A confession . . . and then FIRE in the sky

I have something to admit to you all; something for which I am not proud; something for which I am certain you will all judge and shun me. I have developed an unhealthy obsession to a certain evil empire's iced coffee. No, not Starbucks. The worst of the worst: McDonald's.

As Mike Myers says in So I Married an Ax Murderer, they put "an addictive chemical in [it] that makes ya crave it fortnightly, smartass." As one of my girl friends has fittingly claimed, they might put a little dose of crack in this coffee. It's SO good.

People, seriously, this coffee is perfection. I love my coffee. In fact, I get darn right grouchy if I don't have a large cup in my hands within moments of opening my little peepers. I would confidently say I am a coffee connoisseur. Those genius little machines they have over there at McD's have perfected the balance of cream, sugar and goodness all in a cup that rounds out to be $1.99 plus tax. Yes, ma'am, may I have another? Or four. Thanks.

I am sorry to disappoint those of you who don't condone the big M -- I know. I am an arse. Here is something beautiful to distract you from the evil above.

I snapped these photos from my private rooftop a few nights ago. Summer sunsets in Idaho are difficult to beat. Mom, I thought of you the entire time I was taking these photos. I love you very much - positive thoughts and energy coming your way. xoH

Uncle Brown

I have been promising a big fish photo for you all, and I finally have one. I did an overnight float trip recently on the South Fork of the Snake River where rainbow trout as a species have become a threat to the native cutthroat trout. The fish and game are encouraging folks to keep all of the rainbows they catch -- so much so they put up to $1000 microchips in the little buggers' heads. You turn your fish heads into fish and game and hope for a big bounty. We caught one rainbow and cooked it fireside. These photos look a little gruesome, but I am not entirely sure how one makes cooking fish appear humane and/or appealing. Nothing like dinner cooked fireside, though.

Let me introduce you to my friend Tuli:

Tuli gets cold easily so he wears a child's fleece jacket. I cannot look at this dog in this jacket without laughing out loud.

Each time we fish we are on a mission to catch grandpa brown -- granddaddy brown trout, that is -- the monster brown trout that will not only gobble my fly, but more than likely my arm and the boat, as well. While I didn't catch grandpa brown, I did catch uncle brown. I was fairly pleased with myself. Although, you can see me straining in the photo not to drop uncle brown and ruin the photo op.

Nice spots, eh?

Moving on from fish tales . . . my unwavering affection for noodles and Asian food is no secret here at Hail's Kitchen. It has been some time since I've posted either, and the following salad was my favorite dish to order for takeout as a child. The recipe is called BUN, which is a Vietnamese noodle salad. However, the restaurant where we frequently ordered this misspelled it on their menu as BONE. For years, my mom and sisters and I would order bone thinking we were correct in our pronunciation until somehow we discovered that we had been unwittingly botching the name of this delicious salad. Bone? Really? Gross.

It really is a fantastically delicious salad, and I can't believe I have never ventured to make it until tonight. You will find it is quite similar to other Asian noodle salads I have posted, but none can be called bone.

Excellent. The caption that you cannot see reads: Once tasted, ever wanted! What a slogan!

Familiar accoutrements: shredded carrots, bean sprouts, cucumber, green onions and cilantro.

The dish is commonly served with beef or pork, but I found some sustainable shrimp.

I marinaded them in 1 tbs canola oil, 2 tbs soy sauce, 1 tbs rice vinegar, 1 tsp sherry, 1 garlic clove, and 1 red chili pepper. This marinade would be good on just about anything!

Bone.

The sexual innuendoes are flooding out . . . but . . . my dad reads this site.

Bun, bone, Vietnamese noodle salad

1 package rice noodles, cooked according to directions

1/2 head cabbage or lettuce, sliced thinly

1/2 cucumber, cut into matchsticks

2 carrots, shredded

3 green onions, sliced thinly

handful cilantro, chopped

handful bean sprouts

dressing (nuoc cham) adapted from epicurious:

6 tablespoons fresh lime juice

3 tablespoons Asian fish sauce (preferably nuoc mam)

1/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup warm water

1 garlic clove, forced through a garlic press

2 small thin fresh red or green Asian chilies (1 to 2 inches long) or serrano chilies, seeded and chopped fine (wear rubber gloves)

Cook the noodles according to directions and set aside. Meanwhile, make the dressing. Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and stir to dissolve the sugar. Set aside.

To prepare the salad, toss the cooked noodles with a handful of carrots, cucumbers, onions, cilantro and bean sprouts. Place a handful of chopped lettuce or cabbage in a bowl or on a plate. Place the noodle mixture on top of the lettuce then top with cooked shrimp, beef or pork. Serve with a couple of tablespoons of the dressing -- I like to add my own dressing so perhaps allow your guests/family to drizzle their own. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Updated peas and potatoes

Last weekend the judge and I picked new potatoes -- yukon gold and red. I am sorry I don't have any photos of the harvest, but we were irrigating at the time, and in turn, covered in mud. My camera is already a filthy, filthy mess from being abused in my kitchen, on the farm and on the river, and I saw a foreseeable disaster of muddy hands and camera equipment.

Anyway, these little taters live just under the surface of the plant. All you have to do is run your hand over the dirt and you can uncover them. It is so fun! Kind of like an Easter egg hunt but for potatoes. While fingerling potatoes in the grocery store are tasty, they DO NOT compare to fresh potatoes, new or otherwise. Visit your local farmer's market and pick up a bag. You will be so pleased you did. They are so much more tender and delicate and sweet than anything that has sat on a grocery shelf for weeks.

I also picked the remaining peas from my parent's garden. They were a little worse for wear but still edible. New peas and potatoes are good friends. In fact, I would say they are a marriage made in matchmaker Heaven. The following recipe is a lighter version of the classic creamed dish. I added a squeeze of citrus, a handful of chopped dill and some shaved parmesan cheese. While it's not the creamed peas and potatoes my Great Grandmother Hazel would have made, I am sure she would approve of the following dish.

Surely as cute as Easter eggs.

So are peas. Probably why they are displayed on so much baby attire.

I wished I had some watermelon seeds to spit as I was shelling these peas.

Oh. And a yard.

Fresh dill is so elegant.

Toss the parboiled peas and taters together with sautéed shallots, a big squeeze of lemon, the chopped dill, salt and pepper. Done!

Updated peas and potatoes.

New peas and potatoes with dill

1 lb new potatoes, larger ones quartered

2 cups fresh peas, shelled

3-4 sprigs fresh dill, chopped

1 shallot, choppped

1/2 lemon, juiced

salt and pepper

1 tbs olive oil

parmesan cheese

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and add the potatoes. Cook until tender, about 8-10 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add the peas to the same cooking water. Cook for about 2 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil over medium heat in a saute pan. Add the shallots and cook until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the peas and potatoes to the pan. Saute for another couple of minutes. Squeeze the lemon juice over the pan, season with salt and pepper and toss in the chopped dill. Garnish with shaved parmesan cheese. Serve hot.

Beer makes everything taste better!

The following recipe has been ruminating in my little brain for weeks. I finally had an opportunity to make it last night for a surprise birthday party for some friends. It's always a little risky to try out an experimental recipe at a social gathering, but there was plenty of beer involved, and we all know that beer makes everything taste better!

Really, though, this turned out great. The combination of the blue cheese and the rosemary made the dish. The pie crust was smothered with a roasted garlic cream cheese, which was also quite tasty. This cream cheese, in addition to being taste bud-pleasing, is super versatile. You could mix in sun dried tomatoes or roasted peppers and store it in your fridge for bagels. This tart made for very fun party food -- it could also be lovely for brunch.

Does this garlic look familiar?

To make roasted garlic: slice the top off.

Drizzle with a bit of olive oil, wrap up in some foil and roast in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes or until tender.

A mandolin would have been very convenient here. Mandolin fairy if you're listening, I sure would love one :)

Fresh rosemary.

A brief diatribe: I once got a dried rosemary spear stuck in my throat after eating rosemary focaccia bread for lunch when I worked at Deer Valley Resort. My coworkers thought I was hallucinating. In truth, the little bugger had speared me in the soft tissue behind my tongue. After a number of fruitless attempts to remove the bastard, including tweezers!, someone suggested calling ski patrol. Can you imagine receiving that call? After sticking a napkin halfway down my gullet, I snagged it and was spared a really embarrassing interaction with ski patrol. I tell you, I am a magnet for random, bizarre events such as these. Lucky me.

Cream cheese, roasted garlic, green onions, salt and pepper.

Spread the cream cheese-deliciousness on a pre-baked pie crust. No, I did not make my own crust. Yes, I am still a chicken.

Layer parboiled potatoes as artistically as one can over the cream cheese.

Sprinkle blue cheese and chopped rosemary.

Bake for 45 minutes in a 350 degree.

I dare you to eat just one slice. Cannot be done.

Potato tart with blue cheese and rosemary

1 pie crust -- homemade or store-bought -- I don't judge

1 pound fingerling potatoes, sliced 1/8 inch thick

1 head garlic

1 green onion, sliced thinly

3 sprigs fresh rosemary, chopped

1 block cream cheese, brought to room temperature

handful blue cheese

salt and pepper

Prepare pie crust according to directions and set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roast garlic until tender, about thirty minutes. Meanwhile, slice potatoes and bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Boil potatoes until just tender -- about 8 -10 minutes. Drain and run under cold water. Set aside.

Once the garlic is tender squeeze the bulbs from their 'wrappers.' Usually I burn the heck out of my hands when I do this so be careful and use a towel or wait until the garlic is cool -- I am impatient and can't wait :) Combine the roasted garlic, green onion and about 1/2 tsp salt and pepper and mix well. Be sure to crush the garlic cloves to evenly distribute throughout the cream cheese.

Spread the cream cheese over the pre-baked pie crust then layer the potatoes. Sprinkle with a good handful of blue cheese and the chopped rosemary. Bake for 45 minutes. Slice into wedges and serve either hot or cold.

Garlic anyone?

Another Sunday late-night post -- again I am sun-kissed and sleepy. I had two of my favorite people visit from SLC on Friday night, and we went out . . . like on the town. Hailey, boring? I think not! I actually danced -- I shouldn't have -- but I danced my booty off. Sorry to all who had to witness my white girl moves. Some kind woman stepped on my flip flop-clad foot and left an impression of her stiletto heel. Frozen peas came in handy the next morning. Thanks Ryan and Meshell for making the trek! I miss you two so. xo

I have been living on meals that are far from well-rounded as of late so I was thrilled to cook for my lovely friends. It has been uncomfortably hot here, and I was hungry for something light and fresh. I stopped by the local butcher and picked up a flank steak, which I marinaded in olive oil, rice wine vinegar, worcestershire sauce, crushed garlic, crushed red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. I grilled it on my handy grill pan (no outside grill is a major downfall of apartment living) and sliced it super thin.

While this steak was de-licous, the star of the dinner was the following salad. I served it on a big chopping block, and we went to town. No plates necessary!

Butter lettuce.

Radishes look so innocent, but they pack such a zesty punch.

Rough chop the lettuce, slice the cucumber and radishes, cube avocado and some fresh herbs. Drizzle with your favorite dressing -- homemade blue cheese in my case -- and enjoy!

The perfect summer dinner.

The rest of my weekend was spent sweating on the farm. As I mentioned, it was as hot as the hinges of hell. Garlic, unfortunately, does not harvest itself so I dug out five different types: Early Italian, German Red, Korean Red, Chesnok Red, and Spanish Roja.

I love garlic, as does my family, but what does one do with almost 400 heads? Suggestions?Anyone? I think I need a booth at the farmer's market.

Too bad my glasses are on; you can't see the garlic and sun induced-delirium in my eyes.

Garlic awesomeness.

Irrigation boots: fashion and function.

Friends, the countdown is on. This is a green zebra, perhaps my favorite tomato EVER.

Peppers are happy.

So is the judge. He loves his tractor.

Sunny.

All trimmed up. Garlic anyone?

Summer time and the livin's easy

I watched Julie and Julia the other night -- the movie about the blogger who cooks her way through Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking. While I enjoyed the movie, I loved the book. Such is the case with most crossovers, but the movie is charming and witty and made me crave the following recipe.

There is a scene where Julie and her husband are chowing down on dinner and she comes to the realization that she has thoughts . . . she can write . . . she could write a blog. It's funny. What I love about this scene, specifically, is what they are having for dinner. It is such a Hailey dinner -- bruschetta and wine. I eat meals like that most nights; however, mine look more like this: wine with bruschetta and a side of popcorn with string cheese for dessert. Classy.

I had to have bruschetta in order to get the craving out of my mind. Craving satiated . . . for now. As soon as tomatoes ripen I'll be eating this dinner at least every other day.

Take this bruschetta to your next party -- your friends will want to make out with you it's so good. You've been forewarned.

I like seedy bread just the opposite of how I like my boyfriends: not seedy. Any baguette, sourdough, focaccia or crusty bread will do.

This was my dinner so I used a larger loaf -- for appetizer portions, choose a smaller bread.

What sets my bruschetta apart: I broil the bread for about a minute or two on each side (watch it as it burns quickly). Once it's toasty, I take a garlic clove and rub it all over the bread. THEN I brush the slices with olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt. Don't forget the salt or your bruschetta will just be bruschetta. With the salt, your friends will want to suck face.

Quarter a container of cherry tomatoes. Soon, friends, these will be in season and then EUPHORIA!

My happy basil plant. I really enjoy the flavor of basil so I added about 15 leaves, which I chiffonaded (not sure if that is a verb?).

My favorite duo: olive oil and balsamic vinegar. About 3 tbs of olive oil and 1 tbs of vinegar to the diced tomatoes, the basil, I added about a tbs of minced shallot and salt and pepper to taste.

Spoon over the crusty bread and pucker up.