Fruit Salad with Lime Vanilla Bean Dressing

A long long time ago, after I graduated from University of Chicago and we were getting ready to move to North Carolina, my friends that I worked for wanted to do something nice for Dave and I. They wanted to give us a Chicago experience we wouldn't have done for ourselves that would leave us with a lasting memory of our time living in the city.  The gift:  a dinner for two at Charlie Trotter's restaurant- the only 4-star restaurant in Chicago at the time.  It took two months just to get a reservation!!!

I was quite intimidated going into the restaurant.  I think that both Dave and I agree it was the BEST meal/experience we've ever had at a restaurant.  We liked it so much, he actually bought me the Charlie Trotter Cooks at Home cookbook.  That was over ten years ago and to this day, I have been too scared to make any of the recipes from it.  I usually thumb through it, make a mental note, close it, and never re open it.  This week, I went through the whole book, wrote down all the recipes I wanted to try, and even wrote the page numbers next to them.

I had to start off small, so I made an adapted version of his fruit salad- and oh my goodness, I LOVED it so much and I can't wait to try all the other recipes I have written down. This recipe was soo simple, but turned cut up fruit into something so much more by adding a lime/vanilla bean dressing (NOTE:  I do not normally eat pears and mangoes, but this brings them to a whole new level.) .  I altered his recipe because it called for olive oil in the dressing, along with onions and cantaloupe in the salad.  I'm sure I'm never going to like cantaloupe no matter what, so I used blueberries instead, but I'm thinking watermelon next time.  My kids, my sister, and anyone who tried it loved it.  With summer approaching and yummy fruit coming into season, I'm sure this simple recipe will come in handy to anyone who wants to give it a try.

Fruit Salad with Lime Vanilla Bean Dressing:

2 Mangoes, cut into 1 inch cubes
3 pears, cut into 1 inch cubes
1/2 pint blueberries
3 TBSP fresh squeezed lime juice from 1 lime (key lime is preferrable, but I just used a normal lime)
1 vanilla bean, scraped

1) Juice the lime, be sure to have at least 3 TBSP juice.  Put the juice into a small bowl.  Scrape the seeds from a vanilla bean into the lime juice.  While I cut my fruit, I left the bean pod soaking in the lime juice to extract more seeds and flavor.

2) Peel and cut fruit.  Place in serving bowl.

3) Pour lime vanilla bean juice into the bowl with the fruit, toss to coat.  Serve and enjoy!

Busy Cooking: Spiced Pecans

I had never had spiced nuts until about 6 years ago.  We had a Christmas party before we moved to Japan, and one of our friends brought them over.  They were so delicious and addicting, I couldn't stop eating them.  I got the recipe from her and tucked it away, never to attempt to make them on my own.

This Thanksgiving, my brother, who likes nuts, was coming to visit.  I wanted to make these nuts because I knew that he would really like them.  I couldn't find my friend's recipe, so I resorted to my trusty America's Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook for a spiced pecan recipe.  Their recipe called for Bourbon, I didn't have any and even if I did, I don't really like rum, so I left it out.  These nuts were soooo delicious and easy to make, and with the 2 tsp vanilla in the glaze, they smelled great too.  I made them four days before Thanksgiving, I had to hide them so Hazel and I wouldn't eat them all.  They stayed fresh and crisp right up until the day after Thanksgiving, when I polished them off.

If you're going to a party this month or anytime really and need something simple, quick, and sure to be a hit, try these!  In total, they took ten minutes to make.  We liked them so much, I have 2.5 lbs in the freezer waiting to be glazed!

Spiced Pecans:

Oven:  350'

2 cups pecan halves

Spice mix:
2 TBSP sugar
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp allspice (I omitted because I didn't have any)

Glaze:
1 TBSP unsalted butter
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp brown sugar
OPTIONAL:  1 TBSP rum

1) Preheat oven to 350', place pecans on baking sheet that is lined with parchment paper (for easier clean up) in an even layer.  Bake in oven for 8 minutes.

2) While pecans are in the oven, prepare the spice mix by mixing all the ingredients together in a large bowl, set aside.

3) Make the glaze- add all the ingredients to a medium pan and whisk constantly over medium-high heat until is reaches a boil.  Stir in the pecans and continue cooking until almost all the liquid has evaporated, about 1-2 minutes.

4) Toss the glazed pecans into the bowl with the spice mix.  Place spiced pecans back on baking sheet to cool before eating.  Store in an airtight container- 5-7 days.

Busy Cooking: Pretzel Pizza Bites

I've been making a weekly menu for myself and it's been working great for many reasons, quicker trips to the grocery store, less wasting food, not buying things I don't need, planning easy meals for busy nights, and not having to worry about what's for dinner, to name a few.  I found these pretzel pizza bites on Sweet Pea's Kitchen blog a while ago, and couldn't wait to try them.  Halloween night seemed like the perfect time to enjoy a tasty finger food I could prepare ahead that the kids could eat on the go.

It must be an Illinois thing, because my husband asks me to buy pretzel rolls whenever I go to Whole Foods.  I had never heard of them before.  Since living here, I've seen so many recipes online for pretzel dinner rolls, pretzel sandwich buns, and now pretzel pizza bites- and they all seem to originate from Illinois.  These things totally rock, I can't wait for my dad to visit next week, so I can make them again for him.

As I was making them, I thought I wouldn't post them because it was a bit of an effort, rolling out the small dough balls, filling them, then sealing them.  But, the end result was sooo good, it was totally worth it.  If you're looking for something new to try as an appetizer or for a lazy rainy Sunday afternoon movie or football treat, try these, you won't be sorry!

Pretzel Pizza Rolls:
Dough:
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 TBSP brown sugar
1 pckg active yeast (2 1/4 tsp)
6 TBSP unsalted butter, melted
2 1/2 tsp kosher salt
4 1/2-5 cups all purpose flour

5 qts water
3/4 cup baking soda
shredded mozzarella cheese
pepperoni slices
sauce for dipping
egg beaten for brush on tops (optional- I didn't do this step)
sea salt for sprinkling on tops

For the dough:
1) In the mixer, mix together water, brown sugar, yeast, and butter with the dough hook.  Let sit 5 minutes.

2) Add salt and 4 1/2 cups flour, continue mixing until dough forms a ball.  If it is sticky, add more flour, 1 TBSP at a time.  Knead for about 4 minutes, dough may be sticking slightly to bottom of ball, but should not stick to sides.

3) Place dough in greased bowl, cover and let rise until doubled 1.5-2 hours.

4) Put dough on lightly floured surface.  Cut into 8 equal pieces.  Roll each piece into a 21 inch long rope, cut into 7 pieces each (you should have about 56 pieces of dough).

5) Slice pepperoni pieces into quarters and put shredded cheese into a bowl.  Take each piece of dough, roll out into a flat circle.  Put several pepperoni pieces and a good pinch of mozzarella cheese into the center.  Fold sides up and pinch together.  Roll ends up and pinch together.  Gently press with your finger tips to close the seams.  Place the prepared rolls onto a plate.

6) Preheat the oven to 425.  Prepare baking sheets by lightly greasing them, or lining them with parchment paper.  I needed three baking sheets.  Add the 5 qts water and 3/4 cup baking soda to your largest stock pot and bring to a boil.  I find that you should let it boil for about 4 minutes before you drop your first roll in.

7) Once water is boiling, put the rolls in and you will see some foam forming in the water, let the rolls boil for 30 seconds.  I would drop in about 10-15, count to 30, remove them with a slotted spoon to let the water drain off and place them on a baking sheet.    You can tell the water was hot enough because the dough will feel almost rubbery when you remove the rolls, it should not feel sticky and look like it melted, this means your water isn't ready yet- try a few test ones first.

8) Sprinkle salt on the tops of the rolls.  (or you can brush with beaten egg first, then top with salt- your choice).  Bake in oven until dark golden brown, about 15-18 minutes.  After 12 minutes, my tops were getting brown, I took them out, but they weren't done yet.  I put them back in for 6 more minutes and they were dark, but done and delicious!  They should be dark brown like a pretzel.

9) Let cool, serve with a side of tomato sauce if you like.  I was so hungry, I opted for no sauce and they were delicious!!! I think I ate at least 20- no lie.