Oh, Olive! Two Balsamic & Fruit Salads

Last week my mother-in-law was in town and we strolled through the Glen on our way back from Little Bear Park with the girls. She spotted Oh, Olive! the newest branch of a fantastic olive oil and balsamic vinegar store owned by mother and son team Sandy & Aaron Schuenemann and business partner Mary Koval. We were instantly drawn in and found it hard to leave.

The store has dozens of oils and vinegars "on tap" ready for tasting. We did our very best to try as many as we could before settling on the Sicilian Lemon White Balsamic, Red Apple Balsamic, Espresso Balsamic, and the Wild Mushroom and Sage Olive Oil.  Below you will find my first recipes using my Oh, Olive! finds. Yum!


Espresso Balsamic & Fresh Organic Strawberries

Simple cut strawberries drizzled with Oh, Olive!Espresso Balsamic. Yummy!

Arugula & Watermelon Salad w/ Sicilian Lemon & Basil Vinaigrette

Ingredients:
3 cups baby arugula
4 oz cubed watermelon
1 TBS crumbled goat cheese
1 TBS toasted pine nuts
1-2 TBS Sicilian Lemon & Basil Vinaigrette

Dressing
1/4 cup Oh, Olive! Sicilian Lemon Balsamic
1/2 cup Meyer Lemon Olive Oil
2 medium size basil leaves
Salt & Pepper to taste
*processed together in a mini-food processor

Makes one lunch serving.

Oh, Olive! is online at http://oo2go.com/
or you can visit their fantastic store in the Glen at
1971 Tower Rd. Glenview IL, 60026

Cremini Mushroom & Red Pepper Kebobs

Ingredients:

Organic Sweet Red Peppers

Cremini Mushrooms (whole)

Meyer Lemon Olive Oil

minced fresh garlic

Salt & Pepper

bamboo skewers

Directions:

1. Soak skewers for a few hours or overnight
2. Clean Mushrooms and cut in half
3. Clean and cut red peppers into chunks
4. Marinate veggies in 1/8 cup Meyer Lemon Olive Oil,  dry oregano, minced garlic, salt and pepper to taste. Grill until fully cooked.

Pork & Potato Souvlaki

I love Greek food and my favorite low-carb menu item is souvlaki. I have made this many times before but this time around I decided to mix it up a little and add potatoes to my skewers. The results were delicious. I served this with double cucumber mint tzatziki, hummus, and a simple salad. Yummy.

Ingredients:

2lbs pork loin roast
1/4 cup Meyer lemon olive oil
1 regular lemon or several small Trader Joe's size lemons
1 1/2 heaping tablespoon of oregano, plus a few shakes.
2 large Yukon Gold potatoes
3 garlic cloves - minced with a microplane

Directions: Do this in the morning of grill day.

1. Cube pork into 1 inch cubes and then put cubes in a glass bowl or gallon plastic bag.
2. Add olive oil, 1 TBS + oregano, 1-2 garlic cloves minced and about 1/4 cup of lemon juice, salt and pepper.
3. Stir well or shake and then place container in the fridge to "meld"
4. Cube potatoes and boil until slightly undercooked. 
5. Toss potatoes with 1/8 cup lemon juice, oregano and at least one clove of minced garlic. Add more if you like garlic. Add salt and pepper.  Let "meld" in the fridge until dinner time.
   
6. Thread 2 cubes of pork and then one potato: repeat
7. Grill until meat is cooked through.

Double Cucumber Mint Tzatziki

This is a yummy dip for slouvaki or any other Greek or Middle Eastern kebob or pita you might make. This is chock full of cucumbers and garlic. Enjoy. Warning - this doesn't make a ton only about 7 ounces give or take.

Ingredients:

Small container of Greek Yogurt
one clove of garlic (or to taste)
mint sprigs
lemon
2 Persian cucumbers diced

Directions:

1. Strain Yogurt through cheese cloth to pull out extra moisture. Let sit in the fridge for 20-30 minutes. Squeeze the cheesecloth at the end to get out the last bit of moisture.
2. Put yogurt in a container and then add lemon juice. I used the juice of one very small lemon.
3. Microplane 1-2 cloved of garlic in. 
4. Add 2 diced Persian cucumbers. I slice off the edges and discard or eat the middle seedy section.
5. Add mint leaves to taste. 1-2 big leaves or 3-4 small leaves.
6. Sprinkle in some sea salt. 
7. Process in a mini food processor. 
8. Scoop out and leave to "meld" wrapped in the fridge.

Basic ingredients. You will also need sea salt.

Straining the yogurt to remove extra moisture



 

diced cucumber. Yes, I added it all to the finished product. Note: the center of the cucumber was not used.

microplaning the garlic with the best garage tool turned kitchen gadget!

The final result. Crunchy garlicky goodness.

Vietnamese Cinnamon Iced Coffee

Nothing starts a warm spring day better than sitting out on the patio with a yummy iced coffee. My favorite is made with Vietnamese Cinnamon.

     Directions:

1. Pour 4 oz Vanilla Almond Milk into a large glass
2. Add 1 packet of Stevia 
3. Add two good shakes of Penzey's Extra Fancy Vietnamese Cinnamon
4. Fill the glass with ice
5. Add 4 oz of espresso or coffee

   Stir & Enjoy! 

Yummy! You can find Penzy's Vietnamese Cinnamon at http://www.penzeys.com/

Greeley Street Beans

When I was growing up, there would be many summer mornings when I would wake up to find my grandmother on the front porch with a colander (or as she called it a scol'maccheron or macaroni strainer) and her white enamel pasta pot. She would be busy at work cleaning string beans for what she would call "radi-ool" which was the Bruzzese equivalent of ratatouille. I am certain this was a staple dish from her childhood on Greeley Street in Highland Park, Michigan. Her parents, Maria Vincenza and Mariano, turned their backyard and the empty lot next door into one large garden and from that garden simple but delicious dishes were born. 

Maria Vincenza & Mariano Nicolo working in their Victory Garden

Here is my version of one of my grandmother's variations of "radi-ool". This simple tasty recipe can be eaten alone with a nice slice of crusty bread, as I remember eating it, or it can be served as a side dish.

       Greeley Street Beans

• 1 pound of fresh green beans (cleaned)
• 1 medium red skinned potato
• 1 medium yellow onion
• 1 bottle of La Bella San Marzano tomato puree 25 oz.
• 1/4 cup of olive oil 
• Italian seasoning, salt & pepper to taste
• Parmesan Cheese (fresh grated)

       Directions:

1. Boil the diced potato and string beans in separate pots until fork tender. 
2. Meanwhile, caramelize the sliced onions in olive oil in large pan or dutch oven.
3. Add the tomato sauce to the onions and then when the beans and potatoes are tender add them to the sauce. Add a few dashes of Italian Seasoning, salt, and pepper to taste
4. Cook for 45 minutes - 60 minutes on low until the tomato sauce mellows and reduces slightly.
5. Serve with fresh grated Parmesan.

Basic Ingredients. I used La Bella San Marzano tomato puree http://www.sanmarzanoimports.com/