The taste of this pudding takes me back to childhood desserts, and me eager with spoon in hand. Back then, we made the pudding from a box. I wanted to try an upgrade for the Market Dinner version. The key to making it really deep and butterscotch-y is to let the brown sugar cook and darken long enough. I served it with freshly whipped cream and poco doce chocolate-covered toffee pieces. It was a very big hit at the Market Dinner and I think you’ll love it too.
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This is my favorite potato salad to date. Its somewhat Provencal, with its mustard-vinegar dressing, and sauteed leeks. In the springtime, I prefer it to the mayo version and its a little more high-brow. I have been serving it as a base for seafood, like cod or brown butter scallops, and I accent the seafood with herb pesto. My favorite lately has been a mint-parsley pesto. I prefer the salad warm, but its pretty darn delicious cold as well.
Warm Potato and Leek Salad
1.25 pound peeled yukon gold potatoes, cut in large chunks
2 leeks, white and light green part sliced thinly
2 tablespoons dijon mustard
1 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup minced parsley

1. Combine mustard, vinegar, salt and oil until well mixed. Set aside.
In a saucepan, bring salted water to a boil. Add the potatoes and boil until tender but still firm. Remove with a slotted spoon to a bowl.
2. Add the leeks to the boiling salted water and simmer for about 2 minutes. Remove to the bowl. Add the dressing and the chopped parsley and mix gently with a spatula. Serve warm.

I adore the Yucatan for many, many reasons. The warm air that smells of sea, the tropical jungles, the turquoise cenotes to swim through, are just some of the memories that top the list. The delicious, aromatic food is the only part of the experience that I can replicate back home. This chicken is all about the marinade that infuses the chicken with a flavor that brings me right back to Tulum, and gives it a warm orange hue. I served this chicken on tostados at a recent Market dinner but I’ve served it many times with homemade tortillas. It would also be excellent over rice. I like to garnish the tacos and tortillas with raw onions, jalepenos, cilantro leaves, and a creamy avocado sauce. The recipe for the sauce is included here below.

ACHIOTE YUCATAN CHICKEN
SERVES 6
Ingredients:
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
½ cup fresh orange juice
2 teaspoons Mexican oregano
1 teaspoon cayenne powder
2 teaspoons achiote paste
2 heads of garlic, top cut off and roasted in oven until soft
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon allspice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons canola oil
Lime wedges

Procedure:
1. Cut the chicken into ½ inch wide strips and set aside.
2. Mix the orange juice, oregano, garlic, chile, achiote paste, salt, pepper, allspice and olive oil to create the marinade.
3. Add the chicken to the marinade and let the chicken marinate for one hour, in the refridgerator.
4. To cook the chicken, remove chicken from the marinade and let excess drip off.
5. Heat a large, heavy skillet to medium-high and add canola oil. Saute the chicken strips, turning once or twice until they are thoroughly cooked, about 9 minutes total. Cut a larger piece to confirm that its cooked.
6. Serve with warm corn tortillas and garnish with lime wedges, pickled red onions, creamy avocado sauce (recipe below) and cilantro leaves.

Creamy Avocado Sauce
Ingredients:
1 avocado, diced
1/3 cup fresh lime juice
1 cup cilantro leaves, chopped
2 tsp salt
1 tsp cumin
1 tablespoon agave syrup
1 tablespoon olive oil

Procedure:
1. Blend all ingredients in food processor. Put in a squeeze bottle and drizzle over tacos (or use as a salad dressing).

Fruit desserts are my favorite kind. I prefer the kind that let the fruit’s natural deliciousness shine through. This recipe fits the bill and is beautifully simple. The strawberries are intoxicatingly delicious this time of year so I wanted to create a dessert to highlight that. I have other recipes on this blog that are similar, but use other other seasonal fruits. (If you want to check them out, look at the raspberry dojun and blackberry clafoutis recipes.) Clafoutis is the name for a simple French dessert, but its essentially the same as the less elegantly-named German dojun that my family makes on late summer days. Its a custard-y cake which rises and nestles the fruit that remains on top, glistening with raw sugar. Its best served warm but is delicious room temperature as well.
Strawberry Clafoutis
4 eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup flour
½ cup raw sugar
1 tbsp white sugar
1 tsp salt
1 stick butter
2 cups strawberries, cut into quarters

Procedure:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Beat eggs together for 1 minute. Add milk and beat together.
2. Melt butter in a cast iron skillet (or on stovetop) and blend into egg and milk combination.
3. Add flour, 1 Tbsp white sugar and salt and mix until blended. Pour into buttered skillet (or a 9 x 13 inch glass cake pan).
4. Top with strawberries and spread out in the batter. Sprinkle with remaining ½ cup raw sugar and bake for 30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

I got home from work today and my love greeted me with a request to cook her up a new and tasty cocktail. This is what I whipped up to make her a happy girl.

The Monte Rio Tango
2 parts fresh OJ
2 parts gin
2 parts pomegranate juice
1 part Aperol

Mix well and serve over ice.

This pie can be served either as an appetizer, with a green salad, or as a beautiful meatless entree. If you want to play up the mediterranean flavors more, replace half the Monterey Jack with feta, but half the amount of salt that you add. I used store-bought crusts because eliminating that step makes this recipe do-able, start to finish, in under an hour and a half.

Ricotta Spinach and Kalamata Olive Pie
Serves 6

1 refrigerated pie crust (half of a 15 ounce package) room temperature
1 teaspoon flour

3 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, chopped
1 10-ounces package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed dry
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon oregano

1 15-ounce container ricotta cheese (I love Bellwether Farms)
8 ounces Monterey Jack or mozzerella, shredded
3/4 grated Parmesan cheese
1/3 sliced Kalamata olives
3 large eggs, beaten

Preparation:
1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Unfold pie crust into a 9 inch-diameter glass or ceramic pie dish. Fold edges under and crimp decoratively. Line with parchment paper and fill with pie weights (or dried beans). Bake for 15 minutes, or until the edges of the pastry are very light brown.
2. Allow beans to cool slightly and gently lift the parchment with the pie weights. Store pie weights/beans for future baking use.
3. Melt butter in a heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and saute until tender about 8 minutes. Mix in spinach, salt, pepper, and oregano. Saute until all liquid from spinach evaporates, about 3 minutes.
4. Combine ricotta, Monterey Jack, and Parmesan cheese in a large bowl. Mix in eggs. Add spinach mixture and blend well.
5. Spoon mixture into pie crust. Bake until filling is set in the center and brown on top, about 40 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes and cut into wedges to serve.

I made this decadent meatloaf for my last market dinner and it was a big hit. The bacon adds a smoky flavor and keeps the meatloaf from getting dry. I served it over smashed yukon gold potatoes with roasted garlic and topped with mushroom gravy. It was paired with Sanglier Rouge de Terre, an earthy local wine that has lots of dark fruit. A syrah, merlot or cabernet would work equally well. The leftovers rock on a toasted ciabatta with garlic aioli and arugula.
Bacon-Wrapped Meatloaf
4 ounces of cremini mushrooms
1/2 cup minced yellow onions
3 tablespoons dry red wine
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1.5 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 ounces cubed day old bread
1/4 cup whole milk
1 large beat egg
1 pound beef
1 pound pork
2 tablespoons light or dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon Worchester sauce

Procedure:
1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In one bowl, toss the mushrooms with the onion, red wine, garlic salt and pepper. In another large mixing bowl, combine the bread, milk, and egg. Stir will, lightly mashing the bread until most of the liquid is absorbed. Combine the contents of the two bowls and mix well.
3. Add the meat mixture and combine with the mushroom mixture until mixed very well. Put the meat mixture in a 9×13 baking pan and shape into a loaf that is 10×4. Wrap the strips of bacon around the loaf, tucking underneath and overlapping them slightly. Bake until an instant read thermometer inserted into the center of the loaf reads 160 degrees, about 50-60 minutes. Allow to rest 10 minutes. Transfer the loaf to a serving platter using two long spatulas and slice.

This is the veggie burger that we served at the market dinner for our meat-avoiding friends. I wanted a burger that provided the same earthy, umami-laden satisfaction as a beef burger, and wasn’t crumbly or too mushy. This one did the trick. You could also serve this sans bun with a spicy salsa on top. I served it topped with melted aged cheddar on toasted ciabatta that was schmeared with lemon aioli. Tasty and super healthy, this burger is a keeper and would even survive on the grill.

Lentil-Barley Burgers
makes 8 burgers
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup dried lentils
Cooking spray
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup grated carrot
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
3/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
3/4 cup cooked pearl barley
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
3 large eggs
3 tablespoons canola oil, divided
Preparation
1. To prepare burgers, combine 1 1/2 cups water and lentils in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 25 minutes or until lentils are tender. Drain. Place half of lentils in a large bowl. Place remaining lentils in a food processor; process until smooth. Add processed lentils to whole lentils in bowl.
2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion and carrot; sauté 6 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Add garlic; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add tomato paste, cumin, oregano, chili powder, and 1/4 teaspoon salt; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add onion mixture to lentils. Add remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, barley, and next 5 ingredients (through egg); stir well. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour or until firm.
3. Divide mixture into 8 portions, shaping each into a 1/2-inch-thick patty. Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 4 patties; cook 3 minutes on each side or until browned. Repeat procedure with remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons oil and 4 patties. Serve on toasted ciabatta with lemon aioli and arugula.