Dedicated to my Mom and to Lucile F. Locher Mishler “Mum”, her maternal grandmother.

Traditional Fruitcake

Ingredients:
2 cups mixed Dried Fruits, minced
1 cup Rum
1 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
1 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Nutmeg
1 tsp Ginger
3/4 cup Granulated Sugar
3/4 cup Brown Sugar
5 Eggs
3 Tbsp Canola Oil
1/4 cup Rum
1 Tbsp Lemon Zest
1 Tbsp Orange Zest
1/2 cup Pecans, chopped
1 cup Pecans, whole
1 cup Candied Red Cherries
1 cup Candied Green Cherries
1 cup Candied Pineapple

Directions:

• Soak the minced Dried Fruits in 1 cup of Rum overnight.
• Preheat the Oven to 300°F.
• Sift together the Flour, Baking Powder, Salt, and Spices into a large bowl.
• In a second bowl cream the Eggs with the Sugars.
• Whisk in the Olive Oil and 1/4 cup Dark Rum.
• Slowly incorporate into the Flour mixture.
• Fold in the Dried Fruits, Zest, and 1/2 cup of crushed Pecans.
• Grease a bunt pan well.
• Pour mixture into the bunt pan, and lightly tap it against the counter.
• Decorate with the Candied Fruits and whole Pecans.
• Bake on the middle rack for about 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in it comes out clean.

NOTES: Fruitcake has always been one of my favorite deserts.  My mom tells me about how when she grew up her grandmother “Mum” used to make Fruitcake in early fall, and stick it in cheesecloth a tin.  Every couple weeks she’d pour Port on top of it.  By Christmas it was amazing.  I’m still nervous about keeping a cake in a tin and pouring alcohol on it for over a month…so here’s my version with a less pungent Rum.

Mixed Dried Fruit can include Cranberries, Raisins, Dates, Figs, Apricots, Apples, Pears, Pruns, etc.

My parents recently enjoyed this soup at a JW Marriot in Michigan.  They requested the recipe and surprisingly their server brought out a printed copy for them.  With our crop share came a large batch of carrots, perfect timing for me to try this soup.

Original Recipe

• 4 oz Sweet Onion
• 3 oz Leek
• 6 lbs Carrots,  3 lbs juiced & 3 lbs chopped
• 1/2 oz Ginger Root
• 1/2 oz Garlic
• 2 t Honey
• 2 Quarts Chicken Stock
• 1 Quart Vegetable Stock
• S&P

1. Juice half of the carrots needed and set aside.
2. Rough chop all vegetables (carrots, onion, and leeks) to similar size.
3. Sweat the carrots in olive oil, then add the onion and sauté together.  Add the leeks after the onion water starts to break, season.
4. Add the garlic and ginger and sauté just until fragrant.
5. Add the honey and caramelize it around vegetables.
6. Deglaze with stock and add seasoning again, simmer until carrots and tender and the flavor is properly developed.
7. Puree and strain.  Adjust consistency if needed and season.
8. Label, date, and refrigerate.

I pretty much followed the directions except no chicken stock just veggie stock and I used more ginger then the recipe calls for.  I made this soup a couple days in advance so I added the carrot juice right before refrigerating; I only wanted it to be heated up once.  The soup was delicious but next time I’ll stick to using less ginger, it takes very little to overpower the carrots.  Also I didn’t strain the soup after blending and I roasted a fennel bulb to serve on top of the soup which was a perfect compliment.  (Use agave instead of honey for a vegan approach).

Ingredients

Carrots, Onions, and Leeks

Blended Soup & Carrot Juice (not mixed)

Soup with Slices of Roasted Fennel

]]> http://killerdelicious.wordpress.com/2009/11/26/the-pumpkin-pie-that-ate-my-afternoon/ Fri, 27 Nov 2009 04:53:10 +0000 kimberlyksmith http://killerdelicious.wordpress.com/2009/11/26/the-pumpkin-pie-that-ate-my-afternoon/

I had no idea it would take so long, but somehow this year’s Thanksgiving pumpkin pie took hours and hours to make. You know how it goes. First you have to find all the ingredients. Then clear a space in the kitchen, which wasn’t easy — Alan and Abby were killer-delicious-cooking up a Thanksgiving feast. I needed to make the pie crust from scratch. Alan was all over it — he pulled out the Cuisinart, measured up the flour and boom, pie dough, that was easy. But then he gave me the news: “This needs to chill for an hour before you can roll it out.” An hour. Okay. As you can imagine, my clear spot on the counter got filled up in an hour and then I had to clear it off again, wash it, dry it and make room to roll out the pie crust. I found the rolling pin, and then Alan said “Want me to do it?” I could tell by the look in his eye that he really wanted to do it, so okay, I let him do it. Then he tells me about the next delay: “We need to fill this with beans and bake it until it’s brown.” Beans? Fill it with beans? What was Alan up to, I wondered. Next thing I knew he had cut out some pastry paper and lined the pie crust and filled it with dried beans and into the oven it went. I kept checking on it but it seemed like it took a really long time to get brown. I guess the beans help the crust stay nice and flat because it turned out perfect.

In the meantime, I opened the canned pumpkin filling and put it in a mixing bowl. Then I went for the spices: ground cinnamon, cloves and ground ginger — guess what? I couldn’t find these ingredients. Dilemma. I kept digging around in the cabinet and came up with cinnamon sticks and whole cloves, and Alan helped me grind these into powder. And the result was really powerful spice, fresh and aromatic, much better than the ground stuff that comes in a jar. As for the ground ginger, no luck, but we did have some candied ginger pieces. Alan chopped it up into small pieces and we threw that in too. The recipe called for some eggs and a can of sweetened condensed milk and then stir.

While I wasn’t looking, Alan started whipping it violently with a whisk! “HEY — it says to stir gently!” I said. Oh well, it’s done now, let’s just see what happens. Pumpkin pie went into the oven again for another 45 minutes. Well let me tell you, it was the best pumpkin pie EVAH! Light and fluffy, with the ginger and the clove flavors really coming through, and a perfectly flaky crust. Topped with a dollop of Cool Whip, man, it was killer delicious. It may have taken all afternoon, but it was worth it, I kid you not. And Alan let me take the credit for baking this amazing pumpkin pie even though he did almost all of the work. Shhh, it’ll be our little secret.

Here’s the recipe, in case you want to try it yourself.

Pumpkin Pie

1   15 oz. can organic pumpkin
1 cinnamon stick ground to a powder
1/2 tsp cloves ground to a powder
1 tbsp candied ginger finely chopped
1/2 tsp sea salt
1   14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
2 eggs
1   9″ pie shell

Prepare your pie shell. Mix pumpkin and spices together. Add the rest of the filling ingredients. Whip with a whisk until it’s frothy. Pour into pie shell. bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes, then 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes. You can serve it cool or warm, and it’s especially yummy with a dollop of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream on top. Serves 6 – 8.

This recipe comes from my sister who made them and raved about them and didn’t save me one!  I had a bit of trouble getting the dough to come together and while it was mixing I added in 2-3 tbsp of milk.  The dough was still difficult to roll after it had been chilled and I’m thinking next time I may roll and cut the cookies without chilling the dough and then pop the pan in the freezer for a few minutes before baking.

Chocolate Gingersnap Christmas Stars

• 2/3 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 3 oz milk chocolate, melted and cooled
• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
•  1 tbsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2-3 tbsp of milk (use as needed)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Sift the dry ingredients (excluding sugar)  together in a bowl and set aside.

Cream butter and sugar together, add molasses and chocolate and vanilla.

Mix in the dry ingredients and milk (if needed) until dough comes together.

Pat into two discs and wrap in plastic wrap.  Let chill for 30 minutes

Roll out to 1/8″ thick and cut with cookie cutters.

Sprinkle with sugar if desired.

Bake 7 minutes

There's gonna be a sequel!!

The Lohan family’s media appetite is almost at Gosselin-like levels, and all of their attention is LOL-riffic!

First things first, the Ungaro/Lindsay fashion chronicles continue. There has been a lot of “he-said-she-said” with regards to Lohan’s job security at Ungaro. You’d think this would be a no-brainer for the HR department, what with the half naked models their celebutant consultant sent down the runway only months ago. According to People Magazine, though, the label’s President and Chief Executive, Mounir Moufarrige, contends that Lindsay still “has a job to do.” Oh goodie, I can’t wait for round two! We’ll have to wait till next season to see what kind of horrific mess Lohan cooks up for the fashion house.

I know it’s Thanksgiving, but it must be a really slow news day for celebrity journalists. People Magazine’s lead online story details exactly how the Lohans will be spending the holiday. Dina makes sure nothing goes up in smoke and the eldest daughter comes home for the feast–big deal. Who cares? Doesn’t sound like anything special to me! You can read all the (not so) juicy details here. While you’re on the website, perhaps you can leave some constructive criticism for the reporters working this week.

I saved the best for last: check out these hilarious photos of the Lohans helping the hungry! Perez is right on–totally a publicity stunt. And what’s more, I didn’t even recognize little Lohan with that God-awful hair cut–what was she thinking?!

My sister’s favorite cake. This cake is super moist and chewy like brownies. The frosting uses crystallized ginger to add a spicy kick to traditional cream cheese.

For the cake:      

1 stick butter, softened
1 1/2 Cups raw sugar
4 eggs
1 TB vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
2 14oz cans pumpkin
1 TB baking powder
1 Cup tapioca flour
3 Cups rice flour

Whip butter and sugar together until fluffy. Beat in eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and pumpkin. Incorporate fully. Slowly add baking powder and flours. Mix until uniform. Don’t be afraid to over mix. It’s just not possible.

Bake in 2 well greased and floured 8 inch cake pans in a 375 degree F oven for 30-40, until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.

Cool cakes well.

For Frosting:

Ginger Frosting

1 stick butter at room temperature
1 8oz block of cream cheese at room temperature
1/3 Cup crystallized ginger, pureed
2+ Cups powdered sugar

Ginger purees well in a food processor. The bits should be the size of a quinoa kernels. Whip into butter and cream cheese. Whip until plenty of air is incorporated. Begin whipping in sugar 1/2 Cup at a time. Adjust your sugar to the stiffness you prefer. About 2 Cups is creamy and not too sweet.

To assemble cake:

Put a few dots of icing on the cake plate to help the cake stay put. Place the bottom layer in the center of the cake plate. Put 1/4 of the frosting on the top of this layer.

Sprinkle with walnut pieces, about 1/2 Cup.

Walnut Filling

I like cakes with a “fillings” of any sort between the layers. Anyone can slap some frosting in there, but a fun filling like nuts or dried fruit… whole new game!

Place layer two on top of walnuts. Frost the rest of the cake carefully. The frosting has bits of ginger in it, so it has a nice speckled look that is very forgiving of a few cake crumbs getting mixed in. It’ll look like a pro-iced confection even if you’re cake experience stops at the box.

In light of my great respect for the fine art of Kaiseki, Yuki’s mom decided that she wanted to take me out for another style. That woman loves me! Frankly, I can’t blame her. At any rate, a friend of hers had recommended Ushiyama in the Meguro neighborhood of Tokyo, so we gave it a shot last night. And what a shot it was! Slam dunk!

It started off with a plate of carrots, shiitake, and mibuna with grated apple. Who would have thought of putting grated apple on mushrooms? Ushiyama, that’s who. I’m damn he did, it was amazing!

After that came a dish of four. I ate them clockwise from bottom left. Ama ebi (sweet shrimp), raw sardines with thinly sliced onion that’s been soaked in cold water to remove the sharpness, warm salted ginko nuts skewered on pine needles on top of seitan (wheat gluten) cakes on top of grilled sweet potato that was shaped like a ginko leaf, and uni in a lily blossom. No, I did not eat the maple leaf in the center of the plate nor the pine needles.

Next was the soup course. I heavily bonito flaked dashi broth that was nice and smokey with a rinkon (lotus root) and mochi dumpling and a bok choy leaf with some yuzu zest. It ranks right up there with the best soups I’ve ever eaten, next to the one I ate a few years ago at Iron Chef Michiba’s restaurant.

After the soup course was the sashimi course. It consisted of suzuki (sea bass), melt-in-your-mouth tuna, and ika (squid). It must be ika season because the ika I’ve eaten on this trip is by far the softest and sweetest I’ve ever had.

Then they served us home-made soba noodles in a light soy-dashi with some thinly sliced negi (green onions) on top. I’m telling you, there is absolutely nothing like top quality freshly made soba noodles. I don’t know if I can go back to store-bought dried soba when I get home. I mean, of course I can, but it just won’t be the same. So chewy and clean tasting.

Next up was the grilled course. Sawara (a cousin of the spanish mackerel) grilled with yuzu-miso and served with yuzu-miso konnyaku and daikon that was cut into a flower with a small slice of red pepper. I’ve never had yuzu-miso before, I’m a huge fan!

After that was the simmered course which was kinmedai (splendid alfonsino) in a ginger sauce. It was served with spinach and daikon radish with chawanmushi in the middle.

For the fried course we got a dish with some tempura. Shishito pepper and ebi imo (a kind of yam) served in a light dashi with momiji oroshi and chopped chives.

Then came the rice and miso course. The rice was a glutinous rice with chirimenjako (baby sardines simmered in saltwater, dried in the sun, and covered in a sweet soy marinade), sliced shiso, and served on top of a cherry leaf. The miso had mizuna greens in it. There was also some lightly pickled cucumber and daikon on the side (yes Nick, I even ate the pickles!).

Finally, for dessert we got sweet potato mousse. It was so soft and lightly sweet, it was really more like a light sweet potato cheesecake. Served with a sweet potato chip on top.

This Kaiseki was Kyoto-style which is considered to be the most sophisticated and delicate of all styles. Hard to argue as the food was simply magnificent! Plus, all of that food for only $50 per person! I challenge anyone to find a deal half that good for a meal of that quality prepared with that caliber anywhere in the states. Thanks so much for bringing me here Tamiko!!!

Alta cocina a bajo coste

Leer la entrada completa »

Pumpkin, cinnamon, ginger. Those three words conjure up feelings of warmth, festivities and deliciousness. Take those three ingredients and make a crème brûlée with them — and you’ll have a dessert that’s just plain sublime!

Even before the first bite, the sound of the crust cracking with the back of the spoon instantly makes the mouth water in anticipation of the contrast between the crunchy-sweet caramel and the silky-smooth custard. Then each spoonful is pure heaven, best eaten as unhurriedly as one can.

I find crème brûlée to be a perfect dinner party dessert, and I have many different versions for every season of the year. But during the holidays, making them with freshly baked sugar pumpkins is an extraordinary treat. The creaminess of the pumpkin purée only accentuates the inherent smoothness of the custard. The ginger and cinnamon tantalize the taste buds and linger beautifully until you cannot resist and must take another bite.

Simple, elegant and totally scrumptious, this pumpkin crème brûlée is sure to make your holiday dinner party a memorable one.

Viviane’s tip: Contrary to what many people believe, crème brûlée is not hard to make. The custard base is simple to prepare; all you’ll need is to keep an eye on them so they don’t overbake. Crème brûlée can be prepared up to two days ahead — a huge plus when planning a holiday party. The caramel crust, however, needs to be made 15 to 30 minutes before you serve the custards. I highly recommend buying a kitchen torch. It’ll make the job infinitely easier and will yield perfect results.

Pumpkin Crème Brûlée with Fresh Ginger and Cinnamon

serves 6

3/4 cup pumpkin purée
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons finely grated fresh ginger root (use a microplane grater)
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup whole milk
5 large egg yolks
1/3 cup organic sugar
pinch sea salt

2 tablespoons organic sugar for the caramelized crust
6 – 4oz ramequins

Preheat oven to 300°F.
Step 1: Place the pumpkin purée, ginger and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Whisk until well blended. Set aside.
Step 2: Heat the cream and milk in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. When the liquid has reached boiling point remove from heat and set aside.
Step 3: In the bowl of an electric mixer, whip the egg yolks, sugar and salt at high speed, until the mixture is very pale and ribbony, about 2 minutes. Reduce to low speed and slowly whisk the hot cream into the egg yolk mixture. Add the pumpkin purée and whisk until well blended. Skim the air bubbles off the top with a mesh spatula.
Step 4: Pour the custard into the molds, filling them 1/4” from rim. Place the ramequins in a large baking pan and pour enough hot water in the pan to reach about 1/2″ up the side of the ramequins. Cover pan with aluminum foil and bake for 20 to 25 minutes. The custards should be barely set and wobble when gently shaken. Do not overcook or the crème brûlée will curdle (it would look like scrambled eggs… and if this should happen, unfortunately you’ll have to make a new batch!). Carefully remove the pan from the oven, transfer custards to a cooling rack and let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate the custards for at least 4 hours.
Cook’s note: The custards can be prepared up to this point and refrigerated for up to 2 days.
Step 5: Sprinkle each custard with a little sugar. Hold a lit kitchen torch 4 inches from the sugar topping and move the flame evenly over the surface until a caramel crust has formed. Return to the refrigerator for 15 to 30 minutes before serving. (If the caramel crust is refrigerated for too long, it becomes soggy and loses its crunch!)
Cook’s note: For the recipe to make fresh pumpkin purée, click here.

© 2009 viviane bauquet farre – food & style NY LLC

Eric has a comfort-blanket.  It’s a sheepskin that my other half accidentally ruined in the washing machine, and he adores it.

This is a re-post, but I think I’m justified because I now have pictures of this recipe. And, it’s a good kick-start into the baking season with the holidays around the corner.  These are the gingersnaps my mom always made, and I think they’re the perfect one.  I did double amount of ginger and add some white pepper to make them a little spicier, but their good chewy texture is the same.  And they always turn out perfect looking, so they’re great to bring somewhere. Makes 3-4 dozen cookies, depending on how large you make them.

Ingredients:

3/4 c shortening

1 c sugar

1/4 c molasses

1 egg

2 1/4 c flour

2 t baking soda

1/4 t salt

1 t cinnamon

1 t cloves

2 t ground ginger

1/4 t ground white pepper (optional, but adds a little kick)

Directions:

Heat oven to 350°. Cream shortening and sugar with an electric mixer, then add egg and beat until combined. Mix in molasses. In a small bowl, mix together flour and remaining ingredients.  Add to the butter and sugar mixture and beat until combined. Roll dough into small balls (size of a large gumball) and roll in additional sugar. Place on baking sheet but do not flatten.  Bake for about 9-10 minutes, or set and crackled on top.

So, you’re thinking this is going to be related to that parade I mentioned last post. Well, you’d be wrong to do so. I’m be putting that one up tomorrow. So there!

I just wanted to say that I’m drinking a good ‘ol classic Canadian drink, Canada Dry Ginger Ale. Nothing cures the homesickness like a nice cold glass of the goldish bubbly. Not saying I’m homesick at all, cause, well, I ain’t. I’m doing just fine, but if I was, I know that this would do the trick.

This afternoon I visited my nearest Bookoff store. Pretty much the greatest used bookstore in the world. I have no problem spending 105¥ ($1.25 CDN) on what to me seems like a practically brand new book. The only way you can tell it’s been used is the lack of a plastic wrapping and the Bookoff price tag on the back. Other than that, the book is in solid condition.

I bought two volumes of Bleach (Vol. 1 & 2). Vol. 1 was actually 250¥ while Vol. 2 was 150¥. The only reason for this being books/manga priced at 250¥ are in “better” condition than those priced at 105¥. I couldn’t find Vol. 1 for 105¥ so I had to pick up its more expensive version.

“Aaron, I thought you said that those priced at 105¥ were practically brand new, so are those at 205¥ brand new?” Nope. Everything is used. The subtle difference between better and worse is well that, subtle. I compared the same volumes of multiple Bleach mangas and the only thing that really stuck out at me were that those priced at 105¥ might have a slight tear on the sleeve or a fade in the writing. And even then, most are fine. The Vol. 2 I picked up was perfect. No rips or anything. To me, Vol. 2 should have been priced at 205¥, but I wasn’t going to complain.

Either way, I’m sure you don’t really care to much about the pricing of books at a bookstore, and frankly, I’m starting to wonder why I am so interested in such a thing.

What can we learn from this? Well…If you’re planning on going to Japan and are intending to pick up some manga or other reading material while you are there, check out a used bookstore first before you buy a book brand new. You will save yourself some money (to buy more books) and you might find some other rare oddities while you’re at it.

I mentioned Bookoff earlier and I suggest to check them out for sure. They have tons of locations throughout Japan and you shouldn’t have a problem finding one at all. Be sure to click Bookoff to visit their website.

Well, I should get back to studying/reading. じゃあね

Five Day Break Ahead!!!

My only big plans over the break consist of a short shopping trip with la madre tomorrow!  Otherwise, it’s just relaxation (and a little homework) during my time off.

This morning, I started out my day with a bowl of Kashi Heart to Heart.  I first reached for the organic skim milk, but then let my chocolate craving be my guide and opted for light chocolate soymilk.  YUM!  With an organic banana on the side.

After a LONNNGGGGG day at school, I came home and kicked off my weekend with an organic pomegranate, Fage 2% greek yogurt, raw sunflower seeds, and a sparkling iced green tea.

Gotta love mixing!

This evening, I let my inner “Squash Master” (as Averie has dubbed me ) take over, and popped an orange acorn squash into the oven.  I topped it off with the usual cinnamon and ginger and savored the deliciousness!

I’m headed downstairs to get in some treadmill walking before calling it a night!

Final call for my Giving Thanks Giveaway!  A winner will be chosen tomorrow night!

Heather

Unusually, all three cats were in the mood for posing yesterday.  Here they are, in all their feline glory.

First to pose was Snowball.  This is especially unusual, as she’s incredibly camera-shy.  She tolerated me for ten minutes or so before stalking off to bug the crap out of her big brother.

Next was Eric.  He is most definitely not camera-shy, but he has the attention-span of a knat.  I’m trying to take a picture of Eric (and David!) every day, to document how he’s growing.

And here is Wily, the posiest poser of all.  He knew full well that I was taking all of these photos, but kept posing until I was done.

I love these cats to bits.  Any more need saying?

El fin de año está a la vuelta de la esquina. Todo el mundo prepara las fiestas y piensa en como puede ahorrarse unos euros en regalos, en celebraciones… y en cómo no gastarse un dineral en las `dichosas cenas´ de Navidad”. Para aquellos que quieran ahorrarse dinero en las comilonas navideñas, aquí tienen la solución.

iescabodelahuerta.edu.gva.es

Para la gente que está en crisis y para los que no quieren gastarse mucho dinero, el tapeo es una de las opciones más llamativas. Hay numerosos restaurantes que ofrecen tapeo en Navidad (o cuando no lo es) por un precio muy asequible.

La Gallina Loca, es un restaurante situado en el corazón del barrio de Moncloa y es una de las opciones que proponemos. En este restaurante no sólo ofrecen comidas y cenas de tapeo sino incluso,ofrecen también menús semanales. Se sitúa en la Calle Fernando el Católico, 84  y disponen de una amplia y variada carta. Entre sus especialidades se encuentra la  paella valenciana, el fabuloso arroz a banda,  y unos espléndidos judiones con codornices. Para las fechas navideñas, ofrecen un menú de tapeo para grupos por 20 euros, en el que se incluyen también las bebidas.

Otra opción interesante es el restaurante la Gloria de Montera, situado en la Calle Caballero de Gracia n:10

espaciossecretos.files.wordpress.com

 Este restaurante esquina a  la Calle Montera, forma parte de una cadena de otros de 4 restaurantes  madrileños (La Finca de Susana, Public, Bazaar y Ginger) de corte moderno y buen precio. También dispone de franquicias en Barcelona y Girona.

Una muy buena parte del tapeo ,es cocina mediterránea y entre sus raciones más suculentas se encuentran las croquetas de huevo con queso holandés y  las patatas bravas con chispitas de chistorra. El precio medio del restaurante oscila entre los 15 y 20 euros.

Entre otras sugerencias de tapeo madrileño también se encuentra el curioso restaurante El ingenio de Cervantes  que está decorado con motivos cervantinos y tienen una biblioteca con ejemplares de Don Quijote de la Mancha  escritos en más de 20 idiomas diferentes. El menú para los grupos es apartir de 17 euros.

Y como última sugerencia, llama la atención por su comida y su decoración basada en la cultura española, el restaurante Plato & Placer, que se encuentra en el barrio de la Latina . Su menú de grupo es a partir de los 20 euros e incluso el día de fin de año celebran esa gran noche, con un menú con los mejores platos que tienen en su carta y que que oscila sobre los 65 euros.

Ya que estamos en época de crisis, que la Navidad ni nosotros ¡lo notemos!

It’s dinner time. You’re beyond starving, and somehow there’s no meal planned for the evening. What to do?! I’ll admit readily that this scenario happens a LOT in our house and more often than note, our “go to” meal is spaghetti with red sauce. However, that gets old pretty fast and we’ve been determined to break ourselves of that fallback habit.

So, what’s Plan B? Raid the leftovers and get creative! I’m notorious for saving “just a little bit” of a dish just because I hate to see prepared food go to waste. The result is that, about once a week, the fridge contains a plethora of seemingly mismatched dishes and none of them are enough for a meal on their own. This is where Leftover Gourmet comes in!

Here are some of the things I spotted when I looked in the fridge:
1 cup cooked basmati rice
1 square tempeh (approx 1 worth)
2 carrots
Handful of butterleaf lettuce
Bok choy
Parsnip-carrot puree (yanked from the freezer earlier)

Doesn’t look like much of a meal to you? It certainly does to me! Hang in there, follow along, and you’ll see how easy it can be to transform mish-mash leftovers into a gourmet meal!

Mock tuna salad in bok choy boats

1 cup cooked basmati rice
1 square tempeh, crumbled
2 Tbsp Nasoya Nayonaise or other vegan mayo
1 Tbsp dijon mustard
1 Tbsp pickle relish (or more, if desired)
1 tsp granulated garlic
2 tsp tumeric
3-4 drops Liquid Smoke
Sea salt and pepper to taste
3-4 sliced dried tomatoes, crushed (or sun-dried tomatoes, drained of oil)
4-5 basil leaves, chopped (or 1 tsp dried basil)
2 large pieces of boy choy

Mix all ingredients in a bowl with a fork. Don’t mash! Just stir until you get a uniform mixture. With a spoon, pile your tempeh mix into the wide “bowl” of the boy choy and serve it up!

Ginger-Agave Carrots

2 large carrots, scrubbed and sliced
2 tsp olive oil
1/2 cup water
sea salt
2 tsp minced ginger
2-3 Tbsp agave nectar
Pinch cayenne pepper

Heat oil in a medium sauce pan and add carrots. Sautee about 3 minutes, stirring to coat carrots in oil. Add water, salt and ginger and cover for about 10 minutes. When carrots are fork tender, add agave and cayenne and cook for a few minutes uncovered, until most of the liquid has evaporated. Serve these carrots on their own as a side dish or add them to any warm salad you make!

Dressed Butterleaf Greens
This is a versatile dressing you can use for any greens, fresh or cooked. Make up a batch and keep it in a squeeze bottle in your fridge for up to 2 weeks! This recipe makes enough dressing for about 8 servings. For my Leftover Gourmet dinner, I used about 1 Tbsp of the finished dressing for my large handful of lettuce leaves.

3 Tbsp agave nectar
1 1/2 Tbsp yellow mustard
6 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
Sea salt and pepper

Place all ingredients in a bowl and whisk with a fork. Or, pour them all in a squeeze bottle and, with the nozzle covered, shake vigorously. Serve!

Parsnip-Carrot Soup with Soy

2 cups parsnip-carrot puree (See Note below)
1 cup water
Sea salt and pepper
Soy sauce to finish

Combine puree, water, salt and pepper in a saucepan over low heat. Stir until water is completely mixed in and soup is warmed through. Serve in small bowls and drizzle soy sauce liberally on top. (This soup could be made even more excellent with the addition of some dried wild mushrooms!)

Note: I prepared and froze this parsnip-carrot puree a few weeks ago, and there’s plenty left in the freezer for more soup throughout the winter! I chopped parsnips and carrots, drizzled them sparingly with olive oil and roasted them on a baking sheet 400°F. After allowing them to cool, I pureed them in batches in my food processor. I packaged the puree in quart-size freezer bags, which makes it super easy to defrost quickly and whip up slow roasted soups and other dishes all winter long!

I hope you’ve enjoyed this edition of the Leftover Gourmet, and perhaps you’ll be able to look at your leftovers in a whole new way! I’m always curious about the creative ways people use/reuse their leftovers, so what’s your favorite meal revamp idea?

I accidentally discovered that I can make a dish very similar to Wagamama’s ‘Chicken Chilli Men‘, which just happens to be my Wagamama’s favourite! It was delicious!  GO ME!!!

It is very simple and I made the dish for 2 people for less than £3!   Mind if I share it with you?

Please be aware that I always, always, always have jars of Easy Ginger, Easy Garlic, and Easy Chilli in the fridge and have used them in this recipe, but feel free to replace these with the fresh equivalent.  I also have a bottle of lemon juice (the kind you can put on pancakes) laying around, but you can use this or leave it out altogether.

The important thing is that you can add, remove ingredients to taste, as long as the fundamentals are there you can’t go wrong!  Enjoy!

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Rich’s Chicken Chilli Men  - 2 Servings.

Mmmmmmm

Ingredients:

• 4 teaspoons of ‘Easy Chilli‘ (feel free to use 1 fresh, finely chopped red chilli, seeds included)
• 2 Chicken Breasts (general rule of thumb is 1 per person).
• 2 teaspoons of ‘Easy Ginger‘ (again, feel free to use fresh).
• 3 cloves of garlic (Or 2 teaspoons of Easy Garlic, personally I use the frozen cubes of garlic from Asda)
• 2 lemon grass stalks (preferable but not necessary)
• 1 Red Pepper (you can use half a pepper if you are bulking out with other veg)
• 3 teaspoons of sugar
• 1 tbsp of tomato puree
• 1 Tin of Tomatoes (chopped).
• Salt and black pepper to season.
• A splash of lemon juice (the bottled process stuff is fine).
• 1/2 pint of Water

Optional ingredients:

• You can bulk out the recipe with courgettes (I did, and gave a wonderful texture to the dish).  I usually use half a red pepper, and half a courgette (cubed) and save the rest for another day!
• I add a frozen ‘Spinach Pellet‘ to most of my pasta, noodle, sauce-based dished.  It breaks up to the same consistency of most dried herbs, doesn’t alter the flavour,  and adds a little extra nutrition.

What to do:

1. Fry the chicken, sugar, ‘Easy Ginger‘ and the ‘Easy Chilli‘ in a little oil on a low heat for 5-8 mins.
2. Add the lemon grass (optional), the garlic, and onion. (If using it, add the courgette at this stage). Season with salt and a generous portion of black pepper.
3. Continue to fry on a medium heat until the chicken is brown and the onion is soft.
4. Add the red pepper, the tomato puree, tinned tomatoes, lemon juice, and the water and simmer for 10 minutes.

NOTE: Unlike most tomato base suaces, make sure you don’t over-cook it. If you leave it simmering for too long the edge will be taken off the rich flavours and it will spoil.

To serve:

Mix with some cooked noodles (spaghetti will also do the trick) until fully coated in sauce. Then serve.

Voila!  Please comment and let me know how it worked for you!

Kristen’s long time friend, Tracey joined us for Alterna Thanks last Saturday. Tracey was in charge of bringing a couple of appetizers. I liked her display of fresh sliced oranges, pomegranate seeds,persimmon wedges,  crystalized ginger pieces and sliced apples. She encouraged everyone to eat the the persimmons along with a chunk of ginger. They were delicious!

She also brought radishes to be dipped in softened butter and two types of salts. Although I’m not a fan of radishes I couldn’t resist a try since everyone at the table was ohhh’ing and awwww’ing at their complexities. After my attempt I quickly went back to the persimmons and ginger.

Another one of my photography obsessions is capturing candle light glow. I realized that I began taking dozens of photos at the dinner table while everyone was chatting and working on digesting the scrumptious thanksgiving meal we ate. This is a bad habit (I think) of mine. I think it’s a way for me to tune out a little. But, I can’t help but to obsess on capturing interesting images like this one.

This is a great quick recipe, perfect for those times when you’re being careful with your money or don’t feel like shopping, but need to satisfy a craving for something a little sweet. I give recipes like this the name “magic” because they can be made with a wide variety of ingredients (Magical Options) and they come out a little different every time, depending on what you have in the kitchen…. they’re a nice dessert, a great snack, a quick breakfast and a super gift for friends and neighbours… enjoy!

Ingredients

Dry ingredients:

2-3 Cups Muffin mix and a few Magical Options (see below)

Wet ingredients:

1 C water, 1-2 T cooking oil (or melted margaine or butter) and an extra cup of water

Mix your wet and dry ingredients separately, then make a ‘well’ in the middle of the dry. Add the wet mix to the well, stir it through to coat the dry mix; keep adding water a little at a time until the mixture is moistened all the way through, but not too stiff to stir. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350ºF and grease your muffin tins well. Fill to 3/4 full of muffin batter, bake for 20-28 minutes or until they spring back to the touch and smell just right.

Magical Options (pick a nice combination from below and use your imagination!):

1/2 cup shredded coconut 1/2 C raisins or currants, chopped dates, dried cranberries, papaya, apricots…

1/2 cup sunflower seeds, almonds, walnut or pecans

1 tsp. powdered ginger 1 tsp. cinnamon powder

1 plain chocolate bar, chopped (or 1/2 C chocolate chips, or 2-4 T. cocoa

1 small apple, chopped or 1/2 C blueberries, strawberries

Muffin Mix

1) Store bought mix: you can find cake or muffin mix on sale and add “Magical” stuff from your kitchen

2) Homemade mix: 3 cups flour (or 2 Cups flour and 1 cup oats) 2 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. salt 3/4 C of sugar, or more or less to taste

Suggestions

Fruit Filling: Fill each muffin tin half-way and add 1/2 tsp jam, jelly or soft fruit in the middle. Fill the cups 3/4 full with the muffin batter and bake!

Time Savers:

1) Keep half of the batter in a clean jar in the fridge to make fresh muffins quickly anytime; the batter will keep for 4-7 days.

2) Make a big batch of dry muffin mix and keep it in the freezer – When you’re ready to make muffins, shale out what you need into a big bowl, add your wet ingredients and magical options and bake.

Sweet combinations:

“Fruity” explosion: Add chopped apple and a few raisins and berries to the dry mix; put a spoonful of jam in the middle of 2 layers of batter.

Ambrosia: Add coconut, ginger, cinnamon, almonds and orange essence, diced orange rind or mashed banana.

Gourmet ideas: You can blend a whole orange with the seeds removed into the wet mix, add some chocolate chips or cocoa to the dry and make a nice chocolate orange muffin!) How about lemon, poppy seed and cornmeal?

Savory Combinations: Leave out the sugar and add one or a combination of: Shredded cheese, chopped sundried tomatoes, cooked beans, diced carrot, fried minced onion, celery

Add herbs and spices – chili powder, oregano, rosemary, parsley , olive oil

Rough Times Bacon ‘n’ Egg Muffin: (you’ll never want to stop at a fast food place for breakfast once you’ve tasted these! ) Put a small piece of cooked bacon (vegetarians can use soy bacon), a bit of grated cheese and a spoonful of stirred raw egg in the middle of each muffin, fill the muffin cup with no-sugar batter (you can add a few herbs too!) and add a little grated cheese on top. Bake as usual.

Tip: Don’t have a muffin tin? Well, use a cake pan, a frying pan with a heatproof handle, small tart or other baking dishes – or get to the second hand store and find a nice muffin tin… it’s still probably cheaper than buying those store-bought muffins.

Much Love, Gramma Willi

Good Clean Food for Everyone!

Those who know me well will be aware that I am not a huge advocate of the medical profession – unless your medical condition involves a broken limb or an advanced form of some heinous disease. Or if you need a medical certificate. It’s really nothing personal; I have just been misdiagnosed and over-prescribed so many times over the years that I have been left with trust issues.

[Incidentally, why is it that so many GPs still insist on prescribing antibiotics when they are convinced you have a virus? It's like they're in league with the pharmaceutical companies - or the superbugs.]

My favourite misdiagnoses over the years include:

• contact dermatitis, when I actually had a zinc deficiency;
• chicken pox, which turned out to be ringworm; and
• pregnancy when, as a virginal 14-year old who looked like a 10-year old [I was a late bloomer], I had sunstroke. I had been at a swimming carnival in full sun on the previous day.

Stepping off my soapbox, maybe you now understand my apprehensions. You may also share in my surprise when, after a recent visit to my local GP where I expected no more than a medical certificate, she turned to me with, “Yes, that sounds like the virus that’s going around at the moment -” (but that wasn’t the surprising bit, this was:) “would you like a natural remedy?”

“Y-yes,” I stammered, taken off-guard. With that, she started writing out a different kind of prescription.

“You can add some honey if you like, for taste,” she added as I walked out the door. So I thanked her and I went home and I made it.

As the good doctor suggested, I used the blend as an inhalant first, then drank it as a tea once per day for three consecutive days. It was sweet and clean-tasting. Quite delicious really, even without the honey. And I believe that it actually did my mind and body good.

 
Thank you, Dr G, for restoring my faith in GPs and for my natural remedy.