Sarasotas Simple Sides Mushrooms Fennel Tomatoes Onion Food

TOMATO AND FENNEL SALAD

Steps:

• Toss 2 pounds tomatoes (cut into wedges), 2 thinly sliced fennel bulbs and 1/2 thinly sliced red onion with 1/3 cup olive oil and 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar. Season with 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, 1 teaspoon sugar and a generous amount of pepper. Let sit at least 30 minutes. Toss with 1 cup fresh parsley and 1/2 cup fennel fronds before serving.

MUSHROOM, TOMATO AND ONION SAUTE

Steps:

• Preheat the pan over medium low heat then add 2 tablespoons olive oil.
• Add the onions and brown slowly until tender and golden, about 10 minutes.
• Add more oil if necessary and add mushrooms. Do not raise heat. Cook an additional 10 minutes.
• Add tomatoes and continue to cook until soft, 10-15 minutes.
• Season with salt and pepper and serve.

ROASTED FENNEL WITH TOMATOES

Steps:

• Core and thinly slice 2 fennel bulbs; chop some of the fronds. Peel the cloves from 1 garlic bulb and toss with the fennel and fronds, 1 quartered lemon, 3 tablespoons olive oil and 1 teaspoon each salt and sugar on a baking sheet. Roast in a 500 degrees F oven until golden, about 20 minutes. Toss in 1 pint grape tomatoes; roast until the tomatoes burst, 7 more minutes.

ROASTED FENNEL, MUSHROOM, & TOMATO WITH DILL

Steps:

• Slice red onion and fennel, chunk mushrooms,tomato and zucchini.
• Drizzle olive oil into a 9x13 oven proof casserole dish, add salt, pepper and dill.
• Add prepared vegetables and toss gently until well coated.
• Place in a 400F oven, bottom rack, stirring occasionally, cook for 8 - 12 minutes.

TOMATOES, MUSHROOMS, AND ONIONS

Steps:

• Cut onion into large dice.
• Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. When oil starts to sizzle, add onions.
• Cook until edges start to brown. Stir frequently.
• While onion cooks, cut tomatoes and mushrooms into large dice. Cut green onions into small dice.
• Rough chop basil and then bruise slightly.
• When onion is ready, add rest of vegetables.
• Combine well and lower heat to medium.
• Cook 5 minutes, stir occasionally.
• Add water, puree, garlic, pepper and salt (or Mrs. Dash).
• Combine very well. Lower heat to simmer. Cook another 5-6 minutes or until mushrooms start to give off their liquid and and start to soften.
• DO NOT COVER.
• Remove from heat. You want this dish to have consistency and not become mushy. This will not have alot of liquid when done.
• This can be divided, and packaged up for the freezer. It has a very long freezer shelf life.
• This makes a very good starter to a tomato sauce. It makes a very different pasta sauce when you add some sour cream or plain yogurt. It is wonderful for soups and stews. I use it mixed with some yogurt to top my salmon patties. It's yummy over baked potato or stirred into a bean dish.
• * Save those stems! Clean them, cut off the very bottom and then cut the rest of the stems into small pieces. Put into a freezer container, just cover with water, add scant pinch of salt, seal and freeze. You can add to this container at any time, just make sure the the stems are covered by water. Now they are ready, water and all to use in a soup or stew!
• ** I like to use a combo of fresh ground peppers, such as pink, and green along with the black. Nowadays, you can buy that type of combo in a handy small grinder in your supermarket.

COD WITH FENNEL, MUSHROOMS, TOMATO & DILL

Steps:

• Season cod with salt and pepper and squeese 2 lemon wedges over; set aside.
• Spray nonstick frypan with veggie spray, heat over high heat, add mushrooms, fennel and onion, reserving 4 onion slices. Cook stirring until onions are soft, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Place the 4 pieces of cod on top of the veggies; place one slice of tomato on top each piece of cod and one slice of reserved onion slices on top of tomato. Sprinkle with Dill and squeese 2 more wedges of lemon over all; cover and simmer until cod is cooked through and flakes easily with a fork, about 15 minutes.
• Garnish with remaining lemon wedges and sprigs of fennel leaves.

FENNEL MUSHROOM SKILLET

Steps:

• Wash and trim fennel bulb. Slice into thin wedges. If desired, save some feathery tops for garnish.
• In a large skillet over med-high heat, melt butter. Add fennel, onions, white wine and soy sauce. Saute on med-high heat for about 2 minutes.
• Add mushrooms, garlic, salt and pepper. Continue to cook, stirring often, for an additional 7-9 minutes or until veggies are crisp-tender, or tenderness of your liking.

ROASTED TOMATOES AND MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees with racks in upper and lower thirds. Place tomatoes on one rimmed baking sheet, and mushrooms on another. Toss mushrooms with 1/4 cup oil and 1 tablespoon thyme. Toss tomatoes with remaining oil and thyme. Season both with salt and pepper. Spread each in a single layer, turning tomatoes cut-sides up.
• Roast tomatoes on upper rack 15 minutes. Add mushrooms to lower rack and continue roasting until vegetables are soft and golden brown in places, 35 to 45 minutes more. Serve warm or room temperature.

SARASOTA'S GRILLED GREEN BEANS, PEPPERS, OLIVES & FENNEL

Steps:

• Vinaigrette -- Mix the olive oil, vinegar, dijon, honey, garlic and a little of the salt and pepper. You can always add more and just set to the side.
• Vegetables (beans and peppers) -- Just toss with 1 tablespoon olive oil, salt and pepper in a small bowl, and then add to a medium high heat grill pan or grill and cook 10-12 minutes until all the vegetables have nice grill marks and soft, but let them over cook. I still like a little crisp in my vegetables.
• Fennel -- To that same grill pan, we need to cook the fennel. This is a method which actually grills with a little coating to give it a crisp coating without frying.
• Add the flour and red pepper flakes to a large baggie and add the fennel slices and shake well to combine. Make sure to shake off most of the flour and then add to the grill pan and spray with a little Pam. This will help them to brown and crisp up.
• Finish -- Just remove the grilled peppers and beans to a large bowl, add the olives, and toss lightly with the Balsamic Vinaigrette. Plate and then top with the fennel. That's it. I hope you enjoy it. It is a really fun dish and really simple and always a favorite of my friends.
• Just a little twist on the standard saute.

SARASOTA'S SIMPLE SIDES-MUSHROOMS, FENNEL, TOMATOES & ONION

Steps:

• Vinaigrette -- Add all the ingredients to a measuring cup and mix well.
• Marinade -- Add all the vegetables to a small cookie sheet or casserole dish in a single layer and pour over the marinade. Make sure you turn over each vegetable slice to insure that it is covered with the marinade. Cover with plastic wrap and cover 30 minutes up to 2 hours.
• Grill -- I just spray my indoor or outdoor grill with a non stick spray, or you can even just broil on a cookie sheet lined with parchment or foil. They will take about 10-12 minutes to cook depending on your method.
• Serve -- Each person get a tomato slice, piece of fennel, onion and mushroom. It just makes an easy and healthy side dish.