Spicy Mango Tomato Salsa

As promised here's another savory recipe. This one is for a delicious mango salsa. It's quick and easy to make and perfect as an appetizer with blue corn chips and cold beer. It also makes a great accompaniment for grilled fish, chicken or tacos. 
I have to admit that Mexican food is probably one of my favorites and that I could eat chips and salsa any time. To love spicy, flavorful Mexican food comes with the territory when you live in Los Angeles. We're lucky to have some of the best restaurants that serve food from south of the border. Monte Alban, located in a small strip mall in Santa Monica serves authentic Oaxacan food and some of the best Mole Negro. Try Lares on Pico Boulevard for their fantastic Margaritas, fresh warm chips, and spicy salsa. The original location of La Serenata De Garibaldi in the Boyle Heights area of  Los Angeles has been there for more than thirty years. The restaurant serves gourmet style Mexican cuisine, fresh, healthy and on the lighter side with an emphasis on seafood. Though it is a bit out of the way, the fresh hand-made tortillas are well worth the drive. El Cholo, another Los Angeles institution with five different locations has been around since 1922. Stop by for Happy Hour and enjoy one of their famous El Cholo Margaritas, followed by a generous plate of authentic, traditional Mexican food. Don't miss their excellent fresh green corn tamales, which are only served from May though October. This is only a small sampling of the many outstanding restaurants in town. You'll find truly authentic food in many Downtown and East LA neighborhoods, not to mention the numerous food  trucks and fast food places. One of the most popular ones is Tito's Taco stand in Culver City. Tito's serves freshly made mouthwatering tacos, burritos, and tamales based on secret family recipes. Be prepared to wait patiently for your food, because the lines in front of this LA institution can be very long.


Ingredients
1 ripe Mango, peeled and diced
1/2 cup sweet onion, chopped
5 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely minced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt

Preparation
Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix together. Allow flavors to blend for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Gluten Free Banana Oat Bread

Delicious gluten free orange scented banana bread made with garbanzo beans? You heard right! I've been experimenting with the humble chickpea as a wheat substitute and have to admit that this is my favorite flour replacement so far. Besides banana bread, I made pear bars and an excellent chocolate cake. They all had great crumb texture and came out deliciously moist. Best of all, none of my "test subjects" could tell that I had used garbanzo beans in the batter. You'll see, that there is absolutely no noticeable chickpea taste. If anything, the beans will add a sweet nutty flavor to your baked goods. I used 2 tablespoons of coconut oil in my versions, but you could very well make them fat free. They're also great for vegans, since they don't contain animal products. Depending on your taste you could add nuts, raisins, cranberries or chocolate chunks to the banana bread. The one I made is simple and plain, because I really wanted to get the full taste and make sure there was no lingering garbanzo bean flavor.

Ingredients
2  1/4 cups canned or cooked garbanzo beans
2 tablespoons coconut oil (liquid form)
1/4 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon orange rind, finely grated
1 cup mashed bananas
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon 
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup quick cooking gluten free oats
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda



Preparation 
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and coat a loaf pan with cooking spray.
Using a food processor or blender grind garbanzo beans with orange juice and oil until smooth and creamy.
This may take a while and you'll have to scrape down the sides of the bowl several times. It's essential that the bean mixture is as smooth as possible. Transfer to a large bowl.
Add mashed bananas, beaten eggs, vanilla extract, orange rind, and brown sugar to bean mixture. Stir until well combined.
In a small bowl mix together cinnamon, cornstarch, oats, baking powder, and baking soda.
Add dry ingredients to bean mixture and gently stir to combine.
Pour into loaf pan and bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Cool in pan for 5 minutes and turn out onto a wire rack.

Grilled Eggplant Stacks with Greek Kasseri Cheese

I'm realizing that my blog posts are becoming deliciously sweet, as in "dessert sweet" that is. So, I want to shift gears for a little and share some savory recipes with you. Let's see how long that'll last, before I have a relapse and fall back into my favorite activity, which is truly baking. 


Serve these eggplants stacks as an elegant appetizer, for lunch, or even as a light dinner. There are many variations out there, most of them Italian inspired. They usually include tomato sauce, basil, and Provolone or Mozzarella cheese. The Greek flavors in this version got great reviews from my family. The simple and healthy dish is a combination of classic Mediterranean ingredients such as eggplant, ripe tomatoes, oregano, mint, and Greek Kasseri cheese. Serve it with olives, hot pita bread, and maybe some Greek yogurt on the side.


Ingredients
2 eggplants, sliced into 1 inch slices
4 tomatoes, sliced into 1/2 inch slices
1 teaspoon fresh oregano, finely chopped
1 teaspoon fresh mint, finely chopped 
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/4 cup olive oil
black pepper
1 cup Kasseri cheese, grated


Preparation
Lightly salt eggplant slices and place into a colander. Let sit for about 30 minutes. The salt will draw out excess moisture and remove some of the bitterness of the eggplant. Rinse the eggplant slices and pat dry.
Preheat grill or panini press according to manufacturer's instructions and coat with cooking spray.
Combine olive oil, garlic, oregano, mint, and  black pepper in small bowl.  Brush eggplant and tomato slices with olive oil mixture. Place on grill and cook for about 2-4 minutes over medium heat until eggplant is soft and has nice scorch marks. Cook tomatoes for only 1-2 minutes. Remove from grill and set aside.
Preheat oven to 370 degrees. Assemble stacks on a lined baking sheet. Start with a slice of eggplant, then a tomato slice, and top with grated cheese. Repeat three times. Your last layer should be a generous amount of cheese. Except for salting the eggplants in the beginning there is no additional salt in this recipe, since the cheese has a slightly salty flavor already.
Let eggplant stacks heat through in the oven until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Tahini Dip with Zahtar Pita Chips and Marinated Olives

Many of you may know tahini sauce as the creamy, slightly garlicky condiment that's often served with falafel and other Middle Eastern sandwiches. It also makes a great stand in for hummus. So, if you like the taste and texture of hummus, but don't care much for garbanzo beans, try this delicious dip. Served with spiced pita chips and marinated olives it makes a quick and easy appetizer.

Tahini Dip
Tahini is a paste of ground, hulled, and toasted sesame seeds. It is commonly used in Middle Eastern, North African, Greek, and Turkish cooking. Sesame paste of unhulled, black, toasted seeds is a typical ingredient in China, Korea, and Japan.


1/2  cup of tahini (sesame paste found in specialty stores and Middle Eastern markets), stirred well
1/2  cup of water
1/4  cup olive oil
1/4  cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2  teaspoon sea salt
1/8  teaspoon cumin
1 garlic clove, mashed into a paste
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
chopped parsley for garnish


Mix the first 7 ingredients together until well combined. Consistency should be creamy and not too thin. Add more water if used as a salad dressing or as a sauce for sandwiches.
Drizzle lightly with olive oil, sprinkle with chopped parsley and pine nuts before serving.


Zahtar Spiced Pita Chips

Zahtar is a popular herb and spice mix that is being used throughout the Middle East. The most common combinations consist of sesame seeds, salt, sumac, and dried herbs such as thyme, oregano, and marjoram. 
In addition to being used as a seasoning for meat and vegetable dishes, it also adds great flavor to salads like the Arabic bread salad fattoush. The most popular use of the spice mixture is probably as a topping for pita bread or yogurt cheese.




3-4  loaves of pita bread
olive oil
zahtar (found in specialty stores and Middle Eastern markets)


Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Brush pita bread with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with zahtar. Cut each loaf into 8 wedges and place on prepared sheets. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until edges turn golden brown.

Marinated Olives                           
1 cup green olives 
1 cup Kalamata olives
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons balsamic red wine vinegar          
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon fresh basil, chopped,
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped
1/2 teaspoon fresh rosemary, chopped


Combine all ingredients and mix well. Refrigerate overnight or up to 3 days. Bring to room temperature before serving.