Lately I have not been too well, that’s why I haven’t been posting any recipe on a regular basis like I used to, and my desire and energy for cooking has gone down, hopefully it will pick up at some point. I have no motivation for sitting in front of my computer either, but I sincerely miss everyone, people I met through this blog have been incredibly supportive, kind and generous. Thanks so much for anyone who reads my blogs and leaves genuine comments, they mean a lot to me. I apologize if I have had a difficult time to catch up with everyone, I have had very low energy level and some health issues, but hopefully will get back to my regular routine soon.

I started writing this recipe about three weeks ago and never managed to finish it, it took me forever…so here it is after such a long time. This salad is composed with a well balanced mixture of grains, vegetables, and proteins, such a nutritious and flavorful dish.

I call this a salad since it has a dressing but it can be called anything you like, and can be consumed lukewarm or cold. The particularity of this dish is that I mixed eight varieties of grains and seeds such as brown rice, oats, lentils, pumpkin seeds, etc… for a mixed variety of textures. Maybe you’ll think this look more like a bird meal to you than a gourmet salad. It is definitely questionable, but after you taste it, you will think bird ingredients can taste incredibly tasty.

The grains have been enhanced with vegetables, and seafood which complement the grains quite well. This is nothing complicated, you just need various grains in your pantry.

Ingredients for 2-3

• 200 g of mixed grains such as:
• brown rice
• wheat flakes
• sorghum rice
• buckwheat
• pearl barley
• black rice
• pearl rice
• red lentil
• 1 tbs roasted pumpkin seeds
• 10 large shrimps
• 4 medium artichokes
• 3 tbs dry white wine
• 70 g cannellini beans cooked  (either dried or canned)

Ingredients for the herb-lemon vinaigrette

• 3 tbs avocado oil
• juice of one lemon
• zest of 1/2 lemon
• 1 tsp tarragon, chopped
• 1 tsp parsley, chopped
• 1 tsp chives, chopped
• 1 tbs red onion, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• one pinch cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper

Preparation

Mix all grains together and steam them. You can steam them the same way you would steam rice, even if there are many varities of grains, some of them cook a little faster than others but it does not make a big difference cooking them all together. You can use a rice cooker or use the regular technique using a simple pot.

Trim artichokes, removing the hard leaves around, and cutting off the top of the artichoke. Cut in quarters and place in a container filled with water and lemon juice to prevent the artichokes from darkening.

In a pan, heat olive oil, add 1 garlic clove, then drain artichokes and add to the pan, stir for a few minutes, coating the artichokes with garlic and oil, then add wine, salt and pepper. Stir well. Cover with a lid and cook at medium heat until artichokes are tender. Remove from heat and set aside.

Saute shrimps in olive oil, add salt and pepper and set aside.

In a large container, mix steamed grains with artichokes, cannellini beans, shrimps, pumpkin seeds. Pour vinaigrette on top by mixing all ingredients together. Stir well and serve. You can serve at room temperature or cold.

]]> http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2010/07/salad-of-grain-medley-with-cannellini-shrimps-artichokes-in-a-herb-lemon-dressing/feed/ 28 http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2010/04/a-happy-match-cream-of-fennel-and-cannellini-beans-with-marinated-feta-tartine/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=a-happy-match-cream-of-fennel-and-cannellini-beans-with-marinated-feta-tartine http://citronetvanille.com/blog/2010/04/a-happy-match-cream-of-fennel-and-cannellini-beans-with-marinated-feta-tartine/#comments Fri, 09 Apr 2010 06:10:59 +0000 silvia http://www.citronetvanille.com/blog/?p=9078 Un mariage bienheureux – Crème de fenouil et haricots blancs, tartine de féta mariné

Fennel and cannellini is a very Mediterranean combination, then if you accompany it with feta, there is no more doubt about it. Fennel is perfect for soups and purées, and of course in so many other ways too. When I make those purée types of soups, I cannot help it to accompany it with a tartine of country bread and with some kind of cheese, Roquefort, ricotta, feta, goat cheese, anything that will enhance a spoonful of that sweet fennel flavor.

My favorite alcoholic aperitif being pastis, I love fennel since its sweet anis flavor reminds me of Marseille and the South of France. If you ever end up in Marseille, you have to drink a pastis, it’s the local drink and incredibly refreshing during summer time…of course if you like anis.

Technically what is the difference between a cream, a velouté, a bisque, when talking about a soup? Their main common point is that they’re thick and blended soups. Yes, in the French language there are quite a lot of words to describe “a soup” but they all have very distinct and precise meanings, there are so many nuances that sometimes it’s intricate to explain them accurately.

The velouté is a blended soup, creamy and unctuous and enhanced by cream that contains meats and crustaceans. The cream is made out of pure vegetables combined with crème fraîche.

Bisque is a velouté in which its main ingredient is a crustacean and thickened by yolks and cream.

Then of course, we have the bouillon and the consommé, which are broth based and have a liquid texture. The word soup is a generic one, and does not give you any information on the type of soup you are eating…just a soup.

I did not add cream in my cream of fennel, so technically it cannot be called “cream”, you can add crème fraîche at the end like it should, I am just keeping things light, so au revoir la crème.

Ingredients for 4

For the soup

• 2 fennel bulbs, sliced
• 1 medium size onion, chopped
• 1 sprig thyme
• 1/2 lb cannellini beans, cooked
• vegetable broth
• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1 tbs mint for decoration

For the tartines

• 4 slices country bread, cut in halves
• 4 tbs feta, crumbled
• 1/8 tsp cumin powder
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp olive oil
• cracked black pepper

Preparation

Heat olive oil in a large pot and brown onions, then add fennel and thyme. Stir well to coat the fennel, then add broth (enough just to cover the fennel mixture), adjust with salt and pepper.

When the fennel is cooked, add cooked cannellini beans, and let the soup for about 10 minutes (adjust broth if necessary).

Remove from heat and blend in a blender into a thin mixture.

For the tartines, crumble carefully feta cheese in a container, add spices, herbs and oil. Mix carefully not to break the cheese. Toast slices of bread and top if with cheese.