52 meals

Happy Thanksgiving, friends. I’ll be back soon. XO

Thu, 22 Nov 2012 13:37:23 -0600

Happy Thanksgiving, friends. I’ll be back soon. XO

52! a pizza party to celebrate!

Mon, 01 Oct 2012 15:07:54 -0500

This is my 52nd post! And it’s only September! How about that! To celebrate, I suggested having a homemade pizza party for a recent gathering with some good friends, to bring this project full circle. That doesn’t mean I’m quitting though, friends! Don’t you worry. Despite the next few months being insanely busy (we’re renting a house for the weekend to host 9 family members for Henry’s second birthday, Craig is doing quite a bit of travel and we are moving next month) I have every intention of continuing with this project. This challenge has been so great for me, pushing me to experiment with new recipes and revisit old ones, spend more time with the people I love, and relax and enjoy dinner parties more than I ever have before.

Besides, it was a challenge to cook once a week for others, not just make 52 things. I’m not finished!

I’ve decided that a pizza party is just about the most perfect party you can have with a large group, and I’m already planning the next one. Maybe I’ll start a new project called 52pizzas. And also 52cocktails. I didn’t make any cocktails for this little get together, but I did drink quite a bit of wine, to make up for it.

We had 4 couples present at this shindig, so I made two batches of my pizza crust, one white and one whole wheat, to make 4 delicious pizzas. I assigned each couple (the wives, more accurately) one pizza to gather the ingredients for. We assembled and chatted and shared exciting news (a pregnancy! an upcoming move! twins on the way!) and drank (me probably more than anyone else) and sat outside enjoying the music from the birthday bash happening next door. A fun time was had by all.

What we made (clockwise starting at the top left)

Basil pesto, mozzarella and tomato on white crust
Mushroom, spinach, mozzarella and marinara on whole wheat crust
Gorgonzola, pears and walnuts on whole wheat crust
BBQ sauce, chicken, mushroom and mozzarella on white crust

Neysa made a variation of my raw kale salad and the boys grilled some asparagus and squash. We chilled off with mini frozen desserts (tiny ice cream cones and miniature ice cream sandwiches) and warmed ourselves back up with some warm spiked cider. Something for everyone.

And not a slice of pizza was left at the end of our meal.

I’m going to keep up my challenge, cooking for someone else at least once a week. But I’m also adding mini challenges to myself in the meantime. Try more new things, eat out a lot less, make more meals using food I already have on hand. In between posting about my meals for others I’ll start adding some recipes, tips, photos and musings on what I’m making at home for my little family as well. What we do with our CSA box. Things like that.

So - three cheers to making it this far in my challenge, and a big fat THANK YOU to you, my friends, family and loyal readers, for supporting me and pushing me forward. I love you. xoxo

51 - michael's boozy birthday

Mon, 17 Sep 2012 09:55:49 -0500

Our good friend Michael loves beer. Like really, really loves beer. So when his wife, Hillary, threw him a dessert themed birthday party and asked if I’d help with the food, I knew it had to be boozy.

I originally dreamed up the idea to make carrot cake cupcakes using an IPA - thinking the bitter flavor of the beer would pair really nicely with the sweetness of carrot cupcakes. But the only beer + cake recipe I could find that remotely fit the bill was this one, and although they look incredible and have been saved to my future recipe box, I didn’t think they were quite the right thing for our bearded beer and bourbon loving birthday boy.

So. I thought long and hard about how else to make these cupcakes unsafe for pregnant ladies and children and remembered the candied carrots I made earlier in the year. Remember those? I decided to make good old regular carrot cake cupcakes, and made a bourbon spiked fluffy cream cheese frosting. Then I made some bourbon candied carrots to top them with, using a bit more bourbon than probably necessary. Perfect.

I also made these truffles, increasing the beeriness by making a concentrated beer syrup with a bottle of Robert the Bruce Scottish Ale.

Between my boozy concoctions, these butterbeer jelly shots, and beer floats (milk stout and vanilla ice cream and a lambic and chocolate ice cream combo that I’m still dreaming about), I don’t think anyone left sober. And that means it was a good party.

Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Bourbon Cream Cheese Frosting and Bourbon Soaked Candied Carrots
say that 10 times fast
adapted from Martha and The Joy
makes 2 dozen mini cupcakes

1-1/2 cups AP flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp each cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger
3/4 cup butter (1-1/2 sticks), melted
1 cup dark brown sugar
1 large egg
2 tbsp yogurt
1/4 tsp vanilla
1-1/2 cups grated carrots

Preheat your oven to 375. Line your mini muffin pan with mini muffin liners, or use those ones that you can just set on a cookie sheet, even though they sort of lose their shape a bit anyway. It’s ok. Whisk together the dry ingredients (flour to spices) and set aside. Combine the rest of the ingredients (butter to carrots) until well mixed, then add the dry to the wet, folding until just combined. Fill the liners to just below the top. Bake for 12-15 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean, rotating half way through if you have a spotty oven like mine. Cool completely on a cooling rack.

Bourbon Cream Cheese Frosting

8 oz of cream cheese, room temp
6 tbsp butter (3/4 stick), room temp
2 tsp vanilla
3 cups confectioners sugar, sifted
2 tbsp bourbon (I used Buffalo Trace)

Combine everything in a food processor and pulse until just combined, careful not to mix beyond that or else it will separate. Frost and eat.

Bourbon Candied Carrots

1 large carrot, julienned (mandoline time)
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup bourbon

Bring everything to a boil and simmer for 15-20 minutes until the carrots are soft. Drain (reserve that bourbon carrot simple syrup for cocktails!) and arrange on a silpat or parchment lined cookie sheet. Dry in a 250 degree oven for about 30 minutes until dry and chewy like a boozy carrot gummy candy. Cool. Garnish.

50 - labor day basil lemon gimlets

Fri, 14 Sep 2012 07:48:36 -0500

I should probably change the name of this blog to 52drinks, with the number of cocktail recipes I’ve been sharing. Really.

On labor day we were invited to a bbq, and I was asked, again, to bring the cocktails. It was hot and steamy and we’d been drinking all weekend, so I decided on something tart and tangy and summery - basil lemon gimlets.

I went through a phase a few years ago where I drank these like it was my job. I would make a huge batch of basil simple syrup and buy jugs and jugs of lemonade to ensure I had gimlets for weeks. I brought them to parties, I served them for brunch, I even brought all of the ingredients camping one weekend. The thing about these sweet cocktails is that they go down easy. Really really easy. And I was pretty much hungover all summer long. They sneak up on you, and the hangover you can get after drinking a gallon of sweet lemony vodka is not one you want to have when you wake up in a tent in the middle of the woods.

But they’re great if you drink just one or two at a Labor Day bbq when you’re easing off your weekend long bender.

Basil Lemon Gimlets
adapted from Gourmet
makes one drink. or two dozen.

1 part freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 part vodka
2 parts basil syrup (see below)
fresh basil leaves
splash of soda water
slice of lemon

Shake or stir first three ingredients over ice with some fresh basil leaves. (Ball them up in your fist first if you’re stirring your drink to release the flavor.) Top with a good glug of sparkling water. Garnish with fresh basil and a slice of lemon. Try not to drink too many.

Basil Simple Syrup
makes enough for a weekend long gimlet fest. use leftovers in iced tea, basil mint juleps, and even iced coffee.

4 cups packed fresh basil leaves (stems are ok too)
1 cup sugar
2 cups water

Bring everything to a simmer, then cover and let steep for an hour. Strain. Keeps for about a week.

49 - i ragout, you ragout

Wed, 12 Sep 2012 09:57:38 -0500

I’m surprised I haven’t talked about my ragouts until now - they such a staple to our family meals that I don’t even explain what’s in them anymore, I simply refer to them as a “ragout”. The word ragout means a main dish stew, usually cooked over slow heat, with or without meat. A rich, meaty bolognese is probably the most familiar. Like the word “sauce” or “cake” it can mean a lot of different things. I take liberties with the term, and mine are a combination of sauteed veggies, sometimes shredded meat or bacon, some cream and lemon zest served over pasta (usually bucatini, my favorite dried strand pasta.) I use whatever I have on hand, and in the summer that’s usually a lot of zucchini and summer squash, leeks, tomatoes and greens from our CSA.

Hill and Michael came over for an impromptu dinner last weekend, and I served them one of my weeknight easy ragouts with roasted tomatoes (I just can’t quit with the roasted tomatoes!), shredded chicken, zucchini and summer squash, and spinach.

Summer Vegetable Ragout with Shredded Chicken
serves 4 with leftovers

two cups cherry or small roma tomatoes, halved
3 tbsp olive oil
2 lbs dried strand pasta
1 leek, dark green ends removed, halved and rinsed thoroughly, then sliced thinly
2 cloves of garlic, minced
3 zucchini and/or summer squash, cut in half lengthwise and then sliced into 1/4 inch slices
a large bunch of spinach, rinsed well
2-3 cups shredded cooked chicken
1/4 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup heavy cream, maybe a splash more
zest of one lemon
salt and pepper

Preheat your oven to 300 degrees, and toss your tomatoes with 2 tbsp of the olive oil, salt and pepper and roast until starting to shrivel, about 45 minutes to an hour. Set aside. Put a large pot of water on to boil your pasta.

Put your pasta in to boil and set a timer for the minimum time listed on the package.

In a large wide skillet or pan with a lid, heat the remaining tbsp of olive oil over medium heat and add the leek and garlic, sauteing until translucent. Add the zucchini or squash and cook 3-4 minutes (don’t let them get mushy, you still want them to have some bite), then add your chicken and spinach. Add the chicken stock and bring to a simmer, stirring all the while. As soon as the spinach is wilted add the cream, lemon zest, salt and pepper and bring to a simmer again. Simmer for 3-4 minutes to reduce the liquid a little bit. By now your pasta should be done, so go ahead and toss it right in with your ragout. Toss everything around so the pasta gets all coated in the creamy lemony sauce.

Serve immediately and top with the roasted tomatoes and some freshly chopped herbs or parmesan breadcrumbs.

48 - watermelon avocado cucumber salad. and booze. again.

Mon, 10 Sep 2012 10:00:08 -0500

As part of our Labor Day weekend bender, we spent Saturday with my brother, Phil (that’s him, behind the cocktails.) and Katelin. We made gigantic burgers at their house and I brought my 2012 summer staple - a watermelon salad. This time I made it with cucumber, avocado, tangy feta, pepitas, basil and anise. And it was delicious. We then came back to our place to put our kid to bed, and drank and played games until way past all of our bedtimes. (That’s my brother up there, behind the gin gimlet, campari and soda, sidecar, and bourbon. Apparently we couldn’t agree on a universal cocktail.)

After dinner, in addition to a drunken batch of really buttery popcorn, we made all of the cocktails. Katelin asked us to surprise her, so I made her one of my favorite classic cocktails - a sidecar. I like anything with lemon, sweet and sour and easy sipping. She’d never had one, which settled the decision that she needed to have one, immediately. I think I hooked her.

Watermelon Salad with Avocado and Cucumber
serves 4 as a side dish

4 cups diced watermelon
1 avocado, diced
1/2 cucumber, diced
1/4 cup crumbled feta
1/4 cup toasted salted pepitas
2 tbsp fresh basil, minced
2 tbsp minced red onion
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp minced fresh anise
salt and pepper

Combine lemon, olive oil, anise, salt and pepper. Pour over remaining ingredients and toss to combine. Serve immediately and eat it all.

Classic Sidecar

1 oz Cognac
1 oz Cointreau
1 oz fresh lemon juice

Shake with ice and strain into a martini glass (or a Warren G. Harding glass, if you have one.)

47 - a tribute to Avec

Mon, 10 Sep 2012 08:25:43 -0500

One of my favorite restaurants in Chicago is Avec. I have been visiting the menu there for 8 years, and it’s a thrill every single time. There’s an intimacy about the small classically appointed wood paneled space, and the amazing Chef Koren Grieveson does the most wonderful things with the simplest ingredients - I’ve yet to have a tastier chicken thigh, the chorizo stuffed dates are out of this world, even the marinated olives are worth the trip (and often, the lengthy wait for a table.) So the recent announcement that Chef Grieveson was leaving the restaurant left me speechless. And sad that I didn’t get to go one last time to eat everything on the menu as a tribute to her departure.

Just days prior the announcement, I bookmarked a coincidentally timed recipe published in the September issue of Bon Appetit for Chef Grieveson’s malt vinegar glazed chicken. I made it the night I learned the sad news, and I’ve made the glaze (in double batches) at least three other times for use on veggies, chicken and pork alike. It’s incredibly versatile, tangy and sweet and delicious on everything from eggplant to ribs to salmon. Make it today, in a double batch, and put it on everything - you won’t regret it.

Friends Tony and Ryan came over for dinner recently, and I decided to give Chef Grieveson one more tribute by preparing her delicious malt vinegar glaze.

What I served:

Prairie Fruits Farm Chevre, Homemade Spicy Pickled Carrots and Crostini

Malt Vinegar-Glazed Pork Loin: Brined and glazed according to this recipe in Bon Appetit.

Fresh Corn Polenta: Whisk 1 cup of polenta into 5 cups boiling water. Cook for about 45 minutes, whisking every few to avoid clumps. Thin with an additional 1/4 cup water at a time if it gets too thick. Stir in 2 cups fresh corn, 1/2 cup freshly shredded manchego, salt and pepper to taste.)

Zucchini Salad with Roasted Cherry Tomatoes and Parmesan Breadcrumbs: Roast cherry tomatoes and let cool. Toast 1/2 cup of breadcrumbs with 1 tbsp olive oil in a skillet. When brown and toasted toss in 1/4 cup freshly shredded parmesan cheese, and stir until the cheese melts and starts to brown. Remove from the heat and break up any clumps. Cool. Thinly slice zucchini and toss with a splash of lemon juice, good quality olive oil, a dash of toasted sesame oil or acorn squash oil, salt and pepper. Marinade for 5-10 minutes. Plate the marinated squash, top with tomatoes and sprinkle with breadcrumbs.

It was a lovely evening, full of lots of cocktails and plans for a bourbon soaked field trip to Kentucky in the works (I hope!) And possibly a double date to Avec.

46 - a CSA overload

Fri, 07 Sep 2012 09:24:46 -0500

I have a friend who is going through a really rough time right now. Her family moved into a new apartment only to find it was riddled with lead paint and asbestos, and had to move out again two weeks later and is currently crashing with her husband and two year old in a friend’s basement apartment with no kitchen. She was out of town last weekend and asked me to pick up her CSA share for her (we both are members of Angelic Organics), saying she probably couldn’t do much with it anyway with her current kitchen situation of a mini fridge and a hotplate. So I picked up two boxes of vegetables and sorted through things I thought she could eat raw or with little preparation versus things that I could cook for her into easily stored and easy to serve meals when she returned.

One CSA box can be daunting enough, but two was an overload of organic produce goodness. We had tomatoes galore, two HUGE bunches of carrots, enough kale to feed an army, swiss chard, huge leeks, onions, cucumbers, lots of bell peppers, hot peppers, and two big bunches each of parsley and thyme.

I supplemented with some other ingredients from my fridge and pantry to make her family two healthy dishes with some of the veggies from her box. Both dishes are also easy ways to get veggies into sometimes picky toddlers - hopefully hers will enjoy them as much as Henry does.

My standby quiche recipe was easily adapted to include the swiss chard and leeks from her box, easily sliced and wrapped in foil for an out-of-the-fridge-ready meal. I sauteed the chopped leeks and swiss chard in a little butter until softened and all of the liquid had evaporated, chilled it and layered it into the prepared crust with cheddar and swiss cheeses. I made a second one for us, which Henry and I have been eating all week.

I then used a large portion of the kale in our boxes to make a big batch of kale and walnut pesto. I’ve been on a pesto kick recently, and vaguely remembered this recipe from my Farmer John’s Cookbook from a few years back. I adapted it a bit to suit my tastes, adding more nuts, more oil, and a little lemon zest. The pesto can be used straight from the fridge, tossed with freshly cooked pasta and diced fresh tomato, spread on toast, or mixed with some precooked chicken for a yummy veggie pesto chicken salad.

Some friends have asked me to share what I do with our CSA box every week - and these are two good examples. We eat a lot of raw veg in the summertime, and I pickle and can some items and freeze others for the winter when local produce is lacking. Maybe my project next summer will be a documentation of our weekly produce haul and where it all ends up in our diet.

Kale and Walnut Pesto
adapted from Farmer John’s Cookbook
makes about a cup and a half

1/3 cup walnuts, roughly chopped and toasted (hot skillet for 4-5 minutes tossing every few seconds.)
1/2 lb kale, stems removed and roughly torn
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 cup good quality olive oil (plus more if you like your pesto thinner)
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
zest of 1/2 a lemon
salt and pepper to taste

Toast your walnuts. In a medium skillet over high heat, shake the walnuts around for about 4 minutes until they are lightly golden and fragrant. Set aside to cool.

Blanch your kale. In a large pot of boiling salted water, toss in your kale and simmer for about 10 minutes until soft. In the meantime prepare a large bowl with ice water. Strain the kale (use tongs or a spider strainer so you can re-use the water to boil some pasta!) into the ice water to cool it. Once it is cool, squeeze out as much of the water as possible and toss it in your food processor with the cooled toasted walnuts, garlic, parmesan, lemon zest, salt and pepper. Pulse until thoroughly combined and grainy, then add the olive oil in a steady stream, adding more than the 1/2 cup if you like your pesto thinner. Taste for seasoning, adding more salt and/or pepper to your liking. Enjoy!

45 - the best panini of your life

Wed, 05 Sep 2012 13:00:40 -0500

My girlfriend Erielle and her son Owen came over for lunch recently for a little playdate. I love Erielle (or “Linda” as Henry likes to call her…) because she loves food as much as I do and doesn’t hesitate when I say I’m going to serve a heavy butter and mayo and cheese filled lunch on a hot summery day. She is also really into canning, taught her toddler daughter to yell “I love my mullet”, drunk texts with me when our husbands are working late, and has one of the best senses of humor about being a parent of any mother I know. And now that she has finally started drinking bourbon, she has perhaps become the perfect friend.

So I made her the Best Paninis of Our Lives. I hate when recipes are titled “The Best Whatever You’ll Ever Have”, but these paninis were pretty amazing. Sweet fig, mild melty mozzarella and savory basil pesto are perhaps the most perfect panini fillings ever. We could have maybe added a touch of gorgonzola which may have made them slightly more perfect, but I didn’t want to overdo it.

A tip about paninis - mayo. Spread some mayo (and a little butter as well if you’re feeling like you’re too thin) on the outside of your bread before you grill it. Sounds indulgent? Sounds weird? Think about it - mayo is oil and eggs. You get your fat to toast and a little protein to caramelize on that bread. It’s perfect. Just do it.

I also made an “elotes” salad - raw fresh summer corn, diced tomatoes, more mayo, grated parmesan, and a little lime juice. I would have added cayenne but our toddlers would have been unhappy. And it was not in my best interest to make two two-year-olds cry during our lunch.

Also - Erielle/Linda brought some of her cajun spiced pickled okra which was pretty much the most perfect accompaniment to cut through all that mayo. She’s a smart one, that woman.

Basil Pesto, Fig and Mozzarella Panini
makes 2 of the best sandwiches you’ll ever have

2 fresh figs, sliced
1/4 cup basil pesto
6 slices fresh mozzarella
4 slices good sourdough bread
2 tbsp mayo

Spread the bread slices with mayo. Layer the figs, pesto and mozzarella on the un-mayoed sides, and grill on a preheated panini pan, charcoal grill, or skillet. Enjoy.

“Elotes” Corn Salad
makes 4 servings

2 ears worth of fresh raw corn, cut off the cob
1 nice heirloom tomato, diced
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 cup mayo
juice of 1/2 a lime
salt and pepper to taste
a good sprinkling of cayenne

Combine everything. Enjoy.

44 - a paella in the pan is worth testing two

Tue, 04 Sep 2012 16:00:46 -0500

I am planning a weekend long celebration for my entire family in a few weeks for my son’s second birthday (…or to simply celebrate surviving two years as a new parent). This includes meals for 15 people for three days - people I don’t see often and who have high expectations of my culinary abilities. Since we are all pitching in to rent a vacation home , this means that I’m 1) on a tight budget and 2) trying to plan easy meals so that I can actually spend time with my family and not need to pack my entire kitchen to bring with me.

One of the meals I was considering was a paella. I have a nice paella pan, but I thought that a baked version of this classic spanish dish would be perfect. Prep it ahead of time, throw it in the oven, and have a few cocktails while it cooks. It’s a special meal that I don’t prepare often, it has a little of something for everyone, and it’s always delicious.

So I perused the internet for a basic guideline to help me adapt a traditional stovetop paella pan recipe, and found a few that I mishmashed together. I invited my sister in law over for a little Game of Thrones and to test this recipe that I was considering serving at the weekend party - a classic paella with spanish chorizo, chicken thighs and shrimp. The results were absolutely delicious. And soggy. And greasy.

So. This is why we test recipes. I will make alterations (less water, shorter cooking time, using a different rice, and cooking off the chicken and spanish chorizo a little bit longer to release more of the fat) and post the new recipe after the weekend celebration, I promise. In the meantime, look at the photo above and imagine that the rice is cooked to perfection and there isn’t a thin layer of fatty liquid lurking on the bottom.

43 - chocolate cherry muffins

Tue, 04 Sep 2012 08:56:07 -0500

Henry and I attend a weekly playgroup of other stay at home moms where we typically share fruit and healthy snacks. Recently, however, we were saying goodbye to a mom who was leaving us to go back to work. I offered to bring cupcakes, but in a moment of calorie guilt, and the logistical nightmare of pushing dozens of frosted cupcakes in a stroller in 95 degree heat over to playgroup, I switched my buttercream frosted promise to some hearty chocolate cherry muffins.

To (slightly) offset the two sticks of butter needed for the muffins and the crumble topping, I added ground flax seed to the recipe, and chose cocoa powder over melted chocolate. I also chose yogurt over milk to add a bit more tang.

Though I wasn’t 100% satisfied with the results, (I neglected to add more moisture to offset the flaxseed - they were a little dry) the ladies and kids at playgroup polished off the nearly 4 dozen mini muffins I showed up with, so I quieted my inner critic by stuffing another muffin into my mouth and considered it a success.

I’ll definitely make these again, with the adaptions I’ve made in the recipe below.

Chocolate Cherry Muffins
makes 4 dozen mini muffins

1-3/4 cup AP flour
1/4 cup ground flax seed
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbsp good quality unsweetened cocoa powder
2 large eggs
1-1/4 cup plain whole fat yogurt
2/3 cup light brown sugar
1 stick (8 tbsp) of butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup dried cherries, roughly chopped

Turn your oven on to 400 degrees. Line your muffin pan with cupcake liners.

Mix together the flour, flax seed, baking powder and soda, salt and cocoa powder. In a separate bowl, combine the eggs, yogurt, sugar, butter and vanilla. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined, careful not to overmix. Fold in the cherries. Fill cupcake liners nearly full and top with the chocolate crumble topping (see below).

Bake for about 12 minutes for mini muffins, a few minutes longer for the regular sized version. They’re ready when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If your oven has hot spots like mine, rotate the pan about halfway through.

Chocolate crumble topping:

1 cup AP flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1 stick (8 tbsp) of butter, melted

Combine ingredients until they form a crumbly mess.

42 - zucchini and corn salad

Fri, 31 Aug 2012 09:56:45 -0500

As anyone with a vegetable garden will tell you - zucchini is one of those vegetables that you end up with more of than you every know what to do with. I don’t have a garden, but I have a CSA, and they grow lots and lots of zucchini. Every summer we end up with almost an entire crisper drawer full of the things, and I am always looking for new ways to eat it.

I’m a fan of eating lots of raw vegetables when they’re in season, and zucchini is no exception. I’ve made ribbons to use in place of pasta with marinara sauce (both cooked and raw), I slice it paper thin and put it on sandwiches, and I make lots of zucchini salads.

My brother and his wife came over for dinner recently and to offset a heavy main dish of roasted sausage and fingerling potatoes, I served a light lemony raw zucchini and corn salad. It was a nice balance to the hearty warm sausage and potatoes and left us feeling like we’d done something good for ourselves.

Zucchini and Corn Salad
serves 4 as a side dish

one large zucchini, cut in half lengthwise and sliced thinly into strips (a mandoline makes this easy work)
one large ear of corn, kernels carefully removed from the husk
the juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tbsp good quality olive oil
1 tsp agave nectar
one spring onion, minced
a few large leaves of basil, minced
salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients and let sit for 15-20 minutes. Eat! Enjoy! Be healthy!

41 - camp wandawega cooking

Thu, 30 Aug 2012 10:24:52 -0500

I recently had the pleasure of visiting Camp Wandawega for the first time - an old summer camp/vacation home owned and operated by Tereasa Surratt and David Hernandez. Everything about the place is perfect, from the vintage collections of glassware and dishes (the Fiestaware collection alone! Be still my heart!), to the bear skins, vintage swimsuits and pennants on the walls to the taxidermied menagerie in the lodge. There are gorgeous little cabins that you want to hibernate in, a tree house (!!!), rope swings, teepees, rope swings, canoes, and plenty of outdoor relaxation to be had. I went for a girls weekend with Hillary and Lindsay, for what turned out to be a particularly quiet weekend at the camp.

We met the few other weekend inhabitants, including the lovely Audra Pratt who writes The Cabinologist who was staying in the very modest cottage with her husband, Chad. They were welcome company over the course of the weekend, and we ended up sharing many of our meals together.

Hillary and Lindsay took care of (a shameful quantity of) booze and I planned, shopped for and cooked all of our meals in the lodge kitchen.

Here’s what we ate:

For our first meal - dinner on Friday - we grilled gyulai brats and corn, and I made a watermelon salad with scallion, basil, cucumber, feta, pepitas, white balsamic vinegar, and some butternut squash oil. Simple quick outdoor eating.

Breakfasts both mornings were simple - I made some chocolate chip banana bread before we left for camp, scrambled eggs and cooked bacon one morning and sausage the next. I also brought fruit for a fruit salad, and Lindsay and Hillary naturally worked their magic on some bloody marys. I brought brown sugar to candy the bacon on Saturday, but the lodge oven deemed too temperamental for my early morning (hungover) patience, so it was pan fried instead.

I planned a european style picnic lunch on Saturday - cheeses and salami, smoked herring, olives and pickled mushrooms, bread, jam and fruit. I brought my very last jar of sundried tomato jam - that’s how much I love these ladies. Audra and Chad joined us with their similar spread as we drank beers and enjoyed the warm sun on the patio.

I made tuna tacos for our dinner on Saturday. I grilled simply seasoned gorgeous pink tuna steaks, charred some corn and flour tortillas and served it with an aioli (sour cream, mayo, lime, cumin, coriander, cayenne), shredded cabbage, and an avocado and tomato salad with cilantro, lime, and olive oil.

The weekend went by way too quickly, as did our delicious meals. I can’t wait to go back and cook a dozen other meals I’ve been dreaming about enjoying over a lazy weekend with friends and a vintage glass full of bourbon.

40 - more cocktails. i know.

Wed, 29 Aug 2012 09:58:15 -0500

We had two outdoor music potluck events a few weekends ago, one requiring from me an alcoholic beverage and one requiring a salad. So whereas I provided two separate events with delicious goodies, I’ve been a bit behind on my posts so I’m combining them here. Two recipes! Yay!

So, like the rest of the people who shop at Whole Foods, I’m on a coconut water kick right now. I can’t get enough of it, so much so that I wanted to find a way to incorporate it into a cocktail. Since visiting Chile 5 years ago, I’ve had a soft spot for an occasional pisco sour, so I decided to mash up some coconut water with some pisco and lemon with a little cucumber thrown in for summery good measure. It was a delight, and I urge you to make these immediately to consume on a porch out of a mason jar. You may want a double batch. Just saying.

Coconut Cucumber Pisco Sour
makes one drink.

2 oz pisco
2 oz coconut water
1/2 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 oz simple syrup
a few slices of cucumber

Shake with ice and strain into a glass with a few fresh cucumber slices.

For our potluck salad the next day I made a pesto pasta salad with roasted cherry tomatoes. Roasting tomatoes is a great trick when your supermarket tomatoes are lacking in the flavor department. Slowly roasting concentrates the flavors and intensifies the sweetness, elevating them to a higher level of tomatoey goodness. Perfect for tossing with pasta and some fresh nutty basil pesto.

Basil Pesto Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes
serves 8-ish as a side dish

1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper
4 cups basil
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted and cooled
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup good quality olive oil
juice from 1/4 of a lemon
fresh ground pepper
1 lb of pasta - any shape will do, I used a whole wheat rotini

Roast your tomatoes. Turn your oven to 300 and toss the tomatoes with the 1 tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper. Lay them out evenly, cut side up, on a roasting pan, lined with a Silpat if you have one. Roast for 45 minutes to an hour, checking to see that they are slightly shriveled and starting to dry. Remove and cool.

Make your pesto. Put a large pot of water on to boil and prepare a large bowl of water and ice to the side. Blanch your basil for just 10-15 seconds then shock it in the ice water. Drain and squeeze out any excess water. Squeeze it real good. You don’t want watery pesto. Toss the basil in a food processor with the pine nuts, parmesan, garlic, olive oil, lemon and pepper and pulse until you get pesto. Set aside.

Boil your pasta - you can use the basil blanching water! Drain and rinse with cold water until cool. Combine with your tomatoes and pesto, and some thin slices of salami if you’re feeling meaty.

39 - blueberry lemon bread pudding (and a dinner the night before)

Mon, 13 Aug 2012 09:54:36 -0500

Craig and I met in college, at 19 years old, introduced by a friend I’d known since early high school. Alex had talked us both up to each other in preparation for our meeting, and sure enough, we knew almost immediately that we were going to be an item. I can never thank Alex enough for bringing Craig into my life, but I can at least try to cook him some awesome food when he comes to visit.

Alex came to Chicago for a long overdue visit recently with his lovely lady friend, Amy. If was his first time meeting Henry, and our first time meeting Amy, and I think it’s safe to say we all approved. For their first night in I made a dinner (with the assistance of Craig’s grilling skills):

Grilled Ginger Garlic Marinaded Skirt Steak (rub skirt steak down with lots of minced ginger and garlic, salt, pepper and olive oil at least an hour before cooking. Grill 3- 4 minutes per side. Slice against the grain, on the bais, thinly.)

Garlic Scape and Ginger Sauce (basically the ginger scallion sauce but with garlic scapes instead of scallion)

Grilled Sweet Potato (oil, season, and grill sliced sweet potato for 5 minutes per side)

Bacon Baguette Panzanella Salad (bacon baguette, you say? It’s a baguette with bacon inside and it makes THE BEST panzanella, crostini, french toast, sandwiches….well, everything. It’s the only baguette that matters. You can get yours at my local french bakery, La Boulangerie. Add diced tomato, cucumber, fresh basil, red wine vinegar capers, pickled ramps, and olive oil and you’ve got the most awesome party.)

Pineapple Upside Down Cake with Toasted Coconut Ice Cream (the pound cake AGAIN. This time in a round cake pan smeared with 2 tbsp butter, 1 cup chopped fresh pineapple and 1/4 cup brown sugar before baking, then inverted after cooled.)

I managed to take one terrible photo of my half eaten plate, which I hesitate to share for fear of losing readers, but looking at the pretty blueberry and lemon bread pudding I made for breakfast the next morning makes up for it, right?

I can’t believe I haven’t shared a bread pudding recipe with you yet, because it’s one of those staples that I make again and again for almost every occasion. This time I used the flavors you’re probably getting sick of reading about now - blueberry and lemon. But I promise, it was delicious.

Blueberry Lemon Bread Pudding
serves 6

butter for the pan
6-8 cups bread, cubed in 1/2 inch pieces - I usually use baguette or ciabatta
1 pint fresh blueberries
4 eggs
3 cups of whole milk
zest of one lemon
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup sugar, plus 2 tbsp for topping

Preheat your oven to 325. Generously butter a deep pie dish or 9 inch square pan and arrange half of the bread, then half of the blueberries, then repeat. Combine the milk, eggs, lemon zest, vanilla and 1/2 cup sugar and pour over the bread. You may have to push down on the bread to get it to absorb all of the liquid - and even then it will be very full. Sprinkle the remaining sugar on top and bake for 45-60 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

38 - MARGARITAS. and fish tacos.

Thu, 09 Aug 2012 09:54:42 -0500

While my little brother was busy studying for the bar exam (yay, Phil!), I invited his new bride over as much as I could to give her some company and get her out of her house which had been taken over by law books and round the clock required silence.

On one of those nights I served her fish tacos with a spicy crema and cabbage slaw, and an avocado, cucumber, radish and tomato salad. We also had many margaritas. Many. Margaritas.

My fish tacos are pretty simple. I usually use tilapia, and I dredge it in some flour that I’ve seasoned with salt and pepper, cumin, coriander and maybe some cayenne. Pan fry in a cast iron skillet over high heat with some olive oil until the edges are crispy and cooked through (like 2 minutes a side). Serve with warmed tortillas, some cilantro, shredded cabbage and lime wedges to garnish. I also made a spicy crema - mayo, some lime zest, sour cream, cayenne, cumin, coriander, salt and pepper.

The salad is like a lot of salads I make - using stuff I have on hand and I just keep adding until it seems right. This time I julienned some cucumber and radish, halved some cherry tomatoes and diced some avocado, chopped some cilantro and added a little olive oil, salt, pepper and lime juice and called it a day.

The margaritas were inspired by a timely post on A Cup of Jo. Minus the salt, plus a smoky aged tequila. Pretty wonderful.

37 - more cocktails. and dessert.

Tue, 07 Aug 2012 12:00:00 -0500

Good friends Hillary and Michael invited us to dinner recently, with new friend Max, and I offered to bring the bookends to the meal - an aperitif cocktail and dessert. And since I’ve been on a gin kick (again) recently, I chose a gin drink. And since I like to be thorough, I chose the same flavors to begin and end the meal - blueberry, lemon, and basil. (I’m kind of in a rut over here with the blueberries and lemon. It will pass with the season, I’m sure.)

I started with a blueberry basil gin sour, which I selflessly tested at home for almost two weeks prior to dinner to make sure it was delicious. And delicious it was, at least as far as I can remember after having five of them.

For the tail end of the meal I made Paul Virant’s poundcake that I can’t stop making, and a blueberry basil ice cream to accompany it. It was a lovely combination of flavors, and nicely complimented the roast pork with pineapple and the corn salad Michael and Hillary served us for dinner.

Blueberry Basil Gin Sour
Makes 1 delicious cocktail. So you probably want to double it.

one small handful of basil
1/4 of a lemon
2 oz gin
1/2 oz simple syrup
1.5 oz blueberry juice

(The simple syrup can be reduced depending on the sweetness of the brand of blueberry juice.) Muddle the lemon and the basil with some ice in a cocktail shaker. Add the remaining ingredients and shake. Strain into a glass and garnish with a lemon slice and a basil leaf.

Paul Virant’s Poundcake. With lemon.
Adapted from The Preservation Kitchen

1 lb of butter, room temperature
confectioner’s sugar
zest of one lemon
baking powder
salt
vanilla
eggs
milk
juice of half a lemon
flour

Add the lemon juice to the milk and set aside. Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the lemon zest, baking powder, salt and vanilla and mix to combine. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing thoroughly and scraping down the sides in between additions. Alternate adding the milk and the flour, mixing on low speed until smooth. Pour into a prepared loaf pan (buttered and I usually add a strip of parchment like a little upside down saddle to help get the loaf out after baking) and bake for about an hour, until a toothpick comes out clean.

Blueberry Basil Ice Cream

Makes 1 quart

1 pint fresh blueberries
juice of 1/2 a lemon
1 cup sugar, divided
1 cup milk
1 cup packed basil leaves
pinch of salt
2 cups heavy cream, divided

Heat the blueberries, lemon and 1/2 cup of the sugar over medium heat. Cook, stirring often, until you have a thick sauce, about 10 minutes. Let cool, then strain and set aside to cool, discarding the solids.

Heat the remaining sugar, milk, basil, salt, and 1 cup of the heavy cream over medium heat until just to a simmer. Turn the heat off and let steep for 30 minutes. Strain and let cool slightly, then add the remaining cream and blueberry sauce. Chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours, then follow the directions for your ice cream maker to freeze your new favorite ice cream.

36 - ginger scallion sauce is a new food group

Mon, 06 Aug 2012 08:40:20 -0500

I had my mom and my brother’s new wife over for dinner recently to help me eat a giant slab of salmon I bought on impulse at Whole Foods because it was so gorgeous. With Craig’s help we grilled them on cedar planks with some zucchini and pretty little tomatoes. I also made some plain white buttered rice, which will always hold a soft spot in my heart.

I had about 3 bunches of scallions from our CSA taking up a whole crisper drawer in the fridge, so I nosed around the internet for something to do with them until I found this recipe. It sounded so perfect with the cedar plank salmon, so I promptly made it and we ate the whole jar. And then I made it again for the leftovers and ate all of that. And now I’m making it (and variations - you’ll see) all the freaking time. But it’s healthy, right? Ginger helps with digestion and scallions are a vegetable, right? Nevermind they’re swimming in olive oil that you want to drink straight out of the jar.

I haven’t found anything it isn’t great on - eggs, pasta, toast, chicken, fish, beef. Make it and I promise you won’t be disappointed. Just try to remember there are other food groups.

Also - check out a post by my good friend Michael mentioning me over at Camp Wandawega’s blog. I was just there for the first time this weekend, and it’s the most incredible place. We’re going back again in two weeks, so keep checking for more vacation cooking posts!

35 - cooking on vacation. a little bit.

Mon, 30 Jul 2012 09:52:19 -0500

Craig and I took a recent opportunity to leave our toddler with my fabulous sister in law for TWO WHOLE NIGHTS and skip town with dear friends Hillary and Michael to Michigan for the weekend. We stayed in the incredible summer home of one of Hillary’s generous coworkers, all farmhouse and midcentury and acres of wildlife, including a terrifying mobile bee swarm and a barn cat with her brand new kittens. We drank, beached, shopped, drank, napped and ate almost constantly. It was perfect. But most perfect was being able to lounge around in the morning with our friends and cook a simple breakfast with some ingredients we’d harvested from the gardens on the property.

I just assumed I’d prepare breakfast both mornings we were there, and since nobody threatened to remove a spatula from my hand, I made some simple breakfast dishes while Craig and Michael made us perfect coffee and Hillary made us her perfect bloody marys.

Day 1 - a pretty three cheese boule with my home-canned strawberry preserves, goat cheese, ramp jam. Pork breakfast sausages, soft scrambled eggs with feta, and a fruit salad of pineapple, blueberries and starfruit.

Day 2 - a potato, zucchini and spring onion hash (with veggies from the gardens), gorgeous thick smoky bacon, more soft scrambled eggs with feta and the same fruit salad.

I don’t have any real recipes to share, but if you haven’t seen it, I will enlighten you to this article on how to make the best scrambled eggs. I cut back on the butter a bit, but more butter than you think you need and low low heat are your friends when it comes to a soft and creamy scrambled egg. And lots of feta cheese tossed in at the very end, which I can never get enough of.

34 - i love america and chickpea salad

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 16:55:14 -0500

For the 4th of July we were invited to a backyard bbq by some lovely friends with promises of grilled meats (and non-meats) and a pool. Since I still hadn’t washed my newly named “cocktail jars” from our previous bbq, I offered to bring a side dish instead of boozy drinks. I wanted something hearty, delicious, and vegetarian for a few of the guests, and decided on a chickpea salad with lots of herbs, zucchini, sundried tomato, feta cheese, and a tart vinaigrette.

Chickpea Salad
serves 8-10

the zest and juice of one lemon
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup good olive oil
1 tbsp agave nectar
3-12oz cans of chickpeas, drained and rinsed (or about 4 cups of dried chickpeas, soaked overnight and simmered for about an hour until soft, then cooled.)
1 large zucchini, small dice
2 green onions, chopped
1/4 cup packed parsley, minced
1/4 cup packed basil, minced
1 cup sliced sundried tomatoes
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Whisk together the lemon through the agave and pour over the remaining ingredients. Toss to combine and let sit for about an hour for everything to meld. Enjoy!