Roasted Tomato Pesto

I am not ready to let go of summer yet! Don't get me wrong, Fall is my favorite season, but it seems to be creeping into summer earlier and earlier every year (kind of like Christmas decorations coming out in September)...craziness! The pumpkin craze has taken over the blogisphere and grocery stores already...especially Trader Joe's. I was in there on Sunday and found pumpkin-flavored items all over the store. I was so tempted to get them all, but knew it was too soon, just too soon!

Plus, there is still an abundance of summer produce available, so I quickly let go of any Fall cravings and continued on with summer! Tomatoes are still going strong, and several different types. I found some great Roma tomatoes and other small garden tomatoes and decided to make a pesto. Yep, you can literally make pesto with anything!

There are two ways I LOVE to eat tomatoes, raw, and roasted or charred. By roasting tomatoes, it brings out a hidden sweetness that pairs well with many flavors, including garlic, fresh thyme and pine nuts.

The weather this weekend was absolutely gorgeous! Pure quintessential North Carolina weather at its best! It was definitely a sit-outside-all-day kind of day on Sunday...with pauses in between for football :)

I made the below pesto based on a recipe I learned in a cooking class at Whisk (highly recommend their classes by the way)! The recipe is super easy and pretty difficult to mess up. The pesto is great with crackers, crispy bread, cheese or even cucumber slices.

So as the Hubby and I prepare to say farewell to another NC summer, we plan on enjoying every last second of its beautiful and delicious bounty!

Roasted Tomato Pesto

Yields: 2 cups
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 30-35 minutes

1.5 pounds Roma tomatoes, quartered
4 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic, whole and unpeeled
1 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
3 tablespoons pine nuts
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
sea salt
freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 375F and line a baking sheet with foil. Mix the tomatoes, 2 tablespoons olive oil, thyme and pinch of sea salt on the baking sheet. Throw on the garlic cloves and roast for 30-35 minutes, until the garlic is soft. If the garlic cloves are smaller, take them out around 20-25 minutes so they don't burn. Set the tomato mixture aside to cool. Peel the garlic cloves and add back into the tomato mixture.

In a small dry saute pan, toast the pine nuts over medium-low heat until fragrant and slightly browned. Quickly remove from the pan and let cool on a cutting board or room temperature surface. (Watch the pine nuts closely as they will burn quickly)

Once everything is cooled, blend the tomato mixture, pine nuts, remaining olive oil, crushed red pepper flakes and a bit more sea salt to taste in a food processor. Serve with a soft cheese, crackers or cucumber slices.

Late Summer Minestrone Soup

I'm back from all my travels!! I've been to Bald Head Island, San Francisco, Sonoma County and New York City, all in the past few weeks. I love to travel, but I also love to get home and back into a routine in the kitchen. I always feel so discombobulated when I have an empty refrigerator and pantry!

I was looking forward to getting back to the Farmers Market as well this weekend and stock up on my favorite local goods. There was still a good amount of summer produce left, so I took advantage and loaded up my basket. The Hubby and I were planning on an all-day football extravaganza Sunday since we didn't get to watch kickoff weekend due to our travels. Sunday Fun Days are THE BEST...full of football, cooking and laziness!

Since the weather forecast for the weekend was overcast and slightly cool and I was going to be around the house I decided to make a soup. A minestrone is a super easy and healthy soup to make. Minestrones are not only super versatile, but very cost effective because they are vegetarian. I like to add in a little pasta and beans to make it robust and filling and the Hubby usually includes a little extra cheese and slice of crunchy bread.

It was definitely a lazy Sunday, but at least we got our veggies in:)

Late Summer Minestrone Soup

Recipe inspired from Half Baked Harvest
Yields: 6 servings
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes


2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1 sweet onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
2 zucchinis, chopped (if available, if not, use about 1 cup chopped)
1 ear corn, kernels removed, cob reserved
4 cloves garlic, minced
6-8 cups chicken and/or vegetable broth
1 reserved corn cob
1 Parmesan rind
1 sprig fresh rosemary, chopped
1 small bunch kale, ribs removed and chopped
1 cup favorite pasta (can use a gluten free variety)
1 can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
1/2 cup grated parmesan
sun dried tomatoes (dry packed)
salt and pepper, to taste

Heat a large soup pot over medium heat and melt the butter. Add in the olive oil, onion, carrots and red pepper. Season this with a pinch of salt and pepper and cook, stirring often, for about 10 minutes. Then stir in the zucchini, corn kernels and garlic and cook for another 10 minutes, stirring frequently.

Pour in the broth and add the corn cob and Parmesan rind and bring the soup to a boil. Once boiling, add the rosemary and kale and reduce the heat to a simmer for about 10 minutes. Add in the pasta and cook until it is al dente (according to the package directions). Once the pasta is cooked, remove the soup from heat and stir in the cannellini beans, grated Parmesan, parsley and thyme. Season the soup with salt and pepper to taste and serve with sun dried tomatoes and more grated Parmesan if desired. 

Heirloom Tomato Soup

Every Saturday morning, I come home with multiple baskets full of produce from the various markets that I now find myself going to. For the past several weeks, I have been loading up on tomatoes, all different varieties - sun golds, heirlooms, sunrise bumblebees, and more!

This weekend, I went to the Western Wake Farmers Market again and found myself with too many tomatoes when I got home. Since the weather is crumby (as in rainy and 64 degrees), I decided to work on a soup recipe to use up some of my tomato stash. The heirloom tomatoes were perfect for the soup, not only bringing a vibrant color, but a bright sweet flavor. 

What is an heirloom tomato exactly? Heirlooms are open-pollinated varieties of tomato that can be classified into four categories; family, commercial, mystery and created. Even though heirlooms are not the most attractive of tomatoes, they make up for it with flavor, much more than conventional strands.

I added a few carrots to create more texture, then built on top of the tomato flavor with spices, a Parmesan rind and garlic. The end result was a spicy, yet refreshing soup that was perfect for dinner along-side some sautéed zucchini and corn on the cob from the market. The recipe made enough to last us for several leftover meals, especially since we would need something to combat the rainy day blues ahead!

Heirloom Tomato Soup

Recipe Adapted from Go Bold With Butter

Yields: 4 cups
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes

2 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped

1/2 yellow onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 pounds Heirloom tomatoes (about 4-5 large tomatoes), cut into chunks

3 cups vegetable stock

1 Parmesan rind (optional)

2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped and divided

Heavy cream (optional)

In a large stock or soup pot melt the butter over medium heat, then add in the olive oil, carrot and onion. Season with salt and sauté for 5 minutes or until onions become translucent. Add cayenne and stir to coat vegetables, cook for one minute, then stir in the tomatoes.


Pour in the vegetable stock and Parmesan rind (if using) and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and bring the soup to a simmer. Cook for 15-20 minutes until almost reduced by half and tomatoes are soft. 

Remove the pot from heat and remove the Parmesan rind. Using an immersion blender or regular blender (in batches), blend the soup until a smooth consistency. Serve with fresh basil and heavy cream if desired.

Peaches and Prosciutto with Balsamic Vinegar

Feeling creative today! Could be the beautiful weather, or the fact that I have an abundance of vibrant produce in my kitchen right now. Either way, I decided to throw some interesting ingredients together for a new appy. 

Life is too short to eat the same thing over and over again. I'm always in the mood to get creative in the kitchen. You never know when you might find something new that you love!

Recently, I attended a pesto cooking class at a local kitchen store called Whisk, where I had the pleasure of meeting several lovely people. One such person was Roxanne of Gourmet Grapes and Olives, a specialty online olive oil and balsamic vinegar shop. She sent me some of her favorite bottles to try out, including a dark chocolate balsamic vinegar! I was so intrigued by the vinegar that I was determined to come up with a new dish to feature it.

Since peach season is going strong right now, which I am loving, I thought I would start there to add to my peach repertoire. Next, I did my usual peruse around the kitchen to see what I had in stock and decided I needed something salty and nutty to add to the sweet and savory. So, Peaches and Prosciutto with Balsamic Vinegar was born. If you don't have dark chocolate balsamic vinegar laying around (which I am guessing most people don't), any aged balsamic will work here. I bet a fig infused balsamic would be great!

Get a little creative today and try a new combination of flavors....you might just surprise yourself!

Peaches and Prosciutto with Balsamic Vinegar

Yields: 1 small appetizer 
Prep Time: 3 minutes

1 peach, quartered
3 slices prosciutto
Parmesan shavings
Quality balsamic vinegar
Cracked pepper to taste

Assemble all the ingredients on a plate and enjoy right away. 

30/30 - #6 Peach Bourbon Crumble

Aspen and the FOOD & WINE Classic have been amazing! I love my bestie for experiencing this with me. There will be plenty of pictures and stories to share once I wrap my head around all the exciting events. But for now, I bring you #6 and a Peach Bourbon Crumble!

I came up with this recipe in the middle of peach season last summer amongst the abundance of delicious, sweet, juicy peaches that were at the market. Last Summer, the Carolina's experienced one of the best peach seasons in years, so I was buying them right and left and making whatever I could come up with!

Peach season is just around the corner, so I thought it would be a very appropriate recipe to include in my Top 30 list!

5 days until I turn 30!!!

Find the recipe for the Peach Bourbon Crumble here.

Flavor Infused Water

I can't believe September is here! The weather is amazing! You can feel it in the air...the humidity is gone and Fall is coming (GOT fans??). Yes, we still have warm days ahead, but those are the beautiful, delightful, can't-stand-to-be-inside type of days! This is when our porch gets the most use. We make drinks and snacks, Ryan pulls out his golf club and practice balls, I open a book or magazine and we just sit outside enjoying the comfortable weather. The perfect thing for porch-sitting-September evenings is fresh flavored waters.

Flavored water is the perfect beverage for those "Ahh, this feels nice" kind of days. If you are feeling a little spunky, add some vodka too!

For our relaxing porch day this week, I made a large pitcher of refreshing cucumber and lime water (with maybe a bit of vodka in it...we were feeling spunky). We are obsessed with infused waters...it is the best way to hydrate, especially if you aren't a fan of boring water. I found this handy infuser tool a few years ago that allows you to easily infuse your water without having to fish out all the scraps. Here are a few of our favorite flavor combinations:

• Cucumber and lime
• Citrus - orange, lemon, lime
• Raspberry and mint
• Strawberry and basil
• Cucumber alone - feels like you are at the spa!

Infused water is my go-to healthy mixer for a vodka cocktail as well. You get fresh flavor with no calories or sugar. When Kendal (remember Trendy Kendie) and I were at the beach last year, we discovered a shared love for this type of cocktail and had a great time muddling fruit into our water to cool us off at the beach. I think we tried about 4 or 5 combinations in one afternoon...it got a bit wild :)

Porch sitting days remind me of family and I have to mention a special birthday today! Happy Birthday Desiree!!! You are possibly the best "Mother-in-Law" a girl could ever have. I think we have come to the point where we could just drop the "Mother-in-Law" tag though! Love you so much and hope you have a fantastic birthday....hopefully filled with porch-sitting drinks. :)

Infused Water

Yields: 1 pitcher / 4 glasses
Prep Time: 30 minutes

1 pitcher of filtered water

1 cup of fruit/citrus/vegetable of choice

Combine the ingredients and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before serving.

Teaser
Football season is here! Check back early next week for the best baby back rib recipe you will ever come across. 

Cocktail Month: Cucumber Chill Martini

It's cocktail time and I've had a good week, a REALLY good week! I wrapped up a big project at work, got a promotion, was asked to promote an upcoming event on my blog (details to be shared soon), on my way to see my family AND my birthday week officially started! I know what you are thinking....Jess, say no more, "Let's have a drink!"

Well, alright then! I have the perfect one in mind to cool us off as the hot weather starts to creep in. I can feel it after my afternoon runs, summer is definitely here! Hopefully this cocktail will help bring our body temps back down to normal.

"Cool as a cucumber," as they say. A cucumber is the perfect summer vegetable to cool you down. I have been on a kick recently adding cucumber slices to my water, it reminds me of being at a spa! I thought, why not add some vodka and we have ourselves a real vacation!

This martini (like most martinis) is pretty strong, so not ideal for throwing back. However, if you are not a big drinker, you can simply add in mineral water to tone it down a bit. Rain Vodka is really good here, but use your favorite brand of cucumber vodka.

Cucumber Chill Martini

Yields: 1 drink

2 shots cucumber vodka (suggest Rain Cucumber Lime vodka)
Juice of 1/4 lime
3-4 cucumber slices
salt for rim
ice
Lime wedge and cucumber slice for garnish
Sparkling water (optional)

Chill a martini glass in the freezer for at least 30 minutes. During the last 10 minutes, add in a few slices of cucumber to the sides of the glass so they stick. In a martini shaker, add in ice, vodka and lime juice and shake well until chilled.

Pour about a tablespoon of salt onto a flat plate and spread out.

Remove prepared martini glass from the freezer and dip into the plate of salt to coat the rim of the glass. Pour in the chilled vodka mixture and garnish with lime wedge and cucumber slice.

If using sparkling water, start with a large class and add ice into the glass as well before pouring the vodka mixture and mineral water in.