Bourbon in the springtime, what could be more lovely?

A fantastic article came out on Eater last week about all the great places to drink whisky on St. Patrick's Day. I say, why discriminate?? Go have a great bourbon any old day of the week! Here's the great DC guide to lead you to happy whisky spots around the District.

Add fresh, bright bitters to the classic Manhattan for a warm weather feel.

Also, take a gander at this gorgeous cocktail, the Manhattan. Now that spring has rolled in, I've sweetened up my own version of the classic concoction, while not making it too crazily sweet. My husband and I hosted a gathering last week for a big group of fun, fine folks - and seasoned bourbon drinkers and newbies alike enjoyed this mix. So, pour one soon and be whisk(y)ed away. (Sorry, couldn't help it.)

Taylor-made Manhattan

2 oz Bulliet Bourbon
.5 oz sweet vermouth
.5 oz dry vermouth
A dash of blood orange bitters I like Stirrings brand)
1 Maraschino cherry (crucial, I think!) with 1tsp of cherry juice from the jar

A side dish for shrimp quesadillas, or other dishes for that matter!

Warm spinach, pepper, and onion salad.

I promised you I'd give you a couple pointers for a side dish to serve with your easy shrimp quesadillas, so here it is! I purposefully made the quesadillas without traditional fillings like veggies, onions, or pico de gallo so I could focus the side dishes on these items instead. That way, you and your potential dinner guests can truly use them on the side, or you have the option of putting them inside your quesadilla for more flavor in every bite.

First, a spinach salad that comines fresh spinach with more traditional sides for Mexican dishes like peppers and onions. This dish is easy and quick like the quesadillas, so this entire meal can be ready in about 25 minutes.

I sliced up green, red, and yellow peppers and a red onion and put them in a large sautee pan and drizzled it with olive oil, letting it simmer for about 6 or 7 minutes, until everything was getting a little brown. I then added a bunch of spinach and a bit more olive oil. (You need a lot of spinach to make it a big presence in a side dish, as sauteeing it wilts it down significantly.) I added garlic salt and a little cayenne to add some kick, and let it simmer all together, mixing every now and again until it reached the right level of brown.

If the salad finishes cooking before your quesadillas, cover it until they're done so that you can serve a warm, filling, and flavorful salad: perfect for this transition time between winter and spring! And if you have leftovers, mix them into eggs for a fantastic scramble in the a.m.  Twice is just as nice.

Nothin's quite like when mom makes it...but this was pretty darn good.

Just like Mom makes it.

My friends Jesse & Amanda threw a rockin' dinner party, complete with Sidecar cocktails (recipes to come), a few sweaty rounds of Dance Dance Revolution, and recipes straight from Amanda's mom's arsenal.  They made these sweet and sour meatballs just like my friend Kelly, who served them as a hot appetizer on New Year's Eve.  But sided with fresh grilled asparagus and homemade, gooey mac n' cheese, it seemed like a whole new meatball.  Here's the recipe for the easy meatballs, sure to please any crowd.  Do I have the recipe for the asparagus and mac n' cheese.  Nope.  Amanda's mom is sworn to secrecy: a sign of a saucy chef.  You'll have to do your best to create the home-cooked feel.

Also try the meatballs with pasta, salad, and garlic bread.  Throw on hoagie rolls and toss on some Parmesan cheese and basil - there are oh so many ways...

Shrimp & Kale: a match made in heaven

Serve it with a Chardonnay - you've got a winner.

This is an easy-peasy shrimp dish that'll make everyone happy. It's got great flavor, a mean crunch, and packs some protein - as a main dish or an appetizer.

Fresh shrimp is a best-case scenario, but definitely not essential. In a pinch for a dinner party, I used a bag of frozen, tail-on shrimp and thawed them overnight, about 24 hours before when I knee I'd need to prep them for the party.

I prepped the kale (see my blog post on baking kale) and cooked it for 17 minutes at 400 degrees.  While it was baking, I tossed the thawed shrimp into a pan with coconut oil, garlic, cayenne,  salt, and a little fresh lime juice, and sauteed it slowly for about 10 minutes, tossing every now and again. Viola! Its done.

The kale comes out of the oven crispy and crunchy, perfect. Top the kale with the steaming shrimp and arrange it on a serving plate.

Serve it up with a favorite white wine or a cocktail. Guests will now devour.

Finger Foods: New Year's Eve or any other occasion

The New Year's Eve spread.

My friend Kelly threw a New Year's Eve party with a delicious finger foods spread. Kelly gets a lot of her recipe ideas off of Pinterest, of which she is a mega fan. One cool touch was that she positioned tea light candles among the food which gave it a really inviting, beautiful effect. Some of her easy but hearty recipes are below to use for your next party.

Caprese dip--  

-3 diced tomatoes (try to get all the juice and seeds out), 

-about 4 tablespoons of chopped basil, 

-and 16 oz. of Mozzarella, cubed. 

Combine the ingredients, bake in the oven for 15 minutes on 375, and then broil for another 2 minutes. 

Kelly notes that this dish HAS to be served warm...if you serve the dish at a party where guests are coming at various points during the evening, it's helpful to have a heating element underneath it to keep the cheese soft. Otherwise a perfectly delicious cheesy dish can become a bit of a pain because you'll have to keep reheating it. 

Pesto crescent rolls--again, she says, another simple dish.  

-simply spoon pre-made pesto sauce onto Crescent Rolls 

-roll them up 

-baked as directed on the tube. 

Easy. 

She also made some super tasty meatballs (not shown above unfortunately)-- Kelly says these are crazy simple.  She says that all it takes is throwing a bag of frozen turkey meatballs, a jar of grape jelly, and a 12oz. jar of chili sauce into a Crock Pot and letting it go until they are simmering, saucy, and ready to eat. She invested in a Crock Pot (only $20!) for the party - thank meaty goodness she did.

Look for Kelly's upcoming recipes for mini Strawberry Short Cake Sugar Cookies and Champagne Punch.  (You're already ready for New Year's Eve again, aren't you?)

Kelly owns a company called Belles&Beaux, through which she makes great baby's and children's clothes, burp cloths, blankets, beau ties, etc. Email me or leave a comment for more information and to get in touch with her.

Dinner with Geoff: duck, sprouts, & potatoes like you've never had 'em before

I recently went to a fabulous dinner at my friend Geoff’s place.  He always blazes tasty new trails with recipes that take work and a little risk.  He also had a cool, Southern way of serving the food – he often serves drinks in Mason jars and leaves the food in their original pots to serve in a homey, comfortable, but cool way.  For this dinner, he made duck, Yukon gold and sweet potato gratin with Gruyere, and Brussels sprouts.  Finish it off with some of his homemade spiced bourbon, and you’ve got a quite a meal.  Details below!

The duck recipe can be found here:

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Duck-Confit-102313  

Geoff says to ensure the duck is young, as the meat gets tough with age.  He recommends that you only use the leg & thigh sections, because the breast and wings tend to be a bit too lean.  He says it worked better for him going higher on the heat, around 250 or 275 degrees.

Potatoes:

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Scalloped-Yukon-Gold-and-Sweet-Potato-Gratin-with-Fresh-Herbs-350455 

Geoff notes that when cooking the potatoes, it is better to leave them covered longer, say 45 min, and then 15 uncovered to brown.  He particularly loves how the yams and Gruyere go so well together, creating a creamy and hearty taste.

For the sprouts, Geoff halved and placed the sprouts in a pan with just the littlest bit of water to steam them.  He then added a few cloves of garlic and a couple TBS of butter to sauté the sprouts a bit once the water steams off.  If you have time, he says, he likes to soak the sprouts in salted water, which seems to help them retain their green color after cooking.  Great idea!

As for wine, Geoff always says that even though you’d traditionally serve a white, he likes to serve it with red wine due to the slightly gamy flavor of the duck.

Crème Fraiche: a tasty topping that makes things feel fancy

Fancy Pants pairing - Ooo la la!

Any topping that you have to say with an accent is a good idea.  And Crème Fraiche is a perfect example.  It is rich and creamy and whipped and thick, all at the same time.  Food bloggers tout crème fraiche as an overall winner for toppings: throw a dollop on strawberries or pie as a dessert; mix in a bit as a rich topping for a soup; use as a dip with crudites.

I recently realized, as I read through recipes, that I had never tasted it.  It created some curiosity so when I came across it in the grocery store on special, I snagged some and decided to experiment.  For a recent dinner party, I made a topping for shrimp.  I wanted the Crème's creaminess to be balanced with a little salt and spice, and I wanted to a bit of color.  So, I added dill and thick flakes of black salt and voila! (OK, now I'm just trying to use more French words.)  It was a nice topper for the shrimp and dinner guests lapped it up.  Good maiden voyage!

Want to get super Fancy Pants about it and make your own?  It is possible, and relatively easy.  Add a bit of cultured buttermilk or sour cream to heavy cream. Let the mixture stand for a few hours at room temperature.  The mixture will toughen in consistency to get its thick creaminess once the bacterial cultures act on the cream.  Don't let this freak you out: the cultures happen in the same way that Greek yogurt forms (such as Fage) and the cultures are beneficial to intestinal health.  Another 'hidden' advantage to crème fraiche is that despite the high fat content (people are hard on it's creamy flavor because of this) , but it is very low in sugar as a result.  I guess the lesson is: pick your battles!

Regardless of how you decide to use the Crème Fraiche, it is a diverse delight. It's so good that I'm tempted to start saying crème cheese and crème of mushroom soup, and things like that.

Next time, I'll mix it with some honey and sea salt for fruit or maybe garlic and rosemary for a soup.

Building community through eating together

Happy Thanksgiving!

The way we eat represents our most profound engagement with the natural world. 

Daily, our eating turns nature into culture, 

transforming the body of the world into our bodies and minds.

-from Michael Pollan, The Omnivore's Dilemma

A new twist on the Caprese

Now that's a salad.

Caprese salads are generally a side dish that proves to be a crowd pleaser at gatherings. Who can resist a great olive oil sprinkled atop fresh tomatoes and soft, thick mozerella cheese and basil?  It works in the summer or the winter, especially if you jazz it up with seasonal touches.

The above was a seasonal take. I used a mix of brown tomatoes and cherry tomatoes instead of sliced Beefsteak tomatoes, which is the traditional version in the salad. I like it this way so dinner guests can just as easily take the individual tomatoes as it is to take a slice of the Beefsteak.

Of course, I put olive oil and balsamic on top - a traditional touch that can't be missed!  The olive oil gives the smooth taste while the balsamic adds a punch of flavor that balances out well with the cheese.

And obviously, the diamond of the dish - add basil.  But! Don't be afraid to take chances with some spices: this recipe, I added the smaller flakes of dried basil, but also fresh rosemary for a bit of a different take on the traditional taste.  Dill, thyme, and garlic would also be awesomely zesty.

Feel liberal with the cheese as well.  Above, I used the mozzarella that is most easily sliced - a log of full fat mozzarella. You could also use mozzarella balls which, like the cherry tomatoes, are easy to serve more individually and offer a cool effect on how the dish is presented with different shapes and sizes in what's served.  Burrata mozzarella is a wonderful variety that is a bit more pricey but worth it for the texture and flavor. The outer "shell" is mozzarella but the inside is cheese and cream. It is rich and luscious. I've also made a "Caprese" with chunky feta.

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

Cream cheese frosting?...whopieeeee!

My dear friend and neighbor, Kira, is a fantastic baker.  I am not.  So I seek her out for wisdom on all things baked and fluffy. She is the kind of deliciously creative friend who makes dinner party guests wowed (and jealous) by making the cream pie from the cover of Bon Appetit...and it looks JUST like the picture. Last weekend, she graced my dinner party guests with seasonal Pumpkin Whoopie Pies that were OUT OF THIS WORLD.  
Here is her recipe and notes, adapted from the cookbook Baked: New Frontiers in Baking, by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. Their bakery in Red Hook opened in Jan 05. This is their first book.

Pumpkin Whoopie Cookies:
3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 " baking powder
2 tablespoons cinnamon
1 " ginger
1 " cloves (didn't have this, and don't like it, so i doubled the ginger instead)
2 cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 cup veg oil
3 cups chilled pumpkin puree (i used about 2 x the canned stuff) 
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
*Note: chilling the pumpkin makes the pies easier to scoop. 

Preheat oven to 350. Line baking sheets with parchment.
Whisk the first seven ingredients in a bowl and set aside. 
In a separate bowl, whisk the brown sugar and oil. Add the pumpkin puree and whisk to combine. Add eggs and vanilla and whisk until combined. 
Sprinkle the flour mixture and whisk until combined. (This implies that you do not have to use a mixer, and the dough is not very tough, but I used my Kitchenaid with the whisk attachment.)

Use a small spoon to drop the dough onto the baking sheets one inch apart. Bake for 10-12 or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely. 

Cream Cheese Filling:
3 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened (although mine was straight from the refrigerator. I think this helped with the consistency)
1 teaspoon vanilla

Sift confectioners sugar (I skipped this, but can see why it is useful, there were a few clumps of sugar in the final result)
In a bowl with electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (I used my handheld mixer for convenience) beat the butter until it is smooth. Add the cream cheese and beat until combined. Add confectioners' sugar and vanilla and beat until smooth. Do not over beat or it will loose structure. - Can be made one day ahead. 

Assemble the whoopie pies. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving. I made the cookie part in the evening and then the filling in the morning and assembled them. The cookie part gets a little sticky, so if you are storing them (for up to 3 days) line the container with parchment and put parchment on top, with plastic wrap and keep in the refrigerator. 

If you need a reason to throw a dinner party...

Get inspired.

Yours doesn't have to be this big. 

I read this in Real Simple last month:


"Gastronomical perfection can be reached in these combinations: one person dining alone, usually upon a couch or hillside; two people, of no matter what sex or age, dining in a good restaurant; six people, of no matter what sex and age, dining in a good home." - M.F.K Fisher, An Alphabet for Gourmets

Wonderful.