Lucky Lake Weekend

Here I am again, at Lake Burton for the weekend. My husband and the electrician have been busy all day installing something big, I don't really know what they're doing. Me, I've been knitting, reading, doing my nails, sitting in the sun. Yes, I'm lucky.

I'm just along for the ride. And to cook all the meals, of course. But that's no big deal at all!

I spent the morning watching the ducks go by, reading in the swing. Oh yeah, it's the life.


This evening I'll make steaks on the grill, baked potatoes, roasted asparagus, and a big salad. Hopefully Lindsay can relax. I sure am relaxed. And lucky.

Shrimp and Grits

I worked this weekend and Monday since I was hired to prepare food for dinner parties to celebrate Valentine's Day. Both dinner parties went very well and each couple had gone all out, including arranging in-home messages, in addition to my meal preparation.

I had requests for seafood so one of the appetizers I prepared was my quick version of shrimp and grits. I've been using these grits that I found at the DeKalb Farmers Market. They are very good and have a smooth and creamy texture and a great grit flavor. They're from a company in Blairsville, Georgia.

To prepare the shrimp and grits, I cleaned 1/2 pound of large shrimp and tossed them with dijon mustard, lime zest and salt and pepper. I cooked bacon about 1/2 way through, then wrapped the shrimp in bacon and cooked the shrimp at 400 degrees for about 8 minutes.

Then, I prepared the grits as directed on the package. Once the grits were done, I added a pat of butter and about 3 tbsp heavy cream. This elevates the grits to a greater creamy texture.

Once the shrimp was done, I added them to the grits. I then added a splash of hot chili oil!

By placing the hot chili oil along the side, each person could use as much as they liked. The chili oil really gives this dish a great added dimension.

This is a quick and elegant appetizer and everyone really liked it. Let me know if you try it....enjoy!

Pimento Cheese

I don't think I've ever met a cheese I didn't like. And I especially like pimento cheese, best homemade. It's a Southern thing! I love it on top of a turkey burger....yum!

For Superbowl, I decided to make a platter of assorted appetizers, and my husband requested pimento cheese, spread in celery sticks.


He likes the pimento cheese well blended and creamy, and the food processor makes this an easy job. I first use the shredding blade to shred the cheese, then switch to the regular metal blade, adding the pimentos (drained and rinsed) and blend well. Then, dump all this into a large bowl and add the mayo and black pepper. I don't usually add any salt because the cheese takes care of that.

It makes a lot and keeps well. Good for sandwiches and snacks throughout the week.








Here's the basic recipe:

(1) 8 oz block medium cheddar cheese
(1) 8 oz block extra sharp cheddar cheese
1 large jar pimentos (drained and rinsed)
about 1/3-1/2 cup mayonnaise
freshly ground black pepper

You could also spice it up a bit by adding some hot sauce. Or chopped bacon would also be good.

Enjoy!

I think it's time for a snack.

Eat Your Vegetables!

I cooked for a client yesterday and the menu included tons of vegetables. My shopping list included:
3 kinds of lettuces, fennel, carrots, baby bella mushrooms, new potatoes, zucchini, onions, spinach, carrots, green beans, green onion, red pepper, cucumber and tomato...did I leave anything out?

And fresh herbs: cilantro, Italian parsley, thyme, chives, and basil.

When I arrive at a client's house on a cook day, after unloading the groceries and my equipment, I wash all the vegetables, then get to work.

The carrots and potatoes got roasted,the fennel went into a pasta dish, the green beans got blanched, then added to carmelized onions and stewed tomatoes (forgot to take a picture of that!), the zucchini got grilled.


On the menu also was a large green salad with homemade vinaigrette and grilled shrimp. I bought three kinds of lettuce: boston, green leaf and red romaine. These are the vegetables that the client can use to top the salad: carrots, red pepper, green onion, cucumber, celery and tomatoes.

Fresh vegetables are so delicious and so good for you! Eat as much as you like, most are extremely low in calories.

New Year, New Cookbooks

As a personal chef, I'm always looking for new recipes to try in hopes I'll come across something new and fabulous that I can share with my clients. I subscribe to 5 or 6 cooking magazines and am constantly buying and acquiring cookbooks.

I have three new cookbooks that I'm working my way through: One: recipes using the pressure cooker, two: a creme brulee cookbook, because I've been interested in trying some savory-style custards, and my new favorite, Around My French Table. Tonight I'll be testing from this cookbook, a chicken recipe, a rice and spinach recipe and a vegetable side dish. Can't wait! Hope my husband is hungry.

This weekend, I tested one of the savory recipes from the Creme Brulee cookbook, using Corn and Roasted Red Pepper. It turned out really good and was pretty easy to make.

After prepping all the ingredients, you fill the custard cups with the vegetables and cheese, then add the custard and bake in a waterbath. Then, even though this was a savory creme brulee, the recipe still called for topping with a bit of sugar and burning the top to get it crispy. Surprisingly, this bit of sweetness gave it a really great contrast to the savory filling.

I served this with a roasted chicken. I used Ina Garten's recipe for "perfect roast chicken". That recipe is also a winner.

There are several more savory style recipes in this Creme Brulee cookbook that I definetely want to try, as well as many sweet versions, including lots of chocolate ones. As I work my way through these, I'm sure there will be lots of winners that will make a great side dish or dessert that will be great for dinner parties.

Chocolate Torte

I'm cheffing a dinner party Saturday night for 10 people and needed to test the dessert I plan to serve. A chocolate torte. Last night was our monthly knitting night so I took the cake there to get the girls to taste it and give their opinions.....the cake got a thumbs up!

This recipe is quite simple and didn't take a lot of time to prepare. But it turned out like I hoped, moist and chocolatey. You use bittersweet chocolate, chopped and melted. Eggs, separated and the egg whites beaten and folded in, nuts, butter, and a little bit of sugar.


Then, bake for about 40 minutes.


When the cake was done, I was running late so I don't have a picture of the whole cake, but here's a slice ready to be served.



Saturday night, I'll also make a fruit syrup to go with the cake and to decorate each plate.

Thanks to all the girls at knitting night last night for being my guinea pigs and giving the thumbs up on this dessert!

Here's the recipe:

Capri Chocolate Torte

1 1/2 cups walnuts
1/3 cup all purpose flour
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
14 tablespoons sugar
7 large eggs, separated, room temperature

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, rack in the middle. Butter a 9-inch springform pan, line with wax paper. Finely grind walnuts with flour in processor, set aside. Stir chocolate in top of double boiler over simmering water til melted and smooth. Remove chocolate from over water and cool slightly.

Beat butter and 7 tablespoons sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in melted chocolate. Add egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each. Mix in ground walnut mixture.

Beat egg whites in another bowl until beginning to form soft peaks. Gradually add 7 remaining tablespoons sugar. Beat to soft peaks. Stir 1/4 whites into batter, then fold in remaining whites

Bake about 40 minutes. Cool 10 minutes on rack. Run knife around sides to loosen cake. Release pan sides and cool completely. Transfer to cake platter.

Hazelnut Squares

I just finished making these from the December issue of Bon Apppetit, page 122, called Chocolate-Dipped Hazelnut Caramel Squares. Only mine are drizzled, not dipped. They were not difficult at all to make and are delicious!

The only special equipment you need is a candy thermometer to make the caramel layer. You combine butter, sugar, honey, orange peel and cream and cook till it reaches 230 degrees.



You make the cookie crust (forgot to take a picture of this), then make the caramel sauce, adding chopped hazelnuts, spread mixture over cooked cookie crust and bake another 10 minutes.

And viola!

Add to a festive Holiday plate and you're ready to go. Here's the recipe:

Chocolate-Dipped Hazelnut Caramel Squares

The Crust:
2 cups flour
1 cup packed golden brown sugar
1/3 tsp salt
3/4 cup cold butter, cut into cubes

Mix in food processor till consistency of meal. Press into 13X9X2 metal pan, lined with aluminum foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

The Caramel:
2/3 cup sugar
6 tbsp heavy whipping cream
2 tsp freshly grated orange zest
6 tbsp butter
1/3 cup orange blossom honey
1/4 chopped candied orange peel (I did not use this)
5 ounces hazelnuts

Mix all ingredients excepts hazelnuts in heavy saucepan. Boil till reaches 230 degrees, about 6 minutes. Add nuts and spread immediately onto cookie crust. Bake another 10 minutes at 350 degrees. Let cool about 15 minutes before cutting into squares.

The Chocolate:
Melt 8 oz bittersweet chocolate in bowl over simmering water. Dip corner of cut cookie into chocolate, or drizzle with chocolate.