Welcome To The Beach

Despite the harsh weather reports of Hurricane Earls path towards Cape Cod and The Islands and this warning from Gretchen's email: It could be bad - water under the house, 80MPH winds, no power, roof flying off, 2 feet of water in the driveway and road, the adventurous spirits (or just the crazy one's in our group of friends) Gretchen, Derek, Colucci and I loaded up the car and headed straight for West Dennis Beach. The picturesque beach cottage built by Gretchen's grandfather sits just a few hundred feet back from Nantucket Sound. With an evacuation plan in place (My Mom's house 10 minutes up the road) and plenty of food and booze, not even warnings of a category 3 Hurricane could keep us between our 3rd Annual Labor Day Weekend long bash. We kept a loose eye on the weather and a tight fist on our beers Friday as the "Hurricane" was reduced to a category 2, then eventually a 1 and by the time it hit us that evening, a mere rain and heavy windstorm. Lisa drove down late Friday night just in time for a "Hurricane Swim" (probably the only event that went undocumented by me - I don't own a waterproof camera!) and Adam and Douglas ventured down early Saturday morning, just as the sun came out to play. DeMane, Holly and Reuter - friends whose travel plans were disrupted by Earl were missed but not forgotten. (We got to act them out in a drunken game of Celebrity which is a more fun version of charades!)
It is in severe detox mode, laughing to myself at the inside jokes and ridiculous times, and my mouth watering over all the incredible food we ate, I present to you one Big Beach Bash complete with all things "B" and then some.

Red Bull and vodka's on the car ride down for Colucci and I.
Beers for everyone upon arrival.
and a Be Ready Emergency preparedness kit!
The Beach day 1:The view out my bedroom slider door at the early hours of 9am. Looking a bit ominous, wouldn't you say?
I brewed a pot of coffee and enjoyed it on the porch.
and down by the water.
Breakfast day 1: Blueberry Pancakes and Bacon
These elegantly thin and bursting with juicy deep purple blueberries are Gretchen's special batch. Coated in a layer of sugary sweet pure maple syrup accompanied by crisp savory bacon, this stack of pancakes kicked off a weekend of great eats.
The neighbors boarded up their house. We took a beach walk.Barefeet! We ate lunch, drank some beers, went for a swim, and G and I attempted a puzzle while the boys flew kites.
Make your own panini's with ham, turkey, cheese and roasted zucchini and tomato.
Harpoon UFO!
Black and white puzzles are impossibly hard.
Booze flowed as we watched the storm a-brewin.
Colucci made a Tom Collins mix.
Fresh squeezed lemons, limes, simple syrup, lots of gin and a little club soda. Zesty and refreshing! I polished off two of these before dinner.
I also polished off quite a few of these appetizers. Bruschetta anyone? It was just as tasty as it looks. Ripe tomatoes & fresh basil on a crispy baguette slice as to be expected - but the olives gave this appetizer a unique Mediterranean twist.
I switched to white wine from the box of Franzia in the fridge. (A very wise purchase.)Dinner night 1: Seafood Lasagna with Tomato Basil Bechamel and Caesar salad. Hopefully Gretchen will blog about the recipe! This dinner could certainly stand in a post all its own. I might have forgotten about this salad if I hadn't taken pictures. Not that it didn't taste absolutely incredible with crusty croutons, diced hard boiled egg and fresh grated parmesan cheese - but the Seafood Lasagna out-shined not only the salad, but any other lasagna I've ever tasted. Blame me forgetting the salad on the fact that I was tipsy (ok, drunk) and combine it with the fact that I ate SO much amazing food this weekend, it would be a difficult feat to remember each and every element to these meals without pictures!! As I reviewed all 200 and something, I had an OMG that salad! moment and relived it in all its glory. I just kept remembering those tiny bits of hard boiled egg. Genius.
But the real genius move was this dish.
An abundance of fresh lobster, scallops and shrimp sauteed and sandwiched between smooth pasta layers, bursting with grainy ricotta, stringy mozarella and grated parmesan. Seafood, pasta and cheese - three of my favorite food staples created an out of this world winning combination. Bechamel is a traditionally white sauce of French cuisine. I believe it is prepared by whisking milk into a flour butter roux - but Gretchen will give you the details. The velvety smooth sauce enhanced by tomato, basil and seafood stock coated the lasagna to created an unforgettable no matter how many beers / Tom Collins / glasses of wine consumed dish.

Antics ensued. I ran up and down the beach and along the jetty in my rain gear while the boys swam. I don't know why I didn't man up and put on my suit. I got just as soaked outside on the shores than I would have if I jumped in! The important thing is we made it through the storm alive.

The Beach day 2:
The view out my bedroom slider door at the early hours of 9am. Looks promising today!
Breakfast Day 2:
Ham, egg, cheese & tomato on a homemade biscuit.
Bloody Marys My Better half and Cappy arrived. Just in time....

Best Vacation Ever

It has been awhile blog friends! I've missed you all and definitley have some reading and writing to catch up on. I've been off on a mini vacation, (sans computer) however the Best Vacation Ever title is in reference to my guest post this morning on one of my favorite blogs, Iowa Girl Eats.


IGE asked readers a few weeks in advance to send her emails following a specific Q&A format along with photographs to serve as guests posts while she is on what will probably be her own best vacation ever in Italy! So until I'm back with a full recap of my Labor Day Weekend on Cape Cod 2010, head over to Kristin's blog and check out my trip to Santorini in 2007.
Had IGE requested her guests posts now, this past long weekend would surely be in the running.....more to come!!

Monkey Bread

Sometimes, it's okay to get in touch with our inner child, skip and dance around a room, collapse in a fit of giggles, and eat super-sweet treats -- like monkey bread. Life's too short not to allow ourselves these simple pleasures.

So last night, with a little extra time on my hands (and a little convincing from someone in this house who loves cinnamon-sugar baked goods and who was otherwise tied up with making fantasy football draft picks), I finally decided to tackle making monkey bread from scratch.

The monkey bread I made, following a recipe from The Art and Soul of Baking, starts with a simple white bread dough, which is cut into small pieces, coated in butter and cinnamon sugar, and baked in a tube pan. Well, actually the recipe instructed to bake the monkey bread in a loaf pan, but that just didn't sound as fun to me (especially after recently purchasing a monkey bread pan), so I doubled the dough recipe, crossed my fingers, and used my tube pan instead.

The scariest part of this recipe (besides the calorie count) is that it requires making a yeast bread. This is something I continually freak myself out over and always manage to coach myself through. It's not difficult at all. But for some reason it's difficult for me to remember it's not difficult. And it has its benefits: While the dough rises, there's plenty of time to sit on the couch and catch up on writing blog posts or watch movies like Alvin and the Chipmunks -- may as well completely embrace the inner child by watching kid movies while making kid treats, right?

Below are the steps to make monkey bread in a tube pan and possibly a small loaf of cinnamon-sugar bread (I had some leftover dough). If you would prefer to make the monkey bread in a loaf pan, just halve the ingredients below. Also, it helps to keep a stick of butter out to soften while you're making the bread to use for buttering bowls and pans.

I had quite a bit of help writing the recipe up for you.

It never matters that there's a whole half of the couch free; Gunner has to get as close to me as possible -- even if that means lying on my books. I feel so loved!

Monkey Bread (adapted from The Art and Soul of Baking)
(Printable version)

Ingredients

For the dough
1/2 cup warm water
2 teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons active dry yeast
2 cups warm milk
4 tablespoons butter, melted
6 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons salt

For the cinnamon-sugar coating
2 sticks unsalted butter
3 3/4 cups sugar
4 tablespoons cinnamon

Preparation

Whisk water, sugar, and yeast together in a small bowl. Set aside for 10 minutes, or until yeast is activated and foamy.

Combine the warm milk and melted butter together in another small bowl. (I just added the butter to the measuring cup with the milk, so I wouldn't have to dirty another bowl.)

Place flour and salt in bowl of stand mixer. With dough hook attached, mix for 1 minute on low speed.

Add yeast mixture and milk mixture, and mix on medium speed (or medium-low speed if flour starts flying everywhere) until dough comes together, 2 to 3 minutes.

Cover the dough with a damp towel, and let it rest 20 minutes.

Knead dough with dough hook on medium-low speed until firm, elastic, and smooth, 3 to 6 minutes.

Butter a glass bowl, and scoop the dough into the bowl. Rub the surface of the dough with more butter. Cover the bowl with the damp towel, and let it rise for 45 minutes.

After 45 minutes, leave the dough covered, and start working on the cinnamon- sugar coating. Melt two sticks of butter on the stove. Keep an eye on the butter, and remove it from the heat and pour it in a small bowl once melted. (If it's too hot, you'll burn your fingers when you try to dip the dough in it.)

Grease a tube or monkey bread pan.

Mix sugar and cinnamon together in a medium-size bowl. (I did this in three rounds so the mixture wouldn't get too gunky. If you choose to do this, mix 1 1/4 cups sugar with 4 teaspoons of cinnamon each time.)

Uncover the dough, and turn it out onto your work surface. Press the dough out into a square, making sure to expel any air bubbles as you go.

Using scissors or a bench scraper (highly recommended), cut the dough into small pieces about the size of cherries. (I cut several pieces, dipped them, and then cut more, as opposed to cutting all of the dough at once. This is also a good idea if you have leftover dough and want to turn it into a loaf.)

Dip the dough pieces in the melted butter, and then roll them in the cinnamon sugar.

Place the pieces side by side in the tube pan.

Fill the whole bottom layer evenly, and then move onto the next layer, arranging the pieces the same way, until you have four layers.

Smooth the top layer, and then cover the pan with the damp towel. Let the dough proof (or rise) for another 45 minutes.

If you have leftover dough, gently form it into a ball, and then press the ball out into a square.

Mix together any leftover cinnamon sugar with any leftover butter. Spread this mixture evenly over the square of dough.

Roll the dough toward you, and when you get to the end, use your wrist to pull the dough down and make a seam. Tuck in the ends, and place the loaf into a buttered loaf pan, seam-side down. Rub some butter on top of the loaf. Cover this pan with a damp cloth too, and let it proof for 45 minutes as well.

After 45 minutes, preheat your oven to 375 degrees. When the oven is ready, uncover both pans, and transfer them to the oven.

Bake for 40 minutes, or until golden brown and instant-read thermometer registers 200 degrees.

Transfer pans to wire racks to cool. When cool enough to handle, turn monkey bread out onto a dish or serving platter.

Remove cinnamon bread from loaf pan, and, if desired, brush the top with melted butter, and dip it in cinnamon-sugar.

We were happy we had that loaf of cinnamon bread to placate us while the monkey bread cooled enough to eat.

And then we all know the best thing about monkey bread is the way you eat it. Just pull off pieces, quite like a monkey would, and enjoy.

I imagine that's why it's called monkey bread, though after researching it, it seems like there's no true answer to how it got its name. But I start giggling when I picture what would happen if a group of monkeys got their little hands on a loaf of monkey bread.

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Have you ever made or eaten monkey bread? Do you know this method or the biscuit method? If you had to come up with an explanation for the name, what would you say?

Peaches!

Before apples are taking over my kitchen, I wanted to share this peachy creation with you.  I have The Flavor Bible to thank for inspiring this creation, as my jar of saffron has sat unopened for awhile out of fear ;)  I don't know quite how to describe it...  mellow?  subtle?   I do know that it was delicious, and enjoyed by all!

Saffron Peach Ice Cream
Recipe by Shannon, basic method from The Vegan Scoop

2 cans light coconut milk
2T arrowroot
1/2c evaporated cane juice (I bet brown sugar would also be phenomenal)
scant 1/2t saffron (a pinch)
1T vanilla
3-4 peaches, divided

Measure out 1/4c coconut milk and whisk in 2T arrowroot until smooth, set aside.  Combine the rest of the coconut milk, sugar and saffron in a medium pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. 

While heating, puree 1 large peach in a blender or food processor to yield ~1c puree.

Just as the coconut milk mixture comes to a boil, remove from heat and whisk in arrowroot mixture, vanilla, and peach puree.  Let cool, then refrigerate a few hours until mixture is well chilled.

Dice another peach and set aside.  Churn in an ice cream maker, according to manufacturing directions, adding the diced peach while churning.

Dice the remaining 1-2 peaches and serve with the ice cream!

(You could dice all 3 peaches at once, but they'll start to discolor a bit when stored in the fridge so I wrote the instructions to achieve the brightest colors and peak freshness.)



Thanks to everyone who entered my giveaway and commented on my last two posts!!  Thanks to random.org, the winner of the $90 CSN giveaway is brandi!  Brandi, congrats :)  Shoot me an email, and you'll be ordering some of the Pfalzgraff Cappuccino collection before you know it! 

Hope everyone enjoys the rest of their weekend!  Anyone doing anything fun??

Farmers' Market Finds, September 4

Today I realized that during all these weeks of telling you about my farmers' market finds, I've never told you about my reusable shopping bags.

Sure, I have a closet full of reusable bags touting every brand imaginable from Whole Foods to Eggland's Best to Kenneth Cole, and they all get plenty of use, but the bags I take with me to the farmers' market every Saturday are the Vera Bradley shopping bags my mom got for me.

They're brightly colored, have comfortable shoulder straps, and fit a whole lot of stuff. Two of them fit in a very small bag that I just drop in my purse so I have them with me whenever I need them.

I'd say the only downside to them is that they're the only reusable bags we have that I can't get Jeff to carry and help me share some of the burden! (That's why it's good we have some other -- shall we say more masculine -- ones as well.) He usually has his hands full with Gunner anyways.

Today's Finds

On this particular Saturday, I ended up using both bags for all my finds. I wasn't quite ready for them, but squash and pumpkins were already staring me in the face, and there's no saying no to something this cute.

I don't plan to cook this pumpkin because it's so small, so it'll just be used for a fall decoration. But this guy sparked my interest, and I will be cooking it up. It's called a Red Kuri squash. I've never cooked one before, but Christine from Fresh Local and Best suggested cutting it up, drizzling it with olive oil, and roasting it -- and that sounds like a great plan to me!

In addition to these more autumnal finds, I'm still clinging to summer veggies. I ended up getting more tomatoes, corn, and basil; I finally bought some zucchini and an eggplant; and I got a cucumber for salad.

Doesn't this look like the makings for a great eggplant parm? Stay tuned because I'm hoping to make a homemade roasted plum tomato sauce and eggplant and chicken parm some time this week.

A New Find

Lastly, I discovered metch and Seta's Mediterranean Foods today.

Seta's is a local company based in Jamaica Plain and run by one woman, who was extremely friendly and helpful. Seta had traditional Mediterranean foods for sale like baba ganoush and hummus. But there was one item I didn't recognize called metch. When I mentioned that I'd never heard of it, Seta offered me a sample. It turns out that metch is made with bulghur, tomatoes, parsley, scallions, lemon juice, olive oil, and salt -- and of course I loved it and had to bring some home.  I think it will make a great lunch one day this week.

This was Seta's first time at the Union Square Farmers Market as a guest vendor. She can usually be found at the markets at City Hall Plaza, Copley Square, Davis Square, and Dewey Square. I do hope she comes back to Union Square soon!

As I was thanking Seta and turning to walk away, the Greek salad caught my eye. I spied something yellow that resembled a tomato in the salad and asked what it was. Seta explained that it was a lemon cucumber. I'd never heard of such a thing -- have you?

All in all, I spent yet another lovely morning at the farmers' market. While I am excited for fall, I know I'll miss my warm, sunshine-filled morning strolls down to Starbucks and then back up to the farmers' market with Jeff and Gunner when the cold weather sets in. And I've already noticed the supply and variety of heirloom tomatoes dwindling. But I'm not going to think about that right now, and I'm going to embrace the warm days we have left ahead.

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What did you find at your farmers' market this week? What summer produce will you miss most?

Chicken Braised with Honey, Figs and Vinegar

On Monday night we celebrated the five-year anniversary of my car accident. A bunch of people came over—some I knew, others I did not. My mother, her boyfriend, Charley, and their poodle, Lily, arrived early to help me set up. I cooked a lot, mainly in the morning, before the sticky sheet of heat that has been hovering above Boston this last week began to descend into my kitchen. When we all sat down that night around the big table by the window, the one that overlooks brick buildings and silhouetted steeples glowing in the dusk, we cheered to the small things, to the lucky things, the ones that put us all there, then. There was red wine and white wine, a potato and zucchini torte, an arugula salad and a lot of fine cheese. My favorite dish was the centerpiece: chicken braised with figs, honey and vinegar. I used a recipe from the Zuni Cafe Cookbook, which I took out from the library the week before. The meat was tender and the figs a perfect grainy sweet. The vinegar added just a bit of a bite to the sauce, which was sopped up with hunks of bread fresh from a bakery down the street. We finished with thick slices of plum cake, slathered in whipped cream.


Chicken Braised with Honey, Figs and Vinegar
Adapted from the Zuni Cafe Cookbook

4 chicken legs (thigh plus drumstick)
2 – 3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium-sized onion, peeled, trimmed, and cut into 8 wedges
½ cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons dry white vermouth
about ½ cup chicken stock
1 bay leaf
1 sprig of fresh thyme
a few black peppercorns, barely crushed
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
8 – 10 (or more) fresh figs, cut in half

Rinse and then dry the chicken legs. Trim the excess fat. Season with salt and refrigerate, covered, until ready for use (recommended: 12 – 24 hours in advance).

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Heat oil in a heavy oven proof skilled, preferably large enough that all of the chicken can be held in one single layer. Over medium heat (the oil should sizzle, not pop explosively), brown the chicken, skin side down, until golden brown and crispy, about 10 minutes. Turn the legs over, and cook slightly, about 4 minutes, until just slightly colored. Pour off the fat.

If your skillet is not oven proof, transfer chicken to braising dish, skin side up. Arrange onion wedges in the spaces between the legs. Add the wine, vermouth and enough stock to come to a ½ inch in the dish. Bring to a simmer on the stove. Add the bay leaf, thyme and cracked black pepper.

Place in the oven, uncovered, and cook until meat is tender but not falling off the bone. About 40 minutes. The chicken skin will be bronzed and crisp. The liquid will have reduced by half. Remove from the oven.

Here, the cookbook recommends tilting the pan so that the fat gathers and then spooning off as much as possible. I was confused as to whether or not the chicken should remain in the pot for this, so I decided to remove the legs to a clean plate. I spooned the fat off the sauce as it cooled, and then brought it back to a boil over medium heat, swirling as it reduced to a more syrupy consistency.

Mix the vinegar and honey, and warm slightly. (I did this in the microwave.) Add the figs to the sauce on the stove, and then the vinegar and honey mixture, stirring. Nestle the chicken back into the pan, careful not to squish the figs, and simmer until the sauce is glossy, only a minute or two. The taste should be rich and vibrantly sweet and sour. Add more salt, honey or vinegar to taste.

Serve each chicken leg with two wedges of onion and 4 or 5 fig halves, with a few spoonfuls of sauce.