Baby Arugula Salad with a Lemon Honey Dressing

Spring is finally here! I no longer crave soups or other hearty foods. I am happy eating salads, fruits, and lots of veggies. My favorite snack the past few days has been toasted bread with homemade truffle butter (butter is so easy to make - put heavy cream in the food processor for several minutes and you have your own butter) topped with sliced radishes and fresh thyme. So yummy! I paired the open-faced sandwich with this tasty salad. This salad taste like spring time. It is crisp, sweet, and refreshing. I truly felt feelings of euphoria come over me as I ate it. Is that weird? Maybe it is, but it is true. Greg was pretty impressed with this salad too. I originally was going to use dried figs on it, but since I could find them, I chose to use a little bit of chopped radish instead. It was the perfect amount of crisp and the flavor paired nicely with the arugula. I also topped the salad with the yummy cinnamon spiced almonds (that are made without any egg white) and goat cheese. I was going to use blue cheese but Greg seriously despises blue cheese, so I went with the goat. I think it worked well. If you are looking for a pretty good brand of goat cheese that doesn't cost too much money, I'd recommend the Vermont Creamery brand. I used radishes from Wegman's that were already washed and prepared, which made things much easier. For the dressing, I just mixed up some lemon juice, olive oil, honey, salt and pepper. So simple and so delicious.

If you want a yummy salad for lunch or just looking for a tasty salad to compliment a meal, try this baby arugula salad with lemon honey dressing. Enjoy!

Recipe for Baby Arugula Salad with a Lemon Honey Dressing

INGREDIENTS: 
3 cups of baby arugula leaves
About 20 cinnamon spiced almonds
Thinly sliced radishes cut into quarters (about one radish)
2 ounces of crumbled goat cheese (I used the Vermont Creamery brand)
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 Tbsp. of extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp. of honey
A couple grinds of sea salt
Several grinds of freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS:
Divide the baby arugula leaves amongst two plates. Then top each with the almonds, radishes, and goat cheese.

Prepare the dressing. Put the lemon juice, olive oil, and honey into a smallish bowl. Stir well until the honey is no longer thick and well incorporated. Sprinkle in the salt and pepper. Taste and adjust as desired. Spoon half the dressing over one salad and half over the other.

-Original Recipe-
Recipe makes 2 salads.

Lemon Basil Sorbet

Last week I broke out my ice cream maker, which I haven't used since last Fall. The last time I made ice cream was when I made pumpkin ice cream during the warmer days in October. I made strawberry ice cream last week, and since I made it, I've been dreaming up other fun ice cream recipes. When Greg and I went to St. Michaels this past weekend, we dined at a restaurant called 208 Talbot. The food we ate there was amazing! We must have been seated just around the same time as the tables next to us, because I practically had the dinner and dessert specials memorized. One dessert menu item was mojito sorbet, which peaked my interest. The server said it had no alcohol, it cleansed the palate, and that it was very refreshing. Although we didn't order any dessert, I couldn't stop thinking about that sorbet. I wanted to make a refreshing sorbet! Well, since I had an abundance of lemons for once and since we have basil growing in the garden, I made a lemon basil sorbet. I based the recipe on the bubbly basil lemonade that I made for the first time last summer. It was super delicious, and it was refreshing! It's tart and sweet and a little creamy and pretty incredible. I made it Wednesday afternoon and my friend, Greg, and I ate it so quickly that I had to make another batch again yesterday. I'm excited to share this recipe & I hope you enjoy it as much as we did. And I definitely will be trying to create a mojito sorbet recipe too in the coming weeks!

Recipe for Lemon Basil Sorbet

INGREDIENTS:

Basil Simple Syrup (recipe to follow)

10 ounces of freshly squeezed lemon juice (use a citrus squeezer)

1/3 cup of heavy cream

DIRECTIONS:

In a large bowl, mix together the lemon juice, basil simple syrup, and heavy cream. Mix well. Cover the bowl with a lid in put into the fridge for 30 - 45 minutes. 

Once mixture is cold, add it into an ice cream maker and make according to ice cream maker manufacturer directions (it should take about 20 - 25 minutes). For a softer sorbet, serve immediately. If you prefer a more frozen sorbet, put in an airtight container and store in freezer for a couple hours before serving. 

For the Basil Simple Syrup:

Add 1 cup sugar, 1 cup water, and 3/4 cup of fresh basil leaves (washed and stems removed) to a small saucepan. Put the saucepan over medium high heat. Stir mixture almost constantly until all the sugar is dissolved and bring to a heavy simmer. Allow it to simmer for about a minute, continuing to stir. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. When cool enough to handle, pour over a container into a fine mesh sieve. Press down on the basil leaves to try to extract the most flavor and then discard the basil leaves. Put lid on container and store in fridge for at least an hour before you make the sorbet.

Makes 4 - 6 servings

And remember, I'm also running a GIVEAWAY to celebrate my Blogiversary. Click here for your chance to win! 

Jicama Salad with Mango

Jicama is a fun word to say (so is Francisco). For so long I pronounced it "yickama" or "jicama" (with the sound of the j), until one night when I ate at a yummy Spanish/Latin restaurant in Annapolis with Greg and some friends. My friend and I ordered and shared a dish with jicama. My friend and I told the waitress how much we liked the "yickama," and we kept repeating the mispronunciation until finally the waitress corrected us! It is pronounced with an 'h' instead of a 'j.'

Jicama is also known as a Mexican potato and it is an ingredient found in latin cooking. I love the texture and taste of jicama, especially in salads. The other night my mom asked me and Greg to join the rest of the family at the new Wegman's in Columbia for dinner. At first I wasn't too excited about the idea, until I got online and read the menu. I saw the jicama salad on the online menu, and I knew I needed to have some. The salad did not disappoint. Cool, crisp, refreshing, and light - it had jicama, pineapple, and cucumber in a tasty lime dressing.

As we were leaving the store, I bought a jicama (my first jicama purchase ever)! I found the recipe in the Wegman's catalogue and I reproduced it with some changes. I didn't feel like dealing with a pineapple, so I used mango. I also added some carrots and added a bit of red pepper flakes to the dressing, then topped with whole raw cashews. Greg likened it to a papaya salad, but better. The salad was sweet but not too sweet, spicy but not too spicy - it was just right!

Recipe for Jicama Salad with Mango
INGREDIENTS:
For the salad:
1 medium jicama, peeled and grated with largest grate on a box grater
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut into thin 1-inch slices
1 small carrot, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces, then peeled into strips with a vegetable peeler
1 medium mango, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
Whole raw cashews or cashew pieces, for sprinkling on each salad
For the dressing:
3 limes, juiced
Zest of 1/2 lime
1/4 cup of olive oil
3 Tbsp. of honey
1 tsp. of crushed red pepper flakes (more or less as desired)
1/2 tsp. of sweet chili sauce (optional)

DIRECTIONS:
Make the dressing first. In a smallish bowl, combine the lime juice, lime zest, honey, olive oil, red pepper flakes, and sweet chili sauce. Whisk until well combined. Set aside.

Add the grated jicama to a large bowl. Pour dressing over the jicama and toss well. Cover bowl and put in the fridge for an hour or more. About 15 - 20 minutes before serving, add in the cubed mango, sliced cucumber, and carrot strips. Toss together and then put bowl back in the fridge for 15 minutes.

Serve salad on individual dishes and top each dish with whole raw cashews or cashew pieces.

Recipe Adapted from: Wegmans Catalogue