Potato Chip Cookies

Growing up one my family’s favorite snack foods was, and still is, potato chips. There is a debate among many, whether it is ridges or absent of ridges that are the best types of chips. Quite frankly the non-ridge version was categorically the winner with my family and hands down the traditional Lays potato chip was the preferred choice in our household.

To bring it to another level, there was some minor debate about what type of chip was the best. You are probably thinking, are there really types of chips within a bag of traditional Lays - you bet. They can be "flat", "folded over", "slightly brown" or the bits at the bottom of the bag. In our family the prized possession or as we called it – was the “filet” chip.

The filet was a medium sized chip, not folded over and certainly not any declaration of brown hues and absent of bubbles from the frying process. The filet was highly coveted and when one was discovered, or two people went to the bowl of chips to select, one person would exclaim, I have found a filet. Quite often my Mom would get the most excited about capturing the filet with me right behind her. To this day, we still enjoy a large bowl of potato chips and the hunt for prized filet continues.

To be honest, potato chips are the junk food that I crave. If you posed the question: would I rather have a chocolate bar or a bowl of potato chips, it would be no contest – the potato chips would win every time. It is the salty, crunchy and carbohydrate thing that resonates with me. Several years ago the company I was with at the time had their company headquarters in the mid-west. I was working on a special project that took me from California to the mid-west headquarters.

This particular company served snacks at 3pm to every floor of the headquarters – not sure if they were just old school or it was a mid-western charm thing. In any event, I had my first encounter with the potato chip cookie. I was blown away by the crunch, saltiness and richness that were encapsulated all in a few bites. I tried for years to recreate without avail to finding the closest match to my memory of this brilliant bite of heaven.

Recently I discovered on Smitten Kitchen’s blog a recipe for Potato Chip Cookies and was intrigued to try it. I adapted the recipe by using salted butter, adding more salt and vanilla, incorporating mini dark chocolate chips and doubling the crushed potato chips to the recipe. I loved the idea of garnishing with crushed potato chips. Originally she adapted from Emeril. I brought the cookies to my office the next day and they were gone within a matter of hours along with many requests for the recipe. Enjoy!

Potato Chip Cookies

Makes 3 dozen cookies

1 C. salted butter, at room temperature
1 C. granulated sugar, divided in half
2 t. pure vanilla extract
1 t. sea salt
1/2 C. chopped and toasted pecans
1/2 C. Mini dark chocolate chips
1 C finely crushed potato chips + ¼ C for garnish
2 C. all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Use a stand mixer to cream together the butter with 1/2 cup of the sugar until lightly and fluffy. Mix in the vanilla and salt until smooth. Add the pecans, mini chocolate chips and 1 cup crushed potato chips and mix then add the flour and mix until just combined.

Place the remaining 1/2 cup sugar in a small bowl. Scoop a tablespoon-sized mound of dough and form it into a small ball with the palms of your hands. I use a cookie scoop to form uniform size balls. (See photo in post) Roll the ball in the remaining sugar until coated. Place on baking sheet and using the bottom of a drinking glass to slightly flatten the cookies. Cookies only need to be an inch apart; they only spread a little. Sprinkle with a few flakes of the potato chips. Repeat with remaining dough.

Bake cookies until lightly golden at the edges, about 12 -15 minutes, depending on how hot your oven gets. Transfer to cool on a wire rack.

Crispy Brussels Sprouts Salad with Citrus

One of my favorite parts of each week is our Friday night. Hubby and I look forward to it all week long. We now have a standing tradition that we spend Friday night together either just the two of us or with friends enjoying great wine and delish appetizers. It kicks off the weekend in style along with winding down from a long work week.

Last night was no exception. I got home around 6:30pm while hubby strolled in closer to 7:30pm. I was inspired by a dish that I enjoyed at Bottega in Yountville a few weeks ago. Michael's version was -  Caramelized Brussels Sprout Salad Citrus segments, toasted Marcona almonds, Prosciutto bits, and aged balsamic dressing. I took that concept and switched it up to the Authentic Suburban Gourmet version. Thank you for the inspiration Michael – you are the best!

When hubby walked through the door, wine was selected from the cellar and the salad was in the final stages of assembly. With the chill in the air, a wonderful cabernet sauvignon was a perfect selection. Towards the front of the cellar was a 2004 Korbin Kameron Cabernet Sauvignon and I was immediately drawn to the simple yet elegant label. The rich deep purple color was the first clue we were going to enjoy a stunning bottle of wine. The aroma was complex with clues of deep cherry, pepper and a brilliant earthiness. The finish had hints of cigar, vanilla, spice and juniper berry. A delightful wine indeed.

The fire place was turned on. When we purchased our house, wood burning was not allowed in new construction, however, we have grown to love our “flick of a switch” fire place. With a glass of wine in hand and this divine salad, the evening kicked off to a great start.

Hope all of you had a great Friday night and enjoys each minute of your weekend. Enjoy!!

Crispy Brussels Sprouts Salad with Citrus

Brussels Sprouts

2 C. Brussels Sprouts, trimmed and cut into quarters
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper

Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees. Use a large sheet pan and spread the quartered brussles sprouts evenly and drizzle with olive oil until lightly coated and toss. Season with salt and pepper. Bake for about 17 minutes and toss about half way through the cooking time for even doneness. Remove from oven to let cool slightly.

Lemon Dressing

1 T. Mayonnaise
Zest of one lemon
2 t. Lemon juice
2 T. Olive oil
Pinch of salt

Add all ingredients to a small jar with a lid. Shake until well combined. Taste and adjust ingredients and seasoning to your taste.

Garnishs

2 to 3 Blood oranges cut in half and segments removed
1 Pink grapefruit cut in half and segments removed
½ C. Toasted pine nuts

Assembly

Use a platter and sprinkle the crispy Brussels sprouts in the middle. Add the citrus segments on top of the Brussels sprouts and sprinkle the pine nuts evenly over the salad. Drizzle the lemon dressing and serve immediately.

Valentine's Day Sugar Cookies + Chocolate Bark

Creativity, conversation, food bloggers and a beautiful day outside made for great fun yesterday. Patty from Patty’s Food invited a few Bay Area Food Bloggers to gather at her house for a valentine cooking baking and decorating day. She lives about an hour away from me and with the weather a tad chilly but the sun shining brite, the time passed quickly; especially with Pandora streaming at a moderate to loud volume all the way over. Okay rather loud. Big grin.

Patty is an extremely gracious host and her home felt like our own homes the moment she greeted us at the door. Sparkling water and a lovely boutique chardonnay, were offered within minutes of gathering around the spacious kitchen island. Gina from Spcookiequeen brought a lot of the decorations and special valentine touches for us to enjoy. Her daughter joined us in the fun and is quite the cookie decorating artist.

{Patty and me}

{ Gina with her lovely daughter }
.

Stephanie from Baking Barrister joined in the festivities along with Bonnie from Bonnibella, who I had not met until today. We had a fun day of catching up, talking about blogging, photography, food and laughing. Gosh – what else would a bunch of food bloggers discuss – just saying. Smile. A few other bloogers were unfortunately unable to attend due to prior engagements, but please know you all were certainly missed.

What would a food blogger get together be with out great food? It certainly would not be complete. Luckily for all of us, that was not the case. Wonderful food abounded and it was hard to not over eat my ample share of these goodies. Stephanie wowed us with her Leek confit on toasted crostini’s with goat cheese. Gina make homemade Blood Orange Jam that was too die for and to bring it to the next level she made myer lemon cake to spread the delish jam on top. Patty made a Point Reyes Original Blue, Apple and Walnut Quiche, which I must confess that I enjoyed two slices. Bonni brough firecracker shimp with a wonderful dipping sauce. I made my Stilton and Walnut Palmiers, which were so fragrant in my car and was so tempted to eat one along the way, but refrained.

In addition to the tasty and beautiful cookies, Gina brought the ingredients for valentines day mulit-chocolate bark. So simple to make. Over two double boilers, melt dark chocolate in one and milk chocolate in the other. She used the one pound chocolate bars from Trader Joes. Once melted, add the milk chocolate first in a baking sheet pan and then the dark chocolate and swirl a bit to intertwine the colors. Decorate with various sprinkles and candies on top. Let cool in a freezer until hard. Dump onto a hard surface and break into desired sizes.

Once the cookies were cool enough to frost and decorate, the creativity was bouncing off the walls along with much laughter. Some cookies were small, others large and yet others with sticks attached. Little letters were cut out to attach along with a great selection of sparkely sprinkles that Gina graciously shared. I provided the royal frosting recipe compliments of the wonderful Martha Stewart and the cookie recipe was from Gina – love the hint of almond extract in the cookies. All in all a great way to spend a Saturday – foodie friends, great food and fun conversation.

{Clockwise from the top: (1) Gina (2) Stephanie (3) me with my finished cookie pops (4) Bonnie, Patty and Stephanie taking photos

Sugar Cookies
(Recipe from Gina at SPCookiequeen)

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. almond extract

Beat the butter until softened then add sugar, almond extract, salt and the egg.  Beat until fluffy.  Slowly add the flour and mix until combined. Chill dough for 1 hour. Roll the dough out onto a floured surface until it is 1/4-inch thick. Use ornament shaped cookie cutters (mine were about 3 inches) to cut out the dough and place the cookies 2-inches apart onto cookie sheets lined with parchment or silpats. 
Bake in a 375 degree F oven for 7-9 minutes.

Royal Icing
(Recipe from Martha Stewart)

2 pounds confectioners' sugar
2/3 cup water, plus more if needed
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons meringue powder
Gel-paste food coloring (optional)

Beat sugar, water, and meringue powder with a mixer on low speed until smooth. (If icing is too thick, slowly add more water, beating to desired consistency. If icing is too thin, continue beating for 2 to 3 minutes more.) Add food coloring if desired, a drop at a time, until desired color is reached; if making more than 1 color, divide icing and work in batches. Icing can be refrigerated for up to 1 week.

Please stop by Gina, Patty and Bonni's blogs to see their posts all about our fun day together!

Gruyere & Bacon Stuffed French Toast

Breakfast is not my favorite meal of the day. However, it is my hubby’s favorite hands down. If you are curious, mine would be dinner with a whole bunch of small plates. Albeit, I do eat breakfast everyday to get fuel for the day – typically a Greek yogurt along with a banana or berries.

Since hubby likes to go out for breakfast on the weekends or have me create a “full” breakfast on the weekends, I do have a few favorites including French toast. I love the custard consistency along with a crispy outside of French toast and of course, the rich maple syrup that goes along with this delightful weekend treat.

Early in our relationship, I made Grand Mariner French Toast for my hubby. My hubby never had French toast like this before, since I use thick sliced French bread. The thickness of the bread helps to absorb the luscious custard which produces a decadent and satisfying breakfast. I think my hubby had grown up on sandwich bread dipped in an egg mixture; did not take long for him to be converted.

For me, it all starts with the bread, whether it is a Semifreddi's sour dough loaf or a crunchy & chewy ciabatta, the richness of the bread makes all the difference. Next comes the rich custard with egg, half & half along with real vanilla extract - sometimes a bit of triple sec adds that extra special punch and flavor.

Taking it to the next level is stuffing your French toast with various fillings. Perhaps with ricotta and blueberries or mascarpone and orange zest OR gruyere and bacon stuffed French toast? Lately I am a bit obsessed with the later of my variations; hence I wanted to share with all of you. It is something I have been making for quite sometime and perfected the combination over time. The combination of smoky bacon, earthy gruyere, dense sourdough bread, rich custard, sweet maple syrup and hint of cinnamon is an explosion of amazing flavors all in one bite.

Just imagine all of the wonderful flavors and textures you can stuff your French toast with. Would love to hear all of your wonderful ideas for what you would stuff your French toast with!

Gruyere & Bacon Stuffed French Toast

Makes 4 Slices

4 Slices, good sourdough bread (about 1 1/4th inch thick)
8 Bacon Slices, Cooked until crispy and crumbled
1 C. Gruyere Cheese, grated
Cinnamon dusting French toast
Butter for cooking French toast

Custard

2 Eggs
1 C. Half & Half (could use whole milk or 2% milk)
1 t. Vanilla

Once you have the sour dough bread sliced, you will want to with a sharp knife cut into the bottom of each slice and gently slice to almost the end of the top and sides to create the pocket to stuff each slice.

Add the cooked bacon once cooled and gruyere cheese together in a bowl. Divide evenly among the four slices of bread and begin to gently stuff each one. Once you have completed, then gently press each stuffed bread together to prevent the inside ingredients from escaping.

Prepare the custard by adding the eggs, half & half and vanilla together and whisk gently until combined.

Use a large griddle to cook all of the French toast at the same time. Heat griddle on medium and add approximately 2 tablespoons of butter to the griddle and spread evenly. Meanwhile dip each stuffed bread into the custard mixture and add to the heated griddle. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Let cook over medium for about 5 minutes per side – if your cook top runs hot, you may want to reduce the heat to prevent burning.

Serve with your favorite maple syrup. To make more, simply double or triple the recipe to serve the desired amount of guests. Enjoy!!

Rotisserie Chicken & Barley Soup

There is a certain level of comfort in a bowl of Chicken Soup, especially when it is homemade. Could it be the richness of the broth? Shredded pieces of chicken? Dense noodles? Or perhaps, just the satisfaction and comfort it brings with each spoonful? I believe it is all of the above.

Lemon Crinkle Cookies

Friday in the Bay Area yielded our first storm of the winter season. Another one is expected today, which is extremely good news. The hope is that the rest of winter brings many rain showers along with snow in the Sierras. It would mean the chance of drought during our summer months would be insignificant. We actually have had to run our sprinklers since the lawn was beginning to turn brown and crunchy. The goal is to keep the sprinklers turned off and let mother natures sprinklers run.

With a slight break in the rain yesterday, hubby and I decided to remove the leaves from the gutters to allow for the trapped water to drain. We have a beautiful hundred year old walnut tree in our backyard that produces a significant amount of leaves during the fall that cover the ground and gutters. It is a regal and striking tree but extremely high maintenance. After completing our homeowner task, I jumped on the treadmill and hubby for a bike ride.

Once energized from the treadmill and with rather grey and drab skies, I decided to bake cookies. Not sure what it is about baking, but for me it is just plain comforting - from laying all of the ingredients out on the counter to the mixing of the dough to tasting the final product. {Of course, tasting the raw cookie dough is half the pleasure for me – how about you?}

I had pinned this Lemon Crinkle Cookie recipe some time ago, in hopes of making in the future. Today was that day. Laura Brennan has her own food blog and this was a winning recipe from a contest she participated in. After tasting, I completely agree why the judges awarded her the grand prize. By the way, it is hard to eat just one – trust me.

Lemon Crinkle Cookies

½ cups Butter, softened
1 C. Sugar
1 t. Vanilla Extract
1 Egg
2 T. Lemon Zest
1 T. Fresh Lemon Juice
¼ t. Salt
¼ t. Baking Powder
⅛ t. Baking Soda
1 ½ C. Flour
½ C. Powdered Sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease light colored baking sheets with non stick cooking spray and set aside.

In a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Whip in vanilla, egg, lemon zest and juice. Scrape sides and mix again. Stir in all dry ingredients slowly until just combined, excluding the powdered sugar. Scrape sides of bowl and mix again briefly. Pour powdered sugar into a medium bowl. Roll a heaping teaspoon of dough into a ball and roll in powdered sugar. Place on baking sheet and press lightly to flatten slightly and repeat with remaining dough. I used a one inch diameter ice cream scoop.

Bake for 9-11 minutes or until bottoms begin to barely brown and cookies look matte {not melty or shiny}. I found 10 minutes was perfect. Remove from oven and cool cookies about 3 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

Makes between 2 and 3 dozen cookies depending on the size.

Recipe slightly adapted from Laura Brennan

Stilton and Walnut Palmiers

Who doesn’t LOVE puff pastry? That rich, buttery and flakey dough - when baked is like eating a cloud of pure goodness. Okay – maybe not a cloud per se, but a wonderful piece of pastry, whether it is savory or sweet is one of life’s simple delights.

Puff pastry is just one of those staple items that you should keep in your freezer for last minute guests, so you can whip up a quick appetizer or dessert. I have yet to make it from scratch, although it is on my bucket list; I do keep a couple packages on hand at all times.

For the past 11 years, I have been hosting an annual year end appreciation lunch for my direct reports. I really enjoy making people happy by cooking and entertaining for them. I plan the menu a few weeks in advance, since I need to allocate time to get everything done while working long hours at work. As an extra special touch, I create menus that I have at each place setting so the guests can anticipate what they will be feasting on and have a souvenir to take home with them. I keep a three ring binder of all menus I have ever created for not just this annual team lunch, but all dinners at my house.

{ Clockwise: Stefanie, Debby, Amy + her new baby, Me, Christine, Lisa, Catrina and Matt }



It is fun to reminisce about each gathering, along with ensuring I don’t repeat identical items for the same guests. I will typically tailor each menu by listing my guests, the date and the entire menu from appetizers to dessert. It is a fun way to make your dinner party special.

For this year annual lunch, I served three appetizers to start the festivities including: Truffled Butter and Parmesan Popcorn, Cranberry, Orange & Ginger Brie Cups and the Stilton and Walnut Palmiers I have highlighted in this post. All three were unique but the flavors were brilliant and were teasers for the rest of the menu. Enjoy!

Stilton and Walnut Palmiers

1 sheet puff pastry, thawed
3 ounces Stilton cheese, at room temperature
2-4 tablespoons heavy cream
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
2 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Use a non-stick baking sheet.

On a lightly floured work surface, roll out puff pastry to 1/4 inch thick.

In a medium bowl, combine cheese and enough cream to make a spreadable paste. Spread the mixture on the prepared puff pastry, spreading to within 1/4 inch of the edges. Sprinkle with walnuts and rosemary.

Roll one side tightly to the middle, then roll the other side to middle and press slightly together. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes in the refrigerator. Use a sharp knife, cut into ½ inch slices thick.

Place on prepared baking sheet spacing the rolls 1 inch apart. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, or until rolls are puffed and golden. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.

Adapted from Sweetpeaskitchen

Truffled Butter and Parmesan Popcorn

Popcorn is a wonderful childhood memory for me. For those of you, who have been to a drive in movie either as a child or adult, know that it is a special event. I realize as I write this post, that many of you must be thinking – “what is a drive in movie”? I certainly hope that I am not dating myself, since I do not consider myself old by any means. (Smile)

When I was a little kid, it was a treat for our family to venture in the car to the drive in movie to watch a few flicks. We would get into our pajamas; bring pillows and blankets to be comfortable. Ultimately, my parents were genius’s masterminds - we would fall asleep, be comfortable and were ready to carry to bed when we got home.

Not sure about you, but in the Bay Area, the concept and reality of the drive in movie is almost as extinct like our friends the dinosaurs. A few exist, but not many. How about where you live?

What is a movie, whether at the drive in, theatre or home without the traditional treat of hot buttered popcorn? They go hand in hand. My Mom would use a well seasoned cast iron pot to make popcorn. The pot that my Mom uses actually belonged to my Dad before he married my Mom.  She would pop several batches of white popcorn, melt butter and throw into a large brown paper bag. Numerous vigorous shakes would occur, a bit of salt and then a taste test to ensure the proportions were perfect. Once complete, the top on the trusty brown paper bag would be folded over and packed into the car for our drive in movie adventure.

Over the holidays, I found this recipe from Gourmande in the Kitchen and was completely inspired. I have a real  love for anything truffle related.  I altered her recipe slightly and it was simply divine.  I served it for New Years Eve as one of the appetizers along with my annual team lunch last week.  A hit both times!  Enjoy!!

Truffled Butter and Parmesan Popcorn

6 T. Salted Butter
1 T. Truffle Oil
3 T. Canola or Vegetable Oil
1/2 C. White Popcorn Kernels
1/2 C. finely grated parmesan cheese
Sea salt to taste

In a sauce pan, melt the butter and truffle oil together and set aside.

You’ll need a large heavy-bottomed pot with lid. Heat oil over medium heat with 2 or 3 popcorn kernels. Once the kernals begin to pop, cover with a lid.  Shake periodically so the kernals do not burn.  Once you stop hearing popping, take off the heat.  Add to a large brown paper bag.  Best to double the paper bags to allow for the oil to absorb and not come through.

Drizzle the truffle butter over all of the popcorn once in the brown bag and shake well.  Next add the parmesan cheese and shake well.  Taste and then add salt and shake well, until it reaches the desired taste levels you are looking for.  With the salted butter and parmesan cheese, you may not need to add too much salt.

Roasted Grapes with Thyme, Ricotta and Grilled Bread

How many times do you wish you had a creative appetizer that will “wow” your guests? I bet the answer is a resounding YES!

While browsing through Pinterest, I can across a fantastic crostini recipe that will most certainly impress. I have found time after time, the simplest ingredients put together make the best recipes. This Roasted Grape Crostini fulfills that philosophy. It is smoky, sweet, salty, crunchy, creamy and herbaceous all at the same time.

During my holiday vacation of seventeen glorious days, my hubby and I did quite a bit of entertaining at our house. {One of my favorite things to do}. I served this Roasted Grape Crostini to our guests and this appetizer certainly impressed. It is so simple yet the flavor combinations together are simply wonderful. For me, the grilled ciabatta bread is the key to the success of this appetizer.

I saw a great saying the other day that every foodie can identify with – “Mangia Vita Amore”. It is Italian for – “Eat, Live, Love”. Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and is geared up for a fantastic 2012!

Roasted Grapes with Thyme, Ricotta and Grilled Bread

Grapes (used seedless purple grapes)
Ciabatta Bread
Olive oil
Ricotta Cheese
Thyme
Lemon Zest
Fleur de Sel

Preheat oven to 450ºF. Spread grapes onto a sheet pan. Drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt. Toss all together gently with your hands. Place pan in the oven for 9 to 11 minutes or until grapes just begin to burst.

Meanwhile, heat a grill or grill pan to medium-high. Brush the bread with olive oil. Grill until nice and toasty. Tip: keep heat at medium and toast longer, to prevent burning.

Assemble the open-faced sandwiches: Spread ricotta over bread. Top with roasted grapes. Add the lemon zest and sprinkle with fresh thyme leaves. Sprinkle with a bit of salt or fleur de sel. Tip: Have the ricotta at room temperature before spreading.

*This recipe is originally from Real Simple Magazine, September 2011 and I found it on Alexander’s Kitchen through Pinterest. I made a few slight alterations. It is a loose recipe, so you have flexibility to make as many or little crostini’s as you like.

{ Foodie-Flections 2011 }

It is 2012 – a New Year! It always amazes me, how in the matter of minutes, the clock hands tick over to midnight and a brand New Year begins. With the New Year comes: resolutions, changes, hopes, dreams, aspirations and a renewed energy. It is therapeutic to recognize that with a click of the clocks hand, we are able to set new goals, make changes and reset ourselves for the better.

I am excited to set my goals for 2012, stretch myself beyond, continue life’s journey and relish each and every moment. I am extremely fortunate to have such a wonderful hubby, family and friends plus so much more including being healthy, a wonderful career and a creative outlet called Authentic Suburban Gourmet.

What started as a way to document recipes three years ago, has turned into so much more. It has been a vehicle to new friends, enhanced writing skills, a new passion for photography, numerous innovative recipes, adventures, stretching beyond, an outlet for my creativity, diving into social media and so much more. For 2012, I am setting new milestones for my blog and look forward to reflecting back over the year in December to see how many I will have accomplished. {Hopefully 100%}

I began a segment last year called – “Foodie-Flections” – a way to recap the year of blogging for me with highlights of top posts, fond memories and aspirations for the New Year. Let’s continue the tradition with “Foodie-Flections” for 2011.

My top nine posts for 2011 are highlighted below: (#1) Lofthouse Style Frosted Sugar Cookies (#2) Avocado and Grilled Corn Salad with Cilantro Vinaigrette (#3) Chocolate Smores Cupcakes (#4) Toasted Coconut Marshmallows (#5) Neiman Marcus Popovers (#6) Fig and Watermelon Salad (#7) Sweet and Salty Brownie (#8) Simple Pleasures: Buttermilk Biscuits (#9) Roasted Garlic Mushrooms


    

Along with the top posts are a few of my personal favorites for 2011. These were posts of recipes that were simple, delish, full of flavor and many I have made over and over again throughout the year. Starting in the top left corner, then row by row: Lemony Slice and Bake Cookies, Cast Iron Padron Peppers, Cranberry, Orange and Ginger Chutney Brie Cups, Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Srirachi Aioli, Espresso Chocolate Cake, Roasted Cauliflower Salad with Sherry Vinaigrette, Fig Jam Straws, Green Goddess Dip and Crudite and Beer Battered Avocado Wedges with Mango Salsa.

It was a fun and rewarding year with learning that I made the Top 9 on Foodbuzz four times. I was honored to be asked by Lindsay of Love and Olive Oil to do a guest post on her beautiful blog along with Liren of Kitchen Confidante asking me take part of her “friends-giving” series. Thank you Lindsay and Liren!

{ Guest Post on Love and Olive Oil }

{ Guest Post on Kitchen Confidante }

Earlier in the year I attended a food blogger brunch hosted by Jean along with Liren, the barrister, Ben, Azmima, Stephanie, Patty, Gina and Angi. It was wonderful to catch up with my fellow food bloggers and to have the opportunity to meet several face to face. Several weeks later, I ventured down to the Pebble Beach Food and Wine Event where Jean, Liren and I snagged a photo opportunity with Tyler Florence. If you want to see a recap, just click here and here. In addition, I learned to make macarons from Gina and you can see a recap of our fun day here.

In 2011, I created a Facebook Fan Page, joined Secret Recipe Club, ate at numerous wonderful restaurants and discovered a new obsession – Pinterest. All in all, it was a wonderful year and look forward to the adventures ahead in 2012.