This side dish was inspired by a beautiful food photo I saw in the November issue of Better Homes and Gardens magazine. I would love to be able take beautiful food photos like the ones in magazines. I’m not there yet, but it’s a lot of fun practicing.
Cabbage, pear, gorgonzola and walnuts sounded like a really good combination of flavours. As you can see from the photo, I also added beets because I happened to have them. I only had a few walnuts so I added pecans too. I think the walnuts work better.
Ingredients:
1 head of cabbage
4 pears
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 tsp Cajun spice or paprika (optional)
1/3 cup Gorgonzola (or blue cheese)
1/3 cup walnuts
Cut the head of cabbage into 8 wedges. Blanche the wedges in salted boiling water for literally a minute. Cover the surface area of each wedge with a little olive oil. I poured a little olive oil on a plate and dredged the wedges in it. That way every part of the cabbage gets coated evenly. Sprinkle each wedge with a little salt and pepper. Place them on your baking sheet. I like to cover my baking sheet with parchment paper; it makes clean up later a breeze.
Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven. Turn the cabbage wedges over. Add your slices of pear and walnuts. Cook for another 15 minutes. Remove from the oven. Have a little taste to see if the cabbage is cooked through. If it is, go ahead and add your bite size pieces of Gorgonzola and bake for another 5 minutes or just long enough to warm the cheese a little bit.
You can even prep this dish ahead of time and bake just before your guests arrive. We had it as a side with sirloin steak tonight, but you could serve it as a stand alone dish. It’s that good.
Enjoy!
Sautéed Brussels Sprouts
I’m always in the mood for Brussels sprouts, but I especially look forward to having them for Thanksgiving and Christmas. This recipe is another Ina Garten inspiration from her newest cookbook, Cooking for Jeffrey. I’ve adapted it a little bit. I’ve added a little lemon and Parmesan cheese. Who doesn’t like cheese, right? And to make it a little more festive for the holiday season, I topped it with some bright red pomegranate seeds to give it some holiday flair and a touch of sweetness to counter the mild bitter flavor of the Brussels sprouts.
Ingredients:
2 cups Brussels sprouts
1 tbsp butter
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp of salt
A pinch of pepper
the juice of half a lemon
2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
1 tbsp balsamic glaze
a handful of pomegranate seeds
Cut the Brussels spouts into thin slices. Add the oil and butter to your frying pan. Set your burner to medium/high heat. When the oil and butter are warm, add your Brussels sprouts, salt and pepper and sauté until tender or longer if you like them a little crispy. Take them off the heat and add your lemon juice and stir. Serve them up on your platter and top them with Parmesan, balsamic glaze and pomegranate seeds.
Buon appetito!
Serves 4
Here’s the link to Ina’s website: http://barefootcontessa.com