Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Welcome to the  Foodie Extravaganza !  v. October 2014 = a Pretzel Par-tay We are a group of bloggers who love to blog about food!  Each month we will decide on an all-famous National Monthly Food Holiday in which we will base our recipes around. This month the ingredient is  pretzels  with an optional ingredient of  caramel .  Yes, October is National Pretzel Month along with a whole array of other delightful things!! Get excited!! We hope you all enjoy our delicious pretzel treats this month and come back to see what we bring for you next month.  If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook page  Foodie Extravaganza .  We would love to have you! If you're a spectator looking for delicious tid-bits check out our  Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board ! Looking for our previous parties? Check them out  HERE . Here's what the whole gang made... Apple Cinnamon...

When I signed up to bring some treats to Riley's Mothers' Day Tea Party, I was vague: 'veggie tart' and 'veggie frittata.' I wasn't sure what veggies I would have in my fridge on cooking day. Tonight was the night. And I had Spring onions and fresh dill from my CSA box and some crimini mushrooms and cluster tomatoes. So here we go...we started with a flaky, buttery crust scented with fennel pollen... 2 C white whole wheat flour 1/2 C butter 1/2 C cold water 1 t fennel pollen Use a pastry cutter to blend the butter into the flour and fennel pollen. Add the cold water and mix lightly until it forms a ball. Roll the dough out and lay into a tart pan. Then I layered in lightly sauteed Spring onions, sliced mushrooms, and shredded asiago and mozzarella cheeses. Into the beaten eggs, I folded fresh dill and fresh parsley. Then I poured the egg mixture over the veggies and pressed halved tomatoes into the egg. Season with freshly ground pink H...

To make my life easier, I started with the same filling for the pot pie as the base for the lobster bisque . While I was making the filling, I made the crust. The greatest challenge is a flaky, buttery crust. Here's my recipe... 5 T cold water 1/2 C butter 2 1/2 C flour 1/2 t salt Mix the salt and flour together with a whisk. Cut the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender until you have a coarse, nearly uniform mixture. Make a well in the center and add the ice water. Mix with a fork until it comes together into a dough ball. Knead a few times, only until the dough is smooth. Extra kneading will make the crust tough instead of crumbly. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Divide the dough into two balls - one for the top and one for the bottom. Roll the bottom dough to about 1/8 inch thick and form the crust. Prebake the crust for 20 minutes before filling it and baking the pot pie. fennel, sliced leeks, sliced garlic, minced 2 pounds langostino, cooked and...

One of the best compliments I've had about my cooking this week was at my amuse-bouche party.  A friend of mine does not eat mushrooms; you have to hear her tell the story about having to pluck them out of the woods when she was a child, then you would understand.  But when she saw me pull my beef-chestnut stuffed mushrooms out of the oven, she gave one a try.  I was flattered.  I don't think I converted her to a mushroom-lover, but I was pleased that they were intriguing enough for her to taste. This is a quick, easy appetizer.  Or stuff larger mushrooms and serve them for dinner. ground beef egg chestnut flour minced garlic pink Himalaya salt fresh ground pepper shaved asiago cheese Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Mix all of the ingredients together.  It should be moist enough to form a ball.  Add chestnut flour if it's too soft.  Wash, dry, and destem your mushrooms.  And in the hollow where the stem was, press your beef...

With one large beet in my fridge and a beet-themed dinner in the future, I decided to make a beet-asiago gnocchi for dinner. Most people roll their gnocchi dough into a thick straw and cut the gnocchi; in Italy I was taught to hand-form them, so mine look less uniform. For this batch I used 1 large beet and about 10 small Yukon gold potatoes. Scrub the beet and potatoes then towel-dry. Roll them in olive oil, sprinkle with sea salt, and roast in a 350 degree oven until they are fork-tender. Let cool slightly. Rub the skin from the beet. I leave the skin on the potatoes, but feel free to peel yours if you don't want the texture. Using a potato masher, begin to smash the potatoes in a large mixing bowl. Shred the beets into the potato mixture and keep mashing. Add two pats of butter, one beaten egg, and mash until smooth. Stir in 1 C of shaved asiago. Then mix in flour, slowly, until you get a medium (not stiff, but not too sticky either) dough. Usually I add about 3/4 C by ...