Fennel Pesto on Carrot Salad

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I thought of this recipe as a challenge, to myself, to create a dish using parts of vegetables that most people, including me, normally throw away. The other day, I was grilling a bunch of sliced fennel bulbs for a catering event. Typically, when you are cooking with fennel, you cut off the tall stalks and only use the bulb. That’s because the stalk is usually tough and not that exciting to eat. But it still has some of that lovely anise flavor. And with the stalk, most times, the fronds also get thrown out.

I created this pesto recipe using fennel stalks, fronds (leaves), and a little bit of the bulb. I then made a salad of carrot peels. That’s another part we usually peel and throw away. But the skin of carrots has a great intense flavor and contains concentrated vitamin C and niacin. This pesto is very versatile and can be used on fish, chicken, or pork tenderloin. See the “Variations” section below for more ideas.

You wouldn’t think so, but fennel is actually a member of the carrot family, although it’s not a root vegetable. When a fennel plant goes to seed, it also produces small yellow flowers among the leaves. Every part of it is edible, from the bulb to the flowers, and it can be eaten raw or cooked. It has a fresh licorice flavor. In fact, many supermarkets mistakenly mark fennel as sweet anise.

Fennel is low in calories, but high in fiber and vitamin C, and contains potassium, folate, and vitamin B-6, to name a few.

It’s a great substitute for celery in dishes for an extra depth of flavor.

Serves 4

Difficulty level: easy to medium

Ingredients

  • 2 fennel bulbs – 1 whole, including fronds and stalks, plus only stalks and fronds from a second bulb
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
  • 1/3 cup almonds
  • 1 star anise, soaked in warm water until soft (If you don’t have star anise, or for a more robust licorice flavor, you can add 1 tablespoon of dried fennel seeds.)
  • 1 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil
  • zest of 1 lemon, about 1 teaspoon
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice – or more to taste
  • sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • peeled skin of 8 carrots, or 3-4 full carrots including the skin

Instructions

Wash and roughly chop the fennel bulb, stalks, and fronds and add to the food processor. Optional – Save some of the fronds for garnish.

Add the garlic, parmesan cheese, almonds, and star anise, and/or fennel seeds. Pulse until combined.

While the machine is running, slowly add the olive oil until it all comes together and makes a sauce. You may not use all olive oil, or use more, depending on your desired consistency.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Scrub the carrots clean under running water. Use a vegetable brush if you have one. Since you will be eating the skin, you want to make sure it’s clean!

Peel the carrots and put the skin strips in a salad bowl. If using the whole carrot, continue using the vegetable peeler until all the way through the rest of the “meat” of the carrot.

Toss with some of the pesto until all pieces are covered. Adjust seasoning and add more pesto if needed. Garnish with fronds.

Serve immediately or keep in the refrigerator for up to 1 day. The fennel pesto can be kept in an airtight container for up to 10 days in the refrigerator.

Variations:

  • Use the peel of rainbow carrots for a more colorful salad
  • Use the fennel pesto on sautéed fish, grilled or sautéed chicken, roast pork, grilled or roasted vegetables or grilled sausages.
  • Use as pizza sauce and top with grilled fennel bulb slices, grilled red onions, Italian sausage, and fresh mozzarella cheese
  • Add some to your marinara sauce. The fennel flavor tricks your brain into thinking there is sausage in the sauce!

Do Ahead:

  • The pesto can be made up to 10 days ahead. Keep in an air-tight container and refrigerate.
  • The salad can be made 1 day ahead and refrigerated.
Less food waste by using fennel stalks and carrot peels.

Cranberry & Goat Cheese Tart

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I was invited to an outdoor potluck picnic in the Santa Cruz mountains a couple of weeks ago. The spot was so beautiful and rustic with tall trees and an ocean view in the distance. Gorgeous!

I wanted to bring something delicious of course, but also something to match the rustic atmosphere. Also I didn’t want something that needed to be heated or kept cold. So I looked in my refrigerator to see what I had on hand and decided on this cranberry and goat cheese tart.

The flavor combinations of this tart are so complex – sweet from the cranberry chutney, tangy from the goat cheese, and peppery from the arugula on a crispy, flaky puff pasty dough – it’s hard to believe how easy it is to make. And with only 4 ingredients! (If you don’t count the flour for the work surface.)

Serves: 4-6 as an appetizer

Difficulty Level: So easy

Ingredients

  • 1 sheet puff pastry
  • about 3/4 cup cranberry chutney
  • 8 oz of goat cheese
  • 2 hand fulls of arugula

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Flour your work surface and roll out the puff pastry sheet until it’s about 2 inches wider on each side.

Use parchment paper or aluminum foil to cover a sheet pan for easy clean up later, but totally not necessary. The puff pastry has enough butter on it’s own that it wont stick to the pan.

Before adding toppings, put the rolled out pastry sheet on the sheet pan. Something I didn’t do and it was not fun to move after it had all the toppings.

Spread the cranberry chutney on top, leaving a one-inch border.

Top with pieces of crumbled goat cheese.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 20-25 minutes or until the edges are golden brown.

As soon as you take it out of the oven, top with the arugula. I love having the arugula warm up and wilt a little before serving.

Let rest for about 5-10 minutes before serving. Just that easy!

Variations:

  • make them into bite-sized hors d’ oeuvres. After adding the goat cheese, add the arugula and roll as tight as you can. Cut into 1-1.5″ pieces, lay them flat, and bake on a baking sheet. The oven temperature and time area about the same as the whole tart.
  • Use mango chutney instead of cranberry.
  • Use Feat cheese instead of goat cheese.
  • Add chopped walnuts or pine nuts.

Do Ahead:

  • Assemble up to the point of baking. Wrap with saran wrap and refrigerate up to one day ahead.

Stacked Polenta, Eggplant, & Smoked Mozzarella

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This dish is so delicious and can be presented so beautifully that you will definitely want to add it to the list of your go-to recipes especially for entertaining. Even if you are not vegetarian, like me, you will love this dish with all the layers of flavors and textures. The smoked mozzarella is key in giving it a layer of complexity that will keep you coming back for more. Any season, any reason, this is a great meal to make.

Although tomatoes are available year-round, they are in season and at their best between June and September. So during  those months I use fresh ones. All other times, I use canned or boxed tomatoes. I like to use Pomi chopped tomatoes.

A quick note on how to read recipes. Below I have written in the instructions, “1 cup polenta, cooked…” This means measure 1 cup of dried polenta and cook it. If I had said, 1 cup cooked polenta, that would mean cook the polenta first and measure 1 cup of it.

Serves 2-4            Difficulty level: Intermediate

Ingredients

Sauce

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 ½ pounds fresh, ripe tomatoes, cut into 1” pieces. You can substitute canned tomatoes when not in season. I like to use Pomi chopped tomatoes.
  • sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes or cayenne
  • 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
  • 2 tablespoons vodka
  • ¼ cup crème fraich
  • 1/4 cup chiffonade basil for garnish

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Instructions

The sauce – Heat a medium saucepan on medium-low heat. Add the olive oil. Once heated, add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 20-30 seconds. Add the chopped tomatoes with the juices and turn up the heat to medium-high until it comes to a boil. Turn heat down to medium-low again and cook the tomatoes for about 20 minutes or until soft. Add the spicy pepper.

Puree the sauce either in a food processor, or with an emersion blender. Return to the pan and season with salt and black pepper. Add the vodka and bring to a boil. Cook for a few minutes until the alcohol has evaporated. Lower the heat and add the crème fraich. Stir to mix. Add the parsley and stir. Keep warm until ready to use.

Eggplant, Mozzarella, & Polenta

  • 1 globe eggplant
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 8 ounces smoked Mozzarella cheese, grated
  • sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 1 cup polenta, cooked and put in a dish to set (click here to watch a quick video on how to cook polenta_

Slice eggplants about ½ inch thick with skin on. Depending on the size of the eggplant you should have about 10-12 slices, but make sure to have at least 4 – one for each serving if doing single layer.

Brush both sides with the olive oil and grill on medium heat until cooked, about 2-3 minutes on each side. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Assembly and Cooking

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Un-mold the polenta by inverting the pan on a cutting board. Cut the polenta in 4 squares. If using individual ramekins, use a knife to loosen the polenta and un-mold.

Place the squares of the polenta and slices of grilled eggplants on a cookie sheet, top with some mozzarella cheese. Heat in the oven until the cheese melts, about 5 minutes

To assemble, put some sauce on the bottom of each plate or platter. Make stacks by putting one square of polenta, topped with one piece of eggplant. Add more sauce and repeat with another layer. You can also serve it as one layer.

Finish with more sauce on top and chiffonade basil.

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Variations:

  • Serve as an appetizer by making it into smaller stacks. The picture above is a small square of polenta, a thin slice of eggplant cut in half and then folded in half.
  • Make it lighter by omitting creme fraiche or use 1/2 & 1/2. Milk will not work. It will make it too watery.
  • Don’t make it spicy by leaving out red pepper flakes.
  • Don’t puree the sauce and use it as a chunky sauce.
  • Use other vegetables like zucchini, mushrooms, or red peppers. Or a combination of vegetables.
  • make it in a baking dish and layer like lasagna
  • Use regular mozzarella instead on smoked.

Do Ahead:

  • The sauce can be made up to one week ahead and refrigerated in an airtight container. Or freeze for up to one month. When ready to use, bring to a boil, simmer on low heat for 5 minutes.
  • Polenta can be made up t0 5 days ahead and refrigerated.
  • Eggplants can be grilled and refrigerated for up to 3 days. I haven’t yet tried to freeze them. If you try it, please share your findings.

Cranberry Sauce

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This is so easy you will never want to buy another can of cranberry sauce!

Variations:

  • Add spices like cloves, cinnamon, or ginger.
  • Add fresh herbs like thyme or rosemary while it’s cooking
  • Use cranberry sauce on chicken, duck, pound cake, ice cream…
  • Making a leftover turkey salad? Add some cranberry sauce to the mix, with some nuts and celery.

Do Ahead:

The sauce can be made 5 days ahead of time. Keep refrigerated. You may need to add a little liquid when reheating.

Bruschetta

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This bruschetta always reminds me of that scene in the movie Julie & Julia. You know the one, at the beginning of the movie when she is thinking about starting a blog. Anyway, every time I see that scene my mouth waters and I have to make some. Even if it’s not tomato season.

It’s usually a summer kinda dish so when I crave in the cold seasons, I just warm up the tomato mixture slightly before serving it on the bread. Enjoy!

Serves 2          Difficulty Level: pretty easy and quick

  • 2 medium tomatoes, chopped
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons chopped red onion
  • Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
  • 1/2 cup chiffonade basil leaves – click here to watch a video on how to chiffonade
  • 4 1″-1.5″-thick slices of baguette or French bread
  • 3-4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Since the tomatoes are the main attraction in this dish, choose ones that are juicy and flavorful, like heirloom, or vine-ripened ones. Cherry tomatoes also work.

In a small bowl, mix the chopped tomatoes, garlic, and onion. Add about 2 teaspoons of olive oil, season with salt and pepper and stir to combine. Stir in the basil. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. It’s best to let it sit for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 day ahead, but most of the times I am not that patient. When I make this dish it’s because I have a craving and I need to have it ASAP!

Bruschetta

Heat about 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a medium pan. Add the sliced bread and fry on both sides until lightly brown and crunchy.

Place two pieces on each plate. Divide the tomato mixture into four portions and place on top of the bread slices. Enjoy with a knife and fork or devour by picking it up with your hands. Guess which one is my favorite way to eat it?

Variations:

  • Make it lighter by toasting the bread with no oil instead of frying it.
  • Make it lighter by not adding any olive oil to the tomato mixture.
  • In a pinch, and if you are absolutely desperate, for example if you are stranded on a deserted island, you can use chopped canned tomatoes. Let the juice drain completely.
  • Serve it slightly warm – but not cooked – if it’s chilly outside.

Do Ahead:

  • The tomato mixture can be made up to 1 day ahead.
  • The baguette can be fried one day ahead and heated in the toaster when ready to serve. But only if you are serving this to company and don’t want to spend your time in the kitchen while they are there. It’s really at it’s best when it’s made fresh.