KALE WITH JAPANESE SESAME DRESSING

Sesame dressing seems to make everyone gobble down heaps of greens with abandon. This flavorful dressing is easy to make and it quickly transforms simple blanched kale or spinach into an irresistible dish.

A few months ago, one of our favorite restaurants closed. O Chame and their fresh, soulful Japanese food always made our family happy - after decades of belly-warming meals, we were heartbroken to see it go. O Chame's blanched spinach with sesame dressing was a perennial favorite. (I have to say... there's nothing more satisfying than watching kids devour a huge plate of greens, only to ask for more!) I've been working on tweaking the flavors for my own sesame dressing for a while now - I even consulted my friend Doug who did a stint working at O Chame. 

For you loyalists out there, this dish will not taste exactly like O Chame's beloved sesame spinach, but the flavors should make you nostalgic, for sure. While sesame dressing is traditionally served with blanched spinach, I really enjoy using heartier kale as my greens here. Give it a try...either way, it's darned tasty.

Do you have a Japanese sesame dressing recipe to share? I'd love to hear about it!

A note on ingredients: I suggest looking for toasted white sesame seeds, Mirin, tamari, and rice wine vinegar at your local Japanese/Asian market.

INGREDIENTS
printable recipe

• 1 1/2 -2 pounds kale, tough ribs removed - spinach is also delicious
• 1/2 cup toasted white sesame seeds (if you can't find toasted seeds, you can buy raw sesame seeds and quickly toast them yourself)
• 3 tablespoons Mirin (sweet sake for cooking)
• 2 tablespoons GF Tamari or soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon unseasoned rice wine vinegar
• optional: 2 teaspoons light agave nectar (I find kale likes this extra hit of sweet) 
• optional: if you are the type of person who happens to have dashi on hand, add a splash or two to the dressing

Heat a large pot full of water for blanching the greens.  

In 2 batches, blanch kale leaves in unsalted water for a 1-2 minutes until greens are tender and vibrant green. The age, size and heartiness of your kale will determine how long you'll need to cook the leaves. After about a minute of cooking, I pull out a leaf to start tasting for doneness. (Keep in mind that spinach should only need 20-30 seconds to blanch.) Use tongs to remove blanched greens from the hot water.

Let your cooked greens cool to room temp in a colander while you blanch another batch. Place the second batch of cooked greens into the colander to cool with the first batch. (If you have a garden, save your blanching water. Let it fully cool, then use that nutrient-rich liquid to water your plants.) 

While the greens are cooling, go ahead and make your dressing. Using a mortar and pestle or food processor, blend toasted sesame seeds, Mirin, Tamari, rice vinegar, and agave. It's easier to achieve a creamier consistency using a food processor, but sometimes I prefer the therapeutic labor of a mortar and pestle.

When the kale has cooled to room temp, grab half of the greens and squeeze them between your hands to removed excess liquid. The cooked greens will stick together in a log-shaped clump after being squeezed together in your hands. Take that roll of greens and slice it into 1/2 inch wide strips then transfer chopped leaves to a mixing bowl. 

Before dressing your salad, keep in mind that this recipe gives you a VERY generous amount of dressing. You may only need to use as little as half the dressing. (Feel free to save the remaining dressing in a lidded container in the fridge for another batch of greens.) We like a ton of dressing on our kale, so we use it all in one go. Toss greens and dressing with your hands to fully coat the leaves with the toasted sesame goodness.

This dish can be served at room temp or slightly chilled. It also travels well.  

Serves 4 

OTTOLENGHI'S GREEN GAZPACHO

Last week, I served up some cake for breakfast, so today I thought we could all use a huge bowl of greens for lunch.

This time of year I cannot seem to get enough peaches, nectarines, apricots, pluots - all the yellow, orange, and red juicy deliciousness of summer. I get so caught up trying to stuff myself with fruit while it lasts, that I forget to eat my greens. Bad girl.

My neighbor Caitlin mentioned that she loves Ottolenghi's Green Gazpacho and I thought this might just be the cure to my summer fruit hangover. And it was. I cannot believe how much good green stuff is packed into this chilled soup. We are talking 6 cups of spinach alone! I also really enjoyed the addition of walnuts which gives the gazpacho a little heft and protein - making it a nice summer meal all on its own.

INGREDIENTS - adapted from Yotam Ottolenghi's Plenty
(printable recipe)

Croutons:

• 4 thick slices of sourdough bread (local GF folks, I used a Mariposa baguette)
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• Maldon flaky sea salt

The soup:

• 2 ribs celery, roughly chopped
• 2 bell peppers, cores and seeds removed, and roughly chopped
• 6 small cucumbers, roughly chopped
• 3 slices Millet Bread, toasted (or Ottolenghi calls for stale white bread), crusts removed and chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
• 1 fresh green chili, minced
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 1 1/2 cups walnuts, toasted
• 6 cups baby spinach
• 1 cup basil leaves
• 4 tablespoons sherry vinegar
• 1 cup olive oil
• 3 tablespoons Greek yogurt
• 2-3 cups water
• season generously with salt and freshly ground white pepper
• olive oil for garnish

Preheat oven to 375.

To make the croutons, tear crusty bread into rough bite-sized chunks and scatter them onto a baking sheet. Drizzle olive oil over the bread and sprinkle with salt. Give everything a toss with your hands to coat the bread. Place the baking sheet in the hot oven. Toast for 10 minutes or so until you have nice golden croutons. Set aside for garnish.

Prep all soup ingredients. Get out your blender and set aside a very large bowl to hold your pureed soup. In a blender, puree a mix of ingredients in batches adding more water if you need to, then pour the puree into the large bowl you've set aside. When you've finished all of the pureeing (it took me 4 batches!) give everything a good stir. Season with additional salt and ground white pepper, and chill soup before serving.

Serve gazpacho in wide low bowls. Pass the croutons, and give each bowl a drizzle of olive oil over the top.

This recipe really serves a crowd - I found it made about 16 cups. (I'm thinking I may just have a bowl of leftover gazpacho for breakfast tomorrow!)

SPINACH GALETTE WITH WILD MUSHROOMS

The last gusts of winter have me craving coziness: a good read by the fire still appeals to me, and I want a mug of tea to warm my mitts. But the brilliant green of spring is calling to me as well. Our garden is crazy with buds and sweet new leaves, and the longer evenings inspire me to get out and walk with P after dinner, even if it drizzles.

To honor the end of winter and the burgeoning spring, I thought I'd share some comfort food that is full of freshness. How about flaky buttery deliciousness that's packed with TWELVE CUPS of spinach.... doesn't that sound like a fun way to eat your greens?

Note: be sure to make your dough at least an hour (or up to two days) before you want to cook your galette.

CRUST INGREDIENTS
(printable recipe)

• 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour (GF folks: I always use Pamela's Bread and Flour Mix)
• pinch of sea salt
• 5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
• 6-7 tablespoons ice water

Place flour and salt in a large mixing bowl and stir. Cut butter into pieces and add to the mixing bowl. Using a pastry cutter or two forks, cut butter into the flour mix. Keep mixing until the butter is reduced to pea-sized bits. Drizzle 5 tablespoons of ice water into the bowl and continue to mix ingredients with pastry cutter. Even though the mixture will still be quite crumbly at this point, squeeze some dough between your fingers and see if it holds together. You will probably need to add at least another tablespoon or two of ice water to get your dough to hold together. (Don't overwork or over-wet your dough: a nice, slightly crumbly dough with smears of butter throughout (that just holds together) will give you a great flaky crust later.)

Get out a large piece of plastic wrap and lay it on the counter next to your mixing bowl. Using your hands, gently gather the dough into a ball and place it in the center of the plastic. Wrap the ball in plastic and use the heel of your hand to flatten the dough a into a thick round. Chill the wrapped dough in the fridge for at least a hour, or up to two days.


FILLING INGREDIENTS
(printable recipe)

• 12 packed cups spinach leaves
• 1/2 cup sliced leeks
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• sea salt
• 2 cups fresh wild mushrooms (Chanterelles or Hedgehogs are delicious here)
• 1 cup grated Parmesan
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped Italian parsley

Preheat oven to 375.

Thoroughly wash and trim spinach. If you are using baby spinach, you can keep the leaves whole. If using larger spinach leaves, chop them coarsely. Set aside.

Wash leeks, making sure to get that sneaky dirt out from between the layers. Trim off the roots and slice the whites and pale greens into thin rounds.

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large saute pan, or wok, over medium heat. Add leeks and a pinch of salt to the warm oil, cover pan and cook leeks until tender. When leeks have softened, add spinach leaves and another pinch of salt, toss them with the oil and leeks. (If you cannot fit all the spinach in your pan right away, let the first bit wilt and make room to add more leaves.) Cover and continue to cook over medium heat until spinach is tender - 5 minutes should do.

Remove spinach and leeks from pan and set aside. When the greens have cooled, squeeze out any excess water that might still be clinging to the spinach.

In the meantime, prep your mushrooms. Using a brush, sweep all the dirt off the mushrooms. (Try to avoid washing them in water, if possible.) Trim off any funky bits and coarsely chop.

Heat a medium cast iron or saute pan over high heat. When the pan is hot, but not smoking, add the mushrooms. They will immediately steam and sizzle. After the mushrooms have released their water and it begins to evaporate, add one tablespoon of olive oil and a generous pinch of salt. Continue to cook over high heat until mushrooms are tender, but not well-done. Cooking time will vary, depending on which mushrooms you use; trust yourself, and taste as you go to check for doneness. (Keep in mind that all of these ingredients will continue to cook in the hot oven later.) Set aside cooked mushrooms.

Take your chilled dough out of the fridge. Cover a cutting board with a big piece of parchment paper. Place your dough on the parchment. Sprinkle a bit of extra flour over the top of the dough and dust your rolling pin with flour. Roll out the dough into a nice large circle or oval.  Slide the rolled-out galette dough (keeping it on the parchment) onto a baking sheet.

Leaving a couple of inches of dough as a boundary around the edge of your oval/circle, sprinkle 3/4 cup of Parmesan over the the middle portion. Then add the spinach, leeks, and mushrooms. Spread them out, respecting the boundary around the edges. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan over the top. Fold up up the edges. Put the galette in your 375 degree oven.

After 35-40 minutes of baking, your galette should be nice a golden brown. You can eat it warm or let it cool to room temperature... either way, it's really good.

Sprinkle galette with chopped parsley. Enjoy!

I LOVE OMELETS

Ever since I started Yummy Supper, I have wanted to do a post on my love of omelets, which may just be my favorite meal for lunch, breakfast, or dinner for that matter.  You can stuff them with greens, mushrooms, asparagus, crab, cheese, or keep it light and simple with just a bit of herbs. My mom has always made incredible omelets and she taught me her ways when I was a teenager. People can be quite opinionated about the "right" way to make an omelet.  I'm not so sure I buy into dogmas, but I do know that this is an omelet I love - the eggs are nice and fluffy, while the inside is tender and filled with goodies.



SPINACH + FETA OMELET (makes two)
(printable recipe)

• large bunch spinach, leaves removed and cleaned
• 1 small hot chili (optional), finely chopped
• 4 small or 2 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 3 tablespoon butter (1 for cooking the spinach + 2 more tablespoons for cooking the eggs)
• 4 tablespoons crumbled feta
• 4 large or 6 small eggs
• salt 
• pepper

First, prep all of your ingredients for filling.  In a large saute pan, heat 1 teaspoon olive oil with 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat until bubbling. Add chili, garlic, and shallots. Cook a minute or two until everything starts to soften. Add the washed spinach leaves (we used beautiful water spinach - an ubiquitous ingredient in Bali - but any spinach would be wonderful.) Stir to coat. Saute until tender. Remove cooked spinach from heat and set aside to cool a bit. When the spinach is cool enough to handle, squeeze out any excess water. (If you don't, you'll end up with a sad, watery omelet.) Rough chop spinach and separate into 2 piles. Set aside.

Crumble feta. Set up two equal sized piles of cheese (2 tablespoons each).

Most people who regularly cook omelets have a pan they use just for this purpose. A little well-seasoned cast iron pan with rounded sides is my favorite at home in California. In Bali, where we made omelets at least once a week for lunch, we used a non-stick pan and it worked just fine.

In a small mixing bowl, thoroughly whisk 2 large, or 3 small, eggs. Add a pinch of salt (you may not need any salt at all if your feta is really salty), a few grinds from the pepper mill, and a splash of water. Whisk to integrate.

Here's the way my mom taught me, and this is the method I will pass on to my kids. I hope you like it too!

All of the cooking happens in a number of minutes so be patient with yourself if you are new to cooking omelets.....

Warm pan over medium heat. Plop in a tablespoon of butter. Tilt pan to coat all sides with the butter. When butter is hot and the bubbling has slowed, pour in eggs. Again, tilt the pan to spread the eggs evenly over the bottom of the pan.

When the eggs begin to cook, and big bubbles form, start the technique I show in the photos below: Use a wooden spoon to pull back the eggs from the side of the pan, then tilt the pan letting the runny egg fill the void....

Do this in three or four places until you have a nice, rumpled surface....

 Then add cheese....

Then spinach....

Then flip that omelet out of the pan and you are ready to eat.

Enjoy!

Makes 2 omelets.  

Travel note: We made it to the Greek Islands - so dreamy, yet completely different from Bali. Will have photos to share soon...

QUINOA SALAD WITH FAVAS AND PRESERVED LEMON

I am always looking for new ways to enjoy quinoa and I suspect this recipe will become a staple for us when favas are in season. If you don’t have access to favas, I think steamed, chopped asparagus or even spinach, would be a delicious substitute in this dish. Plus here's another use for those preserved lemons you might have made with me a while back.

Eating favas in the middle of California winter, I feel like a traitor to my friends at home. Here in New Zealand it is early Summer and favas ( aka “broad beans” ) are ready for harvest and impossible for me to resist. I stumbled on this recipe in Australia’s Gourmet Traveller (my new favorite food mag) and loved the mix of flavors. I ended up making a lot of changes to the original recipe until I was satisfied with the balance of fresh, creamy, lemony, flavors I craved. I served the salad to P and my mom - when they oohed and aahed, I figured I needed to share the recipe with you.

This salad can be a one-bowl-meal in itself or works as a substantial side dish for grilled fish or chicken.

David Tanis' Spinach Cake

We have been eating less and less meat around here. I am pretty tired of chicken and there are so many environmental issues with fish and beef that moving away from meat-eating seems natural. I cannot imagine being a vegetarian and don't see that as our future, but we are eating more and more meals that do not revolve around a slab of meat.

Farm eggs are great source of protein and I am always attracted to egg dishes: omelets, custards, stratas, etc. This recipe from David Tanis' Platter of Figs drew me in with its description as a cross between and custard and frittata. The dish is exploding with spinach and its texture is both creamy and fluffy at the same time. Plus, I can imagine using so many other veggies in this recipe: chard, mushrooms, peppers, beets greens....

Tanis suggests serving the vibrant green spinach cake with an herb salad. I decided to use some of the edible blossoms from our garden as a side dish. We have been letting our veggie garden run a bit wild lately. In less than three months we will begin our year of travel and our Berkeley garden will have to find its own rhythm without us. 

INGREDIENTS adapted from David Tanis' Platter of Figs 
(printable recipe)

• 2 pound spinach leaves
• 2 medium leeks, 2 heads green garlic, and/or 2 spring onions
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• freshly ground nutmeg
• salt
• pepper
• 6 large eggs
• 2 cups whole milk
• Parmesan

Thoroughly clean spinach leaves. Coarsely chop and set aside. Dice leeks, green garlic and/or spring onion.

Melt butter in a large saute pan over medium heat.

Add leeks, onion, and/ or garlic.  Season with salt and pepper. Saute for about five minutes until tender. Grate nutmeg over the top.

Turn up the heat. Add spinach in layers (salt each layer as you go) until you can fit it all in the pan. Cover and steam, stirring once or twice, until spinach has just wilted. This should only take a couple of minutes.

Spread cooked spinach onto a platter to cool.

Preheat oven to 400.

When spinach has cooled, get out your blender and puree spinach, eggs, and milk in batches. (Tanis suggests reserving the extra liquid from the cooked spinach and adding it to the puree. I would recommend pouring out the excess spinach water. When I left it in, I had liquid at the bottom of my cake when it was done cooking.) Add extra salt, pepper and a pinch of cayenne. Puree should be heavily seasoned.

Pour soupy batter into a buttered baking dish. Sprinkle a few tablespoons of grated Parmesan over the top.

Bake uncovered in the oven for 35-45 minutes until firm. When the cake is done, you should be able to insert a knife and it will come out clean.

Serve the custardy cake at room temp for brunch and briefly reheat your leftovers in the oven for a tasty breakfast or lunch the next day.

Serves 6-8

Spinach Salad with Crispy Pancetta and Toasted Walnuts

I think this is the era of bacon. People have started bacon-of-the-month clubs, and I even have a friend who abstains from eating meat, except bacon. The salty, crispy goodness makes so many recipes taste better. Oh, I love the thinly sliced pancetta in this salad!


Ingredients

large bunch spinach
1/4 pound pancetta, thinly sliced
handful of walnuts
1 shallot thinly sliced
red wine vinegar
dijon mustard
olive oil
salt and ground pepper to taste

Wash and dry spinach leaves. Cook pancetta slices until crispy. Toast walnuts and chop.

Thinly slice shallots, place in a small bowl, cover with red wine vinegar and a pinch of salt, and let sit for 30 minutes. Add generous spoonful of mustard and enough olive oil to make a nice tangy dressing.

Dress greens, then crumble pancetta and chopped walnuts of the top of the salad. Season with fresh ground pepper.

This salad was the perfect accompaniment for the stuffed eggplant.

Serves 4