Culinary Adventures with Camilla

I recently breezed through The Restaurant by Pamela M. Kelley,* finishing the book one evening after I had done and put away all the dishes. So, it's not a particularly deep or difficult read. But it was a nice way to spend the evening. On the Page photo from amazon.com I have already mentioned that it wasn't a particular deep read. But it was well-written albeit predictable. A grandmother passes away and, in her will, leaves a restaurant that no one knows she owned to her three granddaughters.  "My girls, I know this will come as somewhat of a shock, but I am the sole owner of Mimi’s Place and have been for forty-three years, since I won the restaurant in a bet. A game of poker actually, but that’s too long of a story to go into here. As you know, Mimi’s Place is special to me and always has been" (pg. 34). They must, however, work in the restaurant for a year or the restaurant will belong to the head chef. It was mildly amusing that none of the three women have...

Today we are sharing breakfast recipes. Christie encouraged the group: "We are guilty of having breakfast for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and even dessert! Um.... chocolate waffles? Hello? Show us how you serve up breakfast for your family." Banana Bread Cinnamon Rolls by Kate's Recipe Box Chewy Granola Bars with Pecans and Cranberries by Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks Cinnamon Doughnut Muffins by Jolene's Recipe Journal Eggs Benedict Casserole by Cheese Curd In Paradise Family Favorite Breakfast Tacos by Blogghetti Fried Egg Sandwiches with Homemade Sourdough Buns by Karen's Kitchen Stories Irish Ulster Fry Breakfast by Palatable Pastime Lemon Ricotta Pancakes with Candied Cranberries by Culinary Adventures with Camilla Mickey Mouse Waffles by Simply Inspired Meals Mushroom Swiss Bread Boats by A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures Sausage, Egg & Cheese Breakfast Bites by Sweet Beginnings We share Recipes From Our Dinner Table ! Join o...

    I have recently begun to experiment with the vanilla beans I typically get - Madagascar Bourbon - versus Tahitian vanilla beans. So, you'll probably be seeing a stream of recipes from me that use the two kinds of vanilla. While I know many people are focusing on apples, the darlings of Fall, I wanted the shine the spotlight on the pear. You can use any kind of pears that you want; I happened to have Bartletts in my fruit bowl. This is jam is absolutely divine. On the sweet side for my savory-loving tastebuds, but delicious nonetheless. And it's so, so easy to make.  Ingredients 6 Bartlett pears, cored and thinly sliced (approximately 5 to 6 C) 2 C organic granulated sugar juice from 2 organic lemons (I used Meyer lemons from my parents' tree) zest from 2 organic lemons 2 vanilla beans, split lengthwise (I used Madagascar Bourbon beans) 1/4 C water Procedure Place all of the ingredients - except the lemon juice - in a large flat-bo...

#CranberryWeek continues! Thanks to Caroline of Caroline's Cooking for hosting. I love using fresh cranberries whenever I can get them. See all the other recipes being shared today as part of Cranberry week - follow #cranberryweek for all the tasty cranberry creations: Butternut Squash Wild Rice Salad with Cranberries and Fennel from Caroline's Cooking Cranberry Almond Chicken Salad Wraps from Family Around The Table Cranberry Cheeseball by The Freshman Cook Cranberry Cobbler from Cookaholic Wife Cranberry Gremolata from Culinary Adventures with Camilla Cranberry Orange Relish from Books n' Cooks Jellied Cranberry Sauce from Palatable Pastime Orange Cranberry Sweet Rolls from A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures Pear Holly Cocktail  from Bear & Bug Eats Roasted Green Beans with Cranberries from Making Miracles Slow Cooker Cranberry BBQ Chicken from Jonesin' For Taste Slow Cooker Cranberry Pot Roast from Everyday Eileen White Cheddar and Cranb...

We had discussed bringing lemon squares to class for his birthday treats. Despite the fact that his teacher warned me, "You know, kids don't really bring birthday treats at this age anymore." Well, mine wants them, so we're making them. We had this conversation last night...and I ended up making 2 pans of lemon squares. R: Mom, can you make 30 lemon squares instead of 25? C: Sure. J: You do know that she's just going to cut them smaller, right?!? C: Hey! J: You are, aren't you? I know how your mind works. C: Well... R: Mom!! Because I was making enough for 30 generously-sized lemon squares, I had extras. And I did serve them for (part of) breakfast. At least we had something into which birthday candles could go before we all ran out the door for work and school. Happy 14th birthday, R!!! Crust Ingredients   makes 2 pans of lemon squares 4 C gluten-free flour 1 C organic powdered sugar 1-1/2 C butter (3 sticks) 2 to 3 T co...

Each year, Kita at Girl Carnivore coordinates a month-long event that makes my three carnivores so, so happy. Okay, I know they're actually omni vores, but you know what I mean. Click for the 2016 burgers so far: here . We have 31 days of burgers planned. Here's the 2015 line-up , where I made a salmon burger on cuttlefish ink buns . When I served this - Kheema Aloo Burgers with Fresh Mango Chutney Wrapped in Garlic Naan - the Precise Kitchen Elf asked, "Is this for an event, Mom?" Yes, it's for Burger Month. " He continued, "I love Burger Month!" The other two chimed in immediately, "We love Burger Month, too!!" Inspired by a stop at Curry Up in Palo Alto a few months ago, I was intrigued by the flavors in Enthusiastic Kitchen Elf's samosa burger and decided to create a burger with an Indian twist for my Burger Month offering. It's a triple layer of deliciousness on a garlic naan: jeera aloo topped with a khe...

Today kicks off one of my favorite blogging weeks of the year: Brunch Week. Each year, Terri of Love and Confections coordinates this multi-blogger, multi-day celebration of all things brunch. This year Christie from  A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures  is co-hosting. And I challenge myself to post everyday, getting creative with all of the sponsor goodies we receive for participating. It's so much fun. When I received lemon and orange extracts from #BrunchWeek sponsor Nielsen-Massey , I thought about different recipes that might utilize both. I considered savory dishes, because I really don't have a sweet tooth, then I stumbled across an intriguing recipe from the medieval town of Pérouges, near Lyon, France. Galette Perougienne is made with a yeasted dough, scented with citrus and sprinkled with sugar. That meant I was able to use additional sponsor goodies from Red Star Yeast and Dixie Crystals ; and while I prepared the dough, my eggs sat in the ceramic egg carton ...

Remember, I'm teaching a Bizarre Foods SEM this term? Today, we traveled by tabletop to the Philippines. Don't worry, I didn't make the kids eat balut. Considering I won't even eat balut...I figured that wouldn't be very fair. But we did talk about balut . For our make-project today, I decided that eating seaweed was bizarre enough for some of the kids. Besides this dish has special significance to me. My grandmother, my dad's mom, used to make the most amazing seaweed salad. I remember when I went to Oahu with her as a child, we would drive to Ewa Beach and pick seaweed. She would clean it and make a fresh seaweed salad with it.  Today, I made it with my own kids and ten other students. Reactions were varied. One student said that the seaweed didn't taste like anything, that it just had a funny texture. Another student declared, "I really hate kale."  One student said he didn't want to try it. I insisted. Just one bite....