Summer Sangria

It is getting hot out... really hot.  So when I remembered today we had one of the most refreshing herbs growing rampant right behind our house, I got really excited... for strawberry mint sangria!  Of course while experimenting, one thing led to another and plenty of other fruits went in there, but this was definitely a hit with the fam.  It's wildly refreshing on a hot day, and I didn't add much sugar.

I made a non-alcoholic version for my brother which was surprisingly not that bad, but let's be honest -- the wine & brandy version was hands down the better choice.  We decided I'd recreate it for my brother's graduation party (for 21+ , of course), so family can enjoy it then :-).

My uncle came up from Maryland today, so I got fancy and made some snacks to go with it.  We had some leftover rosemary & sea salt bread, so I used some of our Tuscan herb olive oil (I would definitely recommend buying a small bottle of a specialty olive oil -- it packs amazing flavor and I mix it with regular olive oil so it stays subtle and the bottle lasts longer) and mixed it with one finely chopped garlic clove, torn basil leaves, chopped olives, salt and pepper.  The delicious heirloom tomato was fresh from the farmer's market -- I try to buy local when possible.  Some roasted pecans along with pepper jack cheese and crackers gave us plenty to munch on while we drank the sangria.

I used only 3/4 bottle of wine because we weren't going to drink much and there are other liquids that I added to it.  I eyeballed things here and there, but I tried to measure things out so you can recreate it :-).

Enough stalling -- here is my recipe for this fantastic sangria.  And for the first time, I wouldn't change a thing.

Ingredients

3/4 bottle good white wine (we used a Sauvignon Blanc)
big handful mint leaves, leave some stems (mint grows like weeds, definitely plant some!)
2 handfuls blueberries
about 1 cup sliced strawberries
2 slices lemon (remember to remove the seeds)
Pelligrino water (or any other carbonated water)
1/4 cup white grape juice (with no sugar added)
1 1/2 tbsp sugar
shot of brandy
1/2 cup sweet lemonade
1/3 cup ginger ale

How I did it

Put the fruit (except the lemon slices) and mint in a pitcher, add sugar.  Pour in the wine, stir, and leave in fridge for 1 hour (2 if possible).  Add a splash or two of pelligrino, add in brandy, white grape juice, sweet lemonade, lemon slices and ginger ale.  Stir well.  Keep in fridge for another hour if you can, if not, add to big wine glasses with ice cubes, fruit and mint -- and enjoy with good company :-)

Light balsamic cream pasta with wild mushrooms and asparagus

The dinner I made tonight was inspired by something I ate at Teresa Caffe in Princeton -- one of my favorite restaurants.  It didn't taste like the dish I ate there (which was delicious and very fatty), but it was good, and I reduced the fat content wherever I could for this type of sauce.  I used some guidance from Rachel Ray's site (one of my faves!), since I've never made anything like this before.   As a starter, my mom made a fabulous salad with craisins, toasted pecans, and ginger vinagrette -- yummy!!

Note: if you are looking to make this, please read the notes and the ones under the ingredients, you will want to make some adjustments.  This was an experiment that did not come out that great, but I learned a lot!

Ingredients

~1 lb. penne pasta

1 generous tbsp. butter

olive oil
Salt, pepper
3 tbsp. grated parmesan

1 tbsp. flour

1/4 lb. shitake mushrooms, sliced thin (very overpowering, I'd recommend leaving them out and increasing others)

4/6 lb. white mushrooms, sliced

1 package of baby portabello/crimini mushrooms, sliced
a bundle of asparagus, chopped bite-size (remember to wash them thoroughly - esp the heads!)

2 cloves garlic, chopped/minced

2 shallots, chopped

1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves (if you only have dry, you only really need 1/8 tsp.)
handful chopped parsley

1/2 cup vegetable stock*

1/4 cup good white wine**

4 tbsp. half-and-half (instead of heavy cream)

2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar (try to use something aged, it would add a nicer, sweeter flavor)

*this was experimental since my mom doesn't eat chicken -- you can use chicken stock and/or increase the amount by 1/4 cup since the pasta could use more sauce.  
**the white wine flavor seemed compete with the shitake mushrooms and overpowered the flavor we were looking for with the balsamic vinegar, so you may want to leave it out, increasing the amount of stock instead.

How I did it

Cook the pasta in salted water.  Drain, rinse with cold water and set aside.

In a large pan, heat the oil and melt the butter together.  Add the mushrooms and saute them for 4-5 minutes on medium heat, stirring often.  Add a little splash of white wine to deglaze the pan.  Add a teaspoon of salt and pinch of pepper.  Add the chopped asparagus, cook for 1 minute.  Then garlic, shallots and thyme, cook for 2 minutes (until shallots are transparent).  Sprinkle the flour into the pan, cook for 2 minutes. 

Stir in the balsamic vinegar, stock, (wine**) and half-and-half.  Turn the heat to medium-high and let it simmer for about 2-3 minutes until thickened.  Turn the heat off, immediately add most of the parsley and two tbsp. of the grated parmesan and stir.  Pour onto the pasta in a serving dish and sprinkle the remainder of the parsley and parmesan on top.  Season with additional salt and pepper as needed.  Eat while hot, and drink with some good white wine and even greater company :-)

Tilapia with Lemon and Herbs in a White Wine Reduction

My mom needed something to go with the delicious couscous she made last week with zucchini, yellow squash, walnuts and craisins -- so I decided to get creative! Here's what I made for dinner last night-- a "scrumptious" (as she described it) Tilapia with lemon and a variety of Italian herbs, with some simple sauteed asparagus my mom made on the side (it was on sale at the store and I love it).  Both my mom and brother loved the fish -- It's probably the best fish dish I've ever made.  It was refreshing, delicious, and I didn't need to do any extra shopping -- I used ingredients that were already at home! 

Shout out to my cousin Salony (nickname - Kanu)... the wine I used in this recipe was a 2008 chenin blanc by a South African winery called Kanu!

Ingredients

1 piece of Tilapia (i'm working on the lingo) -- and yes, I just made once piece.  It was more of a side dish for us since we just wanted a couple pieces each for a little protein.  

flour

1/2 cup dry white wine (pick something you'd drink)
1 tbsp. olive oil (I used Extra Light)

1/4 cup finely chopped onion

2 small cloves of finely chopped garlic (or 1 big clove)

salt, pepper

Zest of a lemon  (really get it all out, even take off yellow pieces of the rind with your knife if you can-- the flavor it adds is lovely)

1 tsp. fresh thyme (if you only have dry, you only really need 1/8 tsp.)

1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning (i.e. McCormick's)

1/4 tsp. red chili pepper flakes

1 tbsp. butter

juice of a lemon

1 tbsp. fresh parsley

How I did it

Pour just shy of a tbsp. of olive oil into a small sautee pan on low heat.  Once it heats up after about a minute, stir in the lemon zest, keeping the fire low so the zest doesn't burn.  After letting the zest's flavor release into the oil (you should be able to smell it), add the garlic and let it cook for about a minute.  After adding a pinch of salt and pepper, add the onion, cooking until its just transparent.  Stir in the wine, let simmer at low-medium heat for 10 minutes.

Now, stir in the thyme.  Let it simmer for 15 minutes.  Then add the Italian seasoning and red chili pepper flakes.  [NOTE: I did this at intervals to layer the flavor.  If you don't really have time, feel free to toss it all in at once.]  Let it simmer, stirring occasionally, for 30-35 minutes, which should reduce most of the liquid down.  (If you want there to be more liquid, reduce this time.)

When there are few minutes left, rinse the fish, then pat it dry.  Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper.  Let it rest for 5 minutes.  Then, coat both sides with flour, shaking off excess.  Place aside.

To the sauce pan, add the butter, juice of the lemon and the parsley.  It should take about 5 minutes to get those flavors in, and will turn a little brown.  Let the sauce rest.

To cook the fish, all I did was take two or so spoons of the liquid from the reduction and added it to a non-stick pan.  I sauteed each side for 3-4 minutes on Medium-high heat.  It is delicate, so please flip carefully!!

Spread the onion, garlic, herbs and liquid onto the top of the fish.  We don't like a lot of liquid on our fish, so I chose to reduce it till most of the liquid was gone -- but there was so much flavor packed in what was left, it was the right amount for us!

The final product:

"You were definitely Italian in your last life..."

My love for Italian food can be traced as far back to the age of 5. We were driving in Manhattan when I suddenly declared an impassioned desire for noodles. My dad, who passed away two years ago last month, apparently had no problem changing direction to find me some pasta. Now that's love :-)

Yesterday evening, my mom and I went out to local Italian restaurant Carlucci's. We cracked open a bottle of wine -- an Excelsior Cabernet 2008 from South Africa (I definitely recommend this) -- and enjoyed a delicious meal. I ordered a dish with chicken, lump crabmeat, and pasta in a fabulous champagne cream sauce. If I wasn't so full from the heavy meal (and I guess if we weren't in public), I would have licked the plate clean. My mom also ordered a great dish with sauteed salmon, shrimp, and pappardelle noodles in a white vodka sauce. Deliziosa!

This meal provided a lot of inspiration for me.  I definitely need to learn to cook with crabmeat -- it's really a shame (I can't believe that I'm admitting this) that I never tried Maryland crab while I was down there for four years. I'll have to make up for it now!

chicken w/ crabmeat, asparagus, and angel hair in a champagne cream sauce @ Carlucci's

Afterwards, I took my mom over to the Grover's Mill Coffee House just down the block, where they had a fun local band playing.  I can't believe it was my first time in there.  The place was so welcoming -- there were cute little signs everywhere (there was one that said "will trade gossip for coffee") and the coffee was delicious -- they roast their own coffee in the store!  In the back, they had all these old pictures and comics from back in the day, when people believed martians had landed in the sleepy little town of Grover's Mill, NJ.  It was dismissed as a hoax, but the coffee house made their own story involving a coffee-loving martian, who is now their official mascot.  Silly, but very cute!

@ Grover's Mill Coffee House

Local band @ Grover's Mill Coffee House

Home, sweet and savory

After I realized that while being unemployed and stuck at home, the only thing that got me up and running every day was the idea of cooking (and/or eating) something delicious, I decided to start this blog.   At least twice a week, I'll post dishes that I have made and/or food I ate and absolutely loved.

Here are some of the dishes I made in the past couple unemployed months with my Sous Chef (aka Mom):

baked macaroni and cheese with gruyere and cheddar,
topped with italian breadcrumbs and parsley

oven 'grilled' vegetables with garlic

pasta with cherry tomatoes, mushrooms, 
parmesan, and parsley

vegetable stir fry with ginger, garlic and hoisin sauce

cold lemon ooey chewy bars w/ pecans

dulce de leche ice cream with sweet toasted tortilla 
and mexican caramel