Strawberries and cream--you can't go wrong with that combo. Add a little Port, Brandy and Cointreau and you have one simple dessert that is sure to please. This weekend we are going to enjoy a picnic in the country and this is the dessert that will end our casual lunch. Easy to prepare and easy to travel, Strawberries in Good Spirits, as I like to call this recipe, is always a hit. While I prefer to make homemade whipped cream, see recipe below, in this case for ease of travel, I'll pick up a can of whipped cream. Our picnic will consist of some cheese--a wedge of Manchego and a slice of Tomme de Savoie, a loaf of French bread, mixed olives, duck mousse pate, a sliced pear and a bottle of wine. For the finale... the colorful, sweet strawberries.

Strawberry in Good Spirits
Serves 2

2 cups of strawberries, stems removed, sliced
2 tbsp powdered sugar
2 tbsp Port
2 tbsp Cointreau
2 tbsp Brandy

1 cup cream, whipped
1 tsp Cointreau
1 tsp sugar
If you are traveling it may be easier to buy a can of whipped cream

Slice strawberries and toss with powdered sugar. Refrigerate for 1 hour. Blend Port, Cointreau and Brandy and pour over chilled strawberries. Next add 1 tsp Cointeau and 1 tsp of sugar to the cream and whip. Place the berries in individual dishes and top with whipped cream.

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For your Seduction Meal arsenal, it's a good idea to learn a few simple yet flavorful dishes that you can serve up for a refreshing "quickie" or as a side to a main dish. A simple Greek salad, this recipe is from the cookbook New Greek Cuisine from Jim Botsacos, the Chef of Molyvos Restaurant in NYC. Jim brings the vegetables from his garden to the table and prepares this dish with room temperature ingredients to maximize all flavors. Botsacos explains that in Greece greens are often not added to summer salads, except for perhaps a Romaine salad.

For a full meal, try serving this salad with Grilled Lamb Chops with roasted tomatoes, and end the night with this delightful dessert--panna cotta with balsamic flavored strawberries.


Ingredients

3 beefsteak tomatoes
1 hothouse cucumber, seeded (I like my seeds), scored and quartered lengthwise, and cut crosswise 1/4 inch thick
1 small red onion
20 kalamata olives, pitted, and thinly sliced (I prefer mine left whole)
1 cup diced feta cheese
1 Tbsp well-drained capers
Red Wine Vinaigrette (recipe follows)
1 tsp dried Greek oregano
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
2 cups shredded romaine lettuce  (if you like)

Red Wine Vinaigrette
makes about 3/4 cup

1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 garlic clove, peeled and smashed
1 tsp dried Greek oregano
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Coarse salt and ground pepper to taste

Combine the vinegar with the garlic and the oregano in a small mixing bowl. Add the oil and using a wire whisk, beat constantly until the mixture is emulsified. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside until ready to use.

Preparing the Salad.
Core the tomatoes. Cut each tomato in half crosswise, then cut each half into 5 pieces.Place the pieces in a mixing bowl. Add the cucumber.

Cut the onion in half lengthwise and then slice each half lengthwise into thin julienne. Add the onion to the bowl.

Add the olives, cheese and capers. Take the red wine vinaigrette and briefly whisk ingredients . Add the vinaigrette and toss to coat. Taste and season with oregano and salt and pepper to taste.

Plating the Dish
Place an equal portion of the lettuce (if you choose to add this ingredient) on a salad plate or bowl. Top with equal portion of the tomato salad/mixture. Sprinkle lightly with oregano and serve immediately.

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For a luscious quickie that will satisfy all senses, this seduction meal will delight the eyes, tease the imagination and grab you with its divine taste. A sure winner that can be made in 1/2 hour.


crab ravioli in saffron cream sauce

saffron cream sauce
2 tbsp butter
1 shallot, minced
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 good pinches saffron threads
2 cup whipping cream
1/4 tsp of cayanne pepper
salt and pepper to taste
fresh chives

crab ravioli
1 dozen crab ravioli
I used all natural crab ravioli from The Ravioli Store

lobster
1/2 lb of fresh, cooked lobster meat, preferably with two small lobster tails
cut the lobster tails in half lengthwise
2 tablespoons of butter
1/8 cup of dry white wine

preparing the dish
     
saffron cream sauce
Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat.  Add shallot and cook until translucent. De-glaze by ading wine; cooking and stirring until wine evaporates--about 3 minutes. Add cream and saffron. Lower heat and simmer, cooking until sauce has reduced to just about half. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat. Finish with a pinch of cayenne pepper. Stir. Set aside.

ravioli
Cook lobster ravioli per directions. Drain

lobster
While ravioli is cooking, melt butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add lobster pieces and toss to coat with butter. Add wine. Cook until you have nice medium brown color on the white meat, carefully flipping the skillet, or stirring, to cook lobster on all sides--about 3 - 4 minutes. Set aside

plating the dish
Reheat the sauce, if necessary.  Add 3-4 tablespoons of sauce on each plate. Place 3-5 ravioli on top--depending upon whether you are serving this as an appetizer or a main course. Spoon the sauce over ravioli. Top with a few pieces of the lobster meat. Garnish with snipped chives and a strand of chives that you will a lay on top and across the entire dish. If you like a little kick, sprinkle with a tiny bit of cayenne pepper. Another great garnish would be caviar or tobiko--I'll have to try that next time.

Serve this with a chilled bottle of Chablis and wait for the praise and adoration to follow.

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A reputed aphrodisiac, this delicious vegetable is a Seduction Meal on its own when served to each other dripping in lemon-butter sauce for a sensual, finger-licking treat for two. Given it's phallic shape, asparagus have been often referred to as a libido enhancer but only you can be the judge of that. This easy to prepare, yet tasty side dish complements a wide variety of main meals.




asparagus + lemon butter

one bunch of thin asparagus
2 - 3 tablespoons butter, melted
Juice of 1 lemon
thinly shaved lemon peel
Sea Salt

Wash and trim asparagus spears by cutting off the tough bottoms (1 to 1 1/2 inches)
In a steamer add salt water to the bottom (about 3 inches deep), place asparagus spears in the top strainer and steam until tender but crisp (about 4-5 minutes). Test taste one to be sure. Do not over cook the asparagus otherwise it will be mushy. Individual spears should remain stiff when you hold it--limp asparagus is a turn-off.

Remove spears from the heat and let air dry for a couple of minutes. Next melt the butter on the stove or in the microwave, squeeze in 1/2 of the lemon juice and stir.

Plating the Dish
Arrange the spears on a serving dish. Pour the lemon / butter mixture over the asparagus. Squeeze the other half of the lemon over the dish just before serving. Add  a pinch of sea salt. Garnish with lemon peel. This dish should be served right away.

You can also fill a tall shot glass, or similar vessel, with melted lemon-butter sauce to hand dip each asparagus before serving to each other for a more dramatic experience.

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Whenever you can--always buy FRESH. August and September are THE months to experience the true flavor of tomatoes and this salad is the perfect end-of-the summer treat. I am a big fan of Bon Appetit Magazine. A few years ago I discovered this recipe in the magazine and have been serving it up ever since--never without praise. I make it with or without the garlic toasted bread and I typically serve it with a grilled rib eye steak. (See next week's Grilled Rib Eye Recipe). You can find the original tomato salad recipe at Epicurous.com.

Tomato Blue Cheese Salad
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup grape tomatoes or halved cherry or pear tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped green onions

10 medium heirloom tomatoes of assorted colors, cored, thinly sliced
1 small red onion, sliced paper-thin
3 celery stalks, sliced thin on diagonal
1 1/2 cups coarsely crumbled blue cheese

Combine 1/3 cup oil, cherry or grape tomatoes, and green onions in medium bowl; toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Overlap tomato slices in concentric circles on platter, alternating colors. Scatter onion and celery slices over tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Spoon tomato and green onion mixture over. Sprinkle with crumbled cheese.

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Using the freshest sweet and ripe strawberries of the season, this dreamy dessert was submitted by Virginia, NYC.

Seizing the moment is key to a quickie seduction. I needed a quick dessert to seal the deal without fuss or missing a beat, which is how this recipe came about. You and loverboy/girl can taste the honeyed creamy mixture and the berry liqueur concoction, and all the ingredients are lickable.

Biscotti is a light yummy finish to any meal. Amaretto is very romantic. Add smooth marscapone ricotta for body and honey for sweetness. Its a surefire way for the perfect finish to a seduction meal or the quickie your meal may lead to. My "quickie Imagination" coupled with a "seize the opportunity and use what was on hand" was successfully rewarded, as this can be eaten before, during and after a truly seductive encounter.

creamy strawberry almond biscotti

4 pieces of almond biscotti

1/2 cup Amaretto

6-8 strawberries, washed and halved (quartered if berries are large)

3 sprigs fresh chopped mint leaves

1/2 cup of marscapone

1/2 cup part skim ricotta

4 tablespoons honey

Soak berries and mint in 1/4 cup of Amaretto - set aside. Mix marscapone and ricotta with honey until creamy, set aside. Soak almond biscotti in remaining Amaretto. Refrigerate all ingredients except biscotti until you moment of Seduction.

Spoon ricotta/marscapone mixture onto a biscotti. Spoon the strawberry/mint mixture on top of that. Feed to your object of desire...lick fingers and any other part the mixture drips onto--enjoy!

You can use flavored biscotti, fruit and liquor can be tailored to your preference, i.e. hazelnut biscotti with chocolate liqueur and raspberries or cherries. Enjoy this guaranteed combo for a quickie seduction

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Who can resist hot and spicy? This is a guaranteed hit and very easy to prepare. You can serve this as an appetizer with French bread to soak up the garlic flavored olive oil, or you can toss in some of your favorite cooked pasta and serve as a main coarse.

Spicy Garlic Shrimp

1 lb of medium size shrimp, peel and devein (I leave the tails on, but that's up to you)
1/2 cup of olive oil
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 medium cloves of crushed garlic
A dash or two of sea salt

To infuse the flavor of garlic and pepper, pour 1/2 cup of olive oil in a large skillet, add pepper flakes and crushed garlic and let stand for 1/2 hour. When you are ready to cook, turn up the heat high to get the oil nice and hot. Turn heat down to med-high and add 1/2 of the shrimp. Cook shrimp until they turn pink on edges (about 2 minutes per side), turn each shrimp and cook until the entire shrimp is pink (2 minutes). Remove immediately, do not overcook. Place shrimp in a plate and cover to keep warm. Repeat with remaining shrimp (there should be plenty of oil left). Place shrimp on a serving dish, pouring some of the oil over the shrimp. Serve with crusty french bread to soak up the flavored spicy olive oil.

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I used to take this great photography class at Cooper Union whereby the instructor, Eric Feinblatt, would throw out a word a week and our challenge was to go out and shoot our interpretation of that word. The work presented by the students was extraordinary; filled with creativity, thought-provoking approaches and enough conversation and critique to fill each class. You were inspired to push yourself beyond the expected.

I took this approach when I stumbled upon this image. I loved the way the food was styled, shot and presented; so I decided to reverse engineer this process by concocting a recipe to go with the photo. While I am not a food photographer, and this photo is definitely better than mine, I have to say this dish tasted as good as the original shot looked.

Salmon Tobiko Rolls

4 oz - 8 oz of smoked Scottish Salmon*

4 tablespoons of creme fraiche

2tablespoons of whipped cream cheese

2 tablespoons of tobiko caviar (fish roe)

1teaspoon of fresh, finely chopped chives

fresh cracked pepper

1/2 cup of mixed greens

2-4 tablespoons of fresh Malossol American Keta Salmon Caviar

*Note: This recipe provides enough of the creme fresh mixture for 8 rolls. 4 oz of smoked salmon makes 4 rolls, 8 oz = 8 rolls.

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