Blood Orange Salmon

This is a very fun and easy dinner.  Blood oranges are one of those things that make a meal feel special, since you don't cook with them very often.  They have a hint of both sweetness and bitterness to make a very balances flavor with the fatty fish.  If you prefer, you can use half regular orange and half lime juice instead.  Cooking the fish quickly over high heat gives it a nice crust and ensures that you fish stays moist inside and won't overcook.  We are trying to eat more fish, salmon especially and this is a quick and easy way to do just that.

Blood Orange Salmon
Ingredients:
2 pieces salmon (about 1/3 lbs. each)
2 small blood oranges
1 Tbs. olive oil
salt and pepper

1.  Squeeze the juice from the blood oranges over the fish and let marinate for 15 minutes.

2.  Sprinkle the salmon with salt and pepper.  Heat oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat.
3.  Add fish (skin side up) and cook for 3-4 minutes per side, depending on the thickness of your fish.

4.  Fish is done when salmon is slightly flaky and will still be slightly darker pink in the middle.

I served it with cous cous and a cucumber salad.

One Year Ago:  Lamb Shank Osso Bucco
Two Years Ago: Roasted Chiopino with Clams, Shrimp, and Fish

Raw Tomato Sauce

I do not love raw tomatoes, but I really love this sauce.  I think my raw tomato aversion is more of a textural thing.  I don't like the combination of the watery, meaty, and seedy parts.  But the flavor is obviously super yummy.  When they are blended with other subtle flavors they make a very magical sauce that comes together so quickly that it really is a perfect night out.  It is also nice and healthy, so you can happily slurp up this sauce with no waistline regrets.  This sauce is particularly delightful as summer gets into full swing and your garden is overflowing with plump, juicy beauties, but you don't want to make a heavy, cooked tomato sauce.  I also think that kids would love this fun sauce and since it is very little chopping and no flames, the kids could probably help getting this sauce ready so they would enjoy eating it all that much more.  OR if you have a husband, wife, or significant other whose cooking skills are on par with that of a small child, give them this recipe and tell them that tonight...dinner is on them!

Raw Tomato Sauce
Ingredients:
5 whole tomatoes
1 shallot, or small onion
2 plump garlic cloves
3 Tbs. fresh parsley, chopped
3-4 sprigs fresh thyme
1 Tbs. olive oil
1/4 cup ricotta cheese
Parmesan cheese
1 box pasta - I love bow ties

1.  Coarsely chop tomatoes, shallot, garlic, parsley and thyme and set them in the blender with olive oil and a sprinkle and salt and pepper.

2.  I like the sauce to have a slight texture to it - not baby food smooth.

3.  Add the cheese and stir thoroughly to incorporate.

4.  Top cooked, hot pasta with the sauce

5.  Toss thoroughly so that the sauce warms slightly and all the flavors meld together.  Serve up the pasta and add extra sauce to each bowl.  Yum!

One Year Ago: Mango-Champagne Crock pot Chicken
Two Years Ago: Orange-Saffron Chicken

Oven Baked Churros

If you aren't already friends with Kelaine...I'm sorry.  She rules.  Kelaine and her friend Josh came over for dinner this weekend and the lovely lady brought dessert.  She much have developed a taste for churros on a recent visit to Barcelona to visit recent ex-pat, Wage, who is currently in Barcelona with her hubby.  Apparently they had a wonderful time, ate amazing food, and saw lots of super cool stuff.  Sorry Wage, I think out invitation got lost in the mail.  It's cool, though.  You can invite us any time and we will pop on a flight and come visit you (having international friends is always very fabulous).  Anyway, back to churros.  They are a flaky, dessert pastry that are coated in cinnamon sugar.  They can be eaten happily as-is OR if you want to gain 25 lbs. in 2 months as I did in Spain, you can eat them while dipping them in melted chocolate.  Just saying.

Oven Baked Churros
1 package puffed pastry
3 Tbs. butter
2 Tbs. cinnamon
1/4 cup sugar

1.  Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Lay out the puff pastry on a cutting board and cut into 1 inch strips.
2.  Spray a baking sheet with non-stick spray and set the strips of puff pastry on the baking sheet.  Bake for 10 minutes until puffed up and golden brown.

2. Melt butter in a shallow dish so that it is easy to dip your churros into the butter.

3.  Mix together cinnamon and sugar and then pour the mixture on a plate.

4.  Set up an assembly line where you dip the churros in butter...

...then into the cinnamon sugar.

5.  Now you have delicious churros.

Hurry up and eat them.  They won't last long.

One Year Ago:  Smores Cheesecake
Two Years Ago:  Matzo Ball Soup

Homemade Vanilla Extract

Making your own vanilla extract isn't as crazy as it seems.  Did you know that extracts are really just hooch, hopped up on massive quantities of vanilla?  I did not.  Apparently, during Prohibition, people would actually drink vanilla extract.  I do not recommend this.  I do, however, recommend making a quick and easy batch of vanilla extract that you can keep on hand in your pantry and use for making all of your baked good extra scrumptious.  Homemade vanilla extract is not only more tasty and less preservatives than store bought, it is also a fraction of the price.  Win-win.  It is also easy to double, triple, etc. this recipe, so it makes a great gift.  Especially if you want to repay some lovely ladies who threw you a super fabulous bridal shower this past weekend.  Just saying!

Homemade Vanilla Extract

2 cups vodka

5 whole vanilla beans

medium mason jar

Vanilla beans come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and origins.  You can do some research to see what kind will be best for you.  I used Madagascar, because, why not?  Buying them from the grocery store is a racket.  They are old and overpriced.  I bought mine online at Amazon and they were reasonably prices and perfectly fresh.

A fresh, good vanilla bean will be slightly soft and pliable.  It will have a sheen from the essential oils.  If you have a dry, hard bean,  go get your money back!

1.  You want to start with nice, clean jars.  Fresh from the dishwasher or by hand with hot soapy water is sufficient.

2.  Slice the vanilla beans in half length-wise and then cut in them in half width-wise.  Length-wise releases all those delicious vanilla beans and width-wise ensures that the beans will fit in the jar and be fully covered by the vodka.

3.  Pour vodka into jar.

4.  Close the jar and give a good shake.  You do not need to "seal" it in any special way.  A cute label never hurts either.

5.  Allow to sit in a cool, dark place (pantry) for 6-8 weeks.  Shake occasionally.

Once you've got extract, you can remove the beans or leaving them in will result in a more potent extract.  Enjoy!

One Year Ago:  Blood Orange Chicken Wings

Two Years Ago:  Lemon -Dill Baked Salmon

Sausage and Pepper Sandwich

Every single family* who lived/s in the suburbs of Philadelphia makes some variation of Sausage and Peppers for dinner at least once a month. Preferably more. We were one such family. We are not Italian. Not even close.  Sweet bell peppers sauteed with onions, garlic, and diced tomatoes melds perfectly with the spicy and sweet sausages to form the most amazing meal.  It can be made into a sandwich (most popular) or eaten with pasta.  We added grated cheese to the sandwich, but you could certainly use sliced provolone instead and that would also be amazing. I really love this meal both for the nostalgia but also for the delicious ness factor.  Also, when you think about the fact that this sandwich is actually half vegetables, how bad could it really be for you?  Practically health food!

Sausage and Pepper Sandwich
Ingredients:
3 bell peppers (the more color the better)
2 onions
3 cloves garlic
3 each - hot and sweet Italian sausages
1 can petite diced tomatoes
1/2 cup white wine
1 Tbs. Italian Seasoning
Grated Parmesan cheese (to top sandwich)
salt and pepper
olive oil

*Fine.  Maybe not EVERY single family, but most of them, anyway.

1.  Slice peppers, onions, and garlic.

2.  Heat 2 Tbs. olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat and add sausages.  I like to cut mine into 1 inch pieces so that I have have hot and sweet sausages in my sandwich, but you can cut them any way you like.

3.  Once the sausages are browned nicely on both sides, add the vegetables, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and saute for 5 minutes, until they begin to soften.

4.  Add the tomatoes, Italian Seasoning, and wine and cover.  Allow to cook down for 20 minutes or so, until the vegetables are cooked down and the sauce has thickened.

5.  To make the sandwiches, toast your roll slightly (I think a toasted roll holds up better to this sloppy sandwich, but if you like it un-toasted, go for it) then top the roll with sausages and peppers.  Add grated cheese or a slice of provolone to the top to finish.

Enjoy!

One Year Ago:  Veggie Quiche
Two Years Ago:  Weeknight Rosemary Roasted Potatoes

Edible Teacups for Fun

Are you the cutest 3 year old ever?  Did you just have your Mary Poppins themed third birthday party this past weekend?  If you answered yes to these questions, you are my little cousin Jane.  We had an absolute blast this weekend at Janie's bday party.  Mommy Christy made the most fabulous Mary Poppins costume for her, complete with a Supercalafradgulisticexpialadocious banner, penguin cupcakes (and penguin Brooks brother), and rum punch!  Aunt Lyn (aka my mom; aka Timmy's Aunt) found this recipe for edible teacups and she just HAD to make them for her favorite great-niece.  I lent a hand and the finished product was decidedly adorable.  These are the perfect dessert treat for a little girl's party, a tea party, bridal or baby shower.  We filled them with chocolate-ricotta cannoli filling, but you could certainly use chocolate pudding if you prefer.  Have fun!

Edible Teacups for Fun
Ingredients:
12 sugar ice cream cones
12 peanut butter cups
1/2 cup melting chocolate (like Wilton's)
12 white Oreos (or other cookies)
6 tiny-twist pretzels
chocolate or vanilla pudding or yogurt (to fill)

1.  Use a serrated knife to cut off the bottoms of the ice cream cones.  Slow and stead wins the race here.  Just be gentle and work deliberately.  Obviously have some extras on hand in case a few break. 

2.  To make the handle, use the serrated knife again to cut the tops of the pretzels off.  Again, if you break a few, no worries, just eat those and move along.

3.  Melt the chocolate according to the package directions.  I did mine slowly in the microwave until it was nice and smooth.  You could use regular milk chocolate for this recipe, but I found that the melting chocolate (like you get from a craft store) really worked wonders.  It melted smoothly and hardened quickly to make this novelty baking project a real breeze.  I think regular chocolate would make it a bit more tricky, but certainly do-able.

4.  Line up your cookies.

5.  Dot each cookie with some chocolate and place a peanut butter cup upside-down on top.

6.  Dip the bottom of the cone into the chocolate and set on top of the peanut butter cup.

7.  Hold the cone for a few seconds so that the chocolate hardens in place.

8.  Look to see if there are any holes or open spaces in your "tea cups" and fill them with chocolate, so that your filling won't seep out.

9.  Attach the handles by dotting chocolate on both ends of the pretzel and holdings it onto the side of the cone until it is set.

10.  We found these mini plastic spoons as the Christmas Tree Shop that were perfect!

11.  When you are ready to serve, fill the cups with pudding, yogurt, or cannoli filling and enjoy!

Mary Poppins and the Feed-the-Birds Lady.

One Year Ago: French Onion Soup (ohh la la)

Two Years Ago: Buffalo Turkey Meatball and Chicken Sausage Sandwiches

Fried Fish Tacos

Hello...spring?? Where are you? I can't find yoooouuuu! Mother nature is playing tricks on us by keeping us firmly in winter's grasp at the end of March. She may be a fickle lady, but at least we can outsmart her in the kitchen. These fresh, light, fun fried fish tacos will bring even the worst cabin-fever sufferer running to the table with joy. I love the texture of the fried fish bites along with the crunchy slaw, smooth cheese and spicy sriracha. If I had an avocado, sliced red onion, or sour cream, I would have added some of those too. For this meal, you can work with what you've got to create the perfect taco for you. I really loved this simple dinner. I large filet will make enough tacos for two, so double or triple the recipe if your are making it for a bigger crowd.

Fried Fish Tacos
Ingredients:
1 tilapia (or other white fish) filet
1/4 cup flour
2 Tbs. paprika
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 cup canola oil (for frying)
cabbage slaw, cilantro, cheese, sriracha (garnish)

1.  Wash and pat dry the fish.  Cut into 1-2 inch pieces for frying.

2.  Make the dredge with flour, paprika, salt, and pepper.

3.  Heat a pan of oil over medium-high heat.  When the oil is hot, drop in the fish.  Cook for about 3 minutes per side and remove to a paper-towel covered plate.

4.  Sprinkle immediately with a light sprinkle of salt.  The fish should be tender and flaky through.

5.  To make the tacos, place the fish on a flour tortilla.

Top with cilantro, cabbage slaw, cheese, and sriracha (or any other toppings of your choice).

Enjoy!

One Year Ago: Creamy White Bean Dip
Two Years Ago: Apricot Mustard Glazed Ham (just in time for Easter)