Recipes that are simple and delicious.
These past few weeks, our farmer’s market has yielded some pretty great stuff, in particular strawberries (which actually taste like awesome strawberries), rhubarb, all sorts of herbs and onions, and one of my favorites this time of year, garlic scape. I buy garlic scape every […]
My wife and I are huge fans of hummus. I’ve said it before, and I will say it again. I have no shame in that. With that said, our farmers market is finely bringing in the seasonal pickings, and as I tend to every Saturday […]
If you have been following my recipes for the last couple of weeks, you probably came across one of my appetizers that I coined the smoked steak crostini. Everything about that appetizer, really, simply put, was pretty darn amazing. I do not say that because I made it, but it really was amazing. Another crostini I made for a party we attended was a goat cheese, Mexican pickled red onion, and garlic scape crostini.
Why I came up with this recipe was because of my recent Saturday morning visit to the New Berlin Farmers Market. There is a farmer there that I have been chatting with and buying all sorts of fresh vegetables. There was one item on the table that caught my attention, and that was garlic scapes. First, I was blown away because I have never encountered a garlic scape before and after talking with the farmer, I realized that garlic scapes are basically the shoots that a garlic bulb makes while growing. Almost what an onion would do. I was not only intrigued by the funky twists and twirls that the garlic scape consisted of, but also the fragrance and taste. It was as though I had my hands on a mild garlic green onion thing, and that excited me.
This recipe introduced that flavor of mild garlic and green onion, and when topped on this crostini, really made this appetizer stand out.
Lets get started.
Ingredients:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Brush olive oil onto the top of each sliced baguette and place onto a large baking sheet.
Place into the oven for about 15-20 minutes or until they are a light golden brown. Remove and let cool.
Spread the goat cheese on the top of each crostini, making a thin base. If you have extra goat cheese, add more to each crostini.
Next, top with pickled red onions and sprinkle garlic scapes on top of each crostini.
That’s it. Plate and serve.
What you end up is a perfect bite that has the creaminess of the goat cheese, the tang of the Mexican pickled onions, and the great mild garlic taste of the scapes. Just a perfect bite and a great appetizer. Hope you enjoy.
Lately my wife and I had to cut back the mint in our backyard. If you have never grown mint, be careful, especially if you are not planting in a pot. The mint literally will take over your yard, and this year it decided to […]
I am a fan of leftovers, and only a fan because leftovers present a challenge. That challenge is finding a way to tweak whatever it was into something new. This is where this recipe came into play. I know… Leftover chicken is probably not that […]
So I entered a pie contest this past Fourth of July. If you have known me long enough, you have probably figured out that I am not a baking kind of guy, nor am I one that is big into desserts. However, my kids are all about the desserts, and my daughter in particular is one who is really into fruit, and fruit pies for that matter. So it was last year that we were up at our local festival and that is when I found out there was a pie contest. A friend of ours actually came in first place, and that is what drove me this year to submit one. I’ve really been into blueberries lately and use them quiet extensively when I juice, so I figured that would be my pie, or the base of the pie that I would submit.
As a side note, my pie did not win and I’m fine with that, but what I did notice is that I had a line in front of my pie, full of people just dying to try it. My pie was gone in a matter of seconds. I felt like a winner after all.
This blueberry and ginger pie was so good my daughter asked me to make another one a few days later, and so I did, but taught her how to make it. I was winning again.
Let’s get started.
Ingredients:
The great thing about this pie is that it is so simple to prepare. I will also admit that I included a couple of other items in my pie submission and I will keep those a secret until I win next year.
Start by preheating your oven to 385 degrees.
Next, add your cleaned berries to a large bowl and add in the ginger, lemon zest, lemon juice, sugar, cinnamon, and cornstarch. Gently mix to get everything incorporated.
I used frozen pie crusts with my daughter, just thought I would let you know.
Take one frozen pie crust, in its pan, and add in the blueberry mixture. Carefully place the other pie crust on top of the blueberry mixture, then using a fork, crimp the edges to seal the pie.
Mix the egg and water in a small bowl. Lightly brush the egg wash mixture onto the pie crust. Cut a few slots with a sharp knife on the middle of the pie dough to allow steam to escape.
Sprinkle the course salt and additional sugar on the top of the pie. Place on a baking sheet (as the blueberry mixture will escape), and cook for about 50-60 minutes. Once nice and golden, remove from the baking sheet and place the pie tin onto a plate to let cool.
I like to place my pie into the refrigerator to let cool overnight. Obviously my daughter (and wife) could wait no longer.
When you are ready, slice and serve. The pie just hits the spot. Maybe it is that bit of salt that cuts the sweetness along with the zip from the lemon. Whatever it is, this pie is special, and super delicious, especially on a hot summer day. Enjoy!
