Showing posts with label tasteful tuesday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tasteful tuesday. Show all posts

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Tasteful Tuesday returns....

in time for all of your 4th of July picnic celebrations I thought I would share one of our favorite and not quite traditional picnic salads! This has gotten quite a few thumbs up from family & friends!

This is taken from Moosewood Restaurant Lowfat Favorites.


Moosewood is a famous vegetarian restaurant in Ithaca, NY and this cookbook would be a great addition to any cookbook collection! I have changed the recipe from the cookbook version to fit with my families tastes but will note the alternate additions the author suggests.

Sushi Rice Salad serves 4-6 as a main course
(The way I make it I like to call it a deconstructed california roll! I double this recipe and it will serve 20 as a side salad.)

1C brown rice
1 3/4C water

SAUCE
1/3C rice vinegar
2T sugar
1t salt
2t fresh grated ginger root

1 large cucumber peeled, seeded, diced
1 ripe avocado (not too mushy) peeled & diced
1/2 package surimi (imitation crab meat)roughly chopped
1-2t wasabi powder dissolved in an equal amount of cold water
1 sheet nori seaweed
1T black or brown seasame seeds


Combine rice and water in saucepan, bring to boil. Stir, cover, reduce heat and cook until rice is tender 40-45 min (or cook rice in your rice cooker)

Combine sauce ingredients in seperate small saucepan, simmer 5 min, remove from heat.

In serving bowl combine vegetables, surimi and sauce. Mix in wasabi paste. Add cooked rice, mix well. Toast the sheet of nori by baking for a 1+ minute at 300 degrees, then crumble on top of rice mixture. Toast seasame seeds and sprinkle on top for garnish.

Note - you may also add blanched vegetables such as diced carrot or red pepper. May be served on a bed of greens if serving as a main course salad. may garnish with slices of pickled ginger also.

Much easier than trying to roll your own sushi with a bamboo mat - believe me we have tried! But still offers the mix of tastes and textured that you get in a california roll.

Enjoy!

Tuesday, June 09, 2009

Soups On for Tasty Tuesday!

In the spirit of spring and fresh crops of rhubarb popping up everywhere I am sharing a favorite spring recipe of mine for Parsnip, Rhubarb & Ginger Soup!

This recipe is taken from New Covent Garden Soup Company's Soup & Beyond Cookbook




We picked this book up on a trip to London about 10 years ago and it remains one of my favorite cookbooks! This recipe was the creation of a retired tropical agriculturalist from England - Robert Austin. It was the winner in the 1998 "Create a Soup Contest" in the Daily Telegraph. One of the judges declared "Rhubarb and ginger is a classic combination in cooking, but blending this with parsnips to make a savoury soup is ingenious. The rhubarb really cuts through the sweetness of the parsnips and the result is both unusual and delicious!"



Serves 4 Prep Time ~ about 30 minutes

2oz butter
1 lb parsnips - peeled & roughly chopped
8oz rhubarb - washed and sliced
1 medium onion - finely sliced
2tsp fresh grated ginger
1T flour
1.5 pints chicken stock
2t. brown sugar
salt & pepper to taste

Melt butter & cook the parsnips, rhubarb, onion & ginger for 5 minutes in covered saucepan without coloring,

Add flour - stir well

Add stock & sugar - taste for seasoning - bring to boil stirring constantly

lower heat & simmer about 15min until vegetables are tender

cool a bit then puree in a blender until very smooth

adjust seasoning, reheat & garnish with chopped parsley

Smacznego!