The lemon cucumbers taste different than other cucumbers.Lemon Cumbers also look different….they actually look like lemons. These cucumbers are sweet and sort of fruity with gentle acid. I thought they’d go well with I’itois Onions, Sweet Yellow Bell Peppers and Saffron. I just add a little sugar and a tiny bit of course sea salt. I think that is all this salad needs. I figure if you are able to find lemon cucumbers that you shouldn’t ave trouble finding an I’itiois Onion. It looks like a scallion but has more complex flavors….sort of scallion and sort of shallot.

Ingredients for about 4 servings

5 medium lemon cucumbers – ends trimmed and cut in 1/2 slices

1 yellow bell pepper (stem and core removed) – cut in thin 1/4 slices

1 I’itois onion – sliced

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon course sea salt

pinch saffron

Directions

Everything but saffron goes in a medium sized bowl. Gently stir bowl. Crumble the saffron well with your fingers and add in.

Chill and serve.

This Biscotti recipe is a tweaked and different flavor version of Giada de Laurentiis’s Recipe (chocolate chip biscotti) that is or used to be on www.FoodNetwork.com . The Biscotti just come out delicious. You and all your guest will be thrilled with these Biscotti. The pomegranate just adds a really neat fruity pop and this interesting texture. The fresh rosemary is just something that aromatic and in the background….a hint that you don’t really know it’s there but it just taste delicious.The cookies are great with or without the chocolate drizzle so that is optional….As for the recipe I only changed up the flavor (anise), regular flour for bread flour from the original …… for more texture. I also added lower degree and lower  baking for a crisper biscotti. This recipe will make around 30 Biscotti. Like for most better results for yummier cookies I made the cookie dough the day before and baked up the Biscotti the next day.

Ingredients for about 30 servings

2 cups bread flour

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon course sea salt

3/4 cup sugar

4 oz unsalted butter – room temperature

2 large eggs – beaten

1 teaspoon anise seeds

1 pomegranate – all the fruit from the pomegranate

1 Tablespoon fresh rosemary – chopped fine

optional 6 oz chocolate chips for drizzling (I used milk chocolate….)

Directions

In a large mixing bowl add the sugar and butter and mix well with a fork. Then add the eggs and mix well. Now dump in the flour, baking powder, salt and anise seeds and mix well. Add the pomegranate and rosemary. Mix well. Cover dough bowl with plastic wrap. Put bowl of dough in the refrigerator and let sit overnight.

Next Day

Set oven to 350 degrees F

Get out a baking sheet and line it with a silicon mat if you have one. If not parchment paper should work almost as well.

Roll the dough into two logs and place on lined baking sheet. It should look something like picture below.

Put it in the oven for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes it will look something  like this.

The dough will be hot and soft. Let it cool for a couple hours on the counter.

Remove one dough log and slice it slowly in a sawing motion with a serrated knife in about 1/2 inch slices.

Turn down the oven to 300 degrees F.

If you have two silicon mats line two baking sheets with the silicon mats. (parchment is second choice. The Biscotti need to get baked on each side. Lay the biscotti on the side to get baked like picture below.

Bake the biscotti for 20 minutes and take the biscotti out of the oven. (you might have 4 hard small ends that you might need to remove now and set to the side for drizzling or just eat them)

Turn the oven down again to 275 degrees F.

Flip each biscotti over on the other side so the other side can get cooked. Let them cook for another 20 minutes. After 20 minutes I shut the oven off and opened the door and let the biscotti stay in there to crisp up a little more. (maybe another 20 minutes)

If you are adding the chocolate drizzle…….

Line baking sheets with parchment paper

Then line up the biscotti like this.

In a cereal size bowl microwave the chocolate chips for 30 seconds. Mix them up with a spoon and microwave the chips for another 30 seconds and stir well. You might need another 10 seconds.

With a disposable pastry bag……..Fold it down half way over your hand and spoon in the chocolate.

Snip off about an 1/8 inch of the tip and just go from the front to the back over the biscotti about 6 times each row.

You have to leave the biscotti sit out for around 6 hours because it takes that long for the chocolate to harden.

A special Thanks to Giada de Laurentis for her really great Chocolate Chip Biscotti Recipe on Foodnetwork. I feel that recipe taught me how to make biscotti.

ENJOY!

These Biscotti are Forking Scrumptious!

 

I picked up a bag of Jimmy Red Cornmeal Grits from Nelson’s Seafood and Meat Shop. These Grits are very different than regular grits or even polenta. They have a unique flavor and a very fine texture. On the bag it states that they have a slight chestnut and lavender taste. I tried to pick up on the chestnut taste by adding earthy chestnuts to the spinach. These grits are so different. They have almost no texture and are like creamy soup when you follow the directions on the package. I thought if I cut the liquid by 25% I could make the grits firmer and make a crusted cake out of them. The crust part is very concentrated with corn flavor that is filled with this unique creamy delicate grits. A creamy mild cheese is between two thin layers of crusted grits. Underneath is quickly braised spinach. I heated up a 1/2 cup of water with a Tablespoon of vegetable based (think of it as flavored salt) and thinly sliced onions. As soon as the mixture is hot the spinach gets squeezed into the pot and is done almost instantly. Then the spinach gets drained and seasoned. You will be surprised on how flavorful and delicious the spinach gets. Lastly the grit cakes get topped very very sweet seasoned Italian style tomatoes and a dollop of fresh ricotta cheese if you happen to have any around.

Ingredients for about 8 servings

1 cup Jimmy Red Cornmeal – Geechie Boy Mill Brand (I don’t think any other brand is made the same)

3 cups water

1/2 teaspoon course sea salt

2 Tablespoons unsalted butter

non stick spray – canola or vegetable

1 1/2 lbs fresh spinach

1/2 medium sweet onion – sliced very thin on a mandolin

1 garlic clove – ground to paste

1/2 cup water

1 Tablespoon vegetable base

3 1/2 oz peel roasted chestnuts – slightly more than rough chopped

fresh ground black pepper to  taste

1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 cup tiny sweet grape tomatoes – cut in quarters

1 garlic clove ground to paste

1 Tablespoon fine chopped basil – packed really tight

1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 Tablespoon balsamic  vinegar

1 1/2 Tablespoons shaved parmesan

fresh ground sea salt – to taste

fresh ground black pepper – to taste

4 oz mild cheese mozzarella, mild provolone would be great, mascarpone would be great too (I used a mild pepadew cheese)

optional – 4 dollops of fresh made ricotta cheese

Directions

Put a sauce pot on to boil with 3 cups of water and a 1/2 teaspoon of course sea salt. When it starts to boil slowly whisk in the grits. Keep whisking. Turn down the heat to a medium simmer.  Add the butter and keep whisking. Whisk as much as you can for at least 20 minutes.

Spray a pie pan with non stick spray.

When the grits are done pour the grits in the pie pan and leave on the counter till about room temperature. Then cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to cool at set.

In a medium bowl combine the tomatoes, 1 clove garlic, basil, 1 Tablespoon olive oil, balsamic, parmesan and salt and pepper to taste. Set in the refrigerator.

Now clean out your sauce pot.

Add a 1/2 cup of water to your sauce pot with the sliced onions and bring them to boil on medium high heat. Add the spinach a BIG handful at a time while stirring. (this should be very quick) Now take off heat and place spinach in a colander to drain over a bowl or in sink so it can drain. Stir in the ground garlic, roasted chestnuts, olive oil and black pepper to taste. You will be surprised on how delicious and flavorful the spinach is….

By around now the grits might be chilled and solid.

When the grits are chilled and solid. Dump them out in one piece on a cutting board.

Cut 8 wedges just like a pie.

Get a medium sized fry pan on medium high heat sprayed with non stick spray. When the pan is hot add a couple wedges at a time and they need to brown on both sides. This happened pretty quickly if your pan is hot. They only need about two minutes a side.

I put the mild cheese in-between two grit wedges.

Then over the spinach and spooned on some of the tomato mixture and a spoonful of fresh made ricotta.

 

I got these Great Baby Zucchini with attached Blossoms at the Pinnacle Peak Farmer’s Market. I thought I should stuff the blossoms so I did. Some things you do have to fry but if I can avoid frying I avoid frying because I prefer my empty fat calories from Cheese, Ice Cream, Chocolate, Bread and Alcohol..(usually wine)…….Often….. Often..or VERY OFTEN…. Fried from the oven can actually taste better than foods that are actually fried. My Oven Fried Turkey Wings and Oven Fried French Fries can actually compete with the real thing….How many times has something fried that you ate leaves grease in your mouth?  Doesn’t something fried taste like fish sometimes?  Often something fried just taste like old grease. … Well any who….I’ve come up with an unique breading recipe that actually does come out like a fried crispy coating. Two secrets are to this recipe. One I add Dijon Mustard to the egg because it makes the coating stick together great and it adds a nice flavor. The other secret is that I use Whole Wheat Panko. It works like magic for a crisp baked coating. I note that you will have a little extra Flour, Egg and Panko left over. But I think it will be too difficult to work with less. I used the leftover to make 8 small baked onion rings.

Ingredients for about 2 servings

6 baby zucchini with blossoms attached

2 oz. feta cheese – (it must be the fresh style that’s creamy mild and less salt style with-out tang) – or substitute goat cheese

1/2 cup flour

1 teaspoon sweet paprika

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/2 teaspoon course sea salt

1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

2 L eggs – beaten

1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 cup whole wheat panko

non stick spray – canola or vegetable

Directions

Set oven to 350 degrees F.

If you haven’t done so already wash off and carefully blot dry the zucchini.

You need to slit each blossom and remove the small inside with your fingers. Just pull the little thing out.

Get your 2 oz. block of feta and cut into 6 pieces. Put the biggest piece into the biggest flower. Try to wrap the flower around the cheese as best as you can. The flower wraps around the cheese pretty easy.

Get out three bowls. In one bowl add the flour, paprika, cayenne, course sea salt and black pepper and mix.

In the second bowl add the two beaten eggs and the dijon mustard. Mix well.

In the third bowl goes the whole wheat panko.

Get out a baking sheet and line it with Quilon or parchment paper.

Start by dipping the largest blossom into the flour. Make sure the blossom is coated all over with flower.

Then take the flour coated blossom into the egg mixture and coat the blossom well with egg.

Now the egg coated blossom goes into the panko mixture and make sure the blossom is well coated with panko.

Rest each stuffed blossom with zucchini on a lined sheet tray. LIGHTLY spray the zucchini with non stick spray.

They go in a 350 degree F oven for 30 minutes and then after 30 minutes carefully turn them over and the zucchini only need about 15 minutes more on the other side.

Lightly add fresh ground sea salt and black pepper to the non breaded part of the zucchini when you remove them from the oven.

You might want small sides of marinara sauce for dipping.

Fun appetizer or side dish.

 

 

 

This is nothing like a traditional sweet potato pie. I purchased some purple sweet potatoes. The purple sweet potatoes have a different flavor than orange sweet potatoes. They are slightly perfume-ee with maybe a berry note. I think they also seem a little starchier than an orange sweet potato. The Blackberry seems to lighten up the heavy potato and the flavor and color inspired this pie. The crust is Forking AMAZING! It’s very special and unique. It’s very flavorful. It’s has savory and sweet with yummy pops from the sea salt crystals with a really great texture. It was made with coconut flour, almond flour and olive oil. This pie feels almost like Cheesecake in the mouth. If seeds from blackberries bother you then you need to  push the blackberries threw a strainer if you are making this pie. Now this is a very unique pie! You aren’t going to find anything like this anywhere.

Ingredients for about 8 servings

1/2 cup flour

1/4 cup coconut flour

1/4 cup almond flour

4 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 Tablespoon cold water

2 Tablespoons dark brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon course sea salt

non stick spray

15 oz purple sweet potatoes – already cooked peeled and sliced

8oz blackberries – mash them all pour 1/2 into potato filling the other half gets mixed with 2 Tablespoons sugar and gets set to the side in a small bowl.

2 Tablespoons sugar

2 L eggs – slightly beaten

14 oz sweetened condensed milk

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ginger

pinch white pepper

pinch course sea salt

a few grates fresh nutmeg

Directions

Set oven at 350 degrees

Spray a pie pan with non stick spray (My pan is a very shallow bakery pie pan. (I think it’s a normal size pan…across the bottom is 8 inches but with the flat ends it’s about 11 inches….You can use a slightly different size but the timing might be slightly off)

Your small bowl with 4 oz of mashed blackberries and sugar is set to the side.

In a medium bowl hand mix the these ingredients one at a time, flour, coconut flour, almond flour, olive oil, water, 2 Tablespoons dark brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon sea salt. Hand pat the mixture in the pie pan. Then piece all over with a fork. Put in the oven till it’s lightly cooked that will be 4-5 minutes. Pull out and set to the side.

In a large bowl slice up the potatoes and then mash the potatoes (the slicing breaks them down so they mash better).  Hand mash in the remaining ingredients one at a time till done and the mixture is smooth. Pour a layer into pie shell then a small layer of the blackberries and go back and forth until done.  Place in the oven for about 30 minutes.

It’s delicious and very different! You will be surprised!

 

I never saw or heard of Roselle before and saw them at the Pinnacle Peak Farmers Market and purchased a small bag of them. I found out the Roselle is a wild relative of the Hibiscus Flower. While researching the Roselle I came across a lot of websites claiming the roselle flower has many health benefits. According to Wikipedia the Roselle decreases blood pressure by 7.5/3.5 units. (whatever that means) One website claimed it helps to reverse the effects of diabetes. According to www.Airytea.com the Roselle is very high in vitamins and minerals and cures almost any infliction that you can think of….of course I don’t know if any of this has any truth to it. I read that most people just make beverages from the Roselle flowers (but other parts of the plant are also eaten) so I boiled the Roselle to keep the liquid. I thought they taste sort of like a floral kind of cranberry taste so I just added it to cranberry sauce and I thought lime and a hint of cayenne would be good in the sauce and it is.

Ingredients for about 10 servings

12 oz cranberries  – soak and rinse them a few times

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 cups Roselle liquid – Bring to boil about 2 1/2 cups of water with 10 Roselle Flowers reduce to simmer about 40 minutes – toss out Roselle keep all the liquid. (if you have more than 1 1/2 cups use it and decrease the water)

1 cup water

1 lime – the fresh squeezed juice and all of the zest

pinch course sea salt

pinch cayenne pepper

Directions

Pot a sauce pot on medium high heat and add the Roselle liquid, water, sugar and salt. Bring to boil. Add cranberries, lime juice and cayenne. Reduce to medium heat and stir occasionally. You need to cook it until all the cranberries pop. When the cranberries are popped turn it down a little. You might want to cover it loosely with foil so it doesn’t splatter on your stove. Let it reduce to desired consistency. Lastly add the lime zest. Take off heat and refrigerate. Cranberry sauce also freezes well.

Cranberry sauce that is a little different. It’s not too sweet. It a little floral with a nice texture. It taste good. It might even be super healthy and cure all your ailments. Who The Fork Knows.

 

 

 

I was watching Rachel Ray (a cooking variety and lifestyle TV show). I heard her saying that a  favorite restaurant in Philadelphia for her was Zahav ( a multi award wining restaurant with a multi award wining James Beard wining Chef who is also the 2017 James Beard outstanding chef). Rachel Ray also named a list of about a half dozen celebrity Chefs including Amanda Freitag stating that Zahav was also their favorite restaurant in Philadelphia. WOW that really spoke to me because I happened to have dined at Zahav and also had the most amazing experience   there…..Then on the TV Screen was Chef Michael Solomanov from Zahav via some sort of TV Cam. He was only on TV for what seemed like 30 seconds and in that short time he whipped up Brussels Sprouts Baba Ganoush. It happened so fast I’m not sure I remembered everything but I think I did. I happened to have a Brussels Sprouts stalk in my refrigerator SO I HAD TO TRY! This recipe didn’t have any measurements given so I just had to wing because that’s the way I saw it done on TV. It’s pretty darn delicious! Maybe even FORKING AMAZING! You might want to give this a try! I cooked up all my brussels Sprouts and made about FOUR servings of the Brussels Sprout Baba Ganoush. This recipe is my interpretation of what I saw Chef Michael Solomonov do on the Rachel Ray TV Show.

Ingredients

Brussels Sprouts – I used one stalk

Canola oil for frying (I covered the pan well with oil)

1 lemon (just the fresh squeezed juice

1/3 cup tahini (only purchase tahini that you can pour or it’s too old to eat) ((I like the one that comes in a glass bottle that they sell at Walmart)

1/4 teaspoon cumin

2 oz roasted garlic (whipped or mashed very well) ( half heads of garlic and drizzle them with olive oil and roast in a 350 degree F oven about an hour)

1 cup (packed tight) of the dark charred Brussels Sprouts

water to thin to your desired consistency

fresh ground sea salt to taste

fresh ground black pepper to taste

8 Tablespoons creamy mild not tangy feta cheese (for finishing – 2 Tablespoons a serving)

4 Tablespoons toasted hazelnuts slightly crushed (for finishing – 1 Tablespoon a serving)

2 Tablespoons parsley chopped (for finishing)

4 Tablespoons harissa (condiment for finishing) (preferably a fresh made kind and not from a jar or can)

4 Tablespoons tahini  (condiment for finishing)

2 cups of fried Brussels Sprouts – about 1/2 cup portions for each serving

Directions

The brussels sprouts get cut in half.

Put a large fry pan on medium heat with a good amount of oil. (about 350 degrees F)

When the oil is hot use tongs and fry the Brussels Sprouts till browned (about 6-7 minutes) each brussels sprout is a different size. Some you have to turn over and brown the other side.

It’s a good idea to use a screen for less oil splats. You WANT about a cup of the brussels sprouts to get VERY DARK.

It’s just like when you make eggplant baba ganoush. You need it charred for flavor. The char also turns the sprouts sweet. The darkest Brussels Sprouts you use for the Brussels Sprouts Baba Ganoush. It’s best to get a paper towel under the fried sprouts and then hit then with fresh crushed sea salt and fresh ground black pepper.

Now pack a cup real tight of the sprout that are the most charred. (the darkest ones)

Fine chop the sprouts and put them in a medium sized bowl. (Chef Solomonov said Baba Ganoush should always be chunky)

Add fresh squeezed lemon juice, 1/3 cup tahini, 1/4 teaspoon cumin, 2 oz roasted garlic (whipped or mashed very well). Add water till it get to your desired consistency. It should look similar to this. Add fresh crushed sea salt and black pepper to taste.

Now you build it like a sundae.

On the bottom is a layer of the Brussels Sprouts Baba Ganoush. Use about a quarter of the mixture for a serving.

Top each serving with at least a 1/2 cup of brussels sprouts.

Top the brussels sprouts with about 2 Tablespoons of feta cheese.

Next about 1 Tablespoon of toasted hazelnuts.

finish with a small amount of parsley, a little harissa and a little tahini.

It’s really delicious! All the different flavors and textures go together well. It a Forking Great Brussels Sprouts Dish…Glad I caught Chef Solomonov on the Rachel Ray Show doing this dish!

 

 

 

I had these campari tomatoes that I had to do something with so I thought I’d stuff them. I didn’t feel like the usual bread or rice stuffing so I stuffed them with Israeli Couscous. I like the texture of Israeli Couscous…..It almost pops in your mouth. It’s like pasta caviar. I also happened to have two extra roasted red peppers hanging around and had creamy mild (not tangy) Feta Cheese in my refrigerator so the recipe pretty much happened by it’s self. I do note that due to the size of your tomatoes you might have slightly extra or not enough filling. I had 16 tomatoes that weighed two pounds. I think for this recipe you will want to use small tomatoes that are campari sized. I also (before I hollowed them out.) made slightly more harissa vinaigrette than I needed…maybe a 1/3 of a cup extra.  But this harissa vinaigrette is pretty darn amazing. You will want to use it on eggs or slather it on bread maybe with some creamy mild feta cheese, or just use it over grilled meat that you might want to serve with these tomatoes. This dish can be served at room temperature or slightly warmed up.

Ingredients for about 4 servings

2 lbs campari tomatoes about (16 tomatoes) ((The campari tomato is a small sweet tomato but bigger than a cherry tomato) – slice the top off and hollow them out really well with a teaspoon

2 red bell peppers – roasted with stems, seeds, skin removed and rough chopped and include any roasted pepper juices

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon caraway seeds

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

3 garlic cloves – grated

1 hot pepper – chopped fine ( I used a fried reddish serano pepper – chopped) ((I suggest to use any hot pepper you like and to use it to taste because they all run hotter sometimes than other times…you might want more or much less pepper))

1 lemon – just the fresh squeezed juice

2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 Tablespoons tomato paste

fresh ground sea salt to taste

fresh ground black pepper to taste

1/2 cup Israeli Couscous (I like the Tri Color one)

1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

3/4 cup  vegetable stock

3 oz feta cheese – preferably the mild creamy kind without a strong tang or substitute a creamy goat cheese – crumbled

2 Tablespoons fresh parsley – chopped

Directions

Add one tablespoon olive oil to a small pot on medium high heat. Add the couscous and fry it a couple minutes or till slightly toasted. Add the vegetable broth and lightly cover and reduce to simmer. Cook till couscous is tender. (about ten minutes) Fluff couscous and set to the side.

In a small blender or with a blending wand blend up the roasted red peppers, cumin, caraway, 2 Tablespoon olive oil, garlic cloves, hot pepper, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, tomato paste. Blend till smooth. Add fresh ground sea salt and black pepper to taste.

Add at least half of the harissa vinaigrette to the couscous and mix well. Now add in the feta and parsley.

Scoop out the tomatoes really well if you didn’t already. (you want them to be like shells)

By now the couscous absorbed the harissa and you need to add more or it will be dry.

Stuff the tomatoes and serve at either room temperature or warmed up.

Tasty and different! Not the same old stuff! You will be pleasantly surprised! When I served these at dinner my husband made a face…..”what’s that?” I told him and then after he ate them he said, “you know that was really very good!”