Happy Monday to you!  I first want to thank everyone for their kind words regarding Friday’s House update.  I greatly appreciate it.  How was your weekend?  Mine was a bit nutso as we have been trying to find a second vehicle and a Nintendo Wii.  We checked all over PEI for  Wii and came up empty so we took a trip to New Brunswick yesterday for a Wii and still came up dry.  We looked at a few vehicles as well but just couldn’t find the right one.

So here is a little challenge.  Can anyone find a Wii in their area and if so I will buy it and ship it to myself!  Sound like fun?  Looks like I may have to buy one online at this point or wait a little longer.

Ok I really have to share with you an amazing recipe today.  Do you ever feel like you want to impress your house guests or company with an over the top appetizer? If so, this is the one for you.  It is quite simple but the results are amazing.  I honestly just didn’t make the title up with having proof to back it up.  You have to try these cheese puffs.

Ingredients

• 6 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter ( softened )
• 1/2 Cup Milk
• 1/2 Cup Water
• 1/2 Tsp. Coarse Salt
• 1 Cup Flour
• 4 Large Eggs
• 3/4 Cup Grated gruyere cheese
• 1/4 Cup grated Asiago cheese

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400 Degrees F.
2. In a saucepan combine butter, water milk and salt.
3. Bring to a boil and then add flour; Remove from heat and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon.
4. Dough will dry out and pull from sides of sauce pan.
5. Put back on medium heat and beat a further 50 seconds to dry the dough even more
6. Transfer dough out of hot pan to a bowl and add eggs one at a time; beating vigorously with each egg.
7. After last egg add the Gruyere cheese and beat well.
8. Grease or line cookie sheets with parchment paper .
9. Drop dough from a teaspoon allowing room to expand.
10. Sprinkle tops with Asiago cheese and bake for 15 minutes at 400.
11. Then lower the temperature to 350 and bake another 15-20 minutes to dry the interior.
12. Remove from oven and let cool on a rack for a few minutes
13. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: Make sure to beat the mixture well after each egg addition and the thing to look out for here is to ensure the center of the puff is nice and dry and flaky.  Lowering the heat after the first 15 minutes is key to allow the inside to continue cooking but not brown the outside too much.

Zesty Around the Blogsphere

Before I go – you should check out a fun pancake recipe I feature on Picky Palate yesterday.  I think you might like it especially all the oatmeal lovers.  It is called Whole Grain Oatmeal Apple Pancakes.  Let me know what you think.

I hope you have an amazing Monday and I hope you have some luck finding a Nintendo Wii.  I better get going here and get ready for work.  The sunrise was amazing this morning from the dining room table and I think it gave me a little extra boost of energy.

Take care

zesty

I cannot believe that it is Tuesday already.  Back to the grind as Christmas is now over.  Oh well – we must move on.  Yesterday was a huge shopping day for the house, we picked up some new bedding, some regular supplies, a new microwave and well some clothes…. but that is normal.

Remember a few weeks back when I posted about a huge food night at the zesty in laws?  Well I never posted one of the menu items as of yet because I couldn’t find any good pictures.  Well the good news is I found them and I think you may like it.

Ingredients

• 1 lb Salmon fillets, no bones
• 2 egg whites
• 6 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 2 Tsp. Salt
• 1-1/2 Tbsp. fresh ground pepper
• 2-3 Cups heavy cream, 36-38%, well chilled
• 8 Scallops, firm “feet” removed and reserved.
• 3-4 Peices dill with fronds removed, stems reserved.

Sauce

• 2 Tbsp. minced onion
• Reserved scallop feet
• Dill stems
• 1 Cup white wine
• 1 Cup water
• 1/2 Cup heavy cream

Method

1. Using a food processor, puree the egg whites and the salmon until smooth, use as is or pass through fine sieve to smooth even further. Then chill for at least 2 hours.







2. Whip butter salt and all the pepper until smooth, then add the fish puree and blend until well mixed.
3. Slowly add the cream, in a steady stream to allow full incorporation.
4. Layer 1/2 of the mix in a 4×11 inch loaf pan tamp to settle any air bubbles. Next place scallops and dill in the center of the mixture and cover with the remaining mix and tamp the mixture once again.
5. Cover with buttered parchment and back in a water bath for 90 minutes in an oven preheated to 275 F. Water bath should be about 3/4 up the sides of the loaf pan.
6. Cool for 2-3 hours or overnight. Remove from mold and serve with sauce.
7. Saute onions until soft and not browned and add scallops and dill stems. Cook for 30 sec over low heat and add water and wine and reduce until little 1/4 cup remaining and add cream.



8. Bring to a boil to thicken and then strain.
9. Serve slice mousseline  with sauce over, or under the slice.



10. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: The same mix of fish can be poached in water for a quenelle and sauced then serve warm.

Well I better get going and get ready for work.  I will talk to you tomorrow for sure.  Any big plans for the new year?

Take care

zesty