Jini's Ethnic Gourmet Newsletter August 2006

Recipes
- Strawberry Salad
- Blueberry Drizzle Salad
Ethnic Pleasures

Announcing!

Please visit my new website!
www.jinisethnicgourmet.com
You will find more wonderful recipes there to try out tonight!

Call me old fashioned if you will, but I do believe that home cooked meals are the ultimate labour of love. Family values of cooking and sharing a meal together, apart from being a bonding experience, helps pass on values to the next generation....
Author Jini Aroon (excerpt from Ethnic Gourmet)

Have a very berry summer!

Summer is almost on its way out...judging from our cloudy Vancouver weather - and so is our luscious berry season, here in our lower mainland.

Some of you die-hard berry pickers must have your freezers chock-full of berries by now. For those of you who don't, supermarkets still carry the imported California berries. (Do wash them thoroughly before use.)

Did you know that Canada and the NE United States are the biggest producers of blueberries, and they are a great source of nutrients? Just 1 cup yields 7 gms of fibre, 129 mg of potassium and they are high in flavanoids which protects arteries and also prevents cataract.

They taste wonderful and are easy to use. They make quick breakfast shakes, or instant desserts, combined with 1/2 cup of yogurt, 1/2 banana or a wedge of cantaloupe to add sweetness.

They can be sprinkled on greens with a light dressing, or baked with a little oatmeal and brown sugar topping to make a crunchy and delicious crumble.

So here's a way to prolong the taste of summer berries throughout the rest of the year with these great recipes (adapted from great cooks on the food network!).

I recently made this salad for a wedding catering, and I humbly confess, it was the talk of the party!

Strawberry Salad

Award-Winning Strawberry Salad with Poppy Seed dressing

Ingredients:

6 cup baby spinach and torn romaine lettuce, mixed
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup granulated sugar (175 ml) or honey
1/4 cup skim milk (60 ml)
2 tbsp white vinegar (30 ml) (or VE Mediterranean vinegar)
2 tbsp poppyseeds (30 ml)
1 cup strawberries, sliced (250 ml)
1/2 cup Grand Marnier liqueur (125 ml) (optional)
1 red onion, sliced

Instructions:

Wash and dry the spinach and lettuce. Place in a salad bowl and chill until ready to serve.
To make the dressing, combine mayonnaise, sugar, milk, vinegar, and poppyseeds in a blender or with a whisk until smooth. Chill 1 hour.
Marinate strawberries in liqueur 1 hour.
Drain berries; mix with greens. Pour dressing over the salad to taste or serve separately. Top with onion to garnish.

Chef's tip: if you like a short-cut to making the dressing, you could try a great Poppy Seed dressing mix by Victorian Epicure. Please check out their website at www.epicureselections.com and email me for more information on ordering their products.

The gathering of food at harvest time is still celebrated among many cultures. Food has always been the focal point of any social gathering. No ceremony or party would be complete without the bonding experience of gathering around the food table...
Author Jini Aroon (excerpt from Ethnic Gourmet)

Blueberry Drizzle Salad

Award-Winning Blueberry Drizzle Salad

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons sliced roasted almonds (30 millilitres)
2 cups blueberry (500 millilitres)
2 tbsp sugar (30 millilitres)
1 tbsp water (30 millilitres)
2 tbsp lemon juice (30 millilitres)
1/4 cup olive oil (60 millilitres)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp Dijon mustard (15 millilitres)
Mixed greens

Instructions:

Simmer blueberries with 1 tablespoon of sugar and 1 tablespoon of water until syrupy consistency is achieved. Let cool.
To make dressing. Combine lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, 1 tablespoon sugar and Dijon mustard. Mix well.
Pour cooled blueberries and dressing over mixed greens and serve.

Want more recipes?

Announcing the launch of my Ethnic Pleasures Cookbook!

I am very pleased to share my new cookbook, Ethnic Pleasures where it features gourmet recipes from four different ethnic cultures:

Thai,
Indonesia,
Sri Lanka, and
South Indian.

Each section of the cookbook contains my favourite recipes that cover appetizers, main dishes, desserts, and accompaniments. View a sampling of some of the tasty recipes that you will discover in this highly anticipated collection of recipes from the heart.

Why a Cookbook?

I recently visited Sri Lanka and saw the destruction caused by the December 26, 2004 tsunami that washed away 30,000 lives and left almost a million people homeless. I felt that even a small contribution on my part can go a long way.

I have pledged to donate $5.00 from the sale of each book with my goal being to raise $4,000 by December 2006 to contribute a housing project in Sri Lanka in the Tsunami destroyed area. So you will not only be learning new recipes for some mouth-watering South Asian dishes, but also taking pride in contributing to a great cause.

This Cookbook is available in hard copy or available to download immediately in PDF format. Please visit my website to place your order.... thank you!

Until next month... happy cooking!
Jini

www.jinisethnicgourmet.com