Off The Counter: Empanadas

Once a year Alex and I take on the [somewhat] difficult task of preparing empanadas.  It inevitably turns out to be an all day affair, but one well worth the time and effort.    Using a dough recipe found in the book The Useful Pig and a filling from a 1999 issue of Food And Wine we've perfected this Argentine delight and made it our own.  Take a look:

If you're up for trying these yummy meat pies, but would like a short cut, Goya makes Empanada dough shells.  Be sure to prepare a lot, these tasty pockets are great for freezing!

The Useful Pig Sour Cream Dough recipe:

2 cups sifted flour, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1 stick of butter cut into small pieces and 1/2 cup of sour cream.

Combine the flour, salt and butter in a food processor or by hand.  Cut the butter into the flour mix until texture resembles coarse meal, then add the sour cream and mix until the dough is smooth and blended.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes or until ready to use.

Filling can be found here. 

Buen provecho!

Off The Counter: Post Holiday Salad

This week's Off The Counter features 3 of my favorite salad ingredients:  fennel, citrus and kalamata olives.  Combining them results in a refreshingly light salad that splendidly balances hearty winter meals.  Using locally harvested honey and fresh pressed olive oil (both Christmas presents given to us by Alex's West coast cousins), I created a dressing that's both mildly sweet and acidic.  Ingredients and instructions below:

Ingredients:

Blood oranges, grapefruit, fennel, kalamata olives, fresh squeezed blood orange juice, honey, olive oil, salt and pepper.

Instructions:

Thinly slice the fennel, peeled grapefruit and blood orange.  Arrange them on a platter and toss a handful of olives on top.  In a bowl, add olive oil and fresh squeezed blood orange juice.  Whisk in honey to desired sweetness.  Drizzle on top of salad, add salt and pepper to taste.

Many thanks to VK and AK for sharing some of nature's finest gifts with us this season.

What are your favorite salad ingredients?

Off The Counter: The Breville Juicer

This week's Off The Counter is inspired by the juicer that my husband gave me for Christmas.  Having always loved fresh carrot juice and craving it lately, I thought that having it readily available would be great for all of us, kids and adults alike.  I must confess not everyone is enjoying it as much as I am.  Regardless,  I continue to experiment with different ingredients.  Yesterday I blended carrots, celery and ginger root that resulted in a juice that was both sweet and spicy, not to mention super healthy.   My children are loving the mechanics of the juicer.  Now, if only I could get them to drink the darn juice!

In the past I've tried other juicers, but this one is by far the quietest and easiest to clean.   If you own a juicer, I'd love to hear about your favorite juicy combinations.  If you don't,  I strongly recommend you invest in the Breville juicer [here].

Thank you Alex!

Off The Counter: Pickled Veggies and Bloody Marys

This week's Off The Counter is inspired by a pickled veggie recipe my husband, Alex, found in Food & Wine Magazine.  We purposely prepared this Fall Vegetable Giardiniera to garnish Bloody Marys, but these assorted veggies also complemented cheesy baguettes and  garnished salads throughout the holiday week.  I loved having them available and we're already planning our next pickling extravaganza.  Take a look:

The Fall Vegetable Giardiniera recipe can be found here: 

Alex's Pickled Veggie Bloody Mary Recipe: 

Add the following to a shaker:

Ice, 30z Vodka, splash of giardiniera, ground pepper, pinch of salt, fresh grated horseradish,  sriracha (if you prefer yours on the spicy side) and a little juice of a lemon and a lime.  Top off with Clamato or Beefamato.

Shake and pour into a tall glass with pickled veggies (serves two--or one if you're a lush).  Cheers!!

Off The Counter: Red Lentil Soup

This week's Off The Counter is inspired by my current obsession with red lentils.  I recently found a great recipe on Pinterest that combined this high protein legume with chick peas, coconut milk and Indian spices resulting in a creamy and comforting winter soup.  Take a look at my interpretation of the recipe:

I followed all the instructions listed here but decided to substitute half of the required water amount with vegetable broth.

Let me know if you give this hearty soup a try.  You won't regret it...