06.29.09 S'mores cookies

Last night's sweet treat for our Bachelorette watch party was S'mores cookies from Everyday Food Magazine. These were simple to make, looked great, and tasted even better! The chocolate and marshmallow were warm and gooey, like they had been cooked over a campfire. (They're great leftover, too - just had one for breakfast!)

06.19.09 Roasted banana ice cream

We spent the weekend at the lake with family, and we made a couple of batches of homemade ice cream. We had a repeat of the chocolate sorbet, and we also made roasted banana ice cream, another recipe from The Perfect Scoop. It tasted like bananas foster - caramely and delicious!!

Roasted Banana Ice Cream
Yield: 1 quart

• 3 medium ripe bananas, peeled
• 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 Tablespoon butter, cut into small pieces
• 1 1/2 cup whole milk
• 2 Tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Slice the bananas into 1/2-inch pieces and toss them with the brown sugar and butter in a 2 quart baking dish. Bake for 40 minutes, stirring once during baking, until the bananas are browned and cooked through.

Scrape the bananas and the thick syrup in the baking dish into a food processor or blender. Add the milk, sugar, vanilla, lemon juice, and salt. Puree until smooth.

Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator, then freeze it in your ice cream maker. If the chilled mixture is too thick to pour into your machine, whisking will thin it out.

06.20.09 Summer grill

Robert put on his chef's hat last weekend for filet mignon and grilled zucchini and squash. There aren't really recipes, but it was delicious so I wanted to share it on the blog. The vegetables were seasoned with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and cooked on each side until there were grill marks on each side. The caprese salad was tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and basil, marinated in olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

06.16.09 Chocolate-peanut butter ice cream

Last night's sweet treat for the Bachelorette watch party was brownies (nothing special, from a box) with chocolate-peanut butter ice cream. The ice cream was rich and peanut-buttery, so delicious! It's another recipe from The Perfect Scoop, and there are still many more to try.

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Ice Cream

Ingredients:

2 cups half-and-half

¼ cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder

½ cup sugar

pinch of salt

½ cup creamy peanut butter

Directions:

Whisk together the half-and-half, cocoa powder, sugar and salt in a large saucepan (very important to use a large pan to prevent boiling over - it gets very frothy). Heat the mixture, whisking frequently, until it comes to a full, rolling boil (it will start to foam up). Remove from the heat and whisk in the peanut butter, stirring until thoroughly blended.

Chill the mixture thoroughly, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

06.14.09 Chocolate sorbet

You may have noticed a lack of dinner postings lately - clearly my sweet tooth has dominated during my pregnancy. And now that Sally is here, we'll be eating a lot of take-out and simple meals, so here's yet another ice cream recipe from The Perfect Scoop. This chocolate sorbet is to-die-for! Rich and chocolaty, it's waaaaaaaaaay better than any chocolate ice cream I've ever had. I have no doubt this will be a staple in our freezer.

CHOCOLATE SORBET
Makes 1 quart

2 1/4 cups water
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
Pinch of salt
6 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped (I used semi)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a large saucepan, whisk together 1 1/2 cups of the water with the sugar, cocoa powder, and salt. Bring to a boil, whisking frequently. Let it boil, continuing to whisk, for 45 seconds.

Remove from the heat and stir in the chocolate until it’s melted, then stir in the vanilla extract and the remaining 3/4 cup water. Transfer the mixture to a blender and blend for 15 seconds. Chill the mixture thoroughly, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. (If the mixture has become too thick to pour into your machine, whisk it vigorously to thin it out).

06.11.09 Peach ice cream

My latest batch of homemade ice cream was Paula Deen's recipe for peach ice cream. I love peach season, and this recipe is creamy and delicious! I love the flavor of the brown sugar instead of regular granulated sugar. My only comment is that we don't taste a difference in recipes that call for a custard base vs. an (egg-free) milk and cream mixture where the machine does all the work, so I'm not sure the extra steps are worth the trouble.

06.08.09 Almond blueberry cookies

The sweet treat for last night's Bachelorette watch party was Giada's almond blueberry cookies. They were simple to make, and great way to use blueberries now that it's berry season (I used fresh instead of frozen). They are soft, cakey cookies and taste like the tops of blueberry muffins, which is the best part in my opinion. (I didn't get a photo before they were all devoured, so I borrowed one from the Food Network website. Mine looked just like this, though. :))

06.08.09 Carolina burger

Dinner tonight was another burger recipe from Bobby Flay's new book, Burgers, Fries and Shakes. This time it was the Carolina burger, with mustard barbecue sauce and coleslaw. Again, we used the lean ground sirloin from Fresh Market and I think it really makes a difference here.

Carolina burger
Serves 4

Mustard barbecue sauce:
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
2 heaping tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper

Green onion slaw:
1 cup coarsely chopped green onions
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 serrano chiles, stemmed and seeded
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1/4 cup olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 head of purple cabbage, finely shredded (about 3 cups)
1 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

Burgers:
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
Kosher salt and black pepper
Canola oil
4 hamburger buns, split and toasted

1. To make the barbecue sauce, blend the vinegar, mustard, honey, salt and oil in a blender until emulsified. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the black pepper. (The sauce can be made 1 day ahead, covered and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before serving).

2. To make the dressing for the slaw, blend the green onions, vinegar, 1/4 cup cold water, chiles, mayonnaise, and oil in a blender until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper. Put the cabbage and red onion in a bowl, add the dressing, and stir until combined. Fold in the cilantro and season with salt and pepper to taste. Let sit at room temperature for at least 15 minutes before serving. (The slaw can be made 2 hours in advance and refrigerated).

2. Divide meat into 4 equal portions, and form each portion loosely into ¾” thick burger and make a deep depression in the center with your thumb (a trick to prevent burger bulge as it cooks). Season both sides with salt and pepper.

3. Heat canola oil in a saute pan over high heat until the oil begins to shimmer. Cook the burgers until golden brown and slightly charred on one side (about 3-4 minutes). Flip the burgers and cook until golden as well (about 3-4 minutes) for medium rare. Baste the burgers with some of the barbecue sauce during the last minute of cooking.

4. Place the burgers on the bun bottoms and top each one with more barbecue sauce and some of the slaw. Cover with the bun tops and serve immediately.

06.06.09 Banana-blueberry sorbet

I've discovered a fantastic new cookbook to help feed my homemade ice cream addiction - it's called The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz. You'll be seeing lots of his recipes on the blog in the coming months. First up was the banana-blueberry sorbet. It is fruity, refreshing, and simple - basically fruit, water and sugar, so much healthier than the creamy stuff. But don't worry, the next recipe I want to try from the book is chocolate peanut butter ice cream, which is certainly NOT figure friendly.

Makes about 1 quart

1 medium-sized ripe banana, peeled
2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen (I used fresh)
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

Cut the banana into chunks and puree in a blender or food processor with the blueberries, water, sugar and lime juice until smooth. Chill the mixture thoroughly, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

06.05.09 Mexican grilled corn

Dinner tonight had two encore performances - bacon-wrapped chicken and spicy roasted potatoes - with a new addition of Mexican grilled corn. We used light sour cream and grilled it indoors on our grill pan. Great summer recipe for fresh corn!

06.02.09 Argentinean burger

This recipe is so good I'm almost speechless. But I've regained composure long enough to post about it, so you're in luck. Dinner tonight was the Argentinean burger from Bobby Flay's new cookbook Burgers, Fries and Shakes. Bobby is very particular about his burgers, so I'm going to include his strict instructions - which we followed - on how to cook it. I don't know what the difference-maker was here - the beef, the bun, or the cooking method - but it was the BEST burger I've EVER eaten.

Serves 4
Chimichurri:
2 cups packed fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves
4 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon smoked sweet Spanish paprika
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Burgers:
1 1/2 pounds ground chuck 80% lean (We strayed from the recipe here and used ground sirloin because it is leaner - 95%)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
4 slices Manchego cheese
4 hamburger buns (we used onion rolls)
1/2 red onion, sliced 1/4 inch thick

1. To make the chimichurri, combine the parsley, oregano and garlic in a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. Add the paprika, vinegar, and oil, season with salt and pepper and process until smooth. Scrape into a bowl and let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before serving.

2. Divide meat into 4 equal portions, and form each portion loosely into ¾” thick burger and make a deep depression in the center with your thumb (a trick to prevent burger bulge as it cooks). Season both sides with salt and pepper.

3. Heat the oil in a saute pan over high heat until the oil begins to shimmer. Cook the burgers until golden brown and slightly charred on one side (about 3 minutes). Flip the burgers and cook until golden as well (about 3 minutes) for medium rare. Top each burger with a slice of cheese, tent the pan with foil, and cook for 1 additional minute.

4. Place the burgers on the bun bottoms and top with a large dollop of chimichurri and sliced onion. Cover with the bun tops and serve immediately.

06.01.09 Chocolate surprise cookies

Tonight's sweet treat for our Bachelorette watch party was Martha Stewart's chocolate surprise cookies. The cookies were soft and cake-like, the marshmallow center is the yummy surprise, and the chocolate frosting puts them over the top. So good!!!