My kitchen is now functioning! I have the cabinets, counters, sink and all the appliances in and running. However, we are still doing the tiles and the cabinet trim so it is still a construction zone. While I am cooking, I am keeping it simple as I must share space with my husband who is measuring and fitting the trim to the cabinets.
So I am keeping things simple! Still I thought there may be
someone out there who would like some simple recipes for summer. It has been so
hot that we have not wanted heavy meals and I am just so happy to be preparing
our dinners at home because we are getting more fresh vegetables! We made a simple
supper this week on a ridiculously hot day. I decided on a salad and a nice
little dessert of wine and vanilla poached pears.
For our salad, I wanted to use some of the beautiful
strawberries I had along with baby spinach.
Spinach, Strawberry and Toasted Almond Salad
I really don’t measure the salad ingredients. It is a couple
handfuls of spinach per person and a generous sprinkle of strawberries with a
smattering of almonds. But it was approximately:
8 oz of
spinach
6 oz of
strawberries
1/2 cup
sliced or slivered almonds
Sweet balsamic
vinaigrette to taste
Wash
spinach, even if it is bagged and “washed”
Clean
and slice strawberries
Toast
almonds in 350 oven for about 5-7 minutes until just starting to brown.
Place
spinach in large bowl and mix in a
little vinaigrette. Taste and add a little more as needed. You can put the
extra in a bottle on the table. Gently
mix in strawberries. Plate salad and sprinkle with almonds. Serve.
Sweet Balsamic Vinaigrette
2 parts balsamic vinegar- like raspberry
balsamic ( I usually use 4 TBSPN)
1 part
sugar, agave or honey ( I usually use 2 TBSPN)
Pinch of
salt
1 part
light olive oil ( I usually use 2 TBSPN)
And for
dessert…
I love
desserts made with fruit. This one is simple yet so flavorful. You can choose
to top this with a nice scoop of ice cream. Or, for a lower calorie treat, use
less sugar and serve the pears on their own without ice cream.
Since
this batch is for a family week night meal, I made it kind of rustic with a bit
of skin left on. I also opted to keep it easy but halving pears rather than keeping
them whole. Whole pears look nicer but these were fine for tonight.
Pears poached in sweet wine with vanilla
About 4
pears ( either one pear per person or half per person)
About 4 cups sweet white wine such as Moscato or Riesling
About ½
cup water
About ¾
cup brown or white sugar*
1 ½ tsp
vanilla extract
1
cinnamon stick
*I like the flavor of brown sugar but white looks nice
For whole pears, peel and core most of middle from the
bottom of the pear. For halves, peel, cut
and core.
Place the wine, water, sugar, vanilla and cinnamon stick in
late pot and bring to boil. Boil for 4 minutes, stirring a couple times.
Lower heat and add pears, simmering. Spoon sauce over pears
every few minutes. Simmer for about 20 to 30 minutes until pears are tender but
not overly mushy or falling apart.
Remove pears to serving bowls and increase heat, bringing
sauce to a boil. Keep on a low boil for 20 minutes. Cool for a couple minutes
and then spoon over pears and top with a scoop of ice cream.
What a very elegant dish - sophisticated flavors but not so much to become overcomplicated or dissuade less adventurous eaters. Really well done!
ReplyDeleteWell thank you very much. The recipes on your blog are wonderful! I look forward to trying them.
DeleteOh my goodness! You are so amazing! Everything you make sounds delicious. I really love that salad though. I'd like to try making it. Yum!
ReplyDeleteI am glad you like it :-)
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