Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Apples and Bacon

Why do Brussels sprouts have such a bad reputation among small children? As a kid who absolutely loved broccoli and green beans, I should've known that I would someday come to adore these little mini-cabbage looking things. The most important (and most difficult) part for me is to cook them until they have caramelized a bit. I find that this level of patience is difficult to maintain when the aroma of bacon and roasting apples is permeating every room in my apartment. Forty-five minutes have never felt so long.

While I used small sprouts that were no more than one inch in diameter, this recipe can be prepared with larger Brussels sprouts that have been cut in half lengthwise, or even quartered. I cooked all the ingredients at the same time in one pan, but an undoubtedly tasty variation would've involved cooking the bacon separately, then crumbling it over the finished Brussels sprouts and apples.


1/2 lb brussels sprouts
1 medium apple, cut into 1-inch chunks
2 strips bacon, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 medium onion, diced
1/2 Tbsp olive oil
salt and black pepper
splash of apple cider vinegar
1/4 c chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss all ingredients except vinegar and walnuts together in a small roasting pan. Roast in the oven for 40 to 50 minutes, tossing occasionally. Add vinegar and walnuts before the last few minutes of cooking.

Pear and Gorgonzola Pizza

Fruit and cheese go so well together. Apple and cheddar. Grape and taleggio. Quince and manchego. But none of these combinations top a pizza the way pear and gorgonzola do. Ever since I discovered such a thing at a California Pizza Kitchen (back when I lived near several CPKs and a meal there usually marked a special occasion and a blow to my humble student budget), I have been hooked. I've included a recipe for pizza crust that I memorized in college, which has since been forgotten due to lack of use. Store bought dough is harder to be proud of, but sure saves a lot of time.


1/2 recipe pizza dough (see below)
6 oz fontina cheese, shredded
4 oz gorgonzola dolce
1 firm but ripe pear, cored and thinly sliced (about 1/4-inch thick)
a handful of walnuts, chopped
extra-virgin olive oil
black pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Sprinkle a little bit of cornmeal on a baking sheet. Shape pizza dough on baking sheet, and let it rest for 15 minutes. Brush lightly with olive oil.

Top dough with fontina cheese. Arrange pear slices on top of cheese, then top with pieces of gorgonzola cheese. Bake at 425 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes on the bottom rack of the oven, then 8 to 10 on the top rack. Sprinkle walnuts and black pepper on pizza while it is still hot.


Basic Pizza Dough
(adapted from The Cheese Board Collective Works)

(makes two 12-inch, thin pizzas)

1 packet (2 1/4 tsp or 1/4 oz) yeast
1 1/8 cup warm water
1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
1 1/8 tsp salt
2 3/4 to 3 1/4 cups flour

Dissolve yeast in warm water in a large mixing bowl. Whisk with a fork, let stand 5 minutes.

Add oil, salt, and 2 1/2 cups of flour. Mix with a wooden spoon for at least 5 minutes. The dough should be a little sticky, but not so much that you can't pick it up with your hands. It should form a ball.

Add 1/4 cup of flour to a large cutting board (or any clean, flat surface such as a large baking sheet). Dust your hands with some flour. Knead dough for at least 8 minutes, incorporating flour. If the dough is still way too sticky, add flour 1/4 cup at a time. The end result should be a smooth ball of dough that isn't too dry. For those of you who don't know how to knead, all you do is fold the dough towards you, then push forward with the heel of your hand, then rotate a quarter turn and repeat. It can be therapeutic, like those stress-relief balls that you squeeze. Tip: to prevent your kneading surface from slipping, place a damp towel under it.

Place dough in a well-oiled, large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel and let rise in a warm, draft-free place (such as your kitchen stove) for 1 hour (or whatever the yeast packet instructions say).

After the dough has doubled in size, divide it into two portions, and use one per pizza.

Roasted Delicata Squash Salad

Salads are not just for hot summer weather. As we load up on hot soup, grilled sandwiches, and rich pasta dishes, what better way to balance out these cold weather staples than with a bowl full of vegetables? I love salads that taste like autumn.

Delicata squash are among the easiest to prepare, thanks to their thin, edible skin and quadrilateral symmetry (nerd alert!). They are also very sweet, and pair nicely with the salty cheese, nutty pumpkin seeds, and sherry vinegar in this recipe from Chow.

Maple-Glazed Sweet Potatoes

I love the smell of breakfast in the evening. Just as fresh sage leaves pushed my roasted carrots from A to A+ territory, pure maple syrup* gave these roasted sweet potatoes** a similar accidental-overachiever characteristic. Real maple syrup also smells like 11 AM on a lazy Sunday, which is rather comforting on a weekday night.

I followed a very easy recipe from Epicurious, but used grade A dark amber maple syrup because it was what I had on hand (grade B is darker, has a more concentrated flavor, and is harvested later in the season). The CSA sweet potatoes were small (cute!), so I cut each one into four wedges--they looked like fries and went well with my homemade turkey burgers. I also kept the skins on the sweet potatoes (more fiber!) and skipped the finishing touch of melted butter (less fat!).


* I am referring to the real stuff made from maple tree sap, not the cheaper blend of high-fructose corn syrup brought to you by women named Jemima and Butterworth.
** There are orange-fleshed sweet potatoes that we Americans call "yams," and then there are bland, starchy tubers that botanists and the rest of the world call "yams."

Thanksgiving for Vegetarians

Are you in need of a meat-free Thanksgiving dish, or even an entire vegetarian menu? Sure, there's always the pre-cooked, frozen log of blended tofu, wheat gluten, and beans. But why not replace or supplement this option with some tasty, hearty dishes featuring fresh fall fruits and vegetables?

Chow has gathered 10 satisfying vegetarian recipes from their site (not including the acorn squash with red onion and currants that John and I made last year, pictured).

Gourmet has three different entirely vegetarian menus to choose from.

And of course, there are a lot of great vegetarian cookbooks out there:

• How to Cook Everything Vegetarian - Mark Bittman
• Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone - Deborah Madison
• Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook - Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero
  

Happy eating!

Linguine with Cauliflower, Olives, and Almonds

Here's another easy, light, vegetarian meal that I love to make. The recipe is adapted from Gourmet magazine (I used way less olive oil). The (orange) cauliflower, parsley, and garlic are from Stoneledge Farm. The rest of the ingredients were easily found in my pantry and the local grocery store. And the result is one tasty plate of pasta.

I'd also like to note that while anchovies aren't really my thing, I imagine they'd be a nice addition to this dish.

Fall Lunch Bowl

Too much takeout takes its toll on me (and my wallet). This is my antidote for meals that are too fried, too creamy, too meaty, too cheesy, or all of the above. I pack it all up and bring it to the office, where it can be eaten hot or cold for lunch. Here's what's in it:

• Soba noodles, quinoa, or brown rice
• Marinated, baked tofu
• Roasted vegetables: winter squash, carrots, and/or cauliflower
• Greens (chopped kale, collard greens, mustard greens, or spinach) sauteed with apples and onions (or leeks, scallions, shallots, etc.)
• Sesame dressing: sesame paste, soy sauce, rice vinegar, ground ginger, chili sauce, sesame oil

A cheap, tasty, and healthy meal to break the monotony of your typical lunch options.