Grilling with Whiskey-Ginger Marinade

When it's hot out (like it is right now), we usually grill. We probably grill close to 75% of our meals during the summer. One of our favorite marinades/sauces is this Whiskey Ginger marinade. The recipe in the link is specifically for chicken, but I would think you could use it on just about anything. We've used it on pork chops and it was great. We've served it to guests a few times and they all practically licked their plates.

You certainly don't have to use Stranahan's whiskey. In fact, you might want to save that one for sipping and use a lesser quality whiskey for cooking. It'll still be good. But since Stranahan's is a local obsession of mine, I wanted to post that picture.





Whiskey - Ginger Grill

Ingredients
4 (4-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (or equivalent amount of other meat)
1/3 cup bourbon
1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
1 teaspoon grated lime rind
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons grated peeled fresh ginger
2 teaspoons dark sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
Cooking spray
1 tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon sesame seeds, toasted

Preparation
Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/2-inch thickness using a meat mallet or rolling pin.

Combine bourbon and next 9 ingredients (bourbon through garlic). Reserve 1/3 cup marinade. Pour remaining marinade into a zip-top plastic bag; add chicken. Seal and marinate in refrigerator 1 hour, turning occasionally.

Preheat grill to medium-hot using both burners.

Turn left burner off (leave right burner on). Remove chicken from bag; discard marinade. Coat grill rack with cooking spray. Place chicken on grill rack over right burner; grill 2 minutes on each side or until browned. Move chicken to grill rack over left burner. Cover and cook 5 minutes or until done. Slice each breast diagonally into thin strips; place chicken on a platter. Cover loosely with foil.

Combine water and cornstarch, stirring well with a whisk. Place reserved 1/3 cup marinade in a small saucepan; stir in cornstarch mixture. Bring to a boil; cook 15 seconds, stirring constantly. Drizzle sauce over chicken; sprinkle with sesame seeds.

My New Favorite Zucchini Recipe

Zucchini Latkes

The zucchini have started producing and it's going to be a bumper crop this year. Friends and family: you know they're comin' at ya! As always, I am on a never-ending search to use these fertile critters. I found a recipe for zucchini latkes that I'd clipped from who knows where, but didn't have most of the ingredients. Switched a ton of stuff out, made changes here and there, and voila! What turns out to be my favorite dish of the summer so far.

1 C shredded zucchini
1 large egg (2 if they're smaller, or batter seems dry), beaten slightly
~ 2 T minced shallots
3 T flour
1/2 C corn (I used frozen, but fresh would be better)
1/2 C bread crumbs
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil

That's it! These were sweet and savory and all around delicous.

Just mix the ingredients. Coat your pan with olive oil and heat on medium. Form the latkes into patties about 1/2 inch thick and fry on both sides until golden brown, turning once.

Moroccan Carrot Soup

I made this recipe from Bon Appetit last night and it was great. It was probably not the best idea to make it on the hottest day of the year so far, but the results were worth my sweat. Also, I wouldn't exactly call it a "quick" recipe. Maybe a "moderate amount of time" recipe.




Moroccan Carrot Soup

Ingredients

2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
1 cup chopped white onion
1 pound large carrots, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch dice (about 2 2/3 cups)
2 1/2 cups low-salt chicken broth
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin seeds
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
red pepper to taste
1/2 cup plain yogurt, stirred to loosen


Preparation

Melt butter in large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion; sauté 2 minutes. Mix in carrots. Add broth; bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until carrots are very tender, about 20 minutes.

Stir cumin seeds in small skillet over medium-high heat until fragrant, 4 to 5 minutes; cool. Finely grind--you can do so in a spice mill or with a mortar and pestle like I did. Bon Appetit also recommends that you can seal the seeds in a heavy-duty resealable plastic bag, and use the flat side of a meat mallet or a heavy-duty metal rolling pin to pulverize them.

Remove soup from heat. Puree in batches in blender until smooth. Return to same pan. Whisk in honey, lemon juice, and allspice. Season with salt and pepper. The original recipe does not call for red pepper, but when I make it again, I will add it. A little heat would make it just perfect.

Ladle soup into bowls. Drizzle yogurt over; sprinkle generously with cumin.

Orecchiette with Rapini, Sausage, and Garlic Crumbs

Orecchiette with Rapini, Sausage, and Garlic Crumbs

This dish was a huge hit in our house!

I get a weekly delivery from Door to Door Organics, a company that delivers organic food to your house. It's kind of like a CSA, but of course, in the winter, you're not getting much local food. They do try to do local as much as possible. It's fun to try cooking with new vegetables. This last week I got rapini or broccoli rabe, which I've eaten but never cooked with before. I searched the internet and found this recipe, which is going to stay on our regular menu rotation.

For garlic crumbs:

2 cups fresh (not dry) breadcrumbs (made from approximately 5 slices bread)
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
3 Tablespoons olive oil

For meat sauce:

4 sweet or mild Italian sausages, casings removed
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 clove garlic, chopped
½ to 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, to taste
1 bunch (about 1 lb. / 450 grams) blanched rapini, chopped into 2" pieces
Salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 (500 g) package orecchiette or penne

To make garlic crumbs:

Heat olive oil in a skillet. Add garlic and sauté on medium heat for about 20 seconds. Add breadcrumbs and stir until all crumbs are coated with oil.
Sauté crumbs on medium heat, watching carefully, until they turn brown and crisp. Remove from pan and set aside. Crumbs can be made in advance and kept in a dry, covered container.

To blanch the rapini:

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Boil rapini for 4 minutes and drain. Plunge rapini immediately into a bowl of ice water to stop cooking.

To make meat sauce:

In a deep skillet, heat olive oil. Add garlic and red pepper flakes and sauté on medium heat for about 25 seconds. Add sausage meat and break meat up with a spatula or spoon.
Cook sausage meat until browned and cooked through. Add blanched rapini to the pan and sauté for about 2 minutes.
While meat is browning, cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain, reserving 2 Tablespoons of the cooking water.
Add drained pasta to the meat and rapini mixture and reserved pasta water. Stir together until all ingredients are evenly combined. Add garlic crumbs to pasta and toss to coat. Add a drizzle of olive oil if the pasta seems dry.
Season with salt and pepper and serve with grated parmesan cheese.

This made quite a lot, so at first I added only half of the bread crumbs to half of the pasta. That way the breadcrumbs didn't get soggy for leftovers.

Chicken Sausage, Sweet Onion, and Fennel Pizza

This pizza was the bomb! Even my 6 year old loved it (we won't talk about the 8 year old, who didn't try it. But that was good because it left more for the rest of us). It also proved to my husband that fennel bulb tastes different than fennel seed--not so licorice-y. (See, honey? I'm always right.)

We served it with a nice salad and it made a perfect week night quick meal.

Chicken Sausage, Sweet Onion, and Fennel Pizza

Ingredients
3 ounces chicken apple sausage, chopped
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups vertically sliced Oso Sweet or other sweet onion
1 cup thinly sliced fennel bulb (about 1 small bulb)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 (12-ounce) prebaked pizza crust
3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded Gouda cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 450°.

2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add sausage to pan; sauté 4 minutes or until browned, stirring occasionally. Remove from pan.

3. Add oil to pan. Add onion, fennel, and salt; cover and cook 10 minutes or until tender and lightly browned, stirring occasionally.

4. Place pizza crust on a baking sheet. Top evenly with onion mixture; sprinkle with cheese, and top evenly with sausage. Bake at 450° for 12 minutes or until cheese melts. Sprinkle evenly with chives. Cut pizza into 8 wedges.

Queen Creek Olive Mill, Arizona

My parents winter in Mesa, Arizona, since their WY cabin is too far off the grid to inhabit properly (or pleasantly) in the winter. We recently visited them and they took us to Queen Creek Olive Mill, Arizona's only operating olive farm and mill.

There, they have--in addition--to the farm and mill--a snack bar and shop. The snack bar, del Piero at the Mill, was really quite special.



I had a fantastic antipasto plate with fresh Mozzarella drizzled with fresh basil pesto, artisan cheeses, “Pork Shop” gourmet meats, fruit, roasted vegetables, local pistachios, del Piero Country Olive Mix, and grilled olive bread. I got the plate for one, but it was huge and I shared it with all. I had a glass of chianti with it. B had a sandwich and the boys got nutella and banana sandwiches (the place has kids meals!) with chips and a cookie.

We ate our lunch on their gorgeous, shaded patio area surrounded by herb gardens and lawns.





Don't you like how the olive leaves frame that last picture as if I photoshopped a border? (I didn't.) My only complaint about the place is that "for safety reasons" you can't tour the farm area and see the "real" olive trees. The ones on the visitor's center are all ornamental olives.

The "tour" was short and quick. It started with us seated outside while one of the workers told us the history, etc. of the place. We then moved inside where we got to see the olives being pressed. Here is the "caca," as they called it--or leftovers after the oil has been pressed out of the olives.



Mmmm...appetizing, eh?

But look at these beautiful olives:



We then got to taste the freshest olive oil I've ever tasted (less than 20 minutes after pressing) and a number of their olives.

In the shop, they also have all of their olive oils for tasting. I went a little nuts in the shop. I got truffle olive oil and Mexican Lime olive oil (my favorite--makes fantastic vinaigrette). As a gift for a coworker, I got blood orange olive oil and pomegranate white balsamic vinegar. I also got some sun-baked tomato basil stuffed olives and some Mexican Lime olive oil cakes (these were awesome!). You can order all, but the cakes, through their website.

Here is the recipe for the olive oil cake from their website:

Olive Oil Cake

3 large eggs, beaten
2 cups granulated sugar
10 oz. QCOM Mexican Lime Extra Virgin Olive Oil
10 oz. milk
2 oz. lime juice
3 tsp. lime zest
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (325 if convection oven). Grease a 10 inch pan. Whisk the eggs, sugar, olive oil, milk, citrus juice, and zest. Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Mix the dry ingredients into the wet mixture. Whisk until blended. Pour into the prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour.



Queen Creek Olive Mill was low key and delicious. I highly recommend it if you're in the area.

Green Eggs and Ham Pizza

In honor of Dr. Seuss' birthday, here's a recipe I made tonight called "Egg, Ham, and Spinach Pizza" by Ellie Krieger, but I've rechristened it "Green Eggs and Ham Pizza." (Actually when I made it I wasn't thinking about Dr. Seuss, but today I realized it's a happy coincidence.)



It smelled incredible, was tasty, and VERY easy. Can't beat that!

Ingredients
1 store-bought baked thin-crust pizza shell, preferably whole-wheat, such as Boboli (Or better yet, make your own. I used the easy way out, though)
4 cups (about 4 ounces) baby spinach leaves, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons olive oil
3 ounces prosciutto di Parma, thinly sliced
1/2 cup grated Parmesan (1 1/2 ounces)
3 cloves thinly sliced garlic
4 eggs

Directions
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Place the pizza shell on a cookie sheet. Scatter spinach all over crust. Drizzle with oil. Evenly distribute prosciutto, Parmesan and garlic on top of spinach. Crack eggs onto pizza, roughly positioning 1 yolk on each pizza quarter. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until spinach is wilted and egg whites are just fully cooked.

Cranberry Bars

I've been terrible about blogging lately. I have lots of yummy things to post, and will hopefully get to it over the Christmas break.

Right now, I'm posting this recipe for posterity. I posted a link to it last Christmas and went back to get it today because it's holiday baking day in our house. Unfortunately, I had only posted a link and the magazine it was in is now defunct! That'll learn me. Thankfully, I found it posted somewhere else, but here it is. These are truly delicious and easy.

Cranberry Bars

Crust:

1 C flour
1/3 C granulated sugar
1/2 C (1 stick) of cold butter, cut into tablespoons

Topping:

2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 C packed light brown sugar
1/3 C flour
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1/2 t vanilla extract
1 C whole berry or jellied cranberry sauce (I use whole berry)
1/2 C slivered almonds

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease the sides of an 8 inch square baking pan.

2. Make the crust: In a food processor, combine the flour and granulated sugar. Add the butter and pulse until evenly combined.

3. Press the mixture into the baking pan and bake for 35 minutes or until golden. Remove from the oven to add the topping, but leave the oven on.

4. Meanwhile, make the topping: In a bowl, with an electric mixer, beat the eggs and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the flour, baking powder, salt and vanilla. Stir in the cranberry sauce and almonds.

5. Pour the topping over the cooked shortbread bottom and return to the oven for 40 to 45 minutes, until set and evenly browned on top.

6. Let cool completely in the pan on a rack before cutting into 12 bars.

Peppery Pasta Carbonara with Poached Egg

I tried this dish from the second to last issue of Gourmet (sniff!), because I was in the need for some comfort food and I needed something for which I had all the ingredients on hand. It was super simple and very hearty and yummy. B really liked it too. I will definitely be adding it to the repertoire--especially the winter one.

I've doubled the ingredients to make it serve 2, since the original recipe is for 1 (weird!).

Peppery Pasta Carbonara with Poached Egg

4 bacon slices, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 pound spaghetti
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2/3 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano plus additional for serving
2 to 4 tablespoons chopped tarragon OR ~2 teaspoons dried tarragon (can use parsley too)
2 - 4 large eggs, depending on how hungry you are (The original recipe called for 1 egg per person. There was a lot of pasta and we were hungry, so we ended up making 1 more for each of us.)

Cook bacon in a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Transfer bacon with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain.

Meanwhile, cook spaghetti in a 4-quart saucepan of salted boiling water until al dente. Reserve 2/3 cup cooking water, then transfer spaghetti with tongs to a small bowl, shaking off excess water, and keep pan of water simmering.

Pour off all but 4 teaspoons bacon fat from skillet, then whisk butter into fat in skillet over medium heat. Add spaghetti, reserved cooking water, cheese, and a rounded 1/2 teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring, until sauce is thickened and almost completely absorbed, 2 to 3 minutes. Add bacon and 1 - 2 teaspoon (if using dried - 1 tablespoon if using fresh) tarragon and toss. Season with salt and pepper.

Break egg into a cup and gently slide into water. Poach at a bare simmer to desired doneness (Gourmet says, "we prefer a firm white with a runny yolk, 2 to 3 minutes" and I do too!).

Serve pasta topped with egg (transfer using a slotted spoon). Sprinkle with remaining tarragon if desired.


Above is Gourmet's beautiful picture, because mine, while yummy, was kind of ugly. Comfort food doesn't have to be pretty, does it?

Stuffed Picnic Loaf With Pesto, Grilled Vegetables, Prosciutto and Provolone Cheese

It's not too late in the season to grill (actually, in our house it never really is, although our frequency decreases a lot in the colder months). Today's it's sunny and in the 60s and we're having friends over for dinner. I've made it for guests in the past (with and without prosciutto), and it's always a hit

I'll be making this recipe, which is from "The Vegetarian Grill: 200 Recipes for Inspired Flame-Kissed Meals" by Andrea Chesman. I'm making mine non-vegetarian by adding prosciutto.

Stuffed Picnic Loaf With Pesto, Grilled Vegetables, Prosciutto, and Provolone Cheese

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 large eggplant, peeled and sliced 3/8 inch thick
1 red or green bell pepper, quartered
1 sweet onion (such as Walla Walla sweet)
1 large loaf Italian or French country bread (1 1/4 to 1 1/2 pounds)
1/2 cup pesto (homemade or commercially prepared)
5 ounces provolone cheese, sliced
~ 1/4 # prosciutto
2 large vine-ripened tomatoes, sliced

Prepare a medium-hot fire in grill.

Grill vegetables, turning occasionally, until well browned, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove vegetables from grill as they are done.

Reduce grill's temperature by spreading out coals or reducing flame on a gas grill to low.

Slice the bread in half horizontally. Remove some of loaf's interior to create a hollow space for stuffing with vegetables. Brush loaf's inside with remaining olive oil and garlic, then spread with the pesto. Layer half of the provolone, grilled vegetables, the prosciutto, the tomatoes, and remaining provolone onto bottom piece of bread. Position top half of loaf in place. Wrap loaf in foil.

Place loaf on a low-heat spot on grill, away from direct heat, cover grill and bake until bread is lightly toasted and cheese is melted, about 10 minutes. Do not allow bread to scorch.

To serve, unwrap loaf. Slice into wedges and serve hot.

Makes 4 servings.

NOTE: This sandwich can be assembled up to a day in advance and refrigerated in its foil wrapper. To heat, bake over low coals, turning occasionally, for about 30 minutes. Or heat in oven at 350 F for about 30 minutes.

VARIATIONS: Possible variations on this theme are infinite. Substitute relish or tapenade for pesto. Use different vegetables, replacing some or all of the ones specified with grilled zucchini, yellow summer squash and mushrooms. Cheddar, fontina, Monterey Jack, Colby, Gouda — any semihard cheese with good melting properties — can replace provolone. Or use goat cheese and omit pesto and provolone.


In addition, I'm going to be serving "Rockin' Ginger and Wasabi Wings"--a recipe I got from Foodista this week. If they turn out well, I'll post the recipe and maybe even some pics. It sounds yummy, anyway!

I'm also making that delicious Sour Cream Peach Pecan Pie and I know my friends are bringing some delicious dishes.

Brian just got a keg (for the kegerator) of Avery IPA and I plan on getting into that bottle of Carlson Vineyards Cherry wine that we got in Palisade. I plan on serving it with chocolate-rimmed glasses (the Enstrom's that came with it).

Should be a feast!

Sweet Potato Linguine with Garlic Red Pepper Sauce

Tonight's meal was fantastic. When we were at Colorado Winefest, we picked up some of Pastamore's Sweet Potato Linguine:



I wasn't sure what to do with it, so decided to keep it simple and it turns out that was probably my best bet, because the pasta is so flavorful, you don't want to mask it with a heavy sauce. You should have smelled it while it was boiling! The whole house smelled like Fall.

I decided to cook some chicken and zucchini (from my garden, of course!) and then make an easy "sauce" from olive oil, red pepper, garlic, and parsley (seasoned with some salt and pepper).

We paired it with Carlson Vineyard's Laughing Cat Gewurztraminer, which turned out to be just perfect.



The spicy, but homey linguine with the spicy, fruity wine...ahhhhhhh.....

Sour Cream Peach Pecan Pie

This pie is SO good! We had the best dinner last night. I spent all afternoon cooking, but it was worth it. We had a roast chicken, roast potatoes, broccoli with a dijon vinaigrette (plus I put up the half bushel of peaches we bought in Palisade), and for dessert this pie.

The picture above is from the Taste of Home recipe link. My pie did NOT look pretty, but who cares when it tastes so good.

Sour Cream Peach Pecan Pie

Ingredients:

PIE:
Pastry for single-crust pie (9 inches)
4 cups sliced peeled peaches
2 tablespoons peach preserves
1 cup sugar
1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream
3 egg yolks
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

TOPPING:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons chopped pecans
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup cold butter

Directions:

Line a 9-in. pie plate with pastry; trim and flute edges.

In a large bowl, combine peaches and preserves. Transfer to pastry. In a small bowl, whisk the sugar, sour cream, egg yolks, flour and vanilla. Pour over peaches.

Bake at 425° for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the flour, sugars, pecans and cinnamon. Cut in butter until crumbly; sprinkle over pie. Cover edges of crust to prevent overbrowning.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean and topping is golden brown. Cool completely on a wire rack for 3 hours before serving. Store in the refrigerator.



I've had a favorite recipe for a "peaches and cream" pie, but this one will be replacing it. It's definitely one of my top pies now.

Picky 7 year old wouldn't eat it, but the 5 year old had two helpings. I wanted two, but controlled myself!

Pasta with Bacon and Summer Vegetables

This recipe from Cooking Light has been a hit in our house (except for the picky 7 year old). The original recipe never mentions returning the bacon to the recipe--a MUST!

Cavatappi with Bacon and Summer Vegetables

Ingredients

8 ounces uncooked pasta like cavatappi or farfalle (I used the latter because it's what I had on hand)
4 slices center-cut bacon, chopped (sneak in an extra slice and you'll be happier)
2 teaspoons olive oil (just eye it)
1 cup chopped onion
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 medium summer squash (original recipe calls for zucchini; I've used it and yellow squash), quartered lengthwise and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1 cup fresh corn kernels (about 2 ears) (you could use frozen, but fresh from the cob is much better)
1 pint grape tomatoes (this time I used a mixture of grape and chopped larger tomatoes--I just grab whatever I have on hand in my garden)
1/2 cup (2 ounces) shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, divided
1/4 cup small fresh basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Preparation

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt; drain.

While pasta cooks, cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat 5 minutes or until crisp. Remove bacon from pan with a slotted spoon, reserving drippings in pan.
Add oil to drippings. Add onion and garlic to pan; sauté 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add summer squash; cook 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in corn and tomatoes; cook 5 minutes or until tomatoes burst, stirring occasionally.
Add pasta to tomato mixture; toss. Cook 1 minute or until thoroughly heated, stirring frequently.
Remove from heat. Add 1/4 cup cheese, basil, salt, and pepper AND BACON! Toss to combine. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Zucchini Brownies

These brownies are so ridiculously rich and delicious, that you'll never notice they have veggies in them. Even my picky 7 year old will eat them, which is truly A-MAY-ZING. I've made other yummy zucchini-containing desserts before and he wouldn't touch them. I think it's because he could see or feel the zucchini.

The key is to do more than just shred the zucchini. You have to totally pulverize it. I use the shredding mechanism on my food processor, then run it through the chopping one until it's zucchini pulp. I don't drain it at all. Since there are no eggs in the brownies, you'll need the moisture.

And these brownies are vegan too! Definitely vegan for the brownie part and if you use margarine (and consider it to be vegan) in the frosting, then that's vegan too. I use butter in the frosting, even though the original recipe calls for margarine, because...well...why use margarine when you have butter? I'm not a margarine kinda gal.

These make a more cake-like brownie. In fact, they remind me more of my mom's recipe for "Rich Chocolate Cake" than a brownie. But nevermind, they're delicious, no matter what you call them.

Zucchini Brownies

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups shredded zucchini
1/2 cup chopped pecans (original recipe calls for walnuts)

6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup butter (original recipe calls for margarine)
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract


DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9x13 inch baking pan.
Pulverize the zucchini as directed above.
In a large bowl, mix together the oil, sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla until well blended. Combine the flour, 1/2 cup cocoa, baking soda and salt; stir into the sugar mixture. Fold in the zucchini and nuts. Spread evenly into the prepared pan.
Bake for 25 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven, until brownies spring back when gently touched.
To make the frosting, melt together the 6 tablespoons of cocoa and butter in the microwave or in a saucepan; set aside to cool. In a medium bowl, blend together the confectioners' sugar, milk and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Stir in the cocoa mixture. Spread over cooled brownies before cutting into squares.

Tartin' It Up

A good vegetable tart is a wonderful way to use those summer vegetables. Here are a couple I've made recently.

Rustic Summer Squash Tart



According to the link above, this was originally published in Woman's Day magazine. I used all three squash mentioned in the recipe (zucchini and yellow squash from my garden and pattypan from the farmer's market), but you could use any combination of summer squash or just one.

I'm changing the recipe a bit, because I found that the filling was way too much for my pie crust. I ended up using 2 pie crusts and half the originally indicated amount in each crust.

Ingredients
1 tbsp Extra-virgin olive oil
1 lb Mixed summer squash (zucchini, yellow squash and pattypan), cut in 1/4-in. rounds
2 Shallots, thinly sliced
2 tsp Chopped fresh thyme or marjoram, plus sprigs for garnish (if using dried herbs, use 1/3 to 1/2 the amount)
1 tsp Chopped garlic
Freshly ground pepper
2 Refrigerated pie crust (from a 15-oz box)--or better yet, make your own! (I didn't have time, though, haha)
6-8 oz Roquefort cheese, Gorgonzola or other good-quality blue cheese (depending on how blue-cheesy you want it)
1 Roasted yellow or red pepper (freshly roasted or from a jar), cut in strips. I roasted mine on the grill. Just grill it until slightly charred--delicious!
1 Large plum tomato, sliced, seeds removed
1 Large egg, beaten


1. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add squash and shallots and cook, turning pieces as they start to color, 7 minutes or until crisp-tender. Remove from heat; stir in thyme, garlic and pepper to taste. Cool to room temperature.

2. Heat oven to 400F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper; unroll or unfold pie crusts onto the pieces of parchment. With a rolling pin, roll crusts to 13-in. rounds. Crumble 2 oz of the cheese over each crust (4 oz. total) to within 2 in. of edge. Arrange half of squash mixture, pepper strips and tomato slices on cheese on each crust; fold edge of the crust over filling and brush crust with egg.

3. Bake 35 to 40 minutes until pastry is golden. Slide tart, still on parchment, onto a wire rack. Crumble remaining cheese over top. Let cool before serving.

This dish is great as a main dish, a side dish, and for lunches. We served it with potato leek soup for a meal one night and then I took it as lunch to work the next few days.

Chard Tart

I got this recipe from the fun and tasty Seattle-based blog Root Underground Food, written by a couple in which the husband is an old friend of mine I haven't seen in probably about 20 years(!).



Please see their link above for a much prettier picture of the tart. The key is that they used "real" bread crumbs. I usually keep crusts of good bread in the freezer for making bread crumbs, but this time used prepared bread crumbs, which are much finer. If using the latter, like I did, I would recommend cutting the bread crumb amount in half. My crust was consequently very crumbly, but the filling was delicious. If I'd made it right, this would have been my favorite of the two tarts. Plus it has bacon!

2 bunches chard - chopped
2 cups breadcrumbs (if using store-bought prepared bread crumbs, use only 1 cup)
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp olive oil
3 slices bacon chopped
1/2 med onion chopped
3 eggs
fresh grated nutmeg
salt and pepper

Cover chard with salted water and bring to a boil, cook for 15 minutes or until tender; drain and cool.
Saute bacon and onion until the bacon is crisp and the onions are golden. Cool.
Coat a 9" pie pan coat with oil and press in 3/4 of the breadcrumbs and half of the grated parmesan - like a graham cracker crust on a cheesecake.
Mix cooled chard, bacon and onion mixture, eggs, remainder of cheese, and the seasonings; carefully add to pie pan and breadcrumbs.
Top with the rest of the breadcrumbs and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.


Enjoy your tarts!

Recent Dishes from My Garden

Despite the hail damage, we've been eating like kings on produce from our garden and my sister's garden (thanks, sis!). Here are some dishes we have enjoyed.

Eating Well Magazine's

Golden Summer Squash and Corn Soup.

This is even better as leftovers.

Makes 4 servings, scant 1 cup each

TOTAL TIME: 30 minutes

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium shallot, chopped
2 medium summer squash (about 1 pound), diced
3 teaspoons chopped fresh herbs, such as thyme or oregano, divided
1 14-ounce can reduced-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup fresh corn kernels (from 1 large ear; see Tip) or frozen
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add shallot and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add squash and 1 teaspoon herbs and cook, stirring occasionally, until the squash starts to soften, 3 to 5 minutes.
2. Add broth and salt; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the squash is soft and mostly translucent, about 5 minutes more. Transfer to a blender and puree until smooth. (Use caution when pureeing hot liquids.) Return the soup to the pan and stir in corn. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the corn is tender, 3 to 5 minutes more. Remove from the heat; stir in lemon juice. Serve garnished with the remaining 2 teaspoons herbs and feta.

There's also a really nice article in this issue of Eating Well called "Building a Healthy Food System in Rural America: How a handful of organic farmers, world-class cheesemakers and a locavore restaurant transformed Hardwick, Vermont—a poor, rural town—into a foodie mecca."



And last, but not least (and in my lunch today),

Pete Marczyk's zucchini recipe printed in Westword's Cafe Society blog:

Zucchini and Corn Latke

2 eggs
1 cup zucchini, shredded
corn, kernels from one ear, cooked
chopped chives
2 tbsp diced onion
3 tbsp flour
1/2 cup breadcrumbs (panko)

1) Mix eggs, breadcrumbs and flour with zucchini and corn. Check for consistency (flour should absorb most of the liquid), salt and pepper to taste.

2) Heat a combination of olive oil ("olive oil and squash are like Rogers and Astaire," Pete says) and grapeseed oil ("higher smoke point," he notes), then take a handful of the mix and and press it down with a fork in the oil until it's about a half inch thick, the size of a small pancake. Cook until brown, turning it once.

Mountain Appetites

We're at my parents' cabin in Wyoming. They live off the grid, yet somehow have satellite internet. No phone, but internet. Strange, eh? They have solar power and well water. They live here all summer and then go to Arizona in the winter.

When we're here we eat like kings. What is it about the mountains (being outside? altitude?) that make your appetite so much bigger and make everything taste better. Yesterday we started with an afternoon snack of s'mores. Nuff said.

For dinner we had chicken grilled with olive oil, fresh basil, and salt. Our sides were some globe squash I picked up at the farmer's market. I'd never tried these before. They taste a bit like zucchini, but sweeter. Maybe even a little cucumbery.



I cut them into wedges and brushed them with pesto, then we grilled them. Just before they were finished I sprinkled them with parmesano romano. They were really good!

We also had one of my favorite dishes of all time: "camp potatoes with the B---- special sauce." This is a favorite dish from my childhood that we only made when camping. Basically, it's just sliced potatoes and onions fried in oil. Slice the potatoes thinly and fry them in vegetable oil. It's best to start the onions in a separate small pan if you can, so that they don't burn. They tend to brown more quickly. Cook them until translucent, then set aside. Add them to the potatoes when done. Pour the dish onto paper towels to drain some of the extra grease.

The "B---" (my maiden name) special sauce is just mayo and ketchup mixed together. Pure white trash heaven. Our family falls into two camps: the mayo camp (led by me) and the Miracle Whip camp (led by my Dad). And god forbid we have only one. The other side will whine like crazy. Poor mom. Each person has to mix up their own with their preferred ratios. Dip forkfuls of the camp potatoes into the special sauce and enjoy the deliciousness.

We also had corn on the cob and I brought tomatoes from my garden to slice and serve w/salt and pepper, but forgot, so I guess we'll have that for lunch. For dessert, my dad made his special homemade vanilla ice cream.

My dad is always in charge of breakfast and he does it well. Today we had bacon and almost silver dollar-sized pancakes. He cooked these on their wood burning stove.



Bacon is always yummy, but it tastes about 20 times better in the mountains. What's up with that?

The kids like to grind the coffee beans in the old fashioned grinder next to the stairs.



That's my mom's first place ribbon for a pie making contest next to it and my Dad's (Chuck) chuck wagon sign. We made the coffee in a French press--the stronger the better, in my opinion. And then sit on their back porch where they have a bunch of feeders set up just outside. It's teeming with birds, squirrels, and chipmunks. There's also a salt lick and water hole and if you're lucky and a mama moose and her baby will join you for coffee. Pure heaven!

I was so busy eating I forgot to take pictures of the food! I really need to stop doing that...

"Rose Cake"

Okay, so the way I make this cake has nothing to do with roses. My family just calls it that. It's a recipe that came with a rose shape bundt pan my mother got from Williams Sonoma. I just use a regular bundt pan. Not as pretty, but tastes just as good. The version on their website is for a larger cake. Here is what came with the pan and that I use.

Rose Cake (or Cream Cheese Pound Cake with Lime Glaze)

2 3/4 C flour
1/4 t baking soda
1/4 t salt
2 sticks butter
6 oz. cream cheese
2 1/2 C sugar
5 eggs
1 t. vanilla
2 T lime juice
2 t lime zest

For glaze:
5 T sugar
1 T plus 1 t lime juice (and more as needed)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour bundt cake pan.

Sift together flour, soda, salt.

In electric mixer with flat beater, beat butter and cream cheese on medium until smooth (30-40 sec). Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy, approximately 5 min. Increase speed to medium-high and add eggs, beating well after each one. Beat in vanilla and lime juice. Reduce speed to low and add flour in 3 additions, beating each one until just incorporated. Stir in zest. Spoon into pan, making sides 1" higher than center.

Bake 65-70 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let the cake cool upright in the pan for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the glaze: In a small bowl, whisk together the lime juice and granulated sugar until blended.

Invert the pan onto the wire rack and lift off the pan. Drizzle warm cake with the glaze.


This cake was a huge hit at a barbeque we went to this weekend. In fact, I heard the host refused to share the leftovers with the rest of his family! But seriously, how can you go wrong with a cake with two sticks of butter, cream cheese, and 5 eggs.

Salsa

I actually got some tomatoes from my hail-beaten garden! Last night I used them to make my famous salsa--really a pico de gallo. I loosely use Molly Katzen's Moosewood Cookbook recipe, but it's best if you just eye the amounts and don't measure anything too exactly.

Tomato Salsa

Ingredients:
3 medium-sized ripe tomatoes
2 scallions, finely minced
2 medium cloves garlic, minced
A handful of parsley, finely minced
A handful of cilantro, finely minced
1 teaspoon lightly toasted cumin seeds
3/4 to 1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Crushed red pepper, to taste
1 jigger tequila

Drop the tomatoes into simmering water for 10 seconds. Take them out, pull off the skins and squeeze out the seeds.

Dice the remaining pulp. Combine tomatoes with remaining ingredients in a small bowl or container. Cover tightly and chill. Yield: 11/2 to 2 cups.

Now here's the most important step (and my variation on Katzen's recipe): while you're making the salsa, about half way through, stop and do the shot of tequila. I promise this will make your salsa taste better! You know, the whole making food with love kind of thing.

The longer you leave your salsa, the better it will taste. I often check after about an hour and end up adding more crushed red pepper. It will get hotter with time though.

I tried to take a picture, but apparently when you photograph salsa with a Blackberry it turns out looking like puke.

Anxiously Awaiting Pickles

I pickled for the first time last weekend. I made dill pickles with regular ol' pickle mix from the grocery store. I needed to do something quickly with my cukes that I had to salvage from the great hail storm (more to come on that).

Earlier that day, I saw some beautiful carrots at the Boulder Farmers' Market: yellow, white, and purple. So I decided to try a recipe I'd seen in Molly Wizenberg's book: Spicy Pickled Carrots with Garlic and Thyme. This was the just about the last recipe that I thought I'd try from this book and it turns out it was the first one! I just couldn't resist those beautiful carrots and I was in a pickling mood.

So I'll be trying both sets of pickles this weekend and will report back on how they turned out. But for now I'm just enjoying how pretty they look in my garage frig next to B's keg of Golden City Beer.

So why was I in a pickling panic? Well, we had the hail storm of all storms about a week and a half ago and it destroyed my beautiful garden. Our roof, a window, 2 screens, and a gutter need to be replaced, but I'm most upset about the garden, which now looks like vegetable slaw.

Just look at the carnage:







I salvaged what I could: about 5 cukes, 2 zuchhini, 2 yellow squash, and a couple of tomatoes. I might still get some tomatoes and possibly some zucchini, but for the most part the garden is toast. And it was my best one ever. Whah!