Seminole Corn Dip

As I sit here perusing the internet for one of the simplest recipes of all time, Mexican Street Corn, I am reminded of another festive corn recipe, perfect for a large party like the one I'm planning.  I'm sure that every family has a variation of a recipe like this, it's just one of those types recipes.  Not quite as simple and weird as "Pink Cloud" from your family reunions.  Similar in assembly, but so much tastier.

Seminole Corn Dip
Recipe from Sherry Bowers

2 small cans of mexi-corn {corn kernels and peppers}
1 bunch of green onion, chopped
3-6 T picked jalapeno
8 oz real mayonnaise
8 oz sour cream
4 cups Mexican cheddar/pepper jack, pre-shredded
1 T cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper, to taste.

Drain both cans of corn and add to a large bowl.  Add all other ingredients and stir well.  Taste for seasoning and adjust as needed.  Serve with lots of Fritos.

Serves 15-20.

Farfalle with Asparagus & Mushrooms

Here is another one of our family's tried and true recipes.  Actually, the first time I had this pasta, we weren't yet a family.  It was 5 years ago and I had been on 2 (maybe 3) dates with my husband.  This was one of the first meals he made for me and our great friend Hillary.  Then, David made it for lunch.  For me, it was second lunch... but I don't mind eating an extra meal to make a good impression on a boy.

We have made this recipe differently ever since.  Ingredients are occasionally left out, some times a random ingredient is thrown in. (David, I was not tricked with the fennel... not even a little bit.)  The important thing is to use ingredients that you like.

This is an incredibly simple dinner.  20-minutes simple.  You can have the entire recipe prepped by the time your water has come to a boil and the pasta is al dente. 

Farfalle with Asparagus & Mushrooms
Adapted from Giada's Family Dinners, page 149

1/2 lb farfalle pasta {This time we used baby farfalle, just because it's adorable.}
3 T butter
1 lb baby bellas
1 lb thin asparagus, trimmed, cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces
1 cup mascarpone cheese
Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
3/4 cup walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped {We've also used cashews and pine nuts.  Yum.}
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 T crushed red pepper
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the farfalle and cook until al dente, stirring occasionally, about 12 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of pasta water.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and saute until tender and most of the juices have evaporated, about 5 minutes. Add the asparagus and saute until the asparagus is crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Season vegetables with salt, black pepper, and crushed red pepper.  In a large bowl, add mascarpone, nutmeg, and the farfalle. Stir until the cheese coats the pasta.  If you need to thin the sauce, add the reserved cooking liquid 1/4 cup at a time. Gently stir in walnuts and vegetables. Taste the pasta again for seasoning. Top with freshly grated Parmesan.

Serves 4-6.

Baked Gnocchi and Cheese

I'm in the midst of one of those amazingly restful weekends that I always look forward to (usually Monday around 11am) but rarely ever get.  This meal is just as decadent.  I can't imagine anything more luxurious than soft pillows of gnocchi smothered in cheese sauce.  Maybe a nap on a soft pillow...  I love weekends.

Baked Gnocchi and Cheese
Adapted from Cuisine at Home

1 17.6 oz package of gnocchi
2 T butter
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 T all-purpose flour {I used whole wheat flour, if you're curious about the color of my roux.}
1 cup milk
1/2 T stone-ground mustard
1/3 cup shredded Gruyere cheese
1/3 cup shredded Fontina cheese
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper,  to taste
2 T basil, finely chopped
1/3 cup shredded Parmesan


Preheat oven to 375. Prepare gnocchi according to package directions. Drain and place gnocchi in a single-layer in a 1-1/2 quart shallow baking dish that has been buttered to prevent sticking.

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Whisk in flour until it thickens and bubbles, then whisk in milk and Dijon. Continue to whisk mixture and cook until slightly thickened, about 3-5 minutes.

Combine Gruyere and Fontina, then add by the handful to milk mixture, stirring until melted before adding the next handful. Once all cheese is melted, season sauce with basil. salt and pepper.

Pour sauce over gnocchi and sprinkle with Parmesan over top. Bake gnocchi until they puff and the cheese is golden and bubbly, about 25 minutes. Let gnocchi rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Serves 4 with a big leafy salad, because this meal is decadent!

eggs and honey

In my imaginary future I hope to live farther outside of town and have a few more pets.  I would love to collect my own eggs to make a Sunday omelet.  I would really enjoy swiping my own honey to spread on my homemade biscuits.  The idea of sustaining our family's food needs would be an amazing thing to accomplish, and I would definitely begin with eggs and honey.  Then, cheese...

Perhaps, I can get David on board more quickly with a well designed chicken coop and bee hive.  I've already got him sold on the cow.  Thank you, cheese obsession.

Modern Chicken Coop

Cedar Strip Beehive

Potato Crostini

 

Lately I've taken comfort in cooking "the tried and true". Cooking without a recipe is my new yoga.  It brings a calming productivity to the end of a stressful day.  Hopefully, with enough practice I can "throw together" a meal like this without looking at a computer screen.  Luckily, this one is easy enough to read through once so you can focus on the enjoyment of the slicing and chopping.

Potato Crostini
Ever-so-slightly adapted from Fresh 365
 
20-25 of the teensiest red potatoes
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
4 T chopped chives
4 oz feta cheese, chopped or crumbled by hand
4 T pumpkin seeds
1 t fennel seed
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 375F. Carefully wash each potato and place a baking sheet, be sure to cut down any larger ones to ensure they all have the same cooking time. Cover with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Bake 25-30 minutes, until potatoes are cooked through. Remove from oven and allow to cool.  Meanwhile, mix basil, chives, feta, pumpkin seeds, fennel in a large bowl.  Add potatoes and stir gently.  Return mixture back to baking sheet and continue to bake until cheese is melted and the potatoes begin to crisp. Serve with warm, crusty bread.

Serves 2 as entrée, 4 as a side dish.

Bittersweet Chocolate Chip Cookies

I am not one of those chocoholic girls.  I am one of those freaks that loves really fake, too sweet or too tart, gummi candy.  Gummi Bears have been the most difficult thing for me to give up, since becoming a vegetarian.  No, not bacon, or pepperoni... Although, I do miss pepperoni.  I'm also not much of a baker.  I love baked goods, but I don't have the precision or the patience of a chemist.  It's hard for me to follow a recipe.  Therefore, I've had more baking disasters than I'd care to remember.  That being said, I will bake my husband and my best friend a birthday cake every year and I will always make a cheesecake for Thanksgiving.  Other than these few instances, it is incredibly rare that anything sweet comes out of my oven (unlike my dear friend, Kasey).  This is one of those rare moments.

Bittersweet Chocolate Chip Cookies
Unabashedly taken from the back of the Ghirardelli bag

2 1/4 cups unsifted flour
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
2 t vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 cups Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Chips (No, they are not a sponsor, just great quality and an amazing snack straight out of the freezer.)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Stir flour with baking soda and salt; set aside.  Beat butter with sugar and brown sugar at medium speed until creamy.  Add vanilla and eggs, one at a time, mixing on low speed until incorporated.  Gradually blend dry mixture unto creamed mixture.  Stir in chocolate chips.  Drop by tablespoon onto ungreased cookie sheets.  Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown.

Yield: 4 dozen cookies

I halved this recipe, made 4 cookies, and put the rest in the freezer.  To prepare dough for freezing shape it into a log for "slice and bake" cookies (better for sugar cookies) or shape cookies into tablespoon-sized balls and store in freezer bags (best method for any cookie with chips or nuts).  This is a great way to have fresh baked cookies without a lot of effort.  What do you do with 4 dozen cookies anyhow?

Cheese-Stuffed Portobellos

 

I have made this recipe several times as an appetizer, and thought it would make a great entrée if I used a large portobello mushroom in lieu of several tiny ones.  Since our house has become vegetarian, David has been really excited to throw a few bellas on the grill.  We haven't exactly dusted off the grill, but the warm weather is already here, and I'm sure this recipe would be great outdoors.  Here, I use mostly spinach and feta as a filling, but any combination of vegetable and cheese would work well here.  Next time, I'm adding blue cheese and caramelized onions to the spinach mixture and serving it up with some roasted potatoes.  That should nip that meat and potato craving in the bud.

Cheese-Stuffed Portobellos

Adapted from Paula Deen via Food Network

2 Large Portobello mushrooms (for an appetizer use 24-30 baby bellas)

8 oz fresh baby spinach

2 cloves garlic, finely minced

2 T olive oil

2 oz cream cheese

4 oz feta, roughly chopped or crumbled

1/2 cup  green onion, finely chopped

1/2 cup Parmesan, freshly grated

kosher salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Clean mushrooms with a damp cloth and remove stems and gills (optional).  Gently sauté spinach with garlic and olive oil until spinach is wilted, be careful not to over cook.  In a mixing bowl combine spinach, cream cheese, feta, green onion, salt and pepper.  Once combined, fill mushrooms and place in a baking dish.  Sprinkle Parmesan on top.  Cover baking dish with foil and bake for 20 minutes.  Remove foil and bake for 10 minutes more, or until cheese is golden-brown and mushrooms are tender.  Serve with quinoa, crusty bread, or other starchy side.

Serves 2, as an entrée.