FATTOUSH

This has been my year to focus on Middle Eastern Food. I love the combinations of fresh ingredients and herbs. My new cook book Jerusalem by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi has been amazing, not only to cook from but it is a great read too.

My favorite salad from the cook book is a spinach and date salad that I made here. My second favorite salad came from a recipe in Eating Well, and it is for fattoush. Pita halves are sprinkled with sumac and toasted until golden and crisp. Broken pieces and added to romaine and diced vegetables. Thinly sliced mint rounds it out and it is tossed with a very light dressing of lemon juice, olive oil and sumac. This is the perfect summer salad and in a few months almost all of the ingredients will be growing in my garden!

FATTOUSH

      2 6-inch whole-wheat pitas, split

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

1 1/4 teaspoons ground sumac, (see note), divided

1/4 cup lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1 large head romaine lettuce, coarsely chopped

2 large tomatoes, diced

2 small salad cucumbers, or 1 large cucumber, seeded and diced (peeled if desired)

1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion

1/3 cup thinly sliced fresh mint

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Place pita halves rough-side up on a large baking sheet. Brush with 1 tablespoon oil and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon sumac. Bake until the pita halves are golden and crisp, about 15 minutes. When cool, break into bite-size pieces.

     Whisk lemon juice, salt, pepper and the remaining 2 tablespoons oil and 1/4 teaspoon sumac in a      large  bowl. Add lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, onion, mint and the pita pieces; toss to coat. Let 

     stand for 15 minutes before serving.      

    Recipe from Eating Well

CHOCOLATE TOFU ICE CREAM

Chocolate Tofu Ice Cream...I can't believe I said that, made that, and loved that! It was our Food Matters Project recipe for the week. The recipe was chosen by Meg of Fledgling Foodie. No eggs, or cream, just four ingredients and better than regular ice cream.

I used dark chocolate from Trader Joe's, sugar, vanilla, and soft, silken tofu. In less than 10 minutes this was in the ice cream maker and ready to go. The tofu gave it a smooth, creamy texture. Right out of the ice cream maker it tasted like a cross between rich pudding and chocolate ice cream. That was our favorite time to eat it. After sitting in the freezer it hardened and was delicious too, only not as silky and creamy.

This will be my go-to recipe from now on. It is perfect for a dinner party, just turn on the ice cream maker when you sit down for dinner. It is really rich so a small amount goes a long way making it perfect to serve in a pretty shot glass, demitasse or a small martini glass.

For other takes on this recipe visit our blog here.

CHOCOLATE TOFU ICE CREAM

3/4 cup sugar

1 pound soft silken tofu

8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, melted

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Combine the sugar with 3/4 cup water in a small saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves. Let it cool a bit.

Put all of the ingredients (including the sugar syrup) in a blender and puree until it is completely smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides if necessary. Freeze in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's instruction. Or transfer the mixture to an airtight container and freeze until it is firm, at least 4 hours; then break into chunks and puree in the food processor. Or simply let thaw a bit and eat as soon as it's scoopable.

Recipe by Mark Bittman

SALMON WITH ORANGE-CHILI HOLLANDAISE SAUCE

This was truly an amazing hollandaise sauce. It came together is a very interesting way. Our Food Matters Project recipe for this week was chosen by Sandra of Meadows Cooks. Sandra chose Mark Bittman's recipe for Japanese Spiced Roasted Beets. The recipe has you make a blend of pepper, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, orange zest and chili powder. You toss it with roasted beets or as Mark suggests, parsnips, potatoes, or squash. I made the spice blend but I didn't have "chili powder" in the traditional blend you find in markets but I did have California Chili Powder. I'm not sure what kind of chili was used but my blend was really spicy! I couldn't see it working with vegetables. It was spicy but had a great orange taste from the zest. I had planned on serving it on potatoes but I knew it wasn't going to taste good and I was serving it with a beautiful piece of baked salmon. So I went into rescue mode and I kept thinking about hollandaise. This blend was screaming "add me to hollandaise sauce". So I did and my husband declared this the best sauce I have ever made! In keeping with our healthy way of eating I only put a schmear of hollandaise on the side but let's just say... his was swimming in it.

I winged this recipe but here is what I did. Sliced orange under the salmon, coated the salmon with olive oil, salt and pepper and topped the salmon with sliced orange.

Baked in a 350~ oven for 20 minutes.

I made my fool proof hollandaise recipe which is Julia Childs recipe and you can find it here. Instead of adding the cayenne pepper I added a tablespoon of the spice blend here, 2 tablespoons orange juice and 1 tablespoon lemon juice.

This was (as I said) a rescue, if any of our members have leftover spice blend I highly recommend adding it to hollandaise. If you just want an amazing hollandaise sauce skip the blend and just add orange zest, orange juice, lemon juice and real chili powder or 1 pureed chipotle.

MARINATED FENNEL AND GRAPEFRUIT SALAD

This salad was inspired by Camilla from Culinary Adventures with Camilla. Camilla chose Mark Bittman's recipe for Stir-Fried Fennel and Pink Grapefruit for our Food Matters Project this week. I had never thought of using fennel and grapefruit together. It really works! Instead of a stir-fry I made a salad. I pulled up the last of the fennel growing wild on our hill and marinated it in lemon juice, lemon zest and olive oil. After marinating for 20 minutes the fennel is tossed with grapefruit segments, and topped with mint leaves, fennel fronds, goat cheese and a little more olive oil. A wonderful combination of flavors! I served it along side Grilled Swordfish with Lemon, Mint and Basil.

Camilla has Mark's recipe with the shrimp in it here. For other variations on Mark's recipe please visit the Food Matters Project.

MARINATED FENNEL AND GRAPEFRUIT SALAD

 

• 1 large fennel bulb with fronds
• 1 tsp. lemon zest
• 2 Tbs. lemon juice
• 2 Tbs. olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 1 ruby grapefruit
• 2-3 oz. soft young goat cheese (like chevre)
• 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves

1. Remove the stems from the fennel bulb.  Reserve 2 Tbs. of fennel fronds from the stems, and either discard or save the rest for another use (it makes a good bed for baking a fillet of fish on top of).  Halve and cut the core out of the fennel bulb, then slice the fennel extremely thinly with either a mandoline or a very sharp knife.
2. Toss the fennel with the lemon zest, juice, and olive oil, plus a couple pinches of salt and a couple grinds of black pepper.  Set the fennel aside to marinate at room temperature for 15-20 minutes.
3. While the fennel is marinating, cut the peel and pith off of the grapefruit and cut between the membranes to remove the segments.
4. When the fennel is done marinating, toss it gently with the grapefruit segments and spread them out on a serving platter or in a shallow serving bowl.  Crumble the goat cheese over the salad, and sprinkle the salad with the mint leaves and the fennel fronds.  If you wish, drizzle the salad with a bit more olive oil and additional salt and pepper before serving, and then go ahead and serve.

Recipe from Five and Spice.

CHICKPEA SALAD WITH CASHEW CHUTNEY

This week Jessica of Cheese Please is our Food Matters Project host. Jessica chose Mark Bittman's recipe for Chickpea Salad with Cashew Chutney. The recipe is quick and quite tasty. Cashews are toasted with cumin seeds and a dried Thai chili. All that goes in the blender with some garlic to make a finely ground mixture. It's then mixed with chickpeas, fresh mango, lime juice, and cilantro. The yogurt on top tempers the spice and gives it a delightful creaminess. It was the perfect side to a roasted chicken.

You can find the recipe at Jessica's blog here. Our other members take on this recipe can be found here.

MEDITERRANEAN COBB SALAD

This very tasty salad was chosen by our Food Matters Project host Sara of Pidge's Pantry. Mark Bittman put a healthy twist on the traditional Cobb salad and tops it with a caper-anchovy-parsley dressing that puts this salad in my top 10 best salads ever. 

I followed Mark's recipe but added olives, boiled potatoes, avocado, and some shaved fennel. The dressing is made by putting oil, vinegar, parsley and capers in the blender for only 30 seconds. So easy, so good, and perfect for subbing your favorite ingredients.

MEDITERRANEAN COBB SALAD

1/3 cup olive oil

2 TBSP. wine vinegar

2-3 anchovy fillets, with a bit of their oil (or use more capers)

1 TBSP. capers, with a bit of their brine

2 TBSP. chopped fresh parsley

Black pepper

8 cups chopped romaine lettuce

1 cup cooked or canned chickpeas or white beans

2 ripe tomatoes, chopped

1 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced

3 hard boiled eggs, chopped

1 avocado, cubed

olives

Gorgonzola cheese

Combine the oil, vinegar, anchovies, capers, parsley, and black pepper in a blender and blend to a creamy emulsion, about 30 seconds. Taste and add more vinegar or pepper is desired.

Put the romaine in the center of a large platter and mound the ingredients around. Just before serving, drizzle the top with the vinaigrette, toss at the table and serve.

Recipe adapted from Mark Bittman

SUPER-LEMONY GARBANZO BEANS

This delicious Middle Eastern side dish was inspired by our Food Matters Project recipe this week. Aura from Dinner With Aura chose this weeks recipe Super-Lemony Kidney Beans by Mark Bittman. I substituted garbanzo beans for the kidney beans, left out the tomato paste and chile and sprinkled sumac over the finished dish. This recipe has a method for making "quick" preserved lemon. Normally when I make preserved lemons it's a month long waiting period however I have to say, Mark's quick method is pretty darn good. This recipe for the quick preserved lemons makes enough for leftovers. Keep a jar in the refrigerator, they get better with age and will keep for months. I love adding chopped preserved lemons to a pan sauce to serve over roast chicken or fish, or add some finely chopped lemons to hummus, gives it an extra kick!

These beans made a nice side dish for Turkish Lamb & Eggplant Kebabs.

You can find Mark's recipe using kidney beans on Aura's blog here and for our other members take of the recipe click here.

SUPER-LEMONY GARBANZO BEANS

6 lemons

Salt

1 onion chopped

2 TBSP. minced garlic

1 TBSP. cumin seeds

1 TBSP. mustard seeds

4 cardamon pods

1 cinnamon stick

1 pound garbanzo or chickpeas (rinsed and soaked over night)

Ground sumac for garnish

Heat the oven to 325~. Trim the ends from 4 of the lemons; quarter them, remove the seeds, and put them (rind included) in a food processor. Add the juice of the remaining 2 lemons to the food processor (again, without the seeds) along with 2 tsp. salt. Pulse several times to chop the lemons into bits but don't puree. Put the mixture in a jar and leave it on the counter while you cook the beans; shake it every once in a while.

Put the oil in a large ovenproof pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, 3-5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for about a minute more. Stir in the cumin, mustard seeds, cardamom pods, and cinnamon stick. 

Add the garbanzo beans and water to cover by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil, cover the pot, and bake for about 2 hours. After 2 hours, stir the beans and check to see if they are tender. Cook a little longer if they are not tender and make sure the beans are covered by 1 inch of water. When the beans are tender add 1/2 cup of the preserved lemons. Cover and continue cooking for another 30 minutes.

When the beans are completely tender and the liquid has thickened, fish out the cinnamon stick and cardamom pods. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding pepper, salt, and more lemons if you like.

Serve, garnished with ground sumac.

Beans can be made ahead of time and kept refrigerated for several days. Gently reheat before serving.

Recipe adapted from Mark Bittman