Tomatillo - Salsa Verde

Tomatillos are a hard, small fruit that are a bit tart, yet slightly sweet - earthy but with a hint of citrus. In other words, like nothing else. You may have seen them in the store with their green husks and thought they were weird, green tomatoes. They are used to make mole, spicy soup, and a number of other Mexican dishes. I use them to make vegan salsa verde.

Use on enchiladas or as a condiment for any dish that needs a little extra zip!

Ingredients:

1 pound fresh tomatillos (husked and washed)

1 large yellow onion (cut into large chunks)

3 cloves garlic (peeled)

½ packed cup cilantro leaves (chopped)

½ jalapeno (de-seed if you don’t like the heat)

1 tablespoon lime juice

Sea salt (to taste)

Directions:

Cut the tomatillos into quarters and put them into the bowl of a food processor. Add the onion and garlic and process until smooth. Add the cilantro, jalapeno and lime juice and process until the jalapeno is finely chopped.

Scrape the mixture into a small saucepan. Season lightly with salt and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid is boiled off and the salsa looks like a fine relish - about 15 minutes. Cool before using.

Note: The sauce can be refrigerated for up to 1 week. If refrigerated, you may want to add a little salt and/or lime juice to taste before serving.

Grilled Avocados

Here’s a summer appetizer that our son, Robert, shared with us. It is sort of a Caprese Salad folded into a grilled avocado. Who’d a thunk it! Easy to prepare, it is full of nutrition, and it doesn’t hurt that it looks and tastes fantastic.

Avocados are abundantly available here in California. If you have one or two extra avocados that need to be enjoyed soon, you might also try my Fresh Summer Salad, Fresh Guacamole, or Creamy Avocado-Cilantro Pesto Salad.

Ingredients:

1 clove garlic (minced)

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil plus more for the tomatoes

1 tablespoon freshly-squeezed lime juice

3 avocados

Salt and fresh ground black pepper

18 grape or mini-heirloom tomatoes

12 Ciliegine Whole Milk Fresh Mozzarella

1 serrano chile (stemmed, seeded and thinly sliced)

2 tablespoons basil (chopped)

Instructions:

Heat grill to medium-hot (about 400 degrees).

Place garlic in a medium-sized bowl. Add oil and lime juice, and whisk together. Cut the avocados in half (lengthwise) and remove pits. Brush some of the oil mixture onto each avocado half. Reserve the balance of the oil mixture for later (see below). Season the avocados liberally with salt and pepper.

Skewer the tomatoes and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt.

Place the avocados on the grill cut-side-down. Add the tomatoes alongside. Grill for 4 to 5 minutes in total, turning the tomatoes once. The avocados should be nicely marked and the skin on the tomatoes should be blistered. Remove everything from the grill.

Un-skewer the tomatoes and cut each in half. Add the tomatoes and the Mozzarella balls to the reserved oil mixture. Fold in the sliced chiles and basil. Spoon some of this mixture into each avocado half and finish with a little extra salt, if desired. Serve warm.

Fresh Cucumber-Radish Salad

The delicious dressing for this salad comes from the juices that form while the cucumber marinates with garlic, an Arbol chili, lime juice and other ingredients. As a bonus, the fresh mozzarella pairs well with the marinated cucumbers.

Ingredients:

2 long English cucumbers (Don’t peel. Cut into 1-inch chunks)

3 garlic cloves (lightly crushed)

1 small dried whole Arbol chile (lightly crushed)

½ teaspoon sugar

½ teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice (divided)

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

4 fresh radishes (sliced thin)

¼ cup fresh parsley (chopped)

2 tablespoons fresh basil (chopped)

2 tablespoons fresh cilantro (chopped)

1 tablespoon fresh chives (snipped)

Fresh ground black pepper

4 slices fresh Mozzarella (look for mozzarella medallions)

Directions:

In a large, plastic bag, combine cucumbers, garlic, chile, sugar, salt, and 1 tablespoon of the lime juice. Seal and shake the bag. With the palm of your hand, lightly smush the cucumbers to release their juices. Let the bag with the cucumbers and juices stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Drain the cucumbers, reserving 2 tablespoons of the cucumber juice. Discard the garlic and chile. In a medium bowl, whisk the cucumber juice with the remaining 1 tablespoon of lime juice and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Add the cucumbers, sliced radishes, and herbs.

Arrange the salad on 4 plates. To serve, place a slice of fresh mozzarella on top of each salad.

See Chef Randy’s food blog for more recipes at http://valleyvegetarian.blogspot.com

How to Grill Corn on the Cob

Grilled corn with chili-cumin butter.

I used to throw corn on the barbecue and cook it until I thought it was done. This method was not only hit-and-miss, but insured an over-cooked cob and charred corn silk that stuck between my teeth. Learning how to properly grill corn, however, has made all the difference in how I enjoy it.

Enjoyment begins with selecting fresh, good-looking corn. I look for husks (outer covering) that are bright green and fit snugly around each ear of corn. I then peel back the husk, just a little, to see if the kernels are in tight rows right up to the tip of the corn. If they aren’t, I replace that ear of corn and look for another.

This photo shows kernels that aren’t fully formed toward the tip. Again, no good. You want kernels that are firm all the way up.

The next photo shows corn with rotten kernels. No good. Put it back.

Here’s what a good ear of corn looks like when you get it home:

Preparing the corn for the grill is easy. Begin by soaking the corn (and husks) in cold water for 15 minutes. Be sure the corn is fully immersed in the water. This will provide extra moisture for cooking. After soaking, remove the corn from the water.

Here’s how to grill the corn and where BBQ purists and I part ways. The purist will say you should peel off all but one layer of husk, and all of the corn silk. I find it hard to get all of the corn silk off the ear of corn while leaving enough of the husk to cover the corn. So I make it easy. I peel all of the husk, and scrub all of the corn silk off the ear of corn, before it goes on the grill. Because the corn has absorbed moisture during it’s 15-minute water bath, it still stays plump after it comes off the grill and it has plenty of wonderful grill marks.

So once the corn is grilled and ready to eat, what do you serve with it? I like grilled corn just fine  without any seasoning except maybe a little salt and/or pepper. More often than not, however, I slather the hot corn with some kind of butter-based spread. I recommend the chili-butter spread included below. There is something about the combination of chili and cumin in this spread, especially when prepared with a bit of honey, which is mighty tasty on grilled corn. Please try the chili-butter at least once and, if you have a chance, let me know how you like it!

Ingredients:

8 tablespoons unsalted butter (room temperature – divided)

1 tablespoon chile powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon dried oregano

½  teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon garlic powder

¼ teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon honey

6  ears of corn

Directions:

Preheat grill to medium heat (about 350 degrees).

Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in small skillet over medium-low heat. Add chile powder, cumin, and stir for ten seconds. Remove from heat and transfer to medium bowl. Add oregano, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, honey, and balance of the butter to bowl. Whip until smooth and transfer to a small serving bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Prepare corn for grilling by soaking in cold water for 15 minutes. Remove corn from water, shake off excess water, and remove all husks and corn silk.

Grill the corn until charred in spots, turning 3 or 4 times, for about 10 - 12 minutes. If you have a cover for the grill, put the cover down in between each turning. Transfer corn to a large platter and serve with chili-cumin butter on the side.