Tag: scallions

Strawberry Lime Corn Salad

done5Do you ever get sick of the same ole dinner night after night? I know, it’s probably not exactly “the same”, but getting stuck in a dinner time rut is so easy to do.  Tonight I made a BBQ Salsa Lime chicken and to go along with it, I decided to get creative!  Hence the Strawberry Lime Corn Salad was born…

This time of year is so wonderful for fresh fruits and veggies.  My kids both love strawberries and they both gobble up corn like you wouldn’t believe.  So, I decided to combine the two with a little panache.  I actually made this salad right outside by the grill while enjoying my family.  The kid’s played on the swings, my husband enjoyed a cold drink and I was chopping and dicing away (for about 5 minutes because it’s really that quick!)

If you are making your corn on the grill like I did, you will want to start off by timing it out so that your corn will have time to cool well before dinner, just so that you can handle it.  Another great way to make this ahead though is just to microwave your corn.  (To microwave corn: Don’t remove the husk at all, just place as is in the microwave for 3 minutes on high, then allow to cool for 5 minutes before shucking.) Microwaving is a great method for this particular salad because when you microwave corn, what you are doing is sucking all the sweet juice from the cob and pushing it all into the corn kernels; so, you end up with a very dry cob, but super juicy kernels.

Let’s get started:

Place corn on the grill about 1/2 hour before dinner… The corn itself will take about 15 minutes to cook, and then you can allow 5-10 minutes cooling time.

Grab some fresh strawberries, 6-8 or so.

Grab some fresh strawberries, 6-8 or so.

Dice up your strawberries. I would say a medium dice for a strawberry.

Slice up one scallion… discard the tip of the root and the tip of the top.

Add in your scallions.

Zest one lime.

Add your zest into the salad.

Add your zest into the salad.

Aren't those grill marks pretty? Allow this to cool a bit so that you can handle it with your hands. You'll need two ears of corn for this recipe.

Aren’t those grill marks pretty? Allow this to cool a bit so that you can handle it with your hands. You’ll need two ears of corn for this recipe.

Remove the kernels from the cob be carefully cutting down along the edge.

Add in your corn.

Now take that lime you just zested, cut it in half and add the juice from both halves right into the salad.

Now take that lime you just zested, cut it in half and add the juice from both halves right into the salad. Mix everything together.

 

done1

 

Recipe for Strawberry Lime Corn Salad:

(Serves 4-6)2 ears of corn, grilled, kernels removed from cob

6-8 fresh strawberries, diced

1 lime, zested and squeezed

1 scallion, chopped

1 splash white wine vinegar (about a Tbs.)

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in a bowl.  Serve, enjoy!

*note – this recipe is gluten-free

**note – this recipe has no added salt

 

Southwest Veggie Omelet

done2It is really hard to find a good omelet!  Maybe I’m just picky, but I prefer eggs made at home to those out in a restaurant any day.  This Southwest Veggie omelet is light and fluffy, perfectly seasoned and has some key elements that make it ‘Southwest’.

Once you get my simple techniques down you can make this into any type of omelet you like.  Add ins in this beauty include mushrooms, scallions and pepper jack cheese.  Maybe you aren’t into spice, that’s O.K. substitute with a Swiss or a Cheddar.  Maybe you like some meat in your omelet, have at it.  As long as you get some key techniques down, you can rock your non-stick skillet like a cooking superstar!

Some things to keep in mind: First lets start with the ingredients, the basic to any good omelet is your egg to milk ratio.  I like 2 eggs to 1/4 c. milk.  If you want to substitute out an egg for egg white, be sure you use 2 egg whites for every one egg.  And DO NOT salt until the egg is in the pan, we will go over this in the tutorial.  Also, be sure your burner is set to medium heat, you don’t want to scorch your eggs here, have patience.  A good omelet needs some TLC.

ingredients

The ingredients you will need for this omelet are: 2 eggs, 1/4 c. milk, 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms, 1/4 c. sliced scallions, 2-3 oz. pepper jack cheese and a pinch each of kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper.

butter in pan

Use a 10″ non-stick skillet (save yourself a headache). Even though the pan is non-stick, you are going to want to butter it up… So add one pad of butter.

mushrooms

Saute the mushrooms in the butter. DO NOT add salt as you don’t want to draw water from the mushrooms. Let them gently brown.

add scallions

After a few moments, the mushrooms will be nicely browned, but not overcooked. Add in the sliced scallions. I like to keep the scallions at about inch long pieces for this recipe because I feel like they can stand up to the mushrooms at this size. Any smaller and they could get lost.

add milk2

While the veggies are sauteing, take a minute to beat the eggs and milk together with a fork, vigorously.

add more butter

Once you have sautéed the scallions in with the mushrooms for a couple of minutes, add in another pad of butter. Move the butter about the pan to add an additional layer of protection for your eggs. You do not want the eggs to stick,

add egg

Gently pour your eggs in over the veggies. The eggs will naturally spread the veggies. Once poured, just make sure you redistribute the veggies throughout the egg.  Once poured, sprinkle your kosher salt, just a pinch and your fresh cracked black pepper.

technique1

Pretty immediately the eggs will start to set up. Take a minute to go around the pan and gently lift some of the set eggs to allow for the runny part to take its place in the pan. This is where the fluffiness factor comes in with my omelets. This is a crucial step.  Do this all the way around the pan, lifting in 2-4 spots.

technique2

Once you have made your omelet fluffy, you will want to get it to one edge of your pan. Due to the two layers of butter that were added, this should not be too difficult. If you are struggling a bit with a gentle shimmy, just go around the pan with a spatula and loosen the edges. Then flip. I did an air flip, so I couldn’t take a picture as I did not have the hands for it. I would encourage you to try the air flip if as it is quick and easy. As Julia Child would say “You just have to have the courage”. But, if you aren’t feeling particularly courageous, you can just use your largest spatula to help you to maneuver your eggs over to their other side.

add cheese

Immediately apply the cheese to one side of your omelet to allow for maximum melting time. And lift the non-cheese side over the cheese side. Slide the omelet off the skillet and onto a plate. This process is pretty quick because the majority of your egg is already cooked from the first side and the fluffing technique.

done3

Enjoy!

Recipe for Southwest Veggie Omelet:

(serves 1)

2 eggs

1/4 cup milk

1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced

1/4 cup scallions, sliced

2-3 oz. pepper jack cheese

pinch of kosher salt

pinch of fresh cracked black pepper

2 pads of butter or margarine

Directions:

Beat eggs with milk.  Set aside.

Saute mushrooms in butter in a non-stick 10″skillet.  Add in scallions once mushrooms have browned.  Add in an additional pad of butter.  Add in beaten eggs.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Lift gently along the sides allowing unset eggs to run under set eggs.

Flip.  Add cheese to half the omelet.  Flip the remaining half over the cheese.  Serve.

Enjoy!

*note – this is a gluten-free recipe