If you're like me, you probably have some last of the season cucumbers creeping out of your garden, right? Well, if you don't, this is a great salad to celebrate the waning of the summer months. This salad will make it pop right back up. Really!

I had a few pre-cooked shrimps left (the kind you get in a bag from the grocery store) that needed to be used up so I thought this would be a perfect way to use them up. Not only did we use cucumbers from the garden, all the herbs were too. It was delicious!

Click here for the recipe for Cucumber Shrimp Salad.



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Here's another way to use up left over turkey. This was one of our lunches over the winter holiday. To use up some left over turkey meat from our New Year's dinner, we made this Turkey Potato Salad which is very simple to make and basically is just a potato salad with turkey.

Here is the basic recipe we used:
1 cup chopped cooked turkey meat
3 large potatoes, boiled, peeled and cubed
1 carrot, peeled and grated
2 hard boiled eggs, cubed
2 tablespoons relish
3/4 cup Mayonnaise
Salt & Pepper, to taste

Mix all the ingredients together and serve.

Simple, right? You can serve this as a side, or use it like you would a turkey/chicken salad and make sandwiches. We ate this over toasted rosemary baguettes. Yummy!



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This dish is perfect for a light summer lunch, a picnic or for any summer time party. The great thing about it is, it's a marinated dish so the longer it sits in the dressing the better the flavors get!

Now I know ceviches are supposed to be made from raw fish or seafood, but I just happened to have these cooked shrimps and thought this dish would be a perfect way to use them up.

Click here for the recipe...



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Summer is truly here for sure. The girls are out of school, and the temperature has been flirting with the 100s for days. Yesterday, we stayed inside in the air conditioned housed but my poor husband we out in the heat working with his cousin. He says the heat index where they were working was 107 degrees. It was so hot that I didn't really feel like cooking.

On days like these, salads and cooking outside is the only solution to not heating up the kitchen, and this grilled eggplant salad is substantial and refreshing. Perfect for days like this.

See the recipe for Eggplant salad...



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It is time for Lasang Pinoy again, and for this 18th round our host is Toni of Wifely Steps who chose this month's theme of vegetables! Whether you love them or hate them, we will be writing about Filipino or Filipino inspired vegetable dishes.

In Our Kitchen, vegetables are a no brainer. Any will do, cooked or not, in any which way. I think our favorite way though is AS IS, vegetables that are as close to their natural flavors as possible; that is why salads, simply dressed are so popular at our table.

Here are some 'close-to-traditional' (since I don't ever do anything the authentic way) vegetable dishes that have been published on this blog previously.
Vegetable Adobo
Pinakbet Tagalog
Ampalaya (bittermelon) with Eggs
Kamote Salad
Gising-Gising
Ginisang Sayote

These are variations on the theme or Filipino 'inspired' dishes:
Steamed Garden Vegetables The simplest way of cooking, and also the best way to bring out natural flavors of vegetables.
Green Beans, Tomato & Cilantro Salad
Green Beans with Lemon and Soy Sauce
Shrimp & Vegetables Sinigang sa Miso (in miso soup)
Collard & Beet Greens in Coconut Milk (sa gata)

For LP-18, I offer another variation to an oft used theme of dressing vegetables with the 'filipino salsa' of onions, tomatoes, lemon and fish sauce.



It's grilling time again here in the U.S., and with the past three day holiday, our grill has been on overdrive. This is part of what we cooked on the grill for Memorial Day. Again as with may dishes in our kitchen, it is a cross between the usual grilled vegetable that is dressed with a type of Italian style dressing and the Filipino way of tomatoes, onions, lemon and fish sauce. It is a variation from the traditional Eggplant Salad.

This dish would be perfect for a large crowd and can be cooked ahead of time as the marinating process adds so much to the flavor.

Start by grilling eggplants (I used the large globe eggplants that are more common in the grocery stores) which have been cut into 1/4 inch thick rounds and drizzled with olive oil, salt, & pepper. Do the same to zucchini squashes or yellow squashes that have been halved or quartered lengthwise.

On a platter with sides or bowl, layer first the grilled eggplant slices, then the grilled squash. To these layers add a layer each of tomatoes and sweet onions, then sprinkle with chopped cilantro.

In a separate bowl or cup, mix together equal amounts of soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil until well blended and pour over the vegetable layers. Let stand at room temperature for at least 30 minutes or refrigerated for as much as overnight.

I purposely didn't add any measurements for the dressing as this will depend on how much vegetables you are using. For a small platter, you can start with two tablespoons each, for instance and just increase the proportions according to your needs.

For the roundup of LP18 participants, visit Toni's Wifely Steps.

This salad, I borrowed from Kalyns Kitchen. I also made this last Sunday for our appetizer/nosh day. I had a two pound bag of shrimps, from Costco of course, and decided to make half into shrimp cocktails and the other half into this salad. I modified it a bit to suit what I had on hand and to taste.

INGREDIENTS:
1 lb. cooked, frozen shrimps (thawed and drained)
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced yellow bell pepper
2 avocados, diced
1 Tablespoon lemon juice, to toss with avocado
1/2 tsp. salt, to toss with avocado
1/2 cup sliced green onions
1/2 cup chopped cilantro

Dressing:
1/4 cup Mayonnaise
1/2 tsp. Ancho chili powder

Whisk the mayonnaise and chili powder together, then fold in the thawed and drained shrimps. Set aside in the refrigerator while you chop the other ingredients.

Dice the avocadoes toss with the lemon juice and salt until well coated. This will keep the avocadoes from turning dark. Add the rest of the salad ingredients and toss. Add the mixture to the shrimp and gently fold everything together. Chill (or not), and serve.

Kalyn gives great background on shrimp sizes and how to use raw shrimps if that is what you have on hand. She also says that this recipe is South Beach approved recipe, so if you're on a diet, what a great way to indulge! I had this for lunch the following day, and it was still delicious! I was afraid the avocadoes would have turned black and turned the whole thing into mush, but no, it was still as good if not better as the day we made it!

The weather has started to turn cooler, and so we've had to take in the remains from our garden. Not willing to let summer go quite yet, we've taken advantage of the fall sunshine to do a bit more grilling. I came across this recipe for Potato Salad with Dilled Vinaigrette and decided to use up some of the fresh herbs from the garden before they are dried for the winter.

This is my variation, and my entry for weekend herb blogging which this week is hosted by Fiber of 28 Cooks.

INGREDIENTS:
New Potatoes, cooked and halved/quartered
2 medium carrots, cooked, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
8 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 cup sweet onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, sliced
2 Tablespoons fresh dill
3 Tablespoons fresh italian parsley, chopped
3 Tablespoons chives or green onions, chopped
4 Tablespoons lime or lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked balck pepper
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar or pickle juice

Boil the potatoes and carrots, cut up, and set aside to cool. In the meantime, heat a tablespoon of the olive oil in a skillet and saute' the onions and garlic until fragrant and the onions are translucent. Add the onions and garlic to the potatoes and carrots. Add the dill, parsley, green onions, and bell pepper to the bowl with the potatoes. In a small bowl or jar, mix the remaining olive oil, lemon/lime, black pepper, salt, and pickle juice. Adjust the seasonings, and pour the dressing over the potatoes. Mix well and let sit at room temperature until you are ready to eat to let the flavors blend.

There are many versions of green bean salad, this is one of the simplest but it's my favorite because the natural flavors of each vegetable is enhanced rather than masked. This dish is also perfect when you are on a diet as it has 0% fat content.

This is the green bean salad I referred to in a previous post, green beans & tomato salad. While that salad was dressed with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, this one is dressed simply with lime juice and fish sauce. To begin with, fresh green beans are blanched just until tender, about 4 to 5 minutes in boiling water. They are then quickly cooled off in a bowl of ice water to prevent additional cooking, then drained. In a bowl mix the green beans with chopped tomatoes and cilantro then toss in a dressing of equal parts lime juice and fish sauce. If you prefer you can also add thinly sliced red onions which I chose to omit this time.

Wondering about fish sauce? There are a great many misconceptions about what fish sauce is and how it is made. I was once talking to a former Vietnam Veteran who I thought would have known better since he was actually in the country, but I guess under the circumstances that brought him there, I can't expect him to glean the nuances of Vietnamese cuisine. He actually believed that nuoc mam (fish sauce) was made by hanging fish out in the sun, and as it decomposes and renders it's juices, they are then caught and this is fish sauce. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Fish sauce is a by product of a fermentation process that has been tested and perfected over generations.

Thank goodness for the internet, information is now readily available to the curious or to those who just wants to set the record straight. Here are some background information, just follow the links if you'd like to learn more.

Fish sauce is a condiment commonly used in Southeast Asian cuisine and goes by many names:

NamPlah - Thailand

Nuoc Mam - Vietnam

Ngan Byar - Myanmar

Teuk Trei - Cambodia

Patis - Philippines

Fish sauce is not exclusively of southeast asian origin however, it is also an ingredient to one of the more common western condiment, worstershire sauce. Fish sauce can also be traced as far back as the roman times when it was known as garum.

For the first anniversary edition of Lasang Pinoy, hosted by stef of stefoodie.net and Noodles & Rice, the theme is to define what being Pinoy is all about. I think this may be the hardest topic of all. It is like having to choose which of your children is your favorite. You love them all, but they are all different and they all have something that makes them special, and you love them all for different reasons but you love them all the same, without one having more advantage over another. Read the rest of this post...

Here is my Lola's Kamote Salad:

Kalyn who hosts Weekend Herb Blogging luckily posted this recipe a second time around and reminded me to try it out. I am glad I did because it is such a refreshing change from the usual pickled cucumber salad and it is such a perfect way to highlight the cucumbers and mints from our garden. I made a couple of modifications from Kalyn's recipe since I didn't have the green Tabasco sauce or peanuts on hand, but I think the spirit of the recipe still came through. Here's how I did mine. Kalyn's original recipe is here.

INGREDIENTS:

Cucumbers from our backyard ~ some were not very big yet or are shaped strangely, so I used about 5 or 6 cucumbers (use however many you need to make a bowlful)
1/2 cup fresh mint, coarsely chopped

dressing:
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1 1/2 tablespoons Patis or fish sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 tsp. green habanero sauce
1 1/2 tsp. or two cloves of garlic puree (I ground mine in a mortar & pestle)
salt and pepper to taste

Peel and cut the cucumbers into bite sized chunks and add the coarsely chopped mint. Mix the dressing ingredients in a separate bowl to make sure the sugar and salt are dissolved. Taste and adjust accordingly. Pour the dressing over the cucumbers and lime and let marinade for about 15 minutes before serving.

As Kalyn pointed out on her post, the mint becomes overpowering after a while so it is best to make only as much as you think you can finish in one meal.

I finally got around to posting something for Weekend Herb Blogging which was started by Kalyn's Kitchen! The garden has been doing really well especially the herbs, so I thought this event would be the perfect way to feature these goodies from our backyard.

From one pack of beets seed, we've had a bumper crop of beets this season. I haven't motivated myself yet to start canning anything so we've been eating a lot of greens and beets. So far our favorite way of fixing beets is this fresh pickled recipe which I put together from several sites on the web. The addition of fresh dill is a must. The dill heightens the natural sweetness of the beets perfectly. We have also tried it without the dill, and the flavors were a bit flat without that extra kick from the dill so if you can, don't leave it out.

To cook the beets, first cut the tops off, leaving an inch on the roots, and reserve for another dish. Don't be tempted to peel them first as I was because this will cause a lot of the pretty red coloring to bleed out, and bleeding out is not a good thing even for vegetables. That means don't cut the root tendrils off either just wash the roots throughly and boil the beet roots unpeeled until tender, about 20 to 30 minutes. You can cook them longer if you prefer them to be more tender. 30 minutes, I found, is the perfect cooking time for me as at this point they are thoroughly cooked but still have a bit of a 'bite' to them. Rinse them under cool running water, cool, peel and slice into rounds or quarters.

In a small bowl combine:
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon each of salt & black pepper
about 1 tablespoon of fresh dill, chopped (add more if you prefer I was being a bit cautious this time around)

Pour the dressing over the prepared beets and let marinate at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before serving.

After reminiscing about childhood food memories, the last topic of Lasang Pinoy, I can't help but segue into more memories. With summer waning in the Philippines and summer just starting on this side of the hemisphere, summertime is fresh on all our minds. Summertime, with its lazy days, is the perfect time to let loose the Huck Finn in all of us. Not only does the weather make us want to get out of the hot house and loll under a tree, it also whets our appetites for anything cool and refreshing.

Read the rest...

I don't know why this photo came out so funky, but I guess I'll just have to replace it next time we make potato salad again. This time around, we are doing potato salad the Southern way, or at least this is how my husband's family does potato salad. I know some people like mustard in their potato salad, but hubby's family is not too crazy about it. I am not a big fan of mustardy potato salad either but I use it for color once in a while. This time around, I didn't have to color it with mustard. That yellow color is from the yukon gold potatoes that I used for this batch.

Click here for the Potato Salad recipe...

All About Potato Salads

We have gone grill crazy since the weather turned nice. This week alone we grilled three of our meals and we have entertained friends two weekends in a row. Spring has definitely sprung!!

This is one salad we make when we are tired of the usual mayonnaise based potato salad. This one we learned from Uncle Danny who prepares this dish almost every time we have a cook out at their house.

It is quite simple to prepare. Red skinned potatoes are very attractive in this dish and that is what we normally use, leaving the skin on; but this time, I only had white potatoes. Boil the potatoes until they are cooked through. Cool them a bit before slicing them up (since I used white potatoes, I peeled them first). Chop some red onions (about 1/2 cup) and flat leaf (Italian) parsley (about 3 tablespooons or more if you prefer). Add these to the potatoes along with a drizzle of olive oil, and season with salt and fresh cracked black pepppers. I just eyeball the olive oil and don't measure. The trick is to just give enough to coat the potatoes but not saturate them. This can be served hot or room temperature. I wouldn't recommend chilling it. The good thing about it is, since it's not mayonnaise based you can leave it out until it's time to eat.

Garden Harvest Dinner

This is a plate that Jade made for dinner, and got carried away with the photography. I think it looks pretty though. The vegetables are from our garden. Here is what was on the menu:

Tilapia Parmesan

Tilapia Fillets
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup of all-purpose flour
1 cup of bread crumbs
1/2 cup of grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. of dried basil
1/2 tsp. of dried oregano
1/2 tsp. of garlic powder
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/2 cup of vegetable oil for frying

Sauce:
Capers
Pine Nuts
Butter

Heat the oil in a skillet to medium high heat. In the mean time, beat the eggs in one bowl, and in a separate bowl, combine the rest of the ingredients. Dip the fillets in the beaten egg, then dredge in the flour/bread crumb mixture. Fry in the hot oil until brown on both sides.

For the sauce, place the pine nuts in a small skillet and toast on medium heat, when lightly toasted, add 2 tablespoons of capers with some of the brining liquid. When the liquid has been reduced by half, slowly incorporate as much butter as needed to make a light sauce. Pour over the fried tilapia fillets.

Angel Hair Pasta with Basil Pesto

2 Cloves of fresh garlic
3 cups of fresh basil leaves, stems removed
1/2 cup of pine nuts
1/2 cup of grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup of olive oil

In a blender, blend the above ingredients together until smooth. Pour the sauce over cooked pasta, preferably while the pasta is still hot. If it seems too thick, add a bit of the hot water that the pasta was boiled in to thin the sauce. Toss together, and enjoy.

Tomato Basil Salad

We have an abundance of tomatoes from our garden and they are sooo sweet! So we have been eating them with almost every meal. For this meal, we sliced yellow and red tomatoes and topped it with sliced red onions and basil leave. Nothing else. Simply delicious!