Farmer's market fresh greens with strawberries and feta....YUM

So I mentioned a few days ago about the killer strawberries I picked up at Pepper Place which is one of Birmingham's best Saturday morning farmer's market.

Look at these babies......

I also  bought some fabulous mixed greens and some of the best arugula I've ever had....so peppery and spicy that I had to make a fresh summer salad.    I tossed the greens with some of the strawberries, feta, pine nuts and some left over crumbled bacon.

Then I went searching some of my favorite blogs for a vinaigrette and lo and behold, 

I found one over at "A Good Appetite".

A perfect Strawberry Vinaigrette was the finishing touch that pulled this all together.

Strawberry Vinaigrette

adapted from recipe by "A Good Appetite"

1/2 c olive oil
1/2 c fresh strawberries, halved
1 T balsamic vinegar
1/4 t salt
1/8 t ground black pepper
1 t fresh or 1/4 t dried savory, tarragon, marjoram or basil (I used basil)
1/8 t white sugar

Process everything in a food processor or blender until smooth. Refrigerate until ready to use. This dressing will be a little thicker than many vinaigrettes because of the strawberries.

Makes 1 cup

99 Days

Only 99 days until we get to see this guy again!!

It's 106 days until these douchbags come to the 'Shoe and we shut Carson Palmer up for good.

And it's been 2016 days since Michigan has beaten

Ohio State in football  :)

GO BUCKS!

Barefoot Bloggers - No Outrageous Brownies....but we have Lemon Cake

I know you've come here looking for Outrageous Brownies, and I've made them....maaaany times.  Just not this week.  Yet.

Ina's Outrageous Brownies were the first Barefoot Contessa recipe I ever made, and as I said, I've made them numerous times, but on the heels of Dories Brownie Chipsters, I couldn't stomach anymore brownies this week.

So I made the Lemon Cake instead.  And boy-howdie is this delicious.  Thankfully I immediately put one of the loaves in the freezer, or I'd still be slicing "just a bite" off the loaf every time I passed through the kitchen.  And I'm in the kitchen 100 times a day.  Not exactly good for the waist line.

I made this Saturday after a trip to the local farmer's market when I loaded up on some fabulous local strawberries.  This lemon cake went so well with everything "strawberry" I made including Smitten Kitchen's strawberry-rhubarb compote and an extremely simple strawberry sorbato that was in this April's Bon Appetit magazine.

The lemon syrup that's poured on these while they're still warm is what really puts this recipe over the top.  It makes them sooooo moist.

And look at all of the specks of lemon zest inside there.  Divine.

Mr. B preferred the white chocolate ice cream on his piece.

You must make this.  You'll be so happy you did.  And if you get a chance to hit your local farmer's market, pick up some strawberries.  You'll be happy about that, too!

Here's the recipe for the Lemon Cake.

Lemon Cakes

Copyright 2001, Barefoot Contessa Parties!, All rights reserved

Show: Barefoot ContessaEpisode: Friend in Need

Ingredients:

1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar, divided
4 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1/3 cup grated lemon zest lightly packed (6 to 8 large lemons - Use only fresh lemon juice and zest)
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
3/4 cup buttermilk, at room temperature (I didn't have any buttermilk in the house, so I subbed 3/4 cup non-fat plain yogurt)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For the glaze:

2 cups confectioners' sugar
3 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour 2 (8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch) loaf pans.

Directions:

Cream the butter and 2 cups granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, the key to great cakes is beating the butter and sugar until the mixture's until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. With the mixer on medium speed add the eggs, (break the eggs into a dish before adding to the batter to avoid a bad egg or shells in the batter) 1 at a time, and the lemon zest. Sift together the flour, to make sure there are no lumps, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. Separately, combine 1/4 cup lemon juice, the buttermilk, and vanilla. Add the flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately, beginning and ending with the flour. Divide evenly between the pans, smooth the tops, and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until a cake tester comes out clean.

Cook 1/2 cup granulated sugar with 1/2 cup lemon juice in a small saucepan and cook over low heat until the sugar dissolves. When the cakes are done, cool for 10 minutes, invert them onto a rack set over a tray and spoon the lemon syrup over the cakes. Allow the cakes to cool completely.

For the glaze, combine the confectioners' sugar and the lemon juice in a bowl, mixing with a wire whisk until smooth. Pour over the tops of the cakes and allow the glaze to drizzle down the sides.

To freeze these cakes, prepare them except the glaze. Wrap them well in plastic wrap and freeze. When you're ready to use, defrost and glaze.

Thanks to McKenzie of Kenzie's Kitchen for picking this bonus recipe.

And here's the recipe for the 

Strawberry Sorbato

("Sorbato" is a cross between a sorbet and a gelato)

1 1/2 pounds ripe strawberries, sliced

1 cup sugar

pinch of salt

3/4 cup heavy whipping cream

1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Toss berries, sugar, and salt in large bowl.  Let stand until juicy, about 30 minutes.  Puree mixture in batches in blender.  Press through fine strainer into medium bowl.  Mis cream and lemon juice into puree.  Process in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions.  Transfer to container; cover and freeze until firm; at least 3 hours and up to 2 days.

Tuesdays with Dorie - Chipster Topped Brownies

Who doesn't love brownies?  Who doesn't love chocolate chip cookies?  What if you put chocolate chip cookie dough on top of brownie dough and baked them together?

You'd get extra special double love and you'd get this weeks TWD selection Chipster Topped Brownies as chosen by Beth over at Supplicious.  

Many of the bakers were having trouble with getting these to bake all the way through and not be runny in the middle.  Lucky for me I don't always follow directions correctly.  I baked mine in a sheet pan and had no problems.  I did, however, have problems with getting the cookie dough to spread out over the brownie dough.  I ended up just spooning it on an letting it spread on its own.

I made a few adjustments in the recipe to suit my tastes.  Chocolate chip cookies on top of chocolate brownies seemed like overload to me, so I subbed butterscotch chips and sprinkled the brownie dough with toffee sprinkles before spooning on the cookie dough.  They turned out delish.

I also made some white chocolate ice cream to go on top.  I hadn't had the ice cream maker out in ages and this weekend it saw some serious action.  I'll post those recipes later this week.  In the mean time, head over the Beth's site for the chipster/brownie recipe.

Happy Memorial Day

This is Sam and this has nothing to do with Memorial Day other than Sam came over this weekend to have a "play date" with Rafter.

Is he cute, or what?

I think Rafter thought Sam was just a new chew toy.  

They started with the polite hello's.

Then quickly moved into the not so polite dog hello's.

Just look at that face.  Sweet.

This face.....not so sweet.

Sam quickly figured out that Rafter's not allowed in the kitchen.  Too many counter-surfing incidents gone awry.

He eventually just crashed under the kitchen table.  You get tired quickly when you're not quite one!

I hope everyone has a great Memorial Day.

Sam's going to spend the day recovering from the trauma that is an evening with Rafter!

Tuesdays with Dorie - Mango Bread

I have to say that initially I wasn't very excited about this week's choice.  After all of the really decadent things we've been making lately, this just kind of seemed like a buzz kill.  Bread?  Mango Bread?  

But the more I thought about it, the more excited I got.  I'm still recovering from all the travel, so something simple might be a nice break.  I love mango (but hate working with it...that weird pit and everything).  So I just embraced it.

This is a cinch to put together.  No appliances required and the only labor intensive task is peeling and de-pitting the damn mango.  I'm so buying one of those little gadgets that takes the guess work out.

I loved the spices in this....freshly grated ginger and cinnamon.  They really went well with the mango.  I left out the raisins (not a fan) and substituted about a 1/2 cup of coconut.  Delish.

Spork or Foon suggest making this into French Toast and it looks yummy, so I may try that with some of it.

Thanks to Kelly of Baking with the Boys for picking this week.  Head over to her site for the recipe.

Congrats, Erica

I think I'm finally home for a while.  The past five months have been a blur.....Colorado, Little Dix, Vegas, Cabo, Miami, Turks and Caicos, with a couple of weekend trips to Detroit thrown in there somewhere!

My LAST trip for a looooong time was this past weekend.  I went back home to Ohio to host a bridal shower for my friend's daughter, Erica. 

That's Erica on the left with her mom, Christy.  Christy and I go waaaay back.  42 years to be exact.  Wow.  That's a long time.

If she ever needed to she could totally bribe me.  She knows it all....the skeletons, the dead bodies ..... let's just say she could really get me in trouble.  From first grade all the way through high school, we had a few adventures together!

And I was there when she brought that beautiful baby home from the hospital.  She was scared to death but she found her way and raised a wonderful young woman.  Erica and Nate are getting married in Hilton Head on July 4 and I can't wait to see her walk down the aisle.

Congratulations, Erica.  I'm as proud as if you were my own.

And congratulations, Christy.  Ya done good!

Barefoot Bloggers - Tuna Salad

A BIG thank you to Kate of Warm Olives and Cool Cocktails (love the name of her blog) for picking this recipe.   I can't believe I haven't made this before.  It's classic Ina.  Take simple ingredients and make something easy and fabulous out of them.

My parents were passing through Birmingham this week and my dad loooooves tuna.  It was also an extremely busy week for me as I was leaving town again on Wednesday morning, so something simple like this was perfect.

It took all of about 15 minutes to throw this together and that included grilling the tuna (we like ours barely seared!).  Take that Rachel Ray.

My only complaint would have to be the same complaint I have about most Ina recipes....too salty.  I halved the called for amount and I still found it too salty and I'm a salt lover.  

I also thought that it would have a little more kick to it with the addition of the wasabi powder and hot sauce.  I may add a little more the next time I make this.

I predict this will be a "go-to" summer salad in our house.

Here's the recipe:

Tuna Salad

Copyright 2005, Ina Garten, All Rights Reserved

Show: Barefoot ContessaEpisode: Working Girl

Ingredients

2 pounds very fresh tuna steak, cut 1-inch thick
4 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for brushing
2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus extra for sprinkling
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black, plus extra for sprinkling
2 limes, zest grated
1 teaspoon wasabi powder
6 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice (3 limes)
2 teaspoons soy sauce
10 dashes hot sauce (recommended: Tabasco)
1 to 2 ripe Hass avocados, medium diced
1/4 cup minced scallions, white and green parts (2 scallions)
1/4 cup red onion, small diced

Directions

Brush the tuna steaks with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place the tuna steaks in a very hot saute pan and cook for only 1 minute on each side. Set aside on a platter.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the olive oil, salt, pepper, lime zest, wasabi, lime juice, soy sauce and hot sauce. Add the avocados to the vinaigrette.

Cut the tuna in chunks and place it in a large bowl. Add the scallions and red onion and mix well. Pour the vinaigrette mixture over the tuna and carefully mix.

Tuesdays with Dorie - Tiramisu Cupcakes

I know that this post is supposed to be about Lemon Tarts, but it's not.  I could go into a long explanation about how much I've been traveling and having no time to bake, but frankly, who would care?  So I'll just give you the short version.

I got home Monday afternoon from being gone for a week.  I knew I wanted to try to bake either last week's Tiramisu Cake or this week's tart (so I didn't get kicked to the curb).  I had a tennis match on Tuesday night and the girls love it when I bring them a treat, so I thought that turning the cake into cupcakes would make for a more transportable treat than a tart.

I know, whatever.

That's a picture of the revamped finished product.  Below are the "before" pictures!  Go ahead and have yourself a chuckle.  I cracked myself up while I was doing it.  I had never  used a piping bag (I'm sure that's not the technical name of that nasty thing) but I've watched Ina do it a thousand times.  Looked easy.

I tried starting simple and just making a spiral pattern.  Not successful.

Then I attempted those little star thingies.  Again, failure.

Then I just started squeezing the shit on and as you can see, I was good at that.

So, I just took a knife to them and repaired the damage.  Once I sprinkled the crushed espresso beans on top, no one was the wiser.

From here on out, I'm going to stick with great tasting desserts and leave the pretty part to the more talented!

Thanks to Megan of My Baking Adventures for the pick.  My tennis team loved them.

Happy Mother's Day, Nan!

Turks and Caicos....where the hell is that?

Here's how the conversation went....

Friend, "Where are you going this time?"

Me, "Turks and Caicos."

Friend, "Where the hell is that?"

Me, "I don't know.  Somewhere out in the Caribbean."

And it is.  British West Indies, to be exact.  And it's beautiful.  But, what in the Caribbean isn't, right?

This is another one of our Exclusive Resort destinations, so let's just get that review out of the way first, shall we?

This was our unit for the week.....

It's #3504, if you're an ER member and it's fabulous.  It's three bedrooms and 3.5 baths.  The third bedroom is not immediately accessible except through an outside hallway so that bedroom is not ideal for small children.  It's essentially just another hotel room on the same floor, albeit right across the hall, but we didn't utilize it, so it was a non-issue.

The second bedroom has a pull out sofa so it worked perfectly for us since we had a three year old along on this trip.

Nice functional kitchen.

Great balcony with a fabulous view of the pool and Grace Bay.

The pool had a swim-up bar, which became very important as the week progressed!  (Doesn't it always!)

Check out the circular "sun pods" surrounding the interior of the pool.  Fabulous.  But you have to get there early to get one.  Or you have to get your shizzle there early to get one.  I'd come out on the porch at 7:00 am every morning to see people's magazines and books plopped there to "reserve" them.  So that's what I did!!

The beach.  We never actually went down there to lay, but we did play in the water a few times.

So, we've taken a few "beach" trips in the last five months....Little Dix, Cabo, and Turks and Caicos.

I'd have to say the T&C is my favorite of the three with Little Dix coming in second.  I guess we know where that leaves Cabo.  That's a whole other story.

T&C was easy to get to, the accommodations were fabulous, the food was great and the weather perfect.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Now to the fun part.

Mr. B and I were lucky enough to spend the week with these guys....

That's my nephew and his bootiful, preggers wife.

I know, right?  Makes me feel bad about myself.

This is their little guy.  Who kind of likes Mr. B.

Little kids always like Mr. B

Might be because he acts just like them.  Who knows.

They had meetings in the pool....

...important information was exchanged at the swim up bar.  Who knows what they talked about, but I'm guessing it had something to do with "Pinky Doofers".  

When he and Mr. B weren't busy solving the problems of the world, he conquered swimming.  He started the week with his pink fairy floaties.

But quickly moved on to his pink Barbie intertube.  He seemed to like pink.  Don't read too much into that.

By then end of the week he was doing this.  I know.  Fast learner.

When he wasn't swimming, he was doing this.

He does A LOT of this.  I couldn't keep up.

Good thing his dad was there.  Because like I said, he moves A LOT.

But then he does this.

This I like!  I can keep up with this.

We had a great time.