garlic

Gambas al Ajillo (Garlic Shrimp)

December 29, 2019

Gambas al ajillo make an excellent party appetizer or light dinner. Garlicky shrimp with crushed red pepper and parsley is a classic Spanish appetizer. Served with a crisp white wine, it makes an excellent addition to a tapas party, as do Spanish-style marinated olives and tortilla española.

Whether you are serving this as an appetizer for a fancy New Year’s Eve party, or as a nibble for a summer BBQ with a glass of wine, this Spanish garlic shrimp recipe is great for any occasion.

You can increase the portion and have it for a light dinner with a piece of crusty bread for soaking up all the delicious juices.

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Rosemary Lemon Chicken Thighs

July 10, 2019

Rosemary lemon chicken thighs are ready in about 30 minutes, making it a great choice for a weeknight dinner. Full of flavor, light on effort and super easy, this is a recipe you’ll come back to again and again.

I don’t often think of blogging about food that I cook for clients because the truth of the matter is that I didn’t think people would be interested. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Every pic I’ve posted lately about “client food” has been met with a one-word response: recipe?

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Cherry Chutney

June 11, 2019

Cherry Chutney is a fantastic summer condiment to make with fresh, sweet cherries. If you are unfamiliar with chutney, let me give you a quick description. It’s like a relish, it has sweet and sour ingredients, usually coming from sugar or fruits and vinegar. It is a blend of sweet and savory. Chutney is a great condiment to use with grilled meats or vegetables and this cherry chutney went splendidly with a grilled flank steak.

Cherry Chutney

During warm summer months, when stone fruit is at its peak, I make big batches of this chutney to put up for winter months when I need a bit of summer.

I’m on a serious cherry kick lately. I can’t get enough of them. We have gone through almost 10 pounds in the last month because they always seem to find their way into my cart. You know, just in case I need more. I’ve been putting them in everything from cakes to oatmeal and this week, I decided to go a savory route.

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Kung Pao Green Beans

September 3, 2015

Kung pao green beans are a sweet, spicy side that will liven up any meal. This recipe is nut-free, but it still has all the flavor you’d expect from a classic kung pao. If nut allergies aren’t a concern, sprinkle some chopped peanuts over your green beans to get that true, authentic taste.

Kung Pao Green Beans

As a proclaimed lover of vegetables, I can’t quite understand anyone over the age of seven wrinkling their nose at the sight of them. That being said, I have a few clients who fall into that category and it is my job to come up with recipes that will entice them into eating something green.

I’m not a parent, so I can’t imagine what it is like on a daily basis but I can tell you that once a week I find myself trying to figure out what I can cook for vegetable-hating clients that will actually end up on their plates. This one came to fruition solely based on the fact that one of my clients loves anything spicy. I figured if I disguised the flavor of the vegetable with chilies and garlic, maybe I’d have a hit on my hands.

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Catalan Tomato Bread (pa amb tomàquet)

August 1, 2013

Grilled Catalan tomato bread rubbed with cloves of garlic is a delicious and easy snack. Drizzled with grassy olive oil and dusted with flaked sea salt, it is best enjoyed outside with a glass of Spanish rioja. A super simple dinner or appetizer, this bread is bursting with flavor.

I had been dreaming about travelling to Spain for nearly a decade, so when I finally landed there back in April of 2000, I cried. The moment my feet touched Spanish soil, I was almost in disbelief.

I was so overwhelmed that I could not contain my pure joy. It felt as if the entire universe lined up and planted me exactly where I was supposed to be for that one perfect moment. I wanted for nothing, except Catalan tomato bread.

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How to pickle banana peppers

June 17, 2013

My banana pepper plants have been rather prolific and for this I am grateful. As most of you who are regular visitors to this little space already know, I went a little overboard in planting. I have a tendency to overdo things and this was no exception.

Spending so many years living in an apartment with zero outdoor space, I may have gone a little crazy when I realized that I could grow some of my own food. This had been a goal of mine for a very long time (growing food, not going crazy… that ship has sailed).

I am fascinated by the entire process of planting a seed, taking care of it and watching it grow into something that will actually feed you.

The very first time I had a banana pepper was on a pizza, my Freshman year in college. A small group of us had descended on the pizza place next to campus. We were there under the pretense of “studying” I’m sure. There were pool tables, dart boards (which I became quite skillful at playing), air hockey tables; all the things one thinks of when looking for an appropriate place to “study”.

Anyhow, there we were and one of the guys went to order our pizza and when the waitress came to the table and set it down in front of us, I noticed that it had peppers on it. Not wanting to draw any attention to myself, I dug right in but in my head was this little voice shouting “are you nuts?!”.

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Spicy Thai Chicken Salad with Chili Lime Dressing

July 10, 2012

Spicy Thai chicken salad with spicy chili lime dressing is my go-to summer dinner. The vinaigrette keeps me coming back for more and because it’s so light, I don’t feel the least bit guilty. This salad is a great alternative to it’s heavy, mayo-laden cousins.

In my continuing effort to avoid turning my kitchen into the sweltering fires of hell, I decided that this time I would cheat a little. Just a little, and it’s for the greater good. The heat index is hovering in the triple digits while beads of sweat are pooling at the nape of my neck. The least entertaining thought at this moment is “let’s fire up the oven”.

Store-bought roast chicken: In the winter months, this would be considered sacrilege… but in the blistering heat of summer, it is sweet salvation!

As if buying the chicken wasn’t enough, the food processor is going to do the majority of the work! Yep, this might be the perfect summer recipe. The amount of work involved barely even registers. If you don’t own a food processor it isn’t the end of the world, just a bit of chopping & grating.

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If You’re Afraid of Butter, Use Cream…

May 22, 2012

The above is one of my favorite quotes from Julia Child, one of the gutsiest broads to ever hoist a meat cleaver. (and I use that term lovingly)

On August 15th of this year, Julia would have turned 100 years old and I’d like to think would still be cooking.
In the 100 days leading up to Julia’s birthday, the JC100 is celebrating this culinary powerhouse and her recipes. Each week, a new recipe is featured and this weeks offering was Coq au Vin… one of my all time favorites.

I remember watching Julia & Jacques and loved her candor and fearless approach to cooking. She made it seem fun and most importantly, possible. She had a way of walking her audience through a recipe that made complex dishes seem effortless and isn’t that all we really want? To feel like anything is possible?

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Heirloom tomato bruschetta

May 21, 2011

To (selfishly) honor a request for a 5 ingredient or less recipe, I decided to make heirloom tomato bruschetta.

For those of you who listen to my whining about what I crave (and sometimes tolerate it), it was time to put up or shut up. Bruschetta is one of those things that you can barely classify as a “recipe” but it has clean, simple flavors and when made with great ingredients it is amazingly delicious.

There is nothing worse than using those insipid, pale, cellophane-wrapped tomatoes from the supermarket when summer’s bounty is about to give you the most luscious, ripe tomatoes you could ask for. If you are lucky enough to have any kind of green space or even a pot on a fire-escape you know the joy of seeing those little seedlings bear fruit. Growing your own food is something I long to be able to do, but in the meantime I go to the farmer’s market.

There are farmer’s markets everywhere now and there is a world of difference between a tomato that came from a farm and the aforementioned kind… a tomato that hasn’t been “genetically engineered”. A tomato that actually tastes like a tomato.

For obvious reasons, this is best made when tomatoes are in season. A perfectly ripe tomato is what summer tastes like to me and when making something with such few ingredients, it is essential to have them at their peak.

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