SpecD doesn't usually dwell on Recipes to Regret but a recent acquisition of farmer's market carrots stimulated a Proustianesque shame from my past, hence this cautionary tale in this "recipe" for Carrots Solari. At a certain point during college I was what we now call "over programmed." Out the door around 7:30 or 8 am for a full day of classes. Straight from school to one … [Read more...]
MEDITERRANEAN MARINATED MUSHROOMS
Astute readers will notice that this recipe for Mediterranean Marinated Mushrooms was briefly posted a couple of weeks ago. Turns out this is not a good candidate for shelf-stable canning. Thankfully Eugenia Bone, author of Well Preserved and Mycophilia, hence an expert on the topic twice over, helps me from offering canning recipes that have potentially unpleasant (or worse) … [Read more...]
WHITE AND GREEN ASPARAGUS WITH HERB HOLLANDAISE
While many culinary pundits decry the demise of seasonal eating, there do remain bright spots on the calendar. White asparagus's limited-run each spring reminds us there still exist delicacies that haven't been enslaved by global agri-business. So let's get going while the going is good. Some might find paring white asparagus with green a bit heretical. Our take … [Read more...]
IRISH ROAD KILL
There's plenty we Micks can be proud of: James Joyce, William Butler Yeats, Oscar Wilde, the Ballymaloe Cooking School, JFK and the history of How the Irish Saved Civilization. With March 17th just around the corner now's a good time to remember the wit of the Irish as well in the form of this great St. Patrick's Day … [Read more...]
LAST OF THE HERB GARDEN ROASTED POTATOES (SSD #9)
Another Simply Spectaculary Delicious (SSD) recipe technique is a prefect late-summer side dish. The chilly nights of September remind us the glory days of the herb jardiniere are nearing their end. Summer 2011 was a particularly robust planting and now there's a last dash to employ as many of these flavorful leaves while the … [Read more...]
TARTE A L’OIGNON (SPRING ONION TARTE)
Well it's been quite a summer in the kitchen, a strong run of well-received successes. Not that I'd post the losers, so thankfully only one or two disappointments occurred. Spec D's commitment to superlative dishes regardless of the effort, expense, obscurity or complexity marches on. However, from … [Read more...]
SWEET AND SOUR RAINBOW CARROTS
As summer hastens to a close the pressure is on to squirrel away as much of the local abundance as possible. We've really been grooving on these freshly dug, radiant rainbow carrots. Slowly roasted in butter is our current preparation of choice but knowing they're soon to disappear we put up a big batch with this Sweet and Sour … [Read more...]
RAINBOW CARROTS (SSD #7)
What could possibly be more simply spectacularly delicious that this easy recipe for farm-stand fresh rainbow carrots, gently poached in the purest, cleanest well water (we've had ours checked -- rating: A+!) and then slowly glazed over low heat in an abundance of sweet butter. (If you blinked, that was the … [Read more...]
CRISPY GERMAN RAVIOLI WITH CREAMED SPINACH: GEBRATENE MAULTASCHEN AUF BLATTSPINAT
Guten Morgen meine Damen und Herren! Steve and I are just back from a trip to Berlin, staying at the super deluxe Hotel Adlon on Under den Linden, lavishly and lovingly refurbished to its storied glory. Right out the front door is the great Brandenburg Gate and beyond that lies the green expanse of the Tiergarten. Sitting right next to the former … [Read more...]
BRAISED LEEKS: SSD #4
Simply Spectacularly Delicious Braised Leeks: delicious results with a minimum of fuss (not that there's anything wrong with that). You know how there are words in other languages that have no equivalent in English? Like the Japanese bakku-shan, a girl who is pretty from behind but ugly from the front? Surely everyone's enjoyed a jaysus, … [Read more...]