Archive for June, 2010

June 30, 2010 1

salad with carrot ginger dressing

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This recipe has come a long way before making its way here and like the school game of “telephone” there have been some changes along the way. I adapted it from Tastespace who found it from Smitten Kitchen who adapted it from Gwyneth Paltrow’s newsletter GOOP.com – which features meal plans and recipes of the celebrity’s strict detox diet. Whenever I see the words “master cleanse”, “detox”, and “toxins” my immediate reaction is an eyeroll. Sigh. Of course you’re going to lose weight if you consume only 1,000 calories a day. I digress, though. I’ll save all my rage for Kevin Trudeau. In any case, the salad dressing is wonderful. It’s light, slightly spicy, and the ginger lends a sweet, warm medicinal taste. The original recipe called for white miso, which I left out. I don’t cook Japanese food very often and couldn’t justify purchasing something I’d only use once or twice. Serve with any greens of your choice.

Salad with Carrot Ginger Dressing
(adapted from Tastespace)
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For the salad:
Greens of your choice (head of romaine, green leaf, red leaf, spinach)
1 cup walnuts, chopped
croutons

For the dressing:
1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
1 small shallot or 1/4 of a red onion, chopped
1 tablespoon white miso (I left this out)
2 tablespoons fresh ginger, chopped
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
pinch of cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 cup oil (grapeseed, safflower, canola, olive oil)
2 tablespoons water

Pulse the carrot, shallot or onion, and ginger in a blender until finely chopped. Add the white miso, rice vinegar, sesame oil, cayenne pepper, and sugar and pulse until blended. Transfer the dressing to a large bowl and slowly drizzle in the oil, stirring constantly. Stir in the water.

Arrange the lettuce into individual bowls, top with the dressing, chopped walnuts, and croutons.

Serves 4-5

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June 28, 2010 0

feta and cucumber salad

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Since the weather has warmed up (um, sort of), I’ve been wanting to incorporate more leafy green salads into my diet. I always associate cucumbers with the beginning of summer, since that’s when they are first ripe for the pickin’ in my dad’s garden. I was inspired by the traditional Greek summer salad, but used what I had on hand – including lettuce, which traditionally is not included.

Tips:
- Rinse the red onions briefly in cold water. This helps take off the edge from eating them raw. Alternatively, toss the onions in some olive oil and roast them at 450F on a baking sheet, just until the onion is beginning to brown. This will bring out the natural sweetness of the onions. Definitely worth the extra step.

- I only added a pinch of salt to the dressing. I found the the salad to be salty enough with the feta and olives.

Feta and Cucumber Salad
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1 head of romaine, red leaf, or green leaf lettuce, washed thoroughly and chopped into small pieces
1 large red onion, thinly sliced
2 cucumbers, peeled, seeded and cut into small pieces
1 pint of cherry or grape tomatoes, sliced in half
3/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup kalamata olives, pitted and chopped

For the dressing:
1-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon dill
1/3 cup white wine or red wine vinegar
2/3 cup olive oil
salt & pepper, to taste

Toss together the oregano, dill, salt, pepper, and vinegar in a bowl. Slowly pour in the olive oil, stirring constantly. Continue mixing until blended. Add a little more salt and pepper, if necessary.

In a large bowl, toss together the lettuce, onions, cucumber, and tomatoes. Gently toss in the dressing, lightly coating everything with the dressing. Divide the salad into bowls and top with feta and olives.

Serves 5-6

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June 26, 2010 0

bulgur and chickpea pilaf

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The other night before heading off to the gym, I wanted to make a quick side dish to go along with the za’atar chicken I made the night before. I didn’t have much time and I wanted to make something as quickly as possible, so I looked to Claudia Roden for inspiration. I whipped up this filling and comforting bulgur and chickpea pilaf in about 20 minutes. I dressed up the original recipe slightly by adding chopped parsley and a tablespoon of lemon juice. If you’re unfamiliar with bulgur, it’s a whole wheat grain that has been steamed, dried, and cracked. It can easily be found at Middle Eastern groceries and health food stores, but my local grocery store also sells it in the organic cereal aisle.

Bulgur and Chickpea Pilaf
(adapted from The New Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden)
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1 1/4 cup chicken or vegetable stock, or water
1 cup bulgur
1 15-oz can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 tablespoon butter, olive or sunflower oil
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon lemon juice
salt & pepper

Bring the stock or water to a gentle boil. Pour in the bulgur, cook, covered, on very low heat for 12-15 minutes, or until the stock or water has been absorbed. In the meantime, rinse and drain chickpeas, chop parsley, and squeeze out a tablespoon of lemon juice. Add a tablespoon of butter or oil to the pot, toss in the chickpeas, parsley, and lemon juice. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cook until heated through.

Serves 4 as a side dish

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June 23, 2010 0

meatballs with tzatziki

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Since making gyros a couple weeks ago, I’ve had tzatziki on my mind. The problem is, we never have Greek yogurt on hand for very long because I eat it all by the spoonful straight from the container almost right away (yeah, I’m a barbarian. So what?). I knew that if I were going to make meatballs with tzatziki it would have to be right away, or the yogurt would be consumed in less than 48 hours. I tweaked my basic meatball recipe to include lots of fresh parsley and some dried oregano and the results were fantastic. I used to think the addition of bread and milk to meatballs were just there for filler, but they also keep the meatballs fluffy and tender. I served these with a green salad and we ate them for dinner, but they would make a great appetizer as well.

Meatballs with Tzatziki
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1 lb ground beef (or 1/2 ground beef, 1/2 ground pork)
1 small onion, finely diced
1-3 cloves garlic, chopped finely
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup breadcrumbs or 1 slice of day old bread (crust removed), cut into small pieces
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano
salt & pepper, to taste
at least 3/4 cup of tzatziki, for serving

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a large bowl, soak breadcrumbs in milk. Meanwhile, chop the onion, garlic, and parsley. Beat an egg in a small bowl. Heat oil in a large skillet, when hot add the onions and cook until tender, about 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Remove from heat.

Add the ground meat, onion, garlic, beaten egg, parsley, oregano, salt, and pepper to the large bowl and mix thoroughly by hand. Form the meatballs into the size of golf balls. If the mixture is too wet, add more bread or breadcrumbs. Place the meatballs on an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet lightly brushed with oil. Bake for 25-35 minutes, or until meatballs are slightly browned and no longer pink in the center. Serve hot, with a generous amount of tzatziki.

Serves 3-4

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June 22, 2010 2

olive oil granola with pistachios and apricots

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Last year, when I started making my own homemade granola I proclaimed that I was now officially a resident of the Bay Area. It’s a quintessential hippie food and a derogatory term for Prius drivin’, farmers market lovin’ Liberals (hey, I’m one of those, actually! Or I would be, if I had a car). I used to think that I couldn’t live in California because it was “too granola”. That’s what happens when your opinion of California is shaped by television and media. Turns out, the Bay Area is just like anywhere else. Except prettier. And more expensive.

Wait, what was I talking about? Oh yeah, granola. Before I started making it myself, I used to mix boxes of granola with equal amounts of rolled oats because the store-bought stuff was just way too sweet for my tastes. Every other batch of granola I’ve made has included butter and I’ve seen several recipes for olive oil granola floating around the food blogging world lately. This Middle Eastern-ized recipe from the taste space immediately captured my heart. I made a couple slight changes to the recipe and added about a teaspoon and a half of orange blossom water, which can be found from Middle Eastern groceries and specialty shops (like Whole Foods and co-ops). If olive oil in granola scares you a bit, don’t worry! Of course, the end result depends on the type of olive oil you have. I used what I had on hand – cheap extra virgin olive oil from Trader Joe’s. The olive oil taste isn’t very noticeable, in fact, it wasn’t overpowering like butter can be. I found it preferable to butter, actually.

Check out my new bowl. I picked it up from Japantown a couple weeks ago. It was made for me!

Olive Oil Granola with Pistachios and Apricots
(adapted from Tastespace)
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3 cups rolled oats
1 1/2 cups pistachios, hulled and chopped
1 cup shredded coconut, unsweetened
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
3/4 cup maple syrup (I left this out)
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
a few pinches of salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1-2 teaspoons orange blossom water (to taste)
1 cup dried apricots, chopped

Preheat oven to 300F. Meanwhile, toss together oats, pistachios, coconut, maple syrup (if using), brown, sugar, salt, cardamom, cinnamon and nutmeg in a large bowl. Transfer the mixture in an even layer on the larget baking sheet you have and bake for 40-50 minutes. Stir the granola about every 10 minutes or so, making sure it toasts evenly.

When the granola is golden brown, transfer to a large bowl and mix in a teaspoon of the orange blossom water and apricots. Add up to another teaspoon of orange blossom water, according to taste. Be careful to not add too much, or the batch of granola will end up tasting like perfume. Store the granola in an airtight container away from direct sunlight. Serve with yogurt and fresh fruit.

Makes 10-12 servings

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