From Chef Oonagh Williams of Royal Temptations Catering

Ingredients:

• 4 small beets cooked and peeled, or use roughly half of a 15 oz. can of small whole beets
• 1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
• 3 Tbsp. orange juice
• 1 tsp. Dijon mustard (make sure it’s gluten-free)
• 2 tsp. maple syrup or honey
• ½ cup olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• Greens of 2 green onions, sliced thinly
• 2 Tbsp. fresh parsley
• Zest of half an orange
• Fresh orange, clementines etc., segmented, or small can of mandarin oranges
• Romaine or butter lettuce, shredded
• 4 oz. goat cheese
• ½ cup chopped nuts

Directions:

1. Put balsamic vinegar, orange juice, Dijon mustard, maple syrup, salt and pepper in a container large enough to take vinaigrette and beets. Mix together.

2. Add olive oil, parsley and green onions. Mix it all together using an immersion blender until herbs are chopped and vinaigrette begins to thicken. Taste and adjust seasonings, sweetness, etc.

3. Cut beets into ½ inch cubes using a fluted cutter for a prettier presentation. Add beets to half of the vinaigrette. Preferably leave beets in the dressing for a few hours for flavors to develop.

4. Divide shredded lettuce between two plates. Top with beets in vinaigrette and a few slices of goat cheese (or whichever cheese you prefer). Add some slices of orange

5. Finish with chopped nuts or crushed nut brittle and a drizzle of orange vinaigrette.

Tips and Alternatives:Cook the beets in boiling water, or you can microwave them in a microwave safe bowl with a cover, 2 tablespoons of water and 2 small beets for about 8-10 minutes.

Choose whatever cheese or nuts you would like to top the salad. Omit them for dairy-free or nut-free.

From Chef Oonagh Williams of Royal Temptations Catering

CÉAD MILE FÁILTE
AKA Egg and Smoked Salmon Torte – lunch, dinner or appetizer

This recipe isn’t written in stone. Make as much egg salad as you like, to your own favorite recipe. I do like adding green of green onions or chives to the salad. I don’t add pickles or chopped celery since I like a smooth mix. Smash the hard boiled eggs to make them very creamy or just use the egg slicer in both directions and leave in little pieces. I like to use a mix of mayo and plain Greek yogurt for better calories and the tang of yogurt. Again, make the salad to your taste.

Ingredients:

• 4 eggs, hard boiled, cooled and peeled.
• 2 Tbsp. (30 ml) mayonnaise
• 2 Tbsp. (30 ml) Greek Yogurt or more mayonnaise
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1-2 Tbsp. green of green onions or chives, finely chopped
• 1-2 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh parsley

Toppings:

• Crème Frâiche – you can also substitute sour cream or cream cheese.
• Sliced smoked salmon as much as you like or can afford. I buy imported Scottish or Irish smoked salmon, since that’s what I grew up on. You can use another smoked fish or even tiny salad shrimp or fresh salmon.
• Salmon Roe Caviar or other ‘caviars’. I like the color of salmon roe caviar. There are various brands available, some reasonably priced and shelf stable, others more expensive and in deli section. It is optional, fancy for a party, but my husband doesn’t like it. Many don’t like fish eggs!
• Lemon slices
• Thin slices of green of green onions.

Directions:

1. Mix egg salad ingredients together. Put all of egg salad in one plastic wrap lined wide shallow cereal or soup bowl or in lined individual ramekins or custard cups. Chill for several hours or overnight.
2. To serve. Turn egg salad onto one large plate or individual serving plates and remove plastic wrap.
3. Spread a layer of crème frâiche across the top of egg salad.
4. Either chop smoked salmon into small pieces and arrange on top or roll slices into small jelly rolls and arrange on top. Leave a space in the middle to pile the caviar.
5. Sprinkle with some green of green onions.
6. Garnish with lemon slices and slices of sweet pickled cucumber (or bread and butter pickle slices not spears) or bed of lettuce for a meal.

Additional Ideas:

This dish is excellent served with Irish soda bread.

Crème Frâiche basically tastes like a cross between heavy cream and sour cream, is thick like sour cream, but doesn’t break up as easily when you add it to hot sauces. You can even add sugar or honey to sweeten it for putting on top of desserts.

I take equal quantities of heavy cream and sour cream. Either half a cup or one cup of each, depending on what total quantity I need. Put the heavy cream in microwave safe container and warm in microwave until it is blood heat, comfortably warm, but not over 100 degrees. Then, stir in same quantity of sour cream (I tend to buy lite sour cream for less calories in normal cooking), mix well and leave covered on the counter for 12-36 hours until thickened. I find that within about 6 hours it has thickened to sour cream consistency and that’s in my cooler house. You can help process by immersing sealed container in a container of warm water and changing the water periodically.

About Chef Oonagh Williams

Chef Oonagh Williams has just been chosen as one of New Hampshire’s WZID’s Outstanding Women for 2015. See her at the WZID Women’s Expo Saturday, March 7 and watch her on WMUR’s Cooks Corner on Friday, March 13 with St. Patrick’s Day recipes. Like her at Gluten Free Cooking with Oonagh on Facebook. Chef Oonagh will be at Concord Co-Op on Thursday, March 12, Atkinson Library on Tuesday, March 24 and Westford MA on Thursday, March 26 – programs on the power of food – best medicine or worse poison. Chef Oonagh also does Corporate Lunch ‘n Learns and speaks at various celiac disease conferences. Check the newsletter archives for more of Chef Oonagh’s St. Patricks Day recipes, beef in gluten-free beer, Irish Chicken Rolls, Sticky Toffee puddings and more.