YumSugar

Yummy Link: Wacky Shaped Watermelon

YumSugar — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 04:08:39 -0700

I don't know if you recall, but a few years back Japanese farmers made the news with square watermelon. This time the melons are shaped like faces, hearts, stars and more. - Ping Mag

Trend Alert: Peaches As a Savory Ingredient

YumSugar — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 10:15:40 -0700

This Summer, peaches have moved from being an ingredient in desserts to being the star of savory dishes. From salads to satays, peaches are popping up in places out of the ordinary. I decided to give this trend an experiment by making this roasted vegetable pasta. After all, what better way to celebrate peach season than to center a main course on the beloved stone fruit?

Roasting the peach, as well as the vegetables, makes everything sweeter, and lends a smoky depth to the overall flavor. If you prefer less tart peaches, swap the traditional yellow peach with a white peach. Peaches at the store not looking so great? Ripen them at home. This recipe is great for vegans and vegetarians, but for added protein, toss in sliced chicken breast. To check out the savory peach trend in a scrumptious pasta dish, read more.

Pasta With Roasted Vegetables and Peaches
From Shape magazine

Ingredients

Cooking spray
12 ounces spiral-shaped pasta
1 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise
1 medium yellow squash, halved lengthwise
1 red bell pepper, seeded and quartered
1 peach, halved and pitted
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Salt
Ground black pepper
1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes
4 green onions
For dressing:
1/2 cup orange juice
1 tablespoon honey mustard
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried
Salt
Ground black pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

Directions

Preheat oven to 450°F. Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.
Cook pasta. Drain and transfer to a large bowl.
Meanwhile, place zucchini, squash, bell pepper and peach on prepared baking sheet, flesh-side up. Brush the tops with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Season with salt and black pepper. Place tomatoes and green onions on tray (do not baste). Roast 25 minutes, until all are tender and golden brown.
In a medium bowl, whisk together orange juice, honey mustard, balsamic vinegar, remaining tablespoon of olive oil and thyme. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Add mixture to pasta and toss to coat.
Chop roasted vegetables (except tomatoes) and peach into 1-inch pieces and add to pasta mixture. Add tomatoes and toss to combine. Fold in chopped basil. Serve warm or chilled.

Serves 4.

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Give Me a S'more Popsicle

YumSugar — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 08:00:23 -0700

Summer is coming to an end! I don't want it to, but there's no way to fight it, so instead, I celebrated by creating a frozen treat inspired by the great camping tradition of s'mores. Only a few days ago, PartySugar made homemade smores, and I decided to try my hand at s'mores popsicles. These easy popsicles only require five ingredients: vanilla ice cream, marshmallows, chocolate chips, graham crackers, and vegetable oil.To mimic the shape of a marshmallow, I made the pops in small juice glasses, although any pop mold or dixie cup would work. While these popsicles are not gooey and warm like the original s'more, they have the same great flavor. The first bite of roasted marshmallow ice cream, crisp chocolate, and crunchy graham crackers will cool down anyone who is basking in the last fiery days of Summer. These popsicles are irresistible to kids and adults, so if you want chilly s'mores, keep reading.

Say Cheese! Manchego Pizza With Chorizo and Shrimp

partysugar — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 09:00:06 -0800

My obsession with all things Spanish is no secret. From José Andrés to Crianza to paella, if it's Spanish, I love it! This affection includes manchego, Spain's most famous cheese. Manchego cheese is protected by a Denominación de Origen, meaning it can only be made from sheep that graze in the La Mancha region of Spain. The whole sheep's milk cheese must also be aged in natural caves for a minimum of two months.

Depending on how long it's aged, the flavor can range from mild to sharp. Manchego comes in a round shape and is cut into chunky wedges. The inedible rind gets its pattern from the manufacturing process that involves wrapping the cheese in sheets of a special woven grass. Manchego tastes creamy and slightly salty. Learn how to use the versatile Spanish cheese and check out the recipe for this scrumptious pizza when you read more.

For a simple snack, pair manchego slices with crackers, olives, and jamon Serrano. Shave on salads and roasted vegetables, or as Yum suggested yesterday, enjoy in a turkey sandwich with pear butter. Manchego is also a great cheese for melting. It can be used in quesadillas, grilled cheese sandwiches, or in my case, on pizza!

Although there only four ingredients in this pizza, the flavors combine sensationally.

The tangy manchego complements the bitterness of the escarole and the spiciness of the chorizo. The shrimp is an exciting addition. I definitely plan on making this tasty pie again.

Manchego Pizza With Chorizo and Shrimp
Modified from Food and Wine

Ingredients

1 large ball of refrigerated pizza dough
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
1 large garlic clove, minced
1/2 head escarole, cut into 1-inch pieces (4 cups)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
6 ounces Manchego cheese, shredded (2 cups)
1/2 pound medium shrimp-shelled, deveined and halved lengthwise
1 1/2 ounces firm chorizo, thinly sliced

Directions

Preheat the oven to 500°F. If you have one, set your pizza stone on the bottom of the oven to heat for at least 30 minutes.
On a floured work surface, divide the dough in half and roll each half into a ball. Roll out 1 disk of dough to an 11-inch round. Transfer to a floured pizza peel or other baking sheet.

Prepare the toppings: In a large skillet, heat the olive oil. Add the garlic and cook over moderate heat until golden, about 1 minute. Add the escarole and cook, tossing, until wilted, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Lightly brush the edge of the dough with olive oil. Scatter half of the Manchego over the dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border at the edge, then top with half of the shrimp, chorizo and escarole.

Slide the pizza onto the hot stone (or baking sheet) and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the crust is browned on the bottom, the shrimp is cooked through and the other toppings are sizzling. Cut the pizza into wedges and serve immediately. Repeat with the remaining dough and toppings.

Serves 4.*

*When I made this pizza, I halved the recipe.

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Pasta Shapes 101

YumSugar — Thu, 04 Jan 2007 12:01:17 -0800

While spaghetti is the ideal pasta shape for thin, light sauces, when making a thicker hearty sauce a larger pasta shape is ideal. It's important to choose the pasta shape that best compliments the sauce, for example a chunky meat sauce adheres best to pasta shapes with holes and ridges like rigatoni or mostaccioli and rich creamy sauces work best with the slippery noodles of fettuccine. Since today we are all about pasta I thought it would be fun to overview pasta shapes...until I realized that there are over a hundred various kinds! To see a list of interesting pasta shapes, what their name means in English and which type of sauce works best with them, read more

Rotini: (spirals or twists)
Rotini's twisted shape holds bits of meat, vegetables and cheese, so it works well with any sauce, or you can use it to create fun salads, baked casseroles, or stir-fry meals.

Bow Ties, Farfalle: (butterflies)
Bow Ties brighten any meal with their interesting shape. Thick enough for any sauce, or make into a salad or soup.

Ditalini: (little thimbles)
This versatile shape can be used as the base of any dish. Bake it, stir it into soups, or create great salads and stir-fry dishes.

Spaghetti: (a length of cord)
America's favorite shape, Spaghetti is the perfect choice for nearly any sauce, or it can be used to make casseroles or stir-fry dishes. Go beyond tomato sauce and see what your favorite becomes.

Orzo: (barley)
This small, grain shaped pasta can be topped with any sauce, added to soups, or baked as a casserole. Perfect as a side dish as well as a main course.

Fusilli: (twisted spaghetti)
This long, spiraled shape can be topped with any sauce, broken in half and added to soups, or turned into a beautiful salad. Fusilli also bakes well in casseroles.

Penne, Mostaccioli: (quills and small mustaches, respectively)
This tubular pasta goes well with sauce, used in salads, baked in casseroles, or made into stir fry dishes. There are both ridged and smooth versions. The ridged version will allow sauce to cling a bit more.

Ziti: (bridegrooms)
A medium-sized, tubular pasta shape, Ziti is perfect for chunky sauces and meat dishes. It also makes wonderful salads, baked dishes and stir-fry meals.

Rigatoni: (large grooved)
Rigatoni's ridges and holes are perfect with any sauce, from cream or cheese to the chunkiest meat sauces.

Fettuccine: (small ribbons)
Perfect for heavier sauces, like cheese, meat and tomato sauces. For variety, try breaking in half and putting in soups, or use for a salad.

Have I forgotten to mention your preferred pasta shape? Tell me about it below. If you want to learn more about pasta shapes, check out this complete list of the pastas of the world.

Source

VegiForms: Love It Or Hate It?

YumSugar — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 04:41:31 -0700

If you've ever wanted to grow your own vegetables shaped like faces, you're in luck. These VegiForms are clear plastic molds that can be secured over growing fruits or vegetables while they're growing. A few weeks later, the vegetables fill the mold and voila! You now have an edible little face staring back at you. Personally I love the molded veggie idea, it's definitely a lot of fun. However, this little face is just too creepy to even think about eating! What do you guys think, do you love it or hate it?

Know Your Tomatoes

partysugar — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 10:08:39 -0700

Whether they're from your own garden, purchased at the grocery store, or picked from a farmers' market stall, tomatoes are summer's most beloved ~~vegetable~~ fruit. When they are in season, nothing beats enjoying the simple tomato in all its fleshy, red, ripe glory. When choosing tomatoes look for locally grown, fragrant, heavy, tomatoes with skin that yields slightly to pressure. Bright colored ones are best flavored. It's best to store tomatoes at room temperature rather than in the fridge because the harsh coldness will affect the taste of the fruit. When using a recipe that calls for a certain type of tomato refer to this helpful glossary. read more

Beefsteak: The biggest of the tomato family with a meaty texture - good for salads, grilling, and burgers.

Plum: Also known as Roma tomatoes, these babies are oval shaped, good for cooking, and used frequently in both Italian and Mexican cooking.

Cherry: Small, round like a cherry, and bite sized, these are perfect for salads, roasting, and tossed with pastas.

Salad: Also known as vine or round tomatoes, these are excellent for eating raw in salads or sliced and used in quiches or gratins.

Grape: Like the cherry tomato, these are small, oval shaped tomatoes that are super sweet and kid friendly. Use in salads or for snacks.

Green: A tart, yet ripe variety perfect for frying or for adding color to a tomato salad.

Heirloom: A variety that has been grown for over 100 years with the seeds being passed down from generation to generation. There are many different heirloom varieties that come in many different shapes and sizes.

Know another type of tomato? Please fill us in below!

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Summer Reading: Fanny At Chez Panisse

partysugar — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 06:03:31 -0700

With the tremendous success of the foodie movie, Ratatouille, kids may be disappointed by a cookbook that dumbs down cooking with vegetable faces and cookie cutter shaped sandwiches.

However Alice Waters' children's cookbook is written from the point of view of her daughter Fanny. Fanny At Chez Panisse is the perfect tome for a child who has shown interest in the culinary world. The book begins with Fanny describing her mother's world inside the famed kitchen at Berkeley's Chez Panisse and includes the people who are a part of the daily workings of a restaurant. Later Fanny provides recipes to 46 of her favorite dishes ranging from peach crisp to roast chicken with herbs to garlic mayonnaise - all of which are delicious enough to be enjoyed by both children and parents alike. If you know a child who is interested in learning more about food, think about giving them this delicious book.

What's For Dinner? Easy Peasy Pizza!

partysugar — Fri, 18 May 2007 08:57:31 -0700

You all know how much I love pizza: in every shape, form, and flavor! Making homemade pizza does not have to be an elaborate production, with a little help from the grocery store you can have delicious crisp melt in your mouth pizza quicker than delivery. I know it's Friday and the last thing you feel like doing after a long week of hectic work is making dinner, but this is so fast, so simple, and so tasty that it really is a wonderful choice for tonight's dinner. The recipe calls for chopped green pepper but feel free to substitute your favorite vegetable: roasted red peppers, chopped tomatoes, or sliced mushrooms. Likewise use premade pizza dough if you're not a fan of pita. For the recipe, read more

Aloha Pizza
From Meal Time

4 (4-inch) pitas
2 tablespoons olive oil or 1/2 cup pizza sauce
1 can (8 ounces) pineapple tidbits in juice, drained
6 1/2 ounces extra-lean ham, thinly sliced
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 cup shredded, part-skim mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 425°F.
Arrange pitas on a baking sheet. Divide olive oil OR pizza sauce, spreading evenly over pitas.
Top with pineapple, ham, green pepper and cheese.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until cheese melts.

Serves 4.

Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories 290; Total fat 14g; Saturated fat 4.5g; Cholesterol 30mg; Sodium 850mg; Carbohydrate 30g; Fiber 3g; Protein 20g

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What's In Season: Persimmons

YumSugar — Wed, 27 Dec 2006 07:59:58 -0800

Ever decide to make a recipe, write up a grocery list, and head to the store only to discover sadly that the star ingredient of your dish is actually out of season? There is a reason strawberry shortcakes are only consumed in summer and sweet potato pie in winter. Of course modern American supermarkets would like the average everyday Jane to think that everything is always in season, but they're not fooling me. More and more chefs and restaurants have returned to cooking with fresh, seasonal ingredients. To help you do the same in your kitchen, once a week I'll write about what fruits and vegetables you should be eating now.

Let's start with persimmons, which are in season from November until February, but peak in November and December (so hurry and get your fix while the fixings good). Persimmons are a fruit of Chinese origin and early American settlers used them to make beer and wine. When ripe, the persimmon has a smooth, creamy texture, tangy-sweet flavor, and bright red-orange skin and flesh. The most common persimmon is the Hachiya or the Japanese persimmon. Don't even think about eating these heart shaped little babies until they're ripe because the incredible astringency will make your mouth pucker. You'll know that the Hachiya is ripe when the flesh feels squishy, almost like a water balloon full of jelly.

Persimmons are chock full of vitamins, can be used in recipes (like this one for persimmon bread ) or enjoyed eaten right out of the hand. I personally like to freeze them and eat them as if they were ice cream.