Winter Citrus Salad

adapted from Mark Bittman’s recipe

This is definitely the most loved salad in our family.  In fact, this was a huge factor in getting my son over his salad hatred. 
Ingredients:
1 grapefruit and 1 orange, cut into bite sized pieces
1/2 small onion or 1 shallot, chopped
3 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbs sherry vinegar
1/2 tsp honey
lime or lemon juice to taste
1/4 teaspoon freshly chopped tarragon or a pinch dried (optional, in fact I’ve never added the tarragon)
salt
mixed greens or spinach
Directions:
1. whisk together olive oil, vinegar, honey, lime juice and tarragon until well combined; taste, adjust seasonings and add fruits.
2.  Spoon this mixture over each salad and mix thoroughly.  Add some toasted almond slivers or walnuts if desired.
This should serve at least 4-5 adults.

West African Peanut Soup

Adapted from Mark Bittman

My version is basically the same ingredients as Mark Bittman’s but I added cilantro at the end, and chopped everything smaller so that the kids have an easier time eating it.  Mark Bittman says to core and halve tomatoes and to slice sweet potatoes into thick slices, but I shredded them with the food processor.
This recipe is surprisingly delicious and packed with vitamins and protein!  (I even like this but don’t usually like sweet potatoes)
Ingredients:
1 Tbsp neutral oil (grapeseed, “extra-light olive oil”, peanut oil)
1 medium red or white onion, chopped
1 tsp minced ginger
1 tbs minced garlic
1/2 lb skinless, boneless chicken breasts chopped
pinch of cayenne pepper
salt/pepper
6 cups chicken stock
2 sweet potatoes peeled and cut into thick slices
8 plum tomatoes (coarsely chopped in food processor), or canned diced tomatoes, drained of liquid
1/2 lb collard greens or kale, chopped
1/2 cup natural peanut butter
Directions:
1.  Chop peanuts, or crush them with the side of a knife, orpulse them in a food processor to chop roughly.
2.  Put oil in a deep skillet or medium saucepan over medium heat; a minute later, add onion, ginger and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is soft, 3-5 minutes.  Add chicken and continue cooking for another 3-4 minutes, until just coloring.  Add 1/2 cup peanuts and the cayenne and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3.  Stir in the stock and the sweet potatoes, bring to a boil, and turn heat down to medium-low so the soup bubbles gently.  Stir in tomatoes and collards, then cook, stirring occasionally, until chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes.
4.  Stir in 1/4 cup peanut butter.  Taste, adjust seasoning (you may want to add more peanut butter at this point) and serve, garnished with remaining peanuts and cilantro if desired.

America’s Test Kitchen Fresh Tomato Salsa

This really is the best fresh salsa I’ve ever had!  (It actually tastes kind of similar to Baja Fresh salsa, which is very addicting). Of course it is best with homegrown summer tomatoes, but in the winter I still make it occasionally, using Roma tomatoes. 
I like to cut a Roma tomato from the pointiest part down to the bottom (but not all the way through, then make 3 more cuts down, making a criss cross pattern.  Then turn sideways and chop.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs firm, ripe tomatoes, cut into 3/8 inch dice (about 3 cups)
1 jalapeno chile, minced.  (Remove seeds and ribs and set aside (to be added later for extra spiciness)
1/2 cup minced red onion
1 small garlic clove, minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 1/2 tsp)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 tsp salt
pinch ground black pepper
2-6 tsp juice from 1-2 limes
sugar to taste (up to 1 tsp)
1.  Set a large colander in a large bowl.  Place the tomatoes in the colander and let them drain for 30 minutes.  As the tomatoes drain, layer the jalapeno, onion, garlic, and cilantro on top.  Shake the colander to drain off the excess tomato juice.  Discard the juice.  Add the salt, pepper, and 2 tsp of the lime juice; toss to combine.  Taste and add the minced jalapeno ribs and seeds, sugar, and additional lime juice to taste.

2.  Transfer the contents of the colander to the now-empty bowl.  Add the salt, pepper, and 2 tsp of the lime juice; toss to combine.  Taste and add the minced jalapeno ribs and seeds a little bit at a time, sugar, and additional lime juice to taste.

Greek Salad Dressing

America’s Test Kitchen – (Although I must say that my homemade vinaigrette recipe is very similar to this one!)
The following is their recipe x 4, because I knew we would go through it very quickly!
3/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 Tbs juice from 1 lemon
3 Tbs minced fresh oregano leaves
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
4 medium cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups olive oil
wisk ingredients in a large bowl until combined.

Lunch quesadillas

  When you have kids, it is easy to get stuck in a rut with lunches- always making pbj or macaroni and cheese, or grilled cheese.

I’m not opposed to this by any means, because dinner is usually our meal where I get them to try new things.  I’m ok with doing something more “kid-friendly” for lunch, but at the same time, it sometimes gets a little boring.

When I don’t know what to have for lunch, a quesadilla is usually my standby because you can pretty much throw anything in it and it tastes great!

Today’s was extra delicious because the cherry tomatoes I had from Aldi were perfectly ripe (at least for this time of year).

I put cheddar cheese on 1 half and American on the other half, along with chopped spinach and tomatoes.  Red onions or chicken would have been a great addition to this as well.


 I cook these over medium heat, until nice and crispy, and then fold it in half.

Where I used to work, they would brush a little olive oil on top and sprinkle a little salt, pepper and garlic on the quesadilla.  This makes it extra yummy!  The following picture is one I made for dinner once with chicken, red peppers, onions, spinach and tomatoes.  There is also a little parmesan sprinkled on top.

Hummus

 

This is definitely the best hummus recipe for me!  I found it online a while back, but unfortunately I copied it down and don't remember the website.  Soo yummy!

Hummus
1 cans garbanzo beans
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 Tablespoons tahini paste
2 cloves garlic, chopped
4 to 5 Tablespoons reserved juice from the garbanzo beans
3 heaping tablespoons plain yogurt
½ teaspoon cumin
Salt to taste
cayenne pepper to taste
Mince the garlic. Drain the liquid from the garbanzo beans into a small bowl and keep the liquid handy for later in the process. Add the beans and the garlic into the bowl of your food processor. Process with the metal blade until well combined. Make sure you open the processor at least once to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Add in the lemon juice, tahini, yogurt, cumin, and cayenne and continue to process. Add enough of the reserved juice (4 to 5 Tablespoons) to make the hummus smooth and consistency that you like.