The Purloined Recipe

From www.101cookbooks.com

These little open-faced tartines took less than ten minutes to pull together, and ended up being the epitome of spring.

Serves 2-4

Prep time: 5 min – Cook time: 5 min

4 toasted slabs of whole grain bread, rubbed with olive oil and a bit of garlic

1/2 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 lb of asparagus stalks, trimmed roughly the length of your bread

1 clove garlic, thinly sliced

1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds

1 avocado, pitted and smashed

a couple handfuls of arugula, tossed in a bit of olive oil

a handful of toasted pepitas, or almonds, or sunflower seeds

A few minutes before you want to eat heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When hot add the asparagus, and a pinch of salt and cook for about thirty seconds. Add the garlic and caraway, and cook another thirty seconds, or until the spears are a vibrant green. Remove from heat, and assemble the tartines.

Give each piece of bread a generous slather of mashed avocado. Top that with a bit of arugula, a few asparagus spears, and a generous sprinkling of pepitas or seeds.

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appetizers, cilantro, okra, peppers

from Kate & Mike O’Connor-Masse, Chino Valley Farms

2 pints (1 ½ lbs) Romas, diced
1/3 cup chopped sweet red onion
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
Salt & pepper, to your taste
Shredded mozzarella cheese (optional)

Sliced baguette or Italian bread, lightly toasted.

Combine Romas, onion, garlic, basil, oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.

Spoon tomato mixture onto toasted bread slices, or over mozzarella, if used. Mozzarella is optional, but it does prevent the topping from soaking the bread. Serve immediately.

appetizers, basil, garlic, onions, Recipes By Ingredient, The Recipes, tomatoes

There are many ways to stuff a blossom: 1) cream cheese, mixed with chopped chives, salt and pepper, 2) sautéed sweet corn, chopped green chiles, chopped onion with an egg to hold it together, 3) crumbled and cooked Italian sausage, chopped sweet pepper, a little parmesan cheese and tomato sauce. You get the idea—almost anything goes. All stuffed blossoms can be dipped in a light batter (recipe follows) and fried until golden or baked in an oiled pan at 325o until cooked throughout. For a simpler variation, omit the cheese stuffing and fry the blossoms plain. For a more elegant variation, servedrizzled with a light, well seasoned tomato sauce.

Serves 6-8

1 cup flour
1 1/2 cups (12 ounce can) beer
salt to taste
30-40 squash blossoms
1/2 pound of any good quality cheese
safflower, sunflower or peanut oil

Beat together flour, beer, and salt. Let sit at least 3 hours. Cut cheese into small pieces and stuff each blossom. Heat 1/4-1/2 inch oil in wide skillet. Dip blossoms in batter, then fry in oil until golden brown.

appetizers, Recipes By Ingredient, side dishes, squash blossoms, The Recipes

from Danielle Adams

Filling:

1/2 small container of Ricotta Cheese
1/2 Medium Tomato – Chopped
Handful of Basil – Chopped
Little Bit of Diced Onion
Dash of Garlic Powder
Salt and Pepper to Taste

Batter:

Trader Joe’s or Other Buttermilk Baking Mix
1 Egg
1/2 Cup Water
Enough Veggie Oil to fill about 1/2 of a Medium Sized Skillet/Pan

Make the batter and allow to sit for a bit. Combine all ingredients for the filling.

Fill the Squash Blossoms with the filling, make sure to close the tops of the blossoms after by either pressing them down in to the filling a bit or gently twisting them a bit. Preheat your pan on med-Hi heat.

Dip the blossoms in to the batter and make sure your pan is hot enough. Gently place the blossoms into the pan and cook them until golden brown on each side. I usually turn down the heat to medium at this point.- they cook very rapidly and you should only need to turn them once. I add a little extra salt, pepper and red chili pepper flakes on them after frying too!

P.S. I am a total throw it together and see how it turns out cook… so please let me know if you have any questions about how I made these!!!!

appetizers, basil, garlic, onions, Recipes By Ingredient, side dishes, squash blossoms, The Recipes, tomatoes

from Molly Beverly

Soft cheese layered with green herb and garlic paste. Simple to prepare; allow extra time for complete chilling. Serves 18 as an appetizer.

8 ounces Neufchâtel cheese (a lower fat cream cheese)
1 cup ricotta cheese

Pesto:

1 1/2 cups fresh large basil leaves
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
1/4 cup pine nuts (I substitute walnuts)
2-3 small cloves garlic
Salt to taste

Garnish:

pine nuts, strips of red pepper and/or black olives

Combine Nuefchâtel and ricotta cheese and chill for 3 hours or more.
Meanwhile make the pesto. Place basil leaves in a colander. Cover with boiling water for 5 seconds, then drain completely and pat dry. Place in blender with olive oil, cheese, pine nuts, garlic and just enough water to make it run smoothly.

Blend until very smooth and thick. Add salt to taste. Chill.

To assemble spread half the cheese mixture in a 9X5-inch loaf pan. Brush with olive oil and cover with half of the pesto. Sprinkle with pine nuts. Cover this with the rest of the cheese. Brush with olive oil and layer the rest of the pesto. Sprinkle with pine nuts and decorate with strips of red pepper and black olives.

Refrigerate 12-24 hours before serving. Serve with slices of good French bread and raw vegetables.

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from Molly Beverly

Makes 2 cups.

Adapted from Mediterranean Cooking by Paula Wolfert (a great cookbook with a multitude of fantastic eggplant dishes.) Fire roasting the eggplant infuses it with a wonderful smoky flavor. If you have your barbeque going, definitely roast an eggplant for this dip. If not, use the oven-stove top method.

Greek Version:

1 medium eggplant, about 1 pound
2-3 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 clove garlic, crushed
salt
1/3 cup olive oil

Roast the eggplant. This works best on a gas or charcoal grill, outside, so your house does not heat up. Alternatively use a gas burner on your stove or roast in the oven on highest heat. Cook eggplant, turning occasionally until blackened and blistered and completely soft. Remove stems. Place roasted eggplant in blender or food processor (or finely chop). Add remaining ingredients and blend. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Served chilled with sesame crackers or wedges of pita bread.

Syrian version:

Add 1/2 cup plain yogurt.

Lebanese version (Baba Ghanoush):

Add 2 Tablespoons tahini, sesame seed paste. (Available at health food stores.)

appetizers, dips, eggplant, entrees, garlic, Recipes By Ingredient, side dishes, soups, The Recipes

1/2 teaspoon cumin
4 cups plain yogurt
2-3 medium cucumber
Salt to taste
Mint leaves for garnish

In a small heavy skillet toast the cumin seed, stirring constantly, until aromatic.
Peel seed and grate cucumber. Add to yogurt. Add salt. Serve garnished with
toasted seeds and mint leaves.

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(recipe from the book Local Flavors used with permission of the author, Deborah Madison)

Serves 6 as an appetizer.

I’ve been making Sun Gold tomato soups ever since sipping one that was astonishing at Casablanca restaurant in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The little yellow-orange tomatoes are so sweet that you really have to have the vinegar.

(At the restaurant they used a full-bodied Spanish Chardonnay vinegar.)

You needn’t serve more than a taste of this sweet-tart soup. It makes a stimulating,
eye-opening start to a summer meat on a hot day.

2 pints Sun Gold cherry tomatoes
2 shallots, finely diced
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons Spanish Chardonnay vinegar or champagne vinegar, plus a few
drops sherry vinegar
2 teaspoons finely diced and seeded Serrano chile, optional
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 firm avocado, finely diced
1 tablespoon chopped basil or cilantro

1. Pluck the stems off the tomatoes and rinse them. Add them to a heavy
   saucepan with a tight-fitting lid with half the shallots, ½ teaspoon salt, and 1 cup
   water. Cook over medium-high heat, keeping one ear inclined to the pot. Soon
   you’ll hear the tomatoes popping. Take a peek after a few minutes to make sure
   there’s sufficient moisture in the pan you don’t want the tomatoes to scorch. If the
   skins are slow to pop, add a few tablespoons water. Once they release their
   juices, lower the heat and cook, covered, for 25 minutes.
2. Run the tomatoes through a food mill. You’ll have about 2 cups. Chill well, then taste for salt.
3. Just before serving, combine the remaining shallots in a bowl with the vinegar, chile if using, oil, avocado, and herbs. Season with a pinch or two of salt and some pepper. Spoon the soup into small cups, divide the garnish among them,
   and serve.

appetizers, basil, chiles, cilantro, onions, soups, tomatoes

Serves 8

20 cherry tomatoes, cut in half
1 medium Walla Walla Sweet Onion, cut into thin slices
15 Kalamata olives, pitted and finely chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon capers, drained
½ cup olive oil
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic
Freshly ground black pepper
8 slices Italian country bread, about ½ inch thick and 4 inches wide
4 ounces mascarpone cheese

1. Mix together tomatoes, onions, olives, basil, capers in a small bowl. Whisk
   together the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic, and black pepper. Pour over the
   tomato-onion mixture, and toss. Set aside.
2. Brush the bread with olive oil and grill slices directly over medium heat, turning once, until toasted, 2 to 3 minutes total. Divide the mascarpone evenly among bread slices, spreading it with a knife. Spoon the tomato onion mixture over the mascarpone cheese, dividing evenly and serve at room temperature.

appetizers, basil, garlic, onions, Recipes By Ingredient, The Recipes, tomatoes