broccoli – Oven Love

Broccoli Salad with Homemade Mayo (Guest Post)

Natalie — Thu, 15 Aug 2013 05:03:37 +0000

Today, we’ll be making the marathon 10 hour drive from GA to OH (make that 14 with the kids?). I’m glad to be on our way to getting settled in our new home, but it will be a long and bittersweet day, for sure. While I’m listening to my “Leaving GA” playlist and sobbing on the road, you get the treat of meeting Allison from The Sprouting Seed!

Allison is a nutritionist with a B.S. in Nutritional Science and a full-time mom. She got her start as a nutritionist and breastfeeding counselor at WIC. This was before she moved half way across the world to live in Central Europe, where she learned about real food, vibrant health, and traditional methods of preparation. Allison has found a way to make friends with little old ladies around the world and loves to share their time-tested secrets of life.

So glad to have her here on the blog today. And with a dynamite recipe for broccoli salad, no less! I am normally not a mayo fan.. but I think I will have to try her homemade mayo recipe– it looks amazing.

Broccoli is my favorite veggie. But I’ll be honest, I usually like it one way and one way only: lightly steamed, then sautéed with garlic. It’s simple, delicious, and I rarely feel the need to broaden my broccoli repertoire.

Lately, however, things have changed. I’ve been jazzing up all my vegetable dishes and not even broccoli could escape my creative streak. I started by frying zucchini fritters and grating cauliflower into “rice”. Then, I broke away from the well-beaten path of my broccoli recipe and ventured into new terrain. What did I make? Well, Broccoli Salad, of course!

This salad is hearty and delicious. It features raw broccoli, a homemade mayonnaise dressing and, you guessed it, bacon! I originally made it as a side dish, but lately I’ve been loving a big bowl of Broccoli Salad for dinner. It’s easy to whip up and sure to please. As an added bonus–using homemade mayonnaise instead of the store-bought version turns this dish into a powerhouse of nutrients. Bon Appetite!

Broccoli Salad with Homemade Mayo (Guest Post)

Author: Allison Jordan

Recipe type: SIde Dish, Salad

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

2 heads of broccoli, stalks removed, cut into small florets
6-8 slices of bacon
¼ purple onion, finely diced
½ cup crispy pecans, chopped
¼ cup dried cranberries or raisins
¾ cup homemade mayonnaise (recipe found here: http://thesproutingseed.com/homemade-mayonnaise/)
3 Tbsp white wine vinegar
2 Tbsp raw, local honey

Instructions

In a skillet, fry bacon over medium high heat until evenly crisp. Remove the bacon, drain excess grease and crumble the bacon into small pieces.
In medium bowl, combine mayonnaise, vinegar and honey and whisk until combined. Mix in broccoli florets, cranberries, and onion. Toss ingredients until the broccoli is thoroughly coated with the mayonnaise dressing.Just before serving, add the bacon and crispy pecans.

Baked Potato Casserole

Natalie — Tue, 12 Jun 2012 12:53:00 +0000

We planted potatoes in our garden again this year.

A LOT of potatoes.

Anyone want some potatoes??

I feel like I’m saying “this-is-what-we-are-doing-with-our-garden-surplus” over and over again on this blog, but it’s usually when we have giant piles of produce on our counter that I have to be creative and come up with new recipes.

With a big pile of spuds staring me down, I got a craving for some baked potatoes. We planted Yukon golds in our garden, which are lovely in taste and texture but not excellent for baking, so I had to come up with another plan.

Here’s the procedure: steam the potatoes and broccoli, fry the bacon, cook the onion and garlic, combine it all with some spices and cheese and bake until nice and bubbly. Pretty straight forward. Don’t forget the smoked paprika- it takes the dish to another level, trust me.

This would be a great side dish, but we actually ate it as our main meal. We should have added a salad to make it a more balanced dinner, but let’s face it: we just wanted to stuff our face with gooey, cheesy, bacon-covered potatoes. And hey! The broccoli’s in there- that’s good for you. You can leave it out if you want, but then you should definitely eat a salad. I mean, really.

This isn’t exactly health food, but it’s way better for you than say, a baked potato from Wendy’s. So I think you can still feel good about it. I mean, I do. I’m all about some good fat. I better end this post before I go on a grass-fed, pastured meat tangent or talk about how you need lots of good fat to make better breast milk. You guys are just here for good food.

And this stuff is good.

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

1 hour

Total time

1 hour 20 mins

Ingredients

4 medium Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 head broccoli, chopped into small florets (about 2-3 cups chopped)
8 slices bacon
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ cup chicken stock
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
salt and pepper to taste
1-2 cups (150 g) sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup (100 g) parmesan cheese, shredded

Instructions

Place a steaming basket in a large pot and fill with 1-2 inches of water. Place pot on to boil. When water is boiling, add the potatoes and steam (covered) for 5-6 minutes. Add broccoli to the potatoes and steam for an additional 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and prepare a 9×13 baking dish. (You can butter/spray it now, but I like to use the paper towel with the bacon fat later.)
Meanwhile, fry the bacon until just crisp. Remove the bacon, drain on a paper towel and chop into small pieces, setting 2 tablespoons aside. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the bacon fat in your frying pan. Add the onion and cook over medium heat for 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until the mixture begins to brown, about 3-5 minutes. Add the chicken stock and scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the potatoes and broccoli, paprika, salt and pepper. Remove from the heat.
Mix in half of the cheeses and the bacon (except for the 2 tablespoons you set aside). Pour the mixture into your baking dish and top with the remaining cheeses. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil and serve hot.

Chicken, Kale and Broccoli Casserole

Natalie — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 01:28:00 +0000

Let’s start this with a .. YUM.

Reasons to try this recipe: It’s full of healthy greens.
Dark, beautiful, curly kale and a little family-friendly broccoli. I like greens on their own, but when you add pasta and cheese? That’s a win.

It’s freezable.
I made the full recipe; baking up half of it for our meal and freezing half of it for a future dinner. I love that I only had to cook once, but I get to eat it twice (and not as leftovers).

It’s tasty.

Big bites of pasta, creamy ricotta cheese, perfectly moist chicken and dark, flavorful greens. Pair it with a salad and you can feel great about what you’re feeding your family.This is a solid weeknight meal- try it soon.
(And do not fear the kale! It’s your body’s best friend, I swear.)

Chicken, Kale and Broccoli Casserole

Prep time

30 mins

Cook time

45 mins

Total time

1 hour 15 mins

adapted from Martha Stewart- http://www.marthastewart.com/862208/chicken-and-kale-casserole

Author: Oven Love

Recipe type: Main

Serves: 4

Ingredients

¾ lb. large or jumbo pasta shells
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1 bunch kale, stems and ribs removed, coarsely chopped
1 head broccoli, chopped into florets
2 cups cooked chicken, shredded or chopped
1 large container ricotta cheese
zest of 1 lemon
¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain; return to pot. In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high. Add onion and garlic; cook until onion is beginning to soften, 4 minutes. Add kale and broccoli, cover, and cook until almost tender, about 5 minutes. Transfer to pot with pasta.
Stir in chicken, ricotta, lemon zest, and ½ cup Parmesan; season with salt and pepper. Transfer mixture to a 9-by-13-inch baking dish; top with ¼ cup Parmesan. Bake until top is golden, 30 minutes.
To freeze: Cook pasta al dente according to package instructions. Drain and rinse with cold water; return to the pot. In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high. Add onion and garlic; cook until onion is beginning to soften, 4 minutes. Add kale and broccoli, cover, and cook until almost tender, about 5 minutes. Transfer to pot with pasta. Stir in chicken, ricotta, lemon zest, and ½ cup Parmesan; season with salt and pepper. Transfer mixture to a 9-by-13-inch disposable baking dish (or two 8-by-8-inch baking dishes); top with ¼ cup Parmesan. Let cool to room temperature, cover with aluminum foil and freeze.
To reheat from frozen: Bake casserole (straight from the freezer) at 350 degrees for 60-90 minutes or until completely warmed through, removing the foil for the last 20 minutes of baking. You can also thaw in the fridge the day before and bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes.

Farfalle con Broccoli

Natalie — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 02:28:00 +0000

Before I dip into the vegan recipes, let’s warm up with something vegetarian.

Let’s keep the cheese and cream for just a little while longer, shall we?

This dish feels like something you would make if you lived in Italy, went to market, saw a beautiful head of broccoli and just came home and put dinner together on a whim. It’s a picture of simple Italian-style cooking. If only every dish was this easy.

Preparation here is low-maintenance. The pasta and broccoli are cooked in the same pot and the sauce comes together quickly in the meantime. All you have to do next is toss the pasta with the sauce and add your cheese and you’ve got a lovely dish. It’s also an easy introduction to vegetarian cooking. The recipe calls for a little anchovy paste (don’t freak out- it’s not gross, it just adds a salty flavor), but that can be replaced with a little extra salt to make the dish truly vegetarian. Most kids will go for it, too (you don’t have to tell them about the anchovy).

If you’re cooking for a pickier/non-veg crowd (little ones or men used to eating more meat), you can easily add a little grilled chicken or some crisp bacon to the dish.

While you give this one a try, I’ll be busy daydreaming about Jess making me this dish when I come to visit her in Italy..

Farfalle con Broccoli

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

15 mins

Total time

35 mins

adapted from The Geometry of Pasta, via Suzie the Foodie- http://suziethefoodie.blogspot.com/2010/11/geometry-of-pastas-farfalle-con.html

Author: Oven Love

Recipe type: Pasta

Serves: 4

Ingredients

⅓ lb farfalle (bowtie) pasta
1 head broccoli, cut into florets
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons olive oil
3/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 salted anchovy filets or anchovy paste (omit if necessary and add a little extra salt to compensate)
¼ cup heavy cream
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
fresh cracked black pepper

Instructions

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add pasta and broccoli florets and boil until al dente (it should still have a little bite to it). Meanwhile, fry the garlic in olive oil until fragrant. Turn off the heat and add red pepper flakes to the garlic oil.
Crush the anchovies with a little oil to make a paste (or use a bit of anchovy paste per your taste). When the garlic oil stops sizzling, add the anchovies and mix with a wooden spoon. Mix in the cream and return it to the heat. Drain the pasta and add it to the sauce.
Cook together until the sauce thickens. Add the parmesan and some freshly ground black pepper. If the sauce gets too thick and sticky, add some pasta water.