Spring Beet and Potato Salad

Potato salad is something that people start craving this time of the year.  My Grandma always made it for our family when I was young, and it was always the same, bright yellow, topped with the hardboiled eggs, and red paprika!  It was tasty, but full of mayonnaise in large amounts of course, so not the most healthy.  We make a similar version at the deli I work in, and we always top it with hardboiled eggs as well...one of my cowoerkers Gabrielle lovingly refers to it as the "many eyed beast", and the customers love it!  I have to admit I do love classic potato salad, there is a comforting element to it.  But what I don't love is the unhealthy dressing that comes with it.  So the other day when I was enjoying some Greek yogurt and its creaminess, I thought it would be perfect for a healthy potato salad dressing!  So I created my own potato salad featuring spring ingredients.  Beets, ramps, and radishes were a must!  Maybe Grandma would have thought my shocking pink potato salad odd looking, but it was damn delicious!  It was the perfect meal, filling but light with a tangy dressing just as good as the classic, but kind to the waistline.  I loved the beets in there, they give it a nice sweetness that you don't get from just potatoes.  I think if my Grandma tasted it she would approve of course!  Here is the recipe if you would wish to try it! 

Spring Beet and Potato Salad

Serves 2

Dressing:
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp Greek yogurt
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 clove garlic
1 tsp dijon mustard
2 tsp dried dill
2 tsp dried chervil
2 tsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp sea salt or to taste
freshly ground pepper to taste

2 cups cooked beets, diced large
2 cups baby potatoes, halved, or quartered
4 radishes, thinly sliced
2 ramps, thinly sliced
1 shallot, thinly sliced
4 hardboiled eggs, sliced
mixed greens of your choice (such as arugula, mizuno, dandilion, spinach, watercress)

Whisk dressing ingredients together until smooth.  Combine beets, potatoes, radishes, ramps, shallot, eggs in a bowl, and toss with dressing until well combined.  Place greens on a plate, and top with salad. 

Miso Dressed Spring Radish and Carrot Salad with Toasted Almonds

I was recently at a Japanese fusion restaurant, and I had a salad with the most delicious miso dressing.  I had no idea what it was composed of besides the miso, but it was the perfect balance of salty and sweet lightly and coated the greens perfectly.  It was so good that I have been wanting to recreate it ever since then, and finally decided to do so.   I am a big miso lover, I use it in everything from the obvious, such as soups, and marinades, to the not so obvious such as in desserts, to which it gives a lovely salted caramel like flavor.  It is one ingredient that I always have to have on hand.  Although there are many varieties of it, I prefer the white miso.  It was no wonder that dressing at the restaurant was delicious, miso makes everything more tasty!  When I tried to recreate the dressing, I kept with the Asian theme and added some peanut oil, because I love its nutty quality, some rice wine vinegar for acidity, and agave nectar for a bit of sweetness.  Tamari was needed for a bit of salt in addition to the saltiness of the miso, so no sea salt was needed in this dressing.  Lastly, garlic was important, I  love its flavor in salads, especially Asian ones.  What to pair with this delicious miso dressing?  Well I thought the veggies of spring would be appropriate, so the radishes, carrots and ramps in addition to the greens I had on hand were perfect!  Lastly I topped it off with almonds for crunch!  It was very simple, but so good!  Here is the recipe if you would like to try some for yourself!

Miso Dressed Spring Radish and Carrot Salad with Toasted Almonds
Serves 2

Dressing:
1 Tbsp white miso
1 Tbsp peanut oil
2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
1 tsp agave nectar
1 clove garlic
2 tsp tamari

4 cups mixed greens, such as arugula, spinach, dandelion, mizuna
1 carrot, thinly sliced on the diagonal
6 radishes, thinly sliced
4 ramps, thinly sliced
1/4 cup toasted sliced almonds

In a small bowl, whisk dressing ingredients together.  In a large bowl, combine greens, carrots, radishes, and ramps.  Pour dressing over and toss well to coat.  Place mixture on a serving plate, and top with toasted almonds. 

Pecorino Romano Waffles with Sauteed Ramps, Mushrooms and Poached Eggs

Yesterday morning I was thinking about how long it had been since I had made belgian waffles and I was getting pretty hungry for them!  There is nothing like a hot, fluffy on the inside, crispy on the outside large belgian waffle to make your day more delicious...I used to always make them with strawberries when I was younger and have plenty of butter to melt over the hot waffle!  Although most people usually have them for breakfast or brunch, I often times end up making them for dinner when I am the most hungry.  Afterall, nothing wrong with having breakfast for dinner, or "Brinner" as my friend Matt likes to call it...I love that word!  So last night I decided that brinner was in order, and belgian waffles were it! However I did not feel like the usual sweet waffles, as I was a bit sweeted out from eating a large amount of chocolate cake the day before...so savory seemed like the perfect option! 

I had seen a recent episode of Martha Stewart, where she made savory cheese waffles topped with sauteed veggies and a poached egg.  I loved the concept, so I went with my own version of it!  I had some pecorino romano that I thought would be perfect in the waffles, since it has such a delicious nutty salty flavor, and I had some ramps and local crimini mushrooms that I could sautee and top the waffle with!  I am so excited to finally be able to use ramps again, since they are available in stores for the season, so I use them quite a bit!  Lastly I topped the waffle and veggies off with a perfectly poached egg, which is my favorite way to cook them!  It was a delicious meal...the crispy cheese enhanced  waffle topped off with the savory flavorful veggies and delicious egg with a nice runny yolk to add to the deliciousness, almost like a flavorful built in sauce!  It all had me thinking I should make stuff like this more often!  My waffle maker doesn't get used nearly enough and I need to change that!  It is quick to make, and the waffles are wonderfully fluffy due to the whipping of the egg whites before adding them to the batter!  You should try it out...here is the recipe! 

Pecorino Romano Waffles with Sauteed Ramps, Mushrooms and Poached Eggs

Serves 4

Waffles:
1 cup goat milk
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 large eggs, divided
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 1/2 cups shredded pecorino romano cheese

Poached eggs:
2 tsp vinegar
1 tsp sea salt
6 cups water
4 organic eggs

Veggies:
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 bunches ramps, ends sliced and leaves kept in tact
about 16 crimini mushrooms, or whatever is locally available
sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste


To make waffles, preheat belgian waffle maker, and preheat oven to 250 degrees.  Whisk together goat milk, olive oil, sea salt, pepper, and egg yolks in a large bowl.  Place egg whites in a medium bowl, and with an electric mixer and clean beaters, whip to stiff peaks and set aside.  Whisk baking soda, baking powder, whole wheat pastry flour, and cornstarch into the milk mixture.  Add about 1/4 of the egg whites and whisk to lighten, then fold in remaining egg whites and pecorino romano until just blended.  When waffle maker is heated, Drop batter by the 3/4 cup onto the iron and cook according to package directions.  When waffle has finished, remove to the oven to stay warm while you prepare the other 3 waffles and toppings.  Repeat with remaining waffle batter. 
To poach eggs, heat water to a simmer in a medium saucepan with the vinegar and salt. Crack an egg into a ramakin. Stir water with a spoon to swirl, and carefully pour egg into it. Let cook for 3-4 minutes or preferred doneness, and remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel lined plate. Repeat with other 3 eggs.
To make veggies, heat 1 Tbsp oil in a large non-stick pan, and add mushrooms and bottom part of ramps.  Saute until softened, about 5 minutes, then add tops of ramps, and cook until just wilted.  Add sea salt and pepper to taste. 
To plate, top each waffle with the veggies, then a poached egg, and serve!

Spring Allium Chevre Filo Rolls

Some people are afraid of onions and garlic...I am definately not one of them, and have never been onionphobic!  Yes, they may be quite...aromatic, but that is part of the beauty of them!  I don't care if I have onion or garlic breath...it is well worth it for the deliciousness I enjoy while alliums! I love the wide variety you can get of alliums in the spring...leeks, ramps, spring onions, shallots, I love them all! 

So I was thinking it would be wonderful to make a delicious appetizer on Easter using them! I decided that they would be delicious wrapped in crispy filo dough along with something creamy.  I had a bit of chevre that I thought would be perfect with the alliums.  So I sauteed some leeks, shallots and ramps, along with some garlic a quadruple whammy of alliums, and added a bit of lemon for freshness.  I combined them with pecorino romano for a bit of saltiness, and the creamy chevre. 

It was a very tasty filling, but even tastier when wrapped in crispy filo brushed with olive oil!  They were delicious warm, the filling gooey and oozy, filled with the savory deliciousness of alliums!  They were a wonderful accompaniment to my Easter spread! 

If you love onions and garlic as well you should definately try these while the spring alliums are at their most abundant!  If you don't, well don't let  the fact that these have onions and garlic detract you, as they are cooked and therefore much more mild.  The filo is actually not difficult to work with either as long as you are gentle!  Hope you all had a wonderful Easter, and here is the recipe for the delicious rolls if you would like to try them!

Spring Allium Chevre Filo Rolls

Makes 10

Filling:
1 cup leeks, thinly sliced
1cup ramps, leaves and bottom part, thinly sliced
1cup shallots, thinly sliced

4 garlic cloves, chopped

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper

1 Tbsp lemon zest
16 oz chevre (soft goat cheese)
2 oz shredded pecorino romano cheese

about 3/4 cup olive oil (for brushing
10 sheets filo dough
sea salt

In a large skillet, heat 1 Tbsp olive oil, and add leeks, ramps, and shallots.  Saute until tender, about 5 minutes, then add garlic and saute about a minute more until fragrant.  Let cool slightly, then add to a bowl with sea salt, pepper, lemon zest, chevre and pecorino romano.  Mix until well combined.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees, and line a baking sheet with foil.  Lay out sheets of filo dough, and cover with plastic wrap (so it doesn't dry out, since you will be using a sheet at a time.  Place olive oil in a bowl.  Lay out one sheet of filo, and brush it with olive oil.  fold in half like a book.  Brush with olive oil and place 2 Tbsp filling about 1 inch from the bottom, in the shape of a log about 3 inches wide.  Fold in each side over the filling, and brush the top with olive oil.  Roll up egg roll style, and brush with olive oil.  Place on baking sheet.  Repeat with remaining 9 rolls.  Sprinkle with sea salt, and bake for 15-20 minutes, until golden and heated through.  Keep a close eye because they brown quickly!  Let cool slightly before serving.