Parmesan Peppercorn Salad Dressing

 

With few exceptions, I make my own salad dressing. Having more than once read the ingredients on bottled salad dressing, I tend to shy away from those. There’s really nothing to making your own salad dressing, particularly if you have a mini food processor to blend everything together for you. It emulsifies salad dressing like nobody’s business, even better than those you buy in the store that will occasionally need a good shaking. You just have to make up your mind that you’re going to do it, and once you do, not only will you enjoy it, but you’ll start to experiment like I did with this dressing. Give it some thought. It’s economical, the quality control is unbeatable, and the taste and freshness is phenomenal.

 Parmesan Peppercorn Salad Dressing

½ c. buttermilk
½ c. Duke’s mayonnaise
1/3 c. grated Parmesan cheese
Juice of ½ lemon
1 t. Dijon mustard
1 t. freshly ground black pepper
¼ t. kosher salt

Combine all ingredients with either a mini food processor, or by whisking to within an inch of your life. Cover, refrigerate. Keeps 7 to 10 days.

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Santa All the Way Tablescape

 

This is a riff on last week’s Christmassy non-Christmas table. Many things remain in place, I just swapped out a few to get an entirely different look. If you are hosting a number of parties over the holiday season, there’s no need to go crazy digging out all of your dinnerware when a few changes can make such an impactful difference.

The hunter green tablecloth is the same, as is the yardage that I used as a runner. Similarly, the chargers and dinner plates are the same. I have come to learn that while placemats and chargers make up the overall look, people pay less attention to these background items than they do the specialty pieces. Because of this, it is so easy to change a table by only removing an item or two.

I kept the bold lime green napkins the same, as well as the Milano red flatware by Ginkgo International in the Le Pris pattern, but swapped out last week’s apple napkin rings for these Santa napkin rings that I inherited from my mother.

Instead of the apple items that made up the focal point of my last table, this one is Santas all the way. The same nubby-edged red plates from Pier One are in place, but I topped them with these darling Santa salad/dessert plates that I inherited from my mother as well. On top of those are these wonderful “Ho! Ho! Ho!” soup bowls that I also got at Pier One, and I love them! I was lucky enough to get these two, as these sold out almost immediately.

The Fiestaware pitcher from last week has been replaced with a Fitz and Floyd Santa pitcher that does double duty as the centerpiece. He sits on top of, and is surrounded by a variety of faux greenery (I used this and this) and berries.

 The coffee mugs match the pitcher and so are also by Fitz and Floyd. This set is very early Fitz and Floyd, and one of the first things of theirs that I collected. I still remember buying this at a gourmet shop (The Second Story at Plaza Frontenac for locals) in an upscale mall here in the area back in 1978. I guess that makes this vintage.

Finishing up the table I used simple black candlesticks filled with these wonderful battery operated pine tree candles.

This whimsical and colorful table is surely one that will delight young and old.

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This post is linked to: Tablescape Thursday

Texas Roadhouse Roadkill, my version

 

Have you noticed, like I have, that all of a sudden there seem to be a lot of recipes for Texas Roadhouse Roadkill all over the Internet? I’ve been to Texas Roadhouse only once. It was about 13 years ago, and I honestly have no idea what I ate. It had just opened locally, was jam-packed, and the only impression I got from the place was that I just wanted to get out of there. I will admit to being intrigued with this recipe, so much so that I decided to make it myself, altering it so it met with my standards. I did so by adding the additional step of dipping the patties into an egg wash and then into Italian breadcrumbs. I think that makes beef patties cooked on top of the stove so much better. They seem more like a chopped steak than they do a hamburger. Try this recipe and let me know what you think. The end result does look like a plate of roadkill, but it is awfully good.

 Texas Roadhouse Roadkill, my version

2 lb. ground chuck
2 t. Worcestershire sauce
1 t. Montreal steak seasoning
½ t. freshly ground black pepper
1 large egg
½ c. Italian breadcrumbs
2 T.  butter, divided
1 T. olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, sliced
1 8-oz. pkg. crimini mushrooms, sliced
1-2 c. shredded Monterey Jack cheese

In a large bowl, combine ground chuck, Worcestershire, steak seasoning, black pepper, and mix until well blended. Shape mixture into four oblong potions about ½” thick.

Beat egg with 1 tablespoon water until frothy; pour into a shallow bowl. Put Italian breadcrumbs into another shallow bowl. Dip each patty into the egg mixture, and then into the Italian breadcrumbs, turning to coat. Place coated patties on a plate.

In a 10” – 12” skillet, melt 1 T. butter. Add oil, heating until hot. Sauté onions and a sprinkling of salt for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add mushrooms to the skillet and sauté for another 3 to 4 minutes. Turn out vegetables into a bowl.

Place pan back over heat and melt remaining tablespoon of butter until sizzling, but not brown. Put the crumb-coated patties into the pan and cook for five minutes. Flip to the other side and cook five minutes more. Pour sautéed onions and mushrooms over the top of the burger patties. Cover each one with a generous amount of shredded Monterey jack cheese. Put a lid on the pan and cook until the cheese melts.

 Serve immediately.

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Parmesan Baked Cod

The tasty fish recipe of the week is this wonderful baked cod. It was so good that I was sorry I had only made one piece for myself because I quite easily could’ve eaten two. This recipe will not work with dried herbs, so don’t even think about it. It’s fresh herbs, or nothing. In the doing, and following the instructions carefully, this is company worthy.

Parmesan Baked Cod

Adapted from laurenslatest.com

 2 cod fillets

¼ c. Duke’s mayonnaise

¼ c. freshly grated Parmesan

 2 T. minced fresh flat leaf parsley

 2 T. minced fresh basil

 1 clove garlic, grated

 Sea salt to taste

 Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

A whisper of Old Bay

  Preheat oven to 450°F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat. Place fish fillets onto the prepared baking sheet; set aside.

In a small bowl stir together mayonnaise, cheese, fresh herbs, garlic, salt, and pepper until combined. Spread evenly over the top of the fillets. Sprinkle lightly with Old Bay.

Bake 10-12 minutes or until fish starts looking opaque and flakes.

Switch oven to broiler and brown the tops of the fish until lightly golden, about 1-2 minutes, watching it carefully so it doesn't burn.

 Remove from oven and serve warm with wedges of lemon.

Serves 2

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The Cozy Christmas Cookbook, 50 Recipes to Rediscover the Magic of the Season, Reviewed

 

I felt very nostalgic while reading this fun new cookbook, The Cozy Christmas Cookbook, 50 Recipes to Rediscover the Magic of the Season by Taylor Vance, because it reminded me very much of the cookbooks that my mother had when I was a little girl. That’s a good thing because while it made me feel nostalgic, it was still fresh, and modern, and new, with beautiful photography and clever ideas.

I appreciated the fact that there was an engaging photograph for nearly every recipe. I think that’s important for all cooks whether they are just starting out or are seasoned veterans. I also liked that the recipes were clear, concise, and most of all doable for all skill levels. Nothing is too difficult for anyone to make in order to create something unique, festive, and flavorful.

Despite the retro feel, this book is perfect for today’s cook, who may want to incorporate vegetarian or vegan meals into their diet. There are recipes here that fill the bill in both categories, but for those of us who enjoy our meat and cheese, easy substitutions can be made.

The recipes themselves are whimsically presented, with acute embellishments, frames, and illustrations. You can’t help but feel a sense of fun when flipping through. I also appreciated tips, anecdotes, and helpful hints that were festively scattered throughout.

If you are looking for a way to recapture that culinary Christmas joy, this book is for you.

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Disclaimer: I received a complementary digital copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Holiday Table for Two

Despite the fact that many people start decorating for Christmas after Halloween, for me, the Christmas season doesn’t officially begin until the day after Thanksgiving. As such, I have spent the past number of days going up and down the steps carting up my holiday decorations. During this month I hope to have a number of different tables to share with you, beginning with this one.

 

What I hope to convey with this table is that you do not have to have Christmas dishes, or any type of Christmas decorations in order to create a festive, seasonal table. Upon close inspection, there is nothing Christmassy on this table at all, with the exception of the Christmas colors of red and green, colors that I chose because they are the color of apples as reflected in the Franciscan “Apple” dinnerware pieces that I have used here.

A hunter green tablecloth provides the base. I manufactured a red runner out of some fabric that I had stored in the closet. I simply folded it to the size that I wanted and ran it down the center of the table.

The charger plates are Italian ceramic; I inherited these from my mother. I topped them with a bright red dinner plate from Pier One. A Bordallo Pinheiro geranium salad plate was placed on top of this, with the final piece being a bread and butter plate in the Franciscan “Apple” pattern.

The cups and saucers are also Franciscan apple. The red stemmed water glasses are by Villeroy and Boch; the wine glasses are from Rogaska in the “Gallia” pattern. 

The Milano red flatware by Ginkgo International in the Le Pris pattern seemed the perfect choice. The Apple napkin rings that I used here I have had for decades, and have no idea where I got them originally. I decided to go bold with lime green napkins, and I really like the look. 

This is a lovely table that would be perfect for a holiday lunch, while employing no specialty pieces whatsoever. Start shopping at your house for items that you can use for the holidays. 

The pitcher is Fiestaware, the centerpiece is nothing more than a simple candle ring, hurricane, and pillar candle. I scattered apples of various sizes at the base of the hurricane to pull everything together.

 

This post is linked to: Tablescape Thursday

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Green Bean Salad with Red Peppers and Bleu Cheese

 

This is a salad that I often refer to as a “pantry salad” because it is made up of things I tend to always have on hand. It’s colorful, it’s tasty, and considering one of the main ingredients is canned green beans, it’s quite different from the norm. I tend to make my own croutons out of hamburger and/or hotdog buns that I seem to always have left over, but you can certainly use the boxed croutons. I like blue cheese here, but feta or Parmesan work equally well. It’s a snap to put together and needs to be made ahead of time and refrigerated so that everything is nice and cold. With colors like this, it’s perfect for the holidays.

Green Bean Salad with Red Peppers and Bleu Cheese

 2 14.5-oz. cans green beans*

1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved

½ red onion, thinly sliced

¼ c. Melissa's Fire Roasted Red Peppers, diced

¼ c. blue cheese or Feta crumbles

Homemade croutons (or store bought, if you must)

Raspberry Vinaigrette

 Toss together beans, tomatoes, onion, peppers, and cheese, and refrigerate, covered, for an hour, or up to eight hours. When ready to serve, add croutons and dress with Raspberry Vinaigrette (recipe below).

 *I used one can of cut green beans and one can of French style; you can use any combination that you like.

 Raspberry Vinaigrette Salad Dressing

 ¼ c. vegetable oil

¼ c. raspberry balsamic vinegar

2 T. grated Melissa’s shallot

1 t. Dijon mustard

1 t. sugar

Pinch of salt

Pinch freshly ground black pepper

Place all ingredients EXCEPT the oil in a small mixing bowl. Whisk together until blended. Continue to whisk as you slowly pour in the oil. Whisk until emulsified.  Drizzle over salad.

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