Rachel Roddy’s four bean-based recipes suitable for vegans

Friday nights at Pizzeria Remo run like boisterous clockwork. Whether you've been going there all your life, or it is your first visit, the routine is always the same. You put your name and number on a list, then stand in line until you're called, the disorderly queue spilling from the pavement into the street. If all your group has arrived, you bump your way through the narrow pizzeria – past the wood oven and the three pizzaioli, with bandanas and floury hands, spinning and paddling – to a table that seems far too small, but you all fit in anyway. Once you have all got your legs under the table, you immediately have to dislodge them so the waiter can cover the table with a paper cloth, which you help tame as he dumps on to it a pile of small plates and cutlery, a slip of paper – the menu – and a blue biro with which to mark up your order.

We mark up the same things every week: a marinara and a capricciosa, a small red pizza, water and a litre of house red. But first, fried things on squares of white paper, a battered and fried courgette flower (not as good as they used to be). And, always, a plate of white beans.

I love how Italian bean dishes could include meat and dairy, but so often don't – becoming, like so much good southern Italian food is, incidentally vegan.

At Remo, they are just small white beans – among them a piece of carrot and a ribbed inch of celery, around them some cloudy broth and a halo of olive oil – but they are delicious, at just the right point between floury and creamy: Romans say so' come burro, “like butter”. They come with two great cushiony slices of bread with which to sop up the broth. “I think they cook these beans in the pizza oven,” I tell my friend, another Rachel, before going on about ashes and beans in a flask. The waiter, his allegiance to Lazio emblazoned on both his T-shirt and his forearm, comes over to get plates. “You cook these in the wood oven?” I ask. He looks blank. I try again. “You cook the beans in the pizza oven?” At this he makes a sound, the Roman equivalent of “nah”, and tells me we are not in Tuscany. “We soak them, chuck them in a big pan with carrot and celery and cook them until they are soft like this,” squeezing his fingers. “Buoni, eh?”

Cannellini beans, borlotti beans, kidney, haricot, black-eyed beans ... I am not sure what we would do without them. They are as much the backbone of what we eat as bread, pasta and potatoes are. Italians have a way with beans that puts them firmly at the heart of everyday food, without the shackles of being good for you or good for your pocket – though they are both.

Various varieties of beans work, but mottled borlotti are particularly good for cooking into an almost roasted-chestnut-like softness for this Patience Gray-inspired stew of beans, potato, tomato and herbs. It lends itself to variation though, so try it with different varieties of bean, seasonal vegetables and herbs.

Patience Gray's bean stew (main picture)
For today's recipe, the beans do need soaking (I leave myself a Post-It reminder near the kettle).

1 Cover the beans with fresh water, bring to the boil for 5 minutes, then drain and rinse. If you are using fresh tomatoes, peel them by plunging in boiling water for a minute, then cold water, at which point the skins should peel away. For tinned, drain the juice. Chop the tomatoes roughly.

2 In a large, heavy-based pan over a low heat, fry the onion, garlic and a pinch of salt in the olive oil until soft and fragrant. Add the chopped tomatoes, crushing them against the side of the pan, then simmer for 2 minutes. Roughly chop the parsley and celery leaves, then add to the pan along with the thyme and allow to bubble for a minute more. Add the diced potato, beans and another small pinch of salt, stir then simmer for a minute more, cover with hot water and cook gently for 90 minutes or until the beans and potato are soft. The dish should be soupy, so if at any point the pan looks dry, add more water

3 To serve, sprinkle with a little more chopped parsley, a thread of olive oil, or some chopped red chilli, if you like.

Braised artichoke and butter beans
To serve four: Dice 1 onion, 1 carrot, 1 small leek and 1 stick celery, then in a large, deep pan with a lid, gently fry with a pinch of red chilli flakes in 6 tbsp olive oil over a low flame until soft and fragrant. Meanwhile, trim and quarter 3 globe artichokes, dropping the pieces into a bowl of juice of ½ lemon mixed with water as you go. Once ready, add the artichoke pieces to the pan along with 1 potato, peeled and diced and a pinch of salt. Stir so each piece glistens with oil, add 250ml white wine then reduce to a simmer, cover and leave to braise for 15 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender,stirring occasionally. Stir in 2 drained tinfuls of beans. Cook uncovered for 5 minutes, stirring, until soft and brothy. Season, set aside then gently reheat to serve with bread.

Pasta e ceci – pasta and chickpea soup
To serve four: Gently fry 1 onion and 1 stick celery – both finely diced – in 6 tbsp olive oil until soft and fragrant. Add 1 small, diced potato and stir until each chunk glistens. Add 1 sprig fresh rosemary, 1 tsp tomato puree and a small pinch of chilli flakes, stir and cook for a minute. Add 2 tinfuls of chickpeas, drained and rinsed, along with 1.2 lites of water and a pinch of salt. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer for 20 minutes. When cooked, decant half the soup from the pan, blitz, then return it to the pan. Season to taste, then bring to a steady but moderate boil. Add 120g small dried pasta. Stirring pretty attentively, cook until tender, adding water if necessary. Season and top with olive oil to serve.

White beans and wilted greens
To serve four: Fry 2 chopped garlic cloves, 1 chopped onion, 1 diced celery stalk and a chopped small dried chilli over a low heat for 8 minutes, or until soft and fragrant. Raise the heat and add 700g chopped greens (such as swiss chard, spinach, dandelion greens) a handful at a time, adding the next with a tiny pinch of salt when the previous one has wilted a little. Cover and cook for 5 minutes, or until the greens are soft. Remove the lid, cook for another 2 minutes, add 250g of cooked cannellini beans and a cup of their cooking broth, stir and cook uncovered for about 5 minutes. Serve with garlic-rubbed toast, grilled sausages or white rice. Alternatively use an blitz into a thick soup; top with breadcrumbs.

Dining at Decca is as illuminating as it is delicious

It would seem that nothing at Decca happens by accident. There is a purposeful nature to the cuisine, no element on the plate overlooked.

In other kitchens, this could translate to well executed yet predictable food.

In Decca's case, it sets the stage for a dining experience that is as illuminating as it is delicious.

From the just-burnt-enough brussel sprout leaves found amongst the mussels, to the briny bottarga shavings over housemade cavatelli, to the raw cucumber accompanying the crispy Texas redfish, unexpected supporting characters bring about the best in whatever is taking center stage on the plate. It is a dining experience that doesn't allow any note of flavor to be left to chance nor taken for granted.

It is a dining experience worthy of four stars.

I lived downtown during Decca's lengthy construction and I have dined at Decca several times since the doors opened in 2012. I have always been pleased with my meal and service, though it never quite impressed me like it has as of late.

Every aspect of the Decca experience has firmly come into its own and appears to only be improving with age. Guests will pay top dollar for this experience and I find it to be worth the investment.

A more accessible encounter with Decca may be had in their cellar bar. The intimate, basement level space is walled in massive exposed stones and equally imposing wooden beams run down the center of the room.

Bar bites in the $5 range can be had in the cellar, and they are best enjoyed with one of Decca's cocktails, like the Old Pal ($10), a classic blend of rye, dry vermouth and Amaro that boasted an essence of peach thanks to the unexpected but happy addition of peach liqueur. A favorite signature creation is the Chupacabra ($12), a nuanced, mezcal-based drink married with ginger, cilantro, and chili and double strained, imparting a slightly spicy, herbaceous undertone.

Seated in Decca's first-floor dining space during a recent dinner, we found that the Chupacabra paired particularly well with the avocado toast starter ($14), featuring thin, perfectly ripe slices of avocado fanned atop a toasted slice of seeded bread. Equally thin, raw shavings of asparagus rested atop the avocado, pickled serranos and a bright green goddess dressing completing the dish. It is an excellent example of chef Annie Pettry's keen and creative sense of composition when it comes to both flavor and plating.

The pan roasted mussels ($16) illustrate this point as well. The mussels are cooked in a delicate curry broth and tossed with burnt brussel sprout leaves and peas. A dollop of creme fraiche and a thick slice of charred bread are the ideal counterpoints.

Pasta is my Achilles' heel and I am quite particular about its execution. Chef Pettry's three homemade offerings are among some of the best pasta dishes I've experienced in recent memory. Her linguine verde ($17) is a spot-on version of pasta with clams. The fresh cream sauce coated each al dente noodle just so, with bits of green garlic an ideal partner for the sweet and tender littleneck clams, which imparted that touch of brininess I so love in this classic dish.

Given the meatiness of the morel mushrooms, one would never know that the ricotta cavatelli ($18) was a vegetarian wonderland. Shavings of celery, caraway seed, and a final flurry of bottarga were ingenious ingredients that allowed this compilation to make perfect sense.

Five main courses and four shareable side dishes round out Decca's dinner menu and the crispy Texas redfish ($29) is not to be missed. Served in a large shallow bowl, a perfectly clear leek brodo is poured table side, soaked up by couscous resting beneath the expertly seared redfish. The inclusion of peanut, cucumber and hints of citrus made every bite that much more interesting. The only element this dish lacked was a touch of spice.

The mustard jus accompanying the wood-grilled pork chop ($30) ensured this offering was not for want of spice. Pearls of mustard seed mixed and mingled with the ample chop; the pickled peaches were a sweetly-sour ideal counterpoint.

Our decadent finish at Decca involved a just-rich-enough rectangle of coffee-scented devil's food cake ($9), crowned with a dainty chocolate meringue, a textural garnish that the dish would not have been the same without. But then again, nothing at Decca happens by accident.

Peachy keen and delicious

There are so many ways to enjoy a basketful of fresh peaches. Homemade peach ice cream, cobblers, refrigerator pies and peach jam are some of my favorites.

So I had plenty of ideas last week for the peck of July Flame freestone peaches delivered to work by my cousin, straight from a South Carolina farm. What a treat!

Even before I got the peaches home last Monday, I was thinking of ways I could eat them and couldn't wait to peel one, slice it in an bowl and enjoy the juicy goodness.

I had plans for making my favorite peach cobbler later in the week, but on Tuesday, I wanted something sweet to go with our supper.

In the fall and winter, my husband and I enjoy baked apples. Why not try baked peaches, I thought? I searched around the internet and saw many people do the same. So why haven't I done this before, I wondered?

The preparation couldn't be easier. I did the same thing I do with apples: Cut the peach in half, starting at the stem, and remove the seed. I cut the peaches way I cut an avocado — cutting all the way around with a knife, then twisting the two halves in opposite directions to separate. (I did not peel the peaches.)

Place the peaches in a baking dish. Add a little butter and brown sugar to the top of the peach and a maybe a sprinkle of cinnamon. Then top with chopped pecans if desired. I desired. That's it for the preparation!

The first time I made these, I used three peaches and baked them for about 20 to 30 minutes at 350 degrees, until the peaches were fork tender. I scooped two peach halves into each of our bowls and then added the finishing touch: a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

That ice cream worked its magic, melting slightly and forming a delicious topping that made the peaches even sweeter. What a delicious ending to our dinner.

A few days later, I decided to make the dish again at lunchtime. I prepared them the same way in a microwave-safe baking dish but then cooked them for 3 minutes in the microwave, instead of the oven, with the same yummy results. We ate the peaches this time without ice cream. The peaches had sweetened more and were still delicious without the ice cream on top.

There was a bonus to my baked peach treat. I had two baked peach halves left after the first night's dinner and immediately knew what I wanted to do with them. That night, I prepared a jar of overnight oatmeal, placing 1⁄2 cup of old-fashioned oats and 1⁄2 cup of milk in a Mason jar. Then I cut up the baked peach halves and added them and the remaining pecans to the jar. Everything went into the refrigerator until the next morning.

I was very excited about my breakfast that next day. I opened the lid before heating the jar for about 45 seconds in the microwave. What a delicious breakfast! I did the same thing with the microwave peaches — using the leftover peach in my oats.

I am so pleased I have found two new ways to enjoy the season's peaches. I just wish I had more opportunities to purchase peaches, fresh from the farm.

Once peach season has ended, I'll be baking apples for overnight oatmeal!

Do kimchi and other fermented foods give you more fizz?

When something makes it into the everyday story of country folk that is The Archers, it's safe to say that it has gone mainstream. So, hearing Tom Archer's plans for a kefir empire was all the proof I needed that, as he said: "Fermented foods are the future!" As ever, where Gwyneth Paltrow leads, Ambridge follows.

The health and wellness brigade have been fizzing over ferments for almost a decade; indeed, way back in 2011, Lindsay Lohan was said to have blamed a positive alcohol test while on probation on her fondness for kombucha, a fermented-tea drink. More pertinently, perhaps, Australian journalist and bestselling sugar-avoider Sarah Wilson urges anyone "with auto-immune issues, irritable bowel syndrome, bloating, sugar cravings or any kind of digestive or allergy issue" to give fermenting a go. The Hemsley sisters have called sauerkraut "our ultimate condiment for health", while chef Gizzi Erskine loves kimchi – a punchy Korean speciality generally made from cabbage, chilli and garlic – so much that she named her cat after it. Not bad for what is, essentially, just some elderly cabbage.

What it does

As with so many fads, fermentation is nothing new. Humans have been harnessing the natural action of microorganisms to preserve food for thousands of years. In fact, as "fermentation revivalist" and pickle evangelist Sandor Katz put it on a recent edition of Radio 4's Food Programme: "Humans did not invent or create fermentation. It would be more accurate to state that fermentation created us."

In simple terms, fermentation involves the use of micro-organisms to transform food from one state to another – sort of like cooking, but without the application of heat. In the right conditions, bacteria and yeasts will start to convert the natural sugars in foods into other compounds, such as alcohol or lactic acid. This not only inhibits the growth of other potentially more harmful bacteria, but also changes the flavour of the food concerned – the distinctive tang of yoghurt, for example, is produced by microbes feeding on the lactose in milk. It also, helpfully, slows the spoiling process.

Beer and wine are fermented foods, as are bread, sauerkraut, olives, cured meats, chocolate, coffee, miso, many cheeses and various kinds of pickles – "all the really good stuff," as food writer Michael Pollan puts it. So, the good news is that you are probably eating a few already. They exist in what Katz describes as the "creative space between fresh and rotten food, where most of human culture's most prized delicacies and culinary achievements exist".

But, although interesting flavours are a handy side-effect, it is the microbial content that has got health types excited – because bacteria are big news these days. More specifically, the 39tn microbes, weighing about as much as your brain, that live happily in your gut, the makeup of which, some evidence suggests, may have a significant effect on everything from your long-term weight to your current mood.

How it helps us

Unfortunately, the typical modern western menu does little to nourish this "huge alien ecosystem", as Dr Michael Moseley puts it, under siege as it is from antibiotics and a deluge of cleaning products designed to sterilise every part of our existence. However much we may like junk food and chemical additives, our gut bacteria does not – and our increasingly narrow diet has led to a similar lack of diversity in our gut. Tim Spector, professor of genetic epidemiology at King's College London and the author of The Diet Myth, explains that if we "wipe out our gut microbes, then our immune system goes into autodrive and starts attacking us with autoimmune diseases and allergies".

One way of boosting your natural gut flora is to eat more of the kind of foods they thrive on – which, according to the British Dietetic Association, include onions, garlic, asparagus, artichoke, chicory and banana. These prebiotics, as they are known, will encourage microbe growth. The other way, which is what concerns us here, is the use of so-called probiotics, foods or supplements containing beneficial bacteria that, if they make it as far as our guts, will take up residence there. Fermented foods, or at least live fermented foods (beware pasteurised pickles, for example), are generally considered to be an excellent source of these desirable microbes.

NHS Choices reckons there is good evidence probiotics can prevent children on antibiotics developing diarrhoea; and some evidence that they can shorten an episode caused by a stomach bug by up to a day; they may help relieve the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome and lactose intolerance, too. Nevertheless, "the current state of the evidence does not demonstrate that probiotics have any effect on gut bacteria in healthy people". However, they go on to concede that: "Given the limitations of these studies, that is not to say that all probiotics definitely have no effect. Further high-quality research in their use is needed."

Katz, who firmly rejects media suggestions that he has managed to cure his Aids with fermented foods, takes a similarly low-key attitude. "In general, when I hear people talk about fermented foods as a cure for particular diseases – you know, eat sauerkraut to cure cancer, drink kombucha to cure diabetes – that's kind of a trigger for me," he told Radio 4. "I just think it is not reasonable to expect eating a particular food is going to cure a particular disease … these foods can be very, very powerful and healing, they can potentially improve digestion and nutrient assimilation, immune function and mental health and more. Those are benefits that we all can enjoy and that's not the same as curing any particular disease – their place is in the context of a rich and very varied diet."

Fortunately, as microbes seem to be the current buzz topic within the scientific community, more such research is likely to be forthcoming: Spector has already been instrumental in the establishment of British Gut, the UK's largest open-source science project, which is investigating the microbial diversity of the human gut, running in tandem with a similar project in the US. For about £350, you get an expert interpretation of your microbiome – and scientists get the benefit of your data.

What to eat

In the meantime, there is certainly no harm in including fermented foods in your diet. Not only does it seem likely that the more varied your intake the better, but also they are easy to digest, as some of the work has already been done for you, and they tend to have a distinctive, complex and (sometimes) challenging flavour.

Live yoghurt is good, but kefir, a fermented milk drink that originated in the Caucasus, is better – according to Spector, it contains at least five times as many microbial varieties. Kombucha is another decent source, as are raw milk cheeses, sauerkraut, pickles or kimchi. Natto, Japanese fermented soya beans, may be an acquired taste, but nutty Indonesian tempeh is just like tofu, but nicer. Just make sure none of it has been heat-treated to increase its shelf life.

How Dipping Sauce for Pizza Became Oddly Necessary

It was just a short time ago that dipping pizza in ranch was the Great Debate, with many claiming that the act was an abomination to pies everywhere. Now, the ranch-pizza combo is an integral part of the pizza experience — it's even found on the menus of many sophisticated restaurants.

But it's important to ask how something that elicits such an emotional response from diners became a mainstream option — so much so that before you hit the "place order" button in your delivery pizza app, you're probably adding a couple cups of dipping sauce to the list. America's four largest pizza chains — Papa John's, Pizza Hut, Little Caesars, and Domino's — all offer ranch along with a variety of dips on their menus, tiny upsells that contribute to the $45.15 billion in pizza restaurant sales in 2016. But how did we get here?

It Starts With Breadsticks

According to Saint Joseph's University professor of food marketing John Stanton, asking "Which came first, consumer demand or restaurant upsell?" is like saying "Which came first, the chicken or the egg?" It's impossible to know, but in food marketing, products tend to become popular because of both consumer demand and restaurants looking to increase profits. "All companies are always looking for something new, a different edge," Stanton says. "If [the product] becomes something that people will pay for and expect, eventually you'll see it in more places."

This is how Pizza Hut, founded in 1958, came to offer dipping sauces: due to customer demand. The chain started as a dine-in restaurant in Wichita, Kansas, and has offered warm marinara with its breadsticks and garlic bread since opening. "Warm marinara is one of the most beloved and requested items at Pizza Hut," says director of public relations Doug Terfehr.

Although Pizza Hut was the first chain to serve breadsticks with sauce (which it would later add to dishes like cheese sticks and garlic knots), it was the Detroit-based Little Caesars, founded just one year after Pizza Hut, in 1959, that first succeeded in marketing dips as essential add-ons. The company introduced Crazy Bread, essentially garlic breadsticks, as a side dish in 1982. For three years, the sticks stood alone, but in 1985, the chain introduced the option of adding Crazy Sauce, a slightly altered marinara that's similar to what's on its standard pizza, for a small fee.

But it's Papa John's that gets credit for first creating and marketing a dip specifically for pizza, dislodging the dip from its usual place as a breadstick side.

According to "chief ingredient officer" Sean Muldoon, the brand's popular garlic dipping sauce is as old as Papa John's itself, and since Papa John's founder John Schnatter made it in 1984, it has been included with every pizza ever sold. The tangy dip has a consistency that is a little thicker than melted butter, but not as thick as buttermilk ranch, and it tastes like a mixture of equal parts butter, garlic, and salt.

Muldoon says the recipe has changed a little over time, and was recently updated to comply with the brand's new clean-label standard — meaning partially hydrogenated oils, artificial flavors, and synthetic colors have all been removed — but the bones of it have stayed the same. "The garlic butter sauce has proven to be a perfect complement to our pizza crust," Muldoon says. "Some people love dipping the crust so much, they'll do this first, before eating the pizza."

Escalation

After Papa John's launched its signature pizza dip and Little Caesars debuted Crazy Sauce the following year, dips proliferated. "Some people like to try new things and some people like to try what other people like," Stanton says; pizza dips appealed to both of those groups. Papa John's is still the only major chain that includes a custom sauce specifically made for its pizza, but Pizza Hut, Little Caesars, and Domino's all offer a slew of sauces, sold separately, that you can order with any of their menu items for a small upcharge.

Incremental Upsells

Although upsells are offered throughout all levels of cuisine (ever notice how a restaurant's specials are more expensive than what's on the menu?), online ordering has made small, incremental add-ons easier to sell. According to Stanton, the average basket size of online orders is always larger than what people buy in stores, and the same can be said for food. In 2014, Domino's spokesperson Chris Brandon told Fast Company that the chain's successful app increased add-on sales. In that same piece, a representative from online-delivery service Eat24 reported that online ordering helped diners "try stuff you never thought about ordering over the phone, and that's something we see across the board at all restaurants."

Dipping sauces are now sewn into the pizza-ordering experience. If you place an order online with most pizza chains, you'll get a prompt that asks if you want to add x sauce for x cents more. Eaters might feel like they are getting a good deal, because if you're already spending $20 on a pizza, what's the harm in trying a new 50-cent lemon pepper dip?

One nutritionist says this is the worst way to cook eggs

We don't know about you but we're very partial to scrambled eggs although to be fair, we know that they're not quite as good for you as their poached counterparts.

Boiled is just as good as poached too because you're just using water and not adding anything extra apart from condiments.

In saying that, we would have thought that frying was the least healthy way to cook them but not according to this particular nutritionist.

Spokesperson for the Dietitian's Association of Australia, Joel Feren, chatted to My Body + Soul and explained his reasoning for why scrambled isn't the healthiest of choices.

"Scrambled eggs would be one of the least beneficial because of the different recipes. There are things like milk, extra butter, cream and crème fraiche, so you're not only getting the calories from the egg – which are fine – but you're getting extra fats".

Scrambled is the worst when all is said and done because, with so many different recipes, butter and milk are often used, thus upping the fat content of the meal.

Frying isn't as bad if you use an oil spray on a non-stick pan which helps to minimise the amount you're using and Feren recommends brushing it on, instead of free pouring which can go very wrong.

However, don't worry we don't have to give up our love of scrambled eggs completely with Feren saying they're still a healthy option but "to be mindful of those extra ingredients".

3 Quick & Easy Ways to Steam Cauliflower

Steamed cauliflower is a wonderfully easy and nutritious dish. Top with a bit of salt and/or pepper, a pat of butter to meld with its earthy flavor, a sprinkle of soy sauce or tamari for something simple yet delicious, a drizzle of toasted sesame oil to bring out its nuttiness. Steaming cauliflower is super easy – whether you do it in a pan, with a steamer, or in a microwave.

Looking for other tasty ways to cook this cruciferous veg?

How to Steam Cauliflower In a Pan
This is by far my favorite way to steam cauliflower. It involves one dish, real steam, great tasting cauliflower:

Bring about 1/4 inch of water to a boil in a large frying pan. Add about 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt and trimmed and cleaned cauliflower florets. Cover and steam until as tender as you like (about 3 minutes for crisp-tender and up to 8 minutes for completely cooked, soft florets).

How to Steam Cauliflower In a Steamer Basket
The classic method of steaming uses a steamer basket or insert:

Bring about an inch of water to a boil in the bottom of a pot into which your steamer basket or insert fits. Put trimmed and cleaned cauliflower florets in the steamer basket, set over the boiling water, cover, and steam until tender to the bite, again about 3 for crisp-tender and up to to 8 minutes for fully tender florets.

How to Steam Cauliflower In a Microwave
Steaming cauliflower in a microwave is certainly quick and convenient.

It is definitely more difficult to get vegetables steamed to a precise and even level of doneness, though, and cauliflower steamed in a microwave may require a bit of draining or drying depending on how much liquid you used and how powerful your microwave is:

Put freshly washed cauliflower florets with water still clinging to them in a large bowl, a small pool of water should form in the bottom of the bowl quite quickly.

If you don't see water in the bottom of the bowl, add a tablespoon of water. Cover the bowl with a microwave-safe lid or plate (avoid plastic wrap in microwaves), and cook on high power for 1 minute. Test for tenderness and repeat at 15-second intervals until the cauliflower is steamed to your liking.

How to Serve Steamed Cauliflower
If you want to go beyond a pat of butter and some salt and pepper, there are endless ways to make tasty use of steamed cauliflower:

Add a sauce as in this Cauliflower with Pesto; Romesco Sauce is good too
Toss it with some herbs, as in Cauliflower with Mint
Mash it up a bit and make Cauliflower Fritters
Use it to make Mashed Cauliflower

Butternut Squash with Chickpeas, Tahini and Za'atar

The autumn farmer's market is bursting with pumpkins and every kind of squash. Butternut, or it's mini version, honey nut, is sweet and mild. Roasting brings out a depths of flavor and it pairs perfectly with a spice like za'atar and the savory notes of tahini sauce.

Roasting chickpeas gives them a crunch and adds interest to the creamy texture of the squash. The tahini makes an excellent dressing for baby spinach and the leaves add a fresh element to this roasted dish. You can also serve the squash and chickpeas over rice as more of an entree.

What You'll Need
1 Mini butternut squash (you can use half a large one as well)
2 Tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 Cup chickpeas (canned is fine)
1/4 Cup Greek yogurt tahini sauce (see recipe here)
1 Teaspoon za'atar seasoning
Salt to taste

How to Make It
Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.

Split the squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Rub with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and roast for 45 minutes or until the squash is tender.

Toss the chickpeas with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. When the squash has cooked for 25 minutes, add the chickpeas to the baking sheet for the remaining 20 minutes.

Serve each half of the squash with half the chickpeas. Sprinkle with the za'atar and drizzle on the tahini sauce. Serve over a bed of baby spinach or cooked rice.

Homemade Baked Beans

There is a definite difference between homemade baked beans and those out of a can. When you make them from scratch the beans maintain more of their texture and flavor, the notes of good-quality molasses can be detected and, if you're like me and like traditional-style Boston baked beans, you don't need to worry about someone putting tomato or tomato sauce in them and mucking things up.

That's right, I said it. No tomato product in the baked beans! This is America! We put molasses in, not tomatoes. (Okay, the tomato-style ones are just fine, they're just not Boston baked beans.)

Note that using full-flavored molasses and dark brown sugar will yield stronger, more deeply flavored baked beans. Also, feel free to play a bit with the amount of molasses and brown sugar you add; I prefer my baked beans on the not-too-sweet side, so if you like sweeter baked beans, you may want to increase the molasses and brown sugar by up to half again as much.

What You'll Need
1 pound navy beans or Great Northern beans
1/4 pound salt pork or bacon (bacon lovers can double this, if they like)
1 onion
1/3 cup molasses
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 Tablespoon dry ground mustard
1 teaspoon fine sea salt plus more to taste

How to Make It
Rinse the beans and pick them over, removing any truly shriveled specimens or bits of rock or grit. Put the beans in a large bowl and cover them with cool water. Let them soak overnight. Alternatively, you can use the Quick Soak Method.
Preheat an oven to 250 degrees F or get out a slow-cooker and set it to high.
Chop the salt pork or bacon and put half of it in the bottom of a Dutch oven or heavy pot or the slow cooker. Drain the beans and put half of them on top of the bacon.
Peel and chop the onion and put it on top of the beans. Add the remaining beans and top them with the remaining salt pork or bacon.
In a medium bowl or large measuring cup, combine the molasses, brown sugar, and mustard with 3 cups boiling water. Stir to dissolve the sugar and mustard and pour the mixture over the beans. Cover the pot or slow-cooker and cook the beans for 4 hours. Check on them, if the beans are tender to the bite, stir in the salt.
Cover again and cook for another 2 hours, removing the lid after the first hour (you can leave the lid on if you prefer soupier beans). The beans should be tender and the flavors fully blended.
You can serve the beans right away, but something even more magical happens to their flavor if you let them cool and reheat them the next day.
See more New England Dishes here.

Whole Baked Sweet Potatoes

Do you like your sweet potatoes savory or lightly sweetened and spiced? These sweet potatoes are baked then seasoned with salt and paprika or cinnamon and sugar. See more topping ideas below the recipe instructions.

Try to find sweet potatoes that are uniform in size so they will bake evenly. 

If you prick the potatoes with a fork before baking, bake them in a foil or parchment paper-lined baking pan.

What You'll Need
4 medium sweet potatoes, even in size
vegetable oil
butter
salt, freshly ground black pepper, and paprika or cinnamon sugar*

How to Make It
Heat the oven to 425° F (220° C/Gas 7).

Scrub  the sweet potatoes thoroughly and rub vegetable oil over each potato.

Arrange the potatoes on oven rack and bake in the preheated oven for about 45 minutes, or until tender.  Remove at once and prick with a fork to let steam out.

Cut a 1 1/2-inch cross in the center of each baked sweet potato. Hold a potato with pot holder and press upwards until filling "bursts" up through the cuts.

Top with butter and sprinkle with salt and pepper or paprika or a mixture of cinnamon and sugar.

*Cinnamon Sugar - In a small bowl combine 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar with 1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon. Blend well.

Tips and Variations

Top the finished sweet potatoes with shredded Swiss cheese and cooked crumbled bacon. Put them on a foil-lined baking sheet and place them under the broiler just until the cheese has melted.
Sprinkle the sweet potatoes with cinnamon sugar and put a few miniature marshmallows on each one. Place them on a foil-lined baking sheet and place them under the broiler for a few minutes to brown the marshmallows.
Cinnamon Maple or Honey Sweet Potatoes - After sprinkling each buttered sweet potato lightly with cinnamon sugar, drizzle with a teaspoon or two of maple syrup or honey.

30 Minute Chili With Ground Beef and Beans

This ground beef chili is hearty and delicious, and it takes only 30 minutes from start to finish! Don't feel overwhelmed by the list of ingredients, many are suggested toppings.

The ground beef is quickly browned, then it is combined with a spice mixture, beans, and tomatoes for a quick and easy meal for a busy day. It's also easy on the budget.

Make a pan of cornbread to go with the chili, along with a salad or slaw, or serve it with hot cooked rice and warm tortillas.

If you're making this for a party game day gathering, offer several toppings with the chili and add a bowl of tortilla chips to the menu. The recipe is easily doubled.

What You'll Need
Seasoning Mix
3 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons dried minced onion
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried leaf oregano
1 teaspoon  sugar
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Chili
1 1/2 pounds ground beef, at least 85% lean
1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes
1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes with mild green chile peppers*
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
1 can (15 to 16 ounces) black beans, undrained
salt, to taste
shredded cheddar, cheddar-jack, or a Mexican blend of cheeses
Topping Suggestions
sour cream, chopped green onion, chopped red onion, shredded lettuce, cilantro, guacamole, diced tomatoes

How to Make It
In a small bowl or cup, combine the chili powder with the dried minced onion, cumin, oregano, sugar, garlic powder, and the black and cayenne peppers. Blend well and set aside.
In a Dutch oven or large  sauté pan over medium heat, brown the ground beef, turning and breaking up with a spatula as it cooks.
Drain the ground beef well. Return the beef to the pan over medium heat. Add the chili seasoning mix and stir to blend. 
Add the 2 cans of tomatoes, tomato sauce, and undrained black beans.  Stir to blend ingredients.
Bring the chili to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes.
Taste and add salt, as needed.
Makes 6 generous servings, and the recipe can be doubled or tripled very easily.

Serve with a Tex-Mex cornbread or classic Southern cornbread, biscuits, crackers, or tortilla chips, along with shredded cheese and your favorite toppings.

*If you don't have diced tomatoes with chile peppers, use regular diced tomatoes and add mild green chile peppers. Or, use about 1 to 1 1/2 cups of chunky mild to medium salsa in place of the second can of tomatoes.

HOW FOOD FRAUD CAN GET INTO YOUR KITCHEN

There are protections in place to safeguard the U.S. food supply, but as with sham designer purses and knock off watches, there are billions of dollars to be made with counterfeit cuisine.

Those counterfeit foods include milk, some cheeses and even expensive wine.

In June 2016, there was a massive seizure of counterfeit honey in the Chicago suburbs. Homeland Security Investigations and Customs and Border Protections seized 60 tons of fake honey, which is now stored in a government warehouse on the Texas/Mexico border. It was the largest food fraud investigation in U.S. history.

"It's a crime in which a lot of people have made a lot of money smuggling it into the United States," Special Agent Matthew Gauder, Homeland Security Investigations - Chicago.

The illegal honey was from China, some tainted with antibiotics prohibited in food. The lost revenue for taxpayers tallies in the hundreds of millions.

"Honey is not that innocent food we all like to think it is," Gauder said.

"It could be 10 percent of the entire U.S. food supply is fraudulent one way or another," said John Spink, Ph.D., director of the Food Fraud Initiative at Michigan State University.

Spink said the range of fraudsters is wide. Figuring out who's to blame can be difficult, but necessary.

"It's a crime of opportunity it's a crime that is complex so definitely organized crime is involved, but also some of those larger groups are affiliated with other types of crimes such as terrorism," he said.

Many food producers are now under assault by well-organized counterfeiters, costing the taxpayers billions and risking consumer health.

"We've cleaned up the industry a lot, but the schemes keep evolving," Gauder said.

The schemes continue to become more sophisticated, even the paperwork for purity is being faked.

"Something that is concerning for me as an investigator and for you as a consumer is that in recent shipments, including a seizure I made a few months ago, we're seeing fake and altered laboratory reports," he said.

Some popular targets according to USP, a scientific nonprofit, are olive oil diluted with cheaper inedible oils, spices such as paprika and chili powder mixed with cheaper materials or industrial dyes, honey mislabeled and spiked with corn syrup and possibly antibiotics, and seafood switched out for cheaper species.

"There's a good chance, Chuck, that if you order red snapper at a restaurant you are really getting tilapia. If you order tuna or cod, you are probably getting escolar," Gauder said.

Escolar is a fish that can cause stomach problems.

Food crime can also involve substitution and tampering with dangerous chemicals and ingredients that could make consumers sick. Finding the frauds can be difficult. It's a constant battle for investigators across the globe.

A massive Interpol-Europol operation recently claimed to have netted counterfeit sugar contaminated with fertilizer, and Italian olives painted with copper sulfate to enhance color.

Chicago restaurateur David Flom of Chicago Cut Steakhouse and Ocean Cut Seafood is aware of the swindlers.

"It happens a significant amount in our industry, no question about it," he said.

Flom said reputable restaurants now have safeguards in place to guarantee what's on the menu is the real deal. That includes making personal visits to suppliers.

"It's very important who you partner with or who your marriages are within the food business, and that they are very strong. And so we spend a lot of time doing that and researching that," Flom said.

The penalties associated with being caught are small compared to drug trafficking.

"Organized criminals to include the Italian mafia have figured that out. These are crimes that are relatively low risk that come with a high reward," Gauder said.

The FDA said it continually monitors food producers for safety. The Grocery Manufacturers of America told the I-Team that product safety and integrity and maintaining consumer confidence are the most important goals of the industry.

Best practice is for consumers to buy less-processed food, buy local and skip foods priced too good to be true.