Category: Food

Peach, Zucchini, and Basil Pizza

On August 27, 2016

Peach, zucchini, and basil pizza Is there anything better than eating a peach on a hot summer day? During August I cannot drive by a fruit stand without veering off the road to pick up a few peaches. When I get home with an armload of them all I can think about is how to work peaches into every meal.

Bowl of peaches

Cutting up peaches for breakfast is a no-brainer. For lunch I will toss sliced peaches into a salad of greens and grains. When it came time for dinner though, I couldn’t resist incorporating peaches into a savory pizza. I had a small zucchini from the garden, tons of basil, and fresh mozzarella which adds creamy contrast to the freshness of the summer produce. The balsamic reduction adds a nice tang to the cooked pizza.

If you buy the pizza dough this dinner will come together in no time and is perfect for a weeknight dinner.

Peach, Zucchini, and Basil Pizza

1 lb. of pizza dough, homemade or store-bought

2 tsp olive oil

Dash of salt

1 small to medium zucchini, sliced into 1/8” rounds

2 peaches, thinly sliced

3 oz. of fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced

½ cup balsamic vinegar

¼ cup fresh basil, leaves rolled up and thinly sliced

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Place a pizza stone in oven while the oven preheats. You can also bake pizza on a baking sheet rather than on a pizza stone but spray baking sheet with cooking spray before cooking.

Divide dough into two pieces. Place a sheet of parchment paper on a pizza peel and then sprinkle with flour. Roll dough out so the crust is thin. Sprinkle 1 tsp of olive oil over crust and spread oil around using your fingers or a pastry brush. Sprinkle dough with a dash of salt. Place half of each of the zucchini rounds, peach slices, and cheese on the pizza.

Transfer pizza to pizza stone or baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. While the pizza bakes place balsamic vinegar is a small saucepan on medium heat and cook down until it reduces and thickens. Remove from heat and let cool. Rotate pizza and cook for another 5 minutes or until the crust is golden and crispy and cheese is bubbly. Remove pizza from oven.

Repeat steps with the other half of the dough and remaining ingredients and place in oven to bake when the first pizza comes out of the oven.

Once the pizza is out of the oven drizzle half of the balsamic vinegar reduction and basil over the top of the pizza. Cut into wedges or squares and serve.

Serves 2-4

peach and zucchini pizza

High West Valley Tan Whiskey

By Diane Hartford

On August 26, 2016

In Food

High West Valley Tan

Whiskey lovers and locavores rejoice! A few weeks ago High West Distillery released their Valley Tan whiskey using an updated recipe and whiskey from their own distillery rather than whiskey sourced from elsewhere. We have been waiting all summer for this revamped release.

A little history about the High West

High West was founded in 2009 by former biochemist David Perkins and his wife Jane. They moved to Park City, Utah to open the first legal distillery in the state since 1870. Thanks David and Jane! Whiskey enthusiasts in Utah applaud your excellent taste in spirits and geography.

They opened up shop at the bottom of Main Street in Park City with a small 250 gallon still and bar, quickly gaining attention and accolades in the world of whiskey. In 2015, High West took a huge leap forward by opening a gorgeous distillery in Wanship, Utah at the Blue Sky Ranch. Wanship is approximately 40 miles away from Park City and Salt Lake City.

Late last year, I had the chance to take a tour of the distillery and do a whiskey tasting in the beautiful new space. The new distillery boasts a 1600 galloon copper still. When I was at the new space in November of 2015 the second still was on its way from Scotland where it was manufactured.

A little history about Valley Tan

The fourth release of High West’s Valley Tan merited reworking the recipe as new historical information was found on how the original whiskey was produced in the 1850s by the Mormons. The name Valley Tan is thought to refer to products that were handmade and most likely initially described the tanned leather that the pioneers used.

How was it?

On recent summer night we sat around the fire pit with a glass of Valley Tan on ice. My friends and I liked the smooth taste of whiskey and agreed that it was worth the wait. There was no consensus among the group about whether Valley Tan usurped top spot as our favorite High West whiskey. I still prefer the smoky Campfire whiskey for sipping outside by the fire but a few others liked the Valley Tan better.

Where can you get it?

Valley Tan is available at both the Park City and Wanship locations of High West.

High West on Main Street

High West on Blue Sky Ranch

5 Zucchini Recipes You Gotta Try

By Diane Hartford

On August 19, 2016

In Food

zuni cafe zucchini pickle

When was the last time you sneaked an overgrown zucchini onto a neighbor’s porch? Once a neighbor left an enormous zucchini wrapped in a baby blanket on my porch. I never figured out who did it but it made me laugh. I haven’t done a stealth zucchini drop on a neighbor for a long time though mainly because I have a million zucchini recipes.

souble chocolate zucchini bread

One thing you should know about me, I am a recipe hoarder. I admit it. I have an accordion file folder filled with recipes, many Pinterest boards filled with tempting recipes, and I subscribe to several food magazines. Despite the volume of recipes I already have stashed I cannot resist looking for new ones too. Here are a few that I found this summer that I had to try.

Zuni Café Zucchini Pickles – These are incredibly easy to make. I love to make quick refrigerator pickles with zucchini during summer. They are incredibly crisp and flavorful. Use a mandoline slicer if you have one, it makes the prep on this a snap.
Marinated Zucchini Salad – Isn’t this pretty? A friend of mine made this salad to accompany eggplant parmesan. It was perfect.
Zucchini Parmesan Crisps – Baked not fried yet crispy and delicious. Even my non-zucchini eating vegetarian son will gobble these up. I sub panko for the breadcrumbs for extra crunch.
Zucchini Boats– The filling is so flavorful! Such good color and crunch from the veggies and warmth from the cinnamon. Plus, the rice and lentils ensure that the dish is hearty. Great for a light summer meal especially with a glass of rose.
Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread – Chocolate + zucchini. It’s practically health food, right? This recipe calls for 2 cups of zucchini which should put a dent in supply. I subbed the butter with applesauce to cut down the fat. Perfect with a cup of coffee or tea.

Let me know if you have any favorite zucchini recipes. I have four squash plants in my garden….

5 Awesome Zucchini Recipes

Beet Gazpacho

By Diane Hartford

On August 7, 2016

In Food

Beet Gazpacho

Beets are the jewels of the root vegetable kingdom, perhaps even, the jewels of the entire vegetable kingdom. What other vegetable commands such respect? You must tread carefully when handling them. Don’t wear anything that you care about when preparing beets or you will end up with stains that are nearly impossible to remove. I always wear gloves when handling them so I don’t look like Lady Macbeth when I am done. Only jalapenos warrant similar care when being handled. Despite that, I am dazzled by their ruby color and cannot resist their earthy taste.

This summer has been unusually hot. I am talking ten straight days of triple digit temperatures during the last two weeks. The heat makes me feel slothful. The thought of eating hot food isn’t appealing at all. Because of this I have saved dozens of recipes for gazpacho over the years and once garden tomatoes come on I make a batch every week until they are gone in the fall.

Recently though, I came across a recipe for Beet Gazpacho from Feasting at Home’s blog. The eye-popping color of the gazpacho grabbed my attention. Garden tomatoes were still a few weeks away from being ripe but I longed for a light, refreshing soup to eat at the end of hot day. This velvety soup perfectly fits the bill.

Beet Gazpacho

Recipe adapted from Feasting at Home. I like the subtler flavor of shallots so substituted them for red onions and an English cucumber in place of the smaller Turkish cucumbers. The first time I made the recipe I added sherry to the blender before realizing that they recipe called for sherry vinegar. I loved the way it turned out so now I use both. I used a high speed blender which gives the gazpacho a smooth, velvety texture.

INGREDIENTS

¾ lb. beets (4 medium beets, smaller than a tennis ball)

2 cup shallots, finely diced, divided

2 garlic cloves

1 English cucumber, chopped, divided

½ C fresh dill, divided

2 Tablespoons sherry vinegar, plus more to taste

1 Tablespoon sherry

½ teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste

¼ teaspoon fresh pepper

Garnishes- avocado, diced cucumber, diced beet, diced shallot, and chopped dill

INSTRUCTIONS

Scrub beets, place in a medium pot, and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Turn heat down to low and simmer until fork tender all the way through, about 45- 60 minutes. Chill beets and their cooking liquid.

I wear latex gloves for this part. Once beets have cooled, slip off their skins using your hands. Slice and place 3 of the 4 beets (reserving one beet for garnish) in a blender with 2 Cups of the cold cooking liquid (or veggie stock). Add the half of the chopped shallots), 2 garlic cloves, ¾ of the English cucumber, salt, pepper, sherry vinegar. Sherry, and about ⅔ of the fresh dill (saving some for garnish). Blend until very smooth. Taste and adjust salt and vinegar. Place in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Beet Gazpacho Pin