Click and Cook

Arugula and Kumato Salad with Poached Egg

2012-02-01T01:40:00.000-08:00

Winter-Friendly Salad

I created this combination the other day for lunch and Mr. Fabulous deemed it one of the best salads he has ever eaten. It's got a lot of salad-friendly ingredients I love to use when building a salad. Like crispy lettuce leaves combined with crunchy ingredients and comfort food ingredients like soft cheese and a poached egg. Arugula leaves and kumato tomatoes (reddish-brown tomatoes) are cold weather-friendly, raw salad ingredients. Both wind up being the basis for a lot of salads we eat during the colder months. Here I've tossed arugula leaves with a basic oil and vinegar dressing. I topped the arugula with slices of kumatos, a perfectly cooked poached egg, crumbled blue cheese, (French Bleu d'Auvergne - my favorite) toasted sunflower seeds, and croutons made from homemade bread. I seasoned it with fresh ground black pepper and salt. The egg was just warm enough to further enhance the flavors of the ingredients and it just ever so slightly warmed the blue cheese. The crispy croutons sopped up the runny yolk. Yummy!

Salt

2012-01-27T03:27:00.000-08:00

I LOVE

how salt transforms the flavor of nearly all foods, even fruit. I salivate during the winter months thinking about salt sprinkled on orange colored wedges of ripe and aromatic cantaloupe! Salt accents the flavor of meat, brings out the individuality of vegetables, changes the flavor of bland starches, especially pasta and it's hard to resist sprinkling it on sweets like chocolate and caramel. While I'm a seasoning fanatic (a useful tip I inherited from my mother) there is nothing I've discovered that can replace the flavor of natural salt.

I recommend three types of salt. My favorite is Real Salt that comes from a mineral-rich salt deposit in Redmond, Utah in the United States. Real Salt's unique coloring comes from more than 60 natural trace minerals. It's like none other I've ever tasted and it's the salt I use for any food that gets seasoned with salt. Himalayan Salt (pictured above in block form) comes from the salt deposits in Khewra, Pakistan and has an earthy flavor with varying hues of pink and orange. Celtic Sea Salt is unprocessed, kosher and hand-harvested and gets its light gray hue from the clay ocean beds its harvested from. Celtic Sea Salt is a mineral-rich salt that contains vital trace elements.

I never use iodized salt because it's been chemically treated. Natural salt isn't stripped from it's natural state making it tastier and healthier. Your choice for the type of natural salt you use may very well come from where the salt is sourced - the United States, Pakistan or the ocean!

Planet Kitchen Table Available from Amazon

2012-01-24T05:33:00.000-08:00

A $9.99 bargain that is more than 300 pages of great recipes and valuable information on food labeling, purchasing, selecting ... and so much more.

Ravens Game Day Salad

2012-01-21T10:05:00.000-08:00

PURPLE SALAD

People tell me they love my purple cabbage salads. I vary the ingredients and use an array of nuts, dried fruit, fresh fruit, cheese and vegetables. Here are some suggestions for combinations that are popular. (You can use the colorful ingredients I've added to the purple cabbage - julienned carrots and peas as the basis for your salad or not. For this combination, Feta cheese, toasted sunflower seeds and roasted red pepper would be delicious).

Add any of the following three combinations to shredded purple cabbage for a delicious tasting, unique salad. The added bonus is this colorful, nutrient-rich salad complements steaks, burgers, hot dogs, barbecued chicken, seafood and pork.

fresh mango chunks, roasted cashews, crumbled feta cheese, green onions, chopped red pepper
sliced celery, blue cheese, toasted walnuts, dried cranberries, chunks of apple
toasted sunflower seeds, chunks of kumato tomatoes, cubed fontina cheese, baby arugula

Dress the salad with any one of your favorite salad dressings. I love to toss with a good homemade oil and vinegar dressing or my all-time favorite, Apple Celery Seed Dressing, see October 27, 2010 post for the recipe.

GO RAVENS!

French Toast Casserole with Caramelized Pineapple, Butter and Syrup

2012-01-15T07:56:00.000-08:00

I know you're probably saying ... another recipe featuring pineapple? But the pineapple on the counter seemed to be pleading me with its aromatic aroma. Do something with me! Here's what I did ... I cubed 4 cups of Ciabatta bread and placed the cubes in a lightly oiled pie plate. I whisked 4 eggs with 1 cup of milk and added ¼ cup of Autumn Spice Blend (for this recipe, see post for Tuesday, November 29th) and poured it over the bread cubes. I covered the dish and refrigerated it overnight.

The following morning and 1 hour prior to putting it in the oven, I removed it from the refrigerator, stirred the contents and baked it in a 350° oven for 45 minutes. I cut ripe pineapple (1 slice per person) into bite size pieces and placed them in a hot skillet with a wee bit of canola oil and cooked them until they were slightly blackened. I topped the French toast casserole with caramelized pineapple, butter and syrup. YUMMY!

Curried Shrimp and Pineapple Salad with Cashews and Cranberries

2012-01-10T14:59:00.000-08:00

If you've been following this blog then you know I crave salads in winter and you also know I like to stay with my steadfast rule of eating foods in their growing season. So it can be a bit challenging because just about any fruit or vegetable is available from the grocery store during the winter months. I try very hard not to buy fresh food that is not in season.

For a delicious, colorful and healthy lunch I combined romaine lettuce leaves with cooked chilled shrimp, chunks of golden pineapple, toasted cashews and dried cranberries and tossed it with my tasty recipe for curry dressing. It's a zesty combination full of texture and flavor that won't disappoint. Complement with slices of authentic French bread or wholly slices of Ciabatta. Yummy!

Helpful to know: The amount of dressing is a matter of preference, I prefer the ingredients to be just lightly coated rather than swimming in dressing.

Curry Dressing

1 cup olive oil

½ cup fresh lemon juice

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons curry powder

1 teaspoon ginger

1 teaspoon salt

¼- ½ teaspoon pepper

In a large bowl, combine olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, curry powder, ginger, salt and pepper, whisk until well blended. Leftover dressing will keep for weeks refrigerated.

Hello Foodie

2012-01-06T11:56:00.000-08:00

Hello Foodie

Gearing up for another fun foodie weekend!

Whole Food Market

2012-01-04T07:55:00.000-08:00

MOLLY KUSHNER

My wonderful friend, Molly Kushner is retiring from her position as Marketing Liaison from Whole Foods Market - Mt Washington. Molly has been so supportive of my food career, we've had a lot of fun working together doing culinary classes and book signings over the course of many years. I'll be dressed in purple on Friday and will joins hundreds of other Whole Foods - Mt Washington patrons in saying, so long Molly. I will miss you dearly. Happy retirement!

Happy 2012 to one and all!

2012-01-01T07:28:00.000-08:00

HAPPY 2012

Wishing you a year filled with good health, peace, love, joy, harmony and prosperity.

Pineapple and Cardamom Coffee Cake with Coconut Macadamia Streusel

2011-12-31T05:59:00.000-08:00

Coffee Cake Dreams

I'll be serving this scrumptious coffee cake for New Year's Day brunch. I taste-tested it this past week to Mr. Fabulous (the official taste-tester) and he deemed it one of the best breakfast cakes he has ever tasted. It's rich, moist and delicious. Serve warm from the oven and watch it disappear! Don’t forget steaming cups of fresh brewed coffee!

Helpful to know: I recommend using an aluminum-free baking powder such as Rumford.

Pineapple and Cardamom Coffee Cake

1½ cups all-purpose flour

½ cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon cardamom

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup sour cream

2 eggs, room temperature

1 cup pineapple, chopped

Canola oil for lightly greasing baking pan

Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cardamom and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk sour cream with eggs, whisk until well blended, add pineapple. Add pineapple mixture to flour mixture and stir until fully incorporated. Transfer batter into a lightly oiled 8 x 8 x 2-inch pan.

Coconut Macadamia Streusel

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

¼ cup sugar

2 tablespoons butter, cut into chunks

¼ cup shredded coconut

¼ cup macadamia nuts, chopped

In a small bowl, combine flour and sugar, add chunks of butter and blend using your fingers (the handiest cook’s tool!) until streusel crumbles. Add coconut. Sprinkle evenly over cake, top with chopped macadamia nuts and bake for 35-40 minutes or until light brown. Serve immediately. Yield: 8 servings.

Creamy Cheese Tortellini and Vegetable Chowder

2011-12-29T09:51:00.000-08:00

At the dinner party we hosted last night, guests ranked this as one of the best chowders they had ever eaten! It needs nothing more than a tossed green salad, hot rolls slathered with butter, good company and a nice bottle of wine! It's the perfect soup to eat on a cold winter's night in front of a roaring fire.

Helpful to know: Just about any vegetables you have on hand will work in this recipe, peas, green beans, broccoli, spinach, corn and cauliflower are a few examples. I highly recommend Rapunzel Vegan Vegetable Bouillon with Sea Salt cubes. Rapunzel can be found in the grocery isle at most health-oriented grocery stores nationwide.

2 tablespoons butter

2 cups mushrooms, chopped

1 cup leeks, sliced

1 cup celery, sliced

1 cup red pepper, chopped

1 cup carrots, julienned

4 cups water

2 vegetable cubes

¼ cup (about 1 cup loosely packed leaves will yield ¼ cup) fresh parsley, minced

1 teaspoon salt

Black pepper to taste

One 10-ounce package (about 3 cups) cheese tortellini, cooked according to package directions

1 cup heavy cream

Melt butter in a large pot, over moderate heat; sauté mushrooms, leeks, celery, red pepper and carrots, cook for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add water, bring to a boil, cover and cook for about 5 minutes. Add parsley and vegetable cubes; stir until cube dissolves. Add salt and pepper to taste; add cooked tortellini. Stir in cream. Simmer until heated through. Serve immediately. Yield: 6 servings.

Merry Christmas

2011-12-25T07:48:00.000-08:00

Christmas Dinner Menu and Recipes

2011-12-21T12:15:00.000-08:00

I’ve

been vacillating between serving a stuffed lamb roast (last years Christmas entree) or a beef roast for Christmas dinner. Finally the decision came after I served perfectly cooked slices of roast beef at last nights party. Everyone said the beef was tender, juicy and flavorful. The other great news, it's a no fuss recipe!

ast nights menu also included a Caramel and Cream Pie with Salty Pretzel Crust. Gooey caramel lay in between a buttery, salty pretzel crust and thick globs of sweetened whipped cream. The decision about what to serve for dessert on Christmas night (we have Christmas cookies on Christmas Eve) was sealed the moment I put a bite into my mouth. It's one of the most marvelous desserts I've ever tasted! I'll post again before the 25th, but wanted to let you know what's on our menu because so many of you have asked.

Christmas Dinner Menu

Beef Round Eye Round Roast with Horseradish Cream

Creamy Potatoes with Crispy Buttered Bread Topping

Orange Marmalade Tomatoes

Puff Pastry Stuffed with Mascarpone &Spinach

Mushroom Medley Drenched in Buttered Wine

Caramel Cream Pie with Salty Pretzel Crust

Tender Beef Round Eye Round Roast

This is a great formula for cooking the most flavorful roast. Follow the directions exactly and you will have a perfectly cooked (medium rare) roast. It’s very important to remove the roast from the refrigerator about 3 hours prior to cooking. It’s also very important to let the roast rest once you’ve removed it from the oven.

Helpful to know: At the butcher’s recommendation, I seasoned the roast with A.A. Borsari Seasoned Salt - Original Blend. It’s a unique blend of gourmet salts (known as the caviar of seasoned salts) and many whole fresh herbs. It’s an artisanal company with a great story, www.borsarifoods.com You can also successfully use any seasoning that combines garlic, salt and pepper.

One 3 pound roast

Olive oil

Borsari seasoning or a combination of garlic, salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 500°. Preheat for 20 minutes. Rub roast with olive oil and cover with Borsari seasoning. Place roast fat side up on a rack in a shallow baking pan. Place it in the oven and immediately reduce oven temperature to 475°. Cook for 21 minutes (regardless of the size of the roast, cooking for 7 minutes per pound is the perfect formula). Turn off oven and leave roast in for 20 minutes per pound (60 minutes). Do not open the door to peek at the roast. When cooking time is complete, remove the roast and let stand for 20 minutes. Thinly slice and serve. Yield: 12 servings.

Caramel and Cream Pie with Salty Pretzel Crust

My grandmother used to make a rendition of this pie and as kids we loved it. With one exception for me, I only ate the caramel and cream part because I never liked graham crackers and her caramel cream pie was made using crushed graham crackers. Lately we’ve been eating salty caramel ice cream so the thought of turning these decadent and complementing ingredients together was born.

Helpful to know: Plan accordingly, it takes 2 hours cooking time to turn the condensed milk into caramel plus the additional 4 hours it takes for the pie to set and chill, so it’s best to start early in the day that you plan to serve it. It’s best to prepare whipped cream a few hours prior to serving. Place either bowl or beater (s) in freezer for about 2 hours prior to preparing whipping cream.

Salty Pretzel Crust

12 pretzel rods, about 1¼ cups

1 stick (½ cup) butter, melted

¼ cup brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350°. Process pretzel rods in food processor until crushed. Add melted butter and brown sugar and pulse mixture until combined. Reserve a ¼ cup of mixture. Transfer remaining mixture to a 9-inch pie dish. Bake for about 10 minutes.

Caramel

Two 14-ounce cans sweetened condensed milk.

Increase oven temperature to 425°. Transfer condensed milk to an 11x7-inch baking dish, cover with tin foil. Place condensed milk baking dish into a 13x9-inch baking dish and add enough hot water to fill it one-third full. Carefully place in oven and cook for 2 hours (every 30 minutes stir mixture and add more water when needed) or until thick and caramel colored. As it thickens the mixture begins to get lumpy, don’t worry the lumps sort out during the chilling process. Spread caramel evenly over salty pretzel crust. Allow to cool for about a half hour, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

Cream

2 cups heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar

Pour whipping cream into medium bowl and beat on medium speed. Add confectioners’ sugar. When the cream thickens, increase the speed and continue to beat until cream falls in large globs and has soft peaks. Careful not to over beat or the cream will turn to butter. Top caramel pie with whipped cream and sprinkle reserved salty pretzel mixture on top. Yield: 8-10 servings.

Cranberry Jam

2011-12-17T11:06:00.000-08:00

Jamming

with

Cranberries

In our family it’s a tradition to serve cranberry sauce with Thanksgiving dinner, we not only love it with dinner, it’s our favorite spread on a day-after-Thanksgiving turkey sandwich. During the Christmas holidays this tart fruit appears again when I love to prepare cranberry jam (very similar to cranberry sauce) except the jam cooks a little longer so it’s more like a jam than a sauce. It’s quick, a great food gift for my foodie friends and the pairing possibilities seem endless. I don’t go through the traditional preserving method that is meant for long term storage, I just place it in jars and refrigerate until I gift it or use it. Cranberry jam will last for about 2-3 weeks refrigerated. It’s a delicious accompaniment with pork and chicken or spoon over warm Brie, or for a quick, inexpensive and festive appetizer, spoon over a brick of cream cheese and garnish with toasted almonds. Nick loves to place a dollop over pancakes and then top them with warm maple syrup!

Cranberry Jam

Helpful to know: Be sure to grate the orange zest before you juice the orange.

One (16-ounce) bag fresh cranberries, rinsed

Juice from one orange

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon grated orange zest (from 1 orange)
¼ teaspoon nutmeg

Place ingredients in a medium saucepan, bring mixture to a boil over medium high heat. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer, stirring frequently, until cranberries have softened and mixture is thickened, about 5-8 minutes. Allow to cool completely before refrigerating. Yield: About 3 cups.

Arugula Salad with Tangerine, Avocado and Purple Cabbage

2011-12-11T14:30:00.000-08:00

It happens every year right about now - I need to eat more salads! I'm tossing this together as part of the dinner we are sharing with friends tonight. It's super simple. Arrange arugula leaves in rimmed serving plates, top with segments of tangerine, chunks of avocado and shredded purple cabbage. Toss with my recipe for Fresh-Squeezed Tangerine Dressing. Yummy!

Fresh-Squeezed Tangerine Dressing

Helpful to know: Fresh-Squeezed Tangerine Dressing will keep for several days in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before serving. Shake just before using.

1 teaspoon salt

Several grindings of fresh black pepper

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

¼ cup tangerine juice, freshly squeezed

¾ cup canola oil

In a 2-cup capacity jar with a tight fitting lid, combine salt, black pepper, Dijon mustard and tangerine juice. Add canola oil ¼ cup at a time, shaking well after each addition. Keep dressing at room temperature until ready to serve. Shake just before using. Refrigerate any unused portion. Yield: About 1 cup.

Holiday Antipasto Platter

2011-12-08T06:57:00.000-08:00

My Holiday Antipasto Platter on Marble Chess Board

Antipasto, which literally means "before the meal," is a combination of small bites of tasty food. It's meant to stimulate the appetite before eating the main meal. I love serving antipasto around the holidays because the beauty of the antipasto platter is its simplicity not to mention it's really more about assembling than preparing.

Antipasto plates are simply colorful offerings of marinated vegetables—think artichoke hearts, jarred roasted red and yellow peppers or pickled garlic—rustic artisan breads, salty olives, assorted nuts, natural deli meats, small bites of rich cheeses and seafood delicacies like sardines and shrimp.

Keep your choices to about three to five items, not including bread. My platter (pictured) includes marinated artichoke hearts, natural pepperoni, Genoa salami, green and black olives and bite size cubes of manchego cheese. To complement, serve with rustic slices of crusty bread, focaccia or garlic bread.

Perfect Holiday Party Appetizer

2011-12-03T08:11:00.000-08:00

Perfect Party

App

This one bite appetizer was a hit at the party the other night. I stuffed peppadew peppers with Cherry Glen Chevre aka goat cheese. Peppadew peppers (a fruit) are slightly sweet with a wee bit of heat. Goat cheese is mild and creamy with a distinctive tangy flavor. So if you're looking for a simple, elegant, light, nutrient-rich, colorful holiday appetizer, stuff peppadew peppers with goat cheese! Cherry Glen goat cheese and peppadew peppers can be found at Whole Foods Market (either in the grocery aisle or at the Mt. Washington location peppadews are at the olive bar).

I garnished with thin slices of green onions, but just about any herb or fresh minced parsley would also be beautiful.

Autumn Spice Blend

2011-11-29T14:37:00.000-08:00

I prepare lots of batches of this complementing blend to give as Christmas and hostess gifts. Not only does it transform the flavor of ordinary muffin, waffle and pancake batters but it's called for in so many of the guest-worthy recipes in my new cookbook, Planet Kitchen Table. The combination of flavors won't disappoint, I promise. The aroma? Unforgettable!

Worth noting: Autumn Spice blend is best kept stored in an air-tight container.

One 1-pound box (2¼ cups) light brown sugar

5 teaspoons cinnamon

4 teaspoons nutmeg

2 teaspoons ground cloves

2 teaspoons cardamom

1 teaspoon allspice

1 teaspoon lemon oil

Place brown sugar in large bowl, add spices and toss mixture until spices are well blended with the brown sugar. Add lemon oil and toss until ingredients seem fully incorporated. Yield: About 2¼ cups.

Kernels of Gratitude

2011-11-24T08:59:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

Addressing the Dressing aka Stuffing

2011-11-21T13:24:00.000-08:00

Bread Cubes for Beyond Basic Bread Stuffing

I like to use several different types of bread when I make stuffing; a complementary trio is one third good quality white bread, one third whole wheat bread and one third cornbread. It gives the stuffing a distinctly unusual flavor and a non-mushy texture. This is a good basic stuffing recipe; you can successfully add fillers like cranberries, apples, sausage, chestnuts, oysters and mushrooms. Baking the stuffing in a casserole dish or inside the bird is a matter of personal preference.

Helpful to know: My preferred chicken broth is Imagine Organic Free Range Chicken Broth. Bread stuffing can be prepared in advance, but allow to come to room temperature before heating.

Beyond Basic mixture

½ cup (1 stick) butter

3 cups celery, chopped (leaves are optional but if used, should be included in the 3 cups)

1½ cups white onion, chopped

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon paprika

Several grindings fresh black pepper

1 cup chicken broth

½ cup fresh parsley, minced

Preheat oven to 350°. In a medium pot over moderate heat, melt butter; add celery and onion and sauté for about 5-7 minutes or until fork tender. Remove from heat; add salt, paprika, black pepper, chicken broth and parsley; stir to combine.

Bread Stuffing

15 cups bread, cut into bite size cubes

Canola oil for casserole dish

Place bread cubes in a large bowl; toss with Beyond Basic (celery/onion/broth) mixture and transfer to a lightly oiled 4-quart casserole dish. Bake covered in a 350° oven for about 30 minutes, remove cover and bake an additional 15 minutes. Yield: 12-15 servings.

Apricots and Amaretto Cream with Teriyaki Walnuts

2011-11-16T15:33:00.000-08:00

THANKSGIVING
APPETIZER

I took this photograph several weeks ago at a party I catered. Doesn't it remind you of so many of the colors of autumn leaves? I didn't post the recipe then because I was saving it for now when I think it's the perfect time to serve these bite size morsels. They're a different twist from the typical appetizer fare and are perfect to serve before a big holiday meal because they aren't so filling. Inevitably, takers always remark about their abundant pop-with-savory-sweet flavor!

By the way, this is a great time to remind you about the method for preparing and baking a turkey, check out last year's post I posted on November 9th, entitled, A Thanksgiving you will not soon forget...stay tuned, I'll be Addressing the Dressing over the weekend.

Tidbits for perfection: Choose dried apricots that give to the touch. I especially like the dried apricots from Trader Joe's. You can prepare the teriyaki walnuts and amaretto cream mixture in advance. Up to a few hours prior to serving you can top dried apricots with amaretto cream mixture, top with a walnut, however, just before serving.

Amaretto Cream

One 8-ounce package light cream cheese, softened

4 teaspoons apricot jam

1 tablespoon amaretto almond liquor

1 pound dried apricots halves

In a small bowl, combine cream cheese, apricot jam and amaretto.

Just before serving, spoon about a teaspoon of cream cheese mixture on to each apricot halve and top with a teriyaki walnut.

Teriyaki Walnuts

⅓ cup soy sauce or tamari

3 tablespoons dark rum

2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

1 clove garlic, crushed

1 teaspoon ground ginger

4-6 drops TABASCO® brand Pepper Sauce or hot pepper sauce

1 tablespoon brown sugar

2 cups walnut halves

Salt

Preheat oven to 350°. In a medium bowl, combine soy sauce or tamari, rum, sesame oil, garlic, ginger, Tabasco or pepper sauce and brown sugar. Add walnuts and toss with teriyaki mixture. The mixture will seem liquidy, not to worry, it thickens and partially adheres to the walnuts as it cooks. Transfer nuts to a parchment lined, rimmed baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes tossing nuts halfway through cooking time. Transfer walnuts to a lightly oiled sheet of tin foil, disperse in a single layer and immediately (salt sticks to nuts much better when they are warm) season with salt. Yield: About 50 pieces.

Cherry Glen Monocacy Chipotle Cheese and Lettuce Salad with Apricot Dressing

2011-11-11T08:10:00.000-08:00

Pare/Pear/Pair
11/11/11

Well since it's not going to happen for another 100 years, I thought I would feature today's date, 11/11/11 to coincide with my pare/pear/pair posting in which I'm pairing pared pears. The salad (pictured below) combines ingredients that make up a perfectly complementing pairing of pears with Cherry Glen's award-winning Monocacy Chipotle cheese.

It's no wonder Cherry Glen's Monocacy Chipotle (like no other soft cheese I've ever tasted) won a Blue Ribbon at the 2010 American Cheese Society Competition! Congratulations Cherry Glen you deserve this Blue Ribbon! In case your not familiar, Cherry Glen's Monocacy line (five variations of soft-ripened cheeses) is similar to Brie but is slightly more tangy and flavorful and has that same similar creaminess for which Brie is so noted. The chipotle version has the addition of chipotle pepper, (you can barely see the spots of burnt orange color in the triangular pieces of cheese pictured below) a smoked and usually dried jalapeno pepper. This cheese roars with flavor!

While Nick was attending a business luncheon the other day, I thought I would fool around with some options for pairing this marvelous tasting cheese. It seemed obvious something sweet was needed to offset the peppery flavor that comes from the chipotle pepper. Apricot logically seemed complementing, so I whisked together a salad dressing made using apricot preserves and moscatel wine vinegar. Moscatel wine vinegar is an aromatic and complex vinegar with rich overtones of stone-fruit nectar, blossoms and honey. It paired beautifully with the remaining dressing ingredients.

I love creating and eating salads and I'm known among family, friends and catering clients for my unusual and fantastic tasting salad combinations. Today a lettuce leaf salad appealed on many levels and I also had a variety of interesting foods that would add texture, some sweet, some savory that would turn out a great salad. I combined pieces of romaine lettuce leaves with chunks of perfectly ripe pared pears, toasted walnuts, dried cranberries and Cherry Glen's Monocacy Chipotle Cheese. I tossed it with enough dressing to coat the leaves. OMGoodness! Indeed a great pairing!

Apricot Moscatel Dressing

Helpful to know: Moscatel wine vinegar can be found in upscale grocery stores, gourmet shops or online. Apricot Moscatel Dressing will keep for several days in the refrigerator. Allow to come to room temperature before serving; shake well just prior to using.

1 teaspoon salt

Several grindings fresh black pepper

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

¼ cup moscatel wine vinegar

¼ cup apricot preserves

⅛ cup shallots, minced

¾ cup extra virgin olive oil

In a 2-cup capacity jar with a tight fitting lid, combine salt, pepper, mustard, moscatel wine vinegar apricot preserves and shallots. Shake until ingredients are well blended and salt has dissolved. Add olive oil and shake again to combine ingredients. Store at room temperature until ready to serve; shake well just prior to using. Refrigerate any unused portion. Yield: About 1 cup.

Cherry Glen Monocacy Chipotle Cheese and Lettuce Salad with Apricot Moscatel Dressing

Autumns Garnet Jewel

2011-11-07T12:15:00.000-08:00

POMEGRANATE

For several years my food column, A Reason for the Season ran in baltimore eats, a charming and informative publication that was all about food. My assignment was to profile seasonal fruits and vegetables, a perfect fit given I'm so passionate about eating foods in their growing season. After about three years, the family owned magazine was sold and became an online only publication.

A Reason for the Season gave readers the kind of information I like to learn about a fruit or vegetable, like the span of its' season, what to look for when buying, suggested uses, nutritional information and if space allowed, a culinary related story. I'm featuring pomegranates and what I call Autumns Garnet Jewel because this superfood is so worthy of getting to know and besides it's in season right now!

The name pomegranate originates from Middle French, pomme garnete, literally "seeded apple"; and is sometimes referred to as a Chinese apple. Many researchers believe that the forbidden, yet irresistible fruit that Eve indulged from the Garden of Eden was actually a pomegranate, not an apple!

For centuries pomegranates have been cherished for their exquisite beauty, color, flavor, and health benefits. Pomegranates are one of the healthier foods you can eat. High in antioxidants, potassium, Vitamin C, and a great source of fiber, pomegranates pack a nutritional punch that most foods can’t come close to!

From their distinctive crown to their ruby red arils, pomegranates are royalty amongst fruit. They are symbolic of prosperity and abundance in virtually every civilization. Fortunately, this treasure’s versatility and possibilities are as abundant as the juicy arils bursting forth from within.

Add pomegranate seeds to frozen fruit smoothies, use as a garnish for frozen vanilla yogurt or ice cream, iced cupcakes, soft cheeses, fish, scallops, chicken, pork, duck and lamb. The seeds add interest to lettuce leaf salads or for a bit of culinary drama scatter them over a variety of vegetables like cauliflower, parsnips, green beans and spinach. Or turn your pomegranate seeds into sauces, sorbet, salad dressings, jelly and relish. The possibilities for these garnet colored, nutrient-rich seeds are endless.

SELECTING STORING PREPARING

Pomegranates season generally runs from October through January. They're picked when they're ripe, so they're ready to enjoy as soon as you buy them. A good, ripe pomegranate should feel heavy, and the skin should be firm and taut. The skin color varies from medium red to deep red with a fresh, leather-like appearance. Surface abrasions do not affect the quality of the fruit. Keep fruit refrigerated until ready to use.

To prepare, cut off the crown and score the pomegranate lengthwise in three or four places. Place the pomegranate in a large bowl of water. While holding the fruit under water, split the sections and separate the seeds from the section walls. The seeds will sink to the bottom of the bowl. Remove the white membrane and peel and drain seeds. If you’re not using all the seeds at once, transfer to a container with a tight fitting lid and store seeds in the refrigerator, they will last for several days.

Kitchen Secrets - Style Magazine

2011-10-29T07:15:00.000-07:00

you can see, the November 2011 issue of Style magazine is all about food.

One of the features is Kitchen Secrets where 20 local foodies dish out their best go-to recipes, kitchen tools and tips. The editor, Brian Michael Lawrence asked me to submit. I did and when the issue came out I discovered the kitchen tools and tips part of my submission wasn't included. I haven't had the chance to ask why, perhaps they ran out of space or maybe it's because after I submitted the requested assignment (the first paragraph that follows) Brian was intrigued and asked, "I'd love to hear you expand a bit on the Cheese Curry Pate— how long you've been making it, how you got turned on to it, what you serve it with, etc. And a recipe would be great!" Whatever the reason for the oversight (?), I thought I would share it with you!

My Kitchen Secrets

My hands are my favorite kitchen “gadget.” Efficient and flexible, they always get the job completed. (Of course, I also love my Cuisinart, which works culinary magic in just seconds.) My favorite go-to sea ingredient is sea salt (as opposed to bleached table salt) -- I love it because it both complements and enhances the flavor of almost any food. Cheese Curry Pate with Damson Plum Sauce, is a mouth-watering combination that always receives rave reviews from my guests and clients – even from non-curry fans! When company arrives unexpectedly, I top cream cheese with my own homemade pepper jelly -- tasters wonder if I knew they were coming and imagine that I’ve been in the kitchen for hours. In the grocery store aisles, I find myself going after Rapunzel brand Vegan Vegetable Bouillon; it brings out the best in so many recipes.

Kitchen Secrets located on page 143 reads …

My sister, Kate, discovered this recipe in a garden club cookbook more than 30 years ago. The combination was so appealing that she prepared it (after some minor tweaking and testing) for one of her catering clients. It was a huge hit and became her signature appetizer, serving it to hundreds of people during her catering career. After more than a decade of running her business, Kater & Company, my sister, “sold out” to me, and I was delighted to take on her pleasing recipes along with her solid client base, staff and equipment.

Cheese Curry Pâté with Damson Plum Sauce has been just as popular with my clients as it was with my sister’s. For curry fans, this dish is heaven -- but at various tasting events, I’ve seen even the most emphatic curry detractors won over by its flavorful combination. The recipe is located on page 1 in my cookbook, This Book Cooks, and for good reason – it is that volume’s “number one, go-to” recipe that, once sampled, always nets a cookbook sale!
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Please note, for the recipe for Cheese Curry Pate with Damson Plum Sauce scroll down on this page, click on appetizers, from their scroll toward the bottom and you will see the recipe for this I posted on September 24, 2010.

Kirchmayr's Chocolate Halloween Pumpkin

2011-10-28T08:56:00.000-07:00

A. Kirchmayr chocolatier

Is there anything sweeter than a chocolatier? Probably not! You know how much I love to support local artisan's and my friend Albert Kirchmayr is always busy making the finest chocolate I've ever tasted. Right now he is making lots of adorable and scary Halloween chocolates. The spooky day is almost upon us, there are pumpkins, witches, jack o'lanterns and lollipops to choose from and they come in milk or dark chocolate. While your choosing the decadence, I recommend a bag of chocolate covered hazelnuts, I promise you won't be tricked you will be treated!

Happy Halloween!

Curried Butternut Squash Soup "Shooters"

2011-10-26T09:29:00.000-07:00

Curried Butternut Squash "Shooters"

Over the weekend I catered a wedding at a nature center in Reston, Virginia. The bride wanted a rustic menu that featured food that is representative of the fall harvest. Just exactly the kind of client I love because as you know I am wedded to eating foods in their growing season. I was thrilled everyone not only loved the food they really appreciated it was in season! Here's the menu I served followed by the crowd-pleasing recipe for Curried Butternut Squash Soup.

AUTUMN FIELD TO FORK COCKTAIL RECEPTION MENU

TO CELEBRATE EMILY AND JEFF’S WEDDING

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2011

Curried Butternut Squash Soup “Shooters”

Maryland Crab Fritters with Caper Aioli

Last Harvest Zucchini and Cheese filled Wontons with Apple Jalapeno Jam

Roasted Tomatoes over Basil Stuffed Brie on Crostini

Herbed Cheese Torte with Late Harvest Roasted Vegetables/Homemade Pita Chips

Sesame Pork Tenderloin with Pumpkin Cream on House-made Sweet Potato Biscuits

Cabbage, Cranberry, Apple, Blue Cheese Salad with Toasted Walnuts/Apple Celery Seed Dressing

Marinated Potatoes

Curried Butternut Squash Soup

This soups texture is silky-creamy, velvety-smooth and it promises to slither its way down ones throat like golden honey or a smooth single malt scotch! When the season for butternut squash rounds the corner, this soup is always on my list of must-haves. You can serve the soup in bowls or like I did, as "shooters." If you serve it as "shooters" these vessels hold about a 1/4 cup of soup, so this yield will serve a crowd!

Tidbits for perfection: I highly recommend Imagine Organic Free Range Chicken Broth.

4 tablespoons butter

3 leeks, white part only, thinly sliced

2 large onions, diced

2 teaspoons curry powder

4 large Idaho baking potatoes, peeled and cubed

2 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded and diced

2½ 32-ounce containers chicken broth

2 teaspoons salt

Fresh Ground black pepper to taste

In a large pot, melt butter over medium heat and sauté leeks and onion until glossy. Add curry powder and sauté until fragrant, a minute or so; add chicken broth, potatoes and butternut squash, bring mixture to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour or until vegetables are fork tender. Allow soup to cool slightly. In a food processor or blender, purée soup in batches; transfer puréed batches into a large bowl. After final batch is puréed, transfer soup back into the original large pot, simmer until serving time. Serve hot. Yield: 14 servings.

The platter is from Villeroy & Boch, "shooter" vessels are from 10 Strawberry Street.

Budget-Friendly Soup

2011-10-23T07:58:00.000-07:00

My Mother’s Favorite Budget-Friendly Soup

Some of you know my mother hasn't been feeling well lately. She lost most of her appetite, eating just a few bites of food a couple of times a day. Turns out a medication she was taking was what made her sick. In an effort to get some nutrition in her, I've been making her favorite foods, but even that has been challenging to get her to eat a little more than a few bites. Over the course of time, I'm thrilled to say my efforts have paid off, she seems to be feeling better and thankfully her appetite is slowly coming back. She used to prepare this soup for us whenever we didn't feel well and it always comforted.

The addition of hard-boiled eggs in this delicious, nutritious, complete-meal-in-a-bowl recipe is what makes this soup so unique. When hot broth is combined with egg yolks, the result is a creamy mixture that thickens the soup to perfection!

Helpful to know: Rapunzel Vegan Vegetable Bouillon with Sea Salt are my preferred vegetable cubes. Rapunzel products can be found in the grocery isle of most health-oriented grocery stores nationwide.

5 cups water

3 cups potatoes, peeled (a matter of preference) and cubed

1 cup celery, chopped

1 cup (about 1 medium) carrot, sliced into disks

1 cup white onion, chopped

½ cup fresh parsley, minced

2 vegetable cubes

4 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon salt

Fresh ground black pepper to taste

4 hard-boiled eggs, room temperature, peeled, divided

In a large pot, bring 5 cups water to a boil, add potatoes and cook until just slightly tender. Reduce heat and add celery, carrot and onion, cook until tender. Add parsley, vegetable cubes, butter, salt and pepper to taste. Cut hard-boiled eggs in half, remove yolks and place in medium bowl. Chop egg whites and add to soup. Ladle about ¼ - ½ cup hot broth over egg yolks, stir until creamy. Add yolk mixture to soup and stir until well blended. Yield: 6 servings.

Late Harvest Salad

2011-10-17T08:12:00.000-07:00

BROCCOLI

I love salad of any kind and when the weather gets cooler, I particularly enjoy hardier salads that include vegetables instead of lettuce. Here I've combined perfectly cooked (just fork tender) broccoli pieces with slivers of roasted red peppers, shredded carrots, toasted pine nuts and two of my favorite foods, Kalamata olives and Valbresso brand feta cheese. I showered this colorful, nutrient-rich combination with some extra virgin olive oil. As you can see from my photograph, Late Harvest Salad is a cheery-colored, wonderfully textured side dish that will disappear quickly! It's great accompanied with fish, chicken or beef.

Helpful to know: Cook the broccoli until just fork tender, under cooked or over cooked broccoli will result in a completely different salad. To keep the broccoli from cooking any longer after it’s been removed from the steamer, place a shallow rimmed bowl in the refrigerator to get cold while the broccoli is cooking. This way you won’t be wasting water by running it over the broccoli to get it cool.

Delicious recipe gives reason for craving Brussels Sprouts

2011-10-13T05:43:00.000-07:00

Lemon Butter Brussels Sprout Sauerkraut-Style

The first memory I have of Brussels sprouts appearing on a dinner plate was in my late teens. My mother introduced them around Thanksgiving and served them alongside stuffed pork chops and sweet potatoes. Not only was the combination seasonal, colorful and complementing, the Brussels sprouts were cooked and seasoned to perfection. Her recipe, she told us, couldn’t be simpler, after steaming the miniature green cabbages until fork tender, my mother tossed them with brown butter (butter she had slightly browned over a medium flame) sprouts were coated with the butter and seasoned with salt. The result was yummy. Many years later, I thought how clever my mother to introduce her mature brood of five a sophisticated vegetable when our palates could appreciate them. Brussels sprouts were the accompaniment to many of our dinners through the duration of their season beginning in the fall and throughout the winter months.

Selecting, Storing, Preparing

Brussels sprouts grow in a spiral pattern on robust two to three foot stalks; each stalk depending on height yields about 20-30 sprouts. Farmers’ markets and some grocery stores sell Brussels sprouts attached to the stalk. While this is my favorite way to buy them and certainly the freshest, they are more commonly sold after they have been cut from the stalk. When selecting, chose firm, small, compact sprouts that are a vivid sage green, avoid any sprouts with yellowed leaves. For uniform cooking, select sprouts that are equal in size. Wash and prepare sprouts just before cooking. Fresh sprouts will keep refrigerated in a perforated bag for 5 or more days.

The secret to great tasting Brussels sprouts is in the cooking; they are best cooked until just fork tender. When perfectly cooked these sage green nuggets have a slightly sweet, nutty flavor. To prepare for cooking, soak sprouts in a bowl of tepid water for about 10 minutes. Rinse and trim stem end. To ensure even cooking, cut an X about a ¼-inch deep into the remaining base of each sprout. Brussels can be boiled, braised, roasted or steamed, to retain the most nutrients and for maximum cooking results they are best steamed. Cooking times vary depending on size, cook for about 5-10 minutes, careful not to overcook, after 5 minutes, check every few minutes.

Lemon Butter Brussels Sprouts - Sauerkraut-Style

Hopefully I have influenced you (if you’ve gotten this far, I have dutifully done my Brussels sprout convincing) to be a fan of sprouts or at least willing to try this recipe. My husband Nick is the official taste tester for the recipes I create, this recipe is among his favorite.

½ cup butter, (1 stick)

2 packages or 1½ pounds Brussels sprouts (about 2 dozen)

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons lemon peel, finely grated

2 tablespoons lemon juice

Fresh ground black pepper to taste

To prepare sauerkraut-style Brussels sprouts, remove stem, cut in half lengthwise, thinly slice each half widthwise. In a large pan, melt butter over moderate heat, add Brussels sprouts and salt, stir to evenly coat sprouts with butter. Cover, reduce heat to medium low and cook for 5- 10 minutes or until nearly fork tender, stirring occasionally. Add lemon peel and juice, stir, cover and cook an additional 2-5 minutes or until just tender. Season with pepper. Serves 6.

Brussels sprouts are a tempting side to baked chicken, stuffed pork chops, pork tenderloin and braised short ribs and if your don’t serve sauerkraut with turkey on Thanksgiving, (a tradition among many) Brussels sprouts make a colorful and unique addition to this holiday meal.

Raspberry Pancakes

2011-10-09T07:10:00.000-07:00

Tender and Fluffy Fresh Raspberry Pancakes

I love any fruit or vegetable that has dual seasons. It makes me feel like I feel when a good friend is coming again to visit! Raspberries are in season in our region in June and then again in September through early October. I’ve been desirous of preparing raspberry pancakes since they were in season in the beginning of the summer but before I had the chance to prepare them, I'd missed the harvest. Since this will be the last of fresh raspberries until next June, it seemed fitting to fold these nutrient-rich gems into pancake batter and serve them this morning to our wonderful friend (she and Nick went to grade school together) who is visiting from out of town.

They are decadent, so tender and fluffy and are super simple to prepare!

Helpful to know: If you don’t have any brown rice flour (I discovered it makes pancakes just a wee bit crispy) in your pantry, use 1 cup of all purpose flour.

¾ cup all purpose flour

¼ cup brown rice flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 tablespoon sugar

Pinch of salt

In a large bowl, combine flour, brown rice flour, baking powder, sugar and salt.

1 egg, room temperature

1 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup raspberries, plus extra for garnishing pancakes

In a medium bowl, whisk egg, add milk and vanilla, whisk until blended. Add 1 cup of raspberries. Using the tines of a serving fork, mash the raspberries slightly.

Canola oil for cooking

Butter, syrup and confectioners sugar

Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.

Coat a large skillet with canola oil and heat over a medium high heat. To ensure oil is hot and ready to cook pancakes, sprinkle pan with water; if it sizzles, the oil is ready. Pour about ¼ cup of batter into the skillet for each pancake; a large skillet cooks about 3 at a time. Cook for about 2 minutes on each side or until light brown. Serve immediately with butter and syrup. Garnish with raspberries and dust with confectioners sugar if desired. Yield: 4 servings (about 10-12 pancakes).

Mango Cake with Cardamom

2011-10-02T10:49:00.000-07:00

THE idea for this recipe came to me several years ago when I had too many ripe mangoes in my fruit basket. The combination of mango with the aromatic cardamom made for a delicious taste-treat dessert. It's an irresistible mixture of flavors and a dessert I'm always eager to prepare and share. A friend is stopping by this afternoon en route to her home in Alexandria, Virginia. I'll accompany warm wedges of cake with steaming cups of tea.

Tidbits for perfection: Plan accordingly, if ripe mangoes aren’t available it can take about 3-4 days to ripen, when ripe, it will yield to slight pressure. If you can’t find a ripe one, place in a paper bag at room temperature until the flesh yields; the ripening process can take several days. To get the flesh of the mango, slice lengthwise on both sides as close to the pit as possible. Crisscross-cut the pulpy side of each piece and then turn inside out by holding each half with both hands and pushing in on the skin side. (Think about turning an orange or lemon wedge inside out.) Once you've got the fruit exposed, cut the mango from the skin. You can get some additional fruit from the top and bottom of the remaining section of mango; the section containing the pit. You probably won’t get much meat, but any additional mango is worth it!

1 cup mango, cut into bite size pieces

½ cup raspberry cranberry juice

Preheat oven to 400°. Generously oil a 10-inch baking dish with canola oil. Distribute mango evenly in the bottom of baking dish and pour raspberry cranberry juice over fruit.

2 eggs, room temperature

⅔ cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

¼ cup butter, melted

¼ cup canola oil

1 cup all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon ground cardamom

Confectioners sugar, optional

In a large bowl, beat eggs and gradually add sugar, beat until well combined. Add vanilla, butter and oil, beat until well combined. Add flour and cardamom, stir until fully blended. Spoon batter over fruit mixture, (fruit will show through in some places, cooking will distribute the batter evenly). Bake for 20 minutes or until light brown and bubbly. Allow cake to cool, sprinkle with confectioners sugar if desired. Yield: 8 servings.

Reverse Trick-or-Treating

2011-09-22T09:36:00.000-07:00

I'm not posting a dish I created because I want to share with you something I'm also very passionate about. It's Reverse Trick-or-Treating. It may seem a bit early to post about Halloween (although retail stores keep us in the know!) because if you want to support this worthy endeavor and get your free kit, you have to order now from the Global Exchange website. Below is an excerpt from their website that explains Reverse Trick-or-Treating.

‘The inspiration for Reverse Trick-or-Treating rests on the belief that the simple act of one person saying to another "There's a problem. There's a solution. Let's do something" can be very powerful. And if a child says this to an adult – it's doubly powerful. Further, we believe that such acts will demonstrate to the large corporations, and to public officials, that people are paying attention, people care, and they want action’ – Equal Exchange

This Halloween you can help end the exploitation of adults and children working in the cocoa industry and raise awareness of Fair Trade! Trick-or-treaters will be handing Fair Trade chocolate back to adults, with informational cards attached, to explain the problems of the cocoa industry and how Fair Trade presents a solution. Through providing children with an opportunity to have their voice heard, hundreds of thousands of households in the US are getting the message that child labor and forced labor will not be tolerated by our kids.

Halibut with Pineapple Salsa

2011-09-19T14:18:00.000-07:00

Halibut over wild rice with Pineapple Salsa

divine array of colorful and tasty ingredients that make the perfect topping for just about any piece of white fish. I source fish from markets and vendors that support sustainable seafood practices, this is wild-caught pacific halibut which gets a "Best Choice" rating from The Monterey Bay Seafood Watch . Seafood Watch offers a comprehensive guide about what to buy and what not to buy. You can download a pocket guide that is right for your region. Get to know what are the best choices, good alternatives, what to avoid and whats on their super green list. The Marine Stewardship Council and the Blue Ocean Institute are other seafood watchdogs that help us make choices for healthy oceans. Whole Foods Market adheres to and supports environmental healthy seafood choices.

Pineapple Salsa

Tidbits for perfection: For optimum flavor, make certain the pineapple is really ripe. Roasted red peppers can be found in the refrigerated grocery section (usually near produce) of most health-oriented grocery stores. Plan accordingly, avocadoes tend to take a few days to ripen, keep this in mind if a ripe avocado is not available. Coconut and Macadamia nuts toast very quickly, watch closely as there is a small window between toasted and burned!

1 cup fresh pineapple, chopped

¼ cup roasted red pepper, chopped

¼ cup shredded carrots

⅛ cup shredded coconut, toasted

⅛ cup macadamia nuts, chopped and toasted

⅛ cup green onion, sliced

½ ripe avocado, cut into bite size pieces

In a medium bowl, combine pineapple with red pepper, shredded carrots, coconut, macadamia nuts and green onion. Just before serving, add avocado and stir just to combine. Yield: 4 servings.

My $5 Challenge Value Meal - Sesame Tofu with Tamari Ginger Sauce

2011-09-16T13:48:00.000-07:00

Most of you know my food philosophy and my passion for organizations like Slow Food, so it may come as no surprise that tomorrow, September 17th I'm taking Slow Food's $5 Challenge. The challenge encourages you to cook a fresh and healthy meal for five dollars or less per person. The meal can be a meal with your family or friends or a potluck. The more the merrier because it helps to spread the word. I'll be making this tasty and budget-friendly dish for friends who are coming for dinner tomorrow night. Tofu, rice, carrots and peas are inexpensive and here they come together and make a taste-treat dinner.

Join me and the thousands of others around the country and take the $5 Challenge. Slow Food is the backlash to the fast food industry. Its mission is about good, clean and fair. GOOD refers to taste and quality. CLEAN refers to where food comes from – a healthy food system. FAIR refers to proper and just compensation for all those that work in the food chain. GOOD, CLEAN AND FAIR should all come together.

Slow Food is about more than food, its about recapturing the food system. Slow Food does a lot to help small food producers and artisans compete in the global marketplace without having to compromise their scale and quality. It's also very big on the notion of conviviality, which distinguishes it from other food organizations. I could say so much more ... please pledge to take the challenge and share your $5 story.

Sesame Tofu with Tamari Ginger Sauce

Tofu’s lack of any distinguishable flavor allows for the addition of intense tasting enhancements like this Tamari Ginger Sauce. The outstanding properties of this dish are not only the delicious sauce but also the combination of my favorite textures; crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.

Helpful to know: Tamari Ginger Sauce can be prepared in advance and heated just before tossing tofu. Before measuring out the honey, coat the inside of the tablespoon with oil; the honey will slide right out providing a perfect measure. Plan accordingly; the tofu needs to drain of excess water for 30 minutes or longer. To drain, place tofu on a plate; top tofu with a plate, and top the plate with a cast iron skillet or a weighted casserole dish, pan or heavy platter. Cook the carrots while the tofu is cooking.

Tamari Ginger Sauce

3 tablespoons honey

⅛ cup tamari

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

1 tablespoon brown rice vinegar

1 clove garlic, minced

½ teaspoon powdered ginger

¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes

In a medium saucepan, combine all ingredients and mix until well blended. While tofu is cooking heat sauce over moderate heat.

Sesame Tofu

One 14-ounce package extra firm tofu, drained of excess water

About ¼ cup all-purpose flour

¼ cup or more canola oil

1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds

½ cup frozen peas, thawed

1 cup carrots julienned, cooked until fork tender

¼ cup roasted and salted peanuts

Cut tofu block into 6 slices, cut each slice in half, cut each half on the diagonal to form a triangle, you’ll end up with 24 triangles. Place triangles in a shallow rimmed vessel. Evenly distribute flour over tofu, gently covering all surfaces; a flour sifter works great! Heat oil in a sauté pan over moderately high heat; add tofu and cook in batches until golden brown on all surfaces. Transfer tofu to a shallow serving dish to accommodate and gently toss with Tamari Ginger Sauce. Top with toasted sesame seeds, peas and cooked carrots. Serve immediately. Yield: 4 servings.

Creamy Noodles with Spinach

2011-09-15T07:01:00.000-07:00

Comfort food extraordinaire! I served this to friends who came for dinner last night and they loved it! I served it alongside marinated skirt steak, sauteed mushrooms and broiled tomatoes. We were a happy foursome!

Helpful to know: You can use pancetta instead of Canadian bacon with nearly the same flavor results. This crowd-pleasing side dish complements pork, chicken, fish and beef, but it’s also delicious without any accompaniments! Cook the noodles while you’re preparing the creamy sauce. This dish is best served immediately.

1 tablespoons canola oil

1 slice Canadian bacon, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, crushed

½ cup mascarpone cheese

¼ cup heavy cream

Pinch ground nutmeg

½ cup spinach, cooked and chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

In a large skillet heat canola oil over medium-high heat, cook Canadian bacon for a few minutes or until lightly browned. Reduce heat to medium low and add crushed garlic and cook for about 1 minute or until fragrant. Add mascarpone, cream and nutmeg, whisk until smooth and well combined. Add cooked spinach, stir to combine and season with salt and pepper.

3 cups raw egg noodles

In a large pot, cook egg noodles in boiling salted water according to package directions. Drain noodles and immediately add to creamy sauce, stir until well combined and heated through. Serve immediately. Yield: 4 servings.

Apricot Meatballs

2011-09-09T08:19:00.000-07:00

People devour these meatballs and last night was no exception! Party goers were hovering over the platter. One guest said, sunny gems on a rainy night, what more could I ask for!

Helpful to know: The meatballs and apricot sauce can be prepared in advance. Combine the two, however, just before baking. I love the flavor and consistency of Annie's Natural brand French dressing. For optimum results, use a good quality preserve like Bonne Maman®. Simply Organic makes a wonderful French Onion Dip Mix. These food brand recommendations are available at Whole Foods Market® and other natural foods stores, as well as mainstream supermarkets nationwide.

Meatballs

2 eggs, room temperature

1 teaspoon salt

Fresh ground black pepper to taste

2 pounds ground chuck

1 cup bread crumbs

Canola oil for skillet

Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, beat eggs until well combined. Add salt, black pepper and bread crumbs, stir until well blended. The egg will completely absorb the bread crumbs, not to worry. Add ground chuck to egg/bread crumb mixture and mix thoroughly. Shape into desired size meatballs. In a sauté pan, heat canola oil over moderate heat and brown the meatballs on all sides. Transfer meatballs to a baking dish to accommodate.

Apricot Sauce

One 8-ounce bottle French dressing

1 cup apricot preserves

1 package French onion dip mix

In a medium bowl combine until well blended, French dressing, apricot preserves and French onion dip mix. Pour over meatballs, cover and bake for 30-40 minutes or until sauce is bubbling. Yield: About 30-35 meatballs.

Peach and Cardamom Coffee Cake with Butter Almond Topping

2011-09-06T11:26:00.000-07:00

I've been posting lots of recipes using peaches lately, undoubtedly because I love them, but moreover because unless they are preserved I won't be eating peaches for another 11 months! Sadly, their growing season is just about finished.

Over the weekend, I took this to an all Norwich dog party (14 dogs in all!) and it was devoured by the people in attendance, not the dogs, although my guess is they would have loved it as well! It’s incredibly moist with wonderful fresh peach flavor and mild overtones of aromatic cardamom. It needs nothing more than a steaming hot cup of coffee or tea! Having a dog party is a matter of preference, but I’m warning you, it’s a whole lot of fun!

Peach and Cardamom Coffeecake

1 cup all-purpose flour

½ cup sugar

¾ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon cardamom

1¼ cup peaches, (about 2 medium or 1 large) peeled and chopped, divided

⅔ cup milk

2 tablespoons canola oil

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 egg, room temperature

Canola oil for baking pan

Preheat oven to 350°. Coat an 8-inch baking pan with cooking spray. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, baking soda, cardamom and ¾ cup peaches, toss well. In a medium bowl, combine milk, oil, vanilla, and egg, whisk until well blended. Add liquid mixture to flour mixture, stir until combined. Transfer coffeecake to pan and top with remaining ½ cup chopped peaches.

Butter Almond Topping

¼ cup sliced almonds

1 tablespoon brown sugar

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

2 tablespoons butter

In a small bowl, combine almonds, brown sugar, cinnamon and melted butter, distribute over coffeecake. Bake for 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Serve immediately. Yields: 6 servings.

Peaches and Cream Cake

2011-09-03T09:31:00.000-07:00

I posted my favorite recipe for Citrus and Peach Marmalade this past Monday, August 27th. I prepare it every year when peaches are in the height of their growing season. In addition to being delicious slathered over buttered toast among many other things, I was hoping it would be part of a creamy filling for a rolled cake I was preparing for a client who was getting married. She didn't want a traditional wedding cake, (tying the knot at the age of 75, she for the fourth time, he for the first!) rather something really different that included food from the summer's harvest. I love peaches mixed with anything creamy and when I proposed the combination as a filling in a cake, she loved the suggestion. I was as pleased with the outcome as the bride and her guests, they devoured it! The cake doesn't require icing, so I adorned the surrounding part of the cylinder shaped cake with peach colored rose pedals and gerber daisies and a few greens.

I've posted many rolled cakes. I favor preparing them over traditional cakes because they are so easy, so if you haven't prepared any of the rolled cake recipes or if this is your first time on my blog, don't be daunted, simply follow the directions carefully. I'm certain you will be very pleased with your endeavor and proud of the results.

Peaches and Cream Cake

Helpful to know: The cake needs to be prepared the day before you plan to serve it. Kozy Shack tapioca pudding can be found in the refrigerated section (typically near dairy) of grocery stores nationwide.

Cake

Canola oil for rimmed baking sheet and parchment paper

¾ cup all-purpose flour plus extra for baking sheet

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

½ cup sugar

Preheat oven to 350°. Lightly oil a 17½ x 11½-inch rimmed baking sheet and then line the pan with parchment paper. Lightly coat parchment paper with oil and then lightly dust with flour; using a flour sifter works great. Set prepared pan aside.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar.

3 eggs, room temperature

⅔ cup tapioca pudding

In a large bowl, beat eggs with electric mixer, add tapioca pudding and beat until well combined. Add flour mixture and beat on medium speed until incorporated. Spread batter evenly into pan (it will seem like there’s not enough batter, but there is!) and bake cake for 10 minutes.

While cake is baking …

Confectioners sugar for dusting kitchen towel

Generously dust a kitchen cloth (the cloth should be a little larger than the size of the cake) with confectioners sugar.

After cake has baked for 10 minutes …

Immediately remove cake (lifting it up by the parchment paper) from baking pan and carefully flip cake onto prepared kitchen towel. Gently pull off parchment paper. Starting at the narrow end, roll the cake with the towel (the towel will be the "filling" as well as the "icing".) Don’t worry if the cake breaks as you're rolling it up, it won’t be noticeable. Cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes.

Peaches & Cream Cheese Filling

One 8-ounce package light cream cheese, room temperature

½ cup citrus and peach marmalade (for recipe, see August 27, 2011 post)

1 teaspoon vanilla

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese; add citrus and peach marmalade and vanilla, beat for about 2 minutes on medium speed.

Un-Rolling and Re-Rolling

Carefully unroll cake, spread filling evenly over entire cake (while still on towel). Gently re-roll cake (without towel), place on plastic wrap and completely cover. Refrigerate for several hours prior to serving.

Several hours later or the following day…

Remove cake about 1 hour prior to serving. To serve, transfer cake to a serving platter and cut into slices about 1-inch thick. Yield: 10-12 serving.

Citrus and Peach Marmalade

2011-08-27T03:49:00.000-07:00

Every summer I prepare this recipe when summer peaches are plentiful. We slather it over warm, buttered slices of homemade bread and place dollops of it over vanilla ice cream. It makes a really memorable peanut butter and jelly sandwich as well!

I'm hoping it works in a filling for a cake I'm designing for a catering client who is getting married next week. So stay tuned, I'll let you know the results of the cake.

Citrus and Peach Marmalade

Helpful to know: The mixture must be prepared a day in advance.

2 oranges, unpeeled and quartered

½ lemon, unpeeled

6 medium peaches, peeled and chopped

3½ cups sugar

Place oranges and lemon in food processor, and pulse until mixture is chopped. Transfer orange/lemon mixture to a large container and add peaches and sugar, mix well. Refrigerate overnight.

The following day ...

Transfer mixture to a large saucepan and allow to come to room temperature, about 2 hours. Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat slightly and boil gently (mixture should be "dancing") for 20 minutes, stirring frequently. Allow mixture to cool before transferring to a glass container to accommodate. Once fully cooled, refrigerate. Yield: About five cups.

Frozen Margarita Dessert “Martini’s” with Salty Pretzel Crust

2011-08-22T12:49:00.000-07:00

This is a rendition of the popular cocktail, the frozen margarita. But instead of imbibing as a pre-dinner drink, I’ve created a fantastic tasting warm weather cocktail dessert. Fresh whipped cream and sweetened condensed milk are the smooth and creamy basis. Standard margarita ingredients, Triple Sec, Tequila and fresh lime juice are added to give it that authentic margarita flavor. Sweet and buttery crushed pretzels top this divine and velvety textured dessert; the perfect ending to a summer meal. It’s simple to assemble and I love that most of it can be prepared in advance.

Helpful to know: Be sure to grate the lime zest before you juice the lime. There are so many pretzel choices, I found pretzel rods crushed perfectly. This is an Adults-Only dessert; contains alcohol.

Salty Pretzel Crust

1½ cups pretzels, crushed (15 rods)

¼ cup sugar

1 stick (½ cup) butter, melted

In a medium bowl, combine crushed pretzels with sugar. Add melted butter and stir until well combined.

Margarita Mixture

One (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

⅓ cup fresh lime juice

2 tablespoons Triple Sec

2 tablespoons Tequila

2 teaspoons grated lime zest

One (8-ounce) container heavy whipping cream, whipped

In a large bowl, whisk condensed milk with lime juice, Triple Sec, Tequila, and lime zest. Fold in whipped cream. Transfer to a container with a tight fitting lid. Freeze for 3-4 hours or until firm. Just prior to serving, divide margarita mixture among 6 martini glasses. Top with buttery pretzel mixture. Serve immediately. Yield: 6 servings.

Summer Salad

2011-08-17T08:11:00.000-07:00

I prepared this summer salad when my nephew Connor came over for lunch the other day. We both agreed the combination of flavors was delicious. The combination wasn't planned, I used ingredients I had on hand. I marinated the shrimp in a lemon, olive oil dressing, then tossed the shrimp and the marinade with bite size pieces of romaine lettuce leaves, chunks of yellow tomatoes, avocado, julienned carrots, sweet red pepper, green onion, pine nuts and croutons. You don't have to be wedded to these ingredients, (that's what I like about salads, just about any mixture of garden greenery works) use whatever you have on hand. Garbanzo beans, cherry tomatoes, mushrooms, peas, scallops, hard boiled eggs, cucumber, olives, Feta cheese are some examples of what would also work.

Helpful to know: Shrimp need to marinate for about 3 hours.

Shrimp and Marinade

1 pound large shrimp, cooked, peeled and deveined

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

½ teaspoon salt

Fresh ground black pepper to taste

In a medium bowl, combine shrimp with 3 tablespoons olive oil, lemon juice, salt and black pepper to taste. Marinate for 3 hours. Toss shrimp and marinade with any combination of lettuce leaves and your favorite salad ingredients.

Yellow Tomato Gazpacho with Moist and Rich Chili Cornbread

2011-08-13T13:08:00.000-07:00

Every week I seek the farmer selling yellow tomatoes, mostly because I just love their vibrant color! There really isn't much difference in a red or yellow tomato, the obvious is the color. Red tomatoes are high in lycopene, a powerful antioxidant thought to prevent some cancers. Lycopene is what produces the tomatoes' red color. Red tomatoes are highly acidic, which produces their tangy flavor. Yellow tomatoes are lower in acidity, making them generally sweeter than red tomatoes. Red tomatoes are higher in vitamin C, while yellow tomatoes are higher in niacin and folate.

I have served many renditions of Gazpacho over the years but this recipe ranks as one of my favorites. Gazpacho is a chilled, tomato-based, raw vegetable soup that originated in the south of Spain; some date it back to the Middle Ages. It has been referred to as liquid salad and as such is most flavorful during the summer when there's a bounty of fresh salad fixings! Half of all the veggies in this recipe are puréed, giving this soup incredible body and texture. My favorite accompaniments? Moist and Rich Chili Cornbread and deviled eggs.

MENU

Yellow Tomato Gazpacho

Moist and Rich Chili Cornbread

Deviled Eggs

Helpful to know: Plan ahead! Yellow Tomato Gazpacho is best prepared a day in advance and should be served very cold. Prepare the vegetable broth several hours prior to preparing the vegetables. Rapunzel Vegan Vegetable Bouillon with Sea Salt is my vegetable cube of choice. Rapunzel brand is sold in most health oriented grocery stores nationwide. To blanch and remove skin from tomatoes, cut an “X” on the bottom of the tomato, plunge into boiling water for 30 seconds, remove using a slotted spoon. Allow to cool before coring and removing skin. Chill soup bowls several hours prior to serving time.

Yellow Tomato Gazpacho

2 vegetable cubes

4 cups water, divided use

Bring 4 cups of water to a boil. Transfer boiling water to a large glass bowl, add vegetables cubes and stir until cubes have dissolved. Allow to cool before adding vegetables.

2 large yellow tomatoes, peeled, seeded and cored, divided use

1 large cucumber, peeled, halved, seeds removed, divided use

1 medium onion, peeled and halved, divided use

1 red pepper, halved, seeded, divided use

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon olive oil

A few dashes TABASCO® brand Pepper Sauce

¼ teaspoon salt

Several grindings fresh black pepper

Basil leaves for garnish

In a food processor or blender, combine 1 tomato, ½ cucumber, ½ onion, ½ red pepper and 1 cup of the vegetable broth. Purée until well blended then transfer to a large container.

Chop the remaining tomato, cucumber, onion and red pepper. Add chopped vegetables and minced garlic to puréed mixture; add remaining 3 cups of vegetable broth, olive oil, Tabasco, salt and pepper. Stir until well combined. Chill until ready to serve.

Ladle soup into chilled bowls, garnish with fresh basil leaves. Yield: 6 servings.

Moist and Rich Chili Cornbread

When fresh corn is in season, I can be often found de-cobbing! This is a summer staple that is a complementing accompaniment with an assortment of foods. You will love its' rich flavor and it's so moist. I chop ½ the amount of corn, it’s a great contrast with the whole corn kernels.

De-cobbing directions: After you’ve cooked the corn and allowed it to cool, place a rimmed baking sheet in the sink. Cut the tip of the cob to create a flat end. With a sharp paring knife (starting from the top) slice the corn as close to the cob as possible (you can usually cut about 4 rows at a time) removing corn until you’ve reached the bottom of the cob. Do this until you’ve finished removing all the kernels from the cob. With the dull side of the paring knife, use the same technique as used above to extract any extra juice and the heart of the kernel from the cob.

¾ cup yellow cornmeal

¼ cup white flour

2 teaspoons salt

3 teaspoons baking powder

Preheat oven to 350°. In a small bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, salt and baking powder.

2 eggs, room temperature

¼ cup milk

¾ cup sour cream

⅓ cup olive oil

One 4-ounce can chopped green chilies

¾ cups fresh corn

¾ cup fresh corn, chopped

¾ cup grated Monterey Jack cheese

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs with the milk, add sour cream, oil and green chilies, stir until fully combined, Add corn, chopped corn and cheese, mix until fully incorporated. Add flour mixture to wet ingredients and stir to combine. Pour batter into a greased 11 x 7-inch (2 liter) baking dish. Bake for 1 hour. Serve immediately. Yield: 8 servings

Amanda and Jeff's Wedding Reception

2011-08-08T13:16:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to my clients Amanda and Jeff who got married over the weekend! Amanda chose hot pink and lime green as her colors and as you can see from the pictures I took, the table was gorgeous! I'll take credit for preparing everything on the dinner menu except the wedding cake which Amanda baked. But she ran out of time and left the decorating up to me! I was wondering how I was going to accomplish this task, given I had to prepare dinner for 25 guests! I had appetizers yet to assemble, some that had to be cooked and the seated dinner to prepare and plate. Fearing I would run out of time when it came to cake cutting time, I thought it best to decorate the cake before I delved into appetizers and dinner.

To protest the icing, I carefully topped the areas of the cake to be decorated with parchment paper. As for the decorating, I wasn't really sure what to do, but I could hear my mother saying, start with a foundation. So given hot pink roses were part of the centerpieces it seemed fitting the rose would be the foundation for the cake. Then I surrounded the rose with very small clusters of lime green hydrangea's. Ditto for the edge of the second layer. I dropped a few rose pedals around the hydrangea clusters. Amanda was thrilled!

Basil Drenched Pasta with Shrimp, Peas and Tomatoes

2011-08-03T06:03:00.000-07:00

This is a crowd-pleasing dish I love to serve during the summer months. It's one of the more popular recipes from my cookbook, This Book Cooks. It’s a rather simple main dish entrée, the basil dressing, pasta, shrimp and peas can be prepped in advance. Toss the dish with the dressing just before serving. Serve with slices of good quality bread like one of favorites, ciabatta. The choice of pasta is a matter of preference, short pasta like the one in the picture works well as does fusilli.

Tidbits for perfection: Over the years I have found that most pre-cooked, peeled shrimp have become almost devoid of any flavor, I prefer to use 26-30 count raw shrimp that I cook, peel and devein. To thaw frozen peas, set peas in a bowl and cover with warm water. When peas begin to break apart and/or thaw, drain water and cover again with warm water. The peas should be ready after the second soaking/thawing, if not, repeat process. Cover and refrigerate until tossing time.

Basil Dressing

3 cups fresh basil leaves

½ cup olive oil

¼ cup seasoned rice vinegar

½ teaspoon salt

Fresh ground black pepper to taste

Drop basil leaves into the bowl of a food processor; add olive oil, seasoned rice vinegar, salt and fresh ground black pepper, and process until incorporated.

Pasta

½ pound pasta, cooked according to package directions and cooled

Shrimp, Peas and Tomatoes

2 pounds large shrimp, steamed, peeled and deveined

2 cups frozen peas, thawed

2 large ripe tomatoes, cut into bite size pieces

In a large bowl, combine pasta with shrimp, peas and tomatoes. Toss with basil dressing. Yield: 6 servings.

Marinated Skirt Steak with Summer Tomatoes

2011-07-30T07:35:00.000-07:00

I love skirt steak especially during the summer months, its a lean and very flavorful cut of meat that is relatively inexpensive. The marinade with all its abundant and complementing ingredients enhances the steaks flavor. I'll be serving it for dinner tonight with sauteed summer zucchini and slices of yellow and red tomatoes with fresh basil leaves.

Tidbits for perfection: Plan according the steak needs to marinate for several hours.

¼ cup cooking sherry

¼ cup soy sauce

¼ cup honey

2 tablespoons white vinegar

1 tablespoon fresh gingerroot, minced or 1 teaspoon powdered ginger

1 teaspoon dark sesame oil

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1¼ pound skirt steak

In a baking dish to accommodate the steak, combine the sherry, soy sauce, honey, vinegar, gingerroot, sesame oil and garlic. Place the steak in the marinade turning to coat, marinade for several (3-4 hours is perfect) hours. Turn steak occasionally to marinate evenly.

Allow steak to come to room temperature before cooking.

Set oven temperature to broil or prepare grill. Drain marinade from steak. Place steak on a rack or grill and broil or grill anywhere from 3-8 minutes on each side for medium rare or cook to desired preference. Let the steak rest for about 5 minutes. Slice against the grain into thin slices. Yield: 4 servings.

Summer Smoked Salmon Platter with Homemade Crostini and Pita Chips

2011-07-28T04:45:00.000-07:00

I love the simplicity of a smoked salmon platter ... a quick and super simple summer appetizer. I top thin slices of salmon with capers and red onion and I serve it with an herbed cream cheese spread. Crispy crostini and pita chips are a tasty accompaniments. I prefer making my own crostini and pita chips, they taste so much fresher than store-bought. Besides its really easy to do. For the crostini, thinly slice French bread rounds, brush both sides with olive oil and bake in a 350 oven until crispy and light brown. For the pita chips, cut pita bread into bite size triangles. Heat about 4-5 inches of canola oil in a deep pan, heat over high heat, when oil is hot, drop handfuls of pita chips into oil, cook until light golden brown. Season lightly with salt.

Peaches and Cream Birthday French Toast

2011-07-25T07:08:00.000-07:00

When I returned home from Caramel's morning walk, Nick totally surprised me by having whipped together the most delicious birthday breakfast! French toast really got the royal treatment (as did I!) with fresh slices of peaches, homemade whipped cream and a dusting of cinnamon. Yummy! Thank you Nick for a fantastic birthday celebration breakfast!

Summerlicious Chicken Salad

2011-07-21T07:17:00.000-07:00

Tarragon and Basil Chicken Salad

Here's a unique variation on the traditional chicken salad recipe. Chicken breasts are slathered with Dijon mustard, seasoned with tarragon and basil and then baked. It’s a marvelous combination of flavors.

With temperatures hovering in the triple digits, it's perfect for the ladies luncheon I'm catering today because its cold and light - seasoned slices of colorful tomatoes wedged between sweet slices of red onion and mozzarella cheese are a complementing accompaniment. I'm serving with homemade focaccia and peach iced tea.

Helpful to know: The chicken can be baked prior to the day you're planning to serve it. When I'm not preparing this for a catering party, I often double or triple the recipe, it's makes, "What's for lunch?, What's for dinner?" super easy. Whole Foods Market produces a delicious canola mayonnaise that has the consistency of a thick salad dressing. It works beautifully in this recipe.

1½ pounds chicken breasts, skinned and boned

¼ cup Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon dried tarragon

1 tablespoon dried basil

Preheat oven to 350°. Arrange chicken in a single layer in a baking dish. Spread Dijon mustard evenly over chicken, top with tarragon and basil and bake for 45 minutes. Allow chicken to cool before cutting into bite size pieces.

1 cup celery, minced

⅓ cup mayonnaise (more or less to taste)

Salt to taste, optional

In a large bowl, combine chicken, celery and mayonnaise; season with salt to taste. Toss to evenly distribute ingredients. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Yield: 4 servings.

2011-07-18T05:20:00.001-07:00

Warm weather and summer fruit naturally call for cold, refreshing, nutrient-rich breakfast smoothies. I love "building" smoothies. A smoothie is generally defined as a blended, chilled beverage made from fresh or frozen fruit or vegetables pureed with yogurt or milk. Honey, agave nectar, protein powders, nutritional supplements and a variety of teas can also be added. I typically don't add protein powder, I like getting my protein from a shot of raw nuts. Today I blended dark cherries and raspberries, that's it!

It's so simple to assemble, for an antioxidant-rich drink, place 1 cup of pitted fresh cherries and 1 cup of raspberries in a blender. Blend until smooth and creamy. Serve immediately.

Blueberries Abound

2011-07-05T08:07:00.000-07:00

When blueberries come in season, late June through July I can’t seem to get my fill of these sweet, healthy nuggets. They boast impressive amounts of fiber and nutrients and so few calories - about 80 for one cup. Their uses are many and varied; blueberries add color to assorted fresh fruit, hot and cold cereals and fruit smoothies. I also fold them into muffin, pancake and waffle batter with great results and blueberries turn out memorable homemade pies and cobblers. When these nutritional powerhouses are at the height of their season I make a colorful and complimenting dessert where I layer blueberries with lemon yogurt and homemade granola.

Blueberries grow in clusters and vary in size from that of a small caper to the size of a marble. They are deep in color, ranging from blue to maroon to purple-black, and feature a white-gray waxy "bloom" that covers the berry's surface and serves as a protective coat. The skin surrounds a semi-transparent flesh that encases tiny seeds. Blueberries are literally bursting with beneficial antioxidants. Recent research examined 60 fruits and vegetables for their antioxidant capability and blueberries came out on top, rating highest in their capacity to destroy cancer causing free radicals.

Selecting, Storing, Preparing

Look for blueberries that are firm and free of wrinkles. Make sure berries aren’t soft and damaged or moldy, test by jostling the container, the berries should move freely. Blueberries should be free of moisture since the presence of water will cause the berries to decay. Fresh berries are fragile and should be washed briefly and drained if they are not organic. It’s best to wash berries just prior to use. Blueberries are best consumed within a few days of purchase. Store them in a covered container in the refrigerator.

Blueberries can be frozen with great success. To prepare for freezing, wash, drain and remove any damaged berries, spread berries on a rimmed baking sheet, place in the freezer until frozen. Transfer berries to a plastic bag, freeze until ready to use. Berries typically last up to a year in the freezer.

Cherries and Cream Stuffed French Toast

2011-06-26T06:05:00.000-07:00

The thought of cherries invokes all sorts of memories. One of the most memorable is when my five year old brother announced he would rather have my mother’s home baked cherry pie served at his birthday parties than birthday cake! Then there were the beautiful juice glasses we drank from when we were visiting our grandparents, each glass decorated with a pair of stemmed cherries that were hand painted by my grandmother. The glasses’ cherry design matched my grandparents cherry patterned china. More than a dozen times a day, I pass “Cherry Earrings” a fetching etching that hangs just outside the entrance of our kitchen; amusing reminders of my passion for cherries!

The local cherry season runs from mid-June and ends in early July, although cherry pickers tell me cherries are, “weather dependant,” so the season varies. There are two categories of cherries, sweet and sour (also known as tart or pie cherries). Popular are the purplish-red, heart-shaped sweet cherries, most commonly known as Bing. Another popular sweet variety is Rainier, (pronounced “rah – neer”) a yellow cherry with pinkish “cheeks.” The Sour cherry (mainly used for preserves and pies) is bright red in color and slightly smaller than the sweet version.

A bowl of cherries was the result of this recipe. It would be ideal to serve this delicious dish if you're entertaining another couple for breakfast or brunch. Not only is it impressive, I especially like that it must be prepared in advance. More time to spend with your guests! Pork sausage, vegetarian sausage or bacon are wonderful accompaniments.

Mr. Fabulous and I like to lay the French toast in a pool of maple syrup, as shown in my picture, but that's a matter of preference.

Helpful to know: Plan ahead. This needs to be prepared the day before serving. You can find Tuscan bread in the specialty breads section of most food stores nationwide.

Cherries and Cream

4-ounces cream cheese, softened

1 cup dark cherries, (Bing or Rainier) pitted and chopped

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Eight ½-inch slices Tuscan bread

In a small bowl, combine cream cheese with cherries. Spread cream cheese mixture evenly over four slices of bread; top each slice with second slice of bread.

Egg Mixture

4 eggs, room temperature

½ cup half & half

Whisk eggs with half & half in a baking dish that will accommodate 4 sandwiches in a single layer. Place sandwiches in egg mixture and allow to soak for five minutes on each side. Refrigerate overnight.

The next day …

1-2 tablespoons canola oil, for cooking

Butter and syrup

Sliced almonds

Confectioners sugar for dusting French toast

In preparation for cooking, allow sandwiches to come to room temperature (about 30 minutes.) Heat canola oil in a large skillet over moderately high heat, cook sandwiches (in batches of 2 or in two skillets) until golden brown on each side. Serve immediately with butter and syrup. Top with sliced almonds and dust with confectioners sugar. Yield: 4 servings.

Creamy Shrimp Dip Perfect for Summer Solstice Potluck Party

2011-06-20T14:14:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend I took this Creamy Shrimp Dip to a luncheon friends were hosting in Gibson Island. I found the recipe recently when my mother and I were going through thousands of recipes she has collected over the years, many since I was a little girl. The recipe was written on a 3 x 5-inch lined index card in her beautiful script, marked with four star’s next to the title. She reminisced eating it at a neighborhood cocktail party. She said it was a hit then and I'm happy to tell you it was well received at our friends party. I'm craving the flavors and plan to prepare it for the Summer Solstice potluck party we're going to tomorrow night.

Helpful to know: I served it with a neutral tasting cracker, but crostini, bagel or pita chips would also be tasty as dipping vessels.

Creamy Shrimp Dip

One 8-ounce package light cream cheese, softened

½ cup mayonnaise

½ cup chili sauce

¼ onion, finely chopped

2 teaspoons prepared horseradish

1 cup (about 8-10 large shrimp) cooked shrimp, chopped (reserve one shrimp to use as a garnish if desired)

Spinach leaves for garnish if desired

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine cream cheese, mayonnaise, chili sauce, onion and horseradish, blend until fully combined. Add shrimp and stir until incorporated. Transfer to a rimmed serving dish, cover and refrigerate for several hours. Garnish with shrimp and spinach leaves if desired. Yield: 2½
cups.

Reminiscing Dad's Tasty Burgers on Father's Day

2011-06-19T07:39:00.000-07:00

My dad loved beef, especially burgers and steak. Whenever we had either, he was usually the head cook for our steak and burger meals as opposed to my mother who was for the most part the primary cook in our family. Dad made the best burgers, for starters, (and this was very important) patties were made using ground chuck. Ground chuck is made from only boneless chuck roast and has just enough fat to make it juicy, but not too much to make the burgers shrink down to nothing. He would gently form the meat into patties and season them with salt and pepper. He'd fire up the grill or get our mainstay cast iron skillet nice and hot and cook the burgers a perfect medium rare. "Flip the burgers just once," he would tell me.

Mr. Fabulous and I don't consume a lot of meat, but when we eat a burger, I can't help but reminisce all the times my dad cooked the best tasting burgers. We'd set out a big selection of toppings for the burgers, each of us preferring something different than the other. Ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, relish, cheese and onions was usually the typical topping selection.

Today in honor of Father's Day Nick and I will be eating burgers topped with two of our favorites ... white cheddar cheese and tons of smothered onions. The burgers will get placed on buns (another very important component) the best are those that come somewhere in between a squishy supermarket bun and a fancy bakery version, (although dad wasn't as concerned about the bun as we are).

Dad preferred starchy sides in lieu of vegetable based accompaniments. As a tribute to what he loved, I'll be preparing his all time favorite potato salad, a recipe my mother began making for him shortly after they married.

Dad made my life (and the life of so many people) interesting and fun. I miss him and wish more than anything he was here with us today.

Fresh Strawberry Cake

2011-06-14T13:37:00.000-07:00

Farmers Market Strawberries

Fresh Strawberry Cake

Every summer I remember my parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles sitting around the dining room table talking about the upcoming summer harvest. I remember their saying Maryland was known for its’ strawberries, corn, tomatoes and crabs. In all my travels, I’ve never duplicated the taste of strawberries, corn and tomatoes that hail from our Maryland farms or the very distinctive tasting Maryland crab. When I bite in to any one of these at the height of their season, I have the same reaction as I did the previous season, the season before and the season before. There is nothing that compares to Maryland strawberries, Maryland corn, Maryland tomatoes and Maryland crabs...how fortunate this season is upon us!

Marked in my “summertime” memory as well are what are known as A-rabs; men with pony drawn carts filled with local produce, bellowing, “Marrrrr lynn berries, come git ya Marrrrr lynn berries, Marrrrrr lynn berries, git um now.” On days when I was downtown working with my dad, we would buy a pint of strawberries and eat them on our way to the Lexington Market; our red-stained fingers wrapped around a cracker covered crab cake were happy reminders of our most recent “Marrrrrr lynn berry” repast. At the end of the day when we were heading north for home we would buy several pints of strawberries from one of the pony drawn carts; more than enough berries for my mother to make her delicious strawberry pie.

Maryland strawberries are different from any berry I’ve tasted. Imported strawberries or strawberries from other parts of the country aren’t as potent in flavor and don’t have the deep red color so indicative of the Maryland berry. Imported or out-of-state berries usually have white centers and are lighter in color. Maryland berries are deep red both inside and out and are much sweeter and juicier. So juicy they are actually thirst quenching.

Selecting

The freshest Maryland strawberries are found at roadside stands, farmers’ markets or pick-your-own farms. Perfectly ripe berries are not too firm and not too soft and have a distinct sweet scent. Choose berries that are plump and deep red with stems intact. Medium size berries are often more flavorful than those that are excessively large.

Preparing

Conventional strawberries should be washed prior to serving. Remove stems and caps. Washing organic strawberries is a matter of preference. Strawberries are very perishable and should be eaten soon after purchase. They will keep however refrigerated for a few days. For best results refrigerate them unwashed with stem intact. For future use they can be frozen; remove stem and cap, and spread unwashed, whole strawberries in a single layer, freeze until solid, transfer to plastic bags or containers and keep frozen until ready to use.

Fresh Strawberry Cake

3 cups strawberries, quartered or cut into bite size pieces

Generously oil a 9-inch pie plate with canola oil. Arrange strawberries in the bottom of pie plate.

Cake Batter

2 eggs, room temperature

⅔ cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

½ cup (1 stick) butter, melted

1 cup all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 350°. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat eggs on medium speed and gradually add sugar. Add vanilla and butter and continue to beat until well combined; slowly add flour.

Top strawberries with batter. (The batter doesn’t have to completely cover the strawberries, in fact, I prefer some of the fruit exposed, it makes it look so rustic and homemade looking.) Bake for 30-40 minutes or until light brown and bubbly. Yield: 6 servings.

Savory and Sweet Pineapple Salad

2011-06-08T09:23:00.000-07:00

If a pineapple isn't ripe when you buy it, it can take several days to ripen to juicy deliciousness. Given fruit ripens on its own schedule and that I wanted to be certain I had perfectly ripened pineapple for a graduation party I catered over the weekend, I bought an abundance of pineapples!

I turned what pineapple I didn't use into this colorful and surprisingly fantastic tasting salad. Surprisingly tasty because I combined unusual ingredients ... savory Kalamata olives, tangy Valbresso Feta cheese, salty roasted cashew nuts and green onions with sweet roasted red peppers and perfectly ripe golden sweet pineapple chunks, then I tossed it with just a wee bit of my standard oil and vinegar dressing. Mr. Fabulous, (who was skeptical of the combination) deemed it one of the best savory and sweet combinations he'd ever tasted! We enjoyed it with ham sandwiches, a complementing combination and the perfect cool weather dinner on a hot summer evening.

The salad is simple to assemble, start with ripe pineapple chunks, top with chopped roasted red peppers, thinly sliced green onions, a few Kalamata olives, some crumbled Valbresso Feta cheese and roasted and salted cashews. Toss with a little of your favorite oil and vinegar dressing or prepare my tried and true, super simple, standard vinaigrette dressing recipe.

Helpful to know: A ripe pineapple should have a golden shell. Pineapples ripen from the bottom to the top. Often the bottom is golden and has a fragrant sweet smell and the top is still a little green, if this is the case, you will need the pineapple to ripen a bit longer on the kitchen counter. If the pineapple is ripe you should should be able to pull out some of the top center leaves fairly easily. Pineapples are available year round, but are at the peak of their growing season from March through June.

Kerry’s All-Purpose Vinaigrette

An all-purpose dressing that is so delicious and can be prepared so quickly, you might ask yourself why you ever bought bottled vinaigrette!

Helpful to know: Kerry’s All-Purpose Vinaigrette will keep for several days in the refrigerator. Allow to come to room temperature before serving; shake well just prior to using.

1 teaspoon salt

Several grindings fresh black pepper

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

¼ cup apple cider vinegar

¾ cup extra virgin olive oil

In a 2-cup capacity jar with a tight fitting lid, combine salt, pepper, mustard and apple cider vinegar. Shake until ingredients are well blended and salt has dissolved. Add olive oil and shake again to combine ingredients. Store at room temperature until ready to serve; shake well just prior to using. Refrigerate any unused portion. Yield: About 1 cup.

So Good Soba Shrimp Salad

2011-06-01T13:03:00.000-07:00

With an abundance of color, flavor and texture, this cold main dish salad receives rave reviews every time I serve it. And because the shrimp can be steamed, the dressing assembled and the noodles cooked ahead of time, it's the perfect dish for entertaining!*

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So Good Soba Shrimp Salad

Sliced French or Ciabatta Bread

Helpful to know: Soba noodles are native Japanese pasta made of buckwheat flour (soba-ko) and wheat flour (komugi-ko). Because buckwheat doesn't bind well, it is often combined with wheat flour or wild yam (jinenjo); but in order to be officially classified as Soba, the noodles must contain at least 30% buckwheat. Some believe the higher the buckwheat content, the better/tastier the noodles. There are several variations of soba noodles but my preference is Eden Foods Wild Yam Soba which can be found in most health-oriented grocery stores nationwide.

If noodles stick together after cooking, toss with olive oil. I prefer serving the pasta separate from the So Good Toppings as the topping ingredients are heavy and tend to sink beneath the noodles. My preference for feta is Valbreso French Feta Cheese (PKT Product Resource List, page __) which can be found in most grocery stores nationwide.

If you haven't prepared anything in advance begin with …

Shrimp

1½ pounds jumbo shrimp, steamed, peeled and deveined

While the shrimp is steaming …

So Good Dressing

2 teaspoons salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

½ cup apple cider vinegar

1½ cups extra virgin olive oil

In a 3-4 cup capacity jar with a tight fitting lid, combine salt, pepper, Dijon mustard and apple cider vinegar. Cover and shake mixture vigorously. Add olive oil, cover and shake until incorporated. Keep at room temperature until ready to use. Shake dressing just before tossing noodles and toppings.

Soba Noodles

Two 8.8-ounce packages soba noodles, broken in half

Cook according to package directions. Cool to room temperature.

While the noodles are cooking …

So Good Toppings

1½ pounds steamed jumbo shrimp, peeled, deveined, cut into bite size pieces

1 cup frozen peas, thawed

1 cup yellow pepper, cut into ½-inch pieces

1 cup orange pepper, cut into ½-inch pieces

One 14-ounce can artichoke hearts in water, drained and quartered

½ cup Kalamata olives, pitted

½ cup green onions, sliced

1 cup feta cheese, crumbled

1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half

In a large bowl, combine shrimp, peas, yellow pepper, orange pepper, artichoke hearts, olives and green onions. Toss with just enough dressing to lightly coat toppings; transfer to a serving platter. Top with crumbled feta cheese and cherry tomatoes.

Toss room temperature soba noodles with the remaining dressing or just enough to evenly coat the pasta. Transfer to a shallow serving bowl.

* If you've steamed the shrimp, prepared the dressing and cooked the noodles ahead of time, simply start with the So Good Toppings then let the entertaining begin! Yield: 10-12 servings.

Marinated Potatoes aka Potato Salad

2011-05-30T04:54:00.000-07:00

My mother has been preparing this potato salad since she and my father first ate it at a pot luck picnic with friends in the summer of 1945. The woman who brought it said it wasn’t at all like traditional potato salad because it had a mere tablespoon of mayonnaise! At the time, mayonnaise was rationed ... but potatoes and onions were plentiful and inexpensive, so she decided to be experimental and coat them with an oil and vinegar based dressing rather than the traditional and often bland mayonnaise-based potato salad. Everyone loved it! The tender potatoes soak up the seasoned dressing and the onions wilt slightly during the marination process. It could be labeled addictive!

You may want to double the recipe; this flavorful potato salad is extraordinarily popular! Its picnic friendly, great fare for a crowd and the perfect accompaniment to just about anything that goes with potatoes and especially anything cooked on the grill.

Tidbits for perfection: Plan accordingly; the dressing is best if made several hours in advance. The original recipe used apple cider vinegar, I use seasoned rice vinegar - both however make a great tasting dressing. For maximum flavor prepare this the day before you plan to serve it. Peeling the potatoes is a matter of preference. Potatoes tend to soak up salt, after you have tossed the potato salad with mayonnaise, taste test and adjust salt seasoning if necessary.

Potato Salad Dressing

½ cup canola oil

¼ cup seasoned rice vinegar

1 teaspoon celery seed

1 teaspoon salt

¾ teaspoon black pepper

In a 1-cup capacity jar with a tight fitting lid, combine oil, vinegar, celery seed, salt and pepper. Shake contents until well combined. Allow dressing to stand at room temperature for several hours.

Several hours later …

6 medium potatoes, unpeeled, quartered and cooked in boiling salted water for about 15 minutes or until tender

Allow potatoes to cool, when cool enough to handle, thinly slice.

1½ cups onion, quartered and thinly sliced

In the dish you will be serving the potato salad, layer the potatoes and the onions alternately. Shake dressing and pour evenly over the potatoes and onions. Cover and refrigerate.

The following day, the 1945 part …

1 tablespoon mayonnaise

Just before serving, toss the salad with the mayonnaise. Season with additional salt if necessary. Yield: 6 servings.

Strawberry Cobbler Cake

2011-05-21T10:53:00.000-07:00

When we got back home from the farmer's market this morning, I couldn't wait to turn the ruby red strawberries into one of our favorite strawberry based desserts. It's as much a cobbler as it is a cake, hence its' name. Serve with whipped cream, vanilla ice cream or vanilla yogurt. Yummy!

Strawberry Cobbler Cake

4 cups fresh strawberries, tops removed, washed and quartered

Preheat oven to 350°. Place berries in a 9-inch round baking dish.

Cake

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

4 tablespoons butter, cut into chunks

½ cup milk

In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Drop butter chunks into flour mixture. Cut in butter with two knives (making slicing motions) or use your fingertips to incorporate until mixture is somewhat crumbly. Add milk and stir until fully combined. Dollop batter over strawberries (batter is thick and more like a dough than batter); the final topping as well as baking will evenly distribute the batter.

Cobbler Cake

1 cup cold water

1 tablespoon cornstarch

In a medium bowl, combine water and cornstarch, stir until cornstarch has dissolved, pour over batter. Place baking dish on a rimmed baking sheet and bake cobbler/cake for 45-50 minutes or until lightly browned. Serve warm just as it is or with desired topping. Yield: 8 servings.

Wild Rice Salad with Shrimp, Feta Cheese, Kalamata Olives and Roasted Red Peppers

2011-05-17T08:57:00.000-07:00

A bag of wild rice from the Minnesota based wild rice company, Christmas Point was one of many hostess gifts from our good friends George and Eric. Thank you George and Eric for introducing this fantastic tasting rice to us, Mr. Fabulous and I love it!

It has a distinct nutty flavor and a delightful chewy texture and turned out to be the perfect complement to this combination I whipped together last night for dinner.

Here's what to do ... after you've cooked the rice, keep at room temperature. Top rice with cooked jumbo shrimp, bite size pieces of roasted red peppers, pitted Kalamata olives and crumbled Valbresso cheese. Just before serving, drizzle salad with vinaigrette dressing. Garnish with parsley leaves.

Asparagus

2011-05-15T06:16:00.000-07:00

Just cooked fresh asparagus spears!

I’ve often wondered if grocery store produce departments offered frequent flier miles for fruits and vegetables purchased within a given year, what fruit or vegetable would collect the largest number of miles? I did some research and learned asparagus generally logs more miles in a week than commercial airline pilots! By the time this delicate vegetable finds its way into your grocery store basket it has traveled the globe.

Most of the asparagus we purchase hails from as far away places as Peru, China and California. As the crow flies, Peru is 3,536 miles from Maryland, China 7, 446 and California 3,000! Peru is currently the world’s leading asparagus exporter having overtaken other major U.S. and China producers.

This is an example of precisely what happened in Hadley, Massachusetts (297 miles from Maryland) which until recently was the asparagus capitol of the world. Today the bulk of their asparagus harvest is imported. Towns surrounding Hadley don’t even supply “Hadley grown” asparagus at any local Farmer’s markets!

This isn’t the way we intended to protect, preserve and honor our local agriculture; we need to reverse the trend. To do this and to prevent the carbon footprint from having more of an impact on our environment, we need to buy food in its growing season. There are so many added benefits to eating foods in their growing season; foremost, food is at its peak flavor and it offers the most nutrients.

Selecting, Storing and Preparing

The asparagus season is brief and runs generally from April through May. Asparagus stalks should be rounded, look for firm stems with deep green or purplish closed tips. The thickness of asparagus spears is a matter of preference, (and will determine the cooking time) I’ve discovered over the years the most flavorful spears are medium sized. Use asparagus within one to two days of purchasing. To store, remove the bands that bound the stalks. Store in the refrigerator with the ends wrapped in a paper towel. Before cooking, remove woody end (about 1-2 inches from the bottom) from each stalk.

Serving suggestions

Asparagus can be served hot or cold. If you’re serving cold asparagus, (although I think serving the spears cold mutes their flavor) plunge the stalks in cold water immediately after cooking, once cold, remove the stalks and transfer to a kitchen towel. Many methods can be applied when cooking asparagus. Stalks can be steamed, boiled, broiled or grilled. I tested each method and discovered the most flavorful asparagus is boiled; it evokes a clean mild flavor and preserves the bright green color.

Creamy Lemon Pasta with Asparagus

Lemon and asparagus are a complementing combination. This recipe is simple to assemble, colorful, refreshing and so representative of spring. The dish stands on its’ own but if you want to serve accompaniments, toss baby lettuce leaves with an oil and vinegar dressing and serve with slices of olive bread.

When preparing this dish, for optimum results, the eggs and milk should be at room temperature. The ingredients are easier to incorporate if the pasta is broken in half before cooking. Be sure to grate the lemon zest before you juice the lemon.

2 eggs

1 cup milk

8-ounces angel hair pasta

One bunch fresh asparagus trimmed of woody end and cut into 1-inch pieces (cutting the asparagus on the diagonal adds to the presentation)

2 tablespoons butter

2 teaspoons grated lemon rind

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

½ teaspoon salt

Fresh grated Parmesan cheese

In a medium bowl, whisk until well combined eggs and milk. Cook pasta in salted boiling water for about 4 minutes, add asparagus and cook an additional 2-3 minutes or until asparagus is just fork tender, drain. While the pasta and asparagus are cooking, melt butter, in a medium skillet over moderate heat, add lemon rind, lemon juice and salt, cook for 1 minute. Pour lemon/butter mixture over pasta and asparagus and toss. Add egg/milk combination to pasta/asparagus mixture and cook over low heat for a few minutes or until mixture slightly thickens, stirring constantly, serve immediately. Serve Parmesan cheese buffet style. Serves 4-6.

Watch-It-Disappear Horseradish Dip

2011-05-10T08:34:00.000-07:00

Every year we visit family in Cleveland, Ohio and every year they serve what they call "bar dip." It’s a zesty, delicious, can’t-get-enough dip they buy from a small, independent food store whose long-time owner won’t reveal the recipe. I was determined to duplicate this can’t-get-enough combination and very pleased that it only took three attempts to achieve that irresistible, savory flavor. My cousins always serve the dip with crispy bagel chips; I have served it successfully with fresh pineapple chunks, raw vegetables, pretzels and crispy pita chips. However you serve this dip, it's yummy!

Helpful to know: Watch-It-Disappear Horseradish Dip can be prepared 1-2 days in advance and refrigerated. Allow to come to room temperature before serving. My vegetable bouillon cube of preference is Rapunzel Vegan Vegetable Bouillon with Sea Salt.

One 8-ounce container light whipped cream cheese, softened

1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

¼ cup sour cream

3 tablespoons prepared horseradish

1 vegetable bouillon cube with sea salt, mashed

Fresh chives, garnish, optional

In a food processor, combine cream cheese, cheddar cheese, sour cream, horseradish and mashed bouillon cube; combine until well blended making sure that bouillon cube is fully integrated into mixture. Transfer to a serving platter, using a icing or frosting knife or spatula, shape dip into desired shape, garnish with chives. Serve at room temperature. Yield: About 2 cups.

Mother's Day Menu

2011-05-05T13:00:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day Luncheon Menu

Ham and Asparagus Quiche

Spinach Salad with Strawberries and Toasted Pecans

Gingered Rhubarb Parfaits

Right now garden's and farmer's markets are brimming with asparagus, spinach, strawberries and rhubarb. They happen to be some of my mother's favorite foods, so I'll be using all of them this Sunday.

I love to serve quiche ... (and my mother loves to eat it!) and it's great when entertaining a mid-day party. It can be prepared in the morning and all you have to do is pop it the oven just before guests arrive. Quiche is also a satisfying one-dish meal that falls into the, "comfort food" category.

Spinach and strawberries are so complementing and make a colorful addition to the quiche. Toasted pecans give this salad the perfect crunch. Simply toss spinach leaves with your favorite dressing, I like to use Celery Seed Dressing, it has just the right amount of sweetness. For the recipe, see October 27, 2010 post. Toss the leaves with quartered strawberries and toasted pecans.

For dessert I'm going to fill tulip-shaped glasses with strawberry ice cream (vanilla ice cream or yogurt work as well) and top the ice cream with the gingered rhubarb sauce, really good quality crunchy granola, garnish with a sprig of mint. Yummy!

Happy Mother's Day!

Ham and Asparagus Quiche

Helpful to know: For optimum crust results, flour should be cold. If you don’t store flour in the freezer, place measured amount in freezer for about 15 minutes. And if you're really short on time, a store-bought crust will work, I recommend Wholly Wholesome Organic Pie Shells. Also, remember to plan ahead. Careful not to overcook the asparagus, cook until just fork tender. Place in a ice cold bath to retard cooking, then drain on a kitchen towel.

Quiche Crust

1⅛ cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for work surface

½ teaspoon salt

¼ cup olive oil

2½-3 tablespoons cold water

In a medium bowl, combine flour and salt. Drizzle olive oil over flour and toss until flour mixture is coarse. Slowly drizzle in cold water; add more water if dough doesn’t come together or seems dry. Knead dough a few times to fully incorporate ingredients. Lightly flour work surface; roll dough until it's about 12-inches in diameter. Transfer to a 9-inch pie plate. Flute edges.

Ham and Asparagus Filling

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup onion, finely chopped

½ cup ham, rough chopped

8 eggs, room temperature

½ cup half & half or whole milk

½ teaspoon salt

A dash cayenne pepper

3 cups cheddar cheese, shredded, divided use

One bunch asparagus spears, cooked and cut into 1-inch pieces

Preheat oven to 350°. Heat olive oil in a medium sauté pan over moderate heat; add onion cook until onions are soft. In a large bowl, whisk eggs with half & half, salt and cayenne pepper. Sprinkle 1 cup cheese in the bottom of unbaked pie crust, top cheese with ham and ½ of the asparagus. Top with 1 cup cheese. Top with remaining asparagus. Pour egg mixture evenly over mixture, top with remaining cheese. Bake for 45 minutes. Allow pie to sit for 10 minutes before serving. Yield: 6 servings.

Gingered Rhubarb Sauce

Helpful to know: Gingered Rhubarb Sauce can be prepared ahead of time; will keep for several days refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before refrigerating and bring back to room temperature before serving!

4 cups rhubarb, sliced into ¼-inch thick pieces

½ cup water

½ cup sugar

¼ teaspoon powdered ginger

Place rhubarb and water in a medium saucepan. The ratio of water to rhubarb may seem disproportionate, but too much water will result in a watery sauce. Over moderate heat, cook rhubarb for about 15-20 minutes or until tender. Stir every 5-10 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in sugar and ginger. Serve warm or at room temperature. Yield: About 4 cups.

Vegetarian Mediterranean Dip

2011-05-03T07:29:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend we were part of a Progressive Party. Our part was to host the appetizer portion. I prepared this popular dish and as always it lived up to its reputation, everyone loved it! It's healthy, colorful and the combination of flavors is so complimenting.

My favorite vessel to use for dipping is pita chips. I prefer to prepare homemade chips using store bought pita bread. It's really easy. Separate the top and bottom of each piece of pita bread, stack the rounds and cut into bite size wedges. Fry them in hot canola oil until light brown. While they're still warm, sprinkle with a little salt.

Helpful to know: To avoid the dip from becoming watery, allow artichoke hearts and roasted red peppers to drain well (place in a colander and let stand for an hour or more) before adding to dip. My favorite feta (pronounced FEH-tah) is Valbreso French Feta Cheese which can be found in most grocery stores nationwide. Feta is probably the best known Greek cheese and, some say, the national cheese of Greece. Traditional Greek feta is soft in texture, rich in aroma and tangy in flavor, while French feta cheese tends to be milder, creamier and less salty.

Vegetarian Mediterranean Dip

Olive oil

1 generous handful fresh spinach (once cooked, it will yield about ⅓ of a cup)

In a saute pan over moderate heat, heat olive oil, add spinach and cook until just wilted. Transfer to a small bowl and when cool enough to handle, chop spinach.

One (8-ounce) container hummus

1 cup plain Greek-style yogurt
One (6-ounce) jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained, roughly chopped

⅓ cup cooked spinach
½ cup roasted red peppers, drained, roughly chopped
⅓ cup (about 10 olives) Kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
¼ cup thinly sliced green onions
⅓ cup Valbresso feta cheese, crumbled

Spread hummus evenly in the bottom of an 8-inch round or square dish. Spread yogurt evenly over hummus. Scatter artichoke hearts over yogurt. Scatter spinach, peppers and olives over artichoke hearts. Top with green onions and feta cheese. Yield: 8 servings

Homemade Bread

2011-04-26T07:48:00.000-07:00

Is there anything more inviting than the smell of homemade bread baking? I love the aroma that wafts through the house about 15 minutes after I place bread loaves in the oven to bake.

Making bread is not an exact science; as a rule there is no right or wrong. I prefer to think of it as an art form, where each loaf is a one-of-a-kind masterpiece. Once you become accustomed to the basic practices involved in bread making, you'll probably find yourself baking quite often!

Here are my personal pointers and observations for making a successful loaf of bread

All ingredients should be at room temperature.

Yeast should be fresh (check the expiration date before using.) Yeast will not proof if the temperature of the liquid added is too cold or too hot. I use the inside of my wrist (an area that's sensitive to hot and cold) for testing the temperature of the liquid; it should be no hotter than what you would give a baby. Yeast requires a warm, damp environment to proof as well as the addition of food (honey or sugar.) Proofing yeast is like watching a chemistry experiment; ingredients reacting to other ingredients. The process takes about 5-10 minutes and the result should be a foamy and/or bubbly mixture.

Dough can be quite temperamental and typically performs according to the weather conditions in your kitchen. Humidity makes for stickier dough which means you’ll need to add more flour while kneading; colder/dryer conditions will require less flour during this process. When adding flour during the kneading process, measurements are not exact; add flour until you have smooth, elastic dough to work with. You will find many techniques for kneading dough; the perfect technique is the one that works best for you.

Most bread dough requires at least two risings. During this process, dough should be in a warm environment, free of cold drafts. On top of a warm radiator, near something warming on the stove or on a warm day, in natural sunlight. Rising times vary; on average, expect about one hour per rising.

After a rising, you will always be asked to “punch down” the dough. Punching down is not so much about the act of punching as it is about the act of flattening. Using your fist or outstretched hand, push down the dough in order to deflate it.

Multi-Grain Bread

This is a delicious loaf that is wonderful as a bread for just about any kind of sandwich. It's marvelous as well simply toasted and spread with butter and jam.

2 packages active dry yeast

½ cups warm water

1 tablespoon sugar

In a large bowl, proof yeast with warm water and sugar.

1 cup water

1 teaspoon salt

½ cup cornmeal

In a medium saucepan, bring 1 cup of water to a boil. Add 1 teaspoon salt and cornmeal; lower heat to a simmer and cook for 1 minute, stirring vigorously. Cool mixture for 5 minutes then transfer to bowl with yeast mixture. Stir until well combined.

2 teaspoons salt

2 cups warm water

2 tablespoons honey

½ cup spelt flour

½ cup whole wheat flour

4-5 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for work surface

Canola oil for mixing bowl

Add salt, water, honey, spelt and whole wheat flour; stir until well combined. Add flour, 1 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the mixture begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl, transfer to a floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Lightly oil a large bowl; add dough and turn to coat all surfaces. Cover with kitchen towel and let dough rise in a warm, draft-free place until double in bulk, about 1 hour.

Punch dough down, cut in half and shape into 2 rounds. Place each in a 9 x 5 x 3-inch loaf pan; cover both pans with a kitchen towel and let dough rise until double in bulk, about 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 425°. Bake loaves for 10 minutes. Lower temperature to 350° and bake an additional 20-25 minutes or until loaves are light brown and sound hollow when tapped. Allow to cool before slicing. Yield: Two 9 x 5 x 3-inch loaves.

2011-04-24T05:30:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter! Happy Spring!

Earth Day Every Day

2011-04-22T07:50:00.000-07:00

I’m always trying to be eco-conscious in my daily rounds, so I’m devoted to making every day Earth Day. But to celebrate this year’s actual Earth Day, I’d like to share some eco-conscious tips related to food purchasing, including some useful traceable labels and what they mean.

To honor our planet -- and in the spirit of making a difference in its health – I invite you to join me in an “eco-consciousness-raising movement.” As part of this movement, you believe that making eco-conscious choices does have a positive environmental impact, not just for today, but for future generations, so you are careful about what goes into your grocery cart and re-usable shopping bags. We each “vote with our fork” every day, and if, as often as possible, you cast your vote with these buzzwords in mind -- good, clean, fair, local, organic and sustainable – you will do well by for Mother Earth and of course, your personal well-being.

Tip #1: The latest catch …

Not all fish or fish harvesting practices are good for consumers or the environment. Some seafood can be contaminated with high levels of mercury and PCB’s (polychlorinated biphenyls) highly toxic industrial compounds. A lot of seafood varieties have been over-fished (remember the Orange Roughy craze?) or caught in ways that damage our oceans and marine life.

Eco-conscious guidelines for buying fish include: Buy small fish (they tend to be more plentiful), buy wild, buy American (U.S. guidelines are stricter) from local, trusted retailers; know how and where the fish was caught. The Marine Stewardship Council certifies seafood caught or raised in a sustainable, environmentally-friendly manner. Look for their blue certified sustainable sticker.

The Environmental Defense Fund has a comprehensive guide for the best and worst popular seafood choices – take a look, www.edf.org

Tip #2: Meat matters …

The Global Animal Partnership is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the lives of farm animals raised for meat. Their 5-Step Animal Welfare Rating™ rates how chickens, cattle and pigs are raised. Ratings for other species (turkeys, lamb, and others) are currently in development. For high-quality meat and fowl from sources that raise and slaughter animals ethically and safely, look for their distinctive orange, gold and green 5-step labels.

Tip #3: Produce labels and what they reveal …

Do you know what the little sticker on produce means? It speeds up the scanning process at the checkout stand but it also reveals whether the produce is conventionally grown, genetically modified or organically grown.

A four-digit code means the item is conventionally grown, most likely with pesticides and fertilizers. A five-digit code starting with "8" means the produce is genetically modified. And a five-digit code starting with "9" means the produce was organically grown. So, if an apple has the code "6584" on the sticker, that apple would have been grown from unaltered seed with the possible use of fertilizers and pesticides. An apple labeled "86584" would be genetically altered. And an apple with a code reading "96584" would have been grown organically.

Tip #4: Before you go to check out …

Survey your grocery cart contents in terms of “clean and green.” Is it filled with food packaged in plastic containers? With boxed food whose ingredient labels are unfamiliar and even unpronounceable? With prepared, processed, mass-produced food? With out-of-season food that has traveled extensive distances? Are there items that could be replaced by fresh, organic, ethically-raised, fair-trade and sustainable foods from your local farmer’s market or other artisans? Make a note so that next time you shop, your purchases will be more eco-conscious – good for you, your family and Planet Earth.

Taste trumps everything else, so savor “clean and green” food choices, one bite-at-a time!

Easter Dinner Menu with Luscious Rhubarb Cake

2011-04-19T08:10:00.000-07:00

Most of you know my passion for following the food seasons ... right now gardens are producing watercress, spinach, asparagus, strawberries, new potatoes and rhubarb. Soft crabs and spring lamb are also coming into the mix about this time and are available locally in and around our area.

I created our Easter dinner menu based around all these wonderful foods that celebrate this glorious season. I’ve included one of the recipes featured on the menu, Luscious Rhubarb Cake, a recipe I’m always anxious to prepare once these stalks come in season. Hope you have the chance to prepare it, share it and enjoy it as much as we have over the years.

Happy Easter readers!

Easter Dinner Menu

To Start

Creamy Watercress Soup “Shooters”

Sautéed Soft Crabs with Caper Cream

Dinner

Leg of Lamb Roast Stuffed with Spinach, Feta Cheese & Pine Nuts

Asparagus & Strawberry Salad with Crostini

Roasted Garlic Potatoes with Mint

To Finish

Rhubarb Cake

When the Eat In Season Challenge program I founded was launched in 2008, I presented this rhubarb cake at a press breakfast that our committee hosted. Rob Kasper, the food editor for Baltimore’s primary newspaper, The Sun, enthusiastically agreed with Martha Lucius’ (Eat In Season Challenge committee member) description of this cake as luscious (hence the name of this fabulous cake!) He loved the cake so much that he ran a story not only about the challenge, but about rhubarb as well; and he printed this recipe along with my recipe for Gingered Rhubarb Sauce. When we were taste-testing this cake prior to the press breakfast, I had to hide it from Nick after his second helping otherwise, he confessed, he would have consumed the entire cake in one sitting! It is extraordinarily moist and if I hadn’t been the person assembling the ingredients, I would never guess that tart-tasting rhubarb (a description for which it is commonly known) was one of the primary ingredients.

Helpful to know: I recommend that you use an aluminum-free baking powder such as Rumford. For optimum results, only make this Luscious Rhubarb Cake when luscious rhubarbs are in season! Walnuts are easier to chop if they're cold or frozen.

Luscious Cake
Canola oil for baking pan

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

⅛ teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350°. Lightly oil a 13 x 9-inch baking pan. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.

½ cup (1 stick) butter, softened

½ cup sugar

½ cup brown sugar, packed

1 egg, room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup buttermilk

2 cups (about ½ pound) rhubarb, finely diced

In a large bowl, beat butter with white and brown sugar. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until slightly fluffy. Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk, beat until well combined. Fold in rhubarb. Transfer cake batter to baking pan, spreading evenly.

Luscious Topping
½ cup walnuts, chopped

¼ cup brown sugar, packed

1½ teaspoons cinnamon

In a small bowl, toss walnuts, brown sugar and cinnamon. Distribute topping evenly over cake and bake for 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Yield: 15 servings.

Broccoli, Sweet Onion and Cashew Salad with Creamy Tamari Dressing

2011-04-14T07:17:00.000-07:00

A gorgeous celebration of colors that is as delicious as it is beautiful. It is the perfect accompaniment to fish, chicken or beef.

Tidbits for perfection: Cook the broccoli until just fork tender, under cooked or over cooked broccoli will result in a completely different salad. To keep the broccoli from cooking any longer after it’s been removed from the steamer, place a shallow rimmed bowl in the refrigerator to get cold while the broccoli is cooking. This way you won’t be wasting water by running it over the broccoli to get it cool. Sweet onion, such as Vidalia contributes to the wonderful flavor in this salad. This dish is not a good keeper; serve immediately after you have tossed it with the dressing. Place a shallow rimmed bowl in the refrigerator.

Broccoli

3 cups broccoli with stem, cut into small florets

Steam broccoli until just fork tender. Transfer broccoli to the shallow rimmed platter, and set aside, keep at room temperature.

½ cup sweet onion, thinly sliced

½ cup red pepper, chopped

Add onion and red pepper to broccoli.

Creamy Tamari Dressing

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon mayonnaise

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon tamari or soy sauce

Fresh ground black pepper to taste

In a small bowl whisk garlic, rice vinegar, olive oil, mayonnaise, sugar, tamari and black pepper until well blended.

Broccoli Sweet Onion and Cashew Salad with Creamy Tamari Dressing

½ cup cashew pieces, roasted and salted

¼ cup dried cranberries

Pour dressing over broccoli, onion and red pepper, gently toss until well combined. Add cashews and cranberries. Serve immediately. Yield: 4 servings.

Purée of Cauliflower Soup with Grilled Cheese Kabobs

2011-04-08T07:59:00.000-07:00

I love how cheese complements cauliflower. For lunch I prepared grilled cheese sandwiches, cut them into chunks, skewered the bite size pieces using my favorite toothpicks and positioned them atop steaming bowls of creamy, slide-down-your throat cauliflower soup!

Try it, it promises not to disappoint, and enjoy listening to the mmmmmmmmm’s.

Helpful to know: Remember to save the cauliflower water; it's an important ingredient in this recipe! I highly recommend Imagine Organic Free Range Chicken Broth and Rapunzel Vegan Vegetable Bouillon with Sea Salt cubes. For the grilled cheese sandwiches, I prefer a white sharp cheddar cheese and a good quality bread. Prepare and grill the sandwiches while the soup is simmering. I prepared one grilled cheese per person any leftover pieces I couldn't fit on the bamboo skewer, I served buffet style, rest assured they're won't be any leftover.

Purée of Cauliflower Soup

2½ cups water

One large head cauliflower, cut into uniform size pieces

4 tablespoons butter

½ cup white onion, chopped

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 cup chicken broth

1 cup milk

2 vegetable cubes

2 cups cauliflower water (saved from the steaming process)

In a large pot with a steamer, bring 2½ cups water to a boil, add cauliflower and steam until fork tender. Transfer cauliflower and cauliflower water to a large bowl. Remove steamer and in the same large pot over moderate heat, melt butter and sauté onion until tender; whisk in flour, slowly add chicken broth. Stir in milk, add vegetable cubes, allow vegetable cubes to dissolve; add cauliflower water and cauliflower. In a food processor or blender, purée soup in batches; transfer puréed batches into a large bowl. After final batch is puréed, transfer soup back into the original large pot, simmer and stir. Serve hot. Yield: 6 servings.

To assemble, ladle soup into bowls. Skewer bite size pieces of grilled cheese sandwiches and place on top of the bowl (as pictured) allowing the sandwich pieces to touch the soup.

Herbed Trout with Fried Carrots

2011-04-06T09:49:00.000-07:00

A fantastic tasting entree that has so much flavor and texture. It reminds me of so many wonderful fish dishes I’ve had in high end restaurants over the years that I never thought I could duplicate. Nick dubbed it, invite-friends-for-dinner. Serve fish over wild rice or couscous as well as a fresh seasonal unadorned complementing vegetable. I had an assortment of mushrooms on hand, I sauteed them in a little olive oil and added them to couscous and stirred in a handful of peas for added color and fiber.

Helpful to know: Any leftover herb marinade makes for a great tasting stock for fish soup, stew or chowder.

Herbed Trout

2 cups water

2 vegetable cubes

4 tablespoons butter

¼ cup fresh parsley, minced

4 teaspoons grated lemon zest

2 teaspoons thyme

Bring 2 cups of water to a boil, add vegetable cubes and stir until cubes have dissolved. Add butter, parsley, grated lemon zest and thyme, stir until butter has melted. Transfer mixture to a baking dish that will accommodate the fish fillets.

4 trout fillets or any other relatively thin, mild tasting white fish

Add fillets, spoon marinade over fillets and allow to marinate at room temperature for about a ½ hour.

Preheat oven to 350°. Bake fish for about 30 minutes, (or until cooked through) halfway through baking time baste fish with herb mixture.

Fried Carrots

2 medium carrots, shred (using a vegetable peeler)

Canola oil for frying

In a large skillet heat oil over moderately high heat, add carrots and saute until brown turning constantly. Watch closely there is a narrow margin between brown and crispy carrots or blackened carrots. Yield: 4 servings.

Cherry Almond Cake with Almond Streusel

2011-04-03T05:23:00.000-07:00

Tender and moist, this cake won't disappoint ... serving it warm from the oven with vanilla ice cream is a matter of preference!

Helpful to know: I highly recommend using Oregon® Fruit Products, I love the quality and the philosophy behind this family owned company. The product tastes so pure and fresh, almost like it was just picked and preserved, because it was! Use the reserved cherry juice in your next fruit smoothie. Almond milk has become very popular among lactose-intolerant individuals and can be found in the non-refrigerated grocery section of most health-oriented food stores nationwide.

Cherry Cake

Canola cooking spray for baking pan

1 cup all-purpose flour

½ cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon baking soda

One 15-ounce can pitted dark sweet cherries, drained, rough chopped, divided use

Preheat oven to 350°. Coat a 9.5-inch pie plate with canola cooking spray. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda. Toss flour mixture with ½ of the cherries.

1 egg, room temperature

⅔ cup almond milk

2 tablespoons canola oil

½ teaspoon almond extract

In a medium bowl, combine egg with almond milk, canola oil and almond extract, whisk until well blended. Pour liquid mixture into flour/cherry mixture and stir until well incorporated. Transfer batter into prepared baking pan and top with remaining cherries.

Almond Streusel Topping

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons white flour

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

2 tablespoons butter, cut into chunks

⅓ cup sliced almonds

In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, flour and cinnamon; add butter ad mush with your fingertips. Distribute evenly over cake batter, top with almonds. Bake for 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Yield: 8 servings.

Asparagus with Crispy-Fried Shallots and Brown Butter Breadcrumbs

2011-03-31T07:29:00.000-07:00

Despite cold temperatures hovering around 30 degrees outside, it is officially spring and asparagus, one of this season's garden glories is being harvested right now. I relish this time of year, mostly because it marks the beginning of a long food harvest full of fresh ingredients I love to prepare and eat.

I typically don't adorn fresh asparagus spears, with a lot of other ingredients, rather I allow the flavor to stand on their own, but the other night I prepared this and served it with lamb chops. Fork tender spears were the perfect compliment for the crispy-fried shallots and the carrot disks added a beautiful contrasting color.

If you're not a fan of lamb, this would be a lovely springtime side dish to accompany fish or chicken.

Helpful to know: Asparagus stalks should be rounded; look for firm stems with deep green or purplish closed tips. The thickness of asparagus spears is a matter of preference and will determine the amount of cooking time; I prefer medium size spears. Use asparagus within 1-2 days of purchasing.

Asparagus with Crispy-Fried Shallots and Brown Butter Breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons butter

1 small shallot, (about ¼ cup) thinly sliced

¼ cup breadcrumbs

1 bunch asparagus spears, cooked until fork tender

1 cup carrot disks, cooked until tender

In a medium skillet over moderate heat, melt butter. Saute shallots until tender, add breadcrumbs and cook stirring constantly, cook until chestnut brown. Evenly distribute shallot/breadcrumb mixture and carrots over asparagus spears. Yield: 4 servings.

Caribbean Baby Cakes

2011-03-26T07:31:00.000-07:00

These are absolutely delectable muffins that you can feel good about eating; due in part to the high fiber in coconut and mango. While they are perfectly delicious and moist on their own, flooding them with butter is a matter of preference, but it does make them oh so decadent!

Canola cooking spray for muffin tin

1⅓ cup all-purpose flour

⅓ cup cornmeal

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 350°. Generously oil a 12-capacity muffin tin with canola cooking spray. In a large bowl, combine all-purpose flour, cornmeal, baking soda, baking powder, salt and coconut.

2 eggs, room temperature

¾ cup (one 6-ounce container) plain yogurt

⅓ cup canola oil

1 teaspoon almond extract

1 cup mango, chopped

In a medium bowl, lightly beat eggs, add yogurt, canola oil and almond extract; stir until well blended, add to flour mixture. Combine ingredients until well incorporated; gently fold in mango.

Distribute evenly into muffin tin and bake for 12-15 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool for about 5-10 minutes before removing muffins from tin. Flood with butter if desired. Yield: 12 muffins.

Crepes filled with Cottage Cheese and topped with Black Cherry Confit and Toasted Almonds

2011-03-24T05:08:00.000-07:00

Is there any other food that has as many possibilities as a crepe? They can be eaten hot off the griddle with a slathering of nothing more than butter like they are in the picture top left. Or they can be filled with a multitude of savory or sweet foods. I spread some cottage cheese over a warm crepe, folded it (as pictured bottom) and topped it with some awesome tasting black cherry confit and topped it with toasted almonds. The combination was so complementing, the crunchy almonds was the perfect contrast to the tender crepe and filling.

Crepes can be served for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Use your imagination for savory or sweet toppings and fillings. Here’s a ridiculously simple (takes less than 5 minutes to prepare) basic crepe recipe that works for either savory or sweet toppings and/or fillings.

Helpful to know: Once you’ve prepared the crepe batter, its best if it sits refrigerated for about an hour. Cooking them with a little butter is a matter of preference, I like the chestnut brown color it gives the crepes and certainly the added butter flavor! I cook my crepes in a very well seasoned cast iron, low lip skillet. You really don’t need a special pan to make a great crepe, any skillet with a shallow rim will work.

Basic Crepe Recipe

1¼ cups milk

2 eggs

1 tablespoon butter, melted

¾ cup of all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon salt

In a blender or standing mixer combine all ingredients, blend on medium high heat until well blended. Let rest for about a minute and blend again. Cover and refrigerate for about 1 hour.

About an hour later …

Canola oil or butter for skillet

I prefer cooking crepes to order, but if that doesn't work for you, crepes will keep warm in the oven. Set oven temperature to lowest setting. Warm skillet over moderately high heat, add a little bit of canola oil or a dollop of butter, when butter has melted or when canola oil is hot add ¼ cup of crepe batter, swirl pan allowing batter to move to nearly the edges of the skillet, when the underside of the crepe is lightly brown, carefully flip crepe and cook for about a minute. Cook crepes in batches adding butter if desired to skillet before adding crepe batter. If you're not cooking the crepes to order, transfer cooked crepes to an oven proof baking dish (a pie plate works beautifully) and cover with a damp kitchen towel. Yield: 8-10 eight-inch crepes.

Catfish on Lemon Beds Swimming in Olive Oil with Artichoke Hearts and Kalamata Olives

2011-03-18T09:45:00.000-07:00

Don't know what to have for dinner tonight? Here's an elegant 5-ingredient entrée brimming with flavor. It's super simple to assemble, all you have to do is sandwich catfish filets between tangy lemon slices, season with salt and pepper then blast with olive oil and top with delicate artichoke hearts and abundant flavored Kalamata olives. It's an irresistibly yummy combination. This savory sensational dish speaks for itself, so the choice of sides don’t need to be overly embellished, couscous and peas will round out the meal beautifully.

Just about any mild tasting white fish will work with these ingredients. Catfish happened to be on sale, but halibut, flounder, grouper and cod are a few examples of mild tasting white fish that will work with similar results.

Catfish on Lemon Beds Swimming in Olive Oil with Artichoke Hearts and Kalamata Olives

16 thinly sliced lemons, (about 2-3 lemons) seeds removed

4 fresh catfish fillets

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

Salt

Fresh ground black pepper

1 can artichoke hearts, drained of water, quartered

½ cup Kalamata olives, pitted, roughly chopped

Preheat oven to 350°. Arrange 8 lemon slices in the bottom of a 15 x 10-inch baking dish (4-quart capacity) and top with catfish fillets. Top with remaining slices of lemon. Pour olive oil evenly over fillets, season with salt and pepper. Bake for 20 minutes uncovered. Remove lemon slices from the top of fillets. Distribute artichoke hearts and Kalamata olives over fillets. Spoon any olive oil essence over the combination. Bake for an additional 10 minutes or until fish is cooked through. Carefully transfer fillets to individual serving plates, discarding lemons slices from the bottom of the filets. Serve immediately. Yield: 4 servings.