Tahini Sauce for Vegetables & Pilafs

(I'm no longer posting on this blog - enjoy the recipe but if you want to see what I'm up to, visit me here.)

Sometimes I get really sick of eating my veggies in the same old ways: salads with vinaigrette, crudites (have I told you how much I hate that word?) with hummus, or just plain. I love my veggies and I eat lots of them but sometimes I want them to taste like they're terrible for me! I want them to taste indulgent! Taste like they could be drenched in butter or covered in cheese and bacon! . . .But I don't really want to cover them in any of those things so I make a sesame tahini based dipping sauce to use when I have that urge.

No, it's not diet food. I'd be lying if I told you it was low calorie but it's still healthy. Tahini, the main ingredient here is made from sesame seeds which are pretty fatty. However, the fat in Tahini is the monounsaturated kind, the good fat, and it's also loaded with calcium, magnesium and iron. So you can enjoy all the deliciousness of tahini without feeling bad (provided you don't sit down and eat it with a spoon!).

Try this sauce on raw veggies, steamed veggies, roasted veggies, as a salad dressing or stir into pilafs, and other grain dishes that need a little boost. It's rich, sweet, garlicky and creamy all at the same time. Let me know what you think!

Ingredients

1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup water
2 cloves of minced garlic
1 teaspoon honey
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

This is the most complicated recipe ever. I had to warn you. It will take all day to make so make sure you set aside 8-10 hours to prepare it. HAHA. Just kidding. Toss everything into a bowl and wwhisk until well blended. Serve. Yum!

I'm heading off to Cape Cod until Tuesday so don't expect any posts from me until after that! I actually have the whole week off (yay!) but have family coming to visit from AZ so I'm not sure how much time I'll have online. It won't kill me to get away from the computer for a few days . . .

All text and photographs (except where noted otherwise) © 2008, 2009 Food is to love / Andrea Quigley

Strawberry, Red Onion, and Baby Spinach Salad with Poppy Seed Dresing

(I'm no longer posting on this blog - enjoy the recipe but if you want to see what I'm up to, visit me here.)

Still recovering from Nashville, haha! Posting, cleaning house and everything else has been put on the back burner. Luckily, I slept in quite late today and am feeling so much better. I was a zombie at work all week. I just can't party and not sleep at 31, like I could at 21. ha!

Anyhow, are you sick of salads yet? Not me! I ate like a bear preparing to hibernate all winter long (and for some of the spring!) so I'm all about eating more of my veggies and less of the heavy stuff (but watch, next week I'll post something incredibly fattening-it's just my nature so roll with it). Trying to shed the pounds I've gained and increase my energy and I find that eating a variety of salads helps me do that.

A couple of years ago, a woman named Sandra that I waitressed with had made a big salad with strawberries and poppy seed dressing and brought it into work. She had so much of it that she insisted I take some home and try it. At the time, I wasn't a big fan of fruit in my salads so I was a little hesitant but of course that has changed, and I was actually delighted with the combination. So I haven't talked to Sandra in awhile (which reminds me, I totally owe her a call! I'm so bad with returning phone calls!), I do make a similar strawberry and poppy seed dressing salad now and it makes me think of her every time.

This salad will only take you about 10 minutes to make but the dressing definitely tastes better and has more flavor if you let it sit in the fridge for an hour or two. I recommend making it the day before it you can-but it certainly isn't necessary!

Ingredients

For the salad

1 lb of fresh strawberries, washed, hulled & sliced
1 medium sized red onion, quartered & sliced*
7-8 oz of washed baby spinach

For the poppy seed dressing

3 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon of light mayo
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar
2 tablespoons finely chopped onion *
3 teaspoons poppy seeds
1 teaspoon of dried parsley or 1 tablespoon fresh
kosher salt to taste
a few dashes of garlic powder**
1/2 cup olive oil

*You can reserve one of the quarters of red onion and finely dice it to be used in the dressing.*

Place the baby spinach, red onion and strawberries in a large bowl or serving dish. In a medium sized bowl, add all dressing ingredients except for olive oil and whisk together. ** I used garlic powder here, rather than real garlic because I don't want a strong garlic presence in this dressing. Raw garlic would probably overpower the dressing. I like garlic in almost everything but I know there are others who don't!** When the dressing starts to combine, slowly whisk in the olive oil until well blended. (Feel free to do this in a blender or food processor too!). Pour desired amount of dressing over the spinach, strawberries and onion and toss until the dressing is worked through.

Voila, you are ready to serve! I like to add some raw almonds and bean sprouts and eat it for lunch or bbq some boneless chicken breasts and serve for dinner. Yum!

Well, I'm working at the restaurant tonight (last scheduled shift actually! decided to finally give it up after 11+ years of it. My weekends will be all MINE now!) and then the rest of the weekend is open. J is in Jersey visiting the fam and dropping little bro off at Princeton for a summer work/study program (smart kid!) so I'll probably spend sunday on a bike ride and doing things around the house. Happy Saturday folks!

All text and photographs (except where noted otherwise) © 2008, 2009 Food is to love / Andrea Quigley