Characteristic: template
Zucchini and Orzo Salad with Dill and Coriander
This is a simple, fresh and easily adaptable salad. I really like the combination of dill and summer squash and a little carrot with the tangy vinaigrette. The toasted and roughly ground coriander seeds are a very nice addition. You can also easily scale this up or down and vary the ratio of orzo to vegetables to suit your taste/needs.
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Mixed Greens with Garlic Scapes, Couscous and Nested Eggs
Sometimes, often actually, limitations are the foundation of creativity. Three partial bunches of greens needing to be used (before the next CSA share arrived) and hungry people underfoot inspired this delicious meal. Use any tender, leafy greens you have and in most any combination. If the greens are not so tender the dish will take a little longer--if using spinach and beet and/or turnip tops it will be very quick. And feel free to vary the spices to suit your taste.
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Fried Rice "Pancakes"
Everything I might put into fried rice gets mixed in a bowl and panfried into neat little pancakes. A delicious alternative! And another reason to make twice as much rice as you need in the moment. . .so you have it ready for this sort of quick dinner.
Cabbage, peas, corn, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, turnips or any leafy green, basil and/or mint would be great. Be sure to chop them finely which helps the pancakes hold together when frying.
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Mizuna and Scallion Pancakes
Light, bright and tender. . . these are such a treat. I typically serve mizuna raw in salads or added to soups at the very end. In this preparation they stay really fresh despite the quick visit to the pan.
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Quinoa with Peanut Sauce, Vegetables and Herbs
This is a delicious, fresh dish and it’s a good template. Use whatever vegetables and herbs you have/like. You will likely have sauce left over which is good with cold noodles, leftover rice or chicken, roasted vegetables, etc.
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Quick Broccoli Orzo
You cook everything in one pot, drain, add a bit of cheese and olive oil and you have a steamy, good dish in 15 minutes or less.
Variations:
Use cauliflower, green beans, peas, asparagus, and/or carrots instead of broccoli
Salad turnips and their leaves (if attached) or a few mustard green leaves or spinach is a nice variation
Add some white beans for protein
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Creamy, Spiced Peas, Turnips and Cabbage
--Inspired by Quick & Easy Indian Cooking by Madhur Jaffrey
The complex flavors in this simple curry dish belie the speed with which it comes together. It is a good template as many different vegetables can be used and you can add meats or seafood as you like. I use whatever combination of vegetables I have on hand.
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Polenta Pie
This is a great dish to use up whatever bits of vegetables you have as well as cooked beans, tomato sauce and random bits of meat either already cooked or cooked in the sauce. It's more technique than recipe: cooked saucy vegetables/meat + creamy polenta with cheese, baked until bubbling!
In this particular version I used cabbage, kohlrabi, onions, kale, black beans, leftover tomato sauce, garlic and thyme. I like to chop the vegetables fairly small for this dish.
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Rutabaga with Mustard Seed and Turmeric
This quick dish is delicious, not just with rutabagas, but a mixture of turnips, kohlrabi, and rutabaga, or any one of these. Top it with cilantro and some yogurt and you have a very satisfying side dish.
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Chickpeas, Tomatoes, Potatoes and Pasta
During my time in Italy, I ate versions of this simple, flavorful dish all over the country. It's often made it with maltagliati which means badly cut pasta, the bits and pieces of odd-shaped pasta that are left over from the commercial pasta making process. They are sold in bags, just like regular pasta. Now I use whatever I have on hand.
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Spicy Chickpea, Red Cabbage and Carrot Salad
I try to have cooked beans and chickpeas in the freezer at all times. I cook a good amount, 1 1/2-2 lbs, at a time and then refrigerate and/or freeze portions for future meals. It's just like having canned beans in the pantry but I've gotten so hooked on the flavor and texture of home-cooked ones that I've got a good routine in place that takes little effort.
This bright, hearty salad can be adapted to suit your tastes and pantry.... Read more »
Crunchy Winter Salad of Radish, Celery, and Chickpeas
I love the crunch of watermelon, Black Spanish or daikon radishes in winter salads. They're refreshing and imposing and stand up to lots of different ingredients.
Adapt this to suit your tastes and what you have on hand just be sure to chop everything fairly small so all the ingredients integrate well.... Read more »
Chopped Kohlrabi, Celery and Kimchi Salad
I like the texture and feel of finely chopped vegetable salads. It's almost a cross between a salad and a garnish or salsa but I eat lots of eat, not garnish-sized portions. As always, substitute vegetables and herbs as needed. Keep it crunchy though.
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Scalloped Potatoes (& Celery Root)
Scalloped potatoes was one of the first dishes I cooked for my family as a child. I learned from my mother to layer the thinly sliced potatoes, with herbs and spices and grated cheese. And I was extra generous with the black pepper--in each layer--in those days. Here's my updated and simplified version.
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Barley Salad with Roasted Celery Root and Carrots
This is a simple and hearty salad that holds up well for a few days though the seeds lose some of their crunch.
I tend to have cooked grains in the freezer and sometimes roast lots of vegetables at once to have on hand for various dishes throughout the week which makes a dish like this come together in very little time. And I do my best to have a jar of this classic vinaigrette on hand as well.
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Roasted Acorn Squash Wedges with Cilantro and Garlic
While acorn squash can be hard to cut raw, getting it into wedges or some kind of chunks is doable and makes for a wonderful dish, when roasted and tossed with an herby dressing. This preparation would be delicious with most any kind of winter squash so substitute as you see fit.
The acorn squash used in the photos was a variety with light skin, but most acorn squash has a darker green skin.
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Chard Baked with Orzo and Herbs
--Inspired by Plenty More by Yotam Ottolenghi
This an ideal cook-with-what you have template. Saute onions, garlic and maybe some carrots and celery; add whatever vegetable you have--in this case chard, stems and all, and add broth, lots of fresh herbs, some cheese and rice-shaped orzo pasta and bake it all until cooked and set.
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Tomato, Cucumber, Sweet Onion and Basil Salad
This is a quintessential summer salad that takes 5 minutes to put together. Add feta or fresh mozzarella if you'd like but the simplicity of this is just lovely.
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Eggy Quesadilla
Years ago the wonderful Heidi Swanson of 101cookbooks.com posted a version of this dish that has inspired me ever since. I make variations of this simple concept--a beaten egg in a skillet, covered after a few seconds with a corn tortilla, then flipped over and topped with herbs, cheese, beans, veggies, . . . then folded in half and cooked for another minute.
You can also make these with flour tortillas, if that's what you have on hand or if you want to feed more people. Use at least 2 eggs for a large flour tortilla, and a larger skillet.
Watch a quick video of me making this with my son, if you'd like a tutorial.
I usually use an 8-inch skillet which works perfectly for my 6-inch corn tortillas. You want the skillet to be just a little bigger than the tortillas so the pan contains the egg to the size of your tortilla but still enables you to flip it easily.... Read more »
Crispy (Leftover) Bulgur Patties
I cook more grains--rice, quinoa, bulgur, barley--than I need in the moment because leftover grains are so handy. These bulgur patties are quick to assemble, easy to adapt and so tasty.
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