Cranberry Walnut Chicken Salad

Summertime is most definitely chicken salad season, and I don't mean the old chicken plus mayo plus celery version. Although there's definitely nothing wrong with that. But there are SO many chicken salads out there that are a perfect fusion of all that great summer produce that (yahoo!) springing up all around us. (Remind me that I just said that in about 6 weeks when I am complaining about being surrounded by my basil.) Mediterranean Chicken Salad, with fresh string beans and tomatoes. Tarragon Chicken Salad, with the delicious sweet taste of fresh tarragon. And one of my absolute faves, Chicken Salad with Corn, Fresh Thyme and Goat Cheese Dressing. Yum, yum and yum again.

The great thing about chicken salad -- one of the great things -- is that you can throw it together in practically no time if you remember to toss a few chicken breasts on the grill every time you fire it up this summer. Bathe them in a little Italian salad dressing, or even just some olive oil and vinegar with fresh pepper, and grill them until they are just cooked, about 4-5 minutes per side. Then store them in the fridge until you are ready to use them later in the week. When chicken salad time rolls around, tear the chicken with your fingers so you have some nice bite sized pieces, and then you are ready to roll.

This particular chicken salad is loosely based on a recipe from Cooks Illustrated, and features chopped cheddar cheese, chopped apple, dried cranberries, candied walnuts and romaine lettuce, tossed with a simple viniagrette. In this case, I had a bag of mixed candied nuts left over from something, and that's what I used. (Chicken salad is all about improvisation.) Toss it all together in pretty much whatever portions you like (I like LOTS of chicken) and summertime, super-easy dinner is served!

Cranberry Walnut Chicken Salad, adapted from Cooks Illustrated

• 1 pound boneless chicken breast, cooked and shredded
• 1 large head romaine lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces
• 8 ounces sharp cheddar, cut into small cubes
• 1 Granny Smith apple, cored and cut into small chunks
• 1 cup candied or spiced walnuts (or any variety of nuts that you like)
• 1/2 red onion, sliced thin
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries

Dressing

• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 1 shallot, peeled
• 1 clove garlic, peeled
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• salt and pepper
• 3/4 cup olive oil

1. Process all dressing ingredients except oil in food processor until shallot and garlic are finely chopped. Add oil and continue to process until emulsified.

2. Combine all salad ingredients and toss with 1/2 to 3/4 cup dressing. Divide salad among plates and serve.

Click here for printable recipe

Ace Of Cakes Book Contest!

I haven't done a cookbook giveaway in AGES, and I apologize about that. And the book that I am giving away today isn't exactly a cookbook, but the behind the scenes look at what happens at that wacky, amazing place called Charm City Cakes. I will get to that giveway eventually, but as usual you are going to have to suffer through the backstory, which I have titled "The Teenager's Sculpture Class Final," otherwise known as "Don't Try This At Home."

So, the teenager has been taking a sculpture class in school this year, which has resulted in a beautiful green bowl that sits on my desk, a life mask that she made by layering plaster all over her face (I'm glad I found out about that one AFTER it happened), and various different incarnations in pottery of the Joker from the Batman movie. The final exam for this class, however, took the cake. Literally. The assignment was this: sculpt something out of food.

The teenager, being the teenager, decided that the very best thing to sculpt out of food would be a life-size electric guitar. I immediately cancelled any plans I had for cooking anything in my kitchen that night.

So, armed with mounds and mounds of cake, frosting, M&Ms and licorice, the sculpting began. First the cake was painstaking carved out according to a pattern she had made, and put on a platform of heavy foam core. Luckily I was not home for this part, because I think it would have given me a nervous breakdown. Then she slowly, methodically, painstakingly began applying the frosting and the M&Ms in sections.



Frosting first, then M&Ms applied in a pattern that matched the look of the guitar she was modeling this thing after.

One M&M by one M&M at a time.

"Pwweeaaase can I have some???"

Then came the Twizzler guitar strings, measured, cut and applied with frosting "glue."

"PUHWEEEEEAAAASE???????"

I have to say, I had my doubts. Big, serious, doubts. But dang if the girl didn't pull it off. She brought it in, got a A on the final, and then became a minor celebrity in school as she carried the thing around for the rest of the day giving away slices.

So in celebration of the end of school, a good report card, and a job well done, I'm giving away two copies of the fabulous book ACE OF CAKES, with my heartfelt advice not to try any of this at home. Enter this giveaway by leaving me a comment telling me your favorite cake. (My wonderful email subscribers - click on the title of this post and it will take you to the website where you can leave your comment.) I will let you know next Saturday who the two lucky winners are.

And if your cake suggestion doesn't involve a thousand M&Ms, I might even try to make it.

Lobster Macaroni and Cheese

I've been flirting with lobster macaroni and cheese for a looooong time. It's just that I love macaroni and cheese with a deep and abiding love, and I feel the same about lobster. And I knew that if it was made the right way, this could be the Endless Love version of lobster macaroni and cheese.

I also didn't want it to take forever and a day to make. In my quest for the great LM&C recipe, I have come across a whole variety of recipes that have asked me to do things like save the lobster shells, simmer them for hours, strain them through cheesecloth, run around the kitchen three times chanting incantations...you get my drift. I do want an amazing recipe, but I want to be able to eat it the same day without having to take a nap first. So when I came across Ina Garten's recipe on the Food Network website, I knew I had finally found the lobster macaroni and cheese love of my life. Lots of lobster (I was aiming at recipe that gave the lobster equal time with the macaroni). A combination of cheddar and gruyere cheese. Buttery bread crumbs on top. I'm having heart palpitations just reliving it as I type.

Now, here's my usual advice on the lobster. Get your supermarket to steam it for you, and get whomever is going to get the pleasure of dining on this dish with you to shell the lobster for you. After that, this whole thing is smooth sailing.

Lobster macaroni and cheese. Doesn't the very thought of it make you feel like all is right with the world?

Lobster Macaroni and Cheese, from Ina Garten

• Vegetable oil
• 1 pound cavatappi or elbow macaroni
• 1 quart milk
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, divided
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 12 ounces Gruyere cheese, grated (4 cups)
• 8 ounces extra-sharp Cheddar, grated (2 cups)
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 1/2 pounds cooked lobster meat
• 1 1/2 cups fresh white bread crumbs (5 slices, crusts removed)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Drizzle oil into a large pot of boiling salted water. Add the pasta and cook according to the directions on the package, 6 to 8 minutes. Drain well.

Meanwhile, heat the milk in a small saucepan, but don't boil it. In a large pot, melt 6 tablespoons of butter and add the flour. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring with a whisk. Still whisking, add the hot milk and cook for a minute or two more, until thickened and smooth. Off the heat, add the Gruyere, Cheddar, 1 tablespoon salt, the pepper, and nutmeg. Add the cooked macaroni and lobster and stir well. Place the mixture in 6 to 8 individual gratin dishes.

Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, combine them with the fresh bread crumbs, and sprinkle on the top. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the macaroni is browned on the top.

Click here for printable recipe

Black Pepper and Lime Fries

For me, summer cooking is all about the grill wherever possible. Steak, chicken, seafood, corn, grilled pizza (happy happy sigh)...and since the Southern husband is an impresario at the grill, life in the summer is even better. There's nothing like sitting on your back steps, glass of merlot in hand, watching the love of your life do the cooking.

However, it DOES entail coming up with more side dishes than I, lover of one dish cooking, am normally used to, so I am always doubly happy when I come across a really fun one. These lime fries are from the fabulous 101 Cookbooks blog, and they are both super-easy and very yummy. And pretty darn healthy, as they are the variety of fries that cook in the oven with just a drizzling of olive oil. They involve lots and lots of black pepper, and for that extra zing (here's the part that especially caught my eye), a drizzling of lime juice and some fresh grated lime peel.

Some grilled steak/chicken/seafood, some lime fries, a warm summer evening...ah yes.

Black Pepper and Lime Fries, from 101 Cookbooks

1 1/2 pounds small potatoes, cut into wedges
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
sea salt
freshly ground pepper
1 lime
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 375, oven racks in the middle.

In a medium bowl toss the potato wedges with the olive oil, a few big pinches of sea salt and five or six cranks of the pepper grinder. Arrange the potatoes cut side down on a baking sheet. Place in the oven for 30-35 minutes, tossing the potatoes with a metal spatula half way through.

While the potatoes are baking, zest the lime and cut it into a few wedges.

When the potatoes are cooked through, remove them from the oven, taste, and adjust the seasoning. Add more salt and pepper to taste (don't skimp on the pepper!). Serve in a big shallow bowl, or on a platter, drizzled with lime juice and dusted with the lime zest and Parmesan.

Serves 4 - 6.

Click here for printable recipe

Ice Cream Cupcakes

Some recipes are just a work of genius -- you run across them and first you think "I have GOT to make this as soon as possible," and for me that is quickly followed by "now, why didn't I think of this??" These delectable little ice cream cupcakes are from one of those recipes, and are from Joy The Baker, who is a virtuoso when it comes to inventive and irresistible desserts. A virtuoso, plain and simple.

Here's the drill: you make up a batch of brownie batter (Joy makes her own, I went right for that Duncan Hines box in my pantry), and you spoon just a little bit into foil cupcake liners. Just enough to cook up a fabulous brownie base for your cupcake. Bake and freeze. Then grab your favorite flavor or flavors of ice cream and let it soften. I chose (from left to right in that picture up there) chocolate, mint chocolate chip, and Starbucks Mocha Frappachino. Spoon enough soft ice cream on top of each brownie bottom to fill the cupcake liner. Freeze again.

What you do from here is up to you. Plain would be fine. Joy makes a little chocolate ganache to go on top of hers. I whipped up some cream with a little sugar and vanilla and plopped it on top of each cupcake. Now, the three specimens up there did not last much past their photo op, but the rest of their cousins went into a Ziplock bag, and the next time we got a craving for an ice cream cupcake all we had to do was take one out of the bag and add the topping. Or take one out of the bag and eat it immediately while still standing in front of the freezer.

Ice Cream Cupcakes. Happy happy summer.

Ice Cream Cupcakes, from the incredibly talented Joy The Baker

• One batch brownie batter
• Assorted flavors of ice cream

1. First make the brownie batter. Line two cupcake pans with the foil cupcake liners. Into each cupcake liner, scoop 1 Tablespoon of brownie batter. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 6-8 minutes until the brownie is cooked through.

2. Let the brownies cool in the cupcake pans to room temperature. Once cool, place in the freezer (still in the cupcake pans) for 30 minutes. When you place the cupcake pans in the freezer, remove the ice cream you’re using and place in the refrigerator to soften.

3. When ready to assemble the cupcakes, remove the cupcake pans with foil lined brownie cups from the freezer. Remove the ice cream from the fridge. Run the ice cream scooper under hot water and working quickly, portion a small scoop of ice cream into each foil lined cup, while still in the cupcake pan. The cupcake pan will help the Ice Cream Cupcake hold its shape. You may need to rinse the scooper under hot water in between scoops for easy portioning. Quickly smooth the scoops of ice cream with the back of a small spoon also rinsed in warm water and return the ice cream cupcakes quickly to the freezer.

4. Let the newly formed Ice Cream Cupcakes refreeze for 45 minutes to an hour.

5. To serve, remove the cupcakes from the freezer about 5 minutes before you’d like to serve them. Finish with a dollop of whipped cream and serve.

Click here for printable recipe

French Toast Muffins

French toast is my secret weapon when it comes to teenagers. No matter how embarrassing I manage to be as a mom (yes! as a matter of fact I DO have Single Ladies on my Ipod, and I am going to sing it. Loudly. And yes, I realize I might have gotten the lyrics wrong, but I like singing it anyway, even if your friends are over.)...even if I am that mortifying, I still can redeem myself by making my famous french toast.

And honestly, it's not that famous. It's the garden variety dunk some bread in beaten egg, fry it up in butter and serve it with cinnamon sugar and maple syrup version, but hey, apparently it just tastes that much better when Mama makes it, and I'll take it. She adores it, and I adore her, so it's all good.

Anyway, when I ran across this recipe for french toast muffins I knew I was on to something really, truly great. See those little chunks up on the top of each muffin?

They are pieces of cinnamon bread that have been soaked in the egg batter and then plunked on the top of the muffin batter, so they cook up as little heavenly pieces of actual french toast right on top of your french toast flavored muffin.

Let's take a closer look.

I figure I am now good to sing the wrong lyrics to Single Ladies for the rest of my born days now.

French Toast Muffins, from Recipezaar

French Toast Topping

• 3 tablespoons milk
• 1 egg,slightly beaten
• 6 slices cinnamon bread, crusts trimmed, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

Muffins

• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon maple extract
• 2 cups flour
• 3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Topping

• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1. Heat oven to 375°F
2. Combine all French toast topping ingredients in medium bowl; set aside,.
3. Combine 1 cup milk, melted butter, 1 egg and maple flavoring in another medium bowl. Combine all remaining muffin ingredients in large bowl. Stir milk mixture into flour mixture just until mixed.
4. Spoon batter into greased 12-cup muffin pan. Spoon French toast topping evenly over batter; press down slightly. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
5. Immediately brush muffins with maple-flavored syrup. Combine sugar and cinnamon in small bowl. Sprinkle over glazed muffins. Cool 5 minutes; remove from pan. Serve warm.

Click here for printable recipe

Crunchburgers!

Last weekend I strayed a little out of my usual photographic territory. No cookies, no babies, no puppies...I photographed a car show. And despite pretty much not having any idea what I was doing, the pictures came out...not so bad.

And so I did what I always do when I take a few not so bad pictures. I start trying to figure out how I can possibly relate them to something I have made for dinner, just so I can throw them up here on the blog.

Now, when it comes to babies and puppies, this is not so hard. Anything that features the word dumpling is fair game for me to toss an adorable baby picture out there.

And as for puppies, well, I figure that just about everything in life can be related to a puppy in one way or the other.

But cars? Hmm. I really had to scratch my head over that one. And then it came to me.

Road food!

And what better road food than one of my favorite burger concoctions: The Crunchburger!! Which is basically your good old American cheeseburger, but instead of wasting time putting those good old American Wise potato chips next to the burger, you pile them right on top of the burger itself. It gives the burger a hugely satisfying crunch, along with a hit of salt, that is almost as good as grooving down the highway in your convertible.

So there you have it -- a great recipe and I managed to work my car show photos in there. Triumph!!

Now I have to figure out what to cook that will work with this wedding I just photographed...

Crunchburgers!, from Bobby Flay via Epicurious

• 1 1/2 pounds ground chuck (80 percent lean) or ground turkey (90 percent lean)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
• 8 slices American cheese, each 1/4 inch thick
• 4 potato hamburger buns, split; toasted if desired
• 4 slices beefsteak tomato
• 4 leaves romaine lettuce
• 4 slices red onion
• Horseradish Mustard Mayonnaise
• 4 handfuls of potato chips

1. Divide the meat into 4 equal portions (about 6 ounces each). Form each portion loosely into a 3/4-inch-thick burger and make a deep depression in the center with your thumb. Season both sides of each burger with salt and pepper.

2. Cook the burgers, using the oil and topping each one with 2 slices of cheese and a basting cover during the last minute of cooking.

3. Place the burgers on the bun bottoms and, if desired, top with tomato, lettuce, onion, and a dollop of horseradish mustard mayonnaise. Pile on the potato chips, top with the bun tops, and serve immediately.

Click here for printable recipe

Strawberry Sherbet

I am always too enthusiastic when it comes to buying fresh summer strawberries. They just look so dang good in the market, and I pile them into my cart with reckless abandon. But strawberries are fragile little things, and before I have been able to eat my way through the giant strawberry pile they start looking a little peaked. (I love that word, peaked. I just looked it up to make sure I had the definition absolutely correct, and it means "weak and wan." It reminds me of books like The Secret Garden.)

Anyway, this recipe is the answer to peaked strawberries. When they start to get a little weak and wan and sad and dried-looking, it's time to spring into action and make this absolutely mouthwatering silky smooth dessert, and all you need are the berries, a few other assorted ingredients, your food processor and your freezer. No need to haul out the ice cream maker.

Here's all you need to do. Cut the stems and any really suspicious looking areas off your sad strawberries. If you have any really big berries, cut them in half, and then put them all in a single layer on a cookie sheet, and freeze them solid. Once they are frozen, you drop them in the food processor with a little vanilla yogurt, some strawberry jam and a little bit of sugar. I like this brand of jam in the strawberry variety (although I have been known to fudge it if I have something in the red variety of jam that doesn't precisely fit the recipe.)

Press the button. About 60 seconds later, you will have this:

Creamy, sweet and delicious. Bring on those berries!

Strawberry Sherbet

• 1 pint ripe strawberries, tops cut off
• 1/2 cup vanilla yogurt, any variety
• 2 tablespoons strawberry jam
• 1 tablespoon sugar

1. Lay berries on a cookie sheet in a single layer. Freeze until solid.

2. Place berries and all remaining ingredients in food processor and process until smooth. You may have to stop the processor and scrape the sides a few times to make sure all the frozen berries are processed.

3. Serve at once. It is amazing with a little fresh grated lemon peel on top, if you have any handy.

Click here for printable recipe

Brown Sugar Bacon Waffles

Here's what you know about these waffles by looking at that picture: they are big, fluffy, buttermilk waffles swimming in Vermont maple syrup.

Here's what you can't tell from looking at the picture: the waffle batter is made with a generous dose of brown sugar. Here's what else you can't tell from the picture: the waffle batter also contains chopped up pieces of bacon that was cooked up with a lavish coating of brown sugar that got all melted and caramelized as the bacon cooked.

That's right. There are pieces of brown sugar bacon baked right into that waffle up there. Right. Into. The waffle.

I have to go lie down now.

Brown Sugar Bacon Waffles, from Allrecipes

8 slices bacon 2 tablespoons brown sugar 3 cups flour 1/2 cup brown sugar 1 tablespoon baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt 4 eggs 2 1/2 cups buttermilk 2/3 cup vegetable oil 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1.	Preheat an oven to 375 degrees. Prepare a baking sheet with cooking spray. Arrange the bacon on the prepared baking sheet, and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons brown sugar. Bake in the preheated oven until the bacon is crispy and the brown sugar is caramelized, 10 to 15 minutes. Immediately remove the bacon to a cutting board; cut into small pieces and set aside.
2.	Preheat a waffle iron; grease with cooking spray.
3.	Whisk the flour, 1/2 cup brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Beat the eggs, buttermilk, vegetable oil, and vanilla together in a separate bowl; fold the wet mixture into the flour mixture. Add the bacon and stir, being careful to not over mix.
4.	Ladle the batter into the preheated waffle iron and cook until golden brown; serve hot. Click here for printable recipe

Shredded Chicken with Noodles

This is one of those recipes that falls squarely in the comfort food category. There is something warm and cozy about shredded chicken with noodles and carrots in a delicious sauce that makes you feel like pretty much everything is right with the world. It also features turmeric, a spice that doesn't get anywhere near its fair share of love and respect, at least in MY spice cabinet.

Speaking of spice cabinets (and yes, mine IS in alphabetical order, and I am not ashamed to admit it), the absolute best place in the whole wide world to buy spices is this little outfit called Penzey's. Here's a link:

Penzey's Catalog

I am lucky enough to have a Penzey's in my area (that area being Grand Central Station in NYC) and take a look at this:

...and this....

....and this...

...and don't even get me started on what it smells like in that place. Spice Heaven.

Anyway, turmeric...it's one of the things that makes this recipe from the Pioneer Woman so fabulous. That and the shredded chicken part. There is something about shredded chicken that just does me in, and makes me think about warm blankets and children's books and raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens.

One word about the noodles - the original recipe calls for using pre-cooked frozen noodles and believe me, I would have used them if I had been able to find them. But I wasn't able to, so I just tossed some garden variety egg noodles in there and they worked just fine. Probably due to the previously mentioned shredded chicken and turmeric. One way or the other, the next time you need a good dose of Extreme Comfort Food, this is your recipe.

Shredded Chicken with Noodles, from The Pioneer Woman

1 whole Cut Up Fryer Chicken
2 whole Carrots, Diced
2 stalks Celery, Diced
½ whole Medium Onion, Diced
1 teaspoon Salt
½ teaspoons Turmeric
¼ teaspoons White Pepper (more To Taste)
¼ teaspoons Ground Thyme
2 teaspoons Parsley Flakes
16 ounces, weight Frozen "homemade" Egg Noodles or same amount dried large egg noodles
3 Tablespoons All-purpose Flour

1. Cover chicken in 4 quarts water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Simmer for 30 minutes.

2. Remove chicken from pot with a slotted spoon. With two forks, remove as much meat from the bones as you can, slightly shredding meat in the process. Return bones to broth and simmer on low, covered, for 45 minutes.

3. Remove bones from broth with a slotted spoon, making sure to get any small bones that might have detached. Add the carrots and celery and onions to the pot, followed by the herbs and spices. Stir to combine and simmer for ten minutes to meld flavors.

4. Increase heat and add egg noodles and chicken. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes.

5. Mix flour and a little water. Stir until smooth. Pour into soup, stir to combine, and simmer for another 5 minutes, or until broth thickens a bit. Test and adjust seasonings as needed.

Click here for printable recipe

Lemonade Mint Iced Tea

This one is going to be short and sweet, but I needed to get this up here before summer starts in earnest, because everyone needs to have a good, dependable iced tea recipe in their back pocket.

Now, I am a big fan of something called the Arnold Palmer, which is basically a mixture of half iced tea and half lemonade. The problem is, not everyone knows that a drink that is half iced tea and half lemonade is called an Arnold Palmer. So sometimes I order it when I am at a restaurant and they write it down like it is a perfectly normal thing to order, and sometimes they look at me like I have a screw loose somewhere. I have no earthly idea why this is called an Arnold Palmer, although I think a safe bet is that Arnold Palmer used to drink glasses of half lemonade and half iced tea?

And now that you know all that helpful background, here's a great version of this iced tea, and adding mint into the mix makes it just about perfect. Happy lazy summer days to you.

Lemonade Mint Iced Tea, adapted from Taste of the South

• 10 cups boiling water
• 10 tea bags
• 4 sprigs fresh mint
• 1 twelve ounce can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
• Sugar for sweetening (optional)

1. Combine water, teabads and mint in large pot and let steep for 5-10 minutes, depending on how strong you like your tea. Remove tea bags.

2. Stir in concentrate. At this point you should taste and see if you think you need some sugar. The lemonade will sweeten it somewhat, but if you like your tea pretty sweet you might need to add in some sugar.

3. Refrigerate about one hour, or until ready to serve.

Click here for printable recipe

Breakfast Pizza

I love breakfast.

I love pizza.

And so when the New York Times ran an article that included a recipe for something called "Breakfast Pizza" from the Big Sur Bakery cookbook, well, let's just say they had me at hello. Yes, that IS an egg you see in the middle of that pizza in the picture. There's also bacon, and mozzarella cheese, and chopped parsley and scallions, all nestled onto a scrumptious and easy to make pizza crust. I've reprinted the recipe below the way it appeared in the paper, but I have to be honest and say I don't own a pizza peel, or a pizza stone, or anything else with the word pizza in the title, with the exception of my beloved Oxo pizza cutter, which I use to cut pizza, brownies, pie crust and anything else that needs to be cut in a straight line. So for this pizza, I cooked it on a garden variety cookie sheet and it came out just fine, so if you don't have all that fancy pizza stuff, don't let it stop you from making this scrumptious pizza. (How many times can you use the word "pizza" in one innocent paragragh? Um...a lot?)

Let me be very clear...this still won't stop me from eating slices of cold leftover pizza for breakfast whenever I get the chance...but this is a great option for making pizza specifically for the breakfast table. Or dinner. Or lunch. You get my drift...

Pizza. Pizza. Pizza.

Breakfast Pizza, from The Big Sur Bakery Cookbook

½ teaspoon dry active yeast

2 cups plus 2 tablespoons

bread flour, plus more for dusting

Kosher salt

6 strips bacon

½ cup grated Parmesan

2 cups grated mozzarella

6 large eggs

Freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons minced parsley

2 tablespoons minced chives

2 scallions, thinly sliced

1 shallot, minced.

1. The night before, prepare the dough: place ¾ cup lukewarm water in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook. Sprinkle in the yeast, stir and let sit for 5 minutes. Add the flour and 1 teaspoon of salt and mix on low for 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium and mix for 2 minutes, then increase the speed to high and mix until a smooth dough forms, about 2 minutes more. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface, divide into two equal pieces and form each half into a tight ball. Place on a large floured sheet pan, place the pan in a plastic garbage bag, tie the bag loosely and refrigerate overnight.

2. One hour before baking, place the dough in a warm spot. Adjust the oven rack to the lowest position and set a pizza stone on it (if you have one - if not a heavy duty cookie sheet works fine). Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.

3. Fry the bacon in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat until crisp. Cool on a paper-towel-lined plate; roughly chop.

4. Dip your hands and a ball of dough into the flour. On a lightly floured countertop, pat the dough into a disc with your fingertips, then drape the dough over your fists and carefully stretch it from beneath to form a 12-inch circle.

5. Generously dust the surface of a pizza peel or large inverted sheet pan with flour and place the stretched dough on it. Sprinkle the dough with half of the Parmesan, mozzarella and bacon. Crack 3 eggs over the top and season with salt and pepper.

6. Shake the pizza peel or pan slightly to make sure the dough is not sticking. Carefully lift any sections that are sticking and sprinkle a bit more flour underneath, then slide the pizza directly onto the baking stone or cookie sheet in one quick forward-and-back motion. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, rotating after 5 minutes. When the crust is golden, the cheese is melted and the egg yolks are cooked, transfer the pizza to a cutting board. Sprinkle half of the parsley, chives, scallions and shallot on top. Let cool for 2 minutes, slice and serve immediately. Prepare the second pizza in the same way. Makes 2 (12-inch) pizzas.

Grandpa's Coca-Cola Ribs

Here are my adorable parents, who are just about to celebrate their golden wedding anniversary. With all their friends. And all our giant extended family. At my house. Please pray for good weather.

Anyway, my mom has always been an amazing, phenomenal, extraordinary cook. As a matter of fact, when I did the "All About Me" section on this blog and described myself as a self-taught cook, more than one person who has known me for a while pointed out that I actually had a pretty fantastic teacher, otherwise known as My Mother. Totally true! I probably should have mentioned that. At any rate, she was and still is a virtuoso in the kitchen. Fresh-baked bread, home-made pasta, chocolate mousse cake, veal Oscar, marinated mozzarella, the best scones in the entire world, I could go on and on. My dad...well, he made some pretty great scrambled eggs over the years, but he was mainly relegated to kitchen clean-up crew along with the rest of us.

However. Over the past few years, I have had more than one great meal at their house, and complimented my mom on whatever it was, and she said these four words that were not usually ever strung together in my childhood home:

"Your father made it."

Macaroni and cheese. Shredded beef barbecue sandwiches. And lately, these ribs that are the sweet and spicy kind that literally fall off the bones as you eat them.

Dad? Dad, is that you?

So when he made them for dinner over Memorial Day weekend, I thought that's it, the world must know about this. And with that, here they are, the world's most scrumptious and tender ribs, from the world's most scrumptious and tender dad.

Grandpa's Coca-Cola Ribs

• 4 lbs Pork Ribs
• 3 cups Coca-Cola or Dr. Pepper
• 3 cups Ketchup
• 1 cup Packed Dark Brown Sugar
• 6 tablespoons Chili Powder
• 4 tablespoons Ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons Dry mustard
• 1 tablespoons Ground cinnamon

1. Transfer the ribs to a large non-reactive glass or ceramic dish pour 2 cups of Coca-Cola or Dr. Pepper over them. Reserve the third cup of the soda for a sauce to be made later. Let the ribs marinate, tightly covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated, overnight.

2. Pour the remaining 1 cup of soda into a blender or food processor and add the ketchup, brown sugar, chili powder, pepper, dry mustard, and cinnamon. Mix until smooth and well blended.

3. Put the ribs in a roasting pan that has been coated with cooking spray, brush with the sauce, and roast covered in a 225 oven for about 2 1/2 hours until very tender. (Can be done the day before. )

4. To finish, grill over high heat, basting with the uncooked sauce until the outside is crispy, about 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile simmer the unused sauce for about 20 minute until a little thick.

Click here for printable recipe

Summer Lasagne

This recipe made me ridiculously happy in every way.

First of all, it is one of those recipes that looks like you slaved over it for hours when really you messed around in the kitchen for about 20 minutes. Second, it takes full advantage of the fresh and wonderful summer veggies that are starting to trickle in -- young fresh basil, sweet cherry tomatoes, and zucchini. Third, it is yet another recipe that calls for fresh ricotta, thereby helping me satisfy my new obsession with making my own ricotta (and as always, you feel free to buy your ricotta at the supermarket, the way well-adjusted people do.) Fourth, the reason it is called "Summer Lasagne" is because you don't bake it. Nope, no oven required.

Last but not least, it was SO photogenic. Like this baby I know, it looked good in every single shot.

Exhibit A:



Exhibit B:

Both scrumptious, right??

Here's the recipe. For the lasagne, I mean...not the baby.

Summer Lasagne, adapted from Everyday Food

• 1 cup ricotta
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• 8 lasagne noodles, broken into thirds, cooked and drained
• 1 minced garlic clove
• 2 pints cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 small zucchini, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup torn basil leaves

1. Combine ricotta, parmesan and olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

2. Heat oil in skillet over medium high and add garlic and tomatoes. Cook until slightly broken down, about 3 minutes. Transfer to bowl.

3. Add zucchini to skillet (with a little more oil if needed). Season with salt and pepper and cook about 5 minutes until tender. Transfer to another bowl.

4. Scatter a few tomatoes over four plates. Top with one noodle, a spoonful of ricotta mixture, zucchini and more tomatoes. Repeat layering twice, ending with noodle and tomatoes. Drizzle a little more olive oil on top. Garnish with basil and serve.

Click here for printable recipe

Tomato Blue Cheese Napoleons

Fresh tomatoes, creamy blue cheese, a little home-made remoulade sauce - do I have your attention yet? For some reason, I am on a roll with the side dishes (see my recent post on Lemon Ricotta Potatoes), which is unusual for me, but I am going with the flow here.

For this one you need some great fresh tomatoes, a mild blue cheese, the makings for a quick food processor remoulade sauce that serves as a dressing, and a little lettuce. Once you whiz up the sauce in the food processor, all you have to do is slice up the tomatoes and the cheese, layer them up on a bed of lettuce and drizzle the sauce over the whole thing. Drop a few red onions on the top and you have a very handsome dish that will completely outshine whatever the main course is. In our case, the Southern husband was grilling up some chicken while I made the napoleans. We sliced up the chicken, tossed it on the plates next to the napoleans, drizzled the left-over remolaude sauce on the sliced chicken, and oh my my. Summer tomato season, here we come!

Tomato Blue Cheese Napoleans, adapted from Taste of the South

• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/2 cup mustard
• 1/3 cup chopped scallions
• 1/4 cup prepared horseradish
• 2 large eggs
• Juice of one lemon
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 1 tablespoon Tabasco
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup olive oil

• 1 small head romaine lettuce, cut into strips
• 2 large tomatoes, cut into four slices
• 8 ounces blue cheese, cut into eight slices
• Shaved red onion

1. Combine first 12 ingredients (celery through salt) in food processor and process until smooth. With processor still running, pour oil through feed tube until emulsified.

2. Divide lettuce among four plates. Top with one slice tomato, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place slice of blue cheese on top, top with another tomato slice. Drizzle with remoulade sauce, top with another slice of blue cheese. Drizzle more remoulade over top of both tomato stack and lettuce. Garnish with red onion. (Leftover remoulade sauce will keep in the fridge, and it makes a great salad dressing, a light sauce for chicken or seafood, and/or a delicious marinade.)

Click here for printable recipe