Zucchini Pasta Primavera with Creamy Basil Pesto

Yesterday it was 80 degrees in Colorado.

Tomorrow it'll be in the low 30's and snowing.  Again.

See if I care! I'm making summer meals- fresh and light- snow or not. 

Take that.

One of my favorite things to do in the summertime is make zucchini pasta.  In fact, I posted a Zucchini Spaghetti recipe last year that's pretty darn close to this one.  

But this one is tossed in a creamy basil pesto.  

Yum!

This is a 15 minute quick and easy recipe, no fuss required.

This just so happens to be a vegetarian, dairy free, gluten free, paleo recipe. 

It's so good, and so good for you.  You get some protein from the pine nuts in the pesto. I used what veggies I had on hand, though you could add pretty much anything.  I would've liked to add some spinach or kale, but it was quite filling as is.

If you want a more traditional primavera (aside from using actual pasta, lol) add parmigiana to the pesto- about 1/4 cup) and top the primavera with added parmigiana.  

I'll be honest, I didn't miss the cheese, and I thought I was going to.  

The basil pesto gives it tons of flavor.  I had extra pesto leftover- froze it in ice cube trays, and then removed to a ziploc bag in the freezer.  Now I can add basil pesto to pasta dishes in the future, or top some grilled fish or chicken with it. 

You will need a julienne peeler to make the zucchini spaghetti.  If you don't have one, they can be found at any kitchen store, or even Walmart and Target.  They're great to have, I peel carrots and other vegetables with them for a pretty look.

Zucchini Pasta Primavera with Creamy Basil Pesto

Serves 2

4 Zucchini

5 ounces grape tomatoes (about 1/2 of a 10 ounce container)

1 red pepper, seeded and chopped

1 yellow pepper, seeded and chopped
1/2 white onion, thinly sliced
1/4 cup coconut milk

For the pesto:

3 cups packed fresh basil

1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted and cooled

2 cloves garlic, minced

2/3 cup good quality extra virgin olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

1. Prepare the veggies.  Peel and julienne the zucchini. Place in a colander, sprinkle with a tsp of salt, and toss.  Let sit in sink (this draws the moisture out so zucchini spaghetti stays crisp and doesn't get all soggy). 

2. Heat a few swirls of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion. Saute until the onion is beginning to soften, turn translucent. Add the peppers. Saute until peppers are almost done and soft (about 10 minutes).  Add the grape tomatoes. Cook for a minute or so, and add the zucchini. Toss to incorporate, and cook until zucchini is just barely softening, about 5 minutes. 

2. While cooking the onion and peppers, prepare the pesto. Simply add the basil, pine nuts, garlic, and about half of the oil to a food processor. Pulse to combine.  With the food processor running, drizzle in the remaining oil until the desired consistency is achieved. Add a bit of salt and pepper to taste. 

3. Add a cup of the pesto to the cooking zucchini and vegetables.  Toss to combine.  Cook about 2 minutes to get the zucchini to soak up the pesto, and add the coconut milk.  Stir, and cook another 2 or 3 minutes.  

Plate and enjoy!

A couple more posts to enjoy:
Sweet Summer Squash Pudding
Molasses Crusted Pork Tenderloin with Grilled Pineapple-Papaya Salsa
Gorgonzola Sage Popovers

Upside Down Caramelized Root Vegetable Tart with Flaky Gruyere Crust

What's that you said?

You don't know what a parsnip is either?

I've started a new thing- I go to the supermarket, see something I've never cooked, and buy it.  

Then it sits in my fridge for a week because I don't know what to do with it. 

So I bought a couple parsnips.  Research says they are a root vegetable related to the carrot.  Makes sense, as they look like white carrots.  Wikepedia (yes, I really did get my info here) says they are buttery, sweeter than carrots, and have subtle flavors of butterscotch, honey, and cardamom when cooked.  Sounds pretty good.  

If you don't know (as I didn't) they get peeled the same way carrots do, and then simply cut into slices for this recipe.  

Sounded to me like parsnips and sweet potatoes would go pretty well together, and lucky me- I had a leftover sweet potato! So for you, I decided to make this upside down tart, quite lovely as an appetizer, a lunch, or a snack.  It can be eaten either hot or cold, though the crust is so delishiously flaky right out of the oven. 

Why upside down, you ask?

Because the vegetables caramelize so beautifully when cooked in oil in the hot cast iron skillet.  They turn a nice golden brown and have such a sweet flavor- butterscotch and honey are good ways of describing it. 

And the crust gets SO flaky when not weighed down in the bottom of a pan.  

If I had other root vegetables, I would have thrown them in too.  Experiment with whatever you have on hand, this recipe is pretty basic and forgiving.  

Upside Down Caramelized Root Vegetable Tart with Flaky Gruyere Crust

1 sweet potato, peeled, rinseed, and cut into thin (1/8 inch) slices
2 parsnips, peeled and cut into 1/8 inch slices
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp dried thyme
salt and pepper
olive oil

Flaky Gruyere Crust
1 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
5 tbsp butter, cut in pieces and chilled
5 tbsp ice cold water
1/4 cup packed shredded gruyere

Crust:

Combine flour and salt in a large bowl.  Add the cold butter, and using your hands, work it into flour mixture until it is a crumbly texture.  Do this quickly, you don't want butter to melt too fast.  Drizzle water in and incorporate quickly (I don't mean you need to speed through this, but don't start and then walk away..)  Form gently into a ball, flatten into a 6 inch dish, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least one hour.

Preheat oven to 375.

The veggies:

Heat a few drizzles of olive oil in your cast iron skillet over medium, medium high heat. Add the red onion. Saute until soft.  Add garlic, saute a minute longer, and remove red onion and garlic from pan and set aside. 

Add a bit more olive oil, allow it to warm up for 30 seconds, and add half of the sweet potato. Saute until sweet potato begins to get golden brown color.  Remove from heat and saute other half of sweet potatoes. Remove and repeat with parsnips. 

Once all your veggies are sauteed until golden, remove them all from pan and remove skillet from heat.  Now you can arrange them in a pretty manner.  Pour 1 tbsp of olive oil into the cast iron skillet and disperse.  Evenly sprinkle the thyme directly onto the pan. Begin layering veggies: I started with layering the smallest parsnips in the middle of the pan, followed by a layer of the smallest sweet potato slices, the red onion mixture, more parsnips, and more sweet potato. Season generously with salt and pepper. 

Remove the crust from the fridge and roll out until it is large enough to fit over the cast iron skillet. Quickly place it on top of the veggies and tuck the sides in a bit.  

Place in cast iron skillet in oven and bake for about 25 minutes, or until crust is golden brown.

To remove the tart from the pan: 

Let cool 5-10 minutes until easier to handle.  Using a thin spatula, gently work it underneath the tart to try to lift any veggies stuck to pan.  Remember your pretty arrangement- be gentle with the spatula.  

Grab a plate- most dinner plates will fit just perfectly inside the cast iron skillet.  Place the plate on top of the tart, and (with oven mitts on!) lift the whole pan up and turn is upside down quickly.  Your tart should fall right out and look ever so perfect on your plate!  If it doesn't pry stuck veggies off and rearrange- the tart is pretty east to work with! 

Spinach, Feta, and Fresh Mint Pastries

Filo dough it one of the greatest things, if you ask me.

So flaky, so shapeable to savory or sweet recipes.

I was looking for a most delicious appetizer to serve for a holiday meal, and this was a winner.  

This is pretty much a recipe for Spanakopita, a classic Greek pastry.  I do love Greek food, and these little flaky triangles can be made 3 (yes 3!) days in advance.  (Cover, refrigerate, and bake as directed when ready)

If you've never worked with filo dough before, I must say it requires a bit of patience, understanding, and finesse.  These thinner-than-paper sheets can get the best of you if you're in a rush, so set aside some time and read through the instructions carefully first.

I don't want to scare you off, I actually find filo dough very easy to work with, but some unfamiliar with it and pressed for time... well.. they wind up of that TV show Snapped. 

The secret is lots of butter and keeping the filo dough moist.  When not using the pile of filo dough, you must place a damp rag on top to keep the moisture in.  If you don't the sheets crack and are flaky and IMPOSSIBLE to handle. 

Follow those steps and it'll be a breeze.  

Spinach, Feta, and Fresh Mint Pastries

Makes 30 triangles

1 1/2 lbs spinach, tough stems removed
1 1/2 cups crumbled feta cheese
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese
4 eggs, lightly beaten
2 tbsp chopped fresh mint
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 lb filo dough (20 sheets), thawed if frozen
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled

In a large stockpot, heat a few drizzles of olive oil over medium heat.  Add the spinach, and saute until wilted.  Pour into a colander and let cool.  Squeeze out as much liquid as you can and place on cutting board.  Chop spinach and place in a large bowl.  Add all cheese, eggs, mint, nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste.  Mix well. 

Preheat oven to 375.

Lightly butter a baking sheet.  Have the melted and cooled butter in a bowl or pot, and the spinach mixture in a bowl nearby. Cut the filo dough lengthwise into thirds, so you have 3 long strips.  Get a rag moist and cover the filo until ready to use.  Place a large piece of parchment paper on your countertop.  Using a pastry brush, coat the parchment paper with a layer of butter.  Remove one of the 3 stacks of filo dough from underneath the rag.  Place one piece of the paper thin filo dough on your buttered parchment paper.  Use the pastry brush to cover that piece with butter, paying special attention to the edges and corners. Place another sheet of filo directly on top, and coat with butter. In the top corner of the filo sheet, place a teaspoon of the spinach mixture.  Fold one corner over the the filling on the diagonal to form a triangle.  Fold down again, keeping the triangle shape.  Continue folding until you've reached the bottom and you have a triangle shaped pastry.  Place on baking sheet and repeat.  Don't worry if a sheet rips, the butter will reattach it.  

Bake until golden, about 15 minutes.  Can be served hot, warm, or at room temp.

Tomato Braised Kale

I love kale.

But some people don't.  

I had a feeling the Boyfriend was one of those haters, since he doesn't really like spinach if I don't somehow disguise it.  Spinach quiche? He's into it.  Spinach lasagna? Sure.  Spinach by itself on a plate?  No good.  

So I disguised this kale with some deliciousness.  I've had tomato braised kale in a restaurant before,  loved it, and tried to duplicate it here.  I really wanted a tomato flavor, the kale cooking in the tomato juices, so I used larger tomatoes (versus using grape tomatoes).  I had Campari tomatoes on hand, and I used all 2 lbs of them, as well as homemade chicken stock, of course.  

It turned out fabulous, with just a little kick from the red pepper flakes, and the tomato cooked down nicely and disguised the bitterness of the greens a bit.  

This is hands down, my new favorite kale recipe.  

Tomato Braised Kale

2 lbs kale, ribs removed and coarsely chopped

2 lbs Campari tomatoes (or 2 pints grape tomatoes), large diced

3 garlic cloves

1/2 cup to 3/4 cup chicken or vegetable stock

5 or 6 shakes red pepper flakes

Extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

In a large stockpot, heat a few drizzles of olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic, and saute about a minute.  Add the kale, in two batches if needed, letting it cook down and wilt a minute.  Add the tomatoes, stir to combine.  Add 1/2 cup chicken stock, red pepper flakes, and a generous amount of salt and pepper to taste.  Continue cooking, stirring occasionally.  If the kale looks dry, or is sticking to the bottom of the pan, add the rest of the chicken stock. Continue cooking about 10 to 15 minutes, until kale is wilted and tender.  Add more salt and pepper to taste.  

A couple other favorite recipes:
Sage Rubbed Pork Chops with Fennel Orange Puree
Gorgonzola Sage Popovers

Sage Chicken Chili with Lentils and Garden Vegetables

Here's a nice fall meal for you!

My parents recently gave me an organic homegrown squash that was almost as big as me.. maybe a mild exaggeration.. but look:

They also gave me homegrown peppers and tomatoes, and with this beautiful fall weather and football season starting, OF COURSE I'M GOING TO MAKE CHILI!

This is a healthier chili- made with chicken, protein packing lentils, and lots of vegetables.  It's mildly spicy, though of course you can adjust it to your own tastes.  If you want less spicy, skip the jalapeno and reduce the chili powder to a teaspoon or none at all. For more spicy, increase chili powder to 2 tbsp, and if you really want it hot add another jalapeno!

This is a one-pot meal- no rice required!  The lentils are way healthier than rice, and make the chili a bit more hearty and filling.  Afraid of lentils?  Don't be- they really don't taste like much- they soak up the flavor of the chili, and The Boyfriend didn't even know they were in there.  He still doesn't.   :)  

This chili would make for a perfect vegetarian chili too- just skip the chicken, increase the lentils, and use vegetable stock in place of chicken stock.  The recipe is very forgiving- add and subtract vegetables as you desire.

As with any chili, this can be made in the crockpot or on the stovetop. I wrote down both methods for you. 

Serve with a dollop of sour cream if you like, maybe a Gorgonzola Sage Popover, and voila! Dinner is served. 

Strawberry Salad with Halloumi and Cucumber

My New. Favorite. Salad.

I bought halloumi a couple weeks ago, and it's been sitting in my fridge waiting to be included in a recipe worthy of halloumi.  

'What the heck is halloumi?' you might be thinking...

Halloumi is a Greek semi-soft cheese made from goat's, sheep's, and sometimes cows milk.  It taste kind of like mozzarella but is saltier.  It also has a high melting point- which allows you to fry or GRILL IT!  Who doesn't want warm, gooey cheese straight off the grill?!? 

Well I had finally had enough waiting, and I saw Jamie Oliver paired halloumi and strawberries in a salad.  Conveniently, I had strawberries so I decided to give it a go.   

 I wasn't sure what to expect, I had never had halloumi.  But the mixture of salty halloumi, sweet strawberries, crisp cucumber, and sharp onion....  all I can say is WOW. 

This is amazing.  It's elegant, easy, impressive, and delicious.