Friday Food Find: Cadbury Chocolate!

Enough said! Well, maybe…

The first time I tried Cadbury chocolate I was backpacking through Europe.  I had the most insatiable desire for chocolate.  With a 40lb backpack on my back and a 10 pounder on the front side I sidled through a small convenient store door on a London street corner.  Walking up and down the aisles I found my chocolate destination in a small bag of Candbury chocolate discs.  

I tore open the bag and slipped the first sweet chocolate disc into my mouth.  It touched my tongue and melted into creamy goodness.  It was an instant love-affair; and it hasn’t abated since.

In fact, it’s been a lesson in discipline having to wait for my special Cadbury Chocolate Mini Eggs (and I don’t mean the Cadbury Cream Egg); which come around only for Easter.  

These chocolate eggs with the speckled candy coating are my all-time favorite.  I stock-pile packages, place them in the freezer then take them out sparingly for a few months enjoyment.

They are my Friday Food Find!  You can find them in most markets along with the big box stores that carry any number of seasonal candy items.  They come out several weeks before Easter and usually sell out by that time.

Enjoy!

Friday Food Find: Holiday Green Bean "Casserole" Alternative

I love green bean casserole! You know the one I’m talkin’ about; canned green beans, mushroom soup, fried crunchy onions on top?  While it hasn’t been a tradition at our family’s holiday meals it certainly shown up here and there. 

I don’t know if I should admit this or not but one time I even made this ubiquitous holiday dish for a party when I was single and way before I had any culinary training.  It was simple, cheap & yummy.  So yummy that I ate the whole batch before the party and had to make it all over again.  It was a moment for sure! 

I haven’t had this casserole very many times since; especially now when looking for a little lighter fare.  Which is where today’s Friday Food Find comes in.  

When my sweet baby sister Emily started cooking and hosting meals she brought this recipe to all of us.  It is wonderful; crunchy, crisp, warm, colorful and full of flavor!  I remember the first time she made it for the family. We all couldn’t wait to try it…especially since it had proscuitto! 

I watched her make it again this past Thanksgiving so I could share it with you all.  As my mother says, “It’s a keeper!”  And it is definitely a fabulous and lighter alternative to the “traditional” grean bean casserole. 

Thanks sweet sis for the recipe!

Ingredients

2 lbs fresh green beans, trimmed and blanched
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 of each: red, yellow, and orange bell peppers, sliced, seeded & julienne
4 very thin slices of proscuitto, julienne
1/4 C pecans, rough chop & toasted
1 - 2 Tbls pure maple syrup

Salt and pepper to taste. (Do not salt dish until all ingredients have been combined and you have tasted. Proscuitto is cured therefore salty.)

Process

Blanch green beans and set aside. (This can be done the day before).
Place a large sauté pan over medium high heat. Add olive oil and proscuitto and saute until soft but not crisp.  Remove from pan and place on paper toweling to drain.
Add peppers and saute until just barely soft.
Add the beans and proscuitto to the peppers and saute until heated through, season with salt and pepper to taste.
Drizzle maple syrup to taste and toss together.
Place on serving plate and garnish with toasted pecans. Serve immediately & enjoy!

Friday Food Find: Thanksgiving Breakfast Bowl

It’s the day after Thanksgiving but it’s not over yet!

Like my husband Mike says, “If you go in…go all in!” And that’s just what I did this morning. 

Homemade sausage and herb stuffing and garlic whipped potatoes with turkey gravy; just the leftovers from yesterday’s fabulous meal. These super sides (in more way than one) are my all time favorite.

Hope you are having a fabulous holiday weekend.  And are finding your own FFF Breakfast Bowl from Thanksgiving Day.  Here’s to it!

Friday Food Find: A Holiday Egg, Cheese, Potato & Essence of Truffle Breakfast Casserole

After that mouthful of descriptive words, I’m actually going to say this and own it, “I LOVE a good breakfast casserole!”

And isn’t it just a cat’s meow for a holiday season? Why? Because you can make, cook and freeze it well in advance. When you are ready for it just take it out of the freezer, thaw and bring it to room temperature. Finally, pop it back into the oven to warm through.

How fab is that?

This one came my way when I started researching and teaching tapas classes. It is a take on a traditional Spanish potato tapa which I found, many years ago, in a Penelope Casas cookbook, “Tapas: The little Dishes of Spain” It’s a keeper; especially for a super busy holiday season. Enjoy!

Ingredients

2 eggs
2C heavy whipping cream
1Tbsp of white truffle Oil
1Tbsp of thyme leaves
Salt and Pepper
Cooking oil or spray
3C of frozen hash browns (see roasting process below)
1 C Cheddar cheese, shredded
½ C Mozzarella, shredded

Process

Preheat oven 350°.

In a medium bowl beat eggs, cream, truffle oil and herbs together. Add salt and pepper to taste. Spray one 9”x13” Pyrex dish or cake pan with cooking oil. Evenly distribute roasted potatoes in dish or pan. Do the same with the cheese. Pour egg mixture over potatoes and cheese. Place in oven and bake for about 30 to 45 minutes or until egg mixture does not wiggle and is golden in color. Check every 10 minutes. Take out of oven when done and let set 5-10 minutes. Run a paring knife between the outside edge of the omelet and the inside edge of the dish or pan to loosen. Then slice into squares and serve immediately.

Roasted Potatoes

Ingredients

3C of waxy potatoes (red bliss or Yukon gold), diced in to ½” pieces (or frozen hashbrowns)
2tsp of kosher salt
1tsp of fresh ground pepper
2-3tsp of extra virgin olive oil
Preheat oven 350°.

In a medium size bowl mix all ingredients together thoroughly so that the olive oil, salt and pepper coat the potatoes. Place oiled and seasoned potatoes on to a medium sheet pan. Distribute evenly over the pan surface. Place in the oven on the middle shelf. Roast until potatoes are gold and soft through. This will take up to 20 minutes. Check at 10 minute intervals. When roasted remove from the oven and let cool. Now they are ready for the omelet.

Note: You may use seasoned hashbrowns. If you do, cut back on the seasonings in the recipe.

Friday Food Find: Cranberry Sauce

It’s the Holiday’s…with a capital H!  OMG! In just a little over a week some of us are going to be sitting down to a table full of turkey and fixin’s.  It has only been as an adult have I come to like, enjoy and even crave one this holiday’s most precious accouterments: cranberry sauce.  Oh, the beet colored, jelly shaking, tin can indented blob of what some may call cranberry sauce still exists.  In fact it’s what I grew up with and most probably why I didn’t appreciate how wonderful it could really be.  You know, I’m not judging, I’m just saying, “There’s another way; and, it takes 3 ingredients (1 optional) and no cooking what-so-ever”.  I don’t imagine you can beat that.  Can you?  Here’s the recipe. Hopefully, this will be you most joyous holiday Friday Food Find evah! I know it’s been mine.

Ingredients

1 bag of fresh cranberries, rinsed & gently patted dry (does not have to be perfectly dry)
1 small to medium size, seedless orange, cut into 6 pieces (however you want to do it) leaving the skin on
up to 1Tbsp of sugar (I use raw)

Process

Place cranberries and orange pieces into a food processor.  Begin processing until all ingredients come together to form a pureed relish type consistency (see picture).  Taste.  If the mixture is too bitter add suger a little at a time (processing in-between & scraping down sides of processor) until the sweet level is perfect for you.  This may take more that a tablespoon.  The sweeter the orange the less sugar you will need or at all. 

Use a spatula to remove cranberry sauce from processor.  Place into a container you can seal tightly.  It will last up to 1 week.

Yields up to 10 small servings.