Ohhh, the weekend is hours away and a frosty cold one is in order! I've got a ton of mint popping up in my garden and need to use some of it so I thought a mojito of some sort would be a fresh and delicious way to kick off the weekend. You can make a mojito from almost anything but the basics are always rum, mint, and club soda. Add the pomegranate juice and you've also got some good for you antioxidants in there, too:) Cheers to the weekend! Have a great one!
POMEGRANATE MOJITO
For 2
1/2 cup pomegranate juice
12 mint leaves
3 teaspoons sugar
2 Tablespoon fresh lime juice
3 ounces light rum (you can substitute vodka if you like)
Ice
Club soda
Lime wedge for garnish
Chill two glasses. Put the mint in the bottom of a cocktail shaker with the sugar. Use a wooden spoon to muddle (bruise) the mint and release the oils into the sugar. Add rum, pomegranate juice, lime juice. Fill with ice. Shake until well chilled. Put mint leaves in the bottom of the glass. Add ice. Strain the cocktail over the ice. Top with club soda for a little sparkle. Garnish with lime.
Down South where I come from, we are in the early weeks of strawberry season. This is one of my favorite times of the year... chilly mornings, dew on the ground and fantastic early strawberries on the shelves at the farmer's market. The guy I get fresh strawberries from sells them off the back of his pick-up truck...real old-school.
I wanted to make a strawberry something or 'nother for my first weekend cocktail blog post since leaving for Food Network Star back in January. I also wanted to make it with some sparkle since we are still celebrating the cast announcement for the show. (please forgive me, this could go on all summer) So.... here's what I came up with: a simple, elegant cocktail perfect for a brunch, wedding reception, bridal shower, or ladies luncheon. My Fresh Strawberry Fizz... similar to a Bellini but with strawberry puree instead of peach. Let me know what you think! Happy weekend, friends!
FRESH STRAWBERRY FIZZ
1 pint fresh strawberries, washed, hulled, and sliced
1 750ml bottle Prosecco, chilled
2 tablespoons Grand Marnier or other orange liqueur
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
Add the strawberries, orange juice and Grand Marnier to a pitcher. Puree using an immersion blender (stick blender or you can do this in a regular blender) until very smooth. Taste. If the strawberries are very sweet, you won't need a sweetener, however, if the strawberries are not that sweet, add a bit of Agave Nectar or Confectioners' sugar and puree a bit more.
Fill champagne flutes 1/3 full with puree. Top with Prosecco. Serve with a strawberry garnish.
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BIG NEWS! MARTIE IS ON FOOD NETWORK STAR SEASON 8! GET DETAILS HERE!
I am so thrilled and excited to finally be able to share the news with you... I've had to keep it quiet for almost a year now so excuse me for shouting but I'M ON FOOD NETWORK STAR!
Yes... it is true: I'm part of the cast for Season 8 of Food Network Star which begins Mother's Day Sunday, May 13th at 8pm Central/9pm Eastern. It has been a long journey to the cast announcement. It all started in July when I saw the casting announcement on the Food Network website. That was on a Monday night. The next day, I made the eleven hour drive to Chicago for an open casting call. More than 1,000 of us waited in line for a chance at our own Food Network television show. I was one of the last to go in to see the casting team; it must have been a very long day for them.
After a series of auditions and interviews, I was asked to audition for Alton Brown (yes, that really happened) who selected me to be part of his team for the newly formatted show. Then, in January I packed up three huge suitcases (jeans, cowboy shirts and boots take up a lot of space) and headed to New York to tape the show. There were 15 finalists selected and one of us will win our own show on Food Network on July 22, 2012.
Food Network Star 2012 is going to be a totally new format. Similar to X-Factor and The Voice, three teams of five are mentored by Food Network stars Alton Brown, Giada DeLaurentiis, and Bobby Flay. Ultimately, it is an individual competition but the mentors make it really interesting by offering their unique perspective, guidance, and direction to their star hopefuls. Here is the cast:
Season eight finalists are: Philip “Ippy” Aiona (Kamuela, HI), Judson Allen (Chicago), Martie Duncan (Birmingham, Ala.), Emily Ellyn(Orlando, Fla.), Martita Jara (San Diego), Eric Lee(Petaluma, Calif.), Yvan Lemoine (Maspeth, N.Y.), Josh Lyons(Jupiter, Fla.), Linkie Marais(North Attleborough, Mass.), Nikki Martin (West Hollywood, Calif.), Malcolm Mitchell (Washington, D.C.), Michele Ragussis (Brooklyn, N.Y.), Cristie Schoen (New Orleans), Kara Sigle (Chicago) and Justin Warner (Brooklyn, N.Y.).
In the premiere episode, the fifteen hopefuls arrive in the Food Network Starkitchen in New York City to meet Bobby Flay, Giada De Laurentiis and Alton Brown - the culinary superstars who hand-selected them to compete on their teams. After meeting with their team leader, special guest Robert Irvine challenges the teams to their first “Star Challenge” - to create their own pop-up restaurant from the ground up, with an extremely limited budget and very little time. Each episode also features a “Producer’s Challenge,” where the contestants up for elimination each shoot a segment with their ‘Star’ mentor/producer to be presented to the selection committee in the “pitch room.” Returning judges Food Network executives Bob Tuschman and Susie Fogelson decide who Vote for me for fan favorite up to 10 times every day!stays and goes, along with a roster of guest judges scheduled to join.
I'd like to thank everyone for your support: from Facebook, to my website, to the live shows, videos, and television segments.... all of it has helped me to get here. Now, I'm very hopeful we can see it all the way through but it is going to take more than a village, it is going to take a nation. Fan favorite voting is happening now and will continue throughout the entire competition. And in a twist, the final winner will be decided by America. That's right... you and I get to vote for the final winner!
Here's the link to the Food Network Star. It will have up to the minute information on each episode plus information on each finalist.
I had such fun with our Easter ideas segment on Fox 6 today in Birmingham, Alabama! Using easy to find items like pretty pastel colored tea towels from Bromberg's as a placemat/napkin, colored Juliska glassware, pretty farm-style speckled eggs in wooden bowls and a twig table runner... this table is mix, match, and use what you have style. The clip shows simple these decorating ideas and a deviled egg bar with lots of toppings for a super affordable and relaxed Easter brunch or Good Friday luncheon. Here's the video clip for those of you who missed it.
I don't think I like anything much more than Bolognese-- meat sauce over pasta. I build my Bolognese with lots of flavor--- and really let it cook down to almost a paste consistency to make it really hearty, thick and rich. You can reconstitute it with stock (even chicken or veggie stock is fine) if you want to thin it out a little before serving. Bolognese, a cold salad, some fresh bread, and a good bottle of wine is a party in my book. Next time you want to impress somebody you love, invite them over for this classic Italian supper... you'll get rock star status for this one! Ciao!
BOLOGNESE
This makes a big pot. I usually freeze half but don't add the cream to the part I freeze.
1 T olive oil
5-6 strips bacon or pancetta, diced
1 large onion, diced
1 cup carrots, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 t. kosher salt
1/2 t. black pepper
1 t. fresh thyme- minced (ok use 1/2 t. dried thyme instead)
1/2 t. fresh oregano, minced (ok to use 1/4 t. dried oregano)
1/4 t. fresh ground nutmeg
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 pound ground veal (optional)
1/2 pound ground pork sausage (I use Italian sausage and take it out of the casing)
3 T. tomato paste
2 cups red wine (optional)
1 can (28 ounces) whole tomatoes including the juice, crushed
1 can (28 ounces) tomato puree
1 can (14.5 ounce) tomato sauce
3 cups beef broth (you can also use veg or chicken)
1 Arbol chili
3 bay leaves
1/2 T. sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 T. fresh Italian flat leaf parsley, chopped fine
1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated or shaved
Add the olive oil to a large pot and heat. Over medium-high heat, add the bacon and cook until browned. Add the carrots and onions. Cook until soft. Add the garlic and cook for a minute, stirring constantly. Add the salt, pepper, oregano, thyme, and nutmeg. Add the beef and the sausage. Cook until the meat is browned, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook for one minute, stirring constantly.
Add 1 cup of the red wine (or use stock if you are not cooking with the wine) and use that to deglaze the pan, scraping all of the flavor off the bottom of the pan. Reduce the heat to medium. Let the wine reduce completely, stirring occasionally. Add the other cup of wine and cook, reducing the liquid until it is almost completely gone. Once the wine has cooked down, addd the whole tomatoes (crush them first- I just crush them with my hand) plus the tomato puree and the tomato sauce, and half of the beef broth. Bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly to keep the sauce from sticking on the bottom of the pot. Add the sugar, chili and the bay leaf. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 2-3 hours, stirring frequently. Add more beef broth as the sauce cooks down and becomes thick. You want the sauce to be very thick and paste like but you can add the broth to reconstitute it a bit if you like.
Before serving, remove the chili and the bay leaf. Stir in the cream. Serve with the Parmesan cheese over any hot pasta you like. Sprinkle the cheese over the hot pasta, then ladle over the sauce. Top with fresh parsley. Heaven on a plate!
Friday, April 20, 2012 at 7:35AM 
POMEGRANATE MOJITO
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