Witchy Kitchen

Tag: shallots

  • Olive Oil Braised Veggies

    I am a prolific veggie roaster. After sweeping in from work, before I’ve even taken off my heels I’ve got the oven heated and chopped veggies with little more than olive oil, sea salt and fresh cracked pepper on their way in. It’s hard to beat from a time standpoint, and there’s something to be said for keeping it simple and just letting your veggies do the talking.

    But to elevate my veggie game just a little bit, there’s this braising method – still refreshingly simple, just dressed up a little bit. There’s something so nice about the fresh cleanness of the veggies, gently cooked to maintain their shape and color, with the richness of the immensely flavorful olive oil. It makes for a pretty side dish, perfect to be mopped up with crusty bread, or even a light meal over rice or quinoa.

    It works for all kinds of vegetables, you just add them in the order of cooking time. I used baby red potatoes, carrots, and asparagus, but you can swap them out for whatever you like, just add the longer-cooking ones first. I love this combination of aromatics but you can play around with them as well depending on taste and what you have around in the kitchen.

    Olive Oil Braised Veggies

    • 1/2 cup olive oil
    • 1 lemon, cut into thin wedges (divided)
    • 1/4 cup sundried tomatoes, cut into strips
    • 3-4 cloves garlic, peeled
    • good pinch red chili flakes
    • sprig of rosemary
    • salt & pepper
    • 1 pound baby red potatoes (cut the larger ones in half)
    • 2-3 shallots, quartered
    • 2-3 carrots, peeled and cut into medium sized sticks
    • 1 bunch asparagus, trimmed

    Heat olive oil on medium high. Add a quarter of the lemon wedges (save the rest for serving), and allow them to slightly brown. Add sundried tomatoes, garlic cloves, red pepper flakes and rosemary, and stir for just a minute. Lower heat to medium low and add the new potatoes, shallots, and a good sprinkle of salt and pepper. Stir to coat with the oil and cook for about 20 minutes. Add carrots, stir gently to coat, and cook covered for another 20 minutes. Check to see that veggies are fork-tender but not falling apart. Add asparagus, again stir gently to coat, and cook covered for 7-10 minutes until asparagus is just done.

    Remove from heat and serve with lemon wedges, a sprinkle of parsley or basil if you want, and either with crusty bread or over rice or quinoa. Make sure to get some of the yummy olive oil on top!

  • Roasted Grape and Sweet Potato Salad

    Roasted Grape and Sweet Potato Salad

    After the Renaissance Festival (shamelessly love it, go every year), my friend Gloria invited us back to her house for pumpking carving, also our yearly tradition, and fed us a delicious dinner including a salad with roasted grapes. I was fascinated by these grapes, as I often am with food I’ve eaten since childhood treated a different way, and wanted to try them myself (I roast everything else in the world, might as well try this). So here’s my version of Gloria’s yummy salad, which has a decidedly fall feel.

    Roasted Grape and Sweet Potato Salad

    For the vinaigrette
    The “Original” red wine vinaigrette:

    • 1/4 cup water
    • 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
    • 1/4 tsp sugar
    • 1 tsp fresh lemon juice
    • 2 tsp salt
    • 3/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
    • 3/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce
    • 1/4 tsp dry English mustard
    • 1 small clove garlic, grated
    • 1 cup olive oil

    Shake everything together in a Mason jar.

    For the salad

    • 1 lb grapes
    • 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed
    • 3 slices dark pumpernickel bread, cubed
    • olive oil
    • sea salt & pepper
    • 10 oz or so baby spinach
    • 5 oz queso fresco, crumbled
    • 1 shallot, sliced, and soaked in red wine vinegar, pinch of sugar and salt for 30 minutes
    • couple handful pumpkin seeds

    Heat oven to 400°. On three separate baking dishes, toss grapes, sweet potatoes, and pumpernickel cubes with a little olive oil, then sprinkle with salt and pepper, then spread in a single layer. Roast, turning occasionally. Bread croutons will only take 10 minutes or so until crispy, grapes and sweet potatoes will take 25-35 minutes. Remove and cool.

    Toss together spinach, grapes, sweet potato, and pumpernickel croutons with just enough vinaigrette to coat, then sprinkle with cheese, pickled shallot and pumpkin seeds. Serve with optional extra vinaigrette on the side.

    I’m trying to put some pictures of my stinky cute kids at the Ren Fest but will figure that out later…

  • Persephone Salad

    I am often put in charge of salad. I guess salad is a girly thing to make so I get it by default, but maybe it’s also because I can be artful in diving into the depths of the produce drawer and pantry and emerging with interesting salad ingredients and the means for a homemade vinaigrette.

    As green salads are just as much about texture as they are about flavor, here is the formula: something fresh (possibly fruity!), something creamy, something crunchy. And this salad fits perfectly.

    This particular salad concept is based on this Arugula, Pear and Goat Cheese Salad with Pomegranate Vinaigrette. I made it a couple years ago for Thanksgiving, and I’ve made variations on it ever since – including for Thanksgiving this year, and now for my daughter Zoeya’s holiday potluck.

    The ingredients are very autumnal, but the pomegranate seeds like little ruby jewels look gorgeously Christmassy as well. This is not so much a recipe as a concept with lots of options (and I’m not going to be fussy with amounts). The only absolutely essential ingredient are the pomegranate seeds, which is what makes this so lovely and appropriate for the dark months.

    Persephone Salad

    For the salad:
    greens, such as arugula, mesclun, spinach
    a green apple or pear
    seeds from half a pomegranate
    blue cheese or goat cheese
    walnuts, almonds, pecans, or pumpkin seeds (I used pumpkin seeds in this latest rendition, it’s a great options if you’re serving to people with nut allergies)

    For the vinaigrette:
    pomegranate molasses (instructions below) – this is your best option, but if you don’t have it you can use honey or jam or jelly. Maybe like that yummy lingonberry stuff they have at IKEA.
    sherry or balsamic vinegar
    olive oil or walnut oil
    salt & pepper
    a thinly sliced shallot, pickled in the vinegar, is nice

    To make pomegranate molasses, take a small bottle of pomegranate juice and heat it slowly in a saucepan, stirring, until it is thick enough to coat a spoon. Be careful not to burn.

    To assemble everything, just toss the greens and the apple or pear with some of the vinaigrette (enough to lightly coat, not to drench). Sprinkle all the rest of the ingredients on top, along with another drizzle of vinaigrette.