The kale experiment continues

I have just about decided that the lacinato kale that Whole Foods carries has become my favorite green.  Also known as Tuscan kale, it's dark green, pebbly leaves cook up to tender morsels that are a very pleasing color to the eye.  Inspired by an Anita Lo dish published in the Wall Street journal, I took a shot at my own version.

The dish involved Kabocha squash, which didn't seem to be around this time of year, so I substituted butternut squash.  The WSJ recipe called for simply slicing and roasting the squash, but it also mentioned that Anita makes gnocchi out of it for the restaurant version, so I decided to roast my squash and make gnocchi.

don't often use the gnarly cleaver, but it is

perfect for splitting open a squash

Roasted for 45 minutes or so in a 350 degree oven, the flesh is ready to puree.

I added nutmeg, salt, and freshly ground white pepper to the puree

then I folded in two beaten egg whites

As before, I chose to omit the egg yolk from my gnocchi, and beat the egg whites to stiff peaks, folding them into the seasoned puree, which created something like a mousse.

Into the airy mousse, I incorporated just enough flour to form a soft dough

I rolled that dough out into "ropes" and cut off little gnocchi squares.  I had never tried sauteing gnocchi before, and the article said that is what Anita does at Annisa, so I gave it a whirl.  I sauted the little pillows in butter until they were golden brown, then drained them over paper towels.

 The sauted gnocchi turned out golden brown, and tasted great,

but they were a little too chewy

Though I wasn't particularly pleased with the texture of the gnocchi, I really loved the taste.  Jim and I are not huge squash fans, and I didn't know if we would care for the strong squash punch from the roasted slices of squash in the dish.  The gnocchi were a good way to get the vegetal sweetness of the squash without letting it overpower the whole dish.

The sauce was simplicity itself.  Sliced wild mushrooms, Tuscan kale with the center rib removed, and the leaves sliced.  A little bit of chicken stock, salt, pepper, fresh sage, parmesan, and a last minute swirl of butter.  It came together in just 15 minutes.

I had criminis in the fridge, and I bought a handful of shitakes--

sauted in a whisper of olive oil, they added a meaty texture to the dish

in went the gorgeous kale, along with a little salt and pepper,

and  some chicken broth-- I added a bit of white wine as well

Some sliced fresh sage goes in, and then a last minute swirl of butter to thicken the sauce a bit.  Parmesan gets shaved on top, and dinner is served, along with a nice thin slice of garlic toast, made with garlic infused olive oil.

A pretty dish, loaded with vegetables and interesting flavors

I will certainly revisit this dish in the future.  Since I wasn't all that happy with the texture of the gnocchi, I think next time I will make pasta out of the squash.  And for the next go around, I will use more broth for a moister sauce.  But all in all, the dish had a simple and lovely flavor profile -- making it very worthy of future tweeks.

I am doing a door-knock dinner tonight with some shrimp and scallops in the freezer.  I am thinking that the kale I have left will make another appearance, as might some arugula and red peppers.  Stay tuned for further updates on the kale experiments...

getting the "smoke" into beef brisket

I have been MIA for a couple of weeks.  Got knocked back by a bad cold that is still lingering on, though much improved from two weeks ago.  We went on a ski vacation to Purgatory, CO, and I spent the entire week coughing and sneezing, and nearly 4 days of the trip with my first serious bout of laryngitis.  I was reduced to writing on a legal pad with a marker to communicate to anyone.  Needless to say, it was not my best vacation ever.  But while I was there, my contribution to the Super Bowl Sunday snack-fest was another take on the little brisket sliders.  I know I have written about them before, but this particular preparation is a bit different than the last.  Since the brisket is cooked in the oven, I wanted to see if I could get more "smoke" flavor into the beef.
Toward that end, I made a wet rub of two minced chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, including a tablespoon or so of the sauce.  To that I added a half a tablespoon of ground cumin, half a tablespoon of ground garlic, a teaspoon of salt, a teaspoon of pepper, and 2 teaspoons of smoked paprika.  That got rubbed on the meat.  In the interest of minimal mess, I slide the brisket into an oven bag, and let it sit overnight in the fridge.

Since there are always more chipotles in even a small can than I typically use in a single preparation, I minced up the remaining peppers, poured them into a freezer bag, and froze them flat.  That way, when I want some chipotle, all I have to do is break off a chunk and toss the bag back into the freezer.

Sorry for the lack of pics here, but I wasn't thinking too clearly, and didn't think to pull out the camera.  I do have a photo of the test run brisket I did here in Greenville a couple of weeks before.  I haven't used oven bags much in the past, but they will make more frequent appearances from here on out.  The meat cooked up tender and brown, and there was no pan to scrub.  Two thumbs up in my opinion.

Once the brisket had marinated, I pulled it out of the fridge, cut a few slits in the top of the oven bag, and cooked it for about 4 hours in a 300 degree oven.

the end result was a tender, smoky, spicy brisket

Topped with a bit of simple vinegar slaw, and served on a pretzel roll, the meat made for a satisfying little slider sandwich.

great to eat with one hand while cheering on Pittsburgh --

too bad I couldn't cheer -- not even at a whisper...