Sweet, spicy, juicy, creamy, crunchy…oh yeah baby. Serve me up some paradise!
Feeling hot hot hot? Wanna be cool cool cool? Yes my pretties, you can be both with this little taste of the tropics. This salad, when made exactly as directed, is on the spicy side, so use your discretion on the habanero. You can easily sub in jalapeno for less bite. You know your people. Or, if you live with a bunch of mild-mannered, mild-salsa-eating Yankees go for it with the habanero and get all the leftovers for yourself.
Ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tbs. fresh lime juice
1 Tbs. fresh orange juice
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced crosswise
1 habanero chile, seeded and finely chopped
1 large Florida avocado or 2 medium Haas avocados, sliced 1/4 inch thick lengthwise, then cut crosswise into halves or thirds (here’s a clinic on finding ripe avocados)
1 small pineapple (about 2-1/2 lb.), peeled, quartered, cored, and sliced crosswise 1/4 inch thick (and here’s what you need to know about selecting and prepping pineapple.) PS I am among the freaks who enjoy eating the fibrous core.
scant handful of chopped, toasted almonds, cashews or macadamia nuts (optional)
Method:
Whisk the oil, lime and orange juices, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 1/4 tsp. pepper in a medium bowl. Add the onion and habanero and toss. Set aside at least 10 minutes and up to 45 minutes.
Meanwhile, shingle the pineapple and avocado on a very large flat platter or 2 smaller platters. Using a fork, scoop the onion slices out of the vinaigrette and scatter them over the avocado and pineapple. Drizzle the remaining vinaigrette over the entire platter. Sprinkle with nuts if desired. Season with a little salt and serve within 1 hour.
Bringing it:
This salad is easy to bring anywhere, deconstructed. It’s also a great salad to bring and prep on a weekend away, because the whole elements travel well and do not need refrigeration. Yes, that means more room in the cooler for vitals. (I’m looking at you, frozen daquiris and Hero Slaw.)
I hate being duped. As when people say, “These black bean brownies or date/cocoa truffles or chickpea chocolate chip cookies will fool you!” I’m all about dates and black beans and chickpeas stretching themselves into baking pans, and dressing up as treats, but don’t try to pass them off as anything like the original. We’re friends. We can be honest on this.
So, with that little tirade out of the way we move on to cauliflower, the multitasking food imposter du jour. I tried in vain to make a palatable buffalo cauliflower, and my family breathed a fiery sigh of relief when I gave up. You have no doubt heard of cauliflower “rice,” made by pulverizing the florets in the food processor then cooking/steaming the whole shebang. It’s fine, but it’s not rice, and I resent being made to pretend it’s rice. However, when it comes to couscous, I’m all about pretending. After all, what is couscous but pasta pretending to be a grain? It’s such an understudy already that usurping its identity is almost a favor.
So cauliflower, come on in to my food processor and take the stage. A local Hanover High grad Ellen Jackson just came out with The Lemon Cookbook, and the Valley News published this recipe of hers. I’ve made it about four times, never entirely correctly, and loved it every time. Time #5 I actually took a picture. It’s great right away, a few hours later and the next day, and you have to work really hard to screw it up. I even made it with a bag of frozen cauliflower when the fresh stuff was going for $7 at the Coop. ($7? Do you have a hidden camera in the cruciferous section?) At any rate, all of the above makes it a Bring It all-star.
A few changes/notes, because we have to: The key to toasting the cauliflower well is ample surface area, so dig out your largest pan. (Yes, the one at the bottom of the pile. You’re a few weeks in to that beach body routine so I know you can do it.) Cauliflower heads vary wildly, and I got way more than 4 cups out of mine. I used it all, brushing that big, used pan lightly with oil and toasting the extra separately. I also don’t add the other 2 Tbsp of oil at the end of the recipe. Five Tbsp of oil in a vegetable dish puts us in the tempura range, and at that point you might as well just eat the fries you’d rather have anyway. Ok, here we go!
Toasted Cauliflower “Couscous” With Lemon, Parsley and Almonds
Makes 4 servings
1 (2-pound) head cauliflower, cut into small florets with ½-inch or less of stem
1/3 cup slivered or sliced almonds or pine nuts
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided (my version uses 3, not divided)
1½ teaspoons kosher salt
1 small garlic clove, finely grated or minced
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup lightly packed flat-leaf parsley leaves, coarsely chopped (I use the curly variety because that’s what I had and I prefer its sassy attitude)
Freshly ground black pepper
Using a food processor with either the grating attachment or blade, grate or pulse the cauliflower in batches until it resembles grains of couscous. You should have about 4 cups. You can also use a knife to dice the florets, which will easily break into very small pieces as you go. (I got more like 7 cups from one head and used it all)
In a large, wide skillet over medium heat, toast the almonds, stirring frequently, until they smell nutty and are golden brown, about 7 minutes. Set the nuts aside and wipe out the pan.
Warm 3 tablespoons of the oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the cauliflower and salt. Sauté, stirring frequently, until the cauliflower pieces are toasted and tender, 12 to 15 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and immediately add the garlic and zest, stirring well to distribute the flavors throughout.
After the mixture has cooled slightly, add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil (or not), the lemon juice, almonds, and parsley. (While this was happening I toasted up the rest of the cauliflower and added it in. You can add a little more lemon juice to taste if you like, but it’s already darned lemony.)
Season with additional salt and pepper, and allow the cauliflower to sit for at least 15 minutes, partially covered, for the flavors to develop.
It is excellent at room temperature or can be rewarmed briefly over medium-high heat before serving.
Bringing it:
As with the making of this salad, you have to try pretty hard to mess it up in transport. And it’s good at room temperature. Hello picnics!
I found a recipe for Samosa Inspired Quinoa Stuffed Portabellas. I almost flipped past the recipe given the lengthy title. But, the recipe intrigued me so I pushed on. Taken individually, I really liked each part of the title of this recipe….
Samosa equals Indian spices which I love.
Quinoa equals super grain which is always a bonus.
Portabellas equals, well, just delicious.
Then came my hesitancy, because, taken individually, I was not so keen with other parts of the title of this recipe…
Samosa also equals pie crust and you all know I don’t do pie crust.
Stuffed sounds like extra work and I like easy peasy.
Weighing both sides, I decided to forge ahead and make these but with my own twist. I re-tooled the title to call it “Indian spiced quinoa over portabellas”. That way, I didn’t have the whole pie crust thing looming over me. I also thought, why stuff when you can layer which is so much easier! And so, here it is Indian spiced quinoa over portabella mushrooms. It’s a winner – enjoy!
Ingredients
6 Portabella mushrooms
Olive oil
Salt & Pepper
1 cup dry quinoa
1 medium onion
2 medium carrots
1 cup chopped cilantro
1 Tbsp ginger, minced
1 Tbsp ground coriander
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garam masala
1 can chickpeas
Sharp cheddar or other cheese for topping
Method
Clean portabellas with damp paper towel, cut off stems and scrape out black gills. Coat both sides with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place on oiled baking sheet, underside up and cover with aluminum foil. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.
Rinse quinoa thoroughly and cook according to package directions.
Heat olive oil in heavy bottomed skillet. Saute onion and carrot until softened (maybe 7 – 8 minutes). Add ginger and cook 2-3 more minutes. Add spices and toss to coat. Add chickpeas (you can mash them a bit if you like). Stir in cilantro.
Spoon veggie mixture over cooked portabellas, sprinkle with cheese and put back in oven until for 20 minutes. Oh and the quinoa that falls off the mushrooms will be extra crispy – this is a huge bonus (save this part for yourself!)
Spring is trying to poke through. At least the chickens are feeling it.
If you have neighbors with chickens you might be getting a lot of eggs right now. And really, it makes sense. If I were a northeastern chicken I would not be giving up the goods until just about now. We had quite a winter. And now that it’s relaxing its grip, we’ve got eggs.
This is a good thing, because as it turns out, the aforementioned salad week is actually going to have to be salad month. The past week has reminded me of all the great salads out there, like edamame avocado citrus, shaved asparagus, massaged kale, as well as all the delicious ways to create a deconstructed lunch. It leads me to think, why wasn’t I doing this all along? But that would take away the springtime angst I depend on for balance.
Today, we’re talking about salad toppers. One staple in our house is coconut “bacon.” I did a little blind taste test with my peeps (who are admittedly a bit gun-shy of my experiments after discovering black beans in their brownies and shredded cauliflower in their mac and cheese. Poor dears.) Anyway, like real New Englanders they again gave two thumbs most enthusiastically up to the maple syrup versions that I tried, so I’m sticking to those.
I tend to go a bit overboard on food combining, especially when it comes to toppers. But nothing gives mealtime heft to a salad like the ordinary and incredible egg. Furthermore, fully self contained eggs are the ultimate portable food so they are a natural for Bring It!
Hard boiling eggs ought to be easy, but still every time I do it I have to refer to a grimy index card tucked behind my stove that tells me exactly how many minutes to boil them, let them sit covered and then rinse in cold water. Here are two awesome methods—baking and steaming—both of which will set you free from the grimy index card. The first lets you cook a heap load of eggs—as many as you can fit on your over rack. The second takes slightly less time and the resulting eggs are slightly easier to peel. At any rate, if egg peeling challenges you watch this video (spoiler alert: run them under cold water while peeling.)
So here you go, you future queens and kings of deviled egg overabundance. Chickens, get on your marks!
Position an oven rack in the middle of your oven. Thoroughly dampen a kitchen towel and lay it over the rack. Load that rack up with as many eggs as you like, as long as they don’t touch. Turn your oven on to 320° F and let your eggs bake for 30 minutes. Then, pull the rack out and grab the four corners of the towel to create a little cradle for the eggs. Carry the towel with the eggs out of the oven and transfer the eggs to an ice bath. Let them chill out until you can handle them. Dry them off if you’re making Easter eggs, or peel them if you plan to eat them.
Pros: Volume volume volume! Yes of course you need two dozen!
Cons: Takes more total time (but it’s brainless time)
High and dry–the perfectly easy way to cook your eggs.
In a big pot with a metal steamer inside, bring 1 inch of water to a boil. Add your eggs directly from the fridge to the steamer—6 fit without overcrowding. Cover the pot and let the eggs cook for 12 minutes (6 minutes for soft boiled). If you plan to eat them cold, transfer the eggs to an ice bath and let them chill out until you can handle them, then peel them.
Pros: Quick—you’re boiling an inch of water, not an entire pot; you can easily make them soft boiled too.
Cons: You can’t go for mass production as with the oven method.
Spring Training. Oh baby. Inspiring? Depressing? Hopeful? Daunting? All of the above? At least it can be tasty.
I have a friend who, at the end of ski season, assessing the toll of too many fries and cheeseburgers and not enough training, used to wish for a week on an island with a bag of oranges. I’m feeling her pain. But as much as I need it, I’m not getting that island.
I am, however, going to Mexico in a mere three weeks. As if that hard deadline wasn’t daunting enough, the Title Nine catalog arrived. For me that catalog is usually about 30 percent inspiring and 70 percent depressing. Given my circumstances, however, I’m trying to embrace the inspirational aspect of seeing the hard-bodied microbiologist/organic baker/pro surfer/mother-of-four riding her skateboard to the beach in a cute clingy dress.
This is the long way of saying that it’s salad week here. I had this salad last week at my sister’s house in CA, where Meyer lemons are free for the taking off neighborhood trees. Pure fantasy. It comes from an old issue of Cook’s Country, an off-shoot of the notoriously meticulous Cook’s Illustrated. I included the link but forget about getting any free content from these cats.
Cook’s Country tests the hell out of every recipe, which means two things: a. Every recipe is the most perfect version of what it can be; and b. you have to follow the recipe exactly. This is not a problem for my sister, who gives her recipes the respect they deserve, but it is an issue for a serial slacker like myself. Not surprisingly her version turned out way better than mine, so I’ve added some cautionary notes (in italics) based on my freelancing. My version was still darned good, but hers was better. And if you’re going to be eating salads for three weeks they might as well be as good as they can be.
Speaking of salads, now is a great time to try the kale and brussels sprouts salad if you haven’t already. It’s more of a fall thing, but it’s green and fibrous and delicious, all of which work for spring.
In a leap of faith and a show of hope, I sent back the swim dress/muu-muu and ordered board shorts and a suit. We’ll see how it goes.
Minty Snap Pea Salad
1 ½ pounds sugar snap peas, stems snapped and strings removed (Not all of them require snapping and stringing, but do take out the guess work and weigh them at the store)
salt and pepper
¼ cup finely chopped fresh mint
1 small shallot minced
1 tsp grated zest plus juice from 1 lemon (Meyer, Meyer, Meyer if possible. you know my deal by now)
1 tsp Dijon mustard (regular, not the last of the honey dijon)
1 tsp honey
3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup crumbled goat cheese
Peas: Combine 4 cups water and 4 cups ice in a large bowl; set aside. Bring 4 quarts water to a boil in a large pot over high heat. Add peas and 1 Tbsp salt (regular, not kosher) and cook until crisp tender, about 2 minutes (I overdid mine by about a minute. Not ideal). Drain peas then transfer to ice bath and cool completely (yeah, they mean completely. If they are the tiniest bit warm the goat cheese shmoozes over everything instead of keeping its crumbly integrity.) Remove peas from water, pat dry with kitchen towel (drying is also key to cheese/pea interface) and cut in half crosswise. At this point the peas can be refrigerated in a Ziploc bag for up to two days.
Dress salad: Whisk mint, shallot lemon zest and juice, mustard, honey and oil in a large bowl. Add peas and cheese to bowl and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper (remember the seasoning step). Serve chilled or at room temperature. The salad can be refrigerated in an airtight container for 1 day.
Bringing it:
Make it all ahead and bring it. Or, if you need to prep it ahead, bring peas, dressing and cheese in separate containers and combine before serving.
Here in New Hampshire, we continue to wake up to single digit temperatures and lots of snow still covering the ground. Each day, we don our heavy jackets, wool hats, and warm gloves and head out to the blast cold air hitting our faces, just like we’ve done every day for the past several months. Although most of us love winter, this routine is getting old. We are longing for a day when we can walk outside and feel, well, warm!
Where we live, there are many serious and not-so-serious maple syrup producers. This is the time of year when you walk into the local country store and hear comments about when the sap is going to run. What causes sap to flow? Well, I’m no physicist, but it has to do with temperatures rising above freezing (key word = “above”). These warmer temps of cause positive pressure to develop in the tree. This pressure causes the sap to flow out of the tree through wound or tap holes. During cooler periods, when temps fall below freezing, suction develops, drawing water into the tree through the roots. This replenishes the sap in the tree allowing it to flow again during the next warm period. So, at a very basic level, warmer temps are needed to make this magic happen; hence the constant chatter about when the sap will run. There is still time and hopefully it will come together in the next couple weeks to make the sap run, and run, and run some more.
In the meantime, I decided to break out the pure New Hampshire maple syrup I had on hand to make this delicious salad dressing. This is getting me in the mood for spring because it will happen – I promise!
Enjoy and happy spring everyone.
Ingredients
Salad:
12 cups spring greens
1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese or gorgonzola
3/4 cup pecans, caramelized*
1 cup fresh strawberries or orange slices
In a large salad bowl, toss spring greens with cheese, pecans, and fruit. To prepare the vinaigrette, mix together all ingredients except olive oil until well blended. Add oil in a slow, steady stream until incorporated. Toss greens with dressing.
*To caramelize pecans, spread pecans on baking tray and roast in 350 degree oven until just starting to turn brown (about 2-3 minutes). Remove and toss with enough melted butter to lightly coat. Sprinkle nuts with 2 tsp white sugar and 1 tsp salt and toss again. Return to oven for a minute or two, being careful not to burn.
You’ve probably heard the buzz around cauliflower being billed as the new kale. Now, I love cauliflower, don’t get me wrong…. but the new kale? That sounds like a stretch, for me anyway. I think of kale as so pretty and versatile. I think of cauliflower as so muted and routine. Could I be missing something? I decided to do some homework and find out what all the buzz is about. It didn’t take much Googling before I found a plethora of recipes and photos that were fun, interesting, colorful, delicious and healthy. You can grill it like a steak, crush it into a pizza crust, mash it instead of potatoes, and much more. It takes on many roles without a hitch and everyone is surprised when they learn the “secret” ingredient. Not to mention, the health benefits of cauliflower are plentiful. It’s full of vitamin C, lots of the B’s, omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin K. And it is low in calories. What more could you want?
Try this recipe and don’t forget (from a previous blog post), farro is chewy. The “high chew factor” is good for fast eaters because you have to chew it a lot to get it down! Enjoy and send us your favorite cauli-flower-power recipes!
Ingredients
Roasted Cauliflower:
1 large head cauliflower, cut into bite-sized florets
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
Light sprinkle of fine-grain sea salt
Garlicky Farro:
1 cup uncooked farro, rinsed
2 tsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1/4 tsp fine-grain sea salt
Everything else:
15 pitted Kalamata olives, chopped
1/4 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, rinsed and roughly chopped
2 oz feta cheese, crumbled (a heaping half cup)
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
Fresh ground black pepper to taste
1 avocado, sliced into thin strips
4 handfuls leafy greens (spinach, arugula, spring greens, other)
Method
To roast cauliflower, preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Toss the cauliflower florets with olive oil, red pepper flakes, and a sprinkle of sea salt. Roast for 25-30 minutes, tossing occasionally until the cauliflower is tender and golden on the edges.
To cook the farro, in a medium saucepan, combine rinsed farro and 3 cups of water. Bring water to a boil, then reduce burner to low and simmer for 35-40 minutes (if you are using pearled farro, it takes only about 15 minute so to cook). Once cooked, drain off any excess water and toss with olive oil, garlic, and sea salt (I like to roast the garlic in my toaster oven for a couple minutes before chopping but raw garlic is fine too).
In a large serving bowl, toss together roasted cauliflower, cooked farro, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, and lemon juice. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed.
Divide avocados and greens among salad plates. Top with generous amount of cauliflower and farro salad. Finish plates with an extra squeeze of lemon juice and a drizzle of olive oil if desired.
This is the time of year when many people are looking for game day food. I have to admit, I don’t follow professional sports, but regardless, I still like thinking about game day food and I know chicken wings are a tradition. I found this great recipe for Asian BBQ Chicken Wings made in a crockpot. The description had me at “Asian and BBQ”. Here’s why….
….my family loves both. When I met my husband, he asked me to come to his house for dinner. On our first date, when we were both trying to make good first impressions, he made me BBQ chicken pizza. It was great! The next dinner he made me BBQ grilled shrimp and then BBQ chicken. You don’t have to be a mental giant to see the common thread here. BBQ sauce went on everything! I quickly took over in the kitchen so as to expand our dinner repertoire, but good for him for trying. And his love of BBQ sauce has not abated over the past 20 years. As for the Asian part of the sauce, well, no more need be said, Asian flavoring is always a winner.
Now that you have a little background on why I picked this recipe, I have one more note before we get started…. When I saw this listed as a crockpot recipe, I thought, easy peasy. Then I read the details and realized that you have to brown the wings after cooking them in the crockpot and make the sauce. Now, don’t get me wrong, this recipe is not complicated, but there are a couple steps after the crockpot. I just wanted to provide fair warning, and the extra steps are well worth it. Have plenty of napkins on hand!
Ingredients
4 lbs chicken wings
8 medium scallions, thinly sliced
1 cup hoisin sauce
3 Tbsp Asian sesame oil
1 1/2 Tbsp minced fresh ginger
1 1/2 Tbsp sambal oelek
2 1/2 Tbsp cider vinegar
Asian chile oil (optional)
Method
In a 5-6 quart slow cooker, stir the chicken wings, all but 2 Tbsp of the scallions, hoisin sauce, sesame oil, ginger, and sambal oelek until the wings are evenly coated. Cover and cook until the wings are cooked through but not falling off the bone, 2 1/2 hours on high or 4 hours on low (the wings can stay in the crock pot on warm for up to 1 hour).
Use tongs to transfer the chicken wings to a large foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Strain the sauce inot a fat separator and set aside for a few minutes. Pour the defatted sauce into a 2-quart saucepan, add the vinegar and boil over high heat, stirring occasionally, until reduced by half, about 15 minutes.
Position a rack 4 inches from broiler element and heat the broiler on high. Brush the wings with the sauce and broil until browned, about 3 minutes. Turn the wings over, brush them again, and broil until brown and crisp, about 3 minutes more. Brush with the sauce once more before serving and top with remaining scallions. Drizzle with chile oil if using. Serve any remaining sauce on the side for dipping.
Bring It
Place back in crock pot to bring or leave on rimmed baking sheet and cover with foil. It really depends where you are going and timing on when they will be devoured.
Most nights salad is on the dinner menu in my house. The range of options for ingredients and the variety of dressings are endless. It’s also a great way to clean out the fridge and be creative. This salad combo brings together many of my favorite foods and it joins the ranks of comfort food with its warm dressing and roasted vegetables.
To assemble this salad you will need greens, roasted vegetables, a warm vinaigrette, and toppings if you have them available. See what you have in your cupboard or refrigerator and go to town. You might find ingredients lurking in there that you didn’t know you had. Don’t be afraid…toss them in and then grab a fork and dig in.
Ingredients
Roasted Vegetables:
2 lbs vegetables, trimmed and cut into ¾ inch pieces, about 6 cups (carrots, beets, squash, sweet potatoes, anything really), NOTE: check out Roastarama for more details
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
Salt and pepper
Other Salad Stuff:
4 cups lightly packed, sturdy greens (baby kale, baby chard, escarole, endive, arugula, spinach)
1/4 cup toasted nuts (chopped) or seeds (pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, pinenuts, pepitas, sunflower seeds)
1/3 cup cheese, crumbled or diced (blue cheese, feta, goat cheese, cheddar, aged gouda, Parmigiano-Reggiano)
3 Tbsp dried fruit (cherries, raisins, cranberries, chopped figs, pitted chopped dates)
Dressing:
1/4 cup grapeseed oil
1/3 cup thinly sliced shallots
Kosher salt
1 tsp chopped ginger
2 Tbsp white balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp pure maple syrup
1 Tbsp fresh lime juice
2 tsp finely grated lime zest
2 tsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 tsp Dijon mustard
Fresh ground black pepper
Method
Vegetables:
Heat oven to 450 degrees. In a large bowl, combine vegetables with the oil and tsp salt and pepper. Toss well and transfer to large rimmed baking sheet. Spread into single layer. Roast, flipping a few times while cooking. Cook 20 – 25 minutes until vegetables are tender. Let cool a bit before tossing with salad.
Vinaigrette:
Heat oil in 8 inch skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and a pinch of salt, stirring occasionally until softened and lightly browned. Add ginger and cook, stirring, until fragrant and softened, about 15 -30 seconds. Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a small heatproof bowl, wish the vinegar, maple syrup, lime juice, lime zest, parsley, salt and pepper. Whisk the warm oil into the vinegar mixture until emulsified. Season to taste.
Assembly:
Lightly season the greens with salt and drizzle with 2 Tbsp warm vinaigrette. Toss, taste, and add a little more dressing if needed (but never over dress!). Arrange greens on a large platter. Dress vegetables with 2 Tbsp warm vinaigrette too (again, no over dressing, over dressing = mushy mess). Scatter vegetables over the greens. Top with nuts, cheese, dried fruit. Serve right away.
Bring It
If bringing this warm salad anywhere, bring each component in separate containers and assemble at the host’s house.
“Tis the season to overdo everything. So let’s overdo pomegranates!
It’s almost Christmas, and whether you celebrate it or not, I’ m giving you a gift. Pomegranates. Well, I’m not actually buying them for you, but I am unlocking their potential. For a long time we have heard about the amazing health benefits of pomegranates. They are rich in vitamins and antioxidants, low in calories, high in fiber, high in heart healthy phytochemicals (say that three times quickly then google it). They strengthen the immune system, regulate blood pressure, improve oral hygiene, reduce wrinkles and even give PMS the boot.
All this, and yet I have ignored pomegranates entirely, for the simple reason that they are a pain in the butt. They are messy, labor intensive, not roastable in any way and obscenely expensive in their juiced or seeded form. Until recently nothing moved me to entertain an interest in the pomegranate or its derivatives other than as a splash in a martini.
But then I found myself living with a young friend who has a pomegranate-a-day habit. Fortuitously this coincided with running across a pomegranate hack that made seeding a pomegranate so easy that I had to try it. Bells rang, stars aligned, produce departments rejoiced. Now, my record for getting all the seeds out of a pomegranate is 1 minute 11 seconds, and it is a rare day in my household that does not involve this “super fruit.”
Incidentally, my young friend rejected the hack, even after we staged timed contests to prove hack efficiency. A traditionalist, he adheres to his old ways, enjoying his ritual of settling down on the couch, focusing on his pomegranate, a bowl and the mission. I respect. But I also have yet to find a primary food provider who is in search of labor intensive food prep rituals. So for the rest of you, here is your key to pomegranate freedom.
Though I adore the Russian Food hacker, his version (by his own admission) is a bit too bare bones: “Ve really need a bowl, not zeez cheap plastic plates from single guy apartment.” This guy is a bit dry (and he could crack you in half like a pomegranate), but he is a pro.
And now, what to do with the bonanza of pomegranate seeds you have just unlocked? I’ve got you covered, with four festive ideas to let those seed brighten up your holiday.
#1 Pomegranate Bubbly
Pour anything bubbly—Prosecco, champagne, sparkling cider, birch beer, ginger ale etc—over pomegranate seeds and they will float up, be festive and give you something to chew on. Yum!
#2 Pomegranate Cheese Log
Ingredients
8 oz cream cheese (or 4 oz goat cheese and 4 oz cream cheese mixed)
1 cup pomegranate seeds
1/2 cup chopped chives
2 Tbsp finely minced fresh basil
Crackers, toasts or dipping vehicles of choice.
Method
Place cream cheese (or goat/cream cheese mix) on waxed paper and form into a log. Mix pomegranate seeds, chives and basil on another sheet of waxed paper. Roll cream cheese in seed/herb mixture, pressing lightly to stick. Serve with crackers.
# 3 Pomegranate Guacamole
Oh my! This brings me back to my very first pomegranate cocktail ever, the pomegranate margarita at Rosa Mexicano. This use for pomegranate seeds pretty much assures the pomegranate market in New Hampshire. Lest we forget, guacamole is not an exact science by any means. Shallots or green onion instead of red onion? Awesome. No fresh cilantro? No problemo. Roll with it– its Happy Hour fergawdssakes. If all you can muster is avocado, a shake of Adobo seasoning, a squirt of lemon and pomegranate seeds you are good to go.
Ingredients
2 medium ripe avocados
1/3 cup diced red onion
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 cup pomegranate seeds
Chips or assorted veggies for serving
Method
Halve and pit the avocados then scoop out the flesh into a large bowl.
Add the red onion, cilantro, lime juice, salt and pepper to the bowl, mashing the mixture together with two forks until it reaches your desired consistency.
Stir in the pomegranate seeds then serve the guacamole with chips or assorted dippers.
#4 Pomegranate Desserts
Fly, be free. Let’s not overthink this. Sprinkle them on vanilla ice cream or yogurt. Put them in a trifle or slip them in fruit pies. Mix them with ripe sliced pears, a squeeze of lemon and a dash of cinnamon. Or just eat them with a spoon or funnel them from the bowl right into your mouth. Um. Of course, nobody would do something like that.
Bonus points: Just to let you know, in addition to the above we have also sprinkled them on raclette, put them into quesadillas and on salads, tossed them with sliced steak, put them in crepes and on cereal and thrown them in smoothies. And no, I have not yet roasted them, but the holiday season is young.
Are you still with me? Are you intrigued by the above? My sister turned me on to this video and my captive son and I got a little obsessed with yarn/toilet paper roll pom-pom hats. I figure there are worse obsessions, and who doesn’t need another decorative totally useless bottle topper? Right?
Merry Christmas all!
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