Spinach and Sweet Potato Salad with Bacon and Goat Cheese

Some nights, everything just goes exactly right. The rain has subsided, and my window panes are dry! We're now looking forward to 4 or 5 days of sunshine and 60's! I think some of the beautiful weather found its way into my food tonight. Ken and I have instituted Salad Tuesdays. It's very exciting! We're three weeks in and tonight I hit the jackpot with my own creation.

I took inspiration from a very traditional spinach salad (bacon, hard boiled eggs) and this more complex spinach salad with sweet potatoes. This sounded like something I could combine with fabulous results. Fabulous it was! The flavors melded perfectly - the sweet and salty mix of the potato and the bacon was delicious. The dressing was perfect too and I'm really excited to have found this easy to make balsamic dressing. Try this salad. I promise you will love it.

Three main ingredients - spinach, roasted sweet potatoes, and bacon

Spinach and Sweet Potato Salad with Bacon and Goat Cheese
Serves 3-4

2 sweet potatoes, cut into cubes
1 red onion, sliced into 1/2 inch thick half moons
6 slices turkey bacon
4 oz. goat cheese, crumbled
salt and pepper
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
olive oil
1 lb. baby spinach
Balsamic Citrus Vinaigrette (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 425. Toss sweet potatoes and onions with olive oil, salt, pepper, and chili powder on a baking sheet. Roast for 20 minutes or until vegetables are brown on the edges.

While the vegetables roast, brown the turkey bacon in a skillet until crispy. Drain on paper towels and set aside. Let vegetables cool slightly before mixing the salad. Toss spinach, sweet potatoes and onions, turkey bacon, and goat cheese crumbles with a few tablespoons of the dressing.

Balsamic Citrus Dressing
Makes a lot - keep it in a sealed jar or plastic cup for other uses
Adapted from this recipe on Allrecipes.com

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1 1/2 tablespoons white sugar
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste

Place all ingredients in a seal-able jar or plastic bowl with a lid, seal, and shake to combine!

This salad has great colors.

Beef and Barley Stew

What else is there to do but cook when you're stuck at home monitoring the steady flow of rainwater through your windows? I needed comfort food, badly. My first thought was - beef stew.


Check out my beef and barley stew! I started with this recipe from The Kitchn for Beef and Barley Stew with Mushrooms. The barley sounded like a hearty switch in starch than the normal potatoes. I lucked out and found a well-priced boneless chuck round roast which I cut into cubes and seared in my trusty dutch oven.


Mmmm...meat.

Mmmm...veggies!

Then I sauteed a bunch of traditional veggies (I added carrots the original recipe) and a big box of cremini mushrooms. I deglazed with some Cabernet and filled the pot with a 3 to 1 combination of beef and chicken stock (the recipe called for 2 and 2). I let it simmer for an hour, then added the barley for another 45 minutes of simmering. My final addition was a handful of leftover frozen peas at the way end because, as I told Ken, it's never bad to add something green.

Ta-da!The result was incredibly similar in thickness to Chunky Soup, which I have loved since babyhood. The meat turned out very tender and I really liked the use of barley. It's soft and chewy and truly comforting. It's like a savory oatmeal. I was glad I added carrots and would probably add more next time. But this stew did it's job - it warmed me up as the rain continued to pour.

Random Brownies are the Best Kind

Baking is synonymous with snow. Isn't that what every one did as a kid on snow days? My mom kept boxes of brownie mix and cookie dough in the house for just that thing. We have an insanely small amount of food left in the house, so in almost desperation for anything to eat, I realized I had enough ingredients to bake something. Included in the pantry items was almost half a box of Hershey's Cocoa Powder, which led me to think - brownies!

Bam!

I easily found this incredibly simple cocoa brownie recipe from Alton Brown. It is essentially a homemade box brownie - made in one bowl and using the cocoa powder as the only chocolate flavoring. I had everything in stock and Ken and I whipped this batter up in no time. And scraped the bowl even faster.

Which is better, the batter or the brownie? Hard to say....

I had to go with a 9x13 inch pan because I don't have an 8x8, but it worked out fine. I just remembered to bake it for less time than recommended, since they would be thinner. Magically, at the 35 minute timer I set, they were perfect. Baked solidly through but fluffy and not at burned. They were very richly chocolate and sweet. That's probably from the 2 sticks of butter.

The edges were perfect.

Go big or go home.

New Recipes!

We now return to your regularly scheduled Dinner Blog...

With the rain outside and having the apartment to myself tonight, I had a great opportunity to cook. Finally! I made my own version of three different recipes, all centered around my winter obsession brussels sprouts. The recipe I took this method from is Pasta with Shaved Brussels Sprouts and Pancetta. I had never thought of pairing this vegetable with pasta, but it looked delicious and colorful.

I made some simple tweaks to this recipe to make it my own, based on two other brussels sprouts recipe that I love. The first was to add a handful of raisins, inspired by Barefoot Contessa's Brussels Sprouts Lardons. The second was to splash the entire dish with balsamic vinegar at the way end, then letting it cook down a bit, the idea for which came from Mark Bittman's Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Figs. Finally, I used less pasta than the original recipe asked for, so that there was about an even amount of shaved sprouts as there was pasta. There is no need to weigh this dish down with extra starch.

I absolutely loved the result. The sprouts were tender, the pancetta was crispy, and the raisins and vinegar added a sweetness to balance the saltiness. It was hearty and filling. Next time I would up the amount of garlic and use golden raisins if I happened to have them around. I think they get plumper when you cook them in some liquid. Here's the real recipe...


Shaved Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta and Pasta

Serves 2.

2 tbsp. olive oil
4 oz. diced pancetta
1/2 yellow onion or 2 shallots, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 lb. angel hair pasta
1/2 lb. brussels sprouts, sliced thin
1/3 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup golden raisins
3 splashes balsamic vinegar

1. Boil water for pasta in a large pot.

2. Heat olive oil is a large skillet. Add pancetta and saute until starting to get crispy, about 4 minutes. Add onion or shallot and garlic, and saute until onions begin to brown. Add brussels sprouts, raisins, and chicken stock, and salt and pepper to taste. Turn heat to low and cook until stock is reduced.

3. Cook pasta until al dente. Add pasta to brussels sprouts mixture and balsamic vinegar, toss. Cook together on low for 2 minutes. Serve hot.

And...I'm Back

I am shocked at how long it has been since I've written! December has been quite the busy month, interrupted by an extended period of being sidelined with a nasty cold. Now the holidays have passed, quickly, and I finally have a moment to update! I have been crazed but that doesn't mean I haven't had the chance to cook. Here's a bit of what I did in food on my vacation...

First, I helped my mom with our Christmas dinner, which for us Jews more more like a Hanukkah dinner on Christmas Day. Every year, my mom makes her special brisket. She cooks it the night before submerged in this sweet and sour sauce that has things like ketchup, orange juice, and Worcester sauce in it. She then makes my dad slice it and the sliced meat marinates in the sauce all night. It is so delicious. Everyone who's ever had it has liked it. The sauce is the best part. Then it makes an amazing sandwich on crusty bread the next day.


On the side we tried this absolutely decadent twice baked potato casserole. It's everything you love about baked potatoes in one dish. Potatoes are essentially mashed with butter, cream, shredded cheddar cheese, bacon crumbles, and scallions. The mixture is spread into a baking dish, then topped with yes, more cheddar cheese. I don't think I need to say any more.


My dad isn't really a potato fan (rare, I know) so we made him a special request - farfel with mushrooms. This recipe is a very traditional Jewish dish and the recipe comes from a Jewish cook book I got for my bat mitzvah. Farfel is a small round pasta, sort of like pearl couscous or pastina. In fact, since my mom couldn't find farfel at the local market, we used pastina. This is one of those dishes that is so simple you assume it will be bland, and then its so very not. The farfel is mixed with sauteed mushrooms and onions, parsley, and just salt and pepper. It's very wholesome and especially good when soaking up stray brisket juices.


This was just the first of my holiday meals. We hosted our very first dinner party on New Year's Eve! Stay tuned...

Chicken Stew

Giada De Laurentiis' Chicken Stew is one my absolute favorite comfort foods. It's simple, but delicious, filling, and warm. It's perfect for a winter night...except that it happened to be a day of record heat here in New England. Who cares?


I can't tell you how much I'm enjoying my new dutch oven. This stew was another example of a dish that was both easier and better tasting when cooked in the correct pot. With this stew, the chicken is cooked on the bone submerged in the stew's broth of diced tomatoes, aromatics, and chicken stock. The chicken breasts cooked much more evenly and quickly than when I'd been preparing the stew in a stock pot. I make only a few adjustments to the recipe - I add a can of chickpeas and use oregano instead of dried thyme. I find the dried thyme too overbearing.

The best way to eat chicken stew is with a dusting of Parmesan cheese and a big hunk of warm, crusty bread. Eat one bowl of this dish and I promise you won't be hungry for quite a while. It also freezes well for an easy future dinner.