Chili Seared Snapper with Jicama, Mango & Mint Salad

In my time away from home, two years to be exact, a crush of new restaurants have popped up. Classic French bistros, little cafés, Argentinean steak houses, oh-so-chic sushi spots, & food trucks galore. Needless to say, I've been plowing through these places as quickly as my wallet will allow. Lots of yummy stuff has stuck with me, bacon, avocado & re-fried bean tacos, beet home-fries, juicy pork buns, perfectly seared scallops, & an insane piece of snapper. Foie Gras Snapper seared in Lobster Oil to be exact. A rare appearance at a new-to-me, but well loved haunt, Buenos Aires Café this snapper, paired perfectly with a jicama & mango salad, has been taunting me all week. Foie Gras & lobster oil may be a bit decadent for a run of the mill weeknight dinner, but swap them out for a dash of truffle & chili oil & you've got yourself a tasty piece of snapper. Team it up with re-fried black beans* & a cool jicama & mango salad for a quick simple supper.

Chili Seared Snapper, for 2

1 1lb. red snapper fillet, skin on

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 tsp. truffle oil, divided

1 tsp. chili oil, divided

1/2 tsp. Old Bay seasoning, more to taste

1/2 tsp. All Purpose Greek Seasoning*

salt to taste

pepper to taste

Rub the fillet in half of the truffle & chili oils then rub it in Old Bay, Greek seasoning, salt and pepper. Heat the remaining oil along with the olive oil in a cast iron skillet. Sear the fillet for 3 - 4 minutes on each side or until white & flaky.

Jicama, Mango & Mint Salad, for 2

1 small jicama, peeled & sliced thinly

1 mango, cubed

2 - 4 tbsp. fresh mint, chopped

2 - 4 tbsp. cilantro, chopped

1 lime, juiced

1 - 2 tbsp. olive oil

salt to taste

Half the jicama & peel it. I find it easiest to set the halves face down & run a sharp knife down the sides until all the skin is gone. You loose a little more jicama flesh this way, but it's much faster than trying to peel it with a vegetable peeler. Once peeled, slice the jicama thinly. Set aside in a bowl. Peel & cube the mango. Toss in the bowl with jicama. Throw in the remaining ingredients & toss. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

*For quick but tasty re-fried black beans toss in a chopped poblano pepper & a minced clove of garlic with a can of re-fried black beans. A dash of cumin doesn't hurt either.

Balsamic Black Pepper Ice Cream with Strawberries

I missed this. I missed this little golden tub of perfect vanilla ice cream -- that can only be found in Texas. Well, I'm exaggerating, you can find it across most of the South East, but it was born & bread in Texas. I'm finally back in the land of Blue Bell. The land of Lone Star. The land of hot sun, cold springs, dusty roads, & big skies. I'm back in Texas. Finally.

Settling in, back into a routine, took a while. Longer than I expected. But I'm finally comfortable again. Comfortable in our sunny house. Our new home. Our first home. I'm gradually reacquainting myself with the kitchen as well. We hosted our first dinner party, of sorts, the other evening & I decided a dressed-up carton of that golden ice cream would be a fitting dessert. It was perfect, even if I we got lost in our wine & forgot to serve it. It was just as good the next morning for breakfast.

Balsamic Black Pepper Ice Cream, yields 1 pint

adapted from Nancy Silverton's A Twist of the Wrist

1 pint vanilla ice cream (best you can find)

2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar, plus more for serving

1/2 tsp. cracked black pepper

1 dzn. strawberries, quartered

1/2 c. sugar

Let the ice cream thaw for 5 - 10 minutes. Empty the carton into a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Reserve the carton. Set it on a slow speed & slowly drizzle the balsamic vinegar in. Add the pepper. Continue mixing until well combined, about 5 minutes. Pour the contents back into the carton & re-freeze, about 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, toss the quartered strawberries in a bowl with the sugar. Let sit until the sugar dissolves, about 20 minutes, and the strawberries slightly soften.

Garnish the ice cream with strawberries and a slight drizzle of balsamic vinegar.

Salted Fudge Brownies

There are books everywhere. The one puny book self was full ages ago. Now they're stacked along the walls. Under chairs. On the couch. They're everywhere. Fairy Tales and the Art of Subversion. Re-Enchantment. Funeral Customs. The Culture of the Copy. On the Origin of Stories. These all add up to a thesis ... eventually. After writing, reading, writing, and more reading for hours on end your brain kind of goes numb. Aside from a excess caffine, not much jolts your brain back into action like sugar.

With Ray hunkered down in the living room knee deep in papers, laptops, cords, pens and the like I escaped to the kitchen and tested out a new recipe: salted fudge brownies. These rich, chewy guys are, no joke, the best brownies I've ever had. These are it. I'm not sure how much they actually helped the writing process, but now, along with our mountain of books we have a happy pile of brownies.


Salted Fudge Brownies, makes about 16
adapted from Food & Wine
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
2 oz. unsweetened chocolate (I recommend Scharffenberger), finely chopped
1/4 c. unsweetened cocoa (I like Droste)
2 c. sugar
3 large eggs
1 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. instant espresso powder
1 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. sea salt

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 9-inch square metal cake pan with foil, draping the foil over the edges. Lightly butter the foil.

In a large saucepan (or better yet double boiler), melt the butter with the unsweetened chocolate over very low heat, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat. Whisking the dry ingredients together (cocoa, sugar, flour, & espresso powder) & thoroughly incorporate them into the chocolate/butter mixture. Add the eggs & vanilla. Pour the batter into the prepared pan & smooth the surface. Sprinkle the salt evenly over the batter. Using a butter knife, swirl the salt into the batter. Smooth the surface again if necessary.

Bake the fudge brownies in the center of the oven for about 35 minutes, until the edge is set but the center is still a bit soft & a toothpick inserted into the center comes out coated with a little of the batter. Let the brownies cool at room temperature in the pan for 1 hour, then refrigerate just until they are firm, about 1 hour. Lift the brownies from the pan and peel off the foil. Cut the brownies into 16 squares. Serve at room temperature. They're also quite good chilled - it intensifies the fudge-y texture.


One year ago: Spring Green Fritatta

Lazy Man's Eggs Benedict

Sunday morning breakfasts are something of a ritual around my house. Nothing fancy, but we always sit down for breakfast. Usually migas or a quick scramble land on the table, but this morning I went for broke. For some reason I decided it was a good day to attempt Hollandaise sauce. I'd never made it before -- probably because of my serious phobia of the stuff as a child -- & the sunny, tangy sauce sounded perfect for an uncharacteristically gray California morning. Who says it never rains in Southern California? Drenching a crisp piece of toast & a runny poached egg, our lazy man's eggs benedict almost made me forget the bleak April weather.

Lazy Man's Eggs Benedict, for two
2 large eggs, poached
2 pieces of toast
1/2 c. Sunny Hollandaise Sauce (see below)
a few dashes of tabasco

Toast the bread. To poach an egg, bring a small sauce pan of water to boil. Crack an egg into a small bowl or coffee cup. Once boiling, bring the water down to a hard simmer & slid the egg into the water. Cook for 2 minutes for a runny egg & 2.5 - 3 minutes for a harder egg. Remove from the water with a slotted spoon. Nestle on top of the toast & drizzle with Hollandaise sauce & a few shakes of tabasco.

Sunny Hollandaise Sauce, makes 1/2 c.
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 pinch salt
1 pinch cayenne
2 egg yolks
1/2 stick butter, melted

Bring a small sauce pan of water to a hard simmer. Meanwhile, whisk the eggs yolks & lemon juice until creamy. Place the bowl with the yolk/lemon mixture over the simmering water (making sure the water doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl) & continue to whisk constantly to avoid scrambling the eggs. Slowly incorporate in the melted butter & keep whisking. Once slightly thickened (about 1 minute) remove the bowl from heat & add the salt & cayenne pepper. Keep warm until you're ready to serve.*

*If a layer of skin forms on the sauce, give it a quick beating with a fork before serving.

One year ago: Spring BBQ Chicken, Ratatouille & Aus-Mex Migas Tacos

Chewy Oatmeal Chocolate Chocolate Cookies

Oatmeal chocolate chip cookies were a staple in my childhood. More often than not, a deep blue plate piled with little golden cookies was on the kitchen counter. And more often than not, that plate was reduced to crumbs by the day's end. They were the perfect cookie: not to crunchy, not too soft, not too sugary, not to bland. As I've mentioned before, as a child I was pretty sure my mom had magical baking powers.

Yesterday afternoon, stuck at work, it hit me: I need these cookies, NOW. If I don't get some fresh-out-of-the-oven cookies a.s.a.p. I'm going to lose it! Not sure where that craving came from, but there it was & it wasn't budging. So, faced with a serious cookie hankerin,' I culled up all the ingredients as soon as I walked through the door. An hour later, voilà , warm, chewy, chocolaty heaven!

Chewy Oatmeal Chocolate Chocolate Cookies, makes about 3 1/2 dzn.
1 c. butter, softened
1 c. packed light brown sugar
1/2 c. white sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
3 c. quick-cooking oats
1 c. chopped dark chocolate, about 1 bar (valrhona or scharffen berger both work well)
1 c. semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 325F.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar & white sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon & salt; stir into the creamed mixture until just blended. Mix in the quick oats, walnuts & chocolate chips. Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto parchment or foil lined baking sheets.

Bake for 12 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.


One year ago: Curry Deviled Eggs

Maple-Prosciutto Chicken with Brown Sugar Carrots

Can't get the kiddos to eat their veggies? Here's a fail-safe method for ensuring optimal veggie consumption: drench them in brown sugar & butter. I never was a terribly picky eater as a child, but there were one or two things I turned my nose up at (Raw tomatoes, no way! Olives, forget it!!). These sugary carrots were not among my food rivals.

I'd forgotten about these sweet little gems until recently. I was standing in the aisles of Trader Joe's with a giant bag of baby carrots in my hands trying to justify the purchase to myself ... well, I'll never eat this whole bag on my own ... they almost always go bad ... what would I even cook with baby carrots ... brown sugar carrots, of course!

The next dilemma, what on earth to eat with sweet veggies? Well, fried chicken & mashed potatoes are often teamed up with them, but I wanted to dress it up a bit. Adult-ify them, if you will. Crisp, salty-sweet, maple-y prosciutto wrapped chicken turned out to be the perfect partner for these sugary little carrots. Not to mention, if I may say, super yummy!!

Maple-Prosciutto Chicken, for 2
2 chicken breasts, boneless & skinless
4 slices prosciutto
1 shallot, minced
1 tbsp. unsalted butter
1 1/2 tbsp. maple syrup
1/4 c. white wine
salt to taste

Preheat the oven to 350F. Meanwhile, wrap the chicken breasts in cellophane & pound them (the back of a heavy skillet works wonders) until they're about 1/2" thick. Heat an oven proof skillet over medium heat and melt the butter.

While the butter melts, wrap the chicken breasts in prosciutto -- two slices of prosciutto per breast should be enough -- & press well. Simply pressing firmly should keep the prosciutto secure on the chicken, but use a tooth pick or two if necessary.

Next, toss in the shallot & a pinch of salt in with the butter. After a minute or so, add 1 tbsp. of the maple syrup. Brown the chicken breasts on each side, about 4 minutes per side. Then transfer the skillet to the oven for 2 - 3 minutes to cook through.

Finally, remove the skillet from the oven & set the chicken aside. De-glaze the pan with white wine & add the remaining syrup. Drizzle over the chicken & serve.


Brown Sugar Carrots, for 2
1/2 lb. baby carrots
1/4 c. brown sugar
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
a pinch of salt

In a medium sauce pan melt the butter. Once melted, toss in the sugar & combine. Then add the carrots & cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 15 minutes.

One year ago: Suprêmes de Volaille aux Champignons & Melanzane alla Parmigiana with Zucchini & Asparagus Crudi

Zebra Cake

I don't remember the first time this ice-box cake landed on the dinner table. All I remember is trying to wrap my young mind around the strange concoction. Was it ice cream? No. Was it some sort of pudding? No, not really. Was is cake? Well, I guess, but this was no ordinary cake. Creamy, cool, chocolaty - almost coconuty & zebra striped to boot, I was in love. How could simple whipped cream & thin chocolate wafers, after just a few hours in the fridge, turn into this!?

I assumed my mother possessed some magical dessert spell book (sometimes I still think she does), but it turns out, this cake has been gracing dinner tables for a better part of the 20th century. Sadly, the Famous Chocolate Wafer's popularity has waned & they're becoming nearly impossible to find in stores. After hitting up three different supermarkets I finally came across a cache of the cookies on the very top shelf of a cookie aisle in a local Albertson's. Not an easy thing to spot for a gal of just 5 feet, but well worth the hunt.

Zebra Cake or Famous Chocolate Wafer Cake
3 c. heavy cream
3 tbsp. sugar
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
2 (9 oz.) packages chocolate wafer cookies, 2 or 3 cookies reserved (for topping)

In a large bowl, beat cream, sugar and vanilla with an electric mixer on high speed until soft peaks form. Set aside.

Start with three or four cookies & spread a dollop of whipped cream between each, making something like little sandwiches -- think triple, quadruple, quintuple, decker oreos. Lay each cookie "sandwich" on its edge on a large platter. Continue the process, making rows of cookie & whipped cream "sandwiches," until you have a log shape.

Cover the cookie & whipped cream "sandwiches" with a layer of whipped cream, smoothing with a spatula. Crumble 2 or 3 cookies on top. Refrigerate for 4 -6 hours, then serve.

One year ago: Lemon Pepper Pappardelle with Parsnip Ribbons & Capers & Mother's Enchiladas

Toasted Marshmallow Milkshakes

Not to reinforce a girly trope, but I do not do taxes. 1040. 1040EZ. 1040 Schedule C. Schedule M. Form XYZ. If A, then B, on line C, minus line D ... come on! So confusing. After splurging on an accountant last year, Ray & I assumed we could simply follow her steps & do our own taxes this year - thereby saving $300! Sure, there would me much gnashing of teeth, but it seemed worth the 300 bucks. An hour or so in & several forms deep I was lost. My brain was fried & my nerves were frazzled, but Ray decided to plug on ahead. I knew he'd need some serious fuel to keep him afloat in a sea of deductions, calculators & woe. Lo & behold, nothing can make taxes more painless than a toasty marshmallow milkshake. Nothing! Except maybe an accountant.


Toasted Marshmallow Milkshakes, makes 1
adapted from Gourmet & Stand
3 scoops vanilla ice cream (the best you can find!)
1 tbsp. whole milk
I large dollop plain yogurt
5 Kraft Jumbo Jet-Puffed marshmallows
Whipped cream (optional)

Toast marshmallows under a broiler, or, if you're frisky, over a flame (think gas stove) until they just start to blacken evenly (the trick is to make sure it's evenly toasted and dark, but not turned to charcoal).
Put the milk, yogurt, & then ice cream in the blender. Blend carefully, just until you get a "donut"—when you see the shake holding to the sides of the blender with a hollow core. Then add 3 of the toasted marshmallows to the blender, & whirl it just until they're all broken up and distributed evenly. Be careful not to over-blend it, making it too melty.

Pour shake into a glass, top with a dollop of whipped cream, break the last two marshmallows on top, and serve with an extra-wide straw. Repeat if necessary. And it will probably be necessary.

One year ago: Strawberry Thyme Butter Cookies & Rosemary Boursin