Savor the flavors all week long

IT’S SATURDAY morning and every corner of my kitchen has that delicious, yeasty fragrance usually reserved for bakeries. A mound of whole wheat dough speckled with dates sits in a towel-covered bowl on the counter.

In an hour or two, I’ll shape it into flatbreads and top it with onions caramelized in bacon drippings.

The aromas and busy noises in my kitchen are timely. We’re a month or so into the fall semester, and the architect with whom I’ve shared my dinner table for years is a college professor for the first time. Never having cooked around a teaching schedule before, I’m learning quickly. To guarantee good eats in the week to come, cooking a few hours on Saturday morning is the way to go.

I arrange spicy poblano chiles under the broiler to blister and soften; they’ll add just the right heat and color to creamy green chile and chicken stew.

Meanwhile, onions caramelize in a pot on the stove. When they’re deep brown and achingly soft, I set aside half for the flatbreads. The rest join with a bottle of beer and cook down for the stew.

When they’re done, I drop the roasted chiles into a bowl and set them aside to steam, making the job of peeling them later a cinch. I lower the heat on the oven and arrange a tray of broccoli rabe, dressed with olive oil and orange zest, on a rack inside. On the stove, a skillet bubbles with white wine and cannellini beans.

When the broccoli rabe is tender, some of its leaves crisp and deliciously brittle, I toss it with half of the beans; a shower of ricotta salata over the top and this hearty side dish is done.

Tossed with salad greens, the savory mix will even make a satisfying lunch next week with a piece of flatbread and a sweet fall apple on the side -- ideal for a professor’s busy day.

I puree the rest of the beans with the caramelized onions, roasted chiles and chicken stock to make a velvety poaching liquid for the stew’s chicken thighs.

I’m always keen to use common ingredients like the beans and caramelized onions in recipes because they afford me the time, even on busy weekends, for small extravagances like baking homemade bread.

As for the stew, we’ll feast on it for dinner tonight and then again in the coming week at the end of a long day. What’s more, it doubles as a surprising pasta sauce. I consider a recipe like this one -- that’s versatile and manages to get more flavorful each day -- to be the hallmark of a Saturday morning’s cooking done well.

The flatbreads cool on the counter as I wash the last of the dishes. I’m eager to tear off a hunk and smear it with farmer cheese or maybe a spoonful of thick, garlicky hummus. The smell of my early afternoon snack draws the professor out from behind his desk, where he’s been typing away.

Truth be told, I’m biding my time until midterms. He’s likely to be tough on his students, in which case they’ll surely need homemade cookies to help them soldier through.

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food@latimes.com

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Creamy green chile and chicken stew

Total time: 2 hours, 20 minutes

Servings: 8 to 12

Note: When making this recipe, you can use half of the bean and wine mixture from the broccoli rabe with white beans instead of the cannellini beans in the ingredient list below. To roast the peppers, place them on a stove burner or under the broiler and toast, turning frequently, until the skin is completely charred; place in a bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. When the peppers are cool, peel or brush off the blackened skin and remove the seeds. Do not rinse the peppers because it removes the flavor.

6 slices bacon

2 large yellow onions, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 (12-ounce) bottle light beer or lager

1 quart chicken broth, plus more if desired

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

2 teaspoons dried Mexican oregano, crushed

2 teaspoons ground cumin

4 large medium-hot green chiles (such as poblano, about 1 pound), roasted, peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped

1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

2 cups corn kernels (from about 3 cobs) or cooked and drained white hominy

4 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2 -inch pieces

2 bay leaves

8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 1 3/4 pounds)

3/4 cup sour cream, divided

Warm corn tortillas

1. Heat a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook, turning occasionally, until it’s crisp and the fat is rendered, 7 to 8 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate, crumble and set aside. Add the onions, salt and pepper and cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, until deep golden brown and caramelized, about 20 minutes. Reserve half of the onions for the whole wheat flatbread recipe, or for another use.

2. Add the beer to the remaining onions, stir to scrape up any browned bits and continue to cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the onions are moist and the beer is somewhat reduced, about 10 minutes. Stir in the chicken broth, lime juice, oregano, cumin, chiles, beans, salt and pepper, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Puree the stew until smooth, using a blender (in batches) or in the pot with an immersion blender.

3. Add the corn, carrots, bay leaves and crumbled bacon to the stew and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until cooked through, 20 to 25 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside until it’s cool enough to handle. (Meanwhile, leave the pot on the stove and allow the contents to simmer gently.) Shred the chicken, then return it to the pot.

4. Stir in one-fourth cup of the sour cream. Thin, if desired, with additional broth, season to taste and gently simmer for 10 minutes more, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and discard the bay leaves. You should have about 12 cups of stew. Ladle the stew into bowls, garnish with dollops of sour cream, if you like, and serve with tortillas on the side.

Each of 12 servings: 255 calories; 18 grams protein; 17 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams fiber; 13 grams fat; 5 grams saturated fat; 55 mg. cholesterol; 309 mg. sodium.

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Roasted broccoli rabe

with white beans and ricotta salata

Total time: 30 minutes

Servings: 8 to 12

Note: Reserve half of the bean and wine mixture in Step 3 for use in the green chile and chicken stew, or add all of the bean mixture to the broccoli rabe, if preferred. Ricotta salata can be found at Bristol Farms, Whole Foods and the Cheese Store of Beverly Hills.

1/4 cup olive oil, divided

1 tablespoon orange zest

3 shallots, roughly chopped

2 medium bunches broccoli rabe (about 1 1/2 pounds total), trimmed and cut into 2-inch and 3-inch pieces

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon finely chopped thyme

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

3 cloves garlic, chopped

2 (15-ounce) cans cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 ounce ricotta salata

1. Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with foil and set aside.

2. In a large bowl, place 2 tablespoons of the oil, orange zest, shallots and broccoli rabe along with three-fourths teaspoon salt and one-fourth teaspoon pepper and toss well. Spread the broccoli rabe in an even layer on the baking sheet and place in the oven. Roast, tossing halfway through, until the broccoli rabe is wilted, tender and some leaves are just crispy, about 15 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Add the thyme, pepper flakes and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until the garlic is golden, about 1 minute. Add the beans, one-fourth teaspoon salt and a pinch of pepper and cook, stirring often, until heated through and fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the wine, stir gently and cook, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet, until most of the liquid has evaporated but the beans are still moist, 3 to 5 minutes more. (Reserve half of the bean mixture for the green chile and chicken stew, if you like.)

4. Transfer the broccoli rabe to a large serving bowl when done. Toss with the beans and shave the ricotta salata on top. Serve immediately.

Each of 12 servings: 122 calories; 6 grams protein; 12 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams fiber; 6 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 3 mg. cholesterol; 184 mg. sodium.

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Whole wheat flatbreads

with caramelized onions and dates

Total time: 3 1/4 hours, including 2 1/4 hours rising time

Servings: Makes 2 (14-inch) oval flatbreads, about 16 slices

Note: Use leftover caramelized onions from the green chile and chicken stew to top the flatbreads. Alternatively, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1 large thinly sliced yellow onion and salt and pepper to taste and cook, stirring often, until the onion slices are deep golden brown. This flatbread is also delicious when it’s a few days old; simply toast it in a hot oven before serving.

1 tablespoon sugar

1 ( 1/4 -ounce) package active dry yeast

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, if desired

5 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 cup dried pitted dates (about 1/4 pound), thinly sliced into rounds

3/4 cup caramelized onions

1. Stir the sugar and yeast into a small bowl filled with 1 cup of lukewarm water. Set aside until foamy, about 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together the flours, salt, cardamom and cinnamon, if using. Form a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the yeast mixture with 2 tablespoons oil. Stir, gently working the flour into the middle, until a shaggy dough forms.

3. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle the dates over dough in two batches and continue kneading until they’re well combined, 2 to 3 more minutes. Coat the inside of a large bowl with 1 teaspoon of the remaining oil, then transfer the dough to the bowl. Loosely cover the bowl with a damp towel or plastic wrap, and set aside in a very warm spot until the dough has doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours.

4. Lightly oil 2 large baking sheets with 2 teaspoons oil. Divide the dough into two equal pieces and press and stretch each into an oval 14 inches long and 7 inches wide. Place the ovals on the baking sheets and brush with the remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Evenly scatter the onions on the top of each oval, then set aside in a very warm spot until they are soft and puffed in appearance, about 45 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, place the racks in the top and bottom third of the oven and heat to 400 degrees. Bake the flatbreads, rotating the trays halfway through for even coloring. Bake until cooked through and golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Slice into wedges and serve warm or at room temperature.

Each of 16 servings: 105 calories; 2 grams protein; 14 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams fiber; 5 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 cholesterol; 147 mg. sodium.