Fennel slaw.
Intriguing and not at all what you would think it would be.
Especially when you only have one fennel bulb.
And you realize fennel’s best friend is celery.
And there’s a plethora of the celery in the fridge.
A little bit of orange zest, crushed fennel seeds, ground cumin, hot red pepper flakes and minced garlic.
Let this baby sit a bit and it gets a mind of its own.
Spicy, peppery, fragrant and so damn good with a piece of grilled chicken marinated in fresh lime juice.
Dare I say it?
Big Fat Yum!!!
Fennel and Celery Slaw with Orange, Cumin and Chilies
Adapted from Molly O’Neill’s A Well Seasoned Appetite
1 medium fennel bulb, trimmed and julienned
1 large cup thinly sliced celery
1 tsp ground cumin
2 tbsp fennel seeds, crushed
Good pinch crushed hot red pepper flakes
1 tsp grated orange zest
1 small clove garlic, smashed and minced
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
3 tbsp fresh orange juice
Extra virgin olive oil
Coarse salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Combine fennel and celery in big bowl. Combine fennel seeds, cumin and crushed red pepper flakes in small bowl and add to fennel and celery and toss. Whisk together the orange zest, garlic, fresh lemon and orange juices. Add a couple of good swirls of extra virgin olive oil and season to taste with the coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add to the fennel and celery and toss til well coated. Let sit for an hour at room temperature.
The original recipe calls for chopping ¼ cup of fresh fennel fronds and adding to the salad prior to serving.
I forgot. I’m sure it would be divine. Also you can do this recipe with 3 medium fennel bulbs and leave out the celery. Up to you!
Serves 3.
Click here for a printable recipe!
One Year Ago on Feeding Groom
Two Years Ago on Feeding Groom
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Fennel and Celery Slaw with Orange, Cumin and Chilies
Saturday, October 10, 2009
The Ultimate Chicken Spaghetti
Chicken, tomatoes, spaghetti, black olives and cheddar cheese.
Baked in the oven.
School Food circa 1965.
Don’t get me wrong, I love this stuff.
But I’m not 9 years old and my taste for chicken spaghetti has grown up.
Roasted fennel, red peppers, onions, garlic tossed with chopped roast chicken and tomatoes.
Kalamata olives, whole wheat spaghetti and fresh baby spinach.
Manchego cheese.
Now that’s Chicken Spaghetti.
The Ultimate Chicken Spaghetti
1 large fennel bulb, sliced thin
1 large sweet red onion, sliced thin
1 large sweet yellow onion, sliced thin
10 fat garlic cloves, smashed
2 large red bell peppers, sliced thin
A couple of good swirls of extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons fennel seeds
2 good shakes crushed red pepper flakes
1 cup Kalamata olives pitted and sliced in half, optional
1 28 ounce can diced san Marzano tomatoes, drained
2 cups roasted chicken, chopped
3 cups baby spinach
1 cup grated Manchego cheese
whole wheat spaghetti to serve 3
Put the water on to cook the spaghetti.
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Put the pan in the oven as it preheats.
Toss fennel, onions, garlic, peppers with the olive oil and add the red pepper flakes and fennel seed. Season with coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
Pull out the oven rack the sheet pan is on very carefully to the point where you can add the fennel mix. Stir onto pan…be very careful. Roast for 15 minutes. Add the chicken, tomatoes, olives and stir well. Roast until fennel is tender. Cook the pasta.
Take chicken mixture out of oven and put in large bowl, toss with the spinach. Drain the pasta, add to the bowl and add the cheese, tossing to incorporate. Season to taste with coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Serves three generously.
**Thanks to The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper for the fennel garlic onion roast inspiration.
Click here for a printable recipe!
One Year Ago on Feeding Groom
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Ground Lamb Burgers with a Sweet Leek, Fennel and Sundried Tomato Confit
The blogger stands, yet again, in front of the refrigerator.
Ingredients present themselves.
Ground lamb.
Pancetta.
Fennel.
Prosciutto.
Leeks.
A light bulb goes off over said blogger’s head.
A bit of chopping, a bit of sautéing, a glass of wine, Joni Mitchell sings softly in the background.
A pretty damn good meal for a weeknight appears on the plate.
The blogger smiles.
Ground Lamb Burgers with a Sweet Leek, Fennel and Sundried Tomato Confit
1 lb ground lamb
2 ounce pancetta, chopped
2 ounces prosciutto, chopped
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Combine lamb, prosciutto and pancetta in bowl and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add red pepper flakes and lemon juice and mix well. Form into nice sized patties and let sit thirty minutes.
1 small leek, rinsed well and chopped
3 fat garlic cloves, smashed and chopped
1 small fennel bulb, sliced
1/3 cup chopped sundried tomatoes in oil
¼ cup roasted chicken stock
In a large skillet over medium heat, add a couple of swirls of extra virgin olive oil and when the oil shimmers, add the leeks and cook until soft, about 10 minutes. Add the fennel and garlic and cook another 10 minutes, adjusting the heat so they do not burn. Raise the heat and add the chicken stock and after it cooks down add the sundried tomatoes. Keep warm over low heat.
In heavy skillet over medium to medium high heat add a swirl of extra virgin olive oil. When it shimmers, add the lamb burgers and cook about 8 minutes, or until browned. Flip the burgers and cook until done to your taste, about 8 minutes for medium, 10 for well done.
Plate the burgers, top with the confit and enjoy.
Makes 3 good sized portions.
Click here for a printable recipe!
One Year Ago on Feeding Groom
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Pan Sauteed Pork Chops with Braised Fennel and Gorgonzola
Simplicity is the order of the day around here. This time of year and the year that we are having dictates some sort of simplicity would be welcome anywhere.
And that is the beauty of this dish.
This easy method of cooking pork chops on top of the stove presented last year by Terry B of Blue Kitchen makes a flavorful chop.
The addition of braised fennel and salty sweet Gorgonzola run under the broiler at the last minute takes the chop to an elegant finish.
Easy.
Flavorful.
Delish.
Simple.
Braised Fennel with Gorgonzola
Adapted from Kitchen Conversations by Joyce Goldstein
A couple of good swirls extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp butter
2 small heads fennel, sliced thinly
1 tbsp garlic confit, smashed
A good splash dry white wine
½ cup homemade chicken stock
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 ounce Gorgonzola, crumbled
Heat a medium saute pan and add the swirls of extra virgin olive oil. And butter. Add the fennel and garlic confit. Cook over medium heat until golden, about 10 minutes. Add the wine and let reduce down, about five minutes. Add the chicken stock and cover the pan. Cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Remove top and let simmer until chops are done.
Pan Sautéed Pork Chops
Adapted from Blue Kitchen
1 tsp fennel seed, crushed
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
2 to 4 bone-in pork chops, about 8 ounces each
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 tbsp butter
Heat a large cast iron (or ovenproof) skillet to medium. Add olive oil. Terry says the oil will start to shimmer (and it does!), stir in fennel seed and garlic. Season with salt and pepper and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Pat chops dry and season on both sides with salt and pepper. Increase heat to medium-high and add the pork chops , directly on top of herb/garlic mixture. Cover pan and cook chops undisturbed for 5 minutes. Turn chops, cover pan, reduce heat to medium and cook until just cooked through, about 5 minutes for chops 3/4-inch thick.
When chops are done, put braised fennel on top and sprinkle Gorgonzola over the top. Run under the broiler until Gorgonzola melts, no more than five minutes tops.
Enjoy!!
Serves 2-4 depending on how many chops you cook!
One Year Ago on Feeding Groom
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Ground Pork with Fresh Fennel, Broccoli Rabe and Two Tomatoes: A Sauce for Pasta
Wow.
What a meal.
Frost in the forecast.
A warm fire.
A bunch of broccoli rabe.
A desire for a different pasta sauce.
And a package of ground pork that wanted a home.
It got a great one.
Ground Pork with Fresh Fennel, Broccoli Rabe and Two Tomatoes: A Sauce for Pasta
Inspired by Last Night's Dinner
A couple of good swirls extra virgin olive oil
1 pound ground pork
¼ cup dry vermouth
¼ cup chicken stock
½ large Vidalia onion, chopped
1 large fresh fennel, chopped
1 large spoonful garlic confit
1-½ tsp crushed red peppers
1 tbsp fennel seed
1-½ tsp dried French thyme
1-½ tsp dried Turkish oregano
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
1-15 ounce can San Marzano tomatoes and their juice
¼ cup sundried tomatoes in olive oil, chopped
1 bunch broccoli rabe, trim the stems, wash and chop
Medium pasta shells, cooked (enough for four)
Heat a cast iron pan over medium high heat and add a couple of good swirls extra virgin olive oil. When the oil is wavy, add the ground pork and season well with coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper. When pork has cooked through, remove from pan and add a bit more olive oil.
Add fennel and Vidalia onions and let cook for about 10 minutes til soft. Add crushed red peppers, thyme, oregano and season with freshly ground black pepper. Add the garlic confit and let cook for another 5 minutes or so. Add the vermouth to the pan and stir well. Add the pork back to the pan and any drippings and stir well. Add canned tomatoes, the sundrieds and chicken stock. Let cook for about 30 minutes.
Bring a pot of water to boil. Add the broccoli rabe and bring back to a boil and let cook about three minutes. Remove the rabe from the water, add it to the pork mixture and let simmer while you cook the pasta. When pasta is done, drain it and add to the sauce. Season to taste with freshly ground black pepper.
Serves 4 generously.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Sauteed Shrimp in a Citrusy Fennelly Tomato Sauce
So, this is what I did for dinner.
Nothing fancy. Just a fast shrimp saute thrown (literally ) into a fennelly, citrusy tomato sauce slung over angel hair.
Using up the stuff in the fridge so I can go get some more stuff and forget that I have it.
Then remembering and deciding to forge ahead, because extra virgin olive oil, garlic confit, San Marzano tomatoes will bring out the best in some rather past its prime fennel and a slightly sad looking Valencia orange.
It’s Monday night.
Sautéed Shrimp in a Citrusy Fennelly Tomato Sauce
1 fennel bulb, coarsely chopped
½ large Vidalia onion, coarsely chopped
1 heaping tbsp garlic confit
A couple of good swirls of extra virgin olive oil
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
About a tbsp of fennel seeds
1 Valencia orange, zested, then cut in half
A splash of Pernod
1 28 ounce can of San Marzano tomatoes and their juices
16 large shrimp, peeled, tail left on
A couple of good swirls more of extra virgin olive oil
Fresh Italian parsley, a handful, chopped
Put a large cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Do a couple of good swirls extra virgin olive oil. When it looks wavy add the fennel and onion and let it cook until soft, about five minutes. Add garlic confit and fennel seeds. Season with coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Cook, stirring until garlic is blended in. Add tomatoes and their juice and raise the heat a bit to get a good bubbling going. Add the splash of Pernod, add the orange zest and squeeze one half of the orange over top and stir. Reduce heat to a good simmer and let cook for about twenty minutes.
Take a medium skillet and place over medium high heat and do a couple of good swirls extra virgin olive oil. Throw in the shrimp, season with coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper and squeeze the other half of the orange over the shrimp. These should cook really fast and turn pink. Remove from heat.
When you are ready to eat, add the shrimp to the tomato sauce and let bubble for about three minutes. Toss with chopped fresh Italian parsley and serve with angel hair pasta.
Serves three generously.
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Fennel and Olive Salad with Sherry Vinaigrette
So sweet.
Just out there looking for the right partner to show it off.
Enter the olive.
Salty and spunky. Full of flavor.
Get these two together in a salad and you have a marriage made in heaven.
Cut fennel into matchstick pieces, mix it with pitted green Picholine and black Nicoise olives and toss with a sweet/garlicky sherry vinaigrette, you have got something here.
Try this with bone in pork chops or chicken, seasoned with lots of freshly ground black pepper and a bit of coarse salt, a squeeze of lemon juice and a sprinkling of ground fennel, grilled to perfection.
Fennel and Olive Salad with Sherry Vinaigrette
Adapted from an old Bon Appetit recipe
6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp aged sherry vinaigrette
1 tsp garlic confit
½ cup mixed pitted Picholine and Nicoise olives
1 small fennel bulb, sliced into matchsticks
A handful of mixed baby greens
Whisk oil and vinegar together in small bowl. Add garlic confit, squish it against the side of the bowl to smash, and whisk til blended. Season with a bit of coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Put greens, fennel and olives in large bowl. Add enough dressing to lightly coat the salad. Toss well and adjust seasoning.
Serves 3.
Friday, April 18, 2008
Steelhead Trout with Braised Fennel and Sweet Red Onion
I have become a big fan of trout.
I didn’t know that it is a member of the salmon family. Makes sense when you think about it. The sweet buttery taste and the ability to adapt to lots of recipes is most definitely a characteristic of this fish. Steelhead trout starts out as a freshwater fish and moves to life in the ocean at maturity, feeding on tiny shrimp, and coming back to the freshwater after several years to “swim upstream and spawn.”
I love a fish with a plan.
Perfectly Seared Steelhead Trout Fillets
Preheat oven to 400.
Heat a cast iron skillet on top of the stove. Add a good swirl of extra virgin olive oil.
Put two nice sized fillets of steelhead trout in the pan skin side down.
Cook until skin is crispy, takes about three minutes or so.
Put the pan in the oven for 5-7 minutes til trout is done.
Serves 2.
Braised Fennel with Sweet Red Onion
½ large sweet red onion, sliced thinly
½ cup plus chicken stock
2 tsp sherry vinegar
Juice of one blood orange
2 tbsp finely diced blood orange zest
A couple of good swirls extra virgin olive oil
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
Heat a large cast iron skillet over moderate heat and add a couple of good swirls of extra virgin olive oil. When the oil shimmers, add the red onion and the fennel and let them cook a good while, about ten to fifteen minutes til they are golden and caramelizing. Add the sherry vinegar, the blood orange juice and turn up the heat.
Serves 2.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Beauty and the Beast
One of my favorite cookbooks is BISTRO COOKING by Patricia Wells. It’s a beauty of a cookbook, one that should be in everyone’s collection. Whenever I feel the need for comfort food, I’ll look in one of her books. Especially for these chilly fall days when you don’t want to spend hours in the kitchen,but want to eat something that tastes like you have.
Enter THE BEAST. I saw this fabulous AllClad Slow Cooker in the Williams-Sonoma catalog maybe six weeks ago and the lustation began.
I would wake up in the middle of the night and imagine it in my kitchen. I would be surfing the internet and the only recipes that would pop up would be slow cooker recipes. So, when Groom and I toddled towards ELA…extreme Lower Alabama..to visit with his divine brother and mother, little did I know that as a reward for being the love of his life that THE BEAST would enter my world. Poor Groom, I have a tendency to overreact when I see something..latch on to it and drive it into the ground til I get it. “Honey, can’t you just see this in our kitchen?“ “Look at that cute sweater…it’s a steel color..kinda like the cooker in that catalog? “How are the shrimp cooked; are they cooked on top of the stove in a CAST IRON pan” And so on. I am all about instant gratification. I can’t help it. It’s genetic, according to my mother. Anyway, we ended up at the Williams-Sonoma’s store in Daphne, Alabama with me clinging simultaneously to Groom and to THE BEAST. I call it THE BEAST because it's the biggest thing on my countertop . It’s seven and half quarts of pure stainless steel and cast iron love. It goes in the regular oven, on top of the stove, into the dishwasher. It’s amazing. And it cooks damn good as well!!!
So, logically last Sunday when it was not that cold but not that hot, we fired up the fireplace in the den, watched the Campion series and fed THE BEAST my take on Patricia Wells’s “Bouillabaisse de Poulet Chez Tante Paulette“…or what we call:
Sunday Chicken Stew
Combine in a large Dutch oven or your slow cooker insert:
1 28 ounce can diced San Marzano tomatoes, don’t drain
2 big onions, peeled and quartered and slice in half moons
8 fat garlic cloves peeled and smashed
3 large fennel bulbs with maybe about half of the stalk with the fennel fronds chopped
Extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup Pernod..going for the licorice flavor to complement the fennel
Big pinch of saffron
4-5 Turkish bay leaves
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper eyeball how much you want to use
Fresh thyme…or dried if you can’t find fresh. Use five or six good sized pieces of fresh thyme or two big pinches dried thyme
4 or 5 organic chicken thighs, bone in and skin removed
3 large chicken breasts, bone in and skin removed
Ok, so put all of this in the large Dutch oven and mix with your hands. It’s the only way to be sure that the seasonings and flavors mix well.
Then cover it and put in fridge for five hours at least.
One hour or so before you want to eat (or three hours if you are using a slow cooker) add to Dutch oven or slow cooker :
Small bag baby Yukon gold potatoes, scrubbed and cut in half
2-3 cups chicken stock
Put on stove and cook over medium heat for an hour to an hour and a half. (Or put in slow cooker and set timer for three hours and cook on high.)
Test chicken, out of pot, to be sure cooked and juices run clear.
Serve in large flat bowl..with veggie and broth first and a piece of chicken on top. Sprinkle with parsley. This will serve at 4-5 people maybe even 6 generously.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Pan Sauteed Wild Striped Bass with Fennel Tomato Fondue
I’m one of them. I have old stand-by meals that I’ll do in a pinch if I have to. Usually, I’ll look in the freezer, see what’s shakin’ in there and pick out what I want to do.
Then I go to the cookbooks. And stand in front waiting for inspiration. If that doesn’t work, I’ll go to the internet and surf around the food blogs and websites. The muse strikes and the games begin.
Whole Foods opened in my neighborhood last week. Jazz bands in a grocery store. Unbelievable. Anyway…a trip produced some fresh wild striped bass, something I had never cooked before. Several recipes later..thank you Perla Meyers and Jennifer Hess, I had come up with something. And it was really quite good and very easy. I’m in a major fennel phase. I love it roasted with olive oil and garlic in the oven. I love it in tuna salad with olive oil and capers and roasted red peppers and green olives. If it’s available, I may use half fennel and half celery when celery is called for in a recipe. So give this recipe a whirl and see what you think. It may change the way you eat fish. By the way, don't try to open a bottle of wine and toast bread at the same time. It's a gift to be able to do both!
Pan Sauteed Wild Striped Bass with Fennel and Tomato Fondue
1 large fennel bulb, trimmed and coarsely chopped
1 large sweet yellow onion, peeled and coarsely chopped
2-4 tbs extra virgin olive oil
Coarse salt and fresh ground black pepper
3 big fat garlic cloves, peeled and finely minced
4-6 large flat anchovies, drained and minced
1.5 tsp fennel seed, slightly crushed
1-16 ounce can organic diced tomatoes, don’t drain
Big pinch Turkish oregano
Big pinch thyme leaves
Heat 2 tbs olive oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add fennel and onion and saute til soft, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic, fennel seeds and anchovies and cook til anchovies dissolve. Add tomatoes and their juice and allow to cook down a bit. If too thick, add a bit more tomato juice. Reduce heat to low and let simmer while you do the bass. Season to taste.
Heat a cast iron skillet with two more tbs or so olive oil over medium high heat. Don’t allow to smoke. Mix a bit of flour, black pepper and coarse salt and dredge the fillet on both sides. Shake off as much flour as you can. Put in pan, skin side down and cook til golden brown and flip. Cook til done about five to seven minutes total unless it is very thick. You will be the best judge as to when it’s cooked.
Plate: Use pasta bowls to serve. Put a good sized scoop of the fennel tomato fondue in bottom, and a serving of the bass on top. Pull leaves from fresh Italian parsley and sprinkle on top. Serve with Italian bread, sliced on an angle and toasted.
Serves 3.
