Horseradish Infused Vodka

One of my new favorite things to do is to infuse liquors. Some of my favorites are Basil-Infused Gin, Limoncello, Orangecello and now Horseradish Vodka! My Dad grew a hot batch of horseradish this winter and I have been trying to come up with creative ways to use it! With a suggestion from my friend Jay,I decided to infuse vodka with horseradish.

I have to admit, I was scared of this project, because earlier in the day I grated some horseradish for another recipe and man, does it clean out your sinuses!

Above is the horseradish root, it looks a lot like ginger root, but a little woodier. Once the outer skin is peeled, the root breaks down and mustard oil is secreted, giving horseradish the the kick that it is known for. Its an interesting kind of heat, not like peppers, it hits the sinuses and is really enjoyable! I like it on meat in Bloody Mary's!

Horseradish Infused Vodka

Adapted from Dylan Prime's recipe in the NYTimes

Ingredients

2 oz fresh horseradish root, peeled

1 750-mL Vodka

2 tbsp black peppercorns

*Peel outer skin of horseradish to expose the white flesh. Peel horseradish and place in a glass jar or bottle that has a tight seal. (I purchased my jars at World Market HERE.)

* Crush 1/2 of the peppercorns and place in jar along with vodka.

*Seal jar and place in a dark, dry place, (kitchen cabinet) for 3 hrs.

The NY Times suggests to let it infuse for 24 hrs but I checked up on it after 3 hrs and this is what it looked like:

This batch was good after only 3 hrs! I tried the vodka in two of my favorite cocktails and was surprised with the results. I first made a dirty martini with horseradish infused vodka and olive juice and the horseradish was waaaaaaay to strong! I advise you to not make this cocktail! My second was a Bloody Mary and OMG it was the the best Bloody Mary I have ever made and is right up there with the Louise's West Bloody Mary

Barnes' Bloody Mary

Tomato Juice

1.5 oz horseradish vodka

Seasoning salt

Worcestershire sauce

Tabasco

2 Green olives

1 Stalk of celery or Dil Pickle

I typically eyeball my Bloody Mary's so next time I make one, I will jot down the measurements and post them!

Enjoy!

Horseshoe Lake and Cucumber Salad!

Since its an overcast day at the lake, I think its a good time for me to post the first part of our trip!

I am spending the week at Horseshoe Lake in Merrifield, MN with a group of friends and it has turned out to be a much needed vacation!

After driving all night we arrived in Merrifield around 7:30am. After a quick 2 hr nap we opened a few beers and hopped in the water!

JEEEENNNGAAA

On Sunday we went to Nisswa, a cute lake town about 20 miles from Horseshoe Lake, we had delicious ice cream at the Chocolate Ox and dinner at Rafferty's Pizza

They had a wide variety of pizzas including mashed potato pizza, Lucky Chicken which had a lingonberry sauce that was to die for! I had Alexandra's Barbeque Chicken and it was tasty! I loved the thin crust and who could pass up $1 beers!

After dinner a civic organization in Nisswa gave out American flags shortly before the parade

MEAT RAFFLE?! Sign me up! I remember Andrew Zimmer said this was popular in small Minnesota towns, too bad it was last Friday! I would have wanted to be part of that. In case you are not familiar with the meat raffle, you buy raffle tickets and if your ticket is drawn, you win meat!

We watched the sunset in the paddle boat!

The 4th was spent at the beach and grilling, we found out noodles make great flag poles and the guys celebrated their right to bear arms with a super soaker battle on the dock. Oh, and I wish I had my camera but there was a boat parade in the morning! All the boats in Horseshoe Lake were decorated and each boat had a theme. There were patriotic boats, and Star Wars boats.

What would a food blog be without recipes?? One great thing about vacationing with other foodies: great meals! Sarah's parents stocked the kitchen for us so it was easy to whip up lunch! Today for lunch I made my honey poppyseed vinaigrette for salads and also made a cucumber tomato salad, recipe compliments of Jay :)

Cucumber and Tomato Salad

2 cucumbers, peeled and cut into chunks

1 tomato chopped

2 tsp dill

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp sugar

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

3 tbsp olive oil

s&p

----Mix all ingredients and serve chilled!

Honey Poppyseed Vinaigrette

2 tbsp dijon mustard

2 tbsp honey

1/4 c olive oil

1/4 cup red wine vinegar (sometimes I use apple cider or sherry vinegar)

s&p

1 tbsp lemon juice

2 tsp poppy seeds

----Add all ingredients in mason jar and shake until emulsified. You may adjust vinegar and mustard if you would like it more tangy.

Beet Ravioli Filled with Goat Cheese and Chives

The star of this dish by far is the beet pasta, and after seeing how bright it turned out, I want to try it with carrots and spinach! This recipe was adapted from Katie at the Kitchen Door.

Beet Ravioli Filled with Goat Cheese and Chives

Pasta Dough

2 beets

5 cups all-purpose flour

3 large eggs

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp salt

Filling

1/3 cup goat cheese

1/3 cup feta cheese

1/4 cup Parmesan

2 tsp olive oil

1/4 cup cream

1 tbsp fresh chives, finely chopped

1 tsp garlic powder

salt and pepper to taste

Caramelized Onion Sauce with Walnut & Thyme

2 medium yellow onions, thinly sliced

1 tbsp olive oil

2 cloves minced garlic

1/4 cup chardonnay

2 tsp fresh thyme, chopped

1/4 cup walnuts, chopped

For the Pasta:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and roast beets for 1 hr. Blend with 1/2 cup of water in a food processor until smooth and set aside. Beet puree can be made a day ahead and brought to room temperature before combining with pasta.

In a large bowl make a well with 3 cups of flour and add egg, olive oil, beet pure and salt. Combine all ingredients until it pulls away from the bowl. Knead the dough and add the remaining 2 cups of flour, one cup at a time until the dough does not stick to your finger and is elastic. (About 10 minutes)

It's not quite ready!

Let dough rest for 30 minutes before rolling.

For the filling:

Combine all ingredients for the filling and set aside.

After dough has rested cut into quarters and dust with flour. Using a pasta roller or a rolling pin, roll pasta into thin sheets.

If using a ravioli press, lay one sheet of pasta onto the press and fill each crevice with filling. Lay another sheet of pasta over the filling and roll over press to crimp the ravioli.

While I thought the Ravioli press was a great idea, it was very easy to overfill and difficult to to crimp at times. Maybe because it was a small press. I found that making ravioli the old fashioned way was easiest.

If you are not using a ravioli press:

Lay one sheet of pasta on the table and scoop 1 tsp of filling onto pasta 1/2 inch apart from each other. Lay another sheet of pasta over the filling and press pasta together pushing out any air pockets. Cut into square raviolis and crimp edges.

For the Sauce:

Caramelize onions in olive oil over medium heat in a skillet for 45 minutes or until brown. Add garlic, walnuts and thyme and cook for 1 minute. De-glaze pan with 1/4 cup of wine and cook for another 3 minutes.

While sauce is simmering, boil pasta for 5 minutes or until pasta floats. We steamed the first batch because they were the "uglies" and very delicate. Surprisingly, I liked steaming the pasta because it was quicker and retained less water.

After pasta is cooked, toss in sauce and serve immediately. I served it with an arugula salad dressed with a tangy red wine vinaigrette. Enjoy!

Chipotle Mac & Cheese with Blue Cheese & Cauliflower

Chipotle Mac & Cheese with Blue Cheese & Cauliflower


Warning: This recipe is not figure friendly and is perfect for a cold winter night! This pasta is rich and it is likely to put yourself in a cheese-induced coma!

I love the addition of chipotles in adobo to this dish, it adds a subtle smoky flavor and a spicy kick.

For Breadcrumbs:

2 tbsp. unsalted butter
2 tbsp. olive oil
3 cloves minced garlic
2 cups fresh breadcrumbs

1 head cauliflower, chopped
5 sliced bacon, cooked and chopped (optional)
2 tbsp. chopped chipotles in adobo
4 tbsp. unsalted butter
½ cup all-purpose flour
3 cups 2% milk
2 cups heavy cream
1 tbsp. dry mustard
1 lb. cavatappi pasta
1 lb. extra sharp white cheddar cheese, grated
1 lb. Danish blue cheese, crumbled
½ cup green chopped green onions
Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Toss cauliflower in olive oil, S&P and roast for 25 minutes or until golden and tender While cauliflower is roasting, cook bacon on a wire rack for 20 minutes or until crispy. Remove bacon from oven and pat off grease with paper towel.

Lower oven temperature to 350 degrees

Melt butter and olive oil in skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic and breadcrumbs and toss to coat. Cook until breadcrumbs are golden brown and crunchy. Remove from heat and let cool.

Cook pasta in salted water until al dente, drain and set aside.

Melt butter in a large saucepan and whisk in flour and cook for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in milk, heavy cream and mustard until simmering, about 3 minutes.

Whisk in chipotles, blue cheese and ½ of cheddar cheese until cheese is melted and sauce is thick. Stir in pasta and remaining cheese. Toss in cauliflower, green onions, and bacon.

Pour pasta into a deep baking dish and top with breadcrumbs. Bake for 30 minutes, or until bubbly.

This pasta can be made ahead of time (leave off breadcrumbs) and refrigerated two days prior to baking. It can also be frozen. Allow more time to bake.

I would also suggest baking them in individual servings!

Since this pasta is so rich, I would suggest serving it with a Sauvignon Blanc and a salad with arugula and a nice acidic vinaigrette. This will balance out the creaminess of the pasta

Enjoy!

Sandra Lee Party *Sneak Peek*

I know, I know, I have been a very bad blogger and I'm not going to try to begin listing the excuses as to why I haven't blogged in 3 months!

To redeem myself, I am giving you a sneak peek to our Sandra Lee party which will commence tomorrow night! I am a member of a fabulous cooking club comprised of 5 other opinionated foodies. We share the same feelings towards a certain Food Network star and while we would never choose to prepare her recipes for our family, we decided to come together and host a party inspired by Sandra Lee.

Some people get stressed out at work, but I get stressed out over my lunch break when I watch Ms. Lee make a fool of herself on national television. I wonder what Ina Garten thought of Sandra's Chocolate Truffle Disaster...

I respect the fact that there are food personalities out there that create recipes for busy families who either don't have time to cook, or do not care to cook, blah,blah,blah but Sandra Lee is the exception. Here are my issues with Aunt Sandy:

1. She gets inspirations for recipes from clothing found at discount big box stores.

2. While I love a good cocktail to accompany any meal, if you are offering advice for a "money saving meal", don't you think alcohol should be the first ingredient eliminated?!

3. Tablescapes, need I say more?

Since I am not alone on this opinion, I will not waste any more time on her.

So here is a sneak peak to what you might find at the Sandra Lee party tomorrow.

Austin and I went shopping at Sandra's favorite craft and party store (walmart ) with a $10 budget and here is what we found!

First rule to building a great tablescape:

Pick a theme! Without a proper theme, how can you decorate your home, create 4 outlandish cocktails and cook a meal for you and your family?

We have decided to create Sandra's semi-homemade recipes and cocktails for this party along with our own semi-homemade disaster of a recipe to share with guests. Aunt Sandy would be proud!

Happy New Year and be sure to check out our post on the SL party tomorrow!