Tomato Scallion Shortcakes with Whipped Goat Cheese

I don't really need to get into how many times I've referenced Smitten Kitchen on this blog (I'm too lazy to link them all. That's why.). It's a lot. This is the perfect summer recipe because a) your oven isn't on for very long and b) it involves summer's best fruit masquerading as a vegetable – the perfect summer tomato.

Just go make these.

Tomato Scallion Shortcakes with Whipped Goat Cheese from The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook:

Makes 6-8 short

For the scallion biscuits -

2 c. plus 2 Tb. all-purpose flour

2 Tb. baking powder

¾ tsp. salt

5 Tb. unsalted butter, chilled and cut into cubes

1 scallion, thinly sliced

1 c. buttermilk

For the tomato salad -

1 tablespoon olive oil

1½ Tb. red wine vinegar

⅛ tsp. salt

Pinch of sugar

Freshly ground black pepper

½ lb. (approximately 1⅓ c.) cherry or grape tomatoes

For the topping -

3 Tb. heavy or whipping cream

4 oz. goat cheese, softened

2 scallions, thinly sliced

To make the biscuits, preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together. Use a pastry blender to cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in the scallion, then add the buttermilk and stir until the dough just comes together.

On a floured surface, pat or roll dough to ¾-to-1-inch thickness and cut into 3-inch rounds, reforming scraps as needed. You will get about six to eight biscuits. Arrange 2 inches apart on the prepared sheet. Bake about 15 minutes, until golden brown.

Meanwhile, make the tomato salad. In a bowl, whisk together everything except the tomatoes. Halve or quarter the tomatoes, then add them to the bowl with the dressing and toss to combine.

And now the best part – making the whipped goat cheese.

In a separate bowl, use an electric mixer to whip the cream until peaks form. Add the goat cheese and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy.

Split each warm biscuit in half. Generously spoon each half with the tomato salad and dressing. Dollop with whipped goat cheese and sprinkle with scallions. Serve immediately. Or keep them disassembled, transport them to a big mom and baby picnic, and then assemble them and eat far too many. But hey, it's summer and tomatoes will only be this delicious for a short while.

Peach and Sour Cream Buckle

I'm a sucker for fruit desserts and I'm a sucker for desserts with silly names. Fool? Slump? Grunt? Buckle? Yeah, I'm all about that. Put it together and I'll make it. Tell me there's a Cascadia party and you should bring a local goodie? I guess this buckle will have to do.

It involves peaches I picked at Sauvie Island Farms. Raspberry picking was the primary goal (and I got a LOT of raspberries. Three different recipes worth plus all of the berries that ended up in my and my baby's belly), but peaches could not be ignored. What says summer like a peach? Plus I'd never picked a peach before. Other local things were the flour (Bob's Red Mill - Milwaukie, Oregon), the dairy (Tillamook - Tillamook, Oregon and Sunshine Dairy - Portland), and the eggs (New Seasons PacNW eggs). Oh, and it's delicious. And so so easy.

I followed the recommendation of using half regular granulated sugar and half brown sugar. I recommend you do too.

Peach and Sour Cream Buckle via Herbivoracious

Yield: 16 squares

For the streusel-

½ c. sugar
6 Tb. all-purpose flour
¼ tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. kosher salt or sea salt
4 Tb. (½ stick) cold butter, cut into small pieces

For the cake -
1 ¾ c. whole wheat pastry flour (regular whole wheat worked for me)
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. kosher salt
4 Tb. soft unsalted butter
½ c. granulated sugar

½ c. brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla
½ c. sour cream
¼ c. whole milk
3 c. peeled and sliced peaches (about 12 slices per peach)

For the streusel, mix all ingredients except the butter in a small bowl. Add the butter and work it into the flour mixture with your fingertips until it looks like coarse cornmeal, just like when making a pie crust. It is fine if there are a few larger bits of butter. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Preheat oven to 350. Butter a 9×9 baking pan.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.

In a mixer, beat the butter, sugar, egg and vanilla until fluffy. Beat in the sour cream and milk. Gradually add the flour mixture and combine gently until just mixed, like you would for pancake batter.
Gently fold in the peaches. Your hands are probably the best tool for this. It will seem like way too many peaches. Pour the batter in the pan, and sprinkle on the streusel top evenly. Bake until browned and a toothpick comes out clean, about 40 minutes.

Let cool for 20 minutes. Serve to fanfare and eat plenty.

Sweet Potato Blintzes with Farmer's Cheese

My son is officially in toddlerdom, especially when it comes to meal time. Things that were once beloved now are given to the dog or belong to the floor (which then goes to the dog). Sometimes within one meal a food goes from being bad to good to bad again (mac and cheese is not a floor food!). It’s hard, especially when you worked hard on something, but it’s all worth the effort in turning my child into a foodie.

These were a hit on dinner 1 and breakfast 1 and less so for dinner 2. The sauce, which is I changed to blueberry because it is a food he still very much enjoys, was always popular. So despite the potential of the dog getting a fabulous meal, I’d say these are worth the time and, as a bonus, freeze really nicely. Adults can have some too and they taste extra great when you save them from the floor.

I’m including the original cranberry syrup recipe as I made it for the first set and it really is quite good. If you decide to go the blueberry route, cut the sugar in half.

Sweet Potato Blintzes with Farmer’s Cheese via The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook:

Yield 16 blintzes

Wrappers-

1½ c. milk (whole is great, other fat levels are also fine)

6 large eggs

1½ c. all-purpose flour

¼ tsp. table salt

1 Tb. melted butter or neutral oil, for brushing the pan, plus additional for cooking blintzes  

Filling-

About 4 medium sweet potatoes

2 c. farmer’s cheese

2 large egg yolks

¼ c. sugar

½ tsp. ground cinnamon

Few fresh gratings of nutmeg

Pinch of salt

Cranberry syrup-

2 c. fresh or frozen cranberries

¼ c. orange juice

½ c. sugar

Make the wrapper batter by combining all wrapper ingredients except for butter or oil in a blender. Pour the batter into a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for an hour or up to 2 days.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Bake the sweet potatoes on a tray for about 40 minutes, until soft. Let them cool in their skins. Once they’re cool, peel the sweet potatoes and mash them or run them through a potato ricer.

Preheat a medium skillet or crepe pan over medium-high heat. I don’t have a crepe pan. You probably don’t either. Don’t sweat it, your skillet is fine. Once it’s heated, brush the pan lightly with melted butter or oil. Pour ¼ cup batter into the skillet, swirling it until it evenly coats the bottom, and cook, undisturbed, until the bottom is golden and the top is set, about 2 minutes. No need to flip them. The key here is even heat and just a little bit of grease in your pan. Sounds complicated and come out perfect. Transfer the wrapper to a paper-towel-covered plate, cooked side down. Continue with the remaining batter.

Once the sweet potato puree is cool, stir in the farmer’s cheese, egg yolks, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.

If you plan to freeze these, do so before the browning step. They’ll taste great if you wait.

Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Put an ever-so-slightly heaped ¼ cup of filling in the center of each wrapper, and fold the opposite sides of wrapper over filling until they barely touch. If you had to read that 14 times like I did, it means take the two vertical sides of the wrapper. It’ll make sense in a second. Pull the end of the crepe nearest to you over the filling (away from you), and roll the rest of the way, to completely enclose filling, forming elongated, egg-roll-shaped packets. Reheat with the remaining blintzes and filling. Reheat your crepe skillet - or a larger one, if you want to cook more blintzes are a time - over medium heat and add more butter or oil to coat the pan. Place a few blintzes, seam side down, in a skillet, and cook them until they are golden brown and crisp, for about 5 minutes on each side. Transfer them to a baking sheet, and keep them warm in the over until they are ready to serve.

Now make the syrup. In a saucepan, over medium heat, simmer the cranberries, orange juice, and sugar together until the berries burst, about 7 to 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 5 minutes more. Strain the syrup into a bowl.

Serve the blintzes warm with a drizzle of cranberry syrup and/or a dollop of sour cream.

If you’re lucky, your toddler will eat them and make you feel so proud. If not, they are also great in your own mouth.   

Heirloom Tomato Tart

Summer might be over, but Portland keeps hanging on to the sun. The leaves are falling off of the trees though and it is definitely fall. Maybe you stashed some tomatoes away in your freezer. Make this and pretend it's still August.

Heirloom Tomato Tart via Joy the Baker:

Makes 1 9 by 9 tart

For the sun dried tomato pesto sauce -

1 8 oz. jar sun dried tomatoes, some of the oil reserved

2 cloves garlic, peeled

1 small red chili, seeds remove and coarsely chopped

Big pinch of granulated sugar

1 scant tsp. salt

3-4 Tb. olive oil from the sun dried tomato jar

For the Tart-

1 9×9-inch sheet all-butter puff pastry, thawed but still cold

Small handful fresh basil leaves

4 oz. goat cheese

3 small heirloom tomatoes, sliced about ¼-inch thick and drained on paper towels

Handful of cherry tomatoes, sliced in half and seeds removed

1 Tb. fresh thyme leaves

Olive oil

To make the sun dried tomato pesto sauce, combine sun dried tomatoes, garlic cloves, chopped

chili, sugar, salt, and oil in the bowl of a food processor. Blend until combined, but still slightly

coarse. The mixture does not need to be completely smooth. Taste and season as needed. You'll get some extra. It's fantastic on other things, like toasted bread.

Place a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking

sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

Unfold a chilled sheet of puff pastry. Roll lightly with a rolling pin just to flatten completely. Place on the prepared baking sheet and spread about half of the pesto sauce over the puff

pastry, leaving about a ½-inch border around the edges. Coarsely tear basil leaves over the

sauce. Crumble goat cheese over the sauce. Arrange heirloom tomatoes in a single layer over

the goat cheese and press down slightly. Try to cover as much of the sauce as possible as it can

burn in the oven if exposed. Add a few cherry tomato halves. Sprinkle generously with fresh

thyme and drizzle with olive oil.

Bake for 15 to 18 minutes until puffed and golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to rest

for at lease 10 minutes before serving.

It's kind of like pizza, but so much fancier. Close your eyes and dream of summer.

Shaved Asparagus Pizza

So, the Smitten Kitchen cookbook is amazing. Yes, this recipe is also on her blog, but just know that you need to check out the cookbook. I have a couple more that are cookbook exclusives and then you'll know.

Shaved Asparagus Pizza via The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook (and blog):

Makes 1 thin crust 12” pizza

Pizza dough:

1½ c. flour (can replace up to half of this with whole wheat flour)
1 tsp. salt
¾ tsp. active dry yeast
½ c. lukewarm water (may need up to 1 or 2 tablespoons more)
1 Tb. olive oil

Toppings:
½ lb. Asparagus
¼ c. grated Parmesan
½ lb. mozzarella, shredded or cut into small cubes
2 tsp. olive oil
½ tsp. coarse salt
Several grinds black pepper
1 scallion, thinly sliced

Stir dry ingredients, including yeast, in a large bowl. Add water and olive oil, stirring mixture into as close to a ball as you can. Dump all clumps and floury bits onto a lightly floured surface and knead everything into a homogeneous ball.

Knead it for just a minute or two. Lightly oil the bowl where you had mixed it — one-bowl recipe! — dump the dough in, turn it over so all sides are coated, cover it in plastic wrap and leave it undisturbed for an hour or two, until it has doubled in size.

Dump it back on the floured counter and gently press the air out of the dough with the palm of your hands. Fold the piece into an approximate ball shape, and let it sit under that plastic wrap for 20 more minutes.
Preheat your oven to the hottest temperature it goes, or about 500 in most cases. If you use a pizza stone, have it in there.

Prepare the asparagus. No need to snap off ends; they can be your “handles” as you peel the asparagus. Holding a single asparagus spear by its tough end, lay it flat on a cutting board and using a vegetable peeler create long shavings of asparagus by drawing the peeler from the base to the top of the stalk. Repeat with remaining stalks and don’t fret some pieces are unevenly thick (such as the end of the stalk, which might be too thin to peel); the mixed textures give a great character to the pizza. Discard tough ends. Toss peelings with olive oil, salt and pepper in a bowl and be sure to try one. It is incredibly good. I'd love to try it as a salad.

Assemble and bake the pizza. Roll or stretch out your pizza dough to a 12-inch round. Either transfer to a floured or cornmeal-dusted pizza peel (if using a pizza stone in the oven) or to a floured or cornmeal-dusted tray to bake it on. Sprinkle pizza dough with Parmesan, then mozzarella. Pile asparagus on top. Bake pizza for 10 to 15 minutes, or until edges are browned, the cheese is bubbly and the asparagus might be lightly charred. Remove from the oven and immediately sprinkle with scallions, then slice and eat.

It is much more filling than you'd expect and super tasty. Make it before asparagus are totally out of season.

Kale Caesar Salad with Grilled Goat Cheese

Kale is everywhere. It's hearty. It's good for you. I seem to get it in my CSA every week. I do love kale, but sometimes it starts to be a little much. You need to do something different with it. Hence taking a caesar dressing and using raw kale leaves. And since I was by myself, I got to put a bunch of goat cheese on it. Though I mentioned in the tapenade recipe about using Thai fish sauce as a replacement for anchovies, I learned it first when making this. I made it for one as an entree, but it could easily work for two as a salad course.

Kale Caesar Salad with Grilled Goat Cheese:

(Caesar Dressing modified via 1,000 Mexican Recipes)

Serves 1

Dressing-

½ c. olive oil

2 Tb. red wine vinegar

1 Tb. lemon juice

2 Tb. Thai fish sauce

2 large cloves garlic, chopped

1 tsp. Dijon mustard

¼ c. freshly grated Parmesan cheese

½ tsp. freshly ground pepper, or to taste

2 slices hearty Italian bread (like ciabatta), cut into chunks

2 Tb. olive oil

2 tsp. dried herbs (oregano, basil)

Freshly cracked black pepper, to taste

Large handful torn kale leaves

3 oz. chevre, divided

1 egg, beaten

¼ c. panko

Olive oil

Make the croutons first. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Toss bread cubes in olive oil, herbs, and pepper. Place on a baking sheet and bake until golden brown, 10-15 minutes.

Make the dressing by placing the oil, vinegar, lemon juice, Thai fish sauce, garlic, and mustard in a food processor. Pulse until thoroughly combined. Add the Parmesan and black pepper. Blend until creamy and smooth. This make enough for a few salads, but I love caesar dressing so much I needed to make it all. It keeps well for up to 3 days, so just go for it.

Cut the chevre into 1 ounce chunks. Place chunks in egg to coat, then roll them in the panko. Heat a pan over medium heat until oil is shimmering. Add the coated goat cheese and cook until bottom side is golden brown, about 2 minutes. Turn over and cook until golden, about 1 minute more. Remove from heat.

Dress kale, toss throughly, and top with goat cheese and croutons.

Tangy, crunchy goat cheese and earthy kale are a fantastic combo, especially with the zip from the caesar dressing. I might be able to eat this every week.

30 Before 30: Sauteed Shredded Zucchini (Calabacitas Rallados) (#24)

Zucchini is something I adore (at least this early in the year) and Aaron isn't really into. Childhood experiences with it, I guess. This is a fun new way to play with zucchini before the farmers market is flooded with it and farmers are basically throwing them at you.

Sauteed Shredded Zucchini (Calabacitas Rallados) via 1,000 Mexican Recipes:

Makes 4 servings

2 Tb. olive oil

2 Tb. finely chopped white onion

4 medium zucchini, coarsely shredded

1 tsp. finely chopped fresh oregano or ½ tsp dried, crumbled (Mexican variety preferred)

1/8 tsp. freshly ground pepper, or to taste

½ tsp. salt

1 Tb. crumbled cotija cheese

Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet and cook the onion until slightly softened, but not browned, about 2 minutes. Add the zucchini and oregano. Cook, stirring, until zucchini is limp and hot, with bright green edges, about 4 minutes. Season with black pepper and salt. Sprinkle with cheese.

I loved this! Aaron even ate some and didn't hate it. It tasted amazing the next day too, mixed with the beet and carrots mixture from earlier in the week.

Recipes Complete: 24

Recipes to Go: 6

30 Before 30: Pretty Beets and Carrots (#21)

Beets are wearing me out. I love them, but I've gotten so many through my CSA, I'm not sure how many more I can eat. Fortunately I found another recipe to deal with them and it is pretty darn delicious. It works in the place of slaw as well as salad, so feel free to throw it on a sandwich. Just drain it a bit first or you may end up with purple hands. I skipped the lettuce and the arrangement and just mixed it all together.

Pretty Beets and Carrots via Moosewood Restaurant New Classics:

Serves 4

1 large red beet, peeled

1 large carrot, peeled

1 walnut-sized piece of fresh ginger root

2 Tb. vegetable oil

3 Tb. cider vinegar

1 garlic clove, minced

Salt and ground black pepper to taste

¼ c. minced scallions

6 green or red lettuce leaves (optional)

Coarsely grate the beet and then the carrot to yield about 1½ cups of each. Place in separate bowls and set aside.

Grate the ginger finely and combine it with the oil, vinegar, and garlic. Toss the beets in half the dressing and add salt and pepper to taste. Mix together the scallions, carrots, and the remaining dressing. Add salt and pepper, if you like.

Arrange the lettuce on a platter, mound the carrot mixture in the center, and spoon the beets around it. Or just mix it all up. Depends on how you want to present it, really.

Serve chilled or at room temperature.

I love the faux pickled flavor of this dish and how quickly you can create it, especially if you have a grater attachment for a food processor.

Recipes Complete: 21

Recipes to Go: 9

30 Before 30: Celery Root with Melted Onions (#19)

One thing that has been great about this challenge is using my cookbooks to help me out with some of the seemingly random contents of my CSA. Celery root, or celeriac, is something I know about (thanks Chopped), but have never used. Now that I've made this, I'm totally down with it. This would be a perfect addition to any fall or winter meal, especially around the holidays.

Celery Root with Melted Onions via Ad Hoc at Home:

Serves 6

4 large celery root (about 4 lb. Total)

8 Tb. unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces

1 Tb. thyme leaves\

4 cloves garlic crushed, skin left on

1 c. melted onions

½ c. chicken or veggie stock, plus more if needed

Cut off the top and bottom of each celery root. Stand each one up on a cut side and cut off the skin in strips, from top to bottom, working around the celery root. Quarter each one lengthwise and then, with a Japanese mandoline or knife (or food processor with a slicing attachment, like I did), cut crosswise into thin slices.

Heat two large saute pans over high heat until hot. Add 2 tablespoons of the butter to each pan, the pull the pans off the heat and let butter brown. Add one-quarter of the celery root to each and cook over medium heat for 1 minute, without stirring. Add one-quarter of the thyme and 1 garlic clove to each pan and cook, stirring from time to time, until the celery root is tender throughout, 9 to 10 minutes total cooking time. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Drain the celery root on paper towels. Pour off any excess fat from the pans (and remove any thyme); discard the garlic cloves. Repeat with the remaining celery root.

Add the melted onions to one of the pans and cook to give them a little color, about 3 minutes. Drain the onions to remove the excess fat, and return them to the pan. Add the celery root, stir to combine, and season with salt and pepper as needed. Increase the heat to high and swirl in ½ cup stock. Bring to a simmer, adding additional stock or water if needed to create a creamy dish. Transfer to a serving bowl.

Celery root tastes like a cross between super intense celery and a potato. I really enjoyed this dish, especially paired with Aaron's pork chops.

Recipes Complete: 19

Recipes to Go: 11

30 Before 30: Melted Onions (#18)

Thomas Keller really emphasizes the importance of basics and this importance really can't be overstated. These melted onions were an essential component of the next post and because of that I decided to give them their own post. These work well for sandwiches, added into sauces or salads, or as something to snack on while you're working on the rest of the meal (hmm, what?, who does that?).

Melted Onions via Ad Hoc at Home:

Makes 2 cups

8 c. sliced onions (about 3 large onions)

Kosher salt

8 Tb. unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces

1 sachet (1 bay leaf, 3 thyme leaves, 10 black peppercorns, 1 garlic clove, smashed and peeled)

Lay out a 7-inch square of cheesecloth. Put the bay leaf, thyme, peppercorns, and garlic near the bottom of the square and fold the bottom edge up and over them. Roll once, tuck in the two ends of the cheesecloth, and continue to roll. Tie the cheesecloth at both ends with kitchen twine.

Put the onions in a large saute pan, set over medium-low heat, sprinkle with 2 generous pinches of salt, and cook, stirring from time to time, for about 20 minutes, until the onions have released much of their liquid.

Stir in the butter, add the sachet, cover, and cook slowly over low to medium-low heat for another 30 to 35 minutes. The onions should look creamy at all times; if the butter separates, or the pan looks dry before the onions are done, add a bit of cold water and stir well to re-emulsify the butter. The onions should be meltingly tender but not falling apart or mushy. Season to taste with salt.

Once cooled, the onions can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.

These would be perfect with day after Thanksgiving sandwiches and they are so wonderful with an interesting side dish as you'll see in the next post.

Recipes Complete: 18

Recipes to Go: 12

30 Before 30: Sauteed Carrots with Vinegar and Oregano (Carote in Scapece) (#13)

When making the rigatoni, I realized how much we needed a vegetable with dinner. I'm loving this challenge for forcing me to do different things with vegetables. Carrots are not something I thought about when looking for Italian dishes, but this was a homerun.

Sauteed Carrots with Vinegar and Oregano (Carote In Scapece) via Marcella's Italian Kitchen:

For 4 to 6 persons

2 lb. carrots

3 Tb. extra virgin olive oil

3 or 4 garlic cloves, peeled and cut in half

½ c. wine vinegar

½ tsp. granulated sugar

1 tsp. oregano

¼ tsp. chopped hot red pepper

Salt

Peel and wash the carrots and slice them into rounds ¼-inch thick. Bring a pot of water to a boil and drop in the carrots. Cook them just until they are slightly tender but still crunchy, not fully cooked. Drain and set aside.

Choose a skillet large enough to accommodate the carrots later, put in the oil and the garlic, and turn on the heat to medium high. When the garlic becomes colored a light nut brown, remove it, put in the carrots, and turn up the heat to high. Cook the carrots for a minute or two, stirring them frequently.

Add the vinegar, sugar, oregano, hot pepper, and salt. Continue cooking, stirring from time to time, until all the liquid has evaporated. Transfer the carrots to a serving platter and serve either lukewarm or at room temperature.

Absolutely a new favorite.

Recipes Complete: 13

Recipes to Go: 17

30 Before 30: Bruschetta al Pomodoro (#12)

Okay, so real bruschetta is best grilled, but your broiler is a good substitute. And sun-dried tomatoes can work for fresh. That makes this super fast and perfect with pasta.

Bruschetta al Pomodoro via Marcella's Italian Kitchen:

Serves up to 6

4 fresh, ripe, firm plum tomatoes

4 large or 6 small fresh basil leaves, or a few pinches of oregano

Six ½-inch-thick slices good, crusty country-style bread

A hot charcoal grill

3 or 4 garlic cloves, peeled and mashed

Salt

Black pepper in a grinder

3 Tb. extra virgin olive oil

Wash the tomatoes, split them in half lengthwise, pick out as many seeds as possible with the tip of a paring knife, and dice the tomatoes into ¾-inch cubes.

Wash the basil leaves, shake them thoroughly dry, and tear them by hand into tiny pieces. For more pungent flavor, a few pinches of oregano can be substituted for the basil.

Grilled the bread on both sides (or stick it under the broiler briefly, toasting both sides). While still hot, rub one side of each slices with the mashed garlic. Spread over it the tomatoes and basil or oregano, sprinkle with salt and a grinding of pepper, and top with a sprinkle of olive oil. Serve at once.

It's amazing how wonderfully the garlic melts onto the bread. This is a fantastic appetizer and easily adapted to what you have in the fridge.

Recipes Complete: 12

Recipes to Go: 18 

30 Before 30: Saffron Rice (#2)

I needed something to go with my salmonmeuniere and when it comes to fish dinners, rice is usually the answer. Again I used this 30 before 30 challenge to do something other than just rice. I grabbed Ad Hoc at Home (and with the meuniere, I had my two largest cookbooks in the kitchen at once) and tapped into the genius that is Thomas Keller. This rice is basically paella without the rest and tasted amazing with the salmon. I used homemade chicken stock, but you can easily use veggie stock and make this vegetarian or vegan. It tastes great the next day too.

Saffron Rice via Ad Hoc at Home:

Serves 6

1/4 c. canola oil

3/4 c. finely chopped onion, cut just smaller than a grain of cooked rice

Kosher salt

1 tsp. saffron threads

2 c. short-grain rice

2 3/4- 3 1/2 c. chicken or vegetable stock

Heat the oil in a large saute pan over medium heat until hot. Add the one and season with a sprinkling of salt. Reduce the heat and cook gently for 3 minutes. Add the saffron. Reduce the heat to very low and cook for another 2 minutes. Do not brown the onions and saffron. Add the rice and cook over medium heat, stirring often, to toast the rice for 1 to 2 minutes.

Add 2 1/2 cups of the stock, stir once, scraping the side of the pan if necessary and cover. Bring the stock to a simmer and simmer, adjusting the heat as necessary, for about 8 minutes, until most of the stock is absorbed. Taste the rice and, if necessary, continue cooking, adding up to 3/4 cup more stock 1/4 cup at a time, as necessary, until the rice is almost tender and the final addition of liquid is almost absorbed. Turn the heat to low to allow the rice to absorb the remaining liquid, stirring occasionally. Season with salt and serve hot.

Simple, delicious, and a little different.

Recipes Complete: 2

Recipes to Go: 28

Roasted Winter Citrus

Okay, so it's the end of winter citrus time. I love spring (yay!), but seeing all of that gorgeous orange, yellow, pink, red tasty fruit wane is sad. Here's one last way to use it up before it's gone.

On a side note, this is my 19^th recipe about something roasted in the title. I may need to break up with that term for awhile. With the weather warming up (eventually), that should help. Maybe.

Roasted Winter Citrus via Joy the Baker:

Serves as many as you like

Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Slice citrus (like grapefruit, blood oranges, and seedless tangerines) into small wedges. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with a bit of salt and just a touch of sugar. Add a bit of dried herbs, like herbes de provence (I like the American version with lavender in it).

Roast for 18-20 minutes. Remove from the oven. Allow to rest for 10 minutes, then serve warm.

It's kind of weird, very delicious, and a nice way to say goodbye to winter.  

Potato Tacos with Avocado and Tomatillo Salsa

Apparently I like tomatillos and recipes that are really easy. Want something mid-week and fast and maybe a little different? Try this. Make mashed potatoes. Fry it up in some tortillas. Make some salsa. Bam bam bam – dinner.

Potato Tacos with Avocado and Tomatillo Salsa via Serious Eats:

Serves 4 (or 2 mega hungry people)

2 avocados

4 medium tomatillos, husked, rinsed, and quartered

1 large garlic clove, quartered

1 jalapeno, stemmed, seeded, and chopped

½ c. cilantro leaves, chopped

½ tsp. salt

1 lb. Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, chopped into ½-inch pieces

4 oz. queso fresco, divided, crumbled

Salt and black pepper

12 corn tortillas

¼ c. vegetable oil

½ c. Mexican crema, or sour cream

1½ c. iceberg lettuce, shredded (or better lettuce because yeah)

For the avocado salsa, cut avocados in half lengthwise, and remove large seeds. Scoop out flesh and place in blender along with tomatillos, garlic, chiles, cilantro, ¼ cup water, and salt. Process until it is a coarse puree. Set aside. The avocado sauce won’t turn brown because of the tomatillos. You can also eat a bunch of it while you're working on other stuff.

To make the potato tacos, bring large pot of water to boil over high heat. Add potatoes and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain in a colander. Mash the potato in large bowl, or pass through potato ricer. Mix in half of the queso fresco. Season mixture with salt and pepper to taste.

Spoon two tablespoons of potato mixture into each tortilla. Fold each over, and secure each with one tooth pick, weaving in and out to keep each in a “U” shape.

Pour oil into large 10-inch cast iron pan set over medium-high heat. When oil is shimmering, add enough tacos as will fit in a single layer, probably three. Cook until crisp and golden on each side, about 30 seconds for each, flipping with pair of tongs. When done, remove tacos, draining as much oil as you can. Place on paper towels and repeat process until all tacos are cooked.

Serve tacos with salsa, crema, and lettuce.

So good. So fast. Did I mention how good they are?

Roasted Beet and Potato Borscht

Soup is crazy perfect right now and by right now I mean all of the time. This recipe, though, is even more perfect than perfect because it uses root veg and fills your house with delicious aromas. If you get a CSA like me, you might also be drowning (or just completely sick of) beets. Here's one more way to try them before you just start using them to play fetch with your dog. I won't judge you either way. I added dill thanks to the comments. Beets + dill = of course. If you use veggie stock and either a sour cream replacement (or omit it entirely), you've got yourself a BA vegan soup.

Roasted Beet and Potato Borscht via Serious Eats:

Serves 4

2 lb. red beets (about 5 medium), scrubbed, peeled, and cut into a medium dice (your hands will be bright red. It will be funny for about 2 minutes)
1 lb. russet potatoes (about 2 medium), peeled and cut into a medium dice
2 shallots, coarsely chopped
3 to 5 sprigs fresh dill
2 Tb. olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
5 c. broth (chicken or richly flavored veg)
1 Tb. red wine vinegar
Sour cream

Adjust rack to middle position and preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss vegetables in olive oil, salt, and pepper. Spread out in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and tuck sprigs of dill in amongst the vegetables. Roast until tender, about 45 minutes. Set dill aside.

Bring the broth to a simmer in a large saucepot and add the cooked vegetables. Mash roughly with a potato masher or wooden spoon, add the vinegar, and season to taste with salt and pepper and more vinegar if needed. Serve in bowls topped with a dollop of sour cream and the crushed dill from the baking.

Warm and inviting and really easy. You'll look like you slaved so hard over dinner.

Basil Vinaigrette

Basil. Delicious. Herbaceous. Sometimes going limp in your refrigerator. If you’ve got a lot of basil, this recipe might be just what you need. It’s fast and fantastic with meats and salads. I like it enough to go buy basil. I didn’t have a shallot at the time, so you’ll see my substitution below.

Basil Vinaigrette from Simply Recipes:

Makes about 1 cup

1 tsp. Dijon mustard

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 Tb. chopped onion

½ tsp. salt

1 tsp. sugar

½ c. roughly chopped basil leaves

¼ c. white wine vinegar

¾ c. olive oil

Place the salt, sugar, mustard, garlic, onion, and basil in a food processor. Pulse several times to combine. Scrape the sides of the blender down with a spatula. Add the vinegar and pulse again.

Turn the processor on low and take off the cap in the center of the lid. Slowly pour in the olive oil. It may sputter a little out of the open cap, so hold your hand over it to minimize splashing. When the olive oil is incorporated, turn off the blender and scrape the sides down one more time. Cover and purée everything for 1-2 minutes.

It’s great with a summer green salad and also dynamite with grilled chicken because of its pesto-esque flavor. It will keep in the fridge for about a week.

Caramelized Onion Hummus

My friend Patrice and her now husband make some pretty tasty things. I’ve featured her loveliness on the blog before and this is another one that I’ve had saved in my reader for forever. Other than cooking the onions, this is a low heat recipe – perfect for the hot days of summer to typical Alaskan days.

Caramelized Onion Hummus from The Fantastic Mr. Feedbag:

 1 large medium onion, chopped

3 Tbsp. olive oil

1 tsp. honey

4 to 5 garlic cloves, halved

1 can of garbanzo beans (rinsed & drained) or around 2½ c. soaked & cooked

2 Tbsp. tahini

1 lemon, juiced

¼ c. of olive oil

2¼ Tb. plain yogurt

Sea salt & pepper to taste

1 Tb. Aleppo pepper for topping

Heat the 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add chopped onions and honey stir and cook for 10 minutes. Add garlic and cook for another 10 minutes, stirring often. Remove onion, garlic, honey combo and let cool.

While onion mixture is cooling use a food processor to combine the rest of the ingredients. Add more olive oil or water for a creamier texture.  Add onion, garlic, honey mixture to bean mixture and process until smooth. Let it hang in the fridge for a couple of hours to cool and get even more delicious.

This is the creamiest, best tasting hummus I’ve ever had or made. I recommend it and not just because it came from a loving household.