Goat Cheese with Chipotle and Piloncillo Sauce

I was over at my friend Kristy's for a cocktails a few weeks ago...and I met her friend Stacy. Stacy brought over this goat cheese spread with pita that I couldn't get enough of. SO GOOD! You have to try this!

Some of the ingredients are unusual, but I was able to find them in my grocery store. The caramel topping for this cheese spread is such a beautiful compliment! It is addicting! It is sweet and savory all at the same time. The recipe is so easy to make and you could do it the day before.

Chipotle is really easy to find these days. The tricky part is the Piloncillo. Mexican sugar cane. It comes in a brick like this:


You have to melt it down...but it really took no time at all. Your guests will love this dish.

Goat Cheese with Chipotle and Piloncillo Sauce

yield: Makes about 2 cups cheese spread and about 1 1/4 cups sauce, serving 10 to 12

ingredients

For cheese spread
6 ounces soft mild goat cheese, at room temperature
12 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 small garlic clove, minced and mashed to a paste with 1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon minced canned chiles chipoltes in adobo sauce

For sauce
1 tablespoon minced canned chiles chipoltes in adobo sauce
8 ounces piloncillo (Mexican unrefined sugar)
1 cup heavy cream

Accompaniment:
grilled bread, toasted pita chips, corn chips or crackers


Make cheese spread:
In a bowl with an electric mixer beat together cheeses, garlic paste, and minced chipolte chiles. Transfer mixture to a small serving bowl and chill, covered, at least 4 hours or overnight.

Make sauce:
In a small saucepan combine minced chiles chipoltes, piloncillo, and cream and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally and breaking up sugar, until piloncillo is melted and sauce is smooth, about 20 minutes. Transfer sauce to a small serving bowl and chill, covered, for at least 4 hours or up to overnight.

Spread cheese on grilled bread, corn chips or crackers and lightly drizzle with sauce.

Making Butter

Have you ever thought about making your own butter? I hear people on FoodNetwork saying don't whip up your cream too much or you will make butter...I didn't realize that it would look like this...and that the liquid you extract from the cream is the buttermilk and the rest is the butter solids...how cool is this...easy enough to try I say!



I would love to try this and make a few compound butters from it...butter freezes really well and it would probably be really delicious! I will let u know when I do.

Plum Clafoutis

I have been going to the fresh produce market for a few weeks now...the produce is so amazing. Fresh fresh! Find your local farmers market or direct from the farm market...totally worth it and you can be inspired by the finds. I bought some pretty little plums there for my husband...he eats tons of fruit...I can't keep it in the house long enough. Anyway, these plums weren't very sweet, so I decided to make them into a dessert.

I would normally make my SUMMER BERRY COBBLER...but I saw this recipe on the Barefoot Contessa a few years ago and wanted to try it. It is basically a crepe batter that you pour over fresh fruit and bake. Very simple. The longest part was cutting up and fanning the plums, but it was fun too! :)




Plum Clafoutis

8 small plums
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup milk (low fat is fine)
3 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp freshly ground nutmeg

Preheat oven to 425F and lightly grease a 10-inch round baking/tart dish.
Peel pears. Slice in half and remove cores and stems. Slice crosswise every 1/8 inch and fan around a 10 inch round baking dish, stem ends facing into the center. If your pears are large, you might only use 6 halves around the outside of the pan. If this is the case, add one of the remaining pear halves to the center of the dish (as pictured above). Sprinkle pears with approx. 1 tbsp sugar.
In a food processor, blend flour, 1/4 cup sugar, baking powder, salt, eggs, milk, vanilla and nutmeg until smooth, about 15 seconds. Pour mixture on top of pears and sprinkle again with remaining sugar.



Bake for 15 minutes at 425F. Turn oven down to 350F and bake an additional 25-30 minutes, until clafoutis is golden brown and a tester (sharp knife) inserted into the center comes out clean.
Serve warm, at room temperature or chilled.

Serves 8.

Note: The clafoutis will fall a little bit as it cools, so don’t be surprised!



We wanted to try it so badly, I almost forgot to take a photo! So there is a scoop out of this one. This is a great recipe for any fresh summer stone fruit...peaches, plums, apricots...even pears would be excellent. Give it a try, it is super simple and delicious.

Martha's Cupcake Book

Martha's Cupcake book is coming out in just a few weeks...and to tease us...she is giving us a recipe a day on her show.

You can PREORDER the book...I think I might just do that. I would love to do it for my brother Louis, but I am sure he did already! He should write his own book with his AMAZING cupcakes!

Anyway, I have only seen a few the Martha shows this week (my dvr is full!) but every cupcake I have seen is worth a try. The Lemon meringue especially because I have one of those cool torches and love to use it!

The Lemon Meringue Cupcakes:


Makes 24
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
Finely grated zest of 3 lemons (about 3 tablespoons), plus 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
Lemon Curd
Seven-Minute Frosting
Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is until incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Beat in zest and vanilla. Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two additions of buttermilk and lemon juice, and beating until just combined after each.
Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until golden brown and a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature, or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.
To finish, spread 1 tablespoon lemon curd onto middle of each cupcake. Fill a pastry bag fitted with a large open-star tip (Ateco #828 or Wilton #8B) with frosting. Pipe frosting onto each cupcake, swirling tip slightly and releasing as you pull up to form a peak. Hold a small kitchen torch 3 to 4 inches from surface of frosting, and wave it back and forth until frosting is lightly browned all over. Serve immediately.

Then there is the Chocolate Cupcake...always good!

Makes 12
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup sour cream
Easy White Icing
Sprinkles (optional)
Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 12-cup standard muffin tin with paper liners.
Into a medium bowl, sift together cocoa, flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each, then beat in vanilla. With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture in two batches, alternating with sour cream and beginning and ending with flour.
Pour batter into cups, filling each 3/4 full. Bake until a toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes.
Cool in pan 5 minutes; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely, then spread with Easy White Icing using a table knife or small offset spatula. Decorate with sprinkles, if desired.

Show Me Your Mussels

I am convinced that Friday nights are the best nights to entertain...they force you to be casual, impromptu, no preplanning, just "hey let's get together and make a feast" kind of nights. You can have a few drinks, and still have Saturday and Sunday to recover, which in my mind is a VERY good thing! :)

My friend Kristy came over and we started to cook. But first a cocktail break...

This is the Peach Basil Martini:





This is a great cocktail that we all enjoyed...a great summer drink that you should try! :)









But I digress...this post is all about the Mussels!

On our way home from work, we stopped at the market to pick up something to make for dinner. We wanted some shrimp, then I noticed the mussels...they were on sale...so I asked Kristy if she had ever cooked them...she said no, so I said...what the heck! We bought a pound each of shrimp and mussels thinking we would just figure it out when we got home.



Fish, shellfish, anykind of fish...I have always been afraid to cook...it isn't cheap, and it is very delicate easily ruined...and that I just couldn't face! :) I love it though! So, I had to start somewhere.

What I didn't realize is fish makes a quick meal...and elegant one, and one that doesn't require lots of planning! I love this.

We found a recipe in the Barefoot in Paris book by Ina Garten...and I just happened to have everything on hand...and off we went to create this FANTASTIC dinner.

Note: This recipe uses all mussels, but we bought 1 lb of shrimp and 1 lb of mussels to make this recipe.

Mussels in White Wine
Barefoot In Paris by Ina Garten
Serves 2-3

Ingredients
3 pounds cultivated mussels
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons good olive oil
1 cup chopped shallots (5 to 7 shallots)
1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic (5 to 6 cloves)
1/2 cup chopped canned plum tomatoes, drained (4 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon good saffron threads
1/3 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
1 cup good white wine
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions
To clean the mussels, put them in a large bowl with 2 quarts of water and the flour and soak for 30 minutes, or until the mussels disgorge any sand.





Drain the mussels, then remove the "beard" from each with your fingers. If they're dirty, scrub the mussels with a brush under running water. Discard any mussels whose shells aren't tightly shut.

In a large non-aluminum stockpot, heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook for 5 minutes; then add the garlic and cook for 3 more minutes, or until the shallots are translucent. Add the tomatoes, saffron, parsley, thyme, wine, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil.



Add the mussels,



stir well, then cover the pot, and cook over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until all the mussels are opened (discard any that do not open). With the lid on, shake the pot once or twice to be sure the mussels don't burn on the bottom.



NOTE: at 8 minutes, we added the peeled, deveined shrimp to the pot to cook for the last 3 minutes.

Pour the mussels and the sauce into a large bowl and serve hot.



Isn't this gorgeous? We served it with fresh lemon slices and toasted garlic ciabatta bread to sop up the delicious broth...so good!




This is an impressive dinner. The flavors are out of this world...tastes like a million bucks. This will be a go to recipe for me from now on. It was so simple and easy, and the results to DIE FOR! :) I know I say that a lot, but it is so true...this is a delicious recipe. If you are a virgin shellfish cooker, give this one a try, you won't be sorry!

Turkey Soup Anyone?

So, does anyone else still have any leftover turkey? I decided to make some soup out of mine.

I started with a simple miripois: I finely diced 2 celery ribs, 1/2 an onion and 2 carrots. I sautéed them a bit, then added one box of chicken stock and 1 tsp. of poultry seasoning.



In the mean time, I sauteed some mushrooms, zuchinni and garlic with a bit of fresh sage. Once it was nice and golden, I added them to the pot.



After it came to a simmer, I took my leftover turkey and added it to the pot. I also dropped in 2 cups of egg noodles.



When the noodles were done, I added the juice of a meyer lemon. We had tons of them this season, and I just like the flavor of citrus and poultry. I garnished with some fresh sage and served with some nice crusty bread...YUM!

Pomtinis

One of my favorite cocktails is a martini (thanks to my dear friend Joan, who showed me how to drink right!) I love a good Pomegranate Martini and when Martha showed this recipe and I had to try it.

The recipe calls for orange peel as garnish, but I used Pomegranate seeds instead. Martha has showed how to remove the seeds from a pomegranate and it works like a charm...this is how you do it:

Score the pomegranate into quarters from end to end, without cutting all the way thru, then stick the knife into one end and pry the fruit open.



Then take one of the pieces and hold it over a bowl like this:



Use a wooden spoon, and whack the back of the fruit, and the seeds will just fall into the bowl:



and there you go, a bowl full of pomegranate seeds, no mess, simple:



Now make the cocktail:

Makes 1 cocktail
1 ounce freshly squeezed pomegranate juice
1 1/2 ounces vodka
1 1/2 ounces freshly squeezed grapefruit juice
1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
1/2 ounce Simple Syrup
Ice cubes
Orange peel, for garnish
Directions

In a cocktail shaker, combine pomegranate juice, vodka, grapefruit juice, lime juice, simple syrup, and ice; shake until well combined. Strain into a chilled martini glass. Twist orange peel over cocktail and add to glass; serve.

I used the seeds and a slice of lime to garnish my drinks:



Aren't they lovely!? Perfect cocktail for your holiday parties! The color is so beautiful!



You can watch a video of the recipe on the Martha site.

To Die For: Molten Lava Cakes

Ok, this right here, will make you a rockstar...keep this one, and make it often...well not too often if you care anything about your arteries...but I am serious, this is that good! Molten Lava Cakes:

This is now one of my go-to recipes. Takes only a few ingriedients, and I usually have all of these on hand.

I make this with a mix of milk and dark chocolate, and I also added 1 tsp. of espresso powder to the batter. This is an Ina Garten trick, she says it enhances the chocolate...and I totally agree.

You can make it earlier in the day, pull it out of the fridge 15 minutes before you bake them (just so they aren't so cold before you put them in the oven to bake) and they are wonderful! People go CRAZY for these little cakes. What I love about them is that they cook up in cupcake pans...so you only have to make a small batch, it is a very manageable recipe, and totally 5 Star - a MUST TRY!

Molten Lava Cakes
from Martha Stewart Everyday Food's book, "Great Food Fast."

Ingredients

Serves 6
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for muffin tins
1/3 cup granulated sugar, plus more for muffin tins
3 large eggs
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting
Whipped Cream , for serving
Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Generously butter 6 cups of a standard muffin tin. Dust with granulated sugar, and tap out excess. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and granulated sugar until fluffy.

Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. With the mixer on low speed, beat in flour and salt until just combined.
<
Beat in chocolate until just combined.






Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups.
Place muffin tin on a baking sheet; bake just until tops of the cakes no longer jiggle when the pan is lightly shaken, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven; let stand 10 minutes.


To serve, turn out cakes, and place on serving plates, bottom sides up. Dust with confectioners' sugar, and serve with whipped cream, or ice cream like I did, if desired.

I Heart Nigella: Chocolate Mousse

I am making cupcakes, and I want to make them a little special...because they are for my sweet friend, Viviana, who is leaving her job tomorrow for bigger and better things.

I mad a sheet of Devil's food cake, and after it has baked, drizzled it with about 1/2 cup of Almond Syrup. The kind you put in coffee, it is so good! This syrup is my trick to make cake extra special.

I also made 18 cupcakes and I want to fill them. My amazing brother Louis suggested Chocolate Mousse. All the recipes I found have eggs, and they are raw. I am making this for a crowd, so I don't want to give them raw eggs. So I kept looking.

I found this recipe from Nigella Lawson...I HEART NIGELLA LAWSON. She is gorgeous and has a way with words...and this recipe is so simple! Check it out:

Bang Bang Shrimp

A while back, I posted my Mongolian Beef inspired by PF Changs recipe. In that post I mentioned that my neighbors Heath & Dena made Bang Bang Shrimp inspired by the Bonefish Restaurant recipe. We ate it too fast to take a photo, so they made it again and shared the recipe.



1-2 pounds Medium shrimp

Peal and Devein
Rinse thoroughly.
Mix 2 eggs with some milk and whisk together.
Dip shrimp into milk mixture.
Let excess drip off and then completely cover shrimp in corn starch. try to make it as thick as possible.
In a wok pre-heat peanut oil.
ensure that the oil is hot enough before putting shrimp in the the oil or the corn starch will fall right off.
put shrimp in oil about 15 at a time depending on the size of your wok. and cook for approx 3 minutes.
once cooked place on paper towels to drain excess oil.
after cooking all of the shrimp place shrimp into a large tupperware bowl and pour bang bang sauce on top of shrimp.
Place lid on tupperware and lightly shake.
serve over a bed of chopped romaine lettuce.

Here is the link to the Bang Bang sauce.

This is so good, you have to try it. The sauce is kind of a mayonnaise and chile sauce: spicy and creamy...and makes this dish irresistible.

Barbecue Beef Cups

Ok, here is another great one from Rachael Ray...this is super simple and will be great at my next party! I will make mine with ground turkey breast...I never use ground beef. I might even try some mushrooms, bell peppers and some pasta sauce instead of the barbeque filling!


Barbecue Beef Cups
Byron Kasper

From Every Day with Rachael Ray
November 2007

3/4 pound ground beef
1/2 cup barbecue sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
One 16.3-ounce can refrigerated biscuits
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese


Preheat the oven to 400º. In a skillet, brown the beef over medium heat; drain off excess fat. Remove from the heat and stir in the barbecue sauce and brown sugar. Grease a 6-cup jumbo muffin pan and place a piece of biscuit dough in each cup, stretching the dough up the sides. Divide the beef mixture among the biscuit cups, sprinkle each with cheese and bake until golden, 10 to 12 minutes.

Goat Cheese Appetizer

Don't these look good! Just found this very simple recipe on the Rachel Ray website...and I looks like a keeper to me! Looks great on the plate too!



Goat Cheese Rounds
Tracey Seaman

From Every Day with Rachael Ray
August 2008


Cut one 11-ounce goat cheese log into 6 equal rounds. Lay flat on a serving plate and drizzle with 1/3 cup of extra-virgin olive oil. Sprinkle 2 rounds with 1 teaspoon of herbs de Provence and 1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper, another 2 rounds with 1/3 cup of toasted chopped pecans, and the remaining 2 rounds with 1/4 cup of chopped sun-dried tomatoes; season with salt and pepper. Serve with toasted baguette slices.

Casual Cocktails

I have invited my boss and friend Steve over a million times but he is a jet setter and never in town. Well, he finally got some time to stop by my place and see what a life made my me was all about! :)

We originally planned to have dinner at my place on Saturday...but Steve couldn't make it so he asked if we could switch to Friday, after work...[PANIC SETS IN...WHAT DO I MAKE, DO I HAVE ENOUGH TIME???} I quickly decide to chill and accept, of course I can do this...just have to think on my feet. So what do I do with an hour to shop at lunch and 2 hours prep time after work? I planned some little bites, all but one I have never done before, but I think they all turned out ok!

At 8pm, Steve and Gina arrived:



I also invited Lon and Kelly. Kelly had a prior engagement, so here is Lon enjoying a Tequila!


Here are some of the dishes I prepped for the evening. My first was Roasted Figs wrapped in prosciutto.


I first sliced fresh Mission Figs in half and coated them with a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar and about 1/4 cup brown sugar and roasted them in the oven for 20 minutes.


In the mean time, I cut slices of prosciutto lenghwise to make 2 thin strips. I put a smear of cream cheese in the center of each slice:


Once the figs were cool, I placed a fig in each, rolled them up and secured with a toothpick:



My second dish: Shrimp Fra Diavolo Shooters.

I took a little help from the awesome Whole Foods store that just opened and picked up a great seafood soup as the base of my shooters...but first I had to make the shrimp:

I marinated 12 large shrimp in 2 tbsp olive oil, 2 cloves of garlic finely minced, fresh grouned black pepper, 1/2 tsp. chile flakes and lemon zest for about an hour.


Then I sauteed them in a very hot pan.


Cook the shrimp for about 2 minutes per side...or they will get tough. Don't overcook them!


I have this awesome shot glass set that I got as a wedding gift. I usually do dessert shooters in them...but today, they would be shrimp shooters.


I poured the chilled soup into each shot glass, topped each with a cooked shrimp and served over ice.

I also made Stuffed Mushrooms.

These are really easy, and my old high school friend, Melaine asked me for the recipe...so I decided to make them tonight so I could document for her.

I started out with a container of large, cleaned mushroom and removed the stems.



I then took about 1/2 cup of sliced mushrooms and finely diced them. I sauteed them in olive oil over high heat until they were soft, about 15 minutes. I took the pan off the heat to cool.


I mixed the cooled mushrooms with Alouette Cheese, diced roasted red peppers and filled each cap with some of the mixture.


I topped each cap with parmesan cheese and baked them on a cookie sheet on 400 for 8-10 minutes.

My last dish were POLENTA BITES with Caramelized Mushrooms. I saw this recipe on Easy Entertaining with Michael Chiarello and had to try it.



For the polenta:
3 cups heavy cream
2 cups chicken stock
1 teaspoon finely ground sea salt, preferably gray salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1 cup polenta
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus more for garnish
For the mushrooms:
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 pound button or cremini mushrooms, cut into quarters
Finely ground salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3/4 cup Marsala Wine
2 tablespoons finely chopped Italian parsley leaves

Cook the polenta: In a medium, heavy pot over high heat bring the cream, stock, salt, and nutmeg to a boil. Add the polenta gradually, whisking constantly. When the mixture thickens, switch to a wooden spoon and adjust the heat to maintain a bare simmer. Cook, stirring often, until thick, smooth, and creamy, about 15 minutes. Add the Parmesan and stir. Keep the polenta warm over low heat, stirring occasionally. If the polenta gets dry as it sits, stir in about 1/4 cup of warm stock or cream.
Saute the mushrooms: In a medium skillet over high heat, heat the olive oil. When the oil is hot, sprinkle in the mushrooms in a single layer. Don't stir them! Let them sizzle until they have caramelized on the bottom, about 2 minutes. When the bottoms are caramelized, toss them once and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Continue to cook without stirring for about 5 minutes. Season mushrooms with salt and pepper. Add the butter and cook until it begins to brown, then add the garlic. Continue to cook until the garlic begins to brown. Add the thyme and cook for about 10 seconds. Add the lemon juice and cook until the liquid evaporates. Add the wine, and simmer until the mushrooms are glazed with the sauce. Add the parsley. Then stir and remove the pan from the heat.

Place or pipe about 1 tablespoon of warm polenta onto a spoon. Place about 1/2 teaspoon of the mushroom on top of the polenta. Garnish with grated Parmesan. Serve immediately.

These were really good! I served them on these little amuse bouche spoons I got at Crate and Barrel. I have had them forever waiting for the right time and recipe.




All in all, I didn't have much time, but I was able to come up with some tasty treats. I am really glad Steve and Gina (and you too, Lon) finally got to hang out!