Hey dear ones,

It’s been a min for sure! We just started school, its been going quite smooth, not to say there have been plenty of meltdowns from mom + dad. I had the pleasure to work with @annieshomegrown + thefeedfeed to create a recipe for you. We’ve been big on EASY simple summer food these days. Because with school now in session, the last thing I want to do is SLAVE all day in the kitchen. Even, as much as I love cooking. My go to obsession is roasting my fish in staples like, mayo, gluten free tamari and of course, white wine. This recipe I used, a bit of the Annie’s dressing, pats of butter and BIG splashes of white wine. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did, LET me know if you make it!

Happy cooking friends xo

Roasted wild Halibut, with vine tomatoes, garlic and balsamic glaze. RECIPE:

Ingredients:
2.5 -3.5 halibut fillet | cleaned,and deboned. Patted dry with paper towels.
2 16oz bags of mini mixed potatoes | Scrubbed and left whole
1 8oz bottle of Annie's organic Balsamic dressing
1 head of garlic | Divided, 2 cloves thinly sliced + 4 cloves left whole with peel on
¼ cup dry white wine
2 pats of butter
4 small tomatoes on vine | rinsed
1 bunch fresh parsley | rinsed finely chopped
1 bottle of everyday cooking olive oil | Divided 2-4 TBSP for potatoes
Kosher sea salt | Divided 1 TBSP, 1 TSP and to taste
Fresh ground pepper to taste
Other items needed: tin foil, large sheet pans, large stock pot, parchment paper.

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 400F. Place fish into a large deep dish, coat fish with 1 TBSP salt top to bottom. Let sit for 10 min. Add fresh ground pepper and fully coat fish with ½ bottle Annie's balsamic dressing. Marinate for 15 more min. (tip: set timer)
Prep two large sheet pans with parchment paper. Add potatoes to a large pot of salted water, and bring to boil. Cook for 10-12 min until soft. Rinse with cool water, drain. Toss potatoes in 2 TBSP of olive oil. If they look dry, add more olive oil a little at a time until evenly coated. Salt and pepper to taste. Place potatoes on the baking sheet with 4 garlic cloves, bake for 20-25 min until golden. Set aside.
Take your prepped fish, and place on the baking sheet. Over the fish, smash the butter, sprinkle the sliced garlic, and add ¼ cup wine. Place the tomatoes next to the fish. Season your tomatoes with 1 tsp olive oil, salt pepper, and 1 tsp of Annie's dressing. Seal tray with tin foil. Bake for 20 min. Remove foil and bake for another 10-15 min until the fish is flaky with a touch of a fork.
Rest fish, and finish your potatoes. Peel the garlic, smash with a fork, and spread all over the roasted potatoes. Season with 1-2 tablespoons of parsley. Mix well. For extra flavor, take your cooked fish juice and pour directly over the potatoes. Serve with halibut, and tomatoes. Enjoy.

THIS IS A SPONSORED POST | ALL CONTENT + RECIPE BY NICOLE LEE

The sun is beaming through the curtain window onto my keyboard this afternoon. Currently, sipping on a doppio blonde espresso from starbucks, because my love affair with them is still flourishing. I’m trying to conjure up some profound words about this apple spice cake I made. But for whatever reason I feel stuck, yet a thousand thoughts seem to fill my mind. In my best attempt to quiet the thoughts, I pound my fingers on the keyboard and keep going.

This season has been filled with full-ness, and I think I’ve finally surrendered to it forever being this way, because that is the art of raising kids, having a partner and running a business. Deep down, I think I may go a little crazy if things weren’t always in a state of bustle. In an effort to “ground” myself I made a gluten free apple spice cake, with whipped cream of course... And Scotch, because why not? My fridge was bare last week, because I was taken out by a nasty flu, which unfortunately I feel is still lingering around. I did however have apples, nutmeg, ground ginger, eggs and scotch whiskey. I must confess to you that I felt lazy, and didn’t peel the apples for the cake. Which, I feel it gives the cake a bit more bite to it. And best part, since the cake is baked at 400 degrees, feel free to roast your Sunday Chicken with it. Now lets bake a cake…

lifestyle portrait apple spice cake recipe

Apple Spice cake with whipped cream (Note: this cake is gluten free and dairy free. If for some reason you have an allergy to Scotch Whisky I would switch for another option, like 3 tablespoon of applesauce, or apple cider and Vegan whipped cream tastes just as good as the “real” stuff. )

INGREDIENTS:

3 medium organic honeycrisp apples
4oz ( ½ cup ) grapeseed oil
2 eggs room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tspn date syrup
⅓ cup “vegan buttermilk” (to make mix 1 cup of full fat coconut milk, whisked with 1 tbspoon Apple cider vinegar)
3 tablespoons Irish Scotch Whiskey
½ cup plus ¼ cup brown rice flour
¼ cup tapioca starch
¼ cup potato starch plus more for dusting apples
¼ tsp kosher salt
2 tsp grated ginger
¾ tsp fresh ground nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
¾ tsp aluminum free baking powder
¾ cup organic cane sugar
9inch metal cake pan
Parchment Paper
Non-stick spray
Stand mixer
Confectioners sugar for the top
Whipped cream ( vegan or traditional)

DIRECTIONS:

1.PRE-HEAT YOUR oven to 400 degrees F. Crack your eggs and put them in a bowl and set aside. In a 9inch metal cake pan spray with non stick spray, and line with parchment paper. It will need to come up the sides of the pan.(Press it down too). Measure all your dry ingredients, except the sugar into a bowl and whisk. Measure out the rest of your ingredients and get them in front of you. This is called “Mise en place” if you do this before you bake your cake it will go so much easier!

2.Dice and core 2 of your apples. Then thinly slice the 3rd one. Place your diced apples in a bowl, and coat with 1 tablespoon potato starch and 1 tsp brown rice flour. Toss around a bit with your hands.

3.In a stand mixer with whisk attachment, whisk your eggs until light and frothy about 2-3 min. Stop the mixer and add in your sugar, vanilla, scotch and mix for another 1-2 min until incorporated. Then add in half your flour mixture, and half the grapeseed oil, mix for about 1 min, repeat the last step.

4.With a spatula scrape the bottom of the bowl to ensure everything is mixed well, then fold in your diced apples. Pour your cake batter into the lined cake pan, and place your sliced apples on the top in whatever form you'd like.

5.Bake for 46 - 50 min until golden or a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool on a rack for 10-15 min until cutting open. Enjoy with confectioners sugar and whipped cream on top. **