Friday, August 7, 2009

Something for those lazy summer days

Well I have been on vacation the last couple of days and have been through some excitement. Yesterday while driving to the theater, a SUV stuck a overpass pillar and flipped over right in front of me, so I had to quickly stop, called 911 and rushed to the overturn vehicle and got the driver out of the car. She was not seriously hurt, and I left as soon as the police arrived..............missed my movie, but hey, it was not like I could not stop. Today was better, I finally saw my film, 500 Days of Summer, and I really recommend it to all my readers. Anyway, after the film, I was out enjoying the nice weather and just pretty much relaxed the rest of the day and felt I needed something to help me i that endeavor, so I found rachael's recipe for Sparkling Sangria.

Ingredients
1/4 cup orange flavored liqueur, I used Grand Marnier
1/4 cup almond liqueur, I used Disarrono
12 strawberries, sliced
1 pint raspberries
1 bottle sparkling wine, I used a bottle of Ice Wine
4 seedless grapes


Combine liqueurs and fruit in the bottom of a medium pitcher and lightly muddle. Fill pitcher with sparkling wine. Place a single grape in the bottom of each glass. The yeast on the grape skin will help retain some fizz in your drink. Spoon a bit of muddled berry from the pitcher into each Champagne glass then pour in the liquid. Serve immediately. Cheers!


The Verdict............well let's just say, i am still feeling the buzz as I type this out.........easy to make and very very tasty :-)

Until Tomorrow...........

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Roadside classic

Had a bit of a sweet-tooth today so I made rachaels Chocolate Banana Cream Pie. I have always had a "pro pie' stance, so I was glad to see this recipe of rachael and a little surprised to since she always say that she is not a baker. She has just come out with her own line of bake ware called "oven lovin"......a name I think is just great.....anyway on to the pie.......

Ingredients
1 frozen pie shell, pricked several times with tines of a fork
1 package instant chocolate pudding, prepared to package directions
2 ripe bananas, sliced thin on an angle
1 can spray whipped cream
1 dark chocolate candy bar


Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Bake pie shell 10 to 12 minutes, until golden. Remove from oven and let cool.

Line the baked and cooled pie shell with a layer of chocolate pudding, half of the prepared amount. Add a layer of bananas. Top with remaining prepared instant chocolate pudding and remaining bananas. Cover the top with a giant swirl of whip cream from the spray can, starting at the center and working out. Shave a chocolate bar with a vegetable peeler and top pie with shavings. Serve immediately


The verdict..........This was a really a tasty treat, one of the best pies I have ever had. The only thing I would have changed about this is that, I had to make a second pie do to the fact that I tripped taking the first one from the oven and ended up slinging it across my kitchen. Even managed to get some of it in the fish tank.........on the plus side, the fish took a nibble, so i think they liked the pie.

So if you decided to follow in my footsteps......double the ingredients......


Until tomorrow...............

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Simple Comforts

Tonight, I am feeling a tad down about something, so I decided to make on of my favorite comfort foods Roasted Tomato Bruschetta. I know a lot of readers might think if this as an appetizer, but I can eat the stuff all by itself as a meal.

Ingredients

2 pints grape tomatoes
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 loaf sesame semolina bread (I just used french bread or "freedom" bread to make my republican friends happy))
2 cloves garlic, halved
4 scallions, finely chopped
1/2 cup basil leaves, thinly sliced


Heat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Coat the tomatoes in olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast 20 minutes to concentrate the flavor and burst the tomatoes.

Cut 2 large "planks" of bread each 1-inch thick by slicing the bread lengthwise horizontally. Reserve the rest of the loaf for another use.

When you remove the tomatoes from the oven, switch on broiler. Char bread on both sides then rub hot bread with cut garlic.

In a bowl, lightly mash the roasted tomatoes and combine with scallions and basil. Top the large planks with tomato mixture then cut each giant crostini into 4 pieces, 8 pieces total.

The Verdict...........delicious......I can see also hadd a bit of cheese to the top if you wanted, but it really is a tasty dish as is........


Until Tomorrow...........

Sunday, August 2, 2009

Fruit Fiesta

I was shopping grocery shopping after work and was purchasing various fruits and melons to make up some fruit salads for work this week and I ran across something called an Athena melon. I had never heard of an Athena melon, although it looked a it like a large smooth skin cantaloupe, but I like trying new thins, so i grabbed one. So I got home chopped it up and took a taste........it's cantaloupe....I did some research ad Athena melon is just an american cantaloupe, although it looks a bit different from the ones from europe that I think most of us are used to. So with the melon identified, I have made Margarita Melon Salad.

Ingredients

2 limes, juiced
2 shots tequila
2 tablespoons orange liqueur
3 teaspoons sugar
1/2 cantaloupe, seeded and cubed
1/4 honey dew melon, seeded and cubed
1/4 small watermelon, cubed


Many markets sell halved melons and wedges of watermelon, making it easy to prepare this salad closer to desired amounts. I myself save money buying purchasing the whole melons and chopping them down to size:-)

Combine lime juice, tequila, liqueur, and sugar in a bowl. Add melons and toss to coat with tequila and lime. Serve in shallow bowls.

The verdict........simply to make and a pleasure to eat.......delicious and refreshing.........this would go great at a cookout and also something that would be an item to make for a date if you are cooking for that someone special.

Until tomorrow.........