A Salad with Greens, Cannellini Beans, Capers and Olives
Some days call for a quick salad and today is one of them, a little snack at noon!
We had a friend over from Costa Rica for a couple nights with her two young kids, so my kitchen creations had to be child friendly. Lasagna, pizza and cake made them very happy (I didn't expect anything else)! We were lucky, summer has come back to the city so we spent many hours out at playgrounds, lots of walking and running around for those little legs which made them hungry all the time!
It was only a short visit but we enjoyed every second of it! Now that they left, the flat is quiet again and I feel like some lighter food. I hadn't made any kitchen plans so I had to work with what I found and inspired me, a big lollo bionda lettuce in the fridge, some parsley on the kitchen window sill, a small can of cannellini beans, my Maltese capers and some black Kalamata olives (this jar is never missing in my pantry). All this thrown together in a large bowl and mixed with a light vinaigrette can make two people very happy. You could also add some canned tuna or tomatoes but I found my Saturday snack perfect as it was.
A Salad with Greens, Cannellini Beans, Capers and Olives
As a lunch for 3 or a side dish for 4 you need
lettuce (lollo bionda or rosso), rinsed, dried and torn into pieces, 1 big head
canned cannelli beans, rinsed and drained, 240g / 8.5 ounces
Kalamata olives 12
capers 4 tablespoons
leaves of a small bunch of parsley
For the dressing
olive oil 3 tablespoons
white balsamic vinegar 2 tablespoons
salt and pepper
Whisk the ingredients for the dressing and season to taste.
In a large bowl, mix the lettuce, beans, olives, capers, parsley and dressing.
Parsley, Tomato and Mint Salad
There's a beautiful little take away restaurant close to my flat which offers the best Chickpea Falafel and Chicken Shawarma in town, and this is not just my opinion! This tiny place is called Salsabil and it's run by a very nice guy from Tunis, we've known him for years and he always brings us a cup of hot tea as soon as he sees us, even if we're just passing by! His food is honest and authentic, he doesn't offer that many dishes but each of them is delicious. In summer, we like to sit outside at one of the tables on the pavement and the rest of the year we enjoy the cosiness inside. We sit on wooden benches opposite a photography of the old city walls of Tunis which always reminds me of the Silent City of Mdina in Malta. The light is dimmed and they usually play traditional Tunisian music, it feels a bit like a short holiday in one of the old towns of Tunisia! When it comes to the menu I follow a bit of a tradition, I always order some juicy Falafel in pita bread with different vegetables and sauces, some of their amazing hummus and a very aromatic parsley, tomato and onion salad.
Since I already wrote about my hummus recipe and I'm not experienced enough yet to make my own Falafel in my kitchen (but that will soon change!), I will share my tomato, parsley and mint salad to create a bit of a Salsabil atmosphere at home!
This fresh salad is also great for parties and barbecues!
Parsley, Tomato and Mint Salad
For 2 people as a side dish you need
fresh parsley leaves, roughly chopped, 40g / 1.5 ounces
large, ripe tomato, finely chopped, 1
fresh large mint leaves, finely chopped, 6
small red onion or shallot, finely chopped, 1
garlic, crushed, 1 small clove
olive oil 3 tablespoons
freshly squeezed lemon juice 1 tablespoon
white balsamic vinegar 1 tablespoon
salt and pepper
For the dressing, whisk the olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar and garlic and season with salt and pepper to taste. Mix the dressing with the tomato and herbs and serve in a bowl.
La Ratte Potatoes with Roast Lemon Peel, Olives and Parsley
A few weeks ago my boyfriend came up with a great chicken and red cabbage sandwich idea with an orange infused olive oil. He brushed the inside of the bread with this flavoured oil that we created by heating up a dish of olive oil and orange peel in the oven. The aromatic oil was wonderfully flavoured but the crisp citrus peel impressed me just as much! Since then I've used roast lemon and orange peel for my pasta, salads, couscous and risottos. The thin strips just need a few minutes to become golden crisps packed with flavour so it's important to take them out at the right moment. If you leave them in the oven for too long, they become bitter, and this can happen within seconds!
I have many ideas in my mind that feature both the wonderful oil and the crunchy strips, today's recipe combines roast lemon peel with potatoes, parsley and black olives to make a warm salad, great for lunch or as a side dish. I use the lemon flavoured olive oil as a dressing and the peel as a crunchy topping. It just needed some flaky sea salt for seasoning and it was done! I often use the French La Ratte potatoes for for these kind of potato salads, their taste is nutty and buttery and the skin is very thin. I don't even peel them, I just clean them with a vegetable brush and cut them in half when they are cooked.
La Ratte Potatoes with Roast Lemon Peel, Olives and Parsley
For 2-4 people you need
olive oil 3 tablespoons
lemon peel, cut into pieces, 6 long strips
La Ratte potatoes, cooked, (unpeeled) and cut in half, 14
fresh parsley leaves, a handful
black olives 12
sea salt
Set the oven to 200°C / 390°F (fan-asssited oven).
Put the olive oil and lemon peel in a baking dish and cook for 6 minutes or until the peel is golden and crisp.
Spread the potatoes on plates and mix them with the lemon infused olive oil. Sprinkle them with parsley, olives, roast lemon peel and salt and serve either warm or cold.
Grilled Bell Pepper with Garlic and Thyme
When I see juicy strips of grilled bell pepper on an antipasti platter, colourful in red, orange and yellow, I can barely stop myself from eating all of them (which is unfortunate for my antipasti platter companion). I love this balanced taste of sweet and smokey, it's addictive! There are many ways to do this, some prefer to grill the fruit cut in half, some say you should cook it whole in one piece. Peeling the skin off can be a bit fiddly but it's manageable, there are many suggestions to make this part easier. The latest I heard was to put the grilled bell pepper in a plastic bag and shake it to get rid of the skin although I've never tried it myself.
This is how I grill and peel bell pepper, how I've done it for years and it works perfectly: I put the whole fruit in a baking dish under the grill, turning it as soon as one side gets dark (meaning partly black). When the skin is dark and burst all around, after about 25 minutes, I open the oven, take out the dish and lay a wet kitchen cloth or paper towel over the bell peppers to cover them completely. I wait just a few seconds as they should stay warm and moist for this process. Then, I take out one pepper after the other and pull the skin off with a knife. If you leave them to cool without the moisture it's impossible to peel them without damaging the flesh.
Sometimes I grill a big batch of bell peppers, I cut them in thick strips and keep them covered in olive oil in the fridge for days. Apart from the fact that it is a convenient (and healthy) nibble, it's perfect for an antipasti platter at one of our dinner parties, as a salad or to make sandwiches. This time I grilled only three peppers and marinated them in garlic infused olive oil and fresh thyme. They didn't last very long!
Grilled Bell Pepper with Garlic and Thyme
For 2-4 people you need
bell peppers (red, orange or yellow) 3
olive oil 3 tablespoons
garlic, cut into thin slices, 1 big clove
thyme sprigs 8
In a sauce pan, warm up the olive oil and garlic for 3 minutes on a medium-low heat to infuse the oil, the garlic shouldn't change colour.
Put the bell peppers in a baking dish under the grill and turn them as soon as one side gets dark and starts to burst. I turned them twice, after 10 minutes on each side, I cooked the third side for only 5 minutes. Take the baking dish out and cover with a wet kitchen cloth or paper towel immediately. Wait for 10 seconds, take out one pepper and peel it with a knife. Keep in mind that they are still hot, especially the inside! Cut the peeled fruit in half, take out the seeds and cut the bell pepper into strips.
Pour the olive oil over the bell peppers and sprinkle with the garlic and thyme sprigs (or just the leaves if the sprigs are hard and woody). You can season it with salt and pepper but I left it pure.
Bread Salad with Tomato and Basil and an early morning swim
The most beautiful sparkling blue and a fantastic snorkeling trip was our reward for leaving the house quite early on Sunday morning while everyone else was still asleep in the village. I'm awake earliest (together with Jenny) so it was my job to get the other ones out of their beds and into the car. I managed and off we went to Wied iz-Zurrieq for an early Sunday morning swim before we went to the fish market in Marsaxlokk.
Imagine a fjord cut deep into barren rocks, steep cliffs tumbling into the calm, crystal blue sea in the protected bay. The water is so clear that you can see the seabed metres below and swarms of colourful fish swimming around your feet. The blue of the sea is just mesmerizing, I love to go there in the morning, when the sun is low and creates sparkling reflections which reach deep into the water. I'm obsessed with snorkeling and this is one of my favorite spots.
Most of the tourists come here to visit the famous Blue Grotto, fishermen in tiny colourful wooden boats - Luzzus in Maltese - take them around the corner of the fjord to show them the grotto's fascinating shades of blue. I'm here to see the big schools of fish along the cliffs and to swim through the bubbles of the divers who are getting ready for their trip from this spot. If you visit this place you should either come very early in the morning to enjoy the water and sea world or in the early evening when fishermen's families come to take an evening swim at the end of the fjord. There's lots of chatting and laughing, kids jumping into the sea and older boys looking for octopus. This scene is as beautiful as it is timeless, the atmosphere is basically the same as it was 100 years ago. This is Malta as it's always been and how it will hopefully stay!
At home in Jenny's kitchen, I'm back in my cooking groove and one of the dishes that I prepared for us was my personal ultimate holiday salad, Panzanella, a bread salad with tomatoes, red onions, basil and mint. It's perfect for a quick lunch when the temperatures are so high that you don't even want to switch on the cooker. When I was a child, we used to go to a village close to Luca in Tuscany for our summer holidays. One of the dishes my mother prepared very often (and I loved) was this salad. In the South, bread tends to dry out much quicker because of the high temperatures, there is always some stale bread lying on the table waiting for further processing. So this recipe comes in handy quite often when we're here in Malta.
Bread Salad with Tomato, Basil and Onions
For 2 people you need
medium tomatoes, thickly sliced, 3
small red onion, chopped, 1
white bread, cut into big cubes, 1 thick slice
fresh basil leaves, a handful
olive oil 3 tablespoons
balsamic vinegar 2 tablespoons
salt and pepper
Arrange the tomatoes in a big plate and sprinkle with the onions, bread and basil leaves. Whisk the olive oil and vinegar, season with salt and pepper to taste and pour over the salad, serve immediately.
Orecchiette with Roasted Cherry Tomatoes, Buffalo Mozzarella and Basil
This meal started off with an image in my head. Quite often I imagine recipes visually, I can see the colours, the texture, the whole composition is just waiting to get out of my head onto a plate. For days I've been mentally carrying a Tuscan picture with me (it's Tuscan to me at least). I had a big bowl of orecchiette in mind, topped with roasted cherry tomatoes on a branch. I could see the woody sprig turning black and the firm skin of the red fruit grilled and burst creating a smoky sweetness to mix with my pasta. Sprinkled with pieces of Buffalo mozzarella and fresh basil it turns into a tasty beauty in green, white and red - the Italian flag on a plate!
This is another one of these simple and perfect Italian dishes, the classic combination of tomato, mozzarella and fresh herbs which I love so much in various recipes. It is as good as an insalata caprese which I mix with mint as it is in a Panzanella, a Tuscan salad made with stale bread, a recipe which is on the top of my cooking list for when I'm in Malta (which will be very soon!). You can throw it on pizza, quiche or mix it with any kinds of pasta, warm or cold, with rosemary, oregano, thyme or whatever your herb garden offers. This is the essence of pure Italian comfort food!
Orecchiette with Roasted Cherry Tomatoes, Mozzarella and Basil
For 2 people you need
orecchiette 200g / 7 ounces
cherry tomatoes on a branch 500g / 1 pound
Buffalo mozzarella, torn into bite sized pieces, 125g / 4.5 ounces
big basil leaves, torn, 10
olive oil 50ml / 1 3/4 ounces
garlic, cut in half, 1 clove
salt and crushed black pepper
Cook the pasta in lots of salted water al dente.
Turn on the grill of your oven, put the tomatoes (on their branches) on a baking dish and roast for 12 minutes or until their skin starts to turn black and burst.
In a saucepan, warm up the olive oil together with the garlic and leave on a medium-low heat for 1-2 minutes.
Divide the pasta between 2 big plates, mix with the garlic olive oil and top with mozzarella, basil and a roasted branch of tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt and crushed pepper.
Mâche, Avocado and Raspberry Salad with Honey
This week I can't get enough berries! When I see all those boxes filled with tiny colourful berries at the market I don't even know where to start. Raspberries, gooseberries, red currants, strawberries, so much to choose from! Unfortunately, they haven't reached their peak in sweetness yet due to our disastrous summer weather, but I enjoy them nonetheless. I can't wait any longer, we only have them for a few months and I don't want to miss out.
As much as I love to throw these fruits on tarts or enjoy them as a fruity nibbling alternative to chocolate, they are just as good in fresh and crunchy salads. Combined with the slices of a ripe and velvety avocado, they bring some freshness into the mix. Some mâche salad (also known as field salad or lamb's lettuce) mixed in adds some crunchy bite, perfect for those hot days which I'm still hoping for optimistically. I'll be in Malta soon, there I will definitely get my boiling hot summer weather but I won't find my delicate raspberries. Sometimes you can't have everything in life!
For the 2 of us, I spread a handful of lettuce on 2 plates and covered each of them with the slices of a quarter of a soft avocado and 8 raspberries. I wanted to keep the dressing sweet and fruity, you can use either Balsamico vinegar or raspberry vinegar (or mix the two of them). Whisk 3 tablespoons of olive oil with 2 tablespoons of vinegar, add 1/2 a teaspoon of honey and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle over your salad sparingly.
Spinach, Strawberry and Goat Cheese Salad with Pink Peppercorns
Green, white and red! Many of my summer dishes sing praise to the Italian flag, without any intention, but maybe my subconscious has something to do with it as I love this country so much. I was so shocked and sad for this football loving nation when they had to leave the World Cup this week (and one of their players got bitten!). I know they love this sport almost as much as their food (which means a lot!), so here's a patriotic salad to lift up their spirits!
Crunchy baby spinach, rucola (rocket salad) mixed with a light olive oil, orange and Balsamico dressing, topped with sweet strawberries, thin slices of young goat gouda and pink peppercorns. The mild Dutch cheese, the berries and aromatic pepper work perfectly on their own as well, cheese, fruit and a little spiciness, a scrumptious little nibble I can never reject!
For this salad for 2 I threw together a handful of baby spinach leaves and a small handful of rucola. My fruity dressing is the same one I used for my spinach and melon salad, I whisked 5 teaspoons of olive oil with 3 teaspoons of orange juice, 2 teaspoons of Balsamico vinegar and seasoned it with a little salt and black pepper. 12 strawberries cut in half and 6 slices of goat gouda (or another mild hard goat cheese) torn in pieces sprinkled on top together with a teaspoon of crushed pink peppercorns finished it off.
Potatoes with Rucola Pesto and Peas
A couple vegetables thrown together and mixed with a thick and aromatic pesto, I love these dishes, easy and uncomplicated! You can eat them warm or cold, as a salad, side or main and they are just as perfect on a brunch table as they are for a light dinner with a glass of rosé wine and some crunchy bread. In a month we'll be in Malta and these are the kind of recipes I like to prepare for lunch when the temperature gets closer to 40°C (104°F) and I can feel it slow down the pace of my kitchen activities. You never know how many people will meet at the table, 2, 6 or 8, but a full bowl of potatoes, peas and rucola pesto will please even the biggest Mediterranean family!
This recipe is just as nice with pasta but this time I went for potatoes, the pesto gives them a Southern touch which suits them well. My first idea was to use basil but then I remembered the rucola (rocket) pesto I had made for my Easter lamb chops, so I changed my mind. The rucola adds a soft spiciness, a contrast to the sweet peas. I sprinkled some crushed black pepper on top and my coarse sea salt from Gozo and we ate most of it for lunch, still warm, but the cold leftovers were just as nice!
Potatoes with Rucola Pesto and Peas
For 3 as a main or 4-6 as a side dish you need
potatoes, peeled and cooked, 800g / 28 ounces
peas 100g / 3.5 ounces
coarse sea salt
crushed black peppercorns
For the pesto
rucola (arugula) 80g / 3 ounces
Parmesan 20g / 3/4 ounce
pine nuts 20g / 3/4 ounce
olive oil 75 ml
a pinch of salt
Mix the ingredients for the pesto in a blender.
Cut the potatoes into cubes. Blanch the peas in boiling sugared water for 1 minute and rinse with cold water for 1 second.
In a large bowl, spread out the potatoes and peas and dollop the pesto on top. Sprinkle with sea salt and crushed black pepper.
Spicy Mango Salad and the Thai Park in Berlin
A small path lined with trees and dense bushes led me to one of Berlin's most highly praised culinary hotspots which I've wanted to visit for ages. Last Sunday I finally made my way to the city's famous Thai Park! The air was hot and sticky and I enjoyed the short walk in the shade, I was excited as many of my friends had told me so much about this place and its amazing food. A big meadow surrounded by a green wall of trees opened in front of me, with people sitting on blankets under little umbrellas savoring delicious looking food, playing cards or just daydreaming. It was a peaceful scene, Sunday afternoon calm.
On Sundays when the weather is nice and sunny, women from Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Indonesia come to the Preußen Park in the heart of Berlin and make it their kitchen. They sit on the grass behind colourful cooling boxes, mobile grills and gas cookers and chop vegetables or fry tempura. While they offer golden fried pork belly, shrimp and dumpling sticks, the ladies chat and laugh between their mobile kitchens. On a tiny patch of grass they cook delicacies which I would hardly manage to create in my kitchen! I was astonished, by the beauty of the food and of the women, the utter satisfaction in their faces touched me. Their passion for cooking and for their traditional recipes is the reason they gather in this park thousands of kilometers away from the recipes' origin to create the meals they grew up with and to share with people like me. I was so impressed by the quality and variety of the dishes they offered!
Needless to say that I bought lots of plates and boxes with salads, meat and fish, spring and summer rolls and dumplings. I found a little spot in the shade and enjoyed all the different dishes, flavours and combinations which I rarely use in my own kitchen. There was far too much food so we enjoyed the leftovers at home where I also came up with the idea for a mango salad with a few changes to the one I enjoyed at the park.
To begin with I didn't have green mangos but a very ripe yellow one which I didn't grate (the traditional way) but cut into slices. I mixed it with lots of coriander, roasted cashews and spicy red chili pepper. For the dressing I used the sesame oil I had bought for my Korean Bibimbap, soya sauce, honey, lime and lemongrass. I didn't try to create an authentic Thai mango salad, it's my own variation on this classic. When I want to eat the traditional one which I won't even try to compete with, I will go to the lady in the park and ask her to prepare a portion for me, the best Thai salad I have ever had!
Spicy Mango Salad with Coriander and Roasted Cashews
For 4 people you need
ripe yellow mangos, sliced, 2
coriander, the leaves of 2 bunches
roasted cashews, chopped, a handful
For the dressing
sesame oil 2 tablespoons
sunflower oil 1 teaspoon
soy sauce 1 teaspoon
honey 1 tablespoon
freshly squeezed lime juice 1 teaspoon
zest of 1/4 lime
red chili pepper, finely chopped, 2.5cm / 1" piece
lemongrass, finely chopped, 2.5cm / 1" piece
a pinch of brown sugar
Whisk the ingredients for the dressing and adjust to taste.
Spread the mango and coriander leaves on 4 plates and sprinkle with the cashews and dressing.
Spinach and Melon Salad with Orange Mascarpone
Crisp, young spinach leaves, sweet and ripe Galia melon, creamy mascarpone and a little orange zest becomes a delicious sweet and savory summer salad! It sounds a bit more exotic than it tastes, it's a very fresh and harmonious combination. The idea for it was born out of another recipe which didn't work out as I had expected. I felt like a salad made with melon and a milky flavour. At first, I mixed the melon with mozzarella di bufala but the result wasn't quite as pleasing as expected so I looked for another possible use for my juicy fruit. Spinach, mascarpone and orange, my second attempt was more successful and finally I was satisfied with my salad.
I just wanted a quick and light lunch so I spread a big handful of young spinach leaves on 2 plates together with a quarter Galia melon cut into wedges. I mixed 2 tablespoons of mascarpone with a little freshly squeezed orange juice and dolloped little pieces of it on top of the salad. For the dressing I whisked 5 teaspoons of olive oil with 3 teaspoons of orange juice, 2 teaspoons of balsamic vinegar and a little salt and pepper. I sprinkled the dressing on top of the leaves and fruit and finished it off with 1/2 a teaspoon of orange zest.
Sometimes you have to give your ideas a second try, change them a little but then you'll be rewarded. It definitely won't be the last time I make this salad!
Farfalle with Asparagus, Peas and Leek in Mustard Sauce
This is one of my oldest, most beloved and often cooked spring/ summer recipes. It's been with me for so many years and I still savour it as I did the first time I cooked it. It works both warm as a comfy pasta dinner with a glass of rosé wine, the windows wide open and the flowery smell of June in the air but also as a cold, summery picnic salad, enjoyed outside in the fields under the rustling leaves of a swaying tree.
I'm talking about the wonderful combination of the fine flavours of white asparagus together with sweet peas in their crunchy pods, leek and a light sauce made with spicy Dijon mustard. All this on top of a big bowl of pretty Farfalle pasta, little bow-ties of perfect size and shape to catch all these nice vegetables like a shovel!
This meal tastes fresh and light and is absolutely easy to prepare. You just need to cook the asparagus (green or white), sautée the young pea pods and leek (you could also blanch some peas), deglaze them with white wine or vermouth and mix everything together with the cooked pasta, some mustard and cooking liquid, salt and pepper - that's it!
Farfalle with Asparagus, Peas and Leek in Mustard Sauce
For 2 people you need
Farfalle pasta, 200g / 7 ounces
asparagus (white or green), peeled (if necessary), bottoms cut off, 500g / 1 pound
young peas in their pods, cut into bite sized pieces, 150g / 5.5 ounces
leek, cut into slices, 1/2
water used to cook the asparagus 150ml / 5 ounces
Dijon mustard 2 teaspoons plus more to taste
white wine or vermouth for deglazing
salt and pepper
olive oil for frying
Cook the pasta al dente in lots of salted water.
Cook the asparagus al dente in lots of salted water with a pinch of sugar and cut into bite sized pieces.
In a large heavy pan, heat a splash of olive oil and fry the leek for a few minutes until soft and golden, add the pea pods and fry for another 1-2 minutes. Deglaze with a splash of wine, add the pasta, mustard and water used to cook the asparagus. Season with salt and pepper, add the cooked asparagus, mix and serve on big plates.
Bean and Bacon Salad with White Balsamico and Lemon Thyme
There is something really satisfying about deglazing tiny, crunchy cubes of bacon with sweet Balsamico vinegar. Be it the white or the dark one, both coming from Modena, this vinegar merges with the oily bacon juices to a thick, sweet and sour syrup. It is very concentrated, a great dressing to glaze hearty and crunchy salads like beans and cabbage. A few spoons enrich the vegetables with the whole range of the vinegar's aroma together with the meat's smoky saltiness.
I like to use this dressing for my traditional Bavarian cabbage salad as it brings out a sweet smoothness in the strong cabbage. Today it refines my fava beans, crunchy and green, cooked in salted water for around 6 minutes until they were al dente and rinsed with cold water. I peeled the beans out of their transparent shells for this salad and added some lemon thyme, salt and pepper.
As always, there is lots of peeling involved when there are fava beans on the table, I had 130g / 4.5 ounces of peeled beans after I started with 700g / 1.5 pounds of the fleshy pods. It was enough for the 2 of us as a side dish. I fried 30g / 1 ounce of bacon cut into tiny cubes in a little olive oil for a few minutes until they were golden brown and crisp before I deglazed it with 25ml / 1 ounces of white Balamico vinegar. I scraped the bits and pieces off the bottom of the pan and poured the syrup and bacon over the beans immediately. It just needed a little salt as the bacon added quite a bit of saltiness to it, some ground black pepper and a few fresh leaves of my lemon thyme on top and the salad was done!
A warm Salad with Artichokes in Vermouth
Artichokes seem to follow me in the past few weeks, even when I don't buy them they end up in my kitchen. I got a bag full of beautiful purple baby artichokes as a gift, the tiniest I've ever seen. A friend of mine had bought too many and knowing that I use everything that finds its way into my space she was happy to pass them over to me. I had already made plans for dinner but the vegetables couldn't wait a day longer. When I looked at them, a warm salad came to my mind, a little snack in between. I imagined them sautéed and deglazed with vermouth and some parsley on top, so I brought out my pan and started the cooker.
As a starter for 4 you need 6 small baby artichokes. Cut off the artichoke stem if it’s too woody and pluck the hard outer leaves. Cut the artichoke’s tip off (1/3 – 1/2 of the artichoke), quarter them and scoop out the hairy choke. Keep the prepared artichokes in a bowl of cold water and the juice of half a lemon while you’re finishing the rest.
Sautée the prepared artichokes in a large heavy pan in a dash of olive oil and 2 tablespoons of butter for about 5 minutes together with 1 thinly sliced clove of garlic. Deglaze with 75ml / 2.5 ounces of vermouth and season with salt and pepper. Add 75ml / 2.5 ounces of water and 1 tablespoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice and let them simmer on a medium heat for about 10 minutes until al dente. Sprinkle with roughly chopped parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Buffalo Mozzarella, Cuore Di Bue Tomato and Mint Salad
When I saw these beautiful Cuore Di Bue Tomatoes in the vegetable department of my local organic shop I had to buy them. I know these tomatoes from Malta where farmers sell them from their vegetable trucks at every street corner in the towns. These mobile shops are piled high with ripe, colourful fruits and vegetables from the island, surrounded by women chatting and exchanging the latest gossip while waiting to have their vegetables weighed. Many of them have been going to the same farmer for years and I gladly follow this tradition. Whenever I'm there I buy my groceries from my vegetable man, Leli, twice a week he parks his truck under pink oleander trees in the middle of Msida. He is one of the most friendly, calm and humble people I know, he doesn't talk much but he always has a little smile on his face. Before we leave the island at the end of our holidays, we visit him one last time to say good-bye, I never know who is more sad, him or us!
Back to the Cuore Di Bue Tomatoes, I buy and eat them in bulk when I'm Malta. Their taste is far away from most of the tomatoes you can buy in the cities, they are strong and sweet, very intense, they taste like real tomatoes! Their name comes from their shape and size which is similar to an ox heart but I thought that the Italian name, Cuore Di Bue sounds a bit nicer than Oxheart Tomatoes!
I had a buffalo mozzarella in my fridge which had to be used soon, a quick salad mixed with my beautiful tomatoes was the first idea that came into my mind. I still love this Italian classic which can be a delicious starter or snack when it's made with good quality ingredients. Unfortunately, lots of restaurants offer it made with tasteless tomatoes and mozzarella, which has damaged its image a little over the years. Buffalo milk however creates a very strong mozzarella which is great for this salad, to add a green taste as strong as this cheese, I replaced the traditionally used basil with mint. Our salad for 2 was ready within seconds, 125g / 4.5 ounces of buffalo mozzarella roughly torn into bite sized pieces mixed with 2 ripe Cuore Di Bue tomatoes sliced thinly and a few leaves from my mint plant. The dressing was as easy, 3 tablespoons of olive oil whisked with 2 tablespoons of Balsamico vinegar, salt and pepper.
Green Asparagus with my Egg and Lemon Yoghurt Dressing
Here is another variation on my raw green asparagus salad, I enjoyed it so much that I tried a few others since I wrote about it on the blog last month. This time I mixed the crunchy vegetable with boiled egg crumbles, chives and a sweet and sour creamy dressing. After my Mediterranean style salad with cherry tomatoes and parmesan I felt like a fresh and Nordic combination. I sliced the green stems thinly with my cheese slicer, they curled up around the eggy crumbles and mixed well with the thick and creamy dressing.
As a starter for 4 or a lunch for 2, you need 500g / 1 pound of raw green asparagus (the woody bottom part cut off), rinsed and thinly sliced (lengthwise). For the dressing I whisked 3 heaped tablespoons of yoghurt, with 3 tablespoons of heavy cream and 2 teaspoons of lemon juice but you should adjust the ratio of milky and sour to your taste. Seasoned with salt, pepper and 1/4 teaspoon of sugar, I dolloped it on the asparagus and finished it off with 2 hardboiled eggs, chopped and crumbled and a small bunch of chives, snipped on top.
Cucumber Salad with Dill and Sour Cream Dressing
Lots of amazing food was gathered on my own and on my friend's and family's tables in the past couple days, we enjoyed some special culinary treats, had a great time, and of course ate lots of sweets, cakes and chocolate. No complaints but it's time for a break! I love to feast for days, especially together with the ones I love. Treating others and myself to good homemade food, spending time together at a long table, trying out and sharing new recipes, I need and appreciate this so much. It's like taking a break from the daily routine when time is tight and work is always waiting. These feasts caress my soul, I treasure these moments highly and most of the time they become my most beloved memories!
But each feast has its end, otherwise it wouldn't be so special. Therefore I gladly enjoy a light salad, simple and quick. It combines a lot I love about spring, juicy and tasty cucumber which is such a pleasure after months of watery winter cucumbers, fresh dill, strong and aromatic, and a smooth dressing with sour cream and lemon. For the two of us, I sliced 1 small cucumber very thinly and dolloped my milky dressing over it. I whisked 2 heaped tablespoons of sour cream with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 2 tablespoons of heavy cream and added 1 tablespoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice, salt, pepper and a pinch of sugar. This is just a rough guideline, adjust the ingredients to your own taste, or add some more herbs like chives or parsley or some other vegetables like cherry tomatoes or lettuce. I was happy with my puristic combination, just cucumber, the dressing nicely balanced between sweet, sour and milky, and some freshly chopped dill sprinkled on top.
Raw Asparagus Salad with Cherry Tomatoes and Parmesan
This is the best (and quickest) spring salad I've had so far this year, raw green asparagus with cherry tomatoes, thin slices of young parmesan and a light olive oil and Balsamico vinegar dressing. It combines the best of the season, crunchy, fresh and milky! It was the first time that I ever tried raw asparagus in my kitchen and I was impressed by how good it tastes. I didn't peel the stems, I just cut the bottoms off and before I started preparing the salad I cut a small piece of asparagus to find out how its texture would feel and taste in my mouth. I expected it to be a bit hard and woody but experienced quite the contrary. The outside felt a bit crunchy but the inside was almost tender. After it passed the test I could continue with the preparations for my first raw asparagus salad!
As a side dish or starter for 4, cut the woody bottom part (around 2 cm / 1") off of 500g / 1 pound of medium sized green asparagus and rinse the stems. Cut 16 cherry tomatoes in half and mix with the asparagus. For the dressing, whisk 3 tablespoons of olive oil with 1 tablespoon of dark Balsamico and 1 tablespoon of white Balsamico vinegar. Season with salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle over the salad. Slice 70g / 2.5 ounces of young Parmesan thinly and arrange on top of the salad.
Radicchio with Caramelised Red Onions and Lemon Thyme
In the past few days I've had caramelised onions on my mind, sweet and syrupy, preferably the red ones or shallots which taste softer and reveal an intense natural sweetness when they are cooked. There is a big bowl in my kitchen which is always filled with onions. I like to have the whole range at hand, red, yellow, white, big and small, but most of the time I use the spicy yellow bulbs, mine are medium sized and organic, they bring tears to my eyes as soon as the knife touches the peel. They are great too cook with but painful to prepare! A few shallots are in the bowl as well and red onions of course which I love to use for pies or in salads, which rarely happens as I'm not too fond of raw onions.
I have a beautiful head of radicchio in my fridge just waiting to be used, the big leaves falling over its sides like a ball gown, almost too perfect to destroy! But I must, I want to combine its bitterness with the sweetness of caramelised red onions and some lemon thyme. The radicchio is uncooked but the onions caramelise in sugary butter, softening over less than 15 minutes before I deglaze their juices with dark Balsamico vinegar. The result is delicious, a salad of bitter sweet flavours glazed in a thick sweet and sour dressing!
A Salad of Radicchio, Caramelised Red Onions and Lemon Thyme
For a side dish for 2 you need
radicchio, torn into bite sized pieces, 4 big leaves
medium sized red onions, each cut into 8 pieces (lengthwise), 2
butter 3 tablespoons
sugar 2 tablespoons
balsamic vinegar 2 tablespoons
olive oil 4 tablespoons
lemon thyme, 10 young and soft sprigs chopped roughly or just the leaves
salt and black pepper
In a large pan, heat up 1 tablespoon of oil together with the butter and sugar on medium temperature. As soon as the butter starts to sizzle add the onions, stir once in a while. Let the onions soften over 10 minutes, they can become a bit dark but shouldn't burn as that would make them bitter. When the onions are soft, caramelised and have turned a dark red, season with salt and pepper and take them out keeping their caramel juices in the pan. Deglaze the bits and pieces left in the pan with the Balsamico, put on medium heat for a few seconds and mix it so that just a little of the vinegar evaporates. Take it off the heat, pour the liquid into a bowl, whisk with 3 tablespoons of olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste.
On large plates, arrange the radicchio with the caramelised onions on top, carefully as they are very soft, sprinkle with some salt and pepper and add the thyme. Drizzle the thick dressing over the leaves, it's so strong that a few drops are enough to spread the sweet flavours.
Rucola Salad with Goat Cheese, Honey Dressing and Pink Peppercorns
Here's the salad which accompanied yesterday's salmon with spice crust, rucola with goat cream cheese, crushed pink peppercorns and a sweet honey Balsamico vinegar dressing! I wanted to use both the pink and the green peppercorns which I had just bought at the market, not in the same dish but in the same meal. The spiciness of the green pepper fit perfectly with the crust I chose for the fish but my salad, sweet and milky, needed a mild and less spicy aroma, pink peppercorns. The berries matched the sourness of the creamy cheese very well which was so young that there was only a hint of goat milk. I could have used mozzarella instead but I wanted this special, slightly sharp aroma which balanced out the sweetness of my vinaigrette on the other side.
Usually, I make a quick dressing for my salads, 3 tablespoons of olive and 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar plus salt and pepper, but this salad asked for more. I kept the ratio of vinegar and oil but I mixed my dark balsamic vinegar with the white one and added 1 small teaspoon of honey (depending on the sweetness you want to achieve you might need more or less honey). It turned out thick, sticky and syrupy, exactly what I wanted! For 2 I spread 2 handfuls of rucola leaves on plates and sprinkled 125g / 4.5 ounces of fresh goat cream cheese in big lumps on top. I drizzled the dressing over the leaves and garnished my salad with 1 tablespoon of crushed pink peppercorns. It would have made us just as happy as a light and easy lunch on its own. I have to remember that, it will be perfect on a hot summer evening!
