Tomato-Corn Salad

by Irene Lindvall

We are desperately hanging onto the last days of summer and with the sun still shining I thought it was appropriate to have a bright salad. This is another recipe I've had for over eight years, and while it is similar to some others I've made, this one had only rice wine vinegar and salt & pepper as the spices. I have naïvely only used rice wine vinegar in Asian dishes and I'm so happy that through this recipe exploration I have found so many more uses for it. I also liked that this salad did not need any cool down time or time for marination. 

Things I learned from this recipe:

Next year I am going to attempt to make this recipe all from my garden. Home grown tomatoes, basil, onions and corn. The corn is going to be a stretch, but I'm going to try and grow it. 

Would I make this recipe again?:

Yes

The recipe

4-Step Potato Latkes

by Irene Lindvall

We have dinner plans tonight and Eric is gone for lunch so I went with a brunch of latkes. I opted to serve them with crème fraîche and fresh snipped dill as the recipe suggested and it was quite tasty. We also might've tried it with ketchup and thought it tasted good as well. Not much to report other than this was super easy, quick, and makes eight cakes. I would love to make it again and serve it with apple sauce as the recipe also suggested, and I also found a delicious soup recipe that people say tastes excellent with latkes.

Things I learned from this recipe:

Latkes have a long history for many different people and there are many variations of them. I love making food with such traditions and look forward to making these with different ingredients in the future.

Would I make this recipe again?:

Yes

The recipe

Thai Shredded Chicken & Strawberry Salad

by Irene Lindvall

Bowling leagues have officially started up again so for the next six months Tuesday dinners will be a challenge. We are not early eaters so I usually end up trying to make something I can take with me to bowling. Salad is usually a safe bet so I went with an easy dish I'd been holding onto for just such an occasion. I also took the recipe short cut of using a rotisserie chicken instead of poaching chicken (I hate poached chicken) so the dish was much quicker to make. I also added fresh salad greens from my  garden because we have an influx of them, and Eric noted it wouldn't have been as good without them. The Thai dressing was delicious and I liked the chicken not being soaked in the dressing and instead thought the dressing drizzled over everything was much better. I also loved all of the mint and basil (3/4C split between two bowls) and realized an abundance of herbs is much better than a pinch.

Things I learned from this recipe:

I continue to not add dressing to a salad and toss it, but rather just add what amount I'm comfortable with on top. Still tastes great to me.

Would I make this recipe again?:

Sure

The recipe

Hot & Sour Shrimp Soup

by Irene Lindvall

I'm back! So after nine days in Hawaii and four days being sick with the flu, I'm back, barely. I really hadn't factored in getting sick when I started this cooking adventure, and while I feel bad for missing four days (which I will be making up) I decided there was no way I could go into a grocery store in my current state nor could I prepare food and not get Eric sick at the same time. Today is the first day I feel comfortable leaving the house and strong enough to stand at the stove. I was also not really in the mood to comb through all of my recipes but this one was the second to the top and I took it as a sign. Nothing makes one feel better than soup, right? I think that old adage applies to chicken noodle soup and not soup that burns your lips, tongue, and throat, and makes you use a whole box of tissues and inevitably is not edible. Yikes! The soup was hot, and by hot I mean not pleasant hot. It was just ridiculous. I added more vinegar and even still there was no sour aspect to the dish. All that was edible were the shrimp, mushrooms (which I changed to shiitake) and zucchini. Hours later my lips still tingled - not the best way to get back into cooking!

Things I learned from this recipe:

Heat tolerance has officially been reached.

Would I make this recipe again?:

Probably not.

The recipe

Pad Thai (lunch)

by Irene Lindvall

This will be my last post for a week as we head off to paradise! No recipes for eight days - I feel I've earned it with all the double days of recipes. Today, I made a fairly quick pad Thai dish from the America's Test Kitchen. I served it for lunch before we left for the airport, but I could easily see it being a dinner dish as well. I think this dish was tastier than my last attempt at pad Thai three weeks ago. Previously I cooked it in the wok and this time everything was done in a regular pan. I also think the sauce was much tastier in this recipe. Eric hates pad Thai from restaurants that use ketchup as their sauce base so I am happy to have found a recipe that is so tasty and easy to make that he really enjoys. 

Things I learned from this recipe:

I am happy to report I did not forget the lime wedges with this dish. It was a close call but I did remember and it really is a necessary garnish.

Would I make this recipe again?:

Definitely

The recipe:

Someone else made the exact same recipe from the America's Test Kitchen and was kind enough to post all of the ingredients on her blog.