Food, Libraries and Adventures Still Rule

Last night we did took a culinary journey to Africa.  This was done because despite the Internet and Kindle and iPhones etc, we still go to the library.  (We do not have iPhones or a Kindle, but I do have a disconnected cell pone that I carry as a stopwatch, flashlight and iPod, but that's not important right now).

There is nothing like finding a book at the library and embarking on the tactile journey into enlightenment.  This is even better when it involves cooking.  My Wife Donna found the book Passport on a Plate by Diane Simone Vezza.  A Round-the-World cookbook for children.  My son's love to cook, create and generally make huge messes in the kitchen, just like me.


Donna and Liam decided to chose African food last night.  Three recipes in all.  The first was luku (Chicken Stew)  It is an Ethiopian Dish.  I am not going to go into detail since Liam is going to be blogging about this himself.  This is a very inexpensive dish to make and is mild tasting which gives it a great home in a cookbook for children.  And yes, those are hard-boiled eggs in with the chicken.  I may have thought at first that they would be out of place, but they certainly were not.

The next recipe was from Nigeria called Akara (Black-eyed Pea Balls).  As you can see, they did not retain the shape of balls but were delicious nonetheless.  The book stated that these are often eaten with sweet custard.  I realized as we had a whole bunch of cilantro that I had not done anything with, I quickly made 2 batches of cilantro pesto and 1 batch of Avocado Cilantro Mayonnaise.  These were awesome dipped in either of these.  The balls consisting of beans, cayenne, onion had nice rich almost meatiness about them.


Avocado Cilantro Mayonnaise is NOT African, but it is one of those things that can work on many international dishes.  It is the design of the finest Mexican chef in the universe, Rick Bayless and is a regular staple and the Frontera Grill, Topolobampo and Frontera Fresco all in Chicago.  It is a simple mixture of 1/4 cup of chopped fresh cilantro, 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise and one mashed avocado.  I have yet to find something that this does not taste good on!




The third recipe that Donna and Liam chose was, a Nigerian Fruit Salad.  This was mixed with a nice blend of fruit and seasonings then baked in the oven to draw the sweetness of the fruit to the forefront.  Everything was very good and what a nice adventure for a Wednesday night.  I think I overheard that the next adventure is going to be Russia.  It is a great way for your child to explore social studies by creating and tasting the food that children from other parts of the world eat.  I kind of wonder if the version of this book on the other side of the world has miscellaneous chicken nuggets, macaroni and cheese and french fries for the American recipes.  Can I please say that I am from some other country?  Although Donna did have a box of Kraft Mac-n-Cheese on stand by in case the boys did not like the African food!

Jalapeno Poppers

I cannot eat a store bought popper again after these.  These were inspired by cooking with Caitlin and seasoned my own way.

chile rellenos

January was Mexican Month for me.  Here is my interpretation of Marcela Valladolid's Chile Rellanos.  Pablanos stuffed with Monterey Jack and Oregano and roasted and batter dipped and fried with a nice chunky tomato spice spooned over.  Absolutely awesome.

Spinach Artichoke Dip

Creamy Mussels Portobella in Vermouth

This is a recipe of my own design.  I loved the Mussels in White Zinfandel recipe that my wife makes.  But she fell in love with these.  2 pounds of mussels cooked in sauted onions, garlic, butter, cilantro, portobella Mushrooms, sun dried tomatos and Vermouth with a nice cream stirred in at the last minute.

  This is really a favorite in our house.

George Stella's Low Carrb Pizza's

These pizza's showed me that the sky is the limit.  Just like a song does not need to have the chorus sang until the last 30 seconds of the song, a pizza does not need to be constructed traditionally.  These were good but from here on out, I'd settle for the REAL dough instead of soy.

Getting a blog started is not so easy...but

I was asked at work the other day, what I like to cook.  It was strange, because other than my signature Spinach Artichoke Dip, I couldn't really think of anything.  This is funny because there is so much.  It makes me think about how all of this happened.  While the pop culture of cooking that last 15 years has made ideas accessible to me, I am not a Food Network Foodie.  I am inspired in the wake of the memory of my father who died in 1996 at age 50.  He cooked like I do, like a mad scientist (as my wife calls me).  My sister Brooke who embraced cooking before I did inherited my Dad's cookbooks.  Rightly so.  I had two recipes that I had perfected in 1986 when I was 20, almost 21.  These were the Mc Cormick black cooking bag for pork chops and the strange but tasty, upside down spice-dome cake that I made in Port Aransas, Texas.  I mention Port A because it is or rather WAS a different kind of place.  Smoking in grocery stores was fine and you did not need shirts or shoes in them either.  Mufflers on cars are optional too since vehicles rust VERY fast there.  I digress. 

The dome shape of the cake was because the closest thing I had to a cake pan was a stainless steel bowl.  So Brooke shared a love of more comprehensive cooking with my Dad, whereas I, shared music with him.  In the summer of 1996, as I was going through smaller items of my father's I found an index card of a recipe that he cut off a package in October 1984 one night called "turkey stuffing bake."  At 1 8years old I was surprised that I liked this since in 1984, my tastes really revolved around the fast food industry.  I also liked Shake and Bake for Pork, (as I suspect this may have been pureed and put in my baby bottles years ago).

In 1996 when I found this little yellowing index card, I immediately made the Turkey Stuffing Bake.  Not only did this bring back memories, but it opened a door I could not close.  There was something so sweet about making a meal.  Following a recipe at this point was sort of like mapping out a trip.  I loved to travel and cooking was like that. I played around with different recipes and most of the time in the early years my experimentation was restricted to grilling.

In 2000 during a 6 week medical leave from work, the final tumbler fell into the chamber.  By this point I had tried a good deal of food all over the country and even around the world and with the power of the Internet, I decided that I was going to enjoy these things in my own kitchen.  Since I was newly single, I had nothing to cook on.  So I went to the local 2nd hand store Sclafani's and picked up a used set of Farberware from the 1970's for next to nothing.  I began researching all kinds of recipes, especially Korean and Chinese and some basic french techniques.  These were awesome days.  I would go to the grocery store with something new in mind and that evening, it happened.

I knew then I was on to something and I pulled out all of the stops.  I would coast along on this Internet fed cooking discovery through 2005 when we got cable TV and found the well established Food Network.  Practical ideas from Rachel Ray, Alton Brown, Bobby Flay, George Stella and Juan Carlos fueled an already burning desire to create culinary experience.  All of this happening and yet I lacked technique.  In years to come I became acquainted with Rick Bayless, Alex Gaurnashelli, Jean Christophe Novelli, Cat Cora and many other greats.  These people inspired me and the more I cooked something began to happen, technique which is the beginning of self awareness and where your talent becomes living and breathing. 

To celebrate this coming of age, which I feel has only began I will post some photos of meals made during this time.

The Endless Winter

Winter used to mean that you had an excuse to stay in and cook.  While this is still true the cold and the pounding of snow have me concerned with how much weight has accumulated on the roof, why the oil lights are coming on in 2 of 3 of our vehicles. (The 3rd not having this trouble since it is parked in the garage with stuff piled behind it and sporting a flat tire).

Despite the unwanted distractions, I cook.  This past weekend I made Alex Guarnaschelli's Stuffed White Mushroom Caps.  I have made stuffed mushrooms many times, but I love the vermouth in both the cap and the stuffing.  I usually use a White Zin, but  this was nicer.  She used sour cream and when I stuffed the caps, I realized I had much more for something else.  There were a couple of center cut pork chops in the fridge, so I cut pockets into them and stuffed them with the sour cream filling.  Although the main course was grilled steak that night, I know that in the future, crafting a stuffing I would like to do the stuffing as the center point and perhaps do 3 different components of the meal with a variation of the same stuffing.