Layers

Well, as far as I can see, with one working eye, the blog news is that organic tomatoes really do have more nutrients, farmers' markets are a bargain priced alternative to low income families, most wine is contaminated by fungicides so if you can find organic go for it but don't stop enjoying wine with your meals, and eating grains with beans, lentils, vegetables, fruits, eggs and yogurt is really good for you. In a major medical study recently released, the so-called Mediterranean diets trumps our junk food red meat fiesta yet again.

So here's hoping our farmers are planning right now to plant all sorts of legumes and lentils, root veggies and greens galore to put sunshine inside our bodies.  And here's hoping markets share their wealth with the financially challenged too.

Meanwhile, as spring breaks through in warmer latitudes and winter continues to grip the north and challenge farmers to bring anything to the market, here is something I've been working on as a goodbye salute to the cold season.

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Polenta and Kale Layer Cake

Serves 6

2/3 cup polenta

3 cups water

1 tsp dried oregano

2 tbsp minced roasted poblano pepper

Pinch of red pepper flakes

¼ tsp salt

¼ cup shredded or grated mozzarella cheese

*carnivore options

2 bunches kale

1 med white onion, diced

5 garlic cloves, minced

3 tbsp olive oil

¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 tbsp pine nuts

¼ tsp salt

½ cup ricotta cheese (fat free is fine)

2 lg sweet potatoes

¼ tsp salt

2 cardamom pods, cracked or ¼ ground cardamom.

2 tbsp mascarpone

¼ cup grated parmesan cheese

pinch of nutmeg

1 tbsp olive oil for the pan

Grease an 8 or 9” springform pan with 1 tbsp olive oil and set aside.

Preheat oven to 375º.

Peel and coarsely chop the sweet potatoes. Put in a pot and cover with water.

Add the salt and cardamom pods. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat slightly and cook until potatoes are soft, 12-15 minutes. 

Remove cardamom pods. Using a slotted spoon or spatula, put the sweet potatoes in a food processor. Add 1 tbsp of the cooking water and hold the rest. Add the mascarpone. Quickly puree.  Set aside.

Remove kale leaves from their thick stems. Wash and drain carefully.

Combine kale, garlic and pine nuts in a food processor. Using the pulse button, chop the kale into small pieces as though making pesto.

In a small skillet, heat 2 tbsp olive oil over medium/low heat. Add onions and black pepper. Sauté 5 minutes until onions are soft. 

Stir in the chopped kale mix. Sauté 3-5 minutes until kale is soft but still bright green. Remove from heat. Add salt and ricotta and blend well. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, combine 1 cup sweet potato water with 2 cups water. Add salt and bring to a boil. Whisk in the cornmeal and continue whisking until it is absorbed and the mixture starts to thicken, 5 minutes.

Add oregano, pepper flakes and minced poblano pepper. Continue cooking over low heat 2 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoon. Add mozzarella cheese, stirring as you go and continue cooking 3 more minutes so all cheese is melted.  Polenta should be thick and creamy now.

Cover the bottom of the oiled springform pan with an even layer of the polenta.

Cover the polenta layer with an even layer of the kale mixture.

Top with an even layer of the sweet potatoes.

Top with the grated parmesan cheese and a sprinkle of nutmeg.

Cover the pan with aluminum foil. Bake at 375º for 30 minutes. Remove foil and continue baking 15-20 minutes until top is lightly brown.

Remove from heat. Cool in the pan 10-15 minutes. Remove sides of the pan.

Serve cut in wedges like a cake.

*Carnivores can add ½ cup chopped chorizo or pepperoni to the polenta or ½ cup chopped garlic sausage to the kale.

Winter Wonders

Intense color on your plate is one way to banish winter blahs and learn to love seasonal eating. Picture a spoonful of red cabbage braised with apples and caraway seed next to golden cubes of roasted butternut squash exotically scented with cinnamon and cardamom. That's not just eye-catching; it's a nutrition bonanza. Ditto a dish of spinach pasta with stir-fried kale, garlic, sunflower seeds and bright lemon zest, garnished with grated Parmesan cheese. Consider a bowl of black bean chili topped with the pure white dazzle of fresh local yogurt or sour cream and a sprinkle of chopped fresh greens beside a bowl of yellow rice.

Cabbage...kale...winter squashes...rice and colorful beans...this is how we are supposed to eat right now. Here is the moment to really appreciate the blessings of cold weather crops, those long-lived vegetables at the heart of winter farmers' markets, and the beauty of dried beans with that other preserved crop, rice. They make for eating at its most economical, ecological and exceptional nutritionally. Plus they can make you feel good not just physically but better yet, by knowing you're not destroying the planet trying to have fresh blueberries and bell peppers at this time of year--because you miss them or can't think of anything else to eat.

The red cabbage recipe is in How to Fix a Leek and Other Food from Your Farmer's Market. Here is the butternut squash that will be in this year's edition: roast a whole squash at 350 for about 50 minutes or until it is soft to the touch but not mushy. Cool, peel, seed and dice it. In a large skillet, heat 3 tbsp corn oil and add 1/2 tsp cumin seeds with 2 dried red chili peppers, chopped. Saute 30 seconds and add 1 large red onion diced. Continue to saute 5-7 minutes until the onion is soft and caramelized. Add 1 tsp ground coriander, 1/2 tsp ground cardamom and 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, stir and then add the diced squash. Add the juice of a lime, 1 tbsp brown sugar and 1/2 tsp salt. Blend everything. Keep stirring so nothing sticks to the pan, cooking until the squash is soft to a fork and heated through. Serve garnished with chopped fresh parsley or cilantro.

If you are a carnivore, now is the time to garnish these great dishes with roasted bits of locally produced meat. Maybe a brisket with the red cabbage and some mashed potatoes. Maybe a roast chicken with the butternut squash. Maybe a pork loin roasted with dried apricots, dried cranberries, prunes and onions served with wild rice and steamed kale. Tiz also the season of the small shrimp that go well with penne, parsley and peas (frozen from last spring).

For vivid color and robust flavor, easy to achieve and economical to serve for lunch or a light supper, try this red lentil soup, which serves 4-6:

3 tbsp olive oil

1 lg onion, diced

2 lg garlic cloves, minced

1 fresh red chili, seeded and minced

1/8 tsp ground chili powder

2 tsp cumin seeds

2 tsp ground coriander

1 carrot, finely chopped

1 tsp fenugreek seeds, ground if you can, no big deal if you can't

1 tsp celery seeds

1 tbsp tomato paste

1 ¼ cup split red lentils

4 cups vegetable stock and 2 cups of water

½ tsp freshly ground or cracked black pepper

½ tsp salt or more to your taste

for garnish

1 bunch scallions, finely chopped

1 bunch flat leaf parsley leaves only, chopped

juice of ½ fresh lemon (or lemon wedges for each bowl)

In a heavy gauge medium size lidded casserole or other such pan, heat oil over medium. Add onion, garlic, chili, chili powder, cumin seed and ground coriander, stirring to blend. Sauté over medium heat until onion is soft, 3-5 minutes. Add carrot and cook another 2 minutes. Add fenugreek, celery seeds and tomato paste.

Stir in the lentils, blending everything

Pour in the stock and water. Bring to a boil. Immediately cut heat to low, partially cover the pot and

simmer 35-40 minutes.The lentils should now be mushy and the soup thick.

Serve garnished with chopped scallions and parsley and lemon juice or wedges.

If you prefer a smooth soup, puree before garnishing.

You can turn this into a first class feast, by adding the best locally baked bread you can find, creamy local farm fresh sweet (unsalted) butter and high quality sea salt to sprinkle on top. If you don't do butter, go for the best local cheeses--a trio of them with varying textures. You won't believe how stunning a table set like this can be. Simple things done with perfection can serve enough joy to send you sailing into the new year.

Gong hay fa choi, everyone. The water dragon has arrived.

Or as the Chinese used to say: May your rice never burn.

Kale??

My other food book, Veggiyana, the Dharma of Cooking, was just released by Wisdom Publications in greater Boston, so I've been doing book events here and there for both books, which I am thrilled to report, have been very enthusiastically received. Interestingly, the food most questioned by buyers of both books continues to be kale. "What do I do with it?" "It's so tough I can't seem to cook it right." "What is it anyway?"

Kale is a gift to people in cold climates: a seriously nutritious green that thrives in chill. So it comes early to farmers' markets and stays late. For centuries, kale's been a mainstay of European diets from Ireland where it's the whole point of colcannan down through Germany and Portugal where it's commonly stewed into a soup with sausage and potatoes. Recently I've come upon farmers who've either sun or oven dried it into a crisp, profoundly healthy snack, one of them with chilies included for an unusual bite.

There are actually several kinds of kale: the curly leaf just called kale, the long, slender bluish green leaf sometimes known as Lacinto or Tuscan kale, and a slightly curly purplish split leaf sometimes called Russian kale. They are all sturdy greens whose toughness makes them ideal for deep frying. Wash, carefully dry (no water should be on them when they hit the hot oil) and drop in for a minute or two. The kale will come out black and crunchy and wholly in tact. You just have to be sure to get the excess oil off the curly leaves before serving them up with a pinch of salt.

No matter which type of kale you use, you'll probably have to remove the leaf from its stubbornly tough stalk. that's the part that doesn't soften so easily and becomes stringy and tough to the teeth. Its best uses are pickling, or mincing and throwing into long cooking soups/stews, or compost. You can however chop the leaves and the stems and saute the whole mess in olive oil, garlic and red onion. After five minutes you add a bit of broth, cover and braised until the kale is soft--maybe 5-7 minutes. Season with salt, pepper and a splash of balsamic vinegar to serve.

Lately, I've been cutting up the bluish Tuscan kale to add to yellow split peas flavored with cinnamon, ginger and cardamom--the recipe is in Veggiyana, the Dharma of Cooking. By first sautéeing it in oil and then finishing it in the soupy split peas, it gets tender yet keeps that gorgeous blue-green hue. With those golden peas all around it, this becomes a colorful eyeful that invites the stomach to dig in.

You can finely chop curly kale leaves into a raw kale salad right now with dried cranberries, toasted pine nuts and lemon peel--great beside grilled chicken or a bowl of polenta. If you feel lazy and want a quick, nourishing vegetarian supper, you can loosely chop and throw them into the pot with pasta you boil and then dress the combo with lots of fresh lemon juice, fruity olive oil, fresh black pepper, salt and grated cheese. It will be rich. If you feel more energetic, you can saute up some onions, garlic and pine nuts in olive oil, chop up the kale leaves and toss them in with fresh black pepper and the juice of half a lemon and braise until they're tender. Then put freshly cooked pasta into that, add cheese and enjoy.

Kale cooked with potatoes is a common German combination, and sausage can be added. A great autumn supper!