Linguine with Grilled Tomatoes

I have (I think) some good qualities, but as my friends and family will tell you, flexibility is not one of them. I am very attached to all my lists and schedules. Once I have something on my calendar I am very cranky about changing it. Which leads me to the story behind this recipe. It's a scrumptious and simple one, and the key ingredient, the one that makes it sing, are the grilled tomatoes. The smoky taste that you can only get when you char them a little bit on the grill -- that's what sets this terrific, easy little recipe apart. It's a little bit chancy to plan for this recipe in February in the Northeast, but last weekend it was edging up towards 50 degrees and it felt like maybe spring was around the corner. So I bought me some plum tomatoes and put it on the menu for today.

Then I woke up this morning, looked outside my window and saw this where my back yard used to be.

My trees all looked like they belonged in a Dr. Suess book.

The dog was delirious with happiness. But all I could think of was my grilled tomato linguine dinner.

Because my grill looked like this.

I saw my lovely dinner vanishing right before my eyes. Normal people would have simply figured out something else for dinner. But I have the inflexibility thing going on. What happened next is why I am hopelessly and forever head over heels for the Southern husband.

Those are actual wet, cold snowflakes raining down on him as he grills up those tomatoes for me.

I am one lucky, inflexible girl.

OK, so back to the recipe -- as I mentioned earlier, the key to this whole recipe is the wonderful taste of the grilled tomatoes. You take plum tomatoes, cut them in half, scoop out the seeds and drop them in a bowl with some oil oil, some salt and fresh ground pepper and some thyme -- fresh if you have it, dried if you don't. Fire up that grill and cook them until they are soft and a little bit charred, and then drop them back into that same bowl.

Meantime, cook up some linguine in salted water until it is al dente. Drain it, add some nice olive oil, some fresh grated Parmesan (use the good stuff!) and some fresh ground pepper. Now take those glorious grilled tomatoes, chop them up into pieces and add them with whatever juice and oil has accumulated in the bottom of the bowl and add all of that to the pasta. Toss and divide among warmed dishes...pasta heaven. Any time of year!

LINGUINE WITH GRILLED TOMATOES, adapted from Everyday Foods

• 3 pounds plum tomatoes, halved and seeded
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• Salt and pepper

• 1 pound linguine
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan, plus more for serving

1. Heat grill to high. Toss tomatoes with 3 tablespoons olive oil and thyme. Season with salt and pepper.

2. Starting with cut side down, grill until soft and charred on both sides, 5-10 minutes.

3. Return to bowl and cut into rough pieces with kitchen shears.

4. Cook linguine in salted water until al dente. Drain and return to pot.

5. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil, parmesan and grilled tomatoes and toss.

6. Serve at once garnished with additional parmesan as needed.

Click here for printable recipe

Payday Cookie Bars

I have learned so many, many things from the Southern husband. For example: convertibles are light-years better than regular cars. Few meals in life are better than crayfish steamed in Old Bay spices and chased with Dixie beer. All the words to more Springsteen songs than I can count. And Payday candy bars.

Before he bought me my first Payday bar, lo these many years ago, I foolishly thought that all candy bars needed to involve chocolate. Not so...the wonderful Payday bar is peanuts and caramel with not a bit of chocolate anywhere, and it is GOOD. You don't see them around too often, but when you do, it's well worth buying one. Or two. So I was so excited to when I ran across this recipe for a cookie version of a Payday bar.

This is the third dessert in a row that I have made with yellow cake mix as a base...what does this MEAN? Probably that I should start buying yellow cake mix at Costco. (Any excuse to go to Costco!) Anyway, this is a three-step recipe, and each of the steps are easy -- honestly, the hardest part of this entire thing was cutting the final product into squares. This is rich and dense and chewy, so cut those squares small. A little of this fabulous recipe goes a very long way!

So with thanks to The Lonely Baker, where I first spied this recipe, here they are!

PAYDAY COOKIE BARS

Layer One: The Crust

1 box yellow cake mix
2/3 cup butter, softened
1 egg

Mix all of the ingredients, press into a slightly greased 9X13 pan. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until the edges are golden.

Layer Two: The Marshmallows

2 cups of mini marshmallows

Sprinkle marshmallows over top of crust. Bake for another 5 minutes

Layer Three: The Peanutty Deliciousness

1 bag peanut butter chips
2 tablespoons butter
2/3 cup corn syrup
2 cups crispy rice cereal
2 cups salted peanuts

Melt chips, butter and corn syrup in a saucepan. Remove from heat and stir in cereal and peanuts. Poor over base and spread evenly. Cool, cut into squares. Small squares. Trust me on this.

Click here for printable recipe

Penne with Gorgonzola Tomato Sauce

This blog started out with me trying and then posting new recipes that I had tried out and loved, and a lot of what I put up here is still exactly that. But a few months into it, it occurred to me that I should also be sharing some of the tried and true beloved recipes that I have made again and again over the years. And so I started a category called "Kate's Favorites." (you can find it on the right hand side of the blog web page, under the heading "What's Cooking At Framed." These are all the recipes up on the blog that are my true blue, time-tested, best friends of recipes. The ones I would take with me to a desert island. This is assuming there is a Fairway supermarket on the desert island, and if I can also take my crockpot and my La Crueset dutch oven.)

Anyway, this pasta recipe is one of the oldest and best recipes in this category. I got it out of Bon Appetit magazine about one million years ago, before Bon Appetit got all fancy and frou-frou (I miss the old Bon Appetit!! Why do they always have to CHANGE things that are working just fine?? Are you LISTENING to me, Facebook owners??), and I have made it over and over and over again ever since. It's a great way to use up a piece of blue cheese. You can jazz it up by mixing in shredded chicken or chopped shrimp. If it is fresh basil season it is pure heaven on a plate, but it's pretty dang great with the dried kind too. It's one of those happy, cooperative recipes that merrily adapts to whatever you end up tossing into it. I love recipes like that, don't you? And it's also just delectable in its original form.

So one of my favorites, from me to you. Enjoy.

PENNE WITH GORGONZOLA TOMATO SAUCE, adapted from Bon Appetit

• 3 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 medium onion, chopped

• 4 garlic cloves, chopped

• 1 14 1/2-ounce can Italian plum tomatoes, drained, chopped

• 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil or 1 tablespoon dried, crumbled

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature

• 6 ounce Gorgonzola cheese

• 1 pound penne pasta

• 1 cup freshly grated Romano or Parmesan cheese

1. Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add chopped onion and garlic and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in chopped tomatoes and basil. Cook until mixture thickens, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, using fork, beat butter with Gorgonzola until blended.

3. Cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain well. Return pasta to pot.

4. Whisk Gorgonzola mixture into tomato sauce. Add sauce to pasta and stir to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with Romano and serve.

Click here for printable recipe

Monster Cookies!

This one comes courtesy of my friend L, who is as sweet as these cookies. We had them at our little Super Bowl shindig recently, and people who never eat dessert (you know who you are!) ate them. People who always eat dessert ate them. People ate them before, during and after dinner. Let's just say they were a monster hit.

So of course I cornered her and pleaded shamelessly for the recipe. And unlike some of my other sweet friends (you know who you are!) she happily handed it over. And when I looked it over, I realized that the recipe is almost as fun as the cookies. It's a mix and match approach, and what I mean by that this this: You start with a cookie dough base made up of butter, sugar, flour, peanut butter and oatmeal. Then you get to pick THREE of the following to mix in....

Walnuts. (Although I'm sure if you are a pecan or an almond person, those would be okay too.)

Chocolate chips. The old classic.

Butterscotch chips. Love 'em.

Peanut butter chips. Yes, I know they look just like the butterscotch ones. You will just have to trust me on this, and know that I sampled both chips carefully, all in the name of science.

M&Ms. Mmmmmmmm&Ms. Yum.

Raisins. I gotta tell you, with the other choices, I am afraid for the raisins. Hang in there raisins, I am sure there are some healthy people out there who will pick you and the walnuts.

Once you have made your final selection, you mix 'em into to your cookie dough, bake them, put them on a plate, and stand back. Now as for the recipe below, I have not changed one word of it because I would not want to mess with perfection, and because I think the color commentary in there is just classic. L has many, many sisters, and clearly the configuration of the monster cookies is a point of family debate in her house. I see that the amounts of the mix-ins are left up to the baker to play with. I also see that L went with not three of the mix-in choices but FOUR. This is why I love this girl.

Monster Cookies. No Fear.

MONSTER COOKIES!

Preheat oven: 350˙ | Prep: 20 minutes | Cooking: 8-10 minutes | Cooling: 15 minutes
| Eating: 2-3 minutes

2 sticks of butter, softened
2 cups of white sugar
2 1/2 cups of brown sugar
6 eggs
3 cups of creamy peanut butter (one sister uses crunchy, I don't know what the difference is)
9 cups of oatmeal

Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar in large mixer bowl until creamy.

Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually add peanut butter, stir in oatmeal.

Add: Choose three:

Milk chocolate chips
Butterscotch chips
Baking M&M's
Peanut butter chips
Raisins
Walnuts

I use: 3/4 bag of butterscotch chips, 1/2 bag chocolate chips, 1/3 bag peanut butter chips, 1 cup of walnuts. People seem to like the butterscotch taste. My sister uses: 2 cups of chocolate chips, 1/2 lb mini M&M's and then picks one or two of the others, adding amounts to her taste. But what does she know?!

Click here for printable recipe

BBQ Sandwiches!

Lots of you have asked me what was on the menu at my house for the Super Bowl, and I know it is already practically baseball season now, but better late than never.... Like the Saints, I ended up being a big winner on Super Bowl Sunday because my awesome group of family and friends came with just about everything anyone could possibly want in terms of delicious food that could be eaten while shouting at the television screen.

Here's what we had:

BBQ Sandwiches, as seen above. Both the shredded beef brisket bbq and the fantastic sauce was made by my dad, who is a long-time, unswervingly loyal Redskins fan, and my hero. Recipe below -- thanks, Daddy!

Coleslaw, made by yours truly. We like the vinegar-based kind as opposed to the really creamy kind. It's awesome with the BBQ sandwiches. You can even put a spoonful of it ON your bbq sandwich, if you are really wild and crazy.

Monster Cookies, made by my friend L. There almost aren't words to describe the wonder of these. People who don't even like dessert loved these cookies. People who DO like dessert practically rioted over them. I have the recipe in my hot little hands, and these cookies will be getting their own post tomorrow.

Brownies, made by my soul-sister and future in-law A. (We have decided our teenagers will get married one day. The teenagers don't currently see it that way, but they will come to their senses one day). Sadly, you will never ever know how to make these spectacular brownies, because she won't give me her secret recipe, despite all my shameless begging and pleading and weeping. But MAN are they good.

That's some of it...there was more, if you can believe that. But those were the main events, headlined by that awesome barbeque. We kept the meat warm throughout the game in one crockpot set on low, and the sauce in another set on low. My particular method for assembling my sandwich is to grab a big hunk of the shredded pork in tongs, dunk it into the sauce, and nestle the dripping deliciousness right onto my nice soft sandwich roll. But you feel free to be you, in terms of sandwich assembly.

So there you go, Super Bowl course number one. Tune in tomorrow for the Monster Cookies...

SHREDDED BARBECUE BEEF, adapted from the SILVER PALATE NEW BASICS COOKBOOK

1 five pound beef brisket
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
8 sandwich rolls
2 cups BBQ sauce (following recipe)

1. Preheat oven to 325
2. Put brisket in roasting pan and brush with liquid smoke
3. Combine salt and spices and mix well. Rub into brisket.
4. Cover roasting pan and bake until brisket is fork-tender, about 3 1/2 hours
5. Remove from pan and use 2 forks to pull beef apart in the pan juices, shredding coarsely.
6. Serve on rolls with barbecue sauce.

BBQ Sauce

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 cup chopped onions
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup ketchup
1/2 cup malt vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke

1. Heat oil in saucepan and add onion, garlic, cumin and cayenne. Saute for 5 minutes over medium heat.

2. Stir in remaining ingredients and simmer, stirring, until slightly thickened, 10 minutes. Makes 2 cups.

Click here for printable recipe

Fancy Goodnight Giving Tree Winners

I loved the comments on my Valentine contest SO much. Probably because I love children's books so much. There's just something about a children's book that makes everything right with the world, and reading the comments with all of your favorites just made me feel all warm and fuzzy and happy.

So warm and fuzzy, in fact, that there is no way I can keep this contest to just sending my winners the fabulous Fancy Nancy books alone...there were just too many comments about this one...

and this one...

not to include them as well. So therefore, FANCY NANCY, FANCY NANCY TEA PARTIES, GOODNIGHT MOON and THE GIVING TREE are now on their way to these lucky commenters:

Myrnie, whose four year old is just starting to read. What fun!

Rebecca, whose favorites are THE GIVING TREE and BEAR SNORES ON

and Melissa, whose favorite is THE STORY OF PING (that's my favorite, too!). Melissa, I don't see any contact info for you, so email me here, okay?

Thanks everyone...now click on each of those book covers above for a fun treat, and then go read a story to someone you love, okay?

Coconut Shrimp Soup

If I had to make a list of my all-time favorite things to eat, soup, shrimp and coconut would be right there at the top of the list. Okay, so they would be after bacon, but still right there near the top. Okay, maybe behind chocolate too -- but still at the very head of the class.

So this speedy little soup is a great favorite of mine. It combines shrimp and coconut milk with angel hair pasta and carrots and it all comes together in a delicious, rich-tasting mixture that is part soup, part stew, and totally wonderful. I like to sprinkle some flaked coconut on top each serving - it gives it a little of that sweet and salty kick that I am so hopelessly addicted to. It's like a little taste of the tropics, right here in the middle of snowy, cold, snowy, windy, snowy February. (Did I mention that we had some snow?)



Go warm up with some nice hot coconut shrimp soup.

COCONUT SHRIMP SOUP, adapted from Everyday Foods

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 grated fresh ginger
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
• 1 pound (6 to 8 medium) carrots, peeled, halved lengthwise, and thinly sliced
• 1 can (13.5 ounces) coconut milk
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 4 ounces angel-hair pasta
• 1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled, deveined, and chopped
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
• Coarse salt
• 4 scallions, thinly sliced
• Flaked coconut for garnish
  

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add ginger, garlic, and pepper flakes; cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add carrots, coconut milk, and 3 cups water. In a small bowl, mix cornstarch and 2 tablespoons water until smooth; add to pot. Bring to a boil.
2. Break pasta in half; add to pot. Return to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and simmer until pasta is al dente and carrots are just tender, 3 to 4 minutes.
3. Add shrimp; stir until opaque, about 1 minute. Remove pot from heat, and stir in lime juice; season with salt. Ladle into serving bowls, and garnish with scallions and flaked coconut.

Click here for printable recipe

Artichoke and Fontina Panini

My love affair with my new panini press continues. Who knew that flattening things could be so fun and scrumptious?? At this point, I have realized that putting pretty much anything between two pieces of bread and squishing it under high panini press heat will result in something good. Yes, even chocolate. Or maybe I should say especially chocolate? Although this artichoke and fontina panini was particularly wonderful, probably because I adore both artichokes and fontina.

This is a lovely rich panini sandwich, mainly because of the fontina which is a wonderful, high-flavored cheese. (I sound very official, don't I? But trust me on the fontina. Yum.) The artichokes are the kind that come marinated in the little glass jar, so they have a nice tang to them. Ciabiatta bread and rolls are usually in the bakery section of the supermarket, but honestly any old substantial bread or roll will do. You just want something strong enough to hold the cheese and the artichokes -- in other words, Wonder Bread will not do. Even though I do adore it in a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

So there you have it, my latest in what will be a long line of paninis. Enjoy!

ARTICHOKE AND FONTINA PANINI

• 4 slices ciabiatta bread or two ciabiatta rolls, split
• 1 cup marinated artichoke hearts, chopped
• 4 ounces sliced fontina
• Olive oil
• Salt and fresh ground pepper

1. Preheat the panini grill.

2. Spread a thick layer of artichoke hearts over one slice of bread. Top with a layer of fontina. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper

3. Grill for 4 minutes or until the bread is golden brown and the cheese is melting. Serve immediately.

Click here for printable recipe

Blueberry Crumb Cake and a Valentine's Giveaway!

I have the sweetest giveway EVER for you guys today, but first you get to hear about my Valentine's Day.

This year, my Valentine took me out for my very, very, very favorite thing, which is a cream tea. For those of you who haven't yet had the experience of the wonderfulness that is cream tea, it is a lavish spread of little sandwiches, scones with jam and clotted cream, and all sorts of delectable little cakes and pastries, all served on elegant plates with linen tablecloths and china teapots and teacups and fancy little napkins. There is a lovely little tea-room near us that he takes me to every now and again, and he is always the only guy in the place...further demonstrating his love and devotion and reminding me why I am so head over heels crazy about him.

Well, that and the fact that there is something about how he looks in his cowboy boots that just kills me.

But I digress.

So there we were in the Harmony Tea Room, having our tea and scones and gazing into each other's eyes and acting generally all Valentine-ish, and all the scrumptious little tea cakes reminded me of this wonderful and easy crumb cake I made last weekend. It was fast and simple and just delicious, and perfect to have with your own cup of tea at home.

It also gave me a great idea for a Valentine's Day giveaway. I knew I wanted something pink and fancy, and since I have been on a run of cookbook giveaways lately, I wanted something just a little tiny bit different. (Don't worry, I am not at ALL done with cookbooks to give away. Many more to come.) But in the meantime, here is the pinkest, fanciest book I know.

Isn't she fabulous? And lo and behold, look at this:

She is a girl after my own heart.

Now, while the folks who will adore these books the most are probably around 4 or 5 or 6 years old, I have to tell you that I do adore them a whole lot myself. Fancy Nancy is funny and sassy and fancy and loves a good recipe, especially if it involves sprinkles. The recipe below doesn't involve sprinkles, but it DOES involve blueberries and a delicious crumb topping, which is almost as good. So the next time you are looking for something special to make for your own Valentine, give this a try. In the meantime, I have three copies of both FANCY NANCY and FANCY NANCY TEA PARTIES to give away to three lucky commenters...just leave me a comment below telling me what your favorite children's book is. (As always, my beloved email subscribers can enter by clicking on the title of this post, which will take you to the website where you can leave your comment.) Winners announced Saturday, February 20 at 7pm.

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone. I love all of you.

BLUEBERRY CRUMB CAKE, from Everyday Food

• FOR THE STREUSEL TOPPING
• 1 cup all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
• 1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter
• 
  
• FOR THE CAKE
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, plus more for pan
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled) , plus more for pan
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon allspice
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2/3 cup low-fat buttermilk, well shaken
• 1 1/2 cups blueberries

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Make streusel topping: In a medium bowl, stir together flour, brown sugar, and salt. Cut in the butter using your hands or a pastry blender until large, moist crumbs form. Chill.
2. Butter and flour a 9-inch square baking pan. In a medium bowl, whisk together 1 1/2 cups flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and allspice. In a large bowl, beat the butter and granulated sugar with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add egg; beat well. Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately until just combined. (Batter will be very stiff.) In a large bowl, toss the blueberries with remaining teaspoon flour. Fold blueberries into the batter; spoon into prepared pan.
3. Sprinkle cake with streusel topping. Bake until golden brown and a tester comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Let cool completely. Cut into squares.

Click here for printable recipe

The Cookie Winners!

Well, my mocha chocolate chip cookie cookbook giveaway contest was my most successful EVER. You guys do love your cookies, and who can blame you? The overwhelming favorite by a country mile was good old chocolate chip. You like them chewy and crunchy and warm and gooey, and so do I. The picture above is from my all-time favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe, which is the one from the classic New York Times article about the best chocolate chip cookie recipes ever. It takes two days, but I promise you -- promise you! -- that it is worth it. Here's the link:

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever!

Meantime, thanks so much for all the comments, and I know you are all dying to know who is going to be the happy owner of this:



Now, originally I had three of these to give away, but I was so blown away by all the comments that I couldn't bear to just stop after three, so I got a couple more of them. Which means that the five lucky folks below are going to find this in their mailbox next week.

Once again, thank goodness for Random.org, which I always use to pick the winners. I could never bear to do it myself. And want to know something really mysterious? The five comments that Random.org picked? Not one said chocolate chip cookies.

Hmmm.

Okay, drumroll please......

Winner #1: Morgan Lee, who loves cornflake cookies. Never heard of them, but I'm up for it!

Winner #2: Topher, who loves snickerdoodles. I love those too. I might have to make some very, very soon.

Winner #3: Elga, who loves chocolate and pistachio biscuits. Tres fancy!

Winner #4: NikiTheo, who loves peanut butter and jelly cookies. Please share that recipe. I'll be waiting anxiously....

Winner #5: Erin, who said "what about cookie dough?" Well, of COURSE! And Erin, there was no contact info for you on your entry, so email me here and tell me how to find you.

As for the rest of you guys, thanks so much for entering, and check out my fun Valentine giveaway, going up on the blog tomorrow night.

xoxox

One Bowl Chicken Souvlaki

I am a sucker for any recipe that has "one bowl" in the title. And this particular one comes from one of my favorite go-to cookbooks for those crazy weeknights when you come home and you pretty much have no time whatsover to get dinner on the table...or maybe you have the time but you would rather spend it elsewhere...and that is DINNER DOCTOR. The philosophy of this particular cookbook is that it is perfectly fine to use a few convenience foods in the preparation of your delicious home-cooked meal, thereby speeding whatever it is along just a little more quickly to the dinner table.

Ironically, this specific recipe actually doesn't include any convenience foods -- unless you count the fact that I sent the Southern husband out into the dead of winter to grill the chicken breasts, so that they were conveniently all nice and cooked when I was ready to make dinner. (My honey. Neither rain nor snow nor dead of night will keep the man from his grill.) Once you have some nice cooked chicken -- and I cannot lie, the grilled variety makes this dish just perfection -- you are about 10 short minutes away from suppertime.

So here's the drill. Take one bowl. Tear up your lovely grilled or otherwise cooked chicken into bite-sized piece. Into the bowl with it. Add in some chopped up cucumber, some chopped scallions, some capers, and some halved cherry tomatoes. Mix together some crumbled feta cheese and plain yogurt and toss in a little dried oregano and add this to the bowl. Mix it up good. Now divide it among the plates, top it with a grinding of fresh pepper and some chopped parsley, lay some pita bread on the plate...that's it. You're done. You're happy. And you still have the whole night in front of you!

ONE BOWL CHICKEN SOUVLAKI, adapted from Dinner Doctor

• 4 cups shredded cooked chicken
• 2 large cucumbers, chopped
• 2 scallions, chopped
• 2 tablespoons capers
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• 1/2 cup crumbled feta
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• Fresh ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped parsley
• Pita bread (you could also use naan bread)

1. Combine chicken, cucumbers, scallions, capers and tomatoes in bowl.

2. Mix up feta and yogurt -- you can do this by hand if you like chunkier dressing or in a food processor if you like it smooth. Mix in the oregano.

3. Pour dressing over chicken mixture and stir just to coat. Sprinkle with pepper and parsley and serve with pita bread.

Click here for printable recipe

Spiced Beef in Red Wine Sauce

I love recipes that introduce me to a new ingredient that I have never, ever heard of, and this was one of them. This is from an article published about 6 years ago in the New York Times by Nigella Lawson, and I think I have had the clipping bouncing around in my "need to make this recipe one day" file ever since. (There are recipes in there from the last century. So many recipes, so little time!!) I loved the whole idea of spiced beef cooking in red wine, I loved the idea of serving it on a bed of polenta (which is what we Northerners call it. The southern husband calls it grits.) The thing that kept kicking it to the back of the line was this one ingredient that sounded important, but mysterious and hard to find.

Ever heard of star anise?

Me neither.

Why I decided all of the sudden last weekend to figure this out -- who knows? -- but I called my source of all culinary information and it went like this.

Me: Hi Mom -- do you know what star anise is?
Mom: Of course. It's a spice.
Me: You don't have any, do you?
Mom: Of course. Do you need some?

I guess I am the only one without some star anise hanging around, and I felt the need to have my own jar of it, because you never know when you are going to need some star anise. At least now I knew it was a spice and not some exotic vegetable. A few hours later there I was in the spice aisle at Fairway with my very own jar. It is definitely a handsome little spice.

And smells just like licorice. Yum, yum...this was starting to feel good. The stew itself is a pretty basic recipe with a few excellent wrinkles to it. You start with a base of chopped carrots and onion -- but you also add some chopped bacon with it. Obviously there is the red wine part -- it simmers in the red wine for most of the cooking time. And of course there is the star anise which gives it a delicious sweet and spicy touch. I followed Nigella's directions to the letter and served it on top of a nice little pool of polenta, which was just PERFECT.

So there you have it, a Sunday dinner that is both comforting and just a little exotic. Let me know if you need to borrow any star anise....

SPICED BEEF IN RED WINE SAUCE, from Nigella Lawson

• 2 slices bacon, roughly chopped
• 2 large onions, roughly chopped
• 2 large leeks, white and light-green parts only, roughly chopped
• 3 medium carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley
• 1/3 cup flour
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 1/2 pounds chuck steak in 2-inch cubes
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, or more as needed
• Pinch ground cloves
• 1 1/2 cups red wine
• 2 cups beef stock or canned beef broth
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 3 star anise
• 1 tablespoon light brown sugar

1.

Working in batches in a food processor, process bacon, onions, leeks, carrots and parsley until finely chopped. Transfer mixture to a large bowl, and set aside. Place flour in a freezer bag or other plastic bag. Season with salt and pepper. Add steak cubes, seal bag, and shake until cubes are well coated.

2.

Place a flameproof casserole dish over medium heat, and add 2 tablespoons oil. When hot, add beef in batches, turning until well seared on all sides. As beef is browned, transfer to a plate, and set aside.

3.

If casserole dish is dry, add 1 tablespoon oil. Place over medium heat, and add bacon and vegetable mixture and ground cloves. Sauté until softened, about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, combine wine, beef stock, Worcestershire sauce, star anise and brown sugar. Place over medium-high heat, and bring to a boil. When vegetables have softened, pour liquid over vegetables.

4.

Return beef to pan, and stir well. Bring to a boil, partly cover, and reduce heat to low. Simmer gently until beef is tender, about 2 hours. Serve hot. If desired, stew may be cooked and then covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days or frozen for a month.

Click here for printable recipe

Warm Quinoa Salad with Shrimp and Asparagus

So, I was probably the last one to find out it is pronounced "keen-wah," and that it contains more protein than any other grain. You guys all knew that already, right? I just knew that it tastes dang good, and whenever I have had one too many Maple Butterscotch Macadamia Blondies and am needing an injection of healthy food, this is a great and yummy way to get some. It is chock-full of veggies -- asparagus, peas, sundried tomatoes -- flavored up with some scallions and a few salty cashews, and topped off with my favorite...delicious chopped up shrimp.

Even more happily, it all cooks up in one pot -- the quinoa first, then the veggies, topped with the shrimp. If I am feeling really crazy, I crumble some soft feta cheese onto the top right before I serve it.

This recipe comes from the Whole Foods website, which is (as you might guess) a great source for healthy and delicious food. I wouldn't go there looking for Cookie Truffle recipes, but if you are looking for stuff to make with quinoa, you're looking in the right place.

So there you go. Be healthy, people. Every now and then, anyway.

WARM QUINOA SALAD WITH SHRIMP AND ASPARAGUS, from Whole Foods

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, not reconstituted, julienned
1/2 cup vegetable broth or water
1/2 cup white wine
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed
1/2 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
1/4 cup fresh or frozen green peas
1/2 cup roasted cashew pieces
6 green onions, finely chopped
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley

1. In a medium pot, heat oil over medium heat. Add garlic and onions and cook for 3 minutes. Add sun-dried tomatoes and continue to cook for 1 more minute. Add broth, wine, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Stir in quinoa and simmer on low heat, covered, for about 20 minutes, or until quinoa is almost tender.

2. Arrange shrimp on top of quinoa in pot and simmer for 3 minutes. Add asparagus and peas on top of the shrimp and simmer for 3 more minutes. Top with cashews, green onions and parsley and season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Click here for printable recipe

Mocha Chocolate Chip Cookies and a Cookbook Contest!

There's a super cookbook giveway at the end of this post, but first a little rant.

I really really wish I liked to drink coffee, but I just don't like it. It would be SO much more convenient. Coffee is pretty much everywhere you turn, and us poor second class citizen tea drinkers are doing great if we can find some lukewarm hot water and a tea bag. It's my favorite part of going to London...I am for once in the majority, hot-beverage-wise. Even though the last time I was there it seemed like there was a Starbucks popping up ominously on every corner. Fight back, my London friends!!

However, I mysteriously DO like the taste of coffee when it is baked into things. Say, for example, chocolate chip cookies. Say, for example, chocolate chip cookies made with a mix of dark and white chocolate chips. Say, for example, chocolate chip cookies inspired by the ever-fabulous Julia Child.

Which leads me to the awesome contest, because I have not one, not two but THREE copies of this to give you guys:



Yes I do. And it includes recipes for all kinds of fabulous Julia-inspired baked goods, including these...

There's few things in life better than a full cookie jar on your kitchen counter, don't you think?

So here's what you do: leave me a comment on the bottom of this post telling me what your favorite kind of cookie is, and you will be entered into the drawing for one of these cookbooks. As always, my beloved email subscribers can enter by clicking the title of the post, which will flip you over to the actual website - you can comment there. I will announce the lucky lucky winners next Saturday, February 13, at 7pm. So bring on your cookies, and in the meantime, here's the recipe for mine!

MOCHA CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES, from Baking with Julia

2 cups flour
3 tablespoons instant coffee powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 sticks butter, cut into chunks
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 pound chocolate chips or chunks -- any variety you like.

1. Whisk the flour, coffee, baking soda and salt together. Set aside.

2. Beat the butter in a mixer until lightened. Add granulated sugar and beat for 30 seconds. Add brown sugar and beat for another 30 seconds. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Add vanilla and beat until blended.

3. Turn mixer speed down and add flour mixture, mixing until just incorporated. Add chocolate and mix until evenly blended in.

4. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill in fridge for several hours to overnight.

5. Preheat oven to 350, and line cookie sheets with parchment paper or Silpat. Drop a heaping tablespoon full of dough onto sheets, leaving 2 inches between cookies. Bake for 10-12 minutes.

6. Cool on racks. Make very very sure you eat one while they are still warm.

Click here for printable recipe

Bam! And The Winners Are....

Thanks so much to everyone who participated in my Emeril Double Cookbook giveaway! I love these contests so much because they are always such a wealth of information. I am definitely going to have to catch up on my watching of Ina Garten and Paula Deen, for all the great reasons you guys gave in your comments!

In the meantime, before I get to my three lucky winners, I thought you might like to see an "After" picture of that little pigtailed model up there. Look up for "Before"....and here's "After"...

Much more sophisticated, but still loves cupcakes.

OK! Here comes the happy and sad part, because I always wish I had one for everybody. Thank goodness for random.org, because I could never pick winners out on my own.

1. Andrea, who loves Ina Garten. Definitely going to have to check her out more, because I think she was the most-loved chef in the comments.

2. Veronica M who is a fan of both Paula Deen and butter. Right there with you, Veronica.

3. Calamity Anne...who couldn't pick a favorite! And boy can I relate.

So I will be sending you three your copies of the two fabulous Emeril books, and to everyone else, I am starting my next cookbook giveaway tomorrow night, and it involves COOKIES. That's all I'll say for now. Except thanks for playing, and reading Framed. I love you guys.

Andouille Sausage and Shrimp Scramble

This recipe is one of my long line of "I adore New Orleans" recipes, and yes, I will be cheering loudly for the Saints on Sunday. If you have never been to New Orleans...well, it is one of the best and most unique places on earth, and home to some of the best food you will ever taste. From the beignets at the Cafe du Monde (best eaten really, really late at night with your true love) to the barbeque shrimp at Pascale's Manale, to the pile of perfectly cooked spicy peel and eat crayfish at that place on Decatur Street that I can't remember the name of, to my friend Emeril's spectacular restaurants....New Orleans is Food Heaven.

There are certain ingredients that immediately conjure up New Orleans for me, and andouille sausage is one of them. Spicy, delicious...you can toss it into everything from gumbo to scrambled eggs and whatever it is will be kicked up several notches of deliciousness. My friend R says that andouille sausage is made by little Cajun angels, and I think he is right.

This recipe was supposed to be made with crayfish, but sadly, crayfish are hard to come by in northern New Jersey. If you ever want to bring me a present, crayfish would be just fine. But since no crayfish were available I substituted chopped shrimp, and that was almost as good. This dish is pretty much as easy as it gets to make -- you saute the sausage and seafood and scallions in a little bit of butter, add in the beaten eggs, gently stir the whole thing around until the eggs are set and voila! Spicy, creamy, wonderful.

Which is all I have to say for now, except....

Geaux Saints!

ANDOUILLE SAUSAGE AND SHRIMP SCRAMBLE, adapted from Bubby's Brunch Cookbook

3 large eggs
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 ounces andouille sausage, cut into 1/4 inch slices
1 tablespoon butter
2 ounces chopped shrimp (or crayfish, if you've got any!)
2 tablespoons sliced scallions
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Beat eggs until frothy

2. Heat olive oil in skillet over medium heat and saute sausage for 1-2 minutes. Add butter, shrimp and scallion and stir until shrimp are just cooked through, about 2-3 minutes.

3. Add eggs and cook, stirring continuously until they are set. Salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately.

Click here for printable recipe

Ridiculously Easy Peach Crumble

This incredibly, addictively delicious dessert was SO easy in so many ways, it almost doesn't seem fair. The recipe itself almost doesn't require a bowl, a mixer or even a spoon. The lovely picture above was definitely the easiest one I've ever posted (more on that later). And here's how scrumptious it is: the Southern husband, who is usually not a big dessert person and pretty much the only one I know who can eat ONE fresh-baked chocolate chip cookie at time took a bite of this as it was cooling on the counter. And another. And another. By the time it actually came time to serve the thing as an official dessert, I would say about a third of it had been nibbled away.

Yep, it's that good. No exaggeration. Now get ready for how easy it is.

You take one of those big 28 ounce jars of sliced peaches in light syrup. Dump the whole thing in a 13x9 inch pan, syrup and all. Now take a box of yellow cake mix. Pour the mix evenly over the peaches. Yes, the dry mix, you don't make it into cake batter first...dry mix only. Trust me.

Now take a stick of butter. (I said this was easy, I didn't say it was slenderizing.). Slice it up into about 16 pats and arranged them evenly on the top of the cake mix. Next, pour a cup of brown sugar on top, and a half cup of walnuts on top of that.

Bake it for 40 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Let it cool just long enough to not burn your tongue when you take that first spoonful, and then enjoy it plain or with vanilla ice cream...that is, if you can keep the hungry masses at bay long enough to have a reasonable amount left in the pan to actually HAVE it for dessert. I know, you are thinking where is the liquid, and why won't I just have hot dry cake mix at the end of the baking time, but I guess there is something about the butter and the peach syrup that somehow magically blends with the cake mix to produce peach heaven. I'm not going to think too hard about it so I don't jinx it.

Now about that picture. Two things happened to produce that delicious shot up there. First of all, I actually split this dessert into two 8x8 pans, since I knew my friend and Zen Master photography teacher was coming to visit on the day I made it, and so I sent the other half home with him. I fully intended to photograph a piece of MY portion of the cake after dinner, but see above regarding the cake nibbling that went on before dessert...I didn't have any left.

Then inspiration hit, and I sent an urgent message to the Zen Master, who had the restraint not to eat all of his portion in one sitting. Voila! The easiest picture I have ever created for this blog - it only took one quick email! It all seems too good to be true...but I'll take it!

So there you have it, the easiest dessert you will ever make, with thanks once again to the amazing Bakerella where I found this recipe - go visit her site if you haven't already. Everything on there is just scrumptious.

RIDICULOUSLY EASY PEACH CRUMBLE, from Bakerella

One 25 ounce jar of peaches in light syrup
1 package yellow cake mix
1 stick butter, cut into 16 pieces
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Layer ingredients in 13/9 inch pan in the order listed above.

3. Bake for 40 minutes

4. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream. Or eat it with a spoon right out of the baking dish.

Click here for printable recipe

Cheddar Jalapeno Huevos Rancheros in Tortilla Cups

Here's one of the many things I love about my little blog...one thing leads to another and I end up getting ideas and recipes from the most unexpected places. Take this little number, for example. Where would you expect something that has the words "jalapeno, huevos, rancheros" and "tortilla" to come from? Someplace south of the border, right? Someplace warm and sunny?

Someplace like this?

If you guessed tropical, sultry Vermont, you would be right. I wish I had a picture of it with a little more snow...this is actually what our cabin view will look like in the spring when things thaw out a little...but you get my drift. So here's what happened....I was singing the praises of Cabot cheddar recently in my post on Butternut Cheddar Soup. That particular recipe came from an ad for the wonderful Vermont Cabot cheddar, and the great folks at Cabot liked my post. They sent me a groovy package of stuff, including a recipe booklet full of things that you can make with Vermont cheese and Vermont sour cream and Vermont butter...including a recipe for Huevos Rancheros. Vermont style. Which means you need to use Cabot sour cream, and Cabot pepper jack cheese.

So before we get to this seriously wonderful recipe, just a little bit about Cabot. They are a farm family-owned dairy coop located in Cabot, Vermont, and they make some of the best cheddar cheese you will taste anywhere. You can find it in most supermarkets, and in wonderful giant hunks at Costco. They also make butter, sour cream, yogurt, and probably some other stuff that I don't even know about. Check them out here:

Cabot Vermont

Now on to the main event. You take some nice corn tortillas -- I used the 6 inch round guys -- and soften them up in the microwave for about 10 seconds. Tuck them into whatever nice round oven-safe dishes you have -- I have these little Pyrex bowls that are about 4 inches across. Just big enough to put a tortilla into and have it fit with just a little bit of nice curving along the sides. Now drop a good-sized handful of grated Cabot pepper jack in there. Be generous. Pop the tortilla bowls in the oven for about 10 minutes until the cheese is melted and the tortilla is just a bit crispy.

Meantime you are going to throw together a quick salsa of chopped tomato, chopped red onion, jalapeno, a little honey and some lime juice. Mix up a little cumin with some Cabot sour cream. Poach yourself some eggs. Still with me? Now you are ready for The Assembly.

1. Drop a good dollop of cumin sour cream on the top of the melted cheese inside the tortilla.

2. Line the inner edge of the tortilla shell with sprouts. (Now, I am of two minds about the sprouts. They certainly tasted fine, and they made a lovely contribution to the picture. But I did roam around the supermarket for an extra 10 minutes hunting them down, and they are a little pricy for being basically a garnish. Sorry, sprouts. If you want to use some chopped lettuce, feel totally free -- it will work out just FINE.)

3. Tenderly lay a poached egg in the center of the shell.

4. Put as much salsa around the egg as you need and want. Put a spoonful on top of the egg for good measure.

That's it -- you are ready to roll. I served these up to the Southern husband with a fork and knife, but we looked at the tortilla cups, looked at each other, looked back at the cups, and picked them up with our hands. It was messy and delicious and fun.

So the next time you are looking for great Mexican recipes? Vermont. Of course.

CHEDDAR JALAPENO HUEVOS RANCHEROS

2 medium vine-ripened tomatoes, chopped
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1 teaspoon honey
1 jalapeno pepper, minced
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
1/4 cup Cabot Sour Cream
1 teaspoon ground cumin
6 corn tortillas
8 ounces Cabot Pepper Jack, grated (about 2 cups)
6 large eggs
1/2 pint alfalfa sprouts

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.

2. In medium bowl, combine tomatoes, onions, cilantro, honey, jalapeno, and lime juice. Season mixture with salt and pepper and set aside. In another bowl, combine sour cream and cumin and set aside.

3. Place one tortilla between two sheets of paper towel and microwave for 15 seconds to soften; Press into large custard cup or ramekin to form into bowl shape. Repeat with remaining tortillas.

4. Place cups or ramekins with tortillas on baking sheet and sprinkle one sixth of cheese in each. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

5. Meanwhile, poach eggs in pan of simmering water to desired degree of doneness.

6. To serve, place sour cream and some of sprouts in each tortilla cup; top each with poached egg and spoonfuls of tomato mixture.

Click here for printable recipe.