Salud! at Whole Foods: Cooking with Herbs

A short time ago I had another cooking class at Whole Foods.  This time Merijoy showed us ways to use herbs. 

Even tho I have taken quite a few herb classes and use them a lot in my cooking, I always seem to learn something new.  One of the things I got from this class was how to select and use leeks.  That little bit Merijoy is showing is all you use from the plant.  If you use any more of the green it gets bitter and tough.

Carrot Soup with Croutons & Basil Oil

We started with this nice soup. Tho it had quite a few ingredients it was actually pretty easy to make. It was topped with a bit of goat cheese, the croutons and the basil oil; all of which really made it pop.

 

Butter Lettuce & Avocado Salad with Spring Herbs & Fresh Chevre

The salad was pretty straight forward on this – butter lettuce, paper thin sliced radishes, thin sliced avocado, and assorted herbs. What made it special was the fresh goat cheese that had been coated with herbs and panko crumbs, the pan fried until golden and just getting ready to melt (that’s what happening in the above photo). That was placed on top of the salad and dressed with a Dijon mustard and champagne vinegar dressing. Sorry I didn’t remember to take a photo. It looked so good I jumped right in on it. (It was good too!)

 

Chicken with Tarragon Sauce

A very light sauce on a chicken breast that was browned up in a frying pan, then finished in the oven. While it baked, you made the sauce with some of the drippings which were spooned over the chicken when it was done.

 

Ancho Chile Grilled Shrimp & Beef with 3-Herb Chimichurri Sauce

In doing this recipe I think I would do just one of the meats. The sauce was fantastic – tho it had a lot more than just 3 herbs in it. It was a perfect accompaniment to both the shrimp and beef.

 

Lemon-Thyme Madeleines

So good! I like these enough that I bought a Madeleine pan to make them in.

Dressing for Herb Salad

1 Tablespoon Champagne vinegar

1 Tablespoon minced shallot

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

3 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Kosher or sea salt

Freshly ground pepper

In a small bowl, whisk vinegar, shallot and mustard to blend. Gradually add in oil, whisking continuously to emulsify. Season to taste with salt and pepper.