I’ve left this blog sit in silence for longer than I intended.

I can’t even begin to tell you how many times I sat on the couch with computer on my lap hoping for the words to float from my head to the screen. And they could very well have if there were any words in my head.

You see, my dear loyal readers, I am a very tired girl. Summer, as with many people, is a VERY busy time for us. My husband is a wedding photographer (a very fine one I might add) and seeing that in this beautifully green part of the world where I reside only has about 3 months of sunny weather – the wedding season is short – that is if you want the sun to be a guest at your wedding.

So he is gone a lot and I am left to be the other knight in my 3 year old son’s sword fights or the constant book reader to my adorably sweet 1 year old. We have fun but at the end of the day, when they’ve gone to bed, I plop on the couch, let out a sigh and only get up to crawl into bed – and sometimes not even then.

Oh yeah and then there is the other draining/exciting matter of house buying. We are mere days away from closing on a new home then the madness of the move begins. And I couldn’t be more excited to set up my home, unpack my dishes, roast a chicken in my oven, plan a new garden (a very small one) and eat pizza at Delancey which is just a hop, skip and a jump away.

My silence has nothing to do with lack of great recipes to share with you. In fact today I couldn’t be more excited to talk about Creamed Corn. But really I just need to get right to it because corn is fleeting and Fall is coming.

Creamed Corn was a delightful and welcomed addition to our dinner plates growing up. To this day my oldest brother drools at the mention of this sweet and creamy side dish. Our creamed corn, like many, always came from a can. We didn’t care. It was a vegetable that was as sweet as dessert.

I haven’t had creamed corn since the days when Ken and Barbie were my best friends but inspiration hit in the form of a New York Times article on a non-canned version of a childhood favorite.

Begin with six ears of fresh corn. Remove their hair and give them a shave using a corn zipper – a one purpose tool that I never thought I would have in my kitchen until it was given to me,  but I have to say I a new found respect for this tool as it has come in handy on many occasions. If you don’t have a corn zipper you can use a vegetable peeler. You’ll have to make several passes to get all the kernels off but you’ll get more of the sweet “milk” of the corn this way as opposed to using a pairing knife.

Place your shaved corn in a pot with 1/2 cup heavy cream, 2 cloves sliced garlic and salt and pepper. Let this simmer until the corn is tender and the cream has reduced by about half – this will take about 10 minutes.

At this point I used an immersion blender to break up the kernels a bit to give it a similar texture to that of what I remember was served to me from the can.

Just before serving I added finely sliced fresh basil.

If this were a cooking show this would be the point where I would take a bite, close my eyes and make nearly pornographic noises to illustrate to you exactly how ridiculously good this dish is. Something to the affect of mmmmm, ohhhhh, mmhmmm. Yes.

I think you get my point.

Without any sugar this corn was as sweet as the canned version but the richness of the cream and the fresh taste of the basil matured this classic comfort dish.

Please try it. Quick before the corn is gone and squash takes its place.

Print PDF

I’m not one to shy away from fried foods. What I do tend to avoid are large stinky messes.

Fried foods are notorious for producing an enormous mess. The bubbly caldron of hot oil leaves a lingering smell which takes months and multiple bottles of Febreze to remove. Not to mention the layer of grease that coats every counter, cabinet and counter-dwelling kitchen machinery. Those who know me well know that cleanliness is not something I excel in so again – if I can I will avoid the opportunity to spend hours on my knees scrubbing and poslishing feeling as if I am Cinderella being tortured by my evil step-mother and sisters.

But when I became the proud owner of three Walla Walla onions so fresh the dirt was still attached – my first thought was onion rings.

In order to avoid the mess I set out to make oven-fried onion rings. Just so you know this wasn’t a health choice for me. It was all in the name of ease and less mess. And I must say I succeeded beyond my expetations because not only were these simple, quick and clean to throw together but they came out as crispy and flavorful as their deep-fried brothers.

If you, like me, love the grease but hate the mess then let us celebrate in the name of laziness for a recipe that takes more time to clean the grease off our fingers than off our counters.

Oven-Fried Onion Rings

2 medium onions (sweet or yellow) cut into 1/2 – inch rings

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper

1/4 tsp cayenne

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 egg

1/4 cup  + 1 tbl. flour

1 1/2 cups crushed potato chips (I highly recommend Kettle chips if you can find them)

3 tbl. vegetable oil

Pre-heat your oven to 450*

Combine 1/4 cup flour, salt, pepper and cayenne in a bowl large enough to dip the onions into.

In another similar size bowl combine the buttermilk, egg and 1/4 cup + 1 tbl. flour. Whisk until a smooth batter is formed.

Have all your ingredients nearby to minimize the mess. First your seasoned flour, then the batter and finally a bowl containing your crushed chips.

Dip an onion ring into the seasoned flour. This will help the batter to adhere which helps the chips to adhere. They all work together – deliciously.

After the seasoned flour, dip the onion into the buttermilk batter. Let the excess batter dribble off before you coat the wet ring with the crushed chips. You will need to use your hands a bit to make sure the chips adhere.

Repeat this process with all the onion rings.

Cover a baking sheet with a piece of parchment. Drizzle with 3 tbl. vegetable oil then pop it into the hot oven for 8 minutes – or until the oil just starts to smoke.  Carefully remove the baking sheet from the oven and rotate to evenly coat with oil.

Quickly place your onion rings on the baking sheet then return to the oven. Bake for 8 minutes then flip each ring over before baking for another 8 minutes.

Serve with …

Remember those pickled scapes – and you thought to yourself – what would I ever do with pickled garlic scapes?! Now you know.

Pickled Garlic Scape Tartar Sauce

1/4 cup mayonnaise

2 tbl. pickled garlic scapes, finely chopped (or any other pickled item you have on hand)

1/2 tsp. basil, finely chopped

1/2 tsp. fennel leaves, finely chopped

1/4 tsp. pickle juice – whatever pickle you use – add a tiny splash of it’s pickling juice

Combine all the ingredients. Taste and season with salt and pepper if it needs it. If you want a touch of heat this can handle the addition of a little, finely minced raw garlic.

*note* If you have problems getting the chips to stay on – and as you can see in some of my photos I did, but they still were delicious – you can add in some crushed Saltine crackers. This helps with the adhesion.  You can add as much as half the quantity of chips. So it would be 50% potato chips and 50% Saltine crackers. I do however prefer the taste of using all potato chips.

Print PDF

First of all let me apologize for my delay. We are embarking on the exciting roller coaster ride that is selling and then consequently buying a home. My husband and I decided to move back to Seattle for numerous reasons (this being one just for starters). Our life is on hiatus at the moment as our next move is to be determined by the selling of our current home. We are hopeful and trust that we will end up where we need to be but in the mean time we have moved out of our home, moved in with my wonderful in-laws and attempting to regain a bit of normalcy for our sanity and for our two young boys who are handling all of this extremely well.

Thanks for being patient with me and keep the comments/emails coming I love them and read them all even if I fail to respond in a timely fashion. And hang tight as Artisan Sweets is about to get a NEW name and a NEW killer design. Lots of change and excitement around here! In the meantime let’s talk about CUCUMBERS.

Maybe it’s just me.

During the winter months the variety of local produce dwindles. In my box of organic produce that gets delivered to my door every other Tuesday I begin to notice an abundance of greens, apples and cucumbers where I usually see immense variety, vibrant colors and unique products that eagerly await my creativity to put them to good use.

The apples get devoured by myself and my two boys before they ever have a chance to be covered by a flaky crust. The greens often get a brief saute with a myriad of vegetables then tossed with pasta, olive oil and parmesean.

But the cucumbers. What do I do with the cucumbers? Is it just me or are there others whose data bank of cucumber recipes merely involve tea sandwiches and perfect rounds for removing puffiness? Surely there is more to the slender, green vegetable than pickles and spa water.

After the last two cucumbers that once again sat in the fridge for a couple of days until I finally just sliced them and ate with a little vinegar and olive oil, I decided that they deserve more from me. But what?

Thus I began my Cucumber experiment. Well, not really an experiment, more like a search to seek out other recipes that highlight this misused or underused vegetable.

If you are not like me and you have recipes that make a lowly cucumber sing please let me know. I would love to try them. In the meantime I found a few recipes of interest and will be steadily posting them to the blog.

The first recipe I found most intriguing as I have never cooked and/or baked my cucumber. Cucumber au Gratin is a simple dish that involves boiling then layering the cucumbers with Gruyere and butter. The gratin is then baked and emerges from the oven bubbly and delicious. Please excuse the appearance of the dish. Had I used the correct baking pan I’m sure the results would have been a bit more attractive, but remember you are being patient with me because of the whole moving thing. I have absolutely no idea where my baking dishes are. Well, I have some idea – in an unlabeled box hidden behind the mountain of other unlabeled boxes.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and taste is really what’s important here. I won’t go on and on about how it was the most fantastic thing I’ve ever put into my mouth because it wasn’t. It was, however, surprisingly tasty and so simple that I can guarantee this dish will be making its way onto our table again.

Baked cucumber with gruyere? I had no idea.

Cucumber au Gratin

adapted from B’s Cucumber recipes

• 2 cucumbers
• 1 1/2 cups grated Gruyere cheese
• salt & black pepper
• 3-4 Tbs butter

Peel the cucumbers & cut them into 1 inch pieces. Slice each piece in half lengthwise & remove the seeds. Cook the cucumber in boiling salted water for 10 minutes, then drain & dry. Arrange a layer of cucumber in the base of a buttered ovenproof dish. Sprinkle with a third of the cheese, & season with salt & pepper. Repeat these layers, finishing with cheese. Dot the top with butter. Bake the cucumber gratin in the center of a preheated oven at 400 for 30 minutes.

Print PDF

Have you ever come up with an idea so genius that you know you’re pretty much guaranteed fame and fortune just for conceiving such a brilliant concept?

Well, the other day I came up with said idea.

I really do believe that the world will never be the same once this revelation is unveiled. I am pretty convinced that once I push the publish button on this very post the food network is going to be pounding down my door begging me to have my very own show. Those poor TV execs are going to be pushed aside by the dozens of publishers who will be throwing contracts in my face urging me to sign on to write volumes of cookbooks. Or at the very least you’ll read the following recipe and think “that looks delicious! I must make that right now and devour it in it’s entirety because of how fabulous that looks.” Which really is all I truly want.

Now I know that everything has been done under the sun so chances are this isn’t my idea at all. But I have never heard of it and while asking around have not met any one else who has heard of it either. So with out further ado this may or may not be an original idea but it’s new to me and I want to pass it on to you.

Are you ready? Are you sure?

I call it Yams Brulee (or sweet potato brulee, depending on what part of the country you are from).

The recipe could not be more simple.

Rub a yam with a hefty amount of softened butter and bake in a 350* oven until it is just about done. You should feel a touch of resistance when testing with a knife or fork.

Remove from the oven and cut in the middle lengthwise (hot dog style).

Sprinkle a touch of cinnamon on top of the yam. Add a pinch of salt then more butter to cover the exposed flesh. Continue to roast until completely tender.

Remove yams from the oven then let cool slightly. About 5-10 minutes. Sprinkle a fine layer of sugar over the top then TORCH IT until caramelized. Repeat with another fine layer of sugar.

There you have it. An incredible sweet/savory (and simple) side dish perfect for your holiday table.

Print PDF