Showing posts with label Tomatoes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tomatoes. Show all posts
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Downtown Sarasota Farmers' Market
Every Saturday morning, you'll find me starting my weekend at the Farmers' Market at Main St. and Lemon Ave. This is the time I look forward to the most during the week. Stocking up on my week's produce, having (in my opinion) the best cup of coffee downtown at C'est la Vie, and being surrounded by happy people with their dogs puts a smile on my face. Here are a few images of my favorite market this year. If you are ever in the area, this Saturday market is a must!
Friday, July 3, 2009
Spinach, Tomato, and Orzo Salad
One of my favorite sides to get from the deli at Morton's Market is Spinach and Orzo Salad. Well, Morton's moved out of my neighborhood a year ago, and I've been Orzo free since. I had a strong craving for it the other weekend, and instead of driving to their other location, I decided to make my own. It was so easy and we loved the results, I felt silly that it had taken me so long to make myself. The guide for my salad was one I found by Rachael Ray. Hers was the closest to what I was looking for. Mine is pretty true to her recipe, with just a few slight changes. For Ms. Ray's unadulterated recipe, please click here. Below are my notes on what I changed on her recipe. Hers looked great, I was just missing the lemon and wanted to add feta so had to come up with something slightly different. Sorry you can't see the tomatoes. I used mini Cherokee Purple Tomatoes. By the time we were ready to eat I was so hungry that the photo was an afterthought.Ingredients
* 1 bunch spinach, washed, dried, stems removed
* 1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
* 1/2 box of orzo, cooked to al dente
* 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
* bunch of basil leaves, torn or thinly sliced
* Salt and pepper
* 2 tablespoons of prepared Greek Salad Dressing
* 4 oz Feta cheese, crumbled
Directions
Thinly slice spinach and put into the bottom of a mixing bowl, followed by the halved tomatoes.
Once pasta is cooked and drained, add on top of tomatoes and spinach to slightly wilt.
Drizzle olive oil and salad dressing over orzo and veggies and mix well.
Add basil and salt and pepper and mix again.
Add feta, stirring again to mix.
Taste your orzo to adjust seasonings and serve.
Season to taste.
Serves 4
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Ratatouille
Ratatouille is one of my favorite dishes. It is the perfect time of year to make this traditional French Provençal vegetable stew as everything is in season. For the past month, my favorite organic stall at the Farmers' Market has had Asian eggplant in their "bargain" bin along with green and red bell peppers. The Florida sweet onions are at their prime, as well as tomatoes.
There are several ways of making this dish. Some cook everything separately, then layer and continue cooking, while others choose to saute everything together at once. My version is sort of an easy version of the latter. Yes, you could pre-chop everything and then begin, but I like to cut everything in a certain order as it is cooking.
* First I start by putting about 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large pot and heat over a medium flame. While heating, I roughly chop an onion and 1 clove of garlic, adding it the oil once chopped.
* Next I cut the eggplant (or aubergine depending on where you live). This then gets added to the softening onions with more olive oil to coat well. Eggplant is a very thirsty vegetable and will absorb all of the oil, so don't hold back. At this point I add a good pinch of sea salt, stir, and then continue chopping the rest of the vegetables.
* I then chop the zucchini (courgette), yellow squash, and bell peppers. Once all of the vegetables have been added, I add another drizzle of olive oil if needed, a large pinch of herbes de Provence, reduce heat to medium-low and let simmer.
* While the vegetables are simmering, I chop 1 large or 2 medium tomatoes.
* After the mixture has gently simmer about 30 minutes total, I add the chopped tomato and about 1/2 tablespoon of Harissa paste and stir. I then bring it back up to just about medium and let gently simmer for 20-30 minutes, or to desired consistency.
You can serve ratatouille as a side dish or a main. One of my favorite meals is to have ratatouille over brown rice. It makes an absolutely lovely filling for crepes. I also make a pizza using the left overs - spreading over a pre-baked crust, top with Feta cheese, then bake until cheese had melted.
While I am very happy with this method as it is so easy, I've been reading a few recipes that add the tomato at the beginning. This forms more of a sauce for the vegetables to stew in. I've always added to tomato at the end as I was told many years ago that adding tomatoes too soon to a dish hinders the way the other vegetables cook. Now, I have no idea if this is true and haven't tried doing it in reverse, but if you have anything to add to that topic - I would love to hear!
There are several ways of making this dish. Some cook everything separately, then layer and continue cooking, while others choose to saute everything together at once. My version is sort of an easy version of the latter. Yes, you could pre-chop everything and then begin, but I like to cut everything in a certain order as it is cooking.* First I start by putting about 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large pot and heat over a medium flame. While heating, I roughly chop an onion and 1 clove of garlic, adding it the oil once chopped.
* Next I cut the eggplant (or aubergine depending on where you live). This then gets added to the softening onions with more olive oil to coat well. Eggplant is a very thirsty vegetable and will absorb all of the oil, so don't hold back. At this point I add a good pinch of sea salt, stir, and then continue chopping the rest of the vegetables.
* I then chop the zucchini (courgette), yellow squash, and bell peppers. Once all of the vegetables have been added, I add another drizzle of olive oil if needed, a large pinch of herbes de Provence, reduce heat to medium-low and let simmer.
* While the vegetables are simmering, I chop 1 large or 2 medium tomatoes.* After the mixture has gently simmer about 30 minutes total, I add the chopped tomato and about 1/2 tablespoon of Harissa paste and stir. I then bring it back up to just about medium and let gently simmer for 20-30 minutes, or to desired consistency.
You can serve ratatouille as a side dish or a main. One of my favorite meals is to have ratatouille over brown rice. It makes an absolutely lovely filling for crepes. I also make a pizza using the left overs - spreading over a pre-baked crust, top with Feta cheese, then bake until cheese had melted.
While I am very happy with this method as it is so easy, I've been reading a few recipes that add the tomato at the beginning. This forms more of a sauce for the vegetables to stew in. I've always added to tomato at the end as I was told many years ago that adding tomatoes too soon to a dish hinders the way the other vegetables cook. Now, I have no idea if this is true and haven't tried doing it in reverse, but if you have anything to add to that topic - I would love to hear!Sunday, February 8, 2009
Culinary Creations: Oven Roasted Pork Chops with Mushrooms, Leeks, and Garlic Tomatoes
This recipe is the a prime example of why I created this blog: whenever I come up with a new recipe, and we really like it, I never remember what I did or how long I cooked it. Many a conversation in my house consist of: "It doesn't taste like it did last time" or "This isn't how I remember it at all". In addition, when I'm following a recipe from a book or magazine, I always add or change things around, and like to make notes on what I'd do differently next time. I've got an extensive collection of Sainsbury's Magazines, so remembering which issue what recipe came from can be a bit of a problem. One night after I made something we really like (which no doubtedly didn't get recorded and will never be remembered), I had the epiphany that if it were all in one place, on-line, I will never have to strain my brain/search/forget again!
This an idea that has been going around in my mind for a week: the ingredients were chosen, it was going to be something cooked on the stove, but 1/2 hour before cooking, I decided that bunging it all in the over would leave me free to do other things. This is what I came up with. Serves 4.
* 4 boneless pork chops
* Dijon mustard
* breadcrumbs
* 1 large tomato, cut into large chunks
* 1 clove of garlic, more if you want to roast whole cloves in dish
* 2 thin leeks (not links) (inside joke), thickly sliced
* 8oz Portobello mushrooms, halved
* 4 slices of smoked bacon, roughly chopped
* olive oil for drizzling
* 1/4 wine for drizzling, red or white
* salt, pepper, herbs to taste
1) Half hour before cooking, put a dollop of mustard on each chop, spread to cover, set aside. Then chop 1 clove of garlic, sprinkle over chopped tomato along with a good pinch of salt. Also set aside, both out of the refrigerator. You could use this half hour to clean and prepare the rest of your veg and any side you might serve with it. Duh, I didn't have to tell you that.
2) When half hour is up, pre-heat oven to 350F. While oven is pre-heating, place pork in a large oven safe dish. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs, any type will do, I like to season mine with Herbs de Provence and a little Parmesan cheese. Next add mushrooms, leeks, tomatoes, and bacon. Drizzle with olive oil, wine, season with salt, pepper, and herbs - to your liking.
3) Bake for 30-35 minutes, stirring the veggies after 15 minutes.
I served it with some bow-tie pasta that was tossed in a garlic and herb butter and some white beans with yellow carrots, spinach, also in a garlic butter (compliments to Mr. Green Giant). Keeping the sides simple made it a really easy dish to make, I was glad that I decided to let the oven do all the work. This was all washed down by a lovely sparkling rosé that really complimented the meal. 
James gave it a 9 out of 10 and said it was restaurant quality. I'm just hoping he didn't mean Denny's. He once rated something I made a 10 out of 10, now if only I could remember what that was...
This an idea that has been going around in my mind for a week: the ingredients were chosen, it was going to be something cooked on the stove, but 1/2 hour before cooking, I decided that bunging it all in the over would leave me free to do other things. This is what I came up with. Serves 4.
* 4 boneless pork chops
* Dijon mustard
* breadcrumbs
* 1 large tomato, cut into large chunks
* 1 clove of garlic, more if you want to roast whole cloves in dish
* 2 thin leeks (not links) (inside joke), thickly sliced
* 8oz Portobello mushrooms, halved
* 4 slices of smoked bacon, roughly chopped
* olive oil for drizzling
* 1/4 wine for drizzling, red or white
* salt, pepper, herbs to taste
1) Half hour before cooking, put a dollop of mustard on each chop, spread to cover, set aside. Then chop 1 clove of garlic, sprinkle over chopped tomato along with a good pinch of salt. Also set aside, both out of the refrigerator. You could use this half hour to clean and prepare the rest of your veg and any side you might serve with it. Duh, I didn't have to tell you that.
2) When half hour is up, pre-heat oven to 350F. While oven is pre-heating, place pork in a large oven safe dish. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs, any type will do, I like to season mine with Herbs de Provence and a little Parmesan cheese. Next add mushrooms, leeks, tomatoes, and bacon. Drizzle with olive oil, wine, season with salt, pepper, and herbs - to your liking.
3) Bake for 30-35 minutes, stirring the veggies after 15 minutes.
I served it with some bow-tie pasta that was tossed in a garlic and herb butter and some white beans with yellow carrots, spinach, also in a garlic butter (compliments to Mr. Green Giant). Keeping the sides simple made it a really easy dish to make, I was glad that I decided to let the oven do all the work. This was all washed down by a lovely sparkling rosé that really complimented the meal. James gave it a 9 out of 10 and said it was restaurant quality. I'm just hoping he didn't mean Denny's. He once rated something I made a 10 out of 10, now if only I could remember what that was...
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Product Review: Geeta's Pudina Tikka Spice & Stir
At long last - I have found the most amazing jarred Indian sauce. Geeta's Pudina Tikka Spice & Stir was a mild creamy tomato sauce with mint (pudina) and coriander, seasoned with paprika, cumin and cardamom.
I was interested when I first saw this sauce as it had a separate container on the top with spices. First you lightly saute your meet, chicken, seafood, or vegetables - then add the dry spices.
We used chicken and it was amazing. After adding the spices and cooking a few minutes longer, I added the sauce and cooked over low heat for a half hour. It has such a nice, fresh flavor due to the fact that there aren't a bunch of scientific terms in the ingredients list. You could actually identify what went in to the jar - and the spices were perfectly balanced to create an authentic Indian dish. Authentic to English standards, I should add. The best Indian food I've ever had has been in England, where it is hugely popular and Geeta's products are imported from the UK.
This made an amazingly easy mid-week meal served with curried lentils, Indian Spiced Kale and Tomatoes, and a nice refreshing Hendrick's Cucumber Gin and Tonic to cool our taste buds.
I was interested when I first saw this sauce as it had a separate container on the top with spices. First you lightly saute your meet, chicken, seafood, or vegetables - then add the dry spices.
We used chicken and it was amazing. After adding the spices and cooking a few minutes longer, I added the sauce and cooked over low heat for a half hour. It has such a nice, fresh flavor due to the fact that there aren't a bunch of scientific terms in the ingredients list. You could actually identify what went in to the jar - and the spices were perfectly balanced to create an authentic Indian dish. Authentic to English standards, I should add. The best Indian food I've ever had has been in England, where it is hugely popular and Geeta's products are imported from the UK.
This made an amazingly easy mid-week meal served with curried lentils, Indian Spiced Kale and Tomatoes, and a nice refreshing Hendrick's Cucumber Gin and Tonic to cool our taste buds. As we've only seen Geeta's products at World Market, we'll have to wait until our next trip to Jacksonville to stock up.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Culinary Creations: Indian Spiced Kale and Tomatoes
The inspiration for this dish came from Anjum Anand's Light & Healthy Indian menu in the February 2008 edition of Sainbury's Magazine. In it, Anjum makes a spinach and tomato dish. While I am a fan of spinach, I'm an even bigger fan of kale. I hadn't planned in advance to make this, so didn't have any fresh tomatoes either. A cupboard standby of chopped tomatoes came to the rescue.
In a large pan, I sauteed 1/2 can of chopped tomatoes (very well drained), with 1 teaspoon coriander seeds, 1/2 teaspoon turmeric, 1/2 teaspoon chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon of tandoori BBQ seasoning in 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil until bubbling (about 7 minutes). 
I then added the kale, stirred to coat, and cooked partially covered to allow the excess water to evaporate, on medium heat, for 5 minutes.
It was super easy to make and made the perfect vegetable side dish to serve with Chicken Pudina Tikka, and Dal Mughlai Curry.
My attempts at making Indian food have not always been a success, but any of Anjum Anand's recipes that I've tried have been very easy to follow, and have turned out well. James and I were both stunned at the results and thought it could have been served in any good quality Indian restaurant. It is our new favorite way to have kale.
In a large pan, I sauteed 1/2 can of chopped tomatoes (very well drained), with 1 teaspoon coriander seeds, 1/2 teaspoon turmeric, 1/2 teaspoon chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon of tandoori BBQ seasoning in 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil until bubbling (about 7 minutes). 
I then added the kale, stirred to coat, and cooked partially covered to allow the excess water to evaporate, on medium heat, for 5 minutes.
It was super easy to make and made the perfect vegetable side dish to serve with Chicken Pudina Tikka, and Dal Mughlai Curry.
My attempts at making Indian food have not always been a success, but any of Anjum Anand's recipes that I've tried have been very easy to follow, and have turned out well. James and I were both stunned at the results and thought it could have been served in any good quality Indian restaurant. It is our new favorite way to have kale.Easy Weeknight Indian Feast
One of my favorite things to do is indulge in a decadent mid-week meal. While I do like to make most things from scratch, a busy work week makes it worthwhile having good quality staples on hand. When it comes to Indian food, jarred sauces can be hit or miss. We've recently lucked out by finding some superb jarred sauces, along with canned dal (lentils) - all available at World Market (which will hopefully make its way to our area). This lovely meal was made up of Geeta's Pudina Tikka, Dal Mughlai Curry, and Indian spiced kale & tomatoes, all washed down with a sublime Hendrick's Cucumber G&T. The subtle flavors of the Hendrick's G&T balanced with cucumber made it the perfect drink to balance out the spicy flavors of this meal.
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