Ecuadorian Garlic-Chile Dipping Oil

La Casa de la Abuela is a restaurant with weathered wood tables and a big covered patio. It sits on the main road of La Union, a small town that doesn't even leave a mark on the Google Map of Ecuador. There, in that little town, I experienced the best meal I ate in Ecuador, despite the road noise.

One of the first things that was brought to the table was sliced fresh tomatoes with basil and a drizzle of garlicky, herby oil. There was something about that oil that made those tomatoes shine! Next arrival to the table was a big bowl of seemed muscles and clams, without a doubt freshly caught that morning. We drizzled the same garlic oil over each clam shell in delight. Was it the clams that were stellar or just the oil? Or both? 

We took turns guessing how they made the oil, until finally the owner and chef came to the table, bearing a jar full of the stuff, and the list of the ingredients. 

Just garlic, parsley, and red chiles in olive oil will give you a taste of that night in Ecuador. Drizzle it freely over seafood, dress a caprese salad, use it to make a salad dressing, or drip your favorite bread into it. 🤤

Ecuadorian Garlic-Chile Dipping Oil

Published August 8, 2017 by Caitlin Sherwood

Yields: 1 cup   |    Total Time: 15 minutes

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Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup olive oil
• 10 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 fresno chile (in Ecuador, they would use a small red chile called Pico de Pájaro, but I am unable to find that locally)
• 2 tablespoons minced parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. Mince garlic, fresno chile and parsley and place in jar.
2. Add salt and oil, to jar. Allow to sit covered, in fridge, for 24 hours so that the flavors seep into the oil.
3. Use as a drizzle or dipping oil.

Rainbow Spring Rolls

If you are looking for something healthy, full of veggies, and fun to make, try these out. They're also great for a party: put out sliced veggies, cooked and sliced chicken or steamed shrimp if you like, and let everyone make their own rolls. Traditional spring rolls also have rice noodles inside, but I usually skip them... that's just me. Peanut sauce makes for the perfect condiment! Make plenty, everyone will want their fair share. 

Rainbow Spring Rolls

Published May 30, 2017 by Caitlin Sherwood

These spring rolls have every color of the rainbow, and are perfect for summertime!

Yields: 15   |    Total Time: 30 minutes

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Ingredients:

For the rolls:
• 15 Rice paper wrappers
• 1 yellow bell pepper
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 cup shredded carrots
• 1 cup cucumber, julienned
• 5 pieces of lettuce, thick stem pieces removed
• 1 cup purple cabbage, shredded
• 1/4 cup cilantro leaves
• Optional: chicken (cooked and sliced) or shrimp (steamed), avocado


For the sauce:
• 1/4 cup peanut butter or almond butter
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon finely grated ginger
• 1 teaspoon Sriracha
• 1/4 cup coconut milk (canned, full-fat) 

Directions:

1. Prepare your workspace: set all of your sliced veggies out where they are easy to access (I put them all in small bowls around my cutting board).
2. Heat 1 centimeter of water until it’s just ready to simmer, but not bubbling yet. Place 1 rice paper wrapper in the hot water, just until it becomes soft and pliable. Then, carefully remove it from the water with out tearing it and place it flat on your cutting board (this may take a bit of practice! If you tear one or two, you can try to use it still or just start over with a new rice paper wrapper). While the wrapper is still pliable and warm, make a small row of veggies on one side of the rice paper (1-2 cucumber slices, a few tablespoons each of cabbage and carrots, 1-2 shrimp or slices of chicken, etc.) All together, you want about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of filling for each roll. Then, roll everything up like a burrito.
3. Repeat step 2 until you’ve used up all of your rice paper wrappers.
4. Make the sauce: stir together all of the ingredients until a uniform, creamy sauce comes together.
5. Serve spring rolls with a side of sauce for dipping. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.

Fresh Mint & Fresno Chile Broccoli Salad

This recipe is a copycat recipe from Mod Market, a quick serve restaurant in my area. I go there for lunch meetings (otherwise I usually bring my own lunch) and get whatever they have on their seasonal menu. One day, their seasonal item was this Fresno Mint Broccoli Salad. By bite three I was already thinking about how I would recreate the recipe to share with you all! It's perfect as a hearty salad for lunch but also great as a pot luck dish or side at a dinner party. It also stays fresh in a tupperware in the fridge for a week, so you could make a huge batch and eat deliciously all week.

The base of the salad is arugula. Everything else that goes in is big on flavor: start with fresh broccoli florets, then roasted sweet potatoes, slivered almonds, pickled red onions, minced mint leaves and finally thinly sliced fresno peppers. They are all bold, but none so bold that it out shadows the rest. You get these hearty bites of broccoli and roasted sweet potato, touches of clean mint, and then sweet and bright peppers popping through. The almonds lend crunch. Every bite is slightly different, every bite is delicious.

Drizzle with any dressing you like--I have used both a White Balsamic Vinaigrette and the Bacon Vinaigrette from Trader Joe's and both were fantastic.

Fresh Mint & Fresno Chile Broccoli Salad

Published May 11, 2017 by Caitlin Sherwood

With bold ingredients, this salad is sure to make any meal bright!

Serves: 6   |    Total Time: 40 minutes

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Ingredients:

• 5 cups baby arugula
• 1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted lightly
• 1/2 a red onion, sliced thin and quick pickled
• 1 cup broccoli florets cut into bite-sized pieces
• 4 red fresno peppers, sliced thin
• 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, minced or cut chiffonade-style
• 1 cup diced sweet potatoes
• 1 teaspoon avocado oil
• 1/8 teaspoon each salt & pepper
• Dressing of choice (I used a white balsamic vinaigrette)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Toss cubed sweet potato in avocado oil and sprinkle with salt & pepper. Spread on a cookie sheet, and place in oven. Bake until tender through, 25-35 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool
2. While the sweet potatoes cook, prep the rest of your salad: Place arugula in a large serving bowl. Top with broccoli florets, thinly sliced fresno peppers, mint, and toasted almonds. When the potatoes are cool, add them to the salad and toss everything with your dressing of choice. Serve!