Strawberry Shortcakes with Balsamic Vinegar and Sugar

This is my second post for the day but I just had to share this recipe. I was in a 'Welcome Spring' mood, trying to coax the season into coming just a little sooner by making a few recipes with fresh seasonal produce. I saw the bright red strawberries at the grocery store and their price couldn't be beat. I immediately thought- strawberry shortcakes! I went over to get a box of Bisquick baking mix (please don't judge- Bisquick has a wonderful recipe on the back of their box for delicious shortcakes and I love it for making fluffy pancakes). I knew my girls would LOVE this surprise for dessert, so in the cart went the box and strawberries.
As you can guess, I don't follow the recipe on the Bisquick box completely. Did you know that adding balsamic vinegar and sugar to a bowl of strawberries enhances the berry-ness, adds a note of complexity and makes a delicious syrup? Effortless and delicious. Instead of adding whipped topping to my shortcakes, I simply pour half and half over the entire thing. The half and half soaks into the shortcakes and is pure heaven. I hope you'll try this recipe and enjoy it as much as we do.

Strawberry Shortcakes (makes 6)
1 pint fresh strawberries, sliced
1/4 c. sugar
1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
2 1/3 c. Bisquick baking mix
1/2 cup milk
3 Tbsp. sugar
3 Tbsp. melted butter
half and half

Mix strawberries, 1/4 cup sugar and balsamic vinegar together in a bowl. Let sit on the side.
Meanwhile, heat oven to 425 degrees. Stir Bisquick mix, milk, 3 Tbsp sugar and butter until soft dough forms. Divide dough into 6 portions and drop onto baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Split warm shortcakes, fill and top with strawberries and pour half and half over the top. Enjoy!

Pasta with Creme Fraiche, Lemons and Basil

As I was perusing through my cookbooks trying to plan the meals for this coming week, I came across this recipe for Lotsa Lemon Pasta in the I Love Trader Joe's Cookbook. I looked at the ingredient list and saw that one of my favorite ingredients was featured- creme fraiche. If you've never had creme fraiche before, I can describe it's flavour and texture as somewhat similar to sour cream. It's tangy and ever so slightly sweet. Because of it's high fat content, it doesn't separate when heated and can lend itself well to either savory or sweet dishes. I continued to look down the ingredient list and saw that arugula was listed. Because I didn't have fresh arugula on hand but had just bought a bunch of fresh basil, I decided to substitute one green for the other. As I added ingredients and stirred the sauce together, I tasted it and decided that because of the aromatic lemon zest, I only needed the juice of one lemon instead of two. I also decided to add a dash of nutmeg to the sauce and I felt it was perfectly seasoned.
When the warm pasta was added to the creme fraiche sauce, I immediately smelled the citrusy zing of the lemon and I added the basil right before serving to avoid it turning an unattractive brown. We took our first bite and it was like Spring in our bowls. Seriously. It was fresh, aromatic and made me feel happy. The recipe below is written with my substitutions and additions. I hope you'll enjoy this first taste of Spring.

Pasta with Creme Fraiche, Lemons and Basil (serves 6)
1 7.5-8 oz. container creme fraiche
juice of 1 fresh lemon
zest of 2 lemons
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 16 oz bag of bow tie pasta (or other similar sized pasta)
freshly ground pepper and salt, to taste
dash of nutmeg
10-12 leaves of fresh basil, chiffonade

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook the pasta al dente. Drain the pasta and set aside.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, stir together the creme fraiche, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, pepper, dash of nutmeg and Parmesan cheese together. When pasta is slightly cool, add to sauce and stir. Right before serving, stir in basil. You can add more Parmesan and basil to the top, if desired. Bon Appetite!

Miso Glazed Eggplant

Super. Super fast. Super easy to make. Super delicious!
I've been really craving comfort food and flavors these past two weeks. My daughter and I went to Portland and bought Kabocha (Japanese pumpkin), mini dried shrimp, soba noodles (noodles made of buckwheat), sweet fermented black beans, mochi (sweet rice cakes) and really good miso paste (fermented soybean paste usually used for making miso soup). My grams used to make traditional Japanese dishes that were so yummy. Thankfully the last time she came up to visit us in Oregon I asked her to cook and hand write her recipe for kabocha (but I'll save that for another post).
Now I had the miso paste and decided to make eggplant with it. When I went shopping at a local grocery store I couldn't find Japanese eggplant anywhere. Japanese eggplant is different than Italian globe eggplant. It's skinny and long and can come in colors of white, light green or purple. It's generally sweeter and doesn't require a soak in water to remove bitterness. When you're having comfort food there's no such thing as substitution in my book. Having not been able to find the Japanese eggplant, I decided to special order it from the store. Luckily it arrived in just a couple of days, so now I was ready to cook. This miso glazed eggplant recipe is so delicious for a couple of reasons. The comfort factor aside, you first saute the eggplant so it softens, creating this silky flesh. After you brush the glaze on top of the eggplant, you broil it, and that makes the best bubbly and tasty glaze ever. Slightly sweet, slightly spicy, but oh so tasty. I'm super excited for you to try this recipe and tell me what you think. :)

Miso-Glazed Eggplant (serves 4)
3 Tbsp. vegetable oil
2-3 Japanese eggplant (about 1 1/2 lbs total)
1/3 cup red miso paste (you can find this in the health food refrigerated section)
2 Tbsp packed brown sugar
2 Tbsp sake or white wine
1/4 tsp. red chile flakes
cilantro leaves
1 tsp. sesame seeds

Cut your eggplant in half lengthwise and score the flesh 1/4 inch deep. Preheat broiler to high and place rack at least 4 inches from heat source. Heat oil in a skillet or frying pan over medium high heat. Add eggplant, flesh side down and cook until flesh starts to brown and soften, about 3-4 minutes. Turn eggplant over and cook for another minute.
In a small bowl, combine miso paste, sugar, sake and chile flakes. Turn eggplant flesh side up and transfer to a heat proof dish/sheet pan. Spoon or brush mixture onto eggplant. Broil eggplant until glaze starts to brown, about 2-3 minutes. Let cool slightly, then sprinkle with sesame seeds and cilantro. Serve with steamed rice.

Fish Tacos

I'm the first to admit that I don't know much about fish tacos except that there's a place in town called Bend Fish Company that makes a pretty good and spicy version. I came across this recipe last summer and tucked it away in my file, waiting for the day I'd get inspired to try it. So glad I did. These fish tacos were so yummy, combining the sweet flavor of mango, the creamy avocados, earthy corn tortilla, flaky tender fish and the sweet/sour radish and red onion pickles. We devoured our dinner and were sad the ingredients ran out. We'll definitely be making these again sometime soon.


Fish Tacos (serves 4)
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/3 c. sugar
1 tsp. chili powder, divided
1/2 sliced red onion
6 thinly sliced radishes
1 lb. tilapia fillets
1/4 c. plus 2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 peeled firm ripe mango, cut into thin slices
1 sliced peeled ripe avocado
fresh cilantro leaves
canola or vegetable oil
1 pkg corn tortillas (6 inch size)
taco condiments: sour cream, salsa, salsa verde etc...

combine the red wine vinegar, sugar and 1/4 tsp. chili powder in a small saucepan, bring to boil. Remove the pan from heat, and stir in the red onion and radishes. Let stand, uncovered, 10 minutes or until cooled
rinse fish, pat dry. Gently toss with 1/4 c. lime juice, 1/2 tsp. chili powder, and garlic in a shallow glass dish. Marinate for 10 minutes at room temperature.
Gently toss mango and avocado in small bowl with remaining 1/4 tsp. chili powder and 2 tbsp lime juice.
Preheat a lightly oiled grill rack or grill pan.* Remove fish from marinade, and grill, turning once, 2-4 minutes per side or until cooked through and golden brown. Transfer to a plate, cover and keep warm.
Grill tortillas lightly until pale golden and slightly crisp. Transfer to serving plate.
Fill tortillas with fish, pickled vegetables, avocado and mango mixture, cilantro and other condiments as desired.

*Note: we didn't grill our fish. Instead we sauteed it in a pan on the stove. Next time we make it, I'll definitely try using the grill

White Wine Coq Au Vin

5:15 pm I have a confession to make. Usually when you hear those words you expect something terrible to follow. I hope this is the exception...
Here's the confession: I hadn't tried this recipe before I started to compile this post. I came to the computer right after I set the pot of coq au vin to simmer. I was expecting an outstanding outcome before I'd even tasted it. Why? The ingredients for one thing. How can you possibly go wrong with wine and bacon. The other? The smell filling the kitchen from the steaming pot was so appetizing I just knew I had a winner on the stove. Am I wrong? We'll have to see....
6:06 pm Oh my gosh, this dinner was so incredibly delicious!! You definitely taste the wine but you also have the salty bacon, the tender chunks of chicken, sweet carrots and the thick broth is so comforting. In the words of my family: It's a keeper! It's blog-worthy. Please try this white wine coq au vin for yourself and tell me what you think. :)


White Wine Coq Au Vin (serves 4)
4 1/2 Tbsp flour
salt, pepper to taste
1 1/2 tsp herbes de Provence
4 slices bacon, chopped
1 lb. skinned, deboned chicken thighs (I used chicken breasts)
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 1/2 cups baby carrots
3 stalks of celery
1 medium onion
1 1/3 c. chardonnay
2 c. chicken broth
1/2 c. flat leaf parsley sprigs, chopped
1/4 c. tarragon sprigs, chopped

In a plastic bag, shake flour with salt, pepper and the herbes de Provence, set aside.
In a large pot over med heat, brown bacon, stirring occasionally about 5-7 minutes. Meanwhile, cut chicken into 1 inch chunks, the shake in flour to coat.
With a slotted spoon, transfer bacon from pan to paper towels. Brown half the chicken in bacon fat, stirring occasionally, 3-5 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with remaining chicken, adding oil to pan. Meanwhile, cut carrots in half lengthwise and cut celery into slices. Chop onion.
Add vegetables to pan with salt and pepper and saute until onion is golden about 5 minutes.
Add wine to vegetables, making sure to scrape up all the browned bits at the bottom of the pot. Add chicken stock, chicken and bacon. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer covered until vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes. When ready to serve, add parsley and tarragon. Enjoy!

Beet and Citrus Salad

So, you've probably heard it said that we eat with our eyes first, right? This salad is a rainbow of beautiful colors and fresh tastes. You've got the bright orange from the clementines, the green from the mint, the crisp white from the fennel slices, the deep purple from the beets, the dark olives and the pink from the grapefruit. This salad is so beautiful you may be tempted not to eat it. Fall into temptation (this time) and you'll be glad you did. The flavors are so bright and sweet, it's pure delight. Seriously. Chris had to ask me to stop making "MMMMM MMMMM" sounds through dinner. It's delicious and it's good for you, what more could your eyes and stomach ask for?

Beet and Citrus Salad (serves 2 adapted from Simply Delicioso)
4-5 roasted or cooked beets *I buy a pkg of cooked beets from Trader Joe's
2 clementines (you could substitute 1 large orange or blood orange)
1 ruby red grapefruit
1/4 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced
1/4 c. olives, sliced
10 mint leaves, coarsely chopped
1/2 fennel bulb, thinly sliced
salt and pepper to taste
extra virgin olive oil
2-4 lime wedges

Peel and segment the clementines and grapefruit and place in a large bowl along with the onion, fennel, mint, and olives. Toss together with some salt and pepper.
Cut the beets into 1/4 inch wedges and add them to the bowl. Lightly toss.
Place on plate and drizzle olive oil over the top (I used about 1 tsp. per serving) and squeeze a lime wedge (or two) over the salad. Serve and eat immediately.