Sweet Potato Wedges ~ Oven Roasted

Sweet potatoes have been finding their way into my grocery cart more frequently lately. I like to prepare them in a number of ways.

Baked whole, grated and prepared into Latke, pureed with a splash of cream and a knob of butter...

Or this way ~ cut into wedges, tossed in a bit of olive oil, seasoned with coarse salt & freshly ground pepper, or (spicy Cajun seasoning). I bake them in the oven set to convection roast, at 425-degrees (F)for 10 to 15 minutes; depending upon the thickness of the wedges. I like to roast them until just tender and beginning to take on a little color.

Delicious with a squirt of fresh lime juice, a sprinkle of cayenne pepper or ~ my favorite; Piment d'Espelette.

They make a nice little appetizer, too!

Pasta Verdure Fresche with Chicken Scallopini

Sometimes in the midst of Winter I crave something that reminds me that Spring isn't so very far off. This dish is a nice change from the heavy, brown food of the colder months.



Since the Spring (Primavera) vegetables aren't available here right now, I switch them out for vegetables that are in the market at this time of year; packaged fresh baby spinach, and sweet red peppers with a fresh basil chiffonade finish.

Of course most any vegetables can be substituted; whatever is freshest in the market.



To make the meal a bit more substantial I saute some pounded & seasoned boneless, skinless chicken breast in the style of scallopini and add it to the finished pasta.

I loosely follow the proportions and directions in this recipe from "Gourmet" magazine:

Pasta "Primavera" Recipe


I'm very fond of pan roasting small tomatoes on the vine, stovetop, in a hot pan with a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper until the skins barely burst. It makes the tomatoes very sweet and juicy.



They go very nicely with most any simply prepared fish, chicken or chop dinner.

Coffee Crème Brûlée

I adore plain, creamy vanilla Crème Brûlée, but this version which includes an infusion of espresso beans as well as a kick of Kahlua in the custard, offers an intriguing twist on the old classic.

Originally from the Princeville Resort's La Cascata restaurant on Kauai's north shore, I found the recipe on epicurious.com.

The link to the recipe is below, it makes 8 servings but the recipe can easily be halved.

Recipe for Coffee Crème Brûlée

I whisk in 1 Tablespoon up to a quarter of a cup (4 tablepoons) of Kahlua Liqueur (or any similar coffee flavored liqueur) to the custard mixture prior to pouring into the ramekins before baking. :)

I serve it year round, but since it's served chilled it is particularly welcome on a warm summer evening, offering the flavor of coffee without the heat. Very nice with a little dollop of whipped cream on top, too.

Creamy and rich with the essence of coffee it provides a chic finish for a simple Bistro-style dinner.

If you don't want to fuss with steeping the crushed espresso beans, you may want to try Bob Blumer, The Surreal Gourmet's, more simple version using instant coffee (or espresso) powder instead.

The Surreal Gourmet's Coffee Crème Brûlée

It's very good too.

Big Spectacular Dutch Babies

Resembling oversized popovers, Big Dutch Babies

are a fine alternative to waffles or pancakes, yet they require less effort.

The batter is simply milk, eggs and flour, and a pinch of salt if you like, mixed up in the blender then the batter is poured into melted butter in a hot pan, then baked in a hot oven until it puffs up, light, airy and crispy. Served with a fruit plate and perhaps some sausage, ham or bacon, it's one of my favorite weekend breakfasts.

The recipe has been around for years and years, although I didn't make them myself until I saw a recipe in the late 70's in Sunset Magazine. It's a tried & true ~ I make it as a weekend treat at least once a month.

Here is a link to the recipe which includes proportions according to the size of pan you choose to bake the Dutch Baby.

Recipe for Big Dutch Babies

Any open, shallow pan can be used for baking. A paella pan, roasting pan or skillet all work very well. I prefer my big old Lodge Cast Iron Skillet.

As noted in the recipe, you can adjust the amount of ingredients to suit the size of baking pan you are using for the number of guests being served.

It's best served as you would a souffle, for the most dramatic effect, it's best to have everyone seated at the table when you remove the Dutch Baby from the oven, as it soon deflates. It still tastes delicious though.

There are a number of versions of the recipe, a popular one is made with slices of cinnamon apples. I usually just make the plain one and serve with a choice of toppings. My favorite is confectioner's sugar and lemon slices, but I always offer maple syrup, fruit syrups, and jam or preserves for variety. Some people like to warm up canned fruit pie filling as a topping.

It's so simple, yet delicious, and always popular with guests.

Barbecue Pulled Pork ~ Emeril's Version

It's great to be back ~ Thank you for your kind wishes!

I'll miss our son as he heads home tomorrow morning, always a bittersweet time. :(

The visits always seem too far apart, and too short ~ as the time seems to disappear so quickly with laughter and love all around. We've made plans for the next visit in spring though, so that makes me happy.

Although I have been doing quite a bit of cooking, I haven't had much time to take food photos, just a few to share ~ starting with this recipe.

Everyone loved this meal, the meat was tender, moist, and succulent ~ everything I look for in good pulled pork.

It was the first time I made this particular recipe ~

Emeril Lagasse's Pulled Pork Sandwiches

I would definitely make it again.

First a dry rub is applied and the pork shoulder is allowed to marinate for several hours or overnight in the refrigerator. The pork can be smoked or slow roasted (225 degrees) in the oven, for about 7 hours, and basted with a vinegar-based wet mop every 45 minutes.

The only change I made is I eliminated the Essence of Emeril seasoning, and I reduced the amount of cayenne and red pepper flakes in both the rub and the barbecue sauce.

I chose to roast it in the oven ~ the aroma is divine while it slow roasts nearly all day long.

It was so juicy, flavorful and fall-apart tender at the end of cooking time.

Coleslaw makes a perfect accompaniment; I made it the way we've done in our family for a couple of generations; mayonnaise & apple cider vinegar based with no sugar.

I always like to include some old tried & true family recipes when loved ones come to visit ~ the old recipes evoke such fond memories.

I also served some quick, fresh homemade refrigerator pickles, an easy recipe which I'll be happy to share in an upcoming blog entry.

I made a batch of my favorite homemade sandwich buns to serve with the pork~

I've been making this recipe for many years and blogged about it some time ago ~ you can read about them by clicking the links, below.

Moomie's Legendary Sandwich Buns , and here (formed smaller and served with Nasturtium butter.)

This is my "go to" recipe for buns; easy to make and you can form them in any shape or size you want. They are fabulous as hamburger or hot dog/sausage buns, too. This time I made 8 regular hamburger-size buns from the dough, which worked out perfectly. I always reduce the amount of sugar in the recipe to a scant tablespoon because I don't care for sweet sandwich buns.

I served the Barbecue sauce on the side, in a squeeze bottle as Emeril recommended, that way each person is able to add as much or a little as they like. (The meat is so flavorful I could easily eat it with no BBQ sauce at all.)

Incidentally, the barbecue sauce is very good, not very sweet, not cloying as some tend to be, and so simple to put together; no heating at all. Nice consistency, too ~

The ingredients are simply mixed together and allowed to meld and marry in the refrigerator. I made it while I was putting the rub ingredients together and allowed it to sit overnight in the fridge while the pork was marinating in the rub.

The meat reheats beautifully the next day if there happens to be any left. :)

Postcard ~ From the SPRING Garden

Memories of Spring on this grey Pacific Northwest day.

Family is visiting! We're having a great time.

I'm sorry to be missing these past few days; I'm still cooking and taking photos, so I'll be back soon with more recipes.

Hope you all have a fantastic weekend.

Thank you for stopping by!

Updated Spinach ~ Artichoke Dip

Fair warning! This one is going to spoil you for any other Spinach-Artichoke Dip.

When Cory featured a revised version of Hot Spinach-Artichoke Dip on his excellent blog "Culinary Cory", I was compelled to try it.

Cory explains that he saw a similar idea on Stacey's blog "Stacey Snacks".

Please go check them both out, there are always tempting recipes to try on each of their blogs, and their photography is exceptional.

This is a punched up, slimmed-down version of the dip and it is delicious! Less mayonnaise and no cream cheese allows for the flavor of the vegetables and good cheese to dominate.

Another notable difference is the Panko-Butter crumb topping. (I added a little freshly grated Parmesan cheese to the mix after melting the butter and tossing the crumbs.)

I really liked the idea of using canned artichokes, I used a can of artchoke crowns (as that's what I had on hand), and coarsely chopped them for good, chunky texture.

Instead of frozen spinach I used fresh baby spinach, as Cory did ~ I liked the milder flavor and non-fiberous texture that fresh spinach lends to the dish.

The only other change I made to Stacey and Cory's versions is that I added a generous squeeze of fresh lemon juice, and a little finely grated lemon zest to the blend.

I served it with my homemade Rosemary Bread (the recipe can be found here on my blog. I used the same recipe, except I used chopped fresh rosemary and formed the dough into two baguettes this time. Then sliced and toasted it.

This is a delicious hot appetizer. I made it for my houst guests this week; it was polished it off in no time. Everyone loved it.

A huge thank you to both Cory and Stacey. This one goes into the 'keeper' file. :)