Honey Thyme Butter | Salty, Bitter, Sweet

I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Welcome to my TLC Book Tours stop for Salty, Bitter, Sweet by Mayra Cuevas. Okay, I'll start by saying that overall, I enjoyed this read. Our main character Isa(bella) lives to cook and bake, and is currently living with her papi and stepmother in France, making her way through an exclusive apprenticeship competition course throughout the book.

She mentions and creates tons of food throughout the entire story, making me both hungry and eager to head into the kitchen; both of which are always bonus points in my book. Just a handful of the food mentioned: apple clafoutis, soffrito, chicken legs in wine-butter sauce, lemon tarts, pie, Tagliatelle, mushrooms, white truffles, aged cheese, Jacques Torres' Chocolate Chip Cookies, bacon cheeseburger, guava and cheese.

Wild Blueberry and Thyme Breakfast Sausage | #BonneMaman #SayItWithHomemade

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Bonne Maman. All opinions are my own.

Well, I think that spring has finally sprung in northwestern Indiana. There are tiny green buds on the trees and birds in all shapes and sizes are raising a ruckus outside of windows that have thrown open to air out a house desperately trying to shake off winter. Along with signs of rebirth and revitalization comes the time we celebrate and honor the women who (sometimes) birth, nurture, and raise us—otherwise known as mom!

Fingerling Potato Salad with Honey-Thyme Vinaigrette

It's that time of year again...PICNIC TIME!  That's right, June 18th is National Picnic Day and every June for the past three years I've celebrated with Louise from Months of Edible Celebrations and everybody else who contributes to the giant picnic basket in the online picnic game.  There's something so intriguing about a picnic.  Food tucked away in crinkly wrappers and firm-sided containers...silverware and plates that run from plastic to bamboo to silver...bottles of wine and a corkscrew with some plastic stemware or sturdy plastic cups...linen napkins or papertowels...all snuggled in a cooler or a romantic basket.  Picnics can be as simple and no-fuss as sandwiches, fresh cut fruit and veggies, potato chips, cookies and cold, bottled water.  Or they can be as luxurious and sexy as smoked salmon with cream cheese spread, red onions and capers atop homemade crackers, fresh fruit gallettes, and a bottle of wine.  I think that is part of the fun...part of the surprise!  The fantastic thing about an online picnic is the variety of food that is in the basket, all contributed by a different person from the letter A to the letter Z.

One of my favorite picnic foods is potato salad.  I love it because you can dress it up or dress it down.  Soak it in a tangy vinaigrette of fold it into a creamy mayonnaise.  It can be mild and unassuming or zest and in-your-face.  You could probably make a different type of potato salad for every person in the world.  This is my current favorite.  I love potatoes and fresh green beans together...and I love using baby potatoes or fingerlings in a variety of colors (it adds to the fun).  The vinaigrette alone is a fantastic dressing not only for the potato salad, but also for spinach salads or other dishes in place of a plainer vinaigrette.  Enjoy...and let the picnic games begin!

Fingerling Potato Salad w/ Honey-Thyme Vinaigrette
adapted from Midwest Living June '11
serves ~8

salad ingredients:
1½ lbs. Fingerling Potatoes
sea salt or kosher salt
8 oz. fresh green beans, ends snapped
1 smallish red onion, sliced paper thin
1 lb. bacon
~2 oz. Feta cheese

honey-thyme vinaigrette:
¼ c. cider vinegar
1 shallot, peeled
2 Tbs. honey
1 Tbs. fresh thyme leaves
1½ tsp. Dijon mustard
½ c. canola or vegetable oil
sea salt or kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper

make the Honey-Thyme Vinaigrette:
Combine cider vinegar, shallot, honey, thyme leaves, and Dijon in the jar of a blender and process until smooth.  Throw in a couple pinches of salt and a few good grinds of pepper.  With blender running, slowly pour in oil in a steady stream until thick and glorious.  Set aside. (yield: ~1 c.)

prepping potato salad ingredients:
Place scrubbed potatoes in a large pot with water to cover by at least an inch.  Add about a teaspoon or so salt and bring to a boil.  Turn heat to a simmer and let cook ~8-10 minutes, or until just tender.  Drain and then spread the potatoes out on a sheet tray to cool until you are able to handle them.

Bring about a quart of salted water to a boil and add the green beans.  Let cook ~3 minutes, or until just al dente.  Quickly drain and shock the beans in a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process and hold in the bright color (no army green-beans here...).  Once they are cooled, drain beans for a few minutes.

By now the potatoes should be cool enough to handle.  I do prefer them to still be slightly warm, though.  This helps them soak up the vinaigrette.  Slice them in half lengthwise.  Add the potatoes to a large bowl with the green beans and red onion, then toss everything with about half of the vinaigrette.

Cover the bowl and store in the refrigerator* until ready to use.  In the meantime, I like to put the bacon in the freezer for ~½ hour, then take it out and slice it crosswise into ¼-½" strips.  Add the strips to a frying pan, pulling them apart from each other as you do a bit, with your fingers.  Cook gently, continuing to break the bits apart with your spoon, until just done.  Remove to a paper towel-lined plate with a slotted spoon.  Once cool, store in a baggy or container at room temperature until ready to serve.  (Reserve bacon grease for another use.)

putting it all together:
When you are ready to serve your potato salad, toss everything in the bowl around again.  If you would like to add more of the vinaigrette, do that at this time (if not, reserve the remainder for another use).  Toss in the reserved bacon and crumble in the Feta and serve.

*I also like to eat this salad warm.  If you would like to do that, then have the bacon ready at the same time as your potatoes and green beans, then simply toss everything together and serve.

I'm going on a picnic and I'm bringing...*
Apricot Cobbler
Banana Cream Pie
Cherry Bars in a Jar
Diva Doggie Bites
Emeril's Strawberry Lemonade
FINGERLING POTATO SALAD W/ HONEY-THYME VINAIGRETTE




I am sharing this post with:

The Picnic Game @ Months of Edible Celebrations

 Tasty Tuesday at Naptime Creations

Gnocchi bathed in Brown Butter and Thyme

I've mentioned before how I enjoy the sensuousness of tender gnocchi pillows.  And how adding the deep nuttiness of browned butter makes them downright sexy (especially when paired with earthy sage).  Now...thyme may not be quite as seductive as sage, but there was something else that elevated this particular bowl of gnocchi to another level.  Making the gnocchi from scratch.  Getting your hands involved.  Feeling the dough come together with seamless effort.  While I have no problem with picking up a package of gnocchi that was made by other hands, I definitely think that taking an extra 20 minutes to nurture your own turns sexy into euphoric.

Gnocchi bathed in Brown Butter & Thyme

adapted from Giada De Laurentiis

makes ~60 gnocchi

¼ c. butter
1 Tbs. fresh thyme leaves
1 (1 lb.) russet potato
½ tsp. sea salt
¼ tsp. finely ground black pepper
1 large egg, beaten
¼ c. all-purpose flour (+ more as "kneaded")
 Parmesan, freshly grated

Prick your potato all over, place on a microwave-safe plate and microwave for ~12 minutes, turning halfway through.  Put a large pot of water on to boil.  Let the potato cool for a couple of minutes, then carefully cut it in half and peel away the skin, or scoop the flesh from it.  Place potato in a large bowl and mash it well with a fork.  Add salt and pepper and mix.  Measure out three tablespoons of the egg and mix that into the mixture, as well (discard remaining).  Sift the flour over the top and begin to work it in gently.  Turn out onto a lightly floured surface to finish kneading all of the flour in. Dough should not be sticky...add a bit more flour, if needed.

Put the butter in a heavy skillet over low heat until it begins to brown and smell nutty and amazing, ~5-7 minutes (but keep a close eye on it). Turn off the heat and stir in the thyme leaves.  Set aside for now.

Turn your attention back the dough, then divide it into 4 equal pieces. Roll each piece between your palms and the work surface into a rope (about 15" long & ½" in diameter). Cut the dough into 1" pieces. Roll each piece of dough over a wooden gnocchi paddle with ridges (if you're lucky enough to have one) or simply over the tines of a lightly floured fork (if you're not) to form grooves in the dough.  I just push down lightly with my thumb or finger and roll it down the tines.

By now your water should be boiling, so salt it liberally and then gently the gnocchi in and cook until the gnocchi rise to the surface, about 1 minute...then continue cooking until the gnocchi are tender, about 4 more minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the gnocchi to the warm browned thyme butter skillet and toss gently to coat.

Transfer to serving bowls and grate Parmesan over each serving.

Sharing this post with:
~ IHCC  where our theme this week is Spuds! (One week left to cook with Giada, then we welcome Jamie Oliver. Yay!)
~Claire at Chez Cayenne who is hosting PPN this week.

Nigella's Steak Slice w/ Lemon and Thyme + marinating your meat AFTER you cook it.

There's just something about a potluck that excites me. And not the kind that would have excited young(er)-hippie-girli-90's me...well...not entirely true. There was never really a time when I didn't like food. But there was a time when Pot Luck would have taken on an entirely different meaning. Where food would have been MORE than welcome afterward, actually. Anyway.

Our theme this week over at I Heart Cooking Clubs  is POTLUCK. I have had this recipe...among many others...marked since I first purchased Nigella Express. Finally I decided I was making it. That's something I love about certain cooking clubs/memes/events. They push me to make things I've been meaning to make but have just been too otherwise detained to actually get around to.

Iron Cupcake Earth: Herbs

I have to begin by saying...I am on Tyler Florence's Blog!!! Check me out HERE. You too could end up there...just whip up a recipe by Tyler and join us at Tyler Florence Fridays! Tyler. Tyler Florence. Chef Tyler Florence. Tyler Florence Food Network Chef. Shuttin' up. (photo by Scott Jones Southern Living Magazine Jan 2009 issue) ---------------------------------------------------------------- You know, for someone who is not really the biggest cake fan, I have sure been making a whole lotta cupcakes lately!! It's not that I don't like cake, I just like it every once in a while. I've just been experimenting and preparing for the day I need to send cupcakes along with somebody for one reason or another. (Yes, I always answer the question cake or pie? Pie!) When Reeni suggested I enter Iron Cupcake after my last cupcakes, I figured...why not?? You know me, I like a challenge. I am a bit of a challenged baker (again, you know this, right?)...but practice makes perfect, so I'm willing to keep trying. I took inspiration from those oh-so-addicting cookie dough cupcakes this time. Everybody loves surprises, so I like to oblige. Oh, did I mention that this month's challenge is herbs? Why, yes girli, you just did. Good. I immediately knew I was going to use thyme...not just because it's my favorite herb, but because I have a whole stinkin' bunch of it right now. Okay, more than one stinkin' bunch...many stinkin' bunches! My brain then tells me I must pair it with lemon. And my belly grumbles ricotta. This is what we...my brain, my belly and I (we're quite a team) came up with...

Thyme-Infused, Lemon Ricotta Cupcakes by girlichef yield: 24 cupcakes For Filling: 1 c. ricotta cheese 1/4 c. powdered sugar zest of 1 lemon 1 tsp. thyme leaves big pinch sea salt For Cupcakes: 1 (18.5 oz) box white cake mix so what? 1 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice (~6 lemons) 2/3 c. ricotta cheese 1/3 c. lemon curd 1/3 c. vegetable oil 3 Tbs. poppy seeds 2 Tbs. fresh thyme leaves, chopped 4 large eggs 2 tsp. finely grated lemon zest Start by making the filling, because it needs to chill in the freezer for a while. Mix all of the filling ingredients in medium bowl. Drop by heaping teaspoons onto wax or parchment paper lined sheet pan. Put in freezer for ~1 hour to firm up. Once filling is in the freezer, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Beat all of cake ingredients until thick and fluffy. Fill prepared cupcake tins (either sprayed or with liners) ~2/3 of the way full. Place one frozen ball of filling on top of each. Yes, these balls are big, your eyes are not deceiving you. I decided it was too much filling, therefore halved it for the final recipe.Bake 18-20 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in side (not center, because the filling is there and will be creamy) comes out clean.Frost with your choice of frosting...I actually used cream cheese frosting because I wanted to go into overload. You could go with a buttercream or whipped cream frosting successfully, too. I kid you not, these are super, SUPER rich cuppies!Decorate with some extra lemon zest and a small section of a thyme sprig. Just check out the creamy insides...rich, creamy insides that is. Click on the Iron Cupcake Badge below to check out Iron Cupcake Earth.

Iron Cupcake Earth has prize packs every month for the winner. This month's prize pack consists of:

-A sweet cupcake ID bracelet by INSANEJELLYFISH

-A delicious treat from CIRCLEMONKEY

-A sweet surprise from Sweet Cuppin' Cakes Cupcakery

-And CAKESPY who will be doing something for the winners each month until further notice.

Corporate Prize providers are:

-HEAD CHEFS by FIESTA PRODUCTS

-HELLO CUPCAKE by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson

-JESSIE STEELE APRONS

-TASTE OF HOME books

-a tshirt from UPWITHCUPCAKES.COM

-1-800-Flowers