HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY! There's nothing quite like something handmade, but over the years hand-painted coffee mugs, papier-mâché wall-hangings, seashell frames have built up in our house, and there is simply no more space for more of these heartfelt tokens of love (not to mention, a tissue paper bouquet made by a 20 year-old is not exactly impressive). This year, I have taken up the project of cooking dinner--a homemade, but ingested gift that requires no storage space except for a rumbly tummy.
At the same time, I thought it a great opportunity to launch a recipe directory that I've been meaning to start for a couple years now. No more recipe binders, cards, or stacks of clippings piled and forgotten in a kitchen cabinet. Time for spring cleaning. Time for keeping it simple.
Lemony Shrimp Salad (http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/lemony-shrimp-salad)
1/2 lemon, plus 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
Salt
1 pound shelled and deveined medium shrimp
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons grapeseed or vegetable oil
Pinch of sugar
Freshly ground pepper
2 hearts of romaine, cut into 1-inch-wide ribbons
1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
1 Hass avocado, diced
2 tablespoons snipped chives
- Fill a medium saucepan with water. Squeeze the lemon half into the water, then add it to the water with the peppercorns and a generous pinch of salt; bring to a boil. Add the shrimp and simmer until curled and just pink, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the shrimp to a paper towel-lined plate. Freeze the shrimp until just chilled, about 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk the lemon juice with the olive oil, grapeseed oil, sugar and a generous pinch each of salt and pepper. Add the romaine, tomatoes, avocado and shrimp and toss. Transfer to plates, garnish with the chives and serve.
Asparagus Pasta Salad (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/asparagus-pasta-salad-recipe/index.html)--this one was a beauty! (p.s. I love Rachael!)
1 small shallot or 1/2 large shallot, finely chopped
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, eyeball it
1 pound asparagus, thin spears
2 endive, cored and thinly sliced
1/2 small red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 pound bow tie pasta, farfalle, cooked to al dente and cooled
1/2 cup frozen green peas
1/4 cup chopped flat- leaf parsley, a couple of handfuls
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
*I couldn't find the shallots, so I used small sweet white onions. No endives--next time! And, I accidentally bought curly parsley instead of italian flat-leaf, but it was still delish!
Heat shallot and oil in a small pan on the stovetop over medium low heat for 5 minutes. Allow oil to cool back to room temperature.
Hold a spear of asparagus at each end and snap it. The spear breaks where the tender tops meet the tough bottoms. Line the broken spear up with the bundle of cleaned asparagus. Cut the spears using the guideline of the snapped spear. Par boil the asparagus tops in 1 inch simmering water covered for 3 to 5 minutes. Cool under cold running water and drain. Cut asparagus into 1-inch pieces on an angle and add to a bowl. Combine chopped, cooked asparagus with shredded endive, red bell pepper, cooked pasta, green peas and chopped parsley. The peas will defrost as you toss salad. Pour vinegar into a small bowl and whisk in cooled shallot oil. Pour dressing over salad and toss. Season salad with salt and pepper, to your taste and toss again.
Grilled Chicken with Mint and Pine Nut Gremolata (Cooking Light, May 2010 http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes
/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1981732)--YUMMERZ! I did everything exactly and it was great. Gremolata is bomb.
- Gremolata:
- 1 cup loosely packed fresh mint leaves
- 2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
- 2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
-
Chicken: - 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1. To prepare gremolata, place mint, pine nuts, rind, and garlic in a mini chopper; process just until combined. Add 4 teaspoons olive oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt; process to combine. Set aside.
2. To prepare chicken, heat a large grill pan over medium-high heat. Brush 2 teaspoons olive oil evenly over chicken; sprinkle chicken evenly with 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper. Add chicken to pan; cook 5 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken from pan; let stand 5 minutes. Serve gremolata with chicken.
Grilled Balsamic Skirt Steak (Cooking Light, May 2010 http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1981731 )
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoons dark brown sugar
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 pound skirt steak, trimmed and cut into 4 pieces
- Cooking spray
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1. Combine first 4 ingredients in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add steak, turning to coat; seal and marinate at room temperature 25 minutes, turning once. Remove steak from bag; discard marinade.
2. Heat a large grill pan over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Sprinkle both sides of steak with 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper. Add steak to pan; cook 3 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Remove steak from pan; sprinkle with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Tent with foil; let stand 5 minutes. Cut steak diagonally across the grain into thin slices.
*I think I should have marinated even longer since I used a sirloin tip steak, which is thicker, right?
And for dessert...
Strawberry Almond Tart--I changed this one up!
Crust (Cooking Light, May 2010):
- 36 Honey Graham crackers (9 sheets)
- 2 tbsp. sugar
- 2 tbsp. butter, melted
- 4 tsp. water
- cooking spray
- Nonfat Vanilla Yogurt
- Fresh Strawberries
- Chopped Almonds
2. To prepare crust, place crackers in a food processor (I crushed mine by hand...or Elbert did). Add sugar, butter and water. Place mixture in a 9-inch round tart pan lightly coated with cooking spray, pressing into the pan and up the sides to 3/4 in. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes until lightly brown. Cool completely on a wire rack.
3. Fill cooled crust with nonfat vanilla yogurt.
4. Arrange cut strawberries on top.
5. Sprinkle chopped almonds.
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For later:
With all that extra parley, I tried a Millet Tabbouleh:
Chopped Parsley, Tomatoes, Onions, Millet, Lemon Juice, Olive Oil, Sald & Pepper to taste.
Saturday was a super tiring, but it was so much fun.
I can't believe moms do this all the time...Thanks Mom <3
