Green spears

I don't have a recollection of ever trying asparagus when I was little. I only remember that I associated them with some foul taste and that I never ever wanted to lay eyes on them. I think I might have even been scared of them.


And then, I grew up.






Growing up means accepting responsibility for your own actions, being able to learn from your mistakes (I'm still trying to master that), having perspective when things don't go your way and having perspective when things do, but for me, growing up meant one more thing. Broadening my eating habits.






I'm not going to bore you with the details of my dietary changes or the “aha” moments that I’ve experienced when I tasted different green stuff that I once vowed not to ever put in my mouth.






What I am going to tell you is that the first time I seriously tried asparagus—and by seriously, I mean actually eating a whole spear and not tossing it after the first reluctant bite—was a moment of glee and surprise. I had no idea those little suckers tasted that good.

Just so that I'm not misunderstood here, I am talking about the green asparagus and not the white. Those chubby white ones don't sit well with me at all.

Rooibos tea leaves

Dressed in a hollandaise sauce or with a simple drizzling of Greek extra virgin olive oil, green asparagus are something out of this world. Paired with oranges and a rooibos tea dressing, they are impressive.






I don't know how many of you have tasted rooibos tea but take it from someone who only drinks tea when they have a serious case of sore throat, it is amazing. It is naturally sweet, with a floral and nutty aroma and a vibrant reddish-brown color.






Originating from South Africa and specifically from the small region of Cederberg where the rooibos plant exclusively grows, rooibos tea, meaning red-bush tea, is considered more of an herbal drink rather than "real" tea. It is regarded as extremely healthy due to its high levels of antioxidants and minerals, its lack of caffeine and tannins, and its suggested abilities, among others, to protect against cancer and to improve the immune system.






The leaves of the rooibos plant take on their distinctively red, almost terracotta color during the oxidation and fermentation processes. Non-oxidized leaves of the same plant yield another type of tea, the green rooibos tea which has a lighter color, a milder herbal flavor and far more antioxidants and nutrients than the regular one.






The dressing for this roasted asparagus salad called for a rooibos syrup scented with cinnamon, orange, lemon and honey (be still my heart) and I don't know how to say this without sounding trite but it is p e r f e c t. Simple as that.






As for the rest of the salad, the green asparagus are roasted in the oven just until they're crisp and tender and the juicy oranges are segmented to reveal their lush flesh. Asian flavors are added to the dressing in the form of rice vinegar and sesame oil that give an exotic punch to the salad whereas the ginger, garlic and olive oil perk up the flavor even more. A final sprinkling of toasted peanuts gives added texture to the dish and once you put the first bite into your mouth, you're in for a heck of a ride.











Roasted Green Asparagus Salad with a Rooibos and Orange Dressing
Adapted from Wining & Dining

I like to peel my asparagus. I'm fussy like that. Plus, S has issues with the texture of unpeeled asparagus. But if you get your hands on some fresh, young asparagus and especially if they're thin, I would suggest not peeling them at all. You just need to snap off the bottom part of each spear.

I used tea bags to make the rooibos tea for the syrup but you can certainly use leaves instead.

By the way, I have to tell you that I discovered an exceptional Greek olive oil here in Holland, "Bio Sitia Organic" from the island of Crete, and I am overjoyed because, unfortunately, it is easier to find Spanish or Italian olive oils here rather than Greek. I hope someone does something about this soon. The market is hungry for Greek products. In Holland, Greek products are either non-existent or extremely pricey, which automatically makes them non competitive. I use only Greek olive oil in my cooking—always have and always will— and there's just nothing else like it out there. Whenever I travel to Greece I have to bring back with me large amounts of the stuff, yet this one I found in a small super market near my apartment is becoming my favorite. It is more of a finishing olive oil rather then the one you'd use to cook with and it has a very deep, rich yet delicate flavor. If you happen to find it where you live, use it. I can't recommend it enough.





Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

for rooibos tea
3 rooibos tea bags
250 ml boiling water

for rooibos syrup
400 g sugar
250 ml rooibos tea
1 medium-sized lemon, halved
1 medium-sized orange, halved
1 ½ cinnamon stick
170 ml honey (I used orange blossom honey)

for the dressing
50 ml rooibos syrup
80 ml orange juice, freshly squeezed
10 ml rice vinegar
10 ml Asian sesame oil
1 ½ tsp orange zest
1 medium-sized garlic clove, mashed
1 tsp fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
Salt
Black pepper, freshly ground

for the salad
500 g fresh green asparagus, cleaned and trimmed
2 small oranges
10 ml plus 10 ml extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp spring onions (green parts only), thinly sliced
35 g unsalted peanuts, peeled

Special equipment: sieve


Preparation

Make the rooibos tea
In a small jug, put 3 bags of rooibos tea and add the boiling water. Let stand for 15 minutes.


Make the rooibos syrup
In a medium-sized saucepan add the sugar and rooibos tea. Squeeze the lemon and orange juice into the saucepan and add the halved fruit as well. Add the cinnamon sticks and bring the mixture to the boil over medium heat, stirring continuously until the sugar is dissolved. Lower heat and let simmer for 10 minutes.
Add the honey and bring heat up to high. Stir until the honey is dissolved and bring syrup to the boil. Remove saucepan from the heat and let syrup cool and come to room temperature.
Sieve the syrup over a medium-sized bowl, pressing the fruit halves firmly so that all the syrup comes through. Discard what's left inside the sieve and place syrup in the fridge, uncovered, for about 1 hour, until cold.

Note: you will need 50 ml of the rooibos syrup for the dressing. You can keep the rest in the refrigerator, in an airtight container, and you can use it to dress a fruit salad or drizzle over ice cream.

Clean, peel and trim the asparagus
Rinse asparagus under cold running water.
The end, woody part of the asparagus needs to be snapped off. There are times when that part is clearly visible because its color is yellowish or white instead of green. There will be other times though that it will be green but still woody.
In order to snap off the woody parts of the asparagus, take the end of the asparagus between your thumb and forefinger, holding the top half with your other hand, and bend it until it snaps. It will automatically snap at the part where the woody part ends and the fresh, juicy part starts. In some asparagus this breaking point will be lower and at others it will be further up the tip. Don't worry about that.

It's best if you peel the asparagus with the help of a potato peeler. Peel them along their length, leaving the tips intact.
If the asparagus you're using are very young and tender, you don't need to peel them.


Note: asparagus should be consumed just a few days after you've bought them. Keep them covered in a damp kitchen towel and store them in your fridge's salad crisper for 3-4 days.

Prepare the salad
Once you have cleaned and trimmed the asparagus, place them in a bowl filled with cold water. Make sure they are wholly immersed in the water. Leave them like that for 15 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 200 degrees Celsius.

Arrange the asparagus on a rimmed baking tray in a single layer and drizzle them with 10 ml of olive oil. Roll them back and forth until they are covered with a thin layer of olive oil and put the tray on the middle rack of the oven. Roast asparagus for about 10 minutes until tender and crisp, turning them once or twice so that they cook evenly on all sides.
Take tray out of the oven and place asparagus on a dish to cool.

In the meantime, cut the oranges by using a sharp knife. First, cut off the peel, then the white pith all around the fruit, exposing the flesh, and finally, cut free the flesh of the fruit from the membranes that are in between the wedges.

Toast the peanuts in a small frying pan over medium heat, until they take on a light golden-brown color and start releasing their oils. Be careful not to burn them, they catch easily, and shake the pan oftentimes while toasting them. Once ready, coarsely chop half of them and leave the rest whole.

Prepare the dressing
In a medium sized bowl, add all the ingredients for the dressing and whisk well. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Assemble the salad
In a large salad plate, arrange the roasted asparagus and orange segments. Garnish with the spring onions and sprinkle the peanuts over the salad. Pour the dressing on top and drizzle with a little (10ml) olive oil. Serve immediately and enjoy.

"Orange craze"

What I have discovered about the Dutch these past four years that I have been living in The Netherlands (I can't believe it'll be four years this month) is that they drink a lot of beer. And I mean, A LOT. Well, I didn't actually need four years to figure that out. A night out on the town the first time I visited the country pretty much made it obvious.






In Greece, you have a beer when you go out to a bar or a club and then you move on to the "real" stuff like vodka, tequila, whiskey or a good cocktail, not to mention the copious amounts of ouzo a Greek person can consume in one outing. But here, it is like there is no other drink on the planet other than beer. Ok, I know Holland is the king of beer producers but still, c'mon, it's only beer.

To any beer enthusiasts out there: "Please, don't shoot"






The Dutch may drink a lot of beer on any given day but on one particular day of the year they can drink every other nation under the table, and that's including the Czechs, Irish and Germans. That day is Koninginnedag; Queen's Day.






Koninginnedag is a national holiday which celebrates the birthday of the Queen of The Netherlands. Queen Beatrix's birthday is on January 31st but she decided to officially celebrate her birthday every year on April 30th, the date of her mother and previous Queen, Queen Juliana's birthday, as the weather is better in April and tends to favor outdoor festivities.






On Koninginnedag, the Queen—usually accompanied by her sons and their families—visits one or two towns of the country, which vary each year, greeting the people who receive her with fitting celebrations in her honor. These often involve traditional Dutch dances and demonstrations of old crafts.






Koninginnedag is also famous for the vrijmarkt (free market), where people all over the country are allowed to sell freely and without permit anything they want on the streets. Holland literally turns into an enormous garage sale. People lay blankets and sheets in front of their houses, on sidewalks, streets and parks, selling anything from chairs to computers and from books to refrigerators. You are supposed to bargain for the goods and as the day passes, you are bound to get a good deal on just about anything that is left unsold.






The largest vrijmarkt in Holland is in Amsterdam, where thousands of people try to secure a place on the streets of the city to sell their second-hand goods to the almost two-million people who celebrate the Queen's Day in Holland's capital. Vondelpark, which is the largest park in Amsterdam and a gorgeous one at that, is full of children who gather there to sell their cast-off toys and earn a pretty decent allowance.






On Queen's Day, most people wear orange clothing and nearly everyone has an orange accessory on, like a hat, scarf, crazy orange wig, or a stick-on tattoo of the Dutch flag on their cheeks. The streets are filled with orange balloons, orange banners, orange-colored foods and drinks. It's an orange-palooza. And all that because it is the day of oranjegekte, the day of "orange craze". Orange is the national color of Holland, as it represents the Huis van Oranje-Nassau (House of Orange-Nassau), which is the name of the current Dutch dynasty.






Koninginnedag has come to mean more to the Dutch people that just the celebration of the Queen's birthday. It is a day of unity and solidarity, and a day of fun and enjoyment of spring and everything that it has to offer. Which brings me to the drinking and partying part. Yes, that's what this holiday is all about. It even starts the night before, which is officially known as Koninginnenacht, "Queen's Night", where people all over Holland party like there's no tomorrow.






Outdoor live concerts are taking place around the country, dj's are spinning records on public squares, and a lot of beer-selling is happening on the streets by major Dutch beer brands. The largest celebration of Koninginnenacht happens in The Hague, where it actually originated in the early 1990's, when pre-Queen's Day riots were an increasing problem in the city.






Needless to say, this past weekend was decadent in more ways than one. A lot of drinking, eating and celebrating happened. And of course, I had to prepare something special for the day. Something fitting for Koninginnedag, something orange, something delicious and very refreshing since these past days were extremely hot. So, I decided to make smoothies. Mango, orange (naturally), banana and ginger smoothies.






They are perfect. The cooling mango quenches your thirst and the ripeness of the banana sweetens your senses. Then, as you continue to drink, the ginger suddenly hits you. You can feel it at the tip of your tongue and at the back of your throat, burning you just a tad, and you realize that this is no ordinary smoothie. This is potent stuff.
After all the beers consumed and all that alcohol entering the bloodstream, this smoothie feels like manna from heaven.

Who needs beer when you can have something like this?















Orange Juice, Mango, Banana and Ginger Smoothie
Barely adapted from the New York Times

This recipe calls for ginger juice, which is made by putting grated ginger in a cheesecloth and squeezing the heck out of it. The result is a ginger juice which added to this drink, has a brilliant flavor.
If you're not a fan of ginger, add 1/3 of the amount indicated in the recipe. The flavor will be barely noticeable but the smoothie will still have that "je ne sais quois" that will make it unique. You can omit it from the recipe altogether if you really don't like but, it will be your loss!

Dare I say, a little bit of vodka will transform this into a terrific "adult" smoothie. You knew I had to suggest this.






Yield: about 700 ml / 2 large glasses of smoothie


Ingredients
1 large ripe mango, cut into pieces
½ medium-sized ripe banana, cut into pieces
280 ml orange juice, freshly squeezed
3 tsp fresh ginger, finely grated
5 large ice cubes

Special equipment: blender, cheesecloth


Preparation

Make the ginger juice
Place the grated ginger in a cheesecloth, gather the edges of the cheesecloth together and squeeze the ginger well over a small bowl. You will end up with about 2 tsp of ginger juice.

Make the smoothie
In a blender, add the mango, the banana, the orange and ginger juice, and the ice cubes. Blend well until you have a smooth and frothy mixture.

Serve immediately.

Have I told you...

...how much I love lentils? Yes, I think I have. It was back in January when I first posted about my favorite legume, declaring my ever lasting love for them and sharing with you my family's recipe for Greek lentil soup.






Ever since I was a kid, I had a thing for lentils. It was the only legume I enjoyed eating and that soft spot for those dark round jewels was all my mom needed to make her life easier. I profoundly objected to any attempt she made to feed me healthy food so the fact that I was eager to taste her lentil dishes brought her a sigh of relief.






The thing is though that, all these years my lentil repertoire was limited. It seems that I have been stuck in tradition, cooking lentils the way I have always been cooking them, not attempting to jazz them up a bit or pair them with something other than tomatoes, onions and garlic. Not that there's anything wrong with that but sometimes you just need a change. Especially if you're like us who eat lentils almost twice a month.






A while ago, I had bought a packet of Puy lentils planning to use them in some kind of special lentil dish I was hoping to find. They have been sitting in my kitchen cupboard for a couple of months when I finally realized I had to do something with them.






The previous day, I had bought some smoked trout that I've been dying to make a dish of, and thought I would pair the two. Some ideas came to mind but when I searched through my recipe archives and came across a lentil salad with smoked salmon, ricotta cheese and citrus fruits, I knew that was it. I swapped the salmon for the trout, tweaked and adjusted some of the ingredients and cooking processes, and it became the perfect salad.






Puy lentils or lentilles du Puy as they are called in French, are lentils from the volcanic region of Le Puy-en-Velay in south-central France and they are the only lentils in the world that are identified by area of cultivation. Puy lentils are small, green-black lentils with a blue marbling that have a very rich flavor and a superior quality. They are preferred for use in salads because they hold their shape when cooked, retaining their firmness, and don't disintegrate easily.






It was the first time I was using Puy lentils and I was pleasantly surprised by their 'al dente' texture and their nutty, earthy, peppery taste. The smoked trout with its pungent, aromatic flavor and rich texture paired excellently with the lentils, and the soft, creamy ricotta cheese rendered its sweetness to the salad.






The juicy, plump grapefruit wedges gave a welcomed sourness and the dressing, with its flavors of orange and lemon juice, olive oil and ginger, created an ideal concoction that balanced all the flavors in the salad in a unique way.






And it looks good, doesn't it? The Puy lentils resemble small pebbles from some exotic beach, the coral-hued trout and the bright colored grapefruits pop right at you and the white of the ricotta cheese creates a great contrast.

Puy lentils on the left, light brown lentils on the right

This salad can definitely be served at a special dinner, accompanied by a glass of good Chardonnay, or it can work as a light but fulfilling lunch or supper. Served either way, it surely makes a spectacular dish.











Warm Puy Lentil Salad with Smoked-Trout, Ricotta Cheese and Grapefruit
Adapted from Gastronomos magazine

This salad may have complex and intricate flavors but it's extremely easy to prepare.

If you can't find Puy lentils, you can use small, brown or green lentils. Even though they are different, the use of the common lentil surely doesn't mean that your dish will be any less flavorful or attractive.

As you boil the lentils, you will notice that the color of the water becomes almost black. At the end of the cooking process the lentils will have changed color. From green-black with blue marbling they become dark brown with some dark green markings.

In case you can't find ruby red or pink grapefruits, which are slightly sweeter than the yellow ones, use only yellow grapefruits.






Yield: 6 salad-servings

Ingredients
250 g French Puy lentils
150 ml orange juice, freshly squeezed
50 ml lemon juice, freshly squeezed
90 ml extra virgin olive oil
15 ml red wine vinegar
4 g (1 tsp) fresh ginger, grated
100 g onion, finely chopped
350 g smoked-trout fillets
250 g ricotta cheese
1 large yellow grapefruit, cut into wedges with pips, peel and white pith removed
1 large ruby red or pink grapefruit, cut into wedges with pips, peel and white pith removed
10 g flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped, plus a little extra for sprinkling on top of the salad
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Special equipment: colander


Preparation
Before you cook the lentils, it is important that you pick them over. Sometimes you can find spoiled or blackened lentils, or small stones or debris among them that you have to discard. Just lay the lentils on a plate in small batches and pick them over carefully.

Pour 1 liter of water in a medium-sized, heavy-bottomed pan, put on the lid, and let water come to the boil over high heat. When it comes to the boil, add the Puy lentils along with ¼ tsp salt, lower heat to medium, put on the lid and let lentils cook for 15-20 minutes, until they soften but remain 'al dente', meaning firm but not hard. (Check the lentils after 15 minutes have passed, especially if you're using regular lentils since they cook quicker than Puy lentils).

In the meantime, prepare the dressing. In a large bowl, add the orange and lemon juice, olive oil, red-wine vinegar, grated ginger, finely chopped onion and a little salt and freshly ground black pepper. Mix everything with a spoon and set aside.


Once lentils are ready, drain them in a colander, discarding the liquid, and rinse them well under cold running water. This will stop the cooking process. Drain excess water from the lentils and add them to the bowl that contains the dressing. Mix everything with a spoon and add the entire content of the bowl back to the pan. Heat the lentils over medium heat for 7-8 minutes without the lid and check the seasoning.
Drain the lentils over the bowl, reserving the liquid (which is the dressing) in the bowl, and return lentils back to the pan (the heat should be turned off) adding the parsley and mixing it with the lentils.

The way to cut the grapefruits is by using a sharp knife. First, cut off the peel, then the white pith all around the fruit, exposing the flesh, and finally, cut free the flesh of the fruit from the membranes that are in between the wedges.

Serve the salad by laying some spoonfuls of lentils on the bottom of each plate. Add on top of the lentils pieces of the smoked-trout fillets, some pink and yellow grapefruit wedges and some crumbled ricotta cheese. Pour a tablespoon of the dressing on top of the salad and sprinkle with some finely chopped parsley.
You can alternatively serve the salad in a big salad plate and let your guests help themselves.

The salad is eaten warm (the lentils must be warm, not the rest of the ingredients) or at room temperature.

Citrus fruits revisited

Right in the middle of the gray winter, some rays of color appear in the form of the gorgeous grapefruits, lemons, oranges, clementines, and limes. Isn't that strange? How the cruel, rough winter gives life to such bright and vivid colored fruit? Like nature trying to battle its blues through the creation of small miracles.

These jewels of winter are the juiciest and most flavorful fruits of the season. They're so incredibly versatile making even a novice cook seem seasoned, a simple dish seem complex.
So many different cultures have incorporated citrus fruits in their everyday meals and their celebratory feasts. Who isn't familiar with the classic French recipe of duck á l'orange, or the Italian limoncello? What would the Mexican ceviche be without lemons or Thai tiger prawn dishes without limes?






Right here, in my little expat kitchen, the night before last, a salad composed almost entirely out of citrus fruits was about to make its debut on the dinner table. Don't let me confuse you though. I'm not talking about a bland after-dinner fruit salad. This is a proper dinner salad that hits you in the face with its hotness and sourness, and titillates your taste buds with its sweet nuances.






The protagonists? Ruby red grapefruit, orange, lemon, kumquat. The extras? Olive oil, red chili, peppercorns, mint leaves.






The acidity of the grapefruit and kumquat and the sweetness of the orange complement each other and welcome the addition of heat from the chili and the presence of body from the flavored olive oil. The black and pink peppercorns enter and steal the scene for a moment with their pungent flavor and crunchy texture.

When you bite into the fruits, you can taste little explosions of sharp nectar in your mouth and immediately you feel your lips burning from those devilish chilies and then suddenly the mint comes into play to soothe and refresh your senses.





It's a perfect roller coaster of flavors but beware. This salad is better not eaten on its own. It's too powerful, at least for my palate. It definitely needs a side of a nicely grilled beef rib-eye steak or entrecote, to balance out the sour and hot notes, or if you prefer fish, a tuna steak or salmon, also grilled, would be perfect.
I paired it with a grilled veal steak and it was a match made in heaven.










Hot and Sour Salad with Grapefruit, Oranges, and Kumquats
Adapted from Greek Gourmet

Try to use the sweetest oranges you can find in this salad, since the grapefruit and kumquats tend to be very sour.






Yield: 6-8 servings

Ingredients

for flavored olive oil
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
Peel of 1 orange, cut into strips
Peel of 1/2 lemon, cut into strips
1 or 2 fresh red chilies, cut in half lengthwise
2 1/2 tsp pink peppercorns, crushed
1 tsp black peppercorns, crushed
1/2 tsp ground coriander

for salad
2 large ruby red or pink grapefruit, cut in wedges with pips, peel and white pith removed
2 large oranges, cut in wedges with pips, peel and white pith removed
5 kumquats, seeded and sliced
1 Tbsp pomegranate seeds
1/3 tsp salt, preferably Fleur de Sel
A pinch of good quality sweet paprika
4-5 small mint sprigs


Preparation
The process of flavoring the olive oil must be done very carefully as to not burn the oil.
Pour the oil in a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan and add the orange and lemon peel, crushed pink and black peppercorns, coriander, and chilies. Heat mixture over very low heat, uncovered, stirring occasionally. Once you're able to smell the aromas of the fruit and chillies, about 5-8 minutes in, remove from the heat and let stand, covered, until the mixture has completely cooled.

You can prepare the flavored oil the day before you serve the salad, keeping it in a glass bowl, covered with plastic wrap, at room temperature.

The way to cut the grapefruit and oranges is by using a sharp knife. First cut the peel off, then the white pith, and finally cut free the flesh of the fruit from the membranes.

To serve the salad, arrange the orange, grapefruit, and kumquat pieces in a salad bowl or platter. Remove the chilies, orange and lemon peel from the flavored oil, and pour the oil all over the citrus fruits. Sprinkle with salt and paprika and adorn the platter with the mint sprigs and pomegranate seeds.
Serve immediately.