Poblano Pepper Poppers with Spinach-Artichoke Dip

A few weeks ago I bookmarked Kelly at Eat Make Read's Grown-Up Jalepeño Poppers. Her version made the treats I remembered slightly healthier by removing the breading while keeping the creamy, warm cheese that tones down the Jalepeno's spice so well. She also added goat cheese for a more unique flavor.

Since I had poblanos in abundance from Red Dog Farm, and to be honest can't handle jalepeño level spice, I decided to substitute them. The poblano's spice is more subtle - it grows on you rather than punching you. Then I started thinking about how to add another vegetable to the mix (because I like thinking I'm being healthy) when it dawned on me - Spinach-Artichoke Dip. The filling would remain creamy and cheesy while gaining some nutrients.

The first time I made the dip I used goat cheese in place of the parmesan, but it overpowered the popper making it all goat and spice. It turns out cream cheese and parmesan really is the way to go for spinach artichoke dip, though in the end I did add water chestnuts for an unexpected crunch.These poppers go down easy and are easy to whip up too. If you are pressed for time, you could make things even easier by filling them with pre-made Spinach Artichoke Dip. I promise not to tell.

Poblano Pepper Poppers with Spinach-Artichoke Dip
Yield: 22 poppers

11 small Poblano Peppers
1 teaspoon Olive Oil
2 Garlic Cloves, minced (approximately 1 tablespoon)
1 small Onion, diced (approximately 2/3 cup)
4 cups Fresh Spinach, pack it into the cup as you measure since it shrinks when cooked
3/4 cup Quartered Artichoke Hearts (canned and drained)
1/4 cup chopped Water Chestnuts
4 ounces Cream Cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese
1 teaspoon Salt

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a large baking sheet with foil. Halve the poblano peppers, removing seeds if desired, and place them on the sheet one to two inches apart.
2. Heat the teaspoon of olive oil in a nonstick pan on the stove over medium heat. Once it sizzles when water is flicked at it, add the onions and garlic. Set a timer for three minutes and stir periodically.
3. Rinse spinach. When the timer goes off, add the slightly damp spinach to the garlic and onion mixture. Cook until the spinach wilts and the onions are translucent. Remove the mixture from heat to cool.
4. Combine the cream cheese, parmesan cheese, salt, water chestnuts and artichoke hearts in a bowl. Use kitchen scissors to further break up the artichoke hearts, then stir to combine.
5. Pour the spinach mixture on top of the cheese mixture. Use kitchen scissors to roughly chop the spinach to break it up. Stir to combine.
6. Scoop the spinach-artichoke dip into the waiting poblano peppers so that it peeks up over the edges. I used a half tablespoon scoop for this and it worked great.
7. Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 30 minutes until peppers begin to brown around the edges and the cheese is bubbly.

Created with reference to:
Spinach Artichoke Dip at Serious Eats
Grown-Up Jalepeño Poppers at Eat Make Read
Spinach Artichoke Dip (Vegan) at Oh She Glows
Ellie Krieger’s Spinach Artichoke Dip at Food Network

Seared Scallops with Sesame Panko Eggplant and Plum Salsa

I had already started drooling over Just Food's Let Us Eat Local tasting line-up next Thursday, September 16 when I saw Cathy at Not Eating Out in New York post a contest where an amateur cook could win a ticket and have their recipe published Just Food’s upcoming Veggie Tipsheets book. The idea of tasting food from restaurants I have tried and loved as well as many on my restaurant wish list in one night lured me into creating the recipe below, which I attempted to document with more meticulousness than usual.

What started as a Plum Salsa turned into a fairly seasonal festive tower that packs a lot of punch. The salsa mixes sweet and savory thanks to juicy plums, silky sesame oil and bright mint in addition to the usual salsa ingredients. Its soft texture contrasts pleasantly with the Scallops’ caramelized exterior and the crispy Sesame Panko Eggplant rounds. This dish melted in my mouth.

If you don’t enjoys Scallops or want to be frugal, this still tastes great without them. I had plenty of the Sesame Panko Eggplant topped only with Plum Salsa and can tell you with confidence that Scallops aren’t required to make this dish enjoyable though they certainly take the appearance and taste up a notch.

Plum Salsa
3/4 cup plums (approximately 4)
1/3 cup tomato (approximately 1 medium; I used yellow for color and the low acidity)
1 teaspoon mint
2 tablespoons cilantro
1 tsp jalapeño
1/4 cup white onion
1/4 tsp sesame oil
salt to taste

1. Rinse plums, then cut in half, remove pits and chop roughly into small dice. Place 3/4 cup of plums into a small bowl.
2. Rinse tomato, cut across the equator and remove seeds with your finger. Cut out the inner walls (which still taste great so eat them as you go) and then chop the outer skin into small dice. Add roughly 1/3 cup to the bowl.
3. Rinse mint and remove leaves from stem. Lay leaves on top of each other and chop it finely until you have 1 teaspoon. Repeat this step with cilantro until you have 2 tablespoons. Add both to the bowl.
4. Rinse the jalapeño, cut in half and remove stem and seeds. Mince enough for 1 teaspoon and add to the bowl.
5. Remove skin from outside of onion, cut in half through the root end. Dice half of the onion or enough to fill 1/4 cup and add to the bowl.
6. Measure out ¼ teaspoon sesame oil and add it the bowl. Stir everything together gently. Salt to taste. Put in the refrigerator to chill and develop the flavor.

Panko Sesame Eggplant
(based on Chef Richard Ruben’s methodology for baked, crispy eggplant)
1 eggplant

1 cup Panko (or bread crumbs)
2 tablespoons black sesame seeds
salt to taste

2 egg whites
1 tablespoon olive oil
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees farenheight and cover a baking sheet in foil.
2. Peel eggplant and cut into 1/2 inch rounds, discarding ends. Salt and place in a colander for 15 minutes.
3. While eggplant sits, combine Panko, black sesame seeds and salt on a small plate or in a shallow bowl.
4. In a separate bowl whisk together egg whites and olive oil.
5. Rinse eggplant and pat dry. Dip eggplant in egg white and olive oil mixture until coated. Then dip in the panko mixture. Place on prepared baking sheet.
6. Once all eggplant is resting on the baking sheet, place it in the oven for approximately 20 minutes or until lightly browned and crispy. (For me the top never browned though unbeknownst to me the bottom did.)
7. Remove from oven and set to the side.

Seared Scallops
Olive Oil
Salt
Scallops (I defrosted New England Scallops from Trader Joe’s)

1. Pat scallops dry and salt them.
2. Heat a pan over medium high heat. Add olive oil. When the olive oil becomes fluid enough to spread through the pan, add scallops to it.
3. Cook 2-4 minutes on each side. The scallops are done on one side when they move easily when touched by the spatula.
4. Remove caramelized scallops to paper towel to drain.

To Assemble the final dish…
1. Place a scallop on the eggplant, then top with plum salsa.
2. Enjoy

*I actually tried a few ideas but this was my biggest success. One was so awful that I couldn’t even make myself eat the leftovers. Major fail.

Watermelon Sweets for a Jazz Age Lawn Party Picnic

Sunday I crossed off a MUST activity for my "While I live in NYC List:" the Jazz Age Lawn Party. I've wanted to attend this event since I first moved here 4 years ago, so my expectations were very high going into it and I'm pleased to say they were met 100%.

Meg, Leslie and I were transported into another time thanks to the Governors Island's sun-dappled peaceful atmosphere, enthralling period costumes, the enchanting music of Michael Arenella and his Dreamland Orchestra, Drew Nugent & the Midnight Society and Michael Cumella, phonograph DJ and the dancing. It was the best $7 I've spent in a long time and Meg and I already hope to go back in August in costume. Leslie's the only one who managed to dress in keeping with the theme this time.

In addition to taking everything in, we had a lovely picnic. Leslie brought a great quiche made with tomatoes, squash and basil from her CSA(!) and goat cheese. Meg brought pita chips, a yummy Brooklyn made hummus, prosciutto and melon. I brought the Cupcake Project's watermelon soda and watermelon butter, which I highly recommend making.

The watermelon syrup and butter are incredibly easy to make; you just need 6-8 hours at home to simmer the pureed watermelon over medium-low heat to remove the water and concentrate the its flavor. I used a seedless watermelon that I carried home in my tote bag, which likely weighed between 8-10 pounds, and ended up with a cup of watermelon butter and 2 cups of syrup.

Both items are very sweet, without added sugar!, so a little goes a long way. I diluted one cup of syrup with 2 cups of water (some carbonated) and found the result refreshing, though ice would have helped in the 90+ degree heat. We used the watermelon butter as a spread on pita chips and sprinkled it with goat cheese. The salty chips and cheese contrasted nicely with the sweet. My initial thought was to use the spread on a baguette but as Meg suspected the salt and crunch of the chips made a perfect appetizer.

All Leslie's photos can be seen here. A slideshow of my slots is below.

Cilantro Hummus

After purchasing the biggest bunch of cilantro ever for $1.50 at Green Market, I was forced to find a creative way to use a lot of it at once before it went bad. This simple recipe for Lime Cilantro Hummus was perfect.

I don't have a food processor, but my hand held blender wand worked fine to process the ingredients. My only other substitution was lime juice from a squeeze bottle instead of lime zest and fresh squeezed juice.

The resulting flavor was amazing (I LOVE cilantro) and the whole process took maybe 20 minutes. I will definitely revisit this and make my own hummus moving forward. To make the lime flavor more pronounced, I might even follow the directions next time.