basil vinaigrette.

Despite the fact that we are undergoing a major home renovation that is making my life incredibly stressful, I can't stop myself from cooking.  Or, as has been the case in the last couple of weeks, "assembling" food so it resembles a meal and can be labeled "Dinner".  I've gotten really good at throwing odd bits of things plus whatever is fresh at the farmers market (Tomatoes!  Corn!) onto a plate and describing it as a composed salad.  So far no one is complaining.   

The key to this whole thrown it together meal thing is adding something special to the dish. Sometimes it's fancy cheese (I'm looking at you burrata) but lately its been this basil vinaigrette.  It's the easiest thing in the world and it is so good.  Seriously, we've been putting it on anything and everything including but not limited to - heirloom tomato and feta salads, tri-tip steak, roasted red peppers, roasted eggplant, and that's just the tip of the iceberg.  It just always works and I'm thankful for that.   

Basil Vinaigrette 
Recipe from David Lebovitz 

1/2 cup (125ml) extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons red or white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon water
1 small shallot (25g) peeled and sliced or 2 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3/4 teaspoon kosher or flaky sea salt
2 cups loosely packed (25g) fresh basil leaves

Put the olive oil, vinegar, water, shallot, mustard, and salt in a blender. Coarsely chop the basil leaves and immediately put them in the blender.

Cover the blender and mix on high-speed for 15 to 30 seconds until the vinaigrette is smooth. If the sauce is too thick for your liking, add a little more water or olive oil to thin it out.

Serving and storage: The basil vinaigrette can be used right away or will keep for a week in the refrigerator. It’s best served at room temperature.

bourbon chile sweet and smoky bbq chicken.

BBQ chicken is quintessential summer eating that I have the tendency to avoid.  It's not that I don't love BBQ chicken slathered in a tomato based sauce, it's just that most BBQ sauce is awful.

So awful.

Sauce where the only flavor is sugar (I'll save my sugar for dessert thank you very much).  Most are one dimensional and lack the complexity that I would expect from something that could be loaded with any number of exciting flavors.

Like this sauce which is chock-full of pretty much everything I find delicious in this world - namely bourbon, peaches, and chile.  The chicken gets marinated in part of sauce overnight which helps to tenderize and inject it with flavor.  The next day you cook it and baste it with more sauce.  The resulting chicken is tender, flavorful, and incredibly addicting.  It's BBQ chicken you will actually want to eat.   

Bourbon Chile Sweet and Smoky BBQ Chicken
Recipe from Tasting Table

For the BBQ Sauce

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ small yellow onion, minced
1- 2 red Thai chile—stemmed, seeded and minced
⅔ cup ketchup
¼ cup dark brown sugar
¼ cup bourbon
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons peach preserves
1 tablespoon honey
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For the Chicken

One 3-to-4-pound chicken, broken down into 8 pieces
1½ cups bourbon-chile barbecue sauce, divided (it will use all the BBQ sauce you make)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Make the BBQ Sauce: In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, onion and chile, and cook until lightly golden, 8 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring often, until thickened, 15 minutes. Allow to cool completely before using to marinate or baste.  Makes about 1 1/2 cups

Marinate the Chicken:  In a plastic bag, combine the chicken and ¾ cup of the barbecue sauce. Seal the bag closed and massage the barbecue sauce onto the chicken. Refrigerate overnight.

Cook the Chicken: The next day, light a grill. Remove the chicken and scrape off any barbecue sauce on the skin. Rub the chicken with the vegetable oil and season with salt and pepper.

Place the chicken on the grill, skin-side down, and cook, flipping once, until charred, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Brush with the remaining barbecue sauce, then transfer to a cooler spot on the grill. Cook, covered, until the chicken has reached an internal temperature of 160º and the barbecue sauce has caramelized, 10 minutes more. Transfer to a platter and let rest 5 minutes, then serve.

Alternatively, if you are not blessed with a grill, this can be made in the oven via the Smitten Kitchen method.   Simply place pieces of chicken on two very large pieces of foil, large enough to fold over chicken and form packets.  Turn the chicken pieces so their meatier sides are down, and tightly fold the foil around them to make two large packets.

Place two cooling racks (which will act as baking racks) on two baking sheets (one on each). Place a chicken packet on each and place one sheet on an upper oven rack and one on a lower. Bake chicken for 1 hour, then rotate baking sheets. Bake for another 30 to 60 minutes, until the internal temperature of the thickest part of each chicken reads 155 degrees.  Finish the chicken by heating the broiler. Carefully open each packet of chicken and discard accumulated juices. Arrange chicken pieces on open foil packets, coat with additional BBQ sauce, and run each tray under the broiler until lightly crisped at edges and cooked through. Place on serving platter.

roasted tomatillo salsa.

People with garden's enjoy giving Tyler and I whatever overflow they have (clearly they are aware there is a cook in our home).  So far we've been lucky to receive zucchini, green beans, basil, rhubarb, and most recently habaneros.  Tyler came home with the three habaneros in a zip-lock bag and a warning that they were hot.

Of course I decided there was no way they were going to be as hot as the recipient stated.  Which is why all three went into the tomatillo salsa I made yesterday.   

The resulting salsa was a slow burn kind of salsa.  Not a bad thing but maybe not for everyone (which is why I suggest one or 2 habeneros in the recipe below unless you like a slow burn and then by all means add 3).  The salsa itself is bright and flavorful (in season tomatillos and cilantro will do that).  Perfect on a tortilla chip as an afternoon snack as well as on steak tacos for an epic summer dinner.  

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

Recipe adapted from Rick Bayless

Servings:  1 cup

8 – 10 ounces (3 to 4 medium) tomatillos husked and rinsed Fresh hot chiles (1 or 2 serranos or 1 jalapeno or 1 – 2 habaneros), stemmed 2 large garlic cloves, peeled 6 sprigs of fresh cilantro (thick bottom stems cut off), roughly chopped 1 small white onion, finely chopped Juice of ½ a lime Salt

Roast the tomatillos, chile(s), garlic, and onion on a rimmed baking sheet 4 inches below a very hot broiler, until blotchy black and softening (they’ll be turning from lime green to olive), about 5 minutes.

Flip them over and roast the other side. Cool, then transfer everything to a blender, including all the delicious juice the tomatillos have exuded during roasting. Add the cilantro and lime, then blend to a coarse puree. Taste and add salt as necessary.  Eat with abandon.     

the summer salad (a guide) + lemon tahini dressing.

It is the summer of the salad.  And I'm not talking about some bland leafy lettuce salad with a boring vinaigrette. I am talking about the salad as the meal.  Chock-full of textures and flavors.  It's how I like to eat salad especially now that we've reached the official start of summer; when days are long and sticky and food should be light and easy but interesting. It's also super easy to make an interesting and exciting salad when we are at the peek of farmers market produce season, especially if you adopt my motto of "cram as much peek season produce as possible into your meals".

And how do I want to dress said salad?  With a lemon tahini dressing of course. This has been my go-to dressing for weeks now.  I've paired it with everything from burrata and sugar snap peas to arugula and peas.  It just somehow works with everything and it provides the kind of earthy unami flavor that I come to crave.  Utterly brilliant.  

New Life Motto - Salads make summer eating easy.           

The Summer Salad (A Guide)

We eat a salad like this at least once a week if not more because it's easy and refreshing and satisfying.  It's also a rather excellent way to use up those little scraps and containers that seem to languish in the fridge. Below are some of my favorite combinations but the world is your oyster. Just make sure you make the dressing.   Serve with a wedge of good bread (and rose if you choose).   Dinner is served.   

Baby Arugula + Peas + Cubed Avocado + Cannelini Beans + Hot Sopressata + Aged Cheddar
Burrata + Snow Peas + Sugar Snap Peas + Avocado + Pumpkin Seeds + Torn Basil 
Green Beans + Grilled Haloumi + Toasted Walnuts + Pumpkin Seeds + Sesame Seeds + Currants 

Lemon Tahini Dressing

1 tablespoon tahini
1 tablespoon olive oil
Juice of half a lemon
2 teaspoons Mikes Hot Honey (or 2 teaspoons Honey and a pinch of red pepper flakes)
Salt and Pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl.  Taste.  Adjust seasonings as necessary.  I find that if I have a particularly juicy lemon I sometimes need a little extra tahini to balance the flavors.   Pour over the salad and eat!

hummus with white miso.

This past weekend, in between the hours of driving Tyler and I did through New Jersey, Upstate New York, and Pennsylvania, we stopped for dinner in Philadelphia at High Street on Market (home of the greatest potato bread that has ever existed).   While I did not get to bring home a new loaf of potato bread (let's not talk about it), I did get to stuff my face with an incredible spring hummus that reminded me of how much I love hummus and variations of hummus and basically any and all chickpea dips.   

I wasn't seeking to unearth a new favorite hummus dip, but with Memorial Day right around the corner, I've had mezze on the brain. Summer eating means less meals and more of an "assortment of things that are in season and easy to make".  Extra points if they are portable, can be consumed via chips, bread, or pita, and pair well with an ice-cold white wine or a grapefruit beer.  

And this dip does all that and more.  The inclusion of miso is rather genius - it provides that salty-rich-umami bomb that I seem to crave all of the time (who knew miso and tahini were a match made in food heaven?).  It also pairs brilliantly with any kind of spring/summer salad (current version involves asparagus, beans, feta, and lemon) you can dream up which means it will be on heavy rotation all summer long.  

Hummus with White Miso
Recipe from the Seven Spoons Cookbook

Makes about 2 ½ cups (600 g)

1/4 cup (60 g) blanched almonds

2 cups (450 g) cooked chickpeas or 1 (15-ounce/425 g) can

1/4 cup (60 g) well-stirred tahini

1/4 cup (60 g) white (shiro) miso

2 cloves garlic, smashed with the side of a knife

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Juice from 1/2 lemon, approximately 2 tablespoons, plus more as needed

About 1/2 cup (120 ml) ice water

Fine-grain sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Toasted sesame oil (optional)

Optional Toppings

Extra-virgin olive oil

Flaky sea salt

Coriander seeds or cumin seeds, roasted and cracked

Ground sumac or za’atar

Toasted sesame seeds, white or black, or pine nuts

Minced fresh flat-leaf parsley and chives

Assorted sprouts (such as mung bean, broccoli, alfalfa)

Fried shallots

In a food processor fitted with the metal blade, process the almonds into a fine meal. Add the chickpeas and run the machine again, stopping and scraping down the sides occasionally, until the beans are crumbly and light. Pour in the tahini, miso, garlic, red pepper flakes, and lemon juice. Blend again for 2 minutes or so, then scrape down the sides of the machine. Switch on the motor and start drizzling in enough water so that the hummus billows up, aerated and fluffy. Depending on the beans, you may not use all the water, or you might need more. Let the machine go for 2 to 3 minutes after the consistency seems right. Taste and check for seasoning. For a roasted accent, drip in some toasted sesame oil.

Let the hummus sit for 30 minutes at room temperature before serving, or refrigerate in a covered container for up to 3 days. Serve with the garnishes of your choosing.

homemade nutella (gianduja).

At the very top (if not the top) of the list of things you should never ever (under any circumstances) learn how to make homemade sits nutella.   

Making homemade nutella (also known as gianduja) is like going down a rabbit hole - you will realize rather quickly that you can never ever go back to the jarred stuff.  The jarred stuff is cloyingly sweet, it lacks the true hazlenut taste, and it just isn't really that good (Sorry, don't hate me). 

But this stuff?  This is insane with a pronounced chocolate/nut taste that the jarred stuff doesn't come close to. This is why you buy fresh bread from a reputable bakery.  This is why you make homemade crepes.  This is why you find yourself sneaking into the fridge with a spoon in one hand and a thought in your head that you will only have one more bite (such a lie).  Tyler and I have been eating it slathered on toasted sourdough bread with a thin layer of jam and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt (absurdly good).  It's the kind of stuff that will get you through the rest of February and take you through March.  How can you be sad about the weather when you have homemade nutella in your life?  

Homemade Nutella Recipe (Gianduja)

Recipe via the Baking Society (From the guys at Baked Bakery in Brooklyn/TriBeca) 

This can be halved, but why would you do such a thing?   Also – my Nutella firms up quite a bit as I store it in the fridge.  To bring it back to a spreadable consistency, just nuke it for about 10 seconds.  It will return to its normal perfect state.  

6 ounces (a heaping cup) skinned hazelnuts
1 teaspoon sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, chunked
8 ounces dark chocolate (in the 60% range, not higher)
½ cup heavy cream
½ teaspoon fine sea salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the hazelnuts out on a small baking sheet and roast until toasty brown in color, about 12 minutes (I usually flip the nuts half-way through the bake time for an even roast). Allow to cool completely. Place the hazelnuts in the bowl of a food processor and sprinkle with sugar. Process until a smooth, buttery paste forms, about 3+ minutes. Add the butter and process until just incorporated.

Meanwhile, melt the chocolate, stirring often, in heatproof bowl over a pot of simmering water. After the chocolate is completely melted, whisk in the cream then the hazelnut paste. Pour into a glass jar. The gianduja will thicken as it cools.

Spread on everything.    

apple butter.

If you are anything like me, apple picking means returning home with more apples then one could possibly eat in a reasonable amount of time.  This is not necessarily a bad problem to have especially when there is a slew of apple items you can make (pie! crisp! pork chops with apples!).

But sometimes you long for something else and that is where apple butter comes into play.

Apple butter is not pretty.  It looks like brown mush (no point in stating anything but the obvious) . It's nothing like the beautiful peach jam of summer or strawberry jam of spring.  But! What it lacks for in looks it more then makes up for in flavor.

Apple butter is dreamy.  It's the definition of fall and its everything I want slathered on my peanut butter sandwiches this time of year (best sandwich ever involves chunky peanut butter, apple butter, chia seeds and a sprinkle of sea salt - DYNAMITE).  Cubes of apple are cooked with apple cider and spices. As the apples cook, they begin to thicken to create a cross between apple sauce and jam that may in fact be the greatest condiment ever.  EVER.

Fall, I love you.

Apple Butter 

Recipe from Apt 2B. Baking

Yield - about 2 pints of finished butter

2 pounds good eating apples, peeled, cored and cut into bite sized pieces (but really any apples work)

½ - 2 cups apple cider
¾ cups sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon cloves
¼ teaspoon fresh nutmeg
Juice of half a lemon

In your biggest, heaviest pot combine the apples and enough cider to cover them. Bring to a simmer and cook the apples until tender. A bit of foam will form on the surface that should be skimmed off, it's okay if you can't get it all.

When the apples are tender, remove the pot from the heat and puree the mixture until it is smooth (an immersion blender is the best tool for this). Stir in sugar, spices and lemon juice.

Simmer the mixture, stirring occasionally, until it darkens in color and begins to pop and bubble, about 1-1 1/2 hours. Make sure to watch the pot carefully and stir often in the last 1/2 hour to prevent scorching. I would usually tell you here to cook the butter until it reaches 220º, but I couldn't get mine above 210º and the set turned out perfect. Ladle the hot apple butter into your prepared jars.  

avocado tacos (and some awesome salsa.)

Last week I discovered one of my favorite farms finally set up shop on Thursdays across the street from my office.

Upon discovering this, I practically wept.

I manage to encounter a farmer's markets at least 5 of the 7 days a week and usually these markets have everything I could possibly need depending on the season we are in.  But most lack the "rare" produce - concord grapes, sugar pumpkins, and tomatillos.  These are the items that I love getting my hands on at least once a season. These are the kind of ingredients that makes cooking fun and interesting.

When I stumbled across the tomatillos last week, I knew fresh salsa was in order.  It also happened to coincide with the discovery of the most epic-ly simple recipe from the NYTimes.  This recipe is the kind of thing I want to eat when I am exhausted and have minimal energy to cook anything.  Avocado wrapped in corn tortillas with homemade salsa? Yes, yes, and more yes.  The salsa is both robust and mild.  It plays well with neutral flavors but manages to add an extra dimension of smokiness that you can never get from store bought salsa. Eating simple has never tasted so good.

Avocado Tacos 
Recipe adapted (barely) from the NYTimes

You will have A LOT of salsa left which if you ask me it's a good thing.  I am already planning on spooning in on baked sweet potatoes and pouring it over bean and cheese enchiladas.  It would be killer on a breakfast taco as well.

Serves 3 - 4 depending on your level of hunger

4 pasilla chiles

½ teaspoon coarse sea salt

2 garlic cloves

10 tomatillos, boiled in salted water for 15 minutes or until soft

Juice of half a lime

3 avocados, sliced thin

12 corn tortillas

½ cup chopped cilantro

Optional toppings: Crumbled queso, sliced radish, black beans, lime juice

Make the salsa: Snap the stems off the chiles and remove the seeds. Using tongs, carefully hold the chiles over a medium flame to char on all sides. Transfer chiles to a food processor, add the salt and process into a powder. Add the garlic and tomatillos and purée until smooth.  Add lime juice.  Taste.  Add additional salt if necessary. (This makes 1 pint salsa, more than needed; refrigerate the rest in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.)

To serve, place 3 or 4 slices of avocado on each tortilla and top with salsa, cilantro, and any additional toppings of your choice.

fresh tomato sauce (take 2)

Last week I purchased a box of tomatoes weighing close to 30 pounds.

Why you may ask, would a girl who lives with only one other boy decide to purchase 30 pounds of roma tomatoes?  I'll tell you why, it's because the box cost $15.  FIFTEEN DOLLARS.  At a price like that, they are practically giving away the tomatoes and if my father taught me anything it's that you never ignore a good deal (especially when it's a good food deal).  

On the long walk back to my apartment (and on this walk I managed to spill the box of tomatoes but we don't really have to talk about that), my arms began to quiver and reality began to set in.  What does one actually do with 30 pounds of tomatoes?

The answer lies in tomato sauce. So much tomato sauce.  Enough tomato sauce to last us though the winter.

I made tomato sauce this time last year and it was good (and far easier then this version) but it lacked the perfect stick to the pasta consistency.  So this year I set out to tackle tomato sauce again and what I discovered was the perfect sauce does exist it just takes a lot of work.

I don't need to tell you that making your own tomato paste is annoyingly time consuming.  I don't need to tell you that peeling and seeding 25 pounds of tomatoes will make you want to scream.  I don't need to tell you that deciding to make tomato sauce on the hottest and most humid day of the summer is a bad idea. But I do need to tell you that this sauce is dreamy.  The work is totally worth it.

Fresh Tomato Sauce (Take 2)
Recipe adapted from Serious Eats

10 pounds ripe plum tomatoes, preferably mixed varieties (such as Romas, Amish Pastes, and San Marzanos), plus 15 pounds ripe mixed tomatoes, mostly plums with a small portion of other tomatoes (such as beefsteaks)

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for greasing

3 medium cloves garlic, minced (see note above)

2 large sprigs fresh basil

Kosher salt

Peel the tomatoes: Bring a large Dutch oven or stock pot of water to a boil over high heat. Fill a mixing bowl with ice and water and set this next to the stove. Core out the stems from the tomatoes and slice a shallow "X" in the bottom of each fruit. Working in batches, drop several tomatoes into the boiling water. Cook until you see the skin starting to wrinkle and split, 45 to 60 seconds, then lift the tomatoes out with the slotted spoon and plunge them into the ice water. Continue with the rest of the tomatoes, transferring the cooled tomatoes from the ice water to another mixing bowl as they cool. When finished, use your hands or a paring knife to strip the skins from the tomatoes. Discard the water used to boil the tomatoes.  Halve tomatoes, remove their seeds, and cut into chunks. 

In a large stockpot, heat the 10 pounds of the peeled plum tomatoes, covered, over high heat, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes dump their liquid. Bring to a boil, covered and stirring occasionally, and then cook until tomatoes are softened, about 10 minutes.

Preheat oven to 275°F and grease several rimmed baking sheets and baking dishes with oil.

Pour plum tomato mixture into a food processor or Vitamix and blend until smooth. Pour plum-tomato purée into rimmed baking sheets and/or baking dishes, being careful not to overfill them.

Carefully transfer baking sheets and dishes to oven and bake, checking every 15 minutes and stirring once purée begins to thicken, until a thick, spreadable tomato paste forms, at least 2 hours.

Meanwhile, fill the same large stockpot with remaining 15 pounds of peeled mixed tomatoes and cook, covered, over high heat, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes dump their liquid. Bring to a boil, covered and stirring occasionally, and then cook until tomatoes are softened, about 15 minutes. (Work in batches if your pot can't hold all 15 pounds at once.)

Using a food processor or Vitamix, puree the tomato mixture to desired consistency.  Set aside.

Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large, wide saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and sweet, about 4 minutes. Add mixed-tomato purée and simmer, stirring occasionally, until reduced to a sauce-like consistency, 35-40 minutes.

Remove from heat, stir in basil. Stir in oven-dried tomato paste and season with salt. Use as desired or freeze.

heirloom tomato jam.

Last week when apricot jam was discussed, my mindset was I was done with jam for the season (4 jams in 4 months seemed like more than enough).  

I was wrong to think such a thing. Oh so wrong.  

In the span of 3 days I somehow ended up with over 6 pounds of tomatoes.  Considering tomatoes have such a short shelf life and there are only 2 of us I knew I needed to find a tomato option that would use up about half of these guys and quickly.  

This is how I fell down the hole of tomato jam land.  

Tomato jam is really a fancy name for a thick rustic ketchup-like condiment.  Some recipes take the jam concept very seriously by adding something in the realm of 2 CUPS OF SUGAR to 3 POUNDS OF TOMATOES which is insane to me (though I will admit the sugar is somewhat necessary if you want to preserve the jam).  I was aching for a savory jam.  The kind of thing that begs to be served on a toasted baguette with a poached egg and avocado.  The kind of thing you can spread on grilled cheese or a BLT or even on a veggie burger.  I wanted the juxtaposition of savory and sweet with a kick of heat and a tang of acidity.  

Somehow I ended up making exactly what I was craving (don't you love when that happens?).  This jam has been consumed by the spoonful.  It's been slathered on bread and eaten with hardboiled egg.  Its been served on toast with a dollop of ricotta.  It's the perfect thing for this weird in-between season time of year and it somehow works with just about anything and everything.  

Heirloom Tomato Jam

Recipe adapted from A Cozy Kitchen

3 pounds red heirloom tomatoes
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
Pinch of salt
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

Hull and cut the tomatoes into a rough dice. If you’re using heirloom tomatoes, be sure to cut off any tough, brown spots that might be on their skin. Transfer the chopped tomatoes to a non-reactive medium pot, along with the brown sugar, salt and red wine vinegar. Place the uncovered pot over medium heat and bring the mixture to a simmer; cook for 30 minutes. At the 30 minute-mark add the dried thyme and mix. Cook for an additional 25 to 30 more minutes and until the mixture is thick. If you’re using more or less tomatoes, the cook time will definitely vary.

Allow to cool to room temperature. Transfer to a jar and store in the refrigerator. Tomato jam will be good for two weeks without canning.

apricot jam.

Currently there are 4 different types of homemade jam in our fridge (rhubarb, cherry, peach-jalapeno, and apricot) and I am scared to know how many jars of purchased jam (if I had to throw a number out there I would say 3 but who can say with any degree of certainty).

I guess we like jam?  

Jam is one of those things I kind of love to make for a couple of reasons.

1 - When you tell people you made jam then give you a head tilt and a look of confusion because no one who lives in a city with at least 4 bodegas within a 2 block radius should be making something that can be purchased so easily but I like to challenge myself.  

2 - It makes me feel like Laura Ingalls of Little House on the Prairie.  She is my idol.  

3 - Homemade jam is infinitely better then what you can buy in the store. INFINITELY.  

The flavor of the summer is apricot because the farmers market I pass on the way to work has been selling a pound of apricots for $3 and that my friends is a steal.  Apricot jam is also the bee's knees because it pairs incredibly well with savory items (I am partial to eating it with turkey and brie) as well as sweet (like toast aka my favorite food).  I dialed back the sugar on the original recipe by a great deal because I enjoy a little bit of tart (apricots as they cook down get very tart!) and a little bit of sweet.  It allows the flavor of the fruit to really shine and isn't that the whole point of jam?

Apricot Jam
Recipe adapted from the Homesick Texan

1 pound of apricots, pits removed and quartered (4 cups)
1 1/2 cups of sugar
4 tablespoons of lemon juice (about one lemon) plus zest

Place the apricots, sugar, lemon juice and zest in a pot, and add a couple of tablespoons of water.

Place a plate into the freezer.

Turn the heat to medium, and stirring every five minutes or so, let the fruit cook. It will first get juicy with the fruit intact, and then the fruit will start to disintegrate. As it cooks, there will be foam on top, but just keep stirring, don’t worry about skimming it.

After about 15 - 20 minutes the jam will be about two or three shades darker and will be smooth and thick, with a few lumps here and there. When it coats the back of a spoon, take out the plate from the freezer and place a dollop of the jam on the plate. If it runs, cook it for five more minutes and then test it again. But if becomes solid, then the jam is done.

Store jam in the fridge.  Will keep for about a month if not longer.  

Makes about one pint.

corn on the cob with miso-honey butter.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say there is no food more quintessentially summer then corn on the cob (especially corn on the cob dripping in salted butter).

(I will give you 5 minutes to try and think of another.  I guarantee you will loose this game.)

But corn on the cob with plain old butter is old news.  There is a new preparation in town that is even better.

Miso-honey butter.
(Yes, you read that right.)

Miso is my addiction.  It makes everything better.  Something about that salty bite and it's umami flavor is un-paralleled.  It elevates everything it comes into contact with.  And when it comes into contact with corn?  The flavor has me practically weeping.  Here I mix softened butter with just enough miso to provide a nice salty bite. The addition of honey (in particular Mike's Hot Honey which in addition to miso is my other addiction) provides the perfect hint of sweetness and spice.  Slathered on hot corn?   There is nothing better. (This is my new summer staple.)



Miso-Honey Butter

Makes a generous 2 tablespoons of butter.  

2 tablespoons softened butter
2 teaspoons white miso
1 1/2 teaspoons Mikes Hot Honey (or use regular honey and the smallest pinch of cayenne)

In a small bowl mix butter, miso, honey until combined.  

Slather on anything and everything (especially grilled corn).  

Can be stored in the fridge for many days if need be.   

 

zucchini butter.

We are finally at that glorious time of year where the markets are brimming and overflowing with the ingredients that make me weak in the knees. Tomatoes! (I had my first heirloom of the season last night and I practically wept.)  Corn! (Slathered in butter with lots of salt and pepper please.) Peppers! (Slow roasted until they collapse and then stuffed into a foccacia sandwich with mozzarella.)

But I am not here to talk about those beautiful foods today (come back in a week or two).  I am here to discuss zucchini.  (If we were in a room together and I was making that statement, I'm imagining a long awkward silence to occur right about...now.)

Zucchini.  Zucchini is a vegetable that somehow manages to give and give and then give some more.  If you have a garden and are growing zucchini $100 bucks says that by the end of the summer you are begging for the zucchini to stop because you can't bring yourself to eat another bite.  There is a reason why zucchini has ended up in so many baked goods (zucchini bread! zucchini whoppie pies! zucchini pancakes!), someone needed to find a way to consume all of it without going mad.  If that person knew about zucchini butter, I imagine they would have been encouraged their zucchini plants to keep on giving. 

Zucchini butter is basically shredded zucchini cooked down with a (little bit) of butter until it gets soft and tender and jammy.  At that point its spreadable vegetable wonderfulness that begs to be slathered on well toasted bread and served with goat cheese.  

Here's to the summer of zucchini.  

Zucchini Butter
Recipe via Food 52

There is an endless number of changes you could make to this dish. Spices! (Crushed red pepper flakes! Smoked parika! Aleppo pepper!) Herbs! (Basil! Mint!).  I am dreaming about endless varieties though I must admit, the original version is utterly addicting.

Makes about 2 cups

2 pounds zucchini or assorted summer squash (feel free to use less or add extra -- cooking times will vary)

¼ cup olive oil or butter (I strongly recommend the butter)

2 minced cloves of garlic

Salt and pepper to taste

Coarsely grate the zucchini. Let it drain in a colander for 3 to 4 minutes or until you are ready to begin cooking. To hasten cooking time, squeeze the water out of the zucchini by wringing it in a clean cloth towel.

In a deep skillet, heat the olive oil/butter until warmed/melted. Add the garlic to the pan and sauté briefly. Add the zucchini and toss. Cook and stir over medium to medium-high heat until the zucchini reaches a spreadable consistency, about 15 minutes. If you scorch the bottom, turn the flame down! (And scrape those delicious bits into the butter for added flavor -- you can splash in a little water to help deglaze the pan.) The zucchini will hold its bright green color and slowly caramelize into a nice vegetable jam.  Season with salt and pepper. 

Enjoy on toast.  Or by the spoonful.  

pea pesto.

Peas are so misunderstood (which is why I'm here to give them the respect they deserve).

As Tyler will attest to, I spent most of the month of June discussing the fact that I was unable to find shelling peas.  Sugar snap peas were ALL over the place and while I love them (blanched and dipped in miso peanut dressing please) shelling peas are my favorite mostly because I love the act of shelling them.  (I find it therapeutic.) 

The first batch of peas were suppose to regaled to pasta but because of the heat I switched gears (because being a cook means thinking on your feet).  Pea pesto was made and consumed with such abandon that I think I may prefer to to the original pesto.  Sweet peas are just barely pulvarized and paired with basil, mint, and pecorino.  The pairing is earthy, bright, and clean.  It's perfect on well toasted bread with an additional slice of pecorino but it also makes for one hell of a panini.  

Pea Pesto

Only now do I realize I forgot to add the nuts! How could I forget the nuts?! I'm dreaming of pistachios (more green!) though the standard pine nuts wouldn't be out of place here.  Looks like I'll have to make a new batch, what a shame.  

2 cups of peas, blanched
10 basil leaves
10 mint leaves
3 tablespoons olive oil 
1/2 teaspoon salt plus more to taste
10 grinds of black pepper plus more to taste
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons pecorino
1/4 cup pistachios or pine nuts (optional)
Juice of half a lemon (optional)

Place all ingredients (including the nuts if using) in a food processor with the exception of the lemon juice. Pulse the mixture together until the peas are crushed but not pureed.  Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary. Stir in the lemon juice if using.  Eat with a spoon or atop crusty well-toasted bread.  

sauteed zucchini pizza with walnut pesto and ricotta.

I decided today, on the walk home from work, that the month of September may be the best month at the farmer's market.  It's where summer and fall collide into a beautiful produce filled mess, where tomatoes and apples and pumpkin and zucchini and peaches and peppers live together harmoniously.  It's an epic time. 

I've waited for what feels like months to make this pizza.  I first saw a recipe for it long before zucchini season arrived and so I filed it away so that when August did arrive I could make it.  The thing about August and pizza is that they don't really go together because its too god damm hot to make pizza when your apartment already feels like a sauna.  Turning on the oven and then the air conditioner to try and offset the heat radiating out of the oven is just a recipe for disaster.  (Unless of course you have a grill or an outdoor pizza oven and if that's the case I would love for you to send me an e-mail so we can schedule a weekend to get together next year since I would love to take advantage of those things. I promise to also bring dessert.) 

Thankfully zucchini season extends into September when the weather is cooler (bye air conditioning, hello open windows!), and I can finally have a relationship with my oven again and with pizza!  This pizza is a good way to merge the seasons - the pungent pesto and spicy sauteed zucchini reminds you of summer where as the smoky mozzarella is reminiscent of fall. I love serving it with ice cold pumpkin beers (what could be better on a Sunday night?!) 

Sauteed Zucchini Pizza with Walnut Pesto and Ricotta

Recipe is a combination of several most notably this one and this one

Makes 2 pizzas

So a couple of notes. I tested a new pizza dough recipe since I always love trying new things.  The one I used is here (I halved it).  As you already know there are more then enough pizza dough recipes on this blog (here,  here, and here).  Any of these would work well, just depends on what type of recipe you are looking for.  Store-bought pizza dough is always an option (no judgement).  Any leftover pesto/zucchini can be folded into pasta for a killer lunch.  

For the Pizza

2 zucchini, thinly sliced into rounds

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 - 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

2 balls of pizza dough (see notes above on recipe's for dough)

4 tablespoons creme fraiche, divided

2 garlic cloves thinly sliced

2/3 cup walnut pesto (recipe below)

1 (4 ounce ball) smoked mozzarella (if you can't find smoked regular works as well), torn into pieces

1/2 - 3/4 cup fresh ricotta

2 cups of arugula tossed with a pinch of salt

Walnut Pesto 

1 cup toasted walnuts

2/3 cup fresh basil

2/3 cup arugula

Juice of half a lemon

1 clove garlic

2 -3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan

1/3 - 1/2 cup olive oil (depending on your preference, I prefer less oil then what traditional recipes call for)

2 tablespoons heavy cream or half and half

Salt and pepper to taste

Make the walnut pesto: Puree walnuts, basil, arugula, lemon juice and garlic, then stream in olive oil and cream.  Puree completely. Transfer to a medium bowl and fold in grated Parmesan.  Add salt and peper to taste 

If using a pizza stone, place it on the top rack of your oven and preheat at 500°F for 1 hour.  Use convection if you have it.  If you are not using a pizza stone, preheat your oven 20 minutes before you are ready to bake.  Lighly oil a baking sheet or a metal pizza pan. 

Sauté zucchini with olive oil and red pepper flakes over high heat until deeply browned in parts, 6–8 minutes.

Form each ball of pizza dough into 12"–14" rounds on a floured work surface.  If using a pizza peel dust it with semolina flour or cornmeal.  If not prepare the pizza on your oiled pizza pan.  Place 1 formed pizza dough on peel/pan and spread with 2 tablespoons crème fraîche, along with thin slices of 1 garlic clove.  Top with ⅓ cup walnut pesto, torn pieces of fresh mozzarella, ¼ cup ricotta and a generous amount of zucchini. 

Slide pizza onto pizza stone using a swift movement or place pizza pan in the oven and bake for 8­–10 minutes until golden brown and darker in some parts.  Assemble the next while the previous is baking.

Remove and top each pizza with 1 cups of arugula and a sprinkle of flaky salt.