Watermelon Summer Smoothies Recipe

Recently Safeway invited me to visit a watermelon grower, Perry & Sons. Safeway has been working with Perry & Sons for 60 years and wanted to put a draw attention to their commitment to local growers. I learned a lot about watermelon, enjoyed some lovely watermelon cuisine but to be honest, I was a little disappointed. The watermelon I took home was a seedless variety and it lacked the depth of flavor and sweetness of a seeded watermelon. It was good, just not as sweet as I would have liked. 

I tend to shy away from buying watermelon because it's such a big fruit. So what do you do with lots of watermelon? In addition to making wonderful salads, I discovered it's terrific for smoothies. The trick is adding another fruit to complement it. I tried cantaloup, banana and blueberries and each were wonderful. It makes sense since watermelon is so good in agua fresca. I bet just about any other summer fruit would be great with watermelon such as peaches or raspberries. And no yogurt or milk needed. Just fruit! 

Interestingly enough my favorite bite of watermelon served on the tour was a chunk of watermelon marinated in balsamic vinegar, it intensified the flavor and balanced the sweetness. If you've got a lot of watermelon on your hands, try it in savory dishes such as salsa, wrapped in prosciutto, in gazpacho with shrimp or in a ceviche. And you can whittle a watermelon down to almost nothing if you blend it up in a smoothie...

Watermelon Summer Smoothies

1 serving

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup diced chilled watermelon 

1/2 or more frozen fruit such as banana, blueberries, strawberries, etc. 

Instructions

Place the fruit in the blender and blend until smooth. Ok that's it! Nothing more to it. 

Enjoy! 

Disclaimer: I was a guest of Safeway and received a watermelon, I was not paid to write this or any other post on Cooking with Amy. 

Ginger Peach Preserves Recipe

I am happy to be a "canbassador" for SweetPreservation.com, a community site of the Northwest cherry growers and soft fruit growers of Washington state. They sent me a big box of juicy, sweet, ripe Country Sweet peaches which I agreed to preserve, of course. A post from Dorie Greenspan on Facebook about ginger, peach vanilla jam inspired me to create preserves with the same flavor combination. 

The difference between preserves and jam is sugar. Jam uses a lot of it and preserves use less. I like the flexibility of preserves. You can use preserves in place of jam but you can also use preserves in recipes or as a dessert topping. It's particularly good mixed with plain yogurt. The ginger and vanilla complement the tangy sweet flavor of peaches. I used a combination of fresh ginger and candied ginger, something I found in a ginger peach jam recipe. The ginger is very subtle, you just get a hint of it towards the end of each bite. 

SweetPreservation is a good starting point for canning and preserving. It offers how-to and safety basics, downloadable labels, gift ideas, instructions for throwing an at-home canning party as well as the health benefits of canning. Just so you know, I don't have a canner, funnel or jar lifter. I used a big pot that holds 12 half pint jars, a small plastic scoop instead of a funnel and regular tongs instead of a jar lifter. So give canning a try! You don't need special equipment (or mad DIY skills).

More peach preserving ideas at Punk Domestics. 

Since we're on the subject of peaches, and how you should make the most of them while you can, I highly recommend, The Perfect Peach by Marcy Nikiko and David "Mas" Masumoto, a great book of recipes and stories. 

It's the book for peach lovers, since the Masumoto family lives and breathes peaches and has explored every way and shape of using them.  I've been inspired by the soups, salsas and salads already this season and I know you will be too. 

Ginger Peach Preserves with Vanilla

Makes 12 half pint jars, plus a little more, so fill another jar to keep in the fridge

Ingredients

12 cups peeled, pitted and chopped peaches

1/4 cup minced candied ginger

1 Tablespoon microplaned fresh ginger

2 large vanilla beans or more if small or skinny

2 1/2 cups sugar or more to taste

1/3 cup no/low sugar needed pectin

Instructions

Set up your space for canning. I put out towels and paper towels for cleaning and drying the lids and tops of the jars. Sterilize the jars and lids and put a spoon in the freezer.  Put the peaches and any juice in a large pot (at least 5 quarts) Slice open the vanilla beans, strip out the seeds and add the seeds and pods to the pot along with the ginger. Bring to a boil then simmer and stir for about 10 minutes until the peaches are soft. Remove the pods. 

Whisk the pectin into a cup of sugar. Add the sugar and pectin and bring the preserves back to a boil. Taste it for sweetness and add more sugar as needed. Dip your frozen spoon into the preserves. Run your finger through it, if the path stays clear the preserves are done.

Fill each jar to the first thread so that there is 1/4 - 1/2 inch head room. Clean and dry the rim, place a dry top on and secure with a ring. Process (boil) the jars for 10 minutes then remove them and let them sit undisturbed until completely cool, 12 hours minimum. Test to make sure they are properly sealed and you are good to go. 

Enjoy! 

Sea Urchin Spaghetti Recipe

Sea urchin or uni is rich and creamy. It tastes very briny and yet sweet. Emulsified with some extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice, it makes a wonderful sauce for pasta. The type of pasta you use is up to you of course, but isn't it gorgeous on squid ink pasta? I love the look and flavor of squid ink pasta. It's such a treat! I got mine from Mattarello, a fresh pasta company run by John Pauley and his wife Anna.

I was a fan of John's pasta back when he was still cooking at Rex Cafe around the corner from my house. Now he sells his pasta at pop ups, generally at either Gourmet and More on Franklin or Biondivino wine shop on Green Street. His squid ink pasta is so good you can enjoy it with just a simple olive oil, garlic and white wine sauce with a little bit of chili flakes or parsley. He also sells lasagna, tortellini and some different shapes and styles of pasta, all made by hand.

This pasta is really a showstopper. I'd recommend serving it for a special occasion or dinner party. I adapted the recipe from one by Sara Jenkins I found in La Cucina Italiana, "spaghetti ai ricci di mare" but I simplified it a bit and didn't use any garlic.

Note: Another option is to make the sauce and top the pasta with another type of seafood instead of just more sea urchin. It's delicious with sautéed scallops or shrimp.

Sea Urchin Spaghetti
Serves 4 as a starter or 2 as a main course

Ingredients

About 4 ounces fresh sea urchin, divided
2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 pound fresh pasta preferably squid ink spaghetti
2 Tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 Tablespoon finely chopped chives

Instructions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Combine 2 1/2  ounces sea urchin and lemon juice in the blender, purée until smooth. With blender running, add oil in a slow and steady stream until you have a thick emulsified sauce, the texture of mayonnaise. Transfer the sauce and parsley to a large bowl.

Cook pasta until just al dente. Drain and place in the bowl with sauce and parsley, and toss together. Let pasta sit just until it absorbs some of the sauce, about 1 minute, then season with salt to taste. Portion pasta onto serving plates. Top with remaining uni and garnish with chives.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: My thanks to Whole Foods for providing a sample of sea urchin for this recipe. 

Smoky Tomato Soup Recipe

It's easy to get so caught up in the idea of eating seasonally that we forget that there are certain things that aren't necessarily seasonal, for example vegetables grown in hothouses or greenhouses like Belgian endive, cucumbers and mushrooms, also preserved produce--jams, pickles, chutney, frozen and canned foods. Which brings me to canned tomatoes, which are a great choice for recipes since fresh tomatoes are in season for a fairly short period of time.

While I wouldn't use a canned tomato on a sandwich, they are a must for most tomato based sauces. Lately I've come to appreciate canned fire roasted tomatoes for their lovely smoky flavor. They are great in stew or chili and a sneaky shortcut when making this zippy soup. A nice option in this shoulder season when somedays still feel like Winter, it's something you can make from pantry staples--a few aromatics, cans of tomatoes and broth. Having tried many brands of fire roasted tomatoes, I like Hunt's best and while I prefer homemade, Swanson's is the only canned chicken broth I use.

Another little trick in this soup is the addition of cream cheese. I don't typically keep heavy cream on hand so I am always looking for other ingredients to add creaminess to recipes. In this case a tiny bit of cream cheese adds a lot of richness. But in all honesty this soup is really wonderful even without it.


Smoky Tomato Soup
Serves 4-6

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 medium carrot, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

2 14.5 ounce cans fire roasted tomatoes
2 14.5 ounces chicken broth (or homemade)
2 Tablespoons cream cheese, optional

Instructions

Heat a soup pot over medium heat. Add the oil, onions and carrots and cook, stirring frequently for 8 minutes or until soft and golden, but not brown. Add the garlic and cook another minute. Add the smoked paprika and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes and broth and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 30 minutes, or until fairly thick and saucy.

Add the cream cheese if desired. Blend the soup in batches or use a hand blender. When the soup is smooth, it's ready to serve.

Enjoy!

Easy Almond Cookies Recipe

This is the easiest almond cookie recipe ever. And I bet you could use an easy cookie recipe about now. It requires only a few ingredients and you prepare the dough in the food processor so making them takes maybe 10 minutes and there's barely any clean up. They are a variation of almond macaroons, rich and chewy with just a little crunch from the almond on top. The secret is a hint of almond extract, and to really processing the ingredients until they make a very easy to work with dough.

I was recently sent some almonds from the Almond Board and I was looking for a good way to use them. There are lots of similar recipes to this one, but the comments on Epicurious led me to make a crucial change in the recipe. I cut the sugar in half. I also made slightly larger cookies than the recipe calls for and skipped dusting them in confectioners sugar. It might seem odd to add almond extract to almond cookies, but without it they can be a little bland. Because they are such dense little bites, they won't crumble making them good for travel or shipping. They are gluten free and have no added oil or butter.

While no one eats cookies for health purposes, these are pretty healthy. Lots of research has been done on almonds and they are a true nutritional powerhouse very high in manganese, vitamin E and magnesium and eating them lowers cholesterol and reduces the risk of heart attack. So eat them in good health!

Easy Almond Cookies
Makes 14 cookies, but recipe can easily be multiplied
adapted from a recipe published in Gourmet magazine, 1997

Ingredients

1 cup blanched almonds, whole or slivered
1/3 cup sugar
Pinch salt
1 egg white
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
14 whole almonds

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a food processor combine the almonds, sugar and salt. Process until very finely ground. Add the egg white and almond extract and pulse until the dough comes together. Roll the dough into 14 evenly sized balls, and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Press one almond into the center of each cookie, pressing down slightly.

Bake for 10 minutes or until just starting to show a hint of gold. Let cookies cool on the pan, then transfer to an airtight container.

Enjoy!

Banana Nut Oat Muffins Recipe

These Banana Nut Oat muffins are some of the best muffins I've ever made.I got out of the habit of baking when my stove was replaced. I use my bread machine and my Breville Smart Oven but it's too small for many things. Fortunately I have a muffin pan that makes 6 muffins that fits in it perfectly. And you know what? Making 6 muffins is much better than making a dozen! 

Muffins, like cupcakes are really good when they're fresh, but they get dry and stale quickly. So making smaller batches more frequently makes good sense. These muffins use lots of healthy ingredients like oatmeal, oat bran, bananas, walnuts and a little bit of olive oil so you can feel good about eating them. I used extra virgin olive oil because it's what I have on hand but you could use any olive oil you like. Olive oil is great for baking, especially in muffins and quick breads. The muffins are moist, with a little crunch from the nuts, a little chew from the oats, and have that buttery texture that comes from using bran, perfect to take when you're running out the door.

I adapted this recipe adding oat bran, increasing the amount of nuts and swapping out olive oil for melted butter but I'm not sure where the original recipe came from. It might seem like a lot of ingredients, but it comes together very quickly. The reason I used rolled oats, oat bran, bananas and walnuts is because they all contain magnesium. Many people are deficient in magnesium, over half the population in California according USDA research. But the combination is also really delicious, even if you don't need more magnesium in your diet. Just about everyone (unless those with nut allergies) can benefit from more nuts in their diet. Walnuts in particular have amazing heart healthy benefits.

Do you have a favorite walnut recipe? You could win fabulous prizes if your family recipe is chosen in the Gift of Gather contest. 

Banana Nut Oat Muffins

Makes 6 large muffins

Ingredients

2/3 cup all purpose flour

1/3 cup oat bran

1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats

1/3 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

3/4 cup mashed very ripe bananas (the skins should be brown)

1 egg

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil 

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, oat bran, oatmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. In another bowl, mix together the mashed bananas, eggs, oil and vanilla. Add the banana mixture and walnuts to the flour mixture, stirring with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon just until the dry ingredients are moistened. Do not over mix. 

Spoon batter into a well greased or paper-lined muffin pan (grese the top of the pan to make removing the muffins easier). Bake for about 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center muffin comes out clean. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove muffins from the pan and let cool completely or better yet, eat warm.

Enjoy!

Hot Chocolate Cookies Recipe

The drinks and dishes I tried on my trip to Avery Island inspired me to think about Tabasco in new ways. Of course you can use it in things like in guacamole or in a bloody mary, but how about something unexpected, for example, cookies?

I made François Payard Flourless Chocolate-Walnut Cookies twice during Passover this year and they were gobbled up so quickly that I didn't even get to snap a photo. After following the recipe closely, I decided to put my own twist on it. The cookies are mostly powdered sugar, cocoa powder and egg whites. They are crisp and crackly on the outside but moist and fudgy, almost like brownies on the inside. But perhaps not surprisingly, they are a bit sweet.

To temper the sweetness I added Tabasco and cacao nibs. The Tabasco gives just a hint of heat in the background. You'll barely notice it, but it definitely takes these cookies to the next level. While the toasted walnuts add crunch and a contrasting bitterness, unsweetened cacao nibs help to balance the sweetness even more. Though I wouldn't call these cookies spicy, they do remind me of hot chocolate. The original recipes calls for Dutch process cocoa, but I tested it with natural cocoa (Hershey's and Valrhona) and it worked fine. I make the cookies smaller than Payard does because I'd rather have two cookies than one, but feel free to make them whatever size you like best. You can also make a half batch.

Hot Chocolate Cookies (adapted from François Payard)
makes about 40

Ingredients

2 cups walnut halves
3 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/2 cup + 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (Dutch-process or natural)

1/4 teaspoon salt

4 egg whites
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons Tabasco sauce

2/3 cup cacao nibs


Instructions

Preheat oven to 320 degrees. Chop the walnut roughly, place on a parchment lined, rimmed baking sheet and toast in the oven for 7-10 minutes, just until they are golden and fragrant. Let walnuts cool slightly. In a large bowl, whisk the confectioners’ sugar with the cocoa powder and salt. Add the egg whites, vanilla and Tabasco and stir just until the batter is moistened (do not overbeat). Fold in the walnuts and cacao nibs using a spatula. Spoon a heaping teaspoon of batter onto the baking sheets (or make them as large as a tablespoon if you prefer) and bake for 15 minutes, until the tops are glossy and lightly cracked. Let cookies cool then peel off the parchment paper.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I created this recipe on behalf of Tabasco and I was compensated for it. The choice to post it here, was my own.