Rosemary Lemon Roasted Beets and Potatoes

Three things… One. I have a ton of beets, but that is because I have been taking mostly beets at the farm share pickup (I am scared I will run out so I hoard them) Two.  See that roasting pan? I got it a couple weekends ago  at a barn sale for 75 cents. Isn't it awesome! (it is so awesome) So I really wanted to roast something in it. And three. Roasting means the oven is on and it has been chilly chilly at night (LOVE IT) but I am not willing to turn the heater on in my house until at least the first  of November. Until then, we will just roast all of our food for warmth.

But really, there is no better reason then that beets are tasty and potatoes are tasty. Together, they are super duper tasty. The combination, with the lemon and rosemary giving the dish  a fresh and vibrant boast,  satisfies that person who says he doesn't like beets (the mr, but he eats them so yeah.) and me, who would rather just eat all beets (I ate some of the potatoes)  

Yup, rosemary lemon beets and potatoes.  A simple dish that screams fall, warm comfort food, and just happens to be really pretty too. (especially served in my awesome roasting pan)

The stuff. A couple of beets and a couple of potatoes. Some fresh rosemary (can use dried), a lemon, salt and pepper and olive oil. 

Preheat the oven to 450 and chop up the potato and beets into chunks that will fit in your mouth and dump the chunks into a bowl. 

Mince up the rosemary.. unless you don't mind eating long, kind sharp pieces

Drizzle a bit of olive oil, add in the zest of the lemon, add a good few pinches of salt and pepper and toss in the rosemary and give it a good mix.

Dump onto a baking sheet or in a roasting pan (seriously, this roasting pan is SO PRETTY) Cut the lemon in half and squeeze on half of the lemon juice on the veggies. 

And into the oven it goes. 

All roasted up and ready to go.

 Those colors.. the smell. So good!

Happy weekend people! 

-C

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Rosemary Lemon Roasted Beets and Potatoes

Serves 2-3 as a side 

• 2-3 large beets
• 2-3 large white or red potatoes 
• a few sprigs of fresh rosemary( about 2 tablespoons.. can used dried, just decrease quantity a little)
• 1 lemon
• salt and pepper to taste
• olive oil

Preheat oven to 450

Wash beets and potatoes well then dice them up into mouth sized pieces and toss into a bowl. Drizzle with  enough olive oil to coat the stuff, zest the lemon and add the zest to the bowl, and  cut lemon in half and squeeze half of the lemon juice in.  Oh, and mince up the rosemary and toss that in too. Season with salt and pepper to taste (potatoes like salt) toss it all around until everything is all coated and dump onto a baking sheet or into a roasting pan and stick into the oven for about 45-50 minutes or until golden brown and crunchy tender.

Remove, squeeze the remaining half of lemon on top and serve!

A Roasted Head of Cauliflower with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

Finally, it's safe to turn the oven back on. No more heatwave (PLEASE NO MORE!!!) Last week was such a bust of life, I still feel like I am recovering. But let's not talk about anymore. Lets talk about this cauliflower situation that was a highlight of my week.

I have been meaning to do this for a while now. And I have attempted, I'll have the intention, get the cauliflower and peppers,  then somehow forget that I was going to cook it and just feed it to the mr raw, or he will just start eating at it and then the head is not intact anymore (He loves raw cauliflower). And sure, you don't need to have a whole head of cauliflower to roast it and enjoy it, but come on, doesn't it look super badass and pretty whole? And you can slices of it like you would a cake, a really yummy veggie cake. So yeah, it should be a whole head. Anyways, besides being pretty, this thing was freaking amazing. I love cauliflower, roasted cauliflower even more. Add to it some slightly sweet and cheesy pepper sauce, holy ho…I almost ate the entire thing myself. It was everything and more how I wanted it to turn out and am now forever going eat my cauliflower exactly like this (but probably not always). And the sauce…. I am going to make giant jars of it and stick it on everything. So good.

Now lets get to it.

The stuff. A whole head of cauliflower, a couple colorful peppers, nutritional yeast, garlic, lemon, salt and pepper, and a little bit of olive oil. 

Start with the cauliflower, Trim away any big leaves from the bottom and stick the whole head into a oven safe pot big enough to hold it.. Add in a little water and stick on the stove top on medium heat to cook for a few minutes, just to give it a little head start.

And preheat the oven

Pre roasted, slightly streamed cauliflower goes into the oven until a nice golden brown and all pretty like.

While the cauliflower is roasting, roasted the peppers too.I place mine whole onto a lightly oiled cast iron pan* and stick into the oven.

Once the peppers are starting to char and have become soft and tender, remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes or long enough for you to handle them. When cooled enough, remove the stem, seeds and any of the skin that is coming off.

*Last year I used the same cast iron pan over and over to rasot peppes and never cleaned it, or bothered to oil it. By the end of the summer, there was a 1/2 inch thick layer of hard as rock caramelized pepper juice that I had to chip it away with a chisel… so yeah. be careful of pepper juice.

Toss the roasted peppers into a food processor along with the garlic, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, a splsh of oil and s little salt and pepper.  

And taste.. and try not to eat it all right now (It is so f ing good) 

And take that sweet, so delocouis sauce and smother all over the roasted cauliflower.

If you want, stick it back into the oven for a few minutes to crust up a little bit, but not a necessary.You can call it here and go to town.

I stuck in back in the oven for a few minutes… But again, not necessary.

And now you have this giant, amazing, head of delicious cauliflower, waiting to be eaten. I recommend removing the head and sticking it on a cutting board, you know, for easier cutting, and also it looks pretty badass. 

Cut into chunks and serve right away.  

Goodness gracious was this thing so freaking good!

Have a fantastic day!

-C

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A Roasted Head of Cauliflower with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

• 1 fresh head of cauliflower
• 2 red(yellow or orange work too) peppers
• 2 -3 tablespoons nutritional yeast (the more the cheesier)
• 4-5 cloves of garlic
• juice of a lemon
• salt and pepper
• olive oil

Take whole head of cauliflower and trim any big leaves or stem off bottom. Stick into a big oven safe pot with about 1/2 inch of water. Place a lid on pot and stick on medium heat for about 8-10 minutes, or until water has evaporated. and cauliflower is slightly tender.

Preheat oven to 425.

After the brief cook on the stove top, remove lid, drizzle cauliflower with a tiny bit of oil and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. Stick into oven without the lid.

Now that the oven is on, toss peppers into oven, either on a baking sheet, pan, or on the rack if you have the space and cook until all roasted and soft (should take about 15 minutes). Remove when cooked and let cool off for a few minutes. Once cool enough to handle, remove seeds and stem and any of the skin that want to come off and stick into a food processor. Add in the garlic, nutritional yeast, lemon juice and a tiny drizzle of olive oil. Blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Once the head of cauliflower is cooked and browned, remove from oven and dump/ smear with the red pepper sauce. If you want, place back into oven for a few more minutes, or not. Good both ways.

Remove from pot and cut into big ass chunks. Garnish with something green and eat until you can't eat anymore.

If by chance you have any left overs (which I highly doubt) try blending it up as soup. It is freaking fantastic!

Guacamole Potato Salad

IF you like potatoes and guacamole (probably even if you think you don't like potatoes or guacamole) then oh boy, do I have a treat for you. 

Guacamole Potato Salad.. Only the best potatoes salad you will ever put in your mouth.  

I tried to make this a few weeks back and ended up not getting to my potatoes in time to use, so I had to put the salad on hold. But this weekend I was ready. The grill was prepped, the corn was husked, and the poatoes were boiled. Then it happened, I made the best potato salad ever. It changed the way I feel about potato salad. (I have never really been a huge fan) Sure, I love potatoes, but in the past I have experiences to many overly dressed, really heavy, and overall, some pretty crappy paotao salads. This salad, well it is the exact opposite. This salad is all summer. Bright and light, so full of flavor, but not overly heavy and gross. I mean, its potatoes covered in guacamole… How can that not be amazing. I am now a potato salad fan (for life!). 

So my suggestion for you. Have a cook out, invite your friends, grill up some veggies or whatever and make a humongous batch (you will need a humongous batch) of this potato salad. Sit back and watch (while you are eating) and see peoples faces light up with joy and happiness. You will be number one. The hostess with thte mostest. People will fall at your feet… 

or not. (But probably)

So here, take a look, and make.. Your day, week, life will be better for this.

The stuff; Potatoes, avocados, mini onions, and tomatoes. Pickled Jalapeños (with juice) garlic, and the juice from a lemon And lastly,a big bunch of cilantro, and salt. 

First things first, boil the potatoes. Stick in a pot of cold water with a palmful of salt. Bring to a boil then turn down to a medium heat and stick a lid on the pot. Cook until fork pierces easily through  then strain from water and let cool. When cooled, but still slightly warm, dice them up into mouth sized pieced. Place potatoes back into pot and drizzle a few glugs of the pickled jalapeño juice over them. Place in fridge to complete cool.

While the potatoes are cooling down, mix up the quad dressing. In a large bowl, take the avoado fruit and mash and smoosh  until relatively smooth and mix in minced garlic , lemon juice, and a sprinkle of salt. 

Dice up the onion, jalapeños, tomatoes and add to the mashed avocado and mix that all up…and try not to eat it all before the potatoes get in.

Mix in cold potatoes

add in lots of chopped up cilantro

Nothing compares.. 

Have a great day and get to planning you next cookout!

Later!

-C

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Guacamole Potato Salad 

• 3 lb. of potatoes of a small waxy variety (like red or new potatoes)
• 1 1/2- 2 whole avocados
• 2 small Roma tomatoes or q large
• 2 mini onions with greens or 1 regular white onion
• handful (or more) of pickled jalapeños and the juice
• juice of 1 lemon
• a bunch of fresh cilantro 
• 3 cloves garlic
• salt and pepper

Wash potatoes and stick in a big pot with cold water and a good palmful of salt.  Bring to a boil then turn heat downy to a a medium heat, stick a lid on it  and cook potatoes until a fork can pierce through.  Strain from water and let cool enough to handle. Once cooled, cut potatoes into mouth sized pieces, place back into bowl, and drizzle with a few teaspoons of pickled jalapeño juice. Stick the potatoes in the fridge and let completely cool. 

While those are getting cold, make the guacamole dressing. In a big bowl, place the avocados (pits and rind removed of course) and smash and smoosh until a smooth constancy. Add in a pinch of salt, mince the garlic and toss that in,  and add the juice of the lemon. Now dice up the garlic, onion, tomatoes and jalapenos and gentile fold it all in to the avocado mash.

Once the potatoes are cool, roughly chop the cilantro and  add  that and the potatoes into the guacamole and mix around until everthig is all coated. Top with some more cilantro.

Eat as a side, a meal, a snack, or dessert

a fork pierced nicely but a large wooden spoon works too.

Lasts for 3-4 days in the fridge.

Kohlrabi Apple Walnut Slaw

Before we left for the weekend, I was was trying my hardest to empty the fridge out of all food with the intention of leaning it empty so I could leave it open to defrost while were were gone. Unfortunately I was not able to make it happen. What I did make happen was emptying it almost completely so that when we got home, we had pretty much no food in the house, except for a few things that probably should be eaten.  Plus one of the last things that I want to do after sitting in a car for 6 hours is go to the grocery store, or anywhere for that matter, so I was determined to make with what wet had in the fridge:

• Carrots
• half of a gigantic kohlrabi
• soy milk
• iced tea
• bananas that needed to be frozen
• strawberries

Perfect!  A few carrots and half of a gigantic kohlrabi.. plus at the hotel we were staying at, there were fruit bowls in he lobby full apples. Every time I went past the apples (which was a lot) I grab one or two, so I have a few apples (I actually have a lot of apples now). All the things I need for a super awesome salad slaw. Apples with their  nice sweet crispiness and kohlrabi with its cabbagey, crunchy earthiness, tossed together with some vinegar, some toasted walnuts and some carrots, I mean, so freaking good. And to make it a bit more of a meal, I made some lentils to go with it. But the best part was there was no need to leave the house!!

     The stuff… A huge hunk of a bigger then my head kohlrabi (or 2 normal bulbs). A carrot, an apple, toasted walnuts, red wine vinegar, and some salt.

Pretty simple stuff going on here. Just peel and julienne the kohlrabi, carrot and apple. (no need to peel the carrot or apple unless you want too) and stick it all into a bowl.  I used my mandolin, which is one of my favorite kitchen tools ever, but if you don't have one, a box grater works too.Sprinkle with salt and a good glug glug of red wine vinegar. Chop up the walnuts (some big chunks and some very small pieces makes for good eating), toss it all together and, well that's it. But wait…. let it sit for a few minutes before serving to really let the flavors draw out.And there we have it. Super fast, full of flavors and crunchy texture. A salad slaw after my own heart.

Serve it as it or add to a bed of greens, rice, or lentils… and make sure to save at least as little… cause its an awesome little pre-bed snack.

Happy Week!!

-C

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Kohlrabi Apple Walnut Slaw

• 2 medium sized Kohlrabis 
• 1 medium apple   
• 1 small carrot
• 1/2 cup toasted walnuts
• red wine vinegar
• salt

In a large bowl, julienne kohlrabi (after peeled) apple and carrot. Sprinkle with salt, add in vinegar. Rough chop walnuts and toss the whole bit together. Let sit for at least 10 minutes, if not longer before serving. (A great salad to make ahead of time)

Eat as is, or toss onto a bed of greens, plate of rice or a bowl of lentils.

Any left overs only end up tasting better the next day.

Tarragon Butternut Squash and Onions

I know that it it spring, but I still have a winter farm share for another month and will be cooking and eating roots and squash until the summer share starts in early June. And I am good with that cause I love me some root veggies and butternut squash.  But, yes, it is spring and my body isn't craving the super hearty, rich foods that it was just a few short weeks ago (more like last week) When the temperatures first start to go up, I usually want my food to not feel as heavy or my spices to be quite at warming (I am still all over curries and hot hot hot sauces in the summer). It's like I have said before, I tend to change up my spices with the seasons.  

So to give a lighter feel to a heartier squash, I busted out one of my favorite spices, the oh so lovely tarragon. It has a sweet, light, fruity and floral taste that pairs beautifully with the squash and onions. It give the dish a nice spring like flavor that will leave you feeling satisfied without wanting to move directly onto the couch and hide under a blanket. This is a eat and ride you bike kind of dish ( you don't actually have to go for a bike ride if you don't want to)

Note. If I had a grill, I would definitely cook this dish on it. As of now, I don't own one so I am left to cook on the stove. But by all means, if you have a grill, do it up!

Half of a medium sized butternut squash (or use a whole one.. I had a half in the fridge that was waiting to be cooked)  and one whole onion (two if you use a whole squash)  Apple cider vinegar, olive oil, salt , pepper, garlic powder, and, last but not least, the oh so fragrant and tasty, tarragon. 

Chop the onion  and the squash into big chunks. If you don't like the skin of the squash, you can peel it, but I like it so I don't peel. Drizzle olive oil in a pan or a baking sheet, toss the veggies in and add the garlic powder, tarragon, salt and pepper and a few splashes of apple cider vinegar. Toss around. Stick into oven at 425 degrees for about 30-40 minutes. When the squash is tender and the onions are cooked, remove from oven.  

I am pretty sure you can figure out the rest.

Happy day!

-C

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Tarragon Butternut and Onions

• Half of Medium Butternut Squash
• 1 Large Onion
• 1 Tablespoon Dried Tarragon (use fresh if you have it.. 2 tablespoons)
• 2 Tablespoons Apple Cider Vinegar
• 1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
• Salt ans Pepper
• Olive Oil

Chop squash and onions into similar size pieces. Toss in a skillet or on a oiled baking sheet and add the rest of the ingredients. Toss around and place into a 425 degree oven for about 30-40 minutes or until squash is fork tender.  

Remove from oven and eat.

 Make as a side dish or add to a salad. Eat as a light lunch, or a midnight snack… eat it however you want.