Gianni Calogiuri Fig Vincotto Vinegar

Not certain what I would do without this vinegar.   It is great right out of the bottle – haha – no – I don’t actually do that, although truthfully I do lick my fingers sometimes.  If on a desert island I might just have to bring it – with one of the salads above and some ice cream :). 

 

As you can see above it is wonderful on my salmon salad and my steak salad.  I basically make a variation of this salad almost every day for lunch.  Today it was leftover chicken.  I add herbs too and usually a diced apple.  If I don’t have a leftover protein I’ll add a fried or boiled egg and add a few pistachios.  Mmmm.  Oh, and cheese is especially good on that steak salad.  I’m sure most of you know all of this and I’m just rambling. 

So, I drizzle this all over, add a tad of good quality extra virgin olive oil, Maldon sea salt and pepper and well….scrumptious.  I’ve been using this vinegar for many years now and I do not tire of it.

It is also great drizzled on roasted brussel sprouts.  Greg likes it mixed with honey and then drizzled on the sprouts.  I used to buy this at a local specialty store but now I can get it online.  Just google it and there are several choices – not just Amazon!

It has been a while…

It’s been a long time.  Too long.   Life got a little complicated about four years ago so I put the blog on hold as I wasn’t baking as often.  But I’m back!  When the kids left in the fall of 2019, Rob and I became free birds (empty nesters).  During the winter I started to gather new dinner recipes to try – recipes for two that were clean, healthy and hopefully tasty.  I realized I wanted to start blogging again, but this time include my “free bird recipes” as well as sweets.  Additionally, I had a whole bunch of other thoughts and ideas because last summer I started to teach Andy how to cook.  He was planning to live in an apartment and needed to prepare his own meals.  All of them!  We worked at it and continued our efforts throughout the fall and winter with phone calls and texts.  The “young adult recipe” became an obvious category to be included when I thought about blogging again. 

I got some help from my blog friends and was ready to go – but then there was COVID-19 and all of the kids came home.  I was back to cooking for five – really six because Andy eats double and even more because everyone wanted leftovers for lunch!  Now I can also include some large easy meals since I’ve had lots of practice.  Greg and Andy and Sylvie left so I’m free to start writing again – and to  include all of these new categories.

I don’t bake a ton these days, but I did bake a lot this summer for a local hospital – bringing treats and pleasure to essential workers – and a few of the treats are blog-worthy.  I plan to bake this fall for a local shelter and for Gilda’s club – so I will explore more recipes in the near future.

 I don’t have a ton of free bird  recipes because well – the pandemic and I was far from a free bird!  

Please don’t expect  wonderful prose or photos – expect  a truly tasty recipe that is delicious and therefore blog-worthy.  

It has been a while…

It’s been a long time.  Too long.   Life got a little complicated about four years ago so I put the blog on hold as I wasn’t baking as often.  But I’m back!  When the kids left in the fall of 2019, Rob and I became free birds (empty nesters).  During the winter I started to gather new dinner recipes to try – recipes for two that were clean, healthy and hopefully tasty.  I realized I wanted to start blogging again, but this time include my “free bird recipes” as well as sweets.  Additionally, I had a whole bunch of other thoughts and ideas because last summer I started to teach Andy how to cook.  He was planning to live in an apartment and needed to prepare his own meals.  All of them!  We worked at it and continued our efforts throughout the fall and winter with phone calls and texts.  The “young adult recipe” became an obvious category to be included when I thought about blogging again. 

I got some help from my blog friends and was ready to go – but then there was COVID-19 and all of the kids came home.  I was back to cooking for five – really six because Andy eats double and even more because everyone wanted leftovers for lunch!  Now I can also include some large easy meals since I’ve had lots of practice.  Greg and Andy and Sylvie left so I’m free to start writing again – and to  include all of these new categories.

I don’t bake a ton these days, but I did bake a lot this summer for a local hospital – bringing treats and pleasure to essential workers – and a few of the treats are blog-worthy.  I plan to bake this fall for a local shelter and for Gilda’s club – so I will explore more recipes in the near future.

 I don’t have a ton of free bird  recipes because well – the pandemic and I was far from a free bird!  

Please don’t expect  wonderful prose or photos – expect  a truly tasty recipe that is delicious and therefore blog-worthy.  

Chocolate Dipped Fresh Fruit

Chocolate Dipped Fruit

I’ve dipped a multitude of goodies in chocolate.  My favorite is fresh fruit.  Not just strawberries, but blueberries and raspberries and especially pomegranates.  I might be alone here since whenever I make them I seem to be the only one standing over that platter insisting that “you need to try these!!”   That feeling of the pomegranates popping while the chocolate snaps and then melts, well, it is a symphony in my mouth.

Eat these the day you make them and place in the refrigerator until you serve.  They are mediocre the next day as the fruit begins to break down and gets a little funky.IMG_0286

Read here to remind you about tempering chocolate.  And here about other valentine treats.

apple custard cake

This cake is so pretty and I love the idea of pouring heaving cream over the finished batter.  It got me all excited.  It is supposed to turn into a custard-like cake, and it did.  But I’m not sure that custard on the bottom of a dense cake and softish apples on top is for me.  Or you.  It is so pretty, and I love the concept, but I guess I can’t really rec the cake.

So, why write?  Well, lately I’ve been making a lot of flops and well, I just didn’t want you to forget about me.  So enjoy this pretty pic and hopefully I’ll be back soon –

 

jimmies (chocolate sprinkles)

By now you know that I love ice cream and jimmies.  And not just any jimmy but real jimmies.  I’m sharing this with you so you too can enjoy the happiness I derive from my ice cream eating experience.  A lot of it has to do with the ice cream I know…but seriously (as serious as I can be about ice cream toppings) what you normally get at the supermarket or ice cream parlor is really not what I’m talking about when I say jimmies.

Soo…I did a taste test of my 3 favorites and I can’t choose.  I love them all so pick one and try.  You may find it hard from then on to enjoy a chocolate sprinkle anywhere else but in your home (or mine!)

Ingredients in a typical sprinkle are sugar, veggie oil, corn starch, corn syrup, soy lecithin, salt, natural and artificial flavor, confectioners glaze, and carauba wax.

Ingredients in these jimmies are all similar but generally lists sugar (yeah, sorry that is first), cocoa liquor, cocoa powder, butter oil, milk powder, natural vanilla.

callebaut Belgian Chocolate

cocoa barry jimmies

guittard jimmies 

The links will take you to where you can buy – but search around for the best price.

 

 

 

 

be prepared to bake

Your shopping list might not seem as overwhelming if you generally stock some of the following items.  Just pay attention to how much you bake.  Many items in pantry and refrigerator expire (some sooner than later) so if you are not baking often, wait and shop as you need.  But if you are an avid baker, go for it.

Pantry: flour, sugar, brown sugar (more light than dark) baking soda, baking powder, salt, cocoa (natural and unsweetened, black cocoa), chocolate chips and chocolate bars (milk, semi, white, bitter, extra bitter, unsweetened) cornstarch, whole wheat flour, cake flour, oatmeal (quick cooking and old-fashioned), canola or vegetable oil, dried fruits, a variety of nuts, molasses, graham cracker crumbs, marshmallows, shredded and flaked coconut, spices (cinnamon, ground ginger, allspice, ground cloves, cardamom, ground nutmeg), instant espresso powder, vanilla extract, and vanilla beans, sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk…

Fridge: large eggs, unsalted butter, sour cream, plain yogurt, buttermilk, milk, heavy cream, block cream cheese, lemons and other assorted fruits

Freezer: frozen berries and stone fruits, puff pastry, fillo dough, ice cream

vanilla

Use good quality – and not artificial vanilla.  I love the double strength vanilla extract from Penzey’s spices.  You can order it on-line from penzeys.com.  (As well as many other spices and salts).  It is probably better to skip the vanilla if you don’t have the real thing.

To scrape and seed a vanilla bean, place the long bean on a cutting board.  With your paring knife, slice the bean lengthwise – from top to bottom all the way down and through.  Open it up and you will see soft brown inside.  With the back of your knife, scrape the seed gently (while holding the end of the pod) collecting all the goodness from inside.  These are the seeds and they should be on your knife.  The pod contains more flavor and seeds and is often added to marinating liquids or ice creams – and pulled out later.  You can purchase at the grocery or get a bunch from penzeys.com – store  them in an airtight container or they dry out.

avoid dry and crumbly cookies

I found the difference between a heavily packed cup of flour and lightly packed cup o flour was a bit more than an ounce!  This is a lot in the baking world.  Go to baking tips to see how to measure flour and if you have a scale, use it.  Do you know how to use the “tare” button on your scale?  If not, read the directions or google it.  Makes baking life easy.  Your friends will thank you (for even better cookies and cakes)!

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how to cut, peel and core apples

IMG_4874Apples are soooo good – especially now.  And I know when you see that the ingredients read – 8 apples roughly chopped, your heart might sink a bit with the prep work.  So, here is the plan of attack.  First, put on some really good music.

Cut the top and bottoms off of the apples.  All of them.  Then peel each apple with a sharp paring knife (I do this) but try not to take too much of the flesh off.  If you are lousy at this – use a peeler.  Peel them all.

Slice the apples in half.  All of them.

IMG_4877Taker your apple corer (you should get one) and scoop out the center core by gently pushing the scooper in and twisting.  Then use the scooper to take the little extra rough bits around the core.

Core them all.

Take each apple half and slice.  Now you have slices.

Turn apple, slice again – now you have roughly chopped apples.

 

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