Grazing in the Grass

Dear Bloggers,

         Sorry I have been away for over 3 months. I truly am sorry. I have returned with a possibly delicious meal, if it soothes your savory tooth. A pulled slow-cooked beef with a mound of garlic mashed potatoes. There is nothing complicated about this dish, except the plating.

        To begin, take your pound of beef stew and dry rub it with salt and pepper. Leave it in the fridge to marinate over night. Then, wake up the next morning and toss it in the slow cooker with a bag of frozen pearl onions. Add 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar, 1 cup of water, and 1/4 cup of brown sugar. Cook it on low until you get home from work or you can do this step over-night. In a separate pot, boil some yellow potatoes with 2 bay leaves and a generous tablespoon of salt. Let that cook until they are fork tender, then mash them with 2 teaspoons of freshly grate garlic. Once the beef is cooked, simply pull it apart. It should fall apart once cooked, so there really isn't that much work to do. Plate however you'd like, but top with fresh green onion. Until next week, stay healthy and happy cooking!

A Girl Scout's Temptation

Dear Bloggers,
           Can I just being this entry by gently, ok maybe forcefully admitting, I ATE A WHOLE BOX OF GIRL SCOUT PEANUT BUTTER TAGALONGS... Yes, shamefully, and then the next day finished another. There is no excuse. Yea, sure I workout five days a week, but does that give me permission to binge eat cookies. NO! But, man, they sure tasted awfully creamy going down. Wrong, wrong, wrong, on so many levels. To get back on topic though, I am currently enjoying "Spring" break as the ground outside is covered in snow. I have been pumping out homework, started watching Breaking Bad, which is strangely addictive, and of course, cooking up too many recipes.

           I began the week with a deliciously healthy, almost "Paleo" meal. I was not intending on that, but was curious to see what would happen. I worked with a classic, simple Finocchiaro Family Sunday Sauce sauce beginning by sautéing 1 chopped onion, with 2 cloves of diced garlic in olive oil. I added the ground pork until slightly browned. I then added 2 diced Roma tomatoes and deglazed the pan with a 1/2 cup of red. I added in 1 can of tomato sauce that I made by just blending a can of San Marzano tomatoes. I added 1/2 cup of whole milk, a pinch of salt, pepper, oregano, and basil and let it cook on low for 2 hours. Once the sauce was ready, I took this spiralizer tool and cut up two zucchinis. I boiled some water with salt in a pot and added the spiraled zucchini for 3 minutes. Don't cook them too long, as you want them to be crisp. I added the sauce right over the zucchini and grated some fresh Pecorino Romano.

        This morning I woke up to serve some Crab Toast. I followed Corianda Dimes in her recipe here  it was glorious. Sadly, my crab toast did not come out as beautiful as hers, but I can guarantee it was still as delicious and satisfying. I think I did them incorrectly though, because I added the cheesy, crab mixture to the inside of the muffins. Maybe that's what I did wrong. I'm sorry, Corianda, but I gave it my best hand. Next time I make these, because the smile that it put on my man's face was just too big to not bring it back, I will be sure to cut the English muffins properly.

        Well, thirteen more recipes to go and don't worry, I've got a few more packed into this week! Don't hesitate to give these recipes a go! You'll be happy, I promise.

A Spicy Valentines Day

Dear bloggers,
       What a wonderful week it has been. Snow hit our town and well, the University extended our weekend by an extra two days. I'd say it's been a pretty wonderful two days. Last weekend I had my dear friend over and we made some of Mama Phan's delicious egg rolls. I felt so happy, as I was in a sedated state of over indulgence. I served the egg rolls with some Japanese Miso Pork Noodle Soup and it was divine. On Valentines day, I wanted to give my dear a bit of a bite that he wasn't expecting so I made West Indian Curried Chicken. Both of these recipes can be found through the fabulous cookbook of Bullfrog and Baum, Cooking with Frogs.
       My friend Kara and I began our egg rolls by mixing all of the meats together in a bowl and adding some seasoning. We then grabbed our egg rolls and began rolling. She was such a natural and grasped how to make the egg rolls perfectly; I slightly stepped away and worked on our soup instead. If you are interested in this soup it can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7fZjiLV36c  . I can guarantee that Cooking with Dog does not disappoint any audience!
       Then for our Valentines day lunch I made a meal from Eastern Asia. The original recipe called for West Indian curry powder and in all honesty, I could not find this ingredient due to the snow and the inability to escape our barricade of apartment. I used some simple Trader Joe's curry powder and I felt that it did an equally wonderful job. I let my meat marinate for only 2 hours as suggested and it was SO flavorful. I truly was not anticipating that it would absorb so many flavors, but it was so beautifully bodied. Served on a plate of Spanish Saffron rice, the two flavors coincided so smoothly. The rice was slightly sweet which gave comfort to slight spice of the chicken. It was utterly delicious. Thank you Adri, for this excellent recipe!
     Take a stab at these recipes and let me know if you find the West Indian curry powder. Well, only 15 more recipes to go! Keep yourselves warm with some fuzzy socks and a fire, and as always, stay

healthy and happy cooking!

A Sail to the Caribbean

Dear Bloggers,
    Good evening. I tried my hand at making yogurt, making doughnuts, making Mandel bread and all three did not turn out right. However I also tried making  coconut rice with pigeon peas and that turned out beautifully accompanied by my grilled dolphin with mango chutney. Both of these recipes come once again from Cooking With Frogs. At this time, I have cooked 8 recipes from this book, with only 17 to go.
     Tonight was a night in the Caribbean and man, was it good! Let me begin with the delicious meal of grilled dolphin. The coconut rice with pigeon peas started by sautéing celery with1 red pepper, garlic, thyme, oregano, cilantro and olives in some olive oil. I then added the pigeon peas until sizzling. I added the rice to let it slightly brown and then added in the coconut milk and water. I let it cook for about 50 minutes until it was moist and topped it with cilantro. While the rice was cooking, I began by salting and peppering my Mahi Mahi, threw some oil on the grill, and let it cook for about 4 minutes each side until tender. It took about 10 minutes total. Then I worked on the mango chutney. I combined olive oil, mango chunks, salt, pepper, and orange juice in a food processor until smooth. I plated the fish with the mango chutney and a side of the coconut rice. It was divine. The creaminess of the coconut milk gave such a  nice consistency to the rice. It was so delicious. The fish was perfectly flaky with the sweet and slightly soured mango chutney. Overall, it was probably one of the best meals I have made in a while. I also decided to whip up some quick strawberry margaritas. Can you say yum?

I made some mandel bread as well, however this was not what it was supposed to be. I accidentally overlooked the 1 cup of butter and thought it was actually 1/2 cup. So, you can see how things got messed up there. My Mother's Mandel Bread turned out more so like a bread than it did a hardened cookie. Oh well, thank you Brooke, your photograph looks far superior and more delicious than mine turned out... I tried.





P.S. this is what my yogurt turned out like, but next time I make it, I will be sure not to have the temperature so high when I was letting the milk culture. I think I burned the milk because it is not as smooth as I had hoped. Anyways, until the next blog, stay healthy, don't make the same mistakes I did when cooking these recipes, and happy cooking!

A Delightful Day for Cream

Dear Bloggers,
      Today I embarked on a journey that I thought was a simple snap in between my fingers, making cottage cheese. I had my rennet, my milk, I thought I was set.... until I looked at the recipe, 6 tablespoons of cream it read... I didn't have a drop of cream and thought it probably wouldn't cause much of an effect if I omitted the cream. It's the coagulating process of whey separating from the fat in the milk. I was using 1% milk, I thought that would be enough. Well, to my four hours of patient waiting I came to find nothing had happened. Well, cottage cheese, we must meet again, but I better not waste a half gallon of organic milk again, or else!

     Nonetheless, I also tackled two more recipes from Cooking With Frogs. I managed to have my boyfriend pick up some cream, since I yet again failed to have what I really needed. Firstly, I cracked open those pistachios and damaged my fingers severely and added them to the melted butter in the pan along with the cream, chicken stock, and mascarpone. By the way, Anna, I love mascarpone cheese, it has been there for me through some dark times with a slice of fresh bread. I wish Americans realized the true quality difference between cheeses. Cream cheese has been banned from my refrigerator. I chose to use whole wheat pasta in exchange and tossed it in with the creamy sauce and plated it. I could not have been more pleasantly surprised. The smoothness that the mascarpone brings with the nutty, sweet flavors from the pistachios. It was an 10, hands down. I will opt to cook this recipe when I am feeling the need for some serious comfort food.

     I served the pasta with some beautiful bread I brought back from San Francisco, the one and only with lactobacillus sanfranciscensis. That tangy, sour, magnificently glutenous bread was topped with some freshly roasted garlic, Stonehouse olive oil. If you haven't checked them out, please do so here. They have one of the largest selections of olive oils that are so well bodied with the most fragrant, olive flavor. I topped the roasted garlic with some oregano, basil, and chili flakes. Bread always pleases.
    To end the evening, I opted for Ava's banana bread and was yet again happy. I am not a huge fan of banana bread, to be honest, but this bread was so simple that I forgot how good banana bread is. I loved the soured milk idea, although I wasn't sure scientifically how that would change the bread. Have any thoughts Taylor? Anyways, the banana bread might just have to reserve a place in my heart as being one of the most moist, flavorful breads I have tried. I hope you have the opportunity to appreciate and create some of these decadent dishes. Until next week, or maybe the week after, stay healthy and happy cooking!

Christmas Feast

Dear Bloggers,
      The prep for this meal started yesterday. I wanted to have a mixture of countries incorporated into this years feast. It really wasn't quite as extravagant as I had hoped, although my departure for Florida on Friday morning was the primary cause. I combined my boyfriend's Russian heritage, with my Italian heritage, and our favorite cuisine, Middle Eastern to create a multicultural meal.

      Breakfast was a treat for dear sweetheart, blini. These are very similar to crepes, however once they are stuffed, they are grilled to perfection. Simply start by combining 3 eggs, with 2 cups of milk, and 3/4 cup flour. Whisk until smooth. Add in 1/4 cup vegetable oil. If necessary add more flour, or water if mixture is too thick. Heat a shallow pan to medium high and pour the battery to completely cover the pan with a thin layer. Turn then pancake once its edges look dry. Butter each one. Then, choose a filling. I used the spinach artichoke dip I made and closed them up and grilled them for about 3-4 minutes each side. Serve them with caviar or sour cream if desired. These can also be made sweet with chocolate, any fresh fruit or simply whipped cream.

      I started the meal by preparing the two dips. A spinach artichoke dip that had garlic, dill, parsley, and Pecorino Romano, served cold. I also served a Turksih carrot salad that had greek yogurt, garlic, paprika, and cumin. Each were accompanied by freshly heated pita bread.

      Next was Belyash. Belyash is a small fried pastry filled with any combination of ingredients, however, traditionally, it is made with ground beef. To prepare these, I combined 1/2 tsp yeast, with 1/4 cup of heated water (between 105-115 degrees Fahrenheit), 1 tsp of sugar, and a dash of salt. Once foamy, I combined 1 cup of warm milk (same temperature), with 2 tablespoons of melted butter. I incorporated 3 cups of flour, no more, or the dough won't be as fluffy. I drizzled in some olive oil into the stand mixture to bring the mixture into a ball. I then covered it and put it in a warm place to raise until doubled in size, about 2 hours. I then formed the dough, by oiling my hands into gold sized balls, covered them with a tea towel and let them rise for another hour. The mixture is simply sautéed onions, with 1 green bell pepper. Pulse these in the food processor until they are a fine chop. Add them to a sautée pan and cooked until tender. Drain them over a strainer to release all the liquid. Then add the ground beef to the same pan and cook until lightly pink. It is important not to overcook this mixture. Add it to the onion and pepper mixture. Form small disks about 4-6 inches in shape, add a thin layer of beef and fold in an envelope style. Pan fry them in oil heated to 375 degrees for about 3-4 minutes per side, or until dark golden brown. They go best with sour cream.

       Moving forward was a Cooking With Frogs recipe, The Lindsay Roast with Apple Cider. It was stupendous. One that will be added to our menu as a specialty item. Although I couldn't afford to buy prime beef roast, I opted for the cheaper buy (shameful and sad, but my only option) a chuck eye round roast. Nonetheless, I dry rubbed it with 2 parts pepper to one part salt and let it sit overnight in the fridge. I then added it to my pyrex dish and chose cipollini onions and garlic as the complimentary vegetables. I cooked it at 300 for about 1 1/2 hours to an internal temperature of 150 degrees and it was superb. Absolutely perfect! Thank you Kay Lindsay, this recipe is outstanding.

   


 I also served some delicious struffoli. My Italian heritage took over me and decided, yes, it is Natale, and yes, I must serve struffoli. I followed yet again the recipe from Cooking With Frogs and out came these beauts.  Although they came out a little larger than intended, they still yielded that wonderful crunchy, soft, sweet texture I remember from the past Christmas' spent in Napoli. Four recipes down, 21 to go. Until next time readers, have a Merry Christmas, enjoy family, but most importantly, stay healthy and happy cooking!

A Bequest for the Future Bullfrog

Dear Bloggers,

       I have embarked on a journey to complete all of the recipes included in Bullfrog and Baum's "Cooking With Frogs" which can be found here. It is a collection of recipes from all of the talented, appreciative foodies that work at the firm. I decided to begin my journey with chili and stuffed button mushrooms. I am currently staying home with my mother in California with her newly adopted nephew which is why I had to choose the simplest recipe to cook with staying here. I was expecting a good two hours of cooking, but the food was easy to prepare and quick cooking. 

I started by feeding my hunger with some creamy guacamole served with the one and only, TJ pita chips. Smashed avocados, lime, fresh cilantro, red onion. There is really nothing quite as smooth and soothing. I truly adored the chili as it was as simplistic as a snap with a dash of chopping. A classic chili dish, so to spruce it up I added a splash of red wine, a pinch of cayenne, and a few teaspoons of fresh cilantro. I served it with some mild New Zealand cheddar cheese and fresh crumbled corn bread. I let it simmer for about an hour to get the flavors more deeply infused, although for someone who is in a rush, this is the perfect meal for a Wednesday night.

Moving on to the stuffed button mushrooms. I showed my mother the recipe and she was extremely hesitant about the anchovies. As was I, but while shopping in Trader Joe's, a woman talked with us about how they are a key ingredient and well, my mom was sold. After sautéing the onion, I added in stems with the anchovies and the parsley. The binding of the egg added a nice flavor to somewhat mute any overly earthy flavors that the mushrooms emitted. I am not a huge fan of mushrooms. Something about the texture sets me slightly off, but these, were so flavorful, I really was impressed. 

Overall, each of the two dishes were quick, simple and ultimately fulfilling. Thank you bullfrogs. Two dishes out of twenty-five. Twenty-three more to go. Cheers. Until I return to Virginia, stay healthy, and happy cooking!