Category Archives: Veggies

Green Beans with Crispy Pancetta and Roasted Hazlenuts

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We had our friend Cassie from Eugene and our friends Lyndie, John, and Sophia (happy 1st birthday, Sophia!) from Portland over for dinner a couple of weeks ago and tasked Lyndie with a very general ‘bring something green’ request, which we can do with Lyndie because she’s a fabulous cook and has superior taste. ;)

Not one to dissapoint, she arrived with about 3 pounds of fresh Green Beans. We brainstormed some ideas on how to prepare them and zeroed in on a quick sauté with some crispy little bits of pancetta. After a quick trip to the Roth’s by our house we were all set with about 4 ounces of lovely, round Pancetta slices.

We had some leftover Roasted Hazlenuts from a meal a week or so earlier which we kind of threw in as an afterthought, but which added a nice, warm, earthy flavor that was great with the Beans. And they added a little extra crunch. You could omit them if you wanted to and it wouldn’t be too detrimental to the dish. Continue reading →

Asparagus with Rosemary

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We can’t really remember exactly where this recipe came from (which means we can’t remember who we stole it from) but it’s our default non-salad vegetable for the most part. We love Rosemary anyway (which is good, because if you plant one you’ll have Rosemary for the rest of your life) and Asparagus is such a great vehicle for it that we tend to eat it all the time. It’s a great side for our fancy Beef Tenderloin, it’s super with brunch, and it also makes a fun finger food. Roasting Asparagus beats the pants off of steaming it any day. It intensifies the flavors and prevents sliminess. Continue reading →

Mixed Bean Chili with Squash & ‘From-Scratch’ Chili Powder

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The foodie magazine Bon Appetit recently had a great cover shot of a chili made with Beef Brisket and Butternut Squash that looked incredible. We thought it was really inspiring, but we don’t normally keep whole Beef Briskets lying around so we had to come up with something on our own that would round out the dish a bit.

If you like Bon Appetit like we do then you should also check out Cook’s Illustrated which is basically the print version of the PBS show America’s Test Kitchen (or vice versa). They recently had a special issue all about classic soups and stews. Included among them was a recipe for Chili con Carne that had some great instructions for making your own Chile Powder from scratch using those dried, store-bought, pre-bagged Chilis you can find in the Ethnic Foods section of your grocery store. We thought there might be some potential for greatness if we combined aspects of both recipes into one great dish. Continue reading →

Butter and Brown Sugar Roasted Acorn Squash

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We’ve been on sort of a squash ‘bender’ recently since they’re in season. And, as the weather turns colder we tend to start craving the warmth of comfort foods. Squash is great no matter how you cook it: roasted, cubed and sauteed, in soup, as a rich mash instead of potatoes, the list goes on.

This is squash exactly like our folks used to make when we were kids. With the addition of Butter and Brown Sugar to complement the caramelized roasty bits it’s so good it could practically be dessert. Not only that, but the scent that fills our house while it’s roasting is heavenly… Continue reading →

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Bleu Cheese and Toasted Hazelnuts

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Roasting the Butternut Squash first really brings out the sweetness and the flavor melds beautifully with the tang of the Bleu Cheese and the toastiness of the Hazelnuts. This soup is great served with some crusty bread and a spinach salad, or as a starter for a warming winter meal.

This recipe makes a pretty big batch, which is good since this soup is even better the next day after the flavors have had a chance to blend. Continue reading →