Culinary Adventures with Camilla

  This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of The Quail & Olive . Complimentary product was provided for this post and this page may contain affiliate links. However, all opinions expressed here are my own. The last time I swung in to  The Quail & Olive *, Anni asked if I wanted to come up with some recipe ideas for one of her holiday trio gift packs. Absolutely,  yes!  I grabbed the combination that included the Ascolano and Triple A olive oils with the Tuscan Melody Balsamic Vinegar . Like the Pacific Spice Vinegar , Tuscan Melody Balsamic Vinegar is another creation from Craig Clark of Chaparral Gardens just down the coast in Atascadero. This vinegar is made from fresh oregano and blackberries from his farm and those spicy vegetal notes of the oregano made me think of one of my favorite Italian flatbreads:  schiacciata . I opted to use the Triple A olive oil which is a blend of Arbequina, Arbosana, and Ascolano olive oils. It's grassiness was...

As the final offering of the antipasti portion of our  Ab Ovo Usque Ad Mala  Thanksgiving menu, I was inspired by this passage in Crystal King's  The Chef's Secret* -  "One day I was helping Bartolomeo make meatballs when the court jester found us and, of course, the name polpetta stuck" (pg. 23). It's not that Crystal mentioned or even described an intriguing meatball dish; it's just that 'polpetta' made me chuckle as a nickname. So, I opted to make one of my own favorite Italian-inspired meatballs. These are baked in the oven, then simmered in a fragrant sauce. I did use ground venison for this version though I have also made these with lamb and beef. Ingredients makes 24 walnut-sized meatballs Meatballs 1-1/2 pounds ground venison 1/2 C organic raisins 3 anchovy fillets 2 T balsamic vinegar 1 T minced garlic 1 T capers Also needed: baking sheet, parchment paper, fresh herbs for garnish (I used fresh thyme) Sauce 1 organic on...

These were my 'something green' for the Wine & Fine Swine birthday dinner , but it's something that I make quite a bit because it's easy and tasty. Note that this is not compliant with my current Whole30 adventure . Boo. Though I have read that the balsamic vinegar is allowed so long as it doesn't have any added sugar, the honey is not compliant.  Ingredients serves 6 1½ C diced bacon 1 T olive oil 1 C white onion, peeled and diced 3 to 4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced 2 pounds fresh green beans, washed and trimmed ½ C balsamic vinegar 2 to 3 T honey freshly ground salt freshly ground pepper Procedure Blanch green beans and set aside. In a large, flat-bottom pan, heat 1 T olive oil. Sauté the bacon, onion, and garlic together until the bacon has rendered its fat but it not crisped, approximately 5 to 7 minutes. Pour in the vinegar and whisk in the honey. Bring to a boil and cook until slightly thickened. Toss in t...

Our CSF (that's community supported fishery) pick-up days is one of my favorite dinner days of the week. We love  Real Good Fish  for the quality, the freshness, and the philosophy! Today, Real Good Fish delivered to all of its members fresh market squid that was pulled up yesterday. Talk about fresh... I wanted to make something simple that really highlighted the squid. Since we couldn't agree, I made two recipes. This was the first. Ingredients 1/2 to 3/4 lb fresh market squid, cleaned 1 C organic heirloom cherry tomatoes 1/4 C thinly sliced organic red onion 3 T capers 3 to 4 T olive oil 1 to 2 T freshly squeezed lemon juice 1 to 2 T balsamic vinegar freshly ground salt freshly ground pepper 1 to 2 T fresh parsley, minced Procedure Place squid tubes and tentacles in a large pot. Cover them with water. Make sure they are submerged by at least 1" of water. Bring the water to a boil. As soon as the water boils, drain the squid. Once they are cool e...

When I was working on a post about orange wines from Italy - it's coming soon! - I grabbed a bottle of wine from one of my favorite restaurants. I sat with my friend, who owns the restaurant, and we talked about possible pairings. She thought "something with mushrooms." When I was testing the pairings, I made this dish. While everyone liked it, Jake determined the other dish went better with the wine. So, this dish just gets shared as a regular recipe; the other recipe will be posted for the wine pairing event. Ingredients  serves 2 as an entree Mushrooms 2 large portabello mushrooms, brushed clean of dirt 1/2 C olive oil 1/4 C balsamic vinegar freshly ground salt freshly ground pepper canola oil for the grill (pan) Caprese 3/4 C mozzarella ciliegie, sliced in half 3/4 C diced tomatoes olive oil 1 T fresh basil, roughly chopped  + basil leaves for garnish freshly ground salt freshly ground pepper Procedure Place mushrooms in...

This sponsored post is written by me on behalf of  VinegarTips . All opinions are my own.  You’re heard of the five French Mother Sauces, right? Béchamel, Velouté, Espagnole, Sauce Tomat, and Hollandaise are the five sauces. It's said that every cook should have these in their culinary wheelhouse. Once you know how to make them, you can customize them for your dishes. Years ago I took a sauce class and I can honestly say that I use variations of all of them. All the time. Well, I feel the same way about vinegars. You need to have a variety of them at the ready for creating delicious dishes in your kitchen. Also, by "a variety of vinegars" I do not mean balsamic vinegar with all the fancy infusions you can find these days. Don't get me wrong: I have bottles of fig balsamic, lemongrass white balsamic, and many, many more in my cabinets, too. But, in this post, I am going to share with you what I believe are the five essential  vinegars for ...

I have six different dishes and wine pairings for the upcoming holiday ready to share with you. And irony is not lost on me. While I am not a fan of Valentines' Day  per se,  I am a huge fan of romantic dinners. So, in this week leading up to #WinePW - which happens the 2nd Saturday of every month - I will post recipes that you and your valentine can enjoy on February 14th and really any time you want a dinner that's a little bit more than your usual. I have everything from shrimp to wild boar and venison to salmon. So, stay tuned! Click to read Christy of Confessions of a Culinary Diva 's invitation to our Saturday #WinePW event. I wanted to start off with a local-to-me vintner, Hahn Family Wines .* A few years ago, Jake and I had a chance to tour the Hahn vineyards by ATV. Click to read about  the ATV tour  and about  the wine tasting after . What fun! In the Glass... Hahn's 2013 Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir is a vintage I haven't tried ...

I adore this dish for its simplicity and flexibility. I usually use whatever herbs I need to mirror the flavors of a dish. In this case, I used dried lavender and fresh thyme. Ingredients 1 lb organic brown crimini mushrooms 4 T butter, cut into small cubes  2 cloves fresh garlic, crushed and minced 1/4 C red wine (I used some Merlot) 2 T balsamic vinegar 1 T fresh thyme, minced 1 T dried organic lavender buds freshly ground salt freshly ground pepper Procedure Preheat  oven to 450 degrees F. Brush any dirt from your mushrooms. Place the mushrooms into a rimmed baking dish. Pour in wine and balsamic vinegar. Add in garlic, thyme, and lavender. Toss so that the mushrooms are evenly coated. Lay cubes of butter on top of mushrooms. Roast for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once the mushrooms are tender, move to a serving plate and season to taste with salt and pepper.

When someone pointed me to the Summer Strawberry Kids Cookoff   and we had fresh strawberries in our High Ground Organics CSA box last week, my Enthusiastic Kitchen Elf was game to create a fun, tasty appetizer. We've been enjoying dinners al fresco during these warm summer evenings. He carted his tray out to the yard. The contest rules stated 'five ingredients or less.' D asked if salt and pepper counted as ingredients; I thought so. He tasted his strawberry concoction and decided, with the cardamom (his favorite spice!), it didn't need salt and pepper. Great. I ngredients 1 to 2 pounds fresh organic strawberries (you can use 1 quart) 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced 1/4 C balsamic vinegar 1 t ground cardamom crème fraîche and bread for serving Procedure Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Hull and slice strawberries in half lengthwise. Place them in a mixing bowl with red onion. Pour in the vinegar and toss to coat. Spoon the mixture onto a...