Simon Says: Daily Food Quote, May 31, 2011

Published by Tuesday, May 31, 2011 Permalink 0

by Simón de Swaan

Cauliflower is nothing but a cabbage with a college education.–Mark Twain

Mark Twain was an American author and humorist most noted for his two novels The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and its sequel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885). He published more than 30 books during his career.

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One American’s Synopsis of Chinese Food

Published by Friday, May 27, 2011 Permalink 0

by Gayle Black

In China, there are at least seven styles of cuisine. They vary according to region. While living in Jiangsu Province in the central eastern part of the country, I was mainly exposed to one, broadly defined as “spicy.”  Many of the dishes were spicy, but not extremely so for my American tongue. In northern China, the preference tends to be for noodles and dumplings, rather than rice. The bread available is very good, even when produced on a mass scale. The Chinese are excellent bakers.

In Xuzhou, where I lived for half a year, the mutton is fresh and readily available. They slice it in an artful way and bring it to the table to be enjoyed for visual beauty as well as taste. A popular form of dining is called “hot pot.”  Restaurants provide two pots of boiling water, and diners are able to cook various meats and vegetables at the table. Wonderful sauces for dipping complete the experience.

I especially enjoyed the fresh fruit available in China. The mandarin oranges were sold with stems and leaves, which kept them particularly flavorful. There were also small mangoes, which had a better texture and more delicate flavor than the larger ones most of us are familiar with.  Fruit markets were common on many streets. There were also many flavorful dishes sold by street vendors.  Of course the buyer had to be careful. I bought a good pancake with vegetable filling. I would have been hesitant to buy a meat-filled one.

In order to discover the many varieties of Chinese cooking, a traveler short on time would do best to visit Shanghai. It is a beautiful, cosmopolitan city where all manner of Chinese food and every other type of Chinese creation can be enjoyed.

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Simon Says: Daily Food Quote, May 27, 2011

Published by Friday, May 27, 2011 Permalink 0

by Simón de Swaan

I would rather play Chiquita Banana and have my swimming pool than play Bach and starve.–Xavier Cugat, bandleader (1900-1990)

Xavier Cugat was the first band leader to front a successful Latin orchestra in the United States. He was married five times, the last time to Spanish guitarist and comic actress, Charo. Their wedding was the first at Caesars Palace on the Las Vegas strip.

Click here to listen to a song by his band.

Bananas, Simon Says, Simon de Swaan. The Rambling Epicure. Editor, Jonell Galloway.

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Cocina Transcontinental: Fresas asadas con balsámico

Published by Thursday, May 26, 2011 Permalink 0

Fresas asadas con balsámico, receta inspirada por Three to One

por Tricia Martin y SandeeA

Click here for English

Ingredientes

2 libras de fresas (aproximadamente 1 Kg.
6 cucharadas de azúcar moreno
3 cucharadas de vinagre balsámico
1-2 cucharaditas de té de sal marina en escamas

Instrucciones

Precalienta el horno a 250º F (120ºC).

Mezcla las fresas, el azúcar y el vinagre.

Coloca la mezcla sobre una bandeja de horno, y hornea una hora y media aproximadamente.

Sabrás que están listas cuando tu casa se inunde con el increíble aroma de las fresas asadas.

Saca del horno, espolvorea con la sal, y sírvelas templadas con una bola de helado de vainilla, crème fraîche, o chocolate en trocitos.

En Cualquier caso, están fantásticas solas!

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Simon Says: Daily Food Quote, May 26, 2011

Published by Thursday, May 26, 2011 Permalink 0

by Simón de Swaan

An apple is an excellent thing — until you have tried a peach.–George du Maurier (1834-1896)

George du Maurier was a French-born British cartoonist and author known chiefly for his cartoons in the satirical magazine Punch and for his novel Trilby, which romanticized the life of the artist.

More can be read about him at Victorian Web.

Simon Says, Simon de Swaan. The Rambling Epicure. Editor, Jonell Galloway.

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Cross-Continental Cooking: Slow-Roasted Strawberries

Published by Wednesday, May 25, 2011 Permalink 0

by Tricia Martin and SandeeA

Para leer la versión en español, pinche aquí

My partner SandeeACocina and I partner on a recipe once a month.

This month, we wanted to go with something a little sweeter than usual. Strawberries are in season both in the U.S. and Spain, so it only made sense to use strawberries. Every May I look forward to tasting that perfect jeweled basket of aromatic, sweet strawberries and I couldn’t be more thrilled to find a friend across the Atlantic who revels in some of these same simple pleasures of life. So strawberries it is this month.

We keep the recipes we make each month a “secret” from each other until the very last moment. We don’t see what the other has done until the day before we post. We then swap recipes — Sandee translates into Spanish and I create the photo montages of our pictures — it’s great teamwork!

This month we were both surprised and delighted with the hot/cold aspect of our recipes. The roasted strawberries are hot, messy, and sexy. Sandee’s ice bowl with sangria is cold, composed, and has a lovely surprise finish.

I was inspired to try roasted strawberries when a blog post over at Tricia Martin, by Dimity Jones, popped into my inbox. I was totally seduced by the simplicity of the recipe and the idea of roasting a spring fruit (not even a vegetable) — I tend to save cooking methods like roasting for fall and winter time foods — but am so glad I broke out of that box.

The Balsamic complimented the sweetness of the berries, further intensifying their naturally bright color. The brown sugar did its job of creating the most amazing caramelized strawberry ooze that just begged to be scraped from the pan and licked from the fork.

And the smell — the smell! — of these babies cooking is absolutely intoxicating. My apartment was literally as fragrant as strawberry fields forever as they sizzled on their hot little pan, eeking out beautiful dark red juices and creating one of the best strawberry desserts I’ve had in a long while.

I ate them straight from the pan! I promise I tried to put them on a plate, but alas, the forks in the photo do not lie: I ate this directly from the pan and I would have had all my friends do the same if they had been around, rather like when you share a fondue. The berries would however be smashing over some crumbly short bread, a Southern-style biscuit or with a dollop of crème fraiche.

Three to One

Recipe

Slow-Roasted Strawberries

Recipe inspired by Tricia Martin

Ingredients

Click here for metric recipe converter

2 pounds strawberries
6 tablespoons dark brown sugar
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1-2 teaspoons flaky sea salt

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Toss the strawberries, brown sugar, and balsamic vinegar to coat. Pour onto a baking sheet and bake for 1.5 hours. You’ll know when they are getting near done, your house will fill with the most amazing smell of strawberries. When finished, take the pan out of the oven and sprinkle with the sea salt, serve warm with an optional scoop of creme fraiche, vanilla ice cream, or chopped dark chocolate. However, they really are fantastic on their own.

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Simon Says: Daily Food Quote, May 25, 2011

Published by Wednesday, May 25, 2011 Permalink 0

by Simón de Swaan

The most important point to consider, when making a vegetable salad, is that the ingredients should be of the very finest and freshest you can find. This may be an obvious stipulation, yet it is surprising how often it is not adhered to.–Simon Hopkinson, Week In Week Out

Simon Hopkinson is an English chef and author who started cooking at the age of 16.  He is author of Roast Chicken and Other Stories, which in 2005 was voted the “most useful cookbook of all time” by a panel of British food-world peers. Taken from his much-loved columns in The Independent, Week In Week Out brings together 52 stories about ingredients with their associated recipes.

Simon Says, Simon de Swaan, The Rambling Epicure. Editor, Jonell Galloway.

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Wild Woman on Feral Acres: Falling Far From the Tree

Published by Saturday, May 14, 2011 Permalink 0

by Esmaa Self

We have a 35-year-old Jonathan apple tree that produces marvelous, sweet apples. This tree is supposed to be dead by now, for Jonathans have a life expectancy of about 25 years. While tending the special needs of this fire blight affected tree, I got to thinking about the saw that apples don’t fall far from the tree. It has long been my intention to do just that.

My appetite for a simple, healthy, self sufficient life was teased by failure: the sins of my father, the sometimes health food nut. He introduced me to organic gardening, raw milk and farm eggs; insisted that I eat a hot breakfast; refused to buy white bread, candy or soda pop and preached that from-a-box cooking was no way to live a healthy life.

photo: Wellerco

Continue Reading…

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Simon Says: Daily Food Quote, May 13, 2011

Published by Friday, May 13, 2011 Permalink 0

by Simón de Swaan

…To bring a home-grown apple or a palm full of raspberries in from the garden is a different experience altogether from that of taking them off a supermarket shelf.  And isn’t that what we all want – food that brings us the most possible pleasure and delight?–Nigel Slater, Tender, Volume 2

Nigel Slater is an English cook and food writer.  He is a regular contributor to The Guardian and the author of eleven books about the pleasures of cooking and eating.  He can be seen on the BBC or on his own website.


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Simon Says: Daily Food Quote, May 11, 2011

Published by Wednesday, May 11, 2011 Permalink 0

by Simón de Swaan

A well-stocked freezer full of things you made earlier – soups, stews, chilli con carne, anything that suits reheating – is also a godsend on those nights when you just can’t be bothered to cook.–Henry Dimbleby & John Vincent, Leon Book 2: Naturally Fast Food

Henry Dimbleby and John Vincent were founders and owners of Leon restaurants in London, and have revolutionized the concept of fast food.

Click here for interview with owners explaining why they opened Leon.

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