Polenta Squares With Tomato Sauce

This is a great application for the tomato sauce I made last week and really, just a great trick to have on hand for making appetizers. You can top these polenta squares with any savory sauce, salad or meat to make great snacks or perfect finger food for a party.

Polenta Squares

4 cups veggie stock

1 1/2 cups cornmeal

1 t salt

Bring stock to a boil and add cornmeal in a slow, steady stream, whisking the stock all the while you add the cornmeal. Continue until all the cornmeal has been absorbed. This slow pour is worth it. If you add all of the cornmeal at once, it's a surefire way to get lumpy polenta. Once the cornmeal has been absorbed, pour mixture into a 9 x 13 baking dish and let cool. Place in the refrigerator to finish firming up. Once firm, slice polenta into 1 1/2 inch squares and add topping of your choice. Enjoy!

Vanilla Scented Marshmallows

Store-bought marshmallows don't even compare to the airy, delicate, delicious marshmallows that melt away in your mouth when you make them at home. If you have a stand mixer, it's really simple, not to mention that there is an almost limitless number of flavorings and add-ins that you can experiment with. I made these with just a touch of vanilla, but use whatever flavoring you want.

Vanilla Scented Marshmallows

Makes one half-sheet pan of thin marshmallows (use 9 x 13 pan for thicker marshmallows)

1 oz gelatin (4 Knox packets)

1/2 cup water

1 cup sugar

1 cup light corn syrup

1/4 cup vanilla bean paste

3/4 cup powdered sugar

Spray down the bowl of your stand mixer and the paddle attachment with cooking spray (you'll thank me later). Add water and gelatin to the bowl of the stand mixer to bloom. Stir sugar and corn syrup together in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Allow the sugar and corn syrup to come to a simmer and simmer over medium heat for 3 - 4 minutes. Turn stand mixer on to a medium speed and drizzle the hot sugar mixture into the bowl. When it looks like the sugar is coming together with the gelatin and the danger of hot sugar splashing out the sides of the bowl has passed, turn the mixer up to high and let it go until white fluffy marshmallow forms (10 + minutes). Dust your pan with powdered sugar and pour marshmallow into pan and smooth out to form a relatively flat service. Dust the top with more powdered sugar and let sit at room temperature for 30 - 60 minutes until set. Cut into cubes and dust with more sugar to take care of any stickiness on the cut edges. Enjoy!

Orzo Salad

When we were growing up, my mom would make pasta salads for us as a light dinner. She recently reminded me of the special ingredient in the dressing that I was leaving out. Horseradish. I made it again, using horseradish this time, and it made all the difference in the world. You can use any combination of vegetables you like in this.

Orzo Salad

Serves 4

1 cup orzo

1 cup corn

4 scallions, sliced

2 cups cherry tomatoes, quartered

1/2 cup mayonnaise

2 T horseradish

1 T lemon juice

1/4 t salt

Cook orzo in boiling water for nine minutes. Drain and rinse in cold water to stop cooking. In a small bowl, mix together mayonnaise, horseradish, lemon juice and salt. Add dressing, scallions, corn and tomatoes to orzo and mix well. Chill for an hour before serving.

Halloumi Salad

This is my favorite application for Halloumi, a cheese that holds it shape when grilled. Use any vegetables that you like. I've used Oven Dried Tomatoes and artichoke hearts with a simple lemon dressing.

Halloumi Salad

Serves 2

1 8 oz package Halloumi, sliced into four pieces

1 T canola oil

1 recipe Oven Dried Tomatoes

1 cup artichoke hearts, drained if packed in water or oil

2 T olive oil

2 T lemon juice

salt

1 t dried oregano

Whisk oil and lemon juice together until mixture begins to emulsify. Mix a pinch of salt and oregano into dressing and set aside. Heat canola oil in a grill pan over medium heat. Add Halloumi slices to grill pan and grill for about two minutes on each side until starting to brown.  Place two slices of Halloumi on each plate and top with half of the artichoke hearts and tomatoes. Drizzle with dressing and enjoy!

Frozen Yogurt

Frozen Yogurt at home is really simple with a tub of Fage and an ice cream maker on hand. I dump a full container of Fage into a mixing bowl with a 1/2 cup of sugar and blend well so all of the sugar dissolves. Add the sugar and yogurt mixture to the ice cream maker and freeze according to instructions. Most ice cream makers can handle a doubling of this recipe if you want to make a larger amount, which might not be a bad idea. The tartness and sweetness of this frozen yogurt is irresistible. Enjoy!

Fresh Tomato Sauce

This could almost be considered a tomato salsa or bruschetta topping, but it's how I like to use up tomatoes that I brought in from the garden a few days ago that are getting to the almost too ripe state. You can toss this with some pasta, throw it on toasted bread or my favorite, simply eat it straight with a spoon.

Fresh Tomato Sauce

4 - 6 tomatoes (however many you're trying to use up)

1 clove crushed garlic

1/4 t salt

2 T olive oil

4 basil leaves

Roughly chop the tomatoes and place in a bowl with garlic, salt and olive oil. Place the basil leaves on top of one another and roll up. Slice rolled basil to form thin ribbons and add to the sauce. Mix everything together and enjoy!

German Pancake

This is a great quick breakfast that I like to make when I'm out of bacon and sausage or any of the other boyfriend breakfast staples. This seems to keep him happy in the absence of cured meat.

German Pancake

Adapted from The Joy of Cooking

Serves 4 or 1 - 2 boyfriends

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup sugar

1 egg

pinch of salt

4 T butter

Whisk milk and egg together and mix with flour, sugar and salt (do not over mix). Melt butter in a large (10 - 12") cast iron pan over medium heat. Add batter to pan and let cook one minute on the stove top before placing in the oven. Cook in the oven 15 - 20 minutes. When finished cooking, dust with powdered sugar and serve immediately in the pan as the pancake will deflate very quickly. Enjoy!

Blueberry Tart

I wasn't planning on making a blueberry tart, but when I went to my local market, they were selling two pounds of blueberries for six dollars. Who can pass that up? A good tart dough recipe is key to a good tart and I think I've found a good one from Once Upon A Tart, a great cookbook from the bakery in New York. In most cases, I like to fully bake the tart shell so I can make the filling on the stove top and add it to the crust as the final step.

Blueberry Tart Filling

6 cups blueberries divided

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup sugar

Add 3 cups blueberries, sugar and water to a medium saucepan and simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. The blueberries will begin to break down and the mixture will turn into a wonderful, syrupy blueberry mess. After about 15 minutes, remove from heat and let cool. Place filling into fully baked tart crust (recipe to follow) and top with remaining blueberries in concentric circles. Melt jam in a saucepan on the stove and brush jam over blueberries. Chill until ready to serve.

Tart Crust

Adapted from Once Upon A Tart

Makes two tart crusts (freeze the second for your next tart)

2 1/2 cups flour

1 T sugar

1 t salt

3/4 cup butter cold, sliced into 1/4 inch pads

5 T shortening

3 - 6 T ice water

Add flour, sugar and salt to a food processor fitted with the metal blade and pulse once or twice to make sure it's well mixed. Add butter and shortening and pulse until small balls start to form within the dough. Dump mixture into a large mixing bowl and sprinkle with 3 T ice water. Use a wooden spoon to pull half the dough together into a ball, adding additional Ts of water one at a time until the dough comes together. Repeat with remaining half dough. you can use your hands in place of the spoon, but the heat from your hand may cause the butter in the dough to melt which is a big no no when making tart crust. Pat each ball into a small disc, wrap with plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400*

Remove one dough disc from the fridge and roll out to an 11 inch circle. I slide the removable bottom from the tart pan under the dough to help transfer it to the tart pan. Shape the dough to fit the pan and cut off extra dough. Fit a piece of aluminum foil to the dough and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake in oven for 10 minutes then remove foil and pie weights. Continuing baking for 15 more minutes until the crust is golden. Let cool and then fill with desired topping.