Roasted Carrots & Carrot Top Pesto

Lately I've been picking up bunches of organic carrots at Sprouts that still have their leafy tops attached to them.  After a quick search to check that carrot greens are indeed edible (though somewhat bitter if eaten alone), I decided to make a pesto out of them.  I've been using this pesto on pasta, scrambled eggs, veggies, pork - so many things can go with pesto!  Be sure to wash your carrot greens well since they tend to be quite sandy.

Keep your carrot greens and make pesto!

Olive Oil Flatbread Pizza

Flatbread pizza with brussels sprouts, prosciutto, and mozzarella

This pizza dinner was inspired by several factors: 1) we had just bought a bag of brussels sprouts from Costco, 2) on the same Costco trip I was craving cheese and charcuterie so we picked up mozzarella and a mix of salami, prosciutto, and coppa, and 3) we had recently returned from NYC where we ate a delicious brussels sprouts pizza at Motorino.  Unfortunately I don't have a picture from Motorino to show you for comparison (I was too engrossed in partaking in the deliciousness), but my memory tells me it must have looked pretty similar to the pizza we made.

Instead of adding sauce to the pizza, we just drizzled some olive oil and freshly ground black pepper.  I prepped the brussels sprouts the same way I do my oven roasted brussels sprouts, peeling off some individual leaves so they get nicely browned and become like veggie chips in the oven.  I actually roasted the brussels sprouts on their own first to make sure they were fully cooked and crispy.  I love flatbread and thin crust pizza for the extra crunch in the crust.  Plus, thin crust doesn't fill me up as quickly so I can eat more pieces!  I've tried this flatbread recipe several times lately and it's worked out well for pizzas, as an accompaniment to dips, or a snack on its own.  Keep in mind that it will not be a chewy, doughy pizza crust but more of a thick cracker.

Olive Oil Flatbread (and Pizza)

1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 450F and place a pizza stone or heavy baking sheet on the middle rack.
2. Stir together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl or mixer bowl.  
3. Make a well in the center, then add water and oil.  With a wooden spoon or dough hook attachment, mix the ingredients on low until a dough forms.  Use a spatula to scrape the sides of the bowl and keep the dough together.  Knead dough on medium speed for 1-2 minutes.  
4. Divide dough into 3 pieces.  Working with one piece at a time while keeping the remaining dough covered, roll out dough on a sheet of parchment paper into a circle about 1/4 inch thick.  
5. Lightly brush top with additional olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt.  If making pizza, add your pizza ingredients at this time.   
6. Slide the parchment paper with the flatbread onto the preheated pizza stone or baking sheet.  Bake until pale golden and browned in spots and pizza cheese is melted, 8 to 10 minutes.  While each flatbread is baking, work on rolling out the dough for your next flatbread or pizza on a new sheet of parchment paper. 
7. Remove finished flatbread from the oven by sliding out the parchment paper and keeping the pizza stone or baking sheet in the oven for the next batch.  Let flatbread or pizza cool on a rack for a few minutes before slicing and eating.

Oven Roasted Kale Chips

I've been on a vegetable roasting kick for the past year.  Aside from these delicious roasted brussels sprouts, my other staple is roasted kale.  These crisp up very nicely and amazingly do take on the satisfying crunch of real chips.  Don't be overly ambitious like me in piling kale leaves onto your cookie sheet - it's important to bake these in 1-2 layers so that they cook evenly and all take on the same texture.

If you don't plan to serve this immediately, I'd suggest letting them cool in a single layer on the cookie sheet before you place them in a container.  Otherwise, any residual heat will cause them to soften inside the container and lose their crunchy texture.  Good luck with that though, we snacked through half our batch before it even made it onto the dinner table. :)

Oven Roasted Kale Chips
Serves 2

1 bunch of curly green kale (another variety of kale should work too)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika, optional

1. Preheat oven to 300F.
2. Remove the stems and cut off the tough center ribs of each kale stalk.  Cut leaves into bite-size pieces, roughly 2" in diameter.  
3. Wash kale thoroughly and spin dry in a salad spinner.  Give it a few extra spins since it's crucial to get them as dry as possible or else the water droplets will steam your kale in the oven.   
4. In a bowl, toss leaves with olive oil, salt, and paprika.  Spread leaves in a single layer onto a cookie sheet.  Use an additional cookie sheet if necessary.
5. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes until crispy.  Ten minutes into baking, check on the kale and use tongs to stir or gently turn the leaves over for even baking.  When kale is crispy, remove from the oven and serve immediately or leave the chips on the cookie sheet to cool. 

Oven Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Roasted brussels sprouts have become quite a popular item on many menus lately.  Seeing as how we really enjoy roasting other vegetables, we decided to give this a try this week.  The last time I had brussels sprouts was when I was a kid.  They didn't leave much of an impression on me, though books and movies certainly left a negative impression of them in my memory. After this trial, I can say for sure that I enjoy brussels sprouts.  At least when they are roasted.  Even more so when individual leaflets are roasted to a nice crunchy brown - brussels sprout chips!  We made these two days in a row.  The second time we actually peeled off the leaflets of each brussels sprout so that we could have a whole tray full of these delicious veggie chips.  The brussels sprouts taste great reheated, but the chips do lose their crispiness within a couple hours. 

Roasted Brussels Sprouts
serves 2

1/2 lb brussels sprouts
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1/8 tsp smoked paprika (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 400F.  This amount of brussels sprouts should also fit well in the toaster oven.
2. Cut off the browned ends of each brussels sprout.  Slice in half lengthwise.  Save any leaves that fall off, or peel off more leaves if desired.
3. Place cut brussels sprouts and leaves, olive oil, salt, pepper and smoked paprika in a medium bowl.  Toss until the brussels sprouts are well coated.
4. Spread brussels sprouts in a single layer on a baking pan.  Roast in the oven for about 40 minutes, stirring the contents halfway through to ensure more even cooking.  Brussels sprouts are done when individual leaves are browned and crispy and intact halves are softened and cooked through.

Roasted Asparagus

One of my favorite methods for cooking vegetables is oven-roasting.  It's quick, simple, easy to clean up, and requires minimal ingredients.  Vegetables tossed in olive oil, salt, and pepper come out of the oven with intensified flavors and even a light nuttiness.  The asparagus turned out great here, though the grape tomatoes could have used some slow, lower-temperature roasting to really bring out their sweetness.   

Roasted Asparagus
Serves 4

1 bunch of asparagus (about 1 lb)
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 400F.  Rinse the asparagus to clean.  Cut off the tough ends of the asparagus and discard.  (If you take a single asparagus and snap the end, typically it will snap off right where the tough/dry portion starts.  Use this snapped asparagus as your length guide to cut off the ends of the rest of the bunch.)
2. Place the asparagus in a single layer on a baking sheet or foil-covered baking pan.  Drizzle with the olive oil and roll the spears around to make sure they are evenly coated.  Rearrange the spears into a single layer and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. Place pan in the oven and roast for about 10 minutes until tender enough to pierce with a fork but still slightly crisp. 

Spinach and Roasted Bell Pepper Strata

Last week, we decided to make a strata for Saturday brunch.  The ingredients were easily compiled on Friday night and left overnight to sit in the fridge.  On Saturday morning, we simply preheated the oven, popped the dish in, and an hour later we had a delicious morning meal.  With only two of us, the delicious leftovers served us for breakfast for several days after. Yay for easy-to-prep meals with leftovers!

Spinach and Roasted Bell Pepper Strata
Adapted from smittenkitchen
Serves 6-8

10 ounces fresh spinach (or frozen spinach that's been drained and chopped)
1 1/2 cups finely chopped onion (1 large)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
8 cups cubed French or Italian bread in 1-inch cubes (1/2 lb)
8 ounces coarsely grated mozzarella (3 cups)
6 ounces roasted red bell peppers, diced (from a can or jar)
2 3/4 cups milk
9 large eggs
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1. Saute onions in butter in a skillet over medium heat until soft, about 5 minutes.  Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and nutmeg and continue cooking for 1 minutes.  Add spinach and stir until spinach is fully cooked down.
2. Lightly grease a 9x13 glass baking dish with butter.   Spread half the bread cubes into the bottom of the dish.  Top with half the spinach mixture and half the shredded cheese.  Repeat with the second half of the bread cubes, spinach and cheese.  On the top layer, evenly spread the diced roasted red bell peppers.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, mustard, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper.  Pour mixture evenly over the strata.  Cover the baking dish with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 8 hours or up to one day.
4. When you are ready to bake the strata, remove it from the fridge and let stand in room temperature for 30 minutes while preheating the oven to 350F.  Bake uncovered for 45-55 minutes, until strata is puffed up and golden brown.  Remove from oven and let stand for 5 minutes before serving.  Any leftovers can be stored in the fridge and reheated in the microwave. 

Oven roasted corn on the cob

This is an easy way to prepare corn on the cob if you don't want to fire up the grill.  Roasting the corn makes it easy to shuck and de-silk afterwards.  You can add whatever toppings you like.  In this case I added parmesan cheese, chili pepper, and fresh ground pepper.

Oven Roasted Corn on the Cob
Serves 4

4 ears of fresh corn with husks on
Salt, pepper, and other condiments

1. Preheat oven to 350F.  Place corn directly on the oven rack and roast for 35-45 minutes or until corn is soft.  
2. Remove from oven and let cool until easy to handle by hand.  Peel down corn husks and use as a handle for eating.  Top corn with condiments of your choice.

Roasted vegetables

One of my favorite, simple ways to prepare veggies is oven-roasting them. Cut up cauliflower and broccoli (and any other veggies of choice) and toss them in some olive oil, salt, pepper and paprika. Roast in a single layer at 400F for 30-40 minutes. The high heat caramelizes the veggies and brings out this great nutty flavor!