lizzy in the kitchen

tartine with pea shoots, peaches & feta

Lightly toasted slices of seed & grain boule from Madison Sourdough

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Local, organic pea shoots

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Perfectly ripe sliced peaches

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Feta

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Olive oil & black pepper

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Bliss. Harmony. Nirvana. Ecstacy.

Tips: (Don't say I never gave you anything)

Don't eat this in fancy clothes. Be casual.

Buy unripe, hard peaches and let them sit a few days until fragrant and soft.

Slice bread. Drizzle with olive oil. Toast in 500 F oven for 5 minutes.

If you can find it, a block of feta is so much tastier than the pre-crumbled.

Pea shoots are my spirit vegetable. But if you can't find them, any delicate green will do.

red, white & blue pavlova

I'm pretty much always suspect of the idea of authenticity on the Internet and on blogs especially, but when holidays roll around, I am even more aware. Beautifully styled photos are a thing of beauty and something bloggers take a lot of time to create. Why? Because it is visually pleasing and makes things seem really special and unique.

But I can't help but think, maybe it's more important to tell a story. So while yes, I have included a nice close-up of this delicious red, white & blue pavlova, I am also including a not-so-close-up that shows you that I do not have a gorgeous white table and that when the knife comes out, blueberries hit the table and there are babies on my countertops and *gasp* we have both trash bags and tissues in our kitchen.

I can't help but wonder if all these gorgeously styled summer parties are really as beautiful as the photos seem or if in real life, they are just as ordinary (albeit maybe with some really cute details) as life. I guess what I am trying to say is this: Media has an impact. Blogs have an impact. If the story we tell is only one of perfection, we are not being real and we are impacting people negatively because let's face it, we are not perfect.

Let me be clear. Life is beautiful and styled photos are wonderfully inspiring. Photographers love the detail shots, but sometimes it's comforting to know that not everyone on the Internet is living the high life, that we are all more alike than it may feel.

And this ties in perfectly with this upcoming holiday, one that should unite us as Americans. I'm honestly not big on holidays, but I have a soft spot for a red, white and blue dessert, ever since my mama used to make angel food flag cakes. This time, I made a pavlova because I'm a curious lady.. I have to say, it has the same familiar flavor as the angel food and if you are craving that pillowy cake, check out this angel food cake with balsamic strawberries from last year. But if you're up for something just as easy, but a little bit fancy, try the pavlova. It's a big meringue topped with lightly sweet whipped cream and juicy berries. There's no denying that!

Red, White & Blue PavlovaMakes one large pavlova - I used strawberries and blueberries, but you could change things up with raspberries, cherries, plums, pluots or peaches - the original recipe called for superfine sugar, but with cane sugar, I saw very little texture problem, however the arrowroot powder has a tendency to make things a little gummy, which I did experience here.. I would recommend going with cornstarch and will do that next time.

For the meringue:
1/2 cup cane sugar
1 1/4 tsp. arrowroot powder (or cornstarch) (see headnote)
2 egg whites (absolutely no yolks)
pinch of kosher salt
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

For the whipped cream:
1 cup heavy cream
1-2 Tbsp. powdered sugar
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

For the macerated berries:
1/2 cup sliced strawberries
1/2 cup blueberries
1 Tbsp. pure cane sugar

1. Preheat oven to 275 F. Prepare a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Sift together the cornstarch (arrowroot, if using) and sugar. Separate the eggs (save the yolks for homemade ice cream), making sure that there is NO yolk in the white (they will not whip correctly if yolk is present).

3. In a large bowl, whip the egg whites on low for a couple of minutes, until bubbly and frothy. Increase the speed a bit and slowly add in the sugar/cornstarch mixture. Once the meringue begins to look glossy, start checking for peaks. Once you have soft peaks, add the vanilla extract and a pinch of kosher salt. Keep beating until you achieve firm peaks. Be patient on this step. It could take 10 minutes or more.

How to check for soft/firm peaks:
Stop your mixer, leaving the beaters in the egg whites. Lift the beaters out of the egg whites and turn the beaters upside down. If they leave a peak like a mountain and it flops over, you have soft peaks. Keep beating. If the mountain peaks stay firmly up, you have firm peaks and are good to go.

4. Once you have firm peaks, carefully spoon (I like a rubber spatula for this) the meringue onto your prepared parchment paper in a circle about 8 inches in diameter, making it a bit thicker at the edges.

5. Bake the pavlova for 70-90 minutes, until it is hard on the outside and not toasted. It should just be lightly beige. Turn off the heat, crack the oven door and let cool inside the oven to room temperature. Remove the pavlova and decorate.

6. While your pavlova is cooling in the oven, make your whipped cream and macerated berries. In a small bowl, add your prepared fruit and a tablespoon of sugar and leave about 30 minutes, until the juices of the fruit release. To make fresh whipped cream, add 1 cup whipped cream to a larger bowl (or you can totally do this with an immersion blender in a cup) and begin beating. Once it starts to firm up, add powdered sugar to taste. Once the whipped cream is ready, do not whip it more or you will have the beginnings of butter. Refrigerate it if you need a little more time.

7. Assemble your pavlova. Top the pavlova with the whipped cream (you will use it all) followed by the macerated berries and their juices. Dig in right away! (If you'd like to make the meringue and whipped cream a day ahead, feel free. Make sure to refrigerate the whipped cream and store the meringue in an airtight place - I stuck it on top of a muffin tin that I had a lid for. I'd recommend waiting to macerate the berries and assemble until just before serving.)

 

quinoa granola bars

Currently my daughter is laying in bed singing "Happy Birthday to Mommy," which isn't for a couple of months, but I am dying from the sweetness. And my son is sleeping next to his bed. On purpose. He set up quite the little chill spot for himself. I came into this food blog wanting to steer away from writing about my kids too much - I didn't want to be a mommy blogger - but now that I've been doing it a while and I'm realizing what kind of things I want to share, I am realizing that my being a mother is a big part of what I choose to write here..

I choose to write and cook recipes that kids and families will enjoy, but what that really means is that they are things everybody likes to eat. It would be inauthentic of me to share only food that I like because it isn't what is happening in my kitchen and I suspect, it isn't what is happening in yours either. I suspect you are probably mostly thinking of others when you set foot in the kitchen. What I aim to do is help you bring health and happiness into your kitchen for every member of your family.

For example, I love these granola bars. My daughter does as well. So that tells me that I can share it with you. But I will tell you, my husband doesn't like the quinoa and my son doesn't like the raisins, so for my family, this isn't our ideal granola bar. I hope it will be for you (because it's freaking delicious), but if it's not, don't give up. Try something else. Do not leave the kitchen because one (or twenty) dishes fail. Keep giving love in your home and one day, you will hit a home run and never look back.

Quinoa Granola Bars
adapted from Honestly Yum
Full recipe makes 16 bars- I halved the recipe and used an 8 x 8 pan, but I have given you the measurements for a 9 x 13 inch baking dish. These are easily made gluten-free (with GF oats) or vegan if you substitute more maple syrup for the honey.

1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1/4 coconut oil
1/3 cup almond butter (I used Justin's maple almond butter)
1 cup raw cashews
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup flaked unsweetened coconut
1 cup raisins (I like the Newman's Own)
2 cups rolled oats (make sure they are gluten-free if you are intolerant)
1 cup uncooked quinoa (the tri-color is really pretty, but use what you have)

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Now, prepare your baking pan. Cut a piece of parchment paper so that it will overhang on two sides of the pan. I like to use clothespins to get it to fit the pan until I add the granola bar mixture.

Over medium heat, toast the oats and quinoa in a large pan until just fragrant (a few minutes- make sure to stir). In a large bowl, stir together the toasted oats and quinoa, cashews, almonds, coconut and raisins.

In a small saucepan, stir together the honey, maple syrup, coconut oil and almond butter over medium heat until melted. Pour over the dry ingredients and mix well until all dry ingredients are well-coated.

Pour into the prepared baking pan. and pat down with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon until even. Make sure to get it into the corners.

Bake for 25-30 minutes until nicely toasted on the top. Let cool completely, then lift the bars out of the pan using the overhanging parchment paper and cut with a sharp knife. It is easiest to cut with a longer knife in one swift motion. They may crumble a bit, but if you let them cool completely, you should have nice bars. I stored them in individual ziploc bags, but you could also roll them in parchment.

 

simple italian sausage with pineapple and red peppers

Sometimes I don't know how to start blog posts. All day long, my head swirls with thoughts and ideas and the perfect words to write, but my days are filled with swimming lessons and actually cooking recipes followed by massive loads of dishes and it's pretty unrealistic that I could write down every thought I have in order to capture that one perfect one in a sea of millions. So.. hmmph, I think it's high time there was a device that could record the thoughts in my head without making me look like an idiot or ya know, give me some radioactive illness.

So yeah.. brain recording device.

While I'm at those swimming lessons, I have been reading Keepers, a cookbook filled with recipes that are meant to be kept and made again and again, week after week.. recipes that are meant to stick with you and be shared with those you love. Written by two former Saveur editors, this book is definitely one for the shelves, to be kept and stained and flipped through and doggy-eared.

This simple dish is one of our keepers. We were making it pretty often a couple of years ago and then it fell off the radar, but I think it's back. Sausage is a staple in our freezer and we use it everywhere from stuck in a bun to pasta sauce to fritattas and now in this riff on a sweet and sour pork.

Simple Sweet Sausage with Pineapple and Red Peppers
serves 2-4, depending on your appetites - I served with cilantro-spiked rice and my husband and kids chose to eat it with cheese tortellini - versatile.

3 Italian sausage links
1 cup chopped fresh pineapple, cut into 1/2 -1 inch pieces (you could use canned if you are uncomfortable working with a whole pineapple, but you can also find fresh pineapple in many produce departments)
1 cup chopped red peppers, cut into 1-inch dice
sprinkle of kosher salt
splash of olive oil
cilantro to finish

In a large heavy skillet (I used a 12-inch cast iron) splash in a bit of olive oil and heat to medium. When oil shimmers, add sausages and brown on all sides. The sausages should be deeply browned. Keep an eye on them so they don't burn. When browned, remove sausage from skillet. Turn off heat.

Let sausages cool until you can work with them. Now, slice your sausage into 1/4-1/2 inch slices. Prepare your pineapple and red peppers.

When ingredients are prepared, turn heat back to medium and add sausage slices, pineapple and red pepper to pan. Saute until sausages are nicely golden brown on the outside and the peppers are tender. Season with a small sprinkle of salt and garnish with cilantro.

monday musings

Pretty good weekend around here.. lots of thunderstorms and lots of sun too! It's all pool all the time this summer for us, but I am also scheduling in a craft every week and I made some practice sheets for the kids to practice writing (now if ever I could get around to starting them).

Discovered chocolate chip sconut (scone + donut) at our farmers' market. WHAT! YES!

Definitely need to check out this patio soon.

These movie rankings are strangely intriguing to me.

A dream vacation.. stunning!

We have like a zillion straws.. adding to the summer craft list.

Cooked: Vegetarian baked taquitos

Want to eat: fruit kabob sundaes, hot bunny pasta sauce, chocolate pots de creme with lavendar and sea salt, turkey koftkas with zucchini ribbons and chimichurri

The prettiest pickles

Pretty much obsessed with The Lively Show

Have a good week friends! And look forward to some FUN on Lizzy!