Comfort Foods and Indulgences

It's burger season. I don't care if it's cold out or a 100 degrees... it's time to enjoy some summery meals and eat outdoors. The weather here has been decent (knock on wood). Our summers in the Pacific Northwest often don't begin until July 5th, but I have my hopes up. We've already had our first 90-degree day....kind of amazing for these parts.

Anyway, with Father's Day coming up it's time to start getting some of my husband's favorite recipes and food together. And for him, that means lamb. The hubby couldn't be happier, it's his absolute favorite.

In order to make a juicier, more complex burger, I paired together three different types of ground meat; chuck, lamb and pork. I call it the meat trifecta and it's the perfect combination for a juicier burger. And if you love lamb, the flavor comes through nicely and doesn't disappear within the other meat.

Sweet tooth anyone? This will get you through, but you'll need milk or black coffee and then you'll be in your own swirly heaven. You'll need someone to save you.

I literally sat around indulging in this while I finished a book I recently became obsessed with. I'm not usually a fiction reader but I found my self engrossed in this tale of love and loss and war and pain and well you know how those books are...I couldn't put it down until it was done. It sucked me right in. If you are looking for a good read during Spring Break at the beach or the pool, give it a try.

Anyway, I used coconut milk in this bread but you can use regular milk if you like. It was moist, yummy and sweet! The loaf is nice to look at with a glaze and more coconut on top, who wouldn't love this gorgeous thing...well...my husband...he dislikes coconut. Isn't that crazy?!!

Every time I step into a meat market, I think of my mom. I can’t count the times I impatiently waited as she stood in front of the clear glass that separated her from rows of raw meat. As the butcher stood on the other side of the meat case waiting for her order, she examined the ground beef and the red, marbled roasts.

She carefully inspected the pork chops and the loins. The beef she would eventually purchase must have just the right amount of marbling running through. The pork must have enough fat to give it flavor and keep it moist as it cooked.

Somehow, my antsy behavior in all of those meat markets I frequented with my mother has made a complete turn-around over the years. I’ve become my mother. Meat markets and chocolate shops (she couldn’t pass up a Fanny Farmer store) are high on my list of places I love to visit.

Last week I had the opportunity to stop into Steve’s Meat Market in Ellendale, Minn. Owner, Donnavon Eaker, was busy helping a customer as I stepped into the smokehouse-scented store.

“Having steaks on the grill tonight?” the petite Eaker asked her customer as she added up the cost of the meat purchase. The happy customer shared her plans for that day’s meat purchase and walked out with a hefty bag of meat.

Traditional shortbread should really be called “several sticks of butter – cookies”. The butter could very well be what makes them so additively mouth watering. Shortbread is not something that could linger around my house. If it does, I end up consuming 98% of it. With the weather shifting into summer and tank top season upon us, eating a large batch of shortbread would most likely keep me in turtlenecks and long sleeve t’s rather than a cute maxi or simple sun dress.

I have been  wanting to recreate this favorite, household cookie, yet in a gluten free version. Playing with ingredients has become my new hobby (or obsession) and when something hits and comes out right, the kitchen dance begins! The neighbors up the street can hear me singing with joy as the kids wait patiently by the oven door. I found, rolling out the dough and letting it rest in the fridge before shaping helped the cookies not spread when baked. In addition, cut dough can be flash frozen and saved for another day.

Making shortbread was a high priority. It’s, yet another one of those freezer friendly doughs, and when baked not only does the house smell divine, but the rich, buttery biscuit easily melts in ones mouth. Using ingredients on hand; macadamia nuts, limes, and coconut, a successful cookie was born. This basic dough could easily find a home with lemon, almonds, bittersweet chocolate, dried fruit, and a host of other pantry staples. I am going to experiment. You can too! Then come back here and tell me what you come up with!