Chayote Salad

Posted on July 22, 2016 by melsmosaic

As it’s been so hot recently, wanted to make a refreshing salad that pairs with Mexican food. Remembered a great one from a Mexican cookbook I have, Mexico The Beautiful Cookbook: Authentic Recipes from the Regions of Mexico. It’s with chayote squash and pretty simple. The hardest part is peeling the squash.

Ingredients

2 lb (1 kg) chayotes (vegetable pears/chokos)
salt
6 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced and separated into rings

Directions

-Place the chayotes, unpeeled, in a large saucepan. Cover with water, add a pinch of salt and cook, covered, for 30-40 minutes or until they can easily be pierced with a fork. Drain and let cool for 5 minutes. Peel the chayotes, cut in half, then cut each half into 3 or 4 strips. Chill.
-Combine the oil, vinegar, salt, pepper and oregano. Stir well and correct the seasonings.
-Before serving, mix the chayotes with the dressing, top with the onion and sprinkle with more oregano if desired. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Very refreshing, easy to make and pairs well with tuna steaks, salsa and guac, too! Oh, and margaritas, of course.

Soup of the Day

Posted on March 4, 2016 by melsmosaic

Real Simple always has some good recipes to check out. The most recent one I put to the test was their Squash, Mushroom, and Kale Soup With Dill. All ingredients sound pretty darn good!

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
Kosher salt and black pepper
1 pound mixed mushrooms (such as button and shiitake), stemmed and halved (or quartered if large) (grabbed some good ones from Trader Joe’s)
4 cups vegetable broth
1/2 medium butternut squash, peeled and cut into ½-inch chunks (about 12 ounces)
1/3 cup orzo (could even use quinoa, etc if gluten intolerant)
4 cups loosely packed baby kale leaves (about 2½ ounces)
1/2 cup chopped fresh dill, plus more for garnishing (just used dry stuff)

Directions

-Heat the oil in a medium pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, ½  teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened, about 4 minutes.  Add the mushrooms and lower heat to medium. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are tender and have released their juices, 6 to 8  minutes. Stir in the broth, squash, and orzo and bring to a boil. Reduce heat  to medium-low and simmer until the squash is tender and the orzo is cooked, about 15 minutes.
-Stir in the kale until just wilted.  Season with salt and pepper and stir in the dill. Serve topped with more dill.

When I sampled this mid-way through I was a bit disappointed. But then, when you add the dill…totally amazing flavor punch! Very happy with the end result and nice one to add to the list.

Roasted Squash Heaven

Posted on February 18, 2016 by melsmosaic

Made another delicious recipe from Ottolenghi’s Jerusalem cookbook the other day as pary of a friend’s 50th birthday dinner. I can’t find anything bad from his book. Just love it! This time it was Roasted Butternut Squash & Red Onions with Tahini & Za’atar

Ingredients:
1 large butternut squash (2 1/4 lb), cut into 3/4 by 2 1/2″ wedges (I peeled it and cut into cubes)
2 red onions, cut into 1 1/4″ wedges
3 1/2 tbsp olive oil
3 1/2 tbsp tahini
1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp water
1 garlic close, crushed
3 1/2 tbsp pine nuts
1 tbsp za’atar
1 tbsp coarsely chopped flat leaf parsley
Salt & pepper

Directions:
Preheat oven to 475 degrees.

Put the squash and onion in a large mixing bowl, add 3 tbsp of the oil, 1 tsp salt and some pepper and toss well. Spread on a baking sheet with the skin facing down and roast in the oven for 30-40 minutes, until the vegetables have taken on some color and are cooked through. Keep an eye on the onions as they might cook faster than the squash and need to be removed earlier. Remove from the oven and leave to cool.

To make the sauce, place the tahini in a small bowl along with the lemon juice, water, garlic and 1/4 tsp salt. Whisk until the sauce is the consistency of honey, adding more water or tahini if necessary.

Add the remaining 1 1/2 tsp oil into a small frying pain and place over medium-low heat. Add the pine nuts along with the 1/2 tsp salt and cook for 2 minutes, stirring often, until the nuts are golden brown. Remove from heat and transfer the nuts and oil to a small bowl to stop the cooking.

To serve, spread the vegetables out on a large serving platter and drizzle over the tahini. Sprinkle the pine nuts and their oil on top, followed by the za’atar and parsley.

This was served with a spinach salad from the same cookbook and some roasted shrimp. Could barely stop eating this stuff. Definitely on the list to make again.

You can shave more than just legs or seconds off your race time…

Posted on August 2, 2015 by melsmosaic

…and what are you thinking? Well, I have zucchini and yellow squash in my mind! Saw another great recipe in Bon Appetit that I had to make recently…Shaved Zucchini Salad with Macadamia Nuts.

Ingredients (with some other speedbumps)

-1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
-3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (I forgot to get a lemon so didn’t have the prior, but had to backup of Penzey’s dried stuff)
-3 tablespoons olive oil
-1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
-1 teaspoon honey
-1 teaspoon soy sauce
-Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
-1½ pounds mixed zucchini and summer squash, thinly sliced
-2 cups baby sorrel leaves or other small greens (Whole Foods had no sorrel so I went for arugula, which I LOVE anyway. And after I bought the bag of arugula vs the plastic box that I normally get, the next day I noticed there is no nutritional info on there. On the same size packaging at Trader Joe’s they have the info. Pure curiosity, what dictates fresh packaged produced needing that labeling? I couldn’t find an easy answer on the FDA website)
-3 tablespoons unsalted, roasted pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
-½ ounce Parmesan, finely grated (I cut this out because of my lactose intolerance)
-⅓ cup unsalted, roasted macadamia nuts, coarsely chopped (Whole Foods didn’t have a macadamia nut in sight. I opted for pine nuts)

Directions

Whisk lemon zest, lemon juice, oil, mustard, honey, and soy sauce in a large bowl; season with salt and pepper. Add zucchini and squash, sorrel, and pumpkin seeds and toss to combine. Serve salad topped with Parmesan, macadamia nuts, and more pepper.

Another great recipe. Lots of flavor, the pine nuts definitely delivered and the arugula delivered a punch, too. Bring on salad!

These Chips are(n’t) BS!

Posted on August 17, 2014 by melsmosaic

Was in Whole Foods the other day roaming through the chip aisle to grab some pita chips (of course, right?). I always have to see what else is on the shelves that I really don’t need. Well, a couple years ago I had some chips after running a race that were so good! They were just so unique and I haven’t been able to find them again. I couldn’t quite remember what they were, unfortunately, so have been on this endless hunt. I see these sweet potato chips and try them and realize they aren’t quite right. Well, finally I have found what I was looking for! Garden of Eatin’ Butternut Squash Chips! They are and aren’t BS! So good! The bag says NEW, no, they were around a couple years ago and now are finally back! The chips are made with corn, butternut squash and some spice. They have a bit of sweetness, they’re crunchy and something unique to them. I don’t even think they need salsa to pair with them. I did put some hummus on them once or twice, though — the pita chips didn’t have to get all of it, right? They are also gluten free and dairy free. Check them out, let me know what you think. And, if you find them at different stores, let me know.

Easy Wrap-Up Dinner

Posted on August 20, 2013 by melsmosaic

So I’m a bit late writing about a quick, easy wrap-up dinner I made for Sunday night. It only took a few minutes but gave so many flavors that it was just perfect, and it was lactose free! Served some wine with it and it made going back to work on Monday even worse. Always think…make things easy…use this during the week if you want to.

I had a yellow squash that had been around for a few days that I needed to use before it went bad. So I just sliced that and put it in a pan for a bit until it was cooked to the level I wanted. A few minutes before it was done, I threw some grape tomatoes in the pan just to have them ‘pop.’ I’d been craving shrimp, so I pulled some of the frozen one out of the freezer earlier in the day. I just pan seared those about half way through the cooking of the yellow squash. Oh, for spices on these, I just picked one of my Penzey’s blends.

I looked in my fridge for what else to serve. Had some grapefruit that I always love and they are highly recommended to eat before a meal (if you’re able to) — just having it on the plate was good enough for me. Served a couple pieces of that. And I can never turn olives down. Threw some of the greek ones from Trader Joe’s on there. Had also grabbed some bread earlier in the day and just did some olive oil, S&P for dipping.

Next, the vino! At the liquor store outside of Annapolis this time, Edgewater Liquors, the recommendation was La Mondianese Grignolino. Was about $16… Very light, refreshing…will have to get more.

Also had a little bit of Cline’s Cool Climate Pinot Noir. This is one of my favorites. Since it’s grown where the temps don’t rise a ton (I learned the specs once and don’t remember all the details), it has a different taste than the other Pinot. It’s usually about $18-$20.