Friday evening was spent with our friends Jeff and Marla . . . which meant another M²T³ Event! We decided to start the evening by walking to the grocery store and looking for items we had never used.
We found:
- Brown Bell Peppers
- Cactus Pear
- Chayote Squash
- Yuca
Marla and I went to work in the kitchen. Here were some of the dishes we enjoyed:
1. We chopped the chayote squash and roasted it with green beans, garlic, pepper, salt and balsamic vinegar for 25 minutes at 350°. We all thought the chayote squash was really good! It maintained a crunchiness that made it stand out. I would definitely get it again.
2. We “googled” yuca, and decided to try yuca fries. Bob helped by peeling and slicing the yuca. We boiled the slices for 20 minutes, drained them, tossed with coconut oil and seasonings, and baked them for 20 minutes at 400°. We tried two different seasonings: cinnamon and a savory blend. The savory blend was our favorite—no contest.
3. Marla arranged caprese tower salads using some delicious heirloom tomatoes!
4. We made up our own appetizer using ingredients we thought would compliment each other. Here is the recipe:
Brown Bell Pepper Bites with Cactus Pear Sauce
- 1 brown bell pepper, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 red pear, thinly sliced
- parsley
- 1 cactus (prickly) pear, peeled and chopped
- 1 t. cinnamon
- 1 t. maple syrup (optional)
1. On your serving plate, arrange the bell pepper bites with a slice of red pear and parsley leaf.
2. Place the chopped cactus pear, cinnamon and maple syrup in a blender, and blend until thoroughly combined (the seeds of the cactus pear will not break down—it’s okay).
3. Pour the contents of the blender through a fine strainer (to separate the seeds of the cactus pear from the sauce) to drizzle over the serving plate of bites.
Notes: A brown bell pepper is definitely not necessary for the dish–it was just fun to have something a bit different than the usual red/green/yellow. In retrospect, I don’t think the maple syrup added anything to the dish, and I probably wouldn’t use it next time. The cactus pear provided plenty of sweetness. The cinnamon, however, definitely came through. Don’t skip that!
Since it’s Marla’s 30th birthday (yay!) on Monday, we celebrated by splurging on king crab legs, too! Those were gobbled up before anyone thought to snap a picture. Yum!
It was interesting to work with some new food items (I’ve been a roll with zucchini flowers, patty pan squash and cucuzza squash)! The seeds in the cactus pear had us all very surprised! Have you experimented with any new foods lately? Did you enjoy it?
(in)SPYR is the robust-y Genesis Child Theme from Spyr Media that makes beautiful sites like this possible.
Features
Three theme styles · six color options · custom opt-in area · fully-responsive design · responsive slider · 98% more awesome than other themes
Glad to have stumbled upon your blog. I can’t believe you live in Arlington Heights. I’m in Palatine!
Oh wow, just read you teach at Stevenson. I teach at one of the feeder schools. Small world.
That’s great! Back to work tomorrow!!!
That is too funny! (I used to work at Stevenson with Michelle), which feeder school are you at?
I love how adventurous you are with your food!
I had yuca for the first time in Costa Rica. They mashed it into patties and deep fried it. nom!
This recipe looks so good! I’ve never seen a brown bell pepper before!
Yuca!!!!!!! So popular in the Dominican Republic. Usually fried, with cheese, etc. I was never a fan, but it was one of my best friend’s favorite foods. I don’t think I’ve ever tried the other types of produce. I guess I need to get more adventurous!
I have never seen or heard of a brown pepper before! Looks yummy!
I thought you’d find it interested that I’ve seen yuca (cassava root) on the menu of EVERY cuban restaurant while we’ve been here in Miami…so far I’ve seen it offered as boiled and fried.
Let’s try boiled next time!