Yam Salad with Lemon Dressing

So, I had a hankering for potato salad last month, but had no potatoes. No problem, I decided to use yams instead. But then, I had no celery and no pickles either. I did have broccoli, so I thought why not? Well, it turned out so delicious I made it again, even buying broccoli for the purpose of making the salad. So here it is.

Peel and cube 4 medium yams. Makes about 6 cups of yams. Add to salted boiling water and cook for about 10 to 15 minutes, so they are fork tender. Rinse in cool water so they stop cooking. Drain and refrigerate until completely cooled.

Peel and dice one large red onion.

Peel the stem of a broccoli top. Chop the stem and florets into small pieces.

Mix together and dress with your preferred dressing.

My dressing is a light lemony one with a hint of mustard.

I zested one lemon into the salad.

In a bowl, I mixed the juice of one lemon (2 TBSP) with 2 TBSP of apple cider vinegar and 2 TBSP of olive oil. I then added 1 tsp of mustard, salt, and pepper and mixed together. Then I tossed it with the salad. This makes about 8 cups of salad.

It’s very light and fresh in flavor, allowing the yams to be the star.

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Wild Rice & Brussels Sprout Salad

In a saucepan, bring 3 cups of salted water to a boil, add 1 cup of rinsed wild rice. Let cook on a low boil for 40 minutes or until rice is tender. Check frequently and stir so it does not boil dry. Pour into a colander when done and let drain until completely dry. I left it in the fridge overnight. I added salt and pepper to taste in the morning. Seasoning during each step makes for a richer flavor without over-seasoning.

Clean 1 pound of Brussels sprouts, cut the bottoms and any damaged leaves, then slice into thin strips that you can break up into individual pieces. After I finished cutting all the sprouts I broke the slices up by working with my fingers.

Chop one small red onion

Heat a skillet on medium, grate fresh nutmeg into the pan and toast until the aroma rises. Add a few handfuls of sprouts and saute until just warmed through. Repeat until all the Brussels sprouts have been sauteed.

.In same pan, toast 1/4 cup of slivered almonds.

Mix onion, Brussels sprouts, and wild rice in a large bowl. You can either add the almonds or set to the side and add when serving (It keeps them crunchier.)

Make mustard vinaigrette to dress the salad.

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil.
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup.
• Juice from 1 fresh-squeezed lemon
• 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard.
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper.

Stir this into the salad and let rest. It really takes a couple hours minimum to reach its best flavor, so make ahead and let rest. I made this for Thanksgiving Dinner. It makes 8 servings. It was a hit, there’s a nice toothiness from the rice, a nutty flavor, and a bit of crunch. It’s also colorful with the brown, bright green, and the purple of the onions, looking lovely on the table.

 

 

Three Cucumber Salads

Why three cucumber salads in one post? Because I got 15 pounds of cucumbers from the Food Bank’s Harvest Share program and cucumbers do not keep that well without some vinegar. So, I spent a long time slicing and dicing and mixed up three huge salads. Two of them based on my mom’s delicious old-fashioned cucumber salad.

This is mom’s recipe. Slice your cucumbers no more than 1/4 inch thick. I used a mandoline and easily sliced wafer thin slices. Layer the slices in a container with high sides, lightly salting between layers. I used Glad’s 13 cup family size container which held about 8 -10 large cucumbers, sliced. I put a sheet of wax paper over the container and set my cast iron fry pan on top of the wax paper and then put my tea kettle on top of that so it was weighted down heavily. I left it for a few hours and came back to add the dressing.

After two hours, I dumped the cucumbers into a big colander and let them drain. Rinsing the Glad container to get the saltiness out, I mixed the dressing right in the container while the cukes drained. I used 2 cups of white vinegar, 1/4 cup of sugar, 1 TBSP of dill weed, 1 tsp of garlic salt, and 2 tsp of celery seed.  I squeezed the juice out of the cucumbers, added them back into the container with the dressing and refrigerated overnight so they absorbed back the fluid I had drawn out with salt. Now they are saturated with a fresh dill flavor that has a mild bite. Makes 10 cups of salad.

I only made about 7 cups of this salad because I used oil so it won’t last as long. To make it I cut the cucumbers into 4-6 inch long lengths that I shredded on the mandoline, making threads of cucumber. I also sliced and diced finely two purple onions. I salted and let rest for about an hour. Squeezing out the excess, I grated the zest of two limes over the salad, mixing it in. Then,  squeezed the lime juice into a sauce bowl for the dressing. I added 3/4 cup seasoned rice vinegar, 1/4 cup light olive oil, 2 TBSP of soy sauce, salt, pepper, and 2 tsp of red pepper flakes. I poured on top of the cucumber and onions, shook and let sit to absorb flavors for a few hours. This is a spicy, tangy salad with that delicious earthy tang of limes and the heat of peppers.  It’s delicious on a sandwich with pulled pork. Makes six cups of salad.

These are pepper-salted cucumber slices, also a recipe from my mom. As before, I sliced the cucumbers, layering with salt until I filled the 13 cup container. I added weight on top of them and let them sit for two hours to draw out the liquid. I drained them in a colander, squeezing out all the liquid I could.

In the 13 cup plastic container, I added 2 cups of vinegar, 1/4 cup of sugar, and 1 TBSP of pepper. I mixed together, Added the cucumber and let it soak up the vinegar overnight. This has a fresh vinegary taste with a bit of bite from the pepper, fresh and cool followed by just a bit of heat. Makes 10 cups.

Sausage & Lima Bean Stuffed Portabello Mushroom

Portobello mushrooms were just 1.99 per pound at the grocery store last week, so I picked up a couple, knowing how much I love them stuffed. Then I went and used the spinach I planned to stuff them with for something else and had this crazy idea I would try lima beans. I have some frozen lima beans from Harvest Share and thought why not? After all, lima beans are not super moist, so they might be great stuffing.

I preheated the oven to 350° F while I mixed the following in a bowl.

• 1 cup of lima beans (thawed in microwave for 1 minute)
• 4 links of half-cooked breakfast sausage, peeled and cut (I heated in microwave for 1 minute and drained off the fat, peeled off the skin and cut into small pieces.)
• 1 cup chopped parsley
• 1/2 cup chopped red onion
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• stems from 2 large portobello mushrooms, chopped
• salt and pepper
• 1 egg

Mix all this together and stuff into the cleaned caps of two large portobello mushrooms. I had some left over, I will use it with scrambled eggs.

Bake at 350° for 30 minutes.

You can shred some parmesan cheese on top if you like, but it’s not needed. Lima beans are a great choice for stuffing as they don’t lose their shape or substance when cooked, so the stuffing does not become overly mushy. All the ingredients in the stuffing were chosen to remain their constituent selves while holding together. They worked. The stuffing was completely cooked, but not the least bit soggy or mushy…thanks to draining off the sausage grease and using ingredients with low water content. Paprika seems to be made for mushrooms and works well, too with lima beans and sausage. This is a very satisfying meal that takes care of all your umami longings while remaining relatively light and fresh. This makes two stuffed mushrooms which would serve two if accompanied by salad or soup, or one meal on their own.

Broccoli Frittata

Turn oven on broil

Bring water to a boil in a small pan. As soon as it’s boiling, drop broccoli in for 90 seconds. Drain.

Chop up 4 slices of bacon. Toss in 2 sprigs of fresh thyme. Cook in medium cast iron skillet.

Dice one small onion (I used a red onion.) Add to skillet and sauté until transparent. Add parboiled broccoli.

Beat 4 eggs, add 1/2 cup milk and pour into the skillet. Stir slowly, pulling from the outside to the center. When the eggs are early cooked through remove from the heat.

Add a 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese across the top. Broil until toasty.

This is delicious and makes four servings.

Scrambled Eggs with Bok Choy and Bacon

Chop up two slices of bacon into small bits and fry in cast iron skillet on medium heat with about 2 TBSP of chopped red onion until onions are transparent.

Tear the green tops off some bok chop and rinse clean. Roll up into a tight little cigarette shape and chop finely (usually called chiffonade) and sauté lightly.

Crack 3 eggs, stir together with 1 tablespoon of cold water. Pour into skillet, stir briefly before turning down the heat and keep stirring gently until done. You want to soft scramble the egg so it’s fluffy, moist and soft.

Add salt and pepper when you’re done. Salt added during cooking ruins scrambled eggs.

Makes one serving. It’s delicious, the bok choy leaves are a great blend with bacon and onions.

Chop Salad

This is a simple salad that is fast, easy, crunchy and delicious.

Strain a can of chickpeas and rinse in cold water. Let drip dry a bit before tossing in a bowl.

Chop up the following veggies to add:

• Dice 1/4 red onion
• Slice 2 radishes
• Chop one celery stalk
• Chop one Carrot
• Chop some fresh cilantro

Mix together 1 TBSP of seasoned rice vinegar with some olive oil, salt, and pepper. The usual ration of vinegar is 1 to 4 to emulsify, but I like it a bit more vinegary. I do it about one to one, then add some salt and pepper.

It’s better the next day. Makes two servings.

 

Scrambled Eggs with Rocket, Peppers and Onions

This was a delicious breakfast scramble and so easy.

I heated my cast iron skillet to medium, melting about 1 TBSP of butter, tilting the pan to make sure it was all coated with butter. I had a bag of those mini bell peppers in all colors.  I chopped up about 2 TBSP of red onion, added it to the pan and let it cook. Then I chopped up 2 TBSP of red and yellow peppers and added it to the onions. I cooked until tender. I lowered the heat to low, so I could slow scramble.

While they were cooking, I cracked 3 eggs, added 1 TBSP of water, and blended with a fork. I also grabbed about 1/2 of fresh rocket (arugula) and chopped it up.

After the heat was lowered, I added the eggs and began stirring, stirring, stirring, stirring. Slow scrambling makes super creamy eggs, but they do require a lot of stirring. As soon as the eggs started to solidify, I added the rocket. I did not want it to overcook, so it went in last. I kept stirring until the eggs were done. I then added some salt and pepper to taste. Remember, never add salt to scrambled eggs until they are cooked or they will break.

This was a delicious and hearty breakfast. I like the peppery zest of the rocket.

Fry Bread with Apples and Yogurt

I made these last month when it was too hot to turn on the oven, but wanted to make an apple dessert. I decided to make some fry bread with apples and yogurt.

To make the fry bread. Heat vegetable oil in a deep pan. Use plenty of oil (1 or 2 cups), you can strain it through a cheese cloth and use it again.

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/3 cup water

Mix together and form into four rounds. Drop into the oil, one or two at a time, depending on the size of your pan. You want plenty of space. When one side is done, flip it over and fry on the other side. Remove and rest on paper towels to drain, sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.

So, these are slightly savory apples. I put 1/2 TBSP of butter in a pan with some sliced red onions and a few rosemary leaves. I added two apples, peeled and sectioned, and cooked until tender but not mushy, adding a TBSP of sugar at the end to sweeten the onions a little bit more.

I served  half the apples with two fry bread and a spoonful of yogurt. This made two servings.

Roast Pork with Cabbage Slaw Sandwich

I love sandwiches, but don’t buy bread that often. However, I got a few loaves of Dave’s Killer Bread Good Seed bread and having been trying it out. It is a sweet, moist bread filled with all sorts of seeds as you can see in the picture. Being on the sweet side makes it tricky, because you want to counter that sweetness. i have found the perfect sandwich to make with it though, using a sweet/sour cabbage slaw that has a tart brightness that balances perfectly.

I made a nice big batch of cabbage slaw, enough for a few lunches and several sandwiches. I cut up a small head of green cabbage in thin strips, leaving out the core. As I cut the cabbage, I lightly salted it and let it rest to release some of the liquid. About an hour later, I poured off the liquid and squeezed the cabbage. I diced one small red onion and added it to the cabbage. Then I made a dressing of 1/2 cup of rice wine vinegar and 2 TBSP of sugar. I adde some salt and pepper, stirred it up and poured it on the slaw. Then I sprinkled a teaspoon of celery seed on top, put a lid on it and gave it a good shake. Pro-tip: make sure that lid is nice and secure because even the slightest gap will send some of that vinegar heading directly for your eye. After it’s mixed up. Let it rest for a couple hours so the cabbage soaks up that sweet and sour vinegary yumminess.

I had roasted an pork roast coated in Earl Grey tea the day before and cut a few slices off the roast for the salad. I  took two slices of bread, spread some mayo on it, added a nice layer of cabbage slaw, a couple slices of the roast pork and topped with with the other slice of bread. Wow! The aromatic flavor of the pork and the sweet and sour slaw are a great combination, which I already knew. On the bread, though, it was really a revelation in how balancing flavors can enhance them. That bread was good before, but now it was excellent when it had that slaw as a foil to balance its sweetness.