Fettuccine with Lemon-Marinated Salmon & Capers: An Easy Spring Pasta Dinner

While deciding on this week's soup; Cannellini Bean and Fresh Tomato Broth from Off the Shelf by Donna Hay, I found myself repeatedly salivating over a picture of Lemon Marinated Salmon and Pasta. It must have been the capers. It's always the capers for me. Of course the salmon, lemon, Parmesan, and heap of noodles certainly didn't hurt. 

 
Now if you have raw(ish) fish issues, this dish may not be for you. The salmon does end up lightly "cooked" on the outside from the lemon juice, ceviche-style, making it tender and succulent, but isn't cooked within. Sushi, ceviche or poke fans, and the more adventurous will likely enjoy it. The lemony flavor, combined with the fried capers and cheese is excellent, and the dish ends up being satisfying without being heavy and is nice for a light spring dinner.

Fettuccine with Lemon-Marinated Salmon & Capers
From Off The Shelf by Donna Hay
(Serves 4)

600 g (20 oz) salmon fillet, skin removed
3 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp olive oil 
400 g (14 oz) spaghetti, linguine  or fettuccine
1 Tbsp olive oil
3 Tbsp salted capers, rinsed
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup roughly chopped flat leaf parsley
cracked black pepper

Cut the salmon into small dice and place in a bowl with the lemon juice and olive oil.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes, stirring once.

Place the pasta in a large saucepan of lightly salted boiling water and cook until al dente. Drain.

Heat a frying pan over medium heat. Add the oil and capers and cook for 3 minutes or until crisp. Toss the pasta with half of the Parmesan and the capers and place on serving plates. Toss the salmon with the remaining Parmesan, the parsley and black pepper, spoon over the pasta and serve. 

 
Notes/Results: I really liked the combination of flavors and the cool salmon on top of the warm pasta and caper mix, with the Parmesan melting in just so. I made a half-batch, worried the salmon might suffer texture issues. But I have to say that the fish on my plate the next day for lunch was still surprisingly firm and good. (Note: The best way to enjoy this dish the next day is to store the fish and pasta separately in the fridge, heat the pasta slightly and then top with the fish.) The health coach in me would tell you to use a whole wheat or more fiber-friendly pasta however, the store had bags of fresh pasta on sale and sometimes you just *need* to splurge and savor it. ;-) This dish goes together quickly, after the salmon marinates and makes for an easy weeknight dinner. I will make this again.
 

Cannellini Bean and Fresh (Roasted) Tomato Broth: Simple for Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammie) Sundays

The problem with owning too many cookbooks is that there never seems to be enough time to get around to cooking from all of them. For example my copy of Off the Shelf: Cooking From the Pantry by Donna Hay has been sitting there for ages but I have not yet posted a recipe from it. Looking for a low-effort soup this week, I pulled it out and found  Cannellini Bean and Fresh Tomato Broth and headed to the farmers market for fresh tomatoes and oregano. 

 
I ended up with a mixture of local Roma and large yellow and red tomatoes and decided that I wanted to roast them to pull out their sweetness and flavor. Served with grilled locally-baked rosemary and olive oil bread, it was a tasty light and simple meal.

Cannellini Bean and Fresh (Roasted) Tomato Broth
Adapted from Off the Shelf by Donna Hay
(Serves 4)

6 large ripe tomatoes, quartered* (I roasted my tomatoes)
4 cups (1 3/4 pints) vegetable broth
1 (14 oz) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed (I used 2 cans)
sea salt and cracked black pepper
2 Tbsp chopped fresh oregano
grilled bread to serve

(Note: I felt like roasting my tomatoes so I just placed them in a baking dish and roasted them for about 45 minutes at 425 degrees. But, you could certainly don't have to roast them if you want a faster soup.)

Place the tomatoes and half the stock in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour the mixture through the sieve and place in a saucepan with the remaining broth over medium heat. Allow the soup to come to a boil and simmer for 8-10 minutes, then add the cannellini beans, salt, pepper and oregano. Simmer for 2 minutes and serve in bowls with grilled bread that has been drizzled with a little olive oil.

*Donna notes: "Using really ripe tomatoes will give the soup a wonderful sweet flavor. If perfect tomatoes are not available, you may need to add a pinch of sugar to help boost the flavor.  

Notes/Results: This was just a simple, basic but flavorful soup--easy to make and full of comfort. The tomato broth is good with the flavor of the tomatoes and oregano really coming through. I wanted more beans so I added and extra can. With the mixture of homemade garlic broth and a little "no-chicken" soup base with water, no extra salt was needed and the tomatoes were ripe and sweet enough and along with the roasting, I didn't feel any need for added sugar. You could of course add to this soup--other veggies, pasta, etc., but I think it stands well on its own. I would would make it again.

A soup, a couple of salads and a sandwich await in the Souper Sundays kitchen--let's take a look!

Sandra of Meadows Cooks shares this Simple Ramp and Asparagus Soup and says, "The soup has a real kick - just how my husband likes it. The cayenne really pops out of an otherwise mild melange. Potato is the mild filler with mild ramp and asparagus for flavor. I used white wine vinegar instead of white wine, and omitted the lemon juice, but think it probably is better as written. Spring brings us wonderful new produce as well as pollen. Here is my celebration of the positive side of new growth."  

Pam of Sidewalk Shoes made this pretty green side, Edamame and Mint Salad and says, "I’m always looking for ways to use my mint, so that I can keep it trimmed back and encourage spreading.  When I saw this salad in the April issue of Everyday Foods, it sounded so simple.  At first I thought the addition of butter was kind of weird, but it totally works.  The only thing is that, you really need to serve it at room temperature, because taken straight from the fridge, the butter solidifies a bit.   The flavors in this salad simply sing spring."

Topping her mango taco wraps with salad is Janet of The Taste Space with colorful Black Bean Tostadas with Tangy Cabbage Salad. Janet says, "It worked really well. While the beans crisped up in the oven, I made the beautiful cabbage slaw. It came together seamlessly. Call them tostadas with crispy flatbreads or roll them into tacos.  My mango wraps were crispy but if you let the beans sit on top of the wraps for a while, the wraps absorb some of the moistness and became pliable again. Because they were very thin, they were very delicate and made a big delicious mess. A beautiful delicious mess. I can’t remember the last time I bought red cabbage, but gosh, isn’t it gorgeous?"

Finally Spencer of Live2EatEattoLive Blog uses a homegrown tomato to make his BEST Sandwich and says, "So, I finally decided what to do with our little tomato. Mahalo plenty to all of you that suggested in the comments what to with our lone tomato, by the way. I decided to make a modified BLT sandwich, I call the BEST sandwich--Bacon, Egg, Shiso and Tomato. On toasted whole wheat bread. Pretty awesome (if I do say so myself). Hee hee!"

Thanks to everyone who joined in this week! If you have a soup, salad or sandwich that you would like to share, just click on the Souper Sundays logo on the side bar for all of the details. 

Have a happy, healthy week! 
 

Lumache (Pasta) with Saffron, Capers and Raisins: Sweet, Savory & Tangy Ottolenghi Pasta Goodness

What did we do before the iPhone? And its many apps of course. How else can you sit in front of the grocery store deciding that it might behoove you to actually think about and shop for the weekly Yotam Ottolenghi recipe at least a few days in advance so as not to have to make yet another trip to the store? (Please do refrain from pointing out that this "advance" planning might better have been completed even earlier at home, before actually going to the store rather than in the parking lot.) One quick look at the Ottolenghi iPhone recipe app, and seeing a dish with my beloved capers along with an interesting combination of ingredients, and I was sold on this Pasta with Saffron, Capers and Raisins. I even had most of the ingredients required at home--just needing to pick up an appropriate pasta and some green olives from the olive bar. 

(Besides the app, this recipe can also be found online at The Guardian website.)

This recipe called for conchiglie pasta (shells) but the only shells I could find at my local store were either the teeny-tiny ones or the giant ones you could stuff a small car into. I ended up with an in-the-middle-sized lumache pasta (snails), which held the sauce and all it's good bits equally as well and makes this dish special. 

Pasta with Saffron, Capers and Raisins
By Yotam Ottolenghi
(Serves 2) (I think this serves at least 3 generously)

6 celery stalks
1/3 cup olive oil (I reduced to about 3 Tbsp of olive oil)
1/4 cup pine nuts, roughly broken (I left some whole and crushed some)
3 Tbsp capers, plus 2 tbsp of their brine
10 large green olives, pitted and cut into 1/2-inch dice
1 generous pinch saffron, mixed with 1 tbsp hot water
1 1/2 tsp white-wine vinegar
2/3 cup raisins, soaked in water (I used golden raisins)
9 oz conchiglie pasta (I subbed Lumache pasta)
1 cup chopped parsley
grated zest of 1 lemon
1 garlic clove, crushed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper (no need for salt)
grated Parmesan, optional

Trim any leaves from the celery (leave whole or chop roughly and save them for later) and cut the stalks into 1/2-inch dice. Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan over high heat and add the diced celery and pine nuts. Stir as you fry for a minute or two, or just until the nuts begin to brown--be careful as they can easily burn. Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the capers and their brine, the olives, saffron and its water, the vinegar and the drained raisins. Set aside.

Cook the pasta until al dente, drain into a colander and shake well. Add the pasta into the sauce pan, place over medium high heat and cook everything together, stirring gently. Once hot, stir in the parsley, lemon zest, garlic and plenty of black pepper. Taste and add salt if needed.

 
Transfer to serving plates or bowls, scatter the reserved celery leaves on top and finish with a little Parmesan, if you like.

Notes/Results: Yum! If you are a caper and olive fan, you will enjoy this pasta dish. The bites of the pasta with all of the great ingredients tucked inside are full of so much flavor--like like. Ottolenghi notes the complex "sweet and sour flavors" in this dish but I think of it as more sweet, savory and tangy than sour. This recipe has some great texture from the still-slightly-crunchy celery and pine nuts and the sweetness from the raisins contrasts well with all of the briny ingredients. I confess that I normally either toss out my celery leaves or toss them into a freezer bag of veggie scraps that I use for stock but I actually liked them tossed with the pasta at the end--they add a certain freshness to the dish.  

A couple of recipe notes--I reduced the amount of oil and with the salt of the olives, capers and Parmesan if you add it, it does not need to add any extra salt. Ottolenghi says the recipe is for 2 servings but I would got 3 very generous servings out of it. Satisfying and really good, I would make this dish again. 

This weeks IHCC theme is Use Your Noodle--celebrating pasta in all its glory. You can check out all the Ottolenghi pasta and noodle creations by going to the post and following the links.  

Chickpea, Vegetable & Walnut Soup (aka "The Soup-er Cleanse") for Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammie) Sundays

Maybe I shouldn't refer to this soup by its given name; "The Soup-er Cleanse" on the post title because the words  "cleanse" or "detox" can make people turn up their nose at food because they think it might be too healthy or flavorless. In fact, this soup from The Eat Clean Diet Vegetarian Cookbook by Tosca Reno, has a lot of flavor from the garlic, lemon, parsley, cumin and cayenne. The texture is thick and creamy from the raw walnuts. I look at foods like this as a way to balance, to counteract the not-so-good-for-me things I might indulge in. Like the cannoli I ate for breakfast; freshly-made from the farmers market, too hard to resist, and just about perfect with my soy latte. A decadent cannoli for breakfast, a surprisingly good cleanse soup for lunch--it all evens out in the end! ;-)

The Soup-er Cleanse (Chickpea, Vegetable & Walnut Soup)
Adapted from The Eat Clean Vegetarian Cookbook by Tosca Reno
(Yields: 6 (1-cup) Servings)
Prep: 15 min / Cook: 13-18 minutes

1 Tbsp  extra virgin olive oil
1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 ribs celery, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped, divided
1 small zucchini, chopped
2 cups cooked or 1 (15 oz) can no salt chickpeas, drained & rinsed
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin 
pinch of cayenne
3/4 tsp salt 
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup chopped raw walnuts
1 cup parsley, including stems, roughly chopped
juice of 2 lemons

Heat olive oil in a heavy-bottomed soup pot on medium. Add onion, celery, two cloves of the garlic and sweat for about 3 minutes or until onion is translucent. Add 3 cups water, zucchini, chickpeas, cumin, cayenne, salt and pepper, and bring to a simmer.

Cover and cook on low heat until vegetables are tender, 10-15 minutes. Pour into blender and add reserved clove of chopped garlic, walnuts, parsley and lemon juice. Blend until smooth, working in batches if necessary. Can be eaten hot or cold. (Note: For a chunkier and in my mind, more interesting soup I placed a couple of cups of the soup mixture into the blender with the garlic, parsley, walnuts and lemon juice and poured the puree back into the soup pot and heated through.)

Nutritional Info (Per 1-cup Serving): Calories: 200, Calories from fat: 91, Protein: 6g, Carbs: 23g, Total Fat: 10g, Sat Fat: 1g, Fiber: 5g, Sodium: 364 mg, Cholesterol: 0mg   

Notes/Results: An easy soup that satisfies and tastes great. The recipe directions had the entire soup pureed but I wasn't feeling that, so I just blended part of it (see the details in red above) for a chunkier texture. I like the creaminess that the walnuts gave this soup without adding any dairy. Trying it both hot and cold, I think I prefer the cold version as you taste more of the cumin and less of the lemon. Light but filling, I would make this again. (Even without the breakfast cannoli reason!) ;-)

The soup isn't poured unevenly, its just the shape of the bowl ;-) 

Let's head to the Souper Sundays kitchen and look at the delicious dishes that await.

Pam of Sidewalk Shoes shares this hearty Ham and Yellow Bean Soup. She says, "...you might say that I have been a connoisseur of ham and bean soup practically all my life.   Up to now, my favorite has always been with great northern beans, I know some prefer navy, but for me, it’s great northern.  Until now.  As part of my “year of beans with Rancho Gordo” I received their yellow eye beans.  Good bye great northern, hello yellow eye! ... These were so good.  Perfectly creamy and their flavor complemented the ham wonderfully."

A big WELCOME to Sandra of Meadows Cooks, joining Souper Sundays for the first time this week from Brooklyn. She made Mark Bittman's Creamy Chickpea and Carrot Soup (without the aid of an immersion blender) ;-) and says, "...making creamy soups, soups that need to be blended, is a real pain. You need to transfer all that hot stuff over and back again into the pot to reheat, since it cools off while blending. Making a mess of the kitchen, stove and using more pots and pans than seems necessary. Even without an immersion blender this soup is delicious. The sweet carrot and orange flavors meld nicely with the sultry spices and chickpeas." Welcome Sandra!

Janet of The Taste Space has two salads this week. First up, this satisfying Tempeh and Arugula Salad with a Mustard Miso Dressing. She says, "...the star of this salad was the dressing. Oh my gosh, it was so good. A hefty dose of miso, a strong background of mustard with a sweet sourness from Meyer lemons and maple syrup, this dressing had a lot of bold flavours that became downright addictive. The tempeh was very basic and could be used for most meal salads since it was not strongly flavoured."

Janet's second dish is this Curried Chickpea Salad with Carrots and Currants (The Best Chickpea Salad Ever). She says, "This is a perfect chickpea salad, combining the tang I enjoy from vinaigrettes with a light creaminess from tahini along with a sweet spice from curry powder, contrasted with sweet currants and carrots. It is quite similar to my favourite lentil salad, except I am using a pre-made curry powder. Granted, the success of your salad will depend entirely on the curry powder you use. I am very partial to Penzey’s sweet blend which is fragrant and flavourful without being too spicy or earthy. It is highlighted perfectly with the touch of maple syrup."

Joanne of Eats Well With Others is here with this delectable Roasted Asparagus, Zucchini and Halloumi and says, "...the fun thing about this here salad is that, while it is totally chock full of vegetables with a side of virtue....it is also topped with fried cheese. Which makes you feel just the slightest bit guilty about eating it. And which of course makes you want it all the more. It's a bad boy alright, but if it helps you get through this Monday with just a few more vegetables under your belt, then I'd say it's worth the minor indulgence as you ease yourself back into health."

 
My pal Kim of Stirring the Pot made Ottolenghi's Pasta and Fried Zucchini Salad and says, "...a completely different take on pasta salad than what I'm accustomed to.  First of all, this salad is brimming with shades of green: glorious rounds of fried zucchini, pale green edamame, and an herby pesto-based sauce. The salad is brightened up with lemon zest, capers, and a splash of red wine vinegar then tossed with the pasta and soft chunks of fresh mozzarella.  I must admit, my favorite part are those squishy little bites of fresh mozzarella (I am a cheese lover after all).  This is definitely a keeper!" 
 

 
And, one sandwich entry for this week, these wonderful little open-faced Salmon and Poppy Seed Appetizer Sandwiches from Graziana of Erbe in Cucina. She says, "I had tried the combination of smoked salmon and poppy seeds in Salmon Bagel with Sorrel, and the unusual combo of and lemon and poppy seeds in the Lemon Muffins with Poppy Seeds, so I decided to combine all these three ingredients in this tasty bruschetta."

Thanks to everyone who joined in this week! If you have a soup, salad, or sandwich that you would like to share, just click on the Souper Sundays logo on my side bar for all of the details.

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there and have a happy, healthy week!
 

Zucchini & Hazelnut Salad: Another Yotam Ottolenghi Salad Winner!

 
I was firmly convinced that Tyler Florence's Carpaccio of Raw Zucchini was my favorite way to eat zucchini until I tried Ottolenghi's Zucchini & Hazelnut Salad. It is a wonderful combination of roasted zucchini, basil, Parmesan cheese and toasted hazelnuts that I would find easy to enjoy often. It also begs the question, "Why don't I put toasted hazelnuts in my salads more?!" (Especially since I have a bag full in my freezer!) Lucky we can get good locally-grown zucchini most of the year here in Hawaii but, if it isn't quite zucchini season where you live, bookmark this simple, pretty and flavorful salad for when you need to use up that glut of green squash that happens each year. It's worth it!

 Ottolenghi calls this salad "...the most luxurious summer starter." 

Zucchini & Hazelnut Salad
Adapted from Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi
(Serves 4)

1/3 cup shelled hazelnuts
7 small zucchini (about 1 3/4 lbs in total)
4 tbsp olive oil (I cut down to about 2 Tbsp total)
salt and black pepper to taste
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 1/4 cups mixed green & purple basil leaves (I used sweet & Thai Basil & purple shiso)
3 oz top-quality Parmesan, broken up, very thinly-sliced or shaved
2 tsp hazelnut oil (I used walnut oil)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Scatter the hazelnuts over a baking sheet and roast 12-15 minutes or until nicely browned and toasted. Let them cool down (remove skins if needed) before chopping roughly or just crushing lightly with the side of a large knife.

Place a ridged grill pan on high heat and leave it there until it is almost red hot--at least 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, trim the ends off of zucchini and cut on an angle into about 3/8-inch-thick slices. Place zucchini slices in a bowl and toss with half the olive oil, salt and black pepper. Place the slices on the hot grill pan and cook about 2 minutes on each side, turning them over using tongs. You want to get distinct char marks without cooking the zucchini through. Transfer to a mixing bowl, drizzle balsamic vinegar over and toss to combine. Set aside to cool slightly.

Once zucchini has cooled down, add the remaining olive oil, basil and hazelnuts. Mix lightly and taste for seasoning. Place salad on plates, incorporating the Parmesan, and drizzle over the hazelnut oil.     

Notes/Results: This salad is excellent--simple but elegant and great flavor. The taste of grilled zucchini is enhanced by the basil and the nutty combination of the roasted hazelnuts and Parmesan. The recipe called for green and purple basil but I have not yet replaced my purple basil plant and couldn't find any. I used a mixture of sweet and Thai basil and for a pop of color, I tossed in some dark purple shiso (aka perilla or beefsteak). I didn't have hazelnut oil and didn't really want to buy a bottle, so I used walnut oil as my drizzle. I like that there is just enough balsamic to give flavor but not overpower the rest of the ingredients--I am not fond of salads where all you taste is the balsamic vinegar. I ate a big plate of this salad as a light dinner, along with some toasted garlic bread slices. Another winning Ottolenghi salad! Great for a warm, humid night, I will make it again. 

This week's IHCC theme is "A Squash is a Squash, Of Course, Of Course..." You can check out the squashy Ottolenghi dishes everyone made this week by checking out the links on the post.
 

Tortilla Soup with Beans & Kale: Party in a Bowl for Cinco de Mayo at Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammie) Sundays

 
It's Cinco de Mayo today, a perfect holiday to celebrate over a festive bowl of tortilla soup. Especially good today because it's cool, gray and drizzly here. I wanted to make a vegan tortilla soup version but add something to make it satisfying. Pinto and black beans seemed like a great alternative--as did adding kale to get some healthy greens in there. To make it even healthier, you could bake the tortilla strips and shapes--but hey, it's a holiday--a little balanced celebrating is good. I like to think of this Tortilla Soup with Beans & Kale as the "mullet" of soups--all (healthy) business in the bowl, all party in the toppings! ;-)

Tortilla Soup (Sopa de Tortilla) with Beans & Kale

by Deb, Kahakai Kitchen

(Makes 6 Servings)

canola oil, to fry tortillas

8 corn tortillas, cut into strips or shapes
1 large onion, diced

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp Mexican oregano

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper or to taste

1/2 tsp hot paprika

1 dried pasilla chilies, stemmed, seeded and sliced

2 (14.5 oz) canned fire-roasted diced tomatoes

5 cups veggie broth(low sodium or homemade)

1 cup tomato sauce or passata

1 (16 oz) can low-sodium black beans

1 (16 oz) can low-sodium pinto beans

2 cups kale (either frozen or stemmed and chopped into ribbons)

juice of 1 lime

salt and black pepper to taste

Optional Toppings: 

fried tortilla strips & shapes

chopped fresh cilantro leaves

ripe avocado, peeled, pitted, and sliced or chopped

fresh baby sweet tomatoes, halved

deep fried jalapeno peppers

Mexican cheese or non-dairy cheese id desired

Put canola oil in a heavy soup pot or pan over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, fry the tortilla strips and shapes in small batches until golden brown and crisp, turning after a minute or two, for a total of about 2 to 3 minutes. Drain well on paper towels and set aside.

Discard all but 1 tablespoon of the oil. Reduce heat to medium, add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute another minutes or two, then add the dried chilies and spices and cook about 2 minutes to toast. Add tomatoes, veggie stock, tomato sauce and half the tortilla strips and bring the mixture to a boil, then simmer for 20 minutes.

Using an immersion blender, or carefully in batches in an upright blender, puree the mixture until smooth. Return to the stove over medium heat, stir in the beans and kale, and cook about 5 minutes or until heated through. Season to taste with lime juice, salt, and black pepper. 

So you can see the soup "topless"

Ladle the soup into large bowls and top with cilantro, avocado, remaining tortilla strips, tomatoes, fried jalapeno pieces and serve. Or place toppings in small bowls and let everyone top their own bowl of soup. Enjoy!

Notes/Results: Nothing comforts like a big bowl of tortilla soup and this one is full of good flavor and fun. For the broth, I wanted intense tomato flavor and I wanted to use up some of the open bottle of passata I had leftover from Ottolenghi's Barley Risotto so I added it to the broth with a couple of cans of fire-roasted tomatoes. Combined with the cumin, oregano, cayenne and hot paprika, it had great taste. I kept the broth just slightly spicy because I knew I was topping with these Fresh Gourmet Crispy Jalapenos (on sale at my local Safeway this week). They add a good kick. I kept my soup dairy-free and vegan but feel free to add some of your favorite cheese. This really hit the spot--I would make it again. 

Time to visit the Souper Sundays kitchen and see who dropped by!

Spencer (The Mouse) of Live2EatEat2Live Blog is back with this Lotus Seed "Soup" and says, "One of our relatives, read this post, and gave us a container of dried lotus bulb petals. So it’s lotus seed “soup”, the sequel, with bulb petals.  Followed the instructions to the letter. No ginger nor peanut butter this time. OMG!, I actually followed a recipe, without substantial modifications. Amazing! The Cat said it was  pretty authentic."

Pam of Sidewalk Shoes shares this pretty and refreshing Lobster, Avocado, and Grapefruit Salad and says, "I have to say that Gourmet Today: More than 1000 All-New Recipes for the Contemporary Kitchen has hit another home run.  This salad was light, yet felt rich with the lobster meat and the avocado.  The grapefruit cut through the richness with a sweet tart flavor.  I couldn’t find just arugula, so I used a mix of baby arugula, baby spinach, and baby kale.   Served with a glass of white wine and a nice baguette, it was downright elegant." 

My pal Kim of Stirring the Pot tried her hand at Yotam Ottolenghi's Farro and Roasted Pepper Salad with Smoky Paprika Dressing and says, "My favorite part of the salad, however, was the smoky paprika dressing.  The dressing was rather complex with a hint of smokiness from the paprika, a refreshing zing from the lemon juice, and a touch of sweetness from the honey.  I felt like the dressing really brought everything together.  Thanks to all the flavors and textures I found this salad very addictive."  

Joanne of Eats Well With Others changed out the farro in Ottolenghi's dish and made Wheat Berry and Roasted Pepper Salad with a Smoked Paprika Dressing instead. She says, "...this is another new Ottolenghi favorite of mine.  Bright fresh flavors, sultry roasted red peppers, and a hearty background of beans and wheat berries.  And you should know that it was so good that The.Boy ate it TWICE even though he doesn't like olives OR feta, both of which are fairly prominent in here."

Janet of The Taste Space offers up these crunchy Mexican Chili Salad Wraps and says, "...I thought to myself: lets combine the best of both worlds.Beans and flavourful sauces for a high-protein fix. I actually got the idea after Gena posted Brendan’s recipe for a cold chili. Basically all the foundations from a regular chili are combined to make a satisfying dip. It is quite versatile: heat it up to make a regular chili, serve it with chips as a dip, place overtop your favourite green as a salad or place inside Romaine lettuces as a chili salad wrap."

 
 
Elizabeth of The Law Student's Cookbook shares these Spicy Asian Hamburgers and says, "...I made this delicious hamburger. Infused with Asian flavors, this made such a great meal. And instead of serving it just with french fries, I roasted some asparagus as well and tossed the french fries and the asparagus in Argyle Street Asian Blend, which I had received from a Foodie Pen Pals some months back. And instead of ketchup for the fries, I mixed up some sriacha, mayonnaise,  and ketchup which also was the spread on the burger. Both the fries and the asparagus tasted good with the dip."

Thanks to everyone who joined in this week. If you have a soup, salad or sandwich that you would like to share, just click on the Souper Sundays logo on my side bar for all of the details.

Happy Cinco de Mayo and a Happy, Healthy week!