Culinary Adventures with Camilla

This month, Sue of  Palatable Pastime  told the Baking Bloggers that for October we were baking with potatoes.  "Let's whip up some potatoes in a recipe and slide them into an oven. Potatoes (of all types) can be incorporated into a baked dish or baked first and finished later. Just at some point potatoes are in the oven." I am grateful to have some new recipes to try. This is what the #BakingBloggers are sharing... Aloo Channa Paneer Pie by Magical Ingredients Baked Sweet Potato Fries by Sizzling Tastebuds Crispy Spicy Smashed Potatoes by Sneha’s Recipe Curry Kissed Tater Tots by Culinary Adventures with Camilla Ham and Broccoli Stuffed Potatoes by A Day in the Life on the Farm Stuffed Fingerling Potatoes by Sid’s Sea Palm Cooking Sweet Potato Oatmeal Cookies by Palatable Pastime I never really considered making tater tots before a few years ago. But, inspired by a few friends, I created Hand-formed Parmesan Tater Tots...

It's a new year. And the Cake Slice Bakers have a new book from which they are cooking. For 2020, we'll be baking from  The New Way to Cake: Simple Recipes with Exceptional Flavor  by Benjamina Ebuehi.* In this group, we are given a selection of three cake recipes. We each choose one cake to bake, and then on the 20th - never before - we all post about our cake on our blogs. There are a few rules that we follow, but the most important ones are to have fun and enjoy baking & eating cakes! Follow our  Facebook ,  Instagram , and  Pinterest  pages where you can find all of our cakes, as well as inspiration for many other cakes. You can also click on the links below to take you to each of our cakes. If you have a blog and are interested in joining The Cake Slice Bakers and baking along with us, please send an email to thecakeslicebakers at gmail dot com for more details. The Cake Slice Bakers also have a new Facebook group called  The C...

This is a sponsored post written by me in conjunction with a virtual wine tasting event hosted by  Snooth for Murrieta's Well Winery.  Wine samples were provided for this post and this page may contain affiliate links. Last summer I participated in a virtual tasting with wines from Murrieta's Well*. You can read about that here . So, when my contact at Snooth asked if I wanted to participate this round, I was quick to reply 'yes'. This week, I'll log in and chat with wine enthusiasts around the country about a set of four wines from Murrieta's. Can't wait! Sweet Potato Risotto inspired by the Butternut Squash Risotto by Murrieta's Well Ahead of the event, I decided to try a riff on one of the recipes they sent with the wines. It's not quite butternut squash season here, so I made a sweet potato risotto instead. Ingredients 2 C cubed sweet potato, peeled 1 C white onion, peeled and cubed 2 T butter 1 T olive oil 1 T m...

When we were planning our belated Christmas dinner, I asked Jenn to bring a sidedish. She brought this... It was delicious, subtle, and went perfectly with my Feijoada . And we were all surprised that it didn't include potatoes! She did the shallots and the rosemary just before serving, but came with everything else warmed in a casserole. I can't wait to make this. Ingredients 2 C sweet potatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces 2 C parsnips, cut into ½-inch pieces 1 C celery root, cut into ½-inch pieces 1 clove garlic, smashed ½ t kosher salt 2 T olive oil 2 large shallots, sliced into thin rings 2 T fresh rosemary leaves (from about 2 sprigs) freshly ground black pepper, for serving Procedure Place sweet potatoes, parsnips, celery root, and garlic to a souppot and cover with water by at least 1". Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the vegetables are tender, approximately 15 to 20 minutes. Reserve 1 C cook...

Along with my Halloween Baked Alaska , I brought some roasted veggies to the festivities yesterday. This is an easy dish as long as you have a mandolin* for slicing! Otherwise, you'd better have some stellar knife skills and more patience than I have. Ingredients sweet potatoes, thinly sliced (enough to fill your baking dish) 2 T olive oil 1 t fresh thyme leaves freshly ground salt freshly ground pepper 1 T freshly squeezed lemon juice zest from 1 organic lemon Procedure Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line up your sweet potato slices and stand them up vertically in your baking dish. Sprinkle the potatoes with thyme, salt, and pepper. Cover baking dish with foil and roast until potatoes are tender, approximately 1 hour. Increase oven temperature to 450 degrees F. Remove foil and roast until the tops of the potatoes are browned and crisp, approximately 10 to 15 minutes. Before serving sprinkle with lemon zest and drizzle with lemon juice. Serve hot...

I was inspired to make these sweet potato fries after smelling and tasting Island Thyme Herb Seaoning by  Caribeque   and Chai Curry 'Chup by  Intensity Academy Gourmet Sauces . They are simple and I love that they are baked and not fried. Ingredients sweet potatoes, 1 person usually works well olive oil Island Thyme Herb Seasoning Blend* Chai Curry 'Chup* for serving Procedure Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.  Cut them into fry-shaped pieces, trying to cut them into similarly sized pieces so the fries will bake evenly. Place the fries in a large mixing bowl and pour in enough olive oil to lightly coat the fries. Dust with seasoning. Then, turn the fries onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Flatten them into a single layer without over-crowding. Bake for 15 minutes, then flip the fries. Bake for another 10 to 15 more minutes, or until the fries are crispy. Serve hot with some Chai Curry 'Chup by  Intensity Academy ...

It's time for Group B's  Secret Recipe Club   November reveal. This month I was assigned to   Little Bit of Everything ,  penned by Julie. Julie identifies herself as a 50 something midwesterner who loves to cook, travel and garden. She collect spoons, building upon a collection started by her mother. Her blog, she writes, is a creative journey through her 100+ volume cookbook collection, newspaper and magazine clippings, newly found recipes and baking groups. Nice! The weather is definitely turning. So, I had soups on the brain. Julie has some fantastic soups. I thought about making her Slow-Cooker French Onion Soup ;   Potato, Fennel, Leek Soup ; Potato Leek Chowder Robusto ; or Asian Sweet Potato Soup . I made minor changes to her recipe - adding bacon, sweet potatoes, and some fresh herbs - otherwise, I stayed fairly true to the recipe. It was fantastic! Thanks, Julie, for the inspiration. Little Bit of Everything Corn Chowder Insp...

The great thing about this recipe: its flexibility. You can use whatever root vegetables you have. Think rutabagas, parsnips, celeriac. Get creative! Ingredients 6 turnips, cut into 1" pieces 3 sweet potatoes, cut into 1" pieces 2 onions, peeled and cut into 1" pieces 2 fennel bulbs, cut into wedges with the end intact 3 purple potatoes, cut into 1" pieces 2 Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 1" pieces 1/2 C olive oil 1/2 C honey (I used a local pine honey) pinch of saffron freshly ground sea salt freshly ground pepper dash of ground sweet paprika juice from 1 lemon 4-5 thyme sprigs Procedure Place all of the vegetables in a large mixing bowl. Drizzle the vegetables with olive oil and honey. Season with everything except the lemon juice and fresh thyme. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Roast the vegetables for about 25 – 30 minutes or until cooked and glazed. You want them soft, but not mushy. Drizzle the...

We're pushing ahead in our Cooking Around the World Adventure with a tabletop trip to St. Vincent and the Grenadines. This eastern Caribbean nation is comprised of one volcanic island, Saint Vincent, and thirty-two smaller islands and cays, the Grenadines. Saint Vincent is mountainous with rich volcanic soils, and its volcano, Soufrière, last erupted in 1979— year of their independence from the United Kingdom. Two hydroelectric plants help power Saint Vincent's diversifying economy which has been dependent on exports of bananas and arrowroot. Tourism has been growing steadily, too. Other Facts + Their Flag Population: 111,000 Capital: Kingstown Area: 150 square miles Languages: English, French, Patois Religion: Anglican, Methodist, Roman Catholic, and other Protestant Currency: East Caribbean dollar Literacy Percent: 96 For this dinner, I only made one thing! When researching traditional recipes I kept seeing three recipes pop up - Curried Goat,...

2 C grated zucchini 1 C grated sweet potato 4 T olive oil freshly ground sea salt 2 large eggs 1/3 C white whole wheat flour 1 t baking powder In a medium bowl, whisk eggs. Whisk in the flour and baking powder and stir together until well combined. Gently fold in the grated vegetables. In the medium skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. When oil is heated, drop in the batter by rounded tablespoonfuls. Flatten gently with a fork. Cook about two minutes, or until golden brown around the edges. Flip and cook for another two minutes or until golden. Place on a plate and keep warm in the oven until ready to serve. I served these with plain yogurt from Saint Benoit from Sonoma County and some cardamom-kissed applesauce. Cardamom-Kissed Applesauce 5 organic apples, peeled and cubed 1/2 C organic granulated sugar 1 C water 4 caviar limes (click to read about caviar limes from Good Land Organics ) 4 cardamom pods 2 cinnamon sticks Place all of the i...

Sweet potatoes are a family favorite! So, when I saw this in Matt Armendariz's  On a Stick!  cookbook, I knew we'd have to try it. These were simple and amazing...kinda like giant sweet potato fries. inspired by On a Stick! by Matt Armendariz 2 medium (or 1 large) sweet potato, boiled and sliced into wedges splash of olive oil dash of curry powder smidge of cayenne freshly ground sea salt freshly ground pepper Whisk together the olive oil, curry, and cayenne. Add the sweet potato wedges and toss to coat. Pierce the wedges with a skewer and grill for 4-5 minutes on each side. Remove from heat and season to salt and pepper.

We're into the Ns in our  Cooking Around the World Adventure , as we take advantage of longer summer evenings and lack of homework and a schedule. I held off cooking this for a few days because, frankly, 'grilled bush meat' wasn't high on my to-try list nor was 'neck of mutton' or 'ostrich carpaccio.' I figured that crocodile meat was off the list as possible anyhow. And I was feeling too lazy to head off in search of ostrich meat. I know that I can find it; I just hadn't had the time. Country:  Namibia . Fun Facts : Namibia is the second least densely populated country on earth - after Mongolia. There are just over two million people living in a country which is half the size of Alaska. The Namib desert, at 80 million years, is the world’s oldest desert. Namib means “open space”. Fish River Canyon, , formed about 500 million years ago, is the second largest canyon in the world, after the Grand Canyon – it is 100 miles long, up...

Happy Hanukkah! This morning I decided to kick off Hanukkah with sweet potato latkes, sour cream, bacon - we're not really Jewish! - topped with fresh blackberry sauce. Riley pulled out his menorah; Dylan located his dreidel. So, I just need to remember to pick up some chocolate coins today. Okay, I already mentioned that we're not Jewish. But we  are  attempting to raise socially-aware citizens of the world who are not just tolerant of, but are knowledgeable about, religious and cultural differences. So, we celebrate Hanukkah...and a host of other religious holidays that have nothing to do with our personal beliefs or lack thereof. Mix together 1 shredded sweet potato, 1/4 C white whole wheat flour, dash of nutmeg, dash of ground ginger, splash of milk, and two beaten eggs. Heat oil in a large flat-bottomed pan. When the oil is hot, spoon 1/2 C of the sweet potato mixture into skillet, spreading into flattened rounds with a fork. Cook until undersides are browned, ...