I'm very proud to feature our good friend Philip Keil as the next Guest Designer. I've known Philip about as long as I've been in Austin (14 years!) and had the pleasure working alongside him at Furman + Keil Architects before joining forces with my husband at our own firm.
Philip and his wife Stacy graciously accepted our invitation to invade their kitchen for a day, agreeing to cook a winter meal consisting mainly of local ingredients - many from their own garden. So in honor of Edible Austin's Eat Local Week, we got busy planning our menu!
Our big day began at the downtown Farmer's Market. We found most of our needed veggies, and Philip picked up sausage and homemade stock from the Dai Due butcher shop. Their winter Bockwurst, filled with Richardson Farm pork, Bastrop Cattle Company beef and spices, Meyer lemon zest and fresh chives, inspired most of the meal.
Back to Philip & Stacy's for the preparations! They live in a 1936 bungalow in south Austin, which they converted from a duplex to their own single-family residence about 10 years ago. The kitchen is a large open space that bridges the living and dining rooms. I've always loved their house for its gracious, social feeling.
First order of business: coffee for the cooks! This batch is made old school: freshly ground in an antique bean grinder and steeped in a french press. I love how the textures & patina of well-worn kitchenware bring visual interest to a modern kitchen. The red glass tiles at their backsplash also work well because of their natural varying shades.
Philip & Stacy are experienced gardeners who grow a wide variety of edibles every season. This week we got to choose from kale, broccoli, cauliflower, radishes, pea shoots, mesclun, collard greens, basil & beets! So considering all that (plus the Dai Due sausage) for our inspiration, we decided upon a Sweet Potato, Kale & Sausage soup, Winter Pot Pies, and, to start with, Radishes in Creamy Feta Dressing.
I love that Philip & Stacy are committed to growing much of their own food, in addition to being fabulous and inventive cooks. Stacy spent many years as a professional caterer, but now prefers to treat her family and friends exclusively (lucky for us!). Not surprisingly, Philip is on the board of the Sustainable Food Center, which promotes eating & buying local in Austin.
Stacy's main question before our gathering was: what to do with all these radishes? Here's a tasty & simple way to polish them off:Radishes, Fennel & Olives with Creamy Feta Cheese Spread
Adapted from Vegetables Every Day by Jack Bishop
15 medium radishes, leaves, stems & rootlets trimmed
4 oz feta cheese, crumbled
1/4 c. plain yogurt (we used Greek Yogurt & Honey)
1 small garlic clove
Freshly ground black pepper
1 small fennel bulb
18 kalamata olives (we used green)
4 large pita breads, cut into wedges
1. Halve the radishes lengthwise from stem to root end. Place in a large bowl of ice water for 30 minutes.
2. While the radishes are soaking, use a fork to mash the cheese, yogurt, and garlic together in a small bowl. Add pepper to taste. Place in a small serving dish & set on the serving platter.
3. Remove & discard green stem & fronds from the fennel. Remove blemished or tough layers from the bulb and remove a thick slice from the base and the triangular core. Then slick the fennel crosswise to yield 1/4 inch slices.
4. Arrange fennel & olives around cheese spread. Drain and pat dry the radishes and add to the platter. Serve w/ pita bread in a basket.
Adapted from Vegetables Every Day by Jack Bishop
15 medium radishes, leaves, stems & rootlets trimmed4 oz feta cheese, crumbled
1/4 c. plain yogurt (we used Greek Yogurt & Honey)
1 small garlic clove
Freshly ground black pepper
1 small fennel bulb
18 kalamata olives (we used green)
4 large pita breads, cut into wedges
1. Halve the radishes lengthwise from stem to root end. Place in a large bowl of ice water for 30 minutes.
2. While the radishes are soaking, use a fork to mash the cheese, yogurt, and garlic together in a small bowl. Add pepper to taste. Place in a small serving dish & set on the serving platter.
3. Remove & discard green stem & fronds from the fennel. Remove blemished or tough layers from the bulb and remove a thick slice from the base and the triangular core. Then slick the fennel crosswise to yield 1/4 inch slices.
4. Arrange fennel & olives around cheese spread. Drain and pat dry the radishes and add to the platter. Serve w/ pita bread in a basket.
Back to the design of their kitchen: a tiny, open stair winds up to a cozy attic bedroom, where they can watch movies. The lower stair treads create a perfect gathering spot next to the kitchen. The washer & dryer are cleverly tucked beneath the stair.
While most of the cabinetry and shelves are natural birch, there are little pops of color throughout the house. Here was a fortuitous accent: storing San Pelligrino soda on the window sill, alternating the filled bottles with the empty, brings another bright red hue to the space. 
After devouring the radishes, we got busy on the pot pie filling: first was the bechamel, or white sauce, which would bind the vegetables together into a creamy filling. We sauteed butternut squash & pearl onions until browned, then parboiled the carrots, turnips & celeraic.
we toasted to the holiday season with some aromatic Swedish schnaaps that Philip & Stacy picked up during their recent trip to Stockholm. It was a light golden aquavit that had an herbacious scent of juniper, white pepper, & rosemary. But this stuff is not for amateurs... one shot will knock you off your feet!
While the pot pie fillings simmered, Philip started on the soup. This recipe from Martha Stewart is originally more like a minestrone and includes tubetti. That would be a fine iteration, but we punched it up a few notches with the bockwurst and beef bone stock from Dai Due.
Sweet Potato, Kale, White Bean & Sausage Soup
Sweet Potato, Kale, White Bean & Sausage Soup
adapted from Martha Stewart
At about 3:30, we finally sit down to enjoy lunch. Not that we didn't fully enjoy the hours cooking- that's the fun part, right?
1/2 cup dried cannellini beans
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
1 small onion, cut into quarters
1 head garlic
Salt
1 lb Dai Due Bockwurst sausage
1 tablespoons olive oil
2 small leeks, rinsed, white and light-green parts cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced
1 sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 bunch kale, (3/4 pound)
6 cups Dai Due stock (substitute low-sodium chicken stock)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Parmesan Reggiano for grating
1. Place beans in a large bowl, and cover with water. Let soak overnight, and drain.
2. Place beans, rosemary, onion, and 6 cups water in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to a simmer, and cook until beans are just tender, about one hour. Drain beans in a colander. Discard onion and rosemary; set beans aside.
3. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Wrap garlic in aluminum foil. Cook until soft, about 40 minutes. Remove garlic from oven, and allow to cool. Slice garlic in half crosswise, and squeeze, removing cloves; set cloves aside.
4. Bring a large stockpot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add tubetti, and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a colander, drain, and set aside.
5. Place a 6-quart low-sided saucepan over medium heat. Add olive oil; heat until oil is hot but not smoking. Add leeks, remaining sprig rosemary, and roasted garlic cloves. Cook until leeks become translucent. Add sweet potato; cook, stirring until the potato pieces just begin to soften, about 8 minutes.
6. Add kale; cook until kale begins to wilt, about 4 minutes. Add stock; cook until potato pieces are tender, about 10 minutes. Add reserved beans, pasta, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper. Cook until heated through, about 5 minutes. Divide among six plates; top with grated parmesan, and serve.
The soup is amazing... it has a sweet, light taste from the sweet potatoes & rich stock, contrasting with the salty sausage and a dusting of parmesan.
And the pot pies... such an interesting combination of root vegetables, the celeraic & turnips brighten up the palette like no potato ever could. It feels like winter is officially here... cheers!
Winter Pot Pies
adapted from Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
2 c Herb Bechamel (recipe following)
1.5 lb butternut squash, peeled & diced into 1/2" cubes
flour for dredging
2 T olive oil
2 T butter
16 boiling onions or shallots, peeled & left whole
1 small celery root (celeraic)
Juice of 1 lemon
2 turnips, peeled & cut into cubes
5 medium carrots, cut into 1" lengths
Salt & fresh ground pepper
4 thyme sprigs
1/2 c. whole milk
1 egg, beaten
1. Choose a 2-quart souffle or gratin dish (we used 1 medium size and 2 small). Roll out the pastry between 1/8 & 1/4" thick and cut to fit the dish. Refrigerate the pastry until needed. Have the bechamel cooking in a double boiler while you prepare the vegetables.
2. Toss the squash in the flour, letting the excess fall away. Heat the oil and butter in a large skillet and add the squash & onions. Saute over medium heat until browned and tender, 20 minutes, stirring so they color evenly. Transfer to the baking dish.
3. Peel the celery root, dice it into 1/2" cubes, and put in a bowl with the lemon juice and water to cover. Parboil the remaining vegetables in salted water until tender but still a little firm. Drain, then parboil the celery root for 1 minute. Combine all the vegetables, season with salt & pepper, and transfer the stew to the dish. Tuck in the thyme sprigs.
4. Mix the bechamel & milk and pour it over the vegetables, allowing the sauce to fall between the cracks.
5. Preheat oven to 425 F. Remove the pastry from the refrigerator and lay it on top of the vegetables. Brush the top side with egg, then bake for 12 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 F and continue baking until crust is golden and puffed and sauce is bubbling, 15 to 20 minutes. Let settle a few minutes, then serve.
Bechamel
2 c. milk
1/4 c. finely diced onion
Aromatics: 1 bay leaf, 3 parsley sprigs, 2 thyme sprigs
3 1/2 T butter
3 1/2 T flour
Salt & fresh ground white pepper
Grated nutmeg
1. Heat the milk with the onion and aromatics in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Turn it off just before it boils and set aside for 15 minutes to steep.
2. In another saucepan, make the roux by melting the butter, adding the flour, and stirring constantly over medium heat for 2 minutes. Quickly pour the milk through a strainer into the roux and whisk until thickened. Stir until the sauce comes to a boil. Set the pan over very low heat or transfer to a double boiler. Cook for 25 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with salt, pepper & nutmeg.
3. To finish the sauce, add 1/3 to 1/2 chopper herbs: we used thyme, tarragon & chives.
photography by Valarie L. Campbell
