Greens, Pear, and Ginger Smoothie

Although some parts of my gardens have taken some real hits from gopher activity, what I call my "salad garden" is actually doing pretty well. The ample supply of lettuce, arugula, and multiple kinds of kale has definitely dampened the pain of my eggplant casualties and I've been happily squeezing those garden-fresh greens into my diet at every available opportunity. There have been salads and kale chips and leisurely weekend omelettes galore, but my quick weekday breakfasts can definitely benefit from a bit more of the green stuff too.

It wasn't always the case, but smoothies have become a regular part of my weekday routine, and I quite often squeeze in a little bit of extra nutrition by burying some greens in my fruity smoothies. Despite its place the forefront of the health food craze, raw kale can be a little too much for some people, so use spinach if the bitterness is too much. Sweet pear and honey counteract some of the assertive kale flavor, with the sour lemon juice and spicy ginger doing their part as well. Adding chia seeds or flaxseed, especially if you let them soak overnight, will thicken the smoothie up, but it's ready to drink as soon as you finished blending it.

Greens, Pear, and Ginger Smoothie
serves 1

1 to 1 1/2 cups dairy or non-dairy milk of choice (or coconut water)
2 ounces baby spinach or kale, washed and dried
1 ripe pear, seeded and chopped
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon freshly-grated ginger
1 teaspoon honey or agave, or to taste (optional)
1 tablespoon chia seeds or ground flaxseed, optional.

1. Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

Chicken, Pear, and Gorgonzola Salad

While I've always been happy to dig into a big salad for dinner, I've had a real obsession with main-course salads recently and have been coming up with at least one new salad recipe every week. For whatever reason, nothing makes me happier right now than chowing down on a big, hearty salad with a crusty, buttered roll on the side and to my delight, my husband has been really enjoying my recent spate new of salad recipes as well. Although I was initially sad about the impending close of summer, I'm now really excited to embrace the crisp, cool weather and flavors and ingredients of fall, finding myself craving heartier salads, as opposed to the veggie-packed plates that so often find their way onto my dinner table in the summer. This hearty fall salad combines pungent blue cheese with sweet, crisp pears and toasty, crunchy walnuts, the rich nuts and cheese balanced perfectly by the freshness and crunchiness of the greens and pears. Although blue cheese is a flavor all its own, if you're not a fan (and I realize many people are not), goat cheese, feta, or even a sharp cheddar could be substituted, and apples could stand in for the pears (and would pair particularly well with sharp cheddar). Instead of being disheartened by the end of summer, welcome the beginning of fall and celebrate the bounty of the new season with delicious recipes like this one.

Chicken, Pear, and Gorgonzola Salad
serves 2

8 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast
8 ounces mixed salad greens
1 pear, cored and thinly sliced
2 ounces crumbled gorgonzola
1/4 cup chopped toasted walnuts
Salad dressing, for serving (I like raspberry vinaigrette)

1. Preheat a grill or grill pan over medium heat. Season both sides of the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Cook chicken breast until internal temperature reaches 170 degrees F, remove from heat, and allow to rest for 5 minutes. Slice evenly into thin slices.

2. Meanwhile, wash and dry greens and chop, if necessary. Distribute greens evenly between two large plates, topping each with half of the red onion, blueberries, cheese, and pecans. Add the sliced chicken to the top, drizzle with dressing, and enjoy!

Maple-Pear Baked Steel Cut Oats

I just couldn't get enough Baked Apple and Peanut Butter Steel Cut Oats last weekend and even as I was enjoying them for breakfast last Saturday and Sunday, my mind was already racing with ideas for other baked steel cut oat recipes. While I loved the apple and peanut butter combination, I think I like the maple syrup and pear combination even more. I'm a fool for anything with maple syrup and I've rarely been disappointed by adding it to a dish, so it's no wonder I adore this recipe. This definitely isn't the end of experimenting with this recipe and I look forward to putting together some more creative combinations in the future.

Maple-Pear Baked Steel Cut Oats

serves 1

1/2 whole pear, diced
1/4 cups steel cut oats
1/2 cup milk
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
1 tablespoon chopped toasted walnuts


1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place diced pears in the bottom of an individual-sized oven proof dish.

2. Pour steel cut oats over the pear, then add milk and bake for 30 minutes.

3. Remove from the oven and top with maple syrup and toasted walnuts. Enjoy!

Pear and Buckwheat Pancakes

My newest cookbook obsession is Good to the Grain, which is about baking with whole grain flours. Whenever I get a new cooking magazine or cookbook, I go through page-by-page, marking every recipe I want to try soon with a Post-It. With this cookbook, I've marked more than half of the recipes. Normally I wouldn't consider a pancake recipe worthy of mention, but this one definitely is. Even though these are made entirely from whole-grain flour, they are surprisingly light, yet filling. I love the flavor of the buckwheat flour with subtle hints of pear and it's nice to get away from the basic buttermilk or whole-wheat pancakes I usually make.


Pear and Buckwheat Pancakes
from Good to the Grain by Kim Boyce

makes about 12 pancakes

Fragrant ripe pears and rich honey butter are a great match for the dark, earthy flavors of buckwheat flour in these pancakes-imagine a plate of traditional blini but bigger, heartier, and laden with fruit. Choose a honey with a sweet, mild flavor, such as acacia or orange-blossom. And make sure that your pears are juicy and ripe, but not so soft that they fall apart when you grate them. If you don't have whole-grain pastry flour, use all-purpose flour instead. The pancakes won't have quite the pillowy texture they would with pastry flour, but they'll have the same delicious flavor.

Butter for the pan

Dry mix:
1 c. buckwheat flour
1 c. whole-grain pastry flour
3 T. sugar
2 t. baking powder
3/4 t. kosher salt

Wet Mix:
2 T. unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1.25 c. whole milk
1 egg
2 medium pears, ripe but firm

Finish:
4 oz. (1 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 c. honey


1. Sift the dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl, pouring back into the bowl any bits of grains or other ingredients that may remain in the sifter.

2. Whisk the melted butter, milk, and egg until thoroughly combined.

3. Peel the pears. Using the large holes on a box grater, grate the whole peeled pears into the milk mixture; the pear juice should fall into the milk along with the grated pears.

4. Using a spatula, add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and gently combine. For tender pancakes, it is important that you use a light hand as you gently fold the batter with the spatula. The batter should be slightly thick, with small pieces of pear flecked throughout.

5. Although the batter is best if used immediately, it can sit for about an hour on the counter or overnight in the refrigerator. When you return to the batter, it will be very thick and should be thinned, 1 tablespoon at a time, with milk-take great care not to overmix.

6. Meanwhile, melt the butter and honey together in a small saucepan and cook until boiling, emulsified, and slightly thickened, about 2 to 3 minutes. Pour in the honey butter into a serving pitcher and set it in a warm place near the stove.

7. Heat a 10-inch cast-iron pan or griddle over medium heat until water sizzles when splashed on the pan. Rube the pan generously with butter; this is the key to crisp, buttery edges, my favorite part of any pancake. Working quickly, dollop 1/4-cup mounds of batter on to the pan, 2 or 3 at a time. Once bubbles have begun to form on the top side of the pancakes, flip it over and cook until the bottom is dark golden-brown, about 5 minutes total.

8. Wipe the pan with a cloth before griddling the next batch. Rub the pan with butter and continue with the rest of the batter. If the pan is too hot or not hot enough, adjust the flame accordingly to keep results consistent.

9. Serve the pancakes hot, straight from the skillet, with the pitcher of honey butter, encouraging your guests to pour liberally.