Cold Brew Iced Coffee

I love good coffee. Espresso especially, but good coffee with hints of chocolate and a smooth rich finish is like heaven to me. In the summer I keep a jar of iced coffee on hand for my morning (or sometimes afternoon coffee). Many coffee shops these days make cold brewed iced coffee, and I thought I'd finally try it at home. Cold brewed iced coffee, when done right has all the delicious rich flavor of coffee without the acidity, that's the appeal (also, you don't have to boil water in the 100 degree weather). I had seen some crazy contraptions for this brewing method, but a google search made me realized you don't need anything special to make it at home.  I found this excellent post from a chef at Cooks Illustrated, America's Test Kitchen. He seems to have tested the heck out of this recipe and includes great instructions and photos. I will summarize and simplify it here, but check out his post for more details: - photos and description   and: - recipe (I altered this a bit).

His recipe uses 1:1 coffee to water ratio. I'm sure this makes great coffee, but it is a bit too costly for my wallet, so I used less coffee, and still got a great result. I suggest you play with this recipe, trying different roasts of coffee (medium or dark) and different amounts of coffee. The variables I wouldn't change are: 

1. grind your coffee very fine (espresso or turkish coffee fine)

2. let it steep for 24 hours. It may look dark and ready to go, but it really won't have enough flavor until it steeps for the full 24.

Cold Brew Iced Coffee

2 cups (or up to 3 cups) finely ground coffee (medium roast is recommended)

4 cups room temperature water

1. Stir coffee and water together in a french press or other jar. Let stand covered for 24 hours. Stirring once or twice, especially in the beginning.
2. After 24 hours: If using a french press, press the solids to the bottom of the press. Pour the coffee through a paper filter set in a strainer (this will take a while). If you don't have a French press, pour the coffee through a strainer to remove large solids and then through a paper strainer to remove the fine grinds. 

This will result in a concentrated coffee which you can pour over ice and add a desired amount of water to get the richness you like and enjoy. (His recipe dilutes the coffee with an equal amount of water, pours over ice, and adds a pinch of salt.....I enjoyed mine with a bit of cream...)

If you are interested in some other fun summer drinks check out:

Bitter Lemon or Limeade

Sun Tea

Farmers' Strawberry Lemonade (this has cream in it)

And then there are the spritzers....juice or fruit syrups with seltzer....I love summer drinks!

But, back to coffee. For you die-hard coffee heads out there, what are your cold brew techniques?

Frozen Fruit to Beat the Heat

I am a true northerner, I love the cold, and can't really take the heat. So this summer has been rough, and it's only early July!  It's days like these that I am so thankful for electricity and my freezer. Homemade popsicles using juice or smoothies have taken up residence at the top of my freezer. Popsicles take very little effort, but for an even easier delicious frozen treat, I often freeze grapes and bananas straight up. These two fruits don't freeze solid like a strawberry, they stay slightly soft in the center so you can enjoy them right out of the freezer without breaking your teeth. The perfect healthy antidote to the heat. 

Frozen Grapes: Wash and dry grapes (I use domestic or organic grapes).  Place in a single layer on a flat surface in the freezer. Freeze for a few hours or over night. Enjoy. You can transfer grapes to a bag once they are frozen. For an elegant take on this treat, freeze tiny champagne grapes on the stem, and serve them right out of the freezer.

Frozen Bananas: Slice a ripe banana in half. Poke a chop stick or popsicle stick into the cut end of the banana. Place on a pan or container lid in your freezer. Freeze and enjoy. For a little more fun, you can dip these in melted chocolate and nuts, but I love them just as is. 

What frozen treats are you making this summer?

Strawberry Season Has Arrived!!!

It has been raining an unbelievable amount this past week, but somehow the strawberries seem to be surviving! Today I collected my kids after school and headed off to the country side to pick berries. It was a welcome change from the usual daily grind. My heart was literally racing as I approached the berry fileds and knelt down to start picking. The thrill that nature (with the help of some good farmers) produces these delicious fruits for us to eat is just incredible. We came home with 19 pounds of berries. Now it's time to clean, cut freeze cook and enjoy them.

Here are some great strawberry recipes from years past:

Strawberry Jam 

Best Ever & No Pectin 

Strawberry Farmers Lemonade

Strawberries with Lemon Verbena Cream

Salad with Strawberries, Goat Cheese and Salt & Pepper Almonds

Strawberry Coconut Milk "Ice Cream"















I picked my strawberries at Jones Family Farms again this year (and a few in my backyard). If you are looking for a place to pick, check: pickyourown.org or in CT go to buyctgrown.com.

What are you planning to do with your berries?

Salad with Strawberries, Goat Cheese and Salt & Pepper Almonds

Sweet is usually the direction I go when it comes to strawberries, but these gorgeous berries are also delicious with herbs, cheese or just on a simple salad. As my contribution to a four family picnic I tossed together this salad with some beautiful strawberries, fresh goat cheese, salt and pepper almonds and a basil tarragon vinaigrette. The flavors and textures in this salad are wonderful, and it's a little healthier than strawberry shortcake....

Salad with Strawberries, Goat Cheese and Salt & Pepper Almonds
with Basil Tarragon Vinaigrette

One large head red leaf lettuce washed, dried and torn
1 pint strawberries, cleaned and sliced
4 oz of fresh chevre goat cheese (or feta)
1/2 cup whole raw almonds
1 tablespoon butter
salt and peppe

To make Salt & Pepper Almonds:
Heat a heavy bottomed skillet, add butter. Over medium heat toss in almonds, salt and freshly ground pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally until almonds are starting to brown, but not burn. Let cool.

To make Basil Tarragon Vinaigrette:
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons vinegar (white, white balsamic or apple cider is fine)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon sugar, honey or agave
handful each of basil and tarragon, finely chopped

Whisk all ingredients together or shake well in a jar.

To assemble salad:
Toss lettuce with dressing. Top with almonds, strawberries and crumbled goat cheese.

Enjoy!!!  

If you want to go pick some berries, check out: pickyourown.org or in CT try: buyctgrown.com
My favorite strawberry picking spot is: jonesfamilyfarms.com in Shelton, CT

What savory dishes do you make with strawberries?

Quick Yellow Rice & Beans

This dish is one of my favorite quick standby meals. I love rice and beans because it's delicious, inexpensive, healthy and easy. It's also versitile. Sometimes I make it with chicken, sometimes with olives or peppers if I have them. The yellow can come from saffron or saffron powder, but more often I use a little tumeric, as it is cheaper and I always have it around. This meal literally takes 3 minutes to put in the rice cooker and is great on it's own or topped with a fried egg and salad. The bowl above was a batch I made for one of my kids birthday parties, when I suddenly realized that I had not planned much food for the adults, so quickly threw the ingredients into the cooker, flipped the switch and presto... a quickly meal.

Of course you can make this in a pot or frying pan, but I do love my rice cooker that I got at a tag sale about 15 years ago. Now rice cookers are sold just about everywhere, including pharmacies, like Wallgreens!

You don't really need much of a recipe for this dish. Just remember the parts: rice, liquid, seasoning, beans and fun additions like olives, peas, broccoli, spinach, peppers, curry&raisins etc....If you like your veggies bright green you can add them at the very end or cook them separately and mix them in at the end.

For this batch I used:
2 cups jasmine rice*
3 cups water
1 can beans ( I think I used half black and half kidney in this batch)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric (or saffron or achiote)
1 teaspoon salt or adobo seasoning (or make your own using salt, garlic powder, salt and pepper)**
handful of pitted green olives (optional)
half a red pepper finely diced (optional)
1 cup peas (optional)

*If using brown rice, use 2 Cups rice to 4 Cups water or stock
** you can taste the liquid before cooking and adjust seasoning as needed.
Add all the ingredients into a rice cooker. Click it on to cook, wait and then enjoy!

A few weeks ago I made this version of chicken with yellow rice and beans. Season and sear skinless chicken thighs in a little oil in a deep frying pan, remove and add onion. Saute until translucent, add rice  and saute for one minute. Add beans, chicken, seasoning and water or stock. Bring to a simmer, reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 20 minutes or until rice is tender. Add a touch more water if needed.

If you feel like making this even more special and delicious, finely chop or puree lots of onion, garlic and any herbs you like (cilantro is nice). Saute this mixture in a bit of olive oil, add rice and saute until opaque, then add the liquid or the rest of your ingredients.

How do you like to make rice and beans?

Spring Gardening

Aside from my sugar snap peas, some garlic and some lettuce seeds, my garden is still waiting for seeds and plants. I made the mistake of planting some little cucumber seedlings a week or so ago (see my daughter planting them above), but the cold and hard rain hammered them to oblivion...good thing there is still time to plant more, lots more!

We grow food in six raised beds in our backyard. If you want to see how we built them, check out this detailed post. We used douglas fir for the wood, which is much cheaper than cedar, and seems to be holding up quite well. Each year we add some compost to the beds and plant more seeds and seedlings. I love that it is easier and easier to find seeds and seedlings at the grocery store, flower stands and farmers' markets, there is an ever expanding variety of food to grow. Even the big box stores are carrying organic seeds (not that I'm promoting that you by them there, but still!)

My bag of seeds from years past and a note pad to map out where I'm planting...essential!

If you are in the northeast, there is still time to build some raised beds, fill some pots, or prep some window boxes for growing food. If you are in the New Haven area this weekend, go check out the Common Ground School seedling sale. Get there early, it's usually packed and they have tons of varieties of tomatoes and cucumbers, peppers....sheep sheering, face painting and more. 

For more info:

How to Build Raised Garden Beds Affordably

Common Ground Seedling Sale and Farm Festival - Saturday May 18th 10am-3pm

Also, check out some of these great FREE garden events happening around town this season...thank you to the New Haven Food Policy Council's Urban Agriculture Working Group!

What are you planting in your garden?

Pie Party 2013 in Pictures

What a great night! Fabulous folks, tons of pie, and my friend James, the self proclaimed "Pie Virgin" was converted to the joys of pie! It has taken me a little while to post the pictures, my apologies, but I figured better late than never! There were great pies both sweet and savory, Shepards pie, pasties, caramel apple hand pies and peach pie all using local in March in New England, and a slew of other tasty delights... lobster pie, coconut cream pie, chocolate cream pie with a bird made out of fruit on top, lemon curd tartlets, key lime pie, peach and ricotta hand pies, chess pie and more....see for yourself....

And James eating his first bite of pie EVER!!!

It was fun and delicious...and I don't think I want to eat pie again for a long long time...

Rainbow Parfaits

April is birthday land in my house. My husband, daughter, son and mother all have b-days this month. Lucky for me, while my little girl loves birthdays, she is not so into cake, so for her celebration I get to be b-day creative with something other than flour for one out of the four celebrations. Last year I made these chocolate cups with lemon verbena cream, this year she wanted something with a rainbow, so I made rainbow parfaits. Luscious whipped cream layered with homemade fruit purees: raspberry, passion fruit, mango, kiwi and blackberry. Simple to make, although a bit time consuming, but fabulous, and well worth the effort. I topped these with meringues, another 5 year old favorite. 

 The more labor intensive rainbow treats were reserved for the kids, so for the adults I made a large decadent fruit fool: layers of whipped cream sweetened with condensed milk, layered with passion fruit syrup, and sliced fruit. For another version of this treat I brought to a pot luck later that weekend I added pieces of coconut cake to soak up the juices turning the fool into a triffle.  The passion fruit puree has an incredible flavor and really adds the most amazing accent to these fruit and whipped cream desserts, you can certainly use another orange fruit, but if you can find it, the passion fruit puree is well worth the extra effort!  Look in the frozen food section of grocery stores in areas where there is a latino community, they often carry Goya or La Fey brand frozen fruit pulps.

While the birthday dessert was a huge hit, I think her favorite part of the party was the rainbow candy machine she invented. It was her version of a piñata re-imagined," you don't hit it, papa will shake it and treats with come out wooden slides sticking out the side".  I filled it with chocolates, stickers and other little party favors. 

Food for the party was a rainbow buffet of fruits, vegetables and snacks. The kids ran an obstacle course in our neighbor's driveway, and I basked in the joy of making my little girl's birthday wishes come true for her special day.  

The cheese dish on the right was a big hit with the adults. I had intended to use farmer's cheese, but saw a great looking South American cheese at the market called Aztec Cheese, a fresh cheese, a little firmer and saltier than farmers cheese. I topped it with a drizzle of blood orange flavored olive oil (you could just add a little orange zest to some good olive oil), a good dose of black pepper and chopped scallions. It was delicious, refreshing and a great accompaniment to the rest of the food. 

Rainbow Fruit Triffle

Composed individual version (10 triffles) - simple big bowl version below

1 quart whipping cream (2 pints)

1 can condensed milk (or powdered sugar to taste)

2 teaspoons vanilla

2-3 cups each of a rainbow of fruits, I used raspberries, mango, kiwi and black berries

2 frozen blocks of passion fruit (in the frozen section with goya or other latino food brand products

2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup sugar

Sugar - to sweeten each fruit puree to taste

1. Using fresh fruit or frozen but thawed fruit, make a simple puree out of each fruit by mashing it or putting it into the blender with a little sugar to your liking. I barely sweetened the fruit. Place each puree in a ziplock bag. This can be done a day or two in advance.

2. To thicken the passion fruit juice, put thawed juice or frozen juice into a small sauce pot over medium heat, add 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup sugar to taste. Mix 2 tablespoons of cornstarch with a few tablespoons of thawed juice or water until it is completely dissolved. Stir the cornstarch mixture into the passion fruit juice, bring to a boil and simmer for 30 seconds or so until it thickens. Cool completely and put into a ziplock bag. 

3. Whip cream until thickened, sweetening it with condensed milk, or powdered sugar if you prefer. The condensed milk results in a creamier whipped cream. Place whipped cream in a pipping bag fitted with a small circle tip or in a gallon sized ziplock bag. 

4. To assemble: find small (4oz or less) glasses or plastic cups. I found these at a local dollar store, and have saved them to use again. Snip the corner off of the whipped cream ziplock bag and each fruit puree as you need it. Starting with whipped cream, pipe a thin layer over the bottom of the cup, continue alternating with each fruit puree and whipped cream in color order. I used the passion fruit puree for orange, and the mango for yellow. You can top these with a big dollop of whipped cream, decorate with fruit or make baked meringues as I did. 

Simplified Big Bowl Triffle

1 Quart Cream

1 can condensed milk

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 frozen packet passion fruit juice
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup sugar or other sweetener to taste

Assortment of fruits, sliced

Coconut or vanilla cake, angel food cake or lady finders, or other treat to soak up the fruit juices (optional)

1. Slice fruit and place in separate containers. Berries can be sprinkled with sugar to help the juices come out. Thaw passion fruit juice, sweeten with sugar, honey or other sweetener to taste.
2. Whip the cream with the condensed milk and vanilla. 
3. Layer all of the ingredients in a glass bowl making a lovely pattern on the outside of the bowl. Each cake layer can be topped with fruit and passion fruit juice so it soaks of the juices. 

Note: if you don't have any cake, the whipped cream and fruit alone make a fabulous decadent dessert. 

Do you have any great birthday food ideas to share?