Summery Rice Salad

I'm a sucker for rice salad.  It's my go to meal this time of year.  I mean, who doesn't have rice in the house?  The other reason it's brilliant is that you can add whatever you want to it and dress it with practically anything (i.e. tangy vinaigrette or creamy herb-laced buttermilk).

On a related note, let's talk about the seemingly humble carrot. When I was growing up, carrot sticks were invariably a lunch time staple. Unlike in the U.S. where we tend to slice carrots into thin strips, Danes have no compunction about eating them whole.  Even the three and four year-olds at my son's school eat them that way.  Just as carrot sticks are common in the U.S., a whole carrot that's been peeled and had it's tough ends chopped off are an ubiquitous snack in Denmark, (which is not to say that Danes don't eat carrot sticks, they do, but more commonly it's the whole variety).

I won't get into my French relatives' relationship with the raw carrot. Shredded is acceptable, but my mother in law won't let a carrot stick past her lips.  A whole carrot?  Mais, no.  I recently prepared a salad with carrots sliced into thinish coins. Alan said eating it made him feel like a rabbit.  But the French are never particular about what's put in front of them to eat.  No, never.

Having said that, I owe my discovery of the rice salad and it's myriad renderings to said French relatives. You'll note that the carrots in this rice salad have been shredded.

This version is ultra simple and makes for perfect lunch time fuel. All you do is make a pot of short grained brown rice, shred a few carrots (slice them in coins if you like.  Mais oui.), finely chop a handful of cornichon (mini pickles), chop up a red pepper, and that's it.  A can of tuna is a great addition.  So are garbanzo or black beans. The dressing I use consists of equal parts plain yogurt and mayonnaise as well as a spoon of dijon mustard, and salt and pepper.  To add even more flavor, grate one or two cloves of garlic over the whole thing and stir to combine.

Summery Rice Salad

Ingredients

1c short grain brown rice (cooked according to package directions and cooled)
3 medium carrots (shredded)
1/4 c cornichon
1 whole red, yellow, or green bell pepper, chopped into small pieces
1 can of tuna (optional)

1/3c plain yogurt (I used Greek yogurt)
1/3c mayonnaise (I used Hellman's - yes we can get Hellman's in DK!)
2t dijon mustard

Add to taste:
1t sea salt
1.5t pepper
1-2 cloves of garlic, grated

Directions

Pour cooled, cooked rice into a serving bowl.  Add carrots, pepper, cornichon, and tuna (if using).

Mix together dressing ingredients in a jar and shake well (or mix together with a fork in a small bowl).

Add the dressing to the salad a little at a time until it is coated to your liking (you may have some left over that you can refrigerate).

Grate one or two cloves of garlic over the top and stir.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Salade de Carottes au Thon

Don't let the title fool you.  This is not a French recipe per se.  It's one I thought up.  But to my mind, salade de carottes au thon sounds a thousand times more sophisticated than Carrot Tuna Salad.  But I don't know why it matters.  There is nothing fancy about this recipe, and there needn't be.  It's my favorite go-to lunch of the moment.  Light, healthy, packed full of protein and vitamin A, and wonderfully delicious to boot.

It's one of those meals that is thrown together in a flash.  Grate a few carrots, toss in a bowl with a can of drained tuna, minced shallot or a couple cloves of grated garlic (both if you are feeling daring), and mix with a dressing of plain yogurt and mayonnaise.  Sprinkle liberally with coarse salt and you are good to go.

Salade de Carottes au Thon
3 large carrots, peeled
1 can of drained tuna
1 medium shallot, finely chopped and/or 2 cloves of garlic, grated
1T mayonnaise
1T plain yogurt
Salt

1.  Grate carrots in a food processor (hand grater works, too) and place in a medium bowl
2.  Mix in tuna and shallot and/or garlic
3.  Stir mayonnaise and yogurt together and pour over the salad.  Stir until dressing coats the entire salad.
4.  Add salt to taste.

Danish Greek Salad

Did my title catch your attention? I've been sick all week with a cold, sore throat, and cough and the foods that appeal to me most are fresh, seasonal fruits and veggies. Today for lunch I chopped cucumber, tomatoes, red onion, and feta and added two things to give this salad a Danish twist: slices of a beautiful narrow little yellow Danish pepper and a piece of toasted rugbrod on the side. The pepper added even more splendid color to the salad, and the bread was a fantastic, crunchy accompaniment. Unfortunately, I'm out of Kalamata olives, but normally I'd toss some of those in, too.

To the top, I added a few sprinkles of dried oregano and a 1/4 teaspoon or so of Cavender's All Purpose Greek Seasoning. I didn't bother with a dressing, but you can easily add a splash of olive oil and vinegar or olive oil and lemon juice.

This is such a terrific salad this time of year. Everything tastes so fresh and good. I recommend letting the tomato and cucumber come to room temperature before assembling; but if you prefer your veggies straight from the fridge, go for it. My tomatoes are typically on the counter, but it's the cucumber that I remove from the fridge ahead of time because I find it tastes better not quite so cold. Also, as a matter of preference, I chop the ingredients into small bits so that all I need is a fork to get it from the bowl into my mouth. In other words, no knife required...but cut the ingredients as big or small as you wish.

Danish Greek Salad

Serves 1 as a main dish or 2 as a side

1/2 cucumber, diced

1 large tomato, diced

1/4 of a block of good feta, crumbled

1/4 of a red onion, chopped fine

1/4c Kalamata olives

1/4 of a yellow pepper, chopped fine (or sliced into rings if you have a narrow pepper)

1 piece sliced, toasted rugbrod (or any good bread)

Sprinkle of oregano

Sprinkle of Greek seasoning (otherwise add a little salt to bring out the flavor of the tomatoes and cucumbers...go easy though, the feta is already salty.)

1. Toss all ingredients into a bowl, mix in spices, add, if you wish, a dressing of olive oil and red wine vinegar, and serve with toasted bread. Enjoy!

Not My Average Sunday

I typically try to take it easy on Sundays, but today was uncharacteristically busy.  We spent three hours applying the second coat of paint to our bedroom--with our toddler underfoot and covered in paint!  After lunch I made a strawberry tart that I'd seen on the blog, Simple Mom. After naps for all of us, we enjoyed a slice of tart, served with honey-drizzled Greek yogurt.  All three of us ate multiple slices--it was that good.  We decided it was time to head outside and enjoy the lovely spring day, so we jumped on our bikes and went for a long ride. No, our 20-month old is not a bicycling phenom - we pull him in a bike trailer.  

When we returned it was time to prepare dinner:  baked cod seasoned with fresh thyme and salt and pepper, rice, green beans from our CSA box, and a salad of purple cabbage, diced apple, sliced orange, chopped walnuts, lemon juice, olive oil, and salt.  The salad recipe came in our CSA box along with the cabbage.  And it was in Danish!

After dinner, while my husband gave our son a bath, I made a loaf of Irish Soda Bread.  I'm sort of past my yearly craving for this bread, but my husband loves it.  Plus, we are out of bread, so it will be good for breakfast in the morning.

So, all things considered, not a lazy Sunday.

I'm not positive that it will happen this week, but my goal is to make madeleines using the silicone madeleine baking mold that my mother in law gave me for Christmas.  I also want to try my hand at Beef Bourguignon,  a recipe from Julie and Julia, the book I'm currently reading.