Fig-Prosciutto Crostini with Brie, Walnuts & Rosemary

Some of the popular flavors of Fall, all combined into an

easy, tasty appetizer or snack The combination of

sweet and salty is practically irresistible!

If you have fresh figs, you could slice them in place

of the fig jam ~  substitute thin apple slices, or pears

for the sweet base if you like. 

The recipe is really versatile ~ you can substitute any

favorite jam or preserves, a different cheese and

other toasted nuts (or leave them out entirely.)

It's one of those easy recipes that you can put together

on a moments notice for unexpected guests.

I added the prosciutto, toasted walnuts and the 

rosemary needles as a garnish  (after broiling the bread --spread

with the jam and topped with a piece of Brie) ~

but if you want to assemble ahead with no last minute work, 

you could simply layer the toppings on the bread slices and 

bake in a hot oven until the jam is bubbling and the cheese is melted. 

The prosciutto becomes a little crisp, 

and the rosemary takes on a delicate, toasty crunch.

Cut the bread about 1/2-inch thick, then add the toppings. The texture is
best if you do not toast it first ~ just add the toppings and broil until the
jam is heated and the cheese is melted.

No need for an actual recipe, this one is

particularly easy to remember.

Other suggestions you might like:
Apricot, Raspberry, Peach jam, or a smear of honey; 
 other toasted pine nuts~ 
pecans, sliced (or chopped) almonds, or macadamia nuts.
Goat cheese, cream cheese, Gorgonzola or Blue, etc. ~

There are all kinds of possibilities . . .

Instead of serving as an appetizer or
snack,  substitute them for the cheese course after a special dinner.

Mix it up and try this idea with your own favorite toppings ~ 

I believe you'll enjoy.   

Thank you for stopping by

today, friends!

xo~Mari   :)

Crispy Herbed Chevre with Heirloom Tomatoes ~ PLUS Easy Herb Batter Bread

We're getting down to the nitty gritty; the very last of the tomato season here. After this it will be the hothouse variety until next season.

I like to treasure these last few colorful remnants of summer in the most simple way, to let their natural sweetness shine.



This presentation is similar to what Chef Jonathan Waxman introduced way, way back at the beginning of California Cuisine, in the 1970's.   Long before PCs were a household commodity I remember  clipping newspaper and magazine recipes which featured  this exciting nouveau style of preparing food ~  I think most of us "of a certain age" did the same. 



Practically unheard of here prior to that time,  fresh goat cheese became all the rage, thanks to  Laura Chenel in Sebastopol, CA.  She was  America's first commercial producer  of goat cheese in the US.     I remember meeting Laura around 1980 as she introduced her  newly published cookbook (featuring, of course, goat cheese)  at one of the first Williams-Sonoma stores to branch off from the  original store in nearby Sonoma, California.
Those were exciting times ~ though we now take the  concept of California Cuisine rather casually, it is important to  remember that it was the start of a food revolution,  heavily influencing the way we eat today.

 

I love the colors of a mix of tomatoes! But any kind of fresh, ripe tomatoes you have will do, slice the larger ones and just half the cherry or pear tomatoes.



Fresh and vibrant, this salad exemplifies the roots of California Cuisine.  Chef Jonathan's method is very simple; get the ripest, most flavorful tomatoes adorn them simply with salt and pepper, lemon juice and your favorite nut oil, such as walnut, hazelnut, etc.
Blend a couple of teaspoons or more of freshly minced herbs into the goat cheese very well,  then form the herb cheese into patties  (about 2 ounces each), one per each serving.   Dip in beaten egg and then in plain breadcrumbs which have been seasoned with salt and pepper.  (You can use Panko crumbs if you like.)
Chill the patties or at least 1/2 hour in the refrigerator,  (they will hold together during cooking a little  better if you chill  them even longer.)    When thoroughly chilled bake them on a buttered baking sheet  @ 375ºF for about 8 minutes, or brown them in a little oil  in a frying pan over medium high heat for a few minutes  on each side, turning once, until they are nicely golden brown.
Place on plates or a platter, arrange the tomatoes around the patties, sprinkle with herbs of your choice, salt and freshly ground black pepper. Squeeze lemon juice or a little of your favorite vinegar over and drizzle with nut oil sparingly.
Serve and enjoy while the cheese is still warm.

~*~*~*~*
Fast and Easy Herb Batter Bread
As an accompaniment I baked up some Herb Batter Bread, it's from Sunset Magazine from about the same era.
It's a really easy yeast bread, so if you've ever felt intimidated by yeast breads ~ try this one, it's practically fail proof!
 It goes really well with soups or salads, and any other simple meal. 



 I cannot count the number of times I've made this bread,  but you can probably guess by the condition of my 1971 edition of the Sunset book. (It cost a whopping $1.95 then.)
Back then fresh artisan bread wasn't readily available as it is today and homemade bread like this was a treat.
  You can mix it all up in your stand mixer, or by hand it is not difficult and there is no kneading required.




I usually would bake the bread batter in a round cake pan, but this time  I baked it off in a little rectangular pan. (About 6.5-inches x 10-inches)
I substituted about 80% of the all-purpose white flour with whole wheat flour.
It goes together quickly and is a fantastic recipe to have baking when your loved ones or guests arrive at your home. The aroma is so enticing!
Although we didn't know it then,  the batter is very similar to a foccacia dough  (which I didn't even know about years later.)
When it comes out of the oven the top is brushed with melted butter and sprinkled with a little coarse salt to heighten the flavor of the herbs.



You can use any herbs you like, fresh or dried. In addition to the herbs I usually always add some minced dehydrated onion to the batter.
A little butter melting on the baked, warm bread, and you just about have heaven on a plate!  




It makes a really good little luncheon dish, or light supper, and brings back a flood of memories of my early cooking days.

~*~*~*~*~

If you try either or both of these, I hope you'll love them!
If you would like a printable copy of the Herb Batter Bread, hop on over to my recipe blog ~ HERE.

Thank you for coming by today, I really appreciate your comments. 
See you next time~  ~Mari  :)

Lavender Week Wrap-Up with the Novel Bakers

For the final day of Lavender Week with the Novel Bakers

I'm going to take you from Breakfast/Tea, then skip to the

evening meal, and throw in a few options for dessert

at the end. 

I hope you enjoy!

I made quick, Strawberry-Blueberry and 

Lavender Infused refrigerator jam as an accompaniment

to the warm homemade biscuits

for our tea . . .

The jam is fresh, made with strawberries and blueberries

from the garden, I like that you can control the amount

of sweetener. We prefer ours not too sweet ~

and it cooks up in just a few minutes.

~*~*~*~*~



And for dinner, I just had to make this luscious

Grilled Chicken Breast with a lovely and different

Lavender-Honey Marinade, which my friend Monique 
recently posted on her blog.
(Click to Link.)

Oh my. 
Do yourself a favor. Make THIS!

It's a winner. I followed Monique's variation on

the original recipe exactly and I wouldn't change

a thing about it. It's heavenly.

The light sauce goes really well with the tiny potatoes,

as Monique served it. And because the garden is

prolific with cucumbers right now, I sliced a few and

anointed them with a drizzle of the vinaigrette style

sauce as well. Borage blossoms compliment cucumbers

very nicely, as they have a very mild cuke-like taste.

Yummy! A keeper that I'll definitely make again.

~*~*~*~*~

On to the dessert (or two...)

Fresh Strawberry Ice Cream, infused with Lavender

essence.

It is one of the EASIEST ice cream recipes I know of.

 Condensed milk, heavy cream (warmed with

a bit of lavender, then strained and chilled.)

Put that mix in your ice cream maker to begin the freezing process, 
then about 10 to 15 minutes before the ice cream is

solidified, add the chunks of fresh strawberries

along with a splash of vanilla, and continue with

the freezing process.

I like to offer a drizzle of Lavender Syrup at the table so

anyone who wants it can add a bit to bump up the

lavender flavor.

I happen to like it just as it is. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

If you don't want to serve the Lavender Palmiers (pictured above

with the ice cream), you might like to substitute these

lavender cookies:

Delicate, and gently flavored with lavender ~

I think it's best to make these when the lavender blossoms

are at their peak.

Fresh blossoms are milder, and texturally more appealing than

dried flowers in this recipe.

If you look closely, maybe you can see . . .

~ the tiny specks of green in the cookies ~ this recipe

includes a small amount of minced lavender leaves to

the cookie dough.

Not overwhelming at all, just a faint nuance of

lavender ~ I think these would be so pretty served

at a summer tea or bridal or baby shower.


~*~*~*~*~

I had much fun with the topic of lavender, it pushed

me to try recipes I probably would not have otherwise,

and we were pleasantly surprised at my house at what

a versatile herb lavender is.

Sending out a big THANK YOU to our organizer, Jain @ a quiet life blog,

and my companion Novel Bakers, Mary @ Home is Where the Boat Is.

Michael @ Rattlebridge Farm and our special guest this week ~

Pam @ Sidewalk Shoes, it was fun having you join in Pam!

And a big thank you to my followers, whether

you comment or not ~ I appreciate the time you take

to come see what's going on here on my blog.


xo ~mari

Lavender Week with the Novel Bakers ~ A Bonus Post . . .

Since we at the Novel Bakers are posting about Lavender this week, I thought I would share two older posts that I did some time ago using lavender.


The first is the Lavender Blossom Martini you can find the original post HERE.




~*~*~*~*~

And then one of my ALL-TIME favorite recipes  for homemade ice cream ~ Lavender-Blueberry, which the Novel Baker organizer ~ Jain @ a quiet life blog introduced us to a few years ago. 
Oh my, it's a fabulous recipe and I'm quite sure you'll love it too.
You can add less lavender if you're not sure you'll like it, or add more if you know you love it!  
Lavender-Blueberry Ice Cream





See you back here Wednesday with some all new (for me) Lavender Recipes with the Novel Bakers.



Happy Tuesday, friends!
xo~mari

Lavender Week with the Novel Bakers!

Welcome to Lavender Week with the Novel Bakers. This week we have a special guest joining us:
Pam from Sidewalk Shoes!

~*~*~*~*~

We'll be posting about Lavender on Monday, Wednesday and Friday of this week, I hope you'll enjoy what we have to share.

Here is one of the books that inspired us:

(click the image to learn more)

The first recipe I made was from the book~

"Grilled Lavender Honey Breast of Chicken"

Of course, as is my way, I had to tweak it a bit.

I didn't have boneless chicken breast halves with skin,

so I cubed the boneless chicken and marinated in the delicious citrus

and lavender honey glaze, 

then skewered the chicken chunks, ribbon-candy style with

prosciutto, and grilled the skewers. 

If you don't care for the look of charred skewers, of course you'll
plan ahead and soak them in water before loading the ingredients.  :)

We really enjoyed the flavor the marinade added;

 made with vinegar, lavender honey, fresh lemon zest and juice

along with fresh lime juice and finely ground culinary Provence

lavender buds, a little olive oil and salt and pepper.

I served it as an appetizer course and it quickly disappeared.

I would definitely make this one again, either this way or

as the original recipe suggests~ boneless chicken breasts

with skin-on as a main course.

It was declared a winner.
Thumbs up!

~*~*~*~*~

We're still harvesting our blueberries, so

in keeping with the Lavender theme, I served

the skewers with Blueberry-Lavender Spritzers ~

you can serve them as the recipe suggests spiked with vodka,

but I found they were equally delicious sans the vodka. The

choice is yours.

I think the combination of blueberries and lavender is absolutely

heavenly ~ whether in this luscious Lavender-Blueberry Ice Cream,
(from many, many posts ago), or in this delightful liquid concoction.

It is an easy one to make ahead. First you make the blueberry-lavender

simple syrup (can make it up to a week ahead and keep it in

the refrigerator.)

When you're ready to make the drinks, just put ice cubes in the glasses,

add some of the blueberry-lavender simple syrup, then 

pour the remaining ingredients over.

Garnish with a stem of lavender, a sprig of lemon verbena (or lemon balm)

and a slice of lime.

For an added treat, freeze some blueberries and float them in

the drinks.

Such a refreshing beverage on a hot day!

~*~*~*~*~

Not feeling in the blueberry mood? 

Then you might want to try this recipe from Elise

@ Simply Recipes (I love her blog!)

Lavender Lemonade

I first tasted this at a local restaurant about 10 years ago. It's been a favorite ever since.






Note:
I'll have all of the recipes I share during Lavender Week posted on my recipe blog on Friday. (I'll share the links on Friday.)
A few tips about lavender~ 
Thought to have first been cultivated in the Mediterranean regions, lavender is easy to grow, and grows in poor soil where other plants may fail.
Lavender's uses include: 
Landscaping, crafts, floral decor, culinary, personal care, including therapeutic applications.
Both the flowers and the foliage of lavender are intensely aromatic and the flowers range in color from blue, very dark purple, pink, white and yellow depending upon the variety.
English lavender and Provence lavender are the two types most usually used in cooking.
A little lavender goes a long way in recipes, so it's best to start with a light touch, adding more if you like a more pronounced flavor and aroma.

~*~*~*~*~
Please come along and see the treats the Novel Bakers have in store for you during Lavender Week!
Click on the links below:
Home is Where The Boat Is
Rattlebridge Farm
A Quiet Life
Sidewalk Shoes


Thank you for stopping by today, friends.
Please come back on Wednesday, we have lots more to share!