Warm Grilled Eggplant Salad

Week 10 - Herbs (basil, chives), peaches, white plums, assorted cherry tomatoes, yellow tomato,  (none of that is part of our CSA), 4 tomatoes!, red potatoes, salad greens, Rosa Bianca eggplant, Asian eggplant, green peppers, hot peppers, yellow squash, zucchini, cucumbers, dandelion greens, corn, Swiss chard.

I lost my week 9 photo.  But it was good stuff.  Similar to week 10.  We are there.  The peak of summer produce.  The pinnacle of all that is good.  We are FEASTING!!!

Can you believe this?  Four of these babies came with our CSA.  I bought the rest.  I did an ok job controlling myself.  We had another 5 or 6 from our garden that we ate this week.  Plus several handfuls of cherry tomatoes to supplement.  I thought I might save some of our tomatoes for winter in some form, but I am not at a point yet where I feel overwhelmed by tomatoes.  I feel happy about tomatoes.  I want more!  

This salad was so delicious.  It is very simple.  Some grilled veggies, tossed with some salad greens and a lemon, herb vinaigrette.  I wanted to pair it with something with a bright flavor, acidic flavor, but I also thought something cheesy would be good.  I made some stuffed tomatoes.  Mine where just stuffed with goat cheese, a little panko bread crumbs, parm, basil, and chives.  I cut a very small hole in the top of each tomato (and then ate the hole), then stuffed the cheese filling in.  I baked for about 20 minutes at 400 degrees.  Might be better to just throw them on the grill to avoid the oven.  It has been cold and rainy here so it wasn't a big deal for us.  

We are equally obsessed with eggplant as we are with tomatoes.  Our eggplants in our garden are doing well.  We will probably have at least ten.  We have been getting three or so in our CSA each week.  So good.  These Rosa Bianca globe shaped eggplants are amazing.  Maybe I will make some Baba Ganoush to freeze for Birk once he is ready to explore non-milk calories.  I very much appreciate the milk-only diet.  Meal prep is pretty easy.  Wish we could ride out that phase a little longer.  

Warm Grilled Eggplant Salad
by foodforscot

1 eggplant (I used Rosa Bianca)
1 summer squash
1 green pepper
1 big bag of salad greens
quarter of a medium red onion, thinly sliced
1 handful of basil, rolled and thinly sliced
10 chives, minced
½ tsp of Dijon mustard
1 lemon, juice
1 tsp of red wine vinegar
olive oil
salt
pepper

Slice the eggplant to make 1/4th of an inch thick rounds. Place in a colander (or lay out on a kitchen towel) and sprinkle generously with salt. Mix (or turn) to evenly coat the eggplant with the salt. Let sit for at least 30 minute (up to an hour or so) to release the water out of the eggplant.

Prepare the dressing: In a medium bowl, combine basil, chives, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, red wine vinegar. Season with salt and pepper. While whisking, slowly add in olive oil. Add more salt, pepper, and oil, to taste. Set aside.

Preheat grill to medium high.

Slice the summer squash and quarter (and core and seed) the green pepper. Season with salt and pepper. Once eggplant is done, pat dry with a kitchen towel. Season with pepper. Drizzle olive oil over everything.

Right before grilling, turn off the flame, brush the grill with olive oil. Turn the flame back on. Grill eggplant, squash, and green peppers until soft with nice grill marks. Remove from grill and chop into bite sized pieces.

In a large bowl, toss together salad greens, red onions, grilled veggies, and lemon/herb dressing. Salad is best served warm and immediately.

(Servings: 3, Prep time: 30 min., Cook time: 30 min., Difficulty: Easy)

Printable Version

foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste):  8/10
Scot (taste):  8/10
Effort:  2/5
Dishwashing Effort:  2/5

Ideas for Local/Now Produce

I am four weeks into my CSA.  Above I have the first, third, and fourth weeks of produce.  Right now I am enjoying the fourth week.  From left to right in the bottom photo, I got beets, gigantic dandelion greens, collards, kale, two broccoli, escarole, two bok choy, two red leaf lettuce, radishes, salad turnips, garlic scapes, and some chives (chives didn't come with CSA).

I love greens.  And I am not just saying that.  The salad greens, so far, have changed my life.  I look forward to the days immediately following my CSA pick up because that is when we consume all the lettuce.  I have made many different salads, but haven't photographed them all.  Here are a few ideas if you are needing some:

A BBQ Seitan salad.  I made this twice actually.  This is some romaine and green leaf lettuce (my favorite).  Mixed with some thawed frozen corn, rinsed black beans, diced red pepper or roasted red pepper, finely diced red onion, and diced avocado (just put avocado on top, don't toss with the rest) tossed in a creamy yogurt with fresh herb dressing.  For the Seitan, simply slice, pan fry in a skillet with olive oil and toss with BBQ sauce.  We also ate with some cheese quesadillas (whole wheat tortillas grilled with cheese inside).

A Shaved Salad.  A great way to eat delicious, delicate salad greens is to do a shaved salad.  Using a mandolin or mad knife skills, thinly slice a tart apple, celery (do it even if you think you hate celery), and red onion.  Scatter of lettuce and dress with an herb yogurt dressing and some crumbled goat cheese.  It is SO refreshing.  I could eat it every day.

Other salads we have been enjoying:

Greek ish - lettuce, chickpeas, fresh goat's milk feta, thinly sliced red onion, roasted red peppers, diced cucumber tossed with a red wine vinaigrette.

Cherry dressing - Lettuce, goat cheese, salad turnips, chopped broccoli, chives, almonds tossed with a cherry vinaigrette (cherry jam, dijon mustard, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper).

Green pizza.  I cooked down an entire bunch of kale and an entire bunch of spinach from our week 2 CSA (just chopped them up and sauteed them in olive oil).  I dried the greens a bit by pouring them onto a kitchen towel.  Then, using a whole wheat pizza dough from Whole Foods, I topped it with cilantro pesto (bought from Whole Foods), fresh mozzarella, fresh goat's milk feta packed in liquid, ALL the greens, thinly sliced red onion.  It was SO delicious.  Two whole bunches of greens on one pizza.  You could grill this since it will soon be way too hot for pizza in the oven.

Puree those greens.  Saute the greens in olive oil and then add a rinsed and rained can of white beans (like Cannelloni, Navy, or even Pinto would be fine).  Puree until smooth and season with salt and pepper.  Here I used collards and Cannelloni beans and also flavored it up with some of the cilantro pesto.  I topped it with some fatty white fish.

Stir fry!  An obvious use for all the produce that grows right now is stir fry.  Which seems boring, but by switching up the sauce, you can do a lot.  Here I have cooked up all the bok choy with some onion and red peppers.  I also did a shallow pan fry of some extra firm tofu that has been drenched in corn starch.  The sauce here is a sweet and sour (mix 1/3 c. red wine vinegar, 1/3 cup orange juice, 1 tbsp honey, 3 tbsp ketchup, 1 tsp cornstarch, 1/2 tsp salt).

Another sauce option is a curry:  1 cup coconut milk, 1 tbsp fish sauce, 2 tsp Thai curry paste, 1 tsp packed brown sugar, and 1 tsp corn starch.  I made this with some of the other greens and added smoked tofu (which tasted like hot dogs, so don't use that).  Both of these are from (with some modification) Cook's Illustrated magazine.  For either of these, whisk together in a bowl and add to the stir fried veggies at the end and just cook until warmed through.  Make sure to stir fry your veggies in batches.  If you keep adding more to the pan, they steam and aren't as flavorful.

A warm cabbage slaw.  Here I sautee shredded savoy cabbage with some other dark greens (a type of kale, I believe).  It also has some carrots, onions, and shredded green apple.  I seasoned the slaw with soy sauce and rice vinegar.  I topped it with a fried egg (runny yolk).

Green Chips.  It is almost like cheating.  You just tear the leaves up, toss with some olive oil, salt and pepper.  Spread out on a sheet pan and bake in the oven until crispy.  Lower over temp is better, like 350.  But they work in any temp really.  I made these kale chips with these Roasted Mustard Potatoes, which were amazing.  I could easily eat like two bunches of kale like this in one sitting.  Easily.

Roasted kale, potatoes, and tempeh tossed with parmesan and lemon.  Here I roasted the kale, tempeh, and potatoes (all separately-ish, since they take different amounts of time).  I think I roasted the potatoes and then added the kale at the end.  I think I might have browned the tempeh in a skillet.  Then, I just tossed them all with some lemon juice and parmesan.  This is an old recipe I never posted.

Smoked Salmon, Kale Carbonara - Add your greens to some whole wheat pasta!  I used Cara's recipe here (with some modification).  Really delicious.  I also have made Eats Well with Other's recipe for White Bean and Kale pasta.  It was another great, fast pasta dish with kale.  I made the smoked salmon carbonara when Birk was only a few weeks old and remember eating it almost 100% cold while feeding him in my arms.  Why I took the time to take a blurry photo is beyond me!

I think you are getting the theme.  With the salad greens, you pretty much have to make salad.  Try to be creative.  Add beans and nuts for protein.  Cheese.  With the dark greens, there are so many options but you must add some fat.  If you want to be hard core, fine.  Eat dark greens straight up in your face. But I am telling you, it isn't sustainable.  You will eventually give up on eating greens and will only eat french fries the rest of your life (sounds threatening).  You will see a theme with my greens...cheese, potatoes, fatty fish, coconut milk, tofu, an egg.  It needs that balance in my opinion.  Also adding acid really helps balance out the bitter.

For the rest of the meals we have had with our Local/Now produce, I hope to share a detailed recipe with you.  We have tried some good recipes lately!  Also, it has been bothering me that I am cooking with all these greens but then buying things like cucumbers and red peppers at the grocery store to make things a little more exciting.  Am I a horrible person for relying on these out of season veggies?  Will I be able to live with myself.  Stay tuned to find out.

Roasted Cauliflower

Cauliflower sometimes doesn't get any respect.  And even though it has never been my favorite thing on the crudite platter, I still eat it.  I guess I have skipped it.  But I don't have hatred towards cauliflower.  I just love the cucumber more.

BUT, lately, we have been eating it a lot.  Two reasons.  Mark Bittman uses a lot of cauliflower and I have made all the recipes in his book (not true).  Also it is in a lot of Indian dishes that I have made.  And I really love it with Indian flavors.

First, in case for some strange reason you have not heard of or tried roasted cauliflower, I am here to tell you...do it.  It tastes like chicken nuggets.  

Second, in case you missed Copper, here he is.  I am not exaggerating to say that I think about how he is the greatest dog in the whole world at least twice a day.  It is not bragging.  It is just true.  I also tell him as often as possible because I read somewhere that it is important for our relationship.

Third, I just wanted to give you some inspiration to use roasted cauliflower.  You can just eat it as a side.  In the photo above I made a spinach/coconut milk soup to dip the cauliflower in.  I put quite a bit of grainy mustard in the soup.

Below, I made a warm salad with roasted cauliflower, chickpeas, zucchini and spinach.  It is seasoned with a very grainy mustard vinaigrette and some Indian spices.  It was really good too.  But I think roasted cauliflower would make a good addition to any salad.

Roasted Cauliflower

1 head of cauliflower, cut into florets

olive oil

salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Toss cauliflower florets in some olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Spread out in a single layer on a baking sheet.  Roast in the oven until golden brown.

(Servings:  2, Prep time:  5 min., Cook time:  25 min., Difficulty:  Easy)

Roasted Cauliflower, Chickpeas, Spinach and Zucchini Salad

roasted cauliflower, see recipe above

1 onion, diced

1 zucchini, diced

2 14.5 oz. cans of chickpeas, drains and rinsed

½ tsp of cumin

1 tsp of coriander

¼ tsp of turmeric

1.5 tsp of whole grain mustard (with seeds)

1-2 tbsp of white wine vinegar

salt and pepper

olive oil

1 box of baby spinach (5-6 oz)

In a large skillet over medium high heat, sauté onions until translucent (about 5 min.).  Add zucchini and cook until soft (3-5 min.).  Add chickpeas, cumin, coriander, turmeric, salt and pepper and cook until chickpeas are warmed through (3-5 min.).

Make vinaigrette for spinach:  In a large bowl, add mustard, white wine vinegar, salt and pepper.  Whisk to combine and slowly add olive oil until desired balance of vinegar and oil is achieved.  Add to spinach and toss to coat.

Combine everything.  Eat warm or room temp!

(ServingsL  4-6, Prep time:  15 min., Cook time:  25 min., Difficulty:  Easy) 

Printable Version

foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste): 8/10
Scot (taste):  8/10
Effort:  2/5
Dishwashing Effort:  2/5

Endive, Pear, and Roquefort Salad

Ina Garten was born and raised in my new county.  And she still lives quite close.  I also just got her cookbook, Barefoot in Paris, for Christmas.  So, I have been cooking a lot of Barefoot Contessa-esque meals.  I am into it.

I love salads.  I eat them as main dishes.  I add them to dinner when it needs that little bit of rounding out.  I bring them for lunch.  I order them at restaurants.

But, I feel like I have made just about every combination possible.  And anytime I see an idea that is even slightly different from something I already make, I just have to try it.  This salad recipe has two aspects I wanted to try:

1.  Belgian endive - what is that like?

2.  Egg yolk in the dressing.  I have been meaning to try such a thing in a non-Caesar dressing.

The fruit, nut, blue cheese combo is already one of my favorites.  I have recently been enjoying the very creamy, soft blue cheese.  It is usually labeled as some sort of Italian blue cheese, or the best kind I have tried, blue cheese made from goat's milk (obviously).  In other words, I didn't use Roquefort for this salad, but you can choose your favorite blue cheese.

For #1, the Belgian endive was a nice change.  It is not bitter at all, as I had expected it to be.  Probably slightly more bitter than something like Romaine, but I would say that I was more surprised by how clean and almost watery it tasted.  Juicy.

For #2, we all knew that would be delicious.  It is how you would make a Caesar dressing, but the flavors are much more subtle.  I did use a Champagne vinegar, which is really nice.  The yolk gives the dressing such body and makes it very creamy.  It is delicious.  And I am not responsible if you use dirty eggs.  

Endive, Pear, and Roquefort Salad

by Ina Garten, from Barefoot in Paris

4 to 6 heads of Belgian endive

1 1/2 tablespoons Champagne vinegar or white wine vinegar

3/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard

*1 egg yolk, at room temperature

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

6 tablespoons good olive oil

2 ripe Bartlett pears, halved, cored, and sliced

1/4 pound good Roquefort cheese

1/2 cup toasted walnut halves

Trim off the core end of each head of endive and slice it in half lengthwise. Cut out the cores, separate the leaves, and place 1 1/2 to 2 heads of endive on each plate.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the vinegar, mustard, egg yolk, salt, and pepper. Slowly whisk in the olive oil to make an emulsion. Toss the pears with some vinaigrette and place on the endive. Drizzle the remaining vinaigrette over the endive leaves to moisten them. Crumble the Roquefort onto the endive. Sprinkle with walnuts and serve at room temperature.

*RAW EGG WARNING: Food Network Kitchens suggest caution in consuming raw and lightly cooked eggs due to the slight risk of salmonella or other foodborne illness. To reduce this risk, we recommend you use only fresh, properly refrigerated, clean grade A or AA eggs with intact shells, and avoid contact between the yolks or whites and the shell.

(Servings: 6, Prep time: 20 min., Difficulty: Easy)

Printable Version

foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste):  7/10

Scot (taste):  7/10

Effort:  1/5

Dishwashing Effort:  1/5

Lemon and Olive Quinoa Cakes

I am pretty deece at planning ahead and organizing my life.  But at the same time, I feel like I am always doing everything last minute.  Sometimes I wonder if I should just redefine what last minute is so that I am more satisfied with my preparation for things.  Maybe I should decide that "last minute" is literally a minute before something needs to be done.  That way when I am up until 3 am working on something, I can feel like I am doing things way ahead of time. 

What I am talking about:  Thanksgiving.  This is the first time I will be making the meal, at least, the whole meal.  And there is no doubt in my mind that I will be up until midnight on Wednesday night getting ready for Thanksgiving the next day.  I think I will do my family proud by keeping the essentials on the table, but also trying some new things.  Want to know my current menu?  Here is what I am doing:

-Alton Brown's Brined Turkey - I ordered a fresh turkey.  I will let you know if it was worth it.  This recipe is killer.  

-Gravy (just from the Turkey drippings and some homemade chicken stock) - my dad disagrees with my method, he likes to add milk.  

-Mashed Potatoes - I just do cream cheese, butter, cream, salt and pepper.  Just like my mom taught me.  

-Orange-Cranberry Sauce - a classic.  

-Smoked Chile Scalloped Sweet Potatoes - You know my sweet potato dilemma, I am going spicy.  

-Sausage and Kale Stuffing - I struggled with what kind of regular bread stuffing to make and went this which is full of veggies (kale and butternut squash) and other non-bread items like sausage.  

-Cornbread, Leek, Bacon, Apple, and Pecan Stuffing - Cornbread stuffing with apples and bacon is my favorite!

-Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Pomegranates and Vanilla-Pecan Butter - Risky.

-Soft Knotted Rolls - these might not happen.

Dessert:  Pumpkin Pie from the Flour cookbook (here is close recipe) with whipped cream

Probably too much.  I mean, definitely too much.  But ya know.  

Have I ever told you the story of my sister and her pumpkin pie?  Several Thanksgivings ago, my sister made the pumpkin pie.  And it was a big deal because she made the pumpkin puree from scratch.  One day there was a little pumpkin on the counter.  The next day there was a pumpkin pie on the counter.  So...we all praised her from making her pie from scratch.  And we also all went on and on about how good it tasted.  Only to find out (I think, several years later), that the pumpkin puree didn't work out and she actually just made it from a can.  I have never been able to trust her since.  (For the record, she insists that what I have explained here isn't even what happened.  Don't listen to her.)

The bottom line is:  there is very little evidence that fresh pumpkin puree makes any difference.  However, I still made some to make my pie from (Aunt Linda always does it, so shall I).  Pumpkin pie is on my "Thanksgiving only" list, so I thought I should do it justice.

Anyways, as usual, this discussion has nothing to do with the recipe I am posting.  I have made quinoa cakes a few times before, but I always just make it up as I go, so I never have a recipe to share.  I enjoy throwing quinoa cakes into a weeknight meal mix.  They aren't that quick to make from the start, but once you have to mixture made, they make a really quick dinner.  And I LOVE them with a green salad and a delicious dijon based vinaigrette.  As with any veggie based cake, they can be a little finicky and fall apart easily.  For the last 500 cakes that this recipes makes, I ended up heating oil in a non-stick skillet and then just putting an thin, even layer of the quinoa mixture over the entire skillet.  I crisped up the first side and then just kind of broke it up to flip it in pieces.  It isn't pretty.  But just as good.  And I was hungry.  PS:  These do NOT taste half as good without the salad and vinaigrette.  Necessary.

Lemon and Olive Quinoa Cakes

adapted from Joy the Baker

1 1/2 cups raw quinoa

2 1/4 cups water

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 large eggs, beaten

1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1/2 cup grated parmesan or Gruyere cheese

1/3 cup coarsely chopped green olives

1/3 cup chopped parsley or green onions

1 tablespoon lemon zest

1 cup panko bread crumbs

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 crushed red pepper flakes

1 tablespoon water

olive oil

In a medium saucepan place quinoa, water, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Place over medium heat and bring to a boil. Cover, decrease the heat, and simmer for about 20 minutes, until the quinoa is tender. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.

In a small bowl, whisk eggs and set aside. In a large bowl, toss together onion, garlic, cheese, olives, parsley, lemon zest, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, and cooled quinoa. Add beaten eggs and stir until all of the quinoa mixture is moistened.  Add water to thoroughly moisten mixture. Quinoa should be slightly wet so it doesn’t dry out during cooking.

Scoop out mixture by the 2 tablespoonful. Use clean, moist fingers to form into a patty. Create as many patties as you’d like.

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat olive oil. If you pan is large enough, add four to six patties to the hot pan. You’ll need a bit of room to successfully flip them.

Cook on each side until beautifully browned, about 4 to 5 minutes on each side. Low heat helps the quinoa cakes cook slowly. Brown on each side then remove to a paper towel lined plate.

Serve warm with a small spinach salad, or with scrambled eggs. Also, the quinoa mixture can be left, uncooked in the fridge for a few days. Cook as necessary.

(Servings: 6, Prep time: 45 min., Cook time: 30 min., Difficulty: Easy)

Printable Version

foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste):  8/10

Scot (taste):  8/10

Effort:  3/5

Dishwashing Effort:  3/5

Wilted Bitter Greens with Crispy Walnut Goat Cheese

Breaded goat cheese?  Please.  You know I made this within 24 hours of recipe access.

You know I ate two disks of goat cheese with enough bitter greens necessary to eat two disks of goat cheese.  I don't recommend that.  It is hard to digest two disks of goat cheese. 

But one serving of this is like...super wicked good.  What I love the most about this recipe is that I have more goat cheese patties frozen in my freezer.  And I can just whip those babies up anytime I want.  At any given time, you can guarantee that my freezer will be pretty empty.  We usually have frozen fruit and sometimes a pint of ice cream.  I am not that good about freezing stuff (but even worse about eating the stuff I have frozen).  I can't wait to eat the rest of these!

PS:  I just followed the recipe as is after completely freezing them for several days before using them.  They turned out great!

Wilted Bitter Greens with Crispy Walnut Goat Cheese

by Anne Burrell via Food Network

For Goat Cheese:

3/4 cup walnuts

4 slices Pullman loaf bread, or other tight crumb white bread, crusts removed

1/2 bunch fresh chives, finely chopped

1/2 bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

1 (11-ounce) log goat cheese, cut into 6 equal pieces

Kosher salt

2 eggs, beaten with 1 tablespoon water

For Salad:

Extra-virgin olive oil

1 shallot, minced

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

2 to 3 tablespoons sherry vinegar

1 head radicchio, cut into bite-size pieces

2 cups baby arugula, washed

2 heads Belgian endive, cut into 1/2-inch lengths crosswise

Directions

For the goat cheese: In a food processor, pulse the walnuts until they are coarsely chopped. Tear the bread into pieces and pulse in the food processor with the chopped walnuts until they become coarse breadcrumbs. Transfer the breadcrumb mixture to a wide, flat dish. Stir in the chopped chives and parsley. Flatten each piece of goat cheese into a disk and season with salt. Dip each disk in the beaten egg mixture and then coat with the breadcrumbs, packing the crumbs onto each disk. When all the goat cheese has been coated, chill them in the fridge for at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F.

To help facilitate the frying process, pop the disks in the freezer for 15 minutes before frying.

Coat a large, nonstick saute pan generously with olive oil and bring to a mediumhigh heat. Carefully fry the goat cheese disks in the hot oil on both sides until they are golden brown and crispy, about 2 minutes per side.

When all of the disks have been fried, keep them warm in the oven.

Remove the oil and any burned bits from the pan and give a splash of new oil. Reduce the heat to low, add the shallots to the pan, and let them cook as the pan cools slightly. Add the Dijon and sherry vinegar to the pan and whisk to combine. Add the radicchio, arugula, and endive and season with salt. Toss to fully incorporate with the vinaigrette and to allow the salad to slightly wilt. Taste to make sure it is delicious.

Divide the wilted salad between serving plates and top each salad with a goat cheese disk.

(Servings: 6, Prep time: 25 min., Inactive Prep time: 1 hr 15 min., Cook time: 25 min., Difficulty: Easy)

Printable Version

foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste):  9/10

Scot (taste):  7/10

Effort:  3/5

Dishwashing Effort:  3/5

Roasted Edamame Salad

Let's say I am trying to find out if there are more babies born each year in a particular month.  Or if there is a month where the least amount of babies are born.  How do you think I would go about that google search?

Option 1 - Short and Sweet

"babies born each month"

Option 2 - Old School

"babies + (common dates of conception or common date of births) + frequency"

Option 3 - In the Form of a Question

"Dear Google, 

How are you doing today?

I was just wondering, what is the most common month when babies are born?  While you are at it, what is the least common month?  

Hugs and Kisses, 

Shanon"

Option 4 - Start Broad, Click to Find More

"baby birth statistics"

What kind of searcher are YOU?  98% of the time my searches are in the form of a question.  While I do not write a letter to google each time I search, I do like to treat google as much like a human as possible.  Just like how I treat my dog.  It is called respect, people.  

If you were wondering, after some research, the answer to the questions seems to be that most babies are born in late fall.  The least amount of births happen somewhere in late winter/springish.  These are US statistics and are semi-unofficial.  But that seems to be the trend.  

Try this salad!  It is so good!  Roasting the edamame and corn makes it nutty and delicious.  This could also be eaten with tortilla chips as a salsa type thing.  

Roasted Edamame Salad

by Alton Brown via FoodNetwork

12 ounces fresh or frozen shelled edamame, about 2 cups

1/2 cup fresh corn kernels, about 2 ears of corn

1/4 cup finely diced scallion

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tablespoon olive oil

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 cup chopped fresh tomato

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Place the edamame, corn, scallion, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper into a 13 by 9 metal pan and stir to combine. Place on the middle rack of the oven and roast for 10 to 15 minutes, just until the edamame begins to brown. Remove from the oven and place in the refrigerator until completely cool, approximately 30 minutes.

Add the tomato, basil and vinegar to the edamame mixture and toss to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning, as desired. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

(Servings: 4, Prep/Cook time: 40 min., Chill time: 30 min., Difficulty: Easy)

Printable Version

foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste):  8/10

Scot (taste):  9/10

Effort:  2/5

Dishwashing Effort:  2/5

Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad with Pineapple Poppy Seed Vinaigrette

The salad is the most interesting combo in the universe.  When I read Joy's post about this salad she came up with, I couldn't wait to try it.  It is shaved (raw) Brussels sprouts with chunks of fresh pineapple, avocado, roasted macadamia nuts and French lentils and a pineapple poppy seed vinaigrette.  Fascinating.  Genius.  

Let me just give a little of my experience with the different components.  

Raw Brussels sprouts are good.  The closer you get to the core, the more bitter they taste.  But the bitterness is nice with the other parts of the salad.  Also, 8 cups?  Yikes, that is like a million.  I just got a regular amount.  

Pineapple.  It was actually on sale for me at my Whole Foods.  Even though I claim to be the best produce-picker-outer (including pineapples), the one I picked was pretty horrible.  However, it tasted great in the salad and still made a delicious dressing.  Who knew?

French Lentils.  Fancy lentils.  They are a pretty color.  But they taste the same to me.  Maybe they taste more muddy.  But in a good way.  Hard to explain.

Macadamia nuts.  Are AMAZING!  

As you can see, I did more of a lentil salad with shaved Brussels sprouts, pineapple, avocado and macadamia nuts on top.  This is mostly because I couldn't afford 8 cups of shaved Brussels sprouts.  But I liked the proportions.  Joy's proportions also look delicious.  Also, this dressing is a real winner.  And I am not usually a fan of sweet dressings.  

Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad with Pineapple Poppy Seed Vinaigrette

by Joy the Baker

8 cups raw Brussels sprouts ribbons (lay sprouts on their sides and sliced thin, creating green ribbons)

1/2 cup scallions, sliced from the white to the green

1/4 cup parsley, coarsely chopped

2 cups fresh pineapple chunks, sliced bite size

1 cup French Lentils, cooked

1 cup raw macadamia nuts, roasted in olive oil, salt, and pepper

1 cup avocado chunks

Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Toss raw macadamia nuts in 1 tablespoon olive oil and salt and pepper and roast for 12 to 14 minutes, until golden brown and fragrant. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.

Simmer one cup of French lentils in 3 cups of water. Simmer for 30 to 45 minutes, until just cooked through. Drain completely, drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper and set aside to cool completely.

Slice pineapple into bite size chunks.

Prepare salad dressing.

Slice avocado.

Just before serving the salad, toss together Brussels sprouts, scallions, parsley, pineapple, lentils, macadamia nuts and avocado chunks. Drizzle in dressing and toss well. Serve immediately.

(Servings: 6, Prep time: 1 hr., Difficulty: Easy)

Pineapple Poppy Seed Vinaigrette

1 1/2 to 2 cups fresh pineapple chunks

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar

1 tablespoons chopped scallions (the white portion)

1 small garlic clove, minced

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoon canola oil

2 teaspoons poppy seeds

salt and pepper to taste

Place fresh pineapple chunks in a food processor fitted with the blade attachment. Blend pineapple into a mostly smooth, frothy pulp. Place a fine mesh strainer over a medium bowl and press the pineapple puree through the strainer into the bowl. Scrape the bottom of the fine mesh strainer to get all the good bits. There will be just a bit of pineapple pulp in the fine mesh strainer when you’re done. You’ll have about 1 to 1 1/2 cups of juice/pulp.

In the the bowl of the food processor, combine juice/pump, honey, rice wine vinegar, scallions, garlic, and mustard. Pulse 5 times to incorporate. With the food processor on, slowly stream in the canola oil. Stop the food processor once the dressing is emulsified. Pour the dressing into a medium bowl and stir in poppy seeds, salt and pepper.

Salad dressing should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.

(Makes 2 cups)

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foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste):  8/10

Scot (taste):  9/10

Effort:  3/5

Dishwashing Effort:  3/5

Winter Kale Salad

This was a salad we had last week with the Rosti.  Although it is mostly a typical cheese, fruit, nut salad, I thought I would post it because of the raw kale.  Who knew you could eat a green like that raw and that it would still taste good?!?


You do need to take some extra care to remove all the stems.  But I just love eating a hearty green like this in the winter.  It is a nice change from a regular lettuce salad.  Also, I love pears!  Try this one!  In fact this whole meal was amazing.  

Winter Kale Salad

by Melissa D’Arabian via Food Network

1 small bunch of kale, stems removed, cut or torn into small pieces

1/4 cup pecans, toasted and chopped

1 green onion, chopped

1 pear, peeled and sliced

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Crumbled blue cheese, for garnish

Toss kale, pecans, green onion, and pear together in a medium bowl. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Drizzle vinegar then oil over the top. Toss and serve with a sprinkling of cheese.

(Servings: 4, Prep time: 15 min., Cook time: 0 min., Difficulty: Easy)

Printable Verison

foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste):  7/10

Scot (taste):  7/10

Effort:  1/5

Dishwashing Effort:  1/5

Paysanne Salad

While I was in LA (actually, in Long Beach), I met up with of my long-lost friends.  It was amazing.  And we ate at this little cafe, La Creperie, where I got this 'paysanne' salad.  It isn't clear to me if that is really a good name for this salad, but I just went with it.  

The salad is romaine lettuce, crispy potatoes, and bacon tossed in a Dijon vinaigrette and topped with a poached egg and toasted goat cheese.  

I first had fried potatoes in a salad while I was working on a school project in Mali, Africa.  My team and I worked in a village during the day and some of the younger women in the village would bring us lunch each day.  It was always some sort of meat in a sauce with rice.  But there was sometimes vegetables or something different.  My favorite variation to the norm was the lettuce with fried potatoes tossed in some sort of vinaigrette.  Unfortunately, we were strongly advised not to eat uncooked foods like lettuce so that we didn't get sick from the water it was washed with.  I live on the edge, so I would nibble on it.  I figured they might not even wash it in the village.  Anyways, I just love the idea of fried potatoes in salad.  

Paysanne Salad

For potatoes:

2 medium sized russet potatoes

3 tbsp of vegetable oil

1 tbsp butter

salt and pepper

For dressing:

1.5 tsp of Dijon mustard

1 tbsp of white wine vinegar

2 tbsp of balsamic vinegar

salt and pepper

3-6 tbsp of olive oil

For poached eggs:

4 eggs

1 tsp of white wine vinegar

For salad:

4 slices of bacon, cooked and chopped

2 heads of romaine lettuce, chopped

5 ounces of goat cheese

Start potatoes: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a large saute pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the potato cubes and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Saute stirring frequently, for 5 minutes. Turn the heat up to high, add the water, stir, and cover the pan with a lid. Steam the potatoes until the water evaporates, about 3 or 4 more minutes. (Every 1 to 2 minutes, open the lid long enough to stir the potatoes so they don't stick.) Lower the heat to medium, and saute another 1 to 2 minutes until all traces of water are gone. Toss in the butter and stir to coat the potatoes. Spread the potatoes out on a baking sheet. Bake in the oven until the potatoes are crisp and browned to your liking, about 15 to 25 minutes depending on how dark you want them.

Meanwhile, prepare the dressing: Whisk together the mustard, vinegars, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. While whisking, slowly add in the olive oil, to taste.

Poach the eggs: In a large, deep skillet or sauce pan, fill with water and bring to boil. Reduce to simmer. Add vinegar. Poach one egg at a time for 4-5 minutes. Place in cool water bath while cooking the others.

To assemble salad: Toss half the lettuce, half the potatoes, and half the bacon with some vinaigrette. Put on plate. Top with two poached eggs and half the goat cheese (formed into a round ball). Optional: toast the goat cheese with a torch. Repeat for second salad.

(Servings: 2, Prep time: 10 min., Cook tie: 1 hour, Difficulty: Intermediate)

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foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste):  7/10

Scot (taste):  7/10

Effort:  3/5

Dishwashing Effort:  3/5

Seared Steak and Mushrooms on Mixed Greens with Asian Ginger Dressing

We really enjoyed this salad.  We got great quality (expensive) ribeye steaks from Whole Foods.  They were amazing.  And I used Alton Brown's method for cooking them.  They came out perfect.  

This asian ginger dressing is also delicious.  It is very strong, so dress the salads lightly.  And I like having the mushrooms on the salad (as long as they are cooked!)  

Sorry vegetarians for showing red meat in all its glory.  (If you are going to cheat, go for the steak!  :)

Seared Steak and Mushrooms on Mixed Greens with Asian Ginger Dressing

adapted from Bon Appétit and Alton Brown

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar

2 teaspoons vegetable oil, plus extra for steak and mushrooms

1 tablespoon grated peeled fresh ginger

1 garlic clove, grated

Sriracha, to taste

1/8 teaspoon sesame oil

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

8 ounces crimini (baby bella) mushrooms, sliced

2 12-ounce rib-eye steaks

1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds

8 cups mixed greens

salt and pepper

*Rib-eye steak is also known as Delmonico steak, Spencer steak, or New York strip. It's sometimes called a boneless rib eye, because the steak is a sliced prime rib with the bone removed.

Place 10 to 12-inch cast iron skillet in oven and heat oven to 500 degrees. Bring steak(s) to room temperature.

Mix soy sauce, rice vinegar, vegetable oil, grated ginger, grated garlic, Sriracha, and sesame oil in small bowl. Add cilantro and stir to blend. Set dressing aside. Heat vegetable oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms; sauté until browned, about 8 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer sautéed mushrooms to plate.

When oven reaches temperature, remove pan and place on range over medium heat. Coat steak lightly with oil and season both sides with a generous pinch of salt. Grind on black pepper to taste.

Immediately place steaks in the middle of hot, dry pan. Cook 30 seconds without moving. Turn with tongs and cook another 30 seconds, then put the pan straight into the oven for 2 minutes. Flip steak and cook for another 2 minutes. (This time

is for medium rare steaks. If you prefer medium, add a minute to both of the oven turns.) Remove steak from pan, cover loosely with foil, and rest for 3-5 minutes.

Transfer steaks to cutting board. Slice steaks. Toss mixed greens with dressing in large bowl; divide greens among plates. Top with steak slices and mushrooms and serve.

(Servings: 4, Prep time: 30 min., Cook time: 30 min., Difficulty: Easy)

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foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste):  7/10

Scot (taste):  7/10

Effort:  2/10

Dishwashing Effort:  2/5