Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Today is our fourth May post for our Kitchen Matrix Project, named after Mark Bittman's  Kitchen Matrix  cookbook. You can read about the year-long project:  here . This month, I chose the recipes and went with a Latin theme. So, we have worked with masa; we made salsa; we braised carnitas. And so on...you get the idea. This week I chose Mexican soups, but wasn't really inspired by any of the recipes listed. Darn it. But I will try his tortilla soup and pork soup soon. Just wasn't feeling it this week. Sorry. The #KitchenMatrixCookingProject Mexican Soups An InLinkz Link-up Albóndigas de Frailes  (Friars' Meatball Soup) Albóndigas soup is a traditional Mexican soup featuring spicy meatballs offset by the fresh flavors of vegetables and herbs. This wasn't one of Bittman's recipes under 'Mexican Soups', but it's one of my family's favorites, so I'm sharing it anyway! And, yes, this has my California twist include...

I love the Fantastical Food Fight coordinated by Sarah of  Fantastical Sharing of Recipes .  This month, we were given the challenge of making a recipe inspired by carrot cake. So. Many. Possibilities. I have made many a carrot cake: D made a Spicy Carrot Cake one Easter; Morotskaka is a Swedish carrot cake; I even folded petals in a Marigold Carrot Cake . But I really wanted to do something different. I toyed with a savory carrot cake with turmeric and a feta cheese "frosting," but I'll save that for another time. In the end, I opted to make an unusual Indian dessert that's made with grated carrots, milk, nuts, and spices. But, first, here's the rest of the crew's offerings... An InLinkz Link-up Gajar Ka Halwa (Carrot Pudding) This isn't wholly traditional as I used what we had. I wanted to use rainbow carrots - I had orange, yellow, and purple ones - but D insisted that we use only the orange ones for this. And since he ...

As my Fresh Tasty Valentines event enters its final stretch, I wanted to share a recipe from a new  BenBella Vegan  title: Dining at the Ravens by Jeff and Joan Stanford. I'm not going to say too much about it as I will be kicking off a blog tour for them on the 9th. Check back for that full review and another recipe then. For this event,  BenBella Vegan  is  providing a prize package that includes five different cookbooks from their 2015 publishing releases! One #FreshTastyValentines winner will receive a print copy of the following cookbooks:  The Plant-Based Journey ,  Dining at The Ravens ,  Plant-Powered Families ,  The China Study Quick & Easy Cookbook ,  and   The Plant Pure Nation Cookbook . Enter the giveaway below! Carrot Pâté Canapés   makes 1-1/2 C of pâté slightly adapted - recipe shared with permission I selected an easy - and versatile - recipe. It was quick to put together and delici...

I had the two mini-bakers help me with dessert for our tabletop travel to Sweden. D and S made Morotskaka , a Swedish carrot cake. It was moist and delicious; we didn't frost it and didn't even sprinkle it with powdered sugar. Ingredients 1-1/4 C olive oil 1 1/4 C organic granulated sugar 4 eggs 2 C flour (we used a whole wheat pastry flour) 2 t cinnamon (I forgot the cinnamon, but will definitely use it next time) 1 t baking soda 2 t baking powder 1 t sea salt 4 large carrots, finely grated 3/4 C hazelnuts 1 C raisins Procedure Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9" round baking dish, then line with parchment paper. Butter liberally. Set aside. Grate the carrots. Our four carrots - we used a mixture of orange, yellow, and purple carrots - rendered about 4 cups grated carrots. Chop hazelnuts. Set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together all of the wet ingredients to form a batter. Gradually add the dry ingredient...

Laissez le bon temps rouler!  I forgot to put the andouille sausage in my Sweethearts' Seafood Boil   last weekend, so I had a pound that was begging to be used. And I had a jar of RED spice blend from  Voodoo Chef *  that was sent to me for participating in an online event earlier in the month. Put those together - and given that today is Mardi Gras - the culinary lightbulb of inspiration blinked: Red Beans and Rice! It's easy; it's filling; and, most importantly, it's delicious. Note: mine is not a traditional red beans and rice recipe. I throw in whatever veggies I have on-hand for a nutritious, one-pot meal. Thanks to our High Ground Organics CSA for keeping my fridge stocked with fresh, amazing produce. Ingredients 1 fennel bulb, trimmed and diced 1 large leek, trimmed and diced 3 or 4 small carrots, diced 4 celery stalks, diced 2 T butter splash of olive oil 1 pound cooked andouille sausages, halved and sliced 1 bunch kale, thinly sliced ...

It's time for Group B's  Secret Recipe Club   September reveal. This month I had the pleasure of cooking from two blogs. We never want anyone left out of the fun and games. So, I am whipping up a recipe from Morsels of Life  tonight. Looking through her archives, I realized: she loves her slaw...and I am ready to try all of them. Here's her  Jicama Slaw ,  Cranberry Walnut Slaw ,  Tex Mex Coleslaw ,  Shrimp Coleslaw , and  Asian Coleslaw . When I saw CJ's Basic  Coleslaw , I knew I'd found my recipe. I love getting a good, basic recipe from which I can adapt. And I loved learning something new; I've eaten a lot of slaw, but I never knew the etymology behind the term. CJ shares: The term 'cole slaw' came from the Anglicization of ' koolsla ,' short for ' koolsalade , a Dutch term meaning cabbage salad. And that’s cole slaw in its most basic form. It’s a salad mainly consisting of raw, shredded cabbage and some sort of dressin...

Tonight I made my favorite dinner: a trio of salads! The boys didn't complain at all; they didn't even make any jokes a la Uncle Brian - "no meat, no meal." My brainwashing is complete. [ insert wicked, evil laughter here ] Ingredients 4 large carrots, coarsely grated (approximately 3 C - I used 2 orange and 2 purple) 1/2 C raisins 2 T freshly squeezed lemon juice 3 T olive oil 2 T freshly chopped dill freshly ground salt freshly ground pepper Procedure Place all of the ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Cover and refrigerate for, at least, 30 minutes before sering. Stir once again before serving.

I saw a photo of these cute "carrots" on pinterest, well the photos had them painted with orange dye or something. But the pin didn't have a recipe. So, I did some searching and found a recipe that included these instructions: "Wrap the dough around your cream horn." My what?!? I looked that up, too, and realized that I didn't have enough time to order one. So, I improvised with foil. Piece of cake! Ingredients 2 C water 2 C organic chicken broth 1 to 1-1/2 lbs chicken (I used thigh meat) 1/2 C mayonnaise 1/3 C plain yogurt 5 t curry powder 1 T honey (I used some local honey from Keith Kimes Apiary) 1/2 t ground ginger 1/2 t freshly ground sea salt 1/4 t freshly ground black pepper 1 small fennel bulb, trimmed and finely diced 1 T fennel frond, chopped 1 T dill, chopped crescent roll dough Procedure Bring liquid to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add chicken and simmer uncovered for 6 to 7 minutes. Remove pan ...

Foccacia, an Italian flat-bread, is such an easy thing to make. There's very little kneading required because the yeast does all the work. So, I often make some on the weekends - topped with whatever I have on hand. Today I wanted to use some shredded carrots that I had from  Grimmway Farms , who generously sent carrots to all of the bloggers taking part in the #BrunchWeek 2014 event in May. Ingredients 2 C white whole wheat flour 1 t freshly ground salt 1 t dry active yeast 1 C warm water 1 C shredded carrots (I used shredded carrots from Grimmway Farms *) freshly ground salt freshly ground pepper olive oil balsamic vinegar thin slices of organic lemon 2 T fresh mint, thinly sliced *I received complimentary bags of carrots from Grimmway Farms for participating in the #BrunchWeek 2014 event coming up in May. Procedure In a large bowl, stir flour, salt and yeast together until well combined. Add warm water and stir well until a sticky dough is for...

For Jake's birthday party at the beach, I whipped up some carrot cupcakes and zucchini cupcakes. They were devoured before I remembered to take a photo of them, but I did shoot the extra batter that I made into a loaf! Same recipe, different shape. 2 C white whole wheat flour 2 t baking powder 1-1/2 t baking soda 1 t ground cardamom 1 t ground ginger 3 eggs 1-1/2 C organic raw sugar 1 C Greek yogurt 1/2 C olive oil 2 C grated carrots 1 C sliced almonds 1/2 C marigold petals + some for garnish Preheat oven to 325. Whisk all wet ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Stir in carrots. Fold in dry ingredients until just moistened. Gently fold the flower petals. Scrape batter into cupcake liners and bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely then top with cream cheese frosting and top with more marigold petals for garnish Cream cheese frosting: 16 oz cream cheese, 1/2 C softened butter, 1 T vanilla extrac...

For the first course of our Easter feast, I served some brie toasts smeared with carrot marmalade . Bread + Brie + Carrot Marmalade

Dylan took us to Bolivia for dinner tonight. His dinner - and dessert - featured three very common Bolivian ingredients: peanuts, potatoes, and coconut. Our main dish was a version of Pipían de Gallina (Peanut-Stewed Chicken).  There are versions that are complicated; I found a version that was fairly simply and used peanut butter. Okay, maybe that isn't the most traditional recipe, but it tasted good! olive oil minced garlic chopped fennel chicken boullion chicken, boneless, skinless and cubed salt and pepper to taste carrots, coined potatoes, cubed organic peanut butter Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium-high flame. Add the garlic and fennel. Saute until slightly brown. Add chicken and cook through. Add carrots, potatoes, salt and pepper and cook till fork tender. Pour in boullion, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for about 10 minutes. Whisk a little of the hot broth into the peanut butter to thin it out a bit. Then stir the peanut butter into ...

We are continuing with the 'B's in our cooking around the world adventure, venturing to Belarus for dinner tonight. Dylan was very excited when he located Belarus in the atlas tonight because it's next door to the Ukraine and not too far from Kiev where one of his best friends from school was born. And I was excited because this meal presented me with things I had never considered, for instance putting oatmeal in a savory soup. I put rice and barley in soups. Why not oatmeal, right? I just always think of my oatmeal as a breakfast food...with lots of fruit. So putting it in a soup with onions and mushrooms was a novel idea. Belarusian Oatmeal Soup with Mushrooms The original recipe calls for dried mushrooms. I opted for fresh mushrooms, added shallots, and skipped the sour cream. 3 potatoes, diced 2 C rough cut oats 1 lb stuffing portabella mushrooms, washed, dried, and sliced 2 carrots, sliced 1 onion, diced 3 shallots, diced chicken broth 3 bay leaves pink Hima...

A good friend told me that I wasn't doing the boys any favors by teaching them that whatever they "order" for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, they get. So, I have actively been teaching them how to cook. They won't need to find girlfriends and wives to cater to their fearless palates; they'll be able to cook for themselves and their true loves. What it means for this adventure, though, is bickering. "Mom, Riley helped you with Albania. I get to help with Algeria. Otherwise, it's not fair!" Fine. Wash your hands and get an apron. We're on to country number three of our Cooking Around the World adventure . And Dylan is my sous-chef tonight. So, here we go. We're moving from the Western Balkans to North Africa. Dinner tonight was made up of a trio of savory dishes from ALGERIA, the third country on the list. Country: Algeria The cuisine of Algeria is a mix of various influences - from Berber to Arabic to French to Jewish. Most cooking is ...