Archive | 2008

Food for Love – Goat Cheese and Almond Pasta

14 Feb

It’s Valentine’s Day – the day to celebrate everything and anything romantic…  so why not celebrate by cooking something to stir all your senses, including that aphrodisiac part of you.  Reading about aphrodisiac foods, I was amazed to learn how many of them I have in my pantry and fridge:

Almonds
Sweet Basil
Avocados
Arugula 
Bananas
Strawberries and Raspberries
Nutmeg

So I decided to make something that will contribute to the loving theme of the day using almonds and sweet basil…  I adapted this dish from a Martha Stewart Living magazine.  Enjoy!!

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GOAT CHEESE AND ALMOND PASTA

1/4 lbs whole wheat pasta -penne, rigatoni or any other tubular pasta would work
Small handful sun-dried tomatoes – the dry ones… not the ones packed in oil
1/3 small log of goat cheese
Small handful toasted almonds – I used marcona almonds
About 10 Fresh Basil leaves, torn or cut in strips
Salt and Pepper to taste
Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
  1.  Boil pasta in salted water until al dente.  During the last 3 minutes of boiling the pasta, throw in the sun dried tomatoes to rehydrate.
  2. Drain the pasta well, reserving some of the pasta cooking water.  Return pasta to the pot.
  3. Drizzle pasta with a bit of olive oil.  Add goat cheese in small pieces, basil leaves, pepper and almonds.  Add a bit of the pasta water to create a sauce.  Toss to combine.  Add more water if you feel it’s too dry.
  4. Garnish with added almonds on top. 

There are other several recipes I have created for you already that might help you to create romance any day you are in the mood:

Coquito – Nutmeg

Pasta with Marinated Tomatoes – Basil

Arugula-Red Onion Salad – Arugula

Quesadilla Caprese – Basil

Strawberry Banana Smoothie – Strawberries and Bananas

Strawberry Kanten – Strawberry

Baked Pasta and 4 Cheeses – Basil

White Lasagna with Spinach and Almonds – Nutmeg and Almonds

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Vanilla Powder

11 Feb

Vanilla – one of the most versatile spices there are…  it works in desserts, beverages, milkshakes, side dishes, main dishes…  I use it all the time. 

A few years ago it was brought to my attention that most vanilla extracts are mostly made with alcohol, and in the yoga center I attend and cook for some times a month, we are not supposed to use anything with alcohol as an ingredient.  So, we need to buy some alcohol-free vanilla syrups or some locally made vanilla extracts, which many times are difficult to find.  I have used fresh vanilla pods, but I can’t find them here in Puerto Rico easily… I have to buy them when I travel to the US or online, when I can find a provider that will ship here… 

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But last year I found this great product – VANILLA POWDER.  Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Powder from Nielsen-Massey .  It’s a sugar-free and alcohol-free dry product which can replace vanilla extract in any recipe.  It extracts the essence of vanilla beans and is infused in a natural, dry base.  And the smell is…  AMAZINGLY DELICIOUS!!!!!!

I bought my initial bottle in Indiana, when I visited my sister last year… but I was very pleasantly surprised to find it now in the spices section of my local Freshmart supermarket.

To me, this powder is far superior than any McCormick product out there… go out and look for it.  You’ll never go back to alcohol-based or vanilla flavored products.  Mark my words…

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Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Onions

11 Feb

This is one of the recipes I did in our last Yoga Center Menu for February.

 I just wanted a sweet counterpoint to the savory lasagna and other veggies, without recurring to my trusted ripe plantains…  They’re sweet but savory at the same time and loaded with beta carotene.  I made this recipe using 10lbs of sweet potatoes… and fed about 20 people.  You can definitely adjust to feed your smaller crowd.

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ROASTED SWEET POTATOES WITH ONIONS

1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1″ cubes
1 large onion, sliced
Salt and Pepper to taste
Garlic salt, optional
Olive oil to coat
  1. Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees F. 
  2. In a baking sheet or roasting pan, place sweet potato pieces and onion slices.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Drizzle with olive oil.  Toss with your hands, until all pieces are coated with oil and seasonings.
  3. Roast in oven for 40-45 minutes, moving sweet potatoes around about halftime.
  4. Check the sweet potatoes for doneness before removing from oven.

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Quesadilla Caprese

7 Feb

I love Caprese salads… fresh mozzarella cheese, tomatoes and fresh basil drizzled with extra virgin olive oil. Mmmmm!!! So when Rachael Ray proposed in one of her shows to make quesadillas with an Italian twist, I was all eyes and ears.   

I tried this one night I wanted a quick dinner…  this Quesadilla Caprese works great alone or accompanied with a salad.  As an appetizer or as lunch or light supper.  The fresh mozzarella is very watery and oozes a bit when you’re making it, but the flavor is amazing.

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QUESADILLA CAPRESE

1 whole wheat tortilla
4-5 fresh mozzarella slices
3 tomato slices
4-5 fresh basil leaves
Extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste
  1. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brush some olive oil. 
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  3. Place whole wheat tortilla to warm up.  Flip over to the other side.
  4. Place 1/2 of the mozzarella slices, tomatoes, sprinkle salt and pepper, place basil leaves and the remaining mozzarella slices.  You need cheese next to the tortilla side to act as the “glue” that will keep the quesadilla closed and together.

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 5.  Press down with a spatula.  Some of the moisture of the cheese will ooze out.  Don’t worry, keep the skillet warm enough and the tortilla will not wilt.  Actually it helps to build some crust on the outside rim.  Flip it a few times to get the cheese well melted on both sides.

6.  Dress with a additional drizzle of olive oil.

Try it… it’s awesome.

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The Best Spanish Olive Oil

5 Feb

This past Summer I spent a little over 2 weeks in Spain.  I visited Madrid, Pamplona, Zaragoza, San Sebastian, Barcelona, among others.  Near Barcelona, we visited this little town called Villafranca del Penedés.  It was a must we visited this town, as my friend Walter’s family is originally from there.  The proof – there was a street named after him… it was amazing.

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But what I never thought I would find in Villafranca was one of the best extra virgin olive oils I have ever tasted.  As part of a tour to Villafranca and Montserrat, we visited the Bodegas Torres.  I was afraid this was going to be one of those tourist traps… but the local winery, well known for their Sangre de Toro wine and one of my dad’s favorite red wines, as a real surprising treat.   Besides the winery, Bodegas Torres has a gastronomy division named Torre Real which, among other things, makes olive oil made from Arbequina olives.  According to information I have read since then… Arbequina olives are the “crème de la crème” as Spanish olives is concerned.

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I brought back a bottle of this wonderful olive oil… and now, no other olive oil stands next to it.  I ration it so that I can enjoy it as long as I can…

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To me, it’s the perfect olive oil to dress a salad, to dip great crusty bread or to drizzle over a soup or pasta as a finishing touch.  And the most amazing thing – this olive oil only cost me 5 Euros.  Not bad for such high quality.  They also make white and red wine vinegars.  I have not tried the vinegar yet – I have like 7 open vinegar bottles, so I would like to decrease that inventory before I open a new now.

I good friend from high school lives in Barcelona now and I have asked her to please bring me 3-4 bottles of the Arbequina olive oil when she comes to Puerto Rico in the next few weeks.  If you have access to this wonderful product, I urge you to try it.

Do you have any favorite olive oil?? Tell me all about it.

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