So last week Kat from A Good Appetite won last month’s Royal Foodie Joust with her Brie Stuffed Maple Burger with Spicy Apple Bacon Compote. That got me thinking (and drooling, slightly) about burgers…and maple, one of my favoritest ingredients on the planet. She said that she thought that maple went really well with beef, so I wanted to see if it went just as well with buffalo. I suspected it did.

I love buffalo meat, it is leaner than beef and has more CLA in it, because buffalo must eat grass to survive. To read more about CLA, and why it is important, click here. I also love burgers and it is often our meal of choice for movie night. This meal accompanied the movie Appaloosa with Viggo Mortensen.

I am also a huge fan of caramelized onions. They go good with just about anything you can cook up. Seriously, I bet putting them on ice cream would be awesome. Ever had garlic ice cream? That stuff is fan-freaking-tastic. I only have had it once, but it is a food memory that has stuck with me for probably more than 15 years. So really, I might try the caramelized onion thing, but not today.

Back to the onions. Recently I had made cinnamon spiced caramelized onions to go on a spicy carrot soup. I didn’t blog about it, but the recipe is pretty much like the one I did for Yogi Times way back when. Just added some nice cinnamon to the onions as they were doing their caramelizing thing. They turned out pretty good, so I figured that adding maple to this batch would be worth trying. Top the burgers with these maple-y onions, some Vermont sharp cheddar and some local St. Augustine, FL datil pepper BBQ sauce, and see what happens. A burger of transition, one that features the local delicacies of our current and future homes.

Well what happened is that the sky opened up and…wait no, that didn’t happen… What really happened is that it was one of the best burgers either of us had in a while. Kat, thanks for the inspiration, and I am sure before the fall and winter is over, I will be taking a stab at your winning entry!

Maple Caramelized Onions

INGREDIENTS:

olive oil

½ white onion

salt and pepper to taste

½ bottle of Sam Adams Boston Ale

2 TBS pure VT maple syrup

dash of aged balsamic

METHOD:

Heat a splash of olive oil in a medium sized pan over medium-high heat. Add onions, and stir in the oil. Cook until soft. Add salt and pepper to help sweat the onions and flavor them. Then add ½ bottle of Boston Ale. Lower heat and simmer for about 30-40 minutes, adding water (or more beer) if onions begin to dry out. In the last 10 minutes add the maple and balsamic. Stir to blend and let flavors marry.

BBQ Buffalo Burgers

INGREDIENTS:

8 oz ground buffalo meat

2 TBS of datil pepper BBQ sauce

1 TBS pure VT maple syrup

salt and pepper

METHOD:

Mix the meat with the sauce, maple syrup and spices. Create two nice thick patties. Cook according to your preference. We did ours on the george forman grill. When burgers are cooked to your specifications top with VT sharp cheddar, maple onions and a little more BBQ. Mayo adds a nice dimension as well.

Serve with some nice crispy oven fries and enjoy!

I really love playing in the kitchen and sometimes, I like to play in the kitchen with others. The kitchen in our condo is kind of small and lacking counter space, but I have still found it possible to squeeze people in the kitchen with me, so we can have a good time cooking up something fun! Everyone I know, knows about my love of cooking and I like to have the opportunity to share this passion of mine with them. Cooking together is a whole different experience from cooking FOR someone, although that is great too! I think the key to cooking together with people in small kitchens is to use as few bowls and pans as possible, and to keep it simple so people can enjoy themselves no matter what their level of cooking is.

A few weekends ago we had both my mom and my cousin Michelle visiting. They both came up on a Friday, and since Fridays are always “Movie Night” in this household, I wanted to pick something that would be quick and easy, but also fun and delicious that we could eat while watching movies. Also since Michelle is the only other person besides Roberto that I know who could literally eat pizza every day I decided to do a “make your own pizza” night!

Before anyone arrived I made sure to make a batch of the Olive Oil Dough from Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day (seriously, if you don’t already have this book, stop reading this post and get it!). I also checked to make sure we had my secret pizza sauce ingredient – tomato paste. We use it straight from the can as pizza sauce – it is nice and thick, so no soggy crust!

Everyone had a great time rolling out their individual pizzas. I wish we had been better about taking photos of actual people, but we were too busy having fun! We had a variety of toppings to choose from, which are things I just had in the fridge: fresh mozzarella, roasted red peppers, olives, Applegate Farms pepperoni (no nitrates, antibiotics, etc), peperoncini and fresh heirloom tomato slices, and of course extra virgin olive oil to drizzle on top. We had a great time making pizzas and a week later I was still finding flour in random places

Then last week, our friends Chris and Erin from The Olive Notes came over for a pasta party. When they lived in Italy they always had several jars of Barilla’s Pesto Genovese in their Italian pantry, however were sad to discover that they could not find it back in the states. So when we were in Italy in March ( and I promise there are more travel posts to come) we brought them back a few bottles. To thank us, they suggested we have a pasta making party. Since Roberto and I are moving at the end of the month, we decided to have them over so that we could have one last get together at the condo.

We decided to make a filled pasta, and went with ravioli. We used this recipe for the dough from Recipe Zaar and decided to fill our fresh pasta with a mixture of wild mushrooms that Erin got at the Farmers Market, goat cheese and fresh chives from my garden. We also seasoned it with Sicilian Sea Salt with Blood Orange Zest that we got from D’Italia .

First we made the filling in the food processor – basically threw everything in there and let her rip. Then we cleaned it out and made the dough in the processor at well. Then Erin and I got to rolling out the dough, while the boys made various bruschetta.

Once the dough was rolled it had to sit for 15 minutes and then we filled and cut out the ravioli.

At this point we had another hour to wait until we could cook it, so we ate our bruschetta, sipped some wine and made a delicious salad made from wild arugula and heirloom tomatoes topped with a homemade balsamic-mustard-honey dressing Erin made – it was delicious.

We cooked up the ravioli and then enjoyed an evening reminiscing about our respective Italian travels.

We had such a good time cooking with people in our home that I plan to make this a regular thing, especially now that we are going to have a much bigger kitchen in the new place! So look forward to more of these posts in the future!

Recently we were in the mood for some pub grub. I guess it has something to do with the cooler weather settling in, but we were looking for something tasty for movie night, and we had an Irish movie, The Secret of Roan Inish and really good beer, Samuel Smith’s Oatmeal Stout and Post Road’s Pumpkin Ale. So fish n’ chips just seemed so appropriate!

If you have never seen The Secret of Roan Inish. I highly recommend it. It is one of my favorite films, a beautiful tale based on the Orkney Islands myth of Selkies, people who can transform themselves into seals.

The legend goes anyone who steals and hides the skin of the Selkie, when it has shed its skin, while in human form, they can keep the Selkie from being able to resume their seal form. So there are lots of stories of men stealing the skin of a female Selkie so that he can wed her, etc. But the Selkies always long to return to the sea. One of the most hauntingly beautiful songs I have ever heard, Sealwoman/Yundah by Irish singer, Mary McLaughlin is also about a Selkie. But, I digress….

Anyway, to make the fish n’ chips, I remembered that my good friend, Judy, from No Fear Entertaining had recently made beer battered squash blossoms, and so I decided to use her beer batter for our cod loins (does anyone know why they call them loins? Last time I looked, cod don’t have legs….).

After battering the fish, we had more batter and since I had used the last of the oil, we figured waste not want not, and so we started pulling everything out of the fridge that could be battered and fried – like Bubbies bread n’ butter pickles and some leftover rings of onion. As per tradition, we also had oven baked fries (the chips).

It was a fry festival! Like how I had to add some basil to the dish for the picture? It just looked too monotone without a little color in there!

This was a great dinner and was perfect for the movie and the delicious beer to wash it all down!

When I saw the Daring Bakers challenge for this month, I was nothing short of ecstatic! Don’t get me wrong, I love the creativity behind all the cakes and pastries we have been baking as of late, and if I hadn’t done them, I would still be thinking that baking things like this was something un-attainable for me. But I am always much more into the land of savory. So this was going to be a real treat. I have never made crackers before, but I am a HUGE lover of crackers, eating them almost daily. So I figure it was high time to start making my own!

I was also excited because this is the first time the DB challenge is hosted by gluten free blogs, Natalie from Gluten A Go Go , and co-host Shel, of Musings From the Fishbowl. So when you look at the recipe, be sure to take note that there is a gluten free and non-gluten free version available!

So what is Lavash? It is an Armenian flatbread which is traditionally cooked in a clay oven or Tandoor and is usually used like a tortilla – as in you wrap a filling in it (like a kebab) and eat it like a sandwich. But we bakers are daring, so we are all attempting to make it into crackers using conventional ovens!

I love the foods of the Middle East, so to fulfill the other part of this challenge – making a topping for the crackers, I decided to stay in the same vein by preparing an Armenian Spicy Walnut Dip

and and an Afghani style Cilantro Chutney

(this was a discussion on the Leftover Queen Forum and now I can’t find the thread and I can’t remember the creator of the thread….if anyone recalls, please remind me!!!!).

I decided to make this treat for movie night accompanied by the Lentil Koftas I made some time ago.

The lavash was nice and crispy and the toppings were both fantastic!- the cilantro chutney is full of clean green flavors, while the walnut was very earthy and robust. I even had some leftover dough so I made a few breadsticks!

I loved that this challenge was something I have never made before, yet didn’t take hours or even days to complete! Plus, there is just so much wonderful versatility possible here! So I am no doubt going to be making them again very soon and just play around with the flavors!

The Lavash recipe comes from The Bread Baker’s Apprentice: Mastering The Art of Extraordinary Bread, by Peter Reinhart

Makes 1 sheet pan of crackers

* 1 1/2 cups (6.75 oz) unbleached bread flour or gluten free flour blend (If you use a blend without xanthan gum, add 1 tsp xanthan or guar gum to the recipe)
* 1/2 tsp (.13 oz) salt
* 1/2 tsp (.055 oz) instant yeast
* 1 Tb (.75 oz) agave syrup or sugar
* 1 Tb (.5 oz) vegetable oil
* 1/3 to 1/2 cup + 2 Tb (3 to 4 oz) water, at room temperature
* Poppy seeds, sesame seeds, paprika, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, or kosher salt for toppings

1.  In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, salt yeast, agave, oil, and just enough water to bring everything together into a ball.  You may not need the full 1/2 cup + 2 Tb of water, but be prepared to use it all if needed.

2.  For Non Gluten Free Cracker Dough:  Sprinkle some flour on the counter and transfer the dough to the counter.  Knead for about 10 minutes, or until the ingredients are evenly distributed.  The dough should pass the windowpane test (see http://www.wikihow.com/Determine-if-Bre … ong-Enough for a discription of this) and register 77 degrees to 81 degrees Fahrenheit. The dough should be firmer than French bread dough, but not quite as firm as bagel dough (what I call medium-firm dough), satiny to the touch, not tacky, and supple enough to stretch when pulled.  Lightly oil a bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

or

2.  For Gluten Free Cracker Dough:  The dough should be firmer than French bread dough, but not quite as firm as bagel dough (what I call medium-firm dough), and slightly tacky. Lightly oil a bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

3. Ferment at room temperature for 90 minutes, or until the dough doubles in size. (You can also retard the dough overnight in the refrigerator immediately after kneading or mixing).

(This dough is really a dream – look at that soft smooth surface – and when I lifted the bowl, it felt like it weighed nothing! This dough may have gotten me to enjoy kneading for once…well…maybe…just a little)

4.  For Non Gluten Free Cracker Dough:  Mist the counter lightly with spray oil and transfer the dough to the counter.  Press the dough into a square with your hand and dust the top of the dough lightly with flour.  Roll it out with a rolling pin into a paper thin sheet about 15 inches by 12 inches.  You may have to stop from time to time so that the gluten can relax.  At these times, lift the dough from the counter and wave it a little, and then lay it back down.  Cover it with a towel or plastic wrap while it relaxes.  When it is the desired thinness, let the dough relax for 5 minutes.  Line a sheet pan with baking parchment.  Carefully lift the sheet of dough and lay it on the parchment.  If it overlaps the edge of the pan, snip off the excess with scissors.

or

4.  For Gluten Free Cracker Dough: Lay out two sheets of parchment paper.  Divide the cracker dough in half and then sandwich the dough between the two sheets of parchment.  Roll out the dough until it is a paper thin sheet about 15 inches by 12 inches.  Slowly peel away the top layer of parchment paper.  Then set the bottom layer of parchment paper with the cracker dough on it onto a baking sheet.

5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit with the oven rack on the middle shelf.  Mist the top of the dough with water and sprinkle a covering of seeds or spices on the dough (such as alternating rows of poppy seeds, sesame seeds, paprika, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, kosher or pretzel salt, etc.)  Be careful with spices and salt – a little goes a long way. If you want to precut the cracker, use a pizza cutter (rolling blade) and cut diamonds or rectangles in the dough.  You do not need to separate the pieces, as they will snap apart after baking.  If you want to make shards, bake the sheet of dough without cutting it first.

5.  Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the crackers begin to brown evenly across the top (the time will depend on how thinly and evenly you rolled the dough).

6.  When the crackers are baked, remove the pan from the oven and let them cool in the pan for about 10 minutes.  You can then snap them apart or snap off shards and serve.

For the Cilantro Chutney:

cilantro, 1 large bunch, including minced stems (about 1 semi-packed cup)
green onions, 1 large or 2 small, all parts (about 1/4 cup)
hot green peppers, minced, 1-2 serranos, or 2 jalapenos, or 1 Anaheim (about 1-3 tablespoons)
ginger, 1 coin, grated (about 1 teaspoon)
garlic, 1-2 cloves, pressed with juice (about 1 teaspoon)
lime juice, from 1-3 limes (about 3 tablespoons), with optional lime zest
cumin seeds, roasted and ground (about 1/2 teaspoon)
mint, pinch, dried, or several leaves, fresh
walnuts, 1-2, crushed, possibly roasted (even candied–sugared–ones might work here), (about 2 tablespoons)
salt, pinch or to taste
coarse black pepper, pinch

Blend or use a mortar and pestle.

So as many of you know, in the Leftover Queen household there is an unending quest for good pizza.

I have written about it on my travel blog here, here, here and here , as well as attempting it at home, on the grill last summer when we were at my mom’s.

We have tried other, not so successful pizza making attempts at home that certainly weren’t worth blogging about. But still on this bread revolution kick, I decided to use my new favorite cookbook, Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day to try my hand at a new recipe for pizza dough.

I decided to go with the Olive Oil Dough, but I modified it a little to get some whole wheat flour in there. I have heard the low down on all WW pizza dough from my good friend Helen’s blog, Food Stories, and so I didn’t want to make the same mistake (thanks Helen for being the guinea pig!).

This dough was amazing! It was easy to work with, lifted right off the cookie sheet with no trouble and a perfect golden brown. We topped our pizza with Ciliengini (small fresh mozzarella balls), sun dried tomatoes, artichoke hearts and anchovies with capers. It was the perfect combination of flavors and they texture of the crust was perfect – thin, crunchy on the outside, with a soft give inside. The flavor of the olive oil in the dough really gave it a whole level of deliciousness. The fruitier the olive oil, the better!

We enjoyed this pizza while watching The Spiderwick Chronicles when my mom was visiting. Now Roberto is insisting we have this pizza at least once a week!

INGREDIENTS:

Dough – makes four one pound loaves to be used for pizza, foccacia or even a nice boule.

2 3/4 cups lukewarm water
1 1/2 TBS granulated yeast
1 TBS sea salt
1 TBS sugar
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 cups whole wheat flour
3 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
8 tsp gluten

Pizza Toppings

1/2 small can of tomato paste
dried oregano and basil to taste
1 8 oz. container of Ciliengini
4 oz. artichoke hearts
sprinkling of sun dried tomatoes
1 flat of anchovies with capers, drained (optional)

METHOD:

Mix yeast, salt, sugar and olive oil in a 5 qt. bowl with a lid or food container. Mix in the flours and gluten without kneading, just using a spoon until it is all mixed. You can use wet hands to incorporate the last bit of dry ingredients if necessary. The dough will look “messy”. This is normal – you do not want to over mix.

Cover (not airtight) and allow to rest at room temperature for about 2 hours. The dough can be used immediately after the first rise, or it can be put in the fridge for about an hour, making it easier to handle. Dough can be used for up to 12 days.

To make Pizza:

Preheat oven to 450F.
Roll dough out on a flat surface and roll to desired thinness. Place on a lightly oiled cookie sheet. Spread the tomato paste on the dough and sprinkle with herbs. Place the Ciliengini on top of the pizza evenly spaced. Then add the artichokes, anchovies and sun dried tomatoes. Place on the bottom rack of the oven and bake for about 15-17 minutes or until crust is golden brown (don’t forget to check the bottom) and cheese is melted and bubbling.

Serves 3 adults – and leaves them wanting more…

Serve with “Italian Mojitos” (when you want to channel your inner Giada, who makes Italian version of everyone’s favorites!)

For each drink:

several lemon wedges
generous pinch/ small palm full of fresh basil
generous pinch/ small palm full of fresh mint
simple syrup (I used homemade mint simple syrup), to taste (I used about 2 TBS for each drink)

(muddle these ingredients together in a tall glass)

Then add 2 oz./one shot of dark rum

Fill to top of glass with ice and club soda or seltzer water!

ENJOY!

After finishing up some projects, I decided to treat myself to a movie. You know how there are just some movies that you want for your collection? Well, Le Pacte des Loups or Brotherhood of the Wolf is one of those movies in my book. The film is loosely based on a real-life series of killings that took place in France in the 18th century and on the famous legend around the Beast of Gévaudan. The plot goes something like this. The Chevalier de Fronsac, a knight and the royal taxidermist (yes, you read that right) of King Louis XV of France, and his Native American companion Mani (who is played by Mark Dacascos “The Chairman”, of Iron Chef fame…oh yeeeeaaaaah!) an Iroquois, are sent by the King to the Gevaudan province to investigate the killings of hundreds by a mysterious beast.

If you have never seen it, it is an amazing example of cinematography. I have a real weakness for historical movies – where the costumes and scenery are as brilliant as the imagination can make them. I also love a good supernatural mystery and this movie covers all the bases. It is a bit of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, mixed with Last of the Mohicans and a little bit of Sleepy Hollow thrown in for good measure. It is a gorgeous movie, full of mystery, action, intrigue, a little darkness and beautiful French people. If you get this movie, please so not chose the dub option.
It is just way better in French. Take it from one who knows, ma cherie.

I am not really big into French Cuisine. This doesn’t mean that I don’t like it. Quite the contrary, I just haven’t had many opportunities to eat it and I doubt much of what I cook can be classified as anything close to French cuisine. But in my attempts to somehow create a theme to this movie dinner, I decided to use the one French ingredient I always have in my fridge – Chevre, or Goat’s Cheese. This is my absolute favorite cheese in existence. It is so creamy and pungent and delicious. So I decided that it would taste really good coated in breadcrumbs and pan-fried. My mistake was not giving it an egg wash first. It would have kept these cheesy disks together better. When I was rummaging through the fridge to see what would go with this, my eyes fell on some lovely baby swiss chard leaves I had. So I decided to sautee these up with some bacon, and wine and create a pomegranate-balsamic reduction to go overtop of everything. Not sure how French it was, but it sure tasted fabulous – coupled with some fresh baked bread and a nice glass of red wine, it was certainly a feast for our mouths as we watched the movie, a visual feast for the eyes. Both sensory experiences were intense, deep and exciting!

Fried Chevre

INGREDIENTS:

4 thick slices of Chevre
homemade whole wheat breadcrumbs
pinch of tarragon
pinch of thyme
olive oil

*note*: next time I would first dip the cheese in an egg wash to help the breadcrumbs adhere better to the cheese.

METHOD:

Heat about 3 TBS olive oil in a skillet.
On a small plate mix breadcrumbs and herbs. Coat each slice of chevre in the mixture, and place each slice in the skillet. Pan fry until golden, flip and keep frying until the other side is golden.

Porky Chard

INGREDIENTS:

olive oil
2 slices thick center cut bacon, chopped
medium onion, thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/4 cup white wine – chardonnay works great
4 cups fresh baby chard leaves (regular chard leaves work fine too)
salt and pepper to taste

METHOD:

Heat up a large skillet and pour in the olive oil. Add the chopped bacon and sautee until starting to cook. Add onions and garlic and sautee until vegetables are beginning to brown, then pour in the wine and cook until wine has reduced. At this point make the pomegranate-balsamic glaze. After the wine has reduced, add the swiss chard leaves to the pan and cook until wilted.

Pomegranate-Balsamic Reduction

Pomegranate Syrup (juice would probably work too)
Balsamic vinegar

Mix equal parts in a small sauce pan. Heat on high and stir regularly until it reduces by half and is nice and syrupy.

Serve this dish by placing the chevre next to a pile of sauteed chard and drizzle the whole dish with the pomegranate-balsamic reduction. Serve with nice crusty bread.

Man, there is a lot of squash out in the blogosphere these days! I love squash fritters, to me, it is the absolute best way to cook this “filler” vegetable. There is something about pan frying shredded bits squash with onions and other veggies that really bring out the squash’s hidden sweetness. Zucchini is another great food for making fritters or pancakes. One of my all-time favorite personal creations was Zucchini Fritters with Chipotle Harissa Yogurt . So with that dish in mind, I decided to use the cousin of the zucchini, the humble yellow squash.

I got these cute yellow squash that became affectionately know as “Spaceship Squashes” at the Farmers Market. Have you seen these guys yet? Anyway, it was the last time this particular produce stand was going to take part in the weekly market this season. We love this stand because their local produce is always so BIG – remember that gigantic head of cabbage for a dollar ? – well this is that vendor. So I decided to grab as much as we could for the freezer over the next few months, including another large cabbage and a basket of these cute squashes.

They sat in the fridge for about a week, until I realized that I needed to use them up soon. So I decided to make fritters for another Movie Night. We ate this while watching a DVD of Buffy, The Vampire Slayer Episodes – Season 5. Yes, I love Buffy. The show has gotten a mention twice this week. What can I say, it is quite enjoyable. I promise though, this is as geeky as I get…besides my Lord of the Rings problem, but that is a whole other story. But I am thinking we should have been watching something with aliens for this particular meal. Perhaps, more suited would have been Firefly. *insert geeky music*

Spaceship Squash Fritters
(makes 6 large fritters)

INGREDIENTS:

4 spaceship squashes, grated
1/2 vidalia onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1 egg
1/2 cup whole wheat pancake mix – needed to use this stuff up- you could use ww flour.
1/4 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
1/4 cup shredded cheese ( I used half parmesan and half sharp cheddar)
salt and pepper to taste

METHOD:

Grate squash in a food processor or using a box grater. Salt squash and let it sit in a strainer over a bowl for about 1/2 hour. In the meantime, sautee the onions and peppers in a large skillet. When onions are transparent and soft, add spices.
After 1/2 hour, squeeze the squash hard until most of the water comes out. Combine squash, onions peppers, egg, pancake mix, bread crumbs and cheese in a large bowl. Salt and pepper to taste. Form into patties and dredge in a little more pancake mix. Pan fry in olive oil until golden.

Serve as a burger in buns, or like we did with pita , tomato and avocado slices.

Recently I was sent another great product to review. I was contacted by Hazel over at Freida’s Inc. about a new, fresh garlic product that is now on the market. Hazel told me that the product is made using all natural ingredients and no preservatives: fresh USA-grown garlic, canola oil, lemon juice and salt — that’s it. It sounded too good to be true, a dream come true product review. Something that sounded great and totally fell into pace with my Mediterranean eating habits. So of course I agreed to sample it.

The package from Frieda’s arrived overnight in a cooler with ice. I recieved the original Freida’s Garlic Delight as well as the chipotle flavor – imagine my delight. Immediately I checked out the ingredients and it was just as Hazel had said – all natural and no preservatives! Each tub is 7 oz. and so my head was just swimming with ideas of what to do with these tubs of garlicky goodness.

This package could not have come at a better time. It arrived the same week that Roberto’s mom arrived here from Rome. So I thought it would be great to get everyone’s opinion of the product. The first thing we did with the original flavor was to make garlic bread – what better, simple way to showcase the flavor of this product? Good garlic bread’s merit is based on the subtle, yet earthy flavor of garlic. When I opened the tub, I was immediately hit with a lovely, sweet and nutty garlic aroma – similar to the smell of roasted garlic. As I dipped my spreader into the container the spread was light and fluffy. All good signs.

Some of us got adventurous and decided to put a piece of prized Iberian Acorn Ham, a lovely gift from Nuria, on top.

I must say I am very pleased with this product. The garlic bread was so good that we decided to try the spread with several other recipes: we put it in hummus, in a dipping sauce for sweet potato fries, as well as the Koftas and Buffalo Wings we made for Movie Night. Everything turned out great.

With the Chipotle flavor we used it as a sauce for a spicy shrimp pasta that we served when my mom was here this weekend to celebrate Mother’s Day. We included her in Movie Night and enjoyed this delicious pasta dish, while watching Into The Wild, a movie that stays with you long after the watching. Similar to garlic, that stays with you long after the tasting.

The chipotle garlic spread was a perfect smoky heat with a great garlic punch. I think it would be delicious as a sauce for fish tacos, in cole slaw, or slathered on hot, fresh corn on the cob!

Each tub comes with a recipe and there are two other great flavors, Sun Dried Tomato and Green Olive, both of which sound wonderful! You can also get other recipe ideas on the Frieda’s Inc. website. I honestly thought when I received this product that it was a great idea, but that I would never really use it myself – I have fresh garlic cloves that I use in nearly everything I cook and I don’t get products that overlap. But after sampling this, I changed my mind. The texture and taste is so good, and it is just so convenient, that I told Roberto I might need to be buying this soon.

If you would like to learn more about the various products that Freida’s Inc. offers, including organic, tropical and latin produce, as well as gift ideas and gourmet foods, please check out their webpage. If you would like to know where you can purchase Frieda’s Inc. products near you, please click here or check the produce section at your grocery store or market.

I am all about tradition. Even as a young child, I always enjoyed re-occuring events based on a date, an event, or time. I don’t know what it is about me that just loves a good ritualistic event. Maybe it’s the food. Most likely…Now that I am an adult and getting older and recently married, I have started thinking more about traditions, what they mean to me and what kinds of traditions I want to start for my own family.

When we lived in Vermont, we used to have Roberto’s girls with us every other weekend, and I loved cooking special things when they were there. Especially in anticipation of Movie Night. We would rent a movie and then make fun food, perfect for watching and eating at the same time. Recently Roberto and I decided that we really need to bring back Movie Night – even if only for us. A time to get our jammies on and eat fun foods. We have done this three times so far and it seems to be sticking. We have prepared some really fun finger foods and menus that I want to share in case anyone else has Movie Night and is looking for recipes, or wants to start a Movie Night tradition of their own.

So for our first official movie night, a few months ago, we watched Simply Irresistible. I made Lisa’s Olive Stuffed Cheese Ballsand Curried Deviled Eggs. We also mixed Greek Yogurt with Sumac, Za’atar, Sesame Seeds and Olive Oil and scooped it all up with warm whole wheat pita bread. For dessert we had leftover Key lime pie with strawberries that my mom had sent home with us after a visit. It was a great time. The movie, Simply Irresistible is with Sarah Michelle Gellar. A cooking movie where the emotions she puts in her food while she is cooking, affects those who eat it! Really cute film, especially if you are a die-hard Buffy the Vampire Slayer fan like we are, and therefore are bound to watch anything that has any of the stars from that show in it for all eternity.

The next movie night we had was kind of themed without meaning to be. I had Lentil Koftas with cucumber salad on the menu with a side of Greek style green beans. As we were frying the koftas, I was looking for a plate to put them on, so they would stay warm. Our good friend, Tony had given us a Tagine for a wedding present that he and his partner, Jonathan had carried back with them from a recent trip to Morocco. It had a lid and looked nice, so I decided to use it as a serving platter. Plus I have really been dying to use the Tagine! Don’t worry, I just made Chicken Tagine this weekend – so you will be seeing it in its primary use in a little while!

We ended up getting The Kite Runner as a movie and the theme of the movie really fit well with our menu. The koftas were really great, and I plan on making them again.

I have made the green beans for ages and they were a perfect accompaniment. Recipes to follow. The movie was excellent. It is one of those films that you can’t shrug off for several days. I had read the book and felt the adaptation was perfect.

For our third movie night we really wanted to try Elle’s Mango Buffalo Wings from last month’s Royal Foodie Joust.
I love the spicy and vinegar combination of buffalo wings, but I have never made them at home. When Elle entered the contest last month with a mango buffalo wing, I knew I would love it, so I got the ingredients to make them. They were wonderful, the perfect combination of spice and sweet that I adore with that vinegar hot sauce note. However, the movie, I Am Legend was not a big hit. There is a very bad scene in the movie involving an animal and I just couldn’t take it…I am a big wuss when it comes to these kinds of movies.

However, this one bad movie has not deterred us from continuing the tradition of movie night! Join us for movie night and let us know your best creations!

Lentil Koftas

1 cup brown lentils
1.5 cup bulgur
1 1/2 cups finely chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup olive oil (not extra virgin)
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon Frieda’s Garlic Delight paste
2 eggs
2 TBS Shawarma Seasoning (cumin, coriander, curry, sumac, saffron, black pepper)
1 teaspoon of salt, or more to taste
ground black pepper to taste
Flour for dusting koftas
lemon slices, for serving

Cucumber Salad

1 medium cucumber, seeded and sliced very thinly
1 tsp sumac
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup finely chopped parsley
juice from one lemon

Put the lentils with 1.5 cups of water in a medium (4 qt) pan. Cover pan and cook on low heat until water is absorbed and lentils are cooked, 15-20 minutes.
Put the bulgur in a large bowl, and add the cooked lentils. Mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon and cover the bowl.
While the bulgur is absorbing the liquid of the lentils, cook the chopped onion in the olive oil until soft. Add the tomato and garlic pastes, and cook until the onions are very soft.

Check the lentil mixture for doneness. If the bulgur is too dry, add some more boiling water slowly, then cover for another 10-15 minutes. I had to add about 1/4 to 1/2 cup of water – you don’t want it to be too dry, but you also don’t want it wet.

In a bowl, mix the thinly sliced cucumber, parsley, sumac, lemon juice and salt. Mix thoroughly. Place in fridge until serving time.

When the lentil/bulgur mixture is at the right consistency, add the cooked onion mixture, the parsley, cilantro, Shawarma Seasoning, salt and pepper and 2 eggs. Mix throughly. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.

Now form the koftas: take a chunk about the size of a fig, and roll in your palm and fingers to give it an oblong shape. Shape all of the mixture in this way and then dust them with flour. Heat a large pan with olive oil and add the koftas to the pan – be sure not to crowd then. Fry lightly on each side about 3 minutes until they are golden.

Arrange decoratively on a plate with lemon slices. Serve with cucumber salad.

Greek Green Beans

1 lb fresh green beans, washed and cleaned with ends snipped off.
1/4 cup olive oil
one large onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 14. oz can of stewed tomatoes
1 tsp dried oregano
salt & pepper to taste
feta cheese as garnish

Sautee onions garlic in hot oil until pale golden in color and aromatic. Add the beans and sautee together until well coated in the oil. Add tomatoes, salt, pepper and oregano and cook covered for about 30-40 minutes or until beans are tender. It is even better if you cook it for an hour, and best the next day. Serve hot, garnished with feta cheese crumble.