Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Limoncello is one of those sips that instantly transports you back to where you first tasted it. In my case: sitting on the beach on the Amalfi coast with Jake during a three week trip to Italy just before we got pregnant with R. It reminds me of sunshine, sand, and a carefree time in our lives. Each time I make it, it's a delicious remembrance that one of these days we'll be kidfree and carefree again. Sooner than we think, actually. Well, maybe not the carefree part - that's a luxury of the young and  naïve - but both of our boys will be launched at the end of the summer. And I will certainly lift a glass in celebration that we did it: We raised two boys who have grown up to be good young men who will make the world a better place! But this is about limoncello... This particular batch was inspired by a lemon event at a local organic farm where we tasted three kinds of limoncello - one regular, one limoncello cream, and one with lavender. I picked a ton of lemons at the fa...

Hard to believe that #CranberryWeek is drawing to a close. Boo. I love the tart, red berry of the season. Many thanks to Caroline of Caroline's Cooking for hosting! I have always enjoyed the evergreen-y notes of a good gin. And this cranberry and clementine-infused gin just screams 'it's the holidays' to me. Think cranberry garlands draped over pine branches! See all the other recipes being shared for today's final Cranberry Week post - we hope you've enjoyed following along and will try some of the many cranberry creations! Cranberry Bliss Bars (Starbucks Copycat) from Family Around The Table Cranberry Clementine Gin from Culinary Adventures with Camilla Cranberry Clusters by The Freshman Cook Cranberry Cream Cheese Bars from Sew You Think You Can Cook Cranberry-Pistachio Dark Chocolate Bark from Books n' Cooks Cranberry Pound Cake from Palatable Pastime Panettone from Caroline's Cooking You Make Me Blush Cocktail by A Day in the...

On Friday I bought fresh edible flowers from  MEarth . And, while I made this on Friday, I haven't had a chance to post it till tonight. Before Friday I had never heard of Monarda, also known as Bee Balm. Some reading indicated that I could use it anywhere that I would use Earl Grey tea. So, I decided to infuse some milk with the blossoms and make a milk pudding with it. Ingredients 5 eggs, separated into whites and yolks 1-1/2 C whole milk 1/4 C organic heavy cream 1/4 C organic granulated sugar 2-3 Monarda blossoms + more for garnish 6 to 8 t caramel sauce (I like the one in this recipe ) also needed: a rimmed baking dish to hold your pudding dishes or ramekins Procedure Place the milk and sugar in a small saucepan. Float the monarda blossoms in the pan. Heat the milk slowly - just until small bubbles appear at the edge of the pot. Whisk to dissolve sugar. Let steep for 10 minutes. Strain the blossoms out and set aside. In a lar...

"Mom," asked the Enthusiastic Kitchen Elf, "what are you making for dessert?" What?!?!  Bear in mind that this is what the kitchen in our new house looks like right now. I wasn't planning on making anything except the bare minimum for dinner. I certainly hadn't planned on making dessert.  D - I really don't know where anything is. But I had a gallon of milk in the fridge that needed to be used and he offered to make a hot milk cake, so we dug through some boxes and adapted one of our favorite recipes to infuse the milk with dried lemon verbena leaves. Plus, we had some fresh nectarines that needed to be used right away to. Ingredients  makes one 9" square cake 8 T (1/2 stick) butter + more for greasing pan/parchment paper 1 C milk 4 dried lemon verbena leaves 2 C gluten-free flour 1-3/4 C organic granulated sugar 2 t baking soda 4 large eggs 3 ripe nectarines, pitted and thinly sliced Procedure ...

I really needed basil today, but didn't feel like going to the store. Then I walked around the corner of the house and saw D's African blue basil. Sweet serendipity! I clipped a few stems and headed back into the kitchen to make a simple syrup that I needed for a #BrunchWeek libation. And the great thing: I had plenty left for other cocktail crafting that I needed to do. Ingredients   1 C organic granulated sugar (I used Dixie Crystals )* 1 C water 25 leaves of African blue basil 2 to 3 blossoms of African blue basil Procedure Place sugar and water together in a medium saucepan. Over medium heat, cook until the sugar is completely dissolved. Let simmer for 1 minute. For a thicker syrup, cook it longer. We prefer ours thin. Submerge the leaves and blossoms until they are completely covered. Let stand until syrup is cooled. Pour into a sterile mason jar but do not strain.  Disclaimer - Thank you to #BrunchWeek Sponsor Dixie Crystals for prov...

We all know that sugary drinks are not healthy, right? Infused waters have been on the market for years, but often the list of ingredients include “natural flavors.” I prefer the natural flavors that I select from my fruit bowl. You may have seen a photo of the six-dollar jars of infused asparagus water from Whole Foods last week. There was social media outrage. I just laughed. Really. I laughed. I mean, yes, Whole Foods can be pricey, but it's all about supply and demand. If someone will pay six dollars for a jar of water with three stalks of asparagus, why not sell it? But, again, you can just make your own. Instagram | @marielle.m.n.o.p Somewhere in L.A., Whole Foods executives are laughing at all of us. The way to infuse water is very, very simple: add your flavors to the water and let sit. I like to use a large glass bottle from Grosche. I've included an affiliate link at the bottom of this post, if you're interested.* A couple of notes: use organi...

I've decided that I am going to give handmade holiday gifts this year. You can follow my hashtag #handcraftededibles from now till December as I madly whip up things for friends and family. When I took a poll, friends all voted for edibles - or drinkables. So, I'm starting now. I'll be bottling up some Meyer lemon bitters for lucky cocktail crafters that I know. Our Meyer lemon tree is producing like crazy. I might have some limoncello in the works soon, too. The bitters formula seems pretty simple - bittering agents plus flavoring agents plus alcohol. Cheers. Ingredients peel from 2 organic Meyer lemons 6 white cardamom pods 1/2 t whole cloves 1/2 t coriander seeds one 1" piece of ginger, peeled and cut into strips 1 t birch bark pieces 10 ounces vodka Procedure Place all of the ingredients in a jar. Make sure that the spices are submerged. Cover with a lid and place in the cupboard. Shake gently everyday. Let steep and infuse for two to four ...

Welcome to #BrunchWeek 2015! I'm doing something a little bit different this year; click to read about it: here . But before I launch into some international breakfast and brunch eats, I'm kicking off the week with a cocktail! Cheers! Ingredients Cocktail 12 ounces lychee juice 4 ounces yuzu liqueur 8 ounces floral-infused vodka 1 t pure lemon extract (I used Nielsen-Massey's * ) To Serve 1 C granulated sugar (I used  Dixie Crystals *) 1 t lemon zest 2 ounces floral-infused vodka 1 t pure lemon extract (I used  Nielsen-Massey's ) Procedure Cocktail Combine juice, liqueur, vodka and lemon extract in a glass pitcher, stir to combine. Chill for at least 2 hours, or as long as overnight. To Serve Mix vodka and lemon extract and pour into a shallow bowl. Mix together sugar and lemon zest in another bowl and spoon it into another shallow bowl. Invert glass into vodka mixture and dip into sugar mixture to rim the glass. Pour ...

I've been infusing alcohol with different flavors for awhile -  remember my  Thyme, Fennel, & Blueberry Gin , Buddha's Hand-Infused Tequila , and more?!? - but when I saw a #FlowersandGin class in March, I registered immediately. Hosted at a local flower shop by Bar Cart, Katie Blandin set an amazing table.  It was a feast for the eyes, the nose, and then tongue. Just look at this gorgeousness...and imagine how it smelled. Heady, floral, and fresh. I'm just about ready to see how it tastes. This week. Stay tuned! I'll be using it in a cocktail soon. Given 500 mL of vodka in a 1 L weck jar*, we were able to infuse with whatever we desired. I made what I called Colorful Petal Cordial  by infusing the vodka with jasmine, pansies, calendula, elderflower, violets, juniper, chamomile, and honey. Immerse your blossoms in booze. And leave them for a month - or until your desired flavor is achieved. What fun! And what a great group of gals wit...