Project Runway & Bruschetta

For weeks now, Mollie, Daphne and I planned to watch the season premiere of Project Runway together. Originally, we were going to do it at Daphne's new place, in the screening room in her building, but she had a work thing, so instead we went to Mollie's and Daphne came after work.

Mollie made veggies and rice w/ Indian sauce from TJs. It was yum! And, Daphne made a Blueberry crisp. I heart crisps of all kinds! I made a trio of bruschettas. I did an olive tapenade, a traditional tomato and white bean. For the white bean, I used this as the guide. This time I used scallions and chives, instead of red onion, and fresh basil and parsley from my herb garden instead of dried spices. I also used a bit more lemon juice to make it a bit more summery. For the tapenade, I just blended black olives, a clove of garlic and a bit of olive oil. Super easy, super delish. Finally, for the tomatoes, I diced up abt 3 tomatoes, added s cloves of garlic, fresh chives, basil, parsley and oregano, some s&p, and a dash of oil and balsamic. Online I had seen to drain the tomatoes, but I dismissed it. I wish I hadn't. I'm not sure exactly how to go abt draining them, but after walking to Mollie's, they were really saucy. Still yummy tho. I like combining a few of them together on one slice. Mmmm. And SOOOO easy!

Project Runway was also awesome, and I'm happy its back on! And while I agree with most that Korto deserved to win, and while I didn't really get Daniel's collection, I was happy he won.

Dinner Party

So I hosted a dinner party to thank my two good friends down here for all their help and support in helping me get set up down here in DC. Daphne lent me her awesome apt for a few weeks, where as Mollie has consistently lent me her husband, and I even managed to put his '94 Corsica in a coma for a bit. I'd been planning this dinner party in my head since the second I got the job (and even more so since I knew I would be living in a one bedroom apt!).

For starters we had 3 of the previous mentioned cheeses-- gouda (shout out to our times in Amsterdam), brie and bleu cheese. I also put out a mix of delicious olives I'd gotten at the market, some carrots and celery w/ homemade hummus.

For din, I made a pesto pea salad from Barefoot Contessa, altho I didn't really follow her pesto recipe and I did a mix of basil and mint, as well as a mix of baby spinach and mixed greens. I also made a summer squash dish that to me screams summer. As usual, I start by sauteeing garlic and onion, but then you add yellow squash and slow cook it over low heat for 20-30 minutes. The squash really cooks down and you can start to mash it. I then throw in some diced tomato because I think tomato (especially fresh) makes everything better. Plus summer squash for me can be a tough thing all on its own. I'm kinda weird w/ texture and I don't like things that make my teeth squeak. The primary example of this is mushrooms, but yellow squash have been known to do so as well. Somehow w/ yellow squash, I'm more willing to overlook it and this recipe is nice cuz the squash cooks down so much it doesn't seem to be "squeaky." Then you toss the squash w/ goat cheese and fresh basil. The end result is this amazingly creamy, but summery dish. Delish!

For dessert, I did another Food Network recipe from Semi-Homemade w/ Sandra Lee, Sangria Granita. I think we all know she is a lush, and to be honest my friends and I can be a bit of winos, so I decided to give it a whirl. You take a bottle of white, pour it into a pan, add 3 tbsp orange juice concentrate (I used orange mango), 1 tbsp limeade concentrate, 1 cup nectar (I used a Mango Naked Juice), 3 tbsp honey (I used wayyy less) and 1 tsp vanilla. Then you whisk it all together, throw it in the freezer and mix it every hour or so while it sets. It took abt 6-8 hours for mine to set. I served it with fresh peach on top. Sandra Lee says this makes 4 servings. There were 5 of us, and I still have half a pan of this in my freezer. She is a lush! Mollie brought over some chocolate dipped strawberries, which I thought went very nicely w/ my dessert because both were pretty light and fruity.

We ended the night by playing a riveting round of Apples to Apples. Mollie won, an attestment to her sense of humor. Tom was a close second meaning they truly are a good match! All in all, a great night-- good food, good friends, good times. Andddd, 5 bottles of the wine split between the 3 ladies. Oh yeah...

Steamed Artichokes

So this is super easy, but delicious and satisfying. You just cut off the top 1/4 of the artichoke and steam for about 20 minutes. I put bay leaf and dried garlic and a squirt of lemon juice into the water, to add a bit of flavor to the artichoke. The artichoke is done when you can easily pull away a leaf. For a dipping sauce I add some vinegar to mayo. This time I used some yummy red wine vinegar my parents brought back from France. Mmmm.
The first couple of leaves, may be a little tough w/ little meat, but as you go, the more tender and meaty.

Garlic Hummus

I make a pretty mean hummus if I do say so myself. While I always enjoy hummus, I often think the store bought kind is a bit too acidic, whereas mine is not... As always, I try to make it a bit more healthy than normal too.

I start w/ a can of drained and rinsed chick peas in my all time fav kitchen gadget, the Magic Bullet. I add a heaping tablespoon of tahini, a squirt of lemon juice, some parsley, pepper and paprika, a splash of olive oil and maybe 1/4 cup vege stock, then for a kick I add 2 cloves of raw garlic and blend. Trust me, it has a kick. A friend once asked me what I used to make it spicy before realizing it was just pure, raw, unadulterated garlic. My fav...

Serve w/ veges such as baby carrots, cuke sticks, celery sticks and/or homemade tortilla or pita chips.

For alternatives, I cut back to one clove of garlic and add something else for flavor. My favorite was fresh, raw spinach. Made a nice bright green hummus...

Mexican Night

This night I made black bean soup, homemade tortilla chips, guacamole and corn bread for when I brought the soup for lunch.

I made this soup a long time ago, so my memory may be a bit hazy, but here goes. It's essentially the recipe off the back of the Progresso black beans, but w/ some changes. I'd made it once before and found it to be a bit too salty, this time it was a bit bland. Maybe next time... Also, I prefer a thicker soup and this is still a little runny for my liking. As for the recipe, I'm not a big follower. I always make adaptations and as a result will not be very specific. I think it best to play around and find out what works best for you.

I diced up a large onion, some celery and carrots and sauteed them for abt 5 minutes w/ chili powder and cumin. You then add 2 cans of black beans and something random like 4 cans or 52 ounces of chicken/vege stock. Last time I stuck to this and I blame it both for the saltiness and the runniness, so this time, I believe I added the beans in their liquid, instead of rinsed and drained, and one cup of stock and one cup of water. It was still a bit runny, but definetly less salty.

Then you take 2 cans of drained, rinsed beans and blend them with a jar-ish of salsa. Last time I used up my jalepenos and their juice and that added a nice kick. This time I needed to add additional liquid to get everything moving. Then you mix this mixture into the soup, which thickens it up a bit. I like that this soup has blended beans and chunky beans and vege, I guess I just want the overall soup a bit thicker. I'll need to continue to play w/ water content...

Next, I used my new favorite kitchen gadget to make some delicious guacamole. I love this gadget cuz it is a salad spinner, egg separator and hand spun food processor all in one. It's amazing! I think guacamole is one of the best things ever, but I'm pretty much a purist and don't like to add much to the avocado. I generally use red onion, garlic, salt, lime juice, cilantro and maybe tomato. No sour cream ever, it just cuts the flavor. I also prefer it a bit chunky, that's why I use this gadget and not the infamous Magic Bullet.

For tortilla chips, I just rip flour tortillas and place on a sprayed baking sheet. I generally make a spice mix that has salt, chili powder, cumin, paprika and pepper. I then pinch this over the tortillas. I bake them for abt 8 minutes at about 400 degrees.

Here's the finished meal. I garnish the soup either with scallions or a Mexican cheese mix (seen here). This meal was complimented by a glass of Spanish sangria that I brought back from my most recent European vacation...