Tag: Side Dish
Pear Salad Stack
I guess I would say I’m a fan of any food that manages to pull off an optical illusion while also tasting delicious. You know, like a cake in the shape of a hamburger. Or truffles…(their optical illusion is leading you to believe that something so small couldn’t possibly contain so many calories). This pear salad stack is its own trompe l’oeil, giving the clever impression that a piece of fruit magically unlocked like a 1990’s Caboodle to let a delicious filling of goat cheese, almonds, and dried cranberries hop into its nooks and crannies. Basically, if M. C. Escher ever drew a pear, it would look like this. Thankfully, it’s not nearly as complex and mind-bending as all that. This is probably one of the most interesting salad presentations you can get for the least amount of effort–just the kind of unconventional menu item that makes a lovely first course for a dinner party or a big hit with non-fruit-loving kids. The only downside is having to take it apart to eat it!
Pear Salad Stack
Ingredients:
4 large pears
3/4 c. dried cranberries
3/4 c. crumbled goat cheese
1/2 c. sliced almonds
Balsamic vinegar (optional)
Directions:
1. In a medium bowl, combine dried cranberries, crumbled goat cheese, and sliced almonds.
2. Slice pears horizontally into four equal pieces, then remove core from each piece using a sharp knife. (Alternatively, if you have an apple corer, use it to remove the entire core first, then slice into four pieces.)
3. On four individual plates, layer pear pieces and goat cheese mixture vertically. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar, if desired.
Serves 4.
Kids’ Baptism (Party and Recipe Ideas)
Smile and say “holy water”!
Yesterday was a very special day in the life of our family. Surrounded by friends and family, our three children were all baptized. As you can probably tell by the picture, our kids are not infants–they’re 2, 4, and 6–so this wasn’t an infant baptism, and it also wasn’t an adult baptism. That might seem a little weird, since Catholics usually baptize infants and Protestants usually get baptized as adults, or whenever they make a profession of faith. So what are we? Catholics or Protestants? Well, we’re Catholic now, but come from an Evangelical background. My husband and I joined the Catholic Church about five years ago, when two of our three children were already born. With our Protestant history, though, we never felt all the way comfortable with the idea of infant baptism. Still, baptism is a beautiful opportunity for the Holy Spirit to do its work in any person–infant, child, or adult. The Catechism of the Catholic Church says “Holy Baptism is the basis of the whole Christian life, the gateway to life in the Spirit, and the door which gives access to the other sacraments” (CCC 1213). Believing this, we decided recently that the time had come. It was a truly momentous occasion, followed by a fun party with lots of (you guessed it) yummy food!
The afterparty started immediately after the baptism, which meant I was not home for the hour immediately preceding the party. (Kind of an event planning nightmare, to be honest.) I tried my best to plan snacks that could be made ahead of time, and settled on cupcakes, store-bought truffles, a layered fruit trifle, and a little build-your-own trail mix station.
For the fruit trifle, I layered about two cans of sliced peaches (drained), about one pound of grapes, 7 sliced kiwi, two pounds strawberries, and 12 oz. blueberries. In my experience, people get excited about anything in a trifle dish. Maybe it’s because it just makes everything look pretty. This held true for this fruit salad–it was gone even before the cupcakes. A simple, healthy, pretty party treat!
For the build-your-own trail mix station, we had a variety of bite-sized, mixable goodies: honey roasted peanuts, yogurt raisins, salted almonds, and (my favorite) key lime yogurt pretzels. This could be endlessly modified to include dried cranberries, cashews, M & Ms, cereal, candy corn–whatever your trail mix-loving heart desires!
When it comes to party food, presentation can elevate your menu from the everyday to the unforgettable. Because this was such a big event in our kids’ lives (and because we had about 60 people attending!) I wanted the food presentation to make a visual impact. So, using a gold-flecked burlap runner from Michael’s, I formed the shape of a cross on our rectangular kitchen table. Then, when the cupcakes were done–an assortment of jumbo and regular-sized chocolate and yellow cake with white and turquoise frosting–I placed them on the runner to enhance the image of the cross:
I thought it turned out cool!
Lastly, a couple pics of other decorations–delightful tissue paper puff balls (which I think I want to be a permanent fixture in my kitchen):
And a customizable banner (thanks, Party City)!
Aaaaand a few awesome, newly baptized kids!
Better-Than-Store-Bought Biscuits
Over the Christmas season, we were fortunate enough to spend quite a bit of time with my husband’s high school friends, a group they call “The Core” (which always reminds me an ’80s band or a trendy gym). Our friend Eric and his wife Christa were in town for the wedding of another Core member, and since they’re the only ones who live out of state, it’s always a good excuse to get everyone together when they’re in town. During a little dinner party at our house, somehow Christa and I ended up talking about how you can never make homemade biscuits turn out quite as delicious as the store-bought ones that come in the tube you smack with a spoon. Seriously, they’re never as good. What does Pillsbury put in those tubes that makes their biscuits come out all airy and fluffy and buttery? (Do I actually want to know?) Christa is from Alabama, which I figured meant she would have a slam-dunk biscuit recipe–don’t they eat biscuits all the time in the South? But even she agreed that store-bought always turns out best.
A week or so later I was making a turkey soup that needed some kind of accompaniment and remembered my conversation with Christa. Thus far in my life I had never made a successful biscuit. They always come out more gluten-y doorstoppers than buttery showstoppers. This time I turned to Mark Bittman’s trusty How to Cook Everything Vegetarian to see if his recipe could bring me out of my biscuit funk. And indeed it did! Any guesses for the secret ingredient that made the difference? More baking powder? The lately-super-popular coconut oil? Eye of newt?
Nope, the thing that made the difference was none other than that most versatile of dairy products: yogurt. (Wish I had known this when I wrote about unexpected uses for Greek yogurt.) Then again, the use of the food processor may have also made a difference–though even Mark Bittman says it’s the yogurt. These came out light, buttery, and yes, even fluffy! With the addition of some fresh herbs, they made for a hearty sidekick to turkey soup–and from now on, I’m sure I’ll be using them to accompany many other dishes, because they actually were…
better than store-bought!
Better-Than-Store-Bought Biscuits
(Adapted from How to Cook Everything Vegetarian by Mark Bittman)
Ingredients:
2 c. all-purpose or cake flour
3/4 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. dried herbs, such as rosemary or thyme (optional)
4 Tbsp. butter
7/8 c. yogurt
3 Tbsp. milk
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Mix the dry ingredients in the bowl of a food processor. Cut the butter into small pieces and pulse it in the food processor until thoroughly blended.
3. Transfer mixture to a large bowl. Stir in the yogurt and milk and form dough into a ball. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead it 10 times.
4. Press the dough to a 3/4 inch thickness and cut into 2-inch rounds with a biscuit cutter or open end of a glass. Gently reshape the leftover dough and cut again. Place the rounds on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake 9-10 minutes or until biscuits are golden brown.
Makes about 10 biscuits.
Orange Marmalade
While the rest of the country seems to be entrenched in a real-life version of Disney’s Frozen–a nightmare of blizzards and record low temps–we here in the Phoenix Valley are enjoying our 9th or 10th day of sunshine with temperatures in the upper 60s/low 70s. It was actually getting a little too hot for me this afternoon as I sat on my patio in a light sweater. (Yeah, I am going to be that person who rubs it in. The rest of you get gorgeous summers, falls, and springs while we hide in our air conditioning, the sun turning our iPhones into molten heaps in our cars.)
As I mentioned last time, winter in the valley is the time for citrus–mountains of citrus in every grocery store, citrus dropping from trees and rolling giddily in the street, and bags of excess citrus dropped at your door. After taking care of my free grapefruit, it was time to move on to the oranges included in the bag. It didn’t take long to formulate a plan: marmalade! Having made a batch last year, I wanted to try it again with less sugar. The sickening post-breakfast sugar crash every time I ate marmalade on my toast just wasn’t working with my schedule–you know, the one where I actually need to take care of my children and run errands and all that jazz. This time I decided to slash the sugar by half of what Ina Garten calls for in her recipe (the one I used last year). I must say I’m pleased with the result. While cutting back so significantly on the sugar definitely increased the cooking time–I’m sure there’s some chemical reason why–it was worth it. It came out sweet enough with the real taste of citrus behind it, like a tangy lemonade. Also, if you’re looking at this recipe and wondering when you’ll find the time to make it (yes, it is time-consuming, though not labor-intensive) like most jam/jelly recipes, it yields a high quantity, so your labor is not in vain. But if you’re a planner, a weekend day might be the best choice for when to make this particular recipe.
Lastly, cool fact: the word “marmalade” has been in use in English since 1480 and was originally a Portuguese specialty made from quince. Ever had a quince? Me, neither. Though surprisingly, this marmalade includes both oranges and lemons. Yum!
Orange Marmalade
(Adapted from Ina Garten)
4 large seedless oranges
2 lemons
4 c. sugar
Cut the oranges and lemons in half cross-wise, then into very thin half-moon slices. (Use a mandoline if you have one.) Discard seeds. Place fruit slices and their juices in a large stainless steel pot. Add 8 cups of water and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring often. Remove from heat and stir in the sugar until dissolved. Bring to room temperature and leave covered overnight.
The next day, bring the mixture back to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered for two hours. Turn the heat up to medium and boil, stirring often, another 30-45 minutes, or until it reaches 220 degrees F on a candy thermometer. (Alternatively, if you don’t have a candy thermometer, you can use the cold plate test: scoop a small amount of the mixture onto a spoon and place on a plate in the freezer. Test marmalade consistency when cool but not cold. If it is too runny, it needs more boiling time. If too sticky, add more water. If consistency is to your liking, you’re done!)
Pour marmalade into clean canning jars and seal with the lids. If canning, process the jars in a water bath for 15 minutes. Otherwise, store in the refrigerator for best results. (And give a few away as gifts!)
Makes 3-4 pints.
Pumpkin Butter
Whoa. Did you have any idea that pumpkin butter is super easy to make? I didn’t. Having made apple butter before, which is practically tantamount to bottling your own wine, I always assumed that other “butters” of the fruit/vegetable variety would be the same way. When you make apple butter, you have to first cook down the apples into sauce, then put the sauce in a crock pot or on the stovetop for like 10-12 hours, stirring as you go. It’s like potty training–you can’t leave your house for an entire day for fear of a goopy mess. (Not saying it’s not worth it; it’s just really time-consuming.)
Pumpkin butter, on the other hand, takes you from canned pumpkin to autumn-flavored bliss in 30 minutes. Who knew? Basically, you just dump some simple ingredients in a saucepan and simmer as they combine to reach that velvety consistency that’s smooth as, well, butter. Try this and you’ll never go back to the expensive-by-comparison store-bought version!
And since this recipe is so quick and easy, I’ve been daydreaming about the many uses for this creamy, pumpkiny treat. Here are some that come to mind:
- in oatmeal
- on toast/muffins/scones
- on top of cornbread for a lovely fall-inspired twist (alongside pumpkin chili, perhaps?)
- in yogurt
- in place of jam in thumbprint cookies
- as a cake filling
- with cream cheese, powdered sugar, and butter for a sinful Pumpkin Butter Frosting
- as a unique homemade Christmas gift
Tell me your favorite use for pumpkin butter!
Pumpkin Butter
(Adapted from Allrecipes.com)
Ingredients:
1 15-oz can pumpkin puree
1/4 c. plus 2 Tbsp. apple juice
3/4 c. sugar
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
Directions:
Combine pumpkin, apple juice, sugar, and spices in a large saucepan. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring frequently, for 30 minutes or until thickened and creamy.
Transfer to sterile container and chill in the refrigerator.
Makes 1 pint jar.
