Honey Candied Pecans

An elegant yet quick and simple addition to salads or desserts. I think they'd also be great at a fall afternoon picnic by a lake served with Pescadero goat cheese, crusty french bread and crisp red grapes. Or perhaps spiced and served with hot rooibos tea by a fireside. Or...possibly the best straight out of my pocket.

Unsalted pecans
Sugar
Honey

First heat a pan (cast-iron is my choice) on medium-low heat. Toast the nuts until lightly browned, the pecans will seem to sizzle a little. Drizzle lightly with the honey and toss in the pan then sprinkle a pinch of sugar over it. You can always add cinnamon or a spice of your choice and salt (optional). Heat until the sugar caramelizes but don't let the nuts burn!

Once the honey begins to sizzle a little too, distribute the nuts onto waxed paper and allow to cool. Break apart into pieces with your hand and you're ready to go.

Tomato Bean Salad

Something I made up, thinking it would resemble something like Bi-Rite's bean salad. It was pretty close, I think...I'm sure their dressing is a little different. You can play with the lemon and oil, but the avocado can add quite a bit of tasty fattiness too.

1/3 C beans, soaked and cooked (for ideas, you can check out Rancho Gordo's site)
4-5 small tomatoes, cut into wedges
1/4 thinly sliced onion
1/2 avocado, cubed
4" cucumber, cubed
1 tsp lemon juice, fresh
1 tsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Toss all ingredients together and refrigerate to let the flavors come together. Or consume immediately.

Marinated Bean Salad from TJ's

Not too shabby at all...gooey "marinade" that definitely needs to be drained. But after that, the flavor is quite light. Add a few sprigs of minced mint, 1/4 C minced onion (red), and 1 medium bell pepper diced, toss with salt and pepper and you've got a quick, tasty 3 bean salad. If you want, you can also add 1 tsp vinegar and sugar to taste.

PS: yes, that's Vicky in the background grabbing some raisins.

Shua’s Broccoli Slaw with Toasted Almonds & Cranberries

Simple, elegant and fresh.

Broccoli slaw (from TJ’s or Fresh & Easy)
Gala apples, chopped
Toasted almonds
Dried cranberries

She mixed together balsamic vinegar, olive oil, sea salt and pepper and then tossed in. An alternative would be a light, sweet poppy seed dressing.

Serves 5-6

Spicy Peanut Sesame Noodles

A recipe from one of those Joy of Cooking desk calendars.

Sauce
1 C peanut butter
1/4 C rice vinegar or white vinegar
2 T soy sauce
1 garlic clove, minced
1 chile pepper, seeded and minced OR 1 tsp cayenne or chile flakes
1 tsp chili oil (optional)
1 1/2 T sugar or honey
1/4 C toasted sesame oil
1/2 C freshly brewed black tea

Noodles & Toppings
1 pound noodles (spaghetti or Chinese egg noodles)
4 C shredded cooked chicken OR julienned firm tofu
Peeled, seeded julienned cucumber
Chopped cilantro
Coarsely chopped peanuts
Julienned carrots
Chopped green onions

Combine the sauce ingredients. If you want it really smooth, you can process it in your food processor or blender.

Boil and drain the noodles. Serve at room temperature.

What's pretty is when you display each topping ingredient in a separate bowl. Serve the noodles and let your guests build their plate. This is how Cristal Chen did it once and it was so yummy and fun and colorful!!

6-8 First-course or 4 main-course servings, adapted from Joy of Cooking

Cilantro, Pepita, Pignoli and Almond Pesto

Don't let the fancy names fool you...
Pepita = pumpkin seeds
Pignoli = pine nut
Almond = ...almond

You can use this little sauce:
- mixed with yellow split peas or garbanzo beans as a vegetarian side dish salad. To cook the dried yellow split peas bring 6 cups of water to a boil in a large saucepan, add 2 cups (rinsed) dried split yellow peas and cook for 20 -30 minutes, or until tender. Drain, salt to taste and set aside.
- on top of steak or chicken on a bed of butter lettuce and tomatoes as a main dish like so:

1 cup of the mixed nuts (sold at TJ's as), or just pepitas toasted (divided)
1 cup cilantro leaves and stems, well washed and lightly packed
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
3 medium cloves garlic, peeled
juice of 1 medium lemon
1 serrano chile pepper, minced
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Make the cilantro pesto by blending 1/3 cup of the toasted nuts, the cilantro, Parmesan cheese, garlic, lemon juice, and chile pepper with a hand blender (food processor or standard blender) until smooth.

Continue blending as you gradually drizzle in the olive oil until the pesto comes together into a vibrant green sauce. Taste and add a pinch or two or salt if needed.

Serves 6, adapted from 101cookbooks.com

Edamame with Cranberries, Feta & Basil

I always considered edamame to be an Asian thing (therefore should only be combined with Asian flavors like sesame oil, soy sauce, ginger, etc.)...BUT! this turned out surprisingly tasty. I'm very happy I was wrong.

PS: the photo above is from the second time I made this salad for a home meeting at our house on Monday. It is before the salad is tossed.

1 16-ounce bag frozen shelled edamame
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 or less cup fresh basil leaves, cut into thin strips
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
salt

Cook edamame in boiling salted water for 5 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water to stop cooking. Pat dry.

Toss edamame, cranberries, basil, olive oil, and pepper together in a medium bowl. Gently stir in feta cheese. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Chopped Veggies, Rice and Bean Salad with Lemon Dressing

When May Wang lived with me, we totally went on a Macrobiotic, vegan health food kick. Now, I'm down from a kick to a toe nudge--at this point in my life, I cannot live without animal products, but I do love to eat and play with tasty vegetable based meals.

At that time, we volunteered for a friend who owned a Macrobiotic catering service and even listened to Neal D. Barnard speak about changing eating habits to control and even cure diabetes and other diseases. That's where we got this recipe.

Salad
1 15 oz. can of drained black eyed peas, or black beans
1/2 C or 3 stalks of green onions, finely sliced
2 celery stalks
1 medium tomato, diced
2 T finely chopped cilantro (or parsley)
1 1/2 C cooked brown rice, cooled (1/2 C uncooked)

Dressing
1/4 C lemon juice
1 T olive oil
1/4 t salt
1-3 cloves of garlic, crushed (I like to eat garlic until it's seeping out of my pores so 3 or more is best)

Combine all the salad ingredients except for the brown rice in a strainer. When all the liquids have dripped away, put into a large mixing bowl.

In a smaller bowl, whisk the dressing ingredients and pour over salad. Toss gently. Chill 1 to 2 hours if time permits.

Great as a side dish to compliment something sweet since this is so acidic. Or, you can stuff this inside a tortilla. Anna and I dipped this burrito into a sweet chili hot sauce.

Makes about 5 C, adapted from Neal Barnard's Seminar

Roasted Eggplant and Prosciutto Salad

From Susanne's Site.

For 4 people:
8 oz cherry tomatoes (about 1 1/2 cups)
3 small long eggplants
2 T olive oil
4 slices prosciutto
arugula, baby romaine, or spring mix
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cut a slit through the top of each tomato (like you’re going to cut it in half lengthwise, but don’t cut all the way through). Slice eggplant diagonally into 1-inch thick rounds (don’t make them thinner!). Put into a roasting pan with tomatoes and sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Cook in preheated oven for 350 for 30 minutes. Check halfway through, if the eggplants are getting too done, turn down to 300 for last 10-15 minutes. Tomatoes should burst and be really wrinkley and soft. Rinse the prosciutto then dry. Pan fry on a dry pan until crispy.

For the dressing, combine:
1 T balsamic vinegar
1 T Dijon or Champagne mustard
3 T olive oil
sea salt and black pepper to taste

Toss lettuce with dressing and distribute on plates. Top with prosciutto, tomatoes, and eggplant.

Tangy Twice-Cooked Eggplant with Red Peppers

First made by Cristal and then passed on to Susanne. So flavorful, fresh and delicious!

1 1/2 pounds large Italian eggplants, peeled and cut crosswise into 1-inch-thick rounds Kosher salt
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large red peppers, thinly sliced
1 large Spanish onion, thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon sweet smoked paprika
1/4 cup sherry vinegar
1/2 cup chopped parsley
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Line a large rimmed baking sheet with paper towels. Arrange the eggplant slices in a single layer on the paper towels and sprinkle them with salt. Let stand for 1 hour. Pat the eggplant dry with paper towels.

In a large skillet, heat 1/3 cup of the vegetable oil until shimmering. Add half of the eggplant and cook over moderately high heat, turning once, until browned and tender, about 8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the eggplant to fresh paper towels to drain. Repeat with the remaining 1/3 cup of vegetable oil and eggplant.

Add the peppers, onion and garlic to the skillet and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes. Stir in the paprika and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Return the eggplant to the skillet, stir gently to coat and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the sherry vinegar and simmer for 1 minute. Remove from the heat. Stir in the parsley and lemon juice and season with salt. Let cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until lightly chilled, about 20 minutes, before serving.

Creamy Curry Chicken Salad

Slightly sweet yet savory chicken dish. Serve with crackers, in lettuce cups, in a sandwich with lettuce or spinach, or pita bread. In this photo, I snacked on the salad with Bread & Cie's Caramelized Onion Bread (amazing stuff!!!) and some sliced cucumbers. There are actually more raisins, but they're hiding.

Salad
Chicken: I used 3 chicken thighs, but you can use precooked roasted chicken or one skinless, boneless chicken breast; skin removed
2 stalks of celery, sliced
3 stalks of green onion sliced
1/4 C raisins (depends on how much you like)
3 T sliced almonds, toasted

Curry Dressing
1 1/2 t curry powder
1 T lemon juice
1-2 T mayo (a little goes a long way)
1 T agave nectar (or honey, or 1 t sugar) to taste, can be optional
1 t cayenne (optional)

In a cast iron skillet without oil, cook the 3 chicken thighs with skins removed until no longer pink and juices come out clear. Sprinkle the outside of chicken with a no salt seasoning or maybe pepper, if desired. The outside of the meat should come out browned and a little crunchy. If using a different pan, use a little oil.
--> if using the already cooked variety, go ahead and shred them or cut into strips

While chicken is cooking, mix the dressing ingredients in a small bowl, adjusting seasonings to taste. Mix salad ingredients in larger bowl. Shred chicken with two forks, add to salad. Lastly, mix dressing into salad.

It can be served the next day, but I like the chicken served warm if it is crunchy.

Vegetarian/Vegan Chickpea Cashew Salad

My coworker kindly shared this salad with me the day I got back from my Taiwan/Japan trip. I was too tired to make my lunch that day and it was so refreshing and tasty! I was pleased at how easy it was to make.

1 can chickpeas drained and rinsed
3 stalks green onions chopped
3 stalks celery chopped

1-2 T of (vegan) mayo (add a little at a time to taste)
1 T nutritional yeast (especially if using vegan mayo)
1/4 C unsalted cashew pieces (best if added when you'll eat it so that it will contribute a texture that contrasts the chickpeas)
salt and pepper to taste

Coarsely mash the chickpeas. Don't worry about that outer skin stuff. After you add the other stuff, it won't matter. I used a fork to mash them. I also used my fingers. What's fun is pinching the chickpea until it splits in half. Sometimes it flies all over the counter. It's very rewarding. You can also use a food processor if you're feeling fancy.

Add the rest of ingredients and mix.

You can chill for about 30 minutes or so or you can eat as is.

Serve with bread, crackers, etc. I think it would be a tasty lunch served between two slices of toasted rye bread. I know Vicky likes to eat a tuna salads with pasta.