Thanksgiving Side Dish Ideas

I've been away too long. Will be back soon with more on our trip to Bend, Oregon and the recipe for the granola bars we made to take with us. They make great road snacks.

But this week, all anyone is thinking about is Thanksgiving. Here are a few side dishes and my favorite pecan pie from the archives to give you some ideas. A few of these are recipes I posted before going gluten-free. Easy substitutions are listed to adapt them to be gluten free.



Roasted Butternut Squash with Cinnamon Chipotle Butter



Google Grain (or Rice) Salad
(You can make this one gluten-free by substituting a wild rice blend for the mix of grains and cooking the rice for 50 minutes.) This dish was a big hit at the PhotoMuse photo workshop pot luck recently.



Squash stuffed with pistachios, feta, and herbs



Roasted Carrots and Parsnips with Sage



Beecher's Macaroni & Cheese
(You can make this one gluten-free by substituting sorghum or brown rice flour for the flour in the cheese sauce and using gluten-free pasta.)



Green Beans with Parsley, Almonds, Sesame Seeds and Goat Cheese


Pecan Pie from the Park Cafe near Glacier National Park, Montana
(Make this one gluten-free with a gluten-free pie crust.)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Green Beans with Parsley, Almonds, Sesame Seeds and Goat Cheese

We've been making this green bean salad for months and just can't stop eating it. I like green beans, but they don't usually just jump out and grab my attention most of the time. I love finding recipes for dishes that seem to be more than the sum of their parts. This is one of those recipes. The fresh, bright crunch of the green beans is preserved by quickly blanching them in boiling water and immediately submerging them in ice water to stop the cooking and chill them down. They keep their gorgeous green color and snappy texture this way. And they in no way resemble the mushy, overcooked, sludge of my childhood. This recipe gives green beans their due. And something magical happens when the flavors of the toasted almonds, sesame seeds, lemon, parsley, mustard, shallots and goat cheese come together. It's bright and refreshing and the perfect summer salad. It would make a great picnic salad too in individual Mason jars.

I've been finding recipes like this over and over on the Farm+House+Table blog from Farmhouse Delivery. They work with local, organic and sustainable farmers to provide their customers with deliveries of the best local produce. And then they go a step further. Elizabeth Winslow, one of the co-founders of Farmhouse Delivery, provides recipes using that produce that open your eyes (and tastebuds) to new flavors. I've seen recipe after recipe there that I've bookmarked to try. This green bean salad was one of them. Now we can't stop making it. On her blog, Winslow says the recipe comes from Azul, a groovy little East Austin cafe that is no longer open. I liked Azul too, but don't remember this salad. I'm so glad she preserved this treasure from their menu.

Check out Farm+House+Table for more ways to make the most of the bounty of the garden, whether it's your own or a local farmer's. You'll be seduced by the flavors presented there and the incredible photography of Jody Horton.


Green Beans with Parsley, Almonds, Sesame Seeds and Goat Cheese

1 pound green beans
2 shallots, peeled and minced
2 large handfuls of Italian parsley leaves
4 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
1/3 cup sliced or slivered roasted, salted almonds
1/2 cup crumbled chevre goat cheese
4 tablespoons lemon juice
4 tablespoons champagne vinegar
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/2 cup olive oil


Bring water to a boil in a medium-sized pan.

Fill a medium-sized bowl with ice and water. Set aside.

While the water is coming to a boil, trim ends from green beans and slice them into bite-sized pieces.

Drop the green beans into the boiling water for 30 seconds to blanch them. Immediately remove them and drop them into the bowl of ice water. Let them chill in the ice water for 10 minutes, while you put the rest of the salad together.

In a small bowl, make your dressing. Add lemon juice, vinegar, mustard and shallots. Whisk together. Slowing whisk in olive oil. Set aside.

in a large serving bowl, place almonds and parsley.

Drain green beans from ice water. I put the green beans in a dry dish cloth and rolled them around a bit to remove the excess water. This keeps the dressing from getting watered down.

Add the green beans to the serving bowl and toss with almonds and parsley. Add the dressing and toss again to coat evenly.

Sprinkle top with goat cheese crumbles and sesame seeds.

Serves 6.


Adapted from Farm+House+Table blog by Elizabeth Winslow.

Green Tomato Jam

I've been on a corn kick lately. Fresh corn in salads, gorditas, pupusas, cornbread... I spotted this recipe in a recent issue of Food & Wine — their best new chefs issue. The recipe comes from one of their picks for best new chef this year, Clayton Miller from Trummer's on Main in Virginia. Miller makes hush puppies with this Indian-spiced Green Zebra tomato jam. With honey, ginger, garlic, cinnamon, cumin and cayenne, the jam explodes in your mouth and pairs well with cornbread or hush puppies.

Green Zebra tomatos are common at the farmers market. They are light green with dark green stripes and will ripen to a golden green with a mild, tart, sweet flavor. I love to grow them in the garden. Their flavor and color contrast well with the other red and gold tomatoes we usually grow.

Note: this recipe makes plenty. I ended up filling a quart jar. So you could probably cut the recipe in half, if you like. But it keeps well in the fridge because of the cider vinegar and I've found myself finding more and more things to put it on. It's even tasty as a quick Indian sauce on some chicken or veggies and rice. It's refreshing and full of flavor. Nice for this time of year when we're starting to crave more complex fall tastes but it's still too hot in Austin to dive full-on into those dishes just yet.



Green Zebra tomato jam

2 lbs. of Green Zebra tomatoes
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and grated
1 garlic clove, grated or minced
1-inch cinnamon stick
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 teaspoon salt

Cut the tomatoes into a half-inch dice.

Combine tomatoes and other ingredients in a saucepan. Bring up to a boil and then lower heat to a simmer for about 40-50 minutes, until thickens. Stir occasionally.

Let cool to serve. Store covered in the fridge — a glass jar is perfect for this.

Yield: one quart

Adapted from Clayton Miller in Food & Wine, July 2010

Beecher's Mac & Cheese

While exploring Pike Place Market in Seattle, we stopped by Beecher's Handmade Cheese shop. I'd heard of Beecher's and even tried some of their Flagship Cheddar locally from Central Market. It was the best cheddar I'd ever tasted — a much more dynamic and full-flavored cheddar than I'd ever had before. Beecher's makes their cheeses with no artificial preservatives, flavor enhancers, sweeteners, colors or hydrogenated oils. It's just pure goodness.

I'd seen Beecher's Kurt Dammeier on the Martha Stewart show making "the world's best mac and cheese." That's a mighty big claim. I grew up eating my grandmother's mac and cheese. She was an old-school Southern cook who spoiled me with buttermilk biscuits, chicken and dumplings and the mac and cheese by which I've measured all others. Hers was creamy and cheesey underneath with a thick, crusty layer of cheddar over the top. I've experimented for years with different down-home and gourmet recipes to try to find one I liked as much as hers. Beecher's recipe is the one. We sampled some in their store and I had to try making it myself when we got home.

My husband immediately declared it one of the best things he's ever tasted. I have to agree. The sauce is not just creamy and luscious, but the also the cheesiest I've ever had. The crust of Gruyere and cheddar on top replicates the crust I always loved from my grandmother's version. First, you make your sauce and cook your pasta. Then combine them in a casserole pan (individual little casseroles are handy here and avoid fighting over the serving spoon), sprinkle the top with more cheese, and then bake it in the oven. You can make your sauce and pasta and assemble and refrigerate it before baking. This will actually enhance the flavor. (Saveur magazine recently had an article about the chemical reactions that take place in mac and cheese and they recommended letting the flavors develop like this before baking. So keep that in mind, if it's more convenient. This also means your leftovers will rock.)

This is rich stuff. It has a little chipotle in it to give it just a touch of heat. It takes a lot of cheese. It's not a cheap dish. But it is one of the most satisfying ever. A special occasion, over-the-top splurge. This is the kind of dish that will get you marriage proposals, so don't make it for just anyone.

Cooking notes: Be sure to undercook the pasta by a few minutes — it will continue cooking in the oven and you don't want it to get too soft. I used a rigatoni pasta because I wanted something with a big enough center to capture the sauce. It was perfect. I also used 2% milk and it was still incredibly rich. Beecher's Jack cheese wasn't available locally, so I subbed the Central Market house Jack. But be sure to use Beecher's Flagship for the cheddar. It's what makes this dish transformative.



Beecher's Mac & Cheese

For the cheese sauce:
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/3 cup flour
3 cups (2%) milk
14 ounces (3 1/2 cups) Beecher's Flagship cheddar, grated
2 ounces (1/2 cup) Jack cheese, grated
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon chipotle powder
1 clove garlic, minced

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the garlic, and cook for a couple of minutes to soften the garlic. Add the flour and whisk together. Continue whisking while it cooks for about two minutes.

A little at a time, pour in your milk and continue whisking to incorporate. Then add a little more. Continue the whisking and adding until you've incorporated all of the milk. Keep whisking and cooking for about 10 minutes, until the sauce thickens.

Turn off the heat under the pan. Add the grated cheese, salt and chipotle. Whisk or stir until all of the cheese has melted. Refrigerate for later assembly or assemble into mac and cheese immediately (see below).

For mac and cheese:
6 ounces rigatoni pasta, slightly undercooked (by about 2-3 minutes) and rinsed in cold water, then drained
Beecher's cheese sauce (above)
1 ounce (1/4 cup) Beecher's Flagship cheddar, grated
1 ounce (1/4 cup) Gruyere cheese, grated

Spray one large or 6-8 small casserole pans with cooking spray.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine the warm cheese sauce and the (undercooked) pasta. Pour the pasta and sauce into your baking dish(es). Sprinkle the top with the cheddar and Gruyere.

Bake for about 20-30 minutes, until warmed through. Note: while mine was cooked through at this point, the top wasn't quite browned yet, so I turned on the broiler for the last two minutes of cooking. Be sure to watch over it and pull it out before it goes too far.

Let cool for about five minutes before serving, if you can stand it.

Mac and cheese is uaually considered a side dish, or in the South, a vegetable. And you can serve it on the side with something else, like roasted chicken or whatever. But no one will notice anything else on the table. Just know that. If you have kids, I'm sure you could use this as a bribe to get them to eat their green veggies first.

Adapted from Beecher's World's Greatest Mac & Cheese recipe on MarthaStewart.com.

Serves 6-8.

Wilted Chard with Melty Feta

I picked up this recipe on the fly at a party recently. My friend, Joan, was celebrating her birthday with a spring cookout. Her niece, Jocela Mae, was in town from Portland with her boyfriend, Brehan. As they soaked up the Austin sun, we talked gardening. I mentioned that my rainbow chard plants had done really well all winter, even in the crazy cold temperatures we had down in the teens. Jocela said that lots of folks grow chard and kale in Portland because it does really well there. There are even famously huge kale plants that just grow on and on getting bigger and bigger every year.



She also passed on a recipe they've been enjoying lately — wilted chard with feta cheese. The cheese gets all melty and adds a salty, tangy luxuriousness to the earthy flavors of the chard. It's fast, easy, and dresses up a simple dish of greens into something fancy.



Note: be sure to rinse your greens, but you don't have to get them super dry afterwards. It's ok if they're a little damp when you slice up the leaves, the water will steam out. I use kitchen shears to cut them, it's faster than slicing with a knife. And I usually slice up the stems as well and throw them in too. The color of the stems in rainbow chard is too beautiful to leave out. They look like candy. But if you don't like the sturdier, crunchier texture of the stems, you can trim the leaves on either side of the stem, leaving it out. And then cut the leaves into ribbons.



Be sure to use your largest skillet for this (I used a wok). Like spinach, the chard takes up lots of space at first, but then wilts down as it cooks. And last, being a Southern girl, I must say that if you're not a vegetarian, you could consider cooking these in a little bacon fat instead of olive oil, or even tossing in a few bacon crumbles at the end. (This is how I get my husband to eat greens.) Up to you.

I cannot strongly enough encourage you to have a bowl of these greens alongside some cornbread. They were made for each other. And make a quick and soul-satisfying meal.

Thanks, Jocela!


Wilted Chard with Melty Feta

two tablespoons olive oil
two cloves garlic
one small white or sweet (Vidalia or 1015) onion
one bunch rainbow chard
1/2 cup feta cheese crumbles

Peel and slice the garlic. Set aside.

Peel and slice the onion into large chunks. Set aside.

Cut the chard leaves into ribbons across it's shorter side. Trim away the stems, if you like, but I prefer to leave them in. Trim the stalks into smaller than bite-sized pieces. Set aside.

In a large skillet or wok, heat the olive oil.

Sauté the onions and garlic in the olive oil over medium heat until the onions turn translucent. Stir frequently so the garlic doesn't burn.

Add the chard and toss together with the onions and garlic. Keep flipping and turning it as it wilts in the heat. This will coat it in the flavored oil and will keep it cooking evenly. Tongs are handy for this. Depending on how you like your greens, you can wilt the greens just slightly, so that they retain their bright green color, but the leaves soften. Or, if you like your greens very soft, cook them longer. You'll notice the color will darken and they'll continue to shrink.

When the greens are cooked to your liking, or even just before they get there since they'll continue wilting and cooking, toss in the feta. Continue flipping and turning and stirring with your tongs until the feta is mixed in well and starts to melt.

Serve immediately with some fresh, hot cornbread.

That's some good eating!

Serves 2.


Adapted from Jocela Mae Cunningham.

Roasted Corn Salad

Now that fall is in the air, or in Austin, around the corner at least, I've got comfort food on the brain. We tried La Condesa not too long ago and in addition to their tasty tacos, we had a little bowl of roasted corn soup. It was simply roasted corn kernels in a rich, buttery broth. Simple, but so good.

Ever since, I've had roasted corn cravings. This salad comes from San Francisco chef Elizabeth Falkner. It looked like a great way to use roasted corn. With arugula, avocados, tomatoes, cucumbers, pumpkin seeds and a fresh vinaigrette made from the sweetness of some of the puréed roasted corn, lime, sherry vinegar and a little unexpected hit of warm cinnamon, it was fantastic. The corn in the dressing really takes it to another level. This one's going into rotation with our favorite salads.



Roasted Corn Salad

5 ears of fresh corn, husks and strings removed
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper
1/2 cup roasted, salted pumpkin seeds
3 tablespoon fresh lime juice (approximately 1 lime)
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon hot sauce
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1 1/2 pounds baby arugula
2-3 ripe avocados, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks
2 large red tomatoes, cut into bite-sized chunks
2 large orange or yellow tomatoes, cut into bite-sized chunks
1 hothouse cucumber, cut into quarters lengthwise and sliced
3 ounces queso fresco or ricotta salata, crumbled

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Put the ears of corn on a rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of oil. Season with salt and pepper. Roast for about 25 minutes – turning 2-3 times during the roasting to brown on all sides. Remove from oven and let cool. When cooled completely, cut the kernels from the cobs and set aside.

In a blender, put 1/2 cup corn kernels, lime juice, sherry vinegar, sugar, hot sauce, and cinnamon. Purée until smooth. With the machine on, slowly drizzle in 1/2 cup of olive oil and blend until emulsified. Pour the vinaigrette into a bowl.

In the bottom of a large, shallow salad bowl, make a bed of the arugula. Sprinkle with tomatoes, cucumbers, avocados and the remaining roasted corn. Sprinkle the top with the roasted pumpkin seeds and crumbled cheese. Serve with vinaigrette.

Serves approximately 6-8 as a side salad.

Adapted from Elizabeth Falkner in Food & Wine (August 2000).

Spring Rolls with Fruit

Sorry to be a bit delinquent in posting lately. I've been sidelined with a tummy bug that had me eating baby food for a week. But I'm back and wanted to share these tasty spring rolls.

Before the tummy bug, I was foraging at the Whole Foods sushi counter for lunch and ran across a fruit spring roll. This was a new offering and a delightful and hopefully, recurring, one. It was served with a light peanut sauce that was a little sweeter than usual. Their spring roll included strawberries, lettuce, carrots, cabbage and cucumbers. The strawberries brought a whole new flavor to the party that I really liked. So I decided to try some myself at home.

The main thing about spring rolls is getting the hang of the rice paper wrappers. Once you've got that, you can put just about anything in them. So use your imagination. You just don't want anything too wet or it will weaken the structure of the wrapper too much.

You can also use rice stick noodles or not. You see them often in restaurant spring rolls. They make for a nicely textured filler. Sometimes I put them in, sometimes not. It's up to you. The flavors will be a bit more defined without the noodles.

Cut and prep all of your filling ingredients first. When everything is ready to go, you dip your rice paper wrappers in water and then start assembling immediately, one at a time. The rice paper wrapper won't seem soft enough at first, but as you are assemble it, it will continue to soften.

You can also use whatever herbs you'd like to pair with your filling. Use this as a guide and think up your own combinations. You can make each roll a little different, if you like. They can also be made with shrimp, pork, tofu, or not. It's up to you.



I made these on a weeknight and had enough on my hands assembling the spring rolls, so I picked up a bottled peanut sauce. I've also had them with sweet chili sauce and a ginger lime sauce. Again, your choice.

Below, I've put together more of a guideline than a specific recipe. How many you make and what you put in them is up to you. If you're serving them as an appetizer, you'll probably want two per person.


Spring Rolls with Fruit

strawberries, trimmed and sliced in half
mango, peeled and sliced into sticks
hothouse cucumber, peeled (or not), and sliced into sticks
greens of your choice: leafy lettuce, Asian microgreens
cilantro, chopped
mint, whole leaves stripped from stem
basil, whole leaves stripped from stem
zest of one lime
shrimp, peeled, cleaned, boiled and cooled, and split in half (optional)
rice paper wrappers
rice stick noodles, soaked in hot water briefly and drained (optional)
peanut sauce, for serving
lime cut into wedges for serving

Prepare all of your filling ingredients and have them lined up on the counter ready to go.

If you're using rice stick noodles, soak them in hot water for 2-3 minutes and then drain them. Let them cool while you move on.

To assemble: I tried a few different plates until I found the one that worked best. It had higher lip around the edge which seemed to keep the wrapper from sticking as much.

Take a large bowl or a sauté pan larger than the rice paper wrappers and fill it with 1-2 inches of cool water. Set it next to your assembly space.

Take one rice paper wrapper and submerge it in the water for 3-4 seconds. It won't seem soft enough yet, but go ahead and pull it out, let drip for a second, and lay it on your plate. Arrange your first filling ingredient in a row down the center of the spring roll wrapper. Leave a good 1 1/2 - 2 inches of wrapper clear at top and bottom.

Layer more filling ingredients until you're ready to roll up your wrapper. Be careful not to overfill it or it will be difficult to roll up.

To begin rolling, pull up the bottom portion of the wrapper up and fold it over the filling.



Now do the same with the top portion.



Then take right side and fold it over to the left, covering the center of the roll. Like a sushi roll, you'll want to tuck in the wrapper as tightly as possible into the crease along the left side. Tighten and tuck as you roll. Roll to the left and until it's completely rolled up.



Now start again.

With these ingredients, I made two combos -- 1) strawberries with mint, cucumber, and Asian microgreens; 2) mango with lime zest, cucumber, Asian microgreens, basil, cilantro and sometimes shrimp.

Happy wrapping and rolling.

Roasted Potato Salad

This is the time of year when you see a lot of thick, mayonnaise-y potato salad. It reminds me of childhood and hot summer days. There's something comforting about it when it's done right. But that form of potato salad is a little on the heavy side for me to be making these days and to be eating in the Texas heat. This version is lighter, much fresher, and a little more interesting for a grown-up palate.

You simply roast some potatoes -- I recommend the toaster oven to avoid heating up the whole kitchen -- and blanch some fresh green beans. Both are easy to find in the farmers' market nowadays. Toss those together with some parsley, Kalamata olives, and some crumbles or shards of Pecorino. (Pecorino is a hard Italian cheese made from sheep's milk. It is similiar to Parmigiano Reggiano, with a tangy, salty flavor.) You can crumble a bit of leftover bacon in there as well. Olive oil and a splash of balsamic become the dressing. The flavors here are bold, but when married with the potatoes, they compliment each other instead of competing.

Note, this potato salad is really at it's best when you can contrast the still warm and crispy roasted potatoes with the cold green beans and olives. It's still good if you wrap it up and take it to a picnic, but the potatoes will lose their crispiness so I recommend eating it immediately.


Roasted Potato Salad

2 lbs. new potatoes, cut into quarters
olive oil
coarse sea salt
2/3 - 1 lb. green beans, chopped into bite-sized pieces
1/2 cup flat-leaf (Italian) parsley, chopped
1/2 cup Kalamata olives, pitted, cut in half
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup shredded pecorino cheese
2-3 pieces cooked bacon, crumbled (optional)

Preheat oven or toaster oven to 400 degrees. Drizzle with olive oil and toss on the baking sheet to coat. Sprinkle a little salt over top. (Go easy here, the olives and pecorino are also salty, so you don't want to go too far.) Roast for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and give the potatoes a turn to expose their undersides. Return to oven. Roast approximately 10 more minutes until edges are golden and crispy. Remove from oven and let cool.

While the potatoes are roasting, drop the green beans into boiling water for 4-5 minutes to blanch them. They will turn bright green. You want to remove them while they still have some crunch and that bright color. Immediately drop them into an ice bath (fill a bowl with ice and water) to stop the cooking. When cold, drain well.

In a large bowl, place your drained green beans, parsley, olives, a splash of olive oil and the vinegar. Toss together. Just before serving, add the crispy potatoes, and sprinkle the top with pecorino shavings and bacon, if using.

Serve immediately.

Serves 4-6.

Stuffed Squash

We planted one regular zucchini plant and one round zucchini plant in the garden in April. I'm so glad we only planted the two -- even though zucchinis are probably my favorite veggie, we can barely keep up. So I'm on the prowl for new squash recipes to try. But this one is an old favorite that we'll have again and again.



You stuff your zukes with a feta, pistachio and herb filling that dresses up the pedestrian squash to something quite tasty and impressive, but weeknight easy. You can do it with either kind of squash, long ones or round ones. The little round guys are a bit easier to hollow out, but an apple corer makes quick work of it either way.



Got a favorite squash recipe? Send it our way!



Zucchini stuffed with feta, pistachios and herbs

4 medium-sized zucchini
olive oil
pistachio oil or balsamic vinegar
2 cups feta cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup pistachios, roasted and chopped
1 teaspoon small capers, rinsed and drained
1/3 cup oregano, finely chopped
1/2 bunch chives, finely chopped
2 tablespoons thyme leaves

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare filling: combine feta, pistachios, herbs and 2 teaspoons olive oil. Stir together. Set aside.

Use an apple corer (or melon baller) to remove the middle of the squashes. If using long zucchinis, this will form a hollow tube. Leave one end solid for easier handling. If using a round squash, slice a cap off the top, then remove the center.

Using a small spoon, stuff the squashes with the filling. Press in with your fingers to compress it a bit.

Brush outside of squashes with a bit of olive oil. Pack together tightly in a baking dish. Bake approximately 15-20 minutes until squashes are fork tender and filling is heated through.

Drizzle with pistachio oil or balsamic vinegar to serve.

Serves 4.

Adapted from Delicious magazine, February 2005.

Pancetta-Wrapped Asparagus with Citrus

Asparagus. Wrapped in pancetta. And grilled until the pancetta shares it's juicy porkiness with the asparagus and then crisps up. Top that with a little orange dressing and a spinkle of thyme. Nirvana.

We made this recently as a side to go with some grilled fish. But this is one of those things you could sit down in front of a platter of and go to town. It's that good.

Aside from the big flavor, this is really easy and quick to put together. You'll want the biggest, fattest asparagus you can find. Otherwise, those little pencil-thin spears will turn to charcoal before the pancetta gets crisped. If you use the really big spears, they'll be perfectly cooked, with just a little snap left by the time the pancetta cooks and crisps on them on the grill.

You can even wrap the pancetta around the asparagus ahead of time (up to the night before) and keep them in the fridge. Three tips: be sure to wrap the pancetta around each spear as tightly as you can; refrigerate the wrapped spears for at least 30 minutes to an hour before grilling -- they won't unravel that way; and use skewers to make sets of two asparagus spears each for easier turning on the grill. We ran two skewers, spaced about an inch and a half apart, through sets of two asparagus spears, inserted horizontally. That way, you can grab the skewers and quickly flip them over. Much easier than chasing the individual spears all over the grill. I also noticed that when my husband tried putting in the skewers, the asparagus spears kept breaking apart. Instead of shoving them in with brute force, try twisting the skewer as it goes in. Didn't take as much effort and I didn't break a single spear that way.

You could probably also skip the skewers and just roast these under the broiler or in a grill pan for almost the same effect.

The dressing or "citronette" goes together really quickly with only orange zest and juice, mustard, olive oil, and salt and pepper. The thyme gets sprinkled over the top at the end.

This would be great at a party as a finger food or goes well with anything grilled.

I thought two pounds of asparagus would leave plenty of leftovers when served for four people. But we scarfed these up, so be prepared.


Grilled Pancetta-Wrapped Asparagus with Citrus

2 pounds large asparagus spears, ends trimmed or snapped off

3/4 pound very thinly sliced pancetta (one slice for each asparagus spear)

zest and juice of one large organic orange

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper to taste (remember the pancetta is salty)

2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, stripped from stems

bamboo skewers


Ahead of time (the night before or at least 30-60 minute before grilling), wrap each asparagus spear with one slice of pancetta. Wrap as tightly as you can. You can even wrap your hand around each finished one and give it a little squeeze to sort of glue it together. Cover and refrigerate until ready to grill. Before grilling, insert the skewers, about 1 1/2 to 2 inches apart into sets of two asparagus spears each.

Make dressing: combine the orange juice, mustard, and olive oil in a small bowl. Whisk together.

Grill the asparagus over moderate heat on the grill until the spears are slightly tender and the pancetta is crisp, about 5 minutes. Use the skewers to flip them.

Pull the skewers from the asparagus and serve on a platter. Drizzle the dressing over the top and sprinkle with thyme.

Serve immediately.

Serves 4-6,(depending on how greedy you are).

Adapted from Mario Batali in Food & Wine, May 2008.

Great Guacamole

This is the best guacamole I've ever had. And I can't take any credit for it. It's straight from Rick Bayless, my go to man for all things Mexican. The key is keeping the crunch of the onions, but ditching that overpowering, eye-burning quality that they so often have. His trick? Chop the onions, then rinse them thoroughly in cold water. That's all it takes.

For some, Super Bowl eats might mean beer and wings, but for me, it's all about the guac.

If you're looking for more Super Bowl foods to feed a crowd beyond the usual chili, here are a few more ideas:
• cheese straws
• sopa de lima
• corn tortilla casserole with mushrooms and chard
• smoked chicken, mushroom and wild rice soup
• chocolate almond bars
• pecan pie bars
• brown butter toffee bars
• triple chocolate cookies

Happy Game Day!



Great Guacamole

1 jalapeno
1/2 medium white or sweet (Vidalia or 1015) onion, chopped
1 medium round tomato, 2 Roma tomatoes or about 2/3 cup cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
3 large ripe avocadoes
salt, to taste
1 lime

Get out a large serving bowl.

Roast the chile by heating it in an ungreased skillet for a minute or so on each side until it softens and develops dark spots. Alternatively, you can hold it over a gas flame with tongs, but be careful! Let cool, then peel the skin off, remove the seeds and finely chop. Put the chiles in the bowl.

Put the chopped onion into a strainer and run cold water over it. Tap or shake it to get rid of the extra water and add to the bowl with the chiles.

Chop the tomatoes into small pieces and add to the bowl.

Add the chopped cilantro to the bowl.

Cut the avocados in half by cutting down the length of the avocado until you feel the pit. Keep cutting all the way around it until you comes back to where you started. You should be able to twist the two halves to separate them. One of the halves will have the pit in it. Use a sharp knife to whack straight into the pit and it should stick to your knife for easy removal. You can also scoop it out with a spoon, if you like.

Scoop out the flesh of the avocados with a spoon and add to the bowl.

Use a potato masher or forks to mash avocados into pulp. Leave it as chunky or smooth as you like. Squeeze the juice from half a lime over the top of the guacamole mixture. Stir it all together to incorporate everything. Season with salt to taste. You can also add more lime juice here, if you like.

If you're not serving this right away, it will keep for an hour or two in the fridge covered with plastic. Be sure the plastic wrap is in contact with the surface of the guacamole to help keep it from discoloring.

Makes about 2 1/2 cups to serve 6-8.

Adapted from Mexico One Plate at a Time by Rick Bayless with JeanMarie Brownson and Deann Groen Bayless.

Roasted Carrots & Parsnips with Sage

Sorry to be so long between posts. I've been getting bombed lately with one thing after another and haven't had a chance to post. Sorry! But recipes have been piling up and I wanted to get this one out before Thanksgiving. It's really fast prep, although a bit of a long cook time, but you can do other things while these are in the oven.

I saw this recipe in Real Simple's December issue. I have long been a fan of this magazine, but usually get the least fired up about their food section. But this recipe sucked me in immediately. I love that these few ingredients come together into something much more than the sum of their parts.

When roasted, carrots and parsnips lose some of their water and shrink down a bit into little flavor bombs. If you like sweet potato fries, you'll love these. I'm not a big fried food eater and never fry food at home, but these are like cheater french fries. They are veggies. Real veggies. But they taste like french fries. They taste better than french fries, actually. My husband, who hates carrots, even loved them.

Slice the carrots and parsnips into the thinnest spiky strips that you can. I cut each half of a carrot or parsnip into at least three long strips. You get more roasty, carmelized goodness that way. The natural sugars in the root veggies make them just a little sweet, while the sage and crunchy salt balance out that sweetness with a savory twist. The sage leaves get all crisp and crunchy too and really enhance the carmelized flavor of the carrot and parsnips.

The proportions will sound like a lot, but keep in mind that the veggies shrink down while roasting. I spread these out over two cookie sheets so that they weren't overlapping and could spread out evenly for roasting.

Note: the original recipe called for 1/4 cup olive oil, but that proved way too much. I had to sop it up out of the pan with a paper towel midway through roasting. So I've cut that down. They got more roasty with just enough oil to coat them without them sitting in a pool of it. Also, I used a coarse, crunchy sea salt so that you get little hits of it. Adds great texture. Keep in mind when you're making these that they need to be served immediately. You could probably get away with letting them sit for a few minutes, but they won't make leftovers. You won't have any left over anyway.

We'll be making these over and over and over. They would be great with anything grilled -- burgers, chicken, fish, or as a side for a fancy dinner like Thanksgiving. I bet kids would love these.

Roasted Carrots and Parsnips with Sage

1 1/2 pounds carrots
1 1/2 pounds parsnips
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup fresh sage leaves
coarse sea salt
freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Peel and trim ends off of carrots and parsnips. Then cut them into long spiky strips. I cut each in half lengthwise, then cut those halves into at least three strips each.

Combine the carrot and parsnip strips into a large bowl. Drizzle over olive oil. Add sage leaves. Toss all together well to coat.

Spread out evenly over two (half sheet sized) cookie sheets so that the veggies aren't overlapping.

Roast in oven for 50-60 minutes, pulling them out twice during roasting to turn/stir around so that they cook evenly. Colors will deepen with browned edges when done.

Place on a platter for serving and sprinkle with the salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Serves 4.

Adapted from Real Simple magazine, December 2008.

Roasted Butternut Squash with Cinnamon Chipotle Butter

If you couldn't tell from the gingerbread post, the (almost) cooler weather has me craving warm spices. Ran across this recipe from Fields of Greens for cinnamon chipotle butter and thought it would be tasty on butternut squash. (Greens is a celebrated vegetarian restaurant in San Francisco.)

The recipe called for a chipotle purée made from chipotles in adobo. But I was in a hurry and that felt too fussy. So I used chipotle powder instead. Either way, this butter would be good on so many things...any roasted veggies, sweet potatoes, even fish or shrimp. A little puddle of it melting in the middle of velvety roasted butternut made for a great weeknight dinner veg for us. The lime juice seems like an odd man out in this recipe, but gives the butter a tart little zing that balances nicely with the warm spices.

I usually roast a bunch of butternuts at the same time and then freeze the leftovers. Makes for a great shortcut later on.

Roasted Butternut Squash with Cinnamon Chipotle Butter

5-pound butternut squash
1/4 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder (or 1 teaspoon purée of chipotles in adobo)
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
splash of fresh lime juice (from 1/4 to 1/2 lime)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Cut squash in half lengthwise and place in a roasting pan or on a cookie sheet cut side up. Roast for one hour or until it begins to lose it's shape.

While the squash is roasting, make the butter. Stir together the softened butter with the chipotle, cinnamon and salt. Squeeze juice from 1/4 lime into the butter and stir together well. Taste. If you'd like more zing, add more lime juice.

Remove the squash from the oven and let cool for at least 10-15 minutes. Scoop out the flesh of the squash, discarding the skin. Purée in a blender or with an immersion blender or food processor.

Before serving, reheat the squash if necessary. Serve smooth puréed squash with a dollop of the cinnamon chipotle butter in the center to melt.

Serves 4-6.

Cinnamon Chipotle Butter recipe adapted from Fields of Greens cookbook by Anne Somerville.

Israeli Couscous Salad

Lest you think we've just been eating ice cream around here, here's a little something more savory with shiny green veggies in it.

I clipped this recipe from Everyday Food magazine (a Martha publication) recently. I have to admit, I clipped it for my food styling inspiration file, not my recipe file. But then I seriously looked at the recipe and got seduced by the combination of flavors: green beans, feta, cucumber, pistachios, and golden raisins on a bed of Israeli couscous. Wrap your head around that one. Cool, a little crunchy, a little sweet, a little salty. And with big fat Israeli couscous.

Do you know about Israeli couscous? Most people think couscous are a grain. They look like a grain. But are actually a kind of pasta. Israeli couscous are larger than regular or Moroccan couscous, about the size of peppercorns. If your kids are into bubble tea, these are their perfect savory counterpart. Bubble pasta.

The Everyday Food recipe called for a red wine vinegar dressing. I tried that but it seemed really sharp to me. Admittedly, I'm not a big red wine vinegar fan. It seemed to separate the ingredients instead of bringing them together. So I experimented with a dressing of brown rice vinegar (you might sub rice wine or champagne vinegar, if you don't have brown rice vinegar) and agave with a little olive oil. The agave brought out the sweetness of the golden raisins and the softer tang of the brown rice vinegar had all those ingredients rounded up, holding hands and singing together in no time.

The recipe also calls for English cucumbers. Sometimes you'll also see "hothouse" cucumbers. They are thinner-skinned, usually smaller and skinnier than those fat daddies you see in the summer, have fewer seeds and are milder. I like them because you don't have to peel them. They're easier and and more gently flavored.

This is cool, refreshing and unexpected. Makes a great lunch or picnic food too. The kind of thing you'd want to eat at the beach. And it's pretty. Did I mention that?


Israeli Couscous Salad

1 1/2 cups Israeli couscous
1/2 pound - 3/4 pound green beans, ends trimmed off, cut into bite-size pieces
1 English or hothouse cucumber, quartered lengthwise and sliced into bite-size pieces
1 cup (4 ounces) feta, crumbled
1 cup pistachios, toasted
2/3 cup golden raisins
4 tablespoons brown rice vinegar
1 tablespoon agave syrup (or to taste)
2 tablespoons olive oil

Cook the couscous in a large pot of boiling water for about 4 minutes.

While you're waiting on this, combine the brown rice vinegar, agave and olive oil in a small bowl and whisk together. Add a shot of salt and pepper and whisk again. Set aside.

After the couscous have been boiling for 4 minutes, add the green beans and cook another 2 minutes until the green beans are tender but still crisp. Drain into a colander and rinse with cold water to cool.

In a large bowl, pour your cooled and drained green beans and couscous.

Add the cucumber chunks, feta, pistachios and raisins. Toss together. Add your dressing and toss again. Taste it. Adjust with another shot of vinegar, agave, salt or pepper to your liking.

Serves 4.

Adapted from Everyday Food magazine.

Fresh Corn Salad with Tomatoes and Basil

This is another fast, easy, taste-of-summer kind of salad. And best of all, it requires no cooking. We've been making it for years in all kinds of variations and it's always good. It's a great side with grilled foods or you can make it dinner by adding some grilled chicken chunks right into the salad.

I have to confess, I started making this salad because it was so easy and blessedly, in this Texas summer heat, required no cooking whatsoever. But now I've grown to prefer the corn raw in its sweet, cool, crunchy natural form. You could certainly make it with roasted, grilled or steamed corn too.

The original recipe calls for arugula. We eat a lot of arugula so I've taken to making it this way without the greens, but do as you like. I sometimes top it with arugula sprouts instead. It's great with any kind of cherry tomatoes, but we like to use our Sun Golds fresh out of the garden as well as some little red cherry tomatoes. The color variation is nice.

The champagne vinegar may be an exotic ingredient to some. It's worth seeking out. It's not expensive and adds a much lighter, softer acid balance that's really nice with the sweetness of the corn. Once you have it, you'll find yourself wanting to use it in all kinds of dressings.





Fresh Corn Salad with Cherry Tomatoes and Basil

1/4 cup champagne vinegar
1 medium-sized shallot, minced
salt and pepper
1/2 cup olive oil
6-8 large ears fresh corn, shucked
4 handfuls of baby arugula (or one handful arugula sprouts), optional
3 pints cherry tomatoes, halved
1 bunch basil

Make the dressing: combine the vinegar, shallots and a generous sprinkling of salt and pepper. Whisk together. Add olive oil and whisk again. Set aside.

Cut the kernels from the corn. Place end of corn cob in a deep bowl and shave the kernels off with a very sharp knife. The deep bowl should catch the flyaway kernels.

Add the tomatoes and arugula (if using) to the corn kernels. Toss together to combine. Whisk the dressing again and then sprinkle over the top of the salad. Toss again. Taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary.

Stack the basil leaves in piles of 5-8 leaves. Roll them up lengthwise and cut them into ribbons with a knife or kitchen shears. Toss into salad.

To fancy it up, sprinkle the top with arugula sprouts or organic nasturtiums.

Serves 6-8

Adapted from Food & Wine.

Want some more ideas for corn salads?
Here's an Italian variation from Michael Chiarello using a citrus vinaigrette and pecorino.

Here's a delicious looking one from Elise using grilled corn.

Exotic Carrot Salad

There's been quite a lot of sugar around here lately, what with that yeast roll dough beckoning from the fridge to be made into all manner of sweet delights. So for a little balance, here's a savory dish that's a refreshing and tantalizing way to eat your vegetables.

The recipe comes from Padma Laksmi's Tangy Tart Hot & Sweet. I bookmarked this recipe early on to try, because it, like many of the recipes in this book, was just so intriguing. Wrap your head around this combination: carrots, balsamic, lime, orange oil, cilantro, sesame seeds, chiles, dried cranberries and za'atar. Za'atar is a Middle Eastern spice blend made with oregano, thyme, sesame seeds and sumac. I was first introduced to it in a Nigella recipe for za'atar chicken on fatoush salad. Will make that one for you soon. You could make your own blend, or find it in Austin at Phoenicia. It adds another dimension of flavor to this recipe, but if you want to try it without it, I think you'll still be quite satisfied.

The other ingredient you'll probably have to go looking for is orange oil. Don't make this salad without it. It's the key ingredient. Look for the tiny orange oil bottles near the extracts at Central Market, Whole Foods, gourmet shops and online.

I love carrots, but don't usually make carrot-heavy dishes, because my husband, who will eat just about any crazy thing I want to try, hates carrots. But this was just so intriguing a combination, I had to try even if it meant eating it all myself. But get this, he liked it! Said he'd be happy to add it to the rotation of our favorites.

This would be a great side with roasted fish or chicken or added to an Indian or Middle Eastern feast. I think it would also be a great potluck dish. I'm always intimidated by potlucks. You just know you're going to bring the same thing as everyone else and there you all sit, looking at three bowls of tabbouli and four pasta salads. Nobody else will be bringing this one, but I bet they'll ask for the recipe after trying it. Give it a shot and see what you think.

Note: I saw some beautiful red carrots at the farmers' market. I used one pound of those and another pound of regular orange carrots. They're all orange inside and taste the same. I just couldn't pass up the chance to photograph those red beauties.




Exotic Carrot Salad

dressing:
1/4 cup olive oil
4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons lime juice
1/4 teaspoon pure orange oil

salad:
2 pounds carrots, peeled and cut into matchsticks or shredded
2 1/2 cups cilantro leaves
1/4 cup white sesame seeds, toasted
2 green chiles, minced
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/4 teaspoon za'atar
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

assembly:
Whisk together the dressing ingredients in a large salad bowl.

Add all the rest of the salad ingredients except the za'atar and salt. Toss together.

Sprinkle the top with za'atar and salt just before serving.

Refrigerate if not serving immediately. Best served same day or the dressing will start pickling the salad. (My husband liked it even better the next day when the carrots were softened by the pickling, but I liked it better fresh with a little more snap.)

Serves 6 or more generously.

Adapted from Padma Lakshmi's Tangy Tart Hot & Sweet.