Asian Edamame Dip

If you are looking for a tasty, healthy appetizer -- you need look no further than this Asian Edamame Dip that appeared in the Holiday 2010 issue of the LCBO Food&Drink magazine. I have a friend that sends me every issue via our internal mail system and I anticipate its arrival every season. The BC provincial liquor outlet puts out a similar magazine, and while it's improving, it has yet to rival Food&Drink for its recipes, menu suggestions and "food porn" styling.

I first made this appetizer for my book club to rave reviews and since then it's become a bit of a standby. Don't be put off by the thought of making the accompanying wonton chips. They are really very easy to produce if you buy ready-made wonton wrappers (you can find them at T&Ts or in most produce sections of the major grocery chains) and they look quite impressive served alongside the dip.

Of course, if you have relatives like I do that are deathly allergic to soy products -- this is not a good idea to serve without a huge skull and crossbones symbol beside the serving plate and 911 on your speed dial! Otherwise add this to your appy repertoire as a colourful option easily made ahead.

Yellow Tomato Gazpacho and a New Blender

I bought a new toy for my kitchen -- a soup maker and blender, which made making this cold soup a breeze. I've been meaning to buy a good blender for some time -- ever since my food processor packed it in. I did some online research and determined that a Breville or Cuisinart were the best bets for the money (the Vitamix blender is probably THE best, but I was not prepared to invest that kind of money in a blender).

After looking at all the models I decided on the Cuisinart -- largely because it had the most power, at 900w, in my price range. It also has the added feature of being able to saute in the blender jar and keep a soup hot when serving. This wasn't a feature on my must-have list, but now that I have it, I think it will come in handy for making smooth sauces.

As for the soup itself -- here is the recipe. It's from Suzanne Goin (one of my very favourite chefs) and I followed it to the tee. I was able to get nice ripe yellow heirloom tomatoes at the market -- a must for this to turn out optimally. As Suzanne says in her notes that accompany the recipe, "you end up with unexpectedly dramatic results from a foolproof recipe that is easy to make."

Now this is what summer tastes like!

A hankering for saag and paneer

I've been trying to eat more vegetables lately and had a real craving the other night for saag and paneer. I turned to my trusty cookbook - Vij's Indian Cuisine and was not disappointed. The book has an appetizer version that calls for arugula and spinach in the proportions of 1/4 to 3/4 respectively (too much arugula makes it bitter). I discovered the BC Liquor Store's "Taste" magazine has a reproduction of the recipe here if you are interested in trying it out.

Paired with naan and a refreshing Gruner Veltliner -- this was a great simple dinner. The wine I chose was an Austrian 2010 Stift Goettweig Messwein Gruner Veltliner and it really was a perfect match -- very capable of standing up to the spice in the curry sauce.

This was an easy meal to make (note I bought ready-made paneer and naan). I'll replicate this combo again!