smashed avocado & fresh pea sandwiches

Eureka!  We have a post!  Not quite up to normal after iphoto disappeared suddenly, but I'll take it.  

There is a very good food writer  (Beth Dooley) in one of the Twin Cities newspapers ( the Star Tribune), and I've been delighted to find such delightful, fresh, recipes. This open faced sandwich was inspired by her post on Thursday, though her recipe involves vinaigrette, chevre, radishes, and olive oil, which mine does not.  I thought mashed avocado would be a perfect addition ( I'm on an avocado kick these days, so my fruit bowl still had three avocados, just ripe).

Bursting with fresh flavors, this made a wonderful lunch - the peas, though frozen, were quickly dipped in simmering water, until they were just about to pop, and the mashed avocado was silky and mild.  The fresh sugar snaps a crunchy delight, and I loved the breeze of slivered mint.  I think this is the first sandwich I ever made with peas, and it was wonderful.

To make:

2 slices rye bread

two tablespoons homemade boursin

1/2 an avocado, peeled and mashed

1/2 cup frozen peas, quickly cooked for a minute in simmering water and drained 

3/4 cup fresh sugar snap peas, washed and sliced in 1 inch pieces

several mint leaves, washed and sliced into slivers

1 tablespoon or so of fresh lemon juice over all

sea salt

freshly cracked pepper

hot sauce if you wish

Spread the bread with the boursin.  Add the peas and sugar snaps gently, sprinkle with mint leaves, lemon juice, and salt and pepper and the optional hot sauce.  A few flakes of good parmesan would also be a treat.

Serves two.

I hope your summer is blossoming and full of joy !

little appetizers with crunchy vegetables, fresh herbs, and homemade boursin

The other day I made a few trays of appetizers for a meeting, nothing complicated.  Thinly sliced fresh and crunchy radishes and mild yellow peppers, just- ripe tomatoes, fresh snippings of Italian parsley and dill, oregano, and basil from the garden, gently placed on top of homemade bread and a layer of homemade boursin herb cheese.  Sometimes simple is best!

homemade herb cheese for summer everything!

I used to describe this as a "boursin-style" herb cheese, but it's so much better in every way - creamier, herby, garlicky ( if you want it), and great on everything from burgers to steaks, fish to grilled chicken, baked potatoes, hot pasta - and even as a dip for those gorgeous veggies from your garden or baked tortilla chips.  It is also amazing on sandwiches.

Even better?  It whips up in your mixer bowl (or food processor) in minutes, though using a Cusinart processor can leave the herb cheese with a distinct green hue, not that that bothers me in the least.  It really is a condiment of wonder.

 I keep extras in the freezer or the fridge, but you need to let it warm to room temperature when it reaches that creamy consistency - but then again, one of its ingredients is cream cheese, so don't leave it out for hours .

You can thin it with buttermilk or plain yogurt for dips .  To avoid double-dipping, I usually spoon a few inches of  thinned herb cheese into large plastic cups, fill with a rainbow of vegetables (carrots, sugar snap peas, colorful sweet pepper strips, slim sticks of celery, and bright radishes with an inch or two of green tops , which was my snack today as I dozed under a canopy of beautiful trees.


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Boursin-style herb cheese

8 ounces good cream cheese, softened
1 stick (4 ounces) room temperature unsalted butter
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 t. Dijon mustard
1-2 tablespoons minced Italian parsley
1-2 tablespoons minced chives ( you can also use scallions, but they aren't as strong)
1 heaping teaspoon dried tarragon, which I like better than fresh, or 1 tablespoon fresh tarragon, minced
1-2 cloves medium garlic, pressed or finely minced
kosher salt - to taste.  I find 1 teaspoon is about right.
freshly cracked pepper

Place all the ingredients in mixer bowl and mix to a smooth consistency.  Store in a covered container in the fridge.


Happy summer-is-here!

Spinach and Sweet Potato soup with butter-braised spinach and cheese toasts

My two very favorite vegetables are spinach and sweet potatoes, so naturally it occurred to me yesterday that they might make a mighty fine soup for lunch.   And was I right !   It's a lovely, smooth soup, with lots of flavor and a hint of hot pepper and thyme.

I had been reading Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol. 1, and came across Julia's recipe for  Canapes aux Epinards, which is braised spinach mixed with swiss cheese ( thinking goat cheese would be wonderful, too) and piled on buttered, toasted bread, so I made that as well.  A delicious spinach feast for a late lunch, sitting in the sun, watching the snow melt.

For the Spinach and Sweet Potato soup:

Serves 3 or 4.

4 cups packed, washed spinach, stems ok

2 1/2 cups chicken stock

1/2 cup slice white of leek

1/2 cup peeled, diced sweet potato (large dice)

heft pinch of thyme

pinch of nutmeg

pinch of hot pepper flakes

salt and pepper to taste

1 teaspoon unsalted butter stirred in at the end

In large saucepan, place stock, sweet potato, and leek white.  Simmer until potatoes are tender.

Add the thyme, nutmeg, hot pepper flakes, salt, and pepper to the potatoes, then add the spinach.  Simmer a few minutes, take off the heat, stir, then cover and let sit for 5 minutes.  

Uncover the soup and, using an immersion blender, puree the soup, then add the butter.  Serve immediately with spinach and cheese toasts.

The spinach and cheese toasts:

There are two steps to making these  - first you cook and drain the spinach, then braise it in a little butter. then you saute the spinach with cheese and the toasts in butter ( or oil), then heap them , sprinkle more cheese on, and run them under a broiler.  I used a toaster oven since I only made 8 little toasts.

2 cups fresh, washed spinach, firmly packed, stems removed

a saucepan of boiling water

Place all the spinach in the boiling water and cook for 5 minutes. Drain, then run cold water over the spinach to retain the color, and drain again.

When the spinach is cool, take handfuls of the spinach and squeeze all the moisture out.  It's amazing what you end up with - a handful of spinach!

Chop the spinach finely.

In skillet, melt 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, then add the spinach and stir until the spinach absorbs the butter.  Sprinkle with a pinch of nutmeg  and salt and take off heat, scraping into a bowl.

For the toasts:

3 slices or so of white bread ( I use Pepperidge Farm), trimmed of crusts if desired, and cut into quarters 

3 T. unsalted butter and/or olive oil

Toast the bread in the butter or oil in a skillet, on both sides, removing when golden.

Assembling:

Place the spinach back in the skillet with a little oil or butter.

Grate about 1/4 cup Swiss cheese ( or use another cheese).

Sprinkle a tablespoon or so on the spinach and stir.

Place a spoonful of spinach on each toast, topping with a pinch of cheese.

Place under broiler just before serving just until cheese melts.

The toasts also make wonderful appetizers for a party - enjoy!

crispy sugar snap peas with an herby boursin dip

What a beautiful day! The sun is out, the air isn't too humid, and the daylilies are blooming. I'm packing up my camera for a visit to Davis Brook Farm, an amazing local daylily farm: the scope of color, size, and shapes of their plants are truly stunning. After that, a walk on the beach at MacDowell Lake. My sugar snap peas are still putting out masses of fat peapods, so I'm packing my new favorite snack: crisp peapods with a creamy boursin dip. Oh, heaven!

The boursin I make is garlicky, with smooth undertones of parsley and tarragon, chives and a little dijon. It's delicious on sandwiches, or a little cold chicken or fish, too. Fat slices of warm tomatoes topped with boursin sounds like heaven to me, but I'll have to wait, as my tomatoes are still small and green. I've even made a dairy-free version, by substituting a little olive oil and tofu, instead of cream cheese and sweet butter. It needs to be kept in the fridge, so if you're serving it as a dip, let it soften a little, and add a dollop of olive oil or buttermilk to make it a little thinner.

I serve the dip in shotglasses, or small glass cups, with a few peapods ( and more in a bowl on the side for hungry guests) so people can carry it around - and everyone can double-dip as much as they want.

To make the boursin:

Adapted from Picnic

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 stick ( 8 T. ) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 T. fresh lemon juice

1 t. kosher salt

freshly cracked pepper

1 t. dijon mustard

1 T. minced fresh Italian parsley

1 T. minced fresh chives

1 t. dried tarragon

1/2 t. worcestershire sauce

2 medium garlic cloves, peeled and pressed

1 T. olive oil

Place all your ingredients in a mixer bowl and mix until creamy and incorporated.

Serve with assorted raw vegetables, as a sandwich spread, stirred into hot pasta, atop cold meats, fish, or chicken, or - straight from a spoon:)

If you're making the dairy-free version, using olive oil and tofu, use the food processor.

Store in fridge until needed.

beluga for the Oscars - beluga lentils, that is!

I'm getting a little punchy with this everlasting snow - which is now up to the kitchen window sill. So, when my neighbor gave me some of these lentils the other day and I discovered they were known as "Beluga" lentils, well - I had to have a little fun, didn't I?

Given that today is Oscar day ( which I only watch to see the dresses), a lot of people are hosting parties, and this would be a fun surprise: trimmed hard boiled eggs ( using only the white) filled to the brim with tiny black lentils. Save a little of the hard boiled yolk to make it resemble caviar even more - or top with scallions, parsley, or little bits of tomatoes. Not using the yolks also makes it less aromatically eggy and there's no mayonnaise, so it's dairy free.

To make about 3/4ths of a cup of cooked lentils:

Hard boil six eggs, drain, and leave to soak in cool water.

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1/2 cup tiny black "Beluga" lentils

a bay leaf

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced

water to cover the lentils plus a few inches

Bring the water, lentils, garlic, and bay leaf to a boil, turn down to a medium simmer/boil and cook for about 12 minutes, or until lentils are cooked.

Drain the lentils and remove the garlic and bay leaf, then place the lentils in a bowl.

Add to the lentils:

2T. olive oil

1/2 t. cumin

1/2 t. ( or to taste) kosher salt

fresh pepper

a few squeezes of Sriracha hot sauce

1 T. fresh lemon or lime juice

Toss gently.

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Peel the hard boiled eggs. Trim a tiny bit of the ends off so they'll sit upright.

Cut the trimmed eggs in half vertically.

Gently squeeze the eggs until the yolk pops out.

Fill the eggs with the lentil mixture, garnish with parsley, scallions, egg yolk, or your choice of garnish.

Keep chilled until about to serve.

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If you have any leftovers, these would be a great brown-bag lunch!

Enjoy!

goat cheese appetizers with herbs & rosemary knots

I'm always on the lookout for a good appetizer - and if it includes goat cheese, all the better! After a string of testing four new recipes that were instantly rejected, I hit on this winner that paired beautifully with my much beloved rosemary bread. Instead of making loaves or large rolls, I made a tray of tiny rolls that came out looking like knots, thence the name.

The fresh goat cheese is whipped with cream cheese and unsalted butter, along with dill and scallions ( green onions) and hot sauce, making a smooth and tasty herb cheese, which can be served a few ways: a large cheese ball rolled in parsley and served with crackers or breads, the tiny cheese balls, also rolled in parsley, that can be served alone or with crunchy vegetables or vegetable chips; or the goat cheese alone, spooned into tiny rolls ( gougeres would work, too).

The next time I make this goat cheese mixture, I'm saving some to spoon onto hot baked potatoes - delicious!

You can find the recipe for the rosemary bread here. I simply formed little balls of dough, let them rise for a bit, then snipped them with scissors before spritzing them with water and sprinkling them with salt. I baked them at 400F for about 10 minutes.

The goat cheese mixture:

1/2 stick unsalted butter, room temperature

1 8 oz. package of cream cheese, room temperature

4 ounces fresh goat cheese

1 t. worcestershire sauce

6 dashes Tabasco, or to your taste

1 t. dried dill or 1 T. fresh dill, minced

1/2 to 1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste

1 T. fresh lemon juice

2 T. minced fresh scallions

about 1/2 cup or more minced parsley for covering the cheese

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Mix the ingredients together in a mixer bowl ( except for the parsley) until smooth and creamy. Taste carefully and adjust to your taste.

Set the minced parsley on a plate, then gently scoop out a ball of the goat cheese mixture using an ice cream scoop - you choose the size. Plop the scoop onto the parsley plate and gently roll until covered. Cover and keep in the fridge until ready to serve.

I hope your holiday season is bright, loving, and joyful!

tiny gougeres with scallions, parsley, and lemon

I am, as usual, doing four things at once. I decided to re-test a savory gougeres recipe, in anticipation of Thanksgiving Day appetizers, clean the house, paint the trim - no, wait. Maybe I should paint the walls first. Actually, I wonder what the floor would look like a different color.

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Yesterday I wandered around the Benj. Moore displays, which seem to multiply every time I visit. I am quite sure that particular paint company hires poets and painters to name their colors - and these are just the soft grays! Sleigh bells, Winter solstice, Bear creek, Timber wolf, Temptation, French beret, Smoke embers, and my favorite, Going to the chapel. I'm sticking with London Fog for now, but one never knows.

Oh, you want to know about the gougeres?

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Tiny, soft puffs sprinkled with finely minced scallions and parsley, with the zest of a lemon and several scrapings of nutmeg and pepper, with just a hint of parmesan. Mmmmm, perfect for my very late breakfast. I've been told you can freeze the formed but unbaked gougeres, so I'm testing a batch in the freezer , but in the meantime I think these tasty little bites will make a very nice addition to the pre-Thanksgiving nibbles.

To make about two dozen puffs:

Preheat oven to 400F.

Fit two baking sheets with foil or parchment.

6 T. unsalted butter

1 t. kosher salt

pinch of cayenne pepper

several scrapings of nutmeg

several grindings of fresh black pepper

3/4 cup King Arthur all purpose flour

3 extra large eggs

zest of one lemon

4 scallions, finely chopped

3T. minced parsley

2 T. parmesan cheese, grated

Bring one cup of water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the butter, salt, peppers, nutmeg. Once the butter has melted, take the pan off the heat and stir in the flour with a whisk. Stir rapidly until it forms a ball, then return to medium heat, stirring another minute or so.

Add the eggs one at a time to the dough, then parmesan, parsley and scallions, and the lemon zest. Scrape mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip, and pipe one little circle of dough, then another on top of the first circle, pulling up gently to make a little swirl on top.

Place gougeres in the hot oven, and bake for about 21 minutes, or until gently browned.

Continue with the second sheet.

Let cool a few minutes, then remove to a cooling rack with a spatula.

Enjoy your day!