Root vegetables are budget conscious cooks’ best friends. They’re cheap, store well, and are (usually) full of flavor. Beets are one of my favorite varieties, so when temperatures dipped into the teens last week, I thought it was the perfect time to roast a few. I combined them with roasted sweet potatoes, dried cranberries, and mixed greens to create salads for lunch at work.

If you’ve never roasted beets before, it’s a simple process. Simply wash, roast, and peel. A beet roasting guide with photos and a recipe for a roasted beet salad can be found after the jump.

Roasted Red & Golden Beets

1. Pre-heat the oven to 400º F

2. If your beets come with leaves, cut them off. Scrub as much dirt as possible off of the beets and dry them thoroughly. Slice the tops off if you’d like, but it’s not required at this stage. I removed the tops in the photo below, revealing the red and golden beet flesh.

3. Wrap the beets up in an aluminum foil pocket. Create the pocket by folding a sheet of foil in half and crimping the edges. Don’t crimp the edged too tightly as you’ll want some steam to escape. Place the pocket on a baking sheet that’s also covered in aluminum foil. (If any beet juice escapes from the pocket, it can be difficult to scrub off the sheet later.)

4. Roast the beets for one hour (or until the beets are tender when poked with a fork).

5. Remove the beets from the oven and let them cool for 15-20 minutes.

6. Once they’re cool, peel the beets using a knife (and your hands as needed)  and slice them as desired. Red beets will stain your hands, so make sure to wash them quickly after peeling. Some people put on gloves to avoid staining, but I’ve found dish soap and some scrubbing removes most of the beet juice.

7. If you’d like to use the beets for a salad, dice the beets into half inch cubes. Toss with mixed greens, roasted sweet potatoes (peeedl, diced into half-inch cubes, tossed with a little olive oil, and roasted at 400º for about 30 minutes or until tender), dried cranberries, and a balsamic vinaigrette. A few thin slices of goat cheese would also be a great addition.

I admit it: I have not been spending a lot of time in the kitchen over the past few weeks. Trips up north and many visitors in town have led to nights away from my stove, and when I do cook, it’s using simple, tested recipes from the past. This will be rectified after Independence Day weekend, but in the meantime, I wanted to share my stand-by recipe for basil and chive pesto. Summer is not the best time to simmer tomatoes for a pasta sauce and this pesto is a great alternative, requiring just fresh ingredients and a food processor or other blending device.

Basil and Chive Pesto
-1 cup tightly packed basil leaves
-1/4 cup chopped chives
-2 peeled garlic cloves
-1/3 cup walnuts
-1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
-1/3 to 1/2 cup olive oil, depending on your taste
-Salt and pepper to taste

1) Add basil, chives, garlic, and walnuts to the food processor and pulse a few times to roughly chop. Add olive oil and pulse 3-4 more times. Add Parmesan cheese, pulse until blended, and then add more olive oil if necessary.

2) Taste and add a dash of salt and pepper if desired. Serve on pasta or use as a in place of marinara sauce on homemade pizza.

Remember the classic children’s book Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, about a town where food falls from the sky for each meal? I found out recently that they’re turning it into a computer animated movie. Although the creators of “Clone High” have written and directed it, I highly doubt it will satisfy a generation for whom the book carries such strong feelings of nostalgia. I don’t know about you, but for me the book inspired many crayon drawings of houses and trees covered in a variety of foodstuffs. (I also understand they’re aiming for the twelve and under set rather than the jaded twenty-somethings in my peer group. The studios are betting we’ll all just go see the film version of Where the Wild Things Are, drawn in by a Dave Eggers screenplay, Spike Jonze’s direction, and a trailer that includes an Arcade Fire song. They’re betting right in my case, but such is life [link probably NSFW].)

Looking up information on a movie about meatballs falling from the sky naturally led me making meatballs in my kitchen. I’ve made meatballs only once before and while they turned out okay, they were far from great. After seeing a number of recipes around the web that combined ground beef with a number of other meats, I decided to try mixing ground beef and pork to create a more flavorful meatball. An additional twist was my use of whole wheat breadcrumbs instead of the traditional Italian breadcrumbs, which I believe added a very subtle nutty and sweet flavor. The recipe and more photos after the jump. Warning to vegetarian/vegan readers: raw meat photos ahead.

Basic Meatballs
-1/2 lb. ground beef
-1/2 lb. ground pork
-1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
-1 cup homemade whole wheat bread crumbs (white bread is also fine)
-2 tbs. fresh parsley, chopped
-2 tsp. dried oregano
-1 tsp. garlic salt
-1 tsp. kosher salt
-1 1/2 tsp. black pepper
-1 egg, lightly beaten
-2 tbs. olive oil

1. Mix together all of the ingredients except the olive oil together in a medium bowl. Use your hands to create the meatballs, making them just a bit larger than a ping pong ball.

2. Heat the olive oil in the bottom of a large saucepan over medium heat. You’ll use this pan later to create the sauce and simmer the meatballs, so make sure the sides are tall and that it has a cover. Carefully place the first batch meatballs in the pan using a set of tongs or long wooden spoon, leaving ample room around each meatball. Turn each meatball every few minutes, or until fully browned, for a total of approximately 10 minutes. Place the cooked meatballs on a plate covered with a paper towel.

3. Once all of the meatballs are cooked, pour out the oil, but don’t clean the bottom of the pan. Start the sauce.

Sauce
-2 tbs. olive oil
-1 small yellow onion, diced
-2 garlic cloves, minced
-12 oz can pureed tomatoes
-12 oz can whole, peeled tomatoes
-4 tbs. fresh parsley, chopped (2 for sauce, 2 for garnish)
-1 tsp. kosher salt
-1 tsp. black pepper
-sprinkling of red pepper flakes
-dash of sugar (optional)

1. Heat the olive oil in the saucepan over medium-high heat, then add the onion. Saute until translucent (about 5 minutes), then add the minced garlic and stir until fragrant (about 30 seconds).

2. Add the can of whole tomatoes with their juice and mash them in the pan using a wooden spoon or potato masher. Mix in the pureed tomatoes, parsley, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and sugar (if desired), and bring to a boil.

3. Add the meatballs to the sauce, gently stir to coat them, and turn down the heat to a bare simmer. Cover and cook for 25 minutes.

Pasta
-1 lb. spaghetti

1. While the meatballs are cooking, make the spaghetti according to package directions.

2. Serve the meatballs and spaghetti topped with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley.

Quick breads are what simple breakfast dreams are made of for me. Defined by their use of chemical levening agents like baking powder or soda in place of yeast, quick breads can be thrown together in a matter of minutes and baked for about an hour, resulting in a dense, cake-like treat. They’re typically made up of just liquid, butter, egg, sugar, flour, and a leavening agent, so chances are good you have all of the ingredients for some sort of quick bread in your kitchen right now.

When my boyfriend Ramsey mentioned his love of banana bread a few weeks ago, I realized I had never actually made what may be the quintessential quick bread. I’d made pumpkin in the fall, but had yet to attempt banana. Thus, I went on a hunt for a classic banana bread recipe that would bring back memories of childhood breakfasts.

I first tried Mark Bittman’s recipe from How to Cook Everything, and while good, it wasn’t quite as moist as I wanted. I’ll try it again soon and modifying a few things, but in the meantime, I found what may be the easiest, fool-proof recipe on Simply Recipes. I’ve made it twice since finding it over the weekend and it doesn’t even require a mixer! Dishes are also easy, with just a loaf pan, bowl, fork, and spoon left to clean when all is said and done.

I woke up extra early on Sunday morning to do some cooking. At 10 AM, you would assume I’d be up making a dish for brunch or perhaps baking muffins, but instead I was prepping and roasting a whole chicken. It was a component for that evening’s dinner, the ultimate comfort food: chicken pot pie. The combination of flaky pastry, seasoned gravy, and vegetables that appeared on plates throughout my childhood make it an ideal winter Sunday meal. 

The whole chicken provided not only the meat for the pie, it also provided the chicken broth after a few hours of simmering the carcass on the stove with vegetables and seasonings. The best part was that the three pound free-range organic chicken cost only ten dollars and some change at the store the previous day, which is a bargain in Brooklyn. 

A guide to making chicken broth and the pie are after the jump.

Chicken Broth
-1 chicken carcass, cooked meat removed
-2 carrots, roughly chopped
-2 celery stalks, roughly chopped
-1 small yellow onion, cut into large chunks
-2 bay leaves
-any additional seasonings of your choice
-salt and pepper to taste 

1) Place vegetables and chicken in a large pot and fill with water until it covers the chicken completely. 

2) Add seasonings, stir, and turn on heat. Simmer for 4-5 hours, occasionally removing any foam or large amounts of fat that rise to the surface. 

3) Remove pot from heat and remove the bones, then strain the remaining stock. Discard the vegetables and bay leaves. 

4) Set aside 2 1/2 cups for the chicken pot pie and then refrigerate or freeze the rest for future use. 

Chicken Pot Pie

Crust
-I used Mark Bittman’s tart crust recipe and didn’t add sugar. I also added a a few teaspoons of finely chopped fresh rosemary and marjoram.

Filling
Mo Note: The key to making sure all of your filling components are evenly cooked is cutting them all to about equal sizes. I kept everything about 3/4″ thick. 
-3 tbs. unsalted butter
-2 1/2 cups chicken broth
-2/3 cups flour
-2 large carrots, chopped
-2 large celery stalks, chopped
-1 potato, cubed
-1/4 cup frozen peas
-1 small yellow onion, diced
-2 1/4 cups cooked chicken meat, cut into bite-sized pieces 
-1/8 cup chopped parsley
-2 tsp. fresh rosemary, finely chopped, or 1 tsp. dried
-2 tsp. fresh marjoram, finely chopped, or 1 tsp. dried 
-Salt and pepper to taste

1) Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add chopped onions, stirring often until they become translucent. 

2) Add chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Add flour and stir constantly for 2-3 minutes, or until it is fully incorporated and starts to thicken. 

3) Add rosemary, marjoram, and dashes of salt and pepper. 

4) Add cubed potato and cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add carrot and then add celery 2 minutes later. Pre-heat your over to 375º at this stage. 

5) Once vegetables are tender, add parsley, peas, and chicken. Season to taste and remove from heat. Let cool for a few minutes and then pour into your pie plate. 

6) Roll out your crust and then place on top of the filling, cutting a few vents to allow moisture to escape. 

7) Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until top crust is golden brown.

“…and after all of the broth was absorbed, the rice was still raw!”
“…but then I stirred the rice to find the bottom was COMPLETELY BURNED.”
“…by the time I was done, I had finished the rest of the bottle of wine and just fell asleep.” 

(That last one is a lie, but still, a possible mistake while making this dish.)

I consulted a number of different sites and a few of my cookbooks to put together what would be my first attempt at the dish this afternoon. The result was a Risotto with Thyme Chicken and Mushrooms. You can embellish risotto with just about anything, use vegetable broth for a vegan or vegetarian option, or even sweeten it for dessert. Here’s the recipe.

Risotto with Thyme Chicken and Mushrooms for Two
-6 cups chicken broth (homemade or low sodium pre-made)
-1 medium chicken breast
-1 tbs. olive oil
-1 tbs. balsamic vinegar
-2 portobello mushroom caps (the ideal is porcini mushrooms, but I couldn’t track any down today and didn’t want to hike into Manhattan)
-The leaves of 4 fresh thyme sprigs (about 2 tsp.) 
-1/2 cup finely chopped shallots
-3 tbs. unsalted butter
-1 1/2 cups Aborio rice
-1/2 cup dry white wine
-1/2 tsp. freshly grated lemon zest
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
-Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper 

1) Mushrooms: To avoid having to multi-task while stirring rice later, I recommend preparing the mushrooms before beginning the risotto. Chop the mushrooms into almost bite-sized pieces (they will shrink when cooked). Heat a saucepan over medium heat and then add the 1 tbs. olive oil. Once heated, add mushrooms and stir often. After a minute, add balsamic vinegar and continue cooking until mushrooms are slightly browned. Place in a bowl, cover, and set aside. 

2) Chicken: Salt and pepper chicken breast on both sides. In a small pan over medium heat, melt 1 tbs. butter. Once melted, add 1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves, stir, and let simmer with the butter for about 30 seconds. Add chicken breast and cook over medium-low heat, about 6-8 minutes on each side, or until cooked through. When done, cut into pieces about the size of the mushrooms. 

3) In a medium saucepan, bring chicken broth to a boil and then reduce heat to low, keeping it at a gentle simmer. This is to ensure the broth is close to the temperature of the rice as you add it later. 

4) While the broth is heating, melt 2 tbs. butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat and add shallot, stirring often until translucent. Increase heat and cook shallot until slightly browned, but not burned. 

5) Add rice and continuously stir until it becomes almost opaque, taking care not to brown or burn it, about 4 minutes. 

6) Add 1/3 cup of the white wine and stir until absorbed completely by the rice. Then, add 1/2 cup of the chicken broth and stir often until absorbed. Continue to add chicken broth in 1/2 cup increments, waiting until it is completely absorbed before adding the next batch and stirring often. Try the rice occasionally and once it reaches a tender, but slightly firm texture in the center, it’s ready (this will take around 20 minutes of so). It will have an overall creamy consistency. 

7) Add the last bit of wine, lemon zest, thyme and stir, cooking for another minute or two until the wine is absorbed. 

8 ) Lower the heat and add the cheese, stirring until fully incorporated. Add the mushroom (reserving a few pieces for plating) and chicken and stir until warmed. 

9) Finally, add salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Serve in bowls topped with an extra sprinkle of parmesan cheese and remaining mushrooms.

Bread is just about as basic as it comes, and yet people are scared to make it. They think it’s going to be a lengthy, complicated process, but in reality, it requires a small amount of prep time and a bit of waiting around. You probably already have all of the ingredients sitting in your kitchen, just waiting around. Really, when was the last time you used any of the yeast from that three pack of Fleischmann’s you decided to pick up a few months ago? 

If you’re looking to make a lot of dough and have it at the ready for two weeks or more in the fridge, I highly recommend the Simple Crusty Bread recipe, featured here in the NYT, but originally from Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. If you only want to make a plain white loaf the old-school way, tea towel and all, here’s a simple recipe.

Simple White Loaf
-3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
-1 cup water
-1 packet yeast 
-2 tsp. salt
-2 tbs. butter, softened

1. Mix yeast, flour and salt in a large bowl. Slowly start adding the water and mix with your hand, adding the softened butter, and mixing until all of the flour is moistened and begins to form into a dough. 

2. Remove from the bowl and place on the lightly floured surface, perhaps a large wooden cutting board or if you’re feeling really daring, your newly cleaned countertop. Knead the bread for 8-10 minutes, or until it’s easy to form into a smooth ball. Keep flour close at hand to put on your hands as needed.  

3. Lightly coat the inside of a large bowl with oil and place the ball of dough inside, turning it once to coat the top of the dough. Cover with plastic wrap or a towel and place somewhere warm for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until the dough doubles in size. I like to place my bread on the bedroom radiator when it’s not too hot. It’s in good company with a small selection of Ramsey’s instruments. 
 

4. Take the bread back to the kitchen and punch it down, taking out your rage and frustration that’s built up during the week to remove most of the air from the dough. 

5. Place the dough on a lightly greased baking sheet, lightly grease the top, and sprinkle a small bit of flour on it. Loosely cover with plastic wrap and let rise again for 45 minutes to an hour, again doubling in size. 

6. At the halfway mark, pre-heat the oven to 375º.

7. Once the dough is ready, place the sheet in the oven and bake for about 35 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool on a plate or wire rack, if you have it.

If you’re looking for a way to organize a small apartment kitchen, you only need to glance out your window for inspiration. It’s easy to draw parallels between limited kitchen space and the limited amount of land within New York City’s borders that’s available for development. The solution New York (and all other urban centers) found was going vertical, so why not apply that to the kitchen?  I’ve been able to achieve a fairly organized vertical kitchen by adding a few key items and creating cabinet system.

I was able to increase both my counter space and available shelving by getting a kitchen cart (it was actually an anniversary gift from my boyfriend). Its proximity to the stove makes simultaneous cooking and preparation easy and the shelving below serves as a place for my cookbook collection and appliance storage. 

Narrow shelving under awkwardly high cabinets serves as my storage for serving pieces, mixing bowls, and my indoor gardening supplies. The benefit of the aforementioned awkwardly high cabinets is that I can fit a 3-tiered hanging fruit basket above the shelving for most of my weekly produce. 
 

Finally, rigid cabinet organization helps round things out. Each cabinet shelf has a designated theme, from spices to prepared foods to sauces to breakfast items. I place the most-used items on the bottom shelves since reaching anything on the top shelves requires grabbing a chair to stand on. And, because I like to exact control over my kitchen to a degree some may find unhealthy, each shelf is labeled.