Spinach Salad with Avocado and Orange

I have a ton of Thanksgiving / wintery recipes to share, but somehow I can't get in the holiday mood to post them yet. I've been working on holiday campaigns at work since September, so I think in my mind we skipped December, and it is already February!

I made this salad recently (that I found via Bon Appetit archives of mine) and it was pleasantly simple and delicious. With all these ingredients in season right now, it makes a beautiful palette of colors and a nice side dish.

Ingredients

2 T finely chopped shallots

2 T seasoned rice vinegar

1 T vegetable oil

2 t peeled, minced ginger

1/2 t sesame oil

1 bag organic baby spinach

1 large ripe orange

1 large ripe avocado

salt and pepper to taste

Directions

In a bowl, whisk together first five ingredients until well combined. (This can be done up to two days in advance.)

In a serving bowl or plate, arrange spinach. Peel the orange with a knife so that none of the skin or white pith remains and cut into wedges. Cut the avocado into long wedges as well. Place both the orange and the avocado in the spinach and lightly toss with dressing. Season with a light sprinkling of fresh salt and pepper and serve within 2 hours.

I think this salad would also be just as nice (but less simple) with the addition of pomegranate seeds, walnuts or thin slices of red onion.

Spinach and Cheese Tart

Dave and I moved to San Luis Obispo last week and with that I have a renewed commitment to start cooking and blogging again. Another great thing about this is that Natalie and I can now cook together! We decided to cook a feast this weekend in celebration of our house (mainly kitchen see above) finally being assembled. The menu included the following:

• Spiced white bean dip with whole wheat flatbread
• Spinach and cheese tart with cornmeal crust
• Grilled portobello mushrooms with pesto and Swiss cheese
• Grilled tri tip
  
• Mache salad with sun dried tomatoes, lentils, and Parmesan cheese

There is a vegetarian blog I follow regularly called 101 Cookbooks that has some amazing recipes. The post last week was a for a turnip greens tart. I have never made a tart before, but it seemed like a good challenge. I made this for our dinner this weekend, but I modified it by using spinach instead of turnip greens. I will warn you for those of you who have never made a tart that it is extremely time consuming. That said, I would still do it again. I would probably add a little more cheese, some caramelized red onions, and maybe some minced marinated artichoke hearts to give it more texture. The recipe makes two shells so I will probably attempt this soon...keep you posted! (recipe in the hyperlink above)

Natalie will have to post the mushrooms and salad recipes because these were her incredible contributions to the feast. Below is the dip recipe I created, which was really simple, but a great appetizer for a complicated dinner menu. Enjoy!

Spiced White Bean Dip

1 can white cannellini beans, drained

1/8 c olive oil

1/8 c lemon juice

1 clove garlic

1 t kosher salt (more to taste if desired)

1 t crushed red pepper flakes

1 t toasted cumin seeds

1 t coriander powder

1/2 t white pepper

dash of red wine vinegar

Directions

In food processor, pulse all ingredients until smooth. I put in a bowl and drizzled with a little more olive oil, fresh cracked black pepper, and some feta cheese. I served this with store bought whole wheat flat bread that I toasted and cut into triangles and carrot sticks.

Two Tasty Blog Recipes I Tried This Weekend

We had guests for the weekend so I decided to whip up some recipes that I saw on the web this week.

The first was a recipe from 101 Cook Books which was a Red Pesto Ravioli made with goat cheese, sun dried tomatoes, walnuts and spinach. I followed this recipe almost exactly except that I doubled the pesto recipe to ensure I'd have more for later. This was a hit with our guests and was also a healthy and balanced vegetarian meal. I paired it with a Greek Salad. Check out the recipe below.

Red Pesto Ravioli

For dessert, I made a peach and creme fraiche pie that I found on Smitten Kitchen. This recipe was originally from Martha Stewart. It was delicious and I thought that the creme fraiche really took the peaches to another level of flavor complexity. It was also the first time that I've been successful with making a perfect crumble topping! I learned that the trick is to keep everything really cold before putting it into the oven. I sliced almost frozen butter and mixed it in with the dry crumble ingredients and it turned out really crumbly and crispy. I'm not sure if it was chef error or just juicy California peaches, but I couldn't get the pie to set and be sliceable. It ended up pretty ugly on the plate and was in essence a pie crust with a peach/creme fraiche/crumble soup on top. I think if i were to create this again I would skip the pie crust and just make it in a 8x8 pan as a peach cobbler.

Peach and Creme Fraiche Pie

Both of the blogs have much better pictures than I take so check out their photos- they are beautiful.

Artichoke Spinach Dip

I made a ton of this dip this weekend for a little Memorial Day barbecue. This dip is always a hit at parties and can be made ahead of time and heated right before guests arrive. This can be modified to be as healthy or as naughty as you like, but the full-on heart attack version tastes the best. This recipe will make a 9x9 Pyrex pan worth of dip.

Ingredients
1 cup daisy sour cream
1 cup mayonnaise
1 80z block cream cheese, room temp

1 bag chopped frozen spinach, thawed
1 large jar marinated artichokes, chopped- reserve the juice
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 t hot sauce
1 cup sharp cheddar or Parmesan cheese
salt, pepper, cayenne, cumin to taste

1/2 cup home made bread crumbs (see below)- substitute with panko if lazy

Serve with tortilla chips, sliced peppers, carrot sticks, thin sliced toasted baguettes, etc.

Directions
In a large bowl, mix the first 7 ingredients together. Add half of the vinegary juices from the jar of artichokes to the mixture. Add a half cup of the cheese into the dip and season to taste. Transfer to a greased pyrex pan and top with remaining cheese.

To make the bread crumbs, toast 5 slices of sourdough bread until golden. Tear into pieces and combine in a food processor or blender until crumbly. Add 1/4 cup melted butter and mix. Crumble on top of dip.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until top is golden and dip is bubbly. Serve warm.

Modifications

• Add a jalapeno that is seeded and finely chopped for an extra crunch and spicy kick.
• If dip needs a little more of that marinated vinegary taste, add red wine vinegar
• Forgo cream cheese and just use mayonnaise and sour cream
  

Puff Pastry Traingles with Feta, Spinach and Artichoke

I was having a craving for spanikopita and had some extra puff pastry in the freezer from the tarts that I made about a week ago, so I came up with this. These are easy to make, just require a little time to stuff and seal the pastry squares. I served these over a little mixed green salad with home made balsamic dressing. Recipe makes 16- I would recommend making 3-4 per person.
















Ingredients
1 cup cooked spinach
1/2 cup chopped artichoke hearts
1/3 cup mix of fresh herbs- I used basil, thyme, chives and Italian parsley
1/2 t Italian seasoning
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup herbed feta crumbles
1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese
splash of red wine vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
1 package puff pastry, thawed (2, 10" squares)
















Directions
Mix the first 10 ingredients together in a bowl. Lay out puff pastry on a cutting board and cut each piece into 4 squares. With a butter knife, take each square and make a perforation diagonally through it to make 2 triangles- do not cut in half. Put 2-3 spoonfuls of the spinach mixture onto one side of the diagonal line and fold pastry over so that it folds into a little triangular pouch. Press sides together and roll up slightly until sealed.

Repeat this process with remaining pastry squares. Place triangles on a cookie sheet, spray tops with olive oil and bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. Take out of oven, let cool for 5 minutes and cut each larger triangle in half to make nice bite sized ones.

Green Veggie Alfredo Pasta

Garret's mom used to make him fettuccine Alfredo a lot growing up, so in our earlier dating years, when eating on a college budget, I tried making him fettuccine Alfredo for the first time. My mom taught me to make Alfredo sauce from a roux and needless to say, the fettuccine turned out more like paste than pasta. He ate it anyway, but has since taught me "his" way of making the sauce, which is unexpectedly from cream cheese. I haven't tried making it the roux way since; this is great and much easier.


















Ingredients:
two handfuls green beans, trimmed
one bunch spinach
2 - 4 servings noodle pasta
1 tsp canola butter
8 ounces light cream cheese
1 clove garlic, crushed
3 T milk
1/4 c Parmesan cheese, plus some for topping
1/8 cup toasted pepitas
1/8 cup manzanilla olives
salt and pepper and red pepper flakes to taste

Directions:
Bring a two pots of water to a boil. In one, blanche the green beans and set them aside, then steam the spinach in the same pot and set aside also. Boil pasta according to directions.

In the meantime, add butter, garlic and cream cheese to a sauce pan. Stirring with a whisk, add milk and Parmesan and stir until smooth. You may need to add more milk as it cooks.

Drain pasta and toss with sauce, vegetables and remaining ingredients.

I have been using Trader Joe's Multigrain Pasta with Flax. It has a really nice taste and texture as well as adding extra nutrients and protein. I'm usually not a fan of wheat pasta, but this stuff is GOOD!

Roasted Butternut Squash Spinach Salad

This salad is tasty, healthy and colorful and has a nice balance of salty and sweet. Below I have listed the ingredients for one dinner sized salad— multiply as necessary. It would also be fantastic with some sliced grilled chicken breast on top. If you are a blue cheese hater, I think that shaved Parmesan would be a nice substitution.















Ingredients
1/4 cup cubed butternut squash (fresh or frozen)
3/4 cup fresh baby spinach
2 T chopped walnuts
2 T dried cranberries
2 T chopped yellow bell pepper
a few shavings of red onion
1 oz crumbled Gorgonzola cheese
your favorite balsamic dressing (I like Annie's)

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with olive oil. Spread out butternut squash and let roast for 15 minutes until tender. (I used the frozen variety- fresh may take longer to actually cook).

In a bowl, add remaining ingredients and top with hot butternut squash. Add dressing, toss and serve slightly warm.

Braised Leg of Lamb over Marscapone Polenta

I made this last night for the infamous V day. I sort of pieced this recipe together through a variety of Food Network chefs' lamb recipes, except for the polenta. Emeril Lagsse can take credit for the marscapone polenta part (but I lightened it a bit). We searched 7 grocery stores in town to find marscapone cheese— I had no idea it was so hard to come by in SLO! This dish is extremely fragrant and really delicious. I served it with a stuffed artichoke and pistachio creme brulee. I will post those recipes in the near future.















Ingredients
Lamb
4 garlic cloves
1 small piece peeled fresh gingerroot
olive oil
2 pounds boneless leg of lamb steaks, cut into 2 inch strips
1 cinnamon stick
4 whole cloves
1 bay leaf
1 onion, diced
1/2 T ground cumin
1/2 T ground coriander seeds
1/4 t cayenne
1 cup chopped drained canned tomatoes
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
juice of half a lemon

Polenta
4 1/2 cups vegetable broth
2 cups lowfat milk
a drizzle of olive oil
Freshly ground white pepper
1/2 cup polenta
1/8 cup half and half
1/2 cup mascarpone cheese

Toppings
steamed spinach
toasted pine nuts
diced roasted red peppers
2 T plain yogurt
pepper
balsamic reduction- find the recipe here

Directions
In a blender, combine the garlic cloves with the ginger and about 1/4 cup water, reserve. In a heavy stock pot, grease with olive oil and cook the lamb pieces until browned on all sides, but not cooked in the center. Remove lamb from pot and set aside. In the same pot, fry the cinnamon, cloves and bay leaf and cook for a minute. Next, add the diced onion and cook until translucent. Add the cumin through yogurt ingredients as well as the garlic/ginger mixture and stir thoroughly. Add the lamb back into the pot and fill with a little water until the liquid is half way up the meat. Bring mixture to a boil and then cover and turn to simmer and cook for two hours or until meat is fork tender.

When the lamb has about 45 minutes to go, start the polenta. Combine the broth, milk, olive oil and pepper in a pot and bring to almost a boil. Add the polenta into the pot in a slow stream, stirring constantly to avoid clumping. Bring ingredients to a boil and then turn down to low and cover for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. With 15 minutes remaining, add the marscapone and half and half and adjust the seasonings.

When lamb is done, pull out pieces with a slotted spoon and put into a bowl. Season with lemon juice, salt and pepper. To plate the recipe, put down a little polenta and then top with lamb and remaining toppings.

This version will feed 3 hungry people or 4 lighter eaters (it is very rich). I assume other cuts of lamb could be used (like shanks or shoulder) but this is all I could get fresh and organic in SLO that seemed suitable for braising. With this dish we had Adelaida Cellars 2005 Version wine.