Posts from the ‘Features, Articles and Recipes’ Category

Feb 5

The Pugs – Izzy and Nando

I think its about time that I introduce my two pugs, Izzy and Nando. They are the pugs in the kitchen. Izzy will be 11 years old in April and Nando turned 11, November 2011. My daughter brought Izzy to me when she was only 9 weeks old a few months after my other dog died. I was very upset and said I would never get another dog, my daughter knowing me and my love of animals decided I needed another dog so she came home with Izzy one day. I always had big dogs and was a little scared of such a tiny one, she seemed so fragile, long story short it didn’t take long for me to totally fall in love with her. I wanted Izzy to have a doggie friend, I feel its important they there is canine companionship. So I proceeded to start looking for a friend for Izzy, looking online on Pet Finders and rescue groups. I came across a Pug rescue group in Long Island and registered with them, my preference was a young adult dog since Izzy was just a puppy. They told me it would probably be a year or so since I was so specific about what I wanted. I had no preference regarding gender or color, I didn’t care, but age was a factor. Four days later I got a call, they said that they had just gotten a young pug who was left tied to a pole on a street in Long Island and they said he would be a good match as he was only about 10 months old. I immediately said yes, never saw a picture, it didn’t matter to me. They told me they would bring him to me as they needed to inspect my home. The next day he arrived, sweet Nando. Izzy instantly loved him as did I. They are best friends and do everything together.

Fast forward to December 2008, Nando was not doing well, he had always been so healthy and I was so worried, he exhibited all the classic symptoms of diabetes so I took him to the doctor who confirmed my fears. My local vet had me change his diet, I always cooked for my dogs, neither had ever had dog food but following the advice of the Vet I put Nando on dog food, a special formula. He became worse, even with the insulin I had to give him every day his blood sugar levels were very high. Only 2 months after he was diagnosed with diabetes he became blind. I felt that something had to change, he was going down hill fast so I did some extensive research and found an integrative Veterinarian about 60 miles from my home. This Veterinarian practice is quite well known and the founder has been on TV and has a weekly radio show. The first thing they did was take Nando off of the dog food, the first ingredient was corn, not good for a diabetic. I began making Nando’s food which consists of steamed skinless chicken breast and raw vegetables ground in the food processor, some plain non fat yogurt and a half tsp of cinnamon. He immediately started improving, its now been over 3 years. Nando amazes everyone, when we go for his check ups his blood work up is better than Izzy’s. He is still blind but gets around the house and goes for walks outside, he is slow, but manages to walk around the block and sometimes further. He is a fighter and never ceases to amaze me.

Nando waiting for food

Izzy is not without health problems but does well, she is a real diva and fancies herself the Queen of the house.

The Queen on her pillows

Feb 5

4 Comments

The Solitary Cooks- Lets Bake, Bagels!

I want to preface this by saying, I have never made a bagel in my life. I knew they would probably be challenging but I have complete trust and faith in Chef Cynthia’s recipes. I was a bit scared going into it, fear of the unknown I guess. I have become comfortable with baking simple bread but a bagel, not so much. I was immediately confounded by the addition of VWF (vital wheat gluten), I had never heard of it before and wasn’t sure about its role in the bagel. I live in NYC and we know a good bagel when we bite into it. I usually run to the local bagel store when I need a bagel fix. This challenge intrigued me and making bagels is on my bucket list, so I dove in head first. I decided to cut the recipe in half and got all my ingredients together, I felt very organized. Thank goodness for the Chef’s detailed instructions with pictures even, but despite that I still ran into a snafu and it effected the outcome of my bagels. Don’t get me wrong, they are amazingly delicious they just aren’t very pretty. As I was mixing the dough I noticed it seemed dry, the instructions detail what the dough should be doing every step of the way and mine wasn’t doing it. I tried my own quick fix which really didn’t help, I added a little water and a pinch of flour to help the dough absorb the liquid but it was too much, too little, too late. I ended up with a dough that was too dry, over kneaded (I think) but the good news is I learned from my mistake. I still trudged forward, determined to make bagels. Because the dough was too dry it would not hold a shape very well. In the end, I made bagels, like I said before they are not pretty but they taste great and I feel as though I have accomplished something I have never done before. I plan on making them again using my new found knowledge. Thanks to “The Solitary Cook” for the hand holding and words of encouragement. I am determined to make a bagel as beautiful as hers.

The only one that looked like a bagel out of the bunch!

Feb 1

6 Comments

Featured Recipe – Caramelized Apple Jam

Delicious Caramelized Apple Jam-photo by Bevi

Apples are the harbingers of fall and winter and this jam packs on the flavor of my favorite fall and winter fruit. I first tasted this jam at the food52 cookbook party in September, actually it was not this jam exactly. This is Bevi’s recipe, the jam I had was made by her daughter who produces delectable jam and preserves under the name “Maiden Preserves”right here in Brooklyn. She tweaked her daughters recipe just a bit, and made this delightfully delicious apple jam. Bevi is a food consultant and very active cook on food52, you can see her 55 other recipes by following this link: http://www.food52.com/users/8894_bevi

I made this jam, and believe me its easy to make, I cut the recipe in half and it worked perfectly. I didn’t process the jam, but if you are able to do so, I highly recommend making this entire recipe so that you have plenty on hand. It makes a wonderful homemade gift if you can bear to part with a single jar, its that good!

Makes 6 half pint jars of jam

12 nice sized apples – a firm variety such as Granny Smith, peeled, cored, and chopped into I” pieces

6 to 7 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

3 cups sugar

2 cups fresh apple cider

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

seeds from 1 vanilla bean

2 tablespoons honey

2 tablespoons Calvados (Optional)

6 half pint jam jars, with lids and screw tops, properly sterilized

Place the lemon juice in a large bowl. Peel, core and chop 3 apples at a time and thoroughly mix them into the lemon juice until all the apples are prepared and covered with lemon juice. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside.
In a very large jam pot or enamel Dutch oven, place 2 and 1/2 cups sugar and 1/2 cup of the cider over a medium high flame. Stir constantly to dissolve the sugar, and continue cooking to boiling. Reduce the heat and continue to stir, producing a light caramel colored syrup. This will take anywhere from 10 to 15 minutes.
Immediately add the apples, the rest of the cider, the apple cider vinegar, the vanilla bean seeds, and the honey to the jam pot. (If you want to add Calvados, do so now.) Bring the mixture to a rolling boil, then reduce the heat and cook, stirring often, for about 30 minutes. Keep the mixture simmering. The apples will retain their shape throughout the cooking process, but become soft.
In the meantime, put the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar and a tablespoon of water in a 2 or 3 quart saucepan over medium high heat. Stirring constantly, make a much darker caramel syrup – quite brown in color, being careful to not burn yourself as you prepare the caramel syrup. Pour this syrup immediately into the apple mixture, and stir the mixture well. Allow to cook for another 15 minutes, stirring constantly.
Take a potato masher, and smash about 50% of the apples in the mixture – retaining some pieces for chunkiness, but allowing half of the mixture to take on a jam-like texture. At this point, almost all liquid should be evaporated.
Fill jam jars and process in a hot water bath according to your preferred instructions. I process for 15 minutes. Take out of the hot water bath, wait for the “ping” sound that indicates that the jams are sealed, and allow jams to sit for a day. Any jam that does not have a secure seal should be placed in the refrigerator.

Jan 26

6 Comments

Featured Recipe-Asian Inspired Salmon

Every week I am going to feature a great recipe that I have made and I feel you should know about. Inpatskithen recipe for Asian Inspired Salmon is the perfect quick and delicious meal. The glaze is outstanding. Sweet and spicy, with just the right amount of acid to balance it. It compliments the salmon perfectly. I love that the glaze is also the marinade, I used a blood orange marmalade and added a little lemon zest (I love lemon in just about everything). Pat is an active homecook and you can see her many recipes not only on her blog but on food52. This recipe was also a finalist in Whole Foods salmon contest. You can visit her blog http://www.inpatskitchen.blogspot.com/ or view her other recipes at food52.com http://www.food52.com/cooks/21631_inpatskitchen

Asian Inspired Salmon by Inpatskitchen

Serves 4

1 1/2 pounds skinless salmon fillets cut into 4 equal pieces

1 13 to 14 ounce jar orange marmalade

1/4 cup rice vinegar

2 crushed garlic cloves

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons sesame oil

Hot cooked white rice

3/4 cup sliced green onions

Combine the marmalade, vinegar,soy sauce, garlic, red pepper, ginger, salt, sugar and sesame oil in a small sauce pan and simmer for about 5 minutes.
Let the marinade cool and then pour about half of it over the salmon fillets and marinate them for about 1 hour in the fridge.
Broil or grill the marinated fillets for about ten minutes or until flaky.
Reheat the remaining marinade and serve the salmon over the hot cooked rice drizzled with the warm marinade and topped with green onion slices.

Jan 22

5 Comments

The Mission – Lets Bake

The mission should I choose to accept it (ok, its corny but I just saw the new Mission Impossible flick) is to bake an Italian Boule or loaf, the call to arms or I guess whisks came from “The solitary Cook” and we all are to bake a loaf or boule of her fabulously delicious Italian bread. Truth be told since she posted this recipe I have already made 8 loaves (see an earlier post on my site) and no one has to twist my arm to make more, its just that good. Visit The Solitary Cook at her wordpress website: thesolitarycook.wordpress.com and Lets Bake!!

Preferment on it’s way to the fridge to rest overnight

I took the preferment out of the fridge this morning, let it come to room temp and made the dough. It came together so nicely, I just love this recipe. Just took the finished loaf out of the oven. Tomorrow, with the rest of the dough I will make two boule. Here is a link to the recipe:

RUSTIC ITALIAN BREAD

Finished loaf of Rustic Italian Bread

Jan 15

4 Comments

Baking Bread

Right out of the Oven

Baking bread at least to me can be intimidating, I was hesitant for a while, afraid of failure I guess. My good friend and excellent baker from Food52 put my mind at ease. She is a chef, culinary instructor and now has a blog right here on wordpress. This recipe comes together easily, the instructions are so easy to follow even for a novice bread maker like myself. The result is amazing. This loaf has a thin crispy crust and tender soft inside. Takes me back to when I lived in Italy and used to get my bread every morning from this lovely little bakery in Naples. Don’t be intimidated by bread, the feeling of satisfaction is tremendous when you produce a beautiful loaf and the proof is in the tasting. Delicious!! You can find her blog at:

thesolitarycook.wordpress.com and here is a link to the recipe from food52 http://www.food52.com/recipes/15517_italian_style_boule

Jan 14

14 Comments

Cooking and pugs!

You probably ask yourself what do pugs have to do with cooking, Well, nothing really but my pugs are always hanging out in the kitchen with me, actually its their favorite place to be while I am cooking, Scouring the floor for something that may drop and of course thats where they eat. I love to cook am active on several food related websites, I guess you could say its a passion of mine, my creative outlet. I hope to have this site up and running really soon, bear with me. This site is all about food, and soon I will be posting recipes. Thanks for your patience.