Nature makes me question...

With things like globe artichokes, nature really makes me question whether or not these perennial thistles are meant to be eaten. They have prickly leaves which give the skin a nice bite and at its heart is a fuzzy center, that when ingested, seems to "choke" you. To prep, you must trim the stalk, trim the prickly ends of the leaves, and after steaming, open up it's center to remove the choke. After all this work, it is fun to eat and to stuff with any filling your heart desires.

Quinoa pilaf stuffed globe artichoke

Crostini toast with fava leaf pesto

The pilaf was duo of steamed white and red quinoa along with kalamata olives, minced red onions, raw chopped garlic, golden raisins, fresh oregano, fresh Italian parsley, fresh lemon juice, and extra-virgin olive oil. After the initial steaming the artichokes (about 20 minutes) and removing the choke, stuff them with the pilaf and steam for an additional 15 minutes so that the leaves are tender and edible. The fava leaf pesto made of soaked and toasted walnuts, raw garlic, fresh fava leaves, lemon juice, and lots of extra-virgin olive oil adorned crostini toasts.

Baby leeks

Ramps are wild leeks and they are in season for a short while in spring. The beauty of the baby leek is that you can use the entire vegetable, not just the white part. It is very pungent, so to reduce the pungency, cook it, in this case, grill both the white and leafy parts and blend it into a pesto with garlic, roasted almonds, lemon juice, fresh spinach, parsley, marjarom, and extra-virgin olive oil. The lemony ramp pesto goes well with virtually all kinds of pasta, but in this case, it went extremely well with linguine, simply roasted asparagus and sweet 100 tomatoes, and black beluga lentils.

Spring is in the air

Linguine with fresh baby artichokes, roasted fava beans, and sunflower mint pesto

Springtime vegetables meets in a quinoa linguine tossed in an assortment of:
- fresh baby artichoke hearts braised in extra-virgin olive oil, garlic, shallots, red chili flakes, white wine, and lemon juice;
- roasted fava beans tossed in extra-virgin olive oil and lemon juice;
- simply grilled spring garlic;
- and a sunflower mint pesto made of a blend of toasted sunflower seeds, fresh mint, garlic, lemon juice, and extra-virgin olive oil.
Reserve the artichoke braising liquid and add this liquid when tossing all the pasta components together.

Watercress almond pesto

Watercress is a peppery, delicate, dark green leafy vegetable that grows wild in cool streams of running water. It has a very distinct and unique flavor in which I find overpowering. The raw flavors of the watercress were subdued in a pesto made of roasted almonds, garlic, shallots, fresh basil, lemon juice, and extra-virgin olive oil. The pesto was tossed with quinoa fusilli pasta, roasted spring carrots, roasted sweet 100 cherry tomatoes, and simply cooked French green lentils.

Quinoa fusilli with roasted spring carrots, French green lentils, tomatoes, and watercress-almond pesto

Sunny and not so sunny asparagus

Thus far, I have seen asparagus in three different colors: green, purple, and white. The white asparagus is special as it is protected from the sunlight. As the shoots spring up, the spear continues to be covered and covered until harvest. No sun, no photosynthesis, no green. Playing upon that came the sunny asparagus pesto, a pesto made of garlic, toasted sunflower seeds, red chili flakes, blanched green asparagus (mostly stems), fresh lemon juice, Italian parsley, and extra-virgin olive oil. Tossed with fettuccine, blanched asparagus, thyme-roasted sweet 100 tomatoes, the dish shone as brilliant as the radiant sun. Top garnish, add a bit of toasted sunflower seeds as well as some fresh chopped Italian parsley.

Fettuccine with sunny asparagus pesto

The magic of herbs

Herbs, like spices, add a lot of flavor to foods. And fresh is best! I avoid using dried as much as possible as it is much more intense and does not capture the lightness of the fresh counterpart. This three-herb pistachio pesto featured chervil, Italian parsley, and lemon thyme. Lemon thyme is incredibly refreshing in scent and taste. You have to try it.

Quinoa fusilli pasta with 3-herb pistachio pesto, cranberry beans, kalamata olives, and sweet cherry tomatoes

Gluten-free pasta made of quinoa and corn met it's mate with a pesto made of roasted pistachios, raw garlic, Italian parsley, chervil, lemon thyme, lemon juice, and extra-virgin olive oil. It couldn't really get any simpler than that. And the taste will wow you. Toss it with whatever combination of vegetables or legumes you like. It really does prove it's magic.

A common theme: pesto and mushrooms

A good pesto is an absolute must in my vegan culinary repertoire. It has so many applications: accompany pasta, use as a spread, and even a dip. It can provide both depth and brightness to a dish, depending on ingredients. Today's pesto was paired with roasted mushrooms and linguine. Honestly, it's a common theme of mine, but it works every time.

Linguine with basil-edamame pesto and roasted mushrooms

The pesto was made by blending wild arugula, organic edamame, fresh basil, garlic, onions, roasted cashews and pumpkin seeds, fresh lemon juice, and extra-virgin olive oil. The nuts and seeds added a denseness to the pesto as well as nutritional goodness. Tossed with the linguine was a duo of thyme roasted crimini mushrooms and oyster mushrooms.

Kale. Now what?

Kale is a wintry green that if full of possibilities. It is often put into smoothies, made into chips, eaten in a raw kale salad, sauteed, and the list goes on and on.

Orecchiette with navy beans and kale pesto

Blanched Russian kale made its way into a pesto with shallots and garlic fried in extra-virgin olive oil, lemon zest, and lemon juice. At first, the kale was still bright green, but as it began to turn into the pesto, it turned into a muddy, earthy color. It wasn't the most appealing nor the most offensive. The color honored the season. However, if I were to make kale pesto again, I would definitely try using a raw curly kale for that brilliant green. In the finished dish, the pasta was tossed with cooked white navy beans, raw cherry tomatoes, and kalamata olives. Chopped parsley and roasted kale chips were used to garnish.

Tie this one on for size

When I first discovered farfalle, I was at Macaroni Grill on the east coast. I remember there was a huge smile on my face. It was amazing to me that one could create a bow-tie shaped pasta. It was too adorable, and more than that, really fun to eat. Today's dish was just that: a little fun, a little sophisticated, simple, and way tasty.

Farfalle with grilled raddichio, fennel, olives, and herb-walnut pesto

It's super important to soak walnuts before using. Not only does this aid in digestion, but it also helps remove some of the astringent effects of the delicious nut. Being a purist at times, I personally don't mind it too much as I could eat a boat load of walnuts from the shell. After soaking the nuts, dry toast them in the oven to bring out their nuttiness. The pesto was made by adding the walnuts, a bit of garlic, and chopped fresh sorrel and basil to a food processor. Once pulsed, a bit of lemon juice was pulsed in, then extra-virgin olive oil. Pulse is key. If you keep the food processor running, you will end up with a herb walnut butter as opposed to a pesto. The pesto should still retain some texture and show up as a feature on the dish. The farfalle was tossed with the pesto, a smidgen more extra-virgin olive oil, Hawaiian sea salt, raw shaved fennel, grilled raddichio, and kalamata olives. Utilizing the whole fennel, the fronds were used as a garnish. Fronds are also nice to an infused water or even to a vegetable stock.

The magic of broccoli

How much can one really like broccoli? I mean it's super healthy. Some sources say that broccoli contains twice the vitamin C of an orange, has a bunch of calcium (almost that much of whole milk), and contains minerals that have been found to have anti-cancer properties. With all this goodness, can this vegetable be delicious too? Hmmm... absolutely! In the dish below, broccoli is featured in three ways: raw, grilled, and sprouted. Yes. Broccoli seeds can be sprouted and they are super nutritious. See for yourself.

Penne pasta with raw broccoli and toasted pine nut pesto

The light, yet satisfying pesto is made from raw broccoli (mostly stems), lemon zest and fresh lemon juice, a bit of raw garlic, toasted pine nuts, sea salt, black peppers, and extra-virgin olive oil. You can use raw pine nuts too, but be sure to taste the pine nuts as some of the raw stuff has a particular nuance about them which roasting helps absorb. Bite-sized broccoli florets were lightly tossed in a bit of extra-virgin olive oil, salt, and pepper, then grilled. Then toss the cooked penne (cooked in salt water, of course) with the pesto, broccoli florets, a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil, a splash of lemon juice, and a hint of Hawaiian sea salt. And last, but certainly not least, the dish is garnished with broccoli sprouts and whole leaf Italian parsley. Thanks broccoli!