Creamy Celery Soup
Excerpted from “Six Seasons” by Joshua McFadden (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2017.
45 mins
Makes 4 servings
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 head celery or 10 stalks of celery, cut into 1-inch pieces, leafy tops chopped and reserved
1 small onion diced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 cups vegetable stock or water
1 cup heavy cream
For the garnish:
1/2 cup roughly chopped, lightly toasted walnuts
1/2 cup raisins, plumped in water for 15 minutes and drained
1 teaspoon celery seed
Extra-virgin olive oil
Put the butter, celery and onion in a large pot over medium heat. Season lightly with salt and pepper and cook the vegetables slowly until they have begun to soften and release their juices, about 8 minutes. Don’t let the vegetables brown at all.
Add the stock, adjust the heat to a simmer, and cook until the celery and onion are completely tender, about 30 minutes. Let the soup cool a bit, then process in a blender to make a smooth puree. You might need to do this in batches.
Meanwhile, toss together the reserved chopped celery leaves, walnuts, raisins and celery seed in a bowl and moisten with a few drops of olive oil.
Return the puree to the pot, add the cream, and bring everything to a low simmer. Cook for about 5 minutes to soften the raw cream flavor. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper. Divide into serving bowls and top with the walnut-raisin mixture.
Note: This soup is so simple and pure in flavor I often serve it unadorned. Make a simple topping with a few torn croutons, a grating of Parmigiano, or a swirl of extra-virgin olive oil, or go all the way with the unexpected sweet and nutty topping.
Celery Salad With Dates, Almonds and Parmigiano
our favorite way to enjoy celery — delicious in any season!
Excerpted from “Six Seasons” by Joshua McFadden (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2017.
“This is one of my favorite dishes. It’s so simple, but the combination of ingredients creates a wonderful, intriguing aroma. Try to use really good olive oil for this salad.” — Joshua McFadden
Prep time: 15 to 20 minutes (excluding almond-toasting and celery-chilling) | Very easy
4 servings
Ingredients
8 celery stalks (leaves separated and reserved), tough fibers peeled off, sliced on an angle into 1/4-inch-thick pieces
4 Medjool dates, pitted and roughly chopped
1/2 cup roughly chopped toasted almonds (see below)
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon dried chile flakes
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, shaved into shards with a vegetable peeler
Extra-virgin olive oil
To prepare
OPTIONAL: Put the celery in a bowl of ice water and soak for about 20 minutes to heighten the crispness. Drain and pat dry, then pile into a medium bowl.
Add the celery leaves, dates, almonds, lemon juice, and chile flakes and toss together. Season generously with salt and black pepper. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Add the Parmigiano and 1/4 cup olive oil and toss gently. Taste again and adjust the seasoning so you have a lovely salty, tart, sweet balance.
Serve cool.
Toasted Almonds
You can toast nuts and seeds a number of ways — in the oven, in a dry skillet, with high heat or low heat (or brined and roasted) — but your goal is to go from raw, bland, and soft to fragrant and crunchy. The color should be just a few shades darker than the raw nut or seed and should be even, not simply dark around the edges.
Quantity is up to you
Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Spread the nuts on a pan in a single layer. For a small quantity, a pie plate is good; for more, use a rimmed baking sheet.
Bake until you smell the nuttiness and the color is deepening slightly, 6 to 8 minutes for most whole nuts.
When the nuts are done, transfer them to a plate so they don’t keep cooking on the hot baking pan.
Determining doneness can be tricky because the final texture won’t develop until they’re cool, so at this stage, you’re mostly concerned with color and flavor. To be safe, take them from the oven, let cool, taste one, and if not done enough, pop them back into the oven.
Recipe from “Six Seasons: A New Way With Vegetables” by chef Joshua McFadden
Roasted Eggplant with Tahini
Roasted Eggplant with Tahini
Easy to make, comforting and delicious, this roasted eggplant with tahini is perfect as an appetizer or part of a mezze.
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 25 to 40 mins
Total time: 35 to 50 mins (depending on how big the eggplants are)
Course: Appetizer/Starter
Cuisine: Israeli
Keyword: eggplant recipe, roasted eggplant recipe, vegan
Servings: 2 people
Recipe from Caroline's Cooking
Ingredients
1 large eggplant, or multiple small eggplants
2 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp tahini
1 clove garlic
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp water approx
1 tbsp pine nuts
1/2 tsp date syrup or pomegranate molasses/honey
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400F/200C.
Halve the eggplant lengthwise, then score each side without cutting through to the skin in a criss-cross pattern around 1in/2.5cm apart. Put on a baking sheet, cut side up.
Brush both cut sides generously with olive oil - use the full amount above - then sprinkle with salt and pepper and bake/roast. They should take around 25 to 40 minutes to become soft and tender inside and just starting to brown on top (this depends on how large the eggplant are)
While the eggplant is roasting, mix together the dressing. Put the tahini, lemon juice and garlic in a small jar and shake together. Add some water and shake again, adding a little more if needed to get a good pourable consistency.
Gently toast the pine nuts in a dry skillet/frying pan or under the broiler/grill, watching them closely so they don't burn and set aside.
When the eggplant is ready, drizzle with the tahini dressing (shake it again before using if it was a little while before), drizzle over a little date syrup/honey and the toasted pine nuts. This is probably best served warm but also good at room temperature.
Shishito Peppers -- the go-to method!
HOW TO COOK SHISHITO PEPPERS
INGREDIENTS
Olive oil
Shishito peppers, rinsed and patted very dry
Sea salt
Lemon or lime wedges (optional)
DIRECTIONS
1. Heat a little olive oil in a wide sauté pan or skillet until it’s good and hot but not smoking.
2. Add the peppers, complete with stems, and cook them over medium, tossing and turning them frequently until they blister. They should only char in places. Don’t rush the process. It can take anywhere from 5 to 15 minutes to cook a panful of peppers, depending on the heat and the skillet.
3. When the peppers are blistered, toss them with sea salt and, if desired, add a squeeze of citrus.
4. Slide the peppers into a bowl and serve sizzling hot. Pick them up by the stem end and eat the whole thing—minus the stem!
Try some fun and funky variations . . . Sesame oil instead of olive oil; add a little korean chile flake right before serving, or maybe even sprinkle with some fish sauce. The possibilities are nearly endless.
Fragrant Fennel Fronds Pesto
Fragrant Fennel Fronds Pesto
(Easy!)
If you have ever wondered just what to do with those fennel fronds, fennel leaves, fennel tops or fennel greens once you have used up the bulb, then this lush Fennel Fronds Pesto is for you. Just a handful of ingredients and you have a completely delicious and freezer friendly pesto to use wherever you would use a normal pesto.
Course: Condiment
Cuisine: Anytime
Ingredients
1 cup toasted walnuts
3 cups loosely packed fennel fronds (small stems are ok too!)
1 lemon juiced
1 clove garlic
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup olive oil (plus extra)
Instructions
Toast the walnuts over medium heat for about 3-5 minutes, or until they start to turn a nice golden brown color. Set aside to cool.
Add the walnuts, fennel fronds, lemon juice, garlic and salt to a food processor. Add in half of the olive oil and pulse or blend until incorporated. Continue blending while slowly pouring in the rest of the olive oil and desired consistency is reached (you may need to add in a little more olive oil or water 1 tsp at a time if you prefer it thinner)
Store in an airtight container in the fridge or freeze for later use
Recipe Notes
This freezes really well. Just pop it in a small airtight container (I use mini mason jars for perfect portioning) and pop in the freezer until ready to use. Let thaw overnight in the fridge.
Pair your fennel fronds pesto with:
some freshly cooked pasta;
put a swipe on your sandwich;
dollop some on some fresh salmon before baking;
or use it anywhere you would normally use a pesto.