Pickled Beet and Watermelon Salad

I like Pickled  Beets and make them often. I recently made a simple batch of them. I just roasted them up in a covered pan filled with some Cider Vinegar, Some water and some Nectresse (or sugar) . I let them roast at 350 for about an hour till they were fork tender. When they were cool enough to handle I slid the skins off. Sliced them up with very thinly sliced raw onion and let the mixture with it’s  juices  sit. This way they come out nice and not over pickled or too sweet. I added fresh chunks of watermelon to my beet mixture and I think the Pickled Beets with Onions complements the sweetness of the watermelon without overpowering it. This is a very light and refreshing salad that also looks pretty and is something different that I haven’t seen before.

Forking Good!

Ricotta Gnocchi

Ricotta Gnocchi are very quick and Forking easy to make. My method differs slightly. Instead of rolling out the dough in flour that toughens the gnocchi these are more tender and light because the dough is extruded threw a pastry bag into the boiling salted water. The Gnocchi are so Forking easy to make you don’t need to measure really. you just need these ingredients and a pastry bag.

Ricotta Cheese ( fresh made from Forking easy previous recipe)

Egg (beaten)

Flour (smaller amount than Ricotta Cheese)

Grated hard Italian Cheese (I used Parmigiano Reggiano) (about a cup)

White Pepper (about 1/2 Teaspoon)

Nutmeg (about 1/8 Teaspoon)

Kosher Salt or Sea Salt (About 1/2 Teaspoon)

Extra Virgin Olive (as gnocchi’s come out of boiling water you drizzle the olive oil to prevent sticking and it also adds flavor)

All you really have to remember is that you want to add as little flour as possible so your Gnocchi isn’t heavy. So eyeball your ricotta cheese and you add in a smaller amount of flour than what you have of ricotta. Add the rest of ingredients. Don’t add much Forking nutmeg you will only need 1/8 of a teaspoon or less you don’t want to taste it but it adds something really nice to the flavor.

This much Flour to Ricotta Cheese

Combine ingredients and fill your Forking pastry bag. (not a Forking Ziplock bag)

Make them this big and knock them off with your finger.

When they float to the top they are done and remove with slotted spoon.

Drizzle with Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

Ricotta Gnocchi

Ricotta Gnocchi are Forking Easy to Make!

Forking Good!

All you need to make Ricotta Cheese is Whole Milk, Heavy Cream, Salt and Fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice. You don’t even need to measure or use a thermometer. Any Forking Person can make delicious Fresh Ricotta Cheese that taste better than most store purchased and will also have less stabilizers and Chemicals in it.

Some Heavy Cream

Use some heavy Cream maybe 1/4-1/3 to your ratio of whole milk and some Kosher or Sea Salt. (1/4t.-1t. depending on how much your making) (I used heavy whipping cream because I couldn’t get regular heavy cream from my market, it’s similar enough where it works in this recipe)

Added Milk to the Cream

I put my pot on a medium heat and let it slowly boil for about 5 minutes.

Fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice

Then I added my fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice and let it boil about 5 minutes.

Cuddles after Lemon Juice

Then I pour into Colander with Paper Towel as a liner. I think Paper Towel works better for Ricotta than Cheese Cloth.

Colander with Paper Towel Liner

You need to wait maybe 20 minutes for the whey to come out and then your ready for Fresh Ricotta Cheese.

Forking Good!

This time of year I came by Corn priced 5 for a $1.00. I didn’t get the best corn as it might have been old since the kernels were kind of dried out. I also had Corn Pasta in my pantry.

Trader Joe’s Corn Pasta

I thought I could make patties with them using Corn Masa Flour.

Corn Masa Flour

All I needed to add was a few eggs, a little melted butter, (because butter just taste good with corn) Chopped Green Onions, Fresh Crushed Sea Salt and Fresh Ground Black Pepper. I kept it simple but could have added Fresh Cilantro, Hatch Chili’s, Jalapeño and a garlic clove.

Corn Pasta-Corn Patties

They cooked up real easy on Medium High Heat with just a light spray of canola oil. I lightly salted and peppered each side. They could be kicked up with toppings like sour cream and salsa.

Forking Good!

Red Lentils with Rainbow Chard, Dates and Almonds

This dish is inspired by a side dish I had at Deseo Latin Restaurant in Scottsdale AZ. It’s not the same and isn’t soup like the way it is made at Deseo,  but the combination of Red Lentils with Dates, Almonds, Greens and Cheese is the same.

Ingredients

Vegetable Stock

Rainbow Chard or whatever Fresh Green you can get. (save and chop stems if using Chard)

Onion or Shallots

Red Lentils

Pealed Tomatoes (Cooked or Canned)

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Dates Chopped

Roasted Broken Almonds (I used lightly salted)

Fresh Grated Aged Gouda Cheese or any Cheese with a good flavor that can melt. (Deseo uses Mahon Cheese)

Fresh Crushed Sea Salt or Kosher Salt

Fresh Ground Black Pepper.

Cooked Rainbow Chard with Onions Salt and Pepper

I started this off by cooking the cleaned up Chard in Vegetable Stock then removing from stock setting aside with some onions I fried up in olive oil and then tossing them in with the salt and pepper.

In my pot of vegetable stock I added a can of pealed whole tomatoes that I broke up slightly. I added maybe 1/2 the tomato can size of red lentils and 1/2 lb. or a little more of chopped dates and maybe a cup of broken roasted almonds.

Then I added the Chard Onion Mixture and Grated Aged Gouda Cheese.

Rainbow Chard Stems

Lastly I add the Saved Rainbow Chard Stems and then shut the heat off and let it sit a little. The chopped stems are like super delicate watery celery with little flavor but I think they add some interesting texture and color to the dish. Between the cheese, stock and nuts you might not need any more salt but maybe some more pepper. Using a flavorful vegetable stock is part of the key to this recipe. The dates add pops of sweetness and the tomatoes add a little tang. The  browned onions echo threw the dish and the Roasted Almonds add another layer of flavor along with texture.

Red Lentils with Rainbow Chard, Dates and Almonds

I top the serving with a little cheese and an almond so my guest know what’s in the dish.

Forking Good!

I roasted my Beets up with Apple Cider Vinegar and a little water to start with.

Usually I peel my beets but these had super thin skin so I didn’t need too and then I grated them on my box shredder and made them into a thick shredded shape.

I thought the beets would taste good with Lemongrass, Green Garlic, Thai Chili, Asian Pears, Bean Sprouts, fresh crushed Sea Salt and Fresh Ground Black Pepper.

Asian Pear, Lemongrass, Thai Chili and Green Garlic

I mixed them together and added a Big Splash of Mirin, and small amounts of Soy sauce and Rice Vinegar, Some Chopped Green Onion and Fresh Chopped Fresh Basil.

I boiled off some Whole Wheat Spaghetti and added beaten eggs and Sorghum Flour to look like pancake batter and added the Beet mixture till it looked right to me.

Then on med/high heat I almost dry fried them using just a light spray of canola oil.

I lightly added Crushed Sea Salt and Pepper to them.

They came out very tasty. I think most people would like them.

Forking Good!