Deb's Key West Wine & Gardening

Let's Take A Dip!

2008-10-13T13:09:00.004-05:00

It's the Fall Season, although you could not tell that here in Key West, and time for one of my favorite Sunday pastimes - Football! We have football games on our TV from noon on Sunday till 10 pm Sunday night. I do not necessarily sit in front of the TV for all of it, but I do keep my eye on the games. So every Sunday I try to think of a good football meal. Sometimes we have chili or BBQ ribs, but one of the fun things is the appetizer before the big football meal. I want to share one of my favorite "crowd pleaser" dips that I whipped up yesterday. This dip is so good and only takes about 10 minutes to assemble. It holds well in the fridge so you can make it way ahead of serving.

Mexican Layer Dip

I use a pie plate to serve this in as it is easy to pass since it has handles on the sides and it seems to be just the right size!

Just layer

1 half a can of refried beans

About 3/4 cup of guacamole

About 3/4 cup of salsa

About 3/4 cup of sour cream

Sprinkle over this about 1/4 cup of sliced black olives

Sprinkle over this about 3/4 cup of shredded cheese

Then sprinkle one or two chopped tomatoes

And lastly I put about 4-6 chopped green onions on top

Serve with your favorite tortilla chips

Notice I say "about". It is up to you to decide how much you would like your layers to hold. If you need more dip, use a bigger dish and increase the quantities of layers. Also for your fans who like it "hot", you could add some hot chili peppers into one of the layers and also sprinkle some hot sauce over the dip. See how versatile this dip can be. Best of all it is fast and flavorful!

Cheers!

Tis' The Season - Soon!

2008-10-08T13:30:00.005-05:00

OK, maybe I am rushing the season a bit, but so are the stores. Could not resist this peal and stick on your window snowman at Home Depot the other day. They were getting ready for Christmas so I thought I might as well also!

Speaking of seasons...winter is not far off and that is tomato season here in Key West. This beauty is "off and running"! I usually do not put in my tomatoes until November, but maybe this year I will get a head start on my crop.

Hope all is well with everyone!

Cheers!

Key West Afternoon

2008-09-29T17:42:00.003-05:00

Off the back deck on a Key West afternoon!

Waterspout in its glory!

Cheers!

New Addition

2008-09-16T09:15:00.004-05:00

Hi Everyone! Yep it's me. Sorry I have not been much of a blogger lately as I still am suffering Blog Block. I do want you to know that I visit all of you every week and you guys still rock with all that wonderful food you are preparing! Hopefully I will get back into the food groove again soon!

Meanwhile, we have had a busy storm season so far with Fay, Gustov and last week Ike. Needless to say, I just keep cleaning up. You would think after Fay and Gustov there would not be much else to come off of the trees, but not so. Ike did a number on my little side garden as he took my two big shade ficus trees down. So now my little shady retreat has turned into a sauna. Time for a "redo" of the side garden. I have also been spending quite a bit of time at the garden club I belong to as the storms have done a number there also.

Yes, another abandoned cat has found a new home. Guess where!!!
When they look through the door, as you can see below, I cannot resist!
So our new stray tenant is called Ollie and Ollie loves to EAT! We lost both of our cats, Fang and Hobo last year so Ollie is a very welcome new addition.

Hope all is well with everyone and I will be back soon!

Cheers!

Green Hat Lady In Key West

2008-07-10T14:07:00.002-05:00

Paul Klee said that he knew when a painting was finished - when he stopped looking at it, and it started looking back...

Hope all is well in your world!

Cheers!

Back Into The Creative Mode

2008-06-21T12:57:00.003-05:00

Hello to all! Well the "creative juices" have leaped into action, but not in the food department. I am into being creative with my paint brush instead of a spatula. After almost 2 years, I picked up my brushes, paint, and canvases and I am back painting. The lady with the green hat has been the focus of my attention this past week and is taking shape. Hopefully I will be finished with her within the next week or so and will gladly introduce you to her at that time.

The garden is surviving our summer sun so far with 88 degree days and nights getting down to 82. That sun is HOT! Some of the herbs and peppers are loving the bright, hot and long days of summer, but not much else in the veggie department. I am sure though that the rest of you up north are starting to reap the rewards of your gardens about now. Would like to hear what is ready in your garden!

Speaking of gardens, I must go for now as I think I hear quite a few of my residents shouting for a bit of water!

Cheers!

Jake In The Key West Garden

2008-06-01T09:33:00.007-05:00

Just in case you all do not remember, this is my best pal in the garden, Jake. Jake disappeared during hurricane Wilma a fews years ago. I was extremely upset when I went out after the storm to clean up to find that Jake was gone! Mysteriously, while cleaning out a closet in the hall a while back, I found Jake in a computer box in the closet! Not sure how he got there, but I guess he headed for safety some way or another during the storm. Jake is my magical man!

Jake cannot decide whether he wants to get all the way into the rosemary pot or not.

He does finally makes up his mind and starts to make the climb.

Jake is now thrilled that he decided to get all the way into the pot of rosemary, as he can view the whole garden from this vantage point!

Learning some lessons from Jake.

Still regrouping...back to you all soon!

Cheers!

Time For A Blogging Break

2008-05-16T11:03:00.002-05:00

Things have been a bit hectic around here this week. All of the tomatoes have been harvested, in fact pretty much everything has been harvested except all of the herbs and hot peppers. They love the heat! So it has been a busy week with the garden. Our son Chris is packing up and getting ready to head to Maine next week, as he is going to be the chef at an artist retreat! This whole deal sounds wonderful to me and I wish I was one of the artists! Chris has been occupying our VERY small kitchen the past few weeks working on new meals so I have not had the opportunity to cook like I usually do. I am not complaining, as we are the lucky recipients of these great tasty new dishes he is creating! So, needless to say, things are busy around here. Therefore I have decided to take a blog break. I need to regroup and will be back in a couple of weeks with some more cookbook reviews, much neglected wine reviews, and some new dishes for your summer picnics!

Cheers to all and I will see you in a couple of weeks!

"Serious" In The Garden

2008-05-12T16:07:00.006-05:00

It is another Monday, another beginning. At the REAL beginning of the day, like before the sun shines it's beautiful warm rays down upon us, this gem shines down on us.

This graceful bloom belongs to the "Night-Blooming Cereus" cactus. But to catch it's smiling face, you must be up at the break of dawn. This charming cactus resides at the edge of our property in the back where on warm summer nights it dances!

Another gem that shines is among our blogging community! I want to thank Gloria over at Canela's Kitchen for giving me this award! Visit Gloria's site and you surely can feel the love that she shares with all of us! "Thank You Gloria"!!!!

Cheers!

Key West Garden Prize Winner ?

2008-05-09T09:39:00.004-05:00

What is smaller than an M&M ?

How about the latest ripe tomato in the garden! I must say, it takes ALOT to make a salad!

Have a great weekend! Get out there and plant something in your garden!

Cheers!

Super Supper Sides!

2008-05-05T16:30:00.010-05:00

A few weeks ago Peter at Kalofagas-Greek Food And Beyond decided to do a few posts on side dishes since lately he seemed to be concentrating mostly on main dishes. Good idea Peter since BBQ and picnic season is upon us! Even Marie at Proud Italian Cook jumped on the bandwagon with her suggestions for a few sides. Hop on over and check on these super sides! Too yumptious guys!!!

As you can see, Mike fired up the smoker again this weekend and smoked a beef brisket that was tender and mouthwatering. He even threw a couple of our cayenne peppers on to smoke! So, I thought I would share with you the side dishes that worked well with our smoked beef brisket and would be great at any outdoor BBQ or picnic!

The first tasty side is Succotash Salad With A Creamy Basil Dressing

½ lb. green beans, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces
1 cup of frozen baby lima beans
1 15 oz. can red kidney beans rinsed and drained
1 cup of frozen yellow corn thawed or you could use fresh corn, say about 2 large ears
½ cup chopped green onions
1 chopped seeded cayenne pepper
For the dressing:
¾ cup coarsely chopped fresh basil
½ cup plain Greek nonfat yogurt
¼ cup light mayonnaise
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

Bring a large pan of water to a boil and add the lima beans. Cook them for about 2 minutes then add the green beans and cook about 4 minutes longer. Drain and rinse under cold water, drain well. Transfer these to a large bowl and add the corn, beans, onions and cayenne pepper.
Puree your basil, yogurt, mayo and vinegar in a blender. Add this dressing to your bean mixture and toss well. Salt and pepper to taste.
This is so easy and flavorful. I make mine a little ahead of time so the flavors can really get a hold of each other!

Next up is a Summer Black Bean Pasta Salad

¾ cup uncooked elbow pasta – cook this, drain and rinse under cold water, drain and set aside.
1-1/2 cups of halved grape tomatoes
1 cup peeled and diced avocado
1 cayenne pepper chopped
½ cup chopped cucumber
1/3 cup chopped red onion
2 heaping tablespoons of chopped fresh cilantro
1 15 oz. can of black beans rinsed and drained
2 teaspoons of lime zest
2-1/2 tablespoons of fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon of cider vinegar
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 teaspoon of bottled minced garlic
Salt and pepper to taste

In a medium bowl add your tomatoes, avocado, pepper, cucumber, onion, cilantro, beans and pasta, toss.
Combine your lime zest, juice, vinegar, garlic and oil in a bowl and mix well with a whisk. Add this dressing to your veggie bowl, toss well.
I let this one set also and WOW, those flavors are a real picnic in your mouth!

Last, but definitely not least, have on hand for a real treat, fresh cherry tomatoes from your own garden!!!! What a harvest those have been this year for me and, of course, they all come ripe at the same time! But, these little gems are just wonderful to snack on while you are firing up the grill!

Hope everyone is enjoying Spring !!!!
Cheers!

Smokin' Chicken

2008-04-29T12:49:00.008-05:00

Bummer! Due to “inclement” weather, mainly THE WIND, no kayaking this weekend. Saturday’s winds were 25-30 mph and Sunday in the morning we had rain, of which we could use as it has not rained in weeks but, it has to do it the day we plan to head out on the water! So instead, we fired up the ol’ smoker again! We cannot kayak, but we sure can eat!

I must tell you, if you do not have a smoker, you might just want to think about investing in one. They are very inexpensive and put out some pretty darn good food. The nice thing about them, they can be used as a grill or smoker! One of my favorite books to go along with my smoker is “Smoke and Spice” by Cheryl and Bill Jamison. They have lots of great recipes for rubs, mops, marinades, side dishes, desserts and a few good drink recipes to sip as you are smokin’ your dinner!

I wonder what these two birds are saying to each other before the lights go out and the heat cranks up? Whatever it was must have been good as these birds were terrific!

I was reading “Smoke and Spice” the other night and came upon “Chicken on a Throne”! This is a classic recipe as you grill or smoke your chicken atop a can of beer! Now how cool is that! The night before smoking the birds I made a rub from paprika, black pepper, salt, sugar, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder and a nice heap of cayenne pepper. Next I made an injection liquid from beer, coconut oil, cider vinegar and some of the rub. I injected the birds and then rubbed them down with the rub mixture, sealed those guys in plastic bags and into the fridge for the night.
Next afternoon we cranked up the smoker with charcoal and hickory wood blocks that we soaked for a few hours, opened 2 beers, drank one and then divided the beer between the two cans. To that I added a chopped onion, chopped garlic and a bit of cider vinegar. Placed chickens “on their thrones”, lid on and lights out for the birds, for about 4 hours.

Birds are complete and resting on their thrones in the kitchen awaiting the platter where they will rest and then be consumed! These chickens were smoky, but not heavily, and so moist and tender. No dry chicken at all!

With the smoked chicken I served a simple potato salad, a cucumber salad and a warm dish of:

Black Eyed Peas & Tomatoes

1 Can of Black Eyed Peas, rinsed and drained
1 Medium onion chopped
2-3 Cloves of garlic chopped
2 Tablespoons of coconut oil
2 Teaspoons of dried thyme
1 Heaping tablespoon of fresh thyme (optional)
1 Bay Leaf
1 14 oz. can chopped tomatoes with juice
½ cup of white wine
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1-2 Cayenne peppers chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste

Heat oil in skillet over medium heat adding the onion and cayenne pepper. Sauté for about 4 minutes. Add garlic, bay leaf, and thyme and stir for another minute. Now add the tomatoes and wine. Simmer until sauce thickens, about 25 minutes. Add the black eyed peas and parsley, cook until heated through. Discard bay leaf, add salt and pepper to taste.
This is a tasty easy side dish that goes well with any of your favorite BBQ recipes.

Now our week moves along with plans to attempt kayaking again this weekend! We will get there!!!!
Cheers!

Mapping Out The Route!

2008-04-25T16:06:00.008-05:00

It has been an uneventful week in the cooking department, except for this beauty!

Mike over at Mike’s Table featured on a post last week the most handsome and succulent looking duck – I had to have one! But, instead of roasting ours, we pulled out the smoker and smoked this baby for about 4 hours. Need I tell you how it tasted!!!

Now the eventful part of this week has been planning a kayak trip for the weekend. It is the time of year that is perfect for kayaking as the water has warmed up and the daytime temps are staying comfortable so you do not feel like a duck being roasted out there in the full sunshine! The only thing we are watching is the wind. It is quite a challenge to try to paddle with 25 mph winds slapping you in the face. Great if your back is to the wind and you are only going one way, but the trips are out and back so you will be facing the wind at some point. Yes I know, don’t be a wimp, but I am. I go for the pleasure, not the exercise! So today I am keeping my fingers crossed that the winds lay down tomorrow so we can head out early. The weather is so great here this time of year that I find it hard to stay indoors!

Not only have I been studying my kayak book, but have directed my attention to the native trees and shrubs in the Florida Keys. I have a wee bit of space on our property so I plan to plant some natives. Also, since I am heavily involved with the Key West Garden Club, I am attempting to learn all about keeping the native foliage in our area!

So there you have it! I plan to be back in the kitchen again this week with cookbook in hand and, hopefully, a successful recipe and book review to share with you.
Have a great weekend and do not forget to have a nice glass of wine to start the end of your day!

Cheers!

My 10th Book Review With A Bowl of Soup!

2008-04-21T15:14:00.005-05:00

A favorite book of mine for many years, as it is all about gardening AND cooking, is “The Moosewood Restaurant Kitchen Garden, Creative Gardening for the Adventurous Cook” by David Hirsch. David’s book is well rounded as it gets you involved in the entire process of cooking from planting to putting the food on the table. David’s first encounter with the restaurant was as a gardener who supplied them with fresh basil. David eventually began cooking at the restaurant but still supplied the restaurant with herbs, flowers, and rare specialty produce as organic gardening is one of his passions.
In his chapter on vegetables, he has a section for each veggie. In that section he tells a bit about that veggie, how to start it from seed or planting, cultural requirements, harvest, and culinary tips. He has a wonderful chapter on herbs sharing with us how to grow, culinary tips, and some interesting ways to use herbs besides in food, such as potpourri recipes. His next chapter focuses on edible flowers. It is packed full of information on how to grow these flowers and culinary tips on how to use them. David’s next chapter delves into the design of your garden. Lot’s of great info in this chapter on patterns, plant selection, and maintenance. Chapter 5 gets into the technique portion, such as soils, mulch, seed starting, buying the plants, transplanting, bug and disease control and much more.
One of my favorite chapters, of course, is the one that has the recipes. I want to share with you one of the soups that I adapted from David’s selection.

Portuguese Kale Soup

1 can of great northern beans, drained and rinsed
3 tablespoons coconut oil
1 teaspoon ground fennel seeds
1 medium onion chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1-2 fresh cayenne peppers, finely chopped
1 medium potato chopped
1 large carrot chopped
1 parsnip chopped
1 can of chopped tomatoes, drained
6 cups vegetable or chicken stock
2 large bay leaves
2-3 tablespoons fresh oregano chopped or 1 tablespoon dried
10-12 sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil drained and chopped
1 bunch of fresh kale (about 4 cups) chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat your oil in a pot, add the fennel seeds and stir for a minute, then add the onion and cayenne pepper. Sauté for about 3 minutes. Add the garlic stirring for another minute. Now add the potato, carrot and parsnip. Sauté these for a couple of minutes then add your tomatoes, stock, bay leaves and oregano. Simmer all of these for about 10 minutes.
Now it is time to add your sun-dried tomatoes, kale and beans.
Simmer all of these for 10-15 minutes. Taste and add your salt and pepper to your liking.

This is a very simple wholesome soup that would be great for a quick lunch or perfect for dinner adding a crunchy side salad and a loaf of crusty country bread with dipping oil on the side. And hey, don’t forget a glass of your favorite wine to make this dinner complete!

For all of you spring gardeners and adventurous cooks, I highly recommend picking up a copy of David’s book to kick off your spring and summer growing season!

Cheers!

What Is This Dish, With Wine!

2008-04-18T13:01:00.010-05:00

Can you guess what this is??? No, not pizza, which it sorta looks like. OK, I will tell you. It is the best vegetarian lasagna that I have ever made! No kidding! I know, I know, another lasagna dish. But you have to see the ingredients! Mike said, “This even has beans in it!” I was having a non-exciting afternoon and was contemplating what to have for dinner. I am tired of red meat, already had my fish fixes for the week, I needed a boost of fresh veggies. So I headed to the market and picked up fresh veggies! Result:

Vegetarian Lasagna

Loads of garlic, chopped
1 onion chopped
Coconut Oil
1 small zucchini chopped
1 small yellow squash chopped
8 oz. (one pack) of cremini mushrooms, cleaned, sliced, and sautéed in butter
1 can of white beans, I used Great Northern, drained and rinsed
1 bunch of kale, chopped and cooked in veggie broth till wilted
1 small bunch of asparagus tuff ends cut off and cut into 1-1/2 inch pieces
1 big bunch of fresh oregano or 1 heaping teaspoon of dried
2 cayenne peppers chopped
1-2 carrots chopped
A splash of white wine
Lasagna noodles
Lots of mozzarella cheese
Grated parmesan cheese
A nice hunk of Manchango cheese grated
Salt and Pepper to taste
Your favorite tomato based pasta sauce

Heat a nice glug of oil in your pan; add the onion, garlic and cayenne pepper. Sauté a few minutes, add the carrot and asparagus and sauté about 5 minutes. Then add the oregano, zucchini and squash. Salt and pepper to taste. You want to cook all of these veggies until almost done, but still a bit crunchy as they will cook again in the oven. If they seem to be getting dry in the pan, like mine did, I added about ¼ cup of the wine I was drinking while preparing!
Cook your noodles
Layer:
A bit of sauce
Noodles
½ of the Kale and beans
Manchango Cheese
A bit of sauce
Noodles
Your sautéed veggies
A bit of sauce
Noodles
Rest of the kale
Mushrooms
Loads of mozzarella cheese
A hefty sprinkling of parmesan cheese

Pop that baby into a 350 degree oven for about 35 minutes or till the cheese is nice and browned. Remove and let rest for about 5 minutes before cutting.

Oh my gosh, heaven from one dish! I served a small Caesar salad aside, as this is Mike’s favorite and a loaf of 7 grain bread with bowls of olive oil to dip.

I know this sounds like a lot of work, but actually it is not. I was surprised that I had it all together and in the oven in under an hour. Well worth it! Just look at that kale and beans!

What did we have to drink with this delicious dish? Some delicious wines! Mike had his favorite Cabernet, Columbia Crest Grand Estates Cabernet Sauvignon and I had a thirst quenching crisp Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand, Monkey Bay! Both wines were great to sip before dinner and paired well with the lasagna!

Cheers!
Have a great weekend!

Has Spring Arrived In Your Garden?

2008-04-15T15:09:00.006-05:00

We come from the

earth, we return to the

earth, and in between

we garden.

Cheers!

Wine, Crab Cakes, All In Key West!

2008-04-11T09:55:00.009-05:00

Warning! The photos you are about to view are real. I did not even get to use any fancy props like bowls, napkins or perfect lighting. What you are viewing is a mighty tasty dinner that we had last night that I would like to share with you.

Crab Cakes! Spotted them on the front cover of Cooking Light Magazine this month. So, of course, I got an immediate craving for them. I dug into my recipe box and found my favorite way to prepare them. Most recipes are pretty much the same and I guess mine is also. But…they are delicious!!!! Just look how those cakes flaked apart with the crab pieces still intact!

Debs Crab Cakes

I use the crab that is not in a can but in a container at the fish counter of your favorite store. Warning! It is not cheap, but if you are going to make good crab cakes, it is well worth the investment!

8 oz. of crab meat
¼ cup of mayo
1 heaping teaspoon of Dijon mustard
1-1/2 teaspoons of Old Bay Seasoning
1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice
A generous couple of shakes of your favorite hot sauce
1 egg white
1 heaping teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce
2-3 green onions finely chopped
Panko (Chinese Bread Crumbs)
Coconut oil for frying

Mix together all but the crab and panko. Carefully mix in by hand the crab. Yes, use your hands as any utensil seems to kill the crab! Then take about 2 heaping tablespoons full into your hand to see how it holds together. That is when you need to start adding the Panko little by little. Your goal is to add enough to keep the patty together but not dry it out. Now you are on your own.
Shape crab mixture into patties, place on a plate, cover and put in fridge for about 45 minutes. This keeps the patties from falling apart.
Heat about 3 tablespoons of coconut oil in your frying pan, medium heat.
Add more Panko crumbs on a plate. Take your crab cakes and dip each side in the crumb mixture, then add to skillet.
Cook until nice and crispy brown on both sides. Serve warm.

Last night I made a couple of sauces to go with the crab cakes. The sauce on the right is:

Chipotle Pepper Aioli
Mix in a bowl
One or two canned chipotle peppers, seeded and chopped with a little adobo sauce added
¾ cup of mayo
1 clove of garlic minced
1 generous tablespoon of chopped cilantro
Lime juice to taste

The sauce on the left is:

Remoulade Sauce (This sauce is also great with grilled shrimp)
Mix in a bowl
1 cup of mayo
3 chopped green onions
1 heaping tablespoon of capers, drained
2 teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce
1 heaping tablespoon of horseradish
1 clove of garlic minced
A few generous shakes of your favorite hot sauce
1 tablespoon of finely chopped parsley

Make these sauces ahead of time so they can chill in the fridge to mix the flavors.

To accompany the crab cakes I had a fresh salad of arugula and spinach with a:

Fresh Lemon Vinaigrette
3 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons of finely grated lemon peel
1-1/2 teaspoons of Dijon mustard
1 finely chopped shallot
1 teaspoon Agave Nectar or honey
½ cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl and quickly whisk in the olive oil.

The Lemon Vinaigrette marries well with the crab cakes. In fact, you could use some of it drizzled on the cakes!

The rest of our dinner consisted of roasted baby potatoes in coconut oil with a dusting of cumin and salt and pepper. I also made a black bean and corn salsa, which we just ate as a side dish.

My beverage of choice was a wine that I posted on during the holidays, Le C Faux Frog 2005 Chardonnay by Toad Hollow. This is a wonderful Chardonnay that is not oakey, has a touch of lemon and a bright refreshing finish. It was a perfect match with the crab cakes!

I want to thank my blogging friend Gloria for the E Award that she presented to me. Gloria resides a bit south of me and if you have not visited her site, stop on over and say Hi. She has a wonderful blog, Canela's Kitchen, and writes about the delicious dishes that she prepares and great stories about her family and the places she visits near her home in Chile. Thank you Gloria!

The weekend is upon us once again so everyone enjoy!
Cheers!

My Key West Garden

2008-04-10T10:00:00.004-05:00

A greeting for me this morning in the garden!

Hope you are having a great day!

Cheers!

Mushrooms !

2008-04-06T10:51:00.008-05:00

The Mushroom. A quick definition that I spotted in a book was fleshy body of any of numerous edible fungi. To look at a mushroom and then here the definition, why would anyone want to eat it? Also, who was the first human that came upon a mushroom and actually decided to eat it? When that human was foraging the forest floor how did he know which mushroom was safe and which one was not? Did he take a buddy with him and said, “Here, you try this one” and did the buddy reply “no, it is your turn”…

Whoever decided that mushrooms were safe to eat, I surely am thankful. Mushrooms may not be the “prettiest” veggie, or should I say fungi, out there, but they are surely packed with flavor! They add that touch of mother earth to so many dishes, cooked or raw. On that note, I want to share with you THE easiest and totally packed with flavor appetizer I muster up.

Grilled Mushroom Caps With a Pesto & Pepper Filling.

That is it! Remove the stems from some medium sized cremini mushrooms (they have more flavor than the white button ones) rub a bit of olive oil on the shroom and place on your grill for about 2 minutes flat side down. Meanwhile, take a jar of your favorite prepared pesto, add some to a small bowl and, to that, stir in some freshly chopped chili. I happen to grow cayenne’s year round so I finely chop one of those little red beauties and add it to the bowl of pesto. Bring your warm mushrooms in from the grill and put a little spoon full of your pesto mixture onto the shroom and sit them round side down back on the grill for another couple of minutes. Remove to a plate and serve.

The juicy goodness of the mushroom combined with the pesto is a succulent party in your mouth. If you wanted to get real fancy with them, you could sprinkle a touch of parmesan cheese atop the pesto or you could also add a couple of toasted pine nuts for a little crunch!

Speaking of mushrooms, I will use this as my entry to Holler and Lisa’s April event over at No Croutons Required. The theme this month, of course, is mushrooms! If you would like to participate in this exciting event, hop on over to either one of their sites for the rules.

Foraging for mushrooms on a forest floor is on my list of “Gee, I would like to do that!” If any of you have had the experience of this, I would love to hear about it!
Cheers!

Book Review 9 "The Sharper Your Knife, The Less You Cry"

2008-04-01T12:39:00.004-05:00

Need to get away from the stove but not out of the kitchen? Then pour yourself a cup of coffee, tea or, even better, a glass of wine and enjoy my latest read. A good friend of mine gave me the book “The Sharper Your Knife, The Less You Cry. Love, Laughter, and Tears at the World’s Most Famous Cooking School” by Kathleen Flinn. As all of you cooks out there know, a dream come true would be attending the world famous Le Cordon Bleu cooking school in Paris. In Kathleen’s book, that is exactly what she does. Coming back from vacation, Kathleen finds out that her job has been eliminated. This was not all bad as she felt trapped in corporate middle management. So instead of immediately finding another job, Kathleen clears out her savings account and moves to Paris to pursue a dream – a diploma from Le Cordon Bleu.
In her book we follow Kathleen through her experiences in the kitchens of the cooking school where she meets stern but good hearted chefs and an array of students from all over the world. With them she takes us into the sights and sounds of markets, shops, café’s, and the streets of Paris, that wonderful city of lights. While in Paris, Kathleen’s boyfriend Mike quits his job and moves to Paris with Kathleen while she is attending school. So not only is she experiencing the cooking school in Paris, she shares with us her and Mike’s adventures of living in a foreign country.
At the end of many chapters in her book, Kathleen gives us one of her recipes like mouth-watering Pan Roasted Hens In Calvados Sauce or, one of my favorites, the French classic Boeuf a la Bourguignonne! Also, as a bonus at the end of the book, she give us extra recipes for basics utilized in her recipes such as Pate Brisee and Tomato Concasse.
It always intrigues me and I give much credit to folks who, if able, stop in the middle of their lives and have the guts to do what they have always dreamed, such as Kathleen did.
I truly enjoyed and highly recommend this book. I would love to have the experience of attending a cooking school and, of all places, Paris!
Cheers!

Weekend Wine and A Pasta Salad !

2008-03-28T13:43:00.007-05:00

The weekend is upon us and since spring is upon us also, maybe you plan to do some work outside in your garden or yard. If so, you may not have much time to spend on fixing lunch so here is a great Pasta Salad to whip up in between getting your hands dirty!

This is a Tuna Pasta Salad that I have been making for years so all I have to do is gather up the ingredients and click on the recipe in my brain, which sometimes can be…oh, never mind. On with the pasta salad!

¼ lbs. of fresh green beans, cut into inch pieces and blanched for about 4 minutes, drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking. I have also used frozen beans, just barely cooked to retain some crispness.
6 oz. of Dreamfields Rotini Pasta cooked according to package directions, drained and rinsed under cold water and drained again.
1 can or package of solid white tuna packed in water, drained
3 green onions chopped
1 large tomato seeded and chopped, or sometimes I use a good handful of cherry tomatoes
¼ cup chopped black olives
¾ cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
½ teaspoon celery seeds, optional

I mix the mayo, vinegar and celery seeds in a separate bowl. I toss all of the other ingredients together in a big bowl and then add the dressing and toss again. That is it! What makes this salad so good are the green beans and onions, which give it a nice crunch, the smooth pasta and the nice bite the vinegar adds to the dish!

Let me tell you, Dreamfields Pasta has been a great find for me. I have tried many of the “healthy” pastas on the market, but found Dreamfields to have that authentic pasta taste with only 5 grams of digestible carbs per serving, cholesterol free and 0 grams of trans fat! Dreamfields has twice the fiber of regular pasta because it contains a special fiber, Inulin, which has been shown scientifically to promote digestive health and support a healthy immune system while enhancing calcium absorption! I need all of that at my age!

Another thing I need at my age is a good glass of wine to kick off the weekend. It has been awhile since I have had a nice “Dry Riesling” so I picked up one of my favorites at the store the other day. You cannot go wrong with the 2006 Chateau Ste. Michelle Dry Riesling from the Columbia Valley in Washington State. Most Rieslings are a bit sweet but a Dry Riesling does not have a lot of residual sugar left in the wine, therefore it is not as sweet. Ste. Michelle’s Dry Riesling has mouth watering aromas of melon and peach on the opening and those same flavors are echoed in the mouth as you sip. On the palate I also noted a hint of crisp green apple which added to the nice clean finish of this wine.
At $10.99, what a way to start the end of your day! Have a great weekend!
Cheers!

How Was Easter ?

2008-03-24T16:34:00.005-05:00

Did everyone have a great Easter? Ours was very good! We had lamb chops atop a load of rosemary over a charcoal grill! Oh my gosh, just the smell…heaven. Remember the bowl of salad I showed you in my previous post?

Well it was attacked and dressed with a very simple dressing of freshly squeezed grapefruit, orange and lime juice. To that I added a good plop of whole grain mustard, a squeeze of honey, salt and pepper and just a touch of olive oil. No vinegar. Talk about spring in your mouth! You all have to try this. Soooo fresh and happy!
With our lamb and salad we had fresh asparagus on the grill, a simple potato casserole and grilled bread.

I don't know about you guys, but I love fresh roasted peppers. Their taste just does not compare with the jar type. So for the grilled bread I roasted 2 peppers, cooled then sliced thinly. I put them in a bowl with 1 smashed anchovy, a heaping spoon of capers, about two teaspoons of chopped fresh rosemary, a few sprinkles of red wine vinegar, some chopped black olives and salt and pepper. This we put atop the grilled bread. Oh Yum!
Photos you ask! No time for photos as we were devouring our dinner!

To accompany this wonderful spring dinner, we served a wine that I have told you about before. Ardeche by Louis Latour is a lovely non-oakey Chardonnay from France. Crisp and fresh on the palate, perfect with the fresh fruit juice dressed salad. Hey, and not bad with the rest of the meal also! Did not have to twist my arm for another glass!
Cheers!

Spring Is In The Air And Gardens

2008-03-18T13:44:00.012-05:00

Spring has been in full force in Key West for the past few weeks! I have been spending my entire time outdoors lately and not in the kitchen. I apologize that I do not have any new recipes to share with you and the wine I have been consuming is good ol’ favorites. But what I would like to share with you is an update on my garden!

Anyone for a bowl of salad? Mesclun to be exact!

How about some lovely mint for the lamb you might be serving for Easter or better yet a mint julep to quench your thirst! Actually I use most of mine in ice tea:) And I also see a spring of basil at the top of the photo. Everyone wants in the picture, even Mr. Frog!

Another bumper crop of cayenne peppers!

And hopefully by the looks of all the blossoms on the tomato plants, we will have a bumper crop of tomatoes in the near future!

And blooms that will get your attention in my side yard garden, the bromeliads are lovely!

And the antherium was begging for its photo to be taken!

And not only have I been spending time in my garden, I have been spending time at the Key West Garden Club, of which I am a member. It is busy at the club this time of year because the “season” is coming to an end and the year end plant sale will be taking place soon. Many of the garden club members are “snow birds” and will be heading back north very soon. And, with the heat of summer approaching, the club sells all the plants that they have started this year as there will not be as many folks here to take care of them in the propagation area. Also the garden club is hosting a “A Toast to Spring” on Thursday night to raise money for much of the foliage that will be planted at the new homes being constructed near hear by Habitat For Humanity. The Key West Garden Club has an excellent web site here if you would like to check it out. And if you are in the area on Thursday evening, come by the garden club and say “Hi” as I will be bartending at the fund raiser! (Imagine that!)

If I do not make it back to the blog world before Easter, I want to wish everyone a very “Happy Easter”!

So with dirt on my hands and a smile on my face, I wish all of you a very “Happy Spring”!

Cheers!

No Croutons Required "Spicy Soups"

2008-03-14T16:27:00.010-05:00

Holler and Lisa are at it again this month with No Croutons Required! This month’s theme is “spicy soups”. With that in mind, I went south of the border to Mexico! In our house we love spicy foods, especially Mike. So just for him, I usually have out in my container garden 3 or 4 varieties of hot peppers growing all year round. Therefore I was pretty excited about this soup as I had a couple of ingredients right out the back door. This soup even broke a sweat on me!

This is a Spicy White Bean and Tomato Soup, better known in my house as

Salsa Soup

1 – 16 oz. can of vegetable broth, divided
2 heaping teaspoons of chili powder
2 heaping teaspoons of cumin
1 – 16 oz. can of white beans, I used navy, rinsed and drained
2 cayenne peppers, or you can use whatever hot pepper you desire
1 onion peeled and cut into quarter wedges
2 cloves of garlic peeled
1 can of chopped tomatoes
1 teaspoon of sugar
¼ cup chopped cilantro
2 tablespoons of fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon of olive oil
Salt to taste

In a Dutch oven over medium heat combine 1 cup of broth, chili powder, cumin and beans.
In a food processor while running, drop in your garlic. Then open lid and add the other cup of broth, your hot peppers and onion. Pulse till veggies are chopped. Add this to your beans.
Next add your tomatoes and cilantro to processor and pulse a few times to chop. Add this to the beans, along with the sugar, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer. Let simmer for about 20 minutes till soup is a bit thick and the veggies are cooked.
When soup is a bit thick, remove from heat and add in your lime juice and olive oil. Stir and taste, then add whatever amount of salt that you prefer.
This baby is ready to serve!

Since this is a salsa soup, you will need to have some tortilla chips to accompany. We prefer the organic blue corn ones, but any tortilla chip will do. This is a great soup for weeknights as it comes together really fast. Salsa soup would also be great for a starter soup if you plan to have a big Mexican feast for your next party!

If you have not stopped over to see Holler at Tinned Tomatoes or Lisa at Lisa’s Kitchen, do not wait any longer! Both girls really know how to veg it up! Thanks again you guys for hosting such a fun event! Oh, I almost forgot, don’t forget to check Holler’s site shortly after March 22nd for a fabulous roundup of “spicy soups!”

Cheers!

I Am Bringing The Wine!

2008-03-12T09:37:00.009-05:00

Strike up the band, set the table and uncork, in this case unscrew, the wines! Two wonderful Italian bloggers, Maryann from Finding La Dolce Vita and Marie of Proud Italian Cook have decided to throw a party Festa Italiana! Now tell me, who could resist going to a feast hosted by Italians especially when the invitation starts out “Picture a long table set under the shade of twisting grape vines on a warm summer evening…” That is all I needed to hear knowing that there will be many succulent dishes and luscious desserts. I am there! Then I thought, what will I bring to this gathering of friends? Of course, WINE!

Being it is a warm summer evening, I decided to bring two white wines and one red. I chose 3 from the Banfi Collection of Tuscan Wines as I have been smitten by their white wine selection. Highlighted in my previous posts, I bring to you the Le Rime white wine which is 70% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Grigio and the Fumaio white wine which is a combination of 50% Sauvignon Blanc and 50% Chardonnay. You will be asking for second pours on these crisp, refreshing wines that highlight wonderful citrus notes of lemon and grapefruit. These are both super wines with that zesty finish you cannot forget!

Even though I am a major white wine drinker, coming to an Italian feast would not be complete without a luscious red to compliment the hardy pastas and grilled meats or poultry. The 2006 Col Di Sasso from the Banfi collection is a youthful red wine combining those full bodied grapes, Cabernet Sauvignon and Sangiovese. This wine may be young, but it is bursting with the flavors of cherries and fresh berries with the nice feel of soft tannins on the palate. You can pour me another glass, thank you!

Well, I have my glass of wine and am ready for the feast! If you have not visited Maryann’s or Marie’s site, head on over, but get your taste buds ready for some great treats! Also this party will be ending on March 22nd, so get your dish ready and get to the party! Shortly after March 22nd there will be a round up of all the great food and wine we enjoyed. Don’t want to miss it!

Cheers!

Strawberry Seduction!

2008-03-10T09:18:00.008-05:00

Mike over at Mike’s Table has been seduced and obsessed with strawberries the past few weeks. So much so that he decided to make an event of it! So as a fellow Floridian, I am thrilled to join Mike in his obsession. Yes folks, the strawberries abound in Florida right now at a bargain price of 3 pounds for $5.00! Who could resist that price! So the past few weeks I have added strawberries to just about anything that would take them!
I think the first thing that comes to mind when you here the word strawberry is dessert and chocolate. Figuring that is what will be flooding Mike’s event, I chose to go a little different route and bring to Mike’s party a

“Spinach Salad With Strawberries & Brown Buttered Pecans”

This salad is so simple to prepare and so delicious that you could serve it as a dessert!

Get yourself:
A bag or box of fresh baby spinach
1 head of Boston bib lettuce
1 pint of fresh strawberries sliced
About a ½ of cup of pecans
A good glob of butter

For the vinaigrette:
1/3 cup raspberry vinegar or balsamic vinegar (actually at the store the other day I bought a bottle of a combination of the two that is simply marvelous!)
About a teaspoon of honey – if you use the plain raspberry vinegar you may want to add a bit more. It is a taste thing.
1-2 finely minced shallots
1 heaping teaspoon Dijon mustard
Olive oil – add till you get a good mix
Salt and pepper to taste

Put your glob of butter in a small sauté pan, heat till just turning brown, add your pecans, stir for a few moments and turn off the heat. Be careful and do not burn your pecans.
For the vinaigrette put the first four ingredients in a bowl and mix, add olive oil in a slow stream till you get a good mix.

Now there are two ways that you can serve this salad.
One way is to add your spinach to a big bowl and tear your bib lettuce to about the same size as your spinach and toss together. Add your vinaigrette, saving a touch to pour over the top of the salad. Plate your salad and then sprinkle the strawberries and pecans atop, then drizzle a bit more dressing over the strawberries and pecans and serve.

The second way you can present the salad is to put whole bib lettuce leaves on a salad plate, put your dressed spinach atop, then top with your strawberries and pecans. Drizzle extra dressing atop the berries and pecans and serve.
I must tell you all, this salad not only tastes so good, it is quite decorative on your table!

I want to thank Mike for hosting this luscious event! If you have not checked out Mike’s blog here, please do so. In fact he has a new pasta attachment for his mixer and has been creating some wonderful pasta dishes lately!

Just a bit of trivia: Strawberries were considered an aphrodisiac in the Middle Ages and a soup made of strawberries, borage and cream was traditionally served to newlyweds for breakfast.
Ah ha, now I know why Mike called this event “Strawberry Seduction”!

Cheers!

Prince Charming In The Garden In Key West?

2008-03-07T09:40:00.009-05:00

OK, now you have my photo.

How about a kiss?

Would you put that camera away!

Cheers from Deb's Garden In Key West!

Have a marvelous weekend and make sure your start the end of your day with a glass of wine!

Potato Salad

2008-03-05T11:18:00.005-05:00

This post is for my “Spud Bud” Valli over at More Than Burnt Toast. I do believe Valli’s love of potatoes does surpass mine, but I run a very close second. So Valli I thought of you last night as I was craving something with potatoes! Since Spring is right around the corner I felt that a Potato Salad would be fitting. Since I was going to grill out some chicken thighs, potato salad would be a good match. I don't know about you, but every potato salad I was brought up with was made with mayonnaise and, quite often, hard boiled eggs and some type of sweet relish. There is nothing wrong with potato salad made with mayo, in fact I have a great Southwestern version that has a touch of mayo, but when you are looking for something with a different twist, check this out!

“New Potato” Salad With Grainy Mustard

2 lbs. of those cute little red new potatoes
2 Shallots chopped
½ tablespoon of Dijon mustard
1 heaping tablespoon of whole grain mustard
1-1/2 tablespoons of white wine vinegar
3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon of honey
2 tablespoons of freshly chopped parsley
A splash of dry vermouth

Cook potatoes till just fork tender. Drain and start cooling.
Mix together the shallots, both mustards, vinegar, honey, olive oil and parsley.
While potatoes are still warm, cut into pieces and place in a bowl and splash with the vermouth, toss and then add your mustard dressing tossing again till potatoes are coated.
At this point you can serve the salad still warm, but I like to let it set with a cover over it for about an hour to let all the flavors seep into the potatoes.
If you do not have dry vermouth, no worry, as the salad tastes just as good. The vermouth just gives it an extra little kick.

I told you that I served this potato salad with grilled chicken thighs. Well, when I took the chicken off of the grill I just had to chuckle as I thought one of the pieces looked like a turtle! And I know what you are thinking, ah, she has had too many glasses of wine while preparing that chick. But honestly I only had one glass!

Cheers!

Porcupine Wine Is Fine!

2008-03-03T09:49:00.007-05:00

Wildlife abounds here in Key West this time of year, not only with the critters that live and visit my yard, but also in the wines I drink! My latest find is Porcupine Ridge 2007 Sauvignon Blanc. Of course I could not resist the interesting label, but what caught my attention is that it is a wine from South Africa. I am starting to see a few more wines on the shelf from this interesting part of our world and am anxious to give them a go.
Porcupine Ridge is from the wine farm Boekenhoutskloff which is located in the Franschhoek Valley, Cape of Good Hope, South Africa. Wow, that was a mouthful and this great Sauvignon Blanc from the Cape is a pleasant mouthful profiling tropical fruit flavors and citrus. A bit of Semillon was added to this wine which really firms it up. A well balanced acidity gives this wine a zippy, fresh crispness which makes you hand out your glass for another pour. What also impressed me, besides the wonderful flavor of this wine, is that this winery is also into conserving the land they are farming for their vines and the wildlife that resides there.

They are even sponsoring a PHD student who is researching the feeding behavior and movements of the crested porcupine for which they named this wine. For more on their conservation acts, please visit their website here. It actually is one of the nicer wine websites I have seen in awhile.

While sitting in the garden enjoying a glass of Porcupine Ridge, I had a visitor who seemed seriuosly interested in what I was drinking!

Cheers to a new friend! A wonderful way to start the end of the day!

Happy Leap Day!

2008-02-29T10:05:00.005-05:00

I feel very lucky today. Why? Because we have an extra day in February this year! So what are you going to do with your extra day?

I celebrated, so far, with a stroll in my tiny yard to share with you some color and beauty.

Just remember, tomorrow is March 1st and March is the month that Spring arrives!

Tonight will will celebrate our extra day with a new wine! More on that later!

Happy Weekend!

Cheers!

A Glass Of Wine and In Key West

2008-02-27T13:57:00.008-05:00

Linguine Primavera was on our menu the other night, adapted from the book I just reviewed “Pasta Verde”. I also mentioned that I served a great Sauvignon Blanc with our dinner. The 2004 Reynolds Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc flowed freely and paired so well with our pasta. Let me tell you about Reynolds Vineyards. They are located in the Southwest area of one of my favorite countries, Australia! The Reynolds Sauvignon Blanc is sourced from the famed “Nanya” vineyard in the Murray Valley (Riverland) of South Australia just 150 miles Northeast of Adelaide. My blogging friends from Australia Nora, Lucy and Johanna, I am sure, know exactly where this area is located. Reynolds Sauvignon Blanc is a nice white wine made of 88% Sauvignon Blanc and 12% Chardonnay grapes. My taste buds were treated to a medium bodied wine overflowing with tropical fruit flavors. And to top it all off, my favorite “down under” hint of grassiness presented itself while I was swirling the wine around in my mouth. Oh too good! For the low price of under $12.00, a perfect way to start the end of your day!

Before I end for today, I thought I would share a little piece of Key West with you!

Most of them around town are painted in all sorts of lively colors!

And for those of you who are freezing your ass off in the north, come on down!
Cheers!

Book Review Number 9, "Pasta Verde"

2008-02-25T12:20:00.010-05:00

Before I get into my book review, I want to ask you all if you have ever heard of Jean-Christophe Novelli ? A friend of mine said he is the Emeril of the UK ? I hate to say this, but I have never heard of him. He is quite a handsome dude! Nice website. Let me know!

Last week my contribution to Holler and Lisa’s new monthly challenge “No Croutons Required” was a soup adapted from “Pasta Verde” by Judith Barrett. If any of you have not checked out “No Croutons Required”, please hop on over to Lisa’s Kitchen to check out the roundup of vegetarian soups. I believe there were over 70 entries! How fun!

This week my book review is on “Pasta Verde” by Judith Barrett. She co-authored “Risotto” which is a wonderful book and I know a few of you have it in your collection. I will review “Risotto” in the future. Judith’s “Pasta Verde” has more than 140 vegetarian recipes for pasta sauces, soups, salads and baked pastas using all shapes and sizes of pasta paired with the freshest veggies such as asparagus, broccoli, peppers, mushrooms, and squash. To enhance her sauces Judith recommends using fresh herbs such as basil, rosemary and sage, all of which can be easily grown in pots! I found that a number of Judith’s innovative pasta recipes are ones that whatever you bring home fresh from the grocer or, even better, the farmers market can be made quickly and easily. My kind of cooking! I highly recommend Judith’s book for healthy, easy to prepare and affordable vegetarian pasta recipes!

Chapter 1 – The Main Ingredient – Pasta! She talks about pasta’s past, dry pasta, fresh pasta, cooking and serving pasta.
Chapter 2 – The Pasta Pantry – Judith talks about olive oil, Parmesan Cheese, Vinegar and Herbs
Chapter 3 – Pasta and Vegetable Sauces. She includes in this chapter flavored pastas, roasted vegetable sauces, tomato sauces, mushroom sauces, sauces with truffles and sauces with pesto Chapter 4 – Pasta Soups
Chapter 5 – Pasta Salads
Chapter 6 – Baked and Filled Pasta with Vegetables. She includes lasagna, cannelloni and ravioli
And her last Chapter 7 is Heart Healthy Low-Fat recipes for pasta and vegetables
She covers it all!

Besides the soup that I adapted from her book that you can find in my previous post, I adapted another recipe from her 1st chapter on vegetable sauces with pasta.

I turned her “Spaghetti Primavera” into my "Linguine Primavera".

Blanch these veggies for about 2 minutes in boiling water and then into an ice bath to stop cooking, drain well
2 cups broccoli florets
1 zucchini cut into 1 inch pieces
6 stalks of fresh asparagus cut into one and a half inch pieces
1 cup of green beans cut into 1 inch pieces

Here us the rest:
¾ cup of frozen peas thawed
1 can of diced tomatoes drained well
olive oil
2 cups of thinly sliced mushrooms
3 cloves of garlic minced
1 leek cleaned well and finely sliced
1 cayenne pepper chopped or dried pepper flakes to taste
1 small bunch of fresh parsley finely chopped
1 tablespoon dried basil or about 6 fresh leaves finely chopped
¼ cup of toasted pine nuts
1/2 lb. dried linguine
½ stick of butter
2 tablespoons of vegetable broth
About a ½ cup of cream
½ cup of grated Parmesan cheese

After you blanch your veggies, take a nice glug of olive oil and heat over medium heat. Add your leeks and garlic, sauté for 2 minutes then add the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper and cook for about 5 minutes. Add your hot pepper and parsley and cook for 2 minutes, then pop in your tomatoes and basil. Cook for about 10 minutes to get all the flavors mixed. Now add your green veggies that you had put aside, plus the peas, and heat through.

Meanwhile, cook your linguine till al dente and drain. In the same pot add your butter, cream, broth and cheese. Cook over medium heat till the mixture is smooth and a bit thick, not soupy. Reduce the heat to low and add your pasta back in tossing quickly to blend. Add your veggie mixture and pine nuts, toss until all is warm. Serve in warm bowls. You can pass extra Parmesan at the table if anyone would like.

I served country Italian bread along side with bowls of fruity olive oil for dipping. And last but not least by any means, we had a wonderful Sauvignon Blanc to accompany all. I will tell you about the great wine I served later this week!

Cheers!

Celebrating This Time With Wine

2008-02-21T15:14:00.005-05:00

Celebrating again! You bet! First bean harvest of the season was underway last evening and I had to celebrate, of course, with a glass of wine. I am glad I pulled this Pinot Grigio out of the rack and chilled as it was such an easy white wine to enjoy during the harvest.
The 2006 Lagaria Pinot Grigio is from the northeastern part of Italy, Trentino Alto-Adige and the appellation of Delle Venezie. Lagaria Pinot Grigio is a celebration in your mouth of fresh clean citrus! Go ahead, smack those lips! This is no watery Pinot Grigio, of which I have had a few in my time, but a medium bodied, well balanced wine that will make your taste buds shout out for more!

And besides that, you will enjoy the fresh artwork that adorns this bottle. Price you ask? Under $12.00!

What a way to start the end of your day harvesting beans!

Cheers!

A Day Of Celebration And A Soup For Lisa and Holler

2008-02-19T10:25:00.013-05:00

There is so much to celebrate today! I do not know where to start! OK, we will begin with my original start of this blog one year ago today! I cannot believe I have been blogging for one whole year already. Time flies! Also, this is my 200th post!

This photo is the one I used on my first blog. (Since I had no clue as to what I was doing, I just headed to my garden for a photo.) Oh, those were the days! But one year later, I must “tip my hat” to all of you and say a big “THANKS!” If it was not for you, my community of blogger friends, I am sure that I would not have continued blogging. Everyday when I get this ol’ body out of bed and get myself together, I cannot wait to get the computer fired up and see what is happening with all of my friends! I spend more time “chatting” with all of you everyday than I ever did on the telephone with friends. Also, when I am with friends or family, I talk about you as if you were my next door neighbors, although most of you are thousands of miles away from me! Again, thank you all for being there!!!!

Next up it is time to celebrate the new challenge "No Croutons Required" that Holler from Tinned Tomatoes and Lisa from Lisa’s Kitchen has dreamed up for us. Yes, these two vegetarian ladies are putting us to the test each month for a new soup and salad challenge! The deadline for the first month challenge, which is a vegetable soup, is tomorrow! You still have time to enter the challenge! Check out Lisa’s site here for details and in a few days for the delicious round up of soups which are good for the soul!

My entry for this month is a soup that I have adapted from a wonderful book titled “Pasta Verde” by Judith Barrett who also co-authored “Risotto”. This book has more than 140 vegetarian recipes for pasta sauces, soups, salads and baked pastas. I will be reviewing this book for you next week. On with the soup!

Soup Of Borlotti Beans, Dried Porcini, and Tubetti

A quick note to start, our pinto beans are very much like the Italian borlotti bean. I could not locate the borlotti bean so I used pinto beans.

2 ounces of dried porcini mushrooms (you can use other dried mushrooms but the flavor of the porcini are wonderful)
1 cup of boiling water
A good glug of olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic finely minced
2 cups of pinto beans ( I used canned, drain and rinse before adding to the soup)
1 cup chopped tomatoes with their juice
3 cups of vegetable broth
½ cup dried tubetti pasta (I used elbow)
1 fresh cayenne pepper finely chopped (or you could use a nice sprinkle of dried peppers)

Place your dried mushrooms in a heat proof measuring cup with the boiling water for 30 minutes. Strain through cheese cloth or a coffee filter and save the liquid. Chop the mushrooms.
Heat the oil in a nice size saucepan over medium heat and then add the onions and peppers and sauté for a few minutes, add the chopped garlic and continue sautéing for a minute.
Add the beans, tomatoes, mushrooms with ¼ cup of their soaking liquid and the broth. Bring all to a boil then turn down to simmer until the soup is a bit thick, about 20 minutes.
At this time season the soup with salt to taste. Add your dried pasta to the soup and let cook for about 10 more minutes until the pasta is tender but still firm.

This is a great soup that is fast to make and very satisfying. It is one soup that is a whole meal in itself. Definitely pour yourself a nice glass of red or white wine to start, actually have a glass while you are preparing, add a salad, or even a hunk of parmesan cheese with some crusty bread or crackers along side and baby, you are in heaven!

Now, I have a couple of more things to celebrate! A "big thanks" to Holler for awarding me the “E” award! Holler and I have been good blogging friends for many months now and you must stop by her site and check out the great vegetarian dishes she prepares. Thanks to her, I keep somewhat on the healthy track! Thanks again Holler!

Another big “thank you” goes out to my good blogging friend from South America Gloria at Canela's Kitchen! She has awarded me the "Nice Matters" award. You must stop by her site for good home cooking and her sharing with us stories of her lovely family and friends from her part of the world. Thank you Gloria!

Well, if it was not so early in the morning, I would pour myself a glass of wine to celebrate this day. Oatmeal and wine? Hey, you never know till you try it!

Cheers To All !!!!

Bill You Are On The Blog And What A Great Visit

2008-02-18T10:01:00.003-05:00

Hi Gang! I am back to my site after a wonderful visit from my brother Mark, his new fiancee Cindy (yep, got engaged while they were here, how exciting!) and our good friends Bill and Tina. We had such a fun filled week here in Key West playing tourists. We fished, rode bikes, shopped, had many ice cold beers!, wonderful island food and checked out a couple of our great museums. The wine, beer and food flowed freely and was totally enjoyed during our beautiful sunny days. A fun time was had by all and I hated to see them get back on their planes to head for home. Thanks again Mark, Cindy, Tina and Bill (who is the third handsome dude from the left) for coming to visit us!

Sorry to make this such a short post, but laundry awaits! I will be back tomorrow so I can be "better late than never" in participating in Holler's new adventure!

Cheers!

Where's The Wine

2008-02-10T11:35:00.000-05:00

Leaving you with one last glass of wine which, I know, is empty. It was that good! But before I go, let me tell you about the wine I had last evening! In the previous wine post, I told you about a wine from Banfi. Well, heading down the wine aisle in the Italian section, I found another great inexpensive (under $12.00) wine by Banfi. The 2006 Fumaio white wine from Tuscany is a little gem loaded with vibrant fruit flavors. Fumaio is a blend of 50% Sauvignon Blanc and 50% Chardonnay. Interesting, as I have not found many wines with that combination. The prominent partner here to me was the Sauvignon Blanc as the wine had that nice citrus spark of grapefruit to it and also a lovely melon flavor was present on the palate. The Chardonnay’s contribution to this blend was a nice round body with no taste of oak, as it was aged in stainless steel tanks. The finish was long and satisfying but my taste buds were shouting for more just a few minutes after my first sip! A great wine to start the end of your day!

I am leaving you for the week as the gang from the freezing north is coming south this week for some warm sunshine, cold beer, satisfying wines and a good time. My brother, his girlfriend and another couple who we are good friends with are arriving tomorrow. I am so ready for a “play week” and am excited! Key West is such a neat little diversified town and a great place to play tourist! Photos to follow!

On a closing note, when I return, maybe these little baby bean blossoms will have matured into the real thing, Kentucky Pole Beans, in Key West!!!

Have a good week everyone and I will catch up with you in a week or so!
Cheers!

Wine With Our New Additions!

2008-02-06T10:34:00.000-05:00

Being the proud mother of newly sprouted tomato plants, I just had to celebrate with a favorite wine of mine. Le Rime Chardonnay and Pinot Grigio is a lovely wine produced by Castello Banfi. This wine is a combination of 70% Chardonnay and 30% Pinot Grigio. On opening this bottle, I got a whiff of fresh citrusy lemon with a hint of apple. What was the taste? Well proportioned bright, tangy lemon and green apple flavors with enough acidity to give it a nice back bone. Le Rime is a nice medium bodied wine that is very clean and crisp on the finish. Even though this wine is 70% Chardonnay, it had no “oaky” flavor as it was aged in stainless steel tanks. Cost? Right down my alley at $8.99 a bottle!

I figured I needed a nice light wine to start the end of my day admiring the new additions to the garden. I planted these guys just a week ago and was excited to see them pop up so soon. These new tomato sprouts include “Sweet Baby Girl Hybrid”, “Super Sweet 100 Hybrid” and “Balcony’s”. I did a mix, planting some of the tomato seeds in “seed starter” mix, which contains sphagnum peat moss, vermiculite and lime, and some of them in “organic potting mix”, which is a mixture of composted bark, sphagnum peat moss, pasteurized poultry litter and an organic wetting agent. (Yes, the soils have mixes just like cooking and baking!) So far there is no difference with the growing medium, as all sprouted on the same day. This is the first time I have started my tomatoes from seed, so I am learning the tricks of these little guys. It is hard to imagine that these tiny little plants will produce nice juicy tomatoes in a couple of months. (I say this keeping my fingers crossed!)

As I was visiting other blogs, I noticed Christina at A Thinking Stomach has posted her planting of seeds. She even has some new equipment to help her seeds get a head start! So hop on over to her site to see what interesting seeds she has planted!

Well, I am heading back out to my container garden to check on the radishes that I planted from seed the other day. I noticed some activity in their pot this morning…more new arrivals!
Cheers!

Visitor In My Garden!

2008-02-02T09:19:00.000-05:00

Outside painting the back of our house yesterday, I heard some comotion in our trees. I looked arounds and Mr. Iguanna decided to pay me a visit. Not sure he came to visit me, he is eyeing my cayenne peppers and pot full of lettuce.

Hey, I am going to check out the rest of your garden, but first I think I will check out the pool.

Ah, nothing like relaxing poolside in the sun.

Well, gotta run. I will be back for some lettuce and a glass of wine soon!

Cheers!

Is Your Cupboard Bare?

2008-01-31T10:13:00.000-05:00

Referring again to the book “An Omelette and a Glass of Wine” by Elizabeth David, I came across an article she had written for The Sunday Times that was never published, but I found interesting and a bit funny. The article was titled “How Bare is Your Cupboard?” – Pot-Luck Cookery; original cooking with what you have in hand, in the cupboard or refrigerator by Beverly Pepper (Faber & Faber, I8s.), which Elizabeth was reviewing. Beverly’s book deals with cookery ‘for a room full of unexpected guests – or perhaps just that awkward moment when the larder seems completely bare’.
I think we have all experienced this situation where you get home from work, open the fridge and stand there and stare at the contents. Then mosey on over to the cupboard, open its door and stare. At this point the brain is on “major food mode” as your tummy is telling it “feed me!”
I had this experience the other night as I had fixed some pork shoulder in the oven, but had no side dish to have with the pork. Yes, I had a small salad fixed, but to put the pork on top of that, not happening. So I went to the fridge and noticed I had a couple of sweet potatoes that needed to be used so here is what became of those sweet potatoes.

Deb’s Sweet Potato Hash ?

2 Sweet Potatoes – beautifully cubed if I must say so myself
1 Onion chopped
3 Cloves of Garlic chopped
1/2 of Red Bell Pepper, chopped
Olive Oil
1 Whole Cayenne Pepper Chopped
A Very Generous teaspoon of cumin
A Bit of Chicken stock to keep things moist
Salt and Pepper To Taste
A Generous sprinkle of freshly chopped parsley, needed some green

First thing I did was heat the olive oil and add the potatoes, onions and garlic. I let them sauté a few minutes and noticed that it was tasting a bit bland and also needed some added color to that beautiful orange color of the taters! So that is when I added the red bell pepper and cayenne. Ah, that gave it some personality! At this point I let the potatoes cook till just fork tender; then stirred in the cumin.

I wanted to hold this dish and, since it seemed to be drying out, I added a nice splash of stock to keep it moist. Perfect, but it still needed a bit of color, so towards the end I added the parsley. Sorry, I did not get a photo of that addition as it was time to plate up and the dinner guys were hungry!

So, needless to say, check that fridge when you are in a hurry. You will always find a potato, piece of broccoli or something lurking in the veggie drawer that is begging to be spotlighted on your dinner plate!

I would like to hear your story of “How Bare Is Your Cupboard?”
Hey, do I sense a cookbook waiting to be compiled on recipes just from the leftover stuff in the fridge and "larder"??? Hummm… Or maybe you already know of one!

Cheers!

"An Omelette and A Glass of Wine" Book Review #8

2008-01-28T10:56:00.000-05:00

Elizabeth David is one of my favorite food writers. Oh there are many more that I cherish also, such as M.F.K Fisher, Simone Beck, Laura Shapiro and of late, Ruth Reichl and Anthony Bourdain. My list is actually pretty extensive and sometime soon, maybe it would be fun if we all did a post on our favorite food writers. I am always looking for a new good book on food and wine.
If you like the writings of the “old gals” may I suggest “An Omelette and A Glass of Wine” by Elizabeth David. This book was originally published in 1952 and is an enchanting collection of pieces and essays written over the span of 35 years for a variety of publications that she submitted her work. Even though Elizabeth’s home was England, her favorite countries were France and Italy and many of the essays in this book take place there. Take for instance the essay “An Omelette and a Glass of Wine”. Elizabeth takes us to a celebrated restaurant called the Hotel de la Tete d’Or on the Mont-St-Michel just off the coast of Normandy. Here the menu never changed and, of course, one of the items was an omelette. Madame Poulard, proprietress of the hotel, was known for her exquisite lightness and beauty of her omelette which brought lots of tourists flocking to her table. Further on into the essay, Elizabeth explains what a good omelette consists of and then talks about wine with an omelette. Elizabeth states “Although there are those who maintain that wine and egg dishes don’t go together I must say I do regard a glass or two of wine as not, obviously, essential but at least an enormous enhancement of the enjoyment of a well-cooked omelette. In any case if it were true that wine and eggs are bad partners, then a good many dishes, and in particular, such sauces as mayonnaise, Hollandaise and Béarnaise would have to be banished from meals designed round a good bottle, and that would surely be absurd. But we are not in any case considering the great occasion menu but the almost primitive and elemental meal evoked by the words “Let’s just have an omelette and a glass of wine”! In the rest of this essay Elizabeth takes us with her in her travels in the south of France and talks about her simple meals of omelttes. Her descriptions of her surroundings makes you feel like you are right there with her, “On market days when I was living in a rickety old house in a crumbling Provencal hill-top village…” Now close your eyes and you can actually picture her rickety old house in that hill-top village! I really enjoyed her last sentence in this writing on omelettes and wine, “But one of the main points about the enjoyment of food and wine seems to me to lie in having what you want when you want it and in the particular combination you fancy.” How right you are Elizabeth!

So may I suggest, if you are looking for a good read on a cold wintry evening, pour yourself a nice glass of Shiraz or Merlot to get the chill out and kick back and join Elizabeth David in her colorful explorations of food, cooking, wine and very interesting characters.

I know, now you are wondering where my omelette recipe and recommendation of a wine to pair with it happens to be. Well, the two gentlemen that I dine with every evening would not hear of having eggs for dinner and, serving a glass of wine with my omelette for breakfast, well that will have to wait till I am on vacation! Or hey, maybe not…
Cheers!

Wine That Is Not Upside Down!

2008-01-24T10:24:00.000-05:00

Tucked away between the Andes Mountains and the Pacific Ocean lies the wonderful Casablanca wine region of Chile. This area of Chile is known for its high quality white wines, which brings me to my latest find Kono Baru Sauvignn Blanc. Of course, it’s quirky upside down label drew me to this bottle. ( Actually it was making me crazy as I was turning my head upside down to read the bottle. Hey Deb, why not just pick up the bottle and turn it upside down – OK!) I like the little tab on the bottle which states “SAUVIGNON BLANC Intentionally misplaced labels from well-placed vineyards throughout THE SOUTHER HEMISPHERE.” This is, I believe, is the fourth Chilean wine that I have tried and I am totally enjoying the wines from this part of the world. They differ in flavor from my favorite Sauvignon Blancs from New Zealand, as they do not have that grassy full herbal note to them, but I believe in expanding my palate and why not do it with this expanding wine region. They are producing some darn good white wines!

Kono Baru 2006 Sauvignon Blanc from the Central Valle of Chili is no upside down wine! With aromas and tastes of tart gooseberry, hints of grapefruit and the lively citrus taste of Key limes, this is a party happening in your mouth! I was surprised to find such a nice wine behind this crazy label. It is a dry white wine with a nice acidic balance to it which paired very well with our grilled grouper. At $12.00 a bottle, it is worth going upside down for!

Cheers!

Oops, I almost forgot, check out the cool plastic cork!

Key West Garden Update

2008-01-21T15:32:00.000-05:00

New seed packets arrived !!! Yahoo!!! I love when a package comes in the mail, even if it is something I ordered. Still, I feel like it is a present. I ordered these seeds and a new seed starting book from "The Cook's Garden", the premiere seed source for European Garden Vegetables. They have a fabulous catalog and will gladly send you one free of charge. But beware, you will want to order one of everything when you see the photos in the catalog. Another reason I like this seed company, they scatter a few recipes throughout their catalog which makes you want to order even more seeds! And, as you can see in the photo above, I am trying to do a bit more research on container gardening for 2008, attempting to produce a bigger crop and more variety in those pots. I have been "surfing the web" looking for information and am finding some help by checking out different university extension services. If anyone of you know of a good source for container gardening information, please let me know. Appreciate all the help I can get!

Now, for all of you who are tuned in that are freezing in the north, February is a good month to start some seeds inside so you will be ready for planting after your last frost! Spring will be here before you know it and, even if you do not have much space like me, one nice size pot on your deck or back porch would love to be the home of a few fresh herbs that would be begging to be added to your next fantastic recipe!

But before I start planting again, here is an update of what is happening outside my door today!

Nice bowl of lettuce is coming right along!

And the bananna hot peppers are ripe for the pickin'!

New batch of pole beans are finding their poles!

And a greeting from a newly bloomed hibiscus this morning!

Cheers!

Key West Sculpture

2008-01-18T15:38:00.000-05:00

Each year during the middle of January there is much hustle and bustle down at the park on the beach. Why? Because sculptor's from around the world bring a piece of their art to our tiny island and install it near the beach for a month. This great event is called "Sculpture Key West". Some of these installations are enormous and are made from many materials such as metal, fiberglass, cloth and even stone. Creativity and imagination of these artists always amazes me. Also, besides being at the beach, artists are installing some of their creations throughout the town of Key West. I was on a bike ride today and noticed a monster of some sorts being installed in the pond in front of the police department and their was "heavy equipment" installing some type of metal piece in the Garden Club area. I am looking forward to the event which starts soon.

Just to give you an idea of "Sculpture Key West", here are a couple of photos from last year. I surely will have photos for you this year when the event is complete.

This is a "very big bird" made of metal.

Check out these "guard dogs"!

A very tall horse made from fiberglass and yarn.

Metal hawk heading for a landing.

Head in the sand!

I have been working, mostly painting woodwork, around the house this week getting ready for the gang from up north to arrive in February so not much cooking going on here. Hope you enjoyed a few photos from "Sculpture Key West" and I look forward to showing you more of this year's show.

More food and wine in the near future!!!!

Cheers!

Healthy Muffins

2008-01-15T08:47:00.000-05:00

Company is coming in February! There will be 7 of us gathering in our great room in the mornings for coffee, tea and something to satisfy their tummies after evenings of "many beverages". After reading Wendy's posts the past week and her appetizing muffins, I thought "muffins" would be an easy early morning treat. At the time I was thinking this, I was paging through one of mine and Valli's favorite magazines "Cooking Light". In the December issue, I saw a recipe by Deborah Madison for "Whole Wheat Oat Muffins". Checking the ingredients, I was surprised that I had all of them on hand. So off to the kitchen I went and made these terrific little muffins. Now granted, they are not your bakery-style muffins that look like small snow capped mountains. These little gems are just plain and healthy. I served them to myself with a bowl of fresh fruit and Sher's "Seasoned Eating's" gift to me, cinnamon spun honey. Oh what a breakfast party in my mouth!

Deborah Madison's Whole Wheat-Oat Muffins

1-1/2 cups fat free buttermilk

1 cup regular oats

3 tablespoons canola oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 large egg

1/2 cup oat flour (about 2 ounces)

1/2 cup whole wheat flour (about 2-1/2 ounces)

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

Cooking Spray

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Combine first 5 ingredients in a medium bowl, stir well.

Lightly spoon flours into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flours, sugar, soda, and salt in a large bowl; make a well in center of mixture. Add buttermilk mixture; stir just till moist. Spoon batter into 12 muffin cups coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from pans and cool on a wire rack.

These are great breakfast muffins! They have just a hint of sweetness to them, so they pair well with a fruit salad. The only thing I would do different next time is add a bit of cinnamon to the batter, just because Sher has me on a cinnamon kick!

If any of you have an EASY breakfast dish that I could use while having a crowd at breakfast, please let me know!

Cheers!

Cool Weather Cooking

2008-01-12T08:02:00.000-05:00

In my last post I spotlighted Sarah Leah Chase's "Cold-Weather Cooking" cookbook. We had a soul satisfying warm mushroom salad which is a great starter salad for a winter's evening or it could stand alone for a simple dinner just adding a nice chunk of crusty bread, a piece of cheese, and of course a glass of wine.

Another soul satisfying dish from Sarah is her "Poverty Casserole". The inspiration for this dish came to Sarah while she was living in her drafty apartment above her shop "Que Sera Sarah" during a winter evening. Instead of going out and purchasing ingredients for a dinner she used what she had in her pantry. I myself can attest to that, as I am sure you can too. You know, those evenings where you have been so busy all day that you have not even thought of dinner and when you arrive home you think "what am I going to eat"! So "Poverty Casserole" is the dish! Following in her steps, this is my adaption of a satisfying casserole. I like to call it "Poverty Pasta"!

A few tablespoons of olive oil

1 medium onion, minced

4 cloves of garlic minced

1 lb. of ground turkey

8 whole sundried tomatoes packed in oil and minced

1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes

2 good tablespoons dried oregano

2 teaspoons dried marjoram

2 teaspoons dried thyme

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 large bay leaf

Salt and Pepper to taste

About 12 ounces of penne pasta

2 large eggs

2/3 cup heavy whipping cream

2 cups shredded mozzarella

4 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 350 degrees

Heat your oil in a medium size skillet and add the onions and garlic till soft.

Stir in the ground turkey and cook, breaking it up with a spoon as it cooks until all the pink is gone.

Add all of your dried herbs and bay leaf, stir and then add the sundried tomatoes, and your can of tomatoes. Let these simmer for about 15 minutes so all the flavors meld.

Cook your pasta al dente and drain.

Whisk the eggs and cream together in a large bowl. Quickly add your pasta and toss, then add your meat mixture, stir to combine. Fold in 1-1/2 cups of your mozzarella cheese.

Take your pasta mixture and put it in an oven proof casserole, top with remaining mozzarella and then the Parmesan.

Bake until the cheese is melted and all is bubbling hot, about 30 minutes.

This is a wonderful comfort food for your "Cold-Weather Cooking"! And of course, serve it with a glass of your favorite red wine!

Cheers!

Book Review 7 "Cold-Weather Cooking"

2008-01-09T11:14:00.000-05:00

Winter arrived in Key West, believe it or not, last week one day. We actually set a record low one night of 45 degrees. The lizards were slow, the iguanas were stuck in trees and one of my succulent plants is about ready to bite the dust because of it. So with our little cold snap that occurred, I hit the bookshelf for the perfect book “Cold-Weather Cooking” by Sarah Leah Chase.

A few months ago when I decided to start reading and cooking from my collection of cooking and wine books and reviewing them for you, one of the first ones I reviewed were her books on Pedaling Through Provence and Pedaling Through Burgundy. "Cold-Weather Cooking" is one of her earlier books that I acquired back in the early 90’s and have enjoyed since. Sarah is an excellent writer and “Cold Weather Cooking” provides us with interesting recipes and stories that celebrate the foods that keep us warm! This book came together from Sarah’s stay during winters on Nantucket while she owned her food shop “Que Sera Sarah”. Her business boomed during the summer while all the tourists were enjoying her soups and salads, but the question put to her by many tourists was “what do you do during the winter on this island?” That is when “Cold-Weather Cooking” was born. I just want to list the names of the chapters in Sarah’s book as I think they are very creative!

So Long Summer
Recipes to straddle the seasons, combining foods for summer’s
grand finale with autumn’s chilly beginnings.
Finger Foods For Frosty Weather
Warming little morsels for a chilly evening’s cocktail party.
Thinking Thanksgiving Part 1 – Savories
Thinking Thanksgiving Part 2 – Sweets
Soups For The Solstice
Hearty Soups to fortify body and soul against deep freezes and
other inclement ills.
December Dazzle
Great culinary extravagances that are integral to the holiday
splurge.
Holiday Cheer
Winter’s warm libations accompanied by favorite cookies and
sugarplums.
Cold Weather Comforts
Breakfast fare to provide the incentive to face the world on
the chilliest mornings.
Stormy Weather and Magic Mountains
Simmering stews, crackling roasts, and mounds of carbohydrates
that can be guiltlessly indulged after an invigorating day outdoors.
The Brumal Fire of the Viands
Hearthside grilling to dispel epicurean doldrums and set the soul
on fire again.
Piscean Platters (My favorite as I also am a Pisces’)
Fish dishes from a cook with a taste for astrology.
The Tease of Spring
Recipes that signal the first signs of spring, yet allow for the chill
of fickle March winds.
Easter Feasts
Our last eclectic and ethnic extravaganza.

Sarah starts out each chapter with a story regarding the dishes in that chapter. Also within the chapters she highlights in a box a dinner she would prepare for let’s say “A Harvest Night To Remember” or “January Enthrall”. Sarah also includes “helpful hint” boxes throughout like “Chestnuts Not Roasting On An Open Fire” where she finally makes friends with her microwave on preparing fresh chestnuts!

"Cold-Weather Cooking" is a delightful easy cookbook of which I have some of my favorite recipes. She has a recipe for “Grilled Tuna with Florida Avocado Butter” that has pleased many a dinner guest in my house. And in the spring when we can get our hands on the first harvest of asparagus, I have prepared her “My Very Favorite Asparagus Vinaigrette” and “Oven-Roasted Asparagus with Minced Mushrooms” with much success. But since I am on a salad kick this week, I thought I would try her “Warm Mushroom and Arugula Salad” and share it with you.

Sarah Chase’s “Warm Mushroom and Arugula Salad”

7 tablespoons fruity olive oil
8 oz shitake mushrooms, stems discarded, caps thinly sliced
8 oz domestic white mushrooms, prepared the same way
(I used baby portabella mushrooms instead)
2 cloves of garlic minced (I used 4 as we LOVE garlic in our house)
2 anchovy fillets, minced
¼ cup pitted Nicoise olives, finely minced
2 tablespoons of capers
2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar
2 bunches of arugula, trimmed, rinsed and patted dry
Salt and Pepper to taste
4 oz crumbled Gorgonzola Cheese (I used Maytag Blue)

1. Heat 3 tablespoons of the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and sauté, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and add the garlic, anchovies, olives, capers, lemon juice and vinegar. Simmer a few minutes to blend the flavors.
2. Toss arugula with remaining olive oil in a large salad bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the warm mushroom mixture to the bowl and toss until thoroughly blended. Mix in the cheese and plate. Serve at once.

This is such a great salad for a cold evening as the warm mushrooms slightly wilt the salad and the cheese just sets it off! Oh Yum!
I served this with a nice light red wine and crunchy bread. A meal in itself!
Later this week, I will highlight another one of Sarah’s recipes from her "Cold Weather Cooking" book that is extremely simple and very soul satisfying on these “cold winter” evenings.
Cheers!

Healthy Salad With A Crunch

2008-01-07T09:54:00.000-05:00

As we are all trying to adhere to our "New Years Resolutions", especially if one of your resolutions like mine is trying to lose a bit of extra poundage, you may find this salad that we had the other night perfect. I don't know about you, but when I am trying to loose weight I need something crunchy and lively with a hint of vinegar to satisfy my taste buds. A nice healthy salad to fill you up, not out.

The ingredients are fairly simple. Watercress, daikon radish, cucumber, thinly sliced red onion and a dash of sprouts on top. The dressing was simple consisting of seasoned rice vinegar, with just a drop or so of olive oil. Crunchy heaven in your mouth!

Cheers!

Food Friendly Wine

2008-01-05T09:48:00.000-05:00

Now that the rush of the holiday season is over, I found myself lingering in the wine aisle a bit more this past week. Spending more time looking at labels and getting acquainted with a few bottles that I have been “eyeing” but not paying much attention, I pulled off the shelf a Pinot Gris that has been wanting to come home with me. Pinot Gris is a white wine that has the same grapes as found in Pinot Grigio, which by the way is the number 1 imported white wine here in the U.S.

I highly recommend, if you can find it, a 2006 Erath Pinot Gris from Dundee, Oregon. Dundee is located in the famous Willamette Valley of Oregon, which is a wonderful wine growing region of that state. On the back of their bottle is a statement from their winery that says it all.

"Grapes from the EARTH, wines from the HEART...ERATH"

On unscrewing this gem, the aromas were a mix of melon, apple and citrus. My first sip brought my mouth a wonderful surprise of a lively, bright, clean, lip-smacking mouthful of citrus flavors with a hint of crisp green apple on the finish.

Erath Pinot Gris is one of those food-friendly wines that you could pair with many dishes. I think it would go well with all kinds of sea food, fish, turkey, pork and chicken. It has such a nicely balanced acidity that I would even serve it with Asian dishes, or even those dishes that are a bit spicy. Nora from Life’s Smorgasbord is visiting her family in Singapore, and if she could find this wine there, it would pair well with those yummy dishes Nora and her mom are preparing!

Hope you all are enjoying your new year and stop back and see me next week as I am working on my next cookbook review! Perfect food for these cool winter evenings.

Cheers!

First Wine of 2008 and Hoppin' John!

2008-01-03T10:17:00.000-05:00

Could not start out our New Year without tasting a New Wine! So to usher in 2008, I choose one of my favorite wines, a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand. Sometimes it is hard to find a new wine to try that will fit into my wine budget. Oh sure there are MANY wines out today, but quite a few have price tags over $20.00. Those wines I surely like to try on special occasions, but for a bottle to pop open for a sipper in the evening, I must curtail my spending to under $15.00 and preferably under $10.00 for a week night. But this wine caught my eye as something new around $13.00. Gotta have it!

What a great find! I am talking about the 2006 Giesen Sauvignon Blanc from the Marlborough region of New Zealand. Giesen grows their grapes in the Wairau Valley and their winery is located in the town of Blenheim which is situated in the southwest part of New Zealand. Unscrewing this one, aromas of vibrant citrus and intense tropical fruit weaved their ways to my nose. On my first sip of this wine I new it was going to be a favorite, as my palate enjoyed tastes of sweet gooseberries and that classic grassy, herbal flavor that is so distinct in New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs. This is a nice, medium bodied wine with crisp, refreshing acidity that gives it a nice zip in your mouth on the finish. I think this wine would go great with a nice chicken dish with a side of asparagus. Yum!

Not only did we have a new bottle of wine to bring in the new year we also had a traditional dish that I serve every year on New Year’s Day – “Hoppin John”! This is one of those great Southern dishes with a fuzzy origin. Some say it was a staple of the African slaves on the plantations and, before that, was found throughout the Caribbean. In American folklore, one theory is that friendly hosts would invite their guests to stay for supper by saying “Hop in, John”. Today "Hoppin’ John" is a traditional dish served on New Years Day to bring luck in the coming year.

Deb’s Take On "Hoppin’ John"

Cook 1 lb. of black eye peas in 6 cups of cold water with a small onion quartered, a couple of bay leaves and 4 cloves of smashed garlic, and a ham hock (optional) for about an hour. Do not over cook the beans as you do not want them mushy. Drain removing bay leaves, onion and ham hock.
In a Dutch oven, cook about 4 slices of bacon, drain bacon on paper towels and chop. Then add 1 big chopped onion, 1 chopped green bell pepper, lots of fresh chopped garlic, 3 stalks of chopped celery and a couple of chopped but seeded jalapeno peppers to the pot. Sauté for about 7 minutes. Then add some seasoning – 1 tbsp of store bought Cajun seasoning, ½ teaspoon each of garlic and onion powder, 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper, 1 tablespoon cumin, 2 bay leaves and 1 tablespoon dried thyme.
Add a can of chopped tomatoes with their juice and a pound of sausage, your choice of smoked or kielbasa, sliced. Add peas back into Dutch oven, chopped bacon and pour a bit of chicken broth over all just to keep everything moist while baking.
Put lid on Dutch oven and place into a 325 degree oven for an hour and a half.

This dish is sooo good and comforting! I serve it with rice, as you can put the Hoppin’ John over the rice, and a nice skillet of corn bread. You surely can make this a vegetarian dish by omitting the ham hock and sausage and could use veggie broth to moisten the stew for baking.
I know this sounds like a lot of work, but actually it is not, just a lot of ingredients. Perfect for a cold winter evening as your oven will be cranking away!

Cheers!

Welcome To 2008

2008-01-01T08:23:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year Everyone!

Here we are with a whole new year ahead of us!

May it bring peace and happiness to all of you. Thank you for being there!

Cheers!

Non-Baker Baked!

2007-12-30T13:01:00.001-05:00

The Non-Baker Baked !!!! It really worked! In my last post I was telling you about a recipe I found in two magazines called “Almost No-Knead Bread”. Cooks Illustrated Magazine is the one that caught my eye as it used beer and water, instead of just water. The recipe looked very simple but did take some rising time, anywhere from 8 to 18 hours, the longer the better. So this is a “two dayer” bread.

Bread has to rise in a 10 inch skillet.

Ready for the Oven!

Into the "dutch oven" for the real oven!

Ready!

Oh my gosh, I think it worked!

Not bad for a first attempt!

Moral of story, success for the non-baker baking!

Cheers!

Remembering...And Baking Again?

2007-12-27T09:49:00.000-05:00

As I am sitting here with my morning tea, still adoring my now somewhat drooping Christmas tree, I am thinking of the past year. Wow how quickly it has flown by me. Just 2 weeks ago I was in snowy Ohio visiting the Winter Farmers Market and now I am sitting in the south with all the windows and doors open. Thinking back on the past year, as I guess we all do this time of year, I said to myself, what was the highlight of my past year? First of all, in February, I started my blog. At that time I would have never guessed it would have developed into what it is today, sharing my favorite pastimes with so many new friends. It has developed into a community I cannot live without!

The second highlight of my year was being able to live in Ohio for the summer months and discovering the Oxford Farmers Market. Not only did I get farm fresh veggies, eggs, etc. I got another new set of friends. These couple of photos of the Winters Farmers Market are surely a testament to their dedication. These folks go thru “hell and high water”, OK let’s say snow, to bring to us the freshest and safest foods for our families.

If you would like to visit one of these hardworking farmers check out Lucy from Boulder Belt Eco Farm. Stop on over to Lucy’s blog, for updates weekly on the trials and rewards of organic farming. Reading her blog, and actually speaking with them at the market, sheds a new light and appreciation of “buying local”! This is a photo of Lucy in front of her stand at the Winters Market!

Well folks, enough reminiscing for now, time to plan dinner and head to the grocery store. Also, I am in the process of making “No Knead” Bread. Not sure if any of you saw the article in the New York Times, I didn’t, I first came across it in “Mother Earth News”. The second time I saw an article about it was in the February 2008 issue of “Cooks Illustrated” Magazine. After seeing it this many times, and they telling me how easy it is, I thought I would give it a shot. So the non-baker is baking again. Could this be a new trend for 2008 ???? Scary!

Cheers!

A "Merry Christmas" With Wine

2007-12-23T08:29:00.000-05:00

Well the big day is almost here and hopefully all of your Christmas shopping and wrapping has come to an end. Now it is time to sit back, relax, enjoy family and friends and pop open a bottle of wine to celebrate! And do I have a new one just for this occasion. If you have read any of my past posts on wine, you will know that some of my favorites are wines from "Toad Hollow". My two past favorites have been the "Dry Rose of Pinot Noir, Eye of the Toad" and "Erik's The Red", Propriety Red Wine. Both of these would be great for any celebration. But as I was strolling through the wine aisle this week, choosing our selections for the holidays, I came across Toad Hollow's newest offering. What caught my eye first is the whimsical label, as you all know I adore "artsy" wine labels. So I had to purchase "Le Faux Frog" 2005 Chardonnay!

About 11 years ago, Toad Hollow crossed the big pond over to France and created great new French Wines under the label "Le Faux Frog". These have been nice wines, but to me the ones they produce here in California I enjoyed a bit more. But seeing this label, I had to give them another try. And I am so glad I did! Their 2005 Chardonnay is the best to date. How can it not be as it is produced in the South of France in the District of Limoux! Limoux is situated just south of Carcassonne and not very far from the beautiful Mediterranean Sea. The 2005 Chardonnay has such a refreshing, non-oaky flavor with hints of lemon and a fun bright finish to it. It is not a heavy Chardonnay like some of the California ones can be, but one that is lively and light! Perfect for sipping at your holiday parties!

I will be pouring "Le Faux Frog" this evening and I will raise my glass to all of my friends all over the world!

I want to wish all of you a very "Merry Christmas". Have lots of fun and be safe!

Cheers!

Happy "Seasoned Eatings" From Key West

2007-12-21T05:37:00.000-05:00

My post yesterday was about the fun spice exchange "Seasoned Eatings" hosted by two great gals, Katie at Thyme For Cooking and Lindsay at Country Girl City Living. Thanks for bringing us an early Christmas! It was so fun opening up my spice gift from Sher at What Did You Eat. And, what I truly enjoyed was heading to the kitchen to bake the recipe Sher sent along with her secret spice "cinnamon"! I do not do much baking so this was the perfect treat for me. Sher's recipe for "Cinnamon Lace Cookies" was easy and oh so yummy for the Holidays.

Just look how great they turned out! After I popped them in the oven, I had to watch through the door and, oh my gosh, they did turn into lace while cooking!

Sher's "Cinnamon Lace Cookies"

1 stick of butter (4 oz)

2/3 cup of sugar

1/3 cup light corn syrup

2 tablespoons heavy cream

2/3 cup all purpose flour

1-1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

4 ounces of semi-sweet chocolate chopped

Combine the butter, sugar, corn syrup and cream in a heavy saucepan, bring to a boil stirring often. Remove from heat, add flour and cinnamon and beat till smooth. Put into a bowl and into the fridge to chill.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop 6 one half teaspoons size (and believe me, do not go bigger as I did the first time, these guys really spread out) mounds of batter onto the baking sheets, with room to spread! Bake 8 minutes or until cookies are lacy and golden.

Let cool on baking sheets until firm. Transfer to a rack. Wipe off parchment and repeat with remaining batter. Chill batter between batches.

When cookies are cool, melt chocolate stirring until smooth. Roll the edges of the cookies in chocolate and set them on wax paper to harden. Enjoy!

Sher, these turned out great! I even got a little creative while playing in the kitchen. While the cookies were still fairly warm out of the oven, before I transferred to a rack, I took a fork and picked up the edge of the cookie and then rolled them. When they cooled, I dipped the ends in the chocolate. They turned out like little candies! So sweet and crunchy! Thank you Sher for your spice gift to me!

And, Thank You again Katie and Lindsey for organizing this great event for us. I really appreciate all the time and effort you put into this event. It was so fun and now I look forward to the round up on your sites! Cannot wait to see what everyone else received and "cooked up" with their new spices and recipes!

Merry Christmas and Happy "Seasoned Eatings"!

Cheers!

Home Now and My Spice Package Was Waiting For Me

2007-12-19T08:28:00.000-05:00

On my way home all I could think about was my "Seasoned Eatings" package waiting for me! Sure, I was excited to be back home after the snowy days in Ohio and looking forward to getting a Christmas tree, but the spice package waiting means it is time to get back in the kitchen and prepare whatever awaited me in my secret spice package! Plus, it meant re-connecting to my friends in the blogger world. I missed you all!

I must send out a big thanks to Katie at Thyme For Cooking and Lindsay at Country Girl City Living for hosting a wonderful event for us. Kaite and Lindsay came up with the idea of getting us cooking bloggers together for a spice exchange. We all sent in our addresses to them, they in turn emailed us a fellow blogger somewhere in the world to send a package of a local spice from our area or a spice that we enjoy cooking with, along with a recipe using that spice. We are to prepare our recipe and there will be a roundup of all the goodies on Katie's and Lindsay's site soon. This was such a fun event because I got to meet a few new bloggers. So many thanks again to Katie and Lindsay for all their time and effort to make us have a happy "Seasoned Eatings"!

Now for the fun part! As soon as I walked in the door I opened my "Seasoned Eatings" package. A big "Thank you" to Sher from What Did You Eat! Sher lives in Davis, California and I envy her as she lives so close to wine country! Her spice to me is Cinnamon and a perfect spice for the Holidays! Sher also sent me a beautiful card with her recipe included, a nice note introducing herself and two locally made items. She sent a package of "Naughty Biscotti" from a company located in Santa Clara and a jar of "Spun Honey With Cinnamon" from a local bee keeper in Woodland, Ca. I am going to save this yummy looking jar of honey for Christmas morning! Thank you so much Sher for this terrific package! I am thrilled with these goodies and look forward to making the cookie recipe that you sent me. I will be posting the results of it soon and it will be included in Katie and Lindsay's roundup.

It is great to be back home again and now I must go and visit all of my blogging friends and catch up from the week I was up north. More on that trip tomorrow!

Cheers!

Holiday Shopping On The Mainland

2007-12-06T09:51:00.000-05:00

Hi Gang! I am going to have limited access to internet for the next week or so. I am heading north to do some Christmas shopping and visit family! I should be back to you all full time again the week before Christmas so I can chat with you about the holidays! I will miss you!

Cheers!

Cookbook Review 6 - Wine and Food of Greece

2007-12-02T12:37:00.000-05:00

This cookbook review is for my good blogging friend Valli at More Than Burnt Toast. Valli is a major Greek fan having visited Greece and attending a cooking school there! Valli shares with us on her blog wonderful photos of her visit and delicious recipes from her trip.
I have had “The Food And Wine Of Greece” by Diane Kochilas around my kitchen for quite a few years. The most used recipe out of her book is the flavorful Makedonitiki Skordalia, which is Mike’s favorite appetizer. This is a garlic and potato puree from Macedonia that will knock your socks off with the fresh garlic ingredient. Diane’s book is a great collection of Greek cuisine and pays tribute to the history, tradition, folklore and culture that surround each dish. Diane traveled in Greece and lived in Athens during the writing and testing of her cookbook. I so enjoy books like this written with such details on the different aspects of life and the background for the recipe.
Diane’s first part of the book is dedicated to the essentials of Greek cuisine. Actually, I totally enjoyed this part of the book as it is on Greek Wine! She starts with the mythology of Greek wine, the history of it, followed by the different wine regions. She has a very informative page on the “Appellation Wines Produced in Greece by Name and Region” with a map pointing out these regions. After the wine section, she goes on to discuss the “Spirits of Greece” and then other beverages like teas and coffees. The rest of Part 1 of the book is about basic ingredients and bread. Part 2 discusses appetizers, Part 3 is the main course section and Part 4 is on “sweets”. She has a great follow-up at the end of the book on Classic Greek Meals. For example, Diane lays out a sample menu of what you would serve for Easter, Christmas, Lent, Winter and a favorite Summer meal. This book is a must for anyone who would like to learn and taste authentic Greek dishes!

Here is a recipe that I adapted from “The Food and Wine of Greece”. And yes, here I go again with my tomato fetish!

Kotopoulo Kavourmas or Kokkinisto which is Braised Chicken With Tomato Sauce

3 lbs. of chicken legs, you could use any part of the chicken
Olive Oil and 1 Tablespoon butter
Flour for dredging
2 large red onions, sliced
1 can of petit chopped tomatoes with their juice
4-5 cloves of garlic finely chopped
3 tablespoons of fresh chopped oregano or 1 tablespoon dried
2 bay leafs
1 spring of fresh rosemary chopped (optional)
A good shake of hot pepper flakes (for Mike)
1-2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat some olive oil and butter in your stewing pot, dredge your chicken in flour, add to hot pot and brown chicken on all sides, remove to plate.
Add more olive oil if your pot is dry, add onions until translucent, add garlic for a few moments, add tomatoes, herbs, pepper flakes, and a bit of water. Cover and simmer for about 45 minutes over low heat. Check the pot occasionally to make sure there is enough liquid, if not, add a bit more water.
About 10 minutes before serving, add the vinegar to taste with salt and pepper. Serve hot.

You could serve this chicken dish with rice, mashed potatoes, or like I did, over pasta. It is a very easy, flavorful dish for a cool evening.

I did not have any Greek white wine, so I just went with my favorite Sauvignon Blanc!

Cheers!

New Found Friends

2007-11-28T08:36:00.000-05:00

Happpily in the garden, kissed by rain...

Remember this guy last week looking for a pole...

Better than a pole...a new found friend...the "grape" tomato vine:)

Cheers!

Cookbook Review 5 - Stews, Bogs And Burgoos!

2007-11-26T09:51:00.000-05:00

Still have any leftover turkey? By this time, probably not. If you do, here is a yummy way to use it up. Saturday I was tired of turkey soup, turkey sandwiches and poultry in general. But still starring me in the face when I opened the fridge was a good portion of left over turkey. So off to the book shelf I went. Now here is a book that I have had for several years and enjoy turning to when I want a one pot meal.
Stews, Bogs, and Burgoos – Recipes from the Great American Stewpot by James Villas. James has been the food and wine editor at Town and Country magazine and he has had several articles in Gourmet Magazine, Bon Appetit, New York Times and Esquire. I like his comment at the beginning of his introduction, “In a large, heavy pot… Just these five words, repeated over and over in recipes throughout this book, immediately evoke timeless memories of sitting around a big wooden kitchen table in North Carolina and watching my grandfather fill blue and white bowls with his steaming rabbit stew…”
This is just the beginning of a wonderful book filled with “down home” cooking such as stews, ragouts, burgoos, mulls, braises, bogs, hotpots, kettles, gumbos, chilis – whew, now I am hungry. After his introduction, which will keep you turning the pages of this book, James has chapters on Beef Stews, Pork Stews, Lamb and Veal Stews, Poultry Stews, Game and Variety Meat Stews, Seafood Stews, Vegetable, Bean and Fruit Stews and to accompany all these delicious pots his last chapter is on Biscuits! Another informative feature of his book are the "Stew Savvy" comments throughout the chapters. These are great helpful hints to make life easier while spending time in your kitchen. Here is an example of one of his tips - "To prevent small whole onions from coming apart during the cooking of stews, take a knife and score the root ends with an X". Good advice James!
Now it is time Mr. Turkey leftovers, you are headed for a Mull. Here is my version of James’ Turkey, Corn and Lima Bean Mull.

Turkey, Corn and Green Pea Mull

4 slices of pancetta, or you could use bacon
1 medium onion finely chopped
2 pieces of celery finely chopped
1 green bell pepper finely chopped
3 cups turkey stock and 1 cup chicken stock
One 10 oz. package frozen corn, thawed
One 10 oz. package frozen green peas – my favorite ingredient!, thawed
2 medium sized potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes
Whatever leftover turkey you have cubed, I had about 2-1/2 cups
One teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon dried tarragon
Salt and pepper to taste

In a large heavy pot, fry the pancetta or bacon till crisp, remove from pot, drain on paper towel and crumble. Add a touch of olive oil to the pot if it is too dry and add the onions, celery, bell pepper and cook until soft. Add the remaining ingredients plus your bacon and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the potatoes are fork tender. Add salt and pepper to taste.

As you can see, this is a great alternative to those cold turkey sandwiches. I served it for lunch, but you could definitely do this for supper and just add a crisp salad and some great biscuits to make a satisfying dinner on a “cool” fall evening.

If you are doing it for dinner, a nice wine to serve aside would be a crisp Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio!

Cheers!

Garden Update And Post Thanksgiving

2007-11-23T10:11:00.000-05:00

Hope everyone is fully stuffed from your big bird and have lots of good memories under your belt besides turkey, stuffing, pie, etc. Our day was wonderful with lots of goodies to keep us in food for the next few days. Our table was graced with lots of wine, mostly Rieslings from Washington State, Three Mushroom Dressing, Cranberry and Apple Relish, Smashed Potatoes, Gravey, Pumpkin Pie and Mincemeat Pie. But the Highlight of the dinner table was Mike's grilled turkey straight off the hot charcoals. What a beauty! Good job Mike! It was all so yummy!

While I am listening to Christmas music this morning, I thought I would update you on the container garden!

Pole Beans

Pole Beans Heading For The Sky

Looking For A Pole

First Tomatoes

Hot Banana Peppers

Cayanne Peppers That Need Transplanting

Hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving and Enjoy Your Weekend!

Cheers!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2007-11-21T09:18:00.000-05:00

Enjoyed a glass of 2005 Maison Louis Latour Ardeche Chardonnay last evening while preparing my last list of goodies that I need for our Thanksgiving Dinner. I gave you the scoop on this wine a few months ago, but thought I would share with you again. It would be a nice wine to sip on Thanksgiving Day while that big bird is cooking in your oven and making your house smell so comforting. Chilled, the Ardeche Chardonnay is a nice wine that has a fresh crisp apple note to it and is smooth on the finish. Not a heavy Chardonnay at all! A good choice before you set the table. I have not purchased my wines yet for the big day, but will probably go with a Riesling. They are good chilled and have a nice sweet note that will pair well with the sweeter items on the Thanksgiving Table, such as sweet potatoes and cranberry sauce for instance. Also the Rieslings would be a good choice beside a nice slice of pumpkin or apple pie that is smothered in whip cream or ice cream! As for you red wine drinkers, I would go with a lighter red such as a Pinot Noir, Merlot or even a Shiraz. These will pair well with the light tasting meat of the turkey.

Now that my mouth is watering in anticipation of all the yummy "fixin's" for tomorrow, I will move along as I need to hit the market for my last minute items!

From my home to yours, have a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Cheers!

Cookbook Review 4 - "Baking With Julia"

2007-11-19T10:21:00.000-05:00

We are rapidly approaching the Holiday Season. And with that thought, I start planning all the goodies that I want to adorn my table. Problem is - I am not a baker! Therefore, when a holiday does approach, I pull out my trusty baking companion, Julia. Everyone who cooks knows Julia Child. I have many of her books, but my favorite one that has many bookmarks and stains, is “Baking With Julia”. I picked up this book after tuning into her PBS TV series that aired back in the mid 1990’s. This book and her series is a gathering of 27 chefs of enormous talent which, one by one, visit Julia in her kitchen and prepare some of their specialties. I enjoy this book as it has very explicit instructions of each recipe and beautiful photos of work-in-progress and finished product. I need all the help I can get when baking and this is the perfect book!

After a nice introductory section, Baking With Julia starts with a chapter on “Baking Basics” which is great information from almond paste, baking pans, to the zest of citrus fruits. Following that is one on “Batters and Dough’s” which goes over many “how to’s” on making flaky pie dough, puff pastry, and many other basic batters and dough’s that will be used throughout the book.
Now let the baking begin with:
Breads
Daily Loaves
Artisanal Breads
Flatbreads
Morning Pastries And Quick Breads
Cakes
Everyday Delights
Cakes For Occasions
A Glorious Wedding Cake
Cookies
Pastries
Homey Pies And Tarts
Grand Pastries
Savory Pastries
Sweet Fillings And Savory Spreads
The ending chapters are on the bakers themselves, sources and the index.

One of my favorite recipes from Baking With Julia is the one for Galette. I have used the Galette Dough two different ways in the past, one for a Berry Galette using fresh berries and one for a more savory Galette using fresh plum tomatoes, Monterey Jack cheese, Mozzarella cheese and fresh basil leaves. But the other day I had fresh pears and a big bunch of grapes on hand and thought, WOW, this would make a lovely Galette.

I served my Pear and Grape Galette with freshly made whip cream that I only added a touch of sugar and vanilla. I did not want to overpower the sweet taste of the fruit in the galette, but add a cool smooth texture along with the textures of the crust and fruit. What a happy party in my mouth!

The wine I would serve with my Pear and Grape Galette would be a nicely chilled Riesling from Germany or Washington State. The sweetness of the fruit in the galette would pair nicely with the sweetness of the wine.

Just an ending note – I highly recommend Baking With Julia for a no stress baking experience during your Holiday baking time. She is well worth picking up in your library or local bookstore. Not only is the book “user friendly”, I totally enjoyed the section that introduced us to all 27 chefs that collaborated on this wonderful series.
As Julia would say “Bon Appetit”, or Deb says…
Cheers!

Visiting A Favorite Wine And Visiting Me!

2007-11-15T09:20:00.000-05:00

I visit this wine from time to time

As it totally is a favorite of mine

So pour a glass and let it shine

Monkey Bay is so fine!

How do you guys like that! Well, you will like this wine I am sure. Monkey Bay Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough, New Zealand, is such a treat for under $10.00. As you all know, I really enjoy the Sauvignon Blancs from Australia and New Zealand. They spotlight great, concentrated tropical fruit with a hint of grassiness that I find irresistible. So refreshing and have just the right acidity to balance out all those tropical fruit flavors on your palate. I enjoyed this bottle last evening as the beginning of the end of my day. It went perfect with a fresh piece of fish on the grill basted with butter and lemon. I was on a green kick last night craving crispy green veggies, so I served the fish with grilled asparagus and steamed broccoli. The grassiness of the wine complimented all of the goodies for dinner! Cheers!

Katie from Thyme For Cooking, The Blog, tagged me the other day for a Meme! If you have not visited Katie's site yet, I highly recommend that you do. Her weekly menu's and delicious dishes she posts about will send you to your kitchen immediately! She also entertains us with her wonderful writings about life in France and the antics of her two beautiful dogs. Here ya go Katie!

Four places I have lived: my life started in Kentucky, then to Ohio, then to Tennessee, back to Ohio and now in Florida.

Four Jobs I have had: When I decided to start working in the real world, I planned my jobs as to what benefits I could get out of them. First job was in the accounting department of a Brewery - great benefits! Second job was at an Automotive Parts Distributor. Mike was in heaven because I could get parts for his Corvette! Third Job was for Levi Strauss - need I say more. Last major job was at a Material Handling Distributor. Again Mike was in heaven because we were able to outfit his garage with shelving, etc. for all of his toys, his tools!

Four Favorite Places I have been on Holiday: These 2 places tie for the best holidays I have ever had - France and Australia! Next would be San Francisco and the place I call home, Key West, Florida.

Four Favorite Foods: Wine, Artisan Breads, Olive Oils, and Green Peas.

Four Places I'd rather be: I enjoy my home here, but would love to spend more time in France, Australia, Italy, Canada and the UK. Oops, that is 5, oh well. I think it would be so cool to stay in each spot for 6 months or more to learn all about their history and seek out the best foods,wines and visit with my blogger friends in these areas.

Four Fantastic Bloggers To Tag: Only if you guys have the time, as I know your schedules are pretty full. Nora B., Lucy, Valli and Wendy.

Thank you Katie for the tag. It is fun to learn more about all of our blogging friends!

Cheers to all!

Cookbook Review #3 Kate Hill's Culinary Journey In Gascony

2007-11-12T11:20:00.000-05:00

I have been working on this post for the last week and it is one of the most exciting for me. Why? Let me tell you a quick little story. A few weeks ago, I was on Wendy’s site and decided to visit one of the blogs that she has listed on the side under her column Food. I liked the sound of Lucy’s Kitchen Notebook, so off I went. I was thrilled when I started reading Lucy’s blog because she is located in France. As you all may or may not know, France is one of my favorite spots on earth. I am not sure how I got hooked on France, but it was probably because I was starting my new venture in wines and I was enjoying French wine. This was back in the mid 1980’s. My fascination continued with French wine and then on into French cuisine. In the mid 1990’s I actually got to travel to France twice, due to Mike’s business travels. We met and became good friends with some folks who live in Saumur and that became home base for us. So in my travels of France, they were mostly in the northern part of the country.
OK, back to Lucy’s blog. I do not remember which day I was reading it, but she mentioned a person named Kate Hill and I saw the name Julia Hoyt somewhere. That name rang a bell to me as I read, and still have on my top shelf, a book I purchased back in the mid-90’s called “A Culinary Journey In Gascony” by Kate Ratliffe who lived on a canal barge called the Julia Hoyt. Oh my gosh! It cannot be the same person! So I hopped over to Kate’s sight and WOW! It is the same person who is still living on the Julia Hoyt on a canal in Gascony! I immediately pulled the book from the shelf for a revisit, besides spending hours on Kate’s blog. So let me introduce you to Kate Hill and the Julia Hoyt.

In A Culinary Journey In Gascony, Kate takes you on a six day tour on her canal barge the Julia Hoyt. The canal that she travels is “Canal Lateral a la Garonne”. This canal meanders close to the Garonne River between Bordeaux and Toulouse. During her travels on this slow moving canal, she gathers recipes and rituals from neighbors and friends who live in about nineteen villages along her route.

Her first chapters are Introduction pieces about her home on the Julia Hoyt, the river, the valley, and all the villages she visits while traveling up and down the canal. Day One, Kate takes us to the town of Castets-En-Dorthe, A Barge Town, gives us some lovely photos and takes us on the first part of her culinary journey – Aperitifs. Here she gives us the history and wonderful recipes for some of the aperitifs her and her friends enjoy. Day Two brings us to Meilhan-Sur-Garonne and Kate’s Soups. This was a wonderful chapter and the soup that caught my attention was the “Soupe Aux Poireaux Ma Facon” Leek Soup Vinaigrette.

This soup is comprised of leeks, potatoes, shallots, chives, and a surprise taste that you add at the end, vinaigrette composed of mustard, vinegar, extra virgin olive oil and salt & pepper. This soup was so rich and creamy without a hint of milk or cream. So satisfying!!! Day Three brought us to Marmande-La-Jolie and market day. This chapter was on all the lovely veggies that Kate acquires on her trip. Day Four takes us to Le Mas D’Agenais and Lagruere. Here Kate presents us with “main courses”. I absolutely had to try “Lapin Aux Pruneaux D’Agen” Rabbit Cooked With Prunes of Agen.

I am sure the prunes that I used did not come from Agen, but once I took a bit of this stew, I was not sure I cared where the prunes came from! This rabbit stew was comprised of rabbit, salt & pepper, bacon, onions, shallots, olive oil (because I did not have duck fat!), flour, carrots, celery, fresh thyme, fresh parsley, prunes and 1 bottle of red wine – minus one glass! For a fall evening, this was one of the best dishes I have made in such a long time. So rich and full of flavor, all I added to the meal was salad, bread and another bottle of red wine! Day Five brought her travels to Damazan, Vianne and Buzet. Here we have a chapter on side dishes such a potatoes, vegetable puree’s, leeks and zucchini.

Day Six brings us to the end of this journey back to the home port of the Julia Hoyt, Ste. Colombe-En-Bruilhois and Camont, the French Farmhouse where Kate also calls home. Camont and the Julia Hoyt are located just a wee bit north of the town of Agen, which I have pointed out to you on the map, just in case you want to drop by!

This ending chapter brings you to the end of dinner, dessert. Also, Kate introduces you to Camont and the wonderful folks who are her neighbors.

You must be an “arm chair” traveler and visit with Kate. This book is a travel journal and cookbook all in one. I so enjoyed it back in the mid-90’s and am so enjoying it again! Please visit Kate on her blog “Kate Hill – A French Kitchen Adventure”. Kate also has cooking classes at her “French Cooking School at Camont” and is now planning “Truffle Weekends & Winter Workshops for 2008”. You can now read on Kate’s blog about “Camp Cassoulet” where she had a group of folks, including Lucy and David Lebovitz, join her at Camont for the weekend to make Cassoulet. Wonderful fun posts about the weekend with lots of great photos!

Cheers!

Fun Fruits

2007-11-07T10:28:00.000-05:00

I spend most of my time when I am grocery shopping in the produce section. It smells good and has lots of colorful items to keep me occupied for some time. In the past few weeks I kept eyeing this fruit - Dragon Fruit. Well the flesh I suppose looks like a dragons skin, but I was curious as to what the insides looked like. When I picked it up, it was hard and had no aroma to it. Hum, I wonder what I could do with this, and most of all, what does it taste like. But at a price of $5.00 for one, I put it back on the shelf, but kept my eye on it. I did this for several weeks. Yesterday, to my surprise, Chris came into the house with a sack of fruit and chocolate! He decided to make dessert for dinner and the fruits that he had in the sack were, you guessed it, DRAGON FRUIT!!! I was so excited! So immediately, out came the camera!

Dragon Fruit, a.k.a. Pitahaya, Strawberry Pear is the fruit of several cactus species. It is native to Mexico, South and Central America, but actually is cultivated around the world in all tropical regions. It is rich in fiber, vitamin C and has lots of minerals. In reading about it I found it interesting, that in Taiwan, diabetics use the fruit as a substitute for rice!

As you can see, the flesh of the Dragon Fruit is red. But what really surprised me was that the inside of the fruit was white! I guess I was thinking it would be the same color or pink. There are some that have a red core, but ours was white with lots of little tiny black seeds. OK, now for the taste test! One bite and disappointment spread over Chris' face and I am sure mine also. No flavor! (When I first saw the inside, I thought of Kiwi with those little black seeds.) A nice crunch, but nada on the taste buds. Maybe it was not ripe enough. I have no clue, but it sure looks interesting. Has anyone tried this fruit? What was your experience? Anyhow, we still served it with Chris' chocolate dessert.

What did save the day was the other fruit that Chris had in the sack - Star Fruit, Carambola! We all have had this beauty of a fruit and it saved the day! Star Fruit is originally from Sri Lanka and the Moluccas. It has also been cultivated for hundreds of years in Southeast Asia and Malaysia. Today it grows in South Florida and Hawaii due to our warm environment. It is a lovely little fruit that is an excellent source of Vitamin C and is low in fat. Star Fruit is crunchy and has the combination of flavors such as lemons, plums and a hint of pineapple in it. A touch of acidity in the fruit also adds a bit of sparkle to the palate.

Chris plated his dessert, a small chocolate souffle, on top of a light, creamy banana sauce with a couple of pieces of star fruit to the side. Heavenly! At this point, I said heck with the photos!

Cheers!

Book Review 2, Mario Batali

2007-11-05T09:04:00.000-05:00

In case anyone has not heard of Mario Batali, he has been on the Food Network Channel for about the past 10 years with the shows, Molto Mario, Mediterranean Mario, Mario Eats Italy and Ciao America with Mario Batali. He is also one of the Iron Chefs on the Food Network's Iron Chef America. You can't miss him with his red hair and those distinctive orange gym shoes or orange clogs he wears. Seems always to have shorts on also. He is quite the character. You can check out Mario on his blog here. One of his big successes has been the restaurant Babbo Ristorante e Enoteca in New York City. I have Mario's book Molto Italiano which includes recipes from his shows on TV. I enjoy Mario's distinctive, often humorous way he provides us with a historical and cultural perspective on his Italian dishes. In his book he also shows ways to shorten or simplify everything from purchasing great ingredients to tips on how to prepare things ahead of time. I like the sidebars where he provides the background for the recipe, including the places, people and history behind the dish, so it is not just a book filled with recipes! The book starts out with a small chapter on Italian wine then follows with antipasto; soup, rice and polento; pasta; fish; fowl; meat; vegetables and dolci! It also has an informative chapter on essential equipment and sources for some of the goodies that he includes in his recipes. Along with that are beautiful photos of some of his dishes. I enjoy photos in books as it gives me a guide as to what the dish should look like when "I" get finished with it! (Unfortunately, sometimes my food does not look like the photo! )

Since the "fall season" is upon us, and we have finally gotten down into the cool low 70 degree mark at night with low humidity, I decided to do a meat dish with a hearty sauce to go along. I must apologize that this recipe again is a tomato based dish, but I adore tomatoes! So I promise in my next cookbook review I will make something without tomatoes! Anyhow, please find below Mario's "Braciole di Vitello"!

Braised Veal Rolls In Tomato Sauce

12 thin slices veal shoulder or leg

1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted

1/4 cup dried currents, I used raisins

1/2 cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano Cheese

3 oz. sliced Prosciutto Di Parma, cut into 1/8 in. dice

1 cup coarsely chopped Italian parsley

4 cloves of garlic - I doubled

3 large eggs

Salt and freshly ground pepper

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 oz. sliced Pancetta cut into 1/8 in. dice

1 large Spanish onion thinly sliced

2 cups basic tomato sauce, see below

2 cups dry red wine - and a glass for yourself while you are preparing this!

Basic Tomato Sauce

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 Spanish onion cut into 1/4 inch dice

4 cloves of garlic - I doubled

3 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme or you could use dried - 1-1/2 tablespoons

2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano, or used 1 tablespoon dried

1/2 medium carrot finely shredded

2 - 28 oz. cans whole tomatoes - squished!

1 teaspoon sugar

Salt to taste

Here are the instructions for the tomato sauce.

Heat olive oil over medium heat, add the onion and garlic and cook until soft, about 10 minutes. Add the thyme, oregano and carrots and cook about 5 minutes long, until the carrot is soft. Add the tomatoes with their juices and bring to a boil stirring often. Lower the heat and simmer until it gets really thick, about 30 minutes. Season with the salt.

Now for the veal rolls.

Using a meat mallet, gently pound each veal slice to 1/4 inch thick. Set aside.

In a medium bowl combine the pine nuts, currants, pecorino, prosciutto, parsley and garlic. Add the eggs one at a time and mix well. Season the veal with salt and pepper on both sides and lay out on a work surface. Divide the pine nut mixture onto the veal slices, leaving 1/2 inch border uncovered on each slice. Roll up each piece tightly, starting from the short side, then tie with butcher's twine.

In a large Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over high heat until almost smoking. Add the veal rolls, working in batches if necessary, and brown on all sides. Transfer to a plate and add your pancetta to the oven and cook for 2 minutes, add the onion and cook for 2 minutes.

Add the tomato sauce and wine to the pot and bring to a boil scraping up those yummy brown bits. Reduce to a simmer and add the veal back into the pot. Cover tightly and simmer for 1 hour. Remove from heat and let rest about 10 minutes.

I then put my veal on a platter and spooned the rich tomato sauce over.

The tip on this one is to have your tomato sauce pre-made. Then all you have to do is the veal part. It looks like alot of work, but actually if I can do it, so can you! For this dinner I served an Italian salad, fusilli pasta with olive oil, and Italian Country bread with sauteed mushrooms atop. I used fusilli pasta because those wonderful little grooves grabbed onto the sauce perfectly! We enjoyed a bottle of "A-Mano" 2005 Primitivo from Puglia with this dinner.

What a way to start the end of the day!

Cheers!

Rose' Wine For That Summer But Fall Evening

2007-11-01T14:05:00.000-05:00

Everyone is talking about the Fall Season and the weather getting cooler. In everyone's kitchens are baskets of apples, squashes, pumpkins and the last go round of summer's bounty of veggies. Here in Key West, temperature wise, it is still summer. Our sunny days are bringing us to the low to mid 80 degree range and the night time temps are "dipping down" to about 79 degrees. I still am clad in my shorts and flip flops and the only sign of Fall here are the pumpkins in the grocery store and the Christmas decorations going up in a few of the stores. Oh yes, they do have a few Thanksgiving items for sale like napkins with a pattern of Fall colored leaves and salt and pepper shakers that look like little Pilgrims. Anyhow, since it is still summer for me, I decided to pull out one of my favorite Rose' wines to sip out on the deck last evening.

I popped open a chilled bottle of Chivite's 2005 Gran Feudo Rosado Wine. This is a Spanish Rose' wine made from 100% Garnacha Grapes from the Navarra Region of Spain which borders the Atlantic side of France. I found the bright color, I would say strawberry pink with a hint of violet, to be so eye pleasing! And speaking of strawberry, I found a touch of flavor of that great little berry on my palate. I found this wine to be clean and fresh with a nice balance of low acidity and fruit. Very soft and long on the finish this wine is a perfect pre-dinner treat!

Even though your outdoor temperatures are becoming quite chilly, do not shy away from a fresh and perky wine! It can be the perfect start to the end of your day!

Cheers!

Wine And Cookbook Reviews #1

2007-10-29T09:55:00.000-05:00

In my last post, I talked about Anthony Bourdain's cookbook and told you about one of the recipes I fixed. After I did that, I told myself, Deb, you need to pay a little more attention to the wonderful collection of cookbooks that you have. They are screaming out to me to be brought into the kitchen and "played with"! In the past year, the inspiration for my cooking has been everyones wonderful blogs and the array of cooking and wine magazines that I subscribe to. So much that I have been completely ignoring my cookbook collection. Well, I am going to try and remedy that by choosing one cookbook a week or so, picking out a dish that looks appetizing, fix it and share my cookbook and dish with you. I also will pick up my wine books, find a wine out of those books and do the same thing. If I do all of my books, I will be blogging until...well, for the rest of this life! In doing so, if I happen to talk about a book that you might have in your collection and you have made a dish from it, let me know what you prepared from your book! When I did the chicken dish from Bourdain's book, Shaun at Winter Skies, Kitchen Aglow commented that he had the same book and that he was going back and revisit his book and check out the recipe that I prepared. Maybe Shaun will find another good one in that book and share it with us! Anyhow, I think it will be a fun little adventure for me and I will be blowing the dust off of some very good books that have been with me for years and sharing them with you!

The first book I pulled out is Mollie Katzen's Vegetable Heaven. I think everyone knows who Mollie Katzen is, but if not she is the celebrated author of Moosewood Cookbook, The Enchanted Broccoli Forest and Still Life With Menu. Mollie has a new book out titled The Vegetable Dishes I Can't Live Without. I have not checked her new book out yet, but I surely will soon. Mollie also has a great webiste here that is chocked full of wonderful recipes and other topics that I enjoy and I am sure you will too. Vegetable Heaven is not only a great cookbook, but gracing the pages are over 50 of Mollie's luminous paintings, richly evocative of the pleasures of cooking and eating. This cookbook weaves together culinary styles from around the world: appetizers like Persian Eggplant Dip and Jamaican Salsa-Salad; soups ranging from Big, Bold Noodle to Tunisian Tomato; hearty main course features like Giant Mushroom Popovers and French Picnic Tarts; and a mix and match section of "side-by-side dishes" including grains like Coconut Rice with Ginger, Chiles and Lime, bean in her Stovetop Cassoulet and vegetables Asparagus with Warm Tarragon-Pecan Vinaigrette, which by the way is one of the dishes I prepared and have for you below. The book also has unusual pasta dishes like Farfalle With Artichokes, Mustard Greens and Slow Cooked Onions and a yummy assortment of desserts like Cherry Upside-Down Gingerbread and Pineapple Pomegranita. Well, I think that about wraps up a nice small review of Vegetable Heaven. Here are a couple of the recipes that I fixed the other night from this book. I must apologize as my photos of the dishes are not the greatest because the men in my life were wanting to eat ASAP! But I think you will get the idea. OK...

Arugula Salad With Orange Vinaigrette

1 medium sized head butter (Boston) lettuce, cleaned, dried and chilled

1 to 2 bunches if arugula, coarsely chopped, about 3 cups

10 radishes, thinly sliced

3 tablespoons minced chives or 1 scallion, finely minced

Nicoise olives (optional)

Orange Vinaigrette

2 teaspoons grated orange zest

1/2 cup orange juice

4 tablespoons red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar

2 medium cloves of garlic finely minced

2 tablespoons finely minced parsley

1 teaspoon of salt

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Combine all in a jar and shake well. Shake well as you add to salad.

Break the lettuce leaves into bite-sized pieces and place them in a medium large bowl. Add the arugula, radishes, chives and toss until combined.

Pour in about 1/4 cup of the dressing, grind in some black pepper and toss well from the bottom so everything gets well coated. Drizzle in small amounts of additional dressing as needed until the salad is dressed as you like it. You can serve with Nicoise olives if you desire.

Asparagus In Warm Tarragon-Pecan Vinaigrette

1-1/2 lbs. fresh asparagus, the thinner the better

2 tablespoons balsamic or cider vinegar

2 teaspoons sugar (this is substituted with honey to taste)

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup minced pecans

1 tablespoon minced garlic

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 to 2 tablespoons fresh minced tarragon or 2 teaspoons of dried

Black pepper to taste

Break off and discard the tough bottom ends of the asparagus then cut into 1-1/2 inch or so pieces. I left mine fairly large. Combine the vinegar and sugar or honey in a bowl and mix well. Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the pecans and saute over medium low heat for about 10 minutes or until they are fragrant and lightly toasted. Careful not to burn! Turn up the heat to medium high and add the asparagus, garlic and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Cook until the asparagus are just barely tender. Add the vinegar mixture stirring well. Cook for about 30 seconds and then remove from the heat. Stir in the tarragon and remaining salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot, warm or at room temp.

Such great taste from simple, easy to find ingredients. Both of these dishes are loaded with garden fresh flavors that are very satisfying no matter what the season happens to be outside your door!

Cheers!

Chicken And The Wine Sign Says It All!

2007-10-24T09:50:00.000-05:00

Need I say more! And yes, I do put wine in a great majority of my cooking. I do not even start my evening meal until I have a glass of wine in hand to accompany me on my cooking adventure for the night! Speaking of adventure, I got hold of Anthony Bourdain's "Les Halles Cookbook" and decided to make his recipe , poulet basquaise. I plan to make a few more recipes from his book and then I will do a post on his book. If you do not know Anthony Bourdain, he is the chef that is on the Travel Channel program No Reservations. He is quite a character and I enjoy his style of writing. More on him at another time. Let's get on with dinner. I was in the mood for something French, but I do believe this has a hint of Italian to it also.

Poulet Basquaise

1 whole chicken about 4 lbs. cut into 8 pieces

salt and black pepper

pinch of cayenne pepper, I used a hugh pinch!

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon butter

2 red bell peppers cut into julienne

2 green bell peppers cut into julienne

1 onion thinly sliced

16 oz. canned Italian plum tomatoes

1/2 cup of white wine - you know, some of the wine you are drinking right now while preparing this dish!

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup light chicken stock or broth

3 sprigs of flat leaf parsley finely chopped

Season the chicken all over with the salt, pepper and cayenne. Heat a large pot over medium high heat and add the oil. When the oil is hot add the butter. When the butter has foamed and subsided, add the chicken, skin side down, and brown on that side only! When brown, remove chicken with tongs and set aside on a plate. Add the peppers and onion to the pot and reduce the heat to medium low. Cook for about 10 minutes, then add the tomatoes and cook until the liquid is reduced by half. Stir in the wine scraping, as always, to get the good stuff up. Cook until the wine is reduced by half then add the water and the chicken stock. Return the chicken to the pot with their juices. Cover the pot and allow to cook on low heat for about 25 minutes, then remove the chicken to your serving platter.

Crank up the heat to high and reduce the sauce for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and add the parsley. Pour the sauce over the chicken and serve immediately. I served mine with a white basmati rice.

This is so easy and so good! I served the Redwood Creek Sauvignon Blanc that I was cooking with and the match was wonderful!

What a way to start the end of the day!

Cheers!

Another Great Wine From Chile!

2007-10-22T10:55:00.000-05:00

A fairly new blogger friend, Gloria over at Canela's Kitchen, is from a wonderful country for wines, Chile! This is the 2nd Chilean wine I have tasted in the past month and one I would purchase again, especially since it is priced under $10.00! I chilled and popped open a bottle of 2006 Chilensis Reserva Sauvignon Blanc last evening and was treated to a nice party on my palate! Chilensis is from the D.O. of Casablanca Valley, but the grapes, 100% Sauvignon Blanc, were from their Nilahue Vineyard in the Colchagus Valley. On opening the bottle, I caught the lovely aroma of grapefruit and a touch of lemon. Fresh and crisp on the palate was the nice tart flavor of gooseberries that lent themselves to a nice balanced finish. This wine is produced and bottled by VIA Wines of Chile. They have a beautiful web site that has nice photos of the vineyards and countryside of Chile. As you can see, we enjoyed the wine so much before dinner that I did not get a photo of the actual wine till it was all gone! So for dinner, I had to pull out another wine that I told you about a few weeks ago, Redwood Creek.

Speaking of Redwood Creek Wine, I have to show you a fun marketing item of that wine. Take a look at these corks. Yes, they are plastic but look at what is printed on them. They call them Adventure Tools! Adventure Tool #12 they call Yosemite and it has a picture of a mountain on it. They call it the GPS Hike with 1) 37 degrees, 43' 30" Latitude, 2) 119 degrees, 38' 00" Longitude, 3) Look up at El Capitan! That is the mountain on the cork! Adventure Tool #19 they call Bobber and it has a picture of, I guess you would call it a bobber. 1) Insert eyebolt, 2) Thread fishing line, 3) Cast! So see, you can make a fishing bobber out of the cork! Too Cool are these "Adventure Tools"! Not only do you get a good wine, the corks are very useful! What will they think of next!

Cheers!!!!

Black Eye Pea Cakes & Garden Update

2007-10-19T10:46:00.000-05:00

I know, I know. I have not reviewed a wine for a few posts now. I do have a new one I will be tasting tonight so stay tuned for the review! In the meantime, I would like to show you what is happening in my garden. This is especially for Christina at A Thinking Stomach. She is a fantastic gardener in Southern California and I really enjoy her site as she writes and shows us how her garden is coming along. Her narratives and photos are lovely. So Christina, here is what is happening outside my doors now.

This is a quick shot of how I garden - in containers. They are lined up everywhere there is a space!

Yesterday, I checked on my pole beans and noticed that one of the shoots have emerged!

Today, look how much it has grown since yesterday!

Here is the bannana pepper in bloom!

Christina had a discussion on her blog regarding how we who live in very warm climates all year round tell the difference between seasons. Here in Key West it is always green, but I can tell the seasons by the different flowers that bloom at different times of the year. I know it is fall in my yard when the "Chalice" starts to bloom.

When you see these pods coming to life

The next day the flower is in full bloom. I think these are beautiful flowers and they do look just like a chalice! And what is really neat about this flower is that there is no aroma until the sun sets. Then the flowers give off the most beautiful scent that can only be detected in the evening. What a wonderful gift from Mother Nature.

When the weather starts getting a little cooler, temps in the low 80's, more of the dainty flowers seem to get happy.
So even though we do not have the beautiful leaf colors that the fall season brings up north, we do have the changing of the season here, just a different way. Christina, and everyone, hope you enjoyed the small tour of my fall garden!

Now let's talk Black Eye Pea Cakes! I adapted this recipe from one I saw in Gourmet Magazine last year.

These are a great side dish for fish, which we popped on the grill last evening.

Black Eye Pea Cakes With Green Tomato Salsa

1 can black eye peas rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup minced onion
1/2 of red bell pepper minced
1/2 of green bell pepper minced
3 cloves of garlic minced
1/2 cup panko (breadcrumbs)
2 or 3 eggs yolks, depending on the size of the egg
2 teaspoons of Tabasco Sauce
2 tablespoons of fresh parsley chopped
2 tablespoons of green onions chopped
1 heaping teaspoon of cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/3 cup of cornmeal for dusting
1/2 cup olive oil

Put the drained peas in a bowl and mash them with a potato masher but leave sort of chunky.
In a skillet heat the butter and add the onions, garlic and bell peppers until soft. Add these to the peas along with the bread crumbs, egg yolks, Tabasco, parsley, green onions, cumin and salt and pepper. Mix together. If mixture does not hold together when squeezed, and another egg yolk. Chill, covered for 1 hour.
Remove from fridge and take about a 1/4 cup of mixture in hand to make a patty. Put patties on a plate. Heat oil in a non-stick skillet, dredge patties in cornmeal, add to skillet. Cook until nice and brown turning once. Cakes should be finished in about 8 minutes. (The white coating you see is some of the cornmeal.)
Serve with:

Green Tomato Salsa

I used a mixture of tomatillos and green tomatoes to make about 3-1/2 cups, chopped
1/4 minced red onion
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
2 tablespoons olive oil
Juice from one lime
1 tablespoon of white wine vinegar and 1 tablespoon of rice vinegar
Salt and Pepper to taste
Optional - 1 chopped jalapeno pepper

Put all in a bowl and mix well. I let it set in fridge for about an hour so the flavors would meld.

Serve the salsa with the pea cakes and grilled fish for a marvelous healthy dinner! And of course, do not forget the wine, which I will post about next!

Cheers!

Fall, Apples....

2007-10-16T15:10:00.000-05:00

Ah, the Fall Season. And what is flooding the markets right now and everyone is baking with them ? Apples. Oh so many colors, yes different colors, such as red, green, yellow, and all various shades of those colors. Such a lovely fruit! Anyhow, trying to be healthy but yet sooth my craving for apples after reading all the blogs with wonderful cakes, pies, etc., I decided just to make an "apple snack". Does anyone out there, besides me, need a late afternoon pick me up? You know, it's long after lunch and way before dinner...I need a snack! So seeing my stash of apples and looking through the pantry, I started pulling out a few items and here is what I came up with!

The Ultimate Afternoon Snack For Fall

1 apple of your choice, sliced

1 jar of peanut butter

1 box of granola cereal

Dried blueberries and cranberries

Put your sliced apples on a pretty plate, smear your apples with peanut butter, sprinkle with granola and dried fruit. How fast is that!!! And Yum! You are going to like this one!

Mike even said, "wow, this is pretty good"!

Cheers!

A Lovely Item In The Garden

2007-10-15T09:15:00.000-05:00

Another happy herb in my garden is Sage. This herb reminds me of fall and the upcoming holidays as it is the main herb I use in stuffing for my turkey. Although I use Sage all during the year, this is the season it really shines. It is such a beautiful herb with its fuzzy little, very aromatic, leaves. Talk about aroma therapy, every time I pass my sage plant I find myself gently rubbing the leaves and then taking in their wonderful smell. Ah, freshness!

Sage (Salvia) is a member of the mint family and has a long tradition of medicinal importance, besides culinary. The word Sage comes from the Latin word, salvere, which means to be saved and refers to its alleged curing properties. It was a medicinal cure-all, even thought to cure baldness! In medieval times, sage was thought to impart wisdom and to improve the memory. (I knew there was a reason I liked this herb so much!) The old English word sage, meaning a wise man, comes from this belief. Europeans believe that is helps digest rich foods, which might account for its association with duck and game recipes there. Superstition has it that when all is well, sage will flourish. If things are going badly, it will hang its foliage!

There are many varieties of sage such as pineapple, blue, golden and tricolor, but I grow just a common garden sage. It is a hardy perennial that grows to a height of about 24-30 inches. Leaves are grayish green and oval. They prefer full sun and very well drained soil. You do not want to over water these guys either. They are very drought tolerant once established. Sage is a great herb as it does not need alot of "fussing about".

As I said earlier, I mainly use mine to flavor my stuffing, but if you make your own sausage it is a key ingredient. Sage is also good in egg dishes, cooked veggies and fish. Actually something that is very good that goes with fish is frying the sage leaves like you would a fritter. The Italians add fresh or dried sage leaves into the frying pan when they fry chicken to give the chicken a savory flavor and that great flavor transfers into the gravy if you make it from the drippings. Powdered sage makes a great rub on fresh pork roast before baking. Just remember, to extract the full flavor of the sage leaves, crush or grind the leaves before using. Sage is a strong flavored herb fresh or dried, so use it with discretion. It is very easy to grow in a container on your deck or by any sunny window in your home!

Cheers from the garden!

A Nice Wine With A Guest

2007-10-12T12:18:00.000-05:00

I just have to show you my guest from last evening! He appeared on the door ledge just after dark and stayed there for over an hour! I turned all the lights on in the room hoping to attract a few stray bugs for him, but not sure there were any takers. So he left...hopefully not too hungry!

The other night when I had my cold and everything was tasting pretty much like cardboard, I did have a wine I told you that I was sipping, but the taste buds were not quite up to speed. Luckily they are slowly coming back and last night I popped open the other bottle of Chateau Chauvet that I had chilled, but had not reviewed a few nights ago. I picked up this bottle of 2005 Chateau Chauvet at the grocery store for $6.99! Sometimes I am skeptical when a wine is priced that low, but was pleasantly surprised with this one. I enjoy French White Bordeaux wines very much, but they have become so pricey lately that I only purchase them for special occasions. The winery is located in the tiny mid-West town of St. Hilaire due Bois which is situated between the Dordogne and Loire rivers and not too far from the coast. Chateau Chauvet is a nice, not heavy, but citrus flavored wine with a good balance in the acidity department. I also enjoyed a crisp note towards the end! Not a long finish, but enough flavor that sent my glass back for seconds! For dinner I had a baked sweet potato, sauteed broccoli and the most handsome salmon on the grill! The wine was excellent with dinner!

No better way to start the end of your day but with a glass of wine and a guest!

Cheers!

Wine With Our Pedal South

2007-10-09T08:57:00.000-05:00

How could you not like a wine from a place called Casablanca Valley? Just saying Casablanca brings my thoughts immediately to the 1942 film staring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman. I bet I have watched that movie 50 times! The part I love the most, and of course is famous, is the very end at the airport when she is leaving, just the softness of her face and the look in her eyes while they are speaking....and "here's looking at you kid". OK Deb, snap out of it. This is a wine review, not a movie review! Last night a bottle of 2006 Casas Del Bosque Sauvignon Blanc was on our tasting menu. This winery is located in the Casablanca Valley, not far from Santiago, the capital of Chile. The Casas Del Bosque was a nice crisp wine with a pleasing citrus, such as lime, taste on the plate with a hint of mineral following. A nice refreshing, balanced white wine for under $10.00. We did not have this wine with any particular food, just a nice sipping wine to start the end of the day!

In my last post I talked about the books by Sarah Leah Chase, Pedaling Through Provence and Pedaling Through Burgundy. Two great little cookbooks highlighting Sarah's trips through these two special spots in France. I told you about 2 dishes that I made from the Provence book, but I now want to give you a taste of potatoes that I prepared and served the other night with the Basil Green Bean Salad and the Tarragon Chicken dish.

Potato Gratin Dijonnaise

3 pounds of potatoes, I used Yukon Gold

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 large yellow onion thinly sliced

Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

2 teaspoons dried chervil

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

2 cups creme fraiche

3 heaping tablespoons Dijon mustard

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

4 ounces freshly grated Gruyere cheese

Put the potatoes in a large pot and cover with water. Cook until fork tender. Drain and let cool enough to handle. Remove skins and slice into 1/3 inch rounds.

Melt the butter in a small skillet and saute the onion until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and butter a shallow 12 inch wide baking dish and set aside.

Gently combine the potatoes with the onions in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper and add the parsley and chervil.

In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the creme fraiche, mustard and lemon juice until smooth. Gently, but thoroughly, combine the mixture with the potatoes. Turn this into your buttered baking dish and cover with the shredded cheese.

Bake in the oven until bubbly and nicely brown on top, about 30 minutes. Cool and serve.

This is a great fall dish as the mustard and the creme fraiche make it so comforting. The flavors will surprise you!

Cheers!

Let's Pedal South

2007-10-06T14:39:00.000-05:00

As I surrounded myself with cookbooks the past few days during my down time, I got to the point where I could not stay out of the kitchen any longer! Granted, my taste buds were not back to power yet and my nose was still giving me a run for my money. But..I was hungry after reading all the yummy recipes that I was paging through. While I was in lounge mode, I picked up one of my all time favorite books "Pedaling Through Provence Cookbook" by Sarah Leah Chase. Back in the mid 90's, I was lucky to travel to France twice. I had fallen in love with that country many years before then when I started getting into wines and food. So I have quite a collection of French cookbooks. But when I found out I was actually going to go there, I started planning out the trip as I did not want to waste one moment while I was there. I even had a tutor teach me basic French so I would at least understand the menu's and how to find out where the bathrooms were located! So in my planning stages I came across Sarah's book. She wrote 2 of them, Pedaling Through Provence and Pedaling Through Burgundy. They are great little books because she actually did bike through these locals and documented her experiences by town and recipe. So I used these books as guidelines when we were traveling there. Fun to say, they were a big help! So last evening I got the books into the kitchen and prepared the following.

This is one of Sarah's "Market Day" recipes. The inspiration for this dish was the cooking of Simone Beck, or Simca, who was best known in America as the French woman who collaborated with Julia Child on "Mastering The Art Of French Cooking".

Basil-Strewn String Bean Salad

First make yourself a Basil Vinaigrette

3 cloves of garlic

1/2 teaspoon sea or course salt

1 cup loosely packed fresh basil

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup olive oil

Sarah mentions she uses a mortar and pestle to make this, but I took the easy way out and made it in the blender. I put the garlic, salt and basil in the blender and then added the juice and oil through the top while machine was running.

Bean Salad

1 pound of green beans, trimmed and sliced in half

4 large ripe plum tomatoes, seeded and diced

1 cup imported black olives, pitted and coarsely chopped

6 anchovy fillets, rinsed, drained and chopped

1 fennel bulb, trimmed, cored and thinly sliced

Salt and pepper to taste

And she adds 3 large hard cooked eggs peeled and chopped, but I omitted

Blanch your green beans until just crisp-tender, 2-3 minutes. Drain and refresh under cold water, drain again. In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, olives and anchovies. Stir in the beans and fennel. Add the basil vinaigrette and toss. Season with salt and pepper. Chill the salad a few hours so the flavors will blend. If you do decide to use the eggs, add them right before serving the salad. This bright and lively salad is a great beginning to a meal!

In Sarah's section of the book "Suppers of Lamb And Other Fine Fare", I opted for some other fine fare. I chose her:

Chicken With Tomatoes, Tarragon Vinegar, And Creme Fraiche

The recipe called for 2 chickens, about 3 lbs. each cut into pieces. Since there were only 2 of us, I used only chicken thighs and cut the recipe in half. But I will give you the full recipe, as I have made this in the past for a dinner party of 6 folks.

3 tablespoons of olive oil

2 chickens cut into pieces

Sea or course salt and pepper to taste

1 large onion minced

5 cloves of garlic minced

3 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch dice

2 heaping tablespoons of tomato paste

1-1/2 lbs. ripe tomatoes, seeded and chopped

1 cup tarragon vinegar

1-1/2 cups dry white wine

1/4 cup chopped fresh tarragon or 1-1/2 tablespoons dried

1 teaspoon dried thyme

2/3 cup creme fraiche or heavy whipping cream

Heat the olive oil in a heavy large deep skillet over medium high heat. Season your chicken pieces with salt and pepper and add to the skillet to brown all sides, 5 to 7 minutes. You may have to do this in batches. Transfer browned chicken to a plate.

Add the onion, garlic and carrots to the skillet and saute until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste, tomatoes, vinegar, wine and thyme, bring to a simmer. Return the chicken pieces to the skillet, cover and simmer over medium heat until the chicken is tender, about 30-40 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate.

Bring the sauce to a boil and cook until thick and reduced by 1/3. Stir in the fresh tarragon and creme fraiche and continue to boil for 5 minutes. Add more salt and pepper at this time if needed. Return the chicken to the pot and simmer until chicken is heated through. Serve the chicken with plenty of sauce spooned over it. This sauce just makes this dish so special. It is so smooth and silky with the full flavor of the tomatoes, fresh tarragon and tarragon vinegar whose acidity was mellowed by the addition of the creme fraiche.

I did serve a white wine with our dinner, a French White Bordeaux, Chateau Chauvet. But since my taste buds are not back with me yet, I will review this wine for you later this week since I have a couple bottles of it in my wine rack.

Thank You!

I want to "thank" all of my special blogging friends for their well wishes this week. With the loss of the Gumbo Tree last week and the terrible cold this week...I am ready and hoping for a "back at it" uneventful week this week!

Cheers!

No Wine For The Time...Being

2007-10-03T11:02:00.000-05:00

I have a terrible cold! Yep, so bad that I cannot even taste water! So needless to say, no wine reviews this week till I can get the taste buds back in action again. And well, that goes for cooking anything this week also. I could probably make it look good, but who knows how it would taste! Therefore I am having a "pity party" for myself with lots of juice, not of the grape kind, and soup. I have submerged myself in the comfort of my cookbooks and I know during this down time they will give me much inspiration and wonderful ideas. Therefore, when I have recouped, look out kitchen!

As I was sitting out on the deck in my rocker the other morning trying to get acclimated to being vertical instead of horizontal due to much "laying around" with just me and my cold, I looked up to the right and mother nature gave me a little pick me up of a get well gift. The cactus had the most beautiful bloom emerging from the tippy-top of its head. These blooms only come out in the wee hours of the morning and only have a life of only a few hours. As soon as the sun hits them, they are history. I was fortunate to catch this one early! Such a beauty!

So for the next few days, I will be perched out in my rocker with a cookbook waiting...watching the clouds go by.

Cheers!

Back To The Herb Garden In Key West

2007-10-01T10:04:00.000-05:00

OK, guess what herb this is in my little herb garden - Oregano! I so enjoy this versatile little beauty of an herb. Here is just a bit of info for you. Mediterranean Oregano was originally grown extensively in Greece and Italy. Since Greek and Roman times it has been used with all types of dishes containing meat, fish and veggies. In doing a little reading on this herb, I found this interesting tidbit - before World War II, Oregano was almost unknown in the U.S. It's popularity skyrocketed with the popularity of pizza, as Oregano is what gives pizza its characteristic flavor!

Oregano has a pleasing pungent aroma and flavor. There are quite a few types of Oregano, the most popular being the Mediterranean and the Mexican. I find the Mexican is a bit stronger than the Mediterranean. A simple favorite of mine is to saute aromatic veggies in olive oil with fresh garlic and Oregano. I also make a savory sauce with melted butter, lemon juice, a few capers, and a bit of Oregano which I drizzle over freshly grilled fish. Hey, I bet it would be good drizzled over grilled chicken also! Oh yes, just a hint - before using Oregano in your dish, crush it by hand or with a mortar and pestle. This little gesture releases even more flavor and a great aroma!

Again, I could go on and on about the versatility of this popular herb. It is such an easy herb to grow in a container on your deck, porch or kitchen window!

It is so easy to add a little "lively" spice to your life!

Cheers!

Nice Wine and Fun Grapes!

2007-09-28T12:05:00.000-05:00

Had a nice wine last night that I want to share with you. And no, it did not taste like plums even though you see them in the photo. The plums were just hanging around wanting their photo taken so I let them pop in the picture. I enjoyed a 2005 Maison Louis Latour Ardeche Chardonnay. Vin de Pays Des Coteau De L'Ardeche. A lovely inexpensive French Chardonnay! The good ones are hard to find these days. The Ardeche Chardonnay is from the vineyards of Louis Latour that are located in the Ardeche region of France that is situated to the West of the Rhone Valley. This was a nice crisp, apple fresh flavored wine with a pleasing smooth finish. I sipped it for awhile and then enjoyed it with a simple creamy pasta dish that I whipped up with mushrooms, shallots and a few other goodies. I was so relaxed with my dinner that I did not take any photos! So I will remake my pasta dish sometime this week and post it for you. It is so simple and pairs well with white wine.

Now I must tell you about a little charmer of a fruit that I found the other day in the produce section of the supermarket, Champagne Grapes. I have never seen them before, but they were so cute that I just had to buy them! WOW, what a wonderful sweet tiny treat! They are just so small to have that much flavor in them is what surprised me. Here is the description of them that I found on Recipetips.com

A variety of grape that is grown in clusters that produce very small diameter grapes. It is a seedless grape that provides a very sweet flavor for salads, appetizers or as a snack with cheese. The stem, which is also very tiny and tender, is often consumed with the grape rather than attempting to detach the small connector from the main stem. Champagne grapes that are dried are referred to as currants, a named derived from this variety also being called the Zante Currant grape. Although it may be confused with common black, red or white currants that grow on bushes, it is similar only in shape and size, but is not the same type of fruit. The dried grape that becomes a currant is often used like raisins as an ingredient when baking cookies and sweets. In addition to Zante Currant, this grape may all be known as a Black Corinth grape.

I have been eating these little gems just by themselves as a snack, but this morning I picked a few off of the stem and added them to some plain Greek yogurt with a splash of agave nectar for a cool fresh breakfast treat. Just to show you how small they really are, this photo has a muscadine grape sitting next to the champagne grape!

Well, as you can see, it does not take much to make me a "happy camper"! Grapes to eat and then to drink!

Cheers!

A Little Herb Garden In Key West

2007-09-27T11:33:00.000-05:00

After all the stress from the past two days of losing a lovely island canopy tree, I spent some time with my other garden friends, my herbs. As you all know due to space limitations here, I grow all of my herbs in containers. Actually it is pretty convenient as I can move them around so they can take advantage of sun when they need it and I can get them out of the scorching sun during these HOT afternoons. Herbs are such a big part of my cooking. Yes, there is a time and place for dried herbs, which I use abundantly, but there is nothing like fresh herbs to flavor a dish and also bring beauty to the dish. I love to use fresh herbs as a garnish as the aroma and visual affect is so pleasing to our senses. I have heard many times that you eat with your eyes first and, for me, that is true.

The first herb from my garden I would like to spotlight is my favorite, basil. I bet if you ask any cook, if they were to be put on a desert island with only one herb, their answer would be basil. Am I right? The correct botanical name for basil is Ocimum Basilicum. Ocimum is from a Greek verb that means "to be fragrant" and basil is one herb that is power packed with a fresh distinct aroma. The basil I grow mostly is "Sweet Basil". It grows 2 to 2-1/2 feet tall. Leaves are 2-3 inches long, a bit of a wrinkle to them, and are bright green. When it goes to flower, they are pretty dainty white blooms. There are many other types of basil which I have grown in the past like, lemon, purple and globe. Actually, the globe is a lovely small leaf basil that grows, just like it name says, in a globe and is very dainty looking. Still, out of the above selection, the sweet basil is my favorite.

I do not have a specific recipe to give you using fresh basil, as I have too many! But during the summer when the home grown, juicy, sweet tomatoes are in full force at the farmers market, there is nothing like eating them sliced with fresh basil and a touch of balsamic vinegar. Mouthwatering! There are so many uses for these fragrant tasteful leaves. Like I stated above, the best use is with tomatoes and tomato flavored dishes. Oh wait! We cannot leave out pasta sauces, and one of the best uses of basil is in the making of fresh pesto sauce!

OK, I could go on and on with all the dishes that I include fresh basil, but I am going to end here. Tell me, what is your favorite way to use fresh basil in your kitchen?

Cheers!

A Sad Day In The Life...

2007-09-26T14:18:00.000-05:00

Everyday it rains. Not all day, but off and on. When it does rain, it pours. As you can see my frog in the pool does not seems to mind, but it is wearing on me! Day before yesterday we were having one of our "buckets from the sky" afternoon, when I heard a major crash right outside my window. Running outdoors with the rain pouring down I looked up and the Gumbo Limbo Tree between my house and the neighbors split.

The split part fell on their house!

At least no one was hurt, except my feelings. The tree commission arrived and said the tree could not be saved and would have to come completely down. Oh my gosh, this is a tree that has housed the birds that I love and provided a canopy of cooling shade to us on our HOT summer days here in Key West. Tears...

Today has been an even sadder day, as the tree trimmers arrived early with their noisy truck and chain saws. They have been working all day removing the tree. What even brought more tears and sadness to me was during the final cutting of the part of the tree that overhung our house, a few little sparrows were up there trying to save their home. Tears...

Well, as they say, all good things must come to an end...but now I am trying to find a positive thought in my head to pull me through the rest of the day.

I have decided I now will take advantage of a wide open sky that mother nature has just provided me. Tonight I will set up my telescope and view whatever show she decides to give me to sooth my aching heart...

Tomorrow - Time to plant another tree, a new beginning!

Wine And Veal Ragu

2007-09-24T08:21:00.000-05:00

There is definitely not a chill in the air here in Key West. But just knowing that the first day of fall was upon us, I had to jump into fall mode and make a stew. Actually, it was a Ragu. Last month Dr. Deb's at Good Wines Under $20 posted about the September issue of Food & Wine Magazine. It highlighted "Italy's best recipes" and she noted all the good recipes and how well the magazine did with the wine recommendations. (It is a great issue for Italian wine education!) So I dug my copy out of my stack of "magazines to read" and found a yummy ragu to whip up on this first fall weekend. I did make a few alterations to this recipe. I did not have any corzetti pasta so I used my "maccheroni al torchia". I love to shop for pasta that has unusual shapes and I found this one on my summer trip up to Chicago. I think I may have did a post on the shapes when I purchased them because they were so cool! Here is a photo of them uncooked (left) and cooked (right). OK Deb, move on!

Corzetti Pasta With Veal Ragu (Adapted from the September issue of Food & Wine)

1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms (I used a mix of dried mushrooms that I had on hand)

3 cups hot water

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 sweet onion cut into 1/2 inch dice

2 carrots (I used 3) cut into 1/2 inch dice

1 celery rib (I used 3) cut into 1/2 inch dice

Two 3/4 veal shanks (about 1-1/2 inches thick) cut into 2 inch pieces, bones reserved

Salt and freshly ground pepper

All purpose flour for dusting

1 cup dry red wine

1 - 14 oz. can peeled Italian tomatoes, crushed by hand

1 marjoram sprig - I used a good teaspoon of dried and I also added a good teaspoon of dried thyme

1 pound corzetti - I used my maccheroni al torchio

Soak your dried mushrooms in the hot water for about 15 minutes. Remove mushrooms with slotted spoon and chop - save the water.

In a large pot, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil. Add onion, carrots and celery and cook until softened, about 6 minutes. Remove to a plate.

Add the other 2 tablespoons of oil to hot pan. Season the veal with salt and pepper and dust with flour. Add the meat and the bones to pan and cook over moderately high heat until browned, turning once, about 10 minutes. Add the wine and cook, scraping up any of those yummy bits that are stuck on the bottom, and cook until wine is almost evaporated.

Return the veggies to the pan and add the tomatoes, marjoram, thyme and the mushrooms. Slowly pour in your leftover water that the mushrooms steeped in, but take care not to get the grit off of the bottom into your ragu.

Season with salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer over low heat for about 2 hours. Scoop out the marrow from the bones and stir back into the ragu. Toss the bones.

Cook your pasta until al dente. You can then add the pasta to the ragu or do like me and just put pasta in a deep bowl and ladle ragu on top.

If you like you can add shaved parmigiano-reggiano cheese to the dish. Lovely!

I also want to tell you about a wine that I sipped out on the deck the other night, a 2006 California Pinot Grigio called Redwood Creek. It is produced by the Frei Brothers from Modesto, California who established their vineyards back in 1890. Redwood Creek was nice, crisp and went along with my fall theme, as on the palate was the flavor of nice crisp apples, with hints of peach and citrus. Falling under my $10 week night wine budget, I was glad I purchased a couple of bottles as it is truly a refreshing wine!

A wonderful blogging friend, Valli over at More Than Burnt Toast has tagged me for a MeMe. You must visit Valli's site as she was lucky enough to go to Greece last year and attend a cooking school. She shares with us her wonderful photos, as well as the lovely dishes she learned to make while at the school. OK Valli, just a few notes about me.

My favorite appliance, if you call it that, is an outdoor grill. I so enjoy cooking outdoors and do so about 3 to 4 times a week. I like using charcoal, but mostly cook on a gas grill. I will try cooking anything on the grill!

A major pastime of mine is reading food and wine magazines and best of all is cookbooks! Cookbooks rule and I have a substantial collection!

As you can tell, cooking has been a passion of mine since the days I would spend cooking with my grandmother on her farm. So much of a passion that our son is now a chef and graduated from the Culinary Institute of American in New York!

A gadget I cannot live without is my salad spinner! I hate wet, limpy lettuce and greens!

I do not have a sweet tooth, so I am not much of a dessert person unless it involves chocolate! I would much have an extra appetizer than dessert.

I so enjoy being outdoors as much as I can, unless I am behind the stove. I do container gardening, mostly growing herbs and hot peppers with a couple of tomato plants when the season permits. One day, either in this life or my next, I would love to have a small farm where I could have an extensive garden and a few chickens. Oh, and maybe a goat!

Last but definitely not least is WINE! Every meal with wine is so sublime! Wine is the perfect way to start the end of your day!

Cheers!