Sautéed Radicchio with Balsamic + Walnuts

Although bitter foods don’t typically get welcomed to the holiday table, I encourage you to diversify your menu with this beautiful (and quick!) side dish. Radicchio gets cooked down until it is meltingly soft with balsamic vinegar added for a hint of sweet and sour flavors and walnuts for a little crunch. Optional pomegranate arils and honey add more sweetness and a pop of color. Radicchio and other bitter vegetables in the chicory family stimulate the production of bile and aid in digestion, making them a perfect complement to richer holiday meals.

Prep time: 10 minutes | Cooking time: 15-20 minutes | 4 servings

Ingredients:

¼ cup chopped walnut pieces
1½ lbs. radicchio (any variety, about 2-3 medium heads)
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large shallot, thinly sliced
1 clove of garlic, peeled and gently smashed
½ Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Fine sea salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste
For serving (optional): honey, handful of pomegranate arils

 Preparation:

Toast the walnuts in a 350F/175C degree oven (a toaster oven works great for this) for 4-5 minutes, or until fragrant and just beginning to brown. Remove from the oven and set aside.

Cut the radicchio lengthwise and then slice it into thin ribbons (about ¼-inch wide). Depending on the size of your radicchio, you may wish to cut the ribbons in half if they are very long.

Heat the olive oil in a large cast iron or other heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots, garlic and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring often, for about 8–10 minutes or until the shallots are soft and beginning to lightly brown. (You may need to reduce the heat while cooking if they are browning too quickly.)

Add the radicchio to the skillet. You may need to do this in batches, adding more as it cooks down and space is created. Once all radicchio is in the skillet, cook for 5–7 minutes, until it is soft and tender. Add in the balsamic vinegar, ½ teaspoon of salt, and a few cracks of pepper. Stir well, then taste and add any more vinegar or salt as desired.

To serve, transfer the radicchio to a serving bowl or platter. Sprinkle the toasted walnuts over the top. When you are ready to serve, top the radicchio with a few drizzles of honey and/or pomegranate arils, if using. Enjoy!

Pasta with Fava Beans, Spinach + Meyer Lemon

As soon as fava beans appear at our local farmer’s market each spring, I find myself challenged to see how many times I can make this dish before they disappear for another year. Given their insanely quick harvesting season, I always feel such deep gratitude when I get to enjoy fava beans and the wait for them each year is a reminder that seasonal eating involves a lot of patience AND great reward. If you have kids in the house, put them to work helping you to take beans out of the pods and shells (my son has helped me since he was 2). Here they are paired with two other spring staples in my kitchen – spinach and Meyer lemon.

Prep time: 20 minutes | Cooking time: 10–15 minutes | 4 servings

Ingredients:

~2 cups fresh fava beans (removed from pods, with second skins on - see note)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 medium Meyer lemon (see note)
12 ounces pasta of your choice (any large shape you enjoy)
1/3 cup good quality extra virgin olive oil (see note)
1 clove garlic, halved and lightly smashed
Large pinch of Aleppo pepper flakes (or other mild red pepper - see note)
5 ounces Bloomsdale spinach leaves, washed well (see note)
1 Tablespoon butter (optional)
Salt
Grated parmigiano cheese for serving (optional)

Preparation:

Bring 6 cups of water to a boil over medium high heat. Add the fava beans and baking soda and cook for 2-3 minutes (less time for small beans, more for larger). Drain in a colander and rinse well with cool water. When beans are cool enough, use your fingers to remove the second skins from the beans. Discard skins and set beans aside. (This step can be done in advance, with beans stored in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator until ready to use).

Use a vegetable peeler to remove six strips of zest lengthwise from the Meyer lemon. Gather the strips and use a sharp knife to cut the zest into very fine shreds. Set aside.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. 

While the pasta water is coming to a boil, heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet. When hot, add in the smashed garlic clove and red pepper. Cook for about 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Add in the fava beans, lemon zest and a few large pinches of salt and cook for about 5 minutes or until beans are starting to soften just slightly (be careful not to overcook, they should hold their shape). Turn off heat.

Add the pasta and cook according to the package instructions. Add the spinach to the pot when there is about 30 seconds of cook time remaining.

Drain pasta well and mix it together with the contents of the skillet along with the butter if you’re using it. Add any additional salt as desired. Enjoy immediately, garnished with cheese if you wish.

NOTES

• 2 cups of fava beans will be roughly 2.5-3 pounds of pods, depending on the size of the beans inside. I always try to choose slightly larger pods/beans if possible as they tend to be easier to shell. Feel free to use frozen fava beans (out of their second skins) if you can’t find fresh or don’t want to spend time shelling the beans. If you have a local Persian market, they may sell the frozen version.

• Regular lemon works too, but the unique flavor of Meyer lemon is what makes this dish for me.

• Good olive oil tends to be slightly more expensive and should have a rich flavor. You can use any extra virgin olive oil though really!

• Feel free to omit the red pepper for less heat, or you can use traditional red pepper flakes (but a smaller pinch)

• Bloomsdale spinach has a unique shape/flavor that really holds up in this dish, so use it if you can find it

Tofu with Cashews + Sweet Date Sauce

This quick, meatless main dish has been a hit with a few groups I have shared it with lately and also has become a staple on busy nights in my house. You can easily add vegetables to it (bok choy, kale, etc.) or make it as written with rice and veggies on the side for an easy meal. If you prefer other sources of protein, you can easily substitute those for the tofu.

Prep time: 10 minutes | Cooking time: 20 minutes | 4 servings

Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons neutral cooking oil
1 pound extra firm tofu, excess liquid pressed out and cut into ½-inch cubes
2 Tablespoons sesame oil
2-inch piece of ginger peeled and cut into thin coins
4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 bunch scallions, cut into 2-inch pieces (whites and greens)
Pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
½ cup unsalted roasted cashews
1/3 cup rice wine (mirin) or dry sherry
3 Tablespoons tamari or soy sauce
¼ cup date syrup
One lime, cut into wedges
Chopped cilantro for garnish (optional)
Cooked rice for serving
Salt and pepper

Preparation:

Heat the neutral oil in a 12-inch (or slightly larger) skillet over medium-high. Add tofu cubes and season lightly with salt and pepper. Cook, turning occasionally, until golden brown all over, about 8 minutes. Using a spatula slotted spoon, transfer tofu to a large plate or small baking tray lined with paper towels to absorb excess oil and set aside.

Add the sesame oil to the skillet. Add the ginger, garlic, scallion and red pepper flakes and stir-fry until the garlic just begins to brown, about 2 minutes. Return the tofu to the pan, along with the cashews, rice wine/sherry, tamari/soy sauce and date syrup. Stir well. Cook for 5-7 minutes until the sauce has a slightly thicker, syrupy consistency. Taste and add any additional salt/pepper if desired.

Serve over rice. Let each person enjoying the tofu add a squeeze of lime and garnish with cilantro if desired.

Lemon Poppyseed Overnight Oats

This quick breakfast options combines the ease of overnight oats with the flavors of a classic muffin. I personally love the added texture that the poppyseeds add as a contrast to the soft oats. This is a perfect breakfast for the final hot weeks of summer ahead of us.

Prep time: 5 minutes | Refrigeration time: Overnight | 2 servings

Ingredients:

1 cup rolled oats (certified gluten-free if needed)
2-2½ cups almond milk (or other preferred non-dairy milk)
1–2 teaspoons maple syrup (optional)
Zest of one medium lemon
¾ teaspoon poppyseeds
¼ teaspoon lemon extract (see note)
Optional: garnishes of your choice (fruit, nuts, coconut flakes, granola, etc.)

Preparation:

Add all ingredients to a jar or container and mix well (if using a jar, you can simply shake it; otherwise, gently stir.) Use less milk for a thicker oatmeal or more milk for a thinner consistency (additional milk can be added when serving if it is thicker than desired). You can taste the liquid after combining and adjust the sweetness to your liking if you are using maple syrup.

Place the jar/container in the refrigerator and leave it overnight to allow the oats to soak and soften. When ready to serve, give the jar a shake or gently stir before placing individual servings into bowls. Ideally allow the oats to come closer to room temperature (15-20 minutes) before eating. Garnish as desired just prior to serving.

Note: Choose a high quality, pure lemon extract that is ideally just lemon oil suspended in either oil or alcohol/water. While a greater quantity of lemon juice could be substituted for the lemon extract, this is really what gives the oats the taste of a lemon muffin.