Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Today we are celebrating National French Toast day, hosted by my friend Wendy at A Day in the Life on the Farm . What a line-up of sweet and savory! I love it. Berries and Cream Stuffed French Toast Croissants by Everyday Eileen Cinnamon Roll French Toast with Cream Cheese Glaze. by I Just Make Sandwiches French Toast Bites by The Freshman Cook French Toast Sticks by A Day in the Life on the Farm Pizza Stuffed French Toast by A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures Rabanada by Palatable Pastime Savory French Toast Breakfast Sandwich by Amy's Cooking Adventures Strawberry Cream Cheese Stuffed French Toast by Cindy's Recipes and Writings Torrijas - Spanish French toast by Caroline's Cooking Ingredients  makes 6-8 slices For the filling splash of olive oil 2 green garlic, thinly sliced 4 C chard, chiffonade ½ C whole milk ricotta cheese ½ C feta cheese, crumbled 1 t lemon zest 1 T chopped fresh basil freshly ground salt freshly ground pe

  This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of a local (to me) Youngevity Associate. I received complimentary product for the purpose of review and recipe development, but all opinions are honest and they are my own.  This page may contain affiliate links. Years ago I met Tami as she is one of my best friend's godsisters. We connected through the years as our interests collided and intersected. When she mentioned that she had some brand new spice blends through her social selling site , I asked if she might be interested in partnering with me at Culinary Adventures to do a review on them. About Saveur Saveur Spices is a new offering from Youngevity. Released during the summer to customers in Australia and New Zealand, these have only become available to people in North America and the United Kingdom at the end of September.  The Saveur Spice line includes over three dozen rubs, seasonings, spices, salts, and mixes. All are ETO-free, PPO-free, and gluten-free.

I really wanted to like  The Billionaire's Vinegar: The Mystery of the World's Most Expensive Bottle of Wine  by Benjamin Wallace*. I mean, it's a mixture of history, wine, and mystery. You read 'wine', right? I will usually read through just about any book that includes food and/or wine. Add history and mystery to that and I thought this would be a winner. But here's an analogy for you: If you spent an exorbitant amount of money on a bottle of wine and, at first sip, realize it's soured, would you still finish your glass...much less the bottle? I think not. I felt the warning signs at the beginning of the book, thinking it might be a tedious read. But I persisted, hoping that I was wrong and that I was just not giving it a fair change. So, I pressed on, really gained nothing, but lost several evening's worth of reading time. Perhaps it just wasn't to  my tastes as many others rave about it. But I soured on the book less than halfway through

After a quick hike this morning, the boys and I ran into Whole Foods for a few ingredients. While I grabbed a few quince, I heard the boys arguing about bitter greens. R claimed, "Kale tastes like it should be poisonous." What!?? Whose child are you?! D piped up, "Yeah, whose child are you? Kale is the best." They talked about what makes food bitter and how it's a defensive strategy for plants. Then they proceeded to rank greens in terms of their bitterness: mustard greens, kale, chard, spinach, and collard greens. I didn't pay attention to the ranking. I think people surrounding them were both shocked and amused at the conversation. In the end, they walked over and plunked two bunches of rainbow chard in the basket. "We agreed on chard, Mom," they informed me. Fine. First, I pickled the stems. That's a recipe for another day. Second, I yelled back into their rooms. "How am I cooking the chard?" The usual char

I grew up with those advent calendar filled with waxy, barely edible chocolates. It didn't matter anyway because my mom never let me eat the candy. It was all about the ritual of scanning the scene, locating the correct number, and opening the door for the day. I loved seeing the shape of the chocolate. But, again, I never ate it. Still, it's a holiday tradition that I adore. Who doesn't like a daily surprise counting down to Christmas?! So, when the boys were smaller, I would wrap 25 Christmas books (I used the same books every year!) and each evening we'd unwrap one, cuddle on the couch and read together. I would also pick up two of those same cheap chocolate advent calendars. I think the chocolate has gotten better. And I did let them eat it. But, after they outgrew the board books and picture books, I searched for other ways to count the days. One year my mom and I bought D a LEGO advent calendar; I found an advent candle that R loved to light at dinner

One of the best things about being part of a food blogging community: all the great recipes! There is never a dearth of ideas on how to make something or how to use a particular ingredient. So, when Ellen from Family Around the Table suggested a Thanksgiving Leftovers event, I raised my hand to help coordinate. You can never have enough ideas on how to transform leftovers into other dishes, right? The Leftover Larder Cranberry-Orange Brie Bites  by Books n' Cooks Cranberry-Topped Baked Brie by Culinary Adventures with Camilla (Leftover) Turkey and Cranberry BBQ Sauce Pizza  by Kate's Recipe Box Prosciutto & Asiago Stuffed Mushrooms  by Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice Spicy Turkey Quesadillas  by Jolene's Recipe Journal Turkey Croquettes  by Cindy's Recipes and Writings Turkey and Sausage Gumbo  by Palatable Pastime Turkey Pot Pie  by Making Miracles Cranberry-Topped Baked Brie This is so easy that I'm

Well, our Thanksgiving tradition of adventure continues with our 2017 feast. I can't remember the last time I've roasted a turkey for our table. This year, we're heading to Morocco by tabletop. Inspired by the receipt of my first tagine, I asked the Enthusiastic Kitchen Elf to peruse my Claudia Rodin cookbook - Arabesque: A Taste of Morocco, Turkey, & Lebanon  - and come up with a menu. Then we adjusted based on what's in season and a good balance of color and texture. Here's what we have planned... arabesque /  noun /  an ornament or style that employs flower, foliage, or fruit and sometimes animal and figural outlines to produce an intricate pattern of interlaced lines. I'll share recipes and photos throughout the weekend. But I wanted to give a shoutout of gratitude to Farmer Jamie of Serendipity Farms for the bounty of Fall veggies. I wish I could have worked more of them into this menu, but I had already battled with D on some of the dish

  This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of the sponsors of #FabulousFallBounty. I received complimentary product for the purpose of review and recipe development, but all opinions are honest and they are my own.  This page may contain affiliate links. Here we are at the fifth and final day of our celebration of #FabulousFallBounty. You can read more about the event:  here . And, once again, many thanks to our event sponsors:  Silpat   for a handy silicone mat;  Le Creuset  for a lovely serving platter; and  Melissa's Produce  for providing the bloggers with a beautiful box of goodies, including the pomegranate I used here. First, here are the other bloggers' creations.... An InLinkz Link-up This is hardly a recipe. Really. Just five ingredients that come together in a remarkably easy and festive salad. But, because it's on my table at least once a week in the Fall, I decided to share it. Ingredients  serves 4 arils from 1/2 a

  This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of the sponsors of #FabulousFallBounty. I received complimentary product for the purpose of review and recipe development, but all opinions are honest and they are my own.  This page may contain affiliate links. Here we are at the third day of our celebration of #FabulousFallBounty. You can read more about the event:  here . And, once again, many thanks to our event sponsors:  Silpat   for a handy silicone mat;  Le Creuset  for a lovely serving platter; and  Melissa's Produce  for providing the bloggers with a beautiful box of goodies. My mind was aswirl with how to incorporate it all into some autumn-inspired dishes when I received this bounty of seasonal produce. I knew that I wanted to showcase the dried guajillo chiles and pears in a fun mole sauce. After attending a mole cooking class last year, we've been experimenting with different variations. So, this isn't a traditional mole recipe per se, but the