Martina McBride’s Roasted Chicken and Potatoes with Lemon Rosemary Sauce and Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup

Fourth of July this year has been a scorcher. Who better to roast with than friends and family?

Thankfully, we anticipated the relentless burn of global warming on New Orleans and this year acquired, just in time, a commercial daiquiri machine, into which, all liquids must now go. One of our barbecue attendees exclaimed that everything she drinks this summer should have the consistency of the frozen slush this machine produces. Orange juice 2.0. Beer slushie. Ice tea slurpie. Coffee granita. Only the frozen will get us through this season. From our experimentation thus far with this machine, here are some recipes which have been successful. We own a Margarita Girl single bowl machine, which holds about 6 liters and serves about 25 8oz drinks. It takes about 3 hours to freeze after the liquid is introduced to the unit.

Frozen Hemingway Daiquiri

50 oz rum

18 oz grapefruit juice

18 oz lime juice

12 oz simple syrup

96 oz water

Frozen Mint Julep

40 oz mint simple syrup

54 oz bourbon

108 oz water

In other news, we had a chicken die. Ned Nederlander passed, not because of the heat, but because Kermit the Dog got a little too excited in the backyard and Ned decided to creep outside the coop for an untimely snack. Sad. He has been memorialized with some new signage to keep bully dogs out and improve morale. Hens before mens.

Red, white and blue fence slats, and Lucinda Williams thinking about being the next to creep.

And then we ate chicken….So, I haven’t been a “meat and potatoes” kind of gal until this recipe. WOW, flavor. I got home from a call shift and still had some energy to burn (or was that my stomach lining, with hunger?) and, to my chagrin, upon peeking in the fridge, saw I only had potatoes. Where had the rest of my veggies gone?? The stomach furnace rumbles… so with only potatoes, I checked the freezer and there was the saddest little frozen Cornish hen, who knows how many years old. But it was all meant to be. Randomly, Martina McBride’s cookbook called to me from the shelf, and I went to her, and opened to the index to find “potatoes” and lo and behold, this tasty hour-long recipe caught my eye.

I’ve never roasted lemons before, but now I always will.

Chicken and Potatoes with Roasted Lemon and Rosemary Sauce

Adapted from Martina’s Kitchen Mix: My Recipe Playlist for Real Life

1 ½ pounds small potatoes

3 large lemons

¼ cup Bono Val di Mazara Sicilian Extra Virgin olive oil (This stuff is WOW)

Kosher salt and fresh pepper

1 Cornish hen

2 tsp Ruth Ann’s Muskego Ave Chicken and Fish Penzeys seasoning (a lemon and pepper blend)

2 TB minced garlic

2 cups chicken broth

2 tsp finely chopped rosemary

1 TB unsalted butter

Seriously, this Bono Sicilian oil is top notch. Drizzle away.

Cover the potatoes in water and bring to a boil, cover, and cook for 10-15 minutes until tender. Drain, let cool slightly, and slice in half.

Zest one of the lemons and set the zest aside. Get the broiler going and cut lemons in half. Arrange with the cut sides up and brush with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Broil 6 inches from the heat until browned and soft, about 10 minutes, and let cool. Squeeze the lemons over a strainer into a bowl, yummy, yummy roasted lemon juice, and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 425. The Cornish hen should also get slathered with olive oil and salt and pepper and the lemon zest. Put breast side up on a pan, and roast for 30-35 minutes until inside temperature registers at least 180 degrees.

Meanwhile, put a skillet on the stove top and put some butter and about ¼ cup chicken broth into the skillet and heat until butter is melted. Place the potatoes flat-edge down into the skillet and cook until the liquid evaporates. Place garlic into pan and add a little more chicken broth, let evaporate, about 2 minutes. Combine together roasted lemon juice, the remaining broth and rosemary. When the chicken has about 10 minutes left, take it out and place it on top of the potatoes in the skillet.

Pour half of the lemon rosemary sauce over the whole thing and put in the oven to bake until the chicken is done. Then take the chicken out and put on a platter, return the potatoes in the skillet to the burner and add the last amount of rosemary lemon broth. Make sure you are scraping the bottom of the skillet to get the sticky brown bits (YUM) and then plate the potatoes around the chicken, reserving a bit of thickened broth/fond/yumminess to either serve on the side or to drizzle over the potatoes and chicken.

Oh my gosh.

This would be a perfect reheat-able leftover to take for lunch. Recently, I tried out the HotLogic mini, a lunchbox you can plug in at work and cook your meal/reheat leftovers for lunch! I love it—especially when you are working somewhere without a kitchen or microwave, or if you are travelling—you can still pack your own food to cook and avoid the temptation to eat out or eat fast food!

You can heat any microwave-save glass or tupperware in this. There is a heating element and the insulation helps it cook evenly.

Another real gem in McBride’s cookbook is the Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup, which has such an amazing flavor with masa blended into the cream. YUM. Crumble some tortilla chips and cheddar cheese on top.

Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup

Adapted from Martina’s Kitchen Mix

1 1⁄4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1⁄2 teaspoon black pepper

4 cups (32 ounces) chicken broth

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped

3 garlic cloves, chopped

2 teaspoon chili powder

2 teaspoon ground cumin

2 teaspoon paprika

1 (14.5-ounce) can tomatoes with diced green chiles, undrained

1⁄3 cup masa harina (if you have a Mockmill, just grind a little finer some corn meal!)

1 1⁄3 cups milk

1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 (16-ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed

1 cup fresh or frozen corn

2⁄3 cup heavy cream

1⁄3 cup Greek yogurt

Garnishes: shredded cheese, sour cream/Greek yogurt, diced avocado, cilantro, lime wedges, corn tortilla chips, hot sauce

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Place in a greased 11- x 7-inch baking dish. Pour 1 cup of the broth over the top and cover. Bake 45 minutes or until done. Remove the chicken, reserving the cooking liquid. Shred the meat with 2 forks.

2. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high. Add the onion and jalapeno; cook 3 minutes. Add the garlic; cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Add the remaining 3 cups broth, reserved cooking liquid, chili powder, cumin, paprika, and tomatoes.

3. Whisk together the masa and milk until blended. Stir into the soup. Cook over medium-high, stirring frequently, 10 minutes or until the mixture boils and thickens slightly. Stir in the chicken, black beans, pinto beans, and corn. Reduce the heat to low. Stir in the cream and sour cream. Serve with the desired garnishes.

Beautiful Mornings and Happy Days – Carrot Cake with Saffron Orange Cream

I’ve noticed that most of my favorite people are morning persons. They love to get up with the sun and exercise or meditate or write. I’m a night-owl, and always have been, so beautiful mornings, for me, have been rare. That isn’t true. I’ve “shown up” to a lot of mornings. Just did a nightshift on Friday and watched the sunrise over Canal St from the VA, with a blazing headache.

In college, I was a barista at the campus coffee shop, so technically I was clocked in and conscious at 6am; in residency, I have had to report for duty at o’dark thirty more times than I can care to count, but again, those mornings I would say I have been physically present and yet mentally unaccounted for, at least until a liter of French press coffee gets circulating in my system.

My approach to the working day has always been—how fast can I get into beastmode from corpse pose? I used to pride myself on reducing my wake up-to-clock-in interval to less than 15 minutes, but after reading A Beautiful Morning by Ashley Ellington Brown, a series of short reflections by twenty women who swear by the ethos of a mindful morning ritual, I may try dabbling in more intentional morning time.

Starting with today. I woke up and played Oh Happy Day by the Edwin Hawkins singers, opened up a package of goodies from the Happy Day brands, which seems like a phenomenal company. They have a model similar to TOMS, so that when you buy one of their products, they donate one of their oatmeals to food shelters. They do other amazing things like Job Readiness Training for women, among other global volunteer efforts. You know, if you are going to buy pancake mix, or oatmeal, might as well support a company like this rather than some heartless corporate giant.

Coffee was delicious, the Nicaragua beans my favorite, and the protein pancakes were also yummy.

Happy Day Keto Pancakes with ChocZero syrup

I had my keto friend test out the keto pancakes, and he liked the taste, but we both agreed the texture is kinda salmon-cake-ish. Topped with Choc-Zero syrup, though, just about anything tastes yummy and if you are ketoing to lose weight or for seizure/diabetes reasons, then, more power to you.

Then I read poems from Poetry magazine, for which I will be a forever-subscriber, while I enjoyed delicious Salted Caramel Chai from Wissotzky Tea, so fancy and delicious!

Goes great with a leftover piece of carrot cake, which, please, is basically breakfast. I prefer the saffron cream to a cream-cheese based frosting but have included both recipes here.

Carrot Cake with Orange Saffron Cream

Cake

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup white whole-wheat flour

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

¾ cup canola oil or avocado oil

¾ cup packed light brown sugar

¾ cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

4 large eggs

5 cups shredded carrots (1 pound)

Orange-Saffron Cream

1 cup heavy cream, divided

1 teaspoon grated orange zest, plus julienned zest for garnish

3 saffron threads

⅓ cup white chocolate chips

⅓ cup mascarpone cheese

Or, good old-fashioned Cream Cheese Frosting

1 (8-ounce) package brick style cream cheese, softened to room temperature

½ cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

2 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Whisk all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Beat oil, brown sugar, granulated sugar and vanilla in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until starting to lighten in color, about 2 minutes. Slowly add eggs, one at a time, beating until well combined before adding the next. Add the dry ingredients and mix just until incorporated. Add carrots and mix until just combined.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Bake the cake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 30 to 40 minutes. Let cool completely in the pan on a wire rack, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare orange-saffron cream: Heat ¾ cup cream in a small saucepan over medium-high heat until just steaming. (I’ve also made this using the microwave and it worked, but just make sure you watch it closely!) Place zest and saffron in a small bowl. Pour the hot cream over them and let steep for 10 minutes. Strain (discard zest and saffron). Refrigerate the saffron cream until cold, about 30 minutes. Combine chocolate chips and the remaining ¼ cup cream in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on High, stirring halfway through, until just melted, about 30 seconds. Cool to room temperature, about 10 minutes. Transfer the saffron cream to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Add mascarpone and beat just until medium peaks form. Fold ¼ cup of the mixture into the chocolate mixture until combined, then scrape the chocolate mixture back into the remaining saffron cream. Beat just until lightly whipped, 5 to 10 seconds; do not overmix. Serve the cake topped with the saffron-orange cream and more orange zest, if desired.

Then a maiden voyage in the VW convertible bug that was heroically brought to New Orleans from Seattle by my in-laws, to whom I am so very grateful. O Happy Day, indeed.

Basil Print Ravioli

“A show of the summer softness—a contact of something unseen—an amour of the light and air,/ I am jealous and overwhelm’d with friendliness,/ And will go gallivant with the light and air myself.” Walt Whitman, from “The Sleepers”

Mom came to visit and we made pasta and swam and ate and we ate and we ate. It was like the Sun came to shine.

Ravioli from Scratch

This makes a pound of dough

2 1/3 cups flour

2 eggs, 4 egg yolks

1 TB olive oil

½ tsp salt

Make a bowl of flour on the countertop and add the eggs, salt and olive oil. Mix with a fork until all is combined. You may need to add a TB of water, but do so super sparingly. Knead, knead, knead, crash the dough, then cover with saran and let sit 2-4 hours at room temperature.

To make fancy Basil-printed Ravioli, begin by rolling out a strip of dough to a thickness of about 1/16 inch. The rolling may be done with a rolling pin or a pasta machine. On my pasta machine, I rolled it to a 5, then I made another matching sheet rolled thinner to a 7. Arrange the herb leaves on the dough in any fashion that you desire.

Place a second thinly rolled strip of dough on top; press dough firmly. In order for the herbs to adhere properly the dough must be very fresh. If the dough begins to dry out, mist it with a little water.

Carefully roll both sheets of pasta through the pasta machine, but start at a 3 and slowly increase the settings to 5 or 6. The rolling process will stretch the herbs as they are being embedded into the dough. Place the pasta sheet on a lightly floured surface. Use a sharp knife or pastry cutter to cut the dough into large squares or wide noodles. I have a ravioli mold that cuts the serrated edges and leaves a little space for the filling, about a tsp.

For the filling, so many options. This is a good one:

8 ounces whole-milk ricotta (about 1 cup), drained

3 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded (about 3/4 cup)

1 1/2 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, grated (about 1 cup), divided

3/4 cup chopped fresh basil, divided

6 tablespoons plus 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, divided

3/4 teaspoon black pepper, divided

Stir together ricotta, mozzarella, 1/2 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano, 1/4 cup chopped basil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl. Chill until ready to use.

This ravioli also tastes amazing with Vodka Pasta sauce.

Also, this 5 seed Butter from Beyond the Equator is amazing on toast. Just all by itself, YUM. Started in New Orleans! Wahoo!

Kimchi Spaghetti with Wines from Montepulciano

I’ve always wanted to go to Italy for a vacation, and in my fantasy of that trip, I would ride my bicycle through the Tuscan hillside, villa to villa, vineyard to vineyard, and I would taste one pecorino after another, sample one delicious reserve from the valleys of Val Di Chiana after another. I met the mayor of Montepulciano in New Orleans a few weeks ago at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum and he brought a feast of Italian delights. This small Italian village is number one on my travel list.

In the mood to mix up a pasta dish now? I love this Southern casserole classic with a little kimchi mixed in. If you want it to be vegan, replaced the chicken with 4 cups of tofu and use vegetable broth (and definitely the spicy kimchi instead of the mild).

Kimchi Chicken Spaghetti

Adapted from Southern Living

6 cups unsalted chicken stock 1 (14-oz.)

1 rotisserie chicken, cooked, then shred the chicken from it, reserve the bones and skin

16 ounce uncooked spaghetti

1 (5-oz.) can evaporated milk

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon lower-sodium Worcestershire sauce

2 teaspoons hot sauce

2 teaspoons kosher salt

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onion (about 1 medium onion)

1 1/2 cups chopped red, purple and green bell pepper, however you want

2 cups chopped tomatoes (about 3 medium tomatoes)

4 ounces sharp white Cheddar cheese, shredded (about 1 cup)

1 14.5 oz container N asoya white mild kimchi (If you want to spice it up, use the N asoya spicy kimchi!)

Remove the meat from the rotisserie chicken. Preheat oven to 400°F. Bring 6-8 cups of water to a boil in a Dutch oven over high, and add the remaining pieces of the chicken (bones, skin, questionable bits, etc). Boil for 10-15 minutes. Strain the bits out and into the liquid, boil the pasta until just tender, about 9 minutes. Transfer pasta to a medium bowl (reserving stock). Return stock to a boil over high; boil until liquid is reduced to about 2 1⁄2 cups, about 1 minute. Whisk together evaporated milk and flour in a small bowl. Stir into stock; boil until slightly thickened, 2 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, and salt. Pour stock mixture over pasta. Set aside.

Return Dutch oven to medium-high heat. Add butter, onion, and bell pepper. Cook, stirring often, until tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Remove from heat; add pasta mixture back to Dutch oven. Add chicken and tomatoes and kimchi to Dutch oven; toss to coat. Pour mixture into a 13- x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Top with cheese. Lightly coat aluminum foil with cooking spray. Cover with foil; bake until cheese is melted, 25 to 30 minutes.

This content is sponsored by Nasoya and my tasting of wines from Val di Chiana were complimentary from SOFAB.

Grilled Salmon with Miso-Corn Salad and Salsa

I cannot eat this corn salad enough times in my life. Nor can I catch too many fish in the great Gulf.

Me and my co-chief resident caught so many red fish on our department retreat! Amazing Saturday in June.

Some delights in life are new each and every time. Each summer day in New Orleans is a bright sauna to step into—and gratitude in each oak tree’s shade.

Grilled Salmon with Miso-Corn Salad

Adapted from Food and Wine Magazine

MISO VINAIGRETTE

2 tablespoons white miso

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon unseasoned rice wine vinegar

1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

1 teaspoon lime zest plus 2 tablespoon fresh lime juice (from 1 lime)

1 teaspoon light brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger (from 1 [1-inch] piece)

1 small jalapeño or serrano chile, seeded and finely chopped (optional)

3 tablespoons canola oil

SALAD

3 medium ears fresh yellow corn, shucked

4 medium scallions

2 tablespoons canola oil, divided

12 dry-packed U12 sea scallops (about 1 pound) (we used salmon filets- an entire Costco salmon)

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup cooked and shelled fresh or frozen edamame

1 cup halved cherry or grape tomatoes

3 small red hot peppers (dedo de moca), chopped

2 tablespoons fresh small basil leaves or mint leaves, or a combination of both, torn, plus more for serving

2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds, divided

Make the miso vinaigrette (make a double batch of this if you want to do a variety with salmon)

Whisk together miso, soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, lime zest and juice, brown sugar, ginger, and jalapeño, if using, in a small bowl until miso is dissolved. Whisk in canola oil in a slow, steady stream until well combined. Set aside, or cover and refrigerate up to 1 week.

Make the salad

Preheat a grill to high (450°F to 500°F), or heat a grill pan over high. Brush corn and scallions with 1 tablespoon canola oil, and place on grates (or grill pan). Grill, uncovered, turning occasionally, until just tender and slightly charred, about 4 minutes for scallions and 10 minutes for corn. Remove from heat. When cool enough to handle, cut corn kernels off cobs, and roughly chop scallions into 1/2-inch pieces; set corn and scallions aside.

Remove and discard the small side muscle from each scallop; rinse under cold running water, and pat dry. Thread 3 scallops on 2 parallel skewers, and repeat with remaining 9 scallops on 6 skewers. Brush scallops with remaining 1 tablespoon canola oil, and season both sides with salt. Grill scallops, uncovered, until grill marks appear, about 1 minute and 30 seconds. Turn scallops, and grill until desired degree of doneness, about 30 seconds for medium (warm translucent center). Remove from grill, and set aside. (For the salmon, pan-sear the salmon after soaking it for 24 hours in ½ -3/4 cup miso marinade, then put in oven to bake at 375 degrees for 15-20 minutes).

Toss together corn, scallions, edamame, and tomatoes in a large bowl. Add herbs, miso vinaigrette, and 1 teaspoon sesame seeds; toss to combine. Divide salad among 4 shallow bowls. Top each with a skewer of scallops, and/or salmon. Sprinkle with remaining 1 teaspoon sesame seeds and additional herbs.

Here is another amazing summertime snack—fresh garden salsa.

Tomato Salsa

Adapted from Food and Wine

1 lb tomatoes, diced

1 small green bell pepper, diced

½ red onion, diced

4 red chiles, I use dedo de moca Brazilian peppers

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 TB fresh cilantro, chopped

3 tsp Penzey’s Salsa and Pico spice

¾ tsp kosher salt

½ tsp black pepper

Stir all ingredients together, and voila! Salsa!

Georgia Sourdough Sea Salt Crackers taste great with a little salsa.

Strawberry Shrub Cocktails with Moe’s BBQ

There is no better feeling than spending a warm summer evening in stadium seats at a baseball game, except, I’ll argue, when a foul fly ball lands in your glove.

I have waited for this for thirty four years!

And all this, with a belly full of Moe’s BBQ.

This month, Moe’s opened a new location in Metairie, LA, which is on the way to The Shrine on Airline, home field of the Babycakes minor league baseball team. I had never tried Moe’s BBQ before, and they gave Bake This Day an incredible sampler to enjoy, of which, I’ll say my absolute favorites were the Puerto Rican Red Beans and Rice, ribs, and the chicken wings.

Props to Ashley! Thanks for the recommendations!

They had wonderful, quick service and an easy location to get in and out! We will be back!

Strawberry season came and went in a hot blink here in Louisiana. Here is the most refreshing way to upcycle your almost-rotten strawberries.

Strawberry Shrub

Adapted from Eating Well

1 cup strawberries, halved

1 cup sugar

1 cup Denigris apple cider vinegar (tastes great with both the Honey Ginger type or the Honey Turmeric)

1 (1 inch) strip lemon zest

Combine strawberries, sugar, vinegar and lemon zest in a medium nonreactive saucepan. Use a high quality apple cider vinegar like Denigris, because it gives the Shrub it’s zing.

Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Remove from heat and let stand for 20 minutes. Strain into an airtight heatproof container. Refrigerate until cold, about 4 hours or up to 1 week.

To make ahead: Refrigerate for up to 1 week.

Strawberry Shrub Cocktail

Adapted from Eating Well

2 strawberries

2 leaves fresh basil

1 (1 inch) strip lemon zest

1½ ounces vodka

1 ounce Strawberry Shrub

3 ice cubes, plus more for serving

2 ounces cold plain seltzer

Muddle strawberries, basil and lemon zest in a cocktail shaker or pint jar with a tight-fitting lid until mashed and fragrant. Add vodka, Shrub, and ice. Cover and shake until cold, about 30 seconds. Strain into a glass of ice and top with seltzer.

Strawberry Shrub Mocktail

This is easy

1 ounce Strawberry Shrub

Lemon flavored carbonated water (L’Croix, or what-have-you)

Ice

To the Shrub, stir in as much lemon fizzy water as you want, to taste!

We enjoyed a wonderful weekend in Green Bay, Wisconsin celebrating the wedding of friends. They hosted an all-day picnic the day after the ceremony at Bay Beach Amusement Park, and the weather was beautiful for games and more BBQ and quality time with friends.

Yoga at Bayou Boogaloo and “Build Me Up” Dark Chocolate Pistachio Butter Cups

I know there will come a time when I just wear yoga outfits and Jazzfest print dresses as daily uniform, if weekends are harbingers of the retired versions of ourselves. Marika sent me some yogawear to test out and the leggings had me in a floral mood. Great for gardening because they have stealth side pockets!

Great for doing yoga on a Bayou Boogaloo raft!

Great for yoga with bulldogs licking you in the third eye.

In all seriousness, I do practice yoga, recently Ashtanga yoga, and the strength and flexibility and peace afforded me by a three-times-a-week practice is highly worth the investment of time on the mat. I love discovering that something I once thought impossible is within reach, was ever only a few breaths away.

Is this not also a lesson in love? With flexibility, persistence and time—there family is.

We had such a lovely weekend spent in the company of Midcitizens, kicked off with a celebration of Syttende Mai in Viking style of Abba, complete with a disco armada, a cinnamon roll fleet.

These made by Lucy Baglin, creative and festive (and stable) genius.

Wellements were enjoyed by Baby Clark, the most healthy and granola baby I know.

And from our Portland kitchen, the perfect dessert!

Dark Chocolate Pistachio Butter Cups

Recipe from the Bake This Day PDX kitchen, a la Andie

Line a mini cupcake pan with a dozen paper liners. Melt 20 ounces of dark chocolate, by microwaving 30 seconds at a time until liquid. Using a teaspoon, daub about ½ inch of melted chocolate in each cup and let dry for 5 minutes.

Add ½ teaspoon of pistachio butter, (I used Fiddyment Premium Pistachio Butter) on top of each chocolate cup. Now, remelt remaining chocolate, if necessary for 30 seconds and cover the pistachio butter forming a chocolate bite with pistachio butter inside.Top off with a pinch of sea salt, which makes the surface gorgeous and shiny. Guilt free yumm, after dinner, with an espresso. Don’t forget to focus on the breath.

Gluten Free French Toast and Creole Tartines for Mother’s Day Brunch with a side of Relaxation

“I am scorched/ to realize once again/ how many small, available things/ are in the world/ that aren’t/ pieces of gold/ or power–/ that nobody owns.” Mary Oliver

One of those small, scorching truths is a mother’s love—a cache so valuable and so permanent that time and place have no bearing to govern. I spent this morning soaking in gratitude for my mother and for those who have been motherly to me. Of course, in the garden.

Mom and me circa 1986. The only time I have ever pulled off bangs.

And then I made the first recipe I can recall Mom teaching me—French toast. Simple, delicious bread soaked in eggs and milk, with a little vanilla and spice. I used Little Northern Bakehouse gluten-free bread because I have been addicted to it ever since trying the Cinnamon and Raisin variety, but I have now taken a tour through all their flavors, thanks to some complimentary product samples, and a close second is the Seeds and Grains bread.

I am not someone who personally needs gluten-free options, but I have lots of patients and friends who do need to limit gluten, and as a bread baker, I am always on the lookout for recipes and brands that do gluten-free well (not easy!).

French Toast, in the style of Mom

3 eggs

1 cup milk

2 tsp vanilla

1 tsp Pancake Blend spice

1 TB butter

6 slices Little Northern Bakehouse Seeds and Grain or Cinnamon Raisin bread

Whisk eggs with milk, add vanilla and spice. Heat a skillet and put the butter on to brown. When hot, dip both sides of the bread in the egg mixture and add to the grill. Top with your favorite syrup or jam and enjoy!

Another breakfast favorite you can make with this bread is my “clean out the crisper” Tartines.

1 bunch rainbow chard, chopped

1 onion

2 TB olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp creole “crack” (my favorite spice from Kitchen Witch store in New Orleans)

4 poached eggs

3 red chile peppers, diced (I use dedos de moca, brazilian peppers from the yard)

3-4 slices Little Northern Bakehouse bread, toasted

Saute the onion in the olive oil in a skillet until caramelizing, then add the garlic for 2 minutes, then the chard, cook down until wilted and charred. Finally, add the creole spice, heat until fragrant and heap onto the toast. Top with chile peppers to taste, and poached eggs. Sometimes I sprinkle chia seeds too for extra omega-3 action. Enjoy!

One of the most valuable lessons my Mom imparted, “You don’t have to be everything to everyone. Don’t apologize for taking time for yourself.” Rest. Mary Oliver put it, “watching until the watching turns into feeling/ so that I feel I am myself.”

Check out these sheets from Sleepletics.

As a resident physician, sleep is my preferred currency, and I bank hours in my savings account every chance I get. Got a chance to test the Celliant sheets from Sleepletics, the fabric of which is FDA-determined as a medical wellness item. It is a “responsive textile” with some sort of infrared reflective technology. Fancy that. I can say, they are comfy and, as expected, I feel energized when I wake up.

And my funny bedfellows, the bulldog and the hound, are huge fans.

One of my relaxation rituals in the last year has been to diffuse relaxing essential oils into my bedroom air an hour before I sleep, and when I wake up. Vetiver, lavender, grapefruit, spearmint, cedarwood… all favorites. If you are looking for blend recipes, the book Aromatherapy with Essential Oil Diffusers by Karin Parramore is a great place to start.

Check out Sleepletics for the sheets. Also, I have been using Doterra products and diffusers.

Finally, for relaxation, there is tea. I have been getting into making tea from the flowers in my own garden, and Growing Your Own Tea Garden by Jodi Helmer is fabulous. My disbelief is ridiculous; of course tea is from dried (or fresh!) flowers, but because I had been a person who always got tea from a cardboard box in a grocery store, I was blind to “where tea comes from.” Blush. Just flowers and leaves!

My first tea was hibiscus, which is great for blood pressure and cholesterol, among other things. I also use hibiscus tea to dye my hair red (added to henna).

I have two hibiscus plants in the yard, and all that’s needed is ½ cup of dried flowers or 1 cup of fresh blossoms added to 10 cups of boiling water! Let steep for 5 minutes, strain, and drink! Tasted delicious.

Next I’ll be brewing up my jasmine.

I feel like a hummingbird with my face sunk into a trumpet vine. Or a leaf, “Full of delight and shaking.” Happy Mother’s Day to all, but mostly to mine. Get a cup of tea and a piece of toast, and read this poem somewhere peaceful for a moment of relaxation–reward.

Summer Story

By Mary Oliver

When the hummingbird

sinks its face

into the trumpet vine

and the funnels

of the blossoms,

and the tongue

leaps out

and throbs,

I am scorched

to realize once again

how many small, available things

are in the world

that aren’t

pieces of gold

or power–

that nobody owns

or could buy even

for a hillside of money–

that just

float about the world,

or drift over the fields,

or into the gardens,

and into the tents of the vines

and how here I am

spending my time,

as the saying goes,

watching until the watching turns into feeling

so that I feel I am myself

a small bird

with a terrible hunger

with a thin beak probing and dipping

and a heart that races so fast

it is only a heartbeat ahead of breaking

and I am the hunger and the assuagement

and also I am the leaves and the blossoms,

and, like them, I am full of delight and shaking

Green Shakshuka and Sweet Pea Garden Juleps

We had our Derby hats on ‘til the finale of Jazz Fest. My favorite acts were Herbie Hancock and Erica Falls this year. The Aretha Franklin tribute with the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra featuring Erica Falls at Congo Square turned me into a human degree on the barometer. I melted and evaporated and hung suspended in the hot humid air.

And now on the other side of a transcendent two weeks, we return to the basics.

I love to eat breakfast for every meal. My favorite breakfast cookbook is this one by the editors of Extra Crispy with foreward by Hugh Acheson. It’s hilarious. There is a periodic table of eggs. Chapters titled “Muffins are Cake for Breakfast,” or “Nothing Clears a Crisper Drawer Like Green Shakshuka.” I highly recommend.

[Vegetarian] Breakfast is so easy to make all the time when you have chickens and a garden. Right now our garden is bursting with chard and peppers and the hens are laying three eggs a day! Royal purple beans are climbing up the poles beanstalks and tomatoes are curling around the trellises. Let’s eat green!

Garden Shakshuka

Adapted from Eating Well

⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 large onion, finely chopped

12 ounces chard, stemmed and chopped (save and chop the stems too!)

12 ounces mature spinach, stemmed and chopped

1 cup cauliflower heads

1 tsp Pereg zahtar

1 tsp cumin

½ cup dry white wine

1 small jalapeño or serrano pepper, thinly sliced

2 medium cloves garlic, very thinly sliced

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ teaspoon ground pepper

½ cup low-sodium no-chicken or chicken broth

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

6 large eggs

½ cup crumbled feta or goat cheese

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring often, until soft and translucent but not browned, 7 to 8 minutes. Add spices, and blend 30 seconds until fragrant. Add stems of chard and caulilflower, turn up the heat a tid bit, and cook until the cauliflower is a bit browned. Then add chard and spinach, a few handfuls at a time, and cook, stirring often, until wilted, about 5 minutes. Add wine, hot peppers, garlic, salt and pepper; cook, stirring occasionally, until the wine is absorbed and the garlic softens, 2 to 4 minutes.

Add broth and butter; cook, stirring, until the butter is melted and some of the liquid is absorbed, 1 to 2 minutes. Crack eggs over the vegetables. Cover and cook over medium-low heat until the whites are set, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and sprinkle with cheese; cover and let stand for 2 minutes before serving.

Jazz Fest always goes to my head like a julep or two. Here’s one to save for next year’s derby—using garden greens and sweet peas.

Sweet Pea Garden Mint Julep

Adapted from Eating Well

1 cup water, divided

½ cup sugar

1 cup pea greens (pea shoots), coarsely chopped, plus more for garnish

½ cup sugar snap peas, trimmed and halved

Pinch of salt

1 cup fresh mint leaves, divided, plus more for garnish

1½ cups bourbon, divided

⅓ cup lemon juice, divided

8 cups ice cubes, divided

Pea blossoms for garnish

Combine ½ cup water and sugar in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in pea greens. Let stand until cool, about 25 minutes. Strain into a small bowl and refrigerate the syrup until cold, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, combine snap peas and the remaining ½ cup water in a blender. Blend at medium speed for 1 minute. Pour through a fine-mesh sieve into a small bowl, pressing on the solids to release as much liquid as possible. Season with salt. Refrigerate the juice until cold, about 30 minutes. To prepare each cocktail: Place 2 tablespoons mint and 1½ tablespoons of the syrup in an Old-Fashioned glass. Mash the mint with a muddler or wooden spoon until lightly bruised. Add 3 tablespoons bourbon, 2 teaspoons lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of the pea juice. Add ½ cup ice cubes and stir. Top with another ½ cup ice cubes. Serve garnished with pea blossoms, additional pea greens and mint, if desired.

Oscar Donahue makes the best jewelry. Love seeing him at Jazz Fest every year!

Happy Feet at Jazz Fest with A’rcopedico and Jerk Chicken with Lime Coconut Rice

“Without Love, where would you be now?” The Doobie Brothers started our 2019 Jazz Fest off with a spirit of gratitude on Thursday. It rained real hard that first day and we huddled in the tents listening to Marsalis jazz and Meschiya Lake and the Little Bighorns; then just as the Doobie Brothers were starting, the blanket of clouds pulled back like a curtain and we stood in mud like happy crawfish, scuttling and curling our pincers to snap along.

What a delicious series of days followed. New discoveries for me were Robin Barnes (Songbird of New Orleans) and the Milk Carton Kids. Erica Falls did a tribute to Aretha Franklin that just about levelled Congo Square. And Santana seized the stage with a grand finale featuring Trombone Shorty.

My phone health app tells me that I’ve been dancing about 8-10 miles per day this year at Jazz Fest’s 50^th anniversary. It is, therefore, important to have comfortable shoes. I was delighted to have an opportunity to try A’rcopedico’s Town shoes and Harley sandals. Both are easy to style in Jazz fest fashion and both pairs lasted full days of dancing and tromping about the festival grounds (with patches of sand!)

Harley sandals (Fats Domino the bulldog approves)

Another great discovery for mornings when we are hustling to get the bikes loaded up with chairs and tarps and umbrellas, Steeped Coffee: think tea bags meets pour over coffee. I was skeptical, but they are delicious and speedy! Nice also if you are having breakfast with a non-coffee drinker and want a quick single-serve cup.

This is perfect weather to grill and dine outside, and with my dad in town, we have been enjoying garden dinners. This spiced chicken and rice was delicious!

Jerk Chicken and Lime Coconut Rice

Adapted from Eating Well

1½ teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

½ cup finely chopped yellow onion

2 tablespoons green curry paste

1 cup long-grain brown rice

1 (14 ounce) can light coconut milk

¾ cup water

2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1¼ teaspoons ground allspice

¾ teaspoon cayenne pepper

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¾ teaspoon kosher salt, divided

1½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed

1 cup frozen green peas, thawed

¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus leaves for garnish

1 tablespoon lime juice

Lime wedges for serving

Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add curry paste and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add rice and stir to coat. Add coconut milk and water; bring to a boil over high heat. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer until the rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed, 40 to 50 minutes. Meanwhile, heat a grill pan over medium-high heat. Coat with cooking spray. Mix thyme, garlic powder, allspice, cayenne, cinnamon and ½ teaspoon salt in a medium bowl. Add chicken and toss to coat. Grill the chicken, turning once, until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part registers 165°F, about 12 minutes total. Transfer the chicken to a clean cutting board and let rest. When the rice is done, stir in peas, cilantro, lime juice and the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt with a fork. Cover and let stand for 3 minutes. Serve the chicken with the rice and more cilantro and lime wedges, if desired.