Lime and Vanilla Creme Brulee

Since I don't often like something super-sweet this dessert is perfect! The hint of lime in it really freshens it up leaving it sweet and fresh at the same time.

Lime and Vanilla Creme Brulee**

3 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup whole milk
zest from 3 limes
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped
7 large egg yolks
1 whole large egg
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Raw sugar - this is usually brown and is for caramelizing the top


1. Combine the heavy cream, milk, lime zest, vanilla bean, and vanilla bean seeds together in a large pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Once it begins to simmer remove it from the heat and let it sit for at least 30 minutes. The longer this sits, the stronger the flavors will be.
Preheat the oven to 350.
2. With a mixer, whisk together the egg yolks, whole egg, sugar, and salt until pale yellow and fluffy. 
3. Meanwhile, return the cream mixture to the stove and bring back to a simmer.
4. VERY slowly add the warm cream to the egg mixture. You want to make sure and do this in a slow steady stream so that you don't let the heat cook the eggs. 
5. Pour the liquid into your ramekins and place in a large baking dish. Add enough very hot water so that it comes about half way up the sides of the ramekins. Carefully place in the oven and bake for 40 minutes or until the sides are firm and the center still jiggles slightly. 
6. Remove ramekins from baking dish (with a pot holder!) and let them cool to room temperature. Then, chill them for about 4 hours (it can be longer than that).
7. To caramelize sprinkle with just enough raw sugar to coat the top of each creme brulee. Either place directly under a broiler on high heat or use a kitchen torch to melt the sugar. Enjoy!




** Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill Cookbook

Oyster Stew

My Grandpa (dad's dad) rarely cooked but when he did - it was awesome. This was one of my favorite nights - Oyster Stew. He always served it with homemade, toasted English muffin bread and I loved it! But, then again I was also that weird kid that could eat a whole can of smoked oysters with saltine crackers  by the time I was probably 5. One of my favorite memories of this was making it with hamburgers for the Ronzas and Daniels at the beach my freshman year of high school. I don't think it have ever tasted so good!

Oyster Stew                                     
 4 servings


4 tablespoons unsalted butter
16 ounces canned oysters - more if preferred
4 cups milk - as long as you aren't trying to go low-fat, I'd use whole milk. It'll be richer
Salt and pepper

1. Melt the butter in a large pot. Drain the oysters but save the liquid, setting it aside. Add the oysters to the butter and cook until they start to curl, about 4 minutes.
2. Meanwhile heat the milk with the oyster liquid and season with salt and pepper. Do not let this boil, just make sure that it is hot.
3. Once the oysters have started curling, slowly add the liquid to the oysters while stirring. Season with salt and pepper and serve hot with saltine crackers or toasted bread.

Creamy Loaded Potato Soup

It has rained for 5 days in a row now. I know that it's been step-one-foot-out-the-door-and-start-sweating hot but 5 days?! If Baxter doesn't get outside to run around soon, I will no longer have any bedroom dresser drawers. That's right, he's actually chewing the corners off of them. New ones have been ordered which means that the bedroom door will stay closed. Poor B$ (our stupid nickname for him which he will answer to as much as he does to Baxter).

Anyway, as Matt will be the first one to tell you if it is really cold, if one of us went to the dentist (thanks for that ritual mom), or it is rainy outside - we have soup.

Although the potato is my go-to soup, since I always have everything at my house, you can change it up with what you serve it with. Try sliders, chicken tenders with buffalo sauce on them, croutons, or even an arugula salad with a little Italian dressing. Since I cook the potatoes in chicken broth and add all the toppings of a baked potato, it's really flavorful and not your average potato soup!


Creamy Loaded Potato Soup
4 servings


4 russet or Idaho potatoes
4 cups chicken Broth, possibly more
5 slices of bacon
1/2 cup whipping cream (you can use any kind of milk but the thicker the milk, the creamier the soup)
1/4 cup cream cheese
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 cup sharp Cheddar Cheese, shredded - more to taste if you want
salt and pepper
Sour cream to garnish


1. Peel and cut all the potatoes and place in a large pot. Fill with enough chicken broth to fill up the pot about 3/4 of the way up the potatoes. Boil over high heat until they are fork tender. Once ready, DO NOT DRAIN! Just set it aside.


2. Meanwhile, pan-fry or broil the bacon until cooked through. I like mine really crunchy so that it doesn't get too soft in the soup. Chop into small pieces. I use my kitchen shears here because it's so much easier and neater than using a knife with the bent and curved slices.


3. Using a potato masher (or a fork) mash up the potatoes in the chicken broth that you cooked it in. Add the whipping cream and more chicken broth until you get it just a little bit more liquidy (let's pretend that is a word) than you want. Season with salt and pepper.


4. Stir in the cream cheese, cooked bacon crumbles, butter, and cheddar cheese until well combined. Add more of each ingredient to your liking. Reheat if needed and serve warm with a dollop of sour cream on top. 

Roasted Corn Chowder with Chipotle Crema

This Roasted Corn Chowder is my favorite soup ever. The recipe is a little odd in that it calls for turning up the heat, lowering it, and turning it back up. But, the end result is worth every bit of it.I can't get enough of the Chipotle Crema that you drizzle on top but you could also serve it on the side for those that don't like spicy food. Enjoy!

Roasted Corn Chowder with Chipotle Crema**

serves 8

6 ears of corn, roasted and kernels cut off the cob

2 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 tablespoon minced garlic

2 cups dry white wine

5 cups chicken broth

2 cups heavy cream

1/2 cup sour cream

2 teaspoons pureed canned chipotles in adobo

1 teaspoon fresh lime juice

salt and pepper

1. Over medium heat melt the butter and sweat the onion and garlic for about 5 minutes. Raising the heat to high, add the wine, and reduce until it is about 4 tablespoons, about 12 minutes.

2. Reduce heat to low and add the roasted corn kernels. Sweat about 5 minutes. 

3. Raise the heat back to high, add the chicken stock, and return to a boil. Reduce back to medium and simmer for about 20 minutes. Raise heat to high and add the cream. Bring to a boil. Cook for about 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the soup has slightly thickened. 

4. Process about 3/4 of the soup in a blender or food processor until smooth. Return back to pot with the remaining soup and reheat. Season with salt and pepper.

5. For the crema, combine the sour cream, chipotle puree, lime juice, and salt and pepper. 

6. Serve the soup hot with the chipotle puree drizzled on top and on the side in case people want extra.

** Bobby Flay

Fajitas, Cilantro Lime Rice, & Mexican Twice Baked Potatoes

Often when people come to our house for dinner they ask me "do you always eat like this?" The answer is usually no because if I'm having people over, I'm going to show off!  :)

But that is usually followed by "What do you eat usually?" So today, I thought that I'd share a normal, go-to dinner for us. Fajitas. They're usually something that I have all the ingredients to just sitting in my house (except maybe not the pepper) so it's easy to whip it up. The hardest part is deciding if I want Cilantro Lime Rice or Mexican Twice Baked Potatoes with it.

To be honest my fajita recipe isn't that exciting so I'm going to be very general with it. All I do is slice up a bell pepper and an onion. Saute those in a little oil and add some fresh garlic. When those are softened, remove them and set aside to keep warm. Slice up your chicken breasts and season them with some southwestern seasoning, fajita seasoning, or whatever you have. Saute those until cooked through. Add your veggies back and re-heat. Serve it with shredded cheese, sour cream, warm tortillas, and salsa.

OK, now the fun part!

Cilantro Lime Rice
4 servings - about 200 calories per 3/4 cup.

1 cup white rice, uncooked
2 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon lime juice, fresh if possible
3 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
1 teaspoon vegetable or canola oil


1. Cook the rice according to package directions in the water and salt.
2. Remove to a mixing bowl and let cool slightly.
3. Stir together lime juice, cilantro, and oil.
4. While the rice is still warm, drizzle the lime - cilantro mix over the rice while stirring. Gently stir until the cilantro is dispersed but not so much that the rice gets gummy. Serve warm.


This is delicious in the fajita itself, as a side, or in the bottom of a bowl with all your fajita goodies on top (minus the tortilla).

Mexican Twice Baked Potatoes
4 servings - about 150 calories per potato half


2 russet baking potatoes
3/4 cup cheddar cheese, shredded  (you can use pepperjack, colby jack, whatever you have)
2/3 cup cottage cheese (I used to shy away from this but it's actually tasty in dishes!)
1/2 cup corn kernels
salt and pepper
jalapenos - optional (I use jarred jalapenos that I chop up pretty finely)


1. Bake the potatoes at 425 for about an hour or until tender. You could also microwave them, 1 potato at a time for about 8 minutes each. They should be fork tender all the way through.
2. When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, slice in half lengthwise. Scoop out almost all of the potato flesh, leaving about 1/4 inch all the way around, into a mixing bowl.
3. Mix in both cheeses, corn, jalapenos (if using), and season with salt and pepper.
4. Put the filling back into the 4 potato halves. They will be heaping. Broil for about 6 minutes or until the top gets golden. Serve hot.

We have finally finished framing the mirror in our master bathroom and it looks great. It turned out to be quite the project once Matt got involved because a) he's an engineer and b) he's a perfectionist with things like this.

Here are some before photos. Just a standard builders mirror.

 

Here are the after photos with our new frame.

Prosciutto Wrapped Tilapia with Fresh Sage

Matt and I are trying to go back on a health kick so I've come up with 4 weeks of weekday recipes. Last night was delicious. It's actually one of my favorite fish recipes so I just made it a little healthier. I didn't take any photos but check out the fish and salad recipes below. You could seriously have this dinner together in under 20 minutes.

Prosciutto Wrapped Tilapia with Fresh Sage
Serves 4; about 158 calories per 4 ounces of fish (no sauce)

4 - four ounce tilapia filets
4 large fresh sage leaves
4 thin slices proscuitto
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 teaspoon olive oil 

1. Place a sage leaf in the middle of the each tilapia filet. Wrap a slice of prosciutto around the width of the filet covered the sage leaf. Lightly season with salt and pepper.
2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and swirl around to cover the bottom. Add the fish to the skillet and cook 3 minutes on each side or until cooked through. 
3. Remove and serve on a warm plate to keep the fish warm.

My less healthier version:
4. Remove tilapia and keep warm. Heat about 4 tablespoons of butter in the skillet until it bubbles and starts to turn golden brown. Add 1 tablespoon capers, 2 tablespoons white wine, and 1 teaspoon lemon juice. Add fish back to the skillet and warm. Serve hot with any extra sauce drizzled on top.

If you aren't going to serve this with the lemon butter sauce, I suggest serving it with some smashed red potatoes with a little butter and lemon juice or a citrusy salad. It'll pair nicely with the fish. Or, you can always squeeze a little lemon juice over the top when you serve it.