Lemony Zest :: Kim Lewandowski

Archive for the ‘Food blogging events’ Category

This is my entry in the photo food blogging event, Click, hosted by Jai and Bee of Jugalbindi. We love having sangria during the summer and in my favorite recipe for it, a variety of citrus is the only fruit used. The citrus juice is so refreshing on a hot summer day, we often make a big pitcher just for the two of us.

This batch, though, was for serving at the paella dinner we hosted recently. I made two batches, one with pink wine, my favorite, and one with the traditional red wine.

Last Christmas, my mother-in-law, Barb, gave me a paella kit, among other lovely gifts. She knows how much I love to cook and have people over to cook for, so it was a really cool present It came with a bottle of Spanish extra-virgin olive oil, a bag of calasparra rice, a half gram of saffron, a paella pan and a recipe. So we just had to buy the meats, seafood and some of the veggies, since we used some tomatoes and onions from the garden.

We had two couples over for dinner last night and made the paella, and it was just delicious. I’m going to add to this post later, but I just wanted to get this photo up and show it to my MIL. Thanks, Barb

I learned how to make this dish last summer, and ended up making it almost every Sunday, so we could eat from the leftovers for a few days. We were renovating our kitchen, and I decided I had to become friends with the grill, and at long last get over my fear of lighting it. That fear came from an unfortunate incident when I was about 14 years old and singed my eyebrows because I didn’t know you were supposed to leave the lid open when lighting it Now I know.

Anyway, I came across a recipe for beer-can chicken and then a variation known as wine-butt chicken, because the can goes in the chicken’s butt, don’tcha know? I’m not a beer drinker, so we do the wine version and it’s unbelievably easy and delicious. The steaming liquid from the can flavors and moistens the chicken from the inside out, and look how crispy the skin gets!

It’s also really cool that this recipe illustrates how to extend the use of the grill by using it as an oven.

Grilled Wine-butt Chicken

1 3.5-4 lb. chicken
1/2 cup non-oaky white wine (we usually use Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc)
1/4 cup fresh herbs of choice, chopped, plus a few sprigs (can be one herb, or a mixture – thyme and basil are favorites of ours)
1 clove garlic, sliced
1/4 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1 soda can, emptied and rinsed
1 8″x8″ aluminum pan

Light grill and turn burners to high; close lid. Carefully lift skin from chicken breast and insert chopped herbs between skin and meat. Fill can halfway with wine and put in herb sprigs and garlic. Insert can in chicken cavity and stand it up in the aluminum pan, with the can and the two legs acting as a tripod, so the chicken stands up. Tuck wing tips under.

Brush chicken all over with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Place chicken in pan on grill and close lid. One hour later, come back and check chicken’s temperature with an instant-read thermometer. It’s done when the thigh meat registers 165*F. Have a friend or loved one hold the chicken with tongs while you remove the can with another set of tongs, and put the chicken, breast side up, on a platter. Cover loosely with foil and let rest for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, grill up some veggies to have with this incredibly moist and delicious chicken. Enjoy

This is my entry in this month’s Monthly Mingle food blogging event, begun by Meeta of What’s for Lunch, Honey? and hosted this month by Sig of Live to Eat. And here’s the roundup of all the recipes submitted for this event. I’ll definitely be trying some of these.

I love this time of year My basil is just out of control and the roma tomatoes are finally coming in strong, so it’s caprese salad or something with pesto regularly now. I also need to get some pesto frozen for the winter. I like to put a tablespoon or so into marinara sauce and this recipe works even with thawed frozen pesto.

This is a really simple recipe, though. Everyone has their own basil pesto recipe, I’m sure, so I’m going beyond that to one of my favorite side dishes featuring pesto – pesto pasta. If your favorite pesto uses an herb other than basil, or cheese other than Parmesan, you can substitute those for the garnish. I like to use rotini pasta, because the crevices catch the pesto and you get a lot in each bite.

Pesto Pasta

1 lb. rotini pasta or other small pasta shape
1 cup basil pesto
1-2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil if needed
1/2 cup diced tomatoes
3 tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese
basil leaves

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil; cook pasta till al dente, 8-10 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water to cool; remove to a large bowl. Using a large spatula, mix pasta and pesto together, adding 1-2 tbsp. olive oil if needed to loosen up the pesto. Garnish with diced tomatoes, Parmesan cheese and basil leaves.

This is my entry in the food blogging event Grow Your Own, begun by Andrea of Andrea’s Recipes and hosted this month by Jessica of Finny Knits.

Back in June, I won a cookbook featuring honey in an Iron Chef: Honey competition hosted by Joelen of Joelen’s Culinary Adventures. I thought it would be fun to use a recipe from that book to contribute to another blogging event where the idea was to bake small breads, but unfortunately, I was unable to get the entry typed and posted in time.

But I did make the scones And they were delish.

Savory Scones with Honey, Rosemary and Goat Cheese

1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/3 cups semolina
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup mild herbal honey
1 large egg
1/2 cup cream or whole milk, plus more for brushing scones
1 1/2 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary, divided
5 oz. goat cheese

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. In a medium bowl, sift together the first five ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine olive oil, honey, egg, cream or milk, and 1 tsp. rosemary. Whisk just enough to break up the egg yolk and blend it with the honey.

Use a pastry cutter to work the goat cheese into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs. Make a well in the center and add the wet ingredients. Mix with a large spatula until the dough forms a ball. Knead gently several times and turn onto a lightly floured board. Knead again, just enough to form a workable ball.

Pat the dough down into a circular shape measuring about 8 1/2 inches in diameter and 3/4 inch thick. Cut with a knife or dough cutter into 8 or 10 pie-style wedges. Brush the tops with the cream or milk and sprinkle with the remaining rosemary. Place scones onto baking sheet about 1 inch apart. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until golden brown.

Serve with more goat cheese and honey, or honey butter.

From Covered in Honey by Mani Niall

Joelen of Joelen’s Culinary Adventures has an unbelievable array of food blogging events going – don’t know how she keeps up with the round-ups. There are lots of tasty-looking recipes from previous events to read about and maybe try.

Right now, at the height of the summer, the event she has going on is Summer Produce, and we have lots. The basil and roma tomatoes are really coming in now, and the cucumbers are catching up. So I made a sort of caprese salad over greens for dinner one night. I know, using vinegar isn’t traditional, but I just love red-wine vinegar with this, so that’s what I use

Fresh basil, cucumber and roma tomato from the garden

Caprese-inspired Green Salad

3 cups chopped romaine
1 small cucumber, chopped
2 roma tomatoes, chopped
1/2 cup fresh mozzarella cheese, diced
1/4 cup fresh basil, julienned
3 tbsp. red wine vinegar
3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Layer half of romaine, cucumber, tomatoes, cheese and basil in each of two bowls. Whisk together vinegar, oil, salt and pepper and drizzle over salads.