Saturday, April 16, 2011

Tea Sandwich Saturday #16 - Watercress & Cream Cheese

This week I had watercress on the brain and really wanted to try making some sort of spread with this peppery tasting leafy vegetable.

I started by rinsing off some of the stalks of watercress and placing them on paper towels to soak up the water. When I had picked the leaves and had them in a measuring cup, I pressed down with a dry paper towel to absorb most of the remaining water.

I decided to make an easy cream cheese spread, and here's how I like it:

Watercress Cream Cheese Spread

1 (8-ounce) block low-fat cream cheese
3/4-1 cup watercress
2 teaspoons dried parsley (or substitute fresh if you've got it)
2 teaspoons dried dill, or to taste (I like a lot of dill!)
Dash of salt and pepper

Pulse all ingredients in food processor until blended well. Leave some chunks of green leaf for color and texture.

This sandwich, on thin-sliced English Muffin Bread, looks simple but packs some savory punch.

On this one, I tucked in some whole leaves of the watercress to give it a fluffy look.

Whichever way you prefer, I think this is a nice easy way to include the classic watercress sandwich at teatime.

Just for fun, I thought I'd show some of the watercress seedlings I am growing. If they perform well, there may be another watercress sandwich recipe here before too long!

6 comments:

  1. That sounds delicious! And I adore all the little seedlings!

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  2. The sandwiches look good - the English Muffin bread is one of my Publix favorites. How great to have fresh watercress growing for your garden.

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  3. Now I hadn't thought of growing watercress, as I thought it only grew with lots of water at the edge of a creek or river. Now you tempt me to try, as I love watercress. Your sandwich does sound good. I make one pulsing watercress and goat cheese together, then add sliced radishes. It's been quite popular at Easter tea parties.

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  4. We had wild watercress where I used to live in the Midwest! I would be careful about its source, tho, b/c I was avoiding agri-runoff. I bought it from folks at the market had a spring-fed source. Ah, I miss it! I'm hoping that it will be at the Farmer's Market here!

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  5. Another great sounding sandwich. Good luck with growing your own watercress.

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  6. Hello Angela, what delicious sandwiches! I love all your photos too, beautiful.

    Your plate is so pretty - I have a few plates that look similar. I love that pattern. Mine have (Hutschenreuther, Gelb, Bavaria), on the back). I can never spell it but they sure are nice. I'm enjoying your sandwich series -
    you're so creative! Hope you have a great week, Joanie

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