Roasted Berry and Brie Salad

August 15, 2012

 

Have you ever roasted strawberries or blueberries?  If you have, you are a genius.  If you have not, let me introduce you to a new cooking secret that will make you wish you always have.  I had never tried this before (at least as far as I can remember), and let me tell you, this has to be one of the best ways to use up excess fruit.  Your kitchen will smell divine, you’ll have little bits of sweetened warm berries on top of your salad (or bread or pancakes or whatever you want…), and you’ll feel good about using up all that fruit before it went bad.

I found this recipe and knew immediately that I wanted to try it.  I had a lot of fresh baby spinach on hand, some strawberries that were about to go bad, and some blueberries I had gotten for my Greek yogurt.  I threw in some Brie, well, because….it’s BRIE, and any salad is better with cheese.  But you could throw in any kind of cheese you want (or omit for a vegan-friendly version)-goat cheese would be very good as well.  And the sweet orange vinaigrette ties the whole thing together with a nice pretty, citrusy bow.

Roasted Berry and Brie Salad

Servings: enough for 2 large salads

 

Ingredients

For the roasted berries:

1 pound (or so) of strawberries, halved lengthwise

1/2 cup blueberries

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

3 teaspoons sugar, divided

3/4 teaspoon sea salt, divided

Ground pepper, to taste

For the orange vinaigrette:

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1/8 cup orange juice

1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted

4-5 cups fresh baby spinach

Brie, cut into bite-size pieces

 

Instructions

1. For the berries: Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.

2. Spread the strawberries and blueberries out evenly on a rimmed baking sheet.

3. Drizzle the berries with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, 1 teaspoon of the sugar, 1/4 teaspoon sea salt, and ground pepper.

4. Gently toss the berries to coat completely and bake until softened and fragrant, about 10 minutes.  Set aside to cool.

5. For the vinaigrette: In a medium bowl, whisk together the red wine vinegar, orange juice, 2 teaspoons of sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and ground pepper (to taste) until the sugar dissolves.

6. Slowly pour in the 3 remaining tablespoons of olive oil, whisking constantly, until emulsified.

7. To assemble the salads, place a handful or two of the baby spinach onto serving dishes, top with toasted almonds, roasted berries, Brie, and lightly drizzle with the vinaigrette.

 

Source:  Adapted from Williams-Sonoma.

 

Filed in:Fruit | Salads
comment
August 15, 2012 - 5:42 am

Blog is the New Black - Looks great! I’ve never roasted berries….

August 15, 2012 - 3:20 pm

Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar - This salad looks fabulous!

August 15, 2012 - 6:01 pm

Mel - I’m one of those non-geniuses who haven’t roasted berries before but after spying this salad, I think I must…and the real reason you’ve convinced me is because I could live on Brie and Brie alone for the rest of my life so any salad that has Brie and a novel concept of roasted fruit is one I need to make immediately. Seriously fabulous!

August 16, 2012 - 1:52 am

Chung-Ah | Damn Delicious - I really need to get on board with roasting fruit so I can make this amazing salad! 🙂

August 16, 2012 - 7:54 am

Karen - I.have roasted berries for a strawberry vinagrette that I made, and that made my house smell so good! This salad looks delish! I will have to try it out! Thanks!

August 16, 2012 - 1:51 pm

Angie@Angie's Recipes - This looks fantastic! Love the combo of flavours.

August 16, 2012 - 3:42 pm

Katherine - This looks amazing!

http://therealfoodrunner.blogspot.com/

August 17, 2012 - 2:13 am

Ann P. - Roasted berries are probably the best idea ever! love them on top of salads, and all those other ideas you had–bread, WHOA! Greek yogurt? oh my gosh, so delish!

August 17, 2012 - 9:57 pm

On the Menu: 8/18 - Pursuit of Healthfulness - […] The Curvy Carrot: Roasted Berry and Brie Salad […]

August 18, 2012 - 4:39 pm

Sample Saturday | Homekeeping Adventures - […] Roasted Berry and Brie Salad – Berries and brie and orange vinaigrette. Yum. (from The Curvy Carrot) […]

August 20, 2012 - 11:30 pm

Courtney - Definitely going to try this salad out before berry season is over. I’ve not yet tried roasting berries, but I have a feeling they would be amazing with fresh, creamy brie! Great recipe! 🙂

May 9, 2013 - 8:35 am

Warm Vanilla Sugar | April’s Over? - […] Dinners, Dishes, and Dessert’s Buttermilk Chocolate Chip Muffins, The Curvy Carrot’s Roasted Berry and Brie Salad, Joanne Eats Well with Others Rustic Rhubarb Tartlets, and A Couple Cooks Pad Thai […]

July 15, 2013 - 5:00 am

Roasted Strawberry and Ricotta Bruschetta » The Curvy Carrot - […] the roasted strawberry.  Not a new concept (here’s a great salad that uses them), but roasted strawberries are simply amazing.  The flavor changes into something […]

November 9, 2013 - 2:28 pm

{GOOD EATS: fresh summer salad recipes} | The Sweet Escape - […] RECIPES: 1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10 […]

June 23, 2014 - 9:43 am

{GOOD EATS: 10 fresh summer salad recipes} | The Sweet Escape - […] RECIPES: 1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10 […]

Whole Grain Pancakes

August 12, 2012

So I have a funny story for you.

I had bookmarked this amazing whole grain waffle recipe to make this weekend.  I got up, took Scout on our usual weekend seven mile trek, and the whole way (quadriceps burning), all I could think about was how awesome it was going to be to make some homemade, whole grain waffles topped with lots of fresh fruit when we got back home.

I couldn’t exactly remember where I had stashed the waffle maker when I was unpacking, but I quickly found it and carried it into the kitchen, with a gigantic, hungry smile on my face.

And then the waffle maker promptly fell out of the bottom of the box, onto the wood floor, and promptly shattered the plastic brackets, handle, and trim into multiple, tiny pieces all over the place.  Tragic, yes.

I don’t make waffles all that often, so I won’t take it as a huge loss. In fact, I will probably wait to get a new one since I make them so infrequently. But, what is a girl to do in that situation?  I just laughed, swept up the pieces, and quickly headed over to 101cookbooks, where I knew I would probably find a whole grain pancake recipe to build off of, instead.

And, so, there were pancakes for breakfast.  Enough for two people, hot, steamy, full of flavor, and ready in about 20 minutes.  It was a good morning.

Whole Grain Pancakes

Servings: enough for 2 people

 

Ingredients

1 cup organic spelt flour (if you don’t have this, substitute whole wheat flour instead)

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt

1 cup buttermilk

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

For topping:  fresh fruit (I used a mixture of blueberries, strawberries, and ripe nectarines) and toasted sliced almonds

 

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt.

2. Add the buttermilk, beaten egg, and melted butter, whisking just until combined.

3. In a non-stick frying pan or griddle (or a pan coated with cooking spray or melted butter) over medium heat, pour about 1/3 cup of the batter and cook until bubbles form in the center of each pancake, about 1-2 minutes.

4. Using a rubber spatula, carefully flip each pancake, and cook until completely cooked through, about 30 seconds-1 minute.

5. Top with fresh fruit/toasted almonds and serve immediately.

 

Source: Slightly adapted from 101cookbooks.

 

 

Filed in:Breakfast
comment
August 12, 2012 - 2:15 pm

branny - Fabulous first picture. Our waffle make broke during our move. The handle broke off but we still use it…it just takes some finagling. 🙂

August 12, 2012 - 4:57 pm

ally - YUM! brilliant recipe – thank you!
xo
http://allykayler.blogspot.ca/

August 12, 2012 - 6:44 pm

Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar - So sorry to hear about your waffle maker! I don’t use mine that often either…but still!! At least you made these fun pancakes! Love this recipe.

August 12, 2012 - 10:47 pm

Ann P. - Ayy, how’s your wood floor doing after the crash? I think you recovered quite nicely with these pancakes! They look amazing with all that fruit 🙂

August 13, 2012 - 1:53 am

Chung-Ah | Damn Delicious - Awww, sorry about the waffle maker but these pancakes are fabulous! Love that they’re whole grain, which is definitely something I should be incorporating into my diet a bit more!

August 14, 2012 - 5:24 pm

Ashley @ Wishes and Dishes - These look so good with all that colorful fruit on top! That stinks about the waffle maker breaking 🙁

August 19, 2012 - 10:05 am

mei-ling - Thanks for the great recipe! I’m making them right now with half all purpose flr, and half whole wheat flr, subbing brown sugar because i’m out of regular sugar, and added pecans and blueberries… FREAKIN’ AWESOME!

August 20, 2012 - 10:31 am

Vera Zecevic - Cupcakes Garden - What else can I say then absolutely yummy! 🙂

April 28, 2013 - 7:30 pm

Whole Grain Pancakes - […] source:  thecurvycarrot.com […]

Cherry Garcia Ice Cream

August 9, 2012

Before I left my job in New Hampshire, I had the opportunity to visit the Ben and Jerry’s Factory in Waterbury, Vermont.  It had been on my list of must-do’s when I accepted my fellowship out east, so I was glad to do it.

My little sister happened to be visiting for the weekend, so we made the road trip (complete with snow and ice) over to Waterbury to check out the place.  We had a blast.  The tour was fun, we got free samples, and we stocked up on all things related to ice cream.  One of my picks, of course, was the Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream and Dessert Book.

I go back and forth between which flavor is my favorite.  On my chocolate-craving days, it’s, by far, New York Super Fudge Chunk.  On my more sane days in diet moderation, it’s one of the sorbets or new Greek yogurt flavors.  But, on most days, it’s Cherry Garcia, hands down.

This recipe is actually pretty simple, and considering cherries are in season right now, it’s almost negligent to not make this.  I didn’t change the recipe hardly at all (I did use chocolate chips because I forgot to pick up a Hershey Bar at the store-but feel free to stay true to the original recipe and use chocolate shavings from a plain dark chocolate bar), because, honestly, why would you?

Mmmm, homemade Cherry Garcia.  Just for you.

Cherry Garcia Ice Cream

Servings: 1 quart

 

Ingredients

1/4 cup chocolate chips (or shavings from a dark chocolate bar of your choice)

1/4 cup fresh cherries, halved and pitted

2 large eggs

3/4 cup sugar

2 cups heavy cream

1 cup milk (I used whole milk because that’s what I had on hand)

 

Instructions

1. Place the chocolate chips and the prepared cherries in separate bowls; cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

2. In the bowl of your standing mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (Use your stand mixer if you are planning on using a KitchenAid ice cream maker attachment.  If you don’t have one of these, just mix the ingredients in a large bowl.), whisk the eggs on medium speed until fluffy, about 1-2 minutes.

3. Very slowly, add the sugar, and continue whisking on medium speed until completely added, about 1 minute more.

4. Add the cream and milk and mix well.

5. Transfer the ingredients to your ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufactuer’s instructions.

6. Right before the ice cream is done (I let my KitchenAid ice cream maker go about 18 minutes or so), add the chocolate and the cherries, and continue freezing until the ice cream is done.

7. Cover tightly and freeze immediately.

 

Source:  Directly from Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream and Dessert Book.

 

Filed in:Desserts
comment
August 9, 2012 - 1:53 pm

natalie@thesweetslife - i would LOVE to visit Ben & Jerry’s!

My friend has the book you have and I always love flipping through it–need to get myself a copy!

August 9, 2012 - 3:21 pm

Ann P. - This is amazing! I would love to make this for my fiance’s mom; she’s a Cherry Garcia fanatic 🙂

August 9, 2012 - 6:53 pm

Chung-Ah | Damn Delicious - Wow, you just saved me so much money by sharing this recipe because I always overpay for the Ben & Jerry’s one!

August 10, 2012 - 3:05 am

Vera Zecevic - Cupcakes Garden - Cherry is one of my favorite fruits especially on summer when it is so refreshing ! Your ice cream is gorgeous! I will give it a try!

August 12, 2012 - 12:23 am

holly - cherry is probably my favourite ice cream flavour. It’s so refreshing!

June 17, 2013 - 8:41 pm

Berry-ly Made It | Epicurean Adventures - […] The original recipe can be found at The Curvy Carrot. […]

August 11, 2014 - 9:34 am

Debbie Sansing - Can’t seem to find heavy cream that is not made on shared equipment. Scary! If you have figured out which heavy cream is safe, please share that information. Thanks!!!