Feta Garlic Dill Cream Cheese

I love bagels!! I know, I know... bagels with cream cheese are NOT a smart way to start the day. No whole grains, barely any protein, no fruit or veggies - but SO good!! I just can't resist! There's just something about the crispy, crusty outside combined with the soft, doughy inside of a freshly baked bagel.

A toasted bagel smeared with cream cheese along with a big mug of coffee is my favorite way to start the day.

I don't really have much of a sweet tooth, it's more like a savory tooth! Everything bagels are always my first bagel choice, and I love it when the garlic, onion, sesame and poppy topping also has salt in it. That's right - kosher salt just like a soft pretzel. The salt is used sparingly to make the other flavors that much more savory, that much more delicious. This is where the feta comes in. I started out by sprinkling a little feta on my cream cheese bagel, and the salt in the feta was just enough to bring out the salt on the bagel; just enough to make all of those savory flavors sing. I used some dill to keep things light and fresh, and garlic... well, because it's garlic and you can't ever have too much garlic! This feta garlic dill cheese is also delicious on crackers - especially everything crackers! I also like to put a couple of spoonfuls into scrambled eggs. All of this talk about breakfast is making me hungry!

I have extra bagels and a French press pot of coffee... care to join me?

 

Feta Garlic Dill Cream Cheese

2 8 oz packages cream cheese, at room temperature

8 oz feta (in block form, not the crumbles)

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

3/4 oz fresh dill (one small clamshell)

-Mix all ingredients. Chill overnight for all of the flavors to come together. 

 



Spring Onion Sesame Soba Noodles

I don't know about you, but as much as I love summer side dishes, I'm ready for a change. There's only so much mayonnaise that one person can take! (And I LOVE mayo, especially when it's homemade!) I'm ready for something light and cool to fill that place on my plate where macaroni salad and potato salad usually reside.

I had a huge grocery bag overflowing with spring onions from a friend's garden. Spring onions are great because they're so mild - kind of like a scallion but less delicate.

I had so many spring onions that I decided to make a sauce using a whole bunch of 'em... kind of like an Asian-style pesto, with spring onions instead of basil and sesame oil as opposed to olive.

I basically sliced up the entire spring onion - white, light green, and dark green parts.

I threw the onions into the food processor and gave it a quick pulse before drizzling in the oil and spices.

Just like a traditional pesto, the sauce was paired with noodles - in this case, I used soba noodles. Soba is the Japanese name for buckwheat, so these noodles are whole grain... something my body  would certainly prefer after all of those mountains servings of potato salad.

 

Spring Onion Sesame Soba Noodles

4 spring onions

2 cloves garlic

2 T freshly grated ginger

4 T sesame oil

2 T rice vinegar

4 T soy sauce

2 t honey

1/2 c toasted sesame seeds

4 c shredded carrots

8 oz soba noodles (whole wheat spaghetti works too)

spring onions (optional garnish)

 

-Cook soba noodles according to package directions. Rinse and set aside.

-Roughly chop onions. Put all parts in a food processor and pulse lightly.

-Add garlic and ginger. Pulse all.

-In a small jar or cup, mix sesame oil, rice vinegar, soy sauce and honey. Turn food processor on and slowly drizzle the liquid into the onions, making a paste (just like pesto).

-Add onion "pesto" to soba noodles along with carrots and sesame seeds; chill before serving. -Garnish with sliced scallions if desired. 

Grilled Fish Tacos

So delicious, so simple...
Grilled Fish Tacos

Fresh Strawberry Margarita

Fresh fruit 'ritas - need I say more?!
Fresh Strawberry Margaritas (4 servings)
1 c sliced fresh strawberries
1 c tequila
1/4 c triple sec
1/4 c simple syrup
juice of 1 lime
Put all ingredients in a blender, serve over lots of ice.

Creamy Asparagus Pasta

A light and simple spring dinner, or a great side dish for Plank-Grilled Salmon with Creamy Tarragon Sauce:
Creamy Asparagus Pasta

Plank-Grilled Salmon with Creamy Tarragon Sauce

I had some salmon and tarragon that I needed to put to use, and this was the perfect recipe for both:
Plank-Grilled Salmon with Creamy Tarragon Sauce

Coconut Green Curry Mussels

A trip to Whidbey Island's Penn Cove Mussel Festival this month has left me wanting to experiment with mussels in so many ways! A return trip to Coupeville this weekend meant that I absolutely had to replicate this amazingness:

Coconut Green Curry Mussels
1-1/2 lbs mussels, rinsed

3 T unsalted butter
3 stalks lemongrass, dry parts removed, or the equivalent of 3 stalks from a tube
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 T grated ginger
1 can (13.5 ounces) coconut milk 

3 T green curry paste
juice of 2 limes
1/4 C fresh cilantro, chopped

-Prep all of the ingredients before you start anything cooking. This dish comes together so quickly that you need to be prepared. So, juice the limes, grate the ginger, chop the garlic and cilantro, braise and cut up the lemongrass (or have your squeeze tube close), and rinse and weed out cracked or open mussels.

-Melt the butter in a large pot, over medium-high heat. Add lemongrass, garlic, and ginger. Stir and let cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. While whisking, add coconut milk and green curry sauce. Bring to a simmer over high heat.

-Add mussels. Stir and let cook, covered. In less than 5 minutes, the mussels will open. At this point, remove from heat and add the lime juice and cilantro. 

Recipe - la denver dish