Chef Debbie's Pesto Day

What to do with your bumper crop of basil and mint?! I had my helper, Mary, with me all day and we decided it was time to do something constructive with our herbs so that we can enjoy them all winter. I'm going to freeze some of the mint and basil in water to add to sauces and tea, but today was PESTO DAY!

These are all the ingredients you need for a really great basil-mint pesto. I made two batches of this...what a really vibrant flavor that pops in the mouth! Perfect for fish or chicken...or lamb chops!

I also made a basil-sun dried tomato pesto, and that will be great with whole wheat pastas in the winter. Go to your local catering supplier and get these little 2 ounce containers. Freeze them on a tray then pack them into ziploc or vacuum seal bags to store in the freezer.
Here are the recipes!

Basil-Mint Pesto

1 c. fresh mint leaves
1 c. fresh basil leaves
1/2 c. walnut pieces, toasted
2 T. shredded Parmesan cheese
Juice of one lemon
2 garlic cloves
3/4 tsp. salt
1/3 c. extra virgin olive oil plus extra as needed

Combine ingredients in blender container and pulse until emulsified. If too thick, while motor is running drizzle in extra olive oil until smooth.

Basil Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto

3 c. fresh basil leaves
3 cloves garlic
1/4 c. sun-dried tomatoes, coarsely chopped and ready to use
1/3 c. extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 c. canola oil, plus more as needed
1 tsp. kosher salt
2/3 c. shredded Parmesan cheese
Dash coarsely ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients in blender and pulse until emulsified. Add more canola oil if too thick.

Bon Appétit!
Chef Debbie

Barley Salad with Fresh Herbs

Are you interested in adding more whole grains to your diet? Here's a salad I made last evening, inspired by Rebekah Marion of GroupRecipes. I added the diced tomato and think that crumbled feta cheese would be a great addition, too, for variety. If you have some fresh oregano, throw that in with your fresh herbs of choice. This is really one of those salads that you can easily personalize.

I already had some cooked barley in the freezer (it freezes beautifully!), so I used some of that and reduced the other ingredients to make just the right amount for two. The flavors are even more vibrant this morning, so be sure to make this salad several hours ahead of time and the barley will absorb the flavors of the citrus, herbs, and garlic. Serve a perfectly chilled California Sauvignon Blanc or an Italian Pinot Grigio with this salad.

Here is Rebekah's original recipe:

Barley Salad with Fresh Herbs

3 cups water
1 cup uncooked pearled barley
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper
1/4 cup chopped flat Italian parsley
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
2 TB chopped fresh mint leaves
1/4 cup Canola Oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1-2 TB freshly squeezed lemon juice
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

In a sauce pan, combine water and barley. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer until barley is tender, 40-45 minutes. Drain barley (cool) and set aside. Combine green onions, red (bell) pepper, parsley, basil and mint in a large bowl. Toss in the cooked barley. In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, minced garlic and lemon juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then toss into barley salad, stirring to combine well. Add more salt and pepper to taste. Serve room temperature or cold.

Bon Appétit!
Chef Debbie

Recipe for Cargill's Salad

Back in the 1960's and 1970's going out to a restaurant was a treat and not a weekly occurrence as it is today. Cargill's was a family restaurant near the rural community of McVeytown, Pennsylvania, where my family would go for dinner after church once every few weeks. As with so many family-run restaurants, its life was relatively short (the original owners retired) and it is no longer in existence. I don't remember a thing about any of the dishes from Cargill's Restaurant except their signature salad, which I recreated because I enjoyed it so much. If you love olives, this salad is for you. Few ingredients, simple flavors, and a combination of wonderful textures make up this easy salad.

Cargill's Salad

Serves 4 as a side salad

1/2 head iceburg lettuce, chopped in 1-inch pieces
1 medium ripe tomato, chopped in 1/2-inch pieces
2 narrow ribs celery, cut into 1/4-inch thick slices
3 hard-boiled eggs, cut lengthwise into quarters and then across three times
Good quality mayonnaise, such as Kraft (about 1/2 cup)
20 small green stuffed olives, coarsely chopped
Olive brine
Salt & Pepper

In a large bowl, toss together vegetables, eggs, and olives. Season with salt and pepper. Add a generous spoonful of mayo and a drizzle of the olive brine (about 2 tsps. or more for more olive flavor). Gently fold into vegetable mixture. All the vegetables should be lightly coated with the mayo/olive brine. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve immediately.

To make ahead: Combine the vegetables and eggs and store in refrigerator. Just before serving, add the S&P, olives, and mayo/brine.

Bon Appétit!
Chef Debbie

Monty's Grill is Great!

One of Charlotte's best-kept secrets is surely Monty's Seafood Grill in the Ballantyne community of Charlotte. Last evening we had the spicy mussels in this picture, and of course the best part of this tapa (small serving) is sopping up the delicious wine-chorizo sauce with the hot and crusty bread from the breadbasket that is always kept full. We also had our favorite steak lettuce wraps, lamb lollipops, fried green tomatoes with goat cheese, and spinach gnocchi. Yes, the selections on the menu are international yet each dish compliments the other.

Bob and I love to order a half dozen or so tapas to share, but we've had their regular entrees there and they are fantastic, too. Everything is cooked to perfection and full of bold flavors.

We find that a tapas dinner is fun and exciting as we "discover" new and varied flavors with each dish, and for us that is often much more fun than having a large serving of just one entree. Order a bottle of the Spanish Albariño, ask your server to stretch out your meal, and she'll bring you your tapas a few at a time and you're in for a wonderfully relaxing evening!

"Upscale" at Monty's means the superb quality of the food, the exquisitely tasteful yet casual ambiance, the attentive service, the balanced wine list, and the friendly proprietress (Robyn), who will always visit your table with a smile and a welcome. It does NOT mean overpriced, and that is quite refreshing! On Wednesday evenings, they also offer 1/2 price bottles of select wine, and live music later in the evenings, and they have an excellent Sunday brunch, too.

Give this privately-owned restaurant a try and I know you'll love going there as much as we do!

Bon Appétit!
Chef Debbie

Chef Debbie on Tasting Wine

Do you know how to drink wine? Of course you do, but do you know how to really appreciate the wine in your glass? Pour your next glass with purpose and take a minute to do these things:

Admire the color of the wine in the glass, and the variation between the color at the rim and the color at the core. Note the vibrancy of the color...does your white fairly shine in the glass? Is your wine effervescent? Anticipate the feel of tiny bubbles bursting in your mouth.

Swirl your wine in the glass and admire the rivulets sliding down the sides. (These are also called "legs" and you can anticipate the way the wine will feel in your mouth....no legs mean a light mouth-feel and lots of thick, clinging legs mean a full-bodied wine with a long finish.)

As your nose approaches the glass, how close must it get before you can detect the scent of the wine? Place your nose as far into the glass as you can and inhale deeply. If all you detect is alcohol, set your glass aside for a few minutes to allow the alcohol to dissipate and try again. What do you smell? Flowers? Berries? Chocolate? Herbs? Try to identify as many aromas as you can, and know that what ever you smell is what you smell. (Don't worry about what somebody thinks you should smell.)

Sip and swirl the wine in your mouth, "chew" and make sure the wine has reached all your tastebuds because different parts of your mouth will detect sweet, sour, salty, bitter, etc., and then swallow because the alcohol will hit the back of your tongue (and eventually your brain, of course). Try to identify the flavors that linger in your mouth. Are they the same as those aromas that you detected? Are there new components now? Dried fruit? Pencil box? Spice? Does your mouth feel dry inside (tannins)? Does the back of your throat burn (alcohol)? Is your mouth watering (acid)?

Make this routine a habit and soon you will discover that you will find more pleasure with each wine you try, and you will want to try new wines, make discoveries, and experiment with matching food with your wine. Enjoy!

Bon Appétit!
Chef Debbie

Chef Debbie Stuffs Lobster Tails

I just love the job I do! Romantic dinner party for two this evening, and it was a surprise birthday present which made it even more fun for me! The "birthday boy" saw me when I pulled into the parking lot in my chef whites and immediately put 2 & 2 together and I had to chuckle at the spring in his step as he trotted up the stairs to let his girlfriend know that he'd figured out his surprise birthday gift.

As for me, I really enjoyed meeting Gregg & Brandy and helping to make Gregg's birthday dinner extra-special. Brandy had ordered his favorite dishes, so crab-stuffed lobster was tops on the list, and I really welcomed the opportunity to be creative with the prep and the plating.

I got the biggest kick (and always do) out of watching my clients enjoy their food, but this evening there was a bonus because I got to hear Gregg's side of all the "Happy Birthday" phone calls he received. Each of them went something like this: "Hey....yeah, thanks man....yeah....I'm just finishing up my dinner here. We had our personal chef come in this evening to make us dinner." (Very nonchalant!)

And the very best part of the evening was when I overheard him tell Brandy that he'd never had better food in any restaurant, and he would be talking about this birthday gift for a very long time to come.

You know, it's truly a wonderful thing when one has a passion for something that brings joy to others!

Bon Appétit!
Chef Debbie

The Power of Positive Thinking

A blog a day for a month? As you know, I joined NaBloPoMo, which means that I made a commitment to do a blog a day for a month. I approached this not as a chore, but as an experiment. As it goes, my experiment has been a smashing success even though I was not able to maintain the one-blog-a-day commitment for the past four days due to lack of Internet access in the Great Smoky Mountains.

The reason for my success with this is that I truly have created a new habit that I have enjoyed very much and look forward to the creative process of writing a blog each day. It is no great chore simply because of the way it was approached, and I'm going to transfer this approach to some other "duties" that I have historically labeled as "chores" in the past and therefore am miserable to complete them. Things like certain cleaning "chores," bookkeeping "chores," weeding "chores" in the gardens, and so forth.

And so, I am going to continue with my commitment even though I know that a trip out of the country in a few weeks will prevent my goal of one-blog-a-day for 30 consecutive days. But oh, the fun I will have in the meantime.

Please read the latest post to Zen Habits, which is so timely today in that it illustrates so well the lesson of positive thinking, and look for me here tomorrow!

Bon Appétit!
Chef Debbie