Roasted Vegetables & Freekeh
Oven-roasted Brussels sprouts, delicata squash, fennel, onions, purple carrots, hinona kabu turnips, freekeh with red wine vinegar, kale, crumbled feta, pine nuts, fresh pea shoots
The great thing about this recipe is that you can really substitute whatever vegetables are in season. We found these strange purple hinona kabu turnips at the farmer’s market, so we had to try them out, but you could just as easily use another type of turnip or radish. I wouldn’t lose the fennel, because I always think fennel adds a little something special that you can’t really find in other veggies, but feel free to experiment!
As for the freekeh: when we first discovered it, we had to order it online because it was so hard to find, but I’ve finally started to see it popping up on the top shelves of grocery stores (at least in Philly and Cambridge). It’s a super healthy and versatile grain, so I definitely recommend trying it—though if you can’t find it, quinoa will definitely get the job done for this recipe.
Recipe
Ingredients: 1 ball of dough flour for dusting semolina flour for pizza stone olive oil salt & pepper handful of pine nuts crumbled feta cheese fresh pea shoots (or other microgreens)
For the roasted veggies: 1 medium fennel bulb, halved & sliced into wedges 2-3 hinona kabu turnips, trimmed & sliced lengthwise 1 small yellow onion, peeled & sliced into thin wedges 4 carrots, sliced diagonally into 1-inch pieces (we used purple carrots) 2 small delicata squash, seeds removed & sliced into 1-inch half moons ½ pound Brussels sprouts, trimmed & halved ¾ teaspoon salt a couple grinds of black pepper 2 teaspoons herbs de Provence pinch of cayenne
For the freekeh: 5 cups cold water 2 cups cracked freekeh 1 teaspoon salt a handful or two of kale, stems removed & leaves torn into small pieces (you can also just use whole leaves of baby kale) 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Directions: Preheat your oven to 400° F. Toss all the veggies with a few tablespoons of olive oil, plus the salt & pepper, herbs de Provence & cayenne, until everything is coated. Spread the veggies out in a single layer on a baking sheet (or two, if needed) and roast them in the oven for 20 minutes.
Turn up the heat to 425° F and cook for another 20 minutes, or until the vegetables are starting to look browned and crisp at the edges. Increase your oven temperature to 550° F.
While the vegetables are roasting, you can cook the freekeh. Add the water, freekeh, salt & a tablespoon of olive oil to a saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.
Cover the pot, lower the heat and simmer for about 10-15 minutes. When it’s finished, fluff with a fork and stir in the kale so it wilts slightly. Let it cool a bit and drizzle in a bit of olive oil and a couple tablespoons of red wine vinegar, plus some salt & pepper, tossing to coat.
Prepare your dough using the instructions on the right. When you’ve baked it for a minute, take it out and brush it lightly with olive oil. Spoon out an even layer of the kale and freekeh mixture (not too much, this is already a pretty heavily loaded pizza), followed by the feta, roasted veggies & pine nuts.
Pop your pizza in the oven and bake until the cheese is melty and the crust is a nice golden brown. Then take it out, top with the fresh pea shoots, and enjoy!