Aug 15 2010

Cheese Toast w/Celery Root and Carrot Salad

I was a little apprehensive going into my weekend. It’s Dan’s annual motorcycle ride with his buddies and I always get a little (scratch that) “a lot” nervous as soon as he leaves the driveway.

I made sure to keep myself busy all weekend.

Friday night was pedicures and sushi with my bestie. Saturday was spent hanging out with my parents up at their place. We filled the day with shopping, lunching, Baskin Robbins and cooking – I made the scalloped tomatoes as a side dish to my Mom’s chicken picatta. It was fabulous! I got home in time for another monster treadmill workout and then called it a night. Higgins and I hit the pillow hard and slept through the night. That’s kind of rare when Dan isn’t home.

I had movie plans today with girlfriends. We met up for the first showing of Eat Pray Love  and then headed to Whole Foods for lunch and shopping. I cruised through the salad bar at Whole Foods and wished I had access to it on a more regular basis – like it was permanently located in my house for daily lunches 😉 –  We didn’t finish up with lunch until 4:00 p.m. and I knew I wanted something light for a late dinner.

I have been on the search for celery root for a while. The food co-op doesn’t carry it on a regular basis, Nugget never has it – so when I saw it at Whole Foods, I knew I needed to get it to try a recipe I had bookmarked in my Williams-Sonoma Complete Outdoor Living Cookbook. Cheese toasts with celery root-carrot salad.

The Ingredients:

1 Ounce Sherry Wine Vinegar
1/2 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard
1.5 Ounces Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
2 Large Carrots (I didn’t peel mine before shredding)
1/2 Celery Root
Garlic Powder, Parsley, Salt and Ground pepper to taste
1/2 Cup Shredded Gruyère Cheese
Sliced Rustic Italian Bread – I only had 1/2 a loaf – I made 8 pieces and still had enough salad left over for another 8-10 pieces. The recipe called for large slices of coarse country bread – I had smaller Rustic Italian leftover from the scalloped tomatoes.

Directions:

In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar and mustard. Pour in the oil, whisking constantly until blended and then set aside.

Get your carrots shredded and then get to work on your celery root.

I took a picture of it standing up so you could get the idea if you aren’t familiar with a celery root. Whole Foods does some prep on theirs, sometimes they come all hairy and coconut like on the bottom bulb part.

The celery root’s flesh discolors when exposed to oxygen, so the vinegar from the dressing will help it remain white in color.  The first thing you want to do is slice the end of the bulb off. Next you want to slice away the skin, leaving as much flesh as possible.

Slice around the root until all skin is removed.

I then cut my root in 1/2 and shredded it with the grater.

After you get the celery root shredded, add it to a large bowl with the shredded carrots. The next step is to mix the shredded veggies together and add your seasonings.

Garlic powder, salt, pepper and parsley (The recipe says you could use fresh tarragon, chervil or parsley, I only had dried parsley and it worked out fine). The next step is to add the sherry, Dijon and evoo dressing to the carrots and celery root mix.

Preheat the broiler on your oven while you prep the toast.

Brush your bread with olive oil and then put under the broiler for 2 minutes on 1 side. Then take the toasted bread out of the oven and turn the pieces over. Then brush with a little more olive oil and place the shredded Gruyère on top of each piece and place under the broiler for another 2 minutes  – until the cheese melts and the edges are golden brown.

I forgot to take a picture of the melted cheese, whoops. Last step – top the cheese toast with the salad mixture and serve.

I could not wait to dive in.

I loved the flavor combination and will definitely be making these as an appetizer at my next gathering. I’m apparently going to need to invite about 100 people over, because I keep saying that after every dish I post on this blog. I ate 3 pieces for dinner and it was the perfect ending to a relaxing day with friends.

Tomorrow it’s back to the 8-5 grind. I hope everyone had a great weekend.

Permanent link to this article: http://foodiddy.com/?p=867

Aug 11 2010

Zucchini Patties with Dill Dip

I finally spent some time in the kitchen last night. It made for a very late workout, but I enjoyed cooking and pretty much destroyed every flat service with prep bowls, spoons, bowls, measuring cups, etc. Hmm, really wasn’t missing that part, hah!

Earlier this Summer I picked up Taste of Home’s Summer Appetizers Magazine while waiting in line at the grocery store. $9.99, ouch – but I did mark about 5 or 6 recipes, so that’s not too bad. I found a recipe for Zucchini Patties with Dill Dip and made some slight changes and was good to go.

I bought a bunch of zucchini for my slicer, but also wanted to try something different. I had picked up some yellow squash at the produce ranch I visited last weekend and wanted to use that as well.

Dill Dip Ingredients:

3/4 Cup Sour Cream
2 Tablespoons Minced Fresh Dill
2 Teaspoons Lemon Juice
Salt and Pepper to Taste – I would say at least an 1/8 of a teaspoon for each

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl, cover and refrigerate. ( The fresh dill smelled awesome).

Ingredients for the Patties:

2.5 Cups Shredded Zucchini – I did a combo of zucchini and yellow squash
1 Cup Seasoned Bread Crumbs – I used Trader Joe’s Organic
1 Teaspoon Seafood Seasoning – I used Old Bay
1/4 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
2 Eggs,  lightly beaten – the recipe only called for 1, definitely needs two.
2 Tablespoons Butter – melted
1 Large Carrot – thought I would need 2, but 1 was plenty
1/4 Cup finely chopped onion – left my onion a little chunkier – used a white onion
1/4 Cup All-Purpose Flour
1/2 Cup Canola Oil

I got everything prepped on my lunch hour.

I got the zucchini and squash washed, shredded and then I removed the excess liquid by squeezing the shredded pieces between paper towels.

I got my carrots and onions chopped and to be honest, wasn’t very precise with the chopping or measuring. I was in a rush due to the time constraints. I got everything loaded into the fridge and waited to do the rest after work.

I started by combining my breadcrumbs, seafood seasoning and garlic powder in a large bowl. I got all of the dry ingredients mixed well and then I added 1 lightly beaten egg and the butter. I then blended everything before adding the carrot, onion, zucchini and squash.

I gave  it another good mixing…

This is when I realized I needed another egg. The mixture wasn’t holding together well enough to make the patties. I quickly added a second lightly beaten egg and that worked out great. I then placed the 1/4 cup of flour into a shallow dish to make it easier to coat the patties before frying. My hands were too gummed up to grab the camera for that step.

I started forming the patties and then got them coated with flour before putting them into the canola oil. I had the stove set to high at first and then turned it down to medium/high for the cooking. They sizzled as they entered the pan.

I cooked them for about 3-4 minutes on each side. I removed them with a spatula onto paper towels and then served them with the dill dip. The recipe said that it yielded 2 dozen – I made 5 large patties and then put the rest of the mixture in the fridge for future meals – probably had enough to make 5 or 6 more. I was eating them as a main dish, so I wanted bigger portions. I grabbed about a golf ball size of the mixture before forming the patties for mine.

They were awesome. I am thinking they would also be good as veggie burgers wrapped in lettuce…yum!

I don’t usually eat a lot of fried foods, but these weren’t greasy at all. They did not taste heavy and it was another fun way to incorporate zucchini and other veggies  into a main meal. Enjoy!

Permanent link to this article: http://foodiddy.com/?p=850

Aug 10 2010

A crispy conversation starter…

Last night was filled with life stuff (Higgy had to go to the vet, he’s o.k., just on antibiotics for the next 2 weeks for an infection).  So… I never got a chance to spend time in the kitchen cooking. I did however break into the best crackers/crisps I’ve ever tasted. I thought the Dr. Kracker crackers rocked my world… no my friends… let me introduce you to my newest find – Lesley Stowe Raincoast Crisps – Fig and Olive Crackers.

I have a few friends headed to Canada (they are made in Canada) and I’m about to ask them to fill their car up to the roof before heading home, hah!

1 serving is 6 crackers, there are approximately 6 servings per box. 130 Calories per serving | 3 grams Fat | 0 mg Cholesterol | 270 mg Sodium | 21 g Carbs. | 2 g Fiber| 4 g Protein.

They are definitely boutique crackers and along with that comes a pretty hefty price.  I paid $5.99 at a specialty market – they also have them at Whole Foods in my area, but they are $7.99 on Amazon. My girlfriend had tried them at a party – the host served them with Brie and pear slices – she recommended them and I knew I needed to give them a try. I wasn’t expecting to fall truly, madly, deeply in love 😉

The cracker crisps combine the saltiness of  Kalamata olives with the sweet flavor of Adriatic figs. They also have pumpkin, flax and sesame seeds – oh me oh my.

The trademarked saying of the raincoast crisps  is “A crispy conversation starter”. No doubt. These are definitely coming to my next party invite.

I love that they are a fresh cracker with no preservatives. You need to store them in an airtight container once you open them. One cool thing about the packaging is that it comes with serving suggestions and pairing options.

  • Raincoast crisp crumbs make a great coating for chicken. Dip the chicken in flour, beaten egg and then crumbs. Add cayenne and you have raincoast jerk chicken. Yum!
  • Sprinkle raincoast crisp crumbs on top of mac and cheese or your favorite casseroles and you’ll have a fabulous crunchy topping.
  • Serve with soft cheeses such as chèvre, brie or triple crème.

The raincoast crisps come in different flavors.

The Original – According to the website – a nutty flavor with a slightly sweet finish
Salty Date and Almond
Cinnamon Raisin – only available in Canada
Cranberry Hazelnut
Rosemary Raisin Pecan

The lesleystowe.com website is full of cool recipes.

I can’t wait to try some of the featured recipes – especially the holiday ones.

The only thing better than these crisps was finding the following on my desk this morning.

Jackpot! Say it isn’t so… OMG, a second round of scalloped tomatoes in my near future.

I opened up the bag and yep – they smelled just as awesome as the first bunch. I really think the key to the recipe is using the smaller tomatoes. I will most definitely be stopping at the store at some point in the week to make the delicious dish – again! Thanks Yuba John!

Permanent link to this article: http://foodiddy.com/?p=842