Salami and Cheese Baguette

When you eat something glorious, like the #3 sandwich at Larchmont Village Wine, but 3,000 miles of distance prevents you from eating it regularly, you've got to get creative and MAKE IT AT HOME.  Sorry for shouting, but I guess I'm yelling at you to MAKE THIS AT YOUR HOME because it is just such a divine sandwich.  Soppressata salami, manchego cheese, mixed greens, a sundried tomato spread and oil and vinegar all live between a sliced crusty baguette.  You can add things, like avocado (which I did obviously) but it truly is magnificent on its own.  

To make the sandwich at home, first make your sundried tomato spread.  I found a delicious store-bought paste that I combined with mayo, but if you can't find that you can finely chop (or process) jarred sundried tomatoes instead.  The ratio of mayo to s.d.t. is really up to you, but I did about 1/4 cup to 2 tablespoons.  I made two sandwiches and had some extra spread, which I will happily use up another day in a wrap or on breakfast toast.    

The most important part of this sandwich is the bread.  Go out of your way to find GOOD stuff, because that's what Ina would do.  No but really, it makes a difference.  No one wants a challenge when eating a sandwich, so try to find a crisp, crusty exterior that's soft inside and easy to pull apart (with your mouth).  I went with a standard baguette, but ciabatta would be yummy too.  

Slice your bread, and slather one side with your spread and the other side with mashed avocado (if using).  I always salt my mashed avocado, FOR YOUR INFORMATION.

Build up your sandwich with salami, sliced manchego and mixed greens (in this case I used arugula). Drizzle with just a touch of olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  

Enjoy immediately with your favorite chip and flavored seltzer (or red wine if you're my mother and you're not pregnant).  This sandwich is a delight and you won't regret it!  Until I'm back in California and can get the real deal, I will be making these often.  

Muffuletta Sandwiches

Hello.  I love sandwiches.  I love them like Joey Tribbiani loves them, and yes, I had to google how to spell "Tribbiani."  I think if I had to pick, a good Italian sandwich would be my favorite.  I still dream at night about "The Godmother" from Bay Cities in Santa Monica.  It is literal PERFECTION. Do you have a favorite?  I also love a good turkey, mayo, lettuce and tomato on a soft roll stuffed with crunchy potato chips.  Should we talk about sandwiches for another hour?  No?  Ok.

Recently, I went to see Dave Matthews Band at Jones Beach on Long Island.  I know!  I did a cool thing!  I'm still fun!  We even rented a party bus and went early to tailgate, which is where these sandwiches come in.  I wanted to bring something that would be easy to eat yet robust - something to, you know, stand up to all the adult beverages we brought.  These.  Were.  Perfect.  

The "muffuletta" sandwich is usually served on ciabatta or focaccia and consists of various Italian meats, cheeses and a signature olive salad.  You could probably buy a store-bought version of the salad that would work, but for this recipe I made my own and it was totally worth it.  I only wish I had doubled it so I could have leftovers for dipping with crusty bread.  Since it's too hot and humid EVERYWHERE to cook, you should probably make these sandwiches and call it a day.  Joey Tribbiani would be all like this...   

  

{You can find the recipe HERE.}

I see you, Jimmy.  

You can't hide.  

Flattening the sandwiches.

Party bus ready!

Mexican Street Corn

School is winding down over here, the weather is (slowly) getting warmer, my daughter won't take off her ballet recital costume, and The Voice finale is next week... meaning I'll get my husband back... also meaning I can practically smell summer grilling season.  We're the type of family that fires up the barbecue in the dead of winter, but there's obviously something different about those charred, smoky meals when you're eating them outside.  In anticipation of al fresco style dining, the other day I made a grilled corn side dish that would pair perfectly with BBQ chicken or these tacos.

Often this type of corn is smothered with rich mayo, but we've been trying not to eat foods that are high in cholesterol.  This is why I was thrilled to pair up with Best Foods and work with their Carefully Crafted dressing which is free from eggs, cholesterol and artificial flavors and colors.  It makes such a difference in my day when I don't have to stress about what my children are putting into their mouths!  (So I can concentrate on all the OTHER stresses... like potty training.)  

This corn is so delicious and you can feel good about eating it.  It's also very easy to make: simply grill corn and then roll the cobs in a combo of greek yogurt, Carefully Crafted dressing, cotija cheese,  chili powder, cilantro and fresh lime juice!  You should totally make this for dinner after your son's Field Day or whatever end-of-the-year activity you're celebrating right now :)

Mexican Street Corn

Serves 6

Printable Recipe

6 ears shucked corn

1/4 cup Carefully Crafted dressing & sandwich spread

1/4 cup greek yogurt

1/2 cup crumbled cotija cheese, plus more for serving

1/2 teaspoon chili powder, plus more for serving

1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro

Fresh lime juice (1/2 a lime), plus more wedges for serving

Salt and pepper to taste

Spray outdoor or indoor grill with grilling spray.  Heat grill to medium-high and while grill is heating, combine the Carefully Crafted dressing, greek yogurt, cotija cheese, chili powder, cilantro and the juice from a half of a lime in a bowl and stir until combined.  Grill corn, turning until all sides are cooked, roughly 8-10 minutes total.  Immediately roll corn in dressing and place on platter.  Sprinkle with more cheese and chili powder, and season to taste with salt and pepper. 

#BePicky #Sponsored            

Everything Bagel Butter

I just died.  I'm in heaven now, and in case you're curious, heaven is a cloud of buttery, salty, flavorful bagel butter.  Sure, it's kind of greasy here in heaven, and everyone's hair looks horrible, but butter heaven exists, because I'm there.  Want to hear more?  Or are you weirded out by me? 

The other day a friend - a BRILLIANT FRIEND - sent me this recipe for a butter that's bursting with all those seasonings you love that stick to an Everything bagel: poppy seeds, sesame seeds and minced onion and garlic flakes.  Did I mention the butter is salted?  OMG.  

You just mix it all together, roll it in parchment, let it harden in the freezer, and you have the most delicious butter... perfect for spreading on crackers, melting on veggies or smothered over your favorite bagel.  I highly recommend you make this for the weekend!

DIY Vanilla Salt

Vanilla Salt.  It's a thing!  You may already know about Vanilla Salt, but I did not until a few days ago, so please do not burst my bubble of excitement.  What a perfect topping for cookies and bars (like these, in fact).  And it would also make a great homemade gift this holiday season.    

I followed this tutorial, however, I did not use Grey Celtic Sea Salt.  I do not have that in my pantry, and I didn't feel like braving our horrendous Whole Foods parking lot just to get it.  So I used regular old coarse sea salt and it turned out just fine.  Easy peasy!      

Healthy Burger Toppings

We eat a lot of burgers in our house, especially in the summer.  Turkey burgers (here & here), chicken burgers (here & here & here), veggie burgers (here & here), fish burgers (here) or your classic and DELICIOUS beef burger.  And while I see nothing wrong with topping these burgers with cheese, bacon or onions and mushrooms (sautéed in butter, obviously), I thought I'd change it up a bit and search for healthier and more unique alternatives.

Instead of lettuce, try chopped bok choy sautéed in garlic.  Instead of pickles, try lightly sautéed yellow squash or zucchini.  It's almost impossible for me to eat a burger without tomatoes and avocado, so I had to include those.  But other ideas: roasted red peppers, pickled carrots or crispy kale.  And instead of basic ketchup and mustard, I tried out two different greek yogurt toppings: one with a dash of sriracha and the other with lime juice and lime zest.  Also, the vessel?  One half of a toasted English muffin instead of a bun.  Not exactly easy to eat, but delicious nonetheless.   

Doesn't that look pretty?  All assembled and ready to eat, yes?!  Well SECONDS after this photo was shot, this happened...

The glamorous life of a food blogger... always in a rush to photograph your food and then EAT it.  Oh, and don't worry, I put it all back on my plate and did just that.  Judge away!

Crispy Capers

I am a big fan of texture when it comes to salads or pasta - a little extra crunch can transform a dish.  I'm also a big fan of salt, so it's no wonder that I love these Crispy Capers.  They're also the easiest thing in the world to make.  Oh, except for I burnt the first batch and nearly set off the smoke detector.  But the second batch was the easiest thing in the world to make!  A couple tablespoons of canola oil, a bottle of drained and dried capers, a few minutes over medium-high heat... done.  Let them dry on some paper towel and they're ready to sprinkle over pasta or salad.  Or you can just snack on them, like I do, with everything in life. 

They are also delicious over roasted cauliflower...

Mushroom Crumbs + Food Processor Review

As I mentioned earlier in the week, the department store Kohl's let me pick out a few items to review from their Food Network line of products.  I was like a kid in a virtual candy store trying to choose, but one of the items I finally decided on was this Mini Food Processor (just searched for it online and it might be sold out!) because I didn't own one.  This little guy holds 3 cups of food, has chopping, slicing and shredding options, is dishwasher safe and comes in a bunch of colors (which is usually important to us gals).  I've only tried the chopping function so far but it worked like a dream!    

I used my new food processor to make something I'm going to call Mushroom Crumbs.  Like bread crumbs, only these are mushrooms.  Do you understand?  Great, you're smart.  These would be a great gluten-free alternative to bread crumbs, actually!  But I sprinkled these on top of a hot dog that was placed in a regular old, gluten-packed bun.  It, was, delicious.  All I did was throw some sliced mushrooms into my food processor, chopping them finely.  Then I heated a thin layer of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat, tossed the mushroom crumbs in, and lightly fried them for roughly 7 minutes until they got golden brown...       

I removed them from the pan using a slotted spoon, let them rest on some paper towel, and seasoned them with salt and pepper.  Done.  

p.s. Always soak your hot dogs in beer prior to grilling.  ALWAYS.  

**Now remember, this week Kohl's is giving away $500 to a lucky winner.  All you have to do to enter the sweepstakes is tweet about your favorite hot dog topping or show a photo on Instagram, using the handle @Kohls and the hashtag #CookWithKohls.  What a simple way to make yourself eligible... DO IT!  And there's still one day left to enter my $25 Kohl's Giveaway, so do that too.   

Peanut Sesame Noodles + Homemade Sriracha

Lately, I've been wanting to eat take-out Chinese food from those paper cartons.  I want to shovel food in my mouth using chopsticks, like they do in the movies when something bad happens.  I'm not saying I want something bad to happen, I just want to enjoy a lot of Chinese take-out, in my mouth, while watching Pretty Woman.  Is that okay with you?

Problem is, there is not great take-out Chinese in the Santa Monica area (feel free to correct me if I'm wrong).  So I had to make my own version of Asian-style take-out, even if I was paper carton-less.  I followed this recipe for Peanut Sesame Noodles, and they were delicious!  The sauce was everything I wanted it to be - smooth, spicy, nutty with a hint of sweet.  But what made it excellent was the Homemade Sriracha I stirred it all together with.  A good friend, Marianne, makes her own and hands them out as gifts and I'm telling you, the store-bought version does not come close. She shared her recipe with us below... yay!

Homemade Sriracha

(Makes 1 jar)

Printable Recipe

Adapted from Gwyneth Paltrow's My Father's Daughter

1 1/4 cups peeled garlic

1 pound red jalapeños, steamed and sliced into thin rings (seeds removed - the more seeds: the hotter the sauce)

2 1/4 cups rice vinegar

1/4 cup brown rice syrup

2 T sea salt

1 T arrowroot

1 T fish sauce (or soy sauce)

In a small sauce pan, add garlic and cover with water.  Bring to a boil and immediately drain.  Cool the garlic under running water and return it to saucepan.  Cover again with water and repeat blanching process. 

Thinly slice the blanched garlic and combine with jalapeños and vinegar in a large pot.  Bring to a boil, cook for 3 minutes and then remove from heat.  Add the brown rice syrup and salt and stir to combine.  Let the mixture sit undisturbed for 1 hour to steep and cool. 

Whiz the mixture in a powerful blender until smooth.  Return the pureed sauce to the pot, bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes, skimming off any foam until the sauce is slightly reduced and has some body.      

In a small bowl, dissolve the arrowroot with 1 tablespoon of lukewarm water.  Whisk into the simmering sauce and cool for 2 minutes more or until sauce has thickened.  

Remove the sauce from heat, let it cool slightly and stir in the fish sauce.  Store in a screw top jar in the fridge for up to 6 months. 

I chose to toss my Peanut Noodles with diced red bell pepper, cucumber, green onions, cilantro and chopped peanuts.

Olive Tapenade Spaghetti

I have been pretty creative this week when it comes to dinner.  You can send my medal via mail.  I accept cookies.  The other night, I took pasta and olive tapenade and created dinner!  Make pasta and then scoop in some olive tapenade.  Oh, and then throw in some toasted pine nuts and grated Parmesan cheese.  Salty, crunchy, cheesy... again, you can give your mail carrier pigeon my award... he knows where I live.  BUT!  I'm going to bake next week.  More than once.  So stay tuned... and have a nice weekend, why don't you?!      

Balsamic Glaze

Have you guys tried Trader Joe's Balsamic Glaze?  It's stupid good, or "sick" as my 4-year-old now likes to describe happy things.  Deep in flavor, not overly sweet or vinegar-y, and a perfectly thick consistency.  I use it as dressing ALL the time.  Just drizzle it over your salad with a splash of good olive oil (yup, I strive to sound like Ina) and that's all you need.  Marinate your chicken, or serve it over ice cream and fresh berries (which I have yet to do).  The other night, I used it to roast vegetables (with olive oil, salt and pepper).  It was so perfect, and much better than using watery balsamic vinegar.  

Sorry for all the iPhone photos as of late.  I lost my camera card and my to-do list says BUY ANOTHER.  My to-do list currently says 347 things.  I hate my to-do list and it's stupid face.  

Sriracha Salt

Besides the fact that I don't really know how to say "Sriracha" - I'm obsessed with it.  Now, just yesterday, a friend gifted me a bottle of homemade Sriracha Salt.  WHAT!?!?!?  That was my reaction. Just the smell of it made me do a happy dance in my kitchen (no really, there's evidence of said dance on my iPhone).  She used this recipe, which looks simple enough!  If you're a fan of the spicy condiment, you should probably make a big batch of this salt and put it on everything.  I sprinkled it on my salad last night, DELISH.  Can you imagine a margarita with this stuff rimming the glass?!?  I feel another happy dance coming on... I've gotta go.  

Thank you for the feedback on my new site design!  I'm sort of sick of the "label" section (do you use it?) and I'm trying to brainstorm some new organizational elements.  Ideas are welcome : )    

Tomato Paste 101

I learned an interesting thing in this month's Bon Appetit magazine.  Would you like to learn it with me? Let's learn together!  (I'm a Room Mom at my son's preschool, and learning is F U N!)

Many recipes call for tomato paste, and we throw it in without giving it much thought.  But BA told me that if you let it cook in a little light oil for a few minutes, until it caramelizes in color, it will develop its flavor and add richness to whatever you're cooking.  In fact, you can take a whole can (or tube) of paste, cook the entire thing, freeze it in ice cube trays, and then you'll have one ready the next time you're making sauce!  Neato!  We learned a thing!   

Tomato Butter

Remember when I told you I planted some tomatoes using a plastic toy shovel?  I had no idea what I was doing, which is apparent because now my rosemary is buried underneath the tomatoes.  Who knew tomato plants got to be so big??  Oh you did?  Show off.  And guess what??  Three are growing!  Three!  I gardened!  I am a harvester, a farmer, Siri Plain and Tall!  

Anyway, have you found yourself with a surplus of tomatoes lately?  If you garden, I'm sure you have.  Or maybe you can't stop buying them at the market because of how fresh and juicy they look.  I was very excited to see that Bon Appetit devoted a whole section to tomato recipes this month, one of the easier ones being this Tomato Butter.  Broil, puree, stir - it's as simple as that.  Keep it in your fridge for pastas or sandwiches or steaks.       

Also perfect for smothering over grilled fish...