Tag: main course

Cajun Sausage & Flageolet Stew

27 January 2011 by local kitchen

Because clearly what this blog needs is another stew recipe. And I don’t have enough to say about heirloom beans. Because my personal Spice Rack Challenge is to use the free sample spice mixes from Penzey’s for something other than pumpkin seeds. Because I haven’t been to the farmer’s market in three weeks and I’m down to one lonely carrot, 4 pumpkins and a few Trader Joe’s onions (she hangs her locavore head in shame) in the kitchen larder. Or maybe […]

Categories: beans, heirloom beans, main course, pork, sausage, stew, tomatoes, winter, year round • Tags: Cajun, cooking, flageolet, food, local, main course, recipes, sausage, stew

Vaquero Bean & Chorizo Stew

6 January 2011 by local kitchen

Vaquero beans are so beautiful, I wish I had photographed some for you before I soaked them. They do, however, maintain their lovely markings even after cooking, along with their shape and a toothsome texture. This is a pretty classic bean stew: tomatoes, sausage, aromatic vegetables and a little cilantro or parsley to finish things off. Truly, any bean will work in this recipe, so why not take the opportunity to explore an heirloom varitety that you’ve never tasted? Rancho […]

Categories: 100% local, beans, heirloom beans, main course, pork, sausage, stew, tomatoes, winter, year round • Tags: beans, chorizo, cooking, food, local, main course, pork, recipes, sausage, stew, tomatoes, winter

Dry-Brined Roasted Turkey

19 December 2010 by local kitchen

What do you cook for Christmas Day? Do you have a leisurely day of cranberry nut bread and eggnog, like we do? Do you whip up a full breakfast of eggs, bacon and pancakes? Or do you go all out with a traditional dinner, roasted turkey or goose, plum pudding and the works? Just in case roasted turkey is on your Christmas dinner agenda, I thought I would share my Thanksgiving turkey recipe with you: a simple dry-brine with sage, bay and orange […]

Categories: citrus, fall, holiday, main course, roasting, sage, turkey, winter • Tags: cooking, dry-brine, food, holiday, local, main course, recipes, turkey

Dark Days: Spicy Basil Roasted Chicken

15 December 2010 by local kitchen

Chicken is difficult. Not difficult in that it is tasteless, bland, rubbery, spongy or just plain boring: I never find those things to be true about organically-fed, pastured, humanely-raised chicken. Not difficult in that it’s too hard to cook: in fact, roasted chicken is one of the easiest dishes I make. Chicken, that most ubiquitous of American meat staples, is difficult because it is hard to find. My regular local chicken guy used to be Pat of New England Farms. Pat […]

Categories: 100% local, basil, chicken, Dark Days Local, hot chile peppers, main course, roasting, winter, year round • Tags: chicken, cooking, food, local, main course, recipes, roasting, winter

Turkey Vindaloo

8 December 2010 by local kitchen

New World bird meets Old World spice: film @ 11. Well, it’s not the most attrative dish I’ve ever made. It certainly isn’t authentic; while turkey is common in the Americas and Europe, it’s a rarity in India, and I’m pretty sure they aren’t making vindaloo with pre-made spice packets from Penzeys. Despite those knocks against it, this dish was simple to prepare, easy on the wallet (helpful in these holiday-cash-strapped times), satisfyingly filling, and warming, for a nippy December night, and a great […]

Categories: cauliflower, main course, potato, quick & easy, stew, turkey, winter, year round • Tags: budget, cooking, food, local, main course, quick & easy, recipes, stew, turkey, vindaloo

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Use it or Lose it! Roasted Turkey with Plum Preserves

4 November 2010 by local kitchen

Like many of my fellow canning bloggers, I’ve had a lot of requests for recipes that fall into the “What to do with all of that jam?!” category. For me, this is a bit of a conundrum, because I’m not really sure how I use it up: I don’t eat a whole lot of jam on toast (mostly preferring peanut butter); the obvious classics, like a jam tart or thumbprint cookies, aren’t things that I make often; and despite giving some of it away, […]

Categories: 100% local, fall, main course, plums, roasting, sage, turkey, Use it or Lose it!, winter, year round • Tags: cooking, fall, food, main course, plums, preserves, quick & easy, recipes, roasting, turkey, winter

Chicken Braised in White Wine & Ramps

1 June 2010 by local kitchen

Three years later, this dish hasn’t changed: it’s still wonderful, and apparently still being made with chickens that needed using up yesterday. Luckily for us all, my photography has changed for the better. Yes, I know ramp season has officially passed us by, what with the overabundance of lush, leafy green that is dressing the Northeast woods right now. However, I still had an (albeit fairly limp) bunch of ramps in the fridge that were just begging to be used, […]

Categories: braising, chicken, leek, main course, spring, wild foods, wine, beer & liquor, year round • Tags: chicken, cooking, food, local, main course, ramps, recipes, wild foods

Chickpea & Spring Green Salad with Lemony Vinaigrette

15 April 2010 by local kitchen

Just the thing for Tax Day: a low-stress, quick & easy, protein, fiber and vitamin-packed, cheap one dish meal. Oh, yes, and it’s delicious too! I threw this quick & easy salad together the other night, thinking I was making enough for lunch leftovers, but it was so delicious that Tai & I polished off seconds and the whole bowl disappeared in no time. Even though I’ve been doing quite well on my resolution to use dried beans, I used canned […]

Categories: beans, chickpeas, citrus, quick & easy, radish, salad, spinach, spring, vegetarian, wild foods • Tags: cooking, food, local, main course, quick & easy, recipes, salad, spinach, vegetarian, wild foods

Cajun Chicken Pasta

25 February 2010 by local kitchen

While I read The Pioneer Woman’s blog regularly, and truly enjoy her writing and photography, I think this is the first time I have attempted one of her recipes. Well, let’s face it: she lives on a cattle ranch – I don’t eat beef. She cooks for Marlboro Man, her 4 kids, and various and sundry cowpokes, relatives, Ranch visitors, etc. – I cook for me and Tai. Last, but hardly least, there is nothing particularly seasonal about her cooking, […]

Categories: chicken, corn, garlic, hot chile peppers, main course, parsley, stir-fry, tomatoes, wine, beer & liquor, winter, year round • Tags: chicken, cooking, dinner, food, local, main course, recipes

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Strawberry Balsamic Roasted Turkey

3 February 2010 by local kitchen

Remember summer? Remember bright blue skies, long green grass, hot sun, warm rain and… strawberries? Back in July I made this strawberry jam with the very last of the season’s strawberries: kind of sweet, kind of savory, and a loose set just perfect for turning into a quick and easy marinade on a winter’s Monday night. The smell of strawberry when I popped the top on the jar was incredible and instantly took me back to a hot summer’s day, in […]

Categories: berries, main course, roasting, turkey, Use it or Lose it!, vinegar, winter • Tags: balsamic, cooking, dinner, food, local, main course, recipes, strawberry, turkey

Smoked Paprika & Orange Roasted Chicken

24 November 2009 by local kitchen

Smoked paprika is a rich and flavorful spice, with no real chile heat but the warmth of paprika, the smoky flavor of a wood fire and somehow, the flavor of bacon. This orange & smoked paprika paste yields a very flavorful bird; while I’ve been unable to get a crispy skin despite a few attempts, the meat is highly flavored with smoky paprika and tart-sweet orange, so it is a worthwhile recipe (and the carcass makes an amazing chicken stock). […]

Categories: chicken, citrus, fall, main course, roasting, winter, year round • Tags: chicken, cooking, dinner, food, local, main course, orange, recipes, roasting, smoked paprika

Mac. And. Cheese.

8 April 2009 by local kitchen

I can think of but one response to snow (yes, I said snow) on April 8th – mac and cheese. There are about a gizillion recipes out there for macaroni and cheese (actually Google informs me that there are “about 1,420,000“); this one is a classic version, with a bechamel-cheese sauce, a little salt, pepper & nutmeg, and not much else. I like a lot of different varieties of mac & cheese – the Half King in Chelsea makes a great version […]

Categories: 100% local, cheese, pasta, year round • Tags: cheese, cooking, food, local, main course, pasta, recipes, vegetarian

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Spring Stir-Fry: Chicken, Radish & Green Garlic

30 March 2009 by local kitchen

I’m always on the lookout for interesting radish recipes. Radishes are one of the first things to show up in the farmer’s market in spring that is not a leek, squash, potato or leafy green, hence, I always pick some up (look! they’re pink! crisp! new!) and then, after about three fresh salads with sliced raw radishes, wonder what I’m going to do with the other dozen pink wonders. I was a bit suspicious of stir-fried radish, but this dish was […]

Categories: chicken, cilantro, citrus, garlic, hot chile peppers, main course, quick & easy, radish, spring • Tags: chicken, cooking, food, garlic, green garlic, local, main course, quick & easy, radish, recipes, stir-fry

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Cider-Braised Pork Shoulder with Caramelized Onion Sauce

28 February 2009 by local kitchen

It’s not hard to get good flavor from a heritage pork shoulder, nicely browned on the outside then braised for hours in a low oven, until the meat is moist, juicy and falling-apart tender. Add some fresh-pressed apple cider to the mix, and a healthy dose of caramelized onion, and you’ve got a sweet-savory mix that is out of this world. This is one of Tai’s favorite dishes and the relative ease of preparation belies the moans & groans of […]

Categories: 100% local, apples, braising, pork, winter, year round • Tags: cooking, dinner, fall, food, local, main course, pork, recipes, winter

Pumpkin and Chickpea Soup

2 February 2009 by local kitchen

One of the nice things about being a locavore, or a mostly-locavore (mocavore?), like me, is that you did all sorts of prep work back at the harvest and now you get to reap the benefits. People tend to think that eating locally in the Northeast in winter is all about deprivation; this hearty pumpkin soup is anything but. I keep diced organic pumpkin, chopped local garlic and tablespoon-sized portions of tomato paste in the freezer; all I have to do is […]

Categories: 100% local, beans, chickpeas, fall, soup, vegetarian, winter, winter squash • Tags: cooking, fall, food, local, main course, quick & easy, recipes, soup, vegetarian, winter