Variation on Greek Style Green Beans

17 04 2010

Last night I made the Greek Style Green Beans recipe on my website. Instead of using dill weed as the herb flavor at the end, I began the recipe by cooking the green beans, garlic and tomatoes in EVOO’s Tuscan Herb Olive oil. Then I did not add any dill or other herbs at the end. It was delicious with a subtle hint of herbs gently coating the green beans.





Raw Caesar’s Salad Dressing

16 04 2010
This is from Charlie Trotter’s new cookbook, Raw. This dressing keeps up to two weeks  in the refrigerator and is delicious and healthy.

1 cup extra virgin olive oil

3 cloves garlic

2 medium celery stalks, chopped

½ cup filtered water

¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

¼ cup nama shoyu

2 tbsp white miso

4 tsp Date paste or pureed soaked dates

1 tbsp kelp granules

½ tsp freshly ground pepper

In a high speed blender, combine all the ingredients and process until the mixture is the consistency of a conventional Caesar dressing. Taste and adjust the seasoning.





Asparagus Salad with Pine Nuts

16 04 2010
We are into asparagus season. I love it and am always looking for new ways to make it. I tried this recipe, and I thought the dressing had a nice little kick to it. This is very easy to make.

2 bunches asparagus

½ cup raw pine nuts

3 tbsp oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

¼ cup fresh orange juice

3 tbsp light soy sauce

2 tbsp Japanese rice vinegar

1 tbsp agave

1 tbsp dark sesame oil

1 tsp Asian chile sauce

2 tbsp chopped cilantro

Read the rest of this entry »





Using Leftover Braised Fennel and Potatoes

8 04 2010

My boys love to get breakfast burritos from a little roadside stand here in Denver called Big Mama’s Burritos. These burritos are filled with potatoes, cheese and eggs and their secret vegetarian chili sauce. Looking at my leftover Braised Fennel and Potatoes, I had the great idea that they would make a delicious filling for breakfast burritos. I tried it last night by sauteing my leftover potato mixture in a pan until heated through and then adding 2 beaten eggs. I continue to stir until the eggs were cooked through and nicely blended with the potatoes. Then I added in some shredded cheese and poured on some nice chili sauce. I actually bought a small cup of Big Mama’s chili sauce, but you could use any homemade or store bought sauce or salsa. I heated up tortillas and filled them with the potato, egg and cheese mixture. What an easy way to recreate leftovers into a whole new dish!





Zucchini and Rice Gratin Provencal Style

7 04 2010
Usually I wait until the heart of the summer to start cooking with zucchini. That is when my mother gives me a never-ending supply from her garden. However, I happened to have a few zucchini in my refrigerator yesterday, so I guess I was anticipating that bountiful harvest and the lovely fresh tastes of summer produce. I put together this gratin dish in under an hour. Of course, using a pressure cooker to cook the brown rice sped up the process. You can put together all of the parts to this recipe while the rice is cooking. Then simply assemble and bake. This recipe can be made up to a day in advance before the final baking, making it an ideal dish for entertaining. Once again, I used EVOO’s Tuscan Herb olive oil for roasting the vegetables and drizzling on the rice. You can use just plain extra virgin olive oil, but you may want to add more herbs like some fresh basil and oregano.

Read the rest of this entry »





Braised Fennel and Potatoes

6 04 2010
I love fennel. It has a beautiful subtle anise or licorice flavor. You can use it raw in salads but one of my favorite ways of preparing fennel is braising. Braising involves searing the vegetable first then adding liquid and cooking until tender. I served this dish with my Easter dinner and my boys loved it, even the one who says he doesn’t like fennel and onions.

Read the rest of this entry »





Sweet Potatoes, Caramelized Apples and Greens

3 04 2010
As usual, it was time to use up an odd assortment of vegetables in my refrigerator. I love sweet potatoes simply roasted with sea salt and olive oil or butter. I also know that people love to pair sweet potatoes with more sweetness. Usually I find that to be cloyingly sweet, like those marshmallow and sweet potato combinations at Thanksgiving. However, in the case of this recipe, I thought the slightly bitter greens would compliment the sweetness of the caramelized apples and the sweet potatoes. I was right. It was delicious and naturally sweet as so much of God’s wonderful produce is. Remember you can use any combination of braising greens like mustard greens, kale, collard and beet greens in this recipe.

Read the rest of this entry »





Whole Roasted Cauliflower with Olive Oil and Capers

3 04 2010
I found this inspiration on epicurious.com. I love cauliflower but no one else in my family does. I have been trying to come up with ways to fix cauliflower so that they will eat it. I tried this recipe and they actually enjoyed it. I was thrilled. This is so simple. You can use a basic olive oil or if you have any fused olive oils like EVOO’s Tuscan Herb or Roasted Garlic olive oils, they pair nicely with the cauliflower. This is delicious hot or served room temperature. I am thinking of making it for an Easter picnic tomorrow.

Read the rest of this entry »





Papaya or Mango Salsa with Honey Ginger Balsamic Vinegar

1 04 2010
Here is a salsa I made to feature EVOO’s Honey Ginger Balsamic Vinegar. It was delicious. I served it on grilled black cod. It would also be good on grilled shrimp or scallops or try it with spring rolls or even dumplings. Today I had it for lunch on top of  smoked salmon and cream cheese on toast. The Honey Ginger Balsamic Vinegar added a nice sweetness to the salsa.

Read the rest of this entry »





Zucchini, Red Pepper and Corn Enchiladas

31 03 2010
Last night I was playing with guacamole, and I thought these enchiladas would go nicely with the guacamole. They turned out great. This was the answer to some extra vegetables in my refrigerator, so don’t feel you have to use only zucchini, red pepper and corn. Experiment with other vegetables like maybe greens or broccoli. I like the smokiness that the chipotle peppers added to the dish.

Read the rest of this entry »