Cook 5 Recipes from InterCourses

It’s been a while since I’ve cooked from this cookbook! I don’t know why, it’s not like anything’s been a terrible failure – quite the opposite. I think I’ve just become a little obsessed with bread lately!

Well, this was a nice change of pace from flour and yeast. :)

It’s not the most authentic Thai I ever had and the aphrodisiac in question was once again chile. (Hey, I’m hooked!) Actually, it was a good excuse to use some hot garlic chile paste that I had on hand that I really needed to start using. As evidence by the spice goal, I do have a tendency to purchase little foodie things and just have them sit for a while – and that shouldn’t have happened with the the chile paste.

So the chile paste went into the peanut sauce. Chicken breasts marinated for a bit in a bit of citrus, soy, garlic and sugar. We were supposed to grill the chicken, but it actually snowed yesterday (no sticking), so we broiled it instead. Heated the peanut sauce ingredients and then sliced the chicken. The chicken was then wrapped in lettuce leaves and dipped in the peanut sauce. A very filling Sunday afternoon dinner.

We’re happy campers today. This is a great dinner and would definitely be a wowzer! group appetizer for friends.

This one was described by the cookbook as an inensely flavored experience and it didn’t disappoint. The only tough part on this one was that it was a dish that called for marinating. Not that marinating is difficult – it’s just one of those things I forget about. I’m forever saying, “all I need to do is put everything together tonight and then we’ll cook it tomorrow!” Yeah, that’s a nice theory, isn’t it?

The aphrodisiac in question is chile. Chile powder and what should have been jalapeno but ended up being anaheim chile instead thanks to this crazy salmonella outbreak we’re having this summer. Trivia of the day? Kellogg back in the day when he ran a “health clinic” advised nymphomaniacs to stay away from hot peppers! =)

In reality,this was good and easy to make. The mint mayonnaise was fantastic as well. We’ll look to doing this in the future, but it will likely become more of a “salad” mix, as by the time one gets chicken, sliced cucumbers, lettuce and mint mayonnaise onto pita, it gets a bit messy!

Fancy! Okay, insanely easy. And fun because it meant a trip to Whole Foods. I’d love to shop there everyday, but it’s pretty much a “once in a while” store. Again, less than 5 ingredients. The lavender essence is actually drops of essential oil – a purchase I justified because I can make other things (soaps, candles, etc.) with it…I just need to set it aside and consider it one of my winter projects.

The pics make these look a bit crisp, but I promise that it’s really good carmelization. These were huge – the 8 here represent a pound of scallops. We added a side of edamame beans and had a really good dinner. The Basil/Lavender mixture is in the center of the scallops (I cut them nearly in half horizontally and put the mixture in).

Basil was the aphrodisiac in question – supposedly it keeps wandering eyes at home. It was also a royal herb in Greece. I just know it smells good!

So far, so good. I preferred the pasta, truth be told (I think largely because it was a complete meal). Husband preferred the scallops. Either way, it’s good meals for the future.

This recipe was tucked away on page 45 at the bottom. Grapes are the aphrodisiac in question – a fruit that has brought us everything from jelly to artist inspiration to wine.

The subtitle describes this as fruit and cheese plate meets pasta and they’re right! Basically, it’s goat cheese, grapes and pasta tossed together – the recipe called for watercress, but I lived on the edge and substituted arugula.

I have to say this was one of the lighter tasting pasta dishes I’d had in a long time. It just tasted clean. Looking forward to recipes 2-5!

This is a book I picked up a million years ago, but have never really done more than flip through the pictures (which are amazing!). It’s broken out by ingredients and looking at it, I have no reason for not cooking most of the recipes! I’m going to pick 5 recipes from the book and cook them.

Some of this should be very doable with the garden coming in – there’s a recipe for an Artichoke Muffaletta sandwich which is basically tomatoes, provolone, artichokes and pesto baked. Sounds fantastic.

Plus, this is an aphrodisiac cookbook, so hubba-hubba! ^^