Grilled Tomato and Brie Sandwiches

I had both a great weekend and yet a terrible weekend. I finished a terrific book that left me in tears at the end (which I love), went to an exciting and fun concert, hung out with a great friend…and both completely crashed my computer and nearly destroyed my iPhone.  While I had come to grips a while ago with the fact that I’m way past due for a new computer, I’m praying the Geek Squad can salvage what is left of my 6-year-old, out-of-warranty-computer, and pull the documents, pictures and music I hadn’t yet backed up to my external hard drive.  As I stood in line at Best Buy with my precious computer folded into my arms the way a toddler carries a teddy bear, I was reminded of the episode of Sex and The City where Carrie gets the “sad-Mac” and loses everything.  Panic, anger, fear, paranoia and sadness all kick in at the same time which is when one really becomes aware of just how attached to their computer they are.  And while I was both freaked out about losing some of my files yet elated that this meant I could get a computer that actually keeps up with me, I wasn’t happy to be turning over my credit card to the very nice boy at Best Buy.  To top it off, after bring home said new computer, an error occurred while updating my iPhone and after spending over 45 minutes on the phone with Apple Support, I was told everything was gone.  The backup, which iTunes had confirmed happened…didn’t.  As I’m about to freak out, looking at my blank gray, foreign-looking iPhone, with no contacts, photos, or apps, I unplugged it and plugged it back in, praying for a miracle, and voilà!  Everything miraculously showed up.  Even the Apple Support person couldn’t explain it.  Oh, modern technology, how I love and hate thee.

That being said, in my computer-grieving, financial-impact-of-buying-a-new-computer, and near-panic-attack-from-almost-losing-everything-on-my-iPhone depression, I wanted – no, needed – comfort food. And a quintessential comfort dish to me is grilled cheese. Since I still had some Brie left from last week, I figured now was as good a time as any to make Grilled Tomato and Brie Sandwiches. Nutty, creamy Brie and Dijon mustard are spread over your favorite bread (I used Oatnut which is my favorite but I only allow myself to buy about once a year), and topped with fresh tomatoes and arugula and/or spinach before being grilled to perfection on a grill pan. While I think Brie is best complemented by something sweet, like fruit, honey, or chocolate, this sandwich settled me down just the way comfort food is supposed to.  But I might be needing something a little more comforting when I get my credit card bill.

Like Brie? Check out this and this!

The ingredients:

 Brush olive oil onto one side of each bread slice and rub garlic over oil.

Turn bread slices over and spread Dijon mustard on each slice.  Top each bread slice with cheese, greens, and tomato slices.  Top each with remaining 4 bread slices, oil side up.

Place sandwiches on a grill rack, coated with cooking spray, and heated to high heat.

Grill until golden brown, about two minutes on each side.

Additions:  None

Omissions:  None

Substitutions:

  • Baby spinach

Overall Rating:  Like It

Source:  Cooking Light Magazine

Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Muffins

I’ve been getting into bad breakfast habits again.  I find myself getting a calorie-loaded egg and cheese bagel more often than usual or I’ll end up skipping breakfast altogether and be so starving by 10am that I’ll eat handfuls of miniature Reese’s peanut butter cups out of the candy bowl in the office next door.  It’s terrible.  I decided it was time to make some muffins that I could keep stored away for a quick grab-and-go each morning.  Rather than deprive myself of that morning chocolate I’ve been getting used to, I thought these Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Muffins would be a perfect transition back into normal breakfast eating.

A simple muffin batter is jazzed up with a splash of red wine vinegar and chocolate chips, which are also used to top of these puffy cocoa gems.  I used regular chocolate chips in place of mini-chocolate chips because I had them on hand but I can only imagine how rich and chocolatey these muffins would be with little bits of melted chocolate in every bite.  These muffins satisfy any chocolate urge you get and are perfectly light enough to eat with your morning coffee.  Now I can actually feel a little less guilty about eating chocolate for breakfast.

Also, I want to take a moment to wish my cousin-more-like-a-little-brother Ben a very, very Happy Birthday today!  Check out his novel, Harvitz, As To War, here.

The ingredients:

Combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk.  Make a well in center of mixture.

Combine water, red wine vinegar, canola oil, vanilla and egg in a separate bowl, stirring well.  Stir in half of the chocolate chips and add mixture to the well in the flour mixture.  Stir just until moist.

Coat 12 muffin liners with cooking spray and divide batter evenly among muffin cups.  Top remaining chocolate chips evenly over batter.  

Bake in a 400°F oven for 15 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool for 5 minutes in pan on a wire rack.

 

Additions:  None

Omissions:  None

Substitutions:

  • Whole-wheat flour for 3/4 cup white flour
  • Regular chocolate chips for minichips

Overall Rating:  Love It

Source:  Cooking Light Magazine

Peach and Brie Quesadillas with Lime-Honey Dipping Sauce

I took the day off yesterday and after going to the dentist in the morning, I spent the rest of the day reading and lounging around (a mental health day).  It felt wonderful.  The problem with me having time to myself is I come up with all of these crazy ideas of things to do that I spend a lot of time thinking about but never actually end up doing.  Like writing a novel or traveling across the country – both things that I plan to do one day, even if I’m old and gray when I do it.  In all of my reading and daydreaming, I paused to make myself a delightfully light summer lunch: Peach and Brie Quesadillas with Lime-Honey Dipping Sauce.

Thin slices of peaches are tossed with a touch of brown sugar and chopped chives before being folded into a tortilla with soft Brie cheese and toasted.  The buttery, nuttiness of the Brie complements the natural sweetness in the peaches making them a perfect pair and the slight onion flavor of the chives gives this quesadilla an overall savory bite.  I like the idea of using these ingredients in a panini or grilled cheese so go crazy and make this however you want.  The dipping sauce is a simple mixture of lime zest, lime juice and honey tops off each bite with a bright, sweet ending.  All of these flavors are terrific together.

The ingredients:

Combine peach slices, chives and brown sugar in a bowl, tossing gently to coat.

Spread Brie over half of one tortilla and top with peach mixture.  Fold in half and repeat with other tortillas.

Spray a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray, heated over medium-high heat.  Place folded quesadillas in the pan and cook 2 minutes on each side or until tortillas are lightly browned and crisp.

In a small bowl, combine honey, lime zest and lime juice with a whisk and set aside.

Cut each quesadilla into wedges and serve with sauce. 

Additions:  None

Omissions:  None

Substitutions:

  • Low-carb whole-wheat tortilla

Overall Rating:  Love It

Source:  Cooking Light Magazine

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