Spicy Strawberry and Walnut Salad

Spring starts for me when the local fruit stand opens its doors for the season. Walking through the market and smelling all the fresh produce is something I look forward to all winter long. A couple weeks ago, while I was taking my usual Saturday stroll through the market I could smell the strawberries from an aisle away. Quickly grabbing my carton of berries I thought, "what would be better right now that an spinach and strawberry salad?" My answer, something sweet and spicy. The surprising taste of Cayenne pepper and brown sugared walnuts rounded off with a strawberry champagne vinaigrette added the zest needed for this sometimes boring salad.

Ingredients
Spicy Strawberry and Walnut Salad
1/2 c. sliced strawberries
1 c. baby spinach
1 tbsp. Spicy candied walnuts
1-2 tbsp. Strawberry champagne vinaigrette

Spicy candied walnuts
2 c. boiled water
1 c. chopped walnuts
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. granulated sugar
1 tbsp. Cayenne pepper

Strawberry Champagne Vinaigrette
1/4 c. Strawberry champagne vinegar
1/3 c. extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/4. tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Candied walnuts: pre heat oven to 400 degrees. Boil water over high heat. Mix all the dry ingredients into a 1 gallon zip lock bag. Place the walnut into a colander and pour boiling water over the walnuts and immediately transfer the walnuts into the zip lock back and toss to coat all of the nuts. Lay the coated nuts on a cookie sheet and place in oven for 5-6 minutes. Once the sugar mixture has baked, take out of the oven and set aside to cool.

I love all things made with chickpeas. I was at a friends house for dinner recently and she made an incredible hummus dip which incorporated fresh veggies, olive, oil and feta. She inspired me to try out my own special hummus spread; it was so good I embarrassingly ate the entire plate. I don't feel too guilty because it was (somewhat) healthy!

This is a great dip for any party and sure to be a crowd pleaser.

Ingredients

1 12oz. container hummus
1/2 c. seeded, diced ripe tomatoes
1/2 c. seeded, diced cucumber
1/2 c. chickpeas, casing removed
1/2 c. black olives chopped
3 scallions thinly sliced
1 tbsp. crumbled feta
1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

For this recipe I used store bought hummus, because, let's face it, some of the store bought stuff has gotten REALLY good lately. My two favorite brands right now are Athenos Neo Classic Hummus and Sabra Hummus. I don't think you could go wrong with either of them.

After all the veggies are chopped, diced, and slice, mix them together in a bowl. Pour hummus onto a plate and make a hole in the center. Scoop the vegetables into the whole. Sprinkle with the feta and olive oil and serve.

I like this with pita chips and other vegetables!

Pork Tenderloin in a Trois Berry Port Wine reduction

My favorite mix of flavors are sweet and savory. The tang of berries on my tongue mixed with the creaminess of butter sends my senses into a whirl. This Trois Berry Pork Tenderloin was a huge hit at a recent party I hosted. It's simple, delicious, and a perfect summertime meal.


Ingredients

1 tbsp. olive oil
2 lb. pork tenderloin
salt and pepper

Trois Berry Port Wine Reduction Sauce

2 tbsp. butter
1 shallot minced
1/3 c. dried mixed berries equal parts blueberries, cherries, & cranberries
1 c. Port wine
salt & pepper to taste

Pre-beat oven to 350 degrees.
Heat pan medium-high heat, add olive oil. Run pork tenderloin with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Brown all sides of the tenderloin. Insert an instant read thermometer and put tenderloin in oven and cook until internal temperature is 145 degrees.

When pork has reached the desired temperature remove from oven and set on plate to rest. In the same pan melt 1 tbsp butter and saute shallot until translucent. Add the dried berries and saute until soft. Add port wine and reduce to 3 tbsp. liquid.

Slice the tenderloin on a bias and pour the reduction sauce on top. Serve with your favorite vegetable. Mine was with sauteed green beans with toasted almonds.

You Scream, I Scream

One of my favorite things in the entire world is ice cream! Who can argue that this is one of the most delicious treats bestowed on earth. For years I've wanted to tackle the challenge of making my own ice cream. As a child, I used to beg my parents to make it, but according to my mom, it was "too much work".

Now that I have my own ice cream machine, she must have thought ice cream was churned manually over salt, because I can't imagine many things requireing so little work and time and produce such an amazing result.
Here is my recipe for homemade Chocolate Ice Cream

Ingredients
2 c. whole milk
3 egg yolks
2/3 c. vanilla sugar
pinch of salt
1 16 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 c. half and half
1 c. heavy whipping cream

In a sauce pan heat milk over medium/low heat. Hot enough to steam, but not boil. Add the sugar and salt. Temper the egg yolks and slowly add to the milk mixture. Stir in the chocolate chips until completely melted.

Remove from heat. Pour the chocolate mixture into a bowl. Add the half and half and cream. Mix to combine. Place bowl in ice bath and cool until at least 60 degrees. Pour mixture into a frozen ice cream machine and churn for 35 minutes.

Equipment
Sauce pan
spoon
bowl (2)
ice cream machine

Oh my, Gnocchi

We've all been there. Standing in the grocery store with no idea what to make for dinner. You wander through the produce department looking at seasonal specials then head over to the butcher too see what looks fresh, but the real problem is you don't have an appetite for anything, but you're hungry, then suddenly something sparks your interest; a certain spice, or cut of meat, and you go wild gathering all the ingredients.

My spark was the cover of Food and Wine's April issue; a beautiful picture of Meyer-Lemon Gnocchi. The best part of my adventure to the grocery store was all I had to buy were two Yukon Gold potatoes.

First of all, I completely went on impulse when choosing this dish. I have never made gnocchi nor have I ever eaten it at a restaurant. I was blindly going into this with only visions of a pretty picture.

Wow, was I in for a surprise.

I started peeling the potatoes on Wednesday night at 6pm. The recipe said it only took an hour and 15 minutes. I thought to myself, "Perfect, it'll be ready to go before 7:30pm". Once the potatoes were in the boiling water I started to make the lemon egg mixture. Easy. Gnocchi was going to be a piece of cake.

I get the potatoes out of the water and into the food mill. Perfect texture! I pour the lemon egg mixture over the potatoes and stir into a gooey substance. In goes the flour. Awesome, a dough, just like the recipe said.

The recipe said,

Gently roll the dough into four 1/2-inch-thick ropes. Using a sharp knife, cut
each rope into 1/2-inch pieces. Roll each piece against the tines of a fork to
make ridges. Transfer the gnocchi to the baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap
and refrigerate.

What the recipe didn't say was this process was going to take an hour and fifteen minutes itself. I had a large cutting board covered in ropes of dough, and cutting it into pieces was fine, but do you know how long it takes to roll each individual gnocchi around a fork? Forever!

I had three burners on trying to be "Master of the Gnocchi", one fore boiling the gnocchi, another for pan searing, and other for the lemon butter sauce. I had three backing sheets covered with gnocchi at all different stages, pre-boiled, pre-seared, and awaiting sauce.

When I was finally ready to start browning the gnocchi, I thought the recipe said melt 1 stick butter...so I did. I added my first batch (out of 5) into the pan. I didn't think it looked right, there was way too much butter, so I looked at the recipe again. Doh! It's only 1 tablespoon.

I quickly scooped out the gnocchi and poured the remaining melted butter into a bowl and only kept 1 tablespoon. The gnocchi had to be thrown out, but I had 4 more batches to go, so no worries.

Once all the gnocchi was browned, I placed it in a large serving bowl and poured the lemon butter mixture on top. My long awaited first bite was finally here...two and a half hours later.

As the gnocchi touched my tongue I was hoping for a spectacular sensation for my taste buds, but alas, disappointment. I realized I don't like gnocchi. All that hard work for a dish I'm not a big fan of.

Jeff came home and devoured it. His only suggestion was to add some meat...grill chicken perhaps. After my 2 and half cooking extravaganza, I thought I would be more disappointed because I didn't like the meal, but it was just another learning experience and one not to be repeated.

Slow Sunday: Irish-American Style

Corned beef and cabbage seems to be the first choice for Americans celebrating St. Patrick's day. Two years ago when I was in Ireland I couldn't wait to indulge in two Irish meals: Traditional Irish Breakfast and corned beef and cabbage. While I didn't go one day with out my Irish breakfast of one fried egg, a slice of bacon (think Canadian style with out the smoke), a halved tomato, beans, black pudding, and sausages, I couldn't find corned beef and cabbage anywhere or on any menu!

When I asked locals from Dublin to Galway about where to find this delicious meal, they all gave me a chuckle and said it may be popular in the U.S. but not necessarily in Ireland.

I'll be honest, as excited as I was for an Irish breakfast it was probably the only meal in Ireland I enjoyed, except for the beans, black pudding, and sausages, so really the only thing I ate was the egg, tomato, and bacon.

I'm not sure Corned beef and cabbage is really all that Irish, but is sure is tasty!

I cheated slightly with this recipe. I bought a Boar's Head corned beef brisket which was already been brined in salt, then it came with it's own seasoning package of coriander, bay leaves, all-spice seeds, and some other goodies.

Corned Beef and Cabbage

1 Boar's Head 1st Cut Corned Beef Brisket- approx. 3 lbs. uncooked
12 bite size red potatoes, whole
5 large carrots, peeled and chopped
1/2 large peeled onion diced
1 medium cabbage, cut into wedges

Remove corned beef from bag and place in uncovered Dutch oven, with spices up. Cover with 2 inches of cold water. Bring water to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and allow to simmer slowly for 2 hours. Add vegetables and continue to simmer with lid on for 1 hour, or until meat is fork tender and vegetables are done.

Equipment:
Dutch oven

Carolina Ribs

Living in St. Louis we have a very distinct rib style, conveniently named St. Louis Style Barbeque. This summer I traveled to Charleston South Carolina and experienced Carolina Style barbeque and fell in love.

Being the huge fan of vinegar that I am, it was an easy transition from the tomato based, sweet and spicy barbeque sauce I'm more familiar with to the tangy mustard, vinegar, and brown sugar sauce.

Last night I decided to venture into the unknown and make Carolina Style Ribs. The plan didn't go as smoothly as I had hoped, but the outcome was delicious!

Carolina Style Barbeque Sauce
1.5 c. apple cidar vinegar
1 c. yellow mustard
1 tsp. tomato paste
3 tbsp. dark brown sugar
2 cloves garlic minced
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp. smoked papricka
1 tsp. worcestershire sauce

Preheat oven to 350. Place ribs in pan and cover in a high quality apple cidar. Cover with aluminum foil. Place in over and cook for 2 hours. Remove ribs and place on a pan rack above the apple cidar.

Mop ribs with sauce, cover, and place back in oven. Re-apply sauce every 20 minutes 4 times. Total 1hour and 20 minutes in oven.

For the smoky rib flavor light a grill (low heat) and grill ribs for 20-30 minutes.

Cut and serve.

Reuben me the right way

In all honesty, I'm not a sandwich person. If I'm at home I'll heat up a hot dog before I make myself a sanduíche. Although, there is one exception to this rule, my ever-loving Reuben.

There is much debate where this masterpiece of rye, corned beef, Swiss, Thousand Island dressing, and sauerkraut originated, but I do know it's one sandwich not to be messed with. And besides, it's a perfect blend of Irish (corned beef) and German (sauerkraut) just like me!

Saint Louis has is richly diverse in both Irish and German heritage and delivers a plethora of delicious Reuben sandwiches, however only two stand above the rest.

Pumpernickel's Deli and McGurk's Irish Pub.

Pumpernickel's offers one of the largest Reuben's I have ever eaten and I always order a half. It it grilled to perfection and is messy with 1000 Island dressing...It's a five napkin minimum sandwich.

Our Reuben: The Real Thing! Corned beef, kraut, Swiss, 1000 island, on rye
......................8.25......... 11.25

McGurk's Irish Pub is an easier eating version of the sandwich, but does not
lack in taste. The Reuben here is a destination in itself.

Steamship-style corned beef, sauerkraut, Thousand Island dressing, Swiss on toasted rye. $7.95

Mini-Meatball Sandwiches

I had big plans tonight to make specular Mini Meatball sandwiches, but my plans were a bust, particularly because I didn't want to drive half way across town to buy ground veal. If you ask any true Italian cook, 1 part ground beef, 1 part ground pork, and 1 part ground veal is the only way to make Italian meatballs.

Oh, well. I only look Italian so like any good impostor, I improvised. I can happily say dinner tonight was a success and something worth sharing. Jeff asked for seconds and my friend who came over to eat complimented me on not just the meatballs, but the homemade marinara!!!

Mini-Meatball Sandwiches

1 lb. ground Angus beef
3/4 lb. Italian sausage
1 egg
1/3 c. Italian bread crumbs
1 c. freshly shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano
Salt and Pepper

Marinara:

1 tablespoon richly favored olive oil
1 shallot minced
3 cloves garlic minced
40 oz. canned diced Italian tomatoes
1 tsp. freshly chopped oregano
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried rosemary
salt and pepper

Meatballs: Remove Italian sausage from casing. Mix in all ingredients. Shape into equally sized balls. Brown all sides in a non-stick pan over medium heat. Once meatballs are browned, place in a 350 degree oven for 25 minutes or until cooked thoroughly.

In sauce pan, heat oil and saute garlic and shallot until tender. Add remaining ingredients and simmer until reduced by almost half. About 30-40 minutes. After sauce has reduced, run it through a food mill to grind down the diced tomatoes.

Place cooked meatballs into the marinara sauce. Poor desired meatball amount over hoagie bun and cover with Provolone cheese. Place in low broiler for 5 minutes and serve!

Desired cooking equipment:
Small spring scoop
Food mill
Sauce pan
cookie sheet
non-stick pan

Slow Sunday 1

Sunday is a funny day of the week. I think of it as the ulitmate relaxation day. It's also a family day when my husband and I enjoy hanging out at home and resting before our hectic weeks begin. Sunday nights are usually spent at the kitchen table discussing improvements on the house, upcoming appointments, or travel. What pulls my Sundays together is food; a chance for me to try out new ideas and a day dedicated to taking my time. Slow Sundays.

Tonight I made an outstanding dinner and invited my friends over to share. This is a classic recipe which won a big thumbs up from my husband Jeff. I get a lot of requests for repeat meals and this is always on the top of the list.

Cabernet Pot Roast

1 3lb. Chuck Roast, trimmed and cubed
2 slices bacon diced
2 carrots diced
2 celery stalks diced
1 large onion diced
2 c. Cabernet sauvignon
1 c. beef stock
3 tbsp. corn starch
2 Bay leaves

Salt and pepper to taste

3 carrots sliced
3 large potatoes diced
1 10oz bag of frozen peas

Start with one 3 lb Chuck Roast.

Trim all the fat and cut into bite size pieces (not too small otherwise it will turn into mush).

Season chuck roast with salt and pepper then Brown and set aside.


Brown 2 slices thick cut diced bacon. Render the fat then add in 2 stalks celery diced, 2 carrots diced, 1 large onion diced. Cook until tender.



Add chuck roast back to pot. Stir in 4 tbsp. Cornstarch and two Bay leaves.



Stir in 2 cups good Cabernet Sauvignon and 1 cup veal stock or beef stock. (This particular time I used store bought stuff b/c I didn't realize I had run out).



Place in oven at 300 degrees for two hours.

After two hours add in 3 large potatoes (bite size), 3 carrots sliced, and 1 10oz bag frozen peas.

Place back in oven for another hour or until potatoes and carrots are tender (but not mushy!).

Mahlzeit!

Equipment:
Chef knife
Porcelin coated cast-iron dutch oven

Shakespeare's Pizza in St. Louis

This is great news for Shakespeare's Pizza fans...For the first time ever, Shakespeare's is offered in St. Louis!!! Really, at Domain Street Wine Bar in New Town at Charles.

For everyone not familiar with this Mecca of pizza, Shakespeare's originated 31 years ago in Columbia, MO and it's been a destination point for any college go-er or visitor since the doors opened in the 1970's. Although the popularity and the loyalty to this pizza has not wavered, Shakespeare's has never expanded passed the boundary lines of Boone County...until now.

Pizza's are delivered weekly to Domain Street Wine Bar and are baked to order. The pizza's available are sausage, pepperoni, and extra cheese (my personal favorite) and on Monday and Tuesday nights they have a $5 pizza special.

Driving to Columbia on a weekend just for Shakespeare's Pizza is worthy trek in itself, but now it's a whole lot easier to indulge in this "slice of heaven" pizza pie any day of the week.

Adopt an Olive Tree

A couple months ago my husband Jeff was paging through Sauce Magazine and came across an article about adopting olive trees in Italy. We immediately jumped on the opportunity and $130 later (65 pounds to be exact) we were proud owners of a fruit producing olive tree. With the idea in our heads that we would have to clean out pantry to store all our jugs of oil we were slightly dissapointed with ourselves when we realized were were only going to be recieving 2 liters of oil a year.

Regardless I think it's a great idea. Moments after we pressed the purchase button we recieved a personalized confirmation notice and a week later a hand written thank you card with a certificate of adoption. We also recieved a small booklet with details about the certain species of olive tree we adopted. We have yet to recieve our oil because it arrives in the spring and autumn, but we can't wait!

There are plenty of Italian olive trees that still need adopting. If you're interested in learning more or adopting your own tree check out Nudo at http://www.nudo-italia.com/

Pan Roasted Pork Chops with Cranberry and Wine pan sauce

Tonight I wanted to played with pan sauces. Trying to think of something new tonight I walked into my pantry and looked in the refrigerator and had the perfect ingredients for a new pan sauce. The best part, it was easy, fast, and a success. Definitely an original recipe I'll make again!



Pan Roasted Pork Chops with Cranberry & Wine Sauce:

Two thick center cut pork chops
2 tbsp. olive oil
Salt & Pepper to taste

Sauce
1 shallot minced
1 clove garlic minced
1/3 c. wine wine
1/2 c. beef stock
1/3 c. dried cranberries

Heat oil over medium heat. Salt and pepper both sides of the pork chops. Place pork chops in pan and cook on both sides until internal temperature reaches 150 degrees. Set pork chop aside to rest.

Add minced shallot and garlic to pan stir till translucent. Deglaze pan with wine. Add beef stock and cranberries and reduce by half. Add any additional juices from pork chops into the sauce. Pour over the pork chops and serve.

Table For One

Whether I am reading through a classic like The Professional Chef, skimming Saveur, or watching the Food Network, every recipe seems to be capable of feeding a family of ten. I live by myself…kind of (my girlfriend spends a lot of time at my apartment). Therefore, unless I am entertaining, I have little use for recipes that feed more than two people. When I first started cooking for myself I would end up with weeks worth of leftovers or $30 worth of unused ingredients. So I set out to create tricks to cooking for one (or two). “Table for One” is my means to share these ideas.

In the beginning there was food

I wish I could start by saying I have loved to cook for as long as I can remember. That I loved being in the kitchen with my mother making banana bread and cookies and she taught me every thing my grandmother taught her. I wish I could say I have grew up knowing I was suppose to be a chef.

The truth is I didn't learn to boil water until I went to college. I could make a crazy bowl of Kraft Mac & Cheese and an unbeatable Bagel Bites, but that's as far as my culinary skills took me. My grandmother was a German immigrant and her first job (of 15+ years) in the United States was being a live-in cook, unfortunately she didn't teach anyone her tricks of the the trade. My mother to this day does not enjoy being in a kitchen.

My love of food started in my early 20s when I asked for a crock pot and a blender for Christmas. I thought I was ready to cook after a couple episodes on the Food Network showed me cooking wasn't as challenging as I believed it to be and was less expensive than ordering Shakespeare's Pizza every night.

Since then, my curiosity for cooking has turned into a fiery passion. Most of my knowledge is self taught through culinary text books and cook books. I have taken some chef taught classes, but most importantly I've learned through trial and error.

I love to cook because it allows me to use my imagination to create delicious dishes I can share with others. Gathering around a kitchen table drinking wine and telling stories over a mouth watering meal is when I am happiest. After a long day at work nothing relaxes me more than trying out a new recipe I thought up during the day or making a family favorite.

This blog is dedicated to food and everything food inspired. There is no goal or objective. This is our insight into food on our culinary journey.