Published by mel on March 3, 2010 in breakfast, recipe and sides & bites.
Every year I look forward to the last weekend in February. It’s when the big white tents go up on South Beach and chefs and food lovers flock to the beach to eat and drink everything in sight. Last year, I left disappointed and a little hungry. This year was a completely different story. My favorite year by far. Some of the highlights were beer brewed by Florida International University Students (Rye and IPA), Potato and Shrimp Croquettes with pickled red onion from Gia at the Eden Roc Hotel, Ravioli from The Greenhouse Tavern in Cleveland, OH and Steak with horseradish cream from Luma on Park in Winter Park, FL.
The Whole Foods tent also came strong this year. It’s no secret that Whole Foods is one of my favorite places on earth and their hospitality tent was giving away smoked salmon, caviar, plantains stuffed with chorizo and avocado cream and little toasts with vanilla honey goat cheese. The goat cheese was so simple, but such a tasty little bite that I wanted to attempt to recreate the recipe at home.
This spread is basically just goat cheese whipped with honey and vanilla bean. The honey is a nice contrast to the tangy goat cheese and the vanilla adds a little exotic flavor. It’s a great little snack on crackers or with some strawberries and pretty amazing paired with a fresh mimosa.
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Published by mel on February 23, 2010 in entree and recipe.
For the past couple of months, Tom and I have been training for the A1A (Beach-front avenue!) Half Marathon and Sunday was the Big Day. For me, training was both exhilarating – you feel so accomplished when you’ve run a 10K before breakfast – and painful – patellar tendinitis isn’t particularly fun. Training made me hungry, made me hobble around like an old lady, made me stop drinking beer and wine on Saturday nights (the worst part by far) and made me actually stop wearing heels.
On the Big Day, we woke up at 3:30AM and had some homemade power bars and bananas and were on our way. The weather was great – 60 degrees – and we started our run heading east toward the most beautiful sunrise over the ocean. I didn’t have my best run, but Tom ran with me (almost) the whole way and my official time was 2:05:15. We crossed the finish line with our families cheering us on and then celebrated with a nice, big breakfast of French Toast, Eggs, Bacon and Bloody Marys. All in all, a wonderful, completely exhausting day.
So, what does all that have to do with Baked Chicken & Spinach Pasta? Well, it was all part of our pre-race meal. This dish is one of those things my mom made all the time when I was growing up and my brother and I loved like crazy. It’s a super simple recipe: sauteed chicken with lots of garlic, olive oil, spinach and white wine all tossed with pasta, covered with cheese and baked. Delicious. So, I made a batch and my mother-in-law made Tom’s favorite spaghetti and meat sauce and we all carbo-loaded on Saturday night before the Big Day. Perfect pre-marathon food, but good pretty much all the time.
And now, I’ll happily return to beer and wine on Saturday nights, heels at work and a lot less pasta recipes on the site.
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Published by mel on February 17, 2010 in entree and recipe.
Yeah – I have no business whatsoever calling this Chicken Cordon Bleu. It’s more like Spanish-style stuffed chicken breasts wrapped in ham and cheese. But that’s not the most eye-catching title. Whatever you call them, these chicken breasts are pretty amazing. Also, pretty simple to make.
Just butterfly some chicken breasts and stuff them with spicy Spanish chorizo and Piquillo peppers (roasted red peppers work too). Close them up, wrap them in ham and cover with a slice of provolone cheese and a sprinkle of smoked paprika. Into the oven for a bit, and out comes a one of the best chicken dishes I’ve ever made.
Tom says that only a Cuban would come up with the idea of chicken stuffed and wrapped in pork. And he’s kind of right – we do think pork makes everything taste better. (Sorry vegetarians!)
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Published by mel on December 15, 2009 in entree, recipe and sides & bites.
I am a very bad blogger. I’ve abandoned my website for what seems to be months. Years. First, I was on vacation in Chile (highly recommended for food and wine lovers!). Then I was severely ill and avoiding anything to do with the kitchen altogether. Then we adopted the cutest little mutt I’ve ever seen. (Her name is Mussels – isn’t she just precious?)
Not that I’m making excuses or anything. I just haven’t stepped foot in the kitchen. Until now.
This Eggplant and Sausage Casserole is kind of a mutt itself – a mix between Eggplant Parmesan, Lasagna and Strata. It’s warm and cheesy and perfect for winter. The bottom layer is a kind of sausage bread pudding covered by a thin layer of eggplant. That’s topped with some marinara sauce, then more eggplant. As with any casserole, the crowning glory is a layer of shredded cheese and breadcrumbs. Pop in the oven until it smells delicious and dinner is ready.
Honestly, I wasn’t expecting much from this recipe. Sure, I thought it would make a good weeknight meal, but I was surprised by how much I really liked it. It gave me a homey, pajamas on a Sunday afternoon kind of feeling. Like Chile, it’s highly recommended.
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Published by mel on October 20, 2009 in entree, recipe and sides & bites.
It’s that time of year again. Time for pumpkin-everything. Tom gave me the idea for these when we were watching football, drinking pumpkin ale and munching on nachos. Pumpkin nachos? Why not? Nachos are really just a vehicle for cheese and toppings.
So, I roasted some pumpkin. That went over tortilla chips with some hot Spanish chorizo (smoked paprika + winter squash = awesome), green onions and shredded Colby and Jack cheeses. Into the oven until the cheese was seductively melty, then a squeeze of lime and sprinkling of fresh cilantro.
Behold my terrible knife skills!
Salty chips, sweet pumpkin, spicy chorizo all under a blanket of cheese. It’s delicious. The perfect Fall football food. Actually, the perfect Fall food, no matter what you’re doing.
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Published by mel on September 15, 2009 in entree, recipe and sides & bites.
September is here and with it comes football. My favorite thing about football? Tailgating food, of course. Sure, I love a good college football game, but the real treat is the afternoon beer, wings, nachos and potato skins. In honor of Michigan defeating Notre Dame last weekend (hopefully Michigan State will do the same this weekend), I’m posting football-friendly food all week. And I’m kicking it off with Bacon, Blue Cheese and Jalapeno Twice Baked Potatoes.
The nice people over at Ile de France sent me a nice St. Agur Blue Cheese, which was the perfect ingredient for this amazing side. The filling is spicy and smoky, creamy and blue cheese-y, and the skins are crisp and chewy. If you’re making steak, these should be your side dish. And even if you’re not making steak, you should make these anyway. I promise you won’t have any leftovers.
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Published by mel on July 29, 2009 in dessert, recipe and sides & bites.
Ah, figs. One of my favorite odd foods. They look so weird, but taste so good. I love them on pizza with prosciutto, in a salad with fennel and especially with cheese. Almost any kind of cheese. One of the best appetizers you’ll ever make is a mission fig stuffed with blue cheese and drizzled with honey. So simple, yet so delicious and exotic.
Last night I decided I wanted figs and cheese, but for dessert. I quickly caramelized some figs with vanilla sugar, then topped them off with a dollop of creamy mascarpone cheese and a drizzle of balsamic syrup (also known as balsamic reduction from my Summer Squash Caprese). You’d think the cheese and balsamic would mike it too strong and not sweet enough for dessert, but you’d be wrong. Very, very wrong. The vanilla sugar and natural sweetness of the figs were just emphasized by the mascarpone, and the balsamic syrup was perfectly tart and sweet.
When I popped it in my mouth, I was actually surprised by how much I liked it. Sweet, creamy, fruity and tangy all in one. It was so good that my husband thought the balsamic syrup was chocolate. Silly man. I’ll be making these again soon. And by soon, I mean tonight.
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Published by mel on July 24, 2009 in recipe and sides & bites.
Right around this time every year, people start scouring around for new zucchini recipes to get through what is usually an abundance of summer squash. Zucchini muffins, zucchini bread, ratatouille and zucchini pasta abound. Fortunately for me, I love the stuff and can’t get enough.
One of my favorite preparations is on the grill. Marinated and grilled summer vegetables are so good in pasta, salad or as a simple side. This time, I sliced some zucchini and yellow squash very thin, sprinkled with salt and pepper and quick-grilled them. Stacked with fat tomato slices and topped with a thick hunk of fresh mozzarella cheese, they made a very delicious and very pretty caprese salad.
But what really made it special was the good olive oil and and balsamic reduction I drizzled over the top. I’d never made a balsamic reduction and was pleasantly pleased by how utterly delicious and simple it was. I just simmered some aged balsamic vinegar in a little pot for awhile and it became an intense, slightly sweet syrup that’s insanely good with vegetables and creamy mozzarella.
A beautiful appetizer and an even better sandwich squished into a fresh baguette. Yum, yum and yum!
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Published by mel on July 14, 2009 in entree and recipe.
Although I wish I could, I can’t take credit for this idea. My co-worker Omar was telling me about how he loves his mom’s Puerto Rican cooking and somehow we got on the subject of plantains. Because when a Cuban and Puerto Rican are talking about food, you somehow always end up on the subject of plantains, you know?
Omar explained how his mom makes a very delicious Plantain Pastelón, or plantain casserole. As soon as I heard those magical words – Plantain Casserole – I knew I had to make it as soon as possible! Ripe plantains are like nothing else. They’re sweet and starchy, like a tropical-flavored sweet potato. They mash up well and I knew they’d make the perfect base for a casserole.
I baked some ripe plantains and topped them with chicken sauteed with onions, peppers and garlic. And because this is a Latin American casserole, I threw in some beans. Finally, a casserole wouldn’t be a casserole without cheese on top. When it came out of the oven, it was gorgeous. Exactly what I was hoping for with it’s browned, crisp edges and melted cheesy crust. So, next time you see that big pile of ugly-looking plantains, grab a few for this casserole. You will thank me!
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Published by mel on July 10, 2009 in recipe and sides & bites.
My parents took a trip to Tuscany not too long ago (I know. I’m still jealous and it was months ago.), and the first thing my dad said to me when he got back was, “I had the most delicious thing ever! Gorgonzola polenta! You have to make it.” And I thought to myself “Duh. Why didn’t I think of that?”
So, last night I finally got around to it. And oh my, was it good! Warm, creamy and full of pungent Gorgonzola cheese, this was just about the best imaginable side for a steak. Mashed potatoes and creamed spinach can step aside – it’s Gorgonzola polenta that will cuddle up with my skirt steaks and rib eyes.
Next time, I think I’ll add some pickled red onions or shallots sauteed in butter to balance the creaminess of the polenta. But honestly, it’s amazing just the way it is.
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