Seersucker

I'm just regretting that this is the only picture I took to show how great Seersucker was. I'd been meaning to go forever and Jamie took me for a Valentine's Day dinner. It was so. good. The cocktails were great, with a special smokey chipotle whiskey sour. The biscuits they served to start were flaky and fluffy and buttery. The star of the night was the fried chicken. Wow! It was so herbaceous and juicy, even though it was boneless. It was just so flavorful. I can't wait to go back!

Flavored Salt

We had a party on Friday and a wonderful guest brought me this foursome of flavored salt. It was such a sweet present! I read an article a few years ago about how if you're going to a party, you should always bring something for the hosts that's just for them; not a bottle of wine to be had during the party, but a really nice olive oil or balsamic vinegar or something that they wouldn't buy for themselves. As a frequent party host, I have to say it's so nice! I love getting a bottle of wine for the party, but this really was just so thoughtful and nice and something I wouldn't have gotten for myself.

I made some little crostini, spread on some ricotta, and tested each of the salts. There was Smoked Alderwood (super smoky and BBQ-like), Ghost Pepper (nice and spicy), Thai Ginger, and Espresso. They were so tasty and I can't wait to try them on other things. Jamie wants to try the ghost pepper salt for margaritas.

Thank you, Dre!!!

Cumin grilled cheese for soup

I was inspired by a grilled cheese and soup recipe in Stir by Barbara Lynch and wanted to pair a similar grilled cheese with my chipotle squash soup.  It's a great lunch or light dinner. I also want to make mini ones with shots of soup (inspired by Barbara Lynch) for a party. So crunchy and tasty.

Ingredients:
Bread, very thinly sliced and ideally long so it can sit on top of a bowl of soup
Butter (1 tbsp for 3 sandwiches)
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
thin slices of monterey jack cheese
a sprinkle of pecorino romano

Chipotle Butternut and Acorn Squash Soup

This is a great, warming soup. The two squashes are sweet and the chipotle is spicy and smoky. (You can also add more or less chipotle depending how spicy you want it - or smoked paprika if you don't want any spice.)

Ingredients:

4 cups chicken stock (I used this)

1 tbsp olive oil

1 carrot, peeled and diced

1 onion, diced

1 celery stick, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp cumin

1 tbsp chipotle powder (or start at 1/2 tbsp and move forward)

1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeds removed, and cut into 1" cubes

1 acorn squash, peeled, seeds removed, and cut into 1" cubes

1 yukon gold potato, peeled and cut into 1" cubes

1/2 cup whole milk

1/4 tsp cider vinegar

Homemade Veggie Sushi

My sister Lilly got us a sushi making kit for Christmas and I finally got around to trying it out. It's so great and not hard to do. A little time consuming, yes, but it looks great and is so light, and customizable. I made veggie sushi because I wanted to be sure I had the system down before buying expensive sushi grade fish, but the veggie sushi is actually delicious. Making the rice was supposed to be the hardest part, but it's not that bad. I also found that making inside-out rolls is easier. Can't wait to whip some up for our next dinner party. Thanks, Lil!

Also, I got everything I needed at Whole Foods.

Rooibos Ice Tea

I tasted this delicious rooibos ice tea at the DasDog stand at the Old Biscuit Mill in Cape Town. It was a hot summer morning and this was an amazingly refreshing hybrid between iced tea and juice. It was earthy from the rooibos and was sweetened from a bit of fresh orange juice and honey. I had been craving it since and finally got my act together to try to recreate it last weekend. 

Slow Cooker Chicken Stock

I saw this recipe on Smitten Kitchen and wanted to try it, since I now own a slow cooker. It could not be easier, and it's a great, rich stock with pretty much no fat or any sort of foamy scummy stuff to remove. We had leftover wings from the Super Bowl, so it was perfect. I froze the stock in ziplock bags and noted how much went into each and the date. Can't wait to make soup.

Makes about 3 quarts.

Ingredients:

3 lb chicken wings

Bacon Explosion 2014

So the Bacon Explosion has become a Super Bowl staple in our house, and each year we've updated it a bit (seen here and here). This year, I think we really outdid ourselves. Jamie got me a sausage maker, so we actually made our own sausage for it (totally unnecessary, you can use regular sausage, but it was great). We also smoked it for a few minutes which gave a great smoky flavor. Yum! For our sausage, we used a mix of pork shoulder, green apple, leek, garlic, chipotle, jarlsburg cheese, and a little maple syrup. It's a real crowd pleaser.

Ingredients:

2 packages regular bacon

1 package thick cut bacon

3 lb sausage

1/4 cup spice rub (I use a mix of brown sugar, chipotle, oregano, cumin, thyme, salt, and pepper, usually)

1/4 cup diced Jarlsburg or other melty cheese

big handful of grape tomatoes, cut up

big handful arugula

1/2 onion, diced, and 2 clove garlic, minced, sauted (saute the onion until soft then add the garlic for 1 minute)

BBQ sauce

toothpicks

If you're smoking it, 2 tbsp hickory chips soaked in water for a few minutes

Directions:

Create a square bacon weave, about 6 pieces by 6 pieces, on a large piece of tinfoil on a baking sheet.

Eggs Benedict

I love Eggs Benedict. People are scared of making Hollandaise at home, but it's really not that hard. It's also such a special breakfast to have at home and makes dreary, cold Sunday mornings a bit more bearable. 

Serves 2

Ingredients:

2 English muffins

4 pieces Canadian Bacon

5 eggs

4 tbsp butter

2 tsp lemon juice

salt and pepper

1 tbsp vinegar

1 scallion, thinly sliced

Directions:

First you want to make the Hollandaise. 

Roasted Root Vegetable Soup with White Beans

This is a great soup for a cold winter day. Roasting the veggies first makes them a little sweeter and adds more depth to the flavor. Feel free to change around the veggies if you have anything else that might work - a rutabega, more or less of various veggies - it's pureed, so you can really experiment. I added the white beans to make it a little creamier, but you can omit if you want.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 leeks, rinsed and halved, dark leaves cut off

3 cloves garlic

1 turnip, peeled and cut into pieces

1/2 a small butternut squash, peeled and cut into pieces

Perciatelli with Sausage and Kale Ragu

I had some leftover hot Italian sausage and wanted to make a cozy, hearty pasta to help fight off this Polar Vortex. To add some semblance of healthiness, I threw in some kale. I made a really tasty ragu and served it with perciatelli - a great, hollow noodle like bucatini - good texture, but you can use whatever pasta you'd like. This is an easy and really great sauce, and a nice, cheap dinner,

Served 2-4
Ingredients:
1/2 lb perciatelli
4 links hot Italian sausage, removed from casing
1 tbsp olive oil
1 yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 bunch kale, rinsed, dried and ripped into bite sized pieces
4 slices pickled peppers, chopped
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1 1/2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 28 oz can whole plum tomatoes in their liquid
1 cup chicken stock

Crushed New Potatoes with Horseradish

This is sort of a mix between potato salad and mashed potatoes, and it's great. While a lot of the other recipes are pretty involved, this one is actually quite simple. A nice change from classic mashed potatoes. The original calls for sorrel, but I left it out because I didn't have any. If you want to add sorrel, add 4 tbsp of chopped sorrel with the dressing.

Serves 6

Ingredients:

2 1/4 lb new potatoes

7 tbsp olive oil, plus more for drizzling

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 oz horseradish (prepared or fresh)

1/2 cup watercress

2 scallions, thinly sliced

salt and pepper

Directions:

Wash the potatoes and don't peel them. Put them in a pan with plenty of salted water and bring to a boil. Simmer for 25 to 30 minutes until tender. Drain well and transfer to a large mixing bowl.