How to Impress Your Lady: Moules Meurnière

Gentleman,

Hot Mess here with a public service announcement: taking your lady friend(s) out to eat is sexy, but making food for us is sexier-- especially if it doesn't involve steak or pasta. That's why I'm going to help you out with a series of recipes that are simple, easy, and impressive. 

First up: Moules Meurnière or, rather, mussels steamed in white wine, garlic and shallots. 

Step 1: Prepare your mise en place. You'll need about 1-2 lbs of fresh mussels. Make sure to scrub and rid them of their beards. Next, chop 2 shallots and 2 cloves of garlic. You'll need 2 tablespoons of Italian parsley at the end. 

Mussels, Italian parsley, garlic, and shallots

2. Melt two tablespoons of unsalted butter. Make sure to use unsalted butter. The mussels will release their own salt. 

3. Add shallots. Stir. Add  just a touch of sea salt and some freshly ground black pepper. Cook until translucent. 

4. Add garlic. Once the garlic becomes fragrant and a bit brown add about 1/2 cup of white wine. 

5. Immediately add the mussels and cover the pot with a lid. You'll know the mussels are cooked when they open. Every few minutes hold the lid to the pot with both hands and shake. This will redistribute the mussels so the same bivalves aren't at the bottom during the entire cooking process. Mussels should take between 5 and 8 minutes. Check to see if they're open every couple of minutes. 

6. At this point you can do one of two things. You can dump the entire pot into a big glass bowl, slice up a French baguette and call it a day. Or, you can remove the mussels with a slotted spoon and reduce the broth a bit so it's a thicker consistency. Either way, you'll be in for a delicious meal.

Chiller Soup

The heat, as it always does this time of year in the South, has turned up. The air is heavy with warm water.

I am not a cold soup person. I’ve ordered gazpacho perhaps three times in my eating career. This past Mother’s Day, my godmother ordered a fabulous pink concoction from La Fourchette: a creamy chilled tomato rosemary soup. This was my attempt at recreating this, now legendary, soup.

The best part, aside from it’s refreshing yet creamy flavors, is you don’t have to turn on a single heat source.

Ingredients

- 2 ½ lbs tomatoes

- 2-3 roughly chopped shallots

- 3 tblsp Italian parsley

- salt

- 1 ½ tblsp honey

- ½ cup lowfat buttermilk

- ¼ cup olive oil

- 1 lime

Directions

Halve the tomatoes, squeezing the seeds out into a medium-grade sieve that you have place over a bowl to catch the tomato juice.

Core the tomatoes (remove the tough ends where the stems used to be) and chop roughly.

Roughly chop the shallots and parsley.

Place the tomatoes, tomato juice, Italian parsley, honey, buttermilk and lime juice into a blender. You may have to do this in batches considering the volume limits of your appliance.

With the blender running add the olive oil. Flavor with salt and pepper.

Place in the refrigerator until chilled.

Enjoy!

(How easy was that?)

As a side note, there are a lot of flavor variations that one can experiment with within the scope of this recipe. Tomatoes are incredibly versatile and pair well with so many herbs and spices you’re sure to find a version that’s just as good, if not better, than this one.

Blueberry Lemon Thyme Biscuits

At the beginning of the weekend my fridge contained three pints of blueberries, (minus a few handfuls). I don’t know a single person who dislikes these tiny sweet orbs. They’re like popping summertime into your mouth.


Saturday morning we awoke spooned in an S-shape. The early was quiet. We got out of bed; boyfriend sat on the couch reading the newspaper and I made these delicious breakfast biscuits.


The original recipe didn’t call for blueberries to be in the dough but rather as compote. I didn’t feel like dirtying another part of my kitchen so I added blueberries to each biscuit individually. If I did this again, I’d add the blueberries to the dry ingredients even though a few of them would inevitably burst while kneading the dough.


I made a glaze with lemon juice and powdered sugar. This is completely optional.


Ingredients For Biscuits
• 3/4 cup chilled buttermilk
• 1 tablespoon finely grated lemon peel
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
• 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/3-inch cubes
• 1 cup fresh blueberries


Directions


1. Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 425°F.
2. Line large rimmed baking sheet with silicone baking mat, smooth side up, or parchment paper.
3. Mix buttermilk, lemon peel, and thyme in small bowl.
4. Whisk next 5 ingredients in large bowl to blend, breaking up any large clumps of brown sugar with fingertips.
5. Add butter and rub in with fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal.
6. Add blueberries
7. Add buttermilk mixture and stir with fork just until blended (dough will be sticky). Transfer dough to lightly floured work surface.
8. Knead gently just until dough comes together, 4 to 5 turns (do not overwork dough or shortcakes will be tough).
9. Pat dough out to 3/4-inch-thick round. Using 3-inch-diameter cookie cutter dipped in flour, cut out dough rounds. Gently gather dough scraps and pat out to 3/4-inch thickness and cut out more rounds. Transfer dough rounds to prepared baking sheet, spacing apart. Mine made exactly 18.
10. Bake biscuits until golden and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 10-15 minutes. Transfer to rack; cool slightly.

A Dinner That Cooks Itself

Wednesday night, I came across a dinner that made itself. I’m a busy woman and despite my love of cooking and eating, sometimes after a spinning class I just don’t want to spend time in the kitchen. I want to take a long shower and watch How I Met Your Mother or Community…

..and then I remembered a fabulous French way of cooking, that for a butter-loving and labor-intensive culture, is surprisingly effortless: roasted en papillote.

When I was in high school and living back in Jacksonville (obviously at home) my mother only bought her fish from one person: a French fishmonger. He made the best mango salsa, but he also sold fresh catch of the day in parchment paper pouches atop julienned summer squash, lemon zest, garlic and tomatoes. Popped in the oven for 15 minutes the fish emerged flaky, flavorful and perfectly cooked. This is my homage to him.

In parchment paper, I placed a filet of puritanically white halibut, gave it a cherry tomato necklace and topped it with three thin slices of lemon, some salt and some pepper. Oh, and I dashed some rosé wine in there, too.

Into the oven my package of fish went, alongside two fennel bulbs, sliced, on a sheet pan covered in olive oil and freshly grated parmesan cheese. Yeah baby.


Did I mention that I took a shower while this was in the oven?  Hell yes.

The Best Way to Cook Collards, Brining is Best, and a Delicious Asian Mango Sauce

I’ll admit, up until this week I was unsure of my collard cooking skills. As a southern cooking staple I felt it was pretty sad I didn’t know where to begin (or end) with these healthy, leafy greens.  After last night, I now know that the very best way to prepare these leafy greens is to blanch them after cutting their tender leaves into chiffonades.

Cooking the collards in this manner keeps them tender, not overcooked, and a bright green. They’re perfect for sautéing later, mixing with goat cheese or in a quesadilla.

Any southerner will tell you pork is the perfect protein to accompany collard greens. It’s why we traditionally pair our healthy collards with sweet fatty bacon or ham. Choosing to be a bit healthier, I paired my perfectly cooked collard greens with a brined bone in pork chop. Can you say yum?

Brining is the way to go for super moist and flavorful meat, particularly lean cuts of pork and chicken. Considering how easy the brining process is I’m surprised people don’t do it more often. A simple mixture of salt, sugar and water can improve the texture and taste of so many proteins!

For you science nerds out there who like to know the “how” behind the “how delicious,” here is an explanation of how brining works, courtesy of The Cooks Illustrated:

Here’s a picture of my meal last night (Brined bone in pork chop, blanched collards, roasted golden beets and an Asian inspired mango sauce):

 Asian Inspired Mango Sauce

- 1 shallot, chopped

- vegetable oil

- 3 honey mangoes, puréed

- 1 1/2 tblsp brown sugar

- 3/4 cup low sodium chicken broth or water

- 2 tblsp soy sauce

- 1-2 tsp garlic powder

1. Sauté shallot until soft (~3 minutes), add water and soy sauce.

2. Add brown sugar. Let simmer and reduce a little (~3 minutes)

3. Add mango purée

4. Add garlic powder to taste.

This sauce is super simple, but the flavor is unexpectedly great. The sweet mango, soy sauce's saltiness, and garlic's spice together are great with the pork.

Bluffin' with My Muffin: 56 Meals For $67

Thursday was payday and Friday rent was due. On Monday the remaining bills must be paid. I’m in the juice. I’m in the weeds. However you want to say it I am lacking funds. Two weeks from now I’ll be comfortably “back in black”, but for now the purse strings are knotted.


And yet I still have to eat. With approximately $67 my budget can allow for groceries, can I make it two weeks only spend that much? Can I eat breakfast, lunch, dinner and a snack every day for two weeks? I’ve done the math for you and that means spending $67 on 56 meals. That’s $1.20 per meal.


Challenge accepted.


I went to Publix this morning and spent exactly $67 on groceries. I went to Whole Foods (which my boyfriend has newly named “Whole Paycheck”) and used part of my gift card to buy my animal products. I refuse to forgo organic beef (meat of any kind), eggs and dairy products.


My menu for the next two weeks includes:


• Golden Raisin and Bran Muffins
• Spinach Salad with Roasted Portobello Mushrooms, Poached Egg and Blue Cheese
• Spinach Salad with Golden Raisins, Almonds, Red Onion and Homemade Vinaigrette
• Thai-Style Beef Tacos with Mango Salsa
• Thai-Style Beef Salad with Leftover Mango Salsa
• Avocado and Watermelon Radish Salad with Red Onion
• Banana Bread Smoothies
• Fresh Herb Caesar Salad with Roasted Tomatoes
• Blanched Asparagus with Hollandaise


My plan is to use last night’s leftovers as the next day’s meal building blocks. I’m also relying heavily on cruciferous vegetables to fill me up. We’ll see how it goes.


The Golden Raisin and Bran Muffins are immensely delicious yet healthy. I adapted the recipe from the January 2011 issue of Bon Appetit magazine:

Golden Raisin Oat Bran Muffins


Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup oat bran
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon allspice
1 cup well-shaken buttermilk
1/3 cup mild honey
1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 large eggs
1 cup golden raisins


Equipment: a muffin pan with 12 (1/2-cup) muffin cups


Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle. Butter muffin pan.


2. Whisk together flour, oat bran, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, allspice and cinnamon in a large bowl.


3. In a separate bowl, whisk together buttermilk, honey, butter, and eggs. Add to dry ingredients along with raisins and stir until just combined.

4. Divide batter among muffin cups. Bake until a wooden pick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Turn out onto a rack to cool.

The Perfect St. Patrick's Day Dinner

The average American consumer 23 pounds of pizza per year. You know why-- because it is beer's best friend. Obviously that means it is the perfect St. Patty's Day dinner. If you're not drinking beer (cough Guinness) today there are only a handful of acceptable excuses: you're pregnant, you're under 21, or you're drinking Irish whiskey instead.

Women are twice as likely to choose vegetables for their pizza's toppings, so it should come as no surprise that my St. Patty's Day pie was 100 percent vegetarian. Crispy thin pizza crust topped with yellow tomatoes, French green beans, mushrooms, caramelized balsamic red onions, fresh mozzarella cheese and freshly shaved Parmesano Reggiano right as it came out of the oven. Who wouldn't want this with a celebratory green beer?

Irish you a Happy St. Patty's Day!

Jennifer Aniston and Thai Beef Salad

It never fails; around this time of year women start sweating and it isn't from the rising temperatures. Beach and pool days are around the corner and none of us look quite like the Victoria's Secret swimsuit models wearing the bikinis we just bought. Honestly, I am not interested in looking like Adriana or Heidi. I just want to look like Jennifer Aniston:

The woman is in her 40s and she looks better than most 20 year olds. In three months I am going to look (a little bit more) like her, too. I promise you in 79 days I will be putting a photograph of myself in a bikini up here. My resolve is strong. I taped up "inspirational pictures" around my apartment so I don't forget my goal. 

To kick off my "Jennifer Aniston in 3 Months" program, I ate a super healthy dinner: Tasty Grilled Thai Beef Salad with Spicy Peanut Dressing. Healthy, homemade and really effing tasty.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 lb beef flank steak
• 1 lime
• 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 3 tblsp rice vinegar
• 1 tbslp soy sauce
• 4 tblsp sugar
• 1/2 medium carrot
• 1 mango
• 1 tblsp chopped cilantro
• salt
• 1/4 cup chopped red onion
• lettuce
• 1/4 cup crunchy peanut butter
• 2 tsp sriracha
• 1/4 cup canola oil

Directions:


1. Marinate the flank steak in lime juice, red pepper flakes, 1 tblsp rice vinegar, 1 tblsp soy sauce, and 1 tsp ground ginger for 30 minutes, flipping the beef over after 15 minutes.


2. Dice the mango and red onion. Chop the cilantro. Use a vegetable peeler to shave the carrot. Place all of the produce in a bowl. Add about 1 tblsp of sugar, 1 tblsp rice vinegar and a pinch of salt to the mixture and allow to macerate.


3. Make the salad dressing by combining the peanut butter, 2 tblsp canola oil, 1 tblsp sriracha, 2 tblsp sugar, 1 1/2 tblsp rice vinegar and red pepper flakes. Add a pinch of salt and refrigerate.


4. Heat a grill pan and add canola oil. Grill the steak for about 7 minutes each side. Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes. Slice the beef thinly.


5. Place lettuce, mango salsa and beef slice on plate. Drizzle peanut dressing. Enjoy!

Roasted Vegetables, Whole Wheat Couscous and Blood Orange Reduction

You should be proud of me, last night I made a satisfying, healthy and flavorful meal: Roasted Vegetables with Whole Wheat Couscous and a Blood Orange Reduction. The inspiration behind this dish was the Moroccan-spiced grapeseed oil from Oil & Vinegar in Mt. Pleasant. If you haven't visited this fabulous store that specializes in, you guessed it, oil and vinegar you really need to! 

Ingredients

• 3 small yellow potatoes
• 2 medium-sized beets
• 4 purple heirloom baby carrots
• 4 white heirloom baby carrots
• 2 blood oranges
• molasses
• olive oil
• Moroccan spiced grapeseed oil (From Oil & Vinegar in Mt. Pleasant)
• sea salt
• pepper
• 1 cup whole wheat couscous
• 1 1/4 cup low sodium chicken broth
• butter

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450ºF.
2. Clean and trim the beets. Cover with olive oil, wrap in parchment paper. Wrap the parchment paper in aluminum foil. Roast in the oven for an hour to an hour and a half, until the beets are knife tender.
3. Clean, peel and trim the baby carrots. Clean the potatoes. Cut the potatoes so they are roughly the same size as the carrots. Cover with olive oil, salt and pepper and place on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast for about 30 minutes (or less depending on the size of your vegetables)
4. Cut the blood oranges into halves and juice them.
5. Place blood orange juice into saucepan and place on medium heat. Reduce the juice by about half.
6. Whisk in about 1 tblsp molasses to thicken the reduced blood orange juice. Add about 1 tablespoon of butter and whisk to incorporate. Remove from the heat.
7. Make the couscous according to the package's instructions.
8. Spoon couscous onto plate, add vegetables and drizzle with the Moroccan-spiced grapeseed oil. 
9. Drizzle orange reduction on top. Consume!

Pie Gals

Every week (almost!) I sit down to a homemade dinner, a bottle of wine and I watch Sex and the City with two of my favorite people. This past week I made a healthier version of chicken pot pie and a normal, fattening version of chocolate peanut butter pie.


Healthy Chicken Pot Pie 
adapted from Everyday Food


Ingredients
- 2 bone-in chicken breasts
- olive oil
- sea salt
- freshly ground pepper
- 2 cups frozen peas
- 4 carrots, chopped
- 2 small onions, chopped
- dried thyme
- phyllo dough
- 2 1/2 cups of lowfat milk
- juice of one lemon (2 tblsp)


Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place chicken on a rimmed baking sheet; season with salt and pepper. Roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of breast (avoiding bone) registers 165 degrees, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool slightly; discard skin and bones. Shred meat, and set aside.

While chicken is roasting, heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large saucepan over medium. Add carrots, onion, and thyme; season with salt and pepper, and cook until carrots are crisp-tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Add flour, and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Gradually add milk, stirring until smooth. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes to a simmer and thickens.

Remove from heat; stir in peas, lemon juice, and chicken, and season with salt and pepper. Pour filling into a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate.

Stack phyllo on a work surface. Using a paring knife, cut out an 11-inch circle from the stack; discard trimmings. Stack 2 circles on work surface, and brush gently with 1 teaspoon oil; repeat with remaining circles and oil. Place phyllo stack over filling, and press down about 1/2 inch from the edge so phyllo fits inside rim of pie plate. Bake until golden and bubbling, 20 to 25 minutes. Let potpie cool 15 minutes before serving.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie

Ingredients

30 chocolate wafer cookies
4 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1 envelope (1/4 oz) unflavored gelatin
3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup chopped peanuts


Directions: 



1. Preheat oven to 350. Place cookies in a food processor, and process until finely ground (you should have 1-3/4 cups); add butter, and pulse until moistened. Transfer crumb mixture to a 9-inch removable-bottom tart pan. Press firmly into the bottom and up the sides (use bottom of a dry measuring cup to help). Bake until fragrant and set, 15 to 20 minutes; let cool completely. Wipe food processor clean, and reserve.


2. Place 1/4 cup cold water in a small saucepan; sprinkle with gelatin. Set aside to soften, 5 to 10 minutes.


3. In food processor, combine sugar and peanut butter; process until smooth. Add cream; process until mixture is light and holds soft peaks, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary.


4. Heat softened gelatin over very low heat, stirring, just until dissolved. Add to peanut butter mixture in food processor; blend to combine. Transfer filling to cooled crust, and smooth top.

Red Velvet Cupcakes

Eat these and listen to "Get Outta My Way" by Kylie Minogue

Hello everyone! Remember the days when I used to actually cook and write about it on this blog? Well, hey, I baked you something. A lot of little somethings, actually. Tomorrow is my last official day of work at the PR agency, so I'm baking them red velvet cupcakes. The two perfect cupcakes go to my boss, Jason, and my coworker Eric. These cupcakes are really fluffy and not too sweet, but trust me, the frosting makes up for it!

Red Velvet Cupcakes (adapted from Epicurious)

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature/softened

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

2 eggs

2 oz red food coloring (I only used .03 oz)

1 1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp white vinegar

1 tsp baking soda

1 cup buttermilk

2 oz. water

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. 

2. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy.

3. Add eggs and blend well.

4. Make a paste of cocoa and food coloring and add to the butter mixture.

5. Sift flour and salt together into this mixture.

6. One at a time, add the following ingredients: buttermilk, vanilla, and water.

7. In a small bowl, combine the vinegar and baking soda. Fold it into the cake batter. Make sure it's incorporated, but don't beat it.

8. Pour the batter into the cupcake tins. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the cake springs back when touched.

9. Remove from oven and let cool for about 10 minutes, then turn the cupcakes out of the tins and onto a rack to finish cooling completely.

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 2 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Directions: Beat the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and beat. Add the powdered sugar until the frosting is fluffy. Frost your cupcakes!

"Ma the Meatloaf!" Meatloaf

It's October and the air is getting cooler, leaves are beginning to change ombréed with colors of brown to yellow. When the weather begins to change, I begin to crave comfort food. Meatloaf is a comfort food.

Admittedly the definition of meatloaf is not particularly appetizing. Meat seasoned, shaped into a loaf and baked doesn't make my mouth water. So many of us have meatloaf horror stories of overcooked, dry and gray masses of meat served to us by grandparents, diners and hairnet clad lunch ladies.

Meatloaf should be flavorful, moist and comforting not some gray lump on a plate you need gravy in order to stomach. This meatloaf doesn't need gravy! The secret to this meatloaf is in the preparation. Don't think by just chopping and not mincing the vegetables you'll reach the same results. Soaking the breadcrumbs is also key.


Recipe for "Ma the Meatloaf!" Meatloaf

Ingredients 
- 1 lb ground turkey (not turkey breast)
- 1 lb ground beef chuck
- 3 large eggs
- 2 cups of homemade bread crumbs (I used roasted garlic bread. Yum!)
- 2/3 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup chopped Italian parsley
- 2 carrots
- 2 ribs of celery
- 1/2 white onion
- salt
- pepper
- 2 tblsp unsalted butter 
- 2 tbslp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbslp apple cider vinegar
- center cut bacon
- ketchup


Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF
2. Prepare your mise en place
• chop onion, parsley, carrots and celery ribs
• tear bread into pieces and make breadcrumbs in a blender or food processor
3. Place breadcrumbs in a bowl with the whole milk and allow to soak
4. Place vegetables in a blender or food processor and chop to a fine mince
5. Sauté vegetables in butter on medium heat until carrots are soft, about 5 minutes. Add apple cider vinegar and Worcestershire and mix into vegetables off the heat
6. Add vegetables to breadcrumb and milk mixture
7. Mix beef, turkey and three eggs with vegetable-breadcrumb mixture with your hands
8. Shape into one large loaf and four smaller individual loaves. Top each loaf with ketchup and a criss-cross of bacon.
9. Bake the smaller loaves for 30-35 minutes.
10. Bake the larger loaf for 45 minutes to an hour

There are no photographs of these meatloaves because, in fact, they are gone. You'll know these meatloaves are done when they appear cooked, the bacon is crispy and the juices run clear. DO NOT OVERBAKE. You can always put the meatloaves back in the oven.

Grilled Lamb with Garden Herbs, Roasted Figs and Peach Lavender Bread Pudding

I have been a bad food blogger! I have not been in my rightful place: behind the stove! However, a visit from a dear friend this past Thursday prompted me to return to the heat of the kitchen. 

Tender and juicy (if cooked properly, of course) with the slightest hint of earthy flavor makes lamb one of my favorite proteins. During the summer months I prefer my lamb grilled. The direct high heat of the grill sears lamb beautifully intensifying its earthy qualities. Thursday's supper reminded me just how much I love baby sheep. The best part about this dish? The herbs and natural flavor of the lamb do all the work to make this dish so delicious.

Marinated Lamb Chops and Roasted Figs

6 lamb chops 
15 fresh figs
2 tbsp fresh marjoram
2 tbsp fresh rosemary
2 tbsp fresh thyme
2-3  tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sea salt

Chop the fresh herbs and combine with sea salt and olive oil in the bottom of a large plastic bag. Add lamb chops and coat lamb chops with marinade. Let marinade at room temperature for at least 3 hours or up to overnight.

Once the lamb has marinated to your liking, preheat oven to 450ºF.  Slice figs in half and place on a baking sheet. Drizzle olive oil over figs and sprinkle with any herb you like. I used dried thyme. Roast in oven for 10 minutes.

Grill lamb to desired doneness. I prefer medium rare, which is about 4-5 minutes on each side for a smaller lamb chop, about 6-7 minutes for a meatier piece. Make sure to heat enough so that your lamb sears on each side.

Peach-Lavender Bread Pudding

Everybody has their perfect comfort food. For my friend, Whitney, its mac 'n cheese. For my friend, Rachel, its sautéed mushrooms. For me it is undoubtedly bread pudding. It is one of those menu offerings that I will always order.

This bread pudding recipe was inspired by the Top Chef Quickfire cookbook given to me as a graduation gift from another dear friend (I know he reads this-- thank you!!).

6 eggs
2 cups of heavy cream
10 - 12 bakery hot dog buns (not the cheap ones with preservatives, freshly baked ones) you can also use challah or brioche bread here
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp ground ginger
3-4 peaches
1 tbsp dried lavender (fresh works, too)
4 tblsp honey
1 pint low fat frozen yogurt
2 tblsp chopped crystallized ginger
1 tblsp unsalted butter

*Note: make sure that the pan you use to bake the actual bread pudding in is able to be placed inside another. You'll be filling the larger pan with water for a water bath.

Preheat oven to 350ºF

Allow low fat yogurt to soften while you chop the crystallized ginger. Combine and replace yogurt in freezer.

Cut hot dog buns into 1 inch cubes. Place in the smaller of the two pans.

Mix the cream, eggs, cinnamon and ginger in a small bowl. Pour this mixture over the hot dog buns. The cream mixture should cover the hot dog buns completely. Let stand for 30 minutes. The bread will soak up all of the egg-cream mixture, so you'll need to make sure the amount of liquid is sufficient to make the hot dog buns soggy.

After 30 minutes place the bread mixture pan in second pan and pour water halfway up the side. Place carefully in the oven and bake until set, about 30 minutes. Remove carefully from the oven.

Chop peaches. Heat butter in a pan. Sauté peaches, add honey and lavender to the pan. Cook until soft.

Serve bread pudding with peach sauce and ice cream on top!

Roasted Whole Brined Chicken, Biscuits and Mac 'n Cheese with Caramelized Shallots

Yesterday Billy had a big interview for a promotion. I woke up at 4:00 a.m. to drive him to the airport, and picked him up later that day. Obviously, this was a big day for him. We both were tired and needed some comforting food for dinner. What is more comforting than a roasted whole chicken, biscuits, and macaroni and cheese? I had originally planned to include some sautéed asparagus into the mix but after making the other three components I was too tired to even open the package.

For the chicken, I wanted to make sure it was juicy and succulent. How do you guarantee this? Brine your chicken! In warm water I combined dry thyme, kosher salt and sugar. I hate to tell you I eye-balled this mixture, but that's exactly what I did. I'd say it was about 2 tablespoons of salt, sugar and 2 teaspoons of thyme. I soaked the entire chicken in a large bowl for about an hour to an hour and a half while I was making the biscuits and mac 'n cheese. I unfortunately didn't get a photo of the chicken, but it was absolutely worthy of expletives delicious.  After brining for about an hour, cover the chicken in olive oil. Salt the cavity with kosher salt and stuff with a lemon cut in half. Sprinkle chicken's skin with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Roast at 400ºF until brown and juices run clear. Our chicken was small, but took about 45 minutes to an hour.

Mac 'n cheese comes in two varietals: baked and stove top. I personally prefer stove top, but baked can be alright, too. It requires less face time, as you don't really have to stir incessantly or serve immediately. I adapted this recipe from one found on Epicurious. Originally the recipe included goat cheese but in the spirit of saving money I kept it to one cheese, extra sharp cheddar. My favorite part of this macaroni and cheese recipe undoubtedly are the caramelized shallots. The sweetness of the shallots was a great addition to the sharpness of the cheese. It took comfort food to a new level. I'm sure, however, adding goat cheese, too, would have made this mac 'n cheese over the top good!

Recipe For Mac 'n Cheese with Caramelized Shallots 

Ingredients:
- 2 cups elbow macaroni pasta
- 1 1/2 tblsp all purpose flour
- 2 cups extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded, plus more for sprinkling on top
- 1 1/4 cup half and half
- 2 tsp hot sauce
- 3 cups sliced shallots (about 6 shallots)
- 3 tblsp butter plus more for baking dish

Preheat oven to 450ºF. Butter an 11x7x2 baking dish.

Heat medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter and add then add sliced shallots. Sweat the shallots. Once they've become soft add salt and pepper and cover with a lid. Periodically stir shallots. Once browned and sweet (caramelized) remove from heat and reserve for the mac n' cheese.

Cook macaroni according to the manufacturer's directions. Do not overcook, as you will be baking the pasta later.

Toss cheddar cheese with the all purpose flour.

Bring half and half and hot sauce to a simmer. Add cheddar cheese mixture to the half and half. Still until melted. Add cooked pasta. Pour into baking pan. Top with cheddar cheese and caramelized shallots. Bake for 15 minutes!

I

Recipe for Biscuits

Biscuits are tricky. The best biscuits have yet to be made by yours truly but these are better than the last batch I made a few months ago. I liked this recipe because it was so simple, I could memorize it and not have to keep looking at what I was supposed to do. Food should be simple, amazing and easy, right? Well, sometimes.

Ingredients

- 2 cups all purpose self rising flour
- 6 tablespoons of cold unsalted butter cut into small pieces
- 1 cup whole milk
- all purpose flour for rolling and dusting

Preheat oven to 400ºF

In a bowl mix self rising flour and butter. I like to use my hands to break up the butter into the flour. The consistency should be a mealy, grainy flour.

Add the whole milk to the flour and butter. With a fork mix the milk into the flour until just combined.

Flour a surface liberally as well as your hands. Dump the biscuit dough onto the floured surface. Knead lightly about 6 times. Then pat the dough into a square about 1 inch thick. Cut into squares and place on an unbuttered baking sheet. Bake for about 15-18 minutes until brown.