Poolside Snacks & Treats

I'm in that weird lull between the end of regular school and the start of summer school. Not enough time to go away, but certainly enough time to start on that long list of "to-do's"; get to the gym, file away those magazine cuttings, tidy the garage etc. So honoring my favorite pastime of procrastination I ignored those jobs and headed down to our new Whole Foods to join in with one of their classes. Remember, at the bottom of this page there is a list of their current offerings, yesterdays was "Poolside Snacks & Treats".

I guess one benefit of working at my school is that we finished a week before others, which means that when I headed down to the class....I was the only person that showed up. Which turned out to be excellent as I got to watch the excellent Tatiyana at work and generally shoot the breeze with a fellow foodie. As we talked about culinary influences and discussed food heroes Tatiyana put together four really nice, easy to put together treats.

First on the list was a Sweet & Tangy Melon Slaw. This fresh, mayo free slaw introduced me to Jicama (see the picture above). Kind of a cross between an apple and a pear it added great flavor and texture to the slaw.

This was followed with my favorite dish of the morning, a Black Bean Dip with Corn & Basil. Combining sweetcorn and black beans with basil, hot sauce and cumin my 'expert' created a really flavorsome (is this really a word?) dip that was perfect for tortilla chips. In fact I took a tub of this away with me as I was headed to a small gathering of teachers where the dip was an instant hit!

The last two dishes were fruitier in nature. A Fresh Fruit Salsa with apples, pineapple, strawberries, kiwi, banana and toasted coconut was a little sweet for me, but could be perfect for the neighbors 7th birthday party this weekend. I'll be trying that recipe out on the kids.

Finally Tatiyana created a Blackberry Lime Spritzer. It's the time for limes right now as they add a summery vibe to drinks (mojito anyone?). Blackberries, lime zest, sugar, salt and lime juice were heated through to break the berries down a little. Blitzed in the food processor and strained and then added to sparkling water. In itself it was a very refreshing drink, but maybe with a splash of rum it could be a hit at our next warm summer evening gathering at The Mansfield.

The hour flew by and I came away from Whole Foods having had a really interesting time. Be sure to check out other classes that are being offered, you can also check them out on Facebook where you will also be kept up to date with the daily specials at the store. Certainly more interesting than those infernal 'Farmville' postings!