Blood Orange and Pear Salad

The way a salad should be -- sweet, salty, crunchy, with a hint of tanginess. 

If you buy bottled salad dressing... stop this instant! Seriously. You can make a great salad dressing (vinaigrette) at home. Plus, it will be tastier and won't have as many preservatives and additives.

Salads should have a combination of factors to make them good. First, you need delicious greens. I like baby greens or arugula, which work well with almost any salad. Second, you need a crunch factor. This can come from croutons, nuts, seeds, apples, pears... basically anything that crunches. Then you need a salty flavor added in like a goat cheese or olives. Sweet is the next flavor to add. Fruit is the easiest way to achieve this. Lastly, you need a good dressing, one that complements some of your components. 

Need an example? Ok. I can help...

Blood Orange and Pear Salad

Serves 3-4

Salad ingredients:

• Baby greens -- enough for 4 salads (1/2 to 3/4 pound, depending on the size of the salad)
• 2 blood oranges, segmented and juiced
• 1 bosc pear, sliced
• about a 1/2 cup walnuts pieces, lightly toasted
• goat cheese crumbles or feta cheese

Vinaigrette:

• Juice of 2 blood oranges
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 teaspoons honey
• hefty pinch of salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• about 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

This is me segmenting a lemon for another recipe.

To start, segment the blood oranges: Cut off both ends of the orange and then cut the peel of the orange off (getting as close to the flesh as possible). Then you cut out each segment of the orange (save for the salad). After all the segments are out, squeeze the orange into a bowl for the dressing.

After the orange is segmented, the rest is easy. Finish the vinaigrette by adding the lemon juice, Dijon mustard, garlic, honey, salt, and pepper to the orange juice. Whisk in the olive oil to create a vinaigrette. Taste it to be sure it's seasoned properly.

Assemble the salad by tossing together the greens, orange segments, pear slices, walnuts and cheese. Toss in some of the vinaigrette. Don't drown the greens. They just need to be lightly coated with the dressing. 

So... you have sweet (oranges, pears, and honey), crunchy (pears and walnuts), salty (goat cheese), and tangy (Dijon mustard and lemon juice). 

Delicious.

More salad recipes to follow. 

Photos... from Culinary Lab!

We've had an eventful first few weeks in culinary lab making lots of good food and doing weird experiments with vegetables (do not cook cabbage with either baking soda or cream of tartar... just don't do it).

Students have also explored the goodness of making cheese (fresh mozzarella and buttermilk cheese -- recipe coming soon) and tasting lots of different types of milk, including buttermilk (yes, they tasted buttermilk).

Here are a few photos from last week. The herbs are growing... basil, chives, and parsley are all popping through the soil.

Basil!

Parsley!

Ricotta Cookies from Giada... The favorite recipe of the week.
Absolutely addictive and delicious

The saved mozzarella...
There was an issue with boiling the milk and the curds and whey not separating.
BUT the cheese was saved and turned out great! 

Kara! She's the herb grower and all around awesome person.

Vegan Ice Cream

Vegan Ice Cream. Yum. 

Creamy and delicious. An excellent alternative to regular ice cream.

I found a vegan ice cream recipe on the web. Admittedly, I didn't have high hopes for it. My favorite ice cream is full of eggs, milk, cream, and sugar. Simple. I mean, who doesn't scream for ice cream? I know... vegans could use a good ice cream recipe too (they also need help in the cheese department, too, but I'm not up to that task yet). In lab last week the students explored the world of milk and cheese. As an alternative, I gave them a recipe for vegan ice cream using almond milk. It was well liked by most everyone. 

The recipe was fine, but a bit too banana-y for me. I decided to change the recipe and make it at home. Even though my kids tried the ice cream, they didn't like it. But what do they know? They're kids. Anyhoo... my husband and I liked it. I'm sure you will, too. 

Note on the almond milk: There are a few different flavors of almond milk. I used the vanilla one that is slightly sweetened. You can use the plain version but you may want to add little more sugar to the ice cream. 

Vegan Ice Cream

4 cups almond milk, vanilla flavored

4 tablespoons cocoa powder

4 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons water

1 ripe banana

1 cup almond butter

In a saucepan, mix together the milk, cocoa powder, and sugar. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Add the cornstarch slurry. Bring to a boil and cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat and cool completely. The mixture should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. 

When the mixture is cool, pour it into a blender. Add the banana and almond butter. Blend until smooth. Pour into an ice cream maker and process for 20-25 minutes. Serve right away or freeze until ready to serve. 

Enjoy!

Chickpea Salad

Nice and light. Perfect for a hot summer day.

High in fiber, chickpeas (or garbanzo beans) are a staple in Middle Eastern and Indian cuisine. Their fiber content is so high, that they are a great addition to your diet, especially if you need to regulate your blood glucose levels. 

While falafel and hummus are common ways chickpeas are consumed, it's always nice to see them in whole form situated against bright colors of vegetables. For someone like me, who has to limit the amount of leafy green vegetables, it's nice to have another type of "salad" to eat. 

Chickpea Salad

2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

1 small red bell pepper, diced small

1 small red onion, diced small

2 ribs celery, diced small

Dressing:

Juice of 1 lemon

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

1 garlic clove, minced

¼ teaspoon ground cumin

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

4-5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons Greek yogurt

Toss together the salad ingredients. Whisk together the lemon juice, vinegar, garlic, cumin, salt, pepper, olive oil and yogurt. Toss with the chickpeas. Refrigerate for about an hour before serving to allow the flavors to develop. 

Toss in a bit of feta cheese for a little extra flavor. If you don't want to use Greek yogurt, substitute dijon mustard. 

Enjoy!

Soy Milk Smoothie

Great for a quick breakfast on the go! Good with any frozen berry, not just strawberries. Kids will like it, too. At least mine did. 

I don't use soy milk very often. My family drinks a lot of milk, but we tend to go for cow's milk. Also, the smoothies I typically make for my kids usually don't have any sort of dairy in them. So, when I presented these smoothies, I was a little skeptical that my kids would drink them. I was pleasantly surprised when they gulped down their portions and asked for more. I may just have to make a few more things with soy milk or even almond milk. 

Will we change our dairy habits completely? I doubt it, but it nice to offer an alternative every once in a while. Plus, it gives the kids more exposure to different types of foods and flavors and that's always a positive thing. 

Soy Milk Smoothie

Serves 4

2 cups soy milk 

1 cup orange juice

1/2 cup honey*

1 cup frozen strawberries, raspberries, or blueberries (or a combo of all three)

1 ripe banana, sliced

About 1 cup of ice (more if you want it thicker)

Place all ingredients in a blender. Puree until smooth. Serve. 

*Agave syrup or sugar (probably decrease to 1/4 cup sugar) can be substituted for the honey. 

Carrot Coriander Soup

Carrots and coriander? No way. Yes way! 

Coriander is the seed to a cilantro plant. Some recipes from India or the Middle East will say "coriander leaves" instead of cilantro. Cilantro is one of those herbs that people either love or hate. Those who hate it think it tastes like soap. However, coriander has a different flavor profile. It has a citrusy flavor. It was used in ancient cultures for healing purposes because of it's anti-inflammatory properties. 

So, if you are looking for a different type of soup, try this one.

Carrot Coriander Soup

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 white onion, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tablespoon ground coriander

4 cups vegetable stock

Juice of 2 oranges

5 carrots, peeled and diced small

1 russet potato, peeled and cut into cubes

¾ cup half and half

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion to the pan and saute until tender about 5 minutes.

Stir in the garlic and coriander and cook for one minute. Add the vegetable broth, orange juice, carrots and potato and bring soup to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer the soup over medium-high heat until the carrots are tender, about 35-45 minutes.

Using a blender or food processor, puree the soup until smooth. Return the soup to the saucepan and stir in the cream. Warm the soup over medium heat until hot. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 

Roast Carrots with Allspice

Absolutely the best way to eat roasted carrots. Hands down. 

Who would have thought that allspice would make roast carrots delicious? Don't get me wrong, I like carrots but they get a little boring after awhile. I mean, come on, it's just a carrot. It's orange, slightly sweet, and very crunchy. They're good raw or cooked. Adding allspice made cooked carrots even better. Really. You have to trust me on this.

Allspice is not a combination of spices like a lot of people think. It's actually a berry that's been dried. Most of the time you can find it ground up in the spice section but occasionally you can find it whole. I did a little search on allspice. Wikipedia says it was used a deodorant. I guess if I ever run out of Secret, I can use allspice. 

I adapted this recipe from Leite's Culinaria. 

Roast Carrots with Allspice

3 pounds carrots, cut into 2-inch chunks

2-3 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon allspice

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

4 large garlic cloves, minced

Preheat the oven to 450°F. 

Bring 6 quarts of water to a boil. Add about a 2 teaspoons salt. Add the carrots and cook for about 10 minutes or so, until nearly fork-tender but still have some firmness. Drain thoroughly. On a baking sheet, toss the carrots with enough oil to coat them generously, then toss them with the allspice and salt and pepper to taste. Roast for 20 to 25 minutes, shaking and turning often, until browned. 

Remove the pan from the oven and while the carrots are still in it, add the garlic and toss to combine. Adjust seasonings if need be. 

Cardamom Cookies

Delicate and buttery cookies. Perfect with tea or coffee.

Related to ginger and used in Indian cuisine, cardamom boasts a lot of flavor, especially if you use freshly ground. It's an ancient spice that's been used to aid digestion (like ginger) and stimulate metabolism. 

This is one of the spices the students used last week. A great way to discover the goodness of cardamom is to use it in baking. I found a cardamom cookie recipe at Land O'Lakes website and made some minor changes like increasing the amount of cardamom and increasing the baking time.  

Cardamom Cookies

1 cup butter

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg yolk

1 tablespoon vanilla

1 teaspoon ground cardamom 

2 cups flour

1 cup powdered sugar

Melt butter in saute pan over medium heat. Continue cooking, stirring constantly and watching closely, until butter just starts to turn golden brown (3 to 5 minutes). (Butter will get foamy and bubble.) Immediately remove from heat. Pour into bowl; refrigerate until cooled (30 minutes).

Heat oven to 350°F. Combine cooled browned butter and sugar in large bowl; beat at medium speed until well mixed. Add egg yolk, vanilla and cardamom; continue beating until well mixed. Reduce speed to low. Beat, gradually adding flour, until mixture is no longer crumbly and forms a dough.

Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place 1 inch apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until cookies puff and start to turn light golden brown. (Cookies will have cracks in them.)

Immediately remove from cookie sheets. Cool 1 minute. Roll cookies in powdered sugar while warm and again when completely cooled. Store between sheets of waxed paper in loosely covered container. 

Chinese 5-Spice Noodles

Need a new noodle recipe? How about one using Chinese Five Spice powder? This dish is great hot or cold.

This recipe was adapted from Serious Eats. We substituted soba noodles for the cellophane. The dish was also made with udon noodles. You probably get away with using vermicelli or angel hair pasta, too. 

This recipe was made in class. The students cooked with a variety of spices, including coriander, cardamon, allspice, and Chinese 5-spice. More spice recipes will show up over the next week. We had some delicious eats in lab and will share the goodness with y'all. 

Chinese 5-Spice Noodles

• 1 package soba or udon noodles
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 2 teaspoons chili paste
• 4 cloves garlic garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
• 3 teaspoons five-spice powder
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3/4 cup vegetable stock
• 1 large bunch broccoli, stems removed and chopped
• 3 carrots, shredded
• 1 cup shredded green cabbage
• 3 scallions, chopped
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Cook noodles according to package directions. Toss with a little vegetable oil and set aside. 

Mix together the soy sauce, sesame oil, chili paste, ginger, and five-spice powder in a small bowl.

Place a large wok or saute pan over high heat. Pour in the oil, and then add the onion. Cook, stirring often until translucent, about 3 minutes. Toss in the garlic and cook for another minute. Then add the broccoli, carrots, cabbage, stock, and the soy sauce mixture. Cook for about 5 minutes, or until the broccoli is tender.

Toss in the scallions and noodles. Stir well, and cook until the noodles are coated in the sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Growing Herbs in Unlikely Containers

My mom was an avid gardener. She liked using different planting mediums for herbs and flowers. I remember her using old boots for planting flowers and she even used an old red wagon. It made the garden look more dynamic and interesting and people always commented on the beautiful flowers growing out of old pieces of "junk."

Chives growing in a Soup Tureen

The moral of this little story is to illustrate that you can use any "pot" to grow herbs in. I have a student assistant for my culinary class who was assigned a project of growing herbs in the lab throughout the semester. She picked the planting vessels and the herbs and what we have is an array of different "pots" for our herb garden. We could have gone to the plant store and picked out wooden boxes but that would have been too status quo or boring. 

In order to use different planting vessels, especially ones without drain holes in the bottom, you need to place a layer of rocks or charcoal in the bottom to allow for some sort of drainage. 

The herbs are planted from seed, so I will provide updates on our herb garden as the semester progresses. We're hoping that my students can use the herbs towards for their final project. 

Teapot .. perfect for Mint

It's not sugar, it's basil growing in there.