Fire and Ice Salad

Fire and Ice Marinated Vegetables

Fire and Ice Marinated Vegetables

This very old fashioned dressing is perfect for your fresh garden vegetables. It can be used again and again simply by adding new vegetables to the marinade.

3/4 cup white vinegar

1 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 tsp. mustard seed

1 tsp. celery salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1 tsp. garlic salt

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. olive oil

1/2 tsp. sweet basil

Vegetables such as tomatoes, cucumbers, onions and sweet peppers

Combine all ingredients except vegetables in saucepan. Heat over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Bring to boil and continue boiling for 1 minute.

Remove from heat and cool. Place sliced vegetables in large bowl and pour cooled marinade over them. Refrigerate and serve cold.

Roma Tomato Bruschetta

Ingredients

10 large fresh basil leaves, chopped  OR 1/2 tsp dried basil
2 cups roma (plum) tomatoes
    seeded and chopped ( about 1#)
2 TBSP balsamic vinegar
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/3  Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 loaf French Bread

Heat oven to 325.

Stack 5 basil leaves one on top of the other. Roll up.
Slice crosswise thinly.
Repeat with remaining

Combine tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, and sliced basil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Combine olive oil, garlic in a small bowl. Microwave on HIGH for 30 seconds. Cut bread into slightly angled 1/4" pieces. Brush with olive oil mixture and put on a baking pan. Bake  6-8 minutes or until golden brown,

Just before serving... drain excess liquid from tomatoes, spoon tomato mixture evenly over bread slices.

Fire and Ice Salad from SouthernPlate.com

This recipe comes from the wonderful recipe site, SouthernPlate.com ... be sure to visit her site!

• 2 Tomatoes
• 2 Cucumbers
• 1 purple onion
• water
• white vinegar
• sugar

1. Peel and slice cucumbers. Chop tomatoes and onion. Combine all in a large bowl. Mix up a dressing of equal parts Vinegar, Water, and Sugar. Pour over vegetables and refrigerate.
2. *I start with 1/2 cup each of my dressing ingredients

Grilled Garlic Tomatoes

6 large fresh tomatoes
salt and pepper
6 garlic cloves
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 -2 ounce parmigiano-reggiano cheese
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves, to taste

Directions:Prep Time: 10 mins
Total Time: 20 mins

1 Cut the tomatoes in half crosswise.

2 Season with salt and pepper.

3 Peel and crush the garlic.

4 Heat the oil in a small frying pan over medium heat.

5 Add the garlic and cook until just starting to turn golden brown (1 to 2 minutes).

6 Pour garlic and oil into a heatproof bowl.

7 Set up the grill and preheat to high.

8 When grill is ready, brush some oil on the grill grate.

9 Place tomatoes cut side down on the hot grate and grill until nicely browned (3-5 minutes).

Rotate 45 degrees after 2 minutes to create the crosshatch marks on tomatoes.

Turn the tomatoes with tongs so they sit with the cut side facing up.

Spoon the fried garlic into the tomatoes. Grill until the bottoms are nicely browned (3-5 minutes).

Transfer to a serving plate, grate the cheese over the tomatoes, and sprinkle with thyme.

Valdalia Onion Tartlet with Tomatoes

Makes a 10" tart or 6   4"tartlets.

6 partially baked 4" tartlet shells, or a 10" partially baked tart shell (recipe follows)

1-1/4 lb Vidalia onions, sliced thin

4 oz shallots, sliced thin

8 slices thick-cut bacon

2 T butter

4 oz imported sharp Provolone cheese, shredded

4 eggs

1 C heavy cream

salt, hot sauce to taste

1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

2 tsp balsamic vinegar

4 cloves garlic, minced

3 T fresh rosemary, minced

48 grape tomatoes, halved

Sauté the bacon slowly in a heavy pan until starting to crisp. Remove and drain on a paper towel. Add the onions, shallots and butter to the pan and sauté on medium about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender. Lower heat to medium-low and sauté another 30 - 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions have turned a deep golden brown. Remove from heat .

Whisk the eggs and cream together. Add the nutmeg, vinegar, and rosemary, stirring to combine. Season to taste with hot sauce and salt.

Chop the cooked bacon and stir it into the egg mixture, along with the onions and garlic.

Spoon the mixture into the tart shell or tartlet shells. Scatter the cheese over the surface and then arrange the grape tomatoes on the top surface, cut side down.

Bake in a preheated 375º oven about 25 minutes, until a tester comes out clean. Broil for 3 - 4 minutes about 5" from the heat to finsh the dish.

Allow the tartlets or tart to rest about 5- 8 minutes before removing from the mold. Serve with a fresh salad and crusty French bread.


Pie Crust - Partially Cooked ("Blind Baked")
Makes a single crust 10" pie or six 4" tartlet shells.

3 C sifted all purpose flour

1-1/2 sticks cold butter

1/3 C vegetable shortening

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 C + 2 T ice water

Place the flour, butter, shortening, and salt in the bowl of a food processor and process briefly, until mixture looks like coarse corn meal. Add the ice water and pulse processor a few times until dough begins to clump. Do not overprocess. Scrape dough onto a board put in a plastic food storage bag. Working through the bag, quickly press the dough into a ball. Refrigerate dough for at least an hour. (May be frozen at this point for future use.) Roll the ball out to about 1/8" thick. Butter the pie plate or tart pans and line with the dough.

Butter pieces of aluminum foil and line the crust in the tart pans with them, buttered side down. Fill the foil with dried beans or rice to a depth of about an inch -- this will keep the crust from puffing when it is baked empty. Bake for about 20 minutes in a preheated 425º oven. After 15 minutes remove the foil and weights and prick the crust to prevent puffing. When done, crust should just be starting to brown. Allow to cool. Leave the tart pan rings in place.

The crust can be made up to four hours before the dish is assembled and served.

Simple Bruschetta with Tomato and Basil

fresh garden tomatoes (about 1 1/2 lbs), diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
extra virgin olive oil
balsamic vinegar
fresh basil leaves, chopped.
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 baguette
olive oil

In a bowl, mix together tomatoes, garlic, about a tablespoon of olive oil, about a teaspoon of balsamic vinegar, and a small handful of the fresh chopped basil. Taste and adjust with salt and pepper.
Slice the baguette to make 1/2 inch thick round slices. Warm a generous amount of olive oil in a skillet or fry pan. (I always use my big cast iron pan for PERFECT toast.) Toast bread slices for 5 minutes, or until the bread just begins to turn golden brown. Place toasted bread on a platter and top with the tomato/basil mixture.

Tomatoes & Homemade Pesto Are A Match Made In Summer Eating Heaven

Please visit Farmgirl Fare's blog for these delicious recipes that really bring out the best of summer eating!

Homemade Pesto and Fresh Tomato Pizza is to die for!