Roasted Curried Cauliflower With Cucumber Raita

Last Wednesday we picked up our last CSA share until the spring. And Saturday we had our first full-fledged snowstorm of the season. Sigh. This time of year makes me miss Berkeley quite a bit.

But enough whining. On to the food. The final haul from Hearty Roots Farm included this lovely little cauliflower. I've always been quite susceptible to the unusual, earthy beauty of the brassica family - cauliflower, romanesco, cabbage - each one so unique and fascinating-looking.

I decided that the proper way to pay homage to this beautiful brassica was by tossing it with a liberal amount of ground cumin, curry powder, salt and olive oil and roasting it with thick slices of red onion.

Roasting is one of my favorite ways of preparing cauliflower because it brings out the sweetness and enhances its slightly nutty flavor. It's downright addictive, even without the addition of curry powder. Combine the two and you've got the culinary equivalent of crack-cocaine (or so I imagine - my youth was not quite that adventurous.)

I served it with jasmine rice, a cooling, creamy cucumber raita and a smattering of mango chutney.

'Twas easy, tasty and satisfying. But I have to say that the leftovers we ate for lunch the following day tasted even better.

Roasted Curried Cauliflower

Serves 3-4

Ingredients

* 1 large (or 2 small) cauliflower, washed and cut into florets

* 1 large red onion, sliced

* 2 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed

* Couple generous glugs of olive oil

* 1 tsp sea salt

* 1/2 tsp Freshly ground black pepper

* 1 Tbsp Ground cumin

* 3 tsps curry powder and/or garam Masala

* Pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)

Directions

1. Toss the cauliflower with the spices, onion, garlic and olive oil until well coated. Turn out onto a thick baking sheet in a single layer and roast, turning several times, for 35-45 minutes, until tender when pierced with a fork.

2. While you're waiting for the cauliflower to roast, make the raita and the rice. For the raita, see below. Prepare the rice according to the instructions for whatever type you're using.

3. Serve warm and hope you have enough for leftovers the next day!

Cucumber Raita

Serves 4

Ingredients

* 1 1/2 cups plain, whole milk yogurt (use organic)

* 1/3 - 1/2 cucumber, peeled and cut into dice

* 1 clove of garlic, minced or pressed

* Sea salt to taste

* Black pepper to taste

* A handful of fresh cilantro and/or mint, washed, dried and chopped (optional)

Directions

Mix the garlic, herbs, salt and pepper into the yogurt and thin with a little milk or water to the desired consistency. Stir in the cucumber slices and herbs, cover and let sit in the fridge for several hours if you can (the flavor gets better with time, particularly if you use the herbs).

You might also like:

Coconut Vegetable Curry
• Curried Cauliflower With Spinach and Ginger
• Roasted Butternut Squash & Red Peppers With Rosemary & Parmesan
• Roasted Delicata Squash & Tortellini Salad With Greens, Cranberries & Pepitas

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Giveaway: The Food52 Cookbook - 140 Winning Recipes From Exceptional Home Cooks

Those of you who don't know about the Food52 Community yet are in for a real treat (as are those of you who already know about it.)

This new cookbook is the child of Food52, a truly inspiring, vibrant, and uniquely interactive online community of home cooks curated by food veterans, Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs.

Each week for 52 weeks (hence the name), they ran recipe contests on Food52.com, and the 140 winning recipes make up this book. They include:

• Lemon Cream Cheese Pancakes With Blueberries
• Savory Bread Pudding
• Moroccan Carrot Salad With Harissa
• Smoky Fried Chickpeas
• Grilled Brussels Sprouts
• Mashed Potatoes With Caramelized Onions & Goat Cheese
• Broccoli Rabe, Potato & Rosemary Pizza

That's just a sampling, there are far too many good ones to list them all here.

In addition to these 140 winningest recipes, you also get Amanda and Merrill's helpful comments on each recipe, as well as lots of behind the scenes photos, tips and variations.

So without further ado, I'm giving away one copy of The Food52 Cookbook.

HOW TO ENTER:

Leave a comment, either here or on my Facebook page, telling me what your signature dish is, along with your name and your email address (otherwise, I will not know how to contact you if you win -- I promise that I will not add you to any email lists.)

Comments must be received by Friday, November 4th.

I will choose a winner at random (using random.org) and will announce the winner here, on Facebook and on Twitter on November 7th and will email the winner to get her or his mailing address.

Good luck!

Thanks to the good folks at William Morrow/Harper Collins for providing me with a copy of this luscious book.

Coldframes & Hoop Houses - Extending the Growing Season

I nearly cried when reading that there is a possibility of snow later this week here in the Hudson Valley. I am just not ready for that in any way. Well, except maybe one way... We spent Saturday afternoon transplanting all our fall greens and herbs into the mini hoop house that we constructed out of an old apple crate (purchased from the Apple Bin, no less!) last spring.

Now all's we have to do is cover it with plastic and let the bad weather come (though I hope to God that it will wait until at least November if not December or even, dare I say it, January?)

As autumn deepens, I find myself clinging desperately to the last signs of summer. Although we pulled out most of our plants, we left the two cherry tomatoes standing in the hopes that a few more of the ruby beauties will have a chance to ripen before the first frost strikes. I've also been seized with an almost pathological urge to spend every waking moment out of doors while the going is still good (which has led to some lovely hikes and outings recently.) And I find myself fantasizing about cold frames, those wonderful, inexpensive ways to preserve your growing season just a little bit longer...

I personally love the idea of reusing an old window - to prevent waste, save materials and because I think they look charming.

Despite my intense appreciation of them, I am far from an expert on cold frames (or hoop houses.) So rather than pretend to know more than I do, I thought I'd share with you all some good resources for how to construct and use cold frames. So without further ado, here's a very thorough video from This Old House about how to build your own (unfortunately, Blogger is not playing nicely with Brightcove's embedding options, sigh.)

And here are a few links to check out:

• Instructables post on how to build a coldframe with recycled materials
• Little House In the Suburbs post on building a coldframe
• Inspiring glimpse of a cute, cheap, DIY coldframe from Diggin'Food

You might also like these posts from yours truly:

• Grow Your Own Garlic
• Plant an Herb Garden

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Apple Crisp - Humble, Homey & Delicious

Oh, mares eat oats and does eat oats. And little boys eat apples. At least they do in our house. There's almost nothing Will likes better than an apple (fruit leathers and lollipops do rate just a notch above apples but it's still pretty close.)

After a field trip to Stone Ridge Orchard with his nursery school class last week, he's been talking a lot about picking "the biggestest apple." So when yesterday morning dawned all gorgeous - sunny and blustery and classically autumn, we headed back to Stone Ridge to give him another shot at that "biggestest" apple. Although I did not get a picture of it (photo below is of him with a much smaller apple), he did pick an enormous Ida Red that was approximately the same size as his little head - it kept him happily occupied for the entire car ride home. And we picked about 15 pounds of pommes.

I used some of them to make apple crisp, one of our family's favorite desserts. The combination of oats, butter, apples, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, cloves and lemon juice is hard to beat.

And being naturally lazy, I also appreciate how easy it is to make. A little peeling, coring and chopping takes care of the filling.

Some mixing and clumping with your fingers does for the topping.

Then you plop the topping on  the filling and shove it in the oven. No need to tangle with the cuisinart or the rolling pin.

Shortly afterwards, mouth-watering smells begin to waft from the oven, filling your home with the essential aroma of comfort. And 45 minutes later you've got a heavenly dessert ready to serve with some ice cream.

Apple Crisp

Serves 6

Ingredients

* 6 tart apples, peeled, cored and sliced

* 4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

* 1 cup brown sugar

* 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

* 1/4 tsp ground cloves

* 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

* 1 1/2 cup rolled oats

* 1 stick of butter, room temperature

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Toss the apple slices, lemon juice, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl.

2. Layer the sliced apples in a 9 x 12-inch baking dish.

3 Combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and oats in a bowl. Cut in the butter and mix to combine with your hands. Crumble the topping over the apples.

4 Bake for 45 minutes or until the oat topping looks crunchy and the apples are fork-tender. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream or a non-dairy equivalent (I was never a fan of the soy ice cream products but they do amazing things with coconut milk these days...)

You might also like:

• Apple Bundt Cake
• Apple Pie
• Pear Bread With Lemon & Pecans
• Pumpkin Pie
• Applesauce

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Roasted Butternut Squash & Red Peppers With Rosemary, Garlic & Parmesan

When I saw Kaela post this recipe on Local Kitchen a week or two ago, I knew I would be making it soon.

I rushed right out and bought a nice-looking organic butternut squash. And then the kitchen gods smiled on us and gave us three lovely red peppers in our CSA delivery this past week. It was fate...

The rest was easy and enjoyable - just like falling in love. I peeled the butternut squash, cut it in half, removed the seeds and cubed it.

I cut a big sprig off our rosemary plant, washed it, stripped the leaves and chopped them up.

I diced the lovely red peppers and pressed some garlic (I hate mincing garlic - I always opt for the press).

Then I tossed it all together with some olive oil, salt, and black pepper in one of my handy metal mixing bowls - they're the bomb! Cheap, light, and sturdy, what more can you ask for? I highly recommend getting a set if you don't have one already.

Then I spread it in a layer on a heavy baking sheet, grated Parmesan over the top with my beloved microplane zester and put it in the oven.

I turned them two or three times while they roasted to prevent burning, then declared them finished. Topped with a bit more fresh parmesan, they were DE-LI-CIOUS! Thank you, Kaela. I will be making this again often.

Roasted Butternut Squash & Red Pepper With Rosemary, Garlic & Parmesan  
(recipe courtesy Local Kitchen)

Serves 4 as a side

Ingredients

* 1 2 1/2 to 3-lb butternut squash (or other winter squash), peeled, seeded and diced to 1/2-inch cubes

* 2 large red bell peppers, stemmed, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

* 3 garlic cloves, pressed or minced

* 3 Tbsps chopped parsley

* 4-5 sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves finely chopped (about 1 tbsp)

* Sea salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste

* 3-4 Tbsps olive oil

* 1/2 cup (2 oz) freshly grated Parmesan or Romano cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (375 degrees F convection).

2. In a large bowl, combine squash, bell pepper, garlic, parsley, rosemary, salt & pepper. Toss to mix. Drizzle in olive oil, tossing as you go, until vegetables are all lightly coated.

3. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet or large casserole dish. Sprinkle half of the cheese evenly over the top of the vegetables.

4. Roast, stirring 2 or 3 times, until the squash is tender and beginning to brown at the edges, 45–50 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top and serve hot or at room temperature.

You might also like:

• Baked Stuffed Squash,Three Ways
• Risotto With Roasted Butternut Squash & Sage
• Roasted Delicata Squash & Caramelized Red Onions With Farro & Arugula
• Butternut Squash Ravioli With Browned Butter, Sage, & Pinenuts
• Cider-Glazed Delicata Squash
• Curried Butternut Squash Soup

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Apple Rhubarb Chutney

I wanted to share the lovely results of yesterday morning's trip to Stone Ridge Orchard with you all - apple rhubarb chutney!

I looooove chutney. It's great with Indian food, on toasted cheese sandwiches with some walnuts, with roast pork, chicken and a million other ways. We tend to stock up on mango chutney whenever we have the good fortune to pass by a Trader Joe's but since we live in the hinterlands now, that's pretty rare. But it's also very easy to make and even tastier and cheaper than anything store bought.

I was planning to make curried apple chutney (which I'd still like to do if I find the time...) until I saw this recipe for apple rhubarb chutney and remembered that we had a big bag of rhubarb from Aunt Maggie's garden in our chest freezer. Rhubarb is such great stuff - I love its tangy, unique taste and smell and it's appealing mix of colors - green and pink and red.

The recipe is simple - mix apples and rhubarb with lemon zest and juice, dried cranberries, spices and a BOATload of sugar and cook it down until it's thick and delicious.

Because of all the sugar, you do need to stir it frequently and watch it to make sure it does not burn or overcook but it's a pretty manageable project that will make you and your family happy all winter and spring.

The recipe below is adapted from Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving - I decreased the sugar (the original recipe calls for 4 cups in case you want to follow it), increased the lemon juice, added a touch of salt and a bunch of fresh ginger and some cloves.

Apple Rhubarb Chutney

Makes roughly 4 8-oz jars

Ingredients

* 4 cups diced, peeled, cored apples

* 3-4 cups sugar

* 2 cups diced rhubarb, fresh or frozen

* 1/2 cup water

* Zest and juice of 2 lemons

* 1/2 cup dried cranberries

* 2 tsps grated or finely chopped fresh ginger

* 1 tsp ground cinnamon

* 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

* 1 tsp ground cloves

* 2 tsps salt

Directions

1. In a large stainless steel sauce pan, combine apples, sugar, rhubarb, water and lemon zest and juice. Bring to a hard boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and boil gently, stirring frequently, for 15 minutes. Add cranberries, ginger, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Boil gently, stirring frequently, until thick enough to mound on a spoon. While the chutney cooks down, get the water boiling in your canning pot and sterilize your jars, lids and bands.

2. Ladle the hot chutney into sterilized jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Remove any air bubbles; wipe the rims clean with a clean, wet rag or paper towel, center the lids on the jars and screw the bands down until resistance is met, then increase to finger-tip tight.

3. Submerge the jars completely in a boiling water bath and process for 10 minutes (or your recommended altitude time). Remove the jars from the canner, place on a wire rack or several dishtowels, and allow seals to set and cool for 12-24 hours. Check seals and store any that have not sealed properly in the fridge and use within a week or two. Store the properly sealed jars for up to a year in a cool, dark place.

You might also like:

• Applesauce
• Loquat Chutney
• Tomato Jam
• Zesty Cranberry Sauce with Orange 

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Roasted Delicata Squash & Tortellini Salad With Cranberries, Greens & Pepitas

I modeled this supremely satisfying salad off one that our friend, June, brought when she visited shortly after our son was born a few years ago. I remember it vividly - in part because it was spectacular and in part because I was nursing the baby every two hours at the time and was ravenous around the clock!

After I discovered delicata squash a few years ago, it quickly gained "most favored squash" status in my kitchen. In addition to their divine flavor, one of the nice things about delicatas is that you do not have to peel them - just remove the seeds and cut them up - no need to remove the skin.

The lovely, rich, sweet, slightly nutty flavor of the delicata squash is enhanced by roasting and pairs nicely with the salty, creamy tortellini and the grated parmesan cheese. The greens add a light, fresh note (I only had baby spinach on hand but I prefer arugula as it gives the salad a nice peppery bite), the pepitas add a great, smokey crunch and the dried cranberries offer some tart, sweet notes.

It's hard to stop eating this salad. We made this for lunch today and my husband and I both had to try several times before we were able to finally lay our forks down for good...

I used some fresh tortellini made by La Bella Pasta, a local company that makes great fresh pasta but this would be good with the frozen kind, too. We found a kind we really like called Putney Pasta though I'm sure there are lotsa good ones around.

Roasted Delicata Squash & Tortellini Salad With Cranberries, Greens & Pepitas

Serves 3-4

Ingredients

* 2 delicata squash, halved, seeded and cut into 1 inch chunks

* 1 clove garlic, minced or pressed

* 1 package fresh or frozen cheese tortellini

* 4 cups arugula or baby spinach, washed and dried

* 1/3 cup roasted pepitas

* 1/3 cup sweetened dried cranberries

* 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

* Handful fresh parsley and thyme, rinsed, dried and chopped

* Sea salt

* Black pepper

* Olive oil

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Toss the squash cubes with the garlic, a sprinkling of sea salt and a healthy amount of olive oil to coat on all sides on a heavy baking sheet. Put in the oven and roast, removing every 10 minutes or so to turn the pieces to prevent any from burning. It will probably take 2-3 flippings with the spatula and a total of 25-30 minutes in the oven until the pieces are soft all the way through. Remove from the oven and let cool a bit.

2. While the squash is roasting, bring a pot of water to boil and cook the tortellini according the directions on the package (will vary for fresh or frozen) then drain and toss with some olive oil in a large shallow bowl.

3. While the pasta and squash are cooking, wash and dry the greens and chop the herbs.

4. Combine the squash, tortellini, greens, herbs, cranberries, and pepitas in the large shallow bowl and top with freshly ground black pepper and freshly grated parmesan cheese to taste.

Here are a few recipes I was inspired by recently:

• Roasted Squash Salad with Spicy Pecans from Winnie at Healthy Green Kitchen
• Roasted Butternut Squash, Red Peppers & Rosemary from Kaela at Local Kitchen

You might also like these "squashy" recipes from The Garden of Eating:

• Baked Stuffed Squash,Three Ways
• Butternut Squash Ravioli With Browned Butter, Sage, & Pinenuts
• Cider-Glazed Delicata Squash
• Roasted Delicata Squash & Caramelized Red Onions With Farro & Arugula
• Candied Butternut Squash
• Gingered Winter Squash

Preserved Meyer Lemons, Moroccan Style

We spent last week visiting family and friends back in sunny (well, it was sunny last week, at least) Berkeley. Thanks to the generosity of our former neighbor, Peter, who was out of town, we were able to stay upstairs in our old house.

What a treat to be back in the middle of our beloved Gourmet Ghetto in close proximity to our favorite neighbors and all our old haunts like The Cheeseboard, Moneterey Market, Imperial Tea Court, Saul's, and Guerilla Cafe.

Although our son did not remember Berkeley--not surprising, since he'd only just turned one when we left--he did reconnect with the Meyer lemon tree in our yard in a major way (see here for a brief history of their love affair). Every time we went outside, he insisted on picking at least one lemon from the tree.

There was no way I was going to let these fine fruits go to waste so I packed them very carefully in multiple layers of ziploc bags (they're pretty juicy as lemons go...) in the middle of a suitcase, hoping against hope that all our dirty laundry would provide some protection from the bumps and jostles of baggage handling.

One extremely long day of travel later (we missed the check in window for our flight back by one minute, literally :(), ten Meyer lemons were sitting on our counter back in NY in remarkably good shape!

I've been meaning to try making preserved lemons for about five years now, ever since my culinarily gifted friend and food blogger, Kirsten introduced me to them at a lavish Moroccan feast she whipped up.And since Meyer lemons are a particularly good choice for preserving and I had a bunch of 'em, it seemed that the time had finally come. The process is quite simple though it does take roughly three weeks for them to be ready to use.

Since I have not yet made anything with them, I've included some suggestions from other blogs and sites for recipes that call for preserved lemon. The basic rule of thumb is that preserved lemons are good with anything lemons are good with/in -- lamb, fish, beef, chicken, stews, and most Moroccan food.

Preserved Lemons, Moroccan Style

Makes one quart jar

Ingredients

* 6-8 organic meyer lemons, washed and dried

* Salt (use either kosher salt or a coarse sea salt, do NOT use table salt)

* Sterilized quart jar with lid

Directions

1. Remove any stems and slice a deep X into each end of the lemon - you're basically cutting each lemon nearly into quarters but not going all the way through.

2. Working over a large bowl, pour as much salt into both ends of the semi-open lemon as you can.

3. Pour a layer of salt into the bottom of the quart jar and then press the salt-filled lemon into the bottom of jar and repeat with the remaining lemons.

4. Press the lemons down to release their juice - the liquid should cover them or nearly cover them if you're working with less juicy lemons. You can fill the jar right up to the top since the lemons will reduce as they pickle. Top with a couple tablespoons of salt.

You can also add spices if you like - some of the more common options are bay leaf, cinnamon stick, peppercorns and whole cloves.

5. Seal the jar well and leave out for 2-3 days, pressing the lemons down once a day to make sure they're sitting below the lemon juice to ensure preservation.

6. Move the lemons to the fridge and wait three weeks before using to allow the rinds to pickle fully. To use, rinse the lemons, scrape off the pulp, discard any seeds and chop or mince the rind. They'll keep in the fridge for up to 6 months.

Preserved Lemon Recipe Inspiration:

• French Lentils With Onions & Preserved Lemon from What Julia Ate
• Israeli Couscous With Roasted Butternut Squash & Preserved Lemon from Gourmet via Epicurious
• Spicy Potato Tagine With Preserved Lemon & Olives from Paula Wolfert's The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen via Epicurious
• Preserved Lemon and Spring Vegetable Risotto With Grilled Pernod Shrimp from Food 52
• Moroccan Chicken with Preserved Meyer Lemons and Green Olives from Gourmet via Epicurious
• Moroccan Meatballs With Preserved Lemon from From Kirsten's Kitchen to Yours
• Moroccan Butternut Squash Chickpea Stew from Use Real Butter
• Chicken & Green Olive Tagine from From Kirsten's Kitchen to Yours
• Chickpea & Tomato Tagine from From Kirsten's Kitchen to Yours
• 5 Ideas for Preserved Lemon from The Kitchn

You might also like these Meyer Lemon recipes:

• Candied Bergamot, Meyer Lemon & Blood Orange Peels
• Meyer Lemon and Bergamot Orange Citrus Cooler
• Meyer Lemon Sorbet