Hot Time in the City!

I'm really behind on my blogging, but I've been cooking like mad! A couple weekends ago temperatures in New York soared past 100 degrees, so what did I do to keep cool? I baked!! Thank god for "free" central air.

Here are some pictures of things I've baked and cooked during and after the heat wave:

Cherry Claflouti

This is a really great way to use up tons of cherries! It's sort of a cross between a cake and a crepe. The batter is very eggy and stays moist. It's great for breakfast! I got this recipe from the Larousse Gastronomique, which calls for unpitted cherries. I did not do that because I think it's just rude to ask whoever is enjoying your food to watch out for their teeth and spit out the pits. There are tons of recipes out there, google it and find one you like. It's definitely worth it!

Corn Soup

This is my favorite recipe of the summer. I came up with it a couple years ago because I wanted a healthier, more refreshing alternative to corn chowder.

4 ears of corn
1 medium white or yellow onion diced
half of 1 small jalapeno finely diced, no seeds
1 medium bell pepper diced
1 large clove garlic
1 quart chicken stock
1 tsp smoked paprika
S&P

Sautee the onion and garlic in olive oil until translucent. Add the corn, jalapeno, bell pepper, smoked paprika and S&P and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the chicken stock and simmer for about 15-20 minutes, until it slightly reduces. You can either serve it as is, or put any portion you desire into a food processor or blender, puree and add it back to the soup. The more you puree the smoother your soup, so it's up to you. I prefer less blending and more chunks.

Any of the following garnishes are great with this: fat free greek yogurt, sour cream, chives, cilantro, fresh corn, fresh lime juice. You're only limited by your imagination.

French Macarons!

I have been on a personal mission to get these little guys perfect for a long time now. These are not yet perfect, but they are darn close. For this batch I used all farm share eggs, so maybe that has something to do with why they came out so good. The three fillings are cherry mascarpone, lemon curd and chocolate caramel. All were amazing.

Mu Shu Pork with Farm Share Cocktails

My favorite chinese dish is definitely Mu Shu. I love the pancakes and I love hoisin. I also love that I can easily make it myself. In this version I used the entire head of Napa Cabbage, it worked out perfect.

Also, along with dinner Greg and I made ourselves some cocktails. His is a Manhattan with fresh cherry sauce, and mine is a Rum drink with fresh apricot sauce. For the two sauces I, separately, just covered the fruit in water and added about 1/4 cup of sugar and stewed it for about 20 minutes, pureed them until smooth and then put them back on the stove to reduce to about half. These sauces are amazing. They're good on ice cream, as drink mixers, in vinaigrettes, basted on chicken or steak. Any pulpy fruit you have will work.