Lemon Rosemary Beer Granita

Dan    Recipes, Something Sweet     awesome, beer, chilled, Dan Clapson, desserts, iced, lemon, Mill St Brewery, recipes, rosemary, summer

When the sun hits, it’s time for something refreshing. I fell in love with granitas a while back. They are stupid easy to make and always impress people. From wine and vodka, to prosecco and beer, there is a whole mix of things you can throw into a granita. Since I am in love with cold beer on a hot summer day, I decided to turn on into a dessert.

The fresh rosemary and lemon zest add a nice brightness to this chilly dessert, tasting somewhat like a boozy iced tea…not to be confused with a Long Island Iced Tea…I think only 18 year olds drink those things, right?

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Roasted Nectarine and Baby Kale Salad

Dan    Appetizers & Co., Recipes, Vegan/Vegetarian     Dan Clapson, greek yogurt, iogu yogurt, kale, nectarines, recipes, salads, summer

What you’ll need…

2 nectarines (halved, stoned and 1″ sliced)

1 14 oz can artichoke hearts (drained and quartered)

4 cups baby kale

1 cup cucumber (thinly sliced)

1 cup radishes (quartered)

1/2 red onion (thinly sliced)

1 lemon (zest and juice)

1/3 cup greek yogurt (I used the brand new iogo greko yogurt)

1 TBSP honey

1 TBSP white wine vinegar

salt and pepper

olive oil

Yup, I’m still on the salad train apparently! Not that it’s a bad train to be on, I just wish I would have embraced tasty, nutrient-filled salads prior to the summertime to obtain that beach body I ‘strive’ for every year. There’s always next year, right? Perhaps, I’ll book a sunny vacation for December and aim for then. We shall see!

If you’re looking for a nice, light lunch while enjoying some sun on your deck, then this will do the trick. In lieu of roasting the nectarines, you can leave them halved and toss them on the barbecue to get some nice grill marks on them.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Toss the nectarine slices with a bit of olive oil, season with salt and pepper, place them into a small baking dish and pop them into the oven until they’ve softened and begin to caramelize, about 20 minutes.

While those are roasting away, place the next 5 ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Add the lemon zest to the bowl as well. Instead of grating the lemon or using a microplane to get the zest off, for this salad I like to use a vegetable peeler to get nice, big pieces of the peel. Once I’ve peeled all of the zest off, I thinly slice it, then add it to the salad. This way, it packs an awesomely bright punch to each bite of the salad; kind of like sunshine on your plate and then in your mouth? Trust me!

In a separate small bowl, whisk together the yogurt, honey and vinegar. Add some fresh ground pepper and a few pinches of salt then pour over the salad mix. Toss gently with tongs until well-dressed. Remove the nectarine slices from the oven and serve warm over top a generous portion of the kale salad.

Serves 4

Total prep time…25 min

Blackberry, Basil and Wild Rice Salad

Dan    Appetizers & Co., Recipes     berries, Dan Clapson, quick and easy, recipes, salads, summer, vegetarian, wild rice

What you’ll need…

2 cups cooked wild rice

1 cup yellow string beans (trimmed, 1″ chopped and blanched)

2/3 cup cow’s feta (loosely chopped or crumbled)

1/2 cup cucumber (halved, thinly sliced)

1/2 cup zucchini squash (halved, thinly sliced)

1/2 cup blackberries (halved)

1/2 cup fresh basil (loosely chopped or torn)

1/3 cup green onions (finely chopped)

4 artichoke hearts (quartered)

2 TBSP white wine vinegar

2 TBSP olive oil

1 TBSP lemon juice

1 TBSP honey

2 TSP soy sauce

salt and pepper

Continuing with my newfound (and we’ll assume fleeting) love of healthy salads, I present to you what is, quite possibly, the healthiest dish I have put on this site so far this summer. Healthy or not, this is summer in a bowl. For sure.

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Sweet and Sour Sauteed Radishes and Green Beans

Dan    Appetizers & Co., Recipes     Asian-inspired, garden, green beans, quick and easy, radishes, recipes, summer, vegetarian

What you’ll need…

1 TBSP butter

1 clove garlic (minced)

2 cups radishes (trimmed and halved)

1 1/2 cups fresh green beans (trimmed)

1 TBSP soy sauce

1 TBSP brown sugar

1 TBSP sriracha

2 TSP lemon juice

2 TSP lemon zest

1/3 cup fresh basil (loosely chopped or torn)

salt and pepper

I have been somewhat of a delinquent lately. Between Stampede shenanigans, a house boating trip and long weekend in Saskatoon, my daily fruit and veggie intake had taken a little dip. Hence, green beans and radishes to the rescue. Not really sure why, but my love of cooked radishes continues to grow stronger with each passing week. I’m pretty sure that the only thing I love more than radishes right now is Dawson’s Creek.

Wow.

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Roast Lamb Chops w/Green Apple Mint Salsa and Carrot Tomato Puree

Dan    Mains, Recipes     awesome, carrots, fresh, lamb, mint, recipes, summer

What you’ll need…

Salsa:

1 green apple (cored, 1/4″ diced)

1/2 red onion (diced)

1/4 mint leaves (loosely chopped)

2 TSP lemon juice

1 TSP white sugar

1 TSP lemon zest

1/2 TSP chili powder

salt and pepper

Carrot Tomato Puree:

1 yellow onion (diced)

2 cloves garlic (minced)

3 carrots (peeled, 1″ chopped)

1 red potato (peeled, 1″ cubed)

2 TBSP butter

2 cups chicken stock

1 TBSP tomato paste

2 TSP lemon zest

salt and pepper

olive oil

Lamp Chops:

4 lamb chops

salt and pepper

olive oil

Did you ever watch Lamb Chop’s Play-Along as a kid, listen to that god damn song that ‘never ends’ and then wish you could roast Lamb Chop to make that terrible, terrible music stop? No? Well..maybe that was just me then. Jokes aside, I love a good lamb chop. Since I live in the belt line, the Calgary Co-op downtown Marketplace is my go-to grocery store and they’ve got a wicked meat counter there. So, if I’m not at the farmers’ market, this is typically where I’ll grab my cuts of meat for dinner. Anyway, that’s my tip of the day…onto the food!

For the salsa, place the first 7 ingredients in a small mixing bowl and toss with a spoon until sugar has dissolved and everything is well combined. Season liberally with salt and pepper, toss again and place in the refrigerator until you’re ready to serve.

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Spicy Summer Apple Bisque

Dan    Recipes, Soups, Vegan/Vegetarian     apples, bisque, cherries, gluten-free, radishes, recipes, soup, summer, vegan, vegetarian

What you’ll need…

1 yellow onion (chopped)

1 garlic clove

1 gala apple (peeled, 1” cubed)

1 red potato (peeled, 1” cubed)

2/3 cup cherries (pitted, halved)

3 cups chicken stock (or vegetable stock to stay vegan)

1 TBSP freshly grated ginger

1 TBSP lime juice

1 TBSP sriracha

2 TSP chili powder

salt and pepper

olive oil

radish and cucumber (thinly sliced, for garnish, optional)

The first time I put an apple in a soup, I was like: ‘Holy shit! This is awesome!’. Ever since that day, I’ve been throwing fruit into everything. Well, not everything, but it’s always interesting to find the balance between sweet and savoury using some of your favourite fruit. Since we’re still, thankfully, a few months away from hearty soup weather, this bisque is light, spicy and smooth. Perfect for a summer night that’s a bit overcast. Who says soup can’t be fruity?

Start off by cooking the onion and garlic with a drissle of olive oil in a medium-sized pot until softened, about 5 minutes. Next, add the chopped apple, potato, and cherries to the pot and let cook for another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Pour the stock into the pot and stir in the ginger, lime juice, sriracha, and chili powder. When mixture comes to a boil, reduce to low heat and let simmer on stove for 20 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper

Remove pot from heat to let cool slightly. Next, puree soup until smooth using a food processor or blender. Return to pot and keep warm until ready to serve.

Top with some thinly sliced radish and cucumber to chill out the spicy soup!

Total cook time…35 min

Serves 4