Bibb and Beets with Pumpkin Seeds
When the weather gets cool and thoughts turn to pumpkins, eliminate the summery sunflower seeds and sprouts and add blanched squash and pumpkin seeds to the Bibb lettuce, golden beets, and frisée mix. Blanching simply means dipping a vegetable in boiling water, removing it, and cooling it down. Ice baths speed up the process, but whenever possible I recommend cooling in the refrigerator.
Prepare a 1 lb [455 g] butternut squash or delicata squash by peeling, halving, and removing the seeds. Cut into slices about 1 in [2.5 cm] thick.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and add the squash (you’ll have to wait a few moments for the water to come back up to a boil). Once the water starts to boil again, using a slotted spoon, remove the squash and transfer to a baking sheet to cool in the refrigerator, about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, toast 1/2 cup [70 g] hulled pumpkin seeds. Once the squash has had time to cool, assemble the salad as you would the Sunflower Salad with Golden Beets (page 74).
In 2006, I appeared (full of hustle and heart) on Food Network Challenge’s “Ultimate Thanksgiving Feast” as one of my classic, scrappy South Philly moves in the hope of winning $10,000 in prize money so that I could open Little Owl. And holy turkey, I won! I made a holiday version of my Bibb and Beets with Pumpkin Seeds replete with a cranberry vinaigrette, turkey cracklings, and Madras curry–seasoned pumpkin seeds. To make my Thanksgiving version, prepare the Bibb and Beets with Pumpkin Seeds (above) with these additions and tweaks: For the pumpkin seeds, season them with a pinch of The Harrison Spice Mix (page 18) just before toasting. For the dressing, simply whisk 1/4 cup [60 ml] of your own cranberry sauce into my Sherry Shallot Vinaigrette (page 69). Add 4 oz [115 g] trimmed, chopped, crispy turkey skin (cut it right off your bird and make it extra crispy by putting it in a hot skillet to render and crisp just like bacon). Add 1/4 cup [35 g] dried cranberries for extra texture and cranberry zing.