Culinary Adventures with Camilla

I really love pickles. I've pickled cherries , pickled green tomatoes , pickled mouse melons , pickled blueberries , and more. And that's not even delving into the lacto-fermented pickles. But one of my favorites is pickled red onions and, it appears, I've never blogged the process. How on Earth is that possible? You have to try these, especially if you're an onion fan. I've used them to add texture and flavor to grilled cheese sandwiches. I had some red onions and a splash or two of leftover Luc Belaire Rare Rosé (tasting notes here ). So thought I'd try to add pink sparkling wine to a quick pickle. Ingredients 1 organic red onion, peeled and thinly sliced (approximately 2 C) 3/4 C vinegar (I used a white vinegar) 1/4 C sparkling wine 1 T organic granulated sugar 1 t salt (I used a pink Himalaya salt) Procedure Place sliced red onions in a bowl and sprinkle with salt and sugar. Stir to coat and let stand for 10 minutes. In the meanti...

Making cheese is on my summer foodie bucket list. I mean, I've made cheese before, I just want to get more adept at it. Earlier this week a friend posted a photo that she had tons of nasturtium in her yard and asked if anyone would like some. Me!!! I miss my nasturtium plants from our old, old house. Last night - when I was already in comfy clothes (read: pajamas) - she texted and let me know that she had some for me. So, I pulled on a dress, grabbed a bottle of wine, and headed to her restaurant. She gave me a container of blossoms, a jar of pods, and a bottle of coffee sake to try.  Sweet deal! Sometimes when I get beautiful ingredients, I am inspired immediately. Sometimes, I just want to hoard them and look at them for awhile. These fell into the former category. I decided to head back into the kitchen - even though the floors had already been mopped for the night - and make some fresh cheese for dinner tonight. I love this queso fresco recipe because I can have fres...

Okay, I didn't make this, but I will...and soon! After a morning hike, we stopped for a lavish lunch - and to use up a gift certificate friends had given us. When I write 'lavish' I mean a meal replete with mimosas and three desserts! This was Riley's pick and it was inspiring. A large scoop of Valrhona chocolate mousse was served with a puddle of arbequina olive oil, black salt, pink salt, and a crisp piece of bread. Wow.

I am certain that I must block out how much butter is in this sauce every time I make it, which - probably because of the amount of butter - is very infrequently.  But it is so delicious and a must when you make eggs benedict! 4 egg yolks 4 T lemon juice 1/2 t white balsamic vinegar 1 T white wine 1 C butter, melted 1/4 t pink Himalaya salt caviar from one vanilla bean In the top of the double boiler, whisk together egg yolks, lemon juice, white balsamic, wine, and vanilla caviar. Add the melted butter to egg yolk mixture a couple of tablespoons at a time while whisking yolks constantly. If hollandaise begins to get too thick, add a teaspoon or two of hot water. Continue whisking until all the butter is incorporated. Whisk in salt, then remove from heat. Place a lid on pan to keep sauce warm until ready to serve. I made a breadless benedict for dinner tonight: wilted spinach topped with a poached egg, slathered with the vanilla bean hollandaise. Yummy. ...

It's time for the September Secret Recipe Club  reveal. What's the Secret Recipe Club? It's a group started by Amanda of Amanda's Cookin'  but recently handed off to April of Angel's Homestead . Each month, every participant is assigned to someone else's blog from which they pick a recipe - or two - to make and post, but it's all a secret until the big day. Today's the day. I always love a kitchen challenge and some culinary adventure...and meeting new-to-me foodie bloggers. Meet Jaida of Sweet Beginnings who writes: "I love food. All kinds of food. I love to cook it, eat it, read about it, talk about it...I just love food. I enjoy trying new types of food, though I am a little leery if it looks or sounds too odd." A woman after my own heart. The only thing I would change - for me - "I enjoy trying new types of food...and if I've never seen it, or heard of it, even better!" ;) Jaida did a round-up of 25 different kind...

Another night. Another breadless morning tomorrow...unless I bake something to put under their ham and cheese in their lunchboxes. I decided to make a green olive-thyme round with some lemon olive oil. Can you tell that I'm quite smitten with my We Olive lemon olive oil? Maybe I should have gotten all three bottles' worth of that! 3 C all-purpose flour 1 T active dry yeast 1 t freshly ground pink Himalaya salt 1 C warm water ¼ C lemon olive oil 1 C green olives 2 springs of fresh thyme Place the water in a large mixing bowl. Float the yeast on top and allow it to bloom for about 5 minutes. Add the flour, salt, and olive oil and mix until a ball forms. Knead in green olives and leaves from the thyme sprigs. Shape the dough into a flat round, adding only enough flour to allow you to handle the dough. Cover it and let it rise in the warmest place in your kitchen while you preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Let it rise as long as you can. Brush the loaf with water, sp...

Carpaccio is, by definition, raw. The story I've heard is that carpaccio was invented at Harry's Bar in Venice and named for the Italian painter Vittore Carpaccio who was prone to using red in his paintings - the red of raw beef. So, the salad that bears his name is thinly sliced raw beef piled atop watercress or arugula, drizzled with a vinaigrette made with olive oil and lemon juice and topped with shaved parmesan cheese. Photo credit:  http://www.azerbaijanrugs.com/mp/vittore_carpaccio7.htm  I've been the Harry's Bar once, but I didn't have the carpaccio . Actually, I didn't have anything. I was on a strict budget with just enough in my wallet for an overnight stay, a kilo of tangerines, a wedge of cheese, and a bottle of cheap red wine. I just went in to Harry's and snapped a photo or two before heading on my to the convent on Giudecca where I was spending the night. So, carpaccio is also, by definition, red which avocados definit...

For my Mistress of Spices -inspired dinner, I chose a Cocoa-rubbed Fish with Coconut Chutney. I wanted to make something with turmeric, though I didn't make it on a Sunday. Oh, well. Tilo says: "Each spice has a special day to it. For turmeric it is Sunday, when light drips fat and butter-colored into the bins to be soaked up glowing, when you pray to the nine planets for love and luck." Cocoa-Rubbed Fish I used some fresh ono that a friend had caught and created a dry rub with organic brown sugar, cocoa powder, ground cayenne pepper, ground turmeric, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, and freshly ground pink Himalaya salt and flower pepper. Pat your filets dry and completely cover the fish with the spices, gently rubbing the flavors into the flesh. Heat butter and oil in a large flat-bottomed pan set over a moderate heat and cook the fish for 3 minutes before turning. The sugar will have caramelized and the fish taken on a dark sheen. Cook on the other si...

Despite the dozens of things I have to get done before the school year is over, I had all of the ingredients I needed for the  Food Matters Project  assignment this week...and we have to eat, right?!? I may as well cook with a purpose. So, tonight, after a much needed stroll on the beach, I came home and whipped up my version of Bittman's Mexican-Style Fruit Salad with Grilled or Broiled Fish. The recipe was selected by Sarah of  Food and Fredrick .  Click here for what our week's hostess created in her kitchen. And to see what the other bloggers cooked and blogged, click here and look in the comments section. This was so simple, I almost loathe to call it a recipe. But maybe that's the beauty of it... Chicken, rubbed with minced garlic and sprinkled with fresh dill, freshly ground pink Himalaya salt and flower pepper, broiled in the oven. While the chicken cooks, make a fruit salsa: diced fresh mangoes; cubed, peeled kiwi; sliced strawberries...

When I signed up to bring some treats to Riley's Mothers' Day Tea Party, I was vague: 'veggie tart' and 'veggie frittata.' I wasn't sure what veggies I would have in my fridge on cooking day. Tonight was the night. And I had Spring onions and fresh dill from my CSA box and some crimini mushrooms and cluster tomatoes. So here we go...we started with a flaky, buttery crust scented with fennel pollen... 2 C white whole wheat flour 1/2 C butter 1/2 C cold water 1 t fennel pollen Use a pastry cutter to blend the butter into the flour and fennel pollen. Add the cold water and mix lightly until it forms a ball. Roll the dough out and lay into a tart pan. Then I layered in lightly sauteed Spring onions, sliced mushrooms, and shredded asiago and mozzarella cheeses. Into the beaten eggs, I folded fresh dill and fresh parsley. Then I poured the egg mixture over the veggies and pressed halved tomatoes into the egg. Season with freshly ground pink H...

If you've been following along with this rhubarb recipe debacle, you'll know that my first take at this assignment was, tragically, devoid of the namesake ingredient: rhubarb. How do you make a rhubarb sauce without rhubarb? Well, you don't. But I tried...and so did a bunch of the bloggers in the Food Matters Project . Then, the day after my attempt, I came across rhubarb at a grocery store whose produce clerks had sworn to me, over the phone, that they wouldn't have rhubarb available until June. I bought every single stalk. No joke. I just needed to get some other rhubarb creations out of the way before I braved this again. Besides, I wanted to read all of the other bloggers' takes and incorporate the best elements. I have to admit that the four in my household are rhubarb fanatics. And I got four thumbs up on this dinner. But my husband did say, "if someone doesn't like rhubarb, this is definitely not the dinner for them...but I love it!" Me...

Here's the fourth installment of the Food Matters Project , the brainchild of Sarah of 20somethingcupcakes and Kate from Cookie + Kate . Each week we all - here's the 'we' and we've grown to just over three dozen fellow foodie bloggers - cook the same recipe, from Mark Bittman's The Food Matters Cookbook, posting our interpretations and adaptations. This week Marcia of  twentybysixty  assigned us Mark's Baked Rigatoni with Brussel Sprouts, Figs, and Blue Cheese. Click here for our hostess's post. Or click here , and look in the comments, to see what the others whipped up. I had an extremely busy weekend and needed to squeeze this dinner in today, so I skipped the baking part and I substituted ingredients to match what I had on-hand. It came together very quickly while I was on a conference call about an annual fundraising event - yes, I am a multitasking maniac - and it was a hit! But I must admit that brussel sprouts are a family favorite. When we...

This is week two of the brand-new Food Matters Project , the brainchild of Sarah of 20somethingcupcakes and Kate from Cookie + Kate . When I read the mission - cooking through The Food Matters Cookbook by Mark Bittman who espouses eating more plants, fewer animal products and processed foods, and the positive impact of those choices on us and our planet - I was in. Each week we will all - here's the ' we ', just over a dozen fellow foodie bloggers - cook the same recipe, posting our interpretations and adaptations. This week we were assigned Mark's Seasoned Popcorn Recipe. [Recipe is below.*] Click here for the line-up of recipes. Given that I don't own a microwave, I went with option number one and used olive oil at a lower temperature. It reminded me of those "magical foil" popcorn poppers from when we were kids - okay, maybe from when I was a kid as I know there are bloggers in their 20s on here! - Jiffy Pop, or something like that. With each po...

This is an adaptation on the Bajan Salt Bread I made the other night. I changed it up with some honey - for my dinner theme tonight - and used white whole wheat. 3 C white whole wheat flour 2 T organic clover honey 1 T sea salt 2 T olive oil 1 packet yeast 1 C warm water flower pepper pink Himalaya salt Place the salt, flour, yeast, and honey in a large mixing bowl and slowly add warm water, mixing continually until the mixture forms a stiff dough, add more flour until you have a dough stiff enough to knead. Lightly flour the work surface, and knead dough for 10 minutes until it is smooth and elastic, then place in a greased bowl. Now place bowl in a warm place for 40 minutes until it has doubled in size. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Roll dough into fist-sized balls and place in a greased baking dish. Sprinkle with more salt then let rise for another 20 minutes or, again, until the dough has doubled in size. Place in the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes until rolls are...

Since most of the breads in Barbados are sweet, this one is called 'salt bread' though, admittedly, there is still sugar in it. I'm thinking that sugar cane might be one of their main crops! It was pillowy soft...and we spread it with hearty pats of butter. Dylan did ask, "Do they have butter in Barbados?" Yes. "Mom, are you just saying that?" No. 3 C white flour 2 t organic raw turbinado sugar 1 T sea salt 2 T olive oil 1 packet yeast 1 C warm water Place the salt, flour, and yeast in a large mixing bowl and slowly add warm water, mixing continually until the mixture forms a stiff dough, add more flour until you have a dough stiff enough to knead. Lightly flour the work surface, and knead dough for 10 minutes until it is smooth and elastic, then place in a greased bowl. Now place bowl in a warm place for 40 minutes until it has doubled in size. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Roll dough into fist-sized balls and place in a greased baking dish. Sp...

When life gives you lemons...get in the kitchen! As we were leaving Jenn and Mike's yesterday, after the birthday party, she told me to take some of the lemons from her mother-in-law's tree; she had a huge box sitting on her porch. So, I took about a dozen and dreamt about what I wanted to do with them. Yes, I dream about cooking. That can't be a surprise. I decided to make two family favorites, then I'll branch out. So, first up this morning: preserved lemons. This recipe is so easy and so delicious. You just need to be a little bit patient because they need to be in the jar for at least three weeks. You only need five ingredients: lemons, salt, bay leaves, water, and olive oil.   Wash the lemons well. Cut the lemons into sixths (half and then each half into thirds). Press the cut sides so that they are generously coated with salt. Put a couple of tablespoons of salt in the bottom of a jar and pack the lemons in layers, sprinkling a thin layer of salt between ...