January 2012
4 posts
Meyer Lemons in da House!
Meyer lemons are in season in California, and are therefore in the supermarket all the way here in DC. Meyer lemons are originally from China, and are thought to be a hybrid of a lemon and a mandarin orange.
Having them in the house reminded me of how a little squeeze of lemon (or lime) can lift a dish. Keep citrus around and you can find many uses. This week I used meyer lemon juice in:
...
"Blush" Cabernet Sea Salt
For Christmas, my mother-in-law put some Blush Cabernet Sea Salt from Hawaii in my stocking. I don’t play with flavored salts very often, but I thought this would be fun.
Tonight I seasoned my skirt steak with a bunch of it (liberally distributed over both sides of the steak with some pepper), and it turned out great! I don’t know if it was the blush cabernet flavor (I’m not...
December 2011
4 posts
Happy Early Hanukkah!
My family was in town last night, so we had an early Hanukkah celebration. We ate: brisket, braised in balsamic vinegar, red wine, and veal stock, roasted brussel sprouts, and of course, latkes. The new food processor wedding present was a huge help!The veal stock addition is very exciting, as it was the stock of choice in culinary school. I obviously and shamefully do not make my own stock, but...
Christmas Cookie Fail (Kind of)
I went to a holiday party a few weeks ago and had the best Christmas cookies I have ever had! They were Martha Stewart’s chewy chocolate gingerbread cookies. Very light and chewy, such great gingerbready-flavor, and the chocolate is a really nice touch.
Recipe:
YieldMakes 2 dozen
Ingredients
7 ounces best-quality semisweet chocolate
1 1/2 cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose...
November 2011
8 posts
Soup!
To get all up in my Vita Mix again, I made myself some acorn squash soup (roasted acorn squash, chicken stock, cinnamon, salt & pepper). I also had a lentil/rice blend in my pantry, so I cooked up some lentil soup, as well (with onions, carrots, spinach, and beef stock).
Pumpkin Cornbread
I made one of my favorite Thanksgiving treats to prepare for the big day: pumpkin cornbread.
My aunt Carla made it for us a few years ago, and now it’s a family staple. I made the recipe into muffins because they would take less time to bake (10-12 minutes), and I was going to take them to the office in my new cupcake caddy (wedding gift)!
I also got to use my new VitaMix, which, in three...
'Tis the Season
Thanksgiving is still a week and a half away, but it’s not stopping me from getting into the spirit. Based on my farmer’s market shop today, I made a dinner of turkey braised in pumpkin ale with yams and roasted squash.
I feel like I braise quite a bit and have reviewed the technique many times on my “blog,” but I know some of my friends like to get the recipe for my...
Peking Duck and Other Uneaten Hors d'Oeuvres for...
What I guess I’d heard, but never really believed, was that you don’t really eat at your wedding. Well, it’s true. At least it was for us. I was all nervous and excited until we cut the cake that I didn’t really have time to think about or enjoy the delicious food (and we rocked it out with our food) we had for dinner and cocktails.
Two hors d’oeurves my husband was...
October 2011
3 posts
Clams with Beet Greens and Garlic Toast
I love the way the beet greens turned the sauce such a pretty color!
September 2011
2 posts
Labor Day Weekend Dinner Party
It’s been a while since we’ve had people over. This weekend, some of our friends who were around for the weekend came over for dinner. It was so nice to make it back to the farmer’s market and get the last of the great summer produce: corn, tomatoes, eggplant, zucchini, and peaches.
I also go to use some of my awesome new wedding gifts: a Minnesota cutting board, a silver chips...
August 2011
2 posts
Hello, Gorgeous!
I love you, caribbean blue Le Creuset Dutch oven!
July 2011
12 posts
Shake Shack at Nats Stadium!
Turkey Thighs Rock!
My mother-in-law to be came into town, and I know she’s not much of a meat eater. I didn’t want to make fish, pay for duck, or make chicken again, so I went for some turkey thighs.
They were amazing. Amazing. We couldn’t stop eating it. I marinated them over night in salt, pepper, olive oil, garlic, and fresh herbs, but I honestly think it was the richness of the turkey itself...
Hello, Caprese
Momofuku Braises
Upon a recent trip to Williams-Sonoma, I noticed that Momofuku was selling their very own braising sauces. I normally wouldn’t spend $14 on something I could probably make myself, but I’m a sucker for Momofuku, and I have some W-S gift cards so I thought I’d splurge.
I braised some lamb shanks I had with it, browning those with some vegetables, the contents of the jar and some...
Chesapeake Bay Adventure and A Very Local Meal
We took off for the beach on the Chesapeake Bay yesterday with our doggie. On our trip back, we stopped to get Maryland wine (I found it meh), and some side-of-the-road produce (peaches, green beans, tomatoes, potatoes) that was way cheaper than the farmer’s market.
Tonight I made a salad of the peaches, some mustard greens and kohlrabi from the school garden (I can’t believe I forgot...
Left Overs
We had a lot of chicken, corn, and cauliflower left over, and we had both forgotten to bring our left overs for lunch.
Luckily, I was able to make them into a brand new delicious dish: fusilli with chicken, cauliflower, corn, pesto, and parmesan.
And I remembered to take it for lunch the next day.
June 2011
10 posts
More Fun with Wedding Presents
Some very close friends threw me a bridal shower a few weekends ago. It was beautiful and so much fun. And I got some super great gifts. It’s nice to have gifts, but I also really do think of the person who gave me the gift when I use it (so far), and that’s a very nice thing.
Shown below is my window-sill herb garden (box to come), which I know looks two-thirds pathetic, but I am...
From Spring Into Summer
Spring has officially turned into summer (as of last week). Here is a dish made with the last of the farmer’s market asparagus and the first of the Whole Foods corn (from Georgia, I think).
It’s gnocchi with sauteed corn and asparagus, topped with pecorino.
Some Fancy Things
Farmer’s market produce, the makings of chicken liver mousse (sauteed chicken livers with onion, cinnamon, nutmeg, and port blended with cream), saffron panna cotta in a tea cup, pinot noir in a fancy decanter, chicken liver mousse with cheeses on a fancy tray with matching spreaders.
Coriander, Sage, and Garlic Chicken and Duck
For dinner last night, I used the coriander, sage, and garlic the 4th and 5th graders harvested from the garden on Friday to season the chicken (for the wussies who don’t like duck) and the duck for dinner last night.
Served with potatoes (shown), asparagus, and salad (not shown).
New Pizza Stone and Spring and Summer Veggies
I used my new pizza stone (and the food processor to make the pizza dough) to make an appetizer pizza for a dinner. The new pizza peel was also utilized.
The crust could definitely use more olive oil, but the pesto, spring onion, and zucchini topping was a hit.
May 2011
8 posts
Taking My New Pans for a Test Drive!
One of the many great things about getting married is all the wonderful gifts you get. See below two new All Clad pans: a saute pan and a non-stick grill pan.
I grilled some swordfish and sauteed some summer vegetables.
The trick is how hard it is to keep the pans so shiny after their first use. I dry them right away and have stainless steal cleaner, but it’s just so hard to replicate...
I Love My School Garden!
I have been cooking like crazy from it and saving so much $$$ at the farmer’s market.
Below, chicken with onions, thyme, and kale from the garden, and ravioli with fava beans and broccoli rabe from the garden.
Peas are starting to grow; they are so sweet! I can’t wait to see what grows in the coming months through the summer.
Salmon with Gnocchi and Broccoli Pesto
Really rich, actually. And the pesto was made with our brand new food processor, courtesy of family friends and wedding presents!