When I last went to Hawaii, I made it a personal goal to eat my weight in kalua pork. Yes, that sounds disgusting, but I don’t even care. The stuff is so ridiculously good that I find myself longing for it in an almost atavistic fashion when I am not around it. I’ve known it to be a treat partially due to the complicated preparation – a whole pig is wrapped in ti leaves and banana leaves and then submerged into an underground pit called an imu and covered with coals and/or lava rocks. Sure, I could do that in my back yard. In Arizona.
Back to the drawing board, and as I’m looking through my We The Women of Hawaii cookbook, lo and behold, a recipe for kalua pork. In the oven, no less. I can do this! Apparently, after a little more research, I come to find out that the legendary Sam Choy makes his kalua pork in the same way, using mesquite liquid smoke to replace the flavors imparted by the burning banana leaves of the imu. But how the heck am I going to mimic banana leaves in my home oven? Continue reading Kalua Pork→
Sashimi lovers, this one is for you. The combination of meltingly tender ahi tuna with soy and sesame is a dream. And it couldn’t be simpler to make – the key is tracking down a killer piece of tuna that is so fresh, it still wants to slap you in the face with a fin. Ok, maybe not that fresh, but you don’t want to go cheap on this one. The tuna is the absolute star. Continue reading Ahi Tuna Poke→
For all the folks out there claiming that vegetarian and vegan food has to be boring, falafel is a giant nanny-nanny-boo-boo in their direction. These delicately spiced fritters made of chickpeas are toothsome and filling, leaving even the most dedicated meat eaters feeling as if they’ve got all that they need in front of them.
The name of this recipe came from my sister who demanded that I make a sandwich called a “Mother Stuffer.” In that she is a vegetarian (and most of the time a raw vegan at that), I had to make a concoction that proved that, much like her, veggies are non-stop fun. This pita is no exception – half the fun of falafel is assembling your pita yourself with your favorite toppings, so feel free to use any combination of pickles, peppers and hot sauce that you’d like. Food is ALWAYS more fun when you can make it your own. Continue reading Mother Stuffin’ Falafel Pita with Spicy Tahini Dressing→
Nothing says summertime majesty like a tender fish filet in crisp, lacy batter, slathered in luscious tartar sauce. Correction: nothing says the perfect time of year like the aforementioned fish. A good piece of halibut, carefully breaded and fried, is a welcome addition year-round assuming that I can get my hands on some.
The secret ingredient that makes this recipe sing is the caper aioli – a homemade mayonnaise enlivened with capers, cocktail onions, tarragon and lemon, this condiment tastes of a majesty so great that one would think that you slaved over the stuff. But that’s not the case. Pop the ingredients into the blender and whirr away until the mixture thickens to absolute perfection. Continue reading Crispy Halibut Po’boy with Caper Aioli→
It’d be selling them short to claim eggs as my favorite breakfast food, as that leaves out all of the other meals where eggs win my heart. Sure, I can appreciate a fluffy waffle or sugar-dusted french toast. But if eggs are one of the options, all other sweet delights are off the table. It’s eggs for me 100%.
Though I’ve yet to meet an egg that I didn’t like, there is something about perfectly scrambled eggs in sandwich form that makes me grin bigger than Christmas morning. This sandwich gilds the proverbial lily by adding tender steak to the party, and ups the egg quotient with a piquant topping of jalapeno hollandaise (made in the blender for quick and easy eating). Yes, darlings, this one is trouble. And the best kind of trouble you can get in to, no less. Comfort-food noshing, hangover staving off, one-on-one private time with you and your breakfast a la Hall & Oates kind of trouble. You know exactly what I’m talking about, so don’t even pretend. Continue reading Steak and Egg Sandwich with Jalapeno Hollandaise→
The October Daring Cooks’ Challenge was hosted by Shelley of C Mom Cook and her sister Ruth of The Crafts of Mommyhood. They challenged us to bring a taste of the East into our home kitchens by making our own Moo Shu, including thin pancakes, stir fry and sauce.
I’m totally mad for moo shu and I think that what does it is the inclusion of the awful sounding (but awfully addictively good) tree fungus. Tender pork, spicy ginger and matchsticks of bamboo shoots all solidify the greatness, but it’s the ebony slivers of the tree fungus that make me crazy with delight over this one. I’m known to pitch an actual fit over my chinese takeout if the moo shu order comes with white button mushrooms as a substitute. Blech. Not cool. Continue reading Moo Shu Pork with Homemade Pancakes→
Recipe for The Daring Kitchen
Peta, of the blog Peta Eats, was our lovely hostess for the Daring Cook’s September 2011 challenge, Stock to Soup to Consommé. We were taught the meaning between the three dishes, how to make a crystal clear consommé if we so chose to do so, and encouraged to share our own delicious soup recipes!
This simply stunner of a recipe is perfect when you want to impress the socks (shoes, ties, belts, you name it) off your guests. The flavors sing the praises of autumn, but upon first sip, you’ll notice that the soup is as light as air and almost reminiscent of spring. It’s the kind of ethereal taste that makes you feel as if the chef slaved for hours and hours perfectly balancing flavors and textures. And yet, as you’ll see in the steps below, you couldn’t ask for a more simple or straightforward process.
This recipe comes to us from the extraordinary Devaki Das, a fellow food blogger and lover of global cuisine. You can read more about her in this interview, and visit her site for myriad drool-worthy recipes at Weave a Thousand Flavors. Just promise me that if you cook any of her food, invite me over for dinner. She is a master of her craft! Continue reading Dev’s Roasted Apple, Brie & Thyme Soup→
Today’s guest post is coming at you straight from NYC courtesy of my good friend Arber. We met under non-culinary circumstances during my time as the master of web goodness at The City College of New York. I had the dubious honor of serving as the advisor for his student organization, a cluster of entrepreneurs, programmers and designers who created the brilliant website, In Your Class.com. Funnily, in order to get their student organization up and running as quickly as possible, they found it easier to take over an already established group rather that go through the appeals process to create a new one. Thus, although I am out and out Brazilian/Italian/African-American, I soon discovered that I was the newest advisor to the Albanian Students Organization. The founders (Arber included) were all Albanian, so to prove my mettle, I showed them all I learned from Wikipedia about Albania and had them fill me in on the rest of the important details. I adored the multiculturalism mixed with the laughs, and was totally honored that they asked me to be their advisor in the first place. Continue reading Classic Mussels with White Wine and Herbs→
Recipe for The Daring Kitchen
When I first learned about The Daring Kitchen, I was excited to join a group that would provide me with monthly culinary inspiration. This month’s assignment (and my very first with TDK) was created by Steph from Stephfood, our Daring Cooks’ July hostess. Steph challenged us to make homemade noodles without the help of a motorized pasta machine. She provided us with recipes for Spätzle and Fresh Egg Pasta as well as a few delicious sauces to pair our noodles with! Steph also encouraged us to make noodles that celebrated our culinary heritage. See Full Gnocchi Feast Menu
Authentic-tasting gnocchi are a tall order, but inspired by the charm and panache of the Franks (Falcinelli and Castronovo) of Frankie’s Sputino in Brooklyn, everyone is an expert Italian chef. Although this recipe was a part of my goal to make four gnocchi dishes for The Daring Kitchen, the preparation of the dish proved hardly a challenge. And not because the fickle gnocchi gods* were smiling at me that day, but rather that this recipe must be the master recipe for the most perfect gnocchi. In the amount of time that it took me to boil a pot of water and futz around with a marinara sauce, I had a dough that was pliant, smooth and gorgeous. A little effortless rolling and cutting resulted in photo-ready dumplings. And a quick trip into a jacuzzi of water yielded gnocchi that tasted of heaven. Where were the Franks grandmas so that I could kiss them on both cheeks and throw my hands up in the air? Continue reading Potato Gnocchi alla Sorrentina→
Recipe for The Daring Kitchen
When I first learned about The Daring Kitchen, I was excited to join a group that would provide me with monthly culinary inspiration. This month’s assignment (and my very first with TDK) was created by Steph from Stephfood, our Daring Cooks’ July hostess. Steph challenged us to make homemade noodles without the help of a motorized pasta machine. She provided us with recipes for Spätzle and Fresh Egg Pasta as well as a few delicious sauces to pair our noodles with! Steph also encouraged us to make noodles that celebrated our culinary heritage. See Full Gnocchi Feast Menu
Malfatti, despite the aggressive name (“poorly made” in Italian) are a revelation. I first tasted these babies at a restaurant off of the Piazza del Campo in Siena. Trying to get away from the tourist traps lining the heart of the city, we stumbled into Serafino’s, a small family restaurant run by the daper patriarch of the place, Serafino himself. We made fast friends with the owner/head chef and fell in love with his culinary prowess. Sampling the malfatti, dumplings made of spinach and ricotta held together by sheer will, I knew that we’d stumbled upon something special. How the hell were they made? Continue reading Malfatti with Bolognese→
