Whole Wheat Linguine with Kale, Yellow Tomatoes, and Ricotta by Heather

I just got the Meatless Cookbook by Martha Stewart, and had to make a version of their linguine with kale and tomatoes- the picture was so pretty!  Normally I find Martha Stewart recipes to be a little lacking in flavor, so I amped up with recipe with lemon juice, white wine and added some Greek yogurt to the ricotta mixture.  This recipe comes together in less than 20 minutes, so it's a great weeknight dinner option.



Ingredients:
1 lb. fresh, whole wheat linguine
zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 pint yellow tomatoes (also known as zima tomatoes)
3-4 large lancinato kale leaves, roughly chopped
4-5 stalks broccolini (you can add more if you like), roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup white wine
2 tbs. olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup Greek yogurt
1/4 cup ricotta (I used goat ricotta)
pinch of red pepper flakes

Balaboosta's Fried Cauliflower Recipe by Heather

Balaboosta is a great Mediterranean/Middle Eastern Restaurant on Mulberry Street in Nolita.  If you haven't been, I highly recommend you go!  If you don't live in NYC, you can enjoy this recipe at home, and it's just as good as the original.  You'll make a cauliflower lover out of anyone with this recipe.

Ingredients:

For the crispy cauliflower:
1 large head cauliflower, cut into small florets
1 cup flour
5 cups canola oil
3 tsp. kosher salt
2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

For the white wine vinaigrette:
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
2 tbs. honey
1 tsp. dijon mustard
3 tbs. extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp. kosher salt
pinch of freshly ground black pepper

Garnish:
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 parsley, chopped

Special Ingredient: Ribeye Steaks with Blackberry and Red Wine Reduction

This month, our special ingredient is blackberries.  They're perfectly sweet and in season right now!  Since I don't do a ton of baking, I wanted to make a blackberry reduction, and the best thing to drizzle this over is a nice, juicy steak.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 lb. ribeye steaks, cut about 1 inch thick
2 tbs. butter
salt and pepper
1 tbs. olive oil
3 tbs. red wine
parsley for garnish

Blackberry reduction:
3/4 cup red wine
1 sprig rosemary
couple of fresh blackberries
1/4 cup blackberry jam
2 shallots, minced
2 tbs. butter
1 tbs. olive oil

White Bean and Ramp Crostini by Heather

It's finally starting to feel like spring around NYC, and for Easter, I wanted to make an appetizer that took advantage of some seasonal ingredients.  Brandon and I have had some really good spring-y crostini around the city the past couple of weeks.  Locanda Verde's creamy ricotta crostini is to die for, and Cookshop's ramp salsa verde crostini is also excellent.  This crostini combines the best of both of these.  You'll have a ton of the white bean mixture left over, so it's also great to serve as a dip with some veggies or pita chips.

Ingredients:

For the white bean mixture:

2 cans cannellini beans

1/4 cup greek yogurt

2-3 tbs. basil oil or normal olive oil

1 tsp. chives

1/4 cup parsley

juice and zest of 1 lemon

3 tbs. goat ricotta or regular, whole milk ricotta

salt and pepper to taste

For the ramps:

1 tbs. butter

3-4 tbs. white wine

1 bunch of ramps, cleaned with ends removed

1 loaf bread, sliced

olive oil for drizzling

Chipotle Shrimp Tacos by Heather

I've been obsessed with tacos lately.  Maybe it's because it's finally starting to get warmer outside, and nothing sounds better than sitting outside with a margarita and some tacos.  Sadly, today it rained again and it's dipping into the 30's, but one can hope!  These tacos are really colorful and they pack a lot of punch from the chipotle peppers.

This recipe was adapted from this one at Tartine and Apron Strings, and this comes together so quickly, I didn't take a ton of photos, but it's super easy to make.

Ingredients:

For the shrimp and tequila lime marinade:
1 lb. raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 tsp. sea salt
2 tbs. honey
juice of 2 limes
1/4 cup tequila
1/2 onion, chopped
1/4 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. chipotle powder

For the slaw dressing:
1/2 head red cabbage, finely sliced
1 tsp. dijon mustard
1/4 cup lime juice
1/2 cup neutral oil like canola
salt and pepper to taste

For the chipotle crema:
1 cup Greek yogurt
1-2 chipotles in adobo sauce

Additional ingredients:
corn tortillas
1 lime, quartered
1 avocado, diced
hot sauce (optional)

Special Ingredient: Sweet Pea and Roasted Garlic Dip by Rachel

I'm so behind!

I've been doing a lot of cooking, but I've been bad about sharing them with you.  Sorry!

So I had some friends over for dinner this weekend and in thinking about what to make with the bag of peas that I had, I thought to make a dip.  It was a hit!

Ingredients:
10oz of good, frozen peas
5-6 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sugar
salt, to taste