Friday, June 4, 2010 Silence = Zucchini Night

Every time I cook a meal, at some point, there is total silence. That’s a good sign. It means people are enjoying their food.

Last night there was a lot of quiet.

The meal started off with a Zucchini, Apple and Blue Cheese Salad. Crunchy and sweet chunks of apple tempered the tang of the cheese. The colorful salad could be topped with walnuts, I had them out in a dish. But I forgot them on both of my servings. It was a delicious salad. A great way to start the meal, simple to make – I see many in my future. Maybe with bacon? Mmmm.

The Pasta-Free Lasagna with Zucchini and Chicken took longer than expected to come out of the oven, but as one of my guests said, it was worth the wait. Long thin slices of the summer squash layered with pounded chicken breast. It’s actually something my husband used to make when he was on the Atkins Diet, without the zucchini. The sauce I made was full of flavor, cooking the sliced squash to al dente perfection. Another great way to make a low-carb “pasta” that tastes good and is reminiscent of home.

The Zucchini Dessert Trio was excellent. The Lemon Zucchini Sorbet with Poppy Seeds was bursting with quadruple lemon flavor. Lemon juice, Lemon Verbana, Lemon Thyme and Lemon Balm blended together with the green zucchini to make the most gorgeous shade of citrus sorbet. When making it the texture seemed odd, so I added the poppy seeds as a distraction. But once frozen the dessert came together nicely, the poppy seeds adding a pop - as they should, according to their name.

The Zesty Zucchini Cookies with Quinoa were almost too healthy to accompany the other desserts. The steel cut oatmeal cookies made with homemade apple sauce, orange zest and yellow squash were par-baked during the day so I could serve them hot out of the oven with a cold glass of milk. Everyone got a bag to bring home!

The Chocolate Zucchini Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting were out of this world. Spiced up with ground cloves, moist with the zucchini and topped with a little dab of sweet heaven. We almost annihilated the cupcake tree. The best part? I have an extra bag of icing in the fridge. Strawberries, anyone?

Another successful dinner - and “only” three courses, unless you count the three desserts separately. And you count the two bread courses - which I loved. Two courses of bread with butter, what’s not to love? Other than the fact that it’s summer and I don’t fit into any of my shorts.

Stay tuned for the video!

Bang on, my peeps!

-HH

PS - I've tried to include links for some of the recipes. Please note that I rarely follow a recipe exactly as written. Neither should you.

Thursday, June 3, 2010 Cupcakes on the Coffee Table

I don’t know if you’re familiar with the Forever Stamp from the US Postal Service. You pay current price and it’s always good no matter how much the price of a stamp goes up.

My house is the same size.

As the stamp.

So when one is planning and prepping and cooking one must also carefully consider where things are going to go. Counter space is very limited, the fridge is unable to accommodate anything more than your average fast food value meal. As the title of this piece suggests, I was forced to perch racks of cupcakes on the coffee table to cool. They later found themselves in the bedroom, the coldest room in the house, so their icing wouldn’t melt.

It’s a choreographed nightmare.

At times.

Soon my guests will be arriving and I’ll forget all about the dance.

Bang on, my peeps!

-HH

Headbanging for Human Decency

Yesterday, while signing up for college classes, my path crossed the path of one cross young woman.

I hesitate to call her a young lady, which is why I didn’t. She was rude, attitudinal, belligerent, crass, crude, unrefined, classless and guilty of conduct unbecoming a Headbanging Hostess.

As I stood at the Records Office counter I listened, cringing, as she barked her demands to the poor woman on the other side of the counter. The woman was more than twice her age. Apparently no one teaches respect for your elders anymore. This girl apparently was raised to believe we are all here to serve her and meet her demands exactly as she sees fit.

There’s a word for her. But I won’t use it. I won’t even say the first letter.

But she was.

And I can’t be blamed for pointing it out. I didn’t make her that way. She was very comfortable in the role – making everyone else within earshot uncomfortable.

Good for you, Girlfriend. I hope it all works out for you.

NOT!

How’s about signing up for Manners 101?

This was one of those times when I wanted to say something. To do something - stand up for human decency. But I didn’t.

The chick wasn’t rational. If I had said something I might be waking up with a black-eye. Or in jail. Or in a hospital.

So I kept my mouth shut.

Is this the best course of action for The Headbanging Hostess in a situation such as this? Do I need to take some Karate classes along with my Culinary Training?

What do you think?

-HH

Wednesday, June 2, 2010 Sauce Making is Rule Breaking

Last night, after the sun went down, I found myself perched over the stove roasting peppers and making sauce.

In my house this is heresy.

You see, my husband is Italian. That means he makes the sauce. He makes great sauce, legendary sauce. My neighbor has been known to drink it from a wine glass. She’s also Italian.

I’m half English and half Hungarian. That does not qualify me to make sauce.

But I did it anyway.

Like I said. Heresy.

Never before have I roasted a pepper, but there I was - peeling off the blackened skins, pureeing them in the food processor with canned organic tomatoes. Sweating down onions and garlic with oregano from last year’s garden.

You know it, baby! The Headbanging Hostess freezes the goods from her garden. Throw it in a blender with some olive oil, put that shit in an ice cube tray – BANG! Done. I’m set for the winter. I’ve even started making my own vegetable stock. Those are the green ice cubes you see in the videos. Freeze the vegetable odds and ends instead of throwing them out – carrots, onions, ZUCCHINI! Throw them in a pot with some celery, potato, herbs and boil that shit until the cows come home. Strain it, ice cube tray it, freeze it, put cubes in freezer bag, put cubes in cooking! You know it!

Back to my sauce.

I thought it was great. My husband has yet to try it.

I’ll win him over. It came out good. With a long, pronounced g”uuuuuuuuuuh”d.

Today I spent my allowance on zucchini at the Farmers Market. This afternoon I made sorbet. This evening I assemble the Pasta-Free Lasagna. Tomorrow? I do everything else.

Until then.

Bang on, my peeps!

-HH

Tuesday, June 1, 2010 The Menu for the Week!

Last week at the Farmers Market I saw the first of the summer veggies – radishes, greens, baby turnips and zucchini!

It’s Zucchini Week!!!

Zucchini is one of those summer staples. Once it shows up at the farmers market it’s there to stay. The price gets ridiculously low as the summer goes on. Those who’ve grown it themselves can testify to its prolific production.

Until last year, I only had a few recipes for the summer squash. And even now, I only have a few more. Cutting it on the mandoline to make zucchini-spaghetti (or zucchinetti) has proven to be one of my favorite uses for the veggie.

But this week I’m thinking outside the box. I’m making four things I’ve never made before and one of my Mother Lovin’ Cookies.

Here’s the menu.

-Zucchini, Apple and Blue Cheese Salad

-Pasta-Free Lasagna with Zucchini and Chicken

and a Zucchini Dessert Trio

-Lemon Zucchini Sorbet
-Chocolate Zucchini Cupcakes
-Zesty Zucchini Quinoa Cookies

This will be a relatively healthy meal – as long as the desserts are consumed in moderation.

Good luck with that.

The prep starts tonight with homemade sauce for the lasagna. Tomorrow I’ll buy the zucchini at the Farmers Market and start cookin’.

Bang on, my peeps!

-HH