Rosalind Creasy's Recipes from the Garden. Rosalind Creasy
fennel seeds. Use the blend with red meats and vegetables.
Herbes de Provence à la Bouterin
4 tablespoons dried thyme
2 tablespoons dried rosemary
1 tablespoon dried lavender
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
3 bay leaves, crushed
Tex-Mex Hot Barbecue Blend
A blend from a spicy part of the world, this mixture is great rubbed on beef, chicken, and pork before barbecuing. This recipe is for the “hot-heads”; if you don’t like your food blazing, omit the chile Piquín.
2 tablespoons crumbled, dried Mexican oregano
1 tablespoon cumin seeds, toasted and ground
1 teaspoon chile Piquín flakes
1 teaspoon chili powder
Fresh Light Blend
Use this blend for poultry stuffing, in a lemon butter over fish, and added to soups.
2 tablespoons dried lemon thyme
1 tablespoon dried rosemary
1 tablespoon dried Greek oregano
Roast Potato Blend
2 tablespoons dried sweet marjoram
2 tablespoons dried thyme
For a delicious potato dish, parboil approximately 24 small potatoes (or 1½ lbs/650 g) until almost tender. Put them in a shallow baking pan with 3 tablespoons of olive oil, and stir to coat. Sprinkle salt and pepper and the herb blend over them and stir again. Bake at 400°F (200°C), stirring occasionally until golden brown. (Bake about 20 to 30 minutes.)
Roasted Root Vegetable Blend
Here’s another roasting mix; you can use it interchangeably with the Roast Potato Blend.
1 tablespoon dried rosemary
½ tablespoon dried savory
½ tablespoon dried thyme
salad dressings
The dressing we all need in our repertoire is the basic vinaigrette. This ageless combination of ingredients is elegant in its simplicity, and its quality depends on superior ingredients. Once the basic vinaigrette is mastered, it has endless variations. And then there all those wonderful creamy dressings—some are made with yogurt, others with cheese, cream, or buttermilk. They are also valuable in the salad repertoire. Newcomers to the dressing world are low-fat and nonfat ones. Salads are so much a part of a healthy diet that it makes sense to lower the caloric content for day-to-day salads. With the help of a lot of talented cooks, we now have an ever-expanding choice of tasty low-calorie dressings.
Basic Vinaigrette
Though the proportions of ingredients in a basic vinaigrette differ from cook to cook, the following is a representative recipe. It makes enough to dress a salad for four to six people. As vinaigrettes keep well for a few days, I generally double the amounts to make enough for two salads, refrigerating half.
1½ to 2 tablespoons wine vinegar
½ teaspoon salt
Dash of freshly ground black pepper
5 to 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Mix the vinegar, salt, and pepper and with a whisk blend in the oil to taste. Drizzle most of the dressing over 4 to 6 handfuls of mixed greens, toss gently, and taste. Add more dressing, if needed, and serve.
Vinaigrette with Blood Oranges and Champagne Vinegar
Created by Annie Somerville, executive chef at Greens restaurant in San Francisco, this sophisticated dressing is delicious.
½ teaspoon finely minced orange zest
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed blood orange or tangelo juice
1 tablespoon champagne vinegar
¼ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
In a small bowl, whisk together the orange zest, juice, vinegar, and salt. Once the salt dissolves, whisk in the oil. Makes ⅓ cup (85 ml).
Asian Vinaigrette
Asian greens seem to cry out for their own dressing. I like to use a basic vinaigrette but substitute Asian ingredients and seasonings to complement the “cabbagy” flavor. This rich (but very low-cal) and flavorful vinaigrette is perfect on all sorts of mixed Asian greens. I love to sprinkle a teaspoon or so of toasted sesame seeds over the salad after it is dressed, to accentuate the flavors. You can add all sorts of steamed vegetables to the salad. You may also add cooked chicken as well.
½ teaspoon honey
¼ teaspoon freshly grated ginger
1½ tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons commercial low- or nonfat defatted chicken or vegetable stock
½ teaspoon tamari or soy sauce
½ teaspoon chili oil
1 tablespoon cold-pressed toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon fresh chopped cilantro (optional)
In a small bowl, mix the honey and ginger. Slowly add the vinegar, whisking it in to incorporate the honey. Slowly add the stock, whisking it in. Add the tamari and oils and stir to blend. Makes ½ cup (125 ml).
Vegetable Marinade
Vinaigrettes don’t always need to be used as a dressing drizzled over a salad; they can also be used to marinate vegetables that are then served cold, by themselves or over greens. Chef John Downey, from Downey’s in Santa Barbara, California, likes to use a vinaigrette filled with lots of garden-fresh herbs to marinate lightly cooked vegetables for appetizer salads. This light combination of olive and corn oils and cider vinegar to lets the flavors of the greens and herbs predominate. The recipe makes enough to use as a marinade or to dress two or three green salads.
¼ cup (65 ml) cider or wine vinegar
1 to 3 teaspoons high-quality mustard
1 to 2 tablespoons minced shallots, dried, or scallions (green onions), garlic, or a combination of all three
⅓ cup (10 g) finely chopped fresh herbs such as basil, dill, fennel, parsley, or thyme
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup (250 ml) oil
In a bowl, combine all the ingredients except the oil or process them briefly in a food processor. Slowly whisk in the oil or add it to the processor. Let the mixture stand for ½ hour to allow the flavors to blend; check the seasoning. Refrigerate the unused portion and use within a few days. Makes 1½ cups (350 ml).
Salads come in many different styles. Here is a large garden salad, a Caesar salad, and a composed salad of cucumbers and yellow tomatoes. Even the simplest of salads can be a celebration of flavor, with a little imagination and the addition of fresh herbs and homemade dressing.
creamy salad dressings
Creamy dressings are at their best served with crunchy, crisp lettuces and with assertive greens. As a rule they are not used with baby greens, because they weigh down the greens and overpower the delicate flavors.
Garden Ranch Dressing
This creamy dressing is great on all types of lettuces and mixed greens. Beets and croutons would be great additions to the salad. This recipe makes enough for at least two large salads and will keep in the refrigerator for up to ten days.