All Choked Up | Grilled Artichokes with Lemon Garlic Aioli

August 11, 2012 by 8 Comments

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Friends, can you believe that August is nearly half over? That these glorious, hot, sunshine and thunderstorm-filled days are whipping by us at break neck speed? And before we know it, we will be trudging through another long, cold, snowy winter? *sigh* My apologies for the pessimistic ‘tude that I’m rocking right now. Summer just ain’t long enough!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

However, I do have some advice for making the best of the rest of these summer days. Ready?

1.Get outside. Spend as much time out there as you can! Eat outside, drink outside, be active outside (emphasis on eat and drink). Have a bonfire, roast marshmallows, and devour s’mores. Sit outside and read a book. Get out there and soak up summer!

2.Make these. Don’t ask questions, just do it. Preferably in combination with #1.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3.Go to the farmers’ market. Summer farmers’ markets are fabulous. Fresh produce in its prime. Delicious local goods. Supporting your community. All the things!

4.Eat more ice cream. This should not require an argument, but if you have your doubts, Em has you covered. And if you require any inspiration, look no further.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5.Sleep in. It is summer, after all. And while we might not be 16 anymore, with the glory of summer holidays to waste away by sleeping until 1pm, try to sneak in an extra hour or two of slumber and savor a lazy weekend morning. Preferably followed by pancakes and hot coffee.

6.Get away. Even if you can’t swing an exotic summer holiday, get out of town for a weekend. Enjoy a change of scenery! Go to the beach, the mountains, go camping. Just get out. Your mind will thank you.

7.Grill up some artichokes and then dip them in lemon garlic aioli and stuff them into your face. Seriously.

Artichokes are delicious (and beautiful!) things. I had never bought or eaten a whole artichoke prior to trying this recipe. Canned artichokes often find their way into my grocery basket for use in a spinach and artichoke dip or onto homemade pizza. But there’s more to artichokes than their lovely little hearts! They’ve got cute little leaves that you can dip into a tasty aioli and then pull the flesh from with your teeth. With simple flavors like lemon and garlic, and the wonderful char created by a hot grill, these are a great appetizer or side to any summer meal. Get grillin’ friends, and enjoy summer!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Grilled Artichokes with Lemon Garlic Aioli (barely adapted from Food For My Family)

For the artichokes:
3 whole artichokes
2 lemons
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Fill a large bowl with water, and add the juice from one lemon, saving the rind. Cut the artichokes in half and immediately submerge in the water (to prevent browning). Bring a (very) large pot of water to a boil and add in the squeezed lemon rind. Transfer the artichokes to the boiling water. Boil for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Fire up the grill. In a large bowl, add the juice from the other lemon, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. When the artichokes are done boiling, drain them on a paper towel and then toss them around in the bowl to coat them.

With the grill on medium heat, add the artichokes to the grill. Brush the artichokes with the remaining oil mixture in the bowl. Turn every five minutes until artichokes start to char (mine took about 15 minutes). Remove from heat.

For the lemon garlic aioli:
1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 cloves garlic, minced
Juice from 1/2 of a lemon
1 green onion, diced
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Mix together all ingredients in a small bowl. Refrigerate until ready to serve with the grilled artichokes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Things might get messy. Have your napkins ready.

The photos in this post were taken with Instagram, an iPhone app. If you are an IG user and want to follow my daily foodie (etc.) life, you can find me at @onceuponarecipe.

Filed Under: Appetizers, Sides, Summer, Vegetables and Legumes, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Things Are Working Out | Lemon Coconut Cookies

July 31, 2012 by 25 Comments

Hello friends. My mind is full and cluttered today, so rather than fill your screens with my typical mutterings, I thought I would share a passage from a book I’ve been enjoying lately. If you’ve never heard of Melody Beattie’s Journey to the Heart, you should check it out. Journey to the Heart is a book of daily meditations – lovely and inspirational words to guide you on the path towards spiritual growth. If you just rolled your eyes, and spiritual growth isn’t your thang, keep scrolling for a wicked recipe. If you’re intrigued, keep on reading.

Many of my yoga instructors routinely read passages from this book, and during one particular class I connected so strongly to the passage that was shared that I approached the instructor afterwards to ask her what she was reading from. I picked up a copy of the book not long after that, and I’ve been slowly working my way through it. If you like what you hear, you might wish to get your hands on a copy too.

Things Are Working Out (Journey to the Heart: Daily Meditations on the Path to Freeing Your Soul, HarperCollins, 1996, p. 255-256):

Right now, this moment, things are working out. We natter away, trying to control, shape, and form. Trying to figure things out. We back off, then come closer. We worry and wonder. But things are working out. Things are working out as beautifully and Divinely as possible. The dance of life is taking place in sync with the rhythm of the universe.

Everything is working out, moving forward, evolving. There is a rhythm, an energy, a life force that continues, that shapes, that grows. You do not have to fight, resist, control, or even understand it. All you need to do is be – be present for your life, your love, yourself.

Your soul will lead you on. Your inner voice, your heart, is leading you on. Quiet your mind and trust that where you are and where you’re being led is perfect.

You don’t have to try to get it all together. You don’t have to strive to “have it all.” You already do have all that you need.

How many times have you been through an experience, fretting and fearful about the shape things were taking, only later to exclaim, Oh, I see now. Things were working out all along! Learn to say and believe that now.

Let your mind see what your soul already knows: things are working out perfectly. 

Sometimes it’s easy to worry and over think where we are at in our lives – are we doing enough? Are we doing too little? Relax. Breathe. Everything is working out, let’s enjoy the journey.

Be present. 

And now, a delicious, sweet, tart, chewy cookie for you to enjoy on this spectacular, overwhelming, complicated journey that is life. Lemon and coconut lovers, this one’s for you. As well as those who are curious about what would happen if a macaroon and lemon cookie had a lovechild.

Lemon Coconut Cookies (from Hershey’s Kitchens)

Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

1/4 cup butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

Zest from 2 lemons (about 2 tsp.)

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

1 cup shredded coconut

Powdered sugar, for rolling

Preheat your oven to 300°F. Beat the butter and sugar together until fluffy. Add the eggs and lemon zest, and beat until well mixed. In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter/sugar mixture, beating until well blended. Stir in the coconut. Cover and refrigerate the dough for at least an hour (or overnight), until the dough is firm enough to handle.

Roll the dough into 1.5-inch balls, roll in the powdered sugar, and place two inches apart on a lined baking sheet. Bake for 16-18 minutes until the edges are set. Move the cookies to a wire rack and allow to cool completely.

The last two photos in this post were taken with Instagram, an iPhone app. If you are an IG user and want to follow my daily foodie (etc.) life, you can find me at @onceuponarecipe. 
Now go make these cookies!
Filed Under: Summer, Sweet Treats Tagged With: , , , , ,

I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream For… | Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

July 11, 2012 by 31 Comments

Friends, I have a very sad confession to make. I have had an ice cream maker sitting, unused, in its original box, for one and a half long years. I received it as a gift for Christmas in 2010. I had good intentions of using it immediately. I picked out recipes. I formulated ice cream-making plans. And it never happened.

You see, whenever I followed through on those good intentions, and got all geared up to make ice cream, I’d open the box and realize (for the bazillionth time) that the canister needed to be frozen for at least 8 hours prior to using it. And I’m embarrassed to report that instead of taking it out of the box and sticking in the freezer to avoid the same disappointment the next time around, I just closed it right back up again. It is important to note that there was one other very labor intensive step required…washing the canister. Sometimes I confuse even myself.

Thankfully, I righted all of these wrongs last weekend when I did the smart thing and stuck that dang canister into the freezer, and the next day went out and picked up my ice cream making supplies. And then I got straight to makin’ ice cream!

The combination of mint and chocolate has been one of my favorites for a long time, so I immediately began searching for a mint chocolate chip ice cream recipe. Cool, minty ice cream chock full of dark chocolate chunks. And let me tell you…there is nothing quite like a humongous bowl of cold, minty ice cream on a hot summer evening to help cool a person down. Heat wave is an understatement. Let’s just say there’s been much spread eagle, underwear only, fan blasting directly at the bed insomnia sleeping going on lately. Thank goodness for ice cream.

PS. July is National Ice Cream month! Don’t be surprised if you see another ice cream recipe (or two) posted here in the next few weeks. I’ve spotted a recipe for peanut butter ice cream…trouble!

Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream (adapted from The Kitchn)

Makes about two quarts.

3 cups fresh mint leaves

4 cups half and half

3/4 cup sugar

A pinch of salt

1 tsp. vanilla

4 egg yolks

6 ounces good quality dark chocolate, chopped

Tear the mint leaves off of their stems and put in a bowl. Pound with a pestle or large spoon just until they are bruised and start to give off their delicious minty fragrance.

In a heavy saucepan over medium heat, whisk together the half and half, sugar, and salt. Heat until the mixture just begins to steam, the remove from heat, add the mint leaves, and cover. Steep for about two hours. Once the mixture has steeped, strain out the mint leaves and bring the mixture to just under a simmer. Whisk the egg yolks together in a small bowl and add a cup of the cream to temper the eggs. Whisk it all back into the saucepan and cook, stirring, until the custard reaches 170º to 174ºF (this only took a couple of minutes for me). Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla. Pour into a bowl, cover, and refrigerate overnight.

We’re ready to make ice cream! First, chop the chocolate into chunks and set aside. Freeze the custard in your ice cream maker according to directions, adding the chocolate about halfway through. Transfer ice cream to a container and cover with plastic wrap so that the wrap is touching the surface of the ice cream (this will prevent ice crystals from forming). Freeze for at least four hours before serving. Enjoy!

Filed Under: Summer, Sweet Treats Tagged With: , , , , ,
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