Authors: Carla Snyder

One Pan, Two Plates (23 page)

BOOK: One Pan, Two Plates

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Caponata
is a Sicilian vegetable dish containing eggplant, capers, olives, garlic, and onion. Traditionally, caponata is served as a dip, but it also makes a delicious side dish. The addition of vinegar, raisins, and honey makes it sweet and tart as well as earthy and salty—there’s just a whole lot of flavor going on. The balsamic-glazed turkey cutlet in this recipe is topped with marinated artichoke hearts and Parmesan cheese, and may well remind you of that cheesy artichoke dip your mom used to make for card club. But in a good way, I promise.

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START TO FINISH
30 minutes

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HANDS-ON TIME
25 minutes

...

serves 2

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10 oz/280 g turkey cutlets

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tbsp olive oil, plus more if needed

1 Italian eggplant, cut into ½-in/12-mm dice

1 small red bell pepper, seeded, deribbed, and cut into ½-in/12-mm dice

1 small yellow onion, finely diced

1 celery stalk, finely diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

6 large green olives, pitted and chopped

4 tbsp/60 ml balsamic vinegar, plus more if needed

2 tbsp golden raisins

1 tbsp honey

2 tsp capers, rinsed well and patted dry (see “It’s that easy”)

6 oz/170 g marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

⅓ cup/40 g freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1 tbsp minced fresh flat-leaf parsley

1.
Preheat the broiler with the rack in the second position from the top.

2.
Pat the turkey dry and sprinkle all over with salt and pepper.

3.
Heat a 12-in/30.5-cm ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. When the oil shimmers, add the eggplant, bell pepper, onion, celery, ½ tsp salt, and a few grinds of pepper. Sauté until the vegetables are almost tender and
beginning to brown, about 6 minutes. The eggplant will absorb most of the oil in the pan; add more oil if you think it needs it. Add the garlic, olives, 3 tbsp of the vinegar, the raisins, honey, and capers and stir it up well to blend the flavors. The caponata will sizzle lots. Reduce the heat if the bottom of the pan threatens to scorch. Stir until the vegetables are tender and mushy, another 3 minutes or so. The liquid should be evaporated. Taste and adjust the seasoning with more salt, pepper, or vinegar. Remove the pan from the heat.

4.
Brush the turkey on both sides with the remaining 1 tbsp balsamic and lay it on top of the caponata. Slip the pan under the broiler and broil until the turkey is almost cooked through, about 3 minutes. Meanwhile, in a bowl, stir together the artichokes and Parmesan. Remove the pan from the oven and top the turkey with the artichoke mixture. Return the pan to the broiler and broil until the turkey is cooked through and the topping is hot and melted, about 3 minutes longer. Remove the pan from the oven and sprinkle the parsley over the dish. Transfer the turkey cutlets to two warmed plates, scoop the caponata on the side, and serve hot.

variation:
Thinly sliced pork chop cutlets are a delicious stand-in for the turkey as well.

it’s that easy:
Capers come either packed in brine or dry-coated with salt. You can use the brined ones straight from the jar, but the salt-packed ones need a good rinse to wash the salt away.

extra hungry?
Add a few slices of freshly baked focaccia from your local bakery.

in the glass:
A medium-bodied Syrah has what it takes to make this dish sing. Look for bottlings from Terlato or Peter Lehmann for good taste and value.

Turkey Chili

with
POBLANO
and
QUESO FRESCO

There are few dinners as satisfying as a warm and spicy chili on a cold and stormy night. This is a “white” chili, composed around ground turkey and juicy kernels of corn and thickened with mashed cannellini beans and a fresh poblano pepper for just a touch of heat. The spice blend is light but flavorful, with ample cumin, fragrant cinnamon, and a touch of clove for good measure. Topping off the bowl with a generous helping of
queso fresco
really takes you south of the border, but farmer’s cheese or shredded Cheddar will get the job done as well.

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START TO FINISH
25 minutes

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HANDS-ON TIME
20 minutes

...

serves 2

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1 cup/200 g canned cannellini beans (see Tip)

1 tsp ground cumin

Salt

½ tsp chili powder, plus more if needed

¼ tsp ground cinnamon

Pinch of cayenne pepper

Pinch of ground cloves

Freshly ground black pepper

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 small yellow onion, diced

1 large poblano chile, seeded, deribbed, and diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 lb/455 g ground turkey

1¼ cups/300 ml chicken broth, plus more if needed

Kernels from 1 ear corn or about ½ cup/85 g frozen corn, thawed

2 tbsp sour cream

½ cup/70 g crumbled queso fresco or farmer’s cheese

1 tbsp minced fresh cilantro

1.
Drain the cannellini beans, rinse well, and drain again. Put the beans in a bowl and mash lightly with the back of a fork. Set aside. In a small bowl, combine the cumin, ½ tsp salt, chili powder, cinnamon, cayenne, and cloves and season with black pepper. Set the spice mixture aside.

2.
Heat a 12-in/30.5-cm skillet over medium-high heat and add the vegetable oil. When the oil shimmers, add the onion and poblano and sauté until they begin to soften, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic, spice mixture, and turkey and cook, breaking up the turkey meat with a spoon, until the turkey is no longer pink, about 2 minutes. Add the chicken broth and mashed cannellini beans and stir to mix thoroughly; the beans will thicken the chili. Reduce the heat to low and simmer the chili for about 5 minutes to allow the flavors to blend. If the pan gets dry, add a little more broth or water.

3.
Stir in the corn and sour cream. Taste the chili and add more salt, pepper, or chili powder if it needs it. If you like corn on the crunchy al dente side, remove the chili from the heat now, but if you like your corn soft, continue to simmer it for another minute or two.

4.
Ladle the chili into shallow, warmed bowls and top with the queso fresco and cilantro. Serve hot.

tip:
Zip up the remaining beans from a partial can in a freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months.

it’s that easy:
The amount of turkey meat I call for in this chili may sound like a lot, but I’ve found that most nights, my husband and I are able to kill the whole pan ourselves—I’m not sure if it’s because we are hungrier on chilly chili nights or because this rendition is just so good we can’t stop eating it. Either way . . . here you go.

extra hungry?
Just buy a bag of your favorite salty corn chips. I prefer the whole grain versions. Whether you crumble them in the bowl or use them as a spoon to scoop the chili like salsa, it’s so good.

in the glass:
There are a few directions you could go when pairing wine with this dish. There’s Joseph Drouhin Beaujolais-Villages if you want to go red, and for the white lovers, a Chablis from the same producer would do just as well. Then there’s always the classic beer and chili one-two.

Chicken Stew

with
TOMATOES, ORANGES,
and
OLIVES

You know how good a soft cashmere scarf feels around your neck on a blustery day? Think of this dish as a cashmere scarf for your taste buds. The leek really adds a subtle flavor as only a leek will, so try to use it if you can. If finding a leek is too much trouble, go ahead and use a small onion, thinly sliced. Carrot and celery round out the veggies in the stew, with orange juice and diced tomatoes tarting up the whole thing. The olives add a briny touch and the orange zest gives this chicken-in-a-pot a bright citrusy note that you’ll find particularly addictive. Kind of like that cashmere scarf.