Family

 
 
 

My family has placed me on notice-it's time to open the pool! I feel like Mind That Bird, a little slow out of the gate but a strong finisher. The water is being checked daily not by the thermometer lying at the bottom of the pool but by my very sophistical big toe. The BIG TOE KNOWS!

I find myself thinking ahead-stocking up for easy menus after a long day of swimming. These photos reminded me of oone or favorite gatherings in the kitchen. Triple Cream Bellatoire cheese, fig spread from the Adriactic Sea and my own decadent Strawberries Romanoff! If I play my cards right I will persuade my son, Shane to make us all pizza. He IS the Pizza King!

Ron's put in his request for Prickly Pear Margueritas and will be scouring Hispanic markets in search of the prized cactus tunas. I have timed a batch of Limoncello and will christen the 2009 Season with a toast to all of our loved ones no longer with us!
Posted by Picasa

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Jacque Pepin's Chicken Liver Pate

Image
Every silky-smooth bite of this pleasing chicken liver pate was worth the extra calories!  Created by my daughter-in-law's mother, Jill, the recipe captured everything I love about pate! A perfectly smooth pate enhanced by the addition of cognac. The rich chicken livers pared deliciously with a dark berry compote made of strawberries, blackberries and fresh blueberries! Recipe: Jacque Pepin's Chicken Liver Pâté FAST MAKE-AHEAD 1/2 pound chicken livers, well-trimmed 1/2 small onion, thinly sliced 1 small garlic clove, smashed and peeled 1 bay leaf 1/4 teaspoon thyme leaves Kosher salt 1/2 cup water 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature 2 teaspoons Cognac or Scotch whisky Freshly ground pepper Toasted baguette slices, for serving In a medium saucepan, combine the chicken livers, onion, garlic, bay leaf, thyme and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Add the water and bring to a simmer. Cover, reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring occasiona
Read more

Sweet Potato Cheesecake

Image
        This big ole sweet potato kept following me around the kitchen. I would move it and there it would be-just staring back at me. So, I decided to cook it. Not to be mean-but I didn't know what else to do. There it was. . . all steamy in the bowl And then it occurred to me that I would honor the sweet potato by incorporating it into a tasty dessert. I poked my head around a little in the refrigerator and there sat a big container of ricotta and homemade peach syrup. Things were looking up. I continued opening cabinets to see what was on hand-rather than sending my runner out to the grocery store. I found a container of blanched almonds and pretzel rods. Interesting. . . I got me a big bowl, my whisk and starting creating. Every once in a while you just get lucky. And if ever there was a time to get lucky this was it. In the South, we like our sweet potatoes! What I ended up with was a perfectly dense ricotta "cheesecake" with a hidden layer of blanched almon
Read more

California Sourdough Bread

Image
I found this recipe in one of my favorite chef cookbooks. The recipe is made over a couple of days and calls for starter made from potato water. I had just made up a batch of potato starter-but with potatoes and the potato water, so, that was the first substitution I made. I also switched one cup of the required bread flour for a cup of Italian flour. The results were wonderful. As you can see there is a golden crust around the entire bread but instead of a typical chewy sourdough crust this was a little more crispy. . .like German brotchen. The recipe called for spritzing the dough with water before putting into the oven-which I did-but I also placed a small glass bowl with water in the oven-occasionally pouring water on the floor of the oven to create steam. My husband told me he loved me as he ate his hot-from-the-oven bread! I wanted to share a photo of the inspiration behind all the sudden interest in bread baking.  My friend, Char Fontane gave this to me for Christmas the ye
Read more