Kale Brussels Sprout Salad w. Pecorino & Toasted Nuts

Kale ain’t boring when you coat it with homemade lemon oil and pecorino cheese.

Don’t forget a sprinkling of warm, crunchy toasted pistachios and walnuts. I’ve never written a “Copycat” recipe before, but this salad stuck with me long after I ate it in the backyard of Aurora Bk, paired with a beautiful glass of Italian red wine and surrounded by twinkling lights. We tend to think of salad as a meal suited for summer, but this combination is so comforting and perfectly suited for when you need a dose of greens during chilly winter months.

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Kale Brussels Sprout Salad with Pecorino and Toasted Nuts

Serves 2

Lemon oil 

• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil

• ½ large lemon, scrubbed clean and peel removed in strips without any bitter white pith

Salad

• 5 med Lacinato or Tuscan kale leaves, cleaned and cut into fine strips

• 5 med Brussels sprouts, rinsed and shaved on a mandolin or finely cut using a sharp knife

• ¾ cup mix of roasted salted pistachios and raw walnuts

• ⅔ cup finely grated Pecorino

Dressing

• 2.5 Tbsps lemon oil

• 1 tsp fresh squeezed lemon juice

• Pinch salt

To make your lemon oil, add olive oil and lemon peel to a small saucepan (make sure the lemon peel has no bitter white pith on it as it can make the oil taste bitter as well). Warm over a low-medium heat for about 20 minutes, watching and turning the heat down if necessary to avoid any bubbles from forming in the oil. Then remove from the heat and let steep 10 minutes, or until oil has reached room temperature. Strain through a fine mesh strainer and discard lemon peel. If you make extra oil than you need, store in a dark jar in a cool place.

Next, clean and finely cut your kale, removing the thick middle stem. Roll the leaves together and chiffonade, or cut into fine strips. Similarly, rinse your brussel sprouts and using a mandolin, shave into thin strips or cut using a sharp knife. Add to a bowl and toss with lemon oil, lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Massage the greens and then place in the refrigerator for up to 30 minutes.

Over a medium heat, toast pistachios and walnuts in a dry pan, making sure not to burn, just 3 to 5 minutes, until fragrant. In the meantime, finely grate ⅔ cup pecorino cheese.

Remove greens from the fridge and add toasted nuts and most of the grated cheese. Toss gently with your fingers to mix, and serve with a little extra cheese on top. Serve immediately.

Seared Mushrooms w. Creamy Polenta & Miso Garlic Butter

This dish puts umami front and center.

Umami is the king of all flavor profiles. It’s deep and savory and rich. This appetizer, perfect for the holiday season around the corner, uses three umami ingredients in one dish: mushrooms, Parmigiano-Reggiano and miso. Oh, and did I mention butter and garlic? Finish this flavor bomb of a dish with something bright, like fig balsamic or herb oil. Serve alongside simple proteins and/or plants. Eat the whole cozy bowl yourself, or divvy it up with those whom you can safely gather with.

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Seared Mushrooms with Creamy Polenta and Miso Garlic Butter

For Polenta (serves 2 with leftovers)

• ½ cup white polenta (southern white grits)

• ¼ tsp coarse salt

• 1 cup milk

• 1 cup water

• ½ cup freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano

• Freshly ground black pepper

• Finish with salt to taste (plan to under salt this a little because the mushrooms and miso butter have lots of flavor)

For Mushrooms (serves 2)

• 1 portobello, 2 shiitake and 40g beech mushrooms per serving, or 1/2 cup

• Neutral oil, enough to coat the bottom of your pan

• Coarse salt

• Garlic powder

• 20g butter, or 1.5 Tbsps, melted

• 4 smashed garlic cloves

• ½ Tbsp miso

First, make your creamy polenta: to a pot, add the milk, water and salt. Bring to a boil, then add polenta and lower the heat, cooking until liquid is absorbed, stirring frequently. When polenta is creamy, about 15 minutes, add black pepper, grated parmigiano reggiano and salt to taste. Make sure to under salt the polenta a bit because the miso butter is salty and the mushrooms should also be well seasoned. Remove from the heat off and set to the side, covered.

Clean and dry your mushrooms well. In a frying pan, heat enough neutral oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Drizzle just a little oil on the mushrooms, so your seasoning sticks, and sprinkle with coarse salt and garlic powder on both sides. When the neutral oil is shimmering and pan is hot, sear all the mushrooms on both sides, in batches if necessary to avoid overcrowding. Set mushrooms aside. Safely remove the hot oil and liquid from the pan. Wipe clean and place back over a low heat.

At this point, give your polenta a stir and put back over a low heat, covered, to warm for serving.

In your clean pan, add melted butter, miso and garlic. Over a low-medium heat, whisk to combine butter with the miso. Once incorporated, add the mushrooms to the pan, spooning the miso butter over them.

After a minute or so turn the heat off on both the mushrooms and polenta. Add polenta to a shallow bowl. Using a slotted spoon, remove mushrooms from the pan and place on top. Spoon miso butter over the mushrooms. Serve immediately with a fork and knife. Finish with something bright, like a drizzle of herb oil or fruity balsamic vinegar (I love fig balsamic, personally).

Crispy Chicken Thighs w. Black Peppercorn Mayo

Crispy chicken, savory garlic and the heat of peppercorn mayo.

Growing up, my dad would make us a simple snack that delighted me to no end: sliced deli meat streaked with a thin layer of creamy mayonnaise, rolled up and consumed in two quick bites. As an adult, I have continued to revisit this snack during late evening, post-gym fridge raids, adding a little dijon mustard to the mix. Lazy eating at it’s finest. At some point, though, my taste for fine dining kicked in and I decided it was time to elevate the ingredients and morph this delicious tidbit from my past into a full blown meal. I traded plain old deli meat for crispy roasted chicken and flecked the mayonnaise with whole black peppercorns, coarsely ground. When serving I still like to follow in the footsteps of tradition, using the back of a spoon to spread a dollop of peppercorn mayonnaise into a thin flourish on the plate, followed by the chicken and rendered, garlicky juices. Serve next to Warm Israeli Couscous Salad and roasted vegetables adorned with Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Sauce.

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Crispy Chicken Thighs w. Black Peppercorn Mayo

Serves 2

• 4 chicken thighs

• 8-9 cloves garlic

• Sea salt

• Freshly ground black pepper

• Whole black peppercorns

• Mayonnaise

• 1 lemon

• Neutral oil, like canola or safflower

• Cast iron or stainless steel pan

Preheat oven to 400.

Coat chicken thighs evenly all over with sea salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Let sit anywhere from 15 minutes at room temperature to 3 hours, refrigerated. Bring chicken to room temp before cooking.

Smash 7-8 large garlic cloves with the flat side of a sturdy knife, like a chefs knife, remove skin and place smashed garlic to the side.

Heat neutral oil in a large, high temperature, oven-safe pan (like a cast iron or stainless All-Clad) over med high heat.  When oil is shimmering and hot, add chicken to the pan skin side down. It should sizzle. If it doesn’t, take the chicken out and let it get sufficiently hot. Allow skin to brown about 5-8 minutes, adding a little more freshly ground black pepper about halfway through.

When skin is generously browned and separates easily from the bottom of the pan, turn the heat off. Using tongs, gently flip thighs skin side up. Add smashed garlic cloves to the pan and transfer to the oven. Cook another 15-20 mins or until your chicken is cooked through but still moist and juicy (the proper internal temperature of cooked chicken is 165). When your chicken is done, carefully remove your pan from the oven and move the chicken out of the pan to rest. Be sure to place a dry, well folded kitchen towel or oven mitt over the handle once you remove it from the oven as a “flag”, as the handle will be very hot & you don’t want to accidentally grab it.

When the chicken comes out, tilting the pan away from you, use a big spoon to baste the chicken with the rendered fat and garlic.

While the chicken rests, add a few tablespoons of mayonnaise to a ramekin or small bowl. Again, using the flat side of a sturdy knife, or a mortar and pestle, crush 10-12 whole black peppercorns. Add to mayo along with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. Mix well. You can also make mayonnaise up to a day in advance.

When ready to serve, warm your remaining cooking fat with crispy garlic and spoon over chicken. Serve with peppercorn mayo on the side.