A Floridian Feast

The Food:
Yesterday, Olivia and I were lucky enough to leave behind the dreary New England winter to go to Captiva, Florida with my grandparents. After a very restful afternoon reading and napping on the beach, we were treated to a delicious G-ma supper. Right before dinner we had a sunset that looked almost good enough to eat!

The highlight of the meal was the fresh, local snapper. Apparently there is a technique to making fish come out so tender and moist. G-ma says that you have to cook the fish "very gently". First she coats it with a very thin layer of mayonnaise - the thin part is key, you are to apply it "like you apply cold creme to your face". This is then topped with salt, pepper and lime juice and popped in a 475 degree oven for about 7 minutes. A handy G-ma trick is that you know it is done when it feels like the fleshy part of your forearm, if you let it get to the point that it feels like your wrist you are up a creek without a paddle. When the fish starts to feel done, you turn on the broiler for about 30 seconds to give it a nice top. To top the fish off, G-ma cut up some grapefruit and orange and put it in the microwave for about 30 seconds to take the chill off. What a treat!

This was accompanied by a delicious sweet potato, apricot, and cranberry casserole. We will be very happy to have this recipe next time the fruit and veggie co-op gives us sweet potatoes.
1) Combine 1/2 cup water, 1 2/3 cups chopped dried apricots, 3/4 cups craisins, and a 12 oz. can of apricot nectar in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand, covered, for 20 minutes. Drain the mixture over a bowl, reserving both the fruit and the cooking liquid.
2) Combine sweet potato (about 4 pounds, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick) and 1/4 cup of water in a 3-quart casserole dish. Cover with the lid and microwave on high for 18 minutes, stirring about halfway through. Drain well and set aside.
3) Preheat oven to 350 degrees
4) Arrange half of the sweet potatoes in a casserole coated with cooking spray; top with half of the apricot mixture and 1/4 cup of sugar. Repeat procedure with remaining sweet potato, apricot mixture and 1/4 cup of sugar. Pour reserved cooking liquid over the casserole. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until bubbly.

The meal was rounded out by some nice broccoli.

The People Who Ate It:
We were all too eager to dig in to take a picture, but the meal was enjoyed by Olivia, G-ma, G-Pa, my Aunt Betsy, and me!

Sweet Potato and Broccoli Quiche

Quiche is one of my favorite foods of all time. Its a great way to use any leftover vegetables you have lying around. We usually had it at least once a week when I was younger, and I pretty much use my mom's recipe as a starter.

One of the great things about not living in a health conscious household is that unlike with my mothers quiche, I don't need to use skim milk and low fat cheese.

For this Quiche we used a mixture of cheddar, gouda, and Connecticut raw hard sheep's milk cheese. We also are part of a raw jersey cow milk co-op, and I threw some of that milk in as well. I pretty much make up the ratios as I go along, the only constant being the use of 2 to 2.5 eggs per quiche, so that it stays together but isn't too eggy, which I didn't even realize was possible until trying the quiche at Red and Black - the campus bookstore\cafe.

I sauteed the sweet potato and broccoli for a few minutes before adding it in, just to make sure that it would be cooked the whole way through at the end.

Besides the normal salt and pepper, I usually add a bit of vinegar into my quiches. This is because once when I was younger I had salad with balsamic vinegar on the same plate as my quiche, and some of the vinegar drifted across the plate. Ever since then I've been pouring a little bit on top of my quiche, and now that I make my own I can add it in before baking. I also added a bit of mustard powder, an ingredient I have been fooling around with a lot with lately.

I baked the quiche at 350 for 35-40 minutes. It is important to remember after taking it out to let it sit for at least 10 or 15 minutes, otherwise it might not have competely thickened, and it won't stay together as well once cut.

Here it is plated:

( I don't know why but we seem to be on a green bean binge lately)


And here are the people who ate it:

From right to left: Ruby, Sarah, The Buck, Bill, Ben, The Berk, and me


One thing that I try to do while cooking is to find the good in any ingredient, and to use things that may not be considered sexy or sophisticated in creative ways. For example I added instant coffee into the sauce I made for the chicken a few posts ago. I wanted more of a watery bitterness then a full bodied coffee flavor.

Other times however, this is completely unnecessary and we must appreciate the deliciousness of processed food in their original state:


There is nothing better than a box of brownie mix. (except that no pudge fudge stuff) Its so simple to make, and yet so versatile with all of the different things you can add to it. Just don't follow the instructions for "cakey" rather than "fudgy" brownies... ewww
Here we have Duncan Hines brownie mix with chocolate frosting and mini candy covered chocolate things.