I love summer in the United States mid-east. All the fresh fruits and vegetables make living here worth while. Here is a simple tomato salad that I make often in the summer when all the ingredients are fresh.
Ingredients
- 2 fresh tomatoes
- 1/2 Vidalia Onion
- 4 oz of Fresh Mozzarella
- 4 tbls fresh Basil (regular, Thai or Lemon), roughly diced
- 2 tbls olive oil
- Salt
- Fresh ground black Pepper
Instructions
- Julian the Vidalia Onion
- Lightly squeeze the seeds from the tomatoes and roughly cut into 1/2 inch pieces
- Cut the Mozzarella into small cubes
- Add all ingredients to a bowl and stir until well mixed
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Cover and let sit and room temperature for 1 hour, do not refrigerate
Peas are one of my favorite vegetables. This is a quick and easy recipe for a pureed pea dish that is similar in consistency to mashed potatoes. I resisted trying this dish for some time, since it sounded like baby food, but after trying it I fell in love with a new way to serve peas. Give it a try, you will like it.
Ingredients
- 1 cup of cooked peas (frozen will work, cook per instructions)
- 1/2 a small onion or 1 large shallot
- 1 clove of garlic, crushed
- 2 tbls of stalk, chicken or vegetable
- 1 tsp of fresh basil, diced
- 1 tsp fresh lime juice
- Salt and Pepper
Instructions
- Saute the onions or shallots in the stalk until translucent
- Add the garlic and saute for about 30 seconds, until you can smell the garlic
- Add the peas and basil and cook for 1 minute
- Blend or crush mixture until a paste is formed
- salt and pepper to taste
Hummus is one of my favorite dishes. It’s quick, easy, and delicious. Here is my favorite basic hummus recipe that can be made with ingredients that you should have in any well stocked kitchen.
Ingredients
- 1 16oz can of Chick Peas including 1/4 of the juice
- 2 tsps Tahini
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 2 tbls fresh lime juice (or lemon fresh juice)
- 1.5 tsps salt
- 1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
- Paprika
Instructions
- Add all ingredients, except Paprika, to a bowl or blender
- blend well on high until blended to a paste (stopping to scrape down ingredients as needed) or crush to a paste with a fork, mortar, or potatoe masher
- Sprinkle with Paprika and serve
I love black beans and rice. The mixture of flavors and textures is always outstanding. This recipe adds the spicy flavor of Chorizo and the sweetness of Papaya to the mix along with the tenderness and sweetness of shrimp. The result is a delicious and healthy dish that is rich in textures as well as taste.
Ingredients
- 2 tbls + ½ cup chicken stalk
- 1 can black beans
- 1 Jalapeno Pepper
- ¼ cup corn kernels (frozen will work)
- ¼ cup diced papaya
- ½ Onion
- 1 stalk celery
- ½ Red Pepper
- 1/4 cube rough diced Chorizo sausage
- 1/2 pound medium raw shrimp, shelled and deveined
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 tbls fresh cilantro, finely chopped
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp crushed Mexican Oregano
- 2 tsp Ancho Chili Powder (optional)
- 1 tsp dried or 2 tsp fresh Epazote (optional)
- 2 cups white or brown rice
Instructions
- cook the rice per the directions on the bag, follow remaining directions while rice is cooking
- dice onion, celery, red pepper, jalapeno , papaya
- heat 2 tbls of chicken stalk over medium-high heat
- Once chicken stalk is steaming add onion, celery, Chorizo, and peppers and cook for 5 minutes
- finely dice the cilantro, and garlic
- Add the cilantro and garlic and cook for 30 seconds
- Drain and rinse the black beans
- Add the black beans, stir well and cook for 1 minute
- Add the cumin, Mexican oregano, ancho powder, epazote, corn, and ½ cup chicken stalk
- Stir until mixed and high simmer for about 10 minutes until most the liquid has evaporated
- layer shrimp on top of mixture, cover and cook for 6 minutes until shrimp is done
- Remove from heat and stir in the papaya and cilantro
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Let sit for 1 minute
- Stir well and serve immediately over the rice
This is one of my favorite sweet salsas that is great with chips and even better served with seafood. Try it with either a meaty white fish Halibut, Salmon, Trout, Tilapia, or even shrimp or scallops. It works great with almost any type of seafood. For more heat to the mix substitute a Habanero for the Jalapeno.
Ingredients
- 1 Papaya
- 1 Ripe Asian Pear
- 1 Jalapeno Pepper
- ½ Red Pepper
- ½ a medium Red Onion
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 2 tsp honey
- Salt
- Pepper
Instructions
- Dice the Papaya, Asian Pear, Red Pepper, and Red Onion to a small equal size dice.
- Finely dice the Jalapeno or Habanero
- Mix the Papaya, Pear, Red Pepper, Red Onion, and Jalapeno
- Whisk together the juice of the lemon and the honey
- Stir in the lemon/honey mixture to the diced fruits and vegetables
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Let sit for at least 1 hour covered in a refrigerator