When the weather starts to get colder, on Sunday nights, I load two sheet pans into the oven: one with savory/spicy sausage and brassicas[1]; one with mild sausage and root veggies. The family picks through and eats what they like. And there are plenty of leftovers for grain bowls and other lunches into the week. The basic format is 2-2½ pounds veggies vs. 12 oz sausage. So 25% meat, 75% veggies.

I cook it low and slow. 375 degrees for an hour or more until everything is tender.  

Sweet Roots Tray

• ¾ pound red beets
• ¾ pound golden beets
• ½ pound parsnips
• 1 package (12 oz) Niman Ranch Apple Gouda sausage
• some good oil and salt

Savory Brassicas Tray

• ½ head cauliflower
• ½ head broccoli
• 1 red onion
• 1 package (12 oz) VT Salumi Red Wine & Garlic Sausage
• some good oil and salt, and maybe some black pepper  

Prep: you don’t want your veggies to steam; you want them to roast. So that means they go into the oven dry. If you’re going to wash them (I have to admit, I don’t), plan plenty of time for them to dry out.

Snap the brassicas into forkful-size pieces. Cut the roots and sausages into forkful-size pieces. They don’t need to be the same size or shape, but they should be the same thickness, so they roast at the same speed. Quarter your onion.

Toss: in a large bowl, toss the roots and their sausage together with enough oil to coat. Do the same with the brassicas and their sausages, but since all the little ins-and-outs of the brassica florets have more surface area, you’ll use a little more oil. Either way, you don’t need too much, because the sausages will start to render.  

Arrange & Bake: spread them out on their sheet pans, with at least some spacing, and only one layer. The more spacing, the more steam escapes, the more they shrivel up when baking. For the same reason, try and use a pan without walls. Bake at 375 degrees about an hour, turning every 10-15 minutes to make sure all the sides get oiled and roasted.  They’re done with they seem done.

Serve: this dish should be served family-style. You could sprinkle the pan with chopped parsley or drizzle with tahini sauce, to look a more artful. But I don’t.

[1] Brassicas (also known as crucifers, or cruciferous vegetables) are the family that includes cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, turnip, canola, rutabaga, choy sum, mustard, and all the radishes. Here, I like to focus on Brassicas developed from flowers and buds: broccoli, cauliflower, and Brussels sproutsa fork.   

Whole Grain Noodles  |  Organic Greens  |  Wild Boar  |  Cultured Veggies 

Sichuan Chinese cuisine may just be my favorite worldwide, and Dan Dan Noodles are in my Sichuan top 3.  The name means “bamboo pole noodles,” because the legendary street vendor who invented them carried a bamboo pole over his shoulders, with a bucket of noodles on one end, and a bucket of sauce on the other. 

And that sauce!  It’s hard to describe. I don’t have the adjectives. But imagine a richly spiced Chinese take on Bolognese… And having said that, there’s no one official way to do Dan Dan. Some Dan Dan’s are thin and oily, hot and salty. I like the dense ones, with thick sesame paste, browned minced pork, and pickled veggies for funk and acidity.   

At home, Sichuan cuisine has always seemed daunting to me.  The techniques are manageable enough, but the ingredient lists usually a whole handful of I don’t already have, and wouldn’t know what to do with otherwise.  Here we sidestep that issue, and get our Dan Dan sauce ready-made out of a bottle, from the fine foodie folks at Chinese Laundry Kitchen. We use whole wheat linguine instead of fresh noodles you have to get at the Asian market.  And we substitute Western fermented red cabbage (basically, sauerkraut) for the traditional Chinese preserved mustard greens, which you can never find without preservatives anyways.   It all works. It’s better for you. And it is drop-dead delicious.

Serves 3 as a main 

Prepare the Meat (or ***substitute): sautee the wild boar in oil until well-browned.  Add five-spice powder, soy sauce, black bean paste, and coconut sugar, and cook an additional minute.  Set aside.   

Prepare the Noodles and Wilted Greens: in a large pot, cook the noodles as per package directions.  About a minute before they’re done, throw in the bok choy to blanch.  Drain. 

Prepare The Bowls: into each serving bowl, place a heaping tablespoon Chinese Laundry Kitchen Dan Dan Sauce (mixed very well beforehand).  Put 1/3 of the noodles-and-greens in each, and top with 1/3 the meat.  Add 1-2 forkfuls of the fermented cabbage.   (Traditional recipes cook the pickled greens with the meat.  We don’t, so we don’t kill the live probiotics).  

Serve: bowls are traditionally served not already mixed up.  That’s done at the table.  Top each with minced scallions, chopped peanuts, black sesame seed, and whatever else your heart desires.  Bring a little more dan dan sauce to the table in case anyone likes it spicier.   

***vegetarian/vegan substitute for the wild boar…. Try 1 package Pumfu™ pumpkinseed tofu.  It’s like a green, richer, soy-free version of tofu.  Double the oil (since the Pumfu won’t render any fat), and then mash up the Pumfu™ with a fork.   

[editor’s note. I like Pav Bhaji a lot, I love it with melted cheese on top, and I’ve even had pretty good pizza where they use Pav Bhaji instead of tomato sauce. It’s also 100% plant-based, if you use vegan butter. So of course I’ve been wanting to run a recipe for the newsletter. Turns out our senior cashier Rakhi makes Pav Bhaji just about weekly. This is her recipe.

Pav Bhaji was originally provided as a cheap lunch for textile workers in Mumbai. It was, in the words of one writer, made from “all the leftovers.” You can use a similar philosophy here. Don’t feel constrained by precise quantities. Just make a mash from whatever you’ve got, and enjoy -Adam].   

Pav Bhaji is popular Indian street food.  Pav means “bread” or “dinner roll” and bhaji means “vegetable dish.” So Pav Bhaji is a mashed vegetable dish served with buttered Western-style rolls. Normally Pav Bhaji is about half potatoes, but when I make it for my son, I replace most of them with even more nutrient dense vegetables. -Rakhi 

Serves 4 

• 1½ C chopped carrots 
• 3 C cauliflower florets 
• 1 medium yellow potato, peeled & cubed 
• 1 C chopped red bell pepper 
• 1 C frozen peas 
• 5 Tbsp butter, divided + more for the rolls 
• 1 tsp cumin seeds 
• 1 C finely chopped onion 
• 5 Tbsp butter 
• 2 Tbsp chopped garlic 
• 1 Tbsp grated ginger 
• 1 C chopped fresh or store-bought tomatoes 
• 1-2 Tbsp Pav Bhaji masala spice mix 
• 1 tsp sweet paprika (optional for color) 
• for garnishing ¼ C chopped cilantro 
• for garnishing, lemon juice or lemon wedges 
• soft dinner rolls for serving 
• salt to taste 

Cooking method

1. In a pot, set cauliflower, potatoes, carrots, red bell pepper and frozen peas with 3 cups of water. Add 1tsp salt and cover the pot. Boil the vegetables together on medium heat till tender (around 10 to 15 mins). Using a potato masher, mash all the vegetable. 
2. In another shallow pan melt 2 tbs butter on medium heat, then add the cumin seeds and let them sizzle. Add chopped onions and sauté for two mins. Then add grated ginger and garlic. I use cheese grater to grate. Continue to cook for 1 more mins. Now add chopped tomatoes and mix well. Let the tomatoes cook for 3 mins until softened. Add the Pav Bhaji masala and paprika powder. I like to add paprika powder to give it more color. Now add the remaining butter, smashed vegetables and 1/4 cup water. Cook for another 10 minutes. 
3. Give a good squeeze of lemon and chopped cilantro. Top with the rest of the butter. 
4. Gently toast the dinner rolls, and serve well buttered. 

We shred summer squash – using a spiralizer, a julienne peeler, or by hand. That’s our “pasta.” And then we do it up aglio e olio style. That’s Italian for “garlic and oil.” E gamberi means “and shrimp,” and it’s the shrimp that transform what’s basically a glorified salad into a full-out meal.    

Now let’s talk cheese: there’s generic romano, and there’s pecorino romano. The pecorino version comes from sheep’s milk. It’s a million times better than a generic cow romano, and that’s a mathematical fact. If you use feta instead of romano, again, seek the sheep. Trust me.  

And salad shrimp… I love these! Baby shrimp, already cooked, super-easy, versatile, reasonably priced, and wild.  (Wild is important, because farm-raised shrimp can be pretty gross).  I add them to salads and slaws, omelettes, pastas, even savory waffles. And of course salads, for a punch of protein. Corn salad with shrimp and dill might be my next recipe… 

Serves 4 | 10 minutes prep | 10 minutes cook 

• 2.5 – 3 pounds yellow zucchini 
• ½ C good extra virgin olive oil 
• 4-6 cloves garlic, finely sliced or crushed
• ¼ C dried thyme, or mixed Italian dried herbs. (Yes, that much!)
• 1 16-oz bag frozen salad shrimp, thawed 
• at least 1 C grated pecorino romano, or feta 
• ground black pepper and cayenne to taste 

Instructions

1. Defrost the salad shrimp in the fridge in the morning. 
2. Spiralize or otherwise finely shred the summer squash into “noodles.” Set aside. 
3. In a pan large enough to eventually hold all the noodles, gently heat the oil with the garlic and herbs until the garlic just slightly softens.   
4. Add the zucchini, and continue to stir gently. Remember, you can eat zucchini raw, so how much you cook – nice and soft, or still a little crunchy – is entirely a matter of taste.   
5. Add the shrimp until they’re warmed through. (Remember, they’re already cooked!).  
6. Add some cheese, stir it in, serve with even more cheese

This isn’t authentic, and it probably lacks artistry.  But it’s yummy, a foolproof weeknight staple that’s good for you.  In the winter, I use chopped carrots, and frozen peas and corn.  In summer, why not throw in some snow peas?  Whatever veggies you choose, make sure they’re firm and crunchy with a little vegetabal-y sweetness.    

Ever since the Epicurious website ranked Mekhala the #1 brand for Thai green curry paste, it’s been my go-to.  Doesn’t hurt that it’s organic, either.  But green curry is spicy, and you can absolutely use a milder yellow or red paste.  If anyone in your home is entirely spice-averse (i.e. we have a kindergartener), you can omit the curry paste while cooking.  You finish, ladle out a spices-free portion, then add the curry paste to what’s afterwards.   For her, and even for us, we’ll add splash a Big Tree Farms original coconut aminos: the sweetness from the coconut, partially transformed into a soy sauce-like liquid. It’s salty-savory-sweet, and really adds something. 

feeds 6

Directions

1. Put the coconut milk in a pot with the 5 cups veggies and the curry paste.  Simmer until veggies are al dente.  You can add a little extra water if you like.
2. Add the tofu and stir gently till it warms through.
3. Serve with plenty of chopped bell pepper on top.
4. I really like using the purple Riceberry rice with this.  It’s a hybrid Thai long-grain sticky rice that works perfectly here.  See here for more. 

My mother’s cassoulet recipe (originally published in these pages 2017) is a delight, and a revelation.  Lots of beans and meat.   Rich and warming.  Fatty and delicious.  Creamy on the bottom; melt-in-your mouth crispy on top.   The perfect Sunday dinner for family, and a holiday table centerpiece.   

It is also (if you’re a stickler for tradition) a travesty of epic proportions.  There is no one official cassoulet, but authentic recipes are generally elaborate preparations staged over 3 or 4 days, culminating in a 4-hour bake, in an earthenware vessel called a cassole.  And they involve 5 or 6 kinds of meat, including specially prepared duck. 

My mother’s recipe uses canned beans, regular chicken, and isn’t too picky about the sausage.  And while it is far from vegetarian, it uses less meat than most.  It also uses a shallow baking vessel like a lasagna tray.  More surface area = faster reduction = richer flavors and more crust.  

I’ve modified my mother’s by a) doubling it; b) adding some aromatics; c) cutting the tomato. 

Serves 8-12 hungry people!

1. Pick some fun sausage, roughly compatible with French cuisine.  I used a mix of merguez, andouille, and a red wine & garlic pork sausage from VT.  Pastured, free range, organic.   

2. Drain the beans, reserving liquid.  Chop the vegetables into pieces the size of the beans. 

3. Throw everything except the meats and the garnish together into the biggest shallow pan you’ve got. A lasagna tray works.  So does a paella pan.   Taste for salt.  Depending on the beans and tomatoes you use, you could want a little or a lot.  Add half the bean water.  Mix. 

4. At this point, your dish should look like soppy beans in ketchup sauce.  Don’t worry, it gets better.  Bake at 425 for about 45 minutes, until the vegetables have softened, and most of the moisture is on.  Add a little more bean liquid if it gets too dry.   

5. Place the chicken thighs on top of the beans, skin side up.  Rub with salt and pepper, and whatever spices you want.  Drizzle with oil.   

6. Cut the sausage into 2- to 3-inch chunks, and nestle between the chicken.   

7. Bake another 45 minutes until everything is crusty and perfect. 

Our original August 2022 recipe was for Za’atar Grilled Summer Squash. We wrote “Easy, breezy, backyard casual! All it takes is 3 minutes to prep, another 8 on the grill. Your squash comes off flavorful and tender. It has grill marks. It’s vegan. Everyone is happy.”

The same can be said about this version. Thing is, once you start grilling squash, it’s easy to grill even more, and to use different spices.

Here we use Shichimi Togarishi, a Japanese 7-spice blend of chilis, citrus, seaweed and sesame. If you haven’t tried it… try it! Lovely on plain boiled rice, and just like za’atar, it makes a phenomenal avocado toast.

Ingredients

You’ll notice I don’t list amounts. That’s because it’s pretty variable. Sorry for being so vague!

Directions

1. Slice the summer squash lengthwise into planks, roughly as thick as a pencil
2. Brush both sides of each plank with mayonnaise. You don’t want to use a lot — just a very thin coat — just enough so the spices will stick
3. sprinkle the shichimi togarishi on both sides. You may want to taste it first, to get a sense of the heat level.
4. Preheat grill to medium-high, and grill roughly 4 minutes on each side, using tongs to flip.
5. Serve with a squirt of citrus, and as much salt as you want.