Category: Brunch

No. 616Recipe Card Posted on by — Leave a comment

Pesto Stuffed Shells with Truffle Marinara Sauce

Pesto Stuffed Shells with Truffle Marinara Sauce | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Large pasta shells stuffed with basil pesto and baked in a Truffle Marinara sauce, easy dinner Italian elegance-Pesto Stuffed Shells with Truffle Marinara Sauce from the Membership Collection.

SHELL PASTA

The large shell pasta is perfect for stuffing. I like the simplicity of stuffing the shells with pesto, it makes the recipe easy to prepare. I also like the lighter take on this pasta dish, not loading up on a heavy cheese stuffing.

STORE BROUGHT INGREDIENTS

The key to the simplicity of the recipe is that you are using store-bought pantry items for the bulk of the recipe. Jarred marinara sauce, ready made pesto, and grated cheeses are easily pick up on the way home.

STAUB GRATIN

Consider this an investment piece in the kitchen you will use over and over again. You have seen it many of my recipe photographs, it really is a little jewel. Mine was a limited color Jenni Kayne color, but the new Grenadine color is lovely.

Pesto Stuffed Shells with Truffle Marinara Sauce | Bijouxs Little Jewels

DINNER IS SERVED

This simple pasta dish makes a dinner alongside a green salad and toasty garlic bread if desired.

No. 608Recipe Card Posted on by — Leave a comment

Wild Plum Streusel

Wild Plum Streusel | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Wild plums gathered  from the seaside coast of California are the basis of this luscious, buttery-rich Orcas Island Wild Plum Streusel, a Little Jewel from the Recipe Membership Collection.

WILD PLUMS

A very random collection of dead-ripe small plums were brought to me by a friend, so ripe I had to act fast not to lose their lusciousness. The plums were different varieties of almost-wild trees growing up along the California coast. These were found at a coastal farmers market in the over-ripe bin. I adore plums and since these plums were more-than-ready to use, I was on the hunt for a recipe. I have many plum recipes on my blog, but this one caught my eye.

Wild Plum Streusel | Bijouxs Little Jewels from the Kitchen

 

This recipe hails from Orcas Island. I have been near the area but never to Orcas Island, it looks so beautiful. All of the San Juans are amazing. Vashon Island off the coast of Seattle is one island have to I traveled to and loved. Orcas Island is further north and sits firmily in the within the San Juan Islands. Definetly worth a visit.

OK, the plums are the interesting thing about this recipe. The orcas plums used in the original recipe  are slightly tart, and the wild-ish ones gathered  from north of Santa Barbara I used were also slightly tart. Everyone who tried this streusel commented on how they thought it would be sweet, but instead it was slightly tart. I liked this aspect of the streusel. Try to locate some small tart plums, for the full flavor of the orginal recipe. A cherry pitter will speed things up in removing the pits. The pitted plums are placed on top of a quick cake batter that creates the base of the streusel. Soft buttery cake on the bottom, sweet-tart plums with the streusel topping- yum! Serve with a scoop of gelato.

Wild Plum Streusel | Bijouxs Little Jewels

 

MEMBERSHIP COLLECTION

Savor the season with Membership Collection Recipe No. 608. Easy to join the Collection to access over 600+ recipes only $35.00 for the full year.

 

No. 600Recipe Card Posted on by — Leave a comment

Artichoke Pesto Panini with Basil Vinaigrette

Artichoke Pesto Panini with Basil Vinaigrette | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Spring in the garden heralded by my first artichokes. Inspired, a new recipe for the Collection Membership a crispy Artichoke Pesto Panini with Basil Vinaigrette. Join and as a member access all 600 recipes.

SPRING IN THE GARDEN

As we all know this Spring weather has been a bit wonky everywhere, hard to plan a garden this year. I have held off on planting my lettuce and herbs, the fog has made it dismal here on the CA Coast. However, my tried & true artichokes mananged to squeek out a few artichokes.

Artichoke Pesto Panini with Basil Vinaigrette | Bijouxs Little Jewels

 

ARTICHOKE PANINI

The dreary weather has kept me indoors but I happened on a delighful recipe from Joy’s Once Upon a Thyme featured in Diner’s Driveins and Dives. Joy created a crispy artichoke panini served with the best dressing. They are located in beautiful lush Chehalis Washington.

Artichoke Pesto Panini with Basil Vinaigrette | Bijouxs Little Jewels

BASIL VINAIGRETTE

Her salad dressing is so much in demand that they sell bottles of it at the restaurant, really. While I do not have her exact recipe, I have come pretty closed by tinkering with the ingredients. The episode on DDD does tell more about the basil dressing, which she says people want to drink, it’s that good. Photo from website.

Artichoke Pesto Panini with Basil Vinaigrette | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Artichoke Pesto Panini with Basil Vinaigrette | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Artichoke Pesto Panini with Basil Vinaigrette | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Artichoke Pesto Panini with Basil Vinaigrette | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Artichoke Pesto Panini with Basil Vinaigrette | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Enjoy this crispy Artichoke Pesto Panini with Basil Vinaigrette. Cheers.

No. 598Recipe Card Posted on by — Leave a comment

Mixed Berry Flaugnarde

Mixed Berry Flaurarde | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Gorgeous fruits are making their appearance everywhere you look, yes, summer is almost here. Mixed Berry Flaugnarde, with a puffy light outer crust with creamy custard filling, could not be simpler – Bijouxs Summer Recipe Collection is here.

SUMMER BERRIES

When summer fruit become the cuisine de rigueur, it’s time for recipes that honor the fruit and are summer easy. These lovely fruits came from the Santa Barbara Farmers Market.

Mixed Berry Flaugnarde | Bijouxs Little Jewels

 

RUSTIC FRENCH DESSERT

A tried and true Bijouxs summer recipe is Mixed Berry Flaugnarde, and the best thing it is easier than pie. Many of you may already be familiar with classic clafouti, the delicate French baked custard dessert traditionally made with cherries, but a clafouti is a very flexible dessert. The simple custard mixture also very lovingly envelops other fruits but then it is referred to as a flaugnarde.

Mixed Berry Flaugnarde | Bijouxs Little Jewels
Simple on-hand batter ingredients such as eggs, sugar, milk and flour make a summer fruit find at the farmers market a great dessert in quick time. An easy traveler, the rustic flaugnarde can make its way with you to an event.

MIXED BERRY FLAUGNARDE

Mixed Berry Flaugnarde | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Mixed Berry Flaugnarde | Bijouxs Little Jewels
Bake in traditional round tart/pie pan, a small ovenproof skillet or in square/rectangular tart pans. Served carved into little bites or thin slices, then accompany with or without a scoop of vanilla ice cream or fruit sorbet.

Mixed Berry Flaugnarde – a simple summer dessert for summer’s bounty of fruits a new recipe in the Membership Collection. Join for access to all 598 recipes. Cheers.

 

 

No. 596Recipe Card Posted on by — Leave a comment

Chin Chin’s Classic Chicken Salad

Chin Chin’s Classic Chicken Salad | Bijouxs Little Jewels

THE classic Chinese chicken salad from the Chin Chin restaurant-always a Little Jewel.

CHIN CHIN RESTAURANT

Very hard to believe that Chin Chin began as a counter and to-go eatery in Sunset Plaza years ago about 1983.  In those days as a young girl  I was driving over the hill from the valley to Sunset Plaza to get regular facials at famed spa Ole Henrickson and always stopped in for lunch. Sitting at the tiny counter (wish there were photos) I would order of course the Chicken Salad along with an orders of Chicken Fried Rice and Dumplings to take home for dinner.  All my family members were crazy about the food.

CHINESE CHICKEN SALAD

Along with sitting at the counter to eat, the-then tiny eatery had shelves with some products, most important were the jar of preserved red ginger, which is key to the salad.  I make the dressing ahead, enough for a few of salads. Fresh ginger and green onion are also elements in the dressing so the dressing must be used with a few days. Shredded poached chicken, iceberg lettuce and fried wonton strips and deep fried rice stix are added for crunch. All the ingredients are tossed in a large bowl with the dressing.

Chin Chin’s Classic Chicken Salad | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Alas, I no longer live near any of the Chin Chin locations and it took a but of searching, but I was happy to find a reasonable duplicate of the salad recipe online. I have been enjoying the salad at home. Here served with some chopsticks I kept from a to-go order a LA friend picked up for me not long ago.

Enjoy Chin Chin’s Little Jewel Salad.

 

Still Hungry?