Yumm Sauce

One of my favorite spots for a quick bite to eat when we're traveling in the Northwest is Cafe Yumm.  I have been known to ask my family members to pack bottles of their signature yumm sauce when coming for a visit!  But now I have yumm sauce whenever I want (which is pretty much always), thanks to this great knock-off recipe from Mel's Kitchen Cafe.  The flavor is unique, as you'll see in reading the ingredient list, but I've not shared it with someone yet who didn't enjoy it - or at least do a really good job pretending to!  It's great as a dip for veggies, pretzels, or chips.  It's also great on meat or as a salad dressing, and goes especially well on your version of a taco salad.  Enjoy!

• 1/2 cup avocado, canola, or vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds
• 1 cup canned Great Northern or Garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup light coconut milk (from a can)
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (from about 3 large lemons)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse, kosher salt
• Pinch of coarsely ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 to 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/3 cup nutritional yeast

DIRECTIONS:

1. For the Yumm sauce, add the oil, almonds, beans and water to a blender. Process until very smooth, 1-2 minutes (or as long as needed).
2. Add the coconut milk, lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, curry powder, oregano, cilantro and nutritional yeast. Process again until creamy and smooth. Add additional water to thin out the sauce, if needed. Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve (this tastes best after it’s had time to rest – even several days – but you can also use it right away).

Greek Dressing & Marinade

We've been enjoying some warmer weather this month, so I'm trying to keep the oven off and outdoor eating on!  This dressing/marinade is versatile and so delicious.  I used half the batch for marinating chicken skewers that we grilled.  The rest was drizzled over raw vegetables, cooked veggies, salad, pasta, and whatever else I thought might remotely work.

1/4 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 c. white vinegar
2 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. seasoning salt
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes (this will not make the dressing spicy, just flavorful)
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
4 cloves garlic, smashed and peeled
1 c. canola oil (or other salad oil)
1/2 c. crumbled feta cheese
3/4 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp. dry oregano

In the jar of a blender, combine all the ingredients through the garlic. Blend until smooth. While the blender is running, add the oil in a steady stream. Turn off the blender and add the feta and pulse the blender a few times (more if you want a creamier consistency). Whisk in the herbs. If possible, refrigerate for at least an hour before serving. Use as a marinade for chicken, lamb, or flank steak or drizzle over a Greek salad.

Applesauce

One of our neighbors has a full apple tree in her backyard and offered to let us have our fill.  The kids and I picked as many as we could carry home and have been making applesauce like crazy!  My 3-year-old loves the peeler-corer-slicer, and we all love the finished product!  There's really no way to mess this up (mushed apples with a little sweetener, right?!), but this is how we do it in the Payne kitchen.

8-10 apples, cored, peeled and chopped

1/3 cup white sugar

1 1/2 cups water

1 cinnamon stick (or a little less than 1 tsp. ground cinnamon)

Place everything in a large saucepan.  Stir to mix well.  Cover pot with lid and cook on medium heat for 15 minutes, or until apples are soft.  Remove lid, mash apples and try to be patient enough to eat without burning your mouth.

Strawberry Coulis and Limeade Concentrate

I bookmarked this page from Simple Bites in anticipation of our strawberry picking. They are, indeed, simple ideas, but certainly tasty ways to use up the last of my fresh strawberries.

Strawberry Coulis (a fancy way of saying "Strawberry Sauce")
I made one jar of this and have it tucked away in my freezer to remind us of summer days when the winter comes.

about one pint strawberries, washed and hulled
1 Tablespoon sugar, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon lemon or lime juice

Combine strawberries, lemon juice and sugar in a blender or food processor.

Pulse until berries are somewhat chopped then blend until smooth and the sauce looks glossy. Taste and adjust sugar if needed.

If desired, pass puree through a fine sieve to remove seeds. (I usually skip this step.)

Pour into two 1/2 pint jars, leaving 1/2 an inch of headspace at the top of the jar, and freeze.

Makes 2 cups.

Note: Sauce will also keep up to four days in the refrigerator.

Strawberry-Limeade Concentrate
I tried these out for the first time this evening. I used three cubes for a tall glass of sparkling water. It was summer in a glass - fantastically refreshing! Use lemon juice instead to get strawberry-lemonade concentrate.


3/4 cup strawberry coulis (recipe above)
3/4 cup sugar or whole cane sugar
1 cup lime juice (approximately 8 limes)

Mix ingredients together and freeze in ice cube trays.
To serve: In a drinking glass, stir together 1 cup cold water and two frozen cubes of concentrate and stir to combine.

Toffee-Date Pudding with Toffee Sauce

Do yourself a favor: go make this right now. At least make the toffee sauce and drench a bowl of ice cream with it. Do it. Right now.


6 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for baking pan
2 cups chopped pitted dates (8 ounces)
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla


Preheat oven to 350. Lightly butter an 8-inch square baking pan. IN a small saucepan, combine dates and 1 cup water; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add baking soda and stir until dates begin to break down and mixture thickens slightly. 1 to 2 minutes. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, allspice, and salt. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar on medium until ight and fluffly, 3 to 5 minutes. Add eggs and vailla; beat until combined (mixture may look curdled). Scrape down bowl.

With mixer on low, beat in flour miture in three additions, alternating with date mixture and beginning adn ending with flour mixture. Increase speed to medium and beat to combine. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake until a skewer inserted in center comes out with only a few moist crumbs attached, about 45 minutes. Meanwhile, make Toffee Sauce.

Set baking pan on a wire rack and poke holes all over top of cake with skewer. Pour 1.2 cup Toffee Sauce over cake; let stand 10 minutes. (To store, cover and keep at room temperature, up to 3 days.) Cut cake into squares and serve warm with remaining sauce.

TOFFEE SAUCE:
In a small saucepan, combine:
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
6 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/2 cup heavy cream
pinch of salt

Cook over medium-high, stirring constantly, until sugar dissolves and mixture boils. Reduce to a simmer and cook, without stirring, 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in 2 teaspoons whiskey (optional).

Pasta with Butternut Parmesan Sauce

This was a simple-to-make sauce that didn't take long (minus the time spent baking the squash, but how hard is that?!) and was tasty on the pasta and chicken.


1 butternut squash weighing about 2 1/2 pounds
8 ounces of bow-tie pasta
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1/3 cup of chopped shallots
1/2 cup of packed, freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup of heavy cream (I used whole milk)
1/8 teaspoon of grated nutmeg
1 tablespoon of chopped parsley
2 teaspoons of lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste
Water as needed to thin the sauce

Preheat the oven to 350F. Cut the butternut squash lengthwise in half and scoop out the guts and seeds and discard them. Pour 1/4 cup of water into a pyrex or ceramic baking dish and place the butternut squash halves cut side down. Bake for 40 minutes or until a fork easily pierces the squash. Allow to cool for 10 minutes. Scoop out the squash flesh from the skins and purée with a blender. Discard the skins.

Fill a pot with water and salt (1 tablespoon of salt for every 2 quarts of water). Set over high heat to bring to a hard boil. Add the pasta and cook at a hard boil, uncovered until al dente.

While the pasta is cooking, pour the olive oil into a wide skillet on medium heat. Add the shallots and sauté until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the butternut squash purée and cook for about a minute, mixing it in with the shallots. Add the cream, a tablespoon at a time, slowly stirring it in to incorporate and to avoid lumps. Stir in the Parmesan. Add the nutmeg, salt and pepper. Add water (or chicken stock) to thin to the consistency you want. Take off heat and add the parsley and lemon juice. Cover the pan to keep warm.

Check pasta. When ready (al dente) drain and plate. Pour the sauce over the pasta. Garnish with a little extra parsley and Parmesan. Serve immediately.

Serves 4.

Pumpkin Seed Sauce

I know this picture doesn't look very appetizing, but trust me - this was delicious! I only grilled two chicken breasts and the recipe says the sauce is enough to serve four, so we have enjoyed the left-over sauce on meatballs, baked potatoes, and roasted vegetables. Yummy stuff!

2 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1 jalapeno chile, chopped (seeds and ribs removed for less heat if desired)
1/4 cup raw green pumpkin seeds
1 1/2 cups packed chopped romaine lettuce
1 Tbsp white-wine vinegar (I used red)
salt and pepper
1/4 cup packed fresh cilantro leaves

Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Add onion, garlic, and jalapeno; cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5 to 8 minutes.

Add pumpkin seeds; cook, stirring often, until puffed, about 5 minutes. Add lettuce, vinegar, and 1 cup water; season with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt (it was a tad on the salty side, so I would start with just 1/2 or 1 teaspoon and add to taste). Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer, covered, until lettuce is tender, about 10 minutes.

Transfer mixture to a blender; add cilantro. Blend on high speed until sauce is very smooth, about 3 minutes. Thin sauce with 2 to 4 Tablespoons more water if needed (it should be pourable).

Serve with your choice of meat or veggies or - whatever! This can be made up to 2 days in advance; let cool completely, then refrigerate in an airtight container. Reheat over low heat.