DESCRIPTION
A traditional Middle Eastern Pastry, often made in smaller sizes as appetizers. Pine nuts are likely one of the most commonly used nuts in all kinds of Middle Eastern and Greek and Italian cooking – whether with lamb, pesto, over salads on in some of their sweet treats. Their flavor and texture is unique.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 pound ground lamb
- 1 shallot, finely diced
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds (or ground)
- ½ teaspoon coriander seeds (or ground)
- ½ teaspoon all spice
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- ½ cup roughly chopped Italian parsley
- 1 sprig mint, leaves chopped
- ½ cup pine nuts
- 4 sprigs fresh tarragon, chopped
- 12 sheets filo pastry
- Melted butter or olive oil for brushing
INSTRUCTIONS
- Place the lamb in a frying pan over medium high heat, and cook, stirring until browned, about 4-5 minutes.
- Add the shallot, onion, spices and tomato paste and cook 15 minutes, adding a bit of water if mix becomes too dry, but you are aiming for a fairy dry mixture.
- Remove from heat, add parsley, mint and half of the pine nuts and allow to cool slightly.
- Preheat oven to 400F.
- Chop and lightly toast the remaining pine nuts and toss with the tarragon.
- On a clean, dry surface, lay down one sheet of filo pastry, brush with butter and top with another sheet. Brush again, and scatter a little of the pine nuts mix down half and fold in half horizontally.
- Place 1/6 of the lamb mixture on one end of the pastry. Fold in edges and roll up like a cigar. Brush with butter and scatter over a little more pine nut mix.
- Repeat with remaining mixture and pastry.
- Lay on a lined baking tray and bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.
- Enjoy right away. Delicious with a cucumber yogurt sauce or tomato salsa and glass of Syrah.
DESCRIPTION
Recipe by Chef Chung Chow, noreetuh restaurant in New York.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 pound sushi grade Big-Eye tuna loin
- ½ cup dried seaweed (such as ogo and/or tosaka), rehydrated 10 minutes in cold water
- ½ small red onion, thinly sliced and soaked in ice water 10 minutes
- 1 scallion, thinly sliced on the bias
- ¼ cup macadamia nuts, roughly chopped
- Toasted white sesame seeds, to taste
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
Soy-Pickled Jalapeño Peppers
- 1/2 pound jalapeño peppers, stems trimmed
- 1 bottle distilled white vinegar
- 1 cup soy sauce
Dressing
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 ½ tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon tobanjan*
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
INSTRUCTIONS
- Prepare soy-pickled jalapenos by placing peppers in a wide mouth container or large bowl. Add soy sauce vinegar to cover peppers. Drain and reserve liquid.
- Place liquid mixture in small sauce pan and bring to boil over medium heat. Pour over peppers. Cool to room temperature. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
- Make dressing by combining soy sauce, rice wine vinegar and tobanjan in small bowl. Gently whisk in canola oil and sesame oil. Set aside.
- Cut tuna loin into half inch cubes. Season with the reserved dressing.
- Add rehydrated seaweed, drained sliced red onion, scallion, 8-10 slices of soy-pickled jalapeno, macadamia nuts and sesame seeds.
- Toss gently to combine. Garnish with additional sesame seeds, scallions and sea salt.
*Tobanjan is a spicy miso sauce found in Asian specialty stores and some supermarkets. If you can’t find it, you can use Korean Chile Paste, Gochujang, or simply omit.
DESCRIPTION
This isn’t the all-American coconut macaroon with which many people are familiar. Instead, it’s a lovely, light-as-a-feather French sandwich cookie, which starts with puffy wafers of ground almonds, confectioners sugar and egg white. This version is sealed with a rich, pink, raspberry-flavored buttercream.
INGREDIENTS
- 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons ground almonds*
- 1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
- 3 large egg whites
- 2 tablespoons sugar
Raspberry Buttercream
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) room temperature unsalted butter
- pinch of salt
- 1 tablespoon confectioners sugar
- 1 tablespoon seedless raspberry jelly
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 300°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Combine ground almonds and confectioners sugar until very fine in a food processor.
- In a medium bowl whisk egg whites until stiff but not dry. Add sugar, and whisk again until very stiff.
- Using a rubber spatula, add one-third almond mixture to egg whites and gently fold in, leaving some streaks. Gently fold in remaining almond mixture by thirds.
- Make a piping bag for the batter: Place a sturdy plastic storage bag into a tall water glass, folding its top back around the rim of the glass. Spoon batter gently into plastic bag. Remove bag from water glass and close, snipping a hole in one bottom corner. Use this piping bag to pipe 1-inch kisses onto baking sheets. Bake 18 to 20 minutes, turning pans halfway through baking or until set but not dried out. Let cookies cool completely, then remove from parchment paper with a small offset spatula. Sandwich cookies together with buttercream and serve, or store airtight for up to 2 days.
Raspberry Buttercream
- Using a mixer, beat 1/2 cup (1 stick) room temperature unsalted butter with a pinch of salt until fluffy.
- Add 1 tablespoon confectioners sugar, 1 tablespoon seedless raspberry jelly, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract, and beat until blended.
- Store covered and refrigerated, and let come to room temperature before using.
DESCRIPTION
American Pistachio Protein Bars
INGREDIENTS
- 1/2 cup Dried blueberries
- 1 cup Untoasted coconut flakes
- ½ cup Golden flax seed
- ¾ cup Whey protein or your favorite vegan protein powder
- 2 1/3 cup Salted American pistachio kernels
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ½ cup Sugar
- 1 tablespoon Vegetable oil
- ¼ cup Water
INSTRUCTIONS
- In food processor, combine: dried blueberries, coconut flakes, golden flax seed, whey protein, and salted American pistachio kernels. Pulse, for roughly 20 seconds. In small sauce pan combine: salt, sugar, vegetable oil, and water. Boil for 15 seconds. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix. Using wax paper on baking sheet, flatten mixture evenly. Freeze for 10 minutes and enjoy. Store by wrapping in wax paper.
DESCRIPTION
Put a delicious twist on this classic breakfast dish with pecans. Simply combine pecan pieces into the mix and sprinkle additional on top for a flavorful crunch that can be made ahead of time for a weekday morning or if entertaining guests.
Recipe submitted by Jessica Hylton-Leckie, Jessica in the Kitchen.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup raw pecan pieces + more for topping
- Cooking spray for coating pan
- 1 3/4 cup gluten free or regular baking flour mix
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 flax eggs or equivalent amount of egg replacer* or two eggs
- 1 cup coconut sugar or other sugar
- 1/2 cup coconut oil or pecan oil
- 1/2 vanilla bean or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup plain soy yogurt or regular yogurt
- 3/4 cup ripe mashed bananas*
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare your 9 x 5 banana bread pan by coating the inside of pan with cooking spray and then sprinkling with a bit of the flour mix. Set aside.
- In a medium sized bowl, sift the 10 ounces (1 3/4 cup) of the flour mix, baking powder, baking soda and sea salt and whisk to combine.
- In a mixer attachment bowl, add the flax eggs/egg replacer/egg, sugar and coconut oil. Mix together for about 2 minutes on medium-low speed.
- Scrape the vanilla bean and add to the mixture. Add the soy yogurt and the mashed bananas and mix everything together for 2 more minutes on medium low speed, scraping down the sides and bottom to ensure everything is combined.
- Add in 1/2 of the dry ingredients mixture, combine for 30 seconds, and then add in the rest of the dry ingredients mixture. Mix again for another 30 seconds, ensuring everything is combined.
- Remove bowl from mixer and fold in the raw pecan pieces into the batter until evenly distributed. The batter should be thick.
- Add the batter to the banana bread pan and use your spatula to smooth down the top. Sprinkle some pecan pieces on top.
- Bake the banana bread on the top shelf of your oven for 60 minutes, until a toothpick comes out with a few crumbs. You don’t want it to come out clean, so watch your banana bread from about 50 minutes depending on your oven.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes in pan. Transfer the bread to a wire rack by placing the wire rack on top of the bread, then holding the sides of the pan and flipping it over and removing the pan. Hold the sides of the bread to turn right side up. You can also turn the pan over into your hand, and then flip right side up and place on a wire rack.
- Allow the bread to cool completely. Slice as desired. Enjoy!
Recipe notes:
- Flax egg recipe: 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed meal mixed with 6 tablespoons water.
- Look for very ripe bananas – with dark or black skin.
DESCRIPTION
Sweet and salty honey glazed California walnuts, mango quinoa, plant-based milk, fresh blueberries and strawberries topped with shaved dark chocolate.
Recipe by Chef Jason Knoll.
INGREDIENTS
Honey Glazed Walnuts
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
- 2 cups California walnuts, rough chopped
Mango Quinoa
- 3 cups water
- 2 cups quinoa
- 1 1/4 cups 1/4-inch diced ripe mango
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
Toppings
- 2 cups walnut or other plant-based milk
- 2 cups sliced strawberries
- 1 cup blueberries
- 3 tablespoons shaved dark chocolate
INSTRUCTIONS
- To prepare Honey Glazed Walnuts, preheat oven to 350°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Stir together honey, sugar, salt and butter in a large bowl. Add walnuts and toss well to coat.
- Spread on baking sheet and bake for 17 to 20 minutes or until golden brown, twice. Let cool, stirring occasionally, then break into small bite-size pieces.
- Meanwhile, bring all Mango Quinoa ingredients to a boil in a large pot. Cover and cook over low heat for 12 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork, then let cool completely. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
- For each serving, place 3/4 cup Mango Quinoa the bottom of a bowl and pour 1/4 cup milk around the edges. Sprinkle 1/4 cup strawberries, 2 tablespoons blueberries, 1/3 cup Honey Glazed Walnuts and 1 teaspoon shaved chocolate.
DESCRIPTION
Cheesecake With Pistachios. Recipe by Chef Viviana Varese.
INGREDIENTS
For the Base
- 1 cup Sugar cookies, crumbled
- 3 tsp Brown sugar
- 2 tsp American pistachios
- ¼ cup Butter
For the Cream
- 2 whole Eggs
- 1 Egg yolk
- ¼ cup Granulated white sugar
- 2 ½ cups Ricotta
- Juice of half a lemon
- ½ cup fresh cream
- 1 ½ tbsp cornstarch 20 g
For the Candied Pistachios
- 1 1/3 cups American pistachio kernels
- ½ cup Water
- ¾ cup Granulated white sugar
For the Whipped Fudge with White Chocolate and Pistachios
- ¼ tsp fresh Cream
- ¼ cup white Corn syrup
- 1 ½ cups White chocolate
- ½ cup Pistachio paste
INSTRUCTIONS
For the Candied Pistachios
- Toast the pistachios for 15 minutes at 120 degrees Fahrenheit. To prepare syrup boil water and add sugar and roasted pistachios. Then drain and place pistachios bakery paper and bake at 160 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 minutes or until they are candied.
For the Fudge
- Heat the cream with the corn syrup; do not bring to a boil. Remove from heat, add the chocolate and mix with a whisk. When the chocolate has melted add the pistachio paste. Let rest in the refrigerator for about 3 hours.
For the Base
- Whisk the sugar cookies with candied pistachios and then add the melted butter; mix until homogeneous. Place in a round cake pan with a diameter of 8 inches. Level with a spoon equally to obtain a bottom of about 1/8 inch deep. Let rest in the refrigerator for about half an hour.
For the Cream
- Combine and beat the eggs and egg yolk with the sugar until frothy. Add the sifted ricotta. Mix with lemon juice, starch, and fresh cream. Add ¾ of candied pistachios. Place the cream into the pan over the base and bake in oven at 160 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes; reduce oven temperature to 140 degrees. Continue cooking for another 30 minutes, remove and allow to cool before serving.
Assembly and Finishing
- Blend the cold fudge with an electric mixer until it has a solid consistency. Place the fudge into a piping bag and decorate the cheesecake. Finish with ¼ of candied pistachios.
