by TheLastWonton | May 28, 2011 | Appetizers & Snacks, Baking & Desserts, Greek Food, Main Dishes, Pies, Sides, Vegetarian
A delicious mixture of fresh baby spinach, sunset-tinged golden beets, tangy feta and tasty seasonings tucked into a flaky, tender puff pastry spiral. Yum-O!
The familiar yumminess of spanakopita was the order of the day. But, then again, I did have some beautiful, bright yellow beets waiting so patiently for me to include them in something. Ah ha!! Mmm….that's a good idea!
Oh, now this was getting interesting. Golden beet spanakopita. Yeahhh, that's the ticket! Seems my,oft lazy, creative juices were flowing.
"Oooo, oooo, oooo, I know, I know!" exclaimed my excited inner foodie. Puff pasty. Yeahhhh! To give this delectable garden-goodie filled dish a little more happiness, puff pastry, instead of phyllo, was the only way to go.
Just a nanosecond after that delicious idea shone it's light upon me, I remembered seeing spanakopita done in one big spiral of a pie. Ta da! Ta da, da, da, daaaa!!!
That's it!!! I had it. Yay! It's not often the ideas come rolling in like this. I was feelin' good, feelin' fine, that this one was going to work tickety boo. It did.
Cool looking, Greekily delicious, and I had fun concocting it too. Served warm-from-the-oven with some homemade tzatziki and big, plump jalapeno stuffed queen olives this out of the blue dish got more than it's fair share of mmmmm's.
SPANAKOPITA SPIRAL WITH GOLDEN BEETS
1 generous cup golden beets, cut into 1/4-inch dice
Olive oil
Sea or Kosher salt and freshly ground green or black pepper
1 bunch green onions, sliced
1 pound fresh baby spinach
1 tablespoon fresh dillweed, chopped or 1 teaspoon dried dillweed
3/4 pound feta cheese, crumbled
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 package frozen puff pastry (397gr), thawed
4 tablespoons butter, melted
Preheat oven to 400F. Toss diced beets with 1 tablespoon olive oil and a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Roast on baking sheet about 20 minutes until al dente. Transfer to large bowl.
Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in large skillet over medium-high heat and saute green onion slices, stirring occasionally 5-7 minutes until starting to get nicely caramelized. Reduce heat if onions are browning too quickly. Transfer green onions to bowl with beets.
Heat another tablespoon olive oil in same skillet, add 1/3 to 1/2 of the baby spinach and saute until spinach wilts, tossing with spatula, about 2-4 minutes. Remove spinach to mesh strainer and with a large spoon squeeze out any excess moisture. Repeat sauteing and squeezing with remaining spinach.
Place spinach in the bowl with the beets and green onions. When veggies have cooled to room temperature add dillweed, feta, lemon juice, just a sprinkle of salt, beaten egg and some generous twists of freshly ground black pepper. Mix well to combine.
Cut the puff pastry in half where it is scored. On a lightly floured surface roll each half into approximately 5 x 22-inches. Lay 1/2 of the spinach-beet mixture all along each pastry piece. With your fingers, dab along the top edge of the pastry with a little water to help it stick to itself. Roll the filling up snuggly into a long snake or tube, pinching the seam together. Brush both pastry tubes with melted butter.
In a 9 or 10 inch pie plate twist each tube into a spiral shape around itself, pinching the pastry together a bit where the first and second spirals join. Ta da! Looks good, doesn't it?
Bake at 400F 35-45 minutes, until toasty golden brown. Let cool just a bit, slice into wedges and serve hot with chilled tzatziki on the side. Yum-O!
by TheLastWonton | May 20, 2011 | Appetizers & Snacks, Beef, Pork & Lamb, Breads & Sandwiches, Sides
Tender, juicy little morsels of simply seasoned, butter-sizzled steak plunked atop golden, oven toasted, tangy, blue cheese smeared bread.
I know. I know this isn't crostini, in the classic sense. I did indeed put the cheese topping on before oven-toasting, rather than afterwards. But if you had an Auntie Alice like I had, who willingly passed along her mouthwatering blue cheese bread recipe, you'd be deliciously improvisational and blur the edges between what is and what can be too.
It all just came rushing in when I was conjuring yet another way to serve up little morsels of steak for an appy.
Ummmm, maybe…..little steak sandwiches…..or, steak topped bruschetta……what about crostini with caramelized onions and goat cheese…..no, wait, maybe…… blue cheese. Yeahhh….. blue cheese. Then wham bam, mouthwatering memories of that blue cheese bread Auntie Alice used to make pushed their way right to the front and popped a perfect pan fried steak tidbit on top, without any assistance from me whatsoever. So cool, when that happens.
The anticipated textures and flavours were already dancing in my mouth filling me with enough confidence to toy with crostini purity and re-create a new authentic. All things considered, rather classic within itself – steak, blue cheese and bread.
Auntie Alice's heirloom recipe for the bread. Check.
Now what about the steak? For other appies and salads I often barbecue the steak and slice it thin, but this time I wanted those yummy crispy edges on the outside of the steak bits that only comes from pan frying.
That's about the time one more thing fell into place. Ree, from the renowned food blog The Pioneer Woman, had taken the words right out of my mouth on how to prepare the Steak Bites. That Ree! (Thanks!)
That's how this un-authentic, heirloom flavoured, sumptuous crostini came into the world. You might just have to give this one a try to see what you think.
STEAK AND BLUE CHEESE CROSTINI
For the bread:
1 good-sized loaf ciabatta or crusty baguette
3/4 cup butter
1/2 cup extra creamy Danish blue cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
3-4 tablespoons fresh chives, chopped
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
For the steak:
1 1/2 pounds good striploin, sirloin or your favorite steak
Sea or Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup Chianti, Shiraz or your favorite, full bodied, dry red wine
For the bread: Preheat the oven to 400F. Slice ciabatta or baguette in half horizontally-lengthwise. In medium bowl of electric mixer, combine all ingredients. Beat until well combined.
Spread half of the butter-cheese mixture on each half of the bread. Wrap each half of the loaf loosely in foil and bake 20 minutes. Open foil and broil about 1-2 minutes (watch carefully!) so tops are golden toasty brown and deliciously scrumptious. Cut into strips or smallish, random chunks and serve hot from the oven alongside steak bites.
Meanwhile, for the steak bites: Trim off any fat that runs along the side of the meat. Next, cut strips less that 1-inch wide. Rotate the meat and cut into small bite-sized pieces, removing any chunks of fat or gristle. Season generously with salt and pepper. Toss the meat around a bit to thoroughly coat with the seasonings.
Next, turn on your ventilation fan overhead. Heat a large skillet over medium high to high heat. As the pan heats, add about 2 tablespoons butter to the skillet. Allow the butter to melt, then start to get golden brown, before you add the meat.
Place some of the meat in the pan in a single layer. It should sizzle loudly when it hits the pan – if it doesn't, the pan isn't hot enough. Don't stir or disrupt the meat for 30-45 seconds. You want it to sizzle and brown on one side. Scoop as many steak bites as you can with your spatula and flip them over. Repeat until all the meat is turned. Cook for an additional 45-60 seconds – just long enough to sear the outside of the meat, leaving the inside rare to medium rare. (Keep in mind that it will continue cooking just a tiny bit when you remove it. So don't be afraid to take it out of the pan earlier than you think you should!)
Add a little more butter to the pan and repeat the cooking process with the next batch or batches just as before. Lastly, when all the meat is nicely browned and removed to the plate, deglaze the skillet with the wine. Swirl, swirl, bubble, bubble, then pour all that browned/blackened buttery wine all over the meat.
Now, plunk a steak bite or two on top of a toasty piece of blue cheese crostini and nibble me this!
by TheLastWonton | May 17, 2011 | Appetizers & Snacks, Baking & Desserts, Cake, Treats
Brownie chocolates! So very poppable! Petite, chewy, fudgey brownies cloaked in a velvety chocolate ganache. And just look at those goodies on top. Pop! Pop!
Looky, looky, what I made! You know you waaahnt one!
Okay, okay, I'll fess up, but no booing and hooing when I tell you I used a Brownie mix for these cute little, chocolatey delicious dessert tidbits. Brownie mixes are one of my only 'not from scratch' things I use. Suddenly making brownies is quick, easy and they taste quite remarkable, really.
Sure, sometimes it's definitely worth getting the eggs, butter and chocolate together to create brownie irresistable-ness from scratch, just because. But, I'm telling you now, keeping a good Ghiradelli, Duncan Hines or other Chewy Fudge Brownie mix on hand will come in handy more times than not. Add some gently toasted chopped macadamia nuts or pecans and top with homemade salted caramel glaze or a killer good chocolate buttercream and ta da! brownie excellence (from a box!) Sssshhhh, though, don't tell anyone about the box, because I promise you here and now, no one, not a soul, will ever know that plate of brownies you just set out, or in this case, Brownie Bites are not entirely homemade.
So when I came across these pretty little brownies online, looking like a tray of chocolates, I grabbed that box of Chewy Fudge Brownie mix from the pantry, as fast as I could, and within moments my kitchen was transformed into a chocolately delicious bakeshop.
These were just plain fun to make …… from tapping the perfect little brownies out of the mini-muffins pans, to dunking them in silky liquid ganache to topping them with garnishes that promised to make every bite blissful. Fun!!
For decorating, I used beautiful toasted Okanagan walnut halves, malties, Hawaiian sea salt, chocolate covered raisins, fresh blackberries, Aero balls, chocolate wafer crumbs, chocolate jimmies and cut up Bounty candy bars. More fun!
I found the idea for these devilishly yummy tiny treats on both the Pioneer Woman and Let's Dish food blogs. Thanks Ree and Danelle!! These ladies had fun with brownie bite garnishes too, using everything from chopped nuts, toasted coconut, cocoa nibs, chocolate chips, confetti candy sprinkles to M&Ms and fresh blueberries.
You're already thinking of what you want to decorate with, aren't you?
Who knows, you might even consider keeping a good fudge brownie mix on hand after you try these.
BROWNIE BITES – Makes 30-40
1 box Chewy Fudge Brownie mix (I used Duncan Hines) and the ingredients to make brownies
1 1/2 cups Callebaut semi-sweet chocolate chopped, or good quality chocolate chips
Not quite 1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons corn syrup
2 teaspoons good vanilla extract
Chopped, toasted nuts, sprinkles, candy, fresh berries, sea salt, etc for decorating
Preheat oven to 325F. Make brownie mix according to package directions. Spoon a generous teaspoon of brownie batter in each tin of a very, very well greased (buttered) mini muffin pan. Do not overfill. Brownies should just reach the top of the pan when baked – you don't want any muffin tops.
Bake for 10 to 14 minutes, or until set. Let brownies cool in pans for a couple of minutes then invert on a cooling rack. Allow brownie bites to cool completely.
To make the ganache, mix cream with corn syrup and heat in a microwave safe container. Add chopped chocolate to a separate bowl. Add vanilla to warm cream mixture, then pour over chopped chocolate. Stir until chocolate totally melts and mixture is smooth.
Add brownie bites face down in the icing. Dunk to submerge, and spoon icing over the top to thoroughly coat. Remove with a fork, tapping the fork on the side of the bowl several times quickly in order to get the excess to drain between the tines. Carefully set on a Silpat mat, parchment paper or waxed paper on baking sheet.
Decorate as you wish! Chopped nuts, candies, berries, sprinkles, sea salt…the world is your oyster!
Set the brownies in the fridge so the ganache sets. These are best served well chilled.
**I found I had a good bit of ganache left-over and was going to adjust the recipe for you, but thought better of it, 'cuz now that brownie mixes have become a staple in your pantry, it's a very good thing to have some chocolate ganache on hand**
by TheLastWonton | May 15, 2011 | Appetizers & Snacks, Baking & Desserts, Breads & Sandwiches, Breakfast & Brunch, Sides
Shiny, dark, yeasty, chewy buns of beauty, speckled with sea salt, and promising more enjoyment than any bread should really be allowed to promise.
At dinner last night my mom-in-law, Mar, enthusiastically exclaimed, "these are the best damn buns I've ever had!!". Now that's good guest feedback. And let me tell you, when it comes to all things bread, Mar is a fussy aficionado. Thanks Mar!
I lost my ability to judge the true goodness of pretzel buns a long time ago. I'm not much of a bread person actually, but man oh man, there is something that grabs me and holds on tight when it comes to pretzel buns.
My hat in hand, my head respectfully bowed, to the brilliance of whoever first thought to put the unmistakable soft pretzely goodness into a bun. Genius! Thanks too Stresscake food blog where I came across pretty much the winning combination for my keeper of a pretzel bun recipe.
These yeasty dark beauties, while being hedonistically chewy also boast a pleasingly soft interior, but not too soft. As little bear would say, "they're just right."
Sometimes I make them appetizer size to go with a variety of cheeses and Italian salumi. Last night I made them hand-size for barbecued chicken burgers. After baking and cooling, I cut them in half, smeared them with a bit of butter and toasted them in a hot non-stick pan for a few moments, then set them aside, covered with a t-towel until we were ready to roll.
We grilled up some chicken breasts with ample brushings of a mixture of Frank's Red Hot and a little olive oil, then everyone built their own chicken burger starting with the toasty pretzel bun, stacking up various combinations of honey mustard, mayo, lettuce, tomato, pickles and cheese. Yum-O!
"The smell of good bread baking, like the sound of lightly flowing water is indescribable in its evocation of innocence and delight…..
[Breadmaking is] one of those almost hypnotic businesses,
like a dance from some ancient ceremony.
It leaves you filled with one of the world's sweetest smells….
there is no chiropractic treatment, no Yoga exercise, no hour of meditation in a music-throbbing chapel, that will leave you emptier of bad thoughts than this homely ceremony of making bread."
~ M.F. K. Fisher, from The Art of Eating
Next time, pretzel bun cheeseburgers. Oh baby!
PRETZEL BUNS (adapted from an Alton Brown recipe)
Makes 16-18 small rolls or 8 rolls big enough for burgers
If you use a bread machine, dump the dough ingredients in the order listed and hit the 'dough' cycle, then pick up at the shaping step and proceed with the recipe.
For the dough:
1 1/2 cups warm water (110F or comfortably warm to the touch)
1 tablespoon active dry yeast (1 package)
2 teaspoons sugar
4 1/3 cups flour
2 teaspoons sea or Kosher salt
4 tablespoons butter, melted
For the poaching and glazing:
1/3 cup baking soda
large pot of water
1 egg, lightly beaten with 1 tablespoon of water
Pretzel or sea salt (I used Hawaiian sea salt)
For the dough: Combine the water, yeast and sugar in the bowl of a standing mixer and let rest for 5-7 minutes until foamy. Add flour, salt and melted butter and mix with a dough hook about 8 minutes. The dough should be silky, not sticky, to the touch. (ah, my beautiful silky dough) Butter or oil a bowl, transfer dough to bowl, cover with a towel and let rise in a warm place for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until doubled in bulk.
Punch down and turn onto lightly floured surface. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpat mats.
Shaping: If making smaller buns cut dough into 16-18 pieces. If making burger buns, cut dough into 8 pieces. To shape, take a piece of dough and start forming a nice round, smooth ball by pulling the sides to the centre and pinching to seal. Space evenly on prepared baking sheets, pinched seam side down, leaving at least 1-inch between each roll.
If making burger buns, flatten the formed dough balls with the palm of your hand. Now flatten again. Press hard and get those pretzel buns into a burger bun shape.
Second rise: Cover with a towel and let rise in a warm place about 45 minutes or until doubled in bulk.
Preheat oven to 425F.
Poaching: In a large pot, bring at least 2 quarts of water to a gentle boil. Add baking soda and lower heat to just keep a very gentle boil or simmer. Carefully slip 2 large or 4 to 5 small buns into the poaching liquid, seam side down. Poach for 30 seconds then carefully turn each bun over in the liquid and poach for another 30 seconds. Carefully remove buns with a spider or large slotted spoon to the same prepared baking sheets, seam side down. Repeat with the remaining buns, leaving at least 1-inch between buns for baking.
Glaze: With a pastry brush, glaze each bun completely with beaten egg mixture. Sprinkle with pretzel or sea salt. With a sharp, straight edged knife, cut a slash or 'x' in the top of each bun.
Bake: Bake the buns for 12-20 minutes. Cool completely, but before they cool grab one, rip it open, slather it with cold butter and cheese or golden syrup and munch, munch, munch. After all you must do a quality control check before serving. These buns are best eaten the same day. Pressure's on!
by TheLastWonton | May 12, 2011 | Appetizers & Snacks, Baking & Desserts, Breakfast & Brunch, Italian, Main Dishes, Sides
Tastes like spring! Fresh grassy tangles of tender asparagus shavings; wafer-thin slices of barely ripe tomato; crispy, chewy, gloriously additive little tidbits of pancetta and the soft bite of green onion all muddled up with tangy feta, a toss of golden olive oil, plenty of fresh cracked black pepper with a goodly amount of melty mozzarella. Yes please.
Pssst……..someone plunked an exquisite spring salad on top of my pizza…..and, ♪ ♫ ♫ uh-huh, uh-huh, that's the way, uh-huh, uh-huh, I like it!! ♪ ♫ ♫
A rather brilliant idea, if I do say so myself that was inspired by Deb, of one of my fave food blogs, The Smitten Kitchen. Once again Deb fired my jets, but as I started creating, this pizza took on a life of it's own and just flew together. I love when that happens. Sometimes, when the stars are aligned, magic happens in the kitchen and a new dish or creation just come together like they've been waiting for you to make it happen all along. This pizza is one of those.
Usually I make pizza dough in my breadmaker, but this time around I hit Valoroso, our rather fantastico local Italian grocery-deli for premade, ultra thin, brick-oven style pizza crusts. This won't be the last time I stock up on those pizza crusts, either. Yum-O.
Premade crust and no sauce = very easy pizza prep = one smiling brunette = a happy, Zen-zone kitchen = effortless creating = delicious food = guests who go mmmmm.
On top of all that, shaving asparagus, though just a tich tedious, is fun. Really it is. And the resulting tendrils of veggie goodness look cool, taste even better and make you feel rather clever.
But wait, it's even funner and cleverer to toss a sublime salad smack-dab on top of a pizzeria style crust layered with a hearty scattering of grated mozzarella and slip the whole damn thing into the oven until meltingly irresistible.
This time around I served this bubbly pie of deliciousness as an appy before a pasta course. Clever!!
SHAVED ASPARAGUS, TOMATO AND PANCETTA PIZZA
1 thin 14-15 inch pizza crust
3/4 pound fresh asparagus
5 green onions, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup crumbled feta
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 – 3 tablespoons olive oil
Sprinkling of sea salt
Several grinds of black pepper
4 cups good quality mozzarella, grated
2 firm, just ripe tomatoes, halved then sliced very thin
1/3 pound pancetta, diced, fried til just crispy chewy
Prepare asparagus: No need to snap off the ends; they can be your 'handles' as you peel the asparagus. Holding a single asparagus spear by its tough end, lay it flat on a cutting board and using a vegetable peeler (a Y-shaped peeler works best, but any old peeler will do), create long shavings of asparagus by drawing the peeler from the base to the top of the stalk. Repeat with remaining stalks and no worries if some pieces are thicker, or some break off before you've finished shaving them, if need be tear the thickies up a bit and be done with it as the mixed textures give a great character to the pizza. Discard tough ends. Toss peelings with sliced green onions, minced garlic, feta, lemon zest and juice and olive oil in a bowl. Sprinkle with sea salt and pepper, toss gently and have a taste to make sure you know what you've been missing up til now. You'll be happy you did.
Preheat oven to 450F. Plunk pizza crust onto a large (12' x 17') baking sheet, I cut an inch or so off two edges of my crust and laid them on the sheet snugged up to the rest of the crust so there was no overhang. Top crust with about 2/3 of the grated mozzarella. Pile the asparagus mixture on top, then the tomato slices and tasty little pancetta tidbits. Scatter the rest of the mozzarella on top and slip this baby into the hot oven. Bake pizza 12-18 minutes, or until edges are golden brown and the cheese is bubbly and happy. Remove from oven, slice and eat.
Oh, now this was getting interesting. Golden beet spanakopita. Yeahhh, that's the ticket! Seems my,oft lazy, creative juices were flowing. 
