My Madison Bistro

Sometimes I think I look for recipes that use puff pastry just so I can make something fun with the second sheet of pastry. I can’t even remember what I used the first sheet for anymore, but for the second, I had planned all along to make an apple tart. Nothing fancy, mind you, but a rustic, thrown-together version. I admit, it’s quite possible that my secret plan all along was simply to make the tart, under the premise that it was to use up the extra puff pastry.

Yes, this dessert is better-suited to fall or winter, but it’s been cool and dank, and apples still abound in the stores. A homey dessert was just the ticket after an absolutely rotten week.

This is yet another recipe taken from Everyday Food, which I seem to be obsessed with lately.

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Tags: apples, tarts

Every spring, I welcome the new crop of produce available at the market, as well as the flowers starting to poke through the soil in front of my condo: hyacinths, daffodils, and tulips all represent the beginning of spring to me.

I may not yet have flowers to enjoy, but I can at least start cooking. I saw an easy recipe for cream of asparagus soup in Everyday Food, and I couldn’t wait to try this soup on a cold, grey day. The time arrived earlier this week. I was a little short on the amount of asparagus needed (the original recipe calls for three pounds), so I decided to add some green beans that had been hanging out in my freezer a little too long. Even with my changes, the taste of asparagus was the most prevalent in this soup. The lemon helped brighten things up and cut through the fat a bit, resulting in a nice overall balance.

I made the cheesy croutons to go with the soup because, frankly, the soup alone for lunch wouldn’t be enough to get me through to dinner. I used gruyere because I adore it, but as I ate the first crouton I realized that parmesan probably would have been a better choice. Oh well, next time. . .

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Tags: asparagus

I knew when I first spied this recipe I would someday make it. That someday happened to be a year later, but when you think back to all of the desserts I’ve made over the past year . . . well, there was quite a waiting list.

Was this recipe worth the wait? Well, yes and no. I love shortbread, and I have a long-running love affair with both caramel and chocolate, so you would think I would adore this recipe. However, the shortbread wasn’t the best I’ve had, the chocolate layer could have been thicker, in my opinion, but the caramel did not disappoint. Of course, I would probably be happier with a thicker caramel layer as well, but I’m lactose intolerant, so that really, really would not be a good idea!

For something a little different, and a lot of fun, this is a great recipe to try.

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Tags: caramel, chocolate

I’ve never been a big fan of arugula, but the thought of having it with chicken-flavored croutons and roast chicken was enough to convince me to try out this recipe.

I was not disappointed. This recipe is worth it just for the croutons. Seriously. I love roasted chicken, but I was tempted to subsist solely on croutons the day I made this meal. Yes, they really are that good. I managed to abstain from eating an entire loaf of bread for a meal, however, and I rounded things out with the salad greens and chicken.

I’m already planning on making this meal again soon . . . next weekend, maybe?

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Tags: arugula, chicken, comfort food