Napa Cabbage Salad with Parmesan and Pistachios

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 28-oz. Napa cabbage, tough outer leaves removed, halved, leaves torn into 3"–4" pieces

• 1½ tsp. flaky sea salt, plus more

• ½ cup coarsely chopped raw pistachios

• 1 tsp. plus 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil; plus more for drizzling

• ½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper, plus more

• 1 sprig thyme

• ½ tsp. finely grated orange zest

• ½ tsp. sugar

• 2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar

• 2 tsp. honey

• 1 cup parsley leaves with tender stems

• 1 Tbsp. thinly sliced chives

• 3 oz. Parmesan, shaved, plus more for serving

PREPARATION:

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Place cabbage in a large bowl and sprinkle with 1½ tsp. salt. Toss, massaging with your hands, to soften a bit; set aside.

2. Toss pistachios and 1 tsp. oil on a rimmed baking sheet; season with salt and pepper. Roast, tossing once, until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl. Add thyme, orange zest, and sugar and toss to combine. Let cool; discard thyme sprigs.

3. Whisk vinegar, honey, and ½ tsp. pepper in a small bowl to combine; season with a pinch of salt. Drizzle over cabbage and add parsley, chives, 3 oz. Parmesan, ¼ cup pistachios, and 2 Tbsp. oil. Toss to combine, then taste and season with more salt and pepper if needed.

4. Transfer cabbage salad to a platter and top with more Parmesan and remaining pistachios. Season with pepper and drizzle with some more oil.

Do Ahead: Cabbage can be massaged up to 3 hours in advance. Cover and keep chilled.

Caramelized Onion and Swiss Chard Quiche

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 whole wheat pie crust, chilled

• 2 yellow onions, chopped

• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

• 2 tablespoons butter

• 1/2 bunch Swiss chard, ribs removed, leaves chopped (about 2 1/2 cups)

• 1 cup half and half

• 4 large eggs, beaten

• 1 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning

• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, plus more for seasoning

• 1 pinch fresh ground nutmeg

PREPARATION:

1. Heat a large non-stick pan to medium high and add chopped onions. Cook until browned but not burnt, about 6 minutes. Add a tablespoon of butter, the fresh thyme, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Lower the heat to medium and continue to stir while cooking. Add the remaining tablespoon of butter when the onions become dry and start sticking to the pan, about another 5 minutes.

2. Once the onions are evenly caramelized, about another 5 minutes, add the chopped chard and sauté until wilted, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.

3. Preheat to 425°F. In a medium bowl, whisk the half and half, beaten eggs, salt, pepper, and nutmeg together.

4. Mix in cooled onion and chard mixture. Pour filling into crust. Place the quiche on a baking sheet to make it easier to transport and in case the filling overflows in the oven.

5. Bake quiche for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°F and bake until filling is puffed and just set in center, about 10-15 minutes longer. Transfer to rack and cool 10 minutes. Serve hot or at room temperature.

6. You can freeze the quiche after it has cooled. To reheat, place in a preheated 350°F oven for about 30 minutes, until heated through.

Roasted Rutabaga with Maple Syrup and Thyme

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 large or 2 small rutabaga

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 3 tablespoons maple syrup (see notes)

• salt

• 1 tsp dried thyme

• black pepper

• 1 tbsp fresh thyme (for garnish - optional)

PREPARATION:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200ºC/390ºF. Place a roasting tin the oven to heat up.

2. Peel the rutabagas and cut them into large chunks.

3. Place the rutabagas in a and dress with the olive oil, maple syrup and dried thyme.

4. Add in a good sprinkle of salt and pepper and toss to combine well.

5. Spoon the rutabaga into the roasting tin, reserving any dressing that has pooled at the bottom of the bowl.

6. Roast in the oven, for 25 minutes, then drizzle over the reserved dressing and cook for a further 15-20 minutes until crisp and golden.

7. Serve with a sprinkling of fresh thyme (Or chives works well too!)

Recipe Notes: Use real maple syrup here, the flavored syrups burn quickly and don't have the depth of flavor you need.

Purple Top Turnip & Apple Slaw

INGREDIENTS:

Slaw:

• 2 purple top turnips

• 1 apple (whatever variety you prefer)

• 1/3 cup raw pumpkin seeds

• 1/3 cup olive oil

• 1/2 lemon

Dressing:

• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

• 1 tsp dijon mustard

• 1 tablespoon honey (sub agave or maple syrup if you don’t use honey)

• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

• salt + pepper to taste

PREPARATION:

1. Julienne apples and turnips - Peel turnips and slice into 1/4 inch slices.  Stack slices on top of each other cut as thin as you can into “matchsticks”.  Repeat with unpeeled apple.  (or use mandolin).  Place in large bowl, and squeeze 1/2 lemon over so apples don’t turn brown.

2. Make dressing -  Combine remaining ingredients except pumpkin seeds in a glass jar with a tight fitting lid.  Shake until combined.

3. Pour dressing over slaw -  Mix pumpkin seeds, dressing, and slaw until combined.

Stuffed Pumpkin

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 pumpkin, about 3 pounds

• Salt and freshly ground pepper

• 1/4 pound stale bread, thinly sliced and cut into 1/2-inch chunks

• 1/4 pound cheese, such as Gruyère, Emmenthal, cheddar, or a combination, cut into 1/2-inch chunks

• 2-4 garlic cloves (to taste), split, germ removed, and coarsely chopped

• 4 slices bacon, cooked until crisp, drained, and chopped

• About 1/4 cup snipped fresh chives or sliced scallions

• 1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme

• About 1/3 cup heavy cream

• Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

PREPARATION:

1. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment, or find a Dutch oven with a diameter that's just a tiny bit larger than your pumpkin. If you bake the pumpkin in a casserole, it will keep its shape, but it might stick to the casserole, so you'll have to serve it from the pot—which is an appealingly homey way to serve it. If you bake it on a baking sheet, you can present it freestanding, but maneuvering a heavy stuffed pumpkin with a softened shell isn't so easy. However, since I love the way the unencumbered pumpkin looks in the center of the table, I've always taken my chances with the baked-on-a-sheet method, and so far, I've been lucky.

2. Using a very sturdy knife—and caution—cut a cap out of the top of the pumpkin (think Halloween Jack-o-Lantern). It's easiest to work your knife around the top of the pumpkin at a 45-degree angle. You want to cut off enough of the top to make it easy for you to work inside the pumpkin. Clear away the seeds and strings from the cap and from inside the pumpkin. Season the inside of the pumpkin generously with salt and pepper, and put it on the baking sheet or in the pot.

3. Toss the bread, cheese, garlic, bacon, and herbs together in a bowl. Season with pepper—you probably have enough salt from the bacon and cheese, but taste to be sure—and pack the mix into the pumpkin. The pumpkin should be well filled—you might have a little too much filling, or you might need to add to it. Stir the cream with the nutmeg and some salt and pepper and pour it into the pumpkin. Again, you might have too much or too little—you don't want the ingredients to swim in cream, but you do want them nicely moistened. (It's hard to go wrong here.)

4. Put the cap in place and bake the pumpkin for about 2 hours—check after 90 minutes—or until everything inside the pumpkin is bubbling and the flesh of the pumpkin is tender enough to be pierced easily with the tip of a knife. Because the pumpkin will have exuded liquid, I like to remove the cap during the last 20 minutes or so, so that the liquid can bake away and the top of the stuffing can brown a little.

5. When the pumpkin is ready, carefully, very carefully—it's heavy, hot, and wobbly—bring it to the table or transfer it to a platter that you'll bring to the table.

Serving: You have a choice—you can either spoon out portions of the filling, making sure to get a generous amount of pumpkin into the spoonful, or you can dig into the pumpkin with a big spoon, pull the pumpkin meat into the filling, and then mix everything up. I'm a fan of the pull-and-mix option. Served in hearty portions followed by a salad, the pumpkin is a perfect cold-weather main course; served in generous spoonfuls, it's just right alongside the Thanksgiving turkey.

Storing: It's really best to eat this as soon as it's ready. However, if you've got leftovers, you can scoop them out of the pumpkin, mix them up, cover, and chill them; reheat them the next day.