I don’t know when exactly I fell in love with the concept of Bed & Breakfasts, but I can recall at least a couple fond memories of beds and breakfasts past.  The first was on my tour de colleges all around the southeast.  My recollection of that stay, being more than 10 years ago, is limited to a delicious Mocha Muffin Recipe.  My next experience found me actually in college and staying with my parents and Grandmother in a nearby residence in Winston Salem for Easter.   We had both the western style basement suite and a Victorian room upstairs.  B&Bs tend to gravitate towards themed rooms; a trait I find quite endearing.  Since then I lived next to a very pretty B&B on Piedmont Road in Atlanta.  It actually went up for sale, but after several attempts that at least I thought were quite compelling to convince my parents to purchase the beautiful house for Mom to redecorate and me to manage, I was denied. 

This trip found me on a tour de Florida and in the lovely town of St. Petersburg where we stayed at the Larelle House on a lazy cobblestone street lined with droopy moss, yet bright with history.  The house dated to way back before I was around and was constructed by a hardware salesman for his bride to be!  I couldn’t have imagined a more perfect place.  Walking up the gated entrance you immediately feel relaxed surrounded by the lush green yard soon to spot the big front porch swing that you just can’t wait to plop down on!  But wait, your host Larry is about to welcome you in and give you a tour of his home, beautifully decorated with a myriad of antiques by his wife.  When you think it can’t get better, you catch a glimpse of the backyard where they have bicycles for the guests aka yours truly to enjoy and the most elegant underground  hot tub surrounded by a flowery gazebo in case you need to relax after a hard day’s vacation.  Grabbing a homemade cookie on the way upstairs, the four rooms, themed of course, are just as delightful.  I stayed in the Longley room named after the original owner, which sported very luxurious fabrics, a giant fantasy sized bed, and the courtesy bottle of sherry that comes with all the rooms.  Since there were only two couples staying at the time I was able to peek into the Hemingway room, which was more studious, but with a dash of fun courtesy of the leopard accents.  The Victorian room was also quite nice and just as rosy pink as you would imagine it to be. 

Post tour, we immediately headed back down to the front porch with some wine to enjoy what was left of the daylight and were enjoying watching the cats through the window when we were pleasantly surprised with a smoky cheese and crackers!  It was almost a shame to even leave for dinner, but luckily the waterfront is just a few blocks away and we were able to make it back in time to head down to the hot tub and to bed in time for breakfast at 9!  Breakfast was perfectly in line with the rest of our stay, even though their oven decided not to work for the occasion…  We had three courses with coffee and OJ consisting of a colorful parfait, crust less spinach quiche with the most delicious home fries on the side, and a banana cake (the lady of the house loves to bake) that made me seriously regret giving up sweets for lent. 

                       

Needless to say I was sad to leave my dream life behind, but will watch the classifieds For (a) Sale in years to come!  Here are two quiches that I’ve since made in memoriam:

 

Spring Veggie & Ricotta Quiche

Serves 6 courtesy of My Baking Adventures.

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 10 oz bag fresh spinach
• 1 zucchini, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 15-ounce container ricotta cheese
• 8 ounce mozzarella cheese, grated
• ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 3 large eggs, beaten to blend
• 1 pre made crust

 

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Melt butter in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until tender, about 8 minutes. Mix in spinach and sauté until wilted, about 2 minutes.

Add zucchini and continue to cook until almost all liquid from spinach evaporates, about 3-4 minutes.Set aside to cool slightly.

In a large bowl, combine ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Mix in eggs. Add cooled spinach mixture; blend well.

Spoon cheese mixture into pie crust and smooth the top. Bake until filling is set in center and brown on top.

 

 

Cauliflower & Caramelized Onion (Quichey) Tart

Serves 8 courtesy of Smitten Kitchen.

                                                                     

• 1 small head of cauliflower (about 1 pound) cut into 1-inch flowerets
• 3 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 refrigerated pie crust (I used whole wheat from Whole Foods)
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 2 large eggs
• 1 (7- to 8- ounce) container mascarpone cheese
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
• Pinch of ground nutmeg
• 1 cup grated Gruyère cheese
• 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese

 

Preheat oven to 425°F. Toss cauliflower with 2 tablespoons olive oil in large bowl. Spread on rimmed baking sheet, sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast 15 minutes before turning florets over and roasting until brown and tender, another 15 minutes. Cool cauliflower then thinly slice and drizzle with oil & salt. Reduce temperature to 350°F.

Line crust with foil, fill with pie weights and bake 20 minutes. Remove foil and weights then bake until crust is golden, about 5 additionally minutes. Press crust back with the back of a fork if bubbles form. Cool crust and maintain oven temperature.

Heat remaining 1 1/2 tablespoon olive oil in a heavy large skillet over medium-low heat. Add onion, sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook until onion is a deep golden brown, stirring occasionally for 30 minutes. Cool slightly.

Use a knife or brush to spread the bottom and sides of crust with mustard. Spread onion over crust. Arrange cauliflower over the onion. Whisk eggs, mascarpone, cream and pepper in a medium bowl. Stir in Gruyère. Pour mixture over filling in tart pan, sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake until tart is golden and center is set, about 40 minutes. Transfer to rack and cool 15 minutes before serving.

This soup has A LOT OF VEGETABLES!  Please don’t feel obligated to buy the entire market like I did…and if you’re not up to dumping your entire produce drawer into a pot I understand.  If you did neglect your “5 a day” this weekend, however, this will more than make up for it.  It works that way right?  I’m pretty sure my veggies consisted of fried green tomatoes and Bloody Mary’s, so I’m taking every…umm…real vegetable I can get!

 

I originally found this recipe on the Cooking Light website and modified to the point of minimal recognition.  Feel free to substitute parsnips for the more common Mirepoix or sweet potato for Mr. Idaho.  Those two ingredients were the largest flavor enhancers, but who am I to make you experiment.  I’m pretty sure the original recipe also neglects the cruciferous joys of Brussels Sprouts and cauliflower, but I suppose they do tend to be the outcasts of the veggie kingdom. 

 

Rosemary Roasted Veggie Soup

Serves 6.

 

• 2 T olive oil
• 3 T Dried rosemary
• 1 onion
• 1 red pepper
• 1 sweet potato
• 2 parsnips
• 2 zucchini
• 1 package mushrooms
• 1 head cauliflower, chopped
• Brussels sprouts, halved
• 1 lb chicken breasts, cut into ½ in pieces
• 56 oz Chicken stock
• 1 cup water
• 1 cups whole wheat rotini pasta

 

Toss the veggies in olive oil, rosemary, salt & pepper and roast on a baking sheet for 50 minutes at 375 degrees until soft.  In the meantime, combine chicken, stock, and water in a large saucepan, bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes.  Add roasted veggies and simmer another 30 minutes.  Bring the soup to a boil, add pasta, and cook for 10 minutes until done.

Hey guess what – January’s over!  Time to focus on chocolate, fondue, and something delicious to make for that special someone so they’ll still be yours after Valentine’s Day.   What’s more romantic than a dinner in?  Let me rephrase, what’s more romantic than a dinner in when you’re used to dining out?  I might, for once, prefer not to slave the day away, but I’ve no doubt put in more than my fair share of kitchen duty.  So what to make for that special someone who will, for this one day at least, be your culinary inspiration?  Well, if you’re a lady cooking for your mister, you cannot go wrong with this pork roast.  It’s juicy and tender and doesn’t require constant attention so you can focus your first course elsewhere.    If you’re a mister cooking for your miss, perhaps this is a selfish choice of meat, but she’ll never question your machismo. 

Since I did first whip this up back in 2009 when I was stuffed from an indulgent December, I left the meal at meat and veggies.  You surely have recuperated by now and are ready for some starch.  Try a mashed parsnip or simple risotto.  The gym lines are finally clearing, so you should have more than enough time to give this roast the extra hours of TLC it deserves.  I promise you’ll be paid back one hundred kisses over. 

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Roast Pork Loin w/Veggies

Serves 6.

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• 1 5-bone pork rib roast (about 5 pounds), chine bone removed, rack of bones cut off in 1 piece and reserved
• Coarse kosher salt
• 6 slabs of bacon
• 6 fresh rosemary sprigs, divided, plus more for garnish
• 6 fresh thyme sprigs, divided, plus more for garnish
• 6 fresh bay leaves, divided
• 1 pound brussel sprouts
• 4 large parsnips, peeled, each cut diagonally into 3 or 4 long pieces
• 4 large carrots, peeled, each cut diagonally into 3 or 4 long pieces
• 1 head cauliflower, cut into flowers

 

Italian Salsa Verde

 

• 1/4 cup salted capers, soaked for 30 minutes, drained, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh Italian flat leaf parsley
• 1/3 cup chopped scallions
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
• 1 cup olive oil, preferably extra-virgin
• 1 teaspoons dried crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
• 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

   

Put first 5 ingredients in a food processor and blend.  Continue blending while streaming in olive oil.  Stir in salt & pepper.  

 

Arrange rib rack, bone side up, on work surface. Sprinkle with coarse salt and pepper. Place pork roast atop rib rack, nestled in curve; sprinkle with coarse salt and pepper. Place pork belly, rind side up, atop pork to cover. Using kitchen string or twine, tie rib rack, pork roast, and pork belly together in several places to secure. Sprinkle assembled pork roast all over with coarse salt and pepper. Tuck 3 rosemary sprigs, 3 thyme sprigs, and 3 bay leaves under string in several places. Place roast, pork belly side up, in large roasting pan. Cut 1/4-inch-deep, 3-inch-long slits in rind of pork belly, down length of roast, spacing cuts 1 inch apart. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes.

Position rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 425°F. Place vegetables in roasting pan around pork; tuck in 3 rosemary sprigs, 3 thyme sprigs, and 3 bay leaves in several places. Sprinkle vegetables with coarse salt and pepper.

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Roast pork and vegetables 1 hour. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F. Turn vegetables to coat with pan drippings. Continue to roast pork until thermometer inserted straight down from top into center registers 145°F to 150°F, turning and brushing vegetables occasionally with drippings, about 1 hour 25 minutes longer. Let pork rest 30 minutes.

Transfer roast to platter; surround with vegetables. Garnish with fresh herb sprigs and serve with salsa verde.