Pomodori Al Forno

image and recipe via bon appetit

I found myself dipping bread into the oil while the tomatoes cooked, and no tomatoes made it through the full standing time, but I did make the mistake of halving the recipe! This is amazing. Anni I devoured it.

*err on the side of extra spice and seasoning!

Ingredients

• 1 cups (or more) olive oil, divided
• 2 pounds plum tomatoes, halved lengthwise, seeded. (Canned or fresh, depending on the season and convenience. Canned works beautifully.)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano (I used fresh and doubled this)
• 3/4 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 to 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh Italian parsley
• Aged goat cheese (such as Bûcheron)
• 1 baguette, thinly sliced crosswise, toasted

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 250°F. Pour 1/2 cup oil into 13x9x2-inch glass or ceramic baking dish. Arrange tomatoes in dish, cut side up. Drizzle with remaining 1/2 cup oil. Sprinkle with oregano, sugar, and salt. Bake 1 hour. Using tongs, turn tomatoes over. Bake 1 hour longer. Turn tomatoes over again. Bake until deep red and very tender, transferring tomatoes to plate when soft (time will vary, depending on ripeness of tomatoes), about 15 to 45 minutes longer.
• Layer tomatoes in medium bowl, sprinkling garlic and parsley over each layer; reserve oil in baking dish. Drizzle tomatoes with reserved oil, adding more if necessary to cover. Let stand at room temperature 2 hours. DO AHEAD Cover; chill up to 5 days. Bring to room temperature before serving.
• Serve with aged goat cheese and toasted baguette slices.

Peach and Cornmeal Upside-Down Cake

I tried this recipe from Martha Stewart and it turned out great. I used frozen peaches because it is what I had, and skipped the lavender. It tasted a lot like peach cobbler.

Ingredients

• 5 1/2 ounces (1 stick plus 3 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 medium ripe peaches (about 1 1/4 pounds), skins on, pitted, and cut into 3/4-inch wedges
• 1 cup coarse yellow cornmeal or polenta
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh lavender, or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried lavender
• 1 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup heavy cream

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt 3 tablespoons butter in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat, using a pastry brush to coat sides with butter as it melts. Sprinkle 1/4 cup sugar evenly over bottom of skillet, and cook until sugar starts to bubble and turn golden brown, about 3 minutes. Arrange peaches in a circle at edge of skillet, on top of sugar. Arrange the remaining wedges in the center to fill. Reduce heat to low, and cook until juices are bubbling and peaches begin to soften, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from heat.
2. Whisk cornmeal, flour, baking powder, lavender, and salt in a medium bowl. Beat remaining stick of butter and 3/4 cup sugar with a mixer on high speed, until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to medium. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down sides of bowl. Mix in vanilla and cream. Reduce speed to low, and beat in cornmeal mixture in 2 additions.
3. Drop large spoonfuls of batter over peaches, and spread evenly using an offset spatula. Bake until golden brown and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 20 to 22 minutes. Transfer skillet to a wire rack, and let stand for 10 minutes. Run a knife or spatula around edge of cake. Quickly invert cake onto a cutting board. Tap bottom of skillet to release peaches, and carefully remove skillet. Reposition peach slices on top of cake. Let cool slightly before serving.

recipe and image via Martha Stewart

Everything but the Kitchen Sink Pita Sandwich

This is an old favorite that is going to turn into a summer regular at our place. The picture looks kind of unappetizing (the beets turn things pink) but it is excellent! The kids needed a bit of encouragement to start, then Max ate his entire pita.

Veggie + More Pitas

Combine:

Cheese and meat of choice, chopped or shredded. (I used some deli turkey and leftover shredded chicken + Havarti in the pita pictured.)

The fun part: Veggies! This is a great way to use up fresh raw produce without feeling like you are eating loads of raw vegetables. For the pictured pita I grated 2 beets, 1 carrot, and 1 zucchini and then chopped up some lettuce and avocado into small pieces to make it more palatable for the kids. I might have added something else and forgotten, but you could throw in any other veggie, sprout, or seed and it would be delicious. Grating the fresh veggies really makes it easy to enjoy a lot; you actually don't realize what you are eating which is super helpful with kids.

Toss with dressing of choice. You don't need that much so taste as you add and mix (Ranch or Italian work perfectly, even combined.)

Stuff filling in pita bread (I like the smaller wheat ones) with extra lettuce for adults or cheese for kids. I put dressing on the side as dip for the kids to make it funner.

Cherry Bars

No picture - yep, that's right - because we all know my photography skills are lacking, but you'll have to take my word for it that these are good even though they sound somewhat questionable. Essentially, these are blondies with maraschino cherries - and really quite luscious.

2 c. Brown Sugar
1 square Butter or Margarine
2 Eggs
2 c. Flour
2 t. Baking Powder
1/2 t. Salt
1 t. Vanilla
3/4 c. Chopped Nuts (opt.)
1 c. Maraschino Cherries (well-drained and cut in half)
1 c. Coconut (opt.)

Mix sugar, butter & eggs. Add all other ingredients except cherries. Mix, then add cherries and mix very little.

Spread in greased 9 x 13 pan and bake for 30 min. at 350.

My Mom's Sugar Cookies

I think some of you have this, but a friend requested it so I thought I would post it here. These are our absolute favorite sugar cookies!

Cream together:
1 1/2 c. butter (I usually beat this first)
1 1/2 c. sugar

Beat till light and fluffy

add:
2 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla

Beat till very light and fluffy then add 2 tbsp. milk or cream

Sift together and add:
4 cups flour
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Chill dough at least 1 hour

Roll out and cut out. Do not roll them too thin or they will be crispy

Bake at 375 degrees, roughly 8-10 minutes

UNDER COOK SLIGHTLY!! If the edges start to brown take them out and get them on a cooling rack!

Frosting:

Cream together:
Roughly 1/2-3/4 cup salted butter
1/2 cube (4 oz) cream cheese

Beat in powdered sugar till it is sweet enough
Then add 1 tsp or so of vanilla and milk or cream till the consistency is spreadable

Frost and Enjoy!

Rolo Turtle Pretzels

Image and recipe via Hostess with the Mostess

I've seen this done with varying kinds of Hershey kisses with m&m's smooshed on top (the white striped mint ones are delicious with this!), but this is a new combo for me. You could probably come up with all sorts of combinations for this.

Ingredients:

Rolo chocolate candies
Mini pretzels
Nuts - toasted pecans/almonds/hazelnuts/walnuts

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350

1. Upwrap your Rolos. Place pretzels on baking sheet. Top with a Rolo.

2. Bake in oven for 3-5 minutes, until the chocolate just begins to melt. The Rolo should be soft but not completely melted.

3. Remove from oven, place on cooling rack and immediately squish the chocolate with a nut.

Whole Wheat Waffles

These are the best and lightest whole wheat waffles you will ever have. I think they are better than most white flour waffles. This is kind of a "Choose Your Own Adventure" recipe, and any way will be delicious! I usually halve the recipe for the four of us. Also, if you like the convenience of a mix you can combine all the dry ingredients in a bag and just add the wet stuff later.

We had blueberries in ours this morning. That is what the dark spots in the picture are.

Combine:

2 C. Whole Wheat flour
1/4 C. Sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
2 1/2 tsp Baking Powder

add:

1/4 C melted butter or oil (I use butter)

3 Egg whites or 2 eggs (I use one whole egg with the half recipe and 2 whole eggs with the whole recipe. I figure my kids still need all the good stuff. You can separate the eggs and beat and fold in the whites at the end for extra good texture. It is good either way.)

Add Buttermilk till the consistency is right. With our waffle iron, these cook better if the batter is thicker. You'll figure it to after you make them a few times, or taste each waffle as you cook and adjust.

Stir completely without over stirring. Consistency should be not thick and not runny. The half recipe usually makes just under four cups of batter for me.

--Small frozen blueberries are a great addition, but we usually eat them plain. I have also started adding flax seed meal and wheat germ with the flour, probably about 1/3 cup or so for a half batch. The waffles are still light and delicious, but I would suggest making them plain first to get a feel for the batter.

Salsa

Here is the Salsa recipe that I have been meaning to email a couple of you. Sorry it took so long. It is so easy. Just be prepared to receive this every Christmas even if you start to make it yourself! If you have any questions let me know!

1 #10 (about 102 oz.)can stewed tomatoes

1 7 3/4 oz. can El Pato sauce (yellow can)- found in the hispanic section of grocer

1 4 oz can diced green chilies

5 bunches of fresh chopped green onions

1 bunch of cilantro- chopped

Sprinkle garlic salt and cracked pepper over the top, to taste.

I put all of the ingredients in a large bowl. Then pour the garlic salt and pepper over the top, just enough to create a layer on top. Then I blend about 3 cups at a time to get a good consistency.

Butternut Squash Risotto

I got this recipe straight from Cook's Illustrated's website and it is wonderful! You can leave the spinach out if you want, and dried herbs work fine, just halve the amount.

Yes, the food "styling" is a little cheesy, but Trev and I had been discussing all the things you could do with the risotto (we are weird like that), especially when it was leftover for the next day, and I decided to have fun.

Infusing the chicken broth with the squash's seeds and fibers helps to reinforce the earthy squash flavor. We found that a 2-pound squash consistently yields a cup or so more than the 3 1/2 cups in step 1; this can be added to the skillet along with the squash scrapings in step 2. To make this dish vegetarian, vegetable broth can be used instead of chicken broth, but the resulting risotto will have more pronounced sweetness.

INGREDIENTS

2	tablespoons olive oil , plus 1 teaspoon
1	butternut squash (medium, about 2 pounds), peeled, seeded (fibers and seeds reserved), and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 3 1/2 cups)
3/4	teaspoon table salt
3/4	teaspoon ground black pepper
4	cups low-sodium chicken broth
1	cup water
4	ounces baby spinach
4	tablespoons unsalted butter
2	small onions , chopped very fine (about 1 1/2 cups)
2	medium cloves garlic , minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 2 teaspoons)
2	cups Arborio rice
1 1/2	cups dry white wine
1 1/2	ounces grated Parmesan cheese (about 3/4 cup)
2	tablespoons minced fresh sage leaves
1/4	teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg
1/4	cup pine nuts , toasted in small, dry skillet over medium heat until golden and fragrant, about 5 minutes

1. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering but not smoking. Add about 3 1/2 cups squash in even layer and cook without stirring until golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes; stir in 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until squash is tender and browned, about 5 minutes longer. Transfer squash to bowl and set aside.2. Return skillet to medium heat; add reserved squash fibers and seeds and any leftover diced squash. Cook, stirring frequently to break up fibers, until lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Transfer to large saucepan and add chicken broth and water; cover saucepan and bring mixture to simmer over high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low to maintain bare simmer.3. While broth mixture is simmering, add 1 teaspoon olive oil to now-empty skillet and swirl to coat. Add 4 ounces baby spinach and cook, covered, over medium heat, until leaves begin to wilt, about 2 minutes. Uncover and cook, stirring constantly, until fully wilted, about 30 seconds. Transfer spinach to mesh strainer; set aside. 4. Melt 3 tablespoons butter in now-empty skillet over medium heat; when foaming subsides, add onions, garlic, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Add rice to skillet and cook, stirring frequently, until grains are translucent around edges, about 3 minutes. Add wine and cook, stirring frequently, until fully absorbed, 4 to 5 minutes. 5. Meanwhile, strain hot broth through fine-mesh strainer into medium bowl, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible. Return strained broth to saucepan and discard solids in strainer; cover saucepan and set over low heat to keep broth hot. 6. When wine is fully absorbed, add 3 cups hot broth and half of reserved squash to rice. Simmer, stirring every 3 to 4 minutes, until liquid is absorbed and bottom of pan is almost dry, about 12 minutes.7. Stir in about 1/2 cup hot broth and cook, stirring constantly, until absorbed, about 3 minutes; repeat with additional broth 2 or 3 more times, until rice is al dente. Off heat, stir in remaining 1 tablespoon butter, Parmesan, sage, and nutmeg; drain excess liquid from spinach and gently fold in spinach and remaining cooked squash. If desired, add up to 1/4 cup additional hot broth to loosen texture of risotto. Top individual servings of risotto with toasted pine nuts; serve immediately.