Grilled Veggie Salad

This is pretty self explanatory, guys... this is delicious with anything and everything, and pretty healthy to boot. Plus, if you don't have a grill, broiling in the oven works just as well, just make sure to cut the zucchini a little thicker so they don't disintegrate (I didn't even flip them in the broiler).

Grilled Veggie Salad

1 eggplant
4-5 medium zucchini
1 bunch of asparagus

grape tomatoes
feta cheese
olive oil
balsamic vinegar

Slice the zucchini and eggplant, and cut the asparagus spears into thirds. Toss it all with about 2 tbsp olive oil and some salt and pepper. Lay these guys out on a baking sheet and place under a preheated broiler (I ended up broiling each vegetable individually). The eggplants take about 5 minutes per side, the zucchini will take about 6 - 7 minutes total, and the asparagus are done in a flash, about 3- 4 minutes. The best thing to do is watch and check often, since ovens can vary.

Once those guys are grilled let them cool down completely. Chop the eggplant and zucchini into smaller pieces and toss with the asparagus. Next, I use halved grape tomatoes and sprinkle on some feta cheese. Finally, I toss it all with some balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste...



That is one lunch/snack/side item that will not go unnoticed

Fun with Booze!!!

So I've actually been turned on to the world of infused vodkas. You know how Absolut and other brands have all those "blackberry" and "vanilla" vodkas? Well you can make them at home much more tasty and much less expensive... plus you can have some fun flavors.



Ginger... for example.

I simply took a hunk of fresh ginger, peeled it, sliced it, and put it in a 750 ml bottle of vodka. Clearly, exactness was not what I was aiming for; flavor, on the other hand, was. Why ginger infused vodka? This delightful little local place, Casa Nueva, has a delicious drink called the Crystal made with half ginger vodka, house infused, and half ginger ale. I'm crazy about ginger, or anything sweet and spicy for that matter, so I figured I'd give it a try. With ginger, it seems like timing might be something to mull over. I mean, one can certainly have too much ginger. So far, it's been infusing for about 5 days, and currently tastes slightly sweet, very gingery, and very refreshing. I'll have to update after a couple weeks, when the vodka will likely be much stronger in gingery goodness. Really though, after this little experiment, I feel like the sky's the limit.



Now on to a more tried and true booze recipe: Crema di Limoncello.

I'm guessing most people are familiar with the Italian lemon liquor, Limoncello. If not, you two should get acquainted; I'll set you up, in fact. This is a take on that, made from a recipe given to me by the very first Italian family I ever stayed with in my adventures teaching English abroad (who knew I had an exciting life?!). For ease, I've converted the amounts and instructions, but it's not an exact science; I've had sweeter and more bitter versions, just based on how much sugar is used.

Crema Di Limoncello

8 organic lemons
750 ml bottle grain alcohol
2 liters, or about a half gallon of whole milk
2 1/2 cups sugar
2 whole vanilla beans (if you're skimping I've totally used about 1/4 cup vanilla to substitute)

First, rinse the lemons in a bath made of water and about a teaspoon of baking soda. This will actually remove any odors left on the skin. Next, peel the lemons, being careful only to remove the yellow zest. Place the zest in the grain alcohol and let it set for at least a week.

Once the week is over, the alcohol should be a pleasant yellow, the sunrise-y kind. Heat the milk, sugar, and vanilla bean over medium heat, careful to not let it boil. Once the milk heats up, reduce the heat slightly and keep it going for 45 to 55 minutes. Again, don't let it boil.

When the milk is finished set it to the side and let it cool completely. Then, add the lemon-infused grain alcohol. Finally, you're ready to funnel this into some wine bottles and chill for about another week; this let's the flavors meld together, although taking a sip or two now is perfectly fine ;) Oh, I should note, this recipe makes about three and a half wine bottles. Either way, make sure it's cold, and stays cold. This allows for the milk to last longer and in general, it's a drink best served well chilled.

I'll update later, when I have a better picture.

Still to come, a delicious grilled veggie salad.

Slacker

So I've been a slacker lately. The maple bacon ice cream was a no go... I didn't have time to work out the logistics or to actually make it :(

The cake, while tasty, was definitely sub par in the looks department; here are the better pictures of it...

Before the frosting:


And two shots after the frosting:




I should make it a point to mention I was trying to mimic the top tier of the snow white cake over at Cake Nouveau (second from the left in the center row). In all fairness I only had one or two decent looks at the picture, and didn't have a bottom tier or anything. Basically it was Snow White's abstract bust.

And then there are the ever amazing, best ultimate cookies in the world... even better without pecans, if I do say so myself


But sadly, that was all the baking I got to do. I really need to practice my fondant skills, but I need to find a way to do so that doesn't involve going to the trouble of baking an orange buttermilk cake with lemon curd and lemon white chocolate mousse filling and cream cheese white chocolate frosting. It, by the way, was delightful. I guess in the future I could just use a cardboard cake or instant cake. Still... a 3 layer 9-inch cake is a LOT of cake.

It definitely was not a total baking loss over the weekend. Speaking of weekends, get ready... Fun with Booze-time this weekend, and likely something savory, as I need food :)

Home on the range

I'm heading home for the weekend with a couple goodies in mind to bake, some old, some new.

An awesome cake... pictures to come

Best cookies in the world for my sister

Possibly maple bacon ice cream... at least a small batch for funsies

who knows what else?

Recipes and pictures to come next week when I return!!! (probably around Tuesday)

St. Patrick's Day

You'll find nothing green here, I'm afraid, but you will find a delicious recipe for Whole wheat Irish Soda Bread. Unlike almost all of the other recipes on here I can't really take credit since the original recipe was featured on the Food Network's website however, I've altered it a bit, and can totally attest to it's delicious factor.

Oh, and what is it with jam and butter? I don't know why, but buttered toast with jam is okay, but if you mix the jam and butter together it tastes so much more amazing. Seriously, I have no idea what's going on with it, but it's great; this of course, was the inspiration for the marmalade butter because I love orange marmalade. Bake the bread, maybe toast it and spread on some marmalade butter and you've got one heck of a good breakfast.

Honey Whole Wheat Irish Soda Bread
The addition of honey and the use of bread flour make for a more tender, if perhaps less traditional, loaf

2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups bread flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup honey
2 1/4 cups buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees and coat a baking sheet with non stick spray and a light dusting of flour.

Combine the flours, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. In another bowl whisk the honey and buttermilk together. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and ad the buttermilk mixture. Using your hands (yay!!!) gradually work the flour into the buttermilk mixture until fully incorporated. The dough should be soft but not too wet or sticky.

Turn the dough out onto a well floured surface. Pat the dough together to give it a nice round shape, don't knead. FLip the dough over to coat it completely with flour and flatten to a 2 inch thick disk. Transfer the dough to the baking sheet. Make a long, deep X in the dough and bake for 20 minutes at 450 degrees. Then reduce the temperature to 400 and bake an additional 30 - 35 minutes or until the loaf is browned and the top sounds hollow when tapped. Serve warm or toasted with marmalade butter.


in retrospect I should've cut that slice all the way for aesthetic purposes...

Marmalade Butter

Marmalade
Butter

Done. Enjoy. (Seriously though I use a couple tbsps softened butter and just fold about an equal amount of marmalade or any jam into it. Delicious.)


I looooove marmalade butter...

Salmon Cakes with Mac and Cheese...

So the mac and cheese is the same recipe as before only with bacon because, as my friend Mal puts it, everything can be made better with either the addition of bacon or whipped cream.

Salmon Cakes

These are super easy.

1 lb salmon
1/2 a red onion diced
1 tbsp chopped capers
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 egg
1/4 cup mayonaise
1/4 cup sour cream
1 tbsp dijon or coarse ground mustard
1 tbsp lemon juice
dash hot sauce (I used 1 tsp sambal)
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs (crushed croutons work well too heh)

salt
black pepper

olive oil

Freaking Awesome Sauce
1 tbsp chopped capers
2 tbsp chopped parsley
1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp sour cream
1 tsp dijon or coarse ground mustard
1 tbsp lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste

For the sauce, mix everything together and let it chill. Adjust the taste as you like, the current amounts offer a fairly balanced flavor, but extra lemon juice or capers could bring a little more acidity to it.

You can totally make these in a food processor, or by hand. Start by chopping the salmon into small cubes. Drizzle some olive oil in a pan and saute the onion almost until brown. Cool slightly, add to the salmon. Next add the capers, parsley, and salt and pepper. Mix until combined. Add the egg and mix thoroughly. In a separate, small bowl mix the mayonnaise, sour cream, lemon juice and mustard together. Add it to the salmon followed by the bread crumbs. Mix well. The mixture should be moist but still be easy enough to make small cakes out of. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute the cakes for about 5 minutes per side or until brown. There you go... AMAZING.



*Two things: Salmon-wise I just got a 1lb bag of frozen, vacuum packed salmon... no sense wasting money since it's going to be used as a component in a recipe as opposed to the main dish. Also, notice how there's no dill in this salmon cake recipe? Yeah I bought some yesterday and when I opened to it today, it was moldy. By all means add a couple tbsps of chopped dill to the salmon cakes and a tbsp to the sauce... it'll be great, I just didn't have any :/*

Whole wheat Irish soda bread to come tomorrow. If things go as planned while I'm home, I'll have some pretty amazing recipes and stories to share.

Oh, and thanks, Shane, for the photo :)

just wait..

salmon cakes with mac and cheese today :D

tomorrow or tuesday whole wheat irish soda bread for saint patty's day.

fuck finals week, I'm cooking

Finals Weekend...

So it's the weekend before finals.

I'm not sure if I'll quite have the time for baking deliciousness this weekend. Luckily I've got some photos and recipes saved from making a delicious batch of baklava earlier this quarter.

For the savory of the week, I'm not quite sure what to do. I may postpone a real update until I get back into town since next weekend I'll be home. However, while at home, I'll be making an AMAZING cake. I can't wait for the pictures on that... or the actual cake.

Needless to say this may be a slightly uneventful two weeks, but next quarter starts very soon and with it, new recipes. I'm incredibly eager to figure out some more herbed cookies (rosemary lemon shortbread maybe?) and some delicious savory items (pumpkin brown butter sage pasta).

Awww time...

Roasted Chicken Breasts with New Potatoes

I need to cook something amazing.

My first thought, as usual, is cookies and a soup. The cookies turned out surprisingly well.

But the soup... that's been done (by me, several times :P).

So I'm thinking of herbed chicken breast with a pan jús (totally the wrong accent... darned French) and herb roasted new potatoes. It's a delicious dish I've impressed quite a few people with. I first learned of the technique working in restaurants as an undergrad. You sear a piece of meat (it works with everything: chicken breasts, pork chops, steak, etc) on both sides in a really hot pan. Then you pop the meat in the oven usually for only about 25 minutes and BAM; welcome to the most juicy, delicious piece of meat ever. This is very much a blueprint recipe so adjust at will depending on what you're cooking; when I cook steak I use mostly just rosemary and parsley and deglaze the pan with red wine; when I cook pork, I stick to a sage and rosemary combo. In short, this recipe is a weapon of mass interpretation.

Herb Roasted Chicken and New Potatoes for 2

2 Chicken breasts
salt
pepper
About 3/4 cup chopped parsley (or one bunch)
1 tbsp chopped sage/thyme/rosemary (any combination thereof measuring 3 tbsp total)

Rinse then pat the chicken breasts dry. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Mix the herbs together in a dish and toss the chicken breasts coating them. Let these guys set for a bit while you work on the potatoes.

3- 4 new potatoes
olive oil
salt
pepper
1/4 cup chopped parsley
chopped rosemary/thyme/sage any combination thereof measuring 2 tbsp

Dice the potatoes into small, bite-size chunks. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper, then toss with the herbs.

Olive oil
White wine

Now here's where the magic begins. First, preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Arrange the potatoes on one side of a baking sheet-leave room for the chicken. Next get a pan (make sure it's NOT nonstick) and set it dry on a burner on medium heat. Once the pan is hot, drizzle in some olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add the chicken breasts. (It's important to use a pan large enough to comfortably fit both chicken breasts without over-crowding). The oil should sizzle the second the breasts hit the pan.

Don't touch a darned thing. Let the chicken brown and sear fully. When the sides start to go white, that's when you can take a quick peek with a spatula. If the chicken is brown, flip and brown on the other side. Once it's finished, place the chicken on the baking sheet with the potatoes and bake until the potatoes are done - about 20 minutes.

Oh, and the pan jús... Once you've got the chicken in the oven and the pan is still warm, splash in some white wine or chicken stock and scrape up those tasty bits of flavor stuck to the bottom. You don't need a lot of liquid, and the sauce is going to be strong. Once the bits are scraped up remove the pan from the heat. When the chicken and potatoes are nearly finished toss in a pat of butter to make the sauce extra rich. Spoon it over the breasts and potatoes.



MAGIC... and another candidate for the "I should never be a food photographer" category...

Brown Butter Sage Pecan Cookies

You heard right.

Brown butter sage pecan cookies.

Fats and flavors - By frying the sage leaves and toasting the pecans in the butter you infuse their flavor into the brown butter which already has a nutty flavor going on. I'm thinking of other herbed cookies... maybe rosemary lemon cookies, or honey thyme cookies.

But now, the pleasant surprise of the brown butter sage cookies (I swear my experiments rarely work out this well)...

Brown Butter Sage and Pecan Cookies

(this makes a smaller batch - about 18 cookies - I halved it from the original Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe I modified so as not to be too wasteful if they didn't turn out. I've not yet tried it doubled, but I don't see why it wouldn't work.)

1/2 cup butter
about 1/3 - 1/2 cup sage leaves, whole and bound, if you can
1 cup chopped pecans, divided
milk... you'll see

1 cup + 2 tbsp bread flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

3/4 cup brown sugar (I used roughly half dark and half light brown sugar)
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla

For the brown butter, place the butter in a sauce pan with the sage and a 1/2 cup pecans. Melt and allow the butter to brown. The nuts will be fragrant and lightly toasted; the sage will be fried; the process will take roughly 20 minutes or longer than you think it will.

Drain the delicious browned butter into a liquid measuring cup and keep the pecans but remove the sage. I tossed the pecans with a little salt-giving them a roasted, salted nut effect. For me the fat measured a little over 1/4 cup - let the fat cool. Since all that evaporated was milk solids, let's replace with milk liquids - fill with milk to the 1/2 cup line.

Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

Mix the butter/milk mixture with the brown sugar. Add the egg, lightly beaten, and the vanilla. Next, slowly add the flour mixture, mixing fully. Finally add the reserved pecans as well as the other 1/2 cup of pecans. Chill the mixture until firm. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Scoop the batter onto a baking sheet in heaping tablespoon fulls. Bake for about 15 minutes, but as usual check since cookies size and oven temps vary.



Surprisingly amazing. These guys have a slightly salty/sweet thing going on. Oh, and the surprising thing for me was the texture... just awesome texture. Next up, herb roasted chicken breasts and an awesome meat cooking technique :)

Macaroni and Cheese

So lately I've been having this weird craving for Entemann's Chocolate Doughnuts... It's definitely not the healthiest craving to have, but yeah, what can you do?

I made some pretty wonderful Mac and cheese the other night. It would have been significantly better had I not over cooked it, hence the lack of pictures, but our oven is rather finicky. For cookies, I typically check like 3 times before pulling them out, but I digress. So yeah, here's some wonderful, slightly grown up macaroni and cheese :)

Slightly Grown Up Macaroni and Cheese

2 cups macaroni
olive oil
salt

2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
1 1/2 cups milk
pinch of nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt

4oz sharp cheddar cheese
3oz white cheddar cheese
2 oz bleu cheese
(for a total of 9 oz so feel free to mix and match different cheeses: gruyere would be delicious, and I'd personally love to try a nice aged gouda. I bet it would be good-a *grin*)

Breadcrumbs (store bought, homemade, crushed croutons, it's all good - just not overly seasoned)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

First thing's first: get the macaroni onto boil in some salted water. Once the water starts boiling add a drizzle of oil and toss the macaroni in. Cook by the package directions, usually 7 minutes, and it should be al dente.

Heat the milk to a simmer making sure not to boil it. At this point I put in a small bunch of herbs (sage, rosemary, thyme) to steep, but it's not necessary. While that's going melt the butter in a pan large enough to hold the macaroni. Add the flour and whisk until dissolved. Cook for a minute or two so the flour taste goes away and slowly add the heated milk and whisk until the roux is dissolved. Continue cooking for another minute or two until the white sauce thickens. Add the nutmeg and salt then, off the heat, stir in the cheese. Best cheese sauce EVER.

When the macaroni is done, drain it, add it to the cheese sauce. Pour into a pan (an 8x8 square glass dish worked great for me), top with bread crumbs and bake for 30 minutes, until the macaroni is bubbly and the breadcrumbs are brown. Don't over bake :)

The Best Cookies in All the Land, part deux!

Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies

(as an english major I feel the need to say that by 'ultimate' I simply mean that these will be the last cookies you will ever have to make)

1 cup butter, melted
1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar

1 egg + 1 egg yolk
2 tsp vanilla

2 cups bread flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

8oz semisweet chocolate (like ghiradelli), chopped
4oz pecans
fluer de sel

Combine the butter and brown sugar, mixing thoroughly (as usual my implement of choice is a big wooden spoon). Beat the eggs and vanilla lightly and add to the butter/sugar mixture. Sift the dry ingredients together, add in 3 additions to the wet, mixing thoroughly after each addition. Finally, add the chocolate and chopped pecans. Chill the batter thoroughly before continuing. Make wonderfully large cookies on the baking sheet (I usually fit about 6 - 8 per sheet) and sprinkle with fleur de sel. Bake at 325 degrees for 15 - 18 minutes... I've found oven temps and times can really vary so definitely check after 15 minutes.



I'd also regret not mentioning that I first got this recipe from The Foodie at Fifteen's blog.