Veggie Quesadilla

Ingredients:

•          Large flour tortillas
•          Grated cheddar cheese
•          Olive oil
•          Chopped onions
•          Chopped green peppers
•          Avocado – smashed into guacamole

Instructions:

Heat a large cast iron frying pan to medium high heat. Add a small amount of oil and spread it around the bottom of the pan. Cook your onions and peppers for five-seven minutes, and then remove and place in separate bowl. Next, take one large flour tortilla and place it in the same pan.

Spread your avocado mixture on the bottom of the tortilla. Next, take a handful of grated cheese and sprinkle over the top of the tortilla. Then, add cooked onions and peppers (and anything else you may like, just don’t overload it).

Reduce the heat to medium-low and add second tortilla on top and press down to secure. Let cook for five or so minutes until you can tell cheese is melting. Check that bottom tortilla is crispy by using a spatula to lift up. The tortilla is slightly browned and crispy, flip over carefully. Once other side is crispy, remove from pan and cut into four wedges.

Serve with salsa and sour cream.

Santa Monica Chili

Recipe courtesy of Executive Chef Keith Roberts, Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel
Serves 1 portion

Ingredients:

·         2 ounces of Shrimp Rock              

·         3 ounces (one each) of Scallops - Day Boat          

·         1 ounce of Jumbo Lump Crabmeat

·         ¼ tsp of Garlic Peeled, minced                  

·         2 ounces of Chablis Cooking                       

·         1 ounce of Butter Unsalted        

·         5 Fava Beans, peeled and blanched

·         ¼ tsp of Salt

·         ¼ tsp of black Pepper, ground

·         1 teaspoon of (1/2 large lemon) Lemon juice

·         Pinch of Crushed chili flakes

·         ½ ounce of Olive oil

Heat Olive oil in medium fry pan and sear Scallop until well browned on both sides, transfer to tray or pan and place in medium oven to complete cooking while stew is finished.

In same fry pan sauté Rock Shrimp and salt pepper and chili flakes over high heat for ½ minute, add crab, Fava beans and white wine and simmer for 1 minute then remove from the heat and stir in butter. Pour into soup bowl and top with the seared scallop now cut in half. Serve with toast point or crouton.

Ocean & Vine at Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel
1700 Ocean Avenue
Santa Monica CA 90401
(310) 458-6700           
www.loewshotels.com/santamonica

Recipe: Vegetarian Stromboli

Ingredients:

• 10 ounces of pizza dough – can buy this pre-made at Trader Joe’s
• 1/3 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 cup of sliced artichoke heart
• 3 chopped roasted red peppers
• 1/3 cup chopped of olives – green or black
• 1/4 cup of sundried tomatoes

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.   Next, Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll out to look like a pizza. Spread the cheese, leaving a 1-inch border. Then, add your veggies. Roll it like a jelly roll and crimp the edges with fingers or a fork. Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown on top and feels crispy.

Recipe: Z Grille’s Cauliflower Steak with Chipotle Butter

Read about this recipe and can’t wait to try it out this weekend. Always looking for new “meaty” recipes that are sure to please my vegetarian husband and his ever-changing palette.

Photo: Chris Zuppa/St. Petersburg TimesChipotle Butter Ingredients:

• 2 cups of butter, softened
• ½ cup of garlic, minced
• 1 can of chipotle peppers, drained and minced
• 1 bunch of cilantro, minced
• Salt
• Pepper

Marinade Ingredients:

• ½ cup of fresh herbs, minced (thyme, rosemary, sage; whatever you like or is fresh)
• ½ cup of oil (olive, canola or whatever you use for salad dressing)
• ½ cup of garlic

Cauliflower Steak Ingredients:

• 2 heads of cauliflower
• 3 whole acorn squash, cut in quarters, seeds removed
• ½ cup of Manchego, grated
• 1½ pounds of shiitake mushrooms, stems removed
• 1 tablespoon of butter
• Salt
• Pepper

Instructions:

For butter - mix ½ cup of garlic, chipotle peppers, cilantro, salt and pepper into the softened butter. It will turn a cool red. Refrigerate.

For marinade - mince the herbs and mix with oil and ½ cup of garlic.

For cauliflower - trim sides of the cauliflower, then cut across the head to make “steaks” that are about 1 inch thick. A head should yield at least two, maybe three steaks. Carefully coat cauliflower with marinade, and let sit for at least two hours, but can marinate overnight in refrigerator.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and Place squash on baking sheet and roast for about an hour. Remove from oven and turn on broiler. Sprinkle squash with cheese, then place under broiler to melt cheese, just one or two minutes. When finished, it should look like a potato skin.

Place mushrooms in a large skillet with 1 tablespoon of butter. Add salt and pepper to taste. Roast in oven for about 15 minutes.

Heat grill, and grill the sliced cauliflower, as you would a steak, over very high heat. Flip the slices only once. Don’t play with them. They’ll be fragile and can fall apart. Grill about four to five minutes on each side.

To assemble the dish, put cauliflower on a plate with two or three pieces of squash and a spoonful of mushrooms. Top the hot cauliflower with the chipotle butter and serve.


Z Grill
104 2nd Street South
St Petersburg, Florida 33701
http://www.zgrille.net/

Pan-Seared Scallops

I love seafood, and an easy dish to cook up is pan-seared scallops. You really can’t go wrong with these. Go to your local grocery store and buy fresh from the counter, or if you have little time you can always buy frozen if need be. A little olive oil, butter and lemon should make them taste just right.  

Ingredients:

• 1 to 1 1/4 pounds of dry sea scallops (around  16)
• 2 teaspoons of unsalted butter
• 2 teaspoons of olive oil
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:

Remove the small side muscle from the scallops, rinse with cold water and thoroughly pat dry. Add the butter and oil to a saute pan on high heat. Salt and pepper the scallops. Once the fat begins to smoke, gently add the scallops, making sure they are not touching each other. Sear the scallops for 1 1/2 minutes on each side. The scallops should have a 1/4-inch golden crust on each side while still being translucent in the center. Serve immediately. Try with garlic spinach and mushroom risotto.