Roasting broccoli brings out its sweeter side. For this salad-y dish , I like to roast it just until it is lightly browned. Combine them with buttery Marcona almonds, sweet dates and a little cheddar cheese, and you have a very delicious salad or side dish. Other cruciferous vegetables can be substituted for the broccoli, such as cauliflower florets or…
This one-dish skillet meal might be dubbed an “oven risotto” because of the way the white wine and chicken broth plays a role, plus the use of Arborio rice. Whatever you call it, I think you will find it delicious. Rapini, also referred to has broccoli rabe, offers a welcome bitter edge that brings balance to the starchy rice and…
Avocado and Orange Salad – Updated Classic Combo
Cooking, Melissa's, Produce, Recipes, Uncategorized, VideosAvocado’s rich, nutty taste and creamy texture pairs beautifully with the sweet-sour perkiness of oranges. The fruit duo is especially appealing in a simple salad along with tender lettuce, fresh lemon juice and crunchy almonds. Most often avocados are found firm-to-the-touch in the marketplace; they only ripen off the tree. If they are hard when you buy them, they will…
Pasta + Baby Spinach + Ricotta + Half & Half + Butter = Quick-to-Prepare Fun In the ten years I served on the James Beard Foundation’s Cookbook Award Committee, I flew to NYC four times a year to attend the meetings (we had no idea that ZOOM would become a thing – after all it was the 90’s and early…
This salad recipe is adapted from “Ancient Grains for Modern Families” by Maria Speck (Ten Speed, $29.99). Speck used marinated dried figs in the salad, which are delicious. But I changed my mind about the figs when I had a luscious quinoa salad at Marche Moderne restaurant (Newport Coast). It was adorned with candied kumquats. Reset. I love the sweet-tart…
Rad Red Times Three Salad with Beets, Blood Oranges and Pomegranates
Cookbooks, Cooking, Melissa's, Produce, Recipes, VideosI love red-fleshed fruits and vegetables! Red Times Three Salad showcases three of my favorites: blood oranges, red beets and pomegranate seeds. Blood orange’s sweet-sour flavor profile has a subtle note of raspberry. It pairs beautifully with the earthy edge of beets. I use Melissa’s ready-to-eat peeled and steamed baby beets – they are so convenient and beat the heck…
Pork Marries Mangoes-A Roast with Sweet-Tart Flavor Merriment
Cookbooks, Cooking, Melissa's, Produce, RecipesThe soft flesh of a ripe mango is an alluring blend of pineapple and tree-ripened peach, but it’s sweeter and more exotic. The scent is enticing too, a blend of pine forest and tropical jungle. No wonder it is the most widely consumed fruit in the world. Roast pork and fresh mango are a luscious combination. In this dish, pork…
Crisp-Roasted Baby Dutch Yellow Potatoes w/Pickle Salad
Cooking, Melissa's, Produce, Recipes, UncategorizedThank you Chef Jamie Oliver. I’m a longtime fan of potato salads napped with vinaigrette. But Oliver’s concoction is over-the-moon delicious, teaming crisp spuds with a topping of crunchy vegetables adrift in an oil-less vinegar “pickle” concoction. ‘Such a creative and appealing combination of tastes and textures, as well as contrasting temperatures. It’s a whole new take on conventional potato…