Halloween Treats!

When my 7 year old proclaims..."I don't want to go trick-or-treating this year.  I've done it my whole life."...what's a mom who loves Halloween to do?  Have a Halloween party instead!  The house is decked out with black webbing, white & black pumpkins, and glittery purple accents (I was stuck on a black/purple theme this year), complete with black lights that flank the inside of our porch.  And of course, there is the food.  It's amazing what people can come up with to make food look spooky and gross!  Witches fingers, tombstone sandwiches, calzones made to look like witch hats.  Some of the most fun items are the desserts.  These Spooky Halloween Eyeballs are quite labor intensive, but so worth it.  They taste like peanut butter cups and you can make your monster eyeballs look however you want.  

We also made Chocolate Spiderweb Treats.  The base is essentially a rice krispie treat made with cocoa krispies instead.  They are topped with melted milk chocolate and then drizzled with circles of white chocolate.  To give them a cobweb effect, use a toothpick to pull through the white chocolate. 

Lastly, there are the Cinna-Mummy Wrapple Pops.  A slice of green apple, mummy-wrapped with strips of pie crust that have been tossed in cinnamon and sugar.  They literally taste like little pieces of apple pie in your mouth.  Using raisins for eyes, this is definitely one of the more healthier Halloween treats out there, and delicious too.  

Much more cooking to do, but I wanted to share these ghoulish delights!  Happy Halloween!

Pear and Almond Crostata

What Would Brian Boitano Make?  To be brutally honest, I didn't really care until I tried his Pear and Almond Crostata.  I remember Brian Boitano the Olympic ice skater, the role model for the kids from South Park, but the chef?  I'm a convert.  I'm sure I'll be posting more of his recipes since there are several gems, but with pears in season right now, I thought this one was fitting.

I love rustic tarts and crostatas since you don't have to be perfect with rolling the dough.  My rolling pin may be close to my heart (it was my grandmother's) but a pastry chef, I am not.  To make things even easier, this crust is made from store bought almond paste. 

After rolling out a small portion of the flavorful paste to a thin pancake, a dollop of cream cheese filling (cream cheese, egg, vanilla extract, and a touch of flour and sugar) is spread around the center.  Then you take a quarter of a pear, cut it into 5 slices, and fan it on top of the filling.  To finish the package, wrap the edges of the almond paste around the filling.  Once the crostata is brushed with an egg wash and sprinkled with raw sugar, it bakes until it reaches a rich, golden brown shade, shimmering with sugar crystals.  I chose not to use all of the garnish that Brian called for (ice cream, almonds, mint), but I did opt for the scoop of cherry vanilla ice cream.  Now don't get me wrong, his show is laden with slapstick humor and quirky story-lines, but the recipes are great!  So the simple answer to "what would Brian Boitano make?"...really good stuff!

Dressed up Brownie Bites!

I was in a pinch and needed a quick treat to take to Ryan's school for his birthday celebration.  For the kids whose birthdays are in the summer, they set aside a special day to celebrate them during school.  I thought about bringing cookies or cupcakes, but then I would have to buy 2 containers to ensure one for each child (pricey!). My eyes wandered to the brownie bites, most likely since I personally love them, but it was also the perfect amount in one package.  The only problem is that they looked a bit boring, for kids at least.

I thought about what I had at home - sprinkles.  What child doesn't love sprinkles?  I made my way over to the baking goods aisle and picked up an "easy cheese" bottle of priced-to-sell yellow frosting.  Ryan probably would have preferred red frosting, but for some reason the yellow was reduced to move stock.  Don't worry, I checked for an expiration date, but couldn't find one - that must mean it's still safe.

I was also tempted to look in the snack aisle for a true bottle of sharp cheddar easy cheese.  I may be a foodie, but there are some strange processed foods that I enjoy!  The great thing about these containers of frosting is that they come with 4 tips to create some fun shapes and patterns.  If I was talented, I may have used more than one tip, but alas, that didn't happen.  Ryan helped me squirt the frosting, shake the sprinkles, and then handed them out proudly to his friends at school today.  It was a success and an easy one at that!

Rustic Apple Oven Cake

I'm in awe. I don't even know where to begin with this one. The ease of this dish combined with it's rustic presentation, airiness, and not-too-sweet flavor make for a beautiful dessert or elegant breakfast.  This was literally one of the quickest desserts I had ever made and just recently again, I made it for breakfast.  The other beauty of it is that you most likely have all of the staple ingredients on hand!  Definitely a keeper and one that I do repeatedly.  

You begin this simple dish by combining brown sugar and cinnamon in a cast iron skillet with melted butter.  Next add 1 peeled, cored, sliced apple to the sultry brown mixture and saute the apples for a few minutes, letting them coat themselves in the syrupy goodness.

As they are sizzle on the stove, throw the rest of the ingredients (eggs, flour, milk, salt) in a blender to combine.  Pour the batter over the apples and put the skillet into the oven until the pancake-like dessert is puffed up and browned.  Top with a dusting of powdered sugar and a squeeze of fresh lemon.  It is simply divine, and yet ridiculously simple.  Apple Oven Cake - a must for any apple lover!

  

Celebration of Beer Week (Part 2 of 2) - Blind Lady Ale House ( BLAH)

Both our second and third (and final) outing during SDBW consisted of visiting the Blind Lady Ale House (BLAH).  On our first evening, we mistakenly arrived too late (about 30 min after they opened) and there was a line outside to get in!  Unbelievable, but we were more than happy to wait our turn since we were so pleased with how well SDBW was working out!  The event this evening was the North Coast Flight Tasting & Keeper-Pint.  Mark started off with a pint of the cask-conditioned Red Seal Ale until we commandeered the perfect barrel with which to rest our flight and a generous bowl of marinated olives.  The flight consisted of six-5oz beers, served side-by-side (right to left):

• Scrimshaw Pilsner
• Red Seal Ale
  
• Pranqster Belgian Golden Strong Ale
• Brother Thelonious Belgian Abbey Ale
• Le Merle Saison
• Old Rasputin Imperial Stout

That night, we kept our visit short, knowing that we would be back the following day for Chimay Keeper-Goblet, Chimay Cheese & Food Pairing by Chef Aaron Lamonica.  Since we had a heads up about the seating situation, the second evening we arrived about 30 minutes before the BLAH opened.  Mark, Ryan, and I patiently waited in line for what we hoped would be an enjoyable evening of wonderful cuisine and flavorful beer.  We were not disappointed! 

Once inside, Mark waited in the beer line for our first Chimay with our "keeper" Chimay glass.  Ryan and I nestled into our corner table and played a game of Go Fish.  Wanting to include Ryan as much as possible in this beer event, Mark ordered him a root-beer.  With a glass "beer" bottle in hand, Ryan looked like a pro.  Wait...maybe that's not a good thing??!!

Our 3-course Chimay beer pairing dinner began with a substantial piece of grilled swordfish, accompanied by brussels sprouts, bacon, potato parsnip puree, and a salsa verde that was to die for.  Personally, I wouldn't have named it salsa verde since it had so much more going on than the name "salsa verde" denotes.  I wish I knew the ingredients, but what came through to me (and this is simply my best guess) were the flavors of cilantro, parsley, and shallots seasoned with a beautiful vinaigrette.  The fish was served with the Chimay White.

The second dish was a comforting, yet exotic cassoulet made of shell beans, cotechino sausage, short rib, and duck confit, all cooked and paired with Chimay Red.  I wish this dish was served with a wedge of french bread to soak up the wonderful broth.  In case you didn't know, it seems that duck confit can induce a food coma as well...

Still with 1 more course and a cheese plate on it's way, we also decided to order one of BLAH's famous gourmet pizzas.  Just in case we needed more food.  Actually, we only ordered 1 portion of the Chimay food and beer pairing and shared it amongst the three of us.  Of course I had to explain that a bit so it didn't seem like we were total pigs! 




We've tried a few BLAH pizzas already, so we went with a new one - the Bianca al Prosciutto - prosciutto di parma, olive oil, garlic, mozzarella.  Simple, good garlic flavor, but wasn't one of our favorites from their menu.

Our last indulgence for the evening was the dessert course.  Earlier during beer week at the Karl Strauss dinner, I had a phenomenal beer n bananas foster dessert accompanied by their bourbon barrel-aged trippel.  It definitely changed my mind about they ability to pair the correct beer with a dessert, but the feeling wasn't truly confirmed until this experience.  I thought maybe it was a fluke, but now I know if it is done well, it can be harmonious.  

This dessert was Chimay Grand Reserve Pudding paired with Chimay Grand Reserve.  The spiced pudding was topped with cream and gingersnaps.  Upon taking a bite of this pudding and following it with a sip of the Grand Reserve, it tasted like the perfect old-fashioned, soda fountain root-beer float.  I've never tried so hard to convince Ryan to try some beer, but I wanted him to experience this pairing since I knew it would instantly remind him of something he loves!  The kid is adamant that he does not like beer, so I guess it is best to leave it at that for now.  Thank you, BLAH, for some wonderful food, Chimay beer, and for making me a firm believer in dessert and beer pairings.  Perfecto!