Onion Jelly

This recipe is far more delicious then it sounds. It combines the sweetness of caramelized onion with the spiciness of smoked Spanish paprika and the cozy flavor of cinnamon. I came up with this recipe on a cold night when all I could find in the house(that looked worth eating)was an onion and some bread. So naturally, I had to make something. Now I hope you use some inventive thought in the cooking of this and add things I did not, none the less even if you stick to the recipe verbatim I am sure you will be pleased.

You will need:

1 Large Onion (diced)

1 Tbs Olive oil

1 Tsp Balsamic vinegar

1 Tbs Brown sugar(optional)

1/8 C Black pepper(whole)

Cinnamon

Salt

Smoked Spanish paprika

Caramelize the onions in a medium sauce pan on low heat. Add the balsamic vinegar and black pepper and let it cook for about 5 more minutes. Remove from the heat and add a dash of cinnamon and salt and the smoked paprika to taste. Put it all in a blender and blend on medium speed until slightly chunky. Spread it on good bread or even crepes. Enjoy!

~Z

Open Faced Sandwiches

Open faced sandwiches are the veritable IKEA of food -- Scandanavian, clean-cut, versatile, stylish, and of highly questionable quality. However, with a little creative thought you can leave those particle-board cabinets behind and move onto that awesome $20,000 couch you saw online (at least in terms of sandwiches). If you follow a few simple rules, the open faced sandwich will soon become your go-to goodie for snacks, dates, and company alike.

Ok, so a few conventions for building good open faced sandwiches:

1st) Contrast. In flavor, color, temperature, and/or texture, contrast is the basic building block of a proper open faced sandwich. It gives you complexity and something entertaining in a surprisingly small package

2nd) Color. PLEASE MAKE SURE YOUR SANDWICHES HAVE COLOR! I really loathe colorless sandwiches because the flavor of an open-faced sandwich is typically commensurate with the amount of color in it. Mind you the addtion of color doesn’t need to be difficult. A leaf of spinach, a piece of cilantro, a crasin -- any of those will do.

3rd) Creativity. Mix it up! I mean seriously, it’s a piece of bread with some stuff on it. Repetition is your worst enemy. If you find something that works run with it, but don’t be afraid to mix up your repertoire and try new things.

So now that I’ve gotten the basic conventions out of the way, I’ll give you a recipe for one of my favorite open faced sandwiches. I figured it out when I was scrounging around for dinner at my grandmother’s house in D.C.

Apple Maple Sandwiches.

Bread or crackers (the quantity is very, very, fluid and just depends on what you like and how much of it you want.

2-3 apples (any kind works)

1/3rd cup maple syrup (or dark agave if you’re a hipster)

1/2 tablespoon black pepper

1 teaspoon salt

Rosemary or sage (to your heart’s content)

Some sort of green (mesclun, baby spinach, cilantro, anything with a bit of flavor)

Core and slice the apples, throw them into a saucepan with the maple syrup. Add the rest of the seasonings and cook on low heat until the apples are basically transparent and candied. You might need to throw in a little water, more syrup, or something (frankly I’ve got no idea because I’ve never actually measured any of the portions for this recipe). The apples should be sweet, salty, spicy, and herbacious. When the apples are done take your bread (if it's store bought sliced bread toast it. If it is hard-crust bread then you don’t need to toast it unless you want to.) Place a leaf of your green on the slice of bread then put your apples on top of it. I like to top it off with a cube of unripened cheese (if you live in an area where it's available, I’d recommend queso fresco. If not, you can make your own out of milk and lemon juice, but that's another blog entry.) Serve within a few hours. Serves 8-10.

A few quick after thoughts, I like to cut my bread into pieces which are approximately 1x2 inches. It makes for a bite-size piece and better presentation. . . because small things are cute. Also the portions are deliberately vague because, truth be told, I’ve got no idea what they are. I think they’re close to what I wrote, so you can take that as a guide, but you should really experiment a bit. Pay attention to the apples while they’re cooking and improvise and you’ll probably do well. I’ll post the recipe for the cheese in a later entry, but it’s three A.M. and I need to get some shut-eye.

Dulce De Leche and Chocolate Sauce pizza

This pizza is amazing! It is sweet but, it uses a regular pizza crust and the mixture of dulce de leche and dark chocolate is a real winner.

You will need:

2 C Dulce de leche

1 C Dark chocolate chips

1/4 C Milk

1 1/2 tsp Vanilla sugar

1 ball Pizza dough(from the cheddar cheese and stout pizza recipe)

Heat the milk and dark chocolate on a double boiler stirring constantly. Warm Dulce de leche till runny and spread on pressed or thrown dough. sprinkle the vanilla sugar over the pizza. Bake at 400F for twenty minutes. When removed from the oven the dulce de leche should look like golden paper. Pour the chocolate sauce over it and enjoy!

~Z

New Mexican Green Chile

6 pablaño peppers
2 jalapeño peppers
¼ cup Butter
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon turmeric
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 medium onion, diced
¼ cup flour
4-5 cups Chicken or Vegetable stock
1 medium can high quality diced tomatoes, drained
1 cup Frozen corn (optional)
Salt to taste


Roast the chilies and jalapeños over a gas burner or under broiler. When chilies are done their skin will be black and separated from the flesh of the pepper. Allow peppers to cool and remove the charred skin, seed and dice into ½ inch chunks.

In a large pot, melt the butter and add the cumin and turmeric, let the spices infuse the butter for about a minute over medium heat, (be sure not to burn them!). Throw in the onions and garlic and sauté until translucent, add the diced chilies and continue to cook for a minute more. Add flour to the onion mixture and cook for five minutes over medium heat. Add the sock one cup at a time and stir until combined. Add the tomatoes and corn, and allow chile to thicken over medium-low heat.

Note: If a thicker consistency is desired remove a ½ cup of the chile and combine with 1-2 teaspoons cornstarch, return the slurry to the main pot and stir.

Variation: I don’t eat meat, but I’m told this is delicious with pork or ground beef that has been browned and drained.

The "OH MY FREAKIN GOSH" Rice Krispie Treats

These Rice Krispie treats are inspired. Made with brown butter and caramelized marshmallows, it makes my mouth water just thinking of them.

You will need:

One 10 1/2 oz bag of Marshmallows

One 12 oz box of Rice Krispies

1/2 lb Butter

1/8 tsp Salt

Brown the butter in a large pot and add in the marshmallows and salt. cook till evenly golden brown. Remove the pot from the heat and mix in the rice krispies until throughly coated. Smush into a large parchment paper lined casserole dish until totally filled (it will probably fill two dishes). Enjoy!

~Z

P.S. It is a drier rice krispie treat if you want it chewier use 12oz of marshmallows.

recipe by Julia Moskin

Cheddar Cheese & Stout Pizza

This is my pizza. I got the idea for this pizza from my older brothers "All American fondue" in which he uses cheddar cheese and dark Guinness stout. I pretty much just stole his idea and threw it on a pizza. Here is the recipe idea for my "Cheddar Cheese & Stout Pizza".

The Toppings

You will need:

1 1/2 C Sharp cheddar cheese

1 Pt Guinness dark stout

1/2 C Cilantro

1 Can Tomatoes

1/2 Large Onion (sliced)

1 Tbs Butter

Cumin

Mustard seed

Hot smoked paprika

Honey

Grate the cheese and set aside. Put all ingredients(except onions, cheese and a bit of stout)in a blender and blend on high till thick and slightly chunky. Saute the onions in the butter and a bit of stout.

The Crust

3 C Flour

2 Tsp Active dry yeast

2 Tsp Salt

1 C Water

2 Tbs Olive oil

Add the salt, yeast, and half the flour to a bowl and mix well. Add the water and the olive oil to the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon. Slowly add the flour a bit at a time, once it becomes difficult to stir knead it with your hands adding even less flour at a time. once it becomes thick and doughy, roll it into a ball and let it rise till it doubles in size, 1-2 hours. once risen throw or press the dough into a 1/4 inch sheet and bake once at 400F for about 10 minutes. Once baked add all the toppings and cook for another 20 minutes. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

~Z

Rice pudding Z style

Rice pudding is about as old of a dish as their is and is made almost everywhere. I make mine with cooked rice and a variety of spices. Warm rice pudding is the perfect food for a cold winter night, and chilled rice pudding is a great treat for any season.

You will need:

2 C Rice (cooked)

Cinnamon

Anise

Nutmeg

5 Cloves crushed

3 pieces soft Caramel

1/4 C Sugar

2 C Milk

5 pieces Crystallized Ginger

1 Tbs Vanilla extract

Vanilla Bean(optional)

Add the cooked rice and milk to a large saucepan, turn the stove onto low. Add a few shakes of the cinnamon, nutmeg, anise and all of the crushed cloves. stir and let sit for five minutes. Prepare vanilla bean and add, also add the vanilla extract. let reduce for twenty minutes and add the caramel, sugar and crystallized ginger. wait till the caramel melts then remove from the heat and let it chill overnight. Enjoy!

~Z

Here is how mine turned out.

Snooze: An A.M. Eatery

Snooze...What to say about Snooze. Let me start like this, Wow! I had the pleasure of eating one of the best breakfasts I have ever had this morning at snooze. Whether it was the blow your mind breakfast burrito, the pineapple upside-down pancakes, or the amazing "Orchards fresh French toast" with warm Maple/apple compote on top, Snooze's food is sure to blow your mind. Friendly staff who hardly ever leave your glass empty and seem to have a constant smile on. The design of snooze is also really cool, with strangely ethereal light fixtures and benches straight out out of the Jetsons. I hope you enjoy your visit to snooze as much as I did. Keep reading.

~Z

P.S. get there before 8:00 A.M. or be prepared to wait in line.

(All locations are in Colorado)

locations on, 2262 larimer st. Denver, 700 N Colorado blvd. Denver, 144 west mountain ave. Ft Collins, 6781 S York street. Centennial.

New years resolution!

One of my many new years resolutions was to post at least once a week and to try to post twice. I am also going to try to post both recipes and restaurant reviews this coming year, Hope you all enjoy!

~Z

I'm BAAAAaaaaack *insert nefarious laughter here*

And I've decided to return with a video (because it's been too long since you all have been graced with my handsome mug). So please watch and enjoy: