February Cooking Clubs

February cooking club will be on THURSDAY the 10th at 7:3o pm at Jeri's house. E-mail if you need directions.

The theme will be Sultry Foods, or Foods With Aphrodisiac Powers (this was Joe's idea). Be prepared to tell what the 'power' of your food is.

Main course: Jeri (possibly corn dogs) haha, jeri...

Appetizer: Jenny (Aphrodisiac Dip with phallic shaped vegetables)
Appetizer: Hannah (Fig and Olive Tapenade)

Salad: Missy (Grilled Chicken & Strawberry Salad)
Soup: Stephanie (Creamy Pumpkin Soup)

Side: Sarah (Roasted Asparagus Gratin)

Dessert: Bethany (Chocolate Ravioli)

Drink: Carina (Knock Your Clothes Off Hot Chocolate*)
*Carina may have made that name up on the spot.

Toasted Walnut and Ginger-Garlic Dip
1 1/2 c good quality mayonnaise
1/4 c toasted and finely chopped walnuts
2 minced garlic cloves
1 T finely grated fresh ginger
1/2 t salt
1 t pepper
1 1/2 T lemon juice
pinch of saffron dissolved in 1 T hot water (opt)

In a medium bowl combine ingredients and mix will. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt or lemon juice. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Serve with vegetables.

Creamy Pumpkin Soup
(taken from Allrecipes.com)

1 cup chopped onion
2 tablespoons butter, melted
2 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree (or 15 oz fresh pumpkin if you really want to be seducing people)
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
1 cup heavy whipping cream (or milk if you're a wuss)

Saute onion in butter in a medium saucepan until tender. Add 1 can chicken broth, stir well. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes.

Transfer broth mixture into the container of a blender or processor. Process until smooth. Return mixture to saucepan. Add remaining can of broth, pumpkin, salt, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, and ground pepper; stir well. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Stir in whipping cream and heat through but do not boil. Add more spices if you like it kickier.

Fig and Olive Tapenade
1 cup chopped dried figs
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2/3 cup chopped kalamata olives
2 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
1/3 cup chopped toasted walnuts
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese

Combine figs and water in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, and cook until tender, and liquid has reduced. Remove from heat, and stir in the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, rosemary, thyme, and cayenne. Add olives and garlic, and mix well. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover, and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight to allow flavors to blend.

Unwrap cream cheese block, and place on a serving platter. Spoon tapenade over cheese, and sprinkle with walnuts. Serve with slices of French bread or crackers.

Roasted Asparagus Gratin
2 lbs jumbo asparagus, tough ends removed, and lower half of each spear peeled
3 Tbs extra-virgin olive oil
Salt
Pepper
1 Tbs fresh lemon juice
1 Tbs butter
1 Tbs minced shallot
1 clove garlic, minced
2 c heavy cream
3/4 c (3 oz) freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 Tbs coarsely shaved Parmesan cheese
2 Tbs unseasoned dried bread crumbs

Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and prehead the oven to 450 degrees. in a shallow baking dish, toss the asparagus with the oil, a little salt and pepper, and the lemon juice until the spears are evenly coated.

Roast the aspargus until the spears are just beinning to brown yet are still crip and tender, about 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and drain off the excess oil.
Meanwhile, in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the farlic and shallot and saute, stirring constantly, until the shallot is translucent, about 2 minutes. Add the cream and simmer, uncovered until reduced by one third, about 6 minutes. Stir in the graed Parmesan cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Arrange the asparagus in an oven proof serving dish and spoon the Parmesan cream sauce over the spears, allowing the tips and bases to remain uncovered. Scatter the shaved Parmesan over the top and sprinkle with the bread crumbs. Bake until nicely browned, about 5 minues. Serve immediately.

Grape Salad
2 lbs red grapes
2 lbs green grapes
1 pkg cream cheese, softened
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Mix all ingredients but grapes together with a mixer until smooth. Rinse grapes and pull off stems and stir them in. Chill. When serving, sprinkle brown sugar on top and add chopped cashews or walnuts to taste.