This salad would be ruined by throwing on creamy ranch or something. You want this vinaigrette. Trust me.

Ah, before you even think it, don’t you dare try and say that America has already perfected this and Kraft sells it by the bottle at the grocery store. What you are thinking of is “French Dressing”. That stuff is as French as apple pie and baseball. You aren’t fooling anybody. I’m not even sure what is in that, but I think ketchup is one of the ingredients… and maybe some kind of red or yellow food dye. Look, bottled dressings may have their place (emphasis on may) and I do know you can get pre-made dressings and vinaigrettes in France, but I have never seen the equivalent of American “French Dressing” in the stores there.

And they all soundly beat Grey Poupon.

I’m always a fan of good quality ingredients, but here I must really emphasize one ingredient: mustard. A good Dijon mustard is required for this. I always bring some back in my suitcase, usually a brand like Amora which is inexpensive and tasty. Not everyone has the luxury of bringing their own mustard back from France–I know that. It shouldn’t stop you though, some decent brands are available here. Maille is certainly available at most grocery stores. Grey Poupon will even work. If you can find it, get Maille though, it may be the most authentic of the easy to find brands here in the US. Amora may be available in some import or gourmet shops, but any good quality Dijon will suit you well.

The French have a much greater selection of mustard than we do. Good for them, bad for us. Many grocery stores do have quite a bit of mustard, but that “Yellow Mustard” is hardly worth eating. That doesn’t even exist in France. (I once made the mistake once of picking up “French’s Mustard” thinking it would be French… boy was I wrong.) The image to the right here was taken in a grocery store (Carrefour Market) in Paris (a second photo here). You can find more variety at the full size Carrefours and higher quality mustards are not difficult to find in many specialty or gourmet food stores. Thanks for the pic, Alistair.

Here is the brand I use.

Now that you have your mustard situation straightened out, you’ll need some vinegar. Red wine vinegar is my first choice. I’d never use balsamic in a French vinaigrette, too sweet and syrupy. It can be good, but it’s not what is needed here.

The rest of the ingredients I’ll be less picky about. Get a small shallot, some decent extra virgin olive oil, a bit of sea salt, and some fresh ground pepper. (Good quality olive oil is important, but I’d rather insist on the mustard here.)

chop chop chop chop chop

It’s not quite mix-and-serve though. I’ve found that the vinaigrette improves if you let the ingredients sit together for a while. My mother typically makes this vinaigrette before the meal and just leaves it on the counter until the salad course. The acid from the vinegar seems to mellow the oniony bite of the shallot a bit. If you have enough foresight let the vinegar and shallot macerate for a while before adding the rest of the ingredients. Honestly, I almost always forget to do this. Don’t worry though, no one will complain if you just whip it up moments before eating.

Letting the shallot soak in the vinegar (or even with the rest of the ingredients) seems to take the edge off.

You aren’t limited to just dressing up your leaves with this though. I’ve used variants of this with lentils, chickpeas, and several other things.

Ingredients
Again, as appears to be the tradition in French recipes, I’ve almost never seen actual proportions written out in France. It’s a matter of habit and just tasting the final result. Here are the typical proportions for a salad course for 4 though.
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 small shallot, minced
dash sea salt
dash fresh ground black pepper
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons olive oil

This is what real French dressing looks like.

Directions
1. Combine the vinegar, shallot, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Whisk to combine.
2. Whisk in the mustard and olive oil.
3. Give it a taste. Feel free to add more vinegar, mustard, or oil to your liking. I often add a dash more mustard or vinegar. You should see how you like it though.

Note: You can let sit for a while after either step one or two. I’m not sure that it makes much of a difference when you let it sit, but I do find that the shallot is somewhat tamed.
Don’t mix in the salad until you are ready to eat. Mixing too early will cause the leaves to wilt.

Oh, and use decent salad. No iceberg please. Get some mixed greens. Salad de mache is what I used here. Good stuff.

Rolled Spinach and Cheese Omelettes

My original plan was just to scramble some eggs and keep it simple. Then I remembered that I had some ricotta and Parmesan in the fridge. I also had some chopped frozen spinach in the freezer that I tossed into the microwave to thaw. As I went outside to pick some parsely I realized that my plans were quickly snowballing out of control.

Making things worse, I wasn’t going to be satisfied with a regular omelette (or omelet? Wikipedia says omelette, so I’m sticking with it). Folding it in half is so predictable. Maybe rolling it is cliché, but I have never had a rolled omelette, so I felt cool coming up with the idea.

Feel free to add anything you want to your version, bits of bacon, ham, vegetables… Keep in mind that these omelettes are thinner than regular ones, so rolling large or chuncky things would probably just cause it to tear. I’m happy with how this turned out, especially because I wasn’t even trying to do anything original when I started. In the end this was more complicated than scrambled eggs, but still easier than a real omelette.

Spinach and Cheese Omelette

Ingredients
3 eggs – 1 per omelette
milk – a splash per egg, about a tablespoon per egg
salt and pepper
frozen chopped spinach
olive oil or butter
any cheeses on hand: ricotta, Parmesan
parsley (for garnish) (Now that I have a plant of this stuff I tend to toss it everywhere.)
salsa

Directions

1. Break three eggs into a mason jar, add a splash of milk and a pinch of salt, cover and shake–presto scrambled eggs.
2. Put enough spinach for three omelettes (about 2 tablespoons per omelette) into a bowl and microwave until warm.
3. Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium heat until hot. Add a splash of olive oil (~1 tsp) (or butter for more awesome taste) and swirl to coat the skillet.
4. Add about one third of the egg mixture and swirl to coat the skillet. This will be a thin omelette, that’s fine. Let it cook until it sets, this will happen fairly quickly (~1 min). Flip it as soon as you think it has set enough to handle.
5. Spread about a tablespoon of ricotta, a teaspoon of Parmesan, a few cracks of black pepper and a good pinch of the spinach over the open omelette. Transfer to a large plate.
6. Once on the plate roll the omelette into the spiral you see below and repeat steps 4-6 with the other two omelettes.
7. Serve with the salsa and some chopped parsely. Enjoy your breakfast.

Spinach and Cheese Omelette

This simple, straightforward sauce can be enjoyed on its own or adapted in any number of ways. Add some broth or water to make a thin sauce, add large amounts of vegtables to make a refreshing spring/summer pasta, add some meats, spices, herbs, whatever you have–don’t be afraid to experiment.

A pot of basic marinara sauce.

I typically use canned crushed tomatoes to cut down on the amount of processing I have to do. The small chunks that remain make the sauce appear more rustic and traditional than if it is blended smooth.

For a simpler sauce, omit the carrots and celery, use only one onion, and add a few tablespoons of some herbs like thyme, basil, and parsley. (I usually avoid oregano as it’s more Greek than Italian and quickly overpowers the other ingredients of the dish.)

This recipe makes plenty of sauce (about 6 cups, 48 ounces) but I sometimes double it if I am making a batch to freeze.

The sauce is also vegetarian/vegan friendly.

Basic Marinara Sauce:
You get extra points if you replace the crushed tomatoes with whole canned Italian tomatoes, remove the seeds, and crush them with the back of a spoon.
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 small onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 (32-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
4 to 6 basil leaves
2 dried bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
4 tablespoons unsalted butter (optional)

Directions

1. In a large pot or dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-high heat.
2. Add the onion and garlic and saute until the onion softens (2-4 minutes).
3. Add the carrot, celery, salt, and pepper to the party. Stir occasionally and saute until everything softens (5-7 minutes).
4. Next add the tomatoes, basil and bay leaves. Cover and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for about an hour to thicken. (If it doesn’t thicken after an hour, continue simmering with the lid off.)
5. Fish out the bay leaf and taste. Some canned tomatoes are more acidic than others, so tasting is crucial. If the sauce is acidic, add 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter, mix in and taste again. Repeat if needed. (Alternatively, I’ve also seen other recipes call for a pinch of sugar–sugar will keep it vegetarian/vegan.)
6. I typically leave as is, but if a smoother sauces is needed, blend in batches in either a food processor or blender.

Sauce can be frozen in portions in plastic freezer bags. To thaw, place the bag if the fridge overnight, or if in a hurry, soak the bag in warm water.

Close up of sauce.

Nutty brown rice dinner. The picture was taken before I added the dressing.

These kinds of smaller, lighter dishes are actually more representative of how I eat day-to-day. I love making more complex and interesting dishes when time permits, but it doesn’t take much effort to use things you have on hand in an interesting and flavorful manner. You don’t have to follow these ingredients to the letter, just add anything you have in your fridge. Frozen vegetables work fine too.

Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 cans chickpeas, rinsed, drained
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 or 2 bell peppers, chopped (red or yellow are best)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 small bundle asparagus, chopped
3 cups cooked brown rice
1 cup chopped almonds

-For the Dressing- From 101 Cookbooks
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons hot water
1/2 teaspoon salt

Nutty brown rice dish.

Directions

1. Combine all the ingredients for the dressing together in a bowl and mix to combine. (I keep a spare mason jar around to make dressings. Handy to shake it up and store it in the fridge.)
2. Put a large pot over medium-high heat then add the 3 tablespoons olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add the chickpeas. Sauté for 3-5 minutes, or until some start to brown, stirring occasionally so nothing burns.
3. Add the garlic, peppers, salt, and pepper and stir to combine. Cook for 1-2 minutes.
4. Add the asparagus, cover, and cook for 2 minutes.
5. Add the rice and nearly all the chopped almonds. Cook until heated through, about 1-2 minutes more.
6. Serve with tahini dressing and garnish with the reserved chopped almonds.

Spicy Garlic Shrimp with Sundried Tomatoes

The nice thing about an olive oil sauce is that it lets you play with more spices and herbs to bring those tastes to the front of the dish. You infuse the olive oil with any number of ingredients and drizzle it over the pasta. In this dish I used garlic, red pepper flakes and parsley as the primary flavors. I also soaked the sun-dried tomatoes in the oil to help reconstitute them and help the flavors mix.

The small brown things you see are fried garlic chips. I sliced some garlic into thin disks and essentially fried them in the olive oil. This yielded crispy garlic chips that not only infused the oil with the garlic flavor but also served as a great texture contrast in the dish and looked great as a garnish.

Spicy Garlic Shrimp with Sundried Tomatoes

We’ve discussed picking out shrimp/shellfish before in Erica’s guest post about scallops. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Shrimp should be bought frozen. Most shrimp boats freeze their catches directly on the boat and thawed shrimp begin losing their flavor in just a couple of days.

As far as what size to go with? I tend to like large shrimp (21 to 25 per pound) because you don’t have to prepare as many to get a full dish. But it’s up to you, these were smaller but on sale, so I went ahead and got these.

Spicy Garlic Shrimp with Sundried Tomatoes

Though I don’t always do this, I have read that it’s best not to buy cleaned and peeled shrimp. A chemical called tripolyphosphate is sometimes used in commercially cleaned shrimp. This chemical aids in water retention and can give shrimp an off flavor. The extra moisture will be released during cooking, and the shrimp will steam rather than sauté. That said, I am sometimes lazy and if I’m the only one eating it, I have bought prepared shrimp before.

Spicy Shrimp Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined
Table salt and ground black pepper
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
7 cloves garlic ; 6 cloves sliced thin lengthwise, 1 clove minced
6 sundried tomatoes, cut into strips
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (I like this dish spicy, if you don’t like very spicy food, use 1/4 tsp)
1/4 cup dry sherry
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
2 tablespoons unsalted butter , softened
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Lemon wedges for serving

Preparation:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Prepare the spaghetti as directed on the packet. (Dry pasta generally takes about 8 to 9 minutes for al dente.) When the pasta is al dente, drain and set aside (covered to retain heat). The pasta should be finished about the same time, or before, the shrimp finishes.
2. After shrimp has been prepared, pat them dry with some paper towel and toss with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
3. Put the oil into a small skillet and heat over medium heat. Once oil is hot add the sliced garlic to fry it. Stir occasionally. If you do not hear the garlic sizzle, increase the heat to medium high. Once the garlic is golden and crisp, remove with a fork or slotted spoon and set aside.
4. Reduce the heat to medium-low, add the red pepper flakes and sun dried tomatoes. Stir to cover everything with oil.
5. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add 2-3 tbsps of oil from the small skillet then add the shrimp. Increase the heat to high and spread the shrimp in a single layer so that they are all touching the bottom of the pan. Cook until the edges turn pink, about 1 minute.
6. Flip the shrimp, add sherry, and simmer until shrimp are just cooked through, about 1 minute more. Transfer shrimp to the pasta bowl.
7. Reduce the heat to medium, add the contents of the small skillet to the large one. Add the minced garlic, parsley, butter, and lemon juice and simmer until thickened, about 1 minute. Adjust seasonings if needed.
8. Pour the sauce over the shrimp and pasta. Mix the dish to coat everything with the sauce.
9. Serve. Garnish with the browned garlic chips and place some lemon wedges on the side.

Open some wine and enjoy!

Spicy Garlic Shrimp with Sundried Tomatoes