Although I often go over the top when cooking, sometimes I rein myself in and appreciate the simplicity of combining a few high quality ingredients. Bagna cauda, a traditional Italian dip, is an excellent example of when something simple can yield impressive results. With only four ingredients (and please, use the best quality of these ingredients that you can find), this dip manages to keep you coming back for more. It’s incredibly versatile, going well with bread, fresh vegetables, or even tossed with pasta.
Category: appetizers
Chinese Sticky Rice
Another dim sum favorite of mine, Chinese sticky rice provides a great combination of sweet and savory. This recipe is a perfect recreation of the dish, studded with little bits of tasty mix-ins, including sweet Chinese sausage (with a taste reminiscent of raisins), dried mushrooms, and dried shrimp, which are all essential to the rice’s success. The technique involves sauteeing all the ingredients, including the rice, and then transferring the mix to a steamer – something I was initially skeptical about that ultimately yielded amazing results. Together with some scallion pancakes (which you undoubtedly have waiting in your freezer, right?), you can be well on your way to your own dim sum feast.
Lentil and Sweet Potato Salad
Up to the last minute, I was debating what to call this salad. The simple “Lentil and Sweet Potato Salad,” the slightly more intriguing “Warm Lentil and Sweet Potato Salad,” or the fully informative “Warm Lentil and Sweet Potato Salad with Maple Vinaigrette.” I ultimately went with simplicity, but I want to make sure to give due credit to all the components that make this salad so very tasty. Served warm (or at room temperature), the flavors here feel very seasonally appropriate for autumn. The maple syrup and mustard harmonize seamlessly in the vinaigrette, playing nicely on top of the lentils’ and sweet potatoes’ earthiness.
Roasted Tomato Salsa
It may already be October, but my garden is still producing some last tomatoes, so I used them to make this delicious roasted tomato salsa. Popping the tomatoes (and some of the other components) in the oven adds a nice sweetness to the salsa, and I included both jalapeno and chipotle peppers to give this salsa a good spicy kick. The great thing is how truly easy this salsa is – give some veggies a rough chop, toss them in the oven, and then blend with a few other ingredients. I love having salsa around for adding to sandwiches, putting in burritos or tacos, or having with my eggs in the morning.
Honey-Glazed Cornbread
This cornbread is amazing – probably the best cornbread I’ve ever had. The texture is rich and moist without being overly dense, and it has just the right amount of sweetness to it from an ingenious honey glaze that is poured on the hot cornbread immediately after it is taken out of the oven. I ate this with my jerk chicken chili and it was the perfect complement to the chili’s spiciness. Next time, I think I might add some blueberries to the batter.
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… Read the restRockin’ Rocket Salad
For the most part, I’m more than happy to stick to my native dialect of English (mid-Atlantic American, thank you very much), but there is one item in particular where I can’t help but prefer the British word. Rocket. Called arugula in American English, this leafy green (probably my favorite) deserves all the excitement conjured by references to space travel. Rocket has been touted as an aphrodisiac and is full of vitamins A, C, and K, as well as calcium. And the rich spicy taste can’t be beat. Some may find it a little too peppery (it is often mixed with other greens for this reason), but in the context of this salad, the flavor of the rocket is in perfect balance with the other ingredients.
Palak Chaat
I recently had the pleasure of dining at Rasika, a very popular DC Indian restaurant, and trying their famous palak chaat. This dish is an amazing medley of textures and flavors, with crispy spinach playing off a sour-sweet chutney and sweetened yogurt, and I knew almost immediately that I had to try my best to recreate it. I’ve dedicated this week to a series of posts on recreating all the pieces of Rasika’s palak chaat. This post is the third in a series of three. See post 1: Chaat Masala and post 2: Date Tamarind Chutney.
Creating the perfect crispy spinach was the difficult piece of this recipe.
Zucchini Fritter Stacks
I’ve declared this week Zucchini Week. Harvest those last zucchinis in your garden or buy them up at the farmers market and grocery store on sale, and make these delicious recipes! See my Zucchini Chard Gratin from Monday and come back Friday for another zucchini recipe.
I made these zucchini fritter stacks as a lunchtime meal, but I think they would be amazing as an appetizer or party snack. The fritter itself is crispy with lots of flavor from the zucchini, cheese, and beer. Add tomato and avocado slices on top (and some bacon and extra cheese, of course) and you have a delicious combination of textures and tastes.
Chinese Scallion Pancakes
I love dim sum, and scallion pancakes are one of my favorite dim sum dishes. I always feel like I can just endlessly keep eating the flaky, crisp pancakes packed with flavorful green onions and often accompanied by an equally delightful dipping sauce. Unfortunately, the dim sum restaurant I regularly frequent does not have these little delights among the small dishes piled on their carts. But these pancakes are really quite easy to make and also freeze well, meaning that the next time a craving sets in or a guest stops by unexpectedly, I’ll be ready.
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… Read the restVietnamese Pickles
My refrigerator is absolutely packed with homemade condiments and sauces. I love having lots of building blocks to add to the flavor of even the most basic meals. These Vietnamese pickles are a great addition to my stockpile, allowing for a twist on basic sandwiches and salads, and enabling me to create more authentic Vietnamese dishes like vermicelli noodles and banh mi sandwiches (recipes forthcoming). The carrots and daikon radish hold their crunch and are complemented by the sweet and vinegary pickling liquid. Since I like my food with a kick, I’ve also added jalapeno peppers to this recipe for a faint spicy note.