The children certainly had a fabulous time as did the adults.  I just love a family backyard party.  Part of my entry response to the contest was detailing how much I love home entertaining and preparing food for guests to enjoy and celebrate together.  I love watching children have a fantastic time, while the grownups get to imbibe an adult beverage and spend time mingling and simply enjoying the moment.

Menu

Appetizers

Crostini with Goat Cheese and ‘wichcraft Tomato Relish

Caprese Salad Crostini with Garlic Balsamic Vinaigrette

Frozen Green Grapes

Mains

Seared Pork Tenderloin with Lime-Cumin-Corriander Marindade

Citrus Marinated Grilled Chicken with Fresh Herb Sauce

Ripe Watermelon Balls

Strawberries and Raspberries with Fresh Mint Garnish

Sugar Snap Peas with Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Sauce

Sliced and Seasoned Kirby Cucumbers

Spinach Salad with Strawberries, Goat Cheese, and Almond Slivers

Dessert

Chocolate Cake with Espresso Buttercream and Dark Chocolate Ganache

Fresh Strawberry Cupcakes with Strawberry Buttercream Frosting

The items with links have already been featured on dinnerandconversation.com and helped make this party great.  Those with out, barring the raw foods, will be featured over the next week or so.  Part of home entertaining, especially in the summer in Texas, requires cold raw foods, so that’s part of why those were included.  The other reason is in my personal food philosophy.  Blessedly, I have children who will eat darn near anything.  I don’t prepare separate children’s meals, partly of course because we don’t have toddler food wars, so I wanted to include a variety of fruits that I thought even picky preschoolers could enjoy before indulging in a dessert sugar high.

All in all, I’d call it a grand success.  As I individually break down the recipes, I’ll give some tips on how I go about planning quantities and portion sizes for large gatherings.  Salud to the home party!

Life is a little crazy right now in our casa between the impending move and growing my chef business and catering services.  So if recipe postings are slim in the next few days, please know it’s because I’m either moving boxes, chasing children away from unpacking boxes, or I’ve discovered something crazy, like say, Cory packed my hard drive in an unmarked box and I have no. idea. where it is.  On the upside, I’ve safely packed away a stack of 20 old Gourmet magazines, which I plan to work through and feature this summer.

Potatoes Au Gratin Recipe serves 6

3 c. milk (I use 1%)

1/2 yellow or white onion

8-10 red new potatoes, peeled and sliced in 1/4 inch discs

3 tbsp butter

3 tbsp flour

1/2 tsp kosher salt

8 turns fresh ground pepper

3 c. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

3/4 c. fresh grated parmesan reggiano

In a saucepan over medium heat, warm milk and the half an onion to a simmer.  Remove from heat and let stand 15 minutes.

Heat oven to 325.  Grease casserole dish and arrange potato slices in rows in a single layer on the bottom.  In a heavy bottomed sauce pan, melt butter over medium heat.  Add flour and stir with a wooden spatula for two minutes to form a paste.  Remove onion from milk and discard.  Pour milk into paste and stir continuously, when integrated, increase heat to medium high and cook for around five minutes until sauce has thickened substantially, stirring to prevent scorching.  Add 1 and a 1/2 cups of the shredded cheddar and stir to integrate.  Pour cheese sauce over the potatoes, then top with the remaining cheddar and parmesan.  Bake in oven for 30 minutes, then increase heat to 400 and cook for an additional 10 minutes until golden brown and bubbly.

I’ve made this with half and half and I’ve made it with cream.  It works both ways, but the cream is way better.  Anything resembling a quiche exists as the antithesis of diet food.  This tastes delicious and while you definitely shouldn’t eat it every day, pull it out every now and again and savor the taste.  It delivers a wonderful spicy, savory flavor that is surprising, then delightful.  Also can be made using a store bought frozen pie crust for ease!  Can be served for brunch, appetizers, or as a side dish at dinner.

Tomato Tart serves 8-10

adapted from Williams Sonoma Entertaining Cookbook

1/4 c. chilled butter

1/4 c. chilled Spectrum Palm Oil Shortening

1 and 1/2  c. flour

1/2 tsp kosher salt

3 and 1/2 tbsp ice water

2 tbsp Dijon mustard

3 tbsp fresh mint, minced

1/4 lb. Gruyere, sliced into thin slices

4 tomatoes on the vine

1 c. heavy cream

2 eggs

1/2 tsp kosher salt

12 turns fresh ground pepper

In a food processor, combine flour and salt.  Add butter and shortening cut into little pieces.  Use the pulse button to cut butter and shortening into flour until you see no more large pieces.  Through the top, pour the water 1 tablespoon at a time and continue to pulse until dough is just moist.  Move to a floured surface and form a ball.  Roll out with a floured rolling pin into a circle.  Press into the bottom of a glass pie pan, evening out and smoothing the edge.  Freeze overnight.

Core and cut tomatoes into slices.  Using a paring knife, trim the seeds and jelly from the slices, then move to a colander to drain.  Salt tomatoes slices, then let sit for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350.  Remove the now frozen pie crust, and use a spatula to cover the bottom with the Dijon.  Sprinkle with mint, then top with the Gruyere slices.  Arrange tomatoes on top of the Gruyere.  Combine cream and eggs, whisk to beat.  Season cream and egg mixture with the salt and pepper, then pour over the tomatoes.  Bake in oven for about an hour, until filling has risen and firmed and has a golden brown color.

My fresh mozzarella came from the Dallas Mozzarella Company, a local factory making fresh handmade cheeses of truly exceptional quality.  I’ve been meaning to take their Hands on Cheese Making class for at least five years and just haven’t made it happen yet.  Trust me, I look hot in a hair net.  And the class includes a factory tour, a wine and cheese tasting, and take home samples of your own creations.  I think that’s a description of about my perfect day!  I’ve had a fascination with factories ever since I worked in a service company who sold things via service, but didn’t actually produce anything.  Apparently, the grass is always greener.  It’s a shame I never managed to tour 3M in college when I had the chance.  At that point, of course, endless lectures on the processes, software, and plants involved in making Scotch tape were hideously boring to me.  In any case, the Hands on Cheese Making Class is on my Bucket List.  I can knock out a factory tour and food creation in one fell swoop!

Caprese Salad Crostini

Baguette

1 clove garlic

olive oil

1 /2 lb ball fresh mozzarella

3 vine ripened tomatoes

12-15 basil leaves, halved

Garlic Balsamic Vinagrette

Preheat oven to 425.  Cut baguette into half-inch slices – or approx 25-30 pieces.  Smash garlic with a large knife, peel and break into two halves.  Rub top of each baguette slice with one of the pieces of garlic, as it disintegrates, switch to the other piece.  Using a brush, paint the top of each slice with olive oil.  Place each slice on a cookie sheet and bake 5-7 minutes until your crostini are lightly browned.

Slice mozzarella into 1/4 inch slices, then half or quarter as necessary to fit onto crostini.  Slice tomatoes into 1/4 inch slices, then quarter.  Top crostinis with mozzarella, then basil, then tomato, then drizzle with Garlic Balsamic Vinaigrette.

Garlic Balsamic Vinaigrette

1/4 c. balsamic vinegar

1/2 c. olive oil

1/4 c. water

1.5 tbsp fresh garlic, minced

1/2 tsp Murray River salt

8 turns fresh ground pepper

For the vinaigrette, combine vinegar, oil, water, garlic, salt and pepper.  Whisk together then let rest for at least 30 minutes for the flavors to combine.  Whisk again before serving.  Keep remainder in fridge for up to two weeks.

I also had forgotten how much I love mashed potatoes.  I used to make them all the time, in many variations.  Back in my days of Sunday dinner, before we had children, my house was a revolving door with an open invitation to any and all friends for a Sunday meal.  Mashed potatoes were a habitual side dish at these events.  Garlic mashed potatoes, horseradish mashed potatoes, mashed with chives, etc., etc.  Long ago I abandoned white potatoes in  favor of sweet potatoes for optimal nutrition (lower glycemic index).  Well, I’ve decided I hate sweet potatoes.  I almost *never* want to cook them, so I’m welcoming back russets with enthusiasm.  It’s a problem considering we have a football national championship looming and sweet potatoes are one of my staple burnt orange foods.  Anyway, if you’re looking to lighten up these potatoes, you can totally use milk – even skim.  I just happen to have heavy cream on hand and let’s face it, if you can afford the calories, it is better this way, but it won’t ruin them to use milk.  I frequently make them that way when we don’t have cream.

Roasted Chicken Breasts with Orange Chili Sauce serves 3

3 chicken split breasts

olive oil

kosher salt

fresh ground pepper

3 cloves garlic, chopped

2 c. chicken broth

2/3 c. fresh squeezed clementine juice

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper

3 tbsps butter

1 tbsp chopped fresh Italian Parsley

Preheat oven to 425.  In a heavy bottomed skillet, drizzle chicken breasts with olive oil, then sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Roast for approx an hour, until internal temperature reaches 165.

Remove chicken breasts to a cutting board to rest.  Spoon off as much fat as you can from skillet, leaving any remaining juices.  Saute garlic in juices over medium heat for about 1 minute, scraping up any brown bits.  Add chicken broth, and cook on medium high heat until reduced by 1/4 volume, about five minutes.  Add orange juice and crushed red pepper, cook another two minutes.  Stir in butter, then parsley.  Serve chicken over garlic mashed potatoes, then top with orange chili sauce.

Garlic Mashed Potatoes serves 4

2 large russet potatoes

1/4 c. heavy cream

3 tbsp butter

3 large cloves garlic

1 tsp. olive oil

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper

Peel potatoes, then slice into 1 inch rounds then half each piece.  Place in a pan and fill with cold water, covering potatoes by an inch and a half.  Bring to a boil then continue to boil until potatoes begin to crumble.  Drain, then use a potato ricer to mash potatoes.

Add cream and butter to potatoes, but don’t stir yet.  In a small skillet, warm olive oil, then add garlic and saute on medium until fragrant and just beginning to brown.  Add garlic to potatoes, then stir to combine.  Add salt and pepper, then taste and adjust seasonings if desired.

I came up with this recipe largely because I way over purchased fresh ginger in my efforts towards my making my own ginger ale, a work still in progress.  I don’t often cook with fresh ginger which is really a shame.   I minced mine by hand with a very sharp knife, but if you own a fine microplane grater, you should absolutely use that.  I just haven’t purchased one of those yet.  If you’re short on time, I’d recommend just cooking 1 c. of quinoa in 2.5 cups of water for 15 minutes instead of the two part method below.  I usually cook it that way and can’t imagine that it would make too much of a difference.  Quinoa can be bitter if not rinsed well – so I’ve heard, so far I’ve never run into this myself – so take caution to rinse extra well in a strainer before you get started.  I like my quinoa al dente – kind of crunchy tasting – almost like the texture of the teeny tiny brightly colored roe used in sushi, I forgot what they are called, I don’t eat sushi nearly as much as I used to.  If you’ve tried it and prefer a softer texture, just up your cooking time by about 3-5 minutes.

Quinoa, Black Beans, and Tomatoes in a Citrus Ginger Vinaigrette

1/4 c. fresh squeezed orange juice

2 tbsps fresh squeezed lemon juice

3 tbsps extra virgin olive oil

1 tbsp fresh ginger, peeled and minced

1 tbsp yellow onion, minced (green onions would have been great!  I was out)

1 large clove garlic, minced

1/4 tsp kosher salt

10 turns fresh ground pepper

1 c. organinc quinoa, rinsed very well in a strainer

1 c. canned black beans, rinsed and drained

1 c. canned diced tomatoes, rinsed and drained

In a bowl, combine juices, oil, ginger, onion, garlic, and salt and pepper.  Set aside.

In a saucepan, bring 3 cups water to a boil.  Add 1/2 tsp kosher salt and quinoa.  Let cook uncovered for 8 minutes, then drain into strainer.  Place strainer over a 1 inch of simmering water, then cover quinoa with a clean dish towel (fold to make small enough that the sides won’t catch on fire!), followed by the saucepan’s lid.  Steam quinoa for 7 minutes, then set strainer aside.  After cooling a few minutes, add quinoa to vinaigrette stir, then add black beans, and tomatoes.  Stir then season to taste with salt and pepper.

I’ve been uninspired in my culinary pursuits lately, and just plain distracted in my grocery runs.  Consequently, I realized yesterday I had 16 yellow onions on my counter.  What better way to remedy that than french onion soup?   So I got out my rubber gloves and goggles and got to chopping.  Kidding.  Luckily chopping onions doesn’t bother me nearly as much as some people.  I only cried twice.  And frankly, I think I needed it.  Perhaps preparing this soup should be considered an emotional cleanse.  I attribute my success in limited tear production to my very sharp chef’s knife, thanks to my brand new knife sharpener, and the flame from my gas stove.  According to this wikipedia article, there’s some science to the sharp knife theory, and they also suggest chilling your onions if you’re concerned.

It’s no wonder I love this soup with the amount of alcohol that goes into it, the heating process actually burns off the alcohol content, but the flavor remains.  If you’re not a huge alcohol fan, I’d recommend keeping the sherry/cognac for deglazing – at least at half their amounts, but skip the red wine and replace it’s quantity with more beef stock.  But that’s only if you’re anti-alcohol.  I think the flavor is perfect, complex, and engaging just as written.  I think most chef’s use white wine in their French onion soups, I use red for a variety of reasons.  First, because I use beef stock and beef pairs best with reds, IMO.  Second, for color.  Third, I simply prefer red wine, and someone has to finish off that bottle.  And if you’re not a beef eater, like I know several of you aren’t, feel free to change this to chicken stock, or vegetable stock if you must.  But then you’re really going to need the alcohol for flavor. *wink*

The last caveat I have is that the easiest way to destroy this soup is  to accidentally use sweet onions.  Well it won’t destroy it, it just won’t be the flavor you’re expecting at all.  You need the yellow, dry onion flavor.  Sweet onions like Vidalia, Walla Walla, Maui and Texas 1015 are generally larger and rounder.  Yellow onions are small and firm, and in my experience, the outer papers seem more closely attached to the skin.  If you’re worried, look for the onions in bags, then confirm that the label reads “Yellow Onion” and nothing else.

French Onion Soup

8 peeled yellow onions, sliced to rounds, then halved to half moons

2 bay leaves

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp butter

1/2 c. cognac

1/2 c. dry sherry

1 and 1/2 c. Shiraz or Cabernet  wine

8 c. beef stock (Kitchen Basics recommended)

1 tsp dried thyme leaves

kosher salt

fresh ground pepper

In a stock pot with the heat a quarter of the way past medium towards high, combine the onions, bay leaves, oil, and butter.  Cook for 55 minutes until onions are soft and browned, stirring every five minutes or so with a wooden spatula.  Be sure to scrape the bottom of the pan, and if you’re at all concerned about your onions burning, reduce the heat just a bit.

Add cognac and sherry to deglaze the pan, being sure to scrape up any brown bits and and combine.  Cook uncovered for 5 minutes.  Add wine, cook 20 minutes uncovered.  Add beef stock, increase heat to high, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a quarter of the way past low towards medium.  Add thyme and simmer for 20 minutes.  Add salt and pepper to taste, amount will vary based on seasoning content of stock.  I used approx 2 and 1/2 teaspoons of salt and probably 15 turns of fresh ground pepper.  Let simmer another five minutes, retest, and adjust if needed.  Remove bay leaves, then serve traditionally, topped with a crostini and shredded Gruyere, broiled for a quick minute or with toppings to the side.

I’m a big fan of the slow food movement.  If you’re not familiar and don’t want to read that wikipedia article, my 30 second summary of what slow food means to me is based on creating foods from start to finish using natural, less processed, more local, more seasonal ingredients to cultivate healthy, whole meals which are good for your body, nourish your soul, and create great conversation.  Now I live a very moderate lifestyle, meaning attempting to use moderation in all (most) that I do.  And I certainly don’t mean to insinutate that I never go through a fast food drive through.  Some things catch my attention in the prepared foods market, like the woman I witnessed seeking pimento cheese at the grocery today.  Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but pimento cheese has about five ingredients.  If you buy it preprepared, there’s also going to be preservatives and other stuff, and it’s stored in plastic, and you have to throw away (recycle) the container.  I’m not overly concerned by getting sick from plastic or food preservatives, but I know it will taste fresher and better if I made it myself.  And I get the satisfaction of my time in the kitchen.  I realize that not everyone derives as much joy from food prep as I do, and to you fellow groceryer, I am in no way insinuating that a market should not exist for you to purchase prepared foods.  I just love what I do, and this is what works for me.

So the dip is quick and the pitas are not.  Though if you’d asked me last week how to make homemade pitas, I would have shrugged and my initial thought would be that it would probably require a special oven or at a minimum, special equipment.  Internet, I am here to tell you – that is not true.  There in lies the power of food blogging.  I write this blog for me.  I love that people enjouy reading it, but it started because I thought someday I might like to write a cookbook.  Before this year I’ve never written any of my recipes down, and my recipe box probably contains a sad 25 note cards.  Plus, I could talk about food, think about food, read about food, and create food all day long and that gets boring for my loved ones.  I read a lot of blogs in the past several years, but ironically, no food blogs.  I had no idea how large and crowded this community was.  It’s a phenomenal wealth of information available for you, the Internet, free of charge.  I think the end result will be that we’ll all wind up phenomenollay better cooks, and more and more people will realize the pleasure of dining intertwined with the pleasure of creating.  So thank you google, and thank you FoodieFarmGirl, and all the others to be unveiled during my adventures in pita making and beyond.

Cannellini Bean, Artichoke, and Fresh Rosemary Dip adapted from Farmgirl Fare

1 can organic cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

1 can artichoke hearts (not the marinated kind!), rinsed and drained

2 very large cloves garlic, chopped

3 tbsp fresh lemon juice

4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1/3 c. finely grated fresh Pecorino Romano Cheese

1 tbsp chopped fresh Rosemary

ground sea salt

fresh ground pepper

Place first four ingredients in a food processor, pulse for 3 minutes, then turn to on for 3 more minutes.  Keep your food processor in the on position and drizzle olive oil through top to emulsify.  Pour contents to a bowl and stir in  rosemary and cheese until combined.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Chill for at least two hours, then serve on crostini or pita chips.

Luckily, my cooking – though at times extreme – seems unwavering.  When I wasn’t buried in a book this weekend, or gripped by an unnatural force to college football,  all the while in the background I’ve been cooking.  Much of it not blogworthy, but there are a few highlights I’d like to share.

Vegetable Soup as written in the earlier link was NAILED this week.  Out of the park.  Some days I’m self-deprecating, but this was phenomenal.  The ham shank was cooked for over 4 hours and the broth was delectable.  All the stock veggies, onions, carrots and celery, were sauteed in olive oil for about 10 minutes – together- before being added to the broth.  The corn was fresh – 4 ears, resulting in a phenomenal crunch leaving nothing to be desired.  I also sauteed the kernels briefly about five minutes before addition.  The new red potatoes?  Also sauteed briefly.  Everything’s better roasted?  Touché.  Everything’s better sauteed.  The flavor and freshness melted from this soup.  Do not skip these steps if you’re craving the best vegetable soup of your life.

Express Rice was a quick to the table version of the rice I was trying to make in Florida.  If you’re short on time, go with minute rice.  Use 1 and 1/2 c. minute rice and 2 c. chicken broth, but leave everything else the same ratios.  Only instead of simmering for 30 minutes, cover turn off the heat and let rest for 10 minutes.  A quick to the table way to rescue a bland minute rice side.

Family Barbecue Sauce has been successfully re-engineered.  Or at least closely.  It’s out of the park, but I’m keeping that recipe secret, cause I just may want to sell it.  Just wanted to let you know, I am working on stuff in the background.

And with that, I must sign off, cause I’ll be up until four anyway.  I *will* finish the third book of the Mortal Instruments series tonight.  See you tomorrow.

I’m sorry for disappearing so abruptly.  I just came home from Utah and then, well, life did what it seems to have a way of doing and straight took me out of the game.  Seriously you don’t want details, but I had some surgery and much to my dismay, it took just frankly took a truckload more to recover than I was expecting.  So, I’ve been out of the kitchen and off my feet.  It’s so nearly offensive when your body just fails you that often we find ourselves, or at least my family does, just plain hiding and sulking in a corner.  Or maybe not in a corner, but just unable to deliver your usual exuberance and zest for life.

But.  I’m happy to announce again, I’m back y’all.  And the kids return to preschool in a week so hopefully our lives will resume a semblance of normalcy.  I’ve missed you and I’ve missed my kitchen.

I like to fancy myself one of the old school members of our community.  You’re ailing, well the beach cures all.  Get thyself to the ocean, and HEAL.  Luckily the stars aligned and I had a beach vacation setup with my sweet family.  Loving husband could happily reside on a beach, in the surf each and every day, with just his fishing rod, swim shorts, some fresh shrimp for bait, and endless amounts of time.  So he did what he does best, one of the many things anyway, and caught dinner for us.  It wasn’t the year of the pompano, and I was off my a-game and didn’t have my proper spices, but it was still a fabulous dinner.  And it was fresh caught, ours, and didn’t cost $300.

Sweet husband will probably kick me for posting this photo of him with fish – but you have to see it in action to appreciate.  And when I say appreciate, I mean appreciate like the four exuberant toddlers who couldn’t wait to touch this fish.  Tiny pixie, aka junior fisherman in training seen in the corner of said photo, couldn’t have been more excited about this catch.  I’m pretty sure she informed all of Watercolor about daddy’s catch.  In fact, when said fish was caught, She was the deciding factor.  Sweet husband asked her if he should release it or if she wanted to eat it, and well – she was firm in her decision.  I’m raising a baby who loves food as much as her mama.

The rice pictured was all mine as well, but we had some miscommunication on the grocery list, not once but twice!  And wild rice it was.  I’m hear to tell you, Internet, Uncle Ben’s wild rice, still tastes like Uncle Ben’s even if you leave out the seasoning packet.  But thank you Daddy for making that second trip to the grocery, I’m sorry you were mislead.  If the stars had aligned properly, here’s the recipe on how I would have made it – but please note – your rice will look different if you make it with long grain white rice versus a wild grain mixture.

If you haven’t been to the Destin/Seaside/Florida panhandle area, here’s what you’ve been missing.  ALOT. 

Destin is my childhood.  It’s my sweetest memories, my most beautiful place, the place that makes me whole.  That’s my entourage in the photo,  *I* don’t do swimsuit photos!  But they’re all so cute how can you resist?

Oh yes, and our local Publix grocery didn’t carry my blackened seasoning of choice – Cajun’s Choice – I used the Old Bay plus Blackened Seasoning.  Cajun’s Choice is SPICY!  Old Bay is “seasoned”,  as my mother would say, not *hot* but flavorful.  Also, sweet husband wanted a point made that though catching the giant fish is much more fun, smaller fish are much much more tender and flavorful.

Blackened Redfish

5 lbs redfish fillets – I’m totally guessing here – it was a huge fish upwards of 20lbs, trimmed and cleaned heartily and fed 8 adults easily with leftovers

Blackened Seasoning

Kosher Salt

Olive oil

Clean and fillet fish or purchase that way from your fishmonger, (I like Rex.)  Drizzle with olive oil, rub olive oil evenly with your hand, then sprinkle with blackened seasoning and kosher salt.  Grill on medium heat for about 8 minutes per side, depending on thickness of fish.  I watch it until the edges are totally opaque, then flip.

Spanish Style Rice

1 and 3/4 c. Long Grain White Rice * see notes above

3/4 of white onion finely diced

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tomatoes, chopped

4 c. chicken stock

In a skillet, heat olive oil on medium heat.  Add rice and onion, cook 6 minutes, add garlic and cook 2 more minutes.  In a separate sauce pan, heat chicken stock to a boil, add tomatoes, then rice mixture.  Reduce heat to a low simmer and cook 30 minutes.  Test for texture and seasoning, adjust cooking time and salt/pepper as necessary.