tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73180210735801654572024-03-13T14:44:47.662-05:00Rockin' the KitchenMonica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.comBlogger442125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-6987397776599986552018-06-27T13:49:00.000-05:002018-06-27T13:49:01.817-05:00Sisters Baking Day, Part Two<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I told you we weren't done yet!!! The second part of our baking day we totally threw ourselves into some wild ideas, took some risks, and had some pretty good successes and a slight not-so-success. That's ok though! Not every recipe turns out perfect the first time around but this one was good enough to be shared anyway- flavors were great, just not the perfect bar. You should still try it.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb0hQynypKyqQ3fJKdNdGFqXLt56qb49hDLy-vUgn2Ol-PGi1ItVcnZcOqrwKzaQ5vHM8jrPT4ttlKBJ4OYAE5M1Hx_BCifxFibcffFFlpm1Cm0w57lhjOftVRQR_hBAfLRwEH-zxmBKo/s1600/bars3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb0hQynypKyqQ3fJKdNdGFqXLt56qb49hDLy-vUgn2Ol-PGi1ItVcnZcOqrwKzaQ5vHM8jrPT4ttlKBJ4OYAE5M1Hx_BCifxFibcffFFlpm1Cm0w57lhjOftVRQR_hBAfLRwEH-zxmBKo/s320/bars3.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Bars</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ok so, besides the day-long baking marathon we had some great conversation about the long discussed bakery that Jessica and I have dreamed about for an eternity. Over cups of coffee, and later an icy cold soda, since we picked one of the hottest days of the season for baking, we broke down exactly what we wanted our business to look like. Everything from what we plan to prepare to how it will be served, local sources and seasonal ideas and recipes and a very unique twist that might even bring The Chef into our plans, we hammered it out. Our passion and fierce determination to make this happen has only grown stronger over the last ten years or so and we both realize the time to do it is NOW.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Raspberry Peach Crumble Bars</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We found a lot of inspiration in a cookbook Jessica picked up thrift shopping. </span><i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Breakfast, Lunch, Tea: The Many Little Meals of the Rose Bakery,</i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> by Rose Carrarini, laid out in perfect detail almost exactly the same shop we had always envisioned- beautiful baked goods, breads, cookies, pastries, and an ever changing lunch menu of salads and entrees made by hand, every day, in manageable batches, and when it's gone, it's gone. Tea served in the afternoon, real English style high tea with all the accompaniments, then closed in time for an evening spent with family. Just like Rose's delightful bakery in Paris. Could it be any more perfect than that? Up early every day with the sunshine and the birds singing, up to our elbows in flour and yeast. The smell of fresh bread permeating the air. Chopping, dicing and slicing, great old 70s music in the background. Baking bread while listening to Bread? Yes! Whipping up vinaigrettes and dressings and making salads for the lunch crowd and absolutely loving the life we have chosen to live.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Some people think it's too late for us to have these dreams. We are too old. The market isn't good. You'd never be able to compete with the big stores. We don't want to be rich, or famous, or become a national chain. We just want a simple living, something that is rewarding and fulfilling and every day I can crawl in bed beat because I worked for ME, for myself, and I loved every minute of it. That's what she and I want. Simple. Fulfilling. And you better believe, we are going to make it happen. In the coming weeks we will be doing a lot of research on everything from purchasing equipment to small business loans to finding the perfect location. We both have a dream of the perfect building for our bakery cafe, we just need to find it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In the meantime though, you lovely people get to help us work out recipes and treats that we might or might not decide to include in our menu rotation, or a future cookbook, or just live on in our dreams. Take these two recipes, for example. I know by heart how to make a cheesecake, and everything that goes in it. What I wanted to do was turn that rich dessert into a much more diet friendly and small bite sized bar. Just enough to be satisfying without being a one thousand calorie bomb. If you want to lighten this up, switch the sugar for another sweetener but don't skimp on low fat or non fat cream cheese. It's not the same, it creates a weepy soggy mess. Besides, humans do need some fat in their diets, just choose your foods carefully and you're ok. Our raspberry bars were a take on a similar bar we have purchased at Whole Foods. Theirs was a tighter berry filling, surely a jam, where we used pie filling, so our bars were a little too soft to be bars really but still made a tasty dessert. Just use a fork and plate and you'll love them.</span></div>
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<i><b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Blueberry Lemon Cheesecake Bars</span></b></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1 1/2 cups flour</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">3 tablespoons sugar</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1/2 teaspoon salt</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1/2 cup oil</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1 tablespoon milk</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">2 8 ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">2 tablespoons flour</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">2 eggs</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1/2 cup sugar</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">2 lemons, zested</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1 cup blueberries*</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">* We used a can of berries, rinsed and drained well. You can use fresh or frozen if you have them.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x9 pan with cooking spray and line with parchment. Set aside.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In a small bowl combine the flour, sugar, salt, oil and milk. Mix well. Press evenly onto bottom and a little up the sides of the pan. Bake for ten minutes, then set aside to cool.</span></i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKsBEXt18Wrfrwy4cfspZzit-_7J6SxIQHh23JpCv3ECSW-51tZmaPle0XO1k0aJcl0P22kDeqxggJ4UCvg9yO89vmDNLFd05f3w6MMQt2nFc5bcmPTXD6GSkMEKev5FOw9nGGq6rtoKk/s1600/bars10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKsBEXt18Wrfrwy4cfspZzit-_7J6SxIQHh23JpCv3ECSW-51tZmaPle0XO1k0aJcl0P22kDeqxggJ4UCvg9yO89vmDNLFd05f3w6MMQt2nFc5bcmPTXD6GSkMEKev5FOw9nGGq6rtoKk/s320/bars10.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4ZJq7SVfCLzwAsd4P1DaWvN8Pa5ZJCZiFlFWP3pxfAQG3D-N6W-VFXdWNInk6g3c0sdf4Q4QFrQuURfkeR4z1Fm1UgPGUSuQmkXR4VzWFl-l_fRLfewV10Ri2OhPCA_Cg_U-n2TNJhTE/s1600/bars9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4ZJq7SVfCLzwAsd4P1DaWvN8Pa5ZJCZiFlFWP3pxfAQG3D-N6W-VFXdWNInk6g3c0sdf4Q4QFrQuURfkeR4z1Fm1UgPGUSuQmkXR4VzWFl-l_fRLfewV10Ri2OhPCA_Cg_U-n2TNJhTE/s320/bars9.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese with a mixer until fluffy. Add the eggs, flour, sugar and zest. Mix well. Carefully fold in the blueberries until evenly distributed. Pour over the crust and smooth the top. Bake for 35-45 minutes or until almost set. Bars will firm up as they cool.</span></i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMwLW2MSmhWK6sJlzGLNRd5gPyZ-2IEcLP36snAmUrGdCwgS6XRqdEkKrr6bK_VLfstp0B6aLLKNaFXqb0XcFHBMuGvQOf4WokHtrzPjl7VJO08RP70QgrdweFc40QJoGqqSWbwmcFNq0/s1600/bars8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMwLW2MSmhWK6sJlzGLNRd5gPyZ-2IEcLP36snAmUrGdCwgS6XRqdEkKrr6bK_VLfstp0B6aLLKNaFXqb0XcFHBMuGvQOf4WokHtrzPjl7VJO08RP70QgrdweFc40QJoGqqSWbwmcFNq0/s320/bars8.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Make sure to keep these guys in the fridge and it's best to chill before cutting. They are rich and cheesecakey and oh so delicious. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Our next bars recipe was a total experiment in using up what we had while trying to incorporate ideas we knew worked in other bar cookies. I'd have to say while delicious as all get-out, this was semi successful, but we now know how to improve this recipe the next time out. I'm going to share what we did today, and like I said earlier, I recommend that you serve this with a fork- it's a little messy for eating out of hand. </span></div>
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<i><b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Raspberry Peach Granola Crumble (Bars)</span></b></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">2 cups old fashioned rolled oats</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">2 cups flour</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1 cup packed brown sugar</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1 cup granola, large pieces crushed</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">2 sticks melted butter</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1 teaspoon salt</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1 can raspberry pie filling</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1 cup chopped peaches (fresh or well drained canned)</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1/2 teaspoon almond extract</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1/2 cup chopped toasted almonds</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Heat oven to 375 degrees.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In a medium bowl toss together the oats, flour, brown sugar, granola and salt. Pour the melted butter over. Press a little more than half onto the bottom of a 10x14 baking dish. Set aside. Reserve the rest for later.</span></i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTzHexTgpM5h6jtq108oCDdHmQ29nPMqdG8s2FWtCWKhqoIZu7Ir2JgrbRcN8gIHcI1YPGuuxvN_VaiUSaClUwAH8Hs15tzskBJ0q_y5feIaDoZVZ5LsXQntJtLdk3J32XcFqowoRHEgw/s1600/bars7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTzHexTgpM5h6jtq108oCDdHmQ29nPMqdG8s2FWtCWKhqoIZu7Ir2JgrbRcN8gIHcI1YPGuuxvN_VaiUSaClUwAH8Hs15tzskBJ0q_y5feIaDoZVZ5LsXQntJtLdk3J32XcFqowoRHEgw/s320/bars7.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Combine the raspberry filling, peaches and extract, spread over the crust in the pan.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Add the almonds to the remaining crumble mixture and sprinkle over the top of the fruit, covering evenly. Press the crumb mixture into the fruit slightly.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Bake for 35-45 minutes until browned and bubbly. Remove from oven and cool, then chill in the fridge before cutting.</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">With the pie filling, this is really closer to a crumble or cobbler than a bar, but it's still insanely delicious and would be perfect topped with a scoop of ice cream, maybe slightly warmed up first. We are going to give this one another shot, using the jam instead of pie filling so we will get a gooier and more bar-like texture. But hey, sometimes those semi-fails end up delicious anyway!!</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-28045852040550326892018-06-23T10:42:00.000-05:002018-06-23T10:42:02.009-05:00Easy Chicken Gyros<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Delicious flavors for my marinade</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">So I am pretty much obsessed with cooking shows. You guys probably figured that out by now. Seriously though, I am. I've watched hours and hours of Food Network and The Cooking Channel but over the last few years the type of programming has really changed. Instead of COOKING shows with recipes and demonstrations and new techniques to learn, it's become a game show wasteland. Endless competition and elimination shows sprinkled with some travel shows about food destinations. Many of the good chef are no longer on the network and even the new hosts go right to a show where they travel around sampling barbeque, or burgers, or whatever the theme of the show is. It's super hard to keep my attention with shows like that when I am on a never ending quest to learn more and more about cooking and foods.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">See! I actually DO use the Moulis I keep buying!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That, my friends, is where YouTube comes in! I can watch hours upon hours of uninterrupted (i.e. NO COMMERCIALS) shows from all my favorite chefs and stars. This evening I have some time to myself. The Chef is off playing guitar with some friends, and I am taking advantage of the peace and quiet to catch up on some writing, and watching cooking shows. So who are my favorites? I sometimes talk about my favorite chefs and hosts when I'm writing a post, many times I am inspired by something they cooked or included in a cookbook or maybe I just finished watching their show and it's fresh in my mind. I always always will watch Ina Garten. I don't think I have ever missed an episode of <i>Barefoot Contessa</i> and her cookbooks are among my favorites. Rachel Khoo is also a favorite. Her <i>Little Paris Kitchen</i> and <i>Kitchen Notebook</i> series are some of my very favorites and I watch the reruns quite a lot. The story of her teeny tiny apartment restaurant in Paris is so inspiring. I wish I could have gone there! Lidia Bastianich is another favorite. Her restaurant in Kansas City is not very far from here- I'm soooo going to make a trip there soon! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One of my newest chef idols is Gesine Bullock Prado. Her show, <i>Baked in Vermont</i>, is like watching a story of my dream life. Sister of Sandra Bullock, and a former attorney, she is a self taught pastry chef who has a cooking school right in her home and shares her wonderful creations with everyone. Other favorite female chefs I like to watch are Alexandra Guarnaschelli, and her Chopped co-star Amanda Freitag. Watching all these amazing and highly talented women in the kitchen is very inspiring to me, and really makes me want to create new recipes all the time. After all, isn't that why I spend so much time watching these chefs? Today's recipe is not something I "created" really, I'm sure many many people out there have prepared chicken gyros, but this version has me written all over it. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This marinade is everything, guys. The chicken stays so juicy and sooooo flavorful. You can use this marinade for all kinds of meats and for all kinds of dishes. Leftover chicken is perfect in salad too. Don't skimp on that oregano though. Yes, it sounds like a lot of that amount of liquid but trust me on this. t's delicious. Always use dried oregano, like Lidia recommends, and crunch it up in your fingers to release the oils. I do not recommend fresh oregano for this- it can overwhelm and have a chemical taste. The Chef found a package of pitas at Walmart of all places and they were so soft and delicious! They weren't the pocket kind, they were the fold kind but man sakes I haven't had a pita this good in a long long time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The recipe for the tzaziki sauce is provided courtesy of The Chef, whose cooking career was launched at a long-gone Greek restaurant in Des Moines called Papu's. He paid his early dues there in that kitchen and learned a lot about food, Greek food in particular. This is the same recipe for tzaziki that they made back in the day. It was my first time making it, and it was fabulous!</span><br />
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<i><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Chicken Gyros</span></b></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1/4 cup olive oil</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">3 tablespoons lemon juice</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">zest of one lemon</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1/4 teaspoon garlic salt</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1/4 teaspoon black pepper</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2 teaspoons dried oregano, crushed between fingers</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2 cloves garlic, minced</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">red onion, thinly sliced </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">tomato, thinly sliced</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">shredded lettuce</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">soft pita bread</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">tzatziki sauce (recipe follows)</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Place chicken in large zip top plastic bag. Combine marinade ingredients in small bowl and whisk together. Pour over chicken, press out as much air as possible, and allow to marinade several hours or overnight.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Make the tzaziki sauce and refrigerate until serving time.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Preheat grill, or grill pan. Remove the chicken from the marinade and shake off excess. Discard marinade. Cook the chicken until done, let rest for five minutes.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Slice the chicken into bite size slices. Serve in warmed pita bread with sliced onions and tomatoes, shredded lettuce and top with tzaziki sauce.</span></i></div>
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<i><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Papu's Traditional Tzaziki Sauce</span></b></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 cup sour cream</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1/2 cup packed grated cucumber</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1/2 teaspoon garlic salt</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1/2 teaspoon onion powder</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">pinch black pepper</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2 teaspoons chopped fresh dill</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 tablespoon lemon juice</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Peel the cucumbers. Cut into halves and scoop out the seeds. Grate, then blot with paper towels to remove most of the moisture.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Combine the cucumbers and sour cream with all the seasonings and herbs. Mix in the lemon juice right before serving.</span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I just wanted to talk for a few seconds about the grill pan. Mine is a Calphalon and it's indispensable in my kitchen. There are several really good ones on the market including cast iron grills and they last a lifetime. If you prefer to grill on an actual grill, by all means do, but for small items like this recipe, a grill pan can be your secret weapon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-12578944450846342982018-06-20T12:04:00.000-05:002018-06-20T12:04:01.540-05:00Sisters Baking Day, Part One<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwsC2aSKTMhvVg4ErT6INtG78hkEIXq2cUAGNbx8vnAtE57FghSoyQAv5c32tazlnoD766nwAPnz3hAWnBo4xqO9De0z2vRYG-tJz0od5n9NBC20Qi0dLMjUgSgkCpOrM-lnJz0HLBUP4/s1600/day20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="718" data-original-width="960" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwsC2aSKTMhvVg4ErT6INtG78hkEIXq2cUAGNbx8vnAtE57FghSoyQAv5c32tazlnoD766nwAPnz3hAWnBo4xqO9De0z2vRYG-tJz0od5n9NBC20Qi0dLMjUgSgkCpOrM-lnJz0HLBUP4/s320/day20.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Every one in a while you should really take a day off work. For no reason. Not for an appointment, not for anything you HAVE to do. Just one day, preferably a Friday, stretching out your weekend and giving you some down time to just relax and do something just for you. Something fun and carefree. That's exactly what we did, my "sister" Jessica and I. We took a day off of adult life and had a Baking Day.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We didn't totally fly by the seat of our pants, we did write up a list and a loose plan. We started with the ingredients we already had on hand and built from there. We managed to scrape together quite a few solid ingredients to build off: cake mix, flour, sugars, a can of raspberry pie filling, a couple fresh peaches, canned blueberries, a little bit of leftover granola, some cherry chips, an assortment of extracts. We headed off to Aldi to get a last few things- we needed fresh citrus fruits for zests and juices, grabbed some cream cheese just in case, some nuts, real butter, and we were in business.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Not gonna lie here, we did grab a brownie mix at Aldi. Brownie mixes are just too easy and really very good to mess with all the melting and mixing of scratch brownies, especially when Aldi had a special buy on Ghirardelli brownie mix. We baked the brownies in mini muffin cups for the perfect two bite brownie treats.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJz5GLFWAbyX1Ro2IHFZ5JTJyqVlgzgGTfRNNgPjKEdMuffkDr7l2zNnPRCsIUHAIVhhvVoeKpxPI7yjbkBEXwMenEP9ON_I_xBl6LU1hrsRWzO0zpJRZ41obP5qAYFwy9YOxpSptk5No/s1600/day19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJz5GLFWAbyX1Ro2IHFZ5JTJyqVlgzgGTfRNNgPjKEdMuffkDr7l2zNnPRCsIUHAIVhhvVoeKpxPI7yjbkBEXwMenEP9ON_I_xBl6LU1hrsRWzO0zpJRZ41obP5qAYFwy9YOxpSptk5No/s320/day19.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The first recipe we put together was a super easy recipe you're going to want to remember. You start with a cheat item- cake mix. This is the easiest recipe to switch up to suit your tastes and ingredients on hand. Any cake mix, and add-ins. When using a white cake mix, you want to stick with egg whites only, so we used three. If you're using other cake mixes, two whole eggs are perfect. Here is what we did:</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Almond Cherry Chip Cookies</b></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 box 2 layer size white cake mix</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1/2 cup oil</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">3 egg whites</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1/2 cup mini cherry chips*</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1/2 cup toasted sliced or slivered almonds</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">*We used Gurley Golden Recipe brand mini chips</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Heat oven to 350 degrees.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mix the cake mix, oil and egg together.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Stir in the chips and almonds. </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Use a cookie scoop to make evenly sized cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet. Jessica's scoop is about a perfect rounded tablespoon.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bake for 10 minutes until just lightly browned on the bottom. Let the cookies set on the cookie sheet for 3-4 minutes before removing to a rack to cool. </span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We dusted them generously with powered sugar. So so so delicious!!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Up next we were thinking about things that could also go into the freezer, so we'd have treats for future road trips or busy mornings. Naturally muffins were the first thing we thought of! A while back we had a road trip to Boone and visited the Dutch bakery there where we got the most delicious cranberry orange muffins. That's what we decided on. Jessica had some dried cranberries in the cupboard, and fresh oranges and nuts were newly purchased so here is how we made them:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Orange Cranberry Mini Muffins</b></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2 cups flour</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1/2 teaspoon salt</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 stick butter</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 cup sugar</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2 eggs</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2 teaspoons vanilla extract</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1/2 cup milk</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">zest of one orange</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 cup dried cranberries</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1/2 cup chopped walnuts</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray a mini muffin pan with cooking spray. Set aside.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together and set aside. In a mixing bowl, cream the sugar and butter together until light and fluffy. Use a mixer for this, it's so much easier. Beat in the eggs and vanilla, the zest and then stir in the milk. </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Combine with the dry ingredients, mixing just enough to combine. Don't overmix or the muffins will be tough. Fold in the cranberries and walnuts.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Use a scoop to fill the mini muffin pans. Bake for about 20-25 minutes until muffins are done. Remove from pan and cool on a rack. Dip tops of cooled muffins into orange glaze, or drizzle over them.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Simple Orange Glaze</b></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">3/4 cup powdered sugar</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">freshly squeezed orange juice</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mix together with a whisk until desired consistency. Dip muffins or drizzle over.</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The glaze adds just the perfect sweetness and is a great way to use the orange left over after zesting. It's the ultimate topping for these tasty little muffin bites and sets up well so you don't have a sticky mess.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We had plenty more baking on the agenda, so stay tuned!! You won't want to miss the Bars part of our Sisters Baking Day. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-72882328422580777272018-06-17T14:31:00.000-05:002018-06-17T14:31:11.709-05:00Lunch Date- Gusto Pizza<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ya know, a girl has to work to support this cookbook and foodie habit of mine, and a working girl needs to have lunch so recently my friend and co-worker Belinda and I decided to go have lunch. After a couple months of training in our home office, about an hour away from home, we have finally settled into our remote office location here in the city and while we do miss the convenience of having a big cafeteria and coffee bar in the corporate office, we have the freedom to get out and check out nearby restaurants at lunch time. It's nice to get out of the office, and helps build friendships when you can get out and socialize and Belinda and I have become quite good friends since starting our job on the same day back in February. We share the same sense of humor, are the same age, bot have grown kids and grand kiddos and enjoy a lot of the same things outside of work too.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So Belinda and I decided to head over the Gusto for a little lunch time get away from the office. I have had Gusto Pizza on several occasions but Belinda, having just moved back to the city a couple months ago, is a first timer. I knew she was in for a treat. Literally a block away from our office building Gusto is in a prime location in the Clocktower Square shopping center- loads of parking, sunny and spacious patio for nice days, and a bright and contemporary dining room filled with cool art.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The staff greeted us right away and were happy to help Belinda go through the menu options. They do have a $9.00 lunch special that includes your own 7 inch pizza, choice of side and a drink. This is a great deal!! I had been craving just cheese pizza for the last week prior to this lunch so that's what I went with, the Fromage a Trois. Thin cracker like crust topped with a delicious and oh so slightly sweet marinara sauce, topped with Mozzarella, Provolone and Romano cheeses, sprinkled with red pepper flakes and fresh basil. Our server went over all the other options with Belinda and was in no way trying to rush her. He explained all the different pizza options ad she finally decided on the Spartacus- same crust, red sauce, Graziano's Italian sausage, pepperoni, mozzarella, banana peppers and cremini mushrooms. We both chose a side salad- she went with the creamy Italian dressing and I had sun dried tomato vinaigrette, and the salads were fresh, served right away, a nice serving of baby lettuces, tomato and red onion. Other side options were pasta salad or Panzanella. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Pizzas made it to the table in just about 5 minutes, excellent timing for a lunch out. My Fromage a Trois- perfect. That crust though. Little teeny charred bits, so crispy, perfectly done. Fantastic sauce and cheese portions, this was the perfect lunch sized pie. Belinda's Spartacus was generously topped with everything and I was just a little bit jealous that I didn't choose that one!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Gusto has an impressive list of topping options if you'd like to build your own, things like Peppadews, kimchi, shrimp, maple glazed ham, chipotle bacon, Korean marinated pork and so much more. They also serve sandwiches and desserts so there is something for everyone, including vegan and vegetarian options.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Overall our experience in this new Clocktower Square location was top notch. Clean dining room, NO dirty tables, attentive staff and fantastic and fresh food makes Gusto a great date spot, lunch spot or place to meet friends for a casual dinner. Hurry over and try it- you won't be disappointed!!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: times, "times new roman", serif;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-4832846450755119012018-06-14T18:34:00.000-05:002018-06-17T10:03:12.983-05:00The Wine Experience<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It recently occurred to me that we haven't paid a visit to The Chef's home away from home, The Wine Experience. Tucked inside of the large department stores at Jordan Creek Town Center, The Wine Experience offers a unique spot for lunch or dinner while shopping, a place to duck in for a quick glass of wine or two after work, or a breezy patio chair to sit, have dinner, sip from a great bottle of wine and people-watch. The restaurant is a very cozy little spot with a winding wave of a wine bar, and a creative menu with something for everyone. I've always thought it was a great date night spot- quiet, inviting and no wall of tvs blasting the game of the day. Owners Tom and Layne have amassed an eye-popping collection of wines, which changes often so you always have something new to try.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Most of the time I don't actually eat at the restaurant in which The Chef is working. He thinks it's not necessary since he can truly recreate every dish for me at home. While that is true, I thought it was about time we visited the unique little restaurant that has been his home base for the last couple of years. Bonus- one of the gals who works there is a former high school classmate of mine, and we literally have not seen each other since high school! How fun to run into someone after all these years and get to know them again.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I wasn't there for a full on dinner- just a visit and meet the girls who work there, and maybe have a glass of wine. Since I would have to drive home, I reluctantly passed on the wine but stayed to visit and snack on some kalamata olives, goat cheese stuffed Peppadews and a very delish and simple grilled cheese. The menu boasts a great selection of sandwiches made with fresh ingredients. The Chef roasts whole turkey breasts in-house and slices them himself, fresh every day. Pizzas feature a cracker like crust and some interesting toppings, such as charred broccoli, nduja, arugula, pear, different cheeses, truffles, and more. Entree salads are creative and fresh with lots of tasty ingredients.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Stopping in for a couple glasses of wine? There is a fantastic selection of small plates for sharing, or not sharing!! Seared ahi tune, crusted with sesame seed and served rare is delicious and light. Deviled eggs seem to be making a big comeback in restaurants and The Chef has his own recipe here. Goat cheese stuffed Peppadews, drizzled with balsamic glaze, and blue cheese stuffed dates are tasty one bite nibbles that won't ruin your dinner later and pair beautifully with many of the wine choices. Nduja is featured on this menu as well, as a crostini. If you haven't tried this spicy spreadable pepperoni you need to!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Over the time that The Chef has worked at The Wine Experience he has made some great friends, a number of fans and quite a few really memorable dishes for Friday Night Specials. He has prepared some traditional Italian specialties, perfectly seared steak dinners, an incredible selection of homemade soups, and even stepped out of his comfort zone with a few requested dishes that weren't part of his normal repertoire. Let's take a looks at some of those.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When it comes to Italian, it's hard to beat a meaty and cheesy lasagna stacked high with tender pasta. The Chef's trattoria-style red sauce layered with ground beef, Italian sausage, ricotta, Parmesan and Mozzarella cheeses make a lot of happy tummies when that's the Friday feature. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Garlicky Steak de Burgo is a famous Des Moines specialty that many restaurants serve, and each has their own recipe. The original was created at Johnny and Kay's Restaurant in the Hyatt House Hotel way back in the 1950s and still is wildly popular around the city. The Chef paired his with a simple baked potato and steamed green beans to keep all the focus on the steak with the garlic and herb butter drizzled over. This is one of my favorite dishes!!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Another local favorite in Chicken Marsala. The Chef has his own version of that classic as well and he is not skimpy with the mushrooms. He likes to serve it over pasta with some toasted crunchy garlic focaccia alongside. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In the summer months The Wine Experience partners with a local heirloom tomato grower who supplies the restaurant with some truly beautiful fruit and gives The Chef a lot of opportunities to showcase these sweet and juicy Iowa treasures. Caprese Salad is a favorite in the restaurant, and at home, where sometimes this IS dinner! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-13949038226860222052018-06-11T15:14:00.000-05:002018-06-11T15:14:09.642-05:00She Bakes- Very Vanilla Pound Cake<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">As a hoarder of cookbooks, I don't find myself gravitating to any one particular kind of cookbook, or theme, cuisine or food type. I'm pretty much equally obsessed with it all. I've said before, in a way cookbooks are like textbooks to me. I read them like other people read best sellers, and I learn from them. I know techniques I haven't used yet, how to cook vegetables I've never seen all because I've read about it. A lot. In the past couple years though it seems like I have really been feeling a pull towards vintage cookbooks more so than current ones. I'll buy the newest release from my favorite cookbook author, for sure, but I've been enjoying time in thrift stores and antique shops, browsing through old home ec cookbooks, church cookbooks, and some really cool old cookbooks in the neighborhood of 100 years old.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">One of the highlights of my collection is the Presidential Cookbook, adapted from the White House Cook Book. This gem was published in 1896!! Inside the cover, a previous owner, Isabelle Yost from Oakland, California signed and dated the book December 1, 1906. Besides wondering about Isabelle, I wonder how this book from Oakland ended up in an antique store 100 years later in West Des Moines, Iowa. I plan on spending some serious time with this book and maybe we'll even see a future post with some of the recipes prepared from this one. I think that would be a lot of fun!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">I recently acquired a small collection of what must have been free gift cookbooks- small paperbacks from food companies like Jenny Wren Flour and Royal Baking Powder. Included are a couple cookbooks for home canning, published in 1927! Wow, how I loved flipping through that one and seeing how differently home canning is done today. This particular booklet was a gift for customers from the Bank of Dallas Center, in Dallas Center, Iowa. There were recipes for canning foods we rarely see these days- like gooseberries. It's been a long time since I've seen any gooseberries in any store, although on a rare occasion you might find them in farmers markets. Cauliflower made an appearance in there, and these days it's not recommended, but still fun to see how housewives once preserved it. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">What really got to my heart about these booklets were the newspaper clippings and handwritten recipes tucked inside the pages. Many were held together with straight pins, or pinned to a page in the book. Clipped from long-gone newspapers, they were dated 1930-1935. The handwritten recipes were on scraps of paper, then pencil so faded I could barely make out the words. I'm not kidding when I say my eyes teared up a little, wondering about the woman who originally owned these books, who she was, what her life was like.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Probably the biggest thrill in this collection is the paperback Kerr Home Canning Book. Published in 1944 this book is totally geared to the war effort consciousness of the day. With tag lines like "Food is a weapon" and "Food fights for freedom" you can really get the sense of patriotism that World War II era America was living. There were some really wild recipes in there. Canning milk, which we now know you shouldn't do, has full directions. Sweetbreads and other organ meats? Yep, housewives canned those back then. I suppose because literally nothing was wasted during the war years they found ways to preserve as much food as possible. Even artichokes made the list. This booklet was so fun to read through and the 10 cent price tag made me laugh. Times sure have changed.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">The lady who sold me the cookbook collection had a couple other incredible foodie collectibles that are now Property of Me- prize ribbons from the Iowa State Fair, one dated 1922, the other 1923. Both were for prize winning fruit or vegetables grown in someones garden. I'd give anything to know who the person was who won these ribbons, and what their entry was. I've entered and won many ribbons in county fairs but never entered the state fair. What a thrill that would have been. The ribbons are very fragile now, after nearly 100 years, so they are going to be framed and given a place of honor in my cookbook room and hopefully I can do some research on past fair winners and maybe get close to finding who these were awarded to.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">This stroll down memory lane made me want to dig up an old recipe and give it a new twist. I almost always have the basic ingredients for a cake, and pound cake is a wonderful, and old, recipe. My version uses half and half for richness and double the vanilla of most recipes, half of it being vanilla powder. I use a dark vanilla powder so you get those lovely vanilla specks throughout.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b>Very Vanilla Pound Cake</b></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 stick unsalted butter, room temperature</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 1/2 cups sugar</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>4 eggs</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 cups flour</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 tablespoons half and half or milk</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 teaspoon vanilla extract</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 teaspoon vanilla powder*</i></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">* </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">You can find vanilla powder in most spice aisles. I prefer a dark powder, it looks like vanilla bean flecks. I don't remember the brand name because I put it in a different container!!</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Heat oven to 325 degrees. Generously grease a standard size loaf pan and set aside.</i></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at all the vanilla flecks in there!</td></tr>
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<i style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in the eggs on at a time. Add the remaining ingredients and beat until smooth.</i><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Pour batter into prepared loaf pan, smooth the top.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes, or until pick tests clean. Cool for 30 minutes on a rack before removing from pan, then remove and cool completely before slicing.</i></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqA4cxntgTlowGOUoB4P8E51tb7ZrqzId8ACXH5mGua1YHz91f0_CGzWIQAOlzok8cYtVNqTPvuX58-3R3ApryzvFs0dR_l6NYTYl5ed3UGjgAftKD6-uo-2HpfgqeM2lwtJRIr-0ICPQ/s1600/cake1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqA4cxntgTlowGOUoB4P8E51tb7ZrqzId8ACXH5mGua1YHz91f0_CGzWIQAOlzok8cYtVNqTPvuX58-3R3ApryzvFs0dR_l6NYTYl5ed3UGjgAftKD6-uo-2HpfgqeM2lwtJRIr-0ICPQ/s320/cake1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sliced berries and a little drizzle of caramel sauce</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">This cake is the perfect snack just as it is, sprinkle with powdered sugar, drizzle with a glaze- lemon is really lovely! Top slices with fresh berries and whipped cream or ice cream. Use to make trifle or ice cream sandwiches. Pound cake is so versatile and goes with just about any flavor you can pair with it. I love a slice, just plain, with a cup of hot matcha, it's the perfect late night snack.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Another way we love serving pound cake is with boozy macerated berries. Grab some strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries- whatever you like. Slice the strawberries. Toss the fruit with a little bit of sugar and a generous splash of Gran Marnier, Framboise, Cahmbord, or Ste. Germain liqueur. Allow to rest at room temperature for at least an hour. Spoon fruit and juice over cake slices, and top with whipped cream. Sooooo luxe and delicious. Try it!!</span></div>
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Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-28524516050592227042018-06-07T14:08:00.000-05:002018-06-07T14:08:03.843-05:00Project Cookbook and the Weeknight Gnocchi<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Guys, it is actually happening!!! The writing has begun. The cookbook is officially underway! I'm really excited about this project, and believe me it's been a long time coming. As a very young newlywed I knew nothing about cooking, literally nothing. Everything I know today I learned from reading. Reading cookbooks, and magazines, piles of recipes and articles. Long before the days of 24 hour food shows on television I spent many hours poring over books. The first real cookbook that shaped my cooking skills was the old 1980s red and white checked Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book. I never understood why it was called the "New Cook Book' really, but it is the one book every newly independent adult needs to own. Besides some pretty impressive recipes it also covers the basics- how to cook rice, make plain pastry, roast times and temps for meats. It's literally the elementary, junior high and high school of cooking compiled into chapters. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">As the years went by, my collection grew and I began to grow my skills in the kitchen and I started entering contests. I started to think to myself, hey I can do this, I can write recipes, I should write a cookbook! I kept folders of notes, and bought blank journals and wrote page after page of recipes I made up in my different kitchens. I was writing and still reading, new cookbooks come out all the time so I never ran out of things to read. </span><i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Gourmet</i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> and </span><i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Bon Appetit </i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">magazines began to pile up at my house too. Scraps of paper became bookmarks and I learned more techniques and entered more contests and then friends started saying "you should write a cookbook!" The time wasn't right, but still I saved and filed and wrote, and cooked and baked.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Then several years ago I met my friend Ray. We had a mutual interest in food and started throwing around some ideas. We put together a group of writers and set out to launch an internet magazine about food in our state. We collaborated on a few social media groups focused on Iowa food, historical foods and eating out. We eventually started talking about cookbooks. Writing cookbooks, to be exact. Ray knew I wanted to write my own, and he encouraged me to do it! He was secretly hoping I'd go down the Iowa recipes path but that's not what I had in mind, and even he thought about writing an Iowa-centric cookbook, or compile one anyway. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">One day, when we thought we still had a lifetime to work on these things, my friend was gone. His passing left a lot of people heartbroken, and made me value the time we did have even more- talking about crazy food ideas, his hobo dinners and the time he ate some "wild peppers" he found and ended up nearly poisoning himself. I knew if there was ever a time in my life to make this project a reality, it was now, for my friend. For myself.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So here we are. Project Cookbook is a go and I'm working on it almost daily. </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In my head I have a vision, how I want the photography to be, the outline is working. I've got chapters decided and have been sorting through my journals and scrapbooks looking for the right recipes to include in the book. Because I am "The Baker" around here, of course there will be some pretty fantastic cakes and pies and pastries included, but lots of great entrees and appetizers too. I am really going to focus on things my family loved me to cook.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So let's talk about this recipe. It's definitely going in the book, and it's one of my favorite things to make. Weeknight gnocchi. Why weeknight? Because we are using a big time shortcut which shaves a LOT of time off the prep of this dish and makes it something that's totally doable on a weeknight. Who doesn't love that? These are so easy to make you can even get your kids in on the fun, rolling and cutting into little dumplings. Let's make this!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><b>Easy Herbed Gnocchi</b></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>1 cup dry instant mashed potato flakes</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>1 cup boiling water</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>1 1/2 cups flour</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>1 teaspoon dried thyme</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>salt and pepper</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>1 egg, beaten</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>butter</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>fresh thyme for serving</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>Combine the mashed potato flakes and boiling water in a medium bowl. Set aside to cool slightly.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>In a large bowl stir the flour, salt and pepper and thyme, crushing slightly in your fingers. Add the prepared mashed potatoes and mix in, using a fork or a pastry blender, until mostly combined, looking like small peas. Add the egg and mix in well. Knead once or twice.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>On a floured board, roll out egg sized portions of the dough into half inch diameter ropes. Cut into bite sized pieces with a knife. Place on floured parchment on a sheet pan to hold until all dough is rolled and cut.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>When ready to cook, bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add the gnocchi in batches and boil until they float, maybe 3 to 4 minutes. Remove with slotted spoon and continue to cook all. </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>In a large skillet melt a couple tablespoons of butter. Add the cooked gnocchi and heat, stirring only occasionally until the gnocchi are golden brown in spots and coated in butter. Sprinkle with fresh thyme and serve</i>.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQx6U33FCoEM49UIbWbXh7dS7fFGK7W1uU_1lX2Jx-DwdMgC5SZs5HkwSSCTsErW60K7z4DxzYtgmE2tQ2rh6CXARJue15aESTEjMFgyJVw1B970N0fBjbI6dbHUUgEwclQAyONj399EY/s1600/gnoc11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQx6U33FCoEM49UIbWbXh7dS7fFGK7W1uU_1lX2Jx-DwdMgC5SZs5HkwSSCTsErW60K7z4DxzYtgmE2tQ2rh6CXARJue15aESTEjMFgyJVw1B970N0fBjbI6dbHUUgEwclQAyONj399EY/s320/gnoc11.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I served my gnocchi with some pan-roasted chicken breasts, and it was easy to do. Using a cast iron or other oven safe skillet, heat a couple tablespoons of oil and butter until foaming. Season 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts with salt, pepper and fresh herbs of choice. I used thyme. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6jN60JOiL1FcBZCDHkOvqPnRkOdHCG01LfIPEeX20GocGzr6YMljjQdHP0EzCSc73U9uK9-f7HYVZOzPLdYUyY3GhnYIg6h55MczBRREKX3y7g8W5D_3kROnrfia_Wte3oEm7W8J2nCY/s1600/gnoc14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6jN60JOiL1FcBZCDHkOvqPnRkOdHCG01LfIPEeX20GocGzr6YMljjQdHP0EzCSc73U9uK9-f7HYVZOzPLdYUyY3GhnYIg6h55MczBRREKX3y7g8W5D_3kROnrfia_Wte3oEm7W8J2nCY/s320/gnoc14.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH7Vfy150HuK8lLyUyNLcIAhXWlEIlMsoaHXGApj8InVlAUE0wv807MBSpGoUE31ZIZPFGmYnRiU-JeW5hUMg6FYD6i1SurmAzMDxIrsFNiRqJuFAhdlRA9dKaW3TFj64rxtMP-FOM67o/s1600/gnoc13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH7Vfy150HuK8lLyUyNLcIAhXWlEIlMsoaHXGApj8InVlAUE0wv807MBSpGoUE31ZIZPFGmYnRiU-JeW5hUMg6FYD6i1SurmAzMDxIrsFNiRqJuFAhdlRA9dKaW3TFj64rxtMP-FOM67o/s320/gnoc13.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Brown on both sides then pop in a 375 degree oven for about 20 minutes to finish. I removed the chicken, added another tablespoon of butter to the drippings and browned the gnocchi in the delicious chicken drippings. Oh. Em. Gee. Talk about luxurious. We will be making this again!!</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-53179372585878147472018-06-01T08:23:00.000-05:002018-06-01T08:23:01.929-05:00Honey Roasted Springtime<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7qEl0L-deOirtMkf9l3wIgxHspboaWYl1-81NYLc8K7lTWv2cwkMkxehJhTmDprcwWp7BgL3T-yXR7-AlJ-sxTJUlFjwgMK18V86kblfsalvqzTi7FHGNiCeJviVEHZLAvt7sBoXlJGQ/s1600/rhu1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7qEl0L-deOirtMkf9l3wIgxHspboaWYl1-81NYLc8K7lTWv2cwkMkxehJhTmDprcwWp7BgL3T-yXR7-AlJ-sxTJUlFjwgMK18V86kblfsalvqzTi7FHGNiCeJviVEHZLAvt7sBoXlJGQ/s320/rhu1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My friend Janet has a MASSIVE rhubarb patch that<br />
is decades old and still produces year after year.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">If you grew up in the Midwest, like I did, chances are you have memories of Gramma's house, with a big garden in the backyard, many times an apple tree or some other fruit tree, and way in the back of the yard, the ever popular rhubarb patch. It seems to have gone the way of the dodo- not many people are growing rhubarb patches anymore, and that's really sad. This perennial treat is perfect in sweet or savory recipes and makes such a striking display of giant leaves and huge spikes of teeny flower buds. I suppose the suburbanites don't want to dig up a section of their perfectly sodded lawns but even if you don't eat it, it's still a gorgeous plant to have around. Build a flower bed around it, it's really lovely. Back to when I was a kid- everyone and I mean everyone had rhubarb in the backyard. Some of those plants/clumps were decades old. Strawberry rhubarb pie was a very popular dessert when I was growing up, along with rhubarb crisps, crunches, cobblers- you name it. I would imagine simple economics had a lot to do with the popularity of rhubarb back then- thrifty housewives were making good use of what was available in her own backyard.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ5la57w3eCDCh23Vib1XhdPw8-hbu15xowaSlTJMxJYR3vwmYI1bvnhQt6wbO2KoKo2K-KV5F79C3hU58CHaEG81oxzK-0J2I5KEgzmLjJCllhQOGslOr6FtxVCdZ1MdZyVD7c27D9EY/s1600/rhu2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ5la57w3eCDCh23Vib1XhdPw8-hbu15xowaSlTJMxJYR3vwmYI1bvnhQt6wbO2KoKo2K-KV5F79C3hU58CHaEG81oxzK-0J2I5KEgzmLjJCllhQOGslOr6FtxVCdZ1MdZyVD7c27D9EY/s320/rhu2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">David Tallman has two different varieties of rhubarb in<br />
his northern Iowa rhubarb patch.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tastes change over the years and so do lifestyles. People didn't garden like our parents and grandparents did. They didn't have to. Giant supermarkets sprang up all over with huge produce departments that took all the work out of having fresh fruits and vegetables. People embraced this convenience, and the strawberry patches, raspberry bushes, rhubarb patches, apple trees, and vegetable gardens slowly disappeared from our little landscapes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This spring I was gifted a nice bagful of rhubarb from my very good friends Paul and Jennifer Quick. You might remember Paul from Quick's Hot Spice- he is my Pepper Professor and makes this crazy delicious spice blend. They have a beautiful backyard garden with a large clump of rhubarb and they always give me as much as I want. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Like fashion, food trends have their cycles and rhubarb is no different. As chefs and food industry insiders began focusing more on locally grown foods and less on what they can have delivered from far away, foods like rhubarb started to appear on menus and in recipes, in cookbooks and magazines, all over again. Kitchen gardens planted with lots of delicious things like herbs, lettuces, radishes, beans and rhubarb as the anchor are popping up all over. Home cooks and restaurant chefs alike are planting gardens to have access to the freshest ingredients possible. I hope this trend continues for many years to come- I've seen so many of my favorite "old" foods come back in style and on plates and I'm loving it. Rhubarb has always been a favorite of mine. It's not a true fruit, but it's most often used as one with some added sweetener to tackle the puckering tartness. Chefs are coming up with all sorts of inventive ways to use rhubarb. Soups, slaws, sauces and even salads get a puckery kick from this leafy plant. I'm most likely to use rhubarb in a pie, but I thought why not try something just a little different this spring, and ROAST the rhubarb. A little drizzle of honey brings the sweet and orange zest adds a bright citrus pop. Hibiscus joins the party as a very unexpected guest and brings a fruity and floral tea-like note to the rhubarb. The key to success with roasted rhubarb is not to OVER roast it. You want the rhubarb to retain its shape and not cook into a watery soft blob. Check your rhubarb at 15 minutes, it should be JUST tender but not mushy. If it's still a bit crunchy keep checking every couple minutes. Rhubarb contains a lot of water and can go from crunchy to soft very quickly. Since we will be using our rhubarb in a baked tart, I'm going to under-roast it a bit to keep some crunchiness so it will hold its shape.</span><br />
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<i><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Honey Hibiscus Roasted Rhubarb</span></b></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">3 cups red rhubarb, cut into 1/2 inch pieces</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2-3 tablespoons honey</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">4 tablespoons orange juice</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">zest of one orange</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">hibiscus petals, crushed, or hibiscus powder</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Heat the oven to 350 degrees.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Spread the rhubarb pieces onto a rimmed baking sheet, lined with foil. Stir the honey, the zest and orange juice in a small bowl, mixing in some of the hibiscus to taste. Drizzle the honey mixture evenly over the rhubarb. </span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Place in oven and roast for 15-30 minutes. You want the rhubarb to be barely tender but still hold its shape. Drizzle with additional orange juice if needed.</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now that we have this beautiful roasted rhubarb, what are we going to do with it? Make tarts of course!</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Now you can make any size tart you like. I am going to make individual tarts this time. Don't worry if you don't have individual tart pans. Most people don't have a bunch of fancy miniature tart pans sitting around but it's EASY to find a dozen wide mouth canning jar lids! They are cheap, and the perfect size. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For the filling I decided to go with the traditional French pastry filling frangipane. Made with ground almonds or almond flour, this creamy filling has a delicate almond flavor and goes well with almost any fruit or nut combo. I love it with fresh red raspberries and ripe pears. It just seemed natural to pair it with the fragrant hibiscus and honey roasted rhubarb. I'm using almond flour from Trader Joe's that is 100% almonds. No fillers or sweeteners or additives. That's it. It was perfect.</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Frangipane</b> </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 cup almond flour</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1/2 cup sugar</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2 large eggs</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">3 tablespoons all purpose flour</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">big pinch of salt</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Use a mixer to cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy and light. Add the almond flour and mix in completely, scraping the sides of the mixing bowl often. Add the remaining ingredients and beat until well incorporated.</span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Heat the oven to 375 degrees and line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Set aside. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Roll out pie pastry (purchased or homemade) and cut out circles about one half inch larger around than the rings. Fit the pastry into mini tart pans or canning rings with the lids inside. Fill generously with the frangipane. Top with the rhubarb, arranged in a decorative pattern. </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Bake for 20-30 minutes until golden brown. Cool on a rack. Remove the tarts from the rings or tart pans to serve. Serve topped with whipped cream if desired.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Guys, these were delicious little bites of heaven. The flaky crust cradles the creamy almond filling that isn't overly sweet. The roasted rhubarb has the teeniest hint of honey, a touch of hibiscus and orange flavors. It's a great combination and a new and unique way to add rhubarb to your dessert menu. Give these a try with red raspberries or dark sweet pitted cherries too.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-50080319003626465232018-05-29T10:38:00.000-05:002018-05-29T10:38:05.716-05:00Coffee Club- Store Bought Coffees<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Since Jessica and I have both been down and out with a nasty case of flu, bronchitis, eye grossness and sinus misery we have been unable to visit any coffee destinations for a few weeks. We have had to feed our addictions with -gasp!- store bought coffee!! All is not lost though. We didn't hit the bottom of the barrel with Folgers or any of those brands, we still managed to find interesting coffees to make at home as we recuperate, and we are sharing with you.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">From Trader Joe's - Columbia Supremo Medium Roast.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This coffee surprised me. I expected more, but maybe because I started with a small batch locally roasted coffee and almost always Trader Joe's products are top notch. This coffee was a let down. The first pot we made was a little pale, so the next time I used more ground coffee. This caused me to use up the coffee a lot faster than I should have. When I tried to use in the French press I had to grind it a little coarser, which made it even more weak. This is one coffee I won't buy again. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">From Aldi - Barrissimo Fair Trade, Single Origin, Organic medium roast Peru from the San Pablo Estate.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I am really loving the "new" Aldi with so many wonderful choices. Lots of organic products are available and I was really surprised to find this coffee! It's REALLY good and several of my friends have said they also love this coffee. It's a medium roast but it was not weak after brewing and didn't take half a basket of coffee to accomplish that.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">From Starbucks - Kopelani Blend which features 10% beans from Hawaii's Kau coffee growing region. Also a medium roast.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It's no secret I am a Starbucks fan big time, so I expected to love love love this coffee, and I did. Even though it is a medium roast it brewed a beautiful rich and dark cup. Very flavorful. I tried it black and with just a little bit of half and half and it was a perfect cup. I don't know the acidity percentage on this one but it felt like it was relatively low in acid- it was very smooth. Nice oil sheen on the cup. Aroma that welcomed me right in. It's a seasonal blend so I'll have to wait til next year to get this again.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">During our down time we both have been researching and making lists of interesting coffee places in Iowa to visit, and quite a few coffee roasters we want to check out, so stay tuned!! Lots more coffee adventures to come.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: times, "times new roman", serif;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-10873193201796403182018-05-25T09:00:00.000-05:002018-05-25T09:00:15.683-05:00Nathan Night- Lobster Fried Rice<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXaLxM0Dud1DqomOatgjLyJhAN01ceL6WRvoei_7shpD_p02RIFrvUAjwhDxHQoha2_Q_-hymaV43zWyQSrgcQ9n9TQ4AkedeAbMUdRf0Nf8koFYs5BFCDoNT8qZ_2H-oOUAGGoU_zgyw/s1600/lob9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXaLxM0Dud1DqomOatgjLyJhAN01ceL6WRvoei_7shpD_p02RIFrvUAjwhDxHQoha2_Q_-hymaV43zWyQSrgcQ9n9TQ4AkedeAbMUdRf0Nf8koFYs5BFCDoNT8qZ_2H-oOUAGGoU_zgyw/s320/lob9.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Normally on Nathan Night it's all about Nathan and Gramma doing something fun, but this time around The Chef was in on the fun. Since he was off work recuperating from his surgery he got a chance to be Grandpa for the evening and teach Nathan something new. Remember The Chef and Nathan playing guitar together on Easter Sunday? Holy buckets....... now it's DRUMS. Right smack in the middle of the dining room. I just have to shake my head and let boys be boys. It was a lot of fun watching the guys work out a couple songs. We made a couple videos for Nathan's parents to watch and I got a few pics snapped.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">If only you had seen the look in Nathan's eyes sitting on the throne with those sticks in his hands. He was sooooo into it. Honestly for someone who had never ever played a drum in his life, he wasn't half bad! He listened to what Grampa Chef was telling him to do, and did his best to keep the count steady- even got the headbanging motion going on. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">All that drumming will make a guy work up quite an appetite! Nathan had wanted to learn about making Asian dumplings but he also wanted to try something new he'd never eaten before- lobster. Our budget was a little limited to we had to make something that stretched the lobster a bit, and sticking with the Asian theme, fried rice was the best option. We got our lobster at Aldi, believe it or not. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">If you haven't been in an Aldi store, you need to visit. I swear it's our new go-to grocery store. It's two blocks from home and they have a very large selection of organic produce and other foods, healthy grains, gluten free foods, imported European groceries and some of the best prices around, especially on meat and seafood. The package of lobster tails contained two good sized tails, just the perfect amount for our dinner, and a very reasonable $12.99 price tag. Here is how we made it-</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><b>Lobster Fried Rice</b></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>2 lobster tails</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>2 cups instant rice, uncooked</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>1 cup snow peas, halved</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>small bunch scallions, sliced</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>2 tablespoons soy sauce, plus more</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>2 eggs</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>oil for cooking</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>Thaw lobster completely, if frozen. Rinse the lobster well. </i></span><br />
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<i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Bring a large pot of water o a full boil. Add the lobsters and cook for 8-12 minutes until the shells turn bight red and meat is tender. Remove from boiling water and plunge into an ice bath to stop cooking. Pull the meat from the shells and chop into large chunks.</i><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>Place the instant rice in a large boil. Stir in 1 3/4 cups boiling water and the soy sauce. Cover tightly and let stand 5 minutes. Fluff, and spread out on a sheet pan, pop in fridge to cool.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>When ready to cook, heat a large wok or skillet over high heat. Add a swirl of oil. Beat the eggs and add to pan. Cook the egg like scrambled eggs and remove. Add more oil and add the vegetables. Stir fry for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the rice and continue to stir fry until hot. Toss in the lobster and egg, heat through. Serve with additional soy sauce.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Since Nathan has been curious about his Korean heritage, even though he is pretty far removed from his Korean ancestors, he has been talking a lot about dumplings- Asian dumplings. We talked about making dumplings next time we had a weekend together and I had been setting aside recipes but in the end, Nathan wanted to try the lobster more than he wanted to try making handmade dumplings so we went with our old standby- gyoza and shu mai from Trader Joe's. They are so super easy to prepare and very authentic. Nathan was able to help with the frying and steaming and plating. As always, we had a great time and a great dinner! Now we just need to convince Mom and Dad that they need to spring for a drum set too!</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-91927357072702937892018-05-21T09:44:00.000-05:002018-05-21T09:44:11.039-05:00Coffee Club- Corazon Coffee Roasters<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Remember me talking about exploring coffee? Voila!! Welcome to Jessica and Monica's Coffee Club. After a lot of discussion, we have decided to really dig in to the locally owned coffee houses and coffee roasters here in Des Moines, and Iowa, journal our experiences, and share the adventures as we work our way around the state sipping coffee, enjoying the occasional coffee treat, and finally deciding on who our favorites are. You already know how much I love Starbucks, and Jessica does as well, we make many pit stops into Starbucks for a pick me up. Recently we have been making lists of places we want to try- started out mostly restaurants but it wasn't too long before coffee places started popping up. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We did have our visit to Zanzibar's Coffee Adventure, and we have been brewing different coffees from Trader Joe's to try. It's interesting that as we plan our weekend adventures and Foodie Field Trips we come across interesting coffee houses quite a lot. I'm dying to learn more and Jessica is more than willing to teach me everything she knows about coffee.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The suburb of West Des Moines is home to a unique shopping district known as Valley Junction. Cute shops, fun restaurants and bars, trendy shops line the streets. The Junction hosts a big farmers market every summer with loads of vendors and live music, and it's also home to the next place on our list for a Coffee Club visit- Corazon Coffee Roasters. Located in Valley Junction, Corazon offers a large selection of fair trade coffees that are roasted in-house, teas, and coffee accessories. Their coffee is also sold and served in several Des Moines stores and restaurants, including Gateway Market and HoQ.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One of the most impressive features in the store is the roaster. I've never seen one before and it was interesting to hear how the process works, and how each type of coffee is handled differently. There is an equal part art and science in roasting coffee. I'd love to learn more!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Nate is the owner of the store and he is more than happy to fix you a cup on the spot. He also likes to talk about coffee. His coffee knowledge is impressive. He walked us through the roasting process starting with the giant bags of green coffee beans, which can be stored up to two years before roasting. We all know coffee can be acidic, and a lot of that acid content depends on the origin of the coffee beans. South American coffees tend to be the lowest in acidity of all coffees. Where the coffee comes from also helps a roaster decide how long to roast the beans. The light roasts are beans from Ethiopia. Medium roast beans are grown in Mexico, and dark roasts come from other South American countries. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jessica and I enjoyed a perfect cup of pourover Peru dark roast while talking with Nate in the shop, and purchased a pound to take home. This coffee is heavenly, so smooth and rich. The beans are coated in the flavorful coffee oils that roasting brings out. The aroma is amazing. Even at home in my non-fancy Mr. Coffee, this makes one of the best cups of coffee I have ever experienced. It's going to be hard to top this one!</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-51461605422939828842018-05-18T09:48:00.000-05:002018-05-18T21:47:25.343-05:00Mothers Day Brunch with the Grudge Monster<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When you think of culinary hot spots, you might automatically think of New York City, or Chicago. Portland with it's food truck scene. California for health conscious fresh fare. Texas or Kansas City for barbeque. You might not immediately think of Des Moines, but times are changing friends! We are "on the map" so to speak and it's time to give some serious cred. Des Moines is home to a number of James Beard Award winning chefs. The culinary scene has exploded with downtown, the East Village, and western suburbs taking on a Disneyland-like quality for foodies. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We have events throughout the year that peak interest in the food scene too- the Food Truck Showdown. Winefest. World Food and Music Festival. Italian American Festival. The Taco Festival. We have Greek food fairs, Baconfest, even a cheese curd festival. There is literally something for everyone in the city. I just can't get enough either. Every week I find something interesting to attend, or taste. New restaurants pop up and it's hard to even get in the door with all the buzz. That was the case with St. Kilda. Nestled in the Harbach Lofts building on the southern edge of downtown, St. Kilda is owned by Alexander Hall, who brings his culinary vision all the way from Australia. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My Grudge Monster knew I'd been wanting to go to St. Kilda for a long time so her Mothers Day treat for me was a beautiful brunch. I was so excited to finally get to go! The restaurant space is just gorgeous. Industrial with soaring ceilings, exposed ductwork and brick, but flooded with sunlight and sprinkled with elegant and modern seating and fixtures, the dining room pays tribute to the loft building it's situated in. The menu is so creative, and surprising. Portion sizes are perfect- just perfect for your meal, without needing a to go box. This might seem a bit "light" to some people but honestly, in the U.S. portion sizes have gotten out of control anyway. St. Kilda's philosophy is to provide you with a perfectly sized meal you will eat NOW while freshly prepared. Every dish is beautifully plated and garnished and flavors are best described as- FRESH.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We started with beverages, and they have the perfect cup of black coffee. Single origin fair trade coffee is roasted dark, and brews a beautiful strong cup with the perfect hint of oil on top. No cream or sugar added, this cup was warming and happy.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We shared a bowl of the housemade granola and yogurt. Big crunchy nuts, seeds and perfectly toasted oats filled one side of the bowl while Greek yogurt dotted with chia seed filled the other. Local honey drizzled over all, and fresh berries and peach slices were scattered on top, along with a sprinkling of beautiful microgreens. It was perfectly sweet without being overly so, and loaded with flavors and textures.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We each chose a toast for our entree. Grudgie ordered the Mushroom Toast, which was a big slab of toasted crusty sourdough, spread with a truffled cheese spread, and topped with roasted maitake, bunapi, and bunashime mushrooms, drizzled with olive oil, and sprinkled with microgreens. She added a perfectly poached egg. The bread is just....... yum. Crunchy crust, thickly sliced, perfectly toasted, and piled with the mushrooms, it was so savory and delicious.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I went hipster style with the Avocado Toast. This plate is a serious contender for Best Thing I Ever Ate. That same slab of wonderful sourdough is covered in fresh avocado- just smashed just enough. A dollop of salsa, fresh sliced cucumber, feta cheese, a healthy sprinkling of roasted corn and pickled red onions on top- absolute food heaven. I added a scrambled egg to mine, and I don't know HOW they did it, but somehow they managed to absolutely flawlessly duplicate my grandmother's buttery perfect scrambled eggs. Done exactly as I love them, NO brown spots, not too soft, not too overdone. I ate every kernel of corn, every pickled onion ring, every crumb of bread. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I can't wait to go back, and you better believe I will be. St. Kilda also serves some very creative cocktails, beer and wine, a nice selection of coffee and espresso beverages, handmade bakery items and recently started serving dinner. I. Can't. Wait. To. Go. Back.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: times, "times new roman", serif;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-41550591719590675422018-05-15T20:28:00.000-05:002018-05-15T20:28:23.311-05:00Prime Rib Dinner and More!!<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Holidays are special times for most families, and mine is no exception. We have had some serious big time blowouts and elaborate celebrations over the years and we have had some fairly low key celebrations too. Easter 2018 was one of those low key holidays. My daughter Debbee and her husband Randy invited just the Chef and I over for a quiet evening dinner and it was perfect. The Chef and Nathan got to spend some quality time playing guitar and talking about music. Nathan is learning to play guitar now, and you already know the Chef is quite a skilled player, it's only natural that they would share this hobby! Since Nathan is a middle school student he is learning some actual rock songs, like Seven Nation Army by The White Stripes, and a couple Journey songs. I can't wait to see how he develops as a player especially with the Chef as his grandpa.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Both Debbee and Randy are very good cooks, and spend an equal amount of time in the kitchen preparing meals. Even Nathan, as you already know, has an interest in cooking and learning about new foods, and we always share our Nathan Night adventures. Since Debbee and Randy invited us over for Easter Dinner this year and she decided to go BIG with a beautiful prime rib roast. Although we have all eaten prime rib many times out for dinner, she had never prepared one before. She scoured around for hints and recipes and eventually found exactly what she was looking for. Fresh herbs, garlic, and butter added that extra special touch to a pricey cut of meat. Pretty daring for a first timer but she hit it out of the park with this meal.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Almost as enjoyable as the dinner, was her story about shopping for this roast. She had come across a recipe for "ribeye roast" that looked good to her so she decided to make it. She had not yet put two and two together. At the meat counter she didn't see anything marked ribeye roast so she asked the butcher and he said sure, he had some in the back, what size did she need? She told him how many servings and he came back with a good size roast, and after she and Randy approved, he put it on the scale. Just a quick flash before he whipped it off and wrapped it up, she caught the price- $81.00. She said her heart almost stopped, but she had already gone this far, no turning back now, time to make a prime rib roast. Having spent that much on just the meat, they were determined to not only have the perfect Easter dinner, but to utilize every single piece of that leftover roast the rest of the week, and boy did they ever!!</span><br />
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<i><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Herbed Prime Rib Roast</span></b></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 prime rib roast (Debbee had an 8 lb roast)</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2 sticks butter (NOT margarine), room temperature</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">7 cloves garlic, minced</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped, plus more</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped, plus more</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 tablespoon salt </span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 teaspoon pepper</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></i>
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Allow the prime rib roast to stand at room temperature for about four hours. Two hours before dinner, heat the oven to 500 degrees. </span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In a bowl combine the softened butter with the garlic, herbs, salt and pepper. Spread all over the top and sides of the roast, including the ends. Place roast on a rack in roasting pan and place in preheated oven. Roast at 500 degrees for 5 minutes per pound, then turn off the oven and leave the roast inside. <b>DO NOT OPEN THE DOOR!!!!</b> Leave the roast untouched for two hours. Meat should be 135 degrees, or rare. Remove roast to cutting board and reserve the drippings to make the gravy. Slice the roast into servings and serve with mashed potatoes, herbed gravy, and a vegetable or salad. </span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></i><i><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Herbed Gravy</span></b></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Pan drippings</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 tb flour</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 cups beef broth</i></span><br />
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<i style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Place the roasting pan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour until a smooth paste forms, then whisk in the beef broth. Cook, until bubbly and thickened. Add a few pinches of reserved fresh herbs right before serving.</i><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Since the roast they purchased was an 8 pound roast and a lot more than we would eat for dinner, Debbee was going to make sure to waste nothing from this splurge. The next day, part of the leftover beef became a beef stroganoff with creamy sauce, and tender pasta.</span><br />
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<i><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Debbee's Beef Stroganoff</span></b></i><br />
<i><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b></i>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 tablespoons olive oil</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 shallot, minced</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 cloves garlic, minced</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 tablespoons butter</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 tablespoons flour</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon, crumbled</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1/2 teaspoon dried sage, crumbled</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, crumbled</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>salt and pepper</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 cup sliced mushrooms</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 teaspoons Dijon mustard</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1/4 cup sour cream</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 1/2 cups leftover prime rib, cut into strips</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>fresh parsley, chopped</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally until browned. Add the shallot and garlic, cook for one minute longer until softened but not brown. Stir in the herbs and salt and pepper.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Add the butter. When melted, stir in the flour and mix in completely. Add the beef broth, Worcestershire sauce and mustard and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes until thickened. Stir in the prime rib and cook until heated through. Remove from heat and stir in the sour cream.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Serve over hot cooked noodles, sprinkled with parsley.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The second day was Taco Tuesday with a clever twist on steak tacos. This recipe even used some of the leftover horseradish sauce from Sunday to create a zippy avocado sauce to add a kick.</span><br />
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Steak Tacos with Avocado Horseradish Sauce</span></i></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>olive oil</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>leftover prime rib roast, cut into bite size strips or chunks, about 1 pound</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 limes</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 tablespoons taco seasoning or chili powder</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>6 flour tortillas</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>shredded cheese</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>pico de gallo- your favorite recipe</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Avocado Horseradish Sauce- recipe follows</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Cut the limes in half. Cut one half into wedges and set aside for serving. Juice the remaining limes.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>In a large skillet, heat a couple swirls of olive oil. Add the prime rib and sear well. Sprinkle the lime juice and taco seasoning over. Continue cooking until heated through.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Warm the tortillas. Place a small amount of cheese on the bottom, top with the meat, a little pico and the avocado sauce. Serve with lime wedges.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b>Avocado Horseradish Sauce</b></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 medium avocado, peeled and pitted</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 cloves garlic, finely minced</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 tablespoons lemon juice</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 teaspoon prepared horseradish</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>salt and pepper</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Cut the avocado into chunks and place in food processor with remaining ingredients. Blend or pulse to desired consistency. Serve immediately.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Finally, the remaining prime rib roast was sliced into super thin slices, heated in simmering au jus, and piled onto French rolls for some easy and fast French Dip Sandwiches. You can have this meal on the table in minutes with one simple shortcut- canned au jus or au jus mix packets! So easy and so delish!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I was truly impressed not only with Easterdinner, but her creative uses for those leftover. She used up every bit of the meat too! So, tell me, if you had to recycle some leftover prime rib roast, what would YOU come up with?</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-42138328647819422232018-05-01T08:16:00.000-05:002018-05-01T08:16:23.162-05:00Foodie Field Trip- NewBo City Market and Sykora Bakery<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A couple of summers ago I belonged to a bloggers group in Iowa. The purpose of the group was to network with other bloggers, share ideas and hints, plan and attend classes and seminars and bigger conventions, and to create interest in our local areas. The other members were from all over the state and were interested in all different types of blogging subjects. One woman was a turkey farmer with her husband, another a stay home mom in Amish country, another a pig farmer, and yet another a military veteran now promoting a green lifestyle and homeschooling. This diverse group of people, both men and women, would hold a meet up a couple times a year and on one occasion, the meet up was help at a place called the NewBo City Market in Cedar Rapids. I had not heard of this market, or whatever it was, so I did a little research and it sounded exactly like something I would love. At the last minute I was unable to attend the meetup, and had to make do with every one else's pictures and stories about their experiences that day, and it made me even more sad that I'd missed out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Fast forward about three years and here I am, with a whole Saturday of nothing to do and nowhere to be when inspiration struck and my friend Jessica and I decided to hit the highway on a little adventure. Cedar Rapids is not all that far from Des Moines so we got up early in the morning and set out to experience the market for ourselves.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">You get a real big city feel when you step into the market. The building, which is a former warehouse and metalworks company, is very spacious and home to a number of local vendors offering a wide selection of food offerings, baked goods, meat products, health and beauty, coffee, and much more. Right in the heart of the New Bohemia District in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, the market is open year round and is also a busy events center in addition to a cool market. This nonprofit organization prides itself on its commitment to the community, offering classes, entertainment, assistance with business startups, arts and educational opportunities.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Our visit to the market was awesome. It's so easy to get to and has loads of parking, something a lot of downtown districts in other cities can't say. When we arrived volunteers were out on the lawn setting up and Easter egg hunt for neighborhood kids. Stepping through the doors and it's almost sensory overload. Lots and lots of welcoming smells, busy sounds, laughter, happy people milling about. I was surprised at the variety of vendors in the market. The first one I saw was offering plants and interesting pottery pieces, and right next to them a vendor had a gorgeous display of botanical art- posters featuring different birds, butterflies, plants and flowers. A gourmet ice cream shop was to my right, and a steamed Asian dumpling stand was on the left. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Essential oils, crystals and rocks, pizza, artisan breads, cheeses and meats, cakes and cupcakes, pies and plenty of food options for our lunch rounded out the market. There were food choices from the most popular cuisines- American style gourmet grilled cheese, barbeque, Mediterranean, Mexican, salads and vegetarian, and the Asian dumplings. Jessica chose a very very gooey and perfectly toasted grilled cheese with three cheeses and homemade hand cut sweet potato fries. I went for the dumplings and had Korean mandu and Chinese pork and cabbage. Everything was soooooo good. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I snapped up some essential oils and a gorgeous loaf of crusty sourdough bread before we left the market and headed over to explore the Czech Village. It's hard to imagine that just ten years ago all of this part of the city was under ten feet or more of nasty muddy floodwater. Now it's busy and growing with all kinds of cool loft buildings and condos, shops, restaurants and interesting places to visit. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Czech village is literally a few blocks away from the market, on the other side of the river, and besides the lure of the antique shops, which you know, we just had to check out, offers something I plan on visiting everywhere I go- a bakery. In this case of course, it's a Czech bakery and featured cases of fruity kolache for sale, Czech cakes like the babovka and breads, a cafe that serves lunch, and Czech gift items. The bakery is named Sykora Bakery, and it's located in a building that's been around since the days of dirt roads and wooden sidewalks. Originally opened in 1903, the bakery was purchased by Joseph Sykora in 1927 and was operated by the Sykora family until 1994, when another local family purchased the bakery. Devastated by floodwaters in 2008 and it took over 300 volunteers to get things back into working order including completely gutting and rebuilding the building and replacing the eighty year old Hubbard ovens with modern equipment.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">You know we grabbed some kolache to take back home, I chose cherry and apricot, one of each for The Chef and I to sample. Absolutely lovely. Flaky and tender pastry and generous amounts of the fruit filling that surely were homemade. They had big chunks of apricot and big sour cherries- these couldn't have come from a can or jar. They had many other flavors to choose from like apple, strawberry, blueberry, cheese, fig and poppyseed. That's maybe half of the flavors offered. The variety was huge! The babovka reminded me of bundt cakes and looked delicious.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The antique stores were fun to visit. They had a lot of things you see at any antique store as well at a fairly large selection of European and especially Czech, items for sale, such as artwork, books, glassware and china. The cast iron display was enormous!!!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We did a little sightseeing around Cedar Rapids before hopping back on the interstate and heading home, but in all honestly, it's not much to see. It's a very industrial city and not a lot of curb appeal for driving around, but if you seek out those little hidden gems like the market and the Czech Village, it's definitely worth a visit.</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-51692836058137069492018-04-26T10:19:00.000-05:002018-04-26T10:19:31.248-05:00Recycled Dinner- Using Leftovers in a No Recipe Meal<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Leftovers. You either love them or hate that. Some people eat them, others leave them in plastic containers until they return to life in a fuzzy bowl of antibiotics-to-be. Some people refuse to even save them. Sometimes they make a great lunch the next day and sometimes you're eating them for the next three days. Leftovers don't have to be boring and with a little creativity, they don't have to be the exact same meal either. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Friday night I came home from work dreading the coming winter storm. I walked in the front door and was immediately met by lovely aromas. The Chef was busy cooking dinner. He was making a roast beef, rubbed with a coffee and spice meat rub he put together and slowly roasting in a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon. He makes an absolutely killer roast beef and uses all the traditional vegetables- carrots, onions, garlic, mushrooms. After a delicious dinner we still had a good portion of roast beef left over, and a small bowl of roast potato wedges so he tucked those away in the fridge for now.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Saturday night meant pizza night, and more leftovers. For toppings, we wanted salami, mushrooms, onions, olives green peppers. I needed one bell pepper, but they came in packages of three, so, you guessed it, two peppers were leftover.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">So here we are on Sunday and I need to pull something together using the various left over items from our last couple dinners. This is going to be easy! I've got everything I need- roast beef to chop up, vegetables to add flavor and textures, roasted potatoes to either incorporate or serve alongside, and two beautiful bell peppers to pull it all together!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Get started by preparing the peppers. I used two large green bell peppers. Cut in half lengthwise and remove seeds and membranes. I charred the peppers a little over the gas burners to get a smoky roasted flavor. Spray a baking dish with cooking spray and arrange the peppers cut side up. Set aside.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For the filling I prepared 1/2 cup uncooked rice, using the leftover broth from the roast as the liquid. Just cook it like you would regular rice, and set aside.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pick out and chop enough of the roast beef to make about one cup, enough for four pepper halves. Chop some of the mushrooms and onions. I smashed a couple cloves of garlic too. In a medium bowl, toss the meat cubes, rice, and vegetables with about 1/2 cup salsa or pasta sauce- whatever you have around. Divide the filling among the pepper halves. Top each with some shredded or sliced cheese. Cover with foil, but tent it, so the cheese doesn't stick to the foil and bake at 375 for about 30-45 minutes, uncovering at the end to brown the cheese.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Wasn't that easy? No recipe, just use whatever you have. You can add veggies such as leftover corn, or olives, or whatever you like. Serve with a salad and some bread and you've got a super fast and economical dinner that helps clean out the fridge!</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-27990343482877808222018-04-23T16:32:00.000-05:002018-04-23T16:32:15.786-05:00Lemon Curd Cheesecake<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Lately I have been thinking a lot about baking. Discovering new and interesting bakeries is always fun, and with Jessica and I venturing out and exploring other Iowa towns and cities we have come across some really great bakeries in the last couple months. We visited a Dutch bakery in Boone, as Czech bakery in Cedar Rapids, an old fashioned small town bakery in Walnut, and a handful of cake and cupcake bakeries right here in Des Moines. With all these bakeries on our agenda, I did notice one thing seemed to be missing from most of these bakeries- cheesecake. Not totally absent, we did find a couple cheesecakes but the majority of the bakeries were focused on cakes, pies and pastries. Lots of bread, but not lots of cheesecake, which just means I have to bake my own.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Some people think cheesecake is hard to make- so not true! It all starts with a very basic batter with just a few ingredients, and with this basic New York style cheesecake base recipe you can go anywhere with flavors, like this bright and zesty lemon version, topped with thick and tangy lemon curd (store bought or homemade) and spiked with freshly grated lemon zest throughout. I've made so many different cheesecakes from this recipe- some with liqueurs or cordials, some fruit flavored, and even a matcha tea cheesecake. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A water bath is essential for a perfect cheesecake. There are two ways to do this. One, you can wrap the outside of the pan securely with foil, place in a larger pan and add boiling water halfway up the side of the cheesecake, and bake, or you can place a separate pan of boiling water on another shelf in the oven, like below your cheesecake, and bake it like that. Be very careful removing the pan of hot water from the oven afterwards!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Let's talk about lemon curd for just a minute. Lemon curd is a tradition British condiment that's often served with breads at tea. It is similar to the canned lemon pie filling you might remember from your childhood except it's usually a bit thicker. It's also popular as a filling for tarts and cakes. It's a simple recipe, just fruit juice, sugar, eggs, maybe some cornstarch, and cooked to thicken. Lemon and lime curd are the most popular but you might find orange or even berry curds in some specialty stores, and of course you can always make your own. Recipes are easy to find, and like cheesecake, the basic recipe is simple to alter just by swapping out fruit juices and zests. Grapefruit curd is especially nice, and raspberry is one of my very favorites. We are saving time by using store bought lemon curd. You can find it at almost any grocery store, usually by the jams and jellies. Stonewall Kitchen is a great brand, and so is Trader Joe's lemon curd. I highly recommend either.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i>Lemon Curd Cheesecake</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 1/2 cups crushed vanilla wafers or graham crackers</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1/3 cup melted butter</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 lbs cream cheese, room temperature</i></span></div>
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<i style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">1 cup sugar</i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 teaspoon vanilla</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>2 tablespoons flour</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>4 eggs</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 lemon, zested and juiced</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 jar store bought lemon curd</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Set oven to 325 degrees. Fill a baking dish with hot water and place in the oven on the lowest rack. Prepare an 8 inch springform pan- butter the sides and bottom well.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>On a small bowl toss the crushed cookies and melted butter until combined. Press evenly on the bottom of the prepared pan. Set aside.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Place the cream cheese in a medium mixing bowl- using a stand mixer makes this batter super easy. Use the paddle attachment and beat cheese until fluffy. Gradually add the sugar, vanilla, lemon juice, zest, flour and eggs. Pour the batter over the crust in the pan, smoothing the top. Bake in the oven for 50-60 minutes or until cake feels first and has a slight "jiggle"- it will continue to set on cooling. Cool on a rack, then cover and chill completely. I usually refrigerate this overnight before continuing.</i></span><br />
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<i style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Use a knife to loosen the sides of the cake from the pan. Place on serving plate and carefully remove the sides. </i><i style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Before serving spread the top with the lemon curd. I like a nice thick layer of lemon, but use it to taste. </i><br />
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<i style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Decorate with dollops of whipped cream and additional fresh lemon slices, if you like. Make sure to store this dessert in the fridge.</i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."</span></div>
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Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-66945649659096720522018-04-19T07:50:00.000-05:002018-04-19T07:50:16.694-05:00Cranberry Custard Pie<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBT8DUr1UpmrfTg1NKvl4cOSqIVOUBJlu1mxGG-FH7UuA4I-WkcEnwqdUcrsGalsOrnC6b6gi1vWJtE21UtmdkA9JQ6qSpNZui7KyjsGomvj8dz9YgrkIY2tEId0JrQrh4ejJ1H9TS4ps/s1600/band2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBT8DUr1UpmrfTg1NKvl4cOSqIVOUBJlu1mxGG-FH7UuA4I-WkcEnwqdUcrsGalsOrnC6b6gi1vWJtE21UtmdkA9JQ6qSpNZui7KyjsGomvj8dz9YgrkIY2tEId0JrQrh4ejJ1H9TS4ps/s320/band2.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Seems like these days The Chef is spending more time rockin' the Gibson Flying V and less time rockin' the kitchen, and that means I get more "stove time" so yay!! I'm baking!! Seriously, as he is putting together a new band there is a lot of work to do. Working with other musicians can be as challenging as it is rewarding. You already know about his musical background, so let's talk about the future- still no solid band name, lots of ideas being tossed around. The lineup is complete with Mike, Steve and Dave rounding out the talent. The set list is mostly classic rock, not as heavy as I usually like, but its solid, has a great variety or eras and a lot of songs people are going to want to sing along with. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Chef is a big fan of Uncle Ted so Stranglehold is one he is particularly excited to play. He's got some Tom Petty in there, and the Buckethead/Alien Ant Farm version of Smooth Criminal, and of course, true classics from Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin. He is a HUGE fan of Chicago so 25 or 6 to 4 is in the mix too. I tried to get him to add some Damn Yankees, to no avail, but a couple other suggestions might actually make the set list. I haven't given up on the Damn Yankees though. A girl can always hope, right?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The guys have been at this for a while now, sometimes derailed by the unpredictable Iowa winter weather. Schedule a practice on Monday and by Friday you're knee deep in heavy wet snow. Reschedule for Sunday but now it's 65 degrees and at least one guy is sopping up water in his basement. Plan on next weekend, but hey, ice storm!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As springtime reluctantly begins to shine here in Iowa, many of us, myself included, are thinking of all the beautiful spring berries that are starting to pop up in stores. Raspberries are by far my favorite of all berries, but there is a close second that you might find surprising. I mean, on one hand, we have plump, juicy and so sweet raspberries, and on the other we have kind of waxy textured, definitely not juicy and absolutely NOT sweet, and not in season in spring, cranberries. I love those guys! So much so that when they are in season, I will grab several bags of fresh crans and toss them in the freezer for later. When the holidays roll around I can always whip out a bag of cranberries and make homemade sauce, but I also like using them in other recipes, and outside of the normal cranberry season they are fun and unexpected. Which brings us to this pie. In all honesty I DID make this for Christmas dinner, but.... since I still have four bags of cranberries in the freezer this is something easy and inexpensive that I can whip up in a minute.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I make my own pastry usually but you absolutely can use purchased pastry- just roll it out and fit it into your pan, or use frozen in a disposable pan. I won't judge. Another pantry item I always have on hand is heavy whipping cream. I say pantry because I buy shelf stable heavy whipping cream at Trader Joe's. It's in the baking aisle and it comes in little boxes like juice boxes. No refrigeration is needed until you open the package. It's the best invention ever.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><i>Cranberry Custard Pie</i></b></span></div>
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Adapted from Country Living</div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 recipe single crust pie pastry</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries*</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 tablespoon flour</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 egg white</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>1 cup heavy whipping cream</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>*If using frozen cranberries, allow the thaw at room temperature for an hour or so. I spread them out on a sheet pan to help them thaw quickly.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Heat the oven to 425 degrees.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Prepare the pastry, roll out and fit into 9 inch pie plate. Flute and crimp edge. Set aside.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Stir together 2/3 cups of sugar with the flour. In a separate bowl, beat the egg white until stiff peaks form. Fold into the flour mixture, stirring in the cream as well.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Pour the cranberries into the pie shell. Sprinkle the 1/3 cup sugar over the cranberries, then pour the cream mixture over all. </i></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrMQYQG-kKG1nbkjct6-Xb1HeV99PCxrzwB7-ZGI7GT_Nf9qdAHOXjXh3SnZsnXOH3M5YyV9mMD2euayo3x8mNKzSOCy_B9iJWuvS9vMkNh2bDLN5Hwsc1F8xnaU5Iw2-Eato1QPQUaSw/s1600/cran3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrMQYQG-kKG1nbkjct6-Xb1HeV99PCxrzwB7-ZGI7GT_Nf9qdAHOXjXh3SnZsnXOH3M5YyV9mMD2euayo3x8mNKzSOCy_B9iJWuvS9vMkNh2bDLN5Hwsc1F8xnaU5Iw2-Eato1QPQUaSw/s320/cran3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Place in the oven and bake for 10 minutes, then lower the temp to 350 and bake for 40 minutes. Cool completely before serving. </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This pie is the perfect combination of sweet and tart and is absolutely wonderful with a dollop of whipped cream on top. Try it!!!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-80553036958149699242018-04-16T14:34:00.000-05:002018-04-16T14:34:06.906-05:00The Holy Grail of Holiday Drinks- The Tom and Jerry<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIX3EgmHgAwQIj9PTjchQlRYhJQY_DtN4U6GNCUum9RDFx3iCXymB3J5U6UfBO8nWXceEuNUAJygX8DHXxVhWqCw315CHG7hauVXQRV2COeFi3XetP4U0BbYf7B7xjiG1oF6YpcPCYhy0/s1600/tom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="538" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIX3EgmHgAwQIj9PTjchQlRYhJQY_DtN4U6GNCUum9RDFx3iCXymB3J5U6UfBO8nWXceEuNUAJygX8DHXxVhWqCw315CHG7hauVXQRV2COeFi3XetP4U0BbYf7B7xjiG1oF6YpcPCYhy0/s320/tom.jpg" width="179" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Before I know it, summer is going to be here, with the humidity and oppressive heat. I'll be moaning and groaning about it, most certainly. The Minnesota girl in me is built for cold weather and snow that's for sure, so it should be no surprise really, that while the rest of the state is looking towards spring, new flowers, leaves unfurling, gardening, even tornado season, I'm obsessing over something you only say in the coldest times of the year. It all started about a year ago. I was minding my own business, wandering an antique store here in Des Moines, looking for vintage cookbooks and doilies when I came across something that brought all the childhood feels flooding back- a Tom and Jerry punch bowl set. Holy balls!! I wanted to take it home with me but it wasn't in my budget that day, and someone else took home the prize- it was gone the next time I went.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Saddened by this lost opportunity I began browsing Ebay and online posts. I wanted one sooooo bad. A many times as I went back to the antique store, I never found another one. My dream of owning this precious piece of memories was fading quickly. I'd already worked out the recipe for the batter. The drink, you see, is a holiday tradition- a little bit like a hot boozy eggnog but not quite. Eggs, butter, sugar and warm spices are mixed into a batter that combines with brandy or rum and steamy hot water for a perfect cup of holiday cheer. Some families have their traditional recipes. My family bought the batter at a local grocery store. It was only available for a very short time and always sold frozen. My grandmother always called it "batter crap" ,my mother carried on that tradition and to this day my dad, sister and myself still say that.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I was minding my own business one day when I got a text from my sister. "Are you home?" she asked. I was not, of course, I was out and about food shopping and having a bite of lunch. "Well, I bought you something. I want to bring it to you." I had noooooo idea the surprise I was in for that day. She sent me two pictures and told me to pick which one I wanted. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My heart stopped, I swear. The end of the search. The object I had been crushing on for years, the missing link, the be all and end all. The Tom and Jerry punch bowl set!!!!!! I picked the white set, and she kept the green set. The happy ending is mine. Tom and Jerrys shall be enjoyed in my home once again. I cannot tell you how many cups of this iconic holiday drink have been served by my family at Christmas time. I'm not sure any human has ever counted that high! Seriously! The Tom and Jerry is as much a part of my life, my memories and my DNA as blonde hair and freckles. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The batter is made as follows:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">12 eggs, separated</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 pound butter</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">3 pounds powdered sugar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 teaspoon each: ground nutmeg, ground cloves, ground allspice, cinnamon</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2 teaspoons vanilla *</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">big pinch salt </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">*I used 1 teaspoon liquid vanilla and 1 teaspoon vanilla bean powder because I wanted the little flecks of vanilla in the batter, but you can use all liquid if you prefer.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In a large bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Set aside.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In another large bowl, beat the egg yolks until lemon colored and very thick. Set aside.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In a third bowl, beat the butter and the powdered sugar and spices together. Mix in the egg yolks and vanilla. Stir in the egg whites until completely blended. Pour mixture into a freezer safe container and store in the freezer.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To make a classic Minnesota-style Tom and Jerry, place 1-2 ounces of brandy, whiskey or spiced rum in a coffee mug. Add 2 tablespoons of the batter mixture and top up with simmering water or milk. My family always used water. Stir and enjoy.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Doesn't that just make you feel all warm and happy and cozy inside? I know it sure does me!!</span></div>
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Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-53317060574137350002018-04-06T11:45:00.000-05:002018-04-06T11:45:17.400-05:00Foodie Field Trip- Main Street Cafe and Bakery<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ohhhhhhhh cake. I have such a love affair with cake you just cannot imagine. On the heels of the cupcake bakery boom our city is seeing an uptick in bakeries, many serving lunches and dinner and I am having all sorts of fun exploring them. Everyone knows my almost-sister Jessica and I have our little "thing" we do- thrift shop for a weird variety of goodies that The Chef thinks I don't need (but honestly, I DO need more cookbooks and doilies and teacups and unusual knives and.........) and then we grab a bite to eat, and many times this is centered around what we might have afterwards for dessert. One recent Saturday, after a trip to a thrift store in Ankeny that didn't result in many great discoveries we decided we needed something to cheer us up- cake. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ankeny has been growing my leaps and bounds in the last several years and entire new section of town had sprung up- like a town center all by itself with loads of houses and apartments and new schools, new shopping and of course, new restaurants. It's in one of these little districts that the <a href="http://www.mainstreetcafeandbakery.com/">Main Street Cafe and Bakery</a> can be found. Don't let the drive thru menu outside fool you- what you find inside is so much more than cheapo drive thru food. The menu is large but not overwhelmingly so. Lots of salads, sandwiches, burgers and a few pastas give you lots to choose from. There are ten daily soups- yes ten! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My first visit to Main Street was so delicious. Jessica had been there before but I had not, obviously, and had no idea what to expect. She warned me there would be cake. Ohhhhh Lord she wasn't kidding. The entire counter was lined end to end with beautiful cakes. Chocolate, carrot, lemon,red velvet, grasshopper, so many, but the ones that caught our attention were the Chocolate Raspberry Cake and the Almond Cake. We ordered dinner- we'll get to that in a bit, and a slice of cake each so we could share. Now the chocolate cake was decadent, rich fudgy truffle-like frosting and moist cake layered with sweet raspberry filling. Three amazing layers of chocolate heaven. As wonderful and swoon-inducing as this cake was, it was nowhere near as sublime as the almond cake. One bite and the words wedding cake popped into both of our minds. Moist and tender white cake with a lovely vanilla and almond essence layered with almond buttercream. Ho.Ly.Heck. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Like I said, we did actually order dinner before the cake, and it was fantastic. We both ordered a Frisco burger- juicy burger, Swiss and Cheddar, caramelized onions, signature sauce sandwiched between slices of sourdough coated in butter and Parmesan cheese. Crispy crust on the bread, super juicy burger and the sauce was awesome. I had a choice of side and went with a salad with Blue Cheese dressing- perfect partner. Plus.......it left room for cake!! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On our second visit we knew to go easier on the dinner order and save room for the cake!!! This time around I had the Cheesy Chicken Tortilla Soup, which came to the table steaming hot, full of chunky chicken, corn, black beans, tortilla strips, all drizzled with crema. One of the best soups I have ever had in a restaurant. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jessica ordered grilled chicken strips with steamed broccoli and it looked amazing. The broccoli was so fresh!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">So, again, we had cake. Jessica chose the coconut cake and I had KitKat Cake. The coconut cake was a snowy dream of vanilla cake and toasted coconut, creamy buttercream, promises of heaven and love and angels' wings. The KitKat Cake was another sky high chocolate masterpiece of luscious chocolate cake layers, milk chocolate buttercream, dark chocolate drizzle and miniature KitKats. Yum yum yum yum YUM. I kinda liked it, in case you were wondering. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The cake keeps calling me back, and on my most recent visit, we met just for dessert. Jessica chose the almond cake again and I went with a raspberry almond cake. I keep going back for the raspberry cakes! Wow. Heavenly layers of golden vanilla cake layered with a swirled buttercream and raspberry jam. Sprinkled with slices of toasted almond and swirls of that creamy buttercream. Just wow. This might be my favorite of all the cakes I have tried here!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-63530950295628253242018-04-03T11:30:00.000-05:002018-04-03T11:30:09.879-05:00Buckets of Chicken, and Drunken Chicken<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Let's talk about buckets of chicken. First of all, sometimes The Chef and I do get lazy and decide to just drive through someplace and get some chicken. A bucket of chicken goes a long way for us- fried chicken and all the fixins the first night, leftovers for lunch and maybe even a last couple pieces to cut up and toss in a salad or sandwich. Have you ever tried making chicken salad sandwiches with cut up FRIED chicken? OMG- you must. Now back on track......so we arrive at the unnamed chicken drive through and order our chicken. We get to the window and the employee tells us they are out of legs, would it be ok if they subbed additional thighs in their place? Of course! Thighs are, for me, the best part of the chicken, right? We get home........no chicken thighs. Those dirty rats shorted us on chicken!!! Ugh!!!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Speaking of buckets, have you ever heard of a guitarist who wears a chicken bucket on his head and conceals his identity? That would be Buckethead. He is a metal guitarist who has played with Guns and Roses and several others, and tours on his own with a unique show and playing style, most notably a white mask over his face and that chicken bucket on his head. I have no idea what this guy looks like underneath all that. Anyway, Buckethead has been on The Chef's bucket list for a very long time and since we got to see John5 a few weeks ago, hearing Buckethead was coming to town, The Chef just had to go. The show was unlike any he had ever seen before, both in volume and the performance. Buckethead plays with an accompanying soundtrack instead of a live band and uses an arsenal of effects to create some pretty unusual music. Definitly something a guitarist like The Chef would enjoy. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The Chef often spends his time away from the restaurant playing at different jam sessions around town, and is working with his own band, perfecting their set and working on some new material. He is a very talented musician in his own right, and I can say that without being biased. He has well over 30 years of playing under his belt and it's just part of his DNA. Classic rock is his genre, and he will even sing on occasion if he has to. Of course, when it's my night to cook, that's when you'll definitely find him plugged in and shredding. I get a concert every night.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And with that, we are back to talking about chicken. With my new job and very long, but temporary, commute I get home a lot later than I did before and some days I just don't feel like standing in the kitchen cooking. Times like these are when I turn to simple braises to make a homey and delicious meal. Chicken is my favorite for braising and it doesn't take as much work as you think. A quick brown in hot oil in a big Dutch oven, some aromatics, and a braising liquid, popped in the oven for an hour or so and dinner is served, without the need for any special appliances or equipment. Braising is a very simple technique- you're simply roasting your meat in a liquid, to add flavor, and to bring on a tenderness that's nearly effortless. You can use almost any liquid to braise- stock or broth, wine, beer or vegetable juice all make delicious braises. Be sure to add aromatics like garlic, onion and herbs to really bring out the flavors. Fresh herbs are often too delicate for a braise, with a couple exceptions- thyme and rosemary work well, most others I prefer using the dried version.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The recipe calls for two cups of wine- basically it's a whole bottle with a swig for the cook *wink wink*, because honestly, we have to check the wine, right? I used a fairly inexpensive Riesling, a 2015 Rheinhessen, the kind in the cute cat bottle. It's not too sweet and it doesn't have that oaky taste I hate in Chardonnays. Riesling and Pinot Grigio are my preferred whites for cooking.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Quick note on the chicken- we bought chicken leg quarters- skin on and bone in. I cut the legs and thighs apart myself and removed the section of backbone that was attached. Not all leg quarters have that backbone attached. For a braised recipe like this you do not want to use boneless skinless chicken, and especially not breasts. You won't get enough flavor. The bones especially add a deeper chicken flavor to the sauce. Trust me on this. Learn to love chicken on the bone.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><b>Monica's Drunken Chicken</b></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>4 chicken leg quarters</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>1 small onion, halved then sliced crosswise</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>10 cloves garlic, cut in half</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>2 carrots, sliced</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>2 teaspoons dried marjoram</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>salt and pepper</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>olive oil</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>2 cups Riesling</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>Use a sharp knife to cut the thigh and leg apart. If the thighs have the backbone attached, cut that off and discard (or save for stock). Season well with salt and pepper. Heat oven to 375 degrees.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>Heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium high heat. Add the chicken, a few pieces at a time, to the pot and brown on all sides. Remove and set aside, repeat with all the chicken.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>When chicken pieces are browned, remove and add the onion, garlic and carrot to the pot. Stir to coat with the oil and allow to cook for several minutes until just softened. Add the wine, scraping up the browned bits in the pan, and return the chicken to the pot, nestling down into the wine as much as possible. Place cover on the pot and place in oven. Cook for 1 and 1/2 hours.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>Remove chicken pieces from the pot, cover and keep warm. Remove the vegetables with slotted spoon. Bring the juices to boil over high heat and cook until reduced. You can add a couple tablespoons of butter if you like. Serve the chicken and vegetables with roasted potatoes, drizzled with the sauce. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So easy and delicious, it was almost like I did nothing and boom- dinner was on the table. We served the chicken with roasted potatoes for sopping up all that delicious jus in the pot.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: times, "times new roman", serif;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-13120129016085479202018-03-31T11:30:00.000-05:002018-04-01T01:07:34.145-05:00Foodie Field Trip- Zanzibar's Coffee Adventure<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I'm not one of those new year new me types. Not at all. I do, however, tend to make a mental list of things I am going to do in the new year- foods to try, recipes to learn, places to eat. Last year I made a half hearted attempt at embracing the coffee bean. I went about it all wrong. You know the type- chain coffee shops with a million choices and more sugar than a soda in most of them. Did I love those? Well YA, who wouldn't? I mean come on, coffee or espresso, often hidden with creamy milk, sweetened flavorings, buried under a mound of whipped cream is enough to entice a lot of people. I learned right away that iced coffee beverages were my favorite, and then we had even more sugar going on. Then one day I slowed down, bought a coffee grinder, got a French press, some whole bean coffee and started at the beginning- a regular hot cup of coffee. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">What I learned is this, coffee is as varied and complicated as wine. Different beans, different regions, different roasts, different methods of brewing- I had a lot to learn. Jessica is the coffee connoisseur in my life and figured she would be the appropriate guide for me. She does enjoy Starbucks, having grown up in that region of the country where Starbucks was born, but she is a coffee person- not a froo froo espresso beverage person so I am going to learn a lot as we explore different kinds of coffees, and many unique coffee houses in Iowa. We have been making a list!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Our first couple coffee discussions did take place in a local Starbucks, over brewed coffee for her and some sort of latte for me. Most of the time the topic was how we both desperately want to own our own coffee place, with baked goods and maybe light meals. That's been our dream for a very long time. My curiosity about coffee also spurs a lot of conversation about the different types. One day Jessica and I sat around her kitchen table with a pot of freshly brewed Starbucks Kopelani Blend. All I needed was the slightest splash of half and half to make this cup perfection. Not a grain of sugar added. I could really taste the coffee without all the extra junk added. I loved that! That really fed my curiosity. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Remember that whole bean coffee I bought? Let's talk about that- I chose Colombia Supremo Medium Roast from Trader Jo's. This whole bean coffee had an amazing coffee aroma the minute I opened the container. The beans were plump and once ground they were so fragrant. The cup they provide was lovely. Very smooth, not bitter at all. Again, just the slightest bit of cream and no sugar and I had the perfect cup of coffee. The Chef didn't like it as well from the French press, but in the regular coffeemaker it was much more successful.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now as promised, we did not just make cups of coffee at home, we explored. Des Moines is home to quite a few unique coffee houses and first on the list was </span><a href="http://www.zanzibarscoffee.com/" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Zanzibar Coffee Adventure</a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">. I knew a little about Zanzibar from social media. As a locally owned business, which I prefer to support, I have been following their page for some time and was in awe of the list of available beans they publish every few days. The selection is crazy! More on that later though, first- the shop itself is a little Disneyland for coffee lovers. Situated in the trendy Ingersoll neighborhood in Des Moines, it's in an old building with sky high ceilings with stamped tin tiles covering it, big windows loaded with plants, a long counter for service, as a display for all the delectable baked offerings, and seating. Little round tables line one wall the entire length of the room, and shelves and cubbies dot the room- offering coffee supplies and souvenirs of all kinds.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Big chalk menu boards list not only the menu offerings but also the huge variety of beans available on that day. The selection varies depending on what they receive from suppliers. All of the beans arrive green and are roasted in small batches in-house in their famous Dietrich roaster. The day that we visited the beans available ranged from around $12 per pound to $62 per pound. The variety of flavors and origins was unlike anything I'd ever seen. Jessica made her coffee selection- a Sumatra, and I chose a cafe latte. Not iced, real hot cafe latte. I wanted something different. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Remember how I said the counter where you order also has all the baked treats sitting there? Well.... there was a cherry pie sitting there, and we could not resist. The pie is baked by a local baker exclusively for Zanzibar- it was without a doubt the BEST cherry pie I have ever had in my entire life. The crust was flaky both on the bottom and the lattice top, which was lightly sprinkled with sugar to add crunch. The cherries- oh my the cherries. HUGE and juicy. Tart and sweet. I wanted the whole pie!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jessica loved every bit of her coffee. Me, my cafe latte arrived in a bowl. Very light foam on the top- not sugary whipped cream, but foamed milk, and the coffee- heaven. It was coffee and steamed milk. No sugar. No sweet syrups. No crazy flavors. Just beautiful coffee and steamed milk. I was so in love with this coffee. Zanzibar has set the bar very very high for all the coffee houses we will be visiting in the coming weeks and months, and you can bet I will be back many times.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-65878184765906538662018-03-28T15:30:00.000-05:002018-03-28T15:30:25.322-05:00Ever heard of a Soda Tasting?<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A what? You've heard of wine tastings, whiskey tasting, and beer flights but soda tasting? What kind of crazy idea is this? My crazy idea, that's who! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Have you ever heard of a place called </span><a href="http://www.rocketfizz.com/" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Rocket Fizz</a><span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">? Well, let me tell you about my recent visit to this unique store in Ankeny, Iowa. I first saw the store while stopping for lunch at the restaurant my daughter was managing, Zombie Burger and Shake Lab. Rocket Fizz is a couple doors down. Stepping through the doors was like stepping into my childhood. Sooooo many candies from all over the world, current and vintage. Literally everything I can think of. Candies I haven't seen in years. They even had a great selection of British candies, like Cadbury Flake chocolate and Fry's Turkish Delight- a rose flavored gel covered in chocolate. I had to take those two home, but there were so many others, like Aero and Allsorts, and so many more. They had Japanese KitKats made with matcha tea- had to have those too. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">The real reason I went to Rocket Fizz, however, was not for candy. It was for soda. I had seen an ad on their Facebook page for Pickle Juice Soda and I had a brilliant idea- host a soda tasting! At first I thought I'd just grab a couple bottles of Pickle Juice soda and have a few friends over for giggles and see how horrible or good it is, but wandering around Rocket Fizz, in absolute awe over the endless shelves of crazy soda flavors I knew this would be something so much bigger. I picked out a twelve pack of mixed sodas and you are going to crack up over these flavors: Tractor Organic Cucumber, John5 Limeade (more about John5 later), Lester's Fixins Buffalo Wing, Red Velvet Cookie Dough, Barf Soda, Big Red, Snooki Wild Cherry, Boylans Shirley Temple, Pickle Juice, Kickapoo Fuzzy Navel, and Sioux City Prickly Pear. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Next step in the planning was to compile a list of the right friends, with a sense of adventure and no picky eaters. Usually the promise of tasty food will draw lots of volunteers but I needed to find the right group of people to try these weird soda flavors without balking. <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It was HARD to find willing participants, as one requirement was you must try EVERY flavor, no skipping, no excuses. I didn't find many willing to take the plunge with The Chef and I but we soldiered on bravely and tried them all.<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> L</span></span>et's break it down by flavor:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b>Tractor Organic Cucumber</b></i>- HORRIBLE!!!! Awful awful awful. By far the WORST of all the flavors, e<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">ven <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Barf. Thi<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">s didn't taste in any way like cucumber, it tastes like soap and chemicals. Absolutely awful.</span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b>John5 Limeade</b></i>- This <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">one's bright green color should clue you in- it tast<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">es a lot like lemon lime KoolAid. It's VERY sweet. Cloyingly so, and not very bub<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">bly for a soda. </span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b>Lester's Fixins Buffalo Wing</b></i>- Not as bad as I expected but not good. Quite fizzy and a weird after taste. Did<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">n't have any of the heat associated with b<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">uffalo sauce and didn't really taste like wing sauce, but it was not sweet.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b>Red Velvet Cookie Dough</b></i>- Boring. Overly sweet and boring. Tasted like creme soda.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b>Barf Soda</b></i>- Big surprise here- Barf wasn't aw<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">ful at all. It didn't tas<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">te like I expected, sour and gross. It was fruity, not as sweet a<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">s some <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">of the others, and didn't even smell bad. It was very hard to actually take the first sip but we were very surprised.</span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b>Pickle Juice</b></i>- Looks like, smells, and tastes like pickle juice. Gross gross gross. Dill pickle juice at that. One sip and we were don<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">e.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b>Big Red</b></i>- Just a typical red creme soda here, no surprises. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b>Snooki Wild Cherry</b></i>- Verrrrrrry sweet and not as bubbly. Red color was over the top, tasted like hard candy. T<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">his one was probably my favorite of<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> all the flavors in spite of the sweetness. This would make a decent cocktail with a splash of vodka.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b>Boylans Shirley Temple</b></i>- This one didn't taste like a Shirley Temple at all. It just tasted like unidentifiable fruit soda. Not horrible, not memo<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">rable. Would also probably benefit from a splash of vodka or something.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b>Kickapoo Fuzzy Navel</b></i>- This one was gag-<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">inducing. I expected a sweet and peachy soda with a little hint of orange but it was all wrong. No peach fla<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">vor, no cocktail flavor, no orange. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><b>Sioux City Prickly Pear</b></i>- Another one with an <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">unidentifiable <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">hint of something fruit flavored but you're just not sure what exactly. Since none of us<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> had ever eaten an actual prickly pear we really didn't have anything to compare it to. </span>Also another of the cloyingly sweet sodas. </span></span></span>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now, back to John5. In case you are wondering about this weird name for a soda, John5 is a heavy metal guitarist who has played with David Lee Roth, Marilyn Manson, Rob Zombie, Loser, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Meatloaf and others. He has also worked with MANY well known metal musicians including Ozzy, the Scorpions, Rob Halford and many more. In 2015 John5 teamed up with RocketFizz to create and release his own soda, a carbonated limeade, and <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">that<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">,</span> my friends, is how this came to be. Amazingly, shortly before this story was finished, The Chef and I got a chance to see John5 LIVE at the Vaudeville Mews here in Des Moines- amazing amazing amazing show!!!!!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."</span></span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-66950261971272007742018-03-23T16:41:00.000-05:002018-03-23T16:41:08.362-05:00Laurie's Stuffed Chicken Breasts<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMOrkiYOgkWQjDhyphenhyphenEfn-aqo5QITO9EK3pdLFzKc7cOR-hbIm3AyybkHrwhr2GW8kAtQpEhA5IuAVokaOhhJe0ayIp47tAiOMDudtn40yZfTeLk6ihalV8bkSLp1Q540N44YXwYqQfDIpg/s1600/laurie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="463" data-original-width="338" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMOrkiYOgkWQjDhyphenhyphenEfn-aqo5QITO9EK3pdLFzKc7cOR-hbIm3AyybkHrwhr2GW8kAtQpEhA5IuAVokaOhhJe0ayIp47tAiOMDudtn40yZfTeLk6ihalV8bkSLp1Q540N44YXwYqQfDIpg/s320/laurie.jpg" width="233" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I have told you a bit about Laurie before in a couple different posts. She began her career path in a very different direction, and ended up finding her passion in the restaurant business. Even though she is the textbook single girl with a very demanding work schedule she still finds time to cook at home on occasion and she comes up with some pretty delicious combinations. You can see the influence fine dining has made on her. She likes to cook with beautiful ingredients, lots of fresh vegetables and fruits and loves creating not only delicious dishes but beautiful dishes as well. Colorful plates, attractive combinations. This is one apple that definitely did not fall far from the tree, she absolutely has my love of food and cooking. In her current role, she is the general manager of Magnolia Wine Kitchen, a beautiful restaurant in the heart of downtown Des Moines. Situated in the Western Gateway part of downtown, the restaurant sits right across from the sculpture garden and features huge floor to ceiling windows overlooking the park, and a hip little patio tucked in the alley next to the building. The dining room is decorated with women in mind. Soft colors, plush seating, gorgeous artwork dots the walls. The wine bar features an outstanding selection of wines that changes often. Craft cocktails also are a feature of the restaurant, with Chef Nico creating amazing specials each week in the kitchen.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of her many creations</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Laurie may be front of the house for the most part but she is not afraid to jump in the kitchen and cook when she needs to. She always challenges herself to learn not only the recipes on the menu but to actively help in planning specials and other events. During the recent Culinary Food Fight she served alongside Chef Nico as his sous chef, preparing many of the items with him. I love this about her, she takes those skills she learns on the job home, and re-imagines them as something a home cook can produce just as easily. Tonight, as she was snapchatting me pics and details of her dinner she was making at home, you could see the influence of a restaurant chef in her description and technique. Her dish was a wildly creative mix of sweet and savory, acid and creamy. I knew I'd be stealing this idea! I made a few adjustments in technique, where she butterflied and stuffed the chicken then baked it, I am pounding out the breasts, stuffing, then rolling up, dredging in flour and sauteing before finishing in the oven. It's going to be delicious. Let's get cooking.</span><br />
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Laura's Cherry, Feta, Apple Stuffed Chicken</span></i></b><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">4 boneless skinless chicken breasts</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">salt and pepper</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 cup dried cherries</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2 cups baby spinach</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 Granny Smith apple</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1/4 cup dry red wine </span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1 cup crumbled feta cheese</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">3 scallions</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">all purpose flour</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">butter</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">olive oil </span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pound the chicken breasts to 1/4 inch thickness. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Combine the dried cherries with the red wine and set aside. Chop the unpeeled apple into small dice. Slice the scallions, white and green parts.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Heat a swirl of olive oil in a small skillet. Add the apple and scallion and cook for a minute or two. Add the cherries with the wine and cook over high heat for a minute or two until the wine is almost evaporated and the apples are almost tender. Remove from heat and cool slightly.</span></i><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Laurie likes to serve roasted root veggies.</td></tr>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On each chicken breast, place a layer of baby spinach leaves. Divide the apple mixture between the chicken and sprinkle with feta. Roll up tightly into rolls, securing with toothpicks or cooking twine. I prefer cooking twine- it makes it easier to turn and brown the chicken.</span></i><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Laurie's finished dish.</td></tr>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Heat the oven to 400 degrees and heat a large oven safe skillet over medium high heat. Add a couple tablespoons of butter and a couple tablespoons of olive oil to the skillet. Dredge the chicken rolls in flour, then add to the skillet to brown on all sides, then place in the oven to finish cooking for about 15-20 minutes. Allow chicken to rest for 5 minutes before slicing and serving.</span></i><br />
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Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-64641262975946613722018-03-20T16:33:00.000-05:002018-03-20T16:33:11.618-05:00Super Easy UnFried Pickles<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Spring is here!!! That means it's time to start planning and getting ready to grow a whole summer's worth of fresh herbs. As you know, we like to grow our herbs in pots on the deck so it's super convenient to just step out the door and snip off a few sprigs when cooking. Some of our favorites are flat leaf parsley, thyme, basil and chives. This year however I think I'm going to include some mint- maybe even plant that right in the ground so it keeps coming back (and yes, someplace we won't care if it gets a bit out of hand), a couple additional types of thyme and a couple oregano varieties. Basil is an absolute must for us, and I'm on the lookout for some lettuce leaf basil. Those giant leafs make fantastic greens for sandwiches and also make cute small carb free wraps. Plus, the flavor explosion- wow!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">When the summer winds down I'm often drying tray after tray of herbs before the first freeze hits. While fresh is always best, dried herbs have their uses too, and making up homemade salt-free seasoning blends is one of my favorite ways to use them. I have several books in my cookbook collection with tons of ideas for delicious blends, everything from vegetable seasonings to meat rubs. I like stirring the seasoning into softened butter and minced garlic for a wonderful spread for garlic toast. Another favorite idea of mine is to combine some chives, parsley, thyme and garlic with softened butter and a dash of Worcestershire sauce, roll into a log and chill the butter for a perfect compound butter to slice and serve on top of a sizzling grilled steak.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Today let's use some seasoning to make a delicious and pretty healthy snack that's a snap to put together, and way healthier than the fried version. Unfried Pickles are a great homemade way to enjoy the popular bar snack/appetizer menu staple and it doesn't involve any oil or messy frying. For my unfried pickles I like to use just regular crinkle cut hamburger dill chips. Choose a good brand so your pickles aren't too soft. Pickle chips work better for this recipe than pickle spears, I know some restaurants do serve fried pickle spears, but I am not a fan of that style. Pickle chips crisp up nicely in the oven and don't take very long to bake. It's very important when picking out your seasoning mixture that you choose a salt free blend. Pickles are salty enough so you want to be sure you're not adding additional salt or you will have very very very salty pickles.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><b>UnFried Pickles</b></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>1 jar sliced dill pickles, such as hamburger chips</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>1 cup panko bread crumbs</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>1 teaspoon your favorite salt free seasoning</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>1 egg</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>cooking spray</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>Heat the oven to 400 degrees and line a large baking sheet with foil. Spray with cooking spray and set aside.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>Drain about 1 cup of pickle slices and blot dry with paper towels. In a small shallow dish combine the panko with the seasoning and set aside. Beat the egg in another small bowl. Dip the pickle slices into the egg, then coat completely with the crumb mixture and place on the prepared sheet pan. When all pickle slices have been coated, spray the pickles very lightly with cooking spray. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until browned and crispy. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>For my dipping sauce I combined half a cup of mayonnaise with Sriracha and freshly ground pepper to taste. You can use any type of dipping sauce you like. Ranch dressing is a big favorite!</i></span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7318021073580165457.post-8311157145113385182018-03-17T13:41:00.001-05:002018-03-17T13:41:41.586-05:00Banana Cream Pie What ????<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It's Saturday morning in mid March in Iowa. Spring should be in the air, green blades of grass peeking out, birds chirping, breezy days, but not today. We awoke to a blanket of white flaky yuck. Now, you're going to say "Hey, you always talk about how much you love winter!" and yes, for the most part I DO! Not once March gets here though! I'm so ready for flowers, pots of fresh herbs on the deck, sunshiny mornings and the first farmers markets of the season. Instead, today I'm thinking of reasons to kick on the oven and stay in. Baking? Maybe!</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPwosCv8BC7h1E3vMP4nEKPG6RI0hGbMOV1jJ-geprSVp_993yC4r6FqQ1d7y3zk3Q6YB5R8rUjf-G7JcVXJ5MYidkqBw8sMlkzaX7GO5kzVATR0W-IPheTr3I1uhyphenhyphen9ELPw-CfCoJ_vEM/s1600/banpie1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPwosCv8BC7h1E3vMP4nEKPG6RI0hGbMOV1jJ-geprSVp_993yC4r6FqQ1d7y3zk3Q6YB5R8rUjf-G7JcVXJ5MYidkqBw8sMlkzaX7GO5kzVATR0W-IPheTr3I1uhyphenhyphen9ELPw-CfCoJ_vEM/s320/banpie1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I may have been obsessing over cake lately but there is always room for pie, right? Of course there is! As a baker, I love the challenge of making a really good pie. Achieving a perfect flaky pastry, and creamy fillings that are smooth and free from lumps are not that hard to accomplish. Fruit pies are my favorite pies to bake, especially with fresh fruit. Getting that perfect tart sweet balance, and a slightly thickened juicy filling that doesn't make the crust soggy are the big challenges but simple additions like cornstarch make it happen perfectly. Cream pies are some of the easiest pies to make and offer you lots of chances to use time saving products, and that's what we are going to make today, creamy banana cream pie with a surprise topping- bruleed bananas.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">You can classify this one under the No Recipe Cooking file because we will be using some store bought products to save time but you can certainly make your own graham cracker crust and pastry cream for the filling. Let's get started!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">You will need a graham cracker pie crust, 3 ripe but firm bananas, 1 package COOKED vanilla or banana pudding mix, 1 3/4 cups milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla, granulated sugar, coconut oil and whipped cream. The first thing we are going to do is combine the pudding mix with the milk in a medium saucepan and cook according to package directions. We are using less milk than the box calls for because we want the pie to set better for slicing. Once the pudding is cooked stir in the vanilla, transfer to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap- make sure you place the wrap directly on the surface of the pudding so a skin doesn't form. If you choose to make homemade pastry cream you want to do the same thing. Chill completely.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiSXpMWxI0fHmeAX9Ln6Vgb2UZquhdA4tvjcv-LETl9SHxq6V-1jsl4F_bHK-bsDsvf9rs9Nqomp7UjFzoH2zCPFqcWVJm2RH2jMcNREcRAvwpzNVv7RtKocmEMjmpQNHMkYWm0doLbp8/s1600/banpie6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiSXpMWxI0fHmeAX9Ln6Vgb2UZquhdA4tvjcv-LETl9SHxq6V-1jsl4F_bHK-bsDsvf9rs9Nqomp7UjFzoH2zCPFqcWVJm2RH2jMcNREcRAvwpzNVv7RtKocmEMjmpQNHMkYWm0doLbp8/s320/banpie6.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">To prepare the pie, slice two of the bananas into the crust and spread them out evenly. Remove the plastic from the chilled pastry cream or pudding and spoon into crust, smoothing out to cover the bananas. Place in the fridge while you make the bruleed bananas.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnC9L5kP8JOAuhKAb5VKrERnwDhk9a9rX4ColhWf4NJ2bdAiT08JiZG9r8FbAlcITdDnzH9dqM4qnfHVyyksbBJ9NjeNNfvzZ8Apv1Oj7Pwo1BTS0TgxsA4txpj5DSy3JAd7WcyvfIPys/s1600/banpie5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnC9L5kP8JOAuhKAb5VKrERnwDhk9a9rX4ColhWf4NJ2bdAiT08JiZG9r8FbAlcITdDnzH9dqM4qnfHVyyksbBJ9NjeNNfvzZ8Apv1Oj7Pwo1BTS0TgxsA4txpj5DSy3JAd7WcyvfIPys/s320/banpie5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">To make the bruleed bananas, slice the remaining banana into ten even slices. They should be fairly thick so they cook too much and get soft. Sprinkle some granulated sugar onto a small plate and coat both sides of the banana slices with the sugar- press it gently to get lots of sugar to stick. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkbTXJMj9jlpPlm5ySzkzzRJ9iQuYDYAWtg_8g96IrFfR4KOnqPrKaVQg7QBYvjwL3vljMqAdZw1VoPjxIi2TcSL3Xi7h0oOT6FlZhi4-Q6yVzApGdRPaqaHVJM515IF0_PRb0ysNei1M/s1600/banpie4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkbTXJMj9jlpPlm5ySzkzzRJ9iQuYDYAWtg_8g96IrFfR4KOnqPrKaVQg7QBYvjwL3vljMqAdZw1VoPjxIi2TcSL3Xi7h0oOT6FlZhi4-Q6yVzApGdRPaqaHVJM515IF0_PRb0ysNei1M/s320/banpie4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Heat a small nonstick skillet over fairly high heat. Add a small amount of coconut oil to the skillet and add the banana slices. Cook quickly to brown and caramelize the sugar, turning once. Work fast so the bananas don't overcook. Set aside on small plate to cool. If you have a kitchen torch you can use that to melt the sugar too.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Decorate the top of the pie with dollops of whipped cream and a banana slice.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Wasn't that easy? Your friends and family will rave over this pie and the extra step of bruleeing the bananas makes it look like you invested a ton of time- when really, it was a snap!! Give it a try, it's one of my family's holiday favorites.</span></div>
Monica Ricciohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07968430927429273784noreply@blogger.com0