Tomatoes stuffed with roasted peppers, tuna, capers, and olives

My first week at the new job went very well - it was somewhat overwhelming, of course, meeting new people and getting oriented to the projects that I'll be working on. But overall, I feel like I've already learned a lot and I'm definitely excited about the work! I think the hardest thing was adjusting to a full-time work schedule again - I was surprised at how little energy I had for cooking when I got home each day. I'm sure I'll get used to the schedule soon enough, but for this week I made a meal plan to make things a bit easier. As I made the plan, I made sure to pick out a couple recipes from my new Middle Eastern cookbook to try.

This stuffed tomato recipe is perfect for this time of year, when the tomatoes are so great. It's a Tunisian recipe, and it's wonderful. The tomatoes are stuffed with roasted red peppers, tuna, capers, and olives. Add in some garlic, parsley, and a chile pepper, and I'm sure you can imagine how flavorful this is!

Orzo with shrimp, red peppers, and mushrooms

I feel like I've been seeing orzo recipes everywhere lately. On the blogs, there was this one and this one, and my cousin served an orzo dish when I was at her place last week. So I decided to join the club and cook an orzo recipe for dinner last night. Mediterranean flavors work so well with orzo, so I went in that direction - why mess with something good, right? When I cook pasta, I usually bulk it up with lots of vegetables, and this time I used red peppers and mushrooms. With shrimp, olives, basil, feta cheese, and a generous amount of lemon juice, this recipe is healthy and packed with flavor. I'm so glad we had a lot of leftovers - I can't wait to eat this for lunch tomorrow!

Mango fried rice with cashews and shrimp

You might have noticed that I've been posting a lot of original recipes lately. I'm officially done with grad school now, and I am taking some time off to relax and do some career-related introspection, along with lots of cooking, of course! Creating my own recipes is a little project that I've been working on now that I have more free time. I still spend plenty of quality time with my cookbooks and reading food blogs/websites, but the recipes I see serve mostly as inspiration as I develop my own ideas.

This inspiration for this fried rice recipe came from both a cookbook and a blog. I was flipping through one of my favorite cookbooks, Ottolenghi's Plenty, last week and a recipe for mango and coconut rice salad caught my eye. And then I saw Lauren's recent post about kale salad with mango and avocado which also looked pretty tasty. I don't know if it was the incredible warm weather last week, but I was really craving tropical fruit! Anyway, those two salad recipes ended up getting merged in my mind and morphing into this fried rice. It's got shrimp, cashews, mango, toasted coconut, onion, red bell pepper, kale, ginger, and loads of cilantro and basil (if there's one lesson I've learned from Plenty, it is that I shouldn't be afraid to really amp up the amount of herbs I use in my cooking). I'm very proud of this recipe - it's pretty freaking delicious. The mango ends up kind of melting into the rice and adding a great sweet fruity note to the sauce. I really loved the combination of the tropical mango and coconut flavors with the local New England kale - all the ingredients really come together into a well rounded, filling, and flavorful meal.

Sweet potato, kale, and black bean enchiladas

As a kid, enchiladas were my favorite thing to order when my family went out for Mexican food. For some reason though, I hadn't ever cooked enchiladas myself until recently. I guess I usually make tacos or burritos when I have a Mexican craving, and I never really thought about making enchiladas instead. But I was doing a freezer cleanout recently, and found a package of corn tortillas that needed to be used. I had also been wanting to experiment with making chile sauces, and enchiladas seemed like the perfect way to kill two birds with one stone. It took a couple tries for me to come up with a good chile sauce recipe, and I am thrilled with the final result that I am sharing with you here. It has a nice deep chile pepper flavor that is tempered by tomatoes, and it isn't too spicy. It worked really well with the sweet potato, kale, and mashed black bean filling that I used (spring is almost upon us, but until spring vegetables arrive, I'm perfectly happy eating kale and sweet potatoes!). I'm really glad I made a batch of 16 enchiladas for dinner - Andrew and I have been really enjoying the leftovers and I don't think they're going to last very long...

In other news, I finally created a Facebook page for my blog so that I can stop spamming my whole friend list with blog updates. You can "like" the page here if you are interested in following via Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/4SeasonsOfFood.

p.s. I know it's St. Patrick's Day, and enchiladas are really not Irish. Sorry. They do pair well with beer though!

Is there a dish that you love eating at restaurants but have never tried making at home?

Three party dips

Thank you for the nice comments on my last post! My mom and I cooked like crazy for the celebration party that we threw last night. We both love cooking, so we had a lot of fun with the preparations. All the food came out great, and the party was wonderful! Here are some photos of the spread:

Clockwise from the top left: blue cheese tart, butternut squash and apple bruschetta, zucchini and goat cheese rolls with raisins and pistachios, Italian stuffed mushrooms. The bruschetta recipe can be found here on Tri to Cook, and the zucchini rolls recipe can be found here on Cara's Cravings.

On the dessert table, we had monster cookies (peanut butter oatmeal cookies with chocolate chips and M&Ms), chocolate-whiskey cake, gingerbread whoopie pies with maple buttercream, and cranberry pecan caramel bars.

We also made three dips that we served with pita chips and veggies. We had roasted red pepper and eggplant dip, Persian yogurt and spinach dip, and herbed lima bean hummus. I promised to tell you about all the party recipes, and I'm going to start with these dips. I've already posted the roasted red pepper and eggplant dip recipe, so you can check that out if you want. The lima bean dip is a great twist on traditional chickpea hummus, and is super flavorful due to garlic, cilantro, parsley, dill, mint, and cumin. The spinach and yogurt dip is creamy and delicious, and went especially well with the veggies. The three dips all had unique and distinct flavors but still complemented each other very well. Well, without further delay, here are the recipes!

Roasted red pepper and eggplant dip

Earlier this week, Elina hosted a fun get-together for some of her blogger friends. She asked everyone to bring an appetizer to share, and since it was a midweek event, I knew that I wanted to make something that wasn't too complicated, would be easy to transport, and didn't need to be cooked or heated immediately before serving. I also wanted to make something vegetarian, preferably vegan, and gluten-free, so that everyone would be able to try it. And finally, I wanted to make something featuring seasonal vegetables because I thought it would be nice for my dish to really reflect the theme of my blog. Well, that long list of requirements pretty much ruled out the apps I've made for my own parties in the past, so I started looking at new recipes. When I found this roasted red pepper and eggplant dip recipe in The Gourmet Cookbook, I knew it was perfect. The best part was that it is supposed to sit in the fridge for at least a day before serving so that the flavors can blend, which meant that I could make it over the weekend!

I loved the balanced blend of flavors in this dip - it has sweetness from the roasted veggies, tanginess from the lemon, and a bit of a kick from the garlic and chile pepper. It's great with pitas or crackers, but it also makes a nice addition to pasta sauce and pairs really well with eggs. Although I was initially nervous about what dish to bring for a group of foodies, I think I chose wisely and I was glad to see that everyone else seemed to enjoy the dip as much as I did. I'm definitely going to think of this one next time I need a simple but interesting appetizer for a party!

Do you have a favorite dish to bring to potluck gatherings? 

Roasted peppers and tomatoes baked with capers and olives

I am desperately holding on to summer in my kitchen. This weekend it really hit me that summer produce will be gone from the markets soon, and I had a minor panic attack about all the recipes I haven't made yet and won't be able to make until next summer - an eternity away! (yeah, yeah I know, #firstworldproblems). But then I remembered that even though Labor Day has come and gone, summer growing season hasn't actually ended yet. I calmed down and made an epic cooking plan for the week, making the most of the summeriest of fruits and vegetables. I even made some preserves, which I'll tell you about later. For now, I'm going to focus on this tomato and pepper dish, from Deborah Madison's Local Flavors. Big strips of roasted peppers and tomatoes are baked together with herbs, garlic, capers, and olives. The final product is a colorful, incredibly fragrant and flavorful dish that makes you feel like you are in some sunny Mediterranean country. It's very versatile - we ate it plain, on top of toasted bread, and stuffed into pitas with a spread of goat cheese. It would also pair well with hummus and would make a delicious sandwich with some mozzarella cheese. This recipe is definitely making it onto my Favorites page!

What are your favorite end of summer recipes?

Fresh corn and tomato pizza

I guess I'm a little obsessed with fresh corn right now. I pretty much want to add it to everything. A few days ago, my sister mentioned that she'd had a pizza with fresh corn kernels on it and I immediately decided that pizza with corn was a combination I had to try asap. So I picked up some whole wheat pizza dough at Capone's this week (Now, I like to make my own pizza dough just as much as the next food-obsessed person, but store-bought can be pretty good too, especially for weeknight meals!) and started thinking about pizza toppings. Corn and tomato is an amazing combination for this time of year so I knew that some fresh tomatoes (from our garden!) had to factor in. Instead of tomato sauce, I decided to layer the dough with sliced tomatoes that would hopefully cook into a "sauce" in the oven. I also added some roasted red pepper and goat cheese to the mix, and topped it off with fresh basil. I really enjoyed the pizza - it was light and full of flavor and the sweet corn and tomatoes worked very well with the goat cheese. I really should make pizza for dinner more often!

Pasta with cauliflower and walnut pesto

This post is the first of my two entries for this week's Fall Fest, which features brassicas. Brassicas are a category of vegetable that includes cauliflower, broccoli, brussels sprouts, kale, and cabbage, to name a few. Even for a vegetable lover such as myself, it's not exactly the most exciting group...I'll admit that it took me a while to get inspired for this one. But after flipping through several cookbooks, I found this cauliflower pasta recipe, which is a keeper, as well as a few other brassica recipes that I'm looking forward to trying.

The pesto in this dish is made with cilantro, parsley, garlic, and walnuts. It's got a really interesting flavor, much more subtle than I expected. I thought it was a great match for the cauliflower and other vegetables. The recipe calls for fresh bell peppers, but they're no longer in season here, so I had to improvise. I'm determined to continue eating as much local produce as possible through the colder months, so I substituted some roasted red peppers (frozen from the summer) and a carrot. We also stirred in some chickpeas for added protein, but I forgot to add them before Andrew took pictures. I really liked the final dish with these additions - it's a satisfying single-bowl meal, and is good served warm or cold.

Ratatouille ragu

This dish is a great way to celebrate summer's last hurrah. It's packed with late summer produce, so hurry up and make it while you still can! This was inspired by a gnocchi appetizer that Andrew and I had at Highland Kitchen, a great restaurant/bar in Somerville. The gnocchi was topped with a really flavorful mix of roasted veggies, which we immediately decided to try and replicate at home.

This "ragu" (not technically a ragu, since it is meatless) is versatile, and soooo good. Roasting the veggies intensifies their flavors, and the herbs bring everything together. Cooking-wise, this is pretty simple, but it does require a good amount of chopping. We have enjoyed this over gnocchi and pasta, and I think it would also be good with polenta, or with rice, or as a topping for toasted bread, or stuffed into a pita...lots of options. You could also mix in some white beans if you want to add some protein.

This dish is just so summery and delicious - I hope you enjoy it. With the heat wave in Boston right now, it's hard to believe that it's September already. Fall veggies are coming soon...

Corn fritters with roasted tomatoes and peppers

It's almost fall. Winter squash, brussels sprouts, and apples are appearing at the farmers' market, which means the summer vegetables are on their way out. I love fall in Boston, especially the weather, foliage, and back-to-school season energy, but I'm really going to miss summer produce. I better enjoy it while it lasts...

I had frozen a few cups of fresh corn kernels a couple weeks ago, and decided to use them to make these fritters for a light Saturday afternoon lunch. The recipe came from the September 2010 issue of Cooking Light, and I'm submitting this post to Tina, who is guest hosting this week's Magazine Mondays. The fritters were a hit - both Andrew and my sister, who just moved to Boston (yay!), loved them.

I made quite a few changes to the original recipe: I used white whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose in the batter, and added lime zest and smoked paprika. I served the corn fritters with roasted tomatoes and Anaheim chile peppers, and left out some of the accompaniments that the original recipe suggested, mostly due to lack of ingredients. I think these fritters would be stellar with some avocado and bacon as well. The last major change I made was to do the roasting at a higher temperature than the original recipe instructed - this allowed the pepper skins to brown and blister, and made the tomato roasting go quicker.

Roasted tomato soup with smoked paprika

For this week of Summer Fest, which features tomatoes, I decided to finally make this roasted tomato soup recipe that I had bookmarked in Super Natural Cooking a long time ago. Andrew loves smoky flavors, so I had a feeling that he would like this one. Plus I knew it would be a great way to show off the plum tomatoes that I had just bought at the farmers' market.

This is a really hearty, tasty soup - perfect for the rainy weather we've been having in Boston lately. I loved the way the various vegetable flavors blended with the smokiness of the paprika to make this taste more complex than the standard tomato soup. I stayed fairly close to the original recipe for this one, but chose to use plum tomatoes (recipe doesn't specify, and plum are great for roasting) and added in a potato to make the soup a bit more thick and filling - this is something that my mom always does when she makes tomato soup. With some crusty bread or garlicky croutons, this soup could definitely be a satisfying main course.  

Eggplant and summer squash terrine

Andrew and I went to Italy about 2 years ago, where we experienced a great many culinary revelations - the fact that pasta soaked in oil could somehow not taste oily at all; the comforting taste of soft, creamy polenta; the idea that lasagna could be made with very little cheese and not a drop of tomato sauce; the pillowy, light texture of perfectly made gnocchi; and the discovery that one can never have too much gelato, to name a few. I have memories of a simple but delicious lunch of crusty bread and cheese in Venice (and being attacked by pigeons, but never mind that), a dinner of baby octopus and pea soup in Pisa, freshly caught anchovies in Cinque Terre, grappa in Florence, and hot espressos everywhere. I remember realizing that wine in Italy is often cheaper than soda, and noticing that people looked at us strangely if we didn't drink wine with lunch. In Florence, we marveled at the fact that goat cheese, prosciutto, and arugula were normal, everyday sandwich ingredients, not fancy ones. And then we ate more gelato.

Anyway, before I get too caught up in the reminiscing, let me explain that this rush of memories comes as a result of flipping through The Silver Spoon, which is a giant tome of an Italian cookbook that a friend (thanks Brian!) recently gave us as a wedding gift. This book is packed full of recipes that got me remembering (and hoping to recreate) the flavors of our trip to Italy. 

This eggplant terrine recipe caught my eye right away (I seem to be a bit obsessed with eggplant at the moment). It is time consuming to make, but definitely worthwhile - it is all kinds of delicious. Not too eggy, not too cheesy - it really shows off the flavors of the vegetables. With eggplant, summer squash, red bell peppers, and tomatoes, it is absolutely perfect for this time of year.

Some recipe notes: The original recipe used just eggplant, but I used a combination of eggplant and summer squash, which was great. Make sure to cut the eggplant and squash into uniform, thin slices so that they cook evenly and quickly. I used a mixture of cheeses (noted below), based on the odds and ends that I had in the fridge - I'm sure there are other cheeses that would also work well. Last thing, just so you know - the terrine doesn't look very pretty once it is turned out onto a plate. Still tastes great though!

Corn and roasted peppers with chipotle-caesar dressing

This recipe was inspired by one from Gourmet magazine (sigh, I miss Gourmet) that I came across when searching for something new to do with corn. I had a purple bell pepper (I am a total sucker for unusual colors in vegetables) and a banana pepper waiting in the fridge, and thought they would pair nicely with the corn. You could use any peppers for this, although red bell peppers would probably be the prettiest. I kept the dressing just about the same as it was in the original recipe, but changed around the actual salad quite a bit. The original recipe included grilled avocados, which sound amazing - although sadly not local to MA - and would probably be a nice addition to my version of the salad.



Corn and roasted peppers with chipotle-caesar dressing
Adapted from this recipe
Serves 4

3 ears of corn, husks removed, and kernels cut off with a sharp knife
3 small bell peppers
1 tbsp bacon fat or butter (about the bacon fat: delicious - yes, necessary - no.)
2-3 tbsp grated parmesan
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tbsp minced canned chipotle chiles in adobo (this made this dressing pretty spicy. You might want to cut down on the amount if you are sensitive to heat)

To roast peppers: Heat oven (I did this in a toaster oven to avoid heating the whole kitchen) to 450-500 deg F*. Halve peppers and clean out seeds and membranes. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil, and lay peppers on sheet, skin side up. Roast until skins are dark brown or blackened and blistering. Remove peppers and place in a ziploc bag, brown paper bag, or tupperware container. Close container and let peppers cool and steam for about 20 minutes. When cooled, remove skins (they should come off easily) and chop pepper flesh.

Meanwhile, melt bacon fat in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add corn kernels and cook until tender, about 3-4 minutes.

To make dressing: Put parmesan in a small bowl and add olive oil in a slow stream, whisking. Whisk in lime juice, garlic, chipotles, and 1/8 tsp each of salt and pepper.

Toss corn and peppers with dressing and serve.

* You could do this on a grill if you have one. In this case, leave the peppers whole while you grill.