Late Harvest Caponata

My vegetable drawer runneth over. My hectic schedule has not afforded me the opportunity to preserve as much of my late summer produce in the forms I'd like to have put together, and the fruit flies are surrounding the dish filled with my friend Dave's succulent tomatoes. I needed to do something. I put this caponata together inspired by a food network recipe, but I made some adjustments based on what I had in the house. It made three 1.5 pint containers worth, as well as a smaller pint jar which I plan to share with the man whose tomatoes made up a good deal of the dish. It was delicious. For dinner, we mixed some in with a light garlic quinoa, sprinkled with just a little fresh Parmesan cheese and some fresh herbs sprinkled on top. Perfect.

You need:

1 lg. onion, chopped
4 c. chopped tomatoes
2 bell peppers, chopped
2 eggplant, peeled and chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1/3 c. golden raisins
2 tbsp. capers
1 tbsp. dried oregano
2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil

Coat the bottom of a very large skillet or dutch oven with olive oil. Turn the heat to medium, and salute the onions until soft. Add the eggplant and celery. Cook for 8 minutes. Add the peppers and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the raisins, oregano, and 1 c. water. Cook for 8 minutes. Add the tomatoes, capers and cider vinegar. Cook an additional 10 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve by itself or over rice, pasta, pizza dough, etc. etc. etc.

Pumpkin and Chicken Curry with Basmati Rice

Tonight, a small group of good friends will gather to remember a dear friend whom we lost in 2009. She was kind and funny as hell. Each year, on her birthday weekend, we head to her favorite watering hole for Guinness on tap and reminiscing. That means I need to get dinner on the table quickly and easily - no fuss and little energy. In this month's Parents magazine, there was a entire series on pumpkin recipes. I knew I had all of the ingredients already in the pantry and freezer, so I decided to give it a shot. And I'm lucky that my kids like curry. I just tweaked it a little to suit our tastes, leaving out the cayenne and replacing the spinach with swiss chard.

You need:

4 tsp. olive oil

12 oz. chicken breasts, cut into thin strips

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

1 tbsp. minced ginger

1 tbsp. minced garlic

1 c. unsweetened coconut milk

1 c. canned pureed pumpkin

2 tbsp. curry powder

1/2 tsp. salt

3 c. shredded swiss chard

2 tsp. lemon juice

2 c. steamed basmati rice

Heat 2 tsp. oil in a large skillet. Add the chicken and cook until just done, about 4 minutes. Remove and set aside. Reduce the heat to medium and add the onions, garlic, and ginger. Cook for 5 minutes or until tender. Add the coconut milk, pumpkin and spices. Add 1/2 c. water. Simmer, uncovered, for ten minutes. Add the chicken and swiss chard and cook until wilted. Stir in the lime juice. Serve with the rice. 

Stewed Peppers and Tomatoes with Eggs

A few weekends ago, I took advantage of a bountiful gift of tomatoes from a dear friend of mine. Before my children could gobble them up like nuggets of nature's candy, I spent an afternoon peeling, seeding, and milling them to make a few quarts of sauce. While planning this week's meals, I noticed that Wednesday was going to be a difficult evening to get something interesting on the table due to the number of events overlapping from after school until the evening hours. I've made a similar dish in the past, but with a Mexican flair, so I decided to take advantage of some of the sauce I made and a few leftover vegetables from last week's share. It was ridiculously easy to put together and the kids loved it.

You need:

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 bell peppers, sliced

salt and pepper

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 28-oz.  can of whole tomatoes (I used the jar of sauce I made)

8 large eggs

chopped cilantro

4 slices of toasted bread

Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the onion and cook, covered, for four minutes. Add the peppers, season with 1/2 tsp. each salt and pepper, and cook for six to eight minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook an additional minute. Crush the tomatoes in your hands and add to the skillet along with the juices. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat and simmer for five minutes. Make eight small wells in the sauce and carefully crack an egg into each one. Cover and simmer for six minutes. Uncover and cook until the whites are set and yolks are at your preferred doneness. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro and serve with the toast. 

Apple, Farro, and Bacon Salad with Warm Feta Cheese

This recipe was featured in the October 2015 issue of Woman's Day magazine. I decided to give it a chance because we've headed into indian summer, the time of year when crisp mornings lead to warm afternoons and even crisper evenings. Our vegetable share is filled with the flavors of early autumn - apples, squash, and late summer corn - but the afternoons are too warm for roasting. This salad is the perfect complement to what's bountiful and temperature-friendly. It also heats up nicely the same day, as my friend Dave and I can attest to. Put the entire dish, arugula and all, in the microwave for a minute and a half. Perfection.

You need:

1 1/2 c. farro, cooked according to package directions
4 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled
4 oz. feta cheese
2 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. olive oil
1 tsp. fresh thyme
salt and pepper
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1/2 sm. red onion, finely chopped
2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
1 c. seedless grapes, halved
1 crisp red apple, cored and cut into thin slices
1 bunch arugula, cleaned and stemmed

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Place the feta into the center of a piece of foil. Drizzle with 1 tsp. oil and sprinkle with thyme and pepper. Create a pouch and bake for five minutes. Keep in the foil until ready to serve. In a large bowl, whisk together the vinegar, 1/2 tsp. each salt and pepper. Add onion and toss to coat. Let sit for five minutes. Add the celery, grapes, and apple and toss to combine. Add the farrow and toss with the remaining oil. Toss all to combine. Fold in the arugula and bacon and serve with the feta crumbled on top.

World's Best Smoked Ribs. Ever.

I am no barbecue rock star, but this recipe is amazing. I'd accept a pat on the back for it. LOTS of work. LOTS of time invested. But SO WORTH IT. Take my word for it. 

You need: 

3-4 racks of really good spare ribs

For the rub:

1/4 c. dark brown sugar

1/4 c. sea salt

1/4 c. sweet paprika

3 tbsp. ground pepper

1 tbsp. garlic powder

1 tbsp. dried onion flakes

1 tsp. cayenne

For the mop:

1/2 c. apple cider vinegar

1/2 c. water

4 tbsp. yellow mustard

3 tbsp. olive oil

1 tbsp. garlic powder

1 tbsp. chili powder

1 tsp. cayenne

Combine the rub spices thoroughly. In a small bowl, mix the mop ingredients. Slather the meat with a little extra mustard. Apply the rub to the ribs. If you choose not to use the mustard, rub the rub into the meat. Just sprinkle, though. Don't over apply - just put a little on. Fire up one side of the girl to 220 degrees. Put in your wood chips (pre-soaked in water) in a smoker can next to the flame. Close the grill and let the smoke being. Place a pan of hot water under the meat side of the grill. Place the spare ribs on the grill on the opposite side of the dire, bone side down, to begin cooking. Avoid the ribs touching. Close the lid. Check ONLY every 20 minutes or so and then mop each time - lightly and sparingly! These have to cook for about 5-8 hours. Looks for the meat to pull away from the end of the bones and the meat between the bones reads 205 degrees. Eat them and thank me. 

Provencal Zucchini and Swiss Chard Tart

This is a delicious recipe. I have made it numerous times this summer to take advantage of the chard and zucchini ever present in our weekly share. Because the steps are numerous and there is an additional recipe for the pie crust, I'm simply including the link to the NY Times, where I originally found the recipe. Enjoy. It's worth it. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/24/health/nutrition/24recipehealth.html?_r=0

Slow-Cooker Beef and Peppers over Polenta

It was freezing this weekend. Autumn rushed in with such fury and coated us in stinging rain and chilly winds. We used the day indoors to clean and organize after the madness of the first week of school. This seemed a perfect recipe for a day such a that - hearty, rich, and ready when we needed to eat. The original recipe called for a side of plain polenta, but I doctored mine up with a little Parmesan cheese and mascarpone cheese. Well, because I can.

You need:

1 14.5 oz. can of whole, peeled tomatoes, crushed
1 lb. assorted bell peppers, sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
2 cloves garlic, chopped
salt and pepper
2 lbs. beef chuck, cut into 2 pieces
1 cup polenta, cooked according to directions
basil leaves, for serving

In the crockpot, combine tomatoes, peppers, onion, oregano, garlic, and 1/2 tsp. each salt and pepper. Season the beef with a little salt and pepper and place on top of the tomato mixture. Cook on low for 7-8 hrs. When the time is up, shred the meet into large chunks. Twenty minutes before the cook time is up, cook the polenta. Serve the polenta topped with the stew and a few leaves of basil.