Greek Summer Salad

It's been a hot month so far in Chicagoland. It's dry as dust one day and muggy the next. I've been whipping up healthy main-dish salads so that I heat up the kitchen as little as possible. This is a hearty salad that I adore on steamy nights.

I don't have a Greek story to tell along with this recipe, since a trip to Greece is on our life list but neither Joe nor I have been there yet. However, I have had a mania for Greek stories and mythology.

When I was young, I remember reading a young adult novel set in Greece. A young shepherdess lived on one of the rocky islands in Greece and every day her family sent her in a rowboat to another island to tend the goats. Her lunch was a hunk of bread, some cheese, and a handlful of grapes, and I asked my mom if I could eat that every day for lunch while I was reading this story. One day on the island, the girl met a centaur or a faun that had been hiding there ever since the days of ancient mythology. He became the lonely girl's friend, until his life was in peril when the islanders discovered her secret.

I have no idea what the book was called or who wrote it, but if you've heard of this story, could you email me the title so I can read it again? It enchanted me at the time.

Greek Summer Salad

Ingredients

1 head butter or loose-leaf lettuce, chopped
1/2 cup red onion, thinly sliced
1/2 red pepper, thinly sliced
5 tomatoes, chopped
2 cucumbers, chopped
2 cans pitted black olives

1 cup feta cheese, crumbled
1/4 pound summer sausage, chopped

For the dressing

2/3 cup olive oil
2 cups red wine vinegar

2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons fresh Greek oregano, minced
1 tablespoon flat-leaf parsley, minced
1 shallot, minced
2 tablespoons fresh basil, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
 

Directions

Whisk together dressing ingredients and allow to sit at least 1 hour at room temperature. Toss together the vegetables and refrigerate until ready to serve. Toss in the feta and sausage right before serving, so that they keep their texture. I like to serve the dressing on the side, because any leftovers will store better without the dressing mixed in. You'll probably have some dressing left over, too.

Serves 4-6

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Gyoza - Dim Sum dumplings

We were looking for an interesting way to use up leftover pork roast, the last of some Napa cabbage, and half a can of water chestnuts. When we passed a display of dumpling wrappers in the store, Joe and I started drooling like Pavlov's dogs.

These dumplings are not hard to make, but it does help to dust your assembly board with a little cornstarch to keep them from sticking to the board.

Ingredients

For the filling

1 1/2 cups cooked minced pork, or 1/2 pound raw ground pork
2 tbsp. raw ginger, grated
2 cups Napa or Chinese cabbage, thinly sliced
1/2 cup chives or green onions, chopped
1/2 cup carrots, grated
1/2 cup water chestnuts, finely chopped
2 large cloves of garlic, minced
1 tbsp fish sauce
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 package of small round dumpling wrappers
Salt and pepper
2 tbsp cooking oil

For the dipping sauce

2 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tsp sesame oil
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 tsp honey

Instructions

To start, the cabbage and carrots must be treated so that the excess water is removed - otherwise, the dumplings will be soggy and pasty. Put the cabbage and carrots into a bowl and sprinkle them with salt. Add water to cover, and let sit for 10 minutes.

If using ground pork, crumble it into a pan and brown it completely. Drain off the fat and set it in a large mixing bowl.

Drain the carrot/cabbage mixture and squeeze dry. Add this to the pork. Stir in the rest of the filling ingredients and mix well.

Prepare a small bowl of lukewarm water. Set one wrapper onto a clean cutting board or surface. Dip your fingers into the water and then wipe the water onto the wrapper, dampening the entire side. Place 1 1/2-2 tablespoons of the filling in the middle of the wrapper. Fold the wrapper in half and pinch the ends together in the middle. Dip your fingers into the water and pinch the opening closed so that the edges stick together. Use a fork to press dents around the edge so the wrappers stay closed.

Heat a non-stick frying pan and pour in the oil. Put the finished dumplings, seam side up, into the pan. Add 1 cup of warm water and put a lid on the pan. Cook for 10 minutes, adding more water if the pan dries out completely. Remove from heat and serve when the dumplings are golden brown on the bottom.

 Stir together the dipping sauce ingredients and serve it in individual bowls.

When we made this recipe, we made enough dumplings for two or more meals. We put half of them onto a greased cookie sheet and froze them for several hours, then put them in a freezer bag to eat later.

Makes approximately 30 dumplings.

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Porkchop restaurant, Chicago

After my graduation from the University of Illinois at Chicago, my family went for brunch at an intimate and fun restaurant nearby, Porkchop. The place serves American comfort food with a modern twist. There are also plenty of the dishes that are current trends, like sweet potato fries and mac'n'cheese.

I have been intrigued by the sudden popularity of fried chicken and waffles, and since Joe has yet to take me to a Waffle House, I seized my chance to try this southern phenomenon. I rececived two large crispy and spicy chicken breasts on thick waffles with ancho maple syrup, and it was fantastic. I barely had room enough to eat one breast, though there was a lot of sharing around the table and a couple of bottles of champagne in constant demand.

My daughter Jessie chose the mac'n'cheese, which was creamy and filling, though the portion was smaller. The Damn Good Baby Back ribs were in fact damn good. Joe had the brunch pulled pork sandwich that was topped with chipotle bbq sauce, a fried egg, grilled tomato, and a side of roasted potatoes, red onions, and green peppers. My sister-in-law had the quirky but delicious cornmeal pancakes. I'd have to say, though, that nothing surpassed the dessert we all shared: a homemade bacon glazed donut. Heavenly.

Next time I visit, I'll be sure to order the appetizer called "Trio of Sausage Lollipops", a concept that can't help but be incredible. Apparently, it comes with a creole remoulade dipping sauce. Just for you, I looked up "remoulade" (okay, I didn't know what it was). It sounds like this is either a creole type tartar or shrimp cocktail sauce. I'm sure it's fantastic.

Appropriately close to the old Chicago stockyards and meat processing plants, Porkchop has a hardworking Chicago rustic feel to it. Between two sections of the dining room, there is a somewhat disturbing display of saws that might one day have been used for hog butchering and city building. I was relieved to see that these hanging saws were attached to the floor and ceiling so that a gust of wind from the opening door would not lead to an accidental decapitation. We all left without saw damage, and we were so full that we didn't even eat dinner.

Porkchop restaurant is at 941 E. Randolph, Chicago, Il 60607

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Leinenkugel's Sunset Wheat Beer

Leinenkugel knows how to make picky beer drinker Angela happy. Sunset Wheat is a light, fruity, aromatic wheat beer with a note of blueberry. Perfect for those days we're looking forward to summer. Beer Advocate gives it a good rating, too.

Trivia: Jacob Leinenkugel's brewing company is based in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin. Sound familiar? In the movie "Titanic", it's Jack Dawson's home town. I'm sure he'd approve of this one, also. You know he was a big fan of sunsets.

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Roasted Beet Caviar

If you've always hated beets, you're a lot like me: my mom had to nearly forcefeed me when homegrown beets were on the menu for dinner. Luckily, my husband and children didn't like them either, so beets were a non-issue in our household.

Then Joe and I went to Russian Tea Time restaurant in Chicago.

Among the many wonderful things they served us on the tasting platter, there were two versions of beets: a beet caviar spread, and an interesting beet-apple-pea vinaigrette salad. These were an amazing revelation into the reason why so many Eastern European and Russian peoples love the beet. Maybe this recipe will make a beet-eater out of you, too.

Ingredients
4 fresh beets
2 garlic cloves
2/3 cup walnuts, toasted and finely chopped
2 tablespoons lowfat yogurt, plain
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp. finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/4 tsp. Tabasco sauce
Salt and black pepper to taste


Directions
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Remove paper from garlic cloves, place them on a roasting pan, and brush with olive oil. Scrub beets, place on the roasting pan, and roast in oven until fork-tender. The garlic will be tender in approximately 30-45 minutes, the beets in 60-90 minutes. Let cool.

Peel beets; finely chop beets and garlic and place in a bowl. Stir in all other ingredients. Marinate 6 hours in refrigerator, then serve at room temperature or slightly chilled. Spread on crackers or toasted bread, or serve as a side salad/garnish.

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