Adapted From: Marcella Hazan's cookbook "Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking" 

​Serves 6
Anchovy Sauce
 
6 Tbs butter3 tsp garlic chopped course
*4 flat anchovy fillets, chopped very, very fine
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
 
Chicken 
2 eggs
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded or cut to scaloppine*
1 ½ cups of fine, dry, unflavored breadcrumbs spread on a plate.
2 Tbs butter
2 Tbs olive oil
Salt 
 
Sauce
1.  Put the butter and garlic in a small saucepan and turn on the heat to medium.  Cook the garlic until it becomes colored a pale gold, then turn the heat down to very low, and put in the chopped anchovies. Cook, stirring the anchovies and mashing them against the sides of the pan, until they begin to dissolve into a paste.  Add the chopped parsley, stir and cook for about 20 seconds, then remove from heat and set aside.
 
Chicken

1. Lightly beat the eggs in a deep dish, using a fork or a whisk.
2. Lightly salt each piece of chicken.  Dip each piece of chicken in the egg, coating both sides and letting excess egg flow back into the plate as you pull the chicken away. 
3. Place each piece into the breadcrumbs and press the chicken firmly against the crumbs, using the palm of your hand.  Your palm should come away dry, which means the crumbs are adhering to the meat.
4. Put the butter and oil into a large fry pan and turn on the heat to medium high.  When the butter foam begins to subside, place the chicken pieces in.  Cook until a dark golden crust forms on one side, then turn them and do the other side, altogether about 5 minutes, depending on the thickness of the chicken. 
5. Add the anchovy sauce to the pan and turn the chicken to coat. Transfer to a warm platter.  erve promptly. 

 
*To make Scaloppine (two methods)
 
In this recipe, the chicken must be pounded flat and thin so they will cook evenly.  Note that you should not mash the chicken by bringing the pounder down hard against the breast.  What you want to do is to stretch out the meat, thus thinning and evening it.  Bring the pounder down on the slice so that it meets it flat, not on an edge, and as it comes down on the meat, slide it, on one continuous motion, from the center out word.  Repeat the operation, stretching the slice in all direction until it is evenly thin throughout.
You may also choose to cut the breast in half by butterflying the breast.  Once it is opened, separate the top half from the bottom half creating two pieces of chicken.

*Anchovies-I like to use anchovy paste in a tube instead of the fillets to save some work. If using the paste, use 2 tablespoons.

Southwest Seasoning
¼ cup smoked paprika
1 tsp chipotle power or ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon granulated garlic
1 tablespoon ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons Kosher salt
 
Fish Tacos and Coleslaw
12 small corn tortillas
1 ½ pound tilapia fillets
4 cups red cabbage, thinly sliced
1 small red pepper, thinly sliced
¼ cup red onion, minced
½ cup cilantro, chopped
1 cup mayonnaise
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
2 limes, cut into wedges

1. Preheat the broiler on high and put the cooking rack 5 inches below the flame. Cover a broiler pan with foil and spray with cooking spray.
2. Combine the Southwest seasoning ingredients in a small container and set aside.
   
3. Place the tilapia fillets onto the prepared pan and sprinkle 1 tablespoon of the Southwest seasoning. Broil until the fish is cooked through, about 7-12 minutes depending on how thick the fish is.
4. In a large bowl combine the cabbage, red pepper, red onions, and cilantro. Prepare the dressing in a small bowl by mixing the mayonnaise, vinegar, honey, and 2 teaspoons of the Southwest seasoning together. Toss ½ cup of the dressing with the shredded cabbage and vegetables. Add salt and pepper to taste.  Add more dressing if you like.
5. Warm the tortillas (covered) in the microwave for 1 minute.
   
   ​To assemble the tacos, place a piece of fish and some coleslaw onto each tortilla. Serve with lime wedges on the side.

This is the week to make your lilac syrup. You want to be sure to use flowers that are newly open. If you don't have time to make your syrup; while the flowers are their best, cut your stems and put them in water and store them in the refrigerator for upto 4 days. This help to keep the flowers from opening more and baking in the sun. Make plenty of syrup and store it in 4oz containers in the freezer. You'll have lilac syrup for months to come.

1 cup (packed) lilac flowers-newly opened for best fragrance
½ cup sugar
1/2 cup water
2 blue berries for color


Place the sugar and water in a small saucepan.  Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook until the sugar melts.  Remove the pan from the heat and add the flowers and blueberries, gently press the flowers  to immerse them. Allow the syrup to cool to room temperature.

Strain the syrup, pressing on the flowers to extract as much syrup as possible. Store in a covered container. The syrup can be refrigerated 2-3 weeks or frozen for later use.
 
Uses:
Lemonade, iced tea, cocktails, drizzle over yogurt, ice cream, and cake.

2 oz lilac syrup
juice of one large lemon
seltzer or soda
Ice

Combine the lilac syrup and lemon juice in a tall glass with ice. Add seltzer to taste. Enjoy!

Cocktail Ideas: Add 2 ounces of gin or vodka for a tasty cocktail!

Serves 6 as a side dish

4 ounces sugar snap peas
4 ounces snow peas, sliced on the bias
4 ounces frozen petite peas, thawed
2 scallions, about ½ cup chopped-or equal about of chives, chopped
2 cups pea shoots or tendrils-water cress or mixed greens can be substituted
2 Tbs fresh mint, roughly chopped
2 Tbs fresh flat leafed parsley, roughly chopped
optional: 2-3 radishes, thinly sliced
5 Tbs cider or red wine vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 cup olive oil
Kosher salt and Pepper
Ricotta salata or parmesan, shaved
Edible flowers for garnish

1. Heat a saucepan filled halfway with water and 1 tsp kosher salt. Bring to a boil. While the water is coming to a boil, prepare an ice bath with ice and cold water, set aside.
2. When the salted water reaches a boil, add the sugar snap peas and the sliced snow peas. Cook for 3 minutes. Remove the peas from the water with a slotted spoon and immediately place them into the ice bath. Once cold, drain and place on a cotton towel to pat dry-as dry as possible.
3. Prepare the dressing by combining the vinegar, Dijon mustard, and olive oil in a lidded jar. Cover and shake until combined.
4. Place the sugar snap, snow, and thawed peas, into a large bowl with the greens and optional radish slices. Add the herbs and enough dressing to lightly coat the salad and gently toss.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Serve immediately garnished with cheese and edible flowers.

Check out my Facebook Live cooking demo of this salad with the 3 variations below: https://www.facebook.com/thecreativefeast/videos/561124908113428/
​

Make this salad a meal: Hard boiled eggs or poached eggs with roasted potatoes and roasted radishes.

Appetizer: Dress the salad and place on top of toasted bread smeared with ricotta cheese

Pasta: Add the undressed salad to Pasta Carbonara https://www.thecreativefeast.com/recipeblog/pasta-alla-carbonara

Makes about 1 ½ cups
 
4 large egg yolks
1 Tbs fresh lemon juice
1 Tbs water
 pinch of cayenne pepper
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter
Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper
 

1. Place the egg yolks, lemon juice, and cayenne in the blender and blend thoroughly for about 10 seconds. 
   
   
2. Melt butter until bubbling.
   
   
3. With the blender on, slowly pour the hot butter into the egg mixture.  Blend until thickened.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Add more lemon juice 1 tsp at a time is desired. Serve immediately or keep in a warm water bath until needed. If you refrigerate left overs, reheat in a warm water bath while gently stirring.

Serve with vegetables, chicken, or fish. 
Too thick?  Add an additional tablespoon of warm water or lemon juice.

Serves 2
Vinaigrette
1 cup olive oil or avocado oil
1/3 cup or more vinegar – unfiltered apple cider vinegar or sherry vinegar, or balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

Salad
1-2 slices artisan bread, cut into ½ inch cubes
2 tablespoons olive oil
​4 pieces thick-cut bacon, cut into ½ inch pieces
2 cups (per person) mixed greens
1-2 teaspoons fresh dill, chopped
1-2 teaspoons fresh parsley or mint, chopped

Poached Eggs
2-4 large eggs-depending on how many eggs you would like per salad
1 Tbs vinegar-plain, distilled (apple cider or red vinegar will work if you don’t have white)
water
Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper
 

1. To prepare the vinaigrette: Combine the ingredients in a bottle and shake well. Taste and add more vinegar (a teaspoon or two at a time) to taste. Your vinaigrette can be kept on the counter. Season your salad with salt and pepper after you toss it with the vinaigrette. 

1. To prepare the croutons: Heat a large saute pan over medium high heat with 2 tablespoons olive oil. When the oil is hot, but not smoking, add the bread cubes and gently toss to coat the cubes in the oil. Cook, moving the cubes occasionally until browned and crisp. Sprinkle with a little salt, cool on a plate. 
2. Using the same pan you prepared the croutons in, cook bacon over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until well browned. Remove from the pan and place on paper towels to drain.
3. To poach the eggs: fill a wide, straight-sided sauté pan with water (2 ½-3 inches) and add 1 tablespoon vinegar. Heat the water to a gentle simmer. 
4. Break each egg into a teacup. Slide 1 egg into simmering liquid. If the whites begin to spread, gently push white around the yolk with a slotted spoon. Add remaining eggs in the same manner. 
5. Simmer the eggs 3-4 minutes. If cooking in batches or ahead of serving time, place the cooked eggs into a pan of lukewarm water until serving time. To warm up the eggs, place in a pan of simmering water for 30 seconds or microwave for 15 seconds. 
6. To serve: Add the croutons to the salad greens and toss with just enough vinaigrette to lightly coat the salad. Season the salad with a few pinches of salt and pepper. Toss well and divide among plates. 
7. Place 1-2 poached eggs onto each salad and garnish with the bacon. Serve immediately.

For vinaigrette variations check out Liz’s Vinaigrette
How to poach eggs-Video

Quarantini
Recipe from-https://thenovicechefblog.com/quarantini/
 
3 oz vodka (or gin)
2 oz fresh squeezed lemon juice
3/4 ounce honey syrup
Lemon twist, garnish
Optional: 1 packet EmergenC
 
Add 2 cups ice to a cocktail shaker.
Add vodka, lemon juice and honey syrup to shaker.
Shake, and then strain into a chilled martini glass.
Garnish with a lemon twist if desired.
* EmergenC: run a lemon piece around the rim of the chilled martini glass and dip half the rim into the EmergenC powder. Pour in the drink.

Margarita-Classic
Makes one cocktail

1 1/2 ounces blanco tequila
3/4 ounce orange liqueur
3/4 ounce fresh lime juice
optional-1 tsp agave nectar or simple sugar
salt for rim
lime wheel for garnish

Prepare a rocks, coupe or cocktail glass with a salted rim, if desired. Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker. Add ice and shake until chilled. Strain into prepared glass, over ice if desired. Garnish with a lime wheel.

​Recommendations:
         
Silver (or blanco/white) clear
Joven (or gold/oro/dorado) light color
Añejo (or aged)-brandy like in color

Orange liquor- Triple Sec-clear 
​                      Cointreau-brandy influenced-darker in color
                                

​Jalapeno Cucumber Margarita
Makes one cocktail
 
1 cucumber, diced
1 large jalapeno, seeded and chopped
2 ounces Silver Tequila (bright) or Anejo Tequila (smooth)
1 ounce orange liquor (bright) or Cointreau (smooth)
1 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tsp agave syrup or simple syrup (1 part water: 1 part sugar-sugar dissolved)
1 ounce jalapeno cucumber juice (see instructions below)
Kosher salt for rim
 
Prepare your glass by running a slice of lime around the outside of the rim. Turn the outside rim of the glass though salt and set aside. Add 1 cup ice to cocktail shaker. Pour in Tequila, orange liquor, lime juice, agave, and jalapeno cucumber juice. Cover and shake for 30 seconds. Pour contents into salt rimmed glass. Garnish with a wedge of lime.

Jalapeno Cucumber Juice
Place the chopped cucumber and jalapeno in a blender and smash the pieces down into the pitcher. Blend on high until liquefied, about 30 seconds. (You may need to stop the blender and smash the cucumber pieces down more to get the blade spinning again.)
Set a fine-mesh strainer over a 2-cup measuring cup and pour the liquefied cucumber mixture through the strainer. Using a rubber spatula, press on the solids to extract as much juice as possible. Discard the solids in the strainer. Refrigerate until needed or freeze for later use.
 

​Old Fashioned-Classic
 
1 sugar cube-brown sugar cube is a nice touch
(Or 1 tsp granulated sugar, or 1/4 ounce simple syrup)
2-3 Dashes Angostura Bitters
Splash warm water (if using sugar cube or sugar)
2 ounces Rye or Bourbon
Orange peel-garnish
 
In a double rocks glass, muddle the sugar cube or sugar with Angostura bitters and a small splash of warm water until dissolved. If using simple syrup, swirl with bitters in a double rocks glass. Add whiskey and ice (preferable an over size cube)and stir well. Garnish with an orange peel.
 
Variation:
Rosemary Old Fashioned
 
1/4 ounce rosemary syrup
2-3 dashes Angostura bitters
2 ounces Rye or Bourbon
Rosemary sprig and orange peel for garnish
 
In a rocks glass combine the whiskey, rosemary syrup, and orange bitters. Add ice and stir to chill the drink. Garnish with a rosemary sprig and an orange peel.
 
Recommendations:
Bourbon-Jack Daniels
             Makers Mark

You can't get easier or tastier than this meal. This is an adaptation of a recipe from the NY Times Cooking section. 

Serves 4
3 Tbs olive oil
2 Tbs lemon juice or apple cider vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
½ tsp dried oregano (or rosemary, or basil, or sage)
Kosher salt and black pepper
4-6 small bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs 
4-6 small Yukon gold potatoes, cut into ¾ inch pieces
1 large red pepper, cored, seeded, cut into 1 inch strips
2 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (about ½ cup)
2 Tbs fresh dill, chopped (or parsley, basil, or mint)

1. In a medium bowl, combine 2 tablespoons oil with the lemon juice, garlic, oregano. Add the chicken thighs toss to coat. Let the chicken marinate for at least 30 minutes at room temperature, or longer in the refrigerator.
2. Heat the oven to 425 degrees. On a sheet pan, drizzle the diced potatoes with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; toss well and move to one side of the pan. Pat the chicken thighs dry (this will help the skin crisp up during cooking) and place them, evenly spaced, on the other side of the pan. Roast for 15 minutes.
3. Remove the pan from the oven, toss the potatoes, add the pepper slices, then return everything to the oven and roast until the chicken is cooked through, the skin is golden brown, and the potatoes are tender, 15 to 25 more minutes, depending on the size of the thighs. If the potatoes are not quite tender, remove the chicken thighs to a plate to rest, and return the pan to the oven to roast until tender, another 5 to 10 minutes.
4. Scatter the feta and dill over the potatoes, sprinkle the whole dish with salt and pepper, and serve hot from the pan.

Variations: Adjust your protein cooking time as needed.
Try: Thin pork chops-boneless or bone-in, salmon fillets-thick.
Sweet potatoes, fennel bulb, leeks, red or yellow onion-sliced thick, red onion.

Three breads from the Master Recipe

3 cups (1 1/2 pounds) lukewarm water (you can use cold water, but it will take the dough longer to rise. Just don’t use hot water or you may kill the yeast)
1 tablespoon granulated yeast ( you can use any kind of yeast including: instant, “quick,” rapid rise, bread machine, active dry, or fresh cake yeast*. We’ve always tested with Red Star Yeast and they have a new premium product called PLATINUM, which has worked beautifully in our recipes. You can also decrease the amount of yeast in the recipe by following the directions here. Or you can bake with a sour dough starter, see instructions here.)
*If you use cake yeast you will need 1.3 ounces (37g).
1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons Morton Kosher Salt (adjust to suit your taste or eliminate it all together. Find more information here)
6 1/2 cups (2-pounds) all-purpose flour (we’ve always tested our recipes with typical supermarket flour. If you use a higher protein flour check here)

Equipment list:
5qt container w/lid 
liquid measuring cup
1  and 1/2 cup dry measure cups
butter knife
1 tbs measuring spoon
dough whisk, or large spoon for mixing the dough 
corn meal of dusting your peel or the back side of a baking pan
pizza peel or baking pan
baking stone to bake the bread on or a cast iron pan or similar if you do not own a baking stone

​Whether you are a seasoned cook or complete novice, creating a meal from what you've got on hand is always a challenge. We’ve all stocked our pantries as best we could, and are now trying to figure out how to pull it all together to make an easy, healthy, and delicious meal. 
When you need to limit your trips to the grocery store, choose items that have a longer shelf life and can be used in multiple recipes. Expiration dates on packaged foods are protection for the food manufacturers and a guide for you. "When in doubt, throw it out" is my moto. I use my own judgement. I have been known to use food that may be past the expiration date on the package, but I always smell, feel, and taste the item first before I use it. 
​Nutrient Dense Foods in Your Pantry
The focus of your pantry should be on “real food”- food that is less processed, and nutrient dense.
Stock more nutrient dense foods that will keep you full longer and reduce hunger throughout the day.
 
Natural proteins and fats, frozen vegetables, and full fat dairy are a good base for recipes that are flavorful and satisfying.
 
High carb foods like pasta, rice, and grains are not a nutrient requirement for good health. Because of their higher starch/carbohydrate content, these foods should be the smallest portion on your plate or replaced with lower carb vegetable alternatives.
 
Reliance on highly processed packaged snack items should be kept to a minimum. The potato chip add that  says "you can't eat just one" is true. processed packaged snacks are created in a laboratory with the intent to make you crave more. Be good to yourself and stock up on nutrient packed nuts (unsalted), pick up veggies, berries, olives, and other snacks that will not promote hunger. 

You are welcome to download or view the slide presentation

Gin and Tonic-Classic
2 ounces Gin
Tonic Water
Lime wedge-garnish
 
Add gin to a highball glass and fill with ice. Fill the glass with tonic water. Garnish with lime wedge.
 
Variation:
Rosemary Scented G &T
Rosemary sprig
 
Recommendations:
Gin
          Classic-Gordon’s Dry, Tanquray 10
          Herbal-Hendrick’s
          Botanical-Uncle Val's Botanical Gin 
Tonic
         Schwepp’s, Fever-Tree

Gin & Soda w/Cucumber and Mint

4 cucumber slices
4 mint leaves
2-3 ounces Gin- this is the time to be picky with your gin. Use a gin with botanical, floral, or herbal notes- Hendrick's Gin, Uncle Val's Botanical Gin are perfect.
Lime wedge

In a tall glass, muddle the cucumber and mint in the bottom. Pour in the gin. add ice and top with soda water. Finish with a squeeze of lime.

Adapted from https://www.mydiaryofus.com/blog/
Prepare the Golden Milk and drink it without the rum for a delicious and anti-inflammatory drink before bed. Serve it chilled or hot if you like. Add the rum to create a tasty cocktail.

2 cocktails

1 can coconut milk (full fat) Thai Kitchen is my favorite
1/4 Tsp. ground turmeric
1 pinch of black pepper (helps for your body to absorb the turmeric)
1/2 Tsp. vanilla extract
2 Tbsp honey 
pinch of salt
4 oz. of spiced or dark rum
ice cubes
Cinnamon for garnish

1. Combine coconut milk, turmeric, black pepper, vanilla, and salt in a small saucepan and gently heat until coconut milk and honey have melted and the milk has turned bright yellow.  Take off of the heat, strain through a fine mesh strainer, and cool in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or overnight. 
2. Add rum to a cocktail shaker and then pour turmeric milk in along with 5-6 ice cubes and shake until thoroughly chilled.
3. Pour over crushed ice and sprinkle with cinnamon.

Mint is the unsung hero of the herb family. It is such a wonderful addition to a meal any time of year. It always reminds me of spring. I use this vinaigrette as a dressing for side dishes and as a sauce for lamb, seafood, and chicken.

​Makes about 1 1/4 cups

¾ cup avocado oil or olive oil
¼ cup rice vinegar (or white vinegar)
1 teaspoon sugar
½ cup mint leaves, chopped
½ cup flat leafed parsley, chopped
Kosher salt and ground pepper

1. In a blender, combine the oil, vinegar, and sugar with the chopped herbs and pulse until the ingredients are pureed. Store in the refrigerator until ready to use.

How to use this vinaigrette:

• ​Serve as a sauce for lamb, chicken, and seafood
  
• Drizzle over roasted vegetables
  
• Add to any rice dish
  
• Combine with mayonnaise to create a creamy dressing
  
• Toss with sweet peas, asparagus, or any other spring vegetable. 

Serves 6

​Gremolata is a traditional Italian herb paste that is a simple combination of five ingredients: parsley, garlic, lemon, Parmesan, and extra virgin olive oil. With its bright, citrusy flavor, gremolata transforms ho-hum recipes into amazing dishes! Here I’ve combined gremolata with thinly sliced potatoes and roasted them to create a tasty side dish. It’s simple, delicious, and gorgeous!  
Low-carb trick-prepare and cook the stacked potatoes one day ahead and refrigerate. The refrigeration changes the structure of the starches in the potatoes to make them "resistant starches". Resistant starches have a reduced absorption rate in our bodies and helps to keep our insulin low. Learn more about this amazing phenomenon RESISTANT STARCH
 
½ cup loosely packed chopped flat-leaf parsley
Zest of 1 lemon
2 small minced garlic cloves
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon Kosher salt
1 pinch pepper, freshly ground
8-10 Yukon Gold potatoes
 
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray 12 standard muffin cups generously with nonstick cooking spray.

To make the gremolata, combine the parsley, lemon zest, garlic, Parmesan, oil, salt, and pepper in a bowl and set aside. 

Peel the potatoes and slice them thinly (about ⅛ of an inch) using a sharp knife or mandolin. Add the potato slices to the gremolata and toss to coat. I use my hands to be sure to coat the potatoes evenly. Stack the potatoes to fill each muffin cup over the rim by about ½ inch. Press the stacked potatoes down firmly. Bake until the tops and edges of the potatoes are browned and the centers are tender when pierced with a fork, about 35 to 45 minutes. Remove the potatoes from the oven. Cut around each stack with a sharp knife and remove them with a spoon. Serve hot. These can be made one to two days in advance and reheated, covered, in a 300 degree oven for 20 minutes, or until heated through.  

Nigella Lawson is still the queen of food television for me. Her recipes are wonderful and her style is sexy as hell! I've discovered her website and so should you. www.nigellalawson.com 
This ice cream recipe is amazingly easy and so delicious! No more store bought ice cream for me. You may feel the same way too.

1 1/4     cups heavy cream, well-chilled
2/3       cup sweetened condensed milk (1/2 of a 14 ounce can)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste or 1 teaspoon rose water

1. Whisk all the ingredients together just until the whisk leaves trails of soft peaks in the bowl. 
2. Fill two 1-pint airtight containers, and freeze for 6 hours or overnight. Serve straight from the freezer.

To add a fruit swirl, gently swirl 1/3 cup of a fruit puree into the soft peaks then fill your containers and freeze. I use my Blueberry Sauce or 1/3 cup of raspberry puree made from fresh or frozen raspberries that I have thawed and crushed. Instead of pureed fruit, you can add 2-3 tablespoons of freeze dried fruit powder.

1 1/4     cups heavy cream, well-chilled
2/3       cup sweetened condensed milk
2          tablespoons instant espresso powder
2          tablespoons espresso liqueur

1. Whisk all the ingredients together just until the whisk leaves trails of soft peaks in the bowl, and you have a gorgeous, caffe-latte-colored airy mixture. 
2. Fill two 1-pint airtight containers, and freeze for 6 hours or overnight. Serve straight from the freezer.

 
Variations: 
Go to Nigella Lawson’s website for 6 variations for her One-Step, No-Churn Ice Cream
 https://www.nigella.com/recipes/no-churn-ice-creams

Makes one cocktail
 
1 cucumber, diced
1 large jalapeno, seeded and chopped
2 ounces Silver Tequila (bright) or Anejo Tequila (smooth)
1 ounce orange liquor (bright) or Cointreau (smooth)
1 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tsp agave syrup or simple syrup (1 part water: 1 part sugar-sugar dissolved)
1 ounce jalapeno cucumber juice (see instructions below)
Kosher salt for rim
 
For the jalapeno cucumber juice:
Place the chopped cucumber and jalapeno in a blender and smash the pieces down into the pitcher. Blend on high until liquefied, about 30 seconds. (You may need to stop the blender and smash the cucumber pieces down more to get the blade spinning again.)
Set a fine-mesh strainer over a 2-cup measuring cup and pour the liquefied cucumber mixture through the strainer. Using a rubber spatula, press on the solids to extract as much juice as possible. Discard the solids in the strainer. Refrigerate until needed
 
Prepare your glass by running a slice of lime around the outside of the rim. Turn the outside rim of the glass though salt and set aside. Add 1 cup ice to cocktail shaker. Pour in Tequila, orange liquor, lime juice, agave, and jalapeno cucumber juice. Cover and shake for 30 seconds. Pour contents into salt rimmed glass. Garnish with a wedge of lime.

1 ounce Campari
1 ounce Sweet Vermouth
1 ounce Prosecco or any dry sparkling wine
Orange peel or wheel for garnish

In a rocks or lowball glass, add Campari, sweet vermouth, and ice. Top with prosecco and stir gently to combine. Garnish with orange peel or wheel.

Salmon Spirals with Herb Yogurt Sauce
Beautifully Delicious Cooking with Herbs and Edible Flowers by Liz Barbour

Serves 6

Herb Yogurt Sauce
½ cup plain Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon chopped chives or scallions
2 teaspoons chopped mint
1 teaspoon lemon zest
 
Salmon
1 whole side salmon (3-3 ½  pounds), skin removed
Olive oil
6 teaspoons Dijon mustard
⅓ cup chopped dill
6 four-inch wooden skewers
Kosher salt 
Pepper, freshly ground
 
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking pan with foil and brush lightly with olive oil.
 

1. To prepare the yogurt sauce, combine the yogurt, mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard, chives, mint, and lemon zest in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste and set aside.  
2. To prepare the salmon spirals, slice the side of salmon along its length into six ⅓-inch strips. Roll the strips into spirals (skin side down) and secure with a skewer. Push the skewer from onside of the spiral through the center and out the other side-catch the end of the strip on the skewer. 
   
3. Spread 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard on each spiral, sprinkle with dill. Place the spirals on the baking pan and season with salt and pepper.
   
4. Cook until the salmon is firm to the touch when pressed, about 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and tent with foil to keep warm. To serve, remove the skewers and top with the herb yogurt. 

Note: This recipe can be prepared using salmon fillets instead of spirals.
Variation: Place a scallop in the middle of each spiral. Roll the salmon strip around the scallop.

I love my cocktails and I hope you do too!

Whiskey + Maple Syrup Sour
Author: Julia Turshen from her book Small Victories

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp maple syrup
• 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 3 Tbsp whiskey
• A few dashes of Angostura bitters
• Ice cubes for serving

Optional additions

• ¼ cup [60 ml] seltzer water
• 1 egg white

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the maple syrup, lemon juice, whiskey, and bitters.
2. Fill a highball glass to the top with ice and pour the whiskey mixture into it. Top with the seltzer and give it a stir. Serve immediately.

**If using egg white (which is traditional for this drink) put in a shaker with all the ingredients and the ice. Leave the seltzer out and top of the cocktail once it is in the glass.

Quarantini
https://thenovicechefblog.com/quarantini/
INGREDIENTS
3 oz vodka (or gin)
2 oz fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon honeyOPTIONAL:
1 packet powdered vitamin c or EmergenC
INSTRUCTIONS

• Add 2 cups ice to a cocktail shaker.
• Add vodka, lemon juice and honey to shaker.
• Shake, and then strain into a chilled martini glass.
• Garnish with a lemon twist if desired.
• ADDING VITAMIN C: If you want to add vitamin c, you can add it directly to the shaker when you add the rest of the ingredients or you can rim the chilled martini glass with vitamin c