Lambic Slush

Lambic is a unique Belgian beer my dad introduced me to ages ago.  I love the fruity ones.  We used to drink it in frozen pint glasses on the back deck of his house and he would listen to me talk.  My dad's a good listener...and I surely get teased for talking a lot.  We're a good match.

The label for the peach flavor says, 'Lindemans Peche is a lambic made from local barley, unmalted wheat, and wild yeast.  After spontaneous fermentation peaches are added, creating a secondary fermentation and yielding a beer of exceptional flavor and complexity.' 

Fancy.

Even in my little Montana town I can find it in some of the higher end grocery stores as well as some specialty stores.  It's not too hard to find, just ask at the counter.  It's not too expensive either; usually about ten dollars.

Once upon a time I took a bottle of it to a BBQ and both Brad's sisters agreed that it would be tasty as a slush.  Hmmm, interesting idea.  I stored it away in the back of my brain in the file folder called 'things I want to try some day.'  Other items in that file include; go to Morrocco, build a greenhouse, pet a lion (this one is totally irrational, but I've had it all my life), make paella, learn to tile, own my own business, eat caviar...the list goes on and on.  At least my life won't be boring I suppose. 

This past week, I had the chance to try the lambic slush with the younger of the two sisters, Lauren.  Lambic comes in several fruity flavors including currant, raspberry and apple.  For this endeavour I chose peach.  This couldn't be an easier recipe.  It's only one ingredient.  The only tricky part is having the right equipment...an ice cream maker.

We simply poured about half the bottle or so into my ice cream maker then waited about 20 minutes for it to slosh around and start to freeze. 

It turned into a super refreshing and tasty 'grown-up' slush. 

I think I'll try the raspberry next time.  My dad will be here visiting for a couple weeks soon and this 'recipe' will surely be making an appearance on the newly stained front porch (my accomplishment this weekend).  

Oh, and I almost forgot.  Lauren had the idea to top the slush with some of the rest of the bottle of lambic.  It added a little fizz back in.

So there you have it and now I can check that one of the 'to do' list.

Cheers!

Grilled Halibut with Mango-Avocado Salsa

My new favorite cook is Gwyneth Paltrow.  I didn't even know she could cook until I read an article about her that featured several of her recipes, one of which my mother and I made last Friday night.  Gwyneth also has a cookbook out called My Father's Daughter.  I lost all self-control last week and went out and bought it.  You'll be seeing a lot of her recipes this summer here on My Oh My.  I can't decide what to make next!

In the introduction of her book, Gwyneth talks a lot about cooking with her late father and about her passion for food.  One of my favorite lines from the book is in the foreword written by Chef Mario Batali. 

He writes, 'The most important thing to take from My Father's Daughter is the true pleasure we can derive from the thinking about, then the making of, and finally the enjoyment of eating good food together with the people we care about.' 

This echos exactly how I feel about food.  One of my biggest pleasures is cooking for my loved ones and making them happy.  It's one way I show people I love them. I may not be a beautiful, blonde, singer, actress, author, superhuman, but I do have a love for food in common with Gwyneth Paltrow.  Who knew? 

We spent the past four days with my mother and step-dad on Flathead Lake.  We do a lot of things with them such as sailing, sewing, talking, hot-tubbing, gardening...but mostly we cook.  While cooking lunch, we're already talking about dinner.  While eating breakfast, we talk about how incredible the food was the day before.  One of the many fabulous dishes we ate was Grilled Halibut with Mango-Avocado Salsa.

It was flavorful, simple, elegant and delicious.  Of course, I'm pretty sure everything tastes better with views like this.  Thanks for the inspiration, Gwyneth Paltrow!

Grilled Halibut with Mango-Avocado Salsa
Gwyneth Paltrow

1 medium ripe avocado, peeled and cut into 1/2" dice
1 medium ripe mango, peeled and cut in to 1/2" dice
1 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered
4 large fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced
3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided, plus more for brushing
3 Tbsp. fresh lime juice, divided
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 6-oz. halibut or mahi-mahi fillets
4 lime wedges

Prepare a grill to medium-high heat.  Gently combine the avocado, mango, tomatoes, basil, 1 Tbsp. oil, and 1 Tbsp. lime juice in a large mixing bowl.  Season salsa to taste with salt and pepper ans set aside at room temperature, gently tossing occasionally.

Place fish fillets in a 13x9x2" glass baking dish.  Drizzle remaining 2 Tbsp. oil and 2 Tbsp. lime juice over the dish.  Season fish with salt and pepper.  Turn fish to coat in the oil and lime juice.  Allow to marinate for 10 minutes at room temperature, turning fish occasionally.

Brush grill rack with oil.  Grill fish until just opaque in center, about 5 minutes per side.  Transfer to plates.  Spoon mango-avocado salsa over fish.  Squeeze a lime wedge over each and serve. 

Serves 4

Crab and Avocado Salad

This is my new favorite food. 

I've had many favorite's and I'm sure I will have many more, but for today...for this glorious, sunny day...this is all I need.  My tummy is happy, I've barely finished the dishes and here I am sharing this with you because seriously folks, I couldn't wait to tell you about it. 

I used imitation crab because the real stuff was $30 a pound.  If lump crab meat works into your budget, then by all means, go for it. 

This salad + a glass of icy cold pinot grigio (slushy because I forgot it in the freezer while we went to the park) = one happy mama!

Crab and Avocado Salad
Adapted from Food Network
serves 4

2/3 cup low-fat plain yogurt
3 tablespoons low-fat mayonnaise
1 to 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup chopped fresh chives
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
3 anchovy fillets, chopped (try not to skip this ingredient...soooo tasty)
Freshly ground pepper
1/2 pound crab meat
3/4 cup frozen peas, thawed
1 large avocado, halved, pitted and diced
3 romaine hearts, chopped
1 1/2 cups croutons
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved (or whatever looks best in the produce dept.)

1.  Puree the yogurt, mayonnaise, lemon juice, chives, basil, and anchovies in a blender until smooth (be patient, scrape the sides, it's worth it).  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

2.  Toss the crab meat, half the avocado and about 1 tablespoon of the yogurt dressing in a small bowl.  Toss the romaine, croutons, peas and the remaining avocado with the rest of the dressing in a large bowl.

3.  Divide the romaine salad among plates, top with the tomatoes and place some of the crab mixture in the center.

4.  Bliss

Basil Tomato Pasta

Sometimes...oftentimes...the best things in life are the simplest.  I l-o-v-e fresh basil.  Every year, when I see it in abundance in the grocery store, the first thing I think of is this pasta.  I can remember making this as far back as high school.  My most vivid memory of it is making it for myself during my lunch break after bagging groceries at Albertsons for five hours. 

Everyone in the break room was jealous.  Not because it's a fancy dish, but because it's flavorful and satisfying and makes me smile even when I think about it.  

You can use any pasta you want, but I used this because it looks like flowers and I like flowers.

Basically, you just want to cook as much pasta as you want.   Drizzle in olive oil over it to lightly coat the pasta (maybe a tablespoon per serving of noodles).  Sprinkle it with chopped tomatoes, basil, Parmesan cheese, and salt and pepper to taste.  That's it, folks!

Here's how to chiffonade basil...

Roll up a few leaves of clean, dry basil and slice it in thin slices to make little basil ribbons.  Ordinarily, I cut the ribbons much thinner, but I wasn't paying much attention today. 

Giveaway Winner!

Drum roll please!

And the winner of My Oh My's first giveaway is...........

GLENDA!!!

Glenda,
Please choose from the girl set or the boy set and I'll get 'em in the mail to you.  Contact me at myohmyblog@gmail.com to collect your prize!



Thanks for reading everyone!  Maybe I'll give away the other set next week...stay tuned!

Giveaway!

This marks the very first giveaway here on My Oh My.  These blankets are incredibly useful.  I've made several for family, friends and friends of friends and everyone agrees how much they end up using them.  Check out the set I made for my niece Margot here. 

They're great for swaddling your little one because they're actually big enough to get a tight swaddle without being too bulky.  They also work as a cover up for nursing, something to lay the baby on to change diapers or have 'tummy time.'  Of course, they're also useful as, well, a blanket.  Enter to win a set either for your own little bundle or to keep on hand as a gift.

If you win the drawing, you can choose from either the girl set (1 pink, 1 butterfly floral)...

or the boy set (1 blue and 1 pirate).

To enter the drawing simply comment to this post telling me what you like about this site or what you'd like to see more of.  I appreciate all of my readers so much and would love to make hear from you!
If you have trouble posting your comment, post under 'Anonymous' but don't forget to include your name at the end of your comment. 

You have until 11:00 pm on Wednesday June 8th to post your comment.  The winner will be chosen by a random drawing and will be announced Thursday morning. 

Thanks, dear readers!

Skillet Macaroni and Cheese

Sadly, I'm still in comfort food mode this week.  On Monday, I made turkey soup and rolls.  On Wednesday, spaghetti...now it's macaroni and cheese and meatballs.  Rain, rain go away!!!  Tuesday, I had to cover my tomato plants because of the hail storm.  Us Montanans have stopped griping and now simply look out the windows and shake our heads.

This macaroni and cheese recipe is super tasty and easy even for a weeknight.  It only took about 20 minutes to make.  Ordinarily, I'm not one for buying pre-grated cheese...mostly because I'm cheap frugal.  However, I couldn't resist this Tillamook cheese because it was on sale and well, sheesh, it says mac and cheese right on it.  It's like we were meant to be. 

Skillet Macaroni and Cheese

12 ounces macaroni noodles

3 Tbs. butter

3 Tbs. flour

2 cups milk

8 ounces grated cheese (mix it up however you want)

1 Tbs. dried mustard

1 tsp ground thyme

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Boil the noodles until tender, then drain and set aside.

In a heavy, 12 inch, oven safe skillet, melt the butter over medium heat.  Whisk in the flour until combined and bubbly.  Whisk in the milk and cook until the mixture thickens. 

Add the 8 ounces of mixed cheeses, mustard and thyme.  Whisk until the mixture is smooth, about 2 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper off the heat.  (You don't want to under salt). 

Sprinkle the macaroni and cheese with the Parmesan.  Set your broiler on high and broil until the top is browned.  Watch it carefully so it doesn't burn.  

Time Capsules

Did you ever do a time capsule in school? 

I remember doing one in Elementary School and opening it in Junior High.  The only thing I can specifically remember putting in there was a piece of dried, chewed up gum.  Lord knows why I did that.  The looks of disgust on the faces of my classmates is burned into my retinas. 

Often times I tried to be cool and most of the times I failed miserably.  I think I finally resolved my nerd issues during therapy in my late 20's. 

I'm sure none of you can relate. 

 Anyhow, our neighbor set up craft day for us and we assembled time capsules.  The boys sat with their friend and neighbor, Finn for at least an hour drawing pictures and deciding just what they wanted to include.

According to this next picture, Jacob likes to go to sleep...I beg to differ.

Also, I learned that they are, in fact, capable of agreeing on something.  They unanimously decided that Billy the Exterminator is their favorite show.  Interesting.

We decided we'd bury the capsules and open them again in 5 years. The plan is to then add to the capsules and re-bury them. We'll cross that bridge when we get to it and hopefully, my children are cool like their dad and wouldn't dream of including chewed up gum.