Rosemary Roasted Cashews

We have about 10 pounds of cashews in the house right now. The boy looooves nuts! (I'll wait while you crack a clever joke.) And in the ranking of nuts, cashews are his favorite.

Me? Nuts are nice, but I don't mainline them like he does. In fact, I can win a staring contest with a bowl of nuts, that is, until you coat those suckers with butter, herbs, spices, and sugar, and then my eyelashes go all aflutter.

I've played around with a few spiced nut recipes, but never found one that I was in love with. The spices are always a bit off, or too overwhelming. And if it's a recipe that calls for brown sugar, maple syrup, or some other sweetener, the nuts are too sweet or sticky.

Enter the recipe for rosemary roasted cashews from Ina Garten, a woman who apparently can do no wrong — and is blessed with fabulous gay friends that are always making table centerpieces for her.I like to search out the cashews with extra globs of sugar.

This recipe is the perfect spiced nut recipe — not too sweet, just a little kick from the cayenne, and a delicate flavor from rosemary. We've made the recipe multiple times in the past few months (actually, I only found the recipe, and the boy made the nuts), and each time, I cannot stop eating them, that's how good the nuts are. This recipe is a keeper.

Rosemary Roasted Cashews
adapted from Ina Garten
makes about 3 cups

1 1/4 pounds cashew nuts, raw or already roasted
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
2 teaspoons dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon butter, melted

• Spread nuts in a single layer on an ungreased baking sheet, and bake in a pre-heated 375-degree oven for 8-10 minutes.
  
• Meanwhile, mix the remaining ingredients in a large bowl.
• When the nuts are done roasting, toss the warm nuts in the rosemary mixture until coated.
  
• Serve warm, or cool and store in an airtight container.

Vodka Rosemary Lemonade Fizz

Are y'all rampin' up for the glorious stoop-squattin', patio-pimpin', get-up-n-grill weekend that's ahead of us (at least on the East Coast)? I am! I'm rampin' up so hard I'm writing this post blitzed!

Couldn't wait for the weekend, so I test drove a recipe for vodka rosemary lemonade fizz from the May 2009 issue of Gourmet. So glad I did, 'cause now I've got the lemon/rosemary syrup ready for this weekend.

The drink is essentially a rosemary infused sparkly lemonade (vodka optional, but come on...), and unlike many mixed drink recipes, I actually had the ingredients on hand. Win! And it actually tastes good - not that it's hard for any version of lemonade to taste good. Double win!

Vodka Rosemary Lemonade Fizz
adapted from Gourmet
serves about 5

I laughed at Gourmet's suggested 1 tablespoon of vodka per serving - that's about half a small shot! I won't even suggest an amount of vodka to use; just use your own judgment. I also like mine more lemony, so upped the syrup.

1 cup fresh lemon juice
1 cup sugar
2 (8-inch) rosemary sprigs, plus more for garnish
vodka
seltzer

• In a small pan, bring lemon juice, sugar, and rosemary to a boil, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes. Take off heat, and let cool to room temperature.
• Fill each 8-ounce drinking glass half full with ice, add 3 tablespoons of lemon/rosemary syrup, and vodka to taste. Top off with seltzer, and give the drink a stir. Garnish with a sprig of rosemary.
  

New Potato Pizza

I ate a lot of pizza last month, thanks to the handy-dandy pizza dough at Trader Joes. They offer plain, whole wheat, and herbed dough. Stick with the plain. The whole-wheat dough is too heavy and the herbed dough competes with toppings.

Pizza #1 – Caramelized Sweet Onions and Brie. The dough was brushed with olive oil and topped with Brie and two large, sliced, caramelized onions. (I would eat this again!)

Pizza #2 – Spinach and Feta. The dough was topped with tomato sauce, sautéed onions and spinach, sun dried tomatoes, and feta. (Kind of ordinary. Take it or leave it.)

Pizza #3 – New Potato, Port-Salut, and Rosemary. The dough was brushed with olive oil and topped with thinly sliced new potatoes, Port-Salut, and rosemary. (The winner! This one is dinner party worthy. I was very sad when the leftovers were gone.)

New Potato Pizza

pizza dough
5-8 new potatoes, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 garlic head, roasted and mashed
3 sprigs fresh rosemary
6 ounces Port-Salut cheese, diced or sliced
salt and pepper to taste

• Slice potatoes and boil for 5 minutes or until just done.
• Mix olive oil, garlic, and rosemary in a large bowl.
  
• Add potatoes to bowl with olive oil mixture. Toss to coat.
• Top pizza dough with cheese, potato mixture, and season to taste.