Family picnic

Our socially distant outdoor family dinner on Sunday included a mix of old favorites and new experiments.

Appetizers

A few years ago I saw a recipe for a Mexican style shrimp cocktail. I tweaked and made my own variation which I wrote down on a piece of paper. While I can visualize the paper, I could not locate it. I tried to recreate from memory. I think it’s pretty adaptable to what you have on hand. Everyone seemed to like it.

Mexican shrimp cocktail

• 1 lb jumbo shrimp, peeled, deveined, tossed with olive oil, salt and pepper and roasted at 400 for 8 – 10 minutes. Cut in half lengthwise.
• 1 bottle Clamato
• 2 avocados, chopped
• 2 minced chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
• 1 TB olive oil
• juice of 1 lime
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 minced shallot

Toss all ingredients together and refrigerate for 1 – 4 hours. Serve in small bowls or glasses with spoons.

Guacamole

• 4 ripe avocados
• 1 TB lime juice
• 1 TB sour cream
• 1/2 tsp salt
• dash of pepper
• 1 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 2 TB salsa
• 1 small chopped onion
• 1 chopped tomato
• cilantro (optional)

Mash avocados, add remaining ingredients and mash until well combined.  (This is the part of cooking where toddlers excel!).  Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.  This is one of the few recipes I make where I don’t skimp on salt.  Salt and the chili powder are the two “magic” ingredients that you should consider adding.  Let sit in a bowl with the avocado pits in the guacamole until ready to serve.  (That keeps it from turning brown.)

Entree

Keith wanted to try a new grilled chicken recipe and also offered up burgers. The chicken was amazing!

Slaw

• 1 cup chopped scallions (white and green)
• 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
• 4 tsp honey
• 2 jalapeno chiles, chopped
• 4 TB mayonnaise
• 1 cup canola oil
• 1 package slaw mix
• 1 package purple slaw mix
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 4 tsp poppy seeds

Combine first 6 ingredients in a blender. Toss with slaw mix and onion. Add in poppy seedss and refrigerate until ready to serve chicken.

Chicken

• 1 TB ancho chile powder
• 1 TB ground cumin
• 1 TB ground coriander
• 1 TB ground ginger
• 1 TB brown sugar
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp ground allspice
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground cloves
• 1 tsp ground fennel seeds
• 2 TB Koser salt
• 2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 TB chili powder
• 2 whole boneless, skin-on chicken breasts (if you don’t want to bone the chicken breasts, ask your butcher to do it for you)
• canola oil

Combine all spices. Brush chicken with canola oil and season with spice blend. (Save the rest for another time.) Cook on hot grill about 5 minutes skin-side down to sear. Cook on grill mat on reduced heat until done. (Our chicken breasts were big so it cooked for another 18 minutes.) Bring inside and pour sauce over breasts (see below). Let rest for 10 minutes.

Sauce

• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 3 TB Dijon mustard
• 2 tsp honey
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp ground pepper

Combine all ingredients in a blender. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Sides

Deviled eggs

• 4 eggs
• 1/2 tsp Worcestershire
• 1.4 tsp dry mustard (more if you want them spicier)
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 4 TB mayonnaise

Place eggs in a pot just big enough to hold them and add water to cover.  Bring to a rapid boil, turn off heat and cover for 17 minutes.  Remove from heat and add cold water and ice cubes to stop cooking.  Chill eggs in refrigerator.  Peel eggs and cut in half.  Put yolks in a bowl and mash with a fork.  Add Worcestershire sauce, mustard, paprika and mayonnaise.  Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking.  Fill egg whites with filling and top with additional paprika.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Potato Salad

There are lots of recipes for potato salad and I like most of them but once I discovered this one, it is my default.

• Red potatoes, 3 pounds
• scallions, 1 bunch thinly sliced
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• fresh dill, chopped
• freshly ground pepper

Boil potatoes until tender.  Let cool until you can handle and then chop potatoes.  Combine mayonnaise and lemon juice (adjust to your taste) and toss over potatoes.  Add sliced scallions and pepper.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Dessert

Congo Squares

• 2 3/4 cup flour
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2/3 cup butter
• 1 lb brown sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 package chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.  Sift together flour, baking powder and salt.  Melt butter over low heat.  Remove butter from heat and stir in brown sugar.  Beat eggs into butter, sugar mixture one at a time.  Stir in flour mixture and then chocolate chips.  Bake in a 9 x 13 pan for 25 – 30 minutes.   Let cool and cut into squares.

Party time!

My in-laws both turn 80 this year (my mother-in-law in July and my father-in-law in November.)  They wanted a joint birthday party so Keith and I catered the food and my sister-in-law and her husband took care of the bar.  I wanted the food to be nice and knew that some of the preparation would be done in their kitchen (although it is well-equipped, it is always harder to cook in someone else’s kitchen.)

This was my menu:

Passed hors’doevres 

• Crab salad in cucumber cups
• Tuna tartar in tasting spoons
• Bacon avocado cherry tomatoes

On the table

• Beef tenderloin with two sauces (mustard horseradish and basil parmesan mayonnaise)
• Gazpacho (served in parfait tasting glasses we got at Pier One years ago)
• Bruschetta with three toppings (shrimp, tomato and spinach)
• Asparagus wrapped in prosciutto
• Deviled eggs topped with caviar

For dessert we had cake from Graul’s (two cakes so they could each have their preferred) served with the amazing homemade ice cream from Victor’s Highland Creamery in Oxford where they live.  It’s always interesting to see what is popular with different crowds.  The crab salad and bacon avocado tomatoes were slightly more popular than the tuna.  Everyone loved the beef (it’s hard not to like tenderloin) and everybody always loves deviled eggs.  Somebody commented that they never make them because they are too labor intensive but I know that whenever I serve them people gobble them up.  (Often with the remark “I haven’t had deviled eggs in years.”)  The asparagus was also demolished.

Here are the recipes:

Crab salad in cucumber cups

• 2 seedless cucumbers sliced about 3/4 inch thick
• 1 pound of crabmeat (lump or jumbo)
• 3 – 4 TB mayonnaise
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1/4 tsp celery salt
• 1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Scoop the flesh out of the center of the cucumbers with a spoon making sure not to go all the way through the cucumber.  (This can be done ahead with cucumber cups stored in the fridge until party time)  Gently combine crabmeat with mayo, lemon juice, celery salt and Worcestershire.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.  Spoon a dollop of crab salad into the cucumber cups and serve.

Tuna Tartar

• 1 lb fresh tuna, chopped finely
• 4 TB olive oil
• zest and juice of 1 lime
• 1/2 tsp wasabi powder
• 1 1/2 tsp low sodium soy sauce
• 5 dashes Tabasco sauce
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper
• 2 scallions, minced
• 1 small jalapeno pepper with seeds removed, minced
• 1 1/2 avocados, chopped

Place tuna in a bowl.  Whisk together olive oil, lime zest, lime juice, wasabi, soy sauce, Tabasco, salt and pepper.  Pour over tuna.   Stir in  scallions, jalapeno and avocado.  Refrigerate for a few hours until ready to serve.

Bacon stuffed cherry tomatoes

• cherry tomatoes (I did about 50)
• 1 lb bacon, cooked to crisp
• 2 avocados
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 2 TB mayonnaise

With a sharp knife, cut a small slice off the bottom of the tomatoes so they will stand up flat.  (I made these for a family reunion in June and thought I could skip that step but it’s important – otherwise they roll around on the serving platter.)  Scoop out enough tomato from the top to make a little cup without cutting all the way through the tomato.

Crumble bacon in a bowl.  Add in chopped avocado and squeeze lemon juice over.  Stir in mayonnaise.  (Refrigerate until ready to serve.)  Scoop some of the bacon avocado mixture into each tomato and serve.  Labor intensive but delicious.

Beef Tenderloin 

We always used to cook tenderloin at high heat until we discovered this slow-roasted technique.  Meat is moist and tender.

• 1 beef tenderloin, trimmed and tied
• 3 TB olive oil
• 2 tsp kosher salt
• coarsely ground pepper.

Preheat oven to 275.  Brush filet with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Roast for 1 hour and 15 minutes.  Check temperature – when a thermometer registers 125, your meat is rare.  If you want medium rare, cook to 135.  Remove from oven and cover with aluminum foil.  Let rest for about 20 minutes and then carve and serve with sauce of your choice.  Every time we make the beef this way, people say it is the best they have ever had.

Mustard Horseradish sauce

• 1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
• 3 TB Dijon mustard
• 1 1/2 TB whole-grain mustard
• 1 TB horseradish
• 1/4 cup sour cream

Whisk together to combine.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Gazpacho

• 4 cups tomato juice
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1 red pepper, chopped
• 2 cucumbers, peeled, seeded and chooopped
• 2 scallions, chopped
• juice of 1 lime
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 2 TB white wine vinegar
• 1 tsp tarragon
• 1 tsp basil
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/4 parsley, chopped
• 3 TB olive oil
• 2 large tomatoes, cored and chopped
• salt and pepper to taste

Combine ingredients in a blender and process to your liking.  Refrigerate.  Serve.  This was easy to make ahead and bring ready to go.

Bruschetta Toasts

• 1 loaf of French bread (I used two since I made all three toppings)
• olive oil

Slice bread into 1/4 inch slices on diagonal to make longer slices.  Brush with olive oil.  Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes until crisp.  Cool before topping.  (Toasts can be made ahead and stored in baggies – just make sure they are cool before bagging.)

Tomato topping

• 2 large shallots, thinly sliced
• 1 TB olive oil
• 2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 3 oz ricotta salata or feta cheese, diced
• 2 TB chives, minced
• 2 tsp balsamic vinegar

Heat oil over low to medium heat in a small saucepan.  Cook shallots, stirring until soft.  Add tomatoes and cook for 2 minutes.  Toss tomato mixture with cheese, chives and balsamic vinegar.  Refrigerate until ready to use.  To serve, top toasts with 1 – 2 tsps of mixture (depending upon size of toasts.)

Spinach topping

• 2 bags baby spinach
• 6 garlic cloves, finely minced
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 2 TB olive oil
• 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese

Saute garlic in medium saucepan over medium heat for about 1 minute.  Add spinach in two batches and stir until wilted (about 5 minutes.)  Drain liquid and transfer to a bowl.  Stir in mozzarella cheese.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.  Spoon onto toasts.

Shrimp topping

• 1/2 lb cooked shrimp, roughly chopped
• 2 – 3 TB olive oil
• 1 TB lemon juice
• 2 chopped shallots
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 TB chopped parsley

Combine all ingredients and refrigerate until ready to assemble – up to overnight.  Spoon onto toasts.

Asparagus wrapped in prosciutto

• asparagus
• cream cheese (slightly softened)
• proscuitto (thinly sliced)

Blanch asparagus by dropping into boiling water for about two minutes and then running under cold water.  Refrigerate.

Cut prosciutto slices into smaller pieces.  Spread with cream cheese and roll asparagus spears in it.  This is a bit labor intensive but worth it.  I had them ready to go and then refrigerated with a damp paper towel over them.  I’ll also confess that I’m not good at managing the quantities.  I bought a bunch of asparagus and a pound of proscuitto.  We ran out of asparagus and the big platter of them was decimated.

Deviled eggs

• eggs
• Worcestershire
• dry mustard
• cayenne pepper
• paprika
• mayonnaise

Place eggs in a pot just big enough to hold them and add water to cover.  Bring to a rapid boil, turn off heat and cover for 17 minutes.  Remove from heat and add cold water and ice cubes to stop cooking.  Chill eggs in refrigerator.  Peel eggs and cut in half.  Put yolks in a bowl and mash with a fork.  Add Worcestershire sauce, mustard, paprika and mayonnaise.  For the party I cooked 60 eggs.  I have no idea what quantities I used of anything else – I just put in a bunch of everything, stirred it, tasted it and then added a little more.  Everyone loved them.  You can top with a small amount of caviar to make them look a bit more elegant.   Refrigerate until ready to serve.  (When you fill them and refrigerate you usually end up smashing them when you cover them.  I’ve discovered it is easier to put the whites in a baggie and the filling in a bowl and then fill them when I’m ready to go.

Sadly we were so busy that I never got a chance to take a picture!

Grilling sides

We don’t do burgers on the grill very often but thought it would fit the bill tonight.  We’ll be at the pool most of the afternoon so didn’t want to do anything too fussy.  Here are some favorite sides if you’re grilling:

Deviled eggs

• 4 eggs
• 1/2 tsp Worcestershire
• 1.4 tsp dry mustard (more if you want them spicier)
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 4 TB mayonnaise

Place eggs in a pot just big enough to hold them and add water to cover.  Bring to a rapid boil, turn off heat and cover for 17 minutes.  Remove from heat and add cold water and ice cubes to stop cooking.  Chill eggs in refrigerator.  Peel eggs and cut in half.  Put yolks in a bowl and mash with a fork.  Add Worcestershire sauce, mustard, paprika and mayonnaise.  Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking.  Fill egg whites with filling and top with additional paprika.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Potato Salad

There are lots of recipes for potato salad and I like most of them but once I discovered this one, it is my default.

• Red potatoes, 3 pounds
• scallions, 1 bunch thinly sliced
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• fresh dill, chopped
• freshly ground pepper

Boil potatoes until tender.  Let cool until you can handle and then chop potatoes.  Combine mayonnaise and lemon juice (adjust to your taste) and toss over potatoes.  Add sliced scallions and pepper.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Skillet corn

• 4 – 6 ears of corn, kernels cut from the cob
• 1/2 red onion, finely chopped
• 1 orange bell pepper, finely chopped
• 2 TB olive oil
• 2 TB butter
• minced fresh herbs of your choice (I used basil, parsley and chives from the garden)

Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Add onion and saute until soft, about 5 minutes.  Add pepper and cook an additional 2 minutes.  Add butter and corn and cook, stirring occasionally for 8 – 10 minutes.  Add salt, pepper and minced herbs.  Serve hot.

Sliced tomatoes with Green Goddess dressing

Green Goddess Dressing

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup parsley
• 1/4 cup chives
• 2 TB scallion greens
• 1 1/2 tsp anchovy paste (use this even if you think you don’t like anchovies)  🙂
• 1 tsp white wine vinegar
• 2 cloves garlic

Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth.  Serve on sliced tomatoes

Crab feast sides

Most Marylanders love a crab feast.  Picking crabs is a leisurely activity, you pick, you talk, you eat.  We have only had crabs once this summer and are looking forward to a fun evening with good friends and delicious crabs.  The one thing about picking crabs is that you don’t usually get full from the crabmeat.  (You usually get bored before you get full.)  You need some side dishes.  Corn is always popular.  So are deviled eggs and potato salad.  (And brownies for my friend Jack!)

Deviled eggs

• 4 eggs
• 1/2 tsp Worcestershire
• 1.4 tsp dry mustard (more if you want them spicier)
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 4 TB mayonnaise

Place eggs in a pot just big enough to hold them and add water to cover.  Bring to a rapid boil, reduce heat to just simmering and cover for 17 minutes.  Remove from heat and add cold water and ice cubes to stop cooking.  Chill eggs in refrigerator.  Peel eggs and cut in half.  Put yolks in a bowl and mash with a fork.  Add Worcestershire sauce, mustard, paprika and mayonnaise.  Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking.  Fill egg whites with filling and top with additional paprika.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Potato Salad

There are lots of recipes for potato salad and I like most of them but once I discovered this one, it is my default.

• Red potatoes, 3 pounds
• scallions, 1 bunch thinly sliced
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• freshly ground pepper

Boil potatoes until tender.  Let cool until you can handle and then chop potatoes.  Combine mayonnaise and lemon juice (adjust to your taste) and toss over potatoes.  Add sliced scallions and pepper.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Brownies

• 4 ounces Baker’s Unsweetened Baking Chocolate (NOTE: They recently changed their packaging – it used to be a box with 8 squares, 1 oz each.  Now it is a box with a four ounce breakable bar.)
• 2 sticks butter
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup flour
• 4 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350.  Melt chocolate, butter and sugar over low heat.  Remove from heat and let cool for 10 minutes.  Stir in flour, eggs and vanilla.  Transfer to a 10 x 14 inch baking pan lined with parchment paper and bake for 22 minutes.  (You can halve the recipe and cook in a smaller square baking pan.)  Remove from oven and let sit in pan for at least an hour before cutting.  You will never bother with a mix again.  I have discovered by accident that these are even better if you make them and freeze them.  When you thaw them they are even fudgier.  So I made a big batch yesterday and when they were completely cool, I wrapped up 3 separate packages of about 12 brownies each.  I’ll get one out this afternoon for tonight and it’s nice knowing that if we have a friend over for dinner, there is always a dessert in the freezer ready to go.

Lazy evenings

We have drifted into a lovely but lazy habit of going to the pool in the evenings after work.  It is so quiet and there aren’t many people around.  Samantha can usually find a kid to play with and I enjoy sitting and looking at a magazine.  The problem is the longer I sit there, the less interested I get in leaving.  As a result dinners have been simple.  Last night we had grilled Portabello mushrooms on whole wheat hamburger rolls with lettuce, tomato and red onion and deviled eggs on the side.  Tonight is crab cakes and zucchini fritters.

Deviled eggs

• 4 eggs
• 1/2 tsp Worcestershire
• 1.4 tsp dry mustard (more if you want them spicier)
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 4 TB mayonnaise

Place eggs in a pot just big enough to hold them and add water to cover.  Bring to a rapid boil, reduce heat to just simmering and cover for 17 minutes.  Remove from heat and add cold water and ice cubes to stop cooking.  Chill eggs in refrigerator.  Peel eggs and cut in half.  Put yolks in a bowl and mash with a fork.  Add Worcestershire sauce, mustard, paprika and mayonnaise.  Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking.  Fill egg whites with filling and top with additional paprika.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Crab cakes

• 1 lb lump or jumbo lump crabmeat
• 1 egg
• 1 TB Dijon mustard
• 4 TB mayonnaise
• 1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• dash paprika
• 1/3 cup panko or bread crumbs
• wondra flour
• 2 tsp butter
• 2 tsp olive oil

Whisk together egg, mustard, mayo, spices and panko.  Gently fold in crabmeat.  Sprinkle Wondra flour on a plate and form crab cakes with your hands – place on flour.  Sprinkle tops with flour and refrigerate until ready to cook.

Heat a heavy saute pan over medium heat.  Melt butter and olive oil and add crab cakes.  Cook 4 – 5 minutes per side until crisp and golden brown.

Zucchini fritters

• 2 zucchini grated with a coarse grater (from my very own garden!)
• zest from 1 lemon
• 1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
• 2 scallions thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup flour
• olive oil

Combine zucchini with garlic, scallions, Parmesan, eggs, lemon zest and flour.  Heat a heavy saute pan over medium heat and add olive oil.  Plop zucchini mixture into hot oil by tablespoons and cook 2 -3 minutes per side until crisp.  Remove to a plate covered in paper towels and serve hot.  Great with chipotle mayonnaise or green goddess dressing.

Tapas party

My husband is the captain of an Interclub tennis team and we usually host an end of season party for the team and spouses.  We have done this for a number of years and I’ve done varying things (last year I did the Chinese Chicken salad and sesame noodles, one year I did Fajitas, etc.)  This year they won the title for their league so I wanted it to be special.  In a moment of insanity, I decided to go with a tapas theme.  Tapas are fun because they are lots of little dishes.  Tapas is a lot of work because it is LOTS of little dishes.  I usually pride myself on planning things pretty well but I got a little carried away.  I’m not going to give you the full grocery list.  I am going to share the individual dishes with their ingredients and recipes in the event that you want to make some.  Trust me that if you want to make all of them you should plan on devoting an entire weekend to the effort.

Here is the menu with recipes following:

• Marcona almonds, olives, bread and Spanish cheese (the easy part because you buy these)
• scallops with Serrano ham
• mushroom and shrimp tartlets
• gazpacho (which gave me an excuse to get the cute single serving glasses I’ve been craving from Pier One)
• zucchini fritters with chipotle mayonnaise
• sauteed mushrooms
• cherry tomatoes stuffed with black olives anc apers
• patatas bravas
• steak with garlic and sherry
• Moroccan chicken kabobs
• deviled eggs
• oven baked vegetable tortilla

And a dessert platter with:

• brownies
• lemon iced gingersnap sandwiches
• orange poundcake
• iced sugar cookies (decorated to look like tennis balls)

Here are a couple of pictures:

Tapas party

Don’t you love the centerpiece – trophy and tennis balls

The dessert platter

So I made:

Mushroom and shrimp tarts

Make the filling ahead adn fill the they will get soggy if you let them sit.

• 1/4 lb chopped mushrooms
• 1 cloves minced garlic
• 1 TB butter
• 1/4 cup champagne
• 1/4 cup cream
• 5 cooked jumbo shrimp, peeled and chopped
• 2 oz. grated cheddar cheese
• croustades crispy shells

Saute mushrooms and garlic in butter over low heat for 15 minutes.  Add wine and bring to a boil.  Cook until almost dry.  Add cream and shrimp and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Remove from heat.  Fill shells with mixture and top with grated cheese.  Cook in oven at 375 for 2 – 3 minutes or until cheese is melted and serve.

Scallops with Serrano ham

• scallops (I bought 30)
• juice of 1 lemon
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 3 TB olive oil
• 1 TB minced parsley
• 1/3 lb Serrano ham sliced thin

Combine lemon, garlic, olive oil and parsley and marinate scallops for 20 minutes.  Drain and skewer each scallop on a small skewer (I used bamboo ones that I soaked in water first).  Then skewer a 1/2 slice of scrunched ham.  Broil for 4 – 5 minutes or until scallops are done.  If I had made 60 of them I don’t think there would have been any left.

Gazpacho

• 4 Cups Tomato Juice (If you want spicier soup, use V8)
• 1/2 cup finely minced yellow onion
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 red pepper, minced
• 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and minced
• 2 scallions minced
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• juice of 1 lime
• 2 TB sherry vinegar
• 1 tsp tarragon
• 1 tsp basil
• 1/4 tsp cumin
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, minced
• 3 TB olive oil
• 2 cups fresh tomatoes, diced
• salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients.  Puree some or all as desired.  Chill and serve.

Zucchini fritters

• 2 zucchini grated with a coarse grater
• zest from 1 lemon
• 1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
• 2 scallions thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup flour
• olive oil

Combine zucchini with garlic, scallions, Parmesan, eggs, lemon zest and flour.  Heat a heavy saute pan over medium heat and add olive oil.  Plop zucchini mixture into hot oil by tablespoons and cook 2 -3 minutes per side until crisp.  Remove to a plate covered in paper towels and serve hot.    (I made them ahead and reheated for about 10 minutes in a hot oven.)

Patatas Bravas

• Olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 14 oz canned chopped tomatoes
• 2 tsp white wine finegar
• 1 tsp crushed, dried chile pepper
• 2 tsp paprika
• 1 lb fingerling potatoes

Heat a saucepan over medium heat and add about 2 TB of olive oil.  Cook the onion until soft.  Add garlic and stir in.  Add wine and bring mixture to a boil.  Add tomatoes, vinegar, pepper and paprika and simmer uncovered for 10 – 15 minutes or until sauce thickens.

Remove sauce and transfer to a blender.  Blend until smooth and return to pan.  Keep warm.

Cut potatoes into chunks (unpeeled).  Heat oil in a large skillet and cook poatotes over medium high heat until golden brown.  Drain on paper towels and sprinkle with salt.  Put potatoes in a dish and spoon sauce over potatoes.  Use toothpicks to spear the potatoes.

These are spicy and delicious.  This would make a good vegetable dish with chicken.

Chicken Kabobs

• 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into cubes
• 3 TB olive oil
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp oregano

Whisk together all ingredients in a small bowl or measuring cup.  Pour over chicken and marinate 8 hours or overnight.  When ready to cook, drain and reserve marinade and thread chicken cubes on metal or wooden skewers (if using wooden skewers, soak them in water for 30 minutes first).  Grill or broil kabobs, turning regularly and brushing with reserved marinade (10 – 15 minutes or until chicken is done).  Serve hot.

Deviled eggs

Everyone loves these so plan on each person eating at least two.

• 1 dozen eggs
• 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp dry mustard
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise

Place eggs in a pot just big enough to hold them and add water to cover.  Bring to a rapid boil, reduce heat to just simmering and cover for 17 minutes.  Remove from heat and add cold water and ice cubes to stop cooking.  Chill eggs in refrigerator.  Peel eggs and cut in half.  Put yolks in a bowl and mash with a fork.  Add Worcestershire sauce, mustard, paprika and mayonnaise.  Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking.  Fill egg whites with filling and top with additional paprika.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Stuffed cherry tomatoes

• 2 – 3 pints cherry tomatoes, pulp cut out
• 10 – 12 pitted black olives
• 2 TB capers
• 1 package softened cream cheese

Combine olives and capers in a food processor (I used my little one) and mince.  Add cream cheese and combine.  Stuff tomatoes with filling and refrigerate until ready to serve.  These would also be good stuffed with crab salad or tuna salad.

Steak with garlic and sherry

• 1 pound sirloin cubes
• 4 – 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 TB olive oil
• 1/3 cup good sherry

Combine steak and garlic and toss well with your hands.  Refrigerate for at least one hour or up to overnight.  When ready to cook, heat a heavy skillet over medium heat.  Add oil and then steak.  Cook until desired doneness, then add sherry and cook 2-  3 minutes.  Serve with bread.

Oven baked veggie tortilla

• 4 scallions, minced
• 2 peppers (I used one red and one orange), diced
• 2 cloves garlic , minced
• 2 TB olive oil
• 1 potato, boiled, peeled and diced
• 5 eggs
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 6 oz shredded cheese (I used half Parmesan and half cheddar)

Preheat oven to 375.

Saute garlic, scallions and pepper in olive oil over medium heat until soft but not browned.  Cool and add potato.

Beat eggs and beat with sour cream.  Stir in cheese and vegetables.  Line a 7 x 10 baking dish with aluminum foil and brush with olive oil.  Fill with egg mixture and bake 30 – 40 minutes or until set.  Remove from container and peel off foil.  Cut into squares and serve at room temperature with toothpicks.

Family friendly party

Tonight we had a family from my daughter’s school over for dinner.  Their daughter is going into Kindergarten so we’re hoping Samantha will take Megan under her wing.  Apparently Megan’s favorite food is cheeseburgers.  I thought it would be fun to do sliders and for variety I made burger sliders and crab cake sliders.  To keep it casual, we had deviled eggs, the skillet corn (one of our new favorite things) and a new salad – Bloody Mary tomato salad.   The burger sliders are pretty straight forward – just small hamburgers.  I had American cheese for the kids, Gruyere and arugula for the grownups and I caramelized onions.  The crab cakes I made using my usual recipe – I just made 11 little ones from 1 pound of crabmeat.  I followed up with brownies and the lemon iced gingersnap cookie sandwiches.

Deviled eggs

Everyone loves these so plan on each person eating at least two.

• 1 dozen eggs
• 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp dry mustard
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise

Place eggs in a pot just big enough to hold them and add water to cover.  Bring to a rapid boil, reduce heat to just simmering and cover for 17 minutes.  Remove from heat and add cold water and ice cubes to stop cooking.  Chill eggs in refrigerator.  Peel eggs and cut in half.  Put yolks in a bowl and mash with a fork.  Add Worcestershire sauce, mustard, paprika and mayonnaise.  Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking.  Fill egg whites with filling and top with additional paprika.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Skillet Corn

• 4 – 6 ears of corn, kernels cut from the cob
• 1/2 red onion, finely chopped
• 1 orange bell pepper, finely chopped
• 2 TB olive oil
• 2 TB butter
• minced fresh herbs of your choice (I used basil, parsley and chives from the garden)

Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Add onion and saute until soft, about 5 minutes.  Add pepper and cook an additional 2 minutes.  Add butter and corn and cook, stirring occasionally for 8 – 10 minutes.  Add salt, pepper and minced herbs.  Serve hot.

Bloody Mary tomato salad

• good tomatoes (I bought a few heirlooms and some pretty ones from the produce stand)
• 1 TB horseradish
• 2 TB lemon juice
• 1 tsp celery seed
• 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/4 olive oil

Chop tomatoes.  Combine horseradish, lemon juice, celery seed, Worcestershire and pepper.  Gradually whisk in olive oil.  Toss with tomatoes.  I served this in a trifle bowl and it looked pretty in addition to being tasty.  A definite do-over!

It all looked so pretty but I got busy and forgot to take a picture!

4th of July Crabfeast

Our traditional 4th of July picnic with my in-laws is a crab feast.  We catch the crabs and steam them ourselves.  When you catch them, steam them and pick them you gain a new appreciation for why crabmeat is expensive.  We’ll supplement with corn on the cob, deviled eggs and potato salad.  This year I’m going to make two-berry buckle since it is red, white and blue.

Deviled eggs

Everyone loves these so plan on each person eating at least two.

• 1 dozen eggs
• 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp dry mustard
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise

Place eggs in a pot just big enough to hold them and add water to cover.  Bring to a rapid boil, reduce heat to just simmering and cover for 17 minutes.  Remove from heat and add cold water and ice cubes to stop cooking.  Chill eggs in refrigerator.  Peel eggs and cut in half.  Put yolks in a bowl and mash with a fork.  Add Worcestershire sauce, mustard, paprika and mayonnaise.  Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking.  Fill egg whites with filling and top with additional paprika.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Potato Salad

There are lots of recipes for potato salad and I like most of them but once I discovered this one, it is my default.

• Red potatoes, 3 pounds
• scallions, 1 bunch thinly sliced
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• freshly ground pepper

Boil potatoes until tender.  Let cool until you can handle and then chop potatoes.  Combine mayonnaise and lemon juice (adjust to your taste) and toss over potatoes.  Add sliced scallions and pepper.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Two berry buckle

• 1 1/2 sticks softened butter
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/3 tsp alt
• 1 pt blueberries (rinsed and checked for stems)
• 1 pt raspberries (rinsed and patted dry)

Crumb topping

• 1/2 stick cold butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp fresh grated nutmeg
• zest from 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 375.  Grease a 10 or 11 inch gratin dish.

Combine butter, sugar and vanilla in an electric mixer.  Add eggs one at  time and beat.  Add flour, baking powder and salt and mix until blended.  Fold in fruit carefully and put batter into greased gratin.

Using a pastry cutter or two knives, combine all ingredients until coarsely crumbled.  Spread evenly over batter.

Bake about 45 minutes until golden brown and set.  Cool on a wire rack and serve (ice cream optional!)  Doesn’t that look festive!

Red white and blue dessert for the 4th

Pot luck

Tonight we were invited to a cookout with friends in the neighborhood who have kids at our daughter’s school.  It was a beautiful evening and a fun get together with some people we knew and some we didn’t.  Lots of kids meant that Samantha had a wonderful time running around and playing.  I volunteered to bring deviled eggs and creme de menthe brownies (two of Samantha’s favorite things).  Here are the recipes:

Deviled eggs

When I said I would bring deviled eggs our hostess immediately said “I love deviled eggs.”  Almost everyone loves deviled eggs and we are very happy that while shopping over the weekend we found the perfect carrier for transporting deviled eggs at Sur la Table.

• 1 dozen eggs
• 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp dry mustard
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise

Place eggs in a pot just big enough to hold them and add water to cover.  Bring to a rapid boil, reduce heat to just simmering and cover for 17 minutes.  Remove from heat and add cold water and ice cubes to stop cooking.  Chill eggs in refrigerator.  Peel eggs and cut in half.  Put yolks in a bowl and mash with a fork.  Add Worcestershire sauce, mustard, paprika and mayonnaise.  Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking.  Fill egg whites with filling and top with additional paprika.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Creme de Menthe Brownies

These are pretty easy to make – you just have to allow time for each layer to set.  They do not do well sitting outside in super hot weather.

Base layer:

• 1 stick softened butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup Hershey’s chocolate syrup
• 4 lightly beaten eggsw
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350.  Combine all ingredients in a mixture and mix until well mixed.  Pour into 9 x 13 greased pan and bake for 25 – 30 minutes.  Let cool.

Green icing:

• 1 stick softened butter
• 2 cups confectioner’s sugar
• 3 – 4 TB Creme de Menthe

Beat together and spread over brownies.  Let set.

Chocolate topping:

• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 3/4 stick butter

Melt chocolate chips and butter.  Cool slightly and spread over green icing layer.  Let set.  Cut into small pieces.

Friday night entertaining

Friday night is not the best night for company when you work full time but our friends had family in from out of town and last night was the only time we could get together.  We had a cookout – chicken and burgers on the grill.  I used some “crabbies” from the freezer for pre-dinner snacks and made dessert Thursday night (a repeat of the extremely popular ginger snap sandwich cookies).  The guacamole salad only took a few minutes to assemble and the deviled eggs are a snap.  I invented a new variation on my potato salad which I was very pleased with – apparently everyone else was too because it was all eaten!  Here is the full menu with recipes:

Crabbies

• 12 English muffins, split
• 1 lb lump crabmeat
• 2 sticks butter
• 8 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
• 4 TB mayonnaise
• 1 tsp garlic powder

Melt butter.  Add cheese, mayonnaise and garlic powder.  Gently fold in crabmeat.  Spread muffin halves with crab/cheese mixture.  Freeze in freezer bags until ready to use.

To serve, preheat oven to 375.  Bake on cookie sheets for 10 minutes.  Using a pizza cutter, cut each muffin half in 6 pieces.  Serve hot.  (For those who like a lot of spice, top with red pepper flakes.)

Deviled eggs

Classic picnic food – not the easiest to transport but worth the trouble.

• 1 dozen eggs
• 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp dry mustard
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise

Place eggs in a pot just big enough to hold them and add water to cover.  Bring to a rapid boil, reduce heat to just simmering and cover for 17 minutes.  Remove from heat and add cold water and ice cubes to stop cooking.  Chill eggs in refrigerator.  Peel eggs and cut in half.  Put yolks in a bowl and mash with a fork.  Add Worcestershire sauce, mustard, paprika and mayonnaise.  Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking.  Fill egg whites with filling and top with additional paprika.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Grilled Chicken Sandwiches

• boneless, skinless chicken breasts (Perdue Perfect Portions work really well!)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 – 2 TB chopped fresh herbs of your choice (I used a mix from my garden – parsley, sage, thyme, marjoram and rosemary)

Wash and dry chicken breasts.  Put in a glass dish with all ingredients.  Mix well and marinate up to overnight.  Drain off marinade and grill until done.  Serve on hamburger buns with toppings – lettuce, tomato, red onion, etc.  NOTE: Chipotle mayonnaise is great on these!

Guacamole salad

• 1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 yellow pepper, seeded and diced
• 1 15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/4 cup chopped red onion
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
• zest of 2 limes
• juice of 2 limes
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 avocados, diced

Combine tomatoes, yellow pepper, black beans, red onion, jalapeno and lime zest in a bowl.  Whisk together lime juice, olive oil, garlic and cayenne pepper in a separate container and pour over veggies.  Mix well.  When ready to serve, add avocados and stir to combine.

Lemon chive potato salad

I usually make my potato salad with dill, scallions and mayonnaise mixed with lemon juice.  I wanted something a little bit different and was thinking about the delicious flavor of the grilled lemon chive potatoes that we often serve.  I decided to make a lemon chive potato salad.  Here is what I did:

• 20 oz small red potatoes
• 2 TB minced chives
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• fresh ground pepper

Cook potatoes in boiling water until tender.  When done, drain and put in a glass bowl.  Chop in the bowl using two knives.  Top with fresh ground pepper and chives.  Pour lemon juice on potatoes (it’s important to do this while they are still hot.)  Toss well.  Add mayonnaise and stir.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Ginger snap sandwich cookies

• Ginger snap cookies – I used Anna’s ginger thins
• 1 stick butter softened
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cup confectioner’s sugar
• 1 lemon, zest and juice
• 4 TB cocoa powder
• 1 tsp milk

Combine butter, vanilla and confectioner’s sugar together with a mixer.  Split in half.  For chocolate add 4 TB of unsweetened cocoa powder and 1 tsp milk.  Beat until spreadable.  For lemon add juice and zest of 1 lemon and beat until spreadable.  Spread on ginger cookies and sandwich together.  Freeze until ready to serve.