Warm Fall Salad

I've thoroughly mourned the summer and come to accept that Fall is here. It has been stupid cold the last few weeks and there's no denying it now! In the spirit of embracing it, I've let go of cold salads and welcomed the warm comfort of an all cooked salad. Delicata squash is my all time favorite, so anything with that is going to lift my summer mourning spirits! Behold my improvisation / adaptation of Deb Perlman's Fall-Toush salad from smitten kitchen.

Salad

1 delicata squash sliced into approximately 1.5 inch slices (no need to remove the skin!)

1 large head of broccoli chopped into medium size florets

1 slice of pita bread sliced into crouton sized squares

2 tablespoons olive oil

3 tablespoons of sumac

3 tablespoons salt

1/4 cup flat leaf parsley chopped

1 tablespoon mint

Dressing

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon white wine vinegar

1 teaspoon granulated garlic

Combine 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 2 talespoons of sumac, and 2 tablespoons salt into a covered jar and give it a good shake. Toss delicata squash, broccoli in oil, sumac, and salt mixture in a large bowl. Spread out over a large baking sheet and roast at 400 degrees about 20 minutes. Be careful not to overchar the broccoli. Remove and combine with parsley and mint in a bowl. While that is cooking, drizzle the remaining olive oil over the pita bread and sprinkle over with 1 tablespoon of sumac followed by the last tablespoon of salt. Place it in a toaster over to toast at 350 degrees. If toaster isn't available, simply wait until vegetables cook and then turn down the heat of your oven. Combine all dressing ingredients into the same jar you made the vegetable marinade and pour over the warm vegetables and pita combination. 

Summer Tortellini Salad

Summer is tragically over. Luckily there are still a few yellow squash and zucchini kicking around at the farmer's market and I decided to seize the opportunity for one more chance at one of my favorite summer recipes. The basil plant in my herb garden was still hanging on and goes so beautifully with this fresh summery dish. Elegant in its simplicity, this is a great quick weeknight option.Adapted from this recipe from cooking light. 

1 ~ 8 oz package of tortellini (I used local Silver Spring Maryland's La Pasta, delish!)

4 large basil leaves chiffoned

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 medium yellow squash, sliced

1 medium zucchini, sliced

1 cup of frozen green peas

1 garlic clove, minced

3.5 tablespoons olive oil

Salt and Pepper to taste

Cook the tortellini for 4-5 minutes, don't let it overcook! Drain and add 1 tablespoon and a half of olive oil to avoid sticking. Add a tablespoon of olive oil to the pan and sautee the garlic for no more than a minute and a half or so. Add the zucchini and yellow squash and sautee until just about tender ~12 minutes. Then add the frozen peas to the pan the last 3 minutes of cooking. Toss together vegetables, pasta, lemon juice, basil, remaining olive oil, salt and pepper and serve. 

Radishes, radishes, radishes

Daikon radishes two weeks in a row is not something I'm every going to be fully prepared for, but I did find a few creative ways to use them that I didn't know last year. I threw them in this radishes two ways avocado toast I came up with and I've eaten it more times than I can count this month.

When the first bunch arrived, I went with a variation on this pickling recipe from the NYTimes in which I used pretty purple carrots that came in the same week's CSA to get the beautiful dark rich color you see on the radish carrot mixture on the top of the avocado toast above. They are a great addition to any asian style rice bowl that I like to bring for lunch or a little snack all by themselves.

Avocado Toast with Radishes Two Ways
serves 1
1 slice of good quality bread (I used homemade wild culture sourdough)
1/4 of an avocado
8-10 mandolin thin slices of daikon radish
Juice of half a lemon
Sprinkle of fleur de sal to taste
Sprinkle of table salt
8-10 Daikon and carrot pickles

Place slice of bread in the toaster. Thinly slice daikon radish with mandolin or knife and mix with juice of half a lemon. Add a sprinkle of table salt and let sit while preparing the rest of your dish. When the toast is done slice the avocado in half and use a butter or other dull knife to slice the thinnest wedges you can imagine and spread one at a time onto the bread into a even layer. Sprinkle the avocado with fleur de dal. Add the lemon daikon radishes and then the pickled carrots and daikon to the top. Enjoy!

Lunch on the Go - Kale Wraps

Sometimes it's time to bite the bullet and go uber healthy. For example, you spent the end of your summer eating and drinking your way from Charleston to Hilton Head and back and it's time to reel it in and make some responsible dietary choices for a while. This is my favorite delicious lunch that is loaded with tons of vegetables, proteins, but super low-carb. Wrapping them up tightly and storing them in a small tupperware with no extra room as you see above is the key to making to work with them still in tact. I also think using the delicate lacinto/dino kale instead of the curly leafy varieties really cuts out that bitter raw kale taste. If you prefer a different combination of vegetables to tomato, cucumber, carrot, scallion, and avocado feel free to mix and match. The only limit is how much you can stuff in that kale leaf. They are so tasty you won't even notice you're eating something so healthy.

Kale Wraps

3 leaves of lacinto (dino) kale in tact with bottom stem removed

1/2 avocado

1/2 medium sized tomato, sliced and then divide each slice into quarters

1/4 cup carrot shavings (use a vegetable peeler to shave off slivers)

1/4 cup cucumber, sliced and then divide each slice into quarters

1 tablespoon spring onions, diced

1/4 cup hummus

Start by preparing everything as listed above so you're ready to just assembly line this task. I recommend making each wrap one at a time and placing them into the tupperware as they are rolled up. Spread a tablespoon and a half or so of hummus onto the kale leaf. It should cover the whole thing. Start arranging your veggies. I prefer slicing the avocado on the bottom layer, then drizzling in tomatoes, carrots, cucumbers, and scallions. Start rolling from the bottom end where the stem was removed and then immediately place in tupperware. Repeat that process for remaining two wraps and pack them up very tightly! If this all falls apart, you can always mix it all up into a salad when you are ready to eat it. It's all still delicious in whatever form it winds up in, but there's something nice about the wrap shape if you can achieve it.

Breakfast on the Go - Muffin Tin Frittatas

Is there anything more comforting than a hot breakfast? If I had it my way, we'd all start work at 10-11 am and spend the morning leisurely enjoying a homemade breakfast before starting the day. Given that the odds of that happening are slim to none, the closest I've been able to get is zapping a frittata in the microwave to get a warm egg and vegetable treat, first thing. I tend to make these by the dozen or half dozen and eat them throughout the week each weekday morning. They do not disappoint!

Muffin Tin Frittatas
6 eggs
6 egg whites
4 medium potatoes - diced small
2 medium leeks - diced
(you can use any combination of vegetables, broccoli is also a nice one)
2 tablespoons of coconut oil
1 tablespoon vegetable oil (for greasing muffin tin)
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup low fat milk
1/2 cup cheddar cheese (optional)

Pre-heat oven to 375.
Add coconut oil to a skillet and sautee leeks until soft (about 10 minutes). Add the potatoes and a generous toss of salt to the leeks and stir until potatoes start to soften (15 minutes). While that is sauteing you can start cracking eggs into a mixing bowl. To get all the egg whites possible, I switch the yolk between hands until all of the white has shed the yolk and finds the bowl. After the potatoes are soft, remove the potato leek mixture from pan and let it cool at least 15 minutes so that you don't wind up with scrambled eggs. After they've cooled, add them to the mixed eggs along with milk and a pinch of salt and pepper. Fill each muffin slot with egg mixture and top with cheese, if adding. Place in the oven for 20 minutes (eggs should be puffed up and golden brown on top).

Note - If you are cooking a half dozen, just halve this recipe and only cook for 15 minutes.