I made pork quesadillas with leftover pork chops. I sautéed sliced onion and green pepper with Mexican seasoning, then stirred in chopped cooked pork and turkey sausage. I placed the filling in two flour tortillas and sprinkled it with some shredded cheddar cheese. I folded the tortillas in half around the filling, then sprayed them with olive oil and cooked them in a large skillet over medium heat until lightly brown. I flipped them and browned the other side. I cut them in half and served them with a spoonful of Greek yogurt and salsa, with a tossed salad along side. They turned out delicious – and so easy to make, on an RV stovetop!

 The next day I was one of four featured authors speaking at the Assistance League of Cincinnati’s annual fundraiser – Books and Brunch. I was very honored to be in the company of (left to right in photo below) C.F. Payne (illustrator for Time Magazine, US News and many children’s books), Tammie Lyon (award winning illustrator and author of Olive and Snowflake), and Kim Edwards (NY Times best selling author of Memory Keeper’s Daughter):

We all spoke at the luncheon to the 350 attendees, and also signed books. A very successful day for A Well-Seasoned Kitchen!

That evening our good friends Reed and Sheila Schroeder came out to our campsite for our first Airstream dinner party! Camembert Sauté, Grilled Steaks with Dijon, Caper and Green Onion Sauce and Roasted New Potatoes with Truffle Oil – all from the cookbook – were the centerpiece of the dinner, served along side a tossed green salad. The potatoes needed to be roasted in foil on our grill, as we couldn’t get the gas oven in the airstream to light!

The next morning we headed over to the Schroeder’s Cincinnati home. Robert and Reed headed up north to the airstream factory in Jackson Center, Ohio, while Sheila and I prepared for the luncheon she was hosting the next day to introduce 20 of her friends to A Well-Seasoned Kitchen.  After a trip to Kroger’s, we started preparing the food.

That evening Sheila made a wonderful dinner of fresh pasta with grilled chicken, vegetables and pesto sauce.

The next day was the luncheon. A few final preparations:

Sheila set up three different lovely tables with beautiful flowers displayed in very creative arrangements:

The food was set up buffet style in the dining room. There were three different types of china, and the plate you chose determined what table you set at – very clever!

 The menu included:

Basil Lemonade (recipe on the website via this link)

Benedictine Canapés:

Jeanne’s Gazpacho:

Grilled Chicken and Green Bean Salad:

Parmesan Buttermilk Cornbread:

Strawberry and White Chocolate Heaven

(sorry, it was devoured before I managed to take a photo!)

Wonderful, fun, interesting ladies – who bought lots of books!

That evening we joined our new friend Pamela Reising for dinner at restaurant Jean Robert for dinner before going to see Les Miz. Pam’s niece Lydia and good friends Roxanne and Nadine also joined us. Dinner was fabulous – and the ambiance at the restaurant is wonderful. Our first courses included . . .

 House Salad:

 Mussels Three Ways:

Veal Mac and Cheese:

 And yummy entrees included Vol au Vent of Lobster (photo didn’t turn out), Bacon Wrapped Salmon (again, Photo was blurry), Local Chicken Breast with Medley of Peas, Carrots and Radish:

Sweetbreads with Mushroom, Leek and Blue Cheese Quiche :

 and Halibut with Clam Nage and Parsley:

The production of Les Miz was over the top fabulous – one of the best touring productions I have ever seen and certainly the best of Les Miz I’ve ever seen. The quality of the cast, costumes, lighting, staging – everything! – was a 10 out of 10.

Saturday morning we went for a bike rid around the East Fork Lake campground:

We discovered this sign that might have helped Ted Kennedy had it been displayed on Chappaquiddick:

Saturday afternoon I was a guest on the radio show of Marilyn Harris, local foodie in Cincinnati, on 55KRC Talk Radio.  Pamela Reising made the introduction and came along with me. Marilyn is delightful – very knowledgeable and quite charming. Great fun talking about recipes, our cookbook and cooking ideas:

Saturday night was leftovers and packing up, getting ready to head home to Denver!

I first tasted this delicious lemonade at a Fourth of July party. The recipe comes from the hostess, Peggy Chandler, who is a fabulous home gourmet. I recently served it at a luncheon in Cincinnati promoting the cookbook, to rave reviews! You can serve it straight, or with vodka.

 Basil Lemonade Recipe

(Serves 12)

4 cups packed basil sprigs, plus more for garnish
8 cups water, divided
2 cups sugar
9 strips lemon peel
2 1/2 cups fresh squeezed lemon juice

In a medium saucepan, stir together the basil sprigs, 4 cups water, sugar and lemon peel. Bring a slow boil and continue cooking, stirring, until the sugar is dissolved. Let sit at room temperature for around an hour, then refrigerate for around another hour. Strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a mixing bowl, pushing down on the solids to squeeze out as much of the liquid as possible.

Mix together the basil mixture with the remaining 4 cups water and the lemon juice. Chill for at least an hour. Serve over ice, garnished with a basil sprig.

Make ahead: lemonade can be made up to 2 days in advance, stored in the refrigerator.

Saturday (Day  6) we drove across Iowa to a fabulous national park called Fisherman’s Corner on the banks of the Mississippi River, which was actually in Illinois (the river is the state line). It was a very small campground run by the Army Corps of Engineers, with beautiful, roomy sites:

We had a delicious dinner, planned by Robert – grilled bison dogs with chili, and broccoli slaw on the side, Yum – and super easy as we purchased an organic, vegetarian chili at Whole Foods:

Note our new picnic tablecloth and matching bench covers from Camping World – highly recommended, as picnic tables in campgrounds are often very dirty!

 The next morning (Day 7) we headed back across the river to the darling town of Le Claire, Iowa.

If you are a viewer of a show on History Channel called “American Pickers”, you will be familiar with Le Claire as this is home base for the shop that is the central focus of the series. We went there – it’s called “Antique Archeology” –  and no, Danielle wasn’t there.  After our visit there, we explored the cute little town.

The favorite for us was a visit to the Mississippi River Distilling Company. They make their own vodka, “artisan spirit” (basically a vodka with a bit more ingredients in the process), gin, and whiskey in very small batches. And, the vodka and artisan spirit were great! The latter reminded me of  liquor in Holland called gineveer. We bought a few souvenir bottles:

We stopped for lunch (that turned out to be brunch) at the Faithful Pilot Cafe. Robert’s crab cakes with poached eggs and hollandaise were not that great, but my fried egg tostada with chorizo sausage and cilantro was delicious:

The weather was starting to change (rain on the way) so we headed to the Laundromat to do a few loads of wash, then back to the campground for a dinner of chicken and beef kabobs with ginger couscous (the latter recipe is in A Well-Seasoned Kitchen).

Later that night, the heavens opened up to a most amazing thunderstorm, complete with lot of lightening – for several hours! It rained most of the night and the next morning. Once the rain stopped, we packed up (now day 8 of our trip) and headed to Indiana to Turkey Run State Park.

What a fabulous campground and park – including an Inn, canoeing on the Sugar Creek, and several miles of hiking trails. We took a night off from cooking and dinner at the Turkey Run Inn – quaint, kind of quirky but fun (I wouldn’t go there for the food however). Next morning we hiked a bit then headed for our next stop – Cincinnati.

More to come!

After a quick breakfast, we drove from Scottsbluff en route to mid-Nebraska. About halfway there, we had a special welcome to this area from a “County Mounty”:

81 in a 75 mile per hour zone  – while pulling a trailer – qualifies for a ticket in Nebraska!

Around an hour later we arrived at the beautiful Johnson Lake, for an overnight stay on our way to Omaha:

The campground was lovely – there were lilac bushes throughout the campground, making the entire site smell fabulous:

To celebrate our first speeding ticket in over 6,000 total miles with the airstream, we started our evening with Robert’s delicious martinis (using our stainless steel martini shaker and matching glasses!) while watching a beautiful sunset over the lake – right from our campsite:

Dinner was Grilled Dijon Pork Chops with Arugula (from A Well-Seasoned Kitchen) leftover from my KOTA TV cooking demo the day before, served with sliced tomatoes and buffalo mozzarella cheese topped with chopped chives and balsamic vinegar. Yum!

Day 4 we drove to Omaha, stopping at the Apple store to purchase the connector for my computer I forgot to bring. We motored just a bit east of Omaha, to Council Bluffs, Iowa where we set up camp at Lake Manawa. The lake is beautiful, however the campground is a bit tired – needs a definite facelift. Dinner was chicken breasts with sundried tomato sauce and zucchini ribbons. For the latter, I just used a peeler to thinly slice the zucchini and yellow squash, then tossed them with a bit of olive oil, parmesan cheese, fresh lemon juice and chopped herbs. My apologies, I forgot to photograph it! But I did have this photo of the zucchini ribbons from the last time I made them:

Day 5 (Friday) we woke up and I made Scrambled Egg and Ham “Crepes” for breakfast. I scrambled egg whites with chopped green onions, then rolled them in a slice of Virginia ham that had been spread with a wedge of Laughing Cow cheese. Easy, fast, delicious – and healthy! I served them on our new “happy RV”  acrylic plates, a gift from good friends Tom and Cynthia Ballantyne:

At lunch later that day I spoke to a group of around 30 executive women leaders at CSG Systems in Omaha, which was set up by my good friends Karen Eckmann and Julie Wohlers (Karen is in the photo below) who work there.

The meeting started off with a lunch that included the Grilled Chicken and Green Bean Salad from my cookbook, prepared by the catering department of the local grocery store Hyvee. They did a great job – it was delicious! Then I spoke to the group for around 45 minutes on the creation of the cookbook, and my journey “from the cable business to the culinary arts”. After I was done speaking, I sold cookbooks!

After a quick stop at Whole Foods and Camping World for a few supplies, it was back to Lake Manawa for a 10 mile bike ride in the park surrounding the lake. We saw a wild turkey and two deer on the bike path – unfortunately I didn’t have my camera with me. Back to the airstream for a delicious dinner of grilled salmon cakes with lemon-herb mayonnaise and broccoli slaw:

More adventures to come as we continue our journey in the airstream!

As usual, I was worried that all of our stuff would fit . . . 

But it did! Cuisinart. . . . check. Blender . . .  check. Acrylic plates, bowls, wine glasses . . . check. Stainless steel martini glasses and shaker . . . check. Various pots and pans for broiling, steaming, baking . . .check. Weber grill with utensils  . . .. check. It all fit, along with all the food I wanted to bring:

So, on day 1 we drove to Scottsbluff, Nebraska, to the beautiful campground at Lake Minatare, where we set up camp and made dinner – barbequed pork chops and steamed cauliflower with Parmesan cheese and curry:

I also needed to prepare the pork chops for the TV cooking demo/shoot the next day:

Day two started with a cooking demonstration – with the airstream! – for the local ABC affiliate, KOTA. I had a lot of fun with local news reporter Leigha, making Grilled Dijon Pork Chops with Arugula (click on the photo to watch the segment):

A different sort of TV interview for me, as I was solo – just me on camera, talking. I am more accustomed to having someone with me, cooking with me, asking me questions. It was actually fun! Here is Leigha:

We left the TV taping and went directly to the Scottsbluff radio station, KCMI FM to be interviewed by a super guy, Russ. Great time!

Russ was an excellent interviewer, and promoted the heck out of my book for one hour.

From there, we prepared for my cooking demo and book signing later that afternoon at the Kitchen Company in Scottsbluff – where I was cooking with Teresa Scanlan, Miss America 2011!

We had a wonderful time – Teresa is an amazing woman, 19 going on 30. I would recommend watching her progress – she has great ambition (wants to be President of the US!), and the smarts and talent to make it a reality. We were fortunate to be invited to Teresa’s home that evening for dinner with her mother Janie, sister Christine, brother Adam and her maternal grandparents Nives and Frank. Fun evening with a delicious dinner of chicken marsala, noodles, mixed veggies, and delicious yummy chocolates for dessert.  A delightful family and we had lots of laughs.

Lots more to blog about but I don’t have time to upload the photos right now – it takes ages using WiFi!

For the crepes, I used whole wheat flour and almond milk, but you could use regular flour and/or regular milk if you prefer. For the filling, I used scrambled egg whites, but you could use scrambled whole eggs instead. I put the leftover crepes in the freezer for future use – I’ll be creating more fillings to go in them!

Scrambled Egg, Spinach and Ham Crepes

(Serves 4)

2 eggs
1 cup almond milk (can also use fat free, low fat or whole milk)
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 egg whites
4 wedges Laughing Cow cheese
1 to 1  1/2 cups fresh baby spinach
1/4 cup chopped cooked country ham (can substitute Virginia ham or bacon)
1/4 cup chopped green onions

Place the eggs and milk in a blender and mix well. Add the flour, nutmeg and salt and mix until smooth. Set aside, cover and let stand for 20 to 30 minutes at room temperature.

 Spray an 8-inch skillet with olive oil and set pan over medium heat until a drop of water sizzles in the pan. Pour 1/4 cup of batter into pan and quickly tilt pan to coat bottom completely. Cook until top is set and bottom is lightly brown, around 5 to 6 minutes. Flip and cook around another 25 seconds, or until second side is light brown. Remove to a plate. Repeat with remaining batter. You should have around 8 crepes. You will use 4 for this recipe; wrap and freeze the rest.

 Spray the same pan with olive oil and heat over medium-low heat.  When hot, add the egg whites and cook, stirring, until no longer runny. While the eggs are cooking, spread each of 4 crepes with 1 wedge of the cheese. Spread 1/4 of the spinach down the middle of each crepe. Spoon the cooked scrambled eggs on top of the spinach. Sprinkle ham and onions over eggs. Season with fresh ground pepper. Roll up and place on a plate, seam side down. Serve immediately.

Sautéed Mushrooms and Roasted Asparagus

(Serves 6)

1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
1 pound mushrooms (I like to use a mixture – shitake, cremini, oyster, etc.), sliced
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 teaspoon chopped garlic
2 tablespoons chopped chives
2 tablespoons chopped tarragon
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 pound fresh asparagus, tough ends removed

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a large skillet or sauté pan over medium heat. When hot, add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, around 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the wine and continue cooking for 1 minute, then stir in the garlic and herbs, turn heat to low and cook for another minute. Remove from heat, season to taste with salt and pepper, and set aside.

In a large rimmed baking dish, toss the asparagus with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Season with kosher salt. Roast in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Remove from oven, place asparagus on serving platter and top with mushrooms. Can be served hot or at room temperature.

Make ahead: Mushrooms and asparagus can be cooked up to 2 hours before serving and stored at room temperature.

Ham and Winter Vegetable Pot Pie

(Serves 6) 

1/2 cup unsalted butter, divided
12 medium-sized shallots, peeled, trimmed and cut in half
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
2 teaspoons sugar
2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch square pieces
1 turnip, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch square pieces
1 celery root, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch square pieces
1 1/4 cups chopped ham (preferably country ham)
1/3 cup flour
2 1/2 cups whole milk (can also use 2 percent or skim)
2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup chopped Italian parsley
1 egg, beaten
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Melt 4 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add shallots, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 to 20 minutes or until tender. Increase heat to medium, stir in thyme and sugar and continue cooking, stirring, for 5 to 6 minutes or until caramelized. Watch carefully so they don’t burn. Place in a large deep-dish pie pan. Set aside.

While the shallots are cooking, steam the carrots, turnip and celery root for 8 to 10 minutes or until tender when pierced with a fork. Add to the pie dish along with the chopped ham and stir together.

Melt the remaining 4 tablespoons butter in a medium saucepan over low heat. Whisk in flour and continue cooking for 3 minutes.  Gradually whisk in milk. Bring to a slow boil over medium heat, stirring constantly, and cook for 3 or 4 minutes or until thickened. Stir in Parmesan cheese and parsley.  Season to taste with salt and pepper. Pour into the pie dish and stir well.

Brush the edges of the pie dish with beaten egg. Cover with the pastry, trimming excess (use the trimmings to decorate the top if desired).  Push down on the edges to adhere to the pan. Brush top of pastry with egg and cut a slit or two in the center for steam to escape. Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until pastry is golden brown. Cover edges if they start to burn.

Make ahead: pot pie can be assembled but not baked earlier in the day, covered and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before baking.

Blonde Brownies

(Makes around 48 1-inch square brownies)

2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
10 tablespoons butter, softened
2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)
3/4 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.   Butter and flour a 13-by-9-by-2 inch baking dish.

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.  Set aside.

Using the whisk attachment of an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition, then beat in the vanilla. Stir in the flour mixture just until incorporated (do not overmix), then the chocolate chips and walnuts.  Spread the batter in the prepared pan (batter will be very thick) and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the brownies begin to pull away from the sides of the pan and a tester inserted in the middle comes out clean.  Cool completely before cutting.

High altitude adjustment:  Reduce baking powder by 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoo

Roasted Mushroom and Butternut Squash Spinach Salad

(Serves 4)

1 1/2 cups peeled, seeded and cubed (1/2-inch) butternut squash
2 cups quartered mushrooms (cremini, shitake or small portabellos work best)
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, separated
2 tablespooons chopped walnuts or pecans
4 cups fresh baby spinach
1/4 cup feta cheese crumbles
1/4 cup shredded ham, preferably country ham
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

In a medium roasting pan, using your hands toss together the squash, mushrooms and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper; toss again. Roast for 10 minutes. Stir in the chopped nuts and continue roasting for another 5 to 10 minutes or until the squash is tender, stirring occasionally.

Place 1 cup of spinach on each of 4 individual salad plates. Sprinkle with the feta cheese, then the mushroom mixture, then the ham. Place the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and the balsamic vinegar in a small skillet and warm over low heat. Drizzle over salad; season with salt and fresh ground pepper as needed.