Broccoli "NEW"!

7:53 PM Remy Maguire - Manifest the Best 0 Comments

A new way to cook one of my favorite veggies! Thanks, Maria for the amazing new cookbook, "Farm to Table: The Art of Eating Locally". This cookbook is divided into the four seasons and features wonderfully fresh recipes from some of the best restaurants in town. From the Winter chapter we made a Seared Broccoli and Sweet Onion Salad - this dish was put together by the chef-owner of Fife in Portland. It was simple and scrumptous! I served it as a warm side salad to accompany my take on Stuffed Acorn Squash. You can find one version here (http://remywright.blogspot.com/2009_09_01_archive.html). I switched it up some tonight because we had left-over rice from Thai take-out last night and lots of Craisins, walnuts and goat cheese from our Holiday meals.

Seared Broccoli and Sweet Onion Salad - The Farm to Table Cookbook

1 teas. Dijon mustard
1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil, divided
1 lbs peacock broccoli, cut into 1/4 inch spears (I used long, thin spears of organic broccolini)
1 small sweet onion (1 used 2 small shallots)
8-10 sage leaves, roughly chopped
2 oz goat cheese
salt and fresh ground pepper

1. Whisk the mustard, vinegar and 2 tbp olive oil in a small bowl and set aside.

2. Heat a largre, heavy pan or skillet over high heat. Pour in remaining oil and carefully add onions and broccoli. Saute until bright green and charred in places, about 3 minutes. Add the sage and cook for a minute more, stirring occasionally with tongs. Don't overcrown the veggies, you may want to cook in two batches.

3. Place the veggies in a serving bowl and toss with the vinaigrette and cheese. Season with s and p and serve warm.

As for the Baked Squash....

Slice the ends off one big acorn squash and scoop out the seeds.

I baked the two squash haves in a casserole dish until the meat is tender. About 35 minutes at 400 degrees.

Then I sauteed a couple of spicy chicken sausage links with a few handfuls of chopped mustard greens and a tablespoon of garlic.

Scoop out the insides and mix with rice, nuts, agave syrup, cayenne pepper, craisins. I mixed the whole shebang up with the greens and sausage and stuffed those squashes! Then I sprinkled the tops with some parm and caked until melty.

The bright green broccoli looked and tasted marvelously along side this warmy, cozy, Wintery dish.