This week, we hit the first heat wave of the summer. Temperatures rose to about 42°C with the humidex. As sticky and icky as the weather was, I'd still choose it over the wet and rainy summer we had last year for the single reason that you can actually spend time outdoors. This week, Tuesday dinner was moved to Wednesday so this is a bit of a late post. Tonight's recipes are great for an outdoor dinner party or picnic.
Jenna's Watermelon Salad
We'll start with the refreshing salads, the first being Jenna's watermelon salad. This salad goes well for a weather like today because you can use half of the watermelon for the salad and the other half to snack on while waiting for dinner.
1/2 of a watermelon, diced 1 cucumber, diced
120 g feta cheese, diced
1/2 cup of fresh mint leaves, chopped
1/2 cup of sunflower seeds
1. Mix all ingredients together, put in the fridge to cool.
2. Snack on the other half of the watermelon!
Green Salad with Beets, Peas, Avocado and Feta Cheese
This salad is from Elisha, whose introduced me to the different ways you can use avocado in a salad.
1 head of lettuce, chopped 4 beets, roasted (save the leaves as this will be used for one of the flatbread recipe below)
4 green onions, roasted
120 g feta cheese, chopped
1 avocado, chopped
1/2 cup of fresh peas (can also be frozen but not canned as those are too soft)
olive oil and balsamic vinegar
pinch of salt
1. Start grill or set oven at 350°C. To roast the beets, drizzle them with olive oil then wrap in foil. Put them on the grill or in the oven for 20 min, or until they are soft. Peel and dice once they are soft.
2. To grill the green onions, drizzle them with olive oil and set on the stove or grill for 5 minutes, make sure not to burn them.
3. In a salad bowl, mix thee chopped lettuce with the grilled beets, green onions, feta cheese, avocado and peas.
4. On a separate bowl, mix equal amounts of olive oil and balsamic vinegar - amount depends on how much dressing you want in your salad. Drizzle the salad dressing on the salad, add a pinch of salt.
1 whole grain pizza dough - you can make your own or buy one from the grocery or local baker such as Papa Ceo's in Spadina and Harbord.
6 tomatoes, diced
1 ball of mozzarella cheese, sliced
1 head of garlic, chopped
1/2 cup of chopped fresh basil olive oil
2. Use a long baking sheet as a work area, lightly dust with flour and flatten the pizza dough into a flatbread (see photo above for size).
3. Brush olive oil on the bread.
4. Sprinkle the diced tomatoes and chopped garlic on the flatbread.
5. Add a layer of sliced mozzarella.
6. Add a layer of the chopped basil.
7. If you are a meat lover, you can add prosciutto, ham or any choice of meat on the flatbread.
8. Bake in the oven or put on the grill for 20-30 minutes. Check intermittently and take out when edges start to brown. Do not overcook.
Flatbread 2: Sweet Potato and Vodka Sauce
1 whole grain pizza dough
2 sweet potato, baked
1/2 cup of peas
1 small onion, sliced
1 pint of cherry tomatoes, cut in half
1/2 cup of chopped fresh basil
4 beets worth of beet greens, chopped
balsamic vinegar
pinch of salt
1. Set oven to 400°C or warm up the grill and bake the sweet potato until soft. About 20 minutes. When done, peel and chop the sweet potato into cubes.
2. Use a long baking sheet as a work area, lightly dust with flour and flatten the pizza dough into a flatbread.
3. Use all of the vodka sauce and spread evenly on the flatbread.
4. From the beets used in the salad above, chop their green leaves and add to the flatbread.
5. Add a layer of the cherry tomatoes, cubed sweet potatoes and peas.
6. Add a layer of basil topped with the sliced onion.
7. Lightly drizzle with balsamic vinegar then add a pinch of salt.
8. Put in oven or grill for 20-30 minutes or until the sides start to brown.
Asparagus Egg Nest
This recipe is good for two cooked servings so you can cut the ingredients to half if you want to serve a smaller quantity. It's also a good recipe for breakfast.
1 bunch of asparagus, sliced thinly or shaved
6 eggs
1 1/2 cup of vegetable stock
1. Set the stove at medium high.
2. Thinly slice or shave 1 bunch of asparagus (15-20 stalks)
3. Put half the slices of asparagus on a pan on top of the heated stove, spread them out evenly. Add 3/4 cup of vegetable stock on the pan and let it simmer.
4. Poach 3 eggs on the pan until stock has evaporated.
5. Repeat step 3 and 4 for the rest of the ingredients or cook them at the same time.
Dessert
Recipe to come!
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