Sasha's Kitchen: Herbed Goat Cheese Salad with Strawberries

Goat cheese is one of my favorite foods, and I especially love it in a salad, when it is breaded and warm, the way they do it in good restaurants.  It's actually not that hard to achieve the same result at home by using the proper technique.  This salad, with a homemade basil dijon vinaigrette is enhanced by any seasonal fruit, but this time of year, it is great with fresh local strawberries, which can be arranged outside the perimeter of the salad for a pretty presentation.  This recipe serves four as an appetizer, or two as a dinner salad.


Sasha's Herbed Goat Cheese Salad
5 oz salad mesculin greens
sliced fresh strawberries
9 T canola oil
1 T dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, diced
3 T red wine vinegar
1 T finely diced basil
4 oz herbed goat cheese, cut into four rounds (I used Vermont Butter & Cheese Creamery)
2 egg whites
1/3 cup panko bread crumbs

First, slice the goat cheese into four rounds.  Then, scramble the egg whites with a whisk and coat in the whites, then cover with the panko.  Recoat with the whites and cover with a second layer of panko.  Place on parchment paper (so it doesn't stick to the plate) and put in the freezer for half an hour.  Heat up canola oil in a frying pan and fry for about two minutes on each side over medium high heat.  Place on paper towel to absorb excess oil.  Serve while warm.  To make the dressing, whisk together the garlic, vinegar and dijon mustard.  Pour in oil and mix constantly into the vinegar base to emulsify.  Add the basil and mix well.  Add about 2/3 of the dressing to 5-6 oz of salad greens.  You can add a bit at a time to get the desired effect so you don't get a soggy over dressed salad.  Serve with sliced strawberries.

Sasha's Kitchen: Herbed Goat Cheese Salad with Strawberries

Sasha's Kitchen: Duck Confit Salad with Apples and Blue Cheese

I love a good duck confit salad.  I've made various recipes for duck confit salads in the past, including an Indian-inspired one.  However, this time, I tried my own inventive recipe for mixing ingredients in a duck confit salad and it was my favorite one to date.  I bought the duck confit legs from FreshDirect and removed the fat before adding the duck confit meat to the salad.  A made an orange vinaigrette which went nicely with the blue cheese.  Whoever said you can't mix apples and oranges?

Sasha's Duck Confit Salad
5 oz baby spinach
2 granny smith apples, peeled and chopped
1/4 lb crumbled stilton cheese
2 large duck confit legs, fat removed and shredded
1/2 cup canola oil
1/4 cup orange juice
2 T red wine vinegar

I made the dressing out of the OJ, canola oil and vinegar, and mixed all of the other ingredients to make this lovely salad, which is a great recipe for a busy day.  Stay tuned for more fun posts from me soon. I had a bit of a baking marathon last saturday, where I made a lovely red velvet cake with white chocolate ganache frosting for a pre-Valentine's day treat, as well as my favorite German street pretzels.  Pretzel making is oh so much fun!

Sasha's Kitchen: Duck Confit Salad with Apples and Blue Cheese

Sasha's Kitchen: Mango Salad with Mint Vinaigrette

Mango and mint go together so well.  I love making this salad, which is a simple mango goat cheese salad with a minty vinaigrette, which I have always referred to for some reason as my "mighty mint" vinaigrette.  It has a fresh, mint taste, along with a bit of a tropical aura.  This is an easy salad to make on a weeknight, and is always satisfying.  I've been under some external stressors lately that have been cutting into my cooking energy but this is a meal that's healthy which I can make even when I'm busy dealing with other things. 

Sasha's Mango Salad with Mint Vinaigrette

1 mango, diced

fresh mixed salad greens

pecans, either halves or chopped

4 oz crumbled goat cheese

1/2 cup canola oil

1 tsp meadow honey

2 T diced mint

1 tsp mustard

2 T red wine vinegar

Assemble the salad with the mango, greens, pecans and goat cheese.  Combine the mint, honey, oil, vinegar and mustard for the dressing and shake well. 

Sasha's 

Sasha's Kitchen: Mango Salad with Mint Vinaigrette

Sasha's Kitchen: Chopped Apple Salad & Meeting Bobby Flay

I had the privilege of receiving free tickets to attend the New York Food & Wine Festival again this year, courtesy of ShopRite, as a Potluck featured blogger.  I had the opportunity to taste lots of fabulous foods, and try out many of ShopRite's new products that their tasting pavilion.  In addition, I had the opportunity to have a photo taken with and of course meet one of my favorite chefs from the Food Network - Bobby Flay.  As a huge fan of cooking his recipes over the years, and watching him on Iron Chef America, I got him to sign a copy of his Bar American cookbook, and since then I've been cooking tons of recipes from it that we have really enjoyed. Here's the first recipe of several that we enjoyed trying out from his new cookbook.  It's a crisp, chopped apple salad with blue cheese that is healthy and perfect for fall!

Chopped Apple Salad (recipe adapted from Bobby Flay)
4 apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/2 inch dice (I used granny smith apples)
5 oz baby spinach (the original recipe only calls for 2 oz but I like more)
2 large heads of belgian endive, thinly sliced crosswise
1 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts (I used pecans)
1/2 lbs crumbled blue cheese (about two cups)

Pomegranate Vinaigrette
3 T pomegranate molasses
2 T red wine vinegar
1 heaping T dijon mustard
1 T honey
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil or canola oil

Combine the ingredients for the salad and toss in the vinaigrette. Happy fall!

Sasha's Kitchen: Chopped Apple Salad & Meeting Bobby Flay

Sasha's Kitchen: Heirloom Tomato Caprese Salad

Heirloom tomatoes are one of my favorite flavors of summer. I love looking at them - all different shapes, colors and sizes.  They have a sweet succulent flavor that is slightly different for each varietal.  They are like a rainbow of tomato, both in hue and in flavor.  I had the pleasure of making two salads with them this summer.  I bought some at the Greenmarket at Grand Army Plaza which I combined with a bit of crumbled goat cheese and a balsamic vinaigrette, about a month ago for a simple heirloom tomato salad.  The second salad was a more traditional Italian caprese salad, where I sliced the tomatoes and some buffalo mozzarella cheese, and drizzled with a balsamic vinaigrette.  Both of these salads are quite simple, but are really just meant to showcase the flavor of the heirloom tomatoes. Like summer itself, the season for heirloom tomatoes is coming to a close - it is short but sweet!

Happy Labor Day! Hope you enjoy my heirloom pictures. Tonight, I am making two recipes (after a family minimal cooking low-key weekend that included a trek to Governor's Island) - a chicken tagine with apricots and almonds, and chocolate-mint upside down cupcakes. I'll be sharing both recipes soon, as my life seems to be getting tangled with other obstacles these days.  This blog is always a welcome break for me from all the shenanigans of daily life.

Sasha's Kitchen: Heirloom Tomato Caprese Salad

Sasha's Kitchen: Peach Salad

Here's a new post on a lovely peach salad, perfect for the summer. Can I just add that it is absolutely too hot outside - actually 104 here in New York, which is heat beyond where a nice juicy peach is really helpful. But peaches are great in the summer, so I couldn't resist this peach salad, with fried goat cheese.

Sasha's Summer Peach Salad (serves 2)
Mixed greens
4 oz goat cheese
2 eggs
panko bread crumbs
toasted almond slivers
prosciutto or braciole (optional)

Vinagrette:
1/2 cup canola oil
3 T balsamic vinegar
1 T dijon mustard
1 T diced mint

To prepare the goat cheese, form a 4oz package of goat cheese into four balls. Place in the freezer for 30 minutes. Heat canola oil in a pan, and then coat each ball of goat cheese in the egg and then with panko bread crumbs. Repeat coating in the egg and panko for a second layer. Fry immediately in the oil until nicely browned but not melted, about four minutes or so on medium high. The key here is for the balls to be nicely browned, soft and warm, but not either melted or frozen on the inside.

Slice the peaches and assemble the salad with toasted almond slivers, peaches and greens. You can add prosciutto and/or braciole as well if you prefer.  Top with the vinaigrette mixture above.

Sasha's Kitchen: Peach Salad

Sasha's Kitchen: Summer Nectarine Salad

I love peaches, apricots and nectarines in the summer - especially ones from a farmers' market that are fresh, juicy and delicious. Nothing captures the flavors of summer better. I've now made this simple nectarine salad a couple of times, and it's an easy, satisfying and rewarding combination of flavors. I love Boston lettuce - it goes so nicely with almost any salad, and has such a lovely buttery flavor.

Sasha's Summer Nectarine Salad
head of Boston butter lettuce
3 nectarines, sliced
bocconcini mozzarella
hazelnuts
balsamic vinaigrette (oil, balsamic vinegar and a tablespoon of lemon juice)

Assemble the salad ingredients. If you wish, you can saute the nectarines before using them, but they taste better fresh and juicy in my opinion.

Sorry such a short post, but stay tuned for some new and delicious updates from my kitchen. This is just a simple recipe for a monday night.

Sasha's Kitchen: Summer Nectarine Salad

Sasha's Kitchen: Farro Goat Cheese Salad

I have been to a number of farm to table style restaurants where I have had some fabulous farm fresh salads that incorporated farro in lieu of or in addition to lettuce or fresh greens. Farro is a nutty cereal grain that is perfect in a salad, served slightly warm. The two best farro salads that I have tasted, with a variety of garden fresh, farm to table ingredients, have been at Al Di Li, here in Park Slope, as well as Hen of the Wood in Waterbury, Vermont last summer. Here's a picture of that Hen of the Wood salad that incorporates farro, here. So, I decided it was time to try my hand at preparing some organic farro as part of my own salad. I knew putting in some goat cheese was a must, and a bit of mint. I considered but opted against basil this time, and added some baby spinach greens with the farro. A bit of sweetness was needed to balance the flavors, and since Brad is not a big fan of beets (which might have been my first choice), I opened for apple, which i caramelized in a bit of passion fruit juice.

My husband Brad didn't think he would like this (he kept calling it Pharaoh all week in preparation for the upcoming holiday of Passover, referring to the Steve Martin King Tut song from SNL). But he wound up loving the farro in the salad.

Sasha's Farro Goat Cheese Salad with Caramelized Apples (makes two salads)

2/3 cup of farro grains (cook in water, like rice)

two large handfulls of baby spinach

1 granny smith apple, peeled and sliced

1/3 cup passion fruit juice

2 stalks of celery, chopped

2 T fresh mint leaves

4 oz goat cheese, crumbled

1/2 cup canola oil, 2 T balsamic vinegar, 3 T lemon juice (for the dressing)

Cook the farro according to package instructions, much the same way you would cook rice. While the farro is still warm, assemble the other ingredients for the salad. While the farro is cooking, prepare the apples by caramelizing the apple slices in a saute pan with the passion fruit juice until they are browned nicely, but not burnt. Top with the dressing. This salad was amazing, fresh, healthy and delicious. My husband was a huge fan of the farro, so we will be making it again soon.

Sasha's Kitchen: Farro Goat Cheese Salad

Sasha's Kitchen: Asian Sweet Potato Salad with Cashews

This delicious salad recipe is loosely based on a salad recipe from Tyler Florence's  cookbook, Tyler Florence's Family Meal. The main change I made was instead of using friend asian noodles in the salad, or friend wontons, I went with cashews. I had just received some fabulous nuts to try from ShopRite as part of the Potluck Blog Panel that I am involved with, and I was eager to try them in some Asian-inspired cuisine.  I was careful to only use half of them, because I am saving the other half to make Chinese cashew chicken the following week. At any rate, this sweet potato salad is a winner, and the cashews are a perfect addition and replacement for the friend wontons. The dressing - a creamy sesame/carrot/ginger dressing, which is an interesting take on the traditional carrot/ginger dressing, is absolutely delicious.

Asian Sweet Potato Salad with Cashews
3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into one inch cubes
4 cups lightly packed arugula
two handfulls of cashews
1/2 of a hothouse cucumber, finely sliced
1 cup pitted and halved dates
2 T fresh cilantro, diced
juice of one lemon

Dressing:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 T low sodium soy sauce
1/2 cup grated carrots
2 tsp grated ginger
2 T rice vinegar
2 T mirin

Place the sweet potatoes in a saucepan with lightly salted water, and bring to a simmer. Cook for about 20 minutes over medium heat until just tender (they should still have a tiny bit of crunch; remember, you are not trying to make mashed potatoes!)

Combine all of the ingredients for the dressing in a blender or food processor and puree until smooth.

Combine the arugula, dates, and cilantro (I used much less than the recipe called for) in a large mixing bowl. Some alfalfa bean spouts might be in order as well for the next time I make this - just an idea. Add the lemon juice and a tiny bit of salt and pepper and toss well. Combine the potatoes with the dressing and mix everything together. Yum!

Sasha's Kitchen: Asian Sweet Potato Salad with Cashews

Sasha's Kitchen: Salmon En Papillotte Salad

This is a healthy salmon salad that is just delicious, and is the perfect meal for a weekday dinner that is both health and satisfying. Next time I make this, I might try adding some crunch string beans as well. The combination of the tangy fruits and avocado with the salmon, salad and dressing is scrumptious and the perfect after-work meal that doesn't take to long to prepare. The En papillotte method of preparing salmon results in a moist and delicious fish that is preferable to many other methods of preparation which dry out the salmon. It's also quite easy, as well.


Sasha's Salmon En Papillotte Salad
2 6-8 oz filets of salmon, skinned
mesculin field greens or other mixed greens
1 mango, peeled and diced
1/2 cup of sweet corn
juice of one lemon, plus 2 T lemon juice
zest of one lemon
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, diced
1/2 cup canola oil
3 T balsamic vinegar
parchment paper

First, season the salmon filets with salt and pepper. Combine the lemon juice and zest of one lemon in a mixing bowl. Use this to coat the salmon filets and wrap the seasoned salmon with the parchment paper. Fold in 2 sides of the parchment paper, then fold in the other sides so that all the edges meet at the top, then twist the edges together to seal. Take the packages of salmon and place in the oven and bake for about 15 minutes at 350.

Combine the lettuce, avocado, mango and corn into salad plates. Add the salmon. Top with a dressing made of canola oil, balsamic vinegar and the remaining lemon juice. Enjoy!

Sasha's Kitchen: Salmon En Papillotte Salad

Sasha's Kitchen: Simple Spinach Pear Salad

This is a recipe for a simple, yet beautiful and healthy salad. Baby spinach is just about one of the healthiest greens that you can include in your diet, which is why I chose to include it in this salad. Usually pear salads are made with greens like watercress, or endives, but in my opinion, baby spinach works much better. The combination with the goat cheese is delicious. I recommend sauteing the pears a bit, which gives the perfect residual sweetness to the salad, which balances nicely with the spinach. To prepare the dressing for the salad, simply use balsamic and canola to make a vinaigrette. Top the spinach, almond slivers, pears and goat cheese crumble with the dressing.

Sasha's Simple Spinach Pear Salad
baby green spinach
2 anjou pears, peeled and sliced
crumbled goat cheese
slivered almonds
balsamic vinegar
canola oil

Sasha's Kitchen: Simple Spinach Pear Salad

Sasha's Kitchen: Asian-Style Grilled Steak Salad with Sesame Dressing

Time for a new recipe! I am always a fan of dinner salads, as a healthy and enjoyable dinner time meal for during the week. I decided to create an Asian steak salad with a Sesame dressing to complement. The dressing is easy, and assumes the flavor of the Sesame Oil. The key here is also to use good quality steak for the salad. This was a delicious treat, although it deviated significantly from my initial plan. The only thing I might suggest is chopping up some peanuts to scatter on the top, but otherwise it was just perfect, and a great, healthy meal.

This is quite easy to assemble. Simply pan grill the steak and assemble with the other ingredients. Cover the steak with foil towards the end of the cooking process. Mix up the dressing and top the salad when you serve it.

Sasha's Asian Style Grilled Steak Salad with Sesame Dressing
1 lb flank steak, pan grilled and cut into strips
3hearts of romaine
chopped red pepper
carrot peelings
2 plum tomatoes, pared and chopped
cilantro to season

Dressing
1/2 cup Canola Oil
4 T white vinegar
2 T soy sauce
1 tsp lime juice
1 tsp Sesame Oil
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
1T sugar
1 clove garlic, diced

Sasha's Kitchen: Asian-Style Grilled Steak Salad with Sesame Dressing

Sasha's Kitchen: Mandarin Orange Salad With Caramelized Almonds

I have been making this salad for years, as it has been handed down in my family. But I figured the super bowl would be a good time to write about it because according to family legend, my aunt discovered this salad at a 1971 Super Bowl party, long before I was born. The recipe has changed a bit over the years, and I have made my own tweaks to it. But its long been a favorite of everyone I have ever made it for. The combination of the tangy mandarin oranges and the sweet caramelized almonds is dynamite. Any time I see a can of mandarin oranges, it reminds me that it is time to make this salad for a nice, healthy dinner, especially for a football game. They go nicely with these Jets cupcakes I made last week (you can see where my sports loyalties lie as a New Yorker, even though they lost this past weekend).

I was so excited that ShopRite threw in a can of their mandarin oranges with their last package that they sent me, and I put together this classic salad that I love making with them. Of all the cans of mandarin oranges I have used over the years, these really stood out as having great texture, color and flavor. They were delicious. You really do not need to use a sweet dressing with this salad, as the almonds give you all the sweetness that you need once they are caramelized. My mom passed this recipe along to me and I am so glad she did as it is a winner!

Sasha's Mandarin Orange Salad with Caramelized Almonds

• 3-4 hearts of romaine
• 1 can of ShopRite's mandarin oranges
• 1/2 of a cup of almond slivers
• 1/4 of a cup plus 1 T granulated sugar
• 1 stalk diced celery (optional)
• 1/2 cup canola oil (for the dressing)
• 2 T red wine vinegar (for the dressing)
• 2 T diced parsley (for the dressing)

To caramelize the almonds, combine with the sugar in a small frying pan over medium low hear. You want to make sure the sugar melts slowly so you do not burn the almonds. Once the sugar begins to melt after a few minutes, keep stirring until the sugar and almonds are fully caramelized. Then pour onto a piece of foil a and allow to cool completely. This will make an almond brittle of sorts, which you will need to break apart. I used to do this by hand, and when I got tired of that, I pulverized a nut chopper blade doing this, but now I rely on the Slap-Chop and it works. Mix the nuts with the shredded hearts of romaine, celery and the can of mandarin oranges (draining the liquid first). Then combine the parsley, oil and vinegar for the dressing and add to the salad. Enjoy!

Sasha's Kitchen: Mandarin Orange Salad With Caramelized Almonds

Sasha's Kitchen: Fall Apple Salad with Maple Vinaigrette

I love apples in the fall, and Honeycrisp - the crispest, tart apples out there, are my favorite variety. This salad is quite simple and really nothing more than throwing together a few of my favorite fall ingredients.  My favorite apple salad is still this one with the caramelized apples and spicy orange or tangerine vinaigrette, but this salad is much easier to make in a pinch. 

I have a bunch of exciting recipes on tap for this weekend and next week, including a new tuna dish, several new squash recipes, new cupcakes, and pumpkin ice cream using my new ice cream maker. So stay tuned!

Sasha's Fall Apple Salad with Maple Vinaigrette

Mixed organic greens

2 Honeycrisp apples, peeled and diced

Crumbled goat cheese

Dried Cranberries

Slivered almonds

1/2 cup Canola Oil or Olive Oil

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

3 T Vermont maple syrup

pepper to taste

Preparing this recipe is really simple. Saute the apples in canola oil to soften for about five minutes (don't use any sugar). Combine with the other salad ingredients. Make the vinaigrette by shaking the Canola oil, balsamic vinegar, Vermont maple syrup and a bit of pepper to taste.

Sasha's Kitchen: Fall Apple Salad with Maple Vinaigrette

Sasha's Kitchen: Spice-Infused Heirloom Tomato Salad and NYC's Eataly (a review)

Heirloom tomatoes are one of my favorite summer treats. So delicious and the colors and shapes are unique and beautiful. I love the way they look when you slice them, and all the colors and textures. Their imperfections and details is what makes them so perfect and gorgeous. The taste is luscious and fresh - nothing like a regular tomato.

The heirloom tomato season is not very long, but they're still around in New York, so I picked some up at the new Eataly Market, to prepare this dish. Eataly, by the way, is an incredible Italian foodie paradise of grandiose proportions.  I've been quite a few times now, since it is so close to where I work in Manhattan.   I decided to create some Indian spice infused heirloom tomatoes using my produce from the marketplace. It's quite easy. Mix the various spices and herbs below with the balsamic vinegar and olive oil and add the tomatoes and a sliced kirby cucumber. Allow to soak for a minute or two before serving with freshly made mozzarella. I love the way the Indian spices mix with the fresh goodness of the heirloom tomatoes. It's a wonderful way to say goodbye to summer. The kirby cucumber by the way, is from the locally grown produce section of Fresh Direct.

Sasha's Spice-Infused Heirloom Tomato Salad

3 large heirloom tomatoes
1 kirby cucumber
fresh mozzarella
1 1/2 tsp fennel
1 1/2 tsp cumin
pinch of pepper
pinch of cayenne
1/3 cup olive oil
2 T balsamic vinegar (I used fig-infused balsamic vinegar)
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 cup cilantro
1 tsp diced jalapeno
1 1/2 tsp fresh ginger


And before you thought I forgot - a bit of a review of Eataly Market. I love Eataly - everything there is fresh, gourmet and absolutely screams out Mario Batali. There's quite a few restaurants there, and even though I have been about 5 times already, I have not tried them all. So far, I have tried the panini bar, La Piazza, Verdure, La Pizza and La Pasta. Next I'd like to try the raw bar restaurant (Il Crudo), the fish restaurant (Il Pesce), and the gourmet beef restaurant (Il Manzo). In fairness, I should warn readers, the place is a hot spot right now. It will cool off, but right now the crowds are pretty fierce, even at lunchtime during the week.

 On my first visit, I went to the panini bar and had a brasaole, arugula and pesto panini which was delicious (not pictured).  Then, I went back to the absolutely crazy Saturday night atmosphere with my husband. First, we stopped a the Piazza and enjoyed a sampling of parmesan cheeses with a glass of Italian spumoni. Next, we decided to try the pizza and pasta restaurants. I had one of the fabulous Italian sodas. I've tried a variety of the Italian sodas at Eataly - I've never seen any of them anywhere else in NYC, but the ones I've had so far have been fabulous - rhubarb, lemon, lime - a whole variety of flavors and not overpoweringly sweet like American sodas. My husband had a Moretti beer.

At La Pasta/LaPizza we both started with a fabulous dish of the homemade fresh pasta in a pesto sauce - it was one of the best pesto dishes I've had. Fresh and simple, but oh so good. Then we followed with a basic pizza, which was good, but perhaps a bit too much cheese. But oh that crust - it was irresistible. The cheese was still great though, and of course they make their own mozzarella fresh at Eataly every day.

I have also had the opportunity to try the gelato at Eataly, which despite the long lines, does not dissapoint. I had two favors that would seen not to go well together - Fig and Hazelnut, but they were actually both delicious and went together just fine. I love fresh figs and the fig gelato took me back to that day in Napa a couple years ago where I tasted fresh mission figs from the trees.

Finally, I have tried Verdure (food pictured above),  the vegetable restaurant. There were so many great choices on the menu, including specials. However, I went with a lime flavored Italian soda and vegetables a la piatra, a dish that was composed of a variety of fresh market vegetables, from cauliflower to asparagus to sprouts to radicchio, to zucchini and just about everything else you could imagine. It was an amazing vegetable salad. The brushetta of the day was also amazing - fresh sweet corn with chives and black garlic.  The black garlic was amazing, with an almost balsamic/tamarind like taste - so exotic and delicious. I plan to make my own bruschetta using some later this week, since they sell it at Eataly market.

Sasha's Kitchen: Spice-Infused Heirloom Tomato Salad and NYC's Eataly (a review)

Eric's Kitchen in NJ: Honeydew Prosciutto & Arugula Salad

This was definitely a collaborative effort by my Mom and I. She's recently been adding melon to her salads after having one in some Portuguese restaurant somewhere where they had cantaloupe and arugula and I said that I thought it would be even better with some prosciutto. So Jenn and I showed up to her house Saturday night and she had bought all the ingredients and had me assemble it. I think it came out very well and decided it was 'blog-worthy'.

Ingredients: (served 5 but disappeared quickly)
1 package of arugula
1 half a honeydew, sliced thinly
1 package of prosciutto (2 oz?)
2 tbsp. minced sweet onion (I would omit this or use some red onion sparingly and sliced thinly)
pinch of black pepper
1 tbsp. of shredded Romano cheese (or shaved Parmesan)

Dressing: (This is an approximation but the proportions are close)
1 oz. orange juice
1 oz. raspberry balsamic vinegar
3-4 oz. olive oil

Toss and serve! I would also suggest dressing it lightly and right before serving as the honeydew has a lot of juice and is very sweet to begin with and over dressing could definitely make it soggy. Cantaloupe might be more colorful but I thought the honeydew was delicious.

Eric's Kitchen in NJ: Honeydew Prosciutto & Arugula Salad

Sasha's Kitchen: Watermelon, Feta & Mint Salad

Watermelon is one of those quintessential refreshing summer fruits. Summer is really incomplete without it. It can be used so many different ways - as part of a salad or a fabulous summer cocktail, or simply on its own.  I was inspired to do something with watermelon and feta cheese after having a mouthwateringly delicious tapas appetizer earlier this summer at Miriam, a great Israeli restaurant in Park Slope. What I came up with is a simple and easy salad that showcases fresh summer watermelon. This makes for a delicious and low-calorie dinner or lunch and the flavors combine just perfectly.

Sasha's Watermelon Feta & Mint Salad
3 to 4 cups of freshly sliced watermelon
half a block of chopped feta cheese
3 T of fresh chopped mint
1 T olive oil
1 T balsamic vinegar

Combine the watermelon, feta and mint and toss with the balsamic and oil dressing.  Serve immediately.

Sasha's Kitchen: Watermelon, Feta & Mint Salad

Amasea's Kitchen in Sun Valley: Sour summer slaw

Sorry for the absence, folks!
I went off and got married, then unfortunately we had a loss in our family, so I haven't had a lot of time for creative cooking.

I did make a rhubarb pie last week, but it was honestly really, really bad. Not so much that I wouldn't eat it (PIE!) but not good enough for this blog, even to help others learn from my mistakes.

But the summer produce is coming on, and I'm getting excited. I'm going to wait to see what looks awesome and fresh in the next month or two, and start canning again. You'll get the story on that once I get my enormous canning pot out of storage :)

It being summer, it's time for barbecue, slaw and salads, and those last two were on the menu tonight. I had some great fresh fennel -- a whole bulb, feathery top bits (I'm not sure what to do with those) and all, from Idaho's Bounty. I sauteed half the bulb for something else, but the remaining half went into the Cuisinart's shredder attachment, with two small Fuji apples and about a dozen baby carrots (I would have used big carrots, but the babies were getting a little...rooty, so they needed to be used). I didn't have any cabbage, or that would have gone in too.

Mixing that in a bowl and removing the big, improperly shredded pieces, I added about three tablespoons of lime mayonnaise (interestingly, the Hellmann's intended for the Hispanic market has fewer unpronounceable ingredients and preservatives than the American varieties -- thanks, Grocery Outlet!), a tablespoon of lime juice, a tablespoon of grapefruit vinegar, salt, pepper and freshly-ground red pepper flakes. Oh, and a handful of dried cranberries, since I was out of raisins, for that hint of sweet. If I were to make this again, I think I'd use a little less total liquid, but that's just my taste; others might prefer the squishier texture.

I paired it with a simple salad: organic greens from Idaho's Bounty, topped with corn kernels, sliced almonds, a vinaigrette and some grilled Halloumi-style grilled cheese (not pictured). With a glass of red wine for a little mouth weight, delicious!

Amasea's Kitchen in Sun Valley: Sour summer slaw

Sasha's Kitchen: Homemade Falafel and Israeli Salad With Tahini Yogurt Sauce

When I was in Israel for 8 weeks one summer during my high school years, I tasted some of the best falafel that I ever had.  One of the other things that I liked best about the cuisine in Israel (aside from the amazing giant Apricot fruit rolls that I discovered on Ben Yehuda Street that I have since been unable to find anywhere else in the world) was the basic Israeli Salad which was served with just about everything in Israel from falafel to schwarma.  I decided to create an Israeli meal with my own falafel, a tahini yogurt sauce and an Israeli salad to bring be back to those great memories of my summer in Israel.  The recipe is adapted from Tyler Florence's Recipe on the Food Network, while I added a traditional Israeli salad. I was concerned that the falafel balls would fall apart when they were fried so I added a bit water to the recipe below before forming the falafel balls (just about a tablespoon or two).  In addition, I used canola oil to fry them rather than vegetable oil, so they are actually a reasonably healthy treat.  These were served for brunch with our friends Alica and Alex, and were thoroughly enjoyed with a dessert of chocolate chip brioche (my recipe coming soon!)

Falafel
2 cups dried chickepeas  (soak for 18 to 24 hours in cold water before using)
1 tsp baking powder
1 small onion, diced
6 cloves of garlic, diced
1 T cumin
1 T coriander
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
2 handfulls fresh parsley, coarsely chopped
1 handfull fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped
salt and pepper to taste
canola oil for frying
warm pita bread

Israeli Salad
2 cucumbers, peeled and chopped
2 heirloom tomatoes, peeled and chopped
1 T lemon juice

Tahini Yogurt Sauce
1/2 cup tahini (tahini is a type of sesame seed paste)
1/2 cup FAGE greek yogurt
1 T lemon juice
2 cloves garlic
pinch of salt
pinch of paprika


Put the chickpeas in a bowl and add water to cover by two inches.  Soak in cold water in the refrigerator for 17-24 hours.  The chickpeas will triple in size from their dried form.  Do not use canned garbanzo beans - I am told that your falafel will be soggy if you do.

Put the soaked chickepeas in a food processor and pulse to grind coarsely.  Add the other ingredients and mix well to combine.  Season with salt and pepper and refrigerate for about 15 minutes.

Pur three inches of canola oil in a deep fryer or a large pot.  Roll the falafel into balls about the size of ping pong balls (this recipe should make about 24 falafel). If you have trouble forming balls that are cohesive, add a tablespoon of water to the mix. Fry until the chickpea balls are crusty brown on all sides and voila - its falafel.  Serve with the pita bread, tahini sauce and Israeli salad.

Falafel

Sasha's Kitchen: Homemade Falafel and Israeli Salad With Tahini Yogurt Sauce