Saturday, March 10, 2012

I really outdid myself this time...

Ok, I'm going to get straight to the point here.  This morning I made brunch, and I served eggs benedict on cornbread with a chipotle hollandaise.  Did you hear me?  Eggs benedict on cornbread with a chipotle hollandaise.  Do I even have to tell you about the euphoric state that was my mouth upon the first bite of this bad larry?

As I alluded to a couple of posts ago, I had big brunch plans this weekend.  Big.  I planned my menu, loaded up on some groceries from Berkeley Bowl, and invited some friends/taste-testers over.  One of my taste-testers is a raw foodist and another is allergic to eggs (what needy friends she has!  I know, you're telling me... Is she going to continue with these parenthetical conversations with herself? Probably...), so I also whipped up, in my humble opinion, some pretty awesome raw taco boats with a chipotle cashew cream.  I should note that these were a big hit across the board: enjoyed by carnivores, vegetarians, and raw foodists alike.  I should also note that I plan on putting this cashew cream on everything.  It was simply amazing.  The texture was that of the love child of silk and kool whip.  The flavor was slightly nutty and coated your mouth luxuriously.
There was also this guest, who did a good job babysitting Bianca while we ate.
This feast was then rounded out by some fruit salad with fresh flowers, rosemary garlic roasted potatoes, and freshly juiced orange/pineapple/carrot/ginger juice.  Like I said, I really out did myself.

Eggs Benedict with a Chipotle Hollandaise on Cornbread

For the eggs benedict, I went off of recipes I have already posted.  So go here for the basic eggs benedict, here for the vegan cornbread, and make with the following modifications:

  • Chipotle hollandaise: add 1 tablespoon canned chipotle in adobo sauce to the finished hollandaise sauce.

Can you even handle how good this looks?!

Raw Taco Boats with Chipotle Cashew Cream
Materials:
  • 1/2 cup raw cashews
  • water
  • 1 tablespoon chipotle in adobo sauce
  • Juice from 1 lemon
  • 1 avocado, diced
  • 1 mango, diced
  • 1 tomato, diced
  • 1 bunch radishes, tops/bottoms removed and diced
  • Corn kernels freshly shaved off of 1 ear of corn
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • Juice from 2 limes
  • 1 tablespoon taco seasoning
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 head romaine lettuce hearts

Methods:
Chipotle Cashew Cream
  1. THE NIGHT BEFORE: cover the cashews in water, cover, and place in refrigerator overnight.
  2. Drain the cashews.
  3. Throw cashews, lemon juice, and chipotle in a blender, add enough water to just cover the cashews.
  4. Blend on high for about 5 minutes until it has a super smooth and creamy texture.
  5. Season with salt to taste.

Taco Boats

  1. Mix together the remaining ingredients and add salt and pepper to taste.
  2. Spoon mixture into romaine hearts, using the lettuce as your shell.
  3. Drizzle chipotle cashew cream on top.
  4. Get messy and eat with your hands, just like a taco!

Rosemary Garlic Roasted Potatoes
Materials:
  • 1 pound marbled potatoes of various colors, quartered
  • 2 sprigs rosemary, coarsely chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • olive oil
  • salt and pepper

Method:
  1. Preheat oven to 400.
  2. Toss the potatoes with the remaining ingredients.
  3. Spread out in singe layer in baking dish and cover with tin foil.
  4. Bake for 25 minutes.
  5. Remove tin foil, stir, and return to oven for additional 30 minutes.
Fruit Salad with Fresh Flowers

You don't really need a recipe for this.  Toss together your favorite fruits and throw in a package of edible flowers, if available.  Today I used blackberries, strawberries, blueberries, mango, and banana.


This meal concluded with many full and happy bellies.  Another plus is that pretty much all of this can be made ahead, with the exception of the hollandaise, but that takes all of 5 minutes to whip up.  All of these things certainly don't have to be made together, so don't be too intimidated by the length of this post!  But please, be sure that at least one of these things makes their way into your mouth ASAP, you will not regret it!   

Every dish was basically licked clean.

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