Culinary Adventures with Camilla

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...

Simona from  Briciole  is our   Cook the Books   hostess for this round (October-November 2018); she chose   The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African American Culinary History in the Old South  by Michael W. Twitty .*  You can read Simona's invitation:  here .  Talk about waiting till the last minute...the posts are due today. Yikes. I have had this book since Febuary, but didn't pick it up till October. And to date, I still haven't finished it. On the Page Let me start with this: I thought I would love this book. I mean: food +  history + recipes = my kinda book. Usually. And I have long admired Twitty when I've heard interviews on NPR and read pieces about him. But I had a really tough time getting through this book.  Actually, I already admitted that I didn't finish it. I tried though. I really, really tried. I carted that book with me to multiple robotics competitions, even leaving other books at home so that ...

#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...

I am so rarely in front of the camera. But my Enthusiastic Kitchen Elf grabbed my camera as I was heading to the table to serve the Osso Buco. And I told him I'd use the photo. I've made osso buco a handful of times, including Jamie Oliver's Ossobuco with Bean Ragout  and a lamb osso buco , but I was inspired to do osso buco this year for Thanksgiving because, well, I am anti-turkey. Sorry...I know that's almost un-American. Osso buco , literally means, hole in the bone. So have your butcher cut the shanks into 1" to 2" lengths that have the bone - and marrow - showing. I was so excited to finally get to use my brand-new Dutch oven. So, so happy. Ingredients serves 6 six 2" osso buco-cut beef shanks flour for dredging 3 T butter 2 T olive oil 2 leeks, cleaned, trimmed, and chopped 3 carrots, chopped 1 fennel bulb, trimmed and chopped 6 C organic chicken stock (it should come about 2/3 of the way up the sides of th...

As one of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution Day Ambassadors ( I'm the Monterey #FRD2014 rep! ) I will be sent a copy of his latest cookbook - to cook from and write about. I can't wait. I do have to laugh though, because its title is  Comfort Food . And, according to a good friend:  I only make uncomfortable food . Oh, well. I can learn! To celebrate launch day - today - I'm sharing one of the recipes. Here's Jamie Oliver's Ossobuco alla Milanese recipe from his new cookbook, Comfort Food. And here's my adaptation. I typically don't eat veal, so I went to our local butcher for some lamb shanks sliced into an osso buco-style cut; but they had just sold their last shanks. Darn. But then I noticed the "never tethered...free to roam" on the veal package and decided to go for it. I added in shelling beans to make a ragout and served it over wild rice instead of risotto. Also, I used lots of different herbs in my gremolata instead of just pa...

•             green beans, stem ends trimmed •             water •             5 large garlic cloves, crushed and minced •             zest of 1 large organic lemon (organic because you’re eating the rind) •             juice from  lemons •             1 C tight-packed Italian parsley leaves •             fleur de sel flakes •             freshly ground pepper •             1-1/2 C coarsely-grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese •...

1 4-pound beef brisket splash of olive oil 2 onions, peeled and diced 4  cloves garlic freshly ground sea salt freshly ground pepper 2  C red wine 1-1/2 C organic chicken broth 1 onion, peeled and diced 4  C organic, seedless red grapes 2-3 sprigs of fresh oregano 2-3 stems of fresh parsley 1 stem fresh rosemary 1/4  C olive oil or duck fat, if you have it 1/4  C white whole wheat flour Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a pan, cook 2 C of the onions and whole garlic in hot oil until onions are tender. Spoon the mixture into a roasting pan; I used a deep stoneware dish. Season brisket with salt and pepper; place brisket on onion mixture. Add wine and broth. Cover and roast for 2 hours. Remove cover and roast, uncovered, for another hour. Remove brisket from oven; stir in 1 C diced onions. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Remove the dish from the fridge and let it come to room temperature. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F....

This was a complete surprise to me, but this might have been my absolute favorite thing on our Thanksgiving table. It was fresh, potent, and the perfect flavor foil to my braised brisket. I have never actually bought fresh horseradish until this week. Have you? It looks like a stick! 1 C fresh parsley, chopped 2 t grated fresh horseradish zest from 1 lemon juice from 1 lemon 1 T olive oil freshly ground sea salt Mix all of the ingredients together in a mixing bowl. Let sit for at least 30 minutes before serving to make sure the flavors are well-combined.