Red and Yellow Pepper Roses

Served on 4/29/2011

These peppers are baked, and no oil was used at all in the process.  To get the brighter coloration, I rolled the pepper slices inside-out.  One could sprinkle some olive oil and vinaigrette on top before eating, but these have quite enough flavor by themselves for me. The actual “rolling” of the pepper and its ingredients into roses is tricky and may take a few tries.

Ingredients:

• Red and or yellow peppers
• Anchovies
• Mozzarella slices
• Basil

Optional:

• Lemon Juice
• Olive Oil
• Vinaigrette

To give credit where credit is due, the original inspiration (and much of the recipe) comes from this blog:
http://menuturistico.blogspot.com/2010/05/roselline-di-peperone-giallo-acciughe-e.html

 

Natalie’s Salad and Quiche

This guest recipe comes from ingenious Natalie Nipper who turned holiday leftovers into this awesome looking plate.  The smell lights up the office when she tosses it in lemon juice:

The greens:

• English peas
• Radishes
• Cucumbers
• Carrots
• Butter lettuce
• Kale
• Lemon juice
• Olive oil

The Quiche

• Eggs
• Garlic
• Asparagus
• Sharp cheddar
• Ham
• Pie crust

 

Seared Grapefruit Carpaccio

To be served on Friday, 4/22/2011

I am taking a chance with this one, and not everyone may like this one.

Growing up in Taiwan, we have always had the practice of dipping fresh fruits in a soy sauce and garlic mix and the results were always… surprisingly good!  I am making a dish out of it with some hardy slices of grapefruit and my amateur attempt at presentation.

Goal: to make a refreshing appetizer-esque dish that is NOT a salad (I’ve only had 3 or 4 of those in a row).  The sour-bitterness of the grapefruit needs to be complemented but not lost.

My bed of sauce is a mix of soy sauce, finely chopped garlic, sesame oil, Chinese black vinegar, and some optional sriracha sauce on the side (upper right hand corner of the plate in picture above) for some kick.  I then top it off with some lemon juice and roughly chopped mint leaves to give a fresh aroma and taste.

Finally before serving, I lightly coat the top of the grapefruit slices with sugar powder and melt it with a creme brulee torch; also slightly caramelizing the grapefruit at the same time.

Ingredients:
grapefruit
soy sauce
finely chopped garlic
Chinese black vinegar
sesame oil
sriracha sauce
lemon juice
roughly chopped mint
sugar powder