Green Beans in a Black Bean Dressing

8 oz green beans, trimmed and sliced in half

1 Tbsp black bean paste

3 Tbsp oil

2 tsp sake

1/2 tsp sambal

a squeeze of lime

- Steam the beans until they are bright green. Remove from heat and run under cool water to stop cooking.

- Whisk together the rest of the ingredients

- Combine beans and sauce in a bowl and serve

Tomato Ceviche, Nobu Style

This is the best tomato salad I may have eaten. Ever. We tweaked the recipe for the ceviche sauce, omitting the salt & pepper it called for, improvising a yuzu sauce we didn't have, and subsituting sambal for aji amarillo paste. This recipe will amaze you. I plan on eating it plenty until we are out of heirloom tomatoes for the season!

TOMATO CEVICHE, NOBU STYLE

1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
3 heirloom tomatoes, various colors and sizes, chopped
4 teaspoons cilantro leaves
1/4 cup Ceviche Sauce (see below for recipe)

- Combine the tomatoes and cilantro in a bowl
- Toss gently with the Ceviche Sauce

Ceviche Sauce
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Juice of 1/2 lime
Juice of 1/2 small orange
1 tsp soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon grated garlic
1/2 teaspoon grated ginger
1 teaspoon sambal

- combine all of the ingredients

Black Bean, Corn, & Tomato Salad

Once we had the large batch of homemade tomatillo salsa, it was only a matter of time before taco night. Here, a simple side salad to accompany beef tacos, slices of avocado, and lime and cayenne sprinkled cucumbers. Perfect for August.

1 ear corn
1 can black beans
1 tomato
1/2 jalapeno
1/2 red bell pepper
large handful cilantro
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp coriander
1/8 tsp ancho chili powder
juice of 1/2 lime
pinch of salt

- Drain and rinse the black beans.

- Cut the kernels off the corn and boil for a few minutes until tender.

- Roughly chop the tomato.

- Dice the red pepper.

- Chop the cilantro.

- Combine everything in a bowl with the spices and lime juice. Chill and serve.

Tomatillo Salsa

Jason and I hit the farmer's market this past weekend to pick up some hot peppers for homemade hot sauce. We chatted with a nice guy at the market, discussing which of his peppers would be best for our intentions. He also pointed out the "ghost peppers" he had on the table. The ghost pepper, or Naga or Bhut Jolokia is the hottest pepper in the world coming in at a 1,000,000 on the Scoville rating (for reference, a jalapeno comes in at a mere 5,000, and a habanero tops out at about 350,000). When we paid for our jalapenos and serranos, he offered us two for free.

We were scared but intrigued. After a visit to Walgreens for some latex gloves, we decided to try the pepper in a tomatillo salsa. Jason started working and we decided to put our tongue on the tiniest slice of the pepper.... Not much happened. We got bold and took a little nibble. And pretty much nothing. A very mild hot pepper. Obviously not a Bhut Jolokia, we're thinking it was an Anaheim.

Either way, we ended up with a delicious tomatillo salsa. Try it out with your favorite pepper! And if you get your hands on a real ghost pepper, let us know!

TOMATILLO SALSA

1 1/2 lbs tomatillo
1/2 cup chopped white onion
1 anaheim pepper, destemmed and seeded
1/2 jalapeno pepper, destemmed and seeded
1/2 cup or so cilantro leaves
1 Tbsp lime juice
salt to taste
*optional 1/2 tsp sugar

-Preheat oven to 450

-Remove husks from tomatillos and rinse. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil, slice the tomatillos in half and roast face down in the oven until the skins start to blacken. Remove and let cool.

- Put tomatillos, onion, peppers, cilantro, and lime juice in a blender and pulse until finely chopped. Season to taste with salt.

Heirloom Tomato Tart

Recently Jason and I enjoyed an amazing dinner at Ruxbin. If you haven't heard of it, you probably will soon. A fantastic, little out of the way place with some serious cuisine. One of the highlights was my entree, a tomato tart. I've also been eyeing an heirloom tomato tart recipe from Tartlette and finally decided to give the recipe a try. Granted, I had to go out and buy both a tart pan and rolling pin that morning, as many of you know, I don't really bake.

Well, now I'm addicted to making tarts. The final product was beautiful! It needed more time to set than the recipe indicated (I might actually use less liquid next time) and definitely needed salt but I managed to get the crust right and the end product was beautiful. I've included my notes and suggestions in the recipe. It was perfect as a dinner accompaniment as well as several days worth of breakfasts! Next tart project, gruyere and caramelized onion...

Makes one 9-inch tart

Allow plenty of time for the dough prep

For the crust:

1 1/4 cup all purpose flour

1 stick unsalted butter, cold

1/4 tsp salt

2-3 Tbsp ice cold water

For the filling:

About 6 heirloom tomatoes

2 eggs

1 cup milk

2 tsp freshly chopped rosemary

Salt and pepper - go heavier than a pinch!

1/8 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

For the crust:

- Pulse flour in food processor until incorporated

- Chop butter into quarters, add and pulse until the butter resembles small peas This took longer than I anticipated. I was worried at first I had gone too long, but it takes a bit for the butter to get broken down and then form into little pea shapes!

- Add the salt and pulse once more

- Gradually stream in the water until the flour just comes together I probably used about 2 Tbsp, might ad a little more

- Turn out mixture onto work surface, form into a 2 inch thick disk, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 30 minutes apparently this can also be done up to a day ahead of time

- Flour work surface and roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thick, adding more flour as you go if the dough starts to stick. Place dough into tart pan. All of this was very difficult for me! I 9 inch pan might be a little large for this project. The dough kept breaking when I tried to get it in the pan. Eventually I transferred most of it over then patched up the sides with the excess dough.

- Place a piece of parchment paper over the dough, fill with dried beans and refrigerate for another 30 minutes

- Preheat oven to 350. Place tart pan on middle rack and bake for about 15 minutes (with the beans still inside). Remove from oven, let cool and remove beans and parchment paper.

For the filling:

- Slice the tomatoes and lay flat on a couple of sheets of paper towels to absorb excess water.

- In a large bowl, beat the eggs with the milk. Add the rosemary, salt, pepper, and nutmeg and whisk again.

- Pour the mixture into the tart shell and arrange tomato slices throughout. Here, I might not use all of the liquid as the dish ended up being a little "eggier" than I had expected. It also took longer to bake.

- Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes, or until center is barely set. Tart will continue to set as it cools.

Mozzarella & Tomato Salad

There are a million variations on this salad. And really, who needs a recipe? Fresh tomatoes, mozzarella, basil you've grown, olive oil, salt and pepper and you're done!

I was intrigued by this variation that I saw on Lottie & Doof that called for marinating the mozzarella as well as a couple of surprises, particularly the fennel seeds which were a great touch!I didn't use fresh buffalo mozzarella, we had a package of mozzarella balls on hand, but some fresh farmer's market cherry tomatoes and this dish was a hit.

1/2 tsp fennel seeds, lightly toasted and crushed
Zest of 1/2 a lemon
15 basil leaves, sliced
2 tsp chopped fresh oregano
4 tsp extra virgin olive oil
8 oz mozzarella
A handful or so of cherry tomatoes, larger ones sliced in half
Salt & freshly ground black pepper

-In a bowl combine the fennel, lemon zest, basil, oregano and olive oil. Toss in the mozzarella and marinate in the refridgerator at least 30 minutes.

-Before serving, stir in the tomatoes and season with a little salt and pepper.

Beet and Lentil Salad

This salad was taken from Gordon Ramsey's Cooking for Friends. A perfect summer lunch incorporating roasted red and thinly shaved raw chioggia beets which are simply beautiful.

MARINATED BEETS 
1 Chiogga beet

2-3 Tbsp Olive oil
2-3 Tbsp Sherry vinegar
1 Tbsp shallot, minced
Salt and pepper

- Peel the chioggia beet and using a mandoline, slice into very thin slices.

- Combine the rest of the ingredients and pour over the beets. Let marinate in the fridge for at least 20 minutes

FOR THE SALAD - serves 2

Cooked lentils (I cook a large-ish batch and then use throughout the week)
Mixed greens - spring greens, arugula, mizuna etc.
4 Roasted red beets
Marinated Beet
1-2 ounces of a firm sheep's cheese, diced (I used Carr Valley's Mobay Cheese, which is a goat & sheep blend)

- Cut the roasted beets into quarters if small, cut down further if large

- On each plate spread 2 heaping Tbsp of lentils, 1/2 the roasted beets and 1/2 the cheese. Top with a handful of the greens and 1/2 of the marinated beets.

- Drizzle the marinade on the greens and around the plate.

Lemony Snow Peas and Mixed Mushrooms

Trying to catch up on some recipes that have come into regular rotation recently. This recipe was adapted from the Chatelaine cook book. It works with both snap peas and snow peas and is a great summer side. The menu included:

Moroccan Chicken Thighs
Lentils
Lemony Snow Peas and Mixed Mushrooms

LEMONY SNOW PEAS & MIXED MUSHROOMS

1 lb snow peas or snap peas
1/2 lb mixed mushrooms (we've been using shiitake, crimini, and hen of the woods)
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 Tbsp butter
1 lemon
pinch garlic powder
salt
pepper

- Slice mushrooms (discard stems from shiitake)
- Melt butter in oil in a pan over medium-high heat (this can also be done in a cast iron skillet on the grill for the summer)
- Add mushrooms and a dash of salt. Let cook, mainly undisturbed, so the mushrooms will start to brown
- When mushrooms stop releasing liquid and are browned, add the peas and the juice of half a lemon
- Cook, stirring, until peas are tender crisp and lemon juice is reduced

Tofu Green Curry, Spring Rolls and Zucchini Cakes with Curried Dipping Sauce

Sunday night cooking at our house last night. I had spring roll wrappers and chopped veggies at the ready, a half block of tofu and 3/4 can of coconut milk leftover in the fridge and a gorgeous zucchini from the farmer's market. This meal was born, a blend of thai and middle eastern flavors. The zucchini pancakes were an old favorite, spiced up with a new dipping sauce, the spring rolls a new favorite I foresee making frequently in the future.

Tofu Green Curry

Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce

Zucchini Cakes with Curried Dipping Sauce

Garlic Scape and Tomato Pasta

I've been trying to come up with some new ways to use garlic scapes. I managed to go for a run in this ungodly heat and after a long, cold shower I was starving! Luckily I had some leftover, plain cooked pasta from a few days before, several garlic scapes, a couple of fresh onions from the Corner Farm and one last jar of canned tomatoes left over from last summer. This is a quick and light pasta that didn't even make me regret turning on the stove top!

GARLIC SCAPE AND TOMATO PASTA

Olive oil
2 garlic scapes, sliced
pinch red pepper flakes
2-3 small spring onions sliced
1 cup or so of crushed tomatoes
splash balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper
parmesan
basil
pasta, either left over or cooked according to package

- Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the garlic scapes, pinch of salt, several turns of freshly ground black pepper and red pepper flakes and sautee until the scapes get nice and green

- Add the onions and continue cooking, turning down the heat if needed.

- Add the tomatoes and a splash of balsamic vinegar. Bring to a simmer and then turn down to heat through. Taste and add salt and pepper if needed.

- Add the pasta and toss with the sauce.

- Remove from the heat, chiffonade 8 or so leaves of basil and stir in

- Transfer pasta to bowls and serve with some freshly grated parmesan

Potato, Arugula and Herb Frittata

Potato, Arugula and Herb Frittata

- 2 small red potatoes, quartered and thinly sliced
- 1 small yellow or white onion, thinly sliced
- Approx. 2 oz. arugula, stem ends removed and leaves roughly chopped*
- 8 organic eggs
- large handful parsley
- 10-12 basil leaves, chiffonade
- some chopped tarragon**
-  Olive oil
- Salt & pepper
Tabasco (optional)
*if you can’t find arugula, use spinach
** use whatever herbs you enjoy or have handy
 
Preheat the oven to 425
 
In a cast iron skillet (or other skillet that can go on top of and in the stove) heat 3 Tbsp olive oil over medium heat.
 
Add the potatoes and cook, stirring, for about 2-3 minutes
 
Add the onion, some salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until softened, about another 8 minutes
 
Add the arugula and cook until wilted, about a minute
 
Meanwhile, in a large bowl whisk the eggs, herbs, salt and pepper
 
Once the arugula is wilted, add the egg mixture to the skillet
 
Cook for about 6-8 minutes, or until the center is starting to set
 
Put the skillet in the oven and cook for another 5 minutes (if you want, turn it up to broil for the last minute to get the top to brown a little)
 
Let cool slightly and serve with a dash of Tabasco if you like.

Radish Salad

Jason put together a new batch of lemon confit which is ready to try out. I went for a nice long, cool run this morning on the lake front and stopped by the Green City Farmer's Market afterward. To my delight they had icicle radishes (I haven't had any yet this season).

I was feeling a little peckish and wanted a late afternoon snack. I took a look around and decided to thrown together:

several radishes
1/2 minced confited lemon
1/2 oz feta

The radish and lemon confit on their own didn't exactly work, but with the feta it was delicious. I'm going to have to think of some mediterranean style feta and lemon confit combinations to try out!

Aitor's Gazpacho and Vichyssoise Soups

The men recently did some supper club cooking and Aitor supplied a trio of soups (red, white and blue for 4th of July!). The Gazpacho and Vichyssoise were absolutely amazing. The blueberry soup was delicious, but sweet, more of a dessert. Either way, they will all make appearances frequently through the summer. The recipes for the gazpacho and vichyssoise are below

AITOR'S GAZPACHO

6 ripe tomatoes
1/2 cucumber, peeled
1 small green pepper, coarsely chopped
1 clove garlic
2 slices white bread
3 Tbsp oil
1 Tbsp vinegar
**dash hot sauce (optional)

-Put all ingredients in blender and puree until smooth. Pass soup through a colander and chill before serving

AITOR'S VICHYSSOISE

2 leeks, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3/4 cup thinly sliced potatoes
2 1/3 cups chicken stock
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste
1 1/8 cups heavy whipping cream

- Sweat the leeks and onion in a sauce pan with the butter

- Once softened, add the potatoes, stock, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Simmer gently for 30 minutes.

- Add to blender and puree until smooth. Chill. Stir in cream before serving.

Chilled Cucumber Soup

Adapted from this month's Food & Wine. Perfect porch eating dish.

CHILLED CUCUMBER SOUP
3 cucumbers (abt. 4 oz. each) peeled and coarsely chopped
1 cucumber (abt. 4 oz) peeled and diced
1/2 cup ice cubes
1/4 cup cold water
2-3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1-2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 jalapeno seeded and minced
2 Tbsp shredded mint leaves
1/4 cup plain yogurt
salt

- In a blender combine the 3 cucumbers, ice, water, olive oil, lemon juice, half of the jalapeno and half of the mint leaves and puree. Add salt and refrigerate

- When ready to serve, pour soup into bowls and garnish with the diced cucmber, yogurt and remaining jalapeno and mint

Sauteed Beet Greens

We have beautiful little beets coming up in the corner farm and I brought home a handful the other day after watering. The greens were so beautiful and are usually overlooked as an edible part of the plant. Immediately after getting home I cut the greens of the beets and store them in a separate plastic bag in the crisper. They can be sauteed just like any other green and make for a delicious side. I usually discard part of the stems if they are especially long, but like to leave some stem for a little crunch.

SAUTEED BEET GREENS

- beet greens
- oil
- 1-2 cloves garlic
- pinch red pepper flakes
- salt

-Heat oil in a pan, add the garlic and red pepper flakes and saute until they just start to sizzle

-Add the beet greens and cook until wilted

-Finish with a dash of salt and serve!

Zucchini Blossoms

I have been loving my time with the Altgeld Sawyer Corner Farm. Jason took some great photos on July 3rd and July 10th. The farm is going crazy right now. We had a brief but harsh storm Monday morning and that afternoon I joined a couple of other members to stake up some of the tomato, pepper and corn plants that had gotten knocked around. Several zucchini blossoms had been knocked off the plant and I decided to bring them home and fry them up. I opted for a flour and water batter instead of flour and egg to keep them a little lighter. The blossoms fried up beautifully, I only wish I had grabbed a few more!

The Italians only use the male blossoms, identifiable by their single pistil (which you can remove before cooking). The female blossoms will be attached to the zucchini. I fell in love with this delicacy in Italy before our wedding at Dal Lino Ristorante in Florence. We had them served during the cocktail hour of our reception and I daresay those were one of the greatest bites of food I have ever eaten. Fried zucchini blossoms and sauteed beets greens with dinner last night were such a treat and the best way to kick off the official start of my summer vacation.

FRIED ZUCCHINI BLOSSOMS

zucchini blossoms
flour
water or soda water
salt
pepper
mozzarella (or whatever cheese you like)
oil

-In a small bowl mix the flour with enough water so it is the consistency of cream. Add some salt and pepper.

-Stuff the blossoms with a small piece of mozzarella (which I had handy) or any other cheese and even a little salami if you like.

-Heat the oil in a pan, dredge the blossoms in the flour and water mixture, and fry on both sides until golden brown.

-Drain on paper towels and enjoy!

Vanilla Ice Cream with Chopped Plums and Basil

I'm coming into my last week of class and I've been working almost non-stop all weekend. Luckily, I have Jason to take care of me and cook me dinner! He had been pouring through the cookbooks for inspiration and came up with an incredible spinach and goat cheese taco with a grilled chicken breast and pepita sauce. Incredible. Then, dinner was topped off by this simple, perfect summer dessert. I've been eating a lot of stone fruit recently and the plum - basil combination was divine. I'm not usually much of a dessert person but a little bit of this made me very happy. Make sure to buy some high quality vanilla ice cream!

Vanilla Ice Cream (we used Ben & Jerry's)
1 - 2 ripe plums
8 - 10 basil leaves
sprinkle of sugar

Dice the plums, chiffonade the basil, mix together with just a sprinkle of sugar and serve over a scoop of ice cream. Believe me, it's delicious!

Garlic Scape Pesto

I bought a bunch of beautiful garlic scapes recently at the farmer's market (yay summer!). Last year I had purchased a pre-made garlic scape pesto and figured this year I would try to make my own (the one I purchased last summer was delicious but way too garlicky for me).

Taking a look around the kitchen I found a mini bag of walnuts and a giant bunch of parsley and thought that those flavors combined with the garlic scapes would be wonderfully nutty while the parsley would help cut down a bit on the overpowering, headache inducing garlic flavor. And I was right. This pesto is delicious with the perfect amount of bite. Don't be confused, this is not your regular basil pesto, but I can't wait to try it out on some pasta this week or spread on a grilled chicken breast!

GARLIC SCAPE PESTO

2 garlic scapes, cut into pieces
1 large handful fresh parsley
1 oz walnuts (approx)
Parmesan cheese (a couple of Tbsp?)
Dash of salt
Olive oil
Fresh squeezed lemon juice (optional)

-Combine the garlic scapes, parsley, walnuts, parmesan and salt in a food processor.

-With the blade running, drizzle in the olive oil until you get the desired consisteny, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

-Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and a dash of lemon juice if you like

This recipe can be doubled, tripled, whatever you like! I'm planning to make a few batches and freeze some for later in the season!

Blue Cheese Burgers with Red Onion Jam

Bobby Flay knows how to grill. We used his recipe for blue cheese burgers and red onion last weekend and served them with the roasted fingerling potato salad with watercress and horseradish dressing. I did my burgers with blue cheese, Jason and Nancy opted for provolone. Either way, with the red onion jam, dinner was delicious! We'll be enjoying these throughout the summer, and tonight!

BURGERS

1 lb grass fed ground beef
Worcestershire sauce
Onion powder
Garlic powder
Salt
Pepper
Arugula or watercress
Blue cheese or provolone

- Mix the seasonings into the beef. Form into 3 patties, and make an indent with your thumb on the top of the patty. Grill to your desired level of doneness, just before done, add cheese to the top and cover the grill to melt. And don't forget to toast your buns!

- Serve the burgers topped with dijon mustard, red onion jam and arugula or watercress if you'd like

RED ONION JAM

1 medium red onion
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup red wine
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 Tbsp honey
1 tsp thyme
salt and pepper

- Halve the onion and slice thinly

- Heat the oil in a sauce pan and saute the onion, with some salt and pepper, until nice and soft

- Add the wine, vinegar, honey and thyme and cook until the liquid is absorbed.

- Set aside and season to taste with salt and pepper

Summer Indeed, Vegetable Terrine!

It only took until August, but I am in full summer swing these days. I finally feel like I have some free time to do what I want and am really trying to get back into the cooking mode.

Thursday evening I made pickles. The next day I took off the afternoon and went a little crazy with the cooking. I used an obscene amount of our pots and bowls, but it was well worth it!

First off, the vegetable terrine. I've been wanting to make one of these for quite some time, even though I'm not totally sure what defines a terrine. I'm pretty sure its the layering in a loaf and weighing down that does it.

I researched a couple of recipes and then ended up borrowing bits from each and coming up with my own. It is labor intensive but then you just put it in the fridge and eat it the next few days.

AMY'S SUMMER VEGETABLE TERRINE

- loaf pan & saran wrap

- 3-4 red bell peppers

- 2 zucchini

- 1 eggplant

- 1 lb spinach

- 8oz. log of goat cheese

Peppers: preheat the oven to about 350-375 and roast the red peppers. Put in a covered container until cool enough to handle. Peel off the skins and slice the peppers into long, wide strips.

Eggplant: slice lengthwise, salt and set out in a colander to drain (this helps draw out some of the bitterness). When ready to use, rinse and pat dry. Heat up a grill pan. Brushing each slice with olive oil, grill the slices on both sides and set aside.

Zucchini: slice into rounds. Sautee in a little oil and garlic until softened (I also added some salt and pepper during this step. It was the only seasoning I used). Pull out of the pan and discard the garlic.

Spinach: sautee spinach in a little oil until wilted.

Once all of the veggies are ready, line the loaf pan with saran wrap leaving enough hanging over the sides so that you will be able to wrap it over at the end.

First layer the red peppers. I put 2 down on the bottom and used the rest of the pieces to cover over the long sides of the loaf pan. Leave the short ends free as from this angle you will be able to see all the layers of the finished product. Try to cover all of the spaces as this will be the outside of the finished terrine. Save a pepper slice or two to put on the top (which will be the bottom of the finished terrine). It is important to keep the slices on the sides upright while layering the rest of the veggies.

Next put a layer of eggplant slices followed by a layer of zucchini rounds.

On top of this layer I spread a thin layer of goat cheese (I used about 6oz. of the 8oz.)

Top this with spinach, followed by another layer of zucchini and another layer of eggplant.

Finish it off with the remaining red pepper slices and fold the ends of the side peppers over the top as much as possible. Wrap the saran wrap over all of it tightly.

Put the loaf pan on a plate and weight down the top of the terrine. I used a glass tupperware filled with dried beans that fit just inside the pan. Refrigerate 8 hours to overnight.

To serve, flip the pan over onto a plate lined with arugula or spinach. Pull off the loaf pan and remove the saran wrap. Voila! Cut into slices with a sharp knife. It should hold its shape pretty well.

This dish was simply delicious, clean and simple. I ate it for the next 2 or 3 days and never grew tired of it.