Grilled Potato and Goat Cheese Napoleon

Hello everyone! Sorry for my absence. The last month has been a worldwind of changes. I moved across country and changed jobs. I have moved into my new place and have gone to the grocery store numerous times over the last few days and I finally feel like I've got my necessities. Now to test out that oven to make sure it's working. Cupcakes??

4 Yukon potatoes
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 large clove garlic
2 teaspoons yellow mustard (may sub Dijon mustard)
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
Black pepper and sea salt
3 ounces goat cheese

In a small sauce pan, boil the potatoes until just soft, but not falling apart.

Meanwhile, in a food processor, combine the balsamic vinegar, garlic, mustard, basil leaves, and olive oil. Process until smooth. Season with pepper and salt to taste.

When the potatoes are done, remove from water and slice about 1/4 -1/2 inch thick. Discard the rounded ends. Place on a grill pan heated over medium heat. Cook on each side until golden brown, about 3 minutes on each side. Remove from the pan.

Take one slice and top with a small amount of goat cheese. Top with another slice, top that with goat cheese and another slice of potato. Repeat with all the potatoes, stacking three slices high. Drizzle with the balsamic glaze.

Lemon Bars

A very good friend of mine at work had her last day a couple of weeks ago Friday. Very sad day for us. She never failed to make me laugh. Her request was something lemony. I decided to try make lemon bars. I have had issues to say the least in making lemon bars in the past. Many times they end up being soup with crust. This recipe did it! Success! Not too sweet, not too tart, not soupy!

Butter for greasing the pan
2½ cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup powdered sugar, plus more for garnish
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
6 large eggs
2¼ cups sugar
1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (5-6 lemons)
3 tablespoons grated lemon zest

Heat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-inch square pan.

Combine 2 cups of the flour (reserve 1/2 cup), the powdered sugar, and the salt in a large bowl. Add the butter and blend with a pastry cutter or your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse meal.

Press into the greased pan, pushing the dough all the way up the sides. Bake until the edges are golden brown, about 20 minutes, then remove and set aside. Reduce the oven temperature to 315°F.

In another large bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar until smooth. Gently stir in the lemon juice and zest. Fold in the remaining ½ cup flour until well combined. Allow to sit for several minutes to let the air bubbles to release.

Pour the egg mixture over the hot crust and bake until the curd is set, about 35 minutes. Cool thoroughly (couple of hours) before cutting into bars.

Chili Spiced Buffalo Tacos

I have had a buffalo steak in my freezer for a couple of months now, not knowing really what to do with it. I haven’t cooked it before. I decided to incorporate it with a dish that I have been craving a lot lately. Tacos. The seasoning has a small amount of kick to it due to the chili powder (add more than 2 teaspoons if you like heat), but is balanced out due to the brown sugar and paprika.

2 teaspoons smoked paprika
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
¼ teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons onion, chopped
2 lime juice, freshly squeezed
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 lb lean buffalo skirt steak, trimmed of fat, cut into strips (you may substitute other meats as well)
8 corn tortillas, warmed


In a large ziplock bag, combine all of the ingredients above, with the exception of the tortillas. Shake the bag and massage it to blend the seasonings and coat the meat. Let marinate for about an hour.

Heat a grill pan over medium heat, not too hot or else the buffalo will cook too quickly. Grill the meat, turning after a several minutes on each side. Transfer to a plate and allow to sit (there’ll be lots of juices from the marinade). Place two strips into the tortilla and top with your favorite toppings. I did chopped spinach, tomato, onion, cilantro, and cheese.

Vegetable and Black Bean Tortilla Casserole

Today was definitely a Monday. Busy from the moment I woke up (after about 4 hours of sleep) until I got home. I needed some comfort food. This casserole has a little spicy kick.

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
4 ounces mushrooms, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 medium tomatoes, chopped
1 cup shredded cheese
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup cilantro
1 1/2 cups spinach, chopped
Corn tortillas
1/2 cup enchilada sauce

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray a baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.

Heat a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the olive oil, onions, and garlic. Add the cayenne pepper. Saute until onions are soft, lowering heat as needed to prevent browning. Add the spinach and cook for another few minutes until wilted. Remove from heat.

Place tortillas on in one layer in the baking dish. Top with black beans, tomatoes, onion mixture, cheese, and cilantro. Top with another layer of tortillas. Continue layering, ending with cheese.

Pour the enchilada sauce over the top. Bake for 20 minutes, or until bubbly.

Mushroom and Mascarpone Risotto

A couple of weeks ago, I visited my uncle and father. Within an hour of being there, we were swapping recipes. My family is big on food, shocking. My uncle had stacks and stacks of recipes that he had saved from magazines, cooking books, and newspapers. So of course, my father and I had to go through and make copies of all our favorites. One of which is a risotto recipe*. I like, okay love, mascarpone (desserts, savory dishes…it’s perfect in so many ways), so this a natural choice for me.


*Adopted from Cooking Light.

1 ½ cups boiling water

4 ounces mushrooms

14 ounces beef broth

1 cup uncooked Aroborio rice

¾ cup chopped onion (or shallots)

2 garlic cloves, minced

½ cup dry white wine

¼ cup grated parmigiano cheese

¼ cup mascarpone cheese

1 teaspoon dried thyme

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

In a large bowl, combine the boiling water and mushrooms together. Let stand for about 10 minutes and then drain, reserving 1 ¼ cup of the liquid. Chop the mushrooms and set aside.

In a small saucepan, heat the reserved mushroom liquid and beef broth to a boil. Lower heat to bring to a simmer. Keep it warm over low heat.

Heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Coat with cooking spray. Add the rice, onion, and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes. Don’t allow to brown too much. Add the wine and cook until the liquid evaporates, only a couple of minutes.

Add 1 cup broth mixture to the rice mixture. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes until just about absorbed. Stir occasionally so the rice doesn’t stick to the pan. Add the remaining mixture in ½ cup batches. Place rice into a serving bowl. Add the mushrooms, cheeses, thyme, salt, and pepper. Stir until just melted. Serve warm. Top with addition mascarpone if wanted.

Goat Cheese Muffins

3 cups flour
2 teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 ounces goat cheese
2 cups skim milk
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
4 tablespoons canola oil
2 eggs
1 cup green onions, chopped
4 tablespoons dried parsley

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray two cupcake muffin pans with non-stick cooking spray.

In a small bowl, combine the goat cheese and four tablespoons of the milk (reserve the rest). Stir until smooth. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Then in another bowl, whisk the butter, oil, egg, green onion, and the rest of the milk.

Combine the flour mixture and butter mixture until just moistened.

Spoon one tablespoon into each muffin cup. Then top each one with the goat cheese filling (about 1 teaspoon of goat cheese). Top each one with some more batter. Bake for about 10 minutes. Remove from the pans after about five minutes after removing from the oven.

Blackberry Clafouti

Along with strawberries, I have an overabundance of other fruit as well, in particular, blackberries. A clafouti is a common and EASY way to use up fruit. This dessert only takes about 5 minutes to prepare and can be either be eaten for breakfast or dessert. This is based off of Julia Child’s recipe, which she makes with cherries. Leave it to Julia to make something utterly delicious and super easy.

1 ¼ cup milk
2/3 cup sugar, divided
3 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon salt
½ cup all-purpose flour
2 cups blackberries*

*You can substitute the blackberries for other soft fruit, such as cherries, peaches, raspberries, strawberries, or a combination of the above.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. While the oven is preheating, place 1 tablespoon butter in a pie baking dish with high sides. Place the baking dish into the oven until the butter is melted. Remove from the oven and swirl the butter to cover the bottom of the pan.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk the milk, 1/3 cup sugar, eggs, vanilla, salt, and flour together until completely smooth.

Place the blackberries on the bottom of the baking dish and sprinkle with the remaining 1/3 cup sugar. Slowly pour the milk mixture on top of the fruit.

Bake for about 50 minutes, until it is puffed and a golden brown. The center should be set and when a toothpick is inserted into the center, it should be clean when removed.

Serve warm and refrigerate any leftovers. Reheat for about 20 seconds in the microwave before serving again.