Farmers Market Pasta Salad

It's that time of the year when the farmer's market is brimming with all the vegetables. Creativity is key. And this is what this pasta salad is, a mix of delicious veggies and it stretches the budget with a pound of pasta. Feel free to substitute with what you have in the fridge. Anything goes!

Enjoy!

1 lb. elbow pasta or your favorite pasta, cooked, rinsed
1 large red pepper - roasted and peeled (directions below)
2 fresh peaches and cream ears of corn boiled 10 minutes
1/2 jalepeno minced
1/2 cup sliced black olives
3/4 cut black beans
1 large scallion diced
1 lime
1/4 cup olive oil
fresh ground black pepper
sea salt

Cook the corn for 10 minutes then cut the kernels with a sharp knife. Broil the red pepper turning occasionally until blackened on all sides, put into plastic bag for 15 mintues. Peel skin, discard seeds and stem and dice. Combine pasta, corn, beans, olives, scallions and peppers into large bowl until combined with pasta. Add half the olive oil and toss well. Squeeze in entire lime, add pepper and salt and combine. Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary. The veggies drive the flavor of this dish so not too much olive oil is needed. Refrigerate for a few hours before serving to let flavors mesh.

Serves 8 as a side dish.

Super Ripe Fruit Smoothie

The super ripe plums really make this smoothie sweet. Must try!

Serves 2 - 8 ounce Smoothies

2 Super Ripe Plums
1 cup halved strawberries
1 super ripe black frozen banana
1 tsp flax seeds
1 tbsp Honey
1 cup nonfat plain yogurt
a few ice cubes for desired consistancy

Throw everything in the blender and combine. Enjoy!

Shrimp Diavelo

This is a great dish for the spice and white wine lover. Lots of red pepper flakes along with some tart, dry white wine make these little shrimps sing! Serve over pasta or just serve alone, either way, full of delicious, complex flavors.

Serves 4 as an appetizer or 2 as a meal with pasta. Enjoy!

• 1 pound large shrimp, peeled, deveined
• 1 teaspoon salt, plus just a pinch when serving
  
• 1 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes
• 3 tablespoons olive oil, separated
  
• 1 medium onion, sliced (red or yellow, your choice)
  
• 1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes (do not drain)
  
• 1 cup dry white wine (rec. Barbadillo)
  
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
• 3 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
• 3 tablespoon chopped fresh basil leaves

Directions

Toss the shrimp in a medium bowl with 1 teaspoon of salt and red pepper flakes. Heat the 3 tablespoons oil in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat.

Add the shrimp and saute for about a minute, toss, and continue cooking until just cooked through, about 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer the shrimp to a large plate; set aside.

Add the onion to the same skillet, adding 1 to 2 teaspoons of olive oil to the pan, if necessary, and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes.

Add the tomatoes with their juices, wine, garlic, and oregano. Simmer until the sauce thickens slightly, about 10 minutes. Return the shrimp and any accumulated juices to the tomato mixture; toss to coat, and cook for about a minute so the flavors meld together. Stir in the parsley and basil. Season with more salt, to taste, and serve.

Veggie Cream Cheese

I just realized that I need to create a new section on the blog that is specific to condiments, dressings and spreads. I make most of my condiments and dressings. Here's one I came up with last night. I had tons of radishes, big ones from the Farmer's Market so I'm looking for anyway to use them up. This was great on toast and with veggie crudite.
Makes about 1 cup.
Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 (8 ounce) package light cream cheese, softened

• 2 tablespoons finely chopped carrots
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped scallion, white and green part
• 1 large radish, finely chopped
• 3 inches piece of celery, finely chopped
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon salt (optional)
• 1 dash hot pepper sauce or Worcestershire Sauce

Roasted Marinated Zucchini

It's Zucchini Time! Here's a simple, easy recipe for all that zucchini that seems to be piling up in the fridge.

1 Large Zucchini
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp salt
1 tsp basil
Fresh ground pepper

Slice the zucchini into long narrow strips.

Combine the remaining ingredients into a jar with top and shake until the olive oil is emulsified. Pour the dressing over the zucchini, cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours.

Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees.
Lay the zucchini over a baking sheet. Place on the top rack of the oven and roast 7 minutes or until edges start to brown.

Enjoy!

The roasted strips can be eaten straight OR a great sandwich or wrap filling.

Yogurt Veggie Dip

I thought I bought Vanilla yogurt but I bought plain! So I decided to make a dip so I could eat all the veggies I got this weekend at the Cherry Creek Farmer's Market.

1 cup Plain Yogurt
1 tsp yellow curry powder
1 scallion chopped.
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp lemon

Mix together, chill and enjoy with vegetable crudite.

Baked Jasmine Rice with Chicken and Black Beans

I bought a rotisserie chicken from Safeway yesterday, it was on sale for $5. I made a sandwich which was delicious and then shredded the rest of the chicken. I made chicken stock out of the chicken bones which yielded 12 cups of stock. Then I made the following the recipe. Note - I still have almost a cup chicken left that I'm going to put in my famous "big" salad tomorrow for lunch. So this is really what is called "stretching your dollar".

Baked Jasmine Ric with Chicken and Black Beans

3/4 cup yellow onion chopped
1 garlic glove minced
1/2 chili pepper chopped (optional)
1 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp salt
ground pepper
1/2 cup black beans
1 1/2 cups shredded or cubed cooked chicken (white and dark meat)
3/4 c. jasmine rice
2 cups chicken broth

Preheat oven to 350.
Heat olive oil over medium. Saute onion, garlic and peppers for 5 minutes, add spices, salt and pepper. Add black beans and chicken, stir until combined. Lower heat Do not overcook. Stir constantly about 3 minutes. Put into 8 x 8 glass casserole dish. pour rice over chicken mixture. Pour chicken broth over entire dish. Make sure rice is covered throughout.
Cover with aluminum foil tightly. Bake in oven for 1 hour. Serve hot.
Enjoy!