Category Archives: Brunch

Prosciutto, Asparagus and Swiss on Toast -An Easy Easter Appetizer

Posted on by
2

I’ve been missing my blog!  We’ve been busy visiting Mexico, hosting visitors, working and waiting for the snow to melt.  Here’s a tasty and easy appetizer I made this morning that was inspired by Elsa’s Ham and Asparagus Toasts by Rachael Ray with a few tweaks– I used deli slices of prosciutto and Swiss cheese instead of ground ham and fontina, less butter and smaller slices of bread.  These tweaks made the assembly easier, less expensive and more appealing, I think.  It is easy to leave the prosciutto off of as many slices as desired to make this appetizer friendly to vegetarians.

Asparagus Procuitto and Swiss Toasts on ourwaytoeat.comIngredients:

  • 1/2 pound thin asparagus spears
  • 1 baguette, cut into 3/4-inch slices
  • 2 tablespoons of butter, melted
  • 2.5 tablespoons grainy Dijon mustard
  • 12 slices of Swiss cheese from the deli, halved
  • 1/4-1/2 pound of thinly sliced prosciutto from the deli

Method:

1.  Snap the woody ends off of skinny spring asparagus and steam for 2.5 minutes in salted, boiling water, then run the asparagus under cold water to stop the cooking.

2.  Slice a baguette into 3/4 inch slices.  Arrange the slices on a sheet pan, and toast the slices 6 inches below the broiler in the oven a minute or two.

3.  Mix 2 tablespoons melted butter with 2.5 tablespoons of grainy Dijon mustard and brush over the toasted bread.

4.  Top each slice with a pile of prosciutto, a halved sprig of asparagus and a half slice of Swiss cheese.

5.  Return the sheet pan to the broiler and watch carefully.  Remove when cheese is melted.  Season with ground black pepper and serve on a platter.

I brought the platter to my family’s weekly Saturday morning coffee gathering, and came home with an empty platter.  Success!

 

 

 

 

Lovely Labor Day

Posted on by
Reply

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Labour Day Weekend 2012 was probably the best on the books.  We were at the lake with my parents;  truly a magical place that we get to enjoy all year round.  The weather was perfect this year, so we filled the hours with our favorite summer pass times: boating, swimming, water-skiing, bon fires, leisurely meals, visiting family, a great meal at Companeros, 4-wheeling, sunsets, coffee on the dock, magazines, garden strolls, board games, long talks and lots of laughs.  It was the best.

2 Brunches in Tangletown at Wise Acre Eatery

Posted on by
2

Two weeks ago, late on Saturday morning we went to the Minneapolis Institute of Art to see the Sports Show, a collection of sports-related photographs, television and movie clips related to sports in society, both a pastime and a spectacle.  To be honest, I wasn’t sure I’d be into the show, but I’ll go see any kind of art.  It turned out to be fascinating.  Stanley Kubrick, Andy Warhol and Frank Lloyd Wright took sports photographs — who knew?  

After a few hours of art, we thought we deserved lunch.  It was a beautiful sunny day, so we wound around city streets in South Minneapolis with no particular destination in mind.  We drove down Nicollet Avenue, passed on Corner Table and Blackbird and when we reached 35W we turned around.  When we were about to give up on South Minne and head toward more familiar territory, we drove past a shining, silver auto mechanic’s shop with a brightly lit sign that said Wise Acre.  I commented on the name, not knowing for sure that it was even a restaurant, but Bjorn was familiar with it and heard it was good, so we decided to give it a try.  

From the moment we approached the door, I was glad we happened upon Wise Acre.  Wise Acre is located right next door to Tangletown Gardens, a fancy garden center with a yard that is bursting with creatively arranged garden goods, potted twig, branch, leaf and pine arrangements, statuary, flower pots and bird baths.  It just so happens that the two businesses are under the same ownership.  This means that Wise Acre is abundantly decorated with art and unique potted arrangements, both inside and out.  I was completely agog at the creative decor.  The restaurant was packed, so we opted to sit at the bar, which is made of dark lacquered wood.  There were potted arrangements of moss, birch bark, faux succulent plants, twigs and pinecones on the bar and on every table.

Behind the bar, heavy shelves made of dark-stained, weathered wood and thick glass held wine bottles, glasses and wooden framed geometric ephemera collages.  I am gathering ideas for shelves to hold pots and pans in our kitchen, and I was intrigued by this idea, and inspired by the cool collages.  In the main part of the restaurant, hanging high along the walls were fabric bags with all types of leafy plants and moss growing out of them, right up to the ceiling.  Mechanic’s work lights — single light bulbs attached to wooden handles and protected by a wire cage were suspended from the ceiling by long chords of various lengths, to provide lighting throughout the restaurant and above the bar.

I sat gawking at every detail of the decor and the waitress had to come back twice before I remembered that I was there to eat.  Wise Acre observes a farm-to-table philosophy in every sense.  Beef, Pork, Poultry, Eggs and vegetables raised at Tanglewood Farms, a 100 acre farm located in Plato, Minnesota are served at the restaurant.  Their motto, “the shortest distance between the earth, the hand and the mouth” rings true.  On the weekend, only brunch and dinner are served.  I was tempted by the chowder of the week when I spied a bowl containing hearty chunks of carrot and potato, served with bread.  It contained ham, so I opted for the Egg and White Cheddar sandwich on a Brioche Bun and a mixed green salad.  I had already eaten eggs for breakfast, but when brunch is the only option, and it is 2 p.m, an egg sandwich sounded better than pancakes.

My sandwich came with ham, and I asked for it on the side so that Bjorn could eat it.

The sandwich came with a Dijon Mustard spread on the delicious, grilled Brioche bun.  The mustard was punchy, but makes sense on the sandwich, since the sandwich usually contains ham.  It had kick, and I liked it.  The sandwich was very good.  It was great to have the eggs I had for breakfast to contrast with the Wise Acre eggs.  Hands down, the egg on the sandwich was more fresh and of better quality than the eggs we had at home.  We need to start buying better eggs again!  Friends and family with chickens, take note, we’re in the market for fresh eggs!

Bjorn ordered the grass-fed beef burger with bacon and brie which was served with hand cut fries, a small jar containing pickley cole slaw and little glass of apple chutney.  Bjorn said the burger was good.  It sure looks amazing.  I think the little jar used to serve cole slaw is the cutest thing I had ever seen.  I will be using this idea for serving salads at our backyard BBQ’s this summer for sure.  I tasted a french fry and noticed how remarkably un-greasy they were.  The apple chutney was an interesting condiment.  It is not the new ketchup, but it was fun for a change.

This isn’t the first time a photograph from the inside of the woman’s bathroom in a restaurant has appeared on this blog.  I couldn’t resist snapping a shot of these permanent arrangements of faux and real moss, twigs, leaves and pinecones sitting below romantic sentiments stenciled on rough wood.

Nor could I resist documenting the pine cone and faux succulent plants in clay pots and framed seed collages that decorate the ladies’ room.

This is the first time a photo from the Men’s room has appeared on our blog.  After seeing the ladies room, I had to see the men’s.  I managed to convince Bjorn to head into the restroom with the camera on my phone to do some research.  Sure enough, it too contained cool, artistic decor.  We left feeling well fed and inspired, so inspired that we decided to bring my parents to try Wise Acre the very next weekend when they were in town for a visit and to attend the Minneapolis Home and Garden Show.

Last weekend, after a few hours at the home show, we again headed south on Nicollet toward Wise Acre.  I had the Cheddar and Fried Egg Sandwich on Brioche Bun with Dijon again!  I am a person who has their “go-to” selection in every restaurant.  Typically, as a vegetarian I am accustomed to having only a few choices on most menus.  It makes it easy to decide.  When I return to a place, I tend to have a certain meal in mind.  I know I should live a little, but this is how I like to eat.  Bjorn and my Mom tried the breakfast special, described as a German breakfast, a Wise Acre Bratwurst wrapped in a blanket of light puff pastry, served with a fried egg, sautéed cabbage and salad of apple, fennel, and hoophouse greens tossed in a Furthermore Knot Stock Black Pepper Ale and Mustard vinaigrette.  It looked great, and they both reported it to be good.My Dad had the beef, bacon and brie burger with fries and slaw.  Still love that little jar for serving the slaw….

Butter, Milk Cream, eggs and house-made condiments are sold at Wise Acre.

After lunch we wandered over to Tangletown Gardens to look around.  It is a great garden store, but most items were out of my price-range.  We picked up a dozen of the delicious Tangletown Gardens eggs with pretty green, blue and brown shells for $3.50.    

There is an abundance of inspiration at both Wise Acre, and Tangletown Gardens, and that comes free!  I like these nifty paper flowers cut out of newsprint.  What a great idea.

I always enjoy a little restaurant swag, and this little box of toothpicks from Wise Acre was a nice touch.  I recommend a trip to Wise Acre and Tangletown Gardens.  The farm-raised vegetables, meat, house-made condiments and baked goods are noticeably fresh, well prepared, and are of quality, local origin.  The cool decor adds so much interest to the overall dining experience at Wise Acre.  We didn’t go back a third week in a row, but we surely will return.

Lazy Saturday Brunch Sandwich

Posted on by
3

We try to get up early on the weekend.  Not as early as on a weekday, but as most people do, we only get two days a week that are our own, so we like to stretch it out and pack in as much as we can into the daylight hours.  We have both been exhausted from a very busy November, so this morning we both slept in.  It surprised me that I could stay in bed for almost 10 hours, but clearly, it was needed.  When I finally got up and made coffee, I was hungry!  All of that sleeping was hard work.  So I set about to make a quick breakfast, well brunch actually, because it was too late in the morning to call the meal breakfast in my books.

I had a hankering for avocado on toast.  I have long loved avocado slices on a sandwich.  I adore homemade guacamole (especially my homemade guacamole), but I only recently discovered the lusciousness of eating a lightly seasoned avocado mashed on a slice of toast.  The heat from the toasted bread brings out the rich and unctuous nature of an avocado.  Eating the avocado simply on its own on a grainy slice of toasted bread lets the avocado be the star.  Since avocado contains “good” fat, it is healthy too.

I sort of felt like having an egg, but I wasn’t feeling very ambitious, so I put it to a vote.  Bjorn voted “yes” to an egg, so the above sandwich was born.  I’m sure Bjorn would have enjoyed a fried egg, but I’m not very good at frying eggs, so the egg ended up scrambled in a little bit of butter.  While the eggs were slowly cooking, I toasted 4 slices of grainy and fiberous New England Brown Bread by Country Hearth.  This bread is a staple in our pantry.  There are only 90 calories and 4 grams of fiber in a slice of this stuff.  It has become my favorite bread for toast.  I sliced and slightly mashed an avocado, and stirred in a shot of lime juice, a pinch of red pepper flakes, salt and pepper- all of which I consider to be essential seasonings for an avocado.  I also sliced a ripe, red tomato.  Once the eggs were mostly set, I added shredded Colby Jack cheese, chopped fresh chives and a little salt and pepper.  I lightly buttered one slice of toast –this bread is very grainy, and is pretty dry without cheese, butter or some other spread on it– and mashed 1/2 of the avocado on to the other slice for each sandwich.  I piled on the eggs, and sliced tomatoes.

The last step was to salt and pepper the tomato slices lightly.  Eggs, avocado and tomato are all foods that taste best with a little salt and pepper.  Seasoning each element of the sandwich kicks up the flavor, it is just as important to use a very light touch on each so the sandwich doesn’t become too salty and peppery as a whole.  I put the avocado-topped slice of toast on top of the egg and tomato slice, Bjorn ate his open-faced.  Either way is great.  The sandwich is tasty and gave me plenty of energy to get moving and make something of the day.

Caprese Sandwich– the Best Sandwich of the Summer

Posted on by
Reply

Summer is over when I say it is!  Or at least when the weather starts behaving as though autumn has arrived.  As long as I am picking delicious tomatoes from our garden daily, and walking outside comfortably in flip flops at 5 p.m., it is still summer in my books.  No matter what people say, I am not going to yank out the perennials and I’m going to keep watering our vegetable garden until it frosts.   I am not going to eat like it is October yet either.  I’ve got months and months of soups and roasted vegetables ahead of me, and so for this week, while tomatoes are still bountiful, I’m going to live it up, and enjoy the last precious days of delicious tomato season.  A tomato may just be the most tasty and versatile of all of the summer fruits.  I made myself a Toasted Caprese Sandwich that I ate for lunch when I was home alone.  Since I was home alone, there is no meat-eaters counterpart to the sandwich in this post.

If it isn’t obvious, a meat eater would probably enjoy this sandwich just as I did, or with the addition of crispy bacon, and perhaps mayonnaise instead of basil and mozzarella if that person is a BLT purist.

A sandwich that starts with a tomato like this is impossible to mess up.  This one came from our square foot garden in the back yard.   I see some amazing heirloom tomatoes at the Saint Paul Farmer’s Market, which we check out most weekends.  We just walked right by them this year because we have had a regular supply of our own.  To start with, I assembled all of all of the elements of a caprese.  I sliced up the tomato and some fresh mozzarella and coarsely chopped some basil, also just-picked from our garden.  I toasted the bread only slightly.  I like to pile on the toppings, and so I needed the bread to have a little bit of give to keep it all together.  I think any version of a tomato sandwich should be eaten on either really fresh bread or toasted bread.  Without bacon, all of the sandwich elements are cold, and that little bit of heat from the toasted bread lets everything get cozy and comfy and meld together rather than being one ingredient stacked on top of the next.  In addition to the delicious sandwich fillings being a sure win, this sandwich was destined to succeed because it is made on City Rye.  City Bread is my favorite bread in the whole world.  It is made in Winnipeg, Manitoba, where I grew up.  I stock up on Rye and Pumpernickel every time I am there, and when the freezer is empty of City Bread, it is time to go back, or to entice friends down to Minnesota for a visit.*  I don’t think the people of Winnipeg know how lucky they are to have such a prevalence of wonderful bread available in almost all of their grocery stores.  I think it has something to do with the large Ukrainian population in the city.  When the Ukrainians immigrated to Winnipeg, they brought with them wonderful bread baking which is now engrained in the city’s dietary culture.   I am certain that there are other great breads like this in the world, but in Winnipeg, there is no searching.  City Bread is available almost everywhere.  There are even a few other brands of bread that are quite good available in Winnipeg grocery stores.  I grew up with City Bread, so I am partial to that particular bakery, and I accept no substitutes.

I dressed the sandwich with a olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper.  I used a silicon pastry brush to lightly brush the toasted bread and mozzarella with oil and balsamic vinegar.  You only need a touch.

I ate my sandwich with a cup of coffee.  Kind of an odd beverage pairing, I know.  The sandwich was my breakfast and my lunch.  A cold Diet Coke, or a glass of milk would have been a much more appealing option.  This sandwich was the summer’s best.

*Please come, and kindly bring bread.

Perfect Summer Snack Times Two

Posted on by
2

What do you do when you are hungry for a snack and you have a fresh baguette and all of the ingredients for the two perfect summer salads to go with it?  Well if you are almost incapable of avoiding complication in the creation of even the simplest of summer snacks (like me), you make both.

Today’s summer afternoon snack started with a caprese.  I think an insalata caprese would be in the top 3 contenders of foods that I’d want to have to eat on a desert island.  I love them so much that when our garden is kicking out tomatoes and basil like mad, I’m eating them in as many as three meals a day.  They are summer’s loveliest flavour and texture combination.  A luscious tomato, cut thick, with generous slices of fresh mozzarella and just-picked basil leaves floated down upon them; finished with the lightest drizzle of balsamic vinegar and olive oil, salt and maybe a little pepper.  I’m no stickler, but I will mention that these things taste like a million bucks if you’ve grown your own tomatoes and basil, or bought them very fresh from friendly farmer who has.  And the mozzarella-it must be very fresh, milky and on the watery and porous side.  I think the cryo-packed balls can often be as good as the packed-in-water in plastic containers from the grocery store.  So many people love good fresh mozzarella that it is becoming very easy to find and cheap to buy.  Enough about my caprese obsession.  How about a picture of the golden tomato caprese that launched a thousand word paragraph?

This on its own is the perfect summer snack, but there are two hungry people in this house,  and, I’ve also got some lovely dill, fresh eggs and lettuce, so I can’t stop with just the caprese.  I boiled the eggs, or, if you are a student of Martha Stewart –hard cooked them.

Check out these gorgeous fresh eggs that I bought from a man named Fernando who raises them in the little town where I work.

For egg salad, eggs are boiled, peeled, sliced in half and ready to be chopped and combined with a little light mayonnaise, mustard, diced onion and celery and a little pepper and salt to taste, then piled on top of some lettuce and garnished with dill, both from the garden.

There isn’t much more to do then to place the plate between two hungry people to eat with baguette, or on their own.  I put salt and pepper, olive oil and vinegar on the table, to adjust flavours, as needed.  We dove in.  It was fresh, flavourful and satisfying; the perfect summer snack.