Oven Fries

Potatoes, in just about any form, are the ultimate comfort food. Mashed, French fried, au gratin, scalloped, hash brown, chips, or baked. All delicious. All comforting. My favorite is French fries, which I’ve been woefully missing since the start of the pandemic—we haven’t dined at a restaurant since March 14.

Sure, we’ve done carry-out and delivery, but French fries just don’t travel well. Nothing deep-fried does, so why bother? But I do have a solution that comes pretty darned close to the hot and crispy fries from your favorite eating establishment. Oven fries—no deep-frying necessary, which is a good thing because no matter how much I miss fries, I don’t want that grease hanging in the air.

The key to crisp fries from your oven is soaking those fresh-cut batons in a big ole bowl of ice water for about 20 minutes before they hit the oven. A lot of the starch from the potatoes will drain away and the result will be fries crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside.

Another trick is to space the fries apart on the baking sheet, so they are not touching, otherwise, you’ll end up with potatoes that are more roasted than “fried.” Seasoning is key too. At the very least, you’ll want to salt them generously, both before and after they come out of the oven. I like to play around with the flavors though, using a seasoned salt like Lawry’s or a Cajun blend, or you could use your own custom seasoning mixture.

For the ultimate crispiness, a thorough dusting of cornstarch or arrowroot does the trick. I usually mix the cornstarch and seasonings together and toss the taters with the mixture after they’ve been coated in olive oil. Easy peasy and oh so good. Make a platter, get out your favorite dipping sauce, and I won’t judge if you eat them all yourself. That’s what comfort food is all about. Enjoy!

• Servings: 2-4
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About 2 lbs. russet potatoes, peeled or unpeeled (I leave the skins on for added flavor and nutrition)

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons cornstarch or arrowroot

1 teaspoon Lawry’s seasoned salt or Cajun seasoning (I used the Louisiana brand), or go old school and just use about ½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon onion powder

Ice water

Salt

Cut the potatoes into batons about 1/3 inch thick. Transfer to a large bowl and cover with water and ice. Set aside for 20-30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly oil two large baking sheets.

Meanwhile, mix cornstarch or arrowroot, Lawry’s or Cajun seasoning (or plain salt), and onion powder in a small bowl.

Drain potatoes and place on a clean kitchen towel. Pat dry. Either put dried potatoes back in bowl (dry it out first) or into a large zip-lock bag. Drizzle with olive oil and toss or shake until potatoes are evenly-coated. Sprinkle about 1/3 of the cornstarch mix over potatoes and toss or shake. Repeat two times until cornstarch mixture is used up.

Transfer potatoes to the baking sheets and spread fries out so they are not touching. Bake for 30 minutes, turning fries over and rotating pans about halfway through for even browning and crispiness. Remove from oven and top with a final sprinkling of regular salt. Eat while hot. Makes 2-4 servings.

Falafel with Creamy Tahini-Yogurt Sauce

I don’t know why, but earlier this summer I started craving falafel. And Foxy Falafel, my go-to source for truly great falafel, is limited to curbside pick-up during the pandemic. Deep-fried food just doesn’t travel well, and I’m thinking it wouldn’t be as amazing by the time I got it home.

This led me to look for an authentic recipe that would satisfy my craving. I found it and must share—it’s that good! Plus, it’s not deep-fried–yay! Golden brown and crispy on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside with all those signature falafel herbs and spices, it’s served with a creamy tahini-yogurt sauce, thinly sliced radishes, cucumber, red onion, and tomatoes from our garden. All piled on a whole wheat tortilla or, if you have time, stuffed in my whole wheat pita bread, it’s a nutritious, delicious all-in-one meal.

There’s nothing difficult or time-consuming about this other than the need to plan ahead and start soaking the dried chickpeas the night before (canned chickpeas won’t work here). And after soaking, you don’t have to cook the beans, which makes this recipe even easier! Everything else comes together quickly enough for a weeknight meal. A very special weeknight meal! Enjoy!

• Servings: 4
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Adapted from this Downshiftology recipe
This recipe is naturally gluten-free and all that’s needed to make it vegan is to use a tahini sauce without the yogurt, like this one.

1 cup dried chickpeas (canned won’t work in this recipe)

About half of a medium yellow onion, roughly chopped

1 cup fresh parsley, in between loosely and tightly packed

1 cup fresh cilantro, in between loosely and tightly packed

1 medium jalapeño pepper, seeded and diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 heaping teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground cardamom

Several grinds of black pepper

2 tablespoons chickpea flour

½ teaspoon baking soda

Grapeseed or avocado oil for pan-frying (or another neutral oil of choice)

Tahini-yogurt sauce, recipe follows

Flour or corn tortillas or my whole wheat pita bread

Accompaniments:
Thinly sliced radishes, cucumbers, red onion, diced tomato

The night before you plan to make the falafel, place the chickpeas in a pot and cover with water by 2-3 inches (the chickpeas will triple in size and you want to make sure they stay submerged). Cover pot and set aside.

The next day, drain and rinse the chickpeas and add them to your food processor (after draining, I dump them onto a clean kitchen towel and pat them dry before putting them in the food processor).

Add the onion, parsley, cilantro, jalapeño, garlic, cumin, salt, cardamom, and black pepper to the food processor and process until the mixture is the texture of coarse sand (you may have to stop and scrape down the sides a couple times).

Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and stir in the chickpea flour and baking soda. Cover and refrigerate for 30-60 minutes.

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F. Place a cooling rack on a baking sheet and place it in oven.

Heat a cast iron pan over medium heat. Add a couple tablespoons oil. When oil is hot, form falafel mixture into balls (I used a #30 cookie dough scoop, which is about 1 ½-2 tablespoons) and place in hot pan. Flatten slightly with a spatula. You’ll have to do this in batches—don’t crowd the falafels.

If the mixture seems too wet, add another tablespoon of chickpea flour. If it seems too dry, add a tablespoon of water (I didn’t need to do either both times I have made this recipe).

Cook the falafels for about 3 minutes, until golden brown on the bottom. Flip and cook another 3 minutes. Remove to rack in oven to stay warm. Repeat with remaining falafel mixture. You will probably need to add more oil to the pan.

Serve in warm tortillas or pita with a swoosh of tahini-yogurt sauce, several falafels, tomato, radish, cucumber, or other toppings of choice. Makes about 4 servings or 18-20 falafel.

Creamy Tahini Yogurt Sauce
From this Feasting at Home recipe

¾ cup plain Greek yogurt (I used 2%)

¼ cup tahini

2 garlic cloves, grated on a micro-plane

Juice of one medium lemon

½ to 1 teaspoon kosher salt (my tahini was salt-free, so I used the full teaspoon)

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Wisk all ingredients in small bowl until thoroughly combined and creamy. Can make a day or two ahead of time. Cover and refrigerate until use.

 

Cherry Tomato Quick Kimchi

I recently read an article in which the author ponders the word kimchi not as a singular noun, but as a verb, in that you can kimchi just about anything. And “quick kimchi” at that! If  you can quick pickle, why not quick kimchi?

Having made kimchi before, I know it’s a process—chopping, brining, packing, and then the fermenting—it’s at least a week before you can enjoy this addicting Korean side dish. So to see an article that offered a recipe for a speedy option, I was intrigued.

The article included three quick kimchi recipes: smacked cucumber, fennel, and grape tomato. I had picked up an heirloom cherry tomato medley package the other day and had all the other ingredients, so that’s the version I went with.

This doesn’t have quite the funk of traditional kimchi, but it’s still delicious, addicting even. A little smoky, a little nutty, with the sweetness of cherry tomatoes and the heat of Korean chili pepper (gochugaru), it’s a unique dish with lots of uses. I served it with arugula over buttered baked potatoes and called it a meal. The next morning it was on homemade toasted bread and topped with a fried egg. I imagine it would be great with rice and crispy tofu or grilled portabella mushrooms. It’s even wonderful eaten out of the bowl all by itself while you’re waiting for your potatoes to bake! I see myself making this often throughout the summer as my cherry and pear tomato plants start producing. Enjoy!

• Servings: 2 1/2 cups
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From this NYT Cooking recipe

Note: Gochugaru (Korean chili flakes) is not the same as crushed red pepper flakes. It’s slightly sweet and smoky and has less heat than crushed red pepper or cayenne. You can probably find it at a well-stocked grocery store or Asian market, but if not, it’s easily available online.

1 pound cherry or grape tomatoes (about 2 to 3 cups), halved lengthwise

1 teaspoon kosher salt

2 tablespoons white distilled vinegar

½ teaspoon finely grated garlic

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon sesame oil

1 tablespoon gochugaru (Korean chili flakes)

2 teaspoons tamari or soy sauce (can sub fish sauce if not vegetarian)

1 teaspoon granulated sugar

Thinly sliced scallions, chopped chives, cilantro, or flat-leaf parsley leaves for garnish (optional)

In a medium bowl, toss the tomatoes with the salt, transfer to a colander, and let sit in the sink to drain, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, in the same bowl, add the vinegar and garlic and set aside.

After 30 minutes, add the sesame oil, gochugaru, soy or fish sauce, and sugar to the bowl with the vinegar and garlic and whisk to combine. Use a paper or cloth kitchen towel to pat the tomatoes dry, then add the tomatoes to the dressing and toss until well coated.

Garnish with the optional scallions or herbs before serving. This is best eaten right away, but can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours. Makes about 2 ½ cups.

Italian Meatless Balls

I’ve been working on my Christmas menu ever since Thanksgiving and have changed my mind several times, but finally settled on spaghetti and meatballs. Real meatballs will be served for most, with a meatless version for the vegetarian (me) and those wanting to try something different.

I made this Smitten Kitchen meatball recipe for the carnivores and used aspects of the same recipe for the veggie version, with the main ingredients from my Cauliflower Taco Meat as the base. The cauliflower florets, mushrooms, and walnuts are pulsed in the food processor with a little tomato sauce to make what actually looks a lot like raw ground beef. In addition to the ingredients from the meat recipe, I added fennel seeds, oregano, and marjoram for more Italian flavors.

I made these three times, tweaking things a bit with each version, to arrive at what I think are a pretty great vegetarian Italian meatball. I froze them and the “real” meatballs and will serve them in sauce with spaghetti on Christmas. They would also be good in a meatball sandwich, served on pizza, and as an appetizer with dipping sauce (a mixture of apricot preserves, barbeque sauce, and a little Dijon mustard is quite tasty!). Enjoy!

• Servings: 30 balls
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3 cups cauliflower florets

1 ½ cups chopped cremini mushrooms

1 ½ cups chopped walnuts

1/3 cup tomato sauce

¼ cup chopped curly parsley

¼ cup freshly grated parmesan or romano cheese

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 to 1 ½ teaspoons fennel seeds

½ teaspoon dried marjoram

½ teaspoon dried oregano

½ teaspoon onion powder

½ teaspoon garlic powder

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

2 eggs, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment and set aside.

Place cauliflower, mushrooms, walnuts, and tomato sauce in bowl of a food processor and pulse until the texture of raw finely ground beef.

Transfer mixture to a large bowl. Add remaining ingredients and mix to thoroughly combine. Form mixture into 2-inch balls; I used a #30 cookie scoop (press meatballs a bit to pack them before rolling into balls). Place on prepared baking sheet.

Bake balls about 20 minutes, until lightly browned and firm. Makes about 30 balls.

Use in spaghetti, meatball sandwiches, as a pizza topping, or with a dipping sauce as an appetizer (we’re talking a mixture of apricot preserves, barbeque sauce, and a little Dijon mustard—yum).

Secret Ingredient Spinach-Artichoke Dip

When grocery shopping for food to take on our most recent cabin trip, I impulsively grabbed a bottle of Original Grlk Sauce, an amazing condiment I first discovered at an indoor winter market in NE Minneapolis where I sampled the original flavor and was immediately in love!

Creamy, fluffy, garlicy goodness in a plastic bottle. Locally made (in St. Paul, MN) with all healthy ingredients (it’s also vegan, sugar-free, and gluten-free), I was sold! Back then I used my purchase mainly on sandwiches and in sandwich fillings and was very sad when that bottle was empty. The winter market was over, and my source was gone.

A year or so later, I was surprised to find the elusive condiment I had been craving in a grocery store. Hallelujah! I could now satisfy my hankering whenever it arose.

Fast forward to our cabin trip, on a stormy night with Lake Superior’s waves crashing loudly and the wind roaring, we needed a comfort-food snack. I had a bag of spinach, the beloved Grlk Sauce, parmesan cheese, and some scallions and was mad at myself for not grabbing that container of sour cream from the fridge at home when filling the cooler. But somehow the ingredients on-hand came together for a hot and bubbly snack—a perfect example of food always tasting better at the cabin.

Once back at home, I vowed to make this dip again, but with the additional ingredients I wished I had at the cabin and for sure including my new secret ingredient, Grlk. Then I forgot about it. That is, until watching the red-hot Minnesota Gopher’s football game on a sunny Saturday when, once again, the time was right for a comfort-food snack. After a little improvising, this is what I came up with, and I think it’s a winner, even if we’re not at the cabin! Enjoy!

By the way, Original Grlk Sauce, along with additional flavors, is available at a number of stores in the St. Paul-Minneapolis metro area and online here. It’s amazing!

• Servings: 4
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1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 large clove garlic, chopped

One 6-ounce bag baby spinach

Salt & freshly ground black pepper

One 14-ounce can artichoke hearts packed in water, drained and chopped

½ cup sour cream

¼ cup original Grlk sauce

1 ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce (the Annie’s brand is vegetarian and delicious!)

A pinch of cayenne pepper, or more if you like things really spicy

3/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese, divided

Sliced scallions, for garnish (optional—I forgot to use them today, but won’t next time)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 1.5-quart baking dish with cooking spray or coat it with a little olive oil.

In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. When hot, add garlic and cook, stirring, for about 30 seconds, until fragrant. Add spinach, sprinkle with salt, stir, and cover. Cook, stirring occasionally, until spinach is wilted and bright green. Stir in artichoke hearts.

In a small bowl, whisk together sour cream, Original Grlk Sauce, Worcestershire, cayenne, and freshly ground black pepper. Stir in ½ cup of the parmesan. Add sour cream mixture to spinach mixture and stir to thoroughly combine.

Transfer dip to prepared baking dish. Bake for 15 minutes, then sprinkle with remaining ¼ cup parmesan. Bake another 10 minutes, then broil for a couple minutes to brown the top–watch carefully so it doesn’t burn.

Remove from oven, sprinkle with scallions, if using, and serve dip hot with crackers, toasted pita or naan, veggies, or tortilla chips. Makes about 4 servings.

 

Spiced Pear Butter

A while back I spied some beautiful organic Bartlett pears on sale at Whole Foods and decided to buy a big bag of ‘em. I left them on the counter to ripen and then put them in the crisper drawer of the fridge with plans for lots of pear snacking. Fast forward a week or so and that bag o’ pears was still in the crisper, said snacking had not happened, and the pears were starting to lose their beauty.

A dessert using all those pears would be mighty big and I certainly don’t need those calories, so I decided to see if there was such a thing as pear butter. Pears are kind of like apples, and apple butter is delicious, so pear butter must be a thing. Sure, enough, I found several recipes online.

The result is wonderful! Full of warm fall spices with a richness from the brown sugar and vanilla—I’ll be finding many uses for this deliciousness! On ice-cream, English muffins (paired with peanut butter it’s especially good!), mixed in with plain yogurt, a sweet touch to a savory grilled cheese sandwich, pancake topping, a smoothie mix-in—so many ways to use this concoction! Enjoy!

• Servings: three 12-ounce jars
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Adapted from this USA Pears recipe

3 pounds ripe Bartlett pears

¼ cup water

¾ to 1 cup light brown sugar, use the lower amount for a less sweet version

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

½ of a vanilla bean or ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract*

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/8 teaspoon ground allspice

1/8 teaspoon ground ginger

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Wash, quarter, and core pears (if you do not have a food mill, mentioned later in the recipe, peel pears after washing, and skip the food mill step).

Place pear quarters and water in a large stockpot, over medium heat, until water starts to simmer. Cover pot and adjust heat to maintain a simmer, and cook until pears are soft, about 20 minutes. It may seem like you should add more than a quarter cup of water, but the pears will release liquid as they soften—I assure you there’s no need for more water.

Remove pot from heat and mash pears with a potato masher (if you don’t have a potato masher, carefully mash the pears with the bottom of a large drinking glass).

Place a food mill over a large bowl and run mashed pears, in batches, through mill, discarding pear skins that are left in the mill. Dump the bowl of pear pulp back into the stockpot, add the brown sugar, the vanilla bean, and the spices.

*If you are using pure vanilla extract instead of vanilla bean, add the vanilla later, after the cooking process, where the instructions have you remove the vanilla bean.

Cook pear mixture, uncovered, at a simmer, for about an hour, until desired thickness. Stir every few minutes to prevent scorching. Mixture will thicken somewhat as it cools.

Spoon mixture into jars and, if freezing, leave about an ½ to an inch of headspace in jars for expansion. Will keep in refrigerator for a couple weeks and in freezer for a couple months. Makes about three 12-ounce jars.

 

Spicy Cashew Queso Dip

A venerable party staple, queso dip is delicious and addicting. It is not, however, healthy. Typically made with Velveeta, which is full of colors and preservatives, it’s not even considered actual cheese. So what’s not to love about a version that is also delicious and addicting, but truly good for you?

The combination of cashews and nutritional yeast gives it the cheesy taste and spices, jalapeños, onion and tomato give it the queso treatment. Whirred up in the blender until creamy smooth and warmed up on the stove, it will satisfy all comfort food cravings you may have and will be gobbled up at any party where it’s served. Enjoy!

Spicy Cashew Queso

• Servings: 2 cups
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½ tablespoon neutral oil (grapeseed, canola, vegetable)

1 medium jalapeño pepper, diced

½ cup diced onion

1 cup raw, unsalted cashews, soaked in water for 4 hours, then thoroughly drained (this softens them up so they will blend to a creamy smoothness)

½ cup water (filtered, if you don’t have good tasting tap water)

One 4 oz. can diced green chiles, drained

2 tablespoons nutritional yeast

1 teaspoon taco seasoning, homemade or store-bought

½ teaspoon turmeric

Salt to taste

½ of a 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes, drained

Heat oil in small skillet over medium heat. Add jalapeño and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Set aside.

Place cashews, water, chiles, nutritional yeast, taco seasoning, turmeric, and salt in blender. Blend until completely smooth, stopping blender to scrape down sides occasionally. Taste and add more salt, if necessary.

Transfer cashew mixture to a medium saucepan. Add jalapeño-onion mixture and tomatoes. Over medium-low heat, stir occasionally until hot. Transfer to a bowl and serve with chips or raw vegetables.

Makes about two cups of queso.

 

Sushi Rice Crostini

When you hear the term rice cake, a crunchy, dry, tasteless round with the texture of styrofoam may come to mind. Not so in this case, in fact, here I prefer the term rice crostini. Sounds a little more sophisticated, fancy even. And the opposite of dry and tasteless. Topped with creamy avocado, piquant peppers, and other fresh veggies, these “crostini” are as pretty as they are delicious.

This fun little appetizer comes from the April issue of Food & Wine Magazine. Intrigued by small rectangles of golden rice, I left the magazine open to that page and kept coming back to it. The other day I bought sushi rice for the first time in my life and got to work on the recipe.

Cook the sushi rice either by package directions or in a rice cooker if you have one. I used mine, it’s hands-off, and no matter what type of rice you’re making, it turns out perfectly every time.

The toppings can be switched out to whatever you prefer. If you’re not vegetarian, you could use sushi grade tuna, along with the veggie toppings.

One thing to note, the “crostini” are best topped and eaten soon after they come out of the oven. Also, the recipe is easily halved. I made a half batch and used an 8×8 square baking pan. If you do make a full recipe and don’t have a quarter sheet pan, just use two 8×8 pans. You’ll need to do a little planning ahead because once the rice is in the pan(s), it must be chilled for at least eight hours (mine was in the fridge for close to 24). Enjoy!

• Servings: 56 pieces
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From the April issue of Food & Wine Magazine

6 cups cooked sushi rice, cooled

3 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 tablespoon plus 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

Cooking spray

3 tablespoons neutral oil (grapeseed, canola, avocado)

Suggested toppings:
Chopped avocado
Hot & sweet cherry peppers, sliced
Shaved carrots
Sliced scallions
Arugula
Flakey sea salt, such as Maldon
Tamari (which is gluten-free) or soy sauce for dipping

Line a rimmed quarter sheet pan with plastic wrap, leaving 2 inches of overhang on all sides.

Place rice in a large bowl. Stir together rice vinegar, sugar, and salt in a small bowl until salt is dissolved. Drizzle over rice; gently fold together. Lightly pack rice into a 1-cup dry measuring cup; invert onto prepared pan. Repeat with remaining rice, creating 2 rows of 3. Moisten hands slightly; gently press rice into an even layer. Place another piece of plastic wrap directly on surface of rice; press firmly into a compact, even layer (1/2 inch to 5/8 inch thick). Fold overhanging plastic wrap over top, gently pressing on top and smoothing outer edges. Chill 8 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 475 degrees F. with oven racks in middle and lower third of oven. Remove baking sheet from refrigerator. Unwrap plastic wrap and remove top piece on rice; invert rice onto a work surface (I used a large cutting board). Remove plastic wrap from back.

Cut into about 56 (1 1/2- x 1-inch) pieces. (For clean slices, dip knife into warm water, and wipe clean often.) Lightly coat top of rice pieces with cooking spray. Brush 2 rimmed baking sheets evenly with the oil. Place 28 rice pieces, cooking spray–coated sides down, on each oiled baking sheet. Bake in preheated oven until crisp and lightly golden, 14 to 20 minutes. Flip and top immediately. Makes 56.

Honey-Glazed Sweet Potato Steaks with Brussels Sprouts

I’ve noticed the word steak applied to portabella mushrooms for years, and more recently, to cauliflower, but a new one to me was sweet potato steaks.

This wonderful recipe was found in a Food & Wine Magazine article about Baltimore-based chef Spike Gjerde, who approaches local sourcing like no other. For instance, instead of olive oil and lemons, he uses locally-grown and pressed oils and vinegars in his restaurants, thus providing more opportunities to area farmers and producers.

There were several of Gjerde’s recipes included in the article that sounded amazing like Baked Sheep’s Milk Ricotta with Dried Persimmons and Potato Soup with Sage Butter and Rye Crumbs, but Honey-Glazed Sweet Potato Steaks with Brussels Sprouts intrigued me the most, plus, it was by far the healthiest.

The recipe, as written, only serves two, and it’s really more of an appetizer or small plate quantity, so double it if you want a full meal or if serving as a starter for a small dinner party. Most of the prep can be done ahead of time and the dish comes together quickly after that.

The coating on the sweet potatoes is an addictive bit of crunch and the drizzle of honey that finishes them caramelizes nicely and will have you scraping your plate to get every remaining drop. The less sweet Brussels sprouts are the perfect pairing with their browned bottoms and nutty, savory flavor. Enjoy!

• Servings: 2
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From Food & Wine Magazine, March 2019

Be sure to use a cast-iron skillet for this recipe; it maintains heat and will result in beautifully caramelized honey and well-cooked Brussels sprouts.

1 (1-pound) sweet potato, peeled

1 tablespoon grated peeled fresh ginger

1 1/4 teaspoons sea salt, divided

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1 tablespoon neutral oil (canola, grapeseed, or avocado)

1/2 pound Brussels sprouts, halved top to bottom

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons clover honey, divided

Preheat oven to 400°F. Cut sweet potato lengthwise into 1/2-inch-thick slabs. Place the 2 center-cut potato slabs on a cutting board; reserve remaining sweet potato pieces for another use. Score 1 side of each slab in an 1/8-inch-deep diamond pattern.

Stir together ginger, 3/4 teaspoon salt, coriander, and red pepper flakes in a small bowl. Rub mixture evenly on both sides of sweet potato slabs.

Heat a large cast-iron skillet over high until smoking, about 3 minutes. Add oil, and swirl to coat bottom of skillet. Add sweet potatoes, scored side down, and cook until bottoms are golden brown, about 1 minute. Flip and arrange Brussels sprouts, cut sides down, in a single layer around sweet potatoes. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons honey; transfer skillet to preheated oven.

Roast until sprouts are tender and cut sides are caramelized, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove sprouts from skillet, sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt, and set aside. Return skillet to oven; continue roasting until sweet potatoes are tender, 5 to 8 more minutes.

Remove skillet from oven, and drizzle sweet potatoes with remaining 1/4 cup honey (I used most, but not all of the honey). Tilt skillet, and baste sweet potatoes until honey caramelizes and sweet potatoes are glazed, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer sweet potato steaks to serving plates. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and drizzle with remaining caramelized honey in skillet. Top with Brussels sprouts. Makes two servings.

Hungarian Mushroom Barley Soup

A number of years ago my mother-in-law Ginny, who is a wonderful cook, gave me a copy of a soup recipe clipped from the St. Paul Pioneer Press. The name of the soup was missing from the clipping, and on it, Ginny had written “Mushroom Soup.” With her recommendation, I knew it would be good.

A simple soup with uncomplicated ingredients, it surprises you with nuanced flavors and way above run-of-the-mill deliciousness. Each time I’m a bit taken aback by such great results from something this quick and easy—a perfect example of a dish that is so much more than the sum of its parts!

As we’ve been teased with a tinge of fall weather, I decided it was time to share a good soup recipe. After a quick google search for the actual name and origin, I found it was featured in the Pioneer Press in 2011 and is called Hungarian Mushroom Barley Soup. Apparently there was a popular downtown Minneapolis skyway restaurant back in the day called Café Metro and this came from their cookbook. With the large amount of paprika, no wonder it’s got Hungarian in the name!

The only tweaks I made to this super healthy soup were to decrease the broth from 10 to 8 cups, used fresh herbs instead of  dried, and included a combination of smoked and regular paprika. With the finishing touches of fresh lemon juice and dill, the depth of flavor will satisfy and I’ll bet it’ll be on your table more than once this soup season. Enjoy!

• Servings: 10
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Adapted from the St. Paul Pioneer Press

1 medium onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 1/2 cups green pepper, cut into 1/4-inch dice

1 3/4 cups carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice

1 tablespoon fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried

2 3/4 teaspoons paprika (I used a mixture of smoked and regular)

4 cups mushrooms, cleaned and sliced (either cremini or button work well)

1/4 cup tomato paste

8 cups vegetable broth

2/3 cup uncooked barley

2 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 ½ tablespoons fresh dill or 3/4 teaspoon dried dill

In a large stockpot, sauté the onion in olive oil until soft. Add green pepper, carrots, thyme and paprika. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add mushrooms and tomato paste. Cook for 5 minutes or until mushrooms release their liquid. Add broth. Bring to a boil. Add barley. Reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes or until the barley is tender. Season with the salt and pepper. Stir in lemon juice and dill. Ladle into soup bowls. Makes about 10 servings.