Salud! at Whole Foods: The Best Baklava

At a recent Whole Foods class, the instructor premade some baklava (since it is supposed to sit for several hours).  However, a mistake turned out to be quite serendipitous...

While boiling the sugar honey mix, her phone rang.  In the few moments it took to say she could not talk, the mix boiled over.  And I mean REALLY boiled over.  She lost about a third of the syrup.

Since there was no time to start over, she used what she had and mainly poured it along the slice cuts.

This resulted in a baklava that was way less sticky and not nearly so sweet.  The layers of phyllo remained delightfully crispy while the sweet seeped into the layer of nuts.

If you wish to replicate this alteration, just reduce the syrup ingredients by a third.  And pour along the sliced area.

Salud! at Whole Foods: Turkish Meat Pie (Recipe)

Himself and I recently worked a Whole Foods class on Turkish cuisine.  Oh my it was good!

The main dish is a meat pie that is different from the usual.  It is a new favorite for us.

Salud! at Whole Foods: Parisian Potatoes with Fennel

Picked up a new recipe at a recent class at Whole Foods.  Parisian potatoes with fennel is a different way to do a scalloped potato dish.  The fennel adds a hint of flavor without over powering the rest of the dish's goodness... that being Gruyere, Asiago, and Parmesano cheeses!

What's not to love?

Salud! at Whole Foods: Citrus Asparagus (Recipe)

Spring has finally arrived to spite what the weather is doing!

How am I so sure?

Because the fresh asparagus is in the markets and it is finally affordable!

I learned a new way of preparing asparagus at a recent cooking class at Whole Foods.  It is bright and fresh, bringing out the best in my favorite vegetable.

Salud! at Whole Foods: Pesto Lasagna

Back from another fantastic class with Chef Dan at Whole Foods.  I have a winner to share with you (not that all of Dan's recipes are really good...but this one - oh my...).

He did this pesto lasagna.  I think the only thing I will do differently is to lightly brown off the top under the broiler.

ENJOY!!!

Note:  Do whatever you normally do with your lasagna noodles.  I rarely use fresh, even if it is better.

Tea Time Treats: Colorful Israeli Couscous Salad (Recipe)

At Tea Time Treats, the recipe challenge for May was 'colorful'.  Rather appropriate for spring, isn't it?  I immediately thought of this light and delicious salad.  So good!

http://hedgecombers.com/2016/05/02/tea-time-treats-linky-party-may-2016/ 

Salud! at Whole Foods - Creamy Artichoke Soup

My last volunteer session at Whole Foods hit a home run for me with this delicious soup.

Lots of wonderful little artichokes!

After cooking, Chef Dan uses an immersion blender to break them down.

Then you have to strain out the fibrous pieces. 

See all the stuff in the strainer?

A creamy cup of comfort...so yummy!

NOTE - This recipe makes 12 servings.

Salud! at Whole Foods: Chicken Roulade Stuffed With Fontina, Proscuitto, and Sage

Just back from a new Chef Dan class at Whole Foods.  I have a new favorite chicken recipe!  This is so good and it is easy to make too.  Hardest part is pounding out the chicken super thin so it rolls up nicely.

Dad and Mom... you're going to love this one!

Linked to:

http://hedgecombers.com/2016/07/01/tea-time-treats-july-2016/

http://www.lavenderandlovage.com/

Salud! at Whole Foods: Tuscan Kale Chopped Salad

At a recent cooking class at Whole Foods, we did this delicious winter salad.  I'd never used Tuscan kale before and I'm quite impressed.  It's a 'kinder, gentler' kale as compared to the curly kale I'm used to.

Current Tea Time Treats Challenge:

Affogato

Continuing with a coffee theme, here's an ice cream dessert we did recently at Whole Foods.  Affogato means "drowned" in Italian.  So basically this is an elegant Italian sundae!

By the way, the syrup is excellent on fresh fruit.

Mediterranean Baked Feta

At a recent cooking class, we prepared an appetizer that was different from the 'same old' appetizers you always see.  To say it was the hit of the class session would be an understatement!

The recipe theme for the December Tea Time Treats was "sugar and spice".  I fudged a bit on the 'sugar'... instead of having white sugar, this uses honey instead.

Note:  Buy the best Feta you can find.

Salud! at Whole Foods: Sauteed Brussels Sprouts with Apricots and Bacon

This recipe is just short of a Brussels Sprouts miracle...

You see... Himself does NOT like Brussels sprouts.  Never have I been able to entice him to take more than a bite, no matter how I fixed them.

That's all changed now.

This recipe was one for the "Couples Cook: Thanksgiving" class at Whole Foods last month.  Himself took his 'polite' bite... then another...and another.  He cleaned his plate up folks!  Totally unheard of in our entire marriage.

So here it is for you to enjoy!

(Recipe note:  make sure you use small tender Brussels sprout!)

Cooking With Herbs: Bay, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme (Italian Pot Roast)

At a recent cooking class with Chef Dan Maggipinto I learned how to make the most succulent pot roast ever.  Cooked low and slow, the flavors were deep and the meat was fork tender.

After browning, the roast oven cooks with all sorts of flavorful bits.

After it cooks a long while, it is time to make the sauce from the pan leavings.

The roast resting a bit before slicing.

Yes... it tastes as good as it looks!

Bacon Quiche with a Different Type of Pastry

Are you tired of the same old pastry crust for your quiches?  I was... and didn't even realize it!

That is until I took a class at Whole Foods called "Amazing Bacon".  The Bacon Quiche had a wonderful flaky crust.

This recipe has you making mini quiches... which are great for a party, but not so great for feeding a husband and company.  So I doubled the dough recipe to make my standard 9X13 quiche.

It turned out SO good!

Salud! at Whole Foods: Bacon Jam!

When I first heard about 'bacon jam' I thought it was one of the most awful combinations I'd ever heard of... and felt doubly so once I saw the recipe.

But first impressions aren't always correct.

My first bite quickly led to my second bite...and my third bite...and...

Let's just say it is more than a bit addictive, OK?

So I happily share with you this yummy recipe.  You can thank me later.  Oh, try it as a BLT on a biscuit.  Oh my...

Salsa Anyone?

I'm still working on my summer project of learning to can.  This time Himself and I took a canning class at Whole Foods (as opposed to volunteering/working).  Kinda nice being the student for a change, tho we were ribbed a bit by our volunteer worker peers for 'going the easy route'.  

Himself busy with the salsa.

Getting started with the batch.

And now it is finished!

We each loaded up jars of salsa for processing.

Getting the air bubbles out... not a good thing to have in a jar!

Our delicious finished product!

I feel confident enough now to do some canning on my own.  I wonder what looks good over at the Amish produce auction?

There are more great canning recipes at Lyn's site:

www.preservingnow.com

http://www.earnesthomeco.com/earnest-challenge-update-4/