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Homemade Veggie Burgers

January 25, 2012 by Leave a Comment

 

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Trying to make a veggie burger from scratch has been on my to-cook list for months. I pulled a recipe at least six months ago and have been telling myself I need to make it probably since then. The problem is that it’s a food processor recipe, and sometimes, cleaning that thing takes the fun out of using it!

I finally wrote down what I needed to buy, made hummus so the food processor was already dirty, and got to work on the burgers last Sunday.

The recipe made 9 small-ish burgers, and I plan to eat some this week and freeze them to take for lunches.

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I really liked the texture and spices, and am very glad I finally tried them! No need to buy the frozen version when homemade is so much better, and you can freeze them to use one at a time. Really, these made my lunches so much better!

While this may look like a long ingredient list, it’s actually a lot of pantry items and spices that you might already have as a kitchen staple.

I also had one for dinner with sauteed veggies and some rice.

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Homemade Veggie Burgers

Ingredients:

  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1/2 white onion
  • 1 egg
  • 1 C old-fashioned oats, processed into flour
  • 1.5 C bread crumbs
  • 1 C carrots
  • 1 C black beans, rinsed and mashed
  • 1/4 C parsley
  • 1/3 C cashews (or any nut like almonds, pecans, etc)
  • 1/3 C sunflower seeds
  • 1 T EVOO
  • 1 T soy sauce
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • 1/2 tsp pepper
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Instructions:

  • In a food processor, pulse together carrots, garlic, onion. Add about 3/4 C of the black beans and pulse again. You want the consistency to be mashed but not mushed.
  • In a mixing bowl, add the remaining 1/4 C unblended black beans.
  • Remove food from processor and add to a mixing bowl.
  • Add almonds and sunflower seeds and pulse to a fine chop. Add to mixing bowl.
  • Add oats to the processor and grind to a flour. Add to mixing bowl with bread crumbs.
  • In mixing bowl, stir to combine, then add egg, EVOO, soy sauce, and all spices.
  • Stir to combine.
  • The mixture should hold together in your hand when you try to squeeze it. Before you try to add water, form a burger and see if it holds. I thought mine might need more liquid, but it held together as a burger, so I didn’t add anything.
  • Form mixture into patties and lay on a baking sheet lined with a Silpat or cooking spray.
  • Bake at 350* for about 22 minutes, flipping halfway through.
  • Remove when burgers are starting to brown.

 

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Homemade Veggie Burgers
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 

 

Ingredients
  • Homemade Veggie Burgers
  • 1 clove garlic
  • ½ white onion
  • 1 egg
  • 1 C old-fashioned oats, processed into flour
  • 1.5 C bread crumbs
  • 1 C carrots
  • 1 C black beans, rinsed and mashed
  • ¼ C parsley
  • ⅓ C cashews (or any nut like almonds, pecans, etc)
  • ⅓ C sunflower seeds
  • 1 T EVOO
  • 1 T soy sauce
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • ½ tsp pepper
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp cayenne pepper

Instructions
  1. In a food processor, pulse together carrots, garlic, onion. Add about ¾ C of the black beans and pulse again. You want the consistency to be mashed but not mushed.
  2. In a mixing bowl, add the remaining ¼ C unblended black beans.
  3. Remove food from processor and add to a mixing bowl.
  4. Add almonds and sunflower seeds and pulse to a fine chop. Add to mixing bowl.
  5. Add oats to the processor and grind to a flour. Add to mixing bowl with bread crumbs.
  6. In mixing bowl, stir to combine, then add egg, EVOO, soy sauce, and all spices.
  7. Stir to combine.
  8. The mixture should hold together in your hand when you try to squeeze it. Before you try to add water, form a burger and see if it holds. I thought mine might need more liquid, but it held together as a burger, so I didn’t add anything.
  9. Form mixture into patties and lay on a baking sheet lined with a Silpat or cooking spray.
  10. Bake at 350* for about 22 minutes, flipping halfway through.
  11. Remove when burgers are starting to brown.

Filed Under: Dinner, Lunch, Recipes, Vegetarian · Tagged With: , , , ,

Hukuna Frittata

October 24, 2011 by 3 Comments

For a recent Sunday night dinner, eggs were on the menu. Instead of scrambling like we usually do, we made our first frittata. Last December, we bought a Le Creuset cast iron skillet at an outlet store in Florida. The thing probably weighs ten pounds, but we wanted to try the cast iron method of cooking meat, and on sale was a good way to try it.

Only special pans can go from the stovetop to oven, and Le Creuset makes their products special for that. Eggs are also a great food to start on the stove and finish in the oven.

The frittata turned out to be a fun way to eat vegetables and eggs in a pie shape. We loved it! So many ideas of how to alter the ingredients to make this again. I had mine with a little salad of lettuce and tomato and a bagel on the side. And we shared some bacon.

The best part was the leftovers for lunch! I ate it cold twice for lunch during the week with a salad.

We loved the potatoes and egg together, and bacon would have been great in the frittata too. Can’t wait to make more frittatas!

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Vegetable Frittata

Makes 8 wedges

Ingredients:

  • 3 baby yellow potatoes, diced
  • 1 red bell pepper, chopped
  • 2 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt {divided}
  • freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 8 eggs, beaten
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/4 C grated Pepperjack cheese, plus more for sprinkling
  • 2 scallions, chopped

Instructions:

  • Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
  • In a cast-iron skillet (important), drizzle with 2 T EVOO and let heat up. Cook diced potatoes and garlic for about 8 minutes until tender.
  • Add chopped bell pepper for last 3 minutes.
  • In a mixing bowl, whisk together eggs with salt, pepper, milk and cheese.
  • In the skillet, spread vegetables evenly so they don’t overlap. Pour eggs on and don’t stir.
  • Let sit for about 3 minutes, until sides are getting geled and inside is still wet.
  • Transfer skillet to oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, until top is firm and starting to brown.
  • Remove from oven and add scallions and more cheese for melting.
  • Cut into wedges, and it should remove easily.

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Filed Under: Dinner, Recipes, Vegetarian · Tagged With: , , , ,

Falafel Burgers, Round 2

September 21, 2011 by 2 Comments

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Quite a while ago, I made falafel burgers. We enjoyed them ok, but thought they were a little dry, and basically tasted like baked hummus. It wasn’t bad, just tasted like hummus. Then I saw a recipe recently that added some jalapeno, and more spices, and also cooked them on the stovetop instead of in the oven. Worth a try! I love falafel, and remember liking that the burgers lasted me for lunch for many days.

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We really liked these, but thought they needed a good sauce! What goes with falafel? Tzaziki. I don’t have that in a jar in the fridge. These falafel were much more flavorful, and stovetop method was really good too. I added some shredded carrot to help keep them juicy, and liked the addition of an onion and jalapeno. I also changed the spices from the original recipe because I didn’t have them and didn’t want to buy more spices. It’s all about using what you’ve got.

Falafel Burgers

Ingredients:

  • 1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
  • 1/2 red onion, minced
  • 1 jalapeno, minced
  • 1/3 C shredded carrot
  • 1 lemon, juiced
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 cumin
  • 1/2 tsp paprika
  • 3 T plus 2 tsp EVOO
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp pepper
  • 1/2 C Panko breadcrumbs
  • 1 egg white
Instructions:
  • In a food processor, combine the chickpeas, 2 tsp of olive oil, lemon juice and tahini. Blend well and scoop out into a large bowl. Set aside.
  • Heat up 1 tbsp olive oil over medium high heat in a large skillet. Once hot, add the onions and jalapeno and sauté for about six minutes or until tender. Add the garlic and sauté for another minute until toasty and fragrant. Add cumin and paprika and mix well.
  • Add onion mixture and carrots to the chickpea mixture and stir well to combine. Add the salt, egg white and breadcrumbs and mix well.
  • Heat the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil in the same skillet as before. Form patties with the chickpea mixture and fry for about three-four minutes per side, until golden and crunchy. Drain on paper towels.

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We also had some sliced, roasted carrots as a side, and roasted potatoes. The carrots were cut like fries and roasted with EVOO, salt and pepper at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. The potatoes included rosemary, garlic powder, EVOO, salt and pepper, and were roasted at 400 for about 30 minutes.

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We served our falafel over a salad of lettuce and tomato. Delicious and healthy meal!

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Falafel Burgers
 

Ingredients
  • 1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
  • ½ red onion, minced
  • 1 jalapeno, minced
  • ⅓ C shredded carrot
  • 1 lemon, juiced
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 cumin
  • ½ tsp paprika
  • 3 T plus 2 tsp EVOO
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp pepper
  • ½ C Panko breadcrumbs
  • 1 egg white

Instructions
  1. In a food processor, combine the chickpeas, 2 tsp of olive oil, lemon juice and tahini. Blend well and scoop out into a large bowl. Set aside.
  2. Heat up 1 tbsp olive oil over medium high heat in a large skillet. Once hot, add the onions and jalapeno and sauté for about six minutes or until tender. Add the garlic and sauté for another minute until toasty and fragrant. Add cumin and paprika and mix well.
  3. Add onion mixture and carrots to the chickpea mixture and stir well to combine. Add the salt, egg white and breadcrumbs and mix well.
  4. Heat the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil in the same skillet as before. Form patties with the chickpea mixture and fry for about three-four minutes per side, until golden and crunchy. Drain on paper towels.

Filed Under: Dinner, Recipes, Vegetarian · Tagged With: ,

Asian Noodle Salad

September 16, 2011 by Leave a Comment

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Mmmm spicy noodles. Just what I’d been wanting! For a Labor Day party, I made a gigantic and colorful bowl of an Asian noodle salad. Filled with bell peppers, half a cabbage, and shredded carrots, this was a really healthful and filling side dish. And main dish for my lunch the next day.

Very simple to assemble and better when made in advance, this was all about boiling noodles, chopping veggies, and making a sauce that was spicy enough to your taste. Very simple that a recipe was just a starting place.

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Asian Noodle Salad

(serves a lot, you can cut in half for a normal family size)

Ingredients:

  • 1 box spaghetti
  • 1/2 small cabbage head, shredded
  • 1 bag shredded carrots, or many carrots, shredded (I took a shortcut)
  • 2 red bell peppers, chopped
  • 3 T canola oil
  • 3 T sesame oil
  • 1/4 C soy sauce
  • 2 limes, juiced
  • 2 T sugar
  • 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1 small bunch chives
  • 1 tsp black pepper
Instructions:
  • On the stovetop, bring large pot of water to a boil and boil spaghetti as directed, about 10 minutes.*
  • In a large mixing bowl, combine cabbage, bell peppers and carrots.
  • In a small bowl, combine all liquids and spices for sauce and whisk together.
  • When spaghetti is done, drain and mix with veggies.
  • Pour sauce on top and mix well.
  • Refrigerate overnight or until serving. Serve cold.
*To be helpful for serving, I cut the spaghetti in thirds prior to boiling.

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Asian Noodle Salad
 

Ingredients
  • 1 box spaghetti
  • ½ small cabbage head, shredded
  • 1 bag shredded carrots, or many carrots, shredded (I took a shortcut)
  • 2 red bell peppers, chopped
  • 3 T canola oil
  • 3 T sesame oil
  • ¼ C soy sauce
  • 2 limes, juiced
  • 2 T sugar
  • ½ tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1 small bunch chives
  • 1 tsp black pepper

Instructions
  1. On the stovetop, bring large pot of water to a boil and boil spaghetti as directed, about 10 minutes.*
  2. In a large mixing bowl, combine cabbage, bell peppers and carrots.
  3. In a small bowl, combine all liquids and spices for sauce and whisk together.
  4. When spaghetti is done, drain and mix with veggies.
  5. Pour sauce on top and mix well.
  6. Refrigerate overnight or until serving. Serve cold.
  7. *To be helpful for serving, I cut the spaghetti in thirds prior to boiling.

Filed Under: Dinner, Lunch, Recipes · Tagged With: ,

Jeffrey’s Latest Pasta Creation

August 26, 2011 by Leave a Comment

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Well friends, this is the only home cooked meal to come out of our kitchen this week. There was one night of baked potato for me and eggs for him, but that hardly warrants a picture and a post. I promise we eat boring sometimes, it’s not all home baked challah every week. I actually ate this for dinner two nights, so maybe it’s not as bad? Except that my three dinners at home were pasta twice and a potato. Mmm starch.

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We made this dinner on Monday night, after 24 hours of traveling on a travel day that should have taken about 5 hours. I didn’t really take notes, we planned the meal on the plane so I could grocery shop, and then Jeffrey did most of the cooking. I actually used most ingredients from the pantry or freezer and only had to buy asparagus, an onion and fresh garlic. That’s pretty good!

Since I didn’t write down a recipe, I’ll share the thought process that I think Jeffrey used too.

For her: I wanted a pasta dish with some veggies and melty cheese. We had linguini in the pantry and used the whole box so there were plenty of leftovers. I thought asparagus was a hearty vegetable, so I bought a bunch of that, and then I used corn and edamame I have frozen. Just a big handful of each.

For him: Jeffrey wanted chicken in his pasta, so I defrosted some raw chicken in the freezer when we got home that afternoon. It was thawed by 6 p.m. when it was time to cook. He didn’t want the corn and edamame, but wanted garlic bread. I defrosted some Mrs. Baird’s white bread that we keep frozen, and we baked it with olive oil sans crust cut in triangles.

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For the whole dish to come together, we cooked the pasta as instructions said. About 10 minutes in boiling water.

In a separate pan, we sauteed the asparagus until tender and then added the corn and edamame for me, and none for Jeffrey. I think there was some sauteed onion in there too.

For the pasta sauce, we kept it simple with olive oil and garlic. Jeffrey minced garlic and added it to a sauce pan with olive oil and heated that up. I’m not sure what else was in there, maybe nothing? It made the noodles buttery and slippery. Mmm.

Then we combined the pasta, vegetables, chicken for Jeffrey (pan seared with just salt and pepper), and sauce and cooked together until warmed through. Season with red pepper flakes, salt, pepper and top with grated Parmesan cheese while it’s still hot.

That’s dinner!

Filed Under: Dinner · Tagged With: , ,

Pasta Caprese

July 20, 2011 by 1 Comment

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I was pretty sure I had a winner of a simple weeknight dinner with this dish, and I approved it, but here’s the story.

I had an idea for this Pasta Caprese as something that would be hearty enough for my husband, but still light and summery and without chicken. I made it hearty with cheese and whole wheat pasta, and even added a whole yellow onion and garlic to appease his love of stomach turning foods. I’m nice like that.

I was correct in the easy weeknight dinner part, and it was a filling enough dinner for me, but Jeffrey raided the refrigerator for leftover BBQ 30 minutes after the kitchen closed for the night.

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Putting a spin on a Caprese salad (tomato, mozzarella, basil) by cooking it and adding it to pasta was really tasty. The cheese got melty and stringy, and the tomatoes dissolved into the pasta. I have a few thoughts to make it better, but that’s below.

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Pasta Caprese

Ingredients:

  • 2 large red tomatoes
  • 1 yellow onion, chopped
  • 8 oz block mozzarella
  • 1/2 C basil, in a chiffonade
  • 1 box penne, or about 10 ounces
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper
  • 3 T EVOO

Instructions:

  • In a pasta pot or soup pot, bring water to a boil and cook pasta as directions say, about 10 minutes.
  • In a large skillet, add 1.5 T EVOO to heat and then add garlic, but don’t let it burn.
  • Shortly after, add the onion and cook together until it starts to brown, don’t burn.
  • Add chopped tomatoes and let it all cook together until the tomatoes become very liquidy and it looks like a sauce.
  • Add salt and pepper when the tomatoes go in.
  • Drain pasta, while reserving about 1/2 C pasta water.
  • Place pasta back in the large pot.
  • Add tomato sauce and pasta water to the pasta and mix well. If sauce starts to dissolve into the noodles, add more pasta water.
  • Once combined, add mozzarella and basil and stir to combine. Serve immediately.
  • If you are going to wait to serve, wait to combine the sauce and cheese until ready.
  • Season to taste with salt and pepper.

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The part I should have done was reserve the pasta water to help the sauce stay juicy. In the sauce pan, it was very juicy, but the pasta absorbed it quickly since we didn’t eat right away.

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The mozzarella also turned a little tough while it was sitting waiting for Jeffrey to come home from work. Lesson is to make this right when you want to eat it and your cheese will stay gooey and your sauce will be saucy.

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I still liked it, and it made great leftovers to eat cold.

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This pasta dish was super simple with just a few ingredients. I really liked how it made its own sauce of just tomatoes, onion and garlic. Few ingredients, just two pots, a one-dish meal, and under 30 minutes are my qualifications for an easy weeknight dinner. Even in the summertime!

What are you cooking up quickly this summer? 

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Pasta Caprese
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 

Serves: 4
 

Ingredients
  • 2 large red tomatoes
  • 1 yellow onion, chopped
  • 8 oz block mozzarella
  • ½ C basil, in a chiffonade
  • 1 box penne, or about 10 ounces
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • ¼ tsp each salt and pepper
  • 3 T EVOO

Instructions
  1. In a pasta pot or soup pot, bring water to a boil and cook pasta as directions say, about 10 minutes.
  2. In a large skillet, add 1.5 T EVOO to heat and then add garlic, but don’t let it burn.
  3. Shortly after, add the onion and cook together until it starts to brown, don’t burn.
  4. Add chopped tomatoes and let it all cook together until the tomatoes become very liquidy and it looks like a sauce.
  5. Add salt and pepper when the tomatoes go in.
  6. Drain pasta, while reserving about ½ C pasta water.
  7. Place pasta back in the large pot.
  8. Add tomato sauce and pasta water to the pasta and mix well. If sauce starts to dissolve into the noodles, add more pasta water.
  9. Once combined, add mozzarella and basil and stir to combine. Serve immediately.
  10. If you are going to wait to serve, wait to combine the sauce and cheese until ready.
  11. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Filed Under: Dinner, Recipes · Tagged With: , ,

Protein-Packed Square Meal

July 12, 2011 by 1 Comment

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I have been on a recent kick of making a one-pot dish on Sundays to take for lunch during the week. Packing lunch is one of my least favorite chores and eating out of Tupperware is never appetizing either. I started making a dish ahead of time that can stand alone as a dinner side dish, or be added to a salad for lunch.

This dish is simple and healthy with protein from three different sources. The base is a grain (lentils and farr0) that are both high in protein. Quinoa would be another idea. The second part are vegetables. I used an orange bell pepper, a yellow squash and kale. The third layer is kidney beans for even more protein.

And because everything is better with cheese, and since cheese has protein, I added feta.

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Protein-Packed Square Meal

Ingredients:

  • 1 C green lentils
  • 1/2 C farro, rinsed
  • 3 C water
  • 1 medium yellow squash, chopped
  • 1 can kidney beans
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 C kale, chopped
  • 1/2 C feta crumbles

For the dressing:

  • 3 T EVOO
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp pepper
  • 1/4 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 T apple cider vinegar
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1 lemon, juiced

Instructions:

  • In a sauce pan, add lentils and farro to 3 C water and bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer and let cook about 25 minutes, until most of the water dissolves and grains are fork tender.
  • In a separate skillet, heat garlic for a few minutes, then add kale, squash and bell pepper. Let cook until soft. Remove from heat.
  • Drain grans once cooked and place back in the sauce pan.
  • Add vegetables to the farro/lentil bowl and stir to combine. Add kidney beans and stir.
  • In a separate bowl, combine all ingredients for the dressing. Pour on top of dish and stir to combine.
  • Add feta once cooled.

The whole dish made plenty for the whole week of lunches. When I prep my lunch the night before, I just add lettuce, a tomato and some carrot sticks and spoon about 1/3-1/2 C of the dish on top. Serve with fruit and crackers and there’s lunch!

Over the last few months, I have been eating vegetarian sources of protein for most lunches because I find it easier to plan than prepping meat. It’s more affordable, and there are plenty of options. This dish could be subbed out many different ways with varying grains, vegetables or beans.

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Protein-Packed Square Meal
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 

Serves: 6-8
 

Ingredients
  • 1 C green lentils
  • ½ C farro, rinsed
  • 3 C water
  • 1 medium yellow squash, chopped
  • 1 can kidney beans
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 C kale, chopped
  • ½ C feta crumbles
  • For the dressing:
  • 3 T EVOO
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ tsp pepper
  • ¼ tsp ground cumin
  • 1 T apple cider vinegar
  • ½ tsp garlic powder
  • ¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1 lemon, juiced

Instructions
  1. In a sauce pan, add lentils and farro to 3 C water and bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer and let cook about 25 minutes, until most of the water dissolves and grains are fork tender.
  2. In a separate skillet, heat garlic for a few minutes, then add kale, squash and bell pepper. Let cook until soft. Remove from heat.
  3. Drain grans once cooked and place back in the sauce pan.
  4. Add vegetables to the farro/lentil bowl and stir to combine. Add kidney beans and stir.
  5. In a separate bowl, combine all ingredients for the dressing. Pour on top of dish and stir to combine.
  6. Add feta once cooled.

Filed Under: Lunch, Recipes, Vegetarian · Tagged With: , , ,

Summer Gazpacho

June 28, 2011 by 2 Comments

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Talk about a healthy soup. This is raw. Vegan (if you exclude Worchestershire sauce). Full of fresh and seasonal vegetables. And my husband ate it too! It’s summertime gazpacho, one of the easiest and quickest soups making it perfect for summer. No stove or oven needed.

This is my mom’s recipe, which is probably my grandmother’s too. I used to help chop vegetables because I used to enjoy that when I was a youngin’ just like I do now. This soup is extra tasty with toasted bread with hummus and feta cheese on top to make it a full meal. I recommend it. Also perfect for lunch or dinner, or a refreshing afternoon snack. It’s full of veggies, you can’t go wrong.

Summer Gazpacho

Ingredients

  • 24 oz tomato juice
  • 2 T olive oil
  • 2 T red wine vinegar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp pepper
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 1/2 tsp Worchestershire sauce (not vegan, has anchovies, who knew?)
  • 2 tomatoes
  • 1/4 C onion
  • 1/2 C red bell pepper
  • 1/2 C cucumber
  • 1/2 C celery
  • 1/2 C corn kernels (I used from a frozen bag)
  • 2 tsp parsley
  • 1 tsp chives

Instructions

  • Chop all vegetables and add to large bowl or container.
  • In blender, combine tomato juice, olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, chives, worchestershire sauce, red wine vinegar, and one tomato. Blend until combined.
  • Pour on top of vegetables in  large serving bowl.
  • Refrigerate and serve cold.

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Gazpacho can come in so many variations. There are fruity ones like watermelon or canteloupe. There are green ones, pureed ones, etc. I really like this one best, probably because it’s a family recipe! But I also like textured soups more than a puree. I don’t like a soup to be like drinking a smoothie. There is a time for smoothies and a time for soups. Keep your soups chunky.

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What a difference a year makes! I made this soup last July, which is the last time I made it. I had just started to blog, and here’s the post from then. What a newbie I was…I didn’t even photograph on place mats.

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What a nice little cup of soup.

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Summer Gazpacho
Author: 
Recipe type: Soup
Prep time: 
Total time: 

Serves: 6
 

Ingredients
  • Summer Gazpacho
  • Ingredients
  • 24 oz tomato juice
  • 2 T olive oil
  • 2 T red wine vinegar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp pepper
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • ½ tsp Worchestershire sauce
  • 2 tomatoes
  • ¼ C onion
  • ½ C red bell pepper
  • ½ C cucumber
  • ½ C celery
  • ½ C corn kernels (I used from a frozen bag)
  • 2 tsp parsley
  • 1 tsp chives

Instructions
  1. Instructions
  2. Chop all vegetables and add to large bowl or container.
  3. In blender, combine tomato juice, olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, chives, worchestershire sauce, red wine vinegar, and one tomato. Blend until combined.
  4. Pour on top of vegetables in large serving bowl.
  5. Refrigerate and serve cold.

 

Filed Under: Recipes, Vegetarian · Tagged With: , ,

Summer Salads Part 2

June 22, 2011 by 2 Comments

Are you still with me for summer eating week? So far, there has been brownies and one salad. Here is recipe #3.

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This tortellini salad was the second salad I brought to the baby shower I hosted over the weekend. I made one similar a few weeks ago to try out flavors and proportions.

The key to serving a large amount of people was to make as much as I could ahead of time and then use the immediate time before serving to finish it and plate it. The ingredient list for this is short, the manpower was all in the chopping. The key again was the dressing.

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Cold Tortellini Salad

(serves 40)

Ingredients

  • 96 oz tri-color cheese tortellini (two jumbo packs from Costco)
  • 3 red bell peppers, chopped
  • 1 C red tomatoes, halved
  • 3 C black olives, halved
  • 3 T EVOO
  • 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper
  • 1 lemon, juiced
  • 1 clove garlic, minced

Instructions

  • In a large stock pot, bring water to a boil, filled about 2/3.
  • Add tortellini and cook as package says, about 10 minutes until pasta is ready.
  • Drain in a collander.
  • In a mixing bowl, combine olives, tomatoes and bell peppers.
  • When tortellini is cooled, add to the vegetable bowl.
  • Refrigerate at this step until ready to serve.
  • In a small bowl, combine 3 T EVOO, 3 T water, 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper, the juice of one lemon, and one garlic clove and whisk together.
  • Pour on top and stir until mixed well.
  • You can leave this dish out a while because the refrigerator tended to make the tortellini stick together.
  • Serve at room temperature.

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This dish was a nice medley of cheesy and crunchy, and was filling because of the dense tortellini. A great picnic or party summer salad because it was easy to prepare and can be served or left sitting out for a long time. Also great for lunch or dinner.

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Summer Tortellini Salad
Author: 
Recipe type: salad
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 

Serves: 40
 

Ingredients
  • 96 oz tri-color cheese tortellini (two jumbo packs from Costco)
  • 3 red bell peppers, chopped
  • 1 C red tomatoes, halved
  • 3 C black olives, halved
  • 3 T EVOO
  • ¼ tsp each salt and pepper
  • 1 lemon, juiced
  • 1 clove garlic, minced

Instructions
  1. In a large stock pot, bring water to a boil, filled about ⅔.
  2. Add tortellini and cook as package says, about 10 minutes until pasta is ready.
  3. Drain in a collander.
  4. In a mixing bowl, combine olives, tomatoes and bell peppers.
  5. When tortellini is cooled, add to the vegetable bowl.
  6. Refrigerate at this step until ready to serve.
  7. In a small bowl, combine 3 T EVOO, 3 T water, ¼ tsp each salt and pepper, the juice of one lemon, and one garlic clove and whisk together.
  8. Pour on top and stir until mixed well.
  9. You can leave this dish out a while because the refrigerator tended to make the tortellini stick together.
  10. Serve at room temperature.

Filed Under: Dinner, Recipes, Vegetarian · Tagged With: , ,

Summer Salads Part 1

June 21, 2011 by 2 Comments

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This dish is all about summer. Summer dishes are best served cold. This cold salad uses summer corn and other seasonal vegetables like tomatoes and green beans, and it’s a great make-ahead salad. Cold salads travel well. It’s all about easy picnic-like food in the summertime.

I made this dish and another salad (that would be Part 2 tomorrow) for a baby shower last weekend. I am becoming an expert baby shower hostess, and I’ve learned that easy food is best. Colorful helps too. The ingredients for this dish are scaled to feed an army or a football team. I prepared it for about 30 people. You’ll need to scale it down for less, it doesn’t need to be exact.

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In my opinion, they key to this dish is the dressing. Without dressing, it’s just corn + green beans + tomatoes in a bowl. The dressing brings out the sweet of the corn and blends it all together.

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Summer Corn Salad

Ingredients

(makes enough for 30 as a side dish)

  • 5 pounds (!) corn (I used a frozen bag of organic corn from Costco. Corn on the husk would be great but I didn’t want to shuck and boil so many ears.)
  • 2 pounds green beans, stems cut off
  • 3 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1 C feta cheese crumbles
  • 2 T sugar
  • 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper
  • 4 T evoo

Instructions

  • In a large stock pot, bring water to a boil, filled 2/3 with water.
  • Add corn to water and boil about 5 minutes until soft. No thaw time necessary.
  • Remove corn from water with slotted spoon but do not discard water. Place corn in collander and let water drain for about 10 minutes in the sink. I pressed the water out with my hands. They retain a lot of water.
  • In a large mixing bowl, combine tomatoes and corn.
  • Add green beans to water and boil about 8-10 minutes, until the color is bright green and they are soft.
  • Remove pot from stove and drain water from green beans in collander.
  • Once green beans have cooled, cut them in thirds.
  • Add green beans to the corn/tomato bowl.
  • If you aren’t serving immediately, refrigerate after this step.
  • One hour before you are ready to serve, add feta to the bowl and stir.
  • In a separate small bowl, combine EVOO, salt, pepper and sugar and whisk until sugar dissolves.
  • Pour over the corn mix and stir well.
  • Refrigerate until ready to serve.

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I really love the feta in this dish. It gets all creamy with the dressing and is like an added creaminess in the crevices of the tomatoes and through the corn. The sugar really brings out the sweet of the corn, and the pop of the green beans compliments the crispness of the corn too.

It’s just a nice and light summer salad!

Print
Summer Corn Salad
Author: 
Recipe type: salad
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 

Serves: 40
 

Ingredients
  • Ingredients
  • makes enough for 30 as a side dish)
  • 5 pounds (!) corn (I used a frozen bag of organic corn from Costco. Corn on the husk would be great but I didn’t want to shuck and boil so many ears.)
  • 2 pounds green beans, stems cut off
  • 3 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1 C feta cheese crumbles
  • 2 T sugar
  • ¼ tsp each salt and pepper
  • 4 T evoo

Instructions
  1. Instructions
  2. In a large stock pot, bring water to a boil, filled ⅔ with water.
  3. Add corn to water and boil about 5 minutes until soft. No thaw time necessary.
  4. Remove corn from water with slotted spoon but do not discard water. Place corn in collander and let water drain for about 10 minutes in the sink. I pressed the water out with my hands. They retain a lot of water.
  5. In a large mixing bowl, combine tomatoes and corn.
  6. Add green beans to water and boil about 8-10 minutes, until the color is bright green and they are soft.
  7. Remove pot from stove and drain water from green beans in collander.
  8. Once green beans have cooled, cut them in thirds.
  9. Add green beans to the corn/tomato bowl.
  10. If you aren’t serving immediately, refrigerate after this step.
  11. One hour before you are ready to serve, add feta to the bowl and stir.
  12. In a separate small bowl, combine EVOO, salt, pepper and sugar and whisk until sugar dissolves.
  13. Pour over the corn mix and stir well.
  14. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

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