Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Last week, I participated in the Wine Pairing Weekend event 'New Year, New Wine." I paired Crni Rižoto with Dingac Vinarija’s Pelješac...and you can read my post: here . I was pouring a Croatian wine and decided to make a traditional Croatian dish. Every seafood restaurant in Croatia has a  Crni Rižoto  (black risotto) on its menu.  Crni Rižoto  is risotto dyed black with squid ink; I used cuttlefish ink for the same effect. However, since arborio rice is not Whole30 compliant, I made a version for myself that used caulibits instead of rice. Ingredients 1 C fish stock (or a combination of fish stock and vegetable stock) 1 T olive oil 1 medium shallots, peeled and minced 1 cloves garlic, crushed and minced 1/4 lb shrimp 1/4 lb squid tubes, cleaned and sliced into rings 1/4 lb scallops 1/4 lb clams, scrubbed 1/4 lb mussels, scrubbed 4 C caulibits, or chopped cauliflower 1 T fresh parsley, minced juice and zest from 1 organic lemon 1 t cuttle...

Remember, I'm following the Whole30 this month? Click to read my post about that: I can do anything for a month .  Before I kicked off my Whole30, I had planned to make the mini crab cakes from The Unexpected Cajun Kitchen : Classic Cuisine with a Twist of Farm-to-Table Freshness by Leigh Ann Chatagnier.* But the weekend got away from me and I was left with the ingredients, the idea, and - now - some restrictions. Still, I was determined to have crab cakes.  I made them for breakfast with some major adaptations. Since I wasn't sure about my Cajun seasoning blend, I just tossed in some spices and hoped for the best. It was delicious! Ingredients 1 pound crab meat 1 egg 1/2 C almond meal 1/4 C chopped pecans (I added these in for the crunch of breadcrumbs, leave them out if you wish) 1/2 t fresh thyme, chopped 1 t fresh chives, chopped 1 T fresh parsley, chopped + more for garnish 1/2 t smoked paprika pinch of cayenne pepper freshly grou...

As I continue on my  Whole30 Adventure , I have been asked to share some of my recipes. We've been eating a lot of seafood this week. I cook a lot of seafood anyway, but, for some reason, I've been longing for seafood with my veg-heavy plates. Earlier this week, I picked up some monkfish filets from my fishmonger. And instead of cooking the monkfish en papillote , I decided to try poaching them. I served the monkfish with Simple Sweet Potatoes and a Tangy Slaw . I love that this poached monkfish is delicious and on the table in less than 30 minutes. Winner! Ingredients  fillets serves 4 4 monkfish filets water 2 T + 1 t freshly squeezed lemon juice 4 T ghee, or clarified butter zest from 1 organic lemon 2 T fresh herbs (I used a combination of parsley and cilantro) freshly ground salt freshly ground pepper Procedure Place water, approximately 3/4" deep, in a large, flat-bottom pan. Pour in 2 T freshly squeezed lemon juice and bring t...

At the end of December a friend posted information about her Whole30 adventure and started a group on social media. Okay. I have seen Whole30 mentioned by other friends, but I really hadn't done any reading about it. I figured this would be a good opportunity to find out what it's all about. Here's a link to the Whole30 website . So, you'll be seeing some posts this month with #Whole30 in the post title. The "rules" are pretty basic. "Eat meat, seafood, eggs, tons of vegetables, some fruit, and plenty of good fats from fruits, oils, nuts and seeds. Eat foods with very few ingredients, all pronounceable ingredients, or better yet, no ingredients listed at all because they’re totally natural and unprocessed." Abbey started on January 2nd. I thought I could start that quickly with little change to my regular grocery shopping. But when I realized just how many of the foods I had just purchased for the week were not allowed - think lentils, brown r...