Pita Pizza with Hummus, Leeks, Spinach and Radish

Like I mentioned in a previous post - I have been getting myself to the Frederick farmers market every saturday in hopes of filling a void left from my French market days. Last week I came across these cute little radishes and thought to myself that perhaps the markets in the US aren't so different after all - oh wait - there are no pigs heads here or chickens with their feet and feathers and heads still attached!....but mostly its the same right?




I got back to the house and went out in the garden right away to snap a few pictures of them and then got to thinking - what should I do with them? In France we ate them raw - with a little butter or salt - but I wanted something a little more exciting for my meal.



Tuesday this week we went to Ocean City for the day with some friends. After swimming we chowed down on some Thrashers and then moved on to pizza. Unfortunately as I have recently cut out dairy from my diet - pizza was kinda a boring choice for me. What it came down to was a fourth of a pizza with a thin layer of tomato sauce and two or three wilted looking broccoli on top. This is no pizza - so I decided to make my radishes a topping for a satisfying "pizza."

I say "pizza" because as you can see - it doesn't look like your typical pizza.



Pita Pizza for 2

2 whole wheat pita rounds
2 leeks, sliced thin
small bunch of radishes, sliced thin
2 cups torn spinach leaves
roasted red pepper hummus
1 avocado, diced
small bunch cilantro
extra virgin olive oil
herbs de provence



1. Preheat the oven to 375. Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Sautee the leeks and radishes together until the leeks begin to brown and the radishes soften. Add the spinach and sautee, stirring, until the spinach is wilted and soft. Set aside.
2. Place the pitas on a foil lined baking sheet. In a small bowl combine several soup-spoonfuls of hummus, 1 tsp of olive oil and a 1/4 teaspoon or so of herbs de provence. Spread the mixture evenly on the pitas. Top the hummus with the suateed veggies.
3. Bake the pizzas for 7-8 minutes or until the sides of the pita are golden. Top each pizza with avocado and serve with cilantro.



I left this meal totally satisfied and totally shocked that I hadn't even felt the slightest twinge of dairy desire.

Look out for some cooking with kale next week!

Lentils and Leeks Lunchtime or Soup and Sammy Sunday

Both of these titles appealed to me (for obvious reasons) but as neither was descriptive enough to capture the whole sense of the meal I just put both! Deal.

Since coming to France I have been eating a lot more lentils because they use lentils in soups and salads much more often than we do at home. It seems only fitting that I make a French Green Lentil Soup at least once while in France. So I went out and bought a little sac of Puy lentils (another name for green lentils) and whipped up something simple and delish. Lentils, aside from being yummy, are a good source of protein, fiber, folate and B1. Pair is with rice and you've got yourself a complete protein.

For this soup I paired it with my staple sammy - goat cheese and cucumber.



Leek and Lentil Soup (for 2)
1 leek, washed and sliced
1 onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
2 soup spoons of olive oil
juice of 1/2 a lemon
4 cups veg broth
3/4 cup French green lentils
fresh mint

1. Heat the oil over medium heat in a large soup pot. Sautee the onion, leek and garlic until the onion and leek are soft and golden (5 minutes or so). Add the lentils and veg broth and bring the soup to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes or until the lentils are soft. While the soup is simmering you can get your sandwich ready.
2. When the lentils are tender take the soup off the burner and let it cool slightly. Add the lemon juice. Place half the soup in a food processor and puree. Split the puree between two bowls then top the puree with the unpureed lentils. Top with fresh mint and serve with the sandwich.

Pasta, Sweet Potato and Leek Dish

I had this recipe from a while back that I had been wanting to try so one night I just said, that's it! Im buying some leeks and trying this baby out. I will be honest, the taste of the leeks is very powerful in this dish and at first Jon and I were like...yeah this dish is good, but perhaps not a favorite. I swear though, this dish, every time I ate it got better, and Jon agreed. It grew on us quite quickly and now I am happy to pass it on to you all.



Leek and Sweet Potato Pasta

12 ounces multigrain penne
4 tsp olive oil
3 leeks (white and light green parts) cut into half moons
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
2 small sweet potatoes (1 lb about) cut into 1/2 inch pieces
3/4 cup grated Parmesan
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg (optional)

1. Cook pasta acourding to package, reserve 1/2 cup cooking water
2. Heat oil in large skillet to medium heat. Add leeks and cook, stirring until soft, 4 min
3. Stir in garlic cook 2 min. Add sweet potatoes, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, cook covered, stirring twice, until tender, 6- 8 min
4. Stir in 1/2 cup Parm and cooking water, simmer, stirring until potatoes are fully tender, 2-4 min.
5. Add pasta and nutmeg and toss.
6. Serve with Parm on top

PS that super sweet little bowl is a purchase from Philly :)