Archive for the ‘Starters & Light Meals’ Category

A Middle Eastern Meal

Saturday, March 6th, 2010

MoroccanMeal

Earlier in the week, in one of my culinary classes, we were all asked to bring in a dish that represents comfort food for us. We then headed to the kitchen and go to explain the dish we brought, and then share it with the class. One of my favourites was what my Chef brought in. He is from the Middle East, and he made beautiful, soft, homemade pita bread with hummus, a fava bean dish called Fool Meudane, and wonderful falafel. I was so impressed and inspired that I wanted to make the very same meal for my family! I decided to add a cumin-carrot salad to the meal, as well. Something I love about these dishes is that they all happen to be vegetarian- yum!

I’ll be sharing the recipes over the next little while, and I’d like to start with a basic hummus recipe that gets topped with the fool meudane. My chef informed me that this is not a traditional way of serving it, but hey, he did it….and I liked it!

Hummus2

Basic Hummus

  • 1 19 fl oz can of chickpeas
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 3 Tbsp tahini
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • pinch of salt and pepper
  • 3 Tbsp finely chopped parsley

Combine all the ingredients, except olive oil in a food processor and blend until smooth. Drizzle in olive oil and blend. Stir in parsley and top with paprika.

Fool Meudane (original recipe can be found here)

  • 2 cups frozen fava beans
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice (add tbsp by tbsp, until you get the amount you want- a 1/4 cup may be too much for some people)
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp parsley, chopped
  • 1 small tomato, diced

In a frying pan, heat the olive oil and add the garlic, stir until fragrant. Add the fava beans, lemon juice, and salt. Cover and cook for a minute or two. Add the diced tomato, cover and simmer 2-3 minutes. Turn off the heat, and mash the ingredients with a fork until chunky. You don’t want this dish to be perfectly smooth. Garnish with parsely and drizzle with olive oil.

To serve these, spread the hummus in a bowl leaving a hole in the middle, add the fool meudane in the centre, sprinkle with smoked paprika, and drizzle with olive oil.

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Posted in Light Meals, Middle Eastern, Sides, Snacks, Vegan, Vegetarian | 6 Comments »

Vegetable Pasta- Raw!

Monday, February 22nd, 2010

RawSpaghetti

So I have dabbled in a couple of raw food dishes, such as the raw cheesecake I tried in the summer. I’m feeling a bit less than myself lately and was sick over the past week or so. Because I am in pastry school, I find myself consuming a lot of sugar, and I basically went from a near zero sugar diet, to one where I’m bringing home cakes, pies, tarts, and bread several times a week, and while a lot gets shoved in the freezer right away, it’s the odd bites that catch up to us. I want to start cleansing my diet again, as my school winds down, and wean myself off the sugar once more. I thought a good place to start would be a raw food dish, and though I don’t necessarily think that having a completely raw diet is the best diet, I know that I can count on raw food recipes to provide light, healthy nourishment. I got the recipe from here and only slightly modified it. I really enjoyed the dressing and used it on several salads I had in the following day or two. This was a very nice lunch, and also a great side dish at dinner. Enjoy!

RawSpaghetti3

Raw Vegetable Pasta

Dressing:

  • 1 inch ginger
  • 3/4-1 cup olive oil
  • 2 tsp sesame oil (toasted)
  • Juice of 1 lime
  • 4 tbsp mellow white miso
  • ¼ cup maple syrup
  • zest of one orange
  • 1/3 cup water

Blend in a blender or food processor until creamy and emulsified.

Pasta:

  • 1 large zucchini, sliced with a vegetable peeler
  • 1/2 red pepper, sliced into matchsticks
  • 1 carrot, sliced into matchsticks
  • 1/2 small cucumber, grated
  • Scallions or green onion to garnish
  • Sprinkle of raw sliced nuts of your choice
  • handful of cilantro, chopped

Prepare and mix all veggies, save the scallions or green onion. Toss them with 1/4 cup sauce, adding more if necessary, and sprinkle with scallions. Sprinkle with sliced nuts and cilantro.

RawSpaghetti2

Posted in Appetizers, Brunch & Lunch, Light Meals, Main Meals, Raw, Salads, Sauces & Condiments, Sides, Snacks, Starters & Light Meals, Vegan, Vegetarian | 8 Comments »

Orange-Chipotle Shrimp

Wednesday, February 17th, 2010

orangechipotleshrimp

I love eating salads, but I often add some protein in the form of seafood to them. I recently had a great salad made with lettuce, cherry tomatoes, about half of an avocado, goat cheese, and these orange-chipotle shrimp. I think these shrimp would make a great filling for shrimp tacos, as well! There really aren’t exact amounts of each ingredient for this recipe. Just use however much shrimp you want, and make sure there is enough marinade to coat them all!

Orange-Chipotle Shrimp

  • about 2 chipotle peppers packed in adobo sauce
  • juice of one orange
  • honey
  • salt and pepper
  • 1/2lb peeled shrimp (I take the tails off, too,  so there is less work to do while I am eating the salad)
  • cilantro, chopped

Mix the chipotle peppers, shrimp, orange juice, salt and pepper together. Let marinade for just a few minutes. Heat up a frying to medium hight heat, and add the shrimp. Discard the leftover marinade. Drizzle the shrimp with honey and cook for about one minute, tossing after about 30 seconds. Top with plenty of chopped cilantro.

orangechipotleshrimp2

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Posted in Light Meals, Salads | 5 Comments »

Sesame Sweet Potato Wedges

Saturday, February 13th, 2010

SesameYams

I’m totally obsessed with yams and sweet potatoes, as ya’ll probably know, and here’s one more recipe for when I have to satisfy my craving! These are sesame baked yam fried and they are served with an almond butter dipping sauce. I recently made an almond butter dipping sauce to use with my spring rolls, and it was quite different to the one used in this recipe. This one, to me, tasted just like ketchup, so I added some ginger to try and make it taste a bit more interesting without being overpowering. This made a great 2 am snack ;)

Sesame Sweet Potato Wedges with Almond Dipping Sauce

  • 4 medium sweet potatoes, cut into wedges
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
  • 1 tbsp sesame seeds
  • sea salt
  • chopped cilantro

Preheat oven to 400F.

Arrange the potatoes in a single layer on a lined baking tray. Drizzle with the olive oil and sesame oil, sesame seeds, and salt.

Bake in the oven for approximately 35 minutes until tender.

Almond Dipping Sauce

  • 2 tbsp almond butter
  • 1 tbsp lime juice
  • red chili flakes, to your liking
  • 1-2 tbsp tamari
  • 1 tbsp ketchup
  • 1-2 tsp fresh grated ginger
  • sea salt and pepper

Whisk all ingredients together well, and add 1/4 cup of hot water, blend until smooth. Pour into a saucepan and heat gently.

Sprinkle the cilantro over the potato wedges, and serve with dipping sauce. Enjoy!

SesameYams2

Posted in Sides, Snacks, Starters & Light Meals, Vegan, Vegetarian | 8 Comments »

Herb & Feta Polenta

Saturday, February 6th, 2010

HerbedPolentaCakes2

I feel like it’s been longer than usual inbetween posts for me. I have had midterms all of last week, so I was a bit busy studying (or trying to….). Honestly, who can study with the excitement of the Olympics coming up in just under a week! I can’t wait to have some fun amidst all the chaos and hectic activities downtown. And now onto the food….

I really wanted to make something sort of unique, and cute. I decided on Herb & Feta Polenta with Sun-Dried Tomato Tapenade. I had never made polenta before and I think I had only tried it once. I really like the look of these for appetizers- they are easy to make and can need to be made ahead of time. The polenta has a pretty neutral flavour with just a bit of feta in each bite-sized cake. The sun-dried tomato tapenade livens it up with a splash of balsamic vinegar, and black olives. Try these for some classy superbowl hors d’oeuvres ;)

Herb & Feta Polenta with Sun-Dried Tomato Tapenade (adapted from Vegetarian Food for Friends)

  • 3 tbsp butter
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • 3 scallions, finely chopped
  • 1 1/4 cups boiling water
  • 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp polenta or yellow cornmeal
  • 4 oz feta cheese, crumbled
  • 1 tsp of dried dill
  • sea salt and black pepper
  • sliced black olives
  • 2 oz sun-dried tomatoes, soaked in water and 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar overnight
  • 1/3 olive oil
  • 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 1/8 tsp red chili flakes
  • small handful of fresh basil

Polenta:

In a saucepan, combine butter, olive oil, garlic and scallions and cook until scallions are translucent- a couple minutes. Pour in boiling water, add polenta in a steady stream whisking the whole time to prevent lumps. Cook until polenta thickens and starts forming large bubbles. Stir in feta, dill, salt and pepper. Pour into a well-greased 8 inch square baking pan. Smooth the top of the polenta. Chill in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight.

Cut out approximately 16 rounds with a 2-inch diameter cookie cutter. Top with a spoonful of tapenade and 2-3 slices of olive. Garnish with fresh dill or cilantro. Serve and enjoy!

Tapenade:

Drain the sun-dried tomatoes, and put in a blender with the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, chili flakes, and basil. Process until fairly smooth, and add salt and pepper to taste.

HerbedPolentaCakes

Posted in Appetizers, Brunch & Lunch, Grains, Starters & Light Meals, Vegetarian | 8 Comments »

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