Almond Milk Rice Pudding with Strawberries and Basil

I love this recipe. It is super easy and so delicious.

The combination of the sweet strawberries and the savory, delicate floral quality of the basil tastes like summer to me.  There was always a basil plant on my mother's windowsill in the summer. My grandfather grew strawberries that would twine around a trellis on the side of his garage. Using almond milk in the rice pudding brings a fresh unexpected taste and a lighter texture. Combining all of these flavors, textures and scents just brings me back to my childhood summer of family and fun.

Almond Milk Rice Pudding

Ingredients

• 1 cup jasmine rice
• 2 cups almond milk, unflavored
• 1 cup water
• 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons sugar

Method

1. Put the rice, almond milk, water, cinnamon and sugar into a large pot and stir to mix.
2. Bring to a boil over high heat. Stir once, then reduce the heat to low. Cover the pan.
3. Cook for 12 minutes on low heat.
4. Turn off the heat, stir the mixture once and return the cover to the pot.
5. Let site for 8 minutes covered.
6. Serve with basil marinated strawberries (recipe below).

Basil Marinated Strawberries

Ingredients

• 4 basil leaves minced
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 4 large strawberries cut into pieces

Method

1. Put basil, sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium heat.
2. Stir constantly until all the sugar has dissolved.
3. Pour the basil simple syrup over the strawberries and let them sit for five minutes.
4. Serve on top of the almond milk rice pudding.

Michael Natkin's Herbivoracious: Roasted Maitake Mushrooms in Smoky Tea Broth

Well hello there. A few weeks ago, I had the distinct pleasure of meeting Michael Natkin of the site (and new cookbook) Herbivoracious. As the name suggests, he is a vegetarian chef.

I also found out that Michael is a really nice guy. He loves what he does and is really passionate about sharing his knowledge and love of vegetarian cooking with the world. The book's introduction outlines his very personal journey to becoming a vegetarian, which involved his mother's battle with cancer, his taking over the cooking for the family, and ultimately learning through trial and error about food and cooking.

The recipes in Herbivoracious are straightforward  and easy to follow. I chose to make the Maitake Mushrooms in Smoky Tea Broth. The choice was simple. I am in love with Lapsang Souchang tea. Therefore, any recipe that allows me to use said tea, is for me. It turned out just as the book said: salty, smoky and earthy. Considering this is such a simple recipe, you could really wow a crowd with it because the mix of flavors packs a powerful punch.

It has been about 9 months since I started attending food blogger events out in the real world. I'm amazed at what a nice group of people I've met and how open they all are in sharing tips and tricks of blogging. When I arrived at Cookhouse, the beautiful North Beach location where the event was held, I was nervous and worried I wouldn't feel comfortable with the crowd.

The nerves disappeared immediately when Michael walked right up, shook my hand and we proceeded to discuss the night's menu. His ease with the crowd was refreshing. He talked to me about sharing vegetarian tips (since I dabble with vegetarian recipes and he's an expert) and offered up encouragement with my vegetarian experiments. His blog is amazing and really shows his personality and skill through the written recipes as well as the video demos.

If you'd like to make the Maitake Mushrooms in Smoky Tea Broth that I have shown here, click on over to Michael's Herbivoracious site to check out the book.

Memorial Day Gluten-Free Pasta Salads: Pasta with Romanesco Cauliflower, Pasta with Olives and Walnuts

Going to a Memorial Day BBQ? Pasta salads are an easy made-ahead side dish that can feed a crowd. These are just two examples of pasta salads that you can make. Improvise some, add in some cheese for an extra rich variety. Or, some bacon instead of the tuna in the Romanesco cauliflower pasta salad.

Whatever you do, make these ahead of time, kick off your shoes and enjoy the BBQ.

Ingredients:

• 1 head Romanesco Cauliflower, cut into florets
• 1 can Solid White Tuna, drained
• 1/2 cup Olive Oil
• 2 cups Pasta, cooked (I used gluten-free rice pasta like this one from Tinkyada)
• 3 Tbsps Capers, drained
• 4 Pickled Italian Cherry Peppers

Method:

• Boil a large pot of salted water.
• Chop the peppers into small pieces, removing the stems.
• Once the water has boiled, add the pasta and a steamer basket on top of the pasta to parboil the romanesco cauliflower.
• Cook the romanesco for 3 minutes with the lid on.
• While the pasta/romanesco is boiling, heat a large skillet over high heat.
• Put the olive oil and the tuna in the saute pan and cook for 1 minute on high heat.
• Add the parboiled romanesco to the saute pan and cook for five minutes, or until beginning to brown.
• Put the capers and peppers in with the romanesco and cook for three minutes.
• Drain the pasta, rinse in cool water and  put in a large bowl.
• Mix the pasta and the tuna/romaesco mixture together and enjoy!

Pasta with Olives and Walnuts

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cupLindsay chopped black olives, drained
• 1/4 cup walnuts, chopped
• 1 lb pasta spirals (I used gluten-free rice pasta like this one from Tinkyada)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 diced red onion
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper
• 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
• 4 tbsps Olive Oil, divided, plus some for drizzling at end

Method:

1. Set a large pot of salted water on the stove to boil for pasta.
2. Put drained, chopped olives in a bowl, add 2 cloves minced garlic, salt, pepper and *red pepper flakes.
3. Leave to marinate while pasta water boils, and pasta cooks.
4. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.
5. Add 2 tbsps olive oil to pan, swirl to coat.
6. Lower heat to medium, add remaining 2 cloves of minced garlic, and chopped red onions.
7. Sautee until golden, then reduce heat to low.
8. Add chopped walnuts, moving them around in the pan so they brown evenly.
9. Cook pasta according to directions on box.
10. Just before it’s cooked through, add marinated olives to the onion, garlic, walnut mixture.
11. Raise heat to medium. Heat until olives are just warmed.
12. Drain pasta and place in large bowl.
13. Pour onion, garlic, walnut and olive mixture over pasta and mix.
14. Drizzle olive oil over mixed pasta, add a pinch of salt and *red pepper flakes.
15. Serve and enjoy!

Memorial Day Salads: Salmon Salad, Grilled Radicchio Salad, Avocado and Tomato Salad

Happy Memorial Day Weekend, everyone. If you haven't already planned out all of your dishes for the many BBQ's you will be attending this weekend, consider one (or all) of these three salads. The components for each can be put together in moments, and complement grilled meats and veggies ever so well. I realized I maybe a little late in sharing my Memorial Day ideas, but here they are. There maybe a few posts today, so I can be sure to share as many ideas for your weekend entertaining as possible. Hope you enjoy and that you are able to spend some quality time with your friends and family.

Salmon Salad

Ingredients

• 1 pound salmon, skin on
• 1/2 cup leftover mashed potatoes (method here, dairy free option included)
• 1/2 cup steamed cauliflower (or any other nice veggies you have around)
• 1 cup mache salad greens (any greens will do here, esp. something peppery like arugula or mache)
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. Heat BBQ grill until super hot, but not smoking.
2. Place the salmon, skin side down, on the BBQ grill.
3. Cook for four minutes, or until you see the edges of the salmon turning light pink.
4. Flip the salmon over and cook for an additional 5 minutes.
5. Put the mache on a platter, add the mashed potatoes in dollops over the salad and distribute the cauliflower around the platter.
6. Place the salmon on top and finish by drizzling the olive oil and lemon juice on top.

Grilled Radicchio Salad

Ingredients:

• 1 head Radicchio
• 1 large Shallot, minced
• 2 ears Corn
• 1 large Heirloom Tomato, chopped
• 1 bunch Frisee, shredded
• 1/3 cup Olive Oil
• Salt and Pepper to Taste

Method:

1. Heat BBQ grill until super hot, but not smoking.
2. Cut up radicchio into chunks.
3. Pour olive oil over radicchio on toss to coat.
4. Place radicchio chunks on grill, grill on one side for two minutes, making sure flames don’t get too high.
5. Turn radicchio over, pouring remaining oil onto it. Cook for two more minutes, or until soft.
6. Remove from heat, and chop into smaller pieces.
7. Take corn off the cobs, placing the loose kernels into a large bowl.
8. Add tomatoes, shallots and grilled radicchio to bowl. Toss, gently pulling the radicchio leaves apart.
9. Sprinkle shredded frisee on top of mix.
10. Finish with a little olive oil, salt and pepper.

Avocado and Tomato Salad

Ingredients:

• 2 large avocados, cut into chunks, skin and pit removed
• 4 tomatoes (I used Roma, but love Heirlooms the best)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 lemon, juiced
• Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

1. In a large bowl, combine tomatoes and avocados with salt and pepper.
2. Whisk together the oil and lemon juice in a small bowl.
3. Pour the dressing over the tomatoes and avocados, stir gently to coat all ingredients and add a final grind of fresh black pepper on top.