by Krista | Dec 15, 2010 | Compatriot Wednesday
The night was cold and drizzly as I loaded up ingredients, purse, and slippers, and dashed from my car to my friend Don’s house for cooking club this week. We were a small group since most folks were busy with family and last minute work projects, but it ended up being one of the best nights yet.
We had great talks, about all sorts of things, laughed ourselves silly over a particularly rousing game of Pictionary, and soaked our aches away in the hot tub while cold rain fell. I sure love those folks.
The food was magnificent! We chose a global theme with everyone making something from their cultural or family background. We started off with delicious California red wine and cold dilled green beans like the ones my Mums used to make when we were kids.
Don is a grilling king and made us scrumptious skewers with tender chunks of seasoned beef and lightly charred veggies.
Darren made some of the best soup I’ve ever had, a hearty Irish stew simmered with bacon, chunks of tender potato, and frilly strips of Savoy cabbage.
Jon provided the perfect accompaniment with his inspired twist on traditional quesadillas: adding tiny nuggets of sun-dried tomato. Delish!
I wrapped things up with my family’s traditional Christmas dessert: Danish Almond Rice Pudding with Caramel Sauce. It is one of the most heavenly dishes I know of, pure comfort in a bowl. I’m going to share the recipe with you in a week or two because I want to tell you more of the history of this dish, and the quirky tradition my family has involving one whole almond and a special surprise.
What is one of your favorite dishes from your background?
Darren’s Irish Bacon And Cabbage Soup
Click here for the recipe on All Recipes
Jon’s Sun-dried Tomato Quesadillas
Ingredients:
2 large whole wheat flour tortillas
About 2 cups shredded sharp cheese
1/2 finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes
1 Tbs butter
Directions:
- Spread the butter lightly over one side of each tortilla, and heat up a skillet on medium.
- When skillet is hot, place one tortilla butter-side down.
- Place the cheese and sun-dried tomatoes on the tortilla almost to the edges, and put the second tortilla over that butter side. Flip when golden.
- Serve when hungry!
by Krista | Dec 8, 2010 | Compatriot Wednesday
I knew it was going to be a good night at Cooking Club when my friend Darren brought me a steaming cup of Peppermint Hot Chocolate before dinner. What a scrumptious way to warm up before our feasting began!
I was too sick to make it to my British Night birthday dinner last week, but my lovely friends did a repeat for me and it was marvelous.
While the others cooked and bustled in the kitchen, I served up a few nibbles to tide us over: dilled green beans, Kalamata olives, and artichoke hearts.
Cameron unwrapped the cheesecloth-bound, salt-cured pork he made and sliced it into delectable little morsels of salty goodness. It went perfectly with Don’s mild Swiss cheese slices and glasses of red wine.
Soon the British portion of our feast was piping hot and ready to be eaten. We dug into Cameron’s herbed mashed potatoes…
…Robin’s peppery mashed turnips…
…Jen’s Toad-in-the-Hole, and drenched everything in beef gravy. Mmm, comfort food at its finest.
We ended the meal with a bowl of roasted chestnuts which we peeled and devoured as we visited happily around the dining table. It was a fabulous birthday dinner.
What is comfort food to you?
I’m delighted to have a new article up at The Travel Belles today! Click here to see pictures and read about a boat ride around a Croatian island. I’d love to hear what you think!
This is my contribution to Wanderfood Wednesday at Wanderlust and Lipstick.
Jen’s Toad in the Hole – click here for the recipe.
Robin’s Mashed Turnips
Ingredients:
turnips, peeled and diced
butter
milk
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
- Place turnips in pot and cover with water. Bring to boil and simmer until tender. Drain.
- Add butter, milk, salt and lots of pepper. Mix until smooth.
Cameron’s Salt-Cured Pork Loin
Ingredients:
salt (several cups)
water
pork loin, cut into 2-3 inch strips
Cognac
salt
cheesecloth
Directions:
- Add salt to water and stir until dissolved. Keep adding until it won’t dissolve anymore.
- Add meat to salt water and make sure it’s covered. Let sit 24 hours.
- Remove meat from water and pat dry. Dip in cognac, salt, wrap tightly in cheesecloth, and hang in cool, dry place for 3-5 weeks. (Can also be smoked lightly before wrapping in cheesecloth)
- Unwrap, slice thinly and serve.
by Krista | Nov 24, 2010 | Compatriot Wednesday
Although Washington has seen fit to freeze me to my bones this week, it really is a most beautiful place to live. There are few things as invigorating as an Autumn trek along trails in the woods, breath coming in great clouds, admiring sunbursts shining through the trees.
I love how the sun glimmers down through the branches, setting mossy fronds aglow.
I think my favorite bit is after the hike, finding a view-o-licious spot along the coast and watching the sun set over the San Juan Islands.
Such beauties are especially enjoyable when you get to sit down to a dinner of hearty stew with dear folks afterward. On a particularly cold night, my friends Art and Donna invited me over for succulent boeuf bourguignon served with simple boiled potatoes, sweet cornbread and red wine. It was heavenly.
What is your favorite warming food?
PS – I’m so delighted to have one of my Germany photos featured at Velva’s Tomatoes on the Vine today! Click here to view a lovely alpine lake.
PPS – This is my contribution to Wanderfood Wednesday.
by Krista | Nov 17, 2010 | Compatriot Wednesday
Monday evening was cold and dark as I drove to town bearing fresh sage, dried cherries and small onions. I was early because Darren and I were doing the main course that night, Roasted Duck with Cherry Madeira Reduction, and we had to get a head start if we wanted dinner before 9 p.m.!
We chopped and stuffed and got that baby in the oven and within 45 minutes the house smelled divine.
Kat arrived with a bag of oranges and a big ol’ bag of whole cloves for us to decorate them with. I’ve always wanted to do that, but never had the chance. Even the guys got into the holiday spirit and we had grand fun clustered around the new dining room table (thanks, Jon!!) visiting happily as we attempted to make recognizable designs on our respective oranges.
Don made the evening truly festive with the best cocktail I’ve had in ages: a divine concoction of Coffee Liqueur, Vodka and cold milk. Delicious!!
At last the duck was ready and everyone gathered in the kitchen to fill their plates with Cameron and Robin’s sprightly Spinach Salad with Mandarins and Almonds…
Jon’s fabulous mashed potatoes infused with cumin, mustard, and pistachio mustard sauce…
Kat’s savory Spanish Rice studded with peppers and herbs…
And the succulent duck that was tender and flavorful with marvelously crispy skin. I’m not usually a huge fan of duck, but this dish rocked my world. 🙂
Hope you have a lovely day! 🙂
Robin and Cameron’s Spinach Salad
Ingredients:
1 bag spinach
1 can mandarin orange segments or 1 mandarin orange, segmented
1/2 cup toasted, slivered almonds
1 part olive oil
1 part balsamic vinegar
herbes de Provence
splash of milk
Directions:
- Place spinach, mandarin orange segments and almonds in bowl.
- In small bowl wisk together olive oil, vinegar, herbes de Provence and milk until emulsified.
- Toss with spinach and serve immediately.
Kat’s Spanish Rice
(From Epicurious)
Ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil
2 onions, finely chopped
2 green bell peppers, seeded, ribs removed, and diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup long-grain white rice
One 8-ounce can tomato sauce
2 cups water
1 teaspoon celery salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon cumin (optional)
Directions:
- Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat, then add the onions, green peppers, and celery and sauté until soft, about 3 minutes.
- Add the garlic and cook for another minute while stirring.
- Add the rice and stir together to mix.
- Add the tomato sauce and the water carefully.
- Season with the salt and pepper, and add the cumin, if using.
- Bring to a boil, lower the heat, cover, and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, until the rice is done, stirring once or twice.
Jon’s Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients:
6 potatoes
1 onion, chopped
olive oil
2 Tbsp pistachio yogurt sauce
2 Tbsp creme fraiche
2 tsp cumin
salt to taste
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp mustard powder
1 tsp dried cilantro
2 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup milk
Directions:
- Place potatoes in saucepan, cover with salted water, bring to boil, reduce heat slightly and cook 15-20 minutes until tender.
- Saute onion in olive oil until transparent and soft.
- Drain potatoes, add all remaining ingredients and blend together until they reach mashed potato consistency. Serve warm.
Darren and Krista’s Roast Duck with Cherry Madeira Reduction
Ingredients:
1 duck, washed, dried, innards removed
1 small onion or shallot, minced
2 Tbsp butter
2 onions, cut in quarters
handful fresh sage leaves
1.5-2 cups dried cherries
1 cup madeira or port wine
salt and pepper
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Set roasting rack/cooling rack in roasting pan, place duck on top and set aside.
- In saucepan melt butter and saute onion until translucent. Add 1/2 cup wine and cook 1-2 minutes until mixture reduces and becomes saucy instead of watery.
- Stuff cavity of duck with quartered onions, sage leaves and 1/4 cup cherries. Return to roasting pan.
- Brush with onion wine sauce, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and roast for 3 hours, basting occasionally.
- Remove from oven and place duck on serving platter and let rest while you make sauce.
- Set roasting pan with juices on burner, add remaining wine and cherries, bring to boil, stirring constantly to scrape bits off pan. Let simmer until liquid reduces and cherries are soft.
- Slice duck and drizzle with Cherry Madeira Reduction.
by Krista | Nov 10, 2010 | Compatriot Wednesday
A couple months ago my dear friends, Cameron and Robin, returned from an extended trip to South Africa. Robin was there a year helping women trapped in the sex trade, and Cameron was there for a few months designing and creating a sculpture to be featured in the facility where Robin worked.
Both Cameron and Robin are part of my cooking club and are such fabulous people. Authentic, down-to-earth, kind and loving, they make all our lives better just being there each week. They’re also fantastic, inventive cooks. They’re the sort of folks who can look in the fridge and cupboard, pull out random ingredients and put them together in ways that make us all swoon.
While in Africa they didn’t have a big kitchen to putter around in. Their tools were limited to a funny little hot plate and a small Braai – the South African BBQ. But that didn’t stop them. They still managed to churn out the most scrumptious dishes, and today I’m delighted to share two of them with you.
The first is a red lentil curry made at Museum Park, Pretoria Central, South Africa. They picked up spices at their local Pick and Pay, turned on their hot plate and started cooking. They added garlic powder, cracked mustard seed,
celery seed, and birds eye red peppers to red lentils and black pepper.
Then covered the lot with water and let it simmer for 45 minutes until the lentils were tender and flavorful.
While visiting the Cape of Good Hope, they got a craving for fresh fish. Although staying at a backpacker hostel, they were delighted to find a Braai (BBQ) at their disposal. They picked up a local black fish called Rock Fin from Kalk Bay, a small town on the Cape of Good Hope. They got some off the shelf braai spice at the Checkers grocery market down the street and grilled the Rock Fin until the skin was browned and crispy and the fish flaked beautifully.
I’m hungry just writing about it! 🙂 Makes me want to hop on the next plane to South Africa and explore that incredible country, closing each day with dear friends and homemade food cooked on a hot plate.
This is my contribution to Wanderfood Wednesday.
Cameron and Robin’s Red Lentil Curry
Ingredients:
1 package red lentils
black pepper
garlic powder
cracked mustard seed
celery seed
birds eye red peppers
Directions:
- Combine everything, cover with water, bring to boil and simmer for 45 minutes until lentils are tender.
- Serve with fresh bread.
by Krista | Nov 3, 2010 | Compatriot Wednesday
After a great costume party with my cooking club this weekend, we decided to keep things simple Monday night with appetizers and wine. We had a small group this week, and it was wonderfully cozy and laid back as we puttered about the kitchen, stretching our dining into a 3-hour graze.
We started with mounds of tender French bread dipped in copious amounts of fruity olive oil, balsamic vinegar and an assortment of herbs.
Jon presented us with another of his amazing inventions: Roasted Mozzarella Potato Slices with Pistachio Portabella Cream. It was a truly crazy ensemble of flavors, but boy oh boy was it ever good!! The potatoes were crispy and salty and the cream, oh my, it was fabulous. I don’t even like mushrooms and I ate every last bit!
I made mini Zucchini Tarts with puff pastry, pesto and roasted zucchini topped with toasted Parmesan. Mmm, I love those savory little morsels!
Jenny dazzled us with not one, but THREE kinds of roasted pumpkin seeds: Salted, Worcestershire, and Cinnamon and Sugar. Mercy – they were all scrumptious and toasted to perfection.
In keeping with my newly established tradition, I now present two more of my beloved cooking cohorts: Toby and Cameron. Toby makes the most fabulous soups and is my fellow World War II history addict. (Foyle’s War, anyone?) Cameron is our resident meat master, and with a bit of smoke and his own special rubs and sauces can turn any meat (even SPAM!) into perfection. Cameron just returned from South Africa and very soon I’ll be featuring a fabulous South African dinner he made with his awesome girlfriend, Robin.
I sure am blessed with a lot of wonderful cooks in my life. Who are some of your favorite people to cook with?
Jon’s Roasted Potato Slices with Portabella Pistachio Cream
Ingredients:
3 small Yukon gold potatoes, sliced 1/8″ thick
olive oil
salt and pepper
paprika
mustard powder
Several slices mozzarella cheese, cut to fit potato slice
olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
1 baby portabella mushroom, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 Tbsp tomato paste
salt to taste
1/4 cup pistachios
1 cup plain yogurt
1 Tbsp dried basil
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 400
- Slice 3 small potatoes 1/8″ thick
- Toss potato slices with oil, salt, pepper, paprika, and mustard powder.
- Spread evenly on cookie sheet and bake until crispy (approximately 20 minutes)
- For Sauce:
- Heat olive oil in saucepan and saute onion and mushroom until onion is transparent.
- Add garlic, 1 Tbsp tomato paste, and salt, and saute 2-3 minutes. Set aside.
- Add pistachios to food processor and chop finely. Add onion/mushroom mixture and yogurt and blend until smooth.
- Just before potatoes are done, place a slice of mozzarella cheese on each potato slice and bake until cheese melts and begins to brown.
- As they come out of the oven spoon some of the yogurt sauce over top and sprinkle with dried basil.
Krista’s Mini Zucchini Pesto Tarts
(Makes 12)
Ingredients:
1/2 package puff pastry sheets, thawed and cut into 12 squares
1/2 jar pesto (sun-dried tomato is my favorite, but olive tapenade works well too)
1 baby zucchini, sliced thinly
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Place puff pastry squares on cookie sheet and top with layer of pesto.
- Toss zucchini slices with olive oil, salt and pepper, and arrange on top of pesto, about 4 slices per square.
- Sprinkle each square with Parmesan cheese.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes until pastry has puffed and cheese is golden.
- Serve warm.
