Don't Knock it 'til You Try it Buttermilk Pie

I know what you're thinking, "This sounds gross. Next recipe." Everyone has always been skeptical about this pie for some reason; I never was, I guess because I grew up eating this on very cold winter days. I guess we ate this in the winter doldrums, because there aren't any fresh or seasonal ingredients ingredients it depends on. Whatever reason behind the timing, I didn't care; I was just happily surprised whenever mom made it. She doesn't even know how long it has been in the family recipe tin, whether it's only been a few generations or several, it will be in there when I pass it along.

My dad has come to regularly request this pie; it has joined the ranks of his chosen desserts: chocolate chip cookies fresh out of the oven, our family's boiled custard and pound cake, and plain old ice cream. Aside from the aforementioned favorites, he would rather feast on steak than think about eating a slice of cake (I am somehow coded the exact opposite).

Groovy Granola

 I love crunchy food, and no, I'm not referring to chips, celery, or my grandmother's bread--she's a great cook, but always forgets the bread is in the oven. I'm talking crunchy as in peace, love, and GRANOLA. I could live off of fruit and nuts; I get unnecessarily excited about eating local produce; we just started composting, and it's going to be awesome; and if I had to be a food, I'd probably be this granola (if the watermelon and sweet potato were already taken).

My love affair with granola started in college. My closest friend's mom would make granola and send her back with two gallon bags full. It was much more moist than most granolas and was extremely flavorful in a neutral sort of way--if that makes any sense. She'd add cherries, dried cranberries, apricots, and a ton of pecans and almonds. We would sit on the dorm room floor and munch until it was all gone (and then we'd go get icemilk in the dining hall--ah, the joys of having a young metabolism). Second year, this friend and I lived with four others in an apartment, and each time she went home, we prayed she'd be sent back with bags of granola to share.

Caramelized Onion and Sausage Tart

You will hit a home run with this appetizer at your next dinner party or gathering. The first time I made this, I was catering a party for family friends.  I used a pizza crust and blue cheese, but I tweaked this for the materials I had on hand and for personal tastes.

The second time I made this, it accompanied the potatoes in the appetizer line-up for my dad's birthday dinner. I decided to make this tart sheerly because I had puff pastry left from another recipe. Initially, I was leaning toward making just a caramelized onion tart (sans the sausage), but I remembered a) I had so many hungry people to feel and b) that Mom and Dad have fresh, local sausage (gotta love living in the country) in the freezer. Why not add a little for some extra pizazz?

The sweetness from the onions marries so well with the sausage and rosemary. It's one of those appetizers that's very comforting and familiar--without being heart-attack inducing and even if you haven't had this exact dish before. Mom hates/detests/abhors the thought of onions much less eating an actual onion, but I convinced her to try this. She actually liked it and didn't think it tasted of onions at all! Ha, success.

Bacon Cheddar Barbecue Potato Rounds

Are you in the market for an all-American Super Bowl appetizer? This is your recipe. Make it; serve it; own it. Your guests will love this and just pretend like you invented it. These rounds are reminiscent of potato skins, except they aren't fried and are smaller, so eat as many as you want!

I first had these at a Pampered Chef party circa age twelve. Back to the potatoes, I am not a huge fan of potatoes and never have been, but these don't even taste like the starchy spud y'all know and love. These are great as a side and as an appetizer. They are perfect for a hoard of hungry men...just the crew that was eating with us that night. We (my aunt, my mom, and I) cooked more than enough of these to feed a starving army, so we were able to serve this as an appetizer and with the entrée.

Restaurant Review #1: Molasses Grill in Halifax, VA

I know all of you faithful readers (who am I kidding, Mom, Dad, and Marguerite) have been waiting on pins and needles for a restaurant review, after all, this is a forum for me to write about delicious and/or innovative and/or memorable dishes and places I have eaten.  

Had I conjured this genius blog idea before December, I would have nothing but restaurant reviews on here. I do nothing but eat out in some of the most unique, sometimes hole-in-the-wall, sometimes extravagant restaurants for twelve straight weeks, and then, the travel stops cold turkey before the Christmas holiday. Aaaaaaaand the rest of the year, I live in a in a village (of sorts) in southern Virginia. The two best restaurants are 45 minutes away, and I do my grocery shopping at...I'm embarrassed to say.

I love my job; I love my life; I'm just trying to justify my lack of restaurant reviews until this point. I have made an executive decision to randomly surprise you with posts from restaurants from my traveling days. I will have to include pictures from the web, but it's better that than you not knowing these places exist until I return in the fall and take my own pictures.

We will start off in my hometown of Halifax, VA for the inaugural restaurant review. (I actually went here this past weekend and took some of my own pictures.)

Baby, It's Cold Outside Hot Chocolate

Mint and chocolate go together as well as salt and pepper, Sonny and Cher, Mike and Ike, Bert and Ernie--I could keep going, but I think/hope you get the picture.  I have started to crave this in place of my nightly dessert.  It is perfect, not too sweet, and oh so soothing.  It makes you forget about the jammed printer, the annoying caller, and the car putting along keeping you from running that yellow light.

When it comes to chocolate, don't mess around with the milk chocolate variety; go straight to the dark stuff.  It has a much more robust flavor.  Milk chocolate is just too weak.

Milk of your choice (whole, soy, skim, etc.)
Peppermint schnapps (I suggest buying a larger bottle; you'll make this one again)
Chocolate with high cocoa content (dark, bittersweet, or semi-sweet)

Find your favorite (and largest) mug.  Fill it with milk, but leave room for the schnapps.  If you've had a long day, leave a little more room.  Now, pour the milk into a pan and add the chocolate chips.  I add somewhere around two tablespoons of chocolate chips, but if you want it really chocolate-y, go for it.  If you want a sweeter version, add a tablespoon of sugar.  You must whisk this the entire time over medium heat.  Once the chocolate has melted and the milk begins to steam, remove it from the heat.  You may either add the schnapps now or once you pour it in the mug.  I don't care where you add it just don't forget it.

At this point, if you've had a really rough day, you may whip some cream for the top.  The ratio for of sugar to cream is always 1:4; ingrain this in your memory.  It is yields perfectly sweet whipped cream--not that saccharine stuff in the tub.  Normally you'd flavor it with vanilla, but if you're feeling really feisty, you should replace it with a touch of the schnapps.  You're in business.  I didn't have any cream on hand, so I had to settle for the humble version, but I enjoyed it just the same.

If there is more than one of you in the house tonight, you better make extra, because you won't want to share.  And if it's only you, you should go ahead and make a double batch, because you'll be coming back for seconds.

Dinner Party: Part V (Baked Brie with Preserves and Spiced-Honey Nuts)

Buttery cheese in a buttery crust.  What more could you want?  You will not see me cooking with too much cheese, but this is the one form of cheese that melts my willpower like Justin Bieber melts young girls' hearts.  It is embarrassingly easy, and even though everyone knows that, it always seems to impresses guests. So next time you are in a pinch for an easy appetizer, give this one a shot.

I hate using pre-purchased items in cooking, because I like the experience/attempt of making it myself and knowing how it is made, but I do not have the arm-strength, the patience, or the time to make puff pastry.  But hey, if you're feeling ambitious and have 36 hours to kill, have at it.

The nuts that go on top of the baked brie are schizophrenic; they don't know if they want to be sweet or spicy, and that is what makes them irresistible.  They greet you with an unassuming honey flavor, and then you get a little kick of pepper in the back of your throat--not too much, but just enough to let you know it's there.  They are great by themselves for snacking, atop a salad, or atop a hunk of cheese that has been baking in a buttery, flaky crust.

Dinner Party: Part IV (Bacon-wrapped Dates)

I'm sure you've heard at some point in your life that anything wrapped in bacon has to be good.  Even dried fruit?  Not going to lie, I was a skeptic at first.  After trying one, I was a convert. 

There is a great tapas restaurant we went to often in college (read: when parents came to town and were paying); they served these delicious, salty, sweet nuggets of happiness in the cutest, tiniest cast-iron skillet.  I think they have magical powers, because they disappear before your eyes.  No really, they're there one minute and gone the next. 

A friend and I helped plan an engagement party, and that was the night I learned how to make these (and I've made them half-a-dozen times since them).  I thought there had to be some secret, but it's as simple as it sounds--bacon wrapped around a date.  If you've never tried the combination, you've got to give it a try.  These alone are reason enough not to be a vegetarian. 

Dinner Party: Part III (Cured Salmon)

In September, my grandparents went to the wedding of a family member in France (I'm not kidding, it really was there).  Over the holidays, my grandfather was still talking about the wine (duh), bread/croissant/carb platters (obviously!), and the salmon (really?).  Since I'm obsessed with food, my grandfather asked me if I knew how it was prepared.  "It looked raw but didn't taste smoked, melted in your mouth, and was on a huge bed of greens."  Since I was six time zones and a seven-hour flight flight away, I really had no clue.  I took it as a challenge to figure out how the French wooed my grandfather with their culinary powers.

When I got home, I looked in the holy grail of cooking that Santa left me under the tree.  The only non-baked/grilled/seared salmon recipe they had was a cured salmon number.  Figuring this had to be what my grandfather had, I went on a hunt for various ingredients.  Living where I live in southern Virginia, certain ingredients are hard to come by...try asking for arugula or watercress or balsamic glaze, and you'll get a glazed over, "Worter-whut?"  Once when I was in the check out line, the cashier rang my avocados up as limes; I can't make up this stuff.  So on my shopping excursion, there was no salmon at one place and no dill at another.  After stop #3, I had everything I needed/wanted to recreate this salmon.

I altered the spices it required, because I do not like certain flavors (read: anything faintly resembling the flavor of licorice).  I also added flavors I cannot get enough of (read: rosemary).  I was, apparently, better than what my grandfather had in France.  I was elated that my discerning grandfather was impressed by my salmon (take that, Frenchies), and after he finished off the extra container of salmon, he asked me to cater a dinner party for his friends, because, "They need to try this."  Sure thing, Pop.  Once my grandfather gets an idea in his head, you don't stand in his way.  So my response was, "I'd love to.  When?"  Here we are two weeks later; ten people (some from up to two hours away) are around the dining room table waiting to try this salmon my grandfather has raved about.  No pressure...

Foolproof Salad Dressing

I know, I know, two posts in one day?!  This one is a freebie; it's so easy and short it can't count for a full post.  I felt compelled to share, because going any longer without knowing how to make your own better-than-store-bought dressing is a crime.  I started making my own dressing using seasoning packets; it was fine, but I knew there was something better out there.  I started playing around with different ingredients and proportions, and came up with this.  It's a little different every time, because I don't really like to use measuring cups (so this blog thing is a real challenge).  If you find this dressing having too much vinegar (or oil) add more oil (or vinegar).  

 
1/3 cup vinegar (I use half red wine and half balsamic)
2 t water
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 T dijon mustard (I have a basil dijon I bought while in France last year that is almost out; I better start planning my next trip)
1 T honey
a few turns of the pepper mill


Place in a cruet together and shake vigorously.  Since you have mustard in the dressing, it will separate slower than your typical oil and vinegar dressing.  Mustard helps the liquids emulsify, thus the particles are suspended for longer.  This dressing is great and not too overpowering.  Feel free to adjust the measurements as you see fit.  I have never actually measured ingredients while making this, so it's very rough.


It is a great marinade, too!

Dinner Party: Part II (Chocolate Tart with Salted Caramel Sauce)

Now, I need to teach you a couple things.
1) My name is Lelan, and I am a dessert-aholic.  Do not stand in the way of me and my dessert.  Chips, cheese, pasta, you can have it--just leave me with dessert.  Everyone has (at least) one vice, and mine is dessert.  Sometimes you need to celebrate a special occasion.  Sometimes you need a reward after a stressful day at work.  And then there are those times when you've done nothing all day--you haven't answered one email, you haven't even gotten out of your pajamas, and the only reason you've gone outside was to take out the overflowing trash--even on those days, you deserve a dessert.  No matter what the circumstances, I can find an excuse for dessert.  If you're ever having trouble, contact me.
2) You need to know (if you don't already) the phrase "slap your mama good."  I learned it about a year-and-a-half ago from a co-worker.  She has the most off-the-wall sayings, and most of them I still don't get.  I use this one sparingly, but there are times when anything else you say does not do justice.  Use this when something is so mouth-watering-ly delicious that, were your mother in the room beside you, it would make you want to, well, slap her.

My friend made this tart at a party a few years ago when we were in college; the tart had been devoured by the time I arrived--and I wasn't even that late.  Since then, this recipe has been on my "To bake" list.  This Christmas at my parents' house, I finally had time to make it.  The original recipe called for a chocolate crust, chocolate filling, and chocolate ganache.  I like chocolate, but I am not the death-by-chocolate type, so I decided to tone the chocolate down a bit.

We gave this to family friends for Christmas, and the next day, we came home to a message from the Sandy; she was still drooling about how good it was and even went on to describe it, "The fudge-y chocolate with the homemade caramel, and then you get a crunch of salt...mmm."  I bet had she known the phrase slap your mama good, she would have used it.

After that voice mail, Mom and I set off to make one of our own.  And boy is it ever, SYMG.

Dinner Party: Part I (Honey Wheat French Bread)

Rustic.  That's the one word I use to describe these loaves.  I have yet to master loaf-iness of this recipe, but if you close your eyes, they beautifully delicious.  This Christmas my parents gave me a KitchenAid mixer (from whence I so creatively derived the name for this blog).  Since the mixer comes with dough hook, I attempted to make French bread over the holiday.  I don't consider myself lazy, but if there is an easier way to make bread, I'm willing try it...again.  I once attempted to use a bread machine, but it was an epic failure.  The loaf was so dense that I could use it as a doorstop.  And worst of all, it wouldn't even absorb butter!  That was the real tragedy.  So while I was hesitant to make bread this time, I decided it was worth the try. My first attempt at the French loaf was (fairly) successful--the crust was crunchy and the interior was soft and chewy.  This time I tweaked it a bit to make a honey wheat version.  Recipes for both white and honey wheat are below.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Dried Cranberries

I figured my first post should include some of my most favorite things...
1) Dried cranberries--purchased at Sam's Club, of course.  I go through these too quickly to bother with the non-bulk sizes.  This is not the last time you'll see them.
2) Brussels sprouts--I first ate them boiled to death as a kid, and somehow, I loved them.  I have since graduated to a more refined version of the sprout, but I enjoy them just as much.  They are in season now, so that's an added plus.  I would love to cook seasonal dishes year round, but the thought of only eating avocados a few months of the year makes me reevaluate.
3) European butter--with a higher milkfat (lower water content) than butter produced in the States, it lends a richer flavor, so a little goes a long way.  It's like the extra-virgin olive oil of butters.  Use this for finishing dishes or on English muffins--where you want to taste the butter.

 This is a perfect dish to take to a dinner party or serve guests.  I had a variation of this at a restaurant in Louisville on a work trip; it was so delicious we raved about it to our server.  She said the chef often gives out recipes, so she had him write a rough version of the steps on a receipt.  I have made it several times, but have yet to have it taste exactly like that night.  Everything is better when someone else makes it though and every good chef never gives away all of his secrets.  This is a very simple, comforting dish that is sure to impress.

**I love dishes that are both sweet and savory.  If you are not a fan, you may leave out the cranberries; instead of andouille, you could try chorizo or bacon (just drain excess fat) and substitute white balsamic vinegar for sweet vermouth.