Radish greens, who knew ??

She has done it again. I am referring to my daughter, she too is a major food freak.

She will try anything and everything. Over the holidays she was doing something with our carrot greens, which I mostly ignored.

 Recently she tried turnip green which she pronounced too bitter, next she tried radish greens and had to tell me all about them. This time I listened, sort of, actually Bob was the one who bought the radishes at the farmer's market last weekend. He topped the radishes, carefully cleaned the green and put them in a glass container in the fridge.

The other morning I was getting eggs out to make breakfast when I spied those radish greens. That same daughter has gotten me into the habit of putting something green in my eggs, usually spinach, I have ventured into other more traditional and non traditional greens. Those radish greens called to me. I grabbed a small handful and tossed them into my pan with a little butter, you could use olive oil.

I gave them a minute or two to wilt and then added my two egg whites. I am not a fan of egg yolks, it has nothing to do with cholesterol, just personal preference. I save them to make lemon curd, that will be another post.

I added a little salt and pepper, flipped them over to finish cooking.

With a piece of my homemade whole wheat toast, I had a delightful breakfast. The radish greens are amazingly mild and sweet, not at all like the radish itself, they also give a nice crunch to the eggs.



Moral of this story....listen to your daughter, don't be afraid to try new things !!

PS: Did you know people will actually ask to have the greens removed from the beets at the farmer's market because they don't want them ? Daughter taught us that trick too, ask if they have any leftover beet greens, free produce ! Now we will start asking for radish greens too ;-)

Very Orange Cake !!

Last weekend we were supposed to host some friends for dinner and cards. Being the planner I am, I made the dessert ahead of time. They ended up having to cancel due to illness so Bob and I were left with the cake all to ourselves, so sad ;-)

My inspiration were twofold, my sister has been sharing her incredible navel orange crop with me. They are so juicy with just the right balance of sweet and acid. I wanted to showcase them in a dessert.
My dinner guests are vegan, I needed a cake that did not contain eggs or butter.

When I looked up vegan orange cake, I was surprised by all the entries. Apparently that venerable old favorite Joy of Cooking has a very tasty orange cake that fit my parameters.

One of the recipes I looked up had you decorate it with candied orange peels.

I followed the orange peel recipe but I wasn't very pleased with them, most likely due to operator error. To be honest they didn't add anything to the cake itself. It's certainly sweet enough especially with the glaze.Instead I would add some zest or tiny peel curls to the glaze for show.
If you decide to make them, here is the recipe .

The cake is delightful, moist, easy and very adaptable.

Very Orange Cake

1 cup orange juice
1/3 cup canola oil
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
 orange zest from one orange

Glaze

1/4 cup powdered sugar
1-2 teaspoons orange juice
1 teaspoon orange zest or tiny curls of peel

1) Preheat the oven 350 F. Grease and flour an 8 inch round cake pan, a 9 inch round or 8 inch square would also do. The recipe stressed the flouring part. You could also use a piece of parchment if you are concerned. I had one with the little "cake release bar" at the bottom.

2) Grate the orange, and make juice to one cup. I was lucky and already had  a large jar made up.

3) In a large bowl combine the dry ingredients including the zest.

4) in a smaller bowl combine the liquid ingredients.

5) Add the liquid ingredients into the dry, mix just to blend.

6) Pour into the greased and floured pan, bake for 30 to 35 minutes. Do the toothpick trick to test for doneness. In the 8 inch pan my cake took 35 minutes to bake. It will be a golden brown.

7) Cool for 10 minutes then carefully transfer to a cooling rack. Allow to cool completely before adding the glaze.

8)  In a small bowl mix 1/4 cup powered sugar, 1 teaspoon zest or tiny curls of peel. Start with 1 teaspoon of juice and add more to get a thick paste.

9) Apply the glaze to cover the top of the cake.

10) I know it doesn't look as cool without the candies peel. I would have been more creative with the glaze if I didn't have the peel. Not that it matters, because it won't last that long !!

Tis' the season for chocolate...

If you need an excuse to make a chocolate treat... Valentine's Day is coming soon.
You can make something for an intimate dinner, to share with friends and co-workers or just to treat yourself. Love thyself first, right ??

Over the winter holidays, my dear friend Mita (The Clumsy Cook)  gave me two confections she made.

One was a dark chocolate bark studded with dried fruit and nuts.
I have never really been a fan of "bark" but this changed my mind completely.
The best part is how easy it is to make.

I wanted to make some treats for friends and family for Valentine's Day so I made three batches of bark. Each with a slightly different combination of ingredients. It's great because you can tailor it to the tastes of your loved one. Shhh, don't tell Bob, but I made him some out of milk chocolate, he prefers it to dark chocolate, one of his few flaws ;-)

Mita calls her recipe "trail mix bark", I like to think of mine as "chocolate bark goes for a hike"

Chocolate Bark Goes for a Hike

Ingredients:

16 oz. chocolate: dark or milk
dried fruit, cut into bit size pieces
nuts
seeds
coconut flakes
Coarse grain sea salt

Instead of all the separate ingredients you can use your favorite trail mix to make it very simple.

1) Choose your chocolate. I used these Trader Joe's large bars. You can used higher quality if you choose. I would stay away from Hershey's, chocolate chips will do in a pinch.

2) Have your toppings ready before you start melting your chocolate. I used dried apricots, dried cranberries, toasted coconut flakes, pumpkin seeds, roasted almonds, hazelnuts, cashews, honey roasted peanuts, sunflower seeds. You can also use your favorite trail mix to make it very simple.

3) Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, or use foil and cooking oil spray.

4) Chop your chocolate into small chunks and place into a large microwavable bowl. The smaller your chunks the quicker it will melt. If you don't have a microwave, a double boiler on the stove top works just fine.

5) Cover the bowl with a plate and microwave for 1 minute. Remove and stir and repeat. The trick with melting chocolate in a microwave is to not overcook it. It partly depends on how much chocolate you have in your bowl, it you are using a smaller amount start with 30 seconds. As the chocolate melts decrease the time in the microwave. Eventually it will be smooth.

6) Pour the chocolate onto the prepared pan, use a spatula to smooth it into a round about a half inch thick.

7) Sprinkle with the nuts, fruit and seeds, don't be afraid to use lots. Press them carefully into the chocolate. Dust lightly with some coarse sea salt if you like that combination.

8) Allow to harden, this can be done in a cool room or the fridge if you are in a hurry.

9) Break into chunks and eat !! Or package it in tins, jars or cellophane bags and give it to the people you love.

If you want something a little fancier for Valentine's Day, here are a few of my favorite chocolate recipes from past posts.

Flourless Chocolate Cake, simple but very rich and elegant.

Molten Chocolate Cakes, great for a cold night !!

Chocolate Cupcakes with Dark Chocolate Ganache, for the vegan in your life.

This decadent Chocolate Ice Cream would please even the most critical of your chocolate lovers.

Roasted Brussel Sprout salad

No, it's not a new form of torture, although I am sure for some of you that's how it sounds.
I had a version of this salad a month ago from a local bakery/cafe, The Buttery, it was part of a picnic with my dad. Now that he can no longer go out for lunch when my sister and husband come over to see him, we bring a picnic to his place. We usually dine outside on the patio in the sun.

Back to the Brussel sprout salad...I am a fan of this tiny crucifer, but I think this might sway even those with an aversion. Roasting them brings out their natural sweetness which is complemented by the the tart cranberries. I made up my own recipe after tasting the version done by the Buttery.
I used a simple French mustard vinaigrette for the dressing.
If you are not on a plant based diet, the use of bacon grease gives it a nice smoky flavor ;-)

Roasted Brussel Sprout Salad

Ingredients
1 pound fresh sprouts, trimmed and cut in half
1/2 red onion chopped into 1 inch chunks
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/3 cup dried cranberries

Dressing
juice of one lemon
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon fresh or dried thyme ( optional)


1) Preheat the oven to 400 F. Cover a cookie sheet with foil and spray lightly with olive oil.

Or here's what I did... I always bake my bacon so when it was done baking, I used that same cookie sheet to roast my Brussel sprouts. If there is a lot of grease, pour some off, you just need a thin coating to give the sprouts that smoky flavor.

 2) While the oven is preheating, wash, trim and chop the sprout in half, chop the onion into inch long strips.

3) Toss together in a bowl with 2 teaspoons of olive oil.

4) Pour onto your cookie sheet, distribute evenly.

5) Roast for 10 minutes, then give them a stir and roast for 5 more minutes.

6) While they are roasting you can make the dressing.
 In a bowl mix together the mustard, lemon juice, salt and thyme.

7) Slowly whisk in the olive oil.

8) Once the sprouts and onions are done, toss them in a bowl with the cranberries and the dressing.

9) Allow to chill before serving.