Grilled Fruit with Butter Rum Sauce

Celebrating summer on the Chicago beach- does it get any better? A lot of sun, volleyball, potluck and grilling. Don't forget the sangria! (For today's sangria, I took my classic red version and made a few tweaks including substituting white wine for the red.)  It was the classic summer day that you don't want to end.

My contribution to this summer party was dessert. It needed to be somewhat light, but I wanted to utilize the grill as well. Grilled fruit seemed a given- but also a little plain, a twist was needed. Skewering the fruit onto cinnamon sticks was step one. Slathering the fruit with a caramel rum butter sauce topped it off. This is so good! Clearly you can use whatever fruit you want, I went with pineapples, plum and peaches which paired nicely with the rum.

I can see this butter rum sauce will have other applications as well; you'll see it again on this blog. Right now I'm thinking how good it would be to soften a grilled pine nut or pound cake topped off with a scoop of homemade ice cream. Mmmmhhh, I'm drooling at the thought- and that is fat and happy.

Grilled Fruit with Hot Butter Rum Sauce

Place ingredients in a sauce pan, and simmer:
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup whipping cream
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup rum
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

While the butter caramel rum sauce is simmering, clean and skewer fruit onto cinnamon sticks. I used  small sticks which only hold about two or three pieces of fruit, but you can get longer ones if you prefer. Use a metal skewer to start the hole in the fruit if you are having a hard time pushing the cinnamon stick through.

Simmer the sauce about 10 minutes to meld all the flavors.  Brush the fruit with the rum sauce and place on the grill over medium heat for a few minutes per side. You're goal is to soften the fruit, impart a smoky flavor and get those great grill marks. Brush more rum sauce on as your grilling. Serve remaining rum sauce on the side.

**I did list this dessert recipe under the healthy category - if you went easy on the sauce, this is relatively healthy. But if you're like me, you'll douse the fruit with the rum caramel sauce because this sauce is so fricken' good!

Lemon Blueberry Bread

Lemonade on crack. That's the best way to describe this Lemon Blueberry Bread. It's moist, delicious and lemony. I've used this bread as a dessert and a breakfast bread, it's that good.

I'll admit, this recipe does have more steps than a basic banana or zucchini, but it's worth it. The key notes here are to line the bottom of your pan with parchment paper and also spray the pan. The blueberries tend to get stuck to the sides and bottom so you need to really plan ahead or you will end up a loaf that looks like a crew of mice attacked it.

Make this bread today; it freezes quite well so do make extra and you can have a fork full of lemonade at a moments notice. Prepare to pucker up, you're fat and happy!

Lemon Blueberry Bread

Cream:
1 cups butter
2 cups sugar

Add eggs, beat until smooth:
3 eggs

Add:
3/4 scant cup buttermilk

Mix in sifted dry ingredients:
3 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

fold in;
2 Tbls lemon zest
4 Tbls lemon juice
8 oz frozen blueberries

Line the bottom of loaf pans with parchment paper and grease the pans as well (the blueberries will have a tendency to stick to the bottom). Fill the pans 3/4 full, bake for about 1 hour or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Cool the loafs for 10 minutes and then remove from pans. Place on a cookie rack with parchment under. Pour the icing over the top (recipe below)- try not to eat the icing with by the spoonfuls!

Lemon Icing
8 oz powdered sugar
1/2 cup melted butter
1 1/2 Tbls lemon zest
1/4 cup lemon juice

Make the icing right as the loafs come out of the oven. Melt butter over low heat, whisk all ingredients together until all lumps are gone.

Olive Tapenade

Seems like everybody makes tapenade these days- it's so popular you can buy it in jars in most stores. But why do that when you can make your own, fresh, in minutes?

Use a good, toasted, crusty bread to help diminish the saltiness of the tapenade. Do not use canned olives! Make the effort to pick up good deli olives. Use this as an appetizer, or on picnic sandwiches for a fat and happy surprise flavor booster!


Olive Tapenade

1 cup olives (use a mixed variety- just use good fresh deli olives, not canned)
3/4 cup parsley
2 tbls capers
1 tbls anchovy paste
3 tbls mint
1-2 tbls lemon juice
1 tbls lemon zest
olive oil, enough to just hold it all together.

Place all the ingredients in a mini Cuisinart and pulse lightly until the tapenande is to the texture of your liking. I suggest leaving this somewhat chunky for the best results.

Castel Gandolfo Wood Fired Pizza Review

Being one of the biggest supporters for independent restaurants, when a new pizza place opened up last week in our neighborhood- we couldn't wait to give them a try. The previous the space was occupied by Iggys, it lasted less than 6 months; we frequented often because of the fabulous bartender Carlos. Carlos left before they closed....honestly he was the reason we kept going.

It's seems like a good location, on Chicago just one block from the Red line and just a handful of block off Michigan. But it seems nobody can make a go of it.

Castel Gandolfo is a city in Italy outside of Rome, it's the Pope's summer residence; so what does that have to do with this pizza place in Chicago? My concern with this pizza place is that it doesn't know what it is. I think this is a tough name for a casual pizza place. I can't find a web site for it either. The scripted logo doesn't match the decor nor the menu. Being an extremely limited menu, the most important thing to pay attention to is the freshness and quality of ingredients; unfortunately it appears they did not pay attention to this aspect.

Let me say that we did like the crust on the pizza- it was a good representation of a thin, crispy, Napoleon crust. Beyond that, disappointment ensued with every other element served - a cheap salami, dry mozzarella, hard chewy bread sticks, slim toppings, cheap olive oil and balsamic vinegar, boring sausage and a tasteless sauce; the worst part is that the totally simple antipasto platter and a small pizza with two toppings cost over $40!!! Not even including drinks because at the time they did not have liquor license yet, (but it's on its way).

This is a tough for me to write because I want to support independents- but I also believe in serving good food. The staff also needs be become more comfortable with their customers to help them feel at home, as well as help them understand what the key specialty is in their restaurant.

If you're opening a pizza joint in the most renowned pizza city in the U.S.- it better be damn good. And unfortunately this place is just not worth it. We will give them another shot at some point, after they have a few months to gain their bearings, but in the mean time you should save your money.

Shrimp Tacos with Spicy Mango Guacamole

Avocado and mango go quite well together, trust me- it's true. I've made this concoction for a few different dishes and this one is my new favorite. The sweetness of the mango cuts through the spicy and smoky grill flavor of the jalapeno for a palette pleasing effect.

It's a super simple summer grilled adaptation of guacamole (make the mango salsa just prior to grilling the shrimp)-  and a fun variation over the typical fish taco that will leave you fat and happy (and healthy too!)

Tips and Techniques:  The avocado and the mango should both be quite ripe (very soft) to ensure the best blending.


Shrimp Tacos with Spicy Mango Guacamole

Make the salsa first, set aside.  Grill the ingredients for the spicy mango guacamole next, blend and set aside.  Grill the shrimp just before assembling the tacos.


Mango Salsa
In the meantime, combine in a bowl, toss and set aside:
1/2 ripe Mango, chopped
1 can of black beans
1 roma tomato, de-seeded and chopped
1/2 cup chopped parsley
1/4 cup chopped red onion
3 Tbls red wine vinegar
3 Tbls lime juice


Mango Guacamole
Place the three ingredients below on a skewer, and grill long enough to impart a smokey flavor and to soften the jalapeno and garlic.
1 jalapeno
3 cloves garlic
1/2 avocado (it's easier to leave in the skin while grilling, just slice in half and remove the pit)

Once this above is complete, place all the ingredients in blender, add and blend until smooth:
1/2 ripe mango, cut into chunks
juice of 1 to 2 limes
1/2 cup parsley
salt and pepper
olive oil to thin it out, if needed

Grilled Shrimp:
Drizzle 12 small shrimp with olive oil and toss with pepper. Skewer and grill (about 1-2 minutes per side).  Wrap tortillas in tinfoil and place on the grill while cooking the shrimp, this will warm the tortillas.

Assemble tacos: take a warmed tortilla and add a couple of grilled shrimp, a scoop of the mango salsa and a smear of the mango guacamole. Eat immediately while warm.

Martys Wedding

Lemon and Lavendar Shortbread Cookies

Homemade Pasta

Handmade or Homemade - doesn't matter what you call it, but once you do make pasta from scratch, you'll never go back to dried. Pinkie swear.

I know it sounds daunting, but it's really quite simple. Sure, it takes more time than just opening a box - but the ultimate difference in taste is absolutely worth it.

Once you have the base down pasta dough down, then you can make ravioli, linguine or pappardelle, anything really. I make fresh pasta for soups and lasagna even. Once you start making your own pasta a few times and really get the hang of it - then you can begin to experiment with wheat flours and flavored oils.

A couple of quick notes- you will need to use some water, otherwise you'll end up with an egg noodle. I know first hand that they do not use water in Italy- but their eggs are different. Something to do with feeding the chickens carrots, which produces a protein rich yolk; the yolks are seriously orange in color!

To oil, or not to oil. Growing up, I've witnessed knock down, drag out fights in my family about whether too add oil or not. I add oil and since this is my blog- the recipe I'm giving you has oil, extra virgin of course.
Let's not anymore waste time- there's pasta to be hand!

Homemade Pasta
4 cups flour
3 eggs, have your eggs a room temperature
3 tbls oil
warm water (depending on the humidity, anywhere from 1/4 to 1 cup)

Make a well in the flour, add the eggs and oil. Mix with a fork, beginning to incorporate the flour around the edges.

You'll need to add the water, but add just a few tablespoons at a time. Depending on the humidity, and how the flour is reacting that day, you may need to only add a little. If you get it to wet, it will be a mess and never form a ball. Too dry and it will crumble. But pasta is relatively forgiving.




Give up the fork for your hands. The dough will feel and look like it's never going to come together- but keep working it, it will get there. This is a work out for your hands, forearms and core muscles! Once it gets to a final ball, continue to knead the dough for about 10 minutes.

Kneading:
If you are not used to kneading, try to think about the goal of one silky pliable ball. Using the heal of your hands, push the dough together and forward. Now give it a quarter turn, pull the section farthest away from you back towards you, push the dough together using the heel of your hand again. You want to essentially pinch the dough together. Continue in this same manner.



Eventually, you'll have a smooth, silky ball. Cover the ball with a piece of plastic wrap, and then a warm, moist cloth. Let sit for 20 minutes.





Rolling the dough out:
Once your pasta has rested, you are ready to roll. Cut the dough into four quarters, use one quarter at a time and keep the rest covered so it doesn't dry out. Lightly flour the dough, Begin by slowly rolling out the and the first setting. Fold that in half and roll it on the same largest setting again.

Now move the setting to the next size and slowly roll again, adding more flour if necessary. use one to roll and one hand to hold up and help the dough from piling and sticking together. Repeat this pattern until you have the thickness desired.

At this point, add the secondary cutter to your pasta machine (it usually offer a linguine and a spaghetti cutting option.) Be sure to use lots of flour here to help keep the strips from sticking together.

Another options is to take your long strip of pasta and lightly fold it in half, in half again and then one more time (if needed). Take a sharp knife and slice 2" lengths for Pappardelle. Or you can make ravioli, or simply cut what ever size you desire.

Always use much more water you think you need, get the big pot out! Bring the water to a boil, add salt. Even if your not a salt fan, you must salt the water. Drop in your fresh pasta and you'll be amazed to see it floating in minutes. I'm talking like one or two minutes and your pasta is ready!

If you're making ravioli, look to my classic five cheese Ravioli recipe or be adventurous and try my Fennel Sausage Ravioli recipe! Both are super tasty. Let me know how your pasta turns out ...after your done stuffing your face!

**the dough pictured is flavored with chevril and lemon, which explains why it looks spotted!