Jennifer Aniston's salad?

 I keep running across iterations of a salad that Jennifer Aniston was reputed to have eaten daily while filming Friends.  I have no idea the authenticity of any of them, but it seems a quite good idea to throw together some legumes, a grain, herbs, vegetables, nuts or seeds, and feta.  

Here's what I plan to make this week, having indulged in purchasing some pistachios and finding tasty Persian cucumbers on sale.  I'll put other versions below to have in one place for future reference.  If I could find a nutritious and tasty salad that I could eat every day of the week, I would be ecstatic.  Update: this is really good.  It's not cheap (pistachios? fresh herbs? etc.) but I think it's worth it.  Things to consider: if I'm still liking it on day #5 (I just made it) and how satisfying it is or if I need to eat it with something else for it to stick on my ribs.

• 1 cup uncooked quinoa or bulgar wheat
•  2 cups water
•  1 cup cucumber, chopped
•  ½ cup parsley, chopped
•  ½ cup mint, chopped
•  ⅓ cup red onion, chopped
•  ½ cup roasted and salted pistachios, chopped (I think almonds would be just as good)
•  1 15 ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed (or lentils?)
•  2 lemons, juiced (about 5-6 Tablespoons)
•  ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste  
•  ½ cup crumbled feta cheese

Instructions 

• Rinse and drain quinoa. Add quinoa and water to a small pot and bring the water to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for 15 minutes. Fluff with a fork and let cool for 5-10 minutes. 
• In a medium bowl, stir together cooked quinoa, cucumber, parsley, mint, red onion, pistachios, chickpeas, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper and feta.
• Serve immediately or let the salad chill in the fridge a couple hours before serving.Store salad in an airtight container for up to 5 days in the refrigerator. 
  

   ****Here is another version. Ingredients 1 cup uncooked green lentils, rinsed wellsea salt3 cups water3 T lemon juice (1 lemon)3 T extra virgin olive oil1 small red onion, finely diced1 cup Persian cucumbers 1/4 cup chopped parsley2 scallions, chopped 2 T chopped mint2 T chopped Kalamata olives1/4 cup feta 

Directions

    In a large saucepan, combine the lentils, ½ teaspoon salt, and water.
    Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
    Turn the heat to low and cook for 15–20 minutes, or until the lentils are soft but still slightly firm. Do not overcook the lentils or they will become mushy.
    While the lentils are cooking, whisk together the lemon juice, ½ teaspoon salt, and olive oil in a large bowl.
    Mix the red onion, diced cucumber, parsley, scallions, and mint into the dressing.
    Once the lentils are cooked, drain off any excess water.
    Add the lentils to the large bowl and toss until fully combined.
    Top with olives and, if desired, crumbled feta cheese to serve.

lemon yogurt

 I always have yogurt in my fridge, and often I have a half a lemon that I need to use up.  This is a tasty treat.

- 2 cups yogurt

- lemon zest & juice (1/2 - 1 lemon)

- 1 Tbsp. sugar

Stir it up and enjoy!

Meyer lemon pudding cake

This is really tasty.  I picked up a bag of Meyer lemons at Costco because I wanted to make preserved lemons (and lemons are expensive here), and a friend was coming over for tea so I wanted to make something with the leftover lemons.  This really hit the spot, and it has an interesting custardy texture.  I like it!

Ingredients

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 4 eggs, separated
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon Meyer lemon zest (or more)
• 1/3 cup of Meyer lemon juice
• 1-1/2 cups whole milk

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Combine sugar, flour and salt in a small bowl, whisk together and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, butter and zest. Then pour the lemon juice while whisking until blended. Alternate between adding the dry ingredients and the milk, stirring after each addition until combined.
4. Whip egg whites until stiff and fold them in gently with the lemon mixture. Pour into either an 3-1/2 quart baking dish or 6 to 8 individual ramekins.
5. Set the baking dish into larger roasting pan and fill the large pan with hot water so it comes up 1/3 of the way on the baking dish.
6. Bake for 40 minutes. Let cool for about 10 to 15 minutes before serving. Dust with powdered sugar and serve with fresh berries if desired.  (Also good with thawed frozen berries, without any sugar needed.)

dutch baby

For when there is a surplus of Meyers lemons to squeeze over the top!

From the NY Times, here.

Ingredients

• 3 eggs
• ½ cup flour
• ½ cup milk
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• Pinch of nutmeg
• 4 tablespoons butter
• sweet lemons, syrup, preserves, confectioners' sugar or cinnamon sugar

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Combine eggs, flour, milk, sugar and nutmeg in a blender jar and blend until smooth. Batter may also be mixed by hand.
3. Place butter in a heavy 10-inch skillet or baking dish and place in the oven. As soon as the butter has melted (watch it so it does not burn) add the batter to the pan, return pan to the oven and bake for 20 minutes, until the pancake is puffed and golden. Lower oven temperature to 300 degrees and bake five minutes longer.
4. Remove pancake from oven, cut into wedges and serve at once topped with syrup, preserves, confectioners' sugar or cinnamon sugar.  (I like it best with a lemon squeezed over the top and sprinkled with powdered sugar.)

 

yumm sauce and bowls

There is a restaurant in Oregon called Cafe Yumm that serves yumm bowls.  These are rice and beans with accoutrements, including a super tasty sauce over it.

There are several recipes for it, and I sadly don't appear to have saved that recipe from last year when I had a hankering.

I'm digging through my cupboards for things to eat, and I have over ten pounds of black beans to use up, so Yumm comes to mind.

This one allows me to use soybeans (which were hard to find!  I wanted to get some to make tempeh, and nobody could find them for me; I had to go to a crusty old food store when visiting a friend.  They're doing a "quick soak" right now).

1⁄2 cup canola oil (preferably cold pressed)
1⁄2 cup almonds (for a creamier sauce, use almond flour)
1⁄3 cup nutritional yeast
1⁄2 cup garbanzo beans, cooked
1⁄4 cup soybeans, cooked
1⁄2 cup filtered water (important for flavor)
1⁄2 cup lemon juice (fresh is best)
1-2 garlic clove (small to medium size)
1⁄2 teaspoon salt
1 1⁄2 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried cilantro

• In a blender or food processor blend almonds beans and oil.
• Add all other ingredients and puree until creamy smooth.
• Cover and let stand in the refrigerator for one hour.

(It does freeze pretty well.)

****

Here's a recipe from the Seattle Times and a cookbook:

Makes 1½ cups of sauce
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
¼ cup raw almonds
1/3 cup water
¼ cup cooked chickpeas, drained and rinsed
¼ cup nutritional yeast
2½ tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
¼ teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon curry powder
½ teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon dried cilantro


In a high-speed blender or food processor, combine oil, almonds, water and chickpeas. Blend until relatively smooth. Add remaining ingredients and blend until smooth. Transfer to a small bowl, cover and refrigerate until serving.
From Sarah Matheny , “More Peas, Thank You” (Harlequin, $21.95), Austin American-Statesman

***
Here's another, more like what I made before I think.

Ingredients

Yumm Sauce:

• 3/4 cup canned garbanzo beans drained & rinsed
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1/2 cup water plus additional as needed to thin
• 1/2 cup almond flour (can make it like this)
• 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice 3-4 lemons
• 1/3 cup silken tofu
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 2 garlic cloves crushed
• 1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried cilantro
• ½ teaspoon mustard powder

Instructions

1. Add ingredients to a high-speed blender or food processor, and process until smooth. Transfer to a small bowl, cover and refrigerate until serving.
2. To assemble place about 1 cup rice in bowl, drizzle on Yumm Sauce, then top with 1/2 cup beans, avocado, tomatoes, olives, cheese, cilantro and top with greek yogurt or sour cream. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.
   
   
   

chicken with olives and dates

From Weight Watchers New Complete Cookbook (adapted to increase spices).

1 T olive oil
4 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tsp minced fresh ginger
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp icnnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 pound skinless boneless chicken thighs
1/4 c low-sodium chicken broth
1/4 c dried apricot halves, chopped
2 pitted dates, coarsely chopped
10 small kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
1 T grated lemon zest
1 T water

*Prepare marinade: combine oil through salt in a ziploc bag, then add chicken - squeeze out air, coat chicken, seal bag.  Refrigerate turning once for one hour.  Drain and discard marinade.

*Spray large nonstick skilled with nonstick spray, heat.  Add chicken and broth, cook covered for 15 minutes. Turn chicken over, sprinkle with apricots, dates, olives, lemon zest, water. Cook, covered, checking occasionally, until the chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes longer.  If chicken begins to stick to skillet, add 1-2 T more water.

*Serve with couscous.

***Makes 4 servings.  Per serving: 5 points plus value, 202 ccal, 8 g fat, 2 g sat fat, 0 g trans fat, 82 mg chol, 296 mg sod, 9 g carb, 1 g fib, 23 g prot, 35 mg calc.

Lemon-Fig Cake

Lemon and Fig Cake
Originally uploaded by gummychild

Made these mini cakes for my mom's birthday last weekend! ^_^ They were delicious, and not too sweet (she always complains that baked items are way too sweet, hee hee...), so it was perfect!

Because I didn't have a full cake pan and baked them in mini sized ones, they were kinda like giant muffins...but still good, and would be extra tasty with coffee, tea, or hot cocoa. ^_^

This is from Martha Stewart's little magazine book of recipes, Everyday Food, the Holiday Baking 2007 Edition. =)

Ingredients:

- 1/2 Cup olive oil
- 1/2 Cup milk
- 1 large egg
- 1-1/2 Cups all purpose flour
- 3/4 Cup sugar (I used only 1/2 a cup)
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 package (about 7-10 ounces) of dried figs, stemmed and coarsely chopped up (about 1-1/2 Cups)
- 1-1/2 teaspoons of finely grated lemon zest (from 1 lemon)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Brush a 9" tart pan with a removable bottom with some oil, or use a cake pan lined with parchment paper on the bottom.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk the oil, milk, and egg.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.

4. Add the milk mixture into the bowl of dry ingredients and stir until smooth. Don't overmix! Gently fold in the figs and lemon zest.

5. Spread the batter into the pan, and set the pan on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 35 to 40 minutes.

6. Cool in the pan for about 15 minutes before unmolding the cake onto a wire rack to cool completely. To serve, cut into wedges. The cake can be stored, wrapped well in plastic, at room temperature for up to one day.

Chicken Paillard in Lemon Butter Sauce

Chicken Paillard in Lemon Butter Sauce...with Rice & Spinach
Originally uploaded by gummychild

Slightly modified from Martha Stewart's Living

Ingredients
Serves 2 to 4

-4 chicken breast halves (Martha says to make them into paillards by flattening them with a mallet...I pounded them only a little with a can of corn, but then decided I'd keep them nice and big so that they'd be more juicy. A wise move, as I found out later!)
-Salt and pepper
-1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
-1 tablespoon plus 2 to 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
-2 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed
-Segments and juice of 2 lemons (in hindsight, just 1 lemon is enough. 2 was fine and tasty, but it would be flavorful enough with just 1 lemon)
-3/4 cup low-sodium chicken stock

Directions

1. Season 4 chicken on both sides with salt and pepper.

2. Heat 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil and 1 tablespoon unsalted butter in a large cast iron skillet (maybe it's psychological, but I thought the cast iron seared the chicken and made it taste better than just using a regular skillet) over medium-high heat until butter foams. Add chicken, and saute on 1 side until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Flip, and saute paillards until cooked through, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Chicken Paillard in Lemon Butter Sauce

3. Raise heat to medium-high. Add segments and juice of lemons, chicken stock, and any plate juices, and deglaze the pan, scraping brown bits from bottom with a wooden or metal spoon. Simmer until sauce reduces by half, about 3 minutes. Gradually stir in 2 to 3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter (cut into small pieces) until just melted. Season to taste.

Served with rice and spinach (stir-fried with a bit of oil and a few cloves of garlic). Delicious! ^_^

lemon poppyseed bread

(modified from a Horizon yogurt recipe that was once on-line but is no longer)

Combine:
1 c yogurt
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
zest from one lemon (~1 T)
1/4-1/3 c poppy seeds
1/4 c melted butter
1/4 c applesauce*

Combine in another bowl:
2 c flour (all purpose or whole wheat pastry or a combination)
1/2 c sugar
1 T baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Then combine them and bake in a greased bread pan at 350 degrees for 50+ minutes. (The texture was a little strange - really thick.) (Usually 50 minutes works fine, but today it was still doughy in the middle when I pulled it out then - use the toothpick test to check for doneness: slide one in the middle and see if there's uncooked dough sticking to it. Crumbs are ok- pull it out. But goop and it needs more time.)

Let it cool a bit.

Heat together: juice of a lemon and 1 T sugar until sugar is dissolved.

Poke little holes in the cake with a toothpick and drizzle the glaze over it.

***
AWESOME texture! Soft. Not as lemony as I'd expect, but it's mild (probably because I use Meyers lemons). Freezes well.

*One of my fat-cutting tips is to replace half butter in any baked recipe with applesauce. It works well though it does change the texture, and it helps with the many jars of applesauce I still have left on my shelves from the saucing extravaganza Erin & I had last year. But if you don't want to use applesauce, it would be fine to use 1/2 c butter total.

Lemon Pecan Cookies with Lemon Glaze

Lemon Pecan Cookies with Lemon Glaze
Originally uploaded by gummychild

I didn't looove how these came out, but they weren't too bad, and others might have liked it more. The recipe came from Henry's Market, which is where I get the recipe for that very tasty Citrus Salt that the Chris H. loves, hee hee...=)

Ingredients:

- 1/3 c. powdered sugar
- 1/3 c. butter, room temperature
- 1 Large Egg
- 2/3 c. honey
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 2 Tbsp. lemon zest
- Juice of one lemon
- 2 1/2 Cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/3 c. finely chopped walnuts (*I used pecans)

For the Glaze:
- 2 c. confectioners’ sugar
- 3 Tbsp. lemon juice
- 2 tsp. lemon zest

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375° F.

2. Cream together sugar and butter at low speed. Add egg, honey, vanilla, lemon zest, lemon juice. Mix until smooth.

3. Sift together flour with baking soda and salt. Mix flour mixture into margarine mixture, until just combined. Fold in walnuts.

4. Dust work surface lightly with flour. Roll dough into an 1/8-inch thick rectangle. Using cookie cutters of choice, (I just used a cookie dough scoop, and didn't shape them), cut out cookies and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, about 1-inch apart.

5. Bake 8 to 10 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool on a cooling rack for 10 minutes.

6. While the cookies cool, mix together 2 cups confectioners’ sugar with lemon juice and lemon zest to create a spreadable glaze. Spread glaze over cookies and top with lemon zest, or chopped nuts.

Lemony White Chocolate Chunk Biscotti

Lemony White Chocolate Biscotti
Originally uploaded by gummychild

I've been playing and experimenting in the kitchen again...hooray! ^_^

This is one of my recent creations...

Even BatNomi would be proud of me, because these came out pretty dang tasty! =) And they were the first time I've ever made biscottis before...=)

Granted, they're not photogenic, but they are wonderful in taste! =)

Modified slightly from KraftFoods.

Ingredients:
- 2 cups flour
- 1 tsp. Baking Powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 Tbsp. grated lemon zest
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp. lemon extract
- 4 ounces of White Chocolate chips
- 1/3 cup Sliced Almonds, toasted

Directions:

1. HEAT oven to 350ºF.

2. SIFT together flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.

3. Beat butter, sugar and lemon zest in separate large bowl with mixer until well blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each. Blend in extract. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in chocolate and nuts.

4. DIVIDE dough in half; shape each half into 12x1-inch log on floured surface. Place on greased baking sheet.

5. BAKE 20 min. or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheet 10 min.

6. Transfer to cutting board. Cut each log diagonally into 21 slices, using serrated knife. Return, cut-sides down, to baking sheet. Bake 5 min. or until crisp. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.

preserved lemons

Meyers lemons only come around once a year, and at the farmers market they call to me so seductively. They're sweet and floral and so yummy - but when I end up with dozens, what am I to do? (though I dreamily do fantasize about the day when I have my own home with my own fruit orchard with at least a couple lemon trees)

First I juice a bunch and freeze in ice cube trays (each cube is about 2 T) - I'm very happy to have fresh-tasting lemon juice throughout the year.

I take the peels of these lemons and freeze them. My thinking is that I could just zest them as needed since they're frozen basically intact. I haven't tried it yet, but it's a to-do and I think it would work fine.

But the OTHER THING - and the purpose of this post - is PRESERVED LEMONS.

Last year I did some internet searching when my lemons were starting to turn and I learned for the first time of these. They're used heavily in Moroccan and Algerian cooking, and so I was game. I made a quart which I have very happily used throughout the year. They taste, I'm told, like capers - however, I really don't like capers but I really liked preserved lemons, so there's a limitation to that theory. But they are pickled and not sweet or sour, and taste extremely different than when fresh.

I got advice from several sources, including here. I just made some more today - two pints, and in the second pint I added a bay leaf, a few cardamom pods, a few pepper corns, a cinnamon stick, and a couple cloves. I thought it would be a fun try but I didn't want a full quart of the seasoned ones.

****
Wash some lemons thoroughly (organic is best!). I needed about 3 1/2 lemons for pints and about 8 for a quart - depending on the size.

Put 2 T kosher or sea salt in the bottom of a sterilized jar.

Cut the lemon as if you were going to cut in half through the top, but stop before you actually cut through. Then do the same so it is almost quartered but still attached at the bottom.

Salt heavily inside and outside the lemon.

Squeeze it into the jar - you want juice to come out. (You do NOT, however, want to lemon juice to shoot up all through your kitchen as though a blue whale's blow hole is in your lemons. You know, like I did today. Twice.)

Fill the jar, cramming them in tight, making sure there's lemon juice covering the top (either from these lemons or from extra juice).

I like to cap with the plastic lids Ball makes - the metal will corrode.

Leave the jar out for a few days and turn it upside down every so often. More juice should come from the lemons, but if the lemons aren't covered you can add more juice.

The texture and appearance of the rind will start to change - it's pickling - and after a few days you can put in the fridge. I'm told to not use for a few weeks to allow the process to complete.

It should be fine to keep the jars in the fridge for a year or so - I just make sure there's always lemon juice covering the lemons.

***
TO USE:

I use in recipes calling for them (I'll post some later). Take a lemon out, or use just a half, and remove the pulp. Rinse off the salt and then chop it very finely and add in. I think I read somewhere it can get bitter if cooked a long time, so I add near the end.

Preserved lemons have such a unique flavor and couldn't be substituted with anything else - and since I'm a fan of northern African cuisine, they've been a great discovery for me!