A BBQ + Black Sesame Butter Cookies

Today, we had a family BBQ at my auncle's (aunt + uncle's) house.

We also took the opportunity to belatedly celebrate my Uncle Geraldine's birthday, which had passed the week before.

But really, I think it was just an excuse to have ice cream cake.

Not that my uncle's birthday isn't something to celebrate, we had just never done it before.

When we were blowing out the candles on the cake, my uncle asked my aunt for a kiss.

This is what he got:

Aren't my Aunt Joe and Uncle Geraldine adorable?

I love my family.

I meant to take more pictures of the BBQ because my uncle is famous for his BBQ ribs (really, my auncles used to own a BBQ restaurant in Chelsea) but I forgot to bring my camera - story of my life! - so, no pictures.

What I did remember to bring though, was this:

When I found out we were gathering for a family party, I immediately ran to the nearest grocery store to buy ingredients so that I could experiment with some recipes I'd been working on. Rarely do I get the chance to foist test my culinary adventures on other people so when the chance presented itself, I grabbed it greedily.

I'd been working on a sesame cookie recipe for awhile and by awhile, I mean I'd made it once before, and though it tasted awesome -- which surprised me because who makes an edible cookie on the first try? I must be a culinary genius. -- it was a little too dense for my tastes.

This time around, I wanted to try lightening the dough by using a whole egg instead of just the yolk.

I was a little bit nervous about bringing an experimental batch of cookies to my family to taste because they're all restauranteers/chefs/foodie people so I knew they'd be a tough crowd to sell to. But, that means they're also the best crowd to use as my guinea pigs, right? Right.

As soon as I brought the cookies into the house, my cousin pounced on them, and ten minutes later, the cookies were almost gone.

A rousing, positive verdict I'd say.

Even my Uncle Wilhelmina, who is notoriously a "Just OK"-er, gave me two thumbs up.

Though he might've been drunk.

But I'll take it.

Black Sesame Butter Cookies
Makes 20 cookies

Ingredients

• 8 tablespoons salted butter, preferably European-style butter
• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 egg, beaten
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• pinch of salt
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons black sesame seeds

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a medium-sized bowl, cream butter and sugar.
3. Add in beaten egg and mix well.
4. Stir in vanilla and salt.
5. Pour in flour and combine.
6. Mix in black sesame seeds.
7. Using a small scoop, scoop dough onto cookie sheet and flatten with the back of a spoon.
8. Bake at 350ºF for 20 minutes.

Notes

• If you would like a denser, crumblier cookie, use only 1 egg yolk, discarding the egg white.
• I used Kerrygold Salted Butter (the gold wrapper).

Quick and Easy Three-Ingredient Frozen Yogurt

I am in love.

Do you see this lusciousness?

I could eat it for days.

And I have.

It's so, SO delicious.

And, EASY.

Only 3 ingredients: frozen fruit, Greek yogurt, and honey.

The creaminess of the Greek yogurt adds a smoothness to the blended fruit; it tastes more decadent than it actually is. If you're looking for a lighter treat than ice cream, this is for you.

Throw your choice of frozen fruit into a food processor. Make sure it's straight from the freezer and not starting to melt.

Add 1 cup of Greek yogurt:

And 1 teaspoon of honey:

Then blend until smooth. Serve immediately.

Your tastebuds will rejoice.

I made this a few weekends ago for my mom. After smacking her lips, my mama said:

"Mmm. Good!"

Best endorsement ever.

Quick and Easy Three-Ingredient Frozen Yogurt
Makes 2 servings

Ingredients

• 1 cup Greek yogurt, full fat
• 1 package frozen fruit, about 10 ounces
• 1 teaspoon honey, to taste

Directions

1. Place frozen fruit, yogurt, and honey in a food processor and blend until smooth.
2. Serve immediately.

Notes

• I use plain Fage Total Classic Greek yogurt and raw honey.
• This recipe works with a lot of different kinds of frozen fruit but I wasn't too keen on my experiment with wild blueberries because of the seeds. Strawberries, peaches, or mangoes work really well though.
• This frozen yogurt is meant to be eaten immediately. I wouldn't recommend freezing it because lots of ice crystals will form making for a hard treat. However, if I had an ice cream maker, I would try it.

Avocado Tomato Salad 3-Ways

I love tomato season.

Currently, tomatoes are so juicy and sweet and full of flavor, they don't need any other adornments to make them divinely delicious.

I love it!

The other day at the grocery store, I saw some mini heirloom tomatoes and knew I had to make something with them.

Enter the avocado.

I cut up a small, ripe avocado.

Halved and quartered some mini heirloom tomatoes.

Mixed everything together...

And promptly shoveled spoonfuls into my mouth.

It looked so good, I couldn't help myself.

The juices from the tomatoes were sweet and citrusy, acting like a dressing all by themselves.

So good!

If the plain rendition doesn't appeal to you, sprinkle on some salt and pepper, toss, and inhale.

I did.

And it was good.

If you're feeling adventurous, instead of salt and pepper, pour a little bit of good soy sauce onto the tomatoes and avocados, and revel in the complex flavors. My grandmother loves avocado with soy sauce so that's where I got my inspiration from.

And there you go! Three different ways to make an easy salad for a quick snack or as an appetizer.

I feel a little silly putting a recipe down here but if you want to know the quantities, this is what I used:

Avocado Tomato Salad 3-Ways
Makes 2 servings

Ingredients

• 1 pint mini heirloom tomatoes or cherry tomatoes
• 1 small avocado

Optional
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce or more, to taste

Directions

1. Quarter or halve the tomatoes. Reserve the juices, if any.
2. Peel and cube the avocado.
3. Mix tomatoes, avocado, and juices.
4. Option A: Serve plain.
5. Option B: Sprinkle salt and pepper, to taste, on tomatoes and avocados.
6. Option C: Instead of salt and pepper, pour soy sauce onto tomatoes and avocados. Lightly toss. Add more soy sauce if desired.
7. Enjoy!