I love to cook. That’s not a secret. I’m better at it than some, much worse than others. I fail and I succeed.
I made some Fish Tacos the other week. They were a definite fail. But, today, my friends, was a good cooking day because of a little thing called Tart (it might actually be more of a dessert pizza, but I like the word tart, so that’s what I’m calling it).
It surprised me with it’s deliciousness. I love surprises. But, usually culinary ones are more along the lines of “Wow! That’s really gross,” or “Darn, the pan with the sauce for today’s main dish fell on the floor”… You know what I mean?
But this tart, this little Strawberry-Balsamic Tart, is the good kind of surprise.
Strawberries get all melty and soft when they’re roasted. Reduced balsamic vinegar is syrupy and thick. Pizza crust is thin and crispy. Walnuts are slightly toasted and crunchy. Onions are caramely and sweet. And, maybe the most surprising ingredient, black pepper, adds just the right tiny kick of spice.
Be still my heart.
I can’t stop thinking about this tart.
It was love at first bite.
I ate this on its own for lunch… and had a hard time not eating the entire thing by myself. However, should you want to share, I think it would be great alongside a Spinach Salad topped with Shredded Chicken (use leftover Roasted Chicken), Walnuts, and Strawberries. It could be a brunch food – how about with the Spring Frittata I made a few weeks ago?! Or maybe serve it as an appetizer? Why not?! You could also also also serve it with a dollop of vanilla ice cream and call it dessert.
1 pint strawberries, hulled, and quartered lengthwise
pinch nutmeg
1-2 medium onions, sliced
2 T honey
pinch salt
1/2 C balsamic vinegar
1 pizza crust
1/4 C coconut palm sugar (or brown sugar)
1/4 C raw walnuts, coarsely chopped
pinch freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
Pre-heat oven to 425F. Melt butter.
In a hot, dry skillet, add onions, honey, and salt. Cook over medium-low for about 15-20 minutes, or until they are caramelized, stirring occasionally.
While onions cook, in a small saucepan, bring vinegar to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook until thickened and syrupy, about 12-18 minutes (being careful not to let it burn).
Meanwhile, roll out pizza crust. Par bake for 5 minutes.
Toss strawberries with 1/2 T melted butter and nutmeg.
Brush crust with 1/2 T melted butter. Sprinkle with sugar and press into crust slightly (with a spatula or fingers). Top with onions, walnuts, strawberries, and black pepper. Bake for 7-9 minutes (or according to your pizza dough's recipe instructions), or until crust is done.
Let stand for a few minutes.
Drizzle with balsamic vinegar. If you can wait that long, serve at room temperature. If not, I totally understand. 😉
Today I made dip. It’s not your average Spinach-Artichoke Dip. No way. It’s made with artichokes, walnuts, spinach, and beet greens. There’s a little cheese too. Cheese is always a good addition to dip in my books. I’m totally a fan of creamy dips and sauces. But this time, I exchanged the mayo for balsamic vinegar…
Really, I use the term “dip” loosely. It’s more of a “scoop”, but I don’t know if that works…
If you didn’t blend it, this could be a side dish of wilted greens that you eat with a fork. I’d be ok with that serving option. Or maybe you might want to add some of the water from a pot of cooking pasta and make it into a pasta dish? Be my guest! But, my plan is to scoop it out of a bowl with a cracker or some French bread and call it dinner. Yes, dinner. Or snack, appetizer, lunch, breakfast (alongside a fried egg? Sure, I think so.)…
I’ll admit that it’s not quite as pretty as one of those creamy Spinach-Artichoke dips. It’s the balsamic that gives it the dark color. Totally worth it.
Something I didn’t do that I’m regretting: I didn’t add bacon. That would have been a good addition. Great, now not only am I hungry, but I’m hungry for bacon…
1-2 C cheese, grated (mixture of parmesan and gruyère)
crackers, bread, or bagel chips for serving
Instructions
Heat skillet. Add oil. When oil is hot, add artichokes, shallot, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and sugar. Cook for 3-5 minutes, over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
Add garlic and walnuts. Cook 2 minutes, over medium heat, stirring often.
Add vinegar and reduce down for 3-4 minutes (or less!).
Stir in dijon. Add beet greens and wilt down for 2 minutes, (to help greens wilt down: using tongs, pick up greens and bits from the bottom and turn over). Add spinach and wilt down for 2 minutes, or until all greens are wilted.
Using the chopper attachment of a hand blender (or a food processor), working in batches (if needed), blend the dip to desired consistency.
Today is National Grilled Cheese Day. My brother, Josh, informed me of it this morning. It would have been just wrong not to have it for lunch.
I’m totally cool with a plain old grilled cheese. You know, bread, butter, cheese, done. But today I wanted a fancied up version. Hello gruyère, rosemary ham, fuji apple, olive oil, and a touch of salt, between two pieces of Ezekiel bread. Hello indeed.
a few slices of thinly sliced ham (rosemary ham if you can find it)
Gruyère cheese, as much as you need, sliced
fuji (or your favorite) apple, thinly sliced
Instructions
Drizzle oil on one side of each slice of bread. Sprinkle with salt and distribute evenly over the slice. Top with cheese, ham, and apple slices. Close.
Place into a hot skillet over medium or medium-low heat. Cover (opt.) and cook for about 3ish minutes, or until the bread is crispy. Flip and cook uncovered until cheese is melted and second slice of bread is crispy.
I think at this time of year, the word pollen might be a bad bad word. I, for example, have sneezed approximately seventeen hundred thousand times in the past two weeks. I wonder if I’m allergic to something?!
Here’s a kind of pollen you can get into: Fennel Pollen. I told you about it in December when I’d just begun to try it out. I’m still experimenting, but so far, everything I’ve added it to I’ve liked (not to be confused with “add it to everything”).
And this week, I used it again. This time in a dip for some beets, fennel, potatoes, and carrots. Not just any beets, fennel, potatoes, and carrots though. They’re roasted. Which makes almost any vegetable about a thousand times better (and that’s saying a lot, because I like vegetables).
They’re meant to be served alongside Fennel Pollen Burgers. But, those weren’t for the show. They’re for Friday’s post, so you’ll just have to wait… If you can’t, just make the veggies twice!
