AWEsome Cookery

  Another Christmas favorite for (and from) all the Scandihoovians around me.  I just finished catering a December wedding with a very Norwegian flair and Meatballs were the main attraction.  Actually I think the gravy was the main attraction…but isn’t it always?  It’s all about the gravy.  I didn’t measure anything when making the gravy for the wedding so below only the ingredients for it are listed, maybe later I’ll try to recreate that scrumptious magic.   Swedish meatballs (Köttbullar)

. Beginning in Sälen and ending in Mora, Sweden, the 90 kilometer Swedish Vasaloppet is one of the largest ski races in the world.  Tens of thousands of skiers pilgrimage to Sälen in mid-March to ski, enjoy the spectacle, and some to winter camp along the race course in a good spot to cheer on the racers.  During the week prior to the Vasaloppet between 50,000 and 80,000 people ski the course as a fun family event leading up to

  Pickled cauliflower would be great in the summer heat but I’ve been enjoying the brightness of this veggie alongside my denser fall foods like squash, stews, and slow cooked meats.  There are countless versions of marinated brassicas, though many of us don’t have access to a wide variety of southeast Asian spices so this adaptation is relatively simple.     Here is a little video with two ways to cut cauliflower into florets.  We’ve also been frying and roasting

  Chermoula is one of my favorite flavor bombs of all times. To quote a comment from my friend Heather on my Chermoula post of years ago: “One word…MAGIC. This little gem creates magical alchemy with anything it touches. And I have been introducing it to everything I eat. It is indescribable on veggie tacos. As I was conjuring it, I thought ‘Oh, this doesn’t make very much.’ A mother of five, quantity is always lurking in my consciousness. Chermoula

  Another Autumn treat from 2011 that needs rediscovering…   Pancakes aren’t just for potatoes anymore.  I love potatoes, but there is something endearing about supporting the Underdog.  The humble rutabaga, or ‘Swede’ as the Brits call it, can look huge and weird in the produce section, often ignored like an ugly duckling. Rediscover those Roots, that’s what I say!  Taste the Tubers..     “…Prior to the introduction of the potato to the Old World, latkes were, and in some places still are, made

  I made this salad for my second-ever wedding that I catered on my own many years ago, it was a good mix and I’m kind of amazed I don’t cater with it more often.  Those first weddings were so memorable—I wanted to provide awesome and spectacular food but was still learning what it meant to haul everything off-site, and calling myself ‘the caterer who goes where no other caterers go’ it’s no surprise that I acquired a few stories

  Cauliflower has been experiencing quite the celebrity status over the last few years because of its sturdiness and mild flavor that make it a decent grain-substitute when ‘riced’. Pizza crusts, pilafs, salads, as pasta—cauliflower has found its way into many low-carb experiments.     I wanted to make a saffron-cauliflower pilaf so I simmered the grated cauliflower with saffron, but after tasting it I was not excited. I don’t know if cauliflower and saffron have an inherent clash tendency,

.   My boat!  We found this cutie resting near the shores of Lake Superior in Bayfield, Wisconsin.   There is not much downtime in the summer for Scott and me but we did manage a quick trip to hang out on Lake Superior, our midwestern ocean.  We stayed at a sweet little 50’s era place in Ashland called the Bayview Motel, right on the shores of big lake.  No online reservations—you’ll have to call or email to contact them,

  When creating a catering menu that highlights locally grown ingredients there is a certain amount of ambiguity that is necessary, especially if the menu must be decided upon months in advance.  No one can possibly know what will be available at an exact date so I cannot promise any particular vegetable in a dish.  Even with protective measures like hoop houses there are countless factors affecting crops–things like temperature, rain, no rain, early spring, late freeze, hail, floods, bugs, slugs, deer, raccoons—the list of variables

  Need a bacon substitute for a BLT?    Oh my, the bacon lover in me says there is no substitute for the Fruit of the Pig…but these tamari drenched roasted eggplant pack a load of flavor that gives satisfaction to the Umami Itch.  I made this little sandwich with parmesan but I’m positive a fresh ripe tomato would be a perfect match on top. I often use a marinade with equal parts tamari and cider vinegar—Roasted Tofu Skewers is another example

  The Weavers were back! June is a full and demanding month for me but I get to end it by providing meals for a lovely group of basket weavers from around the world at the Willow Gathering.  This session I peeked in on traditional basket styles from the Catalan region of Spain, and I’ll post the photos from two other sessions later…         The fresh willow is soaked in water so it bends easily, then kept wrapped in plastic

  I really didn’t intend to make a Chicken Salad, it just happened. It started because I wanted to make a chili-lime slaw as a trial run for something I might do for a catering event this summer.  I then saw the toasted sesame oil in the cupboard so I let it shift the flavors into that direction.  Rice vinegar, garlic chili paste, ginger—the dressing was tasty, but I shredded a hard green cabbage and it was not-quite-right, tasting almost bitter, and too intense for what I wanted. What to do?  Add noodles?

  Cute tiny grains.  Bright orange carrots.  Summer days.  Good.   Quinoa is a relatively forgiving grain to cook.  I loosely measure 2 parts liquid to 1 part quinoa, but if you rinse it well and pour a random large amount of water into the pot you can drain off whatever liquid is left when it is cooked to your liking, or you can add more water during the cooking process if needed.  Beautifully un-fussy and un-intimidating—but ONE EXCEPTION is that you

  A quick jaunt to Colorado on Amtrak helped me remember that trains are an awesome way to travel.  Everyone is relaxed, friendly, unparanoid, and relatively diverse.  The leg room in coach is luxurious and the small stations have free long term parking.  Perhaps it’s time you consider an Amtrak adventure?     A sun rising over Nebraska was enjoyed by a few of us in the observation lounge.  There wasn’t much talking in that pre-dawn reverie but the appreciation was palpable as we waited for the downstairs

  I referred to this pickling recipe in the Carrot Flowers post a few years ago and the Quick-Pickled Vegetable Salad last year, but I thought these beauties deserve their own page.  These are one of my favorite stand-byes for antipasto trays—they’re surprisingly bright and zesty, and the cheery orange is great next to the often dull brown hues of olives, mushrooms and meat.   This recipe is also from one of my favorite cookbooks ever, Deborah Madison’s Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone.  I made

  I used to make a similar tofu at the deli, crusted with ground pumpkin seeds, cornmeal and 5-spice.  I simplified it in this version but it still has that hint of exotic with the Big Five to add to your sandwich or stir fry. In the past I would often treat tofu like fish, it has a similar wetness and needs to be handled delicately.  At the Loring Café with we used to make Chef Lenny Russo’s 5-spice grilled trout served

  Superpowers? I sometimes wish my superpowers were more exciting.  List-making is not terribly sexy or awe-inspiring.  I visualize what needs to happen then scribble (with .09 lead pencil and paper) the amounts then compile all the amounts into another list, then figure out the day and order in which things need to happen. It might take numerous drafts to achieve something understandable and useable.  I may even teeter into OCD moments of how a proper list should look and I

  Every culture has their flatbread—tortillas, crepes, roti, pita, gözleme, mana’eesh, msemmen, naan—the list of edible wraps from around the world goes on and on.  This garbanzo flatbread, a.k.a. farinata, socca, torta di ceci or cecina, is common in Italy, France and northern Africa where garbanzos abound.  They’re gluten free, full of protein, and provide a great vehicle to get your favorite toppings into your mouth.     It takes a while for the garbanzo flour to be absorbed into the water so begin early in the

Also known as ‘Seven Flavor Chile” because there are usually seven ingredients (shichi = seven), shichimi is a Japanese dried-spice mixture that can be cooked into dishes or added at the end for a complex punch of flavor.  Though regions and families have their own ingredient combinations and proportions, most shichimi contains chiles, citrus peel, sesame seeds, and nori.  Other ingredients may include Szechuan peppercorn, black or white poppyseeds, hemp seeds, paprika, salt, ginger and garlic.   I recently picked up a bag of pre-mixed shichimi and was reminded how

  Sanskrit scriptures describe the universe as being birthed from an egg. The term Brahmanda is from two words: Brahm (ब्रह्म) = ‘cosmos’ or ‘expanding’, and ‘anda‘ (अण्ड) = ‘egg’.  The Brahmanda Purana, an ancient Indian text, explains this fascinating concept in great detail.  Good reading while you wait for the weather to warm as we muck through this season of mudliness.    Eggs and Spring.   Along with symbolizing life and new birth, in earlier times eggs were one of the few things available