All scrumptious fare affords pleasure! This is particularly true of a  scone with clotted cream, which has been heralded as one of the many time- honored traditions of our friends from across the pond. This delicate confection relies on cold butter for its flakiness whereas most recipes of the American biscuit relies more on vegetable shortening for a crumbly texture. I do not bake with vegetable shortening, however,  I do love crumbly textures and achieve this by adding cream cheese, whenever a recipe calls for vegetable shortening. Whatever, the origin or paradigm of this convivial fare, it is also enjoyed by many all over the world, including my Malaysian elders in South Africa. My mother almost always reverted to preparing it for unexpected company, so without further ado, here is my spin on her recipe.

Scones

These scones were delicate, flaky & even crumbly, accompanied by a mascarpone mousse, ( tasted almost like French vanilla ice cream).  I also made my strawberry & raspberry preserves from scratch with vanilla beans etc…. These all went to my chiropractor & all the lovely ladies who work at the wellness center at “Arne Chiropractic.” Their remarks….ridiculously decadent!

Tahitian vanilla powder & a little of the white vanilla powder, sifted with the flours, is my little spin on this airy scone! Some of the vanilla powder will be left in the sieve, just dump into the bowl with the rest of the flours

As you can see, lavish amounts of whole sun ripened strawberries & raspberries, not sweet at all, no pectin or sugar needed in my preserves, it’s all about the fruit,  & some surprising ingredients !

I ask this frivolous & not in the least condescending question with the utmost respect of all the ladies out there……Is a woman’s worth really measured by her ability of making a good biscuit? The reason for my question is that I have recently discovered the “Little house on the Prairie” series & now receiving all the episodes from Netflix. Anyway,  there is one episode whereby Carolyn Ingalls is put to the test by making biscuits for a possible position as a cook in a hotel, & ultimately she does land the job for making the best biscuits ever! The former cook who was just lousy at cooking was kicked out!  Hey, during the late 1800’s, if a woman could make a good biscuit and a good pot of stew with potatoes, she was pretty much spoken for! I am transfixed by this era portrayed so beautifully by Michael Landon, Melissa Gilbert, & the rest of the cast, an American Western drama, I just cannot wait to watch nightly with my husband!

I wonder whether my scones would have landed me an amorous encounter with Mr. Charles Ingalls himself, that is only if my husband was not yet in my life LOL! I hope he does not read this!

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Publication

This fruit fondant Madeira cake, that I developed here,  is featured in this British magazine below, the Fall issue #114 on page 114. Originally, I contacted them to thank them for the safe arrival of my package with the delectable fruit fondant powders, I purchased from them and much to my delight, they emailed me, asking for a head shot of myself  & the pictures of this cake and publishing my little article in the ” forum” section on pg 114-115. Anyway,  this cake was indescribably delicious, this fruit fondant powder turns into a rich  fruit coolie when mixed with water!

This magazine is sold at Barnes & Noble.

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Colorado

Red Rocks Park is a mountain park in Morrison, Colorado & only 10 minutes drive from my home. I often go here,  either to run up & down the many steps,  go and day dream & most importantly, see my favorite rock bands!. I finally decided to take some pictures last week, while there was no scheduled concert, & share them with you!

I am never without my I Pod, & many of you already know that I love vocal trance. I do love rock too! S..t!**!! this is one run where I really need my IPod, because these steps are forever kicking my big b…..!Anything to detract from the pain will keep my booody moving.

Orjan Nielsen ft Arielle Maren–Redemption

Svenstrup & Vendelboe-Nadia malm…….Danish stars, cool euphoric vocal trance

Medina- Gutter—a Svenstrup & Vendelboe remix….I mentioned her before in my last post, but this is also an awesome remix!

David Guetta ft Usher–without you ( okay, this is no vocal trance, but I still like it)

Red Rocks is my escape from this more often than not frenetic world!

Red Rocks Amphitheater, a world famous venue, hosts many concerts, “Film on the Rocks” ( I love watching movies in the open air), & other events during the summer. I think it seats about 10,000, most probably more! I went to see Santana & the rock bands, Godsmack & Nine Inch Nails, over here. Picture this, after the concerts,  confetti cannons shooting blizzards of confetti shapes from above….pure artistry in motion! It turns serious adults into awestruck children & sends children into giddy glee!

Takes us a mere 10 mins drive to Red Rocks mountain park!

Recipes

Flaky vanilla scones with mascarpone mousse & preserves

As usual, please use organic ingredients when possible, however, I used the King Arthur flours here.

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 3/4 cup self rising flour
• 3 t  “Bob’s Red Mill” double acting baking powder( Aluminum free)
• 1/2  t Tahitian vanilla powder plus 1 t of the white vanilla powder, just because I have both,  ( optional but not for me! he!he!), Or use whatever one you prefer!….  the Tahitian vanilla powder is finely ground vanilla beans, mine was hardly noticeable in my pictures, because they were dispersed throughout the dough. Trust me when I say that it is potent, but oh so darn delicious!
• 3 – 4  T organic sugar, I used 3!
• 6 T cold Plugra ( European, unsalted butter), or any other kind you prefer. I love the richer & creamier taste of Plugra!
  
• 1/2 cup of currants
• 2/3 cup organic milk
• egg yolk beaten lightly for the glaze

Method

Sift all the flours & the Tahitian & the white vanilla powders together, twice. Some of the Tahitian vanilla powder will be left in the sieve, just dump back into the bowl with the flours.  Remove about a quarter cup of this flour mixture & toss with the currants & set aside, (the reason for this step, so that the currants will not sink to the bottom, but will be evenly distributed throughout the dough). Add the sugar to the flour mixture  & mix with a biscuit cutter. Now cut the cold butter into smaller pieces and cut into the flour mixture with the biscuit cutter. Do me a favor, do not over mix here! It is okay if there are bigger pieces of butter showing! Make a well in the center,  add the currants & then  the cold milk and mix just until incorporated, absolutely no over mixing here either! Always let any dough rest, here for 10 mins. Finally roll out the dough to about 3/4 inch on a lightly floured surface,  stamp out 2 inch heart shape designs, ( please just press firmly down on cutter, no twisting), NB…flip the scones over, so that the bottom of the scone is now on top & then place on the cookie sheet,   about an inch apart, (the cold butter specks will now be on the top & they will rise evenly),  brush with the egg yolk & then let rest again for 12 minutes. N.B. do not let the egg yolk glaze drip over the sides of the scone, this will prohibit the scone from rising! Bake in a pre-heated 400 degree oven for about 12 to 15 minutes until lightly browned. You will really smell the vanilla aroma when these babies are done! Makes about 9 scones.

Mascarpone mousse

Whisk some mascarpone @ rm temp. with cold Horizon, organic whipping cream & some of the white vanilla powder.  Set the bowl over ice when whisking! Serve the scones with a dollop of this mousse & preserves of your liking.

Thanks for your visit, enjoy my version of the scone!

Lots of love,

Nazarina.

P/S…..It is so strange, I make these scones only when we have guests staying over or sometimes for my friend’s B&B, but have never blogged about it before. I did not think that the recipe would be important enough to share until now!

The Plugra & the vanilla powder definitely brought some major mojo to this scone party!

Telluride on Dwellable

October, 2,  2011 travel diary

Telluride, Ouray & Durango

Grab a cup of Java, listen to my playlist or yours & come along for the ride! This is a long post, but I can assure you not in the least bit boring!

This mind blowing trip to the south western part of Colorado, a trip, that was promised to me when we moved to Denver, a number of years ago was everything and more, I imagined it to be. It was freakin awesome! My husband went to work in Durango, when we first moved here & ever since then, could not get this beautiful part of Colorado, out of his mind! It only took us about 6 hrs drive to get there and this was really pushing it, stopping only for one bathroom break. We had everything at hand, from a welcome cooler filled with nourishing fare to a jamming playlist that could make you sing like a canary!

You may wonder, why only undertake this trip now?  Well, everything has its time & place, & boy am I glad that the start of  Fall & the  “changing of the leaves,” marked the beginning of this offbeat escapade!

After three & half hours of driving, we reached Grand Junction, guarded by a  surreal mass of grey, brown and  monochromatic cream hues , a mountain known as Mt. Garfield. It looks like a huge desert sand dune, does it not?

I took this shot from the car, as it was difficult to stop here, so it does appear a little fuzzy.

Cool  music from my playlist  DJ Tiesto & Medina (You and I),

Medina (Gutter),   Inna (Amazing),

Nadia Ali, Starkillers & Alex Kenji-(Pressure) ……more below

Climbing in elevation & now only, (20 miles from Telluride & jamming to the beat of Jennifer Lopez…on the floor),  the dwarf-like scrub vegetation,  suddenly gives way to this colorful Alpine scene. There is just nothing to beat these magical Aspen trees during the Fall! Notice the San Juan mountain range in the background? It is dusted with a light layer of snow!  I kid you not this mountain range shoots up to magnificent heights right before your very eyes! It was not coined,  “ to- hell-you-ride” for nothing, the journey into these mountains are sometimes scary, yet so exciting! I was indeed sitting on the edge of my seat!

What can I tell you, I am a “nervous Nelly,” constantly telling my adrenaline junkie of a husband to turn back, but do you think he even minds me, hell no!

Welcome to Uncompahgre National Forest! (5 miles from Telluride)

I am really ( he! he!) cracking up here as I type “Uncompahgre,”because “spell check” is telling me it is supposed to be  “uncomprehending”..….stupid a..!!

Welcome to Telluride…(To-hell-you-ride he! he!)

We are here guys!!!!The sign also says, “your civil liberties are safe here”…. this even jives for man’s best friend….see picture of  “puppy parking” below!  He! he! Political correctness lurks everywhere, can it just not be on my trip?

Anyway, as we roll into Telluride, just like the miners way back then, I am utterly & completely overwhelmed by the scenery. I had to constantly scoop up my jaw from the ground & move on.  There was no way that my little camera would do it justice!

The New Sheridan, also home of the infamous Sheridan Opera house situated in the back.  Boy, if these old walls could talk about the early 1900’s , about the greedy gold diggers, gun slingers, honky tonk saloons & not forgetting the ladies of the night, we might just have the makings of yet another cheesy western here!

Telluride is a little bit quirky, a little bit playful, a “lotta” liberal & a “lotta” expensive…hey! whatever floats your boat, that’s what I always say!

Needless, to say, the price tags on some of these items call for a whole pay check! So forget it, I am not bringing back mindless gifts! he! he! I am a ge nui ne nature girl, so pictures of nature will just have to suffice!

Okay! I thought this was rather strange…as we were driving down main street, a bevy of cheery folk suddenly appeared . Apparently, it is customary for the wedding party to parade down Main street, even with all that soft pouring rain!

The bride, actually wanted us to turn up the volume…apparently the real party was in our car! She really liked Pitbull ( Calle Ocho), I know you want me, of all songs! There is just something about Miami music that makes any self respecting person want to misbehave! just kidding I love Miami! Heh! I have been placed on that misbehaved list a long time ago!

I love these songs though, “thumbs” up if you are still listening to it in 2011

Edward Maya & Vika Jigulina Stereo Love

also The Underdog project- Summer jam

The Underdog project- Remember

Puppy parking max 30 mins!

A building with no roof, or  back walls.

Manitou Lodge (bed & breakfast)……love this cozy home away from home!

The unit we stayed in had two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen and a little sitting room. There is also a main dining room where one could use the stove and other appliances even though one’s unit has all of those things. These places are packed during ski season. So the question is, would we venture here during the winter ski season…..heck ya!

At night, I would be lulled to sleep by this bubbling brook & to be able to revel in this peace & quiet is all that I ask for!

One morning, very early, I jumped onto the gondola in my PJ’s to go to the market to buy almond milk. The B&B provides everything except milk for the lactose intolerant. On the way I was joined by a guy and his little boy & he very “candidly” remarked that he  thought my fuzzy slippers were “cool” I knew that he was trying to make small talk because really my slippers were not in the least cool!

Later that afternoon,  E & I jumped onto the same gondola to take some pictures, & guess who was on the very gondola, the same guy, this time with his wife… he then remarked Oh! I have already met miss fuzzy slippers very early this morning! Both my husband & his wife looked rather puzzled until I explained!

This is Mountain village ski area, the 2nd stop of the gondola ride. My favorite market was at the end of the gondola ride.

Pandora

I laughed at the road signs here, they read ” Slow Children here.” I am just being facetious! It is just kind of funny when one is reading it real slowly Lol!

Water remediation project.

Bridal Veil Falls- stunning falls ( 365 ft in length), tallest free falls in Colorado!

Ahhh, At last, Trout Lake was my very favorite place, so peaceful I could just get lost here and never emerge! Ain’t she just beautiful?

This trail was extremely far into the forest, lucky my husband does not heed my cries because we would never be able to “discover” new places! Anyway, a successful trip does mean, hours & hours of driving.

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Welcome to Ouray!……..Hooray for Ouray!

This place reminds me somewhat of Cape town, where I was born. This quaint little town is nestled between the 2 mountain ranges.

Look no rails! Scary is it not? I suddenly felt one of those loose, liquid bowel movements coming on, but dared not tell the “driver.”

I held my breath and closed my eyes going through the Red Mountain Pass. It is just way to steep for my health! he! he! Not that I am not accustomed to high mountains, but they sneak up on you, some of them as high as 14,000Ft.

The mountains are red here due to the deposits of Iron oxide in the rocks.

Gold & silver mines sprung up in this region, as well as in Telluride, in the 1870’s.

The Idarado mining co. started a water remediation  project here in the 1980’s to improve water quality & to improve the aquatic habitat.

San Juan mountains at its very best! This picture is just unforgettable! You just had to be there to drink in the beauty of these vibrant colors!

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Welcome to Durango!

Durango is known for the “Durango to Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad. I think it was $100 a ticket if I’m not mistaken, but then again we had just come from Silverton…..let me guess, Silverton was known for its silver?” I came up with that all by my smart self!

Diamond Belle Saloon

My husband hung out here watching his beloved, Miami Dolphins lose!

Heading home!

I was mesmerized by the cloud  cover just above the Rockies. Here is this huge open space & it only covers the mountain! At this point, my husband was just really flying down 285,  everything and I mean everything had to be bolted down, or God forbid, you would lose it all!

Thumbs up yet again, if listening to these in 2011. Sometimes the oldies just stay with you!

The Sunclub- Fiesta

Afrojack ft Eva Simons take over control

We speak no Americano Yolanda be cool

Armin Van Buuren & Dj Shah feat Chris Jones- Going wrong

Thank you for riding along with me. Hope you enjoyed this trip as much as we did!

Love,

Nazarina.

There is a certain question that almost invariably comes up at my gatherings of friends at the dinner table, “What besides gastronomy and saponification make you tick?” My answer, even though not etched in stone, but almost always is ” Cooking is after all, just an ephemeral art, just as soon as you create a delicious dish, it is consumed within no time & is gone, so I would always  want for my sweetie and I to rather love life deliciously “in more ways than one” ( wink! wink!),  share life’s pleasures with others and to always laugh at our idiosyncrasies!”  There is just no room for disconsolation in our life. So even though we love delicious food, I would always opt for the romance first!

Sunflower sprout salad with a sour fig dressing

Everything I do is always with my Mom in mind, she could take any mundane dish & magically make it so delicious! There was magic in that lady’s hands!

Organic baby sunflower sprouts, roasted yellow & red cherry tomatoes ( from our garden), reconstituted dried fruit & toasted pine nuts with a sour fig dressing, also a bathroom makeover is on the agenda today.

I bought the sunflower greens from Paradise Farms in Redvale, Colorado. The sunflower sprouts are nutty & crispy,  so pairs exceptionally well with the rest of the ingredients in my recipe.

See my garden here!

I received some dried sour figs from a friend in Cape Town, South Africa, so I thought that a sour fig vinaigrette would be perfect for this crisp salad with all its tasty textures! Sour figs were my Mom’s favorite & her family would always make a sour fig” konfyt” ( I would eat loads of this),  but I decided to be a bit more innovative & make a kick-ass dressing out of them to coat this delicious salad. If you want to know more about these succulent & tart fruits just read HERE & also HERE. These wrinkled brown sour figs are a Cape Malay favorite!

Recipe: Please use organic ingredients when possible!

• 3 X 5oz Organic baby sunflower sprouts or substitute baby spinach, if you cannot find them!
• 1/2 cup toasted pine nuts with a little of my home-made spice mix or  smoked paprika in your case & kosher salt, just do this in a hot pan on the stove top, let cool.
• 1/2 cup reconstituted dried fruit, viz…dried apples, apricots, prunes & pears. Just soak in boiling H2O to make it supple  & then cut into small pieces
• 1 lb roasted cherry, yellow & red tomatoes. Cut tomatoes in half,  place all on a cookie sheet, sprinkle with olive oil & kosher salt & roast @ 250 degrees for an hour, cool & set aside. Garden grown is by far the superior & our garden is no exception!

Sour Fig dressing:  ( Dit is my wending vir ‘n Suid Afrikaanse suurvye slaai sous)

• 1 lb sour figs/ I guess you can subst. regular figs here but it will not be the same! Scratch that!…..It will definitely,  not be the same! Simply because the figs are sweet & these sour figs have a tart pulp that makes your taste buds, prematurely salivate while squeezing the pulp into your mouth!
• wild, unfiltered & raw honey
• pinch kosher salt/ or sea salt
• stick cinnamon
• vanilla bean, scrape using the seeds & the bean too
• Brown rice vinegar or Aged Balsamic, I cook with both
• Grape seed oil or safflower oil here, would not do extra virgin o. o. here, too overpowering in this instance!
• my home-made spice, this toasted mix has elements of sweet & savory in it (optional)

First wash the sour figs. Soak the dry wrinkled or ( even the freshly picked),  sour figs in boiling H2O (about 1 & 1/2 cups of H2o) just to soften. Do not discard this soaking liquid but do strain it! Remove the figs & squeeze out the delicious sour pulp from each  into a small saucepan, (painstaking to say the least), but so freakin worth it! Add 2 or more T of wild organic honey, depending on the amount of sweetness you would like, 1 stick cinnamon & vanilla, a little kosher salt, a little bit of the soaking liquid, ( 1/2 cup),  and cook for about 15-20 mins until this liquid has reduced in volume & is concentrated. Add 1-2 T of the vinegar you could even use  malt v. to the mixture & cook further for 2 mins. I normally add a little bit of my home-made spice to give it that extra kick. Last but not least add the remainder of the cooled, strained soaking liquid & cook for another 5 mins.  Cool this liquid & pour into a jar with  2 T oil, 1 more T of the vinegar, pinch of salt to taste & more cold water if this liquid is too thick, shake like the dickens  & you are done!  Decant into a glass jar with cinnamon & vanilla.

You know what happens next…..just toss all these crisp greens with all the roasted & toasted nuts & fruits & drizzle with the star of this recipe, the SOUR FIG dressing & enjoy! Trust me you will!

“Lekker light” in more ways than one!!

What I did was,  serve the salad in tiny bowls with the dressing on the bottom of the bowl & then just had  everyone toss their own salad, so it was like a tasty surprise.

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Guest Bathroom

This  guest bathroom took 9 months in the making……It was like conceiving & giving birth to a son! Yes, my husband took 9 months to revamp this eye sore & by Jove he is still not done yet!  He does all the renovations on our home by himself with no help. He is truly, the creative genius in our family!!! After you read below, you too will agree!

Before.…the original 70’s style when we bought the house….out dated & so yesterday! It was dislike at first sight!

…….Ta Da! enter the luxurious spa bath…….., be sure to pick up your jaw on the way in! The transformation is stupendous! He actually outlined the pattern on the wall & on the floor first, before laying the tiles…a step that saves you lots of stone tile in the end.

……….complete with a tub & more jets, your sore  a.. can handle! LOL!

I requested little hidden nooks for all my nik naks, ask & thou shalt receive, even if it does mean that you will definitely be getting the silent treatment for a day or two or vice versa when the request was met with a reverberating He..  NO! In this instance, a good old pouting helps!

He! he! I always get my way. Anyway, let’s be realistic the little Paris nik nak has to go & make way for shampoos & other bathroom accoutrements. I do have more shelves on the side for the girly crap.

I love how the light just “spills ” over  the walls! I also requested the river rock  inlay that surrounds the perimeter of the bathroom. I painted this vivid picture in my mind & my husband solely obliged, but not without the added bullsh…..that follows a renovation!

The faucets & all the other fixtures boast that same bronze hue! My husband struggled a bit with the stone that frames the mirror but in the end with his temper in check, finally achieved this fabulous result. Sweetie, let me put it in writing here now……“I am sorry for giving you all that crap while you were trying to get this project done, but you must admit my nagging or should I say seemingly reasonable requests, kept your creative juices flowing & you magically made them come to life!

When a referred Turkish stone quarrier, now a dear friend, learned  that I shared the same religion & that I was into “decent cookery”, he simply gave us the Limestone (counter-top)  for free in exchange for some computer help from my husband & decent grub from me. Life has all  sorts of perks.

Yep, the old crapper is gone, who would not want to park their rear here now & enjoy the view!

This  sweet, little floor register below will keep us, ( or rather our guests), warm during the winter! This bathroom looks better than the other renovated bathrooms in our home! Hence the proverbial saying,” you get better with age.”

This bathroom is upstairs just off a dark hallway, so now I really want him to install a skylight to bring in some natural light, what do you think?

I love making new soaps for my guests, especially for the kids…I really do not mind when they take them home!

Hope you are all keeping your cool!

Love,

Nazarina.

I catered a couple of Christmas parties and had a really fun time preparing for them! My husband was out of town so I decided to party and dance along with everyone else. I thought that it would be the antidote to me missing him.  If you are a regular visitor here, you most probably know that I love dancing, ( a great way to work out),  and occasionally, yet, enthusiastically burst into song, (this you did not know!)!  Oh, come on, don’t be coy with me, tell me you don’t do this when you are alone? It turns out to be a favorite pastime of mine and heck, I am actually insulted for not being discovered ….yet he he ! Hay, let me tell ya, singing, whether on or off key,  is good exercise for relinquishing, cooped up crap, as long as it is in the confines of your own home ( the shower), you’re not hurting anyone’s eardrums! In fact, catchy lyrics and a visceral heave or two, ( you know when you hit those high notes), are  my melodramatic stance at “stardom.” What can I tell you, music,  simply moves me!

This was pretty much the festive mood I was in, trying to expedite the task of baking all thirty of these scrumptious curry pies and other delectable party food. I had lots of help so setting up, including decorating the huge table for the party was a cinch. People were very much impressed by the food and the beautiful table decor! Within in no time, we were dancing and just having a really good time.

Vocal trance rocks!

There I was, minding my own business and rhythmically swaying to the beat of my ultimate favorite trance song—— DASH BERLIN—featuring CERF,MITISKA & JAREN singing MAN ON THE RUN and the Tritonal vocal trance of Nadia Ali, singing  “Fantasy”, ( I am a trance junkie &  I  actually requested the DJ to play this because frankly, he was just playing crap all night, you might also  recognize Nadia Ali, from the group, Iio,  singing “Rapture,” when this Matthew McConaughey wannabe, comes up to me and says in this rather humorous &  Southern colloquial drawl, ” Na za ray na”, I am digging your “abonible” snowman,would you like to dance?” I was actually surprised because when we were introduced earlier, he could barely say two words to me & I do think he was a little drunk, (not snockered) at this point in time.  I felt like saying to him, the word is  “abominable” you fool, but instead I  pretended  that I did not hear him and just sang the chorus line  of  “Fantasy”, a little louder……”Stay away from me….” and hoped that he would just go away.  He most probably realized then that I was not going to oblige, when he turned  around and said, ” Your food and your dance moves are fantastic but your singing is not!”  Flustered, I defiantly stammered a bad word  in Afrikaans, “Vok jou, jou ou moer”  “last time I checked Mr Simon Cowell, you certainly are  no American Idol either!”After a rather awkward silence, we both just cracked up and I decided to just dance with him to keep the peace! Turned out that he was a rather nice guy after all! He did ask what I said to him in Afrikaans, I politely answered, ” I plead the fifth!”

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Lattice pocket pie mold

( Talk about party crashers & a disappearing act! these curry pies simply vanished the minute, they came out of the oven). I had to literally scramble to take the picture of my final presentation!

I bought this simple, yet inexpensive mold from William Sonoma and it truly does a marvelous job of molding these lattice pocket pies. They have a fruity filling on their box & another type of dough.  However, I used my own recipe for the pie crust and the filling. I made my pie crust with pastry flour,  cream cheese,  unsalted butter etc….. The cream cheese gave this dough a flaky and tender crumb, while the butter gave it lots of flavor. I also added a teaspoon of my masala, ( spice blend),  into the prep of the dough, thus giving it that extra burst of flavor! As you can see below, my pie dough is extremely forgiving and holds its shape beautifully!

I would recommend buying this little gadget because it makes the lattice design appear very professional & the other good thing is that, one can really place a lot of filling in the pie without distorting the design.

These pies had a very flavorful & light curry flavor with bits of chopped egg on top. I also made some without egg, but added small chunks of potatoes to the ground beef mixture. The potatoes has to be tender! I also made a roasted apricot & chili chutney as an accompanying dipping sauce. Delish!

Accompanying them were icy cold glasses of the non alcoholic Martinelli’s sparkling apple drinks & maraschino cherries as a garnish. I do not drink alcohol,  ( this does not mean that I cannot have my fun LOL!),  so the hosts, I cater for,  always provide their own alcoholic drinks .

Recipe

• Please use organic ingredients when possible!
• 1 large onion
• 3 large tomatoes, skins removed ( to remove the skins,  make a deep “cross” in the top of the tomato and soak in boiling water)
• 1 T pounded garlic
• 1 teaspoon pounded ginger root
• 1 lb of ground beef, slightly rinsed and drained in a colander
• 2 teaspoons of meat masala( I make & toast my own spice blends)
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon garam masala ( My blend has toasted cumin, coriander, fenugreek etc…..
• 1 julienned  green bell pepper
• 1 chopped green jalapeno, seeds removed
• juice of half of a lemon
• half cup chopped cilantro, including the stems
• 3-5 curry leaves
• 2 small potatoes peeled and diced (optional)
• 3 hard boiled eggs, chopped into tiny pieces ( Do this only if you do not want the potatoes in the ground beef mixture)
• If you cannot find all these spices, then use cumin, sweet red paprika & turmeric of course
• an egg wash for the glaze

Method

Peel & finely chop the onion & saute in 3 T olive oil & 1 T unsalted butter until translucent. Add the pounded garlic & ginger and cook for 5 minutes. Chop the tomatoes into chunks & then add to the onion mixture and cook for 10 minutes until saucy. Add the ground beef and cook for 30 minutes. Toast all the spices first….this brings out a tremendous flavor & aroma…then add them, green peppers,  jalapeno & lemon juice and cook further for about 10 minutes. Now would be a good time to add the potatoes, if you so wish and cook until they are almost tender & then top off with cilantro & curry leaves and cook for 5 minutes more. When done, the potatoes have to be soft & have taken on the color of the spices! Fill the lattices with the ground beef mixture and scatter the chopped egg on top and continue to follow the instructions of molding the pies as per the William Sonoma box. If you wish to leave out the egg then just follow the recipe with the chunks of potatoes instead. Frankly , I love the potato ground beef mixture the best,

Beat an egg yolk with a little water and then brush pies before baking. You can freeze these pies as well. I let the pie dough rest in the refrigerator for an hour before molding and filling them. I baked them at 400 degrees for 25 minutes

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Here are just a few of my other favorite songs for 2010: My sweetie always cracks up when I say “The Giddy DJ is in the house”

I really, really really want to go to a concert & see the two best DJ’s in action, one of them is,

Tiesto—-power mix

& the other is Armin Van Buuren—–Imagine

Lady Antebellum—– Need you now

Vocal trance 2010——Xtreme snow mash up

Rihanna——Only girl in the world, what’s my name etc….

Also listen to this version of Nadia ali “Fantasy” & cool dance moves from the queen of clubs

Nadia Ali—-Is it love?

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Gosh, I have so many more, I swear I do not have enough time to list them all!!!

Hope you too can dance the night away!

Love,

Nazarina.

The premise of this blog is to share cooking, crafts and many laughs and many of you already know that I am extremely ostentatious in all of my efforts whether culinary, presentation of dishes or otherwise but never gaudy! I love exciting food and to say that I am disambiguous would be an understatement especially since I am more than eager to transform anything into more ways than one and totally override  an ingredient’s current potential. So, today I am going to do just that share a recipe, a craft and many a laugh in the form of  a couple of jokes, (hopefully, not too indecorous for your taste!) Oh! c’mon, are you going to sit there and tell me that when friends get together that one of them is not liable to let loose a “dirty” joke? Its funny because normally, I am the one that is easily embarrassed. I always turn red as a tomato and in the process mess up the entire joke he! he! Isn’t it fun to be a little naughty?

Spuddy, buddy?

Tomato flavored potato chips and Chinese 5 spice sweet potato chips

Everyone has a favorite chip and a different term of endearment for this comfort food, whether they are gaufrettes, crisps, frips or like a former neighbor of ours in South Africa would say ‘KRIPS” ( this one always cracks me up!). “Wil jy ‘n pakkie krips he?”

Nevertheless,  they all have to be crispy! My favorite were “Tomato chips” back in South Africa. Unfortunately, I cannot find this flavor here, so,  I made my own. I made my spice  with tomato powder ( on its own, this powder lacks va va va voom), so I  toasted some pink peppercorns in a hot pan, and a few more toasted ingredients to make up the most captivating blend! This spice blend is to die for and imparted a very good flavor to my popcorn, french fries and roasted tomato soup as well. I also made a Chinese  5 spice, a little cinnamon, & a few more toasted ingredients, a custom blend, for the sweet potato chips as well. I made a note of all so that I can get the same flavor every time! Don’t you just hate it if you did not!

See some good tips below on how to keep the chips crispy!

Recipes :

Please use organic ingredients when possible

• 2 big Idaho russet potatoes or Yukon golds or more
• 2  garnet sweet potatoes or more
• Bob’s Red Mill potato starch ( so silky, you do not even have to shake off the excess! I love Bob’s Red Mill!!! & this makes the spuddy extra crispy!
• peanut oil for frying
• kosher salt
• my special tomato spice blend
• my special Chinese 5 spice & cinnamon blend (for sweet potatoes only)

Method and tips for making a batch of “Lays style” chips

Warm half of a saucepan with peanut oil and if you drop in a piece of bread, it should immediately crisp up, this is your queue to drop in the chips. Meanwhile scrub the russets,  (do not peel some of the potatoes, keep it rustic),  under running water and thinly slice with a mandolin. It is fun to use all the different settings on the mandolin like the waffle and many others.  Rinse the russet slices until water runs clear and pat dry with paper towels. Do not let the potatoes sit in water!!! They will become water logged and will steam instead of crisp up! The same goes for the prep of homemade french fries as well.  These slices should  be very dry and then toss them in the silky potato starch and then drop immediately into the electric fryer or a Dutch oven, ( cast iron pot). These two utensils tend to maintain the temperature of the oil and allows anything to be fried evenly. Do not overcrowd the pot, you do not want to steam the potatoes. Fry for about 2 mins until golden brown and drain on a cookie sheet covered with paper towels. Season with your choice of seasoning. If you have a big batch to make, then keep the cooked potato chips in a 300 degree convection bake oven until you are done with the rest and no longer than 20 mins. I use the convection setting because the air flow further dries the residual oil and hence the crispy appeal!

Scrub the sweet potatoes in the same way and dry with a paper towel but do not rinse the slices in water. Toss with Bob’s Red Mill potato starch and fry in the same way as for the regular russets. When the Chinese five spice blend hit the sweet potato chips as it came out of the fryer, the dry cold weather outside seemed like a cinch to bear.

I actually sliced the garnet sweet potatoes very thinly by hand and let all the slices air dry the night before I fried them. This is a kick a.. snack for Thanksgiving !

*Try this as well if you dare!

As the regular russets or Yukon golds come out of the fryer, lightly drizzle with malt vinegar and kosher salt. Do not put on any of the spices I mentioned on this batch though, it will clash with the vinegar! This is a British influence on the tater and was taught to me by my Mom.

Actually now that I remember, it was the Portuguese fish & chip shops that would sell these in South Africa.

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I share with you this really cute sushi napkin fold that I folded by using fabric remnants. You could use paper napkins as well! This will be great for a sushi party!

Crafts

“How to fold the sushi napkin”

For the inside napkin:

• Fold the napkin in half  with the folded edge on bottom & iron flat
• Fold the napkin into 2 & half inch wide bands, starting from the bottom to the top. Do not worry about the little piece sticking out, when you reach the top.
• Roll the napkin tightly, starting from one end into a “roll” and set aside.
• Lay the second napkin in a diamond shape and fold the bottom point up to about 2 & half inches and continue folding into 2 &half inch bands until you reach the top and then flip over.
• lay the first napkin roll about 2 inches from the left side of the second napkin and roll the outside napkin around the first like a sushi roll all the way to the end. The bottom edges of the sushi rolls should be aligned.  Secure with a corsage pin or just tuck the loose end into the folds of the second roll.

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*Baked panko sweet potato balls & half pearl & half boiler onions “onion rings” salad. My take on a potato salad.  I made this as a pot -luck dish for friends and went over really well even with those “burly, bad boys!”

This is a totally vegetarian meal! ( not that I have anything against meat because I do indulge every so now and again )

There is a bed of sesame vinaigrette slaw ( julienned  carrots, cucumbers & parsnips) on the bottom of my panko sweet potato balls and crispy pearl onion “rings” & tomato salad. I made the mayonnaise also from scratch and lightly coated this unique potato salad. Both the little panko sweet potato balls and the pearl & boiler onion rings (balls) were baked.

I say unto all carnivores in light of this menu, “Eat your hearts out!”

Looking at these pictures, one would think that these are meatballs, but I kid you not, they are baked  panko sweet potato and onion balls. The pearl onion balls had a very cool coating on it as well & no it is not a regular flour coating!!!

You will love this homemade version of this light & creamy ” Hellman’s style” mayonnaise and believe it or not, no raw eggs were used!

BTW, I am still getting tomatoes from my patch! See post below for the tomato patch and spicy tomato jam!

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Jokes!

A funny senior citizen joke

“You’re getting old when you get the same sensation from a rocking chair that you once got from a roller coaster.

Mother-in-law joke

Employment joke!

How to ask your Boss for a salary increase..?

One day an employee sends a letter to her boss asking for an increase in
her salary!!!

Dear Bo$$

In thi$ life, we all need $ome thing mo$t de$perately. I think you $hould be
under$tanding of the need$ of u$ worker$ who have given $o much $upport
including $weat and $ervice to your company.

I am $ure you will gue$$ what I mean and re$pond $oon.

Your$ $incerely,
Marian $hih

The next day, the employee received this letter of reply:

Dear Marian

I kNOw you have been working very hard. NOwadays, NOthing much has changed.
You must have NOticed that our company is NOt doing NOticeably well as yet.

NOw the newspaper are saying the world’s leading ecoNOmists are NOt sure if the
United States may go into aNOther recession. After the NOvember presidential
elections things may turn bad.

I have NOthing more to add NOw. You kNOw what I mean.

Yours truly,
Manager

State of mind joke!

It doesn’t hurt to take a hard look at yourself from time to time, and

this should help get you started

During a visit to the mental asylum, a visitor asked the director what

the criterion was which defined whether or not a patient should be

institutionalized.

“Well,” said the director, “We fill up a bathtub, then we offer a

teaspoon, a teacup and a bucket to the patient and ask him or her to

empty the bathtub.”

“Oh, I understand,” said the visitor. “A normal person would use the

bucket because it’s bigger than the spoon or the teacup.”

“No” said the director, “A normal person would pull the plug … Do you

want a room with or without a view?”

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That’s it folks, oh dear, I need a room with a view!!!!

I decided against the really bad jokes after all!

Enjoy,

Nazarina.

Not-so-mundane garden variety

Here are a few recipes I tinkered with throughout the summer, using things from the garden and hey, the garden parties were not bad either!

For some reason, there seem to be an amicable and almost clandestine rivalry between my husband and me and where arbitration in “whom will reign supreme” is not really important. What does matter, is the fact that both of us are passionate about our endeavors and that I am able to constantly chase after gastronomic nirvana!

With this said, my husband is the avid gardener in this family, so the term “green thumb” presumably alludes to his soil stained fingers. He grows all kinds of things from seedlings,  which he first germinates in the sun room, while the snow is still rampant around these parts and then during the warmer months, transplants them to either pots or the yard where “difficult dirt” is the order of many a day! Were it not for his tireless efforts, ( and in my mind, sometimes foolhardy perseverance LOL!),  to dig and aerate this impermeable piece of underlying crap, so sorry,  I meant to say clay,  that lurks just below the already, ( I swear),  denuded top soil, I  would not be able to “showboat” these beauties below! Nevertheless, daunting as this task may seem, he enjoys every minute of it!  Thank  goodness, he has the “balls” to do this every spring, among countless other things!

Berries

This tree is on the side of my studio where it receives plenty of sunshine but also the much needed shade during those 100 degree days from the shadow, cast by  the wall. My grandmother had a blackberry tree that fed the whole neighborhood. She made us climb the tree and then made all kinds of things with blackberries and it is those very moments that I miss so terribly. My sister S shared a memory with me, saying that my Grandfather wanted her to catch all those pesky ripened berries  before they fell onto his vintage Simcar, ( the ones that stained your hands and face and looked like some tattoo artist was hard at work at your expense). Apparently, there is really nothing wrong with inexpensive and underage labor, just look at how we turned out! just kidding! He, he!

Can you imagine a world in black & white? Thank God for granting us a vivid color spectrum!

This is my  so called “big, little very berry  Petit Four” that serves four or many more! (only 6 & half inches in diameter)

I developed this recipe when the berries were bursting with juice and flavor and just falling to the ground. This almost salacious motion needed an equally amorous mate,  ( i.e. a spongy Madeira with berries in the batter), to showcase the berry in all its sun-kissed  glory. The taste was absolutely stupendous,  not in the least sweet, just fruity and a little tart!

Everybody and their Mama are always over at my house, so when I tried dividing this baby into a thousand little pieces, one of my friend’s said “What the fudge Naz, what’s up with this? I need a freakin magnifying glass to even locate my piece!”

This big, little petit four is covered in a fruit fondant that I bought on-line and came all the way from Great Britain. So, it is more than fitting  to serve even the queen of England and the rest of the royal clan!

I served this dessert with a raspberry and blackberry coolie on the side. The berry coolies  intermingled with the fruit fondant ,  making every bite bursting with bits of succulent berry magic! Need I say that this endeavor was pretty darn fruitful!

Just add cooled down boiling water to a mixture of both raspberry & blackcurrant fondants and voila! you have real berries in a liquid state. I added a touch of lemon juice and the berry coolies to make it extra fruity!

It was this fruit fondant that really made this cake soar!!!!

Squires Shop distributes  orders of their products, magazines & magazine subscriptions worldwide, just click on their logo below for this fondant and many more.

Tomatoes

It is such a pleasure to cook straight from the garden and it also gives us that much needed “reconnect” to our food source, especially among the youth where this disconnect seems hauntingly palpable!

This season, my husband uncharacteristically cross pollinated the “Roma” with the  “Big Boy Hybrid” to produce a tomato with an inexplicably delicious flavor, that of my favorite, “Pink Lady” apple. Anyone can purchase a little tomato plant and plant it and nurture it and this is all good, but it is the mere planting and growing directly from seed and experimenting with cross pollination that grabs my attention!

Naturally, I just had to reciprocate and make the best tomato jam ever, so  I did some  “cross pollination” of my own.  I married the tomatoes in this  jam with a few surprises , one of them being harissa, ( just a smidgen to give it that slightly spicy flavor),  and also added a  fruit and a few other ingredients that will knock your socks off! BTW, I used honey and not sugar in this jam.

I removed the doughy insides from some Einstein bagels and filled them with a  crumbly  farmers cheese , topped them with a savory custard , a shower of freshly grated Parmesan and then baked in the oven until golden and crispy. My jam provided that undercurrent of gastronomic mystery to these bagels because without it,  felt amiss!  I am afraid that you just had to be here to appreciate the added flavor that this jam brought to the table!

Spicy tomato jam & inside out cheesy bagels

Mint patch (this is the bees favorite hangout!). These suckers can really dominate a garden but in essence this symbiotic relationship between bee & mint if you will, is really  a win-win situation for me and my tomatoes! If this is what my garden has to endure for the attraction of bees to our tomatoes, then who am I to argue with nature.

This is a steamed dark chocolate & mint pudding ( I cooked this baby in a pot on the stove top). A simple prep, but of course I am all about a challenge, so I had to go and make those pesky but pretty chocolate mint leaves for the decoration! If I were to describe this dessert, my best answer would be, like biting into a piece of spongy marshmallow without the sweetness of course!

Can someone please notify the CIA, someone has to pay dearly with his good name for this luscious chocolate thingy! Yeah, baby, this is criminal!

I did mean the Culinary Institute, what were you thinking?

Cherries ( or whatever the heck this is!). This berry was already growing in the backyard before we took up residence here. Anyway, it has a big seed in the middle and has a  slightly sour taste and so I cooked  about a handful together with craisins in a tangy chutney.

N.B. The Denver Botanic gardens got back to me and told me that these are actually chokecherries! Apparently, these make great jams/chutneys etc…. so I was on the right track.

This is a  “Craisin” good,  Nazarina’s special masala ( paprika},  roasted turkey tenderloin with a drunken  ( Pink Lady) apple slaw. This turkey takes only 40 minutes to bake and is so’ stinkin” good, your family would want to eat it everyday! It is moist and tender and the cherry and craisin chutney are a perfect complement to this dish. So to this dish there are three of my favorite recipes…….1) Craisin & cherry vinaigrette with a twist! ( gingerly toss the crispy apple strips), 2) Craisin & cherry chutney made with honey ( to baste the turkey loins) and 3)  the paprika roasted turkey tenderloin

Cucumbers, where pickling is the least of your culinary capabilities!

Roasted jalapeno (seeds removed) flavored DAHI.  I added some  other surprising twists to this cucumber raita as well . You would say, “Why did I not think of this?”

Sorry Mom, could not resist bringing the Dahi into the new millennium. This is truly mod & daring cuisine!

This is an accompaniment to Briyani and pappadoms , but my family loves  it as a refreshing summer soup as well.

All he ever says is Mmmmmmmmmm!!!!

Well, Mmmm yourself, you little cutie petudie!

Recipes (Please use organic ingredients when possible)

Mint chocolate steam pudding with chocolate leaves

(cooked in a pot of simmering water)

• 3.5oz ( 50% dark Lindt) chocolate (the whole bar) & another bar for the leaves and the sauce.
• quarter cup milk
• 7 oz chocolate cake crumbs / or I just thought of ladyfinger biscuit crumbs ( Boudoir biscuits) ! I am definitely going to use the ladyfinger crumbs, the next time I make another steam pudding! How ingenious of me! Don’t mind if I pat myself on the back! LOL!
• quarter cup sugar
• 2oz unsalted butter
• 3 eggs, separated
• quarter tsp. cream of tartar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 tsp. peppermint extract

Method

Steep the milk on low with 2 mint leaves then melt the 3.5 oz chocolate via a “bain Marie” method, stirring gingerly until smooth and set aside. Cream the butter with the sugar until creamy and then incorporate one egg yolk at a time. Add the vanilla and peppermint and blend.  Add the melted chocolate to the cake crumbs and mix. Fold this mixture into the creamed butter, sugar & egg-yolk mixture. With an electric beater, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until fairly stiff and the fold into the chocolate mixture. Spoon this batter into a 4 cup, lightly greased  pudding mold and close with the lid/ or you can use any pudding mold.

Immerse the  pudding mold into a pot,  pour cold water halfway up the mold and then remove the  mold. Bring this water to a boil and then turn the burner on low. Place the pudding mold back into the boiling water, set on an overturned heatproof plate, and place the lid on and then cook on a slow simmer for 75 minutes. This will come out of the mold easily if you cool on a rack for 20 minutes and loosen the edges with a knife.

To make the leaves:

Melt some chocolate in a bain Marie , thickly paint the underside of a mint leaf with chocolate and allow to dry and cool in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes. Do not let the chocolate spill over to the other side of the leaf, this will make it difficult to do your next step!  Carefully pull the leaf off the hardened chocolate.

Or just dip the leaves in the chocolate, harden and get on with the recipe!

Thanks for being the subjection to a long and hopefully not a  tedious post!

Love,

Nazarina.

On the agenda today:

napkin folds, bonda ( baked recipe), pesto recipe & a giveaway!

May 13th: We shuffled all the names and Teresa was the lucky winner of this giveaway. Congrats to Teresa!

A huge giveaway from Bob’s Red Mill!

Bob’s Red mill is giving away a box containing several packs of different kinds of their stone ground flour to a lucky person out there. Yes, not just one but several! In order to win this awesome gift, just leave me a comment and voila this box will find its way to your door! Imagine all the nutritious and fun things you can bake and use in your stove top dishes with these superior products! For me there can be no other, so get with the “grind” you’ll, get with Bob’s Red Mill!

See also other recipes in previous posts using Bob’ Red Mill!

Thank you Bob’s Red Mill!

BTW, the winner of  the spa soap basket giveaway  was Jo, of Literally in the moment, as mentioned at the end of my previous post! I am working on another basket for yet another lucky person, so check back with me! Also there will be another giveaway from Bob’s Red Mill but you will have to come up with a simple recipe using their flour.  I shall let you know more about this later!

Is this not a cute napkin?  See the super easy “how-to” below! I swear your little child will be able to make this napkin fold!!! Guests will really find them amusing! Now, even the guests at the B&B are learning the whole’ napkin folding thing” and they often e-mail me, saying that they get rave reviews from friends and family when they put it into practice back home.

Baked potato bonda with chili & pistachio pesto. Typically, this hors d’ oeuvre is fried but here I put my own spin on it by rolling the potato dough into balls, poking a hole in it with the back of a wooden spoon & baking it.  I did not mix the garbanzo flour with water like in the traditional recipe.

This crispy potato had a  golden brown “skin” and a silky soft interior. The little hole was a perfect place to hide my tasty chili pesto. Yeah, potatoes are real peasant food, but when presented and baked in this chic way, will make even those food snobs stop looking down their snotty noses!

Made with Bob’s Red Mill stone ground  Garbanzo bean flour!

Chili & pistachio pesto, (creamy, slightly spicy and a nutty accompaniment), I have coated shrimp, smeared under the skin of whole chicken and prepared several other meats & seafood with this  pesto and then grilled or baked! Just thin out just a touch with water for this purpose! Use your culinary realm of imagination!

How to fold the napkin

• Iron the napkin
• Bring the upper & lower edges horizontally together to meet in the center
• Put finger on the center and open out each of the four corners diagonally from that center point like in the picture below

• Roll the left side of the napkin vertically toward the center point and place something on this fold, while you roll up the right side toward the left to meet in the center.
• Fold back the upper section to form the arms of the person.
• Turn the napkin over and gently pull the arms apart.
• Slide the handle of the spoon in the folds in the back of the little person like in the presentation above.

Please use organic ingredients when possible

How to make the baked potato bonda:

• 1 cup Bob’s Red Mill stone ground garbanzo bean flour

• 1 t pure pickle masala or Hungarian sweet paprika ( I always put about 2 teaspoons just because I am crazy for spice that way!)
• 1 t baking powder
• 2 lbs potatoes
• Kosher salt
• 3 T ” Tofutti” brand cream cheese( a soy product & available at Whole Foods and Sunflower Market) or you can use regular
• 2 T Tofutti sour cream
• 1/4 cup Silk soy milk or regular dairy
• 1 T unsalted butter (optional)
• 3 T chopped cilantro
• 2 teaspoons granulated garlic
• 2 teaspoons bell pepper seeds ( optional)

Do not overwork the dough!!! Just incorporate and be done with it! Do you want stiff balls , then practice being light-handed!

Mix the first 3 ingredients in a bowl and set aside. Peel and boil the potatoes in salted water, until soft, drain the water, and put back on a low heat so that the potatoes are dry. Add the butter, cream cheese and milk and mash. Take off the heat and mix in the garlic,bell pepper seeds and cilantro and check your seasoning. Roll the mashed potato into little balls and poke with the back of a wooden spoon and place on a cookie sheet, see below.

Chill in  the refrigerator for half an hour. Brush with egg wash and lightly sprinkle with the garbanzo mixture. I put the garbanzo bean mixture in a sifter and sifted over the potatoes. This will ensure a lighter coating. Drizzle lightly with olive oil and bake in a pre-heated 375 degree oven for about 45 mins until golden brown. Immediately fill the little cavities with chili pesto and serve

For the green chili and pistachio pesto:

• 1 x 7oz can green chilies
• 1 t pure pickle masala
• 1 jalapeno
• 3/4 cup Parmesan
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1/4 c pistachios plus 1/4 c pine nuts
• 1/4 cup cilantro
• 2 t basil
• 1 T fresh lemon juice
• 3 T salad oil
• a little kosher salt to taste.

Blend everything in a blender and refrigerate the leftovers!

Are these really pears?? See recipe on my old blog! You will be surprised to see what they really are!

Thanks for your visit! Don’t forget to leave the comment for the giveaway!

Much love,

Nazarina.

How to make food soar!

On the agenda today:

A bedroom remodel & a date with a creamy pumpkin pie

My husband and I are undertaking this messy project. So far the only thing that I was good at was to search for TV stands . Hay, my name is not “giddy” for nothing! Sorry, I  will put my shoulder to the wheel when my sweetie gets mad LOL! Anyway, my  father-in-law has opted to buy the one that I like, the “Riley Holiday bedroom console” in an espresso color. Check it out and let me know whether I made the right choice!

My old blog www.giddygastronome.blogspot.com

At the B & B, I have the propensity to work freely and unwaveringly through this maze of culinary ideas, bottled up within me and it is this “waiting to get out” that is the only antidote to my restless soul. I am constantly making up dishes and preparing them purely from imaginary measures with the intention of bringing tasty and colorful dishes to life. I really want people to experience that same type of  enthusiasm when dining at my kitchen table or when reading my recipes. I want them to fall hopelessly in love with my cuisine and any fears of having  a “bad plate”, allayed. They should  have a pensive longing  for a dish that I made a “while ago” and console themselves with the thought that they will at least try to make it. This inconceivable need to feed others and not myself  is part of my innate and I find it  extremely hard to go against this selfless trait.  Am I freakin insane?

You are most probably thinking, ” Oh! boy, she is going off on us with her personal crap.” To that I answer, ” Can a girl  have a personal moment here please!”

In this recipe, it is the rice flour that gives these tarts that much loved “airiness.” These are pumpkin and cottage cheese tarts with a golden brown streusel & butterscotch whipping cream rosettes.

I had to laugh when one of the guests at the bed & breakfast said, ” My grandmother’ s pumpkin pie is fantastically stuck in time! I am so darn  sick of hearing her  story about a mythical pumpkin patch, which she has to hoe and  harvest in order for her pie to happen”. I hope she can take your queue!”

I used a 7 inch spring form pan for the one below. This dough yields 4 small tarts and this 7 inch. The filling is made of light cottage cheese, fresh whipping cream, pumpkin…etc. I think it was the streusel that had this pie sold!

The scattered crumbs on the plate tells the story of a soft crunch and the melt-in-your-mouth filling will transport you to your “happy” place! As you know by now, I dislike overly sweet desserts, so naturally I manipulated the sugar content of this pie.

Trust me, beneath my contemporary veneer, there is always a hankering for the traditional recipes, but not this time!

Lo and behold! I did  manage to get a small piece of this delectable pumpkin tart that I so lovingly slaved over! All I ever do is get to taste & then the whole thing disappears right from my reach! I  really loved this recipe, this is a keeper & will appear in my cook book. “Pile some more of that streusel on please!” was the overall consensus . I think I positively seduced even myself with this creamy filling and crunchy topping!

Kumquat & Loquat sambal: Normally this sambal is only made with kumquats, but my innovating spirit begged me to add the loquats!  Serve this as an accompaniment to my savory stacked rice stick & shrimp cakes. See the post below for these cakes. Definitely, serve this sambal with grilled or Cajun fish, fish curry or any vegetarian dish.

This exciting concoction was succulent & tangy and a perfect complement to my rice noodle cakes. The rind of the kumquat was  sweet & the juicy centers,  a little sour and salty. This is by far my  most favorite sambal! My mouth is puckering with pure delight as I write this!

Recipes:

Please use organic ingredients when possible

Kumquat & Loquat sambal (pickle). See post below for the savory rice stick cakes

• 1 x 15 oz can pitted loquats, discard the juice & cut into small segments or use the fresh ones, but add these when you add the kumquats. Hay, anyone out there willing to swap some fresh ones for my beautiful handmade soaps?

• 6 oz fresh kumquats, washed and cut into segments
• 1/3 c plus another 1/2 of a third cup organic honey
• 1/4 c organic brown rice vinegar
• 2 cloves garlic, slivered
• 1 t pure pickle masala, You are most probably thinking  that she would  brush her teeth with this spice, if there was no tooth paste, but I kid you not this stuff is “all that.”
• juice of 2 tangerines or small oranges
• 1 red thai chili chopped and deseeded
• 4 curry leaves
• Big pinch of salt
• 1 T grapeseed oil / or any vegetable oil
• 1 t yellow mustard seeds
• 1 t white sesame seeds
• 1 t black sesame seeds
• little chopped cilantro

Method:

Heat the vinegar on high  in a saucepan, add the kumquats and cook until the mixture comes to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer & cook   for about 4 more mins. until the rinds  of the kumquats become  seemingly soft. Now add the honey and stir the until the mixture becomes syrupy ( takes about 10 mins.) Add the masala & the tangerine juice and cook until incorporated ( 1 more minute).

Remove from heat and pour the contents into a bowl. Add the garlic slivers, red chili and the salt and incorporate & cool for a while. Now you can mix in your loquats. Meanwhile, in a separate pan , heat the grapeseed oil until hot, add the mustard seeds and wait until you hear the “popping” sound of the mustard seeds. Then, quickly add all the sesame seeds and the curry leaves. Pour the contents of this pan  over the kumquat mixture in the bowl. You can now spoon into little bottles, garnish with the cilantro  and refrigerate.

Much love and warmth from my kitchen,

Nazarina.

click here ! See the inside and the details of this fruit fondant cake at www.giddygastronome.com

Just add water to this fruit fondant powder and it turns any dessert into a delicious, fruity heaven!

Today on the menu, moon cake ; rice noodle

My old blog www.giddygastronome.blogspot.com

Please, visit Jo, ( Literally in the moment), and read her passionate stories about rescuing animals.

“Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime”…Chinese proverb

……. more like,  you will not have to listen to his incessant whining about how hungry he is LOL!

Okay, so I am a month late with the festivities of the Chinese Lunar New Year, but would still like to share with you my humble eats that I prepared at that time. My friend at the lodge wanted me to prepare a dessert and a savory hors d’ oeuvre for this  auspicious  occasion, so I prepared my own interpretation of the “moon cake” and my very own ( rice noodle) rice stick & shrimp savory cake  with a Cape Malay style loquat &  kumquat sambal on the side. I put a lot of thought in this menu!

I researched the ingredients of the “moon cake” and was rather skeptical that I  would like the final result. I have even seen some recipes with the addition of soy sauce for color. Nevertheless, I prepared the original recipe that came with the fish mold, ( received this mold as a Christmas gift),  and also developed my own version. I can just look at ingredients of a recipe and deduce whether it would be good or just plain unpalatable! This was  exactly what transpired, the original recipe was heavy and hard and unappealing! However, my version of the ” Chinese moon cookie” though not the authentic version, was by far the most delectable morsel you have ever put in your mouth. Even our Chinese guests agreed that these were delicious, though  very much to the dismay of  their antiquated notions, that I was not capable of making their recipe, palate proud!

My version of the ” Chinese Moon cookie” NB, the emphasis is on “mock” moon cookie.

So freakin good! You don’t know whether you want to eat it or embalm it! Who am I kidding, there was nothing left for a next day!

Stacked rice stick and shrimp savory cakes with loquat & kumquat sambal ( pickle).  There was an exciting little twang with the addition of fresh lemon pepper ( see previous post) and the curry leaves to this savory & crispy cake!! The lightly spiced, yet sweet plump loquats and juicy kumquats combined, complemented the rice stick & shrimp cakes and played almost a culinary havoc with your taste buds! A naughty little twist on my Mama’s sambal recipe! The recipe for the sambal will appear in the next post.

My dad too, makes the most appetizing sambals!

My personal quest was to create  exciting flavors and  textures to make this gathering memorable. Indeed, this occasion  was  so v e r y  triumphant to say the least. NB, you could also omit the shrimp to make it vegetarian, and the rest of the ingredients of this savory cake are  gluten- free to boot, so very versatile for people with specific allergies.

I decided to present the cookies in a fish bowl. Discerning gastronomes would agree that “novelty food” should be presented in a fun type of setting. These puffy, coco nutty, custardy &   melt-in-your-mouth cookies created quite a stir with both kids and adults! This recipe will be in my cook book!

My version of this cookie had custard powder in the dough and a  Cape Malay type of cooked dessicated coconut ( Grandmother’s recipe) in the middle and then I  defiantly dipped the bottom in  melted intense dark 60% “evening dream” chocolate. This chocolate has a hint of Madagascan vanilla. Normally the authentic version of the moon cake calls for bean paste.

This is the original recipe below  which called  for “wong tong” sugar slabs, water, lemon peel, 1 and a 1/2 cups of oil and 6 cups of flour. It really does not look bad in its unbaked stage but when baked it just felt terribly heavy! The dough was also far too oily. Duh! just look at all the oil, it requires!

This is my version below with the cooked dessicated coconut inside the belly of the fish and  English custard powder in the shortbread dough. It was light ( only 1/3 c of organic sugar) so not sweet at all and unsalted organic butter but most importantly, my dough kept the integrity of the design of the mold !

Recipes:

“How to make food soar!”

seafood:

As usual, please use organic ingredients when possible!

For the Rice vermicelli ( rice noodle) and shrimp savory cakes:

• 8 oz “Kong Moon” rice vermicelli rice stick ( soak in boiling H2O for 5 mins.)
• 8 oz cooked large shrimp, cut each shrimp in half crosswise
• small onion finely chopped
• 2 large carrots
• Large jicama, peeled
• 1/2 c  chopped green onion
• a few fresh curry leaves ( for that distinct delicious flavor)
• 1/2 c  cilantro ( this time leaves only)
• red chili, seeds removed & diced
• 5 cloves garlic ( pounded)
• 2 eggs lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup potato starch ( Bob’s Red Mill, unmodified, all natural). I adore this product!!!!
  
• kosher salt ( 2 big pinches)
• 1 T lemon pepper ( see my previous post)
• 1 t pure pickle masala
• 1 T red bell pepper seeds

Method:

Make it a vegetarian version by omitting the shrimp. All these ingredients are gluten-free as well!

Rinse the rice stick in cold water and dry on paper towels. It should not be mushy. Meanwhile, julienne the carrots (thin strips), slice the jicama, stack on top of one another and then julienne and toss with the rest of the ingredients, including the rice stick and the shrimp. Even if you stop right here and just have it as a cold type of salad, it would be delicious with all these flavors going on! Add the potato starch and toss lightly. Gingerly mix in the beaten egg with your hands without breaking up the shrimp and the rest of the ingredients so carefully julienned!

Take about a handful of the mixture and shallow fry in olive oil and a tablespoon of unsalted butter. Use a wide spatula to flatten like a pancake in the pan when cooking it . I also  used a thin spatula to aid in the flipping of the cake and cook until GB&D! Place on paper towels to drain. You could keep the cakes warm in the oven  warmer .

The recipe & more pictures  for the loquat and kumquat sambal will be featured in the next post. I promise, I shall try to post very soon, so do come back !

Much love as always,

Nazarina.

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Question: Do you believe that spices can save you from the debilitating Alzheimer’s disease? I happen to concur the notion that it does!!!!

Old blog (www.giddygastronome.blogspot.com)

Granted, soup is a pretty easy dish to make. C’mon nobody can mess it up and at the end of a very cold day, everyone will  love you for  making it.

I am a voracious advocate for this  “feel good” food and the cozy ambiance it creates. As you well know, soup is an ubiquitous fare in cold climates and it is  this welcoming  simplicity, that makes for it’s broad appeal! For me, a steaming bowl of soup and a chalet in the mountains, are the perfect pair for an idyllic love affair!

Here I have prepared a roast chicken noodle soup with an Asian twist ( a full-blown party in a pot)  and a crunchy kick-a..  cracker on the side. Let me warn you though, make plenty for all your ski buddies because table-side brawls and senseless  butchery could very well be the climax of an enjoyable day of skiing……  all for some maddeningly good crispy cheesy straws! These rugged  guys, I tell ya! They love it when I cook though!

Crispy & flaky, cheese straws ( golden , gooeey & garnished with carrot & daikon “knots” )

My addition of green chillies, seeds removed, and chopped cilantro in the dough makes for a very good flavor and very flaky to boot. The acoustic elements, while munching on these savory snacks, were like music to the ear!

Roast chicken noodle soup with a magical broth and a distinct  Asian twist, was a welcome reprieve for  everyone’s frozen extremities!

Thanks Jo for the beautiful colorful plate!

Made with Sambal Oelek,  edamame, daikon, carrots and spices for flavor

I consider myself extremely lucky living here in Colorado. Colorado with it’s wide open spaces and majestic Rocky Mountains will make you say ” wow!” every time you see it.

……then in a flash, the weather changes and you will freeze your a…..   off!

…the sun is trying it’s utmost to peek through this ominous cloud

I am this crazy about skiing! This is where you will find me most week-ends, braving the I70 en route to Breckenridge, Vail or Beaver Creek….depending  on where this snow storm blows me!

I prepared everything the night before , so that when we came from skiing, I  baked  the straws,  roasted  the chicken in the same oven and finally  warmed the soup.

My entourage of  winter Olympic hopefuls are numerous in number so this here mama has  to be prepared for their ravenous  hunger!

Recipes (Please use organic ingredients when possible)

For the flaky cheese straws

• 1/4 c 100% stone ground-whole grain corn flour (Bob’s Red Mill)
• 1/4 c cornstarch Bob’s of course!
• 1 3/4 c A/p flour
• 2 green chillies finely minced, seeds and veins removed
• 1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro, stems included
• 2 t peri-peri spice ( I used South African)
• 1 t granulated garlic powder
• 2 big pinches of Kosher salt
• 6 oz cold, unsalted butter cut into small pieces
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 to 5 T of cold  H2O ( depending on aridity, Colorado is extremely dry).  I used 5T but if you live at sea level, add 2 first and pulse.
• 5 oz freshly  grated Gouda cheese, plus 2 oz grated sharp cheddar
• 6 oz freshly grated Parmesan
• 1 egg yolk, whisked,  for brushing

Method:

Sift all the dry ingredients and the salt in a food processor and add the spices, cilantro and chillies, and pulse twice. Scatter the butter into the flour & pulse once again. Whisk the egg yolk into the water and then add to the processor. Pulse again 7  short times ( emphasis on short). Knead gently into a smooth ball on the table being careful not to overwork the dough. Place in refrigerator for an hour.

Roll out the dough into a rectangle ( about 10 x20 inches). Brush one half ( measure 10 inches across) with egg yolk and sprinkle with the mixture of Gouda & Cheddar. Now brush the other half and fold this half over the cheesy half. Brush the top with egg  and sprinkle the Parmesan on top. Using a pastry wheel cut the straws 1/2 inch x 3 inches long like in the picture below. Refrigerate for 15 mins. and then bake 400 degrees for 15 mins. until golden and gooeey!

For the roast chicken noodle soup: (organic ingredients please!)

• 12 chicken drumsticks, skinless, rinsed and dried. Bake about 8
• some panko
• lemon pepper
  
• sweet pickle masala or sweet Hungarian paprika
• 1 medium onion finely chopped
• 2 t pounded  fresh garlic
• 1 t  toasted cumin
• 1/2 t  turmeric
• 1-2  t Sambal Oelek
• 1 bunch of carrots, cleaned and cut, I used a cookie cutter or cut into small lengths
• 3 daikon radish, do the same here
• 5 cups homemade chicken stock/ or 2  cartons  organic, low sodium plus 3 cups of water
• 2 oz of egg noodles ( has to be added at the end)
• half pound edamame (frozen)
• 2 T chopped cilantro

Method:

While you are baking the cheese straws, you can bake 8 of the drumsticks in the same oven for 35 mins. Sprinkle the drumsticks with lemon pepper (I make the lemon part fresh and then dry it) and sweet pickle masala or Hungarian paprika if you do not have sweet pickle, drizzle with very little  extra virgin and bake in the oven. The last 10 mins of baking time, sprinkle some panko on the chicken and place back in the oven to crisp up.

Saute the onion in that same container you baked the drumsticks in, you will pick up all the fond(flavor), crazy good, until transparent, 5 mins. Add a tiny bit of extra Virgin olive oil if too dry. Add the garlic and Sambal Oelek,  saute for another 5 mins. Now transfer all these  to a soup pot (Dutch oven) & add the remaining 4 drumsticks and add kosher salt to taste and braise for 15 mins  Add all the carrots and the daikon and saute in the chicken juices until fairly tender about 20 mins. Now add the cumin & turmeric and saute for 5 mins until spices are cooked. Add the edamame and  all the chicken stock and cook for 15  mins and check your seasoning. Add the cilantro and cook for another 5 mins. Last but not least add the egg noodles and cook for another 5 mins.

Dish the soup in the bowls and make sure that you put a few roasted drumsticks in the bowl as well. I always use the pepper mill when I serve the soup and Oh, do not forget the cheese straws!

Much love from my kitchen,

Nazarina,

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