Spring Recipes: Greens and Herbs

Spring greens are readily available in the produce section in most grocery stores, which means we can create healthy salads year round. However, with warm weather arriving, the herbs are growing again, and the farm markets will open soon. This gives cooks many opportunities to add fresh herbs and greens to their salads and dishes. My chives, thyme and oregano have grown enough to harvest small amounts, despite our nights getting down in the 30's. If you don't spray chemicals in your yard, you can also harvest dandelions this time of year while they are young. Today I'm sharing a few recipes and tips from Salads and Herbs by Cora, Rose and Bob Brown, published in 1938.

"Besides the common use as greens for a spring tonic, dandelion leaves can be blanched by inverting flower pots over them...and used as a snappy seasoning to pep up milder lettuce salads. In France the dandelion is so esteemed that a cultivated form resembling endive actually rivals it for crispness and fine flavor and is eaten fresh with gusto and French Dressing. "

Wilted Dandelion Salad

Salt and pepper about a pound of fresh, crisp dandelions. Dice 1/4 pound bacon, fry and pour fat and all over dandelions; stir a tablespoon or two of vinegar in pan, dash it over and stir everything well together.

Dandy Sandwiches

Young dandelion leaves make dandy sandwiches. They should be torn to pieces, rather than cut, in order to bring out their full flavor. Tender young leaves in this fashion are laid between slices of bread and butter and sprinkled with salt. The addition of a little lemon juice and pepper, or paprika, varies the flavor pleasantly.

Mixed Green Salad

6 lettuce leaves

6 romaine leaves

6 escarole leaves

1 cup thinly sliced Chinese cabbage

1 tablespoon minced onion

French dressing

Rub bowl with garlic; arrange the greens in layers and sprinkle with minced onion; add dressing and toss. Drop a four-leaf cover on top for luck.

Lastly, I wanted to share the following tips on chives from the book. I'm not sure I could ever pick just one herb as my favorite, but chives come close. They are easy to grow, ornamental, and a great addition to salads, egg dishes, potatoes and so much more. The flowers can be broken apart and used in salads or dips. They are very peppery, and delicious.

"The tender green tops of this delicate yet snappy onion should always be clipped with shears, very fine, for sprinkling over sandwiches, chops, hamburgers, tomatoes, cucumber, salads, mashed potatoes, on wilted lettuce salad, omelettes, croquettes, sausages, tomato cocktails, French dressing, Thousand Island dressing, or in tartar sauce with fish. The breezy, springlike flavor of chives is the making of almost any spread of soft cheese, such as cream or cottage, by simply mixing it in. Cook string beans with chives and half as much parsley, removed before serving. Try clipped chives on buttered new potatoes in place of parsley and to give color to light soups such as potato and celery. "

On OFL we have an article on growing and using garlic chives:

http://oldfashionedliving.com/garlic-chives.html

Easy Fish Recipes for Dinner

I won't deny that I love fried fish. When I married my husband he introduced me to fish dipped in white cornmeal and fried in vegetable oil instead of coating it in a batter. That was a first for me, and we still fry fish this way once a year or so. Over the years I changed to yellow cornmeal seasoned with ground black pepper, seasoning salt and a little bit of Cajun seasoning. It's still a treat to fry up a few pounds of perch, catfish or tilapia using this method. Most of the time though we go for baked, grilled or sauteed fish in an attempt to eat healthier. Today I'm sharing a few recipes I've tried over the years that have been favorite alternatives to frying.

Baked Tilapia

Ingredients:
4-6 tilapia fillets
Italian dressing, any brand
1 tsp. garlic powder
ground black pepper
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Place the fish in a baking pan in a single layer. Mix the remaining ingredients together and pour over the fish. Marinate for 30 minutes. Bake at 350°F for 20-30 minutes until the fish is flaky.

Notes: This is really good served with rice and a salad.

Garlic Butter Catfish

Ingredients:
1 lb. catfish fillets
flour
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
Lemon

Rinse the catfish in cold water and pat dry. Place a small amount of flour in a pie plate or dish. Very lightly coat the fish with flour. In a heavy skillet, heat butter and oil on medium heat. Add the garlic. Saute 1 minute. Add the fish fillets. Cook over medium high heat about 10 minutes or until fish is cooked through, turning once. Serve with lemon wedges. Makes 4 servings.

Baked Perch With Herbs

Ingredients:
2 lbs. fresh (or frozen) perch
2 tbsp. melted butter
1/4 c. lemon juice
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. seasoning salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

Thaw fish if frozen. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 13 x 9 x 2 inch pan with baking spray or coat lightly with butter. Place fresh fish in the pan. Mix together the butter, lemon juice and seasonings. Drizzle over the fish. Bake uncovered 30-40 minutes or until fish flakes easily with fork.

Grilled Fish Fillets

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lb. fish fillets, any firm variety
1/2 cup butter
1 tbsp. chopped parsley
1 tbsp. fresh dill
2 tbsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. salt
Ground black pepper to taste

Cut fillets into serving size portions if they are large. Cover grill grate with aluminum foil. Spray the foil with nonstick pan spray, or brush lightly with oil or butter. Place the fillets on the foil over medium heat. Combine the rest of the ingredients and baste fish with a brush. Cook about 4 inches from heat for 8-10 minutes. Turn with a spatula and baste again, cooking for an additional 5-7 minutes or until fish flakes with fork.

Notes: I've used tilapia, salmon, catfish, lake trout, perch, blue gill or bass.

On OFL we also have an article with more seafood recipes:

http://oldfashionedliving.com/seafood.html

Spring Recipes: Lovely Desserts

I hope everyone has a wonderful Easter tomorrow. My son is home from college and we're hanging out at home, watching Mary Poppins after breakfast and having an egg hunt after dinner. The weather was lovely today, and hopefully will be tomorrow as well. Today I'm sharing several dessert recipes that can be served after Sunday dinner, or with afternoon tea.

Pineapple Banana Cake

Ingredients:
3 cups all purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 (8 oz) can crushed pineapple
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups mashed bananas

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter or spray a Bundt pan. Mix together dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon) until combined. Make a well in the center and add eggs, pineapple, oil, vanilla and bananas. Stir batter with a large spoon, mixing well. Some lumps will remain; do not overmix. Spoon the batter into the pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean (about 65-75 minutes). Cool on wire rack for 5 minutes before removing cake from pan.

Frosting: Frost with a vanilla frosting, or sprinkle with confectioners' sugar. A light glaze is also nice.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 cup brown sugar
8 maraschino cherries
1 (16 oz.) can pineapple slices
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

Heat butter, sugar, and ginger until thick. Put into the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Place pineapple slices on top of the brown sugar mixture; put one cherry inside each of the pineapple centers. Set aside.

CAKE:
1/4 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, separated
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, sifted
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon lemon or almond extract
1/2 cup milk

Cream the butter with sugar. Beat the egg yolks and add to sugar mixture. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together. Add alternately with milk to the sugar mixture. Beat egg whites until stiff (but not dry) and fold into batter. Pour over the pineapples. Bake at 350°F for 45 minutes or until done. Cool 5 minutes. Turn upside-down onto a serving plate or tray to serve.

Pistachio Cake

Ingredients:
1 devil's food cake mix
2 small pkgs. pistachio instant pudding
1 large container Cool Whip

Mix cake according to directions on box. Bake per instructions for a 9x13 pan. Cool completely. Mix together the container of Cool Whip and the 2 small packages pistachio instant pudding mix. Do not add water or any other ingredients except the whipped topping and pudding. Frost the cooled cake. Sprinkle with crushed pistachio nuts, colored sprinkles, or coconut.

Optional: We've always used Devil's Food cake mix for this dessert, but you can also use white or yellow cake mix if you wish.

Lemon Cake

Ingredients:
1 box white or yellow cake mix
1 small box instant lemon pudding
1/2 cup powdered milk
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup oil
5 large eggs
Glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted
3-4 tablespoons lemon juice

Mix all dry ingredients together. Stir in water and lemon juice. Beat in one egg at a time, afterwards beating the entire mixture for 2 minutes. Pour into Bundt pan and bake at 325 degrees for 50-60 minutes. When cool, drizzle glaze over cake.

To Make Glaze:
Place 2 cups powdered sugar in medium mixing bowl. Whisk in melted butter and lemon juice. Drizzle over cake and cool.

Happy Easter! ~Brenda

Easter Recipes: Spring Side Dishes

As with all holidays, each family has their special Easter dinner dishes. Our family table is never without ham, rolls, and potatoes, but I tend to mix it up as far as the other dishes. My grandmother was Polish and she often fixed kielbasa along with the ham, which I tend to do to if I can get into the city to a meat market. Today I have a few recipes that would be wonderful with Easter dinner if you want to mix it up this year too.

New Potato Fennel Salad

Ingredients:
10 small new red potatoes, sliced
4 eggs, hard-cooked
1/2 c. sliced celery
1/2 c. chopped fennel bulb
1/4 c. thinly sliced sweet onion
DRESSING:
1/2 c. mayonnaise
2 tbsp. spicy mustard
1 tbsp. chopped fresh chives
1 tbsp. white vinegar
1/2 tsp. granulated sugar
1/4 tsp. ground pepper

In large pan, cook the sliced potatoes in boiling water until JUST tender; drain well. Chop the boiled eggs. In a large bowl, combine potatoes, eggs, celery, fennel and onion. In a small bowl, combine the dressing ingredients; whisk well. Spoon dressing over salad; toss gently. Cover and refrigerate 1 to 2 hours.

Note: What I do with the onion is slice it very thin, then cut those slices in quarters. You can also dice the onion.

Dilled Cheddar and Pea Salad

Ingredients:
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen green peas
1 c. shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1 large stalk celery, chopped
1/2 c. mayonnaise
1 1/2 tsp. snipped fresh dill weed

Rinse frozen peas under running cold water to thaw slightly; drain well. Toss the pea, cheese, celery, mayonnaise and dill. Chill until ready to serve.

Notes: I also like adding 5 or 6 diced radishes to this. The cheese should be the regular shredded cheese NOT the finely shredded. You can also dice a block of Cheddar with a sharp knife if you wish. Fresh dill makes all the difference in this salad.

Feta Couscous Salad

Ingredients:
1 c. plus 2 tbsp. chicken or vegetable stock
3/4 c. quick cooking couscous
2 Roma tomatoes, seeded & chopped
3 oz. crumbled feta cheese
1/4 c. minced watercress
3 tbsp. minced green onion
5 tbsp. olive oil
3 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
Salt
ground black pepper

Bring the stock to boil in a small pan. Mix in the couscous, cover and remove from heat. Let stand 5 minutes, then fluff with a fork. Cool to room temperature. Add the couscous to a large bowl. Mix in the tomato, feta, watercress and green onion. In a small bowl or jar, whisk together the oil, lemon, a dash or two of salt and a generous amount of pepper. Gently mix into salad.

Scalloped Potatoes and Onions

Ingredients:
4 medium potatoes, cooked, peeled & sliced
2 sweet onions, thinly sliced then halved
6 slices sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup milk
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
6 slices bacon

In a medium pan combine the onions, soup, milk, salt, and pepper together and heat on medium low until warmed. Arrange 1/3 of the potato slices in the bottom of a greased 2 1/2 quart casserole. Top with 1/3 of the sauce, then the cheese. Continue layering. Lastly, place the strips of bacon across the top. Bake, uncovered at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Notes: This recipe can be varied by using regular white or yellow onions, a different type of cheese or shredded instead of sliced.

On OFL we have a nice article on Polish Easter traditions:
http://oldfashionedliving.com/anna.html

~Brenda

Spring Recipes: Asparagus

One of my favorite spring vegetables is asparagus, especially when it's fresh and thin in size. It's still tasty even when fairly thick, as long as the tough ends are cut off before cooking. Those ends can be used in making stock for a little extra flavor. All of the recipes below use fresh asparagus, which should be washed and the ends trimmed or snapped off before cooking. Any of these dishes would be lovely with Easter or Sunday dinner.

Asparagus Salad

Ingredients:
1 pound fresh asparagus, cut into pieces
1 medium tomato, chopped
1/2 c. red onion, very thinly sliced
1 hard boiled egg, finely chopped
1/4 c. Italian dressing

Cook the asparagus until just tender, 6-8 minutes. Drain and cool. Combine remaining ingredients. Add the asparagus. Cover and refrigerate several hours or overnight. 4 to 6 servings.

Note: I also like sprinkling with Parmesan or Feta cheese before serving.

Italian Style Asparagus

Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds asparagus
1 tbsp. olive oil
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1 tsp. grated lemon zest

Cook the asparagus until just tender in boiling, salted water. Drain. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the garlic, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the garlic is softened, about 1-2 minutes. Add drained asparagus, cook, stirring until heated through, 2-3 minutes. Transfer to serving dish, sprinkle with zest.

Pasta with Asparagus and Feta

Ingredients:
8 oz. pasta, spaghetti or other type
1/2 lb. fresh asparagus
3 tbsp. olive oil
1 tomato, diced
4 oz. feta cheese
1 tsp. chopped fresh oregano or 1/2 tsp. dried

Cook pasta according to package directions. Steam asparagus until just tender; cut into pieces. Drain pasta and return to pot. Add oil and tomato and heat gently until heated through. Add cheese and oregano and heat gently to heat. Toss lightly. Makes four servings.

Garlic Butter Asparagus

Ingredients:
1 lb. fresh asparagus
1/4 c. butter, cut into pieces
4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced finely
1 lemon, cut into wedges
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Grated Parmesan cheese

Boil asparagus until just tender, after trimming ends. In large skillet, melt the butter, add the garlic and sauté until softened. Add the asparagus; and stir in while heating through. Season with salt and pepper. Place on a platter, then squeeze with lemon. Sprinkle generously with cheese.

On OFL I have a menu for a spring luncheon:
http://oldfashionedliving.com/luncheon.html

~Brenda

Spring Salads for Lunch or Dinner

Greens, whether in salad or cooked, are a nice spring treat for dinners and luncheons. Dandelion greens are a classic, but always be sure to use dandelions that have not been sprayed or treated with chemicals in any way. Many times they are available in the spring in the produce section along with other greens, if you prefer to buy them. The following recipes are from my copy of Meta Given's Modern Encyclopedia of Cooking, printed in 1949.

Dandelion Green Salad

1 cup finely shredded dandelion greens, very tender

2 cups shredded cabbage

1/4 cup sliced radishes

1 hard cooked egg, quartered and sliced

2 tbsp. crumbled Blue Cheese

Horseradish dressing

Use only the very tender heart leaves of either the wild or cultivated dandelions and shred by cutting with a very sharp scissors. Cabbage is best shredded by using a very sharp, thin bladed knife. Combine all ingredients and toss lightly with horseradish dressing. 4 servings.

Horseradish Dressing

1/3 cup prepared horseradish

1/4 cup vinegar

1 cup salad oil

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. sugar

1/4 tsp. onion juice

1 tbsp. ice water

1/8 tsp. paprika

Soak horseradish in vinegar overnight. Drain in a sieve over a bowl, pressing horseradish until dry. Discard dry portion and to the strained liquid, add remaining ingredients. Beat well with a rotary beater. Makes about 1 1/3 cups.

Spinach Medley

1/2 pound clean, crisp, raw spinach

1 1/2 cups shredded lettuce

)1 cup grated raw carrots (2 large)

1/4 cup chopped green onions

1/2 cup sliced radishes

1/2 cup French Dressing

1/2 tsp. salt

Vegetables should be cold and crisp. Cut spinach into shreds with a sharp scissors. Cut head lettuce with a sharp knife. Grate carrots. Combine all ingredients but carrots and mix very lightly but thoroughly using two forks. Do not stir. Add the carrots and toss two or three times only. Serve. 4 servings.

Mustard Greens and Spinach with Bacon

2 pounds fresh, tender mustard greens

1/2 pound bacon

1 quart boiling water

1/2 tsp. salt

black pepper to taste

1/2 pound spinach

Wash mustard greens very thoroughly, trimming off roots and tough stems; trim and wash spinach. Put mustard greens into kettle with bacon, add water, cover and boil gently for 45 minutes. Add salt and pepper, and put spinach into kettle, pressing down well. Again cover and cook until spinach is tender, from 10 to 15 minutes. More water may be added as needed. Serve hot. 4 servings.

Watercress is another green that can be grown from seed year round:

http://oldfashionedliving.com/watercress.html

~Brenda

March Garden Tips & Chores

It's hard to believe it's almost the end of March. I spotted the first of my daffodils opening this weekend, and all the trees and shrubs have buds on them, including both lilacs. I've always loved this time of year. Today I'm sharing Spring gardening tips.

Reminder: Don't prune any shrubs or trees that have spring blooms. Prune after the blooms have died off.

-The first spring chore should be walking around your landscape and cutting off any damaged or diseased wood from shrubs and trees. Mine made it through fairly well with just a small amount of damage to my Rose of Sharon. Use sharp garden shears that have been cleaned.

-The next chore is gently raking leaves and debris from all the garden beds that collected over the winter, and cutting back any dead foliage, or pulling up any annuals that were forgotten in the fall. If their isn't any disease present this can all be composted.

-Wait to till or dig in the garden until the soil is dry enough to crumble. If it's too wet from spring rains and moisture it will clump and be hard to work with later.

-If you didn't cut back the old wood on your butterfly bushes (for the type that grow from the ground each year, not on the old wood) then be sure to cut the old stems back to the ground now.

-Once the soil reaches a temperature of about 45 degrees and it's dry enough to work with you can plant peas, spinach, beets, carrots, radishes, lettuce, greens and calendula outside by sowing the seeds into the soil or containers.

-Cut back all ornamental grasses before they start to sprout from the ground so the new growth isn't accidentally snipped.

On OFL I have an article on growing peas:

http://oldfashionedliving.com/The-Spring-Garden:-Growing-Peas.html

~Brenda