Category Archives: recipes

Faux Gras: Vegetarian Foie Gras from David Lebovitz – living the sweet life in Paris

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Lentils double in volume when cooked, so 1 cup (160g) of dried lentils will yield close to the correct amount. They usually take about 20 to 30 minutes to cook until soft, but check the directions on the package for specific guidelines. If avoiding gluten, use tamari instead of soy sauce. For a vegan version, replace the butter with the same quantity of olive oil, for a total of 1/4 cup (60ml) of olive oil. The cognac or brandy is

Faux-Gras-Lentil-Pate-7optional, but it does give the faux gras a little je ne sais quoi.

 

  • 12 medium-sized button mushrooms (100g, about 1 cup)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons butter, salted or unsalted
  • 1 small onion, peeled and diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
  • 2 cups (400g) cooked green lentils
  • 1 cup (140g) toasted walnuts or pecans
  • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari
  • 2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
  • 2 teaspoons fresh thyme, minced
  • 2 tablespoons fresh sage or flat leaf parsley
  • optional: 2 teaspoons Cognac or brandy
  • 1 teaspoon brown sugar
  • 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Wipe the mushrooms clean. Slice off a bit of the stem end (the funky parts) and slice them. Heat the olive oil and butter in a skillet or wide saucepan. Add the onions and garlic, and cook, stirring frequently, until the onions become translucent, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until they’re soft and cooked through, another 5 to 8 minutes. Remove from heat.

2. In a food processor, combine the cooked lentils, nuts, lemon juice, soy sauce, rosemary, thyme, sage or parsley, Cognac (if using), brown sugar, and cayenne. Scrape in the cooked mushroom mixture and process until completely smooth. Taste, and add salt, pepper, and additional cognac, soy sauce, or lemon juice, if it needs balancing.

3. Scrape the pâté into a small serving bowl and refrigerate for a few hours, until firm.

Serving: Serve the pâté with crackers, hearty bread, or small toasts. A nice accompaniment is shallot marmalade or just a few pickles alongside. Makes 6 to 8 appetizer-sized servings

Storage: The spread will keep for 4 days in the refrigerator. It can frozen for up to two months, well-wrapped.

 

Adapted from Très Green, Très Green, Très Chic by Rebecca Leffler

 

Broccoli Tots from http://www.thetwobiteclub.com/

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1 head brobroccoli-tots-4-1ccoli, cut into equal sized florets
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1/3 cup onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
2 eggs
salt and pepper

 

 

  1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
  2. Pour 1 inch of water into a saucepan; bring to a boil.  Place the broccoli into the boiling water, cover, and reduce the heat to medium.  Cook the broccoli for 5-6 minutes, or until it can easily be pierced by a fork.  Drain the broccoli and set aside to cool slightly.
  3. Lay the broccoli out onto paper towels and cover with more paper towels,  Press down firmly on the broccoli to absorb as much moisture as you can.  Another method is to put the broccoli in the center of a dish towel and ring out the water as seen here. Finely chop the broccoli.
  4. In a large bowl, combine combine all of the ingredients and season with salt and pepper.  Stir everything together until well mixed.  Fill each muffin cup in a mini muffin tin to the top, pushing down on the filling with your spoon so it’s nice and compacted.
  5. Bake for 18-20 minutes in preheated oven. The top will be starting to golden. To easily remove from the pan (without scratching it to death), run a plastic knife around the edges of each tot and they should come out easier.

Notes

  • If they seem to be falling apart when you take them out of the pan you can (1) put them back into the oven to cook for a few minutes longer so they are a bit crisper or (2) let them sit in the pan for a few minutes to let the insides firm up a bit before removing them from the pan.  You have to be ginger with them if they’re sticking a little to the pan!
  • The sharp cheddar can be substituted with whatever cheese you have on hand.

 

Spinach and Berries Salad with Dill, Phyllis Keating

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spinach_and_berries_salad_w_dillRed Wine Vinaigrette
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
2 clove garlic
1/4 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoons pepper
1/4 teaspoons dry mustard
1/4 teaspoons onion powder

Salad
1 cup almonds
1 pounds baby spinach
1 pounds butter lettuce
1 bunch scallions
1/2 pints strawberries
1/2 pints raspberries
1/2 pints blueberries
1/4 c dill weed

Toast the almonds for about 5 minutes at 350F . Cool. Toss the almonds, spinach, lettuce, onions, fruit and dill week in a large bowl. Add the vinaigrette just before serving and toss to coat.  Serving Size: 8

Frozen Nanaimo Pie from canadian living

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600x400_desserts-frozen-nanaimo-pie1433786187

  • 3/4 cup (175 mL) graham cracker crumbs
    • 1/3 cup (75 mL) sweetened shredded coconut
    • 1/3 cup (75 mL) finely chopped walnuts
    • 1/4 cup (60 mL) cocoa powder
    • 1/4 cup (60 mL) granulated sugar
    • 1/3 cup (75 mL) butter, melted
    • 2 tbsp (30 mL) custard powder, (such as Bird’s Traditional)
    • 4 cups (1 L) French vanilla ice cream, softened
    • 55 g semisweet chocolate, (about 2 oz), chopped
    • 1/4 cup (60 mL) whipping cream 35%

    In bowl, stir together graham crumbs, coconut, walnuts, cocoa powder and sugar. Drizzle with butter and stir until combined. Press into bottom and up side of 9-inch (23 cm) pie plate.

    Fold custard powder into ice cream; spread over crust, smoothing top. Cover surface directly with plastic wrap; freeze until firm, 2 to 3 hours.

    In small saucepan, heat chocolate and cream over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until melted and smooth. Let cool for 5 minutes. Spread over top of pie; freeze until firm, about 20 minutes. (Make-ahead: Once firm, cover with plastic wrap and freeze for up to 24 hours.) Let stand for 5 minutes before slicing.

     

5-Minute Strawberry Sorbet

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SORBET

  • 1 (16 oz.) bag frozen whole strawberries
  • 1/2 cup non-fat vanilla yogurt
  • 3-4 tablespoons honey or sugar
  • bananas or other frozen fruit, optional

 

1.  Place whole strawberries in food processor and pulse until (mostly) smooth. 30-45 seconds.

2.  Note: mixture will be gritty at first, just keep pulsing.

3.  Spoon in vanilla yogurt and pulse until smooth and incorporated.

4.  Add in 3 tablespoons honey. Taste and add more honey or sugar as needed.

Serve immediately, or transfer to an air-tight container and store in the freezer.
Note: if keeping in the freezer, let sorbet sit for 10 minutes to soften a little before serving.  Yield: approx. 3 cups

Recipe adapted from Just A Taste

 

Compressed Watermelon Salad from the washington post

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  • One 16-ounce block peeled,seedless watermelon
  • Kosher saltwmelon
  • 4 cups torn frisee
  • 1 cup cubed whole-milk mozzarella
  • 2 tablespoons raw, shredded coconut
  • FOR THE DRESSING
  • 1/4 cup plain rice wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil

For the watermelon and salad: Cut the watermelon into 2-inch squares that are 1/3-inch thick. Sprinkle them lightly with salt on one side. Lay the squares on flat surfaces that can fit inside the zip-top bags. Seal, pressing out as much air as possible. Place something on top of the bags that will provide gentle, even pressure, such as a plate with a few 15-ounce cans or a few bags of frozen peas on top. Freeze for 2 hours.

When the watermelon is ready, it will look flatter and have a denser texture. Transfer to a serving bowl; add the frisee and toss gently.

For the dressing: Whisk together the vinegar, sugar, lemon zest and juice, and oil in a liquid measuring cup to form an emulsified dressing.

Pour half of the dressing over the watermelon and frisee; toss gently to coat. Scatter the mozzarella cubes and coconut on top.

Serve right away; pass the remaining dressing at the table.

thai basil sauce from thewoksoflife.com

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2 tablespoons oil
5 cloves garlic, chopped
½ of a red bell pepper, sliced thinly
1 small onion, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
1 teaspoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon fish sauce
½ teaspoon sugar
1 cup thai basil leaves, packed

Heat your wok over high heat, and add the oil.  Add the garlic and red pepper to the wok and stir-fry for about 20 seconds. Add the onions and stir-fry until browned and slightly caramelized.

Toss  in  the soy sauce, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, fish sauce, and sugar. Stir-fry for another few seconds, and then fold in the Thai basil until it’s just wilted. Serve with jasmine rice!

 

Spinach, Apple and Pecan Salad from the bigoven.com

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spinach-apple-and-pecan-salad-2

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 tbsp cider vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 golden delicious apple; halved, cored,
1/4 c. thinly sliced red onion; cut in thin strips
3/4 lb spinach; washed, stems removed, leaves torn
1/2 cup toasted pecans

  1. In serving bowl, whisk oil, vinegar, mustard, sugar, salt and pepper until thick.
  2. Add apple and onion.
  3. Toss until apples and onions are covered with dressing.
  4. Place spinach on top, then pecans.
  5. Just before serving, toss.
  6. might add some blue cheese

4 servings

Chipotle’s ‘secret’ Guacamole recipe

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fwx-chipotle-guacamole-recipeThe recipe is not earth-shattering—
2 Hass avocados
2 teaspoons of lime juice
2 tablespoons freshly chopped cilantro
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
1/2  chopped jalapeño
1/4 teaspoon of kosher salt

Choose the right avocado. It should feel squishy yet firm (like the palm of your hand), and be a nice dark green color on the inside.
2. Cut the avocado in half and the remove the pit (carefully!)
3. Scoop the avocados and place in a medium bowl.
4. Toss and coat with lime juice.
5. Add the salt and using a fork or potato masher, mash until a smooth consistency is achieved.
6. Fold in the remaining ingredients and mix well.
7. Taste the guacamole (over and over) and adjust seasoning if necessary.