#FOOD4THOUGHT

CRAVING FOR ROASTED STRAWBERRY BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE

I recently had a craving for strawberries so I went to the supermarket. After satisfying my palate pangs, I still had a handful left. So I decided to make my own strawberry vinaigrette to use in the for salads in the next few days.

You can try this one out if you have strawberries to spare.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup strawberries
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp stone ground Dijon mustard 
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper

TO MAKE

• Prepare the strawberries by washing, removing the stems and cutting into halves.
• Preheat your oven to 425 °F.
• Get  baking tray and evenly position the strawberries.
• Place the strawberries in the oven.  The fruit will release its own juices. Roast until it caramelizes. That should be about 15 minutes for small Baguio strawberries, and 20 mintes for the big-sized ones.
• Once roasted, remove the strawberries and let it cool.
• Purée the strawberries along with the balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, stone-ground Dijon mustard, garlic and pepper. Make sure to include any strawberry juices in the baking trays.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

• Once the mixture is consistently smooth, pour it in a jar. 
• Keep refrigerated and serve cold.

Did you know that aside from being used as a salad dressing, vinaigrettes can also be used to baste meat? I wonder what the Rosated Strawberry Balsamic Viniagrette will be good for?

KITCHEN QUICKIE: STRAWBERRY AND WATERCRESS SALAD

There's nothing like Baguio to inspire a carnivore like me to eat veggies.

Was recently there and got the chance to buy a few veggies for a fab looking salad you can make in a jiffy.

STRAWBERRY & WATERCRESS SALAD

Ingredients:
Lettuce
Watercress
Strawberries
Beetroot
Cherry Tomatoes

To make:
Prepare the beetroot first.
Cut off the stems and boil in water for 10-15 minutes or until tender.
Put in cold water to cool it down. When it's not hot to the touch anymore, pull (or slice the skin off) and then dice.

The beetroot might look nasty and will "bleed" a little but it tastes good and is a good source of folate and manganese. The red colour from its betanin compound is not broken down by human digestive system so if you eat too much of this, you might experience beeturia.

Wash the strawberries and cherry tomatoes. Slice off the bottom end of the strawberries and slice into thin vertical pieces (so they still retain the heart shape).

Wash the lettuce and watercress.  Soak  both in ice cold water to make it crispier.  Before serving the salad, drain and dry with a paper towel.

Tear the lettuce into bite size pieces with your hands. 

Select the nice leaves and stems of the watercress and add on top of the lettuce.

I like adding the watercress to the salad because it has a bite, similar to but less mustardy than arugula. It's a semi-aquatic plant that humans have been consuming since we discovered that no one died from eating plants. It's rich in vitamin C and also contains a good amount of iron, calcium, iodine, folic acid, manganese and vitamins A, B and K. Yes, you get all of that from a small leaf.

Add everything else and pour the roasted sesame dressing.

Serve and enjoy!

Mochi with Fresh Strawberries

Was lucky enough to taste this dark chocolate mochi ball with fresh strawberry filling made by hand at Dezato, a small cozy cafe near E. Rodriguezrun by sisters Ingrid and Maria.

My name is Mike and I am a Mochi addict.