Green Spaghetti Squash

I found a bunch of cilantro, a few fronds of dill, and some parsley in the fridge so I decided to purée them into a version of chimichurri sauce and stir them into spaghetti squash.

I have to say, it worked very well.

The key is not to call it pesto. That makes diners imagine glorious piles of pasta with fragrant basil and garlic sauce. Green spaghetti squash would be a disappointment.

However, call it spaghetti squash with garlic butter, hazelnuts and green sauce, and it goes down very well.

I don't have a recipe, but this is what I did.

I washed a medium spaghetti squash, pierced it a few times with a knife, and baked it at 375°F for 45 minutes until it was soft. I cut it in half lengthwise and let it cool a bit. Then I scooped out the seeds and discarded them.

In the blender, I puréed cilantro, parsley and dill with a red jalapeño I pulled from the freezer, a little olive oil and a good amount of salt and pepper. Then I whirred in some water to make it more of a sauce than a paste.

I melted some butter in a skillet and added a couple of mashed cloves of garlic. I coarsely chopped a handful of hazelnuts and tossed them in when the garlic was fragrant.

I scooped the strands of spaghetti squash from their shell into the pot and tossed them in the garlic butter. Then I poured in the green sauce and stirred it together. I let it heat fully and then served it as a colorful and flavorful side.

Fennel, Apple and Avocado Salad

I served this fun crunchy salad the other night with a meal of leftover beans and rice. It added a great counterpoint to the meal.

The bashed peppercorns add a zest when you bite into one, and the tart granny smith apple plays well with the fennel and mild Susanna avocado. The fennel adds a good crunch.

I suppose the pink grapefruit zest is not essential, but it added a citrus note without any juice.

Altogether a delicious side salad.

Fennel, Apple and Avocado Salad
2 tsp crushed peppercorns
2 tsp chopped drained capers

¼ tsp fleur de sel

¼ tsp pink grapefruit zest

3 tbsp olive oil

3 tsp chopped dill

1 avocado, cut in thin wedges

1 cup thinly sliced fennel

½ granny smith apple, thinly sliced

Combine peppercorns, capers and salt in a small bowl. Separately, whisk the grapefruit zest with the juice, oil and dill. On a serving plate, layer the avocados, fennel and apple. Drizzle with the vinaigrette and sprinkle with some of the salt mixture.Serve immediately, passing the extra salt at the table.

Serves 2

Summer Barley Salad

I usually think of barley as a winter food - great in soups and stews. But the other day I used it in a salad that tasted of early summer - full of cherry tomatoes and peas and fresh dill.

This ancient grain is soothing to the digestive tract, balancing to the blood sugar, and healing to the heart. It makes a nice change from brown rice, and takes about the same time to cook. Buy barley at the health food store - it should be a brownish color and will be called pot barley. The pearl barley at the supermarket is whiter and more refined - meaning more of its goodness has been removed.

However, when you're eating this salad, you won't be thinking of the health benefits because you'll be too busy enjoying the flavors.

Summer Barley Salad
3/4 cup barley
3 cups frozen corn
1/2 cup fresh or frozen peas
3/4 cup cherry tomatoes
1 stalk celery
2 spring onions
3 tbsp chopped fresh dill
3 tbsp olive oil
juice of 1/2 lemon

Cook the barley in 2 1/2 cups boiling water, covered, until the grain is tender and the water is absorbed, about 45 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.

Steam the corn and peas for about 3 minutes until tender. Halve the cherry tomatoes and dice the celery. Slice both the white and green parts of the spring onions. Combine the vegetables, dill and barley in a large bowl. Stir in the olive oil and lemon juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and extra lemon juice as desired.

Serves 4-6

Winter Vegetable Stew in Kabocha

We bought the prettiest kabocha squash at the market last week. It made a beautiful serving dish for a rather colorless (yet delicious) winter stew.

I washed the squash with my Planet dish soap and cold water. Then I dried it and put it in the toaster oven at 350°F for about 45 minutes, until a knife slipped in easily.

I let it rest a little to cool off, then sliced off the top, scooped out the seeds and goop, and filled it with the bean stew. Very pretty. I scooped some of the squash into our bowls along with the stew, and it added a little sweetness and color.

Winter Vegetable Stew
1/2 cup dry white lima or gigante beans
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 lb carrots, diced
1/4 lb turnips, diced
1 large onion, diced
1/2 lb potatoes, peeled and diced
3/4 lb shredded cabbage
2 cups water or stock
1 tbsp dill (opt)

Cook the beans in plenty of boiling water until tender, about 90 minutes depending on the age of your beans. This can be done a day ahead. Or use 2 15oz cans of white kidney beans or cannelini beans.

Warm the olive oil in a large pot. Add the carrots, turnips and onion. Cook, stirring, about 1 minute. Add the potatoes and cabbage and stir again. Pour in the water or stock. (I used 3/4 cup roasted vegetable stock from the freezer and 1 1/4 cups water.) Cover the pot and simmer 15 minutes. Add more liquid if necessary so it doesn't burn.

Season to taste and stir in the cooked beans (or the drained and rinsed canned beans) and the dill. Cook another 15 minutes, uncovered.

Serve over rice or in bowls or in a roast squash.

Healthy Potato Salad

Potato salads don't have to have mayonnaise.

In fact, the Italian and French way of tossing the warm potatoes in a vinaigrette makes a very flavorful salad. And it's healthy too.

I combined the potatoes with green pepper, broccoli and onion to make a colorful salad that hit the spot on a hot day.

Healthy Potato Salad
2-3 potatoes, cubed (enough to make 2 cups)
1/3 cup Italian salad dressing
1 1/2 cups chopped broccoli1/2 cup diced celery
1/2 cup diced red onion
1/4 cup chopped radishes
2 tbsp diced green pepper
1 tbsp chopped fresh dill (optional)

Peel and cube the potatoes. Put them in cold salted water, bring to a boil, and cook until tender, about 10 minute depending on the size of the pieces. Drain and toss with the salad dressing. Let it marinate in the fridge a couple of hours. (This is not essential, but it intensifies the flavor.)

Cut the broccoli in bite-sized pieces, and steam until tender. Add to the potatoes along with the remaining ingredients. Add salt and pepper to taste, and a little more salad dressing if necessary.

Serves 4-5

Split Pea Soup

Split peas make a wonderful smooth base for a vegetable soup. It's like a luscious cream soup with no dairy products.

I vary the vegetables depending on what I have on hand, but I think this is my favorite version. Turnips and dill are great together, and they really enliven the split peas.

They also add to the health benefits. Turnips are a good source of the insoluble fiber which helps prevent atherosclerosis. Dill is being studied for its effects on cholesterol and blood sugar. Split peas are rich in protein, fiber, and liver-supportive trace minerals.

The flavor of this soup improves as it sits, so I cooked it Sunday morning and then reheated it before dinner - adding extra water to make it soup-y. That's another bonus - because this soup thickens as it cools, you have to add water every time you heat it, increasing the number of servings you get from it. Split peas are inexpensive anyway, so this soup is a real budget stretcher as well as a yummy dinner.

Split Pea Soup
1 1/2 cups dried split peas, rinsed
6 cups water
2 onions, cut in large chunks (about 2 cups)
6 garlic cloves, peeled
1 large tbsp chopped fresh dill or 1 tsp dried
1 lb (about 3 medium) potatoes, peeled and diced
1 large carrot, diced
1/4 lb turnips (2 medium), peeled and diced
1 cup frozen corn kernels
salt and pepper and extra dill

Bring split peas and water to a boil in a large pot. Reduce the heat and skim off any foam that rises to the top. (This foam is why you should never cook split peas in a pressure cooker - the foam can block the vent.) You don't have to be obsessive about skimming - the foam isn't harmful, it's more an aesthetic thing.

Add the onions, garlic and dill. Simmer for one hour.

Remove from heat. Let it cool a little and then purée in batches in the blender until silky smooth. Return to a clean pot and add the potatoes, carrot, turnips, corn and 1 tsp salt. Simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 1 hour. The soup is very thick and will stick on the bottom, so use a low heat and a heavy-bottomed pot, and keep an eye on it.

Season with salt, pepper and more dill to taste.

Serves 6