Almond Heart Cookies

It’s February and romance is in the air. Yes, Valentine’s Day is around the corner, and I am sure many of you are thinking of recipe ideas to surprise your sweetheart. As many of you know, food is the surefire way to get to your love’s heart, make the stomach happy and your love will be forever yours.

As I was reading through the February issue of Martha Stewart Living, two recipes caught my eyes. One is this beautiful and wonderful almond-eye heart cookies, in the beautiful and oh-so-romantic love shape. They are dusted with powdered sugar and I just wanted to eat them, or wished that someone would actually bake these for me, and then wrapped them nicely in a box, with ribbon and a card that says “I Love You.” Anyway, I don’t think I am getting that but I am sure your loved ones will be very delighted if you make these almond heart cookies specially for your sweetheart.

To plan your Valentine’s day ahead, you can actually make these cookies 3 days in advance before V day. So what are you waiting for? Give your love the gift of love with lot of hearts this year! Happy baking using this almond heart cookies recipe.

(Click Page 2 for the Almond-Rye Heart Cookies Recipe)

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Mini Bread Board Giveaway- Handmade from the Heart

Hello lovely friends. I went shopping again and spent quite a bit of time on Etsy. And this is always a good thing.

Searching through stores of handmade crafts on Etsy is something I can spend hours doing. Ultimately I get click happy and start adding to my cart every time I see something beautifully hand made. And if it has anything to do with vintage linens, paper or food styling props, it is super click happy-time.

I was so super stoked to find these handmade individual bread boards by Diana at Our Vintage Home Love! All the bread boards made by Diana are custom and each are unique with their own special characters based on the wood, stain and shape.

What made me fall more in love with these boards is Diana’s story. Please read her bread board story. I cried a few times. Tissues please. 

Handmade and homemade items made with love are so dear to me. Each piece weaves in a special story, a bit of the past and when I can hold it in my hands, I feel so much more inspired to love, share and give back.

So I went extra click happy and purchased a set of these boards to give away!

They are so beautifully hand crafted and are the perfect size for food photography and styling too. I just adore the different shapes of the boards and especially the lovely handles.

Diana also sells a larger selection of boards on her Etsy Store.

Good lucky everyone!

hugs and love,

diane

I purchased a set and will be giving away 2 boards to 2 different winners!

Lovely mini bread boards are hand made. Two winners will receive 2 boards. Leaves & apricots not included. But I will be giving away these vintage linens next week!

Details of bread board giveaway: (3 chances to win)

I purchased a set of these boards and will be giving away 2 boards to 2 different winners!1st chance to win: Leave a comment below and let me know what you would do with the boards if you won2nd chance to win: Follow me on twitter and tweet this giveaway with my handle included @WhiteOnRice . Leave your second comment with a link to show me that you tweeted it.3rd chance to win: Go read Diana’s bread board story. Cry a little. Let me know that you read it and leave the 3rd comment below. Giveaway ends on Wednesday 21, 2011 at midnight PST.Sometime during Thursday 22, 2011 I will ask twitter to give me  a number. The comment number matching the first twitter response will be the first winner. I will do this a second time on our Facebook Page.  Limit one set of boards per person.Please note, all these boards are handmade so the set I ordered to giveaway might not look exactly like the photographs.and btw- have you visited our Facebook page yet? We’d appreciate a “like” if you haven’t. Thank you

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Grilled artichoke stems with tarragon garlic butter, a edible extension of the heart

Spring Fling is here and were celebrating Spring’s bounty with Deb, Editor of Food Network, Margaret of Away to Garden, Jaden Hair of Steamy Kitchen and Nicole of Pinch My Salt.

This week’s theme is artichoke and to participate, just share your artichoke recipe link in our blog on the comments below, as well as the blogs of all our participating friends!

Yesterdays trip to our local farm stand was better than we ever expected. They always have the most beautiful field of artichokes growing and when the artichokes go to flower, a sea of purple buds decorate the normally stark field lying alongside the major freeway.

We were fortunate that they still had beautiful, tender artichokes for sale. At a whopping 75 cents a head, these farm fresh artichokes were the best deal in town. It’s times like these that we can afford to eat artichokes till we drop!

Earlier that morning, the farmers kept the long stems on the artichokes and they were gorgeous displays in the corner of the stand. It was hard to decide if the artichokes should be cooked or be left as a floral decoration. The farm-stand lady grabbed the artichokes we requested and told us to eat the stems because they’re edible extensions of the heart.

We were amazed and enlightened to hear such information! eat the artichoke stem? they’re tender extensions of the heart? that makes total sense! how do you prepare them? After showering her with a series of curious artichoke stem questions, she was equally enthusiastic to share how she prepares her stems.

With a quick little tutorial from the stand-lady, we so excited to be buying artichokes with the long stems and to cook with them! The stems on the artichokes were perfect tender specimens to be extensions of the heart.

Depending on how young the artichokes are, you may or not want to peel the artichoke stems. It isn’t always necessary, but with slightly older stems, peeling makes them a little better.

For grilling artichokes, unless they are super tender, we will boil them first and then grill them just to slightly char and add a nice smokey flavor. In between boiling and grilling, the ‘chokes and stems will get marinated, then that marinade is later used as part of the garlic butter. No waste, all delicious flavor!

More artichoke recipes from our Spring Fling friends:

 Print This Recipe
Grilled Artichokes and Stems with Garlic Tarragon Butter
The quality of the artichokes you are able to get will vary time it takes to cook them. Older artichokes are usually tougher and require longer cook times. Cook by feel and testing, rather than times. For this recipe, first you boil them to mostly cook the artichokes, then marinate them, then finish by grilling to give them an extra special “smokey” quality. When boiling, you’ll want the artichokes nearly all the way cooked, as they won’t cook much more on the grill.  The step is more for the smokey flavor. If you can find artichokes with the stems still attached, cook the stem up too. It is like a extension of the heart. Serves 6. 6 medium Artichokes with Stems4 T Sea Salt (for boiling water)2 small Lemons3/4 c Olive Oil1/4 c preferred Vinegar (we’ll mostly use Rice Wine Vinegar, but any vinegar will work)3 T crushed Garlic, divided1/2 c (1 stick) cold, unsalted Butter, cut into 1/2? chunks2 t Sea Salt, for sauce2 T fresh Lemon Juice2 T minced Fresh Tarragonfresh cracked Black Pepper, to tasteBring a large stock pot 3/4 filled with water to a boil. While the water heats, trim the artichokes. Cut off the stems, and cut them into manageable lengths (usually in half). Peel the outer layer of the stems and rub with half of a lemon. Trim the top third off of the artichokes, then trim the tips of the remaining leaves.Slice the remaining 1 1/4 lemons into large wedges and put in the boiling water. Add the 4 T of sea salt to the water, then add the artichokes and stems. Place a few layers of paper towels over the artichokes to weigh them down, sinking them deeper in the water. Boil for 20-30 minutes or until the heart is tender when pierced and an outer leaf pulls off easily and the meat is tender.Drain and allow to cool upside down in a colander until easy to handle. Slice stems in half. Cut artichokes in half and remove choke with a small spoon.Combine olive oil, vinegar, and 1 T of garlic in a plastic bag large enough to marinate the artichokes and stems. Add artichokes and stems to the marinate, toss to coat, and allow to marinate 30 minutes to an hour.Heat a grill set up for direct heat. Remove artichokes and stems from marinade (reserving the marinade to make sauce) and grill artichokes and stems until lightly charred, about 5 minutes.Add remaining marinade to a sauce pan and heat over medium heat.  Add remaining 2 T of garlic and cook until garlic is soft (about 3 minutes). Remove from heat. Whisk in butter chunks until completely melted. Add sea salt, lemon juice, tarragon, and black pepper, whisking to combine. Serve immediately with grill artichokes and stems.

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Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home

Comprehensive, informative, and engaging, Nigella Kitchen offers feel-good food for cooks and eaters that is comforting yet always seductive, nostalgic but with a modern twist--whether super-fast exotic recipes for the weekday rush, leisurely slow-cook dishes for weekends and special occasions, or irresistible cakes and cookies in true "domestic goddess" style. Nigella Kitchen answers everyday cooking quandaries--what to feed a group of hungry teenagers, how to rustle up a spur-of-the-moment meal for friends, or how to treat yourself when you're home alone--and since real cooking is so often about leftovers, here one recipe can morph into another . . . from ham hocks in cider to cidery pea soup, from "praised" chicken to Chinatown salad. This isn't just about being thrifty; it's about being creative and seeing how recipes evolve.

With 190 mouth watering and inspiring recipes, including more than 60 express-style recipes (30 minutes or under), Nigella Kitchen offers plenty of choice--from clams with chorizo to Guinness gingerbread, from Asian braised beef shank to chocolate key lime pie, from pasta alla genovese to Venetian carrot cake. In addition, Nigella presents her no-nonsense kitchen kit must-haves (and, crucially, what isn't needed) in the way of equipment and magical standby ingredients. But above all, she reminds the reader how much pleasure there is to be had in real food and in reclaiming the traditional rhythms of the kitchen, as she cooks to the beat of the heart of the home, creating simple, delicious recipes to make life less complicated.

Gorgeously illustrated, this expansive, lively narrative, with its rich feast of food, is destined to be a 21st-century classic.

Price: $35.00

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Recipe: Samgyeopsal Ssam (Pork Belly Lettuce Wrap) — the heart of food

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