Oh how I live for summer!  This is such a simple, beautiful, and tasty salad to have during the summer.  Using yellow and red tomatoes gives this salad such vibrant color. The key to this salad is to marinate for at least 4 hours in the refrigerator, then remove from the fridge to come to room temperature for one more hour.
Also, there will be leftover salad dressing/marinade - just use as is on other salads, maybe adding fresh lemon or more red wine vinegar.
2 Red tomatoes
2 Yellow tomatoes
2-3 Tblsp. roughly chopped red onion
2-3 Tblsp. roughly chopped fresh Basil
Salad Dressing Marinade:
2 Tblsp. Organic Red Wine Vinegar
3 Tblsp. Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
To a bowl, add the chopped tomatoes in equal size chunks.  Add in the chopped red onion and basil.  Mix up the dressing and pour over the salad.  Toss to coat well, check for seasonings and refrigerate.

We are in love with this new Garlic Scape Pesto Recipe.  I can't wait to get back to the Farmer's Market to get more of these delicious garlic scapes.  It is a short window, so I am hoping there will still be some available.  First we had the Marinated Chicken dinner with this Pesto served on top of the Chicken and the Red French Fingerling Potatoes.  Then we had this Garlic Scape Pesto stuffed Pork Tenderloin:
With this Pork Tenderloin, I simply cut it through the center (but not all the way through) and slathered in the Garlic Scape Pesto.  Then I tied it up with Kitchen Twine, and rolled it in a breadcrumb mixture of GF breadcrumbs, Parmesan Cheese, dried finely ground Fennel, Garlic powder, salt and pepper.
Roast in a 375 degree oven -  for a 1 1/2 lb. Pork Tenderloin, this took about 35-40 minutes.  It was mighty tender, and mighty flavorful.  The key to this Pesto is to keep it on the thick side, so it does not ooze out during the roasting time.  Once again we have beautiful organic farm market vegetables....we were in heaven!
Next up:  Garlic Scape Pesto stuffed Wild Salmon with A Garlic Scape Pesto Vinaigrette.
Vinaigrette:
2 Tblsp. Red Wine Vinegar
1 minced Garlic Clove
1/2 tsp. Dijon Mustard
2 rounded tsp. Garlic Scape Pesto
3 Tblsp. Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
salt and pepper to taste
Place all the ingredients in a jar shaking well to incorporate:
Drizzle over your salad and dig in!
For the salmon we had a chunk of Sockeye Salmon - 1 1/4 lbs. which I rinsed well in cold water, and patted dry with paper towel.  I cut the salmon in half - not all the way through.  Then I slathered in the Garlic Scape Pesto, added a few slices of fresh lemon then placed the other half on top, wrapped tightly in foil and baked in a 425 degree oven for 40 minutes.  The rule of thumb is a high heat oven, 10 minutes per inch of thickness of your piece of fish.
Remove from the oven, and unwrap.  At this point, run your knife along the outer skin to remove and discard.  Open up the salmon, and pick up the end of the large side of the spine bone, lifting to remove and discard.  Serve your desired size of salmon piece...so so good!
The next night I made Salmon Burgers with Garlic Scape Mayonnaise using the leftover baked Salmon.  To die for!  In the winter time, we will have Salmon Burgers/Cakes using Canned Wild Salmon, and while mighty tasty, fresh is so so much better.
What I have discovered is it is all about the "goo".  In other words, the combination of fresh cooked salmon, 1 egg, mayonnaise, dijon mustard, garlic scape pesto, green onions and gluten free breadcrumbs.  The mixture should come together with a feeling of not too wet, nor too dry:
Fried in some olive oil, and serve with a dollop of Garlic Scape Pesto Mayonnaise - heaven. (I added 3 Tblsp. of the Pesto to about 5- 6 Tblsp. of Mayonnaise, mixing well - just eye-ball and check for taste)
Well that is it this week for the "Garlic Scape Pesto" feature.  If you can get fresh Garlic Scapes - Pesto is the way to go! Here is hoping I can get more...we love this Pesto! 🙂

This recipe came about as a result of having leftovers.  I can't bear to throw away food.  There were two egg yolks in the fridge, leftover Chimichurri Sauce, a lowly quarter of a cabbage - all needing to be used up.  I always said I would never make homemade Mayonnaise or Aioli, because I always thought I would eat too much of it.  But the good news is I can't - it is too rich!  Plus - who knew it would be so super easy to make?  A good way to use up leftovers, and it tasted great too!
AIOLI:
2 organic egg yolks
2 minced garlic cloves
juice of one fresh lemon
salt to taste
1/2 cup of Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 cup of Organic Grapeseed Oil
In a food processor, add the egg yolks, garlic cloves, fresh lemon, and salt.  Whiz up, and very slowly drizzle in the oils.  Continue to process until a thick creamy texture is achieved.  Adjust the salt and lemon to taste.  Doesn't it look so pretty?
If you need a good Chimichurri Sauce recipe, there is one here.
METHOD FOR THE COLESLAW:
This is one of those recipes where you "taste as you go"
3-4 cups of shredded green cabbage
1 large grated carrot
3 Tblsp. minced Red onion
juice of one fresh small lemon
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup Chimichuri Sauce - if necessary add more to taste
Fresh Aioli, by the tablespoon to taste
Add the shredded cabbage, carrot, red onion, salt and pepper and lemon juice in a bowl.  Pour in the Chimichuri Sauce tossing to coat.  Add the Aioli one tablespoon at at time, keep tasting and add more as needed, mixing well to evenly coat the coleslaw.
Refrigerate 2 hours before serving.

This side dish was delectable...if you love Greek Salad this is for you.  I have never done a post on Greek Salad before, firstly, because I don't make the traditional Greek Salad, and secondly, it is too simple to post.    This past week, we have been using up the last of the garden tomatoes, and wonderful cucumbers from the farmer's market - so 2-3 Greek Salads a week.
To give you a simple run down - here is what I do:
Diced Tomatoes
Diced Cucumbers
Diced Red onion
1-2 minced garlic cloves
1 celery stalk, finely sliced
handful of Feta Cheese
handful of Kalamata Olives
1 Tblsp. minced Fresh Flat Leaf Italian Parsley
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Juice of one fresh organic Lemon
Fresh cracked pepper
That is it - too easy.  Usually there will be a serving left over which I eagerly look forward to having the next day.  Always, at the bottom of the bowl, is a delicious combination, of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Garlic, Tomato seeds, Lemon juice, red onion, and usually bits of feta cheese.  Honestly?  I drink this wonderful concoction.  All week I was thinking, this would make a great combination for steamed Vegetables.
So today, I sat down to watch Jamie's 30 minute meals.  (this was the only link I could find, so not sure if this recipe will show up....but too easy, so no worries)
Here he was recreating "my" recipe...and with Steamed Vegetables to boot!  We were so going to have this with dinner tonight, oh, yeahhh...
Tomato Garlic Onion Dressing:
2 Roma Tomatoes
1/4 of a red onion
1-2 garlic cloves - very finely minced
juice of one organic Lemon
salt and pepper to taste
Extra Virgin Olive Oil - a 3 to 1 ratio with the other ingredients
Vegetables:
a big handful of broccoli, stem on
a big handful of fresh green and yellow beans
Dressing:
Slice the tomatoes in half, then grate on the fine side of a box grater into a medium to large bowl discarding the skins.  To this, add 1/4 of a grated red onion, minced garlic cloves, lemon juice, salt and pepper, then the olive oil and mix with a fork.  Adjust for any seasonings.  Set the bowl aside.
Meanwhile, bring a medium sauce pan of water to the boil.  Season well with salt.  Add the broccoli and simmer on a boil for 2 minutes.  Add the beans and continue to boil for 2 minutes, then drain.  Add to the bowl of tomato dressing, tossing well to coat.  Serve warm or cold - either way is unbelievably delicious.  I could barely stay out of this dish to even take a photo!

I found this delicious sprouted organic bean mix at Costco the other day, and was pleasantly surprised. They are delicious - so versatile too.  These would be lovely in soups, or stews....I am thinking up new recipes as I write this!  It makes me really happy to see more and more organic, healthy foods available at Costco - or any store for that matter.
I decided to make a bean salad - a salad I have never made before.  Normally bean salads have red kidney beans in them - which I don't care for.  This sprouted bean mix is a blend of sprouted lentils, adzuki, and mung beans.  There were fresh green beans at the market - so a new salad was underway.  I went with an Italian Salad Dressing - but really, any seasoning would work nicely...curry, cumin to name a few.
1 cup or Organic sprouted bean mix
3 cups of water
1 Bay leaf
a big handful of fresh green beans, trimmed and cut into one inch pieces
1/4 cup Fresh Italian Flat leaf Parsley, minced
1/4 cup finely minced red onion
crumbled Feta Cheese (optional)
Italian Dressing:
3 Tblsp. Red Wine Vinegar
Extra Virgin Olive oil - a three to one ratio with the vinegar
2 minced garlic cloves
1 rounded tsp. Italian Seasoning
salt and pepper
1 tsp. honey
In a medium sauce pan, combine the sprouted beans with the water and Bay leaf.  On medium high heat, bring to a boil, cover with a lid, then turn down to a low simmer, for five minutes.  Remove from heat and let stand for 10 minutes.  Remove the Bay Leaf, drain and allow to cool.
Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to the boil, and blanch the green beans for one minute.  Remove from the heat and drain, putting the green beans into an ice bath for another minute.  Drain from the ice bath in a colander and add to a salad bowl.  Add the cooled sprouted beans to the bowl, as well as the fresh Parsley, and Red onion.
Italian Dressing:
Add the ingredients to a jar or bowl, and whisk well to incorporate.   Then pour the dressing into the bean salad, tossing to combine well.  Check for seasonings.  If using, add crumbled feta cheese, tossing well.  Refrigerate for a couple of hours for the flavors to develop.

The first time I made homemade Ranch dressing, it was good, but I still felt the need to tweek the recipe.  What a lovely dressing this turned out to be!  Most recipes call for buttermilk, I used Kefir milk and it turned out great.
1 Tblsp. finely diced shallot
1 finely minced garlic clove
2 Tblsp. finely chopped chives
1 rounded tsp. Dill Weed
1 tsp. dried Basil
1/2 tsp. dried Thyme
1/2 - 2/3 cup Kefir milk (or buttermilk) (I used 2/3 cup which made the dressing on the runny side - but we liked the consistency)
4 heaping Tblsp. Mayonnaise
1 rounded tsp. Dijon Mustard
1 Tblsp. fresh Lemon Juice
salt and pepper to taste
Dice up the shallot, and finely mince the garlic and finely chopped chives.  Add to a bowl.  Add the remaining ingredients, whisking well to incorporate.  Transfer to a pourable salad dressing jar.  (I use jam jars - they work great!)  This dressing tastes better if made in the morning, to have with the evening meal.
Salad anyone?
Or how about Ranch Dressing with Spicy Terriaki Wings?  Yum!

I think I love just about any kind of coleslaw recipe - creamy, vinaigrette, sweet, not sweet, spicy or not spicy.  And this recipe does not get any easier!   A simple everyday coleslaw recipe.  There are so many options you could use for the dressing.  This dressing was on the tart side, which we loved.  If you wanted it sweet, just add some honey to the dressing.  What about diced sweet gherkins?  For a spicy kick, add in some horseradish, or Dijon Mustard - all of these options would work nicely.
3 cups finely shredded green cabbage
1 large grated carrot
2 finely minced green onions
1 finely sliced celery stalk
Dressing:
a big 1/2 cup of Mayonnaise
juice of 1/2 a fresh lemon
1 Tblsp. Rice Vinegar
fresh cracked pepper, and a pinch of salt
1/4 tsp. Celery Seed
Place all of the vegetables into a bowl, tossing lightly with a fork.  In another bowl, mix up the dressing ingredients, whisking well to incorporate.  Pour over the coleslaw, and mix well.  Refrigerate 1 hour before serving.

Who knew a simple salmon salad could taste so good?  I was pleasantly surprised.  We are still having different kinds of salads ever since the Curry Chicken Salad Post.  So here is another grain free meal, fresh salad we have been eating in our endeavor to cut back on Carbs and Grains.  This salad would be delicious with crab or baby shrimp too.  This was enough for three, so just increase amounts if you have more people to feed.
4 finely shredded Romain Leaves
1 small can of Wild Sockeye Salmon, drained well
2 finely chopped green onions
1 thinly sliced celery stalk - on a diagonal
about 1/2 cup of finely shredded then chopped cabbage
4 minced baby sweet Gherkins
Dressing:
4 rounded Tblsp. Mayonnaise
2 Tblsp. finely minced Fresh Italian Flat Leaf Parsley
1 Tblsp. fresh lemon juice
1 Tblsp. water
2 tsp. dried dill
salt and pepper
Note: if you use this dressing for other seafood salads, I would add a bit of honey to even out the flavors.
Combine all the vegetables, diced pickles in a medium sized bowl.  Mix up the dressing and pour over the vegetables stirring to coat.  It may look like a lot of dressing, but once the salmon goes in, it will even out.  Using a fork, slightly flake the salmon into the bowl, but leaving some chunky pieces too.  Gently mix, and adjust for seasonings.