Re-Discovering Broccoli

I have always liked broccoli. Even when I was a kid, I never complained if there was broccoli on the dinner table like I would if I discovered squash or cabbage was on the menu. In college, I bought broccoli nearly every week and threw stray florets into serviceable stir fries or omelets. However, broccoli was never something I put in my shopping cart because I was excited about it. It was never the star of any dish I made. All of that changed when I saw this post on the Amateur Gourmet site. The Barefoot Contessa recipe highlighted seemed simple enough -- season broccoli with some salt, pepper, and garlic; roast until crispy and brown; toss with lemon zest and lemon juice; sprinkle with pine nuts and grated parmesan. Somehow, the sum of this dish is much, much greater than its parts. I have made broccoli this way countless times and it never fails to please. Roasting carmelizes the broccoli and results in delightfully crispy, browned spots on the florets. I can't imagine making broccoli any other way. This recipe allows broccoli to be the star for once.

Roasted Broccoli

Ingredients

2 bunches broccoli
4 garlic cloves, sliced
salt & pepper
zest of one lemon
juice of 1/2 lemon
parmesan, grated
pine nuts, toasted
olive oil

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425°F.

2. Wash and pat the broccoli very dry. Cut into large florets. Toss with a glug of olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Roast on a baking sheet for 20 to 25 minutes.

3. Remove from oven and toss with lemon zest and lemon juice. Top with pine nuts and parmesan.

Note: The original recipe also calls for julienned basil but I have always omitted it.

Makes 4 servings.

Twice Baked Potato

There are very few foods I love as much as the humble potato. My mother famously once told me that "If you keep eating so much potato, you will start looking like a potato." Sage advice indeed but sometimes I just have to have a baked potato slathered in butter and salt. Twice baked potatoes, of course, are even better. There are endless variations of ingredients you can throw into a twice backed potato -- my constants are butter, light cream, salt, and some sort of cheese. The Simply Recipes site has some good ideas. For the potatoes pictured in this post, I used freshly grated parmesan cheese (my husband's brilliant idea) and turkey bacon. The trick to light fluffy potatoes, is to bake the potatoes for at least an hour with a light rubbing of olive oil and salt. The salt draws out the moisture and the skin gets somewhat crispy. I used to get impatient and underbake the potatoes, which just results in potatoes that refuse to mash well and end up gluey. The recipe below is based on Elises's recipe but I don't include exact measurements for some of the ingredients below as they will vary by taste.

Twice Baked Potatoes

Ingredients

2 large Russet potatoes
olive oil
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
freshly grated parmesan cheese
light cream
2 - 3 strips turkey bacon

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Wash and scrub the potatoes and dry with a paper towel. Prick the potatoes a few times with a fork. Rub with a little olive oil and sprinkle all over with kosher salt. Place on a baking sheet and bake for at least an hour and until the potatoes are cooked through.

2. In the meantime, heat the turkey bacon strips over medium heat until crispy. Crumble and set aside.

3. Remove potatoes from oven and allow to cool somewhat for easy handling. Lower oven temperature to 350°F. Cut off top third of each potato. Scoop out insides but leave about 1/4 inch of potato all around so the potatoes hold their shape.

4. Mash the insides of the potatoes with light cream, salt, 3/4 of grated parmesan cheese, and 2/3 of the crumbled bacon. Add the ingredients to taste and don't overmix as the potato will get gluey.

5. Scoop the mashed potatoes back into the potato skins and top each with remaining turkey bacon crumbles and parmesan cheese. Bake for an additional 15 minutes before serving.

Makes 2 servings.

Harissa Spaghetti

I never would have thought to combine harissa and pasta until I ran into this recipe on the 101 Cookbooks website. The combination of Mediterranean ingredients and harissa in this recipe is ingenious -- it is light and healthy, but also hearty and extremely tasty. Although I admit that I don't like making practical weeknight food, I think this recipe qualifies but still keeps things interesting.

Harissa is one of my favorite ingredients though but, for some reason, I don't use it nearly often enough. The harissa I used for this recipe wasn't too spicy so I was able to use quite a bit for the sauce. I echo Heidi's advice to taste the harissa you intend to use first as pre-made harissa can vary greatly and many are extremely spicy. I also think whole wheat pasta works great for this recipe as it can stand up to bold flavors. I am a late convert to whole wheat pasta and still don't use it for every pasta recipe. However, I have been pleased with the taste and consistency of Trader Joe's Organic Whole Wheat Spaghetti. As usual, I have reproduced the recipe below with a few of my own alterations.

Harissa Spaghetti

Ingredients

4 - 5 medium cloves garlic, peeled
a big pinch of fine grain sea salt
1/4 cup plus 3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 Tbsp harissa (paste)
8-10 ounces (or a little more than 1/2 pound) whole wheat spaghetti
1 small bunch kale, well-washed, deveined, and torn into smaller pieces
1/2 cup oil-cured black olives pitted
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
zest of 1 lemon
squeeze of lemon

Directions

1. Bring a big pot of water to a boil. Whisk together the harissa and 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil with a big pinch of salt and set aside.

2. Heat remaining tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic and saute until fragrant. Add kale and a small pinch of salt and saute until softened. Add half the harissa/olive oil sauce and heat.

3. Add the spaghetti and cook until al dente. Add the cooked spaghetti with a touch of pasta water to the heated sauce. Add the olives, lemon zest, and the remaining sauce and toss to combine. Add a squeeze of lemon and scatter the pine nuts.

Makes 4 servings.

Okra with Mustard Seeds (Sorse Dharush)

I have a lot of respect for bloggers who cook tasty dishes, take beautiful photos, and write brilliant pieces for their food blogs everyday while somehow managing to hold down a full-time job. After my lovely week and a half off, a full work week took everything out of me. By 8pm on Friday night, I could barely keep my eyes open and even convinced my husband to forfeit a dinner reservation. Needless to say, blogging fell by the wayside. I hope to make up for my lack of posting this weekend.

I actually made this okra last Sunday and it served as a great side for three dinners. Despite the fact that my parents are originally from Kolkata and I grew up eating Indian food every night, I am not very good at cooking Bengali food, or even Indian food in general. I think I have a high standard for Indian food and never find anything I make quite as good as I remember from my childhood. It doesn't help that my mother's way (and really, every Indian mother's way) of imparting recipes is "Just use a lot of onions and throw in a pinch of [X ingredient] and some [Y ingredient]. It is so easy." I keep trying, though, because sometimes dinner just doesn't feel like dinner without Indian food.

I discovered this West Bengali okra recipe in Madhur Jaffrey's informative book, A Taste of India. The recipe is incredibly easy though it does require some ingredients that may not be common, including a very Bengali ingredient -- mustard seeds, in fact, two different kinds of mustard seeds. As Madhur Jaffrey explains, the mustard seeds give a slightly bitter flavor that is part of the appeal of the dish. All of these ingredients are readily available in any Indian supermarket or spice shop. Although Little India in Manhattan is well known for Kalustyan's, which is certainly awe-inspiring because it literally carries every type of spice you can imagine, I encourage people to explore some of the lesser known supermarkets in the area. A lot of them carry some of the same spices but at lower prices. I also find that Indian supermarkets carry okra year round.

Okra with Mustard Seeds (Sorse Dharush)

Ingredients

1 lb fresh okra
1 Tbsp whole black mustard seeds
1 Tbsp whole yellow mustard seeds
¼ tsp ground turmeric
¾ tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp salt
3 Tbsp oil
⅛ tsp nigella seeds (kalonji)
2 fresh, hot green chillies

Directions

1. Wash the okra and pat dry. Madhur Jaffrey's recipe tells you to trim the okras but I don't find that to be necessary.

2. Grind the black and yellow mustard seeds in a spice grinder. Put the ground mustard seeds into a small bowl and add the turmeric, chilli powder, salt and ½ cup + 2 Tbsp water. Stir to mix.

3. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a medium flame. When hot, put in the nigella seeds. Ten seconds later, put in the okra and stir. Stir and fry the okra on a medium low heat for 10 minutes or until it is lightly browned.

4. Add the spice mixture and the green chillies. Bring to a simmer. Cover, lower the heat and simmer gently for 5-8 minutes or until the okra is tender.

Makes about 6 small or 3 large servings.

Discovering Brussels Sprouts

Brussels sprouts are not native to India. Unlike some other non-traditional vegetables, like broccoli which was often on our table cooked with Indian spices, my mother never thought to put brussels sprouts into rotation in our household. Thus, I did not grow up with the deep aversion to brussels sprouts that a lot of American children seem to have. Nonetheless, I never thought to make them until I ran into this post on the 101 Cookbooks food blog. The trick to this simple recipe (really, more of a cooking technique) is to avoid overcooking the brussels sprouts, which makes the sprouts not only mushy but a little too bitter. The sprouts turn out bright green with a beautiful brown crust on the cut side. I have reproduced Heidi's recipe below with a few of my own tweaks.

Golden-Crusted Brussels Sprouts

Ingredients

24 brussels sprouts

kosher salt & freshly ground pepper

olive oil

grated cheese of your choice (I usually use shaved Parmesan cheese)

Directions

1. Wash sprouts well. Trim stems and cut each sprout in half, discarding any raggedy outer leaves. Toss with a glug of olive oil.

2. Heat about 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Do not overheat the pan or the brussels sprouts will brown before cooking through. Place the brussels sprouts in pan, cut side down and in one layer. Add a pinch of salt and pepper, cover, and cook for approximately 5 minutes.

3. Cut into a sprout to test whether it is tender throughout. If not, cover and cook for a few more minutes.

4. Once just tender, uncover, increase heat, and cook until golden brown on cut side. Toss the sprouts once or twice to get some browning on the round side. Turn off heat and dust with grated cheese of your choice.