Tag Archives: Recipe

Blueberry Crumb Cake

August 9, 2010

Filed Under : EAT - RECIPES

I love reading blogs.  I love food.  So naturally, I love Ree Drummond aka The Pioneer Woman.  Besides the fact that her blog is witty and has amazing photography, it’s also full of delicious meals and recipes.

Last night, I was craving something fruity and sweet and the first place I looked was my bookmarked Pioneer Woman recipes.   When I landed on this Blueberry Crumb Cake, I knew it was love at first sight.  I had extra blueberries and all of the ingredients on hand.  I seriously love when that happens.

The crumb cake is simple to make and relatively healthy on the dessert spectrum.  I mean, it’s full of blueberries!!  That’s healthy right?  Besides it’s semi-health factor, it is SO DELICIOUS.  Like oh-my-goodness-I-need-3-more-slices-please.  That good.

The blueberry cake itself is moist and full of sweet flavor.  That alone will bring you to tears.  But then add the crunchy,  cinnamon-flavored topping and it elevates it to a whole other level.  Ree, I love you.  And just for reference, the serving size is 16.  Baked it last night aaaaand it’s already gone.

Watermelon-Tomato Salad

June 28, 2010

Filed Under : EAT - RECIPES

Watermelon is to summer like Bella is to Edward.  They belong together for eternity.*  Err…no?

What I mean to say is that summer’s nothing without juicy, sweet watermelon.  I love to take full advantage of it’s seasonality and use it as much as possible, whether it be in margarita form (recipe to come in the near future) or cubed in a fresh, simple salad.

Not only is this Watermelon-Tomato Salad a perfect compliment to any summer meal, but the recipe itself is super easy and fail-proof.  It can be doubled, tripled, quadrupled.  It can be made ahead of time…or eaten while prepared.  It can sit out in the sun while you lay by pool.  It’s so easy, I could cry.

Did I mention that the flavors meld perfectly together?  We already know that tomato and basil are soul mates.  Same with watermelon and mint.  So why not combine the four?  Let me tell you, it works.  It more than works.  It’s  equal parts sweet and savory.  And the feta cheese?  It balances the flavors together with it’s sharp, salty bite.

Recipe adapted from InStyle Magazine, July 2010 Issue:

Watermelon-Tomato Salad
4 lb. seedless watermelon, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 pint of heirloom cherry tomatoes (Trader Joe’s), halved
6 oz. crumbled feta cheese
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves

Place watermelon and tomatoes together on a plate.  Crumble feta on top.  Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Top with basil and mint.

*I clearly failed the analogy portion of the SAT’s.

Mediterranean Orzo Salad with Feta Vinaigrette

May 11, 2010

Filed Under : EAT - RECIPES

Whenever I find a recipe that incorporates all of my favorite ingredients, it’s a guarantee that I’ll be making it.  When I came across this Mediterranean Orzo pasta salad on CookingLight.com, I was over-the-moon giddy reading its list of ingredients: sun-dried tomatoes, artichokes, spinach, kalamata olives, feta cheese.  Oh la la!

The flavors are undeniably Mediterranean and meld so well together in this dish, from the salty bite of the kalamata to the rich and earthy artichokes.  And even though there was such a variety of ingredients, the dish was very light and healthy overall.  I made it as a side dish for Mother’s Day dinner and it was a crowd favorite.

We had so much left over that I’ve been taking it to work for lunch – which is another bonus because it saves well!

Adventures in Banana Bread

December 8, 2009

Filed Under : EAT - RECIPES

Today, it rained. Two things come to my mind when it rains: 1) I wonder if this is what it’s like to live in Forks (MLIT, right Michelle?) and 2) I want to bake. Once my mind shakes away the first quandary, I instantly begin thinking of what sweets and goodies I’m craving. And today, as I spotted the dying bananas on the counter, I knew it was a banana bread day.

But at the same time, I realized I would have difficulties with this undertaking because I painted my nails just a few hours beforehand (OPI A Oui Bit of Red for you polish-aholics like moi). I soldiered on nonetheless, using Flour Bakery’s Famous Banana Bread recipe.

The recipe is super easy and I guarantee you will have all the ingredients in your pantry. The recipe calls for walnuts but I’m not a nut fan when it comes to baked goods so I opted for chocolate chips instead. Everything tastes better with chocolate chips in it. You can quote me on that.

Anyways, as I was pouring the mixture into a loaf pan, it literally filled all the way to the top. I would have grabbed an additional loaf pan but I didn’t want to ruin my nails by riffling through the kitchen cabinets. So I baked it all in one pan and boy was that a mistake. As the bread baked, it overflowed all over the oven. When it was finished baking, it looked like a total shit storm (pardon my French) so I was not about to photograph it for the blog (that’s why I used the recipe photo FYI). That doesn’t mean it didn’t taste delicious! It was moist and chocolaty – just how I like my banana bread.

It certainly wasn’t pretty but it tasted good and that’s all that matters. Lesson learned: never bake with freshly painted nails.

[Image via Food Network]

Thanksgiving Round-Up

November 27, 2009

Filed Under : EAT - RECIPES

Today I’m feeling tired and sluggish because I’m suffering from a massive food hangover. I don’t hold back when it comes to Thanksgiving and this year was no exception. And now, I’m dealing with the consequences. But nonetheless, the evening was a success and I’d like to share my menu with you:

  1. Butternut Squash Chowder: I’ve made this recipe the last several years using Williams-Sonoma’s jar of butternut squash puree. The chowder is thick and creamy and serves as a perfect first course.
  2. Turkey: To prepare, we first massaged globs of butter under the skin. Then we rubbed olive oil over the entire bird and sprinkled it heavily with kosher salt, pepper, and thyme. We filled the cavity with 1 onion chopped in fourths, 1 whole garlic chopped in half, kosher salt, pepper, and thyme. After roasting for several hours, the skin turned out crispy just how I like it.
  3. Cranberry sauce: We made a very simple cranberry sauce with hints of orange and spice.
  4. Buttermilk-Parmesan Mashed Potatoes: I found this recipe in the November Cooking Light and when I saw that it called for Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, I knew I had to include it on the TG menu. The sharp, yet buttery bite of the Parmigiano really added to the potatoes. One of my faves.
  5. My Mom’s Famous Sweet Potatoes: Sorry people, no recipe here. It’s my mother’s secret recipe and even I don’t know what it is. All I know is that she uses 10 lbs. of sweet potatoes because if we ever ran out, we would have some very angry Thanksgiving eaters.
  6. Dried Apricot and Sausage Stuffing: Sorry, I couldn’t even find this recipe online because it’s from Sunset Magazine’s 1995 November issue. We love adding a vintage recipe into the mix and this one’s an old fave.
  7. Brussels Sprouts Gratin with Caramelized Shallots: I blogged about this recipe a few weeks ago and let me tell you, it did not disappoint. The brussels sprouts were tender and delicious in the cheesy gratin. I feel like anything covered in cheese would taste good. The recipe calls for 1 jar of caramelized shallots from Williams-Sonoma but they were having a major shortage and we couldn’t find the jar at any location. So I made my own caramelized shallots using red wine vinegar, brown sugar, salt, and pepper. Holy crap, they were delish.
  8. Sauteed Carrots with Sage: Simple, yet elegant and delicious.
  9. Turkey Gravy: Purchased from our local butcher, Green Acres.
  10. Desserts: Meyer Lemon-Cranberry Bundt Cake, Pumpkin Cheesecake (made by my wonderful aunt), 2 Pumpkin Pies, and Red Velvet Cupcakes (made by my wonderful cousin).

Like I said before, we do it right or we don’t do it at all. And now, it’s time to prepare the leftovers…