Current Addiction: Cowboy Bark

When was the last time that you had a bite of something new and literally felt addicted from your first mouthful? (Please do not respond if your answer involves an illegal substance...haha). This has not happened to me very often, but I have to take my hat off to Trader Joe's Cowboy Bark. Thanks to this little yellow package, I now need to order size 50 jeans and become a member of Cowboy Bark Addicts Anonymous. Please let me know if you would like to join my local chapter.

So what is this Cowboy Bark I speak of? It basically looks like an unappetizing pile of dirt, but do not be fooled. The brown blob you see in the photos below is actually an irresistible combination of dark chocolate, toffee, pretzels, chocolate wafer cookies, peanuts, and almonds. You are probably asking: "Kristina, are you really addicted? I mean, what constitutes an addiction versus thinking something just tastes really good?" Well my friends, it is an addiction if you hide said package of Cowboy Bark in a dark corner of the kitchen cabinet and don't tell your husband, family, and friends that it exists until every last mouthful is GONE. Yep, hi Stuart . . . I umm found a new treat called Cowboy Bark and didn't tell you about until this blog post. Sorry!!

Has anyone else tried Cowboy Bark? Or, is there another treat or type of food in general that you just can't get enough of? I'd love to hear what I might be missing out on!

 

 

Authentic Greek Salad

We still have one glorious month of summer ahead until September rolls around and Stuart starts grad school in the fall. Tomatoes are just about perfect right now and I have been busy enjoying fresh tomatoes in pastas, this burrata nectarine salad, and...you guessed it, Greek salad! I thought I would devote a quick post to my love of this easy, fresh salad and my very strong opinions about what makes an "authentic" Greek salad superior to the Americanized version.

I was lucky enough to travel to Greece in the summer of 2005 before I started college, a generous high school graduation gift from mom and dad. While there, I learned the pleasures of eating a true Greek salad - something I indulged in once or twice per day. In America if you order Greek salad off the menu it likely comes on a bed of fresh lettuce. WRONG! An authentic Greek salad has no lettuce at all - the spotlight is on the crisp, fresh ingredients such as cucumber, tomato, and onion. And guess what: the Greek salad I made, pictured above, is also not authentic (sadly, it's the best I could do at the time). An true Greek salad will come with one large, intact rectangle of feta cheese sitting on top that you break up as you eat. Not once in Greece will you see this salad served with pre-crumbled feta. Aside from looking pretty, this serving style means that your cheese will be more fresh and flavorful. An authentic salad should look more like the one pictured below.

Ingredients:

1 cucumber, sliced 1/4-inch thick
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 red onion, sliced in half-rounds
1/2 pound feta cheese (not crumbled)
1/2 cup kalamata olives, pitted

For the vinaigrette:
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup good red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup good olive oil


Directions:

1. Place the cucumber, peppers, tomatoes and red onion in a large bowl.
2. For the vinaigrette, whisk together the garlic, oregano, mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Still whisking, slowly add the olive oil to make an emulsion. 

3. Pour the vinaigrette over the vegetables. Add the feta and olives and toss lightly. Set aside for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to blend. Serve at room temperature.

 

Watermelon Agua Fresca

Hello readers! I hope everyone had a great weekend and did something fun this past week. Stuart and I just got back on Wednesday night from a nearly week-long vacation at my family's cabin in Twin Lakes, CA. It was a long drive to get there (about 7.5 hours), but once there we were surrounded by pine trees, alpine lakes, and a complete absence of cell phone service or internet. I was a bit worried at first to be disconnected from work, but it was absolutely glorious.

My sister Anna and her boyfriend, Sam, were able to join us all the way from New York City for several days of the trip. It was amazing to have a mini family reunion at a place that is so special to all of us. We spent the time together how we do best: with lots of waffles, barbeque, homemade apricot pie, vegetables from my parents' garden, fish caught in Yosemite rivers...and of course lots of hiking in between.

Now I just want the summer fun to continue forever. What better way to do that then by making this watermelon agua fresca? Something about homemade cocktails and beverages just hits the summertime sweet spot. The plus? You can add tequila or vodka for a little grown-up kick.

 

Ingredients:
8 cups seedless watermelon cubes
6 tablespoons honey or agave nectar
1/3 cup fresh lime juice plus 1 sliced lime
A few sprigs mint or rosemary
Ice cubes

Directions:
Puree watermelon in blender. Strain into bowl through a fine-mesh sieve. Stir in honey and lime juice. Stir in 1-1/2 cups water, lime slices and mint. Chill thoroughly then serve over ice.  

 

 

Add a sprig of rosemary to each glass for a fancy flair! 

Hazelnut Cake with Mocha Frosting

Happy Sunday! I hope you are having a fun weekend, wherever you may be. Stuart and I have been enjoying a nice "SLO" weekend here in San Luis Obispo, with not too much on the radar. It's been a nice change after our past weeks of traveling. Today, we potted plants for the sidewalk in front of our apartment, got groceries, and are planning to wrap up the evening with some homemade turkey burgers (recipe coming soon). Yesterday, we went to an office barbeque party for Stuart's work, which was a ton of fun. While there, we stuffed ourselves with tri-trip and garlic break, and for dessert everyone brought something to share, potluck style. I decided to experiment by making this cake that I found a blog that I follow called Bake or Break. Chock full of hazelnuts and topped with a coffee-chocolate frosting, this is a cake with flavors that work almost as well for breakfast as they do for dessert!

 

 

Pictured above is one half of the cake recipe that appears below. I made the full recipe as shown below, and brought one half of it to a barbeque with friends on Thursday night. The other half I saved in the fridge for the above-mentioned work barbeque on Saturday. If you are interested in making your cake do "double duty" like this, I kept the baked cake in the fridge on Thurs/Fri, then took it out, let the frosting soften up, and frosted it right before the BBQ on Saturday afternoon. It still tasted perfect two days later.

Ingredients:
For the cake:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 & 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed light or dark brown sugar
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup chopped toasted hazelnuts

For the frosting:
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1-3 tablespoons brewed strong coffee (use 3 if you want a stronger coffee flavor)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 to 2 tablespoons milk
Chopped toasted hazelnuts, for garnish

Instructions;
To make the cake:

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Butter two 9-inch round cake pans. Line bottoms with parchment paper. Butter paper.
2. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
3. Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat butter, sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy.
4. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Mix in vanilla.
5. Reduce mixer speed to low. Add flour in three portions, alternating with two portions of sour cream. Mix until a few streaks of flour remain. Stir in hazelnuts.
6. Divide batter evenly between prepared pans. Smooth batter evenly in pans.
7. Bake 30-35 minutes, or until cakes are lightly browned and a pick inserted into the center comes out clean.
8. Cool in pans on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Then, run a knife around the edges to loosen the cakes. Transfer cakes from pans to a wire rack to cool completely. Remove parchment paper.

To make the frosting:

1. Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat butter, cocoa powder, espresso, and vanilla until thoroughly combined.
2. Gradually add confectioners' sugar. Mix until smooth.
3. Add milk as needed to attain desired spreadable consistency.
4. Place one cake layer on a cake plate. Spread half of the frosting on top of the cake.
5. Place remaining cake layer on top of frosted cake layer. Spread remaining frosting on top of the second cake layer. Garnish with chopped hazelnuts.

 

 

 

Crispy Spring Chicken with Basil Pan Sauce

You know what I like about chicken? Just when you think it is getting boring, you find a new recipe or eat a new dish that impresses you and makes you love it all over again. Is that just me? Regardless, you may want to take notes here because this week I had one of those "aha" moments after trying out a great new chicken recipe that I adapted from here: crispy roast chicken with a divine herb sauce. This is one of these meals that is, in both looks and preparation, extremely simple. Yet somehow, the taste of this chicken, when doused with fresh herbs and spices, felt like it belonged straight out of a plate in the French countryside - simple yet exquisite.

There are a few things to keep in mind if you want to make this recipe. First, you will want to buy a whole chicken and quarter it yourself, or buy one that is already quartered. I quartered a whole one I had at home, and if this scares you (it scared me), you might find this video helpful (you can ignore the very first step where he cuts off the wing tips). Second, you will want to let the chicken come to room temperature before roasting by leaving it on the counter for 1 hour. I set myself a reminder in my online calendar a night before so that I would get an alert and remember to do this.

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken (about 4 pounds), quartered, at room temperature
3 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup packed basil
1/2 cup packed parsley
2 cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon red-pepper flakes (to taste)
2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
1 teaspoon honey

Directions:

1. An hour before baking, remove chicken from fridge, quarter it, and let it rest on therimmed baking sheet you will roast it on.
2. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. 
3. Pat chicken dry really well with paper towels. Rub chicken with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil; season liberally all over with salt and pepper. Arrange, skin-side up on pan and roast until golden on the top rack of the oven (or until a thermometer inserted into thickest part of breast (without touching bone) registers 160 degrees), about 35 minutes. 
4. Meanwhile, make the sauce. Using a food processor, pulse the basil, parsley, garlic, red pepper flakes, red wine vinegar, and honey. Slowly add the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and puree until smooth (this can take 1-2 minutes, you are aiming for the consistency of pesto). 
5. When the chicken finishes roasting, let it rest for 10-15 minutes before serving.
6. After the chicken has rested, put the basil sauce into a bowl and add any drippings that you can spoon out from the chicken pan. Mix well. Spoon the sauce over the chicken pieces just before serving.

Secret Green Bean Dipping Sauce:
This is a sauce my family has been making for years. My mom learned how to make it when she was a waitress in a Japanese restaurant. Sounds weird but it's great! Just combine the below ingredients to taste.

Mayonnaise 
Soy sauce
Sesame seeds (optional) 

 

The original recipe I used said to pour the basil sauce onto the pan itself, mix it with the chicken's natural juices, then let the chicken rest on top of it. This worked well but it was a bit tricky to scoop up every last bit of the delicious sauce from the pan when it was time to top the chicken. What I recommended above was to keep the sauce separate (optional). 

 

 

Try serving the chicken with tender green beans and my family's "secret" green bean dipping sauce!