Romanesco Cauliflower with a Leek and Pistachio Pesto

So I fell off the wagon for a bit.  I'm not going to elaborate too much, I'll just say I was overwhelmed for a bit with life but I want to try and make the blog a more regular part of my life.  I've got a handful of recipes I'm really proud of that I'd like to share, one of which is a recipe I plan on using in Whole Foods Hillcrest, if I can ever pull myself away from my responsibilities as "the gelato guy" for a few moments to get the ball rolling on that new project.  Until then, however, I'll be bringing in lots of unique gelato and sorbet flavors that will be exclusive to Whole Foods.  I've been talking with the guys at Bottega Italiana, whom we source our gelato from and who've done a wonderful job with my requests thus far.  Bringing in several new flavors and putting up with my incessant nagging, I really appreciate these guys for their cooperation and their product.  I'll be in Seattle next week, where the headquarters are located, so I might go checkout their retail location and steal some ideas from them.  Be on the lookout for Curry, Honey and Ginger, and Black Sesame gelatos in addition to the Lemon Rosemary, Lime and Cardamom, and Hibiscus sorbets.  I like visitors, so if you're in the San Diego area and get excited about frozen deserts then I'd love to hear your feedback on the new flavors.  If you're a diehard gelato fan, they want me to update the Hillcrest Whole Foods facebook and twitter pages when the new flavors come in, if you're into that kinda thing.

Suzie's Farm has some of the most beautiful produce in San Diego.  If you've been to the farmers markets then you've had to notice a few tables adorned with several baskets filled with unique little gems like pea tendrils, lambs quarter, gigantic black radishes, stinging nettles, and an assortment of sprouts and microgreens that can only inspire a young, aspiring chef.  Behind these tables you'll generally find a very enthusiastic staff who share an equally genuine admiration of the food.  They don't give you the hard sell, when they talk about how much they like the new variety of arugula that they just started growing, you bet your ass you're leaving with at least one bagful of it.  So when you see this giant head of green fractals, what are you inspired to do?  I wanted to highlight the lime green color, so somewhere along the way I decided a leek and pistachio pesto would be a great idea.  I really adore leeks, and I feel like I always use them in the same manner.  When I go to a restaurant I expect to be surprised, so I feel it's necessary to think outside the box when cooking at home as well.  The pesto has an uncanny resemblance to guacamole, which turned out better than expected.  Anyhow, this is what I used:

1 medium head Romanesco or other Cauliflower of your choice, broken into florets
2 medium sized leeks, trimmed, and sliced
1/3 cup of shelled pistachios (try to find raw, unsalted)
2 garlic cloves
1 small handful of parsley
olive oil
half a lemon
salt
pepper


Preheat your oven to 425 F


Start by steaming the Romanesco until tender, but not soggy, in fact a little underdone would probably be just right.  Pull the Romanesco out of the steamer and let it steam dry itself as much as possible (if it's wet the pesto will have trouble sticking).  Pour a tablespoon or two of olive oil in a medium sauce pan, toss in the leeks and a heavy pinch of salt.  Saute the leeks over medium heat for a few minutes then reduce the heat to low, and let the leeks sweat for a while, 30 minutes wouldn't hurt, stirring occasionally until they almost look like they could be starting to caramelize.


Put the garlic in your food processor and pulse a few times to mince it.  Add the pistachios and pulse a few more times, then add the leeks, parsley, another pinch of salt and a few generous grinds of pepper.  Turn on your processor and slowly add maybe a third of a cup or so of olive oil, possibly more if you like a smoother consistency (mine came out like a chunky paste, and it was decadent).  I put about a third of the pesto into a bowl, added the Romanesco and tossed until the pesto was evenly distributed.


Spread out the Romanesco on a sheet pan so there's just a bit of space between each floret.  Squeeze the lemon over the cauliflower.  Put the sheet pan on the top rack of your oven for 12-15 minutes or until some of the fractals barely start to brown.  Pile up the florets on a plate, zest a small amount of lemon over top and serve.  Seriously good.


I shared these with some friends last night and they were a big hit, so I'll probably make more again tomorrow since I still have so much pesto left, and unlike guacamole which would be brown by now my pesto is still a rich green color!  Pictures will come tomorrow!

Butternut Squash Risotto with Roasted Hazelnuts

I'd like to think I'm not the only vegetarian who can do without faux-birds during the holiday season.  I've actually grown to detest any prepackaged mass claiming to either taste similar to or, in some beguiled marketing disaster, better than the real mccoy.  I've overheard many an anarcho-eco-vegaholic spout off about the benefits of a vegan diet while filling their shopping cart or stuffing their face with some greasy, rubbery, tasteless slab of hypocrisy wrapped individually for our convenience, lacking, if not completely void of nutrition.

I'll admit, in those early years of becoming vegetarian I purchased, shared and thoroughly enjoyed one or more of those boxed "cruelty-free" roasts.  In most cases I would take one or two of the smaller slices of said roast, drizzle some mushroom gravy, then surround the meager helping with copious amounts of freshly mashed potatoes, casseroles, assorted roasted vegetables and heavy helpings of homemade desserts, all things that recall pleasant moments from Thanksgivings past.  I've never been much a fan of mock meats and while those holiday substitute turkeys tend to be the (soy)cream of the crop, in no way do they resemble poultry in taste or texture.  After a couple years, however, they did provide that much needed staple food to signify that Thanksgiving had indeed arrived.  I have many fond memories from those holidays I shared with friends and family that I wouldn't trade for anything but for now I would like to encourage anyone reading this to pass on that frozen faux-fowl this year and opt for something equally if not a more autumn inspired dish that I hope will impress all that partake.

For the past few years I've relied on butternut squash as my go-to vegetable for a hearty main dish.  Risotto is surprisingly easy and incredibly versatile, although in any traditional recipe I guarantee any one of a variety of hard italian cheeses will be called for.  Fortunately, it's a rather small amount that can be omitted while having relatively no impact on the outcome and in this recipe the squash actually contributes to the creamy texture.  Here's what you need:

1 small butternut squash
1 1/2 cups arborio rice, or any "risotto" rice
1 cup dry white wine
6 cups vegetable stock
1 onion
1/3 cup crumbled roasted hazelnuts
1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and grated
oil (I prefer coconut, but olive oil is good too)
2 Tbsp minced sage leaves
salt and pepper


Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.


First, take your biggest nice and carefully cut the squash in half lengthwise.  Scoop out the seeds and stringy pulp, save the seeds and roast like you would pumpkin seeds for snacks or garnishing this dish.  Take one half of the squash and rub it with oil.  Roast in the oven for roughly 45 minutes or longer, until the squash is browning and a knife can be easily inserted into the deepest part of the squash.  When cooled, mash or puree the squash and set aside.  Take the other half of the squash, peel and dice into half inch pieces.  Toss with oil and roast for 12-15 minutes, turning the pieces about 8 minutes in, until the corners start caramelizing and set aside.


Bring the vegetable stock to a low simmer, you'll be adding the warm stock in small quantities to the rice.


Dice the onion and over medium-low heat start sweating the onions in 2 tbsp of oil in a large pot, add about half a teaspoon of salt.  When the onions are translucent add the rice and stir, making sure all the rice is coated in oil.  After a minute or two the grains of rice will become clear around the outsides, this is where it become a bit of a chore.  Add the wine and start stirring, you're going to need to stay near the pot for the rest of the cooking time, roughly 30 minutes.  You're going to want the rice to start absorbing all the liquid very slowly, as the rice absorbs liquid it will release starch, thus creating the creamy texture we're hoping to achieve.  Stir the rice frequently, constantly if you can, making sure no rice is sticking to the bottom of the pot and burning.  If any of the grains are browning, your heat is too high, lower the heat!  When the wine is absorbed, add about a cup of the simmering stock to the rice and start stirring again.  When the rice has absorbed the stock, add another cup of stock.  Continue adding stock until the rice is tender, as the pot's contents increase you may need to adjust your heat a bit, turning it ever so slightly higher.  When the risotto has reached the right texture add one last installment of stock, the squash puree and pieces, nuts, ginger, sage, and any more salt and pepper to taste.  Stir in all the ingredients until everything is well incorporated.  Serve immediately, garnish with more nuts or sage if you'd like, and maybe some really nice olive oil.

This year I made the risotto with chestnuts rather than hazelnuts, but I think I prefer my original plan of action.  I may try adding more spices and making a curried butternut squash risotto.  This dish loses it's creamy texture quickly, so if you happen to be making a lot of other dishes, are planning on taking this to a potluck, or just aren't able to serve the risotto immediately I might suggest preparing it the night before, then on the big day form balls or patties with the rice, coat them in breadcrumbs and pan fry (or bake, but really, not nearly as good) until the crust is golden.  I know this recipe is a little late for Thanksgiving 2010, but this dish is quite easily made any night of the week, and there's also another holiday creeping up which would be perfect for risotto as well.  Thanks for reading!  I was busy cooking all day and wasn't really able to get any photos, but there was a couple cameras floating around that evening so hopefully I'll be able to post some pictures of the feast we compiled.

Polenta and Leeks with a Mushroom Ragout

This weekend we had the pleasure of hosting our friend Joe Gocong.  Joe contributed quite a bit to the projects of the household in the past few days, and after 2 solid days of soundproofing our garage he was adamant about rewarding everyone's hard work.  Joe has a strong reputation for crafting a fine pizza pie, and he was excited to share his talent.  Regrettably I was not to be found amongst the gorging.  Chewing has become rather trying since starting my braces treatment on Thursday.

I could not sit back and let my jealousy stew, instead I took some regional inspiration from Joe's plan and picked up something from Ye Olde Whole Foods I would be able savor without the aid of pain killers.  I returned home with some coarse cornmeal and a bottle of my favorite relatively inexpensive Cabernet.  Luckily, like pasta and risotto, polenta leaves itself open for the addition of a multitude of ingredients.  When making this dish in the past I've used the red wine to braise torpedo onions and fennel, which I would definitely suggest trying, but I had a handful of cremini mushrooms hanging out in the fridge that needed some attention.  The mushrooms could have held their own in the ragout, but I had some sweet little sunburst tomatoes that I dried a few months ago while they were in abundance so I could carry their divine flavor into my winter dishes, and I was pretty pumped to try them out.  These are the results:

Polenta

1 1/2 cups polenta, or coarse cormeal

1 cup sliced leeks

2 T olive oil

1 1/2 cups water

1 1/2 cups vegetable broth

a couple heavy pinches of salt

pepper

Bring the broth to a boil and reduce to a simmer in a small saucepan.  In a large pot heat the oil over medium-low heat.  Add the leeks and the salt, stirring occasionally for about ten minutes until soft but not browned.  Add the water and bring to a boil.  Add the polenta slowly while stirring to avoid clumps.  Reduce the heat to a slow simmer.  When the water is absorbed start ladling in small amounts of broth at a time, letting each ladleful absorb before adding another and stir, a lot, until the polenta is soft and creamy.  If it looks a little dry just add a little more water, or maybe some cashew milk if you feel so inclined.  Season with pepper and more salt if desired.

Ragout

3 cups sliced mushrooms

1/2 cup dried tomatoes (or one cup fresh cherry tomatoes sliced in half)

1 small onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, sliced thin

1 cup dry red wine

1 1/2 t dry thyme

Salt and Pepper

2 T Olive Oil

Saute the mushrooms in oil with some salt in a large skillet over medium heat until the mushrooms have given up their moisture and are starting to brown.  Add the garlic and onions and saute until the onions are soft and then add the tomatoes, thyme, pepper and wine.  Reduce the wine until saucy consistency has formed. 

Plate the polenta and serve the ragout over top.  I sprinkled micro-basil over the ragout which added some really mild, earthy subtlety.  In addition to the basil, the arugula salad offered some color the plate was begging for.  Joe contributed all the photos.  He's leaps and bounds ahead of my grasp on my own camera.  I'd like to revisit this dish and alter the finished product, but considering the condition of my gums this was exactly what the doctor ordered.