Picnic in the Park

Y A STROKE OF LUCK, the picnic in the park that we threw for my mom's (censored per her request)th birthday took place on the last weekend of clear skies and warm weather. With everything going on in our lives, it's becoming increasingly rare that our whole family can come together and enjoy an afternoon together, so every opportunity is a special one.

This salad was a perfect way to open the meal. I'm sure I'll be making it again soon:

PEACH SALAD INGREDIENTS

• 1 head butter lettuce
• 2 yellow peaches, thinly sliced
• 1 medium-sized red bell pepper, diced
• 1/2 a head of raddichio
• pine nuts or coarsely chopped walnuts, whatever you have on hand.
• crumbled goat cheese
• balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper to taste
• garlic powder (optional)

And here's an action shot of some cubed butternut squash. Incredibly simple but amazingly hearty.

WARM BUTTERNUT SQUASH INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 butternut squash, cut into 1" cubes
• 2 sprigs of rosemary
• 1 cup vegetable broth

Chocolate cake is my mom's absolute lust-have. My sister and I adapted a recipe from Ina Garten. We omitted the buttermilk her original recipe calls for and changed out some ingredients so that it  was less rich for the sake of our health-conscious parents. That may sound blasphemous but really, it was still delicious.

CHOCOLATE CAKE INGREDIENTS

• 1 3/4 cups flour
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup cocoa powder
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee 

DIRECTIONS

1. Sift the dry ingredients into the bowl of an electric mixer on low speed until combined. In a separate bowl, combine the oil, eggs and vanilla.
2. Using a low speed on the mixer, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry. Then add the coffee and stir just to combine. Pour the batter into 2 buttered and floured 9" cake pans and bake at 350° for 45-40 minutes. Let cake cool in pans for 30 minutes before removing.

Cheers to my mum!

Margaret

Perfect Panzanella

OU CAN NEVER go wrong with Italian food: red vine-ripened tomatoes, fresh herbs, and a loaf of piping hot bread are tried and true Italian classics. To celebrate the start of summer, I made a refreshing yet hearty Panzanella that is unlike most other salads without meat in how filling it is.

SALAD INGREDIENTS

• 4 cups of French bread cut into 1" cubes
• 1 hothouse cucumber cut into 3/4" slices
• 2 large tomatoes cut into 1" cubes
• 1 seeded red bell pepper, cut into 1" cubes
• 1 seeded yellow bell pepper, cut into 1" cubes
• 1/2 small red onion, finely diced
• 15 basil leaves, chopped
• 2 tablespoons capers
• grapeseed or olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

VINAIGRETTE INGREDIENTS

• 1 tsp. spicy Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp. minced garlic
• 2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat grapeseed oil in pan, adding cubes of bread and salt and tossing often, for 10 minutes.
2. Mix tomatoes, cucumber, bell peppers, onion, basil, and capers in a large bowl. Whisk ingredients of vinaigrette, then add it to salad ingredients, and lastly, add toasted bread cubes.

On a tangent, there are some realizations that I've made in the last few months. As much as I love the fashion industry, I think I owe it to myself to seriously explore the world of culinary art, or more broadly-speaking, design. I often find myself wishing I could offer an unparalleled level of content for food/design-hungry readers but simply not having time to put the energy into such a lofty goal! Transitioning into this may not be financially feasible for the next couple of years, especially since my goals run the gamut from visiting gastronomically celebrated cities to taking culinary classes... but mark my words, I'm not going to let these aspirations die.

Until next time, enjoy!

MARGARET

P.S. I've been dying to use this bowl that I got from Anthropologie for Christmas, and now that I have, I can say that it is nothing short of awesome... so if you're on the fence, you should get it! It's the perfect size for salads, soups, or cereal.

For My Mother Theresa

EAR-ROUND APPRECIATION is something my mom deserves simply because she is an amazing person. She amazes me with her resilience, kindness, optimism and her incredible ability to nag non-stop. I'm also amazed by how silly she can be—she sends text messages to my dad asking, "Do you want a snake?" because she thinks that's how you spell 'snack'. Yep, she can diffuse any situation with her silliness.

She also bears an uncanny similarity to Mother Theresa in every almost every way: she is way too nice and has superhuman powers when it comes to multi-tasking (working 9 hour days, cooking, cleaning, laundry, taking her kids to doctor appointments/school/visit friends, taking my grandparents places, grocery shopping)... umm, is she a saint?

My sister and I had the idea of making casual breakfast foods in dressed-up ways. I couldn't think of anything too visually spectacular, but with the idea of daisy eggs in toast, I'd say breakfast foods vaulted from forlorn to pretty darn fantastic in my book.

On the menu for Momma, there was...

DAISY EGGS IN TOAST

Directions:

1. Using a flower-shaped cookie cutter, cut out the center of a slice of bread.
2. Toast the bread, then fit cookie cutter coated with cooking spray in the center of the bread. 
3. Crack an egg into cutter. Cover your pan and cook for 2-3 minutes, then let cool and remove cookie cutter. (You can use a toothpick to loosen the egg if you have problems with sticking.)

ROASTED FENNEL AND CITRUS SALAD (my sister's recipe)

Salad Ingredients:

• 2 bulbs of fennel, cut into 1/2 inch strips and roasted
• 2 oranges, cut into wedges without pith
• 1/2 red onion, diced
• 4 cups mix of spring greens and spinach
• 6 leaves mint
• 1/2 cup walnuts, *optional

Vinaigrette Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup juice from orange
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/8 cup balsamic vinegar

 

Directions:

1. Trim the fennel bulb. Cut into slices about 1/2 inch thick. 
2. Roast fennel at 350° for 20-30 min. until translucent and caramelized.
3. Remove the skin of the oranges with a sharp knife, taking care to remove all the white pith from the fruit. Cut out the orange sections and squeeze the orange juice for the vinaigrette.
4. Slice the onion and mint into ribbons, and scatter walnuts on top of combined ingredients. 
5. Whisk olive oil and vinegar into orange juice.
6. Drizzle vinaigrette on salad and serve.

LEMON SOUFFLE

Ingredients:

• 8 lemons
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Directions:

1. Cut 1/5 of the tip of a lemon off and make sure it sits level. Do the same with the top of each lemon, and save the tops for caps.
2. Scoop out the pulp of the lemon with a melon baller or spoon, and squeeze the juice for later. Repeat with all lemons. Put shells on a sheet lined with parchment paper and place on baking sheet.
3. Separate egg yolks and whites. Combine egg yolks, sugar, flour and 1/4 cup lemon juice in a heat-proof bowl. Whisk the mixture on a medium speed for about 3 minutes until it becomes a light yellow. Using a double boiler, beat for 5-7 minutes until thick. Take the bowl off the double boiler and beat on a medium speed until cool (8-10 minutes).
4. Combine egg whites and 1/4 cup sugar in a new bowl. Using a double boiler, stir until the sugar is dissolved. Remove the bowl and beat on low speed until very frothy. Gradually use a faster speed until the meringue holds soft peaks. Do this for about 2-3 minutes and do not overbeat.    
5. Whisk 1/3 of the meringue from Step 4 into the mixture from Step 3. Pour this mixture into the lemon shells. Heat oven to 350°, and put sheet into oven. Remove from the oven after 10-15 minutes when meringue has puffed up and is slightly golden. Put caps on each lemon and serve immediately!

Happy Mother's Day!
XO // MARGARET

Summer Salad So Sweet I Want it In Winter

AN YOU BELIEVE it's December? It's also hard to believe that I'm still eating salad when it's this cold outside, but try my recipe and you'll understand!

Avocado, Corn, Tomato Salad

Salad Ingredients:

- 2 avocados, cubed

- 1 cup cooked corn

- 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced in half

- 1/4 cup red onion, finely chopped. (*Make sure to do this step well or you'll end up with one spicy salad!) 

Dressing Ingredients:

- 2 tablespoons grapeseed or olive oil

- 2 teaspoons lime zest
- 3 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro

- Splash of lime juice

- Salt and pepper to taste

This salad is so good that it makes the accompanying teeth chattering worth it. I love how easy it is, how there are no leaves in it (having salad sometimes makes me feel like I'm eating grass), and the fresh factor.

Enjoy!
MARGARET