Recipe Rave: Cucumber Avocado Summer Rolls

Okay, I'm obsessed with these. Came across this

William Sonoma recipe via Pinterest and knew I had to give them a try. So so so worth it. So fresh and yummy tasting.  Oh, and working with the rice paper was way easier than I anticipated, so don't be scuuurrrred.

ps-kudos to my local stop & shop for carrying the rice paper wraps. very international of them.

DIY Lemon Sugar Scrub

I found this recipe for DIY moisturizing lemon sugar scrub on Good Life Eats and we love it. While she calls it a kitchen scrub, I've found it most useful left in the upstairs bathroom so we can use it right before going to bed and let the olive oil do its moisturizing overnight.

Blackberry Peach Crostata

Loosely based on this Barefoot Contessa recipe and featuring blackberries I found growing behind our garden shed!

S'mores Cupcakes

One of many nice things about being on pre-maternity leave is having the opportunity to play housewife and surprise Steven with something special from the kitchen when he gets home. Sometimes the surprise is simply having dinner ready when he walks in the door, and sometimes it's a little more exciting, like these s'mores cupcakes.

It's fair to say that Steven is rather enthusiastic about s'mores--he's been known to recite s'mores related quotes from The Sandlot, and when fireside, is personally offended by any deviation from traditional s'mores making protocol. Since I suspect that our next camping trip will be a long way off, I thought these cupcakes would be a fantastic "Honey, I'm hoooome!" treat.

And I was right. They are sinfully good!
Basically a graham cracker cupcake filled with a dollop of marshmallow fluff and topped with chocolate ganache, then topped off with piped fluff and toasted under the broiler, these cupcakes are a gooey mess of deliciousness. And unlike many s'mores inspired foods (I'm looking at you, PopTarts.) they absolutely capture the essence of that simple fireside wonder.

Absolutely delicious with a cold glass of milk!Recipe HERE. Another s'mores cupcake recipe I want to try HERE.

(Hey, if there's one thing I'm learning from reading Julia Child's memoir, it's that one must be thorough in the kitchen! ;)

Eggplant Parm Cannoli

Last week's dreary, rainy, cold weather temporarily relieved my need for light summer food. I felt like something a little heavier and a lot cozier was in order...

This recipe was inspired by a meal I had years ago in Boston's North End. As I recall, the menu simply listed this dish as eggplant parm, but when it came out I was treated to this upgrade--hollowed out fried eggplant filled with a yummy garlic herb ricotta filling. It was delicious and obviously made an impact, since years later I found myself compelled to imitate it.

I started with small eggplants (my grocery store had them labeled as "Italian eggplant", and their shape was much more conducive to hollowing out into nice little tubes than the typical giant ones.) I hollowed them out, breaded them...you know the drill--flour, egg, breadcrumbs...and then fried them.
While they cooled down a bit, I mixed together some ricotta, fresh crushed garlic, salt, pepper, and fresh chopped basil.I improvised and used a sandwich bag with a corner cut off to pipe the filling into the golden brown fried eggplant "tubes". This is when it occurred to me that they were like savory eggplant cannoli. :)I warmed those in the oven for about 4-5 minutes, then served them over spaghetti with marinara* and some grated parmesan.

*No, I did not make my own marinara. Next time. (bluff)

But as far as store bought goes, we really like Newman's Own Organic Marinara.

Shrimp, Lemon, & Pea Risotto and a Request

Lately I've been thinking that I really need to develop a better repertoire of light fresh summer meals. Recipes more exciting and substantial than say, salads...that still capitalize on the availability of good produce and require only minimal stove time.

Right now our summer dinner staples include:

1) Healthy Tacos-healthy(er) modifications include using ground chicken or turkey, mixing our own taco seasoning (ever read the ingredients list on the packets?), baby spinach instead of iceberg, and adding avocado. Steven has even given up his beloved "liquid nacho cheese product" as part of this healthier makeover.

2) Greek Wraps (a la this post)-mostly veggies with feta and spiced meat, pushed squarely into the light & fresh category by the presence of freshly made tzatziki.

3) Pesto/Caprese Pasta-whole wheat thin spaghetti with fresh homemade pesto, grape tomatoes, fresh mozzarella bites, and a variety of other fresh veg...usually sweet peppers, summer squash, and baby spinach.

And, uhhhh, that's pretty much it. Need...more...recipes!!!

Trying to branch out, I whipped up a light lemony risotto the other night. (It's a rip off of one of the best dishes on the menu at CAV.) I just cooked the risotto and added shrimp, julienned peas, lemon zest, grated parmesan, and a healthy dose of black pepper.

Definitely light and fresh (the lemon takes a bow) and easy enough to make on a hot day. Woo hoo, a fourth recipe!

So here is the request part of the post: please share your favorite summer recipes! I need inspiration! Anything fresh & light, while substantial enough to sustain a hardworking DIYer like Steven, not to mention his somewhat less hardworking assistant, moi. Keep us from eating pesto pasta every night, because there is definitely such a phenomenon as too much of a good thing!

Thanks! ~LT

Shaved Asparagus Pizza

When spring finally comes around, I'm always excited for the roll out of seasonal produce. Asparagus, peas, rhubarb, etc...first ones to the party, ushering in the warmer weather and finally bringing back that fresh produce taste that is so elusive during the winter. Yum. So after coming across this unconventional pizza recipe multiple times (HERE and HERE), I decided to give it a shot. While it was a total pain in the neck to shave asparagus (at least with my peeler), the lighter texture is definitely worth the effort. Steven loved it, and he doesn't really like asparagus all that much...which is why I made a Plan B half of the pizza, just in case, LOL.

And in keeping with the spring theme...a little spring cleaning tidbit for anyone else who gets as excited about sorting as nerdy little LT: a great organization post @ Centsational Girl.

Ricotta Tart with Dried Fruit Compote

Steven and I had fantastic date night in Boston's North End a couple weeks ago to celebrate my 30th (!!!) birthday. After a cozy dinner at my favorite Hanover Street restaurant, we stopped for gelati, and after that grabbed some sweet treats from Modern Pastry to bring home. (Yes, we were going full tilt. I hadn't been to the North End in ages!)

At the bakery, Steven was a lucky ducky and managed to get the second to last piece of one of his favorite North End staples, ricotta pie. All of his ooohing and aaahing got me thinking...why not try and make it at home?

Alas, before I came across a recipe for a traditional ricotta pie, I was distracted by this ricotta tart recipe from Epicurious.

The tart itself was super yummy (though the inclusion of cream cheese in the recipe made the texture a little more "cheesecake" than "ricotta tart") and while I appreciated the dried fruit compote, Steven did not love the wine flavor nor the seeds. So, being the clever hubby that he is, he decided to forgo the compote and opted for butterscotch caramel sauce instead. (As in, the one intended for ice cream sundaes.)

Call me a plebeian...but it did taste even better. :)

Banana Bread Meets a Heavy Dose of Chocolate

Few recipes carry the banner of resource management as effectively as banana bread. I'm always shocked when I peel those completely unappealing brown bananas and find still-perfect banana flesh. And to think I almost threw you away.

I used this banana bread recipe, which is a complete deviation from the banana bread (or more often, zucchini bread) that I grew up with. No cinnamon or related spices, no nuts, no vanilla...but featuring lots of chocolate chips.

So it's basically chocolate chip bread with mashed bananas.

Nothing groundbreaking here, but a great way to transform those past-their-prime bananas into something you WANT to eat. This loaf didn't even last a whole day in our house...

New Blog Obsession: Tartelette

Have you seen the movie Julie & Julia, in which blogger Julie Powell, apparently rather bored with her life, endeavors to work her way through all 524 recipes in Julia Child's first cookbook? Well, if I had to choose a similar challenge for myself, I would probably choose to work my way through the recipe index of my new favorite blog, Tartelette.

I am seriously smitten with the recipes, the photos, the desserts...

like S'mores Doughnuts (*omg, drool*):

Candy cane macarons:

and Goat cheese and fresh berry tarts:

That's just a glimpse of all the goodness going on over at Tartelette. Head on over if you're in need of culinary inspiration...so many beautiful things!

*Special thanks to Helene for allowing me to use images from her gorgeous blog*

Peppermint Marshmallows

Inspired by this blogger, and galvanized by my love for hot chocolate, I knew I had to try and make Peppermint Marshmallows for myself. I thought maybe they'd be a little funky (like homemade oreos vs. real oreos...yeah, they're good, but they're not "it") but these are better than store-bought fo' sho'. The texture is perfect...they have this nice semi-firm consistency and then they go all gooey in your hot chocolate. Not to mention kicking it up a notch with the peppermint, cashing in on the best wintertime flavor combo ever. Ah, so good!

Great Potato Salad Recipe

I just wanted to share a great recipe I recently tried: Creamy Potato Salad with Lemon and Fresh Herbs from Epicurious. I needed to throw something together to accompany some fried pork cutlets (traditional Czech řízky) I was making, and this po-po salad sounded promising. Tons of fresh herbs and some lemon zest? A recipe for success, me thinks.

It was simple to make and tasted great...this recipe is definitely being added to my cookbook of go-to dishes. It would be especially fitting for a summer BBQ or picnic, so give it a shot if you're ever looking to try out a new potato salad.

Note: I omitted the celery and the basil and it was still fantastic. Easy peasy.

Laid Back Ladies' Night: Fancy Pants Pizzas

When my girlfriends and I scheduled a Ladies' Night for the weekend after NYE, I knew right away that a nice laid back evening at home would be just what we needed to recover from the rush of the holidays. And since I was hosting, I thought Build Your Own Pizzas, preceded by hot chocolate and vanilla steamers, and followed by chocolate fondue with fruit would be just. what. we. needed. I dare say I was right on the money.

We ended up making a Roasted Butternut Squash and Ricotta pizza...

a pizza featuring roasted garlic, fresh spinach, and roasted cherry tomatoes, topped with mozzarella...

and a Fig & Prosciutto pizza (from Todd English's Figs restaurant) that I have tried to reproduce about 3 times now, and *finally* hit the nail on the head.

The key is the balsamic fig jam, for which I had tried to substitute store-bought fig spread in the past. This time I decided to make it myself and it was spot on...I combined butter, chopped dried figs, balsamic vinegar, water, salt, black pepper, sugar, and dried rosemary in a saucepan and cooked it down for about 1 hour. Spread that on your dough, add prosciutto and shaved Parmesan.* Top with chopped scallions before serving, and you have got one tasty fancy pants pizza!

*Todd English's version also features Gorgonzola. Mine didn't, because...well...I forgot. But it was a fortuitous mistake, since not everyone in my world loves the stinky bleus. :)

P.S.-It's so much fun cooking with girlfriends! In the last couple of months, I have also teamed up with my girls to braid 15 loaves of Vánočka, create a glorious NYE smörgåsbord, and make delicious homemade tamales (documented by LB *here*). Good times.

Pumpkin Spice Pancakes and a Check In

Though the downstairs renovation is by far the dominating factor in our lives right now, we do get a few minutes here and there to celebrate the season in simple ways, such as enjoying these pumpkin spice pancakes for Sunday breakfast before we start the day's projects. To make them, simply add pumpkin puree, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla extract to your usual pancake batter. Serve with real maple syrup ONLY, or risk incurring the wrath of the food gods.

As for the renovation status report: the living room, parlor/"girl room", and dining room are all ready for the floor guys to come in and do their thing. We are now working on the foyer, and we're looking at another 2 weeks for sure. Should be interesting, considering the radiators are disconnected and it's getting mighty chilly. (Looks like we are unintentionally participating in the No Heat Challenge, lol.)

I know it will all be worth it, though, and I can't wait 'til it's finished. Especially since I just ordered something new and fabulous for the dining room...

You'll have to wait and see!

Honey-Glazed Peach Tart with Mascarpone Cream

I had a hankering for peaches, and since I won't even bother with grocery store peaches anymore (I've been disappointed by those deceiving, desiccated impostors too many times), I trucked on down to the farmers' market for some REAL peaches. Ahhhhh, fuzzy sun-ripened goodness.

One serving of summer, coming right up.

Recipe here.

Appleton Creamery, Magical Breakfast Cream, & Homemade Yogurt

While up in Maine last month, we stopped by the Belfast Farmers' Market for the first time.

There was an impressive selection, but my favorite stand by far was that of Appleton Creamery, an award winning artisan cheese maker in nearby Appleton, Maine. They had a stunning variety of chèvre (rolled in herbes de Provence or marinated in olive oil or encased in beeswax or seasoned with maple and peppercorn...), as well as an assortment of other dairy products. And samples of everything! Steven buzzed around from sample to sample like a honeybee among flowers...I'm pretty sure he tried every. single. thing. :)

One product that immediately caught my eye was the sheep's milk yogurt. I love yogurt (so versatile!) and have been incrementally moving away from the mainstream brands of my youth--Yoplait, Colombo, etc--and towards the brands that take a more minimalist approach to the ingredients...no thickeners, HFCS, preservatives, etc. FAGE is my favorite.

Another reason for my heightened interest in the artisan yogurt was the fact that just that very morning I had been flipping through the French Women Don't Get Fat Cookbook by Mireille Guiliano.

(Not a huge fan. While I like her philosophy--basically a low quantity, high quality approach--I frankly found her delivery to be a little...smug. A lot of "I always..." and "I can't understand why anyone would ever..."...Bleh.)

However, she absolutely raves about yogurt, and that's something I could get behind. She calls it every woman's secret weapon, and shares a family recipe for Magical Breakfast Cream: a mixture of yogurt, honey, flax seed oil, lemon juice, grains and nuts. She swears by it as a sort of detox, perfect for when you're feeling a little bloated or like you've been a little too indulgent and need to reset.

So I decided to buy the sheep's milk yogurt, and when I asked the vendor how long it would keep, she assured me that it would be fine, unopened, for about month. She then added:

"I just made it last night, so it can't get any fresher."

Wow. That just floored me. I wanna play!

So I looked into it, and making your own yogurt looks pretty easy (in fact, it's basically 100% analogous to the way we grow bacteria in the lab when we need to produce a ton of DNA. weird.) I definitely want to give it a shot, and after some research, I added this baby to my Amazon wish list:

It's a yogurt maker (basically just an incubator) with 7 glass jars, so none of that alarming plastic leaching talk. Can't wait to try it out!

(Bubba voice): yogurt + honey...yogurt + fruit preserves...yogurt tzatziki...yogurt hamburgers...yogurt pancakes...yogurt casserole...yogurt gumbo...yogurt sausage...yogurt smoothies.......

;)

p.s.-the Magical Breakfast Cream is actually really good...with lemon and honey, how could it be bad?

p.p.s.-Appleton Creamery hosts cheesemaking workshops! Yes, please.

Eggs Benedict

A couple of weeks ago, a froworker (friend+coworker=froworker!) offered me her Siena Farms CSA share as she was going to be out of the country and wouldn't be able to use it. I was happy to help her out. :)

Of course the first thing I thought when I rifled through the box of produce I received was "What am I going to do with all this stuff?" Then I remembered that Gesine Bullock Prado of Confections of a Closet Master Baker, had just posted a recipe for eggs benedict featuring sauteed swiss chard on her other blog, Living in Freegrace.

We love us some benedict and had some lovely rainbow chard in the CSA box, so...no brainer.This was my first time making hollandaise from scratch, and I was actually really surprised at how simple it was. Egg yolks, butter, salt, lemon juice, pepper...and blend.

A perfect weekend brunch!