SSC Side Dish It Out! Edition: Thanksgiving Side Dishes & Desserts to Wow Your Friends & Relatives!

Oh, Thanksgiving! It's the beginning of that wonderful time of year when you put your independence and achievements aside because it all boils down to being able to cook. Luckily for us and our readers, we will not be put in charge of cooking a 10 pound bird to perfection, the rock star of Thanksgiving. No, people with roommates and studio apartments get a pass on that one.



Since none of us have that daunting responsibility the pressure falls on us to provide a killer side dishes that will show up all the other side dishes, and prove our worth, while giving us some Thanksgiving validation.

This edition of Supper Sanity Club will provide you with some ideas to really wow your family. It'll also provide you with some stellar beer and wine ideas, just in case you end up at a relative or significant other's house where they just don’t make gravy like your mom does and having your wine glass full is the only thing keeping you from pointing out that Aunt Linda is kinda racist.

We hope you enjoy these easy delicious recipes brought to you by our eclectic group of ladies and use them as a jumping off point for your own. If you have any questions please join us at www.facebook.com/Supper-Sanity-Club and post them. Christa, myself or one of our other crafty chicas will use our culinary prowess and try to help you out!

-Phoebe


Mini Meatloaves: From Sarah (Our Japanese spin on things!)
This is easy to make and goes perfectly with corn casserole.
It's also a great side to go with some white rice for leftovers. I recommend making extra sauce so you have some to drizzle over your meatloaves while you're plating!

Ingredients
1/3 cup breadcrumbs
1/3 cup milk
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 large egg
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 small onion, finely minced
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 cloves garlic, grated or finely minced
1 1/2 pounds meatloaf mix (ground beef, pork and/or veal)
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup ketchup
1 to 2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

Directions
Mix the breadcrumbs, milk, parsley, egg, Worcestershire sauce, onion, chili powder and garlic in a large bowl. Add the meat, season with salt and pepper and mix with your hands until combined. Shape into six 3-to-4-inch oval loaves. Heat the vegetable oil in a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add the loaves and brown about 3 minutes per side.

Whisk the ketchup, sugar and vinegar in a bowl and brush a few tablespoonfuls over the meat. Add 1/2 cup water to the skillet, cover and simmer over low heat until cooked through, about 15 minutes. Transfer the loaves to a plate.

Add the remaining ketchup mixture to the skillet and cook over high heat, stirring, until thick, 3 to 5 minutes.

Serve 4 meatloaves with the hot glaze.



Cranberry-Mushroom stuffing:
From Jamie (Our very own nutritionist!)
Cranberry mushroom stuffing is fabulous, though time consuming if you make the bread from scratch. You can always use a pre-made bread or bread mix instead. I spent about 4 hours making it one year and then asked my dad to reheat it right before dinner. He left it in the oven too long and it caught on fire. Let's hope you have better luck!


Ingredients
1 tsp. barley malt sweetener
2 cups water
2 Tbsp. honey
1 ½ cups fresh cranberries or thawed frozen cranberries
½ loaf Cinnamon-Orange Poppy Seed bread
1 Tbsp unsalted butter 1 large onion, chopped
1 ½ Tbsp. chopped fresh sage, or 1 tsp. dried
1 celery stalk, diced into ¼ inch pieces
2 pounds small mushrooms, quartered
1 egg, beaten
½ cup nonfat milk
½ cup coarsely chopped pecans

Directions
In a mixing bowl, combine the barley malt sweetener, water, and honey. Stir in the cranberries and let stand for 2 hours. To make croutons, preheat the oven to 200 F. Trim the crust off the bread and cut into ½ inch cubes. Spread out the cubes on a baking sheet and bake for 3 to 5 minutes. Let cool.

Melt the butter in a large skillet, add the onions and sauté over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes. Add the sage and celery and toss to combine. Remove from heat, add the mushrooms and toss again. Set aside to cool.

Mix together the egg and milk. Strain the cranberries and discard the liquid.
In a large bowl toss the croutons with the onion-mushroom mixture. Add the cranberries and pecans and toss again. Add the egg mixture and toss for 30 seconds and serve.

Makes 8 servings (200 calories each)



Brussels Sprouts with Chestnuts: More from Jamie!
1lb Brussels sprouts
½ cup sweet butter
¾ cup brown sugar
½ cup cooked and shelled chestnuts

Directions
Bring a large pan of salted water to a boil over high heat. Trim the Brussels sprouts, removing the coarse stems and any loose outer leaves. Add to the pan of water and boil for 5-10 minutes until just cooked but not too soft. Drain well, rinse in cold water, and drain again. Set aside.

Melt the butter in a heavy skillet. Add the sugar and stir over medium heat until dissolved.
Add the chestnuts to the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are well coated and starting to brown.

Add the sprouts to the skillet with the chestnuts and mix well. Reduce the heat and cook gently, stirring occasionally, for 3-4 minutes to heat through.

Makes 4 servings



Sweet Corn Casserole: From Emily
(Everyone's favorite little ray of sunshine!)
This my mom's recipe and has always been one of my favorites!

1 can creamed corn
1 can drained regular corn
1 stick melted butter
1 cup sour cream
1 box jiffy corn muffin mix

Mix together all ingredients and put in casserole dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. That's it!




Pumpkin Soup: From Phoebe (Co-author of this shizzzz)

This is a family favorite of mine. I understand that introducing soup bowls to the already packed Thanksgiving spread can make you look like a prima donna, so maybe keep this one in mind for soup and turkey sandwiches the next day.

Its super easy to make, so don't worry if you hit the Hot Toddies a little early. Your family will think you're some kind of culinary master mind!

Ingredients
3/4 cup water
1 small onion, chopped
1 can (8 ounces) pumpkin puree
1 cup unsalted vegetable broth
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup fat-free milk
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 green onion, green top only, chopped
heavy cream
dash of curry powder (If you're into that sort of thing.)

Directions
In a large saucepan, heat 1/4 cup of the water over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until tender, about 3 minutes. Don't let the onion dry out.

Add the remaining water, pumpkin, broth, cinnamon and nutmeg. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in the milk and cook until hot. Don't boil.

Ladle into warmed individual bowls and garnish with black pepper, green onion tops, and a dash of cream. Serve immediately.



Sweet Potato & Green Apple Casserole:
From Arlan (Our resident soul food expert!)
Here's my mom's recipe for my favorite dish. It's great with vanilla ice cream :)

Ingredients
6 green apples (Granny Smith)
6 large sweet potatoes brown sugar (to taste)
Nutmeg (to taste)
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 stick butter
Water (as needed)

Peel apples & potatoes. Cut apples & potatoes in half and then quarter. Boil potatoes, butter, brown sugar, nutmeg, and cinnamon together in water (just enough to cover potatoes). Boil until potatoes are tender (not overcooked) and until the mixture has been boiled into a syrup. Layer sweet potatoes and apples into the casserole dish. Cover with the syrup mixture.

Bake in oven on 375 for 20 to 30 minutes until boiling (keep eye on casserole after 20 minutes has past).



Cranberry-Lime Jello: From Jen (Our happily married friend!)
This is my favorite Thanksgiving dish. It's sweet and tart with a bit of crunch. A requirement of all Thanksgiving food is that it makes delicious leftovers, of which this is a perfect example!

Ingredients
1 package of Lime Jello
1 can of Cranberries or 3 cups of homemade cranberry sauce
1 cup chopped walnuts pieces
1 cup diced celery

Directions
Make Lime Jello to package directions. While jello is still liquid, stir in cranberries, walnuts, and celery. Refrigerate until set about 5 hrs.



Pumpkin Bread: From Christa (Co-author of SSC, comedian, designer, expert baker & all around awesomtastic chica!)
This is a recipe that my mom has made every Thanksgiving since I can remember. It's simple, moist and delicious, freezes well and can even be made into muffins! High fives!







Ingredients
3 1/3 cups sifted flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup chocolate chips
3 cups sugar
1 cup oil
4 eggs
2/3 cup water
2 cups canned pumpkin

Mix dry ingredients together. Add remaining ingredients. Mix until smooth.

For Loaves
Grease 3, 9 x 5 inch loaf pans. Fill each 1/3 full. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

For Muffins
Put cupcake papers in muffin tins. Fill each cup 2/3 full. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes.



Booze Pairings!
I am very fond of having bomber bottles of beer as an option in addition to wine at my Thanksgiving table. I highly suggest you try it. Here are some ideas.


Abita Pecan Harvest
This beer tastes like pecans, and that's a good thing! The beer pours a brownish color with minimal head, just the right amount (ha). The beer goes down smooth and leaves a nice aftertaste on your palette.

Mayflower Thanksgiving Ale
Thick and malty, with a great cereal grain taste and a brown sugar aroma that just screams everything fall.

Maine Peeper Ale
Light, citrusy, and hoppy. One of my new favorite beers of all time!

Harpoon Grateful Harvest
Lightly cranberry flavored, but still all ale! This will will go great with everything you serve.



All these beverages along with a great staff (some of whom are named Phoebe) can be found at The Wine Gallery. 516 Commonwealth Ave. Boston MA 02215. Come check us out!


Cheers & Happy Thanksgiving!
Christa, Phoebe & The Ladies of SSC



About Phoebe

Phoebe is comedian, and wine shop manager, who is also somehow pursuing a masters degree in clinical social work. Though she has no real food credits on her resume, she's well versed in wine and food pairing. She was raised on farm fresh food in Maine, learned about Asian cooking during her time in Thailand, became a seafood fanatic living in Newport RI, and is now well on her way to becoming a full fledged foodie/functioning alcoholic in Boston.

SSC Dia de Most-AWESOME Edition: A Mexican Day of the Dead Celebration for the Ages!

It's that's time of year again kiddies! That's right! Halloween is just around the corner! Now, All Hallows Eve has always been one of my favorite holidays BUT I've always been fascinated by Mexican culture, particularly their Dia de los Muertos celebrations. (That's Day of the Dead for you kids who didn't bother paying attention in high school Spanish class.)



El Dia de los Muertos is celebrated on November 1st, or All Souls Day and is basically a far more exciting version of the American Halloween. People decorate sugar skulls, have parades, dress up like dead people, build beautiful alters honoring their relatives and of course, make tons of delicious traditional dishes. Since I have a nifty little collection of Mexican artwork, a love of all things involving skulls and a knack for cooking Mexican food, I thought this year I'd forgo the traditional Halloween party and go for a Dia de los Muertos celebration that will be remembered throughout the ages! The results were deliciously terrifying! (The terrifying part was mostly how we felt the next day after drinking several bottles of tequila.) Check it!


Slow Cooker Mexican Pulled Chicken
This recipe is super easy and can be served as a taco filling or simply put over rice.

4 chicken breasts
2 1/2 tsps cumin
2 tbsps chili powder
1/2 teaspoon paprika
2 teaspoon salt
1 tsp black pepper
2/3 cup chicken broth
2/3 cup cilantro leaves, chopped
2 limes, juiced
2 large onions, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
2 tbsps minced garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil

Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the cumin, chili powder, paprika, salt, pepper and garlic and sauté a few more minutes. Add chicken broth and continue to satue for another minute or so. Turn off and set aside.

Add chicken to crock pot. Squeeze the lime on top, add the cilantro, jalapeno, and pour the onion and garlic mixture over top.

Cook on low for 4-5 hours, or until cooked through and tender. Stir around every once and awhile. Shred chicken with 2 forks. You might want to scoop out a bit of the juice depending on how long you are planning on keeping it warm.

Serve with corn or flour tortillas, rice, black beans, cheese, salsa or anything else you like on tacos. Emily was nice enough to bring her famous AWESOME GUACAMOLE, which you can find the recipe for here, along with some other fantastic Tex-Mex treats!



Mexican Sweet Corn Cake
This is almost like a Mexican version of bread pudding.
It's sweet, delicious and just a bit gooey! Also, it's absolutely terrible for you. Try not to think about it.
It's totally worth it!





1 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup flour
1/2 cup water
3 cups frozen whole-kernel corn, thawed
1/2 cup cornmeal
2/3 cup sugar
4 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder

In a medium bowl beat butter until it is creamy. Add the flour, cream and water and beat until well mixed. Stir corn into the butter mixture.

In a separate bowl, mix cornmeal, sugar, salt, and baking powder. Add to flour mixture and stir. Pour batter into an ungreased 9x13 inch baking pan. Smooth batter and cover with aluminum foil. Place filled pan into a larger pan or dish that is filled a third of the way with water. (I used a roasting pan. I'm not quite sure why you have to do this, I just know it works.)

Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 50-60 minutes. Cool for a few minutes so you don't burn the crap out of your tongue like I did.




Sugar Skull Cookies & Gingerdead Men!*
In lieu of making actual sugar skulls, which although beautiful are a bit complex and largely inedible, I substituted this great sugar cookie recipe. It's perfect for making simple cookies to decorate, no matter what the occasion!

Cookies
3 c flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 c unsalted butter, softened
3/4 c sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg

Frosting
2 cups powdered sugar
4 tbsps milk or heavy cream

Decorations
Gingerbread man cookie cutter
Skull shaped cookie cutter (if can't find skull cookie cutters cut a 3/4 circle into dough and complete circle with a rectangle. [The rectangle will be the teeth])
sprinkles
gel frosting
candy corn
candy coated chocolates...etc.

Put flower and salt together in a small bowl.

In a large bowl beat butter with an electric mixer until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add sugar gradually and beat for about 3 minutes; beat in extract. Beat in egg. Gradually add flour mixture. When it becomes too difficult to beat with an electric mixer, use your hands.

Form dough into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate about an hour or 2, or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350. Spray cookie sheets with non-stick cooking spray. Roll out cookies on a floured surface, to about 1/4in thick. Make sure to flour the rolling pin as well. Cut out shapes with cookie cutters. Place on cookie sheet.

Bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Frosting
Add heavy cream or milk to powdered sugar slowly. A little goes a long way, so be careful. Whisk to get the lumps out. Heavy cream will make for a thicker frosting.

Wait for cookies to cool completely to frost. Decorate!




*Okay, like I said before, this is just a straight up sugar cookie recipe. No gingerbread here. Sorry, I was dying to be punny with the gingerdead thing. Incidentally, The Gingerdead Man is also a ridiculous B Horror Movie starring Gary Busey. If that doesn't terrify you, I don't know what will.



Booze Pairings!
As with any Mexican themed party, tequila is always a must...and believe me we had plenty! If you've have some unpleasant experiences with tequila before, Kahlua is another great Mexican liqueur that is fabulous as a dessert drink.

Kahlua & Cream
1 part Kahlua
2 parts cream or milk

Mix! Serve over ice!

Margaritas!
You can find a great (and uber strong) margarita recipe here, from our Tex-Mex Supper Club Edition.

Mexican Beers
Corona, Dos Equis, Sol, Tecate or Modello



Other Dia de Los Muertos Party Tips!

• Ask your friends to dress up like skeletons, Mexicans or dead people. I painted my face to look like a sugar skull. Since most of my friends don't have the scratch to spend on frivolous things like multiple Halloween costumes (when they can spend their money on frivolous things like booze), we also suggested people could wear whatever they were using for a Halloween costume.

• Buy a package of fake mustaches to give out to your guests. Works best when to bust them out when your friends are already half in the bag. Heh.

• Build an alter.

1. Find a small side table to use.
2. Place a couple of short sturdy boxes on top for multiple levels.
3. Cover with a colorful cloth.
4. Place Christmas lights, candles, skulls, small statues and photos of whatever or whoever you'd like to represent on top. (If you're being serious about this, it's usually photos of dead relatives.) Because I am a comedian and am incapable of taking anything seriously, I had photos of dead concepts.

We memorilized dead things! A photo of Mikey, the Life cereal kid, who died of eating pop rocks and soda, a statue of the Social Distortion Skeleton, to represent the death of punk rock, and a photo of the American flag, to represent the American Dream(...which if you're anything like I am, you've realized was dead a long time ago). Ha.
















Marylin Monroe & Sugar Skull Chick (Emily & Me); Mexican wrestlers fight!














Fun Fact #1: Candy corn now exists in apple, blueberry, tangerine & caramel flavors
Fun Fact #2: Every single one of these flavors is gross; Mustaches in action!

















Huukah time!; Durso gets serious.













Phoebe the mustachioed Mexican , Mary-Catherine Spillane-Gallager, Me; The spread!


Happy Dia de Los Muertos!....(and Happy Halloween too...I guess.)

Cheers!
Christa






About Christa
Christa is a comedian, artist and graphic designer living in Boston. Because most of her family is fresh off the boat, she knows a thing or two about traditional European cooking and baking, provided that the recipes are in English (Thanks a lot, crappy American school system!). She also has a vast knowledge of fancy-smancy beers made by smelly hippies. Although she has no food credits to speak of, generally speaking everything she makes is considered to be "damn good." Check out her other blog Shameless Pomp and Circumstance if you feel like it!

SCC Phantasmorgasmic Edition: SSC visits the Phantom Gourmet Food Festival

Today we bring to you an edition of SSC that is quite close to my heart. Every year since I moved to Boston my best friend from high school/fellow Supper Clubber, Emily and I attend the Phantom Gourmet Food Festival. It was literally one of the first outings I had in downtown Boston. It's an amazing festival of gluttony and deliciousness that we look forward to every year. Once I realized the date of the event was quickly approaching, I thought it would be a kickass idea to blog about one of my favorite traditions.


Phantom Gourmet is, for those of you that don't know,
is a local TV show that tours the best (and most heart attack inducing,) restaurants all around Boston and New England. It's a great way to find new restaurants in your area and the perfect thing to watch on a Saturday morning when you're hungover and all you have in your kitchen is frozen chicken and saltine crackers. (Okay, admittedly that's usually when it makes me what to cry but it's still fun to watch.) The Phantom gives window stickers to the businesses they visit, so if a restaurant has that familiar purple logo on their door, you know it hast to be good!


Phantom Gourmet also puts out a yearly restaurants guide and holds several kickass events each year, the culmination of which is the Phantom Gourmet Food Festival. The festival is held at end of every September just outside of Fenway Park. They close a few streets down, set up scores of tents from almost every restaurants in existence (I believe there were 80+ booths this year) and start the party!



Over the years Emily and I have attempted to devise a plan, a plan to not get too full to try everything, actually be able move later on and not feel like disgusting human beings after we leave. We then forget this plan immetely upon arriving and eat whatever the hell we want.


During the festival all the bars on Lansdown Street are open
and are totally hoppin. We never end up going to them because you get so full at this thing the notion of drinking beer is pretty much impossible, but it looks like a great time. I made my choice, and my choice was gluttony, not drunkenness. (Don't worry, I remedied that the next day.)





You can find any food imaginable here. From classy shit like yellow beet salad, to some not so classy shit like chicken wing dip and ice cream, the Phantom Gourmet Food Fest has something for any palette. There was some pretty crazy food here but we had a definite favorite. Sunset Grill & Tap, one of our favorite restaurants and home of the largest draft beer selection on the East Coast, sampled pumpkin beer flavored ice cream. You heard it right. Pumpkin flavored, beer flavored, ice cream. It was pumpkiny, it was beery, it was creamy, it was confusing, but most of all, it was delicous.













We also had the pleasure of meeting the founder of Spike's Junkyard Dogs, a gourmet hotdog joint. Founder Spike is actually a giant English bulldog. I have a sneaking suspican that he just might be a puppet leader of their organization. Cats are really the only animals with enough business saavy to run a successful restaurants establishment.













We also got a chance to check out Flatbread's on site pizza oven, ate scores of kickass baked goods, sampled some fantastic chili, and discovered a Zipcar covered in purple sporks. (Okay I really don't understand the last one, but I digress...)














Also for some reason there was a couple of giant chickens there and a girl looking semi-humiliated dressed as a taco. Some things you just don't question.














As usual the Phantom Gourmet Food Fest did not disappoint. We tried some new dishes, sampled some old favorites and got to take home a plethora of samples for the trek home. I'm always a fan of supporting local businesses but thank God this thing only happens once a year.
If not I think I would have lost a foot to diabetes by now.














If you'd like to know more about the Phantom Gourmet and some of the
festival restaurants you can find them at www.phantomgourmet.com!


Cheers!
Christa




About Christa
Christa is a comedian, artist and graphic designer living in Boston. Because most of her family is fresh off the boat, she knows a thing or two about traditional European cooking and baking, provided that the recipes are in English (Thanks a lot, crappy American school system!). She also has a vast knowledge of fancy-smancy beers made by smelly hippies. Although she has no food credits to speak of, generally speaking everything she makes is considered to be "damn good." Check out her other blog Shameless Pomp and Circumstance if you feel like it!

SSC: Goodbye Summer! Edition

Finally, after our short hiatus (due to the trials of furthering my education) SCC is back and better than ever! Just in time for the cooler weather, we'll be here to hook you up with some of our fall favorites....but first, a sumptuous summer wrap up brought to you by our favorite curly haired vixen, Phoebe!

- Christa


For this edition of Supper Sanity Club we went with the theme “Good Bye Summer!" With the help of our new SSC member Manika, (who let me take over her apartment because I live in a something that is smaller then a bread box), we put together a dinner showcasing foods to help us transition from summer to fall.

We made a lobster chowder, as something warmer for the changing weather, but still with lobster that screams summer. Next, we put together a salad with both light leafy greens and blueberries for that final summer harvest, but a maple dressing with walnuts for fall flavor goodness. Once we had a few amazing side dishes and dessert brought to us by our fellow Supper Clubbers, we had the perfect meal to take us into the new season. Enjoy!

- Phoebe


Maple, Blueberry & Walnut Salad with Goat Cheese
I have promised my family, (who have been nice enough not to disown me because of my comedy,) that I wouldn't give away our maple soy vinaigrette, but, I will give you the basics because I love you guys too!

Vinaigrette
olive oil
balsamic vinegar
lemon juice
maple syrup
tamari
crushed garlic

Mix ingredients together in a bowl. Pour into a salad dressing container or a jar with a tightly sealable lid. Shake!

Salad
spring mix of dark leafy greens
a mix of cherry tomatoes
blueberries
crushed walnuts
chunks of goat cheese
Changs Crunchy Noodles ([fried wantons] if you can't find just use croutons)

Toss salad ingredients together. Top with vinaigrette.



Lobster & Fish Chowder
This is rather expensive to make, but you can use it as an entree if you double up on potatoes, and onions.

1 sweet onion
butter
garlic
salt
pepper
parsley
white fish (cod, mahi mahi, halibut, etc.)
celery salt
potatoes (yukon, or russet)
1/2 quart half and half or whole milk (don't be a pussy!)
canned lobster meat (can be found in any super market, just ask at the seafood counter)
fresh corn the cob, boiled or roasted
Old Bay

Sauté sweet onion in butter and garlic. Put about 3 inches of water in bottom of pan, add some salt, pepper, and a pinch of fresh parsley. Boil, then lay in your fish and cook at a still bubbling but at lower temp for about five minutes. Lower to a simmer and add celery salt.

At about four minutes into simmering, put in peeled and cubed potatoes. Take off heat and add a little butter. Whole thing should cook for about 5 minutes.

Cool down to a simmer and add half and half. Cut corn off cob. Add corn, canned lobster meat and Old Bay.

Voila!


Lentil Orzo with Pistachios and Cranberries
Our mysterious girlfriend Manika is not one for recipes,
she just lets it happen! Much to our delight, what happened was deliciousness!





orzo, cooked and cooled
seasoned lentils, cooked
4 pieces bacon, chopped and browned until crispy (High quality bacon works best, Manika used bacon from the butcher at Whole Foods)
cranberries
goat or feta cheese, crumbled
olive oil
lime juice
seasoning to taste
roasted pistachios
chopped parsley

Toss all ingredients together and serve at room temperature.



Roasted peppers with Feta Dip

Peppers
baby peppers
salt
pepper
olive oil

Toss peppers with olive oil, salt and pepper. Put on cookie sheet and roast at 375 for 40 minutes or until golden brown around the edges.

Dip
3/4 cup feta cheese
1 cup yogurt
2 tbsp preserved lemons (chopped)
2 tbsp capers

Blend all ingredients together quickly. Serve with peppers as a dip. Yum!




Lime Sugar Cookies with Blueberry Cream Filling
A fantastic recipe borrowed from www.sinfullyspicy.com!

Cookies
1 cups all-purpose flour
1/8 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt 6 tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup + 2 tbsp white granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp fresh squeezed lime juice


Blueberry Cream Cheese Filling
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1.5 cup confectioner’s sugar
2 tbsp blueberry paste [recipe below]

Blueberry Paste
1/2 cup fresh blueberries
2 tbsp water
3 tbsp granulated sugar
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp cornstarch

Prep for Cookies
In a medium bowl, sift flour,baking soda & powder, salt. Set aside.

In a larger bowl,cream the butter and sugar thoroughly until fluffy. Add the lime juice & vanilla and beat until combined.

Gradually add in the flour mixture and gently combine with a spatula to bring together into a dough. You might need to add a tbsp or more of milk at this stage if required to make a soft dough.

Divide the dough into 2 small balls. Take a piece of plastic wrap, put the dough balls on it and flatten with palm to make a disc. Wrap the discs with plastic wrap. Repeat the same with 2nd dough ball. Chill both discs for about 30 minutes.

Line your cookie sheet with parchment paper. Avoid using aluminum foil. Extreme heat will burn the cookies on the bottom.

After chilling, take one disc out, unwrap it and place it between two sheets of parchment paper. Initially, you may find it little difficult to roll because of the chilled dough. It will soften as you go along.

Roll the disc using a floured rolling-pin into a sheet about 1/4″ thick. Using a floured cookie cutter cut the cookies from the rolled dough.

Using a floured thin spatula, transfer the cookies to the lined cookie sheet. Picking up the cookies with fingers will deshape them.

Preheat the oven to 350. Chill the cut cookies again for 15 minutes.

Once chilled, bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes until the sides start turning brown. Cool completely on a cooling rack.


Blueberry Paste Prep
Tip in the blueberries, water and sugar to a small sauce pan. Cook it on low heat until the blueberries are soft and mushy. Transfer to a blender. Blend on high to form a puree. Dissolve cornstarch into lemon juice.

Transfer the puree to sauce pan again and add cornstarch mix. Cook on very low heat for about 5-8 minutes until you get a thick paste. Cool completely before adding to the cream.


Blueberry Cream Filling Prep
Make the filling by beating the cream cheese & butter with an electric mixer. Mix in powdered sugar until smooth. Add 2 tbsp of the cooled blueberry paste above to make a smooth mix.

Assembly
Pipe or spread 1-2 tablespoons of blueberry filling in the center of a cookie. Top with a second cookie and press together until the filling reaches the edges of the cookies. Store in an air tight box for up to 3 days.



Booze Pairings!
Okay guys, here's the thing, this particular night we drank about 9 bottles of wine so while I can't get to all of them, here's a review for one of my favorites.

Big Claw White Wine, $14
Big Claw is a new wine specifically designed to pair with lobster. It is a crisp, balanced blend of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Colombard, Gewurztraminer, and Chenin Blanc from the North Coast. This fantastic wine was the unanimous choice as “the perfect wine to go with lobster” by members of a panel of wine and food professionals chosen by the Lobster Institute in
Maine, an organization dedicated to the preservation of lobster.

Steve Melchiskey of USA Wine West (with offices in California and Maine) and Tim Wissemann of Mariner Beverages (Portland, Maine) are the designers of this wine. It went phenomenally with the lobster stew, but was also just sweet enough to pair with the spicy peppers, and smooth and buttery enough to go to with our desert.

-Phoebe

















The ladies, looking classy!












A scientific experiment: The effect of 9 bottles of wine on classiness...




Cheers!
Christa & Phoebe






About Phoebe

Phoebe is comedian, and wine shop manager, who is also somehow pursuing a masters degree in clinical social work. Though she has no real food credits on her resume, she's well versed in wine and food pairing. She was raised on farm fresh food in Maine, learned about Asian cooking during her time in Thailand, became a seafood fanatic living in Newport RI, and is now well on her way to becoming a full fledged foodie/functioning alcoholic in Boston.