CORN ON THE COB GRILLED WITH FRESH HERBS

Corn on the cob on the grill.  A great way to enjoy summer sweet corn! This corn was as fresh as could be. I bought it just a few hours after it was picked, and at a really sweet price too, 4 for $1.00. I often grill corn: I love eating it hot, crunchy, and slightly charred, but with kernels that are still juicy and sweet below their crispy coat. My way of grilling corn is to wrap it in parchment paper, then in aluminium foil and toss it onto the coals; I have been cooking it this way for more years than I can count.

 

I never considered improving on the taste, not until I came across a picture on the Food Network website of corn grilled in foil but with lots of herbs added for extra taste. 

Well, go figure. I grow herbs and I have a clear view of my little herb garden right from where the grill is set up. Yet, never once did I consider adding some of those herbs I stare at to the corn grilling in front of me. OK, thank you Food Network for kicking my brain into gear. 

This is kind of a no recipe-recipe but here is what I do these days when I grill corn: 

I place a piece of foil on the counter. I top it with parchment paper. Then I begin seasoning the corn with spices and herbs. Use any herbs you love or have on hand. I usually incorporate rosemary, thyme, sage, marjoram, chopped garlic, olive oil combined with a little butter, and salt and pepper. I wrap the corn securely and place it on the grill!  

The corn package should be rotated every three to four minutes to keep it from getting scorched. Total grill time is usually about twenty minutes. When the corn is ready, I unwrap the package and wait until the corn cools down a little. Sometimes I like to top the corn with grated Pecorino Romano cheese. Then I serve it on a bed of basil. The taste imparted by the herbs is not overpowering. The corn flavour is still dominant but the herbs add to it a subtle, excellent note. This method of cooking corn has won me over; there is no going back! Corn grilled with herbs is where it's at!

 

WHITE BEAN DIP WITH FETA CHEESE AND OLIVES

This is a great tasting dip, folks!  Its taste is amplified because it contains roasted a roasted shallot, some roasted garlic, plus the juice of a grilled lemon. 

Pulse a few beans in the food processor along with a host of flavorful Mediterranean ingredients and you get an extremely tasty, creamy and healthy dip! 

• Healthy because the dip is low in fat compared to most other dips out there. 
• Healthy because it's high in protein, calcium and fibre.  
• Tasty!!!  
• Spread the dip on toasted pita slices and you have an irresistible treat!  A really, really delicious and healthy treat!

This recipe is fast to make.  It took me about 20 minutes, and that included cleanup. Who doesn't love the dishwasher??? 

***Here is a tip about feta cheese and olives: 

As these are salty ingredients we Greeks always rinse some of the brine from them.

For the feta cheese: just place the cheese into a bowl and pour water over it. Change the water once or twice, drain, and you're done. The feta will be significantly less salty. If for dietary reasons you want to remove lots of salt from the feta cheese, you can let it soak in water. Experiment with how much time is appropriate for your taste and dietary needs. 

For the olives: they usually also need a good rinsing. Once the job is done, place them into a container and pour a combination of canola and olive oil over them. (Olive oil congeals in the refrigerator, so it must be mixed with another type of oil to keep it from solidifying). The oil should come almost but not quite halfway up the container. Cover, shake gently to coat all the olives and store in the refrigerator. This can be done with just about any type of olives except the sun-dried variety. Those don't get rinsed because they will absorb water and will no longer be sundried.

How to make white bean dip with feta cheese and olives:

Ingredients:

2 (15-ounce) cans white beans such as Great Northern  

5 cloves of garlic, roasted and mashed

1 shallot, roasted and chopped

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

black pepper to taste

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley 

3 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves, save a few for garnish

the juice of one grilled lemon

1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives

8 ounces feta cheese

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

• Cut the lemon in half, brush each half with olive oil and grill. This can be done on the stovetop. 
• Drain and rinse the beans. Place them into the food processor and add the juice from the grilled lemon.   
• Add the roasted garlic, the roasted shallot, olive oil, feta cheese, rosemary, oregano, parsley and black pepper—no need to add salt because the feta cheese and olives contain enough of it.
• Blend in the food processor until all the ingredients are smooth and creamy.
• Add the olives and walnuts. Pulse a few times until they're coarsely chopped. Small pieces of each should be visible in the dip.
• Place into a bowl and refrigerate for 4 to 5 hours. The dip is better if it gets a chance to rest. And really, aren't we all better when we get a chance to rest? 

Take the dip out of the refrigerator and place it into a serving bowl. Drizzle some extra virgin olive oil on top of the dip. Decorate with a few rosemary leaves, and serve with your favourite crackers.  

I hope you love this recipe as much as I do!

PASTA, POTATO AND ONION SOUP

This is a hearty winter soup. Thick, tasty and creamy, but without dairy. Rosemary and parsley add green flavours and give the soup a light green colour. Vegetable broth adds another dimension of flavour, making the soup irresistible. You just want another and yet another bowl. You want to enjoy those potatoes and pasta mixed in the delicious thick broth. Carb heaven! Comfort food!

It's an inexpensive meal, made with ingredients everyone almost always has on hand and it has a long history in my family. This was one of my maternal grandfather’s favourite soups. We don’t know where he came across the recipe, but he taught my grandmother how to cook it. Unusual, because pappou, as we, his grandchildren called him, was never known to go near a stove. He farmed, he made prize-winning wine, he was a beekeeper, but he never cooked. Pappou often asked my grandmother to make this soup for him, and she did, but eventually, she started adding more ingredients to enhance its flavour. 

World War II was a time when most Greeks were close to starvation.  Grandmother often prepared a version of this soup by using water, a few potatoes and a bit of pasta. The soup helped ease her family’s hunger during the Axis occupation.

I learned to cook pasta and potato soup by watching my mother, and now I make my own version, especially when, like today, it’s very cold outside. Eating it nourishes me, but it also connects me to my past.  This soup is really quick and easy to make, but it’s a life-giving soup because a long time ago it sustained folk during unfortunate times. So thumbs up for this pasta potato (and onion) soup, and please pass me another bowl.

Ingredients:

4-5 tablespoons olive oil

1 large red onion, chopped
2 shallots, chopped

3 stalks of celery, diced

2 cloves of garlic chopped well

2 large baking potatoes, peeled and cut into ½ inch cubes
1 nice size Yukon gold potato, peeled and cut in half - it will be used as a garnish

salt and pepper to taste

leaves from one sprig of rosemary, chopped
1/4 bunch of parsley

4 cups vegetable broth or water
1/2 pound vermicelli pasta, broken up - for best results you will need a thin pasta! 

Directions:

• In a large soup pot, heat the olive oil and add the diced potatoes, the onion, the rosemary leaves, the celery and the garlic.  
• Cook over medium heat for a few minutes, mixing well to incorporate the ingredients with the olive oil.
• Add the liquid and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat and add the salt, the pepper, the Yukon gold potato and the parsley. Cook for another 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  
• Drop the pasta into a pot of boiling water and cook according to directions.
• Remove the Yukon gold potato from the soup and reserve it.  When it's cool enough to handle cut it into small cubes. 
• With an immersion blender puree the rest of the soup.
• Add the cooked pasta and the reserved diced Yukon gold potato. 
• Garnish with some rosemary and olive oil.

RACK of LAMB with PARSLEY-ROSEMARY PESTO

This recipe is a no-mess, quick, easy and very delicious way to prepare a rack of lamb. I found the recipe on the Epicurious website, changed a few things around, and now I have a new and tasty way to serve lamb. To make the pesto I used parsley and rosemary from my garden. The ingredients were fresh and bright green and smelled and tasted wonderful. After removing and discarding a decent amount of fat from it, I coated the rack of lamb with the pesto and then I baked it for about 25 minutes. The meat came out of the oven moist, tender and juicy. I heartily recommend this dish!

Ingredients:

3/4 cup parsley leaves. Pack the parsley in the measuring cup so that you get a generous amount.

2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary, plus some rosemary sprigs for decoration

2  1/2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

2 garlic cloves

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 rack of lamb

Marinade for the lamb: Score the lamb and season with salt, pepper, and oregano. Sprinkle some olive oil and the juice of half a lemon over the lamb.

Directions:

1. Marinate the lamb in the refrigerator for about an hour. Take it out and let the meat come to room temperature.
2. Position the cooking rack in the centre of the oven and preheat to 450°F.
3. Place parsley, chopped rosemary, grated Parmesan cheese and garlic in the food processor. Process to a coarse paste. With the machine running, gradually add the olive oil. Season the pesto with salt and pepper.
4. Place the lamb on a small rimmed baking pan.
5. To make cleaning up easier, I like to line my pan with aluminium foil or parchment paper. After cooking, I remove it and throw it out. The foil or the paper will hold the cooking grease, and the pan will remain virtually spotless.
6. Spread all of the pesto over the rounded side of the lamb.
7. Roast for 10 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 400°F and roast to desired doneness, about 15 minutes longer for medium-rare.
8. Remove to a plate and slice. After slicing, arrange the chops on a serving platter, surround with rosemary and pour the juices from the plate over the lamb.