roasted beet, garlic and apple soup

Here's a soup I made for the cafe I work at on the weekends (which you should come check out on Saturday mornings at The Stop's Farmers' Market). I just loved the soup so much I had to make it a second time. I got this gorgeous bunch of beets from the market - just pulled from the ground, firm, with fresh and healthy looking greens. After I roasted them (and their skin just fell off, perfectly), I was in danger of eating them all. Plain. But I managed to save a few for this soup. And a delicious accompaniment? A hearty piece of toast topped with with olive oil and sautéed beet greens. 


roasted beet, garlic and apple soup

Remove tops from four medium beets. Wrap each beet in foil, and bake in the oven for one hour at 400. When the beets are halfway done, toss together two onions, peeled and cut in 6 or 7 wedges, two apples, peeled, cored and cut in quarters. Season with olive oil, salt, pepper and a handful of crushed fennel seeds. Spread on a baking sheet, and throw in the oven with the beets. Also, chop the top 1/2 inch off a whole head of garlic. Drizzle it with olive oil, and wrap in tinfoil. Throw in the oven as well.

When all the veg are done (one hour total for beets, 30 minutes for everything else), remove from the oven. Peel the beets (under cold water), and roughly chop. Combine beets, roasted apples, and roasted onions in a pot. Squeeze the roasted garlic out of its skin, into the pot. Cover with 3 or 4 cups of water, and bring to a simmer. Puree, and add more salt and pepper if needed. Finish with a squeeze of lemon juice. Serve with a big scoop of plain yogurt.

onion brown sugar jam

Make this! It will take you minutes of actual work (then a few hours of sitting back and waiting), and your friends will be like 'why is this so delicious? I love this! I'm going to eat it straight from the jar!' What can you do with these delicious onions? Stir them into mac and cheese, spread them on a grilled cheese sandwich, serve them on a cheese plate, put them on pizza, or throw them into a salad. (My lovely friend Jessica served me a tasty salad with these onions, walnuts and goat cheese - yum!)

Caramelized onions are the simplest thing on earth to make, yet like most delicious things, they take quite a bit of time. Time where you just have to sit back and let the onions do the work, while you go and catch up on Jamie Oliver's new television show.

onion and brown sugar jam
This is really just a fancy name for caramelized onions, a recipe I found in Food and Drink, entitled 'brown sugar and onion marmelade.' I refuse to call it marmelade - marmalade is for citrus, period. I'll stick with the jam title though, because surprise (!), you can process them in jars and make them shelf stable.

1 tbsp olive oil
6 lbs onions
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1 cup brown sugar
pinch of salt

Cut your peeled onions in half, then in slices, around 1/2 inch thick. Don't be too careful - it's all going to cook down into a large, delicious mess. Heat the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pot, add the onions and stir for a minute. Add the brown sugar and vinegar, and stir to distribute. Leave on low heat, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring every 15 minutes or so. The onions will collapse and cook down a lot. Finally, turn the heat up to medium high, and cook off most of the liquid, stirring often, for about 5 minutes.

You can freeze this, or keep it in the fridge for 3 or 4 weeks. Alternately, you can can them in half pint jars, using these instructions, processing for 30 minutes.

mushroom, kale and thyme quiche

Here's a rustic tart-like quiche for winter. Quiches are a great recipe to make ahead for breakfast or lunch. This one is gluten-free, and would go beautifully with a winter slaw or some greenhouse greens. The crust was inspired by this posting on the Wednesday Chef. 

mushroom, kale and thyme quiche with a cornmeal crust
(filling)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, sliced thinly
A handful of mushrooms, sliced
Splash of white wine
A handful of kale, stemmed and cut in ribbons
A few springs of thyme
Salt and pepper
(crust)
3 cups boiling water
1 tsp salt
1 cup cornmeal
A few springs of thyme

1/2 cup grated parmesan
1 egg
(custard)
1 cup yogurt
2 eggs
salt and pepper
1/2 cup grated parmesan
1/2 cup cheddar, cut in small cubes

Preheat the oven to 350. Start heating the olive oil in a pan. Add the onions, and sauté for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, put the 3 cups of water and salt on to boil. Back to the onions - add the mushrooms, and sauté on low heat for another 10 minutes. When the water boils, add the cornmeal in a slow stream, whisking to prevent lumps. Cook for a few minutes, until thick. Strip thyme leaves from springs and stir in. Beat in egg and parmesan. Set aside to cool.

Back to the onions again. Turn the heat up to medium, and deglaze the pan with the white wine. Add in kale, thyme leaves, salt and pepper. Cook until kale is wilted. Set aside.

Stir together the yogurt, eggs, salt and pepper in a bowl. Set aside. Now, press the cornmeal into a greased pie plate, shaping into a crust. Scatter the cheddar across the bottom, then spread the onion/mushroom mixture on top. Finally, pour over the yogurt and egg mix. Grate 1/2 cup parmesan over the whole quiche. Bake for 45 minutes. Let cool for at least a 1/2 hour before slicing. 

Cheap & easy dinner, plentiful & bountiful asparagus

Potato Rosti with grilled asparagus

*this makes delicious dinner for 2. For one person, just make a smaller rosti, cutting amounts in half.

3 large potatoes

1 onion, peeled

salt and pepper

3 or 4 tbsp olive oil

1 lb asparagus

2 tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper

2 eggs

Preheat oven to 350. Grate potatoes (leave skin on) and onion. Season with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a skillet (one that can go in the oven - no plastic handles!). Make sure pan is coated well with oil to avoid rosti mishaps. Pile grated potato and onion mixture in skillet, pressing down and forming a huge, pan-sized potato pancake. Cook on medium heat for 7 or 8 minutes. Run spatula under edges to loosen, then place a large plate face down on the rosti. Flip the entire thing onto the plate, then slide the rosti back onto the pan (now cooking the uncooked side). Put the skillet in the oven for another 7 or 8 minutes.

Meanwhile, perhaps while the first side of the rosti cooks, break off the tough ends of the asparagus. Toss on a baking pan with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. When you put the rosti in the oven, throw in the asparagus. They'll be done the same time as the rosti! (8 minutes). Roll them around once for even cooking.

Meanwhile, while asparagus and rosti are in the oven, fry two eggs.

Serve each rosti piled with asparagus, topped with an egg (maybe with a side of homemade applesause for the rosti).

Cheap, cheap dinner. The whole thing costs between 2 and 4 dollars, depending on whether you're using organic ingredients. Use butter instead of olive oil and you have yourself a 100 mile dinner, possible much much closer, especially if you're lucky enough to have an asparagus bed in your backyard. No excuses for that woody, tasteless asparagus from Peru right now - everywhere has Ontario asparagus, from No Frills to Dufferin Grove to St. Lawrence Market.