Spicy Cheese Straws

I love anything with cheese! I first made this recipe two years ago for my holiday open house. I recently made them again for a shower and I had forgotten how yummy they are. I love the spicy kick from the red pepper flakes as well as the crispy crunch. In addition to being an edible treat these cheese straws also became part of the tablescape. Cheese straws can be displayed in crystal glasses, short vases, or mint julep cups.



Spicy Cheese Straws
Adapted from Southern Living, December 2007

1 1/2 cups (5 oz.) shredded extra-sharp Cheddar cheese*
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces and softened
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 tsp. dried crushed red pepper
1 tablespoon half-and-half


· Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
· Combine first 5 ingredients in a food processor; pulse in 5-second intervals until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add half-and-half, and process 10 seconds or until dough forms a ball.
· Turn dough out onto a well floured surface, and roll into an rectangle (about 1/8 inch thick). Cut dough with a sharp knife into 1/4- to 1/2-inch-wide strips, dipping knife in flour after each cut to ensure clean cuts. Place strips on ungreased baking sheets.
· Bake for12-14 minutes or until ends are slightly browned. Cool on baking sheets on a wire rack 30 minutes.


*I use cracker barrel sharp cheddar and grate the cheese using a hand grater. Trying to grate in a food processor makes the cheese too fine in turn making the dough too soft.

I like to make a double batch, if I can resist from eating the block of cheddar. Straws can be also be made ahead and frozen.

Puffy Pigs

These yummy appetizers are a twist on the classic pig-in-a-blaket. They are easy to make and guaranteed to be a hit. Small cookie cutters can be used to cut shapes for any occasion.



Puffy Pigs
Makes 40

1 lb chicken spinach asiago sausage (from Sam’s)
1 package puff pastry
Toothpicks

· Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
· Cut each sausage link into 8 slices.
· Cook sausage slices in a skillet over medium heat, 4 minutes per side.
· Thaw puff pastry according to package directions.
· Use cookie cutters to cut pasty.
· Top each sausage bite with pastry shape and secure with a toothpick and place on a baking sheet.
· Bake for 20 minutes until pastry is puffed and golden.
· Transfer to platter and serve.

Delicious Destination: Savannah, Georgia

Scott and I traveled to Savannah in May to celebrate our 3rd wedding anniversary. Earlier in the Spring I had read a feature on Savannah in Southern Living . The brief article had everything planned for a romantic weekend getaway. So with Southern Living as our guide I booked our trip. We had a wonderful experience in Savannah and will let Southern Living be my travel guide again in the future. The hotel said we didn't need to rent a car since most things in the historical district are within walking distance and if they aren't then you can travel via trolley, horse drawn carriage, or pedi cab.

We left Houston Friday morning and arrived to Savannah early in the afternoon. We checked into the President’s Quarters and stayed the weekend in the Ronald Reagan suite. The hotel was originally two townhouses which were later converted into the cozy bed and breakfast. We were greeted with sweet Southern accents and told about the morning breakfast on the courtyard and afternoon happy hour. Since we had some time to pass before happy hour, we made our way a few blocks over to River Street.

River Street is your typical tourist trap that every city has...its kind of like The Strand in Galveston. There are tons of souvenir shops, some good people watching, and lots of casual and water themed restaurants. We stopped into the Shrimp Factory for an afternoon snack and to quench our thirst. I had a peach martini* which was divine and some sweet tea. I rarely have Sweet Tea because good sweet tea is usually only found in places like Georgia. For our snacks we had the Seafood Bisque:Creamy Seafood Broth with Crab, Shrimp and Fish, sauteed Onions & Celery and the Shrimp Fan-tail BBQ (Honey-laced Barbecue Sauce). The shrimp was overcooked, so based on that I would not return to Shrimp Factory.

After our stroll down River Street, we returned to our precious Inn to freshen up for Happy Hour and indulge in some savory appetizers and wine. They had a creamy spread made of pecans, peach preserves, cream cheese, and few other tasty items I cannot remember...I just know it was really yummy and my book club would have loved such a treat. After happy hour we freshened up again (thanks to the humidity) and made our way to dinner at the Olde Pink House.

The Olde Pink House does not have a website. I was extremely disappointed in this inconvenience when researching the trip, but once I arrived it was evident they didn't need a website. Several people had recommended we dine at The Olde Pink House so we had to go. We first made our way downstairs into the Tavern to a pre-dinner cocktail. Let me tell you they make a mean Strawberry Mojito*. Then we made our way upstairs for our meal. We started out with a glass of champagne to toast our 3 years of marriage together and then enjoyed the Gary Farrell Pinot Noir* for the remainder of our meal. Due to lack of menu online here is what I remember to the best of my ability. I won't go into too much detail other to say that this place was delicious and I highly recommend you dine here if you ever visit Savannah. At the end of our meal our waiter discovered it was our anniversary and brought out a plate of whipped cream and berries complete with a candle and some chocolate drizzle.

Appetizer: oysters with relishes
Soup: She Crab Soup*
Salad: BLT with fried green tomato*
Entrée: Pork Shank
Entrée: Crispy half duck
Dessert: chocolate torte*

Saturday we began our day with breakfast on the courtyard. It was some sort of croissant french toast stuffed with strawberries and cream cheese. Then we made our way down to River Street to hop on the Old Town Trolley Tours for a tour of Savannah. This is a great quick way to see the sights and learn some history. Also trolley tickets can be purchased with on/off privileges for the whole day so you can get around town without hurting your feet too much. Everyone has asked me why we didn't go to Paula Deen's The Lady & Sons when we were in Savannah--and I have several reasons for not going. 1. All of her recipes are on www.foodnetwork.com so I could make them myself and 2. You have to get there at 9AM the day of to put your name on the list and then wait an hour when you show up for your time. While we were touring on the trolley we noticed Il Pasticcio* and thought all of the sidewalk tables looked cute so we went there for lunch. I had the WARM PROSCUITTO AND GRUYERE CHEESE ON FOCCACIA and Scott the had the SLICED AHI TUNA W/WASABI AIOLI ON CIABATTA, both were delicious. And since were on vacation we each had a glass of the White Haven sauvignon blanc with our sandwiches.

We continued to spend the afternoon walking around the historical district and visiting places we passed on our tour. There were also quite a few antique shops that I browsed in. And I found a Christmas store so I bought an ornament of a crab to remember our trip every year.

The Southern Living article had highly recommended Noble Fare so we dined there on Saturday night. We traveled via Pedi Cab, and our "driver" was a nice young man who is a student at SCAD (Savannah College of Art & Design) and his girlfriend is from The Woodlands...what a small world. Anyway we had a fabulous dinner and I must say that the scallops were the best scallops I've ever had...they were cooked to perfection (however the ones at The Grove recently are a close second)

cocktail: basil ginger lemonade*
appetizer: soft shell crab
soup: Shrimp Bisque*
salad: baby greens with raspberry dressing candied pecans and goat cheese*
entrée: Swordfish with lobster mashed potatoes
entrée: Scallops with corn mashed potatoes*
dessert: strawberry crème brulee*
wine: Vinium Chenin Blanc Viognier

After dinner we returned to Il Pasticcio for some drinks before calling it a night. Il Pasticcio is part restaurant and part lounge so its a great place for an after dinner drink.

Sunday morning we enjoyed our final brunch of shrimp and grits on the courtyard. Then I spent some time on the balcony of our room reading my book. We had a quick lunch down street at Café Ambrosia and enjoyed a Grilled cheese Panini with Colby jack and a hummus tray complimented by pita, red bell pepper, carrots, celery, mushrooms. Then it was time to go to the airport and head back to reality.

* super delicious would definitely order again

Restaurant Review: The Grove

Scott and I joined some friends for dinner at The Grove on Friday night to participate in Houston Restaurant Week. We decided to use this opportunity to try something new. 3 courses for $35 per person with $10 of those dollars benefiting the Houston Food Bank. Their pre-fix menu had quite a few delicious options for each course. Everything sounded really yummy, but since I have 3 bathing suit trips in the next month I decided to order items that were light and summery. I have outlined several of the menu items our table enjoyed I didn't get to taste everything but what I did taste was excellent. I also enjoyed the openness of the restaurant and the view of Discovery Green. I am hoping to dine at The Grove again in the near future.


Cocktail:
Pomegranate Margarita
My friend Courtney had recommended the pomegranate margarita...this concoction was so delicious I ordered two of them. It had the perfect balance of tart and sweetness to get that yummy sourness without the mouth pucker.

1st Course:
Smoked Texas Quail Skewers
Pineapple Bourbon Dipping Sauce

I don't see quail on menus very often so I decided to indulge in this Texan delicacy and delicious it was.

The Grove Picnic Platter
Artisan Meats + Cheese + Pickles

Scott ordered the Picnic platter and he usually eats all of his food and at least half of mine, but I actually had to help him out there was so much to choose from. So I gladly helped myself to some prosciutto and cheese.

Fresh Fish Ceviche
Tropical Fruits + Chiles + Plantain Chips

Our friend ordered this and it was such a generous serving that I got to sample this too. It was very fresh, light, and had the perfect amount of citrus. I would order this for myself next time.

2nd Course:
Hand Rolled Fettuccine
Baja Scallops + Summer Corn + Basil

This dish reminds of one of my favorite summer recipes from Bon Appetite: Linguine with Summer Succotash. This is just a great balance of fresh and light flavors, a perfect summer dish.

Petit Filet
Grove Mashed Potatoes + Broccolini + Brasserie Butter

Our friend ordered the filet and enjoyed every bite and she said the mashed potatoes were particularly awesome. Had I not been watching my figure I would have been tempted by this dish too.

Colorado Lamb T-Bone
Braised Lamb Tamale + Mole Sauce

Scott ordered the lamb t-bone, most restaurants usually feature rib chops so it was good to see a different chop. He enjoyed every bite. Bobby Flay has a similar recipe in Mesa Grill cookbook that I will have to try at home soon.

3rd Course:
Frozen Lime Mousse
Ginger Snap Crust + Cherry Lime Compote

I love citrus desserts and the lime mouse tart was divine but it was so rich that I barely ate half of it. Maybe if I hadn't eaten so much during the 1st course I could have devoured it.

Chocolate Chess Pie
Whipped Cream + Shaved Chocolate

Everyone else ordered the chocolate chess pie but they also could not clean their plates. I heard it was really yummy but I didn't have any room in my belly for a sample.

Blackberry Shortbread Bars

When I first received my copy of the Peace Meals cookbook and flipped through to preview all the recipes I knew this was going to be a great one! The ladies at the Junior League even dedicated a full page for a photo. I first had the pleasure of tasting these yummy treats at a sprinkle (shower for a second baby); they were everything I expected and more. A few weeks ago I hosted a bridal shower at my home and made these for the dessert buffet. All I sampled of this divine goodness was a scrap for the crispy edge. The shower guests devoured the blackberry bars and even came into the kitchen and ate all the crispy edges that I had left in the pan…not a single crumb remained. Last night I made these again to share at work for our monthly birthday celebration, in hopes that I could enjoy more than a few crumbs. I think I ate at least 4 and they barely survived past the lunch hour. Sweet Success!


Blackberry Shortbread Bars
Adapted from Peace Meals
Makes 24 bars

Crust:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 ¼ cups sugar
¼ tsp salt
3 sticks butter, chilled and cut into ½” cubes

· Preheat oven to 350.
· In a food processor combine flour, sugar, salt for 45 seconds. Then add butter and process for 30 seconds or until mixture is crumbly and butter is distributed.
· Reserve 1 ½ cups of the mixture to sprinkle over the top of the filling.
· Spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with Pam for Baking. Then fill baking dish with the remaining crust mixture, pressing the crust mixture firmly into the bottom of the pan.
· Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown and then cool for 10 minutes before adding the filling.

Filling:
2 eggs, whisked
½ cup sugar
½ cup light sour cream
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
16 oz frozen blackberries, thawed*

· In large bowl whisk eggs and then add the sugar, sour cream, and flour to combine.
· After the eggs and other ingredients have been mixed together gently fold in the blackberries.
· Pour the mixture evenly over the prepared crust.
· Sprinkle the top evenly with reserved crust mixture.
· Bake in oven for 45-55 minutes or until crumble top is lightly browned.
· Let cool for at least one hour before cutting into bars.**

*when thawing blackberries place bag inside of a plastic grocery sack to prevent leaks.

**If the baking dish is lined with aluminum foil, once the bars have been cooled they can be lifted out of the baking dish for easier cutting.

These bars would also be great if made with raspberries or a berry medley of blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries.

Restaurant Review: Catalan

Last Thursday night Scott and I enjoyed our first dinner at Catalan. As we were browsing through the menu we quickly realized that narrowing down our choices would be next to impossible because everything sounded so good. We inquired about the Sandbox Tasting and discovered it was 7 courses of the chef’s choosing. This was the perfect solution to our problem. However, we were warned in advance that we should not have plans to go out afterwards, fortunately for us we did not. We also requested to have a wine paired with each course so that we could have a perfect complement to the meal. 3 hours later we made our way home with very full bellies. I highly recommend this option if you want to try some new culinary delights.


The Sandbox Tasting:

I
Market greens tossed in a local citrus vinaigrette with strawberries, goat cheese and Marcona almonds
Adelsheim Rosé of Pinot Noir (Willamette Valley, Oregon)

This was the perfect starter with all my favorite components. I would definitely call it a taste of spring.

II
Ceviche
Raventós i Blanc L’Hereu Reserva Brut Cava (Penedes)

We couldn’t quite figure out the details of this since it was not on the menu, but it had a spicy kick to it, some chile oil perhaps and we think the fish was tuna but maybe not…it doesn’t really matter anyway because it tasted excellent.

III
Roasted Oysters topped with gruyere cheese on a bed of cauliflower puree
Ermes Pavese Blanc de Morgex et De La Salle (Vallée D’Aoste, Italia)

I think this might have been Scott’s favorite course since he is a big oyster fan. Once I figured out how to get them out of the shell I enjoyed every bite. These are the chef’s favorite however they aren’t a regular menu item since he’s very picky out his oysters.

IV
Snapper with jumbo lump crab meat and tomato rice
Dom. de Marcoux Châteauneuf-du-Pape (Rhône, France)

Earlier in the meal the waiter brought out a whole snapper for our approval, it had just come in from Galveston that afternoon. I’m not much of a fish person but will branch out and eat it if I have to. I was pleasantly surprised…and wow it was a lot of fish.

V
Lamp Chop with chickpea, tomato, and zucchini salad
Marimar Estate “Dona Margarita Vineyard” Pinot Noir (Sonoma Coast)

I love lamp chops and had we not ordered the sandbox I most likely would have ordered this from the menu….I was not disappointed.

VI
Duck Confit with pickled red onion topped with fried duck egg
Miner Vineyards “The Odyssey” Syrah/Grenache/Mourvèdre (Napa)

Duck is one of those rare finds on restaurant menus but I love it…although I let Scott have my duck egg. The wine paired with this was very yummy and a great compliment.

VII
Local Meyer lemon cream tart, Texas pecan crust, and sweet tea ice cream
Chocolate Espresso Bread Pudding
Graham’s 20 Year Old Tawny Port (Portugal)

We got the best of both: Scott loves Chocolate and I love citrusy desserts.

Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Cookies

I made this cookie recipe for the first time about a month ago for my hairdresser’s birthday. Last year for his birthday I made him the traditional Neiman Marcus cookies, so this year I decided to kick it up a notch and bake the Neiman Marcus Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe. This of course meant that Scott and I had to perform some “quality control” testing. I have several chocolate cookie recipes (Mississippi Mud and Chocolate Raspberry) that I love to bake, however Scott said these were his new favorite. Scott is a serious chocoholic so this revelation came as no surprise.

Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted from Neiman Marcus Cookbook
2 dozen cookies

3 ½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided
1 stick butter, softened
1 cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt

· Pre-heat oven to 300°F.
· Place 2 cups of the chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave the chocolate chips in 30 second intervals, stirring chips after each interval until chips are melted, about 1.5 minutes.
· Place butter and brown sugar in a mixer bowl and using the paddle attachment beat the butter and sugar for about 30 seconds until combined. Then with the mixer running on low, slowly add the eggs and melted chocolate. Slowly add the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt to the mixing bowl. Scrape down sides of mixing bowl and mix a little longer, and then add the remaining chocolate chips and mix a little longer until chips are incorporated.
· Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Using a 1 oz (2 Tbsp) cookie scoop; scoop dough onto cookie sheet. Scoop about 9 cookies per batch.
· Bake cookies for 20 minutes.
· Let cookies rest for 1 minute on cookie sheet and then transfer cookies with a spatula to a wire rack to cool.
· Repeat process for remaining cookies.