This is the cocktail that, Cay, the hostess of the gourmet group that I am now a member of, served for the December gathering at her gorgeous home. Co-host, Susie is on the left and Cay is on the right, as we toast ourselves for a job well done. To be honest, this selfie was taken before the party began, but once we had cocktails in hand, we knew it would be a success!

Pomegranate Moscow Mules

Candied Mint Leaves

• Water
• 1/2 cup fresh mint leaves
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar

Mule

• Crushed ice
• 1 ½ cups ginger beer
• 2/3 cup pomegranate juice
• 4 ounces vodka
• 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice

Garnish

• Fresh pomegranate arils
• Candied Mint Leaves

[Read more →]

Well, that’s not much of a title for a cooking blog, is it? Sorry, it can’t be helped, I’ve been dealing with a variety of bugs recently.

I’m recovering from my third bout of summer pneumonia. No, not three illnesses this summer, but the third time I’ve had pneumonia during a hot Arizona summer. Go figure! And, I know, it’s not officially summer yet but … more on that later.

The first time I was diagnosed was over the 4th of July weekend, back in the late ’90’s. I specifically remember that date because we had to cancel our annual 4th of July Pool Party. The first and only party I’ve ever canceled.

The second time was during the last week of summer cooking classes in 2009. That was the sickest I think I’ve ever been. I still taught the classes, but if not for my son, Connor, being my assistant, and the fact that I was no longer contagious, that would have been the first and only summer session I would have had to cancel. I made a deal with my doctor; Connor would do all the setup while I stayed in bed. I’d get up to teach the 3-hour classes each day and then go back to bed while Connor cleaned up. I was supposed to stay there until the next day, but that was impossible. I had to do some of the setup and prep, but Connor did the bulk of the work that week. It was pure misery.

And here I am again. It came out of nowhere over the weekend. But three days of antibiotics and I’m on the mend. I’m not feeling great enough to cook up a storm. Not that I even want to cook – it’s too damn hot to think about anything but cold soups and salads and as many liquids as I can tolerate. Look at the forecast for the coming days. I mean … Seriously!!!

That’s what I’m talking about. It may not be officially summer, but in Arizona, official seasonal starts and stops make no difference whatsoever!

OK, so illness is not the only bug I’ve been dealing with, the other is an actual creepy-crawly bug. I have a beautiful pomegranate tree that produces big beautiful pomegranates each and every year. Sounds heavenly, doesn’t it?

[Read more →]

Today is Friday the 13th and tonight I am hosting a Friday the 13th Dinner Party.

I’ll be posting recipes and party details next week, but since today is also World Cocktail Day, that seems the logical and probably luckiest place to start.

This is a pomegranate cocktail. What is lucky about that?

The pomegranate is hailed as a symbol of luck in a number of cultures and religions, including Ancient Greece, Judaism, Christianity, Armenia, and Islam. It’s often a symbol of fertility but has also been associated with sweetness and the fullness of life.

Lucky 13 Pomegranate Cocktail

• 1 ½ ounces (3 tablespoons) silver tequila
• 1/2 ounce (1 tablespoon) pomegranate liqueur
• 1/2 ounce (1 tablespoon) triple sec
• 3 ounces (6 tablespoons) pomegranate juice
• 1 ounce (2 tablespoons) coconut water
• 1/2 to 1 ounce (1 to 2 tablespoons) fresh squeezed lemon juice, to taste

• 2 lime wheels
• 26 pomegranate arils (seeds)
  

To a shaker filled with ice, add the tequila, both liquors, pomegranate juice, coconut water and lemon juice. Shake until well mixed and ice cold.

Pour drink into two chilled martini glasses and garnish each with a lime wheel and 13 fresh pomegranate arils.

Serves 2

Since we’re on the subject of party beverages, I want to share a few of the wines I’ve found to fit my theme.

Bailey felt as though this was the perfect opportunity for her to jump into the photo, nearly knocking over my lucky/unlucky wines. Whatever!

[Read more →]

That is French and translates word for word into Salad. Green. Bitter.

It sounds poetic in French but it certainly does not sound as lovely or appetizing in English. So we shall give it a nicer English name … Bitter Greens Salad with Pomegranates & Parmesan.

So much better. This, of course, was the salad from the European Dinner Party.

I put out store-bought cookies and candies at the end of the meal, so there will not be a dessert recipe. The main course is all I have left to post. Expect that recipe tomorrow.

[Read more →]

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.

[Read more →]

I have the most beautiful and bountiful pomegranate tree in my backyard.

I had the tree planted when we did a complete remodel of our yard, five years ago.

It produces bigger and better-looking fruit each year.

[Read more →]

On Saturday night I taught a cooking class and served dinner at a wedding shower for Leah, the beautiful bride-to-be.  This is the darling and super creative invite that Jenny, Leah’s sister-in-law, sent out… attached to a real cutting board with a real whisk at the top ~ too cute! (and it was even cuter before I marked out the personal info…)

The guacamole I served reminds me of one of my favorite restaurants in Phoenix, Barrio Cafe, where Chef Silvana Salcido Esparaza’s guacamole is made table-side and is the first place I ever saw pomegranate arils added. Remember, they aren’t called pomegranate seeds. The correct name is arils. If you don’t remember, you can go back to THIS, my 100th post, where I tell you all about it (and even how to freeze the arils). Today marks my 834th post. We’ve come a long way baby!

[Read more →]

I was in Florida last week visiting our friends, Kathy and Chris Froggatt. We went out a couple nights and had the most fabulous fish at two of their favorite restaurants. Plus we cooked at home with lobster one night.  More on that in the days to come; what I want to share with you today is a delicious pomegranate martini recipe that Chris made for us… and happily, more than once.

Thank you Chris and Kathy, you are perfect hosts and I had a wonderful time, in spite of the humidity. 🙂  xoxo

[Read more →]

Turkey-Day is only 2 days away!!! Complete Thanksgiving Planning Guide and Timeline. Better get there now!

I’ve known this fact for about a year now, bloggers are very nice and supportive people! Look at this sweet post from a fellow blogger and often, nice comment sender, Audrey Larsen, of The Audrey Files. She is my new BFF – so sorry Jen and Peggy and Anne!

Wanna know something that makes my day (in addition to having a new BFF)? Finding a cool new item at Trader Joe’s, that’s what! While standing in the dried fruit/nut aisle I was scanning for dried cranberries. Not that I really need another bag, I’m guessing that I have at least a half dozen partial bags of dried cranberries tucked behind various other partial bags of nuts and fruits and chocolates in one of my two extra freezers, but I am too busy/lazy to dig for one. That is really a whole other story and could be a post on its own! Anyhow, as I stood there scanning, I saw, the new item – dried pomegranate seeds.

Awesome! I was so excited to try them, I had to control the urge to open the package right there and then. The very second I was in the car, I ripped into it. They are tasty, and according to the package they are a “good source of fiber” too. There you go, run out and snag a couple of bags so that it becomes such a popular item, there is no way TJ’s would even consider discontinuing them. Even though I am enjoying eating them straight from the bag, I decided to create a Thanksgiving recipe using them and share it with you… hey, it’s just how I roll.

[Read more →]

Turkey-Day is only 7 days away!!! Complete Thanksgiving Planning Guide and Timeline.

Shhh, don’t tell my family, but I am going to make different rolls this Thanksgiving. This is a big deal!  There will be whining, complaining, moaning, crying, and even a possible revolt, but I’m still going to do it! Our traditional roll is the absolutely delicious and addictive James Beard Potato Bread Rolls that I made each year. The thing is, I also make these rolls only a short 4 weeks later for Christmas Eve dinner, Christmas day dinner, and use the same dough for my killer Cinnamon-Pecan Rolls on Christmas morning. So… these people, who I have to feed every single day, (sometimes up to 3 times a day!) can try something different on Thanksgiving this year! That something different will be cloverleaf rolls.

Cloverleaf rolls sometimes have tiny crosses marked on each of the three sections, referring to the Holy Trinity, which in Ireland is often compared to the clover. I’ll save that little embellishment for Easter. You may also dip the balls in melted butter after forming and before placing in the muffin cups, that makes for one very rich roll!  Another option is to brush the tops of the rolls (after rising in the muffin tins) with and egg wash or melted butter and then sprinkle the tops of the rolls with sesame, poppy, or mixed seeds. Do so if you wish.

The composed butter that accompanies the rolls calls for pomegranate molasses, which I’ve posted about before and you can get the recipe for by CLICKING HERE. You can make a full 1 cup recipe or reduce it by two-thirds, which will produce exactly 1/3 cup, as called for.  And finally, I’ve added a pumpkin variation for this recipe, just in case, you too, want to mix things up next week. That and the measurements for a scaled down amount of pomegranate molasses are found at the bottom of this post.

[Read more →]