Don’t say I never share some crazy shit with you. Do not eat while watching this video.

Wraps are a fun way to change up dinnertime. Here tender lamb, salty feta and peppery arugula are combined with some green onions and Kalamata olives to make for one exceptionally good meal.

Lamb, Green Onion, Feta & Kalamata Olive Wraps

Ingredients:

300g lamb loin fillet, trimmed of fat
Olive oil
6 green onions, sliced
2 Tbs pitted Kalamata olives, roughly chopped
75g feta cheese, crumbled
2 large flatbreads
50g rocket (arugula)

Directions:

1. Rub the lamb with 1 tsp oil and season with salt and pepper.

2. Heat a griddle pan. Cook the lamb, turning frequently, for around 8-10 minutes. Tent with foil and set aside.

3. Put 2 tsp olive oil in a small frying pan. Add the green onions and cook until tender. Cool slightly then add the olives, feta and some black pepper.

4. Warm the flatbreads and thinly slice the lamb. Add a handful of rocket to each flatbread, lay the meat on top (drizzling over any resting juices) and spoon over the feta mix and roll up.

Serves 2 (Doubles easily)

Recipe from Olive Magazine

Time to get our electronic groove on.

Icky Blossoms are a trio out of Omaha. ‘Deep In The Throes’ is from the band’s self titled debut album.

And a cool Siouxie & the Banshees’ cover.

Check out Icky Blossoms on Facebook and the band’s Website, where you can buy their music.

Cheers!

Ah, Childhood.

Have you seen this photo?

Well, when I was childish little, me and my friends used to play a game where we would clip clothespins to the droopy pants of family and neighbors. The goal was to see how many clothespins you could attach before the person caught on.

As we grew older, we abandoned the physical clothespins, but would still remark to each other whenever there was a sagger in the vinity. “Oh, that guy is four clothespins.” “Quick, to your left….at least a 6 clothespinner.”

Man, I could lose a whole clothesline of pins in the Bieb’s drawers.

Another childhood memory of mine: I remember how much I adored the sweet milk that was left over after a big bowl of breakfast cereal. The sweeter the better. I’d tip the bowl up to my mouth and drink those delicious dregs.

Well, through the brilliance of Christina Tosi, the ultra cool and inventive dessert creator for Momofuku, I was able to escape to the past with a future fresh recipe for Cereal Milk Ice Cream.

I used Corn Flakes as a basic starting ground, but now I cannot wait to try other cereal flavors. The ice cream had a light, refreshing taste with a lovely corn flavor the result of roasting the cereal briefly before steeping it in milk. There are no eggs in this ice cream recipe so it gets its creaminess from the glucose.

Cereal Milk Ice Cream

Ingredients:

Cereal Milk (recipe follows)
3/4 tsp powdered gelatin
2 Tbs (30g) light brown sugar
1/4 tsp (1g) kosher salt
1/4 cup (20g) milk powder
2 Tbs (50g) glucose
Fresh fruit or cereal to garnish (I used Cinnamon Toast Crunch)

Directions:

1. Sprinkle the gelatin over a small amount of the cold cereal milk and let it sit for a couple of minutes to soften.

2. Warm a little bit of the cereal milk and whisk it in the gelatin to dissolve. Whisk in the remaining cereal milk, brown sugar, salt, milk powder, and glucose until everything is fully dissolved.

3. Pour the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions. The ice cream will keep in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 weeks. Garnish with your favorite cereal.

Cereal Milk

Ingredients:

2 ¾ cups (100 grams) cornflakes
3 ¾ cups (825 grams) cold milk
2 tablespoons (30 grams) light brown sugar
¼ teaspoon (1 gram) kosher salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300°F.

2. Spread the cornflakes on a parchment-lined sheet pan. Bake for 15 minutes, until lightly toasted. Cool completely.

3. Transfer cooled cornflakes to a large pitcher or bowl. Pour the milk into the pitcher and stir vigorously. Let steep for 20 minutes at room temperature.

4. Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve, collecting the milk in a medium bowl. Discard mushy cornflakes (or eat them).

5. Whisk the brown sugar and salt into the milk until fully dissolved. Store in a covered container, refrigerated, for up to 1 week.

Recipes from Momofuku Milk Bar Cookbook by Christina Tosi (I left out the freeze dried corn powder called for in the original recipe since I couldn’t be arsed to track it down.)



My son included this song on the Mother’s Day mixtape he made for me. As he would say, it is pretty sick.

Check out AWOLNATION on the band’s Website, where you can learn of upcoming world tour dates and buy their music.

Cheers!

Q: Why does cheese look sane?

A: Because everything else on the plate is crackers.

When the farm stands (or your garden) start offering up the bounty of summer vegetables, keep this different and tasty grilled pizza in mind. The sauce is a light, Parmesan scented corn purée, which is perfect with the Caprese-style toppings.

Grilled Pizza With Cheesy Corn, Fresh Tomatoes, And Basil

Ingredients:

15 ounces pizza dough, store bought or homemade
1 1/3 cups corn kernels (from 2 ears)
1/2 ounce (1/4 cup) Parmesan cheese, grated
1 clove garlic, minced
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
Coarse salt
2 small tomatoes, thinly sliced
6 ounces mozzarella, thinly sliced
1/2 cup basil leaves

Directions:

1. Let dough sit at room temperature (in package) 4 hours.

2. Purée corn, Parmesan, garlic, 2 tablespoons oil, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a food processor until smooth with small chunks.

3. Spread remaining oil on a baking sheet. Place dough on pan, and stretch to an even thickness, turning to coat both sides with oil. Let rest 1 hour, then restretch.

4. Preheat grill to medium.

5. Season dough with salt, and transfer to grill, making sure to keep dough flat and even. Cover grill, and cook until dough is just charred on bottom, 5 to 6 minutes, checking frequently.

6. Carefully turn dough over. Spread corn mixture on dough, and top with tomato slices. Season with salt, and top with mozzarella. Cover grill, and cook until toppings are warmed through and mozzarella has melted, 5 to 6 minutes.

7. Top with basil, and serve.

Serves 6

Recipe from Martha Stewart Living Magazine

Here’s a fun ska-light tune that makes me smile whenever I hear it.

Check out No Such Noise! on Facebook and Bandcamp, where you can buy their music.

Cheers!

Drink a lot tonight and if you have a clever and talented husband, tell him a cheesy joke and he will make a funny video like this one.

This is such a fun dinner.

Toss together ziti with a tomato-bean-chile-olive mixture and a bunch of cheddar cheese, then top it all with your favorite nacho garnishes. Ditch the utensils and use tortilla chips to scoop this yummy pasta meal into your mouth.

Cheesy Taco Ziti

Ingredients:

1 pound ziti pasta
1 (14.5 ounce) can Muir Glen Fire Roasted Tomatoes with Green Chiles, drained or 2 cans (10 ounce) Rotel
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (4 ounce) can chopped black olives
2 cups shredded extra sharp cheddar cheese
Garnishes: tortilla chips, pickled jalapeño slices, sliced green onion, hot sauce, sour cream, chopped tomatoes

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions.

2. While pasta is cooking, place tomatoes in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat and cook off any residual juice, about 2 minutes.

3. Reduce heat to medium-low and add beans and olives. Combine mixture and warm through.

4. When pasta is done cooking, drain and combine with tomato-bean-olive mixture.

5. Place half of pasta on a serving tray and sprinkle with one cup of cheese. Add the rest of pasta on top and sprinkle with remaining layer of cheese. Top with a handful of pickled jalapeños and green onions. Place tortilla chips in and around serving dish as this dinner can just be scooped up like a dip. No utensils necessary. Serve with your choice of garnishes.

Serves 6

Recipe from Noble Pig

Friday kind of food deserves a Friday kind of song. I’m a gonna be alt-rocking out to this cool tune from Pine Barons.

The band states Hot Sauce as both their influence and interest, so douse your pasta well.

Check out Pine Barons on Facebook and Bandcamp, where you can buy their music on a name your price basis.

Cheers!

If you stop by here often enough, its pretty obvious that most everything I make is from someone else’s recipe.

I am a capable cook and could definitely put together meals without following recipes, but I LOVE recipes. I love the whole deal of making something the way it was imagined to be by another person.

Well, today is one of the rare days where you have a recipe from yours truly.

Emily from today’s band, Mahoney & The Moment, had this to say when I asked what I should pair their music with:

“Steve and I are sandwich lovers. We love them big and full of stuffings- pulled pork to coronation chıcken to hummus and veggie. As this is a firey album and we’re half brit/half yankee- fancy making a spicy sarney from somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic?”

How about the traditional flavors of an English Ploughman’s lunch tucked into a sandwich with aged Vermont cheddar and spiced up with some jalapeños? Throw in NY Deli staples pastrami and dill pickles and US diner favorite chipped beef, then grill the whole thing up.

The verdict?

This is a sandwich I would proudly serve to Emily and Steve along with a few pints of Whistling Pig Red Ale from Norwich, Vt’s own Norwich Inn and Theakston’s Old Peculier Ale flown in from England.

With any luck, after lunch they might offer to play a few songs in my kitchen. :)

Spicy Grilled Ploughman’s Sandwich

Ingredients:

2 slices whole wheat bread
Creamy Dried Beef Pickle Spread (recipe follows)
3 slices beef pastrami
4 thin slices of plum tomato
Sliced aged Vermont cheddar cheese
Sliced pickled jalapeños
Butter, for cooking the sandwich

Directions:

1. Spread one slice of bread with some pickle spread. Top with layers of pastrami, tomato, cheese and jalapeños. Cover with second slice of bread.

2. Heat a griddle pan. Place a pat of butter on hot pan. When melted, place sandwich on top. Cook for about 2 minutes until bottom is golden brown. While sandwich is cooking, place a few pats of butter onto top bread slice.

3. Flip sandwich so that buttered top becomes the bottom. Lower heat and cook for about 3 minutes longer, pressing on sandwich with a spatula, until the cheese is melted and the bottom slice of bread is golden brown.

Makes one sandwich

Creamy Dried Beef Pickle Spread

Ingredients:

8 ounces cream cheese, softened
6 dill pickle spears, chopped
2 ounces dried beef, chopped

Directions:

1. Mix together the cream cheese, pickle, and beef until well combined. Chill until ready to serve. Use in the Spicy Grilled Ploughman’s Sandwich or serve as a spread with crackers.

Makes about 1 cup

Recipe from AllRecipes.com

Mahoney & The Moment have a new album out, their second, titled ‘Don’t Say No!’. It is a brilliant mix of folk, bluesy alt-country and breezy rock.

I think the entire album is fantastic, but I adore the opening track and how it draws you right in. Such fun horns, too.

“I don’t like you
I don’t like you
I never did
Never kept it hid

It’s a case of friction
A real contradiction
A deeper shade of blue
Confession of the truth

Archie Lane
I came here to explain
Leaving on a jet plane
Never coming back, here

You’ll get through
With everyone around repulsed by you
Archie Lane
You’re a loser”

And showcasing their softer side, gorgeous voices and lovely harmonies, here are Mahoney & The Moment in a video performed on a Manhattan skyscraper.

Check out Mahoney & The Moment on the band’s Website and Bandcamp, where you can buy their music and learn upcoming UK tour dates.

Oh, and I love this. Such a cool and fun idea. The band has a Stress Management Kit for sale that includes:

Their full CD album
Mahoney & The Moment badge / button
Mahoney & The Moment mint chocolate
Stress ball
Groucho disguise
YoYo
Connect 4
and many more surprises in a specially assembled ‘stress box’

Cheers!

I love chocolate shell on ice cream. I shared a simple recipe awhile back here.

This recipe is just as easy. Still only two ingredients except this time there is the gorgeous marriage of chocolate and peanut butter.

If you have any leftover Choc-PB mixture, you can store it, covered, and re-melt the next time you want some.

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Shell

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons smooth peanut butter
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Microwave peanut butter and chocolate chips on medium power until just melted, stirring once, about 1 minute.

2. Stir until smooth; pour warm over ice cream and wait 1 minute for shell to form. Serve immediately.

Recipe from Rachael Ray Magazine

Time for a really short song. Such pretty piano.

And a totally sweet song.

Check out Julian Sharifi on Bandcamp, where you can get his music.

Learn more about Kyle Andrews on his Website. You can buy the music there.

Cheers!

As you know, I am intrigued by recipes that are unusual, but sound great.

Like these Macaroni And Cheese Pancakes.

I love mac and cheese. I love pancakes. Would I love them together?

Yes.

Throw together a buttermilk based pancake batter, cooked macaroni and a bunch of cheese and a few fry minutes later you have crisp edged, fluffy, cheesy centered disks of goodness.

The recipe calls for serving with maple syrup, which is how we had it last night. This morning though, I had some of the leftover pancakes with pickled, sliced jalapeños and that was really fantastic.

Macaroni And Cheese Pancakes

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon coarse salt
2 1/3 cups buttermilk
2 eggs
2 tablespoons butter, melted
2 1/2 cups cooked macaroni (1 1/4 cups dried), preferably elbows, drained and cooled
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar, plus some extra to garnish (I used yellow cheddar for the batter and sharp white for the garnish)
Maple syrup, for serving

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.

2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, eggs and butter.

3. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk until just combined. Using a spoon, fold in the macaroni and cheddar.

4. Preheat a griddle or large nonstick skillet over medium-low heat and lightly grease. Using a 1/4-cup measure and working in batches of 4, scoop the batter onto the griddle to make pancakes. Cook until the undersides of the pancakes are golden-brown and bubbles start to form on the top, about 5 minutes. Flip and cook until the second side is golden-brown, 3 to 4 minutes longer.

5. Transfer pancakes to a baking sheet and keep warm in a 200℉ oven while cooking the remaining pancake batter.

6. Serve with maple syrup and a scattering of shredded cheddar.

Serves 4 to 6

Recipe from Rachael Ray Magazine

A recipe as unusual and cheerful as Mac ‘n Cheese Pancakes needs a knee slapping, good tune, preferably by a band with an unusual name.

Nude Party, out of Sweden, will do the trick quite nicely.

“Little Kennedy” is from the band’s latest EP ‘Ingratitude Is The World’s Reward’, out this month.

Check out Nude Party on the band’s Website, where you can learn upcoming Swedish tour dates and buy their music. A word of caution…Google searching the band comes up with some pretty startling stuff.

Cheers!

This Red, White & Blueberry Poke Cake is so fun and festive. I love how guests are happily surprised when you cut into the kind of plain white iced cake and they see the happy red and blue inside. It is super delicious, too, and perfect for a patriotic party.

Red, White & Blueberry Poke Cake

Ingredients for cake:

1 package white cake mix
1-1/4 cups water
2 eggs
1/4 cup canola oil

Ingredients for strawberry gelatin:

1 cup fresh strawberries
1/4 cup water
2/3 cup sugar
2-1/4 teaspoons strawberry gelatin

Ingredients for blueberry gelatin:

3/4 cup fresh blueberries
1/2 cup water
4-1/2 teaspoons sugar
4-1/2 teaspoons berry blue gelatin

Ingredients for icing and filling:

2-1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1/3 cup confectioners’ sugar
Berries to garnish, if you like

Directions for cake:

1. Line bottoms of two 9-inch round baking pans with parchment or waxed paper; coat paper with cooking spray.

2. In a large bowl, beat the cake mix, water, eggs and oil on low speed for 30 seconds. Beat on medium for 2 minutes longer.

3. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake at 350°F for 25-30 minutes or until a tester inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool completely in pans on wire racks.

Directions for strawberry gelatin:

1. In a small saucepan, combine the strawberries, water and sugar; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 2-3 minutes or until berries are soft.

2. Strain into a small bowl, pressing berries lightly; discard pulp. Add gelatin to syrup, stirring to dissolve completely. Cool to room temperature.

Directions to make blueberry gelatin:

1. In a small saucepan, combine the blueberries, water and sugar; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 2-3 minutes or until berries are soft.

2. Strain into a small bowl, pressing berries lightly; discard pulp. Add gelatin to syrup, stirring to dissolve completely. Cool to room temperature.

Directions to assemble cake:

1. Using a wooden skewer, pierce tops of cakes to within 1 inch of edge; twist skewer gently to make slightly larger holes.

2. Gradually pour cooled strawberry mixture over one cake, being careful to fill each hole. Repeat with blueberry mixture and remaining cake.

3. Refrigerate cake layers, covered, overnight.

4. In a large bowl, beat cream until it begins to thicken. Add confectioners’ sugar and beat until soft peaks form.

5. Run a knife around edges of pans to loosen cakes. Remove strawberry cake from pan; remove paper. Place cake on a serving plate. Spread with 1 cup whipped cream.

6. Remove blueberry cake from pan; remove paper. Place cake over whipped cream layer. Frost top and sides with remaining cream.

7. Chill for at least 1 hour before serving. Garnish with berries before serving.

Serves 12

Recipe from Taste Of Home Magazine

While you are poking the cake you can listen to ‘Poke The Bear’. Just plain gorgeous.

Check out Bryn Oldfield on Facebook and Soundcloud, where you can get his music.

Cheers!

I also wanted this Grand Marnier Coffee Cocktail.

I adore Grand Marnier all by its lonesome, but it is fabulous in coffee. That hint of orange and brandy…yum.

Grand Marnier Coffee Cocktail

Ingredients:

Cinnamon
Sugar
Lime wedge
1 oz Grand Marnier
5 oz hot coffee
Whipped cream

Directions:

1. In a bowl mix 2 parts sugar to 1 part cinnamon. Rim an 8 ounce stemmed glass with the lime wedge, and dip into the cinnamon-sugar mixture.

2. Pour the Grand Marnier into the glass and add coffee. Top with whipped cream.

Makes 1 drink

My mother is long gone, but I’m sending this song out to her because somehow I know she will be listening.

“So I kissed her today
I think they said it would be A-Okay
I probably would’ve done it anyway
Right now I’m just gonna seize the day

Because a Mother’s love flows so naturally
And a Mother’s love comes unconditionally

So strong and true
I’m speechless just a thinking of you
And my eyes fill up with tears
The more I search and guess the more I fear

But a Mother’s love flows so naturally
And a Mother’s love it always comes for free

So I seen her smile today
So much heart she’s so brave
I heard her laughter cry out loud
I’ll do my best to make Mama proud

And a Mother’s love flows so naturally
And a Mother’s love comes unconditionally

Because a Mother’s love flows so naturally
Oh and a Mother’s love it always comes for free”

Check out Black & Blue Morning on Facebook and Bandcamp, where you can name your price to get their music.

Happy Mother’s Day to all of the mothers out there and a belated wish to the UK/European mums who celebrated back in March. xx

Cheers!

Have you ever seen this crazy video. A friend (Hi Muffy!) sent it to me years ago and I still get a kick out of it. I like that Holiday song, too.

Hearty slow cooker dinners are a staple around my house in the busy winter months. The same goes for spring, when sports season is in full swing and we are not walking through the door much before 8 pm.

Recently it was lovely to come home to the heady smell of this oniony roast. Only 5 ingredients and less than 5 minutes to put together, it couldn’t be an easier meal.

I left the “Lick Your Plate Clean” description that the recipe I followed used, because that sauce really is plate-licking good. It has ginger ale in it! Who knew that would work?

I had some leftover pot roast that I shredded and used to make some awesome quesadillas. Just layer meat and cheese and maybe some pickled jalapeños (yes!) on tortillas and grill until the cheese melts.

Lick Your Plate Clean Slow Cooker Pot Roast

Ingredients:

3-5 lb pot roast
1/2 cup flour
1 envelope brown gravy mix
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
2 cups ginger ale (you can use sugar-free if you like)
Mashed potatoes (I love the refrigerated kind, which really make this the easiest of dinners)
Parsley or a green veg to brighten up the plate, totally optional

Directions:

1. Sprinkle roast with a little bit of flour (reserve remaining flour) Place beef in slow cooker.

2. In a mixing bowl, combine soup mix, gravy mix, remaing flour and ginger ale. Mix well. Pour over roast.

3. Cover and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours. Serve with mashed potoates or noodles.

Serves 8 to 10

Recipe from Tip Garden

Here’s Juliet with ‘Avalon’, the song in the Russian tunnel of death video. She’s in a tunnel, too.

How about some Death Of Juliet, too? (Pixie Juliet above would be dead if she was in the Russian tunnel instead of her quiet one.)

I love this catchy tune.

“All we’ve got is time,
I’m digging your smile”

Check out Death Of Juliet on Facebook. You can buy their music here.

Cheers!