Herbs | Simple By Cindy

Farro and Kale Salad

Jun. 8
2016

When I read this recipe, I wasn’t sure the combination of ingredients would be very pleasing to the palette.

I decided to give it a try, however, because I liked the mix of the farro and kale. Although it is an unusual pairing, it piqued my curiosity.

Wow! This recipe turned out to be just perfect in every way. So many of the ingredients provided great, flavorful textures. The cherries were a lovely addition, surprising me by adding just a touch of sweet and tart at the same time. The citrus dressing is delicious. This recipe is addicting.

I chose not to add the goat cheese. I wasn’t crazy about the addition of this ingredient. But if you love goat cheese, I would add it a little at a time so it does not overwhelm the other beautiful flavors of this dish.

You can use this as a side to any main dish or as a salad for brunch. It is easy to make and is a definite “crowd pleaser”.

This recipe is courtesy of Giada DeLaurentis and will serve 4 people. They will love it.

Ingredients for the Farro and Kale Salad

1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup plus 2 tbsp. very good extra-virgin olive oil
1 small shallot diced
1 cup farro, rinsed
2 cups of chicken broth (you can use low-sodium as well)
2 sprigs oregano, tied with cooking string
1 tsp. kosher salt
Juice of 1 large lemon
Juice of 1 orange
1 small bunch kale, stemmed and finely shredded
1/2 cup dried cherries or 1 cup fresh cherries, pitted and halved or quartered
1/2 English cucumber, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch pieces
4 ounces goat cheese

Put the walnuts in a small, heavy-bottomed skillet over low heat.

Cook, stirring frequently, until lightly toasted and fragrant, about 8-10 minutes.

Cool completely on a small baking sheet.

Heat a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the shallot and cook, stirring often with a wooden spoon, until the shallots have soften and are fragrant, about 3 minutes.

Add the farro and toss in the olive oil and shallot mixture, stirring often for about 3-4 minutes.

Reduce the heat to medium and stir in 2 cups of chicken broth, the oregano sprigs and 1/2 tsp. salt.

Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the farro is cooked through and tender, about 20-25 minutes.

Remove the oregano sprigs, drain the farro (if needed) and set aside.

Whisk together the lemon juice, orange juice, remaining 1/3 cup of olive oil and remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt in a large bowl.

Add the warm farro and toss to coat.

Add the kale, cherries, cucumber and walnuts and toss to combine.

farro and kale Kale, cherries and walnut in bowl

Crumble the goat cheese, toss it gently just to mix and serve.

It’s that simple!

Pasta with Roasted Cauliflower, Parsley and Breadcrumbs

May. 18
2016

I love to try new and innovative ways to make pasta. It may not always be diet-friendly, but it is worth it.

The cauliflower and red onion in this recipe are roasted to perfect tenderness in the oven. The cauliflower offers a nice crunchy texture. It is then tossed with the reserved pasta water that ensures a scrumptious, silky sauce.

All of the ingredients combine to make this a full-flavored, hearty, healthy dish while also managing to stay light and fresh. It is outrageously good!

This recipe is adapted from Martha Stewart. I made a few changes. For example, the recipe called for cavatappi pasta. Since I wasn’t sure where I was going to find that, I used fusilli pasta instead. Any wide, short pasta would be great with this. It also called for white-bread breadcrumbs, which had to be tossed in the food processor with oil. I used my own home-made breadcrumbs that I keep in the freezer. This made my prep time much shorter. You can use any kind of breadcrumbs and it will still be fantastic.

And, as always I used 1-2 more garlic cloves than the recipe called for. If you’re like me, you will too.

This recipe serves 4. It would be great to have for lunch the next day, but make sure you reserve extra pasta water so you can heat it up.

Today’s Hint: Buy some Italian bread, whole wheat bread and Semolina bread at your grocery store. Leave them on the counter for a day. Then place in the food processor and blend. Mix all the breadcrumbs together in a freezer bag and place them in the freezer. Now you will have fresh breadcrumbs when you need them. They last a long time. Take out as much as you need and put them back in your freezer.

Ingredients for the Pasta with Cauliflower

1 head cauliflower (about 2 1/2 pounds) cores and broken into small florets
1 medium red onion, halved and cut into thin wedges
5 garlic cloves, peeled and halved
1/4 cup of olive oil
1 cup of breadcrumbs
12 ounces fusilli pasta
1/4 cup grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Preheat oven to 475.

Place racks in upper and lower thirds.

Set a large pot of salted water to boil.

On a rimmed baking sheet, toss together cauliflower, onion and garlic with 2 tbsp. olive oil; season with salt and pepper.

pasta cauliflower cauliflower onions garlic in pan

Roast on lower rack in oven, until lightly browned and tender, about 20-25 minutes, tossing once.

Spread breadcrumbs on a rimmed baking sheet.

Bake on upper rack of oven until golden brown, about 5-6 minutes, tossing once.

Cook pasta in boiling water 3 minutes less than the cooking time indicated on the package.

RESERVE ONE CUP OF PASTA WATER!

Drain pasta and return to pot.

Add cauliflower mixture, Parmesan cheese, and half of the parsley.

Mix to combine.

While mixing the pasta, gradually add enough pasta water to form a thin sauce that coats the pasta.

Serve topped with breadcrumbs and parsley and, if desired, more Parmesan.

It’s that simple!

Charred Eggplant with Chermoula

May. 4
2016

Chermoula is a Moroccan condiment that is frequently used in Middle Eastern cuisine.

It is a sophisticated sauce that is spicy in every bite. It is a delightful mix of cilantro, parsley, lemon, cumin and coriander.

Of course you may delete any ingredient you do not like. I chose to use half the amount of cilantro the recipe called for, as I am not a huge fan. It was still delicious.

This recipe may sound effortful, but it really did not take much prep time. If you prepare the ingredients before you begin, you will be much more efficient.

This recipe is courtesy of Cooking Light and serves 6. You can always cut it half if you need to. I had way too much eggplant leftover. I have to figure out who I will be giving it to!

Ingredients for Charred Eggplant with Chermoula

2 tsp. cumin seeds
1 tsp. coriander seeds
1 tsp. grated lemon rind (about 2 lemons)
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp. paprika
1/8 tsp. ground red pepper
2 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
1 cup fresh cilantro
1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Cooking spray
2 medium eggplants, trimmed and cut into 1/4 inch slices

Heat a dry skillet over medium heat. Add cumin and coriander seeds. Cook for about 3-4 minutes or until toasted and fragrant. Remove from heat.

Crush seeds with a mortar and pestle or a small heavy skillet.

Add the rind, salt, paprika, red pepper and garlic. Mash to form a paste.

Place spicy mixture, cilantro, parsley, and lemon juice in the bowl of a food processor.

Pulse until finely chopped, scraping sides of bowl as needed.

With processor on, slowly pour olive oil through the food chute, processing just until blended. Set aside.

Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray.

Arrange one-fourth of eggplant slices in pan. Cook 3-5 minutes each side until browned and tender (slightly charred is even better).

Repeat until all of the eggplant has been cooked.

Drizzle cilantro mixture over eggplant.

It’s that simple!

Scalloped Potatoes with Red Onion and Rosemary

Apr. 11
2016

This scalloped potato recipe is courtesy of The Kosher Palette” cookbook, always a favorite “go to” recipe book of mine.

The potatoes are sliced paper thin and layered with a yummy red onion mixture. Slicing the potatoes very thinly may seem like a lot of hard work, but it is worth it. It ensures a delicate and scrumptious dish.

I also love that this recipe does not include cheese and is a non-dairy version of most scalloped potato dishes. You can also top it with breadcrumbs. That would make it even more delightful!

I give this recipe a big thumbs up. You can make it as a side dish for a weeknight dinner, yet it is elegant enough to serve at any family or holiday celebration.

Go ahead and make this one! It’s another “keeper’ in my recipe archives!

Ingredients for Scalloped Potatoes

1 tbsp. margarine or olive oil, plus 2 tsp. set aside
1/4 pound red onion, thinly sliced
1 tbsp. fresh rosemary, chopped, or 1 tsp. dried rosemary
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. salt, plus 1/2 tsp. set aside
1/2 tsp. paprika
2 pounds potatoes, sliced paper thin
2 cups chicken stock

Preheat oven 350.

Heat 1 tsp. margarine in a skillet over medium-high heat.

Add onion and sauté until tender (about 3-5 minutes).

Add in the rosemary, pepper, paprika and 1/2 tsp. of salt. Cook for 1 minute.

Layer one-third of potatoes in the bottom of a 5 1/2 x 7 1/2-inch baking pan greased with 2 teaspoons margarine.

Scalloped potato in baking pan single layer

Top potatoes with half of the onion mixture and sprinkle with 1 tsp. of salt.

Repeat with one-third of potatoes and remaining onion mixture.

Add remaining potatoes, overlapping neatly on top.

Add chicken broth until you reach the top layer of potatoes. Melt remaining margarine and drizzle over top.

Bake covered for 1 – 1/2 hours.

Remove cover and bake an additional 20-30 minutes until golden brown and liquid is absorbed.

Cut into squares and serve.

It’s that simple!

Red Snapper

Sep. 21
2015

I am excited to share with you another great recipe from my sister-in-law, Shelley. My brother had brought home some fresh red snapper he caught while fishing. Shelley got this recipe from a friend; she made some changes to it as did I.

Shelley was lucky enough to use this recipe with freshly caught fish! I was not so lucky and went to my grocery store and asked them to fillet the red snapper for me!

As it turns out, this is a recipe worth trying! The prep time is fast, and the fish cooks in just 15 minutes! It was delicious, and just as Shelley had told me, “blog worthy”.

Try this one, it is a “keeper”!

Ingredients for the Red Snapper

2 red snapper fish, fillet
3 tbsp. mayonnaise
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. lemon-pepper
1 tbsp. fresh dill
Juice of 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 350.

Whisk all the ingredients together. Place red snapper in a pan, flat, so all of the dressing can cover the fish.

Pour dressing over fish.

Bake for 15 minutes.

Any side dish would be a great accompaniment with this dish. I had some leftovers I served with it. What side dish did you use?

Let me know! I would love to hear from you!

It’s that simple!