Category:  Vegetables

When I was introduced to Moroccan cuisine, I became addicted to couscous. It is a perfect side to meat or poultry – especially stews. Like rice, couscous is neutral, acquiring flavors from added ingredients or foods it is paired with.

Try this fantastic vegetarian couscous, made with stir-fried zucchini, squash, onions and chili peppers.

Prep time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4 (as a side dish)

Ingredients:
4 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
1/2 cup minced green zucchini
1/2 cup minced yellow squash
1/2 red chili, minced
1/3 cup minced yellow or white onion
1 cup water
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup dried, uncooked couscous

1. In a nonstick skillet, heat 4 tablespoons oil.

2. Add the minced zucchini, squash, chili and onion.

3. Stir fry the squash-onion mixture over medium heat for about 2 to 3 minutes or until onion is translucent.

4. Transfer the cooked mixture to a small bowl and set aside.

5. Meanwhile, in a 2-quart saucepot, bring 1 cup water to a boil.

6. When water is boiling, stir in the oil, salt and couscous.

7. Remove saucepot with couscous from heat, cover and let stand for 5 minutes.

8. After 5 minutes, fluff up the couscous with a fork.

9. Serve couscous immediately as a side to meat, chicken, lamb or fish. For vegetarian or vegan diets, pair the couscous with salads or other vegetables.

Text and Photographs ©2013 Nancy DeLucia Real

You don’t have to be from the southern region of Calabria, Italy to enjoy homemade “peperoncini” or hot peppers preserved in olive oil. Italians call these “peperoncini sott’olio” and usually sprinkle them over pasta.

First, when buying them fresh from a farmers’ market, here’s what the peppers look like:

Aren’t they cute?

This recipe for preserving the hot peppers is so simple that you’ll wonder why you haven’t made them before. When setting the condiment dish with Hot Calabrese Peppers on the table, make sure to tell your guests that a tiny amount of the peppers will add lots of “heat” to their pasta dish.

Active prep time: 35 minutes
Inactive prep time: 24 hours (for draining peppers overnight)

Ingredients:
One 8-ounce glass canning jar with lid and cover (washed in warm, soapy water & rinsed)
3 cheesecloths
20 to 22 fresh Calabrese peppers
3/4 to 1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup to 1/3 cup white wine vinegar (for sprinkling peppers)
1 cup safflower or sunflower oil (you may need to add a little more)

Sterilizing the Jar, Lid & Cover-

1. Place the jar, lid and cover, wrapped in a cheesecloth, in a 4 or 5-quart sauce pot.

2. Fill the sauce pot with water to 3 inches below rim (the water should be 2 inches above cheesecloth containing jar, lid and cover).

3. Bring the water with jar, lid and cover to a boil. Boil for 15 minutes.

4. After 15 minutes, using canning tongs, carefully remove jar, lid and cover from water. Place them on a triple layer of paper towels on a board on kitchen counter; set aside to cool.

Preparing the Peppers:

1. Meanwhile, wash the peppers and dry each one with paper towels (remove all traces of moisture around the peppers).

2. Line a 12 to 14-inch round colander with a clean cheesecloth – make sure that the cheesecloth is centered over the colander. Let the cloth hang over sides of colander; set aside.

3. To prevent the pepper seeds from burning your fingers, wear sanitary disposable gloves. Using shears, pick up the first pepper by its green stem.

4. Holding the pepper above the cloth-lined colander and beginning at the pointed end of the pepper, cut it into 1/2-inch circles with the shears.

Note: If seeds look black, discard the pepper.

5. Let the pepper circles fall into the cloth-lined colander.

6. Discard the green stem and continue cutting the remaining peppers until you have formed one layer in the cheesecloth in colander.

7. After you have formed one layer of pepper circles, sprinkle them lightly with salt.

8. Follow with a sprinkling of white wine vinegar (about 2 to 4 tablespoons). The first layer of pepper circles will look like this:

9. Place the second cheesecloth over the first prepared layer of peppers.

10. Repeat the cutting procedure to form a second layer of pepper circles over cheesecloth.

11. Repeat the addition of salt and vinegar and cover the pepper circles with a third cheesecloth.

12. Place a sauce pot filled with cold water (this will act as a weight) over the pepper circles in colander and set aside on a counter for 24 hours.

Draining & Canning the Peppers-

1. After 24 hours, carefully remove the pepper circles from cheesecloths and transfer them to the sterilized jar.

2. Using a small spoon, gently but lightly press the pepper circles in the jar (this procedure will remove air bubbles).

3. When the jar is filled to 3/4-inch below the rim, carefully and slowly pour the oil over the pepper circles.

4. Fill the jar until the oil covers the pepper circles by 1/2-inch. This means there should be 1/2-inch oil above the peppers.

5. Place lid over jar, followed by the cover. Close tightly.

6. Store the jar with peppers in refrigerator for one month (this will bring forth a nice fusion of all flavors).

7. After opening the jar of Calabrese Pepper Preserves for the first time, store it in the refrigerator. From this point on, the peppers will last 3 to 4 weeks.

Text and Photograph ©2013 Nancy DeLucia Real

I still have lots of chard sprouting like weeds in my vegetable garden.

Here’s a simple, but fine-tasting recipe with limited ingredients. This means that if you’ve got to buy chard to make this dish, your cost won’t break the bank. I know this is a good thing, since many of us are aiming for bargains at those end-of-summer sales.

Enjoy Chard and Tomatoes as a healthy and delicious side to grilled meats, poultry or seafood dishes.

Prep time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4 (as a side dish)

Ingredients:
2 bunches (about 8 cups) coarsely chopped fresh chard
3 to 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (or more, depending on your taste)
Salt and ground black pepper, to taste
2 yellow or red tomatoes, deseeded & cut into 1/4-inch pieces

1. Rinse, drain and spin dry the chopped chard in cold water about 3 to 4 times (this will remove dirt particles). Set chard aside.

2. Meanwhile, bring a 5 to 6-quart sauce pot filled with water to a boil.

3. When water is boiling, add the chard.

4. Cook chard about 2 to 4 minutes or until it is wilted and tender, but not overcooked.

5. When chard is cooked, drain it in a colander and let it cool slightly, for about 5 minutes.

6. Drain the chard very well and transfer it to a serving bowl.

7. Stir the oil, salt and pepper into the chard. Add tomato pieces and stir once more.

8. Taste, adjust seasonings and serve immediately.

Text and Photograph ©2013 Nancy DeLucia Real

Feel frustrated when you open the refrigerator and see one of every vegetable? Any thoughts of mounting one vegetable on a pedestal and letting it shine solo are immediately gone.

Recently, I found myself holding one fennel, one potato and one zucchini in my hands. As I grabbed these three veggies, I was about to toss them in the trash. I ultimately decided not to do that because they were still fresh.

So I became creative and found myself cutting up the trio into one-inch chunks. I then threw the melange into a medium pot covered with cold water and …. Well, just look at the photo! This fennel, potato & zucchini mash is exquisite, healthy and vegan.

Prep time: 15 minutes (10 minutes for the boil and 5 minutes for the mash)

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

One fresh fennel, green stalks cut and discarded and white parts cut into 1-inch chunks
One medium potato, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
One medium zucchini, peeled and tips cut and discarded; flesh cut into 1-inch chunks
Extra virgin olive oil, to taste (about 2 tablespoons)
Salt and ground black pepper, to taste

1. Rinse the peeled and cut vegetables in cold water and drain.

2. Transfer to a medium pot and cover with cold water.

3. Bring to a boil and cool approximately 8 to 10 minutes or until all vegetables are fork-tender.

4. Drain the cooked vegetables completely.

5. Using a hand masher or a handheld electric mixer, beat the vegetables until a puree is formed. Stir in the olive oil, salt and pepper, to taste.

Serve immediately as a side dish to chicken, seafood or meat. Alternatively, serve as part of a vegetarian or vegan meal.

Text and Photograph ©2013 Nancy DeLucia Real

With our turkey holiday right around the corner, I started thinking about smaller feasts. What do you do when you’re not cooking for 15 to 20 people? You downsize a recipe, right? And, you can also tweak a traditional recipe like mashed potatoes.

Here’s a  Potato-Yam Chipotle Mash for four that’ll blow you away. Made with potatoes, one yam and spiced with chipotle chiles in adobo sauce – it’s deliciously sweet and HOT!  Of course, you can control the amount of heat you want. 

Cooking time: 25 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients:
Two medium Russet potatoes, about 5 inches in length (preferably organic)
1 medium yam (weighing about 1/2 pound)
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter or extra virgin olive oil
3 to 4 tablespoons milk (2% milkfat, 1% milkfat or whole milk*)
1/2 to 1 teaspoon pureed chipotle chiles in adobo sauce**
Salt, to taste

1. Peel the potatoes and cut them into 2-inch chunks; transfer the potato chunks to a bowl of cold water and set aside.

2. Peel the yam and cut it into 2-inch chunks; transfer the yam chunks to the bowl of potatoes and cold water.

3. Drain the potato and yam chunks and transfer them to a 4 to 6-quart saucepot. Cover with cold water. Set saucepot, covered, on a burner on high heat and bring to a boil. Add 3/4 teaspoon salt.

4. Uncover saucepot and cook the potato and yam chunks for 7 to 8 minutes or until they are fork-tender.

5. When the potato and yam chunks are cooked, drain them in a colander and transfer them to a medium glass or porcelain mixing bowl or stand mixer. Add the butter or olive oil to the poato-yam mixture.

6. If using a mixing bowl, beat the potatoes with a hand mixer. Alternatively, use medium mixing speed on a stand mixer.

7. When the potatoes are beaten, stir in the milk and 1/2 teaspoon of the mashed chipotles. Beat once more until well-blended. Taste and add more mashed chipotle, if desired. Adjust salt level, if needed.

Serve Potato-Yam Chipotle Mash with turkey on Thanksgiving Day. This recipe makes for a great side with any meat, poultry or fish filet such as salmon, halibut, sea bass, etc.

Text and Photograph ©2012 Nancy DeLucia Real