Crostini with Goat Cheese and Fennel

It's a dreary day here in NYC. Luckily I have a well stocked larder and don't need to venture out into the wet world. I seem to gravitate towards crostini when I'm scrounging around in the cupboards for something to eat (check out my 'Sweep of the Kitch Crostini'). Crunchy chewy bread is just so satisifying, especially when it's topped with pesto, cheese or caramelized vegetables. This particular crostini is loaded with goat cheese, fennel and a pretty little fennel frond for a pop of color. Oh, and the bread is homemade, so check in later this week for the recipe. In the meantime, tell me what your favorite crostini is...

















Crostini with Goat Cheese and Fennel

1 fennel bulb, fronds reserved
1-2 T. olive oil
spritz lemon juice, optional
salt to taste
2ish oz. goat cheese
toast

• Halve fennel lengthwise and cut out the small core. Place each half on flat side and dice in the same way you would an onion.
• In a medium skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add fennel, and stir to coat. Add 1/4 cup water, turn the heat to high and cook fennel until soft. Add more water as necessary.
• Once fennel's soft, turn heat down to medium-high and allow it to begin to brown. Resist the urge to stir often. Stir only occasionally, after you have added a touch of water so you don't tear the vegetables. Once lightly browned, add salt to taste and lemon juice. The whole process (raw fennel to caramelized) will take about 45 minutes.
• Spread goat cheese on toast and top with caramelized fennel and reserved fronds.
• Enjoy!

Ebook for Haiti

I have exciting news! Lauren, of the fantastic food blog Celiac Teen, put together an awesome Ebook. She gathered 87 recipes (one of which is mine;) from 71 fellow food bloggers who, like her, want to help in the efforts to rebuild Haiti after the devastating earthquake. All proceeds from the Ebook will go to The Canadian Red Cross and donations made before (THIS) Friday 2/12, will be matched by the Canadian Government. Each Ebook is a minimum of a $10, but feel free to donate as much as you wish. As of this morning, after only one full day of sales, 34 books had been sold. Matched, that makes $2080 total! You Go Girl! Check out Lauren's site to learn a bit more about her labor of love, and to buy a book! http://www.celiacteen.com/2010/02/haiti-ebook.html

Chocolate Peanut Butter Footballs

If you're not into football, shape this peanut buttery goodness into hearts and you've got yourself a sweet, homemade valentine.

















Chocolate Peanut Butter Footballs
makes about 30
adapted from Food Mayhem

Peanut Butter Filling

1 3/4 cups confectioners sugar
1 1/2 cups crispy rice cereal
1 cup peanut butter (I used natural chunky, but I think any would be fine.)
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
8 oz chopped chocolate or chocolate chips

• Cover a baking sheet with parchment and place a cooling rack on top of that.
• Combine the sugar and cereal in a medium bowl.
• Stirring occasionally, melt peanut butter and butter in a small bowl over (not touching) simmering water or in a double boiler. Add a pinch of salt if your peanut butter is not salted. Pour mixture over the dry ingredients and stir to combine.
• Divide filling into 1 Tablespoonfuls, then form into footballs. Place footballs on prepared baking sheet.
• In another small bowl over simmering water, melt the chocolate. Place a football in the chocolate and brush with a pastry brush (I like the rubber ones). Transfer bake to baking sheet with the brush and a fork. Continue process with remaining balls. Cool in the refrigerator.
• Once chocolate has hardened, paint on laces (or hearts, stars, etc. with royal icing

Royal Icing

1 large egg whites
1 1/3 cups confectioners sugar

• Place egg white and sugar in mixing bowl and beat until glossy and stiff peaks form. If it’s not stiff enough, add another tablespoon or two of sugar.

turd turd turd, turd is the word.

Mango Browned Butter Bread

You just never know what might happen when you enter the kitchen. I didn't plan to make this bread, but I'm glad for the accident. My inspiration: One, I had a ripe mango resting it's pretty little self on the counter (not to mention the lone, rapidly darkening and, decidedly, un-pretty banana). And two, Meg of Queenie Takes Manhattan was gushing over a gorgeous browned butter pound cake she'd made. I wanted that buttery nuttiness and why the hell not throw in a touch of sweet mango. Shake what your mama gave you...




Mango Browned Butter Quick Bread
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
3 eggs
1/4 cup canola oil
1 ripe banana
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1 1/2 t. ground ginger
1 t. ground cinnamon
1/4 t. salt
1 mango, peeled, pitted and diced
zest of 1 lime
3/4 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped

• Preheat the oven to 350 and grease a loaf pan.
• In a small saute pan over medium-high heat, cook butter until it has browned and smells nutty. Remove from heat.
• Whisk together the eggs and oil and set aside.
• In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and soda, spices and salt.
• Slowly add the slightly cooled butter to the egg and oil mixture; pour over the dry ingredients and mix until blended. Dough will be thick.
• Add mango, zest and nuts and stir to combine. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.
• Bake, on a sheet pan in case there is spillage, for about 1 1/2 hours, until golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean. If you remember, rotate pan half way through baking time.
• Cool for 5 minutes in pan and then transfer loaf to a cooling rack. Once cool, store in the refrigerator.
• Enjoy!

Ice Cream Sandwich

One batch, two cookies with a scoop of ice cream. That's what I call a sandwich.

Spicy Beet and Carrot Slaw

This carrot and beet slaw is raw and spicy. RAW AND SPICY. And it'll make you feel like a million bucks. It packs heat from paprika and cayenne, has a touch of warming cinnamon and a slight tang from cumin. The sweet, earthy vegetables are bright and fresh and don't get lost behind the flavorful dressing. Beet-Carrot, it's like a one-two nutritional punch. Be a man, eat your uber-vegetables.














Spicy Beet and Carrot Slaw
serves 2

2 large or 4 small beets, peeled
2 large carrots, washed
1/2 t. cumin
1/2 t. paprika
1/4 t. cinnamon
1/4 t cayenne
1/4 t. salt
juice of half a lemon
1/8 cup olive oil

• Grate the beets and carrots using a food processor with grater attachment or the coarse side of a box grater. Transfer to a medium bowl and set aside.
• In a small bowl, combine the cumin, paprika, cinnamon, cayenne, salt and lemon juice. Stir until well blended. Add olive oil in a slow stream, whisking to combine, using more or less depending on your taste.
• Add vinaigrette to shredded beets and carrots; mix well. Season to taste.
• Enjoy!

Almond Parsley Pesto

I am, decidedly, not going to brave the grocery store in this blustery wet weather. This 'Sweep of the Kitch' crostini will brighten even the grayest of days. Mine is a quick pesto made with parsley, almonds and jalapeno, but go ahead and substitute any nuts, herbs, or whatever else might be past it's prime in the fridge.














'Sweep of the Kitch' Crostini
serves 2

1 1/2 bunch parsley, washed
1 handful raw almonds
1 jalapeno, coarsely chopped
olive oil
lemon juice
salt
4 pieces toast

• Place parsley, almonds and jalapeno in food processor and process until coarsely chopped. Add oil in a slow stream and continue to process until pesto loosens slightly. Feel free to use a bit of water in place of the oil for a lighter pesto.
• Add lemon juice and salt to taste. Start with a little of each and continue to add until you are satisfied with the flavors. Allow to sit for about 10-15 minutes so the flavors come together.
• Serve on toast with a drizzle of oil.
• Enjoy!

Black bean soup two ways

I love to cook and often become happily obsessed with trying new recipes. That said, I can also be rather lazy. When the slug in me wins out (but my appetite remains voracious), my saving grace is the much maligned leftover. I LOVE leftovers!! I cook, for example, a big batch of spicy black bean soup and freeze a portion of it for future hectic Wednesdays or boozy football Sundays. I eat said soup, eat it again (and probably again-I have a high tolerance for repetition and, luckily, so does my boyfriend). Then, when I finally tire of eating the same old delicious soup, I use it to make a brand-spanking-new dish. Enter baked potato skins with black beans and three cheeses. Then I retire to the couch.














Chipotle Black Bean Soup
Serves a small army

olive oil
2 large onions, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 7.5 oz. can chipotles in adobo sauce, chopped (this will be messy:)
4 15 oz. cans black beans, drained, and divided in half
2 28 oz. cans whole peeled tomatoes
hot water
2 bay leaves
4-5 sprigs cilantro, plus more for garnish
salt to taste

optional garnish: chopped cilantro, cheese (I like cojito or feta), sour cream, avocado, toasted pepitas, etc.

• In a large stock pot over moderate heat, use enough oil to coat bottom and cook onions and peppers until soft, about 10-15 minutes. Salt onion mixture to taste.
• Add chipotles and adobo sauce, and then half the black beans. Stir to coat beans with oil and adobo. Again, add salt to taste.
• Add tomatoes and enough hot water to cover beans by about two inches (your pinkie is a good measuring stick). Turn heat to high and bring to a slow boil, stirring often.
• Once soup has boiled, turn heat down to medium low, add bay leaves and cilantro and cook for about an hour. Again, salt to taste.
• Remove bay leaves and cilantro and puree soup until it's almost smooth. I highly recommend that you get an immersion blender, if you don't have one, because they are super handy. If not, puree the soup in batches in your standing blender. Make sure not to fill your blender more than half way unless you want to wear your soup!
• Add remaining black beans and cook until they're warmed through, 15-20 minutes. Add salt, one last time, if necessary.
• Serve hot and enjoy!

A quick note: Because you salt the soup a number of times while you are making it, don't be heavy handed; a small pinch will do. Most importantly, make sure to taste throughout the process. And, trust those taste buds of yours!

Freeze soup, cooled completely, for up to six months. Defrost under running hot water.














Turn your soup into...
Baked Potato Skins with Black Beans and Three Cheeses
Serves 2-4

1 1/2 cup black bean soup
4 baked potato skin halves leftover from making hash browns
1/4 cup each, shredded and combined: cheddar and jack cheese
1/4 cup feta cheese
cilantro, chopped

• In a small sauce pan over moderate heat, cook down the black bean soup until it has thickened and you have about one cup
• Preheat broiler
• Place potato skins in an oven safe baking dish. Fill each potato with one quarter of the black beans. Cover beans evenly with the cheddar and jack cheeses. Broil until cheese is bubbling and starting to brown.
• Top baked potato skins with feta cheese and cilantro, serve hot and enjoy!

Hash browns

I like to bake the potatoes the night before (as I am NOT a morning person). With this step taken care of, the hash browns will take all of 15 minutes. Order up!

Hash browns
serves 2

2 baking potatoes, scrubbed and dried
butter or oil
1 medium onion, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

• Preheat heat oven to 350. Prick spuds a few times with a fork and brush lightly with oil and bake for about an hour, or until soft to the touch. Allow to cool enough to handle, cut in half and scrap insides into a small bowl. Set skins aside for another use.
• In a small saute pan over moderate heat, cook until soft, about 7-8 minutes. Increase heat to high and add potatoes and season well with salt and pepper. Cook until golden brown, 5-6 minutes, flip and cook for another 5ish minutes. Serve hot.
• Enjoy!

Use the leftover potato skins to make Baked Potato Skins with Black Beans and Three Cheeses

Avocado Toast

I feel like I'm moving a million miles an hour these days. Perhaps that's hyperbole, but I am movin', so I'll cut right to the point- A GIRL'S GOTTA EAT and creative cooking and leisurely eating is certainly not in the cards until this here catering season comes to a screeching halt. Until I've got the time, I'll just have to eat fast food. Enter the avocado.













Now this is what I call fast food! It's healthy, tasty, totally satisfying and, well, fast. What you see pictured below is unadorned avocado toast. Go ahead dress her up though... add olive oil and some cayenne pepper for color. Top with a handful of spicy arugula, a spritz of lemon juice and freshly cracked black pepper. Or throw on some diced pickled jalapeno. Yummmy vinegary jalapenos;) Whatever you do, get on the avocado bandwagon. Pick up a couple once a week, give them a day or two to ripen and you'll have a happy breakfast, lunch or dinner at the ready.














Avocado Toast
serves 2

1 ripe avocado
2-4 slices of bread, depending on the size/shape and how hungry you are
salt

• Cut the avocado in half by rotating a sturdy knife around the pit. Rotate the halves to split and remove the pit. Slice avocado (see below).
• Toast bread to desired darkness. Spoon avocado onto toast and spread evenly. Sprinkle with salt.
• Enjoy!

Bourbon Spiked Cider

Aahh, it's SUNDAY NIGHT. After a holiday weekend, no less! Ease into the work week with a warm bourbon spiked cider. Sip and relax...it's not Monday yet.


















Bourbon Spiked Cider
serves 2

1 1/2 cups apple cider
1 cinnamon stick
4-5 whole cloves
orange peel
3-4 oz bourbon

• In a small saucepan, combine the cider, cinnamon, cloves and orange peel. Bring to a slow bowl, turn heat down to low, and allow to simmer for anywhere from 10 minutes to a few hours (you are simply infusing the cider with the spices, so the longer they steep the more their flavors will shine through).
• Divide the bourbon between two glasses and pour over hot cider. Garnish glass with a cinnamon stick, if you like.
• Enjoy!

Roasted Eggplant Dip

I implore you to double, triple or quadruple this recipe. Seriously, so that no one gets hurt in the rush to scoop up every last bit of dip. It's THAT tasty! The roasted eggplant is silky smooth after a whiz in the food processor. And with loads of parsley and a touch of lemon, it's herbaceous and bright. The perfect antidote for a blustery fall day.














Roasted Eggplant Dip
serves 2

3 small eggplants
2 garlic cloves
juice of half a lemon
1/2 cup parsley, roughly chopped
1/3 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

• Preheat oven to 400.
• Pierce each eggplant with a fork several times. Roast until tender, 25-30 minutes. Allow to cool slightly and remove the pulp from the skin.
• In the bowl of a food processor, combine the eggplant, garlic, lemon juice and parsley. Pulse until combined.
• With the processor running, slowly add the oil. Combine until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve with toast, pita, bread sticks, vegetables...
• Enjoy!

peach jalapeno "salsa"

This really isn't salsa at all. It's basically sliced peaches, sliced jalapeno and a squeeze of lime. Savor the last-of-the-season peaches with a little bit of bite. (If you don't like it hot, dice the pepper and use sparingly.) Serve alongside turkey burgers or grilled chicken. Dinner is served.














peach jalapeno salsa

2 ripe peaches, sliced
1 jalapeno, ribs and seeds discarded; thinly sliced
juice of 1 lime
pinch sugar

• Combine all ingredients and allow to rest for 20 minutes-ish so the flavas meld.
• Enjoy!

Super Size It

Pictures of me rolling hundreds of empanadas...

Strawberry Honey Butter

OMG, this is tasty. When I dip my spoon in for yet another big honkin' bite, I have to remind myself that it's butter. Why then do I feel less guilty smearing it on a piece of cornbread that's also largely butter? Anyhow, this is a keeper. Make sure to use super fresh strawberries for best results. Spread it on toast, biscuits, croissants...any vehicle will do. Just eat it!

Strawberry honey butter

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 pint strawberries, cut into a small "dice"
1 T + water
1 t fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 T honey

• Heat the strawberries and 1 T water in a small saucepan over low heat. Cook until the strawberries have broken down and they are a jammy consistency, adding small amounts of water as necessary. (At this point, feel free to strain the strawberries through a fine mesh sieve to eliminate seeds.)
• Add lemon juice and honey and bring mixture to a boil. Remove from heat and cool slightly.
• In a medium bowl or Tupperware container with a top, combine butter and strawberry mixture until fully combined. Cool in refrigerator for at least an hour. Take out of the fridge 20ish minutes before serving to get the chill off.
  
• Enjoy!

You take such darn good care of me, Quinoa.

The basics, yo.

Quinoa is the seed of a dark leafy plant related to Swiss chard and spinach, but because of its texture, it is usually grouped with the grains. It is light and fluffy, has a nutty flavor and is easily substituted for rice and couscous. It cooks quickly, is easy to digest and is a bona fide nutrient powerhouse. Need I say more? Not really, but I will...

-Quinoa is packed with protein. In fact, it's the only grain that is a complete protein, making it especially good for vegetarians and vegans.

-It's wheat and gluten free making it ideal for restricted diets and people with food allergies.

-It's low on the Glycemic Index and won't spike blood sugar levels. Great for diabetics.

-Full o' fiber. 'nuf said.

-Aaand, it's uber-packed with vitamins and minerals like potassium, magnesium and iron.
Woo hoo!

Now, get a hold of your excited self and make some quinoa!

Quinoa with black beans and tomatoes

2 t lime zest
2 T fresh lime juice
3 T olive oil (or whatever kind you like)
1 cup quinoa
15 oz. black beans, canned or soaked, rinsed
2 medium tomatoes (cherry or plum is fine too), diced and tossed with a pinch of sugar if needed
4 scallions, chopped
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

• Whisk together lime zest and juice, oil, 1/2 t salt, and 1/4 t pepper in a large bowl.
• Rinse quinoa VERY well in a sieve and drain.
• To cook quinoa, remember, 2 to 1. 2 parts water to 1 part quinoa. Combine water, rinsed quinoa and a good pinch salt and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 10-15 minutes. You will know when the quinoa is cooked when: the water is absorbed, it's translucent and the germ of the seed shows a little white ring around the outside.
  
• Add quinoa to dressing and toss until dressing is absorbed, stir in remaining ingredients and salt and pepper to taste.
• Enjoy!
  

Breakneck Ridge

Here are a few shots of Breakneck Ridge, including the "train station" that consists of two sets of stairs in the middle of the tracks and not much else. Not even a trash can, so if you've got any coffee cups or muffin wrappers leftover from breakfast you're packing 'em out.