Roasted Vegetable Salad

For those of you who haven't given up on this blog yet, 1) wow, 2) we're sorry to be so neglectful (4 months is embarassing) and 3) new post! YAY MEREDITH!

I have SO many more recipes I want to share with you all but this one is being posted by popular demand.  I originally obtained this recipe from one of my Columbus besties, Kristi.  She made this for us when she and her hubs were living with us a while back.  Now that I write that, I'm getting deja vu as if I've already blogged this. Oh well, I'm doing it again if I already have simply for the sake of blogging SOMETHING on this poor, neglected blog.  I have made this salad SEVERAL times for SEVERAL different people and it always gets RAVE reviews.  The dressing is the secret, I think.  So here's the recipe:

Feta Dressing

2 T white wine vinegar (can use regular white vinegar)

1 tsp honey

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 tsp Dijon mustard

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp ground black pepper

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

2 tsp minced fresh thyme

Other Ingredients:

Mixed greens

Avocado

Scallions/basil (scallions are cheaper)

Your choice of vegetables (I typically use a purple onion, a zucchini or squash, a bell pepper [anything but green], and asparagus [which roasts for a lesser time than the other vegetables])

Whisk first 6 ingredients.  Slowly whisk in olive oil.  Stir in feta and thyme (often times I only stir in the thyme and put the feta directly on the salad and drizzle the dressing over when time to serve).  

Grab your favorite vegetables. Pre-heat oven to 425. Cut the veg into thick pieces (everything minus the asparagus because they don't need any extra slimming)  and lay them all out flat on a cutting board.  Sprinkle them with salt and let them sit for about 10 minutes (this is really only necessary with squash and zucchini).  Blot the water off of them (getting rid of some of that water in the veg helps them brown better)

Lay out your veggies on a sheet pan- don’t let any of them be all over each other otherwise they won’t evenly roast.  Drizzle them with olive oil (I’d start with 1 tablespoon then if you miss some veg, add a bit more- but don’t drench them) and season with about 1 teaspoon of salt.  (I know it sounds like simple seasoning but the roasting develops flavors for you so you don’t have to worry about other seasonings)

Get a good bed of greens, an avocado, and some scallions (or strips of basil would be divine).   Let the vegetables roast for about 20 minutes (or more- depending on where they are at in the browning stage) turning once at the halfway point.  They may take around 25 minutes, just keep an eye on them.  They should be soft, but caramelized looking in some parts (ie; not all completely brown- but you’ll know it when you see it). 

Cut up your avocado, scallions, and put your beautiful roasted vegetables on top of those greens (I like a spring mix- more nutrients than romaine) and top with the avocado and scallions.  Drizzle over your dressing and you are good to go!  The vegetables can be served warm- if you serve them piping hot, they will wilt the greens.  But hey, there's nothing wrong with a wilted salad from time to time.  ENJOY!

 

Potato and Corn Chowder

(picture compliments of Weight Watchers)

Guys.  I made this soup tonight and it was DELISH.  Find yourself some fresh summer corn and make this dish!  It's got great texture, sweetness from the corn, a hint of heat, and it's hearty- but still a perfect soup for summer.  Serve with some sweet cornbread and a dollop of sour cream and chives. You won't be sorry.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

• Turkey bacon (4-5 slices, chopped)
• 1 russet potato, chopped
• 4 ears summer corn (I used both white and yellow)
• 1 red pepper, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 celery heart, chopped
• Milk (1/2 C to 1 C)
• Chicken or vegetable stock
• 1/2 C white wine (optional)
• Sriracha (or any other hot sauce you have)

Directions:

• Pre-heat your oven to 500 degrees and throw your shucked corn on a baking sheet to roast.  While the corn roasts, chop your veg
• In a stock pot and with a touch of olive oil, sautee your bacon over medium heat until crispy (as crispy as turkey bacon gets, I guess)
• Add your veg and add a dash of salt, allowing them to sweat
• Cover the lid of the pot to allow the vegetables to become tender
• Once tender, deglaze the pan with the white wine (or stock, instead)
• Add your stock and allow soup to come to a strong simmer
• Check your corn- there should be some brown spots
• Carefully, cut the kernels off the cob (you could also just throw a bag of frozen corn kernels and roast them I suppose)
• Add the corn to the pot and simmer for a few minutes (It will probably need a bit more salt- turkey bacon doesn't have near the amount of salt that regular bacon does, so you'll need to add some)
• Add your milk until desired creaminess and continue to simmer for a couple minutes
• Stir in a couple swigs of sriracha and let the flavors merry for 15 minutes before you serve.
• If you want your soup the be thick, use an immersion blender to blend half of it (or stick half of it in a blender)

Deliciously satisfying- the sweet corn not only provides sweetness (obviously) but also a wonderful texture.  There's a lot of flavor in this simple soup and it's SUPER easy to make!  

Enjoy!

Uncle Bob's French Onion Soup

A few months ago I spent a weekend with Uncle Bob and Aunt Kay up in Dallas. Uncle Bob is a "food scientist"...and while I am still unsure of exactly what that means or what he does... I do know that he has a food expertise that shines when he makes this incredible french onion soup. It was a cold February weekend when he made it for me, and it warmed me down to my bones. We should feel pretty special that he agreed to share the recipe with us; Aunt Kay was convinced that he would never reveal the secret. Thank you, Uncle Bob!!!

"Here's my mods on a standard French Onion Soup recipe. It's hard to go wrong on any of the recipes I've tried, but I do like to spend a long time on the onion saute step, and don't mind a few crunchy bits    on the pan bottom.  Stop when you like the color, then deglaze with the white wine, while enjoying a glass.

I like sliced sourdough toasted to dryness in the oven for the top layer, then use grated Swiss to crown it.  Most people don't notice the red pepper kick, so I probably got a little heavy handed on the batch you sampled. 

This soup is great for leftovers, not just in the dead of winter. It is much better day 2 and 3. The flavors meld and complement each other.But it's hard to not eat it day 1!"

penne with zucchini pistou

Wow has it been a while! 

This dish is from a while ago, and GOSH was it delicious. (Forgive the phone snap shot of this pic, I accidentally deleted it on my photos).  It's vegetarian, but so filling and packed with flavor that you won't miss meat!  A 'pistou' is the French's version of a pesto, essentially.  This pistou has caramelized zucchini in addition to the already fabulous flavors of a regular 'pesto.'

Ingredients:

• 2 large or 3 small/medium zucchini
• 3-4 large cloves of garlic
• 1/3 cup parmesan
• a good handful of fresh basil
• any type of nut (optional), about a palm full
• 1 box penne pasta
• 1/2-1 C reserved pasta water
• Olive Oil

Directions:

• Chop your zucchini into medallions
• Heat some olive oil in a medium sized pan over medium/medium high heat
• Add your zucchini and allow the zucchini to caramelize (like the picture)
• Once the zucchini are tender and are golden brown, remove from heat
• Boil your pasta water (add salt!) and add your box of penne
• In a food processor, add 1/3 of your cooked zucchini along with your basil, parmesan, garlic, salt, and nuts (if using)
• While blending the ingredients, stream olive oil into the food processor to make the pistou
• Taste for flavor
• Once the pasta is done, add it (using a slotted spoon) to the zucchini that still hangin' out in the pan, and then dump your pistou mixture on top.  
• Add a little bit of pasta water to the mix as you stir everything together
• Grate some fresh parmesan over the pasta to incorporate, as well

This will easily be one of my favorite go-to dishes during the week because it's simple to make, it's PACKED with flavor, doesn't cost a lot, and saves well for leftovers!

chocolate cakelette with basil-infused buttercream

These little morsels of heaven were discovered through this  blog via Pinterest, naturally.  They were SO yum, but I must tell you- they were A LOT of work.  Hers looked significantly better and much of that is due to her having green food coloring (which obviously I didn't have). Here are my quick suggestions:

-For a quicker version, just use the cupcake recipe and icing- skip the meringue.  It's really not that necessary.
-If you are going to make these all out, I'd save it for a REAL special occasion like a baby shower or mother's day
-Don't wait until 10:00 at night to make these like me....although they did make a wonderful midnight snack.

Overall, they're FABULOUS and delightfully flavorful with that interesting layer of basil in that buttercream.  YUM.

Enjoy!

A Modern Woman

Last week I called my mom to brag to her about how I am now officially a "modern woman". I've been at my new job for about two months and finally feel as though I have this whole working-girl thing figured out.

I've been traveling the past six weekends, working until 5 or later every night, making beautiful home-cooked meals for Anthony, volunteering with the church, attending nightly social events, and keeping up a regular exercise routine... all with freshly washed hair and dressed in my cutest spring outfits, of course.

We got back into town Sunday morning and I decided to take a little nap before I resumed my Sunday regimen of a 5 mile walk, trip to the grocery store, and cooking for the rest of the day. When I woke up it hit my like a ton of bricks: I was sick.

Not just a little sick: so so sick. Like, drop down, drag out, sick-as-a-dog sick. I could barely get out of bed.

I'm a firm believer that your body tells you what it needs. My body was begging me to stop moving and please please let it rest. I slept the entire day, waking only to have Anthony make me drink Thera-flu and kiss my forehead.

He also brought me Wolfgang Puck Tomato Basil Bisque. I try not to eat soup out of a can; it has so much sodium and there's always the fear of injesting BPA and getting cancer. I pride myself on making my own soups.... but, honey, when your this sick, you could not care less. It tasted so good.

So I'm home from work today and trying to give my body what it's asking for. Putting on the brakes is so hard. I guess I haven't figured out what being a "modern woman" really means yet. I have a feeling it may take a little less commitment and a lot more Wolfgang Puck.

Green Juice

My mom just bought a juicer and is literally OBSESSED with juicing things now. I called her at 8:30am this morning and she was already at the grocery store buying ingredients for this bizarre green concotion you see above. I told her to send me a narrative and I would post it for y'all. Here's what she said:

"This is kale/carrot/pear/apple/ginger/lemon refreshing cleansing drink! I'm obsesed with my new juicer! All those lovely vitamins are neslted happily in my tummy. Like yoga is for the mind and body so this juice is for my intestines. Kate, make all this sound good for the blog and send me the link aaaaagain."

I have sent her the link to this blog 20 times. My mom is funny.