Three Recipes from Chef Analise Roland

First course: Tangy Apple Cider Kale Salad

Serves 2

Ingredients

• Half a bunch of red kale, destemmed and thinly sliced
• 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar (per batch of kale)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Sea salt (to taste)
• Lemon zest (to taste)

Directions

1. Place a cast-iron pan or skillet on the stovetop, add a little olive oil and bring to medium heat.
2. Meanwhile, in a medium-sized bowl, toss your de-stemmed kale in olive oil and sea salt.
3. Once the pan is hot, place the kale inside and carefully pour apple cider vinegar on top (it will steam, so watch out!). Continuously stir the kale until it has fully wilted.
4. Add to plates and serve topped with an extra pinch of sea salt and lemon zest.

Second course: Herby Butternut Squash Purée

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 1 butternut squash
• 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
• 2 sprigs of fresh thyme
• Sea salt (to taste)
• 1-2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup veggie or chicken stock (adjust for desired texture)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 415°. Clean and cube the butternut squash and add to a medium-sized bowl.
2. Remove the rosemary and thyme leaves from the woody stems. You can pinch them off with your fingers or use a knife to cut them off quickly.
3. Add the rosemary and thyme to the bowl with the squash and toss with sea salt and olive oil.
4. Spread the mixture out on a baking sheet and roast for 30 minutes or until tender.
5. Remove from the oven and put into a food processor or blender.
6. Begin blending as you slowly add stock to taste. The more stock you add, the soupier the purée will become. Once the purée is to your desired consistency, pour into bowls and serve with an extra drizzle of olive oil.

Third course: Peppercorn and Grapefruit Brined Boneless Pork Chops

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 2 boneless pork chops
• 6 cups of cold water
• 1 tbsp peppercorns
• 1 cup of grapefruit rinds (or other citrus)
• 4 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• ⅛ tsp of sea salt

Directions

1. Six hours before serving the pork, place the pork into a brine of the cold water, black peppercorns, citrus rinds (any citrus will do, but I prefer grapefruit or orange), smashed garlic, olive oil, and sea salt
2. Let sit for 6 hours, then remove from the brine before you begin grilling.
3. Heat the grill to 450°. While the grill warms up, pat the pork chops dry and sprinkle them with sea salt.
4. Add the pork chops to the grill and sear for 3 minutes on each side. They’ll keep cooking once you take them off, so plan to plate and serve them quickly!

Q & A with Analise

Q: Why is addressing food waste important to you?

Most retail stores have such strict guidelines for what they will sell that sometimes almost half of a farm’s harvest will go to waste! It broke my heart to think of such incredible food going to waste when there were so many hungry mouths to feed. At the same time, the chefs I admired most taught me how food waste can be avoided in the kitchen by using the whole animal, the whole vegetable, the whole fruit. There are so many ways to cook with carrot tops, the rinds of oranges, and even the bones of a chicken that will enrich the flavors of food and greatly lower food waste in the kitchen.

Q: How do you reduce food waste in your cooking?

I’m constantly working on using all parts of every ingredient in my recipe formulation. For example, animal scraps and bones make rich, deep broths to nourish and heal your gut from the inside out (also they make great bases for soups). The rinds of citrus and apples can be added to brines and zested into salads for an extra zing. Carrot tops (one of my favorite things to use) can be turned into a wonderful pesto with basil and pumpkin seeds and more.

Q: What advice do you have for people who want to reduce waste when they cook?

You would be surprised how much of the “waste” you think you have in your kitchen can be repurposed or used to add even more depth of flavor and texture to your dishes. If you’re a meal planner, I suggest taking an extra look at your recipes to see what you can use and where. For example, if you’re roasting a chicken, can you make bone broth out of the leftover bones? Can you use those leftover apple and orange peels in a cocktail, as zest for a salad, or cooked down and served on ice cream?