Pizza Pimento Cheese

Pimento cheese has been a staple food down south for generations, and now it's becoming ubiquitous in other parts of the country. At least that's the way it seems to me, a Marylander. My state is technically south of the Mason-Dixon Line, but up here in Baltimore we are definitely not the South. Still, I see pimento cheese popping up on menus everywhere around town, put to use as a burger topping and even as an accompaniment for the unusual (but tasty) combination of fried oysters and waffles. And why not? It's delicious, and if you have the right ingredients on hand, simple to make.

While there is both cheese and pimentos (or roasted red peppers) in pimento cheese, mayonnaise is possibly the most important ingredient. Without it, it's difficult to get the cheese to spread. Duke's is the mayo to use, if you can find it, otherwise, use your favorite. Other than that, pimento cheese requires seasonings, which can be as simple as salt and pepper and a dash of hot sauce, or a bit more complicated with the addition of garlic and onion powders, maybe a bit of Worcestershire sauce. Chef Richard Blais' recipe strays from the South to the Southwest, with the addition of cilantro and poblano peppers. I bastardized the concept quite a bit when I added feta and harissa paste to make a Mediterranean-style pimento cheese, and now I'm going to do it again with my latest cheesy invention: Pizza Pimento Cheese.

Seemed like a no-brainer: add sundried tomatoes and pizza herbs, swap out the cheddar for mozzarella. Add pepperoni, too, because why not? and garnish with fresh basil and thyme. Toasts topped with this concoction made a perfect alternative to a hot grilled cheese sandwich when eaten with a bowl of chilled gazpacho on a hot summer day. And it tasted like pizza. What's not to like?

Pizza Pimento Cheese

8 sundried tomato halves
3 tablespoons softened cream cheese
1/4 cup Duke's mayonnaise
3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup finely chopped roasted red pepper or pimento
1/2 cup finely diced pepperoni
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
Pinch cayenne pepper
Pinch dried rosemary, crushed
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

Rehydrate the tomatoes by soaking them in boiling water until soft, about 15 minutes. Drain well and chop finely. Set aside.

Combine the cream cheese and mayo in a large bowl. Add the cheeses, pimento, pepperoni, and seasonings and stir well to combine. Alternately, you can pulse it a few times with a food processor. Stir in the chopped sundried tomato. Taste for seasonings and add more oregano or garlic if you feel it needs it.

Spread on lightly toasted bread. Top with fresh basil and thyme. You could also add more pepperoni, if you want.

Makes 3+ cups.

Tastes even better after a day or two in the fridge.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Savannah Bee

The Savannah Bee Company offers both edible honey and honey-enriched beauty products. We were both suffering from bad colds and drinking lots of hot tea with honey and lemon, so we jumped at the chance to sample some of Savannah Bee's products.

They sent us three flavors of honey shortbread cookie bites and a jar of spun cinnamon honey--both perfect additions to our tea habit. The cookies are little bitsy things with a big buttery taste and pleasantly granular texture. They are honestly some of the best shortbread we've ever tried, tasting pretty close to home-made.

The spun honey is made from crystallized honey and cinnamon, creating a smooth and dense product that tastes delish eaten right off the spoon, but it's also terrific spread on toast or warm biscuits. I like to add it to my overnight oats, to give them a nice sweetness with a hint of cinnamon. Of course, it's great in regular hot oatmeal as well.

Savannah Bee also sells different types of artisan honey, in flavors like acacia and sourwood, and honeys they call "everyday" honeys, formulated for adding to tea or eating with cheese. They also have a ton of beauty products made with honey or beeswax, including lip balm, body lotion, hand cream, and shampoo. I'm eyeballing the beeswax lip gloss and royal jelly body butter myself to keep dry lips and hands at bay. Hm...might need more of those cookies, too.

Savannah Bee products can be ordered online, from their Web site, but some local Baltimore-area shops also carry their honeys, like Baltimore Coffee and Tea, Eddie's, and the Teavana in Columbia.

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!



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Chocolate Nutter Butter Cookie Butter

The first person to toss cookies in a blender with cream or oil or condensed milk to produce a spread was an evil genius. As if cookies aren't fattening enough on their own, this was a way to infuse them with even more fat and calories and create a product that could possibly rival the pumpkin spice latte for popularity with the Uggs-wearing set.

It also happens to be delicious stuff.

As far as I can tell, cookie butter was originally made with speculoos, a traditional spiced Christmas cookie that is probably best known to Americans as the in-flight snack for Delta airlines. But any cookie will do, actually. Peanut butter lovers will enjoy this version of cookie butter made with Nutter Butter cookies. It's not as smooth as commercial cookie butter, but perhaps if you have a more heavy duty food processor than my Cuisinart, or maybe one of those fancy $700 blenders, you could whip yours to a less-coarse consistency. It's still tasty served on bread or eaten right off a spoon.

Chocolate Nutter Butter Cookie Butter
I think this is one of those recipes that works best by feel. Add as much of the sweetener, oil, and cream as you think you require. The cocoa is absolutely optional, but a nice touch.

1/2 pound of Nutter Butter cookies
Agave syrup
Vegetable oil
Heavy cream
Cocoa powder

Separate the two halves of each cookie and scrape the filling into a small bowl. Place the cookies in a plastic bag and crush them with a rolling pin. Place the crumbs in a food processor and pulse until the crumbs are fairly fine. Add a tablespoon of the agave and pulse to combine. Add the veg oil a tablespoon or two at a time until the crumbs start to stick together and form a mass; 6-7 tablespoons should do it. Dribble in some heavy cream and pulse again until the mixture seems spreadable. Add a few tablespoons of the cocoa powder and continue pulsing until combined. When you stop blending, the mixture should visibly relax in the bowl.

Scrape into a lidded container and consume within a week. Keep refrigerated.



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Book Review - Superfood Sandwiches

Recently I received a review copy of a new cookbook by fellow food blogger, Katie Chudy,
Superfood Sandwiches: Crafting Nutritious Sandwiches with Superfoods for Every Meal and Occasion. The cover photo (caramelized endive and fennel sandwich with gorgonzola dolce found on page 87) attracted me with its colors and textures, and I was hoping to find more of the same inside.

I was not disappointed.

Chudy, who co-owns a personal chef/catering company, The Skinny Beet, with her husband and is also a professional food photographer, understands that a sandwich can be a versatile meal. It doesn't have to mean turkey on white with mayo. (Not that there's anything wrong with that.) She also understands that a sandwich can (and should) be full of both flavor and nutrition. So each recipe in Superfood Sandwiches is packed with superfood ingredients (like kale, avocado, mushrooms, beans, chia seeds, honey, or eggs).

I love that she starts off with basic parts; bread recipes like Parmesan kale bread and condiments like smoky and spicy red pepper pesto or chipotle black bean spread. Then come the sandwiches, and every recipe is new and interesting. There are those that feature exotic flavors, like the Thai take on Elvis' favorite peanut butter and banana sandwich, and a sandwich with Moroccan kale and ratatouille. There are also more simple flavor profiles, like in the spring-like sandwich featuring edamame, peas, and lemon pepper ricotta cheese.

While many of the sandwiches are vegetarian (sweet potato felafel, edamame fried rice burger), there are plenty of meaty options as well, utilizing turkey, salmon, and pork tenderloin. The only problem with this book is deciding which sandwich to try first.

We've tried three recipes (so far); the mushroom, walnut, and brie sandwich was first. A simple combo of sauteed portobellos, lightly candied walnuts, and brie cheese, this sandwich was hearty and filling. The Asian sloppy Joes were next. They were good, but even better when doctored up a bit to have some of the sweetness of a traditional sloppy joe. We added organic ketchup and some brown sugar to the eggplant and cut back on the soy sauce. Terrific, and an easy lunch sandwich ingredient for the work week. The fish sauce, which some folks might consider optional, really makes the dish.

We also tried the tarragon salmon cakes with orange avocado walnut salsa (to which I added a handful of home-grown cherry tomatoes, because we had a ton). Pretty tasty, and even better without the bread. (I see recipes as guidelines, not laws. You should, too, if you are confident in the kitchen.)

It's a good book with good recipes. Go buy it.

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!



Posted on Minxeats.com.