Chai-Spiced Amaranth Pudding
Cooked amaranth has a gelatinous quality that lends itself to pudding. If you have a chai spice blend on hand, substitute 1 teaspoon for the cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves.
More Recent Fall
Honey-Roasted Fig Tartine with Prosciutto
Drizzling figs with honey and popping them under the broiler gives them an impromptu jammy quality; especially good paired with gooey cheese and crisp prosciutto.
Braised and Seared Fennel Wedges
These are the ultimate cross-over food. Served warm, they'd be be lovely on a cold night with Simplest Roast Chicken or Spiced Pork Roast. Served cool, they're terrific finger food for a picnic. This recipe is based on one from the Gotham Cookbook, by Alfred Portale. I've always loved how the braising in this dish makes the fennel silky and tender, while the finishing sear gives it savory caramelization; a luscious juxtaposition.
Sauteed Radishes with Mint
You may know--and love--radishes in their raw state. But they're lovely in this delicious side too. Butter adds a bit of richness to this otherwise simple dish. Browning the butter takes it a step further to add a nutty note, enlivened on the other end by the mint.
Flash-Roasted Carrot Sticks with Cumin-Carrot Yogurt Sauce
The inherent sweetness of garden-fresh carrots is heightened by honey in this dish, and given a spicy kick from cayenne. Make the sauce as spicy as you like with a little or a lot.
Frisee Salad with Lentils and Duck Confit
It's amazing what you can pull together when you've spent time creating tasty basics. Long-roasted duck legs with fall-of-the-bone meat can live in the freezer until you're ready for them, and lentils come together in a flash and can keep nearly all week. The result? One nourishing meal.
Garlic Parsnip Fries
Parsnips have an earthy sweetness to them, making them an interesting alternative to same-old, same-old potato fries. These, with sliced garlic and Parmesan, are downright addictive.
Roasted Winter Veggies
This basic recipe is one we turn to again and again with different mixtures depending on what's at the market. I love how, after about 15 minutes, the kitchen is perfumed with a deep, sweet scent that lingers well past dinner. They're super versatile too. Serve them with anything--or on their own--or fold them into pasta or a frittata. And it's a perfect recipe to practice your knife skills.
White Bean and Kale Ragout with Turnips and Sausage
This ragout is meant to be a throw-together-fast-on-a-weeknight kind of meal. If you have sweet potatoes instead of turnips, use them. If you have Swiss chard in the fridge but no kale, sub it instead. You may be surprised by how much flavor you can coax, with the help of a well-stocked pantry, out of the ingredients you have on hand.
Revelationary Duck Confit
This recipe, originally inspired by the Revisionist Confit of Duck Leg in Sarah Schneider’s A New Way to Cook, is one that has been repeated over and over again in our house. I normally kick off winter by cooking up a dozen and freezing them. Whole, they’re delicious crisped up in a frying pan or the oven. Or shred their meat into salads, soups, pasta--even dumplings or tacos.
Persimmon and Pomegranate Salad with Pecan-Coated Goat Cheese
If you have a wee one, put them to work seeding the pomegranate. Fill a deep bowl with water, cut the pomegranate in half, and show them how to keep their hands below water while they work. The seeds will drop to the bottom and the peel will float to the top, and you’ll have a neat and happy helper come mealtime.
Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal with Toasted Pecans
This breakfast is downright decadent; like a pumpkin pie in a bowl. Don't let its sumptuousness rob you of pleasure though, this dish is super-healthy too. It's loaded with fiber from the pumpkin and whole grain goodness from the oats.
Sweet Potato-Kale Bread Pudding
You can bake these little bread pudding muffins a few days ahead; cool and refrigerate. Reheat them in a low oven while the turkey rests. You also can cook this in a 2-quart baking dish instead of a muffin pan, if you prefer.
“Sans Pan” Cider Gravy
This is a great gravy to use when you're grilling a bird and don't have a pan to collect the juices. A quick turkey stock made from the neck and giblets (removed before the turkey roasts) is enhanced by a nutty roux and brightened by a splash of apple cider. As Nickie says, "it's the perfect autumnal gravy."
Lentil Soup with Roasted Pumpkin
Lentils are a staple food in Eritrea, and every time I prepare them I recall my years there. Adding cubed roasted pumpkin lends this soup vibrant color and transforms it into an ideal Thanksgiving starter.
Grandma Friese’s Whole Cranberries
Grandma Friese was famous in our family for writing out recipes that began with things like “Take a bottle of cream…” without any indication, for those of us who grew up in the post-milkman era, what the size of a “bottle” might be. And that’s the way this recipe was originally handed down to me. She used to make these cranberries way ahead of time and let them ferment; they have quite a kick.
favorite finds
Spicy Hatch chiles have begun to arrive in markets across the country! These babies are key to Southwestern cooking, and they have a very short season. Stock up now, roast 'em and stash 'em in your freezer to enjoy throughout the year.
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