Black-Eyed Pea Salad with Tahini Vinaigrette

In my part of the world, dried beans are principally associated with winter stews and soups, because protein filled beans will help one survive long and nasty winters. To my surprise, I learned that countries where beans play a principal dietary role, experience mild winters. So, I presented myself a challenge to integrate beans into our summer diet. Not in the the traditional sense of baked beans, which are fabulous, but not exactly week night or waistline friendly.

Black-eyed peas have a mild flavor with a firm texture. Often served warm, I like texture served cold with fresh herbs and spring green onions. What completes this salad is a tahini vinaigrette. Tahini brings a nutty flavor to the party. I have used tahini in hummus and dipping sauces for chicken or lamb and until coming across a recipe in Bon Apetit it never occurred to me to use in a vinaigrette. I am sold. Enjoy!

Black-Eyed Pea Salad
Serves 2 as main dish, 4 as side dish
Requires 24 hour soaking time

8 oz. black eyed peas (half bag)
5 springs fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 spring mint, chopped
2 green onions, chopped
1 teaspoon celery salt
2 teaspoons black pepper

Soak beans in cold water for at least 24 hours. Pick through and discard any off colored beans. Rinse with cold water and place in large pot. Cover with water, bring to boil then reduce to a simmer for 20 minutes until beans are tender. Meanwhile, chop herbs and place in a large bowl. Drain beans and combine with herbs and seasoning. Dress with tahini vinaigrette. Allow to cool then refrigerate for 1-2 hours or overnight. Serve cold.

Tahini Vinaigrette
Adapted from Bon Apetit

1 tablespoon tahini
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon honey
pinch of salt and pepper
1 tablespoon, cold water (if need to thin out the tahini)

In a small bowl, combine the tahini, honey, vinegar. Slowly whisk in the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. If mixture is too thick which in a bit of cold water.

Fresh Corn and Black Bean Salad

Summer salads can be so very refreshing but often too filling. This salad is truly light, colorful, easy and was inspired by a trip to a local market. Nino Salvaggio is one my favorite places. One could visit Nino's each day for at least a month and still not try the in house pre-made items from four different chicken salads to panzanella the options seem endless. Their corn salad mixed with zesty Italian and creamy French dressing focuses solely on the corn and is a lifesaver and was the inspiration for this dish.

Fresh corn doesn't need a whole lot of doctoring so I omitted the pre-made dressings and opted for a more simple vinaigrette. I further added the black beans which bring a texture contrast to the crunchy corn and red pepper. I will make this again and may substitute black eyed peas and use grilled corn. Thank God summer has finally arrived!

Fresh Corn and Black Bean Salad
Inspired by Nino Salvaggio
Servings: 2 Main Dishes or 4 Sides Dishes

2 ears of corn, cooked and cut off the cob
1 small red pepper, finely chopped
2 green onions, chopped
2 cups drained canned black beans
1/2 cup olive oil
juice of half a lime
1/2 tablespoon kosher salt
dash of cayenne pepper

Combine olive oil, lime juice, salt and cayenne. In a large bowl mix the corn, red pepper, green onion and black beans. Dress with the vinaigrette and serve at room temperature.

BB: Tuna Salad- The Real Stuff

I was thrilled that Tuna Salad was selected as the first Barefoot Bloggers May recipe. Kate of Warm Olives and Cool Cocktails, authors a fabulous blog and she could not have picked a better dish! Regardless of the price and extra effort in finding fresh tuna, the flavors truly delivered.

I was a bit concerned about the lime juice in this recipe as I am more accustomed to lemon with seafood. However, I found it truly complemented the tuna. I think lemon would be a bit harsh. The avocado brought creaminess to the party, while the red onion and scallion a bit of crunch. I did not know what to expect from an aesthetic perspective, because I had not seen a picture of this dish, but after the first bite, it tasted so good, I did not care what it looked like. This was prepared at my sister's home, and wish I would have brought a stainless steel pan as she only has non-stick coookware which did not give the sear I expected. Although the seared color was not pronounced, the flavor more than made up for that fault. I found the tuna to be perfectly rare while my sister indicated to cook for only 45 seconds as opposed to the 1 minute.

Please be sure to visit Warm Olives and Cool Cocktails for the full Ina Garten recipe and note I omitted the hot sauce and used reduced sodium soy sauce.

BB: Asian Chicken Salad

Asian Chicken Salad is a nice spin on the more traditional mayo-based chicken salad. I really wanted to love this dish, but I found it was a bit heavy on peanut butter. The inclusion of fresh red pepper and roasted asparagus (as opposed to blanched asparagus) somewhat saved this dish, because it provided a much needed crunch. I halved this recipe and it still made a good amount. I will try this again with maybe just a small amount of peanut butter to keep the dressing together as well as black sesame seeds for some color contrast. Many thanks to McKenzie of Kenzie’s Kitchen for the selection. Please be sure to visit her blog for the recipe which is can be found, Barefoot Contessa Parties on page 98.

I have been a member of Barefoot Bloggers for a few months now and I have so much cooking through some wonderful recipes many of which I normally wouldn't try!

Tortellini Fontina Salad

I have no business making a cold pasta salad during the month of March in Michigan. I am begging for the weather Gods to dump lots of snow and ice. Regardless it's been a long and ridiculous winter. Yes I am a grown woman and consciously elected to live in a cold state but this winter was just too much. This is a relatively basic salad that could use whatever green vegetables one has on hand. Peas are my favorite and call out spring. To save time one could use a bottled dressing but I think homemade allows you to control the vinegar or acid. Store bought dressings usually are to white vinegary for me.

Tortellini:

1 16 oz. package of tri-colored tortellini cooked per package instructions

1/2 pint of cherry tomatoes

1 cup frozen peas cooked and cooled

1/4 fontina cubed

1/4 cubed grated parmesan

1/2 tablespoon olive oil

salt and pepper

Dressing or sustitute 2 cups of bottled Italian Dressing:

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon shallots

pinch of red pepper flakes

Prepare tortellini per package instructions. Meanwhile heat 1/2 tablespoon olive oil in saute pan, add tomatoes season with salt and pepper and cook for a few minutes until tomatoes brown slightly. Heat peas per package instructions and drain well. Cube the fontina, grate the Parmesan. Drain tortellini and rinse with cold water. Ensure all water is removed. Combine pasta, tomatoes, peas and cheeses. For the vinaigrette, combine olive oil and vinegar add the shallots. Mix the pasta mixture with the vinaigrette. Allow to cool at room temperature and refrigerate overnight.

Seared Scallop Salad

A great first course or a meal in itself, these seared scallops served over a simple salad are so satisfying. It is difficult to find good, fresh seafood in the winter months in Michigan. There are wonderful area markets such as Papa Joes that have a great selection of seafood but at $24.99 a pound it's not exactly a wallet friendly experience. Now I am sure scallops are pricey in any part of the country, so I only serve for special occasions or when we really crave this sweet treat. Enjoy!

2-4 servings

Ingredients:

Scallops:

1 lb fresh sea scallops about 6-8

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

kosher salt and black pepper

Salad:

1 bag mixed greens

1 shallot, minced

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons olive oil

Heat butter in large pan, meanwhile wash and thoroughly dry scallops, season each side with generous amounts of salt and pepper. When pan in very hot add about 4 scallops but do not crowd the pan. Sear about 3-4 minutes on each side for medium. While scallops are searing, whisk the shallots, lemon and oil and lightly dress the salad greens. Remove scallops from the pan and place on salad, serve immediately.