Farro asparagus spring salad

 So I evidently made this two years ago and just found the recipe in my recipe journal (yes, I'm such a dork that I maintain a recipe journal). So why am I including this long-lost recipe that I don't even recall making? Well in my journal, I marked it with a huge asterisk in sloppy (drunken?) handwriting, "VERY GOOD! Put on website!" Since I'm a rule-follower above all else, I'm making good on my drunken request from a couple years ago by finally adding this recipe to this here blog!

Prep time: 2 cocktails (I guess?)

1 cup farro
1 bunch asparagus
1/2-1 cups frozen peas, boiled for a minute or two then drained and cooled
1/4-1/2 bunch of parsley leaves, chopped coarsely
1/2 cup walnuts, toasted and then chopped coarsely

For the dressing:

1 TBSP fresh lemon juice + 1 tsp lemon rind, minced finely
2-3 TBSP high quality olive oil
1/2 tsp pepper
2 TBSP fresh mint leaves, chopped finely
1/2 tsp soy sauce
1/4 tsp salt
1 TBSP dijon
1/2 tsp agave
1 TBSP shallot, finely minced or grated with a microplane

For garnish:
1-2 handfulls pomegranate seeds (it's easy to get the seeds out of the fruit if you watch a quick youtube tutorial or you can use pre-seeded)

Several large pinches black sesame seeds
Crumbled feta cheese  to taste (splurge and get a good one - it makes a difference!)
Additional minced mint

Combine all dressing ingredients in a jar with an airtight lid and shake until well-mixed.

Cook farro according to directions (or online instructions) with a few pinches of salt. Let cool.

Cut or snap off woody bottoms to the asparagus and blanch is a large pot of boiling water 2-4 minutes, then strain and plunge immediately into a large ice bath. Once cool, rinse and cut the spears in half.

Build the salad in layers on one large serving platter for maximum visual appeal, starting with the bottom, the layers should be:

1. Farro
2. Parsley
3. Asparagus
4. Peas
5. Walnut

Now drizzle with the dressing (you don't have to use all of it if you don't want). On top of that add the feta, then the additional mint, then the pomegranate, then the black sesame. Serve immediately!

Pozole Verde: Eat Now, Eat Often

 

I created this recipe when I hosted a benefit dinner last year. It was late well the fall and so I made the entire dinner global variations of chili. I made a bunch of things from this blog, like Rajma, Cincinnati Chili, and a jerk-based chili with faux chicken. As great as all the other selections were, they tended to all be pretty hearty, heavy chilis. Even for an outdoor dinner on a crisp fall night, I wanted one option that was lighter and brighter to break things up a little bit. While not bean-based, pozole is a great warming satisfying soup. If it's not chili by definition, it's close enough for a chili cook off. And thank gawd I made it. People devoured it faster than squirrels at a nut convention. It was gone faster than coffee at an AA meeting. Folks raved about it more than beer dorks at a Dogfish Head tasting. People liked it, is what I'm trying to say.

Prep time: 3 cocktails

2 x 25-ounce cans hominy, drained and rinsed

3 jalapeños

1 pound tomatillos, dehusked
4-5 fresh poblano peppers
1 very large onion, peeled and chopped into 4-6 pieces

4 TBSP canola or vegetable oil, divided
1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1 bunch cilantro, stems cut off
6-8 cloves garlic - keep intact and the skin on!
4 tsp whole cumin seeds

1-2 Quarts veggie stock, store-bought or homemade
For serving: lime wedges, sliced cabbage, sliced radish, avocado, crema or cotija cheese (both are optional), chopped scallion and/or jalapeño

Preheat oven to a broil and heat up your grill to a medium heat ~450F.

Toast cumin over medium-low heat in a small, dry frying pan for a few minutes until it has turned a couple shades darker and is aromatic. Transfer to a spice grinder and grind into a powder.

In the oven, broil tomatillos and garlic, stirring a few times in the process, in two separate baking sheets until garlic is soft and pretty evenly golden but not browned and tomatillos are pretty well charred. Garlic will only take a few minutes, tomatillos will take longer. 

While your tomatillos and garlic are broiling, place your onions, jalapeños, and poblanos directly on the grill grate and roast until pretty well-charred, turning occasionally so all sides are a bit blackened. This will take 10-20 minutes, depending on your grill. Remove and transfer the peppers to a paper or plastic bag and seal to let them steam for at least 10 minutes (the onions can just cool on your countertop). 

Wipe out the pan you toasted the cumin seeds with and put it back on the stovetop over medium-low to medium heat with 1 TBSP oil. When the pan is warm, add the pumpkin seeds and fry stirring almost constantly until the seeds are toasted and popping a bit. Remove from heat and transfer to a small dish to cool.

After poblanos have cooled enough to handle, remove seeds/guts, tops, and skins under cold running water. Also, peel your garlic once it has cooled and cut the tops off the jalapeños (but retain the skin and guts for flavor and heat!

Transfer poblanos, onions, garlic, tomatillos, jalapeños, pumpkin seeds, cilantro, and ground cumin into blender, then add just enough veggie stock so it can all blend (if your blender isn't large enough, you will want to work in batches). Puree until you have a nice smooth consistency.

In a large pot, heat 3 TBSP oil over medium to medium-high heat. Once hot, add the puree from blender and fry, stirring constantly for 5 minutes. Add 4 cups veggie stock and bring to boil. Add hominy and cook a few more minutes, adjusting salt if needed.

Serve with all the garnishes!