Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta Salad

This has been on my blog list for months... Months I tell you!  "What is your blog list", you ask?   It's my collection of recipes to share here, the tried and true favorites that I make again and again.  I don't always make them right away because sometimes they just aren't seasonally appropriate, although who doesn't want a good pasta salad year-round as a lunch side.  I know I do, but really I do think of this as the perfect picnic dish so summer seems like the perfect time for it.

Apparently that's all I've been cooking this summer because the last three posts that I have done have been picnic sides with one type of grain or another and all are photographed in the large bowl that I transported them in.  Did you notice not one photo was on a plate?  Probably because that plate was plastic and the salads were served after a few glasses of wine and I clearly couldn't be bothered with taking photos that were blog-worthy.  This one was eaten while listening to Counting Crows at a concert venue.  (Like I said, it's been a busy summer and by busy I mean full of fun activities.)  The others were for BBQ's at friend's houses or some other occasion that required me to bring a Tupperware type container that I never seem to have enough of.  But this one, this one, is right near my absolute favorite.

It kind of came about from two different places and then merged into one.  The first place was from a friend and co-worker when I lived in San Francisco who was also quite the foodie.  We were always swapping recipes and talking about who was our favorite on Food Network and what our mom's were cooking.  I think we actually did a lot more talking about cooking than actual cooking.  Nonetheless, most foodies come from foodies and her mom was one as well.  When her mom was in town one time she made a delicious pasta salad and Emily brought it in to work with an extra serving for me for lunch.  Maybe it is my Midwestern-ness but I think I was shocked/fell in love with the fact that it was not mayo-based.  Not that I don't also have a love affair for mayo, but I find that I generally steer towards the oil based ones.   Regardless of the reason, I loved it and made it several times thereafter.  Until I came across Barefoot's version and loved it, but thought that it had some missing ingredients.  And so the marriage was made, my friend Emily's mom's version and Barefoot's version all rolled into one.  It does make kind of for a long ingredient list, but in my opinion it is best with all of it.  But make it your own, I certainly did.

I made this for a camping trip a couple of summers ago (You can tell how much of a "camper" I am by the fact that I made a fresh mozzarella, sun-dried tomato pasta salad for a camping trip... enough said.) and everyone loved it.  Granted it could have been because the other side dish was a can of beans and the main course was hot dogs but I'm pretty sure even the second time everyone had it they liked it too.  Labor Day weekend is upon us, aren't you looking for something to bring to that BBQ?  You just found it...

Trish's Tips:  This is the ultimate make-it-your-own type recipe.  I added in the artichoke hearts and pine nuts based on Emily's mom's recipe.  My friend Steph's husband doesn't like olives so she leaves that out.  If I don't have pine nuts I'll omit them altogether.  It is a bit indulgent with both the mozzarella and parmesan, but I'm telling you, it's worth it, although you could only do 1/2 lb of mozzarella and it would be delicious as well.  The 'shortcut' version of this is a dressing made like Emily's mom; make a dressing from the oil from the sun-dried tomatoes and the marinade from the artichoke hearts.  I've done this when I am not in a fully stocked kitchen or traveling and I don't have access to all of the ingredients and it is also yummy although if you have the ingredients I suggest making the dressing like this recipe states.  I will tell you, this dressing I could eat with a spoon, it is that good.  (This blog is called Feeling Saucy for a reason!)

Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta Salad
Adapted from Barefoot Contessa (& my friend Emily's mom)
Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients:
1/2 lb pasta (I prefer bow ties, Barefoot says Fusilli which are the spirals)
Kosher salt
1 cup halved or quartered cherry or grape tomatoes
1/2 cup kalamata olives, pitted and diced
1 lb fresh mozzarella, medium diced (the kind that comes floating in water)
1/2 cup marinated artichoke hearts, drained and roughly chopped
1/3 cup julienned sun dried tomatoes in oil, drained
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts

For the dressing:
5 sun dried tomatoes in oil, drained (or 1/4 cup julienned/chopped depending on how you buy it)
2 TBL red wine vinegar
4-6 TBL olive oil (start with 4 TBL and depending on how much sun dried tomato oil makes it in, you can increase to 6)
1 garlic clove
1 tsp capers, drained
2 tsp kosher salt
3/4 tsp black pepper

1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 cup basil leaves, julienned

Directions:
Cook the pasta in a large pot of salted water according to package directions.  Drain well and let cool while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

For the dressing, combine the sun-dried tomatoes, vinegar, 4 TBL of olive oil, garlic, capers, salt and pepper in a food processor and pulse until almost smooth.  Taste, if it tastes to vinegar-y then add remaining olive oil 1 TBL at a time.

Add the tomatoes, olives, mozzarella, artichoke hearts, pine nuts and chopped sundried tomatoes to the pasta.  Add the dressing, basil and parmesan cheese and mix being careful not to crush the fresh tomatoes.

Will keep refrigerated, but if not planning on serving right away it is best to top with basil right before serving although it will keep if you don't wait.

Barley Salad with Parsley and Walnuts

Since we last 'met', you can add two more things to the bad luck I told you about.  Turns out my camera never did make it back from vacation with me.  Johnny and I spent five days in Hilton Head, SC with his family which was the scene of the accident for my computer (bad luck #1).  And also, my ipod went kaput.  The ipod, thankfully only required buying a refurbished one for cheap cheap cheap (whew!) as a replacement, but unfortunately the camera is "lost" as my mom would say.  As in a place something goes with no explanation as to where or why, never to return and with it my vacation photos and photos of a delicious quinoa salad that I had forgotten to download prior to vacation (damn!).  But, thankfully many others had cameras in Hilton Head, and the quinoa salad CAN be made again... I guess... but in the mean time I have another one to share with you.  (Thanks Marcie & Gabe for lending their camera for the photos!)  Besides, the quinoa salad is SO last summer...

I get hooked.  Hooked I say on a salad and then it is a ridiculous repeater for at least a couple of years and then I kind of get over it.  I would say this one is my salad of 2010 although I tore it out of Food & Wine at least a couple of years ago.  Everyone needs a collection of summer salad recipes to pull out for the numerous bbq's or invites for an impromptu get together and this is one of mine.  I always make extra too because it keeps well and is perfect for a light lunch.

This one is especially my go-to because it doesn't even require a trip to the grocery store!  Well for me at least, as most are pantry staples with the exception of the parsley, but I usually have some lying in my produce drawer.  If you aren't a fan of barley or can't find it I could see substituting farro or bulgur wheat.  Quinoa or pasta could work too but wouldn't add the nutty flavor you would get from the barley, farro or bulgur.  This recipe has a few of my favorite ingredients.  I think parsley makes everything seem so fresh, walnuts are my second favorite nuts to almonds, and I love lemon vinaigrette.

This isn't necessarily the *star* of the show at the bbq, but if you are having some rich flavored, heavy meats then it is nice to have a light option with simple flavors that can kind of blend with everything.  I like it as a side to kebabs with a flavorful dipping sauce (I know, big surprise right) and if some runs into my barley salad, it works.  But the lemon dressing is nice and light so it's fine just on it's own too, no 'steal the show' main courses needed.  

It's August... (AUGUST!), but there's still plenty of bbq's left.  And it's been a busy summer, but finally, I'm not going anywhere.  Unless of course you invite me over.  And if so, I know what I'm bringing... 

Trish's Tips:
This will keep just fine fully prepared, but if you want it to be nice and fresh, add the parsley just before serving.  If you can't find ricotta salata you could use feta, it would be a much stronger flavor, but still good.  Goat cheese would also be good and ditto on the flavor as feta.  Ricotta salata is kind of like a less 'wet' feta, but still quite dense but much more mild with a bit of a salty flavor.  Worth seeking out if you ask me.  I found mine at Whole Foods.  I guess you could make sans cheese, but being the cheese-lover that I am I certainly wouldn't recommend it.  Toasting nuts: you've done it, right?  I just put more than I need in a dry skillet, toast over a flame and let cool then store in the freezer, then they are all toasted for whenever you need them!  Don't be scared by the cooking directions on the barley, it doesn't need the ridiculous amount of time it says there, follow the directions here and just keep tasting for doneness.  As always, taste taste taste!  Add a bit more lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper when you are done following the instructions here and go with your instincts!

Barley Salad with Parsley and Walnuts
Adapted from Food & Wine Magazine

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups pearled barley (9 oz)
1 cup walnut halves
grated lemon zest of half a lemon
3 TBL fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup packed flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
4 oz, crumbled ricotta salata (about 1 cup)

Directions:
In a large saucepan of boiling salted water, cook the barley over high heat until tender, about 25-35 minutes.  It should be similar to how you cook pasta and be a bit al dente.  Drain the barley and place in large bowl.

Meanwhile make dressing.  Whisk lemon juice with the olive oil, garlic, lemon zest, salt and pepper.  Pour over warm barley and let cool while you prepare the remaining ingredients.

Roughly chop nuts and add to salad once barley has cooled to room temperature.  Add parsley and ricotta salata and toss to coat.  Season to taste with salt, pepper and additional lemon juice or olive oil if needed.

Laziness/Bad Luck/Vacation

You are probably wondering where I've been... well, a lot of places actually.  The Cleves, Hilton Head, Raleign/Durham, miscellanous 'fests' throughout the city.  It's been a busy summer and let's just say the blog hasn't been my first priority.  That and I really haven't done that much cooking!  Being out of town for the weekends has bled into laziness during the week.  Not going grocery shopping/ordering in/frozen Trader Joes meals.  I know, not what you want from a blogger, right?  I do have some good recipes for you though... Good summer grilling recipes... Just not today.  It's just that during my last vacation my computer screen smashed (tear!) and I am praying that I can get the pictures off... sure, the wedding pictures are important, but also I made this really good quinoa recipe I want to share with you.  And if you are like me you don't buy cookbooks without pictures and therefore probably wouldn't be too crazy about a blog post without pictures.  I'm hoping those "Genius'" at the "Genius Bar" at Apple can figure out a solution that doesn't cost an arm and a leg, but until then you'll have to start cooking from my recommendations on the right... Sorry!  Wish me luck on my computer!  Now... what's for dinner?

Mustard Glazed Asparagus

I'm kind of obsessed with my produce box.  And although there are a couple of downfalls (like not giving me any reason to go to the farmers market), I'm still having way too much fun with it.  It definitely makes me appreciate what's in-season and I feel like I have to capture every recipe I want to make with that ingredient before it's season is over.  And for those of you in Chicago, from what I hear you have a little bit of time left for local asparagus.  Which is why I'm sharing this recipe with you.  Asparagus has been one of my favorite ingredients to date.  Some of my other favorites are spinach (so many uses), herbs (which I always buy anyway) and tomato (sadly, just one lonely one).  Although I have to say I could live without the saute mix.  There is SO much of it and I just don't love sauteed greens that much, but it's forcing me to be a bit more creative.  Yeah yeah yeah and I know... I should eat my greens.  

So, eating seasonally.  It's been on my mind.  Maybe also in part because I'm currently reading Animal, Vegetable Miracle.  I was the odd man out for a bit with all the other volunteers at the farmers market as it seems to be the one book that everyone in that type of foodie-culture has read, but now I am seriously into it.  It's about a family that only eats only local food for an entire year.  It talks about all of the benefits of doing so and although I have made a concerted effort toward doing this in some ways over the past couple of years, I've realized it certainly is easier eating local in Midwest in the summer, but would require some serious preparation (and a little boredom in my opinion) to get through the winter.  So I will admit I'm not willing to go for it 100%, but I'm definitely doing what I can to be part of this localvore movement.  And now that I've transitioned from just occasionally shopping the farmers markets to getting most of my produce locally (via produce box)  I'm thinking of my next change...  organizing my cooking binder.  (Okay, hear me out) I have my cooking binder (but really it's 4) divided up and organized like a cookbook (salad, appetizer, meat, pasta) and am thinking I should transition it by season instead.  I am already drawn more to the stew section more in the winter and the grill recipes in the summer but hopefully this will help direct me even more.  Plus any good organizing project gets me pretty excited.

So let's just say this is a recipe from the (soon-to-be) grill section of my binder.  It's one of those grill recipes that I hold on to all winter but never use.  I discovered it last year and made it over and over again which is always the true sign of how good a recipe is.  Something about the grill makes it better than just roasting in the oven.  Or so I think, as I have to say I haven't tried roasting it.  I (of course) make quite a generous amount of sauce so there are extras for whatever grilled meat you make on the side.

Trish's Tips:  One of my cooking tricks, seeing as it is the season of bare arms and bathing suits, is to substitute half of the mayo here for Greek-style yogurt.  There are seriously (way) more calories in 2 tablespoons of mayo than a cup (yes, CUP!) of yogurt.  And although I am definitely not a calorie counter, I am well aware that I tend to like an extremely generous sauce to vegetable ratio and therefore need to make some sacrifices.  Plus yogurt has a lot of health benefits.  I'm not into swapping things out for tasteless fake crap like artificial sweeteners or high-fructose laden anything, but pure, organic yogurt for mayo?  That works for me.  And it works in everything.  Try the swap in egg salad, tuna salad or chicken salad.  My sister swaps out half yogurt for sour cream as well.  It's the same texture, but you just have to be somewhat cautious about the sourness plain yogurt can have, but if you have enough other flavors going on it's usually fine.  If you have a hard time finding Greek-style yogurt you can drain regular plain yogurt over a paper towel and a strainer.  Pour it in and let some of the liquid drain overnight.  I've never tried it but have heard it works great!  It just might be cheaper too although I can't say for sure...  As always, this sauce is delicious so make leftovers and would be great rubbed on a pork tenderloin and grilled, or let some run into your rice pilaf.  We had it with grilled kebabs with beef and definitely snuck a little dipping sauce for them and it was great!  This recipe originally says to 'marinate' the vegetables, but I have a hard time believing that it really makes a difference so I didn't.

Mustard Glazed Asparagus
Adapted from Food & Wine Magazine June 2009

Ingredients:
2 TBL mayonnaise
2 TBL plain Greek-style yogurt (I like low-fat or fat free, but use whatever you want)
1/4 cup grainy mustard (the kind that you can see the seeds.  Sometimes called stone ground mustard)
2-3 TBL fresh lemon juice
2-3 TBL olive oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 lb thick asparagus peeled

Directions:
Light a grill.  In a shallow dish, whisk the mayonnaise and yogurt with the mustard, oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper.  Taste and adjust as needed.  Add the asparagus and turn to coat.

Grill the asparagus over moderately high heat, turning occasionally until the spears are tender and lightly blistered in spots about 3-8 minutes depending on the thickness of your asparagus.  If you are on the fence, take it off; it will keep cooking after you remove it from the grill.  Serve hot or at room temperature.  Save the leftover sauce you coated it in and serve for those that like generous sauce proportions (like me!).

Arugula and Celery Salad with Lemon-Anchovy Dressing

I am loving my produce box.  Every week is like receiving a gift.  Except of course that I pay for it, but for some reason, it still feels like a surprise every week that I get it.  Something about the thrill of your buzzer ringing and a box with your name on it, maybe that's how I became a member of not just one but four wine clubs at one point in time.  Who wouldn't like receiving a wine shipment on a monthly basis?  Until you look at your credit card bill and realize you are paying quite a bit more than the $5.99 price point you usually target at the grocery store.  Still, I've managed to trick myself.  It doesn't feel like money spent on groceries, but more like money spent on fun.  I guess I've always been that way, overly excited into receiving mail.  When I was young and there was a commercial that gave the option to "call for a free information packet" followed by a 1-800 number, I always called it.  It could be a knife set, hearing aid, motorized wheelchair, it didn't matter as it was just a reason to rush to the mailbox and receive something.  I'm thinking now maybe I was in need of a maybe a pen pal or something.   In the end the mail thing wore off though, I think it was getting older and realizing that the main thing coming in the mail was bills.  So for now I've switched my excitement to fed-ex deliveries, or even better, the guy with my produce box.

I love receiving it every week but have to admit that my culinary skills are tested.  My trusty sites that I always turn to for recipes don't always turn up numerous recipes for things like wild ramps, green garlic or white turnips.  But for some things I know exactly what I will make when I get the email announcement.  (Yup, an email too, it's like double the fun... I know, I'm easily amused.)  Like, for example arugula.

I tend to fall in love with a recipe that I will make over and over until I get borderline sick to death of.  My old arugula one was a barefoot contessa recipe that is basically just a simple lemon vinaigrette with shaved parmesan.  (Delicious and I still use it, just have slightly overdone it.)  It was perfect as it required minimal ingredients and was something I could always whip up pretty quickly as I always have lemons, olive oil and parmesan on hand, but it needed a bit of updating to keep me interested.  I found this recipe and since it reminded me of my old favorite I knew I would love it.

They are both very similar, but I guess I would say this one is a bit more spiffed up.  My new favorite arugula salad has a few more ingredients than just the arugula.  It also has celery, parsley and a topping of almonds and the dressing is much more complex.  And unbelievably good.  The Barefoot Contessa lemon vinaigrette is just a clean, fresh flavor whereas this one has a bit more of a salty bite from the (don't be scared) anchovy.  Does that weird you out?  I think maybe it used to weird me out, but I got over it.  If you've ever had a caesar salad (and seriously, who hasn't) you've most likely had it since almost all caesar salad dressing recipes call for it.  The flavor doesn't come off as fishy, just saltier.  The parsley is in both the salad and the dressing which also adds an additional bit of freshness.

I know you will love it.  I brought it over to a friends and she immediately demanded the recipe.  What are you waiting for, the arugula to be delivered to your door?  (Cause we can make that happen you know!)

Trish's Tips:  This dressing keeps beautifully.  I made it for a friend as a side dish to lasagna and made it hours in advance.  I always toast nuts in a dry skillet, then store them in the freezer.  If you don't eat them soon enough the oil can become rancid.  That and the fact that my kitchen does not have a pantry makes the freezer a good spot for them.  What do do with the rest of the anchovies?  I put them in a little jar and cover with olive oil, then the next time I make this recipe (or another) I will pull it out to allow it to come to room temperature and take what I need.  I use the same trick for tomato paste and chipotle chiles in adobo as I never seem to use the whole can of any of these, but hate to just take a bit and waste the rest.  You will have extra dressing here so please don't overdress your salad.  According to Alice Waters if you have dressing pooled in the bottom of your bowl you used too much, and I have to agree.  (She is an expert after all.)  Use the leftover dressing to top grilled chicken or veggies.   

Arugula and Celery Salad with Lemon-Anchovy Dressing

Adapted from Cooking Light April 2009

Serves 4

Ingredients:

Dressing:

2-3 TBL fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

3 TBL water

2 TBL fresh lemon juice

1 1/2 tsp dijon mustard

1-2 garlic cloves depending on size and your preference

3 TBL extra-virgin olive oil

1 canned anchovy fillet, rinsed

freshly ground black pepper to taste

Salad:

6 C arugula

2-3 stalks diagonally cut celery

1/4 cup almonds, toasted and chopped

1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

shaved parmesan for topping.

Directions:

Make dressing by combining all ingredients in a blender or mini food-processor.  Taste and adjust as needed.  Combine arugula, celery and parsley with enough dressing to coat in a large serving bowl and toss to mix.  Top with almonds and parmesan and serve.  

Salmon in Lemon Brodetto with Pea Puree

I promised you some spring recipes, and as we are approaching the end of May I guess I should get you some before it is no longer spring.  I have summer fever.  I know, I just wrote that I have spring fever, but I am always thinking twelve steps ahead.  Like for example it's May, I'm now thinking about the menu for Christmas... we must... decide... now.  Okay, I'm not that bad, but almost.  The Memorial Day weekend menu was (just! last minute!) put together this past weekend.  Plus there's hardly a spring here anyway so no wonder I'm antsy for summer.  In Chicago it mainly goes melting snow, cold day/warm day/cold day, April showers, sunny weather that makes everyone want summer, then official summer.  So regardless of the 75 degree weather here today I guess we'll call it spring for the last couple of weeks here because Memorial Day is definitely the unofficial start to summer and I've got some spring recipes to squeeze in.  Like this one, that's been on my blog list (yes I can make lists for days) since winter.

It screams spring because of the peas, but seeing as you use frozen peas you wouldn't necessarily have to make it in the spring.  Salmon... love it or hate it?  I find people fall into either category.  Well regardless of which one you fall into the salmon is really not the star of the show here.  (And I have been known to sub chicken in for a salmon hater.)  It's the pea puree... and the lemon brodetto.  You're intrigued aren't you?  Doesn't it just sound so fancy?  Yet, the secret is, it's quite effortless.  Granted there are three separate parts to the recipe, but most can be done in advance, just imagine you invite someone over for dinner and they ask what you're making and you just proclaim, "oh I don't know, just some salmon with pea puree and lemon brodetto".  You know, just something I whipped up.

Besides the bragging possibilities the other reason I love this recipe is it has two sauces (TWO SAUCES!) and you all know how I feel about sauces.  The pea puree is basically a pea pesto, and the lemon brodetto is almost like a sauce you would just lightly pour over the top, like one step up from a squeeze of a lemon over fish.  But the two sauces with the salmon combined are perfect, just perfect.

Most of my 35 cookbooks or so fall into the 'fancy/entertaining' category, although I have to say I don't really do all that much in the fancy or entertaining bucket.  Most falls into the 'weeknight wonders' category.  Okay, not really wonders at all, just weeknight sorta special dinners.  This recipe falls into both buckets.  Great for entertaining because most can be prepped in advance, and it of course has the wow factor, but the truth is I've only ever made it on a regular old school night.  (I've been out of school for 10 years, but still feel the need to call it that, weekday just doesn't do the trick.)  So no excuses school night or not.  Give it a shot.

Trish's Tips:  The salmon could also be grilled, like I wrote above, the salmon really isn't the star, it only has olive oil, salt and pepper in it so you could prepare how you like.  I like to cook it as it is written here with a nice crust.  Fish is done when it flakes easily with a fork although some like to cook salmon rare.  I'm not one of those people.  The two sauces could be prepared in advance.  Reheat the lemon brodetto over low heat and bring the pea puree to room temperature before serving.  Peas are naturally sweet and it is written here to be a bit that way.  But I'm not a sweets person; I prefer it less sweet and more salty.  I've adjusted the parmesan a bit from the original recipe to achieve that but left the salt because you should make it how you want it.  Add more salt if you don't like it as sweet.  The lemon brodetto should also be modified to your liking.  Although I love citrus, I dialed the lemon back quite a bit.  Taste as you go and add more if you like.  Make it your own, this is just my adaptation.

Salmon in Lemon Brodetto with Pea Puree
Adapted from Giada de Laurentiis
serves 4

Lemon Brodetto
2 TBL olive oil
1 shallot, diced
1/2 lemon zested and juiced
2 C low-sodium chicken broth
1 TBL chopped mint leaves

Pea Puree
2 cups frozen peas, thawed
1/3 cup fresh mint leaves
1 garlic clove
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2/3 cup freshly grated parmesan

Salmon
1/4 Cup olive oil
4 (4-6 oz) salmon fillets
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions: 
To make the lemon brodetto, warm the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Add the shallot and saute until tender about 7 minutes.  Add the lemon zest and juice, and the broth.  Bring to a simmer, cover and keep warm over low heat.

To make the pea puree, combine the peas, mint, garlic, salt and pepper in a food processor and puree.  With the machine running add the extra virgin olive oil in a steady stream.  Add the parmesan and pulse to combine.  Taste and add more salt, pepper, olive oil, mint or parmesan to your liking.  It should be a very flavorful thick pesto.

To make the salmon, warm the olive oil in a large heavy skillet over high heat.  Season the salmon pieces with salt and pepper.  Sear the salmon on one side until a golden crust forms about 4 minutes.  Flip the fish and continue to cook to your liking.

To assemble the dish, stir the tablespoon of chopped mint into the lemon brodetto and divide among 4 shallow bowls.  Place a large spoonful of pea puree in the center of each bowl.  Place a salmon piece atop each mound of pea puree and serve immediately.

Roasted Asparagus with Balsamic Browned Butter

If you ask me, anything with browned butter is pretty delicious.  And throw in some rich flavors like balsamic and soy and it makes an unbelievably incredible sauce.  Oh and the asparagus is pretty good too.  Although in my mind it's main purpose is a means to transport the sauce.  Okay, I'm not giving it enough credit; the asparagus is pretty good too.  No, it's great.  And you may now know my penchant for roasted vegetables.

This recipe has been in my repertoire for quite some time.  My first food magazine subscription was given to me as a Christmas present by my now sister-in-law.  It was a subscription to Cooking Light Magazine, which is one of her favorites.  I became engrossed, I bought the annual cookbooks, perused the website on a regular basis and thumbed through every last page when the magazine came.  This recipe appeared twice in the nine years or so that I've had a subscription.  The first time it made just a regular appearance as a side dish and the second time was in an anniversary issue featuring the 'best' recipes.  Yup, I already knew that.

I've modified it quite a bit from the original so don't let the 'light' label fool you.  Made in it's original stingy sauce proportions I'm sure it is light, but since I usually at least double the Cooking Light sauce recipes I'm not sure I can call it 'light' any longer.  Oh well, that's not what I was going for anyway, and it's not as though I would call this a super indulgent recipe or anything; we are talking about asparagus here!  Plus, it's the perfect time of year to make it.  Springy, but still a little chill in the air and since the sauce is a bit rich it goes well with the cooler weather.  I would highly, highly recommend having a side dish of rice or perhaps roasted potatoes as to soak up the sauce that the asparagus leaves behind.  I can see a rice pilaf with wild rice, parsley and pine nuts or maybe some steamed red potatoes with fresh herbs and a little olive oil going really well with it.

There are so many reasons why I wanted to make this recipe.  For one, I promised you a spring recipe and this is one of my favorites, the sauce is unbelievable and I am super excited about the new produce box that I signed up for.  In it this week came asparagus, among other interesting findings.  If you live in the Chicago area you probably have the option to do it as well.  Or I'm sure wherever you live there is a CSA that offers it and I would highly recommend.  Actually, maybe I'm not in a position to recommend just yet seeing as it just arrived mere hours ago, but I'm pretty certain I'm going to love it.  I already had such a good time taking out my cookbooks to find recipes for each of the ingredients.  Most people would probably just 'wing-it', but I'm not the 'wing-it' type in any way, shape, or form in any aspect of my life.  Plus, then I wouldn't have the fun of finding new recipes to make with it.  All of the ingredients are local, in-season and many if not all, are organic.  And although I'm pretty revved up about this whole thing I have to admit I don't even know what some of the ingredients are.  Some I have heard of, but certainly wouldn't recognize and in fact I'm still trying to distinguish between the nettles and sorrel.  I'm thinking at this point I might just do something with them both.  There you go, how's that for 'winging' it!

After all this cookbook/internet/cooking binder recipe searching I had a pretty good menu planned out.  Although of course there was one ingredient that I didn't have to ponder what I would do with.  And you can probably guess which ingredient I was most excited about seeing as it's the one that I am making first.  So I watched my front door like a little kid today waiting for my produce box and finally, it's here!  It's here!

I know, I can get carried away.... but you haven't tasted it yet.

Trish's Tips:  Browned butter can be a bit tricky.  I oddly didn't have a problem with it for a long time, but then did manage to burn it, and now I can get a bit scared and not truly brown it.  But I say go for it, what's the worst that can happen, you waste 3 minutes of your time and a few tablespoons of butter?  Here's a link to some pretty detailed instructions on it.  (By the way, that photo above isn't the browned butter, that would be WAY burnt butter.  That's the browned butter with the balsamic and soy mixed in.)

Roasted Asparagus with Balsamic Browned Butter
Adapted from Cooking Light September 2001

Ingredients:
1 - 1 1/2 lb asparagus spears
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
3 TBL butter
1 TBL soy sauce
1 1/2 tsp balsamic vinegar
cooking spray or olive oil

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400.
Arrange asparagus on a single layer on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray or a drizzle of olive oil, salt and pepper.  Roast at 400 for 6-10 minutes depending on the thickness of your asparagus.

Melt butter in a small skillet over medium heat; cook 3 minutes or until lightly browned, shaking pan occasionally.  Remove from heat and stir in soy sauce and balsamic vinegar.  Drizzle over asparagus, tossing well to coat.

Grilled Eggplant and Goat Cheese Salad

Excuse my absence for the last couple of weeks here.  I've been in a food rut.  I know, even me.  I think most people go through it, but me, not so much.  Usually long after everyone is sick of cooking I want to make something else that involves a food processor or several steps.  But it's true; I barely cooked dinner for a good two weeks straight.  The low point was last week when I had a scoop of ice cream for dinner in a coffee mug with some chocolate milk (a sort of milkshake?) and a handful of nuts for dinner.  I just haven't been feeling very inspired.  I breezed through two of my cooking magazines without hardly dog-earing any of the pages, which is the sign to move it to the coveted cooking binder, and even the old favorites seemed so boring.  Nothing sounded good.  I don't know what the root of it is... maybe it's the time of year.  I'm sick to death of stews and soups and heavy winter dishes, and although all of the cooking magazines the last couple of months were filled cover to cover with recipes for spring dishes of peas, artichokes and asparagus I STILL wasn't inspired...

Then last Sunday; I forced myself to make a grocery list which included mostly remake recipes that you have seen here and unfortunately nothing new and exciting.  But then I saw a forecast for two 80-degree days in Chicago... IN APRIL!  I'm loving it, so I completely bypassed all the spring recipes to the summer ones; beef stew one week and grilled eggplant salad the next (with some Thai take-out and ice-cream dinners in between.)  In my defense as my friend Marcie says, we don't really have a spring here.  It's snowy one day and then 80 a week later, who knows maybe I'll still get around to sharing another favorite of mine that I've been waiting to share with you.  It's an asparagus recipe, so spring is obviously the best time to share it with you.  I had written this eggplant salad recipe (and the asparagus one too) on a list of recipes to post here months ago and couldn't wait to share it, but since it's a grilled salad, February or March just didn't seem like the right time to post it.  Although an 80-degree day seemed like the perfect time because we're all in the mood for summer, right?  Especially those of us who live through frigid, snowy winters.

This is by far one of my most favorite recipes.  In fact whenever Johnny will see an eggplant as we're unpacking the groceries he knows it means I will be making this salad.  The last two summers it appeared just about once a week on the menu.  And although I like it best as it is written here, there are many variations as well.  If I don't have basil or mint I will just use parsley.  I've substituted shaved parmesan for the goat cheese.  I've grilled it on a grill pan indoors, but this is really the best way.  And once you make it once you don't even really need a recipe, it's more the combination of ingredients that makes it great.  You can add more or less of whatever you prefer.

So go ahead, break out the grill... or grill pan.  We have spring fever here in the Reynolds' household errr... summer fever, or whatever... Whatever you call it I'm sure you are feeling the same way!  Stay tuned for some spring recipes!

Trish's Tips:  There are many recipes that talk about salting the eggplant to remove the bitterness, but I never do it.  Just skip it.  Japanese eggplants are also delicious with this, I used to only use them, but they are a lot more expensive and not as readily available as your standard eggplant, so that's what I call for here.  If you aren't a fan of goat cheese, shaved parmesan is also delicious.  Eggplant is like a sponge and will literally suck up all of the oil that you give it.  You could grill it without but the oil gives it a nice brownness that you won't get without.  Just be sure to ration yourself or you will end up using a whole bottle.  I pour half the oil in a bowl to get me through brushing one side, then pour the other half in the bowl and brush the other side.  This can be served hot, room temperature or cold.  I like it for entertaining because you don't have to worry about keeping it warm, but if you did want to you could grill it first then keep it warm in the oven.  I like to toast my pine nuts in a dry skillet over medium-low heat, but keep a close watch as they do burn quickly.  Then I will put them in a jar in the freezer to use whenever I want, that way I don't have to toast each time.

Grilled Eggplant and Goat Cheese Salad
Adapted from Giada de Laurentiis
Serves 4

Ingredients:
2 large eggplants, ends trimmed and cut into 1/2-3/4 inch wide length-wise (into circles)
6 TBL olive oil, separated
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
3 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup thinly sliced basil,
3 TBL thinly sliced fresh mint leaves
1 TBL balsamic vinegar
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
Heat grill or place a grill plan over medium-high heat.  Place the eggplant slices on a sheet pan and brush with 2 TBL of the olive oil.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Flip and repeat on the other side with 2 more TBL of olive oil and more salt and pepper.

Grill until tender and grill marks appear about 4 minutes per side.

Place the eggplant slices on a serving platter.  Drizzle with more olive oil (1-2 TBL) and drizzle balsamic vinegar to your liking.  Sprinkle with the pine nuts, goat cheese, basil and mint.

Cheesecake

My first time making cheesecake was a few years ago; the Christmas after we were first married.  We spent that Christmas in San Francisco and I think I was feeling extra homesick for a full on Christmas meal and extra anxious to use my new Kitchen Aid mixer or something because why I decided to make a full cheesecake for just the two of us is now beyond me....  I digress.  I made a cheesecake and followed the directions explicitly making sure that the cream cheese was at room temperature.  (Which for those of you who don't know, this is a cardinal rule of cheesecake making), but somehow I still screwed it up and the final texture was that of cottage cheese.  It still tasted right, but the texture was all off.  My sister (the baking one) claimed, "Yeah, I knew you'd screw it up." (Why I love my sisters.... they tell it like it is.)  And I hate to say she was right... Baking is still not my strong suit although I will say I have evolved... with cheesecake making at the very least.

I have since learned it's a bit of a fickle thing to make and I hardly had any experience of eating it, much less making it, growing up since I acquired most of my baking skills from my mom and she wasn't that big of a fan of cheesecake.  As her and my grandma say "it's not sweet enough".  So I put my cheesecake fantasies to bed after that Christmas until I heard about this epic cheesecake from my husband's family that comes from his Great Aunt Lona.  I never met Lona, but her cheesecake recipe lives on.  Johnny's family was talking about it over Christmas one year and I asked his mom to send me the recipe as everyone was raving about it being the absolute best cheesecake that they had ever had.

I was still a bit apprehensive of another failure, so put it aside for a few months until Johnny's birthday came around.  I decided to make it as his 'birthday cake'.  I spun it as "let me make a family recipe for you", but the truth is he's quite agreeable and I'm quite convincing.  Plus I was dying to try it after hearing the Aunt Lona story and after finally getting the confidence to give cheesecake-making another try.  Perhaps this was due to my tarnished ego from my sister's comment (tear).  I made it then for the first time and it was an instant favorite.

Johnny's birthday landed on Easter that year so we had plenty of family in town to help us finish it.  (I did learn my lesson there, no more enormous desserts for two.)  After cooking a huge Easter Brunch, dinner the night my family came in and a birthday dinner for Johnny, my dad claimed that it was the best thing he ate all weekend.  My brother loved it so much he asked for it for his birthday cake and I made it for my dad again for Father's Day which was the same weekend as my brother-in-law's birthday, so made a double batch (which I would not recommend, very messy!).  He has now requested it again and also had a slice for breakfast the other day... Okay, you get the point.  Everyone loves this and you will too!

The funny thing about this recipe is Aunt Lona would not be pleased.  I screwed it up.  As in, I screwed it up but I have no interest in making it the right way because the wrong way is so good.  The recipe was a family recipe and, like the recipes that have been passed down in my family, was quite loose.  The ingredients listed 2 - 1/2 lbs of cream cheese, which I read as two AND a half pounds of cream cheese, but what it meant was two 8 oz packages of cream cheese since that's how you buy them.  I wondered why the first time I made it, it was practically overflowing out of the pan and I had to put the extras in another dish wondering if I had had the wrong size pan.  In the end it turned out great so I forgot all about the pan-size-to-filling ratio.

Later, my mother-in-law told me how the first time she made it she did it 'wrong' (meaning the same mistake that I made) which was when I then realized that I had indeed even made a mistake.  After careful thought I decided that I don't dare change my version at the risk of disappointing so many!  It turned out so delicious I decided to just modify my 'mistake' version of the recipe so that the filling would be the appropriate amount for a 9'' spring form pan.  All of this required very careful and meticulous math skills which only a spreadsheet loving lady like myself could figure out, but phew, it's done and the modified version has now been tested several times as well so rest assured, yours will not be overflowing.

As you may well know I don't make many things without a sauce to match.   And Aunt Lona sadly didn't provide one although I'm quite certain I would NOT have screwed that one up since sauce is indeed my strong suit.  I used a blueberry one I found in one of my Barefoot cookbooks and I have to say that it goes quite well although you can certainly use whatever type of sauce that you like best.  A mixed berry sauce would work well as would even just some fresh cut fruit if it is in season.  I made it this year for my dad's birthday and since my family isn't big on change especially when it comes to food, so I just kept it as is, including the blueberry sauce that I originally debuted it with.  I have included it here if you want to make it as well which I would very strongly recommend because pretty much everything is better with a sauce.

Maybe at some point I should try a taste-off, but when you have one version that is so unbelievably delicious why mess with a good thing?  I love this recipe because it is not one of those cheesecakes that are unbelievably dense.  It is quite light for cheesecake which comes from the whipped egg whites.  I'm sure the original way with much less cream cheese would be even lighter as well and maybe someday I'll find out but for now I'm sticking with my version.

Trish's Tips:  So many... First of all this is great for entertaining because you have to make it in advance. The sauce can be made ahead as well.  I figured out that the mistake I made the first time I made my cottage cheese like cheesecake was not scraping the bowl after each addition, so although it is a bit of an annoying step, it is extremely important to have a consistently creamy texture.  Otherwise the batter and bottom of the bowl hold the harder unmixed cream cheese and it chunks into the creamy stuff.  The concept of a water bath:  This is what true bakers will use.  You wrap your cheesecake pan in loads of tinfoil and then put it on a cookie sheet that you fill with water and bake it that way.  This supposedly keeps your oven moist and prevents the cheesecake from cracking although I'm not sure what it does in terms of texture as I don't do it.  I tried it before and felt so wasteful using all of that aluminum foil and it leaked anyway.  So try it if you are a perfectionist, but if you are using a sauce it covers the crack anyway.  I just put a pan of water in the oven on the shelf below to at least keep the oven moist and tell myself that this helps, although I'm not sure that it really does.  Seriously.  Room temperature.  People.  As in, leave the cream cheese out the night before or at least for 4 hours.  The eggs I will take out an hour or so before as well as the heavy cream.  If you haven't beat egg whites before you may not know what "until stiff" means.  First off your bowl must be impeccably clean and dry as anything, ANYTHING will interfere with them whipping.  When you scoop out your whisk and they stand straight up that means stiff, they first will be soft peaks which means that you will lift the whisk out and it will slightly come down on itself like a little wave.  After gently, gently folding the egg whites in at the end it's okay if it doesn't look like a totally consistent mixture, it will turn out and is better than over mixing and deflating the whites... okay, that's it.  happy baking!

soft peaks

stiff peaks

Aunt Lona's Cheesecake (almost!)

Ingredients:
Crust:
2 cups honey graham cracker crumbs (about 1 1/2 packets or about 14 grahams)
8 TBL (1 stick) melted butter (plus additional to grease pan)
2 TBL sugar
1/4 tsp salt

Cheesecake:
3 eggs
36 oz cream cheese
6 TBL sugar
4 1/2 tsp flour
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup heavy cream

Directions:
Before beginning make sure all ingredients are at room temperature.  Heat oven to 325.  Using a 9'' or 10'' spring form pan, lightly grease the pan with butter.  Pulse in a food processor all ingredients for the crust.  The mixture should look like wet sand.  Using your fingertips or the flat bottom of a drinking glass or measuring cup, firmly press the mixture over the bottom and up the sides of a spring form pan. (It doesn't need to come all the way to the top.)  Put the crust in the freezer while you complete the next steps.

Separate eggs, putting egg whites in the bowl of a mixer and egg yolks in a separate bowl.  Beat egg whites until stiff.  Move to a separate bowl.  (No need to clean the bowl, just scrape well.)

In the same (now empty) mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until creamy, about 30 seconds.  Scrape the sides of the bowl and the beaters well with a rubber scraper.  Gradually add sugar, flour, salt and vanilla.  Beat until smooth and creamy, 1 to 2 minutes.  Scrape the bowl and beaters well again.

While beating, add egg yolks one at a time or if they have broken drizzle in slowly.  Scrape the sides of the bowl and beaters after each yolk.  After it is well mixed, on low speed beat in heavy cream.

By hand, fold in egg whites and scrape the batter into the crust and smooth the top.  Fill a separate pan with water and put on shelf below cheesecake.  (This will emulate the 'water bath' that I have chosen not to use.)  Bake for 1 hr 15 minutes to 1 hr 30 minutes or until the edges start to brown and the center is only slightly jiggly.  Refrigerate for at least four hours but preferably overnight.

Blueberry Sauce:
Adapted from Ina Garten
This is much less fickle than the cheesecake.  Add more or less sugar depending on how sweet you like it or more or less blueberries depending on how thick you like it.  Play with it, try other berries as well.

Ingredients:
Juice of 2 oranges
1/3 cup sugar
4 half-pints of fresh blueberries or about 16 oz of frozen blueberries
grated zest of 1 small lemon
2 tsp cornstarch
1 TBL freshly grated lemon juice

Combine the orange juice, sugar and cornstarch in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.   When the mixture is translucent and thickened, stir in the blueberries and simmer for 4 to 5 minutes, just until a few berries have burst but most are still whole.  Stir in the lemon zest and lemon juice and let cool.