Mint and Peach Lillet Cooler

Refreshing Beverage of the Week
You know how I love Lillet — that French vermouth I keep in my fridge door at all times — and I am always looking for more ways to enjoy it! (Although serving it on the rocks with a twist of orange usually works for me.) This recipe fits the bill. The citrus and bitter notes of Lillet work perfectly with the peach and mint in this refreshing summer beverage. The honey's flavor melds well with the other ingredients.

Ingredients
2 very ripe peaches, peeled and diced
1/2 cup fresh mint, roughly chopped plus extra to garnish
2 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
8 ounces Lillet Blanc, chilled
Club soda to top off

Procedure
In a bowl, combine the peaches, mint and honey and muddle with the handle of a wooden spoon. Leave to macerate for 15 minutes or so. Pull out 4 pretty cocktail glasses or Mason jars. Add 1 tablespoon lime juice to each, followed by 2 ounces of Lillet each. Divide the peach mixture evenly between the glasses. Stir to mix. Add a few ice cubes to each and top off with club soda. Garnish with mint leaves. Cheers!

Asian Peach

Refreshing Beverage of the Week
This is a trendy summer cocktail and I am nothing if not trendy. This peachy aperitif is a signature cocktail from mixologist (a term I'm not fond of) Jamie Boudreau, who is known for his eccentric ingredient combinations. Boudreau honed his pre-dinner drink mixing skills at Vancouver's legendary restaurant Lemiere (now run by Daniel Boulud).

Ingredients
1/4 fresh peach
Ice
2 ounces sake,
1/2 ounce gin
1/4 ounce fresh lemon juice
1/4 ounce lemongrass syrup

Procedure
To make lemongrass syrup: In a small saucepan, bring 6 ounces simple syrup to a boil. Remove from heat and add 1 coarsely chopped fresh lemongrass stalk. Let cool, cover and refrigerate overnight. Strain syrup into a jar, cover and refrigerate for up to 3 weeks.

In a cocktail shaker, muddle the peach. Add ice and remaining ingredients and shake well. Double strain into a chilled glass.

3 Great Drinks for Breakfast for Dinner ... or Brunch!

Refreshing Beverages of the Week
The great thing about breakfast for dinner is that it's usually after 5:00. Have a drink!

The Perfect Bloody Mary Mix

Ingredients
3 Tbsp dijon mustard
3 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsp prepared horseradish
2 Tbsp hot sauce (like Tabasco)
2.5 oz lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
1.5 oz lime juice (about 2 limes)
2 Tbsp olive brine
1 tsp celery seed
2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
2 tsp kosher or sea salt
64 oz tomato vegetable juice (V8)

Procedure
Mix everything together and add more heat if you are inclined to. Mix with as much or as little vodka as you want.

Pink Bellinis

Ingredients
2 large ripe peaches
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1 cup small ice cubes
1 750 ml bottle pink champagne

Procedure
Drop the peach into a small sauce pan of boiling water and blanch for 2 minutes, put in ice water bath and carefully peel off skin. Cut in half and remove pit. Now puree in a blender with lemon and orange juice. Add the champagne and ice and blend til frothy. Pour into 8 chilled champagne flutes.

Lillet Martinis

This recipe makes 2 big drinks.

Ingredients
1 1/4 cup vodka
1/4 cup Lillet Blanc
4 large strips orange zest

Procedure
The best way to do this is prepare it ahead. Combine Lillet and vodka and add 2 strips of orange zest and put in freezer. When ready to serve, combine chilled yummy liquid into chilled martini glass and add 2 fresh orange zest strips.

Some Sexy Salsas

Low-Cal But Still Lovely
One of my favorite snacks when I need some chewing action is salsa and veggies. But you know there is more to salsa than just tomatoes! So here are three different salsa recipes to keep your healthy dipping interesting.

Fresh Peach Salsa

Ingredients
2 cups fresh peaches, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup sweet red onion, chopped
3 tablespoons lime juice
2 to 3 Tablespoons fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon snipped fresh cilantro
1/2 teaspoon sugar

Procedure
In a medium mixing bowl, stir together peaches, onion, lime juice, peppers, garlic, cilantro, and sugar. Cover and chill for 1 to 2 hours.

Tangerine Salsa

Ingredients
4 Tangerines
2 tablespoon Cilantro, chopped
1 tablespoon Red onion, finely diced
1 bell pepper (yellow, red or green), finely diced
1 teaspoon Jalapeno pepper finely diced
1 tomatillo, diced
1/2 c Triple Sec liqueur
Salt and pepper to taste

Procedure
Mix the tangerine, cilantro, onion, peppers and tomatillo together, stir in the liqueur, and season to taste. Refrigerate for 2 hours before serving to allow time for the flavors to blend.

Zucchini Salsa

Ingredients
5 cups zucchini, shredded (about 5 medium zukes)
4 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
2 medium onions, chopped
2 medium green peppers, chopped
1 small sweet red pepper, chopped
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1 cup white vinegar
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
2 tablespoons tomato paste
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 teaspoons ground mustard
2-1/4 teaspoons salt
3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon each ground cumin, nutmeg and turmeric
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Procedure
In a Dutch oven, combine all ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 40-50 minutes or until thickened, stirring occasionally. Cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate until chilled. Serve with your favorite snack chips or grilled meats. Yield: 7 cups.

Amaretti Stuffed Peach Halves

The Altitude Adjustment Section
In keeping with our easy and Italian theme, I have a recipe for stuffed peach halves. Fresh peaches are still available, but I have used good quality canned peaches (Trader Joe's has great ones in jars... but only sometimes). The stuffing is made with amaretto cookies, you can make your own, or buy the great Italian ones that come in the red tin. I think Kaune's sells them.

Ingredients
3/4 cups ground almonds
3/4 ground Amaretto cookies
1/4 cup sugar
2 egg yolks lightly beaten
6 peaches
1/2 cup Marsala wine

Procedure
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Combine the Almonds, amaretto cookies, and sugar. Stir in the egg yolks a bit at a time. Add just enough egg yolk to hold the sticky mixture together. Form the mixture into 12 walnut sized balls. Butter a shallow baking dish. Cut the peaches in half or use halves to begin with. Place the peaches in the buttered baking dish tight together. Press a ball of almond mixture into the center of each peach. Dot the top with little bits of butter and pour the Marsala wine all over the top. Now bake for 30 minutes until the almond mixture is crusty and golden. Serve warm with some ice cream or gelato. This recipe serves 6 people.

Peach Basil Sangria

Refreshing Beverage of the Week
My good friends Monica and Bram came over for dinner the other night and brought the most delicious sangria I have ever tasted. It has basil and peach in it, so I did some research and here is my version of that fab beverage. I guess I should have just called them and got the recipe, but that’s the kind of week I've been having. Monica, I hope this is as good as yours!

Ingredients
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 cup loosely packed basil leaves
3 1/2 cups peach nectar (available in most local markets)
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 bottle Pinot Grigio, chilled
Sliced peaches to garnish

Procedure
In a saucepan combine half the peach nectar, sugar, basil leaves, and lemon juice. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 5 minutes. Smash the basil leaves with the back of a wooden spoon to release the flavor into the syrup. Remove from the stove and let cool. Strain this mixture into a pitcher and add ice. Then add the chilled white wine, some fresh basil leaves, and some sliced peaches.

Frozen Peach Daiquiris

The Refreshing Beverage of the Week
Peaches, nectarines, even apricots would work for this recipe. I know, make one of each them you can compare and contrast. It's science!

Ingredients
2 1/2 ounces dark rum
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1/4 cup granulated sugar
9 peach cubes (recipe follows)
3/4 cup crushed ice

Procedure
Combine all ingredients in blender; blend until smooth. Pour into stemmed glasses. Garnish with peach and lime slices. Makes three 6-ounce drinks.

Ingredients for peach cubes
4 fresh ripe peeled peaches, sliced
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Procedure
Combine peaches and lemon juice in blender and puree. Pour into ice cube trays; freeze. Makes 18 cubes.

Pink Bellinis

Refreshing Beverage of the Week
Are we girly enough for Pink cocktails? Oh, why the hell not? I love peaches and I like Champagne and sometimes only a silly cocktail will do, so here is a recipe for a Pink Bellinis from Sarah Leah Chase’s great old Nantucket Open House Cookbook. You know, this drink was invented in Venice at Harry’s bar (I think) and made with Prosecco, which you can also use, but it won’t be pink, so there!

Ingredients
1 cup fresh peach puree
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1 cup small ice cubes
1 bottle dry pink champagne, chilled (750 ml)

Procedure
In a blender, combine fresh peach puree, lemon and orange juice, ice, and champagne and blend till frothy. Pour into 8 chilled champagne flutes and serve. Don't drink them all yourself, that would be silly!

Two Dried Fruit dessert options

The Altitude Adjustment Section
Who has time to bake when you're worrying about the bird? If baking is not your thing, this is where your guests come in. Have them bake at home, they have nothing else to do, you could even give them a good recipe, or check our website for some ideas. But here are a few things you could do at home if you wanted to make some end-of-meal sweets.

Good quality dried fruit — pear slices, dried peaches, dried pineapple, dried moist mango all taste even better dipped in dark chocolate. Strawberries are a classic dipping choice. How about fresh or dried figs, they dip very well and are so sexy! Dried fruit can also be used to make a fruit compote, which tastes great with some vanilla ice cream.

Dried Fruit Compote

Ingredients
mixed dried fruit
red wine, to taste
brandy, to taste
honey, to taste
lemon rind

Procedure
In a saucepan, combine all the ingredients with some water till almost covered. Then put on a low flame and cook till the liquid starts to boil. Turn off heat, cover, and let sit 30 minutes so the flavors can all mix together. Put into jars and refrigerate. Or put directly into your mouth.

Four "No-Fail" Thanksgiving Side Dishes

Seasonal Recipe of the Week
Ah... food — like life — is all about the side dishes. Here are all my family secrets revealed in one show. My mother Bernice, who is currently unpacking, mastered one meal in her life and so every single holiday — from Purim to St. Patrick's Day — we always had the same meal, and we loved it. These side dishes are golden.

Raw Cranberry sauce

Ingredients
1 bag cranberries, rinsed and drained
1 –1 1/2 cups sugar
1 whole orange or Tangerine, seedless if possible

Procedure
This is so ridiculously simple. All you do is throw the cranberries in the food processor, add sugar, cut the orange — skin and all — into eighths and add to processor. Pulse a few times till everything is chopped up. Done. This is best made the day ahead.

Potato Nick

Ingredients
5 baking potatoes, peeled and cut into quarters
2 large onions, diced
Peanut oil or canola oil
Salt, pepper, garlic, and Hungarian sweet Paprika

Procedure
Boil the potatoes in a large pot of salted water till soft. In the meantime, sauté the onions in oil, don’t be cheap on the oil. Cook them on a medium to low flame so they get all soft and sweet and brown. Then add enough paprika to make them a nice red-brown color. Now add a splash (it's all about the oil) of extra oil to the onions. Drain the potatoes well and then put them back into the dry, hot pot you used to boil them. Mash by hand with potato masher, then add the onions. If it is not smooth-looking, add some more oil. Taste and adjust seasoning. Now take a 9-inch round or square Pyrex baking dish and drizzle a little oil in the bottom — this will make the bottom crust — and spread the potatoes into the pan. Flatten on top and drizzle a little oil on top. Sprinkle with Paprika and put into 350 degree oven and bake 40 minutes, or until top has a nice brown crust. Serve immediately.

My famous Cole Slaw

Ingredients
1 small green cabbage
1/2 small red cabbage
3 carrots
1 Granny Smith apple
1 Macintosh apple
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon dry Coleman’s mustard
2 cups mayonnaise
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Procedure
Cut by hand, or use the food processor, to shred the cabbage into small, thin pieces. Peel and grate the carrots and add to cabbage. Dice the apples, leaving skin on for color. Add the raisins. Everything else is the dressing. Combine in a bowl with a whisk and add to cabbage. Best made the day before. This recipe makes enough for 8-10 people, so you can cut it in half.

Baked peaches and pineapple

Procedure
In our house, we used to do this with canned fruit — after all it was the1960’s, and modern methods were all the rage.

All you do is open and drain a can of peach halves, and a can of pineapple rings. Place the pineapple into the baking dish (spray with a little non-stick coating first) and then in the center of each one add a peach scooped side up. Now drizzle with honey and crumble some brown sugar into the center of each peach. Put under the broiler for 5 minutes or until you smell the sugar starting to burn or caramelize. Now this year, I canned some Tesuque organic peaches and I am going to try this dish using those and some fresh Hawaiian pineapple. It’s got to be great!

Peach or Apricot Crostata

The Altitude Adjustment Section
This is a fun recipe by Susan Purdy of Pie in the Sky fame for a crostata — or more simply, a fruit pizza. It starts with a great crust and then you add fresh sliced fruit a little thickener and bake. This is a great time to try it with fresh peaches or apricots. Just steal them from your neighbor's tree!

Ingredients for pastry
3 cups A.P. flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons butter, cold and cut up
6 tablespoons vegetable shortening
1 egg yolk, room temperature
2 tablespoons lemon juice
5-6 tablespoons cold water

Procedure for pastry
In food processor, pulse together the flour, sugar, and salt to blend. Add butter and shortening and pulse 8 or 9 times till mixture resembles coarse meal. Add yolk, lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons water and pulse a few times. Add more water, 1 spoon at a time, till dough holds its shape. Do not mix till dough balls follows blade around — that is over-mixed and bad. Now gather into a ball, flatten into a disk, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate at least 1 hour before using.

Ingredients for Filling
5 cups fresh sliced peaches or apricots
1 tablespoon grated orange zest
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1/2 cup jam of your choosing, maybe Orange Marmalade?
2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/3 cup fresh OJ

Procedure for filling and assembly
Combine all ingredients except cornstarch and OJ. Stir cornstarch and OJ together in a small cup and then toss into the fruit. Set aside.

Measure out a large piece of tin foil (shiny side down) and draw a 17-inch circle with your fingernail. Then draw an 8-inch circle inside that one. Now rub butter in the 8 inch circle and flour the outside to the edge of the larger circle. Roll out chilled dough on top of the foil till it reaches the marked line. If it’s too sticky, roll out with plastic wrap on top. Now put the whole thing a flat edged sheet pan. Mark dough 2 inches from edge with fingernail. Whisk up an egg with 1 teaspoon water and brush pastry to make it moisture proof. Sprinkle with1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs to absorb extra moisture. Carefully spoon fruit filling inside drawn circle. Now carefully put your hand under foil to help flip the dough edges onto the fruit letting the dough pleat and fold as it falls. If you see any cracks, seal them with left over egg wash. Sprinkle with a little extra sugar, it couldn't hurt! Now pinch up the foil over the edge, about 1/2-inch high, to trap any dripping juice. Bake at 425 in the bottom of the oven for 15 minutes, and then lower oven to 350 and bake for 25-35 minutes more until pastry is golden brown and fruit feels tender when pierced with a knife. If you followed all this crazy procedure (and I always do) the tart should easily slide off tin foil onto a serving platter. Dust with powdered sugar. Yum!

Fuzzy Peach

Angela's Refreshing Beverage of the Week
The Fuzzy Peach!

Ingredients
1 oz. Pear Brandy
1/2 Oz. fresh lemon juice
1/2 oz. simple syrup
4 oz. brut champagne
2 dashes peach bitters

Procedure
In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, add brandy, lemon juice, and simple syrup. Shake vigorously for about 6 seconds, then strain into a flute, and add champagne slowly. Top with two dashes of bitters.

Summer Fruit Cobbler

The Altitude Adjustment Section
This time of year, with all the lovely summer fruit falling off the trees and practically hitting you on the head, perhaps it's time to talk about cobblers. And who better to go to than Susan Purdy, the queen of high altitude baking? This recipe was influenced by a cobbler she had made by Peyton at Harry’s Roadhouse, right here in Santa Fe. Once you get the basic technique down, you can use a variety of fruit fillings. So this is how you do it:

Ingredients for dough
1 1/2 cups A.P. flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons gran. sugar
pinch nutmeg
4 tablespoons=1/2 stick butter room temp
2/3 cup buttermilk
1 room temp egg

Ingredients for fruit filling
apple juice or orange juice 3/4 cup to 1 1/3 cup, depending on juiciness of fruit
1 1/2 tablespoons corn starch
1/3 to 3/4 cup light brown sugar, depending on sweetness of fruit
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons grated orange zest
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
6 cups sliced ripe fruit plums, peaches, nectarines or berries pitted and thickly sliced

Procedure
Preheat oven to 425. Find a 10-12 inch deep baking pan or use a 2-4 quart dutch oven or an old cast iron skillet.
Prepare the dough in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Pulse together the flour, powder, salt, sugar and nutmeg. Add the butter and pulse till mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add buttermilk and egg, pulse just till mixture comes together — don’t over mix. Set aside.

Now prepare the fruit filling: In a thick-bottomed skillet, whisk together the apple or orange juice and the cornstarch, then stir in the sugar, lemon, orange zest and cinnamon. Add the cut-up fruit and set over medium heat. Bring to the boil and then cover the pot and let simmer for 10 minutes, until the fruit is tender and easily pierces with a knife. Now transfer fruit to baking dish, if using, while still hot (very important). Take tablespoons of the prepared dough and spoon on top of the fruit. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar and set it on a sheet pan lined with tin foil (to help with sticky clean up) in your very hot oven to bake for 25-35 minutes, or until dough is puffed up and golden brown.