Orange Oil w/Waldborg Star Date Balsamic Vinegar Dressing & Salad

When I was in New Orleans this past weekend, Michael took me to that glorious Olive Oil & Fruit Vinegar import store Vom Fass (of which I've already written).  It was extraordinarily hard to decide what kinds of fruit vinegars and olive oils to buy--there were so many flavors and I wanted them all!--but with one suggestion, I knew I could make my decision.

"We had a date vinegar and orange oil salad dressing tasting this weekend" Nick, the store representative, said.  "It was like eating candy!" I was sold.

Below is my version of Nick's recipe based off of what he said.  The dressing supposedly had a 3:2 parts ratio (3 parts orange oil with 2 parts date vinegar).  But, after making a large salad, I felt it really should have been a 1:1 ratio (i.e., 3 parts orange oil with 3 parts vinegar) to get the taste I was going for.  Make with the same oil/vinegars I use here buy ordering from the Vom Fass website, or make your own through homemade infusions for a salad dressing that is clearly delicious.

Orange Oil w/Waldborg Star Date Balsamic Vinegar Dressing & Salad
The key to making this recipe taste "like candy" is to add the olive oil and vinegar separately to the salad.  A lot of people mix and shake their oil and vinegar salad dressings beforehand, but I'm a purist.  I believe in adding the orange olive oil first and then the waldborg star date balsamic vinegar second to the salad.


Ingredients: 
* 1 large salad (4 servings), prepared (see "Fall Salad" recipe for an example recipe)
* 3 tablespoons Orange Olive Oil
* 3 tablespoons Waldborg Star Date Balsamic Vinegar
* 1 orange, zested
* 1/2 cup dates

1.) Prepare salad, and add 1/2 cup dates.

2.) Drizzle 3 tablespoons of Orange Olive Oil over the salad.

3.) Drizzle 3 tablespoons of Waldborg Star Date Balsamic Vinegar over the salad.

4.) Zest an orange over the salad.

5.) Toss to combine.

6.) Dish out servings of salad (makes 4) and serve with more freshly zested orange on top.  Enjoy!

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Fruit Tart

There comes a time as a cook when you just know how to make things.  Nobody has to tell you the dish's contents, you don't have to consult a recipe book, and the dish comes out clearly delicious without much trying.  This fruit tart is one of those recipes.

Perhaps my Fruit Tart recipe comes from two years of pining at the bakery section of La Madeleine, the country French Cafe that's popping up all over America.  La Madeleine has these insanely tasty fruit tarts that are refreshing and light: tons of fruit loaded in a pastry shell and sitting on top of a cup or two of custard, or pudding.  YUM.

If you were to buy the actual pie-size fruit tart from La Madeleine, you'd spend around $15-20.  Making this dish at home (which looks exactly the same and tastes pretty amazing), you'll spend under $10.

Make this dish for a summer dinner--it's a perfect light, and pretty dessert--or just for yourself...for dinner.

Fruit Tart
Like many recipes, two components of this fruit tart can be adjusted to your preference: the flavor of the pudding, or the fruit being used.  I always go for a French Vanilla Pudding, and a combination of blueberries, blackberries, and strawberries, but chocolate pudding, or other fruits (i.e., kiwi) work great here too.


Ingredients:
* 1 large pie crust, frozen, or pre-made with the All-Butter Pie Crust Recipe
* 1 regular size pudding instant mix box
* 3 cups milk (for pudding mix; NOTE: milk contents may vary depending on the instructions listed on the back of the pudding mix box.  My recipe calls for 3 cups milk for 1 box, but yours may call for a little more or less)
* 2-3 cups mixed berries/fruit

1.) Begin by using a pre-made pie crust and baking it in the oven until done.  Remove from oven and allow to cool.

2.) Prepare the pudding mix.  Measure out your milk.

3.) Add to dry instant pudding mix in Kitchenaid (or similar stand-alone mixer).

4.) Mix on medium for 3-5 minutes, or until pudding starts to form/set.

5.) Refrigerate pudding for 30 minutes.  Then, pour pudding mix into pie shell.  Smooth to level pudding distribution.

6.) Prepare the mixed berries by washing all of them.  Add your first berries.  For me, these were the blackberries.

7.) Add your blueberries.

8.) Remove the tops of the strawberries.

9.) Quarter your strawberries.

10.) Add the strawberries to the pie.

11.) Refrigerate until time to eat.  Serve with dessert wine.  Makes 6-8 servings.


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Oatmeal with Fruit & Walnuts

Practically every morning, I make myself a bowl of oatmeal.  I love oatmeal--it's so much heftier than a regular bowl of cereal and you can really customize how you prepare it.  What do you mean? Customize oatmeal? Isn't oatmeal a brown blob of gross that was only eaten by pilgrims and prairie people before we had processed sugary treats like Captain Crunch and Lucky Charms? Well, no.  Actually, it's a complex carb that is GOOD for you, keeps you fuller longer and is indeed, quite tasty, if you know how to prepare it correctly.  Like all dishes in cooking, oatmeal can be clearly delicious with the right ingredients, combinations, and preparational techniques.

Knowing how to make oatmeal can be a challenge, however--do you make it with milk? water? what is the proper oats to liquid ratio? how long do you cook it? is it supposed to be milky like cream of wheat? 

For me, these answers are simple: always prepare oatmeal with water, but feel free to add splashes of milk to the oats in the final dish; the ratio is usually 2:1 (1 cup water to one half cup oats; or 2 cups water to 1 cup oats), and the consistency should never be milky unless you add some milk during the cooking process.  Also, I need to point out I'm talking about steel-cut oats, or regular oats here, not that instant crap that is pre-sugared, processed, etc.

Essentially, what this recipe calls you to do is very simple (heat up water, cook the oats, etc.), and then it makes a judgment call on what I like to add to the oats--fruits and nuts, brown sugar, and spices.  However, you can practically substitute anything for the fruit and nut combo here that you like, you'll just have to tweak the recipe to your preferences.  I've known people to add cocoa powder when cooking oatmeal ("chocolate oatmeal") and even to make the dish into a kind of loaf and bake it in the oven.  However you prepare oatmeal, the right ingredients and techniques will always be clearly delicious!

Oatmeal with Fruit & Walnuts
You can really add any fruit or nut here.  My recipe calls for bananas and walnuts, but apples, craisins, raisins, berries (blueberries! raspberries! blackberries!) as well as pecans and almonds can all be substituted.

*1 cup water
*1/2 cup steel cut oats
* 2 tablespoons brown sugar
*1 teaspoon nutmeg
*1-2 teaspoons cinnamon
*1 banana, cut into circular pieces, optional
*1/4 cup walnuts, optional
*1 teaspoon vanilla/almond extract, optional

1.) Bring 1 cup of water to a boil and add 1/2 cup steel cut oats.  Cook for one minute, stirring occassionally, and remove from heat.
2.) Now, fix the oatmeal with your favorite ingredients: add brown sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, nuts, and fruit.  Stir to integrate.
3.) Pour into a bowl and splash with milk (optional).  Serve immediately and enjoy!

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