"In the Veggie Kitchen" Easter Brunch

Spring is officially here.  The farmers markets are shifting, filling up with asparagus, peas, rhubarb and sweet strawberries.  I couldn't be more thrilled, especially because it's just in time for Easter, which comes early this year.  To kick off the new season, I teamed back up with The Chalkboard and Jenni Kayne to teach another cooking class for their 'In the Veggie Kitchen' series. We focused on Easter Brunch recipes, all of which you can find on Jenni's blog Rip Plus Tan (along with her and Amy's pretty Easter table).  Brunch is a great moment for a vegetarian meal since farm eggs can be the star and they truly are the perfect food.  Combined with colorful spring vegetables, it's a terrific follow-up to an egg hunt.  You can also check out my Easter Timeline at the Chalkboard for lots of make ahead tips! Amy created recipes for an amazing array of natural egg dyes which will make a beautiful Easter basket, as well as adorable floral headbands that rival any Easter bonnet (I just may have stolen one).  My most original recipe is for my new favorite spring cocktail: a rhubarb fizz (click here for recipe).  I have to admit, I'm not much of a mixologist (I can't even claim to know how to make a mean martini) because I always rely on Greg (who wouldn't?).  But I figured it's time to step up my game and have a recipe of my own.  The combination of Hendrick's gin, rhubarb, lemon, celery bitters and egg whites make for a nice sweet to tart ratio, with a pretty pink hue.  Just the right thing to hold while wearing your Sunday best!

 

 

 

The Menu

sips

rhubarb fizz

hendrick's gin, rhubarb, lemon, egg white, celery bitters

snacks

beet dip & artichoke pesto dip

baby spring vegetable crudités

to share

chanterelle & leek frittata with thyme

farro, english peas, ricotta salata, walnuts & mint

grilled asparagus with parmigiano reggiano & lemon

buttermilk smashed fingerling potatoes with melted spring onions

spring green with edible flowers, cara cara oranges & champagne vinaigrette

sweet

lemon almond olive oil cake

favor

strawberry rhubarb jam

And The Oscar Goes To...

My very favorite party of the year! An Academy Awards Viewing Party with a thematic menu, featuring courses inspired by each of the ten 'Best Picture' nominees. And this year, having teamed up with Amy, who made incredible ballots and film-inspired decor, it was the very best. I can't lie or feign modesty, this party gets me pretty excited and worked up. Going into the night, my favorite idea was for Inception: a Turducken (a thing inside of a thing inside of a thing)!! A close second: The King's Speech with Tongue Tea Sandwiches (surprisingly delicious). And the most fun? Toy Story 3's Little Kid Dessert Bar (see details and all other courses below). And new this year? A Documentary Drinks Menu (e.g. dirty martini for Inside Job and virgin mint tea for Restrepo). Amy printed mini film posters to label the food and placed movie stills throughout the party. Um, she also had a little Oscar stamp made and got pretty carried away with gold embossing (show-off). Favors? Popcorn and candy bags for a home movie night. If I could throw such a thematic party every week, I'd pretty much live in a state of ecstasy. I'm already excited to start going to movies and get inspired for next year!!!

The Menu

BLACK SWAN

'Dancers' Crudites with Black Olive Tapenade and White Bean Dip'

THE FIGHTER

'Cracked Out Crostini: Goat Cheese with Cracked Peppercorns and Cracked Fennel Seed'

BIUTIFUL

'Gambas al Ajillo'

KING'S SPEECH

'Tongue Tea Sandwiches'

THE SOCIAL NETWORK

'Open Face-book Lobster Rolls'

INCEPTION

'Turducken'

WINTER'S BONE

'Deconstructed Deer Stew with Venison Sausages'

127 HOURS

'Arm of Pork Burritos with Guacamole, Fresh Cheese and Pickled Red Onion'

THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT

'Chipotle Kid (Goat) Meatballs with So-Cal Garden Cactus Salad'

ALICE IN WONDERLAND

'Painting the Roses Red Slaw'

TRUE GRIT

'True Grit Cakes with Whiskey Cowboy Beans'

TOYS STORY 3

'Little Kid Dessert Bar'

homemade

Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats

Hostess Cupcakes

Rhubarb Pop Tarts

PB & J Cookie Sandwiches

Strawberry Fruit Leather

Dark Chocolate Pudding Cups

A Mossy Affair

I've been a bit homesick for Oregon so I created an evening themed around the Pacific Northwest. All of the greens, pine cones and moss created the cozy setting for the flavors of home: berries, hazelnuts, blue cheese, salmon, trout and pinot noir.

My mom shipped me pine cones from Oregon which served as place cards with muslin tags

Moss from Tillamock, OR was an amazing find at the flower market

I asked Amy to write out menus to put at each place setting as I have rather challenged handwriting. I almost died when she suggested taking it to another level. She used iron-ons to print the menu on muslin which then doubled as our napkins. She giggles each time she recounts my jaw drop and delighted face. Better than any Christmas!

Making gravlax at home couldn't be easier and it's fun to play with different herbs and spices. I wrapped one wild salmon fillet up with salt, brown sugar, paprika and dill and the other with salt, white sugar, fennel seeds and fennel fronds. Always a crowd pleaser.

The LA Fungi stall at the Calabasas Saturday farmer's market was well worth the drive. I really wanted to buy everything but I limited myself to a trio of mushrooms. Morels are just coming into season and such a spring luxury. The Frenchman at the stand suggested I fill the hollows of the mushrooms with a salmon mousse. I already had salmon curing at home so I opted for a soft sheep's milk cheese with fresh chervil and set the morels on a salad of shaved white asparagus. I then sauteed the hen of the woods mushrooms with blackberries and thyme and served on grilled brioche, brushed with truffle oil. Rounding out the plate, a shot glass of shitake mushroom soup.Sampling Oregon blues at the Artisinal Cheese Gallery on Ventura was heaven. I'm a bit of a sample glutton. I selected Echo Mountain blue and paired it with smoked trout and hazelnuts on a bed of wilted arugula and spinach in a warm hazelnut sherry vinaigrette.

I braised the duck legs in pinot noir while Greg smoked the breasts on my new smoker. The cherry-port compote pulled it all together. And swiss chard has become to me what corn was last summer: the thing I want to eat at every meal!

And finally, the party favors. Last weekend I canned jars of agave sweetened, meyer lemon-strawberry compote sweetly labeled to take home.

the menu

house cured spiced wild salmon gravlax on pumpernickel with dill mustard sauce

house cured herbed wild salmon gravlax on cucumber rounds with cream cheese and capers

house pickled spicy dill fennel and cucumber

trio of mushrooms

morels stuffed with fresh sheep's milk cheese and served on a shaved white asparagus and chervil salad

hen of the woods mushrooms sauteed with blackberries, thyme and truffle oil on grilled brioche

shitake mushroom soup

wilted greens with smoked trout, echo mountain blue cheese, hazelnuts

duo of duck

legs braised in pinot noir, smoked breast, parsnip puree, swiss chard with a cherry port sauce

spiced buttermilk cake with pinot noir berry sauce and whipped cream

three chocolate hazelnut tart

dark and stormy cocktail

oregon's king estate pinot grigio and argyle pinot noir

deschutes brewery seasonal ipa

inspired by the Wildwood cookbook...a must buy for any lover of food

Happy Valentine's Day

Holidays just aren't holidays in my book without the appropriate sugar cookies. They have become my signature treat, my go-to party favor. It's the hint of almond in the frosting that makes everyone wonder 'why is this the best sugar cookie ever?!' This year I did classic hearts as favors for Valentine's Day shoppers at my friend Amy's store Apartment Number 9. It happens to be my high school sweetheart's mom's recipe and somehow all of my girlfriends around the country make them. It makes me so happy that each holiday, I have a new friend requesting the recipe. Courtney A. made them for the first time this week, impressing her 'Valentine' Meg in NYC and realized cookies truly are the key to the heart.