Lily's Caesar Dressing
2 cloves garlic
1 oz anchovies from a tin or jar
1 T Dijon mustard
1/2 cup Best Foods mayo 
zest of one lemon
2 lemons, juiced
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup good olive oil
1/2 cup finely shaved Parmesan cheese (I use my zester)

Put the mustard, mayo, lemon juice and zest in a bowl with a grind or two of black pepper and a generous pinch of sea salt. Finely chop the garlic then sprinkle with a bit of sea salt and smash it with the side of your knife against the cutting board until you have a paste. Chop and smash the anchovies the same way, then add to the bowl with the mustard, mayo, lemon juice and zest and whisk to combine. Add the olive oil in a slow stream until you get the texture you want, not too thin, you want it to stick to the romaine leaves well. Add in the cheese, stir. Check for flavor. Does it need more garlic? Lemon juice? Olive oil? You want it to have a balanced flavor with all ingredients detected. Drizzle on well washed and dried romaine leaves, more Parmesan and homemade croutons. Add chicken or cooked shrimp if you like. This dressing is also good as a crudité dip!

I was in Santa Barbara last week at the invitation of some of my Murphys friends who also live down there half of the time. I had never been to Santa Barbara before, no really. I LOVED it! Of course the ocean and beaches are beautiful, the sailboats, the mission and architecture...but the FOOD is over the top delicious. I had plenty of amazing eats, the pork tacos at Lilly's Taqueria downtown, the chicken meatball pizza from Honor Bar in Montecito, Huevos Rancheros at Delgados in Carpenteria and this wonderful nectarine salad at Garden Market, also in Carpenteria. I took notes as I was eating it and a picture for memory's sake and decided it would be a great blog post. I loved the yellow-orange of the fruit against the dark green of the kale, so pretty. Here is my rendition. Thanks Susie, Roxie, Pamela, Rob and Mikey for showing me a great time. Mu-wah!

Nectarine+ Kale Salad
2 nectarines, halved, pitted and sliced thinly
4 green onions, sliced thinly, crosswise
2 bunches of kale, stems removed (either cut them out or just hold onto the stem and pull the leaves off)
1/4 c shelled, toasted pistachios, chopped coarsely
1/2 feta cheese, crumbled
salt and pepper

Mix the vinaigrette first and have ready. Coarsely chop the kale into 2" x 2" pieces.
toss with the vinaigrette and massage with your finger tips for a few minutes so that the dressing starts to break down the kale. Add the rest of the ingredients and toss. This can hang out in your fridge for a couple of hours so it's a great side to take to a bbq.
Serves 8-10.

Toasted Farro  
​2 T olive oil
2 cloves garlic, smashed
1/2 t chile flakes
1 1/2 c farro
2 t salt
6 c water
1 bay leaf

Heat the oil over medium heat in a skillet that has a lid. Add the garlic and the chile flakes and cook for 3 minutes, the garlic will begin to brown slightly. Add the farro and begin to toast it, stirring frequently for about 5 minutes. Add the water, salt and bay leaf, stir, bring to a boil, cover and simmer for about 30 minutes until done. It will still be chewy (don't cook until it pops or it will be mushy). Drain and spread out on a sheet pan to cool. 

Cara Cara oranges are a wonderful surprise! They look exactly like regular navel oranges but cut them open and you are transported to a tropical vacation of glorious pink yumminess. I love them paired with roasted yellow beets, baby spinach, avocados and fennel for a refreshingly beautiful winter salad. Diet friendly too!

Cara Cara orange + roasted yellow beet salad
2 Cara Cara oranges (regular navel oranges or ruby red grapefruit work too) ends cut off, peeled and *supremed
1 avocado, cut into quarters, peeled and chunked
1 fennel bulb, top stalks cut off, sliced very thinly with a mandoline or sharp knife
8 cups baby spinach
4 small golden beets, **roasted, peeled and cut into wedges
1/2 c toasted and salted sunflower seeds (optional)

Toss the spinach leaves in the vinaigrette and place on individual salad plates. Gently toss the orange segments, fennel and beets together witha little of the vinaigrette and top the spinach. Place the avocado chunks on top, drizzle with a bit more dressing and top with the sunflower seeds, if using. Alternately, toss all ingredients together with the vinaigrette, top with sunflower seeds. Serves 6-8.

citrus+honey+mustard vinaigrette
1 t dijon mustard
1 t honey
2 T white wine vinegar (I just found out that Marisolio a wonderful olive oil and vinegar store, here in Murphys, has a Cara Cara Orange-Vanilla white balsamic vinegar. It would be an excellent choice for this dressing! Wow, thanks for letting me know Aubrey!)
2 T juice from prepping the oranges (squeeze the membranes for their juice)
3 T extra virgin olive oil
pinch of salt + pepper

In a small bowl, whisk together the first 4 ingredients. Gradually add the oil, whisking to emulsify. Salt and pepper to taste.

*Supreming is a technique that removes the membrane from citrus fruit so it can be served in slices. To supreme an orange or grapefruit, begin by trimming off the very top and bottom of the fruit with a sharp knife. Next, set the fruit on end, and carefully cut the skin from its flesh, beginning at the top and following the curves down. Then, carefully cut out each section of the fruit by inserting the blade of the knife between the flesh and the membrane on both sides. The wedges should come out easily, leaving only the membrane intact.

​**​Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place the beets, whole, on a large piece of tin foil. Drizzle them with a bit of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Wrap beets tightly in foil and place on a sheet pan or small baking dish. Roast until tender when pierced with a knife, 45 to 60 minutes, depending on size. When cool enough to handle, rub with a paper towel to remove skins.