Cool summer salad that uses lots of mint and parsley. It also uses other summer goodies like onions, tomatoes and cucumbers. When your mint gets away from you, eat it!
Shirazi Cucumber, Tomato and Onion Salad
Recipe By : The Barbecue! Bible by Steven Raichlen p. 90
2 medium tomatoes, fresh rip, cored and cut into
1/2 inch dice
1 large cucumber, peeled seeded ( see how-to), and
cut into 1/2 inch dice
1 small/medium onion, cut into 1/2 inch dice
1/2 cup fresh Italian parsley ( flat leaf) -- chopped
1/2 cup fresh mint -- chopped
3 scallions, bot white and green parts,
trimmed and finely chopped
1 or 2 cloves garlic -- minced
1/4 cup fresh lime juice, or more to taste
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper -- to taste
Combine the tomatoes, cucumber and onion in a serving bowl with the
parsley, mint, scallions, garlic, 1/4 cup lime juice and oil. Toss gently
but thoroughly to mix. Add salt and pepper to taste and more lime juice
as necessary; the salad should be highly seasoned. Serve immediately.
What to do with all that mint
Got the mint but the Black Swallowtail Cats are doing away with my parsley :-)
Karen
Karen,
Too bad. Is a Black Swallowtail Cat a Cat or a butterfly or am I just being dense?
Betty
Okay, here is one I copied out of the New York Times. It uses the same amount of mint, no parsley. It is yummy, too.
February 1, 2006
Recipe: Chipotle Meatballs
Adapted from "Mexican Everyday," by Rick Bayless (W.W. Norton, 2005)
Time: one hour
3 slices bacon in 1-inch pieces
3 garlic cloves, peeled
2 large eggs
½ cup bread crumbs (¾ cup if coarse-textured panko)
Salt
1¼ pounds ground pork
½ cup (loosely packed) coarsely chopped mint leaves, more for garnish
1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes (preferably fire-roasted), drained of all but ¼ cup juice
1 or 2 cans chipotle chilies in adobo, stemmed, seeded and sauce reserved1 teaspoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican
About 1½ cups beef or chicken broth.
1. Heat oven to 450 degrees. In a food processor, combine bacon and 1 garlic clove. Process until finely chopped. Add eggs, bread crumbs and 1 teaspoon salt. Pulse several times to combine thoroughly, then add pork and mint. Pulse a few more times until well combined but not a paste. Remove meat from processor.
2. With wet hands, form meat into about 16 plum-size balls and space them out in a 13-by-9-inch baking dish. Bake until lightly browned, about 15 minutes.
3. While meatballs bake, combine tomatoes, ¼ cup tomato juice, chipotles, 1 to 2 tablespoons chipotle sauce, oregano, remaining garlic cloves (cut in half) and ½ teaspoon salt in a blender or food processor. Process to a smooth purée.
4. When meatballs are ready, spoon off rendered fat from baking dish, then pour tomato mixture on top, covering meatballs evenly. Bake until sauce has thickened somewhat, 15 to 20 minutes.
5. Heat broth in a small saucepan. Divide meatballs among four dinner plates, leaving sauce behind. Stir enough broth into sauce to give it a spoonable consistency. Taste and season with salt, if necessary. Spoon sauce over meatballs, decorate with extra mint leaves, if you wish, and serve.
Yield: 4 servings.
Oop's
This message was edited Jul 25, 2006 9:10 PM