Culinary Adventures with Camilla

First off, let me lead with the disclaimer that I am sure all Filipinos will tell me that I did it wrong. But it's my kitchen, my adobo, and everyone in my household loved it. So, traditional or not, like your apong's or not, this is a pot of delicious, salty goodness. And it's super-duper easy. We're here on Day 14 of our county's shelter-in-place order. And I have to give a shout-out of gratitude to anyone who has ever given us games and books. They are sustaining us through this. Thank you. So, while the adobo cooked, I played a few games with D. In hindsight, I should have doubled this as we didn't have any leftovers for lunch today. Ingredients serves 4 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs 1 large onion, peeled and diced 4 to 5 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed 1 T olive oil 3/4 C to 1 C soy sauce (I use reduced sodium, but this might still be too salty for some people's tastes, adjust down to 1/2 C, if desired) 1 C vinegar (I use apple...

I think the busier my life gets, the more I lose myself in books during every spare, unscheduled moment. I juggle multiple books all year long; it just gets worse during summer vacation. This is one that I took on my son's birthday camping trip a couple of years ago. And while the kids were at the archery range, I sat by the fire and read the afternoon away. I, apparently, never hit 'publish' on this post. Fixing that now... On the Page... Blue Plate Special: An Autobiography of My Appetites  by Kate Christensen* is an atypical food memoir. It doesn't chronicle a trip around the world in pursuit of the perfect plate of something; it's not about a year-long cooking project, with a well-defined start, middle, and end. It's, as its subtitle, a story of her life informed by her relationship with food. First, there are the soft-boiled egg and pieces of buttered toast strips she’s eating in Berkeley when she witnesses her father brutally beating her mo...

I'm not sure why I don't make preserved lemons more often. They are so simple to make. They also add something incredible to a heavily spiced dish. Have you ever tried them? They take about 10 minutes to prep. And they are fairly flexible as well. But, then, you have to be patient for about a month. That's the hardest part. I can't wait to open these up in April. I was inspired by my bounty of lemons from Serendipity Farms . Farmer Jamie is now listing goods on her virtual farm stand page on Facebook. I love it because I can see what she has and order if I want the goods, or not if I don't. More often than not, I type "I'm in!" beneath her photo. While I did make 2 quarts, I am giving you the procedure for 1 quart jar. With only four ingredients, these might seem plain and simple. They are simple, but there's nothing plain about these preserved lemons. They pack quite a punch! Ingredients  makes 1 quart jar 8 to 10 organic l...

I finally decided to try my hand at making my own nut milk. Since Jake has decided to eschew dairy, I need some kind of milk to use on a regular basis...and buying nut milk is expensive! I purchased a jug and a nut milk bag. I've included affiliate links at the bottom of the post to the items that I am using. One batch lasts us a few days and it's so easy, I am almost loathe to call it a recipe. Ingredients 1 C nuts (I've tried almonds, cashews, pumpkin seeds and more, but our favorite - so far - is hazelnut) water + 4 C water Procedure Place nuts in a jar or bowl and cover them with water. Let soak for 6 to 12 hours. I usually let mine stand overnight. Drain and place the nuts in a blender with 4 C water. Blend until smooth. Place your nut bag into the jar and pour the blended mixture through it. The nut meal will get caught in the bag while the liquid will go through. Let soak for another 2 to 4 hours. Then, squeeze as much of the liquid as...

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 always bought my quince paste - despite my complete obsession with all things quince. I figured it was time to make my own. Besides I thought that the recipe I was making called for membrillo . Turns out, it used bocadillo which is made with guava. Whoops. Ingredients 4 C quince, peeled, cored, and diced 4 C water 1/2 C organic granulated sugar Procedure Place quince and water in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for an hour. Pour the poached quince, its poaching liquid, and sugar into a large, flat-bottom pan that will allow the liquid to evaporate more easily. Cook until the liquid thickens to a syrup, approximately 15 to 20 minutes, and is mostly evaporated. Let cool slightly and process in a blender until smooth. I used it at this stage, However, if you want the traditional texture of membrillo - which you can cut into slices and serve with manchego - spoon the paste into a parchment-lined baking dish and bake till dried. ...

For this month's  Food'N'Flix ,  we watched, or rewatched as the case may be,  The Terminal.  Evelynne, at Cheap Ethnic Eatz , is our hostess this month. Click to see  Evelynne's invitation . This post contains an affiliate link for the DVD at the bottom. This is a movie - like last month's selection - that I haven't seen in many, many years. On the Screen... This is the story of Viktor Navorski (played by Tom Hanks), a traveler from Krakozhia, who lands in New York and finds himself stranded in the airport terminal. While he was en route , his country went to war and the government was overthrown. The result: Krakozhia no longer exists and, as a man without a country, Navorski's travel visa has been canceled. He can't leave the airport because he has no official documents; he can't be deported because he has no official documents. Talk about a double-edged sword. So, he's stuck. That's all of the story I'll spoil. ...

I know that some people are very fastidious about their caramel. If I were making candy, I would have pulled my candy thermometer out of the drawer, but for sauce...I'm more fast and loose. I decided to try to make a hop-infused salted caramel. I think next time I'll use more hops. Because the hoppy profile wasn't too strong, I left the petals in. If it were stronger, I might have strained them out. Ingredients 1 C organic raw turbinado sugar 1/4 C water 2 hop blossoms, pulled apart (I used some Cascade hops from the Lamberts ) 3/4 C organic heavy cream 3 1/2 T butter 1 t gray fleur de sel (whatever you use, make sure it has a fine flake) Procedure In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the sugar, water, and hop blossoms over medium-low heat until the sugar dissolves. Once all of the crystals are dissolved, turn up the heat and bring to a boil, without stirring. If needed, use a wet pastry brush to wash down any crystals along the side of the p...

When D and I designed the birthday cake for our friend Stella, there was no question about what color it was going to be. Pink! So, D made a batch of hazelnut marshmallow fondant and dyed it pink. Ingredients 6 C minature marshmallows - loosely poured, not tightly packed 6 C organic powdered sugar 3 T water 1 t organic hazelnut extract pink gel food coloring Procedure Place the marshmallows and the water in a large saucepan.  Cook, on low heat, until the marshmallows are puffy and expanded. Stir the marshmallows with a rubber spatula until they are melted and smooth. Add a few drops of food coloring to the melted marshmallows. Add 4 C of the powdered sugar and begin to stir with the spatula. Stir until the sugar begins to incorporate and it becomes impossible to stir anymore. It will be paste-like. Scrape the marshmallow-sugar mixture out onto a table covered with parchment and dusted with powdered sugar. The mixture will be sticky and lu...

My radishes are most often relegated to salads. There's nothing wrong with that; I love fresh radishes. Have you ever tried Radish Crudités with Creamy Ricotta ?  But a little back I had seen a recipe for  Butter-Braised Radishes that was posted in  The Washington Post  in 2008 . I decided to give that a try with my own little twists...and with Easter Egg radishes to bring to this week's #SundaySupper.  It's remarkable how much a quick braise transforms radishes. It even softens the colors dramatically...and t he braising renders the usually piquant radishes mellow and silky.  Ingredients 2 T butter 1 bunch Easter Egg (or any kind of) radishes, cleaned, greens removed, halved or quartered lengthwise freshly ground black pepper freshly ground sea salt 1 T honey (I used a local avocado honey) 1/2 C water 1 T fresh mint, thinly sliced olive oil  Procedure Use a pan large enough to hold the radishes without crowding. Melt ...

My Precise Kitchen Elf read a recipe for a fermented fruit drink and decided that that was his birthday present for Daddy - rhubarb beer. Okay. At least I get to try it, too. Can't wait! Actually, I just read the recipe and it's a kvass , identified as "a lightly alcoholic beverage, similar to some of the lambic-style beers of Belgium." He's calling beer. He found this recipe in The Hungry Scientist Handbook: Electric Birthday Cakes,Edible Origami, and Other DIY Projects for Techies, Tinkerers, and Foodies  by Patrick Buckley and Lily Binns. It's his favorite cookbook of all time. Ingredients 1 lb rye bread, staled* 16 C hot water 2 T active dry yeast 1/2 C organic cane sugar 5 T water 1 bunch organic mint + 1 leaf (keep separate) strip of lemon zest from an organic lemon 1 C raisins 1 stalk rhubarb, chopped *To stale bread, lay it on a cookie sheet. Place it in a 170 degree oven till it's dried. Procedure Place the bread in a ...