I got a nice surprise in yesterday’s mail – a copy of Where Women Cook: The Heart & Soul of Cooking published by the lovely, lovely Jo Packham. It’s a quarterly magazine sold at retail stores (most bookstores and I think I saw it at Costco and Target too), featuring women passionate about food, their kitchens and their stories.

This month’s cover also features another friend of mine – Robin from Southern Fried Fitness. You’ll love her style – 80% healthy, 20% indulgent and 100% Southern. This woman is just pure good energy!

The magazine features photos from our property and my two boys. That week, I had made a stupid deal with my kids, which resulted in letting them SHAVE THEIR HEADS. Unfortunately, I had totally forgotten about the scheduled shoot. The boys wanted the photographer to shoot them holding our hens.

So great. We look like food blogging, skinhead chicken farmers! LOL At least the kids were wearing shirts and shoes.

Also in the magazine is one of the very last photos taken of Papa, Scott’s dad who passed away a few weeks ago. Mimi and Papa were visiting from Buffalo when the photoshoot took place, so naturally they were part of our story and shoot. He was smiling sweetly at Mimi, with a drink in his hand — just like I want to remember him.

There’s a shot of my garden too – just when we started it in February. We had planted corn from seed – most of the seedlings were 4″ tall except for ONE. The seedling in the middle of the plot shot up past its brothers and sisters to 2 feet. They’re all the same variety, from the same seed envelope. Some mutant corn!

It’s fun to see pics of my garden when we first planted and realize that the little eggplant seeds that we spread out turned into 4 monster plants with more eggplant than any family should have (the secret is our awesome 3-day compost!) I can’t give enough away – I’ve been stuffing them in the pockets of my friends when I give them hugs. Makes for funny looks from other people, especially given the shape of the Asian eggplant!

So our recipe this week that I’ve developed this recipe for my client, Miso & Easy, is Stuffed Miso Eggplant. My girlfriend Kelly’s mom (her name is Sandy) used to cook her eggplant this way (well, without the miso) and when Kelly came over last Monday, we made this in honor of Sandy.

The eggplant is hollowed out – and the eggplant innards (ugh, I hate that word to describe food) flesh (that word is yuck too) insides are added to the ground meat stuffing, which makes the stuffing soooo incredibly moist and juicy.

Stuffed Miso Eggplant Recipe

Recipe developed for client Miso & Easy, a company who makes miso in an easy to use bottle. You can use either Miso & Easy or regular miso paste that you can find in most grocery stores (usually sold in Asian aisle or refrigerated produce section).

Here are the ingredients that you’ll need. If you can’t find the small, skinny Asian eggplant, go ahead and use the big ol’ fat globe eggplant. Your stuffed eggplant halves will just be big ‘n fat!

You can either use Miso & Easy or regular miso paste. If you’re using regular miso paste, add 1/2 teaspoon of mirin (Japanese sweet rice wine). Substitute for mirin: 1 teaspoon white wine + 1/2 teaspoon honey

Cut each eggplant in half and using a teaspoon to hollow out. If you’re using a fat globe eggplant, use a tablespoon instead.

Just scrape slowly – but don’t discard the innards! You’ll be adding that to the ground meat mix.

In a frying pan or saute pan, cook the ground meat, onion, garlic and eggplant innards.

Add the miso (and the mirin if you’re not using Miso & Easy)

Lay the eggplant on a baking sheet.

Spoon in the filling.

Bake and top with fresh basil.

©Steamy Kitchen Recipes, 2012. | Permalink | 6 comments

In my office I have two cabinets, one filled with single malt Scotch whiskys that I refere to as my everyday drinking scotches. The other cabinet holds my ever growing rare Scotch collection. These bottles are held in reserve for those special occasions like zero year birthdays and anniversaries. I justify keeping them around because of their growing value as collectors items like this $250,000 bottle. Jaden is not sold on the whole Scotch collecting idea yet, despite my attempts to assure her they truly are liquid assets.

When she ventures a taste of what ever I’m drinking, I am inundated with comments of “This taste like gasoline and turpentine mixed together” or  questions of “How can you drink that stuff?” While Scotch whisky may be intimidating to the novice, once past the initial burning phase they open up to a whole world of complexities comparable to wines. Deep aromas, subtle flavors and regional variations in environment all impact on the flavors of Scotch.

I first started drinking Scotch over 20 years ago. My 21st birthday happen to fall during our Spring Break Concert Tour. A few of my friends and few local host took me to a well regarded drinking establishment in Bismark, North Dakota. By the way, someone should have pointed out to our promoters that Spring does not come to North Dakota till some time after the first week of March. We all saddled up to the bar and after much hoopla from my friends and hostesses about it being my first legal to drink birthday, the bartender asked what I wanted. I never thought about what my first drink would be. I didn’t ponder for hours what beverage with alcohol would be the first to cross my lips. I just did what I suppose most 21 year old men do. I blurted out “I’ll have a whiskie!” I swear I saw the bartender roll his eyes with disgust. Another naive newby was trying to order a drink. He glared back and asked in a cold tone that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end, “And what kind of whisky would that be? Bourbon, Tennessee, Scotch?”

After the moment of total embarrassment passed, my mind grasped at the first tangible thought it could. My dad’s Scottish, and I’m half Scottish, then I should have Scotch. It made perfect sense in my mind. With new found confidence I fired back “I’ll have a Scotch on the rocks!” The bartender went about his business and returned with my drink a little later. After a few cheers from my friends, down the hatch went my first drink.

And yes, it tasted like gasoline.

I told my dad that story some twenties years later. We laughed and then shared a great conversation about his glory days when he used to drink Scotch and play bagpipes in an award winning band in Rochester New York. He recounted to me yet again how he had acquired his Boer War warpipes and how they played a little louder than the rest of his bandmates.  He mentioned that his favorite Scotch of the time was Glen Grant and how he enjoyed a wee dram back in the days. And we laughed at  how “wee dram” is Scottish for small glass filled multiple times.

Last December I had stopped by a local store to pick up a bottle of Scotch for a friend when I happened to spy a bottle of 10 year Glen Grant. I had never seen it there before nor have I seen it in stock since. I bought it and gave it to my dad for Christmas. After the Christmas rush passed, we shared a wee dram in my office. I had not heard of Glen Grant before, so my dad explained how he liked the deep golden color that reminded him of my mom’s hair. The slightly sweet start that finished in a very dry hint of floral and herbal notes. He lit up as he talked about it. It was warming, much like the drink itself. It was a softer side on my father that I didn’t get to see often. After we finished I placed the cork back in the bottle and placed it with my other drinking scotches. Little did I know that it would be the last drink I shared with my dad.

My father passed away last month. Although I flew to New York several times in the weeks before his passing, his declining health prevented us from sharing more moments like that.

As I recall that moment with my father, I feel I should move the Glen Grant over to my collectors cabinet. I’m not ready to finish the bottle nor am I ready to say farewell to my dad.

©Steamy Kitchen Recipes, 2012. | Permalink | 4 comments

We’re pleased to introduce the all-new Total Blender Designer Series™. It has been engineered to bring a whole new level of beauty and functionality to the high-end blender category, without compromising the famous power and efficiency of our Total Blender Classic Series™.

• Complete Speed Control
• Vivid Icons
• New Sleek Design
• Cleans Up in Seconds
• Versatile Functionality

Artfully Engineered™
The Designer Series will complement your kitchen. The sleek shape, vibrant interface and tasteful hues will beautify your home.

Blend Cycle Icons – More than Just Pretty Pictures
The touch area has illuminated, easy to read, universal icons that enable effortless selection of our signature blend cycles. These cycles are optimized to deliver great blends with a single touch.

You Want TotalControl™? You’ve Got It.
The revolutionary new slider interface gives you absolute control over your blender’s speed. Precise touch sensors give you every bit of control you deserve. Touch anywhere on the slider to jump right to any speed, and slide your finger up and down to fine tune your blend.

Keep cool, Live Longer
Blendtec’s expert engineering team invented a revolutionary new air-flow design that keeps the blender cooler. A cooler motor means longer life.

Clean-up is as Easy as 1…
Every recipe ends with the dreaded clean up. We have made this amazingly simple by using a flat, sealed, touch area and a smooth motor base design.
A quick wipe of a damp cloth and your Blendtec is as beautiful as the day you brought it home. Plus, like all Blendtec blenders, there’s no messy tamper to fuss with while you’re blending.

The Swiss Army Knife of Blenders
Blendtec’s Total Blender Designer Series will be the most-used appliance in your kitchen, because it can do the job of many appliances. It’s a whole juicer, a meat grinder, a latte machine, a bread mixer, an ice cream maker, a grain mill, coffee grinder, milkshake mixer, and a blender.

A Higher Standard

Sometimes, Less is More
We know that even in the biggest kitchens, counter space is limited. So we made careful use of your real estate when we created the Designer Series. It fits easily under most cabinetry and its slender design minimizes its presence while stealing the spotlight. Say goodbye to that big old blender you used to have to store out of sight and out of mind (and therefore didn’t use very much).

1,560 Watts of Power
Our commercial-grade motor is the most-powerful motor available for home use. It’s the only motor strong enough to drive the aggressive blade in our high-performance jar, so you don’t need a messy plunger.

Finely-balanced Direct Drive
Our precision-machined socket connects directly to the motor, resulting in a finely-balanced motor assembly. This reduces vibration and noise, which is critical at our motor speeds. It also increases reliability, because the socket never needs to be replaced (unlike most other blenders).

Technical Details:

• Amps: 13
• Watts: 1560
• Actual Weight: 8 lbs.
• Shipping Weight: 13 lbs.
• Actual Dimensions: 9.25” Deep x 7” Wide x 15” Tall
• Shipping Dimensions: 16” x 10” x 16”
• Direct Drive Motor
• Capacitive Touch User Interface
• Solid State Electronics
• Available in Champagne Metallic

What’s in the Box:

• Designer Series Motor Base
• WildSide Jar
• Vented Gripper Lid
• Recipe Book
• Owner’s Manual
• Registration Card

Giveaway sponsored by Blendtec.

©Steamy Kitchen Recipes, 2012. | Permalink | No comments

This winter and spring has been very dry for us – our ponds, stocked with TONS of fish, turtles and a baby alligator is down by 3/4 (poor fishies!) so we’ve stopped watering our lawn and property for the time being (which is why everything’s a little brown and weedy right now).

We used to have 2 compost systems – one a worm compost and the other a more traditional compost bin about the size of a refrigerator. It wasn’t quite efficient enough for us (we go through a lot of food in our recipe testing) so I thought – hey, why not COMBINE the two systems? How about throwin’ in all those hungry worms into the giant compost bin and they can eat ‘n poop to their heart’s content. (fyi for compost newbies – the worm poop…errr….”castings”….is one of the riches and nearly free fertilizers for your garden).

So I dumped approximately 3,156 worms (my kids tried to count them but we lost track after 56, so this is just a guesstimate) into the bin. A couple of days later, I looked in and the worms were fat ‘n happy, squriming in, under and around all the kitchen scraps. Every day after that, though, i noticed fewer and fewer worms. A week later, some new creatures emerged.

WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY WORMS?!??

After some research, it turns out these guys are Hermetia Illucens – or Black Soldier Fly Larvae. Hermetia sounds much better. Black soldier flies look like regular flies, but are as big as a wasp and sound like bees.

But unlike regular annoying houseflies, BSF are good guys! They’re not considered pests – they aren’t naturally attracted to humans or food (they’re attracted to decaying matter.) They don’t bite or sting. They don’t buzz around you and pretty much stay clear of the people. The larvae are awesome at processing food scraps for compost.

Another benefit? The hens are MAD for them. Like jump into the compost bin crazy mad.

Continue reading How we make compost in 3 days...

©Steamy Kitchen Recipes, 2012. | Permalink | 14 comments

Last Thursday, we had a neurological check up for his epilepsy (which is now under control, thankfully) and he had to draw blood for routine analysis. Nathan is terrified of the needles (as am I) – we were in the waiting room for a good 20 minutes while he cringed in the corner. Every time the door opened and a nurse came out to call the next victim’s name, Nathan would just have this dreadful look. Poor baby.

He tried so hard to convince me that the nurses were out to lunch already and maybe we should come back another day (didn’t work). When they finally called his name, he took the tinest of baby steps, hoping that by the time he reached the evil blood sucking station, they’d forget about him (nope). Without any other excuse or stalling tactic in his pocket – he braved the needle. Surprisingly, no screams, no tears this time. He gave up, gritted his teeth and took it like a big boy.

We walked out and I said, “You were so awesome that I’m going to let you ditch school the rest of the day!” And so we partied the rest of the afternoon, frozen yogurt with 3 toppings, Barnes & Noble book spree, lunch at McDonalds and a visit to my local yarn store, The Good Yarn in Sarasota. Owner Susan and the ladies who work there are amazing – they’ve seen me through my beginner days when they sat patiently teaching me how to knit – and have watched me grow into a freaky speedy knitter who has trouble finishing projects because there’s always something shiny new catching my eye (I know, I have issues).

My boys have always embraced arts and craft (though, what kid doesn’t?!), so much that we built a ‘craft room’ in the back of the house, filled with markers of every shade, enough glitter to fill the swimming pool, crafty paper in pretty patterns and a massive square table to work on. This is also where I keep the yarn stash, I think we have enough yarn to knit a striped scarf from here to Texas.

Part of my yarn stash. Some of my needles. I keep the straight and double pointed needles in vintage blue glass mason jars. The rest of my yarn stash is hidden from my husband.

Normally, when I go to the yarn shop, the boys are with me and they LOVE helping wind the yarn, picking out colors with me and getting tons of attention from the ladies who come to sit around the table to knit. It’s social hour every hour there at The Good Yarn.

A pillow I’ve got to finish up – based on The Beekeeper’s Quilt by Tiny Owl Knits - knitting a giant quilt that takes a year to finish is too big of a project for me, but a pillow for the couch is perfect!

This particular afternoon, Nathan asked Amy, one of the ladies who works there, if she could teach him how to knit. A little boy asking to knit!? In a roomful of cheek pinching grandmothers!? It was as if angels overhead had started singing.

I’ve known Amy for a long time now – my first stitch that I casted on was 9 years ago, when I was pregnant with Andrew. Mimi (what my kids call Scott’s mom) taught me the basic stitches and I took off from there, daydreaming about knitting baby booties and cuddly hats. Amy taught me the rest – complicated stitches, how to read patterns and walked several miles going around and around in the store looking for the perfect yarn for my project. She even knew me when I told her, “I think I want to start a food blog.”

My boys looooove Amy. And so Nathan sat down with her and she began teaching him, step by step, stitch by stitch.

While at the shop, he finished a little knitted patch, Amy helped him bind off and they tied the two ends together to make it into a cool necklace which he proudly wore. He was so excited and proud of himself that he spent his own allowance to buy needles and a skein of bright green yarn.

On the way to school to pick up Andrew, he took off his necklace, put it in my purse and said to me, “Mommy, I took it off because I don’t want my friends to laugh at me for knitting, okay?”

awwwwww….sobsobsob…..oh that’s so sad. But I didn’t say anything to him right then while I was driving….there really was nothing I could say that would change his mind at that time. It would take more than “mommy saying so.” I needed references, support, physical proof that manly men knit, that knitting was cool, that the kids at school wouldn’t make fun of him (or if they did, that it wouldn’t matter.)

My winter yarn is at the bottom…you can tell summer is almost here by the happy colors on top!

After I sent out the email to my newsletter subscribers, reader Kathy emailed, “I thought you might like to know about Rosey Grier. He was a pro football player, whose hobby was knitting and needlepoint. He even wrote a book about needlepoint for men. You can’t get more manly than that. You can Google him and read all about it.”

Another reader, Faleen, pointed out that football great, Rosey Grier, wrote a book on needlepoint and loved to knit! I’ve just now found out that Laurence Fishburne, Ringo Star and Russell Crowe knit too.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and any special messages you have for Nathan – I’ll be reading the responses to him! 

©Steamy Kitchen Recipes, 2012. | Permalink | 48 comments

I’ve known Giuliano, Lael and the girls since their early days of the blog. The Hazan’s live in Sarasota, Florida, just a few minutes hop down the interstate from us. If you’re not familiar with Giuliano, I’m sure you’ve heard of his mother, Italian cooking doyenne, Marcella Hazan, whom I was lucky enough to spend time with a couple of years ago.

Giuliano, Lael and I have crossed paths many times, though usually it’s is a quick “hi!” at the IACP conferences or other blogging conferences. We’ve dined at their house and they at ours – I’m in love with their girls, Gabriella and Michela, who love their pastas almost as much as their papa.

Giuliano just came out with a new book, Hazan Family Favorites, featuring recipes from his childhood and new recipes that he loves to make at home with the girls. The dishes are unfussy and simple to prepare – most recipes have just a handful of ingredients and 3 steps. My favorite part of the book was reading the family stories and watching Giuliano grow up with Marcella and Victor through photos!

This morning’s eggs from our hens and a giant zucchini from the garden went into the Frittata with Zucchini. We added a super-ripe heirloom tomato, also from our garden and finished it off with goat cheese crumbles (sadly, not from our homestead, though one day….maybe…a goat or two)

Zucchini Frittata Recipe

The zucchini is best sliced on a mandolin – the one I *love* is the handheld mandolin by Oxo for $14.99. It’s lightweight, under $15 and requires no setting up.

Gorgeous heirloom tomato from my garden – I don’t remember the name of this tomato, but it ripens to a deep dark red/black color.

The onions are caramelized with just a pinch of sugar. The sugar helps speed up the caramelization by half the time.

Sliced zucchini is added to the pan and cooked until soft.

Those pretty eggs are from the hens – we used 5 of them. Whisk the eggs well.

In the pan, pour in the eggs, throw on the tomato slices and dot with crumbled goat cheese. Bake.

Great for breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner.

©Steamy Kitchen Recipes, 2012. | Permalink | 22 comments

When I got my first real job in college, the question morphed into, “how can I make this easier?” (i.e. less work) which led to learning a new word, “streamlining.” It became a game to me – I challenged myself to find ways to simplify tasks at work and kept track of money saved and minutes shaved.

Promotions came fast, money came easy and success as an employee was a piece of cake.

I remember during my Tony Robbins days, one of the biggest lessons I learned during the seminars was, “Ask a better question, get a better answer.” It’s so true – I kept asking myself the right questions.

Now, just to be fair, I don’t always ask myself smart questions: “I wonder how much of my arm a gator could chomp off in one bite?”

Asking a better question changes your focus – your brain’s gears start churning, maybe your eyes will start wandering and looking off in far distance as you search for an answer. [when I'm deep in thought, I tend to look up and to my left....you?]

Ever heard of WWJD? What would Jesus Do?

Well, I have a list of people that I admire – the list is a wild party – with celebrities (Oprah), crazy business greats (Richard Branson), innovators (Steve Jobs and Guy Kawasaki), family (Dad and brother), Jackie Chan, Edward Cullen, Cyndi Lauper, my 10th grade math teacher, Ms. K (a woman I met on the plane 14 years ago), my husband and the boys, a woman I used to work for but I really despised but damn she was a marketing genius, and a slew of other strange characters in my life.

So anytime that I needed to solve out a major problem, brainstorm a business idea or just plain ol’ bored….I hold a party in my head. With fabulous cocktails and finger foods catered by Wolfgang Puck and allllll these people on my imaginary “Board of Advisors” show up. It’s invite-only. Sometimes we’re on the beach, sometimes we’re in our PJs sitting by the fire (please tell me I’m not the only one who imagines Anderson Cooper in pink striped PJs!) and I go around the room, imagining what each person would given the unique situation.

WWJBD? What would James Bond Do?

It’s the best way to brainstorm hands-down (and the cheapest too).

Loooong story to get to my point – I started the Steamy Kitchen business with a $200 investment: domain name, free WordPress blog theme, cheapy camera. In fact, the bulk of the investment went towards the making of the business plan: $4 posterboard and $60 worth of magazines. Many of you who have seen me speak know about how I created a “dream board” to use as my business plan (that story deserves its own post).

In creating Steamy Kitchen, I asked myself and my Board of Advisors, “How can I transform this precious personal food blog into a thriving site that supports our family?”

If you think I’m an anomoly, you need to pick up a copy of Chris Guillebeau’s book, The $100 Startup: Reinvent the way you make a living, do what you love and create a new future.

Who is Chris? A friend and on my imaginary “Board of Advisors.” (WWCGD? What would Chris Guillebeau do?) He’s the author of The Art of Nonconformity - download his 2 free manifestos (bottom right hand side on his blog) and read them….now!

Chris is on the right and that’s the one and only Jonathan Fields on the left.

Chris’s new book, The $100 Startup, profiles 50 people who have started their business with very little investment and have built it to earn at least $50,000 a year to millions a year. And yeah, I’m in it (wheeeeeeee!)

What I love about Chris is that he gets me (and I get him.) We’re both nonconformists (or as my kids call us “weirdos”), carving out our lives the way we want, not what’s expected or based on others’ standards of normal. There’s always a better question to ask, another way to solve a problem, a more creative path to living.

Who would be on your Board of Advisors?

©Steamy Kitchen Recipes, 2012. | Permalink | 30 comments

When we first moved into our house, I had carved out a small patch of land for the herb garden. Since the irrigation was a little messed up, the gardenette was close to a hose and small enough to be manageable daily.

Once the main garden was built last October, I had transferred all my energy, plants and herbs into raised beds and sort of neglected the temporary gardenette. Most everything had died (that patch is still without automatic irrigation) except for the weeds and the fennel plants, which had miraculously thrived with no attention and no water. I have no idea what super-strain of fennel this is, but heck, I’m grateful.

I’ve got more fennel than I can ever eat myself, so I’ve been inserting both the bulb and the fragrant fronds into salads and grilling recipes when we entertain. People say fennel is licorice-y, but it’s so much more than that. Fennel is refreshing, slightly minty with the fragrance and “mist” of anise. I think the word, “licorice flavor” is too strong of a description — I don’t taste the licorice flavor straight on my tongue, it’s more of an overall delicate aroma. Kind of like how fresh basil, mint or dill tastes in your mouth.

Fennel is perfect to pair with miso, honey and orange. It’s an herb that can stand on its own – the fresh crunch of the bulb and don’t forget the lovely fronds, which are equally fragrant with a more floral slant.

If you’re not a big fan of fennel – I’ve got substitutes for you in the recipe.

Miso Salmon with Orange and Fennel Recipe

This is another miso inspired recipe I’ve developed for my client, Miso & Easy, a ready-to-use miso paste. Use any miso paste that you wish!

Here’s what ya need:

The first step is to marinate your salmon (or any fish of your choice) with miso, honey, ginger, sake (or white wine – or omit the alcohol altogether). Marinate in refrigerator for 1 hour or even overnight is fine.

On a baking sheet, layer sliced fennel bulb and a few orange slices. Substitute onion for the fennel, omit the orange if you’d like.

Lay the marinated salmon on top.

Top with fennel fronds – or fresh herb of your choice (basil, parsley, etc) You can even top it with more orange slices if you want.

Bake until done and serve with rice.

©Steamy Kitchen Recipes, 2012. | Permalink | 13 comments

A few months ago, I thought it would be fun to make hazelnut milk. Yes, fun to make, fun to sip, but the concoction was so rich that sipping was all we could do….that is….until we discovered that adding a shot of Bailey’s Irish Cream to it made it fantastically addictive.

We haven’t made hazelnut milk since – but with a giant bag of happy round hazelnuts still in my refrigerator (hey, is is weird that I keep nuts in the refrigerator?) I came up with several recipes to use them up.

Even though this dish looks fancy, even restaurant-worthy, the elements of this dish are relatively simple. Well, it has to be, in my opinion – nutty and luxurious-tasting hazelnut browned butter shouldn’t have to compete with anything too complicated on the plate.

The cherry tomatoes are from the garden, I can’t pick them fast enough – I’ll finish picking one side of the plant, turn around and zoinks!! another 10 have ripened just like that.

Since I’m the only one in the house who eats tomatoes (!#!$@!#) I’ve resorted to sharing the lot with the hens, chucking a handful every day into their coop.

pssst…..Hey, has anyone tried hypnosis to get your kids and husband to like a certain food?

Throw those babies into the pan with the fish, they’ll burst open (sometimes I’ll even use my spatula to squish ‘em a bit in the pan to release the juices).

©Steamy Kitchen Recipes, 2012. | Permalink | 16 comments

Usually, the kitchen is loud….or should I say “lively” – the boys are running through with their Nerf guns, old-school Madonna playing on Pandora, me singing, “borderline….feels like I’m going to lose my mind…you just keep on pushing my love….” and Coco at my feet, waiting for me to drop a morsel of food as I fling my arms trying to dance my Madonna.

Yeah, that’s usually the scene.

Last week, I was alone in the house during the day – the kids were at school and Scott was in New York to be with his very ill dad – my kitchen was very quiet. I liked it that way, I had forgotten how the sounds of cooking can be soothing.

the “pop” as my sharp knife breaks and pierces the skin of a taut, ripe tomato.

chorus of scratching as I grate parmesan cheese.

gentle tzzzzssssss of bubbling butter in a pan.

if you can hear with your eyes, the sucking and drawing up of hot melted butter into the spongy pores of the bread.

fllllueeaappp as the face of the sandwich falls back on the pan after you flip it.

zzzahhhhhhhh as grated parmesan relaxes, melts and spreads out.

(smile) thanks for listening….

This recipe is from my friend, Michael Natkin, who happens to have one of the most happy smiles I’ve ever encountered. Michael runs Herbivoracious blog, which is all about vegetarian recipes. His very first book is just out - Herbivoracious and I’m so giddy proud of him.

Of all the recipes, I chose Super Frico – only because after seeing that recipe name, I couldn’t stop singing, “She’s a super frico, super frico. She’s super-frico, yow”

Come on! Be a dork and sing with me!

That sandwich is pretty kinky
It’s a super frico
The kind of lunch you read about
In foodie magazines

That cheese is pretty wild now
It’s a super frico
I really love to taste it
Every time we meet
She’s all right, she’s all right
That sandwich all right with me, yeah

Super Frico, baby

Make your standard grilled cheese sandwich (I like adding tomato to mine)

Remove the sandwich and sprinkle in your grated parmesan cheese, roughly in the same size as the sandwich.

Once it gets a little bubbly and melty, put your grilled cheese on top.

Press with a ginormous spatula to weld the cheese to the sandwich.

Lovely.

Stuff from the store

Need a cheese grater? I love this one.

I’m a big fan of fat spatulas…this one is nonstick.

Best Parmegiano Reggiano – big love for Whole Foods, the only company I know who has “crack parties“

©Steamy Kitchen Recipes, 2012. | Permalink | 25 comments