Tag Archives: fennel

Roasted Fennel with Orange-Honey Dressing

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Fennel is a love it or hate it vegetable because of the intense anise flavors. But roasting the bulbous veggie helps mellow the licorice notes and turns its fibrous texture luxuriously creamy. For this roasted fennel, Cook’s Illustrated (CI) began by cutting the bulbs into wedges, which had two benefits: It provided good surface area for browning, and the attached core kept the pieces intact.

Covering the pieces with foil for most of the cooking time allowed them to steam and turn creamy; then remove the foil for the last 10 minutes of roasting so that they can turn golden and deliciously caramelized. Toss the wedges with salted water before covering them, which provides moisture for steaming and helps get seasoning between the layers.

Arranging the pieces on the long sides of a rimmed baking sheet ensures that all the pieces get equal exposure to the heat and browned evenly. However, the original recipe did not specify what size rimmed baking sheet and we used the smaller quarter sheet pan instead of a half sheet pan. Because of that, we think it took much longer for the liquid to evaporate, thus much longer for the fennel wedges to brown. In fact, we even put them under the broiler at the end for a minute or so.

The tart dressing made with orange juice and honey is the perfect complement to the sweet fennel. WOW, we practically swooned when eating it! And it was a great side dish to complement our Sear Roasted Salmon entrée, but I changed the number of servings from 4-6 to 3-4; we almost finished it off between the two of us.

CI Note: Look for fennel bulbs that measure 3½ to 4 inches in diameter and weigh around 1 pound with the stalks (12 to 14 ounces without); trim the bases very lightly so that the bulbs remain intact.

Roasted Fennel with Orange-Honey Dressing

  • Servings: 3-4
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

  • 2 fennel bulbs, trimmed of stalks (but save some fronds for garnish), bases lightly trimmed
  • 2 Tbsp. fronds chopped coarse, stalks discarded
  • 2 Tbsp. water
  • 1 tsp. kosher salt
  • 3 Tbsp. vegetable oil
  • ¼ tsp. pepper

Dressing

  • 1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 tsp. honey
  • 1 ½ tsp. white wine vinegar
  • â…› tsp. grated orange zest plus 1 tablespoon juice
  • Pinch kosher salt

Directions

  1. FOR THE FENNEL: Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees. Spray rimmed baking sheet with vegetable oil spray.
  2. Cut each fennel bulb lengthwise through core into 8 wedges (do not remove core). Whisk water and salt in large bowl until salt is dissolved. Add fennel wedges to bowl and toss gently to coat. Drizzle with oil, sprinkle with pepper, and toss gently to coat.
  3. Arrange fennel wedges cut side down along 2 longer sides of prepared sheet. Drizzle any water in bowl evenly over fennel wedges. Cover sheet tightly with aluminum foil and roast for 20 minutes.
  4. Remove the foil from the sheet and continue to roast until side of fennel touching the sheet is browned, 5 to 8 minutes longer (this may take even longer than that), rotating sheet halfway through roasting.
  5. Flip each fennel wedge to second cut side. Continue to roast until second side is browned, 3 to 5 minutes (or more) longer. Transfer to serving dish.
  6. FOR THE DRESSING: While fennel roasts, whisk all ingredients together in small bowl.
  7. Whisk dressing to recombine when ready to use. Drizzle dressing over fennel, sprinkle with fennel fronds, and serve.

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Recipe from Cook’s Illustrated

Vermouth-Braised Chicken and Potatoes with Fennel

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This one-pot meal from Milk Street with classic Italian flavors couldn’t be easier. The ingredients are combined in the pot, then pressure cooked (or slow cooked) until the chicken is fork-tender. To finish the dish and create a flavorful sauce, the cooking liquid is thickened with a couple tablespoons of flour—just enough for clingability but without any heaviness. A little lemon juice adds acidity and brightness. Super Good!

It is suggested to serve over polenta or with hunks of crusty bread. Since we were doing neither, we increased the amount of baby potatoes by about 50%, to 12 ounces instead of 8 (which would be pretty paltry for four people). And with only 1.6 pounds of thighs, we were able to use our smaller 4-liter pressure cooker. Somehow we forgot to halve the potatoes, but they still came out tender and creamy.

Don’t worry that ½ cup vermouth is too little liquid. The chicken and vegetables release flavorful juices as they cook that, combined with the vermouth, form the base for the sauce.

Vermouth-Braised Chicken and Potatoes with Fennel

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

  • ½ cup white vermouth
  • 6 medium garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
  • 1 Tbsp. fennel seeds
  • Kosher salt and ground white pepper
  • 2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed
  • 8 oz. small yukon gold potatoes (1 to 1½ inches in diameter), halved
  • 1 medium fennel bulb, trimmed, halved, cored and thinly sliced
  • 1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups lightly packed baby arugula, roughly chopped
  • 1 Tbsp. lemon juice

Directions

  1. In a 6-quart Instant Pot, stir together the vermouth, garlic, fennel seeds, 1 teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon white pepper. Add the chicken, potatoes and fennel, distributing the ingredients in an even layer.
  2. Lock the lid in place and move the pressure valve to Sealing. Select Pressure Cook or Manual; make sure the pressure level is set to High. Set the cooking time for 8 minutes. When pressure cooking is complete, let the pressure release naturally until the float valve drops. Press Cancel, then carefully open the pot.
  3. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken and potatoes to a serving bowl, then tent with foil. In a small bowl, whisk the flour with 2 tablespoons of the cooking liquid until smooth, then stir into the pot. Select Normal/Medium Sauté and bring the liquid to a simmer. Cook, stirring often, until lightly thickened, 2 to 5 minutes. Off heat, stir in the arugula and lemon juice, then taste and season with salt and white pepper. Pour the sauce over the chicken and potatoes.

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Adapted from a recipe for Milk Street

Tuscany’s Fagioli All’uccelletto

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Otherwise known in English as White Beans with Sage, Garlic and Fennel. Super-fab! This one-pot vegetarian meal is so satisfying and tasty, that if you are a meat-eater—and we are—you won’t miss the meat. The simple combination of white beans, sage and garlic exemplifies the clarity of flavor the Tuscany region’s cooks can pull from just a few ingredients.

It is advised not to use cannellini beans, but rather Navy or Great Northern. We used the latter which are smaller than cannellini beans but larger than navy beans. Known for their delicate, nutty flavor, they’re usually added to casseroles and soups, such as this recipe. In summary, white beans provide a good source of protein, an excellent source of fiber, and several essential nutrients.

This recipe gave us a perfect opportunity to harvest the remainder of our fresh sage from the garden before the cold weather set in. Used in two ways—finely chopped and fried whole—this herb has a pronounced herbal flavor that is earthy, has a slightly peppery taste, and emits hints of mint, eucalyptus, and lemon. What’s more, sage is faintly piney, though not like juniper. It’s much softer and mixed with subtle citrus notes; perhaps a little on the bitter side, though not harshly so.

We loved it topped with an ample garnish of grated parmesan, but if omitted, it could work for the vegans in the family.

Don’t drain both cans of beans. The liquid from one of the cans creates a sauce-like consistency that keeps the beans succulent.

Tuscany's Fagioli All'uccelletto

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

  • 6 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided
  • 1 large fennel bulb, trimmed and finely chopped
  • 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
  • 4 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 3 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh sage, plus 20 whole leaves
  • ¼ tsp. red pepper flakes
  • Kosher salt and ground black pepper
  • 1 14½-oz. can diced tomatoes
  • 2 15½-oz. cans white beans, 1 can rinsed and drained
  • Shaved or grated parmesan cheese, to serve

Directions

  1. In a large Dutch oven over medium, heat 3 tablespoons of the oil until shimmering. Add the fennel, onion, garlic, chopped sage, red pepper flakes and 1 teaspoon salt. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables have softened, about 15 minutes.
  2. Stir in the tomatoes and the beans. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally and adjusting the heat as needed to maintain a gentle simmer, for 10 minutes. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
  3. Meanwhile, line a plate with paper towels. In a 12-inch skillet over medium-high, heat the remaining 3 tablespoons oil until shimmering. Add the sage leaves and cook, flipping the leaves once, until the edges begin to curl, about 1 minute. Transfer to the prepared plate; reserve the oil.
  4. Transfer the beans to a serving bowl, then drizzle with the sage oil. Coarsely crumble the sage leaves over the beans. Top with Parmesan.

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Recipe from Catherine Smart for Milk Street