Side Note: Winter Squash and Kale Pasta with Pecan Bread Crumbs

November 10, 2023November 5, 2023 by akc

There are a lot of good winter squash + pasta dishes out there, but the Winter Squash and Kale Pasta with Pecan Bread Crumbs from Bon Appetit is one of my favorites, though I do make a few adjustments to it.

Overall this comes together pretty easily. The only trick of timing is that you need pasta water to help wilt the kale, but then the pasta is sitting for about 5 minutes before you put everything together. Not a huge deal, but in my opinion this part of the instructions sort of gives it away as a restaurant recipe adapted for the home cook. You could easily just use tap water and add some salt. Since you don’t really make a sauce for this, you don’t need the starch from the pasta water quite as much as you might in other recipes.

In terms of the changes I made, some were driven by the comments, where folks noted this made a lot more servings than anticipated. To make two generous servings, I use about 1.5 pounds of squash, a whole bundle of lacinato kale, and about 6 ounces of pasta. And I make about 1/4 recipe of the pecan and panko topping, otherwise we tend to have a lot left over.

For pasta, I use some kind of shape instead of spaghetti. It’s much easier to get a relatively even distribution of squash and kale that way. You can use whatever shape you like. This time we had handmade kale rotini that we got at the farmer’s market, which made for a very pretty dinner.

Any kind of winter squash will work here, so use your favorite. I often make this with delicata, but it’s good with acorn squash and butternut squash, too. You can always choose based on which type of squash is about the right size.

The flavors here are fairly subtle, so don’t skimp on seasoning your squash and salting your pasta. And don’t worry about measuring out the exact amount of lemon zest for the topping, just get a bunch in there. I also make sure to use a lot of parmesan cheese at the end, and never skip the lemon juice.

A shallow white bowl holds a pile of pasta. Peeking out from the bottom are pieces of light green rotini. Piled on top are orange chunks of squash and dark green pieces of kale. The whole thing is showered with golden brown panko and chopped toasted pecans. — The Winter Squash and Kale Pasta with Pecan Bread Crumbs from Bon Appetit.

Side Note: Summer Corn, Tomato, and Salmon Salad with Za’atar Dressing

August 16, 2023August 13, 2023 by akc

I wanted to share one of my favorite summer dishes, the Summer Corn, Tomato, and Salmon Salad with Za’atar Dressing from Epicurious. It’s a lovely combination of tomatoes and corn and makes a delicious, light dinner.

While I make the veggies and dressing as directed, I follow Serious Eats’ technique for pan-seared salmon rather than poaching it. This is in part because I cook the corn in the microwave. I don’t worry too much about the exact measurements for the tomatoes and corn. To feed two of us, I use two ears of corn, and usually two small-to-medium sized heirloom tomatoes, or a quart of multicolored cherry tomatoes.

If you don’t like salmon, I think this would be delightful with shrimp or pretty much any type of white fish.

A shallow white bowl holds a light pink salmon filet that has been crisped in the middle. To the right is a pile of dark red and yellow tomato wedges tossed with corn. The veggies are glistening from a dressing that's left small specks of herbs flecked across everything. The whole plate is showered with minced green chives. — The Summer Corn, Tomato, and Salmon Salad with Za’atar Dressing from Epicurious.

Side Note: Omsom Thai Larb

July 17, 2023July 31, 2023 by akc

In depths of the pandemic lockdowns, I came across Omsom, a company that creates sauce packets for making absolutely delicious Asian dishes. Our favorite is the Thai Larb, but we also enjoy the Korean Spicy Bulgogi and have tried several others as well.

Cooking with these is super simple. Basically, you prep your protein and then add the sauce. For me the hardest part is usually figuring out what else I want to have on the side, as I’m not a huge fan of cooking multiple side dishes. I want them to be thematic but also simple. Typically with the larb I make some blistered green beans (I do a variation where I skip the shallots and throw in some ginger) and rice.

They have a lot of recipes on their site, at least one for each flavor they offer, as well as recipes for suggested sides. And there are a lot of vegetarian options as well. We really just like the larb with ground pork, but with the bulgogi I usually make their tofu recipe.

Lately I’m able to get this at a little botiquey grocery store near me, but you can also order online. The first time we tried them I got the Southeast Asian Sampler which was a fun introduction. If you’re at all curious about these I recommend getting a sampler to try them out. If you’re not sure where to start, I’d explore the recipes and see which ones are most appealing.

A shallow white bowl contains a pile of green beans coated in ginger and oil. To the right is a pile of cooked pork mixed with shallots, topped with scallions. The pork has flecks of red seasoning throughout. At the back of the plate is a pile of white rice topped with chili crisp. — The Omsom Thai Larb, with white rice and a side of gingery green beans.

Side Note: Champagne Vinaigrette

June 12, 2023June 2, 2023 by akc

As we get into peak summer salad territory, I thought I’d share my favorite salad dressing, this Champagne Vinaigrette from Epicurious.

This dressing strikes the right balance between acids and oils, and the mustard adds a savory note but isn’t overwhelming. The flavor is pretty punchy, so I find it works best on darker salad greens like baby spinach, arugula, and salad mixes that include red lettuce. I don’t like to use it on salads that include feta cheese or olives, because the flavors compete too much. But that means it does a great job making a boring side salad a bit less boring.

There’s almost always a bottle of this in my fridge, in a glass flip top bottle like this one. No matter what I do the olive oil solidifies, so I try to remember to take the bottle out ahead of time so it can come up to room temperature and become more usable. But it also holds up just fine if you need to throw it in the microwave briefly (30 seconds max, and only if it’s basically a full bottle. Make sure you remove the flip top since it has metal).

In terms of making this I find it comes together very quickly. I use whatever white wine vinegar I can find, and a high quality olive oil. I try to mince the garlic pretty fine, and I skip the hot sauce. I’d recommend against a blender or food processor for this, as it can introduce a bitter note in the olive oil. Here’s the science if you’re interested.

For olive oil, this will turn out just fine with your regular cooking oil, assuming it’s reasonably fresh. But if you take the time to seek out something a little higher quality I don’t think you’ll regret it. In addition to salad dressings, you can use it to finish a pasta dish and drizzle over summer tomatoes. Or of course, just to dip a chunk of bread in. Really any application where you’re not heating the oil is a great time for a specialty olive oil.

I’m partial to California Olive Ranch Arbequina olive oil, which I can’t seem to get as easily anymore. Lately I’ve been using the Global Blend Robust instead. You can probably find something at your supermarket, but if you’re near an Italian market or a specialty store you’ll almost certainly have more than one option. (I still think about a fantastic olive oil I got at a market in Baltimore’s Little Italy that was green and really tasted like olives. )

A white bowl holds a fresh green salad. There is pieces of curly green lettuce, chopped grape tomatoes, small coins of carrot, and chopped snap peas. It's been drizzled with salad dressing so there are bigs of oil catching the light. — Not that you can tell, but this side salad is dressed with the Champagne Vinaigrette.

Side Note: Rhubarb Crumble

May 14, 2023May 12, 2023 by akc

For the last few years, I’ve made the Rhubarb Crumble from Simply Recipes in the spring. It’s a great way to use a bundle of rhubarb from the farmer’s market, especially since I probably have everything we need at home already.

I halve this and make it in four ramekins, which works really well. Usually they look a little too full when they go into the oven, but the rhubarb cooks down quite a bit. This comes together really quickly as there’s not much to do to prep the rhubarb, and as long as you don’t have too much less than a pound you’re good to go. (If you do, you might want to consider whether you the crumble-to-rhubarb ratio to lean more towards crumble or not and adjust accordingly.)

The first time I made this, I found it to be too sweet. Now I reduce the sugar in the filling by 1/4 cup, and in the topping by 1/2 cup. (That’s for a half batch.) I’d recommend this especially if you plan to serve it with ice cream or whipped cream.

These keep well in the fridge for a day and warm up nicely in the microwave. They’d probably keep for a bit longer but really, why wouldn’t you just eat the other two the next day?