Aunt Neet's Famous Pound Cake

Pound Cake
1 stick margarine (softened)
1 stick butter (softened)
1/2 cup Crisco
3 cups sugar
6 large eggs
3 cups cake flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. vanilla flavoring
1 1/8 cup canned milk

**Don't be too freaked out when you see all the butter, shortening, and eggs here. This is a huge cake!

Strawberry Topping
2 lbs. strawberries
1/4 cup sugar (or to taste)

Almond Whipped Cream
2 cups whipping cream
2 Tbsp. sugar
1/4 - 1/2 tsp. almond extract (to taste)

1. Cream margarine, butter, Crisco, and sugar with mixer on high. Beat for a long time...seriously, longer than you think. Wait until the texture becomes really fluffy and creamy. 2. Add eggs, one at a time, beating all the while. Beat together for a long time again, waiting before adding each egg.
3. In a separate bowl, mix all the dry ingredients with a whisk. Turn mixer to low. Alternating, add the dry mixer and milk.
4. Add vanilla flavoring.
5. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
6. Pulse 1 lb. of strawberries and sugar in food processor to desired consistency. Slice the other 1 lb. and combine.
7. Whip cream, sugar, and flavoring together until soft peaks form.

This recipe is from my great-aunt Neet who is a truly fabulous cook. Basically everything she touches in the kitchen turns to gold. This recipe is for her famous pound cake which is renowned in our family for its perfection. It's true that it is not the healthiest cake ever, but who is eating cake for the nutrition factor, really? Plus, I'm a big believer in portion control and that you should treat yourself when you can. Trust me, this cake is definitely a treat! It has a light, fluffy, moist texture, but it is also dense and full of buttery goodness.

I have added some strawberries and almond whipped cream to spice it up a bit for my mom's birthday, but it's quite good on its own, too.

WARNING: A good stand mixer is a requirement for this cake. It just won't come out right without it. My aunt has been telling me this for years and I just got a Kitchen Aid mixer for Christmas (thanks Peter!). I had been wanting a good mixer forever, mostly so I could try and master this cake. This was the first thing I made with it. Like everything, it takes some practice. I'm not quite up to par with Aunt Neet...

Spinach Salad with Strawberries, Almonds, Goat Cheese, and Pan-Seared Chicken

Spinach Salad
1-2 handfuls baby spinach per serving
~ 5 sliced strawberries per serving
1/2 cup toasted almonds
crumbled goat cheese (to taste)

White Wine Vinaigrette
1/4 c extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt

1. Mix above ingredients together and drizzle over spinach salad.

Pan-Seared Chicken Breasts
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (fat trimmed)
2 tsp kosher salt
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp black pepper

* Makes 4 salads

1. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat to 275 F. Poke thickest half of each breast 5-6 times with a fork and sprinkle with kosher salt. Place chicken, skinned side down, in a large baking dish and cover tightly with foil. Bake until thickest part registers 145 to 150 degrees on instant-read thermometer, about 30 to 40 minutes.
2. Remove chicken from oven and transfer, skinned side up, to paper towel-lined plate and pat dry with paper towels. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until smoking. While pan is heating, whisk butter, flour, cornstarch, and pepper together in small bowl. Lightly brush top side of chicken with half of butter mixture. Place chicken in skillet, coated side down, and cook until browned. While chicken browns, brush with remaining butter mixture. Using tongs, flip chicken, reduce heat to medium, and cook until second side is browned and thickest part of breast registers 160 to 165 degrees.

This is a perfect dish for a hot summer evening. It's light and easy to put together and you can prepare the salads while the chicken is in the oven. The strawberries and goat cheese can be swapped for your favorite fruit/cheese combo. I've tried raspberries with goat cheese before, and that was also really good. I'm thinking pear and Gorgonzola would be tasty, or strawberries and sliced brie. The vinaigrette is just something quickly thrown together, so be sure to taste-test it before putting it on the salad. My future father-in-law recently gave me a tip for toasting nuts: instead of putting them in the oven (where I usually forget about them until they are scorched and smoking), try toasting them in a skillet with olive oil over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until browned. They are super tasty, and you can use the leftover oil to add flavor in the vinaigrette.
I got the recipe for the pan-seared chicken breast from Cooks Illustrated, which is a great magazine with lots of great tips. Their website has a bunch of pan sauces that go great with this chicken, if you would like to try something different with it. They do charge a small fee to join, but I definitely recommend it.

Thai Ginger Rubbed Grilled Salmon with Green Curry Sauce

Thai Ginger Rubbed Salmon

2.5-3 lbs boneless salmon fillet
2 tsp fresh lime juice
2 tsp ground ginger
1tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground tumeric
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground red cayenne pepper

1. Preheat grill to high heat. Make a tray out of tin foil by folding a long piece in half and folding up all 4 sides, dull side up.
2. Grease foil tray with olive oil. Place foil tray on platter (a long cutting board works well) to transport to the grill.
3. Mix together ginger, basil, paprika, cumin, coriander, tumeric, salt, and cayenne pepper. Place salmon on foil tray, skin side down. Squeeze lime juice over salmon and rub the spice blend into the fillet.
4. Transfer the foil tray to the grill and cook, covered, for 10 minutes per inch thickness of the fish fillet. If you can't use a grill, bake at 475 F in your oven (but still use the foil tray).

Green Curry Sauce

1.5 tbsp green curry paste
1/2 tbsp curry powder
2 cups coconut milk (I use canned light coconut milk from TJ's)
1 cup chicken broth
2 tbsp fish sauce
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp basil leaves
4 tsp fresh lime juice
1.5 tbsp fresh basil, chopped

1. Whisk together green curry paste, curry powder, coconut milk, chicken broth, fish sauce, sugar and basil leaves in a sauce pan. Simmer for 5 minutes and spoon over salmon fillets.
2. Top with lime juice and fresh basil.

This recipe was created by Cat Cora for the McCormick Gourmet Collection. Needless to say, it uses a lot of spices. However, if you enjoy Thai and Indian cooking, you will definitely use these again. Same goes for the fish sauce, which you can find at almost any Asian foods market. Caution: avoid smelling fish sauce, as this may turn your appetite....I solemnly swear, it blends well with the curry sauce. Another tip that I recently learned about Thai cooking, is that the sugar counteracts the spiciness. So, if you would like to make this dish a little spicier, I would suggest also adding a bit more sugar. I typically serve this with jasmine rice.
As the name suggests, this salmon is great on the grill. However, if you don't have a grill, or if you forget to start the grill in time for dinner (as is my habit), it also turns out well in the oven. It doesn't require loads of prep time or clean up, so it is a great healthy option, even on a weeknight.