Grated Beet and Carrot Salad with Pistachios and Feta

I love beets. But they are really messy and stain absolutely everything they come into contact with. They ruin clothes, manicures, dish towels and everything else in a 10 foot radius. The best way to cook with them is to be stark naked…which may not be ideal for a dinner party, but it’s perfect for the mom on maternity leave who is nursing 24/7.

Raw vegetables scream summer. This simple salad consists of raw beets and carrots mixed with a bit of arugula or other greens, nuts and some feta. I have also made it with a dollop of hummus instead of feta. Dress with oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. I used white balsamic which is my new favorite.

I didn’t ruin any of my clothes this time around but Annecy’s white onsies now have what look like bloody finger prints all over them. Creepy. But it’s a really good salad!

Tunisian Fish Cakes with Lemon and Paprika Aïoli

Annecy has arrived. Cooking has not come to a total standstill like it did with Xavier’s arrival, but meals have been very basic these past two weeks. Theo swooped in last night to liven things up with Tunisian fish cakes. Armed with bushels of cilantro and parsley, lemons and fresh fish, he quite quickly whipped up about 30 fish cakes.

Initially I was nervous about fish cakes for multiple reasons that stem from my deep-rooted suspicion of all seafood besides the harmless (and dull) white filet. This is a result of growing up with a father who ate oily, stinky bluefish for breakfast.  Additionally, anyone who has worked in a restaurant knows that fish cakes are often made out of fish that needs to get used up quickly. Making something into a cake with lots of spices and herbs can hide fish that has passed its prime. Recipes with ‘fish’ in the title as opposed to a specific kind of fish also freak me out. For example, fish stew sounds less appealing to me than roasted halibut. And finally, I wasn’t thrilled about the idea of fish in my food processor.

BUT, I trust Theo completely where food is concerned. This is a guy who has brought me fresh za’atar after all. And my fears were unwarranted. These were delicious.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Tunisian-Fish-Cakes-with-Lemon-and-Paprika-Aioli-107907?mbid=ipapp

Thank you Theo. Anybody else want to cook us dinner? ;)

Braised Eggplant, Pork and Enoki Mushrooms

I always enjoy eggplant in stir fry dishes but when I make it myself, it's always a bit chewy and underdone. I was recently drawn to this Mark Bittman recipe in the New York Times since braising the eggplant guarantees it will cook through.

It's a very easy weeknight recipe that involves minimal chopping and a short cooking time. The eggplant requires no preparation besides cutting it and enoki mushrooms tend to be easy to clean and pull apart.

http://www.nytimes.com/recipes/1014735/Braised-Eggplant-Pork-and-Mushrooms.html

Lamb, Grated Beets and Millet Meatballs

If you only own a few cookbooks, which I do, Nigel Slater's Tender should be one of them. It's not a vegetarian cookbook, but it's organized by vegetable. So if you have a vegetable, you can just look in the table of contents for dozens of recipe ideas. It's awesome.

Also awesome is his recipe for beet and lamb meatballs. It's a fantastic way to lighten and sweeten the ground lamb while packing in the nutrition found in beets. I followed his recipe fairly closely but substituted millet for the cracked wheat and cilantro for parsley.

Mix together approximately 14 ounces of ground lamb and 10 ounces of grated beets. Add one grated onion, 3 crushed garlic cloves and 3 tablespoons of herbs (parsley, dill, cilantro or whatever sounds good to you). Add approximately half a cup of cracked wheat or millet. Mix it all together with salt and pepper. Form into around 16 small patties and chill for one hour.

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly fry each meatball on each side until brown and then transfer to a baking sheet. Cook for 15-20 minutes in the oven. You'll have to try one to see if they are done as they stay a gorgeous color red even when cooked.
                                                    

Chickpea Flour Fritters with Spinach, Red Onion and Potatoes

I have been having fritter envy lately. It started with Smitten Kitchen’s post about cauliflower and feta fritters with pomegranate that people have been raving about lately. They look awesome! Unfortunately, most fritters contain the still-banned flour, eggs, cheese or all of the above. Sigh. Refusing to give up, I did a bit of research and…Indian pakoras to the rescue!

http://fortheloveofyum.wordpress.com/2010/04/19/pakoras-chickpea-flour-fritters-with-spinach-red-onion-and-potatoes/

These fried snacks are made with very thinly sliced red onions and potatoes, spinach and are packed with fresh spices. They hold together well and are easy to flip…especially if you are liberal with the oil. I’m becoming increasingly convinced that chickpea flour is the solution to all the world’s problems…or at least my cravings!

Chicken Thighs Glazed with Lemon and Kalamata Olives

Chicken breasts are rarely very good. While ubiquitous on everything from Caesar salads to sandwiches, they are often tasteless and dry. They make for terrible leftovers since heating them up tends to dry them out even more. They are also expensive. Chicken thighs, however, have much more flavor and just enough fat to keep them tender and juicy when grilled, sautéed or thrown into curries. And they are much cheaper!

Last night I made this simple chicken recipe for fellow salt-lover Amie J. It’s a delicious combination of lemons, Kalamata olives, tarragon and capers that comes together quickly and is packed with flavor. I used chickpea flour instead of regular flour and regular lemons.

http://food52.com/recipes/9387-chicken-thighs-glazed-with-meyer-lemon-and-kalamata-olives

Double the recipe. Chicken thighs make great leftovers!

Turkey Meatballs with Zucchini, Green Onions and Sumac

Meatballs don’t need breadcrumbs or eggs. It’s official. I have made two of Ottolenghi’s versions and neither one required breadcrumbs as a filler. His lamb kofta recipe that I wrote up here relies on crushed pine nuts to hold them together. I recently made his turkey meatballs with grated zucchini and green onions and substituted the three eggs for flax seed with no issues. (One tablespoon of ground flaxseed with about 2 tablespoons of water equals one egg).

Breadcrumbs and eggs aside, these flavorful meatballs are awesome. And any recipe that simply says, ‘combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl’ immediately earns points in my book.  Since I wasn’t making the accompanying yogurt sauce (no substitute found for that yet!), I just added the sumac into the turkey mixture so I wouldn’t miss out on that flavor. All that’s left to do after mixing together all the ingredients is to pan sear them and throw them in the oven for 8 minutes.

http://www.eatlivetravelwrite.com/2013/02/les-petits-chefs-cook-the-books-jerusalem/

I doubled the recipe as these little patties travel well and make for great lunches for a few days. They are so packed with flavor that you can serve them with a simple grain and sautéed vegetable to give your taste buds a rest between bites.