Older Bolder Life

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leeks

the Older Bolder Life Vegetable Wednesday: Grilled Leeks and Zucchini with Pecans

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I promise this will be the last zucchini recipe I’ll post for a while; the zucchini coming in now are just so good, so available, and such a good buy right now I couldn’t resist this one.

That said, the real star of this dish is actually the grilled leeks, something you don’t see all that often, though they’re delicious and should be on everyone’s radar during the summer grilling season.

And besides tasting great, leeks are packed with a host of nutrients and phytochemicals, including impressive amounts of vitamin K, manganese, copper, vitamins B6, C, A, folate, iron, the flavonoid kaempferol, and a number of antioxidant polyphenols.

This recipe is easy-peasy, just don’t overcook the vegetables on the grill; they need to crisp-tender and not soggy. By the way, you can use whatever nuts you favor or have on hand, we used pecans given the Texas penchant for pecans, though this would be great with walnuts as well…

1/3 cup pecans
5 tbsp avocado or extra virgin olive oil, divided
2 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 garlic clove, grated
Good salt
Fresh ground black pepper

2 large leeks, white and pale-green parts only, see below
2-3 medium zucchini (about a pound), scrubbed, halved lengthwise
1/2 cup (generous) fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

Toast the pecans (oven or skillet) until fragrant, chop coarsely, then throw into large bowl along with 3 tbsp of your oil of choice, the lemon juice, grated garlic, a generous pinch of salt and fresh ground pepper.
Fire the grill and prep the vegetables; leave the root end of the leeks intact and slice in half lengthwise once trimmed to length. Coat the vegetable with the remaining oil and season generously with salt and pepper.

Now grill the vegetables over a hot fire, turning every minute or so, until well marked and they begin to tenderize – be careful to not overcook, you want the vegetables to be “al dente” and not mushy.

When done, pull the vegetables and place on a cutting board; cut into bite-sized pieces (trim the root ends of the leeks of course), and add to the bowl with the pecans and vinaigrette along with the parsley. Toss to combine well and coat the vegetables, adjust seasonings for salt, pepper, and lemon.

Enjoy.

the Older Bolder Life Vegetable Wednesday 5 December: Avocado Oil Roasted Leeks

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We dined with friends several weeks ago and the hostess served these simple yet delicious Avocado Oil Roasted Leeks with the meal. They were a perfect texture with a soft body complemented by just enough crispy browned edges, and what an amazing flavor.

We love leeks around our camp, using them in a number of soups and stews, as well as my wife’s favorite boeuf bourguignon recipe (I don’t think we’ve posted that one yet, I’ll make sure we get that done before the holiday week upcoming…)

These couldn’t be more simple to do, though with a two-hour cook time, you’ll need to plan ahead a bit. And by the way, our hostess had prepared these with a very nice olive oil, though we’ve since made them with avocado oil (both for taste preference and avocado oil’s much higher smoke point).

By the way, the oil remaining after cooking makes an amazing contribution to your next vinaigrette…

8 leeks, white and pale green sections, split lengthwise
1/2 cup good avocado oil (maybe a little more)
Good salt

Throw a rimmed baking sheet in the oven and preheat to 400.

Prep your leeks, minding to use only the white and the pale green stem sections; cut them in half lengthwise and wash thoroughly to remove the sand and grit. Take care to pat them as dry as you can after washing.

Now toss with the avocado oil and season generously with your favorite salt.

Pull the hot baking sheet from the oven, arrange the leeks cut side down on the hot sheet, then cover loosely with foil. Throw them back in the oven, reduce the heat to 300, and leave them alone for an hour and 20 minutes. Check at that point to see if they’re tender and lightly browned; they might need another 10-20 minutes.

Now remove the foil and turn the leeks cut sides up; turn the over up to 400 and slide the leeks back in until they’re golden brown and the tops (cut sides) look a little crispy.

Save that oil by the way, it’s great for roasting vegetables or making a flavorful vinaigrette…

Enjoy.

the Older Bolder Life Vegetable Wednesday 11 July: Grilled Leeks

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We’re huge fans of the lovely leek around our camp, and love it when big bundles show up stacked in ice at our favorite Central Market here in the metro.

Leeks play well in so many different recipes, but one of our absolute favorite preps is to grill them, though given their size they can be a challenge to cook through on the grill without burning the outer leaves (pending your fire and degree of attention nursing them along, some might take as long as 30 minutes to cook through).

Our friend Chef Libby in Austin showed us this trick a few years back of starting the cook with a quick (no more than 5 minutes!) par-boil, followed by a shock in cold water, then followed by a much more reasonable, olive-oil-basted, 6-10 minutes on the grill.

Don’t forget to prep your leeks carefully, the coarse greens must be trimmed, the body of the leek split and the layers washed thoroughly to remove all the sand they grow in. It’s worth the extra couple of  minutes to do this right.

And a sprinkling of good salt really makes these sing hot off the grill…

4-6 large leeks, trimmed and prepped (see above)
Kosher salt
2 tbsp good EVOO or avocado oil
Freshly ground black pepper

Prep your leeks are detailed above; while you’re doing so bring a large pot or skillet of salted water to a boil. Now gently boil the leeks for just three to five minutes; you’re looking for them to soften a bit but you don’t want their bright green color to fade.

Immediately plunge into an ice water bath; keep the leeks in the cool water until they’re cool, then remove and pat dry.

Fire the grill, brush the leeks with your oil of choice, and grill over direct heat for 3-5 minutes per side. We like ours to crisp up and brown a bit with nice grill marks.

Pull the leeks, and season to taste with good salt, fresh ground pepper, and perhaps even another drizzle of good oil.

Enjoy.