Parsley-Lemonade Ice Pops: Guest Posting at girlichef for the Summer Of The Popsicle!

Stop by girlichef and you can find me hanging out, guest posting for my pal Heather's Summer Of The Popsicle event. I linked up a few of my popsicles last year when Heather first created her gathering of icy treats. This year, since I am "holding the (popsicle) stick" for this week, I came up with some tasty ice pops just for this fun event. 

 

Sweet/tangy/slightly herby Parsley-Lemonade Ice Pops were inspired by the house lemonade at my favorite restaurant, Town in Kaimuki on Oahu. 

You can find the recipe for these refreshing treats here at girlichef. 

If you are a fan of tasty frozen treats on a stick, Heather has them featured every Wednesday throughout the summer! You can link up your own ice pops, popsicles and paletas there too. (You can also find this fun event on Twitter at #SummerOfThePopsicle) 

  

Check it out!

Udon Noodles with Tofu & Asparagus in Miso Broth for Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammie) Sundays

Sometimes the craving for a big bowl of thick noodles strikes. Something simple in taste and quick to make. This bowl of Udon Noodles with Tofu and Asparagus in Miso Broth comes from Donna Hay. 

I made a few changes to the recipe such as adding some garlic broth to my soup base--just enough to add a little more flavor without overpowering the miso/dashi broth. I also cooked it a bit differently as Donna Hay has the miso boil for a few minutes and I like to stir mine in at the end to keep the enzymes intact. That and the other changes are noted in red below.

Udon Noodles with Tofu & Asparagus in Miso Broth
The New Cook by Donna Hay
(Serves 4-6)

6 cups (48 fl oz) cold water (I used 1/2 homemade garlic broth)
8 cm / 3-inch piece kombu (dried seaweed)
5 Tbsp dried bonito flakes
2 Tbsp red miso (I used "mellow" red miso)
250 g / 8 oz dried udon noodles
300 g fresh asparagus, trimmed and halved
150 g / 5 oz firm tofu, chopped
2 scallions, chopped
(thinly sliced red chile and sesame seeds for garnish)

Place water and kombu in a saucepan and slowly bring to a boil. As soon as water boils, remove kombu. Remove water from heat and add bonito flakes. Return saucepan to hat and bring liquid to the boil. As soon as liquid boils, remove it from the heat and set aside for 1 minute. Strain liquid through a fine sieve or muslin.

Place strained liquid in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Add a little of the liquid to the miso and mix until smooth. Add miso to pan. Add noodles and asparagus to pan and boil for 6-8 minutes or until al dente. Stir tofu and scallions through noodle mixture. Serve immediately. (Note: To keep the nutrients in the miso, it's better not to boil it. I assembled the soup by cooking the noodles and asparagus separately (the noodles were fresh and just took a couple of minutes in boiling water, then I blanched the asparagus in the same pot. I mixed the miso paste in a small amount of water and stirred it into the hot broth as directed, then put the cooked asparagus and noodles into the serving bowl with the tofu and scallions and ladled the miso broth over it--garnishing with the red chile and sesame seeds.)

Notes/Results: Simple, mellow, comforting. A big bowl of noodles that hits the spot. The noodles and tofu are filling without being heavy. You could change out the veggies--adding what you like. You can also omit the bonito in the broth if you want it vegan--just add a little tamari or soy sauce in its place for flavor. Even with cooking the noodles and blanching the asparagus separately, this soup only took about 20 minutes to make. Easy and tasty--I would make this again. 

We have soups and salads awaiting in the Souper Sundays kitchen--let's take a look!

Tigerfish of Teczcape - An Escape to Food is here with a cream-free Asparagus Soup and says, "The entire asparagus - bottom stems (peeled) and spear tops usually end up as stir-fries in my kitchen. However, when tender tips are used for steaming or in en-papillote recipes, the bottom stems are saved for a soup like this Asparagus Soup. A spring light lunch - soup served with "flat-bread" pizza!"

Mireille of Chef Mireille's Global Creations has both a soup and a salad to share this week. Her soup is this homey Moroccan Lamb Soup with Homemade Vegetable Broth. She says,   "On a cool night with torrential rain storms outside as we have been receiving every other day washed out NYC, I made this warm soup. While I wasn't able to replicate the flavor of the Yemen Cafe soup, this one was delicious too, although this one was closer to a Moroccan Soup with the use of Raz al Hanout!"

Chef Mireille's salad is a Sweet Split Pea and Coconut Salad. She says, "This Andhra dessert salad is from Julie Sahni's Classic Indian Vegetarian and Grain Cooking. It's a unique sweet salad made with split peas, from the Brahmin's of Andhra Pradesh. ... This was so delicious and the perfect sweet salad to end a meal, especially during the heat of summer when lighter desserts are preferred."

Joanne of Eats Well With Others shares this Southern Fattoush Salad and says, "...we have to learn to get happy about the little things.Things like crispy bits of pita croutons. Sweet and crunchy bites of bell pepper mixed with sweet and juicy bites of cherry tomatoes. A tangy delicious dressing made with mustard we only just realized was expired...a week later...when our boyfriend tried to use it as a fry dipping sauce and actually took the time to read the label, which some of us never rarely do. I mean, really. Who could have even known that mustard has an expiration date on it. Am I right?"

Janet of The Taste Space made two salads this week. First up, this Lemony Cucumber and Chickpea Salad with Dukkah about which she says, "This salad started off a bit ho-hum, with a simple favour profile: cucumbers, chickpeas, quinoa, lemon and balsamic. It was nice, but not something to rave about… I wanted to add some chopped almonds but instead sprinkled the mystery nut blend overtop and it definitely brought this to a wow dish. The lemon really accents and highlights the spices. It tastes great and yet I still cannot confirm what is in this mix. So for now, let’s assume it is dukkah and enjoy it for all it is worth."

Janet's second dish is this Quinoa Pilaf Salad with Lemon and Thyme. Janet says, "The main flavours were classic: lemon and thyme. The difference was in the quinoa. First it was rinsed, dried, toasted, cooked in a minimal amount of broth and then steamed with a towel. I typically use a 1.75:1 broth:quinoa ratio but this was much closer to 1:1. This results in no-mush quinoa. The kernels are separate and flavourful. Due to the limited liquid, you might notice they do not become as big and not as voluminous. They are also not water-logged."

Judee of Gluten Free A-Z Blog is back with Raw Kale and Blueberry Salad with Orange Cashew Dressing. She says, "This raw kale and blueberry salad was delicious. The tartness of the kale combined with the sweetness of the berries and the nuttiness of the sesame seeds was really outrageous!!. ... It looked so pretty, and then I tasted it and was immediately thrilled. In addition, it's amazingly healthy because blueberries and kale are on  the top ten list for powerful antioxidants that may help prevent cancer and other diseases."

Thanks to everyone who joined in this week! If you have a soup, salad or sandwich that you would like to share, just click on the Souper Sundays logo on the side bar for all of the details. 

Have a happy, healthy week!
 

Butter Bean Purée with Dukkah & Egg: An Ottolenghi Hummus Variation

Butter bean or lima bean? Ottolenghi's online recipe says butter bean, the Ottolenghi iPhone app says lima bean. Sometimes the lima and butter are used interchangeably, other times butter bean refers to a larger lima bean. It gets a little confusing but judging from the response I get from most people when I tell them I made lima bean purée and since I used the larger dried lima beans, I am titling this post and recipe: Butter Bean Purée with Dukkah & Egg. It just sounds a bit sexier, doesn't it? ;-) Butter also describes the texture of this hummus-like purée--it's smooth and silky in a way that most chickpea hummus isn't.

I did adjust the recipe to fit my tastes--I like stronger flavors (and cumin) in my hummus. In fact, if you don't serve it with the dukkah and egg on top, you might add even more spice and aromatics to it as it is a mild flavor. Part of the reason I selected this recipe was the dukkah, a Middle-Eastern nut and spice mix. My mom gave me a couple of small jars of the mixture from Trader Joe's when she was last here and I wanted another excuse to use it. You can easily make you own in case you don't have a handy package of dukkah, the Ottolenghi Guardian post has an easy recipe for the blend. It turns out, topping a hummus or purée with dukkah and grated egg is a very good thing for the texture and taste, and even the appearance. 

My recipe changes are in red below.

Butter Bean Purée with Dukkah & Egg
Adapted from Ottolenghi from The Guardian UK & the iPhone app 
(Serves 4)

2 1/4 cups cooked butter beans + 1/3 cup of the water they are cooked with or canned in.
4 garlic cloves, crushed (I used 8 cloves of roasted garlic)
2 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice (I used about 4 Tbsp + the zest)
1/2 cup olive oil, separated
(I added 2 tsp ground cumin seed)
fine sea salt and black pepper to taste
about 2 Tbsp dukkah (optional)
1/4  cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
2 free-range eggs, hard-boiled and peeled
(I added hot smoked paprika to garnish)

Place the beans and their 1/3 cup of liquid in the bowl of a food processor and add the garlic, lemon juice, 6 Tbsp of the olive oil, a teaspoon of salt and some black pepper to tatse. Blitz for a couple of minutes to a very smooth purée, transfer to a bowl and if not using immediately, cover with plastic wrap and chill.

To put the dish together, remove the clingfilm from the purée, stir well and taste for seasoning. Spread purée out on serving  platter and use the back of a spoon to create a wavy pattern. Drizzle over most of the remaining oil and sprinkle with the dukkah if using. Scatter over the chopped parsley, then coarsely grate the eggs and sprinkle on top. Finish with a final drizzle of olive oil. (I also sprinkled the leftover lemon zest and some hot smoked parsley on top.) Serve with bread, crackers or veggie dippers.

Dukkahs vary in ingredients--this is what is in Trader Joe's version

Notes/Results: I liked this recipe--with my changes/additions and topped with the dukkah and egg. On its own, the purée is good. Great silky texture, nothing earth-shattering in terms of flavor and I don't think I would have liked it near as much if I had not roasted and increased the amount of garlic, added the cumin and the extra lemon juice. The toppings are what make this appetizer sing--the crumbly, nutty spice of the dukkah and the hard-boiled egg which makes it look pretty and feel more substantial and satisfying. (I also liked the brightness sprinkling on the leftover lemon zest gave it and the color/taste of the smoky paprika.) I make A LOT of bean purées and hummus--for myself, and to take to gatherings, and I usually just dump it into a bowl and top with a little olive oil and maybe a sprinkle of paprika and/or parsley, so "jazzing it up" was a great idea and I will be using the dukkah/egg technique in the future. For dippers, I grilled some garlic naan, opened some thyme-flavored pita chips, and added baby carrots for color. Overall, this purée turned into another Ottolenghi success for me--I would make it again with my extras. 

On the recipe app, Ottolenghi says this purée is "not dissimilar to hummus"--so I am doing double-duty with it as both this week's I Heart Cooking Clubs "A Little Bit of Sunshine" theme entry (foods/ingredients with hues of yellow and orange) and as an entry for June'sOptional Monthly Community Recipe in which we are making any Ottolenghi hummus. 

You can check out the sunny foods everyone made by going to the post here, or find out the details on June's Optional Community Recipe here.

 

Blueberry Gazpacho with Avocado & Feta: Sweet, Tangy & Spicy for Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammie) Sundays

With pints of on-sale blueberries in my fridge and freezer, and a desire to see if blueberries and a blender can create something that isn't a smoothie, I decided to try make a Blueberry Gazpacho. I searched on line, but the few recipes I came up with were all more of a dessert-style, playing up on the sweet. I wanted something that combined the sweet with spicy and had enough tangy acidity to balance it all out, so I just threw together my own. It's unusual but refreshing, flavorful, pretty and great for a starter on a warm, humid day.

Blueberry Gazpacho with Avocado & Feta
by Deb, Kahakai Kitchen
(Makes 6 Appetizer Servings)

5 cups fresh blueberries, divided + extra for topping
2 cups black/purple grapes
1 shallot, diced
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
1 cup white grape juice (or other fruit juice of choice)
2 Tbsp fresh cilantro
2 Tbsp fresh mint
pinch of salt
black pepper to taste 
juice of 2 limes or to taste 
1/2 large cucumber, diced
avocado to garnish (optional)
feta to garnish (optional)

Place 4 cups of the blueberries, grapes, shallot, celery, jalapeno, juice, cilantro and mint into the blender and blend on high until mostly smooth. Add salt, black pepper and lime juice to taste. Stir in  diced cucumber and I cup of the blueberries.  Chill for a few hours or overnight in fridge. Serve very cold in small bowls or cups, garnished with diced avocado, crumbled feta and a few blueberries.

Notes/Results: Cold and refreshing.  The combination of sweet and tangy, finished by a nice kick from the jalapeno hits the spot. I left the soup somewhat chunky--I like it that way, but you could certainly puree it more and/or put it through a sieve. To keep it vegan, leave off the feta (although the saltiness and texture add a lot) and garnish with the avocado and more mint and cilantro. I would make this again!

We have a soup and some lovely salads waiting in the Souper Sunday kitchen--let's take a look.

Simona of Briciole made this pretty flower-flecked noodle-filled bowl of "Stained Glass" Maltagliati in Broth and says, "My husband having a cold and chicken soup becoming a daily menu item, maltagliati recommended themselves as being suitable for a steaming bowl of my chicken broth/stock. Bring the broth of choice to a boil, toss the pasta in it and cook until tender. Ladle into bowls, distribute some freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano on top and serve immediately."

Tigerfish of Teczcape-An Escape to Food brings this light and lovely Cucumber Appetizer Salad with Sesame Oil-Soy Dressing and says, "Summer IS the season for cooling cucumbers. Plus who could resist the organic cucumber when they go on-sale at 88 cents each. To neutralize the "cool" (yin) of the cucumber, I am going to add warm (yang) elements to it. Red chili flakes and raw garlic should do the trick. This Chinese-style cucumber salad is dressed in sesame oil, rice vinegar, sugar and soy sauce." 

 
Janet of The Taste Space offers up a satisfying Broccoli and Kasha Bowl with an Onion-Miso-Dill Dressing and says, "With a focus on simpler meals, I made the dressing first and then decided what to toss with it. And yes, this was a glorious dressing. It seems so weird. Raw onion? Dill? Miso? But trust me, it worked so well. I also tried a creamier version with tofu-cashew mayonnaise and liked that, too. I picked kasha, but any grain would work here. Brown rice? Quinoa? Choose your favourite veggie but broccoli complemented the tangy dill-miso dressing well."

Pam of Sidewalk Shoes shares what just might be “possibly the best salad I’ve ever made"--an Apple and Avocado Salad with Fresh Mint and Lime. She says, "Everything about this salad works.  The tartness of the lime juice, the crisp apples, the smooth creamy avocado, the mild flavor and soft crunch of the cucumbers, the bright mint, and the tangy feta.  The salad called for watercress, which I’m sure would have added even another element – a bit of a peppery bite, but I couldn’t find any, so I subbed some spring greens.  I served this along side a grilled spatchcocked chicken and it was perfect.  It was even better the next day, which is something you can’t say for a lot of salads."

Kim of Stirring the Pot tried Yotam Ottolenghi's Baby Spinach Salad with Dates and Almonds and says, "Tender leaves of baby spinach, sweet chewy dates, thin slivers of red onion, crispy pita bread croutons with crunchy slivers of almonds kissed with the exotic blend of sumac and red chile flakes, all tossed together in a bright citrus dressing.  It all comes together to create a very delicious and rather unique salad.  This is a salad for the senses. Sweet, chewy, tender, crispy, crunchy, citrusy,  with mild onion flavor, and bright citrus notes.  It looks a bit exotic.  It tastes a bit exotic.  It feels indulgent and it is.  However, it's also perfectly healthy.  I encourage you to give it a try."
 

Some wonderful warm-weather dishes! Thanks to everyone who joined in this week. If you have a soup, salad or sandwich that you would like to share, just click on the Souper Sundays logo on the side bar for all of the details. 

Have a happy, healthy week!
 

Almond/Walnut & Blueberry Crumble Cream: The Ultimate in Comforting Desserts

There is a saying that "when life (or Whole Foods in this case) gives you a lot of blueberries you make a lot of blueberry recipes..." Or something like that. I have a lot of blueberries at my house. How can you pass up a one day sale on organic blueberries for $1.99 a pint or $22 for a case of 12 pints? You can't. Combine that with store credit for one of my healthy tour/cooking demo gigs and they were free--even better. So two full cases came home with me. Besides eating them in all of their natural glory, I have frozen some, juiced some, dried some, put them in smoothies, eaten them in salads and with yogurt. I made blueberry-chia seed jam, I am making a blueberry gazpacho for Souper Sundays, and, when I saw a Yotam Ottolenghi recipe for a Walnut & Fruit Crumble Cream, I knew I would make it with blueberries.

Besides switching out the fruit, I made a few changes noted in red below.

Almond/Walnut & Blueberry Crumble Cream 
Adapted From Jerusalem by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi
(Serves 4)

Fruit Compote:
1 lb fresh organic blueberries
juice and zest of 1 lemon
1 Tbsp agave syrup

Note: The recipe lists two fruit compotes fig and a guava/plum combination with the lemon and sugar adjusted to taste and to accommodate the sweetness of the fruit. (Use about 1 lb of fruit in total) I used the above measurements for my fresh blueberries, adding more lemon juice and zest for tang.

Crumble:
1/3 cup / 40 g whole-wheat flour
1/3 cup / 40 g all-purpose flour
3 1/2 Tbsp / 50g unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 3/4-inch / 2cm cubes
3/12 Tbsp / 50 g light brown sugar
pinch of salt
1 cup /100 g walnuts, coarsely broken (I used 1/2 cup walnuts & 1/2 cup sliced almonds)

Cream:
2/3 cup / 150 ml heavy cream
6 1/2 Tbsp / 100 g Greek yogurt
6 1/2 Tbsp / 100 g mascarpone cheese
1 Tbsp super-fine sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 star anise, ground (I used Chinese Five-Spice)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F / 190 degrees C. 

Start with fruit and mix ingredients together in a medium saucepan and cook over medium-low for 15-20 minutes, until the fruits are completely soft, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and set aside to cool down.

For crumble, place flours in a large mixing bowl with butter, sugar, and salt. Use your fingers to rub the mixture into a coarse bread crumb texture, then stir in the nuts. Spread on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper and place in oven for 15-20 minutes, until dry and cooked through. Remove from oven and leave to cool.

For the cream: place all ingredients in a large mixing bowl and whisk to soft peaks, taking care not to overwhip (it is quite thick to begin with, show it shouldn't take more than 30 seconds or so).

To assemble, spoon 1/3 of the crumble into four medium glasses or glass bowls. Cover this with about 2/3 of the fruit, then 2/3 of the cream. Add another 1/3 of the crumble, them the remaining fruit, and the remaining cream. Serve at once or chill for a few hours before serving. Scatter the remaining crumble on top just before serving.

Notes/Results: I LOVE this dessert! It's like a combination of a fool and a crumble--the ultimate in comforting desserts. It's not overly sweet, which I like. The crumble which tastes of cookies, is probably the sweetest part of the dessert. There is always one component of an Ottolenghi multi-part dish that I especially fall in love with. In this case it is the spiced cream. It's a thick pillowy cloud of deliciousness--I am not sure whether I most want to eat it or float away on it. ;-) The combining of the cream with the mascarpone and the Greek yogurt makes it luscious and the little hit of spices adds complexity and flavor. Here's the thing. Ottolenghi calls for ground star anise and cardamom in the cream recipe. I had a choice--locate and dig the star anise out of the freezer, get the step stool from the spare bedroom and take it to the kitchen, climb to reach the upper shelf, find the spice grinder in the back of the cupboard, and then go to the work of grinding the star anise OR, open the spice cupboard and pull out the Chinese Five-Spice (which has ground star anise along with fennel, cinnamon, cloves and white pepper). Guess which one I chose? Right! I think it worked beautifully--it is subtle and mixed with the cardamom, it just highlights the sweet/tangy flavor of the berries without overpowering. I'm lazy--I'd do it again. ;-) This would be great with most any fruit or fruit mixture. (I want to try Ottolenghi's guava-plum combination.) I will make this again. 

 
Our I Heart Cooking Clubs theme this week is Something Sweet. You can check out the desserts, sweet treats and recipes with sweet ingredients that everyone made by following the links on the post. 

Asparagus and Zucchini Velouté with Parsley Pesto for Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammie) Sundays

As a rule, given a choice between clear brothy soups and thick puréed ones, I go for brothy. But  at times, a thick and velvety veggie soup strikes my fancy, like this Asparagus and Zucchini Velouté I found on the Vegetarian Times website. I was undecided on my soup this week and this one caught my eye before a farmers market visit. I picked up fresh local zucchini, asparagus and parsley for a nice cusp of spring/summer soup.  

I made a couple of changes to the recipe. Although this soup is a velouté, French for velvet, and a type of sauce made with a blond roux, I made it vegan by using a non-dairy butter substitute.The recipe calls for chopped parsley on top but I thought adding a gremolata-style pesto to add both flavor and texture would make it even better. My changes are in red below.

Asparagus and Zucchini Velouté with Parsley Pesto
Adapted from Kitty Ellyson via Vegetarian Times, 11/2011
(Serves 4)

16-oz. bunch asparagus, trimmed and coarsely chopped
1 1/2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
1 medium zucchini, coarsely chopped (about 1 cup or so)
½ tsp salt
4 Tbsp butter (I used Earth Balance--non-dairy)
4 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley

Bring asparagus, broth, zucchini, salt, and 2 & 1/2 cups water to a simmer in medium saucepan. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 15 to 20 minutes, or until vegetables are tender. Transfer to food processor or blender, and blend until smooth.
 
Melt butter in same saucepan over medium heat. Stir in flour, and cook 3 to 5 minutes, or until browned. Add puréed soup mixture, and cook over medium-low heat until soup is thickened. (I would add that to prevent any lumps, you add just a cup of two of the soup to the butter/flour mixture and whisk it in well before adding the rest of the soup.) Season with salt and pepper, if desired. 

Serve sprinkled with parsley. (Instead of parsley, I made a pesto with about 2 cups of parsley, 1/3 cup slivered almonds, the zest and juice of 2 lemons, 2 cloves garlic and olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.) 

 
Notes/Results: Creamy and elegant, this soup has a subtle flavor until the lemony-garlicky pesto is stirred in--why I would recommend it as a garnish instead on plain parsley. It elevates the soup into something more. Of course this isn't a health-food soup with the butter (or non-butter if you make it vegan like I did) but it is rich enough that a small bowl as a starter is satisfying and won't break the bank. Quick and simple to throw together, I would make this again.  

 
Now let's check out the Souper Sundays kitchen and see who dropped by:

Tigerfish of Teczcape - An Escape to Food shares this Flat Rice Noodles (Kway Teow) Soup and says, "I hardly cook Teochew-Style Flat Rice Noodles (Kway Teow) Soup unless I am able to get fresh rice noodles from the Asian supermarket in my weekly groceries. ... This California-US version of Teochew Kway Teow Soup has been simplified to suit the availability of ingredients that can be easily found here. The most distinct difference is the absence of Teochew fishballs and instead, you find pan-fried tofu."

Brittany of Brittany Cooks is here with Summer Corn Chowder and says, "When fresh corn is on sale at your grocery store for 10/$1.00, you buy it. At that point, it's nearly free, and I do not turn down nearly free noms. With that much corn in my possession, I knew exactly what I was going to make...corn chowder. The corn is truly the star of this chowder, as it should be. The sweet kernels are still slightly crisp after cooking, and the potatoes add sustenance. Thick and slightly peppery, it's the perfect way to use up summer corn, and is now one of my favorite soups! Bon appetit!"

 
Pam of Sidewalk Shoes says, "Pasta salads are my favorite side dish of choice because they are your vegetable and starch in one nice neat package.  I really like the Vegetable Pasta Salad with Goat Cheese from Cooking Light because it is heavy on the vegetables and light on the pasta.  This was a really fresh tasting pasta salad, and what I really liked about it was that it was equally good warm or at room temperature.  At room temperature, it seemed more like a side dish, but when heated up for lunch, it felt substantial enough to be a main course."

Mireille of Chef Mireille's Global Creations made this bright and colorful Apricot Spinach Salad and says, "With apricots now becoming a regular fixture at the markets with summer approaching, I got some nice ripe ones a few days ago. After eating a few as is, what does a cook do with a bunch of gorgeous fruit on her table? She tries to come up with delicious recipes, utilizing the rosy beauties. ... I love fruit in salads and this one was no exception." 
 

A wrap from Janet of The Taste Space, a healthy Raw Carrot Falafels and Cauliflower Couscous Wrap with a Hummus Dressing. Janet says, "The dehydrator and juicer are now out in full force. Carrots for juice and then the pulp was made into these lovely raw falafels. I know, I said I don’t like raw Mediterranean eats. While I like Middle Eastern foods, I don’t like falafels. However, I loved these raw carrot falafels. Probably because they don’t taste like real falafels. And they don’t use raw chickpeas, either.
In any case, they taste great.

I am officially in serious like, if not love, with the Fava Bean Burgers my pal Kim from Stirring the Pot made this week. She says, "Okay, so I have a thing for veggie burgers.  We're talking a major kinda thing.  As in I like veggie burgers better than a big juicy cheeseburger kinda thing.  Especially if the veggie burger is made from beans.  So, right off the bat, there may be a bit of bias involved when I say these fava bean burgers are extremely delicious.  Even so, I think carnivores and vegetarians alike would agree that Yotam Ottoleghi's Fava Bean Burgers are incredible.  These are hands down the very best veggie burgers I've ever had."

Thanks to everyone who joined in this week with their spectacular dishes. If you have a soup, salad or sandwich that you would like to share, just click on the Souper Sundays logo for all of the details. 

Have a happy, healthy week!