Salad Nicoise

This is one of my favorite meals anytime of year, but especially in the summer when fresh greens are so plentiful.  It requires some prep, but is easy to put together once that is done.

Earlier in the day, I prepared four of the ingredients.  I hardboiled and shelled two eggs.  I boiled a handful of baby potatoes and cooled in the fridge.  I shocked two handfuls of green beans.  This involved cooking the beans in boiling water for 4-5 minutes and then draining and shocking them in an ice water bath, which stopped the cooking, and the beans are left al dente.  I cooked the tuna steaks medium and set aside to cool before slicing them.

When I ready to assemble the salad, here is what I put together - salad greens, beans, halved baby potatoes, and kalamata olives dressed in a simple vinaigrette. I plated the salad and then on top of each laid the sliced hardboiled egg, anchovy fillets, and the sliced tuna steak.  It was a beautiful sight to behold and so delicious.

A few notes - I ordered this a restaurant recently and the waiter seemed apologetic about the anchovies.  In fact, they only added them when requested.  I thought that was very sad.  Most people think anchovies are fishy when really their defining characteristic is a wonderful saltiness.  Also when I am in a hurry, I use canned tuna, drained and flaked.  Sliced cherry tomatoes are also a traditional part of the meal but neither one of us likes them.  I thought that I could have added some fresh salsa instead for something a little different but we were out.

Shrimp and avocado salad + cool ways to use limeade

Salads in the summer are wonderful because they involve no cooking and can be constructed using really fresh ingredients.  This was easy to throw together  with red leaf lettuce (from our garden), medium sized shrimp (drefrosted), chunks of avocado, a sliced hardboiled egg, some shredded carrot, and a handful of roasted pepitas.  I like to toss the salad with Trader Joe's Cilantro dressing and chill right before serving.  Good serving of protein too!

One tip I learned from my sister-in-law Liz:  boil a half dozen eggs at once, then peel and store in the fridge.  It really makes them so much easier to use.

It has been in the nineties here for over a week.  Here are the most refreshing drinks I often turn to, using limeade (lemonade works just as well) as a base.

Limeade with a splash of tequila tastes remarkably like a margarita.

A radler is a German drink involving half lager, half limeade. 

In order to make a rock shandy, take a glass with half seltzer water, half limeade, and add a few dashes of bitters.

Peach and cherry breakfast cobbler

July 1, 2013

I eat more fruit in the summer than any other time of year.  I love berries, melons, and stone fruits.  This morning, I woke up craving a cobbler.  This took about five minutes to make one serving.

I washed and sliced one southern peach and stirred into a pretty blue bowl a handful of  pre-pitted cherries that came from Russ' brother Fred's tree.  I added some cinnamon and a little honey before microwaving the bowl for two and half minutes.  If I had it, I would also have added cardamom which brings out the peach flavor.   I sprinkled some muesli which I had made earlier (oats, bran flakes, grapenuts, walnuts, flax seed, and dried cranberries) and topped with two spoonfuls of nonfat plain Greek yogurt.

It was like eating dessert first thing in the morning.  The tangyness of  the yogurt worked well with the sweetness of the fruit.  Eating the fruit warm was a comforting way to start the day.