Cauliflower Toasts

Cauliflower Toasts taste just like fall. Loaded with melty cheese and prosciutto, this dish is not for dieters. But the toasts are really nice with a glass of wine. This recipe  - from Ina Garten, natch - elevates the cauliflower to a next-level atmosphere.

You start by roasting the florets and then mixing them into a vat of cheese and seasonings. Before serving, top with MORE cheese and chopped chives. 

I feel like these toasts are a starter, but I easily ate a couple and was totally full. I have determined that all Barefoot Contessa recipes are very rich.  Honestly, I didn't even use as much cheese as she called for. LOL. I also do not use as much salt as the recipe calls for.

I feel like you could easily make these vegetarian by omitting the prosciutto. I don't think you would miss much flavor from that. 

I really enjoyed these and would make them again!

Since my husband was not interested in trying the toasts, I just made two at a time and used the broiler in the toaster oven. The cauliflower mixture stored well in the refrigerator, and I made a few more toasts throughout the week. 

Here you go:

Cauliflower Toasts

Serves 6

From "Cook Like a Pro"

By Ina Garten

1 small head cauliflower (2 pounds)

4 Tbsp. good olive oil

1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

12 ounces Italian mascarpone cheese, at room temperature

6 ounces Gruyere cheese, grated

4 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto, julienned

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

6 large slices country-style bread

Paprika

Freshly grated Italian Parmesan cheese

2 Tbsp. minced fresh chives

Flaked sea salt, such as Maldon

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Turn the cauliflower upside down on a cutting board. Cut off and discard must but not all of the stems, then cut the florets into small 1/2-inch clusters. Place the florets on a sheet pan. Toss them with olive oil, red pepper flakes, 1 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. black pepper, and spread them out in a single layer. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes, tossing two or three times, until the florets are tender and randomly browned. Set aside to cool for 10 minutes.

Set the oven to broil and arrange a rack 6 inches below the heat.

Transfer the florets to a large mixing bowl and add the mascarpone, stirring to coat the florets evenly. Stir in the Gruyere, prosciutto, nutmeg, 1 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. black pepper.

Toast the bread in a toaster until lightly browned, and place in a single layer on a sheet pan lined with foil. Mound the cauliflower mixture evenly on each toast and dust with paprika. Broil the toasts for 2 to 4 minutes, until browned and bubbling. (Watch them carefully). Transfer to plates and sprinkle with Parmesan, chives and sea salt. Serve hot.

Prosciutto Peach Bites

My Prosciutto Peach Bites will totally spruce up your appetizer spread for your next summer soiree. The color and flavor are everything. You got your sweet from the peach, your salty from the prosciutto, your creamy from the mozzarella, your freshness from the basil, and finally your zing from a little lemon drizzle. You don't want to overdo it on the dressing. Just a hint.

You can make these in an assembly line. Set up on a platter and drizzle with the lemon oil. And, you're done.

Individual serving appetizers always class up the joint, right?

This goes well with wine and any cocktail. For sure!

Prosciutto Peach Bites
(Makes 24)

Ingredients:
2 medium ripe peaches, cut into 24 1-inch bite-sized pieces
Fresh mozzarella, cut into 24 1-inch bite-sized pieces
4 slices of prosciutto, cut into 6 strips to wrap around the peach pieces
12 medium basil leaves, cut in half
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
2 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
A pinch of salt
Fresh black pepper to taste
24 toothpicks

Instructions:
Place peach piece on top of prosciutto slice. Wrap prosciutto around peach.

Place 1 basil piece on top of 1 mozzarella slice.

Place prepared peach on top of prepared mozzarella slice.

Gently connect the pieces with a toothpick.

Repeat 23 more times. Set prepared bites on serving platter.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl whisk together lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Lightly drizzle over prepared bites.

Serve!

Marinated Mozzarella

This is the time of year people start thinking about their showstopping party aps for the Super Bowl. Ok, well maybe not everybody. But the Jersey Girl totally does. I mean honestly, the only thing I care about during the Super Bowl is the food and the half-time show.

Marinated Mozzarella is my go-to. I've been making this literally for a million years. Well, maybe 15, but ….same thing!

I like to serve my marinated mozzarella with toasted garlic baguette, prosciutto, sliced tomato or grape tomatoes and some basil. But you can do whatever you please and it's perfectly rockin' on its own atop your fave cracker.

Your guests will love it no matter what!

Marinated Mozzarella with Garlic Toasts
(Makes 24 servings)

For the mozzarella:
2 to 3 medium balls of fresh mozzarella, drained and sliced
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. dried parsley
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
Salt and fresh pepper to taste
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Combine all dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Add olive oil. Whisk until well blended. Place mozzarella slices in the bowl. Gently fold mozzarella into oil and herb mixture. Let mozzarella rest for at least an hour at room temperature. Stir occasionally.

For the Garlic Toasts:
1 clove of garlic, peeled and cut in half
1 long loaf of crusty Italian bread or French baguette

Preheat broiler.

Slice bread with a serrated knife. Rub each slice with garlic on both sides. Place on a baking sheet. Toast under the broiler for a minute or two. Flip slices to toast both sides. Keep a watchful eye on your broiler!

Serve mozzarella and toasts with thinly sliced prosciutto, fresh basil and tomato slices or grape tomatoes, if in season.

Late Night Pasta

During the school year, my din din often goes down around 10 p.m. with a glass of vino and some DVR'd trash TV.

Piano teachers get on the clock once the school dismissal bell rings out, so this leads to some interesting eating times.

Me - I like to fine dine when everybody packs up and leaves and my brain is clear of Mozart, scales and phrasing. The kid is in bed. Oh, and the school forms are signed. The school lunch is packed up. The laundry is started. The great room is tidied. The mail is sorted.

I mean really, does it ever end?

So yeah, then I eat dinner.

Here's a perfect recipe for such cirumstances:

Spaghettini with Prosciutto, Peas and Arugula.

It comes together in 20 minutes and is just right for good eats after a working momma finishes her day.

My recipe serves one, but you can easily double or quadruple it for the fam.

Spaghettini with Prosciutto, Peas and Arugula
Serves one

4 ounces spaghettini
Olive oil
1 fat scallion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
1-2 thin slices of proscuitto, chopped
1/4 cup frozen peas
2 cups arugula
1/4 cup half and half
Pasta water
Salt and pepper to taste
Parmiggiano to taste, grated

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook your pasta as instructed on the package.

In a large saucepan, add olive oil. Heat over medium heat. Add scallions, garlic, red pepper flakes. After 3-4 minutes, add the prosciutto. Raise heat slightly. Saute for five more minutes. Season with pepper and a little bit of salt. (The prosciutto brings saltiness to the game.)

Add half and half and a ladle of pasta water. Add peas. Cook until peas are heated through and the sauce bubbles a bit.

Add pasta and arugula. Toss. Add another ladle of pasta water. You can add a splash of half and half, too, if you desire.

Turn off the heat. Add a drizzle of olive oil.

Top with parmiggiano.

Enjoy with your fave wine, a mindless show and solitude.

That Girl

You know those annoying posters on food Web sites who say they made the recipe BUT they changed this, this and that? God, those people are the WORST.

Yeah. I'm THAT girl today.

So the recipe I'm rockin' out to y'all involves grilled bread, but The Jersey Girl lives in a grill-less house. Say what?!?

I know.

It's a long, boring story that I've probably mentioned previously on my dusty blog. In a nutshell, The Jersey Girl's humble abode stands atop Jersey land that is surrounded by blueberry fields (natch) and when the wind howls across our terrain, it's pretty fierce and strong and insanely loud and it decided to take down The Husband's shiny meat-cooker one too many times. Therefore, my better half's cooking pride and joy swims with the fishes in a Jersey landfill somewhere over the rainbow. Of course a grill will be in the mix, when Deck Project Jersey Girl Style 2013 comes to fruition. (See, Husband. I'm writing about the fantasy deck to make it seem.... real.)

So I made my Grilled Bread with Prosciutto by using the oven's broiler. It's totally fab as are all the Barefoot Contessa recipes that I try. Totally recommend with a glass of wine. Really, what doesn't go with some vino, that is the question. Serve at your next cocktail party, mmmmkay?! Cause you know, parents of toddlers are ALWAYS throwing cocktail parties. (With themselves and Elmo.)

I am including some pics of the yumminess as well as my almost-2-year-old yumminess, Evan. He's been loving the whole Halloween scene. He rocked his pirate costume three times. (Totally worth the dollas. Thanks, Party City!) And we took him on a hayride extravaganza in Egg Harbor City on the Saturday before Hurricane Sandy. The romp in the hay - awesome; the storm - not so much.

In case you were wondering, all The Jersey Girl familia is safe and sound.

Grilled Bread with Prosciutto
(Makes 6 slices)
From "Barefoot Contessa How Easy is That?"
By Ina Garten

6 slices good Tuscan round bread, sliced 3/4 inch thick
1 large garlic clove, cut in half
Good olive oil
2 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto, torn in pieces
2 ounces smoked mozzarella, grated
3 Tbsp. minced fresh parsley

Prepare a charcoal grill with medium-hot coals or turn gas grill to medium-high heat.

Grill the bread for 2 minutes until golden on one side. Place the bread grilled side up on a platter and immediately rub the cut side of the garlic clove over the surface of the bread. For really garlicky fettunta, rub hard. Drizzle a tablespoon of olive oil over each slice of bread.

Place the torn prosciutto over the grilled side of the bread and top with the grated mozzarella. Return the bread to the hot grill, cover the grill, and cook for 1 to 2 minutes - just long enough to melt the cheese and rewarm the toast. (Be sure the vent is open so the fire doesn't go out!) Drizzle with a little more olive oil, sprinkle with parsley, salt and pepper and serve hot.

Please note: The Jersey Girl made her toasts using her oven's broiler.

Actin' a Fool

Shopping on the Internets after a night of boozing?

Probably not such a grand idea.

But, the Jersey Girl thought it was an AWESOME thing to do a few years ago while visiting my sis Monica and b-i-l Jason down in Alexandria, Va.

Along with The Husband, we had just gone out for some good eats and major wine consumption, when talk turned to cookbooks. “The Silver Spoon” had recently been translated to anglaise, and as a collector of all things books and cooking, I knew this bazillion-pager was my soulmate. According to many published reports, “The Silver Spoon” is a super duper popular cookbook in the motherland a.k.a. Italy. It is also the self-proclaimed “bible of authentic Italian cooking.”

Yes, please.

I had spent the previous day perusing my sister’s copy from cover-to-cover and took to the book this same delightful evening of inebriation.

Not surprisingly, my next course of action was hijacking the laptop and placing an order on Amazon.

I was thrilled to see the book was a fab price – it was like 25 smackaroos.

But here’s the catch: Thanks to shaky fingers, blurred vision, mindless chitchat and a nightcap, no doubt, The Jersey Girl clicked “Overnight Super Expensive Really Majorly Concorde Fast Shipping” rather than my usual “Super Saver Free Shipping Get It Sometime Next Week” box.

Superb, Susan. Good job!

So, yeah. The book totally beat us home. But traffic on I-95 from D.C. is killer, OK.

And it cost about $70 when all is said and done because I think I added a novel or something to my purchase to get the free shipping.

Oh, the irony.

The Husband razzes me about this fine moment to this day.

It happened like three years ago.

Despite my shopping gaffe, “The Silver Spoon” is fabu.

Here is a rockin’ asparagrass recipe from its many pages. Yes, I know it’s ASPARAGUS. But the Jersey Girl has her own lingo in her own little world.

The recipe rocks. I blanched the asparagus for just about 9 minutes, instead of the 15 as called for in the recipe. I don’t groove on mushy asparagrass. I also ixnayed the toothpicks. Waste of time. You don’t need them. And, I cut down on the butta. Plus, I melted the butter. God, as I’m writing this, I guess you could say I didn’t really follow “The Silver Spoon” recipe too well. Ooops.

Asparagus Rolls
From “The Silver Spoon”
Serves 4

2 ¼ pounds asparagus, spears trimmed
¼ cup butter, plus extra for greasing
3 ½ ounces prosciutto, sliced
Scant 1 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
Salt

Cook the asparagus in salted, boiling water for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease an ovenproof dish with butter. Drain the asparagus and gently pat dry. Spread out the prosciutto on the counter, lay two large or three small asparagus spears on each slice, roll up and fasten each roulade with a toothpick. Place the rolls in the prepared dish. Sprinkle with Parmesan, dot with butter and bake for 10 minutes. Serve immediately.

Please note: The Jersey Girl blanched the asparagus for 9 minutes, did not use toothpicks, and used just 2 Tbsp. of butter, rather than ¼ cup.

Designer Pizza

Being a food snob means I scoff at takeout pizza. Ditto for fast food, frozen dinners and canned soup.

Yes, I’ve eaten all of the above-mentioned things at some point.

But it never brought me happy thoughts or joyful feelings. It probably just made me feel like a big fat cow.

Truth: I gave up fast food for Lent junior year in college. I’ve never returned since. And that was in the year 199….. er, a really long, long time ago. I was probably listening to Garbage or Dave Matthews or Fiona Apple. So, you do the math. Also during this time, I quit soda and potato chips. OK, I may eat a potato chip like two times a year now. But that’s it. Honest.

If you want happiness for your soul, then make a pizza. I love the anticipation to see how it turns out. You open the hot oven and the scent of sweet garlic and creamy mozzarella and baked bread smacks you in the face. And it looks all golden and fab. And your inner monologue is something like, "OMG. I made THIS. And it's going to be way delish. Yay. Super yay. Super fly yay!"

This week, we had Pizza with Carmelized Red Onions, Fresh Mozzarella, Basil and Prosciutto.

I’m pretty sure that’s not on the menu at Domino’s.

The combo of onions, mozzarella, basil and prosciutto is fantastically awesome. The red pepper flakes give it a major kick. The Husband  loved the spiciness. You can totally omit the red pepper if you'd like.

With the pizza, of course, came a salad: Baby Spinach with Citrus Dressing. So yummy, OMG. Making salad dressing is SO easy. Seriously.

Bottled salad dressing is also on my Shun List. So are mullets, Uggs, leggings and fake neon nails. But, I digress.

The spinach salad is so light and refreshing. Love. In the pic that my personal Paul Child aka Mark shot, you can totally see the delightful flecks of orange zest. So gorg.

Baby Spinach Salad with Citrus Dressing
(Makes 3 to 4 servings)

8 ounces baby spinach, washed and dried
½ small red onion, thinly sliced
Citrus Dressing (see below)

Place spinach and red onion in a bowl. Set aside.

Citrus Dressing
1 lemon, zest and juice
1 small orange, zest and juice
½ tsp. dried thyme
1/3 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste.

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl. Whisk together. Pour over baby spinach and onions when ready to serve.

Pizza With Carmelized Red Onions, Prosciutto and Basil
Pizza dough from bakery or pizza shop
1 large red onion sliced
4 garlic cloves, sliced
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
Olive oil
Thinly cut prosciutto
Fresh mozzarella, not in water, sliced
20 basil leaves, washed and dried
Salt and pepper to taste

Roll out pizza dough so that it fits into a standard cookie baking sheet. With the tines of a fork, poke holes all over the dough. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and set aside. I usually do this at least 2 hours ahead.

In a medium pan, heat 2 Tbsp. olive oil and sauté red onion until fragrant. About 10 minutes. Add red pepper flakes and garlic. Saute for about 4-5 minutes. Note: You can do this step ahead.

When you are ready to make the pizza:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Remove kitchen towel. Place tray with pizza dough in oven and bake for 6 to 10 minutes to lightly brown the bottom of the crust. (You can check to see if the bottom browned by gently lifting with a spatula).

Remove browned crust from oven. Scatter sautéed red onion and garlic mixture all over the crust. Top with fresh mozzarella. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle olive oil on top of mozzarella. Bake for 12-14 minutes until crust is golden brown.

Remove pizza from oven.

Top with prosciutto slices and basil. After about five minutes, cut and serve.

For more homemade pizza recipes, please click here.