Jungle Birthday

Just a quick sneak-peek at the prep for JG's 4th Birthday Party this coming Saturday.....here is a picture of the party favors in the making - not quite finished; still need to attach the little tag. The party is a Jungle theme - and who doesn't love Fruit Stripe Gum?!?! "Yipes, Stripes, Fruit Stripe Gum!"

Salmon at Sam's

So I was reading up on some doctor named Perricone for some reason, and started thinking about where we could get Wild Alaskan Salmon. Turns out you can get it at Sam's Club, where box of individually sealed, pre-seasoned, 6oz. wild Alaskan salmon fillets costs about $15.

You know, I was not confident I could tell the difference between the Atlantic salmon I usually buy and this, but boy, was I ever wrong. I recommend it very highly. Just throw it on the grill (or in your grill pan, which is what I did) for 3-5 minutes (depending on how you like your salmon) skin-side down, then flip and do the same on the other side. The skin peels off really easily, so go ahead and peel it off with your fingers or a fork, then right before it's done, you want to flip it one more time to get a nice sear on both sides.

We had it last night for dinner with brown rice and steamed broccoli. Mmmm....

Shana's Broccoli
Cut up a bunch of broccoli (I like to use the stems too)
Put a small pot on the stove over med-high heat.
Pour in a little bit of olive oil, some minced garlic, and a pinch of red pepper flakes.
Stir about 30 seconds. Throw in the broccoli, and stir until coated.
Add some chicken stock (I don't know, maybe 1/4-1/2 cup)
Turn down the heat to low, cover, and steam until crisp-tender, which should only take a couple of minutes. Remove from heat but leave the lid on to keep cooking it a few more minutes/keep it warm until you're ready to eat it.

Porch Sittin'

Since the weather has been so nice, the husband and I have had several evenings of "porch sittin'." This usually involves a bottle of something tasty, and this week, we chose champagne. Heck, since I'm a light weight when it comes to alcohol, we get two nights out of it. I guess you could say I'm a buy one, get one free kinda gal. Anyhow... While preparing our yummy treats, it occurred to me to take a picture and use it for my next post. Yippee for me! This particular night, we dined on mixed olives from the olive bar at Kroger, Greek Spinach Pie, crostini's (AKA kristini's), and homemade hummus with crackers, celery, and carrots. The crostini's are chopped tomatoes and kalamata olives, with a little oregano, on top of toasted pepper swiss bread from Great Harvest. The Greek Spinach Pie is a recipe passed on from a FPC soprano sectional years ago. I used it one time for our Thanksgiving brunch by dropping a spoonful of the mixture into phyllo shells in place of a pie crust. Hope you enjoy it, and who knows, maybe it'll inspire some porch sittin' for you.

Greek Spinach Pie

1 Pillsbury pie crust
10oz. frozen chopped spinach, thawed
2 Tbl butter
1 small onion, chopped
1 small red bell pepper, chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbl all-purpose flour
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
4oz feta cheese, crumbled
2 tsp Greek seasoning
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 C grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400.
Fit pie crust into a 9" pie plate, fold edges under and crimp. Bake crust at 400 for 7 minutes. Remove from oven, and set aside. Reduce oven to 350.
Drain spinach well, set aside.
Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat; add onion and next 3 ingredients, and saute 5 minutes or until tender.
Stir in flour; cook, stirring constantly for 1 minute.
Stir together spinach, onion mixture, eggs and next 5 ingredients. Pour into pie crust. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Sprinkle evenly with parmesan cheese, and bake 5 more minutes or until set. Cool 5 minutes before slicing.

Corner Bakery....yummy!

In case you haven't been tempted to try the new Corner Bakery Cafe (located out at Dogwood Festival) yet - you really should. They have a great menu, and very yummy food. I have done takeout once and eaten in the restaurant once. I had the chicken carbonara for takeout and it was enough to serve myself and my little "pumpkin-pants" dinner twice! It was delicious too - with really nice white meat chicken, bacon, and spring green peas in a creamy sauce. When I dined there, I had the soup and salad combo - broccoli cheese soup and a super scrumptious salad called the Harvest Salad which included chicken, crisp green apples, toasted walnuts, bleu cheese and currants tossed with mixed greens, balsamic vinaigrette and harvest crisps.

and, oh by the way.....Parents Magazine has named Corner Bakery Cafe"One of the 10 Best Fast-Casual Restaurants in America" July 2009.

You really should give it a try!

Muffins

Since returning home from Africa, we have been eating very light. Smoothies, granola, salads, etc. I'm easing my way back into the world of actual cooking, and have a craving for muffins. Here's a favorite recipe for Bran Muffins:

1 C wheat or oat bran
1 1/2 C whole wheat flour (I use spelt)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
Mix together, then add 1/2 C raisins. I use golden raisins for extra sweetness.

In a separate bowl mix the following:
2 eggs, beaten
1 C milk
3/4 C applesauce
2 Tbls oil
1/2 C molasses or honey, or a combination of both

Add the liquid to the flour mixture, and mix just till combined. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-18 minutes.

July Supper Club

Menu

Pre-Dinner Drink - Tom Collins cocktail (modified)
3 Tbsp gin
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp powdered sugar
Sprite Zero to taste

For a pitcher, I made a simple syrup using 1 cup of lemon juice and 3 Tbsp granulated sugar, then added 1.75 cups gin, 3 cups Sprite Zero, and 2 cups of ice.

Appetizers - Beef carpacchio with horseradish and crushed grape tomatoes*
Sauteed feta with parsley, raisin, caper, and pine nut sauce*
Grilled pizza with mozarella, fresh tomatoes, and basil*
Soup - Yellow pepper gazpacho
Salad - Baby arugula and black grapes
Fish - Scallop ceviche with melon, chile, and mint*
Pasta - Penne puttanesca*
Poultry - Lemon chicken with white wine and parsley*
Vegetable - Carpacchio of raw squash*
Beef - Grilled flank steak with spicy pepper and watermelon salad
Dessert - Basil ice cream with wine-poached cherries*
Cookies - Coffee and chocolate ginger cookies

Starred* items came from the Tyler Florence cookbook Eat This Book.