A throw together salad that goes “POW” in your mouth. I made Shepards Pie with a cauliflower “crust” and ended up only needing 1/2 a head of cauliflower. I needed to use up the other half in some fashion. I made a 24 hour quick pickle with the cauliflower and threw in some carrots too. The pickled veggies add a good zip, and allow me to control the sugar content– most brines contain a massive amount of sugar.

Maybe I’m not the first one to think of this. I know a quick Google search would likely show me that I’m not, but I just don’t want to know. Seems like everyone has thought of almost all of my ‘AH-HA’ moments. Regardless, this was inspired by a lack of things fresh in the fridge. This is a pantry meal if I’ve ever seen one. Every ingredient is jarred or canned and bought at the good old grocery store. Perhaps you’d say it’s not very “whole” or “from the ground” but heck, sometimes you need dinner in 10 minutes.

Ingredients

2 cans tuna packed in olive oil, flaked with a fork

1/2 7 oz. can of artichoke hearts, roughly chopped

1/2 c kalamata olives, about 15 or so

1/2 c roasted red peppers, chopped

1/4 c – 1/3 c store bought pesto sauce

Method

Combine all ingredients and serve. Easy, huh?

Beef stew, also known as beef bourguignon, is good, but boring–and we personally think it tastes like straight up sour wine and that is not very tasty, especially by the spoonful. So we’ve added a bit of balsamic vinegar and raisins to counter the sour with a bit of sweet. We’re also swirling in a nice, briny, herbal pesto to brighten up the braise. Another change, we’re not using a crock pot! The dutch oven allows liquid to evaporate from the pot, thus creating a thicker, more intense flavored stew. And heck, I would rather eat in 2 hours than in 6 hours, agreed?

Stew Ingredients

• 2 T fat of your choice
• 2 lb. chuck shoulder, cubed
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 3/4 c raisins
• (1) 28 oz. can fire roasted crushed tomatoes
• 1 c red wine (only if you have some leftover, don’t go out and buy some just for this recipe–stock will work fine)
• 1/2 c balsamic vinegar
• 1 lemon, sliced and seeds removed
• S&P

Pesto Ingredients

• 1 handful of basil leaves
• 1/2 handful of mint leaves
• 1/2 c green olives (about 20)
• 3 T extra virgin olive oil

Method

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

In a dutch oven melt your fat. Salt and pepper the cubed chuck pieces, add them to the pot and let them brown on each side. Don’t fidget with them or remove them until you see a visible brown crust on the meat. Remove and reserve on a plate.  To the pot, add the onion, garlic and carrot. Let them sweat and saute until soft, about 10 minutes. Add the meat back to the pot, along with the tomatoes, raisins, red wine and balsamic vinegar. Stir to combine. Top with sliced lemons.

Lay a piece of parchment paper of the the top of the pot and press it down into the pot. Place in the oven and braise for 2 hours. Taste the meat, it should be super tender, if it’s not give it another half hour or so.

Once you’re about 10 minutes from the stew finishing; combine all the ingredients for the pesto in a mini food processor. Pulse until everything has come together.

When the stew is out of the oven, take the lemon rinds out, but leave in the flesh…it’ll separate very easily. Swirl in the pesto and serve.

Rubbery, over cooked, leathery eggs are not tasty eats. There are 2 secrets to a great frittata.

1. Use a dish that’s wide enough! The smaller the diameter of the dish, the longer the eggs take to cook–hence the leathery-ness and browning. Notice in the pic that the eggs come about half way up the dish.

You’ll never guess #2.

2. Acid. Vinegar, lemon juice, salt, etc. Acids actually tenderize the proteins in the eggs, so the end result is lighter and creamier…and NO, you don’t taste the acid in the finished eggs.

Ingredients

• 6 eggs
• 3 strips of bacon, crumbled
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 3 basil leaves, chopped
• 1/2 roasted red pepper, chopped
• 1/4 t vinegar or lemon juice

Method

Grease an oven safe baking dish (a pie or tart pan works great here) and turn the oven to 350F.

In a bowl whisk together all the ingredients and pour them into the greased baking dish. Bake for approx. 20 minutes–or when you gently agitate the dish, the center doesn’t jiggle.