May 29, 2012
One of the thing that made its way back from Seattle with me is a lovely loaf of Yukon Gold Potato bread from the Three Girls Bakery at Pike Place Market (post about that trip coming up). The bread was delicious with just unsalted butter but I wanted to grill it so I made this tomato-basil panini with fresh ricotta in a grill pan on top of the stove and served it with a little... View Article
May 28, 2012
Still on the risotto adventure, although intermittent postings. Check out basic risotto here. Essentially the same as the basic risotto recipe but with a little more lemon juice and pine nuts added. Simple, nice and refreshing. Use this recipe to build on flavours by adding seasonal vegetables and herbs that you like. Ingredients: 3 tablespoons butter 1/2 small onion, or 1 shallot, minced 1 cup Arborio rice 1/3 cup white wine 4 cups stock (chicken... View Article
May 27, 2012
I don’t know about you but I am always in the mood for a good potato salad. It is easy to make and hardly requires a recipe but most people get into the routine of making it one way and leave it at that. Why? Potatoes are relatively neutral and can be combined with so many different ingredients and dressings. It’s fun (isn’t it?) to try new ways of making the familiar and much loved... View Article
May 25, 2012
A light yet substantial salad to serve for lunch or take along on a picnic or a spring boat ride. Quinoa cooks very quickly so you can whip up this salad in no time (I like to have cooked quinoa in the fridge, it keeps for a couple of days and can be used for a salad). To roast the yellow cauliflower just separate into small florets, toss with some olive oil and roast on... View Article
May 23, 2012
Our friend Randy just came back from Germany with a few pictures of spring restaurant dishes that he shared with me. One was a fabulous looking white radish salad served with a couple of slices of crusty country bread that looked inspiring. Of course I immediately headed to the market here in Kelowna and my fridge right now looks like a radish patch. I bought radishes of all kinds and colours, lots of them, including... View Article
May 23, 2012
Here is the third instalment in the risotto “series”. See Basic Risotto Here and Spring Asparagus Risotto here. I decided to break the “series” up a bit so it’s not all risotto because I have been cooking so many other fun things and eager to share them on the blog. So, back to risotto. Once you have made a basic risotto, adding other ingredients to it can be fun and creative. Think about what is in... View Article
May 23, 2012
Cauliflower, just like the name suggests, is a large flower belonging to the cruciferous vegetable family (think broccoli, cabbage etc). The standard cauliflower is white, resulting from the flower being hidden by the leaves wrapped around it, preventing sunlight from reaching it and making it green through photosynthesis (photosynthesis produces green chlorophyl pigment making veggies green) . It also comes in orange, purple and green colours, the result of mutation. I use it mostly during... View Article
May 22, 2012
Have you joined the quinoa “club” yet? It seems that every now and then a new trend takes over the culinary world and everyone starts cooking it. Quinoa is one such phenomenon. Quinoa looks like a grain but in fact it is a seed passed on to us through the ancient Inca culture. It’s known as the super seed and its claim to fame is the fact that it is gluten free and protein rich. In... View Article
May 21, 2012
Second instalment in the risotto “series”. Here is a special spring treat – combining asparagus and risotto for a lovely lunch or dinner. Risotto lends itself to many flavours. You can add vegetables to the risotto as it cooks, or add cooked vegetables to it at the end, when it is almost done. In this recipe I add the asparagus about half way through the cooking to allow the grains and asparagus to finish cooking... View Article
May 18, 2012
Who doesn’t like potato salad? I make a few different kinds: my mother’s recipe with just mayo, carrots, and pickles, my mother-in-law’s with hard boiled eggs, an Italian one with olive oil and vinegar and a French one with wine, olive oil, red onion and shallots. Here is my recipe for the French potato salad. The wine replaces the vinegar in the Italaian version of this salad.You need to use waxy, not starchy potatoes so... View Article
May 17, 2012
Traditionally fennel is paired with orange and there are many salad recipes combining these two ingredients with various dressings. While tradition is important, so is innovation. Here is a salad combining fennel with another citrus, grapefruit this time, and a touch of exotic with a few slices of fresh mango I picked up at the Asian market the other day. I made different versions of this salad a few times while working on my salad... View Article
May 16, 2012
Filo pastry is very versatile and easy to use. It’s true that you need to work reasonably fast to prevent the filo sheets from drying, but placing a lightly wet towel over them helps keeping them moist. Filo sheets are stacked one on top of the other, about 6 sheets per roll, and then the filling is placed on the edge and the filo is rolled up, jelly roll style, encasing the filling. You need... View Article
