brewsky sangria

summer..summer...summertime!

last summer it was cherry mojitos...

this summer hello brewsky sangria....

• 2 bartlett pears, peeled and chopped

• 1 cup plus 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

• 4 12-ounce bottles larger, chilled (recommend TJ's Bohemian lager)

• 1 cup triple sec

• ice

• 2 bosc pears, sliced for garnish

1. in a food processor, combine the bartlett pears with 2 tbsp of the lemon juice

and process to puree

2. slowly pour the beer into a pitcher. stir in the remaining lemon juice, triple sec and the pear puree. 

3. fill pint glasses halfway with ice, add the sangria and garnish with bosc pear slices

4. bottoms up

mango-radicchio caprese with basil vinaigrette

sunshine on a plate. my new favorite recipe. leftovers for breakfast. can't wait to share.

mango-radicchio caprese with basil vinaigrette

bon appétit may 2008

• 1/3 cup chopped fresh basil, plus 8 whole large basil leaves

• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

• 2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar

1. puree first three ingredients in food processor or blender

• 8 radicchio leaves (thick ends trimmed)

• 2 mangoes, peeled, halved and thinly sliced

• 8 1/4 inch-thick slices of fresh mozzarella

2. using radicchio leaves as lettuce cups, layer each cup with couple slices of mango, mozzarella and basil leaf.

3. drizzle a small spoonful of the basil vinaigrette over each radicchio cup

4. enjoy

purple potato medley salad

they say everything is better with bacon and i learned from a dear friend long ago it works well in potato salad. for the past year i've loved the potato medley at TJ's, which consists of these vibrant, gorgeous purple potatoes. it seemed only perfect to create a potato salad combining both ingredients. i don't love mayo so often i thin it out with olive oil, citrus, fresh herbs and vinegar. 

memorial day weekend...potato salad 

* key creation

• 2 lbs potato medley (purple, yukon gold and red) 

• 3 hard boiled eggs

• 4 slices applewood smoked bacon (crumbled)

• 1/4 cup purple basil leaves (chopped)

• 1/2  tsp green peppercorns (smash up with flat side of knife)

• 2 tbsp wasabi mayonaise

• 3 tbsp of apple cider vinegar

• 1 large shallot diced

• 1 small red thai chili

• salt/pepper

• 1/4 cup olive oil

• 1 green onion stalk finely sliced

1. cut potatoes into large 1" inch pieces with the skins on. boil potatoes until fork tender

2. pan fry bacon until well done and set aside

3. boil eggs until hard boiled about 10 mins and set aside

4. whisk mayo, apple cider vinegar and olive oil until creamy

5. add diced shallots, chilis, peppercorn paste to dressing

6. in large bowl pour dressing over the potatoes, add bacon, basil and eggs and toss lightly 

7. season with salt and pepper to desired taste

8. sprinkle green onions on top to garnish

topanga canyon brunch....blueberry muffins

having been born and raised in maine, I have a love hate relationship with blueberries. one can't be from maine and not love blueberries. as a child my favorite book was the 1948 classic blueberries for sal and one morning in maine. so every time i see a recipe with blueberries i'm secretly drawn to find that perfect blueberry recipe that too becomes my literary classic. after mulling over this next recipe for about a month, i was finally inspired by a brunch invite to my dear friend's new topanga canyon treehouse. my preference is always a streusel topping for my baked goods and I was certain that a lemon sugar topping would fail to deliver satisfying results.... i was wrong. i LOVED the lemony-sugar, crunchy coating! 

"cook's illustrated" may/june 2009 - recipe source

lemon sugar topping:

stir together sugar and lemon zest and set aside.

• 1/3 cup (2 1/3 ounces) sugar

• 1 1/2 tsp finely grated lemon zest

streusel topping:

stir together next four ingredients and drizzle 5 tbsp of warm melted unsalted butter and toss with fork.

• 3 tbsp granulated sugar

• 3 tbsp brown sugar

• pinch table salt

• 1/2 cup plus 3 tbsp flour

muffins:

• 2 cups (about 10 ounces) fresh blueberries

• 1 1/8 cups (8 ounces) plus 1 tsp

• 2 1/2 cups (12 1/2 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour

• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder

• 1 tsp table salt

• 2 large eggs

• 4 tbsp (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly

• 1/4 cup vegetable oil

• 1 cup buttermilk

• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

directions for the muffins:

1. adjust the over rack to upper middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. spray standard muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray.

bring one cup of blueberries and 1 tsp of sugar to simmer in small saucepan over medium heat. cook, mashing berries with spoon several times and stirring frequently, until berries have broken down and mixture has thickened and reduces to 1/4 cup. transfer to small bowl and cool to room temperature, 10-15 minutes.

2. whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in large bowl. whisk remaining 1 1/8 cups of sugar and eggs together in medium bowl until thick and homogeneous, about 45 secs. slowly whisk in butter and oil until combined. whisk in buttermilk and vanilla until combined. using rubber spatula, fold egg mixture and remaining 1 cup blueberries into flour mixture until just moistened. (batter will be very lumpy with few spots of dry flour, do not over mix.

3, using an ice cream scoop divide batter equally into 9 large muffin holders, batter should completely fill cups and mound slightly. Spoon tsp of cooked berry mixture into center of each mound of batter. Using chopstick or skewer, gently swirl berry filling into batter using a figure-eight motion. Sprinkle lemon sugar or streusel topping over the top. 

4. bake until muffin tops are golden and just firm, 17-19 minutes. Cool muffins in tin for 5 minutes and finish cooling 

the beginning.....5.19.09

this blog is the beginning of a new and exciting journey chronicling my culinary adventures. much of my time is consumed seeking out interesting and inspiring recipes. cooking is therapy for my soul and there is nothing more satisfying than cooking for friends and family. this blog is dedicated to them.

a co-worker friend of mine introduced me to the deliciously thick and nutritious Fage yogurt and I can't get enough of it. at first I enjoyed it with just honey and then one day remembering my Nana and how she always had Grape-nuts in the house when we visited, it occurred to me that the combination of crunch, sweet and creamy-ness could quite possibly be heaven....and it WAS!

Yogurt Heaven

• 1 cup Fage 0% (pronounced fa-yeh)

• 1/3 cup Grape-nuts

• 3 tbsp of brown sugar or honey (or to desired taste)

• Sprinkle Grape-nuts over yogurt and top with brown sugar or honey

• ENJOY!

http://fageusa.com