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Summer Salads, part I

Summer brings a change to our kitchen. Basically, we do a lot less oven roasting and a lot more grilling. The other change is we add several basic vegie salads to the fridge, to help make meals easier … at home or on the road.  

The next few Thursday posts will contain recipes and notes on the different salads we like. We hope you like them too and if there is a summer salad you really enjoy, please take a moment and share it in the comments. We’ll load it in the recipe page and let the other readers of the blog know.

The most basic of these salads is Chopped Salad. You’ll find a variety of recipes in any search, because it’s a basic go to recipe. Our main criteria is for the dressing to be simple, low fat, low carb. As evident in the recipe, the variety is also in vegetables used. It’s what you like and/or have on hand. This turns out ot be a great end of the week vegetable drawer emptier. 

Chopped Salad is super versatile. It is great as a side to any grill entree. Add it to a bed of greens and some protein and you have a salad entree. Enjoy!

Print Recipe

Chopped Salad

Ingredients

  • 1/4 lb green beans cut into 1/4 inch pieces
  • 1/2 cucumber, seeded and cut into 1/4 inch pieces
  • 1 small yellow or red pepper, seeded and cut into 1/4 inch pieces
  • 4-5 small tomatoes, seeded and diced into 1/4 inch pieces
  • 4-5 fresh basil leaves, chopped
  • 1/2 cup fresh parsley
  • 1/2 cup corn

Vinaigrette

  • 3-4 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp white wine vinaigrette
  • 1/2 clove garlic, minced
  • 1/2 tsp dijon mustard
  • 1 pinch salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

  • Lightly blanch green beans. Don't overcook. Cool in a bowl of cold water, then cut into 1/4 inch pieces.
  • Peel cucumber. Seed and cut into 1/4 inch pieces.
  • Seed and cut yellow or red pepper into 1/4 inch pieces.
  • Seed and dice tomatoes into 1/4 inch pieces.
  • Chop fresh basil leaves.
  • Chop fresh parsley.
  • Toss in corn and gently mix ingredients together.

Vinaigrette

  • Mix olive oil, white wine vinegar, garlic, dijon mustard and salt and pepper. Stir vigorously until well incorporated.
  • Add vinaigrette to chopped salad and mix thoroughly. Refrigerate.
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A Bug Hunt

With any hobby there are varying levels of involvement. We tend to be involved. So when it comes to fly fishing, aquatic entomology is part of the process.

Streams are much more alive with insect activity subsurface than you might expect. The best way to know what fish are eating is to sieve up some information … literally.

Three types of insects make up a majority of food sources, caddis, mayfly and stoneflys. The best imitation for an aquatic invertebrate is part latin name and part fisher folklore. Mostly you’re looking at size and color. Information obtained from the sample tray is taken to the tying bench and applied to a standard pattern.

It’s not clear if all this leads to more fish. The immersive nature is part of the fun. Plus you get to see lots of interesting creatures. Lately we’ve been pointing the macro lens at the collection tray and the videos are otherworldly, but a bug hunt is also part of the fun.

 

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Picnic Treat

We always called it camping cake and for as long as I can remember, it was a part of Sunday fishing trips.

Not sure whose recipe it was, but this date rich cake, topped with walnuts and chocolate chips, is the perfect sheet cake for summer outings.

The start of summer seemed like a good time to pull out the recipe along with the green cookie bowl … nostalgia for Schommer kids. In case you’re one of the unlucky few who don’t have the recipe, it’s included at the end of the post.

The recipe uses dates to sweeten the cake. This also means the cake stays moist for much longer. When you include the ‘frosting,’ nuts and chocolate chips. this is really the perfect summer picnic treat.

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Camping Cake

Sheet cake that is perfect for picnic baskets

Ingredients

  • 1 cup chopped dates
  • 1 cup boiling water
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 cup shortening
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 ¾ cup flour
  • 2 tablespoons cocoa
  • 10 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup walnuts coarsely chopped

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 9 x 13 cake pan.
  • Mix together dates, boiling water and soda, set aside.
  • Cream shortening with sugar and then add eggs.
  • Sift together flour and cocoa, blend all ingredients together and spread evenly in cake pan.
  • Top with walnuts and chocolate chips.
  • Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
  • Allow to cool, then cut into 2 inch squares. Cake keeps well in closed container for 4 or 5 days, but also freezes well.
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Cascade Loop

Blazed by early explorers like John Fremont, a mostly two-lane road winds south out of Bend onto the eastern slopes of the Cascade Mountains. This nearly 100 mile stretch started out as a dirt trail linking the city to a southern route over those rugged peaks. It’s those peaks that draw most of the traffic these days.

We regularly access the upper Deschutes River and Davis Lake along a stretch of FS 47, Cascade Lakes Scenic Highway. Though at least once a year we make the loop from the southern edge of Bend to it’s junction at Highway 58 because it’s a really beautiful drive.

South from Bend you climb to the base of Mt Bachelor. A major section of the highway is closed until late May but by mid-June it’s lined with wildflowers and snow capped peaks. There are many places to pull off and explore but we never just pass the meadow on the western edge of Sparks Lake.

Soda Creek Campground caught our attention this trip. Only ten sites but all with views across the meadow.

We will very likely be back for an overnight, to hopefully catch some wild life that venture onto the grassy flats that the creek meanders through.

From June to September the lakes and their resort beaches are filled with swimmers, kayaks, even powerboats … places we mostly avoid in the summer. We do however frequent a couple of turnoffs between Lava Lake and Crane Prairie Reservoir. A crystal clear stream, headwaters of the Deschutes River cuts a channel through the pines and offers great picnic sites.

 

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Almond Cake with berries

Just in time for summer berry season, this recipe has everything I love about cake. It is light, fluffy and moist,  making it a wonderful canvas for fresh, seasonal fruit. Better yet, it is relatively guilt-free. Having only 140 calories and 15 grams of carbohydrates per slice.

I was excited to try out my new Charlotte baking pan, which features a ladyfinger-style rim. And sure enough, the center indentation holds the fruit beautifully.

The addition of a baked in dusting of sugar in the center, gives this cake a light, crispy topping that is delicious. Love it!

Print Recipe

Almond Cake with berries

Tender, fluffy cake topped with fresh fruit. Gluten free and low carbohydrates.
Servings: 12 servings

Ingredients

  • 4 eggs, separated
  • 1/2 cup sugar, divided into 1/4 cups
  • 2 tbsps sugar, for dustiing bottom of baking pan
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 1/4 cups almond flour
  • 1 tbsp coconut flour You can replace coconut flour with 1/4 cup almond flour.
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 1/2-2 cups berries, for topping

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease an 8 inch round pan with butter or coconut oil. Make sure to cover up the sides. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of the sugar into the bottom of the pan.
  • Beat together eggs yolks, 1/4 cup sugar, and the vanilla, until smooth.
  • Using a stand mixer, whip the egg whites until they form soft peaks. Slowly beat in the remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Set aside.
  • Whisk together the dry ingredients (flours, baking powder and salt), and add to the egg yolks. Stir to form a thick dough.
  • Fold in the egg whites, 1/2 cup at a time, incorporating them fully between each addition. The final addition should result in a smooth, fluffy batter.
  • Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan. Bake the cake on the center rack for 30 to 35 minutes, until it's golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
  • Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Turn the cake out onto a serving plate.
  • Allow cake to cool before topping with sliced berries, or fruit of your choice.