Green Smothie

Have I got a great smoothie recipe for you! :) While it is green, do not be scared, it is still very delicious and nutritious. I use Tribest personal blender, which is easy to use and very fast to clean, so the ingredients are for 1 person. If you are making the smoothie for several people, just remember to scale up.

Ingredients:
1 banana
1/3 cup of coconut water
1 tsp of maca powder (optional)
1/4 tsp of powdered probiotic(optional) I use BlueBonnet Milk Free Powder Acidophilus Plus FOS Powder, description can be found here
1 large kale leaf, stem discarded
3-4 fresh pineapple chunks
1 tsp of chia seeds

Blend all the ingredients except chia seeds, pour the mixture into a glass and sprinkle chia seeds on top. I prefer not to blend chia seeds (it makes the smoothie too thick), but by sprinkling, I still get my dose of omegas :)

Hope you enjoy. Let me know what your favorite smoothie recipes are. I would love to try them!

And here is me...just being goofy...

Cheers,
Sasha

Garlicky Avocado Toast

This is my version of the now famous avocado toast. Now if you are on a strict GF diet, make sure to use gluten free bread. I also read some time ago that for those who have gluten sensitivity, sourdough bread might work since due to fermentation process, the bacteria breaks down the gluten proteins and either reduce or eliminate them altogether. I found that sourdough does not upset my tummy, so once in a while, I prefer it vs other GF breads.

Ingredients:
Sourdough bread (4-5 slices)
2 avocados, cubed
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 garlic clove for the toasts, skin removed
1/2 tsp of paprika flakes
juice of 1 lime
drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
salt
pepper

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Brush the bread with olive oil and toast for about 10 minutes (the time might vary depending on the oven).

Now, slice the avocado and open by twisting it. Carefully remove the pit. Holding half of the avocado in your palm, carefully slice it with the knife so you will have cubes. (Let me know if anyone needs a tutorial on how you can do this. My hubby thinks many might not know, but I usually assume otherwise). Flip the skin and the cubes of avocado will fall into the designated bowl. If you are nervous and not sure how to do this, you can always use a tablespoon and just remove half of the avocado by carefully sliding the spoon between avocado and the skin. At that point, you can just cube the avocado as you would any other vegetable.

Juice the lime, add the minced garlic, paprika flakes, drizzle of olive oil and salt and pepper. Taste and see if you need to adjust seasoning.

Remove the toasts from the oven and rub with the remaining garlic over the toasted bread (been making the garlicky toasts this way since childhood :)). Whatever is left of the garlic, you can always mince and throw in the avocado mix. Top the toast with the avocado mixture and enjoy!

Cheers,
Sash

Summer Cold Soup - the Russian Style

Hello Y'all,

Hope you guys are doing well. Having all the ingredients readily available at home, I decided to whip up a cold beet soup that I grew up with, also called "Svekolnik". This is a cold summer soup that is made with seasonal veggies and fresh herbs.

There are many variations to this soup, but in my household, I make it with goat milk plain kefir (which is lactose friendly) and beet-infused water. While the color might suggest this soup to be beet-heavy, the rest of the ingredients bring balance where the beet brings color to this summery madness :)

This soup is very easy to make, so give it a try while the weather is still hot.

Ingredients:
2 medium size meets, skin removed (make sure to save the water in which beets will be boiling)
4 eggs
4 small seedless cucumbers, finely chopped
2 medium sized potatoes (keep the skin)
2 cups of plain goat milk kefir
1/2 of the scallion bunch, chopped
1/4 cup of dill, chopped
1/2 - 1 tsp of horseradish (optional)
juice of 1/2 lime
1 tsp of salt
pepper to taste

Remove the skin from the beets, cut them in half, add to a medium size pot, cover with water and bring to a boil. The beets should be ready in about 20 minutes. You can check them by piercing the beets with the fork - if easily pierced, they are ready! :)
Add potatoes in skin and eggs to a second medium size pot, add water to cover everything and bring to a boil. After 15 minutes of boiling, remove the eggs and cool them down in the cold water, while letting the potatoes cook additional 10 minutes or so (check for readiness to make sure).

While the veggies are cooking, cut the cucumbers into small cubes and add them to a large bowl. By then, the eggs should have cooled down, dice 2 out of 4 eggs and add them to the bowl as well. When the beets are ready, grate and add to the rest of the veggies, while keeping the leftover beet water (very important and will come handy, trust me). When potatoes are cooked, remove the skins and cube them, and add them to the rest of the veggies. Add the chopped scallions and dill and you have your veggie bowl complete.

Grab the second bowl (make sure it will be large enough since you will be combining all the ingredients). Add 2 cups of kefir and 1 cup of beet water.

If you lost your beet water in the sink (it happens), add regular water. I just prefer beet since it is a little bit more flavorful, but not too strong of a flavor that it will ruin your soup.

Add the prepared veggies to your liquid mixture.

Add the lime juice and the horseradish and mix everything together. Season with salt and pepper and taste. Add more seasoning if you'd like.

Now, remember, you still have 2 more eggs left :) You want each bowl to have a sliced egg on top. I also chopped a slice of pancetta, fried it, and added it on top for extra crunchiness. This step, however, is optional.

Usually, we eat this soup with the side of boiled potatoes mixed with fresh dill (at least that's how we did it in Lithuania), but we also enjoy it with the avocado toast.

I hope you enjoy!

Cheers,
Sash

Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Fresh Figs

Hello Friends,

If you noticed, figs are in season and I cannot stop myself from buying fresh figs almost on a daily basis. Soon I will be all figged out! J

I came across a recipe from Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi and could not resist of trying it – the combination of roasted sweet potatoes with fresh figs just sounded a-mazing. While I changed the recipe just slightly, all the praise goes to them.

If you love fresh figs as much as I do, this will give you a new appreciation for them…

Ingredients in this recipe will make 1 entrée or appetizer for two.

Ingredients:

1 large sweet potato

2 tbsp of sunflower oil

3 tbsp of balsamic vinegar

1.5 tbsp of sugar

½ bunch of green onions, cut into 1-1.5 inch segments

4-5 fresh ripe figs, quartered

1 Fresno red chili, cleaned and minced (if you are not used to chilies, use half of the pepper)

1 tbsp of olive oil

Salt

Pepper

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Remove the skin from the sweet potato, halve the potato and then cut each half once more. If the pieces are still too chunky, I suggest cutting those once more, so they will cook faster. Mix the potato slices with 2 tbsp of the sunflower oil, season with salt and pepper and let them cook for 25 minutes, checking on them occasionally.

In the meantime, prep the onion and the chili pepper (make sure you remove the seeds – which are the spiciest part of the pepper). If you are not very experienced with chili peppers, wear gloves to avoid touching your eyes or other parts of your body later – that might hurt J Given the previous experience, I also remove my contacts before cooking just in cases. LOL

When the potatoes are almost done, start working on your balsamic reduction. To make the balsamic reduction – add the balsamic vinegar and sugar to a small pot and bring to a boil. Then decrease the heat and simmer for 2-4 minutes until the sauce thickens. Remove from the heat when the vinegar is still runnier than honey.

Fry the green onions and chili in 1 tbsp of olive oil over medium heat for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure not to burn the chili.

Arrange the sweet potato on the plate, spoon the green onion and chili pepper on top, add the figs and then drizzle with the balsamic reduction. (if you prepped the reduction a bit too early and it got too thick – that’s ok. Just put it back on the stove, add 1 tsp of water and slightly reheat it).

The dish is ready to be served.

The slight heat from the chili, warmth from sweet potatoes and the sweetness from the figs make this dish a winner in my book. I hope you enjoy!

Cheers,

Sasha

Strawberry Hibiscus Ginger Punch - Perfect Summer Drink

Hello Friends,

Since it is so hot and humid (at least in NYC), I wanted to share this simple punch recipe with you, courtesy of Curtis Stone. Even though I was making iced drinks with hibiscus for years (I love hibiscus+chrysanthemum combination), the idea of adding strawberries and fresh ginger is simply brilliant.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup of sugar
1 cup of dried hibiscus flowers (can usually be found in International stores)
2 cups of fresh strawberries, sliced in half (I often add some frozen berries if I ran out of strawberries)
2 inch piece of fresh ginger, thinly sliced
7-8 cups of water

In a medium saucepan, add 4 cups of water and 1/2 cup of sugar. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally to make sure the sugar will dissolve. Turn off the heat, and add hibiscus flowers, strawberries, and ginger. Cover the saucepan and let everything steep for about 2 hours.
Strain the liquid into a bowl first and then transfer into a pitcher. Add 3-4 cups of water, depending on your taste. You can serve over ice or just store the pitcher in the freezer - this is something that we do!

Depending on your taste, the punch might be a touch bit sweet, so feel free to add some punch to the glass and then add more water to dilute. In that case, the punch will last longer :)

Hope you enjoy!

Cheers,

Sasha

Watermelon Feta Salad

This salad is a perfect dish during the summer months. Watermelon can usually be found 90% of the time in my household in the summer, so I had to share the recipe with you :) While most of the time I just eat it by itself, sometimes I want something else with it - something like feta...

Ingredients:
Watermelon, cubed
Sweet onion, very thinly sliced (I usually use mandoline for this)
Feta, cubed (I use authentic Greek one, which is a combination of sheep and goat)
Lime juice
Extra virgin of olive oil, drizzled
mint, chopped (I bought apple mint from farmer's market, which I absolutely loved in this dish)

I think the proportion of the ingredients can vary, depending on your liking. But for one person, I use half of the quarterly watermelon slice, not much onion, ~ 1/4 of cup of feta, 1 tbsp of mint, lime juice from half a lime and a drizzle of EVOO.

It is a great combination of ingredients. Let me know if you tried something like this before and if you liked it. If you did, do you use similar ingredients or do you add something else? Let me know!

Cheers,
Sash

Lemon Honey Jar and Ginger Lemon Tea

Happy Monday Folks,

It's has been a while since I posted anything. Sorry about that. I wanted to share this one with you because I have literally been using this stuff every single day.
My husband and I call this lemon jar - Pap's lemons :) Our pap, officially my father-in-law, used to take daily walks and collect lemons from this amazing lemon tree - neighbor's lemon tree I might add. According to him, he didn't want the lemons to rot, so he had to "save" them. Now, just in case and thank goodness he has a big fridge - he has, on average, about 8 jars in his fridge with these preserved lemons. You save time and in case you ran out, you always have lemons at home.

While I thought it was a great idea to have one in the fridge for my tea, I never ended up preparing them at home. However, while visiting San Diego this May, the weather was colder than I anticipated and I wanted to make sure I wouldn't get sick, so I made myself ginger lemon tea. I have been making it every since. Now I know it is summer and this might be a perfect winter drink, but I like to drink it in the morning to wake up my digestive system and get ready for the day. Drink it to feel better in case your stomach/digestive system is out of whack or if you are sick. It is simply wonderful.

To prepare lemons:
Get a jar that has a good lid. The one that you see in the picture I got in Home Goods for 3 bucks. Slide lemons and place them in the jar until the top. Add honey on top and let it sink it. I start with 3-4 tbsp of honey. You might need to add more later, but it takes some time for honey and lemons to work and get those juices going. I check in on the jar during the day to see if I need to add more honey. You don't want top lemons to be without any liquid because they can go bad. I keep the jar in the fridge and use it every day.

To prepare ginger lemon tea:
Clean and thinly slice about 1.5 inch of ginger. Pour hot water on top, cover the top and let it steep for about 5 mins. Add 2-3 lemon slices from the jar with a 1 tbsp of the juice.

I love this ginger tea because it is not "too gingery" for me. The lemons come in handy for any tea/drink.

Enjoy and stay healthy!
Cheers,

Sash

Heirloom Tomato Feta Salad

Hi All,

Hoping for a warmer weather again, I threw this salad quickly and it turned out fantastic. I suggest using heirloom tomatoes because the flavor of those tomatoes is just outstanding. When it comes to summer, I cannot resist buying heirloom tomatoes any chance I get.

Ingredients:

2 large tomatoes (or 1 huge heirloom one)

1/2 onion, thinly sliced (If you have a mandoline, I suggest using it)

1.5 tbsp of good quality extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)

pinch of salt

pinch of pepper

1 - 1.5 tbsp of mixed cilantro, mint, tarragon, dill (if you are missing one don't worry, but I do recommend a mixture of greens)

1/4 cup of sheep's feta, cubed or crubmled

Cut the tomato in larger pieces, add thinly sliced onion, salt and pepper, and EVOO. Add feta and gently mix. Taste to make sure you don't need extra salt and enjoy.

This salad was so simple and delicious that even my husband, who doesn't really love tomatoes, devoured it.

Enjoy! 

Cheers,

Sasha

Beet Kambocha Apple Soup

I created this recipe using the ingredients that I had in the fridge (nothing wasted approach!) and it turned out to be such a success. This soup is a touch bit sweet (thanks to the beet and the apple), but even my husband who doesn't care for soups at all loved it, so give this one a try.

Ingredients:
1/2 yellow onion, diced
1 tbsp of goat milk butter (or regular butter if that works for you)
1/3 of the medium-sized kombucha (only seeds removed, the outer skin stays on)
1 green apple, skin removed, chopped
1 red beet, skin removed, chopped
2 small or 1 large garlic clove, minced
1 tsp of minced ginger (optional)
1 small box of chicken stock (8 oz/240 ml) (The stock is optional. If you don't have the stock, just replace it with additional water)
2 cups of water (I used 2 so it just covered the veggies. if you have less veggies, just adjust)
1 cup of lite coconut milk
fresh dill

Heat the medium-sized pot to a medium heat, add the onion, garlic and ginger and cook for about 5 minutes. Add veggies, chicken stock and water (just so it covers the veggies) and simmer for 20 minutes.

The beet takes the longest to cook so check the beet to make sure it's tender to see if the soup is ready. If it is, let the soup to cool down.

Once the soup is cooled, puree the soup. Add salt and pepper and taste. Once satisfied, add the coconut milk (but leave some behind, so you can drizzle for decoration if you want :)).
I was carefully pouring the coconut milk to practice my art skills for later :)

Sprinkle minced dill when serving and enjoy!

Hope you like!
Cheers,
Sasha

Roasted Carrots with Za'atar - Simply Delicious

There are days when I just want roasted veggies, so my side dish becomes my main meal. Smaller size carrots would be better for this recipe, but in my case, I didn't have those, so larger ones did the job just fine.

Ingredients:
Carrots (I used 6-7)
1-2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
1/2 tsp of salt
dash of pepper
1/2 tsp of za'atar (amazing spice thats very versatile, which is made of sesame seeds, thyme, sumac, marjoram and salt)
cilantro
half of a lemon, juiced

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Drizzle 1 tbsp of EVOO into a tray, add your carrots and just roll them, to make sure they are coated in EVOO. Sprinkle the carrots with salt, pepper, and za'atar. I drizzled just a little of EVOO on top of veggies as well and put the try in the oven. In about 20 minutes the carrots were tender and scrumptious. Now, the cooking time really depends on your size of carrots, so just check them after 10 minutes or so to see how much longer they would need to cook. When done, sprinkle with cilantro and drizzle with lemon juice.

As I mentioned, this is a great side dish, which sometimes I eat as a main meal, so give it a try.
Enjoy!

Cheers,
Sasha

Zucchini Guacamole Spaghetti

Hoping that the spring would be coming to NYC soon, I made raw and creamy zucchini pasta, which was a spin on my previously posted zucchini pasta salad, which can be found here. The addition of guacamole makes this recipe so creamy, that I promise you - you will inhale it :)

Ingredients:
1 medium size zucchini, cut on mandoline (i use 1/8'' thickness, which make it look like real pasta)
Cherie tomatoes, halved (I used 6-8 tomatoes, but it is really up to you how many to include)
2-3 handful tbsp of guacamole (recipe can be found here)
1/2-1 tsp of Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)
half of lemon, juiced
parsley, minced (I like a bunch, so used about 1/4 of a cup, but add as much as you like)
pinch of salt

Slice the zucchini either using vegetable spiral slicer (which i don't have), or use mandoline to slice the zucchini. I use 1/8'' inch setting, so the zucchini gets cut not too thick, resembling spaghetti.

Add 3 heaping tbsp of guacamole (recipe that I used can be found here), juice half of the lemon and drizzle just a little bit of olive oil. Carefully mix, making sure the zucchini is fully coated. Add the cherry tomatoes, parsley and and a pinch of salt. Mix again and taste to make sure the seasoning is just right.

It's this simple. The recipe is very delicious and in my family, was servied with the healthy butternut apple squash soup, which can also be found here.

Cheers,
Sasha

Gluten Free Butternut Squash Apple Coconut Soup

I wanted to share another great recipe for a simple, delicious, and most importantly - quick soup that you can make even when you are tired after a workday.

Ingredients:
1 medium size onion, chopped finely (I prefer to use sweet onions and given that they are often big, I used half)
1 tbsp of EVOO or goat milk butter
1/2 medium size butternut squash, chopped in 1/2 inch cubes
1 green apple, peeled and chopped
salt
pepper
1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes
1/2 cup of lite coconut milk
1.5 cup of water

Heat the medium-sized pot to medium heat, add the EVOO/butter and cook the onion for about 5 minutes, stirring gently. After the onion is cooked and translucent, add the butternut squash, apple, spices and cover the veggies with coconut milk and water. Lower the heat to low and cook the soup for ~ 20 minutes, so the butternut squash becomes tender.
Let the soup cool down and puree it. Taste the soup again to make sure you have enough salt and pepper.

That's it. It is that simple. The red pepper flakes give the soup a little warmth without making it too spicy and the coconut milk makes the soup creamy.

Hope you enjoy!
Cheers,

Sasha

Simple Guacamole

While there are many variations to guacamole (one that I made earlier here), I realized that I have been making this recipe for the last dozen or so times. It is very simple, so give this variation a try.

Ingredients:
2 avocados
1/4 of jalapeno, minced
cilantro, minced (it really depends how much you like it, but i usually add a good amount)
1 lemon, juiced
EVOO, drizzled (just a little, ~ 1/2-1 tsp)

Mash the avocados, add the lemon juice, cilantro, jalapeno and drizzle carefully the olive oil. Mix gently and ta-da - guacamole is ready to go. It's that easy and simple.

Enjoy!
Cheers,
Sash

Shakshuka - Quick and Easy Gluten Free Breakfast

Hello All! It's been a while since I posted anything, but today's breakfast made me want to share the recipe with all of you. I recently came across a shakshuka recipe in a magazine and remembered that last time I tried shakshuka in a restaurant, I loved it.
This recipe is very easy to make and you can have it with whatever type of gluten free toast on the side you want.

Ingredients:
2 tbsp of olive oil
1 medium size onion, chopped (I prefer sweet onion)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 15 oz can of chickpeas, drained
2 tsp of cumin
1/2 - 1 tsp of red pepper flakes
Salt and black pepper
1 28 oz can of organic diced tomatoes
3-4 eggs
Parsley, chopped

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Next, heat the olive oi in a large ovenproof skillet over medium high heat (I used cast iron skillet). Add the onion and garlic and cook it, stirring, for about 5 minutes. Add the chickpeas, cumin, paprika, a pinch of salt and pepper and stir well. Add the diced tomatoes and 1/3 cup of water and cook, stirring ocassionally for about 15-20 minutes, allowing the liquid to evaporate (you want the sauce to thicken a little).

Make 3-4 wells in the tomato mixture and crack an egg into each. Transfer the skillet into the pre-heated oven and let the shakshuka bake for 8-10 minutes. Once cooked, sprinkle fresh parsley and enjoy!

Cheers,
Sasha

Sunday Breakfast - Deconstructed Gazpacho

Hope you had a great weekend friends! Breakfast on weekend is not always at home for us. We work crazy hours during the week and when the weekend comes, there is a very high chance that shelves in my fridge would be empty...Well, especially lately. When we do know we will have breakfast at home and it will be a relaxing day, I love to make a 'deconstructed" gazpacho and scrambled eggs. Even though the eggs are scrumptious, the gazpacho is what everyone keeps reaching for.

Review of Seasprinkles and the Best Baked Yams Ever

Hi All,
For those of you who want to bake a yam instead of a regular baked potato, have I got a special ingredient for you! :) Months ago, when we wanted to bake some sweet potatoes, Will, hubby of mine, requested that I buy some bacon bits. I was trying to eat less meat (not that I eat meat that often), so was browsing in the grocery store to replace the bacon with something else that’s crunchy. Alas, I found it – Sprinkles – Roasted Seaweed Snack that supposed to work great over salads. These sprinkles are so addictive! But they are healthy, vegan, and gluten free, so who cares? We have been making these sweet potatoes with sprinkles ever seen. I don’t have the best pictures for you, but bake the potatoes as you usually would, cut them in half, add some butter, and cheese. In our case, we add at a minimum, seaweed sprinkles, and if we have, some chopped scallions as well. If you can’t find the shredded sprinkles, the “fun & go pack” boxes would also work (which can nowadays be found more easily in grocery stores), just mush the flat sheets with your hands and it’s good to go.
Hope you will try it. It is absolutely delicious!
Cheers, Sasha

GRILLED SWORDFISH KEBABS

Hi Friends,

As some of you know, both my hubby and I are trying to eat healthier this summer. More salads, more fish, more fruits etc.

Yesterday Will bought one steak of swordfish for me, so I decided to give it a go. I never cooked it before, so made swordfish skewers, which turned out to be very good. Give this one a try!

Ingredients:

1 swordfish steak, cut into ~ 1 inch cubes

Lemon

Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)

½ tsp paprika

¼ tsp lemon pepper

Salt

After cutting the fish into cubes, I placed them into the dish, drizzled EVOO on top (to coat the fish, but not too much oil that it would be swimming in it), added paprika, juice from half a lemon, and lemon pepper. Mix the fish carefully with the rest of the ingredients so the spices would coat the fish evenly. Cover the dish with plastic and place in the fridge. If you can afford to leave it there for an hour or two, that’s great. I only waited for 30 mins, since everyone was starving :)

Place 8 -10 bamboo sticks into the bowl with water for 30 mins while the fish is marinating. During those 30 mins, clean your kitchen and do anyting else that you want to serve. In my case, I love grilled veggies, so I prepare those (usually peppers, zucchinis, onion etc).

After 30 mins, create your kebabs. Remember to use 2 bamboo sticks per one kebab, so fish won’t be spinning. Start with fish and end with fish. Put any veggies that you want in between. Brush the leftover oil/spice mixture on your kebab and place that side of it on the grill, which has been turned to medium heat.

Turn your fish kebabs several times to make sure the fish is cooked thoroughly. It took about 10 mins and the dish was delish! :) It was very juicy and the EVOO/spice mixture was more enjoyable than I anticipated.

Hope you enjoy!

Sash

Gluten Free Salmon Kebabs

I went to farmer's market this weekend and got some zucchinis, squashes, and some asparagus. Trying to use everything in the kitchen this week reminded me that I have had bamboo skewers for ages. I have never used them, so needed some inspiration… I came across the recipe on Epicurious, which I changed a bit, and really wanted to share that with you. The asparagus, zucchini and squash slices I used as a side dish.

Ingredients:

1 pound of thick salmon fillet, so that you can cut it into 1’’ cubes

Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)

2 tbsp of Fresh Oregano, minced

2 tsp of sesame seeds

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp of salt

¼ of tsp of red pepper flakes

½ lemon, thinly sliced

3 tbsp of EVOO

Sweet onion, sliced into wedges

Non-stick grill pan

Bamboo skewers, soaked in water for 30 mins

First, place the bamboo skewers in water. Next, prepare spices and set them aside in a small bowl: oregano, sesame seeds, cumin, salt, and pepper flakes.

Slice the salmon fillet into 1’’ cubes. I prefer to have smaller cubes, but whatever you like – make sure the cubes are consistent size. If they are not, some would be cooked sooner than others and you really don't want that :)

Use two skewers instead of one so the salmon would not be spinning when you are turning the skewers. Take the two skewers, thread the salmon cube carefully, add lemon slice, add onion wedge into skewers and make sure that you start and end with the salmon cube. Brush the skewers with the olive oil and sprinkle the top side with spice mixture.

For the side dish, I added the zucchini and squash slices to the bowl, added some salt and drizzled everything with olive oil (not too much oil, just to coat the slices). Mix all the ingredients and be ready to place on the grill with the skewers.

Put the grill on medium heat, place the skewer's side that was brushed with oil on the grill. The top side now can be brushed with oil and sprinkled with spices. The space that’s left on the grill can be used for the side dish, and in my case – slices zucchs and asparagus.

Grill, turning occasionally, to make sure the fish is cooked thoroughly, which in total should take about 8-10 minutes. 

Turn the zucchs in about 4-5 minutes, so your fish and the zucchinis would be cooked at the same time.

Place everything on the dish and add some more lemon juice on top.

Enjoy delicious meal in just 30 minutes!

Cheers,

Sash

Gluten Free Zucchini Pasta Salad

I wanted to share with you the Gluten Free Zucchini Pasta Salad recipe – perfect for summer days and is very quick to make.

Ingredients:

Zucchini and/or yellow summer squash

Grape tomatoes

Goat/sheep hard cheese (I used Sheep Pyrenees cheese that I bought at Fairway)

Salt

Pepper

Lemon juice

Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)
Fresh Dill

If you have a mandoline, slice the zucchs thinly (I sliced them on 3 mm). Place those thin slices on top of each other and julienne them, to resemble the “pasta.” If you don’t have the madoline, that’s OK as well. Just slice the veggies as thinly as you can (not paper thin) and julienne them to make matchsticks.

 

Prepare the grape tomatoes by slicing them in half. Add grated cheese, salt, pepper, and chopped dill. Two small zucchs and a small box of grape tomatoes makes a pretty big bowl of the pasta that can feed 2 people. Juice 1 lemon, and drizzle a little bit of EVOO. Gently mix the ingredients and serve! 

The dish is very refreshing and can be served as a main dish or just a side dish. It really depends how many tomatoes or how much cheese you want to add, so use your best judgement.

Just remember – do not make this too far in advance because the dish will become watery. When it comes to squashes and zucchinis, use them right before serving.

I hope you enjoy!

Cheers,

Sash

Gluten Free Broiled Salmon - a.k.a. Salmon Niki's Style...

Happy Saturday!

I wanted to share my favorite salmon recipe. It is the most mouth-watering and delicious salmon that I have ever cooked. The recipe came from my very good friend Niki. With her permission, I wanted to share it with you!

Make sure to buy a salmon steak/single serving piece or you can buy regular salmon steak and just cut that piece in half and remove the bone. The regular salmon fillet would not work for this recipe, trust me, I tried several times :)

Ingredients:

Salmon Steak

Goat milk butter (or regular butter if you are ok with the lactose)

1 garlic clove

Olive oil

Salt

Make 4 incisions in your salmon steak, but not too deep. Peel your garlic and cut the clove into 3-4 pieces. Prepare your tray, put the aluminum foil, and drizzle a little of olive oil. Place the salmon stake on the prepared tray, insert your garlic pieces into the holes of the salmon, and place two thinly sliced butter pieces and put them on top of the salmon. I also drizzle the salmon steak with thin line of olive oil after that, but you can skip that step if you like.

Place the tray in the oven and broil it for 20-25 minutes at 425 degress. My salmon is usually ready at exactly 23 minutes, but it really depends on the size of the salmon.

As you see from the photo, I also placed the asparagus on the same tray and drizzled it with the olive oil. The whole dish was ready in no time. I hope you like it.

Thank you to Niki for sharing the recipe with me. I can never go back :)

Below picture is of the same salmon but with the salad this time. I like it THAT much!

Enjoy. Sash