Posts Tagged ‘mint’

Minty Lemon Balm & Ginger Herbal Tea

Herbal Tea // Good Things Grow

I thought I was going to be sharing a broccoli recipe with you today, but if you’re in the pacific NW area, you’re with me when I say hello sunshine! So I changed my mind and went with something a little more refreshing.

I’ve been playing around with the herbs currently growing in my garden. The perennial chocolate mint and lemon balm seem to have exploded onto the scene overnight. If I don’t keep them in check, they’ll soon take over; this I am sure. So herbal concoctions have been keeping our thirst quenched in a major way.

Herbal Tea // Good Things GrowHerbal Tea // Good Things Grow

Much of the end of April brought quiet backyard fires going into the evenings, friends over for dinner, and bike rides. Now the mountains are calling us, and we’re headed up for a little hiking this weekend, so I’m keeping this post short. Happy weekend friends! If the sun isn’t around where you are, keep this one tucked away for later when it warms up.

Herbal Tea // Good Things Grow

Minty Lemon Balm & Ginger Herbal Tea / makes 4 cups
I used chocolate mint, but I think other types of mint would work just as well. If you’re vegan, you can replace the honey with cane sugar if you’d like, just make sure to add it while the water is still pretty hot so it has time to dissolve.

4 cups water
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
4 tablespoons chopped fresh lemon balm
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1-2 tablespoon raw honey

Bring the water to a boil, then remove from heat and let sit a minute.

Meanwhile, place the mint, lemon balm, and ginger in a large strainer over a small bowl or liquid measuring cup, making sure the leaves will be fully submerged once the water is poured in. Alternatively, you can wrap the herbs and ginger up in several pieces of cheesecloth, tie a knot at the top.

Pour the hot water over the leaves and let sit for about 15-20 minutes. Lift out the strainer, add honey to taste, then place in the fridge until cold. Serve cold, over ice and garnish with mint and/or lemon balm sprigs.

Breakfast, Drinks, Gluten-Free, Spring, Summer, Vegan

Raw Apricot & Cherry Jam Tart

raw apricot and cherry jam tart
Two raw food desserts in a row… it must be Summer. Looking back in my archives I noticed I have a record of making a lot of raw or almost raw desserts and salads this time of year. Besides the fact that there is an incredible amount of fresh produce at our fingertips in the Summer, I think my reasoning for cooking more raw, is that the days are warmer and food just tastes so much better in its natural state. Not to mention that less cooking also means more free time outside, who doesn’t want that?

I don’t think I’ve mentioned yet that our backyard came with a fruiting cherry tree. A very huge, old cherry tree. The cherries are just now starting to turn a bright red, (most at the top 25-foot canopy) but we tested one out the other day and it’s some kind of sweet variety. It needs some major pruning and cleaning up, from years of neglect, but we’re hoping to harvest some of the cherries for ourselves before the birds get to them. In the mean time cherry and stone fruit season in Washington has been a little earlier than usual, so I’ve been picking up what I can from the market.

apricots

apricots_tart

Like many people, I don’t usually get quite as excited about apricots as I do peaches and nectarines, but I just couldn’t resist. I picked up a couple pounds and brought them home, soon realizing I was going to need a way to prepare them that was going to use them up in quantity because they were perfectly ripe and ready. Inspiration came when I saw the last bit of cherries left over in the fridge, not enough to make a whole dessert, but not quite as plump and beautiful as they were the day I purchased them to enjoy eating. I thought I could make a sort of jam by pureeing the cherries and combining them with chia seeds, and it worked. For some reason the photos don’t show the chia seeds as much as in real life, but they really helped to gel the cherries and when topped with fresh apricots and drizzled with a mint honey glaze, it became not just a dessert, but a decadent breakfast as well.

raw apricot and cherry jam tart

Raw Apricot & Cherry Jam Tart / serves 6-8

The cherry jam in this recipe is not really a traditional jam. The chia seeds act as a pectin gelling the blended cherries together. If you happen to have a jar of real cherry jam you can probably use that too, however it most likely won’t be completely raw.

for the crust
1 cup raw unsalted almonds
3/4 cup pitted dates
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
pinch of salt

for the filling
4-5 fresh apricots
1/3 cup cherry jam, recipe below
1 tablespoon raw honey
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons chopped fresh mint

cherry jam
1 full cup fresh sweet cherries (I used Bing), pitted
1 tablespoon honey
1-2 teaspoons chia seeds

Place the almonds in a food processor and blend until they become a coarse crumble, but no large bits left. Add the coconut and salt, then while processor is still running add the dates one at a time until the dough pulls together into one mass. It should all be well blended and there maybe a few slightly larger pieces.

Press the almond mixture into a 7 or 8-inch spring-form or tart pan (line the bottom with parchment first for easy removal, but not necessary). If using a spring-form pan, estimate about a 1/4-inch to 3/16-inch lip up the side to hold in just enough jam and the apricot slices. Place the crust in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. You can also make the day before.

For the cherry jam place the pitted cherries, honey, and chia seeds in a small food processor and blend until smooth. Let sit for 5-10 minutes.

Combine the honey lemon juice and mint in a small bowl. If honey is not runny enough to blend, warm slightly with the lemon juice in a small saucepan until you can easily mix together, then stir in mint, set aside. Cut the apricots in half, remove the pit and slice into 1/4-inch thick wedges.

Remove crust from the fridge, spread in the cherry jam right up to the edge, you’ll have some left over. Arrange the apricot slices in a spiral starting from the outside. Using a pastry brush, top the tart with the honey mixture. Place tart in the fridge for another 30 minutes or so and serve chilled. Best on the first day, but will keep in the fridge for several days or you can prepare the crust and jam ahead of time and assemble before serving.

Desserts + Sweets, Fruits, Gluten-Free, Proteins, Summer

Green Quinoa

green quinoa

One evening, a couple weeks ago, Scott and I were lounging in the living room and I turned to Scott and said, “I really can’t believe this house is ours.” He responded, “I was just thinking the same thing.” I’ve been reflecting about my life and how incredibly fortunate I feel for everyone and everything in it. We’ve been in our house for about 7 weeks now and I have to pinch myself every time I’m reminded of this fact. This whole time I’ve been wondering when I would have a chance to sit back and just enjoy it because the unpacking, painting, and building that we embarked upon when we first moved in was taking up so much of our time, all while still working on our businesses needs too.

Then I realized there have been friends and family coming over or stopping by 2 or 3 times a week. Sometimes for dinner or an afternoon snack, other times for just hanging out or a round of ping pong or badminton. It has felt so effortless and normal that I haven’t thought twice about it. You see, our previous rental house was only 650 sq. ft. being used as not only a home, but an entire work studio for two fully self-employed, married adults. To say the least, it was a bit cramped all the time, even with our best efforts to maintain organization.

We have a giant dining table made from a reclaimed bowling ally that we’ve been hauling around with us for the past 5 years, but it’s never been put to use for it’s intended purpose; dining. The few times we did have people over, we had to corral ourselves around a small coffee table in the living room and stoop down or hold our plates in our laps to enjoy a meal. We often ate meals at our computer or on a small rolling cart we used in the kitchen. Since moving here I have eaten every single meal at our dining table and it has felt so great. I now cherish this moment when I get to close my computer 3 times a day to just sit and enjoy my food.

It feels a little weird to say that I’ve probably dreamed of having my own house since I was little, but I have. I’ve always been incredibly domestic and a nester by nature. I used to arrange and re-arrange my room, organizing and putting things in their place. I enjoyed cooking and cleaning and the prep work that came with holidays around the house when my mom would prepare big family meals for our guests. I seriously can’t wait for that in our new house. I can’t wait for trick-or-treaters this October or setting up holiday decor. I can’t wait for our garden to be fully exploding (fingers crossed) with more vegetables than I know what to do with, so I have to force them onto neighbors and friends (more zucchini anyone?).

herbs

I’ve been picking herbs and greens and uprooting radishes for a little over a week now and my cooking has definitely been lead by it too. All those herbs and baby arugula you see up there, are from our garden and were put into this green quinoa. Having so much fresh produce right in our back yard makes cooking even easier. Everyone who has seen or heard about our garden, is always so impressed that we even put one in this year. It was the first thing on my to-do list and this green bowl is the first proof that it was definitely worth our efforts.

green quinoa bowl

Green Quinoa / serves 4-6
Adapted from Plenty

I’ve made several changes to Ottolenghi’s original recipe, using what I had. I used some leftover quinoa I had, but have given instructions for starting with dry quinoa.

1 cup quinoa
2 cup water or vegetable stock
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

herb paste
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
6 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup chopped pistachios, toasted and roughly chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
big pinch red pepper flakes
1 1/4 cup baby arugula leaves or larger ones chopped

Rinse and drain the quinoa. Place in a saucepan with the water or stock, adding a pinch of salt if you like, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a low simmer, cover and cook for about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat a large pan over medium heat and fry the onions in the oil until golden and completely soft. Add the salt and cumin and mix well. Leave to cool slightly.

To make the herb paste, place all the ingredients in a food processor and blitz until smooth.

Add the herb paste to the quinoa and mix everything together well with a fork to fluff it up. Add the cooked onion, the pistachios, garlic, red pepper flakes, and arugula and gently mix. Serve at room temperature.

Gluten-Free, Grains, Salads, Sides, Spring, Vegan, Vegetables

Mint Chip Ice Cream

Happy solstice! Today is one of my favorite days of the year. The sun comes up before 5am and it doesn’t go down until 10pm. It’s crazy and it’s a day that calls for ice cream. Don’t you agree?

I have many fond memories growing up of mint chocolate chip ice cream. Mostly in the Summer months and always with sticky streaks of light green running down the sides of my cheeks. But I’m an adult now and the green coloring added to my ice cream isn’t as appealing as it once was, nor is a face smeared with the stuff. So once again I pulled out my beloved ice cream maker and set about to make a fresh minty batch of ice cream.

Remember when I made mango sorbet. It was light, refreshing, and there was no refined sugar. I loved the idea of using dates as a sweetener and knew my Summer was going to be filled with all kinds of icy treats made using this technique. I was so excited when I took my first bite of this mint chip ice cream. Just the right amount of sweetness, no weird artificial or chemical after taste, and perfectly minty and chocolaty in every bite.

I used David’schocolate chip making expertise. It worked perfectly. You just chill the container you want to keep your ice cream in, drizzle in a bit of melted dark chocolate, cover with a scoop of fresh churned ice cream and repeat, swirling in the chocolate as you go to make chips. You’ll end up with small bits of chocolate and some that are slightly larger depending on how thick you drizzle.

Mint Chip Ice Cream / makes about 3 cups

A packed cup of mint may seem like a lot, but you will be straining the mint out, not blending it in and it really depends on how long you let the milk and mint mixture sit to achieve your satisfactory mint potency. I let mine site for about 1 1/2 – 2 hours and it was perfect.

1 cup almond milk
1 14oz. can coconut milk
pinch of salt
1 cup packed fresh mint
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 oz. pitted dates, about 1 cup
about 1 cup boiled water
3 oz. dark chocolate

Heat the almond milk, coconut milk, salt, and mint in a small sauce pan over medium high heat. Let it get hot enough to where it is steaming, but not boiling.

Cover and set aside to cool for about 1-2 hours or depending on how minty of a flavor you want.

In the meantime, place the dates into a small bowl and pour the boiling water over them. Let sit for at least 15 minutes to soften, then drain.

Strain the mint leaves from the milk mixture, giving them a good squeeze with a spatula to extract more mint flavor if you wish. Place the dates and milk mixture into a blender and blend on high speed until smooth. Place everything in the refrigerator until cold, at least 2 hours or overnight.

Freeze the ice cream according to your ice cream machines instructions.

Place your ice cream storage container into the freezer. While the ice cream is churning, melt the chocolate in a double broiler, stirring until smooth.

Pull the container out of the freezer, drizzle some of the chocolate into the bottom. Then scoop out some of the churned ice cream and drizzle on more chocolate and quickly stir it in. Continue layering like this until and stirring in more chocolate until finished.

Place in the freezer until firm. Pull out 15 minutes to serving for easier scooping.

Desserts + Sweets, Gluten-Free, Vegan