Gettin’ Naked!

We have a new chef over at I Heart Cooking Clubs this week. That’s right, its our first date with Jamie Oliver.  I have always enjoyed watching Jamie, and I find his effervescent style very refreshing (pun entirely intended). I’m not sure how well we will get along over the next six months of cooking together though, as so very few of his recipes are “Leach Family” friendly. I adore his simple salads and his lovely pastas, but, as I have found, sometimes his choice of ingredients leaves me floundering in my lack of shopping options.

But, since I things he is absolutely fabulous, I’m going to give it the ol’ college try. Starting now. Our theme this inaugural week is “Let's Get Naked”, which I think is very forward for a first date, but hey, I’m willing to give it a chance!

When the vote was in and it was announced that Jamie was our next chef, naturally I went looking for recipes. I don’t own a single one of his cookbooks (that’s a new concept for me) so I just did some browsing online, and the very first recipe that jumped out and said “Eat Me!” was Jamie’s Fresh Asian Noodle Salad. Conveniently, I had just happened across some little personal-sized packages of bean thread noodles and stashed a few in my pantry. Finding any decent fresh chiles wasn’t easy, though, and the best I could do was some green serranos.

I have to say, This recipe kicks ass! I wasn’t that optimistic about it with its basic ingredients (and no, I didn’t have any prawns, either, so my medium size frozen shrimp had to stand in), but it came together beautifully and I couldn’t keep my chopsticks out of it as I was packing up the leftovers for lunch last night. This one is definitely going to be making regular appearances over the summer when I have my own home-grown fresh chiles on hand!

fresh asian noodle salad

ingredients

• 300g/10½oz cellophane noodles or beanthread noodles
• 200g/7oz minced beef
• 2 teaspoons five-spice
• 5 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and grated
• 2 heaped teaspoons of grated fresh ginger
• 100g/5½oz cooked peeled prawns
• 3 teaspoons sugar
• 1 bunch of spring onions, finely sliced
• 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• 2 fresh red chilies, deseeded and finely sliced
• 1 handful of fresh coriander, chopped
• 1 handful of fresh mint, chopped
• 2 handfuls of roasted peanuts
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

starter | serves 4
This is one of those salads which tastes so amazing that you have to keep making it! It’s spicy, zingy and really gets your tastebuds going.

Soak the noodles in a bowl of warm water until soft, then drain and put back in the bowl. In a hot wok fry the beef and five-spice in the olive oil until brown and crisp, then add the garlic, ginger, prawns and sugar and stir-fry for another 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir the wok mixture into the noodles. Add the spring onions, lime juice, fish sauce, chilies, coriander, mint and peanuts to the bowl. Toss well and correct the seasoning — it wants to be quite zingy with the lime juice. Sprinkle with some extra herb leaves if you like and serve cold.

Try this: You can modify the recipe by using a little wok-fried squid, shellfish or different minced meats.

This is my submission to I Heart Cooking Clubs and Presto Pasta Nights hosted by Ruth at Once Upon a Feast this week.

Arancini di Riso for I Heart Cooking Clubs

I am going to miss cooking with Giada.


Wait, what the hell am I saying? I’m not going to quit cooking with Giada! I’m just going to have to add another chef to my roster of dishes to try. And that won’t be hard, because the choices we are voting on for the next chef over at I Heart Cooking Clubs is full of winners (I admit, I’m rooting for anyone BUT Bobby Flay). Personally, I am a big fan of Rick Bayless, so I think you can see where MY vote lies....

This week’s theme for I Heart Cooking Clubs is Potluck, which is designed to give us the opportunity to try recipes that we have been drooling over but just haven’t quite fit any of the recent themes. The only hard part about that concept for me, is narrowing it down. There are still SO many recipes I want to try, but fate helped me make my decision this week.

While Ginny was visiting this weekend, we made a batch of Creamy Leek Risotto from the Silver Spoon cookbook that is one of our personal favorites. Granted, it is not the Mushroom and Peas Risotto that Giada’s recipe calls for, but I suspect she’ll forgive me since I’ve seen multiple versions of her recipe. You know, that and the fact that I’m allergic to mushrooms.

If you’ve never had arancini, these can be made any number of ways, and it a great way to use up leftovers. The creamy leek risotto is wonderful for this because it stays very moist in the center while the outside fries up to a nice, crispy shell. Serve your arancini with a dish of marinara or alfredo sauce for dipping. These are terrific as an appetizer, or, if you’re me, a main dish on a night when you are already deep-frying something for the hubby.

Arancini di Riso

• Vegetable oil, for deep-frying
• 2 large eggs, beaten to blend
• 2 cups Risotto with Mushrooms and Peas, recipe follows, cooled
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
• 1 1/2 cups dried Italian-style bread crumbs
• 2 ounces mozzarella, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (my risotto is creamy enough, I didn’t use the mozzarella)
• Salt

Pour enough oil in a heavy large saucepan to reach the depth of 3 inches. Heat the oil over medium heat to 350 degrees F.

Stir the eggs, risotto, Parmesan, and 1/2 cup of the bread crumbs in a large bowl to combine. Place the remaining breadcrumbs in a medium bowl. Using about 2 tablespoons of the risotto mixture for each, form the risotto mixture into 1 3/4-inch-diameter balls. Insert 1 cube of mozzarella into the center of each ball. Roll the balls in the bread crumbs to coat.

Working in batches, add the rice balls to the hot oil and cook until brown and heated through, turning them as necessary, about 4 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the rice balls to paper towels to drain. Season with salt. Let rest 2 minutes. Serve hot.

Just look at the beautiful creamy center on these!

Be careful – these puppies are going to be HOT in the center! They are so worth it, though. Arancini are one of the reasons I make risotto....just for the leftovers!

This is my submission to the I Heart Cooking Clubs Potluck this week!

Spring Fever! Strawberry Nutella Panini for I Heart Cooking Clubs

There are always certain things that are signs of spring. These things can be depended on, without fail, to harken the coming of warmer days. I could name a half dozen of those signs right now. But around here, there is one sure sign of spring that every local recognizes.

Strawberries.

We even have an annual Strawberry Festival, although every year the berries come a little sooner and are nearly out of season by the time the festival rolls around. But, to me, the first decent strawberries that appear in the stores always excite me. And I was lucky enough to find these luscious little gems just yesterday at my local grocer.

One of my favorite things to do with the season’s first berries is something I learned from Giada de Laurentiis. See, the first berries aren’t necessarily the prettiest berries, but they still taste wonderful after having just gone through the local ice age and its series of snowpocalypses and blizzasters. One thing about berries that might not be the prettiest, though, is that they look just fine when they are sliced and covered in chocoloate.

After discovering the shiny red goodness, I promptly rounded the store and grabbed a pound cake from the freezer and a jar of Nutella.

And, really, I am not a patient person.

So, waking up at the ridiculously ungodly hour of 3:52am this morning, I got the hubs out the door to work, and by 5:00 I was slicing pound cake and heating up the Panini press (also known as the George Foreman grill that Ginny gave me).

This is so simple, its stupid.

1. Slice the pound cake into ½ inch thick slices.
2. Slather one side of each piece with Nutella. Not too thick, though it may be tempting to do so, because it will just ooze out onto the grill and be wasted. And that’s just unacceptable. So restrain yourself. Please.
3. Slice your strawberries and place them on half the Nutella-coated slabs of pound cake.
4. Spray the Panini press with cooking spray. Sandwich the slices together and place them on the grill, closing the lid.
5. Grill until you have beautiful grill marks on each little sandwich.

Because a pancake yields pretty small slices, these make perfect little finger sandwiches....or breakfast sandwiches....which is what they are for me today. Breakfast.

Now THAT'S what I call "packing a lunch"!

However, if you wanted to get fancy, you could slice the loaf the long way and make bigger panini, then cut them into thinner sticks, or just shove the entire thing down your gullet and pretend its health food, you know, because it has fruit on it. That’s my rationalization, anyway.

 

So there you go. I declare it SPRING! And I’m celebrating with strawberries and Nutella. Care to join me?

This is my submission for Spring Fever week over at I Heart Cooking Clubs.

That's Amore!

Every year when February rolls around, I waffle back and forth about what I think of February’s Hallmark holiday. On one hand, I think its great that there is a date set aside every year to encourage couples to show their appreciation and love for one another. On the other, I think it just gets out of control. Who takes who out? Who buys the gifts? Why are gifts necessary? It goes on and on. And with us, it gets even more exhausting as we just got through Christmas, and both of our birthdays are in January, so by February, the last thing we need is another gift-giving holiday. So, in our house, we long ago came up with a compromise. First of all, we don’t do Valentine’s gifts. Same for our anniversary. No gifts. The deal is that we get a sitter, and we go out and do something fun together. And to ward off any jealousy or bitterness over who gets the special treatment, we take turns. One year, I do the planning and take him somewhere that I have chosen specifically because HE will enjoy it. On the alternating years, he does the same for me (ok, so his turn usually comes down to me picking a place to eat and him paying, but hey, I’ll take what I can get. Casanova, he is not). That way, everyone gets special treatment at some point, and we both like this arrangement.

What are we doing this year? I have no idea. We keep bringing the subject up and neither one of us has made a suggestion. We have lost track of whose turn it is, and with the big day being on a Monday this year, we have to try and decide which day we are going to celebrate. So far, all we know is that it is not going to be this weekend. Instead, Ty is going to get a treat. He doesn’t know it yet, but his best friend is coming to our house for a sleepover tomorrow. There will undoubtedly be pizza and cookies, movies, and probably a tent in the living room.

Since, at the earliest, we will have our own date NEXT weekend (if we can decide on something to do) I went ahead and showed my appreciation for Matt last night. (get your minds out of the gutter – he isn’t THAT lucky!) So how do I show my appreciation for my husband?

I feed him.

And when you’re talking about food, in the Big Man’s mind, love equates to beef. Preferably with potatoes. But definitely nothing green. Or red. Or really any other color at all. Cheese is permitted, and bread, but no vegetables. And so I made a Matt-worthy meal, just for him, to show him how much I love him. Although I’d love him more if he’d eat a green bean or two now and then. Or a carrot. Something.

So, what was on the menu? Well, when I did my grocery shopping earlier this week, my local grocery had a nice looking flat iron steak and some adorable little bitty new potatoes, so I turned to Giada de Laurentiis and made her Steak with Balsamic BBQ Sauce, and Smashed Parmesan Potatoes.

I was intrigued by this recipe when I ran across it, but I admit that I tweaked it a little to our own tastes when I read the list of ingredients. For example, I didn’t have any Dijon mustard, so I just mixed in a little ground mustard. And ketchup? Really? I don’t think so. The tang of balsamic vinegar is something I love, but it can be a little too much for Matt unless there is something else in the mix to temper it a little bit, and I really didn’t see ketchup doing that. However, we have a new favorite BBQ sauce in our house that is made right here in Illinois, called Uncle Joe’s BBQ, and comes in a variety of flavors. I picked up a couple of bottles at the Market On The Square here in town recently and we ADORE it. SO I took the bottle of the “Sweet Smoke” and added some of that to the sauce in place of the ketchup. Sorry, Giada, I just couldn’t do the ketchup.

Now that we have the menu, I have to tell you how this all went down. See, its winter. And not only is it winter, we recently survived a Blizzaster here in the Midwest. So, while this recipe calls for grilling the steak.... there ain’t no way that was happening last night. There isn’t enough love in the world to make me stand out on my deck right now grilling a steak for my husband. And you know what? That attitude came back to bite me on the ass.

We have an electric indoor grill. We got it for our wedding. We haven’t used it in YEARS. Last night I found out why. Its because I hid it. Because Matt was always wanting to use it and it is a BITCH to clean. SO I hid it and he finally forgot we had it. I didn’t forget. I knew right where it was. And I pushed aside all thoughts of the hell I’d go through cleaning it because... I LOVE MY HUSBAND. And he’s worth it. Right?

Were your ears ringing last night? If they were, its not because we were talking about you. Its because you could hear the smoke alarms going off at my house. That sucker can smoke up a house like nobody’s business. So while I was planning this meal, and opting to avoid standing outside on a February night to grill the steak. I ended up in the frigid winter air anyway. Standing in my kitchen with the windows wide open waving my arms like one of those guys on an airport runway. Except that I was waving newspapers around instead of little light wands....and, you know, the fact that I probably looked like I was on crack.

SO, for dinner last night, the hubs got dinner AND a show! Oh, and we’re now officially short one small kitchen appliance. Because I chucked that grill out into the skating rink that is our driveway and left it for next week’s trash pickup. I hope they aren’t dumb enough to take it home, thinking it’s a perfectly good grill that shouldn’t have been thrown away. The bonus for me is that now I don’t have to clean it. But if your ears are ringing next week.... well, its probably the smoke alarms going off at the house of our trash pickup guy.

Honey, if that ain’t love, I’ll kiss your ass.

This is my submisison for this week's "That's Amore!" theme over at I Heart Cooking Clubs

Notice there is absolutely nothing green on this plate....



STEAK WITH BALSAMIC BBQ SAUCE

For the Balsamic BBQ sauce:

• 1 cup balsamic vinegar

• 3/4 cup ketchup

• 1/3 cup brown sugar

• 1 garlic clove, minced

• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the steak:

 • 4 pieces of New York strip or Club strip steak (I used one nice sized flat iron steak)

• Salt and freshly ground pepper

Combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan and stir until all the ingredients are incorporated and the mixture is smooth. Simmer over medium heat until reduced by 1/3, about 15 to 20 minutes.

Place a grill pan over medium heat or preheat a gas or charcoal grill. Season the meat with salt and pepper. Lightly coat with some of the BBQ sauce using a pastry brush. Place the meat on the grill. Place the remaining BBQ sauce, still in the small saucepan, over low heat or on the edge of a gas or charcoal grill and allow to gently simmer while the meat cooks.

Cook the steaks starting at about 4 minutes per side until a meat thermometer reads the desired temperature, 120 degrees F for medium rare, 135 degrees F for medium (about 6 minutes per side), 155 degrees F for well done (about 9 minutes per side). Continually brush the meat with BBQ sauce every few minutes. Remove the meat from the grill and let rest for at least 5 minutes. Serve with the heated BBQ sauce alongside.

SMASHED PARMESAN POTATOES

3 pounds baby red-skinned potatoes, unpeeled, halved  (I used about half that amount)

2/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan

1/2 cup olive oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Combine the potatoes in a large pot of water. Cover and bring the water to a boil. Continue boiling until the potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. Drain, reserving 3/4 cup of the cooking liquid. Return the potatoes to the pot. Coarsely mash the potatoes, adding enough reserved cooking liquid to moisten. Using a large fork, stir in the Parmesan and the oil. Season the potatoes, to taste, with salt and pepper and serve.

**NOTES** This steak was AWESOME. We ended up finishing it off in the oven when the smoke got out of control, but it was wonderful and tender (cut flat iron steaks across the grain) and the sauce was a wonderful explosion of flavor. The switch I made for the ketchup was definitely a winner. The potatoes were also nice, and very easy to put together. I would probably add more cheese next time.

Zuppa Stracciatella

I do so love Potluck week over at I Heart Cooking Clubs. It always gives me the opportunity to post the recipes that I intended to make during the month, for other themes, and then had the month get away from me before I got them posted. Last week, I had my dish carefully planned out. I've been in the mood for soup, and Giada's Zuppa Stracciatella is a wonderful "Fall Favorite" for me.

Naturally, the days slipped by all too quickly until I suddenly realized that it was Friday, and I was out of the game once again.

Well, that's not stopping me this week! The temperature started bottoming out last night on my way home form work and the first thing on my mind when I got home was soup. This one is so easy to throw together, I can make a batch almost any night of the week, tweaking the recipe based on what I have available at the time. This week I was fresh out of parsley and basil, but I had a bag of gorgeous prosciutto tortellini from a recent trip to The Hill, which I threw in after the eggs cooked.

The idea of this soup isn't uniquely Italian. It is really no more than another version of egg drop soup with an Italian twist. And I love egg drop soup. For the one, the eggs are mixed with Parmesan cheese to thicken the ribbons of cooked egg in the soup. For some reason, mine didn't string out the way they usually do into savory threads (maybe I added too much cheese this time), but that didn't stop them from tasting delicious.

Put a few slices of artisan salume and a mix of marinated olives on the side and you have one fabulous fall meal.

This is my submission to this week's "Potluck" at I Heart Cooking Clubs as well as Presto Pasta Nights, being hosted by Oh Taste N See this week.

Zuppa Stracciatella
6 cups good quality chicken broth or stock
2 large eggs, beaten
1 tsp grated Parmesan
fresh Italian parsley and basil
1 cup baby spinach, cut in thin strips

In a large saucepan, bring the stock to a boil. Meanwhile, mix the cheese, parsley and basil with the beaten eggs. Stirring quickly in a clockwise motion, gradually drizzle the egg mixture into the hot stock, creating thready strips. Season the soup with salt and pepper.
For my variation, I added in a cup of  some lovely prosciutto tortellini and cooked it until the pasta was al dente and hot throughout.
Toss the spinach in just before serving so it doesn't lose its fresh green color.

Serve immediately.

Kid at Heart – Giada’s Sciue Sciue

Our theme over at I Heart Cooking Clubs this week is “Kid at Heart”. When I first started thinking about what I wanted to make, I was steering toward chocolate and other sweets. But then...I remembered.

When I was a kid, I did not care for chocolate. I know....I was a strange little child. And its not like I wouldn’t eat chocolate or didn’t enjoy candy, but it was never the first thing I was drawn to as a kid. (My mom is sitting in her chair, nodding her head and thinking that I was switched at birth.)

Here’s how it would go down at my kitchen table. We’d eat supper. Usually something like a pork roast or spaghetti. Always with a vegetable (or two) on the side; salad and peas, maybe corn.... We didn’t have dessert every night, but it wasn’t unusual, either. But, I digress. We would finish eating supper and move on to dessert...and my Mom and Dad and sister would all move on to the sweet stuff.... and I would reach for the bowl with the rest of the peas in it...or another helping of spaghetti....

My mother sometimes wonders how she gave birth to me.

So, naturally, when I was reminiscing about my childhood dinner table, it occurs to me that the kid inside me wouldn’t automatically pick Giada’s Chocolate Pizza....no. She would ask for pasta. And not just any pasta, not when Giada is in the kitchen with me.

Its gotta be Sciue Sciue.

(Now my mother is truly confused)

This is not a dish I had growing up, but I discovered it years ago when I first became entranced by Everyday Italian. One of the simplest pasta dishes ever, and made with kids in mind (well, except maybe my completely irreverent picky eater of a son) using pastina; any little short cut pasta you have, but in my case, Ditalini.

This is the first pasta dish I ever served to my Little Man. And he loved it (you know, until he was introduced to the Blue Box and its neon orange contents, and never turned back).

And so, for the kid in my heart...and the child OF my heart....Giada’s Sciue Sciue pasta. A quick, light yet hearty, and flavorful bowl of goodness that I can throw together almost any night of the week, just from my fridge and pantry. It just doesn’t get much better than that.

This is my submission for I Heart Cooking Clubs this week, as well as for Presto Pasta Nights.

REMINDER! Don’t forget that you have until November 19 (That’s only a week away, folks!) to submit your dishes to The Bacon Games!

Giada’s Sciue Sciue (Little Thimbles)

1 1/2 cups ditalini (thimble-shaped pasta)
1/4 cup olive oil (I just used a couple of tablespoons. No need to go overboard)
2 teaspoons minced garlic (I add some minced onion or shallot)
5 plum tomatoes, chopped (about 1 pound – I used a container of lovely little grape tomatoes)
8 ounces cold fresh mozzarella cheese, drained, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
8 large fresh basil leaves, coarsely chopped (straight from my freezer!)

1 Boil up a large saucepan of salted water. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still al dente (firm to the bite), stirring often to prevent sticking. This takes about 8 minutes. Drain.

2 Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Be careful not to burn.

3 Add the tomatoes and saute just until heated through, about 2 minutes. Add the cooked, drained pasta.

4 Remove skillet from heat. Add the cheese and basil and toss to coat. Season to taste with salt.

**Notes: when I make this, just after sautéing the tomatoes, I add about a half a cup of white wine to the pan and let it cook down a bit. This is best served straight from the pan while the cheese still has some body to it. I made this last night while Daddy was out hunting, and put the leftovers in the fridge for another use. This weekend Ginny is coming out for our annual Holiday Candy making fest, and the rest of this pasta will make a fabulous frittata for breakfast Saturday morning! Stay tuned for that post!

I Heart Cooking Clubs – Benvenuto, Giada!

I can’t tell you how happy I was when Giada was voted in for the next six month term for I Heart Cooking Clubs. I was torn between her and Lidia Bastianich, as I love them both, but I already have all of Giada’s books so I was pleased that I wouldn’t have to buy any new ones. (Not that I ever HAVE to buy new books for each chef, but come on... you know I have to.)

The first weekly theme for our visit with Giada is “Benvenuto! Party Foods!” and that one is a winner for me. I have a long, on-going love affair with Italian food, and I love throwing Italian themed dinners. When I think of party food, or an Italian celebration of any kind, the very first thing I think of is, “What can I put on the antipasto tray?”

Well, that...and, of course, a cocktail of some kind.

I’m very familiar with some of Giada’s appetizers, and they are all so simple to throw together, I couldn’t resist making a whole tray. (Aren’t my co-workers lucky?)

One of my absolute favorites is Crostini with Gorgonzola and Honey. Then I moved on to Salami Crisps with Sour Cream and Basil. After that, it was a no brainer to land on Citrus Spiced Mixed Olives.

This combination goes together fantastically since two of the items go in the oven at similar temperatures, with a step or two that can be done in advance (toasting the baguette slices and the walnuts), and the olives you just throw together on the stove top while the others are in the oven.

Top that off with a bubbly cocktail (my usual is Prosecco, but since I have a bottle of Limoncello in the liquor cabinet, I couldn’t resist breaking that out instead. Giada’s recipe calls for making your own lime-based Limoncello, but for the sake of simplicity, I just used store bought.) and you have a gorgeous Italian Welcome party waiting to happen. Invite a few people over to share and this is a no-miss party menu.

This is my submission for our first Giada theme for I Heart Cooking Clubs!

Benvenuto al nostro randello, Giada! I can’t wait to celebrate all the fall and winter holidays with Giada’s recipes.

Crostini with Gorgonzola, Honey and Walnuts
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 24 1/3-inch-thick diagonal slices baguette
• 6 ounces creamy gorgonzola cheese , coarsely crumbled
• 2/3 cup walnuts , toasted, coarsely chopped
• 1 ripe fig , thinly sliced crosswise (optional)
• 3 tablespoons honey

Directions
Preheat the oven to 375°. Arrange the baguette slices on a baking sheet in a single layer. Lightly brush the baguette slices with oil. Toast in the oven until the baguette slices are golden, about 8 minutes. (You can toast the baguette slices 1 day ahead. Cool, then store them at room temperature in an airtight container.)

Toss the gorgonzola with walnuts in a small bowl. Spoon the cheese mixture onto the baguette slices and press slightly to adhere. Return the baking sheet to the over and bake until the cheese melts, about 8 minutes.

Arrange the crostini on a platter. Top each with a slice of fig, if desired. Drizzle with honey and serve warm.

SALAMI CRISPS WITH SOUR CREAM AND BASIL
• 24 (1/8-inch to 1/4-inch) slices Italian dry Genoa salami (about 4 ounces)
• 1/3 cup sour cream
• 3 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil leaves

Directions
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Line 2 heavy large baking sheets with aluminum foil. Arrange the salami in a single layer over the baking sheets. Bake until the salami slices are amber brown, watching closely to ensure they brown evenly, about 15 minutes. Transfer the salami crisps to a paper towel-lined baking sheet to absorb the excess oil. Set aside to cool.

Spoon a dollop of sour cream on top of each salami crisp. Sprinkle the basil over and serve

CITRUS-SPICED MIXED OLIVES

• 3 tablespoons olive oil

• 2 cloves garlic, smashed

• 1 1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper

• 1 large sprig fresh rosemary, 2 bay leaves, or both

• Zest of 1 orange, peeled in long strips with a vegetable peeler

• Zest of 1 lemon, peeled in long strips with a vegetable peeler
• 12 ounces mixed olives, such as kalamata, nicoise, or cerignola, drained

• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

• Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Put the olive oil, garlic, red pepper, herbs, and citrus zests in a medium skillet. Heat over medium-high heat, swirling the pan until the mixture is fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the olives, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the garlic is golden and the zest begins to curl, about 5 minutes more. Discard and remove bay leaves, if using. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Glossy, plump, and gorgeous, our Citrus-Spiced Mixed Olives are primo party starters. Toss 'em together, then leave them out while you mingle with your guests.

LIME-ONCELLO SPRITZERS WITH MINT

Limoncello:

• 2 pounds limes (about 10 large)

• 1 (750-ml) bottle 100-proof vodka

• 2 1/2 cups sugar

• 2 1/2 cups water

Spritzers:

• Ice cubes

• 1 cup fresh mint leaves

• 1 cup club soda

Directions

To make limoncello: Using a vegetable peeler, remove the peel from the limes in long strips (reserve the limes for another use). Place the lime peels in a 1-quart jar. Pour the vodka over the peels and screw on the lid. Steep the lime peels in the vodka for 1 week at room temperature.

Stir the sugar and water in a large saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes. Cool completely, then stir in the vodka mixture. Strain the liquids into bottles, pressing on the peels to extract as much liquid as possible. Seal the bottles and refrigerate until cold, at least 4 hours and up to 1 month.

To make spritzers: Fill 4 tall glasses halfway with ice. Add the mint leaves. Using the handle of a wooden spoon, coarsely crush the mint leaves into the ice. Pour some limoncello over, and stir to blend. Add a splash of club soda and serve.

Pineapple Ginger Sorbet for I Heart Cooking Clubs

It really doesn’t get any easier than this.

Looking for a nice, light dessert for a hot summer evening, I turned to our dear friend Mark Bittman. And, as usual, I was not disappointed. I have said in the past that Bittman’s recipes are the epitome of ease and simplicity (Duh, that’s why he’d called “The Minimalist”.) but this recipe just goes above and beyond.

I’ve been on kind of a gelato/ice cream/sorbet kick lately. I recently ordered Bittman’s book, The Minimalist Entertains, and found this chilly treat on his menu for an Asian Grilled Dinner. I don’t even need to look up the recipe....there are only three ingredients.

4 cups pineapple puree (Admittedly, I’ve never seen this in the store, but I bought 2 cans of crushed pineapple and demolished it in my food processor instead.)
1 cup sugar
1 TB ginger (fresh, dried or candied)

Mix all three ingredients together and freeze it in an ice cream maker.Bittman says this is best straight out of the machine or after no more than an hour in the freezer. I couldn’t agree more. Naturally, I doubled the ginger, but that’s just how I roll. Other than that, I made no changes. This recipe is the essence of perfection. Fresh, cool, and flavorful, it just caresses your mouth and makes you utter noises that probably shouldn’t be heard at the dinner table.

Need a quick and tasty dessert in a hurry? Try this one. Keep a couple of cans of pineapple in the pantry and it’s a no fuss-no muss dish that will have your dinner guests raving...and mumbling sweet obscenities under their breath....if my experience is any indicator...

I’m already thinking of variations on this one to try.....stay tuned....I may just get inspired!

This is my submission for this week's theme over at I Heart Cooking Clubs - POTLUCK!

A Girls Night In with Mark Bittman for I Heart Cooking Clubs

When I think of a Girls Night Out, I think of ditching the men, getting Barbie’d out and dancing our butts off in some too-loud bar that I am too old to be seen in.

On the other hand, a Girls Night In is just as fun, without all the sweat, stress, and body contouring foundation garments.

So, when I saw the I Heart Cooking Clubs theme for this week, I knew just the ticket. Cocktails and finger food. And since Ginny was about to come for a visit (yes, I did this recipe weeks ago, knowing about the theme, and just waited to post about it), it was the perfect setting for a Girls Night at the house. I even managed to get the hubs to locate himself elsewhere for the evening, so as not to disrupt our girliness.

So what was on the menu? Well, God bless Mark Bittman, cuz he knows his shrimp. We fired up the grill and skewered some of his Spicy Grilled Shrimp, which we served with grilled tequila pineapple skewers and Mofongo. Mofongo is not a Bittman recipe, but a carryover from Ginny’s recent trip to Puerto Rico that she was itching to try back here in the landlocked Midwest. It is a dish that takes roasted, mashed plantains to a new level.

And since I did say “cocktails” I looked to our buddy Mark again. We sampled a variety of libations, including his Tequila Sunrise (from How to Cook Everything), an old standby from my bartending days.We also had Cherry Margaritas and Lemon Basil Mojitos (a recipe Ginny brought with her that is a lovely blend of Bacardi Limon, our fresh sour mix, club soda, fresh mint, basil and lime).TEQUILA SUNRISE
From Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything

1 cup tequila
Orange juice as needed
Grenadine

Divide the tequila evenly between 4 glasses.
Add orange juice and a few drops of grenadine, as desired.
Mark Bittman's Spicy Grilled Shrimp
From Fish, The Complete Guide to Buying and Cooking, by Mark Bittman
Makes 4 servingsTime: 20 minutes

2 pounds large shrimp
1 large clove garlic
1 tablespoon coarse salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
Lemon wedges
Peel the shrimp (you can butterfly them if you like; just cut along the line of the vein, a little deeper than usual). Mince the garlic with the salt; mix it with the cayenne and paprika, then make it into a paste with the olive oil and lemon juice. Smear the paste all over the shrimp. Start a charcoal or gas grill or preheat the broiler; the fire can be as hot as you like. Grill or broil the shrimp, 2 to 3 minutes per side.Serve immediately or at room temperature, with lemon wedges.Now, clearly, as a former bartender, I didn’t need a recipe for the tequila sunrise, but since there was a rendition of it in Bittman’s HTCE, I thought I’d go ahead and include it here for your reference. What we REALLY did was pour a shot (or so) of good tequila in each glass, then topped that with a orange-pineapple juice blend (since we had a “pineapple” theme going already). Just as a rule of thumb, the proportions should be about 2 to 1. Two parts juice to one part alcohol. Then, very carefully, drizzle a little bit of grenadine around the edges of the drink. As the syrup falls into the glass, it makes the famous “sunrise” effect, as you can see in the picture.

For the shrimp, we actually followed Bittman’s recipe. Although I usually find that I have to supplement the seasonings in his dishes, I was pleasantly surprised to find that these little babies had plenty of oomph just as they were. I couldn’t keep myself from nibbling on the last of these at the end of the evening, even though I was much too full to be eating any more. This would be a fabulous appetizer for any cocktail party!

I have to say, the traditional mojito is not my favorite drink. Apparently, even though I like mint, I don’t care for it in my beverages. However, the Lemon Basil Mojito was a revelation that I look forward to having again and again! Tart and sweet at the same time, it had just the right amount of bite with an herby undertone.

All in all, we had a fabulous Girls Night In! A few cocktails, some tasty treats and a movie or two rounded out the evening perfectly.

I smell BACON!!! Better with Bacon for I Heart Cooking Clubs

It is true what they say... everything IS better with bacon... but what I want to know is...

WHY THE HELL DIDN’T I THINK OF THIS???

Mark Bittman continues to make me smack my head in a “Coulda had a V8” kind of motion.

I mean, come on....

Bacon.... waffles....

bacon. waffles.

BACON WAFFLES!!!

Seriously, people. I love bacon and I love waffles. I love bacon WITH my waffles... why wouldn’t I have thought of having bacon IN my waffles?? The version of this that I ran across on the internet used a belgian waffle maker, pouring the batter onto the grates, and laying a couple of slices of cooked bacon across the batter before closing the lid.

The recipe originates from Bittman’s How to Cook Everything as a variation on his Quick and Easy Waffles. He offers a basic waffle recipe with eleven, count ‘em, ELEVEN options for variations. I decided to employ two of those variations in the same waffle.

The first of which was to add cheese. I know what you’re thinking, cheese in a waffle? Well, really, when you go through the McDonald’s drive through (and I know you do, you don’t even have to admit it here, I’ll keep your greasy little secret) don’t you ask for your McGriddle with cheese? Or your McMuffin? I know I do. So the combination didn’t seem at all strange to me. Although the hubs did look at me a little funny. I chose to let him stew with it instead of trying to explain my logic to him.

SO, I added about a half a cup of shredded sharp cheddar directly in the batter.

In his suggestion for a bacon waffle, he says (as in the internet version I found) to lay a couple of slices of bacon across the uncooked batter before closing the lid on the waffle iron. He also says the bacon cooks along with the batter, implying that it would be raw bacon I am putting on the waffle batter. Not that I have a problem with raw bacon, I don’t, but in the other version I saw, the writer specifically stated that it was cooked bacon she added. Hmmm...confused.

In either case, I decided that I wasn’t sure if I liked the idea of whole slices of bacon seared to the side of a waffle. I’m envisioning a whole strip breaking loose and hitting me in the chin with a maple syrup coated “thwack!” and frankly, that doesn’t strike me as an appealing scenario. Plus, how do you guarantee that you get bacon in every bite? Or waffle? I was thinking the bacon should complement the waffle, instead of either playing second fiddle, or overshadowing it.

You know what I did? I cooked my bacon up all nice and crispy. Then I crushed it up into yummy little bacon bits. Then I sprinkled the bits over the batter so they would end up in every little crevice of the waffle. The result? Well, you’re just going to have to try it yourself and find out, because you can’t have mine... don’t even try... I WILL stab you with my fork... Its friggin’ genius, is what it is. I’m tempted not to even show you these pictures. But, because I’m a sick, sadistic kind of bitch... I’m going to anyway. Go ahead.... drool.....

Quick and Easy Waffles

from How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman

canola or other neutral oil for brushing the iron

2 cups flour

½ teaspoon salt

2 TB sugar

3 tsp baking powder

1 ½ cups milk

2 eggs

4 TB butter, melted and cooled

1 tsp vanilla extract, optional

Brush the waffle iron lightly with oil and preheat it.

Combine the dry ingredients. Mix together the milk and eggs. Stir in the butter (and vanilla, if using).

Stir the wet into the dry ingredients. If the mixture seems a little too thick to pour, add a little more milk.

Spread a ladleful or so of batter onto the waffle iron and bake until the waffle is done, usually 3 to 5 minutes, depending on your iron.Variations:Add grated mild cheese, such as Cheddar or Jack, about one cup per batch of batter.

Lay 2 or 3 strips of bacon across the batter after spreading onto the waffle iron and before closing the lid. Bacon will cook along with the waffles; cooking time may be a minute or two longer.

This is my submission for this week's "Better with Bacon" theme for I Heart Cooking Clubs.

In My Picnic Basket - Tomato Jam for I Heart Cooking Clubs

When I think of picnics, obviously I think of the basket with the checkerboard blanket and the deli sandwiches and fruit. What I also think of is summer produce like jams and jellies to spread on biscuits and crusty bread. When I came across this recipe, it was a magnetic force that I couldn’t resist. I believe this recipe may have originated from Bittman’s Minimalist column, as I wasn’t able to find a reference to it anywhere else.

This is my submission for the I Heart Cooking Clubs theme this week - Picnic Basket!

Tomato Jam
Recipe courtesy of Mark Bittman

1 ½ lb good ripe tomatoes (roma are best), cored and coarsely chopped
1 cup sugar
2 TB freshly squeezed lime juice
1 TB freshly grated ginger
1 tsp ground cumin
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp salt
1 jalapeño, stemmed seeded and minced

1. Combine all ingredients in a heavy medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often.
2. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until mixture has the consistency of thick jam, about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
3. Taste and adjust seasoning, then cool and refrigerate until ready to use; this will keep at least a week.

Yield about 1 pint.NOTES: This took WAY longer than the recommended 1 hour and 15 minutes to simmer down for me. I actually let it go nearly 2 and a half hours....the first night. We were going to bed, so I poured it into a container and left it in the fridge. When I got home from work the next day, I put it back on the stove and continued to simmer it another hour or so until it came to the right consistency. Not sure if it was user error or a mistake in the recipe, but it did take awhile. That being said, I’m really glad I didn’t give up on it. This is one of those foods that when you first take a bite, it gives you that feeling that you’ve tasted it somewhere before, but it’s a very strange taste combination that you can’t quite place. Then you take another bite...and it grows on you. And another bite...and you’re in love. It’s a very unusual flavor that you will either love or hate. I, personally, will be making it again, but with more heat. I used two jalapeños, compared to Bittman’s one, but I think I would almost double that or add some red pepper to amp up the heat a bit. I think this would be absolutely fabulous on a juicy burger or pureed a bit more and used as a dipping sauce.

REMINDER!!! There is only one week left to enter my giveaway! If you look closely (okay, not that closely.... there is a hint in this post as to what the prize will be!)

Dining with Dad (I Heart Cooking Clubs)

Months ago, I planned a special post in honor of my Dad for Father’s Day. It involved a little retrospective about my dad when he was younger, and some special sandwiches he used to eat. But that post ended up being a horrifying culinary experience that I simply could not associate with the wonderful part of my life that is my Dad.

And so, when I saw that this week’s theme for I Heart Cooking Clubs, very appropriately, was Dining with Dad, it really struck a chord. My first instinct was, “what would I cook for my Dad?” but that thought was quickly eradicated by another.

One of my fondest memories of my Dad involves breakfast. Over countless weekends when my sister and I were growing up, Dad would make breakfast. Almost always pancakes or waffles, but sometimes a fried egg sandwich. To this day, I don’t know if he and Mom had some kind of agreement that since she cooked throughout the week, that was his turn to cook; whether he looked forward to spending this time with his family, or if my sister and I just drove him to distraction by whining for pancakes until we got our way.

I can still picture those mornings very clearly. Dad in his robe and us in our nightgowns. The same skillet and spatula, and the same plastic batter bowl and whisk. I can close my eyes and see him whisking up the batter, holding the bowl at an angle. Then using a butter knife to drop a little bit of oleo in the pan, spreading it across the whole surface with the spatula. And he only buttered the pan between every other batch of pancakes. Dad had pancakes down to a science. Knew exactly how much batter to pour into the pan and how long to let them cook before flipping them.

I have a lot of great memories of my Dad, but when I think of food and my Dad at the same time, this is what I remember.

In any case, this tradition stuck with me my whole life, though college and beyond, to the point that when I came home for a visit, I would request waffles. (Dad’s waffles were always my favorite) Then, when I had my son, and he finally reached the age where we could sit down and have a hot breakfast together, waffles were the first thing I made for him.

On that note (that of becoming a parent in my own right) even though my preference would be to have waffles (love those little crevices filled with butter and syrup), I can’t help but think of my Little Man. He does love patty-cakes (that’s ‘pancakes’ to those of you who can’t translate my 5 year-old’s vocabulary), and even more so if there are chocolate chips on them.

So, making this a three-generation breakfast, we are dining with Dad, and Grandpa, depending on which one of us you ask. If it were my Dad cooking, it would be a strict Bisquick mix, but since we are having breakfast a la Mark Bittman, I have used a recipe from his How To Cook Everything that was a real winner for me and my Little Man. Not to mention that he was very excited to be getting chocolate chip pattycakes for supper! I wasn't complaining, either. Sometimes its fun to have breakfast for supper. (Do you think its okay to have red wine with pancakes? Yeah, so do I...)

Here’s to you, Dad. Wish we could have had you here to enjoy them with us. I only hope Ty will have as many great memories of me as I will always have of you. We love you so much and we can't wait to see you in JulyChocolate Chip Pancakes
2 cups flour
1 ½ cups milk
2 eggs
2 tsp baking powder
1 TB sugar
¼ tsp salt
2 TB oil or belted butter

Warm butter in a skillet over medium heat. Mix all ingredients together (can still be a little lumpy) and pour batter into the pan.Sprinkle chocolate chips over each pancake.When the edges of the pancakes begin to bubble, flip them over. Cook until done and serve to one very happy little boy. (Okay, so I added that part on my own.)Here's to you, Dad.

Mixing it Up - Bittman Style!

Even as much as I adore grilling in the summer, I still manage to get in a rut for ideas on what to make. I mean, really, how many different ways can you grill a chicken breast, right? I do love the larger cuts like brisket and ribs, and so forth, but those time-consuming items are reserved for Sundays when time is generally not a concern.

So, when I was making my grocery list last week, as usual, I asked the hubs if he had any suggestions. And, as usual, I got bupkus for a response. So, I fell into my usual routine of browsing the local grocer’s meat case, appealing to it to produce something new and attractive. On this occasion, I did actually find a small bit of inspiration. Nothing dramatic, but for some reason there was a glut of various sausages available during my weekly visit.

I grabbed up a package of Garlic Italian, one of Andouille, and a third of a local Bockwurst. Can you say “mixed grill”? I knew you could. I froze half of it for another day, and we grilled the three sausages, plus some sweet corn and farmers market asparagus for a nice, easy weeknight meal.
Pretty, no?

So here’s the twist. I was searching for a dish to make for I Heart Cooking Clubs this week (this being our monthly ‘Pot Luck’ theme) and was inspired yet again when I ran across Mark Bittman’s recipe for Asparagus Pesto.

Asparagus. Pesto. Yum! I love pesto. I love asparagus. I never would have dreamed to put the two together even though I have made a number of variations on pesto in the past.

Bittman’s recipe calls for boiling a pound of asparagus until tender but not mushy. Well, I had used up all my nice asparagus on the grill (and, in a skillet, when the propane bottle ran out halfway through the cooking process) the night before (and anyway, I’m not a fan of boiling vegetables) so I ran to the Wednesday night farmer’s market hoping to purchase another bundle.

Um, no. Its gone. Apparently the season is really over. So sad. But, undeterred, I had a brainstorm. I had the leftover asparagus in the fridge....and I had made quite a bit of it, so there was plenty for a half batch of Bittman’s pesto. Which is more than enough for me for dinner.

Excited, I ran home (ok, yes, I drove) got the food processor out (lucky me, it was still out from being used for something yet to be posted, and had been washed) and started chucking ingredients in the bowl.

Pestos are so easy, people. Really. I mean, its an herb or vegetable, oil, nuts, cheese, and maybe some acid. No recipe required (although I will post Bittman’s below, just for reference) just keep adding until it looks right.

Start with something green, in this case, about a half pound of leftover grilled/sautéed asparagus.
Toss in a handful of pine nuts (or almonds, hazelnuts, etc. Preferably toasted, but I was lazy last night and just tossed them right in).
Add a handful of grated parmesan.
(Normally I add garlic, but I was afraid in this case it would overwhelm the flavor of the asparagus, so I skipped it.)
Salt and pepper.
A good squeeze of lemon juice (about a half a lemon).
Put the top on the mixer, press ‘ON’, and drizzle olive oil through the top until the mixture forms a nice smooth paste.
My one tip is start small on the other ingredients, as you want your asparagus to be the center of attention. If you add too much cheese, and you are out of asparagus, you’re also out of luck, so add a little at a time if you’re a novice pesto maker.

And....PESTO!Lovely, lovely....now. What to do with it? I thought smearing it on crusty bread would be nice...if I had some. Which I didn’t. Crackers? Yeah, the saltines in my pantry weren’t exactly worthy of such a topping. A layer on a nice Panini with mozzarella and ham would be delish. I had the ham and cheese...again, no bread.

PASTA! I am usually hesitant to make a pesto pasta because it seems like the pesto just disappears on the noodles and becomes too subtle. This asparagus pesto was springy and pungent and I didn’t want to give up the lovely chunkiness of it. So what do I do? Make orzo.

Yep, I boiled up about a cup of orzo, and just mixed enough of it into the pesto to get the consistency I wanted, and VOILA! Fabulous. A lovely summertime dinner I couldn’t wait to dig my spoon into. This turned out so creamy and luscious, it wasn’t much different than a risotto in texture.The whole thing went together in about 15 minutes since I used leftover asparagus and I scarfed it down just as fast.

Thanks again, Mark Bittman, for a fabulous idea! I usually only cook as much asparagus as I intend to eat for that meal, but I’ll be grilling extra from now on, just so I can make pesto with the leftovers! This is my submission for I Heart Cooking Clubs and Presto Pasta Nights (check for the roundup later this week at http://www.kirstenlindquist.blogspot.com/) this week!

Now, here’s the original recipe:
Asparagus Pesto
Kosher salt
1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2-inch segments
4 cloves garlic
1/2 cup toasted hazelnuts
1/4 cup olive oil, or more as desired
3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Freshly ground black pepper
Juice of 1/2 lemon, or to taste.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the asparagus and cook until tender but not mushy, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain well and shock with ice water to stop the cooking. Reserve some of the cooking liquid.
Transfer the cooled asparagus pieces to a food processor and add the garlic, hazelnuts, 2 tablespoons of the oil, Parmesan, a pinch of salt and a couple of tablespoons of the cooking liquid.
Process the mixture, stopping to scrape down the sides of the container if necessary, and gradually add the remaining oil and a bit more of the reserved cooking liquid to moisten if necessary. Add the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste, pulse one last time to finish mixing.
Serve over pasta, fish or chicken. Top with chopped hazelnuts and additional Parmesan cheese, if desired.
Makes about 1 1/2 cups of pesto. Keeps, covered and refrigerated for a day or two.

I Never Promised You an HERB Garden.... I Heart Cooking Clubs

Can you tell I grew up listening to soft rock on my parents' radio?

I couldn’t have been more pleased with this week’s theme for I Heart Cooking Clubs, and for two reasons.

1. I totally flaked on it last week because I am so crazy busy getting ready for this weekend’s wedding. However, I did have a recipe picked out for last week’s Garlic Breath theme, and it turned out that it fits perfectly into this week’s Herb Garden theme as well! SO, bonus for me!
2. My herb garden is just producing fantastically, so I got to use some of my lovely aromatics.
3. My chosen recipe was a perfect side dish for the grilled stuff pork chops the hubs whipped up the other night.
Yes, that’s right, the hubs cooked. He’s been spending more time at home lately since he’s been laid off and caught an episode of some Bobby Flay trainwreck of a show (sorry, I can’t help it, I think Bobby Flay is the char-broiled spawn of the devil) and thought his grilled stuffed pork chops sounded like good eatin’. WHAT. EV.

Anyway, the chops are basically a pork-cordon-bleu type thing where you take a really thick pork chop and butterfly it, then pound it out flat, then stuff it with ham

and swiss,fold the sucker back up,season and grill.Actually, it didn’t turn out too bad. The heat of the grill was a bit much for the pork and it got a bit dry, but it gave us some inspiration for a different rendition to try at a later date. SO keep an eye out for that one! I also had him throw on some lovely asparagus I picked up at the farmers market this weekend.As for the Herb Garden I never promised you..... how about some Linguine with Garlic and Olive Oil.....and herbs!This recipe has a variation listed that calls for A CUP of chopped fresh herbs of your choice. I promptly attacked my herb garden with a gusto that may have frightened the hubs’ friend who was hanging out with us in the front yard, but hey, no one can say I’m not an enthusiastic cook.

I also happened to have a package of Sweet Red Onion Linguine from Papparedelle’s pasta that I had been looking for an excuse to use. For the dressing, you basically warm up a half cup of olive oil in a pan (while the pasta is cooking) and simmer some garlic until it is soft (Bittman says 2 cloves, I say at least four), then add in your herbs and more olive oil, if necessary.Drain the pasta and toss! Fantastic.....That’s my submission for I Heart Cooking Clubs this week!

I Heart Cooking Clubs – Roast Pork Tenderloin

For the past several years, I have complained every spring that we don’t really seem to get “Spring” any more. Generally, we go from freezing cold temps to blazing summer heat in a matter of weeks. Not this year. This year Spring seems to be dragging on eternally, punishing me for my whiny nature. This is not, however, what I remember Spring being like. Has it really been so long since we’ve had a “real” Spring that I’ve forgotten what it is like? Or is it just that the season is completely out of whack this year? I mean, isn’t it supposed to be APRIL showers?? It’s the middle of May and Mother Nature seems to be having a bad case of PMS, because we’ve been getting nothing but rain for weeks. And, to be quite frank, its pissing this girl off.

For one thing, the lawn looks like it belongs in a remote sector of the Amazon right now. Between the hubs long work hours lately, and the incessant showers pummeling our area, it hasn’t been mowed in weeks.

Second, my basil is SUCKING. Yep, It’s been too wet and too cold and where I usually have a veritable BUSH of basil by now, I am still barely ahead of where I started with several small plants that are beginning to take on a yellowish cast and I’m afraid to trim any off for fear that I won’t have any more to use. Basil is, by far, the herb I utilize most in the summer months and I am usually well into my summer cooking bliss at this point.

Third, I really, REALLY wanted to start grilling as soon as Mother Freakin’ Nature gave us that one good week of nice weather...about a month ago. (she’s such a tease) The weather has not exactly been conducive to grilling, and I didn’t get my own gas grill until Mother’s Day (The whole prep time on the charcoal grill takes too darn long when you’re fighting the weather, in my opinion).

So, that brings me to my I Heart Cooking Clubs selection for this week’s theme, “potluck”. I wanted to grill....I purchased meat specifically with the intention of grilling....and then, naturally, it rained. What a pain in the ass. Not that the dish didn’t still turn out well, but it would have been much more successful on the grill, I have no doubt.

I was in the mood for pork tenderloin. Browsing through Mark Bittman’s “How to Cook Everything”, I found two recipes that sounded wonderful to me (ironic that pork tenderloins come in those handy, vacuum-sealed 2-packs). Pissed off at the world (and, more specifically, Mother Nature) I made them anyway. Both ended up being quite succulent and flavorful, but the mustard base for the Pork Tenderloin with Mustard Curry burned right off in the pan, leaving the crust in the dust, so to speak. I will definitely have to try this one again on the grill when I get a chance, as the hubs and I enjoyed both recipes. Unfortunately, the Man of the House took ALL the leftovers with him to work the next day and I didn’t get to enjoy it again, though I think the leftovers would have made a very yummy pork sandwich for my lunch (just a good excuse to try it again, right?).

Grilled or Broiled Pork Tenderloin with Mustard Curry (How to Cook Everything, page 463)
2 TB Dijon mustard
2 TB curry powder
Salt & pepper
1 ¼ pork tenderloin, in one piece

Make a paste out of the mustard and curry powder, then slather it all over the pork. Heat a little oil in a large skillet and sear the meat on all sides (make sure you have your kitchen windows open, or you’re liable to set off the smoke alarm). Transfer the pan to a 350 degree oven and roast until the tenderloin reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees. (I know it says “grilled or broiled”, but I already explained why I didn’t grill it, and I recently discovered that the broiler on my new stove kinda sucks, so there you go...)(I did the same thing with the other tenderloin and made a mixture of soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic and red pepper flake. I thought I found it in HTCE, but now that I look back, I don’t see it there, so maybe it was the beer talking...)

Next time, I will definitely be grilling....

Movie Night! For I Heart Cooking Clubs

The first thing I think of when I hear the words “Movie Night” usually have to do with popcorn, but I just couldn’t find a Bittman recipe involving popcorn that interested me. However, on the same page as “Buttered Popcorn” in How to Cook Everything, I found a recipe for spiced nuts. Roasted. Sautéed. Spiced. Buttered..... I did a little combination of a couple suggestions there and made a Sautéed Spiced Buttered nuts recipe.

When it comes to movie night, as long as I have something to munch on, and as long as it is salty, I’m good to go! These nuts really fit the bill, and I have a feeling one of my coworkers is going to be addicted before the day is out.
Sautéed Buttered Nuts
4 TB butter
1 TB steak seasoning (Bittman suggests using any spice mixture, such as chili or curry, but I spotted my can of Montreal Steak seasoning and decided to give it a whirl!)
2 cups mixed nuts

Melt the butter in a skillet and add the spice mixture.
Sautee the nuts in the seasoned butter about 5 minutes, or until nice and toasty.I had a bit of a glut of butter left at the end, so I drained the nuts and let them dry on parchment paper.This is my entry for this week’s I Heart Cooking Clubs theme – Movie Night!

I Heart Cooking Clubs - Pantry Raid!!!

Ok, I have to honestly say that when I was talking about this week's theme for I Heart Cooking Clubs, my husband really thought I said something entirely different. He was a tad bit confused when I started breaking out fish filets and large quantities of butter.

For this week's theme, the idea is to make something using your pantry staples. Well, my idea of what constitutes a "pantry staple" may differ from others, but one thing that there is never any lack of in my house is butter. Hellooooo.... we live in the country, its a staple. While I was trying to decide what to make for this particular theme, Ginny texted me from her local co-op where she had just found fresh rainbow trout, a new favorite of ours since attending a cooking class last year. Once we knew we had the fish, the whole plan came together.

And no, I am not trying to claim that rainbow trout is a staple, but it IS the vehicle for my selection for this week's IHCC theme!

In my neck of the woods, it is commonly understood that "everything is better with butter" (and bacon, but that's another post entirely). In my house, in particular, it only gets better when you make it a "compound" butter, meaning you add lovely flavors to it. Most commonly you see this in some variation of a garlic butter.

In Bittman's "How To Cook Everything", he has a number of compound butters listed, and we decided to try three of them, and have a throwdown to decide which was our favorite by gently pan frying the rainbow trout filets and dressing them up with the finished butters. For each of the butters, we just brought the butter to room temperature so it was nice and soft, mixed in the ingredients, and then chilled to solidify. I know you may be thinking that some of the ingredients below may be a stretch when referring to pantry staples, but if you've ever been to my kitchen or are aware of my love affair with Penzey's spices.....well, you'd understand.
(clockwise from the top - Mustard Butter, Wasabi Butter, Ginger-Lime Butter)
Wasabi Butter
4 ounces butter
1 tsp wasabi powder (we used 2 teaspoons, because one just wasn't enough.)

Ginger Lime Butter
4 ounces butter
1 TB fresh grated ginger
1 TB lime juice (we also added the zest from the lime, for extra punch)

Mustard Butter
4 ounces butter
1 TB mustard (we used the Guinness mustard that Ginny made recently)

These butters can be kept in the fridge for a week, or indefinitely, depending on the ingredients you use. We doubled each recipe so we would both have leftovers to keep in our respective fridges.

Now, for the results!!!
We lightly seasoned four trout filets with salt and pepper and gently pan fried them, skin side down first, until the fish was opaque and flaky. We topped three of the filets with one of the butters, and then, since the last little filet looked sad and lonely, we slapped a dollop of our favorite butter on it so that it would be happy before we scarfed it down.And our favorite was? The Ginger Lime!It was bright and flavorful (really glad we added the zest) and it had enough staying power to hold up throughout the dish. The other two butters were good, but may have been better suited for different dishes. While both the mustard and wasabi butters were tasty, we felt they fell flat when used on the clean slate of the fish. I may have to try the wasabi butter on some popcorn later this week, and the mustard on a nice steak, hot off the grill, this weekend.

The basic concept here is that you can add anything to butter, so give it a try! I can promise you won't be disappointed.