Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Malfatti di Ricotta e Cavolo Nero.  "Badly formed" dumplings with ricotta and kale. Also known as 'dinner'! I was running out the door to for an assignment, but needed to whip something up that would not require many more instructions than: take out of the oven and serve. These are so easy and pillowy soft. Traditionally they are made with spinach, but I had some kale from my WE Cooperative CSA box from Fogline Farm, so I used that. 2 C whole milk ricotta (I used sheep's milk ricotta) 1/2 C feta cheese 3 T Italian parsley, chopped 2 C kale, thinly sliced 2 stems of green garlic, thinly sliced zest from 1 lemon 1 egg freshly ground pink Himalaya salt and pepper corn flour for dusting 1/2 C organic chicken stock juice from 1 lemon olive oil Saute the kale and green garlic together until wilted. Let cool. Pour the chicken stock in the bottom of a baking dish, add the lemon juice and a splash of olive oil.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Pl...

I found references to 'sinkers' and 'spinners' - different kinds of Caribbean dumplings - and decided that 'sinkers' would be a good way to keep Dylan occupied while Riley worked on his school project. They are called sinkers because they sink into your soup. 1 C white whole wheat flour 1/4 C corn flour warm water dash of curry Mix the flours and spice in a bowl and add just enough water to form a bowl. Let rest for 15 minutes. Roll the dough into tapered dumplings. To cook, drop dough into soup and cook for 30 minutes. I added curry to these...for some added zing. They were great!

While the dads and minis did boy-things at the J-Squared Ranch on Mothers' Day weekend, Pia and I headed into Paso Robles for a much-needed break from all things testosterone. And, as we usually do, when we get some girl time, we ate. Tasted, nibbled, imbibed, and tasted some more. This time was no different. We started off at We Olive where we tasted olive oils that ran the gamut from fruity and light to grassy and robust. We also tasted oils that were infused with everything from blood orange and meyer lemon to piquant peppers. And we both walked out with multiple bottles of some delicious oils and vinegars, wholly inspired to go home and create delicous dishes that highlighted our purchases. Here's a dish I make that pairs well with We Olive's Extra Virgin Arbequina Olive Oil that has medium fruit and light pungency.   Malfatti di Ricotta e Bietola. "Badly formed" dumplings with ricotta and chard. Also known as a quick and easy summer dinner. These ar...

Last year was the first time I made hoecakes to celebrate Presidents' Day . Actually it was the first time I'd ever made hoecakes at all...forget about making them for a specific event. I was inspired by my friend and culinary genius Jenn of Rook No. 17  who always does everything with such panache. The boys loved the hoecakes...and I actually knew where the book was this year.    So, we read George Washington's Breakfast by Jean Fritz and cooked Hoecakes v.2 before I dropped the boys off with my parents and headed to work. Although, I didn't check my pantry last night and when I dug into the flours, this morning, I discovered that we didn't have any cornmeal. I had corn flour. Same grain, different texture, right? I say 'close enough.' It worked for us. 1 C white whole wheat flour 1 C corn flour 1 t baking powder 1 T raw sugar 2 large eggs 1 C organic milk 1 T freshly squeezed meyer lemon juice 1/2 C butter, melted Put all of the dry ingredients in...