BAKED EGG in a BALSAMIC HERBED PORTOBELLO & SPINACH, PEAR + SUNFLOWER SALAD

One of the most utterly frustrating things for me, as an overly enthusiastic yet still rather novice foodie, is the fact that I have a good few friends who cook and bake incredibly well with what seems to be little to no effort.  Now, I recognize that 'effort' is subjective; it is possible that they are actually trying really hard but are just playing it cool.  (Possible, but doubtful.  These aren't ladies who care too much for fronting.)  Either way, when these few friends make magic in the kitchen, there are certainly no recipes in sight.  Epic frittata for six brimming with roasted veg?  No problem.  Moroccan tagine?  Sure, just give me an hour.  Silky smooth cream cheese frosting?  Let me just check the pantry and we'll be on our way.  Don't get me wrong, I am incredibly grateful to have these friends--not only because of the sheer joy I derive from cooking with them but also for the tips and tricks I've learned.  But I would be lying if I said their effortless skill in producing ridiculously delicious, impeccably seasoned, and truly creative dishes wasn't mildly frustrating (okay, bordering on irritating, if I'm being honest.  But that's just because I envy their skills so greatly!).

I feel this is worth sharing not to vent my frustration, but because I wonder if some of you might relate?  Every time I express these sentiments to my friends, hovering over the stove or the Kitchen Aid, they never fail to remind me that they have years of experience.  In restaurant kitchens, in bakeries, at home with their families.  You'll get there, they say.  You're getting there already.  

I have come across a great many inspiring recipes over the past year of my bordering-on-compulsive food blog reading.  While I find them undoubtedly useful and follow them often, I also love using a recipe as a framework and adding my own spin to it.  During the relatively short time I have been embarking on this journey, I have recognized and appreciated the importance of knowing the basics and having a few good tricks up my sleeve to use as the basis for something entirely different.  This Baked Egg in a Balsamic Portobello is just that: delicious in its own right but also a great springboard for you to adapt and run with.

The portobello mushroom cap, marinated in balsamic vinegar, garlic and herbs, is so succulent, meaty and brimming with flavor, I was truly stunned into silence the first time I made it.  The marinade comes courtesy of Sarah B. from My New Roots, who suggests grilling the mushroom and serving it with an avocado & basil aioli (which is equally delectable).  In this version, I've prepared it with caramelized onions and a baked egg, giving it a boost of protein and a more brunch-y feel.  Truth is though, the possibilities for this mushroom are endless:  slice it up and toss it in a salad or a wrap; fill it with quinoa, nuts and fresh herbs; pack it with sautéed leafy greens; turn it into a caprese by topping it off with basil, tomato and melted mozzarella...you really can't go wrong.

For the accompanying salad, my focus was twofold: simple and seasonal.  While I've always liked pears, I never found them to be a wow-factor fruit--until a couple months ago, that is, when I first sampled a pear slice from my local farmers market. The pear was unlike any I had previously tasted, overwhelmingly fragrant and dripping with sweetness, perfectly ripe yet retaining a slight firmness.  While the height of pear season has passed with autumn, a few varieties are still popping up at local markets and I'm making sure to take advantage.  For the salad's dressing, I sought to create flavors that would compliment the sweetness of the pear while playing against the spinach's mild bitterness. I ultimately opted for something a bit punchy and a bit bold: a cinnamon-sage vinaigrette.  Topped off with toasted sunflower seeds to add some crunch, this salad is quite simple yet combines flavors that are complex.  Simply satisfying.

Baked Egg in a Balsamic Herbed Portobello (with caramelized onions)
Adapted from My New Roots
Serves Two

Ingredients
2 medium eggs
2 large portobello mushroom caps (preferably with tall and curved-in edges)
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
3/4 tsp. dried thyme
3/4 tsp. dried oregano
1 garlic clove, minced
1 small red onion
1 Tbsp. olive, sunflower or coconut oil 
salt & pepper, to taste

Directions
1.  Prep mushrooms: With a clean cloth or paper towel, brush any dirt off mushroom caps.  Break off and discard the stems.
2.  Put 1 Tbsp. olive oil, balsamic, garlic, and herbs into a large plastic re-sealable bag and give it a shake.  Add the mushroom caps and swish them around the bag, ensuring that they are thoroughly coated with the marinade.  Refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour. (They can be left for up to 12 hours in the fridge).
3.  When ready to prepare the rest of the dish, pre-heat oven to 350°F/180°C/Gas 4.
4.  Grease a baking tray and line it with parchment paper.
4.  Slice onion into ribbons (whatever thickness you prefer).  Heat 1 Tbsp. of cooking oil on medium-low in a medium size pan.
5.  Cook onions on medium-low heat until caramelized (translucent and fully softened with browning edges), 10-20 mins.  (Cooking time will depend on the size of your onion strips.)  Sprinkle with a pinch of salt if desired and stir only occasionally, primarily leaving them to sit and simmer.
6.  When onions are ready, place mushrooms gill-side up on baking tray.
7.  Place caramelized onions in mushroom caps.
8.  Very carefully, slide one egg in each cap on top of the onions.  It may be easier to crack each egg into a small ramekin and slide them in from there.
9.  Bake mushrooms for 15-25 minutes, until the egg whites are opaque and the yolk is set to your liking.

Spinach, Pear and Sunflower Salad
Dressing adapted from Love and Lemons
Serves Two

Ingredients
Salad:
A few hefty handfuls of fresh baby spinach leaves
1 pear, cubed
1 Tbsp. raw sunflower seeds

Cinnamon-Sage Dressing
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. honey
1/2 tsp. apple cider vinegar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
2 sage leaves, minced
salt & pepper, to taste

1.  In a small frying pan, toast sunflower seeds on a low heat until fragrant and browning very slightly, 2-4 minutes.
2.  Combine all dressing ingredients in a jar or container with a tight lid.  Shake vigorously.
2.  Mix spinach, pear slices, and sunflower seeds and dress until lightly and evenly coated.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH BROWN RICE RISOTTO with FIG + GOAT CHEESE SALAD

Is anyone else having a hard time wrapping your head around the fact that 2012 is almost over?  For me, in many ways, the year turned out so differently than I ever could have imagined.  Looking back, it has been an incredibly positive and generative year, but also one of the most challenging.  2012: The Year of Growing Pains.

It is so easy to become overwhelmed by the hardships that face us, to be bogged down by what we perceive as failures, by the countless efforts that don't seem to pay off.  The other day, a close friend and I were talking about how backwards the values that America instills in us (its residents) are, encouraging us to equate self-worth and validation with productivity, money and the consumption of goods.  We work ourselves to the ground and when we take time for ourselves, we feel guilty about it.  We aren't taught to appreciate the things that make us human--our compassion, our playfulness, our empathy, our vulnerability, our humor.  We aren't taught to appreciate the process of things, the efforts we make even when we don't achieve our goals in the ways we hoped.  This is a heavy weight to carry--in all of us.

So, 2012 has been a hard year.  Through it, I've really started to learn how important it is to be kind to myself and to appreciate the efforts I have made--I am making--regardless of what does and doesn't seem to pay off.  And to actually do something in recognition of these efforts, this perseverance. 

Enter: Butternut squash brown rice risotto with fig and goat cheese salad.  Good company.  And a bottle of Prosecco.

Until about six months ago, I always thought of risotto as one of those specialty restaurant dishes.  It had never even occurred to me that people could--and do--make it at home.  The first person I witnessed undertaking this feat was an Italian friend from my MA program.  Watching her slowly add white wine, ladle in more broth, stir, stir, repeat, I was completely baffled by how labor intensive the process was.  I was in awe but pretty well scared off of ever tackling the dish myself.

A few months later, a different friend made an incredibly delicious vegan squash risotto, whipped up with no recipe in sight.  I was utterly envious of her skill and wanted nothing more that night than to be able to produce it myself.  As I've been becoming increasingly interested in food and nutrition over the past year, I have become rather committed to eating as many whole foods (least amount of processing + highest nutritional value) as possible.  The vegan version of the risotto eliminated all butter and cream, which took care of the high levels of saturated fat typically in the dish.  But what about the rice?  I was curious if genuinely creamy and delicious risotto could be made with brown rice instead of the traditional white, arborio rice.  Turns out, it can.  This is fantastic news. For everyone, basically.

With the presence and moral support of a friend, I was ready to take on the dish.  After a rough week of grueling job applications, near-empty bank accounts, unrelenting heartbreak, and a quickly expiring visa between the two of us, my friend proposed that our casual dinner be turned into a celebration.  To celebrate our efforts, our perseverance in the face of the cascade of difficulties we have each faced in the past weeks, months, year.  She brought Prosecco.  I splurged on fresh figs for the salad.  We made an absolutely awesome vegan, whole grain, seasonal, hearty and nutritious butternut squash risotto.  This is not a quick dish, but it is well worth it.  So go on--treat yourself.

Butternut Squash Brown Rice Risotto
Serves 3-4

Ingredients:

1 medium butternut squash, peeled & cubed (1/2" - 3/4" squares)

1 cup short grain brown rice

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 medium yellow onion or large shallot (i used a shallot), chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup dry white wine (optional) (i didn't use this but hear it enhances the 'depth of flavor')

3 cups vegetable stock (or whatever stock you prefer)

2-3 sage leaves, minced

2 thyme sprigs, leaves removed

1/2 a lemon, juice + zest

1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar

bit of honey or chili flakes (optional, if you like things sweet or with a bit of a kick)

salt + pepper

Directions:

1.  Prepare squash: Preheat oven to 400°F.  Lightly coat cubed squash with olive oil, salt and pepper.  Roast in oven until tender, around 20-35 mins, checking and tossing around pan every 10 minutes or so.

2.  Parboil rice: Bring a pot of water to a boil (no specific amount, just enough to submerge the rice).  Add rice and cook at a low but steady boil until half-tender, 10-15 minutes.  Drain.

[If you want to cut down your leading-up-to-meal cooking time, both of these steps can be done in advance. Let both rice + squash cool before storing in the fridge.]

3.  In a large and deep saucepan, heat 2 Tbsp olive oil over medium-low heat.  Sautée chopped shallot until softened, about 3 minutes.  Add garlic and stir for another minute.

4.  Add the rice and stir to coat.  Continue sautéeing the rice for a few minutes.

5.  Turn heat up to medium-high.  If using wine, add to saucepan and stir consistently until it is evaporated.

6.  Begin to add the stock, 1/4 - 1/2 cup at a time, stirring consistently.  Make sure the liquid is bubbling, at a low but consistent boil.  Once the first round of stock has evaporated, add the next 1/4 - 1/2 cup.  Continue this process, stirring consistently.

7.  Don't forget about your squash!  (If it is still in the oven.)

8.  As you're stirring the rice, add salt and pepper to taste.  If you're using a spoonful of honey or bit of chili flakes, toss them in too.

9.  When the rice is about 2/3 done (after 15 minutes or so), add half of the squash cubes.  Mash mash, stir stir!  The squash should break down and add to the delicious creaminess of the rice.

10.  Taste the rice after about 20 minutes to check on its doneness, as you may not end up using all the stock (I didn't).

11.  When the rice is just about ready, tender but still a bit al dente, add the thyme, sage, and zest and juice from the half lemon.

12.  About a minute before you turn off the heat, add the remaining squash and balsamic vinegar.  The rice should be cooked but not mushy, the texture creamy but not soupy.

13.  Serve hot and revel in the warming, fragrant, whole grain and mega-nutritious winter veg meal you just made!

Fig & Goat Cheese Salad

Ingredients:

Mixed greens (spinach, arugula, watercress...)

3 fresh figs

goat cheese (the crumbly kind)

Honey Balsamic Dressing:

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1/2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar

1 tsp. honey

salt + pepper to taste