Archives for April 29, 2012

Beans, Beans, The Musical Fruit!

April 29, 2012 by Leave a Comment

I keep containers of black beans, canneloni beans, and edamame (I don’t really know if that’s a bean or not, but you get the idea.)

My favorite brand of black beans is Bush’s and I’ve tried them all.

Empty the can of beans into a sieve.  Run cold water over them until the water comes out clean.  Spread the beans onto paper toweling to drain.  Salt fairly generously.  Put in plastic containers and refrigerate.

The edamame I  buy frozen —already shelled.  Follow directions;  however I don’t cook them quite as long as it says, for I like them a little ‘al dente.’   Again, I spread them out on paper toweling, cool completely, salt and refrigerate.

These keep for a couple of weeks, and are GREAT tossed onto salads.  So nutritious, and we all know how good they are for us.

Filed Under: Miscellaneous and Helpful Hints

Additions to Salads

April 29, 2012 by Leave a Comment

A salad can be as simple or creative as you wish.

One of my favorite salads is to assemble two or three types of lettuces in a large bowl and then over the top, place the following:

Tiny circles of the new miniature peppers–red, yellow and orange

Chopped red onion

Olives–I particularly like the Kalamato olives–well drained

Red and Yellow grape tomatoes. (or that tomato surprise in “vegetables’.)

Feta Cheese–broken into rather large pieces–for who wants a miserly amount of feta cheese?

Black Beans

Edamame  Look for my cool idea in “miscellaneous and helpful hints’

I have found that guests love to put their own dressing over this salad, so rather than ‘dressing’ it myself, I pass a few combinations of dressing in plastic squeeze bottles with the long spouts–which makes it so easy to ‘drizzle’  thin strips of dressing over the top in creative designs.  My two favorite at the moment are Green Goddess, and a good Greek dressing.  But a well-aged Balsamic is rather nice if you’re counting calories.

When I make my salads for guests, I really like to assemble each one individually, cover them with dampened paper toweling,  seal with plastic wrap, and refrigerate.  If you have space in your fridge, it makes it so much easier than each guest having to struggle with scooping out their own salads.  Also, that way, you can make each one as pretty as can be, rather than a jumble of this and that.  (Or one person glomming all the cheese, or olives, and the next person left with nothing but the greens!)  Just a thought—you might want to try it.

Filed Under: Miscellaneous and Helpful Hints, Salads

Tabbouli

April 29, 2012 by Leave a Comment

I may have to add to or ‘tweak’ this recipe in a few days, for my true recipe is in Ohio.  I will try to dish this out by memory.

Ingredients:

One box Heartland Bulgher wheat

Chicken broth– Home-made or a good canned brand.

Do not even THINK of making tabbouli unless you have access to FRESH herbs.  Under no circumstances are you to use dried herbs!!!!!  (I will come haunt you in your sleep.)

Three or four cups tightly packed mint leaves–finely minced 

One cup tightly packed Italian parsley–finely minced

About 24 or more long sprigs of chive–finely minced

Two or three bunches green onions–finely chopped

Two or three cups finely chopped and seeded plum tomatoes

EVOO

3 or 4 garlic cloves

Juice of about six lemons–strained

Salt and pepper

Technique:

Measure out the entire box of bulgher wheat. It seems to me it’s between three and four cups wheat.

Measure out the same amount of chicken broth

Put the dry bulgher wheat into a large fine sieve and run it under cold water.  Let it drain in the sieve for a few minutes.

In a large sauce pan, pour the chicken broth and bring to a boil.

SLOWLY scrape the bulgher wheat into it, and stir—ONCE.

Cover and simmer on low for a few minutes.  Turn the heat off, and let sit covered for about 10 minutes.

Uncover, fluff with a fork and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.

Scoop out onto one or two cookie sheets, fluffing often to separate the grains until completely cool. (I even use clean hands to do this–carressing the grains through them to separate.

At this point you can refrigerate the grains, covered in a plastic container until ready to use.

In a blender or food processor, zap the garlic, add the lemon juice, salt and pepper, and drizzle the EVOO slowly into it with the blade running until not ompletely runny.  You want it  still to  taste extremely ‘lemony’!  

Pour the bulgher wheat back onto a couple of cookie sheets with raised sides.  Mix the herbs, tomatoes and onions into it until completely mixed.  Drizzle the lemon sauce into it, again, fluffing completely.  Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.

I like to pour the tabbouli into a pretty bowl, and on top place a ‘flower rose’ sculpted from a long tomato peel, and for the stem, two or three varying lengths of chive, using three or four mint leaves as the leaves.

Tabbouli will keep for three or four days, and I guarantee–if your family is like mine–they will BEG for it during the summer.  It is a labor of love, however; and I always plan to devote two days for its eventual creation.

Filed Under: Pasta, Grains and Legumes