Veteran Built and a side of Apple Pie

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Veteran Built and a side of Apple Pie

So on to that side of Apple Pie…what could be more American than serving in the military and loving apple pie?! :) Matt saw the bowl of red local macintosh apples that were waiting for our boys to eat them and asked when were we going to have apple pie?? Done. I used the salted caramel I recently made from Jane Soudah’s cookbook, ‘Delightful Desserts’ and baked the Salted Caramel Apple Pie for dessert. Our whole family so enjoyed this apple pie, that Matt has already requested it as our dessert for our Thanksgiving with our extended family. We did serve this pie warmed with a scoop or 2 of Steve’s Bourbon Vanilla and a Salted Caramel ice cream. YUM!!

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Moules Frites - My Favorite Summer Meal

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Who am I kidding…this is my ALL-time, all-season favorite meal! Mussels, white wine, onions, garlic, shoestring french fries, and a baguette to soak up all that lovely, super flavorful broth - HECK YEAH!!!

Recently, we had been on a crazy juggling exercise of business and family schedules and throw in our 12 year-old Connor’s all-star game travel series for good measure. ;) We were so looking forward to relaxing at his Sunday early evening baseball game at the picturesque Marine Field overlooking the Newport Harbor when the gray ominous clouds rolled in and the skies opened up to a deluge of torrential rain. Well, there went that game. In place, we set up our newly acquired and freshly painted mini picnic table (Thank you, Sass) with a mussel spread that would make a nostalgic New Englander proud! I seriously cannot get enough of these beautiful navy blue bivalve mollusks with a pearly blue shelled interior….and they are so inexpensive to buy. For a couple pounds that can feed our family of 4 - they come in at $10! So think twice when you order them at a restaurant as they are so easy to make at home and serve al fresco on a porch like we did. Enjoy the summer friends!


Moules Frites a la Mullins

Ingredients:

  • 2 lb. mussels, de-bearded and scrubbed

  • 1/4 cup of Olive Oil

  • 1/2 cup dry white wine

  • 2 tbsp. unsalted butter, cubed

  • Sliced garlic - 2 cloves

  • Chopped Parsley

  • Cherry tomatoes (gave a pop of color!) - handful or 2

  • 1 medium sliced shallot

  • A splash of seafood broth

  • Crusty baguette!!

  • Shoestring Fries

  • Rosemary and Thyme Newport Sea Salt Co.

How-To:

Well, our how-to as there are so many many ways to ‘Moules-Frites’….

  • Shortcut: Take freezer shoestring fries and pop them into a pre-heated oven…meanwhile have all your ingredients ready to go.

  • First, heat olive oil and butter in a 12” high-sided skillet over low heat.

  • Take chopped shallots and throw it into the skillet, the aroma will envelop your kitchen…

  • After approx. 6 minutes, add sliced garlic and lightly sea salted tomatoes to skillet…

  • Let “marry” for a few minutes, then add white wine (that you enjoy) to the skillet, take a sip of your own and chat for a minute, and then add a splash of seafood broth…still with me???

  • Add scrubbed and de-bearded mussels, season with a sprinkle of sea salt, bring up to medium-high and COVER your skillet…

  • Cook, occasionally shaking skillet, until all mussels are opened, about 5 minutes.

  • Open the lid….and smell the DIVINE aroma waft out of the mussel heaven pan…..Divide mussels, only if you want to share between 2 large bowls or if you want to save some dishes just serve from the pan and throw those fries in, baby! I sprinkle our shoestring fries with our Rosemary and Thyme Sea Salt and serve with a mustard aioli…let me know if you would like that recipe…;)

  • Add friends and family around your picnic table and enjoy! OH>>>>>and serve chilled white wine or beer…it completes this meal!

    CHEERS!

And that's a Wrap to 2017!

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And that's a Wrap to 2017!

Hello there and Happy delicious and inspiring New Year to you! I know I have said this before in other posts, but I will say it again - Whew! It has been a whirlwind of activity both personally and professionally for our Newport Sea Salt family. During our first small business Christmas season, we moved into our old home in Newport from military housing. This was our first move ever that did not involve moving out of state, across country or across the ocean - but just across town. It was the shortest move we have ever made, but not the easiest. As snow came down as well as the cold temperature, we watched as box after box came into our home marked ‘nick nacks’ and books waiting to find a cozy spot in our extra small home. Matt and I just looked at each other with a bit of bewilderment, but smiled and started to unpack - and decorate for Christmas. Did I mention that between the move and the crazy holiday season that it was business as usual?! And not usual by any means, as we had vendors calling us with replenishing requests and new orders to stock their shelves. It was AH-MAZING.

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September is Here and with that comes...Comfort Food!

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September is Here and with that comes...Comfort Food!

Welcome September! Can you believe it that the summer is coming rapidly to a close?! Did you get all your BBQ’s, summer parties, beach visits, and summer reading checked off your ‘How to Spend your Summer Days’ list? It has been such a phenomenal summer of good activity for us. We did have some lows with our kiddos sick with a summer flu while at their grandparent’s house in CT, and a bout of poison ivy before sail camp was to start, and topped off with a dog bite, but other than those incidents we had a beautiful summer being back in New England with our family and friends.  Our boys learned to sail and crab, and we enjoyed our summer living in Fort Adams to the full extent with these amazing coastal views.

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In the Kitchen with David Lebovitz and I

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In the Kitchen with David Lebovitz and I

Oh hello, so glad you stopped by!  Did you want to see the final pictures from the chocolate mousse I attempted to make? I have unstuck myself from the hardened caramelized spoons and cleaned up the floor of sticky golden caramel to now sit down and write about David Lebovitz’s dreamy ‘Salted Butter Caramel Chocolate Mousse’. I love reading cookbooks, and thinking if I ever have all the ingredients I need I would love to make recipes like this one. Well, this week the lovely Butter Cuisine’s Brian and Lori collaborated with us and made a Sea Salted Butter. It is fantastic! They were kind to stock our market table to share with customers and I was able to bring a butter roll home. Normally, I would buy a baguette and marry the 2 up and perhaps, maybe make a salad on the side. But, not this time. I took out my David Lebovitz cookbook and started to flip through the gorgeous matte pages until my eyes fell upon the perfect recipe to use with Butter Cuisine’s Sea Salt Butter and our flaky Newport Sea Salt - this heavenly chocolate mousse that would use both of our ingredients and use up our heavy cream in the fridge and make for a nice solo dinner for me…I mean ahem, dessert to share with Matt and our boys. 

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Stay Salty with this Summer Salad Recipe

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Stay Salty with this Summer Salad Recipe

Whew, it has been a jam packed summer thus far! Are you enjoying all your BBQ’s, summer parties, and hopefully some summer relaxation? We have been so fortunate to see so many friends this summer here in Newport. Friends from Italy, Virginia Beach, Pennsylvania and Colorado have made their visit to us in the awesome city by the sea. Just last night, my soon to be turning 80 year old dad (bday tomorrow) and my spring chicken mom of a few years younger have arrived from South Carolina and are ready to spoil our boys with lots of love and attention. Grandparents are the best! Our schedule is packed with fun things to do together and to start we may just take my dad on the Craft Brew Race and end the day at the Polo fields. With that being said, it is going to be a crazy day. Matt and I love food and like to prepare some fun sides and main dishes to bring to events like the Polo gathering and so we are preparing…

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ANCHORS AWEIGH!

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ANCHORS AWEIGH!

Newport Sea Salt Co. has just launched! We will be proudly producing small batches of hand harvested sea salt from the beautiful Brenton Point Reef in Newport, Rhode Island as we have just cleared our last hurdle to operate our small business! 

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