Colorful chard and bean 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.
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.
