Seared Albacore Spinach Salad with Rosemary

My dear friend, Valori made this salad, which she describes as being "packed full of fresh flavors just waiting to burst in your mouth! It is filling, visually pleasing, and above all healthy! Great for a late lunch or a light dinner".

Salads are a great way to explore flavor combinations, use up what you have in your fridge and cupboards and get a significant amount of healthy vegetables into your diet. Make sure that you wash all vegetables thoroughly because any pesticides, grit, dirt or residues could make the salad bitter and be harmful to your health. I try to buy organic vegetables whenever I can, but especially when it is for a salad or will otherwise be eaten raw.


INGREDIENTS FOR BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE:

* 1 cup olive oil
* 1/2 c. balsamic vinegar
* 3 or 4 cloves garlic, minced finely
* 3 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese
* Salt and pepper to taste

Whisk together vinegar, garlic and grated cheese. Gradually add the olive oil. Salt and pepper to taste. Set aside to let the flavors develop. You do not need to refrigerate the dressing while you prepare the salad because you want the oils to remain room temperature for the flavors to marry and avoid becoming thick.

Note: If you use a store-bought salad dressing instead, I would recommend avoiding fruit based or flavored ones because it will be too sweet for this kind of salad.

INGREDIENTS FOR SPINACH SALAD:

3 cups of fresh spinach
3 leaves of fresh romaine lettuce, ribs removed and leaves torn
1 fresh ripe avocado, diced with a squeeze of lemon juice to prevent browning
1/2 washed red bell pepper (optional); diced finely
6-8 fresh cherry tomatoes
1/2 ripe mango
1/2 cup fresh raspberries
1 Tbsp. sunflower seed oil
1/8 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped finely
4 ounces of fresh albacore, sashimi grade, between 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick
5 Tbsp. Balsamic Vinaigrette (recipe above)
2 Tbsp. slivered almonds, unsalted (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

* Thoroughly wash, rinse and dry the spinach and romaine lettuce.
* Slice the mango into thin slender slices about two inches long, squared ends, and about 1/4 of an inch thick.
* Drizzle a small puddle of the vinaigrette on the bottom of two deep plates.
* Place a big handful of the spinach and lettuce mix on top of the balsamic dressing.
* Sprinkle on the bell pepper and divide up the avocado slices and cherry tomatoes between the two plates. Line the edges of the side with the raspberries.
* Neatly place 5-6 slices of mango around salad poking outward like a porcupine.
* Rub 1 tsp. of the oil onto the outside of the fish, salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle on the fresh rosemary.
* In a heavy bottomed non-stick skillet on medium-high heat, heat oil and place fish on the skillet for about 15-30 seconds on each side. A nice hot pan will ensure that the fish is seared quickly without cooking it all the way through. Be careful not to overcook--you want the fish to be lightly cooked (white in appearance) about 3 millimeters on each side.
* Remove fish from heat, allow to cool slightly and slice into 1/4 inch pieces.
* Arrange slices of seared albacore in a fan-like design over the prepared salad.
* Drizzle on more balsamic vinaigrette if desired.
* Optional: garnish with slivered almonds.

Serving Suggestion: Serve salad with a glass of blush wine.

Thanks, Valori, for your recipe contribution! If anyone else is interested in doing a guest spotlight, feel free to contact me and provide a blurb, photo and instructions! :)

Sugar Cookie Cream Cheese Bars with Fruit

My cousin's wife, Tara, makes outrageously gorgeous cakes as a hobby of hers and oh my does she know how to make a cake! I keep telling her she should make it into a business, but now she is a full time mommy with two little boys that keep her very busy. Her son, Kyan, had his first birthday and she made this amazing caterpillar cake for the birthday party. That's Kyan reaching for a delicious fistful of cake in hopes to ruin it before we have finished singing Happy Birthday...and that's Tara's hand trying to prevent him from doing so...And here are some other photo's of her exceptional handiwork:

I am so incredibly impressed with her cakes--aren't you?! Tara, you are amazing!

For our family's Fourth of July party this year, Tara made a very simple fruit tart--think soft, chewy sugar cookie with a cream cheese filling with fruit on top! It was such a big hit at the party that I thought I would share the recipe because it is so simple, you just won't even believe it!


INGREDIENTS:

* 1 roll of slice-n-bake sugar cookie dough (I highly recommend seeking out an all natural brand like Cookie Love to avoid partially hydrogenated oils)
* 1 package of all natural cream cheese
* 1/3 cup sugar (preferably evaporated cane sugar)
* 1 tsp pure vanilla extract (no imitation!)
* fruit for topping (blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, kiwi, and/or mango)

DIRECTIONS:

* Flatten out the dough in a greased 9x13 pan and bake at 350 degrees according to directions on package--it should turn just slightly golden brown but still be a little undercooked. Set aside to cool completely.
* In a mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until creamy and smooth.
* Use a rubber spatula to smooth the cream cheese mixture out on top of the cookie layer.
* Arrange fruit as desired and refrigerate for at least one hour.

You will be shocked by this simple, yummy dessert!

Another yummy variation is to add 1/4 tsp. of cinnamon and 3 Tbsp. maple syrup to the cream cheese mixture and, instead of fruit for the topping, sprinkle 1/2 cup of toasted and chopped pecans...

Easy Mediterranean Pasta Salad

Sometimes when I see big bins of grains at a grocery store, I have to really, really restrain the urge to just stuff my hands deep down into the bins. I just imagine what it might feel like to dive into a big pool of rice and then I start to laugh and giggle and then I have to get out of the grocery store immediately before I start to attract attention to myself. You get this same urge too?! No? oh...

I desperately love Orzo...hot, cold, room temperature, whatever. It's is ridiculously yummy mixed with some fresh chopped parsley, olive oil, lemon juice and pine nuts and served with some grilled salmon...But orzo is also the perfect pasta for a pasta salad...

Every time there is a BBQ, pool party or picnic, someone always requests (read: demands) that my cousin, Laura, bring this Mediterranean salad...So, I decided I should slumber party at her place and help her make some so I could share the recipe with you too (after all, you have lots of BBQ's and pool parties and picnics to attend and everyone could use an easy, delicious and ever-popular recipe in their recipe arsenal).

You can also tailor the ingredients to add more of what you like and less of what you don't!

INGREDIENTS:

* 1 package of Orzo (cooked according to directions on package and drained)
* Olives (Oil cured or kalamata olives)
* Sundried Tomatoes
* 2 or 3 Heirloom Tomatoes (or a handful of cherry tomatoes)
* Feta cheese, crumbled
* Artichoke hearts (optional)
* 2 or 3 cloves garlic, crushed
* handful of basil leaves, chopped
* salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste
* 1 tsp. dried oregano (optional)
* 1 bottle of Red Wine & Olive Oil Vinaigrette (use to taste)

Mix it all up and refrigerate until you are ready to serve...

Thanks, Laura!

Anniversary Dinner

Whew! My friends, it has been awhile since I have posted--but rest assured, it hasn't been because I haven't been eating (because I have been)...I have been working a lot and apartment hunting in any free time I have (which has been such an exhausting project to say the least)...

In any case, my 2-year anniversary (April 4) with my significant other snuck up on me so fast that, once again, I was completely outdone by him and came home after a very long day at work to find a little scroll on my desk tied up by a blue ribbon, which was a typed dinner menu that read:

Enjoy a fresh seafood dinner by candlelight:

*Miso Soup with sesame seeds
*Sashimi of Saku Tuna, Yellowtail, and Salmon
*Prawn, avocado and edamame salad
*Steamed rice with Furikake garnish
*Nigori Sake

It was the perfect light and fresh dinner I needed! And if you haven't tried Nigori (unfiltered sake), I highly recommend trying some because it is very refreshing, unique and absolutely yummy. Think of it as...rice milk. with alcohol. Pictured here is Snow Beauty, but there are many, many different kinds to try. I love the descriptions of sake because, similar to descriptions of wine, there are abundant adjectives and complex comparisons (that was an alliteration accident, i swear! oi!) that I find wildly entertaining and imaginative...

But what I really want to rave about is the Prawn, avocado and edamame salad he created for the occasion, because it was soooo good and deserves a guest spotlight so you can enjoy it at home too!

Prawn, Avocado, and Edamame Salad

INGREDIENTS:

* 5 or 6 large uncooked prawns, peeled, deveined and cleaned (frozen or fresh)
* 2/3 cup edamame beans (shelled and rinsed)
* 1 tsp. sesame oil
* 1 tsp. mirin
* sea salt & pepper (to taste)
* juice and zest of 1 lemon
* 1 large tomato (vine-ripened is best!), cubed
* 1 large avocado (Haas if possible), cubed

DIRECTIONS:

* Heat pan to medium high heat and add sesame oil.
* Sautee prawns and edamame beans with mirin, lemon juice and zest, and salt and pepper.
* Let cool and toss with tomato and avocado.
* Serve in a mound or pack into desired shape and top with a chive or garnish of choice.

Variations: try adding fresh mango chunks!

Thank you, Honey! Happy Anniversary!

Sexual Chocolate

Goji berries, the himalayan superfood, have been said to increase your libido...Hmmmm...Goji, anyone?! Turns out they are so incredibly healthy for lots of reasons--they are full of potassium, vitamin C, beta-carotene, zinc and lots of other antioxidants...

...and I have already confessed to you my love for the raw vegan treat called Goji Bliss....just pure coconut and goji berries all blended up into a crumbly delicious spread...

These chewy, chocolatey treats were a gift from my friend James who loves the Goji (and who also happens to be in his second year of medical school at UCSD so he should know...). They are incredibly easy to make, yummy and a half, and have a unique unexpected twist of flavor...

Thanks, James!

INGREDIENTS:

* 1 16-oz. bar of dark chocolate (I used TJ's brand, which is 72% cacao)
* 2 cups of goji berries
* 1 Tbsp. szechuan peppercorns

DIRECTIONS:

* Boil peppercorns till they become fairly soft (about 3-5 minutes). Then drain.
* Melt chocolate over medium heat (or use a double boiler!).
* Add goji berries and peppercorns. Mix.
* Spread out on wax paper and let cool.
* Cut into bars when cooled.

About a second after you bite into it, you should get a spike of spicy flavor, which quickly dissolves into sweet, chewy, chocolatey yumminess...

Valentine's Day Delights

Valentine's Day is not the most ideal day to go out to a restaurant for dinner---its obscenely crowded and many places skimp on their "special" menu...so I usually try to make a special meal at home....But this year, I was working all day...But, to my own surprise, I came home around 7 pm to find that my significant other had prepared the following menu:



FIRST COURSE:
* Walnut Salad with Sheep Gufanti Tartufo Molitnerno (ie: soft sheep's milk cheese with a black truffle ribbon) on Belgian endive.





SECOND COURSE:

* Sunchoke Smash with Homemade Sage Butter Whip.







THIRD COURSE:

* Fresh Garlic & Herb Linguini & Black Truffle Gratin







FOURTH COURSE

* Steamed Lobster Tails with Meyer Lemon Butter and Grilled Asparagus



The meal was so delicious...I loved every bit of it!

Out of curiosity, what did you do or eat on Valentine's day?! Feel free to share some stories!

Jason: Polenta Cakes with Sauteed Corn

Morgan and I made this dish as an appetizer to go with black bean enchiladas. The polenta was floured, dipped in egg, rolled in cornmeal, and fried. The corn was sauteed with homemade cilantro oil and shallots (you can mix in some hominy for some chewy texture as well). The reserved cilantro puree from the oil process was spooned onto the tomato slices. When preparing this dish, be sure to wear a sombrero and a fake mustache. Me gusta.

-- Jason