Slow-Simmered Lentils with Kale and Goat Cheese

March 3, 2023February 16, 2023 by akc

The Slow-Simmered Lentils with Kale and Goat Cheese from Smitten Kitchen Keepers didn’t initially catch my eye, but when I saw someone mention them online somehow they immediately got on my list.

We wound up with bagged, pre-chopped kale in our grocery order, so I didn’t try out including the steps. (They are in the bagged stuff, but it’s already a pain to sift them out and strip the leaves off the bigger stems.) Other that that I made it as directed, adding half the cheese at the end since I only needed two servings.

The only real thing to be aware of if you make this is that it needs to simmer for close to an hour, so don’t start it too late in the evening. (You could easily do your prep ahead though – sort through your lentils and prep the veg and it’d be very fast to throw it all in the dutch oven.) Deb doesn’t cue for this but make sure to check your lentils a couple of times and taste to see if they’re cooked through or not. I didn’t need the entire hour, I think mine took about 45 minutes.

I didn’t have the recommended country bread or sourdough to toast alongside this, so on a whim I made some corn muffins since I happened to have everything I needed for a recipe that had floated across my radar recently. In my opinion the bread would have been better, providing ore contrast than the muffins. But my husband liked that he could break pieces of the muffin up and scoop it along with the lentils.

A shallow white bowl fills the frame. In the center is a pile of brown lentils with pieces of cooked kale and onion visible throughout. A small mound of white goat cheese peeks out from the middle. — Slow-Simmered Lentils with Kale and Goat Cheese from *Smitten Kitchen Keepers*.

Focaccia Onion Board

February 26, 2023February 12, 2023 by akc

The Focaccia Onion Board is one of those dishes that I could practically taste when I read the recipe. I made it for dinner, served alongside this Kale and Roasted Vegetable Soup from Simply Recipes, which is one of my favorite winter soups.

Like the Ligurian Focaccia, I made this in my quarter sheet pan. Deb calls for a 9×13 pan, but I suspect that’s because she anticipates most folks will have one. A quarter sheet pan is a smidge wider and barely shorter (9.5″ x 12.8″), so I knew the dough would fit. I also figured I’d get a better result, as my 9×13 pan is glass. Note that if you do use a glass pan for this, some commenters indicated that the dough stuck to it mightily. Apparently if you butter the pan before putting in the oil that solves the problem.

If your 9×13 pan is also glass, I recommend that you get a quarter sheet pan if you have the space and funds. It’s nice to have some smaller rimmed baking sheets around (I also have a couple of eighth sheet pans) for little jobs like toasting nuts, and you can also use them for prep. Nordic Ware Naturals is the brand to get.

Anyway, I let this rise on the counter for about four hours, which is twice as long as Deb calls for. But my kitchen is cold and I knew it wouldn’t be out long enough to get weird. This worked perfectly, though I’m not sure how much that was aided by the oven being on for part of that time. (I roasted the veggies for soup in the afternoon, they’re easier to handle if they’re cool.) I did get a lovely rise and the dough was very light and airy when I got it into the pan.

The only other change I made was to bake this on top of our pizza stone. Partially because it turned out to be in the oven, but also because I knew that would help ensure the bottom was crisp.

I’m fairly happy with how this turned out, but I have a few pointers. Deb says that this is supposed to be “deeply golden brown at the edges and across the top” after 25 minutes. Mine was barely golden at the edges at that point, so I put it in for 10 more minutes. I liked the color better at that point, but it still wasn’t “deeply golden brown.” But if you look at the photos on her site, it’s much closer to what I wound up with — lightly golden.

As you will see I did run into trouble with the onions. I overcooked them on the stovetop, so they burned in the oven, especially with the extra 10 minutes. I quickly pulled off some of the worst, but I’d say to err on the side of getting less color on them on the stove. Definitely look at the reference photos she’s got on the recipe to guide you.

This is much less salty than what I think of when I think of focaccia. But this is a spin on an Eastern European flatbread, so I don’t think it’s supposed to be. And it’s meant to go alongside a spread of bagel-type toppings like cream cheese, lox, etc. So if you are planning to do that, I think it’ll be pretty perfect.

I can see myself making this again for a brunch, or as a bread to serve when I’m making something for dinner and wish I had bread to go with it but didn’t anticipate that 24 hours prior. But if I’m making focaccia, I’m going to stick with the Ligurian Focaccia, and maybe add onions to that if I feel so inclined.

A white plate holds six squares of bread. The bread is very lightly golden brown, and has a focaccia like texture. It's topped in poppy seeds and slightly overdone caramelized onions. — The Focaccia Onion Board from The Smitten Kitchen Blog.

Creamy Coconut Rice with Chili-Lime Vegetables

February 21, 2023 by akc

I’m always on the lookout for vegetarian dinners and I liked the sound of the Creamy Coconut Rice with Chili-Lime Vegetables from Smitten Kitchen Keepers. I used to make this Spicy Stir-Fried Tofu with Coconut Rice to take to work for lunch, and the rice was always very good. And we like roasted veggies, so it seemed like a no-brainer.

For this I used an entire head of cauliflower and a small acorn squash. I subbed a jalapeno for the red chili, and decided to forgo the cilantro.

I used a 9×13 pan for the rice as apparently I don’t have a 3 quart casserole. It came together very quickly and I threw that in the oven while I chopped the veggies. I don’t think the timing would have been quite right, but I was hungry and wanted to get a head start on the rice, which needs to bake for 40-45 minutes.

Sadly for me, at 45 mins there was still a lot of liquid left in the pan with the rice, though it did seem like the rice was cooked. It turns out I’d set the oven temp too low, so I turned it up to finish off the veggies and poured the rice into a skillet. I just brought it to a gentle boil and stirred away until it got to the consistency I was looking for. At that point I decided the veggies were done and threw everything together.

Even setting aside my own issues making this, I’m not sure it’s a keeper for us. We tend to make dishes with very bold flavors, and this is pretty mild. In my opinion it needs a condiment, or more seasoning on the veggies. I kept thinking back to the spicy stir-fried tofu, which is coated in a spice mix that brings a lot of flavor to the dish. I would usually add some broccoli to it to round it out and to stretch the meal. I might just bring that back into the dinner rotation, we’ll see.

A shallow white bowl holds a big scoop of creamy yellow rice. It's topped with roasted cauliflower florets and pieces of squash. There are a couple of slices of jalpeno peeking out. — Creamy Coconut Rice with Chili-Lime Vegetables from *Smitten Kitchen Keepers*.

Sheet Pan Chicken Tikka

February 16, 2023February 12, 2023 by akc

This Sheet Pan Chicken Tikka is another entry in the “chicken and veggies on a sheet pan” dinner category. I’ve made it many times and always as written, though I do tend to skip the finishes.

I like the combination of potatoes and cauliflower here, and in particular that they aren’t heavily spiced. You could certainly dust them with some of the spices used in the marinade, but I like the contrast between the chicken and the veggies. And you should make the lightly pickled onions she suggests, as that zing goes very well. (We typically have pickled red onions on hand and just use those, though depending on how long they’ve been sitting sometimes they aren’t quite as pungent as I’d like for this application.)

I can usually get the veggies prepped in about 15 minutes, so the chicken can get at least that minimum amount of time in the marinade. For maximum flavor, I pull up the skin on the chicken thighs and rub some of the marinade under the skin, and I don’t brush off the excess like she tells you to (I’ve never had trouble with it burning, but your oven may have other ideas). In general I make the full recipe of veggies, which fills the sheet pan, and marinade the full amount of chicken, but only half of it goes in the oven. The other half goes in the freezer to make dinner some other night even easier.

A pile of roasted cauliflower florets and potato cubes rests on a white plate. They are flicked with cumin seeds and topped with pickled red onions.Next to them is a chicken thigh coated in an orangey sauce that has been baked on. — Sheet Pan Chicken Tikka from The Smitten Kitchen Blog.

Crispy Chili Garlic Butter Shrimp

February 11, 2023February 4, 2023 by akc

We are big on shrimp in this house, and usually have it every couple of weeks or so. When I saw the Crispy Chili Garlic Butter Shrimp in Smitten Kitchen Keepers I knew it was something we’d have to try.

This came together in a flash for me because the shrimp we typically purchase come with shells on, but already deveined. (For local friends, we get these from The District Fishwife at Union Market.) To serve the two of us for dinner, I made a half batch.

Deb calls for either hot smoked paprika or crushed red pepper, so I did a combination of regular smoked paprika and crushed red pepper. We do like spicy so I definitely could have added more. Don’t skimp on the lemon juice, I thought it might be too much but you really want it to cut through the butter.

If you don’t want to use wine you could substitute some broth (ideally seafood broth, but a light chicken or veggie broth would work too). If you do that, be mindful that you don’t over salt and consider adding a little more lemon juice at the end.

I did not have any appropriate bread on hand and regretted not getting any to serve with this. (I skipped it because I served this with the Green Angel Hair with Garlic Butter.) We wouldn’t have needed much, just something to enjoy the rest of the sauce. A slice or two from a baguette would have done the trick.