Category: fennel

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Farewell to Winter Roasted Vegetables

Farmshare vegetables, crisp on the outside, tender on the inside, flavor everywhere.  This would work with any number of vegetables, and is a great way to use up those odds and ends in the crisper.
Total time: 40 minutes
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 Minutes
Serves: 4
1 head cauliflower, stalks removed and separated into florets
2 carrots, peeled and cut into rounds
1 bulb fennel, bulb diced, fronds minced and reserved
1 red onion, diced
2 large potatoes, diced
2 T EVOO (Extra-Virgin Olive Oil)
sea salt or kosher salt to taste
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Toss all ingredients except reserved fennel fronds in a bowl.  
3. Toss with fennel fronds to taste.  Roast 25 minutes until vegetables are tender and begin to brown.
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Roasted Cod with Caramelized Grapefruit and Fennel

I’m a grapefruit convert.  I have seen the light — the Florida sunlight, even in the dark of a Boston Winter.  My farmshare has shown me the way.  I didn’t even like grapefruit until recently, although you wouldn’t know it from this blog.  But the farmshare kept bringing it, which forced me to get creative.  I love the fresh citrus flavor that grapefruit brings when its bitterness is tempered. 

While in San Francisco at the end of February, I had an amazing sea bass with grapefruit-fennel slaw at The Firefly, and I’ve been trying to recreate it ever since.  This comes close, and was on the table in less than 20 minutes. 

This would work with other fish, with onions instead of fennel, with other herbs, and with oranges, which wouldn’t need so much sugar.  I’m also experimenting with natural sweeteners, but honey doesn’t seem to do the trick.  Cod comes in fresh from Gloucester to our local Whole Foods, making it flaky and delicious — a far cry from that tasteless substance in your average fish and chips.

I love the challenges that come in the box of organic produce each week.   Who knows what next week will bring?

Time: 20 minutes
Serves: 2 (easily multiplied)

Ingredients:
2 6 oz cod fillets
1 bulb fennel
2 grapefruits
1/3 c sugar
1 t coriander
1T EVOO (Extra-Virgin Olive Oil)
salt and pepper to taste
bed of greens, such as baby spinach, arugula, or watercress (optional)

1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.   
2. Slice the fennel into 1″ pieces, removing the tough core.  Reserve and chop the fronds.
3. By now the oven should be heated.  Place cod in a baking dish, season with salt and pepper, and bake for 10-12 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, heat the EVOO over medium-low heat.  Add the fennel and a pinch of salt.  Cook slowly, until fennel begins to caramelize. 
5. While you’re waiting for the fennel to caramelize, section the grapefruits, removing seeds and pith, and place into a bowl.  If you’re not sure how to do this, check out this video.  Toss the grapefruit sections with the sugar.
6. When fennel has begun to caramelize (it will turn translucent, brown a bit, and taste sweet), add the sugared grapefruit to the pan.  Cook for 3 minutes until grapefruit begins to caramelize.  Be careful not to burn.  Add coriander, toss, and turn off the heat. 
7.  Remove the cod from the oven.  Place each filet on a bed of greens (if desired).
8.  Top with the grapefruit-fennel mixture, garnish with fennel fronds, and serve.

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Food for Thought: Is it Possible to be a Locavore in a New England Winter?

Is it possible to be a locavore in a New England winter?  The Smart Green Gourmet is determined to find out.  After shopping at farmer’s markets throughout the Spring, Summer, and Fall, I searched for a way to continue buying local, seasonal, organic/sustainable produce in the winter months.  Last winter, the only thing I could find at Whole Foods, Shaw’s, and Wilson Farm in the winter were turnips.  My dedication to local foods crumbled when confronted week after week with their purply-white peels.

So I had initially shied away from joining a winter farmshare for fear that I would eat nothing but  turnips all winter long.  But this winter I stumbled upon Enterprise Farms, which takes an innovative approach to wintertime Community Supported Agriculture.  Enterprise has created a regional “food shed” to supplement local New England organic produce with partner organic/sustainable farms from the East Coast.  This way my food still travels a shorter distance and consumes fewer resources than if I had bought it at the grocery store, and I can still support small farmers, but I can eat citrus and parsley as well as turnips.   Jordan and Kelley at Enterprise were also very helpful and were willing to tolerate my crazy travel schedule and let us try out a small share from February 1 through May 1.  They had many pick-up locations, including one right near me, and they even deliver by bike in a pinch.  So we signed on for a small share, which easily fits in a canvas shopping bag.  It was great to meet all of my neighbors as everyone lined up to receive their boxes of delicious produce.  Many brought their kids along to learn about local food.  Perhaps they were taking a cue from Michele Obama, who introduces schoolchildren to her White House garden as part of her crusade against childhood obesity, using fresh veggies to teach kids about healthy food and the Earth from which it grows. 

This week, I received:

 
The produce did not disappoint.  Tonight, the fresh arugula brought a breath of Spring to my Winter table in a salad with crisp apples, walnuts, roasted fennel, fennel fronds, and a sweet sherry vinaigrette.  And after today’s news, I’m especially glad to know where my salad is coming from.  Maybe tomorrow I’ll tackle the turnips.
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Recipe: Roasted Beet, Fennel, Pear, Orange, and Walnut Salad


Delicious, hearty, and healthy. A burst of color on the winter table. You can roast the beets and fennel several days ahead for this delicious salad. The beets turn everything a freakish shade of pink so I find it best to dress them separately from the rest of the salad, lay them on top, and only stir them into the salad when serving.

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook time: 1 hour or more to roast the beets; roast fennel while roasting beets
Total time: 1 hour, 25 minutes
Serves: 4 as a main course for lunch; more with other things

Ingredients:
3 large beets
2 bulbs fennel, fronds removed and chopped roughly
2 pears (any kind)
2 oranges or clementines, sectioned, pith removed if desired
2-3 handfuls walnut halves, toasted if desired
1 handful mint, chopped roughly
2 lemons, juiced + zest of 1 lemon
1/2-1 C olive oil
1 clove garlic, peeled
additional olive oil
salt and black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Remove leaves from beets, leaving a few inches of stems. Rinse the beets, and while still wet, wrap them individually in foil, or place them together in a covered pan. Roast in 400 degree oven for about 1 hour until tender. (I learned this technique from Mark Bittman, who learned it from the great Jean-Geoerges Vongerichten) (You can refrigerate the beets, still wrapped, for about a week).
3. Meanwhile, remove the outer layer from the fennel and cut into small spears. Put in pan, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, and roast alongside the beets for 20-25 minutes, or until beginning to caramelize (brown).
4. Make the vinaigrette. Combine the lemon juice, lemon zest, 1/2-1 C olive oil, 1 clove garlic, pinch of salt, and pepper to taste in a small blender or food processor until emulsified.
5. After the beets have cooled, peel them. The skin will slide right off. (Bittman says if you use paper towels you won’t stain your fingers, but I haven’t figured out how to get away without beet on my hands).
6. Cut the beets into quarters, then into slices. Place in a bowl. Dress with 1/2 vinaigrette.
7. In another large bowl, toss together the roasted fennel, pears and oranges. Dress with 1/2 the vinaigrette. Toss with walnuts, mint, and (some) fennel fronds.
8. Lay the beets gently on top of the salad mixture, garnish with mint and fennel fronds, and serve.

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Recipe: Roasted Beet, Fennel, Pear, Orange, and Walnut Salad


Delicious, hearty, and healthy. A burst of color on the winter table. You can roast the beets and fennel several days ahead for this delicious salad. The beets turn everything a freakish shade of pink so I find it best to dress them separately from the rest of the salad, lay them on top, and only stir them into the salad when serving.

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook time: 1 hour or more to roast the beets; roast fennel while roasting beets
Total time: 1 hour, 25 minutes
Serves: 4 as a main course for lunch; more with other things

Ingredients:
3 large beets
2 bulbs fennel, fronds removed and chopped roughly
2 pears (any kind)
2 oranges or clementines, sectioned, pith removed if desired
2-3 handfuls walnut halves, toasted if desired
1 handful mint, chopped roughly
2 lemons, juiced + zest of 1 lemon
1/2-1 C olive oil
1 clove garlic, peeled
additional olive oil
salt and black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Remove leaves from beets, leaving a few inches of stems. Rinse the beets, and while still wet, wrap them individually in foil, or place them together in a covered pan. Roast in 400 degree oven for about 1 hour until tender. (I learned this technique from Mark Bittman, who learned it from the great Jean-Geoerges Vongerichten) (You can refrigerate the beets, still wrapped, for about a week).
3. Meanwhile, remove the outer layer from the fennel and cut into small spears. Put in pan, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, and roast alongside the beets for 20-25 minutes, or until beginning to caramelize (brown).
4. Make the vinaigrette. Combine the lemon juice, lemon zest, 1/2-1 C olive oil, 1 clove garlic, pinch of salt, and pepper to taste in a small blender or food processor until emulsified.
5. After the beets have cooled, peel them. The skin will slide right off. (Bittman says if you use paper towels you won’t stain your fingers, but I haven’t figured out how to get away without beet on my hands).
6. Cut the beets into quarters, then into slices. Place in a bowl. Dress with 1/2 vinaigrette.
7. In another large bowl, toss together the roasted fennel, pears and oranges. Dress with 1/2 the vinaigrette. Toss with walnuts, mint, and (some) fennel fronds.
8. Lay the beets gently on top of the salad mixture, garnish with mint and fennel fronds, and serve.

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Menu: Chicken with Coriander and Fennel, Roasted Cauliflower, Baked Sweet Potatoes with Lime, and Salad with Roasted Fennel, Oranges, and Mint

Serves: 4
Prep Time: 25 Minutes
Total Time: 1 Hour; or make sweet potatoes ahead and make everything else in 1/2 hour on day of meal
Make ahead: Chicken, sweet potatoes, cauliflower, and fennel can be made ahead. Salad can be tossed quickly on day of meal.
Special equipment needed: 2 ovens, or 1 oven and 1 toaster oven for the chicken

Ingredients:
1-2 heads cauliflower
4 sweet potatoes
1-2 bulbs fennel
2 oranges
Ingredients for Chicken (or other protein) with Coriander and Fennel (recipe below)
lime wedges
extra-virgin olive oil
balsalmic vinegar
handful of mint leaves, coarsely chopped
sea salt

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and another (toaster oven?) to 350 degrees
2. Scrub sweet potatoes, pat dry, and prick each several times with fork. Place in a baking pan lined with foil and roast for 1 hour, or until tender when pricked with fork. Serve with lime wedges.
3. Remove leaves and base from cauliflower. Rinse and pat dry. Drizzle with 1-2T olive oil and roast in oven with sweet potatoes for 25-30 minutes or until lightly browned.
4. Remove fennel stalks and reserve for garnish. Cut fennel into 1/4″ slices and drizzle with 1T olive oil. Roast in oven with other veggies for 20-25 minutes or until lightly browned.
5. Prepare chicken according to recipe below.
6. Zest orange(s) and reserve zest for garnishing chicken (optional)
7. Slice down sides of oranges and then carve oranges away from inner core to remove the bitter white pith and seeds. (Alternatively, just section oranges) Toss with roasted fennel and mint and reserved chopped feathery fennel fronds. Splash with balsamic vinegar to taste. Serve alone or on a bed of greens.

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Menu: Chicken with Coriander and Fennel, Roasted Cauliflower, Baked Sweet Potatoes with Lime, and Salad with Roasted Fennel, Oranges, and Mint

Serves: 4
Prep Time: 25 Minutes
Total Time: 1 Hour; or make sweet potatoes ahead and make everything else in 1/2 hour on day of meal
Make ahead: Chicken, sweet potatoes, cauliflower, and fennel can be made ahead. Salad can be tossed quickly on day of meal.
Special equipment needed: 2 ovens, or 1 oven and 1 toaster oven for the chicken

Ingredients:
1-2 heads cauliflower
4 sweet potatoes
1-2 bulbs fennel
2 oranges
Ingredients for Chicken (or other protein) with Coriander and Fennel (recipe below)
lime wedges
extra-virgin olive oil
balsalmic vinegar
handful of mint leaves, coarsely chopped
sea salt

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and another (toaster oven?) to 350 degrees
2. Scrub sweet potatoes, pat dry, and prick each several times with fork. Place in a baking pan lined with foil and roast for 1 hour, or until tender when pricked with fork. Serve with lime wedges.
3. Remove leaves and base from cauliflower. Rinse and pat dry. Drizzle with 1-2T olive oil and roast in oven with sweet potatoes for 25-30 minutes or until lightly browned.
4. Remove fennel stalks and reserve for garnish. Cut fennel into 1/4″ slices and drizzle with 1T olive oil. Roast in oven with other veggies for 20-25 minutes or until lightly browned.
5. Prepare chicken according to recipe below.
6. Zest orange(s) and reserve zest for garnishing chicken (optional)
7. Slice down sides of oranges and then carve oranges away from inner core to remove the bitter white pith and seeds. (Alternatively, just section oranges) Toss with roasted fennel and mint and reserved chopped feathery fennel fronds. Splash with balsamic vinegar to taste. Serve alone or on a bed of greens.

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Recipe: Chicken (or other protein) with Coriander and Fennel

Looking for something delicious and different? Look no further. You can even make it ahead. This recipe would work with fish, veal or pork chops, or seitan. Make spice blend far in advance. Recipe may be prepared to step 2 and refrigerated up to 2 days in advance. Prepared chicken may be refrigerated for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 4 months.

Serves: 4 (easily multiplied)
Make ahead: Yes
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 T olive oil

2t coriander
2t fennel seeds

5T grill seasoning OR make your own by mixing:
1/2T coriander
1/2T onion powder
1/2T garlic powder
1/2T coriander
1/2T kosher salt
2T black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees (375 if using veal or pork chops)
2. Combine all spices. Rub chicken (or other protein) with spices.
3. Heat 2T olive oil in an ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Sear chicken on both sides, about 2 minutes per side.
4. Transfer pan to oven for 10 minutes.