It's party night, and I'm serving my favorite cold bites to please a crowd. Whitney Adams, from the awesome wine blog Brunellos Have More Fun and one of my favorite ladies EVER, joins me for some tips and help eating these tasty treats.
My sister and I are pretty busy ladies, and even though we live together, "quality time" isn't necessarily a guarantee. I'm an early bird, she's a late sleeper. I pass out by midnight and she'll burn that oil until two or three. So setting aside a night to just hang out on the couch requires both of us to pull out our calendars and see what can work. This week on Food For Thought, I make some of Amanda's favorites and she swings by the set to try them out. Delicious Roasted Brussels Sprouts with homemade aioli, gooey mac and cheese, molten chocolate cake with maple whipped cream, and Amanda's favorite salad with mango chutney vinaigrette round out this decadent meal for two.
Rosemary Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Garlic Aioli1 lbs Brussels sprouts2 tablespoons olive oil1/2 teaspoon salt1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper1 sprig rosemary1 shallot, slicedFor Aioli2 garlic cloves, minced
*1 large egg
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
Pinch of pepper
Pinch of paprika
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon snipped chives*You have to be careful when using raw eggs in recipes, so do what's comfortable for you and your family. If you don't want to use a raw egg, replace the egg and oil with 3/4 cup of mayonnaise. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Cut off the ends of the Brussels sprouts and pull off any yellow outer leaves. Mix them in a bowl with the olive oil, shallot, rosemary, salt and pepper. Pour them on a sheet pan and roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until crisp on the outside and tender on the inside, stirring half way through so they evenly brown. Sprinkle with more kosher salt and enjoy right away.
For the garlic aioli, combine the garlic, egg, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and paprika in a medium bowl. With a whisk (electric is easiest), mix together to combine. While whisking quickly, drizzle in the olive oil and combine until it forms a pale yellow sauce and not a moment more (it can break down pretty easily). Garnish with chives and serve immediately with the Brussels sprouts for dipping
Much like when I have attempted to speak a foreign language, making macaroni and cheese has proven to be a frustrating, awkward experience, where I inadvertently insult the people on the receiving end of my efforts. And much like the 5 years of Spanish under my belt, my 20-some attempts at a good macaroni and cheese seemed in vain, leading me no closer to my goal. My problems varied from attempt to attempt: too dry, too gummy, too dense. But this last round: success! Flavorful and silky with an even ratio of cheese to pasta. The trick is in the béchamel, and using common sense when choosing the amount of pasta. The gremolata breadcrumbs add a bright and fresh flavor to this rich mac and cheese. So get ready to curl up with one of the ultimate comfort foods. Enjoy!
Classic Mac & Cheese with Gremolata Breadcrumbs
Gremolata Breadcrumbs:
1 teaspoon lemon zest
4 slices Italian bread
small handful flat leaf parsley, plus more for garnish
3 cloves of garlic
2 oz Parmiggiano
1/4 cup Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper
For White Sauce:
3-4 cups milk (you might need more to get the right consistency)
1 yellow onion, roughly sliced
1 bay leaf
Pinch of chili flakes
1 tablespoon black pepper cloves
1 garlic clove, halved
For Roux:
3 oz butter
1/4 cup flour
1 cup Gruyere, grated
1/2 cup gouda, grated
1 cup sharp Cheddar, grated
1/2 cup Parmigiano Reggiano, grated
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, freshly grated
8-12 oz elbow macaroni
Preheat oven to 375 F.There are two main parts to this dish.
The first is the topping, which is bread, lemon zest, garlic, parm, and olive oil. All this goes in a food processor. Pulse until well combined and the parm has become small crumbs. Add the parsley and pulse a couple of times (you don't want green bread crumbs).
For the sauce for the mac and cheese, heat the milk in a small saucepan with all of the milk ingredients, but be careful not to boil it. Add butter to another pot and let it melt. Add the flour, and stir to create a roux (this will give something for the cheese to cling to).
Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring with a whisk. While whisking, add the hot milk through a strainer and cook for a minute or two more, until thickened and smooth. Off the heat, add the cheese half the pepper, and nutmeg. Salt to taste. Stir well.
Cook the macaroni according to package instructions. Start with about 8 oz and fold into the cheese sauce. If you like more pasta, add more. Pour into greased ramekins (or baking dish). Put the crumbs on top of the mac and cheese, covering the entire top layer.Bake for 30-45 minutes (depending on ramekins or one large baking dish), or until the sauce is bubbly and the crust is browned on top.
Do you have 20 minutes? Good. Here's how you play this out:You and your loved one are on the couch, catching up on Archer before the finale this week. You've gotten to the bottom of your takeout, and you turn to them while fast forwarding, "Want any dessert?" They sort of shrug, paying more attention to the TV than the offer, assuming that means you're grabbing an ice cream sandwich or something from the freezer. You sneak off for 5 minutes, whisking together the ingredients and popping it in the oven. You join in until the next commercial break and then BAM! Hit them with a molten chocolate cake.Where did this come from? How did you make it so quickly? Why the fancy dessert? Are you hiding something? Yes, busting out a molten chocolate cake might be suspicious the first time, but it'll quickly become an ongoing phenomenon in your house if any of you like chocolate. Or cake. Or happiness. And if you don't like these things, why are you on a cooking blog anyway?One little cake is perfect for two to split, as its molten deliciousness is very rich. I love the chocolate paired with a maple tinted whipping cream, but feel free to just pop a scoop of your favorite ice cream on that sucker if its easier. The batter can be made ahead of time, poured in the ramekins, and kept in the fridge until it's time for dessert; but make sure to bake it for an extra minute or two, since it'll be cold.There's something innately impressive in preparing a hot, relatively composed dessert for someone. Once that spoon breaks into the cake, letting it burst open with warm, gooey chocolate, well, who isn't going to gobble that right up? Enjoy!
Molten Chocolate Cake with Maple Whipped CreamMakes four 8oz ramekins
12 oz dark chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup unsalted butter, cubed
4 large eggs, room temperature
1/4 cup white sugar
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped (or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract)
1 large pinch cayenne (about 1/4 teaspoon)
1 cup heavy cream
2-3 tablespoons maple syrup (depending on how sweet you like it)
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped (or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract)Melt the chocolate, butter, and sugar over a double boiler. Turn off the heat and let it cool for a minute.
Preheat oven to 400 F
Meanwhile, whisk together the eggs and salt, and add it to the melted mixture. Whisk it together quickly so the eggs don't cook. Add the vanilla, cayenne, and flour. Mix until just incorporated.
Grease the ramekins and fill until almost full with batter.
These are ready to go right into the oven: Bake for 10-11 minutes, 12 if you don't want if super gooey.
Meanwhile whip together the cream, maple syrup, and vanilla until soft peaks form.
While I’m waiting for Amanda, I can’t resist, I have to try this. Here’s how I present it: Flip the cakes onto plates and serve with a dollop of cream. It’s beautiful and no one will know how easy it was.
Amanda's Favorite Salad
8 oz arugula
1 grilled chicken breast, sliced
1 pear, (bosc or anjou) thinly sliced
1/4 cup thompson raisins or dried currants
1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted
1/4 cup finely sliced red onion
Vinaigrette
1 tablespoon mango chutney
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste.
Just combine all of the ingredients, except for the chicken breast, and mix thoroughly.
In a sealed container, combine all of the vinaigrette ingredients and shake to combine. Lightly dress the salad, plate, and fan out the chicken breast on top.
HOLD THE DRESSING until you’re ready to serve salad; greens start to wilt as soon as they come into contact with an acid, which starts the process of breaking them down.
I love the smell of smoke: fireplaces, barbecues, dragons, anything that produces smoke gets my immediate attention and an obvious comment. "Smells like winter," or "Smells like summer," or "Smells like slaying season." And as much as I love eating things cooked over an open flame, I do very little cooking over an open flame myself. It's such a dad thing that I leave it to him, which means my grilled food is limited to meat and vegetables. This isn't a bad thing, but little did I know everything could be grilled. Seriously, everything.
Every Sunday during the summer my family tries to get together for dinner and some form of entertainment. My sister and I are such an awesome Cranium team that it's simply too demoralizing for the rest of my family to play. Emotions run high in the Thomas household, and bruised egos, wine, and giant dodecahedron shaped dice are a less than sportsmanlike combination. So it's apples to apples now! My dad is the only person frustrated by a game based entirely on subjective inside jokes and obscure knowledge of another person's humor, so, too bad if the winning card isironic, dad, we're still playing. Note: best moment of the night was when he put down "Joan of Arc" for "eccentric", and lost to "Cher." In the midst of arguing his case he claimed to "know" Joan of Arc, which we all assumed meant personally, and teased him for the rest of the night for knowing a 15th century saint.
Jane's Shrimp on the Barbie
My mom's shrimp share their origins with my childhood birthday cakes, sausage rolls, and a few other Aussie treats, which all derive from the same tome: The Australian Women's Weekly. Stacks of paperback cookbooks from the early 80s protrude from her cupboards, filled with ugly photography and lots of mayonnaise. And yet, with a little tweaking they produce delicious and unexpected results. These shrimp are a little sweet, a little spicy, and have that "what is this flavor?" factor. They're perfect on their own or tossed in a salad. Enjoy!
3 lbs fresh medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons of honey
2 tablespoons chili sauce (not hot sauce)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3 large shallots, finely chopped
2 tablespoons of finely chopped parsley
2 tablespoons finely sliced green onions
1/4 teaspoon ground Chinese five spice
Combine all of the ingredients, adding the prawns last, and marinate in the fridge for one to two hours. Put the prawns onto wooden skewers, about 4 to a skewer. I submerge my skewers into water while the prawns are marinating so they don't burn on the grill. On a medium-high grill, cook the prawns until just firm, about 1 minute per side. Brush the prawns with the marinade as they cook. I usually serve about 2 skewers per person. Enjoy!
Grilled Corn with Honey, Lime, and Ancho Chili Butter
Grilled sweet corn is one of the staples of summer, and the slightly sweet and spicy butter only brings out its delicious and delicate flavor. Enjoy!
10 ears of white corn
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and Pepper
12 oz unsalted butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon ancho chili powder
2 1/2 teaspoons lime zest
2 teaspoons honey
Mix the butter, zest, ancho chili powder, and honey together. Salt to taste and put butter into butter dishes. I decorated mine with an extra pinch of ancho chili powder and lime zest. Set aside or refrigerate. Set your grill to high and drizzle olive oil evenly over the corn, rolling the ears to cover all sides. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook until each side has a little color, about 2-3 minutes a side. Serve hot and butter with the back of a fork (it works better than a knife) and enjoy!
When the lovely Kristin Appenbrink from Realsimple.com reached out to me about joining the blog relay of A Month of Stress Free Dinners they were putting on, I was all in. The list of recipes to choose from were varied, but I zeroed in on this delicious little number immediately. First off, I LOVE lamb. Love it. It's savory with just a hint of gaminess, and is such a lovely departure from the usual chicken, pork, beef, rinse repeat cycle I can find myself in. The other thing I love about lamb? Chops take about 6 minutes total to cook. So you'll have this entire meal, including the sautéed escarole and chickpeas in under 15 minutes. Boom. Done! Love it.
For this recipe and other delicious 20 Minute Dinner Recipes, check out RealSimple.com.
Serves 4| Hands-On Time: 30m| Total Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 small head escarole, leaves torn (about 13 cups)
4 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
1/4 cup dry white wine
kosher salt and black pepper
1 15.5-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed
8 small rib or loin lamb chops (1 inch thick; about 2 3/4 pounds total)
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
Directions Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a Dutch oven or large saucepan over medium heat. Add the escarole, garlic, wine, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper and cook, covered, tossing occasionally, until very tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the chickpeas and cook until warmed through, 1 to 2 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the lamb with the oregano and ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper. In 2 batches, cook the lamb, 2 to 3 minutes per side for medium-rare. Serve with the escarole.
