Pear cheese salad

Pear and cheese is a classic combination. And I decided to have it for a light dinner. The wilted rocket leaves gave a hint of bitterness, one of my favorite flavors cutting through the sweetness and richness of the pear and cheese. The honey and lemon dressing added the tartness to cut through the creamy rich flavors. A play of simple clean flavors made it a great salad.

You can print the recipe for your kitchen here: PRINTABLE RECIPE

INGREDIENTS:

(Serves 2)

2 pears

100g provolone piccante cheese

200g rocket leaves

1tbsp roasted sesame seeds

50g chopped walnuts

1tbsp honey

3tbsp lemon juice

4tbsp butter

1sp cayenne pepper

Salt

METHOD:

1.      Peel and dice the pear. Dice the cheese into small cubes.

2.      Heat 1tbsp of butter. Add the rocket leaves and let them wilt on medium heat.

3.      To make the dressing, melt 3tbsp butter. Add the honey, lemon juice, and cayenne pepper. Bring to boil and quickly remove from heat.

4.      Toss together the pear, cheese, wilted rocket leaves. Add the dressing and seasoning.

5.      Add chopped walnuts and sprinkle with roasted sesame seeds.

Paneer/Chana

Panner (Chana) is an acid-set cheese common in Indian subcontinent cuisine. It is not matured unlike other cheeses and it doesn’t melt, making it a good ingredient in cooking and for stuffing. In India, at home we would always buy it. Only when I was little, it was made fresh at home. I would eat it fresh, warm, without pressing in its crumbled form, with a little sugar. And I still remember its creamy fresh taste. After coming to Slovenia, getting paneer and substituting it with any other cheese was a problem. Many Indian dishes call for it as an ingredient and substituting with cottage cheese was not an option as it melts. Therefore, I decided to try making it on my own. And after a few trials and errors, I can make it perfectly. It is fresh, tasty and easy to make. Great to eat warm with little sugar, or ready for the tasty paneer dishes.

INGREDIENTS:

1lt milk
3sp lime/lemon juice OR 2tbsp vinegar
1/2cup warm water

METHOD:

1. Boil the milk.
2. In the mean time, prepare the limejuice (vinegar) by diluting it with water.
3. Also, make the strainer ready with cheesecloth on it.
4. When the milk starts to boil, lower the heat to minimum.
5. Add slowly the limejuice (vinegar) with constant stirring.
6. The milk will start to curdle. Stir gently until the greenish transparent whey separates out.
7. Strain the paneer and wash it with cold water to remove sourish flavor if any.
8. Drain the paneer completely.
9. Wrap it in cloth in the desired shape and keep it pressed under something heavy for a couple of hour to make a slab of the paneer that can be cut into pieces for cooking.

NOTE:
Add a little more of limejuice or vinegar if this amount is not enough.
Save the whey, it is a healthy drink and good for making dough, lentils, cooking etc.