NuM NuM

Pepperoni Pizza Puffs
24 mini pizza puffs
Recipe from Rachael Ray

Note: These can be made ahead of time. Place baked puffs on a baking sheet and put in the freezer until frozen about 25 minutes. Transfer to a storage bag. When ready to eat, preheat oven to 350 degrees, place puffs on a baking sheet, and bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until warm and heated through.

Orange Sherbert
Recipe from Alton Brown
Makes about 1 quart

• 7 ounces sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons finely grated orange zest
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 cups freshly squeezed orange juice, approximately 2 to 3 pounds oranges
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups very cold whole milk*

Directions

In the bowl of a food processor combine all of the ingredients except the milk and process until the sugar is dissolved, approximately 1 minute. Transfer the mixture to a mixing bowl and whisk in the milk. Cover the bowl and place in the refrigerator until the mixture reaches 40 degrees F or below, approximately 1 hour.

Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker and process until it is the consistency of soft serve ice cream. You may serve now or transfer to a lidded container and place in freezer until firm, approximately 3 hours.

*I used 2%

As I've mentioned before, breakfast is one of my favorite meals and this portobello "benedict" reminded me of the many reasons why I enjoy it so much. Anytime I order eggs benedict I can never seem to get past the over easy egg and always find myself eating around the yolk. This "benedict" however was right up my alley with the addition of pesto and scrambled eggs - YUM MAY! Substituting the english muffin for the portobello mushroom was a brilliant idea as well and added a bit of "meatyness" to the dish. Make your breakfast a little extra special and give this a try :)


Grilled Portobello "Benedict"
Adapted from Ellie Krieger, So Easy via Apple a Day Blog

Ingredients:
cooking spray
2 portobello caps (about 4 oz. each)
1 tsp olive oil
S&P
4 slices Canadian bacon (1/8" thick)
Store-bought or homemade pesto, to taste
2 large eggs
4 large egg whites
1 TBSP milk or water
freshly-ground black pepper, to taste
2 tbs. freshly-grated Parmesan cheese
3-4 fresh basil leaves, chiffonade

Directions:
1. Preheat a grill or grill pan sprayed with cooking spray over medium-high heat.

2. With a spoon, gently scrape out the gills from the inside of the mushroom caps, taking care not to break the caps. Brush both sides with the oil or spray with PAM olive oil and sprinkle both side with S&P. Grill the mushrooms until they are tender and their juices begin to release, about seven minutes per side or until cooked all the way through. Transfer each mushroom to a plate, top side down.

3. One the same grill or grill pan, cook the Canadian bacon slices until they are warm and grill marks have formed, about 1 minute per side. Place one to two slices of bacon on each mushroom cap. Spread pesto over the Canadian bacon.

4. While the mushrooms are grilling, whisk the eggs, egg whites, and water/milk together in a medium bowl until well combined. In a medium-sized skillet over medium-low heat, scramble the eggs until cooked through. Mine took about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and add basil and cheese.

5. Divide the scrambled eggs over the pesto and if so desired, sprinkle more cheese. Serve immediately.

Involtini di Pesce Spada
Adapted from Epicurious
3 to 4 servings

For the involtini:
1/2 cup of breadcrumbs (freshly ground, if possible, made with day old bread with crust removed)
1 tbs of fresh young Pecorino cheese
2 tbs of grated Parmigiano reggiano
1 tablespoons pine nuts (pignoli), toasted
1 tablespoons raisins
1 cloves of garlic, diced
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
About 1 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/4 pounds swordfish steaks, pounded thin*
Olive oil to fry

1. Place the breadcrumbs in a medium sized bowl. Add the Pecorino, parmigiano, pine nuts, raisins, garlic and parsley into a food processor and chop very finely. Toss together and season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper.
2. Drizzle the mixture while tossing with 1 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and toss. The olive oil will help to hold the filling together but should not leave the filling soaked – use your discretion.
3. Flatten the swordfish slices further between 2 pieces of wax paper, pounding with the side of a mallet or heavy cleaver very gently so you don’t break through the flesh. Each slice should be about 5 1/2 x 3 1/2 inches.
4. Season each slice of fish with salt and pepper and spoon about 2 tablespoons of the filling on top of the fish. Be careful not to overdo it with the filling….a little goes a long way.
5. Fold in the sides of the fish. Tuck in the end nearest you and roll up the slice. Secure with a toothpick or kitchen twine
6. Repeat for remaining slices.
7. Brush some olive oil all over swordfish and season with salt and pepper. Prepare skillet at medium high and cook fish for two-three minutes. Rotate 90 degrees and cook one to two more minutes, then repeat twice to cook on all sides.
8. Plate and serve with slices of lemon

*Next time I think I'll try to freeze the fish for about thirty minutes and then slice it. Let me know if you try the recipe and it works out for you. Or ask the fish monger to slice it as thin as possible


Mesclun Salad Vinaigrette
Adapted from Ina Garten

2 tablespoons good olive oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Mix all ingredients together.

Feta Sun-Dried Tomato Turkey Burger Sliders
Adapted from Picky Palate
Makes about 10 sliders

1 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
10 oz ground turkey
1/4 Cup + 1 tbs crumbled feta cheese
2.5 tbs sun-dried tomatoes, jarred in olive oil, drained and finely chopped
1/4 Cup+1 tbs fresh baby spinach leaves, chopped
Pinch of Kosher salt, fresh cracked pepper and Garlic Powder with Parsley

Sun-Dried Tomato Aioli
1/4 Cup mayonnaise
1 Tablespoons sun-dried tomatoes, packed in olive oil, drained finely chopped
Baby hamburger buns or dinner rolls, split and warmed (Trader Joe's slider buns)
1/2 Cups fresh baby spinach leaves

1. Place turkey, feta, sun dried tomato, spinach and seasonings into a mixing bowl. Mix until just combined. Make a test patty and cook and check for seasonings. I had to add more garlic powder and S&P. Using a heavy duty baking sheet, remove meat from bowl and pat it down into a square using the baking sheet as your guide to about ¾-inch thick. Using a 2 inch cookie cutter cut out meat. Or you can also use a 1/4 cup measuring cup and shape into little patty’s and place onto a cookie sheet. Once all are formed, place under broiler and cook to 165. To broil burgers, turn the broiler to high in stove and let it heat up for a few minutes. Put the patties on the broiling pan and position the pan about 4 to 5 inches below the broiler. Flip the burgers once the first side gets brown, maybe about three minutes. Cook until the inside reaches the desired temperature. Or you can cook these on a grill or skillet using the 1 tbs of EVOO.

2. Toast buns then place mayonnaise and tomatoes into a bowl; mix to combine. Spread over insides of toasted warm rolls. Layer bottom roll with spinach and the burger. Close with top roll and eat.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake
One 7-inch cheesecake
Recipe adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Crust:
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 1/4 cups chocolate cookie crumbs (I like to use chocolate Teddy Grahams but you could use any chocolate wafer cookie or even Oreos)

Filling:
2 (8-ounce) blocks cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup sour cream (I used light and it worked just fine)

Cookie Dough:
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 tablespoon water or milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup mini chocolate chips

For the cookie dough: In a medium bowl, combine the butter and sugars for the cookie dough. Add the water (or milk), vanilla and blend. Mix in the flour, salt and 1/2 cup of the chocolate chips. The dough will be fairly soft. Gently roll the dough into small balls (about a teaspoon size, maybe a bit larger) and place them on a wax paper lined plate or baking sheet. Place them in the freezer to harden while making the rest of the cheesecake.

For the crust: Lightly grease the bottom and sides of a 7-inch springform pan and wrap outside with foil to prevent any water from leaking into the pan. In a medium bowl, combine the butter with the chocolate cookie crumbs (you could easily use a food processor to crush the cookies and incorporate the butter). Press onto the bottom and about halfway up the sides of the prepared pan.

For the cheesecake: Using an electric mixer on high speed, beat the cream cheese, sugar, eggs until smooth. Add flour and blend until smooth. Add the vanilla and sour cream and mix just until blended. Be careful not to overmix – incorporating too much air into the batter can contribute to a cheesecake cracking on top during baking.

Pour half the batter into the prepared crust. Drop half of the cookie dough balls into the batter that is in the pan distributing them evenly in the pan. Gently stir in the remaining cookie dough balls and remaining half of mini chocolate chips into the remaining batter. Pour into the pan, spreading the batter to the sides of the pan and evening it out across the top (it is ok to see bumps of cookie dough here and there, smooth it the best you can). Place in a water bath using cold water. Bake the cheesecake at 325 degrees for 50 minutes to one hour. Cake should slightly jiggle in the middle. Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool completely on a wire rack. Refrigerate until chilled (ideally, overnight). To serve, cut into slices.

Recipe Source: adapted from Nate and Kylie W. (my brother and sister-in-law)

Lobster and I opted to stay in for Valentine's Day and dined at Chez NuM NuM. Our menu consisted of:

Osso Buco with Olives, Lemon, and Parsley
Recipe from Epicurious
Serves 2

Ingredients

For stew

• 2 (10-12oz) meaty cross-cut veal shanks (osso buco; 2 to 2 1/2 lb total), each tied with kitchen string
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoons olive oil
• 1.5 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 medium onions, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
• 1/2 small carrot, finely chopped
• 1/2 celery rib, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1 (15 oz) can whole plum tomatoes with juice (not in purée), coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup Kalamata or other brine-cured black olives, pitted and coarsely chopped
• 3/4 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
• 1 fresh flat-leaf parsley sprig
• 1/2 Turkish or 1/4 California bay leaf
• 1 (2- by 1/2-inch) strips fresh lemon zest , cut crosswise into fine julienne
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste

For gremolata

• 1.5 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1/2 large garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon finely grated fresh fresh lemon zest

• Special equipment: heavy ovenproof pot (wide enough to hold shanks in 1 layer)

Preparation

Make stew:

Pat shanks dry and season with salt and pepper. Divide shanks and flour between 2 large sealable plastic bags and shake to coat, then remove shanks from bags, shaking off excess flour. Heat oil and 1 tablespoons butter in ovenproof pot over moderately high heat until foam subsides, then brown shanks well in 2 batches, 10 to 12 minutes per batch, transferring to a plate.

Reduce heat to moderate and add remaining tablespoon butter to pot along with onions, carrot, celery, and garlic and cook, stirring, until onions are pale golden, about 5 minutes. Add remaining stew ingredients and bring to a boil, stirring. Arrange shanks in pot in 1 layer and return to a simmer. Cover pot and braise shanks in middle of oven until very tender, (about 2 1/2 hours) Remove strings from osso buco and discard along with parsley sprig and bay leaf. (If cooking day ahead – remove parsley sprig and bay leaf – remove strings just before serving.

Make gremolata and serve osso buco:
Stir together gremolata ingredients in a small bowl and sprinkle over osso buco. Serve immediately.

Cooks' notes: • Osso buco (without gremolata) can be made 1 day ahead. Cool completely, uncovered, then chill, covered. Reheat, covered, in a 325°F oven 30 to 40 minutes. (mine took a bit longer)

• Osso buco can also be cooked in a large roasting pan. Straddle pan across 2 burners for browning and boiling, then cover pan tightly with foil for braising.

*With leftover use pasta and eat with sauce too

Risotto Milanese
2 servings
Adapted from Barefoot Contessa

• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4-5 cups beef broth (low sodium)
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter or I can’t believe it's not butter
• 1/4 cup minced shallots (1 large)
• 3/4 cup Arborio rice
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 teaspoon saffron threads
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Meanwhile, heat the beef broth in a small covered saucepan. Leave it on low heat to simmer.
In a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter and saute the shallots on medium-low heat for 10 minutes, until the shallots are translucent but not browned. Add the rice and stir to coat the grains with butter. Add the wine and cook until evaporated. Add 2 full ladles of stock to the rice plus the saffron, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Stir, and simmer until the stock is absorbed, 5 to 10 minutes. Continue to add the stock, 2 ladles at a time, stirring every few minutes. Each time, cook until the mixture seems a little dry, then add more stock. Continue until the rice is cooked through, but still al dente, about 30 minutes total. Off the heat, add the Parmesan cheese. Mix well and serve.

Note: When plating risotto, the rice should spread a little on the plate. Not like a soup, but not a clumpy mess either.

Ginger Scallion Sauce Adapted from David Chang
Makes about 1 cup
1 ¼ cups thinly sliced scallions (greens and whites; from 1 to 2 large bunches)

1/4 cup finely minced peeled fresh ginger

2 tbs grapeseed or other neutral oil

1 teaspoons soy sauce, preferably usukuchi (light soy sauce), found in Asian markets

1 tsp sherry vinegar

½ teaspoon kosher salt, or more to taste

12 oz soba noodles

Soba soup base/sauce

Mix together the scallions, ginger, oil, soy, vinegar, and salt in a bowl. Taste and check for salt, adding more if needed. Though it's best after 15 or 20 minutes of sitting, ginger scallion sauce is good from the minute it's stirred together up to a day or two in the fridge. Cook soba noodles and drain under cold water and mix with sauce. Add soba soup base to taste. Top with cucumbers and tofu if desired.

Quick Pickled Cucumbers

3 Kirby/Persian Cucumber, cut it's 1/8" slice discs

1 tablespoon sugar, or more to taste

1 teaspoon kosher salt, or more to taste

1. Combine the vegetable with the sugar and salt in a small mixing bowl and toss to coat with the sugar and salt. Let sit for 5 to 10 minutes.

2. Taste: if the pickles are too sweet or too salty, put them into a colander, rinse off the seasoning, and dry in a kitchen towel. Taste again and add more sugar or salt as needed. Serve after 5 to 10 minutes, or refrigerate for up to 4 hours *Recipe from David Chang

Strawberry Tiramisu
Recipe from All Recipes
4 servings

• 1 pint fresh strawberries
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1 cup mascarpone cheese
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons Kahlua
• 18 ladyfingers
• 1/3 cup chilled espresso
• 1/2 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder

Directions

1. Cut off the tops of the strawberries and slice the berries. Reserve 2 large whole berries for garnish.
2. In a blender, place 2 cups of strawberries and 2 tablespoons confectioners sugar; blend to puree and set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, combine mascarpone cheese, 1/4 cup cream, 1/4 cup confectioners sugar, and liqueur; beat with an electric mixer on medium-high speed for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes until thickened.
4. Place espresso in a bowl. Drop half of a ladyfinger horizontally into the espresso quickly roll and remove. Place 6 ladyfingers on a serving plate, spread or pipe out 1/2 of the cheese mixture over the ladyfingers, and layer with half of the sliced strawberries.
5. Repeat with the next 6 ladyfingers, espresso, remaining cheese mixture, and sliced strawberries; top with remaining 6 ladyfingers.
6. In a small mixing bowl, combine 1/4 cup heavy cream with 2 tablespoons sugar; beat with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until just whipped, approximately 1 minute. Spread cream evenly over top layer of ladyfingers.
7. Dust cocoa over whipped cream, and garnish with 2 reserved strawberries. Pour strawberry puree onto two serving plates. Cut tiramisu in half, and place onto puree.

Parmesan puffs, parmesan puffs, parmesan puffs! Warning: these are highly addicting and you will not be able to stop at just one! All will power goes out the window when it comes to these bad boys! Lobster made dinner the other night and served these miniature marvels as our appetizer. They were so delicious, I asked him where he bought them from? To my surprise, he made them from SCRATCH! Yes ladies, the Lobster can bake too. What a wonderful hubby! Okay, I'll stop being disgusting now.

These parmesan puffs are quite similar to the gougeres I've made in the past, but I think they're even better! With the gougeres the cheese flavor is a bit milder since the inside is hollow, but with these babies, they're denser so there's delicious cheesy-ness (is that a word?) all over. Both would serve as a great appetizer, it just depends on the theme of your party. Parmesan puffs: barbecue. Gougeres: cocktail party. Heck.....mix and match and serve them both, 'cuz who wouldn't want to eat a delicious ball of cheese! Enjoy!

Parmesan Puffs

Serves 4

Adapted from All Recipes

• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup butter
  
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 cup marinara sauce

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease a medium baking sheet.
2. In a medium saucepan, bring milk and butter to boil over medium high heat. Stir in flour and reduce heat to low. Vigorously stir until thick enough to form into a ball. Remove from heat.
3. Beat eggs into the mixture until smooth. Stir in Parmesan cheese.
4. Drop the dough by rounded teaspoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven 15 minutes, or until puffed and golden brown. Serve warm with warmed marinara sauce for dipping.

Note: Lobster would suggest to use less butter then the original amount

If you are like moi and always on the lookout for a tried-and-true cornbread recipe, well look no further because this one's got it all. It's perfectly sweet with a crumbly texture and stays nice and moist during baking. I have one more cornbread recipe in my files, so I'll have to do a taste comparison,- but I'll definitely be returning to this one again and again.

Since it was just Lobster and I eating the cornbread, I made a smaller amount then the recipe called for. I discovered an amazing website that converts any recipe to fit whatever baking dish you have in your kitchen - which will help reduce having to buy a bajillion different pan sizes. You simply figure out the volume of the pan you are using and divide it by the volume of the pan in the original recipe. Multiply that number with the measurement for each ingredient in the original recipe and voila: your recipe is scaled down for you. It may sound a bit daunting, but seriously, math and I have never gotten along, but this is the type of math even I can do.

Here's an example with the pan I used for this recipe. The original recipe called for an 8-inch square pan which is equal to 8 cups in volume. The pan I used was a 1.2 qt baking dish which is equal to 5.76 volume. So you take 5.76 and divide it by 8 which equals .72. Now all you have to do is multiply each ingredient by .72 and you have your new converted amount. In hindsight, I could've just cut the recipe in half and made cornbread muffins, but then how would you have learned this cool new trick :D Apply this method to any recipe you'd like to convert and you'll be excited to do math again. Good luck!

Cornbread

Recipe from Mel's Kitchen

To convert a recipe click here and here

½ cup cornmeal

1 ½ cup flour
2/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1/3 cup oil
3 tablespoons butter, melted
2 eggs, beaten
1 ¼ cup milk

Add dry ingredients, make a well and add oil, butter, eggs, and milk into the center. Stir until just mixed (batter will be runny – don’t be alarmed!). Bake in an 8” square pan at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. This doubles perfectly for a 9X13-inch pan.

Honey Butter:
2 sticks butter, softened
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup marshmallow fluff

Whip all together with an electric mixer and serve at room temperature (can be refrigerated and softened).

Recipe Source: Nate and Kylie

Note: I did not try the honey butter but read great reviews about it.

Raspberry Pecan Bread
Recipe adapted from Ocean Spray via Food Bride Blog
Makes one large loaf or two smaller loaves

2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 Tbsp butter
3/4 cup orange juice
1 Tbsp orange zest
1 egg
1 1/2 cup raspberries or cranberries
3/4 cups pecans, chopped and toasted
1/4 cup demerera sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9 (or 10) x 5 loaf pan (or 2 smaller loaf pans).

Mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda in the bowl of your stand mixer. Turn on medium and add shortening until combined. Add orange juice, orange zest, and egg. Mix until well-blended. Stir in berries and nuts. Pour the batter into the pan and spread evenly. Spread demerera sugar evenly over the top.

Bake for 50-55 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Mini loaves should take 35-40 minutes. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Remove the bread from the pan and let cool completely. Wrap the cooled loaf tightly with plastic wrap or foil to keep it moist.

Pea Pesto Crostini
Adapted from Gimme Some Oven
Makes 2 cups

• 1 baguette (sliced thin on a diagonal)
• 1 (10 oz.) package frozen peas, thawed and drained
  
• 1/2 cup extra firm/firm tofu - squeezed dry
  
• 1 ounce Parmesan, grated
• one squeeze of fresh lemon juice, to taste
  
• salt and pepper
• Extra-virgin olive oil, to taste
  

Method:

Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Toast until golden, about 10-12 minutes. (Watch carefully so they don’t burn!)

Place tofu between paper towels and squeeze as much liquid out as possible

Meanwhile, in a food processor fitted with the metal blade, puree the peas, and tofu. Place mixture in bowl and add parmesan and lemon juice, salt (about 1/2 tsp.), and pepper (about 1/4 tsp.) to taste. I ended up adding more lemon juice, and S&P. If you feel the dip is too chunky or taste a little gritty add olive oil until it reaches the consistency you like.

Spread the pea mixture on the crostini and top with grated Parmesan, if desired.