TREAT: Swiss Potato Roesti Dish with Bacon, Eggs, Cheese, Tomatoes & Chives

We traveled to Lucerne, Switzerland and ate at the Taube (highly recommended - great atmosphere, kid friendly and delicious food).  We ordered the Luzerner Rösti for our son and were jealous we did not order it for ourselves!  Fortunately for me, I was sitting right by an area where they were displaying the chef's cookbook and so I found the recipe.  Here is the recipe for the “Chapellbridge–Röschti” and you can find some additional tips here.

Ingredients

• 3 russet potatoes 
• One yellow or red onion, sliced
• Salt and pepper
• 6 Tbsp (3/4 of a stick) of butter, divided 
• 4 ounces of Gruyere cheese, sliced or diced
• 4 large eggs
• 4 pieces of bacon 
• 3/4 cup of cherry tomatoes, halved 
• Chopped chives, to taste 
• Chopped flat-leaf parsley

Instructions

• Place potatoes in a large saucepan, add cold water to cover them, season with a lot of salt & bring to a boil.  Once boiling, reduce the heat and simmer until you can stick a knife in the potatoes easily (approximately 10 minutes).  Drain the potatoes, let them cool & chill them until they are firm (about 2 hours).  Once they are chilled, grate the potatoes using the large holes of a box grater. 
• Preheat oven to 300 degrees. 
• Melt 4 Tbsp butter in a 12 inch ovenproof pan over medium-low heat.  Add the potatoes and the sliced onions.  Season with salt & pepper and press to compact.  Cook for approximately 15-20 minutes (until the bottom is golden brown and crisp). 
• Slide the rosti onto a plate so that you can flip it to cook the other side (so return the rosti to the pan with the browned side up). Dot 1 Tbsp butter around the edge, allowing it to melt under the rosti.  Season with salt & pepper and cook until the second side is brown and the center is tender (approximately 10-15 minutes).
• Cook the bacon & the eggs sunny side up (just until the whites are almost set) in a separate pan. 
• Top the rosti with the cheese, tomatoes and chives and bake in the oven until the cheese melts (approximately 5-8 minutes).
• Top the rosti with the bacon (in a cross) and the eggs.  Garnish with more chives and parsley.

This was so good that we forgot to take a picture before devouring it.  So this is all you get....

TREAT: Lemon Parmesan Dressing

I am officially obsessed with this salad dressing.  It is so, so, so, so good.

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup of parmesan cheese 
• 5 Tbsp of EVOO 
• 2 Tbsp of fresh lemon juice (I love lemon, so I just use the juice from one whole lemon) 
• 1 tsp finely grated lemon peel (again, I love lemon so I use the zest from the entire lemon)

Instructions

• Combine all of the ingredients in a food processor to mix. 
• It tastes best on a salad of arugula, cherry tomatoes, avocado slices & hearts of palm. 

Yum!  You can find this recipe here.

TREAT: Arugula salad with Caprese Stuffed Tomatoes

This salad is delicious and looks beautiful - so it is great to serve when you have guests over!

Ingredients & Instructions for Basil Oil Sauce

• 1 large bunch of basil (approx. 2 cups of packed basil leaves) 
• 1/2 - 1 cup of olive oil (adjust based on how thick you like it) 
• 1-2 garlic cloves 
• Salt to Taste
• Instructions: Mix all ingredients together in a blender or food processor until smooth.
• Note: This oil can be used refrigerated and should be used within 24-48 hours.

This recipe was found here.

Ingredients for Stuffed Avocados and Salad

• 1 pint of cherry tomatoes, halved 
• 8 ounces or 1/2 pound of mozzarella pearls
• 1/2 cup of the basic garlic oil sauce 
• 4 avocados 
• Arugula lettuce to serve with the avocados (optional) 
• 4-6 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar to drizzle (adjust to taste) 
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

• For the filling: Mix the tomatoes, mozzarella pearls & basil oil. 
• For the avocados and salad: Cut them in half and carefully peel the skin.  Place the peeled avocados on a plate over the salad greens.  Spoon the caprese filling into the avocado halves.  Drizzle with balsamic vinegar reduction and serve immediately. 

This recipe was found here.

TREAT: Delicious Risotto Recipe - with Tomatoes, Mozzarella & Arugula

Every time I go to cook something, I somehow forget recipes that I have tried and loved.  It is like punchlines to a good joke - I can just never remember them quickly.  So, my sister SL2, in case you are reading this - this is how you can find recipes that I have tried and loved from afar for you to use.  Pinterest is awesome, but it was getting too complicated because of the combinations and changes.

This risotto is worth me coming out of a blog cave for a couple of years.  It is easy to make and truly delicious.  I served it with the avocado and arugula salad (adjacent post) because it used a lot of the same ingredients & now that I walk everywhere in the city and do not use a car, keeping groceries at a minimum is key.

Ingredients

• 1 cup of arborio rice 
• 2 Tablespoons of EVOO
• 3 Shallots, chopped 
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 4 cups vegetable stock (warmed in a saucepan on the oven)
• 2 Tablespoons of cold butter
• 2 cups of arugula
• 1 cup of cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 3/4 cup fresh mozzarella, diced
• Parmagiano to serve
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Simmer your vegetable stock on the stove so that it is hot by the time you add it to the rice 
2. In a large pan, over medium/high heat, add the EVOO and once it is hot, add the shallots and sauté until translucent.
3. Add the rice and fry it with the EVOO and shallots so that all of the grains are coated in the oil.
4. Reduce the heat to medium low & add the white wine & cook until it is evaporated completely.
5. Add 1 cup of vegetable stock and cook, stirring occasionally until it is absorbed by the rice.  Repeat the price twice (one cup at a time).  If at the end you have used 3 cups and you think your rice is still too hard, then you can add the last cup of stock and cook until al dente.
6. Turn off the heat and add the butter - stir quickly. 
7. Once the butter has been combined, add the tomatoes and arugula and stir until everything is incorporated.
8. Add the mozzarella and stir gently.
9. Add salt and pepper as necessary. 
10. Serve immediately with parmesan.
11. Parmagiano to serve
12. Salt and pepper to taste

• This recipe is from this website.

I highly recommend this recipe - it is delicious and was enjoyed by the whole family.  This would also be good to serve to guests.  It is not too difficult to make (as many risottos can be).  Enjoy!

  

TIP: Stripes

Even though I am currently 5 months pregnant, I still love looking at what is coming out in stores.  One thing that I love for spring is stripes!

Lush "Harper" Chiffon Dress from Nordstrom, $46

Striped Double Knit Dress from Forever 21, $19.80

Suzi Chin for Maggy Boutique Striped Jersey Blouson Dress from Nordstrom, $148

BCBG Catarina Ruffled Skirt from BCBG, $138

There is a cute maxi dress that is reasonably priced at Macy's, but it will not allow me to copy the image.  Check it out here: INC Sleeveless Surplice Tie Dye Maxi from Macys, $59.99

TIP: Great Skincare

For anybody who has oily/combination skin, I highly recommend Ole Henriksen.  ESPECIALLY if you are pregnant because there are none of the forbidden acids.  I went to Sephora when pregnancy hormones were making me break out (and I was in the in-between stage of my pregnant belly looking more like a beer belly, so needless to say I wanted to at least fix my skin problems).  The person who helped me at Sephora highly recommended this line and I am so glad that he did!  


I am pretty picky with how creams feel on my face - I hate it when they are too thick, too greasy or if they do not leave my skin feeling hydrated.  This cream is perfect & I am now hooked.  Your skin feels soft and it does not cause breakouts.  

The cream can be purchased at Sephora or Beauty Bar (Beauty Bar has no tax in most states and free shipping).  It is $35, which I know can be considered a lot for a cream but this one jar lasted me for 3 months & I use it every morning and evening.  And it is worth it!

TREAT: Stuffed Bell Peppers

This is super easy, something you can play around with and it's really flavorful. To make this for two people:


Ingredients: 
- 2 red bell peppers 
- 1/2 of a white onion 
- 1/4 cup of chopped carrots 
- 2 cloves of garlic 
- 1 tomato 
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Parmesan Cheese 
- Salt/Pepper
- Marinara spaghetti sauce (or other favorite spaghetti sauce, such as arabiatta) 
- Brown rice or cous cous (I really like Near East Roasted Garlic & Olive Oil, which can be found at Whole Foods and most larger grocery stores) 

Directions: 
- Heat oven to 350 degrees
- Prepare brown rice or cous cous according to instructions on package 
- Finely chop the garlic, tomato, onion and carrots & sauté everything except the tomato them until the onion is soft (about 5 minutes) in approximately 2 tablespoons of olive oil.  About one minute before you are finished sautéing everything, add in the tomato.    




- Cut open and clean the red peppers.  
- Boil water and steam the red peppers for approximately 5 minutes (covered) or until a knife easily goes into a pepper.  If you do not have a steamer, you can place the peppers in the oven at 350 degrees for approximately 7 minutes to soften them.  Again, check the peppers with a knife.  






- While the peppers are cooking, add the cooked cous cous or rice to the vegetable mix.  Continue cooking on low and add 2 tablespoons of spaghetti sauce (or your desired amount for flavor) and mix all of the flavors together. 





- Stuff the peppers with the rice (or cous cous) vegetable mix & incorporate as much parmesan cheese sas you would like. 
- Cook the stuffed pepper in the oven (at 350 degrees) for 5 minutes.  


If you are a meat eater, you could add ground beef to the recipe. 


Enjoy & apologies for the pictures - they were taken with my phone and do not do the food justice - it is actually really good!

Great Video

If you have not seen this video already, I highly recommend it.  This is a video prepared by a teenager, Ben Breedlove, who passed away from heart problems on Christmas.  Shortly before he passed away, he made this video about his condition and near-death experiences.  It is interesting and inspiring & I can imagine it has given his family a lot of hope.  Check it out! 

Happy 2012!

I have been horrible at posting and received an update today with different stats, etc. and realized that this is something that is fun for me & I should start back up again!  Life got busy and then I found out I am pregnant and so I let this fall to the side.  I am having quite a few complications with my pregnancy and am largely bed bound, so this will be a fun outlet to try different recipes, do some focused Internet searches & give me something to do!  On that note, I wish everybody a happy and health New Years and 2012!  

TIP: Personal Cards

Trying to make a creative gift, I decided to make personalized notecards wrapped with a ribbon.  I went to buy different colored papers as accent paper and then different colored notecards.  I love reading, so I thought about the books I was reading to see if there were any suitable quotes for my cards.  In addition to the notecards and the paper, I bought two different stamps to cut the paper evenly (the small stamp is 1" and the larger stamp is about 3.5"):





I used the 1" stamp to cut out different patterns of paper to decorate the notecards:





I printed up the quotes and cut them with the larger stamp on thicker white paper:






On the inside, I usually just had a simple saying to go with the quote to address the particular occasion.  For example, I made the following: 


Any Purpose Cards: 


Front: "Life is the most spectacular show on Earth."  (From Water for Elephants)
Inside: "Enjoy the Show" 


Friendship: 


Front:  "I roll onto my side and stare out of the venetian blind at the blue sky beyond.  After a few minutes, I'm lulled into a sort of peace.  The sky, the sky-same as it always was."  (From Water for Elephants)
Inside:  Some Things, Like Friends, Never Change


Welcome Home: 


Front: "Wasn't that the definition of home?  Not where you are from, but where you are wanted?"  (From Cutting for Stone)
Inside:  Welcome Home 


Sisters: 


Front: "Sisters are for life.  She is the only person in the world who shares my memories of our childhood, our parents, our struggles, our sorrows, and, yes, even our moments of happiness and triumph.  My sister is the one who person who truly knows me, as I know her." (From Shanghai Girls) 
Inside:  Love You, Sister


Thank You:


Front:  "I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of tough, and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder."  (From G.K. Chesterton) 
Inside:  Much Gratitude & Many Thanks


Blank Cards:  


Front: "To live every day as if it had been stolen from death, that is how I would like to live.  To feel the joy of life.  To separate oneself from the burden, the angst, the anguish that we all encounter every day.  To say I am alive, I am wonderful, I am.  That is something to aspire to."  (From Art of Racing in the Rain) 
Inside: Blank


If you don't have any books or other quotes you would want to use, there is always http://www.quotegarden.com/ as well, which has great variety.

TIP: Keep Calm and Carry On

I have always liked these posters, and thought it would be a nice little mantra for the office in our house.  I saw the framed version at Z Gallerie the other week while shopping, and it reminded me that I love the saying and the style, but it was a more than I wanted to spend. 

I went on to Etsy and found the poster (there are a lot of different vendors and artists who sell them in many different colors and sizes).  I only had to spend $19 for the poster for the color and size I wanted.  To save more money, I bought the Ribba frame from Ikea:


Ready to be moved into the office!





I was curious about where the "Keep Calm and Carry On" phrase comes from, and apparently England produced different posters during World War II that they strategically released in subway stations and other public areas to help keep the public calm about what was going on politically and with the war.  This is the last poster that was created -- simple, easy to read and with the King's crown.  This was going to be released if Germany invaded England.  When the war ended, this poster was never released and forgotten about until fairly recently the past few years when it was found in the archives.

TIP: Live Well Now

I heard about this article on the radio when I was pulling into work, and I had to find it because I thought it was so well put.  Basically there was a nurse, Bronnie Ware, who nursed dying people for years in palliative care.  She made a few observations of people who were nearing the end of their life.  First of all, every person found their peace.  Second of all, when asked about regrets or things they would do differently, there were five things that she kept hearing (starting with the most common):

1.  I wish I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.  People wish that they had honored the dreams that they had. 

2.  I wish I didn't work so hard.  This came from every single male patient that she nursed.  They felt that they missed out on their children and spouse and a dissatisfaction with the "treadmill of a work existence." 

3.  I wish I'd had the courage to express my feelings.  Tell people what you are thinking -- too many people suppressed their feelings in order to keep peace with others, but then they did not have peace.

4.  I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.  People often regretted becoming too caught up in their own lives and let their friendships slip by over the years.  "It comes down to love and relationships in the end."

5.  I wish that I had let myself be happier.  Most people didn't realize that happiness is a choice, they were afraid of change and too worried about what others think.

Click here to check out the article

TREAT: Bacon, Chive & Blue Cheese Potatoes

Ingredients:
-12 small Yukon Gold potatoes
- 2 teaspoons plus 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 1/2 cup crumbled Maytag blue cheese
- 4 slices applewood-smoked bacon , cooked until crisp and crumbled
- 1 tablespoon minced chives

Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Bring water and 2 teaspoons of salt to boil -- cook potatoes until tender, about 20 minutes.
- Cook bacon in a pan or in the microwave until it is crispy
- Run the potatoes under cold water to stop the cooking and to make them cool
- Slice a small piece from the top and bottom of each potato
- Toss the potatoes with the oil, salt and pepper



- Use a paring knife or other knife to score the top of each potato and remove some of the potato so that you can fill it with the cheese and bacon (equal amounts of each)
- Bake until the cheese melts -- about 5-7 minutes
- Sprinkle with bacon bits and chives and serve

TREAT: Sundried Tomato and Goat Cheese Spread

Ingredients:
- 12 ounces goat cheese
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 1/2 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes
- 1/2 cup pitted and chopped kalamata olives
- 3 Tbsp basil - cut into strips
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

Directions:
- Combine goat and cream cheese in a bowl
- Form into a circular shape and place it on a plate - and press down
- Combine the rest of the ingredients in a bowl




- Pour mixture over the cheese and serve with bread and pita chips

And....Back

I definitely have taken a long break and now I'm back so that I can hopefully have fun with my sister trying different recipes. Speaking of which - Happy Mothers Day S!