Food: Sweet and Tangy Three Bean Salad

I love vinegar. And if you're wondering to what extent, let me tell you it's not uncommon for me to douse fish and chips in so much liquid the fish appear to be swimming once again or to eat so much salt and vinegar flavored popcorn my tongue hurts. I prefer vinegar over any sort of salad dressing and think it's great on any and all potato-based dishes (potato chips and perogies included) or crisp veggies (lettuce, cukes, okra). And I get super-excited when restaurants cater to my cravings. For example, a favorite Detroit-area restaurant of mine serves the national dish of Cuba (Ajiaco) with a container of vinegar on the side to pour into the stew. Despite all of these ways I use this tangy condiment, my favorite usage is in the age-old culinary method of pickling.

I have always been a fan of pickles and serving them in new ways (Jonathan introduced me to grilled cheese with pickles not too long ago and I wondered why I had never thought to try it before). And as I've mentioned in past postings, my mom does a lot of canning every year, often making a couple batches of pickled veggies, green beans being one variety. Her green beans I fancy even more than traditional cucumber-based dills since they're firm, crunchy and tangy with a touch of a kick. So when I found this salad in a Better Homes and Gardens magazine, I was instantly reminded of my mother's canned, hot beans and thought this seemed like a dressed-up, refrigerator-version.

I first mentioned this side dish a couple of postings ago (I served it with Swordfish Milanese). As in any refrigerator pickle recipe, it's important to make this a day ahead as the flavors really concentrate overnight. The fresh green beans will lose some of their bright green color the longer they're in the fridge but don't worry, they will keep their crunch and absorb a ton of flavor.



Sweet and Tangy Three Bean Salad
Adapted from: Better Homes & Gardens

Ingredients

• 8 oz. fresh green beans, trimmed
• 3/4 cups cider vinegar
• 2/3 cups bloody mary mix (I prefer Mr & Mrs T's Premium Blend)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 tsp. Worcestershire Sauce
• 2 tsp. stone-ground mustard
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 14.5-oz. can cut wax beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 15-oz. can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
• 6 baby carrots, sliced

Directions

1. In large saucepan cook green beans in boiling lightly salted water for 10 minutes or just until tender; drain and rinse with cold water. Set aside.
2. In extra-large bowl combine vinegar, bloody mary mix, oil, sugar, Worcestershire, mustard and garlic. Stir in canned beans and carrot. Refrigerate, covered, overnight.

Food: Rhubarb Strusel Bars

If you haven't figured it out already, I greatly adore rhubarb (hence my second posting featuring the ruby-red veggie in the past two weeks). So when I was flipping through magazines last week looking for inspiration, I got so excited when I saw this recipe, I immediately ripped the page out of my Better Homes and Gardens magazine almost tearing it in half (oops!). I don't know how I could have missed it (yes, this recipe was from the May 2008! issue, page 198). The fact I still have year-old magazines sitting around my house is kind of embarassing, but it was a fun to discover something new...and clean my house at the same time ;)

Since I'm not big on super-sweet desserts (sweet-tart is more my style), I decided to leave off the ginger icing and crystallized ginger on the top. This ended up being a good call since the cookie bar-base is very sugary. If I make this recipe again I would probably double the amount of rhubarb and hope it didn't make the crust too soggy since I thought this turned out to be more strusel than rhubarb-flavored. But it was still good nonetheless.

Oaty Rhubarb Streusel Bars

Recipe from Better Homes & Gardens

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 cups quick-cooking rolled oats
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 3/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
• 2 cups fresh or frozen unsweetened sliced rhubarb
• 1 recipe Ginger Icing (see recipe)
• 1 Tbsp. finely chopped crystallized ginger (optional)

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 8x8x2-inch baking pan with heavy foil extended beyond pan edges.
• In large bowl stir together oats, the 1 cup flour, and brown sugar. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside 1 cup oats mixture. Press remaining on bottom of prepared pan. Bake 25 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in medium bowl stir together granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons flour, and ground ginger. Add rhubarb; toss to coat. Spread on hot crust. Sprinkle reserved oats mixture; press lightly.
• Bake 30 to 35 minutes, until top is golden and filling is bubbly. Cool on rack. Drizzle icing, sprinkle crystallized ginger. Lift from pan; cut into bars. Store, covered, in refrigerator up to 2 days. Makes 16 bars.
• Ginger Icing: In small bowl sitr together 3/4 cup sifted powdered sugar, 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger, and 3 to 4 teaspoons apricot nectar, orange juice, or milk.