Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette

Never go to the market when you’re hungry. Isn’t that what they always say? My daughter and I went to the store to pick up a few things we needed for our family’s dinners this week. Right at lunch time! Both of us were very hungry, so needless to say, we picked up our share of fun snacks. Everywhere we turned there was something we wanted to try. Before we left with all our goodies, we made one more stop at the market sushi counter to pick up some veggie rolls that we planned to gobble down as soon as we got home.

On the drive home, it occurred to me that in our hunger-crazed haste, we forgot to pick up our favorite asian sesame dressing to use on our veggie rolls (we put dressing on everything ’round here.) So as we made our way home, I mentally ran through what I had in stock at the house and realized I could probably throw one together with what we already had. It turned out great! I plan to use it as a marinade for chicken this week as well.

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Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette (Dressing/Dip/Marinade)

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup rice vinegar
  • 1 tsp onion flakes (I used dried chopped red onion because I had it on hand. Finely minced shallot would be lovely too, though)
  • 2 tsp agave
  • 1 tsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp tahini
  • 1 tsp grated fresh ginger (I used the pretty shavings that came with our veggie rolls)
  • 1 tbsp sesame oil
  • 1/2 – 3/4 cup salad oil of your choice (I used vegetable oil)

Directions

Combine the rice vinegar, onion, agave, soy sauce, tahini and ginger. I used an immersion blender to blend it all, but a vigorous whisking would work just fine.

Slowly drizzle in your oils while blending or whisking well to fully incorporate the oils with the other ingredients. Some folks like their dressing more oily than others, so stop around the 1/2 cup mark and do a taste test. Then slowly drizzle in more oil until you get the balance of vinegar and oil that you prefer. We like our dressings on the vinegary side over here.

Store in the fridge for up to a week.

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Fingerling Potatoes on the Grill

I love this time of year. We’re right on the cusp of summer. This week we have experienced a surge of hot days that have necessitated the use of the sprinkler, water balloons, a generous allotment of limeade popsicles and of course, the grill!

I purchased some fingerling potatoes at the market earlier this week, and while I was looking forward to eating them with one of our dinners, I wasn’t looking forward to firing up the oven to roast them. Enter the grill!

This recipe is just a blank potato canvas. Alone, the way I prepared them, these potatoes are kind of like a steak fry. But you can add whatever you want:  Peppers, onions, asparagus, Old Bay, seasoning salt, garlic… the veggie and seasoning possibilities for this side dish are endless.

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Peas, Lettuce, Volunteers and More

Took the cell phone out to the garden this afternoon…

peas

The peas are finally taking off – I just hope it’s not too late in the season. They got such a slow start.

lettuce

The lettuce in front of the peas were supposed to be reserved for microgreens, but they were doing so well, I decided to let them keep on growing. They taste great. We’ve already been harvesting this for salads. Continue reading