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red slaw with honey tangerines
There is a grocery store here in Utah called Harmons that I will drive twenty minutes out of my way to visit. That may not sound like that far of a drive, but when you consider I pass at least eight other grocery stores, a Costco, and a Super Target on the way, those twenty minutes prove just how much I love it. I don’t make enough money to buy all my groceries there, and they don’t even have everything I could find at a Whole Foods, but their service is exceptional. It seems like everyone in there knows all there is to know about the food in their section. And there is always someone standing within five yards who can answer any of my questions.
Oh, and don’t get me started on their Cheese Man. I don’t know that he knows that I call him that—apparently, his real name is Andrew—but he knows everything there is to know about cheese, and he deserves the distinction.
Last week, I was there browsing (I like to browse at grocery stores. I once had a roommate flatmate from Australia who said this drove her CRAZY when we would shop together), and I was looking for something interesting. The kid in the produce section asked if he could help me, and I told him I was looking for fruit. He immediately suggested these honey tangerines (or Murcott tangerines), which are sweeter than other varieties, and suggested I put them in a salad. After some research on the internet, I found out that these tangerines only grow in Florida, and are available in the Spring.
Here is the salad I made.
sweet potatoes and brussels sprouts on wilted greens with warm maple vinaigrette
My brother was just on the phone telling me I had hardly any savory recipes. This is for you, Joe.
It rained almost everyday last week. We even got snow on the mountains.
Those are the kinds of days I want to eat a skillet cookie for dinner. Or a big bowl of chili covered in melted cheddar, like this one my friend Shaina made. Those are the kinds of days I want something to warm me to the bone.
I think this salad accomplished just that.
heirloom tomato salad with burrata cheese
Hello, my friends, I’d like you to meet my new friend, burrata. This little lump of cheese has made me one of the happiest people in the world. And I think it will do the same for you.
I was first introduced to this little orb of the creamier, dreamier relative of fresh mozzarella, when my peeps at babble took us out to dinner in New York last year. Since then, I have been searching high and low for it in Utah. I am happy to announce, that last week, I found it at Whole Foods, one of my favorite places in the world.
leafy greens, avocado, and blackened chicken salad
Every cookbook library should have a nice, sharp pencil handy. So often, the best recipes are the direct result of improvising on another recipe.
The seasoning I used for this blackened chicken is made up of the ingredients I had in my cupboard: paprika from my local Indian store, ground dill and thyme.
You could, by all means, make a rub with a more cajun flavor, using white pepper and onion powder. It’s up to you. But I didn’t have those things, so I made it my own way.
salade niçoise with sweet potatoes and anchovy chive dressing
I have seen dozens of recipes for niçoise salad over the years. But to tell you the truth, they’ve never looked that appetizing to me. Maybe it’s my childhood aversion to green beans coming out, or maybe it’s that I expect the potatoes to be too bland and starchy. Even the niçoise salads with fresh ahi tuna never sparked much of my interest.
But I recently bought a copy of Gwyneth Paltrow’s cookbook, and she features two niçoise salads: one cool, and one warm. The photographs of both make the salad look so rustic and inviting, that I began to reconsider my prejudice against the salad from Nice.
As for the potatoes, my mom and I have been replacing regular starchy potatoes with sweet potatoes lately—they’re higher in nutrients and flavor, so I thought I’d add those to the salad instead.
Not to mention, I have been getting these gorgeous eggs from my neighbor lately, so I knew the bright yolks would make the salad stunning to look at.
I figured it was time to finally try my own version.
broccoli crunch salad
This recipe isn’t my own . . . well, the recipe is my own, but the idea isn’t. I was addicted to a very similar salad they sell at Whole Foods. I googled the recipe and discovered as many variations on the recipe as there are food blogs.
This is my take—I tried to get as close to the Whole Foods version as possible. I first posted a similar recipe on babble.com, but this time I made sure to include candied cashews.
It’s a balance between sweet, tangy, crunchy, and nutty. I love it. I hope you do, too.
cucumber ribbon salad with dill
This is just a quick salad I threw together to go with the sloppy joes. I love how light it is, and with the cucumber sliced in ribbons, it’s much more tender than a regular cucumber salad—it almost provides the same satisfaction as eating a bowl of pasta.
heart beets salad with fried goat cheese
I had a few minutes before the end of the night to add in one last Valentine’s post.
This is what I had for lunch. I roasted the beets a couple of days ago, actually, and was going to put this up on Friday for a “power food friday” post. But, you know me. I got busy. I wasn’t kidding when I said my kitchen was a mess.
Anyway, these cute little beet hearts have been waiting ever so patiently in my fridge, and I wanted to add something special to them. I remembered how well goat cheese goes with beets, so I thought I’d try a little idea I saw on the Food Network, which was goat cheese balls, coated in panko, and fried.
It was a great combination. The beets were sweet and earthy, and the goat cheese was warm and tangy. Perfect.
cranberry avocado salsa
While I watched my friend’s kids the other day, I found in her fridge the most interesting salsa. It was made with cranberries and avocados, a combination I never would have come up with on my own. Since I knew she wouldn’t be home for another day, I figured I could try some. The flavors went together perfectly, and I was amazed at how good something could taste. It was the best salsa I had ever eaten.
I googled “cranberry avocado” and it immediately suggested the word “salsa”—apparently, it’s quite popular. The recipe on MarthaStewart.com came up first. As soon as I could, I tried out the recipe for myself.
Unfortunately, I found, as is often the case, that what I made was not as good as what I had tasted at my friend’s house. After some tweaking, though, I believe I found the right balance of flavors.
If you are looking for some more sweet things, be sure to see FamilyFreshCooking’s Christmas Sweet Treats Round-Up.
something quick and light.
Instead of apologizing for not posting in ages, I am going to just pretend like I’ve been here all along.
I took the picture of this salad with a this new light I bought
Before I forget, I am really excited about teaching a cooking class at Thanksgiving Point this spring. If any of you will be in Utah in the middle of May, then be sure to sign up for it. I am teaching a series of classes right now called “Entertain Your Family: Fun and Easy Ways to Impress the Ones You Love Most.” On May 20th, I will teach a class on how to throw a panini party for your own family, with recipes and ideas on how to make it really fun. It’s for people who have old kids, young kids, or no kids, so if you can make it, please come!
Also, if you live in Utah, and would like to have me teach a class somewhere, please let me know in the comments section.
