Blue Moon Muffins - Blue Cornmeal Muffins Recipe

Blue Moon Muffins

(yields 12 muffins)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

Sift then Whisk together in a large mixing bowl:

1 cup blue cornmeal

1 cup flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup sugar

In a separate medium mixing bowl stir together until combined:

1 cup buttermilk

1 large egg (beaten lightly before added)

1 stick unsalted butter (melted, though not completely. You want small chunks of butter left in the batter that will melt into the muffins as they bake...)

1/4 cup maple syrup

Slowly combine wet and dry ingredients and mix until combined (be sure not to overmix) Pour mixture into greased muffin tins.

Bake 15 minutes or until toothpick inserted into muffins comes out dry. Allow to cool for 10 minutes.

Goes great with bluberry jelly (blueberries are in season right now!) or any kind of icingt that you so desire... a hearty, filling breakfast, snack or dessert depending on how you decorate it!

As always, your feedback is appreciated, would love to hear if you loved them as much as my friends and family did!

Xo

Yet Another Salad.... So easy!!!

This salad is a delicious, easy, light and healthy lunch:

1. Slice 2 tomatoes (preferably garden fresh as these were)

2. Slice 1 avocado

3. Garnish with handful of garden-fresh basil, julienned and handful of garden fresh oregano

4. Sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper.

5. In a small saucepan add 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar and 1 tablespoon granulated sugar. Bring mixture to boil, stirring often. Allow to reduce down to half original height (notice where mixture bubbled in pan and allow to boil until half that height...) Turn off burner and pour syrupy balsamic reduction into pourable container.

6. Drizzle over salad and enjoy!

Now wasn't that easy? Why not try it for lunch or dinner today!

Xo

April Post: A Retrospective

Here is a blog posting I wrote back in April which is still poignant to me today:

Music is the Key

I spent half my weekend in Brooklyn, New York, sitting in a dimly lit cafe overlooking Stone Park and eating a dinner of arctic char, wilted pea shoots and fried oysters drizzled with sauce gribiche. I drank cold, sweet vermouth and felt the vibrancy of the artistic and cultural soul of Brooklyn in each butterscotch and licorice sip that slipped past the tip of my tongue. (My uncle explained to me that drinking through a straw would be a crime – “Melissa, Vermouth such as this should not be tasted hastily through a plastic tube that pushes the liquid to the back of your throat, but instead should be savored, from the front teeth, tip of the tongue and then to every taste bud beyond…”)

The area itself is known in part for its elusive hipster inhabitants, 20-somethings expressing the counter-culture of today through non-expression and non-chalance in their fashion choices and attitude. Male faces were unshaven, clothes were un-ironed and blandly colored, yet the appearance of these so-called “hipsters” screamed with a deliberate cohesiveness that even an ironic printed tee could not obscure. Funny that even non-conformity these days seems somehow dictated by an unwritten code of conduct and dress that even the most culturally liberal of citizens unconsciously follow. Nevertheless, I thoroughly loved it all, and the Elvis Perkins concert at the Brooklyn Bell I experienced later that night was so full of life that I fear I am happily changed forever because of it. At one moment during the show, a girl standing next to me in the front row decided to take a picture of Elvis’ shoes, to which he commented, “Is it really so necessary to photograph my footwear? Well yes, I guess everything needs to be documented in this world we live in today.” And then I was lost in that moment as well, in the idea that everything needs to be written, to be noted, and that nothing can be done without the knowledge that other people know we do it, otherwise it may as well have not been done at all. A profound concept for a Saturday night, to be sure, but one I am still pondering as I write these words to you now.

So what is the point of this entry? (Well does it even need a point?) I guess it is my own personal declaration for my re-devotion to music, no to great music, no to all kinds of great music, and also to great eating, and to mindful living, and to an entire philosophy of life that echoes with more depth than my philosophy at present in a world that is fast-becoming sadly opaque. So I give up existing by giving the most un-meaningful of things any meaning, and I vow to sift through the cultural muck and return once again to that time when importance was not dispensed lightly. I tread now with a heavier heart and an even heavier mind…. Adieu!

Don't Be Left in the Dark... Chocolate

I'll keep this post short (though not so sweet.) Looking for something to finish off your meal with but not in the mood for a heavy full-blown dessert? Try a square of DARK (and when I say dark I mean DARK! 75% cocoa or higher...) Chocolate. It's satisfying, filling and the complex flavors in a really good bar will entice and satiate you until morning. It's not sweet enough to crave more than one piece, but like a really stinky cheese, there's something about a slightly bitter piece of chocolate that is the perfect ending to a day of eating. Also, it's full of healthy anti-oxidants so BO-NUS!

Here's a short article about what WebMD has to say about it: http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20030827/dark-chocolate-is-healthy-chocolate

And with that, back to the all-star game! Go American League!

Xo

Day Off - Who are Your Favorite Food Network Chefs?

Have a day off today, sitting inside on this grey day and doing some work while watching food network. Sort of perfect. Which reminds me, who are your favorite food network chefs/hosts? I've compiled a list with brief explanations, based purely off which shows I enjoy watching the most (as a side note, Nigella Lawson would certainly top this list if her show still aired on the network):

1. Ina Garten - This one is pretty self-explanatory. Her show makes me want to live in East Hampton next door to her garden and be her best friend, not to mention that the food she makes always looks fresh and delicious.

2. Giada DiLaurentiis - There's something very relaxing and easy about the way she cooks. It goes to show that simple, clean flavors can always go a long way.

3. Adam Gertler - Hilarious hilarious hilarious. Also, my (not so secret?) celebrity chef crush.

4. Paula Deen (and the Deen Bros) - She's such a ball of goodness and southern hospitality all wrapped up into one buttery person. Don't you agree y'all?

5. Ted Allen (as host of Chopped) - Not that I particularly care for Ted Allen and his mechanistic personality as host of Chopped, but the show itself has proven to be my favorite on the network in terms of actual watchability and appeal.

6. Alton Brown - Yes, he's sometimes too cheesy and his recipes are always way too complicated to actually replicate in your own kitchen, but it is fascinating to watch him describe the proper way to store asparagus for ten minutes straight using contraptions you could never hope to find in your local grocery store.

7. Ace of Cakes Crew - As a wanna-be hipster, their attitude and style appeals to me and their amazing creations are always fascinating to watch being built from start to incredible finish.

8. The Neelys - Their love is infectious, even if their recipes don't always appeal to my palate.

9. Anne Burrell - She genuinely teaches as she cooks, so it's a refreshing change to have a chef on the network directed for those just starting out in the kitchen who may not have the confidence to tackle a Brown recipe or the finesse to complete one of Ina's.

10. Alex Guarnaschelli - Have only seen her show a few times, but I do like the descriptive (if not sometimes over the top) way she talks about food.

I'm not going to get into my least favorite in the name of positivity, but what's your opinion? Who did I miss, or miss the mark on?

xo

My Recommendation for Happiness: Dancing

What "Organic" Means to Me (In one Run-On Sentence)

Just a quick note here... when I think of eating organically I don't necessarily think of a particular brand or type of food but rather a way of eating that is wholesome and satisfying, so that instead of living to eat we eat to live and along the way enjoy this activity that sustains us in life, allowing us to wake up each morning and begin the day with a meal and end the day satisfied with all that we put into our bodies throughout the hours we were awake... ya dig???