Korean Rice Salad with Pickled Radish

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20140611-DSC_7402-2It’s no secret – I adore salads. I’ve posted tons of salad recipes on The Fig Tree. I’m a sucker for salads filled with delicious, crisp greens and fresh chopped veggies. And even sometimes some fruit. But every now and again, I get bored of the same old green salad. Sometimes I crave something a little more hearty – something with beans, nuts and/or cooked grains such as quinoa, couscous, barley, millet, kamut, farro or rice.

Ever since I made this Creamy Herb & Cucumber Salad, I’ve been completely smitten with rice salads of all kinds. They are perfect for work lunches and light, but satisfying dinners. They are great for potlucks, picnics and BBQs too! Plus they are incredibly easy to throw together. The rice acts as a blank canvas for so many great flavour combinations! This salad is just plain yummy. It’s fresh and vibrant with a great combination of sweet, sour, spicy and salty flavours. The homemade pickled radish and carrots really make this dish. They give the perfect bite! The crushed cashews give the salad a lot of texture and the edamame boosts the protein content along with the avocado that lends the perfect amount of creaminess.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend! I am off to the annual local Jazz Festival this weekend! Lots of free shows going on downtown. Cannot wait! Plus, I’ll be attending a birthday party, a graduation party, a Zumbathon, a BBQ, a father’s day brunch and gearing up for my birthday next week. Yikes! It’s going to be a busy one, but we are trying to jam everything in before we head off on our European adventure next month. :)

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Korean Rice Salad with Pickled Radish

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients

    For the Pickles:
  • 1 carrot, julienned
  • 1 cup of thinly sliced radishes (8 to 10 radishes)
  • 2 teaspoons of sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon of salt
  • 1/4 cup of unseasoned rice vinegar
    • For the Dressing:
  • 4 teaspoons of canola oil or vegetable oil
  • 1 tablespoon of fresh lime juice
  • 2 teaspoons of fresh grated ginger
  • 1 teaspoon of sesame oil
  • 1/4 teaspoon of salt
    • For the Salad:
  • 1 cup of uncooked basmati rice or medium-grain rice
  • 1/3 cup of chopped fresh cilantro or parsley
  • 1/2 cup of finely chopped unsalted cashews
  • 1 cup of shelled edamame
  • 1 small red chile, finely sliced (optional)
  • 1 avocado, diced
  • 1 tablespoons of sesame seeds

Method

  1. One hour before assembling the salad: in a small bowl, toss together the julienned carrot and radish slices. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of sugar and 1/8 teaspoon of salt. Allow mixture to stand for 10 minutes then rinse well with cold water.
  2. Whisk together the rice vinegar, the remaining 1 teaspoon of sugar and 1/8 teaspoon of salt. Pour over the carrot/radish mixture and cover. Allow mixture to sit for about 45 minutes. Drain well.
  3. Bring 2 cups of water to a boil. Add rice and reduce to a simmer. Simmer rice for 10-12 minutes then remove from heat and allow it to sit covered for another 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork. Allow rice to cool to room temperature.
  4. For the dressing, whisk together the oil, lime juice, sesame oil, fresh ginger and salt. Pour dressing over the cooled rice. Add in the fresh chopped cilantro or parsley, pickled carrots and radish mixture, edamame, red chile slices and crushed cashews. Toss well to combine.
  5. Right before serving, mix in the diced avocado. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Source: adapted from Canadian Living Magazine July 2014 

Curried Coconut Corn Chowder

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coconutcurrycorn2-2The countdown has begun! Three weeks today, Jesse and I will be jetting off for an adventure in Europe! We will be visiting Spain, Switzerland, Germany, Denmark, The Netherlands and Belgium. It’s going to be an amazing whirlwind experience full of amazing food, beautiful sites and lots of new people. I cannot wait! But to be honest…I am really going to miss my kitchen! *haha* We have booked a few rooms through AirB&B where we will be staying with locals and have access to their kitchens. I am really hoping some of them will let me cook them dinner! Or perhaps, they could even teach me how to make some of local fare!

coconutcurrycornI have been busy looking up vegetarian and vegan restaurants to try in Europe during our summer abroad. Lots of great places to try! I cannot wait!!! I am really looking forward to trying authentic food from each location we visit. I am hoping to post a lot while we’re away to document our adventures and report on the food situation in each place. Any suggestions on what to see, eat and/or do while in Spain, Switzerland, Germany, Denmark, The Netherlands and/or Belgium?

And now…onto the recipe! I’ve had this idea to make a corn chowder using coconut milk for some time. Finally, I found some time to throw it together and it was amazing!!! It’s creamy with bright, fresh flavours. I opted to use frozen fresh corn, as corn is not yet in season here. But I know it will be even better once fresh corn is popping up at the farmer’s markets. This recipe comes together in 30 minutes and can be served hot or cold. Serve chilled for a delicious, cool dinner on a hot evening this summer. If you like corn chowder, check out my recipe for Mexican Corn Chowder with Quinoa. It’s another family fav :)

20140611-DSC_7426In other more important news, I want to congratulate my best friends Patrick and Stephanie on the arrival of their beautiful baby girl Ruby! I am so happy for you guys. She is just beautiful and so very sweet. So shiny and new! I am so glad that everyone is happy, healthy and settling into being a new family of three. Ruby, I cannot wait to spoil you rotten! :) xoxo

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Curried Coconut Corn Chowder

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 yellow onion, diced
  • 3 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon of grated ginger (or 1 teaspoon of ground ginger)
  • 1 tablespoon of canola oil or olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon of sugar
  • 1 tablespoon of Madras curry powder or your favourite curry powder
  • 4 cups of low sodium vegetable stock
  • 3 and 1/2 cups of fresh corn (frozen is fine)
  • 1-14 ounce can of coconut milk (lite is fine)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • fresh chopped cilantro or parsley for garnish

Method

  1. In a large pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onions and sauté until soft and translucent (about 5 minutes). Add minced garlic, grated ginger and sugar. Sauté another 5 minutes or until the onions start to brown slightly.
  2. Sprinkle onions with Madras curry powder. If using ginger powder, add along side the curry powder. Stir until fragrant (about 1 minute). Add low-sodium vegetable broth followed by the fresh corn. Bring soup to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer.
  3. Simmer soup for 5 minutes then remove soup from heat and purée with an immersion blender. You can also use a regular blender or food processor. Just make sure to cover the lid with a towel to prevent injury. Blend until smooth.
  4. Return soup to pot and stir in the coconut milk. Season with salt and pepper. Cook another 10 minutes over low-medium heat to allow the flavours to develop. Garnish with cilantro or parsley.

 Source: adapted from Bon Apétit online

Vegan Spinach and Artichoke Stuffed Shells

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20140523-DSC_6873-3Somehow we skipped from the worst winter in decades straight to…summer! This week has been lovely. One of my very favourite things is warm evenings where you can just lounge outside for hours on end. Jesse and I did that this week. After dinner each evening this week, we went for a bike ride and then sat outside on the deck for hours reading and chatting. Blissful. Can it be this warm and beautiful all year round? It’s funny though – I had all of these great seasonal, spring recipes to share this May on The Fig Tree, but now I feel like skipping straight to the summer recipes since it’s so nice and hot out. *haha*

One spring recipe that I don’t want to skip is this one here for Vegan Spinach and Artichoke Stuffed Shells with Béchamel. This is one delicious vegan main course! The shells are filled with an amazing, rich cashew ricotta flavoured with garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest and parsley. Diced artichokes and spinach are added to the cashew ricotta before the filling is spooned into the shells. A simple vegan béchamel with a pinch of nutmeg tops of the dish and then it’s all baked to a golden, bubbly perfection and served. It’s good. Really good. I just wish it has been less difficult to capture its deliciousness in a photo!

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend! What do you have planned? This weekend, we will attend Doors Open Winnipeg, visit a friend who’s in from out-of-town and go on a bike ride or two. ‘Til next time. xo

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Vegan Spinach and Artichoke Stuffed Shells

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

Serving Size: 4 jumbo shells

Ingredients

    Filling Ingredients:
  • 1 and 1/2 cups of unsalted cashews, soaked in water for a minimum of 4 hours
  • 1/4 cup of unsweetened almond milk
  • juice of one lemon
  • zest of one lemon
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • 1/4 cup of finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
  • 1-14 ounce can of artichokes (not marinated); finely diced
  • 4 cups of fresh spinach, finely chopped
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 16 jumbo pasta shells
    • Bechamel Ingredients:
  • 1/4 cup of vegan butter (such as Earth Balance)
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 3 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1/4 cup of arrowroot powder or corn starch
  • 2 cups of unsweetened almond milk
  • 1 tablespoon of nutritional yeast
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • a pinch of nutmeg

Method

  1. Drain cashews. Preheat oven to 350'F.
  2. Cook pasta shells in salted water according to package until al dente. Once shells are al dente, drain and rinse with cold water to stop cooking. Set aside.
  3. Meanwhile, in a blender, purée the cashews, 1/4 cup of almond milk and 2 cloves of garlic until smooth. Add additional almond milk as needed to create the consistency of a creamy ricotta. Pour cashew ricotta into a medium bowl. Mix in the lemon juice, zest of one lemon, flat-leaf parsley, diced artichokes and finely chopped spinach. Season with salt and pepper.
  4. In a saucepan over medium-high heat, melt the vegan butter. Add the diced onion and sauté for 5 minutes, or until soft and translucent. Add minced garlic and sauté another minute. Sprinkle onions and garlic with the arrowroot powder or corn starch. Stir to form a paste. Whisk in the almond milk followed by the nutritional yeast and salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low and cook for another minute or so (until the sauce thickens up nicely). Add a pinch of nutmeg.
  5. Prepare a baking dish with a few scoops of béchamel sauce at the bottom. Using a a piping bag or a small spatula, fill each shell with about 2 tablespoons of filling. Note: My preference is using a piping bag, as it makes filling the shells much easier and less messy. Place shells into the baking dish. Top with the béchamel sauce.
  6. Bake shells for 20 to 25 minutes, or until slightly brown and bubbly. Serve and enjoy!

 Source: The Fig Tree

cashew filling inspired by Love & Lemons; vegan béchamel adapted from Veggieful