Italian Green Sauce – Salsa Verde

Have you ever seen such a beautiful bouquet of flat-leaf parsley?   This organically grown herb grows in one of the vegetable beds at Sylvan Rodriguez Elementary School in Houston.  In the shadow of the Williams Tower (formerly Transco Tower see it in the top right hand corner?)  this notable school hosts the Recipe for Success program that I praised in my previous post.  I picked a lovely bunch and admired my fresh arrangement at home for several days – pinching leaves and enjoying the crisp green taste in my mouth it’s a great breath freshener!

Remember when curly parsley was merely a colorful decoration on your dinner plate, left untouched, then dumped in the rubbish bin?   Fresh parsley has since taken top billing in our kitchens in the likes of tabbouleh, chimichurri and pesto.  It’s a subtle flavoring in many other dishes including dressings, stocks and sauces.  Loaded with Vitamin C (it has three times the amount in oranges), Vitamins A and K, iron and folate, parsley also has therapeutic value as a diuretic.  When used to make tea, it can reduce high blood pressure.  It can also help to settle an upset stomach and is rich in antioxidants.  Because it is so readily available, don’t even think about buying the dried, dead leaves in a jar to cook with – it just won’t cut it and I’ll come and admonish you!

I looked for a recipe that used a generous amount of fresh parsley.  Green Sauce, or Salsa Verde comes from Mario Batali’s Molto Mario cookbook.  Batali serves this sauce with a variety of meats (calf tongue, veal, brisket, beef cheeks, sausage, capon and turkey) in broth.   With all of those meats in a bowl, Mario found a way to add a seafood component as well, so…salt-packed anchovies come on the scene via a flavorful and complex sauce.  After test-tasting the mixture, I added a clove of garlic – and WOW – it’s the bomb!   Not only is it delicious, it’s also very versatile - you can use it as a dipping sauce or in an appetizer (see my crostini below).  We enjoyed the sauce with roasted chicken breasts the other night and on broiled fish and sweet potatoes last night. 

 

Italian Green Sauce – Salsa Verde     Adapted from Mario Batali’s Molto Italiano cookbook.

I bunch Italian flat-leaf parsley, rinsed, leaves only

4 salt-packed anchovies (canned), rinsed and picked over for visible bones (anchovy bones are very soft, small and edible so you don’t have to remove them all)

1 small bunch mint, rinsed, leaves only

2 tablespoons capers, rinsed

1 hard-boiled egg, cooled

1 clove garlic, peeled

1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes

4 cornichons or ½ large kosher dill

2 tablespoons white or red wine vinegar

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Place parsley, anchovies, mint, capers, egg, garlic, cornichons, vinegar, olive oil and black pepper in a food processor and blend until smooth.

Serve at room temperature.

And just because I’m my father’s daughter and I have the stomach and taste buds that can handle intense flavors, I made crostini with toasted sesame bread and green sauce.  I topped them each with a tiny, briny, oily and pungent anchovy filet - not for the squeamish…but give it a try!

 Prijatno!

Recipe for Success foundation and 1-2-3 Salad

Ever the diligent volunteers, my friend Chantal and I arrived at Sylvan Rodriguez Elementary School to support our new pet project, Recipe for Success.  Founded by philanthropist Gracie Cavnar, Recipe for Success is a non-profit charity that has been active in five fortunate Houston I.S.D. schools for the last four years. 

The primary goal of RFS is to combat childhood obesity.  Students are taught that nutritious food comes from the ground and not at a drive-thru window or in a sealed plastic bag or box.  The Foundation hopes to increase the students’ awareness and appreciation for fresh fruits and vegetables by teaching them how to garden and harvest their crops.  They then use the produce in simple recipes using basic cooking techniques.

To help inspire the kids, well-known local chefs volunteer their time in the classrooms.  With the help of Houston’s own Monica Pope of t’afia, chef participation has grown to include the likes of chefs Randy Evans, Robert Del Grande, David Luna, Randy Rucker, Bryan Caswell, Chris Shepherd, Ryan Pera and many, many more.

Rodriguez Elementary is lucky to have chef Mark Wilson as its full-time instructor.  Here he assists students with the dressing for 1-2-3 Salad.

A former Broadway actor, musician and playwright, chef Wilson does an excellent job of capturing the students’ attention!

Students took turns at whisking the vinaigrette to the count of 10.  As an added bonus, the ever enthusiastic Chantal, a Belgian Francophile, broke out into her native French and taught the kids to count from 1 – 10!  They also learned a new word – emulsion.  They’re not just making any old salad – this is a gourmet salad with balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, feta cheese and walnuts.  Love it!

At each participating campus, the Seed-to-Plate Nutrition Education™ program uses an organic garden as an outdoor classroom.  This expansive garden at Rodriguez Elementary has about 18 raised beds.  Each grade level is responsible for three of them.  I came away with a bunch of the most beautiful flat-leaf parsley that you will see in my next post.

Let’s see how big this pumpkin can grow!

These basil plants are setting their seeds.  Here the students learn about perennials and planting from seed. 

Newly harvested sweet potatoes and delicate lettuce leaves.  Look at the size of those tubers!

Eggplants!

Believe it or not, after the dressing was made, there was a mad dash to do the dishes, which I’m sure rarely happens at home!  Chef Dwain, an intern with RFS, prepares sweet, salty, bitter and sour ingredients for a tasting of flavors – and a fancy new word entered their culinary vocabulary:  UMAMI

The view from the dishwashing stand is to this pretty atrium: bird feeders, a small pond, fruit trees, potted herbs, raised beds, a compost barrel and a busy teacher named Mrs. Silverstone!

Decorated pots in the atrium.

This cutie enjoyed sweeping the floor. 

All in all, the students are exposed to healthy cooking ingredients which have sadly become foreign to many households.   Most students loved the salad and also the feta cheese and asked for more - a sure sign that young palates are much more receptive to delicious and healthy fare than we give them credit for. 

Our beautiful Houston fall weather prompted a fun picnic between the vegetable beds.  Students lined up for a ‘wrap’ of salad greens served with their own home-made salad dressing served by Mrs. Silverstone and Chantal.  Many came back for more…and more.  It was an encouraging sight!

This 1-2-3 Salad includes fresh mixed salad greens and is supplemented with nuts, grains, cheese and just a little bit of sugar (in the form of honey in this recipe).  It provides more precious nutrients than the oppressively sweet cereals and processed foods targeted at our school-aged children.

1-2-3 Salad, adapted from the original recipe by chef Monica Pope

4 servings

2 - 3 large handfuls of mixed lettuce (choose a mixture for color, texture and flavor), washed and patted dry on a towel

¼ cup nuts (walnuts, almonds, pecans)

½ cup fruit (dried or fresh)

¼ cup cooked grains or pasta (quinoa, orzo, couscous)

¼ cup cheese (feta, parmesan, blue cheese)

For the dressing: (use about half of this recipe for 4 people)

1/8 cup balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon honey

½ teaspoon Dijon mustard

¼ teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

Make the dressing by putting balsamic vinegar, honey, mustard, salt and pepper in a bowl. Whisk quickly to combine. Add olive oil, drop by drop, as you whisk the dressing quickly. The dressing will thicken and emulsify and resemble a deep caramel color. Set aside.

To assemble the salad place in a bowl the lettuce mix, nuts, fruit, grains and cheese.  Check the dressing: if it is very thick, add a little lemon juice or water to it.  Add 1/4 cup of dressing and toss to combine all ingredients. Add more dressing, if desired. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste, if necessary.

Prijatno!