Garlic Avocado BLT

The reason that the title of this recipe begins with the word "garlic", is because when Tom and I made these sandwiches, we put way too much garlic. We had one of those colossal garlic heads where one clove was equal to about three normal cloves, and we used two of them. I love garlic, but I admit it had a bit of a bite. But nothing that prevented these from being the best BLT I've ever made.

1 sesame seed bagel
2 slices tomato
4 slices maple bacon
1 large leaf Romano heart lettuce
1 slice American cheese
1/2 avocado
1 tsp lemon juice
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup onion, chopped
2 tbsp mayonnaise

To make the garlic avocado spread, mix together the avocado, lemon juice, garlic, onion, mayo and salt and pepper to taste. Cook the bacon in the manner you like it. Toast the bagel. Spread the mixture onto the bagel and add the bacon, lettuce, tomato and cheese. Enjoy!

Chicken with Prosciutto

My cousin Jessi, the one with the famous guacamole recipe, sent me a couple of new recipes to try out. I finally got around to her simple chicken breast and prosciutto dish, which sounded delicious, and came out even better than I imagined. The recipe only calls for a couple of ingredients so it's great to make when you don't have a lot on hand.

2 thin sliced chicken cutlets
4 thin slices prosciutto
1 tbsp pesto sauce
1 tsp garlic, chopped
ground pepper
oregano

makes 2 servings

Roll up the individual pieces of prosciutto and place 2 on one half of each chicken cutlet. Spread pesto on prosciutto. Fold over the other half of the chicken and use toothpicks to hold in place. Sprinkle pepper and oregano generously on the outside of the chicken. Cook in oil and garlic over medium to medium-high head until the chicken is no longer pink inside. Remove toothpicks and enjoy!

As you can see, I didn't have thinly cut chicken, so it's not as pretty or as easy to cook as I would have liked. The recipe called for fresh basil, which I did not have. But I did have some of my dad's homemade pesto sauce in the freezer, so I substituted and think that it gave an even better flavor than the basil alone would have. It also called for thyme, which my spice self seems to be lacking. I poked around on the internet and looked at other chicken and prosciutto recipes, and oregano seemed common in many other ones. 

Alfredo Like You've Never Seen It Before

Nothing beats a good alfredo sauce. When you are cooking at home, however; it can often be difficult to get it to the perfect creamy-ness. And if you are being spontaneous and don't just have heavy cream on hand, a real alfredo sauce can seem a little out of reach.

Fortunately, there is a little known solution to all these problems.

An egg. Who would have thought of so simple an ingredient to make a perfectly creamy dish? You won't believe it until you try it for yourself.

I am giving my boyfriend total credit for this recipe. I went over his house one day after he had been watching the Food Network and he came up this dish. He said he had seen a segment on a restaurant that finished making your plate in front of you--in this case it was this alfredo dinner and they cracked the egg at your table. There was no recipe he followed, I just helped him do a makeshift alfredo and he added the egg. It was better than any other alfredo sauces I had tried before.


1/2 lb angel hair pasta
1/4 stick butter
1/2 cup milk
1 tbsp flour
1/2 cup shredded cheese (Tom prefers mozzarella, while I prefer Parmesan for a more classic flavor)
1 tbsp garlic
1 egg
salt pepper

makes 2 servings

Boil the pasta until cooked. Meanwhile, in a pan over med-low heat, melt the butter (or oil if you wish) and add the garlic. Once the garlic has begun to cook, add the milk, flour, salt and pepper and stir. When your pasta is just about ready, add the cheese and stir constantly. Drain the pasta and then add it to the pan, still stirring. Finally, once the pasta and sauce are mixed well, crack an egg over the dish. Stir until the egg is completely combined and then your dish is ready to serve.

Avocado on Toast

When I was young, I used to watch my mom spread this yucky green stuff on her toast. I couldn't imagine that it could taste good, it was just so gooey and the color of boogers. 

I think honestly I was not a fan of avocado until this year. It just never appealed to me. But then when I realized that with a bit of alteration these bland avocados could nearly be guacamole without all the frills. 

I was inspired by this delicious looking post to put my avocado on toast just like my mom. I'm always so sick of toast or yogurt or whatever lame snacks we have on hand. So I decided to mix it up a little bit. 

Eating an avocado is all about improvisation. My favorite way is eating it raw and sprinkling a little lemon juice and garlic powder. This is also good on toast as well. A Cozy Kitchen suggested adding red pepper flakes, which gives it more of the spicy guacamole feel, and it was delicious. 

You can also do a stripped down guac, with just avocado, lemon juice, garlic powder, salt and pepper, and jalapeño, omitting any of these ingredients that aren't on hand. You can use it as dip or you can be like me, and just eat it with a spoon. 

Avocados can sometimes be rather expensive. But like any food they go on sale. Catch them when they are cheap and you will appreciate them even more.  

My First Shot At Aioli

(First off, sorry for such a long post with no pictures. My camera cable is MIA.)

What is aioli, you may ask? Before last semester I had no idea either. Then it came to me. The most glorious sandwich the campus can offer.

It was like a treasure trove amidst a tiny cafe with soggy caeser wraps and hockey-puck hamburgers. It was like it called out to me. It reached out its sandwich hand and said, "Come along, on this beautiful journey. You need not eat anything else for the rest of the semester." And I followed its guidance. I ate this sandwich every chance I could. On Tuesdays and Thursdays I would trot off to Herder Cafe and salivate as I pictured the glory. Sometimes they did not have my sandwich. But I think they learned. I ate it twice a week for three months and never once was tired of it.

What is this magic, you ask? Well, for those of you who go to UMass, I'm not giving away my precious secret. Just kidding, I'll tell you, but there better be some of them waiting for me next semester. This sandwich is from French Meadow Cafe, which is located in the Campus Center, but Herder Cafe also carried them. You can sometimes find this sandwich in the refrigerated section of Blue Wall.

It's name:  BLT Croissant with Turkey and Garlic Aioli.

Bacon and flaky croissants and the most beautiful taste in the world, all rolled into one.

I'm sorry if you do not attend UMass and you are hating me because you want this sandwich now. I'm also sorry if you are thinking to yourself, why am I reading all of this nonsense. Give me a recipe already. All you need to do is scroll down until you see it. I'm not forcing anyone to listen to my babbling.

But seriously. This sandwich changed my life. And it's the one thing I miss from UMass right now during this winter break. So I decided today I was going to try and make aioli.

Honestly it did not come out nearly as good as I hoped. I followed the recipe from Epicurious exactly. I looked at other recipes and they are all mostly the same. I kind of hated my first finger dip into my creation. But after a couple adjustments and putting it onto a sandwich, it was relatively good. Not as good as French Meadow, but I think they cheat. I have a feeling they just mix garlic and mayonnaise, because theirs was white and mine was yellow. But hey, it was still good. It tastes a lot different on a sandwich than trying it by itself.

2 cloves of garlic (I used 4 small ones, and then added another normal sized one, which I think took it too far)
1 egg yolk
2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/4 cup olive oil (it called for EVOO, but it was way too tangy for my liking)
3 tbsp vegetable oil
salt and pepper to taste
1 tbsp mayonnaise (optional)

Makes about 1/2 cup of aioli

Mince and mash the garlic into a paste. If you are not using a garlic mincer, use a large knife and if you've never done this before, check out this Youtube tutorial. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, lemon and mustard. Then add the oil, constantly whisking and only a few drops at a time so that it becomes emulsified. (Remember that science experiment from elementary school where you put oil and water in a glass and they separate? You don't want that to happen here.) Then whisk in the garlic and add salt and pepper to taste. I thought it needed something else, so I added the mayo and it took a little of the bite off. Use as a spread on a sandwich of your choice.

Another ramble:
Do you know how to get an egg yolk separated from the whites? I learned from some romantic comedy that was my favorite on ABCFamily when I was younger. I have always been excited to use my knowledge. It's cold, but kind of fun. You hold the egg in your hand and let the whites slip through your fingers as you transfer from hand to hand until it's only a yolk. Thank you anonymous movie. (Anyone else remember it? It was about a hockey player and he marries this girl at the end and A Thousand Miles plays...)

Garlic Knots

This was my first ever stab at making bread. Yeast is so weird! This recipe went pretty well for me though; no disasters. Thankfully I had my parents giving me tips along the way. And of course my helpful boyfriend.

1 3/4 cups warm water (about 115 degrees, your sink should be able to do this)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1 1/2 tbsp active dry yeast
5 cups flour
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp parsley flakes
1 tbsp fresh basil
2 tsp garlic powder

In a medium bowl, stir together the yeast and warm water until the yeast has fully dissolved, about 10 minutes.
Then combine olive oil, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. Slowly add the flour; you will probably need to use your hands to mix as the dough becomes thicker. Cover the bowl with saran wrap and let rise for 1-3 hours, until it is doubled in volume. When the dough has risen, set up a cutting board and rolling pin covered with oil. Spray 3 baking sheets with non-stick cooking spray and keep near your cutting station. Divide the dough in half so that it is easier to use. Roll the dough into a rectangle so that it is about 1/2 inch thick, and cut the dough into strips about 1/2 inch wide. Sprinkle with flour, and roll the dough strips so that they are rounded. Then take each strip and tie them into knots and place them on the baking sheets. Let the dough sit out for about another hour, until the knots have doubled in size. Then place them into the oven preheated for 400 degrees and bake for 10-15 minutes until golden brown. Meanwhile, simmer together garlic, 3 tbsps olive oil, garlic powder, parsley and basil on the stovetop. Immediately after you take the knots out of the oven, paint the garlic oil on the rolls.

The next time I make this, I would want the garlic to be somehow inside the knots. The coating is not quite garlic-y enough for me. I assume that the reason you are supposed to paint it on after is so that garlic doesn't burn in the oven. Let me know if you have any tips!