Appetizers

Parsley Salad with Lemon Tahini Dressing

October 8, 2014 By Janie-Jean Leave a Comment

Parsley Salad with Lemon Tahini Dressing

In my past life I was a waitress in a Mediterranean restaurant. Let’s just say it was a learning experience.

I can honestly say though that I grew to love the flavors of this cuisine. We served Kabobs, stuffed grape leaves, hummus, Baba ghanoush and SHWARMA!! Oh how I love Shwarma!

One item on the menu boasted to be the “Healthiest Salad in the world” called Tabouleh: a parsley salad mixed with diced tomatoes and dressing. While I don’t quite understand what makes it the healthiest in the world, it’s still pretty darn tasty!!

Today I have a spin off of the traditional Tabouleh that I found in a Food and Wine Cookbook. It’s the perfect pairing of greens for this lemony Tahini dressing. PLUS it goes great with our Garlic Chickpea pasta!

In a dry pan, toast some walnuts til they are golden brown. Set them aside and allow to cool on a plate!

Meanwhile, assemble the dressing by combining garlic, lemon juice, and some Tahini paste. Season to taste with salt and pepper. This dressing is so silky and packs a flavor punch!

In a separate bowl toss together some flat leaf parsley leaves that have been chopped along with some thinly sliced scallions. I love how green this salad looks!

Sprinkle the walnuts over the salad. Pine nuts would be a great substitution here too!

Then toss the salad with the Tahini dressing until coated evenly! I love how the dressing coats the side of the glass bowl…I like to think of it as food art!

The flavors of the Mediterranean culture are so very interesting to the palate! When I take a bite of this salad, I remember how special these flavors are to me. Flavors that are, in my opinion, the unsung heroes of the culinary scene!

Go ahead and be adventurous today and give this recipe a shot! If parsley is not your thing, you can totally use other peppery greens like arugula and watercress. To me, what really screams Mediterranean in this recipe is the dressing!

Enjoy!

Love,

Janie-Jean

Parsley Salad with Lemon Tahini Dressing

Author: Janie-Jean

Ingredients

¼ cup walnuts chopped
¼ cup tahini paste, at room temperature
1 ½ Tbs freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 small garlic clove, finely chopped
2 Tbs water
Salt and freshly ground pepper
4 cups fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, thick stems discarded
4 scallions, thinly sliced crosswise

Instructions

Toast the chopped walnuts in a small skillet over medium heat. Shake the skillet occasionally, until the walnuts are golden brown, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a plate to cool.
To make the dressing, mix together the tahini paste, lemon juice, garlic, and water. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
In a medium bowl, toss the parsley with the chopped scallions and walnuts. Add the tahini dressing and toss together well. Serve immediately.
**If you’re not into eating parsley you could try this with other peppery greens like arugula, watercress, or escarole. This would also go pretty well with Kale.

Caramelized Peach Salad

September 4, 2014 By Janie-Jean Leave a Comment

Caramelized Peach Salad

Retail therapy is a beautiful thing! Just the other week I had the pleasure of shopping with my mother-in-law and Grandma at some swanky mall in Columbus, OH. This mall was the real deal- stores were inside, stores were outside, up, down and sideways too! Dresses, jewelry and shoes were included in the bounty I collected (ahem…bought) and I have no regrets!

The one treasure we did find shopping was a beautifully dressed salad topped with caramelized peaches. We had to stop for sustenance…plus some members of our party were getting “Hangry” …if you know what I mean. But seriously…this salad looked so delicious that I thought I would try creating my own version at home which coordinated perfectly with the Green Bean Corn Pasta!

Start by slicing your peaches in half then breaking down the halves into quarters…got that? Another example of math in every day cooking…

Set the peaches aside till you are ready to use them. Make the syrup by combining some wine, sugar, cardamom pods, a cinnamon stick and a vanilla bean in a medium sauce pan over medium high heat.

Continue to stir frequently so that the sugar dissolves and the mixture comes to a boil. Allow it to boil for about 3 minutes. It’s going to get slightly syrupy as it cooks down.

Toss in your peaches (gently) and stir to coat each slice evenly. Continue to cook the mixture with the peaches for about 3 to 4 minutes. This is going to turn the peaches a nice golden color.

When the cooking is completed, toss the whole spices and pour mixture into a glass bowl. These peaches have a plethora of uses, but today we are going to use them as our salad topper.

Toss together any mixed greens you desire with sliced onions and dried cranberries. Top with the caramelized peaches and sprinkle with a tasty garnish of gorgonzola.

A fancy salad dressed to impress any dinner party…or family member for that matter. The peaches are luscious, sweet and spicy (not hot spicy…like spices spicy). The salad adds a delightful savory element to the dish and the garnish of gorgonzola adds the perfect salty note to balance the flavors. Do you have a favorite salad combo? I would love to hear your thoughts as I brainstorm more ideas for pasta night!

Love you all!

Janie-Jean

Caramelized Peach Salad

Author: Janie-Jean

Ingredients

4 firm- ripe peaches
1 cup dry red wine
½ cup sugar
4 whole cardamom pods
1 cinnamon stick (3 inches long)
1 whole vanilla bean, split lengthwise
Mixed greens- whatever you prefer
½ red onion thinly sliced
Crumbled gorgonzola cheese to taste
¼ cup dried cranberry for garnish

Instructions

Cut the peaches in half and remove the pits. Then cut each half into quarters.
In a medium sauce pan over medium high heat combine the wine, sugar, cardamom pods, vanilla and cinnamon stick. Stir till sugar is dissolved. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook until the mixture becomes slightly syrupy. This will take about 3 minutes. Toss in the peaches, making sure that each piece is coated with the syrup. Cook until the peaches are evenly coated and turn golden in color about 3 to 4 minutes. Discard the whole spices and serve the peaches warm or cold.
To make the salad:
Toss the greens, red onion and dried cranberries together in a large bowl. Top with the Caramelized peaches as well as the syrup. Sprinkle with the gorgonzola cheese. Serve immediately.

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

June 27, 2014 By Janie-Jean Leave a Comment

A Lesson In Sharing
My son is great. Seriously, he is one of the best gifts given to me and my husband. However, I have to confess that he is also the worst thing that has happened to my appetite. Let me explain, Mom’s I am sure you have been there, you sit down to a wonderful, home cooked meal with your family to which you barely touch because someone is leaning over to see what you are eating and insists on indulging in everything on your plate. YOUR PLATE! C’mon now…I know sharing is an important lesson that our children need to learn…but there is a fine line between sharing and mooching off of someone else…ladies, it’s time to take back YOUR MEALS! Are you with me? Let’s start with a snack you can share with your kids. Good ol’ fashion hummus…

Hummus is a typically easy dip to create, but the beauty of this recipe is it cuts out some of those “rare” ingredients like tahini paste. What you are left with is a beautiful example of how simple, everyday ingredients can be used to create a flavorful snack or even lunch. Here is the line up-

First things first, let’s roast those peppers. If you haven’t roasted peppers before it’s really simple. Don’t believe me? Watch and learn! Place peppers on a baking sheet lined with foil and a cookie rack.

Place in the oven under a preheated broiler. I had the broiler on High. BE SURE TO STICK BY THE OVEN WHILE ROASTING! I cannot tell you how many times I have walked away and nearly destroyed not only my dish but my kitchen for that matter…YEESH!

We want the skin of the pepper to get really charred. You will need to turn it periodically so the entire pepper has a chance to char evenly.

Once the skin is charred place the peppers in a glass bowl and cover with foil. This is going to allow the peppers to continue to steam with its residual heat which will loosen the charred skin.

Once they are cool enough to handle use your hands to remove the loosened skin. Then slice the peppers into ½ inch strips.

Now it’s time to make the dip…In a food processer fitted with the blade attachment add the chickpeas, yogurt, oil, cumin and garlic.

Puree the ingredients. Are you salivating? I know am…no lie!

Add ½ of the roasted red pepper to the hummus and puree as well.

Serve the hummus in a small bowl for baby topped with some of the remaining roasted red pepper. As you notice I have diced some of the strips…Lew doesn’t have too many teeth at this point so I needed to adjust to his chewing ability. While you’re at it, serve some on a piece of crusty bread for yourself…you deserve it after all that hard work mama!

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Author: Janie-Jean

Ingredients

1 Red Bell Pepper
1 can (15 oz) cooked low-sodium chickpeas, rinsed and drained
½ cup plain whole-milk yogurt
1 small clove garlic
2 TBS olive oil
½ teaspoon ground cumin

Instructions

Preheat your broiler on High.
Line a broiler pan with aluminum foil.
Broil the peppers, turning occasionally, until the skin is blackened all over.
Transfer to a glass bowl and cover to let the pepper steam to help loosen the skin. Let stand to cool.
When cool enough to handle, cut the pepper in half then remove and discard the stem, seeds and blackened skin.
In a food processer or blender, combine the chickpeas, half of the roasted red pepper, the yogurt, garlic, cumin, and olive oil and process until smooth. Cut the other half of the bell pepper into small strips for dipping.
Refrigerate the hummus in an airtight container for up to 1 week; refrigerate the pepper strips for up to 3 days.
**You can also make extra roasted red bell pepper, puree them and then freeze for future mix-ins. Also try with ricotta cheese, cottage cheese or even with chicken or pork.

Nothing is better than sharing a recipe with friends and family, but at some point the kid has to learn to eat what is on his plate. And when you both are eating the same thing, it is hard for him to deny the food served in front of him. Ok Mom’s of the world, let’s rally together and commit to taking time to feed ourselves and explore the culinary wonders of this world. They can take our time and energy but they cannot take our FOOD! Will you join me?