Pear Palooza! 30+ Sweet and Savory Pear Recipes

     Pears were never one of my favorite fruits.  I thought they were boring and didn't have much flavor.  Turns out that's because I only ever had the plain green pears.  Years later I began eating different variety of pears and started to enjoy them more then ever.  I finally made a pear butter that was out of this world and I've been hooked on pears ever since.

     Since pears are usually considered a fall to winter fruit, I thought this would be the perfect time to share some sweet and savory pear recipes from some seriously talented food bloggers!

Sweet Pear Recipes:

1.  Pear Almond Graham Cracker Tart from Vintage Kitchen Notes

2.  Pear and Ginger Bites 
3.  Salted Caramel Pears from 52 Kitchen Adventures 
4.  Mini Pear Walnut Crisps with Blood Orange Caramel Sauce from Chocolate Moosey
5.  Honey Glazed Baked Korean Pears in Wonton Crisps from Cooking on the Weekends
6.  Spiced Pear Bread Pudding from Snappy Gourmet 
7.  Baked Pear Vanilla French Toast from Taste and Tell
8.  Pear Bourbon Clafoutis from Eat the Love 

9.  Apple Pear Crumble from Because I Like Chocolate 

10.  Slow Cooker Spiced Pear Butter from Frugal Foodie Mama 
11.  Oatmeal Cookie Pear Bars
12.  Pear and Almond Tart from Karen's Kitchen Stories
13.  Pear and Cranberry Cornmeal Cake from Ricki Heller
14.  Pear Butter
15. Vanilla Roasted Pears from An Edible Mosaic
16. Pear, Apple, and Pistachio Crumble from Cravings of a Lunatic
17.  Port Wine Mascarpone Pear Tart from
18.  Spiced Pear Ginger Scones
19.  Brown Butter Pear Cake from Crumb 
20. Southern Comfort Pear Almond Frangipane Pie from Eat the Love
21. Autumn Poached Pears from The Little Ferraro Kitchen
22. Pear Walnut Crisp from The Kitchen is My Playground
23. Winter Fruit Crisp from Keep It Sweet Desserts
24. Pear Pecan Upside Down Cake from Vintage Kitchen Notes
25. Red Wine Poached Pear Rustic Tart from Eat the Love

Savory Pear Recipes: 

26.  Pear Almond Arugula Salad with Honey Mustard Vinaigrette from Vintage Kitchen Notes

27. Asian-Style Slaw with Korean Pears from Cooking on the Weekends

28.  Caramelized Onion Cabrales Pear Crisp from Cooking on the Weekends

29.  Habanero Jack Grilled Cheese with Pear & Prosciutto from Cooking with Books

30.  Pomegranate, Pear, and Gorgonzola Salad from What Jew Wanna Eat

31.  Grilled Rib Eye Steak Marinated in Asian Spices and Korean Pears from Cooking on the Weekends 

32.  Fennel & Pear Crostini from The Hungry Goddess

33. Caramelized Onion, Fresh Pear, Goat Cheese, and Sausage Pizza from Farm Fresh Feasts

 

     Pears were never one of my favorite fruits.  I thought they were boring and didn't have much flavor.  Turns out that's because I only ever had the plain green pears.  Years later I began eating different variety of pears and started to enjoy them more then ever.  I finally made a pear butter that was out of this world and I've been hooked on pears ever since.

     Since pears are usually considered a fall to winter fruit, I thought this would be the perfect time to share some sweet and savory pear recipes from some seriously talented food bloggers!

Sweet Pear Recipes:

1.  Pear Almond Graham Cracker Tart from Vintage Kitchen Notes

2.  Pear and Ginger Bites 
3.  Salted Caramel Pears from 52 Kitchen Adventures 
4.  Mini Pear Walnut Crisps with Blood Orange Caramel Sauce from Chocolate Moosey
5.  Honey Glazed Baked Korean Pears in Wonton Crisps from Cooking on the Weekends
6.  Spiced Pear Bread Pudding from Snappy Gourmet 
7.  Baked Pear Vanilla French Toast from Taste and Tell
8.  Pear Bourbon Clafoutis from Eat the Love 

9.  Apple Pear Crumble from Because I Like Chocolate 

10.  Slow Cooker Spiced Pear Butter from Frugal Foodie Mama 
11.  Oatmeal Cookie Pear Bars
12.  Pear and Almond Tart from Karen's Kitchen Stories
13.  Pear and Cranberry Cornmeal Cake from Ricki Heller
14.  Pear Butter
15. Vanilla Roasted Pears from An Edible Mosaic
16. Pear, Apple, and Pistachio Crumble from Cravings of a Lunatic
17.  Port Wine Mascarpone Pear Tart from
18.  Spiced Pear Ginger Scones
19.  Brown Butter Pear Cake from Crumb 
20. Southern Comfort Pear Almond Frangipane Pie from Eat the Love
21. Autumn Poached Pears from The Little Ferraro Kitchen
22. Pear Walnut Crisp from The Kitchen is My Playground
23. Winter Fruit Crisp from Keep It Sweet Desserts
24. Pear Pecan Upside Down Cake from Vintage Kitchen Notes
25. Red Wine Poached Pear Rustic Tart from Eat the Love

Savory Pear Recipes: 

26.  Pear Almond Arugula Salad with Honey Mustard Vinaigrette from Vintage Kitchen Notes

27. Asian-Style Slaw with Korean Pears from Cooking on the Weekends

28.  Caramelized Onion Cabrales Pear Crisp from Cooking on the Weekends

29.  Habanero Jack Grilled Cheese with Pear & Prosciutto from Cooking with Books

30.  Pomegranate, Pear, and Gorgonzola Salad from What Jew Wanna Eat

31.  Grilled Rib Eye Steak Marinated in Asian Spices and Korean Pears from Cooking on the Weekends 

32.  Fennel & Pear Crostini from The Hungry Goddess

33. Caramelized Onion, Fresh Pear, Goat Cheese, and Sausage Pizza from Farm Fresh Feasts

 

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

A Vegetarian Italian Feast for Four

Baci di Ricotta - Ricotta Kisses

Mmm... check out that bowl of deliciousness: Nigella's baci di ricotta (from Feast). An airy-light ricotta batter, deep fried til crisp and doused with icing sugar. Heaven!

I sometimes think I use dinner parties as an excuse to go crazy with the calories - and by way of example, look at my pork belly and pavlova; the richest chocolate cake I've ever eaten; salted butter caramel ice-cream with salted candied peanuts, peanut butter fudge sauce; a roast rack of pork followed by triple-chocolate custard tarts. Nothing wrong with that - if you're going to indulge with a decadent treat, better to share it around rather than have it all to yourself!

However, when this particular dinner party rolled around, I was really in the mood for something altogether lighter, and I wanted to include lots of delicious green vegetables. This wasn't out of any dietary concern or self-imposed restriction - y'all know I'm not a dieter! - but simply because I felt like a less-filling meal, one that wouldn't have us all popping our trouser buttons afterwards! I also really enjoy vegetables, and wanted them to be the star of the show. Dessert was deep-fried, but the baci di ricotta were in small quantities, and weren't hugely filling, like say, a cheesecake or a chocolate cake might be. Decadence without the food coma. (Besides, I feel that all the green vegetables negate all the deep-fried, amirite?)

A Vegetarian Italian Feast for Four

Broad Bean Bruschetta

Eggplant Involtini

My Favourite Green Salad

Baci di Ricotta

This recipes for this meal all came from Nigella's Feast, one of my favourite cookbooks. It's essentially the "Italian-Inspired Supper for Six" from the Meatless Feasts chapter, in reduced quantities, with Nigella's broad bean bruschetta instead of the Italianified guacamole, and a pimped up green salad on the side. (Recipe below!) The menu was a little time-consuming to put together, but these are some of my favourite recipes, so I was happy to devote the afternoon to cooking them.

Double-podded broad beans

Broad beans! I love, love, love broad beans! And although Nigella says you have to use fresh ones for this recipe, I've always used frozen ones and it turns out fabulously.

Sliced zucchini

I added grilled zucchini to Nigella's suggested side salad of baby spinach, pumpkin seeds and avocado. I used a mandolin to slice them, and was so surprised when they fell in such a pretty pattern!

Filling for the involtini

Now, as I've mentioned before, Nigella is super keen on involtini (grilled eggplant, wrapped around a filling, covered with tomato sauce, topped with cheese and baked), and has variations on this recipe in about half of her books. The involtini I made on this occasion weren't technically the ones in Feast, but rather a mash-up of all the different versions. For the filling, I used feta, parmesan, pine nuts, currants, egg, parsley and lemon zest, with bulghur wheat for added bulk.

Eggplant involtini

Rather than smothering the pretty little eggplant rolls in a jar of tomato passata, I made a proper tomato sauce by sautéing chopped onion and garlic in olive oil, adding some tinned crushed tomatoes and slowly cooking them until thickened. Time consuming, yes, but I love tomato sauce, and it can all be done in advance, and just baked when you want to eat.

Let's have a look at the meal! Look how green the broad bean bruschetta is. I love it!

Broad bean bruschetta

I served it with toasted light rye bread. (I wish I could say I chargrilled these slices, but I literally just toasted them in the toaster). Looking back at the pictures now, I see it was a pretty big pile of bread for four people as a starter - I must have been worried that we'd still be hungry, haha. (We only had about a slice each).

Broad bean bruschetta

Eggplant involtini

These involtini are soooo delicious - I love the pop of sweetness from the currants, the mushy eggplants and the toasty melted mozzarella.

My favourite green salad

Sometimes I make salads and they remain untouched, a virtuous but unnecessary adjunct to a complete meal, but this one went down really well - I think the additions of the grilled zucchini, toasted pumpkin seeds, avocado really made it very moreish. (And I'm sure the seeds and avocado added all sorts of heart-healthy fats - bonus!)

Dinner

And once all those lovely vegetables were eaten, it was time to deep-fry! It is a bit of work to have to cook dessert in the middle of a dinner party, but I thought it was actually a nice way to break up the evening - we all just headed into the kitchen to keep chatting while I prepared the baci. The batter takes just a minute to stir together, and the deep-frying process wasn't too difficult or scary, as I used a small saucepan keep the process manageable, and an oil themometer to take any guesswork out of the process. I love how they puff up into irregular little alien shapes!

Deep frying the baci

Baci di Ricotta

And if it was easy to make them, it was even easier to eat them! A thick dusting of icing sugar on top, a pot of tea on the side and... inhale!

My Favourite Green Salad
Adapted from an idea in Nigella Lawson's Feast

Ingredients
2 zucchini
2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds
120 grams baby spinach leaves
1 ripe avocado
Salt, pepper, lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil

Method
Heat a griddle pan over a medium heat. Trim the ends of the zucchini and thinly slice lengthwise. (A mandolin is ideal). Brush each slice with olive oil on both sides and grill for a minute on each side, until cooked through and marked with and char marks. Remove to a plate. Sprinkle generously with salt and squeeze a little lemon juice over. Let cool completely before assembling the salad.
Toast the pumpkin seeds in a dry frying pan for a few minutes, until lovely and fragrant. (They don't really change colour, so use your nose to tell you when they're ready). Tip them out onto a plate to cool down.
When you are ready to eat, place the spinach leaves in a large bowl. Add the zucchini slices and half the pumpkin seeds.
Cut the avocado in half, and scoop out little pieces with a teaspoon. Add to the spinach and zucchini in the bowl. Squeeze more lemon juice over, to prevent the avocado pieces from browning. Drizzle generously with olive oil. Toss to combine, and add salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with the remaining pumpkin seeds to serve.
Serves 4-6 as a side

Baci di Ricotta - Ricotta Kisses

Mmm... check out that bowl of deliciousness: Nigella's baci di ricotta (from Feast). An airy-light ricotta batter, deep fried til crisp and doused with icing sugar. Heaven!

I sometimes think I use dinner parties as an excuse to go crazy with the calories - and by way of example, look at my pork belly and pavlova; the richest chocolate cake I've ever eaten; salted butter caramel ice-cream with salted candied peanuts, peanut butter fudge sauce; a roast rack of pork followed by triple-chocolate custard tarts. Nothing wrong with that - if you're going to indulge with a decadent treat, better to share it around rather than have it all to yourself!

However, when this particular dinner party rolled around, I was really in the mood for something altogether lighter, and I wanted to include lots of delicious green vegetables. This wasn't out of any dietary concern or self-imposed restriction - y'all know I'm not a dieter! - but simply because I felt like a less-filling meal, one that wouldn't have us all popping our trouser buttons afterwards! I also really enjoy vegetables, and wanted them to be the star of the show. Dessert was deep-fried, but the baci di ricotta were in small quantities, and weren't hugely filling, like say, a cheesecake or a chocolate cake might be. Decadence without the food coma. (Besides, I feel that all the green vegetables negate all the deep-fried, amirite?)

A Vegetarian Italian Feast for Four

Broad Bean Bruschetta

Eggplant Involtini

My Favourite Green Salad

Baci di Ricotta

This recipes for this meal all came from Nigella's Feast, one of my favourite cookbooks. It's essentially the "Italian-Inspired Supper for Six" from the Meatless Feasts chapter, in reduced quantities, with Nigella's broad bean bruschetta instead of the Italianified guacamole, and a pimped up green salad on the side. (Recipe below!) The menu was a little time-consuming to put together, but these are some of my favourite recipes, so I was happy to devote the afternoon to cooking them.

Double-podded broad beans

Broad beans! I love, love, love broad beans! And although Nigella says you have to use fresh ones for this recipe, I've always used frozen ones and it turns out fabulously.

Sliced zucchini

I added grilled zucchini to Nigella's suggested side salad of baby spinach, pumpkin seeds and avocado. I used a mandolin to slice them, and was so surprised when they fell in such a pretty pattern!

Filling for the involtini

Now, as I've mentioned before, Nigella is super keen on involtini (grilled eggplant, wrapped around a filling, covered with tomato sauce, topped with cheese and baked), and has variations on this recipe in about half of her books. The involtini I made on this occasion weren't technically the ones in Feast, but rather a mash-up of all the different versions. For the filling, I used feta, parmesan, pine nuts, currants, egg, parsley and lemon zest, with bulghur wheat for added bulk.

Eggplant involtini

Rather than smothering the pretty little eggplant rolls in a jar of tomato passata, I made a proper tomato sauce by sautéing chopped onion and garlic in olive oil, adding some tinned crushed tomatoes and slowly cooking them until thickened. Time consuming, yes, but I love tomato sauce, and it can all be done in advance, and just baked when you want to eat.

Let's have a look at the meal! Look how green the broad bean bruschetta is. I love it!

Broad bean bruschetta

I served it with toasted light rye bread. (I wish I could say I chargrilled these slices, but I literally just toasted them in the toaster). Looking back at the pictures now, I see it was a pretty big pile of bread for four people as a starter - I must have been worried that we'd still be hungry, haha. (We only had about a slice each).

Broad bean bruschetta

Eggplant involtini

These involtini are soooo delicious - I love the pop of sweetness from the currants, the mushy eggplants and the toasty melted mozzarella.

My favourite green salad

Sometimes I make salads and they remain untouched, a virtuous but unnecessary adjunct to a complete meal, but this one went down really well - I think the additions of the grilled zucchini, toasted pumpkin seeds, avocado really made it very moreish. (And I'm sure the seeds and avocado added all sorts of heart-healthy fats - bonus!)

Dinner

And once all those lovely vegetables were eaten, it was time to deep-fry! It is a bit of work to have to cook dessert in the middle of a dinner party, but I thought it was actually a nice way to break up the evening - we all just headed into the kitchen to keep chatting while I prepared the baci. The batter takes just a minute to stir together, and the deep-frying process wasn't too difficult or scary, as I used a small saucepan keep the process manageable, and an oil themometer to take any guesswork out of the process. I love how they puff up into irregular little alien shapes!

Deep frying the baci

Baci di Ricotta

And if it was easy to make them, it was even easier to eat them! A thick dusting of icing sugar on top, a pot of tea on the side and... inhale!

My Favourite Green Salad
Adapted from an idea in Nigella Lawson's Feast

Ingredients
2 zucchini
2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds
120 grams baby spinach leaves
1 ripe avocado
Salt, pepper, lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil

Method
Heat a griddle pan over a medium heat. Trim the ends of the zucchini and thinly slice lengthwise. (A mandolin is ideal). Brush each slice with olive oil on both sides and grill for a minute on each side, until cooked through and marked with and char marks. Remove to a plate. Sprinkle generously with salt and squeeze a little lemon juice over. Let cool completely before assembling the salad.
Toast the pumpkin seeds in a dry frying pan for a few minutes, until lovely and fragrant. (They don't really change colour, so use your nose to tell you when they're ready). Tip them out onto a plate to cool down.
When you are ready to eat, place the spinach leaves in a large bowl. Add the zucchini slices and half the pumpkin seeds.
Cut the avocado in half, and scoop out little pieces with a teaspoon. Add to the spinach and zucchini in the bowl. Squeeze more lemon juice over, to prevent the avocado pieces from browning. Drizzle generously with olive oil. Toss to combine, and add salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with the remaining pumpkin seeds to serve.
Serves 4-6 as a side

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Father's Day Dinner and some Ottolenghi Goodness

Chicken with cardamom rice

Mmm... don't you just love a big comforting pot of chicken and rice? It's my dad's favourite dish, so for Father's Day this year, I decided to make him a dinner with Ottolenghi's chicken with cardamom rice as the central dish. I chose some other recipes from Jerusalem as accompaniments, with a simple Donna Hay crème caramel for dessert. (His other favourite!)

A Father's Day Dinner for Four

Butternut squash and tahini spread

Crudités‎, garlic pide, za'atar pide

Na'ama's fattoush

Chicken with cardamom rice

Crème caramel

All the savoury recipes in this menu come from the gorgeous book Jerusalem, however, many of the recipes from the book seem to have been pretty widely published over the net - by bloggers, in newspapers, on forums and so on. (For whatever reason, authors Yotam and Sami don't seem bothered by it - and as far as I can tell, it doesn't seem to have dented their immense popularity! If anything, I think it's helped spread the word.) Having not made any adaptations to their recipes on this occasion, I won't be publishing them myself here, but I've included links to the recipes in the menu above, for your reference. However, I can highly highly recommend purchasing a copy of the book for yourself - it's brilliant!

Let's take a look at the meal.

Butternut squash and tahini spread, peeled Dutch carrots, radishes

The butternut squash and tahini spread sounded like it would be right up my alley, but I found it unrelentingly dense and cement-like, despite my trying to slacken the mixture with extra yogurt, lemon juice, olive oil and water. I love the idea of starting a meal with a vegetable dip with vegetable crudités though, but next time I think I'll try one of their hummus or eggplant dip recipes.

Garlic pide, za'atar pide

Don't panic - I didn't bake the bread myself, this time! I just bought some Turkish bread at the supermarket, drizzled it with olive oil and za'atar and heated it through in the oven. I also picked up a loaf of that fantastically garlicky Afghani bread (I can't remember the brand, but they seem to sell them at larger supermarkets and are very large ovals of thin bread, with lots of oil and a strong garlicky aroma that always escapes the plastic bag in which it is held.) Love it.

Na'ama's fattoush, before dressing

Na'ama's fattoush is Sami's mother's recipe, and although I was worried a salad containing bread and a yogurt dressing would be very rich, it was actually wonderfully refreshing. I loved the fresh crunch of the cucumber, tomato, radish and red onion, against the soft bread and creamy yogurt.

Na'ama's fattoush, with dressing and sumac

And here's the chicken!

Chicken with cardamom rice

It was a little more work than my usual family favourite: Nigella's saffron-scented chicken pilaf, and there were quite a few more ingredients, but it was so worth it! All the different spices (cardamom, cloves, cinnamon) and herbs (dill, coriander, parsley) create such complex and unusual layers of flavour, and cooking the chicken on the bone makes the rice extra tasty. I had been a bit nervous that the chicken wouldn't cook through, or that the rice would burn, but I followed the directions exactly, and both the chicken pieces and rice were cooked perfectly. Most importantly, Dad loved it, and kept on picking at it straight out of the pot as the evening went on.

Crème caramel

I had made the crème caramels earlier that day, and unmoulded them to serve. As you can see, they were a bit messy (I just ran a knife around the side of the ramekins and tipped them out into shallow bowls - but think I should have dipped them in hot water first, to loosen the caramel from the bottom and sides). My dad didn't seem to mind though - yay! They were really creamy, with a great bitter edge from the caramel. (I used vanilla beans, because I love them, and everyone seems to think it's a treat seeing vanilla bean flecks). I used a Donna Hay recipe for the crème caramels (recipe here) - her über-styled food photography really gets on my nerves, but I can't deny that she has good recipes for the basics and classics.

For me, the most impressive dish was, surprisingly, the salad! I loved the refreshing yet comforting fattoush so much that I made it again a few days later for a midweek dinner. This time, I made it with turkey & courgette burgers with spring onion and cumin (also from Jerusalem) and some mashed sweet potato and butternut squash. So fantastic! And it made fab leftovers for workday lunches too - bonus!

Na'ama's fattoush, sweet potato and pumpkin mash, turkey and zucchini burgers

Turkey and zucchini burgers, Na'ama's fattoush, mashed sweet potato and butternut squash

Chicken with cardamom rice

Mmm... don't you just love a big comforting pot of chicken and rice? It's my dad's favourite dish, so for Father's Day this year, I decided to make him a dinner with Ottolenghi's chicken with cardamom rice as the central dish. I chose some other recipes from Jerusalem as accompaniments, with a simple Donna Hay crème caramel for dessert. (His other favourite!)

A Father's Day Dinner for Four

Butternut squash and tahini spread

Crudités‎, garlic pide, za'atar pide

Na'ama's fattoush

Chicken with cardamom rice

Crème caramel

All the savoury recipes in this menu come from the gorgeous book Jerusalem, however, many of the recipes from the book seem to have been pretty widely published over the net - by bloggers, in newspapers, on forums and so on. (For whatever reason, authors Yotam and Sami don't seem bothered by it - and as far as I can tell, it doesn't seem to have dented their immense popularity! If anything, I think it's helped spread the word.) Having not made any adaptations to their recipes on this occasion, I won't be publishing them myself here, but I've included links to the recipes in the menu above, for your reference. However, I can highly highly recommend purchasing a copy of the book for yourself - it's brilliant!

Let's take a look at the meal.

Butternut squash and tahini spread, peeled Dutch carrots, radishes

The butternut squash and tahini spread sounded like it would be right up my alley, but I found it unrelentingly dense and cement-like, despite my trying to slacken the mixture with extra yogurt, lemon juice, olive oil and water. I love the idea of starting a meal with a vegetable dip with vegetable crudités though, but next time I think I'll try one of their hummus or eggplant dip recipes.

Garlic pide, za'atar pide

Don't panic - I didn't bake the bread myself, this time! I just bought some Turkish bread at the supermarket, drizzled it with olive oil and za'atar and heated it through in the oven. I also picked up a loaf of that fantastically garlicky Afghani bread (I can't remember the brand, but they seem to sell them at larger supermarkets and are very large ovals of thin bread, with lots of oil and a strong garlicky aroma that always escapes the plastic bag in which it is held.) Love it.

Na'ama's fattoush, before dressing

Na'ama's fattoush is Sami's mother's recipe, and although I was worried a salad containing bread and a yogurt dressing would be very rich, it was actually wonderfully refreshing. I loved the fresh crunch of the cucumber, tomato, radish and red onion, against the soft bread and creamy yogurt.

Na'ama's fattoush, with dressing and sumac

And here's the chicken!

Chicken with cardamom rice

It was a little more work than my usual family favourite: Nigella's saffron-scented chicken pilaf, and there were quite a few more ingredients, but it was so worth it! All the different spices (cardamom, cloves, cinnamon) and herbs (dill, coriander, parsley) create such complex and unusual layers of flavour, and cooking the chicken on the bone makes the rice extra tasty. I had been a bit nervous that the chicken wouldn't cook through, or that the rice would burn, but I followed the directions exactly, and both the chicken pieces and rice were cooked perfectly. Most importantly, Dad loved it, and kept on picking at it straight out of the pot as the evening went on.

Crème caramel

I had made the crème caramels earlier that day, and unmoulded them to serve. As you can see, they were a bit messy (I just ran a knife around the side of the ramekins and tipped them out into shallow bowls - but think I should have dipped them in hot water first, to loosen the caramel from the bottom and sides). My dad didn't seem to mind though - yay! They were really creamy, with a great bitter edge from the caramel. (I used vanilla beans, because I love them, and everyone seems to think it's a treat seeing vanilla bean flecks). I used a Donna Hay recipe for the crème caramels (recipe here) - her über-styled food photography really gets on my nerves, but I can't deny that she has good recipes for the basics and classics.

For me, the most impressive dish was, surprisingly, the salad! I loved the refreshing yet comforting fattoush so much that I made it again a few days later for a midweek dinner. This time, I made it with turkey & courgette burgers with spring onion and cumin (also from Jerusalem) and some mashed sweet potato and butternut squash. So fantastic! And it made fab leftovers for workday lunches too - bonus!

Na'ama's fattoush, sweet potato and pumpkin mash, turkey and zucchini burgers

Turkey and zucchini burgers, Na'ama's fattoush, mashed sweet potato and butternut squash

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

CSA Wednesdays: Roasted Corn and Avocado Salad

    We're getting to the end of our CSA.  I'm sad.  I hate going all winter without fresh vegetables and fruits but we get what we can at the market.  This week we received corn, pumpkins, tomatoes, peppers, basil, and apples.

        The apples I used in a fabulous vegan apple pie (recipe coming soon!)  I used the tomatoes and peppers for enchiladas one night.  The basil I used in my pasta.  The pumpkins are great because I can make several recipes out of one.  This week I used the pumpkin to make pie and bread.  Yum!

       Then came the corn.  I wasn't sure what I was going to do with the corn because work has been getting busy.  I feel like this year especially I'm being pulled in a million different directions and I can't get to all of my kids everyday.  I think that's part of being a special education inclusion teacher.  I have kids in grades K-5 so I'm always off and running from one room to another.  I wore my pedometer yesterday and can you believe that during the work day I walked 3.4 miles just going from one classroom to another?  Craziness!

      I wanted to make tacos but I needed a side dish to go along with it and I saw a photo for a light and fresh grilled corn salad that I wanted to try.   There was no recipe attached to it so while I had to wing it, it turned out great.  Grilled corn and avocado are tossed with a honey lime dressing spiced with chili powder.  It's delicious and a great healthy side.

Roasted Corn and Avocado Salad  (a Hezzi-D original)
4 ears of corn
1 T. olive oil
1 t. salt
1 t. black pepper
1 ripe avocado
For the dressing:
2 T. olive oil
2 T. red wine vinegar
2 t. lime juice
1-2 t. honey
1 t. chili garlic sauce
1 t. cumin
1/4 t. chili powder

1.  Heat the grill to medium heat.  Brush the ears of corn with the olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Cook on the grill, turning every few minutes, until it is golden brown.  Remove and allow to cool.

2.  Once the corn has cooled, cut the kernels off the cob and place in a large bowl.  Peel, seed, and dice the avocado and add it to the corn.

3.  In a small bowl combine all the ingredients for the dressing and whisk until combined.  Pour over top of the corn and avocado salad.  Toss to combine.

4.  Refrigerate for at least 1 hour to allow the flavors to mingle.  Serve cold.

    We're getting to the end of our CSA.  I'm sad.  I hate going all winter without fresh vegetables and fruits but we get what we can at the market.  This week we received corn, pumpkins, tomatoes, peppers, basil, and apples.

        The apples I used in a fabulous vegan apple pie (recipe coming soon!)  I used the tomatoes and peppers for enchiladas one night.  The basil I used in my pasta.  The pumpkins are great because I can make several recipes out of one.  This week I used the pumpkin to make pie and bread.  Yum!

       Then came the corn.  I wasn't sure what I was going to do with the corn because work has been getting busy.  I feel like this year especially I'm being pulled in a million different directions and I can't get to all of my kids everyday.  I think that's part of being a special education inclusion teacher.  I have kids in grades K-5 so I'm always off and running from one room to another.  I wore my pedometer yesterday and can you believe that during the work day I walked 3.4 miles just going from one classroom to another?  Craziness!

      I wanted to make tacos but I needed a side dish to go along with it and I saw a photo for a light and fresh grilled corn salad that I wanted to try.   There was no recipe attached to it so while I had to wing it, it turned out great.  Grilled corn and avocado are tossed with a honey lime dressing spiced with chili powder.  It's delicious and a great healthy side.

Roasted Corn and Avocado Salad  (a Hezzi-D original)
4 ears of corn
1 T. olive oil
1 t. salt
1 t. black pepper
1 ripe avocado
For the dressing:
2 T. olive oil
2 T. red wine vinegar
2 t. lime juice
1-2 t. honey
1 t. chili garlic sauce
1 t. cumin
1/4 t. chili powder

1.  Heat the grill to medium heat.  Brush the ears of corn with the olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Cook on the grill, turning every few minutes, until it is golden brown.  Remove and allow to cool.

2.  Once the corn has cooled, cut the kernels off the cob and place in a large bowl.  Peel, seed, and dice the avocado and add it to the corn.

3.  In a small bowl combine all the ingredients for the dressing and whisk until combined.  Pour over top of the corn and avocado salad.  Toss to combine.

4.  Refrigerate for at least 1 hour to allow the flavors to mingle.  Serve cold.

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