The World's Easiest Tomato Tart

Another great pinterest find! I had to bring appetizers to two different parties last weekend (as well as 2-3 dozen cookies to each), so I wanted something simple, yet classy and tasty. This fit the bill perfectly. It's from babble and I doubled the amounts to make the two pictured.

1 sheet puff pastry, defrosted

2-3 large tomatoes, or a handful of cherry tomatoes, cored and sliced

2-3 branches fresh thyme

1 T. good quality olive oil

Pepper

a generous pinche of Sea Salt

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF. Line a jelly roll pan with parchment paper or a Silpat. Place the puff pastry on the lined baking sheet and lightly score a 1/2″ border around the edge with a sharp knife. Use fork tines to prick the pastry inside the border all over. This will prevent the pastry from puffing up too much when baking.

2. Place the tomato slices in a single layer on the puff pastry (the original recipe said be careful not to overlap, but I think that would make it even more delicious). Strip the thyme branches and sprinkle over the tomatoes, then drizzle with olive oil, a few cranks of good pepper and sea salt.

3. Baked for 30-40 minutes or until pastry is crispy and deeply browned. Sprinkle on a dash more salt. Serve.

Halloween Wines! [repost]

Not sure what wines to serve at your Halloween party this year?  Don't worry, we've got you covered!


Back in 2009, Eat Well and Prosper explored the resurgence of ciders in America. Ciders tend to taste similar to white wines and champagnes, and are a great thematic drink to serve at any fall function due to their being made of apples.

Read more about cider here.

A company called Bellwether conjures the Halloween spirit every year with a blackcurrant-blended cider called Black Magic.


Here are some other ciders from Bellwether previously reviewed on this site:

• Bellwether Heritage Old
• Bellwether Heritage New
• Bellwether Spyglass

And Trader Joe's always has you covered with nice theme labels containing good wine.

• Dearly Beloved
• Benefactor Cellars

And there's a fun Elvira wine on the market from our friends at Sort This Out Cellars.

If you have any favorites, be sure to mention them in the comments.
Happy Halloween, everybody!!

Roasted Cauliflower, Broccoli & Sun-Dried Tomato Salad with Chickpeas

Another "inspired by pinterest" recipe.

I found a recipe for Roasted Cauliflower, Broccoli & Sun-Dried Tomato Salad with Chickpeas and knew immediately that it would be my lunch the entire following week. I love how easily it comes together and how little work is involved. Especially if you're roasting veggies for dinner, you can just make extra for tomorrow's lunch!

I left out the olives and served it over mixed greens. I added in some baked tofu and topped it with a dijon vinaigrette. So yummy! If I were going to eat it immediately, I'd roast the chickpeas in the oven and get them super crunchy. If you're preparing it ahead of time, I don't think that cooking them at all is really needed, but that's a personal preference.

Homemade hummus

A few weeks ago, I came across this infographic of hummus recipes.

And whoda thunk - these recipes are actually pretty good! I tried the classic hummus and then the beet hummus, since I had some beets laying around. Both were very tasty, and so easy to make - just throw all 5 ingredients into a processor, blend, and serve! I accompanied the hummus with fresh wheat pita, couscous and tabbouleh for a Mediterranean feast.

Wine of the Week - Carivintas 2010 "Rocket" Rosé of Tempranillo

Smells of fresh-cut grass, which I often get from rosés, as well as sour candy and a little bit of foot-odor funk (which, again, does not mean there's anything wrong with the wine, and doesn't usually have an effect on the taste). On the tongue, there's a mixed sensation happening here.  The wine has some bite to it; so much so that it could almost be mistaken for being semi-sparkling (it feels a little bit like bubbles on your tongue).  But at the same time, this wine is somehow flat; just sort of bland and uninteresting.  A mediocre wine, probably overpriced for its quality. 13.9% alcohol

Wine of the Week - STO 2010 "Zin City" Zinfandel

Dark cherries and blueberries on the nose, with an undercurrent of caramel.  Tastes of burnt leather, and more of those dark cherries.  Some unfortunate bitterness. I've been blown away by previous vintages of Sort This Out's Zin City, and this one doesn't quite hold up to that standard.  But this is still a very good Zinfandel that I would highly recommend. 13.5% alcohol

Autumn Pizza

Who doesn't like a good pizza?

And now that it's fall, I feel the need to incorporate autumn vegetables into everything. So, autumn pizza it is!

Ingredients
Olive oil Large Butternut squash
1 small Yellow onion, sliced
1 clove garlic, diced
Wheat tortillas
Basil pesto
Ricotta cheese
Parmesan cheese
Nutmeg Pepitas(or roasted pumpkin seeds)

1. Slice the squash in half lengthwise. Lightly oil a cookie sheet or glassware and place squash face down. Cook at 375 degrees for 45-60 minutes, until the "meat" is soft.
2. Meanwhile, in 2-3 tbsp olive oil, brown the onion and garlic.
3. Spread out the tortillas on a cookie sheet. Spoon 2-3 tbsp pesto across each tortilla. Top with cooked garlic and onions.
4. Once squash is soft, spoon out the guts (the yucky looking pulp with the seeds)and discard. Spoon out the rest of the 'meat' and spread by tbsp-ful evenly over the tortillas. Top with dollops of ricotta, and sprinkle on Parmesan, pepitas, and nutmeg.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes, until tortillas are crispy. Slice and serve.