Mango & Tomato

6/18/13

Beet Salad with Mayonnaise & Walnuts: Russian Recipes Revisited

This Beet Salad with Mayonnaise and Walnuts is one of the easiest and most satisfying Russian salads I've grown up with. I actually almost forgot all about it, but then I made this beet dish from Jerusalem cookbook and thought: omg, the Russian version is sooooo much better. So I had to make it for this month's Russian Recipes Revisited.

Beet Salad with Mayonnaise and Walnuts

{I'm not providing specific ingredient amounts because this is more to taste.}

Ingredients
beets, roasted and grated***
mayonnaise
garlic, minced {or use a microplane}
walnuts, toasted and chopped
optional: chopped prunes, chopped cilantro or parsley

***To roast the beets, wash them, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, wrap in aluminum foil and roast on a cookie sheet in a 475F degree preheated oven for at least an hour, or as long as it takes.

Directions
1. Combine grated beets with mayonnaise {use as much as you want}, garlic {ditto}, chopped walnuts and a bit of cilantro. You can also add prunes, but I did not.
2. Refrigerate this salad for at least an hour.
3. It's great as an appetizer or as a side.

Isn't the color just absolutely gorgeous!? This salad brought back so many fun memories of family members and friends sitting around the table, eating zakuski, which are salads and appetizers, and waiting for the main course.

Will you make this salad?

6/17/13

What to do with Dates: Spinach Salad with Dates, Summer Berries & Almonds

Who wants dates!? If this wasn't a food blog, I bet you'd think I'm talking about the dates of romantic type. Alas, those have been quite rare over here, but there is always hope, right?

Ok, let's get back to the food.

Earlier this month I received four huge boxes courtesy of Bard Valley Natural Delights which contained organic Medjool dates, pitted dates, chili lime date rolls, almond date rolls, pistachio date rolls and coconut date rolls.

I was blown away by the variety and generosity of my gift and was happy to share some of the bounty with my friends.

I also wanted to make something with the dates. In the past, I've made Rice with Dates, Pistachios and Scallions and Biscotti with Hazelnuts and Dates, but wanted something lighter this time around.

That's how I came up with Spinach Salad with Dates, Summer Berries & Almonds.

Spinach Salad with Dates, Summer Berries & Almonds

Ingredients

spinach
dates, pitted and chopped
strawberries, quartered
blueberries
pickled red onions
supremes of orange
toasted almonds, chopped
olive oil
whole grain mustard
garlic, minced
salt & pepper

Directions
1. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl except for olive oil, mustard, garlic, salt and pepper.
2. Whisk together the oil with mustard, garlic, salt & pepper and pour over the salad.
3. Eat.

Isn't this a gorgeous salad? You get the sweetness from the berries and dates, a bit of pucker from the pickled onions, and the heat from the garlic.

About Bard Valley Natural Delights™ Medjool Dates

Known as the “Fruit of the Kings,” caramel-like Natural Delights Medjool Dates are considered the best-tasting, most luscious dates in the world. In addition to being a good source of fiber, they contain no added sugar, are high in antioxidants, and offer important vitamins and minerals including Potassium, Copper, Magnesium, Vitamin B6, Niacin, Calcium, Iron and Vitamin K. The Bard Valley Medjool Date Growers Association (BVMDGA), a consortium of family growers in the southwest, is responsible for over 60 percent of the Medjool dates grown in the United States. Thanks to their efforts, Natural Delights is the top Medjool date brand in the country. For more information, visit www.naturaldelights.com.

Disclosure: I received the dates as a gift from the Bard Valey Natural Delights, but was not compensated for this post. All opinions are my own.

6/14/13

Perfect Summer Brunch Dessert: Apricot & Almond Crostata

Looking for a perfect summer dessert? Then you must make this Apricot & Almond Crostata.

Here's the back story: I flew to Seattle at the beginning of June to visit my family and friends and to celebrate my mother's birthday. Clearly I've known my parents my entire life, but there are certain things about them I will never understand. For example, when asked what she wanted for her birthday, my mom said nothing.

You see, if someone would have asked me, I would have been able to give a list of at least 10 things in different price categories. But maybe that's just me.

Although my brother decided my mom would love a brand new TV, which she did, and that's what we purchased for her with our dad's help, my twin Anna and I also decided to make a Sunday birthday brunch for our mom, dad, and my siblings' significant others.

The brunch menu included roasted potatoes, mozzarella/tomato/basil salad, smoked salmon, sliced avocado, English muffins and mimosas.

For dessert, Anna and I decided to make Almond, Apricot, and Cream Cheese Crostata from Epicurious.

Unfortunately, the store did not have the almond paste. So we had to improvise.

To make the almond paste, we ground almonds with some confectioner's sugar, and egg white and a bit of vanilla extract. We did not want to use the almond extract in case that would be too almond'y ;)

{The butter in the list to the left was for something else.}

To make the crostata, I unrolled the pie crust and realized it was completely broken into pieces. Luckily, I was able to glue it back together with the warmth of my hands.

We then combined the cream cheese with the almond paste and an egg yolk and spread the filling on top of the pie crust.

Next, Anna arranged the halved and pitted apricots into perfect concentric circles and we brushed the apricots with warmed up apricot jam.

The dessert baked for about 40 minutes in the oven.

{For more step by step photos, check out Snacking in the Kitchen.}

This was such a light and not overly sweet dessert. It held up well for a few days and was shared with a few friends who absolutely loved it. You can make the same with plums or nectarines or a combination of those fruit.

Most importantly, our mom loved the dessert and the brunch we made her and the TV!!! Good times was had by all ;)

6/12/13

What to do with Leftover Wasabi? Wasabi Potato Patties with Canadian Bacon and Peas

Do you ever wonder "Good lord, how does she come up with this stuff?" I mean really, how many people wake up one day and make Wasabi Potato Patties with Canadian Bacon and Peas?

Ok, I'll tell you.

A few weeks ago I picked up sushi at my grocery store. The trick to hopefully not getting sick from a grocery store sushi is to ask the sushi people to make a combination "plate" instead of picking up an already made sushi. That way you'll know you are getting fresher stuff. It's worked for me this far.

I ate the sushi. It was fine. I had a bit of wasabi leftover and did not want to throw it away.

So I decided to use it. I also had some random red potatoes, and Canadian bacon. And I almost always have frozen peas. So there you go: Wasabi Potato Patties with Canadian Bacon and Peas.

Wasabi Potato Patties with Canadian Bacon and Peas
Makes 6 patties

Ingredients
3 small red potatoes, cubed, cooked in salted water till tender
1 teaspoon olive oil
4 pieces Canadian bacon, chopped
1/3 cup frozen peas, defrosted
3 tablespoons fire roasted diced green chiles (from a can)
1-2 teaspoons prepared wasabi

to serve: sour cream mixed with additional wasabi

Directions
1. Saute Canadian bacon in the olive oil till crispy. Add peas and chiles.

2. Mash cooked potatoes and mix in the bacon, peas, chiles and wasabi. Allow to cool before making patties.

3. Form patties. Saute them in a bit of olive oil for 3 minutes on each side. Serve with wasabi sour cream.

These were super easy and really delicious! They make a great lunch, dinner, or a fun unusual brunch dish.

For other fun potato ideas, check out Potato Balls in Tomato Sauce, Potato Patties with Summer Sausage and Cheese, and Mushroom, Potato and Pea Potstickers.

6/10/13

How to Bake Biscotti at Home: Hazelnut Date Biscotti Recipe

Last week I flew to Seattle to spend time with family and friends and to celebrate my mom's birthday. One of her favorite cookies is the super easy to make biscotti. I've written several times before about the process of making biscotti at home, adding different fun things to your biscotti, and about my not so stellar attempt at making chocolate biscotti.

This time I decided to make Hazelnut Date Biscotti.

Hazelnut Date Biscotti

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup toasted, shelled hazelnuts
1 cup pitted, quartered dates
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350F.
2. Mix all the dry ingredients together.
3. Whisk together the eggs and the vanilla extract and add to the dry ingredients.
4. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and form two flat loaves with your biscotti dough.
5. Bake for 25 minutes.

6. Once the loaves are cooled, cut them with a serrated knife into 1/4-1/3" thick slices.
7. Bake the biscotti for 15-25 minutes, depending on how crisp you want them to be, turning them halfway through.

Ta da!!!

These were AWESOME!!! One of my friends actually thought my condo smelled like chocolate after I baked these. The biscotti was sweet due to the dates and had a great nut flavor. I preferred to leave hazelnuts whole, but you can chop them if you want.

These travel really well and are a great hostess gift.

What do you like to add into your biscotti?

6/7/13

Perfect Summer Drink: Watermelon, Strawberry & Mint Aqua Fresca

It it hot and humid where you are? Or are you just looking for a fun non alcoholic summer drink? Either way, you are not going to regret making this Watermelon, Strawberry & Mint Aqua Fresca.

I made this drink after purchasing Marcella Kriebel's Comida Latina. The book is nothing like I've ever seen before: each recipe is illustrated and there are pages filled with helpful tips, definitions, and even Spanish names for everyday cookware equipment.

Last week I actually took a watercolor class taught by Marcella!! It was so much fun ;)

Two of the recipes in the book that looked especially refreshing were the Aqua Fresca and the Paletas. I decided to combine the flavors from these two recipes to make my own Aqua Fresca.

Watermelon, Strawberry & Mint Aqua Fresca

Ingredients

1 part watermelon

1 part strawberries

fresh mint

2 parts water

Directions

1. Add everything to a blender and puree till perfectly smooth.

2. Strain the mixture through a fine sieve and refrigerate the clear liquid for at least 30 minutes.

3. Pour the Watermelon, Strawberry & Mint Aqua Fresca into glasses, add a straw and a strawberry as fun decorations and drink!!

I'm looking forward to experimenting with different fruit combinations to make other varieties of aqua fresca!

Two questions for you:
1) What's the latest cookbook you've purchased?
2) What's your favorite flavor of aqua fresca?

6/5/13

Cooking From Jerusalem Cookbook: Pureed Beets with Yogurt & Za'atar

I made the Pureed Beets with Yogurt & Za'atar for the third Cookbook Dinner Club with my friends Cecilia and Julia. Our first cookbook dinner club was based on Yotam Ottolenghi's Plenty Cookbook. Our second cookbook dinner club was based on Barefoot Contessa's Foolproof.

For the third get together, we went back to Yotam Ottolenghi and cooked from Jerusalem.

I've been to Israel twice and absolutely loved the people, the culture and of course the FOOD of the country. I could not wait to try to make some of the dishes that came from that region of the world.

Surprisingly, or not, I chose a dish that reminded me of a Russian beet salad my family has made as far back as I can remember. I might blog about it one day.

But for now, let's chat about Pureed Beets with Yogurt & Za'atar.

This recipe is really pretty and packs a lot of various flavors and textures, but once again I found Ottolenghi's directions not extremely user friendly.

Just being honest.

First, I'm not sure why I was instructed to roast the beets without wrapping them in aluminum foil. I should have listened to my inner voice and done what I always do when I roast beets (wrapping them up in aluminum foil after drizzling them with olive oil and seasoning them with a bit of salt).

Second, the beets took much longer to roast than the recipe specified, and came out of the oven shriveled and difficult to peel.

But I persevered.

To make this dish, I had to puree the beets in a food processor with garlic, chile, yogurt, olive oil, za'atar and date syrup.

WHO HAS DATE SYRUP?!?!?!?!

I did not want to buy an entire bottle (or a jar?) of date syrup, so I used a bit of pomegranate molasses instead.

I then transferred the puree into a shallow plate and topped it with goat cheese, scallions, and toasted chopped hazelnuts.

It did look pretty. And it tasted pretty good, but I would have loved it more with the mayonnaise instead of the yogurt.

Although I wasn't thrilled with this dish, I loved hanging out with Cecilia and Julia and trying out a new cookbook. My favorite dish on the table by far was Braised eggs with lamb, tahini and sumac.

Have you cooked from Jerusalem before? Which dishes would you recommend?

6/3/13

Best Summer Salad Ever: Sauteed Corn & Red Pepper Salad with Avocado, Olives & Goat Cheese

This Sauteed Corn & Red Pepper Salad with Avocado, Olives & Goat Cheese will quickly become your favorite summer salad or a side. The sweetness of the corn is balanced with the saltiness of the olives. Plus, what's not to like about the creamy avocado and the mild goat cheese? Not only is this recipe perfect for Meatless Monday, it is perfect for lunch or dinner any day of the week.

Go ahead, make this Sauteed Corn & Red Pepper Salad with Avocado, Olives & Goat Cheese and see if you don't become addicted to it.

Sauteed Corn & Red Pepper Salad with Avocado, Olives & Goat Cheese
Makes 1-2 portions {depending on how hungry you are}

Ingredients

olive oil
kernels from 1 ear of corn
1 red pepper, diced
2 garlic cloves, sliced
salt to taste
red pepper flakes
10 cherry tomatoes, halved
10 kalamata olives, halved
1/2 avocado, cubed
2 tablespoons crumbled goat cheese

Directions

1. Heat the olive oil in a skillet, add corn, red pepper and garlic. Season with salt and red pepper flakes. Saute until the vegetables are golden brown.

2. Transfer the sauteed corn, red pepper and garlic to a bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients, except the goat cheese. Taste for salt and add a drizzle of olive oil if needed.

3. Put the salad in a plate and top with the crumbled goat cheese.

As soon as the goat cheese hits the hot corn and peppers, it will start to melt. This is beyond delicious.

Of course you can use feta or queso fresca instead of the goat cheese. You can also play with different types of olives and spices.

I would have added fresh cilantro, basil or parsley to this salad, but alas I did not have any on hand.

Go get your fork and dig in!

What's your favorite summer salad or side?

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