On Friday night we had a little reunion of sorts. Our dear friends and former neighbors, Lori and Jonathon, were in town for the week.

In December, Tram and I flew to Chicago to visit them and do a bit of Christmas shopping. We had an absolute ball! I meant to blog about our trip but I never got around to it, you know, with the holiday rush and all.

Tram and Steve and Lori and Jonathon came over for dinner and we had the very best time! I’ll be posting recipes all week; appetizers, cocktails, starters, salads, and even a salt block cooking recipe. I’m going, to begin with a gorgeous smoked salmon appetizer. It’s hard to take that first chunk out of it because it’s so beautiful, but once you get going on it, it’s hard to stop. It’s as delicious as it is lovely.

There is no cooking involved and you’ll be using a food processor to put it together. As such, I’ll be tagging this one as an Easy-Breezy Recipe.

Once you add the herbs, you want to use the Pulse button ONLY. You don’t want the mixture to turn green from the herbs or the processor to turn the salmon and cranberries into baby food. What you’re going for is a cohesive mixture with a bit of texture.

Fresh Fruit – Smoked Salmon Spread

• 4-ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon each; fresh minced dill, mint, and thyme
• 24-ounce package of smoked salmon
• 1/2 cup crushed pineapple, drained
• 1/3 cup dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup chopped dry roasted almonds
• Fresh sliced peaches, blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, and fresh sprigs of thyme, basil, dill, and/or mint for garnish
• Crackers for serving

Place the cream cheese in the bowl of a food processor and blend; add the mayonnaise and salt and blend until smooth.

Using the pulse button, add in the fresh herbs with only 2 or 3 short pulses.

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Last night, we had George and Julie over for cards and dinner. You may remember George and Julie as the “side vs. salad” couple from the 4th of July party. That’s George sitting on the cool deck and Julie in the blue top on the far right.

We’ve always been a big “cards family.” We play either Hearts, Spades, Rummy 500, Pinochle, or Gin Rummy with my dad nearly every Sunday. So “cards and dinner” is nothing new at our house, but having another couple over for that explicit reason is.

I had family obligations all morning and into the early afternoon, so dinner had to be fast and easy. I made a quick cocktail by whizzing a few frozen mixed berries in the blender with about a cup of purchased lemonade. I strained out the seeds and put the mixture in a pitcher and then added the rest of the bottled lemonade and popped that in the fridge to chill. When it was time to serve, I poured the berry lemonade and an ounce of vodka over ice and topped it off with a splash of homemade limoncello. Cocktail Done!

When Dave got home from work, I asked him to scour the refrigerator for olives and the pantry for smoked fish and pâté and arrange it on a platter with some crackers and grissini breadsticks.  Snacks Done!

Below is the recipe for one of the two salads I made, the other will follow in a day or so.

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Connor did not request this salad for his birthday dinner, but I needed something cool, refreshing, colorful, and healthy to add to the menu that was heavy with ribs and BBQ sauce.

I’d be happy eating this all summer long! Add some feta or goat cheese if you’d like. I left it out because those aren’t Connor’s favorite things, and on your birthday, you should never have to eat something you don’t like!

Summer Corn, Cucumber & Tomato Salad

Cilantro Vinaigrette
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon champagne vinegar
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Salad
16-ounce package frozen corn, thawed
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2  English cucumber, diced
1/2 red onion, peeled and diced
2 avocados, diced

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Here’s another great appetizer for summer. If you don’t want to heat up the kitchen, use a grill basket and cook the shrimp outside.

Mixed Herb Pesto Shrimp Skewers

Pesto
3 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1 cup pine nuts, toasted
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup fresh Italian parsley leaves, packed
1/4 cup fresh tarragon leaves
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves
4 garlic cloves, peeled
2/3 cup olive oil

Skewers
2 pounds frozen uncooked peeled and deveined medium shrimp, about 60 total, thawed
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Pesto: Place basil, pine nuts, Parmesan, parsley, tarragon, mint, and garlic in a food processor. Blend until herbs are finely chopped. Add oil with the machine running, through the feed tube, and blend to a coarse puree. Season pesto to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to a small bowl.

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This salad is so beautiful, full of color and healthy goodness. The glistening arils from pomegranates, the red chewy dried cranberry, the creamy richness of avocado, the crunch and spicy bite of the pepitas – oh my!

I use the one-pound box of greens from Costco, their “half and half” mix, half baby spinach, and half colorful spring mix.

Any lettuce or combination of greens you prefer works just fine. Be sure to use a full pound though, this is a “big” salad! Once the dressing is added to the greens, the salad won’t keep for long, so be sure to wait until the last minute to put it all together.

I use my Candied Spiced Pepitas. These Candied Almonds would be wonderful too.

Quick Tip: This vinaigrette uses sesame seeds. Store sesame seeds in the refrigerator. Those little things go rancid in a hurry if they are stored at room temperature.

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I admit it, this recipe looks VERY intimidating. It is long. There are many components. It looks complicated. But I PROMISE it is not hard to do. In fact, it is a wonderful special occasion entertaining dish. For a crowd, no less!

How is that possible, you ask?

It is because none of the components are difficult and all but one can be done 1 or 2 days in advance. So in reality, it comes together quickly and seamlessly at the end.

Even the final, last-minute component, the Hollandaise sauce, is foolproof. I know, you may be ready to quit reading right now… Hollandaise Sauce – Absolutely Not!

But really it is foolproof! No stove is involved! All you need is a blender. You’re still skeptical? This sauce comes from Chef Tyler Florence. It works perfectly and is easy as can be, I may never make traditional Hollandaise sauce again!

As I was beginning to make the crêpes in my usual crêpe pan, I decided that they were too small, so I switched to a larger skillet. This was a personal choice, if you don’t have a medium-size skillet (about 10-inches across the top) a smaller regular crêpe pan is fine. Above you can see the two pans I’m talking about, and below the difference in the crêpe sizes.

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I had planned to tell you about my weekend but I haven’t had time to get the photos put together. Instead, how about another recipe for our new “skinny” category today?

Skinny Greek Salad

Roasted Grape Tomatoes
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
Pam non-stick cooking spray
1 teaspoon Greek seasoning, divided
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Oil-Free Greek Dressing
Juice from roasting tomatoes (from above)
Zest from 1 small lemon
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 small garlic clove, peeled and minced
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Chicken
1/4 cup lemon juice
3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 tablespoon fresh chopped rosemary
1 tablespoon fresh chopped oregano
1 tablespoon fresh chopped thyme
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

Salad
1 cup chopped cucumber
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/4 cup pitted and sliced Kalamata olives
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 tablespoons thinly sliced and chopped red onion
1 head Romaine lettuce; torn into bite-size pieces, washed and spun dry

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When I have the time, I like to salt my beef and let it sit at room temperature for 1 hour before cooking. If I have even more time (and remember – that’s really the hard part – remembering!) I prefer to salt it overnight.

You may have heard or been taught to not salt beef until just before cooking. That can be true too.  I know, it’s so contradictory and confusing. Instead of trying to explain it myself, I am going to direct you to THIS ARTICLE, which explains the science of it perfectly, and also tells you what NOT to do when salting beef.

This is good information, don’t be lazy, be sure to check it out!

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This is the perfect appetizer to make for your family or take to a party this holiday season. It comes together easily. It can and should be made ahead of time. It’s pretty and makes an impressive presentation. Plus, it feeds a crowd!

Herbed Cheesecake

Crust
3/4 cup pecans
3/4 cup dry seasoned bread crumbs
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
Filling
16 ounces (2 packages) cream cheese, room temperature
11 ounce log goat cheese, room temperature
1 cup sour cream
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 eggs
1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes (packed in oil) drained and finely chopped
1  1/2 tablespoons fresh dill, minced
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh chives, minced
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
Garnish
Fresh dill sprigs
4 cherry tomatoes, halved and, if desired, roasted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9-inch spring form pan with nonstick cooking spray. Line the bottom with a piece of parchment or foil and spray the top of the paper as well. Triple wrap the spring form with heavy-duty foil, coming up the sides and nearly to the top.

Crust: Place the pecans and bread crumbs in the bowl of a food processor and blend until pecans are finely chopped, add the melted butter and turn on the machine until the mixture begins to come together.

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As a celebration for another great year at Les Gourmettes Cooking School, Barb treated me and Kim to a spa day. It was scheduled for early June, but I got food poisoning the night before and could not go with them. Barb, sweetly scheduled another date for after my summer classes at Les Petites Gourmettes, and she and I had a great time a week ago at the Willow Springs Spa at the Scottsdale Princess. After our treatments, we enjoyed a delicious lunch. We each ordered the Grilled Chicken Cobb Salad. It was your basic Cobb, with the exception of the herb vinaigrette… which was outstanding.  I asked the waiter if the chef might be willing to share the recipe. I gave him my email, and sure enough, within an hour of arriving home, it popped into my inbox.

I cut the recipe he sent in half. You may want to cut it in half again, it still makes over 3 cups, and although that is a lot, it is delicious on more than just salads. I drizzled it on hot fresh corn on the cob and as the dressing for a tomato-mozzarella salad. Both were fabulous.

You can wing it with the herb quantities if you don’t have a scale or just don’t feel like weighing everything, nothing has to be exact. Look at the photo I posted of all the herbs and it will give you a good idea of the amounts needed for each. I can tell you that 1.25-ounces of chives is two of those little herb boxes you get in the produce section. You can take it from there.

Thank you, Barb, for a relaxing and luxurious day – what a generous gift and treat! xoxo

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