Strawberry Muffins, Crisp and Dressing, Oh My!

The Hangry Foodasaurus herself!  2012

Hangry Foodasaurus, June 2012

  

           Hangry Foodasaurus, June 2012

There is nothing better than fresh, local produce!  I love the summer and all it has to offer.  This past weekend my husband and I went strawberry-picking at Red Fire Farm in Western, MA.  For the second year in a row we have our CSA here and this was our first visit to the farm.  It was a little adventure for us to get out of the city,  plus an experiment to see how long I could last in the car (at 28 weeks pregnant).  We rented a Zipcar for the day and headed out to the Pick Your Own patch in Granby, MA.  It was so beautiful to see rolling hills, hear frogs and peepers and see barn swallows swooping over the fields.  We could hear a baseball game nearby and the fresh air and breeze were incredibly therapeutic to us.  We were so used to our surroundings as children growing up around Pittsburgh, PA and living for 6 years in Ithaca, NY where open land and nature surrounded us.  We were excited to move to a city (Cambridge in 2010) but the glamour has worn off and we really realized how much we missed the farms and fresh air!  We still love cities, but we feel like someday we need to settle in a more wooded community :)


My plan was to take it easy and not overdo it, but as soon as I got in the fields I couldn't help but get into my Yoga squat position and pick away!  8 quarts of strawberries later my fingers were berry-stained and we were happily sweaty and satisfied with our goodies.


On the way home, with the strawberry scent wafting in the breeze, I began to dream up ideas for what to do with all of our booty.  I certainly was too tired to deal with them on Saturday, so we stored them in the fridge (unwashed) in open colanders to preserve freshness as much as possible.


On Sunday I was a baking machine making strawberry wheat muffins, strawberry crisp with almond crunch topping and strawberry-poppyseed salad dressing.  Not to mention having strawberries on granola, cereal, in fruit salad drizzled with yogurt smoothie and of course, by the handful!  We also froze some to have on the ready for fruit smoothies.


For the Strawberry Crisp, I adapted the recipe from Eclectic Recipes blog http://eclecticrecipes.com/strawberry-rhubarb-crisp


I doubled the strawberries, didn't use rhubarb and lessened the brown sugar.  I also added coconut to the topping.

Hangry Foodasaurus, June 2012

The muffins were very easy.  I followed a recipe from Alida's Kitchen  almost exactly.  I used a little more yogurt and did less sugar than instructed.  I also sliced a strawberry to place on top of each muffin for a nice presentation effect.  












For a really tasty dressing, try this strawberry poppy seed dressing.  For the salad I used mixed greens, spinach, slivered almonds, raisins, strawberries, onions and kohlrabi.

Strawberry Poppy Seed Dressing

HF, June 2012

Agave nectar-small amount

2 teaspoons German mustard (any will work fine though)

1/2 tsp. salt

1/3 cup rice vinegar (or apple cider, red or white wine would be good)

2 Tablespoons Vidalia onion (red onion could work here)

8 fresh strawberries

1 T. water

3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (vegetable or canola would be OK)

2 tsp. poppy seed

Hangry Foodasaurus, June 2012

  

Throw all ingredients in the blender and puree.  Dressings are fun because you can mix and match ingredients that you prefer.  This dressing is a really pretty pink color when finished! 


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Colorful Salad with Golden Beets

Hangry Foodasaurus, May 2012

I am all about plating my food and making it look presentable.  Presentation is so important to me that even if I cut up apple slices with peanut butter for myself I can't help but arranging the slices in a radiating pattern with a dollop of peanut butter in the center.  I think things just taste better when you take them time to arrange them artfully.  Plus, it makes you more excited to eat it because it seems more special.

This simple and delicious salad is perfect for a light lunch or to go along with dinner.  It is particularly colorful (I love the purple/yellow combo) and even though it only has 5 ingredients it's packed with flavor.  You can have this a few days in a row if you plan ahead in advance.  It takes about one hour to roast the beets and 20 minutes to roast the onions, so take that into account.  What I like to do is roast beets and onions after dinner (or along with dinner) one night so they are ready for the next day.

You'll need:

1 bunch of organic golden beets (with stems)
1 large organic red onion
Organic mixed salad greens, arugula or baby spinach
Pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
Parmesan or Goat cheese
Salad dressing of your choice (I will give my staple dressing below)

Beets:
Remove tops and bottom root with a sharp knife.  Scrub beets thoroughly.  Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper and wrap each individual beet in foil.  Roast on 400 degrees F for about 50 minutes or until a fork can poke through with ease.  Allow to cool for about 10 minutes more before peeling and slicing.

(save the tops in a bag in your fridge and for later use--sauteed beet greens are mild and tasty.  I used mine in my quiche recipe)

Onions:
Peel and slice red onion, place on a roasting sheet with sides and drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper--notice the pattern ;)  Roast about 20 minutes on 400, or until the onions start to carmelize, but not burn. Use a spatula to turn them about halfway through.  Remove from pan and put in a bowl to cool.

Pepitas:
Toss pepitas onto a baking sheet and toast them until they are fragrant (keep checking because they burn quickly)!  I use the toaster oven but you can do this in an oven as well along with your onions and beets.  Remove from heat, toss and cool on baking sheet.

Hangry Foodasaurus Go-To Dressing:
4 teaspoons Dijon mustard
3-4 teaspoons of Cider or White vinegar
salt and pepper
Drizzle extra virgin olive oil into mix and stir vigorously until everything blends together into a golden yellow dressing.  Add more/less to taste of any of the ingredients.

If you aren't making the salad the same day, refrigerate the beets, onions and store seeds in an airtight container once cooled.

If you ARE making the salad, go ahead and plate up your washed greens, top with beet slices in a circular pattern, and display onions across the center.  Sprinkle with desired amount of goat cheese or Parmesan cheese and pepitas.  Drizzle with dressing and enjoy!  Serve with multigrain bread and some protein item of your choice.

Makes about 4 servings

Hearty Daily Granola

I honestly can't believe it's taken me this long to post one of my staple foods in the house:  granola!  I know, I know, being the "Earth People" that we are (term coined by my mother-in-law), it comes as no surprise that we eat granola every single morning with our breakfast.  And sometimes for a snack!

This winning recipe is the best because it's easy, fast and makes a large volume.  I've adapted it from a Bed & Breakfast on the San Juan Islands (off the coast of Washington State).  I haven't purposely omitted their name, I just forget!  If anyone knows the name of the B & B, please remind me and I'll give them credit!!  It's a gorgeous and rare escape only a quick ferry ride from Seattle.  In 2008, my wonderful friends Tessa and Dave were married there and part of her wedding favor for guests was this very granola!  She gave me the recipe because I loved it so much and we've been making it religiously ever since.

Hangry Foodasaurus, 2012

Here's what you need:

o   7 cups oats  (regular or steel cut or a mixture)

o   ½ cup brown sugar (you can always use a little less)

o   ½ cup olive oil (I used ¼ cup EVOO and ¼ cup coconut oil)

o   ½ tsp sea salt

Hangry Foodasaurus, 2012

o   ½ cup each of:

o   almonds

o   pecans (I omitted pecans, doubled up on other seeds/nuts)

o   walnuts

o   cashews

o   pepitas

o   sesame seeds (I omitted)

o   flax meal (I used whole flax seeds or sometimes omit altogether)

o   millet

o   oat bran

o   coconut

o   sunflower seeds

-¾ cup honey  (you can substitute maple syrup or a blend of both)

-1 T vanilla extract (I sometimes use almond extract)

-2 tsp cinnamon

You can also spruce it up by adding your favorite dried fruits or other grains!!  I tend to get the raw, unsalted and preferably organic versions of all the nuts and seeds.  Roasted nuts work too, but stick with the unsalted.

Mix everything together in a very large bowl.  Leave some clumps remaining.  Spread onto 2 large-sized flat baking sheets with sides.  Bake at 300 degrees F for 30 minutes.  I always put the racks towards the center and switch places with the two sheets on the shelves halfway through—stir at this point.  Allow to cool on baking sheets (it will continue to cook), stirring frequently until completely cooled.  Store in airtight containers in the fridge.  

Tip:  Once refrigerated it is trickier to break apart, so I always leave out the container that we're currently using and rotate through the refrigerated ones.  

Even though there's a ton, it goes quickly around our house, so I like to stock up for at least 2 batches worth when I go to the grocery store.  My favorite thing to do is top Greek yogurt with this granola and berries, mangoes or other fruit.  Also, amazing on its own with unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or your milk of choice).

Happy Crunching!