The Perfect Parfait

 This is the time for cool treats and nothing says that better than a parfait. It could be a lovely way to start the day? It can be a cool treat after a barbecue .Anyway you have it 's a nice treat on a hot August day,,

As expected the parfait  was created by the French around 1890. The original recipe was the basis for our frozen custards of today. French chefs cooked eggs sugar and cream together as a custard then frozen. There are two versions. the french one which is made with whipped cream, simple syrup and any kind of flavoring, namely fruit. It's then poured into a tin, much like its' Italian cousin the semifreddo. Egg yolks are added , much like the original recipe to give it body. The American version is more layered like a sundae. There is also a Japanese one with a base layer of cornflakes! it also has more whipped cream and gelatin cubes than the American one. A breakfast parfait is a different and fun way to start the day. Use Greek yogurt which is thicker and has more body than the American and layer with different ingredients.Add old fashioned oats and for more nutrition and good helping of chia seeds. You could add frozen fruit but fresh is better especially now with all the harvests happening right now. Layer with sliced peaches and strawberries for a tasty treat.Sliced bananas and blueberries also work. Keep in mind that you can have this as a mid afternoon snack too. Add chocolate chips for some flavor and a boost of energy.

An ice cream parfait is a lovely way to use the fruit of the season along with good ice cream., As for the ice cream , you can make it yourself or get a good brand . A simple yet elegant one is layers if vanilla ice cream and fresh cut fruit. Try a French vanilla with pitted and chopped cherries is also good. You can do the same with other fruit for the season like peaches and strawberries. If you want more layers, add  crumbled vanilla wafers like Lidl's or Nabiscos and top with whipped cream. Of course a chocolate version is also  doable and delicious. Layer chocolate ice cream with strawberries or chopped , pitted cherries. Add a good chocolate syrup such as U-Bet or Fox's. (Hershey's also work well here).Top with a blob of whipped cream and more fruit. You can add a layer of cookie or even chocolate cake here too. A decadent dessert is a tiramisu su one. It starts with a homemade ice cream made from a mix of mascapone cheese and evaporated milk. Beat together until stiff peaks form and freeze until ready to use. You can also use coffee ice cream too. Cake is the base here and it's soaking either vanilla or chocolate pound cake in espresso. Layer the ice cream and cake, sort of like mini trifles .You can also sprinkle on cocoa powder too to give it a mocha flavor. Top with whipped cream and more powdered chocolate.

Beat the heat with the perfect parfait. You can make one for a breakfast treat or have one after a barbecue. Either way they're cool and delightful.

Cold Salad Days

 let's face it .August is hot. That means easy and simple dishes. That means salads of any sort and any kind. They don;t have to be the green lettuce and tomato kind.They could be created from other ingredients.

I feel that way during these sticky humid days. It's hot prepping. It's hot cooking. it;s hot washing up a ton of dishes. This is why salads come in handy. One of my favorites is the Neopolitan bread salad made super easy by using croutons and just tomatoes chopped and marinated in oil.

Scallions were added for a bit of color too. I added a handful of  Fresh Gourmet garlic and butter croutons. The company also has other flavors like Texas toast and Caesar Parmesan. Add what you want and have fun with it.

It makes for a yummy salad. You could add onions like the original or even pepperoni slices to give it more depth.

This was a sweet and savory crunchy blend that was just perfect for a sweltering day like today. If you want protein then go for a three bean salad. You can add peppers if you want or onions. 

This is a mix if canellini beans, chickpeas and red kidney beans. It's a great source of protein for vegetarians and vegans. You could add corn , avocado slices and sliced cherry tomatoes for a spin on cowboy caviar. 

Keep in mind you only need four extra ingredients for a successful salad.

Use a good olive oil like Lidl's. It;s light and lets the other ingredients shine. The same goes for vinegar. I prefer Acme's Signature red wine. As for salt  - you don't need the fancy sea salt to flavor. It should be a supporting player .I used Stop and Shop's but you can use any brand. Fresh ground pepper ,like Lidl's give some bite and is better than already ground. Other good salad ingredients are onion and garlic powder a long with paprika for mayo based potato salads.

It's August. It's hot. Make a filling salad for dinner. It's an easy and tasty fix.

Kamala For COTUS

 Is it I'm[ortant for a candidate to be relatable to their constituents? Yes. Even better is that they cook which is always relatable. What would make for a good COTUS Cook Of The United States? Someone who loves cooking and a good sit down family meal. Someone like Kamala Harris.

Regular contributor Kim Severson wrote about the presidential candidate in yesterday's New York Times  Wednesday Food section. A few presidents were known to cook. Dwight Eisenhower famously liked to grill steaks in the White House back yard. Abe Lincoln was known to put on an apron and help out. Yet Vice President. Harris goes the extra mile. She is in charge of her family's Sunday meals where she creates the family favorite spaghetti Bolognese. Yet she also embraces her  South Indian roots. She has cooked with the actor Mindy Kaling where they made dosas, a type of crepe , popular with street vendors and a potato curry.Of course she has also make monster cookies with a young voter, Avery in Iowa. She also cooked apples and bacon with her Iowa's campaign chair. She made sure both ingredients were from Iowa. Unlike other candidates she also scrolls through YouTube  to study videos. During the pandemic she took to Instagram where she got a lesson in egg cookery from famed chef Jose Andres.

Not surprisingly Ms Harris learned cooking from her mother Shyamala Gopalan. Theirs is a vegetarian cuisine thanks to their Hindi religion so Ms Harris grew up with vegetable samosas and dal, She also has favorites  such as Marcella Hazan and Alice Waters cookbooks. She had even mentioned that she'd like to write her own one day on Jennifer Hudson's talk show.Her cooking skills are as smooth as her political ones. She's known to crack an egg with one hand and chopped an onion so well that it impressed chef Tom Colicchio. The Harris- Emhoff kitchen is more a kitchen belonging to a professional chef than a possible future president. She owns enamel skillets a gas range and a crock next to a stove overflowing with spatulas and spoons, Yet cooking is more than a hobby.It centers and grounds the busy pol.It makes her feel normal, especially after a busy week. There is nothing like cooking for her husband and bonus children. She feels in control with cooking whether it's making family recipes or dry brining a turkey with salt and pepper. If she is elected she will have to say goodbye to some of this. She can still cook but with an army of help to cut , chop and prep.

It will be a crazy race for the next few months. Luckily Vice President Harris can turn to her cooking for calm and serenity It helps dealing with the wildness of this presidential election.

Tomato 's Versatility

 It is the height of the tomato season. They're everywhere, in sandwiches , gracing salads, and starring in sauces. Can there be any more recipes regarding these bright red gems/ yes. There different takes on classic recipes that re sure to please even those that are tired of these beauties.

Regular contributor Emily Weinstein give five recipes in today's New York Times Wednesday's Food section.Yes, Ms Weinstein loves them sliced with a sprinkle of salt  but tomatoes can also shine in other dishes by other Food section contributors. Melissa Clark gives an interesting one  - gingery meatballs with an Asian influenced tomato sauce that has soy sauce instead of olive oil in it. It's a nice difference from the usual meatballs and sauce. The meatballs have the bite of ginger while soy sauce brings out the tomatoes/ sweetness.Serve this with rice instead of pasta.Caroline Geler' grates her tomatoes sort of like the Spinish pan tomat but these are used as a sauce for butter fried salmon. The fish is sauteed first and then the tomatoes are added on one side of the skillet. It and the salmon are simmered for twenty-five to thirty minutes in a covered pan. Another seafood dish is shrimp with okra and tomatoes. To be honest the veggies are not ones that most would combine but the three ingredients do give off a Cajun vibe.Kia Damon contributed this and she also adds smoked paprika and oregano for more flavor.

The most luxurious dish is from Christian. Reynoso food blogger and San Francisco chef.His I'd fresh tomato ,basil and prosciutto pasta. The sauce is a lush mix of these ingredients along with fresh ricotta added in.Think of it as a semi cooked or semo cotto salsa cruda with the tomatoes being only partially cooked. The pasta  - namely spaghetti - is added to this. fresh basil is shredded and them sprinkled on the pasta and sauce. Slices of paper thin prosciutto are draped over each plate and then a dollop of ricotta is added to it. It's a lovely sweet salty blend of flavors. Tomato lovers can also try Hetty Liu McKinnon's dumpling tomato salad with chili crisp vinaigrette. This is a popular recipe with Times readers. Home chefs can use any frozen brand of pot stickers. These are fried and put on a bed of sliced tomatoes. The chili crisp vinaigrette is a blend of rice wine vinegar and soy sauce to give it an Asian vibe. The dish can be either vegetarian with vegetable stuffed dumplings or a meaty one filled with pork or shrimp.

Tomatoes add to any dish.Try any of these recipes  for your garden' s harvest.They're tasty and delicious ,perfect ways to highlight these gems.

Picking Vacations

 August is the time for vacations but it;s also the time for many harvests. If you have the chance check out farms in the area where you';ll be staying. A cool day could provide with some tasty harvests and fun .

The New Jersey shore is always a fun place to stay. There;s the ocean, the Boardwalks and surprisingly enough some nearby fruit and veggie farms. If you have the chance go visit the many that dot the Southern part of the Garden State.Visit Angelo's Farm market in Mullica They offer everything from peaches   now out to strawberries. Go in the fall for a weekend trip and trie their many different fruit pies.There is also Beach Plum Farm in West  Cape May. They not only have produce raised on their farm , there is also a farm to table restaurant and best of all all sorts of cottages to stay in, There is the Whaler';s a cottage from the 1700;s to the Winona , a prefab house that Sears Roebuck sold between 1927 and 1932 to name a few. It's a great place to relax but also pick up some tips on how to cook with just picked fruits and vegetables. There also also lesson and lectures about sustainable farming too. Salem County , one of the state's southernmost ones offer a variety of good farms not farm from the WIldwoods and Atlantic City.

New York State has some great ocean side and lake side resorts, yet there are also many farms located near them. Yes, the Hamptons attract all sorts of celebs and beautiful people. Yet the area was farmland first and there are still some excellent steads nearby. Ina Garten, the iconic chef and Hamptons dweller probably has visited East End Community Farms This is a collaborative where local farmers grow and sell produce as well as artesanal bread The North Fork of the Ilsand is known for its calm waters and down to earth atmosphere. It 's also a great place to vacation and check out such local farms as harbes Family Farm. They offer some of Long Island's best as far as produce with tomatoes and strawberries, Soon enough their apple orchards will open and there will be apple picking. Cape Cod, a well loved destination also has its share of farms. COntact Crow Farms outside of historic Sandwich Massachusetts, They offer a  pick your own which could be anything from broccoli to tomatoes.

Try something different this vacation. Go to a farm one day instead of the beach. Enjoy picking or picking out fresh produce . It's a fun alternative and a great way of enjoying local harvests.

A Cool Hot Salad

 A hot salad might seem ridiculous on a sweltering summer day yet it's actually a good idea. Air fried leaves are not only sweeter and tastier  but add texture to a normally boring salad. Any type of  can be used to create a unique blend of veggies and dressing.

I used Romaine lettuce.It does have the best flavor when air fried and served as a nice base for Roma tomatoes.

These were bought from my local Farmer;s Market and were just washed before air frying.

I then brushed Lidl's olive oil on both sides

If you just had the leaves, you could add salt pepper, and a mix of herbs for more flavor. 

My air fryer basket is round so the leaves had to be curved to fit in,. You really should lay them out straight if your air fryer basket has the room. IF not try to fit them in the basket. It's them airfrying them for about four minutes at 380 degrees Farenheit. This ensures that the leaves are not only crisped but also cooked.

As far  as other veggies , just keep it simple. I added sliced Roma tomatoes which give a lovely juiciness to the salad and to the dressing. The dressing was Follow Your  Heart Vegan dressing in ranch which worked very well with both the Romaine and the tomatoes.

Air fried Romaine really is a delicious addition. The next time I will probably add croutons for some crunch and more flavor. You can add them or even the Parmesan cheese rounds groceries shells. A handful of sunflower seeds would also be a nice addition as well.

A hot salad on a hot day ?It's actually a perfect summer meal. Try air fryer salad for a cool take on a warm weather classic.

Barbecue On A Budget

 Happiness is a barbecue yet it can get expensive? What to do ? You can cut corners and still have a tasty spread. It's just knowing how to budget and create flavorful dishes.

A barbecue and garden produce go hand in hand. You can easily take those early ripened beefsteaks and use those to top burgers. They also are great for all sorts of salad too.One of my favorites, panzanella requires just sliced tomatoes - any kind, fresh basil chiffonaded and olive oil. Garlic from the garden can flavor the salad and any salad for that matter.If you;re luckily enough to have corn in your garden take advantage of it. Grilled corn is a great side but it can also be used in corn salads for a different take on barbecue dishes. Add onions tomatoes and cucumber for a tasty colorful dish. A simple vinaigrette is perfect here so it can let all the different flavors shine.Shiny, purple eggplant are gracing garden patches right now and it's time to enjoy their creamy textured and earthy flavor. These are a great meat sub for any barbecue and they can be barbecued in a variety of ways.Brush slices with an herbal oil and grill both sides for a few minutes. A homemade bruschetta is also a great topping for eggplant along with Parmesan cheese too.

Of course there are great stores like Lidl that can help you with a budget barbecue. Try their onion burgers which taste like the burgers your mom and Gran made. These have bits of sweet onion in them. Lidl' also has pure beef and turkey patties too , ranging anywhere from $11.99 to $7.99 Walmart also has a good price on the meat patties being a dollar more than Lidl (although I think Lidl has the more flavorful patties)Bubba 's Burgers which can be bought almost everywhere are also a  good deal. Acme me has a twelve pack of the turkey kind for $9.99 . Keep in mind you can also sub in veggie and bean burgers too.Are homemade bean burgers just as moist and tasty as the store bought ones? Yes and much cheaper too. It's a mix of black beans (which are usually sixty cents a can), bread crumbs and a egg. These last are for binding. You can add chopped onions as you would with regular burgers. Spices such as ground ancho peppers and chipotle also give some zing and zest. 

You can have a good barbecue on a budget.It's just takes planning and ingenuity. Try it for some delicious flavors at low cost.