Lentils go Midwest

Posted by Kathryn @ 11:12 AM

So this past weekend I wanted to do a BBQ because the weather was so nice. This Texan cannot resist the opportunity to sear meat on a grill, but in this instance many of my guests followed a vegetarian diet, avoided milk products, or had other dietary restrictions. So I decided to change up the traditional Chicago slider to fit their needs a bit better! So here comes the lentil slider. It looks suspiciously like a falafel on a small bun, but it has a differently delicious texture/flavor combo.

Zest and Juice of one lemon
6 scallions chopped
3/4 of a package of lentils cooked through
2/3 of a baguette or other bread (check the ingredients for milk products or eggs) whole wheat works nicely
Salt
Ground Pepper
1/4 cup mint
1/4 cup parsley
1-2 tsp cumin
2 tsp of red pepper flakes
1 tsp ground coriander seed
2 tsp of cornstarch in 2 tb of water or an egg
3 TB olive oil

Blitz the bread in a food processor. Add the additional ingredients and blend to a paste (don't loose all of the lentil texture, but if you are using cornstarch rather than egg it will need to be more pureed so that the patties don't fall apart. Heat a skillet with additional olive oil and roll1-2 tb quantities of the puree into balls. Fry each patty until golden brown on both sides. Place on a tiny roll and serve with tahini or yogurt with mint and lemon zest as toppings.

The patties are also excellent on a salad. I know it is CSA time so many people are trying to come up with new ways to spice up lettuce and this is a great one!

Notes from the BBQ

Posted by The Husband @ 1:25 PM

Whoa. That month flew by...apologies for the lack of updates. Life gets to be, well, life.

This past weekend we hosted an open house/BBQ for friends and acquaintances. Kathryn and her sister made copious amounts of great food (more on that to come), and I helped by grilling a couple things out back.

One item seemed to be a hit, and I wanted to pass it on here: sangria. It's incredibly easy to make, and is a perfect companion to Summery foods.

Here's the recipe as I used it:

• 1/2 Cup Orange juice
• 1/4 Cup Rose's Lime Juice*
• 1/4 Cup Sugar*
• 750ml of dry red wine -- We used a zinfandel
• Cinnamon, cloves
• Sliced/Chopped fruit

*Yes, this is cheating a bit. We were a bit short on fresh limes. Rose's is sweetened, which adds a lot more sugar to the recipe than you'll find other places. I ended up cutting down on the regular sugar to compensate. We also added a bit more wine than just the one 750ml bottle to reduce the orange flavor.

Mix the OJ, the Rose's and the wine together with the sugar, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Sprinkle the cinnamon and throw in the cloves. Cut up some oranges, limes, grapes, apples, or whatever suits your mood and toss it in. Let the whole mixture chill for several hours.

Serve cold, over ice. Make sure to get a generous portion of the saturated fruit into the mix. Makes you feel healthy while downing the vino...

Pleasant Surprise in Aspinwall

Posted by Kathryn @ 11:29 AM

So I am a bit behind the curve. The other day my husband, sister, and I were on our way to see Kung Fu Panda at the Waterworks. We were hungry, but wanted something other than the fast food chinese or chain restaurants right next to the theater. So when we were driving through Aspinwall we decided to go down mainstreet to look for grub. We saw a sign for a place called Mio. There was a gentleman smoking outside, so we asked him if he liked their food and he said "Didn't you know that they were just in Pittsburgh Magazine for being Best new Restaurant." Clearly none of us had purchase the issue yet, but this meant we had chosen well and we decided to go in to eat.

We approached the host/hostess and they asked if we had a reservation. We were a little taken aback because the wine bars we have visited in the past were not really the reservation kind of place. Luckily there was space at the bar which suited the quick style of meal we planned to enjoy.

We sat down, enjoyed the bartender, enjoyed some wine/a mojito for my sister, and ordered of the menu. We all stuck to appetizers/ salads because we were not looking for a fancy night on the town (being that the occasion for our visit was an animated feature). My sister got the deconstructed hanger steak salad with cheddar and shoe string potatoes, I got the crab and avocado salad on warm brioche, and my husband got goat cheese and chive ravioli with roasted beets. My goodness the plates were gorgeous and the flavors divine. I liked the subtlety of the basil and chorizo oil with my crab salad. The sweetness of brioche melted next to the luscious jumbo crab. The steak salad was fun play on the traditional Pittsburgh salad with french fries. The ravioli were balanced and flavorful. We were so pleased with the meal that we can't wait to take the In-laws there for dinner when they visit in July!

So go eat at the bar and have a wonderful meal at Mio soon!... it really should be a regular spot for us.