Citrus Pork with Egg Noodles

1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/2 pound boneless pork loin, cut into 2″ x 1/2″ strips
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1/2 tablespoon brown sugar
2 medium carrots, sliced
1 tablespoon corn starch
1/2 cup sliced green onions
1/2 pound egg noodles, cooked, drained

Get the water boiling for your noodles.

In a small bowl combine cumin, salt and pepper. Add pork; toss to coat.

In a large skillet heat oil over medium-high heat. Add the pork and garlic. Sauté for 2 minutes or until browned.

In a small bowl blend the broth, orange juice, vinegar, and brown sugar. Reserve 1/4 cup of the broth mixture. Pour all but the reserved broth mixture into the skillet with the pork and garlic. Add the carrots. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat to medium. Cook 7-8 minutes.
Blend corn starch into reserved broth mixture. Stirring constantly, pour the corn starch mixture into the skillet to thicken the sauce. Add the green onions. Bring to a boil and simmer for 1 more minute.

Toss with the noodles. Serve immediately.

Serves 4.

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Italian Sausage Soup

1 pound Italian-spiced pork sausage
1 clove garlic, minced
3 1/2 cups vegetable broth
2 cups stewed tomatoes
1 cup sliced carrots
2 cups great Northern beans with cooking liquid
2 small zucchini, cubed
2 cups spinach, packed, rinsed and torn
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt

In a stockpot or Dutch oven, brown sausage with garlic. Stir in broth, tomatoes and carrots, and season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer 15 minutes. Stir in beans with liquid and zucchini. Cover, and simmer another 15 minutes, or until zucchini is tender.

Remove from heat and add spinach. Replace lid, allowing the heat from the soup to cook the spinach leaves. Soup is ready to serve after 5 minutes.

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Moroccan Pork

2 lemons
2 1/2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 teaspoons paprika, preferably Hungarian
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger plus 1 pinch, divided
1 1/2 pounds pork loin, cubed
1 14-ounce can reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 cup butternut squash, diced (1/2-inch cubes)
1 cup carrots, sliced (1/2 inch thick)
1 cup canned chickpeas, rinsed
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1/2 cup diced tomatoes
2 tablespoons preserved lemon, chopped and rinsed (see note; optional)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon hot sauce, such as Tabasco
1 pinch ground cinnamon
1 pinch ground allspice

Zest and juice the lemon(s) to get 1 tablespoon zest and 2 tablespoons juice; reserve the zest. Combine the juice, 1/2 teaspoon oil, paprika, turmeric, coriander, cumin, pepper and 1/4 teaspoon ginger in a medium bowl. Add pork; stir to coat. Marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or up to 4 hours.

Heat the remaining 2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the pork and cook, stirring, until no longer pink on the outside and beginning to brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the pork to a plate.

Add broth, squash, carrots, chickpeas, onion, tomatoes, preserved lemon (if using), tomato paste, garlic, hot sauce, cinnamon, allspice, the reserved lemon zest and the remaining pinch of ginger to the pan. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally; reduce heat to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Stir in the pork, return to a simmer and cook, stirring, until the pork is just cooked through, 2 to 5 minutes more.

Note: Although entirely optional, preserved lemons make this ragu more authentic. A signature flavor in Moroccan dishes, lemons that are preserved in a salt-lemon juice mixture for at least 30 days have a salty, sweet taste and tender texture. Find them at specialty food stores or online at surlatable.com.

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Slow-Cooked Pork Shoulder

1 lean boneless pork shoulder
1 medium onion, diced
2 tablespoons fresh sage, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, chopped
10 cloves garlic, sliced
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon dry white wine
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon teriyaki sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Place the sage, garlic, rosemary, ground pepper, salt, teriyaki sauce and brown sugar in a food mixer, and blend together until thick. While the mixer is still on, the add in the olive oil and white wine. Trim the fat off of the pork roast. Make several holes in the roast 1 inch deep. Place the mixed sauce into each hole and cover the roast with the rest. Cook with onions for 5 hours.

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Stir-Fry Pork with Cabbage and other Super-Vegetables

4 boneless pork chops
2 cups broccoli florets, blanched
2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2 sweet red peppers, seeded, cut bite-sized
1 head bok choy, thinly sliced
2 cups fresh bean sprouts, rinsed
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 slice fresh ginger, minced
1 cup beef broth
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 teaspoon oyster sauce
1/4 teaspoon hot red pepper sauce (optional)
1 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch
1/3 cup cold water

Remove fat from pork and cut into thin slices. Have veggies cut and ready. Prepare the sauce by heating 1 tablespoon of oil in a small saucepan. Sauté the garlic and ginger until sizzling. Add broth, soy sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil, oyster sauce, and hot red pepper sauce. Simmer 5 minutes. Stir the cornstarch into cold water until there are no lumps. Add to sauce, stirring constantly until thickened. Simmer a few minutes longer.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a 12-inch skillet or wok. Over high heat, stir-fry the pork until it’s just cooked through. Remove and reserve the pork. Add another tablespoon oil to the skillet. Over medium-high heat, stir-fry the celery and onion 1 minute. Add the red pepper and broccoli; stir-fry 1 minute. Add the cabbage; stir-fry 1 minute. Add the sprouts and cooked pork. Stir in the sauce and heat through, stirring well to blend flavors.

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Sweet & Sour Broccoli

Purple Sprouting Broccoli1 bunch Nash’s purple sprouting broccoli
1 tablespoon high-heat oil
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon soy sauce

Cut each broccoli stalk in half to create long, thin pieces. Wash and dry well.

Warm a large sauté pan over medium-high heat and add the oils. Add the purple sprouting broccoli and brown it on the outside, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and stir frequently until fragrant and beginning to brown. Add the sugar, vinegar, pepper, and soy sauce. Let the sauce reduce by half and stir to coat the broccoli. Taste for seasoning, and serve warm.

We thank Darin Gagner for this recipe.

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Buckwheat Bliny

Buckwheat groats

Before it’s ground into flour, buckwheat looks like a pile of tiny, three-sided pyramids. After it’s ground, sifted, and baked into pancakes, buckwheat is delicious.

This traditional Russian dish highlights buckwheat’s place of origin (Siberia) and is very versatile. Add your choice of accompaniments and eat these treats for breakfast, lunch, dinner or snacks. Make a batch on Sunday and enjoy throughout the week! If you are trying to reduce the amount of gluten in your diet, use all buckwheat flour instead of the soft white wheat flour.

2/3 cups Nash’s soft white wheat flour
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon instant yeast
1 cup warm milk
2 tablespoons  butter
1 egg, separated
Vegetable oil (high heat)

Optional accompaniments
Butter
Sour cream
Crème fraîche
Caviar
Smoked fish (salmon, sturgeon, trout, whitefish)
Chopped onions
Chopped hard-boiled eggs
Fresh chopped dill
Beet salad

In a bowl, mix the first four dry ingredients together and then make a well in the center. Add the milk and blend well with a wooden spoon. Cover with a dish towel and place in a warm, draft-free area and let the sponge rise until it doubles in size, about a hour.

Melt the butter and let it cool. Break up and beat the egg yolk in a small bowl and add the cooled melted butter a teaspoon at a time (this is an important step to temper the batter) and beat well. Add this egg yolk/butter mixture to the sponge and mix well.

In a separate bowl, whisk the egg white until stiff and fold into the sponge/batter. Cover again and let stand for twenty minutes.

Heat a skillet or griddle to medium heat and coat lightly with vegetable oil. Spoon about 2 tablespoons to a quarter cup of batter on the skillet, depending on how large you want your bliny to be. When the bubbles on the surface of the batter pop (after about a minute or two) turn the bliny over with a spatula and cook for another 45 seconds to a minute. Transfer to a plate and keep warm. Serve with your preferred accompaniments.

We thank thekitchn.com for this recipe.

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About Buckwheat

Buckwheat groats

Buckwheat groats look like tiny, three-sided pyramids. After it’s ground, sifted, and baked into pancakes, buckwheat is both delicious and nutritious.

Buckwheat is native to Eurasia, specifically the region of Siberia. It is an ancient and hardy plant that can grow vigorously, even in poor soils and extreme climates. The plant’s fragrant white flowers are attractive to bee pollinators. Because of buckwheat’s hardiness and resistance to disease, it is one of the few commercially-grown grains that is not doused heavily with pesticides.

Buckwheat is nutritionally dense, containing all eight essential amino acids. It also contains a phytonutrient in the flavonoid family called “rutin,” which aids the cardiovascular system by helping to lower the levels of lipids in the blood.

Magnesium, also found in significant quantities in buckwheat, relaxes blood vessels and helps promote blood flow and nutrient delivery. This relaxation also lowers blood pressure, making buckwheat an ideal choice for overall cardiovascular health. Rutin and other flavonoids found in buckwheat also act as antioxidants in our bodies, and they help to extend the antioxidant capacities of vitamin C.

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Rutabaga Chipotle Soup

rutabagas

Add the smokiness of chipotle peppers to the turnipy spice of rutabagas!

3 tablespoons butter
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
2 large rutabagas, peeled and diced (about 5 cups)
4 cups broth of choice
2 cups heavy cream
1/4 to 1 teaspoon dried ground chipotle, depending on your taste
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon  ground pepper
Salt to taste

Melt butter in a large pot and add onion and celery, cooking until browned. Season with salt. Add the rutabaga and the broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until the rutabaga is fork-tender, about 30 minutes. Add the chipotle and the pepper. Stir well.

Process in a blender or food processor until smooth, and pass through a fine mesh sieve to remove any chunks. Stir in the cream and taste. Gently simmer for 15 minutes. Add more salt, pepper, chipotle, or paprika if you think it needs it.

We thank thekitchn.com for this recipe.

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Chocolate Beet Cake

A bunch of golden beets8 ounces beets, unpeeled, rinsed and scrubbed free of dirt
7 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup hot espresso
7 ounces butter at room temperature, cubed
1 cup flour
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
5 large eggs, separated, at room temperature
Pinch salt
1 cup sugar

Grease an 8 1/2 inch pan and line the bottom with parchment paper. Boil the beets in salted water until very tender, about 45 minutes. Drain, then rinse with cold water. When cool enough to handle, slip off the peels, cut into chunks, and grind in a food processor or grate until a coarse puree.

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. In a large bowl, set over a pan of barely simmering water, melt the chocolate, stirring as little as possible. Once melted, turn off the heat, pour in hot espresso and stir once. Press butter pieces into chocolate and allow to soften without stirring.

Sift together flour, cocoa powder, and baking powder in separate bowl. Remove bowl of chocolate from heat and stir until butter is melted. Let sit to cool, then stir egg yolks together and briskly stir them into chocolate mixture. Fold in the beets.

In stand mixer, or by hand, whip egg whites until stiff. Gradually fold sugar into egg whites, then fold into melted chocolate mixture, being careful not to overmix. Fold in the flour and cocoa powder.

Scrape the batter into prepared cake pan and reduce oven heat to 325ºF, and bake for 40 minutes, or until sides are just set but center is still is wobbly. Do not overbake. Let cool completely, then remove from pan.

Spread with crème fraîche and sprinkle with poppy seeds shortly before serving.

We thank davidlebovitz.com for this recipe.

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