Casa de Lindquist - Food

I love appetizers! There have been times where I made an entire "meal" out of my favorite appetizers because I love them so much. And who says appetizers have to come before a meal? Why can't they be the meal? :)

I have always had a bit of a sweet tooth and nothing gets me like a really good chocolate cake or chewy delicious brownies! When my mom started making cheesecake brownies I thought I was in Heaven! They have all the delicious chewy-ness of regular brownies with the added bonus of a cheesecake-like layer. This fantastic dessert will leave your guests begging for the recipe.

I remember blueberry muffins with such a fondness that every time I make them I get nostalgic. Mom only made blueberry muffins on weekends and only a few times a year... and nothing was better than mom's homemade blueberry muffins, unless of course they were grandma's blueberry muffins!

If you're a fan of dipping focaccia bread in olive oil and/or balsamic vinegar, then have I got a treat for you! My husband and I were out in California for our wedding and whilst hanging out in Napa Valley (gorgeous!) we stopped by a restaurant called Celadon. Before we had our meal, they served their own homemade focaccia bread and Spicy Dipping Oil. It was so incredibly flavorful, that I asked the server what was in it.

As was mentioned in the "Focaccia versus Focaccia bread" entry, my favorite paninis used to come from the Blue Note Cafe. Unfortunately, as the cafe has closed, I am forced to look elsewhere for the tasty paninis. I requested the recipe from the owner and tried it out for myself. It was incredible! Now you can try it too!!!

Before we assemble our panini, we need to make the special tomato sauce.
 

Lately, I have had a craving for these turkey paninis I used to get at a local cafe called "The Blue Note." I used to go there at least once a month either to enjoy a night of salsa dancing or eat their famous paninis. This past weekend, I was hanging out with the former owners of the cafe and finally got the recipe from them.

As I have gotten older, made more of my own food, and developed my tastes, I have discovered that I am very particular about my food. I wouldn't even call it "picky" as that implies that I don't like to eat food. Rather, I find that if I can make something myself better than the restaurant at which we are eating, I am disinclined to order the food item.

The trick to making a killer pina colada... fresh pineapple. Who knew?


I usually stay away from the bars because they charge far too much for drinks, but I have one weakness: pina coladas. Despite much searching and agonizing, I hadn't found a good recipe or pre-mixed pina colada, so I was at the mercy of the bars... until now!




Pina Colada Recipe

There is nothing quite like fresh vegetables and shrimp on a warm summer's day. Since Minnesota has finally warmed up (I think we got to a whopping 80 degrees F today), I decided it was time for shrimp!

One day after making cheesecake...
I just had to follow my craving and make my homemade strawberry daiquiris to go with my next piece of deep dark chocolate cheesecake!