bacon-wrapped figs stuffed with goat cheese

When my friend Lindsey was staying with us a few weeks ago she took inspiration from my fig tree and decided she was going to make something delicious with them.

The combination of sweet fruit, potent cheese and salty bacon (or some other similarly cured meat) is one that we are seeing a lot these days, dates filled with blue cheese and wrapped in proscuitto, cantelope with proscuitto and feta, or this perfect little purse of flavor - figs, stuffed with goat cheese and wrapped in bacon.

This combo is perfect for someone like me who just doesn't love overly sweet things. Even fresh figs on their own are often too much for me, so adding goat cheese and bacon (two of my very favorite things) into the mix adds both acidity and saltiness to round out that sweet.

Beyond the intensely amazing flavor that this trio puts out is the sheer ease of assembly and the delightfully short prep and cooking time. These sweet treats can be ready in minutes and have the class and glamor of a five star event. I think you might be seeing a lot of recipes focusing on ease in the next few months as I focus on growing a little something else (= bun in the oven).

Before the last glimpses of summer are gone - get yourself some fresh figs and a nice, crisp white wine and assemble these little beauties.

RECIPE
bacon-wrapped figs stuffed with goat cheese
 makes 10

5 fresh figs
5 slices bacon, cut in half
3 1/2 Tbsp goat cheese
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
pinch of salt

- cut the figs in half lengthwise
- divide the goat cheese into 10 equal portions, gently push a portion into the centers of the figs
- wrap the bacon firmly around the fig and cheese
- lay foil on a baking pan, place each fig half on the pan
- broil for about 5-7 minutes (until bacon begins to crisp)
- remove from oven, sprinkle balsamic evenly over figs
- enjoy!

pan-roasted chicken breast with artichoke hearts and tomatoes

Oh my goodness, the last month has been such a whirlwind. Buying a house, selling a condo, moving out of a condo, moving into a house. Needless to say, very little cooking was going on.

But now we're in and, for the most part, the dust has settled. The kitchen resembles less a repository for cardboard boxes and more somewhere where a little culinary magic might just happen.

I was finally able to take a deep breath one evening and whip a little something up with the few ingredients I had on hand. I have this great book called 30-Minute Meals and I was able to adapt a very swift chicken dish that was fit for company.

The beauty of the pan roasted chicken is that it takes no time at all and you get some of that yummy brown stuff on the bottom of your pan to deglaze and use as in your sauce. The artichoke hearts and tomatoes add both color and flavor and make a very mediteranean meal out of pantry staples.

One detail the the books recipe called for the I substituted was bone-in chicken breasts. These do typically have much more flavor and if you can find them, they work great. I, however, usually only have the boneless kind in my freezer and so I went with those - all turned out just fine.

I served this accompanied with blanched green beans and biscuits and it was truly a delicious 30-minute meal.

pan-roasted chicken breasts with artichoke hearts and tomatoes

serves 4

4 chicken breasts (bone in or out)
olive oil - about 5 Tbsp
1 large jar artichoke hearts (10+ ounces)
1 pint cherry tomatoes
3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried (or fresh) thyme
2 pinches red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste

-preheat the oven to 450 degrees
-put 1-2 Tbsp oil in the skillet and heat
-season the chicken with salt and pepper and brown on both sides (about 5 minutes total)
-transfer the chicken to the oven and bake for 15 minutes (closer to 20 if using bone-in), until the thermometer reads 160 degrees
- toss the artichokes with salt and pepper and thyme and oregano. Add more oil to the skillet and heat, then brown the artichokes, stirring occasionally (about 8 minutes), then add in tomatoes until just wilted (2 minutes)
-spread artichoke and tomato mixture over the chicken breasts
-whisk together remaining olive oil with the lemon juice, garlic and pepper flakes, drizzle over chicken when serving.
-

postlet - a simple suggestion for lemon curd

a great number of you have asked me what my favorite way to eat and serve lemon curd is, that is other than spooning heaping mounds of it directly into my mouth, and I must say that it's in tart form.

 the naked tart

The curd is sinfully good on a simple shortcrust pastry, however, I prefer it on a ginger crust just to give it that extra kick. The best part about my ginger crust is that it's two ingredients, yep, two! And so this tart is done in minutes (that is, if you already have the curd on hand).

I also like to dress the tart up a bit at the end, and you can really have a lot of fun with this (especially if you're obsessively aesthetically minded like I am). When I make these tarts in individual tart shells I like to take my brulee torch and give the tart a crisp sugar coating that goes crunch when you tap it with your fork (this is also my favorite part of eating creme brulee). On a bigger tart this doesn't work quite as well. It's still beautifully appealing, but a little messy when you cut slices into it. Blueberries or raspberries, a dusting of powdered sugar or even cocoa powder are all great substitutions here.

a crunchy brulee crust

 you think we liked it?

RECIPE

lemon tart on ginger snap crust
serves 8

2 x recipe for lemon curd
2 cups ginger snaps (I really like to use Trader Joe's triple ginger cookies so try and find these if you can, but if you can't any ginger snap will do)
4 Tbsp butter, melted

- preheat the oven to 375 degrees
- butter a ten inch false bottom tart pan (or three false bottom 3-inch tart pans)
- in a food processor or blender whiz the ginger snaps for about 20 seconds
- pour in the melted butter, whiz until totally combined (about 20 more seconds)
- press the crust into the tart pan using your fingers or the back of a spoon. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until fragrant
- remove from oven and press down once more to make sure you still have you tart edges (they might have melted into the bottom crust during cooking.
- pour in the lemon curd and place in the fridge for an hour.

options:
- for the brulee top, generously sprinkle granulated sugar on top of the tart so that it is completely covered and white. Using a kitchen torch, melt the sugar until a light golden brown and so there is no more "white" sugar visible.
- otherwise, finely dust powdered sugar and/or cocoa powder, or top with fresh berries.

Savoring Seattle - a brief view of a tasty trip

You know, I have a great dislike for the times when things you have to do get in the way of things you want to do. The past two weeks have been full of those times - work deadlines, social responsibilities, tedious errands, that I have had little time to cook, let alone blog. It has been a pain!

 Seattle sunrise with Mt. Rainier in the background

However, here I am - ready to finish part 2 of the already begun saga of the Seattle Holiday Adventure, albeit a little late and out of context...but here goes.

You've now heard about the epic (and delicious) route we took to get to Seattle, now all of the eating we did once we arrived must be accounted for, and let me tell you - there was plenty of eating going on.

We got there just in time for Christmas Eve and the Quebec side of my family has a great tradition of staying up really late - having a fancy hors d'ouvre party around 10:30 and then at midnight (when it's officially Christmas) we get to open presents. This event usually extends into the not-so-wee hours of the morning...

My contribution to the evening was to be blue cheese-stuffed dates, wrapped in bacon (recipe below). I had sampled these before, but had never made them - luckily they are super simple, especially for something that tastes so good.

Bacon-wrapped dates stuffed with blue cheese - ready for the oven.

Pitted dates come with a hole already in them, so all you need to do is find a blue cheese soft enough to coax into it. This isn't a huge limitation by any means because most blue cheeses are naturally soft(ish) so just stay away from the rather hard ones. Once these bacon-wrapped gems came out of the oven, they almost didn't make it to midnight - they were that popular!

I almost didn't get a photo of these, they went so fast!

There was also plenty of eating out while in Seattle, but one place stood out in particular. It's one of my perennial favorites when I'm in town and its name is La Medusa. It's Sicilian eatery with little pretense and lots of flavor. We went there on New Year's Eve, which also happens to be my brother's birthday. They had a prix fixe menu on this particular night with wine pairings, so naturally that's what I got.

The first course was seared scallops atop a sunchoke puree with caramelized onions and pomegranate seeds. The scallop was delicately seared and still almost translucent in the middle, an indication that it has not been overcooked and its light texture floated nicely above the puree when paired in a bite together. The onions and pomegranate added both a subtle sweetness and crunch that rounded out the dish nicely. This course was paired with NV Jeio Rose Prosecco from Italy, whose bubbles carried a lightness that matched the dish and was lovely.

The happy eaters @ La Medusa - birthday boy at the far end

The salad (or second) course was an arugula salad with satsuma orange, castelvetrano olives and a pancetta vinaigrette. The vinaigrette is what made this salad, and no, I'm not just saying that due to my obscene fondness for bacon (a close relative to pancetta). Without the salty accent, the salad would have been too common, bordering on cliche - but the warm vinaigrette definitely set it apart and made it something special, especially given how nicely the peppery arugula paired with the pancetta (pepper bacon anyone!?!?). Course two was paired with Mirth Chardonnay from Washington State which, I've got to admit, I was not a big fan of. The flavor was too heavy, lacking a crispness that would have gone nicely with the salad and had a slight hint of burnt rubber to it.

The main course was Cotechino with black lentils. I at first had to ask the waitress what Cotechino was exactly. It's a large, rustic sausage typically consisting of pork, fatback and pork rind. Cotechino is a dish traditionally served on New Year's Eve and is purported to bring prosperity to its eater. La Medusa's version was very tasty indeed and that was lucky because the bed of black lentils it rested upon was a little underwhelming on its own. Together, however, they had an earthy richness and heartiness that was a nice way to say arivaderchi! to 2009. The cotechino was paired with a Sicilian red that goes by the name Il Frappato (it's 100% frappato grapes) which brought forth a comparable earthiness to the pork.

Cotechino! (Unfortunately this is the only good picture of the food I managed)

Lastly, though the prix fixe came with poached seckle pears, I couldn't resist La Medusa's cannoli. I don't know what it is about this crispy-creamy pastries but I am just ridiculously enamoured with them and get them everywhere I go. So there!

Suffice it to say that I have never eated at La Medusa and been dissappointed, and this year was no exception. So - for those of you who don't live in Seattle, but plan on visiting - add this to your must visit list. And for those of you who do live in Seattle - what are you waiting for?!?!?



P.S. A Fast Food Favorite: Its not too often that I give in to fast food cravings, but these days it's possible to have slow/fast food. Does that make any sense? I didn't think so! What I mean is that there are lots of talented food artisans that are taking on traditional fast foods and making them into tasty (often locally-sourced) delicacies, but they're still available in high speeds and relatively low costs.

One such example is Top Pot donuts in Seattle. They are taking a tired perhaps even antiquated foodstuff and turning it into something exotic that you might actually want to waste the calories on. We got to try the chocolate raspberry (the glaze is made with real raspberries!), the mexican chocolate (with cinnamon and sugar), the classic maple bar and the oh-so-tasty raised glazed, just to name a few.

Top Pot donuts - 12 kinds o' love (some already got eaten)

These were so good we got a dozen to share, and coming from someone who was previously not a huge donut fan, that's a pretty big deal.

RECIPE

Bacon-Wrapped Dates Stuffed with Blue Cheese

Pitted Dates - as many as you want to serve (suggested: 1/2 pound)
Blue cheese (such as St. Agur) - you'll need about 1/2 tsp per date (suggested: 1/4 pound)
Bacon - half a slice per date

-Let the blue cheese soften slightly at room temp.
-Pinch off a piece of cheese and roll it into a size that can be inserted into the hole.
-Wrap the date tightly in bacon, placing it on a baking tray with the bacon's free end down.
-Broil in the oven for 7-10 minutes (or until crispy, but keep a close eye so that they don't burn) and flip (if possible - sometimes the dates don't want to cooperate!)
-Transfer to plate and serve! (watch out - these puppies come out hot~)