Pumpkin Gingersnap Ice Cream
I have a history of not letting things set. This means I'm the worst at letting my nail polish dry, but that's because the second I finish painting my last nail something urgent comes up and I'm frantically trying to navigate through my life with wet polish! An important phone call, a scratch that needs scratching, a knock at the door, my son jamming bread up his nose, or picking up a bowl's worth of Cheerios off the floor are all things that would happen the second I'm done painting my nails.
The reason why I don't often make ice cream is that I'm totally impatient when it comes to letting ice cream set. About 2 hours after I put this ice cream into the freezer for its big deep chill, I dipped a clean spoon in to taste. To my dismay, it wasn't finished but it DID taste totally awesome. Why didn't I just let it set??!
OK so I let it set. Then I scooped out some ice cream, plunked in a lone gingersnap and got right down to business. Creamy pumpkin ice cream studded with gingersnaps and perfumed with hint bourbon? You know you want it! This is the ice cream recipe that made me realize that ice cream really is worth the wait. Perhaps after 32 years of living I will finally figure out patience?
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Butternut Squash Ricotta & Sage Crostini
I went to Michael's yesterday to get a few things for my Halloween decorating project and almost EVERYTHING Halloween related was reduced in price. The aisles were quickly being cleared of Halloween decor to make room for the bright colored greens and reds of Christmas. I wanted to scream WAAAAAAIT. Wait just a minute! Am I seriously behind on this Halloween decoration thing??! (don't answer that). I just don't think I'm ready to get in the head space of Christmas yet. I haven't even thought about what I am going to make for Thanksgiving this year!
When you wake up to a cold crisp morning don't you just want to put on a scarf and roast something? Here's your chance! Butternut squash gets roasted with a bit of brown sugar in this recipe. Your house will smell terrific & autumn like. Garlic rubbed toasted bread gets accessorized with a nice dab of lemon scented ricotta. Cubes of roasted butternut squash are topped on the ricotta and finished off with fresh lemon juice & fried sage leaves. I think I just figured out what we're making as a Thanksgiving appetizer. It's definitely fall, not winter. Someone tell Michael's.
Arugula Fig & Fennel Salad
Whenever I see a fennel bulb, memories flood into my head of my dad picking wild fennel on the side our driveway. I remember him taking a bite and offering me some. I also remember being puzzled as to why my dad loved the taste of fennel; my uneducated palette just didn't get it. When I set a plate of this Arugula Fig & Fennel salad in front of my dad on Cooper's birthday, with beaming eyes he told me how much his father loved figs and how they'd pick them off the trees during this time of year when he was a boy. I could tell the salad triggered a fond memory for his father in the same way fennel triggers my memories of him.
This is what I love the most about feeding others. It's always a pleasure hearing other people's stories and connections with food. It's particularly exciting when food helps brings back memories from my parent's childhood because I am always so eager to learn more about them.
Peppery arugula and crunchy fennel slices are spiked with a simply lemon dressing and finished off with beautiful quarters of sweet juicy figs and shavings of fresh Parmesan. It's a perfectly pretty and well balanced salad. Hurry up! Fig season is almost over!
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Banana Donuts w/ Peanut Butter Frosting
Are you sitting down? Good. So, I baked these banana doughnuts to share with you. That's right, baked. I spared a few calories by baking the doughnuts but don't worry I made up for it on the back end. Peanut butter frosting sounds pretty amazing right? What could possibly make it better?
Cue the flashing lights, throw confetti in the air, hug the person next to you because Browned Butter has made its way into this peanut butter frosting. Check out those browned butter bits! That's totally not vanilla bean, it's butter!
A banana bread like doughnut gets glazed with a sweet/savory peanut butter & browned butter frosting. Watch out, you're getting drool on your keyboard!
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Scallops with Creamed Corn and Tarragon
The key to a successful relationship is compromise. Sometimes you just have to take one for the team. Doing the dishes without being asked, watching an episode of Project Runway, tolerating a 16 inning baseball game or eating Indian food for dinner because that's what your significant other was craving are all legitimate examples.
I'm not a die hard fan of scallops, but my husband is. I've had a few seared scallops at restaurants over the past few years and I've learned that searing a scallop is key to me liking a scallop. So why would I make scallops for dinner even though I don't really love them? Because I'm taking one for the team! I'm making my husband happy and that, my friends, is compromise. What I love about this recipe is that it tastes like it was made in a restaurant. I'd totally spend $20 for this dish because tastes expensive and exotic. It's all about the vermouth & tarragon. Casey told me this dish was one of the best things I've made; he's not wrong. Sometimes through the act of compromise, you find things you really like. Compromise can be awesome.
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Caramelized Onion Jam
Let's talk about kitchen staples for a sec. You should always have extra virgin olive oil on hand. Always always always. Onions are a must too. Make sure you get some every time you're out grocery shopping. Balsamic vinegar, chicken stock, salt & brown sugar are necessities as well. Why? Because without these staples, you can't just go into your kitchen one Sunday afternoon and make caramelized onion jam on a whim. And how sad is a refrigerator that doesn't have a nice little jar of Caramelized Onion Jam in it? Very sad.
So, what does one do with Caramelized Onion Jam? Let's brainstorm!
- put it on a pizza with Gorgonzola and pears
- add it to crostini with figs and goat cheese & prosciutto
- put it on a steak sandwich or burger with a grainy mustard
- add it to pasta with roasted tomatoes and peppers
- stir it into your mashed potatoes
- shove some in your grilled cheese
- put some on a hot dog
- make an arugula salad with it
- add it to a baked potato with sour cream
- add it to an omelet with mushrooms
- stand in front of your fridge and eat it directly from the jar
Caramelized onion jam is now a staple!
Three Cheese & Herb Tomato Tart
Let's pretend we are neighbors for a second. Wouldn't that be awesome? We'd have coffee together in the mornings with an occasional cinnamon roll or maybe a slice of coffee cake. I'd call you up last minute to see if you wanna hop in the car for a late night Target run and you'd totally be down. In fact, you suggest we hit up IKEA on the way there. Good call! Sometimes I'd borrow a few eggs or a cup of sugar and I'd always repay you with delicious treats.
One day you'd drop off a box of tomatoes from your garden and within hours I'd show up at your door with this Three Cheese & Herb Tomato Tart. You'd invite me in, offer me a slice (even though I already ate two before I arrived at your door) and we'd sit on your back porch eating together. We'd talk about what was going on in the neighborhood (why does that dog ALWAYS bark?!). I'd pull up some hilarious videos on You Tube from my phone and then you'd show me a sewing project you're working on. Eventually we'd have some fancy boozy beverage and no doubt we'd drink too much. I love how we never have to worry about driving home!
When I ask you what you liked about this tart, you'd say "Duh! There's puff pastry involved!" Then you'd marvel at how perfect your homegrown tomatoes taste paired with a blend of three different cheeses, garlic and herbs. I'm so glad we're neighbors, aren't you? Now can I please borrow your hedge trimmers? My front yard is getting unruly.
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Moscow Mules
I like to think that given the opportunity, Oprah and I would be the best of friends. We'd drive across the country together, stopping at every rest stop to get beef jerky and blue corn tortilla chips. I'd teach her how to buy toilet paper and people would constantly stop us to get their picture taken. We'd follow the same diet trends, have our own book club, wear matching diamond pinkie rings and make coffee dates with Nate to look at wallpaper samples. While Oprah was off playing with her dogs, I'd hang out with Gayle and do a few sandwich tastings. The three of us would sit out on the veranda of one of Oprah's fabulous mansions with stacks of magazines and a fancy bar cart full of Moscow Mules. I'd tell her how I wished I had my own traditional copper mugs for Moscow Mules and a man would appear out of nowhere with a box of 12. We'd get a little tipsy and I'd convince Oprah to get Donald Trump to personally deliver us a Trump turkey burger. It would be his second time eating that burger.
We would have such a good life together Oprah.
I realize that none of this will make sense to you if you aren't an Oprah lover. The Moscow Mule is Oprah's favorite drink. I can totally see why. The combo of lime, mint and ginger beer is so sweet, refreshing and thirst quenching that you might not even notice there's vodka in the mix. In other words, this cocktail will go down EASY. One drink and you'll be imagining living the good life with the my pal, Oprah Winfrey. Trust.
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