Apologies to the Euythmics, but ever since I conceived the idea for this post, I could not get their song out of my head. When I made my batch of homemade olives, I researched the various techniques involved, including the use of lye. I suddenly seemed to encounter all matter of food made with...
I had to share this list of award winning cookbooks from around the world. I’d never seen such a broad collection of resources. All of them were entered into the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards this past year, and they represent their country in the “Best of the World” category. If you’ve gotten your hands...
My love for capers slowly creeped up on me, a lot I imagine like those relationships where the couple start out as friends, and then realize they have something more in common, and soon amore. What are they? Capers are the unripened green flower buds of the Capparis spinosa (close kin to the cabbage...
Its artichoke season and I am so happy! While driving along the Monterey Peninsula we saw signs at several restaurants and the ubiquitous roadside stands all claiming to serve delicious fried artichokes, french fried artichokes and artichokes in just about every form imaginable. On our meandering journey along Highway 1, I made my husband...
As I touched on in a previous post, salt is commonly obtained in one of two ways, from the sea or mined, and those methods go back millennia. Rock salt occurs in vast beds of sedimentary minerals, the last reminder of dried up lakes and seas. In the United States and Canada extensive underground...
One fortuitous discovery for me was that I learned I like dates. Wait!… make that I L-O-V-E dates! You see before sampling the fresh succulent varieties available to me in California, I associated dates with that desiccated stuff that ended up in my tapioca pudding and annoyingly clung to my teeth. It was sticky...
Cumin is one of those spices, that grows on me; the more I use it, the more I appreciate its versatility – it adds a depth of flavor to the dish that I love, but without the astringency that coriander can add. Even my so called “spice adverse” dinner companions appreciate its contribution to...
The custom of eating pork on New Year’s is based on the notion that pigs symbolize progress or prosperity for many cultures – not a connection that may immediately come to mind. The animal pushes forward, rooting in the ground before moving, symbolizing progress. In Italy, the fatty meat also symbolizes the fattening of...
A recent post on Hungarian paprika hinted at the possibilities of paprika’s use expands beyond the political confines of Hungary. The bright red colour of ground paprika leaves a lasting impression for anyone visiting the spice markets from Morocco to Turkey to Iraq to Northern India. In these regions, the spice is prized as much for...
As I previously mentioned, I think street or fast food can go a long way to providing a multi-sensory cultural experience that accurately captures the current culture of the country, region, or city in question. Every time I bite into a conchita pilbil taco, I am transported back to Merida, Mexico, or a gelato reminds me of...
