Winter Gatherings (13 page)

Root Vegetables Anna

Makes 6 servings

This is an elegant presentation for humble root vegetables—a crisp outer shell of thinly sliced potatoes enclosing a tender filling of sweet celery root and earthy turnips. A mandoline or food processor will make short work of the slicing.

3 baking potatoes, such as russet or Burbank (1¼ pounds)

½ medium celery root (also known as celeriac)

1 medium turnip

6 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary

• 1.
  Preheat the oven to 400°F.
  
• 2.
  Peel the potatoes, celery root, and turnip. Using a V-shaped slicer or food processor, cut the potatoes into 1/8-inch-thick rounds. Place in a bowl, but do not rinse or cover with water. Repeat with the celery root and turnip; you should have about 2 cups combined celery root and turnip.
  
• 3.
  Immediately melt the butter in a 9-inch-diameter nonstick skillet over medium heat. Pour out all but 2 tablespoons of the butter into a heatproof bowl. Arrange half of the potatoes in concentric circles in the skillet. Season with half of the salt and pepper. Arrange the celery root and turnip over the potatoes and sprinkle with the rosemary. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the remaining butter and half of the remaining salt and pepper. Top with the remaining potatoes and salt and pepper. Press the vegetables with your hands to make an even thickness. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cover tightly, preferably with a flat, and not domed, lid. Cook until the bottom layer of the potatoes is golden brown, about 20 minutes.
  
• 4.
  Holding the lid and skillet together, invert to unmold the root vegetable “cake” onto the lid. (If your skillet lid is domed, substitute a large, flat plate when inverting the vegetables.) Pour the remaining butter into the skillet and swirl the skillet to coat the inside with butter. Slide the cake off the lid and back into the skillet, browned side up. If the skillet handle is not heatproof, wrap in aluminum foil.
  
• 5.
  Place the cake in the oven and bake until the vegetables are tender when pierced with a sharp knife, about 30 minutes. Slide onto a platter, cut into wedges, and serve.
  

Root Vegetables

Nature works in very mysterious ways. Just when the delicate fruits and vegetables of summer are depleted, another source of food appears to give us sustenance. These are the root vegetables, which feed humans throughout the cold, barren winter until spring’s bounty emerges.

Not all of a plant is edible. Sometimes we eat only the leaves, or just the fruit that contains the seeds that regenerate the plant. With others, the root that grows under the ground is the edible part. Roots collect the moisture in the ground and send it up to the leaves. To retain this moisture, their skins are tough. Even though you may hear that you should not peel root vegetables in order to benefit from the vitamins in the skins, for the best texture, peel them.

When the roots are pulled up, these same tough skins are actually beneficial, because they allow the vegetables to be kept for quite a while before drying out, even without the benefit of electrical refrigeration. The classic root cellar of the American farm was a cool, dark place where the vegetables could be stored throughout the long, cold winter. Some vegetables are commonly considered root vegetables even though they are tubers (potatoes and beets, for example), where the edible portions grow between the leaves and the roots.

Root vegetables are sweet because they also are the receptacle for the plants’ starches, which are converted into sugars by enzymes. Many recipes for root vegetables play up this inherent sweetness with a little added sugar. Roasting is one of the best ways to cook root vegetables because browning brings out the sugary flavors.

Mashed Potato Casserole with Smoked Gouda and Bacon

Makes 6 to 8 servings

This casserole was created as an over-the-top potato accompaniment for a simply prepared pork loin or roast chicken. It has a double dose of smoked ingredients with both bacon and smoked Gouda. A crunchy bacon-and-scallion topping acts as a counterpoint to the creamy potatoes, and is part of this dish’s charm.

6 bacon strips, preferably thick-sliced applewood smoked

3 scallions, green and white parts, finely chopped

3 pounds baking potatoes, such as russet or Burbank, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks

4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter, plus more for the baking dish

¾ cup sour cream

1/3 cup milk

2 cups (8 ounces) shredded smoked Gouda

• 1.
  Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat, turning occasionally, until crisp and brown, about 10 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to drain and cool. Chop the cooked bacon. Combine the bacon and scallions; set aside.
  
• 2.
  Place the potatoes in a large saucepan and add enough cold salted water to cover. Cover the saucepan with a lid and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and cook with the lid ajar until the potatoes are tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Drain well. Return the potatoes to the empty saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring often, until the potatoes film the bottom of the saucepan, about 2 minutes.
  
• 3.
  Butter a 13 x 9-inch baking dish. Add the butter, sour cream, and milk to the potatoes. Mash with a potato masher (or beat with an electric hand mixer on low speed) until smooth. Stir in 1½ cups of the Gouda and two-thirds of the bacon mixture; reserve the remaining bacon mixture. Spread in the baking dish. Sprinkle the remaining ½ cup Gouda on top. (The casserole and the bacon mixture can be prepared up to 8 hours ahead, but keep them separately covered and refrigerated. Remove the bacon mixture from the refrigerator 1 hour before serving.)
  
• 4.
  Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake until the cheese melts and the edges of the mashed potatoes are bubbling, about 30 minutes (or about 40 minutes if refrigerated). Sprinkle with the reserved bacon mixture and serve hot.
  

Mom’s Red Cabbage

Makes 8 servings

This is based on my mom’s red cabbage, which, in turn, comes from her mother’s version. Of course, like most all mothers, Mom isn’t too concerned about measurements or even precise ingredients. Sometimes she’ll substitute fruit preserves or even Chinese plum sauce for some of the sugar. This makes a healthy amount of cabbage, but that’s okay, because leftovers are even better than freshly made.

2 bacon strips, coarsely chopped

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and cut into ½-inch dice

1 medium onion, chopped

One 2½-pound head red cabbage, cored and cut into thin shreds

½ cup red wine vinegar

½ cup packed light brown sugar

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 bay leaf

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

• 1.
  Cook the bacon and oil together in a large saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is crisp and browned, about 8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to paper towels, leaving the fat in the saucepan.
  
• 2.
  Add the apples to the saucepan and cook, stirring occasionally, until they begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in the onion and cook until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the cabbage and vinegar, and stir well. Add the brown sugar, thyme, and bay leaf, and stir again. Return the bacon to the saucepan. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cover. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage is very tender, about 1¼ hours.
  
• 3.
  Remove the bay leaf. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve hot.
  

Five-Spice Applesauce

Makes about 5 cups

Making applesauce is a winter tradition for many cooks, and I like to have a container in the refrigerator for serving with pork chops, roast turkey, and, of course, latkes. You can make applesauce of just about any apple, or combination, as long as you avoid Red Delicious, which melt into a glop. And a little wine or hard cider and interesting Asian-style spicing elevates this applesauce from Grandma’s.

1 whole star anise

¼ teaspoon Sichuan peppercorns

1/8 teaspoon fennel seed

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

3 pounds all-purpose apples, such as Macoun, Cortland, or Golden Delicious, peeled, cored, and cut into 1-inch chunks

½ cup semidry white wine, such as Riesling, hard cider, or water

1/3 cup sugar

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

• 1.
  Grind the star anise, peppercorns, and fennel seed in an electric spice grinder or in a mortar. Add the cinnamon and cloves. Sift through a fine-mesh wire sieve to remove any hard bark.
  
• 2.
  Combine the apples, wine, sugar, spices, and lemon juice in a heavy-bottomed medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook, stirring often (the harder you stir, the more the apples will break down), until the apples have formed a thick, chunky sauce, about 15 minutes.
  
• 3.
  Serve warm or cooled to room temperature. (The applesauce can be cooled, covered, and refrigerated for up to 5 days.)
  

Braised Kale with Cornmeal Dumplings

Makes 6 to 8 servings

I devised this pot of greens with tender cornmeal dumplings as a side dish for Southern-inspired main courses like baked ham and fried chicken. It makes a lot, but I don’t mind, because leftovers are quickly transformed into soup with some chicken or pork stock. My market carries three kinds of kale: bright green standard kale, dark green curly kale, and the very dark Italian “dinosaur” kale also known as
cavolo nero
. Use the one you like, or even a combination.

B
RAISED
K
ALE

2½ pounds kale

3 bacon strips, coarsely chopped