Cavolo Nero

I have become re-addicted to leafy greens, in particular kale and Swiss chard. This shouldn’t surprise me. I grew up on turnip greens, mustard greens and collards back in coastal Virginia, and they were always a welcomed addition to any meal. My partner of 30+ years, however, really doesn’t care for leafy greens. More accurately stated, except for spinach, he will not eat them. And so, for the most part, greens have been only an occasional treat for me for the last three decades.

Well, what’s that crap all about??! Not only are greens ultra delicious, they are also superfoods--nutrition powerhouses. I now eat them regularly and never a single leaf is wasted!

Not long ago I discovered lacinato or Tuscan kale, also known as black kale. I happen to prefer its incredibly sexy Italian name, Cavolo Nero, which I think literally translates as black cabbage. (Kale is a member of the cabbage family.)

This was the mainstay of my lunch today, and I loved it so much that I’m adding it to Meal Estate. If you can’t find cavolo nero, by all means use any kale in the market that looks fresh and deeply green. Buono appetito! Salute!

Cavolo Nero with Balsamic Vinaigrette

Serves 1 or 2

1 large bunch cavolo nero or other kale, stemmed and cut into wide ribbons

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar (try pomegranate infused balsamic if you can find it)

1/4 to 1/2 cup pomegranate arils/seeds (optional; it's good without them, too)
2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Wash kale ribbons in cold water and spin dry. A little water will cling to the leaves, and you want that. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the olive oil and warm until shimmering. Add the kale ribbons all at once. Stir and toss gently until wilted but still fairly crunchy. If you want them softer you can cook them longer, but you might need to sprinkle them with a little more water to keep them from drying out. Remove from heat and toss with balsamic vinegar, pomegranate seeds and pine nuts. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve right away. (With mine, I enjoyed a cold leftover smoked chicken breast from last night’s roast chicken on the grill. YUM!)

5482 Seasoning (Trying to Cut Back on Salt)

I love salt--not on its own, for sure. And not at the table. Seasoning with salt during cooking, though, brings out the very best flavors in food. When salt doesn't come to the party, things just don't taste right to me. For health reasons, I'm convinced that I really ought to cut back on it. Today I'm putting together a personal house seasoning that I hope will help. I'm making Green Chile Cheeseburgers tonight. I'll season the meat with it and see how I like it. Since my house number is 5482, I'll name it...

5482 Seasoning

2 tablespoons each freshly ground black pepper, granulated garlic, granulated onion and fine sea salt
1 teaspoon dried minced lemon peel

Combine all ingredients in a jar. Shake to mix well. Store tightly covered in a dry, cool place.

Panzanella! (An Italian Salad of Tomatoes and Stale Bread)

I just enjoyed the most gorgeous weekend in Southern California. I think the daytime highs never exceeded 75 degrees the whole time--pure heaven after the almost daily 100+ degrees we endure here in Tucson from July through mid September. I went to the Hollywood Farmers Market on Sunday, and it was fully decked out in its finest summertime regalia! If I still lived in West Hollywood (and I SO wish I did) I would have filled bag after bag with bounties of chilies and peppers, tomatoes, greens, ears of fresh bi-color corn, fresh chanterelles--all organic, by the way--and one or two of the locally baked sourdough baguettes found in a few places at the Market. As it was, I bought about 10 pounds of organic heirloom tomatoes and gingerly packed them in my shoulder bag for the plane ride home. Every single tomato survived the trip, and tonight I'm having an heirloom tomato salad that is delectable beyond description! I hope you'll make it too. (By the way, I had an AWESOME B-L-T for lunch. Will repeat tomorrow!)

Panzanella!

Makes 4 large portions, 2 if you are a tomato addict like me. All you need to add for a great meal is perhaps some grilled chicken or shrimp... and a glass or two of chilled Pino Grigio!

2 large heirloom tomatoes (or other vine-ripe, full flavored summer tomatoes)
1 large cucumber, peeled and seeded
21 pitted Kalamata olives, sliced or halved
1 tablespoon good red wine vinegar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 - 3 ounces feta cheese, crumbled into large chunks
1/4 cup basil chiffonade (thinly sliced basil leaves, or you can chop them if you wish)
1 - 1 1/2 cups day old sourdough or Italian bread, cut into 1 inch cubes
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil--the best you have on hand

Core tomatoes and cut them into bite size chunks. Slice cucumber into 1/4 inch slices. Transfer to a large bowl. Add the olives and drizzle the salad with the vinegar. Toss briefly with 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Set aside at room temperature for 30 minutes. Drain in a colander, reserving 1/2 cup of the juice. When ready to serve, add the cheese, basil and bread to the vegetables. Whisk the olive oil into the reserved juices. Season the dressing with additional salt and pepper as needed; add more red wine vinegar if you like. Toss gently with the salad and serve.

Note: Thinly sliced red onion, scallions and radishes are great in this salad, too. Just make sure that tomatoes get the starring role.

Five Ingredient Soup

Today I made some soup for lunch. Hot soup. In the middle of the Sonoran Desert in summer. What, am I nuts? Actually I make this soup from time to time because I love it--it's one of my favorite soups--and today I was craving it. I had been feeling a little out of sorts, a little down in the dumps for a day or two and you know what? This soup was like a mystery tonic! Maybe it isn't a mystery when you consider the ingredients: lean protein from the chicken, fiber and plant protein from the beans, high lycopene tomatoes, chicken stock and all the wonderful things that leafy greens bring. And low in fat too!! I might have a bit more for a snack later!

Five Ingredient Soup (not counting the seasonings)

1 Chicken Italian sausage link, casing removed
1 (14.5 oz.) can petite diced tomatoes
1 quart chicken stock or reduced sodium chicken broth
1 (14.5 oz.) can cannellini beans or other white beans, drained and rinsed
1 small bunch kale, stemmed and rough chopped

Brown the sausage in a nonstick skillet, breaking up into small pieces. Transfer with slotted spoon to a 3-quart saucepan. Add the tomatoes, stock, beans and 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper. Bring to a boil. Add kale. Simmer just until kale is wilted and bright green. Season with salt and black pepper to taste. Serve.

Note: I actually prefer to use one Chicken Andouille Sausage link, like the kind sold at Trader Joe's, chopped. Didn't have any on hand today, but the Italian link substituted quite nicely.

Fried Green Tomatoes

I grew up on Virginia's Eastern Shore, the southern tip of the Delmarva peninsula, situated between the Atlantic Ocean on the east and the Chesapeake Bay on the west. We fried everything back then; everything, that is, but green tomatoes, which is pretty amazing considering that farmers' summer fields of tomatoes were literally everywhere. I first heard of fried green tomatoes when the movie of the same name opened, and I remember thinking, "People don't really eat those things, do they?" Well, of course they do. Here's my twist on this Southern delicacy!

Russell's Fried Green Tomatoes
3 or 4 unripe green tomatoes, about 2 1/2 inches in diameter
Kosher salt
1/2 to 1 cup Russell's Breading Mix (recipe follows)
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 egg
1/4 cup buttermilk
Canola oil
Best Cocktail Sauce (recipe follows)

Cut green tomatoes into 1/2 inch slices and lay them on a double thickness of paper towels. Sprinkle lightly with kosher salt--about 1/2 teaspoon total. Let stand 20 minutes. The salt will not only season the tomatoes but will also help drain some moisture from them.

You will need a flat, shallow pan (a quarter sheet pan is perfect), two plates and one shallow bowl. Sprinkle breading mix lightly--1 or 2 tablespoons should be plenty--across surface of pan. Place flour on one plate and about 1/2 cup breading mix on another plate. In the shallow bowl beat the egg and whisk in the buttermilk.

Dredge a tomato slice in flour, coating well but shaking off excess. Dip into egg mixture and then in the breading mixture. Press to coat. Turn and coat the other side with breading mix. Place on sheet pan. Repeat until all tomato slices are breaded adding breading mix as needed.

Add oil to a depth of about 1/8 to 1/4 inch in a large skillet. Heat on medium-high until just starting to smoke. Reduce heat slightly and add tomato slices, but don't crowd them. Work in batches if necessary. Fry until golden brown; flip and fry until other side is golden brown, about 3 minutes each side. Remove from oil and drain on paper towels.

Serve piping hot with Best Cocktail Sauce (or a good commercial cocktail sauce such as Crosse and Blackwell or Trader Joe's) for dipping.

Russell's Breading Mix for Seafood and Vegetables
8 ounces (weight) yellow corn meal (a little more than 1 ½ cups)
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
2 teaspoons white pepper
2 teaspoons black pepper
2 teaspoons fine sea salt or table salt*
1 teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon celery seeds

Combine all ingredients in a large, lidded container and shake well. Store in a cool, dark pantry for several months, or freeze. (No need to defrost before using.) Makes about two cups.

*This amount of salt makes for a lightly seasoned breading mix to take into account for food that might already be brined or salted. Increase or decrease salt in the mix as desired.

Best Cocktail Sauce

1/2 cup ketchup

1/2 cup chili sauce (such as Heinz)

1/4 cup prepared horseradish

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon Sriracha*

Combine all ingredients in a jar or bowl and mix well. Chill. Keeps for several weeks in the refrigerator.

*Sriracha is a fiery, garlicky hot sauce found in the Asian section of many supermarkets. There is no substitute for its flavor, but for the heat you can use any hot sauce available, to taste.