summer pasta salad made lighter

I will be the first one to profess my love for macaroni salad or a creamy potato salad, both covered in mayo.

BUT-why not try something else? Greek yogurt has become a staple on every grocery store visit. What used to be the base for my smoothies is now also a salad dressing component, a sauce for latkes, a veggie dip and the coating for a delicious and light summer pasta salad.

The ironic part about this is that I made this recipe on the least summery day we have had in Seattle. Since moving here in June, we have experienced record temps in June (hottest ever!!) and July while never seeing it drop below 70. Until the day I made this pasta salad, as it rained in sheets for hours and hours and I sipped hot cocoa on the couch.

I was originally inspired to make this salad after finding mini farfalle (bow tie pasta) at the store and realizing it had been forever since I whipped up a pasta salad. The greek yogurt lends the creamy texture I crave, and by thinning it out with lemon juice and olive oil, it perfectly coats the pasta. The peppers add a great crunch and feta balances out the sweetness of the tomatoes perfectly.

Make this before summer is over!

summer pasta salad 
(serves about 10-halve the recipe if you don't plan on bringing to a party or eating this for at least a week like me)

1 pound of pasta-your choice!
1 cup of bell peppers (red, orange and yellow), diced. I cut mine pretty small, but any bite sized chop would work
1 cup grape or mini heirloom tomatoes, quartered
1/2 cup of feta, cubed
1/4 cup parsley, diced
2 tbsp of salt
1 tbsp pepper
1 tbsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 and a half cups greek yogurt (I used 0%)
juice and zest of 2 lemons
1/4 cup of olive oil

• bring a pot of water to boil, add 1 tbsp of salt and pasta, cook per directions, drain and transfer to a large bowl
• mix yogurt, lemon juice and zest, olive oil, remaining salt, pepper, onion and garlic powder and whisk together. You should have a thinned out consistency that still sticks to the back of a spoon without running when you run your finger through it

tip: if its too thin, add a tbsp of yougurt and stir in; if too thick add a bit more olive oil in. as with all my recipes, its not an exact science

• pour the mixture over the still warm pasta and toss
• once well combined, add remaining ingredients and toss together
• serve warm, room temp or chilled right from the fridge

The best part about this is how many variations you can make of this. Of course, any pasta would work and I love orzo or elbows for any pasta salad. But the veggie and cheese options are endless: mozzarella would be really delicious, or any cubed, hard cheese (this is probably the only time I would pass up the goat cheese, since its mild creaminess may get overpowered by the sauce. Shocking, I know.) Shred carrots and zucchini, dice up grapes, toss in arugula. You can even do lemon juice and oil and skip the greek yogurt--though after you try it, I doubt you will want to.

#eggseries finale: omelette

Months later, I woke up and finally decided to make an omelette. I have to admit, I never really learned the proper technique (and I can't promise that has changed much) but it is one of the most popular egg preparations and I felt I owed it to myself to give it a shot.

I think I understand why this is something every chef is expected to know how to make. It's not easy, it takes practice and technique and flaws are clearly visible.

For example, my omelette ripped when I tried to turn it, didn't come out as smooth and round as I wanted and was maybe a little too brown. After the recipe I will share suggestions for how to improve next time and later share with you all any progress I make as I work to perfect this.

I turned to Alton for this one and his steps were very specific, but the recipe felt complex to me. I dutifully followed his "egg warming" technique but he lost me on "snapping" the omelette back towards me and I wished there were pictures.

3-egg omelette
3 eggs
1 tsp butter, softened or room temp
a pinch of salt
any toppings you prefer

I sautéed kale, peppers and turkey before hand, sprinkled in some goat cheese and set it aside in a bowl for later. Use ANY toppings you like.

• run the eggs under warm water (not hot) for about 3 mins
• heat the pan on medium high
• crack eggs into a bowl and whisk with a fork (add salt here or at the end as I did)

tip: Alton suggests a fork instead of a whisk to avoid too much air getting into the eggs

• butter the pan with one tsp of softened butter, and spread it all over the pan
• pour your egg mixture in and stir with a rubber spatula vigorously for 5 seconds
• spread the mixture around the pan by tilting it and then loosen the edges and spread the eggs with the spatula to form a circle and keep edges from sticking
• let sit untouched for ten seconds
• shake the pan to loosen, then add toppings to the center
• fold the edges over each side and slide onto a plate (season with salt here if you did not do earlier)

#instacookingvideo here

Changes to make:

• add another egg, or a smaller pan. I don't think I had enough egg to cover the pan fully. You can see gaps in the omelette forming
• move quicker to spread the eggs out
• lower the heat slightly--the recipe I followed called for medium-high heat, but I think with trying this for the first time, cooking it lower and slower may have helped me
• lessen the topping amount-that definitely caused my omelette to tear

What do you guys want to see next?!? I have a kale recipe coming up (NOT kale chips), a new spice mixture that I am obsessed with this summer and a tasty spin on quesadillas.

#eggseries: scrambled eggs

After a brief hiatus to move to another state (lots of stories and pics to share there at a later date), I am finishing up the #eggseries with the second to last tutorial on scrambled eggs.

Once I learned this method, they came out light and fluffy every time! You can watch the video here.

fluffy scrambled eggs
2 eggs, beaten with a whisk
salt and pepper for seasoning
1-2 tablespoons of butter

• melt the butter in a pan on medium-high heat
• once melted, lower to medium-low heat and wait for the pan to cool down slightly
• add your eggs and let them sit fow about 30 seconds--the edges should start to firm up a bit
• slowly move the eggs around the pan with a rubber spatula, scrambling them together until they start to set but still look a bit soft and slightly liquidy
• remove from pan immediately (or they will continue to cook)
• season with salt and pepper

tip: you can add goat cheese, grated parm, other herbs such as parsley or tomatoes, among many other things. I add these in after the eggs have been added to the pan and let them cook and melt in together.

(serves one)

Let me know if you guys have requests for other egg-related dishes. I have to conquer this omelette that I have clearly been putting off...

Also, comment with any other requests!

tzatziki sauce

Writing to you guys from my parents house in NY!

Its been a hectic few days at home and have been busy gobbling up my faves so not much cooking has been happening. Last night my dad fired up the grill and made some steaks and shish kebabs that we got from this amazing greek butcher in queens. They are authentic lamb and beef: I watched the butcher cut them up and skewer them myself.

A little tzatziki sauce to dip the meat into is my favorite thing and I have loved experimenting with yogurt sauces lately, so I whipped up a quick one to go with dinner. I would pretty much put this on anything, but it would make a great sub for mayo on a sandwich, or just to dip pita chips into!

tzatziki sauce
1 cup of 1 or 2% plain greek yogurt
juice of half a lemon
2 tbsp dill
1/4 cup finely diced cucumber
1 garlic clove, minced and made into a paste (steps below)
salt and pepper to taste

combine all ingredients and season to taste. chill before serving

garlic paste
finely mince 1 garlic clove and season with a few sprinkles of sea salt
using the back of the knife, mash the salt and garlic into a paste, scraping the back of the knife against the cutting board
repeat until the mixture is a paste consistency

Give me some ideas guys! What would everyone like to see in a future post? More videos, detailed tutorials..?

#eggseries: soft boiled eggs

I am so excited for the response I have gotten on the #eggseries and can not wait to share some more tips with you! I hope everyone is happily poaching eggs and ready for the gooey, dipable soft boiled eggs you are about to get.

I have seen a few variations on cooking these (including boiling the water, then placing the eggs in), but this is the way my mom has always done it, so I am teaching you her way.

heres what to do:

• place eggs in pot of cold water, make sure the water covers the eggs and bring to a boil
• once boiling, remove from heat, keep covered for 1 1/2 minutes (watch it closely!) and then remove and place in egg cups 

tip: if you don't have egg cups, use small cups or mugs and cushion with napkins or paper towels

• crack open the tops of the eggs with the back of a spoon and scoop off, removing any egg shells
• season with salt and pepper and dip butter toast or english muffin sticks in.  

//sorry for the poorly focused second half--its tough to film some of these angles!//

Next up: I am going to take the weekend to research and teach myself the proper omelette and #instacookingvideo it for you next week. Mike and I leave for my parents on Monday, so you may get some demos from the parents household, and soon, all demos to come from our new Seattle kitchen!

Enjoy your eggs people!

poached eggs..

..and the kickoff to "Veronica teaches you how to make eggs" #eggseries.

After a few questions on how to poach, soft boil and scramble an egg and realizing I do not know how to make a proper omelette, I have decided to launch the #eggseries. Its a great ingredient that can be enjoyed so many ways and more importantly, so easy to make once you have mastered it.

First up..poached eggs. You can check out my #instacookingvideo or follow the steps below. I taught myself how to make these when I was in my eggs benedict obsession period a few years back. The presentation really turns out beautiful with the soft egg white enclosing the runny golden yolk and can be just as delicious with a piece of toast or some asparagus as it is with a fancier benedict.

Heres what to do:

bring a pot of water to a slow, not rapid boil and add a splash of white vinegar.
tip: this is supposed to help the proteins "coagulate" but all I know is, I always do it this way and they turn out great every time
crack your eggs into a small bowl then slide them one at a time into the water
let simmer for 1 1/2-2 minutes and then remove with slotted spoon and let drain on paper towel
season with salt and pepper and serve

poached eggs on top of stewed tomatoes and an arugula/herb mix with a dollop of ricotta

potato latkes

Mikes mom found this recipe in the Boston Globe when he was a kid and from there, he was hooked.

This is a re-typed version his sister used for a school project--so adorable

She makes them every time he goes back home and they are delicious: crispy but fluffy and just slightly salty. I love to dip mine in sour cream (or the yogurt sauce I tried last night) but his standby is apple sauce. There are some habits of nine year old Mike that I won't try to change.

I did need to learn how to make them though--I had never even had latkes before we met. His favorite food and I can't make it? Not acceptable.

We tried a few times and I have to say it was one of the tougher recipes for me to tackle. Potatoes have a lot of water in them and if you don't squeeze it out, they won't fry or crisp up properly. Getting that outside crust is critical.

Last night I made a batch and was laser focused on getting them right. The verdict?

"Almost as good as my moms."

That I can live with.

Recipe is below, I make a slight adjustment to the one above by adding an extra tablespoon of flour.

potato latkes
4 potatoes, peeled and diced in large chunks
1 small to medium onion, peeled and diced in large chunks
1 egg
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp of white pepper (regular pepper will do as well, you will just see the specks)
3 tbsp flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
vegetable oil for frying

• grate potatoes and onions (or use your food processor which is easier and much quicker) into a colander and squeeze out as much liquid as you can. 
• there will still be moisture and I squeeze them again before frying so don't kill yourself, but try to get as much out as you can
• mix egg, salt, pepper, flour and baking powder in a bowl, add onion and potatoes and mix together
• preheat pan with about 1/4 inch of oil on medium-high heat
• tip: oil is hot enough when you flick a bit of water into it and it sizzles
• place mixture in a colander over a bowl and squeeze handfuls of the mixture to get the water out and then form into a cake and place in the oil
• press down slightly with a spatula and let crisp up--first batch may take about 5-6 minutes, later batches are quicker. you want the edges to be brown and crispy
• flip and press down, then transfer to a paper-towel lined plate to drain. season with a bit of salt
• move to a foil lined baking sheet and keep warm in a 200 degree oven until all batches are cooked and ready to serve
• serve with sour cream or apple sauce, or my lemon herb yogurt, recipe below

lemon herb yogurt

3 tbsp fat free greek yogurt

juice of a half a lemon

a handful of chopped herbs-I like parsley and basil

salt to taste

stir ingredients together and serve over latkes, chicken, or thin it out with juice of a whole lemon for a creamy dressing!