Blueberries Blueberries Blueberries

This past week I decided to stop by a local fruit stand - Stanley's. Sometimes I do really well there - the prices are often terrific - and sometimes not so much. It is the type of place that is hit or miss and you have to use some of the veggies immediately to prevent spoilage. This week I did find some wonderful fresh baby spinach that was loose (SO much better than pre-packaged) and some beautiful scallions - 3 bunches for $1.oo!! Also for sale was a huge clamshell of blueberries.

My kids love fruit, so I figured this would be great - I wash it up - they eat it - etc... While they did eat a whole lot of it, there was quite a bit left over and it looked like it was going to go bad. So, I came up with an easy salad and dressing to use it up - was terrific!

Spinach salad with blueberry dressing

2-3 cups fresh baby spinach washed well and dried
2 scallions, chopped
1 cup fresh blueberries
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes

Salad dressing
2-3 tablespoons of blueberries (smoosh them a bit in a cup)
Juice of one lemon and about 1 tsp of the zest
3-4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp dijon mustard (I use Maille - it is the best... but any other kind will do)
1/2 cup good olive oil

Toss salad ingredients together. Mix together salad dressing ingredients except for olive oil
. Drizzle in olive oil while whisking.

Right before serving, toss a bit of the dressing with the salad - or serve the salad and put the dressing on the side for people to dress their own salad.

Yum!!!!!

Orange Lavender Provence Chicken

For some reason the scents of Provence have been on my mind. Maybe it is all the gardening (the lavender is doing great) or the beautiful sunny and warm weather that has allowed us to spend time outside just lazing around out on the front porch or in a nearby park, but last week I just was thinking about it. (Could also be some recent re-read "quickie" books - Year in Provence, etc... but anyway...)

So - I had this chicken and it was gorgeous outside - we also had some great clementines and a few lemons that looked like they were about to go. Jay, the kids and I were going out for the day, so I thought it would be lovely to have the scent of orange and lavender with dinner.

Orange Lavender Provence Chicken

1 whole chicken 3-4 lbs -"flattened" (cut out the backbone and make the chicken as flat as possible - or have your butcher do this for you)

Marinade
Zest of 2 small oranges (I used clementines because that is what I had - any will do)
Juice of 2 small oranges
Juice of 1 small lemon
2 tbsp honey
1-2 sprigs lavender
1 small sprig rosemary
1-2 small sprigs fresh thyme
1 tsp herbs du provence (I added this after I thought it needed some more "oomph"
1/4 cup or so of olive oil
kosher salt (about 1-2 tsp) and pepper to taste

Whisk marinade ingredients without olive oil together. Whisk in olive oil. Taste for flavor - sometimes the orange makes it to sweet - so you may want to add some more lemon juice to "brighten" the marinade.

Put chicken in a plastic bag or other container you can fit everything around in. Pour in marinade - squish it around so the chicken is well coated. Seal and put in refrigerator for about 4-5 hours.

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees (or heat a grill if you are grilling this). Place chicken, including marinade into roasting pan. Roast for about 1 hour or until juices run clear (since it is "flattened" it will cook faster and more evenly.) Serve with green salad tossed with lemon juice, olive oil and salt and pepper

Yum!

Crunchy Jicama and Apple Salad with Lime Honey Vinagrette

When the weather gets warm, I look for things that are crisp, crunchy and citrusy. Lots of times I make broccoli or cole slaw for side dishes, but sometimes you just want something a bit different.

This apple and jicama salad always hits the spot. Jicama is a root vegetable - sweet like and apple but based in the potato family. You can peel it pretty easily or just cut the skin off and then slice it into matchstick shapes (julienne as it were). It is very crunchy and delicious alone. This salad plays on the sweet/citrus side by including green apples as well...
I also toss in a bit of chile powder to the vinagrette to give it a slight "kick" - although be careful not to "slip" and accidentally drop the container of chile powder into the bowl where you are mixing the vinagrette... you may have to start over. (Not that I have any experience with this...)

By the way, the key to this salad is keeping everything about the same thickness - it is supposed to resemble a "slaw" so shredded or thin slices of everything.

Jicama and Apple Salad with Honey Lime Vinagrette

1 medium jicama - peeled and cut into matchsticks (julienne)
2-3 carrots - grated or cut into matchsticks
1 small green or red apple - quartered and sliced very thinly.
2 celery stalks - chopped thinly
1/2 napa cabbage - shredded

Vinagrette (Do this to taste and increase/decrease based on the amount of veggies you have shredded/sliced)
Zest of 2 limes
Juice of 2 limes
3-4 Tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar
2-3 Tbsp Honey
1/4 cup of canola oil
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp of chile powder
pepper to taste

1. Make vinagrette in the bottom of a large mixing bowl. Mix together all ingredients except canola oil, salt and pepper. Whisk in canola oil slowly to "emulsify" the vinagrette (just a fancy word for whisk whisk whisk until everything is well mixed...) Add salt and pepper to taste. Increase chile powder if desired.

2. Toss shredded veggies with vinagrette. Serve.

(Note: This will stay really crisp for about 1 day or so... but I usually make this the same day I am serving it. You can get everything ready the day before - keep all the veggies separate in the fridge - and the vinagrette separate as well - then mix together before serving.)

This would also be really terrific tossed with some sliced almonds on top and some fresh parsley/cilantro.

Enjoy!

Mary Mary Quite Contrary How Does Your Garden Grow?

We did it!

Yes my friends, our vegetable garden has actually produced vegetables. (I am not going to delve into the pesky rabbit that completely stripped our green bean plants of the green beans...that will be the next post)

But look at the beautiful snap peas that are growing - and pattypan squash.



The snap peas are delicious right off the vine and I am going to have J do a bit of harvesting so we can munch on them with dinner. I am tempted to take the very delicate squash blossoms (only a few, since I want to see the pattypans) and stuff them with some goat cheese, dip them in a bit of egg and flour (very light) and fry them up!

The carrots aren't ready to be harvested yet, but seem to be doing well, as are our newly planted eggplant and tomatoes...

Very exciting! Victory garden here we come!

Summer and Pasta

Well, summer is officially here! And, after a wonderful trip to see my parents (lots of time in the pool for the kids) we are back home and into the swing of things. So, of course, that means lots of cooking.

But when it gets really hot, I don't want to spend lots of time over the stove. However, I also don't want to resort to sandwiches or waffles every night.

Tonight I did one of my really simple dishes - a go to dish that is quick and easy - and uses only 1 pot.

Pasta with Garlic and Olive Oil

Linguine/Spaghetti
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 pinch red pepper flakes
1 pinch of salt
Ground pepper
Fresh parsley/other herbs if you have them and your kids don't object (Minced)

1. Boil the water for the pasta - salt the water generously with kosher salt once it is boiling and right before you cook the pasta.
2. Once the pasta is finished, pour the pasta and water into a colander and put aside.
3. Turn the heat to medium low and put the olive oil in the same pot (I use a 4 quart pot most of the time for pasta... I know that this is not "technically" correct - but it does work.)
4. Once oil is hot but not burning (it will sizzle as it meets some of the leftover pasta water) add the garlic and quickly saute to flavor the olive oil. Put in the red pepper flakes, salt and ground pepper. Remove from heat.
5. Pour the pasta back into the pot and toss with the sauce. Toss with fresh herbs and serve.

Yum. I also quickly steamed some green beans that J picked out as a a side dish.

Enjoy!

Summer Gazpacho

The fact is that in Chicago there is no shortage of what to do during the summer. And, in my very humble opinion, I can't think of a better city to be in. This weekend there was a ton of things to do - from BluesFest in Grant Park - featuring a bunch of stages and BB King - to the Printers Row Book Fair (Where we were this afternoon with the kids and some friends - looking at books, playing in the kids area and listening to Justin Roberts - all for free - then tearing to a restaurant during a torrential downpour!) - to RibFest in our neighborhood, where there was not only great food - but another kids area with shows on science from the Museum of Science and Industry, fun carnival games, face painting, etc.

So, on these types of weekends, we often opt for the simple in terms of dinner - last night it was soba noodles with teriyaki sauce and a simple green salad with sunflower sprouts and a basic vinagrette. Tonight, frankly, we were all so pooped, and it was so hot out that we opted for waffles and fruit.

That being said, I did take some time while J was mellowing with Dad on the couch watching Star Wars, and A was playing in the kitchen sink, to make a quick gazpacho for the week. Couldn't be easier or more delicious.

Gazpacho

2-4 ripe tomatoes (I used hot house tomatoes on the vine) peeled* and diced
1/2 cup diced cucumbers (I used English variety - but any will do)
3/4 cup diced red and orange bell peppers (any type will do, I like these)
1/2 diced onion (I used some vidalias that I had on hand - sweet and flavorful!)
2 finely minced or pressed garlic cloves
2 1/2 cups vegetable juice (I use R Kundsun Very Veggie - tomato juice works too)
1/4 teaspoon worshtechire sauce
black pepper
juice of 1 lime or lemon

1. Mix together all above ingredients. Chill and serve. It is better to do this one day ahead and serve the next day. I take it to work with salad.

For garnish - wedges of lime/lemon and chopped scallions or chives. You could also garnish with some cilantro and sliced avocado - whatever you like.

Also, keep in mind that gazpacho is really versatile. If you want a bit of a kick, throw in 1/4 cup of diced jalapeno, increase the veggies, dice them more finely or more chunky - toss in some fresh parsley, a handful of frozen corn or peas... All would be terrific!

* To peel tomato... Boil some water. Carefully make an "X" about 1/8 inch or so into the bottom of the tomato - enough to pierce the skin and a bit of the tomato itself. Drop the tomato into the boiling water. After about 30 seconds, remove the tomato and drop into cold water. The skin will peel right off.

Have a great week everyone!

Grilled Split Chicken

This one is so easy and delicious, I just had to share...

Marinated and Grilled Split Chicken

1 3 lb. chicken
1/2 cup olive oil
juice of 3 lemons
1 tbsp minced garlic
salt and pepper to taste

1. Prepare the chicken by "splitting it." Turn the chicken so the breast side is down. Using sharp knife or poultry shears, cut along the back bone on one side, than the other. Remove the backbone. Using your hands, push down on either side of the chicken so it is flat. Tuck the wing and leg under, use the palm of your hand to flatten the joints of the thigh and leg. Salt and pepper to taste and place in a non-reactive dish.

2. Prepare the marinade. (Olive Oil, Lemon Juice, Garlic)

3. Put chicken in flat container (casserole, baggie, whatever you have on hand to pour marinade into) and pour marinade over chicken. Turn chicken over a couple of times in marinade so it is well coated. Marinate for 2-3 hours or overnight in the refrigerator, turning once or twice.

4. Heat grill. When grill is heated, take chicken out of marinade and put on grill, skin side down and grill for about 15 minutes. Turn over, baste with leftover marinade and grill for another 15 minutes. Turn chicken over 1 more time, and grill another 12 minutes or until done. Remove from grill and serve up!

Now, I happen to have a mattone, which is essentially a terracotta weight for cooking chickens. It makes the chickens extra crispy and still keeps everything moist. I did wrap the top of my mattone (you can use a brick too..) in aluminum foil, spray with olive oil, and put this on top of the chicken when I started grilling. Really all this does is weight the chicken down - if you have a brick or mattone, give it a try- if not, just grill away!!!

Delicious!