Cooking With Fava Beans

I've been trying new recipes lately. This one is from the April 2011 issue of Bon Appetit, page 14. Although I did switch it up a little (the ** are changes/additions I made to the recipe).

Their original title is Garganelli with Asparagus, Artichokes, Favas and Peas. This recipe is a great Springtime recipe and uses a ton of green vegetables. And is very yummy!

I had corkscrew pasta on hand so I used that. I also did not use fresh artichokes, I used marinated in a jar instead. Saved a lot of time. I also had green peas in the freezer and used those instead of fresh.




Here's my version of the recipe:

**1 small jar marinated artichokes, chopped in large chunks
3/4 pound fresh fava beans, shelled (I got them at the Buford Hwy Farmers Market)
8 medium asparagus spears
1 pound pasta
**1 1/2 cups frozen green peas, thawed
3/4 cups loosely packed fresh tarragon leaes
**1 large clove galic, peeled
6 tbsp butter, cut into pieces
2 cups packed fresh spinach
grated parmesan
**1/4 cup toasted pine nuts

Bring large saucepan of water to boil. Add fava beans and asparagus. Cook until asparagus is crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Remove to ice water bath to stop cooking, then drain and pat dry. Peel fava beans to remove outer layer.

Cook pasta as directed on package. Drain, reserving liquid.

Put peas in food processor and puree. Add tarragon, garlic and 3/4 cup pasta water to processor and blend with peas. Season with salt/pepper.

Bring butter and 1/2 cup pasta water to simmer. Add artichokes, fava beans, asparagus and spinach. Toss until spinach wilts and vegetables are heated through, about 2 minutes. Add pasta and peas and toss to coat. Add grated parmesan to taste and toasted pine nuts.

Enjoy!

Herbs Are Ready To Grow

I've planted my new herbs for this growing season and had several from last year survive and are thriving.

From last year, the oregano is doing great...a very healthy plant. I need to figure out something great to do with this. Also from last year, the parsley and chives came back. I need to separate these and give them their own big pot so they can really grow.

I had two rosemary plants that survived in pots over the winter so I moved them into the yard for a permanent spot. Hopefully it will like the spot I chose. I've also had a bay leaf for several years and it seems to like its spot. Normally, if a recipe calls for bay leaf, you only need 2 or 3 leaves and it's great to be able to just go outside and pluck a leaf whenever you need it.

I planted a lavender plant because I love the way it smells. It's great when I'm outside near the herbs and get a slight whiff! Love it.

My new plants for this year are sage, thyme and tarragon. I'll use all these throughout the summer. I also planted two basil plants. They look so small now, but by mid-summer they'll be really big. That's good, because we really like the basil, tomato and mozzarella salad in the summer when the tomatoes are perfect.


We've decided to plant a couple of tomato plants this year also. Our front yard gets the most sun so that's where they will go, maybe in a week or so.

I love having the fresh herbs at my fingertips, knowing I can just go outside and pick what I need for a recipe. I think I've planted all I'll need for the season, they just need to grow and thrive....yay!

Vegetable Exploration

On a recent trip to the Buford Highway Farmers Market, I decided to seek out vegetables I'd never tried before. I also had found some new recipes I wanted to try, so I spent the weekend cooking vegetables and trying new recipes.

Friday started with pattypan squash. I bought yellow and green and also baby zucchini. I tossed them in olive oil, sprinkled with salt and pepper, and roasted them at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes. Delicious! I will most definitely cook these again. And probably use them as a vegetable for a client dinner party, as they look so yummy on the plate and are different. Try these!

Next, I found these carrots called Thumbelina Carrots. Are they the cutest thing you've ever seen? I also bought fingerling potatoes. Again, tossed them with olive oil, salt and pepper and roasted in the oven. Again, delicious! The carrots were very sweet.



Tonight, I'm trying a new recipe from the April issue of Bon Appetite. It uses fava beans, which I've never cooked before. Can't wait to do this one. It's so green and Spring-like! It also has asparagus, spinach and green peas.

All the vegetables have such beautiful color. It's the little things that make me happy.

Volunteer Chef

I have been a volunteer chef with the Cooking Matters organization for the past couple of years. Cooking Matters is a program affiliated with Share Our Strength and is designed to teach adults, families and children about healthy eating on a budget. The course covers nutrition, food shopping, discussions on eating healthy food, and of course how to cook in a healthy way.

Last week I completed another 6-week session with a group of seniors. They really enjoy the classes and always enjoy the food. Over the course of the class, we prepared breakfasts foods, several chicken dishes, and some vegetarian meals.

For the last class, we had a luncheon and I prepared green beans, macaroni and cheese and roasted several chickens with herbs. Everyone enjoyed the food and we had a good time visiting with each other and sharing what we had learned during the class.


Volunteering feels good, especially when you're doing something you love. It's easy for me to share my love of cooking and food and rewarding to see that others appreciate hearing about my passion.

Here's a link for more information about the Cooking Matters program:
http://cookingmatters.org/what-we-do/our-program/

Smokin' On the Egg

Last weekend the weather was beautiful so I decided to cook on my Big Green Egg. I've had my Egg for about 9 years now and it's one of my favorite tools for cooking.

Several months ago, I had bought a pork butt and put it in the freezer; I defrosted it on Saturday so it would be ready for smoking on Sunday. I brought out the Egg, started the charcoal, and when the fire was really hot, I put the pork butt on, closed the lid, and reduced the heat to begin the smoking process. I let the pork smoke for about 9 hours.

Around midday, I let the fire come up to a higher heat and grilled some shrimp that I had marinated in ginger, garlic, lemon zest, cayenne and a little olive oil. That was our dinner.



Early evening, the pork was done. It was so delicious! The flavor of smoking all day was just incredible. Did I say I love my Big Green Egg?

We'll have sandwiches all week.

Chicken Pot Pie

I cooked for a client this past Monday and one of their entrees was chicken pot pie. I knew my husband loves chicken pot pie, so I decided to make it for us last night for dinner. I've been using a recipe I found on Food Network from Emeril Legasse and it's really good!

You need chicken, preferably your own fresh cooked chicken. I did this, and it really is the best way to go. Just cover a whole chicken in water and simmer for about 1 1/2 hours. You'll get so much chicken off one bird, you'll have enough to make several different dishes.

You'll also need onion, carrots, celery, potato, frozen green peas, chicken broth, flour and half 'n half, and cooked chicken. And pie crust, for the bottom and top.

Prepare all your vegetables by washing and chopping. Boil the chopped potato separately. Saute the carrot, onion and celery. Add flour to begin the sauce. Add the chicken stock, then half 'n half.


Add all this to your potatoes, chicken and peas. Pour into the pie crust, and top with the top crust. Bake at 400 degrees for about 30-40 minutes, till crust is golden and enjoy!

I think I'll have leftovers for lunch today.....

Book Club Dinner

Last week, it was my turn to host our monthly neighborhood book club meeting and I volunteered to cook dinner. We had about twelve people for this month's book, "The Art Of Racing In The Rain".

I made pork tenderloin with a mustard cream sauce, chicken breast stuffed with spinach, sundried tomato and goat cheese with a tsaziki sauce, green beans sauteed with shallot and mushrooms, and a potato fennel gratin.





I've made the potato fennel gratin so many times for family gatherings and dinner parties and it is always a hit so I thought I'd share the recipe. It's from Ina Garten.


Potato Fennel Gratin

2 small fennel bulbs
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter, unslated
2 pounds russet potatoes (about 4 large potatoes)
2 cups heavy cream
2 1/2 cups grated Gruyere cheese
3 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter the inside of a 10X15X2 inch baking dish.

Remove stalks from fennel and cut bulbs in half lenghtwise. Remove the cores and thinly slice the bulbs crosswise, making approx. 4 cups of sliced fennel. Saute the fennel and onion in the olive oil and butter on medium heat for about 15 minutes, until tender.

Peel potatos and thinly slice (I use a mandoline---works great!) Mix the potatoes in a large bowl with 2 cups of cream, 2 cups Gruyere, and salt and pepper. Add the fennel and onion and mix well.

Pour into baking dish, pressing down to make smooth. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Bake for 1 hour covered with foil, then 1/2 hour uncovered till top is golden brown and potatoes are cooked through.