There is nothing better than a recipe that does double or triple duty.  To find a recipe that starts as one recipe and then becomes something very different by adding or subtracting just a few ingredients makes meal planning so much easier.
​   
Makes about 2 cups

2 tsp olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 Tbs of fresh ginger, chopped
1 can of black beans (15 ounces), drained and rinsed 
1 cup chicken stock or water
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
2 tsp soy sauce or Bragg's Aminos
Pinch crushed red pepper
2 Tbs fresh cilantro, chopped
2 pieces of scallion, sliced thin on the diagonal.

1. Heat oil, garlic, and ginger in a saucepan over low heat and cook, stirring for 2 minutes (do not brown).  
2. Add the rinsed black beans, stock, sesame oil, soy sauce, and crushed red pepper. Simmer over low heat for 10 minutes.  Add more stock if you would like a saucier consistency.
3. Finish with fresh cilantro and sliced scallions.

Serving options:
Serve over fish, chicken, beef, or pork.  You can also serve it over rice, spaghetti squash, or steamed broccoli.  Add chicken or vegetable stock the sauce and it create a soup.  Take that soup and puree it, add some left over chicken and it becomes an Asian chili.  To take this recipe and turn it into a Mexican or Latin dish, leave out the ginger, soy sauce, and sesame oil and add in chipotle!  The possibilities are endless. My Asian Black Bean Sauce is one of my favorite multi-use recipes.  The ingredients are always part of my pantry supplies. This recipe freezes well for later use.

​This recipe is written to be prepared in an air fryer. You can prepare the tomatoes in the oven or fried in oil if you prefer. See notes below.

Serves 2-4

2-3 medium green tomatoes (unripe, cut into 1/4 inch slices)
2 eggs
½ cup flour
1 cup Panko crumbs
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon kosher salt-sea salt, mineral salt 
1 teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
½  teaspoon garlic powder
½  teaspoon onion powder
Avocado oil spray (or other non-seed oil spray)

1. Pre-heat air fryer to 400ºF.
2. In a medium bowl whisk the eggs. Place the flour on a plate.
3. In a wide shallow container, combine the Panko crumbs, cornmeal, and the seasoning.
4. Sprinkle the tomatoes with a little salt. Dip the tomato slices in the flour, dip in egg mixture, and then press Panko crumb mixture into both sides. Sprinkle a little more salt on them.
5. Spray the air fryer basket generously with avocado spray, and place as many coated tomatoes in the basket that will fit with plenty of space in between. Spray coated tomatoes with additional avocado spray to lightly coat.
6. Cook for 10 minutes or until browned and crispy. 
7. Repeat with remaining tomatoes.
8. Serve hot.

 
Serving suggestions:
Serve with a dipping sauce. Serve in a sandwich. Top with fried or poached eggs. 
To fry: In a deep 12-inch skillet heat 1 inch avocado oil to 350-360°F. Fry in batches to avoid over crowding the pan. Fry for 4-5 minutes total, gently turning as needed until golden.
To oven cook: Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cook coated tomatoes for 20 minutes, If you have a convection setting, be sure to use it!

I enjoy creating delicious recipes to share with my students, but when I discover a recipe by another chef I never hesitate to share it. And, when that chef has cookbook that I love, you know I'm going to share that too. Joshua McFadden's book Six Seasons-A New Way with Vegetables has become a favorite, seasonal cookbook for me. You MUST get this book! McFadden has opened my mind and my pallet to so many new flavor combinations and wonderful ways to prepare vegetables seasonally. This recipe is a wonderful example of an easy, beautiful, and delicious recipe I use often. Enjoy!

Makes 4 cups
Kosher salt, to taste
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
2 cloves garlic, smashed flat and peeled
1 pound kale, thick ribs removed (dark green, curly kale)
 Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
½ pound pasta, like pappardelle or rigatoni
¾ cup coarsely grated Parmigiano- Reggiano

1. Put a large pot of generously salted water over high heat, and bring to a boil. 
2. In a small skillet over medium heat, add olive oil and garlic, and cook until the garlic begins to sizzle. Reduce heat to low, and cook very gently until garlic is soft and begins to turn light gold, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
3. When water is boiling, add kale leaves, and cook until tender, but not mushy, about 5 minutes. Pull out the hot, dripping kale leaves with tongs, and put directly into a blender. (Don’t drain the pot; you’ll use that same boiling water to cook the pasta.) 
4. Add garlic and its oil to the blender, along with a splash of hot water from the pot if you need some more liquid to get the blender going. Blend into a fine, thick green purée. Taste, and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, then blend again.
5. Add the pasta to the still-boiling water, and cook according to directions on the package. Ladle out about a cup of the water to save for finishing the dish, then drain the pasta and return it to the dry pot. Add the half of the kale purée, about 3/4 of the grated cheese and a splash of the reserved pasta water. Toss until all the pasta is well coated and bright green, adding another splash of pasta water and more kale sauce if needed so that the sauce is loose and almost creamy in texture. Serve in bowls right away, and top with an extra drizzle of olive oil and the rest of the grated cheese. Any leftover kale sauce can be frozen.

​Additions:
1-pound U26-30 shrimp, peeled and deveined-5 minutes before the pasta is done cooking, add the shrimp to the pasta and continue cooking for 5 minutes. Continue with recipe as written.

More uses for this Kale Sauce

• add to any soup 
• add to any pasta sauce
  
• add cream to the kale sauce and drizzle over pasta, chicken, steak, pork, seafood
• spread on sandwiches or wraps
• stir into eggs to make kale scrambled eggs
• combine with homemade stock to make a soup
• add to Asian noodle bowl

Serves 2-4
​
2 Tbs olive oil
4 cloves of garlic, sliced thinly 
1-pint cherry tomatoes, cut in half-a color assortment is nice
1/8 tsp of crushed red pepper
2 ears of freshly picked corn, corn cut off the cob
1-pound fresh shrimp, shells removed
5 leaves fresh basil, sliced in strips or 1/3 cup chopped flat leafed parsley
3 Tbs unsalted butter (very cold)
Kosher or Sea Salt and Pepper
 

1. In a large sauté pan, heat the oil and the slivered garlic over medium-low heat. Cook until the garlic softens and becomes aromatic, about 1 minute.  
2. Add the sliced cherry tomatoes, crushed red pepper, corn kernels, and shrimp. Raise the heat to medium, cover the pan, and cook for 5 minutes. 
3. Add your herbs, stir gently to combine. 
4. To finish, turn off the heat and gently stir in the cold butter to create a velvety finish to your dish.

 
Serve as is, with sliced boiled Yukon Gold potatoes, over pasta, or rice. You can also use this as a topping for bruschetta-cut the shrimp into bite sized pieces for easy eating.

I prepared this delicious, easy, and quick meal for my class "15-Minute Meals". For that class I added 1/2 of a yellow onion and 1/2 of a large delicata squash. No need to peel this squash which is a real time saver. Both additions were perfect!

Serve 4
12 oz smoked sausage, sliced into 2 inch pieces-Kielbasa or other precooked sausage is fine
kale-6-8 large leaves, spines removed, leaves ripped into large pieces
½  cup water
salt and pepper
 
Place all ingredients into an 8-quart stock pot over medium high heat. Cover and cook for 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Divide between 2 plates and serve.

​Alternatives: Green cabbage or any other hardy green can be used instead of kale. 
You can add additional vegetables such as sliced onions, garlic, small butternut squash cubes to pot. Choose vegetables that won't overcook in 8 minutes.