here comes the sun

so, because i am becoming such a little greenie (not the dog treat, mind you), i recently decided that i wanted a solar oven. what's that, you ask? well, basically, it's a dark plastic box with a clear plastic lid that collects heat inside and gets hot enough to cook food. i found out about this earth saving cooking device from the path to freedom urban homestead folks. a popular brand of oven, called a solar sport, is made by the solar oven society. this great company is not only helping to save the environment, they're helping women and families in third world countries that are sun rich, but fuel poor. some women in africa have to spend a full day searching for wood just to have enough fuel to cook their food. the solar oven allows them to use the sun's energy as a free and endlessly renewable resource to cook their food while simultaneously freeing up their time for jobs, for other chores and to spend with their families. another problem with using wood as cooking fuel is that the wood not only adds excessive amounts of carbon to the atmosphere, it is usually burned in closed areas risking injuries from fires and increasing health problems from the families that constantly have to breathe in all that smoke. another great use for the solar oven is to make it simple to use the sun to make safe drinking water by pasteurization. every purchase of a solar oven from the solar oven society helps to fund the organization's efforts to distribute solar ovens in developing countries.

my loving family bought me one for my birthday (thanks, family!) and, i'm embarrassed to say, it promptly sat on the inside of my house for almost two months. work's been a little crazy recently and that, coupled with june gloom, has made it difficult for me to find a day that i'm not at the office and is also sunny enough to use the oven. well, today was the day and i decided to test out my solar oven! i haven't been to the market in a while and i didn't have much on hand, so i decided to keep it simple for my first test and just make a pot of basmati rice. at about 11 am, i put the rice and water in the pot (two black camping-style cooking pots come with the oven), arranged the oven facing south in direct sun on a table on my rooftop patio and put the pot in the oven...



then i clipped the clear plastic top on the oven and let it be (now that's the real meaning of "set it and forget it," mr. popeil)...



the oven also comes with an oven thermometer, which i put in so i could see how hot my oven would get. after setting everything up, i set about pottering around in my garden for a while. after about 15 minutes, the temperature inside the oven was almost 150 degrees. by about 45 minutes to an hour, it was up over 200. the manual said it takes about two hours to cook rice, so i left it to cook and went about my day. about two hours later, i went back upstairs to my patio and checked out the oven. the temperature inside was about 225. i opened up the oven and lifted the lid off the pot to find this...



...a perfectly cooked, steaming pot of basmati rice - i kid you not!



i was so excited! i cooked food with the sun! it was so simple and didn't heat up my kitchen and didn't add to my carbon footprint and all the energy was free! i can't wait to try out some other foods. i'm thinking during the weekdays, i could use it as an electricity-free crock pot and make stuff like red beans for red beans and rice, indian-style dal and stews and such. i'm really looking forward to doing some low and slow braising, like alton brown's baby back ribs. i also got the reflectors for the oven, which direct more sunlight into the inside so you can boost the temperature up to 300 to do baking. can't wait to try that either. yay!

Looking for a good sopapilla

recipe...now there is a story to this request but then isn't there always.

Sister Moon and I were on a trip (I called it our Thelma & Louise trip but we didn't kill anybody or drive off a cliff) that took us into New Mexico. So we stay overnite in Gallup, NM check into our hotel, I iced my finger after breaking it removing luggage from the trunk. That's another story but not for the food blog. Anyhow, we go to this local spot highly recommended. Great food, had posole for the first time, then tamales and god knows what else. BUT we topped it off with a sopapilla another name for fried dough served with honey so what's not to like. Some serve it with powdered sugar or maybe even ice cream. I'm a purist I like mine with honey and that's it.

Now fast forward to where we are, the Nomads, in Cheyenne, Wyoming and we find a local Mexican joint that has great food, even posole almost as good as mine or sister moon's. They served sopapillas. Now get this theirs was whole wheat cinnamon but served with honey.

I must say whole wheat would not be my first choice but it was good none the less. Mr Doodles has never had sopapillas and to be honest he said he could do without - SHAME!!! What's not to like it's fried dough served warm.

So maybe our good blogger friend Christine may have a sopapilla recipe or anyone else that would care to contribute. I know I could Google for a recipe but I am looking for a tried and true.

Oh yes and some drizzle chocolate over......so stay tuna'd.

here's a photo I took off the Internet.

Tarragon, basil, sage and thyme

Close to the Paul Simon hit but not. This is my summer herb garden; almost out of hand. Basil and thyme, I've got oodles of recipes, cook with those two herbs all the time. It's the sage and tarragon I'm struggling with so off to the 'net and here are some quick ideas.

• Caramelize onions an then throw in whole sage leaves and roast for about 8-10 minutes.
• Swirl two tablespoons unsalted butter in a skillet over medium. Stir constantly until it brown and stops bubbling, add the sage and cook until crisp. Serve over cheese raviolis or plain cooked pasta.
• Chopped tarragon into your regular potato salad. Also in chicken or egg salad.
  
• Chopped tarragon and chives into omelets.
  

I happened to visit Kalyn's Kitchen and found this recipe for roasted mushrooms with tarragon. How timely. If you have any recipes specific to these two herb, share the permalink with us.

A cool salad idea for your hot 4th of July

When the thermometer moves much past 85 I stop using my oven and move to the gas grill outside. My kitchen is small and I get claustrophobic when it's hot. Go figure, I can sleep in the tear drop. I also have trouble eating anything hot in the summer so salads are a big seller at the Cafe Moon.

Here is an quick and easy alternative to a green salad. It's quite yummy with grilled anything. There a many variations but the sweet of the dressing and the salty cheese makes it a hit.

• Enough chopped Napa Cabbage for two
• Crumbled blue cheese, Point Reyes,* if you have it
  
• Chopped pecans
• Dressing

Toss this all together and refrigerate about 20 or so minutes before eating. I like it nice and cold and the cheese and dressing to melding together.


Dressing

1 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon celery seed
1 teaspoon dried onion
3-4 tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1 teaspoon prepared mustard, I like Dijon
1 teaspoon salt

Mix all the ingredients in a covered jar and allow to stand at room temperature for a few hours. Refrigerate one hour before serving. Shake well just before using. Will keep one week in refrigerator.

This dressing is great drizzled over avocado and grapefruit, too.

* Point Reyes Blue Cheese is spectacular and when I get to Whole Paycheck, and feel I can afford it, I pick it up. Here's a trick to stretch an expensive cheese like this. Wrap the cheese in a plastic and then in a freezer bag and freeze. When you want to use it over a salad, grate the frozen cheese over the salad and then rewrap and return it to the freezer. It extends the life of your precious purchase. Mine never last more than a month or two so I'm not sure how long it can last.

Simple cookin'

The Gypsy Caravan and our little Tear Drop headed West to Mc Grath State Beach last week. Oh so lovely was the weather and although we stayed a few days we only really cooked one night. With Andria's Seafood five minutes away who could resist. I knew we were in the right place when Mr Doodles said, "This looks like my kinda place!" If you find yourself in Ventura Harbor, drop in. It's not fancy, just simple and good.

With my seafood allergy I stayed away from anything fishy but everyone else dug right in. Scallops, Fish and Chips and a great looking Clam Chowder loaded with the main ingredient; clams. Not so in some restaurants. Darling husband gave his approval with a clean bowl. They're menu included a grilled chicken sandwich and fries (fried in their own oil, I always ask) and it was tender and tasty.

That next night we started with a bbq'd tri-tip, baked potatoes, and an avocado and tomato salad with lime and olive oil. We finished the meal with a great fire and toasted marshmallows. Aren't simple meals the best? Trust me it was a wonderful meal but it might have been the company, too. The only thing missing was lil bird and company.

Food Bloggy Pets of the Month

The reason we do this is to:

• Get new people reading your blog
• Get new people reading our blog
• See some adorable pix of dogs, cats, rabbits, reptiles, birds, (you get the picture)

So, to make this work all you need to do is:

• Post your photo of your pet on your blog, hopefully with a food related entry
  
• Have a link to PBE on that post
• E-mail us the permalink; the link that goes just to that entry
• Send a small photo of your pet for our page
  

Then:

• PBE will post all these links and photos together for all to see
  
• Visitors to our site click to find a wonderful new Food Blog
• You get to share the love of your life
• We get to see some furry faces. Or feathered, or scaly. We are still waiting for someone to produce a reptile photo.

Our e-mail, pbetouffee@gmail.com if you have any questions about how to send your files.

Guest Chef: Ingrid

Welcome to our guest chef Ingrid. Here she is busy in her kitchen attending to my four-course birthday dinner she and her family hosted for me last weekend.

It was all quite yummy. Here is one of the appetizers served.

Stuffed Mushrooms

Everything You Will Need:
1/2 pound of fresh Italian sausage (removed from the casings)
1 1/4 cups of onion (finely chopped).
1 tablespoon of olive oil
2 tablespoons of green bell pepper (finely chopped)
1 pound of fresh mushrooms(medium-sized) (save the caps, remove the stems and chop finely)
1 teaspoon salt, freshly ground pepper
1 3-ounce package of cream cheese
2 tablespoons of butter (melted)
1/4 cup of Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
fresh chopped parsley for garnish

In a large skillet, cook the sausage in the olive oil over medium heat for five to six minutes, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon to crumble the sausage. Add the chopped onion, green bell pepper, mushrooms stems, the salt and pepper to taste. Continue to cook for six or seven minutes or until the onion and bell pepper are tender. Turn off the heat and stir in the cream cheese. Fill the mushroom caps with the sausage.

In a small bowl, thoroughly mix the butter and the breadcrumbs. Press the stuffed mushroom
caps firmly into the buttered breadcrumbs. Put two tablespoons of water into a nine inch by thirteen inch glass baking dish. Place the mushroom caps in the dish, breaded sides up. Pre- heat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake for twenty to twenty-five minutes or until the breadcrumbs are brown. Sprinkle on fresh chopped parsley and serve.

The finish to the meal were these beautiful cupcakes done by one of our other guest chef's Teri.


Editor's note: If you're interested in my other birthday surprises you can visit my blog.

RV Birthday dinner

We pulled into Salt Lake City and noticed that we are now on mountain time. So it was a bit late to head to the city. We decided to stay home bound and I would fix Mr Doodles a birthday dinner.

I am still finding cooking in the RV a bit of a challenge for lack of space. I'll adjust, I just had hoped it would have been before now.

The above photo is of noodles, roasted pork and green peas . A similar meal was prepared by sister while we were visiting. And I had remembered how tasty that meal, so I shopped Trader Joe's when we were in Carson City, NV and I was able to find the very same tasty egg noodles that sister used. Tasty because they taste so very fresh. Pork came from Costco, already roasted, sneaky huh! And the peas came outta the freezer.

I re-heated the pork in a skillet with about a 1/4 cup of beef broth, cooked the noodles according to package directions and heated the peas. I know this is not gourmet or anything new but I was darned pleased I could prepare this meal in an RV.

By the way I hope you folks in the US have a Trader Joe's in your area...one of the main reasons I left Florida, no Trader Joes.

To continue about the above meal, Mr Doodles enjoyed his birthday meal, but I think the trip to the Cold Stone Creamery out did my RV meal. Cold Stone refers to a visit to their stores "the ultimate ice cream experience". I will strive to have the ultimate RV meal..........stay tuna'd

My trip is complete!

No, our trip is not over just got the exclamation mark on it however.

As y'all know food is an important part of our lives and growing up we have such fond memories of favorite foods.

Mine is fried chicken. Well sister Moon made fried chicken and potato salad tonite for dinner. Damn she fries chicken good. It isn't what you use it's how you use it, technique is the key. Some folks got it and some don't. I don't; sister does. However we make the exact same family potato salad. Nothing fancy, but potatoes, celery, hard boiled eggs. a bit of finely diced onions and mayo. That's it...oh salt and pepper.

We have had just the best time at sister and brother-in-laws. The boys did projects, lord only knows what those were. While sister and I just did what we always do when we are together have the best time. We did play a lot of scrabble, our favorite game.

So off Mr Doodles and I go to Yosemite/Sequoia for a few days. From there, we aren't sure, BUT y'all will be the first to know when we get there.

I'll get back on track posting I promise but time with family is very precious. Stay tuna'd.......

Please join me in wishing...

my sister Moon a very special

Happy Birthday!!!

June Wing-ding

Our Family Bash was quite fun. We had friends and family and lots of food. Italian was the theme with a sub-theme of being lazy. We cooked some and also saved time with a mixture of store-bought items. All in all, it was a tasty afternoon.

This was the menu:
Artichoke and Red Pepper Bruchetta
Sausage and Bread Spiedini
Meat Ball Sandwiches with Balsamic Onion Relish
Orzo Salad
Antipasta Tray
Cheese Cake with Apricot Glaze

The photo at the left was not food on the table cloth but a clear glass plate that looked like we ate on the table cloth. Honest, we didn't.

The meat ball sandwiches were great with Balsamic Onion Relish, a recipe I found on Acme Instand Food. Thanks, Kevin it was a hit.

I know there has been discussion about using store bought but I have to voice an opinion. Sometimes I just don't have the time to fix everything from scratch. I pick the products I serve my family and friends carefully being aware of food additives; Doodles is mucho allergic to MSG so that is a no no here. Bottled dressing? Yes, when I'm feeding a crowd and there are wonderful products to choose from. I agree most things are better from scratch but only when it makes sense.

Doodles here: I must agree on the store bought versus from scratch. Here is my take on the whole thing. Why have a large gathering of friends and family and spend time in the kitchen preparing? Doesn't make sense to me. Oh yes I am wildly allergic to MSG and one just has to be a label reader cause manufacturers are beginning to use MSG more than in the past few years.

The above mentioned Wing-ding was a blast, but then when we are all together it's always fun. We combined a few birthdays to complete the celebration.

Editors Note: You might wonder, where is our lil bird? Well, she and her darling husband and two doggies did join us, she was one of the birthday celebrators, but she was whisked away on a business trip so has not had time to add to the postings.

Orzo Salad and Antipasta Tray

The Orzo salad was a Doodles creation and it was abundant with fresh items. We went to the Farmer's Market for some but finished at my local market for what was lacking. It had lots of good textures and flavors. This pix doesn't do justice to the bright colors. Here are the ingredients:

• orzo
• fresh asparagus, blanched
• roasted red pepper
• green onion
• garbanzo beans, marinated overnight in the dressing, Newman's Own Low-fat Sesame Ginger
  
• carrots
• cucumbers
• chopped cilantro

The antipasta was pretty easy, just assemble and serve. It did have my very favorite Mortadella with Pistachios and Garlic. It also included some beautiful Culver City Farmer's Market tomatoes and red peppers.

Sausage, sourdough and red pepper spiedini

These we used as appetizers with a bruchetta of french bread slices toasted with garlic, salt and pepper and spread with Trader Joe's Artichoke and Red Pepper Tapenade mixed with grated Parmesan cheese and broiled until bubbly. Doesn't the color of the red onion just set this off?

• 6 tablespoons Sherry wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 2 garlic cloves, pressed
• 4 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
• 1 cup olive oil

This makes more than you need for the spiedini but is good on tossed greens, too.

Whisk first four ingredients in a small bowl, then whisk in the oil. Season dressing with salt and pepper. Skewer pre-cooked sausage and sourdough bread alternately with roasted red peppers and red onion slices; brush liberally with dressing. Grill turning often until sausage is nicely browned.

Irish crystal; Cuban libation

Mojitos have been a favorite of mine for a few years but I rarely found bartenders willing to make them until just recently. They would complain they just didn't have any fresh mint. Last week I found a bottle of pre-made mix from the lovely people who bring you Rose's Lime Juice. It save the trouble of muddling the mint with the sugar and juicing the limes and they are almost as good. I rubbed a few fresh mint leaves between my hands and tossed into the finished product.

This has been an evening ritual for sister Doodles and myself but we have been good and limit it to one refreshing drink before dinner. Of course, they taste all that much better in Waterford Crystal–but doesn't everything?

Latent Heat of Vaporization

What? This happens when liquid changes state to a vapor without any observable change in sensible temperature.


What is it, steam.

This is a filler to let you all know we are still in business, just busy. With Doodles and husband here we've been having way too much fun, some cooking, lots of eating, actually exercising , and nightly Mojitos. We should have some cooking posts, soon.

Creative at 2 below

New challenge, the Deep Freeze Summer Challenge gave me an opportunity to take stock of my freezer. This is what I found, chopped spinach, puff pastry, walnuts, chopped onions and cooked chicken. I also had some frozen sliced cheese and did not know what it was but looked white, maybe Jack.

I did cheat a bit and used some basil but it was from my herb garden, I didn't go to the store.

So, this is what I cooked up from the freezer. Chicken and Spinach Empanadas with Toasted Walnut and Basil Pesto.

I sauteed the onion in olive oil then chopped the chicken quite fine and added that to the skillet. Mean while I toasted some walnuts and made a pesto without the cheese and this I added to the chicken. I then added a few handfuls of the spinach and cooked it all for a few minutes. In goes the cheese, oh look, it's Swiss, didn't matter now. Salt and pepper and set aside to cool.

The puff pastry was defrosted so I floured my board and just rolled them out a bit. Filled half of the square and folded into a triangle. On to a cookie sheet and brushed with olive oil and into a hot 400 oven for about ten minutes. Puffed, and lightly browned. The squares were large so I cut the empanadas in half. Quite tasty was my beloved's assessment and I have to admit it was fun to experiment especially when it turned out so good.










Here is a bonus. I had two left over pastry squares so I rolled them out into a rectangle, brushed with olive oil, and sprinkled some parmesan cheese. I then cut each into about four long pieces and gave each one a few twists then onto a cookie sheet and into the same hot oven.

Three PBE women in one kitchen, finally

Doodles and Company made it to California and specifically my house. Here we are getting busy with the lunch. Photo courtesy of Mr. Doodles.

ripen ripen ripen

Vegetarians: please avert your eyes

Our crazy Californio Butchers have a different way of carving up the old beefy animal. Maybe they carve the same but they give them other names. One popular cut of meat here is the tri-tip cut. It is a lovely cut and is the best on the BBQ. I think there is a California statue preventing you from roasting it in the oven.

There is a California tradition; the Santa Maria BBQ. In this sleepy little central California town they take their outdoor BBQ seriously. On Saturdays BBQs are set up on street corners all over the town, most are used as fund-raisers, but it seems like everyone has a grill going. Some of the best are the little "mom & pop" stands. There is something so basically yummy about cooking over a wood fire.

The tri-tops are sliced thin and usually served on French rolls and no BBQ sauce, just fresh salsa. They also make this yummy little bean called the pinquito, a small pinto slow cooked and so flavorful. I drool at the thought. The entire town smells of smoke but in that fun way, not that California-brush-fire, oh my god, the-hills- are-ablaze, way.

The Gypsy Caravan will be here this weekend and I've loaded the freezer with tri-tip, an all time fav of Doodles and Mr Doodles, and we will BBQ to their hearts content. My prep is easy. A good rub either purchased or make your own. Mine has:

• Chili powder
• Garlic Powder
• Onion Powder
• Spanish smoked paprika
• Ground Cumin
• Just a bit of brown sugar
• Ground Fennel
  
• Salt and Pepper

Rub down the tri tip liberally and cover and refrigerate 24 hours. I cook mine on the grill slowly in between two burners. There is a bit of fat and I don't want it to burn just slowly baste the roast. As with all meats, let it rest before slicing, Slice across the grain. Now slop on some salsa and dig in.

If you get to the Central Coast of California, Santa Maria is about an hour north of Santa Barbara, make sure it's on a weekend because there is nothing like classic Santa Maria Style BBQ.

Fresh corn salad

Salad Stravaganza, another round-up request this time to share some salad recipes. So here is mine. If you want to share a favorite of yours slide on over to La Mia Cucina for the rules. The deadline is June 25 with the round-up coming July 1 just in time for those of you celebrating the Fourth of July.

Our fresh corn is just coming to local farmer's markets and all I can say, Yipee! Love the stuff. No recipe, our favorite is a quick boil and on to the table. I eat it without butter or anything else but on occasion a sprinkle or three of Tony Chachere's creole seasoning. Sacre Dieu!

Here is something I've tossed together this weekend; a fresh corn salad. Pretty easy and quite tasty. It is also one of those dishes you can fuddle around with to suit your tastes adding more or less of the hot stuff. There is something quite summerly about sweet corn and something spicy and now ya got it in one fork-full.

Spicy Fresh Corn Salad

Dressing, mix together:
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lime juice
2 tablespoons salsa, or 1 canned chipotle pepper, chopped
2 tablespoons peeled and chopped grilled red pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon minced ginger (I used a microplane)
About tablespoons of finely chopped fresh mint
Salt and pepper to taste

Shuck and wash two ears of sweet corn
Brush on just a bit of olive oil and cook on a hot grill for 10 minutes, turning often; cool
Cut corn from cob into a medium bowl
Mix in dressing, chill one hour and serve. Don't serve too cold.

Run, it's lava

Once in a fine restaurant, I ordered Lava Cake. It took an additional twenty minutes but was well worth the wait. I've seen recipes before but always thought they had to be fussy, they always add twenty minutes at a restaurant. Boy, was I wrong. This is one of the easiest desserts around. Well, maybe not the easiest but has to rank right at the top of the list.

Chez Mégane has a wonderful recipe so I'm not going to reproduce it here, click over. What I will say is instead of mixing in the cinnamon, I sprinkled just a bit on the tops before baking.
When it says beat for 7 minutes on high, they aren't kidding. I just set the timer and my darling mixer beat the bejesus out of the batter. What I can't figure out is how does it make a cake with only two tablespoons of flour?

As you see, I was quite unimaginative and only topped the cakes with chocolate ice cream but I'd run out of time. There were no complaints. A tad more planning would have given a better presentation.

The photo does not do them justice. I should have showed them split open and the oozy chocolate; Megan's has a much better pix. We were all too eager to dive into the lava.

There is an unrelated P.S for this post but none the less important. Happy Birthday to our own Maltese Parakeet! We are postponing her special party until the Gypsy Caravan makes its way to Southern California in June. Which is appropriate since she was born two weeks early. Always in a hurry, that girl.

a reminder...

to our many faithful readers of PBE...I, Doodles have headed out on the road for a year long RV trip with Mr Doodles. You may keep up with my happy trails messages here

But I also promise to do some food blogging here so as not to leave it all up to lil bird and sister moon.

If you have never cooked a meal in an RV you are in for a treat. I also hope to do a restaurant review along the way, so ...stay tuna'd!

a repeat ...for the heart healthy

I must preface this by saying I am on the road traveling and hope I have not missed the HOTM deadline....if so... sorry Ilva and Joanna.

This salad was made last year and sooooo many times before that and since.

This lunch salad was built as a group project, Doodles and Mooncrazy. I, sister moon, stood at the refrigerator and tossed things out to Doodles to chop and slice. Amazing what you can create. I, Doodles, love this salad because it is just easy and refreshing and so very versatile. Don't turn your nose up at this bottled dressing cause it is low in calorie but loaded with flavor. That Paul Newman is just a special kinda guy.
The chicken was Costco's (a US based big box store) cooked roaster and the apples, Grannie Smith. The farmer's market asparagus was blanched and it stayed nice and crisp even as a leftover. Chopped pecans, lots a cilantro, sliced green onion, and canned garbonzo beans rounded out this orzo salad. Topped with Newman's Own Sesame Ginger dressing it was a full meal.

Try this dressing for marinating chicken or pork … and while your at it check out Mr. Newman's web site for some recipe ideas.

mother's day wrap up

can we eat it yet?

as you all know, the three pbe gals are related in the following fashion: mooncrazy and doodles are sisters and i, maltese parakeet, am mooncrazy's daughter. we started this blog because the family occasions are all about the food, and all we ever talk about is food, and it's only gotten worse since we started this blog. the men in our life have all learned not to touch the food until they ask, "has this been photographed for the blog yet?" i even caught my dad snapping pictures of the food as it was going on the table at thanksgiving!

so, when i invited my ma over for mother's day brunch, i knew it had to be the perfect menu and photo-worthy, as well. no pressure. i wanted to do a nice, french sort of meal with a carbon-friendly green/local theme and as organic as i could make it, too. ingredients from my crop share were on the menu as were items from the santa monica farmers' market (and i took the bus there, too). everything else was from trader joe's! (love you, tj!)


leek tart. love my convection oven!

here's what was on the menu:

mimosas with organic oj and chandon champagne (neither local nor organic, but soooo good)
leek tart with herbes de provence and whole wheat pie crust
salad with tri-color roasted beets and goat cheese with honey-dijon-white balsamic vinaigrette
chicken sweet italian sausage
roasted purple, white and red potatoes with garlic and rosemary
sicilian blood orange cake with fresh whipped cream


why, yes, the cake is crooked. but everything looks better on a cake plate with a dusting of powdered sugar. the silicon bundt cake pan sounded like a good idea when i bought it.

the cake is the same cake that i made for the is my blog burning stale bread challenge that we participated in a long time ago. i did it in a bundt pan this time, which i don't think i would do again. my bunky offered up halfway through his slice that he thought it tasted like froot loops. he got such a look from me for that one. although, i have to agree that, on second tasting, this cake is a little sweet and i might use less sugar in the batter next time, knowing that it's going to get soaked with the syrup.

all in all, i think everyone enjoyed the meal, especially the guest of honor. happy mother's day, again, mooncrazy!

Your heart's gonna love this one

Just in time for Heart of the Matter #3 I came up with a very easy, very quick pasta dish. Doodles and I had fallen in love and ordered this dish every time we visited our Mom in Ft Wayne, Indiana. So simple but quite tasty. This fits this month's criteria for a healthy pasta dish. You still have time the deadline is May 22.

Funny thing is, I really hadn't tried to make it but found myself with only a few ingredients and a hungry husband so here is what I came up with.

Pasta with mushrooms

• Cook enough pasta for two people, reserve a bit of cooking water
• Clean and slice very thin about 8 ounces of crimmini mushrooms ( I used the Cuisinart)
• 1 tablespoon of minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
• about 8 small fresh basil leaves, chopped
• about 3 tablespoons very good olive oil

Heat the oil in a large skillet, quickly saute the garlic and thyme. Add the cooked spaghetti and stir until coated with the garlic oil and herb. Remove from heat and stir in the mushrooms and basil. If this looks too dry, add a bit of reserved cooking water. Season with salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste and serve with a dusting of Parmesan cheese.

This was very flavorful and would make a great lunch or even a main dish with a nice green salad. Well, it satisfied the hungry husband.

Juicy!

Freya and Paul at Writing at the Kitchen Table have challenged us all to create a the perfect BBQ'd burger with their Big Burger Ballyhoo 2007. They've extended the deadline until May 25 th so there is time for you to jump in. Here is my attempt for the record books.

I'd heard rumors that ground brisket was the way to go for a more beefier tasting burger. Grinding at home makes sense, you can control the texture as well as how much fat. Don't forget, it's the fat that gives burgers some of their flavor so don't eliminate the fat.



So here's the method:

• About two pounds of brisket and I got four patties. We like them big. A thin burger looses all it's juiciness.
• I seasoned with Old Bay Seasoning and lots of fresh cracked pepper. (I have no problem tasting raw hamburger to adjust the seasoning) Add more salt if necessary. Don't over season or it masks the flavor of the meat.
• Make sure your grill is hot. We like our meat rare or at least pink inside. Let rest a few minutes and top with cheese. I served these with caramelized onions and strips of Anaheim Chilies and a nice seeded bun.

Don't have a meat grinder? Butchers usually will accommodate but in a pinch the food processor will do OK. Grinding your own meat takes more time but the result is a substantial burger that tasted more like steak than a bland soft hamburger. Juicy!

Thinking Blogger Award

Here we are, late again. Freya and Paul at Writing at the Kitchen Table were kind enough to include us in their Thinking Bloggers award with four other interesting food blogs. The three of us, sister Doodles, daughter Maltese Parakeet, who we fondly call lil bird, and myself have enjoyed the year plus of blogging and hope to add a new dimension with Doodles being on the road for a while and the "gypsy" of our gang of three.

This honor is not taken lightly so we will get on with the our nominations. The meme ask nothing other that to nominate five food blogs that make you think. Us three settled on one each and, with a flourish, here they are.

Doodles: Lucullian Delights-An Italian Experience If you only go to see Ilva's photos you'd be pleased enough but do stay for the recipes, she comes up with some great flavor idea. Check out the Minty Pea and Avocado salad.

Maltese Parakeet: Kate at Accidental hedonist writes about the politics of food and her food history posts are so much fun. Don't miss The etymology of Pumpernickel for a grand chuckle.

Mooncrazy: Megan at Chez Mégane does the ordinary extraordinary. Her pre-prep and prep photos are great for the new cook and Molten Chocolate Cinnamon Cakes are easier than I'd thought.

This list is not finite by any stretch of the imagination but we are pleased to be in the company of any of these three food bloggers.

If we named your blog, here is what you are supposed to do:

1. If, and only if, you get tagged, write a post with links to 5 blogs that make you think,
2. Link to this post so that people can easily find the exact origin of the meme,
3. Optional: Proudly display the 'Thinking Blogger Award' with a link to the post that you wrote.
4. don't forget to notify they blogs you've nominated.

Easy summer supper

We have a cut that Southern California butchers call London Broil. This is a term usually associated with a method of preparation rather than a cut of beef but we never said Californios are logical.

The London Broil cut, in my stores, is taken from the Boneless Top Loin. It's usually about two to three inches thick. We like it seasoned and thrown on the grill, sliced across the grain and for the sake of the beef, don't over cook!

Summer has sneaked into our lives this week with temperatures hovering in the 80s so that means lots of outdoor cooking. And because I've been trying to be "Green*" at least once a week I BBQ'd two LB steaks at once. The first night it was a simple meal of steak and a salad, one of our favorite meals. While the grill was going, I caramelized onions in a small pan, blackened the skin off some red peppers and used both in my salad. I made more than I needed and boy, was I glad I did because the next day temp soared to 100 and I did not feel like cooking.

In the fridge:

• leftover steak
• caramelized onions
• red pepper
• some cooked spaghetti
• basil

What a bonanza. I heated the pasta in olive oil with some garlic, added basil, onions, red pepper until hot and then tossed in the thinly sliced steak. I turned off the heat, covered and prepared some garlic bread. The beef was heated but still had the rareness we like and was great with the garlic bread. This took me minutes from fridge to table and didn't heat up the kitchen that night.

* I know, I blabber on about being Green and conservation but I truly believe we could all make a difference. Let us know any of your ideas for cutting down somewhere else in the kitchen.

moroccan night on the westside

because it's been HOT here in lovely west l.a., i thought i should make a desert-inspired dinner tonite. well, not really. i saw this review on laist yesterday about a great little moroccan joint on westwood called koutoubia and i remembered the spicy carrots that i had there once. kind of sweet and spicy and cumin-y. yum. i had some carrots in the fridge, so i got them started on their overnite spicy marinade. here's the recipe i used, called taim chef einat admony's spicy moroccan carrots:

2 pounds carrots, peeled
3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for sautéing
1/2 tablespoon cumin
1/2 tablespoon paprika
1/2 tablespoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar (i used a tablespoon of honey)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
pinch of cayenne pepper
3 tablespoons white wine or champagne vinegar (i used half white balsamic and half apple cider vinegar)

Place carrots in a large pot of cold water and bring to a boil, cooking until slightly tender but not overdone, approximately 15 minutes depending on the size of the carrots. Drain and place carrots in an ice-water bath until cool, then slice diagonally into 1/4-inch-thick rounds. In a large pan, sauté the carrot slices in olive oil until slightly brown, cooking them in small batches if your pan becomes crowded. Place carrots in a bowl, add the olive oil and the remaining ingredients, and mix well. For best results, refrigerate overnight and serve at room temperature. Serves five.

to round out the theme, i roasted some salmon and threw together a couscous salad (chilled couscous, sliced cucumber, sliced tomato, chopped kalamata olives, chiffonaded mint (from my garden, no less), salt, pepper, olive oil & lemon juice).



it was too hot for mint tea.

white beans........and nothing fancy!

this is so damn simple it's stupid....but so dang good. So cook yourself up a big pot of these and some corn bread, that is a must. And enjoy this dish. If I can find my camera I'll post the photo.

Now a bit of history......while living in South Florida over here of the pretty side of the side, and for those of you that don't know that's the Gulf side. While living here we started attending a event called the Swamp Buggy races in Naples, FL. Well you go and tailgate, stay in your motorhomes, cause it's a three day event. It is fun......great family fun for kids too. Anyway the first year we were not intending to eat at the motorhomes, and about 8 of us were deciding on a dinner spot, something simple and casual of course. I mentioned that I saw a place on the way in, just down the road and it was crowded for lunch so it must be good. Looked like a locals place and those are always better.

Well we went to Cracklin Jacks - and to say it was good was an understatement. All of their evening meals are served family style with a bunch a side dishes. One of them is the white beans. Now when you say white beans to me it sounds bland. I was offered some and had one bite I was convinced this is a darned good way to prepare white beans.

We had the good fortune of passing by Cracklin Jacks the other day and I asked them again how the beans were made and the waitress sent out the owner. She heard we were leaving the area so she came out to say thanks and to tell me, very generally I might add, how they cook the beans. I was quite surprised as will all our other friends be when we all get together this summer and I serve them the famous Crackin Jack's white beans.

Ingredients

1 lb white beans .... your choice
or one large can of cannelini beans
a ham hock , shredded finely to add to the beans
chicken broth 14 oz box, low sodium
1 medium onion - chopped in small chunks - I used vidalia sweet onions
Crystal Hot Sauce.........that got your attention huh lil bird

Here is the method

Cook the beans the way you normally would.......I didn't have time to cook fresh so I opened the can. If using the canned do not rinse. Saute the onions in a bit of oil, when finish sauteing add a couple of splashes of the Crystal hot sauce, add onions to the beans. Cook the ham hock in the chicken broth until the meat falls off the bone. I happened to have one already cooked, shredded the meat and added about a 1/4 cup to the bean mixture and a bit of the broth the ham was cooked in. Heat thoroughly, adjust seasonings, do not add salt because some ham can be quite salty. Careful with that hot sauce, the dish tastes just like hmmm what is that heat in this?

And if you do try this please say a thank you to Margaret at Cracklin Jacks, cause she did not have to tell me how to do this and I did tell her I was going to post it.

Your opinion counts

I'm gonna send you over to another fellow food blogger, Ilva at Lucullian to read her post on the very interesting subject of an overwhelming feeling when faced with the amount of blogs to be read. You know how you feel like your the only one that feels a certain way. Well it turns out I am not alone in this department.

Now my questions to those that visit is very pointed and meant to be constructive in terms of the blogging community on a whole, why do you NOT comment on blogs. I guess I am such a blabber mouth and I expect everyone to voice their opinion good, bad or indifferent.

In my humble opinion bloggers thrive on comments. It's an interesting world this blogging community and most of us feel that comments just makes it that much better. I hope the majority of you do not think it is clique-ish in anyway. Because it is not. Some of us know each other because we are related, maybe we live in the same town or maybe we have like interests or maybe even started emailing each other after a certain post and voila!!! a friendship blossomed.

Many of us have counters on our sites so that we know how many visitors we have and then to see that you have a ton of visitors and only one comment. I know it takes time and we all have busy lives and this blog is certainly not meant to put any guilt on our readers. I guess it is just more of a curiosity than anything else.
Care to comment?

weekend dog and garden blogging

inspired by my experience with the crop share and the urban homestead folks in pasadena, i decided to try my hand at some container gardening up on my rooftop/patio/balcony area. my patio was recently re-roofed, thanks to some skillful handyman and general contractor services , courtesy of my pa, which means i actually want to go up there again. so, in late february, i got me a copy of the bountiful container and started reading and planning. a few weeks later, i started planting. i thought i would start from seeds for a lot of things (except tomatoes) and after a few weeks of watering dirt and watching nothing come up, i gave that up and bought some seedlings for most of the rest of the plants. i've since learned to sprout seedlings on my kitchen window sill, which has been helpful.

at present, my little container garden is growing well. the edible portions include: tomatoes (salad size red and lemon boy); cucumbers; thai bird chilis; jalapeno peppers; nasturtium; lettuce; green garlic; green onions; chives; oregano; mint; thyme; basil; tarragon; sage; and rosemary.

here're some pictures of my growing little garden on a sunny saturday morning:


container garden - tomatoes, cucumbers/nasturtium and peppers (l to r)



baby tomato


lettuce


thyme, mint & oregano


nasturtium

and, because it's the weekend, here's a snap of my houndlettes soaking up the sun. i call it "still life with dogs and herbs" for sweetnicks' weekend dog blogging:


max & multy

Update: It turns out this is the last weekend dog blogging ever, so make sure to go check it out. thanks cate, for so many of weekends of dogs!

Cooking with tea

Ever get a hankerin' (later, I'll swear I didn't use that word) for smoky BBQ ribs but you just can't get outside? America's Test Kitchen elves really dreamed up an odd combination to recreate that smoky slow cooked flavor of BBQ ribs done on the grill. I grill outside all the time but I was interested in their tricky way of adding the smoke flavor; Lapsang Souchong tea. Would this work?

Doodles and I adore Peet's Tea blend, Russian Caravan but for this recipe you'll need the full strength "kick-ass" tea not cut with anything else. Twinnings in the individual bag is best because it's finely ground, if not, whir it in the coffee grinder.

The quick basics to this was:

• Rub and refrigerate ribs for 24 hours then freeze 45 minutes. I used my rub but ATK has one in the recipe.
• Heat pizza stone in 500 degree oven until really hot. They say 45 minutes.
• Sprinkle the smoky tea on sheet pan, then place ribs on rack above and cover all with heavy foil.
• Place sheet pan on stone and cook ribs for 30 minutes.
• Lower temp to 250 and pour 1/2 cup of apple juice in bottom of pan.
• Continue to roast for about 1 1/2 hours or until the meat comes off the bone.
• The ribs will be pale so I sauced them and put them under the broiler.

Now I love the show but the two Test Kitchen folks were just so amazed at how smoky the ribs were. They're always amazed, thrilled, or just plain starved but it's their show and their cooking. I didn't find the ribs to have the same wonderful all-day smoked flavor they raved about though I followed their method exactly. What I did have were some tasty fall-off-the-bone, little bit smoky, ribs that were quite easy and could be done ahead and sauced and broiled later. What I love is they are willing to try some odd combos and this makes me more adventurous in the kitchen.

Recipe on ATK

Editor's note: That BBQ sauce is from Trader Joe's and has no HFCS.

Feeding a crowd, or just hungry

Everyone has one of those dishes you make for large parties. Something so tasty that guests talk about long after the party is over. I use Giada De Laurentiis' Chicken Tetrazzini. This is easy to prepare the day before and pop in the oven an hour before the serving.

My only deviation from her wonderful recipe is to reserve the breadcrumb Parmesan cheese topping until right before I put it in the oven. That's something for me to say since I modify every recipe I find, this one is darn near perfect. The recipe states it serves 6-8 but I've found at a buffet or a potluck, when you are serving other dishes, it will feed more like 8-10.

This is also one of the "bullet-proof" casseroles that can be reheated without any problem so next day lunch is most tasty. After a big party the last thing you want to do is cook but reheat, yum.

This is one of my go-tos, what about sharing some of your party pleasers.

Editors note: Pardon this crummy photo. I had ten in the buffet line and forgot to take the beauty shot before I called them to dinner. Never try to come between hungry guest and the food. Sheesh.