Tag: Fresh

Zucchini Pasta with Fresh Tomato Sauce

It’s probably no secret that I love pasta. My fiance and I eat it every Sunday night. But its so darn hot in Philadelphia right now and I’ve been craving something a bit less heavy to eat.

OXO must have known my pasta-loving dilemma because they sent me their new Hand-Held Spiralizer, which turns veggies into long thin spaghetti-like strands in no time!

Zucchini noodles (or “zoodles”) seem to be all the rage at the moment, so I was excited to try them out myself!

The OXO Hand-Held Spiralizer creates curly noodles from  long vegetables like zucchini, carrots, and cucumbers, while it’s open blade design accommodates round vegetables like beets, potatoes, and sweet potatoes. The food holder keeps hands safe from the blade and the easy non-slip grip container makes it simple to turn the Spiralizer. It is also BPA-free and dishwasher safe.

For this recipe, I decided to make a tomato sauce out of the fresh tomatoes I had in my house, so this recipe for Zucchini Pasta with Fresh Tomato Sauce is a very summery meal!

Note: I was sent an OXO Hand-Help Spiralizer to try for this post. Opinions are my own. 

 

Ingredients:

  • 9 roma (plum) tomatoes, chopped (~3 cups)
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • 6 zucchini squash
  • grated Parmesan cheese (omit to make dairy free)
  • fresh basil leaves, optional

Continue reading Zucchini Pasta with Fresh Tomato Sauce

Homemade Fresh Salsas and Keeping #NaturallyClean with Clorox Green Works

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone.
#NaturallyClean #CollectiveBias

 

Having a blog means that I tend to do a lot of cooking for larger groups. I usually show up to any gathering with at least one appetizer or snack for a crowd. Cooking for groups can be a bit of a challenge in my small apartment, so it’s crucial that I can reuse kitchen tools while making different parts of a recipe!

 

Clorox Green Works has a great new product, Pump ‘N Clean, now available in Target. Green Works Pump ‘N Clean can be found in the green section of the cleaning aisle, with the rest of the Clorox Green Works line.

The whole Clorox Green Works line cleans thoroughly and powerfully without using harsh chemicals or leaving any residue. The line includes wipes, dish soaps, detergents, and cleaners that are made with plant- and mineral-based cleaning ingredients. The products are not tested on animals and use environmentally sustainable packaging whenever possible.

From June 14-July 11, you can use the Target Cartwheel app to save 10% on all Green Works products.

 

The Pump ‘N Clean product is both a time saver and a way to keep your kitchen clean and safe. It’s food-safe, so you can use it to clean your knives and cutting boards in between cutting veggies and fruits! (Green Works Pump ‘N Clean is not to be used to clean up after raw meat or raw fish.) To use, just place a dish towel or sponge on top of the Pump ‘N Clean and press down to dispense the liquid. Use the dish towel/sponge to clean your knifes, counters, stove top, whatever needs cleaning! It’s easy to clean are you are cooking, which is a huge time saver!

I wanted to make two different salsas for a friend’s party, a traditional fresh salsa, and a fruit salsa. The traditional salsa is made of fresh tomatoes, red onion, and jalapeno, while the fruit salsa is filled with berries, pineapple, oranges and kiwifruit.  Obviously, mixing the flavors of these two would ruin them both, so it was important that I was able to quickly clean both my knife and my cutting board!

Ingredients:

Fresh Salsa:

  • 3 plum tomatoes, chopped and seeded
  • 1 red onion, finely chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 jalapeno, finely chopped
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Fruit Salsa:

  •  1/2 cup strawberries, finely chopped
  • 1/4 cup blueberries, halved
  • 1/4 cup raspberries, quartered
  • 1 medium orange, peeled and chopped
  • 3 medium kiwifruit, peeled and chopped
  • 1  (8 oz) can unsweetened crushed pineapple, drained
  • the juice of 1 lemon
  • 1 teaspoon sugar

Continue reading Homemade Fresh Salsas and Keeping #NaturallyClean with Clorox Green Works

Fresh Salmon Burgers

Everyone loves a good hamburger at a summer barbecue, but sometimes you just want something a little different. Salmon burgers are a really delicious option and are healthier too. Homemade salmon burgers are really easy to make and blow the frozen ones in the supermarket out of the water. This recipe from Coastal Living takes about 5 to 10 minutes to prep and then just another 5 minutes to cook. To snazz up the salmon burger a bit, I also made a Greek yogurt topping and added some lemon and garlic to the buns before toasting.

Ingredients:

Salmon Burgers:

  • 1 slice white bread
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1 1/2 pounds salmon fillet
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons fresh dill finely chopped
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • sliced cucumbers, optional

Buns:

  • 4 hamburger buns
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • the zest of one lemon
  • 1 teaspoon dill, chopped

Greek yogurt sauce:

  • 1 cup Greek yogurt
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon dill, finely chopped
  • the zest and juice of 1 lemon

Continue reading Fresh Salmon Burgers

Creamy Fresh Tomato Soup

Naturally, the day after I made my Grilled Tomato Orzo Salad in a Tomato Bowl pretending it was summer, the weather decided to do a 180 and veer into rainy cold sadness. Sigh. So what better way to use some of my Lipman Tomatoes than to make Creamy Tomato Soup? I found this recipe on Food Network and I had most of the ingredients already, win! I changed the recipe slightly for my tastes.
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 red onion, chopped
1 carrot, unpeeled and chopped
3 cloves minced garlic
12 plum tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 cup packed chopped fresh basil leaves, plus julienned basil leaves, for garnish
3 cups chicken stock
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup heavy cream
Croutons, for garnish

Heat a large pot or a Dutch oven over medium-low heat. Add the olive oil. Chop the onion and carrot.
Saute for 10 minutes.
While waiting for the onion and carrot to soften, mince the garlic and set it aside. Roughly chop the tomatoes. Chop the basil.
Add the garlic to the pot and cook for 1 minute.
Add the tomatoes, sugar, tomato paste, basil, chicken stock, salt and pepper to the pot.
Stir well and bring to a boil.
Lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes.
If you have an immersion blender, at this stage, use to puree the soup. If you don’t, remove half the mixture and add it to a blender. Blend until smooth; be sure to keep the center of the top off of the blender and cover with a paper towel. Repeat with remaining mixture. Return to the pot over medium-low heat.
The soup is honestly good to go at this point. Feel free to just stop here.
To make a creamy soup, add the cream to the soup and mix.
Serve with basil and croutons.

Oh my goodness. Not only is this super easy, but it is absolutely delicious.

Because the soup is made with so many fresh tomatoes, it’s important to use tomatoes at their peak.

This is a wonderfully thick soup so it’s a meal in itself, but rainy, cold days always make me want a favorite childhood staple:

Note: The original recipe used a food mill but I don’t have one. And I was not willing to peel the tomatoes so I blended them, and it worked out great. The soup ended up completely creamy.

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