Voted most delicious & most easy to prepare salad worldwide!
2 cups mini or Ciliegine or cherry size fresh mozzarella balls
3 cups grape tomatoes
2 Tablespoons julienne strips of fresh basil or fresh rosemary finely chopped
2 Tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt to taste
1 Tablespoon white wine vinegar, optional to taste
This is so easy to put together for breakfast, lunch, dinner or snacks! In a serving platter or bowl place mozzarella and tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt, olive oil and vinegar. Toss. Layer basil strips on top and voila! This is a favorite at breakfast brunches! It is also the national salad of Italy, representing the three colors of their flag!
Mix in a pot with a whisk using the following proportion: 1 white egg + 1 spoon of sugar + 1 spoon of mascarpone till the mixture becomes uniform and creamy (it’ll take 10-15 minutes). Now wet the Savoiardi cookies in the coffee (it must me cold), better if only from one side for a couple of second (otherwise it’d become too wet). Start to make a layer of wet cookies followed by a layer of cream you’ve already prepared. After 2-3 layers (it depends from the depth of pot you’re using), finish with a last layer of cream and put on the top some ground chocolate (you can even put the chocolate on the top of each layer, as you want). Let tiramisú rest in the fridge for half day, serve cold.
This recipe is from Marco, our friend from Italy. His mother is a chef in Milan. Marco orchestrated an authentic Italian dinner at our home for friends.
This easy to eat finger food is full of protein, iron, calcium and many other nutrients. It has a mild flavor and can be cut into many different shapes to please kids and adults. Cut them into 1 inch squares for a party snack or 2-3 inches as a side or main dish for breakfast, lunch or dinner.
I discovered this recipe while working at Strongbow’s Turkey Inn while I was studying nutrition at Valparaiso University in Indiana. We served it as a 1 bite appetizer at parties and catered events.
Ingredients and Directions
1. Set oven to 350 degrees
2. In a 9×13 inch pan melt 3 tablespoons butter
3. Whisk together in a bowl:
4 -5 eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
4. Combine with your hands in a 2nd bowl:
2-10 to 14 oz. packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed. (You can squeeze out some of the water which will give you a denser spinach cheese square. If you don’t squeeze the water out your spinach cheese square will be lighter and moister.)
3/4 to 1 lb. Monterey Jack, brick or white cheddar cheese, shredded
5. In a saute pan: this step is optional!!!!! I usually don’t add the onion and garlic. It wasn’t in the original recipe. You can also add other spices and flavors if you like
Melt 1 Tbsp butter
Saute 1 small minced onion and/or 2 cloves minced garlic
Add this to the cheese mixture
6. Combine the egg mixture with the cheese mixture.
7. Pour the batter into the baking pan and spread evenly.
8. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-35 minutes or until edges just start to brown.
9. Cool 10-20 minutes or until spinach feels firm and is cool enough to handle. Cut into squares. Remove them from the pan with a stiff metal spatula while warm so they don’t stick to the bottom of the pan.
Makes 24 – 2 inch squares
Spinach Cheese Squares served with broccolini and cherry tomatoes
Batter mixed and ready for baking pan
Melt butter in a 9×13 inch baking pan in the oven
Batter spread into pan ready to bake
Lightly browned edges on the baked Spinach Cheese Squares
Roasted Red Pepper Sauce is a very forgiving thing to make. If you want a stronger pepper flavor then add less tomatoes. The proportions do not have to be exact. I like a lot of onion and garlic. The tomatoes can be a sauce or crushed or whole. If you have a favorite variety of tomatoes use those.
Blend it all really well with a stick blender or food processor. The sauce should be very smooth. If you want a more chunky sauce I’d add some extra chopped roasted peppers at the end after the bulk of the sauce has been puréed
Another idea is to use this sauce as a soup! You can thin it out a bit with some broth if it’s too thick. I love it!!
Roasted Red Pepper Soup!
Ingredients
2-4 Tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
5 12-oz jars DeLallo Grilled Piquillo Peppers in water, not drained or 2-4 cups roasted red peppers you make or any brand you purchase
1/2 or 1 29-oz. can tomato puree or other canned tomato
Directions
Sauté onion in olive oil over medium heat until translucent but not browned
Add garlic and quickly saute, but do not brown.
Add all the roasted and peeled red peppers or the peppers and liquid of the jars of the peppers and the can of tomato and combine.
Puree with an immersion blender or a food processor.
Return to stove top and simmer very low for 10 minutes. May burn easily.
Voila! Serve over pasta or as a sauce with crusty bread sandwiches such as meatball sandwiches. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese
To use as a soup serve it hot and thin it out with a little broth if needed. Sprinkle with Parmesan and serve with crusty bread
Mince together 1st 3 ingredients in a food processor or emersion blender. I prefer it chunky and do not process this very much. Slowly add olive oil. If you prefer a thicker spread, omit or use less of the oil. When making a light appetizer, a thinner Olivada will spread like butter. A chunkier Olivada with less oil can be piled on like a bruschetta and even served as lunch with a salad. My neice Irina ate this for lunch through her childhood! Spread on French bread, hearty whole grain crusty bread or crackers.
Nutrition Notes: Olives are a great source of monounsaturated fats which are also found in nuts, olive and canola oils and avocados. Monounsaturated fats improve blood cholesterol levels, which can decrease your risk of heart disease, and they may help with keeping blood sugar levels in check (potentially helpful for appetite control and reducing the risk for diabetes). A few studies have looked at monounsaturated fats as being beneficial for specifically reducing belly fat, but firm findings are lacking. To take it a step further, replace saturated fats with whole plant food sources of fat instead of refined plant oils which are stripped of their fiber, vitamins, minerals & phytochemical compounds. Whole plant foods rich in mono and poly unsaturated fats are olives, avocado, nuts, & seeds from plants like sunflowers, olives, soybean & safflower.
The olives are high in salt, so balance this with less salty foods thru the day.
Joan prepared this for her 40th birthday party. She is from California and is of Mexican ancestry.
In a large frying pan heat:
2 Tbsp olive oil
Add:
1 small – medium onion, chopped, and saute
Add and saute quickly:
1 cloved minced garlic
Add & simmer 15 minutes
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp oregano
1-2 Tablespoon chili powder
salt and pepper
you can add more spice as desired
1-28 oz. can tomato sauce
1 cup broth
Depending on the size of the tortillas, 6-10 flour tortillas
Spoon about 1 cup sauce into bottom of a 9 x 13 inch baking pan
Dip 1 tortilla in the sauce and invert it and dip again
Place tortilla in baking pan.
Spoon about ¼ cup refried beans/mashed kidney beans into 1 end of the tortilla
Spoon 1/3 cup Mexican cheese mix over beans.
Roll tortilla up from the filling end and place seam side down in baking dish.
Repeat with remaining ingredients.
Top tortillas with remaining sauce
Sprinkle with remaining cheese
Bake at 350 degrees until heated through and bubbly.
Everyone always loves this cookie! It is a recipe adapted from Baking With Julia by Gale Gand.
Ingredients
4 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 pound butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 egg yolks
13 Oz jar Bonne Maman raspberry or strawberry preserves. No other store brands are good. Home made is best
1 cup confectionery sugar, about
Directions
1. In a medium bowl whisk together:
4 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
2. In a stand mixer bowl beat:
1 lb. unsalted butter
3. Add and beat until fluffy:
2 cups sugar
4 egg yolks
4. Add flour mixture to butter mixture and blend until just combined. Do not over beat.
5. Spread out 2 large pieces of plastic wrap on the counter.
6. Divide the dough in half and place a half on each piece of plastic.
7. Form into a roundish size and wrap each piece.
8. Freeze until solid…………several hours or overnight
9. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. If using a dark baking pan try 325 degrees so it doesn’t brown too fast
10. Using the grating attachment of a Kitchen Aid Mixer or the large holes of a box grater, grate 1 piece of dough into a 9 x 13 inch baking pan. Lightly pat the dough evenly and gently, but don’t press down too firmly. A simple aluminum pan is my favorite
Grating Half the Dough into the Baking Pan
11. Spread 13 oz. or so of homemade or Bonne Maman Strawberry or Raspberry Preserves on top of the grated dough.
12. Grate the other piece of dough evenly over the jam and pat gently and evenly.
Grating the Dough Over the Strawberry Preserves
13. Bake 40-60 minutes or until just turning a light golden color. Better to under-bake than over bake! The dark colored baking pans bake more quickly
14. As soon as it is removed from the oven, sift the top of the shortbread generously with confectioner’s sugar. Cool 10 minutes and cut into squares with a sharp paring knife
nina in the kitchen 