Thank you all for your patience and understanding. It was another whirlwind, busy weekend. I wish I could have chit-chatted with you all - whether it was wine, party ideas, or socially. You know once you get me going, I can't stop!
I tried to sample a variety of party foods. I'm trying to get in as many as possible before New Year's. As always - easy to prepare and tastey. None of the recipes disappointed, but the three customer favorites were - Arugula, Burrata, and Prosciutto - PreMoo Cheese Spread - Creamy Chipotle Berry Brie.
If you came late to the party or weren't at the tastings every day (yes, some customers come to all of my tastings), here's what you missed ...
I have to start with my all time favorite and my customers favorite. It's a perfect pairing for Champagne, sparkling wine, Cava, Prosecco ... Bubbles. (I LOVE bubbles!)
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| Chef Fred |
Arugula,
Burrata, and Prosciutto
1
container of BelGioioso Burratta,
drained
4
to 8 slices Parma Prosciutto,
sliced thin
1
clam shell baby arugula
extra virgin olive
oil
Kosher
salt
On
four salad plates, lay baby arugula.
Slice
each ball of Burrata into four slices.
Place 2 slices on each plate.
Drizzle
Burrata and Arugula with olive oil. Season with Kosher salt.
Drape
Prosciutto on top of Burrata. Serve.
Yields: 4 servings
If you have not had Burrata (means butter in Italian), it is a must. This a fresh Mozzarella ball filled with fresh Mozzarella and cream. When you slice into it, the creamy, heavenly delicousness oozes out. The creaminess of the cheese, with a hint of pepper from Arugula, drizzled with extra virgin olive oil, a tad of salt from the Prosciutto and Kosher salt ... paired with bubbles ... it's heavenly.
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I needed a change from crackers and French Rounds. Nothing against them, but ... variety at a party is what everyone needs. So I came up with this recipe. Customers were enjoying it. My TFM (The Fresh Market) Taste Testers devoured the end scraps I cut off.
Ham and Swiss Roll-Ups
8 oz. TFM cream cheese, softened
¾ c. mayonnaise
3 c. shredded Jarlsberg Swiss
cheese
½ c. Delallo Red Roasted Piquillo
Peppers, patted dry and
chopped
¾ tsp. Worcestershire sauce
12 (1/8-inch thick) slices
Mickelberry ham
1 jar Maille Cornichones
Place cream cheese and mayonnaise
in a medium mixing bowl. Beat at medium
speed with an electric mixer until creamy.
Add Swiss cheese, peppers, and Worchestershire. Mix until well blended.
Lay one slice of ham on a flat
surface. Spread with cheese
mixture. Roll up (jelly roll fashion
starting at long side) and place on a baking sheet. Repeat for remaining ham slices. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.
Prior to serving, slice off the
end of each ham roll. Cut roll into 5
equal bites.
To serve, cut Cornichones in half
(on the diagonal). Place one half on a
frill pick and then place on ham bite.
Set on serving dish. Repeat for
all bites.
Yields: 60 bites
Okay. So I was looking for a change from crackers and thought roll-ups on a pick would be great. However, after I put picks on all the ham, I sampled one of the ends I trimmed off on a cracker with a cornichon. It was like eating a mini sandwich. I much prefer it this way. Give it a try. This is not only nice for the holidays, but also Super Bowl parties.
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Sticking with my ban on crackers ...
Greek Picks
1 jar Apetina Marinated Feta
1 jar Penelopese Pitted Kalamata Olives
1 small clamshell grape tomatoes
On a frill pick put one grape tomato, one olive, and cube of feta. Place on a serving plate.
Here you have it. Open three containers, skewer and serve. No slicing and dicing. Just some assembly required. These can be prepared ahead of time and refrigerated until serving.
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Artichoke
Bruschetta
1
jar Stonewall Kitchen
Tomato Herb Bruschetta Spread
6
oz. Delallo Marinated Artichoke Hearts,
drained
¼
c. pine nuts, toasted and roughly chopped
1
clove garlic, minced
¼
c. diced onion
½
c. Reggiano Parmesan cheese
¼
c. fresh basil, chopped
salt
and pepper, to taste
TFM
Garlic Parmesan French Rounds or Petit Toasts
Place
all ingredients (except French Rounds or Petit Toasts) in a mixing bowl. Toss until well incorporated. Refrigerate for 3 hours or overnight to let
flavors blend. Transfer to a serving
bowl. Serve.
On Thursday I prepared this with Domestic Parmesan. Friday I prepared with Reggiano. Reggiano definitely enhances the flavor. Domestic was too mild.
This proved interesting. Some customers liked. Some customers loved. One customer said it would be good over pasta. My ever faithful Fresh Market taste testers enjoyed. I liked, but thought there was too much garlic (and I only used one clove and removed the center of it). What can I say? Give it a try.
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Fresh Market's cheese specialist, Nicole, prepared this delicious treat. I'm so glad she did. Customers LOVED it.
PreMoo
Cheese Spread
7 oz. PreMoo cheese, shredded
2 Tbl. chopped red onion
¼ tsp. garlic powder
1/8 tsp. paprika
¼ tsp. Coleman’s dry mustard
1 tsp sugar
Starting with ½ cup mayonnaise, combine all ingredients in a
large mixing bowl. Add more mayonnaise to taste. Transfer to a serving
bowl. Serve.
This is a VERY popular cheese spread. I'd say it's adictive. Nice for the holidays. Great for snacking. Just right for Super Bowl parties. Customer favorite.
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| 2013 Recipe Booklet |
The following recipe is from Fresh Markets Recipe Booklet Fresh Flavors Holiday Edition 2012. (If you did not get this years recipe booklet, they are still available and I will have them at my tasting table until they run out.)
Creamy Chipotle
Berry Brie
1 small (13.2 oz.) wheel Ile de France Brie,
top
rind removed
¼ c. Wholesome Blue Agave
½ c. chopped pecans
½ c. dried cranberries
½ c. Bronco Bob’s Raspberry Chipotle Sauce
TFM Entertainment crackers or
Ancient Grains
Crackers
Preheat oven to 400o. Place brie on an oven safe serving dish.
Bake 4 to 6 minutes or just until the brie begins to
melt.
While brie is baking, in a small saucepan, combine
agave, pecans, dried cranberries and Bronco Bob’s Sauce. Heat until warm.
When brie is baked, spread cranberry-nut mixture
over top of the brie. Serve immediately
with TFM crackers.
This was delicious. Customers were taking the recipe and product before I began my sampling because it just sounded so good. A nice change from a fruity brie. This had a bit of heat, which the brie toned down. Also, my apologies for running out of product so quickly. Grocery did order it for me, but it was not on the truck. It will hopefully be in this week.
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Lastly, I did two samplings, on crackers, with products I enjoy and I thought customers would enjoy as well. I can tell you my trusty TFM Taste Tasters were gobbling them up (especially when my back was turned).
Roasted Garlic Onion Jam with Cheese
1 jar Stonewall Kitchen
Roasted Garlic Onion Jam
1 wedge Buttermilk Blue Cheese
TFM Ancient Grains Crackers
Spread jam on cracker and top with a piece of blue cheese.
You can use Feta or Goat Cheese, or your favorite blue cheese, in place of the Buttermilk Blue. You can also use TFM French Rounds. This is the perfect pairing for Port.
I orginally wanted to the following recipe with fresh figs and honey. But, fresh figs were not on the truck. Luckily I had a "Plan B" and the recipe follows.
If you have not had Boucherondin, it is a goat cheese center, with an outer ring of brie and an edible rind. My "Plan B" was using my favorite product - Dalmatia Fig Spread.
Boucherondin and Fig Spread
1 round of Boucherondin
1 jar Dalmatia Fig Spread
TFM Ancient Grains Crackers
Spread Dalmatia Fig Spread on crackers and place on a serving platter.
Slice Boucherondin (thinly) in wedges as you would a cake. Place a wedge on top of fig spread. Serve.
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Monday, December 23rd, I prepared the following two recipes. They were modifications of recipes I prepared on December 14th for the Rex-Goliath event. One major modification - I used Greek Cream Cheese and Greek Yogurt. This gives the recipes a thicker consistancy and a richer flavor. Personally I think these taste better and my TFM taste testers did too.
Feta-Roasted Garlic Onion Jam Spread #2
4 oz. Greek Yogurt & Greek Cream Cheese
4 oz. crumbled Feta cheese
3 to 4 Tbl. Stonewall Kitchen Roasted Garlic Onion Jam
Place all ingredients in a mixing bowl. Mix until thoroughly blended. Transfer to a serving bowl. Serve with your favorite crackers or TFM French Rounds.
Goat Cheese-Orange Cranberry-Horseradish Spread
4 oz. Greek Yogurt & Greek Cream Cheese
1/3 lb. crumbled Goat cheese with cranberry
2 Tbl. Stonewall Kitchen Orange Cranberry Marmalade
1¼ tsp. horseradish
Place all ingredients in a mixing bowl. Mix until thoroughly blended. Transfer to a serving bowl. Serve with your favorite crackers or TFM French Rounds.
This was not as sweet as the original recipe I prepared. The hint of horseradish was a nice touch.
Of these two recipes, the Feta-Roasted Garlic Onion Jam Spread was still the favorite.
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That's all for the recipes this weekend. I have one more weekend of holiday party ideas left. Then in January I will start sampling appetizers for Super Bowl Parties. I already have some recipes and mind and "played" with them. My TFM Taste Testers have already given them the thumbs up.
I just want to finish with Fresh Market's Take-and-Bake Brie. If you need something quick and easy, these are delicious. If you are looking for something unique and different, then I suggest the Decadent Chocolate Brie. To-die-for delicious! Nicole is taking orders. It's not too late!
