Asian Salad with Red Peppers

I've been blogging for almost 2 years now.  Back in the early days, when I had no idea what I was doing, I posted a recipe that has always been a big hit in my family for an asian slaw/salad.  Though the salad is great, I cringe a little lot when I go back and look at my early posts.  The pictures are pretty awful.  Hard to believe I was using the same camera then as I do now.  I'm always working to improve my photography skills and I still have a lot to learn, but looking back makes me realize just how far I've come.  Wonder what things will look like in another two years...

Somehow nearly two years has passed since I've made this salad.  Which is a shame, because I remembered how much I love it when my family served it at our Christmas day dinner this past year.  It's refreshing.  It's crunchy.  It's green onion-ey.  It's sweet and tangy all at the same time.  And it's incredibly easy to make.

When I saw a head of cabbage at our local farmer's market, it was on.  I decided to waiver slightly from the original recipe by adding some finely sliced red peppers.  I had an excess of red peppers in the fridge from a Costco run. I thought they would complement the other flavors in the salad nicely, not to mention bringing a pretty burst of red among a rather monotone landscape of colors.  Hubby and I enjoyed the addition of the peppers and I will plan to include them going forward. 

We typically eat this salad as a side dish, but if you add some grilled chicken or rotisserie chicken, this could easily be a main course.  I like to toss the dressing with the salad about 10 minutes before I plan to serve it to allow the dressing to slightly soften the hearty cabbage. This dish is a crowd pleaser and would be great for a party.   Did I mention this is easy to make?  It is super easy.  And you should totally make it and thank me later. ;) 

Enjoy!

Asian Salad with Red Peppers

Serves 6-8 people

1/2 head thinly sliced cabbage or 16 oz bag of cabbage mix

1 package chicken Top Ramen

2 Tablespoons sesame seeds

1/2 cup slivered almonds

4 green onions thinly sliced
1 red pepper, stem and seeds removed, thinly sliced

Dressing:

Whisk together the following and chill

3 Tablespoons sugar

3 Tablespoons white vinegar

1/3 cup vegetable oil (do not substitute olive oil)

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

Flavor packet from Top Ramen

Place uncooked ramen noodles in a ziploc bag and crush into small pieces using a meat mallet or rolling pin. Place crushed ramen, sesame seeds and almonds on a baking sheet. Toast in a 350 degree oven for 10-12 minutes until lightly golden. Toss slaw, red peppers, green onions, ramen, sesame seeds, almonds in dressing. Let the salad sit for about 10 minutes before serving to allow dressing to soften the cabbage a bit.

Roasted Red Pepper Pesto Crostini

I haven't told you all this yet, but one of my goals in 2012 is to have more regularly scheduled posting on the blog.  In my fantasy world I would like to post 5 days a week.  But in the real world I thought I should just commit to 2 days to start.  Since January rolled around I've been trying to post every Tuesday and Thursday and then a few Sundays have been thrown in for good measure.  As you can see, today is not any of those days.  It's Friday. 

I'm a little disappointed that I'm day late so early on in the game.  I don't even have a good excuse.  I had the pictures for this post done last weekend. I knew this would be a busy week and I should have written the post ahead of time.  But my usual procrastination set in and things came up.  You know, life, work, family, my cats, a business trip to Las Vegas.....and in between all that I've been completely consumed with reading the Hunger Games whenever I can get a chance.  Have you read this book yet?  It's addicting.  It's actually the first in a trilogy and I'm already on to the second.  But I have managed to pull myself away long enough to get this post up, even if it is a day later than I planned. 

Seems like this has been appetizer month around our house.  Between New Years and football games we've tried several new appetizers over the last few weeks.  This roasted red pepper crostini was born out of the need to get rid of some peppers that were reaching their peak ripeness in our fridge.  After an internet search on "red pepper appetizers" I was quickly intrigued by this recipe I found on Williams-Sonoma's website.  Hubby and I love traditional pesto made with basil, pine nuts, garlic, Parmesan cheese and olive oil.  This sounded like a fun twist, using roasted red peppers, almonds, garlic, Parmesan cheese, olive oil and parsley.  It has bold, strong and somewhat spicy flavors.  Since the garlic is raw, it, along with the cayenne, add a nice spice layer to the pesto.  The texture is rich and thick and easy to spread on the toasted baguette.

The Williams-Sonoma recipe makes it even more decadent by starting with a layer of goat cheese on the crostini and warming it in the oven before topping it with the pesto.  Since Hubby and my father-in-law aren't cheese eaters, I skipped that step.  But it's noted in the directions below and next time I make this I will do a few with cheese for me.   The recipe makes just over a cup of pesto.  One other note, I actually used 1 red pepper and 1 yellow pepper which is why the pesto is more orange and pale in color (but not in flavor!). 

If you have any leftover pesto (which we did not), it could be used to turn a sandwich or homemade panini into something special.  It would also be great with pasta (but you would have to make a whole batch just for that) or it could also kick up a steamed vegetable, like broccoli. 

Since I skipped the goat cheese, I served our pesto and crostini separately and let people put as much or little as they wanted on top.  If you are looking for a fresh bold appetizer for your next football watching party, this is a great choice. 

Enjoy!
 

Roasted Red Pepper Crostini
adapted from Williams-Sonoma

Yields 24 crostini (1 cup pesto)

Ingredients:

1 baguette cut in 1/4 inch thick slices
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (I used a garlic flavored olive oil)
2 garlic cloves, peeled
2 red bell peppers, roasted, seeds and stem removed and roughly chopped*
2 tablespoons toasted slivered almonds (to toast, place almonds in small skillet on medium low heat.  Stir until almonds are very lightly browned and become fragrant, about 5-7 minutes)
3 tablespoons grated fresh Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped flat leaf parsley, divided
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
4 ounces of soft goat cheese (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and place the slices of bread on the baking sheet.  Lightly brush the top sides of the bread with the olive oil.  Bake for 10-12 minutes until bread is toasted.  Bake 3 minutes longer for very crispy bread.  When bread comes out of the oven and is still warm rub each slice with one of the cloves of garlic.  Set aside.

To make the pesto, place 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, the remaining clove of garlic, peppers, almonds, Parmigiano cheese, 3 tablespoons of the parsley, lemon juice and cayenne pepper into a food processor and pulse until the pesto is thick but somewhat smooth.  Pulse longer for a smoother pesto.  Season with salt and pepper to your taste and pulse a few more times to fully combine. 

When you are nearly ready to serve pre-heat your oven to 350.  Spread goat cheese on each crostini and bake for about 5 minutes until the goat cheese is soft and the bread is warmed through.   Top each crostini with the red pepper pesto and sprinkle with remaining parsley.  Serve immediately.


*We roast our peppers on the barbeque.  Just place the peppers directly on the grill over high heat and turn every 5 minutes until peppers are soft and the exterior skin will turn black.  Takes 20-25 minutes.  Transfer the peppers to a bowl and cover the the bowl with plastic wrap.  Set aside and let the pepper steam for about 15 minutes.  Remove the plastic and let the peppers cool enough to handle them.  Remove the skins, stems and seeds.  Do not rinse the peppers under water.

Sweet Pepper Soup and Herb Parmesan Crostini

I have not been a huge soup person in the past and have only made soup at home once in a while.  The weather has officially turned cool and I've been craving soup lately. I have made three soups in the last three weeks.  The first was a butternut squash soup from Cooking Light.  It was ok, but I didn't deem it blogworthy.  The second soup was chicken noodle from Cook's Illustrated.  A good solid soup, but I forgot to photograph it.  Guess that means I have to make it again.  And the third soup was this sweet pepper soup.  You will notice that I didn't reference a recipe source for this one, because it was really an amalgmation of a few recipes I came across and I'm going to deem this one my own since it was vastly different from any of the individual recipes.   

What I love about all this soup making is how easy it is.  Especially since I am not making my own stock and using store bought stock or chicken base and water.  I've been making the soup the night before we want to have it for dinner.  I have noticed this extra time allows the soup flavors to develop overnight making it even better the next day. 

I created this soup out of necessity of not wanting to waste 6 sweet bell peppers sitting in my fridge for over a week.  I was very happy with the result.  Hubby said this soup would be great with a grilled cheese sandwich and I have to agree.  We had the soup with herb parmesan crusted crostini which is great to dip in and soak up all the sweet pepper goodness.

Enjoy!


Sweet Pepper Soup

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large sweet onion, chopped into a medium dice
2 small carrots, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces (about 1/2 cup)
4 large garlic cloves, cut in quarters
1/4 cup dry white wine
6 sweet bell peppers, seeds and stems removed and chopped into 1 inch pieces
3 cups water
4 teaspoons chicken base (if you are using chicken broth instead, use 3 cups of low sodium broth)
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
8 large basil leaves plus extra for garnish
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Salt and pepper to taste
Sour cream and feta cheese to top soup

In a dutch oven or large pot, heat olive oil on medium high heat and saute the onion, carrots and garlic until the onions are cooked, about 8 minutes.  Add wine and cook on high until only about a tablespoon of wine remains.  Add peppers, water, chicken base, red pepper flakes, basil and tomato paste.  Season generously with salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to low and simmer for about 30 minutes until peppers are tender.  Use an immersion blender to puree the soup.  Alternatively, use a blender or food processor to puree the soup in batches.  Strain soup into a large bowl using a fine mesh strainer.  Don't skip this step if you like a smooth soup to strain out the skin from the peppers.  Serve with a small dollop of sour cream, a sprinkle of feta and freshly torn basil. 


Herb Parmesan Crostini

Ingredients:

1 baguettte
1/2 cup coarsely grated or chopped parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons butter, room temperature
1 1/2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
2 tablespoon fresh chives, minced (optional)
fresh cracked black pepper to taste

Preheat  oven to 375 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with foil or parchment. 

Cut baguette on the diagonal crosswise into 1/4 thick slices.  Mix all ingredients together and lightly spread cheese mixture onto the slices and place face up on the baking sheet.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Turn the oven to broil and bake for an additional 2-3 minutes until crostini is golden brown.

Secret Recipe Club: Summer Gazpacho with a Nutty Twist

A cool refreshing soup bursting with flavor is perfect on a hot summer day.  Especially one that requires no cooking.  Gazpacho is a delicious chilled vegetable soup that originates from Spain.  I found this recipe for Summer Gazpacho with a Walnut Twist from Cheap Ethnic Eatz.  I had a blast browsing through Evelyn's blog as my first assignment with the Secret Recipe Club! 

What is the Secret Recipe Club you might ask?  It's a very cool online group founded by Amanda of Amanda's Cookin'.  Each month the participating food bloggers are each assigned another persons blog in the group to make a recipe from.  Everyone posts the recipes they made on the same day at the same time. The cool part it is a secret and you don't know who has been assigned who's blog until the post date.   It's a great way to get to know other food blogs, take on new recipes and increase exposure for everyone.  If you are interested in joining or just learning more head over the Secret Recipe Club.  And don't forget to scroll all the way to the end of this post to see the blog hop linking to what everyone made this month.

I have spent quite a bit of time perusing Cheap Ethic Eatz over the past month.  Though I'm a big fan of cheap (and delicious) food, I have to admit I'm not overly adventurous when it comes to ethnic cuisines.  I guess compared to my mom I'm a word traveler of cuisine, but compared to the truly adventurous, like Evelyn, I'm pretty basic.  I like, Italian, Greek, Persian, Lebanese, Japanese, Chinese, Mexican, French (to a certain extent).  I'm bit more leery of other types like Ethiopian, Korean, Thai or Indian.  The great thing about Evelyn's site is she has a range of diverse dishes.

When deciding which recipe to make, I must have changed my mind at least 56 4 or 5 times.  Some of the recipes I was debating on were homemade jalapeno hot sauce, aranci (Italian fried rice balls), peach salsa and fig ice cream.  In the end I went with Summer Gazpacho with a Walnut Twist.  I admit, I played it a little safe by making gazpacho....but I couldn't resist.  I came across it when we were in the middle of a mini heat wave here in Southern California and this no cook soup sounded like a perfect accompaniment to grilled mahi mahi I was planning to make.

The gazpacho was wonderful and this offered a twist I haven't seen before...topping your soup with herb toasted walnuts.  I didn't have walnuts on hand, but I had some pecans and they were a great addition to the soup, adding a nice texture and flavor.

The nuts give a little extra heartiness to this very light soup.  Hubby is not a fan of nuts so I also did a version with garlic croutons so his soup would have a little extra crunch.  And that was delicious too! 

If you have never tried gazpacho before, I highly recommend it.  Thanks for sharing a great recipe Evelyn!

Summer Gazpacho with a Walnut Twist
from Cheap Ethnic Eatz

For the gazpacho:
5 ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped
1 cucumber, peeled and coarsely chopped (I left the skin on as I was using an English cucumber)
1 small red or green bell pepper, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 small onion, finely chopped (I used red onion)
1/4 cup white vinegar
1 1/2 cups tomato juice
3 tablespoons chopped cilantro
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

For toasted walnuts:
2/3 cup coarsely chopped walnuts (I used walnuts)
1 teaspoon olive oil
3/4 teaspoon finely chopped herbs (I used fresh flat leaf parsley and a bit of minced garlic)
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Salt (optional)

To make soup:
Combine tomatoes, cucumber, pepper, garlic, onion, vinegar and tomato juice in a large bowl.  Transfer batches of the mixture to a food processor and pulse until coarsely pureed.  Transfer pureed soup into another large bowl and stir in salt and pepper, cover and chill in the refrigerator.  When serving if soup seems too thick, stir in more tomato juice.  Top with toasted nuts and serve.

To make herb walnuts:
Preheat over to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Line a small baking sheet with aluminum foil and toss nuts, herbs, cayenne and salt and pepper with your finger to coat.  Bake 5 to 7 minutes or until nuts are lightly toasted. 

Asian Chicken and Roasted Pepper Sandwich

I can't quite recall what originally prompted me to put this sandwich together. But it's been a house favorite for the past five years or so and is really easy to make. This sandwich is all about the mayo. Asian seasoned mayo. Pampered Chef Asian Seasoning and mayonnaise are a match made in heaven. The seasoning packs a nice punch with garlic, red & green bell pepper, sesame seeds, soy sauce, orange and lemon zest, lime, green onion and ginger. So add as much or as little to your taste. We like a lot!

We hadn't had this sandwich in quite some time because we ran out of the Pampered Chef magical blend. I finally broke down and ordered some online and just a few days later we were back in yummy sandwich makin business! As a side note, the shipping on my order cost nearly as much as the seasoning....so I stocked up to make the most out of my purchase. I also ordered a greek seasoning blend that I'm excited to try out.

Now that the spring is officially here....grilling has kicked into full swing at our house. 3 of the 4 components of this sandwich are done on the grill so Hubby plays a big part in the creation of this meal. Generally I prep everything for the grill and Hubby does the grilling, then I assemble it all. So I did my part and had it all ready to go to the grill...but guess what? The grill was out of gas. So we had to to turn to plan B. The grill pan. I have to say the results weren't quite the same as the hint of charred goodness you can only get from a grill...but it was still quite good.

The chicken is marinated in a store bought teriyaki sauce then grilled. I prefer a sauce that has pineapple juice in it. But any asian inspired marinade (store bought or homemade) would do just fine. The chicken is sliced and topped with tender roasted red and yellow peppers (also courtesy of Hubby's fine grill work). Sandwiched between two asian mayo slathered pieces of freshly grilled ciabatta bread....it's delicious! Don't skimp on the mayo. Really!

Asian Chicken & Roasted Pepper Sandwich Recipe:
1lb boneless skinless chicken breast
1/2 cup of store bought teriyaki sauce (with pineapple juice)
2 red, orange or yellow peppers
4 sandwich size ciabatta (La Brea Bakery ciabatta at Costco is our favorite)
2/3 cup mayo
2-3 Tablespoons of Pampered Chef Asian Seasoning

Marinate chicken in teriyaki sauce for 4 hours up to 1 day. Combine mayo and asian seasoning in a small bowl and set aside in the fridge. Roast peppers on high heat on the BBQ until skins are charred black and interior flesh is tender, about 20 minutes. Transfer the peppers to a deep bowl and immediately place plastic wrap over the top sealing in the heat. When peppers are cool enough to handle, remove the charred skin and cut into 2 inch strips, removing seeds, ribbing and stem. Grill chicken until done, about 10-12 minutes. Allow chicken to cool for at least 5 minutes and slice 1/2 inch strips. Cut ciabattas in half and (lightly brush with olive oil if desired) toast on grill 2-3 minutes to desired toastiness. Generously spread mayo on bread and top with chicken and peppers. And most importantly.....Enjoy!