The Freckled Key

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Buttery Herb-Gruyere Toasts {served with soft-boiled eggs}

This is yet another Smitten Kitchen creation. I adore Smitten Kitchen - I am smitten with Smitten Kitchen (sorry, I had to). Her recipes are so doable and ALWAYS delicious! Her cookbook comes out this Fall and you can bet I am pre-ordering that baby!

I made this for breakfast for myself a few weeks ago and boy, it hit the spot! This would be perfect for brunch, or even an afternoon munch. The yolk from the egg creates a perfect sauce for the salty, crunchy cheese-sprinkled toasts... yum!

What you need:
16 sourdough toast fingers, 1/2" thick
4 Tbls. butter, melted
1 tsp. dijon mustard
salt
pepper
1/3 c. finely grated Gruyere cheese
2 Tbls. finely grated Romano cheese (or parmesan)
1 Tbls. finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 tsp. finely chopped fresh thyme

What to do:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Place bread cubes in a large, shallow bowl.
Whisk together mustard and butter and drizzle over the top of the bread.
Sprinkle with salt, pepper, cheeses, and herbs.
Toss to coat.
Spray baking sheet with nonstick spray and scatter the bread cubes on the sheet.
Bake until crisp and golden, about 20 minutes.

Serve with soft-boiled eggs (you can find instructions on how to do this on the internet - just use Google!), making sure to soak up every last bit of yolk into that crispy toast!

Licking my fingers,

HK

Kale Pesto Pasta with Toasted Pine Nuts

Scott and I have recently signed up for Farmhouse Delivery, a farm-to-home produce delivery service that brings fresh, organic produce to your doorstep from farmers within 120 miles of Houston. Our first delivery was last week and it was chalk-full of green! In our bundle this week: kale, carrots, onions, romaine lettuce, arugula, beets, oranges, and brussel sprouts... yum :)

Scott, though, does not like kale, and I have a love/hate relationship with arugula, so I ventured over to the Farmhouse Delivery blog for recipe inspiration using the produce we were given. When I read "Kale Pesto", I was immediately intrigued, as I have only ever made pesto from basil - you know, the traditional way.

Well, this kale pesto served over whole grain pasta, sprinkled with toasted pine nuts and parmesan cheese was nutty, slightly salty, and creamy...

So, if you, like Scott, are a kale-hater, then making this kale pesto is a must. I know it won Scott over (at least in pesto-form...)!

What you need:
1 bunch kale, washed and leaves torn off of stem
1/4 c. pine nuts, lightly toasted
2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
1/4 c. grated parmesan, plus more for serving
1/2 c. olive oil
salt & pepper
1 package pasta of your choosing (we used thin spaghetti, and the original recipe called for paparadelle)

What to do:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
Plunge kale leaves into the water, then immediately remove with tongs and place in an ice bath to cease cooking.
Drain in a colander, then place on paper towels to absorb extra moisture.
Place in the bowl of a food processor with the garlic, parmesan, and all but 2 Tbls. of the pine nuts.
Add a generous pinch of salt and pulse briefly to combine and chop.
With the food processor running, drizzle in the olive oil until the kale is minced and all ingredients are well combined, creating a loose, creamy texture for the pesto.
Meanwhile, cook and drain the pasta, reserved ~1 c. of the water.
Place pasta in a large bowl and add the pesto, tossing to combine.
Top each individual serving with a sprinkle of pine nuts and grated parmesan.

Kale in my teeth,

HK

03.25 - 04.06.12

Photo of the day for the last week or so...

03.25.12

03.26.12 | Stuck in traffic...

03.28.12 | Sunrise on my way to work

03.29.12 | I spilled my cereal...

03.30.12 | Our first tomato from our tomato plant!

04.01.12 | Ice cream with some girlfriends!

04.03.12 | Watching Scotty play soccer!

04.05.12 | The toilet I park next to everyday at work... Spring has brought a lovely arrangement of flowers to add to the still life...

04.06.12 | Big ol' cookie sandwich at the outlet mall in Round Rock!

Happy Easter,

Friday, March 23, 2012

03.13 - 03.23.2012

The last few weeks have been consumed with work for me, studio for Scott, and the best part - preparing for my cousin's wedding! I was so honored and thrilled to serve as Matron of Honor and photographer for the event. It was my first wedding to photograph, and with the help of my amazing husband and wonderful mother (who served as photographers during the ceremony), it was a huge success! I am still in the process of editing the 529 total images (yikes!), but the pictures are beautiful and I will post them on my photography blog hopefully sometime this week :)

As for the photo-a-day... I missed a couple days here and there, as-per-usual, but here are the next series of photos:

03.14.2012 | Long neighborhood walk with Scott - the azaleas are in full bloom here in Houston. Stunning.

03. 16.2012 | My cousin's wedding was held at my grandparent's beautiful lake house. This is my grandfather watching the goings-on of the rehearsal from the kitchen window.

03.17.2012 | The bride on her wedding day, taking one final check in the mirror before the ceremony.

03.23.2012 | Strawberry field where Scott and I picked strawberries this afternoon.

Strawberry-stained lips,

Monday, March 12, 2012

02.09.12 - 03.12.12

It's been over a month, folks! Over a month since my last "Photo a Day" post... Have no fear, though, I have been taking pictures! BUT, our camera suffered a minor injury and had to go to the camera doctor for about 12 days - no pics taken during that time because I don't have a camera on my phone :/

So, here they are! ---- raw, unedited, straight-out-of-camera (SOOC) (how redundant can I be...?) photographs!