Warm Brie with Figs and Pistachio Tapenade

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Baked Brie is one of my favorite appetizers, and it’s great to take to a holiday party. My parents make it every year for theirs! 

Baked Brie can come in many forms- in this version Brie is smothered in a fig and pistachio tapenade that includes honey and sea salt (YUM!). My recipe was featured in Better Homes and Gardens’ Holiday Recipes magazine (along with a little interview!), which is out now. Pick up the magazine, or click on over to BHG's Delish Dish blog for more of my photos and the recipe. 

Happy Holiday Party cooking!

Polenta Fries

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Polenta Fries are a healthy snack that seem just a little indulgent, and they’re best right out of the oven. I have seen millions of versions of them online, but prefer this slightly breaded recipe for a bit of extra outer-shell crunch. They are great with any dip: marinara, hummus, pesto, spicy mustard, tzaziki….

I buy the pre-cooked tube of polenta and slice the rounded edges off to use for something else.  As always, salt to taste. One egg and a half cup of breadcrumbs is about right for an 18 oz. tube. You could also make your own polenta from scratch, and even mix things in (like feta, olives or sun dried tomatoes?).  Feel free to get creative with the breadcrumb mixture and add in dried herbs or spices. Or cut big triangles to make polenta “steaks” and serve it as an entree. Enjoy!

By Erin Gleeson for The Forest Feast

Avocado Onion Rings

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These Avocado Onion Rings can be baked or fried and are great with any dipping sauce (I like tahini). If frying, just brown both sides in olive oil on medium in a non-stick pan. Cutting them into rings works best if the avocados are firm-ripe. Enjoy!

By Erin Gleeson for The Forest Feast

You might also like: Orange Avocado Salad

All-time Favorite Posts

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The Forest Feast turned 2 today! On that foggy morning 2 years ago, I had just gotten married, just left New York City for a cabin in the woods and I needed a new project to be excited about, a fresh start in a new place. Only in my wildest dreams did I think this little blog would inspire a whole new direction for my career and a cookbook dream project to boot! THANK YOU, my dear readers, from the bottom of my heart!  Your sweet notes and encouragement have inspired me to continue sharing recipes and made it possible for this series to grow. I am so excited to see what will be in store for The Forest Feast, and can’t wait to share my cookbook with you in April.

Growing up in the apple orchard, every fall we had more apples than we knew what to do with. When we had eaten all the apple butter, apple pie, apple sauce and apple cake we could manage, my mom would start dehydrating them to make garland, and we’d save them for decorations around the holidays. The Jewish harvest holiday of Sukkot just ended, and we haven’t managed to take down our sukkah yet (the little hut you built to eat meals under for a week). I just love sitting out there, maybe just another week or so! Jonathan snapped some pictures of me sitting under it the other day, while I was slicing apples for dehydration. I strung the dried apples (along with peppers and dried orange slices) on pastry twine and hung them in the sukkah.

I’m feeling a little nostalgic, so I thought I’d share some of my favorite all-time posts from the archive with you:

Watermelon Salad (my most popular post to date! from July 2012)

Roasted Brussels Sprouts (Jan. 2013)

Campfire Cocktail Hour (Feb. 2012)

Red Roasted Carrots (April 2012)

Guacamole Deviled Eggs (Nov. 2011)

Happy weekend, everyone!

With lots of gratitutde,

xx Erin

Lemon Ricotta Crostini

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We had a deck party last weekend and I made a batch of these Lemon Ricotta Crostini- they were a hit! And they were sooooo easy to make. Just slice and toast a baguette, and top the slices with ricotta, a drizzle of honey and a pinch of freshly grated lemon zest. Top with a pinch of coarse salt and serve!

By Erin Gleeson for The Forest Feast