Roasted Smashed Potatoes

These little guys make a yummy starchy side to any meat dish, but I think these could make a fun finger eating appetizer, too!  Instead of just rosemary, salt and pepper, I thought I would add some color and spice by incorporating paprika.  But these potatoes make a great base for any topping.  I think next time I'll go wild and crazy by adding bacon and chives.  But this time I kept it simple so the rosemary's flavor could steal the show.

What you'll need: serves 2-3

12 small gold potatoes (rinsed and poked with a fork)

2 sprigs of fresh rosemary (roughly chopped)

Kosher salt

Ground black pepper

Paprika

Olive Oil

Boil the potatoes with well salted water (about 2 big pinches) until fork tender.  Drain them and place on a foil lined baking sheet.  With a potato masher, smash each potato once.  Drizzle them with a thin layer of olive oil.  Sprinkle on the rosemary, salt, black pepper and paprika (to taste).  Throw them into a 400 degrees oven and bake for about 20 mins or until golden brown and crispy.  Serve immediately because they tend to cool down quickly.

Nutella Stuffed Strawberries

I love chocolate dipped strawberries like everyone else, but I don't particularly like making them.... tempering the chocolate just right, waiting for the chocolate to harden, etc.  But these Nutella Stuffed Strawberries are fast to make and you can enjoy them immediately!  Nutella not only adds a decadent chocolatey punch to the sweet strawberries but gives them an extra kick of nuttiness from its infamous hazelnut flavoring.  And to give this small dessert some crunch, a few mini chocolate chips are placed on top.  Now, you know me and citrus... we're best buds.  So to finish this yummy bite off... some orange zest sprinkled on top for a pop of freshness.  I made three batches of these and could have had three more.  Yum!

What you'll need:

1 container ripe strawberries

Nutella

Mini chocolate chips

Orange zest

With a skinny knife, cut out the center of the strawberries.  But don't throw that part out... that's good meat from the strawberries.  I ate them as I went.  :)  With a pastry bag (fitted with a small tip) filled with nutella, pipe the chocolate into the hollowed strawberry.  Place on the mini chocolate chips and sprinkle with orange zest.  A yummy experience, all in just one bite!

Grapefruit and Orange Cocktails

This past weekend was annoyingly hot!  So after a busy errand-running day on Saturday, I cooled myself down with a Grapefruit Cocktail while my mother sipped on an Orange Cocktail.  And we identified them with colored fish stirrers!  The combo of the citrus juices, lemon slices and muddled mint took the heat off my brow instantly.  And just for kicks, a jigger of Coconut Rum was added to the mix!

What you'll need: per drink

Ice

1/3 cup Grapefruit or Orange Juice

Big splash of Squirt

1 jigger Coconut Rum

Fresh Mint leaves + extra for garnish

Lemon Slices

Muddle/crush some of the mint leaves at the bottom of your glass with a spoon.  Add the ice cubes.  Pour in the coconut rum, citrus juice and Squirt.  Add in the lemon slices and top it off with leftover mint leaves for garnish. 

Eggplant Parmigiana Sandwich

Happy Belated Earth Day!  This year, the family and I celebrated picnic style at our local arboretum.  As we enjoyed the beautiful grounds and peacocks, we stuffed ourselves with Italian Eggplant Parmigiana Sandwiches.  I used the same recipe as this (but also layered in sharp provolone cheese this time) and simply put it between two pieces of toasted bread.  A bit messy but completely worth it.  It's tangy from the marinara sauce, but a little salty from the parmesan and provolone cheese.  And people wonder why I've never had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich... ;)

This particular sandwich has a bit of history.  In the late 50's my grandparents splurged and took the whole family (including a wheelchair bound grandmother) to Disneyland.  Because they were poor, they couldn't afford to feed everyone DL hotdogs, etc.  And because they didn't allow you to bring food in, they snuck in enough Eggplant Sandwiches to last them an entire day in my aunt's stroller and Grandma's wheelchair!  Think about it... 6 people times 3 meals each... that's a ton of Eggplant Sandwiches to hide successfully!!  To this day my mom and uncle remember the mortification of having to eat these Italian "immigrant" sandwiches throughout the day while watching every other child eat American theme park food.  Since then, my mother has gotten over it... not sure my uncle has!  But every time we eat these delicious juicy sandwiches, we get to revisit a funny memory.

Earth Day Adventures:

Mom playing scoop ball with the local Peacocks

A walk to the Waterfalls

Enjoying Spring bloom: Poppies

Foodista Feature

My little food blog is slowly making its way up in the world and I have Foodista to thank for that today!  I've been added to their Food Blog of the Day.  Thanks again, Foodista, for a great Feature!

Lemon Tarts with Coconut Shells

I'm so excited to share today these incredible tangy tasting Lemon Tarts with Coconut Shells.  Beth Butterfield and her sister Diane were kind enough to allow me to share on the blog their Grandmother's special recipe.  These bite size nests are the perfect little dessert for any spring party or gathering and they're even gluten free!  The filling is not too sweet due to the right amount of refreshing lemon flavoring and the shells have the perfect crunch from the baked coconut flakes.  To die for!

What you'll need:  makes 24

Lemon Curd:

3/4 cup fresh lemon juice (6 lemons)

Grated zest of 2 lemons

2 large eggs

7 large egg yolks

3/4 cup sugar

4 tbsp butter, softened

Coconut Shells:

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup egg whites (about 3 eggs)

2 1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut (not shredded)

For the curd: In a small bowl, combine the lemon juice and zest.  Set aside.  In a medium nonreactive bowl (glass), whisk eggs and sugar until combined.  Add lemon juice mixture and whisk until just combined.  Set bowl over a pan of simmering water (double boiler method).  Don't let the bowl touch the water.  Cook stirring constantly with a heatproof spatula, until mixture has thickened to a pudding-like consistency, about 6 mins.  Remove the bowl from the pan and whisk in the butter.  Strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl.  Press a piece of plastic directly onto the surface of curd to prevent skin.  Refrigerate until it's time to assemble and serve.

For the Shells: Mix the sugar, egg whites and coconut together.  Put a spoonful in each cup of a 24 mini muffin pan.  Press the dough into the molds to make little nests with sides.  Bake until golden brown in a 325 degrees oven for about 30 mins.  Let cool completely in the pan and remove gently.  

Fill each cup/nest with curd and top with whipped cream. 

Spring Fruit and Yogurt Dips

My family typically makes Ambrosia Fruit Salad for the Holidays.  But for the past two Easters, we've been enjoying Fresh Fruit instead with sides of Maple and Honey Yogurt Dips.  This time my Aunt Jean went the extra mile and cut up fresh strawberries, pineapple, kiwi, and limes (aren't the zig zag designs cute on the limes?), then threw them all together with blueberries and seedless grapes.  But the trick she used to transform an average bowl of fruit was adding chopped up bits of Chocolate Mint!!  Have you ever tried this?  It's mint infused with chocolate flavoring.  You don't need much, because a little goes a long way.  But getting a little piece of chocolate mint every now and then with a bite of sweet fruit is a refreshing fun surprise!

My Aunt conjured up two great yogurt dips to serve along side the fruit.  I originally thought... "The fruit is so good on its own, do I really need to dip it in yogurt?"  The answer is, "Heck yes!".  Once I dipped a strawberry in the Maple Cinnamon Dip and a grape in the Honey Vanilla Dip, I was hooked and couldn't stop.  The yogurts gives the fruit some tang and a pop of extra flavoring of spice or vanilla flavor.  So perfect for a spring or summer party coming up!

What you'll need:  Maple Cinnamon Yogurt Dip

1 8oz plain yogurt
2 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp brown sugar
1/3 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp fresh lime juice

Mix them all together and serve!

What you'll need:  Honey Vanilla Yogurt Dip

1 8oz plain yogurt
2 tbsp honey
1/2 vanilla bean (seeds scraped out)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp fresh lime juice

Cut open the vanilla bean and scrape out half of the vanilla seeds.  Mix that with the rest of the ingredients and serve!