This salsa is like a thin and unchunky version of guacamole. It is from Esteban Castillo’s cookbook Chicano Eats, and was used with grilled steak to make Vampiros de Asada. When Carol saw the recipe, she could not believe that it would use 1.5 cups of water, but it does. It has a nice citrusy Read More …
This classic Middle Eastern dip can be made in a variety of ways with a wide range of spiciness. This version is based on Israeli Soul by Michael Solomonov and Steven Cook and is not spicy. It added some good variety to a set of dips to accompany Grilled Flatbread. 1 cup walnuts 4 roasted Read More …
This bread has quite a complex flavor from the olives, garlic, red pepper, and bit of sugar. This version is an adaptation of a recipe in Bread Illustrated from America’s Test Kitchen. I made this based on weight of flour vs. the volume. The original recipe equated 3 cups of bread flour with 16.5 oz., Read More …
These tasty pickles can be eaten within a day or so of making them. This version is adapted from a recipe in the Richmond Times-Dispatch and makes about a pint of pickles. 1 lb. English or Persian cucumbers, cut into ¼ inch slices 2 Tbs. salt ½ cup sugar ½ cup white vinegar 1 Tbs. Read More …
This side dish accompanied Chinese Braised Beefin the photograph. The mushrooms were a good addition since they really soaked up the sauce. This is an adaptation from Cook’s Illustrated’s “All-Time Best Chinese Recipes”. Sauce 2 Tbs. water 1 Tbs. soy sauce 1 Tbs. dry sherry 2 tsp. brown sugar 2 tsp. grated fresh ginger 1 Read More …
This Central European classic was an accompaniment to a pork roast, the comfort food of Carol’s childhood. It was easy and very good. Note that this was started the day before, rested overnight in the refrigerator to meld the flavors, and then reheated the second day. This version is adapted from a favorite cookbook, The Read More …
This condiment from the Israeli cookbook Sababa is essentially a quick way of making preserved lemons. I just used it in another recipe from Sababa, Lemony Tuna Pasta. 1 lb. lemons (3 large or 4 medium), washed 3 large cloves of garlic, thinly sliced 1 small jalapeno, seeded and thinly sliced 3 Tbs. kosher salt Read More …
This tasty and easy salad is adapted from Nancie McDermott’s book Quick & Easy Thai. Like many Asian salads, there is no oil in the dish, so this is quite low calorie. I made it with chopped peanuts (vs. dried shrimp) so that I did not have to go to a specialty grocery for any Read More …
In recent years, I have gotten lazy (or have not planned ahead) and have generally microwaved my “baked” potato. It was ready in 7 minutes, vs. the 1 hour+ that it takes for the oven, and that seemed like a good deal. I recently read an article in www.thekitchn.com extolling the virtues of actually baking Read More …
Gazpacho, a chilled liquid salad, is a Spanish classic for high summer when tomatoes are at their best. This straight-forward version is adapted from one of my oldest and most well-worn cookbooks, The Time-Life International Cookbook. It will serve 6 to 8 and needs to be made a few hours before serving to meld and Read More …