This one feels a little bit like cheating. Sometimes I get myself all worked up over coming up with complex, 100% from scratch recipes because I want to punish myself impress you. I can’t tell you how often I have slaved, I tell you, slaved for hours over a  recipe that turned out to be very What? This Simple Thing That I Could Have Easily Bought At The Store In Less Time And For Less Money And That Would Have Probably Been Just As Good? Those days aren’t behind me, but I thought I’d turn the table a bit with a recipe that is much more What? This Complicated Seeming Thing? I Whipped This Up With My Eyes Closed.

Sometimes, you need a quick appetizer that’s sure to impress, or, as was the case for me last weekend, you feel like a little bit lot of butter and creamy cheese might just do you good. And, when either of these situations apply, what better than triple crème brie melting out of a flaky, buttery pastry shell? Especially when such a treat can be whipped up in, oh, absolutely no time at all?

I discovered ready-to-bake pie crusts and puff pastry while I was in France, of all places. (Allow me to break a myth: Even French cooks are pressed for time and, yes, occasionally cheat.) They’re an absolute cinch and have even rescued a few recipes when my own crusts have gone awry. (I recommend keeping one in the freezer for just such an occasion!)

You could experiment with different types of fruit preserves or compotes to use for the filling. I think apricot would be delicious but a really fruity, fresh-tasting homemade orange marmalade was what I had on hand (I canned several jars in the fall), and it worked pretty well, though maybe bitter for some people’s taste. I liked the almonds for texture but you could omit them if you like, or use sliced almonds rather than chopped if you’re really concerned with aesthetics.

Lastly, a note on cheese: Good cheese is expensive, but worth it. Buy a smaller piece of quality brie rather than a whole wheel of something mediocre if, like me, you’re on a budget. I used about an 8-ounce wedge of brie and it baked just fine, and was much, much more decadent and delicious than the store brand camembert. Splurge! This recipe is clearly not about restraint.

Baked Brie with Preserves and Almonds

• 6-12 ounces of quality brie (whole wheel or just a wedge)
• puff pastry
• 2 tablespoons chopped or sliced raw almonds
• 2 tablespoons jam, preserves or marmalade to compliment the cheese

Preheat oven to 350ºF. If your puff pastry is frozen, follow directions on the package to thaw it properly. When it is thawed, lay it flat on a baking sheet. Place the brie in the center without removing rind. Spoon jam on top of cheese and sprinkle with half of the almonds.

Carefully fold the dough over the cheese, making sure to pinch closed any openings where melted cheese might escape. Creating bulky folds of dough will leave it raw and should be avoided. Once the cheese is wrapped, sprinkle the package with remaining almonds.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until crust is flaky and golden. Allow to cool for a few minutes before serving with crackers or slices of fruit, such as pear or apple. 

Last night’s dinner was a total cleaning-out-the-fridge meal. It’s really rare that I have much in my fridge to “clean out” because lately I’m too poor to buy groceries.Nonetheless, Colin came to visit last week and left behind an entire steak, something I rarely eat, and I happened to have some odds and ends from a bag of groceries my mom cleaned out of her fridge and gave to me. These summer rolls were the brain child of a growling stomach and the contents of my refrigerator.

As with egg rolls, spring rolls, wontons, etc., it’s easy to be daunted - specialty food stores! multiple steps! torn rice wrappers! tons of prep! If you feel this way, I can empathize. I used to feel the same way until a culinary mentor gave me a lesson that totally changed my perspective. (Okay, actually, my post about Vietnamese spring rolls includes a recipe that is a bit labor-intensive, but totally worth it.) All of the ingredients for these summer rolls, including the wrappers, came from a regular grocery store, and you don’t need any special equipment at all to make them. 

It seemed fitting to munch on summer rolls since the past few days have brought violent end-of-summer weather. Hot days squeezed between chilly ones have been announced by thunderstorms and tornado sirens. I’m sick of sweating and ready for sweaters, but I thought I’d honor the end of the season with one last (fingers crossed) cold meal. 

One thing I really like about summer rolls is that they’re simple to make in small quantities, so I didn’t end up with double leftovers last night. Another positive aspect is that there aren’t really any rules about what you can put inside, so they’re infinitely customizable (i.e., the contents of just about any fridge will do). If you’re making them to share with others I recommend using the freshest produce available, but I’d say that as long as your ingredients still offer some crunch and flavor, it’s okay to use these as a way to get rid of leftover bits of vegetables that you can’t bear to waste (do you do this? I sometimes save the oddest of ends, swearing up and down I’ll find a way to reuse them). 

Below I’ll list the ingredients I used. Experiment with meat or make them veggie! Use frozen shrimp, sautéed chicken, or tofu. If you want to use steak but don’t have any leftover, I suggest consulting a recipe like this one to season your steak and give your rolls a more intensely Asian flavor. Use my dipping sauce recipe or make up your own. Play with proportion and use more vegetables or more meat depending on your taste- this is a dish you can truly make yours and that is executable by even the most amateur cook.

Steak Summer Rolls

• leftover steak (a lean cut works best), about 1 ounce per roll
• carrot
• scallion
• fresh jalapeño pepper
• cucumber
• fresh basil, about 4 large leaves per roll
• round rice paper wrappers
• Crisp whole lettuce leaves, such as whole romaine

1. Cut steak, carrots, jalapeño and cucumber into long, narrow pieces about 4 inches in length.

2. Lay a clean kitchen towel, folded in half, on your workstation. Soak rice wrappers one at a time in a pie pan of hot water for about 30 seconds. Remove carefully so as not to tear and lay on towel. Spread flat with the pads of your fingers and then arrange steak, carrots, jalapeño and cucumber in the center. Lay basil leaves on top.

3. Fold the short ends of the wrapper over the tips of the ingredients. Carefully fold the side of the wrapper that is closest to you over the filling and, using your fingers to pull the filling toward you and keep the roll tight without breaking it, roll firmly away from you. Move to a plate and allow to dry a bit (this is what makes the wrapper sticky) and repeat until you have made enough rolls.

4. Lay each roll inside a crisp, clean lettuce leaf. Serve with a dipping sauce.

Peanut Dipping Sauce

• 2 teaspoons rice vinegar
• 2 teaspoons all natural peanut butter
• 1 teaspoon mirin
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon sriracha

Whisk all ingredients together until smooth and then serve. Makes 2 tablespoons.

I’m sorry to sound like such a complainer but I feel it would be dishonest to neglect to mention again how hot it is here. Not just hot even (temperatures well above 90ºF), but really humid and sticky. Going outside is akin to taking a steam shower and the heaviness of the air is so nauseating, it’s hard to find my appetite.

That said, a girl still needs to eat. And her hollow-legged boyfriend definitely isn’t going to skip a meal. Colin came for a visit this weekend and, since the slices are rather big, we made dinner of nothing but this bruschetta and cold beer, waiting for the sun to drop behind the roof of the building next door and eating with our fingers, tomato juice running down our chins.

As a disclaimer, I feel I should mention that this recipe includes anchovies. Trust me, Colin wasn’t too keen on the idea either and needed a little reassurance, but we both agreed, after stuffing our faces full of bruschetta, that they impart a subtle saltiness and a hint of umami (Colin’s favorite piece of culinary vocabulary) to an otherwise fresh dish. I guess what I’m saying is, don’t skip the anchovy! If, however, you don’t heed my advice, I suggest doubling the salt. 

Simple Bruschetta

• 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 3 vine-ripened tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 small white onion
• 2 tablespoons fresh basil
• 2 anchovy fillets
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• pepper to taste
• 1 loaf crusty white bread, such as a French baguette or sourdough

1. Wash, seed and dice the tomatoes and move to a medium bowl with the lemon juice. Dice the onion and add to the tomatoes. Mince the garlic and anchovy fillets, chop the basil, and add all three to the bowl along with one tablespoon of the olive oil. Stir only to combine and season to taste with the salt and pepper. (The anchovies add a lot of salt, so don’t salt before tasting!)

2. Cut the bread into 3/4 inch slices, cutting on an angle to make the surface area of the slices as big as possible. Heat the remaining three tablespoons of oil over medium heat in a heavy skillet. Fry the bread, turning frequently, until browned to taste on both sides. Rub the top side of each slice with the remaining garlic clove and spoon the tomato mixture on top to serve.

My sister is the official tradition keeper in our family, and if we do anything twice, she remembers and expects that we do it exactly the same way, every year, forever. Last year for Father’s Day we children cooked up a feast of Guinness-battered fish and chips served wrapped in newspaper and a heaping mound of smashed peas. This year, Vietnamese food! I think we’re roped into a tradition of ethnic food on Father’s Day, but the three of us have such a good time cooking together that I don’t think I’ll mind keeping this one.

Each of us kids picked a traditional Vietnamese dish, and all three were unified by a central dipping sauce, which created cohesive flavor. I chose to make spring rolls, since this winter I went on a bit of an egg roll kick, and recently learned to make Japanese pork dumplings, but had never worked with the rice wrappers used in this recipe.

Let’s be frank: Spring rolls seem like a lot of work, especially when your local takeout joint probably delivers to your door in a fraction of the time it takes to make them yourself. However, I can now say from experience that takeout can’t complete with the complex flavor, the freshness of the ingredients in a homemade spring roll. And, even though I’m usually happy to give up an entire afternoon to prepare something more easily bought for the sake of doing it all by myself, I am happy to say that you won’t have to slave over these spring rolls. This is a fuss-free appetizer that can be thrown together fairly quickly and looks really impressive. The ingredients are not obscure, either - I didn’t have to visit a specialty store to find any of them.

The dipping sauce is sweet and sour and spicy all at once, and even works as a salad dressing (we tossed some cabbage in it with a bit of fresh mint and cilantro)! I feel like making tons of it and making it a staple on the condiment shelf of my fridge. My whole family was practically drinking the leftovers off their plates; we were sucking it off our fingers all night long (yes, it’s so good that you’ll forget all about manners)!

Pork Springs Rolls (adapted from Saveur)

• 2 ounces rice stick noodles
• 1/2 ounce dried wood ear mushrooms
• 1 pound ground pork
• 1 medium yellow onion
• 1 carrot
• 1 egg
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 20 round (or 40 triangular) rice paper wrappers 
• vegetable oil for frying

1. Soak rice stick noodles and dried mushrooms in hot water until soft, about 20 minutes. Drain well and finely chop. Peel and finely chop the onion. Peel and grate the carrot. 

2. Combine noodles, mushrooms, pork, onions and grated carrot in a medium bowl. Mix until well combined. Stir in egg and season with salt and pepper.

3. Soak wrappers, one at a time, in a bowl of hot water until soft and workable, about 15-30 seconds. Transfer to a clean tea towel and pat dry with a second towel. If using round wrappers, cut in half. On each half (or whole if using triangular wrappers), with the rounded side facing you, place 1 heaping tablespoon of filling on the center of the wrapper. Fold the long, straight edge over the filling and then fold in sides before rolling tight. It’s very important to roll tightly or the rolls will come undone while frying. Keep a little rice vinegar in a bowl to dip your fingers into in case the wrappers get sticky, but avoid using too much or they won’t stay sealed. Place finished rolls on a plate or cutting board.

4. Heat oil in a wok or large frying pan over medium-high head. You’re not deep-frying the rolls, so the pan only needs to be well coated in oil. Fry rolls in batches, turning frequently to brown all sides evenly, until crisp and golden. Cooking time will vary depending on the pan you use. Transfer finished spring rolls to paper towels or a rack to drain. Serve with nuoc cham dipping sauce. Makes 40 small rolls. 

Nuoc Cham Dipping Sauce (adapted from Saveur)

• 1/2 cup Vietnamese fish sauce
• 2 large garlic cloves
• 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper
• 6 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 2 tablespoons sugar

1. Peel and mince garlic. Whisk lime juice and sugar together in a bowl until sugar is well integrated. Add other ingredients and whisk. If possible, allow to sit for a couple of hours before serving to allow flavors to mingle. 

This weekend I’m going to visit some friends in Akron who are hosting a lock-in. This group of friends meets weekly for what we call, simply, “hangouts.” I regularly attended when I lived in Akron but now I just tag along whenever I’m visiting Colin. He won’t be there this weekend but I’m going anyway, since I never turn down an invitation that promises board games, homemade pizza, pajamas and playing with Wes, a very talkative and intelligent 21-month-old. And, because there will be plenty of us staying overnight, and hanging out requires plenty of sustenance, I decided to whip up some snacky-type things to take along.

I’ve been experimenting lots with pastry lately, especially croissants, but when I’m in the mood for a pastry that isn’t so challenging that it makes make me want to slam my head in the refrigerator door, I make gougères. I’m embarrassed to say that what I love most about them is that they remind me of a certain brand, whose name I certainly won’t utter here, of cheddar-flavored crackers that I adored as a child. However, being made with gruyère, they are decidedly more grown-up, and the hollow center left behind when they puff up makes me believe that they would be lovely if piped full of some sort of whipped filling like salmon salad, though I’ve yet to try that. Even plain, they’re delicious and really a cinch to whip up.

I always make an extra big batch of gougères, because really, what’s the fun in only 12 gougères, or even 24? Fine, perhaps, if I don’t have to share! No, I like to make them four dozen at a time, so I’ve doubled this recipe and think you should, too (unless, like me, you have a really tiny food processor, and, unlike me, are deterred by this sort of setback).

I also really wanted to make a mango salsa, which I attempted for the first time last summer to great success, if I do say so myself (and I usually do). My grocery store seems to carry mangos in every season. I’ve often remarked (and rejoiced) that I live in a place where I can eat mangos, my favorite fruit, year-round, even though they’re never, ever, ever in season here in Ohio. Naturally today would be the one day that I found the produce section completely devoid of mangos. Zut, alors!

What did catch my eye were some plump tomatillos. And so a tomatillo guacamole was born, the tomatillos adding a welcome burst of acid. I decided not to go too spicy because, lacking any sort of sensitivity to spice, I am particularly bad at remembering who likes spicy food and who doesn’t. Still, I added a tiny bit of sriracha, which I have decided should not be limited to Thai food, or even Asian food, but is a perfectly acceptable source of heat in any cuisine.

Gougères (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)

• 2 cups milk
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Dash cayenne pepper
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 6 large eggs
• 1 teaspoons paprika
• 1 cups grated Parmesan cheese
• 3 cups grated Swiss cheese (Emmenthaler or Gruyère)

1. Bring the milk, butter, salt, and cayenne to a boil in a saucepan. Remove from the heat, add the flour all at once, and mix vigorously with a wooden spatula until the mixture forms a ball. Return the pan to the heat and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about 1 minute to dry the mixture a bit. Transfer to the bowl of a food processor, let cool for 5 minutes, then process for about 5 seconds.

2. Preheat oven to 375°F. Add the eggs and paprika to the processor bowl, and process for 10 to 15 seconds, until well mixed. Transfer the choux paste to a mixing bowl, and let cool for 10 minutes.

3. If your cookie sheets aren’t nonstick, line them with parchment paper. Add both cheeses to the choux paste. Stir just enough to incorporate. Using a soup spoons, scoop out about a tablespoon of the gougère dough, and with a second soup spoon, push it off onto the cookie sheet. Continue making individual gougères, spacing them about 2-inches apart on the sheet. Bake for about 30 minutes, until golden brown.

Tomatillo Guacamole (original recipe)

• 3 ripe avocados
• 2 medium or large tomatillos
• 1 small onion
• 1 small jalapeño pepper
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• juice of 1 lime
• 1 teaspoon salt
• sriracha sauce to taste

1. Slice the avocados and half and, using a sharp knife, hack once, firmly, into the pit and twist to remove. Scoop out the fruit with a spoon and transfer to a medium mixing bowl. Mash with a fork.

2. Husk and rinse the tomatillos (they are very sticky). Dice finely and add to the mixing bowl.

3. Finely chop the onion and jalapeño, and add those and all remaining ingredients to the mixing bowl. Stir to incorporate and serve with corn chips.