butternut squash salad with farro and pepitas from smitten kitchen.com

1 medium butternut squash (about 2 pounds)
5 to 6 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 cup semi-pearled farro (see Note up top)
1/3 cup toasted pepitas (I used, and love, the salted ones)
3 ounces ricotta salata or another salty cheese, crumbled or coarsely grated (about 3/4 cup)(omit to make vegan)
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
1 tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/2 small red onion, finely chopped

 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Peel squash, then halve lengthwise and scoop out seeds. Cut squash into approximately 3/4-inch chunks. Coat one large or two small baking sheets with 2 tablespoons oil total. Spread squash out in single layer on sheet. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast until pieces are tender, about 30 to 40 minutes, turning them over halfway through the cooking time. Set aside to cool slightly.

While squash is roasting, cook farro in a large pot of simmering salted water until the grains are tender but chewy, about 30 minutes. (Since there are so many varieties of farro, however, if your package suggests otherwise, it’s best to defer to its cooking suggestion.) Drain and cool slightly.

While squash is roasting and farro is simmering, in a small bowl, whisk together sherry vinegar, water, 1/2 teaspoon table salt and granulated sugar until sugar and salt dissolve. Stir in onion; it will barely be covered by vinegar mixture but don’t worry. Cover and set in fridge until needed; 30 minutes is ideal but less time will still make a lovely, lightly pickled onion.

In a large bowl, mix together butternut squash, farro, red onion and its vinegar brine, the crumbled cheese and pepitas. Toss with 3 tablespoons of the remaining olive oil, use the 4th one only if needed. Taste and adjust seasonings. Eat now or later. Salad keeps in the fridge for up to a week.

Summer Tomato Pudding from Lynne Rossetto Kasper

Tomato Sauce
Good-tasting extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 medium to large onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice
Salt and black pepper to taste
generous pinch hot red pepper flakes
2 large garlic cloves, minced
3 tightly packed tablespoons fresh basil, torn
1-3/4 to 2 pounds good-tasting tomatoes, cored and coarsely chopped (do not seed or peel), or 1 28-ounce can whole tomatoes with liquid
Olive oil for the baking dish
7- to 8-inch piece of baguette, a couple of days old if possible, cut into 1-inch thick rounds

Custard
5 large eggs, beaten
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, or to taste
1 cup half and half, or heavy cream
1 cup whole or skim milk
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Flavorings
1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
4 ounces firm, fresh, whole milk sheep or cow cheese, or cream cheese, thinly sliced
10 fresh basil leaves, torn
1/4 cup pitted Niçoise or oil-cured Moroccan olives
1 good-tasting medium tomato, sliced into 1/2-inch rounds, or 1 cup halved, flavorful grape tomatoes

1. Make the tomato sauce: Lightly film a 4-quart saucepan with the olive oil. Heat over medium-high. Add the onion with some salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes and cook until golden. Stir in the garlic and basil, and cook 30 seconds. Stir in the tomatoes, breaking them up as they go into the pan. Bring the sauce to a lively bubble and cook, uncovered, 10 to 15 minutes or until thick. Stir often with a flat wood spatula to keep from sticking. Taste for seasoning. Cover and set aside 15 to 20 minutes to mellow or refrigerate up to 24 hours.

2. Assemble the pudding: While the sauce cooks, oil an 8-inch square glass baking dish. Preheat the oven to 325ºF. Cover the bottom of the dish completely with the bread slices.

3. Make the custard: In a large bowl, whisk together in a large bowl the eggs, salt, pepper, nutmeg, half-and-half, milk, and Parmigiano cheese. Pour half the custard over the bread and let it soak in for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with 3 tablespoons of the feta cheese, and half the slices of the fresh cheese. Tuck in half the basil leaves.

4. Cover everything with the tomato sauce. Pour in the rest of the custard, scatter the olives over the custard, push the sliced tomatoes and rest of the basil leaves into the custard, cover with the rest of the fresh cheese and sprinkle with the remaining feta.

5. Cover with foil and bake 45 minutes, then raise the heat to 375ºF. and bake 25 to 30 minutes. Finally, uncover and bake another 20 minutes, or until the thermometer inserted near the center of the pudding reads 200ºF. to 210ºF.  Let the pudding rest at room temperature 15 minutes. Serve it hot or just warm.

Makes an 8-inch-square baking dish of pudding and doubles easily. Tomato sauce and custard could be done a day ahead and refrigerated.

between 200ºF. and 210ºF. and then give it at least a 15-minute rest before serving.

 

Spaghetti Salad from Martha

    • Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
    • 1/2 pound thin spaghetti
    • 1/2 small red onion, quartered lengthwise and sliced crosswise (about 1/3 cup)
    • 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
    • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
    • 1/4 teaspoon minced garlic
    • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
    • 1/2 teaspoon sugar
      • 1/2 English cucumber, seeded and cut into 1/2 inch pieces (about 3/4 cup)
      • 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
      • 1/4 cup kalamata olives (about 10), pitted and halved
      • 1 tablespoon capers, rinsed and drained
      • 1/4 cup packed parsley leaves
      • 3 ounces crumbled feta (about3/4 cup)1 medium bell pepper, cut into 1/2 inch pieces (about 1 cup)

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta until al dente, 9 to 10 minutes. Drain, and let cool slightly.

  • While pasta is cooking, stir together onion, vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, and oil. Season vinaigrette with 1 teaspoon salt, pepper, and sugar.

  • In a large bowl, combine pasta, bell pepper, cucumber, tomatoes, olives, capers, and vinaigrette. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours and up to 1 day.

  • Toss pasta with parsley and feta. Re-season, if desired, before serving.

 

Creamy Greek Pasta Salad from twopeasandtheirpod.com

  • 1 lb pasta such as fusilli, penne, or farfalle
  • 1 1/4 cups plain Greek yogurt
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon dried dill
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 1/2 cups halved grape tomatoes
  • 1 seedless cucumber, chopped
  • 3/4 cup pitted kalamata olives, halved
  • 1/2 cup diced red onion
  • 3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
  • Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
  1. Cook pasta according to package directions.
  2. While the pasta is cooking, stir together the Greek yogurt, garlic, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, dill, and oregano in a large bowl.
  3. When the pasta is done cooking, drain and run cold water over the pasta. Drain completely and pour the pasta into the large bowl with the Greek yogurt mixture. Add the tomatoes, cucumber, olives, red onion, and feta cheese. Stir gently until ingredients are well coated. Season with salt and black pepper, to taste. You can add a little extra dill and lemon juice, if desired. Serve.

Deconstructed Mexican Style Corn, Chris Santos

FN_Chris-Santos-Deconstructed-Corn-Salad_s4x3.jpg.rend.sniipadlarge6 ears corn
1/2 red onion, minced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3/4 cup crumbled cotija cheese
3/4 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh cilantro
Zest of 2 limes

Heat a grill or grill pan over high heat until hot, and then add the corn and char on all sides, turning occasionally, until blackened in parts, 12 to 15 minutes. When cool enough to handle, cut the kernels off the cobs.
Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium heat and saute the onions until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the charred corn kernels and cook until warmed. Stir in 1/2 cup of the cheese, the mayonnaise, cilantro and lime zest. Season with 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of the chipotle salt.
Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup cotija cheese.
Cook’s Note: This recipe is great with an added squeeze of fresh lime juice.

Harissa Squash and Feta Galette from washington post

yum

MAKE AHEAD: The dough for the galette crust needs to be refrigerated for at least 1 hour and up to overnight.
1/2 cup dark or light rye flour
2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
6 tablespoons chilled vegan shortening (may substitute butter or coconut oil)
4 to 6 tablespoons ice water
2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

For the galette
2 pounds butternut or other winter squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch chunks
2 cup harissa (store-bought or homemade; see related recipe and headnote), or more for serving
3 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
1 large egg yolk
2 teaspoons whole milk
Cilantro leaves, chopped, for garnish

For the crust: Combine the rye flour, all-purpose flour, salt and shortening in a food processor; pulse a few times, until the shortening is mostly the size of peas, with some bigger pieces. Add 4 tablespoons of the ice water and the vinegar; pulse a few times, until the dough mostly comes together as one lump with a few shaggy pieces. Turn the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap and squeeze it to see if a ball forms. If it is too dry to come together, sprinkle with more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing with your hands until it does. Press the dough into a disk, wrap it tightly in the plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (and up to overnight).  4 to 6 servings

Avocado Strawberry Spinach Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing

IMG_3433
6 cups fresh baby spinach
1 pint strawberries, hulled and sliced
1 avocado, diced (or you can double this to 2 avocados!)
4 ounces crumbled gorgonzola or blue cheese or feta
1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted optional
half a small red onion, thinly sliced
poppyseed dressing (recipe below)

Poppyseed Dressing Ingredients:
1/2 cup avocado oil (or any oil, such as olive oil)
3 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar or rice wine vinegar
2 Tbsp. honey
1 Tbsp. poppy seeds
pinch of ground dry mustard (optional) or dijion
salt and pepper

To Make The Salad:
Toss all ingredients together with your desired amount of dressing until combined. Serve immediately.

To Make The Poppyseed Dressing:
Whisk all ingredients together until combined.

dmv Note: if the strawberries are not very tasty combine with a bit of sugar and allow to sit for a short time.

Watermelon Summer Salad

3/4 cup halved, thinly sliced red onion
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 1/2 quarts seeded, cubed watermelon
3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/2 cup pitted black olive halves
1 cup chopped fresh mint
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil

 

1. Place the onion slices in a small bowl with the lime juice. The acid of the lime will mellow the flavor of the raw onion. Let stand for 10 minutes.

2. In a large bowl, combine the watermelon cubes, feta cheese, black olives, onions with the lime juice, and mint. Drizzle olive oil over it all, and toss to blend. Dig in and be prepared for a pleasant surprise!

Notes: I used about 1/3 c. red onion, less cheese, did not measure the watermelon used 1/2 of a small bullet melon.  Used about 1/4 c. mint, and a small can of black olives–next time use MORE,