Take a BITE from my Birthday!

On November 20th, 1988 a little aspiring food blogger was born into this world.

She started her life as a picky little eater, but favored the most interesting culinary combinations. Reinventing foods as if they were her own. She ate pickles dipped in sugar and honey drizzled over her steak.

As she grew into a teen she enjoyed the occasional junk food binge but still kept to her foodie self with her packed school lunches. They consisted of fresh french baguette with butter and a baggie of red bell pepper slices with lemon juice, olive oil, fresh ground pepper and sea salt.

By the time she was 22 she turned her self into a culinary connoisseur (Love the way that sounds!) Don't be fooled here, this girl still loves pizza dipped in ranch, but for her 22nd birthday celebration she invited her closest friends for a hands-on cooking party!

For those of you who couldn't make it, here is a taste of what went on that night! I'll list the recipes straight from the class! I had my amazing cooking teacher who I take demonstrational classes with, come do a hands-on class for me and my friends.

Table setting where everyone sat after we prepared a wonderful meal.

We made a fantastic Tuscan style meal that night.

It started with:

Festive Baby Green and Melon Wraps

Serves 8

VINAIGRETTE

1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

3 tablespoons Red Wine Vinegar 2 tablespoons Honey

1 tablespoon Dijon Mustard

1 tablespoon Garlic – minced

To Season Kosher or Sea Salt & Ground Black Pepper Combine and whisk the oil, vinegar, lemon juice, honey, mustard and garlic in the bottom of a salad bowl. Season with salt and pepper.

SALAD

4 cups Mixed Baby Salad Greens

1/4 cup Red Onions – thinly sliced, soaked in water for 30 minutes then drained

Add the greens and onion to the salad bowl and toss.

ROLLS

1 pound Provolone Cheese – “sandwich” thick/size portions then sliced in half

1 whole Cantaloupe, Mango or Papaya – peeled, seeded & sliced into 2” strips Arrange the cheese slices onto a work surface.

Put a small handful of greens onto one end, top with slice of melon then roll tightly allowing some of the greens and melon to show through the ends. Arrange, fold side down, onto a serving platter.

SERVE

Serve at room temperature drizzled with any remaining vinaigrette … or … arrange several wraps onto each serving plate and garnish with a drizzle of the vinaigrette.

NOTE Recipe is great with thinly sliced prosciutto as the first layer around the wraps.

Then we moved on to:

Mushroom Ragout Crostini

Serves 8

TOASTS

1 Loaf French Baguette – thinly sliced and brushed with Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Preheat the oven to 375F. Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper. Arrange the bread slices onto the baking sheet. Brush each on the top side with the oil. Toast in the oven until golden brown (10 minutes). Cool on the baking sheet.

MUSHROOMS

3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 tablespoon Unsalted Butter

1/3 cup Shallots – thinly sliced

1 tablespoon Garlic - minced

6 cups Mushrooms (any mix)

1/4 cup Mascarpone Cheese

3 tablespoons Flat Leaf Parsley - chopped

1 tablespoon Rosemary – minced

1 teaspoon Thyme – minced

1 teaspoon Lemon Zest

1 cup Fontina Cheese – shredded or grated

1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese – shredded, flaked or grated

To Season Kosher or Sea Salt & Ground Black Pepper

Warm the oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and garlic and cook, stirring, just until fragrant (2 minutes). Stir in the mushrooms and continue to cook until browned (5 minutes). Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the mascarpone cheese, parsley, rosemary, thyme and lemon zest. Cool to room temperature in the pan. Once cool stir in the fontina and parmesan cheese.

CROSTINI Top each toast with a generous spoonful of the mushroom mixture. Return the baking sheet to the preheated oven. Bake until the cheese begins to melt (3-5 minutes)

SERVE Transfer the warm crostini to a serving platter and garnish with additional parsley.

For our main course we made:

Balsamic Glazed Cornish Hens

Serves 8

(oops! Forgot to take more pictures of the cornish hens here they are right before entering the oven.)

GLAZE

1 cup Balsamic Vinegar (medium priced)

1 cup Orange Marmalade

1 cup Light Brown Sugar – packed

3 tablespoons Cornstarch

3 tablespoons Garlic - minced

2 tablespoons Rosemary – roughly chopped

1 tablespoon Thyme Leaves – roughly chopped

1 teaspoon Kosher or Sea Salt

1/2 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper Combine and whisk the vinegar, marmalade, brown sugar and cornstarch in a saucepan. Warm over a medium heat until bubbly and thick (3+ minutes). Stir in the garlic, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper. Continue to simmer for another 3 minutes. Cool to room temp.

CHICKEN

2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter

3 cups Onions – sliced into thin wedges

4 whole Cornish Hens – sliced in half

1 cup All Purpose Flour

To Season Kosher or Sea Salt & Ground Black Pepper

Preheat the oven to 425F. Coat a large shallow casserole (2 if small) with cooking spray. Warm the oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and sauté until just tender. Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer to the casserole. Reheat the skillet, adding more oil and butter if necessary. Place the chicken in a large bowl and toss with the flour, salt and pepper. Shake off any excess then add to the skillet. Cook long enough to brown on all sides then transfer to the casserole (skin side up). Drizzle half of the glaze over the chicken. Transfer the casserole to the oven and roast (occasionally drizzling more glaze over the chicken) until cooked through (45 minutes or an internal temperature of 160F in the thickest portions).

SERVE

1 cup Green Onions – thinly sliced

Arrange the chicken onto a serving platter or serve onto individual plates. Drizzle the any leftover glaze over the top and garnish with a sprinkle of the onions.

The side dish was my favorite part:

Fettucini Pasta with Sautéed Garden Vegetables

Serves 8

PASTA

To Dust Additional All Purpose Flour

3-1/2 cups All Purpose Flour

1 teaspoon Kosher or Sea Salt

2 large Eggs – fork beaten

1/2 cup Cool Water

Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper then dust with flour. Place the flour and salt onto a work surface. Using a fork stir together. Create a “well” into the center. Combine the eggs and half of the water into the well. Mix together with a fork. Slowly stir in the flour and the remaining water into the center until a rough dough has been formed (more water may be necessary depending on the humidity level). Knead the dough until it is smooth and springs back with you press into it with your thumb.

(J kneading the pasta dough like a pro.)

Cover with a bowl on the work surface and wait 20 minutes before forming the pasta. Dust the work surface with flour. Cut the dough into 4 portions. Roll a portion of the dough until it is about 1/3” thick. Cut into 1/2" wide strips. Transfer to the baking sheet. Continue with the remaining dough. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta. Cook until al dente (7-10 minutes depending on the thickness and dryness of the pasta).

SAUCE

3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil

4 medium Zucchini – ends trimmed, halved lengthwise then thinly sliced

2 medium Red Bell Peppers – seeded & thinly sliced

1 cup Red Onion – thinly sliced

2+ tablespoons Garlic – thinly sliced or minced

Desired amount of prepared pesto

To Season Kosher or Sea Salt & Ground Black Pepper

Warm the oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add the zucchini, peppers, onions and garlic. Sauté until crisp and tender (7 minutes or less). Season with salt and pepper. Once the pasta has cooked, drain and add to the skillet of vegetables. Continue to sauté for a few minutes longer.

SERVE

1/2+ cup Parmesan Cheese Flakes

1/3 cup Basil – thinly sliced & loosely packed

Transfer the pasta to a large serving bowl. Add the cheese and basil. Serve with additional cheese if desired.

Last but not least:

Nonna’s Pear Tart

Serves 8

CRUST

3 cups All-Purpose Flour

1/2 cup Granulated Sugar

1/4 teaspoon Kosher Salt

1 large Egg Yolk

1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

1 cup Unsalted Butter – chilled & cut into a small dice

Preheat the oven to 350F. Coat a 9” tart pan (with removable bottom) with cooking spray. Combine the flour, sugar and salt in a bowl. Mix in egg yolk and vanilla. Add the butter by rubbing it between your hands until the mixture is very crumbly. Set aside 1 cup of the mixture. Scatter the remaining mixture onto the tart pan bottom. Press into the sides then press the remaining portion into the bottom. The dough should be an even thickness throughout. Chill until firm (15 minutes).

FILLING

2 cups Fig or Apricot Preserves

4 large Pears – peeled, quartered lengthwise, core removed then cut into 1/2” slices

To Garnish Turbino (Raw) Sugar

Spread the preserves over the bottom of the chilled tart crust. Starting along the outer ring of the tart pan, arrange the pears in the pan forming a flower pattern until completely filled. Scatter the reserved uncooked crust mixture over the top of the pears. Sprinkle the sugar over the top. Bake until the pastry begins to pull away from sides and is nicely browned and the pears are bubbly (40 minutes). Cool to room temperature before slicing.

TO SERVE

1/4 cup Powdered Sugar

To Garnish Whipped Cream or Vanilla Ice Cream

It was an amazing and busy night. It was great to cook with my friends and eat such delicious food that we all cooked!

Happy birthday to ME!