My Guest Post for More than a Mount Full- Fig, Duck, Gorgonzola, Caramelized Onion and Pear Flatbread

When I grow up, I want to be a fig.

No, no, wait. Don’t leave! Hear me out!!

Put down that phone – no need to call the authorities and put me away into the looneybin (well, not yet, at least!).

There is a lot of factual evidence, which has enabled my desire to become a fig (courtesy my Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Companion), which is as follows....

Want to see more?! OF COURSE YOU DO!!! Well go here and click and check out my guest post for Chef Dennis at More Than a Mount Full.

Lemon and Thyme Orzo

Eating is just so much fun. Isn't it?!

Especially when you experience a myriad of glorious flavors that dance around on your tongue merrily before they meet their untimely end. ...Or, perhaps it is a quite timely end. It's an end, no matter how you look at it!

As we are sprinting into summer, I encourage you to try this incredibly simple and light orzo. It is a dish that just beckons you. If you listen real close, you can hear them.. Go on, lean in. Listen -- Do you hear it?

"....Caaaaarpe.. Caaaaarpe diem... seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary!"

I've always wanted a reason to say that to someone. So, sorry, I couldn't resist.

This dish is light and easy and begs for your attention! And yes, the flavors dance on your tongue! What fun!

Lemon and Thyme Orzo

Yields: 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients:

10 oz. orzo

1 lemon

1 TBS thyme

1 tsp parsley

1 tsp garlic powder

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Bring 2 quarts of water to a boil with a pinch of salt. Once boiling, add the orzo and cook to the packages instructions. Drain when finished and run about 1 cup of cold water over it to stop it from cooking.

2. Squeeze the juice from one lemon and also get about 1 TBS of lemon zest into a shallow bowl. Add the seasonings and stir.

3. Add the lemon juice/herb mixture to the orzo. Top with a pinch of Parmesan. Eat and enjoy!

How to Caramelize Onions

Caramelizing onions is a fantastic and simple way to bring out the best flavor in an onion. Onions, once caramelized, are incredibly versatile and add a great layer of taste to any dish. (You will see an appearance of caramelized onions to a super secret dish that will make an appearance on Friday I know, you can't wait! ...BUT YOU GOTTA).

In a few easy steps, you will have rendered delicious onions. You're so excited. I can tell.

Caramelized Onions


Ingredients
2 lbs onions
2 TBS butter, unsalted
1 TBS sugar
1 tsp salt

Directions:
1. Remove the root and top end of the onion. Peel off the outer layer and cut in half, from root to top. Then slice thinly.

2. Heat a skillet (cast-iron, if you have it, and your grandmother's if you can swing it, hehe), place 2 TBS of butter over medium.

3. Add the onions, stirring to coat the onions fully with the butter. Sweat the onions for about 5 to 7 minutes, then add salt and sugar.

4. Cook for approximately 20 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes, allowing them to brown, but not burn.

Guest Post with Natasha aka the 5 Star Foodie!

Greetings to all the readers of Cleanliness is Next to Godliness. Emily has been a great blogger friend whose excellent posts and recipes I read on a regular basis, and it is an honor to be guest posting here today.

Every time I travel to new destinations, I bring back an inspiration to create new dishes based on the flavors from the places I visit. Sometimes, if there is a concept of a dish that I've had in a restaurant, I may try to replicate it or create my own version inspired by the original concept.

On our recent trip to Southwest we had a wonderful dinner at Anasazi restaurant in Santa Fe. I ordered the Double Cut Colorado Lamb Chops with green chile grits cakes, cumin carrot puree, snow peas, and pasilla cherry demi glace. It wasn't a perfect dish, with the grits cake being too rich and the pasilla-cherry sauce too subtle, but I loved the concept of this dish, and decided to create my own improved version at home, Grilled Lamb Loin with Pasilla-Cherry Reduction, Green Chile Grits Cakes, and Cumin Carrot Puree. I made the sauce a lot more flavorful by highlighting the cherry flavor and the spicy kick from the chiles. I also did not batter and deep fry the grits cake as in the original dish but simply sauteed them in butter which made them a lot lighter. This was a very successful dish that everyone in my family really enjoyed.



Ingredients:

pasilla-cherry reduction
2 cups pitted sour cherries
1/2 cup sugar (or to taste)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 dried pasilla chiles
1 tablespoon agave syrup

green chile grits cakes
2 cups salted water
1/2 cup uncooked grits
Salt to taste
1 4-ounce jar of green chiles
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
2-3 tablespoons butter

carrots
About 8 ounces baby carrots
1/4 light cream
1 teaspoon (or to taste) cumin (toasted cumin seeds, ground)
Salt to taste

lamb
1 boneless lamb loin
1/2 teaspoon ground dried sage
Salt, pepper to taste
Olive oil
Cilantro, for garnish

Directions:

pasilla-cherry reduction
In a medium pot, add sour cherries, sugar and vanilla extract. Cook on medium-high heat, stirring, until the sugar is dissolved. Lower the heat and simmer until the cherries let out the juice. Take off the heat, strain the juice into a bowl, saving the cherries for another use.

Dehydrate pasilla chiles, by cooking them in boiling water. Take the seeds out if desired. Blend in a food processor with agave, and 1/2 cup of leftover liquid from dehydrating the pasilla chiles, adding more liquid if necessary. Strain.

In a saucepan, combine 1/2 cup of cherry juice and 1/4 cup of pasilla chile paste. Bring to boil and simmer, stirring occasionally, until it reduces by about a third. Keep warm until serving.

green chile grits cakes

Add grits to salted boiling water, and cook 10-15 minutes on low heat. Mix in green chiles and Parmesan, then spread prepared grits evenly in a single layer in a baking sheet, and cool completely. Cut out 4 small rounds, 2.5 inches in diameter. Melt butter in a skillet, then add the grits cakes and fry them on both sides until golden brown.

carrots

Add baby carrots to salted boiling water. Simmer until the carrots are tender. Blend in a food processor with cream and cumin. Strain. Keep warm until serving.

lamb loin

Prepare the grill. Sprinkle the lamb loin with olive oil, sage, salt, and pepper. Grill for about 4-5 minutes per side for medium rare. Let the lamb rest for a few minutes then slice into rounds.

to serve:

Spoon cumin carrot puree in a center of the plate, place a green chile grits cake in a middle of the puree, top with a slice of lamb loin and garnish with cilantro if desired. Drizzle the Pasilla-cherry reduction sauce around.

A Giveaway Winner!! Woohooo!!!!!!!!!!!

We have a winner! We have a winner! Wooohooooooooooooooooooooooooo! The handy Random Number generator gave us a winnner!!

True Random Number GeneratorMin: Max: Result:15Powered by RANDOM.ORG

AliciaS! You won the mini cocotte from Le Creuset!

Congratulations!! You rock!

Send your contact information to emilyamalloy@gmail.com that way we can get you your spoil!!!

Mini Banana Muffins with Mascarpone Cheese Frosting

Muffins.

I love muffins. Sure they take time to bake, but when you're done, they're done.

Huh? What do I mean?

Once you put in the time and effort into making the muffins, they become a no-fuss-on-the-go-breakfast.

I prefer not to fuss in the morning myself, unless I run out of coffee, then I fuss like a three month old. Not a pretty sight.

The only thing I like more than regular muffins are mini muffins. They're cute and petite. ...What I am striving to become. They are the same amount of fun as a regular muffin, but 1/3 of the size.

33% of the size

33% of the calories

100% chance I'll end up eating 20 of them, telling myself these facts with each bite.

Yum. Full. Yum.

...My pants are feeling tighter already.

These muffins are so delicious that you can eat them with the wrapper on and they still taste good. Seriously! I'm being quite honest! It's been done. Just ask my brother-in-law :)

He ate one with a wrapper on it this weekend. And still said it was good. A little crunchy, but still good.

My recommendations for you:

a) Eat less than 20.

2) Remove the wrappers before consuming. I know, they're so cute and you don't want to waste a minute of your life not eating these mini muffins.

c) Hide a stash for yourself for your own private consumption. You'd be surprised how fast your 6'3" husband can go through these. (So maybe it's just mine. Thank God he takes off the wrappers).

d) You still have time to enter the giveaway. Hurry! It ends tonight!! A winner will be announced tomorrow! AH! So excited.

Banana Muffins with Mascarpone Cheese Frosting

Adapted from Giada De Laurentiis

Yields: 48 mini muffins

Ingredients:

Muffins:

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

2 cups granulated sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

3 large eggs

1 TBS vanilla extract

4 ripe bananas, peeled and coarsely mashed

Frosting:

3 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

6 tTBS (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

1/3 cup mascarpone cheese, room temperature

3 TBS honey

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line mini muffin pan with paper liners.

2. Whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg together in a medium bowl.

3. Beat the sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla in a large bowl. Add the banana, stirring until well combined.

4. Add the dry ingredients and stir until well combined.

5. Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups. Bake the muffins on the middle rack until the tops are golden brown and a tester inserted into the center comes out with no crumbs attached, about 10 to 12 minutes.

6. For muffin frosting: Using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in the mascarpone cheese and then beat in the honey. Spread the frosting over the muffins. Top with walnuts.

Southwestern Salad with Salmon

Not all salads were created equal. It's true! Some salads are simply more yummy and filling than others!

Take this salad for instance, it's one of those salads that you consume and to your surprise, 25 minutes later, you're not starving and trying to eat your desk.

...Get caught nibbling on your desk at work once, and people will ignore you at the coffee machine! Trust me, it is not a good situation.

Do you want to lose your work friends? Of course you don't.

Do you want to eat a healthy lunch or dinner that will keep you full? Of course you do!

Do you want a promotion at work? Of course you do!*

Well then, make this salad, become full and satisfied, ooh and ahh over the delicious creation. Then you will make lots of friends, not feel overly full and bloated from eating junky food, and get a raise.*

The end.

**Promotions and raises are not guaranteed by this recipe**

There's still time in the giveaway! Click here to enter! Remember, now a winner will be drawn on Wednesday because of the Blogger hiccup!

Southwestern Salad with Salmon

Yields: 4 servings

Ingredients:

1 salmon fillet, with skin on

2 garlic cloves, minced

6 cups baby spinach rinsed

1/2 cup sweet kernel corn

1/2 cup black beans

1/2 avocado, pitted and diced

1/2 red bell pepper, diced

Salad dressing-

Extra virgin olive oil

1 TBS dried cilantro

1 TBS cumin

1 TBS paprika

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

Lime juice from 1/2 of a lime

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Rub the salmon with olive oil and top with minced garlic, salt, and pepper. Bake (skin side down) for approximately 10 to 15 minutes, depending upon the size of the fillet. Once the fillet is finished, and using a fork, flake the salmon.

2. In a saute pan, heat 1 TBS olive oil over medium. Add pepper, corn, and black beans. Cooking for approximately 3 to 5 minutes. Set aside.

3. Top the spinach with salmon, avocado, and corn/black bean mixture.

4. For salad dressing, combine all of the ingredients, shaking well!! Top salad!

IMPORTANT: Giveaway Announcement!

Hello all. I guess it has been no secret to those in the blogging world that Blogger had been down for quite some time. Mind you, my Old Fashioned Waffles post is still missing because of this error. Insanely frustrating! I just hope it reappears soon!

As a result of this glitch, I know people were unable to access my site, and enter the giveaway. I have decided to push back the giveaway TWO DAYS to give everyone a fair and equal shot to enter!

So here's the deal, all of the same rules still apply, but you have until Tuesday, May 17, 2011 at 11:59PM to enter, and I will draw a winner Wednesday morning!

Best of luck to you all! And thank you so much for your patience during Blogger's hiccup!

Old Fashioned Buttermilk Waffles

There is nothing quite like breakfast. Well, there is nothing like a good old-fashioned-eat-so-much-you-have-to-unbutton-your-pants kind of breakfast.

Sigh. How romantic.

Every once in a while, I get a real hunkering for a good old fashioned breakfast and this weekend was no exception.

WAFFLES! I thought would do the trick to cure the hunker! ....And you don't get more old fashioned than waffles! They're delicious! They help you to conquer your day! Heck, they might help you to conquer the world!

I mean, I'm sure Attila the Hun consumed tons of waffles before expanding and unifying the Hunnic empire in the mid-400s.

That is incredibly factual.

So, make yourself like Attila the Hun and make yourself these waffles and conquer your day (...but with a little less war, and not so much invasion, and perhaps zero pillaging, if you can help it, please!).

Hey... HEY YOU! Did you forget to enter into the giveaway?!?!? You have until Sunday!!!! Click here and enter, k?! Go on and click! "Sit ubu sit! Good boy!"

Old Fashioned Buttermilk Waffles

Recipe Courtesy: Mark Bittman, How to Cook Everything

Yields: 4 to 6 Servings or 1 Attila the Hun

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 TBS sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 3/4 cups buttermilk* or 1 1/2 cups sour cream or plain yogurt thinned with 1/4 cup milk
2 eggs, separated
4 TBS (1/2 stick butter, melted and cooled)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Canola oil

Directions:

1. In a medium sized bowl, combine the dry ingredients.

2. In another bowl, mix together the buttermilk, sour cream or yogurt and the egg yolks only. After well combined, add the butter and vanilla.

3. Coat the waffle iron lightly with oil and preheat it.

4. Combine the wet and dry ingredients, keeping the egg whites aside.

5. Beat the egg whites with a whisk or an electric mixer until they hold soft peaks. Stir them gently into the batter.

6. Spread a ladleful or so of batter onto the waffle iron and bake until the waffle is done, usually 3 to 5 minutes, depending on your iron. Serve immediately or keep warm for a few minutes in a low oven.

* The buttermilk can be substituted with 1 1/4 cups of milk at room temperature, mixed with two tablespoons white vinegar, left to clabber for 10 minutes.

Giveaway Alert! Second Blogiversary Celebration!

Sound the alarms! Alert the firemen! Grab your children!!! We are having a giveaway!

"Holy batman! A giveaway she says?!"

Yessireebob. In honor of my upcoming SECOND BLOGIVERSARY, I am having a giveaway.

I am doing this for several reasons and they are as follows (and in no particular order):

1. Because I like ya and y'all are my friends! (Really, I refer to you as if we are the oldest and dearest of friends, for instance at dinner I'll say: "You'll never guess what Drick made yesterday, we're moving to Alabama" or "Guess what Trix posted today, it's so fancy!" and "Sabrina is the cutest pregnant woman ever..." or "Claudia made a pizza using foccacia, why didn't she invite me over?! It’s not because I’m in PA and she’s in FL. ..Is it because I forgot to shave my legs today??" ...and so on)

2. Because it's a PAR-TAY (okay, so it's really not a party, let alone a par-tay, but who's to stop me from celebrating within my own mind?)

3. Because I'm getting my roots touched up next week.

4. Refer to reason number 1, which will hopefully lead to reason number 2.

5. It's my freakin' second year blogiversary (which is reason enough, let's face it).

6. Now because of the final part of Reason #1, you now realize I need to shave my legs, and I have the urgent need to redeem myself.

What is being given away, you ask?!

Well... a super awesome Le Creuset Mini Cocotte

I have one, I use it to store my Kosher salt by my stove for easy pinchin' access.

....It almost has as much easy pinch access as my husband's tushy. TMI. Sorry.

REDO: ...It almost has as much easy pinch access as my husband's cheeks ....And I mean the ones on his face. K, much better.

"How do I win??"

There are several ways of winning! One is by commenting on this post about what you'll use this for and you place yourself in the running! Enhance your chance to win by also doing the following:

1. When you tweet about the giveaway, you can add an additional comment!

2. When you follow me on Twitter, you can add yet another comment!

3. When you share on Facebook, you can add another comment!

4. When you follow me on Facebook, you can add ANOTHER COMMENT (that marks 5 altogether!).

5. I won't post anymore number lists on this post, promise.

You can enter up until Sunday, May 15, 2011 at 11:59PM. And on Monday the 16th, I will use the handy random number generator to pull a winner! Huzzah!

...And the fine print?!

There's no real fine print. Honestly...

Exceptforthefactthatbyenteringthiscontestyoupromisetomebybestfriendfortherestofmylifeandgivemesevenbagilliondollars.

....kidding. Unless you really do have a bagillion dollars to give me, then the fine print applies to you.

ShopRite Post!: The Best Dern Pizza This Side of the Mississippi

Hey guys!! Guess what?! It's Tuesday!

Womp, womp. I know, I'm depressed, too.

But cheer up! My next posting for ShopRite is up! And it's all about pizza! Now what's not to love about that?!

Oooooooo Pizzzaaa! Go on over and check it now, ya hear?!

Cinco de Mayo! Fusion Dish- Tex Mex Ravioletti

For dinner, I recently made a fusion dish by combining two continually fabulous cuisines: Tex Mex and Italian. Yumm! Two things that are pretty darn awesome on their own, but put them together and BAM!

(I'm really hoping that you are imagining Batman style graphics!)

Don't know what I mean? I mean like this:

Okay, now you definitely know what I mean. Moving on.

.....Fusion. It is a word that just makes you sound like you know what you are talking about. Fusion cuisine.

It also makes the meal sound like it was a science project, and depending upon your audience, that could be a good thing. However, keeping in mind my chemistry and biology grades in high school, I will steer away from calling it a science project.

But that won't take away from the fact that this was GOOD. I am always so surprised when you can put together two different ethnic cuisines and have it turn out to taste pretty darn good!

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Fusion Dish- Tex Mex Ravioletti

Yields: 4 servings

Ingredients
1 (15oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
3/4 cup onion, diced
1 cup corn kernels, fresh or frozen
1 tomato, diced
1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced
1 jalapeño, seeds removed and diced
2 TBS ancho chili powder
1 TBS paprika
1 TBS cayenne pepper
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground pepper
1 TBS cilantro
1 TBS parsley
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
Extra virgin olive oil

1 lb mini ravioli or ravioletti

Directions:
1. Boil the ravioletti to the packaging's instructions. Drain and set aside.

2. Saute the onions in olive oil over medium heat until translucent. Add the bell and jalapeño peppers and cook for another 2 minutes.
3. Add the corn, beans, tomatoes, and herbs. Cook for another 2 to 3 minutes.
4. Add the vinegar and reduce the heat to low. And cook for approximately 10 minutes.

5. Top the ravioletti with the salsa mixture. Garnish with cheese!