Cold Cucumber and Yogurt Soup

I planned to share a recipe for a savory tart today but with the heat wave we experience in DC right now I could not even think about making anything in an oven, as outside it feels like being in an oven. Instead, I decided to do something quite opposite: a cold soup straight from a refrigerator.

It is extremely easy, comparing, for example, to the much more labor intensive Polish cold beet soup, but also very refreshing on a day as today and can be made in no time, like gazpacho. There are many versions of yogurt and cucumber soup but I like this particular one because with the addition of sparkling water it becomes even lighter and more refreshing than any other I tried.

In general, this soup is made from cucumbers but I also like to add some red radish to make it more crunchy. Not to much, just for extra texture. I also like to season it with dill, which, in Polish cuisine, is often used to accompany cucumber dishes.

So, if where you are is as hot as where I am, you could use this cucumber soup to cool down.

Cold Cucumber and Yogurt Soup
(Serves 4-6)

Ingredients:
4-5 very fresh Kirby cucumbers, or one English cucumber,
6 radishes, cut in half and finely sliced,
3 cups low fat (2 percent) Greek yogurt,
1 cup sparkling water,
2-3 garlic cloves, minced,
juice from half a lemon,
2 tbsp fresh, chopped dill,
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil,
sea salt and freshly grated pepper to taste,

Preparation:
1. Place yogurt in a large bowl. Add sparkling water and, using a whisker, beat until smooth.
2. Peel of cucumbers. You can chop them finely or in a blender, or grate on a small whole grater. Add cucumbers to the yogurt.
3. Add juice, garlic and chopped dill to the yogurt. Season with salt and pepper and let it chill for at least 2 hours.
4. Divide soup between 4 or 6 small bowls. Drizzle with olive oil and decorate with radish.
Serve and enjoy.

Mixed Pesto Sauce with Nuts

Let's talk about basil. This is a perfect time--basil in pots and gardens is ready to be harvested, fresh and unbelievably aromatic.

I cannot imagine my life without the pesto sauce. About once in ten days my kids ask for "green sauce pasta" which is pasta served with pesto. Most easy and one of the most delicious pasta dishes.

I have known the pesto sauce for over two decades but I never bought it. I always make my own, as organic as possible. I grow my own basil, I add the best oils and once in a while a make a big jar of pesto, which I serve fresh and I freeze the rest in small containers. Then unfrozen it is always fresh and bright green as on the day I make it.

Over the years, I also came up with some modification to load my pesto with vitamins and all the good stuff that my kids do not like to eat. Although mostly made of basil leaves my pesto has also half a cup of parsley. Besides traditionally used pine nuts I toast some pumpkin seeds and a bit of walnuts. I also use two types of oil: extra virgin olive and rice bran oil. This way my pesto is full of vitamins and, thanks to basil and parsley, one serving of pasta with my pesto sauce delivers daily requirements of vitamins K, A and C and, because of all types of nuts and oils used in it, also vitamins E, omega-3 fatty acids, selenium, and magnesium.

For extra taste I add a squeeze of lemon juice, which you will not find in the traditional recipes, but which preserves the sauce and its color and adds an extra taste to it which my kids enjoy more than the more bland taste of the traditional pesto.

Mixed Pesto Sauce with Nuts

Ingredients:
1 large bunch (about 2 cups) fresh basil leaves,
1/2 cup curled parsley leaves,
1 cup best extra virgin olive oil,
1/3 cup rice bran oil,
juice from half a lemon,
2-3 garlic cloves,
1/4 cup pine nuts,
2 tbsp pumpkin seeds,
2 tbsp walnuts,
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese,
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Preparation:
1. Place all the ingredients except the Parmesan in a blender and run the blender until you obtain a smooth creamy sauce.

2. Transfer the sauce to a bowl, add the Parmesan, and mix well with a spoon. Serve fresh with pasta or freeze for future use in a tightly closed, preferably glass, containers.

Raspberry Tart with Cheese and Honey Cream

Raspberries are among my favorite fruits. When fresh and sweet, they taste best simply on their own, or just toasted on light summer desserts.

As raspberries are now in season and available everywhere, not surprisingly, this recipe came to my mind during my latest food shopping. It is a very easy and delicious dessert, perfect for this season when raspberries are easy to get, inexpensive, and sweet. I used to make it quite often in the past, but somehow I have never made it since I started this blog.

Recently, I make desserts only when I cook dinners for friends, so last week, while having my neighbors for an impromptu dinner, I made this cake to take pictures and get their opinion. They liked it a lot and complimented everything: the crust, the cream, and the presentation.

This tart is made almost entirely in a food processor. Only the base is baked. The crust for this cake is very short but also kind of grainy which gives the whole tart an interesting texture. There is a thin layer of cream on it and then a lot of raspberries on top.

I like this tart so much because, like many European desserts, it is not too sweet. The cream cheese and crème fraîche filling is sweetened only with a little bit of honey. But when you bite a piece of this tart, the crunchiness of the base blends with the soft cream and delicate juicy raspberries drizzled with honey and, for a moment, you feel in your mouth a summer heaven from Provence or Tuscany.

Raspberry Tart with Cheese and Honey Cream
(For a 10-inch tart form with removable bottom)

Ingredients:

For the crust:
1 and 1/4 cup all purpose flour,
7 tbsp butter, cut into thick slices,
1 large egg,
1/4 cup sugar,
a generous pinch of salt.

For the topping:
1 pack 8 oz cream cheese at room temperature,
1/4 cup crème fraîche (sour cream can be a substitute if crème fraîche is not available),
1/4 cup running honey, plus extra 2 tbsp,
1 lb (3-4 cups) of fresh raspberries,

Preparation:
1. To make crust, put flour, butter, sugar, egg, and salt in a food processor. Pulse until ingredients create crumbles. Transfer them to a lightly buttered tart form. Press them to the bottom and sides of the form with fingers and let chill for a minimum of one hour.
2. Preheat oven to 350 F and bake the crust for 25-30 minutes, until dark gold. Let it cool completely.
3. To make cream filling, using an electric mixer beat cream cheese, honey and crème fraîche until smooth. Spread evenly on the bottom of the crust.
4. Decorate the top of the tart with raspberries and drizzle with remaining the 2 tbsp of honey.

5. Gently remove the tart from the pan by removing the wall. Place on the serving plate. Serve at room temperature. The tart can be kept in a refrigerator for up to three days.