Smoked Salmon Pizza

Anything you can do, I can do better (or at least similar). I often think this when I find myself repeatedly ordering a favorite item from a restaurant.

In this case, it was a smoked salmon and crème fraiche flatbread we'd discovered on a local happy hour menu. At the restaurant, the flatbread topped with dill and tarragon. I created my own version, adding fresh chives and lemon zest.

First the ingredients: pizza dough (I used homemade with some whole wheat and a tablespoon of ground flaxseed, which provided a nutty, crunchy flavor), smoked salmon, crème fraiche, lemon, dill, chives, arugula, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper.

 

Before baking or grilling the dough, drizzle the top with a liberal amount of extra virgin olive oil to ensure the crust won't burn.

I also like to sprinkle a little cornmeal on the pizza pan to add a crunchy texture to the bottom.

The baking time will vary depending on whether you are using an oven or grill.

While the pizza is baking, toss the arugula with lemon juice, lemon zest, minced dill and chives, and a little extra virgin olive oil.

Once the dough is baked, the rest is simple. Drizzle some crème fraiche onto the warm dough then arrange the salmon slices in a single layer. Top the salmon with lemon zest, minced dill and chives, and another drizzle of crème fraiche then pile the arugula on top.

Fiesta Salad

If you know anything about me and my food preferences, you know that two of my favorite things to eat are salad and anything Mexican. I am actually somewhat obsessive about both. I eat salad for lunch just about every day, and we have been known to have Mexican-themed dinners several times a week.

Although we have several Mexican cookbooks in our collection, I often prefer creating my own recipes. I threw together this salad in a matter of minutes using farm-fresh lettuces (choose something hardy and crunchy, like Romaine) and grilled chicken.

I tossed frozen organic corn kernels in a cast iron pan to warm them and seasoned them with a few grinds of Trader Joe's South African Smoke seasoning, which contains smoked paprika, sea salt, garlic and basil. The warm corn added a nice texture to the salad.

Before assembling the salad, I chopped and seasoned a handful of organic cherry tomatoes and added a splash of extra virgin olive oil to make them extra juicy.

I topped the salad with sliced avocado, chopped scallions and a creamy cilantro-lime garlic dressing. For one serving, mince and then lightly sauté a small clove of garlic. Place it in a small bowl with 1 tablespoon of Greek yogurt, 1 tablespoon of lime juice, a handful of finely minced cilantro and salt and pepper to taste.

 

This salad would also be delicious with a drizzle of homemade salsa.

 

Vegetarian spring rolls

homemade spicy peanut sauce

When it's too hot to cook, we love making Thai-style spring rolls.

The basic ingredients are rice paper and rice noodles, which can be found in the Asian section of many food markets.

You can get creative with fillings, using anything from thinly-sliced pork to shrimp to roast beef—I've even seen recipes where bacon is used as a filling.

Toss in any veggies you desire—carrots, cucumbers, radishes, Boston lettuce, cilantro, sprouts. We recently filled ours with tofu, shredded carrots, basil, scallions.



grilled tofu

The rice noodles are easy to prepare. You simply soak them in hot water until they pull apart.



draining the rice noodles

I make my spicy peanut sauce by mixing natural peanut butter, soy sauce, garlic, rice vinegar, cilantro and sriracha.

close-up spicy peanut sauce

To assemble, dip the rice paper in cold water, fill and gently roll—the delicate paper rips easily.

hand rolling

We topped our spring rolls with a little extra sriracha and completed the meal with a tossed salad simply dressed with carrot-ginger dressing.

dinner!