Tag Archives: tomato

Cheese Dishes, Easy to Prepare, Egg Dishes, Main Courses, Recipes, Salads, Sauces and Condiments

California Cobb Salad with Green Goddess Dressing

Green Goddess Dressing © Photo by Angela GunderI love a good story, and with a name like “Green Goddess” you know there’s a bit of a tale lingering around.  An almost kitschy throwback to the 1920s and 30s, the dressing is a zesty combination of fresh herbs, anchovies and sour cream, enlivened by a little bit of lemon juice.  The name supposedly originates from the Palace Hotel in San Francisco where the dressing was made as a tribute to the hit play, “The Green Goddess,” and alas, a star was born.

My guess is that the popularity of this gem died down with the waning of favor over anchovies – a pity, really, in that the flavor profile of anchovies themselves are addictive.  If people can down caesar dressing by the gallon, what’s the deal with hating on anchovies?  It’s plain malarkey.

The recipe for this dressing is a riff off a version from Food and Wine Magazine used to dress a chicken salad.  My husband took a look at the picture and said, “This would be great without all of that other mess around it.” “So you mean just the dressing?” “Yeah, pretty much.”  After a few tweaks to the recipe and a bed of greens, we were cooking with gas.

California Cobb Salad © Photo by Angela GunderSo where does a nostalgic dressing trip down memory lane take us.  To a salad with just as much historical presence. 1930 at the Hollywood Brown Derby heralded the chefery of Robert Cobb and Chuck Wilson – apparently the owner Cobb wandered around the kitchen looking for something awesome to eat and threw together a crazy amalgamation of greens, bacon, eggs, avocado and blue cheese.  I can appreciate a late-night scrounge for munchies, if I do say so myself.

In plating this salad, I love a careful presentation of each ingredient segmented into its own section.  Something about the vibrant colors in their own spots just waiting to be mixed together with the lovely dressing is an impressor and a half.  As you know, it’s all about the presentation…says the designer.

Recipe for

California Cobb Salad with Green Goddess Dressing

Ingredients
1/2 c. of parsley leaves, loosely packed
1/2 c. of basil leaves
1/4 c. of chopped dill
4 sprigs of tarragon, leaves removed and chopped
1 sprig of oregano, leaves removed and chopped
1 c. of mayonnaise
zest of 1 lemon
juice of half a lemon
1/4 c. of chopped chives
salt and pepper to taste

mixed greens (baby romaine is fun)
3 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
2 perfectly hard-boiled eggs, diced
4 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 avocado, diced
1/2 c. of crumbled blue cheese
1 boneless skinless chicken breast, halved lengthwise into two cutlets
1 tbs. of olive oil
1 tbs. of herbes des provence

Begin by making the dressing – add all of the herbs except for the chives to the food processor, along with the garlic, lemon zest and juice.  Blitz until finely chopped and then add the mayo.  Blitz again to blend and then remove to a bowl.  Stir in the chives and then season with salt and pepper.  Chill.

Heat the olive oil in a skillet.  While that warms, season the chicken with the herbes des provence and salt and pepper.  Sear the chicken until it is cooked through and browned on both sides.  Remove from pan and let cool slightly.  Cube chicken and set aside.

Grab a large platter and make a bed of greens.  Arrange the tomatoes, chopped eggs, chopped bacon, avocado, blue cheese and chicken in a pretty splay.  Right before serving, toss the salad and top with the Green Goddess dressing.  Tuck in and get down.

Breakfast and Brunch, Egg Dishes, Recipes

Breakfast Tacos with Potatoes, Chorizo and Egg

Breakfast Taco with Potatoes, Chorizo and Egg © Photo by Angela GunderSay what you will about Texas, but they get things absolutely right when it comes to fast food – chiefly, above all else, the glory of Taco Cabana.  The name is so misleading in its plebian nature, while the franchise dishes out tasty fillings in tender, pliant tortillas.  May all the Taco Bells be stricken from the earth in place of this bastion of tex mex wonders.

I first had Taco Cabana on a trip to Austin City Limits – the hubby and I woke up early at the hotel and decided to forage for breakfast.  We wandered out of the hotel and found a shopping center with a closed Whole Foods and a very open Taco Cabana.  With the best of intentions, we ordered a dozen mixed breakfast tacos in the hopes of bringing back the bounty to our friends back at the hotel.  But no – we lapsed into total food amensia and ate every single taco without even realizing what we were doing.  Dennis and I stared at each other in wonderment after attacking the mass of eggs, beans, potatoes, chorizo and cheese.  It was just so good, we devoured the goodness with no hesitation.

In that I don’t find myself in Texas too often (read: ever), I had to find a way to get my breakfast taco fix at home.  I’d be lying if I told you that I actually eat this for breakfast though.  This is the kind of home cooking that is thrown together at midnight and eaten directly from the kitchen island standing up.  Utensils be damned, eating this dish transports us back to that day where we found some serious goodness in a Texas parking lot in a moment of unexpected perfection.

Recipe for

Breakfast Tacos with Potatoes, Chorizo and Egg

Ingredients
2 medium potatoes, cubed
3 cloves of garlic, smashed
1 tsp. of salt

1 lb. of fresh chorizo (pork or beef)
6 eggs
flour or corn tortillas

chopped tomato
shredded cheese
salsa
cilantro
chopped onion

Add potatoes, garlic and salt to a small saucepan and cover with water.  Heat on high and boil until potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork.  Drain and set aside.

In a large skillet, cook the chorizo, breaking up the large pieces with a spatula.  When the meat is just about cooked through, add the potatoes and allow them to crisp up with the chorizo.  Set aside.

In another skillet, heat 1 tbs. of olive oil on medium.  Scramble your eggs in small bowl and slip into the pan with the oil.  Turn the heat to medium low and gently push the eggs around the pan, allowing curds to slowly form.

Assemble your taco by scooping some of the chorizo and potatoes onto a warmed tortilla.  Top with eggs and a bit of the condiments of your choosing – Dennis likes shredded cheddar, but I love a bit of cilantro, tomato and onion.  Dab with a bit of salsa and eat with reckless abandon.

Lighten Up, Recipes, Salads, Side Dishes, Vegan Dishes, Vegetarian Dishes

Purple Potatoes Vinaigrette

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This salad is the perfect tribute to summer, giving traditional mayo-laden potato salad a run for the money.  Tender potatoes soak in a vibrant dressing full of basil and garlic, imparting mounds of flavor.  Give this one a twirl at your next barbecue – it’s the perfect partner to grilled meats.

Purple Potatoes Vinaigrette

1 lb of purple creamer potatoes, halved
4 tbs. of pesto, homemade or jarred (here’s a recipe for Watercress Pesto)
2 tbs. of red wine vinegar
1/3 c. of olive oil
1 cl. of garlic, minced
salt and pepper (to taste)
3 plum tomatoes, diced

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Drop in potatoes and then cook until fork tender. Drain the potatoes well and toss into the fridge to cool.

Whisk the pesto, vinegar, olive oil and garlic. Toss potatoes with tomatoes and dressing. Taste for salt and pepper. Serve.

Cheese Dishes, Meat Dishes, Pasta Dishes, Recipes

Lasagna Bolognese

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This one, my darlings, is a labor of love.  With a toothsome, slow-simmering bolognese in the style of Marcella Hazan (which some might even call blasphemy for even mentioning her name in conjunction with a sauce that is not her exact recipe – to which I proffer that there are as many bolognese recipes as there are mammas in Bologna making their personal “secret” recipes) and a creamy bechamel in lieu of layer of ricotta and mozzarella, this true take on lasagne bolognese is something special.

Don’t be deferred by the time it takes to make this (at least 5 hours) and the list of ingredients – you’ll have lasagna for 6-8 comfortably, plus extra bolognese to dress around two pounds of pasta, so expect to not have to cook for some time afterwards while relishing in the glorious Italian leftovers.  The only time saver in the bunch comes in the form of the no-boil lasagna sheets – these babies, though instant, are lovely in their thin, delicate texture.  Much better than dealing with blubbery, curly edged classic lasagna noodles and far more refined in taste.  Though this is work, it’s very rewarding, and those that get to sample a bit will make you realize that maybe all that time was well worth it. Continue reading Lasagna Bolognese →

Appetizers and Small Plates, Lighten Up, Recipes, Sauces and Condiments, Vegan Dishes, Vegetarian Dishes

Fresh Tomato Salsa

There’s something to be a said for a good recipe passed on from trusted cook to trusted cook.  Finding one of these gems is truly like finding a hidden treasure – the question is whether you’ll share once you do.  Given that I’m not at all proprietary, and I love the fact that these posts get you guys cooking, eating and sharing in turn, how could I not pass it on!

This one comes from my grandmother, Vo, who was given this recipe by a friend, who in turn received it from her grandmother – the same recipe that she used back in Mexico.  Something as seemingly pedestrian as salsa becomes a celebration of the sweetness of ripe tomatoes and the piquant flavor of jalapeno.  I was surprised to learn that there’s nary the lime or bit of oil in this one – just veggies and goodness. Continue reading Fresh Tomato Salsa →

Main Courses, Meat Dishes, Recipes, Rice Dishes

Porcupine Meatballs (Italian Beef Meatballs with Rice)

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Nope, no bits of real porcupine in this one.  Just a good ole-fashioned Italian meatball recipe with the inclusion of rice – imagine the filling for stuffed peppers as a standalone dish.  That’s the goodness that is this porcupine free recipe.

This one holds a very special place in my heart as it is, on record, my first memory of ever cooking anything by myself.  As a means of breaking me into the long line of great female cooks in our family, my grandmother and mother purchased me a cookbook for kids when I was 9 or 10.  I remember pouring through the pages, wanting to be a part of the group of kids in the test kitchen pictured creating and devouring the many recipes.  I particularly like the cooked dishes – the idea that I could be responsible for more than a PBJ cut with a cookie-cutter was exhilarating.  One of the recipes, called “Porcupine Meatballs” was particularly interesting to me and seemingly edible for the family, so my mom said that it’d be a good one to start with. Continue reading Porcupine Meatballs (Italian Beef Meatballs with Rice) →

Easy to Prepare, Lighten Up, Main Courses, Poultry Dishes, Recipes

Lemon Chicken Shish Kebab

I really love making shish kebab – it’s always praised effusively when made for friends and that pay off comes with very little work.  Buy a bunch of veggies and a little meat, let them hang in some herbs and spices, thread on skewers, grill or broil and call it a day.  This marinade could not be any easier, and best of all, is made with such common pantry staples, you don’t have to do any special shopping ahead of time to get this one on the table.

The best part is that you can absolutely do what you like when making this – if you prefer red meat to chicken, substitute cubes of beef tenderloin or tender lamb.   Like seafood better?  Try this recipe with cubes of swordfish threaded on skewers, separated by bay leaves instead of the vegetables.  It makes a hearty, savory alternative to the traditional red meat or chicken.  And of course, you can bypass the meat altogether and just go with the veggies alone.  Use whatever assortment of vegetables that look the best in the grocery, or are on hand in your fridge – eggplant and squash also make excellent additions.  It’s all good!

Serve these gems with a squeeze of lemon and a side of fluffy rice or pita.  No fuss, no muss and people will swoon for the fresh preparation and bright ingredients.  It’s such a winner, you’ve just gotta try it.

Recipe for

Lemon Chicken Shish Kebab

Ingredients
1 lb. of boneless, skinless chicken breast
2 tbs. of olive oil
1 tsp. of garlic powder
1/2 tsp. of onion powder
1 tsp. of paprika
1/4 tsp. of black pepper
1/2 tsp. of kosher salt
zest and juice of 1 lemon
2 cl. of garlic

whole mushrooms (white or crimini)
1 red bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
1 onion
cherry tomatoes
zest of 1 lemon
2 tbs. of olive oil
black pepper
1 tsp of salt

Cut chicken into 1 inch cubes and place in a tupperware.  On a clean cutting board, loosely chop garlic and then sprinkle the kosher salt on top.  Using the blade of your knife, drag it across the garlic to mash it into the salt, forming a paste.  Add garlic paste to chicken, along with the olive oil, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, black pepper, lemon zest and lemon juice.  Stir well and place in the fridge to marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours.

Remove chicken from fridge and let rest on the counter while you prep the veggies.  Clean mushrooms with a damp paper towel and place in a bowl.  Add your cherry tomatoes to the bowl.  Cut red and green pepper into 1 inch chunks and add to the mushrooms.  Next, cut onion into 1 inch chunks, making sure to keep the slices of onion together as best you can.  Set aside, separate from the mushrooms, peppers and tomatoes.  In the veggie bowl, add the lemon zest, olive oil, black pepper and salt.  Toss to combine flavors.

Get out some skewers – if you are using bamboo skewers, make sure to soak them in water first to prevent them from burning.  Thread the chicken and vegetables onto the skewers, alternating between meat and veggies.  Place skewers on a tray to hang out while you continue to assemble the shish kebab.

Lightly grease a grill or a grill pan with canola oil or Pam for grilling and heat to smoking.  Turn heat down to medium and cook kebabs until veggies are charred and chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes per side.  Serve.

Appetizers and Small Plates, Meat Dishes, Recipes

Albondigas (Spanish Meatballs)

If good Sicilians love the joys of a meatball, then it’s no surprise that good cooking Sicilians know how to whip one up with class.  Consider me a fan, nay a fanatic, of the meatball.  So much so that I love them in all shapes and forms, from the Vietnamese variety as delicious Bo Vien in a steaming bowl of pho, to this recipe for piquant albondigas, Spanish meatballs flavored with paprika and cooked in a red pepper and sherry sauce.  For you red sauce fanatics out there, this one is a lovely change of pace.

Albondigas are often found as part of tapas, a collection of small plates of both hot and cold nibbles hailing from Spain.  These are served in sauce in a small clay dish with nary a bit of pasta or rice as accompaniment.  As such, you’ll probably want to get a good-quality, crusty loaf of bread to use to sop up this absolutely delicious sauce.  Throw in a dish of garlicky olives, manchego cheese, marinated mushrooms, and manchego cheese for a simple Spanish spread.  Or make a few other cooked tapas, like a Tortilla Española (a simple Egg and Potato omlette) or Pollo al Ajillo (chicken sauteed with garlic and sherry), and feast like a champion matador minus the unnecessary bull-slaying.  Olé!

The real trick to these guys, as with most meatballs, is to sear them very well before plunking them into your sauce of choice for slow-cooking.  Doing this allows the meatballs to keep their shape, seal in the juices, and allow them to become meltingly tender after cooking.  You want them dark brown before adding to the sauce to keep things awesome.  And for you, I want nothing less than awesome.

Recipe for

Albondigas (Spanish Meatballs)

Ingredients
1 lb. of ground pork
1 lb. of ground beef
3 cl. of garlic, minced
3 tbs. of chopped flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
1 tbs. of fresh oregano, chopped
1/4 tsp. of paprika
1/4 tsp. of black pepper
2 tsp. of salt
1/4 of a large onion, finely chopped
1/4 c. of bread crumbs
1 egg
1 tsp. of worchestershire sauce
2 tbs. of olive oil

24 oz. jar of piquillo peppers, drained (can use roasted reds instead)
1 16.5 oz. can of stewed tomatoes
2 tbs. of olive oil
1 tbs. of sherry
salt and pepper

1/2. c. of chicken broth
1/2 c. of dry white wine

Preheat the oven to 400°.

Add pork, beef, garlic, parsley, oregano, pepper, salt, onion and worchestershire sauce to a large bowl and mix well.  Mix in egg and bread crumbs and set aside.  Wash hands well and then wet them thoroughly.  Scoop out about 2-3 heaping tablespoons into your hand and roll into a ball.  Place on a plate and continue to roll meatballs.

To a food processor or blender, add the piquillo peppers, the tomatoes with juice,two tbs. of olive oil and the sherry.  Pulse until smooth.  Taste for salt and pepper and season accordingly.  Pour mixture into a dutch oven and put over medium-low heat to simmer.

Heat the remaining 2 tbs. of olive oil in a skillet.  In batches, brown the meatballs on all sides, making sure to sear them well.  As they finish, add them to the piquillo pepper sauce.  When all meatballs are browned an the skillet is still hot, carefully add the white wine to the pan.  As the wine reduces, scrape up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan.  Add the chicken broth and continue to reduce by half.  Pour liquid into the pot with the piquillo sauce and meatballs.  Cover dutch oven and place into the oven.  Bake for 40 minutes, checking after a half an hour to make sure that the sauce hasn’t thickened too much.  If it looks as if there is no liquid left, add a 1/2 c. of water, recover and cook for the last 15 minutes.

To serve, remove albondigas to a dish and top with the piquillo pepper sauce.  Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve.

Baked Goods, Cakes, Pies and Tarts, Desserts, Easy to Prepare, Recipes, Vegetarian Dishes

Sweet Tomato Tart

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Tomato lovers rejoice, for now you can celebrate these delicious orbs of sweet majesty at all meals.  This is truly the ultimate tomato dessert given that a) there aren’t too many others in competition and b) it is as simple as it is wondrous.  “Tomatoes for dessert?!?” you scoff.  What better way to enjoy the sweetness of a tomato than in a simple tart brushed with currant jam until a rich, garnet color and then baked just enough to release the natural juices and crisp up the delicious tart crust?  You’re welcome.

Sweet Tomato Tart © Spice or Die

I first had this dessert with my mom at the restaurant Tosca in DC, and after the first bite, we totally understood how commonsensical it was to use tomatoes for dessert, particularly heirlooms.  For those that don’t know – there are two main types of tomatoes: heirlooms and hybrids.  Hybrids are the most common – they grown all year round and produce several crops of tomatoes throughout the growing season.  The tomatoes (and sorry if I am getting dorky here) are created through self-pollination, meaning that a farmer/scientist/botanist/whatever can control what specific traits that the tomato’s offspring will harbor.  This has resulted in hardy, disease-fighting tomatoes that can be enjoyed whenever and wherever.

The rarer heirloom tomato is created through open-pollination, as occurs in nature – bees and other pollinators pass on genetic traits from various types of tomatoes, resulting in wild cross breeds that are hard to genetically track and control.  The tomatoes come in wild arrays of colors, shapes and sizes, and typically only give off a single crop per growing season.  They can be bumpy, even ugly on the outside (some grocery stores actually call them “ugly tomatoes”, but cut into one and you’ll find the juiciest, sweetest flesh that you could possibly imagine.  These are the tomatoes that make people fall in love with them.  They are our oldest tomatoes as well – many of the strains were grown by the indigenous peoples of not only the continent of North America, but also around the world.

For this recipe, I encourage you to go out and find some heirloom tomatoes that look special to you – pick a fun color like the dark purple of a Black Krim, or the sunshine bright Brandywine Yellow.  You could even try one of the striped varieties for a best-of-both-worlds situation.  They’re really worth a trip to the Farmer’s Market just to check them out.  Of course, if you can’t find heirlooms, you can absolutely make this tart with a juicy, meaty hybrid tomato – just find the best ones available and treat them lovingly when assembling the tart.  It’s all good at the end of the day!

 

Sweet Tomato Tart

1 pie crust (can also use puff pastry)
2 medium-sized heirloom tomatoes (any color, can also use hybrid)
5 tbs. of red currant jam
4 tbs. of raw sugar (can substitute light brown sugar)

Preheat your oven to 400°.

Slice tomatoes as paper-thin as possible (thick tomatoes won’t cook properly) and carefully lay them on a paper towel to dry them a bit.  You’ll want enough slices to cover the pie crust in one even, semi-overlapping layer.

In a small saucepan over medium low heat, melt the currant jam.  If the jam has pieces of currants in it, strain them out.  You can actually save these little currant pieces as a topping for ice cream or a sweet treat.  I actually use them like caviar (ha!) on top of a cracker spread with my mock boursin cheese recipe for a little taste of sweet and savory combined.

Roll your pie crust out into a 9″ tart pan, making sure not to tear any holes.  Lay your tomatoes out on the crust in overlapping concentric circles, making sure that the whole thing is pretty and even.  Using a pastry brush, apply a generous layer of the melted currant jam over the tomatoes.  Sprinkle the sugar on top.

Place the tart in the oven and bake until the crust is golden and the tomatoes are bubbly and a lovely red, about 15-20 minutes.  Let rest until warm and serve with ice cream – maybe a lovely scoop of basil gelato?

Main Courses, Poultry Dishes, Recipes, Rice Dishes

Chicken Burritos

This burrito recipe comes from one of my all time favorite hole-in-the-wall joints, El Toro Partido, in Hamilton Heights.  Down the hill from where I work at City College, this bustling Mexican outpost dishes out sumptuous and authentic plates that are as gorgeous as the decor is not.  Probably my favorite dish on the menu (aside from the spicily divine green sauce and corny tortilla chips) is the chicken burrito.  I know, I know – you’re saying right now what could be so glamorous about this burrito?  For me, above all of the other perfectly seasoned toppings, is the inclusion of savory shreds of oaxaca cheese.  Almost like a Mexican mozzarella, oaxaca is nutty and stretchy and delicious – kind of the same consistency of Polly-O string cheese, but high brow.  If you’ve not tried it before, you definitely need to get on some. Continue reading Chicken Burritos →