Recipe

See Food

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Catalina offshore is a local seafood market. We were told about it by a neighbor and watched it make its debut on a travel channel show. I don’t know why it took us so long to make our appearance.

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We strolled in early on a Saturday morning side swiping the local chefs and fishermen. A cook behind an enormous stock pot was  handing out bowls of piping hot bouillabaisse while we waited for our order. We came for mussels but left with a side of snapper. I love a whole roasted fish, if it’s one the specials at a good restaurant, chances are that will be my choice.  But scaling and cleaning a whole fish and then worrying about cooking it has intimated me. But standing in front of this array of fish, I decided this was my time  to tackle the snapper.

First up, mussels. We had an amazing dish at a local seafood restaurant a few weeks back.The Mr and I love our shellfish and after 10 years I think we agreed that those mussels were indeed some of the best. I needed to replicate this dish!  After intense recipe research I chose a favorite blogger of mine and used this recipe. They turned out better than I imagined, the mussels were the plumpest and juiciest I have ever had and the coconut curry broth was drinkable, like pour in a glass and cheers!

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Then there was the Snapper. Since I hooked it on a whim, I really had no idea what I was going to do. I chose to keep it simple and let the fish shine. I grabbed some lemon, herbs and salt. I wrapped it in foil and roasted it,  at the end I let it sunbathe under the broiler for a minute.

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We delightfully dug in.

IMG_8778 Along side we enjoyed caprese and grilled artichokes with an aioli, never forgetting the crusty bread.

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It was some good eating!

Bolognese + Garlic Cream Sauce

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You know what marriage is? it’s bumping into the same person in your kitchen day after day and not killing them. Also known as true love.

The other night I made a recipe that I got over a year ago with a wine shipment. Dunham cellars in Walla Walla, one of our favorites in town.  Most of the recipes we received from them looked good, but this one I knew I was going to make, I just needed an excuse.

The recipe read like it was a  Bolognese meets Alfredo sauce, where is the fault in that?  My first step after reading a recipe, any recipe is to pick it apart. Most of the time I will counter it with multiple other “similar” recipes and come up with my own ending.

The results were pretty fantastic. Sausage and garlic can do no wrong, just make sure you get an Italian sausage in casing that has fennel, otherwise you’re wasting your time with this dish. I am not sure what my final measurements were so I will give you the original recipe. Do as you wish but don’t leave out the sausage or the red peppers, trust me.

Oh, and for some reason the original recipe is named “Tagliatelle Bolognese”. I am not sure if the person who submitted this recipe couldn’t find Tagliatelle and just grabbed the nearest fettuccine and “forgot” to tell us, or they  just didn’t know. But the two are different. With that, it really won’t matter what you use, although if you can find fresh Tagliatelle than by all means use that. I couldn’t, well I didn’t want to drive down to Little Italy, so I used fresh Fettuccine that I found at Sprouts.

Happy cooking!

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Ingredients

Meat sauce

3 oz. ground beef (crumbled into ½” pieces)
• 3 oz. Italian sausage (crumbled into ½” pieces)
• 1/8 teaspoon dried red chili flakes
• 12 oz. Plum tomatoes (seeded, drained, chopped)
• 1 Tablespoon parsley, minced
• 1 ½ teaspoons garlic, minced
• 3 Tablespoons roasted red pepper (cut into ¼” strips)
• ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• Fresh ground black pepper
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 lb. Fettuccine
• Parmesan, finely shredded
• Fresh parsley, chopped

Garlic Cream sauce

• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 cube butter
• 1 pint whipping cream
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Fresh ground black pepper

INSTRUCTIONS:
Meat sauce: Preheat 12” sauté pan over medium high heat. Sprinkle salt over the bottom of the pan to aid in browning and prevent meat from sticking. Add ground
beef and sausage a little at a time. Meat should sizzle and smoke. Let meat brown on one side then stir. Cook to medium rare and drain off excess fat. Add all other
ingredients except olive oil. Simmer uncovered about 30 minutes until thickened. Stir in olive oil and set aside.

Cream sauce: Heat butter in a heavy gauge sauce pan until melted. Add minced garlic and simmer on low heat for 5 to 8 minutes. Add cream, salt and pepper. Let
simmer for 45 minutes until reduced in volume by 10%, stirring often.

Heat meat sauce, then add the cream sauce and heat until it bubbles and reduces. Cook pasta, drain and add to the sauce, thoroughly coating noodles. SERVE IMMEDIATELY. Garnish with shredded parmesan and parsley.

*recipe from Dunham Cellars

Tomato + Caramelized Onion Tart

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I have made a few different versions of this tart. Sometimes I leave out the onions, sometimes I use goat cheese and once made it in a home made pie crust. Every time it’s delicious. Pretty sure you can’t go wrong with any of these ingredients.

Unfortunately we don’t have any tomatoes in our garden yet, so I succumbed to buying Heirlooms at the market. That just means I will have to make it again in the summer, right?

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This tart accompanied many other amazing dishes at our Easter brunch. But it can be a stand alone with a salad on the side. Serves about 4 as a meal, 6 as a side dish.

 

Ingredients

4 medium Heirloom tomatoes, sliced 1/4 inch thick

1 medium sweet onion, sliced.

1 Tbs. butter

2 Tbs. white wine

1 tsp Thyme

1 sheet puff pastry

Boursin cheese, as much as you want

Shredded or shaved parmesan

Basil, torn or cut

Kosher salt

Olive oil

 

Directions

If the puff pastry is frozen, lay it on the counter until soft to the touch, about 30 -40 minutes. Or defrost in refrigerator over night.

Layer a large plate or cutting board with paper towels. Lay tomato slices on a single layer on the prepared plate. Sprinkle with kosher salt, flip them over and repeat. Let them hang out and drain while preparing the onions.

Heat the butter and a tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat, add onions. Saute them for a few minutes and then add wine and thyme. Lower the heat and let them cook until golden brown, stirring every so often. About 20 minutes.

Heat oven to 425. Unfold puff pastry sheet on baking pan, lined with parchment or foil if that’s all you have. With a sharp knife lightly score a border (3/4 inch from the edge) around the entire pastry.

Spread on as much Boursin cheese as you want inside the border and then sprinkle with parmesan. Add the onions on top of cheese when they are good and caramelized. Add your tomatoes, overlapping if necessary. Sprinkle with salt, drizzle with olive oil, add more parmesan if you want and pop it into the oven for about 20-25 minutes or when the pastry is golden brown. Sprinkle with your basil and you are set to serve. Prepare to wow your guests!

Easter in Ramona

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Our old neighbors are now living out in Ramona. They have so much land, so much space, perfect for an Easter egg hunt. So the girls got their baskets and we loaded up the truck.

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Their house has quite the views, hawks soar above the citrus trees and squirrels dart across the path to their pool.

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If you squint you can see some of our favorite wineries.

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The kids had a lot of fun hunting eggs, well I should say Kaili had fun. Averi just wanted to chase the cat and explore.

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There was quite a spread for lunch, homemade quiche to fried chicken sliders and delicious fresh squeezed OJ from their trees. I made this lemon cake. I was overly cautious to keep an eye on it but somehow I overcooked it by a few minutes, but I would still recommend the recipe. I am going to try another recipe this week to compare and because I need a another piece of lemon cake in my life.

Once we were able to drag the kids away from their playground we headed down the road to Kohill winery. We are new members and had a wine pickup but also, you can’t go to Ramona without hitting a winery, i am pretty sure it’s illegal.

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The girls snacked because they don’t eat their actual meals and then they chased each other around the tasting room while we decided what wines to take home.

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It was a good practice run for Easter, now we get to do it all over again next week but without getting in the car.

Spaghetti Squash Greek Salad

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Do you ever buy a spaghetti squash and then it sits on the counter for days before you use it? I do, all.the.time. I hem and haw about what to do with it and then I always end up making this, but in a casserole dish.

Finally I went back to a recipe I used to make, seems like years ago. Spaghetti squash Greek salad. The nice part about this recipe is I can make it in the afternoon and then cover and chill it while we run to soccer or swimming and then it’s ready without any fuss for dinner. And no, my kids don’t eat it….”don’t make me laugh, ha, ha, ha.”

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Ingredients

For the dressing:

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons EV olive oil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced

For the Salad:

2 cups cooked spaghetti squash ( cut in half, roast at 400 degrees for 45 minutes, let cool. Scoop out and squeeze as much water out with a cheese cloth)
1 /2 cups chopped tomato
1 cup diced cucumber
1/2 cup  crumbled feta cheese * I add a tad more right before serving.
1/4 cup diced red onion
2 tablespoons chopped pitted kalamata olives

Combine first 6 ingredients in a small bowl and whisk together.
Combine spaghetti squash and remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Add vinegar mixture; toss well. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

*recipe adapted from My Recipes

Dragging my Feet

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What can I say, I have been a horrible blogger lately. I will blame it on the Avester. Every time I stand by my computer contemplating on writing, she is at my heels yelling “Mama, mama, mama, UP UP UP!” It’s ear piercing and nerve-racking.  I end up picking her up and wandering away from the computer.

Averi is now 19 months and quite the handful. She prefers her meals on the go, something I told myself I would never let her do. Wandering around with food, what good can come of it. Well, it keeps her quiet, let’s me get stuff done and puts meat on her bones, so for now, I just go with it.

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Photo by Brian Kerr

Kaili just ended her first month of soccer. She seemed to really enjoy it so I signed her up for another month.  She also started up swimming again, this time it’s at a swim school opposed to the YMCA. But once a week isn’t frequent enough so I am hoping to up it to twice a week. We need this girl swimming.

IMG_7399As I write this, it’s sprinkling outside but the last couple weeks we have been spoiled with amazing weather. I have spent almost everyday outside reading in the sun and then spending the afternoon playing in the backyard with the girls.

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We spent Valentines day as a family eating chocolate, popping in and out of the hot tub, sun bathing and watching Shane work in the backyard. More on that later. Kaili had a school party and enjoyed scouring through her mound of cards and candy.

Kaili and one of her besties.
Kaili and one of her besties.

Shane and I treated ourselves to some King crab for dinner and then I tried making chocolate soufflés for dessert. They didn’t turn out as I expected, the lava cakes I make are much more decadent. Next year, I will go back to making those.

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Shimmer Play-douh

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Kaili ran out of Play-doh right before Christmas. Instead of buying more we decided it would be fun to make some of our own but with pizzazz.

It’s so easy to add play-doh to your cart and hit purchase on Amazon but it’s almost as easy to make your own. I used this tried and true recipe but we added a few drops of peppermint extract and a few, ok a lot of shakes of glitter.

*I find that the gel dye is much more vibrant, just make sure you don’t make the dough on a  beloved cutting board, it will stain.

IMG_6725IMG_6729I gotta say, one month later and the consistency is still great. Red and green mixed together don’t make the best looking color so it’s time to make some new colors.

Kaili spends time on the iPad at night watching video tutorials on play-dough activities. So if your child loves it as much as mine, this will save you some cash. Cha-Ching!

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Roasted Veggie Galette

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This was so much easier than I thought it was going to be. You could make it harder on yourself and make your own pastry dough, but really, no need to.

Now that I did a test run I am excited to make it again with some of the vegetables that came in my Farm Fresh box.

All you do is roast a bunch of veggies, drizzled with olive oil and showered lightly with salt and pepper in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes. I used red and yellow peppers, zucchini and onion. You could use eggplant, mushrooms, leeks, yellow squash, anything really.

Prepare a baking sheet with your pie dough, spread a generous layer of cream cheese and then follow up with a generous dollop of Boursin garlic and herb cheese. Top with the veggies and then pull up the edges of the pie dough around the vegetables to make a rustic little pie. Brush the pie dough with milk and sprinkle with parmesan. Pop back in the 400 degree oven for another 20 minutes and prepare to wow the socks off of your guests, or just eat it all by yourself. No need to share something so good!

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Butternut Squash Bisque

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I am back on the Farm Fresh to You bandwagon. This time I am taking the time to personalize each delivery and try to meal plan around it. It’s really nice to know what will be delivered to your doorstep and that it will all taste so good, much better than the store bought produce. Last week I got some butternut squash and hemmed an hawed all week on what to make, none of the recipes looked good. I decided since the weather dropped a good 10 degrees that I would make a soup. 80 is totally soup weather in San Diego.

I like to hang out in my kitchen during the day when I only have one child, it’s my favorite PDA. (primary daytime activity) I planned on having the bisque done by lunch so Shane could have a hot meal waiting for him when he walked in the door. Awww, aren’t I the best?

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I meshed a couple recipes together and came up with this.

Ingredients

2 butternut squash

1 apple, peeled and chopped

1 onion, chopped

1 TBS olive oil

2 TBS red curry paste

1 TBS coriander

1 tsp cayenne pepper

4 cups chicken broth

3/4 cup full fat coconut milk

2 tsp honey

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 375

Cut the squash in half, de seed and put on baking sheet face down.

Roast for 1 hour or until super tender. Let cool and then spoon into a bowl.

Heat the oil in a dutch oven over med high heat and then add the onion and apple. Sauté for 5 min or until tender. Add the curry paste, coriander, cayenne (You can omit the cayenne if you don’t like it spicy) and a pinch of salt and pepper. Let cook for 2 minutes and then add the chicken stock and squash. Let that come to a boil and then bring it down to a simmer. Let simmer for 30 minutes.

Transfer soup to a blender or food processor and working in batches puree the soup until smooth. Put the soup back in the dutch oven and heat over medium heat. Add the coconut milk and honey and more salt and pepper to taste.

You can top your bisque with cilantro and sour cream or leave it as is. It’s delicious!

Peanut Sauce Zoodles

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I made this recipe twice in a week. The husband isn’t a peanut butter fan and every time I make something like this he isn’t impressed. I thought this would be a perfect dish for myself to eat during the week. I had enough sauce for two bowls of noodles plus extra to dip my chicken in, perfecto.

*Recipe adapted from Can You Stay For Dinner?

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Ingredients

1 TBS grated ginger
1 garlic clove
1/3 cup natural creamy peanut butter
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon (packed) light brown sugar * I used PureVia as a substitute, honey would work too.
1 teaspoon Sriracha
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
4 tablespoons water (room temperature, add them 2 TBSP at a time until desired consistency)
3 Zucchini, spiraled
1 large carrot, grated
½ large seedless cucumber, chopped
4 scallions, chopped
¼ cup roasted, unsalted peanuts, chopped

Make the peanut sauce: In a food processor or blender, I used my magic bullet. combine the ginger, garlic, peanut butter, soy sauce, lime juice,  sugar (or substitute) Sriracha, sesame oil, and 3 tablespoons room temperature water. Pulse until smooth, adding 1 more tablespoon of water if needed to give the sauce a pourable, silky consistency.
In a large bowl, combine the zucchini, carrots, cucumber, and scallions. Pour the peanut sauce on top and toss well to coat all of the squash noodles and veggies. Sprinkle with peanuts and drizzle with Sriracha.

*Note, this does not hold up well. Only dress what you want to eat, save the rest for later.

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