For picky eaters

Mom wasn't an experimental cook when we were younger; she couldn't have been--we were too picky. And so was my dad. (He still is.) One simple meal Mom made on a lazy (or busy) Saturday afternoon that appealed to and satisfied all of us was cheese crisp. In Arizona, these are basically open-faced quesadillas (read more about them here), although Mom would usually ask whether we wanted ours folded in half or flat; they were cheese crisps to us either way. And we loved them. When I was little, I liked the folded kind because the cheese and the tortilla were soft and it seemed like the "hot sauce," or salsa, clung to them a little better.

Now, I prefer my cheese crisps open-faced on whole wheat or multi-grain tortillas, with not too much cheese, barely golden brown on the bottom with crispy bits of cheese around the edges and topped with avocados and tomatoes. Kind of like Mom made.

Arizona Cheese Crisps

1/2 tablespoon butter

4 small multi-grain or whole wheat tortillas

1/2 to 3/4 cup shredded Mexican-style cheese (the one I prefer contains cheddar, asadero, queso quesadilla, and monterey jack)

1 avocado, sliced

2 tomatoes, sliced or diced

salt

Melt the butter in a medium non-stick pan over medium heat. When the butter is melted, place one tortilla on the pan and immediately top with a thin layer of cheese, covering the tortilla all the way to the edges. Cook until the bottom is golden brown and the cheese is just melted and crispy at the edges. Remove from the pan and set aside on a plate. Repeat with the remaining three tortillas. If the tortillas start browning too fast, take the pan off the heat, wipe the butter off with a paper towel, and put the pan back on the heat with another pat of butter. When melted, add another tortilla and cheese on top.

When all the tortillas are cheesed and crisped, top with sliced avocado and tomatoes. Add a pinch of salt to bring out the flavor of the avocados and cut into wedges, if desired. I like to pick the whole thing up and eat it bite by bite myself.

Serves 2-4.

Meant to be

Sometimes the best comfort foods are combinations we've never tried before. Go figure. Take this combination, for example: sweet pears, nutty cheese, and spicy arugula between two slices of ciabatta. These are ingredients meant to be together, more so than I originally thought.

My friend Lark helped me make them last week, and we found ourselves stuffing the last bits of leftover pear slices and nutty, delicious cheese into our mouths when our sandwiches had disappeared into thin air.

Simple, sweet, and savory, too. If you're in the mood for something simple and homey, but also new and exciting, try these panini. I think you'll like them.

Pear Panini

Adapted from a recipe by Giada De Laurentiis

If you have a panini machine, ignore the stuff about cooking these on a pan and using an extra one to press the sandwich. Just use your machine instead.

8 slices ciabatta or country bread

1/4 cup olive oil

8 ounces sliced Taleggio cheese, brie, or nutty, melty cheese (I tried an Italian cheese I'd never heard of before and can't figure out the name of it at the moment, but I'll keep doing my research and let you know.)

2 large pears (I used "Best Ever" pears--perfect!), cored and cut into 1/4-inch wedges

2 tablespoons Agave nectar or honey

Pinch salt

Pinch freshly ground black pepper

3 ounces arugula or spinach

Preheat a non-stick skillet to medium. Brush the bread on both sides with olive oil and place the bottom half of the bread (only the inside part that will touch the cheese) on the skillet until toasty and golden. Continue with the inside of the top slices of the bread.

While the top slices are toasting, begin forming the sandwiches. Divide the cheese among the warm bread so it can start melting. Cover the cheese with pear slices. Drizzle the pears with the Agave nectar or honey. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Top with a handful of arugula. Place the toasted top half of the bread over the arugula and return the completed sandwiches (2-4 at a time) to the skillet. Place a smaller skillet on top of the panini and place a few heavy cans of food into the top skillet to press the sandwiches for 1-2 minutes. Flip the sandwiches over and do the same for the other side. Remove from the skillet. Cut the sandwiches in half and serve immediately.

Serves 4.

A first time for everything

The first time I traveled overseas, I was so excited and nervous at the same time that I made myself air-sick. I can't describe exactly what I felt as the crowded two-aisled airbus started its descent over a new land. I think it was a mixture of fear of the unknown and the rush of doing something I'd never done before but always wanted to. This was similar to what I felt when I made creme brulee for the first time. Yes, really.

This is how I feel about my culinary concoctions. The combining and mixing of ingredients--simple and plain though they are of themselves--to create something as delightful and sweet and sophisticated as a creme brulee gives me a satisfaction I can't get anywhere else. Except for maybe on a trip across the sea.

Although the brulee is probably one of the most basic of desserts and one of the first culinary students learn, it's also classic, versatile, and finishes off just about any meal quite nicely. (And, you'll notice, I can finish it off quite nicely, too.) Its mellow vanilla flavor and light, creamy texture make the perfect companions for its carmelized sugary top, which somehow reminds me of marshmallows lightly toasted over a campfire. Even though it makes me as giddy and breathless as I get when I go to a far-off place, it still tastes kind of like...

Home.

Creme Brulee

Adapted from Alton Brown's recipe from Good Eats

Creme brulee is relatively simple to make, although you have to be careful about a few things. First, don't add the warm cream all at once to the egg yolks. You may end up with scrambled brulee. Also, remember to only add the yolks (the yellow part) to the mixture. The best way to separate the yolk from the white is to crack the egg, keeping the yolk in one half of the shell, and then transfer it to the other half of the shell while holding it over a bowl and allowing the white to spill out.

1 quart heavy cream

1 or 2 vanilla beans, split and scraped

1 cup granulated sugar, divided

6 large egg yolks

2 quarts hot water

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Place the cream, vanilla bean(s), and the pulp into a medium saucepan set over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, cover, and allow to sit for at least 15 minutes. Remove the vanilla bean(s).

In a medium bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup sugar and the egg yolks until well blended and it just starts to lighten in color. Add the cream a little at a time, stirring continually. Pour the liquid into 6 (7 to 8-ounce) ramekins. Place the ramekins into a large cake pan or roasting pan. Pour enough hot water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake just until the creme is set but still trembling in the center, approximately 40 to 45 minutes. Remove the ramekins from the pan and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 3 days.

Remove the creme from the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes prior to browning the sugar on top. Divide the remaining 1/2 cup sugar equally among the 6 dishes and spread evenly on top. Using a torch, melt the sugar and form a crispy top. Or, preheat the broiler, set the ramekins on a baking dish, and let the sugar carmelize, about 1 to 2 minutes. Allow the creme brulee to sit for at least 5 minutes before serving or place in the refrigerator for a couple minutes. Top with fresh berries and/or fruit.

Serves 6.

I know, I know...

So in case you haven't noticed, I haven't done what I promised--or so it appears. Let me explain. The truth is, I have been cooking, cooking, and cooking some more, AND snapping shots to document all of my experiments in the kitchen. I really do have so much to share with you (if any of "you" actually do read my blog--or even if you don't), but I've been using the excuse that I can't find the attachment I need to connect my camera to my computer so I can upload the shots I've taken. As someone recently pointed out, I could easily remedy that if I really wanted to. True that. But during the last several weeks, I've thought of some new ideas. So as I rework my blog, I will resolve the missing cord problem ASAP and keep "you" all updated. Don't give up on me. Please?

The plan

I know I haven't been the best at this, and I apologize. Basically, I've been busy and haven't had a lot of time for cooking lately. I know, lame excuse. I've just moved and once I get settled, I plan to start cooking like the dickens and update this blog regularly. That's the plan.

To make up for it, here's a picture from my trip to Turkey.  It's a new favorite for me which I intend to try and duplicate: Turkish pizza! Wow!

Nothing yet

Sorry about the lack of posts and pictures promised. I've had a rough time getting back on track after my trip. They are coming, though. Be excited.

Bon Voyage to me

Sorry I missed posting this past week. I've been running around trying to get ready for an exciting trip to a far-off land, as many of you know. I will be gone for nearly two weeks, but you can be sure there will be lovely pictures posted at the end of that time period. See you then!