Not sure why, but many people look at those odd looking veggies, wonder if they are white carrots or odd shape turnips and do not know how to treat them. Well a simple thing to do which is so much healthier than potatoes is plain simple mashed parsnips. Due to its sweetness kids will actually love it.
INGREDIENTS
5 parsnips
1 tblsp butter
1/2 cup of cream or milk
2 eggs yolks
salt & pepper to taste
DIRECTIONS
Peel the parsnips
Put them in a large pot with water and salt
Let them boil until soft to the fork
Once fully cooked, remove them from the water and mash them as you would the potatoes, add the cream/milk and the butter
Once well mixed, add the egg yolks.
Serve with anything such as a broiled chicken as shown above
but I HAVE to share this with everyone... Last Saturday a reporter from our local newspaper Sussex Sun, came over to our house to interview me as a foreigner and newcomer to Sussex, we talked of course a lot about food, so here is the article for those interested: http://www.livinglakecountry.com/sussexsun/news/82699752.html
Only today did I find out there was such as thing as National Chocolate Cake day. Well my friends, today is the day! So let's get cooking and eat some chocolate cake. What a better excuse can we ever find for such delight?
Did you know today is also the birthday of Mozart? So perhaps we should create a German Chocolate cake. Anyone has any good recipes out there?
Now I am going through the net trying to figure out why is it that January 27th is National Chocolate Cake day and I yet have to find out any explanation. May that have been yet another Hallmark invention to sell more cards? Does anyone out there know?
Well I am a big fan of a site called halfhourmeals.com and I found a cake I will be making tonight. I do not have kailhua liquor so I will substitute it for Port wine. I will post photos and how it comes out later on. Here is the link to Pierre's Famous Chocolate Cake!
Not so sure I translated this one to perfection. This is indeed a bread with all types of meats inside it. This is a typical tradition in my family. My Father is originally from Tras-os-Montes, the northeastern region of Portugal. While growing up, when the Bola was made, its scents would fill the house and shortly after it would come out of the oven, we were all waiting to grab a piece of the bread still warm yet so appetizing.
INGREDIENTS
For the dough
½ cup of baking yeast
1 tbsp of brown sugar
½ cup of warm milk
8 cups of whole wheat flour
12 Eggs
½ tbsp of salt
1 cup of olive oil
For the filling
1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 bunch of parsley
butter
sal /pepper to taste
Meats: here it is up to you to add whichever you want. Below is the list of the typical ones we use, but as these are not always available where you live, be creative and mix and match the various meats you can find in your area, such as mexican chorizo, brats, kielbasa, deer sausage or summer sausage, etc. The important thing is that all meats should be smoked or cooked. This is also a good way to clean your fridge.
1 linguiça
1 chouriço
1/2 cup bacon cubes
1/4 cup ham cubes
1/4 cup chicken pieces
1/2 cup of any meat (beef or pork)
1 egg yolk
DIRECTIONS
In a bowl pour the warm milk then add the sugar and yeast, mix it then let it rest for 5 minutes until the yeast starts to foam
In another large bowl pour the flour and make the hole in the middle. Add the salt and the yeast and milk solution
work the dough with your hands while adding the eggs and the oil
The dough needs to be well worked until it bubbles a little. If the dough is too hard add a little warm water until getting an elastic dough which detaches itself from the bowl
Make a ball out of the dough with the help of a little flour
Cover it with a towel and a blanket to keep it warm, if doing this during the summer the blanket will not be needed
Let it rise for about 2 hours
Grease an oven save pan (9x13) with olive oil
Divide the dough into three equal amounts
With the first one cover the bottom of the pan
Add the meats on top then cover with another dough part
Again cover with the rest of the meats and cover with the final dough part
Put pressure all around the extremities of the dough with your fingers to try to stick the dough together
Brush the top of the dough with an egg yolk so to create a golden colour
Put it in the oven for about 25 minutes at about 335 degrees
After 15 minutes lower the temperature to 225
Cut slices of the bread and eat it just as is, or you can create toasts with it and spread butter on top
I grew up eating this fabulous chocolate mousse from my sister. I who am not a great fan of sweets, let me tell you. I cannot have enough of this.
INGREDIENTS:
12 dark semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon of instant coffee
1 tablespoon of Port wine
1/2 cup of butter
3/4 cup of sugar
5 eggs
DIRECTIONS
In a doubler boiler add the chocolate and butter. Once butter and chocolate are fully melted add the coffee and mix it very well with a wooden spoon so to create a nice smooth paste
Add the port wine and keep on mixing it well
Beat the egg yolks with the sugar until getting a soft and bubbly consistency
While still beating the eggs gently, add the chocolate paste very slowly a little at the time
Beat the egg whites to form stiff, firm peaks
Again slowly fold the egg whites from top to bottom into the previous paste until you create a smooth texture
Pour the mouse into a glass round bowl and put it in the fridge for at least 2 hours prior to serving
A little later than I wished for but here we go. What I love about this topic is all you can do with spices, how you can transform a meal, how you can mix different herbs, spices and condiments to create fabulous tastes and smells. If you add a little cumin and cilantro you will create an Indian like taste and smell. A little chillie, lemon and cilantro, it will remind you of Mexican and so on. Talking about Mexican, I just came across this site I would like to share. What called my attention to it is my absolute love for spicy food, therefore any site or store that offers a nice selection of chillie peppers and other seasonings is worth my investigation. This site is called Pendery's - a world of chiles ands pices. They also have very interesting cookbooks everyone should check out. One of them really called my attention and I am thinking in getting it, it is a mexican cook book about the best 50 salsas. So... the choice of the month is: Chili
CHILE - CHILLI - CHILLY- CHILIE - CHILLIE
Above all, which one is correct? We all write it differently. I tend to write it the latter way, even though I found myself not being consistent. From the dictionary.com it seems the correct ones are chili or chile. ITS STORY
s the fruit of the plants from the genus Capsicum, members of the nightshade family, Solanaceae. The capsicum (Chilli Pepper) plant is indigenous to South and Central America, where they grow wild. The very first concerted cultivation of the plant is believed to have taken place around 7000 to 6000 BC and traces have been found at prehistoric burial sites around Peru. By the turn of the 15th century, when the Spanish and Portuguese landed in Latin America, chillie peppers were widely cultivated for human consumption.
They were introduced to South Asia in the 1500s and have come to dominate the world spice trade. Few could have imagined the impact of Columbus' discovery of a spice so pungent that it rivaled the better known black pepper native to South Asia. India is now the largest producer of chillies in the world.
Chilies were cultivated around the globe after Columbus. Diego Álvarez Chanca, a physician on Columbus' second voyage to the West Indies in 1493, brought the first chili peppers to Spain, and first wrote about their medicinal effects in 1494. From Mexico, at the time the Spanish colony that controlled commerce with Asia, chili peppers spread rapidly into the Philippines and then to India, China, Korea and Japan. They were quickly incorporated into the local cuisines.
An alternate sequence for chili peppers' spread has the Portuguese getting the pepper from Spain, and thence to India, as described by Lizzie Collingham in her book Curry. Collingham states in her book that the chili pepper figures heavily in the cuisine of the Goan region of India, which was the site of a Portuguese colony (e.g. vindaloo, an Indian interpretation of a Portuguese dish, Carne de Vinha de Alhos, meat with a marinate of garlic and wine). Collingham also describes the journey of chili peppers from India, through Central Asia and Turkey, to Hungary, where it became the national spice in the form of paprika.
Chile peppers are perhaps the first plants to be domesticated in Central America, where there is evidence that they were consumed in 7500 BC.
There are about 25 species in the genus Capsicum and they originate from Central and South America. Several species have been domesticated to produce many cultivated types, ranging from mild and sweet to hot and pungent.
ITS SMELLS, SCENTS AND TASTES Can be described as: fiery, spicy, intoxicating, hot, sweet, sexual CULINARY USES
Chillies can be added to just about everything you cook. You can add it as you are preparing the food, in a marinate, sprinkled on top or as part of a sauce or chutney. Nowadays the usage of chillies in the kitchen is worldwide used. HEALING POWERS
Fights inflammation, arthritis pain, helps reduce blood cholesterol, triglyceride levels, and platelet aggregation, clears congestion, boosts immunity, helps the spread of prostate cancer, prevents ulcers, helps with weight loss, lowers the risk of diabetes type2 and so on. LIST OF CHILLIE PEPPERS
Instead of re-creating a list I found this link that has them all well compiled and organized along with a little description: www.chilipeppermadness.com/chili-pepper-types.html. One they do not have though which I absolutely LOVE is the Galician (north west of Spain) Pimiento de Padron. HOW TO GROW CHILLIE PEPPERS INDOORS
Apart from the beauty of the plant itself, growing chillie peppers indoors is not that hard as long as they get sufficient amount of sun every day. Do make sure to grow them in a nice size pot, have rich organic potting soil and once the frost is over and the warm sun it out, bring them back outside.
As I went to the supermarket yesterday during my lunch break I noticed these Turkey thighs and I thought. Well that is what I will do for dinner. I had not done them in a while. Arriving home is always an interesting scene as My little one wants my devoted attention yet I also want to cook, so I decided to quickly prepare the thighs, then put them in the oven while bathing the little one. Of course the smart thing would have been to have everything ready in the morning or the night before this way all I would have to do is to put them straight in the oven.
INGREDIENTS
2 turkey thighs
4 tablespoons of paprika
6 chopped garlic
1 tablespoon of thick sea salt
1 cup of olive oil
2 bay leaves cut into 4 pieces each
DIRECTIONS
In a oven safe dish add half the olive oil, salt, paprika, garlic and bay leaves and mix it
Add the 2 turkey thighs and pour rest of olive oil along with other ingredients on the top
Put it in the oven first at 325 for about the first 20 minutes, then up to 375 for the last 15 minutes
Today thanks to a link from a friend in facebook I found out about this site which I would like to share with all as in our busy daily lives I believe a site of such can be a huge help in making sure not to just grab some take out, but instead create a nice meal at home and enjoy with the whole family. So here it is: www.notakeout.com
The most rewarding about buying seasonal fruits and vegetables is that you can more easily find cheaper organic choices as well getting the freshest of them. The differences between December and January is extremely similar of course so apart from getting a list of the produce I will also add a recipe along with the post.
JANUARY VEGETABLES
Brussel Sprouts
Carrots
Cabbage
Turnips - Check the Cream of Turnip
Spinach
Leeks
Kale - Check out the Caldo Verde Soup
Celeriac
Parsnip
JANUARY FRUITS
Apples
Oranges
Tangerines
Grapefruits
Pear
Just these past holidays I had a fantastic substitute for mashed potatoes. It was Mashed Parsnips. They are absolutely fantastic, tasty, a little tangy and fresh tasting. I had never thought of doing such, but will certainly start making this more often as it is a perfect side dish for ham, pork, lamb or a beef roast.
MASHED PARSNIPS
Ingredients
8 parsnips
1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp of olive oil
1 liter of chicken stock
1/2 bar of butter
milk
salt and pepper to taste
Directions
In a pot add the olive oil and bring it to hot
Add the chopped onions and garlic
Once lightly golden add the chicken stock and parsnips cut in 1 inch slices
Bring heat to low and let it simmer until parsnips are nice and soft
Remove excess broth and puree everything adding butter and a little milk
Yet again, I cannot leave a classic recipe alone. Well actually this was due to the fact that last minute I noticed I did not have any lemons and home, so decided to use oranges instead.
INGREDIENTS
8 thinly sliced veal scallopine
1 orange
salt & pepper to taste
1.5 cups of thin bread crumbs
1/2 cup of grated Parmesan
1 tsp of thyme
2 tsp of Penzeys Fox Point Seasoning
2 eggs
salt & pepper to taste
1 cup of olive oil
DIRECTIONS
Marinate the veal slices with salt, pepper and the juice of a whole orange
In a bowl beat the eggs slightly and add a little salt & pepper
Combine the bread crumbs, seasonings and Parmesan and spread it on a plate
in a skillet add the olive oil and bring it to hot
Pass each veal scallopine through the eggs then the bread crumb mixture and place it in the skillet once the oil is nice and hot
Repeat for all veal scallopines
Serve with a nice aromatic rice and an arugula salad
SUGGESTIONS
It is not easy to find thin bread crumbs, so an idea it to use your coffee grinder to make your crumbs as thin as possible. The reason I prefer this way is that it is not as heavy and the fried food does not hold as much oil.
This was a "re-invention" from a recipe I had tried at a friend's house. These appetizer are a huge hit. Make sure to use high quality ingredients especially for the blue cheese, crab meat and bacon. Try to get smoked bacon. Here in Wisconsin I buy Nueske Bacon.
INGREDIENTS
8 jalapeños
6oz crab meat
1/2 cup blue cheese
8oz salmon cream cheese
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
8 slices of smoked bacon
DIRECTIONS
Make a longitudinal cut only on one side of each jalapeño.
Remove all seeds from the jalapeños.
In a bowl mix crab meat, blue cheese, cream cheese and shredded mozzarella.
Stuff each jalapeño with the mixture.
Wrap each stuffed jalapeño with a slice of bacon and put them in a oven safe deep dish.
Put them in the oven at low broil for about 15 minutes.
Whether you are just passing by Portugal or staying for a while, do go check this paradise, which is no less than my parents place! www.quinta-riotouro.com
attention to it is my absolute love for spicy food, therefore any site or store that offers a nice selection of chillie peppers and other seasonings is worth my investigation. This site is called Pendery's - a world of chiles ands pices. They also have very interesting cookbooks everyone should check out. One of them really called my attention and I am thinking in getting it, it is a 
