homemade rice-a-roni

I love Rice-a-roni, but there's so much sodium per serving... I was looking for another way to get the same flavor with things that I already have around the house. Big thanks to chaos in the kitchen for the recipe, which you can find here. Love it!

Oven-dried Cherry/Grape Tomatoes

A few weeks ago, we found ourselves with an abundance of tomatoes -- a mix of salad tomatoes, sauce tomatoes, heirlooms, cherry and grape tomatoes. I had been wanting to test this whole oven-dried tomato idea -- which was an ideal option given that the sun hadn't shown its face for days.

I sliced the tomatoes in half -- I only used the cherries and the grapes -- and laid them cut-side up on a baking sheet (with the help of my 3-year-old niece).
I drizzled the whole thing with extra virgin olive oil, and seasoned the 'maters with salt and pepper.
I put them in a 250 degree oven, and let them hang out for a few hours. The length of time really depends on size and thickness of the tomatoes.
I packed them in jars with extra virgin olive oil, and stuck 'em in the fridge. Some recipes claim that they stay good for only two weeks, but mine are still going strong. My hope is that the olive oil will take on the essence/deliciousness of the sweet tomatoes, and I'll be able to dress salads with it or drizzle it over focaccia dough before baking.

dinner party apps

I know... I haven't blogged in a long time. It's been (yikes!) over a month. I've been making/eating good food in the meantime but haven't had time to write so much as a paragraph about what I've been cooking. In fact, I've barely had time to enjoy a meal sitting down. I've started a new job, and technically am working three jobs right now. One will end this week just in time for another to start. Luckily I'm good at time-management and am great at multi-tasking. Yay for being type-A!

Anyway, these are some tasty apps that I whipped up for a dinner party last night. I carved out some squarish pieces of puff pastry, carved out a smaller square (halfway through the dough) to make a raised edge, pressed in some feta cheese, added a tomato slice (1 slice of San Marzano plum tomato or a quarter slice of a larger tomato), and drizzled with herby oil (1 cup extra virgin olive oil and mixed garden herbs, along with some salt and pepper -- whipped into happiness with an immersion blender). Just a few minutes in the oven and we were ready for the party!

Portuguese sweets in an unlikely location

Last month, I met a friend in Boston and we spent a few hours wandering around. We were in Chinatown, and on a mission to find an Asian market called Super 88, but we had no luck. We saw the parking area, and a sign with an arrow that said "Welcome" but we could not, for the life of us, find the door. Anyway, we set off to find an Asian bakery instead, and stumbled upon a place called Great Taste Bakery (63 Beach St). We found lots of the expected, and a bit of the unexpected. There were tons of yummy-looking pastries screaming our names, but the thing that jumped out at me the most were the Portuguese pastries (!!!!). They looked exactly like the Pastéis de Nata or Pastéis de Belém that we ate on our weekend trip the Portugal last year. They're made of delicious custard, surrounded by flaky pastry, and bruléed on the top. Of course, we grabbed a few for the road, and they the taste was quite authentic. What a find!

New Blog :: Kat's Paws

Hey everyone!
I've just launched a new blog. I've been wanting to do some posts about crafts and other non-food things, and I've been afraid of getting too far from the kitchen on some posts. So I've started another blog, migrated a couple entries from this blog, and there's more to come!

A few things to look forward to...

• batik-making
• painted tiles
• mosaics
• knitting the "prime rib"
• Hawaiian quilting

You can visit the new blog by finding it in my blog list (on the right side of the browser) or by clicking the link here.

Easy Slow-Cooker Pulled Pork

I've had such success lately with slow-cooker pulled chicken that I decided to delve into trying slow-cooker pulled pork. We had a whey-fed pork shoulder (from Willow Hill Farm) in the freezer, so I threw it into the slow-cooker, topped it with lots of delicious ingredients, and let it hang out for 10 hours. It was frozen, so I started the slow-cooker on high, let it go for about 4 hours, then turned it down to low for the rest of the day. The result was a tender and delicious mound of sweet pulled pork. If you start with a thawed pork shoulder, low for 8 hours should do just fine.

I was inspired by the pulled pork on Baking Bites, and tweaked the recipe to accommodate what I had in the kitchen. I served the pork on crusty rolls with slaw and sharp cheddar.

Easy Slow-Cooker Pulled Pork
3.5# pork shoulder roast
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, sliced or chopped (it will melt into the sauce)
1/3 cup ketchup
1/3 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup brown sugar (light or dark)
1/3 cup fire-roasted tomato sauce
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp grainy mustard
2 tsp paprika (I used sweet, not hot)
pinch cayenne pepper
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
3/4 cup water
3 tbsp maple syrup

1. Place pork shoulder in slow-cooker
2. Add all remaining ingredients
3. You may want to move some things around so that the pork is covered by the sauce
4. Set the slow-cooker to low
5. Cover, and let cook for 8 hours (If pork is frozen, try doing what I did!)

Hail Storm!

Lots of damage. One side of house (siding) ruined, broken gutters, ripped screens, flattened garden, shredded plants, dimpled car....... Ouch. =(

Restaurant Week

On our mutual vacation week, my guy and I visited a number of local restaurants. We tried to target places we hadn't been yet, and the places featured in this write-up were the results of a bizarre selection system that I'm pretty sure we couldn't repeat if we tried. These reviews are a combination of both of our thoughts.

Two Thumbs Up

The best meal we ate that week was, without a doubt, at Kong Chow in Shelburne. We were greeted enthusiastically by our awesome server Josh and the owner. We chose a table in the dining room (there's outdoor seating on the patio, too), and were presented with a dish of housemade fried noodles (Josh informed us that nearly everything -- sans soy sauce -- is housemade at Kong Chow), a sweet dipping sauce (similar to duck sauce), a pot of delicious tea, and of course, ice water. We started with an order of the Hot Oil Wontons, which are not fried, but steamed, and come drizzled with chili oil. My guy ordered the Tangerine Chicken, which was spicy, sweet, and perfectly cooked, and I ordered the Black Forest Shrimp. The shrimp was also perfectly cooked, came with a delicious array of veggies, and was covered in a fantastic black bean - based sauce. The portions were great -- the perfect amount for my guy, and just enough so that I could enjoy my shrimp for lunch the next day (when I asked for a box to take home my leftovers, Josh said "Actually, we try not to let the food leave the building..."). We were visited multiple times during the meal, both by Josh and the owner, both of whom contributed greatly to our enjoyable experience. The delicious food, comfortable atmosphere, and great service (not to mention the added entertainment -- both Josh and the owner are pretty funny) combined to create an overall positive feeling about Kong Chow. We highly recommend it (and wish we lived closer to it)!

We enjoyed another great meal at Papa Nick's Family Restaurant in Hinesburg. Their menu includes a mix of American, Greek, and Italian specialties, and they serve Greek dinner specials every Thursday night. We sampled quite a bit of food at Papa Nick's -- my guy was dying to try the wings, so we got an order of hots, and they were delicious! My guy got fried clams, which came with delicious fries and a house salad. I ordered the Broiled Stuffed Halibut special, which was perfectly cooked, stuffed with spinach (and artichokes?) and topped with a delicious Newburg sauce. Since it was a Greek special, it came with an assortment of Greek appetizers, a Greek salad, and rice pilaf. Both of our meals came with freshly-baked rolls. The servings are generous, and we had no complaints (while the place was packed, we waited only about a minute to be seated). It was a meal to remember!

Two Thumbs Down

The positive reviews on Seven Nights drew us to Rozzi's Lakeshore Tavern in Colchester. In hopes of finding delicious burgers, we entered Rozzis... It was a bit confusing at first, since we seemed to enter a bar, rather than a restaurant. The restaurant seating area was separated from the bar with a handful of stairs, and no wall, which we found a bit strange. The tables were very close to each other, which led to feeling crowded, even though there weren't many other customers in the dining area. We started with mozzarella sticks, which were pretty standard (aka tasty) and came with plenty of marinara sauce. My guy ordered the Western Burger -- well done, which came with bacon, cheese, and BBQ sauce. I ordered the Jamaican Jerk Burger -- medium well, which I expected to be spicy. My burger was decidedly un-Jerk-like, and overcooked to the point where it had an outer layer of charcoal. Our burgers were very similar in taste and texture, regardless of toppings. Our fries, unfortunately, were a bigger disappointment. They were salt-less, and only partially cooked. We could not finish either of our meals. My guy suggested we give them the benefit of a doubt and try dessert -- after all, we were already there -- so we ordered the "strawberry shortcake with local strawberries," the dessert special. My guy and I were joking about what would be on the plate... He guessed that it would be a storebought shortcake sponge base (the kind you can find at the grocery store -- pack of 6 for $1.99), frozen strawberries, and whipped cream from a can. Unfortunately, he was not far-off in his guess. Storebought sponge, un-fresh strawberries (and I'd wager they weren't local unless Price Chopper counts), and canned whipped cream. Pretty unimpressive when you're being charged $4.99 for each serving. Good thing we shared dessert. I have to add that the crowding issue reappeared when we were leaving -- we nearly had to climb over a couple to get out of the place.

We consumed another disappointing meal at The Rotisserie in South Burlington, which also got decent ratings on Seven Nights. They're famous for their prime rib, so we both ordered a dish that included it. My guy ordered the Prime Rib with a side of fries, which was tender, but unseasoned, and I ordered the French Dip Sandwich. Although the meat was sliced quite thinly on the sandwich, it tasted like the color grey. The "au jus" portion of the meal was beefy, but like a liquid salt lick. The fries here were better than those of Rozzi's, but not fantastic. Our service was less-than-stellar (we tried multiple times to get our server's attention, and were not the only ones waiting for our check), and the tablecloth (which was under glass) was dirty, which was a turn-off. We will not be patronizing this establishment again.

New Restaurant Adventures

On our mutual vacation week, my guy and I visited a number of local restaurants. We tried to target places we hadn't been yet, and the places featured in this write-up were the results of a bizarre selection system that I'm pretty sure we couldn't repeat if we tried. These reviews are a combination of both of our thoughts.

Two Thumbs Up

The best meal we ate that week was, without a doubt, at Kong Chow in Shelburne. We were greeted enthusiastically by our awesome server (Josh) and the owner. We chose a table, and were presented with a dish of housemade fried noodles (Josh informed us that nearly everything -- sans soy sauce -- is housemade at Kong Chow), a sweet dipping sauce (similar to duck sauce), a pot of delicious tea, and of course, ice water. We started with an order of the Hot Oil Wontons, which are not fried, but steamed, and come drizzled with chili oil. My guy ordered the Tangerine Chicken, which was spicy, sweet, and perfectly cooked, and I ordered the Black Forest Shrimp. The shrimp was also perfectly cooked, came with a delicious array of veggies, and was covered in a fantastic black bean - based sauce. The portions were great -- the perfect amount for my guy, and just enough so that I could enjoy my shrimp for lunch the next day (when I asked for a box to take home my leftovers, Josh said "Actually, we try not to let the food leave the building..."). We were visited multiple times during the meal, both by our server and the owner, both of whom contributed greatly to our enjoyable experience. The delicious food and great service combined to create an overall positive feeling about Kong Chow. We highly recommend it!

We enjoyed another great meal at Papa Nick's Family Restaurant in Hinesburg. Their menu includes a mix of American, Greek, and Italian specialties, and they serve Greek dinner specials every Thursday night. We sampled quite a bit of food at Papa Nick's -- my guy was dying to try the wings, so we got an order of hots, and they were delicious! My guy got fried clams, which came with delicious fries and a house salad. I ordered the Broiled Stuffed Halibut special, which was perfectly cooked, stuffed with spinach (and artichokes?) and topped with a delicious Newburg sauce. Since it was a Greek special, it came with an assortment of Greek appetizers, a Greek salad, and rice pilaf. Both of our meals came with freshly-baked rolls. The servings are generous, and we had no complaints. It was a meal to remember!

Two Thumbs Down

The positive reviews on Seven Nights drew us to Rozzi's Lakeshore Tavern in Colchester. In hopes of finding delicious burgers, we entered Rozzis... It was a bit confusing at first, since we seemed to enter a bar, rather than a restaurant. The restaurant seating area is separated from the bar with a handful of stairs, and no wall, which we found a bit strange. We started with mozzarella sticks, which were pretty standard (aka tasty) and came with plenty of marinara sauce. My guy ordered the Cowboy (or was it Western?) Burger -- well done, which came with bacon, cheese, and bbq sauce. I ordered the Jamaican Jerk Burger -- medium well, which I expected to be spicy. My burger was decidedly un-Jerk-like, and overcooked to the point where it had an outer layer of charcoal. Our burgers were very similar in taste and texture, regardless of toppings. Our fries, unfortunately, were a bigger disappointment. They were salt-less, and only partially cooked. We could not finish either of our meals. My guy suggested we give them the benefit of a doubt and try dessert -- after all, we were already there -- so we ordered the "strawberry shortcake with local strawberries," the dessert special. My guy and I were joking about what would be on the plate... He guessed that it would be a storebought shortcake sponge base (the kind you can find at the grocery store -- pack of 6 for $1.99), frozen strawberries, and whipped cream from a can. Unfortunately, he was not far-off in his guess. Storebought sponge, un-fresh strawberries (and I'd wager they weren't local unless Price Chopper counts), and canned whipped cream. Pretty unimpressive when you're being charged $4.99 for each serving. Good thing we shared dessert.

We consumed another disappointing meal at The Rotisserie in South Burlington, which also got nice ratings on Seven Nights. They're famous for their prime rib, so we both ordered a dish that included it. My guy ordered the Prime Rib with a side of fries, which was tender, but unseasoned, and I ordered the French Dip Sandwich. Although the meat was sliced quite thinly on the sandwich, it tasted like the color grey. The "au jus" portion of the meal was beefy, but like a liquid salt lick. The fries here were better than those of Rozzi's, but not fantastic. Our service was less-than-stellar (we tried multiple times to get our server's attention, and were not the only ones waiting for our check), and the tablecloth (which was under glass) was dirty, which was a turn-off. We will not be patronizing this establishment again.

Indian-spiced chicken pitas

My boyfriend and I made these delicious chicken pitas a while back... We found a recipe for Indian-spiced chicken burgers in Martha Stewart Living's Everyday Food - Great Food Fast cookbook, and made slider-sized patties. We topped the patties with a savory yogurt sauce and tossed in some cucumber slices. We served each pita with spicy potato wedges and an orzo salad with asparagus and feta cheese. We will definitely be repeating this!

You can find a similar recipe at Bakin' and Eggs, a fantastic food blog.

Housemade gifts :: #2 Grow your own African violets

Sometime last year (during the summer, maybe) my mom and I decided to grow our own African violets. We removed some of the leaves of my one African violet, dipped the bottom of each stem in water, then in rooting hormone, and stuck them each in a mug (since we always have too many mugs!). By last month, they each had about twenty leaves. For graduation gifts, I re-potted four of them in small colorful pots, and one in this teacup. It just happened to bloom on the day of my friend's graduation party... =)

stale pita crisis averted!

A while back, I was in the mood for a pita sandwich (I absolutely love a good turkey pita with lettuce, tomato, cheddar, and a little ranch) and I picked up some pocketless pitas at the grocery store. I immediately made a sandwich when I got back home, and was disappointed to find that they were a little bit stale. But, don't worry, it wasn't a complete loss. With the remainder of the package, I made personal pizzas throughout the week for my lunches. It's a great base for a variety of toppings -- you could add roni, go veggie, use pesto instead of tomato sauce -- I even made one with vodka sauce! It's a quick option, and I didn't even miss regular pizza crust. Crisis averted. =)

lightly-curried potatoes and spinach

When I want a quick go-to warm dish, I often turn to a plate of lightly-curried potatoes and spinach. It's not too spicy, but has a hint of Indian flair, and costs much less than heading to the nearest Indian restaurant for take-out.

I start by sauteing cubed potatoes in a little butter, a little oil, a liberal sprinkling of curry powder, and salt.

Once the potatoes are fork-tender and getting crispy, I add a few turns around the pan of cream, and toss a handful of fresh spinach on top.

The spinach wilts quite quickly, so be ready to eat!

Once the spinach is wilted, I check for seasonings and add salt (or pepper) if necessary.

Bavarian-style Soft Pretzels

The other night, after watching Throwdown! with Bobby Flay (the episode where he challenges the Pretzel Boys of Philly), my friend and I were inspired to make our own soft pretzels. The next morning, we found a simple Bavarian-style soft pretzel recipe on the BeerSmith blog -- it's the type of pretzel that Bobby made during the Throwdown.

The pretzel dough-making was easy. Just follow the directions in the recipe to mix and knead the dough, let it rise until doubled, then shape. The pretzels take a quick bath (15-20 seconds) in boiling baking soda-water solution and are ready to be sprinkled with delicious toppings -- we did some with salt only, some with poppy seeds, sesame seeds, or Parmesan cheese, and one or two with a combo of everything.

Here's what they looked like after the water bath and the addition of the toppings.


They spent about 8 minutes in a 475 degree (F) oven and were ready to be ripped apart. We ate them plain, but you could dip them in mustard or a cheesy sauce. I would definitely repeat this recipe again. They were fantastic!

ajvar burgers

Yesterday, while exploring the aisles of Taste of Europe (European grocery that stocks Russian, Bosnian, Polish, Macedonian, and German foods -- next to the YMCA on 34D Mallets Bay Ave. in Winooski), my favorite Ukrainian found quite the selection of ajvar. Ajvar is a Balkan condiment that is made from red peppers, eggplant, garlic and chili peppers. It can be either mild or hot, and was the perfect addition (along with some Bulgarian sheep's milk cheese) to our burgers last night. You can order ajvar online from Taste of Europe at Eurofoodmart.com.

Mo-chimi or churri-jo?

A friend was staying at our house last weekend, and I whipped up a dinner in celebration of her moving back to VT. It was the first grilling of the season for me (at least on our grill), and here's what I made: whey-fed pork (loin chops and country-style ribs) from Willow Hill Farm marinated, basted and served with a hybrid chimichurri-mojo sauce (super herby + citrus + garlic); grilled summer squash, zucchini, and scallions with a warm grilled tomato vinaigrette; savory tomato wedges and a guacamole salad (chunky tomatoes, cukes, and avocado, dressed in a zesty cilantro vinaigrette).

Rainy day food

With all this rain lately, I'm trying not to jinx myself by thinking about *cringe* last summer (I remember in June & July there were only 7 dry days... total! I can't remember specifics about August, but I know I didn't get a tan...). I'm trying to focus instead on the positive... comfort food!

When its cold and rainy outside, all I want to do is curl up inside with a blanket, a bowl of warm comfort food, and a good book (or a movie). In thinking about my favorite comfort foods, I came across these lasagna photos from a few months back. I made a big dish of lasagna bolognese...

I started with a rich bolognese sauce, sweet with carrots and onions. I layered the sauce with a mixture of ricotta, egg, and mozzarella cheese, no-boil lasagna noodles (we didn't have a pan big enough in our townhouse to boil lasagna noodles), and freshly grated parmesan cheese. I served the lasagna with a house favorite -- no-knead rolls. Delicious!

Veal Saltimboca @ Three Tomatoes Trattoria

Post-grad dinner at Three Tomatoes Trattoria in Williston, VT. Delicious!

sweet sushi :: sushi que hice completamente de dulces

I made this for my roomie, who also graduated last week from college.

Lo hice para mi compañera de casa quien acabó su carera al mismo tiempo que yo (la semana pasada).

Grad party!

We had a party with friends and family at our house yesterday to celebrate my graduation from college. It's unbelievable how fast the past four years have flown by. As usual, it was my goal to fill everyone's tummy with good food. Here's what was on the menu:

On the Spanish app table:

• Tortilla (Spanish potato omelette)
• Manchego (traditional sheep cheese from La Mancha)
• Membrillo (quince paste -- traditionally paired with manchego)
• Spicy Catalan olives
• Bread, of course
  
• Pastelitos de gambas (shrimp egg-roll style bites -- learned how to make these in Madrid) *
  

On the veg app table:

• Fresh fruit
• Veggies & dip (we found the cutest little yellow baby carrots!)

On the un-named app table:

• Chips & 2 salsas
• Cinnamon chips & fruit salsa (by Jane)
• Boucher Blue Cheese (by Green Mountain Blue Cheese @ Boucher Family Farm)
  
• Vermont Butter & Cheese Chevre
• Bread & crispy bagel chips
• More fresh fruit

On the kitchen island:

• Maple Whiskey Pulled Chicken from Picante Dulce *
  
• Zesty coleslaw
• Cabot Hunter's Cheddar & rolls for making chicken sandwiches
• Dakin Farm maple glazed ham
  
• Grape tomato, fresh mozzarella, and basil salad
• Spinach, red cabbage, and cilantro salad (thanks to an SMC Spanish prof for that idea!)
• Southwest black bean, corn, and red pepper salad
• Potato salad (by my great aunt)
• Roasted veggie, orzo, and feta salad

For dessert:

• Strawberry trifle!
• Oatmeal & cinnamon chip cookies

* MMcC -- I saved you some in the freezy!

tomatoes & mozz :: tomates y queso mozzarella

a few days in the Berwicks

I spent a few days last week in the Berwicks (in Southern Maine) with a good friend. It was a welcome vacation from the work involved in completing my final college semester. We spent our time doing some outlet shopping in Kittery, walking along the Marginal Way in Ogunquit, picking up some salt water taffy at Perkins Cove Candies, and of course -- enjoying delicious food!

The first night I was there, she took me to a place called Tapas & Tini's, which was quite fitting since I'm completely in a Spanish food deficit. While the tortilla (Spanish potato omelette) was not quite what I'm used to, I must remember what a friend told me last year. ("It doesn't matter how you make it, because everyone makes it differently. There's at least one person out there who has made it the same way.") The empanadas were quite delicious, filled with tender chicken and potatoes, and wrapped in a flaky and brightly colored (sweet potato?) dough. We also enjoyed the tomates adobados, or marinated tomatoes, which were served on zesty slices of toast. Of course, I felt compelled to order a martini, so I chose the Hendrick's Cucumbertini (pictured here), which reminded me sharply that I have not had gin in quite some time. Overall, it was a meal to be repeated!

The next night, she took me to Tío Juan's Margaritas Mexican Restaurant, where I was finally able to sample the infamous Heavens to Margatroid margarita, which is made with 7 liquors and promises to be "an out of world experience". Whether you choose to have it frozen or on-the-rocks, it's delicious! And if you're looking for a light dinner (or one that's light on the wallet), consider splitting the steak and chicken combo fajitas. It's the perfect amount of food for two, and it's delicious!

While I was in the Berwicks, I also visited Dairy Queen for the first time EVER, and my friend introduced me to a delicious chips & dip combo. It's somewhat of a local product combo, as both the artichoke dip (not your typical artichoke dip!) and the tortilla strips are made in Concord, NH. They're made by Mitchell's, and the artichoke dip is to-die-for! It's not as heavy as traditional spinach & artichoke dip but is just as addicting. The tortilla strips are perfectly seasoned, slightly nutty, and a welcome break from mass-produced supermarket tortilla chip. Mitchell's claim to fame is their Fresh Salsa, but they offer 10 fresh sauces/dips/salsas in total, along with their tortilla strips. Of course, I had to take some strips and dip back to VT with me. =)

On the way out of town, I stopped off at Duston's Bakery and Deli in Dover, NH to pick up a few treats for my friends. They make the best whoopie pies around, and actually make pumpkin whoopie pies! They're AMAZING.

All in all, it was a fantastic trip!

sweet & spicy broiled salmon :: salmón dulce y picante

Whenever I think of salmon, I think of the way my mom makes it. When salmon's on sale, she buys a fillet or two, presses a delicious dry rub into the top and broils it until the salmon is flaky and tender.

She usually puts maple sugar into the rub, but at school, I don't have any, so I use brown sugar in place of it. I mix a dry rub of dark brown sugar, paprika, chili powder, salt and pepper, and press it into a few fresh salmon steaks. Just about 10 minutes under the broiler and you've got a tasty main dish. I usually serve it with rice and roasted or sauteed vegetables.

**

Cuando pienso en salmón, siempre pienso en la manera que mi madre lo hace. Cuando está rebajado, compra un filete o dos, pone una mezcla de especias encima y lo gratina hasta que esté cocido muy bien y tierno.

Normalmente pone azúcar de arce en la mezcla de especias, pero como no lo tengo en mi residencia (que está situada en la universidad), puso azúcar moreno. Mezclo el azúcar moreno, paprika (pimentón), chile en polvo, sal y pimienta, y puse la mezcla encima de tres o cuatro filetes. Solamente unos diez minutos debajo del gratinador y ya está. Normalmente lo sirvo con arroz sazonado y verduras (asadas o salteadas).

GSC-Style Samoas Bars

Earlier today, I was looking through the hundreds of recent posts on my Google Reader (I subscribe to some 60 different blogs -- almost all are food-related) and this one thing caught my eye: a post about Samoas bars from the kitchn. Their inspiration comes from The Crepes of Wrath, who adapted the recipe from Baking Bites. The recipe is ingenious! It's based on the Girl Scout Cookies called Samoas (although I always knew them as Caramel deLites) and it brings all the major players to the table: the cookie base, slightly salty caramel, crunchy coconut, and chocolate. I whipped up a batch and was completely satisfied with the result. It was so much easier than the alternative Samoas procedure -- cutting out rings of cookie dough would have taken me much longer. All in all, it was a big hit among the roommates, and I'll probably make them again. In fact, as soon as my guy sees this, he'll probably make me sign a contract to that effect. =)

Spanish Sweets :: Dulces españoles

These are two of my favorite Spanish sweets... First, turrón is a nougat candy. It can be either soft (blando) or hard (duro), and can be made with different nuts or have added flavors (or may even be dipped in chocolate!). The one in this picture is hard and is made with almonds (and happens to be my favorite kind!). The second is polvorones -- crumbly cookies that can be sweet or not-sweet, and are delicious with a cup of coffee. They're both traditional eats for the holidays, but I'd eat them any day... =)

***

Estos son dos tipos de mis dulces españoles favoritos. Primero, el turrón. El turrón puede ser de tipo blando o duro, puede ser hecho de muchos tipos de frutos secos y puede incluir otros sabores o chocolate. El turrón en esta foto es de tipo duro y tiene almendras (y da la casualidad que es mi tipo favorito). Segundo, los polvorones. Son galletas migajosas que puede ser dulces o salados y llevan muy bien con un café con leche. Los dos tipos son dulces tradicionales para navidad, pero me encantaría comerlos en cualquier día. =)

Easter Brunch

My family and I had Easter Brunch together yesterday. Here's what was on the menu (my mom's ideas!):

• panzanella-stuffed cherry tomatoes
• three grain rye bread squares with salmon and dill cream cheese

• breakfast casserole adapted from this Eating Well recipe
  
• sage breakfast sausages
• roasted asparagus with herbed yogurt sauce
  
• minted orzo with feta

• hot cross buns from Red Hen
  
• blueberry cake
• fresh cantaloupe and oranges
  

No-Knead Sweet Rolls

Have you ever had a craving for sweet dinner rolls, but don't have hours to work with a labor-intensive dough? I found a recipe for Blue Ribbon Overnight Rolls, and they've become a favorite among my roommates. I've made a few changes to the recipe, so here it is!

No-Knead Sweet Rolls

Ingredients:

2 1/4 teaspoons of active dry yeast (or one packet)
1 cup warm whole milk
1/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup light brown sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 cups all-purpose flour

1. Mix together yeast, warm milk and sugars. Set aside for 30 minutes.
2. Add eggs, melted butter, and salt.
3. Mix in the flour, one cup at a time, until dough is well combined.
4. Cover bowl with plastic wrap or a damp towel for at least 3 hours. (You can even let it stand overnight.)
5. Divide the dough into 16-24 even pieces. (You can either divide the dough in half and follow the steps illustrated below, or divide the dough into 16-24 pieces and roll each into a ball.)
6. Bake at 375 for 10-15 minutes, until golden brown.

return of the raw apple cake :: reaparición de la tarta de manzanas "crudas"

One of my favorite easy cakes... Check out the recipe here.
***
Una de mis tartas favoritas y fáciles. Haz clic aquí para ver la receta en inglés.

apple dutch baby :: crep horneado de manzana

adventures in Ukrainian cuisine :: aventuras de la cocina ucraniana

When I studied last year in Madrid, I lived with a Ukrainian/Long Island girl. Since Nat and I lived with a family, we weren't able to cook our own food. Therefore, I heard a lot about Ukrainian food, but wasn't able to taste a bite! Over winter break, we headed back to Spain for a few weeks. Since we were flying out of JFK, I spent a few days at her house on either of the trip. These few days were my introduction to (and the source of a budding obsession with) Ukrainian food.

While I was staying at my roommate's house, I enjoyed muliple bowls of borscht, delicious sauteed mushrooms in a silky sour cream sauce, and many servings of "Russian" salad (or Ukrainian salad, if you prefer).

The week after we returned from Spain, I embarked on my own adventures, creating pot after pot of borscht (although my version is quite a bit darker than that of Nat's mom), and numerous bowls of Russian salad. My biggest obsession, however, is the mushroom dish. I cannot get enough of them!

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Cuando estudié en Madrid el año pasado, viví con una chica ucraniana que vive en Long Island, en Nueva York. A causa de que vivimos con una familia española, no pudimos cocinarnos ningún tipo de comida. Por eso, supe mucho de comida ucraniana, pero no pude saborear ni un bocadito. Pero... durante las vacaciones de Navidad, nos fuimos otra vez a España para pasar un par de semanas. Esta vez, como viajamos por el aeropuerto JFK en Nueva York, pude pasar un par de días en la casa de mi compañera, ambos antes y después de estar en España. Durante esos días me introducieron a (y fueron la obsesión con) comida ucraniana.

Cuando estuve en su casa, tomé muchos boles de borscht (una sopa famosa de Ucrania y Rusia), un plato delicioso de champiñones (salteados y con una salsa suave de crema agria) y muchos bocados de ensaladilla rusia (o ensaladilla ucraniana, si se quiera).

Durante la semana despues de regresando, empecé con mis propias aventuras en la cocina, cocinando ollas y ollas de borscht (aunque mi versión parece más oscura que la de la madre de Nat) y haciendo boles innumerables de ensaladilla ucraniana. Sin embargo, mi obsesión principal son los champiñones. Parece que no puedo tomar bastante. =)


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Nat's mom's amazing borscht :: Bol de borscht de la madre de Nat















My own borscht :: Mi propia receta de borscht















My own Russian salad :: Mi propia ensaladilla rusia

a new toy :: un juguete nuevo

I realize that it's a bit late to be writing about this, but for my birthday last October, my roommates gave me a gift certificate to Williams-Sonoma. I spent part of my gift on a Primo Milk Frother, a handheld tool that runs on batteries and helps create the perfect latte or mochaccino. It also makes a deliciously frothy hot cocoa (as shown in the photo below).

(It's been a while since my last post, and I apologize. This is my first après-wrist-surgery post, and there are many more to come!)

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Me doy cuenta que está un poco tarde para mencionarlo, pero durante el octubre pasado mis compañeras de casa me dieron un vale-regalo de Williams-Sonoma (una tienda americana de productos de la concina y de la casa). Con mi vale-regalo, compré un Primo Milk Frother, un instrumento de mano que funciona con pillas y se ayuda a crear el café latte o mochaccino perfecto. También se ayuda a crear un chocolate de la taza (de estilo americano) delicioso y espumoso (como se puede ver debajo).

(Siento que hace mucho tiempo desde mi última entrada. Es la primera entrada después de la cirugía de muñeca y hay muchas entradas más que vienen.)

Good Food & Good Talk

A few weeks back, a friend and I were in serious need of good dishes and good dishing. We were short on time, so I started with storebought pizza dough, layered on slices of juicy plum tomatoes, chopped (canned) artichoke hearts, caramelized onions, slices of creamy smoked mozzarella, and grated parmesan and kasseri cheeses. I topped the whole thing off with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and a few cracks of fresh black pepper.

Here's the pizza before finding it's way to the oven...



















The pizza after a few minutes of intense heat...














I served it up with a Greek-style salad of mesclun, tomatoes, cukes, and feta, all dressed in extra virgin olive oil, aged balsamic vinegar, smoked salt, cracked black pepper, and a sprinkling of Herbes de Provence.

Going beyond chocolates & flowers...

Have you ever seen those commercials for Edible Arrangements and wondered if they're really all they're cracked up to be? Let me be the first to tell you, if you're getting one from the Burlington location, they are! I had always wondered what they were like, and I guess at some point I mentioned that while watching their commercial. For Valentine's Day this year, my boy picked me up one of these. The fruit was fresh, perfectly arranged, and overall -- delicious! For a fruithead like me, it really ranks in the top ten gifts.

Where Not to Eat :: Asian Bistro

I don't often make negative references to places that I've been, but something stuck out the other night when I was eating dinner. My boy and I had decided to go out for a dinner date, and we chose Asian Bistro (121 Connor Way, Williston, VT) since we had been wanting to try it out.

Our dinner started out with mixed shrimp and vegetable tempura for $6 (since we are both nuts about tempura). The batter was nicely done and in general, the appetizer portion of the meal was pretty delicious. However, after tasting the rest of the meal, I was a bit mad about the tempura, as it had given us false hope.

I opted for one of the chef's specialties: Crispy Scallops ($13.50). The menu described it as "scallops with honey glazed walnuts in a crispy crepe w/ spicy onion sauce on the side," but that's not quite what I got. First of all, I think "crispy crepe" is referring to the batter, which was quite raw-tasting and didn't have a hint of salt nor pepper. The spicy onion sauce consisted of about 1.5 cups of sickly-sweet but slightly odd-tasting teriyaki sauce. The scallops did not taste fresh and had an unappetizing mouth feel. After talking with friends and doing a little research, I'm guessing they weren't "scallops" in the first place, but rather some off-tasting shark meat cut into scallop-sized pieces. The honey glazed walnuts were a huge disconnect, and just thrown on top of the "scallops", which were in a greasy taco-salad-type fried tortilla bowl.

My boy also (unfortunately) chose a chef's specialty called Chicken with Honey Walnut ($11.50). It was described as "chicken crisp-sauteed in a tangy white cream sauce and topped with honeyeyed walnuts". Firstly, it was fried, not sauteed, and the batter tasted exactly like every other cheap Chinese restaurant's sweet & sour chicken. This batter was seasoned and without the sauce, the chicken wasn't bad. However, this "cream sauce" was clearly nowhere near cream at any point in it's short life. In the first bite, I was overwhelmed by the taste of mayonaise and my boy pointed out that it also tasted quite a bit like mustard. I don't know what else was in the sauce, but one bite was more than what I needed. Again, there were walnuts on the plate, which made no sense. Maybe they would have been alright with a cream sauce, but there was no cream sauce to be found.

After all, I would rate this meal "pretty terrible". It would have been "awful" were it not for the tempura. And, oddly enough, the honeyed (or "honeyeyed") walnuts, though disconnected from the rest of both plates, were the only enjoyable things on them. However, there are not enough walnuts in the world to make this $40 meal worth it.

As I said before, I don't often write about negative food experiences in detail, but today I spoke with a number of people that had similar experiences. One person visited the restaurant the same night that I did and had both bad food and a rude waitperson. Another person mentioned that they had only eaten there once and would not eat there again, due to the food-borne illness that resulted.

All in all, I will never set food in this establishment again, nor their Winooski location. It ranks in my top five worst Asian food experiences. I would not recommend this restaurant to anyone, friend or foe. Save your money (and your stomach) and go somewhere else.

Oversized Strawberry!

My favorite homework snack lately has been a bowl of juicy green grapes and strawberries. It's the perfect pick-me-up between hours of productions management math problems and hours of business-plan-planning. All was normal until one day when I stumbled upon this gigantic strawberry! I just had to take some photos. Check it out...

My delicious bowl of fruity goodness!














The gigantic strawberry next to a normal strawberry!














And just for size comparison...

Kat's Kolby

Back in July of '08, I made a tiny wheel of mixed milk (sheep & cow) colby cheese. It spent from July to mid-October in a cave, aging away with other cheeses. The result was good -- kind of sharp, a little tangy, and awesome for grating over pasta or adding to baked mac & cheese. I should have made more!

beef stew over mashed potatoes

My mom introduced me to this Cooking Light recipe last month: it's a delicious beef stew, and instead of adding the potatoes to the stew, the stew is served over creamy and slightly smokey mashed potatoes (I added in a bit of Maldon smoked sea salt). The grassfed stew beef is from Willow Hill Farm (my mom said it's the leanest beef she's ever seen) and you can find the recipe for the stew here.

Stuffed Cupcakes for my Valentine

This year, I made some cupcakes inspired by these, except I made them more Valentine's Day friendly by adding CHOCOLATE!

I stuffed devil's food cupcakes with strawberries, and frosted them with vanilla buttercream.









































A new outlook on chocolate-covered strawberries. =)