pepitas Archives - A Calculated Whisk

Strawberry Avocado Salad with Candied Pepitas

May 25, 2017 By Becky 30 Comments

This post is sponsored by Cavit.

This refreshing strawberry and avocado salad with candied pepitas is a perfect way to enjoy spring produce, perhaps alongside a glass of crisp pinot grigio.

Guess what? Yesterday was my birthday, and tomorrow is the very first National Pinot Grigio Day! With so much to celebrate, I decided a really fun salad was in order. This strawberry and avocado salad is loaded with sweet and salty candied pepitas, vibrant radishes, fresh romaine, and a cumin-lime dressing. I’ve been making various iterations of this salad for a few weeks now, and when I have them on hand I also like to add thinly sliced scallions and sugar snaps and a handful of fresh cilantro leaves.

This salad pairs incredibly well with Cavit‘s pinot grigio, which is light and refreshing with a hint of fruity flavors and only a tad bit of sweetness. It’s cold-fermented in cutting edge thermo-conditioned tanks, which make it taste extra fresh and springy. I recommend enjoying a glass of well-chilled pinot grigio on your porch or in your backyard alongside a big plate of this salad.

Strawberry-Peach Crisp with Hazelnut-Pepita Crumble

August 27, 2015 By Becky 12 Comments

This gluten-free strawberry-peach crisp is lightly sweetened with maple syrup

and topped with a rich crumble made with hazelnut flour and pumpkin seeds.

Hello from Chattanooga, our new home! Ben and I packed everything up and drove from Boston to Tennessee across two days, arriving last night a little after midnight. I’m in love with my new city, which is Ben’s hometown, already. So far we’ve driven around a bit looking at houses, and had amazing burgers at Main Street Meats (see my bunless burger on Insta!). We’re also dogsitting for Ben’s sister, so I get to spend time with this guy.

I spent a while editing the photos of this fabulous strawberry-peach crisp with hazelnut-pepita crumble today. The photographs make me a little sad, because this was the last photo shoot I did in our apartment in Boston, where I’ve taken all the photos for the blog so far and all the photos for my cookbook, Paleo Planet. I hope our next apartment has light that I like just as much!

Anyway, enough wistful reminiscing about the natural light at my old apartment. We’re talking crisp today! I had some good-looking strawberries and peaches, but wanted to do more than just eat them. In part because I was trying to avoid packing, I decided to bake. (Yes, when I’m feeling stressed, I avoid whatever I’m worried about and bake instead. No, my fiancé has never complained!)

I put the freshly cut fruit right into the greased baking dish and added a little maple syrup, a tiny bit of tapioca flour to keep the juices under control, and a pinch of salt and the seeds of half a vanilla bean to bring out the natural sweetness of the fruit. I mixed it all together right in the dish to avoid having to wash an extra bowl. (I did have to wash the bowl I made the crumble in, but that’s it for this recipe: one bowl + the baking dish).

Salted Pepita Chocolate Bark (Great Gift Idea!)

November 23, 2013 By Becky 2 Comments

Here’s another post with an easy idea for a great gift: salted pepita chocolate bark. I brought little baggies of this to work last week, and everybody loved them. My coworkers were convinced that I bought the bark somewhere fancy. No one needs to know that this gourmet treat takes only minutes to make! I wrapped mine up in little cellophane treat bags, but you could also pack a bunch up in a nice holiday tin for a more sizeable gift.

If you missed my first post in the great gift ideas series, check it out. When you’re done making vanilla salt, come back here to read about the bark. See you in five minutes!

Done? If not, you can substitute any coarse or flaky sea salt here, but the vanilla salt really takes this over the top. The pepitas provide a nice crunch and a pop of color, and the combination of vanilla bean, salt, and dark chocolate is absolutely amazing.

I like to make this right before bed, then leave it out to harden while I sleep. When I wake up in the morning, it’s ready to break into pieces. Because of this routine, Ben calls this “breakfast chocolate”. I can assure you, however, that it’s delicious any time of day. I’m planning on making some more so I can put out a big bowl of it on Thanksgiving, for those of us who like to nibble on something sweet while waiting for the turkey. Enjoy!