Cheese Antojitos

The cheese antojitos story started back in the mid-1990s. The Peterborough Arms, a pub from my university days. One of my favourite snacks from the Arms were their cheese antojitos served by an eccentric server who walked around with PEZ dispensers stuffed in his belt like guns in holsters.

Being on a student budget, I quickly figured out how to make them myself and continued to make them as the occasional treat. When the Peterborough Arms closed shop, I knew that I alone held their secret. And it's now time to share that secret.

The beauty of these snacks is that they're flexible as well. The base is cream cheese and the rest is up to you. You can add roasted garlic, cheddar or bleu cheese instead of feta, skip the olives and tomatoes, add minced prosciutto or whatever. Just make sure the flavours blend well together.

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Cheese Antojitos

by Daniel Saraga March-30-2012

These cheese and tortilla snacks are perfect for parties.

Ingredients

• 1 package (250g) cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
• 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, finely shredded
• 2 tbsp sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
• 1/4 cup kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
• 6 8-inch flour tortillas

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350-degrees.2. Combine cheeses, tomatoes, olives and pepper sauce in medium bowl and fold together using a spatula.3. Liberally spread mixture onto each tortilla, leaving a little space at the edges.4. Roll the tortillas and place on a foil-lined baking sheet.5. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until toasty (but not burnt).6. Let cool for 2-3 minutes and using a very sharp knife, slice into straight rounds or at an angle.

Details

Prep time: 20 mins Cook time: 20 mins Total time: 40 mins Yield: 40 pieces

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Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad

Guest Chef: Mom

For the last Friday of a vacation week, we were heading to my parents for lunch and relaxing on their patio. A couple days earlier, my mom had called me, very excited about a recipe she saw for a pasta salad in the Toronto Sun. Not wanting to ask why on earth she was reading the Sun, I asked her about the recipe and it sounded great. She prepared it for the Friday lunch.

The salad tasted great. The flavour mostly comes from both roasted and picked vegetables. My mom was especially excited about the recipe because it's very easy to prepare ahead of time. The vegetables can be roasted a day or two in advance and refrigerated, and the rest of the salad comes together quite easily. Mom also switched things up a bit and used roasted garlic (and more garlic than the original recipe stated) and was more liberal with the balsamic vinegar (but she didn't remember how much more liberal).

Although the recipe calls for some parmesean cheese for garnish, I actually think that adding 1/2 cup feta cheese immediately before serving would really do the trick. Not having any feta on hand, we weren't able to try it.

Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad

• 1 red onion, sliced
• 2 zucchini, cut lengthwise into thick strips
• 8 stalks asparagus, ends trimmed
• 1 250g package cremini mushrooms, cleaned and quartered
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• salt
• pepper
• 1 package (500g) rotini pasta
• 1 medium jar (340ml) marinated artichokes, drained and roughly chopped
• 3 roasted red peppers, skinned and cut into strips
• 4 cloves roasted garlic, minced
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/4 cup sliced pimiento-stuffed olives
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 2-3 basil leaves, chopped
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup feta cheese (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 400-degrees and line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. Toss onion, zucchini, asparagus and mushrooms in olive oil, salt and pepper and transfer to cookie sheets.
3. Grill the vegetables in the oven for 5 minutes, turn and continue grilling for another 5 minutes until tender and crispy
4. Remove vegetables from oven and let cool. Roughly chop vegetables and transfer to a container if preparing in advance. Cook pasta until al dente following the package directions, rinse and drain.
5. When ready to serve, in a large bowl, toss pasta, grilled vegetables, artichokes, roasted peppers, garlic, tomatoes, olives, oil, vinegar, parsley, basil and feta cheese and serve.

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Shakshuka (Israeli Eggs Poached in Spicy Tomato Sauce)

During Passover, my family tends to eat lots of eggs. Mostly because eggs are in just about everything during Passover. But this particular meal wasn't inspired by that. Instead, it was inspired by a tweet I made earlier that week.

I'd been wanting to make Shakshuka for months, but I never had an incentive. And things were busy. When the tweet went out, Meredith saw it and hinted that I should consider it for dinner that week, and the wheels started turning.

As a Passover dish, it's excellent (well, if you serve it with matza instead of pita, slightly less excellent), as it's tasty and full of protein. I'd say that it's one of those dishes that could easily be served as breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

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Shakshuka (Israeli Eggs Poached in Spicy Tomato Sauce)

by Daniel Saraga June 15, 2011

Shahshuka is an excellent lunch or dinner, served with warm pita and Israeli salads.

Ingredients

1/4 cup olive oil3 jalapeno peppers stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped1 onion, chopped5 garlic cloves, minced1 tsp ground cumin1 tbsp paprika1 can diced tomatoes5 eggs1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled1 tbsp parsley, chopped

Instructions

1. Heat oil in a deep pan over medium-high heat. 2. Add peppers and onions and stir occasionally for six minutes. Onions should be soft and slightly browned. 3. Add garlic, cumin, and paprika, stirring frequently for 2 minutes.4. Add diced tomatoes and liquid, reduce heat to medium and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. 5. Reduce to medium-low, stir and make five wells in the thick sauce. 6. Crack eggs over wells, cover and cook for about five minutes, until yolks have set.7. Baste the eggs with tomato sauce using a small spoon and sprinkle feta and parsley.

Details

Prep time: 5 mins Cook time: 30 mins Total time: 35 mins Yield: 3-4 servings

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