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Melon With Orange-Ginger Syrup

Posted in Recipes, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on August 14, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Cool and refreshing  – what more could you want from a recipe using ripe summer melons? How about something unexpected? The first few bites of this sweet melon mélange reveal subtle hints of orange and ginger, but the next few bites pique your interest. A splash of Cointreau elevates the flavors from sophisticated to sublime. Should you serve this dish as a salad or as a dessert? Your choice – it’s great for both!

Melon With Orange-Ginger Syrup
Recipe from Martha Stewart

Ingredients:
1 cup freshly squeezed and strained orange juice (about 4 oranges), plus zest of 2 oranges
1 cup sugar
1/2 ounce ginger, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons Cointreau
1 small honeydew melon, cut in half, seeded
1 small canary melon, cut in half, seeded
1 cantaloupe, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch wedges
Mint sprigs, for garnish

Directions:
1. Fill a large bowl with ice and water; set aside. Place the orange juice, sugar, and ginger in a small saucepan over medium heat; bring to a boil; Let simmer, stirring occasionally, until sugar has dissolved and syrup has thickened, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat; strain syrup into a clean bowl; add the Cointreau; stir to combine. Set bowl in ice bath, or chill in refrigerator, until syrup is cold.

2. Using different sizes of melon ballers, cut balls from the honeydew and canary melons. Place balls in a medium bowl; add 1/2 cup cold syrup and orange zest. Toss to combine.

3. To serve, arrange cantaloupe on a platter. Spoon melon balls on top. Serve extra melon balls on the side. Drizzle melons with syrup; garnish with mint. Serve with remaining syrup on the side.

Serves 8.

Linnell’s Notes:
1. With all the wonderful melons available, don’t feel restricted to only using the types of melons called for in the recipe. Do, however, try to select a variety of melons that will give you a colorful array of melon flesh.

2. The recipe suggests creating different size melon balls. I’m sure the presentation would have been more attractive if the melon balls were different sizes, but I only have one melon baller. That’s life!

ENJOY!

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Quinoa and Black Bean Salad

Posted in About me, Recipes, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on August 7, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Feeling guilty over devouring a two-pound lobster last night in celebration of my 35th wedding anniversary, tonight I’m eating a healthy quinoa and black bean salad that’s tossed with a lime-cumin dressing and served on a bed of fresh pea shoots. I’ve posted other quinoa recipes before, so you already know that these grains are amazingly-nutritious. Adding the delicate pea shoots provides a rich source of Vitamins K, C, and A. What a delicious way to offset the gluttony of the evening before!

Quinoa and Black Bean Salad
Recipe from Epicurious

Ingredients for Salad:
1½ cups quinoa
1½ cups cooked black beans, rinsed if canned
1½ tablespoons red wine vinegar
1½ cups cooked corn (cut from about two ears)
3/4 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
2 pickled jalapeño chilies, seeded and minced (wear rubber gloves)
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh coriander

Ingredients for Dressing:
5 tablespoons fresh lime juice, or to taste
1 teaspoon salt
1¼ teaspoons ground cumin, or to taste
1/3 cup olive oil

Directions:
1. In a bowl wash quinoa in at least 5 changes cold water, rubbing grains and letting them settle before pouring off most of water, until water runs clear and drain in a large fine sieve.

2. In a saucepan of salted boiling water cook quinoa 10 minutes. Drain quinoa in sieve and rinse under cold water. Set sieve over a saucepan of boiling water (quinoa should not touch water) and steam quinoa, covered with a kitchen towel and lid, until fluffy and dry, about 10 minutes (check water level in saucepan occasionally, adding water if necessary).

3. While quinoa is cooking, in a small bowl toss beans with vinegar and salt and pepper to taste.

4. Transfer quinoa to a large bowl and cool. Add beans, corn, bell pepper, jalapeños, and coriander. Toss well.

5. In a small bowl whisk together lime juice, salt, and cumin and add oil in a stream, whisking.

6. Drizzle dressing over salad and toss well with salt and pepper to taste. Salad may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Bring salad to room temperature before serving.

Serves 4 to 6 as an entrée or 8 as a side dish.

Linnell’s Notes:
1. Fresh jalapeño can be used instead of pickled jalapeño.
2. Coriander is also called cilantro. According to Wikipedia, “Cilantro (sih-LAHN-troh) is the Spanish word for coriander leaves.”
3. Because I had fresh lemons and didn’t have fresh limes, I substituted 5 tablespoons of lemon juice for the lime juice. With that substitution, I decided to use Meyer lemon-infused olive oil in lieu of regular olive oil.
4. Another successful substitution was Italian parsley for the coriander leaves. I’m sure the recipe would have had a more southwestern flavor, if I had used lime juice and coriander leaves. My version had a bit more of an Italian flare.
5. I used less salt than the recipe called for. I did not add any salt to the bean and vinegar mixture and I only put in a pinch of salt into the dressing mixture.

ENJOY!

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Green Goddess Dressing from the Palace Hotel

Posted in About me, In The Kitchen, Marriage, Recipes, Travel, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on August 1, 2012| 1 Comment »

Last weekend my son married the girl of his dreams. The venue was the beautiful Palace Hotel in San Francisco where my grandfather worked in the 1940s. While touring the historic hotel, a hotel staffer told me that the doorknobs on the tall mahogany room doors were the originals from 1909. As I walked down a long hallway, I touched several of the doorknobs, letting my fingers linger a moment on each of them. Goosebumps ran down my arms as I considered that my dear grandfather might have touched these same doorknobs.

The Palace Hotel is famous for many things, one of which is its Green Goddess Dressing. According to the Palace website, “The Green Goddess Dressing was created at the Palace Hotel in 1923 by Executive Chef Phillip Roemer. Chef Roemer created the dressing for a banquet held at the Palace. The event was honoring actor George Arliss who was the lead in William Archer’s hit play “The Green Goddess.”  The creamy dressing is bright with fresh herbal flavors and goes well with mixed baby greens, fresh vegetables, or a seafood salad.

Green Goddess Dressing
Original Recipe from the Palace Hotel in San Francisco

Ingredients:
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup snipped fresh chives or minced scallions
1/4 cup fresh parsley
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
3 anchovy fillets, rinsed, patted dry, and minced
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions:
Stir all the ingredients together in a small bowl until well-blended. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Use immediately or cover and refrigerate.

Linnell’s Notes:
The mixture will be white with green herb flecks in it. To make the dressing the classic green color, pour the mixture into a blender or food processor and give it a couple of whirls until it is the desired color.

Enjoy!

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Quinoa Salad With Tomatoes and Basil

Posted in About me, Recipes, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on July 24, 2012| 2 Comments »

 

Wedding bells will chime this week for my son and his fiancé. As I happily wade through lists and list of wedding details, I offer you a repost of one of my favorite summer salads. Enjoy!

How fortunate it is that tomatoes and basil both thrive in summer heat. When it’s too hot to cook, salads make frequent appearances on the dinner menu in my house and with the bounty of tomatoes and basil outside in the garden, who could resist not finding as many ways as possible to use these two summer favorites? It only gets better – here’s a recipe that combines tomatoes and basil with the healthy goodness of quinoa. In an earlier post Quinoa and Shrimp Salad, I explained why quinoa is a nutritional gem; these tiny seeds contain a balanced set of essential amino acids, making them complete proteins, and are a great gluten-free source of dietary fiber, phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, and iron.

Quinoa Salad With Tomatoes and Basil
Adapted from a recipe by Rachel Venokur-Clark

Salad Ingredients:
1 C quinoa
1/2 red onion, diced
2 fresh tomatoes, chopped
1/3 C sun-dried tomatoes (packed in oil), diced
1/2 C fresh basil, chopped
1/4 C pine nuts, toasted

Dressing Ingredients:
4 garlic cloves
1-1/2 tsp lemon juice
3 T white balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dijon mustard
1/4 C extra virgin olive oil

Directions:
1. Measure quinoa into a sieve and rinse with cold water. Drain. Bring 2 cups of water to a boil and add quinoa. Cover and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes or until water is absorbed. Set aside and let cool.

2. Whisk together all dressing ingredients, except for the olive oil. Pour oil in a small stream into the the bowl of dressing ingredients, whisking the whole time to form an emulsion. Set aside.

3. Toast the pine nuts in a pan until lightly browned and fragrant. While toasting, keep an eye on them and stir them occasionally so that they don’t burn. Let cool.

4. To the cooked and cooled quinoa, add diced onion, diced tomatoes, diced sun-dried tomatoes, and diced basil. Toss gently.

5. Whisk salad dressing again and pour over salad ingredients. Toss again.

6. Serve on a bed of lettuce and garnish with toasted pine nuts.

Serves 4-6.

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Massaged Kale Salad With Mango

Posted in Health, In The Kitchen, Recipes, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on July 17, 2012| 1 Comment »

Wait! You should think twice before you say, “Ewww . . . kale!” and snub this recipe. Try to withhold judgement until after you taste this easy-to-make and nutrient-packed salad. The earthy flavor and color of dark green kale leaves are wonderfully offset by the tropical fruit flavor and bright color of mango. And what makes this salad different from other kale salads is the massaged kale. Yes, that’s right, MASSAGED. Most of us know that a little oil and a gentle massage go a long way to relax tense muscles. Kale undergoes a similar transformation after a short and gentle massage. The tough and fibrous strips of kale become relaxed and tender. What’s not to like about eight simple ingredients that when combined together create a beautiful salad and a healthier you?

Massaged Kale Salad
Recipe courtesy of Aarti Sequeira

Ingredients:
1 large bunch of kale, stalks removed and discarded, leaves thinly sliced
1 lemon, juiced
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
Kosher salt
2 teaspoons honey
Freshly ground black pepper
1 mango, diced small (about 1 cup)
Small handful toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds), about 2 rounded tablespoons

Directions:
1. In large serving bowl, add the kale, half of lemon juice, a drizzle of oil and a little kosher salt. Massage until kale starts to soften and wilt, 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside while you make the dressing.
2. In a small bowl, whisk remaining lemon juice with the honey and lots of freshly ground black pepper. Stream in the 1/4 cup of oil while whisking until a dressing forms, and you like how it tastes.
3. Pour the dressing over the kale and add the mango and pepitas. Toss and serve.

Serves 4.

Linnell’s Notes:
1. The easiest way to remove stalks from kale leaves is to hold the stem end in one hand and, in one motion, pull the leaf away and down the stem with the other hand. Repeat until all stems are removed. Wash and dry leaves.
2. To cut the leaves, stack several leaves and then roll them into a cigar. Slice your kale “cigar” crosswise to form thin ribbons.
3. The lemon I used was large, so I added a little bit more honey to take away some of the tartness in the salad dressing.
4. Other fruit, such as peaches or strawberries, could easily be substituted for the mango.

ENJOY!

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Not Yo’ Mama’s Banana Pudding

Posted in About me, Recipes, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 10, 2012| 1 Comment »

Lightly freckled bananas sit on my kitchen counter and beg to be eaten while still in their prime. A thought crosses my mind, “What about using them in a dessert for the potluck dinner tonight?” Being short on time, I search for a quick and easy banana recipe. Voilà! Paula Deen to the rescue again! This recipe tantalizes me, because it contains all sorts of sinful ingredients like cream cheese, whipped cream and sweetened condensed milk. But what really lures me in is the use of a big-time favorite cookie of mine – buttery Pepperidge Farm Chessmen cookies. I can’t wait to sample this dessert! Hold on a minute . . . how am I going to taste this luscious banana dessert AND serve it at a potluck? I don’t think anyone will notice a missing corner piece, do you?

Not Yo’ Mama’s Banana Pudding
Recipe courtesy of Paula Deen

Ingredients:
2 bags Pepperidge Farm Chessmen cookies
6 to 8 bananas, sliced
2 cups milk
1 (5-ounce) box instant French vanilla pudding
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (12-ounce) container frozen whipped topping thawed, or equal amount sweetened whipped cream

Directions:
1. Line the bottom of a 13 by 9 by 2-inch dish with 1 bag of cookies . . .

. . . and then layer bananas on top of them.

2. Notice that some of the cookies are broken. Eat them.

3. In a bowl, combine the milk and pudding mix and blend well using a handheld electric mixer.
4. Using another bowl, combine the cream cheese and condensed milk together and mix until smooth. Fold the whipped topping into the cream cheese mixture. Add the cream cheese mixture to the pudding mixture and stir until well blended. Pour the mixture over the cookies and bananas and cover with the remaining cookies.

4. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Serves 12.

Linnell’s Notes:
1. Because I like my banana desserts to be full of fresh banana flavor, I cut up eight bananas.
2. To prevent the bananas from turning yellow, I sliced the bananas and, in batches, put them in a strainer over a bowl and poured lemon juice over them. I poured the lemon juice from the bowl back into the measuring cup to use again.

3. For better flavor, I whipped up some fresh whipping cream and used it in place of the frozen whipped topping.
4. This recipe does come together easily and makes a wonderful dessert for potlucks, family dinners, and parties.

ENJOY!

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Corn Relish

Posted in Gift Ideas, Recipes, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 3, 2012| Leave a Comment »

My Auntie Ella or Auntie La-la, as some of her nieces called her when they were young, makes a corn relish that is a family favorite and a perfect summer side dish. Its sweet and tangy flavor compliments grilled meat, seafood, burgers, hotdogs, sandwiches – just about anything! My mom actually prefers the relish all by itself and by the spoonfuls! Want to dress up a plain green salad? Just mound some of this relish on fresh greens and your salad is instantly more attractive and flavorful!

Corn Relish
Recipe from my Auntie Ella

Ingredients:
1 15-ounce can Le Sueur peas, drained
2 11-ounce cans white shoepeg corn, drained
1 8-ounce can of cut green beans, drained
1 4-ounce jar of diced pimientos, drained
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
1 green pepper, finely chopped
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil
3/4 cup vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions:
1. In a large bowl add the drained peas, shoepeg corn, green beans, and pimientos.
2. Add the chopped onion, celery, and green pepper to the bowl.
3. In a small bowl mix together the sugar, oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Pour into the bowl of vegetables and stir gently.
4. Put seasoned vegetable mixture into a glass jar or other acid-resistant container and refrigerate overnight.

Linnell’s Notes:
1. Look for cans of Green Giant shoepeg corn.
2. For more color, instead of using canned green beans, I blanch fresh green beans in boiling water, dump them in an ice water bath, drain them well, and cut them up.
3. Auntie Ella likes to add diced fresh tomatoes instead of using diced pimientos.
4. This relish tastes so much better when the flavors have had a chance to meld, so make sure to refrigerate it for a while before serving.
5. For a little bit of kick, I add one-half finely diced fresh jalapeño pepper. My family wouldn’t mind if I added the whole pepper, though!

ENJOY!

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Mashed Tofu and Spinach Salad (Shira-Ae)

Posted in Health, Recipes, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on June 26, 2012| Leave a Comment »

The famous Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto recently lost 40 pounds in three months. How did Morimoto manage to lose so much weight? In a Food Network Magazine interview he said that he cut calories, took walks, sweat as much as he could, limited his alcohol intake, and had his wife do the cooking at home. High-protein tofu was a big part of his new diet. His wife Keiko’s easy recipe for Mashed Tofu and Spinach Salad combines great-for-you tofu with good-for-you spinach. It’s a winning recipe that would make Popeye proud!

Mashed Tofu and Spinach Salad (Shira-Ae)
Recipe by Masaharu Morimoto

Ingredients:
One 14-ounce package firm tofu
Kosher salt
8 cups spinach leaves
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
1½ teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon mirin (sweet rice wine)
1 teaspoon salt

Directions:
1. Drain the tofu and wrap in paper towels to absorb excess water. Puree in a food processor until smooth, then transfer to a bowl and set aside.

2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Fill a bowl with ice water. Cook the spinach in the boiling water until wilted, about 2 minutes, then drain and plunge it into the ice water. Drain and squeeze out the excess water.

3. Toast the sesame seeds in a skillet over medium-low heat, tossing, until golden, about 3 minutes. Cool, then grind in a spice grinder. Stir the ground seeds, sugar, mirin, soy sauce and spinach into the tofu. Season with salt.

Serves 2.

Linnell’s Notes:
1. Please note that this recipe only serves 2 people. 8 cups of spinach leaves cooks down to nothing, especially since you squeeze it out after cooking it. I cooked 9 cups of spinach leaves, but after looking at the tofu-spinach ratio, I probably should have cooked 10 cups.

2. One cup of cooked unsalted spinach already has 126 mg of salt in it, so I did not add the full teaspoon of salt at the end. I only added a pinch of salt.

3. I make life easier by purchasing containers of pre-roasted sesame seeds at Asian markets. I keep these seeds in my freezer until they are needed.

4. Adding a little bit of crushed red pepper flakes would give this recipe a little kick.

Enjoy!

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Quinoa, Spinach and Mushroom Salad

Posted in Health, Recipes, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on June 19, 2012| 2 Comments »

Quinoa is a super food all year round, but it shines especially in summer salads. Take an average spinach and mushroom salad and make it more nutritious and more substantial by adding quinoa to it. And by adding omega-3-rich walnuts, this salad goes from healthy to heart healthy!

Quinoa, Spinach and Mushroom Salad
Recipe by Martha Rose Schulman, author of “The Very Best Recipes for Health”

Salad Ingredients:
3/4 cup quinoa
1¼ cups water
Salt to taste
1 bag baby spinach, rinsed and dried, or 1/2 bunch spinach, stemmed, washed and dried
6 white or cremini mushrooms, sliced
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 ounce feta cheese, crumbled (1/4 cup, optional)

Dressing Ingredients:
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 small garlic clove, puréed
Salt to taste
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup buttermilk
Freshly ground pepper

Directions:
1. Place quinoa in a strainer and rinse several times with cold water. Place in a medium saucepan with 1¼ cups water and salt to taste. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer 15 minutes, until the grains display a threadlike spiral and the water is absorbed. Remove from the heat, remove the lid and place a dishtowel over the pan, then return the lid to the pan and let sit for 10 minutes or longer undisturbed. Transfer to a salad bowl and fluff with forks. Allow to cool.

2. Add the spinach, mushrooms, walnuts, parsley and optional cheese to the bowl.

3. Whisk together the dressing ingredients and toss with the salad just before serving.

Yields: 6 servings

Advance Preparation: You can assemble the salad up to a day ahead, but don’t toss with the dressing until shortly before serving.

Linnell’s Notes:
1. I could not find sherry vinegar in the grocery store, so I used champagne vinegar that I already had at home.

2. I used 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and 1 tablespoon of Meyer lemon olive oil in the salad dressing.

3. For added flavor, I simmered the quinoa in chicken broth instead of water. Because the broth contains salt, I added no additional salt to the cooking water.

4. Strict vegetarians can choose to omit the feta cheese.

ENJOY!

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Santa Fe Meatballs

Posted in About me, Recipes, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on June 12, 2012| 2 Comments »


The introduction had me after the first four words, “Not your average meatball.” But then it went on to say, “This modern version is an instant hit for any gathering. Great for finger food or served on a sandwich.” A vision of a juicy, meatball sandwich tantalized me and forced me to run around my kitchen to check if I had the ingredients for this recipe. The ingredients are an interesting combination: pickled jalapeño peppers add kick and lime juice adds tang, but these meatballs also contain good-for-you quinoa, which adds moisture to the meatballs, and not-so-good-for-you bacon, which adds great flavor. Like life, these meatballs are all about balance!

Santa Fe Meatballs
From the cookbook Quinoa: The Everyday Superfood 365

Ingredients:
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup quinoa
1 lb lean ground beef or turkey
6 slices bacon, finely chopped and cooked
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro, Italian parsley or curly parsley
2 large eggs
1 tbsp minced fresh garlic
2 tsp minced pickled jalapeños
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1 lime

Directions:
1. Bring water and quinoa to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for 10 minutes. Turn the heat off and leave the covered saucepan on the burner for an additional 5 minutes. Remove the lid and fluff with a fork. Set aside.

2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

3. Combine the ground meat, 1/2 cup cooked quinoa, bacon, onion, cilantro, eggs, garlic, jalapeños, cumin and salt in a medium bowl. Blend well and form the mixture into 1-inch meatballs.

4. Place meatballs on a large nonstick baking sheet or one lined with parchment paper. Bake for about 7-8 minutes, then turn the meatballs and cook for another 7-8 minutes, until they are no longer pink inside.

5. Juice the lime and drizzle over the meatballs. Serve immediately.

Makes about 50.

Linnell’s Notes:
1. I used ground turkey with good results. The turkey meat remained moist.

2. I know it runs contrary to the reason for putting bacon in a recipe, but I did trim a lot of the fat away while cutting up the bacon. It just didn’t make sense to use ground turkey and then add fat back into the recipe.

3. Because I have friends who are not fond of cilantro, I used a mixture of fresh cilantro and fresh parsley. That way, a little bit of cilantro flavor comes through, but it’s not a dominant flavor in the meatballs.

4. I used three limes. Two for their juice and one for garnish.

5. You will have leftover quinoa. Refrigerate it for future use or make a small quinoa salad to eat with the meatballs.

6. I used a 1-inch, spring-loaded, ice cream scoop to create even-sized meatballs. If you don’t have a scoop like this, pinching off equal-sized portions of meat and rolling them between your palms works well, too.

7. I poured the lime juice into a large bowl and gently tossed the hot meatballs in the juice before plating them.

8. The recipe states, “To keep this gluten-free, make sure you use gluten-free bacon.”

Enjoy!

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