Tropical Fruit Salad

taste of the tropics...

It's the last day of April and the weather in Cincy is rainy and cold. I wish I was some where warmer and drier right now! Sadly, I don't have a vacation planned until the end of September and it's to no where tropical. This time last year I was gearing up for our family cruise to the Caribbean. In tribute to this warm memory (and in an effort to take my taste buds there) I've made this Tropical Fruit Salad.

This fruit salad is light and refreshing like so much of the tropics are and it's very different from those that I grew up eating. My mom makes a few different "Americanized" versions of fruit salad with things like apples, bananas, grapes, oranges, and usually Cool Whip! She also makes some gelatin fruit salads, not my favorite, but it's another type. One that we make and I really love is a Waldorf Salad, which is for special occasions. So, make your favorite fruit salad or try this tropical one tonight. Here's how to make it...

Ingredients - Serves 4-6
1 Mango
1/2 Pineapple
2 Kiwi Fruit
2-3 Sprigs Fresh Basil (~2 T)
1-2 Springs Fresh Mint (~1 T)
1 Lime, zest & juice
1 T Fresh Ginger, minced
2 T Blue Agave Nector
1/8 tsp. Cayenne Pepper
Garnish: Black Chia Seeds

Directions
Peel and dice the mango, pineapple, and kiwi to similar size. Chop the herbs together. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk the lime zest, juice, ginger, agave, and cayenne pepper together. Add the fruit and herbs. Stir and let stand for 10 mins. This allows the flavors to meld and the fruit juices to release.

To serve: Divide the mixture among bowls or cups and sprinkle with the black chia seeds. Close your eyes and taste the tropics. Enjoy!

Mexi-Cali Salad Bowls

easy peasy, lime squeezy

This quick Mexico-California fusion salad continues my spring salad rainbow series. I make this salad all the time. It's a great week night meal, if I'm cooking just for me, or have next to nothing in my refrigerator. We spent the weekend out of town with friends (and their new little girl Marilyn). So, I needed an easy dinner for tonight. This was just perfect.

This salad requires only 6 main ingredients: crushed blue corn chips, lettuce, onion, bell pepper, black beans, and cheese. But, it's so much better with spices and an array of toppings. I suggest chili powder, paprika, cumin, and garlic powder to spice things up. And, topping everything off with salsa, sour cream, sliced avocado, cilantro, hot sauce, and a lime. But, you can do whatever you want with this salad. That's one of the best things about it...the other is that it's delicious! Make this quick, easy, customizable, and tasty salad, here's how...

Ingredients - Serves 4
~ 2 C Blue Corn Chips, crushed
1-2 Heads Romain Lettuce, roughly chopped
1 T Canola Oil
1 Yellow Onion, thinly sliced
1 Red Bell Pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 T Chili Powder
1 tsp. Paprika
1 tsp. Ground Cumin
1/2 tsp. Garlic Powder
1 Can Low-Sodium Black Beans, rinsed & drained
1 C Shredded Mexican Blend Cheese
Toppings: Salsa, Sour Cream, Avocado, Cilantro, Hot Sauce, and/or Lime Slices

Directions
Make the salad bowls: In 4 large bowls, divide the crushed blue corn chips and chopped Romain lettuce evenly. Set aside.

Cook the veggies: In a medium skillet add 1 T oil. Heat over med-high until very hot. Carefully add the onions and pepper. Sauté until soft and the onion begins to brown, 6-8 minutes. Add in the spices and cook another minute. Add the black beans, reduce the heat to low, and warm through.

Top the bowls: Once the veggies are ready, top the prepared bowls evenly with the mixture. Add the cheese and any (or all) toppings desired. Enjoy!

Glenda Moore's Asian Coleslaw

spring salad season...

With spring comes lighter eating, preparing us for summer, sun, and fun. So, for this rainbow series I'll post 3 different salad type recipes. Each will pay homage to different ethnic cuisines and yield a fusion style recipe. Our first stop is Asia with an Asian Coleslaw from a family friend's kitchen.

This recipe was given to my mom by one of her friend's Glenda Moore. While I haven't followed her recipe to a "T", she still deserves the credit (I hope she doesn't mind I'm posting this for anyone to see) and praise. It's delicious and always a great alternative to traditional coleslaw. Plus it's super easy to make, can totally be made ahead, and transports easily. Get ready for summer sun and make this spring type salad. Here's how...

Ingredients - Serves 8-12
Dressing
1/2 C Peanut Oil
1 T Low Sodium Soy Sauce
1/4 C Red Wine Vinegar
3/4 C Granulated Sugar

Crunchy Stuff
4 T Unsalted Butter
1 C Sliced Almonds
1 Package Ramen Noodles (any flavor), crushed
1/4 C Sesame Seeds

Slaw
2 (10 oz.) Packages Broccoli (or regular) Slaw
6 Green Onions, sliced

Directions
This recipe can be made ahead. Just put the dressing, crunchy stuff, and slaw in separate containers. When ready to eat, mix together, and serve immediately.

Make the dressing: In a small bowl combine the oil, soy sauce, red wine vinegar, and sugar. Whisk to combine. Set aside. Note: You can substitute vegetable oil if you don't have peanut (or someone has an allergy).

Make the crunchy stuff: Melt the butter in a skillet. Add the almonds, crushed ramen, and sesame seeds. Toast until lightly browned. Set aside to cool. Note: It doesn't matter what flavor ramen you buy, the packet is discarded.

Make the slaw: Combine the broccoli slaw and onions in a large bowl. Add the dressing and crunchy stuff. Toss to mix well. Serve immediately. Enjoy!

Caramelized Shallot & Fig Jam

jam session...

I'm not sure if I can convince you that this is a dessert, but it is a sweet treat, and in France would be served along side cheeses and breads apres (after in French) dinner. So, I'm going to count it (my blog, my rules)! Now that we've gotten that out of the way let's talk about this pretty purple jam.

It's really quite a simple recipe, requiring only butter, shallots, figs, red wine, salt, and sugar. What makes it so good is the time taken to develop each layer of flavor. First, you give the shallots plenty of time to caramelize in the butter. Then, you reduce the wine and infuse that flavor into the figs. Finally, you sweeten the deal by adding the sugar and allowing that to cook down into a syrupy, jammy consistency. So, if you have the time, try out this recipe...

Ingredients - Makes ~16 oz.
2 T Unsalted Butter
3-4 Shallots (~1 C), thinly sliced
10 oz. Dried Black Mission Figs, stemmed & halved
2 C Dry Red Wine
Pinch Kosher Salt
1 C Granulated Sugar
To Serve: Buttery croissants, biscuits, and/or bread

Directions

Melt the butter in a medium sauce pan over low heat. Add the sliced shallots and cook until soft and caramelized, 20-25 minutes.

Next, add the wine to deglaze the pan. Add the figs and salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer. Cook until the figs absorb most of the wine and become plump and soft, about 20 minutes.

Then, smash the figs with the back of a wooden spoon to break them up a bit. Stir in the sugar and cook an additional 20-25 minutes over low heat, or until the desired jam consistency is met. Cool and store. Serve with any buttery bread; I suggest croissants or biscuits. Bon appetit!

Pulled Chicken Sandwiches with Sweet Shallot BBQ Sauce

sweet and savory...

This was an easy recipe to create, write, and make. I've made many different versions of BBQ chicken sandwiches. Typically though, I use a bottled BBQ sauce. One of my favorites is Sweet Baby Ray's. Inspired by the sweetness in that sauce, I've created this caramelized shallot version. Of course the shallots make this BBQ sauce different, but so does the green apple. Not only does it provide texture, but it provides a nice balance to the sandwich as a whole.

If you are going to use this BBQ sauce in a different way (say with ribs, pork, etc.) you might consider pureeing it after it has been cooked and cooled. The apples mostly keep their shape and that might prove troublesome if you use the sauce to grill (it's almost that season!). Anyway you choose to enjoy the Sweet Shallot BBQ Sauce, do it soon, it's really delicious. Here's how to make it...

Ingredients - Serves 4
2 T Unsalted Butter
4-5 Shallots, thinly sliced
1 Green Apple, peeled & diced
1 C Ketchup
1/3 C Molasses
1/3 C Brown Sugar
3 T Apple Cider Vinegar
1 T Whole-Grain Mustard
1 T Worcestershire Sauce
~ 2 C Poached Chicken, shredded
4 Whole-Wheat Buns, split & toasted
Coleslaw (optional)

Directions

Poach the chicken: Put ~1 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken in a pot. Add enough water to cover by 1 inch. Optional: Add 2 bay leaves, 6-8 black pepper corns, and 1/2 T kosher salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, 10-12 minutes. Remove to a plate to cool. Shred the chicken and set aside.

Meanwhile, caramelize the shallots: Heat a large high-sided skillet over medium. Add the butter. Once the butter is melted, add the shallots. Cook 2-3 minutes, then reduce the heat to med-low and cook until caramelized, about 20 minutes.

Make the BBQ sauce: Next, add the apple to the caramelized shallots and cook for 3-4 minutes. Then add the ketchup, molasses, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, mustard, and Worcestershire sauce. Simmer over low for about 20 minutes. The apples will soften and the flavors will meld.

Plate the dish: Mix the shredded chicken into the BBQ sauce. Put one toasted bun on a plate and top with the saucy chicken. Serve with your favorite coleslaw and another side (we chose chips). Enjoy!

Wedge Salad with Creamy Shallot Dressing & Crispy Shallot Topping

veggie wedge salad

A traditional wedge salad is served with lots of bacon. Obviously, for me this isn't an option. But, I love everything else about a wedge, so for this post I've made a vegetarian friendly version. The star of my salad is arguably the crispy fried shallots, but the dressing is quite good too. If you haven't guessed, I'm focusing on shallots for this series of recipes.

With spring comes lots of different types of onions - green, chives, ramps, etc. Shallots are one of many, but they are the only ones that are purple! Of course, they don't uncover their beautiful light purple color until the skin is peeled away. This recipe calls not only for shallots, but also for a little red onion and chives. All other traditional wedge ingredients like iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, and blue cheese are included. Make this veggie wedge salad even if you aren't a vegetarian, it's quite tasty. Here's how...

Ingredients - Serves 4
Wedge Salad
1 Head Iceberg Lettuce, core & cut into quarters
1 C Cherry Tomatoes, halved
1/4 Small Red Onion, thinly sliced
4 oz. Crumbled Blue Cheese

Creamy Shallot Dressing
1 Shallot, finely chopped
1/2 C Plain Greek Yogurt
1/4 C Sour Cream
1/2 C Butter Milk
1 T Chives, chopped
1 T White Wine Vinegar
Kosher Salt
Black Pepper

Crispy Shallot Topping
Canola Oil, for frying
4 Shallots
2 T All-Purpose Flour
Smoked Salt (or Kosher)

Directions
Begin by heating a large skillet (suggest cast iron) filled halfway with oil to 350 degrees.

Make the dressing: Combine the shallot, yogurt, sour cream, butter milk, chives, and vinegar in a medium bowl. Whisk together and season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Make the crispy shallots: Slice the shallots into thin rings. Separate the rings and put them in a bowl with the flour. Gently toss to coat. Shake off any excess flour and put half of the shallots into the preheated oil. Fry the shallots until they are golden brown, about 5 minutes. Don't over cook, they will become bitter. Remove the crispy shallots to a paper towel lined plate and sprinkle with the smoked salt. Repeat until all of the shallots have been fried.

Build the salad: Put one iceberg wedge on a plate cut-side up. Top with some of the dressing. Then, add the tomatoes, red onion, and blue cheese. Finally top with the crispy shallots and more black pepper. Serve with extra dressing. Enjoy!