Vegetables + Salads – Page 21 – Writing With My Mouth Full

Artichokes with Pork Sausage

This recipe is from the All-Star Thanksgiving 2004 show on FoodTV demonstrated by Tyler Florence. Getting the flesh of the artichoke is a lot of work, so a Filipino father is necessary, but it’s also a wonderful Thanksgiving dish that doesn’t involve any turkey. Your artichokes should look like this after trimming them to expose the light green flesh.

The white hairs and the pink leaves should be scooped out and discarded after simmering in the flavorful broth. They are easier and cleaner to remove cooked than raw. You need 8 artichokes for this recipe to have enough by the time you clean them out.

Ingredients:
8 artichokes, trimmed down and halved
2 large pork sausages
1/2 cup chicken stock
sage leaves
2 shallots, minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
the other half of the lemon, thinly sliced
2 tbsps unsalted butter
salt, pepper, olive oil

For the flavorful broth:
1/4 cup of dry white wine
2 quarts of water
a handful of fresh parsley
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 bay leaves
half a lemon
salt, pepper

1. Bring the flavorful broth to a simmer in a large pot. Add the artichokes, cover the pot over medium heat for a little less than 20 minutes, until there is no resistance when a knife is inserted into the base of the artichokes.
2. Spoon out the artichokes carefully and try to leave the halves intact for a better presentation. Carefully scoop out the hairy choke from the center and discard.
3. In a hot, deep skillet, pour some olive oil and brown and cook the sausages for about 10 minutes. Remove and set aside. Using the same skillet, add a drizzle of olive oil to the pan and cook the sage leaves until fragrant. Add shallots, garlic and lemon slices and cook for another 2 minutes. Add chicken stock, bring to a simmer and emulsify with butter and a little bit more oil until reduced and thickened.
4. Return artichokes and sausages in the pan and cook over low heat for a few minutes to warm them up. Spoon out and serve by topping with leftover parsley.

Pumpkin Bread

Pumpkins are everywhere come Halloween time and my mother always takes one home from her kindergarten school trip. Ah, autumn. If you don’t want to spend the extra effort to bake, feel free to use Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe Butter Recipe Golden mix and follow their instructions on the box instead of using your own flour, baking soda and baking powder.

Ingredients:
3 cups fresh pumpkin, shredded
1 cup pumpkin seeds, toasted
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
3 eggs
2 tsps cinnamon
2 tsps nutmeg
half a stick of butter, melted in the microwave
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 tsp salt

1. Preheat oven to 350Ã© while you shred the pumpkin meat.
2. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, mix sugar, oil and eggs.
3. Combine both mixtures and fold in the pumpkin meat. Pour into a baking pan coated with butter and a little flour. Bake until golden brown. Test the middle section with a toothpick until it comes out clean.
4. While baking, toast pumpkin seeds in a hot skillet with a sprinkle of salt. Sprinkle on top of the pumpkin bread before it completely sets.

Pumpkin Ravioli with Maitake

Di Palo’s in New York City sells different kinds of pasta. In the fall, I like to pick up their pumpkin ravioli and buy mushrooms from the farmers’ market to match. Maitake mushrooms, also called hen of the woods mushrooms, are capless and look more like a cluster of wings. They’re very fragrant and can get expensive when they’re in season. You can substitute shiitake mushrooms if you don’t have access to them.

Ingredients:
1 package of pumpkin ravioli
a few ounces of maitake mushrooms
3 garlic cloves, minced
half a stick of butter
salt, ground white pepper

1. Add ravioli in salted boiling water. Remove and drain after 10 minutes. Set aside.
2. In a skillet, sautÃ© garlic in butter until light brown. Add mushrooms until tender. Serve along with the ravioli.

Portobello Salad with Smoked Yellow Peppers

This is one of my favorite salads. The yellow bell pepper adds a sweetness to it while the portobello mushrooms make it beefier. I don’t have a grill outside my apartment–I don’t have an outside!–so I use the stovetop and hold the bell pepper using heat-resistant tongs. You can also broil the bell peppers until all sides are dark brown. Place the broiled peppers in a brown paper bag, close and let steam for about 15 minutes. The skin removes easily after this process.

Ingredients:
fresh portobello mushrooms, brushed off dirt using paper towel
2 yellow bell peppers, julienned
mixed greens, thoroughly washed, patted dry
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 medium red onion, chopped
a drizzle of balsamic vinegar
salt, pepper, olive oil

1. Grill yellow bell peppers until slightly black. Let them cool down before slicing.
2. Drizzle olive oil on portobello mushrooms and put in the broiler until soft. Let them cool down before slicing as well.
3. In a large salad bowl, toss all ingredients together and season with salt and pepper.

Taleggio and Mushroom Tart

Taleggio, a very rich and semi-soft cheese made from whole cow’s milk, has a distinct smell. When I saw this recipe in The New York Times, I knew it would be more fragrant with earthy mushrooms. It’s a great autumn recipe if you can afford some truffles or chantarelles in season. Otherwise, shiitake mushrooms will do.

Ingredients:
1 medium-sized deep-dish pie crust shell
Taleggio cheese, rinds removed, thinly sliced
a few ounces of shiitake mushrooms, sliced and stems discarded
1 tbsp cumin seeds
1 small shallot, finely chopped
2 tbsps crÃ¨me fraÃ®che
salt, ground white pepper, olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 350Âº and bake pie shell for about 10 minutes.
2. While baking, sautÃ© cumin, shallots and mushrooms in hot olive oil until mushrooms are starting to brown. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Let the pie shell cool and then spread crÃ¨me fraÃ®che and cover with the cooked shallots and mushrooms. Top with Taleggio. Bake in oven for about 15 minutes until cheese melts.