Dining Outside the Home: Carpenter Creek Cellars in Remington, Indiana! Carpenter Creek Cellars’ Music Fest is where you find children frolicking on the lawn, against a backdrop of adults sipping Strawberry Wine, guitar music filling the air, and the aromas of BBQ pork smoking on the grill. Life stands still against the rambling brook running along the fence-rowed vineyard in Jasper County, Indiana.
What’s Cooking in Gail’s Kitchen? Be Our Guest: Cantaloupe Chicken Salad! Indiana Cantaloupe is a popular fruit these days. Some even dub it a “labor of love”. As a sweet and fragrant melon, it quickly becomes a perfect alternative to the summer watermelon. Wonderfully rich and appealing in color, the cantaloupe becomes an ideal serving vessel. One scoop and the seeds are gone. Fill half with a savory chicken salad and save the other for vanilla ice cream later on. Win, Win!
CANTALOUPE CHICKEN SALAD
Ingredients:
1 cantaloupe, cut in half or quarters, seeds removed
10-ounce can premium chicken breast, chunk in water; drained
1/4 teaspoon celery seed
1/4 cup mayonnaise
10 seedless green grapes, halved
1 tablespoon pecan pieces
1/8 teaspoon fresh Mexican tarragon, chopped
Instructions:
One cantaloupe serves four. Cut the cantaloupe in half; using a spoon, scoop out the seeds. Tip to remove any juice. Slice each half into a quarter wedge. Place each wedge into a luncheon plate. Set aside. In a large bowl, add drained chicken chunks. Shred chunks slightly, using two forks. Sprinkle with celery seed. Add mayonnaise and mix well. Fold in green grapes and pecan pieces. Stir to blend together. Divide chicken salad equally over each cantaloupe wedge. Garnish with chopped tarragon. Serve.
What’s Cooking in Gail’s Kitchen? Be Our Guest: Broccoli Florets in Cashew Sauce! Are you one of those siblings who used to roll your eyes at the idea of being told to “eat your vegetables”? Isn’t it amazing how we outgrow childhood perceptions and turn them into a food-lover’s paradise? I know, right! Take broccoli, for instance. I remember sitting at the table until every tender green floret had been pushed around my plate, refusing to eat another bite. Nowadays, I practically cheer when the waitress says I can substitute broccoli in place of french fries.
BROCCOLI FLORETS IN CASHEW SAUCE
Ingredients:
1 pound broccoli, cut up and stems removed
1/3 cup unsalted butter
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3 tablespoons Golden Mountain sauce
2 teaspoons garlic vinegar
1/4 teaspoon Mrs. Dash Herb and Garlic Blend
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup cashews, chopped
Instructions:
Cut the stalk off a head of broccoli with a sharp knife. As you cut through the thickness, the individual florets will fall away into smaller pieces. The crowns will feel tight and springy with the appearance of tight closed buds. Discard stems. Place the florets in a microwave safe covered dish. Add 2 tablespoons water. Microwave on HIGH for 3 minutes. Carefully remove from microwave oven; drain. In a small skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add brown sugar, Golden Mountain sauce, garlic vinegar, Mrs. Dash spices, and garlic cloves. Bring to a boil; stirring to dissolve sugar. Remove from heat. Mix in the cashews. Ladle cashew sauce over broccoli florets and serve.
Dining Outside the Home: Farmhouse Restaurant in Fair Oaks, Indiana! Experience a culinary adventure that’s straight off the farm. With ingredients that are raised, produced, and harvested locally, freshness is key. From the moment you are seated, all who gather round the table notice hospitality that knows no bounds. One munch of all-natural cornbread from the bread basket can test willpower that sends self-control reeling. And that’s just the beginning. Portions are generous, so be warned. Whether you choose mile-high sandwiches or hand cut ribeyes, no one walks away hungry or disappointed. And the desserts are phenomenal, I’m told. I wouldn’t know. Honestly, I surrendered to the texture and aroma of the cornbread.
What’s Cooking in Gail’s Kitchen? Be Our Guest: Almond-Vanilla Popovers! What if I told you it was possible to eat a serving of bread, but without all the preservatives? It is. And then, what would you say if I told you the outside was golden brown and the inside was hollow? That’s right. Hollow. These light and airy popovers of pancake-like batter puff up into delectable buttery crowns that leave you singing their praises and clapping your hands. It’s like you just witnessed a bit of magic in your very own kitchen.
ALMOND-VANILLA POPOVERS
Ingredients:
6 large eggs
2 cups light cream
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
2 teaspoons almond extract
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon sea salt
3 tablespoons sugar
2 cups flour
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400°. Move the oven rack one setting below the middle row. Grease a 12-count bouchon pan. In a food processor, combine eggs, light cream, butter, almond extract, vanilla extract, sea salt, sugar, and flour. Blend until no lumps remain and batter is light yellow and frothy, approximately one minute. Fill each bouchon cup 2/3 full. Do not overfill. (Refrigerate leftover batter until ready to make the next batch. At that time, use a whisk to vigorously stir the batter.) Place bouchon pan in the oven; bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Do not open the oven door during baking or the popovers will deflate. When golden brown, remove from the oven. After 2 minutes in the pan, remove and transfer popovers to a wire rack. Do not allow them to cool in the pan or they may turn soggy. Serve warm as is or with a dollop of honey, jam, or butter.
Dining Outside the Home: Wyldewood Cellars in Saint Joseph, Illinois! It’s not every day you come across a winery that specializes exclusively in elderberry wine. This family-owned award-winning winery’s claim to fame rests in the natural health benefits at its very core. Elderberry juice, in its concentrated form, is practically liquid gold. For centuries, Europeans have treasured this knowledge and utilized the accessibility of this native berry. Wyldewood Cellars cultivated the elderberry plant on their family farm in Peck, Kansas strictly for wine and extract production. And then they shared it with others by processing and bottling it locally. Stop by and chat with Tracie. She’ll be happy to share her story with free samples. Every good meal deserves a celebration with wine.
Cross the threshold to my open kitchen. Not only will you feel welcome, pampered, and invited, you’ll catch a glimpse of something wonderful to take back home. I like fresh ingredients, garden herbs, rich chocolate, and French butter. And I’m in good company. Some of my recent posts have been favored by the “Food Network” on Twitter (Snapshotsincursive @DornaGail) as well as Ina Garten’s The Barefoot Contessa, on Instagram (gail _dorna). I’d love to connect with you there as well. Experience different flavors and textures one bite at a time. Catch a glimpse of “Eating My Way Through the Alphabet: Be Our Guest!” This remarkable journey of the palate is unique because it gives me a few moments with you. Thanks very much to all of my guests and followers on http://snapshotsincursive.com for the uplifting support, award nominations, and moving words of encouragement. What’s Cooking in Gail’s Kitchen? It’s as simple as A-B-C. One of my passions is being at home in my own country kitchen. I love to cook, and my husband loves that I do it often. I adore time-honored traditions using tried-and-true recipes. Yet, I often never think twice about tweaking old favorites or modifying others to suit the inner craving of the moment. Most of the recipes serve 2-4 people, but can be altered in any direction. The leftovers are golden morsels to be eaten later or shared with others. And I love to share. To me, seeing a smile in gratitude is thanks enough. The recipes you find here in the next several weeks can be prepared very easily. Feel free to contact me with questions or comments. Now take a deep breath, inhale the aromas, and join me on a tasteful journey entitled, “EATING MY WAY THROUGH THE ALPHABET: BE OUR GUEST!”
“It was in the 1920s,
when nobody had time to reflect,
that I saw a still-life painting
with a flower
that was perfectly exquisite,
but so small you really
could not appreciate it.”
~ Georgia O’Keeffe
“Do not go
where the path may lead,
go instead
where there is no path,
and leave a trail.”
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
snapshotsincursive 