The morning after my last day of school involves cleaning. When I can finally get a chance to sleep in for an extra two hours I get out of bed and start unpacking my school bag. Loose papers, empty lipstick, missing hair ties, and an overload of pens come tumbling out onto the floor. I hate clutter, so the things I don't need any more -good bye- go into the garbage pile and I feel so relieved. Everything from last semester is no longer needed (I have digital copies of most things anyways). I love that feeling of ending strong and starting fresh; one more semester to go! I need room for the pile of clothes and toiletries I have to take with me to Italy next semester. After I treck outside in my dads over-sized sneakers and cheetah pajamas to throw everything away, I go inside to make myself coffee, pulling out a hand- me- down vintage Italian coffee carafe because I can't stop thinking about Italy. I enjoy a cup of coffee from Cafe du Monde and snack on some raspberry vanilla cookies before another whimsical afternoon shopping in an overstuffed mall.
Cream of Wheat Keeps me Cozy on Days like Today.
My dad always made cream of wheat for me when I was little. I don't think I know of anyone that even eats the cement like porridge. I only describe it this way because I think that's what people may think of when they see it; but I love it. It was one of those things that I shared with my father and often my mother, but something my dad would usually make just for the two of us. My brother- forget it- he was happy eating a bowl of sugar coated cereal waking up hours after we sopped up our bowls anyways.
Add macerated blueberries and cherries to hit the tart notes, toasted sunflower seeds for a little crunch, and heavy cream to keep it luscious. The heavy cream really does bump up the mouth feel and flavor, but who am I kidding, you already know this.
Nasturtium Capers
Inspired by my Ecology professor, I have been picking nasturtium seeds for weeks now! I am currently seed saving and germinating some other nasturtium seeds as well. Nasturtiums are amazing! Not only are they perennials meaning their rootstock grow back annually- making this better for the soil- but the entire plant is versatile. From the lily pad like leaves known as nose twists, to the yellow and orange flowers and its seeds, you can utilize this plant for so many things. My cousin Chelsea decorated the top of an ice cream cake with the edible flowers; who would think? The leaves have an antibacterial property, as well as vitamin C and iron which makes it common to add in a salad.
The Apple Trilogy
What could you possibly do with 12 pounds of apples. Apple picking, even for two doesn’t allow you to pick just a few apples and run along to the pumpkin patch. Apple picking means buying in bulk the best crop of the year. Apple infused Rekya vodka is the perfect way to use up those apple skins from making apple butter. Just add star anise,a cinnamon stick, nutmeg, and vanilla. As for the apple butter, use similar spices, with the addition of Crown maple syrup, and apple cider. Leave it to cook for many hours. We used 12 apples, and it took 4 hours to get thick, gooey, and caramelized. Leave it coarse or purée until smooth.
The Apple creme brulee was an experiment. Chris and I tag teamed this one. We cored, made custard, and filled the apples baking them in a water bath at 250 degrees. After sitting over night, we torched them with sugar. A very comforting, luscious fall treat.
Peaceful Eating
Boys and their food. I had hoped it came out the way Chris once made it for me, but food tastes different when different people make it, so it’s lovely to see all variations. So, he was happily eating it regardless. Spaghetti (grandma made that executive choice) ricotta, big smashed cloves of garlic, a cup or more of finely grated Parmesan, cracked black pepper, and baby basil leaves. I think I found my love for pasta through my grandmother who would bring me her leftovers a few times a week growing up. Now that we cook for her more often, she gets to decide what she wants sometimes and usually that means it's either burgers or pasta.
The Invereted Flower
Wasps, specifically Fig Wasps, are the reason why this delicate fruit is available as a decoration for pastries, part of an elegant breakfast, or made into Fig Newton cookies. Wasps tunnel themselves into the fruit, detach their wings, nest their eggs, and allow for pollination to occur. We are simply eating the dissolved body of a wasp, how interesting! Because figs flower internally, other pollinators besides the honey bee, were brought into nature to get the job done. Who knew... This mutual relationship is vital for the survival of the Fig Wasps and the production of Figs. So we owe it to those pesky bugs that sting like crazy; they are good for something.
Crumbles for Your Late Night Thoughts
After a 12 hour day of picking at, and munching on baked sweets, the best way to end the day is to continue eating sweets. Coming home to mamas apple crisp is the best fall Sunday night treat. Whipped cream, vanilla bean frozen custard, or as is. Sometimes sipping on cold milk helps flush down the butter in the crumble.
Wine Berries
It's a nice thought, but no. These berries aren't known to make wine, but they are however, related to blackberries and the many ways you can manipulate them. It's common to see these plump guys, on the side of a highway growing wildly; so the next time you are in a summer road trip, traffic jam, take that time to berry pick.
An Obsession Since My Pre- School Days
I live for pasta. I know that a few of my past posts have digressed this fact, but I will continue to tell all. I remember when I was in elementary and middle school, I would always boil Swanson Chicken broth while cooking a pot of pasta to add to it. Tortellini was my favorite type of stuffed pasta to eat in soup. And because I did not know how to make them then, my mother would buy the frozen kind. Although you could barely taste the filling inside them, I continued to crave the al dente crevices. So for me, eating any type of pasta is about texture. I also loved, loved, loved, when my mother made tortellini with cream sauce and shrimp. We had this only once every few months because of the potential heart attacks one bowl of it could cause.
I am a huge fan of these babies. One of my recent posts about ravioli's, features the recipe for the filling that I used to create these tortellini. I dare you to give it a try! I have copied a link below to help guide you through the shaping process of tortellini.
Tomatoes, Peaches and Parm
A unique combination that's absolutely delicious. Although tomatoes and peaches are at the tired end of their season I am craving their fruitful flavors. Sarah Copeland would feed me such flavorful salads for lunch every time we worked together. I could not quite figure out how she could make such greens and veggies taste so ridiculously good. I would crave her salads on my way to work at eight or nine in the morning. I would always always look forward to lunch about an hour or so before. I would never think to create a salad with parmesan, peaches, and tomatoes. Ever. I think this was a good call! Thank you for the inspiration Sarah, for taking me out of my comfort zone with salads.
There is Nothing Like Produce from Farmers Markets
I cannot tell you how happy it makes me to get these beautiful heirloom tomatoes from the market. The absolute best time of the season to buy is in August when they are at their peek in the season. Cut them into a peach salad, blanch them quickly into pasta with arugula pesto, or munch on them for a snack before and after lunch. Cherry tomatoes are really like candy if you buy them right. I could eat these like grapes, really.
Oki Gnocchi
I have been lusting at the thought of purple gnocchi for weeks! The secret of how they turned purple is my own, but I will say they taste like any generic potato gnocchi recipe regardless! Sweet Italian sausage is a great pair with any pasta dish, and happily, I found a few links in the fridge. Green peas are a beautiful addition to color along with torn garden basil and nasturtium leaves. And although my mother got snippy when I cut her sunflowers off the plant, I continued to use them for a burst of color in the photo~ sorry mama, but I did feed you dinner.
Dig In! Forget the Plates...
Cookie skillets are one way to satisfy a hankering for something sweet. Brownies, and cookies and mint chocolate chip ice cream is the best combination! I am biased, I suppose since I love mint chip. My girl friends love cookie skillets, and instead of going out five times a week to get one, I decided we try and make a jumbo one at home.
Purple Drip Cake
In honor of No Diet Day ( May 6th) here I present to you a fat free cake. I would be totally lying if I didn't admit to the truth about that. Of course it's not fat free, that's just ludicrous. This is a lemon drip cake filled with strawberries and cream, iced it with frosting sure to give you cavities in the first bite, and chocolate ganache poured over the top. The cake represents an ongoing trend known as "drip cake." You build a cake that's impossibly tall to cut and pour melted ganache around the rim to create the "dripping" effect. I absolutely loved building this cake and I encourage anyone who sees this to go and make one too.
Components: 2- 7 inch lemon cake rounds cut in half, 2 Cups strawberries sliced paper thin on mandolin (macerated with sugar), 1 pint whipped cream, Vanilla Icing (Swiss or Italian Meringue), White chocolate, colored purple
No "Yolking" Around
One of the popular food trends currently is adding an egg on top of everything eaten in sight. I've seen burgers with sunny side up eggs placed right on top of the patty, just before the yolk breaks and runs everywhere, and I’ve seen creamy spaghetti with a sixty- two-degree egg nestled right on top. There is something so satisfying about puncturing an egg yolk onto your food. As if hamburger meat and heavy cream didn’t have enough fat in them! And the silkiness of it too, it's like the way chocolate melts in your mouth.
I was fantasizing about a meal with a fancy poached egg on top and started craving the idea of it too. I was shamefully disappointed when I didn't find spaghetti in my cabinet (the pasta freak that I am) and soon came up with an alternative plan making polenta instead. So, then this turned into a brunch special at six o'clock in the evening, good ole corn meal and eggs. But, after composing it I really noticed how versatile this dish was. With the addition of seared zucchini and pearl onions, tempura fried artichoke, and parsley oil this meal is great for brunch, lunch, or dinner.
Easter Flowers and Candy Showers!
It took me hours to make this scene feel right. I think after coloring some eggs light blue, picking grass and small flowers off the plants in my mothers window boxes I finally started to see Easter and spring make its mark. Even better, the carrot shaped candy bowl could not have been a better piece for this Easter spread. And the yellow carnations atop the tiny layer cake add just enough frill to finish off the decoration nicely too.
"Zest" Kitchen
She asked me for a "big" favor since she was stuck without a car for a few hours. "I need flour" aunt Lois said, "I'm experimenting with my lemon cookies." My great grandmother- nanny- was the pioneer of this family recipe. Aunt Lois was the one to grab hold of that recipe after her passing, so she could continue making them for what is now over thirty years. She told me she wanted to "experiment" in her "test kitchen" to see what the lemon cookies tasted like, by replacing the lemon with lime and orange zest. I was delighted to observe the making of these cookies, watching them transform into something slightly different than before. I was happy to receive a small baggie of zesty confections later that day! The results of her attempt to change up the flavor profile of the recipe came out as lime being our favorite. So does that mean lime is her new signature cookie?
Juniper Sunset
I would like to take a minute to appreciate the fact that we did experience some eighty degree weather this April. Although, I would rather be drenched in sweat than turning into a life form of an icicle, it was pretty darn hot the last few days! This Spring time, summer heatwave we may have experienced made me want to have a cocktail! Gin and tonic is a classic alcoholic combo, but mixed with Aperol things just get a little interesting. Back in March when I was in my front of house class at American Bounty my classmates and I had to pull a few different types of spirits and liquors out of a hat. We later used those options to create a new cocktail concoction. I pulled Tanqueray Gin and Aperol and decided I wanted to make a spin off the classic Gin and Tonic. Tanqueray Gin was created by Charles Tanqueray after opening a distillery in London, England around the 1830s. Gin is made from juniper berries but Tanqueray Gin is also known for its "London dry" style with accents of coriander, angelica root, and licorice. Aperol was invented in 1919 and didn't gain its spotlight until World War II. It's currently processed by the Campari company and may deem similar characteristics to Campari as well. However, Aperol is lower in alcohol, less bitter, and lighter in color.
I created my drink to include gin and Aperol with rhubarb simple syrup, fresh squeezed blood orange, tonic, and rhubarb sugar on the rim. Aperol contains rhubarb so I wanted to accentuate those bitter sweet notes.
"Leeking" Purple
I didn't know how the purple potato would turn out in this dish with the idea I had in mind. In order to create the purple base of this plate in the manner I had previously imaged, I did a lot of tedious experimenting. It took a mandolin, 1.5 inch round cutter, and lots of patience to re- create the shape I wanted the potato to become. Accompanying the purple starch is Sockeye Salmon, charred leeks, bacon leek puree, asparagus, and bacon broth. The salmon itself was pan seared and basted with bubbly brown butter. The branded leeks echo the flavor of the leek and bacon puree that glue the asparagus tip to the fish. And, to bring everything "full circle" a table- side pour of piping hot bacon broth is added right before consumption.
Breakfast or Dessert?
My intention was to create something sweet for breakfast, but it was so sweet it turned into dessert instead. Although, I don't think most people would mind dessert for breakfast, lunch, or dinner for that matter! I had angle food cake lying around the kitchen and wanted to put it to use before it went stale. I decided to make angle food cake french toast with a mixed berry cream cheese filling; it was sort of like an inside out stuffed french toast. The berry syrup underneath the french toast was supposed to act as the sauce, but I wouldn't dare not to finish this without maple syrup, and of course it was the last addition to the dish! Hot tea and delicate strawberries complete the breakfast... or dessert?.