Happy New Year!!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas....ours was fantastic!!! Lots of family, food and laughs. We also felt our daughter kick several times during dinner which was very exciting and the first time my husband has felt her.

We have been so busy getting our house in order for the new year....we have made progress on the nursery....we bought all of our furniture and have been spending several hours at the Pacific Design Center looking at wallpaper... I finally found the perfect one online by a European company called Arthouse.....

Most of you have made your reservations or are doing last minute preparations for your New Years Eve parties tomorrow night. We are going to take it easy and spend it with a few couple friends of ours, go for a nice dinner and play board games. If you are entertaining at home here are a few tips.

• Keep it simple
• Stick to no more then three appetizers
• Buy Prosecco instead of Champagne (Prosecco is an Italian sparkling wine, it is lighter and less expensive)
• Fondue is always festive and fun
• Make sure to drink a glass of water after each cocktail
• Don't drink and Drive

A cheese plate is always a great idea for a party. Here is the one I did for Christmas

The Perfect Cheese Plate:

This plate consists of a Triple Cream Brie, Herbed Goat Cheese with basil, parsley & rosemary, St. Andre, Hirtenkase (a German cheese) & Gorgonzola (an Italian blue cheese) Sourdough Baguette, Parmesan Crisps & La Panzella Crackers, Rosemary Cashews & Fig Preserves.

• You want to have a minimum of five cheeses (a goat, brie, blue and at least one hard cheese)
• Shop at a specialty cheese store or somewhere that has a wide variety like Whole Foods (they will let you try them)
• Step outside of the box. Try things you have never heard of before (this year instead of Mahon or Manchego which are great hard cheeses I added Hirtenkase which was delicious)
• Fig preserves or Mango Chutney goes great with cheese. All you need is one or the other (fig works nicely with any Blue where mango chutney goes with Mahon or Manchego)
• Nuts are also great with cheese (Cashews, Roasted Almonds or Marcona Almonds which are from Spain)
• Add your own herbs to your goat cheese (buy a plain log of goat cheese, finely chop any herbs you want and roll the cheese in them to cover completely)

I love La Panzenella crackers, they come in a variety of flavors and work well with any cheese

La Brea bakery makes fantastic bread!!! A Sourdough Baguette and Parmesan Crisps......they sell them in many grocery stores and if you live in Los Angeles you can go to their store....

624 S. La Brea Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90036 323-939-6813

I have received emails from a few of you asking me to write on a more regular basis so I promise I am going to do so.......

I hope you all have a wonderful and safe New Year!

Enjoy,

Jamielyn xoxo

Happy Holidays.........

Dear family and friends..... another month flew by. I am now 24 weeks pregnant and feeling really good. I finally have tons of energy and am back to doing yoga daily.

My husband and I have been very busy with the holidays...we put our tree up right after Thanksgiving and have all of our shopping done. We also celebrate Hanukkah so we went up north to celebrate with his family. We went to a really fun party where we ate tons of latkes...they were good but not nearly the same as my mother in laws.......We have also been busy cleaning out my office to turn it into a nursery. I will post photos in the upcoming months.

For Christmas we go to Orange County and celebrate with my family. My sister Kristin is a excellent cook and usually makes a prime rib with horseradish cream.....

Some of you my be looking for some last minute gift ideas so here are a few....my next blog feature will be the best of 2009 but here are some really good cookbooks that you can pick up

"How to Roast a Lamb" by Michael Psilakis

I just got this book, it is a beautiful book filled with some many wonderful recipes.

"Baked" by Matt Lewis & Renato Poliafito

I have baked my way through this book and everything is so delicious!

Another great gift idea is to give a cooking magazine subscription. You would be surprised by how many of your friends who love to cook don't subscribe to magazines. Here is a couple I would recommend.

"Bon Appetit"

"Martha Stewart Living"

As far as your Christmas dinner I would suggest the following menu......

Starters -

Rosemary Cashews

Crudite with Green Goddess Dressing

Main Course -

Prime Rib w/Madeira & Horseradish Cream

Salad (something light; Arugula w/shaved parmesan & a lemon vinaigrette)

Any potato of your choice (how about latkes?)

Dessert -

Chocolate Souffle

Rosemary Cashews

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 pounds cashew nuts
• 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh rosemary leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 2 teaspoons dark brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon melted butter
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Place the nuts on an ungreased baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes until they are warmed through. Meanwhile, combine the rosemary, pepper, sugar, salt and butter in a large bowl. Toss the warm nuts with the rosemary mixture until the nuts are completely coated. Serve warm.

Crudites with Green Goddess Dressing

Use any combination of vegetables that you like. I would recommend, carrots, celery, red & yellow pepper, asparagus, zuchinni, cucumber & radishes. Slice all vegetables into strips and arrange neatly on a platter. Accompany with the following dressing

Green Goddess Dressing

Ingredients

• 1 cup good mayonnaise
• 1 cup chopped scallions, white and green parts (6 to 7 scallions)
• 1 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
• 2 teaspoons chopped garlic (2 cloves)
• 2 teaspoons anchovy paste
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup sour cream
• 
  
• Directions
• Place the mayonnaise, scallions, basil, lemon juice, garlic, anchovy paste, salt and pepper in a blender and blend until smooth. Add the sour cream and process just until blended
• 
  
• Prime Rib with Madeira Wine & Horseradish Cream
• 
  
• 1 9- to 9 1/2-pound prime rib beef roast, excess fat trimmed
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 6 medium onions, peeled, quartered
• 2 1/2 cups canned beef broth
• 1 3/4 cups Madeira
• 1 1/4 cups dry red wine
• 4 large fresh thyme sprigs
• 4 large fresh parsley sprigs
• 3 large fresh rosemary sprigs
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter, room temperature
• 2 tablespoons all purpose flour

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 450°F. Place beef, fat side up, on heavy large rimmed baking sheet. Rub with oil; sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Roast beef 20 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F. Place onions around beef. Continue to roast until thermometer inserted into center of beef registers 125°F for medium-rare, stirring onions occasionally, about 2 hours 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine broth, Madeira, wine, thyme, parsley, rosemary, and bay leaf in medium saucepan. Boil until mixture is reduced to 2 cups, about 25 minutes. Remove from heat. Discard herbs.

Transfer beef to platter. Using slotted spoon, transfer onions to same platter; tent with foil. Let stand 30 minutes.

Scrape juices and browned bits from baking sheet into sauce; bring to boil. Mix butter and flour in small bowl to blend. Whisk into sauce; simmer until smooth and slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve beef with sauces.

Horseradish Cream

1 1/2 cups crème fraîche or sour cream

1/2 cup prepared white horseradish

6 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

Whisk all ingredients to blend in small bowl. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and chill.)

Chocolate Souffle

Ingredients

• 
  
• 7 ounces finely chopped bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus for preparing the molds
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 3 large egg yolks
• 3 tablespoons warm water
• 1/2 cup sugar, plus 2 tablespoons
• 8 large egg whites, room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• Confectioners' sugar for garnish

Directions

Brush 6 (6-ounce) ramekins with soft butter, then coat with sugar. Put the prepared ramekins in the freezer. (This can be done a day ahead.)

Set an oven rack in lower third of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F.

Put the chocolate and butter in a medium heatproof bowl. Bring a saucepan filled with an inch or so of water to a very slow simmer; set the bowl over, but not touching, the water. Stir the chocolate occasionally until melted and smooth. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract. Set aside.

Combine the egg yolks and warm water in the bowl of a standing mixer or large bowl and beat until frothy. Gradually add 2 tablespoons sugar, and continue beating until ribbons form, about 5 minutes. Very lightly fold the yolks into the chocolate mixture. (Rinse the bowl well, if using for beating the egg whites.)

Remove prepared ramekins from freezer. Put the egg whites in the bowl of a standing mixer, or large non-reactive bowl, add the lemon juice. Beat on medium until frothy; then gradually add the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar and increase speed to high. Beat until the whites hold a stiff but not dry peak.

Working quickly, fold about a third of the egg whites into the chocolate to lighten; then fold in remaining whites until blended. Gently ladle or spoon the souffle mixture into the ramekins, and place on a baking sheet. (Level off the surface with a straight edge, scraping any excess mixture back into the bowl.)

Immediately bake until the souffle rises about 1 1/2 inches from the ramekins, and the tops are touched with brown, about 18 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven, dust with confectioners' sugar and serve immediately.

Happy holidays & enjoy......

Jamielyn xoxo

Loving Fall.....

Dear friends....I am so sorry it has been so long since my last blog. Things have been pretty hectic for me...as most of you know I am almost five months pregnant. Time really does fly.... I have to say I have never loved fall as much as I am loving it this year. This is the perfect weather for being pregnant and of course all the wonderful colors and food.

I have never been a very big fan of Halloween, I love it for the kids and seeing them in their costumes but I am not one for dressing up. I do however love to carve pumpkins. This year we made some pretty creative ones.

I have always loved pumpkin....pumpkin soup, pumpkin ice cream, pumpkin bread, pumpkin ravioli and pumpkin pie!!!

I decided to have some friends over for pumpkin carving, homemade pumpkin ravioli and homemade pumpkin pie. I have made pumpkin pie before but never from real pumpkin so off we went to the pumpkin patch....my husband got a little crazy and wanted lots of pumpkins

I asked the owner of the pumpkin patch (who grows all of the pumpkins himself) for a sugar pumpkin (it is hard to tell the difference)

• When roasting your own pumpkin for puree you want to use a pie pumpkin or sugar pumpkin (if you use a regular one it will be very watery)

He picked out a perfect one and off we went!!!

I looked through dozens of cookbooks and online for the perfect pumpkin pie recipe. Surprisingly almost every recipe I found calls for canned pumpkin puree, not that I don't love that as well but I really wanted to make it from fresh roasted pumpkin.

I finally found the perfect recipe and I am sharing it with you. It is a lot more work (a pregnant lady on her feet all day in the kitchen, wow was I tired) but it was so worth it and I will never use canned pumpkin again.

The evening was a huge success and I look forward to doing it again next Halloween!!!

• Depending on the size of the pumpkin it might take much longer to roast, cutting it into smaller pieces will cut done the cooking time
• You can freeze your left over puree in freezer bags, I would pre-measure them into two cup portions

Have fun and enjoy.........

Jamielyn xoxo

Suzanne's Old Fashioned Pumpkin Pie

My friend Suzanne performed an experiment with her family and me. She baked two pumpkin pies, one using the purée and recipe from a can, the other using purée she made from a ripe sugar pumpkin. Each of us received two slices, one from each pie, without knowing which was which. The winner? The adults clearly preferred the pie made from scratch - it had a richer flavor (possibly due in part to added spices). One child preferred the pie made from the canned purée, the other two had no preference. Needless to say, everyone finished both of their slices, and the whipped cream too!

Suzanne's Old Fashioned Pumpkin Pie

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups of pumpkin pulp purée from a sugar pumpkin* or from canned pumpkin purée
• 1 1/2 cup heavy cream or 1 12 oz. can of evaporated milk
• 1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs plus the yolk of a third egg
• 2 teaspoons of cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamon
• 1/2 teaspoon of lemon zest
• 1 good crust (see pâte brisée recipe)

* To make pumpkin purée from a sugar pumpkin: start with a small-medium sugar pumpkin, cut out the stem and scrape out the insides, discard (save the seeds, of course). Cut into sections and steam in a saucepan with a couple inches of water at the bottom, until soft. Scoop out the pulp from the skin. Or you can bake whole or halved in a 350°F oven until fork tender. Optional - put pulp through a food mill or chinois to make extra smooth.

METHOD

1 Preheat oven to 425°F.

2 Mix sugars, salt, and spices, and lemon zest in a large bowl. Beat the eggs and add to the bowl. Stir in the pumpkin purée. Stir in cream. Whisk all together until well incorporated.

3 Pour into pie shell and bake at 425°F for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes reduce the temperature to 350°F. Bake 40-50 minutes, or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean.

4 Cool on a wire rack for 2 hours.

Serve with whipped cream. Serves 8.

All Butter Crust for Sweet and Savory Pies (Pâte Brisée)

This recipe makes 1 pâte brisée crust, enough for one tart. If you are making a pie with a bottom and top crust, double this recipe and form two discs of dough instead of one.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
• 8 Tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter, very-cold, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar (increase to 1 1/2 teaspoons if for a sweet recipe)
• 2 to 4 Tbsp ice water, very cold

METHOD

1 Start by cutting the sticks of butter into 1/2-inch cubes and placing in the freezer for at least 15 minutes (preferably longer) so that they become thoroughly chilled.

Dough is ready to shape into discs.

2 In a food processor, combine flour, salt, and sugar, pulse to mix. Add butter and pulse 6 to 8 times, until mixture resembles coarse meal, with pea size pieces of butter. Add water 1 Tablespoon at a time, pulsing until mixture just begins to clump together. If you pinch some of the crumbly dough and it holds together, it's ready, if not, add a little more water and pulse again.

3 Remove dough from machine and place on a clean surface. Carefully shape into a discs. Do not over-knead the dough! You should still be able to see little bits of butter in the dough. These bits of butter are what will allow the result crust to be flaky. Sprinkle the disc with a little flour on all sides. Wrap the disc in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

4 Remove the crust disk from the refrigerator. Let sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes. Sprinkle some flour on top of the disk. Roll out with a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface to a 12 inch circle; about 1/8 of an inch thick. As you roll out the dough, use a metal spatula to check if the dough is sticking to the surface below. Add a few sprinkles of flour if necessary to keep the dough from sticking. Gently fold in half. Place on to a 9-inch pie plate, lining up the fold with the center of the pan. Gently unfold and press down to line the pie dish with the dough.