Pegu's Earl Grey MarTEAni

Audrey Saunders is the mixologist at Pegu -- the hottest place to get a drink in Manhattan. She knows how to make her cocktails. I found this recipe in New York Magazine and am republishing it without their permission, but this drink is too good not to share.

Audrey's Earl Grey MarTEAni

Ingredients
3/4 ounce fresh lemon juice
1 ounce simple syrup (1:1 sugar-to-water ratio)
1 1/2 ounce Earl Grey tea–infused Tanqueray gin (see recipe below)
1 egg white
Garnish: lemon twist

Instructions
Measure all the ingredients into a mixing glass. Add ice, and shake hard to a 10-second count. Strain into a chilled martini glass, 1/2 rimmed with sugar, and garnish with a lemon twist.

Earl Grey Tea–Infused Tanqueray Gin
1 750 ml bottle of Tanqueray gin (for its flavor and high proof)
4 tablespoons loose, Earl Grey tea

Measure tea into bottle. Cap and shake, and let sit at room temperature for 2 hours. Strain through a fine sieve or coffee filter into a bowl. Rinse out bottle to remove loose tea, and pour infusion back into clean bottle. Will store indefinitely refrigerated.

California Fried Egg Sandwich

Eggs are great any time of the day. They're an inexpensive protein that can be easily dressed up and that keep you running long into the day. This sandwich is one of my all time favorites and is quick to assemble -- the caramelized onions are often left over from dinner the night before and I always have an avocado on hand in my kitchen.

California Fried Egg Sandwich
Serves 1

1 egg, fried in extra virgin olive oil
1/4 mashed avocado, seasoned with salt, pepper and a squeeze of lime
balsamic caramelized onions
2 slices toasted San Fran Sourdough bread
balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper

Spread the mashed avocado on each slice of toast. Pile on the egg and onions. Drizzle with basalmic and cap with second slice of toast.

Rhuberry Cake

This Strawberry Cake with Rhubarb filling is perfect a refreshing and well-balanced dessert for the springtime. The cake is flavourful and moist; the rhubarb just a little bit tart; the whip-cream frosting just sweet enough.

Rhuberry Cake

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
4 eggs
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 cup puréed fresh or frozen and thawed strawberries
1/2 cup coarsely chopped strawberries
1/2 cup buttermilk
slices strawberries for garnish

For Filling:
3 stalks of Rhubarb, cut into pieces
1/2 cup strawberries, cut
1/4 c. sugar (or to your liking)
2 tbs cornstarch
1/4 c. water

Frosting:
1 pint whipping cream
1 tbs vanilla extract
2-3 tbs sugar


For Filling (make first):
Add rhubarb, water and sugar to saucepan and let cook until rhubarb becomes soft. Add strawberries and cornstarch and cook until the rhubarb falls apart and the fruit mixture thickens. Pour into bowl and let cool in refridgerator for 2 hours before using.

For Cake:
Preheat oven to 350°F.

Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans or one 9- x 13-inch cake pan. Set aside.

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.

In a separate bowl, beat together eggs, 1/2 cup of the butter, 1 cup of the puréed strawberries and milk, then add to bowl with flour mixture and beat with a wire whisk until combined.

Pour batter into prepared cake pans. Sprinkle the chopped strawberries over the batter in each pan and give a quick stir. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until done when tested with a toothpick. Set aside to let cool slightly, then invert cakes onto a cooling rack and set aside to let cool completely.

Level bottom layer of the cake with a knife. With the whipped cream in a pastry bag, create a wall for the filling on the base layer. Add the rhubarb filling, top with second cake and frost top with whipped cream. Garnish with strawberries.

One Pot Chicken Dinner

Sometimes, I like it when my dinner makes itself -- which is exactly what happens when you throw all your veggies, potatoes and chicken into a le crueset dutch oven. Clean up is easy and everything is flavourfull. The amount of vegetables can be adjusted to suit your party.

One Pot Chicken Dinner

1 small roasting chicken (around 6 lbs)
fresh herbs -- thyme, rosemary and parsley
1 bunch carrots, chopped
1 stalk of celery
2 onions -- 1 quartered, 1 roughly chopped
12 button mushrooms
12 crimini mushrooms
12 small red potatoes
1/2 cup white wine
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper

rub the chicken with olive oil, fresh herbs and salt and pepper. Inside cavity, place the 1 quartered onion, a few of the diced carrotes, the chopped celery stalk, and some more fresh herbs, salt and pepper.

line the bottom of a dutch over with the remaining carrots and onions. Place the chicken on top. Place the potatoes around the chicken. Pour the white wine in the bottom.

Cover with the lid and put in the oven at 350DegreesF and cook for one hour. Add the mushrooms and allow to cook until the chicken is done (about another 30minutes). Everything in the pot goes on the dinner plate!

Fiddleheads with Lemon Brown Butter

Every spring I look forward to Fiddleheads -- baby ferns that taste like a cross between a french bean and an asparagus. I particularly like them served along side fish, they are perfect paired with some wild salmon (which you can start to get in the market around mid-april).

Fiddleheads with Lemon Brown Butter

1 1/2 lbs fiddlehead ferns
3 tbs. unsalted butter
1 shallot, diced
1 small clove of garlic, sliced
1 tbs lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste

Clean the fiddleheads by rubbing them gently between your hands to remove any brown scales. Trim off any brown ends and before cooking, rinse the fiddleheads in cool water and drain.

In a small saute pan, melt butter over medium hear. When the butter starts to bubble, lower heat and cook, stirring until the butter turns a light brown and smells nutty (3-4 mins).

Immediately turn off the heat and add the shallot and garlic. Stir for 1 minute and add lemon juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper. keep warm.

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. add the fiddleheads and cook until tender, but still crisp -- about 4-5 minutes. Drain and immediately toss with the brown butter.

Serves 6

Hot Crossed Buns

Nothing says spring and Easter to a Catholic like Hot Crossed Buns. I think these sweet, airy, fruity buns are great year round and are a perfect accompaniment to a hot cup of tea in the afternoon. This is a traditional recipe and does require a bit of time to let things rise, but the finished product is delicious. The hardest part is finding the citron!

Hot Crossed Buns

1/4 Cup Lukewarm water
1 tbsp light brown sugar
2 tbsp yeast
1 1/2 cup scaled milk
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs, beaten
4 1/3 cups all purpose flour, sifted
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cup currants
1/3 cup citron, finely diced

Glaze
Melted Butter
Honey


Icing
2 tbsp hot milk
icing sugar, to thicken
zest of 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 400degrees F

1. Add lukewarm water to a small bowl and dissolve 1 tbsp of light brown sugar. sprinkle with yeast. Let stand for 10 minutes, until frothy and be sure to keep away from drafts

2. Scald the milk and add the butter, sugar and salt.

3. beat the eggs until they are light and combine slowly with the milk mixture and the yeast.

4. Sift 3 cups of flour and combine with spices in a mixing bowl.

5. Add the yeast mixture and beat for 4 minutes to form a sponge.

6. toss the currants and citron with 1/2 cup of flour and mix it with the sponge. If necessary, add more flour to make a firm dough. Beat well.

7. Set the dough in a pan of warm water to rise, covered with a towel.

8. When dough is light, push it down and form into 2 dozen balls. Place them in a well greased pan, loosely covered with a towel, to rise again. This will take about 45 minutes.

9. bake in over for about 20 minutes. Remove and brush with mixture of melted butter and honey.

10. mix hot milk with powdered sugar and lemon zest to make a thick icing. fill pastry bag and when buns are cool, form crosses on the top of the buns with the icing.