Catering Gig

The lovely office of Peachtree Planning volunteered to be my guinea pigs on Tuesday. I catered the weekly "lunch and learn" for 20 financial planners. I was a bit nervous but they were the perfect group to test my catering skills.

On the menu:

ham and pimento cheese sandwiches on sourdough and Italian panne

chicken caesar club sandwiches on ciabatta

roasted vegetable orzo

peanut butter cookies

Ham and Pimento Cheese

This sandwich was inspired by Palmetto Cheese (found only at Publix). This store bought but homemade like pimento cheese is a huge hit among my friends and family.

Slather one side of bread with a pimento cheese of your choice

Spread the side with dijon mustard

Add thinly sliced virginia ham

Chicken Club

I adapted this sandwich from a similar sandwich by my idol Ina Garten. It is so hearty and flavorful that is makes a great dinner sandwich as well.

You will need:

2 split chicken breasts, bone in, skin on

olive oil

4-5 slices of bacon

1 garlic clove, chopped

2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley

1.5 tsp anchovy paste

1 tsp dijon mustard

1.5 Tbsp lemon juice

1/2 cup mayo

ciabatta loaf

arugula or lettuce of your choice

parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Place chicken breasts on a sheet pan

Rub chicken breasts with olive oil

Sprinkle with salt and pepper

Roast 35-40 minutes

Cool slightly

Slice meat thickly and set aside

Place bacon on a sheet pan

Bake for 10-15 minutes, until crisp

Set aside to drain on paper towels

*I love this method of cooking bacon

For the homemade caesar mayo:

Place garlic and parsley in a cuisinart with steel blade

Process until minced

Add anchovy paste, mustard, lemon juice and mayo

Process until smooth

Refrigerate until ready to use

*you may want to add more mayo depending on taste preferences, it's strong!

Slice the ciabatta in half horizontally

Toast in the oven and cool slightly

Spread both sides of ciabatta with Caesar mayo

Layer arugula, parmesan, chicken, bacon

Cut into thirds

Serve at room temp

Roasted Vegetable Orzo

It's safe to say that 90% of the time I have a batch of this pasta salad in my fridge. It's healthy, fresh and a crowd pleaser.

You will need:

1 small eggplant,

1 red bell pepper,

1 yellow bell pepper

1 red onion

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/3 cup olive oil

salt and pepper

1/2 pound orzo

Dressing:

1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)

1/3 cup olive oil

salt and pepper

Finishing touches:

4 scallions, minced

1/4 pine nuts, toasted (Trader Joe's sells them toasted)

3/4 pound of feta, diced not crumbled

15 fresh basil leaves, cut into chiffonade (long ribbons)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees

Dice the eggplant, bell peppers and onion into uniform size pieces, about 3/4 inch

Toss with garlic, olive oil, s&p

Spread on large baking sheet

Roast for 30-40 minutes, until brown, toss once during roasting

Boil the orzo in salted water for 7-9 minutes

Combine lemon juice, olive oil, s&p

Drain orzo and transfer to a serving bowl

Pour dressing over pasta while still hot (the pasta will soak up the yummy flavors)

Add roasted vegetables to pasta, be sure to capture all liquid

Cool to room temp, this is important!

Add scallions, pine nuts, feta and basil

Check seasonings

Serve at room temp

*if you are making this ahead of time, add basil at the last minute so it won't turn brown

XXL Peanut Butter Cookies

These classic peanut butter cookies and be refrigerated for up to a week in an airtight container. Makes 20 large cookies if you eat a some dough along the way.

You will need:

2 stick of butter

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1 cup regular sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup coarsely chopped roasted peanuts

1/4 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 375

Cream together butter, peanut butter, brown sugar and regular sugar in mixer until well combined

Add the eggs and vanilla

Mix until all ingredients are combined

Sift flour, baking soda and salt

Slowly add to peanut better mixture, stirring until smooth,

*don't over-mix

Scoop dough onto cookie sheet

Flatten cookie dough ball sightly

Sprinkle with chopped peanut and sugar

Bake 10-12 minutes

Cool on a baking rack

Ta-da, lunch is served!

Sunday Salmon

I like to end the weekend with a hearty but healthy meal. Marinated salmon, roasted okra, faux creamed spinach and cheese toast satisfied my craving.

Exotic Salmon Marinade

You will need:

6 Tbsp honey

1/4 cilantro, chopped

1/4 cup hoisin sauce

1/2 tsp ginger, minced

1 Tbsp canned green chilies

1 Tbsp brown sugar

4 salmon steaks

vegetable oil

salt and pepper

Combine the first six ingredients

Rinse salmon and pat dry really good

Place in a glass dish

Brush salmon with vegetable oil

Sprinkle salmon with salt and pepper (use more than you think)

Coat with marinade

Broil on high, 4 minutes on each side

Faux Creamed Spinach

If want to add a bit of richness to regular sauteed spinach, my twist is great.

Saute a bag of spinach with a smidgen of butter and 1/4 cup of whole milk.

Roasted Okra

I learned this okra cooking method from the man at the farm stand. It is now my favorite way to cook okra.

Toss okra with olive oil, s&p and a light sprinkle of nutmeg

Bake at 400 degrees for about ten minutes

Tiny Cheese Toast

If you have tons of small pieces of bread, make tiny cheese toasts! I have bags of bread end pieces in my freezer and love to make little cheese toasts.

Dab butter

Sprinkle whatever cheese you have on hand

Broil for a few minutes

Chili, Cornbread and LOTS of Water

While I should have been building an ark to escape Atlanta flooding, I was making quick chili and cornbread. This recipe does not claim to be a slow cooked, all-day long, fresh ingredient chili recipe. But, on nights like yesterday when I was stranded due to flood waters and needed to improvise, this chili was the perfect supper.

*Please don't judge me for using so many canned goods and seasoning packets

Santa Fe Chili

Saute 1 onion and 1 garlic clove in oil in large stock pot

Brown 1 pound of ground turkey (or beef) in same pot

Add the following cans without draining!

1 can tomatoes (diced, chopped etc)

1 can Rotel

2 cans white corn

1 can pinto beans

1 can black beans

1 can white beans

1 package of taco seasoning ( I used two and it was WAY too much)

1 package of ranch seasoning pack

Pour about 2 cups of water

Simmer until the ingredients meld and the chili thickens

Please DO judge me for the following cornbread recipe. It's my proudest family recipe. I may not be giving it enough of a spotlight at this point but trust me it's awesome.

Cornbread

You will need:

1 box jiffy cornbread mix

3 eggs

3/4 cup vegetable oil

1 small can of creamed corn

8 ounces of sour cream

Whip the three eggs

Stir in the rest until just mixed

Bake at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes

If there is any left, I love keeping some in the freezer to pull out in the winter months.

The Bomb Bolognese

Similar to my roast chicken experience, my first Bolognese try was easy and successful. Paired with fresh egg noodles and topped with parm, this meal in a bowl was delicious.

You will need:

1 onion

1 garlic clove

olive oil

1 celery stalk

1 pound of ground beef

1 (28 ounce) can of crushed tomatoes, maybe even more

Herbs- parsley, basil, oregano, thyme

salt

pepper

1/4 cup pecorino Romano cheese

1 pound of egg noodles

Saute the onions and garlic in olive oil until tender (about 8 minutes)

Add celery and cook for another 5 minutes

Increase heat to high

Add the ground beef

Saute until meat is no longer pink, stir until crumbly

Add tomatoes, herbs, salt and pepper

Cook over medium heat until the sauce thickens

Serve over egg noodles

Top with pecorino cheese and more herbs

Figs and Eggs

I am lucky enough to have a grandmother with an abundance of fruitful fig trees and a chicken coop. Justin and I recently picked buckets full of ripe figs and enough fresh eggs to fill a carton. I love figs. I love there purplie green color, curvy plump shape, delicate texture and opulent inside. I love roasted figs, fig preserves and baked figs and sugar over ice cream. Many of my friends want to like figs but just don't. I have found that the following recipe will get just about anyone to appreciate figs.

Slice figs in half and place in a baking dish*

Reduce balsamic vinegar in a sauce pan until think, sweet and syrupy

Stuff the fig halves with goat cheese

Drizzle with balsamic syrup

Sprinkle with finely chopped fresh herbs and salt

*You can serve this appetizer cold or if you don't like the rawness of figs, place them in the oven for 10 minutes or until desired taste and texture.

As for the fresh eggs, we had breakfast for dinner- fresh eggs, bacon and cheese toast.

My First Roasted Chicken

Sunday feels like a day that deserves nostalgic and classic food. Last Sunday felt particularly old fashioned and I was compelled to tackle a roast chicken. As it turned out, there wasn't much to tackle. The prep is easy for something full of flavor and flexibility. Many classic sides pair well with roast chicken. I chose to make mushroom risotto and roasted asparagus. The best part about a roast chicken is the leftovers- oh the possibilities. Chicken salad, wraps, casserole, enchiladas, or pizza! BBQ chicken pizza to be specific. Let me start at the beginning...

I referred to several cookbooks in cooking my first roasted chicken- Martha Stewart Cooking School and The Joy of Cooking to name a few.

Rinse and thoroughly dry off one whole chicken (inside and out)

Trim the fat

Stuff the cavity with lemon, salt &P, chopped garlic and any fresh herbs

Rub the skin with better

Season outside with plenty of salt and pepper

Tie the legs together

Roast at 450 degrees for 50 minutes or 165 degrees

Rest for at least ten minutes

The following night use leftovers to make BBQ chicken pizza

Toss chicken pieces in BBQ sauce

Roll out store bought pizza dough (preferably from Publix)

Slice thinly red onions

Rub crust lightly with olive oil and kosher salt

Top pizza with chicken, grated mozzarella, onions

Cook according to dough directions