Showing posts with label Parmigiano. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Parmigiano. Show all posts

Monday, April 5, 2010

A Tasty Morsel


The Long Quiche Goodbye comes out in twelve weeks!

Count 'em. Twelve!!!! [Can you tell I'm excited?]

I don’t have a ticker counter, something that will tick off the minutes and hours and help me countdown to liftoff, but twelve weeks feels important. It’s the length of a season.

To every season, turn, turn, turn…[the page].

To honor this twelve-week mark, I’ve posted a book trailer on YouTube. Click this link to VIEW TRAILER. I hope you'll take a look at this "tasty morsel" and share with friends. [If you click this link and leave a comment on my website, you'll be entered to win my next newsletter contest.] If you want to pre-order, there's a link on my website for that, as well.

In the meantime, I mention The Long Quiche Goodbye because in the story, Charlotte, the owner of The Cheese Shop, has twin eight-year-old nieces and they are the inspiration for this week's recipe.

Long story short, Charlotte's cousin Matthew needed someplace to stay, so he and the nieces moved in with Charlotte. Charlotte adores the girls and wants to make sure they start off each day with a healthy dose of love and a good meal. Feeding them something they like to eat helps!

Their favorite breakfast includes eggs and Zircles or Crisp Toasts. I've shared my Parmigiano Zircles recipe before on this blog, but not Crisp Toasts. What I love about these little gems is how versatile they are and how easy they are to prepare. They go with breakfast, lunch, dinner, salads, soups, or are tasty all on their own!

And you are the visionary. You get to decide which spice and how much of each spice goes into them.

CRISP TOASTS:

You'll need a baguette of bread, oil, balsamic vinegar, spices, salt and pepper.

For this batch, I sliced the baguette of bread thin. I set the slices on a cookie tray, then I brushed each piece with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

I seasoned with the twins' favorite spices: rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper.

Then I sprinkled with a generous amount of grated Parmigiano-Regiano. [You can also use shredded Parmesan].

Slide the cookie tray into a preheated 400 degree oven.

Bake 6-10 minutes, depending on your desire of crispiness.

Remove from oven and serve immediately with your favorite meal. They are crunch-in-your-mouth yummy.

Don't forget that they make a lovely addition to a cheese platter,
too.

Enjoy.


New April Contest!!!!

The first book in Riley's Memphis Barbeque series, Delicious and Suspicious, will be released July 6. [The same date as mine!] Though I'll be having a contest in June to celebrate, Riley is choosing NOW! Don't miss out!!!

DELICIOUS    SUSPICIOUS cover
Are you interested in winning Williams-Sonoma’s Ultimate Grilling Rub Collection? It’s easy to enter! Just send an email to [email protected] with
“Contest” in the subject line.

Grilling Rub   Collection Really, really want to up your chances? You’ll get one extra entry if you follow us on Twitter, one extra if you subscribe to our posts (in the right hand sidebar under “Subscribe”), and one extra for becoming a follower (by clicking the “follow” button in the right hand column under our book covers and blog roll.) Just send us an extra email at [email protected] and let us know what you’ve signed up for. If you’re already a follower or subscriber, let us know that, too!


Last but not least, my next newsletter is coming out this week. Sign up to receive it by clicking this link: Avery's newsletter , read about my Cheese of the Month, and get a heads-up on future contests.

Best to all!

~Avery

Monday, March 29, 2010

Avery Won't Passover Easter Potatoes

Passover - to celebrate the Hebrews' escape from enslavement in Egypt.

Easter - to celebrate the life and death of Jesus Christ.

Spring - to celebrate the birth of chocolate bunnies!



Because Passover and Easter occur during the same week, let's pause for a moment and think about these holidays.

Candy doesn't quite set the mood, right?

Don't get me wrong. I love candy. Love it. I love creme eggs and chocolate bunnies and jelly bellys and chocolate gelt. But we can get lost in the sweet, the colorful, the fun and forget about the bittersweet. The reason for Passover and Easter. The faith, the passion, the turning point. The love, forgiveness, and hope.

For those of you who celebrate a religious holiday this week, may you find all that you seek.

For those of you who don't celebrate, may you also find what you seek.

And for those of you cooking dinner for your family and friends...

Here's my treat.

And it's not candy!

What tastes good with either brisket, lamb, or ham? Potatoes!

This week I decided that I really wanted to tweak those potatoes. Make them something special. Offer a side dish worth showing off, that is fresh tasting in honor of spring.

I bought a pound of small potatoes of various colors. Purple, gold, red with white centers. Pretty. And then I improvised with my favorites flavors adding, of course, cheese!


Avery Won't Passover Easter Potatoes

Ingredients:

¼ cup chicken broth

¼ cup oil

¼ cup milk

¼ cup white wine

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground pepper

3 long springs of rosemary, cut into snips

4 tablespoons leeks, sliced (rinsed well!)

2 tablespoons shallots, diced

1 pound colorful small potatoes, rinsed and halved

1/2 cup shredded parmesan [Parmigiano Reggiano Mitica at Whole Foods]


Directions:

Pour liquids and spices into a 2-3 quart baking pan. Layer the potatoes on top.

Cover with foil. Bake 1 hour at 325 degrees.

Remove from oven, remove foil.

Stir and top with ½ cup shredded parmesan

Return to oven. Broil for 5 minutes.

Adorn with sprig of rosemary.

These potatoes are melt in your mouth great and heat up well the next day.

* These also do well baked in individual ramekins.


In other news:

It’s the last of March and we’re still celebrating cupcakes! Our own Jenn McKinlay’s Sprinkle with Murder is now out in bookstores near you! If you’d like to win cupcakes from Crumbs Bake Shop, send us an e-mail at[email protected] or leave a comment with your idea of the wackiest cupcake ingredients you can think of. This contest ends SOON!

Also:

If you're interested, visit my website by clicking this link: Avery Aames. The Long Quiche Goodbye, the first in A Cheese Shop Mystery series, will be coming out soon. It's available for pre-order. Check out my newsletter for upcoming contests. And check out the SNEAK PREVIEW of chapter one!