Basmati Rice Salad with Asparagus and Leek

We wanted a side dish for our delicious burgers and I decided to raid the fridge and come up with something. Left over basmati rice from our Charlie Trotter cooking extravaganza the night before (more on that later), 6 spears of steamed asparagus and a leek and dinner was ready!

BASMATI RICE SALAD WITH ASPARGUS AND LEEK

2-3 cups cooked basmati rice
6 spears steamed asparagus, cut on the bias into 1 inch pieces
1 leek, white and light green parts, split, cleaned well and cut into half moons
olive oil
salt and pepper

- In a sauce pan heat the oil on low and saute the leek until soft

- In a large bowl combine the rice, asparagus and leeks

- Toss with dressing and serve room temperature

LEMON WHITE WINE VINEGAR DRESSING DRESSING

Juice of 1 lemon
White wine vinegar
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

- In a jar add the juice of a lemon and a Tablespoon or so of white wine vinegar

- Add olive oil to taste, whisking as you go

- Add salt and pepper to taste
- In

Roasted Fingerling Potato Salad with Watercress Horseradish Dressing

Most of our cooking inspiration these days comes from library books. Almost weekly, Jason heads to the library to get a new book or two (or three). This method has allowed us to try so many new styles and recipes without having to commit to a book that might end up having only one or two interesting recipes.

A recent favorite was Earth to Table: Seasonal Recipes from an Organic Farm by Jeff Crump and Bettina Schormann. The book is organized by season and highlights dishes that best encapsulate the spirit of that season which I love.

This recipe was a yummy hit and simple to make. We served it first with a spice rubbed pork tenderloin and made it again to serve with delicious Bobby Flay cheeseburgers. We made a couple of changes, in particular altering how the salad was composed and served. If you can't find fresh horseradish root you could always substitute prepared, and if watercress is nowhere to be found, substitute arugula for a similar, peppery flavor. While the recipe calls for peeling the potatoes, I love living the skin on and everyone agreed this was the way to go with this recipe!

ROASTED FINGERLING POTATO SALAD WITH WATERCRESS HORSERADISH DRESSING

2 lbs fingerling potatoes
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves
1 tsp salt
1-2 bunches watercress

DRESSING
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup sour cream
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp freshly grated horseradish root
Salt and pepper to taste
lemon

- Preheat the oven to 450

- Toss the potatoes, oil, thyme and salt in a medium bowl

- Spread on a baking dish and roast until very tender, about 30 minutes. Check the potatoes and flip them halfway through the baking, the skins will get a little browned

-  To make the dressing: whisk together the oil, sour cream, vinegar and horseradish. Season to taste with salt and pepper. I ended up adding a little extra horseradish and a dash of lemon juice. Cover and refrigerate while potatoes finish

- Once potatoes are done and have cooled slightly, toss in a large bowl with the watercress

- Serve the salad with the dressing on the side for guests to drizzle themselves

Fiddlehead Ferns (or why I should be accompanied when grocery shopping)

I love to grocery shop, I always have.  I hate shopping for clothes, accessories, makeup and all the other things women typically adore.  But roaming the aisles for food, I could do it for hours.  As you may have noted from my previous posts, I am in heaven since the opening of the Dill Pickle Food Co-op.  Everything my culinary heart desired under one roof just minutes from my house.

The co-op provides me a source for new and varied products, spices, fruits and vegetables.  This was the first year I've cooked with ramps and today I purchased something I don't think I've even seen in person, fiddlehead ferns.

A quick glance through my cookbooks proved that I do not have a single recipe for the strange looking spring vegetable.  I did find an entry for them in The Flavor Bible, as follows:

Season:  Spring

Taste:  Bitter

Weight:  Medium

Volume:  Moderate-Loud

Techniques/Tips:  Always serve cooked:  blanch, boil, sautee, steam

Sounds about right for a very strange looking spring vegetable that is not routinely seen in your run-of-the-mill grocery store.

The Flavor Bible actually provides quite a list of recommended flavor pairings.  The bolded or highly recommended flavor pairings include sweet butter, cheese: comte, goat, parmesan, onions, pasta, vinaigrettes and vinegar: balsamic and sherry.  The BOLDED CAPITALIZED (very highly recommended) pairing is wild mushrooms.

Luckily I also grabbed a handful of shiitake mushrooms and a leek.  I'm going to see what a bit of internet research combined with a bit of ingenuity help me come up with in the next couple of days...

***Editor's Note:  A day or two later I did find a recipe for fiddlehead ferns in From Asparagus to Zucchini put out by the Madison Area Community Supported Agriculture Coalition (MACSAC).