Although I tend to shop and cook seasonally, when you’re promoting a cookbook, you’re at the mercy of your book’s offerings and the recipes that members of the media/class participants/event planners select for their publication or special event. This means I sometimes have to make figs in a blanket in winter or, in this case, tangerine-lemongrass mimosas in June.

I hit the Trader Joes, which sells a delicious tangerine juice in the refrigerated section. But there was not a drop of juice to be found, nor a tangerine on the produce shelf. The sales clerk explained that for a few short weeks each spring there are absolutely no tangerines to be found for juice or otherwise.

I tried a farm stand I like, which happens to make its own fresh juices in hopes of snagging some whole fruit. Nada.

Next I tried a major chain supermarket, remembering that Dole makes an orange-tangerine blend. I figured that would do in a pinch. But alas, it seems that Dole was also sans tangerines.

So I strolled the juice drink aisle in desperation. And I found a new V8 product called Passion Fruit Tangerine Fusion. “Why not?” I thought. I also purchased fresh-squeezed OJ figuring I could blend it all together to make something more citrus-y.

I tried following the recipe for The Love Diet Tangerine-Lemongrass Mimosas exactly but using V8 instead of tangerine juice. With a little squeeze of lemon to add a bite, the drink was as good, if not better than the original. (In fact, when I served the leftovers to friends a few days later, adding a shot of pure passion fruit concentrate to the blend, the result was practically orgasmic.)

Best of all, the V8 layered additional nutrition to the drink–one of the main goals of The Love Diet program! By adding the juice blend to Champagne, each mimosa offered a half a serving of vegetables. Imagine, getting your veggies while drinking Champagne. Genius!

The experiment made me realize that the gift of The Love Diet could keep on giving. As I modify recipes to save time, money, replace forgotten ingredients or just stave off boredom, I could share them with readers.

Its so simple, really. Using the instantaneous communication of the Internet, The Love Diet can give readers something almost as useful as the book’s original contents: ways to modify recipes when they’re missing, allergic to or simply don’t like an ingredient.

In the book we encourage home cooks to try the recipe once the way it is written and then feel free to improvise on the second try. But I know many people aren’t comfortable, nor are they successful with improvisation.

So stay tuned for The Love Diet’s secrets to ingredient swapping. For a teaser, try my mimosas with V8 Fusion. Your body will thank me for that extra serving of veggies at cocktail hour.

In the meantime, I’m traveling this week to Peju Winery to offer a sneak preview of some of The Love Diet’s recipes at a special Auction Napa Valley event. I’ve taken a few of the book’s recipes and tweaked them slightly (mostly by altering the herbs and spices or the acidity) to pair with a few of Peju’s wines.

Planning the menu was great fun for me. It combined the two sides of my career. (In addition to writing cookbooks and speaking on aphrodisiacs, I’m also a wine journalist and often work with wineries on pairings.) The winery had a few specific wines they wanted to showcase, so the menu we’ll be serving on Thursday to an intimate group of about 30 wine lovers will include:

Passed

2008 Sauvignon Blanc
2006 Zinfandel
Parmesan Soy Bean Bruschetta
Souse Vide Salmon with Fennel-Apricot Slaw
Coffee-Kissed Buffalo meatballs with Espresso Oyster Dipping Sauce

First Course

2006 Cabernet Franc
Black Truffle Lovers’ Lasagna served with a Baby Green Salad and the One-and-Only Salad Dressing

Second Course

2006 Merlot
2002 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve
Seared Halibut with Mushroom “Cream” on a bed of Braised Celery

Third Course

2005 H.B. Cabernet Sauvignon
Selection of Cheeses with Blue Cheese Walnut Brittle

Dessert

2009 Chardonnay
Handmade Chocolate Truffles

I’m often asked how I change a recipe to make it work better with a wine. With an event at a winery, we want to make sure the meal really showcases the wine rather than competing with it for your attention, if that makes sense.

I’ve pasted below first the original version of The Love Diet Black Truffle Lover’s Lasagna and following it is the altered version we will serve on Thursday. If you want to see the difference it makes with the wine, try getting the Peju Cabernet Franc and taste like a pro!

black truffle lovers’ lasagna
vegetarian
makes 4 servings
The scent of black truffle is very similar to that of a male pheromone. (Pheromones are human, sexual scents that unconsciously register as attraction in possible mates.) And we know women who swear by as little as a single whiff of truffles as producing the… ahem… desired effect. Because we can’t afford to run out and buy black truffles every time we’re looking for action, we’ve created a dish that uses black truffle oil and salt in such a way that it releases that aroma of desire into the air.

Black Truffle Lover’s Lasagna
from The Love Diet by Juan-Carlos Cruz and Amy Reiley
makes 4 servings

1 1/2 c eggplant, chopped
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 tsp black truffle-infused oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 portabella mushroom cap, minced
2 medium zucchini, chopped
2 c baby spinach salad leaves, roughly chopped
1 tsp black truffle salt
1 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
1 c part skim ricotta
6 no-cook lasagna noodles
1/4 c Parmesan, grated

1. Sprinkle the eggplant with the 1/2 tsp salt, set aside for 10 minutes. (Eggplant will discolor slightly.)
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees, and coat an 8 or 9-inch square baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
3. Heat oil in a large, nonstick pan over medium heat. Sauté garlic for 1 minute.
4. Add mushroom and sauté for an additional minute.
5. Stir in eggplant and zucchini. Gently sauté for 10 minutes, until vegetables are softened.
6. Stir in spinach and truffle salt then remove from heat when the spinach begins to wilt. 7. Add basil and ricotta and thoroughly mix.
8. Spread 1/4 of the vegetable mixture on the bottom of the baking dish. Top with 2 noodles, followed by 1/4 of the vegetables; then 2 more noodles, repeat, then finish with the last 1/4 of the vegetables.
9. Top with grated Parmesan, cover pan with foil and bake for 20 minutes.
10. Uncover and cook for an additional 5 minutes. For a crunchy top, put under the broiler for an additional 3-5 minutes, until cheese is deep golden.

Black Truffle Lovers’ Lasagna
makes 9 servings
paired with Peju Cabernet Franc

1 tbsp and 2 tsp black truffle-infused oil
2 clove garlic, crushed
2 portabella mushroom cap, minced
3 c eggplant, chopped
1 tsp salt
3 lg zucchini, chopped
4 c baby spinach salad leaves, roughly chopped
2 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
2 tsp black truffle salt
1 1/2 c part skim ricotta
2/3 c crumbled chevre
10 no-cook lasagna noodles
1/3 c grated Parmesan

1. Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon salt over eggplant, set aside for 10 minutes. (Eggplant will discolor slightly.)
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees, and coat a 9-inch square square baking dish (with high sides) with nonstick cooking spray.
3. Heat oil to medium heat in a large saute pan. Sauté garlic for 1 minute.
4. Add mushroom and saute for an additional minute.
5. Stir in eggplant and zucchini. Gently sauté for 10 minutes, until vegetables are softened.
6. Stir in spinach and truffle salt then remove from heat when the spinach begins to wilt. 7. Add basil, ricotta and chevre and thoroughly mix. Season with more truffle salt if needed.
8. Spread 1/6 of the vegetable mixture on the bottom of the baking dish. Top with 2 noodles, followed by 1/6 of the vegetables; then 2 more noodles, repeat until all noodles are used, then finish with the last 1/6 of the vegetables.
9. Top with grated Parmesan, cover pan with foil and bake for 22-24 minutes.
10. Uncover and cook for an additional 5 minutes. For a crunchy top, put under the broiler for an additional 3-5 minutes, until cheese is deep golden.

For presentation, cut into 9 squares and serve with small baby lettuce salad on side.

JC and I planned our second day of recipe testing to coincide with our publisher, Life of Reiley’s annual holiday party. In other words, JC and I would be cooking all the food and our guests would be guinea pigs. On the menu this time was Chocolate-Kissed White Bean Chili, Attitude Adjustment Anchovy Toasts with a side of whole wheat pasta, Crab Salad, Egg Bread French Toast with Blueberry Syrup and one of my go-to Christmas foods, Chocolate Mint Cookies as well as a little spirit to put us in the holiday spirit, a Limoncello Spritzer with a fresh mint garnish.

Testing went well this time. We’d each road tested our recipes on our own before we got together, so there weren’t any unpleasant surprises. (Lets face it, when you have two partners on a book with equal egos, they want to try and blow each other away. We came prepared and brandishing knives.)

This time we were pretty happy with everything – no exciting mishaps to reveal. I did burn the first batch of cookies. I could never make it in a restaurant kitchen juggling 8 tasks at once.

What was probably more interesting than the actual dishes during this day of tasting was what happens in the kitchen when JC and I cook.

JC is a gregarious guy and full of stories. He always shows up with his knife kit and his 2 dogs, a pair of terriers named Nick and Maggie. The beasts are immediately released into the yard, along with my little monster, Big. Nick and Big play hard while we cook hard – so hard, in fact, that Big, my feisty long-haired chihuahua, (think almond-eyed chihuahua with a Farrah Fawcett haircut), dislocated a rib.

While the pups were at play, JC filled me in on the latest novel on his must read list. Normally I prefer to read a book myself rather than get the verbal Cliff’s notes. But since I rarely have time to read for fun, its nice to read vicariously through JC. And he’s such a great story teller that his interpretation is probably more interesting than the original.

On this occasion, I probably bossed JC around a little more than usual. I was in charge of a party and we had a 3 hour deadline! We weren’t making a lot of dishes, so the stress wasn’t from cooking on a timeline. The important part of our testing is to take our skeleton recipes and note adjustments with complete thoroughness. This takes time and concentration you don’t need on a normal day at the stove.

The results of day two were very positive. I do want to go back and work on the Limocello Spritzer. It was a variation on a recipe I’d done for years but something didn’t quite work this time. I blamed my mint, which at this time of year tends to be without fragrance. I think I’ll go back and try muddling the mint next time to add that extra layer of flavor.

The chili was definitely the day’s. I wouldn’t change a thing. The recipe was based on my family’s annual tradition, a pot of chili with chocolate on Christmas Eve. But I added 2 ingredients that were a departure from the original: cocoa powder and acai fruit puree. If you don’t yet know acai, you probably soon will. Its rain forest superfood, packed with antioxidants. Its flavor is rich and not too sweet. Why I added it to the chili, I really don’t know. I was kind of thinking of trying to pack the dish with as many libido-boosting ingredients as possible. That, combine with the cocoa, gave the chili a depth of flavor and faint sweetness I’ve never before experienced in the dish.

The French toast was a fun addition to our collection of recipes. JC previously made the dish with a banana topping but we already have a breakfast dish that involves banana in the book, so we went toward blueberries, (a wonderful ingredient for life-long health). The syrup was bold in flavor but still tart, a great foil to egg bread. But the topping was a puree, smooth as maple syrup. We both agreed that an additional texture would really up the dish’s impact, so in future we’ll make it with a few fresh blueberries as garnish.

Since our second day of testing, we’ve continued to work on our own. Next week will bring day 3, our third chance to show off and swap stories.

Spreading the Cheese