Greek Salad

This is a wonderful summer salad. The recipe actually calls for the salad to be layered in a glass jar... but plates more than suffice.
* 3/4 cup orzo
* 1 (15-ounce) can black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
* 1 large tomato, diced (1 cup)
* 2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
* 2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
* 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
* 1/2 seedless cucumber, halved lengthwise, cored, and diced (1 cup)
* 1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion
* 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
* 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
* 1 teaspoon finely chopped oregano (this can be overpowering)
* 2 to 3 cups coarsely chopped romaine
* 1/2 pound feta, crumbled (1 cup)


Cook and drain orzo, rinse under cold water until cool. Drain well.

Toss black-eyed peas, tomato, and parsley with vinegar, 1 tablespoon oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Marinate, stirring occasionally, 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, toss together orzo, remaining tablespoon oil, cucumber, onion, lemon zest and juice, oregano, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl.

Divide black-eyed-pea mixture (with juices) on plates and layer orzo salad, romaine, and feta on top.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Greek-Salad-with-Orzo-and-Black-Eyed-Peas-243207

Burgers

For the 4th of July we decided to celebrate with burgers on the grill. I love a good burger but I also like my burger to be seasoned. I had Chris season mine with this mixture and it was one of the best burgers I have had in a long time. Please feel free to post your burger seasoning secrets as we are always in pursuit of achieving the ultimate burger flavor.

For every 2 pounds of beef:

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
Salt & Pepper

I topped my burger with cheddar, bacon, avocado, sauteed mushrooms, ketchup and mustard. Delicious.

Double Chocolate Cookies

Chris and I were craving something chocolatey this weekend so we decided to make these cookies. I have been hesitant in the past about chocolate cookies because they never seem to meet my expectations, but these were delicious. I fully intended to photograph the ones we made, but once I got the camera out I realized they were all gone.

Ingredients

Makes about 3 dozen

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/2 pound good-quality chocolate, 4 ounces coarsely chopped and 4 ounces cut into 1/4-inch chunks* I used the Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate bars for this- they were on super sale at our grocery store one day so I stocked up and I prefer this over milk chocolate anyway.
  
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside. Melt 4 ounces coarsely chopped chocolate with the butter in a small heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water; let cool slightly.
2. Put chocolate mixture, sugar, eggs, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until combined. Reduce speed to low; gradually mix in flour mixture. Fold in chocolate chunks.
3. Using a 1 1/2-inch ice cream scoop, drop dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing 2 inches apart. Bake until cookies are flat and surfaces crack, about 15 minutes (cookies should be soft). Let cool on parchment on wire racks. Cookies can be stored between layers of parchment in airtight containers at room temperature up to 3 days.

A New Type of Pesto Pasta

So the other day while I was at Costco I thought it would be a good idea to buy a 3 pound bag of walnuts (they were so cheap in bulk) even though we are moving in 4.5 weeks. Oh well, Costco wins again. So Joseph and I have been trying to think of ways to eat all of these walnuts, he made this delicious pasta for dinner the other night and it was really good. Sorry I forgot to take a picture.

Use some type of short pasta, I used Penne, cook in salted water

okay for the topping, it is a pesto of sorts

1 can kalamata olives
feta cheese
2 cloves garlic
1 onion
walnuts

put these ingredients in a food processor and blend until they form a paste of sorts, you may want to grind the garlic first to make sure it gets ground up really well. Add olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste. Once the noodles are finished top with the olive/walnut/feta pesto and enjoy.

Let them eat quiche

Ham and Asparagus Quiche

This is a fantastic meal with a quick salad. You can probably change around the ingredients.

1 Prebaked pie shell (I wimp out here and buy one in the freezer section, poke some holes in the crust with a fork and bake it at 350 for 15 to 20 minute, until golden brown)

Whisk together:
2 large eggs plus 2 large egg yolks
3/4 C whole milk
3/4 heavy cream
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground white pepper
pinch of nutmeg



Sprinkle a layer of Parmesan cheese on top.

On the bottom of the warm pie crust scatter 4 oz. deli ham cut into 1/4- 1/2 inch dice and 8 stalks of asparagus that have been cut into one inch pieces and blanched.






Pour the whisked egg mixture on top until filled to an inch or so below the top. Bake for 32-35 minutes until the center is like gelatin but a knife inserted an inch from the border comes out clean. Can be served warm or at room temperature.



Courtesy of the New Best Recipe Book from Cooks Illustrated pp640

Chicken Stir-Fry Wraps

I made these for dinner and they were really good. This is obviously not my picture. I got the recipe from Martha, who I love. I made some rice which Joseph added to his wraps which was also good.

1 1/2 pounds chicken breast halved horizontally and sliced thin
1 large onion, sliced thin
1 large bell pepper, sliced thin
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 teaspoon grated ginger
red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch mixed with 1 TBSP water
12-16 boston lettuce leaves

Directions

1. Season chicken with salt and pepper. In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over high heat. Add half the chicken; cook, stirring constantly, until opaque throughout, 2 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with remaining chicken.
2. Add remaining tablespoon oil to pan, along with the onion and bell pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, until onion is tender and golden, about 4 minutes (reduce heat if browning too quickly).
3. Reduce heat to medium; add garlic, ginger, and red-pepper flakes; cook, stirring, until fragrant, 30 to 60 seconds.
4. Stir in soy sauce, vinegar, and cornstarch mixture; remove from heat. Add chicken and any accumulated juices; toss to coat. Serve in lettuce cups.

Goat cheese, basil, red pepper delights

I make these everytime I have a chance. It is one of my absolute favorite recipes ever, and I could probably eat these every week and never get sick of them. Seriously you MUST try these. I first tried them at a party and ate like 7. I asked the girl for her recipe and now I make it all the time.

ingredients:

baguette (large or small, doesn't matter)
Red bell peppers
goat cheese
garlic (minced or pureed) (in a pinch you can use powdered garlic)
fresh basil

1. slice the baguette and spread garlic on each piece, place on a cookie sheet.
2. set the oven to BROIL and toast about 2 minutes (watch them, this happens fast)
3. spread goat cheese on each piece.
4. top with a leaf, or pieces of leaves of basil.
5. slice and saute red pepper in a pan.
6. place a slice or two of the red peppers on each slice of toast.
ENJOY!