Sping on a plate

**recipes as previously published in the daily vanguard**

Hello! I know it's been awhile, and I apologize. I went on a mental and physical vacation to my hometown in Sonoma County, California. Meyer lemons, beautiful family, and 75 degree weather made it extremely hard to bring myself back to Oregon, but you gotta do what you gotta do.
Another event that occurred on my vacation was a visit to Michael Chairello's restaurant, Bottega in Yountville. I don't review restaurants on my blog but this may have been some of the best Italian food I've ever had.
My main course was a pan-fried gnocchi with a heaping serving of spring vegetables and a creamy fonduta sauce. The colors on the plate were electric greens and oranges and the tastes were so fresh you'd think the veggies were picked that morning.
Here is my inspired recipe from the dish, minus the Fonduta add creamy goat cheese crumbles (a favorite ingredient of mine).
And following that, I have artichoke my way, a seasonal and fun food to eat. As Mr. Chiarello says,Buon Appetito.

Shells and spring veggies
Feel free to add any of your favorite spring vegetables—sugar snap peas would work well here also.


Ingredients
1 leek, cleaned and sliced into half moons
6 medium sized carrots (green tops removed) cut into slices
4 tablespoons of garlic and chive pesto (purchased from Pesto Outside The Box, a vendor at the PSU Farmer’s Market)
1 cup of whole wheat or regular shell pasta
4 tablespoons of olive oil
Zest from one Meyer lemon
2 tablespoons of goat cheese crumbles
Sprinkle of salt
Dash of fresh ground pepper

Method
Bring a medium saucepan filled with water and a sprinkle of sea salt to a boil.
Meanwhile, heat a large skillet to medium-high heat, add olive oil.
When olive oil is hot, add carrot slices. Sprinkle with salt, grind pepper and let the carrots cook in oil for a few minutes.

Add pasta to water and cook according to package directions.
Next, add leeks to skillet, stir with spatula and add spices as needed. Sauté for 8–10 minutes at medium heat.

When pasta is ready and carrots are crisp tender, mix the pasta into the skillet.
Add pesto, goat cheese crumbles and zest.
Serve with lemon slices, serves 1–2 people.


Artichoke with lemon dill crema
This is a classic preparation of a vegetable that’s as fun to eat as it is tasty. If serving with pasta, make sure to start the artichoke earlier than the pasta. They often take a long time to become tender.

Ingredients:
1 artichoke, trimmed of dirty leaves and stem removed
1 clove of garlic, peeled
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon of white wine vinegar
Crema:
1/2 cup Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons of dill
Juice from one Meyer lemon
1 teaspoon of honey

Method
Place a few inches of water in a medium saucepan. Place garlic, bay leaf, and vinegar in water and let it come to a boil.

Place steamer basket above water, and place artichoke in, stem up.
Place lid on pan and let simmer for 20–40 minutes.
When leaves can be removed easily with a fork, the artichoke is ready. Serve with lemon dill crema.

Crema:
Mix yogurt, honey, lemon juice and dill in a small bowl. Serve with artichoke for dipping.
Serves 1–2 people.

Olive Press Competition: A 4 Course St. Patty's Meal

I sure do love me a food holiday. That’s why when I was invited to participate in a food blogger competition for Olive Press olive oil company in Sonoma (my hometown county! Represent!), I instantly thought of our upcoming holiday. Sure, I may be Italian/Lithuanian, but my boyfriend and favorite beer are both Irish, so of course I know what I’m talking about. Please enjoy my greened-out meal; each course highlighted with one of the following Olive Press olive oils:

Arbequina (light)
Mission (medium)
Italian (robust)
Blood Orange (sweet)

They've got all kinds of great oils you can check out at:
www.theolivepress.com


I’m not even the slightest bit competitive, so I just want to say thank you to Olive Press for sending me your samples and taking a chance on a newbie food blogger. Thanks so much!






Starter: Kale chips with Avocado Crema
These kale chips are nutrient-packed and transform completely in the oven into crunchy, salty delights. The Italian olive oil helped these chips achieve a smoky taste, which paired well with my avocado crema dip. Who doesn’t like avocado? (It’s got that good fat).

Ingredients:
1 small avocado, very soft and ripe
1 tablespoon of nonfat Greek yogurt
1 tsp sea salt
1 bunch of kale
Italian Olive Oil (Olive Press)

Method:
1) Take prettiest, fullest leaves from the bunch and rinse thoroughly.
2) Lay out kale leaves on baking sheet. Drizzle two tablespoons Italian olive oil, top with sea salt and a grind or two of pepper.
3) Bake kale in the oven for 10 minutes.
4) Meanwhile, mix salt, avocado, and Greek yogurt in a small bowl, tasting for preference.
5) Serve avocado crema with kale chips, instructing guests to dip the stems of the chips in the crema.




Side: Spinach Dill Mashed Potatoes
Here’s a comfort classic with ribbons of farmer’s market spinach and earthy dill to add some flare to an old favorite. I use the medium Mission olive oil because it isn’t an aggressive flavor and it adds the silkiness butter usually offers to mashed potatoes. And most importantly, it’s St.Paddy’s Day so you have to have SOME potatoes!

Ingredients:
1 large handful of spinach (preferably from the farmer’s market, oh so green!)
1 lb of Yukon gold potatoes, scrubbed
½ cup half and half
Mission olive oil (Olive Press)
1 tablespoon fresh or dried dill
sea salt and pepper
1 minced garlic clove

1) Boil potatoes for 20-30 minutes or until you cut push through a potato with a fork easily.
2) When there is around 10 minutes left, set a medium skillet to high and add one tablespoon of Mission olive oil and the garlic. Next, add the spinach and sauté with a spatula.
3) Drain boiled potatoes and return to sauté pan. Add half and half and spinach and stir.




Main Dish:Calamari Shells With Goat Cheese and Capers
The shells I use for this recipe adhere really well to the creaminess of the goat cheese, and the tangy lemon zest compliment the zing of the capers. The Arbequina olive oil is by far my favorite of the four: it’s delicate and really highlights the flavor of seafood…I like it so much I add it to the sauce as well!

Ingredients:
½ lb calamari tubes, sliced
1 cup of shell pasta
¼ cup of goat cheese crumbles
2 tablespoons capers
1 small zucchini, sliced
Delicate Arbequina Olive Oil (Olive Press)
the zest from one lemon
2 tablespoons parsley

1) Bring a medium saucepan full of water to a boil
2) When boiling, drizzle 1 1/2 tablespoons of the Arbequina olive oil in a medium to large skillet. Place on medium high heat.
3) Add zucchini slices to mixture, cook for 4-5 minutes until becoming soft. Then add calamari to the mix, cooking a few minutes more.
4) Meanwhile, mix 2 more tablespoons of Arbequina with the zest and parsley in a small bowl.
5) When pasta is al dente, drain and then pour into skillet with calamari, zucchini and capers.
6) Top with lemon zest/parsley sauce and enjoy.



Dessert: Fruit Medley with Blood Orange Sherry Sauce
After any meal, it’s nice to leave the palate with something sweet. The Blood Orange olive oil from Olive press is really fantastic with a splash of sherry vinegar to add some kick to its sweetness. This fruit salad highlights some of our seasonal winter fruits that have been showing up everywhere, as well as some berries to prepare us for spring. Lastly, I added hazelnuts because they’re an Oregon favorite, and I have to give some love to my current residence!

Ingredients:
1 Anjou pear, sliced
2 Granny Smith apples, thinly sliced
½ cup blueberries
1 large handful of toasted hazelnuts
3 tablespoons Blood Orange olive oil (Olive Press)
1 and ½ tablespoon of sherry vinegar

1) Mix all fruit in a bowl with the nuts.
2) Mix oil and vinegar in a small bowl. Whisk with a fork.
3) Top fruit with sauce, and serve to someone you love!

Whore Sauce With Shrimp & Lentils

*As Published In The Daily Vanguard*

Sugo alla puttanesca translates to “whore’s sauce” in Italian because of its “easy ingredients. The components of this sauce may be simple, but it is complex in taste. If you make Italian food a lot (Lord knows I do!), you'll likely have these ingredients in your fridge.

The recipe, inspired by a dish that Food Network’s Guy Fieri made with salmon on his show Guy’s Big Bite (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/guy-fieri/lentil-puttanesca-with-salmon-recipe/index.html), is a combination of high flavor and high health. Lentils are full of all the good stuff—protein, iron, fiber, amino acids and vitamin B1.

Adding shrimp complements the nutrition factor of this dish, too. It’s a lean protein with just 85 calories to a three-ounce serving.

Of course, flavor is the most important aspect of your meal, and the saltiness of this sauce, with the hint of the brine from the shrimp, takes the palate to a very good place. Enjoy!

PS..sorry about the lack of pictures for this one..still trying to figure out this camera...more this weekend though:)


Ingredients

For the main course
1/2 cup uncooked lentils or 1 cup of the precooked kind (Trader Joe’s)
2 anchovies in olive oil, drained
2 tablespoons of kalamata olives, pitted
2 tablespoons of capers
3 tablespoons of white wine vinegar
1 can diced tomatoes, low sodium
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves
2 cups of shrimp of any variety, shelled and deveined
1 tablespoon of red pepper flakes
Juice from 1 lemon
2 tablespoons of parsley

For bread
Olive oil
Whole wheat baguette
Juice from 1/2 lemon
2 tablespoons of oregano

For salad
4 large handfuls of spinach
2 handfuls of red cabbage, chopped
1 pear, sliced
2 ounces of almonds
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
3 tablespoons olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Half the juice of a lemon

Method
Prepare your ingredients. Chop and drain the anchovies. Chop your olives. Drain your can of diced tomatoes. Chop the parsley. Dice your onion and garlic cloves. Slice your bread into as many slices as you wish. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Heat one cup of water and the lentils in a saucepan on high until boiling. Simmer for 15 minutes and remove from heat.

Heat a large nonstick skillet to medium-high, and add a few tablespoons of olive oil.

Add red pepper flakes to the oil and wait for a minute until fragrant. Next, add your diced onion and garlic to the oil. Sauté with spatula for five to eight minutes or until soft. Add anchovies, capers and olives. Add tomatoes and kick the heat down to medium and let the flavors mingle while you make the salad.

Take the cabbage, spinach, almonds and pear slices and place in a large bowl. Take the olive oil, sherry vinegar, salt and pepper and whisk with a fork in a small bowl or glass.

Next, place bread slices on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes, or until golden brown.

Add shrimp to sauce, raising the heat a bit. Move around the shrimp with the spatula until they are a ripe pink, around six minutes.

Squeeze lemon juice and sprinkle oregano on the hot bread slices.

When the shrimp is done cooking, add lemon juice, white wine vinegar and pepper.

Herbes de Provence Tofu Scramble With Peas

**As Previously Published In The Daily Vanguard**

This breakfast is tasty, healthy, and tastes like something you'd spend 12 bucks for at a breakfast place. But don't go out and buy breakfast! Make this instead. Please forgive the photo, I didn't take a picture when I made this. But it guess it kind of fits..bright colors, morning...breakfast..recipe? You see, I totally knew what I was doing all along.
I do have good news though! I have a new camera coming in the mail, so soon my pictures will not suck! Something to look forward to! I might be the only one who cares about that..but yea, it's exciting. Anyway, this meal is fast so it could also double as a quick dinner or lunch when paired with a side salad.

Ingredients
1 shallot
1 large chunk of extra-firm tofu
1/2 cup of frozen peas
1 tablespoon of Herbes de Provence
1 pinch of sea salt
Olive oil

Method
Remove papery layer from shallot and mince like you would a garlic clove.


Slice off desired amount of tofu from its block, and squeeze both sides to ensure there isn’t any extra moisture. Crumble between your fingers into small pieces.


Coat a skillet with a thin layer of oil, about one tablespoon. Turn the heat to medium-high.

Add shallot, and move around with a spatula until it has softened a bit, around a minute.


Turn the heat to high, add peas and salt, stirring until warmed through and peas are no longer frozen.


Add tofu crumbles and Herbes de Provence and mix the ingredients together, allowing the flavors to mingle.


Taste for seasoning, add more salt or Herbes de Provence if desired.


Enjoy with a piece of whole wheat toast or an English muffin.

Popcorn- Four Ways

** As Previously Published In The Daily Vanguard**


Forget the greasy movie theater variety that stops getting tasty after the first layer. Stop turning to the microwave kinds that are adorned with strange orange substances on the inside of the bag. Now you have a new way to make popcorn.

This method is cheaper, faster and, most importantly, not filled with harmful chemicals. Below is a standard base recipe to start with. If you’re feeling creative, there are four possible toppings to match whatever you’re craving that night. There’s a sweet, a cheesy and a spicy addition you can add to your kernels. You’ll still use your microwave to make this delicious snack, but it’s possible you’ll never go back to the old way of making popcorn again.

The Base Popcorn Recipe
This is a standard recipe that is tasty on its own, and it takes less than five minutes to make.

What you need
1 Brown paper bag (sack-lunch style)
Popcorn kernels (which can be purchased in most bulk grocery sections, as well as by the bag in the popcorn aisle)
Microwave

Ingredients
1 small handful popcorn kernels
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 teaspoon of salt

Method
Place kernels in bag and fold down in three small panels. Microwave for one minute and 30 seconds, or whenever the time between popping sounds exceeds 10 seconds. Carefully open bag away from face (steam will be hot). Add olive oil and salt and shake, pour into bowl and enjoy.

Spicy Sriracha garlic popcorn
The zing of Sriracha adds some tangy kick to the popcorn, but feel free to use any of your favorite hot sauces here.

Ingredients
2 pats of unsalted butter
1 garlic clove, minced
2–5 squirts of Sriricha or any other hot sauce, depending on preference

Method
Microwave all ingredients in a small bowl or ramekin. Top finished popcorn (omit olive oil from original recipe) with sauce mixture.

So sweet popcorn
This recipe is reminiscent of the kettle corn you can purchase in bags or at fairs. Warning: This one can be addicting.

Ingredients
4 pats of unsalted butter
3 tablespoons of fine sugar
1 pinch of salt

Method
Heat all ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring slowly until butter is melted. Top base popcorn recipe with mixture, shaking to ensure even coverage.

Not-so-cheesy popcorn
While this topping doesn’t use any actual cheese, the nutritional yeast creates a similar texture.

Ingredients
1 small handful of nutritional yeast (which can be purchased in most grocery bulk sections)
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 pinches of salt

Method
Make base popcorn recipe. Top with olive oil, shake bag to ensure even coverage. Add nutritional yeast, shake again. Add salt, shake again.

Beet Kale Salad

This recipe is kind of an "everything but the sink" lunch, but the results were tasty and so, so filling. If you don't like beets, I'm sure you could sub purple potatoes or something equally tasty and starchy.

Ingredients
2 beets
2 tablespoons of freshly minced ginger or powdered ginger (which I used)
1/2 container of Whole Food's Kale&Sesame Seaweed Salad (from the prepared foods section)
1 egg
1/2 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

Method
1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Since beets take forever to bake, it's good to start this recipe BEFORE you're hungry for lunch. Or you can always do a little cooking while eating;)
2) Wrap beets in foil, and place in oven. Let bake for 1 hour.
3)Remove beets from oven, drain juices, and let cool.
4) While beets cool, hard boil an egg (drop egg into boiling water and leave in for 10 minutes. Run cool water over when done). Slice the finished egg.
5) Mix the beets and hard boiled egg slices with the kale salad, add the rest of the ingredients. DO NOT salt, Whole Foods does enough of that with this salad.

Steak Fajitas

Steak Fajitas

*As published in The Daily Vanguard*

Steak fajitas are a delicious option that can accommodate the tastes any guest you might be sharing with. Serve this recipe in a “build your own” bar at house, laying out toppings and the following salsa recipe so each eater can design their own perfect fajita. For a vegetarian option, simply replace steak with a block of extra-firm tofu and decrease cooking time to three minutes per side.


Ingredients
1 lb flank steak
2 bell peppers, sliced into strips
1 onion, sliced into rings
Flour, corn or whole-wheat tortillas, taco sized
Canola oil
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin

Marinade
3 tablespoons brown sugar
5 dashes Worchester sauce
5 shakes of hot sauce, such as Tapatio
1 handful of cilantro, chopped finely
3 tablespoons canola or any oil
Juice from two limes

Possible toppings
Sour cream
Chopped cilantro
Hot sauce
Lime juice
Prepared guacamole
Grated cheddar cheese

Method


Put steak in a large Ziploc bag with ingredients for marinade, shaking to ensure coverage. Place in fridge for 30 minutes or overnight.

Put one tablespoon of oil in a large nonstick skillet. Turn the heat to medium-high, and wait until oil has tiny wisps of smoke rising.

Add marinated steak to pan, and allow one side to cook for five to six minutes, lowering the heat if the pan begins to burn. Flip steak and cook for another four to five minutes. Remove to plate and cover with foil and let sit for five to 10 minutes.

Add another tablespoon of oil to the pan and follow with peppers and onions, along with a shake of cumin and a shake of chili powder. Cook at medium-high heat until vegetables start to brown and soften, about six minutes.

Meanwhile, slice cooked steak against the grain into thin strips. Take tortillas and place on a plate and cover with plastic wrap. Microwave for one minute.

Set up a fajita bar and allow your guests to enjoy!


Pico de gallo
Since the ingredients in this recipe are all chopped into small chunks, it makes sense that pico de gallo translates to “beak of the rooster.” But you don’t have to be a bird to enjoy this classic recipe for your fajitas, chips, eggs or anything else you enjoy salsa on. Use canned tomatoes during winter or fresh tomatoes in the summer when they’re in season.

Ingredients
2 cans of diced tomatoes drained of any excess juices (or in summer, four-cored and seeded tomatoes, diced, any variety)
1/2 onion, diced
Juice from three limes
1 clove of garlic, minced
5 tablespoons of chopped cilantro
1 jalapeño, chopped and seeded

Method


Mix all ingredients in a large bowl.


Taste and add salt and lime juice to your liking, perhaps add a teaspoon of sugar if the lime is too tart.

Cover the salsa with plastic wrap and let marinate in fridge for as long as time allows.

Spoon the salsa onto fajitas or whatever meal strikes your fancy.