WFMW - Following Recipes

This week's suggested theme for We Are THAT Family's 'Works for Me Wednesday' was to describe something that does NOT work for you. This past week, something that does not seem to work for me is following recipes to the 't'.

I am obsessed with corn. It's kind of strange, but one of my favorite summer foods and summer flavors is good old corn on the cob. I came across this really great recipe from Bon Appetit (I do read other magazines... I swear!) called Roasted Corn with Manchego and Lime

This recipe is truly fabulous in every aspect that isn't actually written in the recipe itself. While I was lucky enough to have corn in the refrigerator, I was unsure where exactly I was going to get Manchego cheese, aside from taking a long trip up to the cheese shop where my boyfriend lives. And... They closed at 6:00. Oops.

As I googled substitutions for Manchego cheese, I had found that Manchego is actually a spanish sheep's milk cheese. If there was nothing else I learned from watching Rachael Ray daily at 10:00 everyday this spring, it was that anything with the word 'Pecorino' is a sheep's cheese. Pecorino Romano would be a perfect substitute and, even better, I knew I had it in the fridge.

When I came home from the store with my two limes, I got cooking. It went something like this..

'Oven preheated, check.'
'Corn ready to go, check.'
'Limes zested, check.'
'Now let me get out that cheese! UGHHHHH. Parmigiano reggiano???'

It would have to work.


As I worked further and further through the recipe, already substituting 1/2 green bell pepper sliced really, super thin for the two jalapenos the recipe called for (my boyfriend HATES peppers), I noticed one other thing I did not seem to have. Chives. How could I not remember the chives?

My only reasonable substitution was mint! Straight out of the garden! And while I know the sweeter flavor profile I have created was not exactly what Bon Appetit had in mind for this recipe, the out come for me personally was nothing short of fabulous.


So did we get all that?

1/2 green bell pepper in place of 2 jalapenos

Parmigiano reggiano in place of manchego

mint instead of chives

While I did enjoy my own incidental version of this recipe, I know I would love to try making the real version just to compare. If I were you, I would do the same. Not to mention... you might consider actually reading the recipe before making it unlike this doofus here (points finger at herself).

WFMW - Zucchini Pickles: Pickling Tutorial P1

In the summer of 2009, I was lucky enough to complete an internship at a bakery with good values. While at school, all I was used to was low quality butter, Sweetex, and Primex. When I started at The Sweet Life Bakery, it was almost as if a whole new world was opened for me. All butter- buttercream, fresh and seasonal fruit products, and nearly everything was homemade. I was once told that everywhere you work will influence and round out what you will do in your future. Although I have worked at many other places, I must say that what I gained from The Sweet Life has had the greatest impact on my values and I am forever grateful of that.

Not long after my employment ended at the Sweet Life, I became obsessed with the ideas of all butter goods, seasonal products, local farmer's markets, and making everything from scratch. Which is why I was absolutely thrilled to see this summer's issue of Bon Appetit!



Not only does the pie on the cover look to die for, but the entire content of this issue is about using produce from your local market effectively and using produce that is in season and at it's peak taste and freshness. Also, if you are a gardener, the recipes in this issue are specifically designed to use up all that fabulous produce right in your backyard.

One of the recipes that I was most excited to try, was the "Zucchini Pickles" recipe. You might be thinking... "Zucchini... Pickles?". Yeah.. That was my first thought. Then, after a bit of consideration, I figured that cucumber and zucchini are practically cousins! They must be a hit!

Here is the recipe from Bon Appetit Magazine:

Zucchini Dill Pickles

2 lb. small zucchini
4 T coarse sea salt
12 fresh dill sprigs
2 t yellow or brown mustard seeds
1 t coriander seeds
1 t dill seeds
1/4 t saffron threads
4 garlic cloves
4 red jalapenos
2 1/2 cups white wine vinegar
1/4 cup sugar


Your goal in cutting the zucchini is to make them 1. look like a pickle and 2. cut them to size so that they can properly fit in the canning jar:



Once cut, place the zucchini in a large bowl. Add 2T salt and 4 cups of ice. Add cold water to cover and top the bowl with a plate to keep each zucchini submerged:



Let the zucchini sit for two hours, drain, and rinse.

Divide your dill sprigs, mustard seeds, coriander seeds, dill seeds, saffron seeds, garlic, and jalapeno evenly between each jar. The recipe calls for 2 - 1 quart jars. I used smaller, 16oz jars so to figure out how many jars I needed, I put as much zucchini as I could in each jar. This way you know you have just the right amount of space, or if you need more.




Bring the vinegar, sugar, remaining 2T of salt, and 1 1/4 cups of water to a boil. Add your zucchini and cook, stirring occasionally until they look a 'khaki' green color. This should be about 2 minutes. Once cooked, transfer zucchini into your jars and divide the hot syrup between them. Be sure to leave about 1/2 inch of space at the top.

Place your lids on the jars and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Allow about a week to pickle, and enjoy! ( :


I have pickled my zucchini just this past Saturday so the wow factor is yet to be determined. I will be sure to follow up in a Part 2! Happy Pickling! ( :


P.S. I am eyeing up the pickles as they sit on my window sill. I. Can't. Wait.



(Works For Me Wednesday ( : )