Slovenian Recipes

During these hot summer days, using our grill to cook is a given. Not only does it make clean up in the kitchen much quicker, but it also gives dinner that summer feel we all love. This week I decided to make something entirely new on the grill and created mini pita sliders. For me a slider usually implies a traditional ground beef burger on a mini bun. Usually; but not this time. Using mini pitas filled with grilled shrimp and chicken strips gave these pitas the lightness I was looking for. Adding my topical pine nut salsa added fresh flavors and made me feel like I was on vacation. To make this tropical pine nut salsa, chop up the following ingredients:  1 avocado, 1 white nectarine , 1/2 a red onion , 1 mango , a handful of cherry tomatoes , and a bunch of cilantro . Mix together and squeeze the juice of 1 lime over top. While the salsa flavors marry, roast your pine nuts. Swirl a little olive oil into your skillet, heat over medium heat, then add raw pin...

The heat wave finally broke in Cleveland; it is a beautiful, sunny day with cool temperatures in the high 60s. I had an hour between picking up and dropping of my kids at their various activities, and since it was so gorgeous outside, I decided to go to one of my favorite places:  The Westside Market. I didn't have anything specific in mind to buy but knew that it would be well worth my time. The beauty of going to the market is that the vegetables look so fresh and vibrant, and you can rely on them tasting just as good as they look. This trip to the Market did not disappoint. My first pick of the day was a huge organic sweet onion bulb . It caught my eye as soon as I walked up to my favorite stand. I knew immediately that dinner would consist of veggies grilled in my grill basket and topped with one of CW2C's vinaigrettes.  I love this time of summer when it is so easy to find such wonderful produce. Grilling the veggies so they get that chargrilled flavor with a ni...

This week consisted of camps, baseball tournaments and vacation bible school which didn't leave very much time to spend in the kitchen or even at home. I had an hour in between dropping off and picking up kids, so I decided to create this Spicy Asian Sauce. It became my go-to flavor booster. My favorite way I have used it (so far) is over the kale, orzo and black sesame seed salad that's pictured above. My sauce transformed a simple salad into something spectacular. I also used it to add a little heat to my fettuccine Alfredo. The heat from the Spicy Asian Sauce combined with the creaminess of the Alfredo sauce gives the fettuccine extra heat and flavor while retaining its traditional flavors. You won't feel like you're eating Asian noodles. Be patient while making the sauce; the longer it simmers the more flavorful it will be. Spicy Asian Sauce Sauté 2 cloves of chopped  garlic in 1 cup of chili oil   over medium high heat until the garlic aroma fills ...

Wheat berries are not a part of our weekly meal rotation. As a matter of fact, I have never made them. I read about wheat berries in a blog I love to follow called "Bits & Pieces" by Maria Isabella. Maria wrote about Serbia in one of her recent posts and I became curious about Serbian food. She was generous enough to post her favorite Serbian dessert, called Koljivo; it was calling my name. I wasn't sure how many stars my four food critics would give after sampling the Koljivo, but I remained hopeful. It's not often that I make a dessert that all four kids love. Not often, but this dessert qualifies. It was a grand slam in my kitchen! I tweaked Maria's original recipe a tad, and Koljivo has now been added to our favorite desserts list. Thank you, Maria! Koljivo is a sweet boiled wheat dish. Take 1 lb of wheat berries and boil in a pot of salted water for one and a half hours, stirring occasionally to make sure none of the wheat berries stick to the bot...

Until today I thought I did not like polenta. My memory of polenta is far from positive. I was served a big bowl of this mushy mixture that reminded me of a breakfast dish. Did I mention it was lunch? I swore I would never eat it again or put my kids through that same awful experience. As the saying goes, never say never. My mom ate polenta prepared in a new way (to her) at a restaurant recently and wanted to recreate the recipe at home. She knew that if we both were going to enjoy the polenta it would have to be sautéed in olive oil to make sure that it was nice and crunchy rather than creamy. (Or as I describe it. Mushy!) To ensure success I asked the advice of my friend Karen, "the polenta queen." Karen always makes polenta for her husband; he grew up eating it often and he loves it. I needed to know if my polenta expert had any tips or secrets for the perfect polenta. Her recipe was similar to my mom's, but she shared a technique for achieving the texture we were a...