citrusbasil

A Feast for a Jarl: Skyrim Dinner

2012-07-12T10:21:00.000-07:00

My boyfriend Zak and I are avid fans of the Elder Scrolls series, and we often play Skyrim together. I'm a newcomer to the series while he has been a fan since Morrowind. In the midst of a new DLC that was to be released, Dawnguard, I decided to throw him a feast fit for a Jarl. I cooked him a delicious beef and butternut squash stew, baked potatoes, roasted vegetables, and sweetrolls! Yes, I decided to tackle the infamous desert that the Whiterun guards like to joke about. Let me guess, someone stole your sweetroll. My boyfriend actually did steal one of the sweetrolls from my plate and quipped that little line with the silliest smirk on his face. What a butt. The recipe I used for the sweetrolls is from Gourmet Gaming, a food blog with recipes based on videogame food. The sweetrolls were perfectly soft, light and deliciously sweet, and the cinnamon-sugar glaze inside was perfect to bite into, and the cinnamon-cream cheese frosting added an extra sweetness to the airy rolls. Luckilly, I had a bundt cake cupcake pan, so I didn't have to create my own holes or mold the cake into the classic sweetroll shape.

The roasted vegetables were butternut squash, onions, carrots and asparagus, and the baked potato was simple with butter and some Montreal steak seasoning sprinkled on top. I love Montreal steak seasoning; top anything with it and it's addicting and delicious with a little kick. The stew was amazingly delicious and hearty, and I was surprised at how well butternut squash complimented the beef. I ended up adding some of the baked potato and roasted veggies to the stew for extra flavor.

Beef and Butternut Squash Stew
Recipe adapted from Giada de Laurentiis

3 tablespoons olive oil

1. Heat 3 tbs of olive oil over medium heat in a large saucepan, and add the onions, thyme, rosemary and garlic. Saute until the onions are tender.

2. Toss the beef in flour, salt and pepper and add to the pot, turning the heat up to medium high. Cook until the beef is browned.

3. Add the Marsala wine and stir up all the bits and goods at the bottom of the pan with a spoon.

4. Add the squash and sun-dried tomatoes, stir, then add the beef broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook for an hour. Season with salt and pepper. Top with parsley and serve!

Pasta with Simple Garlic Sauce

2012-06-25T15:32:00.000-07:00

I decided to make do with what was in my house and come up with a simple pasta recipe with a quick and easy sauce. The aroma of the garlic and olive oil cooking together is divine! I've made this quite a few times whenever I'm at a friend's house and the only things available to cook with are garlic, pasta, and olive oil.

Ingredients:

1 box of pasta (whatever kind you want)
4-6 cloves of garlic, chopped
1/2 cup of olive oil
Parmesan Cheese to serve
Parsley (optional)
Salt & Black pepper

Directions:

Bring a pot of salted water to a rapid boil and add the pasta, cooking for about 9 minutes.
While the pasta cooks, add the olive oil and garlic to a saucepan and cook on medium heat. When the garlic turns a golden brown, take the pan off the heat, add parsley and black pepper.
When the pasta is finished cooking, drain and return to pot. Add the sauce and mix it with the pasta. Top with parsley and parmesan cheese and serve.

Bruschetta and Fall Vegetable Soup

2012-06-25T15:28:00.002-07:00

Last year my friend Nicole and I threw a little dinner party at my house and invited about seven friends over. We made tomato-basil bruschetta, which was extremely easy and delicious, and a warm fall vegetable soup.

Bruschetta

Yield: 8 servings

INGREDIENTS

2 Tomatoes
3/4 c fresh basil
1/2 of a French loaf
1 clove of garlic
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO, you Rachel Ray fans)

DIRECTIONS

De-seed your tomatoes. Dice up into small pieces.
Chiffonade your basil.
Combine Italian seasoning, tomatoes, and basil.
Cut your French loaf into 1 inch wide slices.
Heat a pan on medium-high heat with some oil in it.
Rub the clove of garlic on each side of the bread.
Fry your bread in the oil. Remove when crispy and light brown.
Top with basil, tomato, and seasoning mix.
Enjoy!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Rustic Fall Vegetable Soup

Nicole and I made this AWESOME soup. 7 amazing people came over and had some of it. We adapted this recipe from the Cooking Channel website, by Kelsey Nixon. We thought it looked too chunky, so we changed some things and we couldn’t find winter squash so we used yellow squash instead.

INGREDIENTS

Adapted Recipe

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
3 yellow squash, sliced
1 medium zucchini, diced
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and diced
1/2 cup orzo
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
2 tsp Italian seasoning
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 of a French loaf

DIRECTIONS

Dice up your onion and heat your oil in a soup pot on medium-high heat.
Add in the onion to the hot oil, allow onion to become translucent.
Add in garlic.
Dice your zucchini and slice your squash, add into your pan.
Peel your yam and dice it up. Add to pan.
Add your tomatoes, seasoning, chicken broth, and orzo. Finally, add in your salt and pepper.
Simmer 30 minutes or until vegetables cooked thoroughly.
Ladle into bowls and serve with toasted/pan fried bread sliced 1 inch thick.

Oh, and then we made cookies from Nicole's recipe. We’re insane so we made 4 different kinds: pumpkin, minced walnut and dried cranberry (fan favorite), chocolate chip, and butterscotch.

Lemon Fusilli with Arugula

2012-06-25T15:21:00.003-07:00

Hello there! It has been years since I last updated, and I apologize deeply for that! But, I am restarting my little food blog. :)

This dish is one of my favorites to make, and is always a hit in my home. The recipe is adapted from Ina Garten. I added chicken to the pasta, which brings an extra dimension of flavor and makes the dish, imo. It’s very easy to make as well.

Ingredients:

1 tbs olive oil
1 tbs (2 cloves) minced garlic
2 cups heavy cream
3 lemons
salt and pepper
1 bunch broccoli
1 pound dried fusilli pasta (bowties)
1/2 pound baby arugula /2 bunches regular arugula, leaves cut in thirds
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 pint grape/cherry tomatoes, halved
1 roasterie chicken, cut into bite size pieces (I got mine already made from Target)

Directions:

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat the olive oil and add the garlic, cooking for 60 seconds. Add the cream, the zest and juice from 2 lemons, 2 tsps of salt and a 1 tsp of pepper, Bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes until it thickens.
Cut the broccoli into florets and discard the stem. Cook in boiling salted water for 3-5 minutes. Drain the broccoli and shock in cold ice water to stop the cooking, set aside.
Cook the pasta according to directions on the box (about 12 minutes). Drain pasta and put back in pot.
Add the cream sauce and cook over medium-low heat for 3 minutes.
Pour the pasta into a large bowl (I used a giant bowl for this), add the arugula, tomatoes, cheese, chicken, and broccoli. Cut the last lemon in half and slice thinly, add it to the pasta. Toss well and serve hot!

New Jersey

2010-11-24T14:47:00.000-08:00

It's been quite a while since I last updated! I've been very busy this month. My grandfather passed away on November 10, and my family took a weekend trip to New Jersey for his funeral. I grew up in Paramus, NJ, a town of shopping galore, autumn leaves, busy streets, and memories. I spent fourteen years of my life there until I moved to Clermont, FL after 8th grade. My friends Tina, Deep, Lais and Ashley made plans to see me while I was in Paramus. I haven't seen them in five years, and I missed them terribly. We kept in contact over the years, and Skyped a bit. It was a bittersweet time, with the sad funeral of my grandfather and the joyous reunion of my best friends.

On friday morning I woke up at the insane hour of 4 AM to drive to Orlando International Airport to catch a flight to Atlantic City, NJ. As we neared our destination I gazed out of the window next to my seat and was greeted by endless waves of autumn trees. I missed the changing leaves in the fall, Clermont has next to none, instead their place is taken by palm trees. When I walked outside the crisp cool 40-degree weather rushed at me, a far cry from the 80-degree weather in Clermont. I was happy though, I missed the cold, and was tired of the endless warmth. My family hopped into our rental car and drove to my uncle's house in Forked River.

My uncle and cousin talked with us for a while, and I ducked downstairs to pet their beautiful cat, Marie. Marie sat on a couch and purred the entire time I pet her, and she had dazzling green eyes and soft, fluffy fur. She looked like my own cat, Tigger, only Tigger is short-haired with gray fur. I have a soft spot for cats. My cousin was visiting as well from Michigan, and brought his adorable children along, Abigail and AJ. My grandma caressed AJ while I went into the kitchen to check out the food. They ordered Subway for us. A giant spread of sandwiches, cookies, salads and condiments covered the table.

I munched on a roast beef sandwich, then we drove to my aunt's little store, The Hippie House. It's a tiny store full of tye-dye shirts, peace sign necklaces, records, jewelery, and hippie culture memorabilia.

After visiting Forked River, we began the two-hour drive to Paramus. I looked out the window and reveled in the sights of places I've visited. Memories came flooding back to me all at once, and I missed this town more than I once thought. Paramus and Clermont are radically different. In Paramus, there's shopping centers everywhere, small businesses around every corner, delicious bagels, three giant malls, people are always on the go, never stopping, always going, going, going, the streets are alive every minute, trucks and cars zooming past at night when you're asleep, crisp, cold weather, snow in the winter, falling leaves in autumn. Clermont is quieter, slower, more tranquil, less small businesses, more Walmarts and dollar stores, more chain restaurants instead of bakeries and pizzerias, Publix in place of Shoprite, dead roads at 2 AM, crickets chirping at night, lush green fields instead of urban buildings, the nearest mall thirty minutes away. I longed for the endless shopping, the busy life, the local joints instead of the giant chain corporations.

At night we ate at On The Border,a tex-mex restaurant next to Chili's. I ordered a pork tamale and chicken enchiladas with black beans and rice. Our table had tons of nachos with dipping sauces. I fell in love with tamales right then and there. They have an interesting taste, of corn and pork, soft, almost creamy, a texture change from the usual tortillas that I reveled in. Afterwards we decided to see what the Bergen Mall looked like. Five years ago, when I left, it was a dead mall, almost abandoned, and Tina told me how they were fixing it up and adding new stores. I laughed at the thought of this empty brown building being crowded and popular. I would eat my words when I saw the modern building with Target, Bobby Flay's Burger Palace, Whole Foods, new clothing stores, and people rushing in and out. I think my jaw dropped at that moment. They really did revamp the entire place. I walked into Target and bought a blue leopard-print flat iron for my hair, and my father ran into a friendly face from his old job at King's Supermarket. At night I slept soundly, even with the rushing traffic outside my hotel room.

In the morning the funeral service was held at Washington Memorial Cemetery, and afterwards lunch was served at Lieto's Italian Restaurant. The waiters poured soda into our glasses and served soup, salad, and the main course of our choice, along with desert.

I ordered the chicken Parmesan, sprinkled cheese over my pasta, and watched my niece Jessica run around the restaurant. I was eagerly waiting for the arrival of Tina and my friends after lunch, and excitement ran through my veins. The chicken parm was tender and delightfully cheesy, a true classic. Desert was served afterwards, a little round ball of chocolate and vanilla ice cream topped with whipped cream.

I was standing in the middle of the restaurant when I looked behind me to see Tina grinning at me.
Needless to say, we both screamed in happiness and embraced each other, my eyes brimming with tears over the sight of my best friend. I was truly happy in that moment, the smile on my face could never be wiped off, every single thought on my mind was that of joy and shock and anticipation. We scrambled to Deep's car, where I hugged her and Ashley, and we drove to Lais's home to pick her up along for the ride. Our plan was to go see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows at the new movie theater in Garden State Plaza. The entire car ride was a nostaliga wave, with me pointing out our old middle school, parks we used to walk along, the library Tina and I visited over the weekend, my old house, the Shoprite my sister and her husband worked at and met, the KFC Tina and I frequented, the bank where in 4th grade we took a field trip to visit and count pennies in that amazing machine. I was in awe of everything.

We made it to GSP and rode the escalator upstairs, shoppers strutting past in peacoats, bags in their gloved hands. We grabbed tickets and snooped around a few stores before we made it in time for the movie, complete with popcorn and soda. After the movie, Tina and I headed to Bobby Flay's Burger Palace to eat dinner.

I ordered a Napa Valley burger, complete with a medium-well beef patty, watercress, goat cheese, and lemon honey mustard. Tina ordered the Bobby Burger, which had blue cheese, bacon, lettuce, and tomato. We skipped on the crunchified option, which puts potato chips on your burger of choice, but nordered french fries. We found a table outside of Whole Foods and ate our din-din an chatted about college life.

The Napa Valle burger was delicious. I had never had goat cheese before, and I enjoyed the creaminess of it, and the watercress was a welcome addition instead of the usual lettuce. After eating, we strolled around Whole Foods. There's a Whole Foods in Orlando that I've been to twice and loved, and I am quite jealous of Tina for having a Whole Foods so close to her home.

Turkey and geese for the holidays! We happened to stumble upon some rather amusing bottles of wine.

The next morning we drove to a little bagel shop. Now, New Jersey has far superior bagels to Florida. I believe it's the water that makes them so amazingly light and soft. I used to have a salt bagel for breakfast when I lived in Paramus, and I deeply missed the bagels of NJ. The Florida bagels cannot compare to these masterpieces. So, I ordered a fresh, hot buttered salt bagel.

BEST. BAGEL. OF. MY. LIFE.

After eating that God-Tier bagel, we bought some flowers t put on the graves of our loved ones. I stumbled upon this amusing piece of art.

Teehee.

My brother wanted to take a walk around Dunkerhook, so I took my camera along and snapped photos of the autumn scenery.

We then drove to Hackensack to pay a delicious visit to B&W Bakery. Inside, a girl at the counter complimented my camera while I made the hardest decision of my life: which delicious treat to buy?

I opted for a mini cannoli. Flaky and creamy in a cute little package.

My brother wanted to show his wife these historic homes and a very historic bridge nearby. History lesson ahoy!

George Washington crossed that bridge. I walked upon a piece of history right near my home town. Talk about awesome.

I flew back to Clermont Sunday night. I wish I could go back, stay longer, see more people, explore old places. I miss Paramus.

Boeuf Bourguignon

2010-11-08T17:45:00.000-08:00

I have been waiting for days to make this, and I finally got the chance to do so! When I first saw Julie & Julia, in the scene where Julie makes this stew, I knew then and there that I had to make this dish. I am so glad I did! The smell cascaded through my house while it cooked, and my mother and grandmother loved it! I could taste the red wine in the sauce, the beef was tender, moist and delicious, and the onions were soft, smooth and cooked to perfection. Truly an amazing stew. Thank you, Julia!

Boeuf Bourguignon
Adapted from Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol. 1

6-ounce chunk of bacon (I used bacon bits from my pantry since the bacon was too expensive)
9-10 inch fireproof casserole 3 inches deep
1 tb olive oil/cooking oil (I used extra virgin olive oil)
slotted spoon
3 lbs. lean stewing beef cut into 2-inch cubes
1 sliced carrot
1 sliced onion
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 Tb flour
3 cups of a full-bodied, young red wine
2-3 cups brown beef stock or canned beef bouillon (I used beef stock)
1 tb tomato paste
A crumbled bay leaf
The blanched bacon rind
18-24 small white onions, brown braised in stock (see recipe)
1 lb. quartered fresh mushrooms sauteed in butter (I omitted these since my mother hates mushrooms)
Parsley sprigs

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Dry the beef with paper towels, or else it won't brown. Saute the beef in the oil a few pieces at a time, don't crowd them. I used two saute pans to cook the beef, since I didn't have enough room. Cook until browned on all sides, then add it to the casserole.

In the same fat, brown the onion and carrots. I added bacon bits to the oil. Pour out the fat.

Return the beef to the casserole and toss with salt and pepper, then add the flour and toss again to coat the beef. Place the casserole uncovered in the middle position of the oven for 4 minutes. Toss the meat again and return to the oven for another 4 minutes. Remove the casserole and lower the oven to 325 degrees.

Stir in the wine and stock so the meat is barely covered, then add the tomato paste, garlic, herbs, and bacon rind. Bring to a simmer on top of the stove.

I used a red wine from the local winery here in Clermont :)

Cover the casserole and place in oven. Let it simmer slowly for 3 hours. The meat is done when a fork pierces it easilly.

While the beef is cooking, prepare the onions and mushrooms. I didn't include mushrooms as my mother dislikes them, but kept the pearl onions. In a skillet, heat 1 1/2 tb of oil and butter. Peel the onions and add them to the oil and roll them about so they brown as evenly as possible. Brown the onions for 10 minutes, then pour in 1/2 cup of beef stock, salt and pepper, and a bouquet of thyme, basil and a bay leaf. Cover and simmer slowly for 4-50 minutes.

When the meat is tender, add the pearl onions to the stew, and serve!

My mother baked some potatoes to go alongside the stew :)

Living with the Land

2010-11-05T23:01:00.001-07:00

I cannot tell you how many times I have been on this ride. I've honestly lost count. It's always amazing to see how much the vegetables have grown over time, and children in the seats behind me cooing at the bananas and the infamous nine pound lemons pictured above.

There's so many herbs rotating around in their containers. Basil, rosemary, mint, and more! I feel like a kid in a candy store when the boat enters that section.

There's spiraling columns of lettuce, and planes of it. One side is young and newly planted, the other is older and growing. In the herb room, there's a combination of the lettuce nutrient-film technique with the fish farming. The fish are in a tank below the lettuce, and both work together to supply nutrients to each other.

Tomato trees are usually pointed at in awe by people on the boat.

I really do need to start my own little garden, and plant some herbs too.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie from the Garden Grill

2010-11-05T20:30:00.001-07:00

My mother and I often venture to Epcot, and when we go inside The Land, we always pass by the Garden Grill restaurant inside. I've always been curious to try it out, having ridden the Living with the Land boat ride and gazing at all the fresh vegetables growing in the greenhouse. We finally decided one day to go there for a nice lunch. As soon as you head up the ramp, you are rotating: the restaurant actually rotates around slowly, letting the diners view scenes from the boat ride. Mickey, Pluto, Chip and Dale visit everyone, and I got a few photos with them while we ate. The food was amazing, fresh from the garden, organic and environmentally-friendly. Food was served family-style, so we got a taste of everything. For desert was a strawberry-rhubarb pie. I had never had one before, and it was quite delicious!

Some awkward pictures of me with the characters thank you for your time.

Of cookbooks and tortilla chips

2010-11-05T20:29:00.000-07:00

College life has been busy, and I haven’t done much cooking in a while, sadly. I did, however, discover that my campus’s library has a nice collection of cookbooks. So far I’ve checked out:

Anthony Bourdain’s Les Halles Cookbook
Julia Child and Jacques Pepin’s Cooking at Home
Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything

I also went to Barnes & Noble and found one of Nigella Lawson’s cookbooks ten minutes before the store closed. Hurrah!

I’ve been learning so much from reading all these cookbooks and watching the Cooking Channel. I’ve also been watching documentaries on Julia Child (I love Netflix ever so much). The other night I was watching a clip of her making omelets, grabbed my copy of Mastering the Art of French Cooking and decided to give it a try at 8pm. I had never cooked nor eaten an omelet before, and, following Julia’s instructions, I successfully made my first omelet! I was a plain omelet with butter, but it was still delicious.

Speaking of Julia, for my literature class I had to do a presentation on my favorite author. I picked her for my presentation, and someone else in the class did his on the chef who wrote Momofuku! Everyone else in class but me and him did theirs on Dr. Seuss or some teen novelist. I was happy to see another person do a cookbook author!

I decided on impulse the other night to make fried tortilla chips. I cooked a little batch and earned an eyebrow-raise from my mother (“Why are you playing with oil at 10pm?”), sprinkled them with salt and let my family taste them. They are so much better than store-bought tortilla chips, and fun to make. :)

Oh Julia.

2010-11-05T20:27:00.001-07:00

Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol. 1
I remember after watching Julie & Julia I wandered around Barnes & Noble and came across this amazing book. To this day I am still reading it, pouring over the delicious recipes (and reading it in Julia’s voice, it’s hard not to). I’ve been learning so much from her. The first recipe I tried from this book was scrambled eggs. It was my first time making and eating them too, and I was nervous, but in the end they were the most delicious scrambled eggs I had ever had in my life, and my mother loved them. Thank you Julia! <3

Curried Chickpeas

2010-11-05T20:26:00.000-07:00

I found this recipe while watching the Cooking Channel. There’s a show on there called Everyday Exotic, and the host made this wonderful chickpea dish with curry. I never had chickpeas before, so this sounded intriguing.

The combination of garlic, carrots, onions, tomatoes, curry and chickpeas was divine. The vegetables were in a wonderful broth of chicken stock and white wine, and my father had two bowls! The sugar adds a sweetness to the chickpeas, and it is a warm, simple dish to make.

Cous Cous alla Panzanella

2010-11-05T20:24:00.000-07:00

I was lurking on the Cooking Channel’s blog for recipes and discovered an amazing recipe for couscous! The recipe is from David Rocco, who has a show on there (David Rocco’s Dolce Vita); I reccomend you check it out. Couscous is my favorite food on this planet. I feel in love with it when I went to Disney’s Tusker House restaurant in Animal Kingdom. They had at least five different kinds of couscous: pearl couscous, couscous salad, and more. Since then I’ve been in love with couscous, and this simple recipe seemed perfect to me.

The recipe calls for no cooking whatsoever (which confused my mom, since she is used to cooking the couscous). Instead, it says the let the couscous soak up all of the juices in a bowl,and it will puff up and absorb all the flavors. I chopped up the tomatoes and poured all of the juices in, then opened the box of couscous and let it marinade in all the liquids. The dry couscous was swimming in a pool of tomato juice, lemon juice and olive oil, and for a moment I was doubtful that the couscous would really soak up *all* of that liquid, but I continued on.I chopped up the red onion (and didn’t cry! hurray), the red and yellow peppers and the cherry tomatoes, and teared the basil leaves into the bowl. After seasoning it with salt and pepper I mixed the concoction together. I wrapped the entire bowl in saran wrap and placed it in the fridge. The recipe says that it takes three hours for the flavors to soak in, but it was already 8 pm so I let it sit overnight.

The next day I walked up to the fridge, took out the bowl of couscous salad, peeled off the saran wrap and gasped. The once-drowning couscous was puffed up and it had indeed absorbed all of the liquids! The vegetables looked bright and fresh, and I couldn’t wait to dig in. The salad was colorful and refreshing! It is now my favorite couscous recipe to date. My dad cooked some ribs to serve alongside it, which were also delicious.

Some photos.

2010-11-05T20:21:00.000-07:00

Most of these were taken at Disney. I tend to visit Disney World quite a bit. :)

Easter Treats!

The pastry shop in the France Pavillion at Epcot is amazing. The last time I was there, I got elephant ears. Mmm.

It is delicious.

Raphsodic Cooperative Company

2010-11-05T20:17:00.000-07:00

Some photos I took of Raphsodic Cooperative Company's delicious treats a few months ago. They’re located in Orlando FL and specialize in organic, vegan baked goods, coffee and local art!

Deep South Rice and Beans

2010-11-05T20:08:00.000-07:00

Deep South Rice and Beans

I made this amazing dish a few months ago, and my family loved it! The recipe is from Cook’s Library Vegetarian cookbook. (serves 4)

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup long grain rice
4 tbsp olive oil
1 small green bell pepper, halved, deseeded and chopped
1 small red bell pepper, halved, deseeded and chopped
1 onion, chopped finely
1 small red or green chile, seeded and chopped finely
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 cup canned red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 tbsp chopped fresh basil
2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1 tsp Cajun spice
salt & pepper
fresh basil leaves, to garnish

DIRECTIONS

Cook the rice in boiling, lightly salted water for 12 minutes, until it is just tender. Rinse under cold water, drain, and set aside.
Heat the olive oil in a skillet, add the green and red bell peppers, the onion, and cook for about 5 minutes, until soft.
Add the chile and tomatoes and cook for 2 minutes.
Add the vegetables and the drained red kidney beans to the cooked rice, and stir to combine.
Add the chopped fresh herbs and the Cajun spice to the rice mixture and combine.
Season the salad to taste with salt & pepper and serve, garnish with fresh basil leaves.

Tomato-Zucchini Gratin

2010-11-05T20:05:00.000-07:00

This recipe is from Vegetarian Times. I already had fresh local zucchini and tomatoes from the little farmer’s market downtown, and parmesan cheese. My mother ran to Publix to pick up some fresh basil leaves and kalamata olives. At first she was skeptical that I would eat olives, but I insisted that she buy them. While she was gone, I received a call from her.

Mom: …The olives in a jar are 5 dollars.

Me: Then get a smaller jar?

Mom: That’s the only jar they have. I am not spending five dollars on olives.

Me: *Groans* Fine, don’t get the olives then…

When she arrived home I was happy to discover that she had found a smaller can of olives. The olives were not lost afterall!

I sauted the zucchini in olive oil, admiring the crisp aroma filling the kitchen. My mother came over to take a look at the beautifully golden zucchini. I spread the zucchini slices on a baking pan (which was heart-shaped), then layered large pieces of tomato on top. Instead of chopping the garlic and basil, I used a mini food processor and scattered the mixture around the dish. I added olives and a generous amount of cheese, then made a second layer of zucchini and tomato. I drizzled olive oil on top, sprinkled more cheese, and added a few more olives. It looked delicious, and it wasn’t even baked yet! I covered the pan in foil and placed it in the oven for ten minutes, then removed the foil and continued baking it for 20 minutes. I checked back on my gratin and it was bubbling wonderfully. The cheese had melted, and tomato was soft and cheesy, the basil and garlic clung to the zucchini and blended beautifully. The smell was glorious. Even my father arose from his comfy couch to take a look at the gratin.

I scooped some onto a plate and gazed at the tomato bubbling with cheese on my fork for a moment. I dived in. It was love at first bite. I now officially love and adore tomatoes. What have I been missing all my life? The tomatoes were moist, juicy and soft. It almost melted in my mouth, and the Parmesan added a warmth to the texture. The zucchini was perfectly cooked and had a nice crunch. It was the perfect balence to the soft tomato. The basil and garlic was indeed noticeable (as I typed this, I can still taste the garlic!) and a great factor in the dish. I was very surprised with the olives. I had thought they would be too cold and an abrupt difference from the warm, gooey tomatoes and zucchini. To my delight, they were equally warm and savory.

This dish transformed me into a tomato lover. For this, I am grateful.

Christmas 2007

2010-11-05T20:00:00.000-07:00

Here are are a few photos I took of Christmas with my family in 2007. It was my first time using a dSLR, and the first day I fell in love with photography.

Hello!

2010-11-05T19:53:00.000-07:00

My name is Courtney. I like to watch the Cooking Channel.

Actually, I’m quite obsessed with it. When I was young I remember sitting on an old green recliner, watching Emeril Live on our widescreen tv. At that point I told my mother, “I want to learn how to cook. I want to watch the Food Network everyday and be like Emeril.” The next day she took me shopping for a cookbook. I picked out a cookbook by Emeril for young kids. It was titled “Emeril’s There’s a Chef in my Family!: Recipes to Get Everybody Cooking”. I remember trying out the recipes in the book. I wanted more. I wanted to cook more, learn more, try new things. I was a very picky eater before I started to watch the Food Network. I was inspired to try new foods at restaurants. I was open to new dishes, new ingredients, new tastes.

I am now eighteen years old and a college student. I'm currently studying English/literature, then planning on transferring to UCF and majoring in photography. I hope to go to culinary school afterwards. I almost always have the Cooking Channel on my tv. Even if I’m not watching it, it is on in the background. I was vegetarian for half a year, and after becoming an omnivore again, I had expanded my pallet. I fell in love with couscous, tried a mushroom for the first time in my life (My mom detests them and makes a face whenever they are mentioned), and being vegetarian was almost a challenge: finding something other than chicken to order at a restaurant.

This blog used to be on tumblr, but I decided to move it here. It will contain recipes from my cookbook collection and such, food photography, perhaps some reviews of restaurants. Food is my favorite thing to photograph, hands down. I often linger in my college's library in the cookbook section. I'm always learning new techniques, new recipes.

I hope you enjoy my little blog from a Sunburst Kitchen. :)