new years 2009

To bring in the new year this year we got together with our dear friends/neighbours and made a delicious 7 course meal!

The menu:

• Moscato, Innocent Bystander '09
• Smoked salmon lox roles with marscapone cheese
• Domaine la lieue, chardonnay '08
• Lime butter VI scallops
• Caramelized prosciutto and pear salad (see below post for recipe)
• Mussels with fennel, cracked mustard and apple crema (see below post for recipe)
• Haut-censy Muscadet
• Cilantro sesame marinated albacore tuna with mango mint dipping sauce
• Road 13 chardonnay
• Prawns with shiitake and portobello mushrooms
• Tiramisu
• Pacific Sun - black tea

vanilla roasted pears

vanilla roasted pears

recipe and picture by smitten kitchen

Serves 4 or so
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 vanilla bean
1 1/2 pounds slightly-under-ripe, fragrant, medium pears, peeled if desired, halved though the stem and cored (I used Bosc but will be giving this recipe a spin with Bartlets later today; Schneider says all varieites work)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoon unsalted butter
Preheat oven to 375°F. Place the sugar in a small bowl. With a thin, sharp knife, split the vanilla bean lengthwise in half and scrape out the seeds. Stir the seeds into the sugar.
Arrange the pears in a large baking dish, cut-side up. Drizzle the lemon juice evenly over the fruit, then sprinkle with the sugar. Nestle the vanilla pod among the fruit (I first slit my halves lengthwise into quarters). Pour the water into the dish. Dot each pear with some butter.
Roast the pears 30 minutes brushing them occasionally with the pan juices. Turn the pears over and continue roasting, basting once or twice, until tender and caramelized, 25 to 30 minutes longer (if the pears are small, test for doneness after 35 or 40 minutes of cooking; a paring knife poked into the thickest part of one should meet with no resistance).
Serve warm, spooned with the caramelized pear drippings from the pan over ice cream, dolloped with crème fraîche, on your morning oatmeal, chilled with cheese and crackers or...

granola

granola

~ recipe by me

makes aprox. 20 cups

14 cups old fashioned rolled oats

1.5 cup wheat germ

1.5 cup oat bran

1 cup pumpkin seeds

1 cup sesame seeds

1 cup sunflower seeds

1 cup pecans

1 cup sliced almonds

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 cup honey

1 cup hot water

1 cup grape seed oil

2 tsp vanilla

2 cups coconut

1.5 cup dried cranberries

1.5 cup raisins

1 cup cut up dried apricots (optional)

Preheat oven to 325 F

-In a large bowl, mix the rolled oats, wheat germ, oat bran, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, pecans, and almonds.

-In a separate bow mix brown sugar, honey, hot water, oil, and vanilla.

-Add the dry ingredients to wet and mix well.

-Spread evenly in a large metal bowl or on cookie sheets and bake, stirring every 15 minutes, until cereal is evenly browned and crunchy. Baking takes 1 - 1.5 hours.

-Remove from oven. When cooled, add the coconut, raisins, sun-dried cranberries, and apricots

caramelized pancetta and pear salad

caramelized pancetta and pear salad

~ recipe by me

2 pears peeled and sliced

3 slices pancetta or prosciutto

1 clove of garlic, minced

3 tbsp brown sugar

1 tbsp olive oil

salt / pepper

1 blood orange peeled and sliced

gorgonzola cheese

5 cups mixed salad greens

sunflower sprouts

dressing

2 tbsp, red wine vinegar

1 tbsp lemon juice

1/2 tsp honey

1/4 cup olive oil

salt / pepper

Preheat oven to 400 F. In a medium bowl toss together pears, pancetta, garlic, sugar, oil, salt and pepper. Place ingredients on a baking sheet (single layer). Cook until pancetta is crisp and brown and pears are soft and caramelized - about 20 minutes. Remove and cool for 5 minutes. Crumble or cut up pancetta into smaller pieces once cooled.

Dressing - mix all ingredients except oil. slowly add olive oil and mix with hand blender. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Makes more dressing then required for salad.

Divide salad greens between 4 small plates. For each serving - arrange crumbled pancetta, pears, sliced blood orange segments, sunflower sprouts and gorgonzola cheese on salad greens. Drizzle salad dressing on each serving and serve!

mussels with fennel, cracked mustard, and apple crema

While visiting Boston this fall, Em and I stumbled across a quaint dinner in the north end where we shared the most delicious muscles. I attempted to recreate these mussels for our new years dinner last night - and was quite successful.

mussels with fennel, cracked mustard and apple crema

~ recipe by me

1/4 cup butter

1 cup chopped fresh fennel bulb

3 shallots chopped

5 garlic cloves chopped

2 tsp fennel seeds

3 tbsp cracked dijon mustard

2 cups apple juice

4 tbsp apple sauce

2 cups of dry white wine

1 cup whipping cream

2 tsp chopped rosemary

Melt butter in large pan over low - medium heat. Add chopped fennel, shallots, garlic, fennel seeds and dijon. Saute until fennel is tender, about 5 minutes. Add apple juice and simmer for 5 minutes. Blend with hand blender or in food processor. Return mixture to large pan add wine and cream and boil until liquid thickens slightly - about 10 minutes. Add rosemary simmer for 1 minute. Add mussels cover and cook on medium - high heat for about 5 minutes (until mussels have opened). Divide mussels among bowls (discard any mussels that do not open). Ladle broth over mussels and serve with warm crusty french bread.

sweet potato-pecan burgers

sweet potato-pecan burgers with caramelized onions

recipe and picture by cooking light

• BURGERS:
• 2 1/2 cups (1/2-inch) cubed peeled sweet potato
• 2 1/2 cups chopped onion
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 cup regular oats
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans, toasted
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 6 (1 1/2-ounce) 100% whole wheat or whole-grain buns
• 
  
• ONIONS:

• 1 teaspoon canola oil
• 3 cups sliced onion
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 
  

1. To prepare onions, heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add sliced onion to pan; sauté 12 minutes or until browned, stirring occasionally. Stir in vinegar, sugar, and 1/8 teaspoon salt; cook 30 seconds or until vinegar is absorbed. Remove onion mixture from pan; keep warm.

2. To prepare burgers, place potato in a large saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until tender; drain.

3. Heat large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add chopped onion and garlic to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until tender.

4. Place potato, chopped onion mixture, oats, cumin, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and pepper in a food processor; process until smooth. Place potato mixture in a large bowl; stir in nuts. Divide potato mixture into 6 equal portions, shaping each into a 1/2-inch-thick patty.

5. Wipe pan dry with a paper towel. Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in pan over medium-high heat. Add 3 patties to pan; cook 4 minutes or until browned. Carefully turn patties over; cook 3 minutes or until browned. Remove from pan; keep warm. Repeat procedure with remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons oil and 3 patties.