Showing posts with label walnuts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label walnuts. Show all posts

Late Summer Green Bean Salad with Feta, Cranberries, and Walnuts


As we enter the last hurrah of summer around here, a bumper crop of lovely green beans are making their showy appearance at our local farmers market. Sure there are the standard beans, glorious in their plump greenness, but there are also the more unusual varieties arriving onto the scene. The deep purple, almost midnight black numbers. Broad beans that are flecked with a red that mysteriously disappears once cooked. The fashionably thin French selections. All delightful and unique in their own way.

Mix any combination of these beauties with brain boosting walnuts along with the tang of feta and the sweetness of dried cranberries and you have the beginning of an enchanting late summer side salad. For our vegan friends, skip the feta. An inspired raw version can be created by shredding the uncooked beans, switching out lemon juice for the balsamic and Dijon, omitting the cheese and leaving the walnuts in all their raw glory. 

A handful of walnuts each day can help keep breast cancer away


A powerful defense against breast cancer might just be found in the daily habit of eating walnuts. Researchers at Marshall University in W. Virginia have discovered that breast cancer risk dropped significantly in lab animals who ate a regular diet that included a modest amount of the nut.

Gorgonzola-Apple Quesadilla with Walnuts and Caramelized Shallots

Apple season has arrived and I always look forward to all the unique, locally grown varieties. The focus is on crisp, slightly tart apples; if you have a favorite, use it. Leave the skin on since it lends extra nutrition and color.

As with most quesadilla, this comes together quickly and effortlessly; just the thing for a busy weekday supper. If you are not a Gorgonzola fan or if you have children, a mild white cheddar is a pleasant alternative. Have a bit of creative fun as the possibilities and combinations are limitless.