from www.seriouseats.com
Serves 4

Romaine lettuce is being restyled. The workhorse of the Caesar salad bowl is breaking out of its cliché use and being exploited by chefs for soups, side dishes, wraps and stuffing. The heat adds a whole other dimension to the lettuce, releasing their sweetness with just a hint of smokiness. Stir-fried romaine lettuce, with garlic, is honestly quite fantastic! Don’t be so surprised, grilled lettuce is really good. I love how charred they get, a little burnt on the edges, warm but still crunchy in the middle. The trick is to brush it well with oil and cook for a very short time. It’s delicious and unexpected.

Ingredients

1/2 cup pitted black olives, not too salty
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup olive oil + more for brushing
4 pieces rustic bread
4 romaine lettuce hearts, halved lengthwise
1 small cucumber, thinly sliced
1 ripe tomato, sliced
A few thin slices of red onion or shallot
A few shavings of parmigiano-reggiano cheese
Fresh ground black pepper

Directions

For the olives, you want a variety that is fleshy, easy to pit, and not overpoweringly salty. Alphonsos are a nice choice. Whatever you do, don’t use the tasteless canned “Ripe California” olives. If you only have the very salty kind, pit and soak them for ten minutes in hot water, then squeeze them out.

In a mini-food processor, thoroughly puree the olives and garlic. Add the lemon zest and juice and process for 20 seconds. Add the 1/4 cup of olive oil, 2 teaspoons at a time, processing for 15 seconds after each addition to emulsify. Let rest and then taste and adjust acid and salt before serving. You want it at room temperature for serving.

Heat a grill pan over a medium-high flame. Brush the bread with olive oil and toast on each side until nicely browned and marked by the grill. Push down a little to get nice marks.

Brush the cut side of the romaine and grill for about 30 seconds, pushing down gently.

To serve, put each piece of bread on a plate. Top with two romaine halves, some of the cucumber, tomato, red onion, and the parmigiano. Drizzle on the dressing and finish with a grind of black pepper.

from www.notwithoutsalt.com (Mexican Everyday, by Rick Bayless) 

Ingredients

12 oz. bunch of Swiss chard, thick lower stems removed (10 oz. cleaned spinach can be used instead)
1 1/2 tablespoons oil, lard or bacon drippings
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tsp. red pepper flakes (add more or less depending on how spicy you like it)
1/2 cup chicken or vegetable broth (water works too)
Salt
12 warm corn tortillas
1 cup (4 ounces) Queso Fresco or other fresh cheese such as feta or goat cheese
Smoky Chipotle Salsa for serving (recipe below) 

Directions

Slice the chard into 1/2-inch ribbons. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and mushrooms then cook until golden brown, about 4-5 minutes. To the onions add the red pepper flakes and garlic. Stir for about 20 seconds until you are hit with the aroma of the garlic then immediately add the broth or water, 1/2 teaspoon salt and the greens. Adjust the heat to medium-low then cover the skillet. Cook until the greens are almost tender. For Swiss chard this will be about 5 minutes. Spinach only takes about 2 minutes. Uncover the pan, adjust the heat to medium-high then cook until the juices have reduced significantly and merely glaze the greens. Taste and add salt if you think it needs it. Serve with the corn tortillas, crumbled fresh cheese and Chipotle salsa.

Serves 4

by Ashley Rodriquez

For pot roast
1/2 cup canola oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
5 pounds boneless short ribs, denuded (all surface fat removed; have your butcher do this)
1 cup dry sherry (you may also use red or white wine or even stock)
4 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
2 large onions, peeled and roughly chopped
8 stalks celery, peeled and roughly chopped
8 cloves garlic, unpeeled
1 bay leaf
About 8 cups (2 quarts) chicken stock or low-sodium chicken broth

For roasted vegetables and caramelized onions
3 medium carrots (about 2 pounds) peeled, halved lengthwise, then halved horizontally
4-5 medium parsnips, peeled, halved lengthwise, then halved horizontally
1 1/2 lbs fingerling potatoes, halved
1 yellow onion, medium diced
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Prepare pot roast
Position racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat to 350°F. Season beef liberally with salt and pepper. In large Dutch oven or heavy ovenproof pot over moderately high heat, heat oil until hot but not smoking. Add beef and sear until dark brown and crisp on both sides, about 10 minutes total. Transfer beef to large plate. Pour off oil in pan and discard. Add sherry, wine or stock and simmer uncovered, scraping up browned bits on bottom of pan, until reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Pour reduced sherry into heatproof liquid measuring cup.

In same pan, combine carrots, onions, celery, garlic, and bay leaf. Lay beef on top of vegetable mixture and pour reduced sherry over. Add enough chicken stock to cover 3/4 of meat. Cover and transfer to lower rack in oven. Roast until fork-tender, about 3 hours.

While beef is roasting, prepare roasted vegetables
During final hour of roasting, in large bowl, toss carrots, parsnips, potatoes and onion with olive oil until well coated. Season generously with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Spread on baking sheet and transfer to upper rack in oven. Roast until slightly tender and browned, about 45 minutes. Transfer to large bowl and keep warm.

Finish dish
When beef is tender, transfer to serving platter; tent with foil. Skim fat from liquid in pot. Strain liquid through fine-mesh sieve, pressing on solids with back of spoon to extract all juices, then discarding solids. Return liquid to pot, set over high heat, and bring to boil. Reduce heat to moderate and simmer, uncovered, until reduced slightly, about 5 minutes. Season juices to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Pour half of juices into bowl with roasted vegetables; toss to combine. Pour other half of juices into gravy dish. Arrange vegetables around beef on serving platter and serve immediately, with extra juices on side.

Ingredients

2 cups prepared burdock
2 cups prepared carrots
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons dashi (Japanese stock) (optional)
1 tablespoon water, as needed

Directions

1. Prepare the burdock and carrots in the same way, by washing and scraping the outer skin (they don’t have to be peeled). Then cut into matchstick-sized pieces. As you’re cutting the burdock, throw the pieces into a bowl of cold water to prevent them from turning brown in the air.

2. In a large skillet or wok, heat the vegetable oil and sesame oil. When it’s hot, sprinkle in the sesame seeds and cook, stirring it for about a minute.

3. Drain the burdock and add it and the carrots to the pan. Cook and stir over medium high heat for about five to seven minutes.

4. Add soy sauce and continue stir-frying. If you wish, add the dashi (available in Japanese and other Asian markets) and water and continue stir-frying until liquid has evaporated. The total cooking time for this burdock recipe is about ten minutes. The burdock will change color from milky white to shiny gray/brown. This burdock recipe will give you a crisp, crunchy, earthy, and delicious dish.

Recipe from /www.herbalmusings.com

Ingredients

1 large stalk celery, cut into 3 pieces
3 tablespoons peanut butter
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons raisins

Directions

Place the celery pieces on a clean surface, hollow part facing up, and sprinkle evenly with cinnamon. Spoon peanut butter into the hollow, and arrange raisins on top.