11.09.09
Goji Leaves Pear Salad
Goji (wolfberries) leaves is expensive, seasonal vegetable; a delicacy in China. Fresh goji leaves and tender stems has a texture similar to spinach, just slightly chewable and delicious. Goji leaves contain more nutrients than ordinary vegetables. In China, there is a tradition to eat goji leaves to improve one’s eyesight. In Japan, people like to boil their soup togher with goji leaves to make the soup more tonic. The maple syrup dressing reduces the slight bitter taste in goji leaves and enhance the taste of this healthy salad. Enjoy this salad with any grilled or roasted main dishes.
Serves 6
Ingredients
Maple Dressing
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
3 ts champagne vinegar
2 tsp honey
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salad
10 oz. goji leaves
1 pear
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
For Dressing:
Whisk mayonnaise, maple syrup, vinegar and honey in a medium bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in the olive oil until mixture thicken slightly. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
For Salad:
Toss goji leaves, sliced pear and 1/4 cup walnuts in a salad bowl with enough dressing to coat. Sprinkle the remaining walnuts in each serving before serve.
Maple Dressing
Ingredients
Maple Dressing
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
3 ts champagne vinegar
2 tsp honey
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Whisk mayonnaise, maple syrup, vinegar and honey in a medium bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in the olive oil until mixture thicken slightly. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
11.08.09
Organic Pearl Barley with Fennel and Tomatoes Salad
I first learned about this recipe from Gale Gand’s Farro with Tomatoes and Parsley in her book, “Brunch!”. Instead of farro, I use Pearl Barley, which tastes the same as farro. You can also use wheat berry if neither farro nor pearl barley was available. I think heirloom tomatoes intensify the taste of this salad. This is why I like to make this salad when heirloom tomatoes is in season.
Serves 6
Ingredients
1 cup organic Pearl Barley
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup halved grape tomatoes
1/2 cup diced fennel
1/2 cup diced seeded cucumber
2 tps coarsely chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup italian dressing/ lemon herb vinaigrette
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Put pearl barley in a bowl, add 3 cups of water and let soak for at least 30 minutes. for best result, soak the pearl barley overnight.
Drain the pearl barley and place it in a medium saucepan. Add 1 1/2 cups water and the broth, and simmer over medium-low heat for 15 minutes, until the pearl barley is tender when you bite down on it. Drained and let cool.
In a large bowl, toss the cooked pearl barley with the tomatoes, fennel. cucumber parsley and dressing, and salt and pepper to taste. Cover, and chill at least 1 hour before serving.
10.15.09
Almond Meal Shortbeard Thumbprints
INGREDIENTS
1 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup almond meal/ flour
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup fruit preserves/ jam/ jelly
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
3/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon milk
Ready in 1 hr 15 min, Servings: 48
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
In a medium bowl, cream together butter and white sugar until smooth. Mix in 1/2 teaspoon almond extract. Mix in flour until dough comes together. Roll dough into 1 1/2 inch balls, and place on ungreased cookie sheets. Make a small hole in the center of each ball, using your thumb and finger, and fill the hole with preserves.
Bake for 14 to 18 minutes in preheated oven, or until lightly browned. Let cool 1 minute on the cookie sheet.
Sugar Icing (optional):
In a medium bowl, mix together the confectioners’ sugar, 3/4 teaspoon almond extract, and milk until smooth. Drizzle lightly over warm cookies.
10.06.09
Pepper Cheese Sandwiches
The filling for this sandwich taste better with blue stilton cheese. Using dry toasted walnut instead of raw walnut will intensify the scent of the cheese filling.
Spread:
Cream together 1 cup soft butter, 2 teaspoons brown sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg.
Filling:
1 1/4 cups Stilton cheese, finely grated
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons brandy
1/4 cup, more or less, heavy cream
20 slices bread, your choice
Combine all filling ingredients except the cream in a small bowl. Gradually add the cream to bring the mixture to spreading consistency. Spread a thin layer of the butter mixture to the edge of one side of each piece of bread. Top half the slices with the filling. Place the remaining bread slices on top, remove the crusts and cut as desired. Makes 40 tea sandwiches.
Smoked Salmon Sandwiches
Simple recipes sometimes may bring you great suprise. These smoked salmon sandwiches were so tasteful that my guests could not have enough of them in my tea party. I found this recipe online while wondering on what kind of sandwiches to serve for my tea party last weekend. The orignial recipe uses cream cheese instead of mascarpone cheese.
1 cup mascarpone cheese
20 slices bread, your choice
1/2 cup capers
12 ounces thin-sliced smoked salmon
Juice of 1 lemon
Black pepper
Spread the cream cheese on one side of each slice of bread. Dot with capers. Arrange the smoked salmon on 10 of the bread slices and brush with lemon juice. Pepper generously. Top with the other 10 slices, remove the crusts and cut. Makes 40 tea sandwiches or 30 fingers.
Cucumber Sandwiches
Cucumber sandwiches are still the quintessential tea sandwich recipe. No tea party recipe page would be complete without them.
1 large cucumber, peeled and sliced very thinly
Salt
3/4 cup soft butter
2 teaspoons minced fresh garlic
20 slices bread
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
Pepper to taste
Lightly salt the cucumber slices and place them in a colander to drain for 1 to 2 hours. Then combine the butter and garlic and apply to one side of each slice of bread. In a small bowl, stir together the lemon juice, olive oil, and pepper. Add the cucumber slices, coating them well. Arrange the cucumber on 10 of the bread slices, top with the other 10 slices, remove the crusts, and quarter. Serve immediately. Makes 40 tea sandwiches.
source: www.greatpartyrecipes.com/teasandwichrecipes.html
08.18.09
Flaxseed Meal Madelaines
Madelaines is my all time favourite. It is so comforting just with a cup of coffee, latte or tea in the afternoon. We have flaxseed meal muffins, so why not in the classic, fancy Madelaines. Besides having some flaxseed meal to Madelaines added a sense of health to this tasty French cake.
Ingredients
Melted butter for brushing
2 eggs
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour, sifted before measuring, plus extra for dusting
3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled to lukewarm
2 12-mold madelaine pans
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400 degree F (200 degree C). Generously brush the madelaine pan with melted butter, then dust with flour.
In a heatproof bowl or the top pan of double boiler, combine the eggs, honey, sugar and ground nutmeg. Set over a panof simmering water and whisk just until lukewarm.
Transfer the bowl to a working surface. Continue to whisk on the mixture with an electric mixer set on high speed until pale yellow, light, foamy and triple in volume. Beat in the vanilla extract and gradually mix in the flaxseed meal and flour. Slowly fold the melted butter into the batter. Spoon the batter into the prepard molds. Fill each mold almost to the top.
Bake for 12 minutes until golden brown and springy to the touch, rotating the pan 180 degrees halfway through baking. When it is done, use a knife to gently pry out the madelaines.
Makes 24 madelaines, ~113 calories each
08.17.09
Buckwheat Crepe
This delicious buckwheat crepe is a variation inspired by Julia Child’s original Pate A Crepes. It can be used for either sweet or savory flavour crepes.
Ingredients
1 cup cold water
1 cup cold milk
4 eggs
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup unbleached all purpose flour
3/4 cup stone ground buckwheat flour
4 tbsp melted butter
1 nonstick crepe pan or iron skillet, with 6 1/2 to 7 inch bottom diameter
Instructions
Put unbleached all purpose flour, buckwheat flour, salt and eggs in a bowl. While beating up the ingredients with a whisk, add in the melted butter until the mixture becomes a thick batter. Gradually add in the milk and cold water, continue to whisk on the batter until the mixture is smooth and even. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. The batter should be very light and runny, enough to coat the spatula.
Grease the crepe pan lightly with oil. After the crepe pan heated up, ladled 1/4 cup of the batter into the middle of the pan. Quickly tilt the pan in all directions to run the batter all over the bottom of the pan in a thin film. Return the pan to the heat for 1 minute. Lift its edges with a spatula and turn when it is nicely light browned. Brown lightly for the other side, about 30 seconds. Slide the crept on a rack when it is done. Grease the pan again for the next crepe.
Fill the crepe with fresh fruits, Nutella, chocolate sauce or fruit preserves if sweet crepe is desired. Use left overs or fresh vegetables, chicken /turkey meat, ham /steak or smoked salmon as filling choices for savory crepe
Make 16~20 6 1/2 to 7 inch crepes, ~66 calories each
08.16.09
Tiramisu “Follow Me”
Serve 8
Ingredients
- 4 large eggs, with yolks and whites separated
- 4 tbsp sugar
- 8 oz. Mascarpone cheese
- 20 – 24 Ladyfingers (Savoiardi)
- 2 cups Espresso coffee
- 2 tbsp of hard liqueur(Cognac, Brandy or Grand Marnier)
- 1/4 cup COCOA power
- 2 tsp ground coffee
1 Serving Dish / plastic container (size approx. 9 x5 x3)
Instruction
Combine 3 egg yolks, sugar, and liqueur into the large mixing bowl. Beat until sugar dissolves and the egg yolks become pale yellow. Add Mascarpone and beat 3 to 5 minutes until consistency is smooth . In another bowl, combine 4 egg whites and a pinch of sugar. Beat until mixture forms stiff peaks. Gently fold the egg white into Mascarpone mixture
Pour the expresso coffee into flat dish and let cool. Dip one side of each Lady Finger, and layer on bottom of serving dish. Spread 1/2 of Mascarpone mixture and sprinkle with cocoa, then with 1 teaspoon of ground coffee. Continue layering the ladyfingers and finish with a Mascarpone layer. Sprinkle with the remaining cocoa and ground coffee. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving
