Cooking Show: Farmers Market Episode #2

We filmed an episode of the cooking show last week.

It's been two years since our last Farmers Market-themed show!  I decided there were a few seasonal recipes that I needed to share.

My obsession with heirloom tomatoes is right up there with my obsession with anything caprese, which is fortunate since the two can easily be combined!  

Except I couldn't decide on which caprese appetizer I wanted to prepare.  So we went with two!

Grilled Eggplant Caprese Stacks

Layered with pesto and fresh mozzarella, with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and a sprinkling of shredded basil...is your mouth watering yet?  Here is the printable recipe.

Caprese Garlic Bread With Heirloom Tomatoes

Maybe the only thing better than adding heirloom tomatoes to a caprese recipe would be adding garlic bread.  Yum!  Click here to be taken to the printable recipe.

Crabcakes with Lemon Dill Sauce

After he devoured two of these, Dan the Awesome Cameraman sighed and declared, "Oh, those crab cakes are good."  Here is the printable recipe.

Can you spot the umbrella drinks lurking in the background of some of the photos?  That would be our Frozen Mango-Peach Cocktails.   I neglected to take a photo of them, but here's a photo of another batch from a different night!

And finally...

Blueberry Oatmeal Crumble

If you're looking for a blueberry recipe, look no further.

This is a perfect dessert while it's still warm out of the oven (topped with ice cream, of course)!

Here's the printable recipe.

Cooking Show: Our Favorite Ina Garten Recipes

The theme for our most recent cooking show was suggested by a friend of mine who absolutely loves, loves, LOVES Ina Garten.

"Have you ever thought of doing a show featuring Ina Garten recipes?" was all she had to say to convince me that it would be the next theme for the show.  So we picked out a few recipes (I admit we had trouble narrowing it down to a few!  We'll have to do another show in the future).

 

We started with Pomegranate Cosmos.  Whew, they sure do pack a punch.  After a few sips, we all agreed that they were extremely refreshing and would be a great summer cocktail!

Next up: Cape Cod Chopped Salad.  Was it my love for arugula that made me choose this recipe?  My affinity for Cape Cod? My fondness for adding fruit to my salads?  Because...bacon?  Who knows?  The only thing you need to know is that this salad is out-of-this-world delicious! 

I asked my friend, Trish (an expert on all things Ina), if she had a favorite Ina Garten recipe.  Her reply:  "Shrimp Scampi!"  I googled it and the first recipe that popped up was for Ina's Baked Shrimp Scampi, which was not the scampi recipe that Trish was referring to; however, we both agreed that it looked so good that we had to give it a try!

This scampi was outstanding.  It didn't take long to disappear!  One of the participants in our dining room audience may have asked me for the recipe before she even swallowed her first bite, it was that good.

The last recipe we prepared was my recipe for Croque Monsieur, which I've altered over the years but the first time I made it I followed Ina's version.

 Do you notice anything else in this picture, something I haven't mentioned yet?

Truffle Tots!!

Not an Ina Garten recipe, but I did promise in a previous blogpost that I would post about my truffle tots soon-- click here to be taken to that recipe!

Valentine's Day Cooking Show!

We filmed an episode of the cooking show last week.

Valentine's Day is on a Sunday this year!  Wouldn't it be fun to stay home and cook something special together?  Spend time bonding in the kitchen with your husband, wife, boyfriend or girlfriend instead of going out?

My friends Amy & Kerry cooked with me, and we came up with a few things that are perfect for Valentine's Day!

We started off with a cocktail.  Whenever a certain one of my circles of friends gathers, we refer to this cocktail as "Karen's Drink," because Karen was the first one who served it.  There are 8 of us who regularly get together, and one of us will say, "I'll bring Karen's Drink!"

Valentine's Day Cocktail

I googled the ingredients (Cran-Raspberry juice, Sprite and Stoli Razberi) to see if there is such a drink which already exists.  There were two that are close: Razberi Kicker, which uses similar ingredients in different proportions (regular cranberry juice instead of cran-raspberry and only a splash of sprite); and From Russia With Love, which I thought was a GREAT name for a Valentine's day cocktail!  However, the From Russia With Love cocktail uses opposite proportions (mostly 7-Up and only a splash of cranberry juice).

So Karen's Drink is going to become our Valentine's Day Cocktail.  Click on the title above to be taken to the printable recipe.

Herbed Scalloped Potatoes

These were totally devoured.  When Dan the Awesome Camera Man arrived, he handed me a container and said, "I mentioned scalloped potatoes to my wife and she handed me THIS."

I'm so glad that I filled up Dan's container before we all sat down to eat!  There would have been nothing left for him to take home to his wife.

Lemon & Garlic Shrimp with Wilted Spinach

This requires minimal prep and about 5 minutes cooking time.  I think it took me longer to take this picture of the shrimp than it took to cook it.

And then it completely disappeared when we finished filming.   No leftovers.  It was thoroughly devoured.  

Next time, I'm making a double batch.

And finally, Raspberry Brambles, little fruity pockets of yumminess.

Cooking Show--Trying Out New Recipes!!

Warning!  Long, rambling post right here!  But if you work your way through to the end, there will be recipes for Lemon Drop Martinis, Caesar Salad Dressing, Lobster Macaroni & Cheese, and Churros Poppers!

I promise that all of these recipes will eventually be posted with the usual step-by-step photos!  However, I have been receiving a lot of emails from viewers of the cooking show who would like to have the recipes that I prepared on the last show.  Please be warned that I'm still developing some of these recipes, and my notes will reflect some tweaks that I'm planning for the next time I prepare them!

We filmed another cooking show a couple of weeks ago.

The best way I can describe the theme would be "Attempting to prepare or develop recipes that I've never made before."

We happened upon this theme in a roundabout way.  I went out to dinner with my friend, Trish.  She ordered the house donuts for dessert, and our conversation went something like this:

Trish: Can you cook donuts?

Me: I never have, but I guess I could.  I don't deep-fry anything...it's one thing to eat them when you go somewhere and they're already prepared, but to pour all that oil into a deep-fryer...yikes.  I may as well just get a syringe and inject it directly into my thighs.

Trish: Do you have a deep fryer?

Me: Yes, I've never used it, it's sitting in my basement, unopened.

Trish: You should do a deep-frying cooking show!

Me: Only if you'll cook with me!

During the past year, I've asked her a couple of times if she would cook with me on the show, and she always said no.  I'm guessing that on this particular night, her defenses were lowered by the lemon-drop martinis that we had with dinner.  Lower defenses + joy at the thought of more deep-fried donuts in her future = YES!  If only I had figured out sooner that plying her with donuts was the key to getting her on camera.

Farmers Market-Inspired Cooking Show!

Last week, we filmed an episode of the cooking show.

All of the recipes we prepared were inspired by our local Farmers Market.

My friend Amy cooked with me.

Gayle and Sheila watched from the sidelines, and provided lots of light moments off-camera.

Like when they discussed the short-shorts that Amy's husband wore in the early 80's.  Or when they pondered hot flashes.

When we went outside to grill the zucchini and summer squash, it started to rain, so Gayle and Sheila bailed on us and ran inside.

But then they provided lots of moral support by telling us that our now-wet hair looked fabulous on the camera monitor.

They were so sincere, I actually believed them.  I just adore my sweet, supportive friends.

While it rained, Amy and I cooked up a storm of our own!  

 Ravioli with Tomato & Basil Cream Sauce

The aforementioned Grilled Zucchini & Summer Squash.

There is no link to take you to a recipe, but it's so simple--here you go:

-Lop off the ends of four 6-inch zucchini/summer squash, and slice them lengthwise.  You should get 4 slices from each, aim for slices at least 1/4" but no more than 1/2" thick.

-In a medium bowl, whisk together 1/4 cup EACH of balsamic vinegar and olive oil, with 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder and a pinch of salt and pepper.

-Add the slices of zucchini and summer squash, and toss to coat.

-Grill on MEDIUM/HIGH, 2-3 minutes each side, just long enough to get great color and grill marks.  The squash should start to soften, yet still hold its shape.

Seared Sea Scallops with Sweet Vermouth 

Crab Cakes and Dill Sauce

It's no secret I'm a terrible photographer.  Just scroll through my blog and you'll find proof.

Yesterday, I thought I would work on my skills and attempt to photograph some of my deck plants.  This was the first (and only) photo I took:

When I was looking through the viewfinder, I was thinking to myself, "Wow, it's so sunny I can hardly see."

Yep, not only am I a terrible photographer, I'm a clueless one as well.

I snapped the photo, then pulled it up onto the screen to check it and thought, whaaat......turns out my lens was all fogged because it was so humid out.  Note to self: allow the camera a little bit of time to adjust to the temperature change on a hot and humid day after it's been sitting in an air-conditioned house.

Live and learn.

 Temps were about 10 degrees higher today, but there was less humidity so I was able to get the shots of my flowers before they die.

Because they ARE going to die.

Killing plants is another one of my specialties.

You'll notice that my containers are heavy on the moss rose (portulaca), which is sun-loving yet drought-tolerant.  My kind of container plant!

I've been cutting my dahlias to take into my house.  It seems that every bloom that I cut is quickly replaced by two more.  I cut all of these and took them into my house.

 I love how perfect they look when they are wide open!

I sat down to write this blog post and my shadow, Clyde, sat down next to me and then promptly fell asleep.

He is at an age where he is never willing to sit for me to photograph him.  So I grabbed a photo while he was sleeping.  And the whir of the camera woke him up,  Oops.

I'm sure if he could speak, he'd be saying, "Huh?  Why'd ya wake me?  It's only my 13th nap today."  And if he could speak, I am sure that his voice would sound exactly like Homer Simpson's.  That's the voice that I imagine in my head when I imagine him talking.  Sort of a dopey voice, because he's a dopey dog.

NOT that I hear voices in my head.  Only Clyde's voice.  The voice that I imagine he would have if he could speak.

I'll stop now.  And give you today's recipe, inspired by the fabulous crab meat that I bought from the seafood vendor at the farmers market.  Crab Cakes and a yummy dill sauce.

Shrimp & Potato Soup

Will it really reach 90 degrees on Monday as everyone seems to think?

I figured I should take a few pictures of the blooms and blossoms in my yard before they wilt and drop from heat exhaustion.

None of the tulips have opened yet, I'm hoping they can hold on until after the heatwave!

My niece has adopted a puppy.  Meet Milo!

They live about 100 miles away, I'm afraid by the time I meet him in person his puppy days will be behind him.

Fortunately, she's posting lots of pictures of him on her facebook page so I get to "oooh" and aaaaah" over him all day long!

I made this pillow for the bottom of his crate.....puppies should be pampered, don'tcha think?

I decided to pamper myself a bit tonight!  Mr. Terrific and Sean went to the Red Sox game (Go Sox!!), Erin was out with friends, so I only had myself to cook for.  I'm the only seafood lover in this house, so unless I want to listen to a chorus of groans I rarely prepare anything remotely fishy.  

Tonight, I seized the opportunity to get creative in the kitchen without having to worry about pleasing anyone other than myself!

With the warmer weather coming, I figure that my soup-making days will be on hold for the next five months or so. The only seafood I had in the house was some shrimp in my freezer, but I had enough ingredients on hand to put together a really yummy soup!