BRUNCH RECIPES FROM FOOD FOR THOUGHT WITH CLAIRE THOMAS

Saturday morning breakfast is a tradition in the Thomas household, and it is entirely under my dad's supervision.  As I've mentioned before, his culinary purview is limited to french fries, grilling, and breakfast. The crispy hash browns (which are actually my mum's recipe) are derivative of bubble and squeak, and the eggs are my creation, along with Red Velvet Pancakes and Henry's favorite Cornflake Crusted French Toast.  Why not wake up a little early this Saturday and surprise someone with a tray of the good stuff?  Enjoy!


Cornflake Crusted French Toast

Ingredients:
For about 10 slices of French Toast
1 brioche loaf, sliced into one inch slices

3 eggs

2 cups whole milk

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups corn flakes
Maple Syrup (to serve)

Beat together the eggs, milk, and spices. Crush the cornflakes with a rolling pin. Dunk the bread in the egg/milk mixture and place it on top of the cornflakes. Pat the bread down, flip, and pat again. Place the coated bread into a well greased pan heated over medium heat and cook until browned on both sides. Plate with butter and syrup and devour.

Red Velvet Pancakes





Ingredients:
For 8 pancakes

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons white sugar

2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1 large egg, lightly beaten

3/4 buttermilk

1/4 cup creme fraiche or sour cream

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1 tablespoon red food coloring

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Mascarpone Spread:

4 oz softened mascarpone

2 oz creme fraiche

2 tablespoons white sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon lemon zest

In a large bowl whisk together the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl whisk together the egg, buttermilk, and creme fraiche/sour cream,melted butter, red food coloring, and vanilla extract. Add them together and whisk just until combined. A little lumpy is fine. Heat a frying pan or griddle over medium high heat. When hot add butter or oil to grease, followed by a small scoop of the batter. Wait for the pancakes to bubble (2-3 minutes), flip and cook for a minute or two more. Meanwhile, mix all of the ingredients in the mascarpone spread together, and use to garnish the pancakes with some maple syrup. Enjoy!

Thomas Family Breakfast

Pancetta Fried Eggs and Hash Browns:

Ingredients:

 4 large eggs

4 thin slices of pancetta

salt and pepper

olive oil

2 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped

4 russet potatoes

3 cloves of garlic, minced

Directions:

Spear the potatoes with a fork a few times over the skin.  Pop the potatoes in the microwave and cook for 13 to 15 minutes, until the skin is pulling away and the potato is soft (you can also boil or bake the potatoes if you prefer).  Roughly chop up the potatoes and discard any large sheets of the skin.  


Heat a large saucepan with about 1/4 cup olive oil and the garlic over a medium flame.  Add the potatoes and mix to combine, then press everything down, forming a sort of patty.  Salt and pepper them, then let the potatoes cook, untouched, for a few minutes, until just starting to get golden brown on the bottom.  Flip the potatoes (as best as you can, it may fall apart a little), pat down and salt and pepper that side, and cook for a few minutes more until that side is golden brown.  Repeat this process (about 20 minutes) until the potatoes are a deep golden brown and crunchy.  With the back  of your spatula, break the potatoes apart and stir around.  Done!  


For the eggs, cook the pancetta over medium heat until crunchy on one side.  Flip the pancetta and crack an egg over it.  Salt and pepper the egg and cook until the whites are no longer clear.  Sprinkle a little parsely over the egg and enjoy!

MOVIE NIGHT SNACKS FROM FOOD FOR THOUGHT WITH CLAIRE THOMAS

It's movie night! And what goes better with curling up on the couch than salty, sweet, and totally indulgent snacks? I put together some of my favorites, inspired by my family (like my dad's epic milkshakes), my friends (Christie's Law School study snack - sriracha popcorn), and the concession stand. I hope you enjoy these treats!

 

Brown Butter Popcorn

Dried Corn (on cobs or loose)

Unsalted butter (Salted butter can burn easier when making brown butter)

Sea Salt or Kosher Salt (something flaked for texture)

If using the dried corn cobs, stick several cobs in a paper lunch bag, and fold over the edge at least 3 times. Stick in the microwave and nuke for 1 minute and 20 seconds. That's what worked for my popcorn, but every microwave is different, so perhaps try one cob at that time and see what results you get. You will not get every kernal, so don't over cook it and end up with burnt popcorn. If using loose kernals, pop in an air popper or in a lightly oiled covered pot on the stove at medium-high heat. Place the popcorn into a large bowl (you want a little room for coating).

Now for the brown butter. My ratio of butter to popcorn is about 2 tablespoons butter to 3-4 cups plain popcorn. You can do whatever you like. Pop the butter in a saucepan over medium heat and cook until foamy with the milk solids browned. My trick is once the butter starts foaming, I lift the sauce pan away from the heat and swirl it around. This deflates the foam and lets me get a good look at the milk solids. You want a nutty, warm brown, like the color of waffles. Pour the butter over the popcorn, and then sprinkle with salt. Toss the popcorn to coat. Then put the sauce pan into the bowl, pushing the popcorn in to coat with residual butter. Taste and adjust. Enjoy!

Sriracha Popcorn

Dried Corn (on cobs or loose)

Butter

Sriracha (or your favorite hot sauce)

Lime Zest

Sea Salt or Kosher Salt (something flaked for texture)

If using the dried corn cobs, stick several cobs in a paper lunch bag, and fold over the edge at least 3 times. Stick in the microwave and nuke for 1 minute and 20 seconds. That's what worked for my popcorn, but every microwave is different, so perhaps try one cob at that time and see what results you get. You will not get every kernal, so don't over cook it and end up with burnt popcorn. If using loose kernals, pop in an air popper or in a lightly oiled covered pot on the stove at medium-high heat. Place the popcorn into a large bowl (you want a little room for coating).

Now for the toppings. My ratio of butter to popcorn is about 2 tablespoons butter to 3-4 cups plain popped popcorn. You can do whatever you like. Pop the butter in a saucepan over medium heat and melt.  For each cup of popcorn, add  a teaspoon of sriracha and a 1/2 teaspoon on lime zest to the melted butter.  Pour over the popcorn and mix it up, sprinkling with salt.  Taste, and if you like it spicier drizzle on a little more sriracha.

A quick note about raw egg safety:

The egg in this recipe is totally optional (it's how my family and I enjoy our milkshakes) and if you use a safe, pasteurized egg, there shouldn't be a problem.  Make sure to do what you feel is best for you and your family; there's a lot of great information out there on the handling of raw foods in general, so check out The Incredible Egg for more information.


Vanilla Milkshake

3 large scoops vanilla ice cream

1/2 ripe banana

1 egg (optional)

1/4 cup milk

Directions:

Plop everything in a blender and puree until thick and smooth.

S'mores Milkshake

3 marshmallows

2 tablespoons dark chocolate, grated

3 large scoops vanilla ice cream

1 graham cracker

1 egg (optional)
1/4 cup milk

Directions:

Torch the marshmallows over an open flame until black on the outside and liquid in the middle. Plop everything, except the cracker, in a blender and puree until thick and smooth. Garnish with graham crackers crumbs.

Old School Movie Candy

1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream  1 cup white sugar 1 cup packed light brown sugar 2 1/2 teaspoons salt 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 9 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped 2 cups roughly chopped nuts (whatever your favorite are)

In a heavy medium sized saucepan, stir together the cream, sugars, and salt. Place the saucepan over medium high heat and bring to a boil, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Once the mixture boils, with a heatproof pastry brush that has been dipped in warm water, wash down the sides of the saucepan to remove any sugar crystals that may have formed. Boil the mixture over medium high heat (do not stir) until the temperature reaches 245F. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Pour the caramel into your greased pan (grease with butter or cooking spray) and let cool to room temperature, then pop in the fridge for at least 2 hours, or when it's completely chilled. When chilled, scoop out tablespoon sized balls of the caramel with a greased spoon.  Melt the chocolate over a double boiler (you don't want to burn it), and when it has cooled a bit, dip the caramels in, using a fork so the excess chocolate can drip through the prongs. Set aside on parchment paper. Sprinkle with chopped nuts.  Keep in the fridge until serving (so they don't get too gooey).  Enjoy!

THREE SALADS, ONE VINAIGRETTE FROM FOOD FOR THOUGHT WITH CLAIRE THOMAS

On today's episode of Food for Thought, I made three very different salads with one vinaigrette.  Once you have the ratio down of 1:3, you can make fresh vinaigrette tailored to your palette any time you want to rustle up a quick salad (I also add my vinaigrettes to pasta, rice, grains, anything that needs a little perking up).  I chose three salads that work in almost any situation: hearty and perfect for lunch or a side,  leafy and easily multiplied for two or four or twelve, and, of course, one involving bacon. These aren't boring "side salads" all sad and wilted, these are fresh, flavorful, and super delicious. Enjoy!

Balsamic Caprese Pasta Salad with Toasted pine nuts

1 cup orzo pasta (or other pasta)

1 pint cherry tomatoes, quartered

8 oz ciliegini (mini mozzarella balls), quartered

1/2 cup basil, chiffonade (sliced into strips)

1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted

2 tablespoons Balsamic Vinaigrette

Cook the pasta in salted water until al dente, coat with the vinaigrette, and cool.  Add the tomatoes, pine nuts, and basil, stirring to mix.  Taste and add salt, pepper, and balsamic vinegar to taste. Add the mozzarella and stir to incorporate (I add the mozzarella last because I want it to stay white). Finish with a drizzle of balsamic vinaigrette.

Basic Balsamic vinaigrette

1 tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar

3 tablespoons Olive oil

Salt and Pepper to taste

Mix together the ingredients (I put them in a small container and shake) until emulsified, meaning, it has an even consistency.  Taste and adjust seasoning and store in the fridge.  You'll need to shake it before you use it each time.

Roasted Beet Salad with Goat Cheese, Arugula, and Pecans

6 small beets

Olive oil

8 oz arugula

4 oz goat cheese (fresh chevre)

1/2 cup halved pecans, toasted

2 tablespoons Balsamic Vinaigrette

Preheat oven to 425F.  Wash the beets and chop off the greens (reserve to saute if you like).  Wrap up each beet in aluminum foil and put on a baking sheet to catch drips.  Roast for 25-35 minutes (depending on the size of the beets) or until tender to a fork.  Unwrap the beets and let them cool.  The skin should peel right off.  Quarter or eighth the beets and combine with the arugula, pecans, and vinaigrette.  Add the goat cheese on top.  Enjoy!

The McNamara Potato Salad, courtesy of my Nana

3 lbs rose potatoes, cut into fourths or eighths with the skin on (any small sized waxy potato)

3 large eggs

1/2 cup red onion, finely chopped

1 cup green peas

1 cup bacon, chopped and cooked

1/4 cup dill pickle, chopped

2 tablespoons chives, finely chopped

3 tablespoons balsamic vinaigrette

1/2 cup mayo

Salt and Pepper

In a pot of room temperature water, add the cut up potatoes and a tablespoon of salt.  Bring to a boil and simmer for about 15-20 minutes, or until tender (but not mushy).  Drain the potatoes and toss with the vinaigrette while still warm.  While the potatoes cool, add the eggs to a pot of room temp water, bring to boil and turn off.  Let the eggs sit for 8-10 minutes in the hot water, then drain and pop in an ice bath until you're ready to use.  This method makes sure you don't get any of those grey rings around your yolks. Peel the eggs and chop up (I used an egg slicer).  Add the all of the ingredients to the potatoes, reserve half of the chives for garnish. Mix together, season with salt and pepper, and garnish with chives. Enjoy!

BROWN SUGAR SOUR CREAM BLUEBERRY COFFEE CAKE

I need to get better at naming recipes.  Usually, I just list the ingredients in a tasty sounding matter, but for this recipe...there's too much tasty! Obviously I have to mention the blueberries, but what about the brown sugar, giving it a deeper, almost maple-y flavor? I should also bring up the sour cream, adding a tangy richness.  What about the cinnamon streusel? Nah, you'll find out about that soon enough.

This recipe is a play on my mom's sour cream coffee cake, also known as the BEST CAKE EVER.  My brother had it as his 18th birthday cake.  It's moist, a little tart, and laden with cinnamon and pecans.  I thought, why not merge this awesomeness with my other favorite baked good, blueberry muffins.

So I give you: Brown Sugar Sour Cream Blueberry Coffee Cake...with cinnamon streusel!






Ingredients:

1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar, packed
8 oz unsalted butter (two sticks)
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 tablespoon Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
2 cups Sour Cream
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 half pints blueberries

For Cinnamon Streusel:
1/2 cup flour
2 oz butter, cold and cubed
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350 F. In a mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugars together (it should be a creamy, consistent texture and blonde looking). Add the eggs, one at a time until fully incorporated. Sift together the dry ingredients and add a quarter at a time, alternately adding the sour cream. Lastly, add the vanilla. Pour into a greased sheet cake pan.

To make the cinnamon streusel, cut together the butter, flour, cinnamon, sugar, and salt until the butter is the size of small peas.

Sprinkle the batter blueberries, and then the streusel on top. Bake for 40-45 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.

Allow it to cool completely, then slice and serve. Enjoy1

BEAUTY RECIPES

Yes, I know it's not food, but these were so fun to shoot I just had to share them here. My cousin Erica is a super talented make up artist who got a lot of buzz for the adorable pink roots she created for Luv AJ's most recent lookbook.

We decided to shoot a fun little "How To" for the beauty blog Birch Box (with none other than Luv AJ herself modeling), and had so much fun we shot another set for Rackled LA with my lovely cousin Rachel modeling. So whether you want to rock some super simple (and very temporary) pink roots, a colorful cat eye, or a chic top knot, we've got the steps right here!

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: MEXICAN INSPIRED APPETIZERS

South of the border, down Mexico way....

Now I have Patsy Cline stuck in my head, but more importantly, I have a new batch of recipes from today's episode of Food for Thought and they're all inspired by the delicious flavors of Mexico.

Growing up in Southern California meant that I grew up eating Mexican food.  Every version of it too: traditional, authentic, inauthentic, fusion, Sonoran, Yucatecan, anything from the country just south of us.  The flavors, combinations, and varieties of Mexican cuisine are so immense,  I can always discover something new rather than turning to carne asada tacos yet again.

Some of the recipes borrow just an ingredient from the Mexican spice drawer, like the smokey hit of chipotle in my Chipotle Hummus with Blanched Vegetables, while others are inspired by traditional dishes like Roasted Salsa Verde.  Either way, these are delicious as snacks or served for a group. Enjoy!

Homemade Chipotle Hummus with Blanched Vegetables

8 oz dried garbanzo beans

3 garlic cloves

1 rosemary sprig

1/4 cup tahini

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/3 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon adobo sauce from a chipotle pepper can

1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

Salt and Pepper

Soak the garbanzos in water overnight. In a pot of room temperature water add the garbanzos, rosemary and garlic.  Bring to a boil and simmer for 3-4 hours, or until completely tender.  Drain the beans and garlic and place in a food processor with the tahini and a pinch of salt and pepper.  Puree and drizzle in half of the lemon juice and olive oil.  Taste and add more lemon and oil to taste.  Add the paprika and chipotle pepper at the end, pulsing to marble it throughout. 

For the blanched vegetables, fill a pot with water and bring it to boil.  Fill a bowl half up with ice and water.  Slice you vegetables to blanch (bell pepper, green beans, broccoli, carrots, snap peas, asparagus) and the ones you'll leave raw (cucumber, zucchini, celery, cherry tomatoes).  Add a tablespoon of salt to the water and throw the vegetables to blanch in, letting them cook for about 30-45 seconds.  Test for doneness, and when crisp but tender toss immediately into the ice bath. Dry completely and serve with the hummus.

Why blanch? Blanching may be used to preserve color and texture, to prepare ingredients ahead of time, and to prepare vegetables for freezing.  It also turns up the flavor in lackluster vegetables.

Why make hummus from scratch:  The flavor is delicious, fresher, and deeper and you get to control what goes into it.  This is especially helpful if you're watching you sodium intake.

Dad's Guacamole

6 ripe medium avocados

1/2 red onion, finely chopped

1/2 bunch of cilantro, coarsely chopped

1 tablespoon hot sauce

1/2 a lemon, juiced--this keeps it green, as well as adding the taste.

salt and pepper

Halve the avocados and remove the pit. Using a large spoon, remove the creamy content into a large bowl. Then add the onion, cilantro, lemon juice and hot sauce, mixing with a fork to mash up the avocado. Careful not to over mix! Taste and adjust. Add the salt and pepper liberally, taste and adjust again. Enjoy!

Roasted Salsa Verde

Note:  If fresh tomatillos are not available, use the canned version, but don't roast them.

Ingredients: 

8 fresh tomatillos

6 cloves of garlic

1/2 bunch cilantro, leaves plucked

1 poblano pepper (the large dark green ones)

2 teaspoons pico pica (or any other hot sauce)

olive oil

salt and pepper

Heat oven to 425 F, unwrap and rinse the tomatillos. They're surprisingly sticky. Halve the tomatillos and arrange on a baking sheet. Drizzle the tomatillos and cloves of garlic with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Wrap the garlic in aluminum foil and place on the baking sheet with the tomatillos. Roast for 10 minutes then remove the garlic and crank the oven up to broil (550 F). Broil the tomatillos for 5-7 more minutes, or until browned at the edges and oozing. For the poblano, char it over an open flame until the skin is black.  Once it has cooled, scrape off the skin, slice off the top and remove the seeds. Add the tomatillos, cilantro, garlic, poblanos, and pico pica to a food processor. Blend to whole thing together. Salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!

Mom's Brie and Grape Quesadilla

For 1 quesadilla

2 flour tortillas

about 6 green grapes, halved (about 1/2 a cup)

about 6-8 slices brie (about 1/2 a wedge)

Nonstick Spray

On one  tortilla, spread out the brie slices (saving a couple) and add the grape halves, top with the other brie slices and second tortilla.  In a pan over a medium heat, sprayed with non-stick spray, cook the quesadilla until golden brown and flip, about 3 minutes per side.  The cheese should be nice and gooey.

OMBRE EASTER EGGS

It's that time of year again! I'd wake up and immediately search under my bed for an Easter Basket, my sister and I would put on new Easter dresses before church (my favorite one was purple and covered in flowers with gigantic puffy sleeves), and at some point in the day we'd play chubby bunny...a competition where you stuff as many peeps into your mouth as possible and say "chubby bunny." The one with the most peeps wins. And one year, my Dad wore a full size Easter bunny costume to assist with the Easter Egg Hunt. I was so honored to have a guest like the Easter Bunny over that I grabbed his hand and took him on the grand tour of my room; I think we even shared some Cadbury Eggs. My sister, on the other hand, walked past "the Easter Bunny" and said "Hey, dad" with out blinking an eye. When I realized I had been defrauded, I burst into hysterical tears, freaking out that the Easter bunny wasn't real.


Last Easter was a tough one.


When GLO.MSN came to me for fun Easter DIY ideas, I immediately thought of mixing the timeless classic with a recent trend: Ombre Easter Eggs. I was inspired by speckled birds' eggs that come in every delicate hue, and just scream "springtime" to me . Ombre simply means that color fades from one to another, and with a few pops of sparkle from silver and gold food paint, the muted hues of the eggs turned out beautifully.


For the full steps on how to make you're own Ombre Easter Eggs, check out the article on GLO, here.


Happy Easter!

S'MEACHES, REVISITED

I'm so honored that S'Meaches has been nominated for Best Food Video of the Year by Saveur Magazine.  Here it is, reposted for your viewing pleasure.  Please vote here!


I recently toasted up a batch of my old favorite, S'Meaches and thought it was time for a new recipe video!





Fire is such a wonderful, transformative thing. At first glance, singeing something as perfect as a ripe summer peach seems sacrilege, but then you taste it, and then you add a marshmallow because why the hell not. The burnt sugar with a hint of spice, the acid of the yellow peach against the saccharine marshmallow, it all works somehow and is my new campfire favorite. Smeaches. Smores + peaches. It's a pretty obvious pun, so you probably didn't need that explained, but whatever, smeaches it is. Enjoy!

1 peach, sliced into 6-8 slices and halved horizontally

6-8 marshmallows

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
Graham Crackers

Mix the cayenne and sugar, and toss the peaches in it. Put a bottom half of a peach slice on a stick, add the marshmallow, then the other half of peach. Toast over a medium-low flame until caramelized and browned. Enjoy!

SPICY ROASTED PINEAPPLE LEMON/LIMEADE

There are a lot of different ways to come up with a recipe.  You can try to replicate one you try at a restaurant, or give a group of ingredients you love a difference spin (For instance, I dare you to find a scenario where Caprese doesn't work: pasta, sandwiches, alone, it's always awesome), or sometimes you treat it like a math equation. If x and y are both delicious, then z will be awesome (given that x + y = z).  I mean, I wouldn't try it with roast chicken and chocolate cake, but with roasted pineapple, jalapeno, and citrus, yeah, the math comes out alright.


It's about understanding balance and what "goes."  Sort of like how Jonathan Adler can merge 70s tackiness with Palm Springs and it looks amazing, or JCrew mixing plaids.  Sweet with acid and spice always works.  It's always exciting, and I'm yet to meet someone who doesn't like that combination. Slam dunk, every time.


This is one of those situations.  It could've just as easily been mango lime with thai chili, or pear lemon and ginger, so if you're feeling creative, go for it! Come up with your own "perfect" combination.  Enjoy! 















For 1 quart (4 cups)

1/3 cup lemon juice (about 2)

1/2 cup lime juice (about 4)

6 rings fresh pineapple, roasted

1/2 red jalapeno, thinly sliced

6 tblsp agave

2 cups hot water


Preheat oven to 450 F.  On a sheet pan, lay down the pineapple and half of the sliced jalapeno. Roast until the pineapple is browned at the edges.  A few black spots aren't a bad thing.  Pop 4 of the roasted pineapple rings and half of the roasted jalapeno into a blender, and puree.  Add water if needed to help the blender get going. Strain into a pitcher.  Juice the lemons and limes, and put all of the used halves into a bowl and cover with 2 cups of hot water.  Let it sit for about 10 minutes.  The hot water pulls all of the natural oils out of the citrus skins and adds so much flavor.  Add the water and juices to the pitcher, and finish with the agave nectar.  Add the remaining pineapple and sliced jalapeno to the pitcher to add color and texture.  Chill in the fridge until ready to serve.