Requested Recipes

Okay, so this isn't an international food night post, but I've had requests for a couple of my recipes, so here's a smattering of them:

Green Goop Pasta*

 

Note: I usually make stuff up, so this is an estimation of what I do...
serves 4-6 (and probably could serve more...)

2-3 medium ripe avocado

½ c cilantro leaves, chopped

1 bunch spinach

1 red pepper

2 T lime juice

1-2 green chilies (jalapeno or serrano)

Garlic cloves (generous to taste, at least 3 cloves)

2 T olive oil

Basil

4 T Parmesan, grated

Salt and pepper

1-2 lb. pasta

1 can chickpeas (garbanzo beans)

Cook pasta according to directions. Drain pasta and chickpeas.

Put a bit of oil in pan and sauté red pepper and then add remaining spinach (after sauce is made) to wilt. Add pasta and chickpeas. Add sauce (to taste, can save some sauce for later). Toss to coat. Garnish with red pepper flakes and/or parmesan (sometimes I garnish with mozzarella if I have it).

Sauce:
Place avocados (skinned and pitted) into blender. Add cilantro, 1-2 c. spinach, garlic, lime juice, chili, parmesan, oil, salt, and pepper. Add 1-2 T. water and blend until smooth.

*We tried this with rice instead of pasta and just had a bowl of the pepper, wilted spinach, and beans on the side in addition to the sauce (instead of mixed all together), and it was fantastic!

Carolina Slaw
1 large head of cabbage, finely shredded
1 medium bell pepper, finely chopped (optional)
1 medium sweet onions, finely chopped (optional)
2 carrots, grated
or
Pick up a bag of cole slaw mix :)

Dressing:
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon celery seed (optional)
1 cup cider vinegar
Spices to taste (garlic, salt, pepper)

Put veggie mix in large bowl. Heat up dressing ingredients over medium heat and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer until sugar is dissolved. Pour over veggies and mix. Chill until cold.

Tropical Fruit Spring Rolls

Rice wrappers (they sell them at grocery stores in the Asian food section... they are circular and hard... about 8 inches in diameter)
Fruit!
I used the following (putting the last three ingredients all together in a bowl):

• 1 mango (cut into strips)
• 1/2 lb strawberries (chopped)
• 3 kiwi chopped
• 2 bananas (chopped)

Dipping Sauce:
1/2 c. honey
2 t. lime juice
1/4 t. vanilla extract

So the rice wrappers can be a bit tricky... and I've used them quite a bit and still don't have the technique down perfectly, but here's what I do...

Get a frying pan that will fit one rice wrapper and fill with water. Set burner on lowest setting. Dip wrapper in until it becomes flexible. Pull out of the water and place on a plate. Place mango sticks about 1 inch from the bottom. Put about a tablespoon of the rest of the fruit. Pull the bottom of the wrapper up and tuck under the fruit. Pull the sides in and roll up. The wrapper should stick to itself and seal. Repeat until fruit is gone. Place a damp paper towel over them if you're not going to eat immediately.

Add all sauce ingredients and heat up for about 30 seconds. Dip and enjoy!