ROASTED or GRILLED SALMON WITH CARAMELIZED ONIONS AND FIGS

My husband was waxing nostalgic recently, after I mentioned that our local Harris Teeter had fresh figs. He told me about his uncle, who had a fig tree in Trenton, New Jersey; and how he enjoyed eating the fresh figs from his uncle's tree.

So I bought him some figs. And he kept forgetting to eat them. So I salvaged the figs with this recipe and some nice wild-caught salmon.

I felt like I was eating at a 5-star restaurant with this entree. The sweetness of the caramelized onions
and the delicate figs with the herbs and wine -- voila, magnifique! After I finished, I thanked my hubby for not eating his figs.

Really, try this recipe...it's wonderful...and this is one for which you need no special equipment. You can grill the salmon as I did, or you can roast it in a 450F oven for 7-10 minutes, till it's medium-rare. And if you have leftover salmon, it makes great sandwiches; or use it as a salad topping.

This would also make a nice company dish because it's special. It's not much work. The hardest part is waiting for the onions to caramelize. You can't rush them or they won't develop that sweetness that makes them so special. But if you have some patience, you will be amply rewarded.

----Roasted or Grilled Salmon With Caramelized Onions and Figs
(Recipe #103255, recipezaar)
(Rating: 9 out of 10)
INGREDIENTS: 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
4 cups peeled, halved and thinly sliced Vidalia onion
Sea salt, to taste
8 fresh figs, washed, stemmed, cut in half
1/2 cup drinking quality dry white wine
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh rosemary
fresh ground black pepper
1-1/3 lb. salmon fillet, skinned, cut into 4 portions
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

Heat oil in bottom of large, heavy skillet or saute pan. Add onions and sprinkle with 1/2 tsp. salt. Cover and cook over medium-low-heat, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft,about 10 minutes. Remove cover and cook, stirring often, until onions are golden, 20-25 minutes.

Stir in figs, wine, broth, vinegar and fresh rosemary. Increase heat to high
and simmer until sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. (My sauce never thickened.)
Adjust seasonings, adding more saltand/or pepper as needed. Keep the fig sauce warm. Cook salmon, either in the oven or on a charcoal grill, cooking only till rare and seasoning the salmon only with sea salt and pepper. Serve the salmon over the fig sauce and sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley. Serves 4

BON APPETIT'S BLUEBERRY SOUR CREAM PIE, ADAPTED

Right now, blueberries abound in Eastern North Carolina. While I like to buy local produce, when our Harris Teeter offered New Jersey blueberries as a buy one-get one sale, I couldn't resist. After all, I spent 20 years of my life in New Jersey, the Garden State, and even had my own blueberry bushes. (BTW, is it my imagination, or are the New Jersey blueberries bigger and sweeter? They look bigger and they taste sweeter to me.) We had company for dinner earlier this week, and that was all the excuse I needed to bake up a blueberry pie. The recipe I worked from was published by Bon Appetit in their June 1995 issue. You can see the original version on epicurious. This pie was delicious! The sour cream filling tones down the tartness of the blueberries; but when you serve it with creme fraiche instead of ice cream or whipped cream, the tartness comes back. I'm rating this a 9 out of 10, a definite keeper.

Bon Appetit's Blueberry Sour Cream Pie, adapted

Rating: 9 out of 10

CRUST: Use your favorite pie crust recipe, store-bought crust, or check out my favorite pie crust recipe.

FILLING: 1 cup lite sour cream

3/4 cup sugar

1 Tbsp. cornstarch

1 egg, beaten

3/4 tsp. almond extract

1 Tbsp. almond liqueur

1/4 tsp. sea salt

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

5 cups fresh blueberries + 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour

TOPPING: 1/3 cup whole wheat flour

1/3 cup oats

3 Tbsp. brown sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, cold, cut in chunks

1/3 cup sliced almonds

GARNISH: 1-1/2 cup blueberries

8-12 oz. creme fraiche

1 tsp. cinnamon

Make pie crust according to recipe or package directions. Preheat oven to 400F. Position oven rack in bottom third of oven and place a pizza stone on the rack.

Roll out pie dough on floured surface to 13-inch round. Transfer to a 9" glass pie plate. Trim edge to 1/2" overhang. Fold and crimp edge. Set aside.

Whisk all filling ingredients except blueberries till smooth and well combined. Gently mix in blueberries. Spoon into crust. Place on pizza stone; bake 25 minutes. Sprinkle topping (see directions below) over pie. Bake an additional 20 minutes, or till filling is set and bubbling. Cool pie on wire rack for at least 4 hours before cutting. Garnish each slice with a dollop of creme fraiche, a sprinkle of cinnamon and some fresh blueberries. Yummmm.

Topping: In work bowl of food processor, combine all ingredients except almonds. Pulse till mixture is like cornmeal. Add almonds and just pulse briefly to combine. (Or if you don't have a food processor, then combine all ingredients except almonds in a medium bowl. Cut the butter in with a pastry blender or two knifes until the mixture resembles cornmeal. Add the almonds and crunch them slightly with the knives or pastry blender to combine.)

ROASTED SQUASH SOUP

Better Homes and Gardens printed this recipe in its November 2007 issue. I know it's July and it's hot, and this soup is really for the fall. But I have about 10 home-frozen packs of squash in my freezer, and I was in the mood for hot soup. This makes up very quickly if you have the squash frozen as I did. (I buy butternut squash when it's plentiful and cheap; I roast it in the oven, scoop out the roasted flesh and package it in 1 cup containers for the freezer.) The soup is on the thick side; it's smooth and creamy and delicious! Instead of using heavy cream as the recipe called for, I subbed Land o'Lakes fat-free half and half. For the topping I used creme fraiche which IMHO worked with the soup flavor better than the heavy cream would have.

One last note: Buy whole nutmegs and grate them yourself. You won't believe the taste difference. Here's the recipe:

Roasted Squash Soup
2-1/2 lb. butternut or acorn squash or sugar pumpkin (I used butternut squash)
2 Tbsp. Smart Balance buttery spread or extra-virgin olive oil
1-1/2 cups coarsely chopped onion
6 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves removed and finely chopped; discard stems
1 small bay leaf
3-1/2 to 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 Tbsp. honey (optional) (I omitted the honey)
1/3 cup Land o'Lakes fat-free half and half
1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 cup creme fraiche for topping

If you are working from fresh, unroasted, squash, split them in half lengthwise. Preheat oven to 350F. With spoon, scrape out seeds and fibers from cavity. Season cut sides of squash with 1 tsp. salt; place flesh side down in lightly buttered baking dish or 15x10x1-inch baking pan lined with parchment paper. Add 1/2 cup water to baking pan. Bake 1 to 1-1/2 hours, until skin is browned and flesh is tender when pierced with knife. Remove from oven; let rest until cool enough to handle. Scoop out flesh; discard skin.

In large saucepan or dutch oven, heat Smart Balance over medium heat. Add onions, salt, bay leaf and thyme. Saute till onions are tender and translucent (do not allow them to color), about 10 minutes, reducing heat if necessary. Add squash. Cook 5 minutes, stirring often. Add broth; bring to simmer. Simmer, uncovered, 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. (Note: I covered the pot as the soup was thick enough and I didn't want it to reduce further.) Adjust seasonings. Remove bay leaf. Stir in honey, if using. Puree soup right in the pot with an immersion blender, or in batches in a blender or food processor. Reheat soup in pot, stirring in half and half and 1/4 tsp. nutmeg; heat through but do not boil. Adjust seasonings; add salt, pepper and honey as needed. Top each serving with a spoonful of creme fraiche and a sprinkling of nutmeg. Yield: 6 (1-cup) servings

PASTA-VEGGIE SALAD WITH LEMON-BASIL VINAIGRETTE

Here's a shot of my cookie tray for our neighborhood July 3 picnic, with 4 different kinds of cookies:

Even though there were tons of desserts at the party, these were cleaned out!

I also brought this delicious pasta salad --

Allrecipes.com has this great
pasta salad recipe from food columnist Pam Anderson. Working off Pam's recipe, I created this pasta salad for our July 3 picnic and loved the results. The salad has a lot of ingredients, especially with the vinaigrette, but it's worth the extra time and effort. Trouble is I made way too much. We had company for dinner last night and I served it again, this time with tomatoes chopped in it. Everyone loved it. I actually like it better with the tomatoes, and they add some color. The nice thing about Pam's recipe is that it's a template -- you get to pick your own ingredients. So I opted for mixing the pastas (slipping in some whole wheat penne that fussy Guy never picked up on) and using the veggies I was most interested in at the time. You get to pick your faves also. Let me know if you try this -- leave a comment at the end of any post.

Pasta-Veggie Salad with Lemon-Basil Vinaigrette
INGREDIENTS:
1 lb. pasta (I used 1/3 lb. spirals, 1/3 lb. penne, & 1/3 lb. whole wheat penne)
3 cups fresh broccoli flowerets
1-1/2 cups fresh sugar snap peas, strings removed
1-1/2 cups fresh sliced mushrooms
1-1/2 cups fresh chopped tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped, pitted olives
2-3 Tbsp. capers, drained
3 large green onions, finely sliced
1/2 cup fresh chopped parsley
1/4 cup fresh chopped basil
2 tsp. lemon zest
3/4 cup Parmesan cheese
Lemon-Basil Vinaigrette (see recipe below)

Cook pasta according to package directions, removing about 2 minutes before done. While pasta is cooking, lay out broccoli, snap peas and mushrooms on a large (13x17) baking pan or in the bottom of a very large mixing bowl or bottom of a dutch oven. Drain pasta and place over the veggies. Cover with a towel or plastic wrap for about 30 minutes to let the heat of the pasta very slightly "cook" the veggies. (The veggies won't really cook, but it'll be just enough to take the raw edge off. The mushrooms, however, will turn dark and "cook" more than the peas and broccoli.)In the meantime, prepare the vinaigrette (see recipe below). Transfer pasta and veggies to a large mixing bowl or dutch oven. Add all remaining ingredients, including vinaigrette, and toss to combine. If not serving right away, only add about 1/4 cup of vinaigrette; refrigerate; add remaining vinaigrette immediately before serving. Yield: probably about 16 servings, though Pam says 8 -- we're still eating it and it's already served 8.

Lemon-Basil Vinaigrette
INGREDIENTS:
2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp. minced fresh garlic
1 tsp. sea salt (or more, if preferred)
1/4 tsp. black pepper

1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Measure lemon juice, mustard, garlic, salt, pepper and basil into a small bowl.
Whisk lightly till combined. Slowly whisk in oil in a slow, steady stream to make an emulsified vinaigrette. You can also make this in a blender if you prefer, but put the basil in whole and only blend till it's chopped the way you want.

LOIS FRAGNITO'S BROCCOLI TOMATO SALAD

There was a lot of good food at our neighborhood picnic on Thursday. This is one of several broccoli dishes, all of which were excellent. Lois gave me the recipe, which is so easy, she didn't even have to write it down. The dressing is thin, something I really like about this dish, and the flavors go perfectly with the veggies. This one is a keeper.

Lois Fragnito's Broccoli Tomato Salad
1 head broccoli, cut into flowerets only
1 red onion, coarsely chopped
2 lbs. tomatoes of any kind, cut into serving pieces (or use grape tomatoes if you wish)
1 bottle Marzetti Blue Cheese dressing

Combine all ingredients. Chill. Yield: 8-10 servings

MORNING CALL'S #2 WINNING CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE RECIPE

Happy 4th of July! We had a wonderful neighborhood picnic celebration yesterday in the circle at the end of our street (see slideshow on the right side of this blog.) Today's recipe was part of our celebration.

The Morning Call newspaper of Allentown, PA, recently had a chocolate chip recipe contest, and published the five winning recipes. The #1 winning recipe looked interesting; it had Grape Nuts cereal as one of the ingredients. I would make it, but what would I do with the rest of the box of Grape Nuts? I don't eat Grape Nuts, though I used to.

The recipe posted here won second prize. It calls for York mini peppermint patties chips, but honestly I'd never even heard of them. They must not be widely distributed yet. So, unfortunately, I used plain chocolate chips, and I know that changed the outcome. The cookie, itself, is a soft but sturdy one, almost cakelike, and just very slightly crisp on the edges. There are no nuts in this one, and I am partial to nuts. Still, I liked these, even if they aren't my faves. I mean how can you go wrong with chocolate chip cookies? It's like there are no ugly brides and no bad chocolate chip cookie recipes. I added more chocolate chips than the recipe called for, and I mixed them, using part semi sweet, part milk chocolate, part Hershey's Special Dark. These went to the 3rd of July party and there weren't any left over, so I guess that speaks for itself.

Joanne Heller's Chocolate Chip Patties, adapted (half recipe)
Rating: 8 out of 10
INGREDIENTS:
3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup white sugar, preferably superfine
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 large egg + 1 large white, room temperature
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
2-1/8 cups all-purpose flour (I used 1 cup white whole wheat + 1-1/8 cups all purpose)
1-1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. sea salt
4 oz. milk chocolate morsels (2/3 cup)
4 oz. semisweet chocolate morsels (2/3 cup)
4 oz. Hershey's Special Dark morsels (2/3 cup)(or use the Peppermint Pattie chips if you can find them)

In large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugars. (I do this by hand using a wire whisk, but you can use a mixer if you prefer.) Add the egg, white, vanilla, and lemon juice and beat till smooth and well combined. (If you use a mixer, be sure to use low speed so you don't overheat the dough.) Stir in the flour, baking soda and salt just till combined and fold in the chips. Refrigerate the dough for 1/2 hour. (I left it in the fridge overnight.)

Preheat oven to 375F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Form the dough into
1 to 1-1/2" balls and flatten the balls to make a thick disc, using a damp juice glass bottom. (I dropped large tablespoonfuls of dough onto cookie sheet and left the dough mounded. I baked one batch at 375F and didn't like the results. For the remaining batches, I heated the oven to 375F, but as soon as I put the cookies in, I reduced the temp to 350F, simulating a commercial oven with decreasing temperature. These turned out better I thought. After a batch came out of the oven, I turned it back up to 375F, then reduced it to 350F again when the new batch went in.) Bake 10-12 minutes (depending on how large your cookies are). Use a toothpick inserted in center of cookie to test for doneness. When it returns with just a few crumbs on it, take the cookies out and let them cool in pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to finish cooling. These are best if you underbake them just slightly. Yield: 25 - 3" cookies

FROSTED LEMON COOKIES

Tomorrow is our neighborhood's annual July 3 picnic. We each bring what we're grilling plus a side dish or dessert to share. I'm bringing pasta salad and 4 different kinds of cookies. I've already made a peanut butter cookie and a chocolate chip cookie and I still have some Berger cookies in the freezer. The July issue of Southern Living had a Frosted Sugar-'n'-Spice Cookies recipe that caught my eye. Perfect, I thought....until I priced the red and blue sprinkles. No way, not with my new conservationist mode of baking/shopping.
So I improvised. I didn't rush out and buy the 5-sided star cookie cutter; instead I used my 6-sided star cutter. It was smaller, but did the job. Instead of making a spice cookie, I made a lemon cookie; instead of plain white frosting, I made lemon cream cheese frosting. I used up more of the self-rising flour and more of the box of True Lemon. These cookies are soft and cakey and very good. I ate two and wanted more. The brown sugar works well with the lemon. Even though they're not red, white and blue, I think these cookies will be a hit.

Frosted Lemon Cookies, adapted from Southern Living's Frosted Sugar-'n'-Spice Cookies, 1/2 recipe
Rating: 8 out of 10
INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup self-rising flour
1/4 tsp. baking soda
3 packets True Lemon (or 2 tsp. lemon juice)
3 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
3 oz. cream cheese, softened (I used 1-1/2 oz. fat-free + 1-1/2 oz. Neufchatell)
1/4 cup sugar (I used vanilla sugar)
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 egg yolk
1 tsp. orange zest
2 tsp. lemon zest
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Sift together first 4 ingredients in a bowl. In a medium-large bowl, whisk butter, cream cheese and sugars by hand till very smooth. (You can use electric mixer if you prefer; I just think it's easier to do cookies by hand.) Add egg yolk, zests and vanilla and whisk again till very smooth. Stir in flour mixture with spatula, mixing till just combined. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate 2-24 hours.

Preheat oven to 350F. Place dough on floured surface; roll to 1/4" thickness; cut with cookie cutter of choice. Place 1" apart on ungreased, parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake 8-10 minutes or till cookies are set and just beginning to brown around edges. Transfer to wire rack to cool completely before frosting. Yield: 26 cookies

Lemon-Cream Cheese Frosting
INGREDIENTS:
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
2 Tbsp. cream cheese, softened (I used half fat-free, half Neufchatel
good pinch of sea salt
2 packets True Lemon (or 2 tsp. lemon juice)
1/2 tsp. lemon zest
1-1/2 cups 10X sugar (confectioner's)
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 Tbsp. fat-free half and half (or more if needed to make a spreading consistency)

In small bowl, with electric mixer, whip butter, cream cheese, salt, True Lemon, lemon zest and 1/2 cup of 10X sugar on low speed till combined; then whip at medium speed till smooth and fluffy. Gradually add remaining 10X sugar, vanilla and half and half. Add more half and half, if needed, to make a frosting of spreading consistency. (I only used 1/2 Tbsp.)

When cookies are cool, spread a thin layer of frosting over the tops. Sprinkle with crushed nuts or sprinkles of choice. (If freezing: Air dry on racks for 1 hour before layering them in a container for the freezer. The frosting will harden just enough that you will be able to layer them.)