Wild Rice with Pearl Onions, Dried Fruit, + Toasted Pecans

This past weekend we became a two car household. When we moved out of the city, I didn't think we'd need another car. We'd managed for years on one car and I thought it'd continue that way. The challenge is that my work takes me all over the place. Most of my clients are in Boston or Cambridge, accessible via public transportation. Recently, though, more inquiries have been coming in from restaurants in surrounding towns. In these instances, I've had to check in with Eric. Would he need the car that day? Can I take it? Is he able to get a ride home? Running your own business is chaotic enough and adding these logistical complications into the mix was creating more stress.

When my parents asked us a few months ago if we'd be interested in taking their old car if they got a new one, we said, "Of course! That'd be amazing!" So, here we are, the proud owners of a '97 Toyota Camry. It's a car I grew up with and have fond memories of. I'm feeling a bit liberated now that it's in our possession. My day to day routine will surely change because of it. I can run errands I wasn't able to before. I see other ways it's going to change my life... the spontaneous trips I can take to the Cape or to visit my family in New Jersey. Or if I just need to get out of the house, I can drive over to a local nature reservation for a walk in the woods with Maki.

After our trip to New Orleans, I was excited to get back into the kitchen. Following our return, we were hit with a pretty large snow storm, forcing us to hunker down at home for a couple of days. I used this time to do some recipe development, starting with a wild rice dish that I'd been meaning to prepare for quite a while. I'm not sure how it happened, but we have a massive quantity of wild rice in our cabinets. We don't cook with it all that often, so I can see how we'd have some... but there are multiple bags, some half used, that have piled up in there. I've never been a huge fan of wild rice, except in soups. How does one make it interesting? The answer, I've learned, is by loading it with exciting flavors and textures. A little sprinkle of salt isn't going to cut it. It needs something bolder. I took inspiration from an old recipe my mom had saved from, I believe, Bon Appetit, which utilizes pearl onions and dried cherries. I loved this idea, but I thought, "Why stop there? Let's run with this!" I took out a mixture of spices from the cupboard: cumin, cinnamon, cayenne (I add cayenne to just about everything), cardamom and cloves. Here are the flavors (and smells) of the season that I love so much. I'd imagine it goes perfectly with roasted meat (I've seen similar recipes used as stuffing) and salmon. It also works wonderfully on top of a salad of greens and cucumber with a light lemon dressing.

Wild Rice with Pearl Onions, Dried Fruit and Toasted Pecans

Yields: approx. 4-6 servings as a side

Ingredients

1 cup wild rice, rinsed 18 oz. pearl onions, blanched in boiling water 3 tbsp butter 1 cup dried fruit, such as dried cherries, cranberries and/or currants Kosher salt ½ tsp ground cardamom 1 tsp ground cinnamon ½ tsp ground cumin ½ tsp ground cloves ½ tsp cayenne pepper ½ tsp paprika 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley 1/2 cup pecans, toasted and chopped

Directions

1. In a large pot, bring wild rice and 3 ½ cups of water to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for 40-50 minutes.

2. While the rice is cooking, bring another pot of water to a boil. Add pearl onions and cook for 2 minutes. Immediately transfer onions to an ice bath. Once cooled, transfer to a cutting board. Using a paring knife, slice off the root end of the onion. Using your fingers, gently pinch the other end of the onion, at which point the skin should separate from the rest of the onion.

3. Once the rice is done cooking, strain it in a colander. Set aside.

4. In a large sauté pan, heat butter over medium-high heat. Add pearl onions and season with the spices and salt. Cook for 5 minutes, until the pearl onions have started to caramelize.

5. Stir in cooked wild rice, dried fruit, chopped pecans and parsley. Season with additional salt.

Black Radish Slaw with Toasted Quinoa

These poor black radishes sat in the fridge for weeks. Actually, it may have been over a month. Totally neglected. As the one who does most of the cooking, it was up to me to get up the guts to work with these again. The last time was almost two years ago and I was a bit stunned by their pungent flavor. It was a similar reaction to what I had when I first tried dandelion greens. But now I'm a fan of those greens. I found a way to mellow them and I knew I could do the same with black radish.

After weeks of meals loaded with butter, cream, sugar, and all those delicious and rich ingredients, I was ready to lighten things up a bit. Slaws are my favorite this time of year. Between the soups and stews, it's nice to balance things by preparing a big salad with a zingy slaw. A little sweetness comes out through the agave and carrot, with a touch of tang from the lime. It's got a lot going on. A ton of flavor; a lot of textures. And it reminds me to remain fearless in the kitchen. At face value, an ingredient can be intimidating. Approaching it with a little finesse, however, can transform it into something beautiful.

Black Radish Slaw with Toasted Quinoa

Yields: Serves 4 as a side

Ingredients

1/2 cup quinoa 1 cup low-sodium vegetable broth 2 medium-sized black radish, peeled and root end trimmed. 2 medium-sized carrots, peeled 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint leaves 1 lime, juiced 2 tsp agave 3.5 tablespoons olive oil Kosher salt 1 tsp smoked paprika Baby spinach, rinsed Sesame seeds

Instructions

1. To cook the quinoa, add the veggie broth to a pot and bring to a boil.  Stir in the quinoa, cover and reduce heat to medium low. Simmer until all the veggie broth has been absorbed, approximately 15 minutes.  While it's cooking, prepare the rest of the slaw.

2. Using a shredding side of a box grater, grate the black radish and carrot into a mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together lime juice, agave, and 1.5 tablespoons olive oil, along with the mint leaves and 1 tsp of Kosher salt. Pour dressing over grated radish slaw and toss together. Let sit for 10-15 minutes.

3. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to a medium sauté pan.  Set over medium-high heat.  Once the oil has heated, add the quinoa to the pan and spread out across the surface.  Refrain from stirring as this will allow the quinoa to crisp up.  After 2-3 minutes, give the quinoa a stir, season with 1/4 teaspoon of Kosher salt and 1 tsp smoked paprika and cook for another 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat.

4. On a platter, add a couple heaping handfuls of baby spinach. Top with slaw, then sprinkle toasted quinoa and some sesame seeds over it.

Chard + Roasted Garlic Pesto

What can be said in New Year rhymes, That’s not been said a thousand times?

The new years come, the old years go, We know we dream, we dream we know.

We rise up laughing with the light, We lie down weeping with the night.

We hug the world until it stings, We curse it then and sigh for wings.

We live, we love, we woo, we wed, We wreathe our brides, we sheet our dead.

We laugh, we weep, we hope, we fear, And that’s the burden of the year.

The Year, Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Chard and Roasted Garlic Pesto

Yields: Approximately 1.5 cups pesto

Ingredients

1 head garlic 1 bunch chard (around 4 cups of packed leaves), rinsed, dried and deribbed 1 bunch fresh parsley, stems removed 1/2 cup slivered almonds Juice of one lemon 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, finely grated Olive oil

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Prepare a piece of aluminum foil that's big enough to wrap around the garlic. Peel off the majority of the paper from the garlic and slice off the top to expose the tops of each clove. Place in the center of the aluminum foil and drizzle a little olive oil on top. Wrap with aluminum foil and place directly on oven rack. Bake for 35-40 minutes.

2. In a small sauté pan set over medium heat, cook the almond slivers, stirring often to make sure they don't burn, until they become lightly toasted.

3. Remove garlic from the oven, squeeze out each clove and transfer to a food processor, along with the toasted almonds. Pulse until the almonds are chopped and have turned into a coarse paste. Add the chard, parsley, and lemon juice, along with 2 tablespoons olive oil, and pulse until pureed.

4. Transfer mixture to a serving bowl. Stir in Parmesan cheese. Serve with bread or toss with pasta.