Roasted Cauliflower and Almond Salad

It's an ongoing challenge between me and cauliflower!

I've said before that cauliflower is not my favorite vegetable (details here and here).

You will say: why do you keep buying it when there are many other vegetables available?

I don't know exactly.

But the good thing is that, when I buy it, I am somehow forced to be more creative than I would be with other vegetables that are more appetizing - at least for me - by nature, like carrots, tomatoes, zucchini, and others that can even be eaten as they are or just cooked in a simple way.

The result is that I've been trying many different recipes with cauliflower, some of which really nice (have a look at this link for cauliflower recipes)..

And I'm glad to share them in case you readers have with this vegetable the same controversial relation as me.

Beetroot and purslane salad with orange dressing

Unfortunately at this time of the year it is quite difficult to find fresh beetroots to cook from scratch.
In fact they are harvested between the end of summer and the beginning of autumn and then kept for the rest of the year (somehow like potatoes). Yesterday for example I found some fresh beets at the supermarket, but they do not have the greens on and are not as juicy as the fresh ones.
And, in any case, if you are craving beetroots when the season is over, you can always use the pre-cooked ones (sold in vacuum-sealed packages): not the same taste and versatility of the fresh ones, but still palatable.

I can't deny that I love beetroots really much; in fact at the moment it is probably one of the vegetables with more recipes on the blog  (check this link for viewing them).

Grilled pepper salad with capers, olives and lemon

When summer arrives and temperatures start to rise (even though, honestly, where I live temperatures are pretty high all over the year) we all prefer light and refreshing food, and also do not want to spend much time in the kitchen cooking and cleaning. Salads are a perfect solution for summer lunches and dinners: they can be served as a starter, as a side dish or even as a complete meal just by mixing up a balanced combination of tasty and nutritious ingredients.

And also salads do not necessarily have to be made with greens and leaves: many vegetables, raw and/or cooked, make great salads, with just few additional matching ingredients and the right dressing.
Like in the case of this grilled peppers salad with capers, olives and lemon, a tribute to Mediterranean colors and flavors. Quick and easy to prepare, it will make a good impression in several occasions: it can be a tasty solution for a family lunch along with some mozzarella or another fresh cheese and some bread to soak up all its tasty juices, and will be perfect also as a side dish for grilled meat or fish; but it will also go well in a spread of appetizers in a more formal dinner. As it keeps well, you can bring it with you in your lunch-box as well as for a picnic or a lunch on the beach. And if you have some leftover, use to make a rustic sandwich with sourdough bread (or another firm and crusty bread) and a slice of cheese (like scamorza or a fresh pecorino cheese).

Panzanella (Tuscan bread and tomato salad)

I always love trying new dishes and recipes, making variations on familiar ones, experimenting with ingredients, spices and techniques. But there are some traditional recipes that I consider almost perfect in their original, classical version and that I therefore like to make without any particular innovation or personal addition. And panzanella belongs with honor to this group.

Panzanella is a recipe from the Italian region of Tuscany; even if it can be found with small local and/or family variations all across the region and even in other Italian areas, the main ingredient for this recipe is stale bread soaked in water or in a mix of water and vinegar.  In fact panzanella is one of those recipes born out of necessity as a way to use old bread and make it appetizing with the addition of fresh vegetables and extra virgin olive oil.

Like many other traditional recipes, panzanella's origins are not totally clear, but are for sure centuries old and probably date back to the Middle Ages.

Some legends say it's a dish of rural tradition created by peasants mixing old bread (at that time bread was baked only once a week or less) and the veggies available in the field; others believe that it comes from the custom of old mariners from Tuscany and Liguria to soak their bread (which was dried to keep during their long travels across the sea) in sea water before seasoning and eating with their meals.

Beetroot and aubergine "fattoush" salad

This beetroot and aubergine "fattoush"is my favorite salad lately. 

Since the first time I prepared it, few weeks ago, I have been making again and again without getting bored of it. Actually each time I made it, I tried to refine the initial recipe with some variations until I finally found the "perfect" combination of ingredients, at least for my taste.

But, to be honest, this is not a recipe that I have developed totally by myself. In fact it was during a cooking demo - held at Bloomie's Kitchen by Troy Payne, head chef at Cle restaurant - that I had the chance to know and try for the first time the recipe, and actually loved it at the first taste.

Chef Troy described the recipe as his personal take on the fattoush salad, one of the most popular and prepared Middle Eastern dish; and also a way to make more appetizing two vegetables, aubergine and beetroot, that he personally doesn't rave about.

With this introduction, and considering the fact that, on the contrary, I love both aubergines and beets, as well as fattoush indeed, I couldn't not to like this salad!

Fennel, feta and pomegranate salad

Fennel is a vegetable that I like but don't buy and prepare very often because it's not much appreciated by the rest of the family: my son eats very few types of vegetables - excluding potato, or better fries, I would say he has only cucumbers, tomatoes (preferably on pasta as a sauce) and not much more - while my husband, who is a vegetables lover, prefers anyway other varieties.
In spite of this, especially when it's in season (by the way now at the Farmers Market it's still possible to find some good fennel), I buy it once in a while. Because, even if I know several persons who do not like fennel - I don't know, maybe it's a coincidence - I appreciate its aromatic, lightly sweet taste as well as the crunchy texture: to preserve both characteristics I like it steamed for few minutes, just until the color begins to change, and served just with extra virgin olive oil.
But it is also good raw in salads, finely sliced or chopped, in soups, or roasted, sauteed, baked as a side dish; and it is also delicious when combined with other ingredients to make more complex, rich and nutritious dishes, like savory pies and tarts, or baked gratin (in a popular Italian recipe boiled fennel are baked with bechamel, parmigiano or another grated cheese and, optionally, prosciutto or ham), or stuffed veggies with meat or cheese, or even battered and deep-fried.
The recipes I prefer are anyway those in which fennel is not cooked for a long time or overwhelmed by other ingredients or condiments; in particular I like the combination with ingredients able to enhance and complement to fennel peculiar flavor.

Camargue red rice and quinoa with orange, dried apricots and pistachios

Being Italian, I am probably expected to eat more pasta than I actually do. In fact, like it's true that pasta is the most universally renowned Italian food (only pizza is maybe as popular as pasta), so it is also true that the average lunch of the average Italian family usually includes a plate of pasta. 

This being the reality, I have to admit that I am quite peculiar to be Italian as I actually don't eat pasta so often. But don't get me wrong! I do like pasta very much, and I think it is a really wonderful creation of the Italian cuisine: it's so versatile that it can be transformed into a last minute dinner as well as into a sophisticated dish, resulting always tasty and satisfying. The fact is that I get bored: even changing the shape and / or the sauce, to me pasta is pasta (like it would be rice or fish or meat or chicken or anything else eaten every day). I enjoy it much more if I have once in a while (let's say once a week, maybe twice, three times start to be too much). I eat pasta more often - that means almost every day, with few exceptions - only when I visit my family, or my husband's, and have my meals at home with them. And then I usually get bored of pasta ...

What I like to do at home is on one side making always different and new recipes, on the other having different types of dishes during the week, especially at dinner (for lunch I am fine with a salad): this way we have something different every day and always prepared using different ingredients and recipes. It's funny but, excluding some recipes that I particularly love or that I make particularly well, as a result of this habit of mine there are some recipes that I made only once - that is actually a shame for certain lovely dishes, which would deserve to be made again! Also I have to admit to be lucky as my husband is very open to try anything new and different and appreciate my love for experimenting in the kitchen (even if he probably would appreciate more experiments on pasta...); and also never complains when something doesn't come out so appetizing as I wished. 

All this confession of mine is a justification - mostly to myself - for not sharing (yet) a recipe for pasta but for an alternative to pasta, a really good one though: a combination of red rice and quinoa, mixed with caramelized onions, dried apricots, toasted pistachios, rocket and orange zest, in a olive oil, orange and lemon juice dressing.

Pumpkin and beetroot salad with goat cheese

I like to create recipes and do it very often - if "create" may sounds an overstatement, let's say that I often cook without following any recipe; and this happens in most cases with fresh foods, mainly vegetables but also fish, that I buy prompted by their freshness and appearance or just by inspiration rather than the idea of making a specific recipe. And this is something I really enjoy, a bit challenging but much satisfying: I love to find good combinations of ingredients, flavors and textures, to choose the best cooking technique, to add spices and herbs, to experiment something new or different, and finally to make a nice presentation. And what a personal great satisfaction when the dish comes out so good that I wish to make it again! But in this cases, it is important to write down the recipe as soon possible, in order to take note of both ingredients (and possibly the exact amount used) and preparation steps. In fact I know from previous experiences that, if I like something I make, I'd better take note soon because it is much likely that the same, or at least a quite similar, good result won't come out again. And this is what I did with this salad, made few days ago - my Instagram followers have already seen the picture - when I was alone for dinner (husband traveling) but wanted anyway make something appetizing, not too complicated (not worth spending too much time in the kitchen for feeding just one person) and with plenty of vegetables (as I can't live without a huge portion of veggies every single day). I had a nice butternut squash, few beetroots and a bunch of baby spinach bought last Friday at the Farmer Market on the Terrace that I wanted to use. 

Seafood, fennel and lime salad

I have previously said (see my post here) that "Ottolenghi The Cookbook" is my favorite cookbook at the moment. I have already tried several recipes and many others are in the pipeline.
Among the recipes I have already made- all very appreciated actually - this Seafood, fennel and lime salad is so far one of my favorite; I'll prepare it again and again, both for family meals and dinners with friends (future guests, be prepared to taste it sooner or later!).
When I first read this recipe in the book, I loved it immediately as it reminds me one of my favorite Italian seafood appetizers, insalata di mare (seafood salad), a simple dish of usually steamed or poached seafood (any type of fish can be used, but a seafood salad usually has prawns or shrimps and squids, and sometimes shellfish, scallops and/or other firm fish) that can come in several variants; the basic version is made dressing the seafood only with extra-virgin olive oil and lemon juice, but it is possible to add many other ingredients in order to have different combinations of flavors and textures: capers, olives, citrus zests, raw or cooked vegetables (celery is commonly used in Italy, but also zucchini, carrots, cherry tomatoes, steamed potatoes, sun-dried tomatoes work well), herbs (parsley is the most popular) and spices ... the range of possible combinations is almost infinite.  Also it can be served warm or at room temperature.