Seasonal Side Dishes

Paul Virant
Chicago, IL

Chef's Recipe
Soups & Sides
Winter

Delicata squash, pea shoots, blue cheese

(serves 8)

4 delicata squash, washed, split lengthwise, thinly sliced

3T grape seed oil

3T butter

5 cloves garlic, minced

Salt and pepper

1 lemon juice and zest

2 quarts pea shoots

Blue cheese

-roast the squash in the butter and oil until caramelized (about 5-7 min)

-season, add the garlic, cook another minute

-remove from heat, add the lemon juice and zest

-toss in pea shoots, garnish with crumbled blue cheese, serve

Roasted river valley mushrooms with pickled green beans

(serves 8)

1# oyster mushrooms, torn

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 sweet onion, sliced

3T grape seed oil

3T butter

Salt and pepper

1c pickled green beans, sliced with ½ c of the pickling liquid

-roast the mushrooms in a wide hot pan with the butter and oil for @2 minutes

-add the onion and garlic, cook 2 more minutes, season

-deglaze with the beans, serve

Caramelized chestnuts, sunchokes, milk jam

(serves 8)

½# iqf (individually quick frozen) chestnuts, thawed

½# sunchokes, scrubbed, washed and thinly sliced

4oz butter

Water

1 sprig of rosemary

Salt and pepper

1/2c milk jam (or sweetened condensed milk)

-in a wide saucepan cook the chestnuts in butter to brown @5 minutes

-add the rosemary, cover with a lid and continue cooking on low heat another 10 minutes until they are almost cooked through

-add the sunchokes, cover and cook until tender

Serve with a garnish of rosemary