Beet Dealer

After the almost unavoidably indulgent holiday season, I am reminded of the negative physical effects of unhealthy eating. Fatigue, bloating, crankiness, weight gain, did I mention fatigue? YAWN I'm pretty sure the amount of excess we partake in this time of year makes us all more conscious of the relationship between what we eat and how we feel. It's no wonder one of the most popular New Year's resolution is to eat healthier.

There is a quote I love by Shunryu Suzuki "Each of you is perfect the way you are, and you can use a little improvement" I'm not trying to completely change my eating habits. I'm simply trying to become more aware of what makes me feel good and do more of that, and eating healthy makes me feel good.

With that in mind I made a really tasty, pretty beet and lentil salad with a cumin vinaigrette.


I absolutely LOVE beets. Unfortunately so many people are only familiar with the canned variety, I do NOT like canned beets. It's a shame that so many people say they don't like beets when all they ever tried came from a can or jar (or boiled, which is not much better). If this has been your only exposure to beets then I wouldn't blame you for thinking you don't like them. But I think you owe it to yourself to give fresh beets a try. Just one bite, what could it hurt? Go ahead, roast one up, maybe start with a golden beet which has a more mild, subtle flavor, sprinkle it with a little salt and take just one. little. bite.

Beets are delicious little balls of earth candy. I think my favorite way to have them is roasted. Because they are so earthy, I like to pair them with something sharp, feta, vinaigrette, feta and vinaigrette... and I love them with cumin, it adds a delicious toasty flavor to their earthiness.
I've always wanted to use the beet greens because 1. they are delicious, similar in flavor to spinach and 2. it seems so wasteful throwing them away. Unfortunately my local grocery store usually has bunches of beets that have very, very wilted greens. I finally went to the nearest Whole Foods and found beautiful organic beets with equally beautiful greens. Finally!



Beet and Lentil Salad with Cumin Vinaigrette

3 red beets with their greens
3 golden beets with their greens
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup lentils (I used red, but you could use regular lentils)
salt to taste

Preheat oven to 400 Fahrenheit. Cut the greens from the beets. Place the beets in a pan, add about 3 tablespoons water, a drizzle of olive oil and sprinkle with coarse kosher salt. Cover the pan with foil and put in the oven until they give a bit to the touch, about 1 hour. Let the beets cool until you can handle them. Peel them and slice into bite sized wedges.

Remove the stems from the beet greens and thoroughly wash them. Stack the greens and thinly slice them. In a pan, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over high heat and add the greens and salt to taste. Saute until they start to wilt, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile cook the lentils. Bring 3 cups of water to a boil, add 1 cup lentils and boil until tender, about 5 minutes. Drain the lentils.

For the vinaigrette
In a pan heat 1 tablespoon olive oil, add finely chopped garlic and cumin and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Remove from heat. Add balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Salt to taste.

In a bowl combine the lentils, greens and beets. Add the vinaigrette and toss to combine. Adjust the seasonings if needed.

Creme Fraiche and Creme Fraiche Biscuits

I just remembered I need to make my creme fraiche now so it is ready in time for Thanksgiving. I am going to be using it to make these really good biscuits.
I love creme fraiche, it's something I try to have on hand. It's great with potatoes, with fish or chicken, in salad dressing, as a base for dip, with vegetables, as a finishing touch for soups, sweetened and served with fruit... you can almost always use it in place of sour cream. It adds a nice subtle tanginess. Oh and it is ridiculously easy to make.


Creme Fraiche
1 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons buttermilk

In a glass jar, add cream and butter cream. close jar and shake gently to combine. Let it sit in a warm spot for 12 - 24 hours. It should be thicker than cream, thinner than sour cream. Refrigerate until needed.

It will get thicker and more delicious as it sits. I try to make it 3 days before I'll be using it. I've heard it will keep for 2 weeks or more but I've never had any around that long.

Holiday Mashed Potatoes

I call these "holiday potatoes" because they are ridiculously rich and indulgent, the kind of food I eat only once in a great while, usually on the holidays. Unless of course my brother is in town. He inevitably requests that I make these for him. They are delicious, worth every gram of fat, calorie and carbohydrate!

5 pounds potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes (approximately)
2 tablespoons table salt
8 ounces cream cheese
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup sour cream
cream as needed

Place the potato chunks into a large pot, cover with enough water to come 2 inches above.
Add the salt and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are tender.
Drain the water from the pot. Add the cream cheese and butter, mash the potatoes until there are no lumps. Stir in the sour cream. Add cream until the desired consistency is reached. Taste and add more salt if needed.

Chiffonnade Brussles Sprouts

I'm one of those strange people who have always loved Brussels Sprouts. My grandmother would always serve them on Thanksgiving, and while it was a dish I'm sure many of my family would have been happy to see go, it wouldn't have felt like Thanksgiving without them. Take the turkey, but please don't touch the Brussels sprouts! Grandma would boil them, usually until they were overcooked which is a tradition I am happy to see go :)

I was determined to make everyone love them as much as I did which meant finding a new way to cook them. I came across shredded Brussels sprouts on a menu of a restaurant that sadly, is now long gone. They served their sprouts sauteed with shredded Parmesan. I've opted to leave the Parmesan out and roast them.

The Brussels sprouts are not really chiffonnade, but they give that appearance when they are thinly sliced across their width and, well, it sounds better than sliced Brussels sprouts.



Chiffonnade Brussels Sprouts
3 pounds Brussels sprouts, the tough outer leaves removed
1/3 - 1/2 cup olive oil
coarse salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 400.
Thinly slice across the width of the Brussels sprouts discarding the stump. (Alternatively you can use a food processor, make sure to remove the stump first.)
Toss the sprouts with the oil and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Place on a large baking sheet and roast for 15 minutes.



I like to let these roast until some of the sprouts get dark and crispy. It's a matter of preference, this is even good raw!
This is an excellent dish for people who think they don't like Brussels sprouts I've converted many people with this recipe. Confession, I'm also one of the annoying people that more or less forces you to try something even after you tell me you don't like it, convinced that you simply haven't had it prepared like this or if you have it wasn't done well or maybe your tastes have changed. (If I've done that to you, I'm sorry. I would like to say I won't do it again but that is probably not true.)

If you have any leftover which I never do (I've even made extra hoping for leftovers!) you can toss the roasted Brussels sprouts with pasta and a little Parmesan. So simple and so good!

Cheddar Cheese Mashed Potatoes

3 pounds russet potatoes
1/4 cup butter
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
hot whole milk
salt

Peel potatoes and cut into even size pieces.
Add the potatoes to a large pot and cover so water comes about 2 inches above the potatoes.
Bring to a boil then add a generous amount of salt (about 2 tablespoons).
Boil until potatoes are tender and give no resistance when poked with a fork. (depending on the size of your potatoes about 20 minutes.)
Drain the potatoes, add butter and mash with a masher until there are no lumps. Add Cheddar and mix in. Add enough hot milk to get the desired consistency. Add salt if necessary.