Herbed Cocktail Onions and Olives

This is one of my favorite little snacks/nibbles. It’s so simple to make, and it can be served at your most sophisticated dinner parties, or served up in a little bowl just for you while you relaxing at home with a book and a glass of wine. It transforms simple Kalamata Olives and Pickled Cocktail Onions into something that you won’t be able stop eating. Add some lightly salted mixed nuts on the side and you have perfection. I found it at the Rowes Wharf Bar in Boston.

You know those places that you can walk into from a noisy street and within seconds, be transported to a spot that’s quiet, cozy and comfortable? It almost feels like home, but there are no kids or dogs asking for your attention every five minutes. Yeah, you know what I mean!

The Rowes Wharf Bar at the Boston Harbor Hotel is one of our favorite quiet spots. Just look at it, with it’s comfy chairs, dark wood, and non-trendy atmosphere. The staff is incredible, too. They’re there to see to what you want or need, even before you know you need it--always very attentive, refilling glasses and snacks. On one occasion, there was a table of…I want to say kids, because they were so immature, but they weren’t--they were young professionals--still, old enough to know better. They were about ten of them, and they were loud, which I can live with. It’s a bar, after all. Then they had to get louder and start using miscellaneous expletives and totally embarrassing themselves. Someone must have complained (I swear it wasn’t us!), because our waitress went to their table and quickly and quietly got the situation under control. They shut the heck up and we profusely thanked her. See? They’re looking out for you!

The bar snack at Rowes Wharf Bar is this mix of little onions and olives, served alongside mixed nuts. You think it won’t be anything special, but oh, it’s a bit briny from the olives and onions, salty, crunchy--and they'll just keep replenishing your supply! The olives are velvety and the onions give you that little pop--I could go on and on about it, but I’ll just give you the recipe. Oh, how did I get the recipe? I emailed the concierge at the hotel, and she asked the chef. He was kind enough to share and I’m forever grateful!

Herbed Cocktail Onions and Olives

Chef Daniel Bruce, Boston Harbor Hotel
  
2 cups Pitted Kalamata Olives
2 cups Pickled Cocktail Onions
1/4 cup Balsamic Vinaigrette
1/4 cup chopped fresh herbs,including Parsley, Basil, Thyme and Chives
Salted Mixed Nuts (to serve alongside)

Drain the olives and onions, and put them in a bowl with the vinaigrette and herbs, then toss to incorporate everything.

Store in a covered container and refrigerate for at least four hours so the flavors can mingle.

Serve with nuts and your favorite beverages.

• The balsamic vinaigrette mellows the onions and olives and takes the edge off so they’re a bit more pleasant on the taste buds, and not so sharp. So even if you think the olives and onions will be strong and overpowering, they’re not.

See the archway in the middle of this picture? The hotel entrance where the bar is located is just to the left of the archway. When you’re done at the bar, you can head out this back way and walk along Boston’s Harborwalk at Rowes Wharf. It’s just beautiful with all of the boats docked and the fresh ocean breeze--and the views are spectacular!

Apple Pie Filled Cider Doughnut Muffins

Muffins and doughnuts. I love them both! I like muffins better, though. I think. I’ve made doughnut muffins a couple times already, and they were wonderful. I’d have to say, though, that these are by far my favorites! They’ve got that classic doughnut flavor--nutmeg, and plenty of it. It’s just enough so that when these are baking, your taste buds will be anticipating a doughnut. The apple pie filling is a nice addition in the middle, and the glaze--when it sets, it has that nice “crackly” quality. Like when you bite into a glazed doughnut. These are kid and husband approved. Everything about them says Autumn, from the cider doughnut flavor to the apple filling and warmly spiced glaze.

I actually made these first a couple of weeks ago, and wanted to change things up a bit. For one, cutting the butter. I adapted this recipe from BBC Good Food. Doubled it, added some stuff, changed some things. There were five ounces of melted butter in the original--doubling it would have meant ten. TEN. Which is two and a half sticks! That’s a lot of butter. I brought in some applesauce to take the place of about half of that. Thank goodness for applesauce in baking! It’s a fabulous fat replacer. Just shop carefully and look for one without that useless poison, HFCS. No one needs that! And unfortunately, most major brands have it. And they market it right at your kids! Look for the organic choices in your market. (Lecture over.) The yogurt in these also helps to keep the muffins tender and not dry.

A note on the boiled cider in these. It’s not a necessity, but it’s a great ingredient to have in your fridge. It’s very intense, so a little goes a long way. Use it in baking, in sauces, with pork or chicken--use your imagination! There are a lot of good ideas in the comments here on King Arthur Flour’s site. If you want to, you can even make your own. And it’s the season--apple cider is everywhere! You could make some now to last you quite a while!

The filling. I had a jar of Maple Apple Drizzle that I picked up at a general store in the mountains. You can kind of see what kind of texture it is in the photo. Think apple pie filling. You can make your own really quickly by dicing an apple or two into small chunks, adding a touch of sugar or maple syrup, and some spices--apple pie spice, cinnamon, nutmeg, etc. No need to overthink it--just add stuff till it tastes good to you. Or if you don’t want to do that, use a good chunky applesauce and just break up any large chunks of apple.

Now, aside from these notes about the boiled cider and the filling, these are so easy to make! Dry stuff, wet stuff, add the wet to the dry, mix. Done! The glazing takes just a few minutes. After a couple of days being stored, the glaze will soften up and sink into the muffins. They still taste great, though, so it’s a small matter to me. If you’re planning on taking these somewhere, glaze just a couple of hours before you go, or the day before.

Apple Pie Filled Cider Doughnut Muffins

Makes 16-17 standard sized muffins
Adapted from BBC Good Food

Muffins:

1 cup sugar
3 1/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp nutmeg
4 eggs
1 cup Greek yogurt (you can use sour cream or plain yogurt)
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 stick (4 oz) plus 1 tbsp butter, melted and slightly cooled
3/4 cup applesauce (please look for one without HFCS!)
2 tbsp boiled cider (or regular apple cider)

Apple Pie Filling Options:

You'll need about a cup or so of filling.

Maple Apple Drizzle or Finely diced apple that's sprinkled with a bit of sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg--or apple pie spice, then cooked down a bit to get that caramelized apple texture. You could also skip the cooking part and just leave the spiced apple chunks as is--OR chunky applesauce OR premade jarred apple pie filling--just cut the apples into small pieces.

Glaze--Optional:

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted to remove lumps
3/4 tsp apple pie spice
Pinch of nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
5 tbsp apple cider

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Grease muffin tins, or line with paper liners. I like the crispy edges, so I don't use paper.

In a medium mixing bowl, add the sugar, flour, salt, baking soda, and nutmeg. Mix well with a whisk and set aside. In another bowl, whisk the eggs, yogurt, vanilla, butter, applesauce and boiled cider. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ones and stir until moistened. (Don't stir the heck out of it, be gentle--I like to use a rubber spatula and mostly "fold" the ingredients together.)

Put a couple of tablespoons of batter in about 16 muffin cups. I used a 2 1/2 tbsp sized ice cream scoop. (You can go back and make one or two more if you have enough batter.) Using a measuring teaspoon, add one teaspoon of filling in the center of each mound of batter. Go back now and add another 2-3 tbsp of batter over the tops of each muffin.

If you decide not to use the glaze, sprinkle the top of each muffin with apple pie spice or just cinnamon--and then proceed to bake. If you're using the glaze, leave the tops alone and bake the muffins.

Bake at 400 for 10 minutes, then turn the oven down to 350 and bake for 6 more minutes. A tester should come out clean. Remove from oven and let cool in pans for 5-10 minutes. Remove from pans and let cool on racks completely before glazing.

To make the glaze, sift the powdered sugar into a small bowl. Whisk in the apple pie spice, nutmeg and cinnamon. Whisk in the apple cider until completely blended. Dip the top of each muffin into the glaze, and set back on the cooling rack over a baking sheet to catch the drips.

Grilled Chocolate and Parmesan Sandwich

Yeah, really. And it’s good. Damn good. Pairing the not so sweet dark chocolate with the nutty, tangy Parmesan cheese is pure genius. Don’t forget about the buttery-crispy grilled bread.

Who, me? Genius? Why thanks! But no, it’s not my idea. I read about it on The Huffington Post a couple weeks ago, and haven’t been able to get it out of my mind. I’d have made it right away, too, if it weren’t for those pesky kids eating all of the chocolate and bread. Moving on…

It’s Sunday afternoon, and it’s a rainy one, at that. Husband is out with one of the kids at Comic Con, and it’s just me and the rest of the kids. Who are busy playing the Wii and generally goofing off, which is good. No cries of “Mom, I’m boooored!" Yet.

I decided, after doing some behind the scenes stuff on my blog, that I should hightail it to the kitchen and make this before all the Parm was gone again. Good thing, too, because as you can see, there’s just a small chunk left.

Now, before you start thinking this is gross, read this, from the article:

“Each ingredient's volatile compounds (aromas) are quantified using gas chromatography and/or a mass spectrometer. The concentrations are then compared with their respective flavor threshold and finally matched with other ingredients that have similar compounds.”

So there! I double dog dare you to give this a try. (I know, some of you are already in the kitchen making this!) For those of you that are skeptical, trust me. It’s not cheesy. The chocolate and Parmesan compliment each other--think salty/sweet.

Grilled Chocolate and Parmesan Sandwich

Makes one sandwich.

For the love of all things good and cheesy, don't use the grated stuff. Get a good little hunk of Parmigiano-Reggiano, and use some thin slices here.

2 slices of your favorite bread
2 ounces dark (semi-sweet) chocolate, chopped-not too coarse, you need it to melt
Enough thinly shaved slices Parmesan cheese to cover one slice of bread
Butter

Heat a skillet to about medium--maybe a little higher. Butter one side of each slice of bread.

Put one slice, butter side down in the pan, and cover it with the cheese slices. Sprinkle the chopped chocolate over that, and place the second slice of bread, butter side up, on top of that.

Heat this until the cheese and chocolate get melty, and then carefully flip the sandwich over with a spatula. When both sides of the sandwich are golden brown to your liking, it's done.

Serve right away, with lots of napkins. If someone else wants one, tell them to make their own, you're eating.

• The next time I make this, I’m using sourdough, more cheese, and a little less chocolate.
• Even my nine year old loved this, and that’s saying a lot! He doesn’t like strong cheese or dark chocolate. He even asked for more! The sixteen year old swiped what I had left, too.
• Notice that I categorized this under main dish, lunch, and dessert. Because for some of you, chocolate or cheese could actually be a main dish. I know. It’s ok. Yes, I’ll hold you. What, breakfast? Hell, yes! With coffee.

Berry Cheesecake Cookies

Cheesecake and cookies--two of my favorites. Combining the two is something I should have done sooner, I think. These are seriously delectable little cookies. They’re petite and look all ready for Spring, with their pretty jewel-like dried berries showing through. I used a dried berry mix from Trader Joe’s that has strawberries (yes, really!), cherries and blueberries. If any dried fruit could be described as “juicy,” it’s these. They’re not hard or dry, they’re soft and tender. I decided to go for a not so commonly used nut in cookies--toasted pine nuts. If you can’t find them or don’t want to splurge on them, use your favorite.

The taste is just like a bite of cheesecake on your taste buds. They’re not crispy, and not cakey--but in between. A soft cookie, but they also hold up very well in storage. I’m not kidding--I had them in a Ziploc bag that was getting moved around from place to place in the kitchen, and they didn’t break apart. They’re also not a hugely sweet cookie--just enough.

Berry Cheesecake Cookies

Adapted from  About.com
Makes about 5 dozen

1 cup butter, softened
6 oz cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 -1 tsp almond extract
1 egg
2 tbsp half and half or milk
2 cups flour
8 oz dried berries (I used a mix of dried strawberries, cherries and blueberries from Trader Joe's.)
1 cup white chocolate, coarsely chopped
3/4 cup toasted pine nuts

Heat oven to 325 degrees.

In the bowl of a standing mixer, or a large bowl, cream the butter, cream cheese, sugar, salt, and extracts. Add the egg and the half and half (or milk), mixing well. Add the flour to the bowl and blend in. With the mixer on low, stir in the berries, chocolate, and nuts.

A note on the dried berries. The strawberries were a little large, so I went ahead and chopped those up to make them smaller, since these cookies are fairly small.

Drop batter on to a parchment covered baking sheet using a small cookie scoop or a teaspoon. My small scoop has a 2 teaspoon capacity. Bake for 15-16 minutes (The cookies will be pale on top, but golden brown around the bottom edges.) and let the cookies cool for one minute on the baking sheets before removing to a rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

• These would be lovely on your Easter table, or perfect for baby and bridal showers!
• How about with your afternoon tea? Having a ladies lunch? Add these to the menu!
• If you can’t find the dried berries I used, go ahead and use what you’ve got. I don’t recommend raisins, though--they’re just not cheesecakey.
• These improve with age--they were great the first day, but in the following days, they really got their "cheesecake thing" going on. 

I freaking love this Bean Dip

Over the years, Billy has requested numerous cheese and bean dips. I’ve happily obliged, because…who doesn’t love dips? I know I do! There are tons of recipes for them out there. This one happens to be my favorite. It’s not loaded with cheese, so I don’t feel too bad eating it, either. It’s also ridiculously simple to make--it’s a one pot deal!

Speaking of the pot, I don’t even need this served in a bowl. I can stand at the stove and eat it right out of the pan. I’m serious. I’m not even ashamed! Give me a bag of chips and this dip, and I’m going to town.

“What? Where’s the bean dip?”

…

“Did I say I was making bean dip?”

…

“Nope, not me. You must be imagining things.”

…

“Sorry. There’s no bean dip.”

__________________________________________

Yeah, it’s like that. It’s my favorite, what can I say?

Recipe!

I freaking love this Bean Dip

Makes about 4 cups

1 (16 oz) can refried beans
1 cup shredded cheese, I use a Mexican blend
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1/4 tsp adobo powder
1 jar (8 oz.) taco sauce
1 can (4 oz.) diced green chilies
dash of garlic powder
Corn chips for dipping

Mix all the ingredients, but not the corn chips, in a small saucepan.

Cook over low heat, stirring often, until thoroughly heated and cheese is
melted.

Keep warm. Serve with corn chips.

So simple! And if you want more heat, go ahead and add it.

For more Super Bowl Foods, check out my other posts here:

• Pizza Roll Ups, plus other recipe links
• Super Bowl Party Foods