Holiday Power Breakfast

Cranberry sauce doesn’t have to be just for Thanksgiving dinner. Spoon it over yogurt for a fantastic breakfast chock full of stuff that’s good for you. It's not just a great way to use up turkey dinner leftovers, it’s a reason to make a whole new batch!


Yogurt with Cranberry Sauce (8 servings)

• 12 oz. fresh cranberries, rinsed
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• ½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
• ½ cup water
• Plain, non-fat Greek yogurt

1. Combine the cranberries, sugar, vanilla, orange juice, and water in a heavy saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thick, about 20 minutes. Cool; it will continue to thicken as it cools.
2. Spoon cranberry sauce over yogurt.

When You Can’t Get to Afghanistan…

There is a fantastic Afghan restaurant in Cambridge called the Helmand. Every time I go, I always make sure to get the kaddo bourani as an appetizer. It’s slow-roasted pumpkin covered by a yogurt sauce and then covered again by a meat sauce. I know, it sounds a little weird, but it is one of the most delicious things I have ever eaten. Years ago I found the recipe for it online but the thought of dealing with a pumpkin has always kept me from making it. Then it occurred to me that I could try substituting sweet potatoes. So I had a go at it. While it’s not the same as the Helmand’s, it is absolutely delicious!

Kaddo Bourani with Sweet Potato (4 to 6 servings)

Sweet potato

• 3 medium sweet potatoes (about 2 ½ lbs.)
• 6 tbsp. canola oil
• 1 cup sugar

Yogurt sauce

• 2 cups plain yogurt (I used non-fat and it was fine)
• 2 garlic cloves, pressed
• 1 tsp. dried mint
• ½ tsp. salt

Meat sauce

• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 large tomato, seeded and finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, pressed
• 1 ¼ tsp. ground coriander
• 1 ½ tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• ½ tsp. ground turmeric
• 2 tbsp. tomato paste
• 1 1/3 cups water

Make the sweet potatoes

1. Preheat oven to 300°.
2. Peel the sweet potatoes and cut into 2-inch pieces. Toss them in the oil and place them in a single layer on a baking sheet. Sprinkle the sugar evenly over the sweet potato pieces. (1 cup of sugar is correct – that’s not a typo. In fact, that is significantly reduced from the original recipe.)
3. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 1 hour then turn the sweet potato pieces. Bake for 1 more hour. Then basted the pieces with the pan juices, cover, and bake for another 45 minutes.

Make the yogurt sauce

1. Mix all the ingredients together. Refrigerate, covered, until ready to serve.

Make the meat sauce

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet. Brown the onions then add the meat and cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until it is broken up into small pieces and the meat is cooked through.
2. Add the tomato, garlic, ground coriander, salt, pepper, and turmeric and cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes.
3. Stir in the tomato paste and the water and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and let simmer for about 15 minutes.

To serve

Spoon the sweet potato onto a plate. Top with cold yogurt sauce. Top with hot meat sauce.

Dipping into Delicious

With the start of fall and the weather getting just a little cooler but not really cold, it’s time to say goodbye to the light summer dishes. But I’m not ready to embrace hearty, cold-weather fare. I decided that two dips were exactly what I wanted for the week. Dips are great because not only do they make a terrific snack or even light meal with pita chips and a side salad, they are fantastic sandwich spreads. I decided on a roasted eggplant and red pepper dip from the Barefoot Contessa that a friend had sent me years ago and a black olive tapenade from a great sandwich cookbook.

Both of these dips are wonderful just with pita chips or crackers but can they also transform a sandwich into something sublime. Spread the olive tapenade on ciabatta bread and top with prosciutto, fresh basil leaves, tomato slices, and fresh mozzarella. Or spread the roasted eggplant and red pepper dip on French baguette and top with smoked turkey and gouda. You’ll never want to use mayonnaise again.

Roasted Eggplant and Red Pepper Dip

• 1 medium eggplant, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2 red bell peppers, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 onion, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 garlic cloves, pressed
• 3 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 ½ tsp. kosher salt
• ½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp. tomato paste

1. Preheat the oven to 450°.
2. Toss the eggplant, peppers, and onions in a large bowl with the garlic, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Spread them in an even layer on a baking sheet and roast for 45 minutes, tossing once. Cool slightly.
3. Place the vegetables in a food processor fitted with a steel blade, add the tomato pasted, and pulse to blend.

Black Olive Tapenade

• 1 cup niçoise or kalamata olives, pitted
• 2 anchovy fillets
• 2 garlic cloves, pressed
• 1 tbsp. capers, drained
• 1 tbsp. herbes de Provence
• ¼ cup chopped fresh basil
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
• freshly ground black pepper to taste

1. In a food processor, combine the olives, anchovies, garlic, capers, herbes de Provence, and basil. Process until the mixture is very finely chopped, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
2. With the machine running, gradually add the olive oil in a thin, steady stream until the mixture is very smooth, like a thick paste. Stir in the lemon juices and season to taste with pepper.

Pita Chips

• Pita bread (I like to use whole wheat pita)\
• Olive oil
• Kosher salt

1. Preheat the oven to 375°.
2. Brush the pita with olive oil on both sides. Stack the pita and cut into wedges.
3. Place the pita wedges on a baking sheet in an even layer and sprinkle with kosher salt.
4. Bake for 6-7 minutes, turn the chips, and bake for another 6-7 minutes.

Creamy, Elegant Pasta in No Time

Pasta with cream sauce is one of those dishes that is incredibly easy to make, is incredibly fast to make, and offers endless variations (like this and this). One of my favorite variations is fettuccini with smoked salmon and dill cream sauce. A small chunk of smoked salmon (don’t use the slices, they don’t work nearly as well) and some fresh dill and you have a pasta that tastes rich and even a little elegant. Sometimes, for a homier version, instead of the dill I use 2 tsp. of Old Bay seasoning, which is also delicious.

Pasta with Smoked Salmon and Dill Cream Sauce (4 to 6 servings)

• 3 tbsp. butter
• 3 tbsp. flour
• 1 ½ cups milk
• 4 oz. smoked salmon fillet, shredded with a fork
• Fresh dill
• 1 lb. fettuccini, cooked and drained

1. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Add the milk and whisk. Heat until the sauce thickens. Stir in the salmon and dill. Pour sauce over fettuccini and toss.

Chicken Salad goes Indian

I wanted my chicken salad a little more exotic this time. I decided to use Indian flavors but I knew I was going to have to do a lot of adapting which is half the fun. I turned to my Indian cookbooks for help. Rather than just poach the chicken breasts in chicken broth like I usually do, I decided to prepare them based on a recipe for chicken tandoori, which gave the chicken lots of flavor. (No color, though. The bright red chicken tandoori that you typically see in Indian restaurants comes courtesy of food coloring.) For the dressing, I thought using yogurt as the base rather than mayonnaise would be a little more “authentic.” Then I thought of my favorite Indian spinach dish (saag) and thought why not use that for my inspiration. Using a lamb saag recipe – more as a rough guide for the types of spices to use than anything else – I concocted a dressing with more Indian spices to complement the tandoori chicken. The final result is an extremely flavorful and exotic chicken salad that bears little resemblance to my two inspiration dishes but is delicious nonetheless. I served the chicken salad on naan, which you can now buy at the supermarket!

I must have been very hungry as I was planning the meal because I decided I needed a side dish. Flipping through my What’s Cooking Indian cookbook, I came across a recipe for potatoes and peas that looked delicious and I though that it might make a good potato salad substitute. Not only was this a delicious side dish, it was also excellent cold!

Indian Chicken Salad with Spinach (6 servings)

• 2-3 chicken breasts
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 lemon
• 12 oz. plain yogurt
• 1 small onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• ¾ inch ginger root, peeled
• ¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp. garam masala
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• ½ tsp. ground coriander
• 3 oz. baby spinach

1. Cut slits into the chicken. Sprinkle ½ tsp. salt and squeeze the juice from half the lemon over them. Lightly rub the salt and juice into the slits. Turn the chicken over and repeat with the remaining salt and lemon juice. Set aside for 20 minutes.
2. Blend 6 oz. of the yogurt, onion, 1 clove of the garlic, ¼ inch of the ginger, cayenne pepper, and garam masala in a food processor until it is a smooth paste.
3. Put the chicken and juices into a large zip-top plastic bag with the yogurt marinade, tossing until the chicken is completely covered. Seal and refrigerate 6-24 hours.
4. Preheat the oven to 450°. Take the chicken out of the bag, shaking off as much marinade as possible. Place in a shallow baking dish and bake for 30 minutes or until just doe. Cool and shred the chicken.
5. In a large bowl, whisk together the remaining 6 oz. of yogurt, the remaining garlic clove pressed, the remaining ½-inch of ginger grated, the cumin, and the coriander. Add the spinach and shredded chicken and stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate for a few hours to allow the flavors to blend.

Indian Potatoes and Peas (6 servings)

• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1 clove garlic, pressed
• ½ inch ginger, peeled and grated
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• ½ tsp. turmeric
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 1/3 cups vegetable broth
• 3 Idaho potatoes, peeled and cut into ¼-inch cubes
• 1 10-oz. box frozen peas
• ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the onions and sauté, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 10 minutes.
2. In a small bowl, combine the garlic, ginger, chili powder, turmeric, and salt. Add the spice mixture to the onions. Stir in 2/3 cup of vegetable stock, cover, and cook until the onions are cooked through, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the potatoes and cook for 5 minutes. Add the peas and the remaining 2/3 cup vegetable stock, cover, and cook 20 minutes until the potatoes are tender. Stir in the parsley.

Isn’t that Niçoise?

This is my absolute favorite dish for hot summer days. I make it at least once every summer and I always make sure I have the ingredients on hand. It’s from an intriguing little cookbook called Cool Food. It’s very fast and the only real cooking is the boiling of the pasta. I often – as I did this time – use angel hair which cooks up even faster than spaghetti.. This dish is best served at room temperature.
Spaghetti Niçoise (6 to 8 servings)

• 1 lb. spaghetti or angel hair, cooked and drained.
• 3 cans good-quality tuna in olive oil
• ½ cup Kalamata or Niçoise olives, pitted and halved
• 2/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes, halved lengthwise
• 4 anchovy fillets, chopped into small pieces
• 1 tsp. lemon zest
• 2 tbsp. lemon juice
• 3 tbsp. baby capers, drained
• ¼ cup parsley, chopped

1. Empty the tuna and its oil into a large bowl. Add the olives, tomato halves, anchovies, lemon zest and juice, capers, and parsley.Add the pasta and toss.

Minty Beautiful

I also came home with some mint from my mother’s herb garden and so I made a vanilla-mint fruit salad. I hadn’t planned to post it because I’ve already written up the basic recipe. The strawberries and kiwis at the grocery store looked fantastic so that’s what I went with this time. When I put it together, it just looked so gorgeous, I had to take a picture!

Not only does this look great, the vanilla, mint, and lime all work really well with the kiwis and strawberries and this fruit salad packs quite a vitamin C punch!