Sherry – Rosemary and the Goat

Frisee and Arugula Salad with a Bunch of Friends

Absolutely the best salad ever!

Roaming around some of my favorite sites from wineries I came across this salad and I have to say it has become one of my all time favorites. I couldn’t decide whether to post this or not but then decided I would hate for you to never taste the combination of all these ingredients.

Frisee which I have always called “scratchy throat lettuce” mixed with peppery arugula, some haricots verte, toasted almonds, some fresh peaches, and I added the avocado tossed with a wonderful dressing makes a salad that I won’t easily forget and it will be top of my list to prepare for dinner guest. If peaches are out of season I would try some apple, pear, or fresh figs.

The night I made this the kids came over for dinner and I actually had thirds on this salad. Usually I’m doing good to finish the salad I have on my plate.

September 26, 2022 By Sherry

Entree/ Pasta

Giant Pasta with Baby Zucchini

A use for leftover Charcuterie meats.

After making my charcuterie board on our girl’s trip to Waco, there was quite a bit of meat left over and I just threw it in the freezer when I got home thinking I might use if for our snack one night while having our “front porch cocktails”. Then recently when I was at Cost Plus World Market I bought several of their pastas. Ya know, buying different pastas is my weakness. Well, they had a giant fussily pasta that I thought would go perfect with my baby (the size of your little finger) zucchini that I picked up at Trader Joe’s. And the results were amazing.

I’m only using the prosciutto and the pancetta out of the meats. I wasn’t sure how frying and browning salami would work and I knew I wouldn’t like the mortadella. When I make this again I will have the pancetta sliced a little thicker so I can cube it and then cut the pancetta thin and in threads.

September 15, 2022 By Sherry

Entree/ Pork

Tequila, Sausage and Vegetable Mixed Grill

Perfect for your Labor Day backyard party.

The night we made this there was only the two of us. As you can see in the picture, we could have feed at least 4 extra people. Where were you?

This isn’t actually a “mixed grill” but I didn’t know what to call it. I had saved the basic ingredients from a Food Network recipe I had seen but then decided to go off road and add a lot of other things to the recipe. Usually a mixed grill has several kinds of meats and I only had my Eckerman’s Smoked jalapeno Sausage with Cheese and besides we didn’t need any other meats.

September 2, 2022 By Sherry

Appetizers/ HotApp

Cambozola, Apple and Prosciutto App

Good and easy!

A tapa, pintxos, meze (platter), pupu, zakuska, Hors D’oeuvres, canapés, antipasto, amuse bouche, finger food, charcuterie, and even crudites are all words for appetizers from all over the world. Who doesn’t love munching on something while having a great vintage cocktail before dinner?

I love appetizers and cocktail parties. I feel like I have master my cocktail making and I’ve been making appetizers all my married life and that’s 53 years now. I love a good “surprise” amuse bouche from the chef and I’ve never met a tapa or pintxos (I have a few of those on this blog I tried after returning from a Spain trip) I didn’t love. I remember one of my first amuse bouches was from Gramercy Tavern and the waiter brought out a tiny little dish filled with salt and it had a tater tot resting in the middle of the dish. Well, that tater tot was filled with a black tapenade and later after returning home the chef actually scaled down and sent the recipe to me. I still have not made that dish but I will one day soon.

August 23, 2022 By Sherry

Dessert/ Desserts

Chocolate Pecan Cobbler

Who says a cobbler has to have fruit in it!

I love cobblers and they are probably one of my favorite desserts especially in the summer when there are so many delicious fruits available; peach, blackberry, mixture of raspberry, blackberry and blueberry – you name it if it has fruit and a crust it will be on my list of favorite desserts.

My sister, Terry, told me about having a pecan cobbler that she liked so I had to start looking for a recipe and when I found one my first thought was “how could chocolate not make this taste even better”. Well, it did and it also made it a richer dessert and if you plan on serving it with ice cream start with a small serving since you can always go back for seconds. I ended up portioning my leftovers into small tin cups and freezing it so if we have a chocolate attack we can go get one and nuke it and add some vanilla ice cream.

August 16, 2022 By Sherry

Side dish/ Vegetables

Charred Broccoli with Blue Cheese Dressing and Spicy Rice

What do you do after a hard day’s work?

I’ve always loved cooking, taking cooking classes, watching cooking competitions, talking food, recreating a dish that I have enjoyed from a restaurant and teaching someone how to make something special. So, even today, in my old age (ha) after helping out in the kitchen at our son and D-I-L’s brewery for 6-8 hours I’ll come home and watch a good “food movie” or some of my new favorite food shows on Magnolia network or even sit down and search the internet for some new recipes.

One of my favorite things to do is to look at menus from restaurants where friends or family have dined. You can’t imagine how many ideas I have gotten from reading menus and unless it is an over the top restaurant with like super complicated foods and techniques, it’s pretty easy to come up with a recipe.

This particular recipe is from Stephanie Izard (The Girl and the Goat Restaurant in Chicago). She won Top Chef competition in their fourth season and now has four restaurants. (Her green bean recipe is still one of my all time favorite green bean recipes.) My son, Scott, is always sending me new things to try. I would have to say that he is a lot more adventurous than I am. I have not tried his tahini brownies and probably won’t but I will try almost anything else he recommends. When he showed me this recipe I think he had already made it twice so I knew it must be good.

July 26, 2022 By Sherry

Entree/ Pork/ Sandwiches

Pork Burger with Blue Cheese and Grilled Peaches

Who doesn’t love a good burger?

Back in my high school “burger days” (the 60’s)the only place we would go for a good burger was Knox’s Drive-In. Whether it was with my now husband or my twin sister, Terry and a group of friends that was our go to place for a burger and hanging out. That might have been about the only place back then to get a burger. The Drive-In is now closed but to this day I can still remember the phone number and that is mainly because whenever we would go back home for a visit our three kids always wanted a “Knox’s Burger”. What a burger it was, a thin patty that you could actually get your mouth around topped with my favorite mustard, pickle, onion and slaw. Not any ordinary slaw either; simple finely chopped cabbage with maybe a little pickle juice and tiny bit of mustard.

Fast forward to current times and you’ll find burgers that could feed four people and have to be dissected to get it in your mouth. I’ve never had an egg on a burger and that’s one trend I hope is over. Those poor chickens have been working overtime to provide eggs for “put an egg on it” menu items.

This pork burger is a recipe I found in Erin French’s new cookbook The Lost Kitchen. The Lost Kitchen is one of my favorite Magnolia networks new shows. Erin has her Lost Kitchen restaurant in Freedom, Maine and the only way to get a reservation for the 6 months a year she is open is to send a postcard in sometime in April and hope they see it and you make it on their reservation list. I’m still looking for a Round Top post card that might catch her attention. Maybe I need one that says “90 population” and she’ll think “that girls needs a night out”.

July 13, 2022 By Sherry

Pork

Chops and Rice — Quick and Easy

Who doesn’t like quick and easy?

This recipe is something I have made for over 50 years, and it was one of the first things I cooked as a newly wed.

I have to say this recipe was put aside for a couple of decades until recently and I was trying to think of something to make for dinner that could be made after I come home from working at the brewery. During the Spring antique show here in Round Top, (TX) there was no time for cooking when I got home from a long day of prepping and helping out in the kitchen (and I don’t even stay until closing).

What makes this recipe fast is the “instant” rice which I gave up years ago for converted rice, black or red rice and all the other mouth-watering rices available. But, when you are in a hurry this rice will have you sitting at the table in no time enjoying a homemade meal.

June 21, 2022 By Sherry

Side dish/ Vegetables

Smashed Brussel Sprouts with Pistachios

No chasing these little spheres around the plate!

Seems like Brussel sprouts have always gotten a bad rap in the green vegetable category. Ever wonder why? Well, after some searching I found that it is in your DNA. Either you have the “sprout gene” (PTC) or you don’t. This gene comes in 2 forms – bitter and non-bitter tasting. If you are really interested in why you may be a BS hater, read on here.

The BS’s, for me, have become less bitter and I think that is the way I prepare them these days. A little sweetness from balsamic or adding dates or golden raisins can’t help to elevate this little vegetable to a better place in our vegetable choices. My mother never prepared Brussel sprouts and that’s probably because my dad didn’t like them and back then she cooked vegetables like cabbage and even green beans long past their “done” stage making things a drab color and mushy. In later years all of my mother’s and dad’s cooking changed and green beans were cooked to a vibrant green or cabbage not cooked to death. I personally like my cabbage cut into small pieces and sautéed very quick so it still has a little bite to it and the color resembles more of what it looked like when cut from the garden.

May 16, 2022 By Sherry

Appetizers

Girl’s Trip Charcuterie Board

Charcuterie, Charcuterie, Charcuterie!

It’s been almost two years since we moved from The Woodlands to Round Top, Texas population 90. Not sure if that 90 includes us or not but we are here and enjoying all the activity that goes on in the area.

So, it was about time for a girl’s trip to happen and Waco was a good place to meet up for a weekend of fun and laughs with old friends from The Woodlands. I though, after watching numerous You Tube videos on making charcuterie boards and seeing them on Instagram all the time that we needed to make one together; and our first night there would be a good way to relax. I gave everyone some links to watch on the making of charcuterie boards and then a list of things we all needed to bring and the rest is history. Of course, cocktails were involved — White Lady, French 75 and Chocolate Martinis along with some Fuzzy Navels and Pina Coladas.

Charcuterie (shar-KOO-ta-REE is a term that dates back as far as the 15th century and means products of a fancy pork butcher). A charcuterie basically refers to various meat products. In France you would probably have more meats, terrines, pates, gallotines, etc. A cheese board refers to a selection of cheeses etc. These days anything can be put on a charcuterie with meats, cheeses, sweets, jams, nuts, fruits all artfully arranged on a board to make a beautiful presentation for your guest.

My husband bought me this beautiful 18×20 walnut/resin (blue river running through it) from Woodlab.com and I couldn’t wait to use it. Maybe in the future I will use it for simpler things that are a lot less expensive than filling this board with meats, cheeses, nuts, jams/preserves, candy, breads/crackers, honeys and even some pate son Paul made for me. Hors d’Oeuvres have always been one of my favorite items to prepare especially for dinner guest.

May 8, 2022 By Sherry

Entree/ Poultry

Halal Cart-Style Chicken and Yellow Rice

This recipe is a keeper!

When you look at this recipe and all the steps DO NOT, I repeat do not click “back” and leave page. This recipe is worth all the effort and a few steps could be don’t ahead.

My son, Scott, is always sending me new and different recipes he’s found. Sometimes I say no to brownies made with soy sauce or tahini cookies but this one was different and it turns out I had all the ingredients and we both ended up making it on the same night. See both our pictures below.

Other than cooking at the brewery, what else do I have to do with my time right now; so I’m up for a challenge for any recipe I come across that sounds interesting. If anyone is ever interested in learning how to make anything I’m in the mood to make just come on over and help me cook.

April 19, 2022 By Sherry

Entree/ Fish/Seafood

Smoked Salmon Cakes

And…Red Pepper Sauce!

So, what does one do with a large package of smoked salmon that wasn’t eaten because of COVID. This was going to be on one of my appetizer trays for Christmas when all the kids were here but Covid happened and the week cut short and this package of salmon found itself thrown into the freezer.

We had plans to go to the movie the day I made this recipe and I knew we would eat ourselves sick on popcorn and by the time we got back I wouldn’t want to cook and a day’s diet of nothing but popcorn wouldn’t be that healthy. So, I got busy that morning and made my salmon cakes, my red pepper sauce and even made a Mardi Gras colored slaw for a side dish (since Mardi Gras was coming up). The slaw was beautiful, the cakes laid in the refrigerator just waiting to be cooked that night. Even if it was a late dinner, we had a “proper” meal.

April 1, 2022 By Sherry

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