asparagus meets banana

i don't think my taste buds have ever been this confused - yet entirely satisfied -  before! the idea of raw asparagus seems strange on its own, but raw asparagus and banana? and not in some crazy green smoothie?...

marinated raw asparagus salad:

a bunch of crisp local asparagus, ends cut and skin peeled

olive oil

juice of one lime

spoonful of dijon mustard

splash of cider vinegar

salt and pepper

marinate the peeled, raw asparagus in an air tight container or gallon plastic bag for a couple of hours in the fridge. serve chilled over a bed of mustard greens, lettuce, or micro greens!

this raw asparagus salad packs a punch, so it would be a great contrast along side a super creamy, cheesy or heavy dish. i was enjoying it just as a salad, but my over-stimulated taste buds needed something slightly sweet and creamy to calm down with: a dollop of avocado and banana mash! 

ripe avocados and bananas have a similar texture, and together (with a splash of lemon juice) this unlikely duo of fruits make a great topper or spread! don't believe me? try it!

rosemary and lemon

another cheese inspired meal! manchego sheep cheese - a unique cheese produced in la mancha, spain. firm, tangy and sweet smelling. this particular variety is encrusted with rosemary. while i would have been completely satisfied enjoying this rosemary cheese all on its own, i decided instead to create a rosemary inspired meal. or even better - a rosemary and lemon meal!

see on flickr

asparagus just started appearing at my local farmers market. why not feature this early spring veggie on a pizza along with some rosemary from my garden? and just for fun, i made up some rosemary lemonade!

asparagus pizza with manchego rosemary cheese and lemon:

1 pizza dough recipe (look back to my january post)

1 large bunch asparagus, chopped into 2 inch bits

zest of 1 lemon

fresh rosemarry

olive oil

1 lemon, sliced as thinly as possible

rosemary manchego, sliced into thin strips

fresh parsley, chopped

i used my regular pizza dough recipe, except this time i used regular yeast, letting it rise for a couple hours. then i rolled it out onto a baking sheet, and let it rise again for about an hour. this gave me the more focaccia type of crust that i wanted. while your dough is rising, prep your asparagus, and marinate with chopped rosemary, lemon zest, olive oil and pepper. once your dough is ready, remove the asparagus from the marinade - reserving the olive oil, rosemary and zest for your pizza base. spread this across your crust, and top with asparagus tips, fresh parsley, sliced lemons, salt and pepper. you can add more chopped rosemary if you like. bake at 450 for about 15-20 minutes, until your crust is light brown and asparagus is tender. 

see on flickr

i roasted up extra asparagus to serve along side the pizza and made up some fun drinks using the same flavors on my pizza: rosemary lemonade!

for the lemonade i boiled about 1.5 cups of water, adding in a huge handful of rosemary leaves de-stemmed. reduce the heat to low, and add in a half cup of sugar or agave. leave the rosemary leaves to steep for about 15 minutes on the low heat. then remove your pot from the heat, and let cool completely. in the mean time juice as many lemons as you can (5-8 maybe for this amount of sugar) finally, mix everything together in a pitcher and let chill in the fridge. serve iced with lemon slices and sprigs of rosemary!

see on flickr

tarragon pasta

the cheese that inspired it all: river valley's fresh tarragon goat cheese. this artisan goat cheese in incredibly fresh tasting. at such a young age, the cheese still has quite a bit of moisture in it, giving it a slightly different texture than your typical crumbly chevre. this week at the farmers market they came with a new flavor - one of my favorite herb flavors actually - tarragon!

see on flickr

delicious green tarragon pasta salad with tarragon goat cheese:

penne pasta (i used whole wheat penne, but it would have been more fun to use green spinach penne!)

large bunch of fresh asparagus 

1 jar of artichoke hearts, cut into quarters (marinated or not)

tons of fresh tarragon, chopped

fresh parsley, chopped

green onions, chopped

crushed raw or roasted garlic

zest and juice of 1 lemon

olive oil

goat cheese

salt and pepper

cook pasta as directed. strain and coat with a generous splash of olive oil. let to cool while you cut your asparagus into thirds, toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. roast in the oven at 450 degrees for about 10-12 minutes until tender. while the your pasta is still warm, mix in the zest, garlic, and herbs so that the olive oil on the pasta absorbs the flavors. finally, mix in the artichoke, asparagus, lemon juice, crumbled tarragon goat cheese with tons of salt and pepper. this dish can also be great warm, but i like the freshness of the lemon in a chilled pasta salad best!

see on flickr

spicy sesame crackers and baba ganoush

crackers are simple to make and there are an endless amount of possibilities when it comes to flavors. i wanted something spicy, with sesame seeds to compliment a lovely chickpea-eggplant dip i made up.

for the baba ganoush:

2 eggplants

1-5 cloves garlic

lemon juice

1 cup chick peas

3 tablespoons tahini (sesame paste)

smoked paprika or garam masala

salt

pepper

cut 2 medium eggplants in half, brushing the cut side with a bit of olive oil. place skin side down in a roasting pan or baking sheet and roast in a 400 degree oven for about 40 minutes until the skin is well browned/charred. (note - you can use raw garlic. or while you're eggplant bakes, you can roast some garlic in olive oil along the side). let cool for a few minutes before scraping out the insides of the eggplant into a food processor or blender. add into the blender several cloves of roasted garlic (or 1 raw clove), tahini, lemon juice, chick peas, spices, salt and pepper. blend until smooth, adjust flavors and texture by adding more or less lemon juice or chick peas. should be slightly thinner texture than hummus. you don't to use chick peas, but it does wonders to the texture of your dip without taking away from the flavor of the roasted eggplant!

see on flickr

for the spicy sesame crackers:

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 cup buckwheat flour

1/4 cup wheat bran

1/2 cup oil (i used a grapeseed oil marinated with chili peppers)

1/2 cup cold water

teaspoon salt

super easy! mix and roll. cut and bake...

mix water into dry ingredients until just combined. kneed for a bit, adjusting flour and water until you have a dry but not too crumbly dough. roll out as thinly as possible (1/8 inch). take a fork and poke wholes all over your rolled out dough. use the rim of a glass to cut circular crackers. place on a baking sheet with parchment paper. bake at 400 degrees until bottoms are light brown. flip over, and bake for a couple more minutes. cool on a drying rack and sprinkle with a bit more salt. 

roasted garlic & sun dried tomato soup with pumpernickel croutons

seattle weather is completely unreliable! i woke up to a cold cloudy sky and instantly though of soup! this is my fancied up version of tomato soup with crackers:

roasting garlic adds a ton of flavor without the bitterness of raw garlic. to roast, simply peel your garlic, coat with olive oil, and wrap all the cloves in tin foil. bake at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes until browned.

it may be a lot of effort... but so worth it!

the soup: 

one onion chopped 

2 full heads of roasted garlic (15-20 cloves... oh yeah!)

dried thyme & oregano

3 small or 1 large potato, cubed 

1 cup sun dried tomatoes (not in oil)

4 cups vegetable stock

3-4 cups canned tomatoes

saute the onion with olive oil for 3-5 minutes, add in a spoonful of thyme and a pinch of oregano along with the roasted garlic cloves. saute for another minute. add in your cuped potatoes and sun dried tomatoes. cover with 4 cups vegetable stock. bring to a boil, and let simmer until potatoes are tender (15-20 minutes depending on the size of your cubes). add in the canned tomatoes. taste - add salt and pepper! use an immersion blender (my favorite kitchen toy!) or puree in batches in a blender until smooth. 

pumpernickel croutons:

tall grass bakery - a local bread company that frequents the seattle farmers markets - makes amazing artisan breads. their pumpernickel loaf is light and great for making flavorful croutons! 

cut your bread into 1 inch cubes. mix together a quarter cup olive oil, 2 finely diced or crushed cloves of garlic, tons of dried thyme, salt and pepper. drizzle over bread cubes and mix with hands. spread out on a baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, until edges are brown and crisp. let cool on a paper towel or paper bag.

green egg salad

i accidently ended up with 2 dozen eggs at home and only 1 of me. the obvious solution would be to make egg salad, but i have something against mayo. so i created a green egg salad!

see on flickr

diced hard boiled eggs (bring eggs in water to a boil, turn off and let sit covered for 10 minute)

diced avocado

chopped cilantro

chopped green onion

a couple spoonfuls of capers

splash of vinegar

salt and pepper

*mix your green ingredients in with you sliced eggs. salad was amazing on pumpernickel bread and a few slices of tomato! 

see on flickr