Pumpkin Pie Sorbet

Other than my blender and my food processor, I have never used a kitchen gadget as much as I've used this ice cream maker. You can make ice cream out of anything! Sorbet is actually my preference, and it's a great way to use up overripe fruit! The other day I picked up a bag of frozen strawberries, thawed them and then put them in the blender with some simple syrup and a little bit of water. So fresh tasting and such a strong and amazing strawberry flavor! You can take any juice and make a quick sorbet - fresh squeezed orange juice, or lemonade. Toss in some yogurt to make frozen yogurt. It's endless.

So I wondered what a pumpkin sorbet would taste like? I had pumpkin on the brain because of Halloween of course, so I went to pick up a can of pumpkin. But they were out of the plain pumpkin, and just had the pumpkin pie mix. Not a big deal, it's still obviously pumpkin, but it is already sweetened and spiced. Not much left for me to do!

I dumped the can of mix into the ice cream maker and poured in a healthy splash of half & half. Or was it heavy cream? Can't remember... you can use either. Or, none at all.

15 minutes later....

What can I say. If you like pumpkin pie - you will LOVE this. It's best fresh. If you are going to make it ahead, I'd probably add more cream to it so it doesn't freeze too hard.

POTATO TACOS

When I was a kid, this was one of my most favorite things! We called them potato tacos. It is my Dad's recipe, and I believe the story was that he got the idea from a street vendor in Mexico. No one I have ever talked to has ever heard of tacos with potatoes mixed in - including the many Mexican-Americans I have asked. So, maybe it didn't come from Mexico. Or, maybe it did, but it was just that one street vendor's special recipe? Everyone who has tried them loves them. It's different, but familiar at the same time. You gotta try it!

Mixing potato with meat is certainly a good way to stretch a buck, and in this case, it gives a whole new twist to something we have all had a million times, in a million different ways. The traditional recipe is simply ground beef mixed with equal parts potato (boiled is fine) and then it's put into a flour tortilla and fried.

You can also mix some chopped cilantro and diced onion into the filling.

Fill a large flour tortilla, then fold it in half and fry the tacos in batches in a little bit of oil until golden on both sides.

When done, garnish with all your favorites. I like shredded lettuce, cheese, a little sour cream, fresh diced tomatoes and hot sauce!

HOW TO MAKE PIZZA

Pizza anyone?

Our new babysitter-slash "private preschool" is just awesome. She has so many activities for the girls and the fun just never ends over there. It's apparently so fun that now, when at home with "Mom," CZ is bored to tears most of the time.

The other day for lunch I decided to make a pizza, then I thought, hmmmm... I might as well let CZ help me make it? It would be a fun activity. Something the "baby-sitter" might let the kids help with. She's only 2 1/2, but it's not dangerous at all (no sharp sharp knives or hot frying pans spitting oil everywhere).

On this day, we chose a classic tomato sauce.

1 can tomato paste. A good splash of olive oil. A little salt & pepper. A pinch of dried oregano -- I don't have fresh oregano. The snails always eat it. The only thing I can grow here is rosemary. Anyway, I also added a clove of chopped garlic.

CZ stirred the sauce. Standing on a chair.

Taste it, make sure it's good before you slather it all over your pizza!

You can make your own crust, if you're into that sort of thing. I am not into making crust by scratch, so don't come to me for a dough recipe. I use store-bought pizza dough.

Add the sauce, the cheese, and if you like, other stuff. Bake it at 450 until golden and bubbly and not too burnt on the bottom because toddlers don't like things too "dark."

Perfect!

Enjoy!

Sauteed Clam. Appetizer?

Isn't it cute. The little clam.

Last week we went to the beach. The water is nice and warm this time of year here in southern California, and the tourists are now gone, so we can finally enjoy our beach again!

While out in the surf, I wasn't exactly looking for food, I was just looking for seashells for my daughter to play with. It's funny though, because we were just talking about clamming and wondering if you can just find clams on any beach, or if they were more fond of certain conditions, like say colder water or whatever. We don't know. We just buy them. But this day I found one! Guess that answers the question of whether you can just find them anywhere. I found one in Newport Beach. It looked healthy, definitely looked alive... he was closed tightly. And I'm not sure what type of clam it was - but the shell was quite thick and strong. Not what you typically see in the stores. It was buried in the sand, but the surf uncovered it, and I picked him up!

So, there he is. Cute little clam. I don't even like clams, but hubby does, and he didn't hesitate for one second when I asked him if he wanted to take it home and cook it, "Absolutely!" he said.

But how do we even know if it's an edible variety, I wondered? He wasn't worried. so we brought it home. And I cooked it.

I was sauteing some diced peppers and garlic for our dinner, so I tossed the clam into the pan. And then added some white wine. And then we waited for the clam to open.

....... and we waited.

He wasn't giving up without a fight. That thick shell I guess just takes longer to heat up, because it took a while to open! I thought it was probably dead. But then all of a sudden...

Ahhh! There he is!!!

I don't like clams or mussels myself, but I do cook them for hubby. It's been a while since I cooked any though, and usually I presoak them in water with some flour, and that will make them expel any sand. This was one time we really needed to do this, and I forgot. This little guy was filled with sand! Hubby ate it anyway though. I could have rinsed it off, but he ate it before I had the chance. Said it was gritty, but still delicious! :)

TOMATO CROUTON SALAD

The good tomatoes will be gone before you know it! Enjoy them while you can!

This recipe is a really quick & simple way to enjoy the tomatoes and highlight their natural flavors without overpowering them with dressings or cooking them. It's light and fresh.

Chop fresh heirloom or other summer tomatoes into bite sized cubes.

If you have any leftover baguette bread, cut it into small cubes and put on a cookie sheet - drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper, and cook on 350 until golden brown. If you don't want to make your own, that's fine... just use croutons!

When ready to serve, toss the tomatoes and the croutons, and that's it! Serve immediately before the bread gets soggy. No dressing needed because the tomatoes are juicy enough. Season to taste with salt & pepper. Fresh grated Parmesan is optional, but adds extra flavor and a bit of richness.

WARM ROASTED NUTS WITH TRUFFLE OIL AND SEA SALT

I love these. Fresh roasted almonds and filberts. Great snack. Healthy. Rich in protein. Good on salads, sprinkled on top of pasta or on pan seared chicken.

You can't get that fresh taste buying them already roasted. You have to do it yourself.

Buy raw nuts -- whatever kind floats your boat -- and keep them tightly sealed and stored in the refrigerator until ready to use. In a 325-350 oven, roast for around 15 minutes, or until they are golden brown inside, as seen below. I like to use the sliced almonds, and they cook faster than the filberts do obviously.

When done, while still warm - drizzle with a little of your favorite flavored oil (truffle oil, chili oil, garlic oil) and then sprinkle with flakey sea salt and toss to coat.

FRIED ARTICHOKES

I was going to grill the artichokes. Then, changed my mind. How about fried?

I was at the Vietnamese market on Sunday and found these very nice, small artichokes. Most of their produce is grown locally, and it's all very fresh - these artichokes were small, but very nice. When looking for fresh artichokes, picked at the right time, look for ones with the leaves snug like this (below). Not that the ones with the leaves spiked out aren't good, but these are what you'd pick, if you had the choice between the two.

Anyone who is familiar with artichokes knows they take a little while to cook. You can't just toss them on the grill for 10 minutes and then serve 'em up. And artichokes are one of the few vegetables that just do not taste good raw. Or even half raw. So you gotta cook them all the way through. What I like to do is trim then tough leaves off, then put them in the pressure cooker for a bit to steam, this speeds up the process quite a bit.

Another thing that speeds cooking, and makes them a little nicer to eat, is trimming off the tough outer leaves. The tender part remains -- but the yucky outside leaves are gone. A sharp knife is needed - my vintage Wusthof carver works perfect; the small, stiff carbon steel blade easily cuts through the tough leaves.

The ones last night were smaller, tender leaved artichokes, but with the larger ones I also trim off the tops (below). This way you don't get pricked with the thorns!

Now, the cooking part.

Into the pressure cooker. Once it starts steaming, I let them cook until I am able to smell them. This is a good indication they are ready to remove. It goes fast though, so pay attention or you could end up with mush. As soon as you smell the artichokes - turn off the heat and let the steam out. I love my pressure cooker. I prefer the European models, like this SEB. I like the safety top and the design of the lid.

Out of the water, they are cooked through but still a little firm so I can cut them. Starting at the bottom, I cut through quickly with a sharp knife. A thin flexible blade works best here... and another one of my favorites, my vintage Pernot carbon steel slicer. Goes through anything like it was butter.

Once cut in half, you can leave as-is, or cut again into quarters, which is what I did. In a large fry pan, coat the bottom with about 1/4" olive or vegetable oil. When hot, gently put the pieces in and cook on med/high until crisp and golden. Remove from pan, drain on paper towels and sprinkle with salt.

I also made a quick dipping sauce:

2 parts mayo

2 parts ketchup

1 part yellow mustard

1 part water - to thin it

fresh ground black pepper

1 teaspoon chili powder

2 tablespoons lemon juice

Stir until creamy.

Serve family style, as an appetizer.