October 10 weekly menu | fall table

Farm Fresh

beets, carrots, fennel, gourmet greens, collard greens, lettuce, onions, sweet peppers, winter squash

What’s for Dinner?

The last of summer’s sweet peppers, and I’ll make good use of them for sure! Fresh and crunchy, in salads, and soft and golden, in a Spanish vegetable paella. And the four cortland onions I got will meld with nearly everything, from pizzas and enchiladas to soups and waffle night. It’s a perfect mixture of farm-fresh produce this week, for so many comforting early fall meals.

Friday – pizza & scary movie night

fennel sausage & onion pizza (Food Network)
fig and fennel salad (Culinate)

Saturday – acorn squash, mexican style

mexican chopped salad with beets & walnut dressing (Food and Wine)
winter squash enchiladas (Pinch of Yum)

Sunday – sunday supper in spain

green salad with lemon vinaigrette (Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa)
multi-vegetable paella (Yotam Ottolenghi, Plenty)
bread, spanish olive oil

Monday – post-soccer one-pot

pasta with sausage & collard greens (Mark Bittman, The Best Recipes in the World)

Tuesday – veggie jam  + waffles

chicken ‘n waffles (Mark Bittman, How to Cook Everything)
fennel, onion, & apple chutney (Not Eating Out in NY)

Wednesday – mid-week rich, smooth & velvety

roasted carrot and fennel soup (Serious Eats)
chopped salad (Bon Appetit)
crusty bread

Thursday – sammie night

roasted beet, gorgonzola, & walnut bread panini (Williams Sonoma)
carrot fries (Martha Stewart)

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Friday – pizza & scary movie night

fennel sausage & onion pizza (Food Network)
fig and fennel salad (Culinate)

I scoped out the Ken’s Artisan Pizza menu for a little autumn pizza inspiration this week. I had to look no further than the ultra straightforward sausage and onion version. This Food Network recipe is just a guide and walks you through the caramelizing of the onions and browning of the sausage. Very straightforward, the important tidbit being “low and slow” for the onions so they do not brown too quickly. I’ll pick up some sausage with fennel mixed in. This particular recipe uses blue or gorgonzola cheese, which would be rich and fabulous. But use whatever cheese you like – mozzarella, fontina, etc. This is a “no sauce” pizza; the olive oil and caramelized onion provide the base instead (try it with a little sprinkling of crunchy salt too!). Follow this prior Pizza Night post for a no-fail dough recipe I rely on each week. It makes enough for two pizzas, even three if rolled out in the super thin, best-for-crispy-pizza style. To complement the Italian sausage, I’ll make a favorite fall salad, chock full of sweet figs and crunchy fennel (to simplify, I’ll skip the prosciutto). My bag of gourmet greens will be a nice base for this; I’ll also buy some extra arugula for both the salad and a pizza topper as it’s pulled from the oven. Just like Ken’s heavenly pies!

Other seasonal pizza combinations:

spinach and chive pizza
leek, chard, & corn flatbread
kale, sundried tomato, & feta pizza
pizza with green garlic & arugula
pizza bianca with goat cheese & chard
zucchini, sliced tomato, & leek pizza 
grilled pizza with kale, mushroom, & sausage
fresh ricotta and red onion pizza
sweet onion pizza
pizza with grilled fennel and parmesan
eggplant & tomato pizza
caramelized onion, kale, & corn flatbread
classic margherita pizza
potato & rosemary pizza
pizza with red and yellow peppers

Saturday – acorn squash, mexican style

mexican chopped salad with beets & walnut dressing (Food and Wine)
winter squash enchiladas (Pinch of Yum)

A go-to family favorite during the season of never-ending winter squash…enchiladas! I’ll use my acorn squash this week in these lickety-split vegetarian enchiladas. I’ll skip the homemade tomatillo sauce, and pick up a favorite jarred version from the store. I always find it easier to pre-roast any squash I’m using first. Just cut in in half and place it face down in a hot oven until it’s easier to peel and cut into chunks. I’ll substitute my own sweet peppers for the green, skip the mushrooms, and add a can of drained and rinsed black beans. Chopped chicken would be a welcome addition too, either in place of the black beans, or right alongside. Toppings will include freshly chopped cilantro, a couple types of salsa, and maybe some sour cream or plain yogurt. And I can’t wait to try this salad. I’ll pre-roast and peel my beets at the beginning of my veggie week, keeping them at the ready for this recipe and more. Here, they are cut into small cubes and combined with apples, fennel, avocado, greens and tortilla chips. With a zesty lime and walnut vinaigrette, it seems the perfect way to combine our northwest autumn bounty with south-of-the-border inspiration.

Sunday – sunday supper in spain

green salad with lemon vinaigrette (Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa)
multi-vegetable paella (Yotam Ottolenghi, Plenty)
bread, spanish olive oil

I’ve always been a little intimidated by paella, widely considered Spain’s national dish. To get the rice just right, not burned on the bottom or mushy throughout, is just the start. Often the recipes seem downright overwhelming, or somehow very “special occasion”. But with an on-again-off-again rainy weekend ahead, I pulled out Plenty knowing I’d find a veggie-centric Sunday supper I couldn’t resist. This multi-vegetable paella jumped right out, a wildly colorful, one-pot main course. With red peppers, onions, fennel, and tomatoes (believe it or not, I’ve still got ’em coming), I can’t not give it a whirl. Smoked paprika, turmeric, saffron, and a little cayenne, as well as a finishing sprinkle of lemon juice, combine to create a flavor combination that is sure to wow. While the ingredient list may seem lengthy, there’s nothing wildly exotic or unavailable. My veggie delivery provides the bulk, with the rest easy to come by. If I don’t see frozen fava beans at the market, I’ll pull out my always-on-hand edamame. For an extra special treat, pick up some premium Spanish olive oil. It will take any simple salad up a notch, and be the perfect dipper for some crusty bakery bread.

Monday – post-soccer one-pot

pasta with sausage & collard greens (Mark Bittman, The Best Recipes in the World)

Always in search of those weeknight meals that are one-pot (I don’t count the pasta boil pot!) and can easily be made ahead. With a quick warm-up during the frenzied post 8 p.m. rush in the door, this healthy and hearty dish will soothe both stomaches and souls. Even if you don’t make it ahead of time, this dinner can be made in the amount of time it takes to boil pasta. I’m opting for a pre-cooked turkey sausage that I’ll just slice and brown with the garlic and red pepper flakes. I’ll save a step, throwing all of my chopped collards in with the pasta, cooking them together. That’s it – drain, toss together with the other ingredients, and pass lots of freshly grated parmesan.

Tuesday – veggie jam + waffles

chicken ‘n waffles (Mark Bittman, How to Cook Everything)
fennel, onion, & apple jam (Not Eating Out in NY)

This is a “make up” dinner. I’m making up to my son, who pitifully came home from a recent sleepover asking why the heck do I not make waffles, whipped cream, and bacon for dinner?!? It was a fair question, as this is indeed a fabulous sounding supper. In that spirit, I’ll try to please this week with an on-trend fried chicken and waffle combo, complete with a sensational seasonal veggie chutney. Nope, I don’t do fried chicken. I might eat a piece, but I’m not cooking it. But I’m certain someone out there does it remarkably well, deli-style. I’ll pick some up, and spend my kitchen efforts on the simple buttermilk waffles and fennel, onion, & apple chutney (jam, relish, sauce, etc.). The chutney’s ingredients are minimal, but do allow an hour or so of slow cooking time, a prime do-ahead candidate. In addition to being delicious with fried chicken and waffles, the chutney would be right at home in so many places: along side any grilled meat; spread on a sandwich; with a hunk of your favorite cheese; dolloped on top of roasted root vegetables, on top of salted, broiled crostini, the possibilities are endless. Now my son just may skip the chutney and go the whipped cream route, which is a fine option indeed.

Wednesday – mid-week rich, smooth & velvety

roasted carrot and fennel soup (Serious Eats)
chopped salad (Bon Appetit)
crusty bread

The ingredient list is short, and right in line with my veggie box. It’s a stand-out soup, where the veggies are roasted until caramelized and rich. Once the carrots, onions, and fennel are golden and soft, toss them in a soup pot, and after adding the little bit of butter, wine and broth, puree with an immersion blender. Done! While I’m roasting the veggies, I’ll toss together a chopped salad. This one calls for fennel, red pepper, and romaine; “chopped” to me means whatever fresh vegetables (plus salami or chicken or chickpeas or…) you’ve got and love. A simple balsamic vinaigrette and some sprinkled parmesan will pull it all together. Add your favorite bakery bread for soup-dipping.

Thursday – sammie night

roasted beet, gorgonzola, & walnut bread panini (Williams Sonoma)
carrot fries (Martha Stewart)

The Thursday sammie night routine is a keeper. Modify fillings to your heart’s content; just know that beets and gorgonzola (or any type of blue cheese) is a match made in heaven. And it’s another stress-free night with my beets already roasted and peeled. Lots of bakeries will have a nice walnut bread – the sandwiches will resemble the beet, cheese, & walnut salads you pay big bucks for in a restaurant! But if walnut bread isn’t your thing (or your kids’!), pick whatever, but I do think a heartier, nuttier, whole wheatier bread would taste best in this combo. Forget the mayo, sprinkle with a little balsamic & olive oil instead. You could easily add some thinly sliced roasted chicken, and that would fit right in too. For a side dish, I’ll cut some carrots into nice fry-size pieces, tossing them on a baking sheet with olive oil & salt, and roasting until they’re browned and a little crispy. Not exactly french fries, but delicious indeed!

“What the Kale?!?”

Don’t panic and get out the compost bin if all of the sudden you have a giant veggie delivery coming your way, and you still have a fridge full.  Here are a few suggestions for preserving the bounty!  (Soups and stews freeze wonderfully in those gallon zip lock freezer bags.)

• red bell pepper soup (Alice Waters, The Art of Simple Food)
• delicata squash soup (A Chow Life)