Ellie P. Campbell Photography

Photographer, blogger, and friend Cat Pennenga and I share a love of trying relatively simple, yummy recipes and sharing them through photos. Her recent food posts have made my mouth water and had me missing recipe blogging, and since I’ve been itching to try some of Heidi Swanson of 101cookbooks.com‘s new recipes, we decided to make some food, take some photos, and eat together! Fun and yum.

We went with a lemon and fennel theme – two of the best ingredients ever. Mmm. Luckily, Heidi had two lemon-fennel (or anise) recipes that were perfect for lunch on a hot summer day (which it seems everyone’s feeling these days, not just those of us in sticky Florida).

The first dish is a a version of Heidi’s Shaved Fennel Salad, the recipe for which is also in her latest cookbook, Super Natural Every Day (why do I not own this yet?). We made some adjustments due to availability (i.e., gross-looking arugula at the supermarket) and our whims.

Shaved Fennel Salad, serves 2-4

• 1 medium-large zucchini, sliced into thin coins
• 1 large fennel bulb, trimmed and sliced thin
• 1/2 cup loosely chopped fresh dill
• 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• fine grain sea salt
• 3-4 generous handfuls of Organic Girl’s super greens (or arugula)
• 1/3 cup sliced almonds
• 1/4 cup dried cherries
• 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

optional crostini side: Drizzle a little olive oil and sprinkle a bit of salt over 2-3 sourdough slices. Broil for about two minutes – but watch it carefully; they burn fast! Then slice into cracker-sized strips.

For the salad, instead of using raw zucchini, we suggest tossing the coins in a little olive oil and salt and broiling them for about 5 minutes. Then, toss all of the ingredients together and eat!

The next recipe is super simple and so deliciously refreshing – as a drink (or cocktail) or icy sorbet. Such a perfect, healthy summer treat!

Lemon Anise Slush, serves 4-6

• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (about 3-4 lemons)
• 1/3 cup honey, plus more for drizzling
• 3/4 teaspoon anise seeds, plus more for a sprinkle
• 1 cup 2% Greek yogurt
• ice cubes (to fill the blender, about 3 cups)

Blend it all together. Serve immediately as a slushy drink (and spike with the anise-flavored Sambuca, if you want to take it up a notch), or freeze for a couple hours and serve as a sorbet-like treat. Drizzle a bit of honey, and sprinkle some anise seeds on top before serving.

Enjoy!

And here’s a little of what was going on behind the scenes:

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For our Oscar-watching party, we needed yummy, healthy snacks that were speedy to prepare (shooting a wedding the day before, there wasn’t much time for party prep). Also, our friends have some dietary restrictions, so that added a challenge. Inspired by a farro salad I made for this crew once before as well as the gorgeous radishes and lemons from our organic delivery (Sun Coast Organics!), my sister and I whipped up this simple, delicious orzo salad in a matter of minutes (maybe 20). The main dish was surrounded by munchies of roasted veggies, kettle corn, Ange’s homemade strawberry pie, Erin’s scrumptious Whole Foods treat box of chocolate-covered pineapple and other goodies, and coconut chocolate pudding. Can’t wait for next year!

Orzo Salad with Asparagus, Radish & Fennel, serves 4-6

• 1 lb orzo
• 1 bunch radishes
• 1 bulb fennel
• 1.5 cups asparagus, chopped into bite-sizes pieces (approx)

for dressing:

• 1 small lemon, juiced
• 1 tbsp non-fat Greek yogurt
• 1-2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 sprig dill, finely chopped
• salt & pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle.

Boil the orzo in salted water, making sure to leave the paste al dente (about 7 minutes). Drain, rinse thoroughly with cold water, and set aside.

Preheat small roasting pan in the oven for a few minutes (5 will do). Toss the asparagus in a drizzle of olive oil, salt and pepper, spread on the preheated pan, and roast until just cooked but still crunchy, 5-7 minutes. Meanwhile, slice the fennel and radish bulbs as thinly as possible.

For the dressing, whisk together the lemon juice, Greek yogurt, olive oil, dill, salt and pepper.

Toss all of the ingredients together in a large bowl, top with a dollop of Greek yogurt, and enjoy! (It goes really well with panko-breaded chicken or another mild-flavored protein… and makes great leftovers, too!)

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