Zucchini and Pasta

When it comes to technology, I'm always a little bit behind the times.

I own a first generation iPhone. Yes, the ones that don't even use 3G. It would be almost cool if I was one of the first people to buy one, but I bought mine used from my sister's father-in-law when he upgraded about three years ago. My husband used to bug me to upgrade for the love of Pete but after I explained to him several times that my phone still works and iPhones are hip he's finally given up.   

Under pressure from my husband, I finally donated my VCR to Goodwill two years ago when we were packing to move out to Utah. Not that I used it much by that point, but I wasn't sure if I'd need to pull it out and watch all those episodes of Trading Spaces that I had taped. 

I owned a hand-me-down TV from my parents up until two years ago, too. A hand-me-down TV isn't necessarily bad, but hand-me-down-TV-my-parents-bought-when-I-was-a-small-child is not so good. Sometimes I wonder if my husband married me just as an excuse to get rid of it.

Anyway, in keeping with all my luddite, late-adopting technology ways, I joined Twitter just yesterday. And found out that it's pretty fun, can be very addictive and is yet another way to waste my time. Needless to say, I'm pretty excited about it. If you are already on there, please let me know so I can follow you and have even more excuses to spend time online. (Yes, I hear you can tweet from a phone, but so far that's beyond me and my phone's skills.)

Also in keeping with my coming to most parties a little late, I have one final zucchini recipe for you today. If you don't have zucchini coming our your ears anymore (or if you never did) I would say this recipe would even be worth buying a bunch of zucchini at the grocery story. It's simple, fast, and surprisingly flavorful. It's so good, in fact, that I braved additional insults from the farm stand lady last week to buy zucchini to make it again. (Luckily for me she wasn't there this time.) Thinly sliced zucchini is cooked with garlic, salt, pepper and olive oil until it is very soft and then it is mashed into a sauce that you use serve over pasta. How simple and ingenius is that? You can leave out the fresh mint if you don't have any, but I really liked the freshness it added. You can also add in some heavy cream or extras like pine nuts or peas if you want, but even in its most simple form it's a great, fast summer dinner.

Better late than never, right?

Zucchini and Pasta

3 T olive oil

1 clove garlic finely chopped

6 medium zucchini, thinly sliced

1/2 tsp kosher salt plus more to taste

pepper

1 lb penne, farfalle or other short pasta

1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese

2 T fresh packed mint leaves, torn

1 cup thawed frozen peas (optional)

1/4 cup pine nuts (optional)

1 T cream (optional)

1. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil. When it is hot, add the garlic, zucchini, 1/2 tsp kosher salt, and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring often, for 15 minutes or until the zucchini is quite tender,

2. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 minutes or until the pasta is tender but still has some bite. Dip a heatproof glass measuring cup into the pasta cooking water and remove 1/2 cup. Drain the pasta into a colander and return it to the pot.

3. With a potato masher, mash the zucchini until it is coarse. Stir in the Parmesan and add the mixture to the cooked pasta. Stir well over low heat until the pasta is hot. Add a few spoons of the pasta cooking water if the mixture seems dry. Add in peas, pine nuts or cream if using, season with salt to taste, stir in the mint and serve.

Serves: 4-6


Recipe Source: The Boston Globe; adapted from “The River Cottage Cookbook’’

Jicama Slaw

My 5 year-old nephew came to a sad realization this weekend: just about everything in our modern lives runs on electricity. And of course, being in Vermont in the wake of Irene, there was a good portion of the day yesterday when his family had no power. The poor guy would ask for permission to do things and always get the answer that he couldn't because the electricity was out. "No TV?" Frown. "No movies?" Frown. "No PS3?" Slaps hands on face in anguish. I'm sure there are a lot of adults along the East Coast that were feeling the same way. Just talking on the phone with my family I was feeling pretty lucky with my computer and internet and air conditioning all humming away until my parents mentioned that they had gotten out the Legos to help entertain the grandkids during the power outage. Then the smugness turned into jealousy. Now that's just not fair. How come I can't spend the day playing with Legos, too?

Hopefully all of you on the East Coast were able to stay safe and dry this weekend. While it seemed like most of the world was talking about rain, rain, and more rain, we were mostly sunny and hot in our area. My husband and I were away or busy the past couple weekends, so we stuck close to home this time and just relaxed. Relaxing, of course, means moving my sister into a new apartment, laundry, going to a baseball game and having people over for dinner. You know, relaxing. It also means finally getting around to making a few recipes that have been on my list for a while, this slaw being one of them.

I've had jicama slaw on my mind since my husband and I went down to Southern Utah to visit his grandma. She lives in a little tourist-type town close to a couple National Parks and the Grand Canyon. It's a pretty area with red rocks and amazing geological features. We went out to eat at a restaurant in town and my husband got a side of slaw with his pulled pork sandwich. I pretty much ignored it until someone else at the table mentioned that it was a jicama slaw. Then my ears perked up a bit, I instantly stole all of it from my husband's plate and started making plans to recreated the slaw at home.

Now, I know what you're thinking. A slaw? Ick. Aren't most slaws slimy and watery? Don't they have mayo in them? And cabbage? Why would I get all excited about making one? Basically because it's delicious. If you haven't tried jicama yet, this would be a great way to do it. It has a sweet, mild flavor that I would compare to fresh sugar snap peas. It looks like a round sweet potato and to use it you just peel off the brown skin and slice up the white, crispy interior. It's so easy to use and gives dishes a light, fresh taste with good, crunchy texture. That's why it works so well in this slaw. The jicama doesn't get slimy or overly watery the way cabbage can. Its sweet, mild flavor works perfectly with the simple oil/lime juice dressing with a touch of cumin. There's no mayo required. Or knife skills, even, if you use a mandolin slicer. Or 'lectricity, as my nephew would say. It's a great, fast side for Southwestern dishes, burgers, pulled pork, or just about any summer barbecued meal.

Jicama Slaw

Ingredients:

1 medium jicama (about 1 1/2 pounds) peeled and chopped into thin slices (about 3 cups)

2 carrots, coarsely grated (1 cup)

1/4 cup canola oil

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 tsp kosher salt

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, combine oil, lime juice, cumin and salt. Add jicama and carrots and toss to combine. Serve immediately, or refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 4 hours to allow flavors to develop.

Recipe Source: inspired by the Rocking V in Kanab, UT

Apple Tarragon Granita

Granitas, where have you been all my life? I can't believe I've lived through so many summers thinking that Fla-Vor-Ice (or Otter Pops, to you Westerners) was the best, light, fruit refreshment my freezer could offer. (Even though the purple flavor makes my throat itch. Does this happen to anyone else?)

I think I had heard of you, though. You sounded so exotic, like something I'd eat in a cafe on a warm summer afternoon in Italy. I assumed you were difficult to make. Isn't that the case with most fancy-sounding foods?

Well, I'm ready to admit that I was wrong. Wrong about everything. You aren't difficult to make at all. If I had known it would just take a few hours of freezing and the occasional fluffing with a fork I would have found you long ago. I just had no idea. Also, you may sound exotic but instead you are comfortingly familiar. You're like a snow cone that tastes like fruit instead of ice chunks. You're light and refreshing and so very versatile. I love that fresh herbs work so well to give you such wonderful flavor. I'm truly sorry I had to spend so long eating Fla-Vor-Ices until I found you. I'm completely devoted to you from now on. 

Apple Tarragon Granita

3 cups no-sugar added apple juice
1/2 cup sugar
2 T coarsely chopped fresh tarragon (this is the amount I used, but I'd coarsely chop, measure it, and then either finely chop it after or put it in a blender. Big pieces of tarragon just taste too strong when you are eating it.)
4 tsp lemon juice

In an 8 inch square dish, combine all ingredients until sugar is dissolved. Freeze 1-2 hours and stir with a fork. Freeze 2-3 hours longer, stirring with a fork occasionally. (Once it is mostly frozen it's more like fluffing with a fork than stirring.) Stir with a fork before serving.

Recipe Source: Taste of Home Healthy Cooking

Skillet Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli

It's been a busy few weeks. Thankfully, it's been mostly full of fun and spending time with family, but still, I haven't grocery shopped in a week and a half, my husband is on his last pair of clean underwear, and during slow moments at work I daydream about sleep. In fact, I'm writing this post on the way to work, squeezed between two other people on a bus that looks like this:

I work at a cancer research center at a big state university, and the first couple weeks of the fall semester you can always count on the 6:30 AM bus that I ride to be overfilled with enthusiastic university students headed to school. Slowly the numbers start to thin out as students either drop out of their morning classes, start skipping, or drive so they can get an extra half hour of sleep. I know I shouldn't be happy about that kind of behavior from the people who are quite possibly studying to be my accountants and doctors, designing the buildings I work in and teaching my kids, but it's pretty nice to have a seat to yourself on the bus.

 



Anyway, the craziness at our house has left little time for cooking, which is where lovely 30 minute one-skillet dishes like this one come in very handy. It's a fast, nothing fancy, nothing frilly, great tasting combination of chicken, cheddar cheese, broccoli and rice that is perfect for a weeknight meal. I love that it dirties only one pan and require very little chopping or prep work. I also love that I can easily keep everything to make it on hand so I have a go to meal when I'm shorter on time than usual. It has saved us from eating cereal for dinner more than once, and I'm sure it will again. Since, to be honest, life is always a little crazy at our house.

Skillet Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli

4	boneless, skinless chicken breasts (6 ounces each)
	salt and freshly ground black pepper
3	tablespoons vegetable oil
1	onion, minced
1½	cups instant white rice
3	garlic cloves, minced
1½	cups low sodium chicken broth
1	10oz pkg frozen broccoli florets, thawed
	(or one large head of broccoli, washed and cut into florets)
1	cup shredded cheddar cheese
1	teaspoon tabasco

1. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Brown chicken well on one side, about 5 minutes. Transfer chicken to plate and set aside.

2. Add remaining tablespoon oil to skillet, and return to med high heat till shimmering. Add onion and ½ teaspoon salt and cook uintil softened. 5 minutes. Stir in rice and garlic and cook until fragrant about 30 seconds.

3. Stir in broth, scraping up any browned bits. nestle chicken into rice browned side up. Cover and cook over medium low heat until liquid is absorbed and thickest part of chicken registers 160, about 10 minutes.

4. Transfer chicken to clean plate. Off heat gently fold broccoli, ½ cup cheddar, and tabasco into rice. Add salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle remaining ½ cup cheddar over top, cover, and let sit till cheese melts, about 2 minutes. Serve with chicken.

Yield: Four servings

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated Best 30-Minute Meals

Parmesan Zucchini Quick Bread

"You know, they say that you can tell how many friends you have by whether you have to buy zucchini or not." 

That's what the lady at the farm stand said to me as I picking out zucchini the other day. I'm assuming she was just trying to make conversation, but since I had loaded my arms with about 10 zucchini, I couldn't help feeling that it must look like I didn't have a friend in the world. 

There are always a couple options for how to react when someone mistakenly offends you. I thought for a second about telling her that life was a lonely, lonely journey for me and how most of the time I just try my hardest to forget how friendless I am. Maybe even squeeze out a tear or two.

Honesty won over, though, and instead I said, "Oh, I just really love zucchini bread."

Honesty really is the best policy, anyway, isn't it?

And I do really love zucchini bread. This is the time of year when I shred pounds and pounds worth of zucchini, lovingly measure it into ziploc bags and freeze it away to use during those dark days of winter. That yearly ritual happened last night at our house, and I saved out a couple cups to use for a batch of bread right then. Much as I love my regular zucchini bread, though, for one of the first times in my life I wasn't in the mood for something sweet. I blame the large quantities of saltwater taffy, ice cream, cookies and other goodies I ate this weekend while my husband and I were visiting his grandma. Also, the large amounts of saltwater taffy, cookies and other goodies I ate in the car on the way there and back.

Fortunately for me, this Parmesan zucchini bread isn't sweet at all. It's a perfect, herby, cheesy bread that lives up to the name of quick bread and goes so well with just about any soup, pasta dish or grilled meat. It's light and fluffy and moist without being oily. I love the salty Parmesan in it and the how easily you can adjust the flavor by changing up the herbs you use. My current favorites are fresh oregano with a pinch of fresh choped rosemary, but you can use any of your favorites. If you are lucky enough to have some fresh zucchini, (and I won't judge you if you bought it for yourself) give this savory zucchini bread a try with your next dinner.  

Ingredients:

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 2 cups unbleached, all purpose flour
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 4 eggs, beaten
• 2 cups buttermilk
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 tablespoons fresh herbs, minced - rosemary and thyme work well
• 2 cups shredded Parmesan cheese, divided
• 2 cups grated zucchini

Instructions:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350° Prepare the loaf pans -­ brush with olive oil or use non stick cooking spray.

2. Whisk together the 2 flours, Davis Baking Powder, baking soda and salt. Make a well in the center and add the oil, eggs, buttermilk, honey, herbs, 1 1/2 cups of the Parmesan cheese and the zucchini. Stir with a wooden spoon to mix together. Do not over mix or the dough will become tough.

3. Divide evenly among the prepared pans. Top with the reserved 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese. Bake for about 50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

4. Cool on a wire rack.

Recipe Source: Clabber Girl 

Grilled Chicken Sausages with Apple Salsa

The thought crossed my mind before I could even register how wrong it was. 

I wished it was fall yesterday.

There I was, stopping on my way home from work at the little outdoor market in my town and reveling in the beautiful colors the eggplants. Happily picking out a few zucchini to finally make zucchini bread for my husband. Trying decide which tomato variety I wanted to eat with my salad for dinner. Wondering if I really needed those purple bell peppers I had just bought. 

And sweating profusely in the 95 degree heat. 

I'd like to blame the heat for it. No one is thinking clearly in that much heat. At least, that's what I'm telling myself. Because when you are buying some gorgeous summer bounty, enjoying the long daylight of a summer evening, and making plans to barbecue, there's really no reason to want fall. I blame the fact that I lived 95% of my life in Vermont and Minnesota and I am unaccustomed to such long summers as we have here in Utah. And maybe also I'm a little bit crazy.

Since deep down I know fall will be here before I know it, and since I know that in the deep, dark days of winter I'll be wishing for sandals and shaved ice, I'm making myself appreciate the last bits of summer we have left. I'm not allowing myself to buy canned pumpkin quite yet, or slice into the beautiful butternut squash I have sitting on my counter. I'm making pestos and ice cream and enjoying the end of summer the best I can.

This recipe is perfect for this mood that I'm in. I'm a big fan of chicken sausage, and cooking it on the grill makes it summery enough for me. The spicy flavors of the salsa and the sweet/spicy flavors of the apple salsa are perfectly matched, easy, and fresh tasting. I'm ignoring the fact that apples snuck in there somehow instead of a more summery fresh corn salsa. Because despite my efforts to hang on to summer, when I'm standing at the grill and sweat is dripping down my back I can't say that I don't wish for fall just a little bit.

Grilled Chicken Sausages with Apple Salsa

3 T sugar
1 1/2 T cider vinegar
1 1/2 T lemon juice
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
3 sweet apples (such as Gala) peeled, cored and chopped
1 T fresh oregano, minced (1 tsp dried)

6 large chicken sausages, preferably spicy (bratwursts would also work)
6 hot dog buns

1. Stir sugar, vinegar, lemon juice and red pepper flakes together in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Add chopped apple, cover pan, reduce heat and simmer until apples are beginning to soften. Remove from heat, add oregano and allow to cool. (You can serve this either at room temperature or from the refrigerator.

2. Grill chicken sausages on a gas or charcoal grill over medium heat until cooked through. Place each sausage in a bun, top with 3-4 T of apple salsa and serve.

Serves : 6

Recipe Source: adapted from The Summer Book by Susan Branch

Quinoa Patties

When you hear about something all the time on the news, the internet, or from friends, you start to wonder if it can really live up to the hype.

Like The Jersey Shore. We have the most basic of cable at our house so I've never seen the show, but I hear about it all the time. Does that really live up to the hype around it? Judging from the "Situation Workout" I tried this morning courtesy of Hulu Plus, I'd say no. But I could be wrong. Is it just fascinating to watch? 

Or how about the deep fried Kool-Aid that is apparently the new popular food at State Fairs? Is that as good as people say it is? Or is it just different enough that people want to try it out of curiosity? If I remember right, the deep friend Snickers bars that I tried out of curiosity just tasted like a melted Snickers bar. Is deep fried Kool-Aid better?

There are all kinds of things that are bound to disappoint you when you set your expectations high based on a whole lot of hype. 

Quinoa is not one of those things. You probably have heard of it by now, and know what a great source of protein it is and how healthy it is for you. You probably have heard how much people love it and how it has such a fluffy texture and mild, nutty taste. And if you've eaten it by now, you know that is all true. Quinoa really does live up to its hype. 

I love it in salads, and I've got some of my favorites that I need to post, but I thought today I'd share a slightly different use of quinoa that I really like: quinoa patties. They're soft, flavorful, moist cakes of quinoa with delicious spices and a nice, fluffy texture. They're perfect for when you have some leftover quinoa in the fridge that you don't know what to do with. (Or maybe you happened to overcook your quinoa a little bit and it is stickier than you'd like for a salad. Perfect for that, too.) These patties are a great way to try quinoa and enjoy its versatile flavor. I think they're perfect on some greens with a little bit of sour cream, (or plain Greek yogurt if you prefer) and some tomatoes. I've eaten them both hot and cold and I prefer to have them hot, but its nice to have to cold option if your microwave at work gets a glitch and starts running anytime the door is opened and you are afraid of microwaving your hand and looking like Dumbledore in the 6th Harry Potter movie if you put anything in it. Hypothetically speaking.

Whatever the reason or the occasion, give quinoa patties a try and see what all the hype about. 

Quinoa Patties

2 1/2 cups cooked quinoa, at room temperature*
4 large eggs, beaten
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1 small yellow or white onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup crumbled queso fresco
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1 1/2 cup whole grain bread crumbs, plus more if needed
Water, if needed
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil or clarified butter

Directions:

Combine the quinoa, eggs, and salt in a medium bowl. Stir in the onion, queso fresco, cumin, coriander and red pepper flakes. Add the bread crumbs, stir, and let sit for a few minutes so the crumbs can absorb some of the moisture. At this point, you should have a mixture you can easily form into twelve 1-inch patties. I err on the very moist side because it makes for a not-overly-dry patty, but you can add more bread crumbs, a bit at a time, to firm up the mixture, if need be. Conversely, a bit more beaten egg or water can be used to moisten the mixture. (I like to keep the patties on the moist side and form them one by one in my hand using the ring for a mason jar to keep them round until placing them in the skillet.)

Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-low heat, add 6 patties, if they'll fit with some room between each, cover, and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, until the bottoms are deeply browned. Turn up the heat if there is no browning after 10 minutes and continue to cook until the patties are browned. Carefully flip the patties with a spatula and cook the second sides for 7 minutes, or until golden. Remove from the skillet and cool on a wire rack while you cook the remaining patties. Alternatively, the quinoa mixture keeps nicely in the refrigerator for a few days; you can cook patties to order, if you prefer.

Recipe source: Adapted from Heidi Swanson's Super Natural Every Day cookbook

*For instructions on how to cook quinoa on the stovetop, go here. For pressure cooker instructions, go here. I like using the pressure cooker because it is so fast, but both ways work equally well. 

Cinnamon Roll Cookies

In my family, there is story about my sister and her husband that has become legendary.

It has to do with a shared Cinnabon, my sister getting distracted and my brother-in-law eating the whole heart of the Cinnabon. 

Yes, the whole ooey, gooey, sweetest, most cinnamony part of the Cinnabon. 

The very fact that this story has become legend should tell you just how seriously we take our food in my family, especially our favorite foods. Don't mess with us and our cinnamon rolls. 

When I tell you these cinnamon roll cookies are delicious, then, you know that I mean it. You all know I love some cinnamon, and cookies are one of my favorite things to bake. Wrap a buttery freezer cookie around some cinnamon filling and you've got a bite size morsel of deliciousness. Plus you get the bonus ease of a slice and bake cookie that you can have in your freezer ready to bake at any time. Of course in our house, we find cinnamon roll cookie emergencies after the dough has been in the freezer for a grand total of an hour or so. Once you taste these, I think your family probably will, too. 

Cinnamon Roll Cookies


Ingredients: 


1/2 cup powdered sugar

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 large egg white 

1 T water

Directions: 

1. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, cream together the sugar, butter, salt and vanilla. Add the flour, stirring to make a cohesive dough. Flatten the dough into a disk, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate until you’re ready to use it. 

2. Transfer the dough to a piece of parchment or waxed paper. Roll it into a 9x12 inch rectangle. Whisk egg white with water until foamy, and brush on the surface of the rolled dough.

3. In a small bowl, whisk together the sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle it evenly over the dough. Starting with the long end, roll the dough into a log, sealing the edge. Wrap it in plastic wrap and freeze until firm.

4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove the dough from the freezer and unwrap it. Using a sharp knife, gently cut it into 1/2-inch slices. Transfer them to a baking sheet.

5. Bake the cookies 12 to 15 minutes, until they’re a light golden brown. Remove them from the oven and transfer to a rack to cool. Drizzle with a glaze if desired.

Yield: 2 dozen cookies

Recipe source: The King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion

Pasta with Tomato and Almond Pesto

Have you heard that they are remaking Dirty Dancing? 

I know. 

How can you improve on it? What could be better than Patrick Swayze dancing? Is the new "Baby" going to carry a watermelon? Please tell me if someone is going to put her in a corner. 

This is the movie that always seemed special to me because I couldn't see it until I was "older." The movie I remember my mom watching the end of over and over again. I even remember her turning to me all starry-eyed after watching it and saying, "She jumped" like it was the most amazing thing ever. How can you remake magic like that? 

Some things just don't need revision.  

You may be thinking something similar about messing around with pesto. What could be better than the classic basil/pine nuts/olive oil/parmesan flavor? 

I wouldn't think of this tomato pesto as a remake of the classic, wonderful pesto flavors. I think of it is a twist on the original that is just as good. It's like comparing the 90's movie "Clueless" to the Gywneth Paltrow version of "Emma." Same basic formula, but each wonderful in their own right. 

In this case, the basic formula is some nut, this time toasted almonds, processed with some herbs or other flavoring, in this case tomatoes and basil, with olive oil and parmesan. It's so fast to put together that by the time your pasta is cooked, your pesto is ready. And as far as taste goes - it's just plain delicious. The original recipe calls for cherry or grape tomatoes but seeing how we are in tomato season I would use whatever is fresh from your garden or farmer's market. It's a meal that you make for yourself on a weeknight because it is so fast, but it is impressive enough to serve company. 

It's a revision that's as good as the classic.

Pasta with Tomato and Almond Pesto

Note: A half teaspoon of red wine vinegar and ¼ teaspoon of red pepper flakes can be substituted for the pepperoncini. If you don’t have a food processor, a blender may be substituted. In step 2, pulse ingredients until roughly chopped, then proceed with the recipe, reducing processing times by half.


Ingredients:


1/4 cup slivered almonds
12 ounces cherry or grape tomatoes (about 2 1/2 cups; or substitute with 12 ounces of any fresh tomato)
1/2 cup packed fresh basil leaves
1 medium garlic clove, minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 1 tsp)
1 small pepperocini (hot peppers in vinegar) stemmed, seeded and minced (about 1/2 tsp; see note)
Table salt
pinch red pepper flakes (optional)
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 pound pasta, preferable linguine or spaghetti
1 ounce Parmesan cheese, grated (about 1/2 cup) plus extra for serving

Directions:

1. Toast almonds in small skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently, until pale golden and fragrant, 2 to 4 minutes. Cool almonds to room temperature.

2. Process cooled almonds, tomatoes, basil, garlic, pepperoncini, 1 teaspoon salt, and red pepper flakes (if using) in food processor until smooth, about 1 minute. Scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula. With machine running, slowly drizzle in oil, about 30 seconds.

3. Meanwhile, bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Add pasta and 1 tablespoon salt and cook until al dente. Reserve ½ cup cooking water; drain pasta and transfer back to cooking pot.

4. Add pesto and ½ cup Parmesan to cooked pasta, adjusting consistency with reserved pasta cooking water so that pesto coats pasta. Serve immediately, passing Parmesan separately.

Serves: 4-6

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated

Deep Dish Blueberry Pie

The same diner-type restaurant in New York that had the incredible cheese blintzes I wrote about here also serves just about every other type of comfort food you can imagine. Grilled cheese sandwiches, soups, burgers, cheesecake, and of course, pie. 

This pie didn't come from an attempt to re-create some wonderful pie I ate at that restaurant, though. In fact, I never ate pie there. This pie comes from finding a cookbook for said restaurant and just reading the title of the recipe, "Deep Dish Blueberry Pie." 

Hello, my new best friend.

I love blueberries, and for me, the filling of a pie is the best part. I sometimes even eat around the crust if I'm starting to feel full. (Usually a clue to just stop eating, but when it comes to pie, sometimes you just have to make sacrifices.) The idea of a deep dish blueberry pie, then, was music to my ears. An extra thick slice of sweetened fresh blueberries? Where do I sign up? Finding this recipe also coincided with a big sale on blueberries at my local grocery store. I think the heavens were telling me I needed to start baking.

Happily for me, deep dish blueberry pie is as delicious as it sounds. Served warm or cold, with ice cream or plain, the blueberry flavor was nice and strong. I like that the spices weren't over-powering but were definitely noticeable. And, of course, I loved that each slice was so full of thick filling. In fact, I still picked around the crust and ate about 2 pieces worth of filling when I first cut into it. 

Poor crust. You just can't compare to the blueberry filling you contain.

For those who have baked a blueberry pie before, you probably already know that you need some hefty thickening agents for the filling because blueberries are so juicy. This recipe uses a combination of tapioca and cornstarch, which makes for a nice, thick filling. Quick cooking tapioca is usually found near the pudding mixes in the grocery store. I find that it works better to mix it into the filling and let sit for 10 minutes or so before filling the pie so that the tapioca can start to dissolve. As it is, you are still likely to see some little cooked tapioca balls in your cooked pie filling. They don't taste like anything and the texture isn't a problem, but if that sounds horrid to you, you might want to try another recipe. Just giving you fair warning. I happen to like using tapioca as a thickener, but I think there are people very strongly in the cornstarch camp and that's just fine. 

Deep Dish Blueberry Pie

1 recipe pie pastry, enough for a double crust pie

For the blueberry filling:
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup quick-cooking tapioca
3 T cornstarch
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
8 cups fresh blueberries, picked over for stems and bruises
2 T fresh lemon juice
3 T unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

For the glaze:
1 extra-large egg yolk
1/4 tsp vegetable oil

1. Butter a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate. Make you pie crust, roll out half of it 1/8 inch thick on a lightly floured surface, and trim to a 15-inch circle. Transfer the pastry to the pie plate, leaving a 1 1/2 inch overhang. Place the pastry shell and the rest of the pastry in the refrigerator while you make the filling.

2. Mix the granulated sugar, brown sugar, tapioca, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt together in a medium-sized bowl. Set aside.

3. Mix the blueberries and lemon juice together in a large bowl. Sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar mixture over the berries and toss until all the berries are well coated. Let stand for 5-10 minutes. (I find this helps to get the tapioca to thicken better once the pie is cooked.)

4. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the over to 425 degrees. Spoon the berry filling into the pie shell, mounding it high in the center. (If some of the tapioca mixture looks like it is clumping at the bottom of the bowl and not mixing well with the blueberries, just don't transfer it to the pie. It is in excess of what you need to thicken the pie.) Dot the filling with the butter pieces.

5. Roll out the remaining pastry 1/8 inch thick and trim to a 13 inch circle. Using the tip of a paring knife, cut out a 3/4 inch circle of pastry in the center of the pastry round for the steam vent. (Or cut slits in the finished pie if you prefer.) Transfer the pastry circle to the top of the pie. Moisten the edges of the pastry with a little ice water, fold the edges under, and pinch them to seal. Shape the edge of the pastry to stand up 1 inch high, then flute.

6. To make the glaze, whisk the egg yolk with the oil and brush on the top of the pie. Bake the pie for 10 minutes at 425.

7. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 and continue baking until the crust is golden and the filling is bubbly, 50 minutes to 1 hour. (I like to cover my pie after 20 minutes or so of baking so the crust doesn't get too browned.) Remove from the oven and let cool for at least 2 hours before serving.

Recipe Source: adapted from Welcome To Juniors: Remembering Brooklyn with Recipes and Memories from its Favorite Restaurant.

Golden Grilled Chicken Thighs with Apricots

I consider myself to be a fairly honest person. I tell the cashier when he/she has rung me up wrong and I owe more money. I don't eat samples of the bulk candy at the grocery store without paying for them. I try to return things I borrow in a fairly prompt manner.

I faced a slight moral dilemma last week, though. I had seen this recipe and really wanted to try it. Luckily, it was Saturday and I go grocery shopping on Saturdays. (Along with everyone else in my city, I think.) I made my list of food we needed for the week, went to the store, and returned. I put all the groceries away and started getting these chicken thighs ready for dinner. I went outside to start the grill when I realized I hadn't bought apricots. Somehow they had missed being put on the list. Most people wouldn't consider this a minor emergency, seeing how the apricots are just a side addition to the chicken thighs and not really integral to the recipe. I, however, love grilled fruit and had been looking forward to trying the apricots in the recipe. Besides, the recipe is called "golden grilled chicken thighs with apricots." Not "golden grilled chicken thighs with nothing else."

That's when the moral dilemma comes in. As I was standing by the grill, willing apricots to appear magically, I looked down the street and saw my neighbor's apricot tree. Bursting with apricots. Covered with apricots. With branches hanging down because they were so heavy with apricots. Some apricots even so ripe they had fallen on the ground. Just taunting me. It didn't look like anyone was at home, and I don't know those neighbors very well. And there were so many apricots, surely they wouldn't notice me taking a few. Just a couple. I could always offer to pay them for them when they got home. What would you do?

I didn't end up taking those apricots. In my life, I've found if you have to justify something, usually it's just not worth it in the long run. I went inside and found an even better solution than stealing my neighbor's apricots or running to the store. 

I sent my husband to the store.

In the long run, I'd say all the hassle to make this recipe was still worth it. It was one of the best things we've grilled all summer. The thighs were juicy and perfectly seasoned after their few hours spent marinating, and the golden sauce that was put on them after cooking was just sweet enough. I love the flavor that the mint and mustard added to the sauce, and the pistachios also gave good flavor as well as some nice crunch. Even my husband, (who might have been inclined to dislike the dish due to the extra errand he had to run to get the apricots) just loved it. For the record, though, he did not eat any of the apricots. I think it was in protest.  

Golden Grilled Chicken Thighs with Apricots

2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs
salt and black pepper
1/2 cup apricot nectar (peach nectar works, too)
6 T apricot preserves
4 T snipped fresh mint
1 T olive oil
1 T sherry vinegar
1/2 tsp curry powder
1 clove garlic, minced
8 medium apricots, halved and pitted
2 green onions, chopped
1/4 cup chopped pistachio nuts
1 T Dijon mustard
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp salt

1. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Place in a large resealable plastic bag set in a shallow dish. For marinade, in a bowl combine half of the nectar, 2 T of the preserves, half of the mint, 1 T olive oil, vinegar, curry, and garlic. Pour over chicken. Seal bag; turn to coat. Marinate in the refrigerator for 2 to 4 hours.

2. Remove chicken from marinade; discard marinade. For a charcoal grill, grill chicken on rack of an uncovered grill directly over medium coals for 12 to 15 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink (180 degrees), turning once halfway through grilling. Add apricots to grill, cut sides down, the last 5 minutes of grilling and grill until lightly browned and softened. (For a gass grill, preheat grill. Reduce heat to medium. Place chicken on grill rack over heat. Cover; grill as above.)

3. For sauce, in a bowl combine remaining apricot nectar, preserves, mint, green onions, 3 T of the pistachios, mustard, 1 tsp olive oil, mustard seeds, and salt. To serve, drizzle chicken and apricots with sauce and sprinkle with remaining pistachios.

Makes: 4-6 servings

Recipe Source: Better Homes and Gardens All Time Favorites

Plum Green Bean Salad

Yesterday was a good news/bad news day.

The good news is that I got up early to work out. The bad news was that my elliptical trainer was sitting in an inch of water in the basement. 

Good news: We found and fixed the source (broken sprinkler pipe) and we're all dried out now. Bad news: It took the entire day to get to that point.

Good news: Nothing of value was ruined. Bad news: That means my husband's drum set lives on to drum another day.

Bad news: I dropped the lid to my pressure cooker and broke it. Good news: They sell replacement parts online. (Also good news for my husband because he got to eat In-N-Out for dinner.)

The real good news is that there were so many silver linings in our little flood and the rest of the events of yesterday that I am almost having trouble finding bad news examples to share. I love working with my husband, even when it means wading through muddy water or dealing with incredibly large bugs. You know you've married the right person when something like that almost seems fun because you're doing it together. 

It's a great combo that makes this green bean salad good news, too. You've probably noticed my now that I love using fruit in recipes where it wouldn't normally be expected. I love the touch of sweetness that it adds and I'm always surprised at how well most fruit can blend with savory flavors. In this salad it is plums (or peaches) that give the salad a unique flavor. The caramelized onions don't hurt, either, and neither does a touch of fresh rosemary. And green beans are just delicious too, aren't they? It is a salad that you can serve warm or cold, making it versatile as well as delicious. Not to mention pretty, too. And healthy.

Basically, good news all around.

Plum Green Bean Salad

1 medium sweet onion, sliced
1 T olive oil
1 lb green beans, trimmed
1 tsp snipped fresh rosemary
1 clove garlic, minced
2 peaches or nectarines or three plums
1 T lime juice
1/8 tsp salt plus more to taste

In a 12-inch skillet, cook onions in hot oil over medium heat for 5 minutes or just until beginning to soften. Add green beans, rosemary, garlic and salt. Cover and cook for 10 minutes more or until beans are crisp-tender. Remove from heat and toss in peach slices and lime juice. Serve hot or cold. (If planning on serving cold, don't add fruit to salad until right before serving.)

Recipe Source: Better Homes and Gardens

Grilled Vegetable Corn Boats

I still haven't caught up completely on my e-mails, blog reading and Google+ing (I'm fairly certain that last one isn't a verb, but I just invented it.) but I'm back from a wonderful long weekend in New York. The JFK airport, as usual, did not really want to see me leave and showed me by delaying my flight for several hours before having me sit on the plane for several more hours. Thank you JFK. I'll miss you, I enjoyed getting home at 2 AM. (Although JFK must love my mother-in-law and sister-in-law even more because their flight was cancelled and they had to stay there another night.) 

If you've been to New York City, you probably already know that the food there is just amazing. Whatever type of food you want to eat, there's a restaurant for it and it's probably the best __________ (fill in the blank) you've ever had. I'm still dreaming about some couscous I had at a Moroccan restaurant that I will never be able to recreate but will definitely try. 

In honor then, of the wonderful creamy risottos, blintzes and cheesecakes I had in NYC, I thought I'd continue on with the theme I started Monday with a veggie week. Not because you need it, you see, but because I do. (Did I mention cheesecake?) Whenever I start eating on vacation I think, "I wish I could eat like this every day!" but by the end I'm always happy to get back to "real" food. Man cannon live on cheesecake alone because he would probably die before age 30. 

These corn boats are probably the most exciting veggie dish I make, and they're also some of my favorites. They're fun, tasty, and they aren't difficult to make. Chopping the ingredients is probably the most time intensive part. Using the husk as a "boat" to warm the filling and for serving adds some great flavor and makes for an impressive presentation. You could always skip the husk step, but in my mind it is what makes this recipe special. Fresh corn is one of my favorite things about summer, so I love that this recipe takes advantage of all parts of the corn, both outside and in. You can bake the corn boats once they are filled, but if you are like me and don't like to use the oven in the summer, I'd grill them instead. Both ways work wonderfully, although the grilling does require you to keep a closer eye on the boats so they don't burn. Either way you choose, make sure you try this with some fresh corn before the summer is over. 

Corn Boats

4 ears corn with husks

1 T olive oil

1 small red onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)

1 medium red or green bell pepper, diced (about 1/2 cup)

1 small sweet potato, peeled and diced (about 1 cup)

1/2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp table salt

1/2 tsp hot pepper sauce

2 T chopped cilantro or parsley

1. Remove tough outer leaves of husks and discard. Pull remaining husks back over the stem end, remove silk and cut corn cob off, leaving husks and stem end attached. Reserve 2-3 husks for later use.

2. Cut corn off cobs. (See this post from Dishing the Divine for a great tip on how to cut corn off the cob.)

3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees, or heat grill to medium high heat. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, red pepper and sweet potato; cook until just tender, about 8 minutes. Stir in corn, chili powder, salt and hot pepper sauce. Cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in cilantro; remove from heat. Let cool slightly.

4. Spoon about 1 cup vegetable mixture into each husk. (See picture below.) Using a strip of the reserved husk or kitchen twine, tie the husks to enclose the filling. Trim excess husk 1/2 to 3/4 inch from ties. Place boats on a cookie sheet and bake until heated through and husks are beginning to brown, about 12-15 minutes. If grilling, place on grill over direct heat and turn 1/4 turn every few minutes to prevent burning. Remove when all sides are lightly browned. 

You will have bent the husk backwards to cut the cob off, but bend the husk back forward to fill. I like to use my thumb to make an opening in the leaves and fill from there. 

Recipe Source: adapted from Creative Cook's Kitchen