Spicy Roasted Potato Salad

Did some more playing around with Latin themed food this past weekend for Memorial Day. We decided to make a potato salad for our BBQ with friends. I wanted to make something that had more zip to it, and not the traditional egg and mayonnaise based potato salad. I made a roasted potato salad with some tomatillo-cilantro dressing. The warm roasted potatoes, soaked up the spicy buttermilk based dressing. This is definitely something I'll make again.



Roasted Potato Salad with Tomatillo Dressing

8 cups of cubed / diced baby red (or other) potatoes
Olive oil
Sea salt
Fresh pepper

Liberally coat uniformly diced potatoes in olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast in a 450 degree oven for 30-40 minutes, until roasted and crunchy on the outside and tender on the inside. Allow to slightly cool. Meanwhile prepare the tomatillo dressing

Cilantro-Tomatillo Dressing

1 buttermilk ranch dressing packet
½ C buttermilk
½ C sour cream
3 large tomatillos
1/2 bunch cilantro
2 cloves garlic
1 poblano / anaheim pepper
1 lime juiced & zested
1 jalapeno seeded
Sea salt to taste
Fresh pepper to taste

Place all ingredients in a food processor and thoroughly combine. If dressing is too spicy, add some more sour cream. Start with ½ cup of the tomatillo dressing, and dress potato salad to your desired creaminess, add more as needed. This dressing recipe will make more than what you need for the potatoes. The remaining dressing can be used on green salad.

A New Take On PicNic Bean Salad

So this past Memorial Day weekend, we had a few parties we went to. A friend of mine from High School & Utah, shared some recipes with me. I decided to take them as base, and adjust them to my liking. I had fun coming up with this new Latin inspired bean salad for our picnic with friends.



Dan's Latin Inspired Bean Salad

1 can organic black beans drained
1 can organic garbanzo beans drained
1 can organic kidney beans drained
1 can organic white or shopeg corn
1 bunch of green onions, diced
1 small red onion, diced
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 bunch cilantro, diced
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
Zest from 1 lemon
1/3 cup olive oil
1 tsp cumin
salt & pepper to taste

Drain canned vegetables. Place in a large bowl with onions, cilantro and tomatoes. The tomatoes can be raw. I typically roast them off for an hour or so, once halved, as I like the concentrated & caramelized flavor of oven roasted tomatoes. Juice lemon. If not enough juice to make 1/3 cup, add red wine vinegar. Add olive oil, zest, salt, pepper and cumin and whisk to make a vinaigrette. Pour over vegetables and let marinate for an hour at room temperature. Serve at room temperature.

Drunken Potato Salad

When I cook, I like to cook healthy. I made a massive commitment to myself to eat healthy, be healthy, exercise a lot, and be happy. Watching myself change has been a invigorating and addicting thing to do. I cook with organic ingredients in everything. conventional ingredients are the exception to the rule. Recently, I made this lightened up potato salad for a side with pulled pork, and my home canned sugar-free BBQ sauce. Most potato salads are mayonnaise based. This is olive oil and wine based, and much lighter than traditional potato salads.

Dan's Drunken Potato Salad

5 Pounds Red Potatoes, cooked, partially cooled and rough chopped
1/2 C White Wine
1/2 to 3/4 C Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 Bulbs Garlic, roasted and cooled
1 Large Lemon, zested and juiced
3 T Fresh Rosemary, chopped
3 T Fresh Dill, chopped
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. slice bulbs of garlic in half and liberally coat with olive oil, salt and pepper. Wrap in foil and roast in oven for 60-70 minutes, until soft and caramelized. Remove and allow to cool.

Boil potatoes until fork tender, remove from water and allow to cool enough to be able to handle. When cool enough to handle, rough chop and place in a bowl. Meanwhile prepare dressing by extracting (squishing) out all the caramelized garlic pulp. Add that to the wine, olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, fresh herbs and salt and pepper. Mix until thoroughly combined. Pour dressing over warm potatoes and allow them to absorb and soak up the wine/oil mixture and fresh herbs. Serve at room temperate. Can be made a day in advance, but bring to room temp for several hours before serving.

Wintertime Israeli Couscous

We picked this recipe up at Steve & Kelly's on Thanksgiving. It was really good. I finally got around to making this for dinner this past weekend, and made some minor adjustments. Fresh lemon is easier and much cheaper than preserved lemon. Though, I do want to make my own home-canned preserved lemon, found a recipe for that. Also, I added much more dried fruit and more toasted nuts.



Israeli Couscous w/ Roasted Butternut Squash & Lemon
Gourmet | September 1999

1 preserved lemon, or juice and zest of two lemons
1 1/2 pound butternut squash, peeled and seeded, and cut into 1/4-inch dice
3 tablespoons olive oil, more possibly
1 large onion, chopped
1 3/4 cups Israeli couscous, about 1 pound
1 (3-inch) cinnamon stick
1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
3/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup dried cranberries or cherries

Preheat oven to 475°F.

Halve lemons and scoop out flesh, keeping both flesh and peel. Cut enough peel into 1/4-inch dice to measure 1/4 cup. Put lemon flesh in a sieve set over a bowl and press with back of a spoon to extract juice. Or zest and juice lemons, reserve.

Toss squash with 1 tablespoon oil and salt to taste in a large shallow baking pan and spread in 1 layer. Roast in upper third of oven 15 minutes, or until squash is just tender, and transfer to a large bowl.

Cook onion in 1 tablespoon oil in a 10-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until just beginning to turn golden. Add to squash.

Cook couscous with cinnamon stick in a large pot of boiling salted water 10 minutes, or until just tender, and drain in a colander (do not rinse). Add couscous to vegetables and toss with 2 tablespoon oil to coat.

Add lemon peel and juice, parsley, nuts, raisins, ground cinnamon, and salt to taste. Toss to mix well. Best at room temperature.

2010 Healthy Recipes, Week #10

It's been a while since I've had a chance to actually cook and create in the kitchen. Our house has been on the market for several weeks, and with that, comes the feeling of living in a museum, since it always has to be "client ready" for someone to walk through your home and potentially make an offer to purchase it. In that vein the other night after the gym, some roasted vegetables sounded good with some seared pork loin medallions on salad with warm dressing. I didn't follow any recipe. Just wanted the flavor component of shallots and mustard vinaigrette on my salad.



Dan's Caramelized Shallot Dressing

1 Shallot finely, diced
3 Garlic cloves, finely diced
1 T Olive Oil
2 T Dijon mustard
¼ C Balsamic vinegar
½ C Beef stock
Salt
Pepper
Fresh Basil

Heat olive oil in small sauce pan over medium heat, sauté shallots and garlic until caramelized. Add balsamic vinegar and stock and reduce to ½ volume, whisk in Dijon mustard, salt and pepper. Stir in freshly chopped basil before serving.

Prepare pork loin by generously seasoning the meat with salt and pepper. Sear 4-5 minutes on each side in a heated frying pan over medium-high heat. After meat is seared, roast for 25 minutes in the oven at 425 degrees. Let rest for 5 minutes and slice.

Arrange mixed greens on plate. Add a few slices of roasted pork loin, and drizzle warm dressing over pork and lettuce. Serve with roasted vegetables. I made asparagus and roasted it for the same 25 minutes along side the pork in the oven.

2010 Healthy Recipes, Week #4

This steak and arugula salad recipe from the recent issue of Real Simple Magazine was very tasty, and extremely simple to make. For the most part, I followed this recipe exactly as it was laid out in the magazine, but did make three minor changes for a different end result.

First, when I made the dressing it was really acidic tasting with just the mustard, olive oil and the red wine vinegar. It was horribly sour and needed some sweetener. I decided to add some honey and make it more of honey-mustard vinaigrette. A little bit of honey went a long way, and it tasted tons better.

Second, I could basically eat a raw sweet onion, but it has to be in the right context. I love the mild flavor of shallots but for this salad with the seared steak, I felt it would taste better if the shallots were caramelized in a pan and cooled, then added to the salad. The caramelization made the flavor even more complex and who doesn’t like onions with steak? I typically caramelize any onion, garlic or shallot beforehand in most recipes to give it a more intense, but less pungent flavor.

Third, since this salad was our meal, and we were not having anything else with it, I felt that a few crumbles of feta or even blue cheese would go great with it. So I added some cheese.



Steak & Arugula Salad

1 teaspoon plus 1 tablespoon olive oil
1 ½ pounds sirloin steak (1 inch thick)
Kosher salt
Black pepper
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon honey
2 oranges
2 bunches arugula, thick stems removed (about 8 cups)
1 shallot, thinly sliced, caramelized
¼ cup pomegranate seeds (optional)
½ cup feta cheese, crumbled

Heat 1 teaspoon of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the liberally with salt pepper and cook to the desired doneness, 5 to 6 minutes per side for medium-rare. Plus an additional 10 minutes in a 350 degree oven for medium doneness, if desired. Let steak rest for 5 minutes before slicing.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together the vinegar, mustard, honey, and the remaining tablespoon of oil, ½ teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper.

Cut away the peel and pith of the oranges. Working over the bowl of vinaigrette, supreme [cut out] the orange segments, adding them to the bowl as you go. Add the arugula and shallot and toss to combine. Serve with the steak and sprinkle with the pomegranate seeds and feta if using.

2010 Healthy Recipes, Week #1

One of my new years and ongoing resolutions is to continue down my path of health and wellness, and really transform the type of food I choose to prepare and consume. Staying away from anything that is processed, over-refined and eating more grains, more whole foods and trying to eat only organic. The past 18 months I’ve dropped some significant weight. I want to continue losing weight and exercising more, so I can live a long, healthy and productive life.

In this vein, one particular resolution is to cook out of all the cook books I have at home. I have dozens of them. And, since I really like experimenting in the kitchen, I plan to “test” all these recipes and adjust them to my own liking, re-creating them in a sense, so they are even healthier. This past weekend, after reviewing a few recipes in Cooking Light, Saveur and Bon Appétit, I decided to come up with this new take on a bulgur salad that we both have come to thoroughly enjoy. I plan to post these adjusted recipes weekly, and am curious to have you try them out and let me know what you think.



Bulgur Salad with Pistachios & Cranberries

2+1/4 c. stock or broth
1+1/2 c. uncooked medium bulgur
3 oranges, zested, supremed and juice reserved
3/4 c. fresh orange juice (about 3 oranges) divided
2 tsp. kosher salt, divided
1 c. dried cranberries
1 c. pistachios, roasted & finely chopped
1/2 c. thinly sliced fresh mint
1 small finely chopped red onion
1 to 1+1/2 c. crumbled feta cheese
1/4 c. best quality extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Combine stock, bulgur, 1/2 cup juice, and 1 tsp. salt in a large saucepan; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat; let stand 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Uncover and cool to room temperature.

Combine remaining ¼ c. juice, ¼ c. olive oil, pepper and remaining 1 tsp. salt and thoroughly mix to form dressing. Add remaining ingredients in a large bowl; toss to combine. Add cooled bulgur mixture; toss well to combine. Cover and chill, or serve at room temperature.

Brunch & The Mo-Tab...! :)

We had a great evening this past Sunday with a good friend of ours. I decided that brunch for dinner sounded yummy. We ate brunch fare on our Christmas China, then headed over to church to watch the Shoreline Stake's annual "Gifts of Christmas" with children, youth and adult choirs. The Gifts of Christmas choral concert also sync's up with the annual LDS First Presidency devotional. I loved the message from President Dieter Uchtdorf, and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir's rendition of 'O Holy Night," arranged by Mack Wilberg. I was all teary listening to that song.



Brunch for dinner. Winter fruit salad, savory bread pudding and roasted rosemary red potatoes.



Winter Fruit Salad

3 oranges, supremed
1/2 C cranberries
I C grapes, halved
1 lime, zested and juiced
3 T mint, finely chopped
1 T honey

Supreme oranges into a bowl reserving juice. Add cranberries, halved grapes, zest and juice of lime and honey. Thoroughly mix. Add mint and serve. Next time I make this I'm going to add pomegranate seeds as well.



Roasted Potatoes.



The star of the Sunday brunch, my Mom's savory bread pudding [breakfast strata]. Our family makes this dish every year around Christmas. My mom, also used a donut maker to make the discs of bread for the top. I did the same thing with cookie cutters. It immediately took me back to my childhood preparing this in the kitchen of my parents home. It was a fantastic evening.

Panzanella Salad

We had an enjoyable weekend this past three day weekend celebrating Memorial Day. Since the weather has been breathtaking and warm, I made a few salads for various meals we had with friends. Sunday we went to Snoqualmie Falls with Steve, Kelly and Miles and took a picnic and relaxed in the sun on the grass. After dinner, Steve strapped Miles into the harness and we walked around the observation desk and grounds. Miles eyes, barely peeked out the top of the rather overwhelming [in my perspective] baby harness thing-a-ma-bobber. I made a pasta salad and this panzanella salad to enjoy.

Dan’s Artichoke Panzanella Salad

5 to 6 cups bread, cubed and dried
2 cups cherry tomatoes, roasted
1 cup cherry tomatoes, fresh
1 16oz can cannellini beans, drained
1 16oz can quartered artichoke hearts, drained
1 to 1&1/2 cups feta cheese, crumbled
1 large orange pepper, chopped
¼ cup fresh basil, finely shredded
¼ cup chopped red onion, sweet onion or chive
¼ cup fresh parsley, finely shredded
¼ cup fresh lemon juice, reserving zest
½ cup best quality olive oil, plus more for tomatoes
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Slice tomatoes in half length wise and arrange on a cookie sheet skin side down, and cut side up. Arranging in this fashion is necessary to prevent sticking to pan. Drizzle with olive oil, salt, pepper and a little sugar. Slow roast tomatoes for 90-120 minutes until they are dried, chewy and caramelized.

Cube bread and allow it to stale for a day or two. Day old sourdough bread or any other good rustic bread works best. Alternately, you can cube bread and bake it off in oven at 250 degrees for 20 minutes to dry it out.

Combine dried bread, roasted tomatoes, fresh tomatoes, onion, beans, artichoke hearts, diced peppers, cheese, lemon zest and fresh herbs. Mix gently. Whisk together fresh lemon juice, olive oil and salt and pepper to make vinaigrette. Pour over bread and vegetable mixture and combine well. Add more salt and pepper to taste if necessary. Serve at room temperature.

Roasted Chicken & Bulgar Salad

I got a recipe from Kelly, who got a recipe from Cooking Light magazine and we’ve been cooking this recipe for dinners and lunches ever since. I’ve made adjustments to this recipe to get it to our liking. We took this to game night last Friday with friends and I was asked to share. The recipe makes a huge batch, be sure to half the recipe unless you are feeding eight or more people.

41/2 c. water
3 c. uncooked medium bulgur
3/4 c. fresh lemon juice (about 3 lemons) divided
2 tsp. kosher salt, divided
4 grilled, boneless / skinless chicken breasts
2 c. halved grape tomatoes or roasted tomatoes or sun-dried tomatoes or mixture
1 cucumber seeded and diced
1 bell pepper, red preferably, seeded and diced
1/2 c. chopped fresh parsley
1/2 c. thinly sliced fresh basil
1 small finely chopped red onion
1 to 1+1/2 c. crumbled feta cheese
1/4 c. best quality extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Combine water, bulgur, 1/2 cup juice, and 1 tsp. salt in a large saucepan; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat; let stand 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Uncover and cool to room temperature.

Combine remaining 1/4 c. juice, remaining 1 tsp. salt and remaining ingredients in a large bowl; toss to combine. Add cooled bulgur mixture; toss well to combine. Cover and chill.

Christmas Jell-O Dessert

I think we have a new holiday tradition. This past Christmas Day, we had "Strawberry Jell-O Fluff" which is a tradition with Holly's aunt and her entire family. I was a little hesitant to eat this concoction, but basically ended up inhaling it. Totally processed and bad for you, but really good none-the-less. We'll be making Jell-O Fluff for Christmas and Easter I'm sure going forward.

STRAWBERRY JELLO FLUFF

1 lg. pkg. strawberry Jell-O
1 lb. frozen diced or sliced strawberries
1 (8 oz.) Cool Whip

Prepare Jell-O according to package directions using hot water only. Add slightly thawed & crushed strawberries or raspberries. Refrigerate until slightly thickened. Beat in Cool Whip with electric mixer until well mixed. Refrigerate until set.

Oven Roasted Tomato Salad

This oven dried tomato pasta salad recipe was taken from a friend. We love making this, and have adjusted slightly to our liking. Since Miss Nancy requested this, and loved the sample I gave her last Sunday...here you go. This is simple, fresh and tastes great with a few simple quality ingredients.

Oven Roasted Tomato Salad

1 Pint Cherry or Grape tomatoes, halved
1/4 C Good Olive Oil
1 - 16 oz Package Farfalle [bow tie] pasta
Fresh Basil to liking
Fresh Lemon Juice to liking
Fresh Lemon Zest to liking
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Good Sea Salt
3/4 to 1 C, Fresh Mozzarella, Feta or Parmesan Cheese

Combine halved tomatoes with a generous amount of olive oil. Liberally season with salt and pepper. Roast tomatoes low and slow in a 300 degree oven for 1.5-2.5 hours. Length of time depends on size of tomatoes. When finished roasting, allow to cool slightly.

Meanwhile cook pasta according to package directions. Combine cooked pasta, with roasted tomatoes and the olive oil that they roasted in. Mix thoroughly. Add in chopped fresh basil, lemon juice and zest. Mix in cheese. Serve at room temperature.

Witchy Poo [AKA Watergate Salad]

Witchy Poo Jell-O Salad

1 (3.4 oz) package instant pistachio pudding mix
1 (8 oz) can crushed pineapple, with juice
1 cup miniature marshmallows
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pistachio's, toasted
1/2 (8 oz) container frozen whipped topping, thawed

In a large bowl, mix together pudding mix, pineapple with juice, marshmallows, and toasted nuts. Fold in whipped topping. Chill.

This past weekend, the weather was sensational. We did a bunch of yard work, and planted some vegetables, herbs and flowers. We had a big BBQ Saturday evening and our friend Karen brought over what I refer to as "Witchy Poo!" This Jell-O salad is also known as Watergate Salad. Because Nixon lied about what type of fruit and Jell-O goes in this salad. Kidding. It brought back memories of summers as kids when my Mom and aunts would make Witchy Poo for family BBQ's.