I spent last weekend in the Catskills with friends and made dinner for them on Saturday night. One of the things I made was this simple chive butter recipe.
It's such a delicious treat for a summer lunch or dinner and it's super easy to make.
You'll need:
1 stick of salted butter Fresh chives 1 tsp lemon juice
Begin by setting the butter out in a medium sized mixing bowl to soften. Cut it up into smaller pieces to hasten the process. Once it's softened up nicely, cut the chives into the bowl.
I find it easier to use a pair of scissors for cutting chives. Then add the lemon juice (if you don't like things quite as tart you can use half a teaspoon) and mix everything together with a fork. Once it's all well combined, remove the butter to a sheet of wax paper.
Using the paper, work the lump of butter back into a stick form. It can be square or round. I chose to make a square stick. The process is a little obscene, but I'm sure some of you will enjoy that. If you're timid, you can put the butter in small ramekins. Put the butter back in the fridge to firm up. Serve with a hearty sour dough bread.
This can also be done with other herbs, and you can substitute cream cheese for butter. I love recipes like this. They add so much to a meal, but are so quick and easy to make. Enjoy!
I have several very cute, tiny little cookbooks by an author named Ruth Chier Rosen. They're just darling and come in little boxes that have the same graphics as the book covers. I discovered them through my friend and publicist, Jennifer Cohan, who had one called Entertaining Snacks After Dark (1962). A few years ago that book became a tiny little obsession - a perfect match for the tiny little books! I made "Ruth Chier Rosen" a watched search on eBay and waited to pounce on the book when it came available. While I waited I had the opportunity to pounce a few more times on some of her other mini masterpieces. I acquired Having a Ball - Party Menus & Recipes for Every Occasion (1959), and The Big Spread - An Encyclopedia of Hors D'oeuvres and Canapes (1953). So now I own three of these cute little books.
Aside from their cuteness and Ruth's penchant for titles that have a slightly risque double entendre (the chafing dish book is called "Wick and Lick"), the books have some fascinating recipes in them. Between the covers of The Big Spread, you can learn how to make Strawberries Marquisee, which are faux strawberries formed from chopped liver and rolled in bread crumbs that have been dyed red with food coloring and Beet Sticks, which are, basically, borscht popsicles.
These oddities aside, she has a charming recipe for Cheese Straws - one of my favorites:
2 t salt 4 c flour 1/2 cup butter 1/2 cup shortening or lard Water 12 oz grated sharp cheddar 3 T butter Dash cayenne 1 egg 1 T sherry
Combine the salt, flour, 1/2 cup butter, shortening or lard and water to make pastry and chill. Blend cheese, 3 T butter and cayenne until smooth. When chilled, roll out pastry into a large rectangle and spread the cheese mixture on it. Fold the pastry in thirds and roll out again and refold. Do this twice more for a total of 4 times. Chill again. Preheat the over to 400 degrees. Re-roll and cut into long narrow strips. Beat the egg with the sherry and then brush it on the strips. Sprinkle with poppy seeds and bake until golden brown and puffed.
These books won't provide you with every day fare, but there are some nice recipes in them and their size and the novelty of the matching box make them perfect gifts for the historically epicurious. If you're mother appreciates ironic vintage recipes, why not give her one for mothers day? They can be found on many used book websites and eBay.
Speaking of Mother's Day... Also in the picture above is our Gillian Napkin from Felix Populi. They make a charming gift as well!
It's cold and raw and wet out today, people. Not a pleasant day to be out and about, as I had to be. So I made myself and a friend an easy pesto pizza for lunch. It goes together very quickly, so it's perfect for a meal on the run!
You'll need:
Pre-made pizza crust Olive Oil Pesto (I used my own which I make from my father's 4 cheese pizza blend cheese Sharp cheddar cheese, grated
Preheat the oven to 450, then put the
crust on a cookie sheet and brush it with olive oil. Spread the pesto
evenly over the crust.
Sprinkle on the cheese, then pop it into the oven, turn the oven down to 425 and bake for 7 to 10 minutes.
I told you it was easy... Here's the finished product all ready to serve. It's featured here with my Gillian Floral Napkin, now on sale at Felix Populi.
My friend Jeffrey introduced me to these pizza crusts and they really are delicious and so versatile! Use your imagination and I'm sure you can find many ways to customize them for your own gourmet pizzas.
For my father's pesto you'll need:
4 cups fresh basil leaves neatly compressed 1 cup pine nuts 5 cloves freshly minced garlic 1 cup olive oil 1 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese Salt to taste
Begin by combining your basil, pine nuts and garlic in a food processor. Pulse a few times to begin combining them. With the processor running add the olive oil in a steady drizzle. Once it's all in, scrape the sides of the processor and add the cheese and pulse to combine. Salt to taste. Makes about 2 cups.
Cheese. It’s one of nature’s wonders, and one of my favorite foods. This week on the show we’re making toasted sesame cheese wafers. It’s a very tasty recipe that was originally featured in an episode devoted to the wonders of this delightful food.
For the wafers you’ll need:
5 oz processed cheese spread
3 Tbs. butter
¾ cup flour
¼ tsp paprika
2 Tbs. toasted sesame seeds
Preheat the oven to 400. Sift the flour and paprika together, and then blend in the sesame seeds. Combine the cheese and butter in a bowl and cream together. Add the flour mixture and stir until well blended. The dough will be stiff. On a sheet of wax paper work the dough into a log about 6 and one half inches long and an inch and a half in diameter and wrap in the wax paper. Chill the dough in the fridge for at least an hour and up to one week. When chilled, unwrap the dough, slice thinly and bake for about 15 minutes, or until lightly brown around the edges.
Cheese, milk’s leap to immortality, is one of the most versatile foods in any cook’s arsenal. It can be used in savory or sweet dishes and has such varied flavors, as to confuse even the most devoted epicurean. Some of my favorites are:
Cotswald: This is a cheddar variation from England. It’s rich and robust with a delightful tang. I love it on hearty sourdough bread.
Saga Bleu and Cambazola: These are brie/bleu combinations – both delicious with French bread or fruit.
Gruyere: This is the prince of Swiss cheese. Its rich and nutty flavor are delightful in fondue or on crackers.
I love having people over for cheese tastings. Putting out several cheeses on a board and letting my friends become intimate with them is my idea of a delightful Sunday afternoon. Try it yourself and see how much fun it can be!
Hi people, this week I have a lovely family recipe for you:
date nut cake. It was my grandmother’s recipe and I made it for Mary Ellen’s
birthday. It’s just delicious.
You’ll need:
1 stick of butter
½ lb dates
1 tsp soda
1 cup boiling water
1 ¼ cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 egg
½ cup pecans
Begin by putting the butter, dates and soda in a bowl and covering them with the boiling water then let them cool. Preheat the oven to 350 and grease a 9 x 12? baking pan. Then add the egg, flour, sugar and pecans to the cooled ingredients in the bowl and mix well. Pour into your greased pan and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the cake pulls away from the sides of the pan.
