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Colorful chard and bean salad

chard, beans, sun dried tomato salad

If you shopped at a farmers’ market lately you had to have seen the chard bundles piled high. Chard is delicious sauted with some tomato, garlic, and onion and then served either alongside a tender chop, steak or fish or on top of a bed of fettuccine. But I also love chard served fresh and raw…no cooking required when the leaves are this tender and sweet. Last summer I served up as a simple salad green. This week I was thinking about a salad I could take to work for my lunch but since I’ve been eating lettuce salads for over a month I was a bit bored with the salad idea. After rummaging through the refrigerator and the cabinets I came up with the idea of a bean salad with the addition of chard, sun dried tomatoes, and pine nuts. It’s not surprising that it’s pretty…all those jewel toned colors of red, yellow, and green but the flavors and textures work so well together that it is surprisingly addictive…the crunch and flavor of the chopped chard stalks and leaves, the butteriness of the beans, and the unique flavors of the sun dried tomatoes and pine nuts all held together with a good olive oil and my favorite apple vinegar from Vom Fass. I highly recommend this salad, not only for its flavor and visual appeal but also it packs a ton of antioxidants, fiber, and vitamins. This recipe makes a large batch and although the salad is not as visually impressive after the first day the flavors do improve…it makes a great lunch.

Chopped chard and bean salad
1 medium onion, diced
1 shallot, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 can red beans, rinsed & drained
1 can chickpeas, rinsed & drained
1 bunch of chard, rinsed and dried, stalks chopped, leaves cut into strips
Handful of sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
1/2 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted
1/3 extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup star apple vinegar (Vom Fass) or perhaps a balsamic

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and toss to combine. Taste for seasoning and adjust of necessary. Serve cold or at room temperature.

July 11, 2009 | Filed Under Westside Community Market, Wisconsin, beans, farmers market, food, geek fast food, quick and easy, recipe, sides, soup, salad, sandwich | 4 Comments 

Chicago Deep Dish Pizza

Chicago deep dish pizza

In Wisconsin we can vote early, so yesterday I went to Town Hall and flexed my civic muscle with the scribble of a pencil. It was lots of fun because voting is always fun but the city workers seemed rather perturbed at the steady influx of early voters and I hate to admit it but that made it even more fun. I voted early because I’m not working on election day, instead I’ll spend the day helping to get out the vote for Barack.

Today I happily bring you a favorite of Chicagoans everywhere. I suggest you bake one up for your election night dinner…it is easy, absolutely delicious, and satisfying…that way even if your candidate loses you’ll still find some satisfaction in a good meal. I blogged about this recipe earlier this year when I was guest blogging at Accidental Hedonist and because I’ve improved the recipe and because it is such an easy meal to make I thought I would show it off again. I’ve had authentic Chicago pizza at Pizzeria Uno and Gino’s and I think my pizza has better flavor and texture. I recommend using a instant read thermometer to take a reading on the crust; it should be at 210° and there is more than enough space to jab the probe into the side crust to get a reading…I’ve never been disappointed using this technique.

Chicago style deep-dish pizza
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Dough
3/4 cup of water
1/4 cup of olive oil
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 1/4 teaspoons yeast
1 tablespoon of honey
1/4 cup of cornmeal
1 cup of white whole wheat flour
1 + cups of all-purpose white flour

Toppings and sauce
1/2 pound of bulk Italian sausage
1 28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes
1/2 lb. grated mozzarella
Italian seasoning, minced garlic, salt, pepper

Put the first 7 dough ingredients in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed for 2 minutes. Reduce the speed and gradually add the 1+ cups of all purpose flour until the dough clears the side of the bowl. Stop the mixer and replace the paddle attachment with a dough hook. Mix with the dough hook for 5 minutes or so, gradually adding flour until the dough comes to a consistency where it barely sticks to your fingers for just a moment and then it releases.

Put the dough in bowl greased with olive oil, cover with plastic wrap and let it rise in the refrigerator overnight, or even for 3 or 4 days (my longer storage method involves a plastic bag rather than a bowl).

Pull the dough from the refrigerator and smoosh it out into a thick round circle. Drape it over a well oiled cast iron skillet and nudge it about until it rests on the bottom and against the sides with no gaps or tightness. The edges will need a trim so roll a rolling pin across the top of the pan to sever the dough exactly at the top. Let it rise while you prepare the sausage, cheese, and sauce. Preheat the oven to 375°.

Shape the Italian sausage into loose, little nuggets about 1″ in diameter, and brown them in a skillet over medium heat. Season the crushed tomatoes with a pinch of Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, and minced garlic.

The first layer of the pizza is the grated mozzarella, followed by the sausage, followed by the sauce. I usually cover the crust with a foil tent to keep it from becoming burnt. Bake in a preheated 375°it for 25-30 minutes or until the side crust reaches a temperature of 210°.

Let it cool a bit, slice into wedges and eat.

Chicago deep dish pizza

October 16, 2008 | Filed Under Chicago, Wisconsin, baking, food, pizza, quick and easy, recipe | 19 Comments 

Roasted Eggplant and Pepper Pasta Salad

pasta salad

I never make pasta salad. That’s because in the ’80s so many atrocious, awful, nasty pasta salads were created and served that it actually makes my head spin to think about it. At that time I didn’t have a phobia about mayonnaise, which I do now, and that’s what 99 percent of those evil pasta salads were dressed with. Let me backtrack here…I hate jarred mayonnaise…it sucks and blows at the same time. In fact it’s so bad that when I do actually make a mayonnaise it’s not a mayonnaise…it’s a classic aiol which I would never, ever slop over a bowl of pasta salad. Dave eats mayonnaise…I eat mustard.

Anyways…pasta salad is something I don’t even think of making. But I was talking to a friend and she too lives in a house with three men, two of which are teenagers, so like me she spends a lot of time preparing food to feed those eating machines. She mentioned a Barefoot Contessa pasta salad with roasted eggplant, bell peppers, and onion all tossed with a lemon vinaigrette and I thought it sounded tasty and light and I love Ina Garten so I looked it up, then cooked it up, and it was a big hit.

pasta salad

This salad is perfect for this time of year when you may be swimming in too many vegetables; whether you have a generous garden or you just can’t control yourself at the farmers’ market this salad will make quick and easy use of all that you have. The flavors are light, tangy, and perfect to accompany a burger, a stuffed chicken thigh sandwich, BBQ chicken, or steak. I can’t believe I went this long without making this salad…it’s that good.

The original recipe called for feta, pine nuts, and fresh basil…none of which I had and I actually don’t regret not having them. The basil would have been a tasty topper but the cheese could have over-powered the lightness of the salad…it’s your call but I know I won’t be adding it the next time I make this salad, it was delicious without it. Instead of pine nuts I used toasted and salted pumpkin seeds and they were a fabulous salty crunch with a robust flavor. Best of all, the leftover salad is great for a workday lunch. I added some leftover grilled salmon and a tomato and it was superb.

Roasted Eggplant and Pepper Pasta Salad
adapted from an Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa recipe
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1 large eggplant, peeled and 3/4 inch diced
2 red bell peppers, 1 inch diced
2 green bell pepper, 1 inch diced
2 red onion, peeled and 1 inch diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ cup olive oil
Salt
1 pound orzo pasta
½ cup toasted and salted pumpkin seeds

For the dressing
½ cup fresh lemon juice (2 lemons)
½ cup olive oil
Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Toss the eggplant, bell peppers, onion, and garlic with the olive oil, salt, and pepper on a large sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Roast for 40 minutes.

While the veggies are roasting cook the orzo according to package instructions. Feel free to use any shape of pasta that you love. Drain and transfer to a large bowl.

Add the roasted vegetables to the bowl making sure to include all those good veggie juices. Combine the lemon juice and olive oil and whisk to mix. Add some salt and pepper and then pour over the pasta and vegetables and toss to combine. Check the seasoning and adjust accordingly. Serve at room temperature or chilled with the pumpkin seeds as a garnish on top.

August 8, 2008 | Filed Under Wisconsin, food, pasta, pizza, noodles, recipe, soup, salad, sandwich, vegetable | 5 Comments 

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