Olive Sables | Blogger C.L.U.E. Society

I am thrilled to put my super sleuthing hat on again for this month’s edition of Blogger C.L.U.E. Society.  We are a group of enthusiastic food bloggers who belong to this secret society of sorts where we are assigned another blog in the group and must hunt for a wonderful recipe of our choice that fits the theme for the month.  It is a fun journey that we get to experience each month. 

For June, our theme was Picnic Food, which gives each of us a lot of creative prowess to determine what we would bring on a picnic.  My dream picnic is filled with luscious cured meats, cheeses, French bread, olives, wine and a sweet treat or two.  The idea of having many flavors and taste sensations while being outside on a perfectly warm day is simply divine. 

My assigned blog this month is published by Kathy from Bakeway with Me.  Kathy has an affinity for everything to do with baking and cooking.  She produces mouthwatering delights on her blog and does a great job of telling a story and describing her creations.  I can sense the passion behind the writer and I know if she lived near me, I would be at her house quite often.  After looking through her many recipes, I kept coming back to the Olive Sables for three reasons.  First, I have never had a sable.  Second, this seemed like the perfect addition to my virtual picnic basket and third, the idea of sweet and savory together simply makes me smile.

The original recipe called for potato starch which I have cooked with prior but did not have any on hand.  I clicked into Google – “substitute for potato starch” and corn starch popped right up.  I stopped by Whole Foods to pick up olives for these little delights and thought the combination of green and black would add that extra dimension to the cookie.  I chose a cured black olive and my favorite Castelvetrano Olive.  This little cookie/cracker was simply heaven – so light, flavorful and addictive. 

Olive Sables

Makes about 60 cookies

1 Large Hard Boiled Egg (disregard the white portion)

2 ¼ Cup All-purpose Flour

6 Tablespoons Corn Starch

15 Tablespoons Butter, room temperature

1/3 Cup Olive Oil

1 Cup Confectioner’s Sugar

½ Cup Pitted Olives, chopped

Grate a hard boiled egg yolk onto a piece of wax paper.  Set aside.

Use a stand mixer with the paddle attachment and beat the butter on medium speed until it’s soft and creamy.  Beat in the olive oil and scrape down the sides until blended.  Next add the grated egg yolk and mix well.  Blend in the confectioner’s sugar, reduce the speed to low and the flour and cornstarch and mix until incorporated.  Add the chopped olives and quickly mix until incorporated.

Turn the dough onto a work surface and divide in half.  Shape each piece into a log about 1 ½ inches in diameter.  Wrap in plastic and chill for several hours or best overnight.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper.  Work with one log at a time, slice the cookie ¼ inch thick and arrange them on the baking sheet.  Bake the sables for 15 to 18 minutes, rotating at the midway mark or until the cookies are firm but not colored.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool and repeat with remaining dough.

(Almost) Nancy's Chopped Salad w/ Oregano Vinaigrette by Heather from girlichef

Apple Chips by Lauren from Sew You Think You Can Cook

Barbecue Chicken Salad w/ Smoky Barbecue Vinaigrette by Kate from Kate's Kitchen

California Quinoa Greek Salad;by Christiane from Taking on Magazines

Carrot Cake Cookies by Kathy from Bakeaway with Me

Chicken Salad w/ Peanut Dressing by Azmina from Lawyer Loves Lunch

Chicken Waldorf Salad by Aly from Cooking in Stilettos

Duck with Pear Wraps + Limeade with Chia Seeds by Kelli from Kelli's Kitchen

Fried Apple Pies by Liz from That Skinny Chick Can Bake

Green Bean & Corn Salad by Alice from A Mama, Baby and Shar-pei in the Kitchen

Loaded Baked Potato Salad by Lea Ann from Cooking on the Ranch

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Date Cookies by Rebekah from Making Miracles

Olive Sables by Lisa from Authentic Suburban Gourmet

Puff Pastry Antipasto Squares by Anna from annaDishes

Smoky Pimento Cheese Spread by Debra from Eliot's Eats

Sweet and Spicy Barbecue Baked Beans + Chickenburger Roll-in-a-Basket by Kathy from A Spoonful of Thyme

Thomas Keller's Chocolate Chip Cookies by Kim from Liv Life

Tuscan Bean Salad by Stacy from Food Lust People Love

Watermelon Feta Salad by Jean from Lemons and Anchovies

White Bean, Bacon and Rosemary Salad by Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm

Christy from Confessions of a Culinary Diva

Roasted Pepper and Chevre Tartine | Friday Night Bites

Yesterday was a special day in our house.  It was the 1^st birthday for Marty and Stewart who are our fluffy baby Havanese. I adore Martha Stewart and originally wanted a boy and girl, but we were blessed with two brothers, so they became "Marty and Stewart". It is still hard to fathom that we picked them up from SFO back in early August.  How time flies!  I made a special photo of them to celebrate their milestone and wanted to share with all of you.

Speaking of time flying by, it has been a few weeks since I have shared a Friday Night delight with all you.  I absolutely adore a Crostini, bruschetta or tartine – anyway you slice it – it is a 2 to 3bite of crunchy bread with delectable toppings that is perfect for entertaining.  This week I have a grilled tartine with goat cheese (chevre), roasted red bell peppers, capers, garlic and herbs – how can you go wrong with this combination.  The end result was simply stunning and pairs perfectly with a chilled glass of Sancerre.

You might be thinking, what is the darn difference between a Crostini, bruschetta and tartine – glad you asked.  A Crostini means “little toast” in Italian and is an appetizer consisting of a small slice of grilled or toasted bread and toppings. A bruschetta is a starter dish from Italyconsisting of grilled bread rubbed with garlic and topped with olive oil and salt. You can also top it with tomato, vegetables, beans or cured meats. Finally a Tartine is a French open-faced sandwich, especially one with a rich or fancy spread.  To me, they all have a special place in my heart, I mean stomach. Smile.

Roasted Pepper and Chevre Tartine

Makes 4

4 Slices of French bread

Olive Oil

1 (12 oz) jar of Roasted Red Peppers, drained and sliced thin

4 Garlic Cloves, sliced thin

1 Tablespoon Capers, drained and patted dry

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

4 oz. Chevre (Goat Cheese)

1 Tablespoon Fresh Thyme Leaves

2 Tablespoon Flat Leaf Parsley, rough chop

Salt and Pepper

Brush each side of the French bread slices lightly with olive oil.  Preheat a BBQ or grill pan to medium.  Place the slices of bread onto the grill and turn often until each side is golden brown.  Set aside.

In a medium bowl, add the roasted peppers, garlic slices, capers and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Mix and let sit for one hour to marinade the flavors.

To assemble, spread about 1 to 2 tablespoons of goat cheese on each slice of bread.  Add the desired amount of the red pepper mixture to each one.  Sprinkle the thyme and flat leaf parsley over each one and season with salt and pepper. Enjoy!

Almond Crescent Cookies | Secret Recipe Club

My weekend was filled with both hard labor and relaxation.  The hard labor part came first in the way of repairing our backyard fence to prevent our little fur babies, Marty and Stewart from escaping.  After 14 years, the fence has taken a beating with the sun, rain and sprinklers.  The bottom portion on some of the sections of fence had sustained damage which made the boards easy to move.  Our little havanese, as smart as they are figured out how to move them and explore in the neighbors backyards.

This was a bit scary for me, since they are not even a year old and what happens if the neighbor did not have a gate that locked and they ran onto the street.  Luckily, this was not the case – we caught them in time and did the repairs.  In addition, one section was on a slight hill and Marty dug enough to slip between and explore.  That was fence repair number two.  Needless to say, hubby and I did a lot of digging, board cutting, more digging and drilling to secure our traveling havanese.  I can now sleep better knowing they are finally secure inside our backyard and their days of going on exploratory excursions has come to a halt.

Now for the relaxation part, it was time for the Secret Recipe Club great reveal again.  This month I was matched with Margaret with her delightful blog called Tea and Scones.  Her blog is right up my alley with my love for scones and tasty tea.  She loves to bake, eat and bake some more.  She has been writing her blog since 2007 and has a plethora of recipes to choose from.  One of the ways I relax is to bake cookies and so I finally chose her Almond Crescent Cookies. 

My hubby loves these cookies and I have only purchased them.  I thought it would be perfect to make since it is a bit overcast and gloomy outside plus we were exhausted from our manual labor day yesterday.  In addition, I am hosting for my book club tomorrow night and they would be perfect with a bowl of ice cream for dessert.  I found that the dough was super dry, so I added some water and that seemed to do the trick without compromising the integrity of the cookie.  I also added a bit more powdered sugar plus I toasted and pulsed the almonds to represent more of a rough almond meal.  The end result was one super divine cookie.  Thank you Margaret!

Almond Crescent Cookies

Make 20 to 22 cookies

8 Tablespoon Butter, room temperature

½ Cup Powdered Sugar

1 ½ Cup Slivered Almonds, Toasted then pulsed in food processor

2 Cups Flour

1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract

4 Tablespoons Water

Powdered Sugar to Dust

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Add 1 ½ Cup of slivered almonds to a cookie sheet and bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.  Let cool.  Add to a food processor and pulse until crumbly.

In a stand mixer, add the butter and with a paddle attachment, beat until fluffy.  Add the ½ cup of powdered sugar slowly and incorporate.  Next add the vanilla and mix.  Slowly add the flour to fully combine.  Add the prepared almonds and mix.  The mixture will be dry and crumbly.  Slowly add one tablespoon at a time the water until the dough forms together.  It will be a thick dough but not sticky.

Take 2 tablespoons of dough and form to a crescent shape.  I rolled into a log first then curved it to represent a crescent and shaped it from there.

Bake the cookies for 15 to 20 minutes, until lightly golden brown and firm to the touch.  Remove from the oven and let cool for 3 to 4 minutes.  In a bowl, roll in the powdered sugar to fully coat each one.  Let cool and repeat if you desire more powdered sugar.  Will keep up to 3 days in an airtight container.

To see all the other great recipes, click HERE:

Raspberry Oat Bars | Blogger C.L.U.E. Society

I am excited about three things at this exact moment.  First that it time again for Blogger C.L.U.E. Society.  Second is that the theme for May is berries. Third but the most exciting is that I was paired with Kim from Liv Life.  I belong to this secret society of sorts where each month we are paired with another food blogger, given a theme and set off to explore our assigned bloggers blog and hunt down a recipe that matches the theme and we are excited about making.

Although I have actually never met Kim, I feel like we have been friends for years.  We actually have been Facebook friends for years. She was originally from the Bay Area and now resides in the San Diego area with her Pilot hubby, talented daughter Liv, smart son and their two adorable Maltese doggies. I feel like we have a lot in common since our hubbies both fly airplanes.  My hubby flies small planes for fun and wishes he was an airline pilot, where her hubby is one.  We both have two doggies and they are a large part of our worlds.  We both have blogs and love to cook.  I have a open invitation for her to come to Friday Night Bites and enjoy wine and appetizers with my hubby and me.  I truly hope she will take me up on the offer one day soon. Smile.

I spent several hours combing Kim’s site to pick just the right recipe that sang to me and had the secret ingredient – berries.  After narrowing down my choices I finally settled on her Strawberry Oatmeal Jam Bars. I thought I would mix it up a bit and made it with raspberries since they are my absolute favorite berry on this planet.  I also added a teaspoon of orange liquor to the jam to kick it up just a tiny notch.  I like a tall bar cookie so I increased the quantities a bit. The end result was heaven in my mouth.  Hubby loved them.  Thank you Kim for such a wonderful recipe and I look forward to having you and your hubby over for Friday Night Bites one day soon!

Raspberry Oat Bars

Make 16 two inch squares

¾ Cup Brown Sugar

1 ½ Cup Flour

½ teaspoon Baking Soda

¼ teaspoon Salt

¾ Cup Rolled Oats

¾ Cup Butter, cut into small cubes

1 Cup Raspberry Jam

1/3 Cup Fresh Raspberries

1 teaspoon Orange Liquor

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray an 8 inch square pan with cooking spray and set aside.  You can also line with parchment paper as an alternative to the cooking spray, which I did.  It makes it easy to remove and cut into even pieces.

In a large bowl, combine the brown sugar, flour, baking soda, salt and rolled oats.  Drop the butter into the flour mixture and rub with your fingers or a pastry cutter to form a crumble.  Press 2 cups of the mixture into the prepared pan and spread the jam over the top and drizzle the orange liquor on top and gently spread over the jam.  Sprinkle the raspberries over the jam and then sprinkle with the remaining crumble mixture, gently pressing the crumble into the top of the jam.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the bars are lightly browned.  Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack.  Allow the bars to cool completely before cutting into squares.

Please check out all the recipes from May's Blogger C.L.U.E. Society posts:

Lisa from Authentic Suburban Gourmet

Christy from Confessions of a Culinary Diva

Alice from A Mama, Baby and Shar-pei in the Kitchen

Azmina from Lawyer Loves Lunch

Kelli from Kelli's Kitchen

Kim from Liv Life

Stacy from Food Lust People Love

Lea Ann from Cooking on the Ranch

Kathleen from Bakeaway with Me

Anna from Anna Dishes

Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm

Jean from Lemons and Anchovies

Heather from girlichef

Liz from That Skinny Chick Can Bake

Christiane from Taking on Magazines

Debra from Eliot's Eats

Lora from Cake Duchess

Kathy from A Spoonful of Thyme

Rebekah from Making Miracles

Lauren from Sew You Think You Can Cook

Baby Kale and Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad with Creamy Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette + Dole Ambassador Spotlight

Did you know that May is National Salad Month?  If you are like me, then you are simply elated.  I probably eat salad 5 times per week and sometime twice a day – for lunch and dinner.  I love a salad with the freshest vegetables, a bit of crunch, grilled chicken and packed with flavor.  It is like love in a bowl – you get all of the right nutrition all in one convenient handy vessel.

I am an official ambassador for Dole Fresh Fruits and Vegetables.  Dole provided me with compensation for my time.  As always, all opinions expressed in this post are mine.

Shakespeare talked about “salad days”, he reflected to a time of youthful freshness like the days of May, when spring is at its peak.  Even though the nutritious value and fresh flavors of salads are relished year round, May has been awarded the honor of being National Salad Month and serves as a tasty reminder to eat more greens.  Americans love their salad with an all time high consumption rate of 73% of U.S.households serving salad regularly. 

Just like fashion, salads have their trendy moments.  From what I gather on the salad runway, anything with Kale is still red hot. Whether it is a kale Caesar, massaged kale or kale with oranges and marcona almonds – I believe Kale will be a classic dish on your table for years to come.  We can jump back to ancient times and round up the popular grains of the time – what’s old is new again.  Included in that popular resurgence is farro, chia seeds, quinoa, teff and kamut.  Lastly, I have seen many restaurants put their spin on the Italian chopped salad.  Whether it includes salami, cheese or avocado – the chop is going to be on menus for the foreseeable future.

I was thrilled when Dole reached out to me and asked if I would like to be an official Dole Ambassador for 2015.  It did not take me long to click the reply button and say yes.  Dole is one of those well respected brands that has a rich history and was founded in Hawaiiin 1851.  They are the world’s largest producer and marketer of high-quality fresh fruits and vegetables.  Dole markets a growing line of packaged and frozen foods, and is a produce industry leader in nutrition education and research. 

As part of being an ambassador for Dole, they are featuring thier chosen bloggers in a “spotlight” chat on their Facebook Fan Page.  I am excited that I am being featured on Wednesday, May 13^th at 5pmPST/8pm EST and you simply just click HERE.  To kick off my spotlight, I created a salad recipe especially for Dole.  It highlights Doles Baby Kale and shaved Brussels Sprouts along with a handmade Creamy Lemon Vinaigrette. 

Baby Kale and Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad with Creamy Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette

Serves 4

Salad

4 Cups Shaved Brussels Sprouts

4 Cups Dole Power Up Baby Kale

1 Cup Marcona Almonds, Rough Chop

½ Cup Pomegranate Seeds

Add all of the ingredients to a large bowl and toss with ½ cup of the Creamy Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette.  Add more dressing if desired.

Creamy Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette

1/3 Cup Meyer Lemon Juice

4 t. Lemon Zest

3 Cloves Garlic, minced

2 t. DijonMustard

2 t. Honey

¼ t. Salt

¼ t. Pepper

½ Cup Olive Oil

1/3 Cup Sour Cream

Add all of the above ingredients to a pint mason jar.  Adhere tightly the lid and shake for 2 minutes until well combined.  Chill for 30 minutes in the refrigerator to let the flavor meld together.

Savory Cheddar and Thyme Whole Wheat Mini Biscuits | Friday Night Bites

As many of you know, I relish my Fridays, especially the moment work ends and the weekend begins.  Hubby and I celebrate the launch of the weekend with Friday Night Bites.  A few nibbles, a bottle of wine, good conversation and a time to either chill with our favorite television shows or time with friends.

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of hosting three other couples over at our house for Friday Night Bites.  I treasure these hosting opportunities and love opening our house to entertain friends and simply enjoy each others company.  Everyone arrived on time with divine hostess gifts that were completely unexpected and will be cherished.  We are a “shoeless” house and everyone simply kicked them off and we were popping corks on wine bottles within ten minutes – my kind of party.

One of the gals I had met a few weeks prior at an impromptu Friday night gathering at her house.  We got to talking and soon realized that she had recently pinned this recipe and was simply flattered that she had been a fan of my blog for quite sometime.  I write and share recipes here, but with the vast internet, you never know exactly who is enjoying your blog.  Nice to connect with a real live reader, plus she and I had so much in common; it will be great to gather again.

I selected my tried and true appetizer recipes for the soirée and wanted the evening to be fun, stress free and full of laughs and tasty food.  You are probably curious, what did I make?  I decided on a large cheese platter, Parmesan Pecan Dip, Roasted Grape Crostini, Shaved Truffle BrusselsSprout Crostini, Caprese Bites and Chorizo Date & Apricot Bites.  As usual for me, I made too much food, but I never want my guests to go hungry.

The one appetizer that I did not have time to make was these Savory Cheddar and Thyme Whole Wheat Mini Biscuits. I made them with whole wheat flour and they were simply divine.  I actually served them with my Balsamic Fig Jam.  I would recommend serving with your favorite sparkling wine or a crisp Rose. Trust me, you will not be able to stop at eating just one of these. 

Savory Cheddar and Thyme Whole Wheat Mini Biscuits

Yeilds 20 Biscuits

2 Cups Whole Wheat Flour

1 Tablespoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon Salt

12 Tablespoons Cold Butter

1 Cup White Cheddar Cheese, grated

5 Tablespoons Fresh Thyme Leaves, rough chop

6 Grinds Fresh Pepper

½ Cup Buttermilk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Cut the cold butter into cubes and add to the dry mixture.  Use your fingers and break up the butter into pea size pieces.  Next add the grated cheese and chopped thyme and mix gently.

In a small bowl, mix the buttermilk and egg together then add to the dry mixture and combine until incorporated.  Lightly knead the dough together and be careful to not over mix.

Sprinkle flour on your work surface and press the dough and press out to be 3/4^th inch thick.  Use a one inch round cookie cutter to cut out the rounds.  Press together dough and repeat process until all dough is used.

Place onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush each biscuit with the egg wash and top with a few sprinkles of fleur de sel.  Let chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes prior to baking.  Bake for 9 to 12 minutes or until lightly golden brown.

Pizza Pinwheels | Secret Recipe Club

It is that time again for the secret reveal.  You might be asking yourself, a secret reveal for what?  It is Secret Recipe Club time again.  It just seems like it was the March reveal and here we are in April.  Time is flying by WAY too quickly. 

This month I was matched with Nicole who publishes a blog called PicNic.  Nicole lives in New Zealand and earned a PhD in Neuroscience/Biochemistry.  In addition to be extremely busy with work she loves to bake and cook. She has a wide variety of recipes on her blog which made it challenging to find the one that I would choose for this month.

After browsing through, I found these Pizza Pinwheels which caught my attention since my hubby would adore them.  He is fascinated with Totino’s Pizza Rolls and thought this would be a nice change for him.  It uses puff pastry which makes everything simply wonderful and extra special.  I switched it up to use garlic powder, four kinds of cheese and pepperoni and the result was simply divine.

While making these bite sized delights I could not help but think about my bucket list to travel to New Zealand and Australiasomeday soon.  I can only imagine how beautiful these two countries are and can hardly wait to explore them.  I am a Bravo TV fanatic and I am currently obsessed with The Real Housewives of Melbourne.  I am fascinated to see how they live, which is probably not the norm for everyone else, but albeit quite entertaining.  Chyka is my favorite and I am enamored with her blog. 

Thank you Nicole for the sublime appetizer recipe and inspiration - Cheese to you!

Pizza Pinwheels

Makes 32

2 Sheets Puff Pastry

1 6 oz. Can of Tomato Paste

1 teaspoon Garlic Powder

1 teaspoon Dried Oregano

5 Oz. Pepperoni, diced small

2 ½ Cup Shredded Cheese* (Asiago, Parmesan, Fontina and Provolone)

Thraw the puff pastry.  Lay onto a large board and roll out with a rolling pin slightly.  Divide the tomato paste evenly between the two sheets and spread to cover.  Sprinkle half of the garlic powder and oregano on each sheet.  Divide the pepperoni among both sheets and along with half of the cheese on each.

Roll each sheet as tight as possible and wrap seperately in plastic wrap. Chill in the refrigerator for at least one hour.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Use a serrated knife to cut ½ slices from each roll.  Lay onto a cookie sheet with each pinwheel at least 1 inch apart.  Cook for 15 minutes until golden brown.  Let cool for one minute and serve.

*I used the Quattro Formagio blend from Trader Joe's

To view everyone's choices for April, simply click the link below:
April's selections for Secret Recipe Club