Tag: blog

Mushroom Ricotta Bruschetta – This Was Anything But Flat

Please do not take this post’s brevity for any kind of lack
of enthusiasm or excitement over this very handsome mushroom and ricotta
bruschetta. Time’s a little short today, as my car’s left-front tire was fatally
injured last night in a brutal pothole attack.

Everyone else is fine, but I didn’t want to delay the
uploading of this fine recipe until I had time to do a proper blog post. So
basically, I’m phoning this one in. Of course, my biggest fear isn’t that
you’ll be disappointed…it’s that you won’t notice that big a difference.

Anyway, this was super tasty, and very simple to make. I
show making the ricotta bruschetta part first, but as I mention, you’ll
obviously want to have your mushrooms cooking while you prepare the bases. I
hope you give this delicious, and very versatile dish a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 4 Mushroom Ricotta Bruschetta

1 cup ricotta cheese

1 egg

zest of one lemon

1/2 tsp salt

black pepper to taste
red chili flakes to taste

4 thick slices of lightly toasted bread

1 tbsp olive oil

For the mushrooms:

2 tbsp butter, divided (half to sauté, half to stir in at
end)

1 tbsp olive oil

16 large white mushrooms

1/4 cup green onions and/or 3-4 cloves of garlic

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup marsala wine

1/2 cup chicken broth

2 tsp lemon juice

2 tbsp chopped Italian parsley

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Ginger Pear Cranberry Sauce – Making Your Holidays More Difficult, One Condiment at a Time

You would think the vast majority of the visitors to this
blog would be fine with me posting a new holiday cranberry sauce every
year, but apparently that’s not the case.

After posting the tease picture for
this lovely ginger, pear, cranberry sauce, I received a bunch of comments and
emails with the same basic message, “please don’t, you’re confusing us.”

Evidently, some people like our past cranberry sauce recipes
so much, that they don’t know if they should stick with them, or try a new
version. It’s causing quite the dilemma. Do you go with the one you know you love, and
that garnered so many compliments, or do you try something new and risk it all?

Sorry, I really can’t help you decide, but at least let me make an
already tough call, even tougher. This gingery, pear-studded cranberry sauce
was simply amazing. I’ve been wanting to try pear in a cranberry sauce forever,
and this was so fantastic that I’m a little upset I waited this long.

Anyway, I hope your Thanksgiving menu is shaping up nicely,
and that tomorrow will bring a table full of fabulous food. Whether you use
this cranberry sauce, or an older version, or heaven help us, one from another
blog, I hope you and your family have a great holiday. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 2 cups:
12 oz fresh whole
cranberries

1 large bosc pear, peeled,
diced

2 oz candied ginger,
minced

zest of 1 large orange

1 cup fresh orange juice

1/4 cup water

1 cup sugar

1 whole star anise

1 cinnamon stick

1/2 tsp garam masala (an Indian-style
curry spice blend)

1/4 tsp salt

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Gluten Free? Don’t Look at Me!

My inability to help visitors to this blog with questions
about gluten-free Thanksgiving baking has been well documented. I’m a gluten junkie of the
highest order, and know almost nothing about gluten-free substitutions, which
is why I shy away from giving advice that could potentially make someone ill.

Luckily, my good friend Shauna Ahern, better known as “The Gluten-Free Girl,” has just launched an interactive app called, “Gluten Free Thanksgiving Baking.” If you’re interested in getting more info, you can
visit her blog, or simply follow this link to the Apple Store. Enjoy!