10-Second Mediterranean Salad

Toss this salad in a jiffy

Well, now that I have your attention, I admit this salad will take more than 10 seconds to toss together. Assuming you have all the ingredients ready, it might take few minutes - tops. Really. I think you can handle that.

What is it about instant gratification anyway? It’s like we’ve never lost our infantile urge to have our every need satisfied RIGHT NOW. We all know that it is just not possible to lose ten pounds in one day, or to change the world in five, but there’s always that hope. And I don’t know about you, but my days seem to be springing forth and losing substance. An hour’s worth, to be exact. I need it back!

But back to the salad – if you make a batch of the balsamic vinaigrette (adapted slightly from a recipe in the March ’08 Gourmet magazine) ahead of time, this will be a simple, speedy-fast meal. I love all the Mediterranean flavors in this salad recipe- everything from the artichokes to the chickpeas calls out to me. Oh, wait, it must be time for lunch...

10-Second Mediterranean Salad
inspired by a recipe in Whole Foods magazine

2 -4 tablespoons Balsamic Vinaigrette (recipe follows)
1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained
1 jar or can artichoke hearts, drained and halved
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes in assorted colors if you can find them
Handful of leftover steamed green beans (optional)
¼ cup thinly sliced red onion or shallot
2 cups mixed prewashed salad greens
2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts
¼ cup soft goat or feta cheese

Put 2 tablespoons dressing in a large bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients except cheese and toss gently. Add more dressing if you like. Crumble cheese over the top.
Serves 4.

Balsamic Vinaigrette: In a food processor, pulse ¾ cup balsamic vinegar, 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard, 2 tablespoon Italian or flat-leaf parsley leaves, 2 teaspoons honey, 1 finely chopped shallot, 1 finely chopped garlic clove, and a dash of hot sauce. With motor running, slowly drizzle in ¾ cup olive oil or safflower oil until emulsified. Season with about 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt and fresh black pepper. Keep in a jar in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

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Chickpea and Sun-Dried Tomato Hummus

A delicious, high-protein snack

I've told you before about my absolute love for legumes, chickpeas in particular. Canned chickpeas are definitely at the top of my list of pantry staples, and maybe even a desert-island must for me too. Hmmm, maybe my desert island should be located someplace where chickpeas grow in happy profusion, for instance in the Aegean Sea. Do chickpeas flourish in the Aegean Sea? I've no idea, although it's kind of nice to imagine.

But I digress. I've made this Mark Bittman-inspired hummus recipe a few times since it appeared in the New York Times just a few weeks ago, and I love it. I take scoops of it with pieces of crisp flatbread when I start feeling hungry in between meals. Hummus is a great nutritious high-protein snack. It's not just for potluck, people!

This version turns out a lovely shade of ochre with the addition of sun-dried tomatoes and pimenton, which is smoked Spanish paprika (another must-have for the spice rack).

For some reason, Bittman goes to the trouble to cook his chickpeas first - while this does provide good, tasty liquid to moisten the spread, it's not what I call fast. I've found that cooking chickpeas can have iffy results. I try buying them at stores that seem to stock fresh dried beans, but I have no patience for them. Most of the bulk dried chickpeas I've taken home take way too long to cook. After a few hours of boiling what seems like a potful of pebbles that never seem to soften, I reach for a good old can. And for this recipe, which otherwise comes together in a snap, shaving a few hours off the prep time is a good thing.

I also go for the oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes here, rather than the dried ones he calls for. I think they add rich olive-oily moistness to the hummus.

This spread is simply fantastic as a dip, but I've also spread some on tortillas with a little goat cheese for killer quesadillas.

If you're a fan of chickpeas, you might also like these recipes:

Cashew Chicken with Roasted Spiced Chickpeas

Olive Oil-Poached Shrimp with Chickpeas and Feta

Chickpea and Sun-Dried Tomato Hummus

inspired by Mark Bittman

1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, drained
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
2 tablespoons tahini
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, plus more to taste
2 teaspoons smoked Spanish paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 small garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

Place all ingredients in the workbowl of a food processor. Pulse until you have a relatively smooth paste (I don't mind if it's a little chunky). Taste and season with more lemon juice and salt, if needed. Scrape down the sides of workbowl and pulse briefly to combine.

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Olive Oil-Poached Shrimp with Chickpeas and Feta

Fresh and Wild

"Fish are the only carnivores consumed in any quantity by people."

That quote is from Barry Estabrook's story about shrimp in the March issue of Gourmet, and I've been thinking about it.

Although, thinking is not my excuse for taking a week off from this blog; no, that was due to my sudden inclination to repaint my kitchen walls (Silver Sage by Restoration Hardware, if you're curious), which required me to unplug my computer and then led to all sorts of reorganizing and vacuuming of certain spaces that haven't been touched by high-quality Miele suction since we moved in.

I don't know why the idea that fish possess the bloodthirsty predatory nature of creatures like tigers, wolves and Giant Water Bugs is so interesting to me. Maybe it's that fish are also one of the few truly wild foods that we eat in quantity.

Really, not including fresh game, the list of wild foods eaten on an average day in our culture is pretty short: Honey (which almost doesn't count because it's cultivated by beekeepers) Nuts - like these wild Missouri pecans. Real wild rice. Morels, ramps and fiddlehead ferns. And if you really swing with Euell Gibbons, dandelions from the back yard.

I was glad to read Estabrook's piece, because he addresses a nit-picky problem I've had lately with shrimp, which is that they have a tendency to taste like scum from a big muddy pond. That's because, he says, the millions of pounds of shrimp we eat each year are farm-raised in large "murky" pools somewhere in Asia or Ecuador. And, those shrimp have probably been frozen and refrozen multiple times by the time we grab a bag in the grocery store, which is why every once in a while you'll get a shrimp with the texture of a cotton ball.

What we really want to be eating is fresh, wild American shrimp. I tracked some down at a gem of a local seafood shop, Bob's. I hadn't been there in a long while and apparently I've been missing out on some fine, fat Gulf shrimp beauties. Although I'm sure they'd seen some freezer time, they smelled sweet and fresh. I poached them in olive oil in this Mark Bittman-inspired recipe:

Olive Oil Poached Shrimp with Smoked Paprika, Chickpeas and Feta
Makes about 4 servings

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil (use the good stuff for this)
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 pounds Gulf shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/3 cup oven dried tomatoes, sliced
1 can chickpeas, drained
A few handfuls baby arugula or spinach
1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese


Combine the oil and garlic in a 10-inch skillet. Turn the heat to medium and cook until garlic begins to sizzle. Add the cumin and paprika and stir. Turn the heat up and add the shrimp, seasoning to taste with salt and pepper.

Cook until the shrimp turn pink. Stir in the tomatoes, chickpeas, arugula or spinach, and top with feta.
Serve over couscous.

Copyright (c) 2007 FamilyStyle Food

Cashew Chicken with Roasted Spiced Chickpeas

Gathering the Garbanzos

Last week, I noticed a food-blogging phenomenon that I don’t have a name for. It’s probably been described in Malcolm Gladwell’s book about social trends, The Tipping Point, but I can’t recall what term he has for it. It’s that thing where one day, it seems you see the same recipe, idea, color or low-rise jean style right in front of you, everywhere you look.

Since I can’t enlighten you further, I’ll name this particular incidence the Convergence of Chickpeas:

1. Alanna at A Veggie Venture writes about an easy garbanzo supper.
2. Lydia at The Perfect Pantry displays an essential pantry staple.
3. Lisa at Champaign Taste made a beautiful Italian-style soup.
4. Molly at Orangette describes a loving lunch gift.

Because chickpeas are one of my personal “soul” foods, I have a special place for them in my foodie heart.

I love that you can buy them in a can, drain and eat as they are or embellish them in any number of tasty exotic ways. Also, that they can inspire a whole meal, and the simpler the better. I love boldly spiced dishes like this quick cashew chicken.

It’s another convergence of sorts - Bangkok meets Bangalore.

Cashew Chicken with Roasted Spiced Chickpeas
for 4 servings

1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, drained
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into 1-inch pieces
2 shallots, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
2 cups baby spinach leaves
1/2 cup roasted, salted cashews, chopped
3 cups cooked rice

Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Toss the chickpeas on a baking sheet with 1 tablespoon of the oil, salt, curry powder, cumin and cayenne. Roast for 25 minutes.

Heat a non-stick wok or large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil until smoking. Toss in the chicken and cook, stirring, until surfaces are seared, but interior is still pink. Stir in the shallots and cook until softened, 1-2 minutes.

Add the sugar, soy sauce, and fish sauce to the chicken and stir. Cook a few more minutes, until the chicken is cooked through.

Stir in the chickpeas, spinach and cashews. Serve in bowls with hot cooked rice.

Copyright (c) 2007 FamilyStyle Food