Lisa made these delicious caramelized onion bites. This recipe is a keeper.

Asparagus season and Easter come at the same time and what a perfect pairing that is! They are both happy signs of spring.

Plus this lovely green vegetable pairs wonderfully with both ham and lamb.

We had all three for our Easter brunch; ham in the Herb Crêpes Eggs Benedict Florentine, Pomegranate Molasses Lamb Chops, and this lovely asparagus dish.

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I don’t know if any of you noticed, but this entire summer, just about any and every food themed magazine was having a heyday with pies. From Martha Stewart Living, Food & Wine, and Bon Appétit, to InStyle, and O, it was pies, pies, and more pies! Even the in-flight magazine on either Southwest Airlines or US Airways (can’t recall specifically which one, I flew both several times – yeah, because I am a jet-setter!) had a huge article with recipes for pies! What’s up with that? I mean I love pies as much as just about anybody on the planet, but I somehow missed that 2011 was designated – THE SUMMER OF PIES!

I actually put up two recipes for pies this summer, the first was a Buttermilk Pie on June 24th, during the height of kids’ cooking classes. And then again on August 22nd when I, along with hundreds of others, made a Pie for Mikey, in remembrance of a fellow food-blooger’s beloved husband. Neither one was exactly in cahoots with the rest of the food world celebrating The Wonderful World of Pies. One was created to use up the boatloads of buttermilk I was fortunate enough to get – for free – from Shamrock Farms and the other – well as I just said, it was an honor to make.

One of the most popular pies in just about all of these publications was Strawberry-Rhubarb. And for good reason, that is summer at its best! And now that summer is done and over with for most of the country (it will still feel like and be referred to as “summer” here in AZ for about 4 to 7 more weeks), I have decided to jump on the bandwagon… kind of.  In defiance, I am going to use strawberries and rhubarb to make a tart, not a pie, so take that “Summer of Pie”!

In my overt act of rebellion, I mistakenly bought way too much rhubarb. Once I started cutting it up, I remembered that 1 or 2 stalks go a long long way.  I think I purchased 8 or 9 stalks and the pie, I mean the tart, it takes one – maybe two. Oh well, the recipe for Rhubarb-Strawberry Compote will be handed over to you tomorrow. Maybe it will induce the “Fall of Compotes” revolution! Hey, you never know.

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These quick and easy appetizers may be shaped however you like; as tartlets, purses, or turnovers. The recipe below describes how to make into tartlets. For purses, completely enclose the filling and brush the entire outside surface (except the bottom) with egg-wash. For turnovers, chop the apples and nuts into smaller pieces and fold into triangles, crimp the edges with a fork and brush all over with egg-wash. Personally, I prefer the tartlets for two reasons; you can see exactly what is inside and there is a higher filling to pastry ratio when the filling is not fully enclosed. It gives you more bang for your buck. Any version of these may be used to top a salad, but once again, I think the tartlets are the best option for that application as well.

I also prefer to use Trader Joe’s puff pastry for this recipe. The sheets are in a perfect square, without any folds. Pepperidge Farm is the other easy-to-find choice and will also work. The end product will be shaped slightly different, as their pasty comes folded in thirds and is a rectangular shape. It is also thinner, so no need to roll out, but you will need to thaw according to package directions before unfolding.

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Martinis have always seemed like such a sophisticated drink, probably in the past due to James Bond and nowadays thanks to one of my favorite television shows, Mad Men… Don Draper…deep sigh.

These delectable Martini Puffs are equally upscale and easy to make, as long as you can wait the full week for the olives to marinate. Equally wonderful, they can be assembled and frozen before baking, then go directly from the freezer to the oven for impromptu entertaining.
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With all the dishes you’ll be making for the big Thanksgiving feast, you need a couple of easy, quick, and tasty appetizers to go with the crudites. One of the quickest and easiest products to use is puff pastry.

Puff pastry can be purchased in the freezer section of the grocery store, usually near the pie crusts. Most grocery stores carry the Pepperidge Farms brand. Trader Joe’s also carries their own signature brand of puff pastry (you can pick up the tapenades there too). Both brands have two sheets of pastry per package, only one is needed for this recipe. Wrap well and refreeze the second sheet for future use.
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