holiday cooking & baking….

Dec 23rd- pernil & oven-baked polenta Christmas Eve- moqueca with cod and shrimp, and Chef Aristedes’ imam bayaldi Christmas Day- duck with cherry, port & peppercorn sauce, potato and shiitake gratin, roasted brussel sprouts & beets, and Christmas pudding Boxing Day- swiss-style sauerbraten with egg noodles, and cauliflower, kale, broccoli, green bean & gruyere gratin … Continue reading →

pernil numero uno

Taking the lime idea from this pernil recipe, and using Bittman’s unorthodox pernil recipe (including onion and ancho chili) as a guide, I made my first pernil. Tasty! And unbelievably tender. Will try a more authentic Puerto Rican pernil recipe the next time.

brussel sprouts sort of braised in white balsamic and butter

my new favourite way to make brussel sprouts… 2 dozen brussel sprouts, cleaned, and halved 2 tbsp butter, cut into pieces 2 tbsp of white balsamic vinegar, or more to taste Fresh ground pepper to taste. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (with convection if you like). Add ingredients to a pyrex dish. Bake for … Continue reading →

variations on a theme….spanakopita

The last batch of spanakopita was made with a combination 1/2 goat milk feta, 1/2 sheep milk feta, leeks, spinach, baby arugula, onions and green onions. Would repeat.

potatoes au gratin #1

improv dish turned out delish! 5 medium peeled potatoes, sliced thin 1 clove of garlic, peeled and cut in half 1 tsp of dried thyme. 1 cup of grated Emmenthal 3/4 cup of heavy cream freshly ground black pepper to taste Preheat oven to 350 degrees F with Convection on(if you have no convection oven, … Continue reading →