TURNIPS WITH BUTTERY CHANTERELLE MUSHROOM STUFFING

Who eats turnips? We never did when I was a kid, and as far as I know, none of my friends mom's made them either.  I never even tasted a turnip -- that I know of -- until I was in my 30's.  They're not bad. Nothing special in my opinion, but not bad. I guess most people just mash them? Personally, I'd rather have mashed potatoes. 

There is a very nice restaurant in Los Angeles called Providence. It is the first, and so far only, place I have ever had a delicious turnip. They took baby turnips and stuffed them with mushroom stuffing. It was so unique tasting, and so fantastic that every time I see a turnip now I think of Providence. 

Here is a similar preparation...

Get the smallest turnips you can find. 

I use an apple core tool and carve out the center. If they don't stand up well, which most won't, cut a small slice off the bottom so they have a flat surface to stand on and don't roll around spilling the stuffing. 

 
The stuffing will be done before the turnips, so I suggest steaming them for about 5-10 minutes until they are about 1/2 cooked. Be careful not to overcook them, we just need a little head start so they are cooked through when done. I find they overcook easily. You can go from hard to mush in very little time, so just keep checking them with a fork and you want them to be softened a bit, but definitely still firm.  

I took one large Chanterelle mushroom and cut it into a very small dice, along with 2 large cloves of garlic. Then I melted about 4 tablespoons of butter and sauteed them until the garlic was cooked and fragrant. 

Once the garlic and mushrooms were brown, I added some salt, pepper and enough bread crumbs to bring the stuffing together. 

I stuffed the turnips......

And baked at 350 for about 30 minutes until the stuffing was brown and crispy.

CREAM OF AVOCADO SOUP WITH BACON & EGGS

Avocado soup. Have you ever made it?  It's so easy -- literally takes only minutes -- and it's a great way to taste the freshness of summer, since avocado is a summery ingredient for most people, but the warmth and richness of a hearty winter soup that's going to fill you up and keep you satisfied without weighing you down. 

Adding things to the soup is also something I love to do, but I think it's best when the additions are minimal. Shredded chicken is probably my favorite, but bacon & eggs also go great with the avocado. 

Just a little bit of crispy bacon, and one scrambled egg ...

The broth and avocado are in the blender about to take a spin. After blended, I simply heat in a pan until flour is cooked and soup is slightly thickened. 

Maybe a drizzle of cream ...

Chop the bacon & eggs ...

Nice lunch.

Makes 4 cups, or 2 big bowls

2 1/2 cups chicken broth (homemade preferred)
4 Tbsp Wondra (or 2 Tbsp flour)
1 ripe California avocado
4 Tablespoons half & half or heavy cream (optional)

Dissolve the Wondra (or flour) in about 1/2 cup of warm but not hot chicken stock, then pour into a blender with the rest of the stock, and the avocado. Blend until desired consistency, I prefer it completely smooth. Once blended, transfer to a saucepan and heat until just starting to boil, then simmer for 10 minutes more, just to cook flour and to let the soup thicken a little. Add salt and pepper to taste. If I am in the mood for extra richness, I'll add a splash of half & half.

COOKING WITH BACON -- BACON WRAPPED BRUSSELS SPROUTS -- SIDE DISH

A while back I mentioned that I'd be working on side dishes. Easy recipes that would make the typically boring side dishes more interesting. But they had to be simple, and made without bizarre ingredients -- Just stuff you already have around the house. We often focus so much on the main dish that when it comes to the side dish, it's usually defaulted to something boring.  I'm just trying to mix it up. 

Well .... How do these look? Yummy, right? They were. 

It's not that I'm a huge fan of brussels sprouts. I don't hate them, but I don't love them either. Maybe this is why I'm on a quest for ways to make them great? Because they really are good for you. And I want to love them, I really do. 

The last bs dish I made was the brussels sprouts with balsamic vinegar caramelized onions. It was a big hit. A note on that dish though -- it's only good when it's fresh, so serve immediately, when they're hot. 

So now, my new recipe is a dead-simple one, because I just got back from vacation and I have a bad cold and I'm dog tired. Today I made BACON WRAPPED BRUSSELS SPROUTS.  I was at the grocery yesterday and I saw some pretty large brussels sprouts. I usually try and pick out the smallest ones, but I thought what the heck, let's try the jumbo ones and just see how they compare. 

They were really good!

Start by trimming the tough ends off. 

Then, simply wrap in bacon! I used 1/2 slice for each brussels sprout.  I also recommend using a toothpick at the seam to keep the bacon from shrinking and coming off the vegetable. 

Into a 450 oven for about 25-30 minutes (or until bacon is done and the BS is tender)

Tender inside... crisp, smoky bacon outside. Guys, these were delicious! 

SIDE DISH~ BRUSSELS SPROUTS with BALSAMIC VINEGAR CARAMELIZED ONIONS

This dish is rich, and slightly sweet from the onions, a tiny bite from the cayenne, and lots of delicious caramelizing! It's A-Mazing. 

OK, so I'll admit, my first choice for this dish was not Brussels sprouts. This developed out of necessity, because my original ingredient was sweet peas. But my sweet peas were rotten. Shoot! It was a last minute thing - I looked in the fridge, my choices were broccoli, collard greens, Chinese cabbage, Brussels sprouts and green chard. The best fit I saw, was Brussels sprouts. 

Ingredients:

serves 4

2 large yellow or white onions

2 oz pancetta or bacon

Brussels sprouts for 4 - about 1 lb

1/4 cup sherry vinegar

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup water

1/4 tsp white pepper

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp sugar

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp butter

To begin, saute the pancetta (or chopped bacon) in the butter and olive oil for 3 minutes.

Add the onion. Reduce to low, and stir frequently. You do not want to brown the onions. You are caramelizing them. Slow cooking. 

Keep stirring ....

Almost there ...

OK, now add the vinegars, salt, pepper, sugar, cayenne and water. Bring to a boil. Cook on medium-high until all liquid is reduced. 

After the liquid was reduced, I moved the onions aside, and I added the bs and sauteed them on med-low until golden.

Serve immediately.  

SIDE DISH - KEN'S CHINESE FIVE SPICE ASPARAGUS

About a year (or two?) ago I was on the phone with my best friend and she mentioned that her husband made this great asparagus on the grill ... 

He seasoned it with Chinese Five Spice. Interesting, I thought. That was pretty much the end of it.

A long time later -- I remembered it out of the blue. Maybe because it was interesting, or maybe just for no reason at all, but I thought it would make a great "Side Dish" post. 

You'll need:

1 bunch young asparagus

1 tsp olive oil

1 TBSP Butter

1 TBSP Chinese Five Spice

Salt & Pepper to taste

(optional - and only if you like sweet stuff) 1 tsp Brown Sugar

I was too lazy to uncover the grill. So, I steamed my asparagus. 

Then I flash-browned it in the olive oil & butter.

The five spice, as  you can see, is mostly warm spices, so if you liked things sweet, a generous pinch of sugar (or brown sugar!) would go excellent with the flavors. My husband does not like sweet foods though, so I just used the five spice and s&p.

After the quick saute, dust with the five spice powder (and sugar, if desired) and toss. It's different, intensely flavorful, exotic, easy and GOOD.

SIDE DISH - POTATOES AND KALE

One thing that frustrates me is that there are just not very many interesting side dishes out there. Steamed vegetables. Baked potato. Grilled asparagus. Yawn.

Finding interesting side dishes to go with the 1000 ways I can make chicken has become a priority for me lately. I don't need another way to make chicken. I need stuff to eat along with the chicken! Lately I have been looking at food thinking mainly of ways I can make a side dish with it ...  ways to pair it with vegetables, make it healthy, but still good because I have some picky eaters in this house.  

So, first up  -- KALE & POTATOES

serves 4

1 bunch kale

1 large baking potato (or a couple smaller potatoes)

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp butter

salt & pepper to taste

(optional) 1 clove chopped garlic

I like to microwave my potatoes in their skin, this way it cooks them without water making them mushy. Important especially if you want to brown the potatoes. And, it's fast! But cook your potatoes however you like, then set aside to cool while the kale cooks.

Clean and chop the kale (remove stems) and boil in water for about 15 minutes, or per your own preference if you like it soft or extra firm. Kale is pretty rugged, and it can really be cooked to death and still be great. Undercook it and it might be a bit too firm textured for some first-time kale eaters.  If you've never had it before, just taste a piece after 15 minutes or so to determine if you prefer it cooked more. When done, drain well and set aside. 

Dice the potato. Heat the olive oil and butter until the butter is lightly brown and fragrant. Saute the potatoes until brown and crispy at the edges. Add the garlic only in the last 2 minutes of crisping the potatoes so the garlic doesn't burn. 

Mix potatoes and kale, salt & pepper to taste.

DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT MEANS TO MISS NEW ORLEANS?

We go to NOLA for the food. I wish there was someplace in Southern California that made a half-way decent version of the classics, but there just isn't. So,  you have to make it yourself when you crave it. And I'll be honest - if  you're not  a local, you're not going to make it the same. I don't give a shit who's recipe you've got. 

We DO however, have kickass seafood, so that helps. It'll cost you... but if you want some live sweet shrimp that were caught a few hours ago, you can buy them. Pearson's Port is a local seafood merchant, family owned, in Newport Beach. The wife runs the store, the husband fishes. They have all sorts of goodies, whatever is in season. Today it was sweet shrimp (live) and halibut. Caught that day. 10 jumbo shrimp, $25. 1/2 lb of halibut, $10.00. Yowza. Aren't they beautiful though!

Since they were alive, I quickly plunged them into boiling water to - um - dispatch them. I wanted to do a New Orleans bbq shrimp saute' and I wasn't about to toss them into the frying pan kicking, and I can't do the knife in the head thing, so this was the nicest way I could think of. 

After they were no longer kicking, I sauteed them with some garlic, salt, pepper, Worcestershire, thyme, oregano and some spice until done, then added the butter for the finish. A little rice on the side and some crispy bread. The shrimp was to die for - better than lobster. Worth the $25.00. 

This is my $10 piece of halibut. I think tonight I'll cut it into chunks and panko it.

OK... so, moving on. 

These little gremlins are called Merlitons. A common vegetable in New Orleans. About a month ago I made a classic dish, Stuffed Merlitons. 

Dice onions, green pepper, celery & garlic. Cut the Merlitons in half. 

Saute' the onions, peppers, garlic, celery and about 1/2 lb ground beef until brown.  

Boil Merlitons until barely tender (over cook them like I did and they'll be mushy).

Remove the pit. Then remove flesh - leaving the tough skin intact (way easier said than done!)  This was a lot of work and honestly, I'll never bother with it again. 

Mix the flesh with the meat mixture, then stuff the shells. Sprinkle with bread crumbs and some parmesan,  and bake at 350 until golden on top.  They were really good, but next time I'll just mix it all together like a casserole - no need to stuff a shell you can't eat. 

AND...  Lastly, some Shrimp Étouffée! 

I didn't follow a recipe, I just made it from "taste memory."  

First, the dirty rice. Saute sausage and onion, bell pepper and garlic. Add rice and water and cook. 

The shrimp were sauteed in butter, garlic, green pepper, celery and onion, then I added flour and homemade chicken stock to make the sauce. I finished with a few dashes of cayenne pepper and Cajun seasoning, a pinch of thyme and fresh green onions. Served with the rice and collards. 

  

After all this food, I think I got the cravings out of my system for a little while. You can't really go to New Orleans in the summer, it's too damn hot. California beach weenies like us can't take the hot humid Gulf Coast climate.