Eye for a Recipe

This roast chicken dish from Alison Roman, featured in her new cookbook Nothing Fancy, is perfect for Sunday dinner. Season a whole chicken and stuff with oregano. Place in a roasting pan and scatter tomatoes, garlic, butter and more oregano around the chicken. Roast low and slow – about 2 ½ hours – until the chicken is done and the tomatoes are soft. Add some wine vinegar and serve.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

I use Eden Organic red wine vinegar, which has no sulfites added. Check the bread for preservatives – Ace Bakery bread is usually free of additives. I use Gay Lea butter, which has no colour added.

Tomatoes, garlic, oregano and butter enhance the flavour of this slow-roasted chicken

Stuff the chicken with oregano, drizzle with oil and crushed fennel seed and nestle the other ingredients around the chicken

Roast until the chicken is done and the tomatoes are very soft

Slow-roasted oregano chicken with buttered tomatoes

Ingredients:

1 (3 ½ – to 4-pound/1.5 to 1.8 kg) whole chicken

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

¼ cup (60 ml) olive oil

1 ½ tablespoons (22.5 ml) fennel seeds, crushed in a mortar and pestle or spice mill, or chopped with a knife

1 bunch fresh oregano

1 ½ pounds (680 g) small vine-ripened tomatoes (about 6), halved lengthwise

2 heads of garlic, halved crosswise (it’s fine to leave the skin on)

2 tablespoons (30 ml) unsalted butter, cut into pieces

2 tablespoons (30 ml) red wine vinegar or white wine vinegar

4 to 6 (1-inch/2.54-cm-thick) slices of good country bread, such as country loaf or sourdough, toasted (optional)

Preparation:

Heat the oven to 325 degrees F (163 C). Season the chicken with salt and pepper. (If you can do this in advance, please do.) Drizzle it with the olive oil and sprinkle with the fennel seeds.

Stuff the cavity with half the oregano and place in a large baking dish. Scatter the tomatoes, garlic, butter and remaining oregano around the chicken. Roast until the chicken is golden brown and completely cooked through, and the tomatoes are nice and jammy, 2 ½ to 3 hours. Add the vinegar to the tomatoes and let the chicken rest in the baking dish for 10 minutes.

Place toast, if using, on serving platter and spoon the jammy tomatoes over or around the toast. Carve the chicken and place on top of the toast to catch the juices. Serves 4-6.

From Nothing Fancy, by Alison Roman

This pizza from Epicurious is savoury and hearty. Top pizza dough with cheese, rosemary, hot pepper flakes and salt and then add mozzarella, cooked sausage, onions and mushrooms. Bake until the crust is brown and then garnish with more cheese and parsley. Cook’s note: A pizza wheel may drag the toppings off the pizza, so try a large sharp chef’s knife instead.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

If you are buying the pizza dough, check for preservatives. If you are making your own, look for a recipe using unbleached all-purpose flour, traditional active dry yeast, salt, sugar, olive oil and water. Genuine Parmesan cheese is additive free. Check the hot pepper flakes to make sure they don’t contain colour or anti-caking agents. Look for sausages without additives or preservatives, such as PC Free From brand hot Italian sausages. I used No-Name pizza mozzarella, which is additive free.

Top the dough with cooked sausage, onions and wild mushrooms

Bake until crust is browned and sprinkle with more cheese and parsley before serving

Ingredients:

1 16-ounce (454 g) ball purchased or homemade fresh pizza dough

2/3 cup (165 ml) finely grated Parmesan cheese

2 ¼ teaspoons (12 ml) finely chopped fresh rosemary, divided

½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) dried crushed red pepper

Coarse kosher salt

1 ½ tablespoons (22.5 ml) olive oil, divided

2 ½ hot Italian sausages, casings removed

1 small red onion, thinly sliced

7 ounces (198 g) fresh wild mushrooms (such as stemmed shiitake, oyster, and chanterelle), thickly sliced

1 ¾ cups (438 ml) coarsely grated whole-milk mozzarella cheese (about 7 ounces), divided

Chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Preparation:

Position 1 rack in top third and 1 rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 450°F (232°C). Lightly flour 2 baking sheets. Place dough on work surface; let stand until room temperature, about 20 minutes. Divide dough in half. Press and stretch each piece out on lightly floured surface to 5-inch round. Sprinkle each with 1/3 cup (85 ml) Parmesan cheese, ¾ teaspoon (3.75 ml) rosemary, and ¼ (1.25 ml) teaspoon crushed red pepper; sprinkle with coarse salt. Roll each piece of dough out to 10-inch (25.4-cm) round, pressing in seasonings. Transfer dough rounds to prepared baking sheets.

Heat 1 tablespoon (15 ml) oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add sausage. Sauté until brown, breaking into ½ -inch (1.25-cm) pieces with back of spoon, about 5 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer sausage to bowl. Add onion to skillet. Sauté until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes; transfer to plate. Add remaining ½ tablespoon (7.5 ml) oil to skillet. Add mushrooms and remaining ¾ teaspoon (3.75 ml) rosemary; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Sauté until brown, about 5 minutes. Leaving ½ -inch (1.25-cm) plain border, top each dough round with ¾ cup (185 ml) mozzarella, then onion, sausage, and mushrooms.

Bake until crust bottoms are crisp and brown, reversing sheets after 10 minutes, about 20 minutes total. Using large spatula, transfer pizzas to work surface. Sprinkle each with 2 tablespoons (30 ml) mozzarella, then parsley, if desired. Makes 2 pizzas.

From Epicurious

This healthy and tasty recipe from Canadian Living is perfect for a weeknight supper. Roast zucchini, garlic and red onion for 20 minutes, then add salmon and cherry tomatoes. Broil for about 8 minutes – be careful not to overcook – and serve. To broil, place the baking sheet about six inches (15 cm) from the broiler coils.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Red wine vinegar typically contains added sulfites. I use Eden Organic red wine vinegar, which has only naturally occurring sulfites.

Roast zucchini, onion and garlic for about 20 minutes

Add salmon and tomatoes and broil for about 8 minutes

Sheet Pan Provençale Salmon

Ingredients:

3 zucchini, cut in 1-inch (2.54-cm) pieces

3 cloves garlic, sliced

1 red onion, cut in ½ -inch (1.25-cm) thick wedges

3 tablespoons (45 ml) olive oil, divided

1 teaspoon (5 ml) salt, divided

¾ teaspoons (3.75 ml) pepper, divided

4 skin-on salmon fillets (about 1 lb/450 g total)

2 cups (500 ml) cherry tomatoes

3 tablespoons (45 ml) red wine vinegar

¼ cup (60 ml) basil leaves, torn

Preparation:

Arrange rack in top third of oven; preheat to 425°F (218°C). Line baking sheet with parchment paper. On pan, toss together zucchini, garlic, red onion, 2 tbsp (30 ml) of the oil and ½ tsp (2.5 ml) each of the salt and pepper. Roast, stirring halfway through, until tender, about 20 minutes.

Remove from oven; push vegetables to edges of pan. Arrange salmon, skin side down, and tomatoes in centre; drizzle with remaining 1 tbsp (15 ml) oil. Sprinkle with remaining ½ tsp (2.5 ml) salt and ¼ tsp (1.25 ml) pepper. Return to top rack of oven; broil until fish flakes easily when tested and vegetables are beginning to brown, 6 to 8 minutes. Drizzle with vinegar; sprinkle with basil. Serves 4.

From Canadian Living

When the weather cools down I start to crave hearty baked pastas like this one from Bon Appetit.

While cooking your pasta (add the broccoli rabe for the last few minutes), brown sausage meat in an oven-proof skillet and add garlic and fresh sage. Add cream and cheese to make a savoury sauce. When the pasta and broccoli rabe are cooked, add the meat/cheese sauce, mix, return everything to the skillet and bake. Add more fresh sage and place under the broiler for a few minutes to brown the top.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Check the sausage, cheese and hot pepper flakes to make sure they don’t contain colour, additives and preservatives.

Brown the sausage meat

Cook pasta and add broccoli rabe for the last few minutes of cooking

Add cream and cheese to sausage to create a sauce

Bake for about 35 minutes then place under the broiler for a few minutes to brown the top

Ingredients:

Kosher salt

12 ounces (340 g) Fontina and/or aged cheddar cheese

6 garlic cloves

2 large sprigs sage

1 bunch of broccoli rabe

¼ cup (60 ml) plus 1 tablespoon (15 ml) extra-virgin olive oil

1 pound (454 g) sweet or hot Italian sausage

½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) crushed red pepper flakes

2 cups (500 ml) half-and-half

1 pound (454 g) ridged medium pasta shells, or large tube pasta, such as lumaconi or rigatoni

Preparation:

Place racks in center and upper third of oven; preheat to 325°F (163°C). Heat a large pot of water over high. Add several tablespoons of salt and bring to a boil (this is for your pasta).

Grate 12 oz. (340 g) cheese on the large holds of a box grater (you should have about 4½ cups/1.06 L). Smash 6 garlic cloves, peel, and coarsely chop. Pick all sage leaves from stems and set aside about 10. Finely chop remaining leaves (you should have about 1 Tbsp./15 ml)). Trim tough dried ends from 1 bunch of broccoli rabe, then cut stems into 2″/5cm pieces. Leave leafy ends long.

Heat a deep, large, ovenproof skillet, preferably cast iron, over medium-high. Add ¼ cup (60 ml) oil and swirl to coat. Remove 1 lb. (454 g) sausage from casings and add to skillet. Break into small pieces with a wooden spoon. Cook, undisturbed, until sausage is browned, about 4 minutes. Stir a couple of times and continue to cook, undisturbed again, until sausage is fully cooked through, about 3 minutes longer.

Add garlic, chopped sage, and ½ tsp. (2.5 ml) red pepper and cook, stirring, until garlic is golden, about 2 minutes.

Stir in 2 cups (500 ml) half-and-half and simmer until sauce is thickened slightly, about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low.

Gradually add about two-thirds of cheese, bit by bit, stirring constantly and letting cheese melt completely before adding more, until sauce is smooth and thick, about 3 minutes; season with salt and remove from heat.

Meanwhile, cook 1 lb. (464 g) pasta shells in boiling salted water 2 minutes shy of package instructions (8–10 minutes depending on type). During the last 2 minutes, add all of broccoli rabe to pot with pasta. Drain in a colander and shake several times to remove excess water. Return pasta and broccoli rabe to empty pasta pot.

Add cheesy sausage mixture from skillet to pot with pasta. Stir until pasta and broccoli rabe are coated in sauce, then transfer everything back to skillet.

Cover skillet tightly with foil and bake on center rack until pasta is tender and sauce is bubbling, 30–40 minutes. Let rest a few minutes while you heat broiler.

Remove foil and top with remaining cheese. Toss sage leaves with remaining 1 Tbsp. (15 ml) oil in a small bowl and arrange over pasta. Broil until cheese is browned and bubbling in spots, about 5 minutes (depending on strength of broiler).

Let pasta cool a minute or two before serving. Serves 8.

From Bon Appetit