Memorial Day with Bourbon Peach Cobbler

Nothing says Memorial Day like good friends, a hot day at the pool, and a box of driveway fireworks.  We had tired kids and since I was partaking in the fun, the day called for quick, easy, and classic food.

Hotdogs and hamburgers were out since I was sure everyone had or would have their fill of them this weekend.  My friend suggested ordering pizza.  Sam's Club sells dough by the case for a mere $16 and change, and I always have these on hand in the freezer.  I figured by the time we pay for delivery and wait, I can whip up 2 pizzas at home.  Of course, cheese for kids and Barbeque Chicken pizza for adults.  Both were gone by the end of the night.

Since it is strawberry season I bought some strawberries and made retro strawberry shortcakes.  If your my age I am sure you had some of these growing up.  Store bought dessert cakes, mascerated strawberries and whipped cream.

My daughter with her Strawberry Shortcake

The dessert for the adults was a Tyler Florence, Bourbon Peach Cobbler.  Tyler is from the South so I knew he probably grew up eating something like this, of course, elevated to his "ultimate" reputation.  This recipe is a cinch and can be made right in your cast iron skillet.  My peaches from our local farmer's market were small so I felt I didn't quite have enough peach.  I would recommend 8 large peaches or 12 small.  The bourbon flavor is light and just gives the peaches a bit of a lift. It is not overly alcohol-flavored so I would feel comfortable serving this to anyone.  The sweet biscuit dough is heavenly.  It was soft, crunchy, creamy...can you tell I am a texture girl.  Last but not least, warm cobbler begs to be topped with a scoop or 2 of vanilla ice cream.

The day felt like a classic summer adventure; exhausted kids that smell like sunscreen, adults with cold beer and good food in everyone's bellies. 

Thank you Dad, Pap, Grammie and all our Vets!  Happy Memorial Day!

Surprise Hit

It was a lazy Sunday morning, daddy was on the links and the kids were looking for something sweet.  Donuts were on their mind and I wasn't interested in getting everyone dressed for a morning run to Dunkin' Donuts.  There were 3 very ripe bananas on my counter and I remembered a recipe for Banana-Cream Cheese Breakfast Cakes. 

The Kitchen Aid came out and the kids and I went to work.  This was a quick and easy recipe, my only complaint was I had to clean my mixing bowl a couple of times and had a few too many bowls.  The recipe said that it makes 12 muffins but I found that I had batter for 24.  It is critical that you don't overfill the muffin tin with batter.  I have a tendency to do this to make sure I use every last bit, but please take my advice: practice restraint!  The cream cheese mousse is delicious, but I found it did not penetrate all the way into the middle of the muffin.  It sat a bit on top, sort of like a black bottom cupcake.  Next time I might try to cook the batter a bit before piping the mousse to see if I can get a little deeper into the muffin.

The recipe is pretty cut and dry. I pulled these babies out and I thought 'Eh, they are ok'.  My kids ate them up.  These muffins are something I would definitely make a day ahead since they ended up tasting better the next day.  I was truly surprised at how good they tasted for how nondescript they appeared.  These little gems are wonderful and worth every bit of the extra washing at the sink.

Angry Shrimp

Harris Teeter had a wonderful sale - buy 2 bags of 21-30 count shrimp get 3 free.  My freezer is stocked with 10 lbs. of shrimp, so I went searching for something creative and light.  I stumbled upon Angry Shrimp with Citrus/Spinach Salad created by Michael Chiarello. Michael is an amazing chef, famous for his do-ahead menus and wow factor presentations. I have two young children, ages 5 and 2, so something that I can prepare in stages is always desirable. We don’t eat out much so I like to try to create restaurant quality meals at home.

First I segmented the fruit, which I find kind of fun!   It is difficult at first, but practice is the only way to get better.  Once you master the “supreme” technique, the fruit looks so pretty and tastes so great with all the bitterness of the pith removed.  While you are working with the citrus you are already creating the base of your vinaigrette: the juice. Talk about a 2-for-1!  Just add salt, pepper and olive oil and voila!

By far the star of the dish is the shrimp.  My husband went crazy; he said it was the best he has ever had.  It is so easy, such a light dredge and a quick pan fry…perfection.  The shrimp could stand alone, and it was good hot or at room temp.  Leftovers could be used for a po’boy the next day.  My picky kids even liked it.  The salad is a homerun; it is a perfect balance of texture and has all the elements of flavor: sweet, sour and spicy.  We loved it and will serve it often. This is actually the second time I have made the dish.  The first time I added 2 jalapenos unseeded and it was super spicy, even for my husband who loves chiles.  This time around, we found that one seeded jalapeno produced the best heat level for us, and I recommend using as much basil as you can.  My herbs are still seedlings so I didn’t have a ton to work with but whatever you have will work.  This restaurant quality meal can be prepped ahead of time and quickly assembled for a wonderful spring or summer dinner.