If you’ve been reading my blog for any length of time, you’ll know that I’m a fan of the one-dish meal. Fussing about with multiple pots and pans is just not for me, and nor is doing multiple sets of dishes afterward. The way I see it, if something needs a side dish to complete it, how good can it be?

Yet there are certain dishes (and yes, good ones) that do require a little something else, aren’t there? I can think of several: fishcakes, tarts, certain soups. In those cases, I’ll often reach for one of my beloved salads, but sometimes I’m in the mood for something simpler. So occasionally, yes- I’ll have a side dish. And very occasionally, if I’m feeling particularly virtuous (or if I plan to bake something particularly sinful later on), I’ll have just a side.

As was the case last weekend, when I roasted up some broccoli for my lunch. This dish is adapted from an Amateur Gourmet recipe, but it’s hardly something any one person can take credit for. Broccoli, lemon, cheese: that’s pretty much it.

This time, I used Tenderstem broccoli, which I believe goes by the moniker “Broccolini” outside of the UK. The long, tender stalks and asparagus-like flavour is perfect here, but any broccoli will do. I’ve used regular calabrese, purple sprouting and even Romanescu before, all with slightly unique but equally delicious results. You can also change up the cheese here; feta is great in the summer, and parmesan or gorgonzola work well in the cooler months.

So, make this, and I’m sure you’ll forgive me my little side-dish aside. It probably won’t happen again for months, anyway.

• Roast Broccoli with Lemon and Cheese
• serves 4 as a side
• 400g Tenderstem (or other) broccoli
  2 Tbs. olive oil
  zest of one lemon
  sea salt and black pepper, to taste
  juice of one lemon
  50g feta cheese, crumbled (could also use: parmesan, gorgonzola, buffalo mozzarella)
• 1. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F. Lay the broccoli in a single layer in a shallow roasting tin, and drizzle with the olive oil. Sprinkle over the lemon zest, a pinch of sea salt and lots of freshly ground black pepper.
  
  2. Roast broccoli for approximately 20 minutes, until turning brown and crisp in places (there is no need to toss with the Tenderstem, though you may want to with a chunkier variety). Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the lemon juice and cheese. Serve immediately.

As with anything, trends in the food world come and go. Some are short-lived (cake pops, anyone?), some a little more tenacious (sigh- cupcakes) and some become broader movements that are difficult to define until we’re past them. So, what movement are we in now? I don’t profess to be an expert at this stuff, but I believe we’re currently in an age of under-cooking.

Think about it- it’s all about texture these days, no? Pasta is al dente, fish cooked just through and not a second longer, and anyone who orders their steak any better done than medium-rare is instantly relegated to uncool territory. I’m not saying I disagree with any of this (except maybe the steak thing, for obvious reasons), just pointing it out. Clearly, the days of Grandma’s overcooked meat and veg are long gone.

But every now and then, it’s nice to go against the tide and cook the s**t out of something. This recipe for Long-Cooked Broccoli comes from Alice Waters, and slowly cooks the vegetable until it completely breaks down, rendering it unrecognizable, yet mouthwatering. It ends up in a part solid, part liquid state that’s equally comfortable acting as a side dish or as a sauce for pasta, rice or fish.

The recipe calls for broccoli stems and florets, another trend which seems to have fallen by the wayside. I rarely see a recipe that calls for stems these days, yet we always ate both when I was growing up. (We strangely referred to the florets as “broc-broc” and the stems as “broc no-broc”.) Once the broc (both kinds) have been simmered with some garlic and chili flakes for an hour, you stir in some lemon zest and season to taste. The addition of buttermilk adds a tangy richness that takes things to a whole other level.

So here’s to a new trend: things that taste good.

• Long-Cooked Broccoli with Buttermilk
• adapted from Alice Waters’ Long-Cooked Broccoli
• serves 4 as a side
• 1 large head broccoli
  3 Tbs. olive oil
  3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
  1/4 tsp. chili flakes
  1 cup water
  zest of one lemon
  1/3 cup buttermilk
  sea salt and black pepper, to taste
• 1. Cut the broccoli into small florets, and peel and slice the stem pieces). Rinse and set aside.
  
  2. Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and chili flakes and cook for one minute. Add the broccoli and stir everything well. Continue cooking for 4-5 minutes, until everything is very fragrant.
  
  3. Add the water and bring to a boil. Turn the heat to very low, cover, and simmer for one hour. Check occasionally to stir and make sure the mixture isn’t sticking; you may need to add more water.
  
  4. After one hour, remove from the heat and stir in the lemon zest and buttermilk. Season to taste and stir vigorously, to give the broccoli the texture of a coarse purée. Serve immediately, as a side or sauce.

Let’s face it: there are not that many ways to make a veggie side interesting. One of the reasons I tend to be a one-dish-meal kind of girl (you know, besides being lazy) is the tricky matter of making a great side dish. Not only does it have to be interesting on its own, but it must also complement whatever the main dish is: a tall order for some humble veggies, no?

So I’ll let you in on a little secret I’ve discovered: pangrattato. Ok, so it’s not really a secret, but this crispy breadcrumb topping is far less well-known than it should be, in my opinion. I’d never heard of it at all before Jamie Oliver made a version on TV a couple years ago. Hell, I even told my boss, a professional chef and food business owner, the name of that “delicious crispy breadcrumb” topping he was waxing poetic over!

At its simplest, pangrattato is a toasted breadcrumb topping, but it can be gussied up in innumerable ways. Jamie’s original version contained porcini mushrooms, and he also does a mean chili one. It can be fried in butter or olive oil, can contain spices, nuts or herbs, and can range in flavour from Italian to Indian or Greek. I gave this one a bright Asian taste with chili, cashews, coriander and lemon zest. Basically, these are breadcrumbs on crack.

So, once you’ve pimped up your breadcrumbs, you need a vehicle for them. Pangrattato makes a wicked topping for pasta, risotto, soup or fish, but I find it most useful for the humble roast veg. For this dish I chose a mixture of butternut squash and cauliflower; it might sound like an odd combination, but the mixture in flavour and texture is awesome. Almost any roast-able veg would work though; broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, parsnips, potatoes and squash would all be good.

There’s just one teeny problem with this dish. It’s so good, I sometimes end up eating a whole bowl of these crumb-y veg as a main, instead of a side. Right back to square one, then.

• Roast Veg with Nutty, Spicy Pangrattato
• serves 4 as a side (makes approx. 1 cup of pangrattato)
• For the roast vegetables:
  750g vegetable(s) of your choice, cut into bite-sized pieces
  2 Tbs. olive oil
  a good pinch sea salt
  
  For the pangrattato:
  45g butter
  3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
  1 tsp. chili flakes
  50g cashews, chopped finely
  100g fresh breadcrumbs (white or brown)
  zest of half a lemon
  3 Tbs. finely chopped coriander
  sea salt, to taste
• 1. Start by roasting the vegetables. Preheat your oven to 200°C/400°F and spread the chopped (or floreted) veg in a single layer on a baking sheet or shallow dish. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with sea salt and toss to coat. Roast until tender (time will depend on what you’re using; mine took about 20 minutes).
  
  2. While the vegetables are cooking, start the pangrattato. Heat the butter in a nonstick pan over medium-high heat and add the garlic. When it begins to colour, add the chili flakes and cashews and cook for another minute or two.
  
  3. Add the breadcrumbs to the pan and stir well so that they evenly soak up the butter. Cook for another 4-6 minutes, stirring frequently, so that the breadcrumbs become brown and toasted. Remove pan from the heat and discard the garlic cloves. Stir in the lemon zest and coriander and season to taste.
  
  4. When the vegetables are done roasting, toss with the pangrattato and serve immediately.

Can you believe that Christmas is a mere 15 days away? I’ll admit- despite the passing of time and my best efforts, I’m not feeling all that Christmassy this year. For the first time in my 26 years, I’ll be spending Christmas away from my family, traveling instead to the English coast to be with my boyfriend’s. Though I’m looking forward to experiencing Andrew’s traditions, it does feel a bit anticlimactic to be spending the holiday season in England.

As such, I’m having some trouble getting in touch with my festive side. While my Canadian hometown has been dusted with snow over the past week, turning it into a sparkly, magical winter wonderland (or a slippery, slushy Hell- it depends who you ask) London remains stubbornly green. Yes, my village has its Christmas lights on and there are holiday displays in every shop window, but none of that is doing much to make this foreigner feel at home.

The cure for this homesick holiday ambivalence is quite clearly food (isn’t it always?). Roasting always seems like a particularly festive cooking method, so when I bought these parsnips and carrots from the market on Sunday, I figured that a sweet roasted side dish was the way to go. I threw in some shallots to balance all the sweetness, and drizzled over some maple syrup for that taste of home.

These would make a great side for a roast dinner of some sort; I’m sure in my former life I would’ve loved them alongside a chicken. As it stands, Andrew and I enjoyed these for lunch with some cheesy scrambled eggs and a slice of toast. (It may seem strange, but the sharpness of the cheddar was the perfect counterpoint to the maple syrup.)

So, am I in the festive mood now? Well, not really- but at least I’m one meal closer.

• Maple Roasted Parsnips, Carrots and Shallots
• serves 4 as a side, 2 as a meal
• 4 parsnips
  3 carrots
  4 shallots
  1-2 sprigs rosemary, leaves picked
  3 Tbs. olive oil
  good pinch of sea salt
  2 Tbs. maple syrup
• 1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F. Scrub or peel the parsnips and carrots (I peel rather than wash, as I’m very lazy and find it easier), then quarter lengthwise and cut into 2″ lengths. Peel the shallots and quarter lengthwise.
  
  2. Throw the veg into a shallow baking dish and scatter the rosemary over the top. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle over the sea salt.
  
  3. Bake for 25 minutes, then pour over the maple syrup and toss to coat. Return to the oven for another 10 minutes. Cool for 3-5 minutes, then serve.

I’m gonna come right out and say it: carrots are pretty boring, yes? I mean, I like them and all, and I get that a lot of you probably do, too. Understandable, because there’s a lot about carrots to like: they’re pretty, they’re sweet, and if you believe universal parent-imparted wisdom, they’ll make you see in the dark.

That’s pretty much where it ends, though. How many times have you ever heard someone say “I LOVE carrots- they’re my favourite vegetable!” I’m going to go out on a limb and guess never. I think it’s because the humble carrot is nearly always relegated to side dish territory, and rarely gets to take centre stage. A side of carrots was a prerequisite for any celebratory dinner when I was growing up. Come Thanksgiving, Christmas or Easter they were there, but I never liked them as much as their neighbors broccoli, potatoes and brussels sprouts. 

So when I took a bunch of carrots home on Sunday, I had lofty ambitions to make them into something exciting that I’d actually look forward to eating. Because I sometimes find cooked carrots a bit too sweet, I figured the best way to counteract this was to pile on the salt and spice. Looking to my favourite Asian flavours for inspiration, I braised these with some garlic, ginger, chili and soy sauce, and garnished the resulting dish with fresh spring onions and coriander. 

This dish far exceeded my (modest) expectations: it was vibrant and flavourful and damn near addictive. The “braising and glazing” technique I used comes via Mark Bittman, and resulted in tender carrots coated in a thick, syrupy sauce. So make it, and throw the poor old carrot a bone for once. They’ve got as much right to stand in the spotlight as anyone else, after all.

Note: Contrary to my original intentions, I’ve categorized this as a side dish, both because I figured most people would use it as one, and because the Side category on my recipe tab was looking depressingly bare. Of course, it doesn’t have to be a side; this would make a great simple meal, served over rice or Asian noodles. 

• Soy Braised Carrots
• serves 2 as a main with rice or noodles, 4 as a side 
• 2 Tbs. vegetable oil (or other neutral oil)
  2 cloves garlic, minced
  1″ chunk of ginger, minced
  2 cups of carrots, peeled and chopped into 1/2″ chunks 
  2 Tbs. soy sauce
  1/4 cup water
  1/4 tsp. chili flakes
  1 Tbs. sesame oil
  3 small spring onions, finely chopped 
  2 Tbs. chopped coriander 
• 1. Heat the oil in a heavy nonstick pan (one that has a lid) over medium heat. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for about 30 seconds. 
  
  2. Add the chopped carrots, soy sauce, water and chili flakes. Give a quick stir, then cover and turn the heat down to low. Cook for 12-15 minutes until the carrots are tender, stirring once or twice. You may need to add some more water if the mixture becomes too dry.
  
  3. When the carrots are tender, take the lid off the pan and turn the heat up to medium-high. Cook until the moisture has mainly evaporated and the carrots are nicely browned. 
  
  4. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the sesame oil. Serve sprinkled with the spring onion and coriander.  

I know, I know, it’s not Wednesday. But “Wildcard Thursday” doesn’t really have the same ring to it, and besides, I made this on Wednesday. Er, actually, come to think of it, I made this on Tuesday, intending to blog about it on Wednesday… Well, never mind. The consuming of and blogging about the meal in question bookended a Wednesday, so it still kind of works. 

Phew. Moving swiftly on… As much as I like trying out new recipes and ingredients, I can sometimes, and I suspect I’m not alone here, fall into a bit of a rut, grocery-wise. I am quite content buying the same produce week after week at the farmer’s market, happy to stay that way until the season change and new options are forced on me. Obviously, this can get quite boring. I thought up Wildcard Wednesdays as a challenge to myself: buy and cook one item that I’m unfamiliar with each week. (Failing that, I suppose I could also buy a familiar item, and prepare it in a new way.)

This week, that item is Jerusalem Artichokes, or Sunchokes, as they’re sometimes called. These crazy little tubers (ew) really freaked me out the first time I saw them at the market last year. I had to ask my sister what they were, and what to do with them. She pointed me in the direction of Jerusalem Artichoke soup, which I made, and enjoyed. I’ve also had them in a delicious mash with potatoes and goat’s cheese, but that’s it. Last weekend, while looking around the market for a suitable inaugural Wildcard, I realized that I’d never eaten J-chokes in their actual, original form. Up until now, I’d always puréed or mashed them. 

Well, that was about to change. I bought five of the little buggers, took them home, and began the hunt for a recipe to make the most of them. I considered J-choke chips, from my favourite Mark Bittman book, but wanted something a bit more exciting. I considered roasting them, or even making a gratin. In the end I was most inspired by this recipe from Jamie Oliver, and decided to go with it (tweaking as desired, of course). 

Served alongside a gruyère omelette, with a sprinkling of porcini breadcrumbs, they made a great dinner. 

• Sautéed Jerusalem Artichokes with Garlic and Bay
• Adapted from this recipe by Jamie Oliver
• serves 2
• 5 jerusalem artichokes
  3 Tbs. olive oil
  5-6 fresh bay leaves
  3 cloves garlic, crushed
  1/4 cup vinegar (white wine vinegar or balsamic)
  1/3 cup vegetable stock
  salt and pepper
• 1. Scrub the j-chokes well and peel them roughly. Remove the frightening hairy bits and any dark parts, but don’t worry about a bit of skin. Chop them into 1/2″ to 1″ chunks.
  
  2. Heat the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pan over med-high heat. Toss in the j-chokes and cook, stirring every few minutes, until they are beginning to brown. 
  
  3. Turn down the heat to med-low, and throw in the garlic and bay leaves. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook for another minute or so. Add the vinegar and stock, cover tightly and cook for about 25 minutes, shaking the pan or stirring every five. (You may need to add a bit more liquid as they cook.)
  
  4. Check the seasoning, adding more salt and pepper if needed. Serve alongside meat, fish, or as I did, an omelette.