Heirloom Tomato Bruschetta with Brie and Balsamic Drizzle

So I have come to a conclusion. I have decided that a camera should follow me twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.

Not because I’m super funny or interesting. Not because I’m profound or inspiring.

I need to be followed with a camera because my every day life is some of the best slapstick humor out there.

On any given day, I slip, trip, smack, bang and bump myself COUNTLESS times. I don’t even want to put a ballpark number on it because I don’t think that would do it justice.

Just yesterday, I got into work and went straight for my first morning project. The coffee. We have a wonderful coffee machine in the office, but you have to make sure the water stays above a certain level. As I took a full cup of water and tried to move it from the water dispenser to the machine, a total of three feet, I caught the cup of water on the corner of the counter and it went flying EVERYWHERE. In the few hours following, I banged my knee four times and ran into my next-door neighbor’s cube wall, almost taking the whole thing down. And circa three in the afternoon, I went to make tea and somehow managed in one motion to launch the lid of the tin tea canister directly into my face, only to stomp it into a twisted mess the second it hit the floor.

Seriously, where was the camera?

And I’m not even going to talk about the spilling problem.

Basically, I am absolutely a walking disaster and you are all missing out on some solid laughs.

There is no doubt in my mind or those who spend any time with me, that I’m clumsy. But somehow, the only place I seem to be able to keep it together is in the kitchen. In the kitchen, I have some finesse. In the kitchen, I’m less bull in a china shop and more elegant stallion, galloping and prancing around the kitchen with speed and grace.

All right, that last analogy was super weird, but you get the point.

This is a dish that just came along organically from a trip to the market and it just fell into place. Without any actual falling.

You will need…

1 lb heirloom tomatoes, diced into ½ inch cubes

1 clove garlic, minced

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon chopped mint

¼ cup balsamic vinegar

2 ounces robust and creamy cheese, like Brie

1 sourdough baguette, sliced into ½ inch thick slices

Salt and pepper to taste

Start by combining your garlic and olive oil and let the garlic infused for 30 minutes up to 24 hours.

Preheat your oven to broil.

Lay out the bread slices on a baking sheet and broil until toasted 2 to 3 minutes a side.

Remove the bread from the oven and set it aside to cool.

While the bread is cooling, bring the vinegar to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat. Simmer the vinegar until it is reduced by half. About 8 minutes.

As the vinegar is reducing, combine the garlic and olive oil, mint and tomatoes together in a bowl. Toss well and season with salt and pepper.

Spread the cheese onto the toasted bread.

When the balsamic drizzle is ready, top the toasted bread with a hearty helping of the tomato mixture.

Drizzle the balsamic over the top of the tomatoes and serve.

Love and Beer Floats

Angela 

Heirloom Tomato Bruschetta with Brie and Balsamic Drizzle

1 lb heirloom tomatoes, diced into ½ inch cubes

1 clove garlic, minced

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon chopped mint

¼ cup balsamic vinegar

2 ounces robust and creamy cheese, like Brie

1 sourdough baguette, sliced into ½ inch thick slices

Salt and pepper to taste

Start by combining your garlic and olive oil and let the garlic infused for 30 minutes up to 24 hours.

Preheat your oven to broil.

Lay out the bread slices on a baking sheet and broil until toasted 2 to 3 minutes a side.

Remove the bread from the oven and set it aside to cool.

While the bread is cooling, bring the vinegar to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat. Simmer the vinegar until it is reduced by half. About 8 minutes.

As the vinegar is reducing, combine the garlic and olive oil, mint and tomatoes together in a bowl. Toss well and season with salt and pepper.

Spread the cheese onto the toasted bread.

When the balsamic drizzle is ready, top the toasted bread with a hearty helping of the tomato mixture.

Drizzle the balsamic over the top of the tomatoes and serve. 

Grilled Chicken with Cucumber and Peach Salsa

I want to take a second to give a little love to the unsung hero of this here blog.

For a long time, all the magic happened because I made it happen. Of course I’d get help from visiting dinner guests or family members, but for the most part I was running around the kitchens I’ve cooked in like a chicken with my head cut off.

But these days things are easier and down right prettier because Wes does everything he can to help me.

From dicing things to perfection, to hitting the grill when I have too much going on to snagging the camera when I need seven hands. He does it all.

He does it all AFTER working his butt off for ten hours a day.

Finally, all his hard work and selflessness has paid off. He got a great promotion at work after years of dedication and hard work.

Congrats my love! You deserve it!

In your honor, I will call you and demand that you tell me what to make for dinner and then freak out and have you help me chop things.

Thanks for working so hard and keeping all together!

You will need…

4 chicken breasts, pounded thin

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons peach preserves

½ cup cucumber, peeled and chopped

1 tablespoon fresh mint, finely chopped

3 tablespoons red onion, diced

2 large ripe peaches, peeled and chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Start by combining the preserves, cucumber, mint and onion in a medium bowl.

Season with salt and pepper and let the flavors combine for 30 minutes to 2 hours.

Preheat the grill to a high heat.

Gently brush the chicken with olive oil and season well with salt and pepper.

Grill the chicken until it has good grill marks and is cooked through. About 4 minutes a side.

When the chicken is cooked through, top with 2 tablespoons salsa and serve hot.

Love and Beer Floats

Angela 

Grilled Chicken with Cucumber and Peach Salsa

4 chicken breasts, pounded thin

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons peach preserves

½ cup cucumber, peeled and chopped

1 tablespoon fresh mint, finely chopped

3 tablespoons red onion, diced

2 large ripe peaches, peeled and chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Start by combining the preserves, cucumber, mint and onion in a medium bowl.

Season with salt and pepper and let the flavors combine for 30 minutes to 2 hours.

Preheat the grill to a high heat.

Gently brush the chicken with olive oil and season well with salt and pepper.

Grill the chicken until it has good grill marks and is cooked through. About 4 minutes a side.

When the chicken is cooked through, top with 2 tablespoons salsa and serve hot. 

Mint Chocolate Brownies with Chocolate Frosting

Even though my day job has stresses, like pretty much every other person on this planet, even on the worst days I work at a great company with great people.

It is also a company with awesome perks. We have an awesomely relaxed work environment. One where there is a gym on site, a rocking patio with fire pits and in close proximity the beach. We can wear whatever we want to work and can make our spaces our own. But most importantly, we throw rocking parties.

Tonight was our annual holiday party complete with lots of booze, good food and free stuff.

Well guess who has two thumbs and won something tonight.

This girl.

I was the lucky winner of a primo parking spot at work. Like, super primo. For a whole year. Three hundred and sixty five days, minus weekends and holidays, of up front parking.

Score.

Thank you Quiksilver. For being awesome. For giving me super awesome parking, and for eating all my treats when I bring them to work. 

Just like these tasty morsels that they destroyed.

You will need…

Brownies:

1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour

¾ cup cocoa powder

½ teaspoon baking powder

1 cup butter (2 sticks)

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

10 ounces (1 pack) mint chocolate chips

Frosting:

½ cup butter (1 stick)

1/3 cup cocoa powder

2 cups powdered sugar

2 tablespoons whole milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Green sprinkles (optional)

Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees F.

Then in the bowl of a stand mixer or in a bowl with a hand mixer, blend together the 1 cup butter and 2 cups sugar until light and fluffy.

While you are slowly mixing, add in the eggs one at a time.

Add in 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

Then mix together the flour, baking powder and cocoa powder and sift it slowly into the wet mixture.

Mix in the chocolate mint chips until completely combined.

Pour into a 9 x 13 inch buttered baking dish.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes.

Set aside to cool.

While the brownies are cooling, mix together the remaining butter, cocoa powder, powdered sugar and vanilla extract.

When completely blended and the brownies have completely cooled, use a spatula to evenly spread the frosting.

Top with green sprinkles.

Cut and serve.

Love and Beer Floats

Angela  

Mint Chocolate Brownies with Chocolate Frosting

Brownies:

1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour

¾ cup cocoa powder

½ teaspoon baking powder

1 cup butter (2 sticks)

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

10 ounces (1 pack) mint chocolate chips

Frosting:

½ cup butter (1 stick)

1/3 cup cocoa powder

2 cups powdered sugar

2 tablespoons whole milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Green sprinkles (optional)

Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees F.

Then in the bowl of a stand mixer or in a bowl with a hand mixer, blend together the 1 cup butter and 2 cups sugar until light and fluffy.

While you are slowly mixing, add in the eggs one at a time.

Add in 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

Then mix together the flour, baking powder and cocoa powder and sift it slowly into the wet mixture.

Mix in the chocolate mint chips until completely combined.

Pour into a 9 x 13 inch buttered baking dish.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes.

Set aside to cool.

While the brownies are cooling, mix together the remaining butter, cocoa powder, powdered sugar and vanilla extract.

When completely blended and the brownies have completely cooled, use a spatula to evenly spread the frosting.

Top with green sprinkles.

Cut and serve.

Pea Puree Crusted Rack of Lamb

Autumn is in full swing in sunny southern California. Meaning, the temperature finely dropped below eighty degrees, I can’t look at my summer wardrobe anymore so I’ve taken to wearing boots and scarves and somehow I’ve convinced myself that it’s too cold outside to barbeque.

So inside I go. To create warmer, heartier, homier food.

If I can pretend that the weather is cold outside, then so can my diners (my family members who live with me and are forced to eat my food).

So get read for some serious fall dishes.

You will need…

2 racks of lamb

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cups thawed frozen peas

¼ cup fresh mint leaves

2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 tablespoon whole grain mustard

1 shallot, roughly chopped

¼ cup walnuts, roughly chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Start by preheating your oven to 450 degrees F.

While the oven is preheating, combine the peas, mint, garlic, mustard, shallot and walnuts in the bowl of food processor and blend until the mixture is pureed.

Taste the puree and season it with salt and pepper to taste.

Then, heat the oil in an oven safe pan over medium high heat.

When the oil is very hot, season the lamb well with salt and pepper and seer it till it is nice and browned. Start with the fatty side down.

As soon as the lamb has a nice seer, remove the pan from the heat and set it aside.

Cover the lamb with aluminum foil and let it rest for 5 minutes.

After the lamb has rested, remove the foil and rub the puree all over the lamb.

When the lamb is rubbed down, place the pan in the oven and cook it for 12 minutes for medium rare.

Remove the pan from the oven, remove the lamb from the pan and let it rest, covered with aluminum foil, for another 5 minutes.

Slice and serve hot. 

Love and Beer Floats

Angela

Pea Puree Crusted Rack of Lamb

2 racks of lamb

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cups thawed frozen peas

¼ cup fresh mint leaves

2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 tablespoon whole grain mustard

1 shallot, roughly chopped

¼ cup walnuts, roughly chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Start by preheating your oven to 450 degrees F.

While the oven is preheating, combine the peas, mint, garlic, mustard, shallot and walnuts in the bowl of food processor and blend until the mixture is pureed.

Taste the puree and season it with salt and pepper to taste.

Then, heat the oil in an oven safe pan over medium high heat.

When the oil is very hot, season the lamb well with salt and pepper and seer it till it is nice and browned. Start with the fatty side down.

As soon as the lamb has a nice seer, remove the pan from the heat and set it aside.

Cover the lamb with aluminum foil and let it rest for 5 minutes.

After the lamb has rested, remove the foil and rub the puree all over the lamb.

When the lamb is rubbed down, place the pan in the oven and cook it for 12 minutes for medium rare.

Remove the pan from the oven, remove the lamb from the pan and let it rest, covered with aluminum foil, for another 5 minutes.

Slice and serve hot.