So Fresh and So Clean Clean!

Let's keep trying to fool ourselves that it's not winter. Another way to do that is to have a light, summer salad.

Romaine, Avocado, and Corn Salad

From Marthastewart.com

1/2 head romaine lettuce, cut into 1/2-inch strips
2 cups fresh corn kernels
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 avocado, peeled, pitted, and cubed
1 to 2 Tbs fresh lime juice
1/4 tsp chili powder
Coarse salt and ground pepper

• In a bowl combine the romaine, corn, and cherry tomatoes.
• Add 3/4 cup of avocado
• Place the remaining avocado in a blender along with 1/3 cup water, lime juice, and chili powder
• Season with salt and pepper
• Pour dressing over the salad; toss gently

If you want to be really classy, you'll wait to make this salad until the spring or summer (when corn is in season), but if you're like me you will just use frozen. Oh Snap!

Shocking!

It seems to be increasingly popular to have food and wine pairings on your menu. I've tried these pairings before and they never really worked for me. So, I tend to ignore the advise and just order whatever I would normally want.

Well, Food & Wine magazine's February issue has 50 recipes they pair with wine, beer, and cocktails. Even without the pairings, many of the recipes sound great, so I thought I would try the pairings with it.
Some Shocking news; the food and beer pairing was amazing! I really felt the beer enhanced the flavor of the dish. F&D magazine really knows what they are talking about :-)

What I chose to make was a pork tenderloin and a salad (the salad had no alcoholic pairings).

Pork Tenderloin Smothered in Onion and Mustard

Pairing suggestions:

Wine: Gewürztraminer

Cocktail: Shandy 

Beer: German Ale - Hofbrauhaus original

2 12oz pork tenderloins, cut into 2" lengths and pounded 1" thick

Salt and freshly ground pepper

1 tsp all-purpose flour, plus a bit extra

2 Tbs unsalted butter

2 Tbs extra virgin olive oil

1 large onion, very thinly sliced

1 Tbs grainy mustard

1 cup low-sodium chicken broth

1 Tbs fresh, chopped dill

Buttered noodles for serving

• Season the pork with salt and pepper and dust with flour.
• In a medium, deep skillet, melt the butter in the olive oil.
• Add the pork and cook over high heat, turning once, until lightly browned, about 3 minutes.
• Transfer the pork to a plate.
• Add the onion to the skillet, cover and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes.
• Stir in the mustard and the 1 teaspoon of flour and cook for 1 minute.
• Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil.
• Nestle the pork in the onion sauce.
• Cover and simmer over moderate heat until the pork is cooked through, about 8 minutes.
• Transfer the pork to plates.
• Stir the chopped dill into the sauce and spoon over the pork.
• Serve with buttered noodles. - Suggestion of course. I usually just have it alone or with a side of cooked carrots.

Serve over buttered noodles.

Bibb-and-Radish Salad with Buttermilk Dressing
3 large heads of bibb lettuce, leaves torn (serving for 8 people)
8 radishes, thinly sliced
1/3 cup snipped chives
2 Tbs mayonnaise
1/3 cup buttermilk
2 Tbs red wine vinegar
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and fresh ground pepper

• In a large bowl, toss the lettuce with the radishes and chives
• In a small bowl, whisk the mayonnaise with the buttermilk and vinegar
• Gradually whisk in the olive oil
• Season with salt and pepper to taste
• Just before serving, drizzle dressing over salad and toss well

Surprisingly, both of these dishes take about the same time to make (about 30 min each). So I made the salad and my husband made the pork and we were done around the same time.

One tip my husband taught me was how to preserve the dill and the chives.

• Take the bunch and and hold it together tightly by the stems.
• Put it in a brown paper lunch bag, upside down (stems facing up). Keep a hold of the bunch.
• With your other hand, grab the paper bag around the stems and rubber band them together.
• Take a knife and gently poke holes around the bottom of the bag.
• Store in the refrigerator.

Oregon

One of the gifts we received for our wedding was a cookbook from Oregon...from my husband's family....who is from Oregon. When I saw the book, I wasn't too excited because I didn't think too many interesting foods would come from Oregon. However, I still enjoyed getting the book, because the thought was really sweet and they wrote a note inside the book for us.

Well, one night we were trying to think of something to make and decided to go to the cookbooks. When I started to go through the Oregon cookbook, I was amazed! Everything inside of it looked delicious and I wanted to try all the recipes.

Below are the few that we have tried so far. I really recommend getting this book! (You can find it on Amazon)

From Raindrops to Roses: A collection of Oregon style celebrations

Blossom Festival Asparagus with Dijon Tarragon Vinaigrette

Asparagus

• Steam 2 pounds of fresh asparagus
• Remove from steamer and put in an ice bath

Dressing

3 TBS of boiling water
1/4 cup of Dijon mustard
1/3 cup of olive oil
2 TBS rice vinegar
2 TBS fresh, minced tarragon

• Slowly whisk the water into the mustard
• Slowly whisk in the olive oil until it forms a thick creamy sauce
• Slowly add vinegar until tart
• Season with S/P and tarragon
• Place chilled asparagus on platter and drizzle vinaigrette lightly over the top

Grilled Scallop Salad
This recipe also calls for asparagus, but I'm removing it from the recipe because I made the above asparagus recipe instead.

Scallops and Mushrooms

2 TBS olive oil
1 TSP soy sauce
24 sea scallops
2 cups fresh mushrooms sliced

• In a large zip bag, combine oil and soy sauce and then add scallops
• Seal bag and coat scallops - let stand for 10 min
• Arrange mushrooms on a 9" square piece of heavy duty foil coated with cooking spray
• Grill mushrooms on foil uncovered over medium heat for 10-15 min or until tender - We used the George Foreman
• Grill scallops, uncovered, over medium heat for 7-8 min on each side or until scallops are firm and opaque - We used the George Foreman

Salad

2 cups of Boston lettuce
1/4 cup cooked and crumbled bacon
1 cup toasted and chopped walnuts
2 TBS Romano cheese
Balsamic vinaigrette dressing

• Arrange lettuce on serving plates, top with scallops, mushrooms, bacon, walnuts and cheese
• Drizzle with dressing

Oregon Blackberry Vodka Lemonade
This is a very good drink. However, I don't feel it is good enough to justify the amount of work involved. A regular boxed lemonade punch and vodka is just as good for me!

6 lemons
3/4 cup chilled vodka
2 cups water
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup fresh blackberries
2 cups ice

• Remove zest from 4 lemons and squeeze enough juice from them and the remaining 2 lemons to measure 1 cup
• In a saucepan, boil 1 cup water with sugar - stir until dissolved
• Add zest, lemon juice, and another cup of water to sugar mixture - allow to cool
• In a food processor, puree blackberries and stir into lemonade.
• Pour mixture through a sieve into a pitcher.
• Add vodka and chill for 2 hours to 2 days