Summer Harvest Vegetable Stew

My sister Sylvia generates great recipes. Here is her take on vegetable stew. 

"Use whatever you have that is in season. Peas, zucchini, corn, peppers. This was just what I had at the cottage and I really craved a vegetable-based meal. All of the vegetables are from our local farm market, Juicy Fruit, at the lake."

Ingredients:

• 1 large Onion
• 2 stalks Celery 
• 1 large Carrot
• 2 medium potatoes
• 1 cup Green beans 
• 2 small Beets
• I cup yellow grape tomatoes 
• 2 cups broth
• 2 cups cooked Romano beans
• 1 Tbsp hot chili sauce
• 1 Tsp Worcestershire 
• salt and pepper to taste
• Nub of Parmesan rind (remove before serving)

Methods:

Chop these vegetables into bite-sized pieces.Saute the onion in a tbsp of extra virgin olive oil.

Simmer all of the vegetables in the broth in a large covered pot, 30-40 minutes

Let the stew sit a few minutes to thicken before serving. Sprinkle with chopped fresh herbs if you have some. Serve with crusty bread.

 

Sauteed Red Peppers and Steamed Green Beans on Savoury Couscous

This is less a recipe than it is a way to present vegetables that may be languishing in your fridge. In this case, I sautéed in olive oil, salt and pepper, a red pepper that was on its way out. Briefly steamed some beans that were similarly close to ending their stay in my fridge. And placed them on some couscous which I attempted to flavour with sautéed diced onions, some olive oil and salt and pepper. I may have put some butter on the green beans after steaming them.

Shaved Fennel Salad from Bon Appetit Magazine

Boring salad begone. This is perfect for those with a fennel fetish.

Ingredients: 

• 2 cups coarsely torn sourdough bread
• 1/2 cup walnuts , toasted
• 6 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• salt
• 3 Tbsp. sherry vinegar or red or white wine vinegar
• 1 garlic clove, finely grated
• 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 fennel bulbs with fronds
• 3/4 cup torn mint leaves
• 1/2 lemon
• 2 oz of shaved parmesan

Methods:

Toast the walnuts in a skillet on top of the stove. Toss the bread in 3 Tbsp. oil and season with salt. Toast in a 400 degree F. oven for 12-15 minutes until crisp.  

Whisk together the vinegar, garlic, pepper flakes and another 3 Tbsp. oil in a small bowl. Set aside.

Remove the stalks and fronds from the fennel bulb. Coarsely chop the fronds and slice the stalks thinly. Using a mandoline or very sharp knife, thinly slice the fennel bulbs. 

At some point you have to mix the ingredients together. I mixed the walnuts, croutons, dressing, shaved fennel bulb and torn mint  together in a plastic freezer bag, then plated those ingredients. On top, I placed the sliced stalks, fronds and shaved cheese. I then drizzled the salad with lemon juice, more olive oil and sprinkled on some Maldon salt. But use whatever method you like for putting the salad together.

Classic Green Bean Casserole

A woman by the name of Dorcas O'Reilly invented this recipe in 1955 when she worked as a manager in Campbell's test kitchen. I'm sure a number of Canadian housewives have tried this dish since its origination but I'm not sure that it took off in Canada the way it did in the United States, where apparently, it is a classic at the Thanksgiving meal. Along with marshmallows on sweet potatoes.

So, I ended up making this dish on the Thursday that was Thanksgiving Day in the U.S., in an attempt to better understand American 'appetites'. Didn't love it, but I probably should have used tinned beans rather than frozen, and Campbell's mushroom soup as opposed to a generic brand. 

Below you will find the link to the original recipe as well as a link to Ms. O'Reilly's obituary. She died in 2018 at the age of 92.

https://www.campbells.com/kitchen/recipes/classic-green-bean-casserole/

http://www.grubstreet.com/2018/10/dorcas-reilly-inventor-of-green-bean-casserole-dies-at-92.html

Fennel and Apple Slaw

If you like the distinctive flavour of fennel, you'll like this fresh-tasting salad. This slightly altered recipe is based on one found in the Autumn 2018 edition of Food and Drink magazine. I didn't have several of the ingredients that the authors suggested, so had to wing it. Where does one find juniper berries anyway?

Ingredients:

• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• a teaspoon of Dijon mustard
• one large fennel bulb
• 1 - 2 apples sliced (depending on their size)
• 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
• salt and pepper to taste

Methods:

In a small bowl, whisk the mustard, lemon juice and olive oil together. Wash the fennel bulb, cut it in half and remove the core and fronds. Thinly slice the fennel with a mandoline or sharp knife. Place it in a large bowl along with the thinly sliced onion, and parsley. Cut the apples in half and remove the cores. Thinly slice the apples, then add them to the bowl. Add the dressing and mix the ingredients well. Add salt and pepper to taste. 

Sauteed Corn, Greens, Bacon and Scallions

This is a great way to eat your veggies, and 'tis the season for vegetables. By Julia Moskin and the New York Times Cooking column.

Ingredients:

• 4 slices bacon, cut into 1/2 inch strips
• 1-2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 shallot or small onion, minced
• 3 cups of corn kernels, sliced from 4-5 cobs of corn
• 1/2 cup of diced red pepper
• pinch of chili pepper flakes\salt and pepper to taste
• 2 or 3 scallions, white and light green parts, thinly sliced
• 4- 6 cups of tender greens like baby chard or kale or spinach

Methods:

Cook the bacon in a large skillet until crisp then drain it on a paper towel. Reserve a teaspoon (or more) of fat in the skillet. Add the butter and the shallot. Sizzle but don't scorch the vegetable. Stir for about 2 minutes before adding the corn, peppers and pepper flakes. Stir about 5 minutes before seasoning to taste with salt and pepper. Add the bacon and scallions. Then add the greens about 2 cups at a time, stirring to wilt before adding more. 

Smashed Cucumber Salad from Bon Appetit Magazine

I'm not sure why smashed cucumbers are in vogue right now, but I tried this recipe from Bon Appetit and it was A-OK. The final product kinda looks like you've had a meltdown in the kitchen. However, it tastes good, and you get to release all of your frustrations by bashing a vegetable. Here's the link to the recipe.

https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/smashed-cucumber-salad-with-lemon-and-celery-salt

Roasted Asparagus with Almonds and Capers

I’ve misplaced the name of the author of this recipe, but I’m quite sure I found it in a recent NYT Cooking column. The original recipe called for fresh dill as an accompaniment to the asparagus in addition to the almonds and fried capers, but I decided enough was enough, and omitted the dill. I used some very healthy, chunky-looking asparagus when testing this recipe and they stood up to roasting well. This was my first attempt at frying capers and I'm not sure that I was entirely successful. C'est la vie.

Ingredients:

• ⅓ pounds/600 grams asparagus, woody ends trimmed 
• 3 tablespoons olive oil 
• Salt and black pepper
• 2 tablespoons/30 grams unsalted butter
•  Scant 1/4 cup/20 grams sliced/chopped almonds
• 3 tablespoons/30 grams baby capers, patted dry on paper towels

Methods:

Heat your oven to 425 degrees F. Arrange asparagus on a baking sheet and toss them in 1 tablespoon of olive oil, with a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Space the asparagus well apart on the baking sheet, and roast, shaking the pan occasionally, until the asparagus is soft and starting to brown in places, 8 to 12 minutes, depending on thickness. In a small or medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat until foamy. Add almonds and fry, stirring frequently, until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour the almonds and butter over the asparagus. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil to the pan and heat over high heat. Once hot, add the capers and fry, stirring continuously, until they have opened up and become crisp, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the capers from the oil and sprinkle over the asparagus.

Beet and Whipped Goat Cheese Salad

This is a salad that has received rave reviews on the three occasions I’ve served it. Because I am a fairly lazy cook, I have taken some liberties with the original recipe. My apologies to its author.

Ingredients for the beet salad:

• a tin of baby beets, drained and cut into bite-sized pieces
• 2 tablespoons minced shallots or minced onion, if you don’t happen to have shallots
• at least 3 tablespoons of olive oil
• 2 tablespoons of a rich sweet vinegar such as balsamic or sherry vinegar
• salt and pepper to taste
• ¼ cup shelled nuts like walnuts, pistachios or pecans
• 2 cups of small salad greens or a combination of salad greens mixed with fresh herb leaves, such as mint or Italian parsley

Ingredients for the cheese:

• ¼ cup (4 ounces) fresh goat cheese
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• 1/2 teaspoon of rice or white wine vinegar (or more to taste)
• ½ teaspoon of coarsely ground black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon salt, or more to taste

Methods: 
Cut the beets into bite-sized pieces then place them in a bowl with the shallots, oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Let the beets marinate for at least 30 minutes. Toast the nuts briefly, sprinkle them with salt if unsalted and chop them coarsely. Prepare the goat cheese by whisking/whipping the cheese with the olive oil, vinegar, cream, salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

To serve, arrange the greens on a platter, then pile on the beets. Spoon any remaining dressing over the salad. Spoon on dollops of the whipped cheese and sprinkle with the nuts.