Food News: Pairing Wine with…Grits

In the second news posting of the day, the Dallas Morning Times considers which wines pair best with cheese grits. Seeing as they’re of the the bacon-wrapped shrimp variety, I’m unlikely to try the grits dish. But you have to like an article that considers seriously the wine-grits conundrum. Thanks, Dick, for the heads up.
“Crisp, [...]

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Food News: Eating as an act of preservation

This article from today’s New York Times, “To Save a Species, Serve it for Dinner,” caught my eye. It’s about a new book, Renewing America’s Food Traditions: Saving and Savoring the Continent’s Most Endangered Foods, and the accompanying food movement that works for the preservation of endangered plant and animal species through consumption.

Gary Paul Nabhan, [...]

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Homemade Strawberry Frozen Custard

I was in a cooking mood yesterday. I made tortilla española, green pea and mint soup and some kosher for Passover egg white cookies. The cookies left me with three egg yolks to use up. I had some strawberries on hand, so I decided to make a homemade frozen yogurt/custard. I played it pretty fast [...]

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Food News: Wash Post does dinner for 4 on $12

I liked this article on feeding a family of four for $12 in the Washington Post. The chef has good form in using items from the perimeter of the grocery store and getting the most out of ingredients. As opposed to the New York Times’ recent piece on eating from the dollar store, this article [...]

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Mashed Potatoes

Mashed potatoes were a great hit at the seder, and for lunch several days afterward.
Mashed Potatoes
3 lbs. redskin potatoes, washed, unpeeled and cubed
1/2 c. whole milk
3 T. butter
1 T. salt
Cover the cubed potatoes with cold water in a medium pot. Salt the water if that’s your thing. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and [...]

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Food News: Shoppers Guide to Buying Organic

The Environmental Working Group just came out with a new Shopper’s Guide to Buying Organic. Helpful ranking of pesticides found in fruits and vegetables so you can prioritize organic purchases. Peaches, apples, bell peppers: buy organic. Corn, avocado, onions: conventional produce is ok. I printed one and put it on my fridge.

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Seder Fish

Back to blogging about the food we ate at our seder last Sunday. The main course was a Brazilian Holiday Fish recipe from the New York Times. I made 2 lbs of fish fillets–mostly mahi mahi, with a little snapper thrown in–for 8 people and had enough for a serving + of leftover, so the [...]

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Huevos Haminados

Huevos haminados are a Spanish/Middle Eastern tradition of uncertain origin. They cook slowly in simmering water with onion skins, which creates this wonderfully rich, red color on the shells. Depending on how long you cook them, the insides can also acquire a brown color. I served them as the first course of the meal, which [...]

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Steamed Artichokes

The seder last night was wonderful. We had a great mix of people that allowed for great conversation about the rituals of the seder, and a lot of other things, too. The surprising cooking success for me was the steamed artichokes we had on the table as a snack before the meal was served.

I like [...]

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Traditional Haroset

This is the more traditional style of Haroset eaten at Eastern European seders. It’s adapted from a recipe my mom uses. Makes about 4 cups of Haroset (plenty for a small seder of 8, which is what we’ll be on Sunday).

Haroset
Ingredients
4 apples (red delicious, braeburn, any kind of crisp apple), unpeeled
2/3 c. walnuts
4 big spoonfuls [...]

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