Roasted Curried Cauliflower Florets

Ingredients:
1 head cauliflower, washed, dried, and cut into florets
A few whole cloves of garlic, peeled
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp curry powder
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 F. In a small bowl whisk the olive oil, lemon juice, cumin, turmeric, curry powder, and salt and pepper. On a baking sheet or roasting pan, toss mixture onto cauliflower florets. Tuck cloves of garlic among florets. Roast for about 25 minutes or until golden and slightly caramelized.

Personal Note: This is a nice, slightly less typical way to use cauliflower for a super easy side dish with dinner.

Thai-Style Chicken Soup

A fragrant blend of coconut milk, lemon grass, ginger and lime makes a delicious soup, with just a hint of chile.

Whenever you have a roast chicken it is worth using the carcass to make stock. Remove all the skin from the remains of the bird and put the carcass into a large pan. Add roughly chopped onion, carrot, and celery stick, and a bouquet garni. Cover with water and bring to the boil. Skim off the scum and then simmer the stock for 1 hour. Strain through muslin (cheesecloth). Skim of the fat when the stock is cold.

Serves 4.

Ingredients:
5 ml/1 teaspoon oil
1-2 fresh red chilies, seeded and chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 large leek, finely sliced
550 ml/18 fl oz/2.5 cups chicken stock
450 ml/0.75 pint/scant 2 cups coconut milk
450 g/1 lb skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into bitesize pieces
30 ml/2 tablespoons Thai fish sauce
1 lemon grass stalk, split
2.5 cm/1 inch piece fresh root ginger, peeled and crushed
5 ml/1 teaspoon sugar
4 kaffir lime leaves (optional)
75 g/3 oz/0.75 cup frozen peas, thawed
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro (coriander)

Method:

Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the chilies and garlic and cook for about 2 minutes. Add the leek and cook for 2 minutes longer. Stir in the stock and coconut milk and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

Add the chicken, fish sauce, lemon grass, ginger, sugar and lime leaves, if using. Lower the heat and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes until the chicken is tender, stirring occasionally. Add the peas and cook for 3 minutes longer. Remove the lemon grass and stir in the cilantro just before serving.

Personal Note: My mom sent me this recipe. I didn't even use proper homemade chicken stock (I know--the horror! Don't tell my parents!); I settled for Le Gout-style chicken stock base. I also fiddled a bit with measurements, since I added ddok I happened to find at the Asian grocer's. The result was a thicker, less pale soup, kind of more like porridge or Asia's spunkier/more energetically flavored answer to shepherd's pie. It had a great balance of flavors--gently hot, savory, zesty/near-citrusy (thanks to the lime, lemongrass, and fresh ginger!), and sweet. Cozy-comforting like chicken soup should be, too. And sinus clearing to boot! Robert loved it.

I'm eating a bowl of it now. Good for a rainy evening.

Pasta with Butter, Sage, and Parmesan

Pasta with Butter, Sage, and Parmesan

If you eliminate the sage, kids will love this dish. (There are homes in Italy where pasta with butter and Parmesan is the equivalent of pabulum.) But most grown-ups prefer the sharper edge that sage provides. Like many others, this sauce can be prepared in the time it takes water to boil.

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter
20 or 30 fresh sage leaves or about 1 tablespoon dried whole sage leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 pound cut pasta, such as ziti or penne, or long pasta, such as linguine or spaghetti
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

2. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Add the sage,salt, and pepper. Cook until the butter turns light brown, about 10 minutes.

3. Salt the boiling water and cook the pasta until it is tender but firm. Spoon 2 or 3 tablespoons of the pasta cooking water into a warm serving bowl. Drain the pasta and toss in the serving bowl with the butter, more pepper, and half the Parmesan. Pass the remaining Parmesan at the table.

Personal Note: If you make this with the dried sage, either cut back on the amount or use more butter and let it cook slowly for a bit longer...it will be bitter otherwise. You can use less bitter herbs anyway, if you have fresh ones on hand to get rid of--I've used rosemary, thyme, and basil and they all worked fine for me. It's important to lightly brown the butter--it'll give the non-sauce some dimension, a sort of nutty almost "sausage-y" flavor and aroma. Robert walked in when I made it thinking I was cooking up breakfast sausage! Some days I just want a bowl of buttery pasta with no complicated other flavors. It's like comfort food.