Fattouch salad

Hey guys, Yes I'm blogging about another delicious salad this evening. I posted this pic a few days ago on my Instagram of a Middle Eastern inspired dinner and an old friend asked for the recipe. While I can't give out an exact recipe but i'll let you know what I did to make this yummy meal so you can create your own version of this super satisfying Fattouch salad. 

INGREDIENTS: 
mixed baby greens (kale, chard, spinach, pea sprouts etc...)
green beans (cooked - I used that were simply sauteed with some shallots & garlic)
cherry tomatoes
mushrooms (raw and thinly sliced) 
feta cheese
calipo tuna (packed in olive oil) 
sweet onion (thinly sliced) 
pita chips (with za'atar and thyme) 
fresh mint leaves (rough chopped) 
minced raw garlic (one clove)
lemon juice (1/2 lemon)
dried oregano (pinch) 
pinch of Himalayan sea salt & black pepper 
splash of red wine vinegar 

FOR THE PITA CHIPS: Pre heat oven to 350.
Cut whole wheat pita into triangular strips, drizzle with grape seed oil (or whatever oil you like), add a pinch of sumac, za'atar, dried thyme, salt & pepper. Massage the spice and oil mixture in so that the majority of the pitas are well seasoned. Bake for 5 -10 mins until all the pita chips are well toasted. You will have to check on them and agitate the pan every few minutes so that they toast evenly. 

I promise I'm going to try and post more fresh and easy recipes like this over the summer. I know I've been dragging ass in the posting department. Chow for now yall.

Eric's broccoli salad

I know it's been a while since I last wrote a post. I'm sorry lovies but, I've been really focusing my energy on family, cooking and getting fit. This healthy recipe is simple, delicious and will leaving you feeling full and energized. It makes an excellent lunch or light dinner with minimal effort. I can not take any of the credit for this tasty dish as it's my amazing partners creation.  This is his all time favorite salad and he admits to having pretty much lived off of it before we met. Of course his version was using a pre made salad dressing from a bottle, which will just not do for this tomato snobs pallet. My version uses a simple balsamic & olive oil vinaigrette with a hint of raw minced garlic, which you can just toss in with the rest of the ingredients.

For the best tasting salad lightly blanch your broccoli (about one minute in boiling water then straight into a cold ice bath). Thinly slice your onions and put them in a bowl of cold water or vinegar until you are ready to toss everything together. This takes that pungent raw bite out of the onion that some people can find offensive, just be sure to rinse them before adding to the salad. I would recommend 1 large can of tuna or 2 small cans of Calipo (my favorite) per head of broccoli, 4 or 5 medium size mushrooms, 1/2 a small red onion and a few tbs of low fat feta cheese, 1 small clove of garlic, balsamic vinegar, good olive oil, salt and pepper to your taste. Please use the photo about as your guide for chopping and slicing.

Eric's broccoli salad has under 200 calories per serving, 10g of healthy fat, 14g lean protein and a ton of vitamin C and fiber. Serve this salad with fresh baguette and room temperature butter if you've got company, or some gluten free bread if you're being healthy like us ;)

My legendary Kale salad

 Good Monday to you all. I've been obsessed with this salad for the last five or six months now. I eat it so often I don't even think of it as something to photograph and blog about, but since so many of my friends and family have requested the recipe I think its time to let you all in on this simple and delicious salad. The ingredients definitely vary depending on what's in my fridge/ pantry but the star remains - the simple dressing and the kale! The photo is just one example including fresh green peas & purple cabbage. Basically everything but the kale, tomatoes & some sort of cabbage is optional. The dressing is also not exact just taste until you are happy with the acid, salt garlic balance. You can also add lentils or beans to the salad for extra protein, or serve with your favorite entree - anything works!

INGREDIENTS: 

organic kale - julienned

red cabbage (or green) - julienned

romaine lettuce - julienned (optional)

cherry tomatoes - divided

avocado - chopped

hearts of palm - sliced/ chopped 

fresh green peas (optional)

radishes - thinly sliced (optional)

garlic - 1 clove minced

lemon juice - squeeze

apple cider vinegar - splash

s & p - to taste 

olive oil - drizzle

You pretty much just toss everything together until the salad is dressed really well, and seasoned to your taste. If you omit the romaine lettuce the salad will stand up over night and be great the next day. Feel free to play around with adding other veggies you like and make this your very own. 

 

Saying goodbye to sesame & a speedy Thai Style Slaw

The test results are in and I'm very pleased to announce I am not lactose intolerant nor am I a glutentard (my apologies to those who have taken offence to that statement).  Yes it's all very exciting. I do not have to say goodbye to my good friends 1%, Drunken goat or sour dough. I'm not completely in the clear as It seems I have two pretty high reactions to some slightly random ingredients. The first is cranberry which I'm really not too sad to see go, the second definitely a little morose about - yes I'm extremely melodramatic. You love it! My beloved sesame seed, I shall miss you dearly. No bagel will ever be the same. Every time I go for Middle Eastern food I will be reminded of the good old days when my pita was slathered in hummus and tahinah. If only this food allergy covered all my problems in life. The test actually shed some more light on to why I haven't been feeling so hot, but I'll save the nitty gritty for another post. For now my farewell to sesame continues... This easy slaw is best attempted with a mandolin or some serious knife skills and a sharp handful of Japanese steel. Ie. you need a good knife! 

INGREDIENTS: everything gets a fine julienne

green apple

carrot

celery

red cabbage 

green cabbage 

kale 

romaine 

peeled frozen shrimp - or cooked if you like (thaw in cold water)

FOR THE DRESSING: Whisk everything together

1/2 cup natural  peanut butter  (I like to use crunchy for texture)
4 limes - zest and juice- oranges work well too

1/4 cup honey
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sambal 

2 tbs sesame oil  

splash of water - optional depending on how thick/ thin the dressing is

PREP: Chop veg, & whisk dressing. 

COOK: Bring a small salted pot of water to a boil, then drop your shrimp for 45 seconds to a minute. 

SERVE: With black sesame seeds and or toasted peanuts. 

 

Taboule with a Twist

 Taboule or tabouleh is a very traditional Middle Eastern salad. It's something I grew up eating and really love. Most of the time you see this being served along side a hummus plate or inside a shewarma sandwich. Traditionally taboule is made simply with bulgur, tomatoes, cucumbers, onion, mint/ parsley, and lemon. I've obviously put my own Tomato Snob twist on it by using arugula in place of the parsley. I also added radish which I love for their bitter crunch, I also used red onion instead of white. This salad is wonderful served along side my blackened salmon or any grilled meat. As I'm trying to eat healthier and get more vitamins I also blanched off and quick pan fried some kale in my cold infused olive oil (from yesterdays demo).  Here's the taboule low down...

INGREDIENTS: 

1 cup cooked bulgur - cook like rice: 1 cup dried bulgur to 1 3/5 cups liquid 

2 handfuls of arugula - fine chop

1 clove garlic - minced

2 tomatoes - seeds removed & finely chopped

handful radishes - fine chop

1/2 red onion - fine chop

2 baby cucumbers - seeds removed & finely chopped

1 sprig of mint - fine chop 

pinch salt & pepper

1 lemon - juiced

sumac - pinch 

drizzle olive oil - infused oil works too!

PREP: Chop all ingredients, add lemon s&p, sumac and drizzle of oil. Toss and enjoy! 

That's all folks... Happy Friday! Stay tuned for a special weekend post. I'm thinking a healthy baked good.

Greek Village style salad

Choriatiki or Horiatiki means village or country in Greek.When followed by the word salad it refers to a bowl of veggies consisting of chopped tomatoes, cucumber, red onions, feta cheese, and kalamata olives with lots of greek olive oil and oregano. In short it's a chopped salad! In some regions capers are also added to the salad, or vinegar.  This delicious mix is mostly eaten in the summer months when all of the ingredients are at their best. My version of this classic Greek salad uses the addition of fresh herbs and peppers. 
INGREDIENTS: 
red peppers - chopped
yellow peppers - chopped 
green peppers - chopped
orange peppers - chopped
red onion - slices 
tomatoes - chopped
cucumbers - chopped
black olives (I used sun dried - not classic) 
handful fresh mint - chopped
handful fresh dill - chopped
handful fresh oregano - chopped
handful of feta - crumbled 
1 lemon - juiced 
a few tbs evoo 
splash of red wine vinegar 
s&p to taste 
PREP: Combine everything in a bowl toss and enjoy. This salad is good for 2-3 days. 

Chopped salad with Dill vinaigrette and an 11 hour road trip

If any of you have ever been on a long car ride  you how annoying it can be to get a decent meal. Options are limited if you're trying to save time and keep close to the highway. I usually like to pack carrot sticks, fruits and rice cakes or baked chips to snack on since I know when we finally stop the options will be mostly fried and packed  with saturated fats.  I figure If I can at least have a healthy snack before the saturated fatty meal. My rationale is that I'll eat less of it, and won't be as guilty for consuming gross junk food.  On our last road trip to Philly I had some time before we left so I decided to whip up a chopped salad. I brought a few plastic cups and spoons thinking it would be easy access in the car. This salad was delicious and a much needed dose of veggies before arriving in the US, where cheese steaks would be on the menu along with a trip to the Sugar Philly truck and lord knows what else. 
INGREDIENTS: 
Chick peas
sugar snap peas
radishes 
yellow pepper
corn (cooked and cut off the cob)
cucumber
carrots (purple & orange)
hearts of palm 
artichoke hearts 
celery
PREP: Use whatever veg you like - this combination was quite tasty and I pretty much just used up whatever I had left in my fridge. Chop everything add vinaigrette and presto done! The salad is even better the next day 


FOR VINAIGRETTE: 
1 tbs dijon mustard
chopped dill - handful 
1 garlic clove - minced 
1/2 tbs honey 
2 tbs red wine or white wine vinegar 
3-4 tbs olive oil 
s&p to taste 

Not so nicoise salad

Salad nicoise is a tradition all over France and Italy as well where it's called insalata nizzarda. The salad that gets it's name sake from Nice where it originally consisted of raw red peppers, shallots, artichoke, tuna and topped with anchovies. Some French traditionalists believe potatoes should never be included in this delicious salad made famous by one of the most beloved chefs Julia Child. In fact some believe no cooked vegetable should ever be included in the salad. I say sacrebleu! use whatever you like in your not so nicoise salad. The one rule I will give you however is to serve on a family style plate so that everyone can take what ever toppings they desire. Also it looks so pretty all laid out like that. 
INGREDIENTS: 
boiled potatoes - flash fried after w/ seasoning salt (optional)
Cherry tomatoes - halved
arugula and spinach 
roasted red peppers
cooked beets
hearts of palm - big chunks
cucumber - sliced
black kalamata or nicoise olives
hard boiled egg
tuna packed in olive oil


FOR DRESSING: 
dijon mustard
balsamic vinegar 
olive oil 
s & p
1 part vinegar and mustard to 2 parts oil ~ whisk mustard and vinegar together then 
continue to whisk while slowly adding oil. 


There are no real directions or amounts for this salad as it can be for as many people as you like. Feel free to substitute any of the things you like or don't like. The green jar in the photo is some homemade 
parsley pesto that I slathered on toast to serve alongside the salad. I'll post the recipe for that another time. 


Chow for now. 

Billy's Gỏi Gà - Vietnamese chicken salad

My Best friend Billy is one of my biggest food idols. He cooks the way I love to cook - without a recipe. He's the one who really got me into cooking and appreciating different types of cuisine. I'll never forget years ago, back in the day of me being a picky eater, I was invited out with Billy's family for his birthday. They were going to the top sushi restaurant in the city and as a birthday gift to Bill he asked me to try everything the chef put in front of me. I was so nervous! Before that evening I thought sushi was cucumber and california rolls. I had never tried raw fish and sea food was totally foreign to me. I did as Billy asked and tried everything the chef offered. Each course was more delicious then the last and thus a monster was born! 

A few weeks back we were all up north for another of Billy's birthday extravaganzas. This year he decided to do a Vietnamese chicken salad which was a huge hit. Billy sent his dad to three different grocery stores to get the exact ingredients he needed. Do your self a favor and shop in kensington or the Loblaws on St. Clair as they have the best Asian selection of products.

INGREDIENTS: 

chicken breasts - or whole chicken cut up if you prefer (skinless)  for poaching 

1/2 green (nappa or savoy) cabbage - thinly sliced (use cuisinart slicing blade if you have) 

2 carrots - turned in to matchsticks (use cuisinart shredding blade if you have)

1/2 onion - thinly sliced (use cuisinart slicing blade if you have) 

1 handful mint - torn 

1 handful Kinh Gioi / Vietnamese mint (you can always use more regular mint if you cant find)

1 handful cilantro - torn or fine chopped if you're not crazy about the flavor

1 handful Húng quế / Thai basil (optional) 

1/2 cup peanuts - toasted & chopped

1 cup shallots - fried 

flour - for dusting the shallots before frying 

canola oil - for frying 

FOR DRESSING: 

1-2 red bird chili - fine chop (you may want to remove the seeds)

2 garlic cloves - minced

2 tbs ginger - minced

1 lime juiced

4 tbs rice wine vinegar 

2 tbs fish sauce

3 tsp sugar 

pinch of salt 

PREP: All veg. and layer in a large bowl. In a small bowl mix all ingredients together for dressing - put to the side.

Take your super thinly sliced shallots and separate them so that they look like tiny onion rings. Toss them in a few tbs of ap (all purpose) flour.  

COOK: To poach the chicken: In a medium heavy bottom pot place chicken with a few pepper corns (you can also ad some slices of ginger and garlic to the poaching liquid). Cover with water or chicken stock and bring to a boil. As soon as the liquid starts to boil drop the heat to a low simmer and partly cover the pot. Let cook for 10 minutes. Then turn off heat completely and allow chicken to stay in the hot water for another 20 mins. 

To fry the shallots: Have a tray with paper towel on stand by. In a shallow pan fill with about 2 inches of canola oil. Heat oil and test one shallot to make sure oil is hot enough. You will want small bubbles start to form around the shallot immediately. When oil is ready drop a hand full of shallots into the oil (about 1 min per batch) * The shallots will burn very quickly so if they start turning brown too quickly slightly drop the heat. Fry in small batches. Make sure you have a slotted spoon or spider to transfer shallots from the hot oil. As soon as they turn golden brown transfer to the paper towel and salt while hot. 

ASSEMBLE: Once chicken is cooked & shredded place ontop of the salad, then place peanuts fried shallots and  fresh torn herbs on top of everything. Drizzle dressing over before serving.