Whether you’re raising a glass in gratitude or preparing to toast the new year, I wanted to share some delicious, simple and special recipes that are some of my favorites. Cooking can be a respite for many if you relax and enjoy the process instead of rushing through a recipe to get to the final product. Although after you’ve tried these once, it may be hard not to rush for seconds!
Spiced Pear Sparkler
Use martini glasses for serving
Ingredients:
- 2 Bartlett pears
- 2T lemon juice
- 1 vanilla bean
- 1c water
- 4oz Fever tree ginger beer
- 1c fresh squeezed blood oranges
- 3T honey
- 1/2t cinnamon
Directions:
- Peel and deseed pears, chop into 1-inch pieces.
- Add lemon to water and bring to slow boil, poach pears until soft 8-10 min. Reserve 1/2c poaching liquid.
- While pears are poaching, combine orange juice and honey and reduce by half.
- Add cinnamon when reduced and set aside.
- Blend pears and reserved liquid until smooth. Remove vanilla beans from stem and stir into pear juice.
- Pour reduced orange mixture into a shallow plate.
- Take martini glass and dip rim in juice.
- Pour vanilla pear juice into 1/2 the glass and top with 2 oz ginger beer.
- Enjoy!
Pumpkin hummus
Prep:
- Cut in half 1 sugar pumpkin cut and deseed (or substitute 1 can pumpkin)
- Drizzle both halves of pumpkin with olive oil and season with 2t kosher salt and pumpkin pie spice. Roast in oven at 375 for 30-45 min until tender.
- Let pumpkin cool and then remove filling.
- Pan roast 3T pumpkin seeds with 1T olive oil on med heat 2-4 min pour out on paper towels and sprinkle with cinnamon, set aside.
Ingredients:
- 1c pumpkin
- 15 oz white canelli beans
- 2T cashew nut butter
- 1t pumpkin pie spice
- Salt to taste
Directions:
- Add all ingredients to food processor and blend until smooth.
- Serve hummus in bowl and garnish with cinnamon roasted pumpkin seeds, 1T pomegranate perils and a couple grinds of Himalayan black sea salt.
- Serve with pita chips, root vegetable chips or vegetable crudité. Enjoy!
Seared Chilean sea bass and plum gastrique with basil hazelnut quinoa
Ingredients:
- 4 oz fresh sea bass
- 3 large red plums, very ripe
- ¼ cup honey
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- 1 Tbs butter or vegan butter
- ¼ c dry red wine
- 1 small shallot minced
Directions:
- In a food processor or blender, puree 2 plums and cut up third plum into chunks
- To prepare gastrique: In a 1- to 2-quart pan, mix honey with ¼ cup water; cook, uncovered, over medium-high heat until reduced by half about 5 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat; carefully add vinegar and stir until combined. Remove and set aside.
- Rinse pan. In the same pan, melt butter over medium-high heat; add shallot and cook 2 to 3 minutes. Add wine and cook, uncovered, until most of the liquid evaporates (watch carefully), about 5 minutes.
- Add plum puree and chopped plums, simmer on low, uncovered, until plums are very soft, about 15 minutes. Whisk to break up plum chunks.
- Press mixture through a food strainer (china cap). Set gastrique aside.
- While quinoa is cooking, pulse 4 oz fresh basil leaves and 1/4c hazelnuts in food processor until combined to rice-like texture.
- Bring 2c water and 1c quinoa to a boil, cover and cook until water is evaporated 10-12 min, fluff with fork.
- Toss with basil hazelnut mixture, keep warm.
- Season sea bass with salt and white pepper.
- Heat pan on med high heat and add 1T olive oil.
- Add fish flesh side down, sear for 5-7 min, flip and reduce heat to medium and cook fish until internal temp is 145.
- Assemble dish by placing basil hazelnut quinoa on a plate and topping with seared sea bass. Drizzle with plumb gastrique. Enjoy!
