- Page 31 of 69 - Wholesome Recipes Made for Sharing

June 10, 2015

Roasted Tomatoes and Greens with Shallot Vinaigrette

June in Michigan is such a wonderful time of the year for cooking. There’s an abundance of fresh produce everywhere and the weather is still fairly moderate so I don’t mind being at the stove or turning on the oven. The cooler mornings and evenings keep me in the mood for baking and the warm sunny afternoons inspire a myriad of colorful salads. These days are perfect for roasting all of those early summer fruits and vegetables. Lately we’ve been enjoying our fair share of roasted cherry tomatoes in our pastas and salads. Like any roasted fruit, cherry tomatoes become intensely sweet and even more beautiful after being roasted. It may take a little bit of time to roast the tomatoes, but the extra effort is worth it in the end. This salad is a glorious combination of textures and flavors- soft and juicy tomatoes, crisp cucumbers, crunchy pepitas, creamy crumbly feta, and chewy spelt grains. Adding whole grains to salads is a wonderful solution for making salads more substantial and filling. I’ve used spelt here, but any whole grain such as farro, quinoa, or barley will do. I brought this to a teacher’s appreciation luncheon at my daughter’s school a few weeks ago and it quickly disappeared!

Roasted Tomatoes and Greens with Shallot Vinaigrette

Serves: 6 side portions

Ingredients

Salad

1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 cup spelt, soaked 4-6 hours, drained and rinsed
1 bunch kale, stems removed, leaves shredded
1 English cucumber, diced
⅓ cup pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
¾ cup crumbled feta, plus extra for sprinkling on top

Dressing

6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic white vinegar
2 teaspoons dijon mustard
2 shallots, minced
½ teaspoon kosher salt
⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut tomatoes in half lengthwise and toss with 1 teaspoon olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Spread tomatoes evenly on prepared baking sheet and roast for 25-28 minutes, until tomatoes are softened and slightly shriveled.
In a small saucepan, combine the spelt and 2 cups water. Bring to a boil then simmer spelt until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain and set aside to cool.
In the bowl of a food processor, blend dressing ingredients until well combined and smooth.
Toss kale, cucumbers, pepitas, and spelt with half the dressing. Gently toss in feta, tomatoes, and additional dressing to taste. If needed, season with additional salt and pepper. Garnish with additional feta and pepitas.

June 5, 2015

Rhubarb Apple Baked Donuts

Today is National Donut Day and we are joining in the celebration with these Rhubarb Apple Baked Donuts. Since I’m still pretty new to the food blogging scene, I had never even heard of National Donut Day until Melissa clued me in. (And coincidentally, her blog is also what convinced me to buy a donut pan. Go check out all of her incredible baked donut recipes.) Just for fun, I googled National Donut Day and learned that this has been an official day since 1938 and was created to honor the Salvation Army workers who served donuts to the soldiers during World War I. There you go… your interesting food fact for the day. Anyhow, back to these donuts. I used a combination of white whole wheat flour and whole wheat pastry flour to keep the texture light and I sweetened them with coconut sugar and a touch of honey. The rhubarb and apple complement each other well and give these donuts a nice bright flavor. They are sweet, a bit tart, and perfect for this early summer season when rhubarb is plentiful. Happy Donut Day!

Rhubarb Apple Baked Donuts

Serves: 6 regular donuts + 4 donut holes, or 7 regular sized donuts

Ingredients

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
⅓ cup apple juice
¼ cup coconut sugar
2 tablespoons honey
1 egg
½ cup whole wheat pastry flour
½ white whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground cardamon
¼ teaspoon sea salt
⅓ cup shredded apple
slightly heaped ⅓ cup finely diced rhubarb
natural cane sugar for finishing

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400. Lightly butter donut pan.
In a small saucepan, melt butter over low heat. Add apple juice, coconut sugar, and honey. Whisk until sugar is dissolved. Add egg and whisk to egg to incorporate.
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, and salt.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix together until just combined. Do not over mix. Use a rubber spatula to fold in rhubarb and apple.
Pipe the mixture evenly into the donut pan. (I use a small ziploc bag and cut the tip off one corner for piping.)
Bake for 9-10 minutes, until donuts are lightly browned and tops appear dry. Let cool in pan for 2-3 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Donuts are best served slightly warm. Dip in natural cane sugar before serving, if desired.

Notes

adapted from The Faux Martha

June 2, 2015

Crackly Crust Mixed Berry Cobbler

We hosted a small Memorial Day gathering with some extended family last weekend and this is the dessert I had planned to make. I tweaked and tested the recipe ahead of time to make sure it would be just the way I wanted. And then because I was trying to clean the house, practice instruments with the kids, set the table, and prep the rest of the meal all at the same time, I sadly botched up the dessert. I inadvertantly added too much butter, left the milk out completely, and while the end result was edible, it was not this. This cobbler (and not the one I ended up making for Memorial Day) has a unique crackly crust which makes this dessert rustic and beautiful at the same time. The secret to the crackly crust is sprinkling with the top with a layer of sugar and then drizzling hot water over the sugar, melting it right before it goes in the oven. The method is a bit odd, but it works. While the cobbler is baking, the sweet biscuit layer develops a thin, delicate, and slightly crunchy crust. The crust will remain crunchy and crackly for about a day. After it has been chilled and refrigerated, it loses a bit of the crunch, although it is still delicious. Serve with ice cream or greek yogurt. I have greek yogurt in the photos here, but Ryan’s vote is for the ice cream.

Crackly Crust Mixed Berry Cobbler

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

2 pounds mixed berries, about 8 cups (any combination of blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries)
2 tablespoons cornstarch or arrowroot
3 tablespoons natural cane sugar
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
½ cup + 3 tablespoons natural cane sugar, divided
1 teaspoon vanilla
¾ cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon kosher salt
6 tablespoons whole milk
¼ cup hot water

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350.
In a large mixing bowl, use a wooden spoon to gently combine the berries, cornstarch or arrowroot, sugar, and lemon juice. Transfer to an 8x8 baking dish.
In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat together butter and ½ cup sugar on medium high speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Beat in vanilla. Add flour mixture and mix on medium speed until evenly crumbly. With the mixer running on low, gradually pour in milk and beat for another minute, until batter is light and fluffy.
Dollop batter over berry filling and use a knife or offset spatula to gently spread batter evenly over the berries. Sprinkle remaining 3 tablespoons sugar over the batter. Drizzle hot water over the sugar, melting it right before it goes in the oven.
Bake for 70-80 minutes, until golden brown and crackly. Let the cobbler sit for at least 30 minutes to set before serving. Serve with ice cream or greek yogurt.

Notes

adapted from A Boat, A Whale, and A Walrus