Chocolate Amaretto Tart Piled High with Strawberries

What a fantastic weekend my family and I had. How was yours? Friday night was another all-nighter getting ready for the Salon on Saturday. I think I need a few more hours in my week! The Cooking Salon went very well and my Distinguished Guests enjoyed a morning at the Market learning how to pack a beautiful picnic for an evening at Wolf Trap, or a day in Virginia's Wine Country.


I'll share with you today the dessert, a decadent but very simple Chocolate Amaretto Tart with almost the last of our strawberry season's berries. The farmer I work with, Mary from Mt. Olympus Farm, said that with all the rain we have had, the strawberries are fermenting in the fields. So I celebrated this last harvest with this show stopping dessert.


Sunday evening we met my brother and his family at Wolf Trap for the Marine Corp Band and Fireworks. My spiffy new camera can do these cool panorama shots. Everyone is in the photo except me.


Here is Mia, my niece. She is so cute you could just squish her.


The fireworks were set to the music of this year's performances and the final song was Mamma Mia! I think there were a few thousand people singing and humming along. I was. It is such a fun sound track and I enjoyed the movie, so we are hoping to see it live this summer. The kids even want to see this one.


All in all a great weekend of hard work, time with family and friends, and solving some big problems. My biggie last week was that my original power cords weren't cutting it and I had to move up to 10 gauge/15 amp/1875 watts/NEMA L5-15R/100ft extension cords to run my appliances at the market. You had no idea I could speak power cords? Yeah, I am an electrician now too. These new suckers are thick and very heavy, 25 pounds a piece, and I will not even mention the cost- it makes my want to cry. So although I am getting a big workout with these guys, they work.

Now for that tart recipe...

Chocolate Amaretto Silk Tart with Strawberries– adapted from Annie Coughlin the Dinner Belle
one 9 inch prepared rolled pie dough
3/4 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup cocoa powder
12 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup heavy cream
3 large eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
3 T. Amaretto
Strawberries
non-melting powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350°. Place pie dough in a 9 inch tart pan or pie pan, pressing into the sides of the pan, trim excess. In a medium sized, heavy bottomed pan heat cream, butter, and cocoa powder until butter is melted. Place chocolate chips in a large bowl. Pour heated cream mixture over chocolate. Let set while you whisk together the eggs, sugar, and salt. Stir chocolate mixture until smooth and slowly whisk into the egg mixture. Add Amaretto and stir until smooth. Pour into prepared crust. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely before serving. Top with fresh strawberries and sprinkle liberally with powdered sugar. Serves 8-10.

This is a tart I had learned to make years ago at a cooking class and have made it countless times when I used to cater. It can be made ahead of time, freezes well, and travels nicely- simply top with strawberries and powdered sugar once you get to where you are going to picnic or party.

PS- It was also my 18th Wedding Anniversary with Himself, the best fella a gal could have.


How was your Memorial Day Weekend?

For love of country they accepted death... ~James A. Garfield
Never Forget.

Robin Sue

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Cooking up Chard Stems at the Market

Here is a look at my new "office," pretty nice, huh? Last Saturday was a beautiful day to cook at the market. Sunshine, live music, tons of people, and fresh produce. Now that strawberries and chard, preferably red chard with its bright red petioles, are in season, I chose to highlight them at last Saturday's Cooking Salon. I decided to hit my Distinguished Guests with a bit of shock and awe by showing them that you can actually eat the stems of the chard which left them all mmm-mmming and quite speechless- speechless in a good way. The dish is fantastic and no more tossing those red nutrient rich stems away.


Also cooking in the Market has made me learn to adapt. I figured out how to cook a casserole, all in one pan, without an oven, which was serendipitous in teaching my Guests how to cook all summer long without having to heat an oven. No oven, equals cool kitchen. Yay! One pan, equals less...well you know.


The trick to getting a crispy topping on your casserole without an oven...make the topping first.


How to Make Chard Stems Casserole Without an Oven Using One Pan. That's a long title, so how 'bout this one...

Chard Stems with Red Onions and Crispy Bread Topping- adapted from Vegetables Every Day
2-3 cups bread torn, day old is best- I tore mine big and rustic!
2 T. olive oil
2 T. unsalted butter
Kosher Salt to taste

12 large chard stems, one inch slices
water to cover

2 red onions, diced
pinch sugar
2-3 T. olive oil
1/2-2/3 cup heavy cream
salt and pepper to taste

In a large skillet over medium high heat, heat olive oil and butter until butter is melted and starting to bubble. Add bread crumbs, stirring to coat all of them in butter mixture. Sprinkle with a bit of salt. Cook while stirring occasionally until golden brown and toasted. Watch closely as this can burn easily. Remove croutons to a plate.

In the same skillet, over high heat, add stems and just enough water to cover them. Boil 8 minutes. Do not worry if there is water still in the pan at this point, it will cook off, plus you do not want to throw that nutrient rich water away. To the same pan over medium heat, add olive oil and onions, a pinch of sugar, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally until onions have a nice golden brown color and are tender. Stir in cream, and cook until thickened, about 3-5 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Top with croutons. Serve immediately. Serves about 4. Also nice over pasta, rice, or cannellini beans. Or before adding the croutons, make four small wells and crack eggs into them, cooking the eggs to your favored doneness then top with croutons.

Notes on chard stems.
1. They must be boiled to tenderize. I have tried sauteing them without first boiling and they get even tougher.

2. Stems alone taste a bit like asparagus but readily adopt the flavors of ingredients they are cooked with while remaining toothsome and colorful.

3. Two meals from one bunch of chard can be done by sauteing up the greens one day in olive oil with salt, pepper, and garlic, then the next having this Chard Stem recipe. No waste.

More about my Cooking Salon go here.

Robin Sue

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How to Make Homemade Wipes- The New Way

Sorta looks like milk spewing out of that pitcher. Naw it's just another one of Robin Sue's cockamimi idears. When I had my first baby, a girlfriend of mine taught me how to make my own baby wipes. It was in style back then, you know like making your own onion keeper out of lady's pantyhose. It wasn't like I was all granola or anything, I think I did it to stay in my grocery budget. So was it cheaper than purchased wipes? Yes, but what a pain. In order to get the paper towels in the Rubbermaid (round back then) container, the paper towel "loaf" had to be cut in half using a serrated knife. Have you ever tried to cut a paper towel roll in half? Lots of sweat, a dulled knife, two caddywompus loaves of paper towels, and one heck of a dusty mess. That trend for me did not last long.

Now fast forward to today. Why the heck would I want to make my own wipes again, I have no babies? For the Cooking Salon. Last week, I found my hands got rather sticky, and without running water and only having dry paper towels, I got stickier. The hand sanitizer worked nicely but my hands were as dry as prunes by the end. So being in the market I thought I would go back to my old wipes, more au naturel though. By replacing tap water with filtered water steeped with herbs from my garden, and swapping olive oil for the baby oil in the original recipe, and using a fragrance-free soap, I was able to come up with these moisturizing, lightly-scented wipes that a dude would even use.


This pitcher is brilliant! I should patent it pronto. Wish I had thought of it years ago, instead of cutting all those wicked rolls in half. The idea of using a one gallon Rubbermaid pitcher made me giggle right there in isle 8 of my grocer. The spout makes this perfect for pulling the wipes through. When done, twist it shut. Jump up, toe touch, splits! Yaaaaaay BRK!


The downside to going au naturel? The yellow on white effect you get on the towels from the olive oil. Not pretty. Almost disturbing. But then kinda funny too.

Well anyway...

How to Make Homemade Wipes, the New Way
One roll 112 sheets select-a-size Bounty paper towels*
3 T. olive oil**
3 T. Fragrance-free hand soap (I used 365 foaming hand soap)***
4 cups filtered water
a few handfuls of garden herbs- I used lavender and mint****
zest from one citrus fruit, optional- I used lime*****
One gallon Rubbermaid pitcher with lid

In a large pot bring water to a boil. Pour into a glass bowl filled with various herbs and the zest of one citrus fruit. Muddle the herbs using the handle on a wooden spoon. Let steep until water is cool. Strain water through a fine mesh sieve lined with a few layers of cheese cloth or a coffee filter, then whisk in the soap and oil- I stirred and that is why I got yellow patches, must whisk well! Place the paper towels in the pitcher and slowly pour the water over it. Let the towels completely soak. Now that the towels are wet, pull out the center tube and discard it. Gently push the paper towels just below the level of the spout. Find the center towel and start pulling. Pull and rip off about 5 towels to get it all started. Don't waste those towels, give yourself a bath with them at this point, or put them in a zippy bag for on the go. Pull the leading towel from the center and thread it through the hole in lid and place the lid on the pitcher so that the towel exits through the spout. When not is use twist the lid shut. A few towels got stuck here and there, but so do the purchased ones too.

My thoughts...
* From what I understand Bounty uses chlorine to bleach the towels white. Go as natural as you want here and use the paper towel of your choice but it must be strong enough to withstand pulling. OK, all the way natural would be not using paper towels at all, but using cloths instead. Yadda, yadda, I get it. Go pin your shiny medal on.

**You may use baby oil as your oil of choice. Whole Foods has some very nice ones to choose from if you want to go very natural, or avoid mineral oil. Be sure to read up on any oils you may use, like if tea tree oil is not properly diluted it can cause irritation, so read up. I like olive oil even if it does make my towels look yellow!

***I liked the foaming hand soap as it does not leave such a soapy feel on my hands as does regular hand soap. I did not pump it out, I opened the lid and poured it out. Remember we are not rinsing this stuff off so we don't want to be too soapy. But do try any soap you like, and fragrance is fine, I just wanted my garden herbs to scent my wipes.

****The mint, lavender, and lime is a great combo. Next I would like to try rosemary and lemon. Then orange and sage. I'm sure to have 17 of these around before long.

*****Using citrus zest, whether it be lemon, orange, lime, or grapefruit is a nice way to add fragrance oils. A few drops of essential oil works as well too for adding fragrance. Again, read up.

These wipes do not have preservatives in them and will spoil over time. I'm thinking a splash of vinegar may help(?). So keep in a cool place, not the car on a hot summer's day with the windows up- that's just a no no on all counts.

These wipes are perfect for cleaning "dirty" hands or faces, but for "germy" hands, use a hand sanitizer if soap and water are not available. Catch my drift here?

Well this should keep you busy over the weekend. I am off to the market tomorrow to cook up some delicious chard dishes- the chard, the whole chard, and nothing but the chard. And a beautiful strawberry dessert too. I may just share it with you all.

Robin Sue

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Teapot Cake

With just whipped cream, strawberries, angel food cake, and peppermint leaves I created this cake. Sure I could have made some fondant or Rice Krispies Treats for the handle and spout, but why make life so complicated? This is simple enough to do with your children, and they will especially like eating it, mine sure did.

First, whip up 3 pints of whipping cream. I like to add one packet Whip It to every pint, it has always kept my whipped cream stabilized and that is what you want when decorating cakes with it.


Building the cake is pretty fun.

1. Place one purchased angel food cake with fat side toward the top on a platter. Fill the hole with sliced strawberries and frost the top with whipped cream.

2. Top with more sliced strawberries, pressing them down into the cream. Add a thin layer of cream over top of the berries.

3. Top with the second cake, fat side down. Fill the hole with more strawberries. Place a serrated knife at a 45 degree angle and cut along the top cakes edge to give it a more rounded look.

4. Using the cut off edges, form them into the lid of the cake. Don't worry if it looks wonky at first, the cream will cover it all up.


Now frost the entire cake with the whipped cream. Embellish with strawberries that have been placed on 8 inch skewers and fresh peppermint leaves. Add some cream to a large pastry bag fitted with a large round tip and embellish the cake with "pearls" and swirls. Have fun and be creative!

To be a bit whimsical, I made my spout and handle out of heavy ivory colored paper and decorated it with more swirls. Very easy to do and I had this cake done in under an hour.

Teapot Cake
2 purchased angel food cakes

3 pints whipping cream whipped stiff with 3 packets of stabilizer(Whip it), 4 T. powdered sugar, and 1 tsp vanilla

4 pounds strawberries, washed, hulled and sliced, putting a few whole ones aside for decoration

fresh peppermint leaves

Place one purchased angel food cake with fat side toward the top on a platter. Fill the hole with sliced strawberries and frost the top with whipped cream. Top with more sliced strawberries, pressing them down into the cream. Add a thin layer of cream over top of the berries. Top with the second cake, fat side down. Fill the hole with more strawberries. Place a serrated knife at a 45 degree angle and cut along the top cakes edge to give it a more rounded look. Using the cut off edges, form them into the lid of the cake. Don't worry if it looks wonky at first, the cream will cover it all up. Now frost the entire cake with the whipped cream. Embellish with strawberries that have been placed on 8 inch skewers and fresh peppermint leaves. Add some cream to a large pastry bag fitted with a large round tip and embellish the cake with "pearls" and swirls. Serve with the extra strawberries and cream. Enjoy!
*Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator.

PS- We found that it was much easier to cut and serve the top cake first and work our way down. Plenty for everyone!

Now that you have the idea- I kept it very simple, you may use any kind of cake, frosting, color, embellishments, and fillings. Be creative. And if you do make this cake, let me know, I would love to share your link so that others can get more ideas.

This fancy schmancy cake is also perfect for bridal and baby showers!

Robin Sue

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Cookbook Review: Guy Fieri Food- Giveaway!

Winner winner Chicken Dinner! Congrats to Natalie! Comment #30.

I get offers to review cookbooks all the time, but when this one came across my desk, I knew it had to be good. Man, this Guy can cook!

While reading Guy's soon to be released first-ever cookbook- Guy Fieri Food, Himself asked me what I thought about it. "He cooks like a Guy," I stated. Let me explain. I cook. My brother cooks. I use 5 ingredients in 3 short steps. Bro uses 38.5 ingredients and 23 steps, and it usually involves a marinade, rub, smoker, and a few power tools just because. We cook differently. Can we agree on this, or am I off base? Nothing wrong with this, it is simply my scientific observation.

Himself and I are big fans of Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. When we hit the road, we usually key up Guy's picks for a few of our meals and he has yet to steer us wrong. Guy lives huge and cooks huge-er. His recipes are bold, adventurous, and extremely flavorful. Recipe after recipe in his book left me saying, "I didn't see that coming." Some of his recipes have a laundry list of ingredients which can deter a new cook, but really what he is saying is, "have a good time people, don't be afraid to season your food!" He places unexpected flavor in each of his dishes such as his Watermelon Pork Tacos. These tacos were fantastic with so many flavors bursting all at once in my mouth. Extremely delicious. In fact I had to stop typing this to go eat them in complete and utter concentration. Ya they're that good.

Do you think Guy would ever get a BRK tatt just like mine? Smirk.

Watermelon Pork Tacos- Guy Fieri Food, page 220
Pork
1 pork tenderloin, silverskin removed, cut into 1-inch-thick slices
1 T. onion powder
1 tsp. red chili flakes
1 tsp. black pepper
2 T. chopped ginger
1 T. seeded, minced serrano chile
2 T. minced garlic
3 T. soy sauce
2 T. oyster sauce
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

Combine pork with all the ingredients in a zip-top bag and marinate for 30 minutes.

Vinaigrette
2 T. rice vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 1/2 T. soy sauce
1/4 tsp sesame oil

While the pork is marinating, whisk together all the vinaigrette ingredients.

Salsa
1 cup watermelon cut into 1/4 inch cubes
1 cup seeded English cucumber cut into 1/4 inch cubes
1 avocado, pitted, peeled, and cut into 1/4 inch cubes

In a medium bowl, combine all the ingredients for the salsa. Very gently fold in the vinaigrette. Chill.

Back to the meat. Preheat a grill to medium. Discard the marinade. Grill the pork for 3 minutes on each side. Remove from the heat, let rest 3 minutes, and roughly chop into 1/2 inch pieces.

Trim off the soft dark green end of 1 romaine lettuce head. Cut off the rood end and separate the leaves to create 4 inch long lettuce shells. Rinse, dry, and chill the leaves. To serve, fill the lettuce shells with the pork, top with salsa and my additions ripped cilantro leaves and a squirt of fresh lime juice.

_____________________________________________________
Disclosure: William Morrow Publishers sent me Guy Fieri Food: Cookin' It, Livin' It, Lovin' It for review. All opinions here are my own.

Would you like to win a copy of Guy's book? OK we can make that happen. The publisher and I would love to put this book in the hot little hands of one of my readers. To win...

1. Leave a message stating your all-time favorite Diner Food.
2. Make sure I have a way to contact you, like your email.
3. Must be a US resident.
4. If you post this on your site with a link back, tweet it, or FB it with @bigredkitchen, you can post one more comment for each. You know the game!
5. You have until 9pm EST Friday May 13th.


Congrats to Natalie! #30. Yeah I had to take a picture of the box, could not for the life of me right click, copy, and paste. There must be a loose screw somewhere.

Robin Sue

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I Took the Finish® Challenge and Sent Cascade® Packing

Have you ever used a cleaning product for years and were not entirely satisfied with its performance? That's my story here. I used Cascade® for 18 years because it is what my Ma used. I continued to be pretty disappointed with how my dishes came out of the dishwasher, often with stuck-on food from last night's dinner, but I settled with it anyway because I wondered if any other product could do any better. As a food blogger I can spend an entire morning cooking, photographing, writing, editing, then running out to pick my children up from school. Those dishes from that morning may sit there until after dinner, or worse, then next morning. Hey I am keeping it real here!

When I was contacted by an agency (ooh very Washington DC- I was intrigued!) asking if I would "blindly" challenge their dishwasher detergent, I agreed. Why not? I had nothing to lose, and questioned if this product would do any better than Cascade®? Now, you all know I am a Science Teacher, so I put my Lab Coat on and ran a series of Trials using the Scientific Method on this "Top Secret" product. I tested hypothesis after hypothesis by hitting it with every dirty dish nightmare I could dream up, like a roasting pan I "forgot" to line with foil, or cheese microwaved to a plate, or dried on peanut butter or sour cream, hot cocoa mugs, dried on oatmeal, or very greasy dishes, or... well you get the idea. I was baffled and amazed that the dishes came out very shiny, spot free, and clean. You see, the electrons of the detergent broke the hydrogen and oxygen bonds of the water molecules, which breaks the surface tension of the water and lifts dirt... oh wait, too much information, huh? OK, fast forward and with blindfolds off I found out that Finish Quantum® was the "Top Secret" product I was challenging! After using Cascade for 18 years, Finish Quantum® and I sent it packing.

As a productive food blogger, Science and PE Teacher, wife, and mom of three children, I need my products to work and work well. My favorite seven little words on Finish Quantum's® package are "So Powerful No Need to Pre-Rinse." Less work for me means spending more time doing what I love. Now that's a miracle.

Take the Finish® Challenge. Hit it with everything you've got! I did.

Pop on over to The Finish® Dishwashing YouTube Channel to view the commercial.


Disclosure: Opinion expressed prior to disclosure of manufacturer and product "Finish Quantum®". Appeared in a TV commercial after product use. Compensated for endorsement.

Robin Sue

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Nutella Bites

Fillo Cups save the day again! I have formed a habit of keeping a box of these in my freezer for emergency appetizers or desserts. The other day, it happened, Himself came home from Zuzu's baseball game saying we had been invited to dinner that evening. "That evening" happened to be in 15 minutes. Thankfully I remembered the Fillo Cups. I also had some Nutella and Mascarpone lingering about along with some leftover fresh whipped cream. Ta Da! Dessert in under 5 minutes. Topped with some grated chocolate and mint from the garden, these little treats made a big show.

Nutella Bites
Mix a big spoonful of Mascarpone with a big spoonful of Nutella. Fill all 15 Fillo Cups using a small spoon with the Nutella mixture and top with a bit of whipped cream. Sprinkle with grated chocolate and decorate with mint leaves. Serves 6-7.

Liren at Kitchen Confidante has an actual recipe for these if you need one. Hers are super pretty! And while we are on the topic of Nutella, you must try Michelle's Nutella Fudge Brownies over at One Ordinary Day.

Mascarpone mixes well with fresh raspberries, or peanut butter and honey, or grated chocolate and orange rind, or instant espresso and powdered sugar, or any other additions you can think of for fantastic fillings for these little Fillo Cups.

More Fillo Cup Recipes:
Mini Baked Brie Cups
Cannoli Bites
Brie Bites
Crab Rangoon

BRK is Foodista's Drink Blog of the Day. Go See. Cheers!

Happy Cinco de Mayo! What yummy foods are you enjoying today?

Robin Sue

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Stove Top Top-Pops, So Un-Boring

Geophyte Nation, the biggest potato grower in the US has recently come forward declaring spud sales are down. “With our greatest efforts, we can no longer entice Americans in purchasing potatoes,” stated chairmen Sir N. Dere, “we have run every campaign possible, from giving coupons to suggesting recipes, but the spud is dead.” Researchers found that 85% of Americans agree that potatoes are boring and no longer the first choice as the “Sweetheart of Sides.” Who’s the prettiest girl on the block now? Stove Top. The creators of Stove Top Stuffing were already confident in their stuffing, but wanted to woo the other 15% of Americans away from the dud spud. After scouring food blogs for the latest trends in food, they found success with Top-Pops, Stove Top Stuffing on a stick. “We could not miss with this food-on-a-stick trend,” states Stove Top’s CEO, “Our stuffing is delicious as is, but put it on a stick and Americans are entranced.” Top Pop’s, touted as the Un-Potato, sales are skyrocketing, saving all of America from mundane mealtimes. “Not only are potatoes boring, they have eyes, and that’s just creepy,” shouted Idahoan high school student Jim James over his classmates chanting, “Top Pops Rule! Top Pops Rule! Top Pops Rule!”

Top-Pops
6 ounce package Stove Top Stuffing Cornbread Mix
1 cup boiling water
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 egg

In a large bowl mix stuffing, water, and butter until blended. Stir in egg and cheese. Form into 2 inch-sized balls and bake in 400 degree preheated oven for 20 minutes. Remove and add sticks at a 45 degree angle. Serve immediately. Makes 9.

Kraft Stove Top Stuffing Mix: The Un-Potato Contest:
Come on! Get your creative juices flowing and create your own cheeky and humorous post promoting Stove Top Stuffing as the unboring, unpotato. I had fun and so can you, plus it’s for a chance to win a $100 American Express Gift Card. For more details check out the contest details at: The Un-Potato Contest

Visit the Kraft Stove Top Stuffing Facebook Page to learn more, oh and you should like ‘em while you’re at it.

#unpotatofest

Disclosure: I was given monetary compensation from Kraft Foods for my participation in their “Un-Potato” campaign. No potatoes were physically harmed in the making of this post, only their feelings.

Robin Sue

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