Good Thyme Kitchen

You are here: Home / Archives for Sauces & Dressings

Sauces & Dressings

Roasted Red Pepper Tahini Dressing

by Leave a Comment

The flavor of this roasted red pepper tahini dressing is seriously outa this world!  We are always experimenting with different flavors for dressings and sauces and this one is a total win!  We used jared roasted red peppers because they have a perfect texture and well, they are super easy!  Talk about a total time saver.  We highly recommend them and you can usually find them in any grocery store.  So, check out how easy this dressing is to make…All you need is a food processor or a blender, tahini, roasted red peppers, garlic, lemon, olive oil, honey and sea salt.  Simply add all the ingredients to your blender or food processor and blend until mixed.  This dressing is delicious on salads, tossed with roasted veggies or as a spread on a sandwich or wrap.  Stay tuned for the next blog post to see how we used this deliciousness!!  You gotta try this one!

Click here for another favorite dressing recipe:

http://www.goodthymekitchen.com/creamy-balsamic-dressing/


Roasted Red Pepper Tahini Dressing
 
Save Print
Prep time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 1 cup
Ingredients
  • ¼ C tahini
  • juice of 1 medium lemon
  • ½ C roasted red peppers
  • ¼ C good quality olive oil
  • 2 tsp honey
  • kosher salt to taste
Instructions
  1. Using a food processor or high speed blender add all ingredients except for salt. Process on high until smooth. Season with kosher salt to taste. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for 7-10 days.

Lemon Kale Pesto

by Leave a Comment

We just love it when two loves collide…in this case we combined our love of kale and our love of pesto and mixed them up.  With this mashup, lemon kale pesto was born and we are definitely in LOVE with the combo!  Kale pesto is something you can easily whip up on a Sunday afternoon so it’s ready to roll for quick and easy weekday cooking.  You can use the lemon kale pesto on pasta, with sautéed veggies as a marinade for chicken, the list is endless.

Since kale is a heartier leaf you need to boil and blanch the kale to break it down before adding it to the food processor with the other ingredients.  Strip off the stem of the kale and add the leaves to boiling water for about 30 second.  Transfer the kale to a bowl of ice cold water – this is called blanching.  It stops the cooking and keeps the color vibrant.

One you’ve blanched the kale it’s time to throw everything together and make your pesto.  Add all of the ingredients to the food processor except for the olive oil, scrape down the sides until everything is all mixed up.  Keep the food processor running and slowly add the olive oil until combined.  Speaking of olive oil…use the good stuff, don’t skimp on cheap olive oil.  It makes a huge difference and makes everything taste that much better.  Always spend the extra few dollars when it comes to olive oil!!! Okay, olive oil rant officially over…at least for this post!

Now check out the beautiful vibrant color of this lemon kale pesto.   Gorgeous….almost too pretty to eat, but not really…you definitely need to eat this!! You will notice an earthier and heartier flavor when making pesto from kale instead of basil.  A great twist on a classic favorite, we hope you love this as much as we do!

Lemon Kale Pesto
 
Save Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 1½ C
Ingredients
  • 1 medium bunch lacinato kale, stems removed
  • ⅓ C toasted walnuts
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • juice of 1 lemon
  • zest of 1 lemon
  • ⅓ C grated romano cheese
  • ½ C good quality olive oil
  • ¼ tsp kosher salt
  • ¼ tsp cracked pepper
Instructions
  1. Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Add kale to the boiling water and remove with a slotted spoon or thongs after 30 seconds. Transfer immediately to a bowl of ice water. Drain and dry kale on paper towels.
  2. Using a food processor add kale, walnuts, garlic, lemon juice and zest and romano cheese. Pulse until combined. With the food processor running drizzle in the olive oil, add in S&P. Pulse, stopping to scrape down sides with a spatula until fully incorporated and broken down. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 10 days.

Salted Chocolate Almond Butter

by Leave a Comment

After making almond butter at home, really there is no turning back.  It’s crazy easy and the difference in taste compared to the store bought stuff is off the charts.  Not to mention that you can add different flavors to the mix so naturally we decided to add chocolate.  Well, not really chocolate…we added one of our favorite ingredients, cacao powder, but it tastes just like chocolate and it’s healthy. Winning!

You want to start by toasting the nuts, yes I said toasted nuts…stay with me men.  You want to toast the almonds to bring out the oils and the flavor.  So don’t forget to toast the nuts! Add the toasted nuts to a food processor and let it whirl.  You need to be patient with this because at first it’s going to look like powdered nuts and nothing like almond butter.  Stop the food processor once in a while to scrape down the sides.  All of a sudden it’s like magic and the powdered nuts suddenly turn into butter…it’s really quiet exciting.  I’m not even kidding, I get super excited when I see it come together.  I know, I need to get a life..yeah, yeah.

Once you achieve the consistency like the picture above it’s time to spice it up.  You can be boring and just leave it as plain old almond butter, but it’s sooooo much better with the cacao powder and other ingredients, trust us!

Add in the fixins….the cacao powder, honey, vanilla and a little bit of coconut oil…and don’t forget the salt. Feel free to adjust the honey to make it as sweet as you want, you also may need to adjust the amount of coconut oil to reach the perfect consistency.  Before you know it you will be smothering this salted chocolate almond butter on anything and everything. We happen to really love it caked on a perfectly toasted piece of bread with some sliced bananas, a sprinkle of chia seeds and a drizzle of honey.  Yum!

 

Salted Chocolate Almond Butter
 
Save Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 1 C
Ingredients
  • 2 C unsalted raw almonds
  • 2 Tbsp cacao powder
  • 1 Tbsp coconut oil + more to thin if necessary
  • 1 tsp raw honey + more for desired sweetness
  • ½ tsp vanilla
  • kosher or sea salt to taste - approx 1 tsp
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread almonds evenly on rimmed cookie sheet. Toast for 10 minutes in the oven.
  2. Remove almonds from oven and transfer to a food processor. Mix continually, ocassionally stop to scrape down sides. Almonds will turn to powder consistancy and eventually turn to smooth buttery consistancy after about 10 minutes....be patient! Once this happens add remaining ingredients and mix to incorporate. Adjust honey and salt as desired. Store in mason jar in the pantry or fridge.

Pea Pesto

by Leave a Comment

Peas are green….basil is green…why not swap basil out for peas and see what happens?  Oh hi pea pesto, you are just as amazing as basil pesto!  Who knew?? This was a case of recipe testing gone right.  Pea pesto is everything we hoped it would be and then some…

Truthfully this pea pesto was born because it’s impossible to keep fresh herbs alive during the summer in AZ.  They turn into dead fried leaves, which would definitely not be good in pesto.  Since there was no fresh basil to be found in the house, the substitution hunting began and we came across a bag of trustee frozen peas.  These little recipe substitution tests can either go terribly wrong or in this case the stars aligned and all was good in the world.  No seriously, we poured it over pasta with a bit of the reserved pasta water, added some sautéed cherry tomatoes and made ourselves one damn good and healthy gluten free pasta dish. Easy peasy…

We happened to have some pea pesto left over which turned into our appetizer for the next day, pea pesto dip served with some fresh veggies. This version definitely has a thicker consistency than traditional basil pesto so it makes a good dip.  If using it for pasta just make sure to reserve some of that pasta water like we  did to thin the pesto out a bit.


Pea Pesto
 
Save Print
Prep time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 1 C
Ingredients
  • 1 C frozen peas - dethawed to room temperature
  • ½ C grated pecorino cheese
  • ¼ C toasted pine nuts
  • 1 clove garlic
  • ¼ C good quality olive oil
  • kosher salt to taste
Instructions
  1. Add all ingredients to a food processor except for olive oil and salt. Pulse until mixed. While the food processor is running slowly drizzle in the olive oil until incorporated. Add kosher salt to taste.

Creamy Balsamic Dressing

by Leave a Comment

To say I could drink this dressing might sound aggressive but I’m sorry, not sorry…it really is that good!  Making you own salad dressing is not only easier than you think, but it’s a million times tastier (and healthier) than buying the bottled stuff.  If you have never tried making your own dressing, we insist that you give it a try, starting with this balsamic dressing.  We guarantee that you will never buy the pre-made stuff again.  This creamy balsamic is a GTK favorite, it goes with everything.  It’s literally just six simple ingredients, takes 5 minutes to make and will last up to a week in the fridge.  How can you argue with that?  The combination of the tang of the balsamic, the sweetness of the maple syrup and the creaminess of the greek yogurt knocks this one out of the park!  Drizzle this over your favorite salad and you are going to be happy happy!!

saladdrizzle

Creamy Balsamic Dressing
 
Save Print
Prep time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: Approx ½ C
Ingredients
  • 1 clove garlic, chopped
  • 2 Tbsp 0% Greek yogurt
  • 1 Tbsp pure maple syrup
  • 1 Tbsp dijon mustard
  • 3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 3 Tbsp good quality olive oil
Instructions
  1. Using a food processor, blender, or immersion blender - add all ingredients except olive oil and process until smooth, slowly drizzle in the olive oil and continue to process until incorporated. Store in airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Creamy Tzatziki Dip with Cucumber and Dill

by Leave a Comment

I’m not gonna lie, tzatziki is fun to say!  Go ahead, say it!  Sounds like this…”Sa Zee Kee”.  Raise your hand if you love Greek food!! We are huge fans and this delicious, cool, lemony, garlicky, refreshing and light yogurt dip could very well be the main reason!  If you are unaware of what tzatziki is, you are about to be enlightened…and then well, you are just going to have to make this.  It’s beyond easy and you don’t need a lot of ingredients.  (applause!!) Basically, you just need greek yogurt, lemon, cucumber, garlic and dill.  One of the most fun parts about making this dip is grating the cucumber on your cheese grater then squeezing out all of the juice.  Not to mention, that’s pretty much it for the effort part too.  We love to serve this as a simple dip with pita chips or use it as a sauce with chicken and hummus as well.  Say it again…We love Tzatziki!!

tzakiki

Tzatziki
 
Save Print
Prep time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 2 cups
Ingredients
  • 2 C Fage 0% Greek yogurt
  • ½ English cucumber
  • 2 Tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
  • zest of 1 lemon
  • 2 Tbsp chopped dill
  • 1 clove garlic, pressed
  • ½ tsp kosher salt
Instructions
  1. In a medium bowl add yogurt. Using a box grater, grate the cucumber. Squeeze excess juice from grated cucumber with a thin dish towel, cheese cloth or with your hand. Add the cucumber and all remaining ingredients to the yogurt. Mix to incorporate all ingredients. Best served chilled.

Garlic & Lemon Herb Butter

by Leave a Comment

Garlic and lemon herb butter is so easy and well, like the best thing ever! How can such a small ingredient change up a recipe so much? Adding flavor to butter like this garlic and lemon herb butter can totally transform your dish taking it form boring to complex and so totally flavorful! It’s an easy process but it packs a big punch. You can experiment with different flavor combinations creating either savory as in this case, or a sweet butter like maple cinnamon or orange vanilla.

Lemon, garlic and fresh herbs make chicken, fish, veggies, pasta, or just about anything better. The process is simple, leave a stick of unsalted butter out until it reaches room temperature. Add butter, juice and rind of 1 lemon, 2 cloves pressed garlic and chopped herbs (rosemary, basil & dill). Add a pinch of kosher salt and mix until incorporated. Place the butter on a piece of parchment paper and roll into a log, tie each end and store in the fridge for 10 days.

Let us know how you use your her butter or what flavor combinations you come up with. We would love to hear from you!


Garlic & Lemon Herb Butter
 
Save Print
Prep time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 1 stick of butter
Ingredients
  • 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
  • 2 cloved garlic, pressed (pushed through a garlic press or finely minced)
  • zest of 1 medium lemon
  • juice of 1 medium lemon
  • 1 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
  • 1 Tbsp chopped fresh dill
  • 1 Tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
  • ¼ tsp kosher salt to taste
Instructions
  1. In a medium bowl mash softened butter with a fork. Add all remaining ingredients except salt and stir until mixed. Add kosher salt to taste - approx ¼ tsp.
  2. Spoon butter onto a piece of parchment paper. Form butter into a log shape. Wrap tightly in parchment paper and store in a ziploc bag. Store in refrigerator for up to 10 days or freeze for up to 6 months.
Good Thyme Tip - Use your favorite herb combinations such as tarragon, sage, parsley, etc. herb butter is great with pasta, seafood, poultry, really anything!

Harvest Pumpkin Butter

by Leave a Comment

Why spread boring old butter on your toast when you can have PUMPKIN butter?  Oh and by the way, it doesn’t have to just be toast…mix it in yogurt, top on oatmeal, serve over ice cream. If you need a last minute Thanksgiving side dish, toss a couple of tablespoons of this pumpkin butter with chopped sweet potatoes and bake.  Sweet potatoes made easy! Need I say more?  Probably not but I will.  Let’s just continue to take full advantage of the fact that it’s finally fall and whip up a batch, or 2 or 5. Don’t mind if I do!

Side note…it’s very confusing to me why this is called pumpkin butter when it’s dairy free.  Who names this stuff anyways?  Shouldn’t it be called pumpkin jam or spread or something that makes more sense?  Why did they have to go messing up the obvious and put this in the butter category when clearly it’s NOT a butter!  Random rant but really, let’s get with the program and call it what it really is…pumpkin jamspread.

pumpkinbutteraction

Stephanie Heymann Photography

How cute does it look in the little mason jar?   It makes the best hostess gift if you have any fall parties on the schedule too.  So enjoy the pumpkin butter NOT butter jamspread!

pumpkinbutter

Stephanie Heymann Photography

Harvest Pumpkin Butter
 
Save Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 2 Cups
Ingredients
  • 1 - 15 oz can pumpkin puree - not pie filling
  • ¼ C brown sugar
  • ¼ C maple syrup
  • ½ C unsweetened applesauce
  • ½ lemon, juiced
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
  • ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
  • ¼ tsp kosher salt
Instructions
  1. Combine all ingredients together in a saucepan over medium heat until it begins to bubble. Reduce heat to simmer, continue cooking uncovered for 20 minutes.
  2. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. Spread on everything from toast to pancakes, mixed into yogurt, oatmeal or baked on top of butternut squash.
  3. Store in an airtight glass container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Homemade BBQ Sauce – GTK Style

by Leave a Comment

Move over store bought BBQ sauce, make room for Homemade BBQ sauce – GTK Style. We just moved in and we’re pretty darn good! This recipe is quick and easy and you can adjust the ingredients based on your personal taste. For example, instead of using regular pepper sauce try adding smokey chipotle pepper sauce. Gives it a slightly smokey taste.  Here’s another bonus. You will look pretty awesome and impress your friends and co-workers when you roll up to your next potluck and you tell everyone that you threw together your own Homemade BBQ sauce in like 5 minutes. Just sayin’!

This recipe was put together through some trial and error until we finally found the right combination of sweet, smokey and tangy. It’s versatile and goes great with other dishes. We recommend you use it with our recipes for  BBQ Chicken Pizza with Smoked Mozzarella or BBQ Pulled Pork Sliders or BBQ Pulled Chicken Sandwich. So give it a try, and just remember…when everyone suddenly wants to talk to you at the next potluck, you’ll know why!

IMG_3607

GTK Homemade BBQ Sauce
 
Save Print
Prep time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: Approx ½. Cup
Ingredients
  • ½ C ketchup (Trader Joe's Organic or other organic ketchup)
  • 2 Tbsp brown sugar
  • 2 Tbsp worcestershire sauce
  • 1 Tbsp cider vinegar
  • 3-4 dashes hot pepper sauce (we use smokey chipotle pepper sauce) - adjust based on the amount of heat you prefer
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • ¼ tsp dry mustard powder - we prefer Coleman's
  • 1 tsp liquid smoke
  • 1 Tbsp molasses
  • ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
  1. In a bowl whisk all ingredients together. Store in refrigerator in airtight container.

Basic Basil Pesto – Homemade

by Leave a Comment

Make your own basic basil pesto. Fresh basil, pine nuts, garlic, Parmesan and olive oil, that’s it folks! Seriously, that’s all it takes to make ridiculously delicious, unbelievably fragrant (like, cannot stop smelling it…is that weird?) basil pesto. We are obsessed with this basil pesto, and it is just so much better when it is homemade. You will find that it’s really easy enough to make that you don’t need to waste your money buying it. Basic basil pesto is a versatile sauce.  There are so many things that you can do with it to totally transform a meal into something seriously awesome!

Here are our top 10 favorite ways to incorporate this deliciousness into your routine:

  1. Smothered on a wrap or panini
  2. Topped on your favorite fish
  3. Mixed into salad dressing
  4. Drizzled over caprese
  5. Used as a garnish on soup
  6. Tossed into a cold potato salad
  7. Served as a base for pizza or bruschetta
  8.  Topped over roasted chicken
  9. Mixed with avocado and spread on toast
  10. As a sauce for pasta, like our Pesto Pasta with Sausage, Spinach, and Jammy Tomatoes.

Don’t be afraid to experiment. We are confident that you cannot go wrong when cooking with basic basil pesto you made from scratch.

basicbasilpesto

Basic Basil Pesto
 
Save Print
Prep time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 1 Cup
Ingredients
  • 2 C packed fresh basil leaves
  • ¼ C toasted pine nuts
  • 1 cloved garlic, chopped
  • ½ C grated parmesan cheese
  • ½ C good quality olive oil
  • S & P to taste
Instructions
  1. In a food processor combine basil, cheese, garlic, pine nuts and ¼ C olive oil. Slowly drizzle in the remaining ¼ C olive oil while the food processor is running. Season with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste. Store in airtight container in refrigerator for up to 1 week.