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Posted December 24th, 2007 by Vicky in Cookbook, Entertaining, Holidays, Quick Eats, Recipe
Forget the gingerbread house. Your holiday dessert should be simple to prepare, so you can spend more time with your family (that is what Christmas is about, right?). Here’s a quick chocoalte mousse recipe from Nigella Lawson’s cookbook, Nigella Express: 130 Recipes for Good Food, Fast.
Nigella says that most mousses need to be made the day before, to allow the egg yolk to set. Here’s her “instant” alternative. She does away with eggs, which not only saves time but allows you to safely feed it to young children.
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) soft butter
9 oz best-quality semisweet chocolate, chopped into small pieces
1/4 cup hot water from a recently boiled kettle
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1. Pour the marshmallows, butter, chocolate, and water in a heavy-bottomed saucepan.
2. Melt over gentle heat, stirring occassionally. Remove from heat and let cool.
3 Whip the cream with the vanilla until it’s got a thick consistency. Fold it into the cooled chocolate mixture.
4. Pour into individual dishes or cups and chill until ready to serve.
Watch Nigella’s regular TV show, Nigella Express on the BBC Channel for more recipes and tips.
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Posted November 1st, 2007 by Vicky in Entertaining, Gossip, News, Trivia
Hide the kitchen knives — celebrity chefs Jessica Seinfeld and Missy Chase Lapine have gone into a war.
Lapine started it, calling Seinfeld a plagiarist for copying recipes. Seinfeld’s book, Deceptively Delicious has been hitting bestseller lists for its creative ways of incorporating healthy ingredients into kids’ favorite meals. It’s the same concept behind Lapine’s own new release, Sneaky Chefs.
Seinfeld’s husband, comedian Jerry Seinfeld, lashed back, calling her “wacko.” “Now she’s accusng my wife of a Watergate-style break-in at Harper Collins [the publisher].”
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Posted July 1st, 2007 by Vicky in Biography, Chef, Cookbook, Entertaining, Ideas, Kitchens, Recipe, Tips
A lot of cooks would agree that the use of wine in some meals have added a certain spice in making them sought after. Such can be attributed towards the contributions of Chef John Ash, an internationally recognized chef, educator and author. His continued work and application of wine towards cuisine and his evident mastery for winery has been his obvious trademark that has brought him towards world wide prominence.
John is known to hold various classes and teaches culinary schools and institutions with regards to the tricks of the proper use of wine for culinary meals. Majority of his known reliability has been attributed towards the wine industry and such has been something that has continued to push him up towards fame and fortune.
He has published two books, namely American Game Cooking in 1991 and From the Earth to the Table: John Ash�s Wine Country Cuisine in 1996. The latter book was awarded the Julia Child Award for Best Cookbook in 1996 by the International Association of Culinary Professionals.
Technorati Tags: wine, cuisine, recipes, game, birds, culinary
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Posted June 6th, 2007 by Vicky in Biography, Chef, Cookbook, Entertaining, Ideas, Kitchens, Quick Eats, Recipe, Television
Cooking is best practiced if it has been something that was experienced from the start especially during childhood. Such is the story of one of the glamorous personalities to grace TV cooking shows in the mold of Silvana Franco. Franco trained as a chef at High Peak College in Buxton and obtained a degree in Home Economy at South Bank University.
Silvana started out writing for BBC Worldwide in its Vegetarian Good Food Magazine. She made this her cup of tea until she was elevated to a senior writer. She soon graced the TV sets for such shows as Gourmet Express 2, Ready Steady to Cook and Two�s Saturday Kitchen. But despite her continuous rise to stardom, she never let go of her writing which include that of Can�t Cook, Won�t Cook, Ainsley�s Big Cook Out and Friends for Dinner.
She also runs a food media company called Fork, proof of her continued love and loyalty in the field of cooking.
Technorati Tags: cookbook, chefs, tv shows, vegetarian
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Posted February 10th, 2007 by Vicky in Chef, Entertaining, Kitchens, Television, Trivia
Celebrity chefs often gain fame from having a television show. The term celebrity chef is often seen as derogatory by those chefs who eaned their title through school and hard work. As we all know, it takes a lot of sweat and practice to be a professional chef, cooking for many people none of whom are related to you.
The show Iron Chef gives the celebrity chefs a chance to prove that they aren’t just for show. Iron chef show began in Japan and a spin off was later made called Iron Chef America. In both shows, there are preselected Iron Chefs. These chefs are masters at their craft. In the US, The Iron Chefs are Mario Batali, Bobby Flay, Masaharu Morimoto (who was also an Iron Chef in the show in Japan) and the first female Iron Chef, Cat Cora.
Every week a challenger comes forward. These are chefs with good reputations theselves in the cooking field. They choose which Iron Chef with whom to do battle and then they are given a secret ingredient which they must use in all their dishes.
It is a tough battle with only 30 minutes to make a full course meal. It challenges each chefs creativity and ability to the limit. It is also a great show because it shows that no true chef works in the kitchen alone. He has to have a great team - who themselves are great in their respective areas.
The question is: whose cuisine will reign supreme?
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Posted December 24th, 2006 by Vicky in Entertaining, Holidays, Recipe
Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year. It’s a time of gathering and renewing family ties. It is about giving and sharing our blessings. It’s also about sitting in front of the fire and talking all night, sharing stories of christmases past and the visits of Santa.
Of course if you are going to be awake all night and talking all night long, while hoping to catch a glimpse of Santa, you can’t do it with a dry throat. This calls for a drink that is meant to be savored with friends while gathered around the tree watching the kids play. It is one of the best nights of the year.
Try Emeril Lagasse’s Chocolatey Christmas Cafe Au Lait. Though cafe au lait is normally a breakfast drink, this drink is perfect even if you drink this before your first meal of the day.
Have a merry christmas everyone!
Emeril’s Chocolate-y Christmas Cafe Au Lait
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk
- 2/3 cup plus 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
- 2 ( 2-inch) cinnamon sticks
- 1 strip orange peel, about 1/2 inch by 3 inches
- 10 whole cloves
- 2 to 2 1/2 cups hot brewed strong coffee
- 1/4 cup cold heavy cream
- Ground cinnamon, for garnish
- Cocoa, for garnish
Directions:
In a medium saucepan, whisk together the milk, 2/3 cup of the sugar, and cocoa until smooth. Add the cinnamon sticks, orange peel and cloves and bring to a simmer, stirring, to dissolve the sugar and prevent the cocoa from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Simmer for 2 minutes, then remove from the heat, cover, and let steep for 10 minutes.
In a medium bowl, whip the cream with the remaining 1 teaspoon sugar until thick and frothy, and peaks form. Set aside.
Strain the milk mixture into a coffee pot or carafe and add 2 cups of the hot coffee (2 1/2 cups for stronger coffee flavor, to taste). Pour into cups or small mugs and top each with a dollop of the sweetened whipped cream.
Serve immediately.
For a stronger coffee flavor, add another 1/2 cup hot coffee to the mixture.
Technorati Tags: coffee, Christmas, chocolate, Emeril Lagasse
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Posted December 12th, 2006 by Vicky in Entertaining, Holidays, Recipe
Christmas is definitely in the air, so what better time to start baking cookies? If you have children, this simple action can turn into a wonderful holiday tradition! These Linzer cookies from Ina Garten are festive and elegant enough to also serve at holiday get-togethers, and also make fabulous presents to give away.
Linzer Cookies
3/4 pound unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup good raspberry preserves
Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together the butter and sugar until they are just combined. Add the vanilla. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt, then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a surface dusted with flour and shape into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.
Roll the dough 1/4-inch thick and cut 2 3/4-inch rounds with a plain or fluted cutter. With 1/2 of the rounds, cut a hole from the middle of each round with a heart or spade shaped cutter. Place all the cookies on an ungreased baking sheet and chill for 15 minutes.
Bake the cookies for 20 to 25 minutes, until the edges begin to brown. Allow to cool to room temperature. Spread raspberry preserves on the flat side of each solid cookie. Dust the top of the cut-out cookies with confectioners’ sugar and press the flat sides together, with the raspberry preserves in the middle and the confectioners’ sugar on the top.
Technorati Tags: Christmas, Holidays, Christmas recipe, linzer cookies, Ina Garten
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Posted December 10th, 2006 by Vicky in Cookbook, Entertaining, Holidays, Ideas, Menus
Next in line for Christmas menus to consider is Mario Batali’s, the Food Network’s, larger than life American-Italian chef. I must say though, that this menu is not typical-Mario, whose recipes I’ve found not to be the simplest to do in your average home kitchen.
This Christmas menu is actually pretty easy to pull off, in both availability of ingredients and procedure, unlike his Christmas Eve menu, the Seven Fish (also found in his cookbook Holiday Food, pictured above), which is what I would call, classic Mario - delicious, but not exactly easy peasy.
“This menu has all the ingredients for a superb holiday. The dishes indulge and comfort, and they incorporate a little bit of tradition and a lot of play. Best of all, none of these dishes is particularly complicated.
I love to cook for my family at the holidays; it’s a special way of showing love and affection. But there’s no point if all that cooking actually takes away from time spent with loved ones.
That’s why this menu is ideal. Certain components can be prepared ahead of time, and even the final preparations won’t leave you feeling as though you’ve spent the day handcuffed to the stove. It’s a celebratory dinner everyone, even the cook, will have energy and desire to enjoy.”
— Mario Batali
Mario’s Italian Christmas Dinner
Vongole Origanate
Clams with Oregano and Bread Crumbs
Crostini Napoletani
Fresh Ricotta, Anchovy, and Oregano Toasts
Broccoli Soffriti
Braised Broccoli
Tacchino Ripieno
Turkey Stuffed with Chestnuts and Prunes
Linguine alle Noci
Linguine with Walnut Sauce
Affogato al Caffe
Coffee Semifreddo “Drowned” in Coffee
For recipes, click HERE.
Technorati Tags: Christmas, Holidays, Christmas dinner, Mario Batali
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Posted December 8th, 2006 by Vicky in Entertaining, Holidays, Ideas, Menus
With Thanksgiving barely over and leftovers still smouldering in the fridge, theres no better time to start thinking and planning for the next big day ahead - Christmas!!
Ok, call me a bit of a sadist, but unlike Thanksgiving which really only involves a singular meal (maybe you were even lucky this year and played guest and not chef) , Christmas is so much more, especially so if you have a family with little children.
You know what I’m talking about - stockings, tree, decorations, outfits, parties, pantomimes and presents - to a list which seems to get longer every year! So yes, early preparations for this particular holiday does make good sense.
And since this blog is about chefs and therefore food, I’ll be posting about some of my favourite celeb chefs’ Christmas menus. Depending on your mood, gathering and needs this year, you can decide early on what tickles your fancy most. After all, Christmas is the season for celebration, joy, and splashing out indulgently - as Nigella so rightly reminds us in her Christmas Menu below.
“I think the mistake people make most when entertaining is to get too fancy with the food. No one is ever too sophisticated for the basic pleasures of home cooking, and there is something about those old favorites that makes everyone feel a little leap of joy in the heart………The whole point of a feast is that it is unnecessarily abundant”
Nigella Lawson
Nigella’s Rustic Christmas Menu
Crab Cocktail
Seasonal Breeze
Perfect Roast Potatoes
Petits Pois à la Française
Green Bean and Lemon Casserole
Standing Rib Roast
Chestnut Cheesecake
For recipes, start HERE.
Technorati Tags: Christmas, Holidays, Christmas dinner, Nigella Lawson
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Posted November 23rd, 2006 by Vicky in Chef, Entertaining, Holidays, Television
While watching the holiday-appropriate “Turkey Challenge” episode of Iron Chef America, in which the contestants were each given the Thanksgiving bird to get creative within the show’s time slot, I watched half-interested as to who was challenging Bobby Flay (yet again) with Alton’s semi-sarcastic drawl in the background.
When I saw that it wasn’t Mario and that it was two affable ladies - a blonde in bright pink and a diminutive brunette with funky glasses, it got my attention. I realized after a while, that it was the Two Hot Tamales, also known as Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger.
The most interesting dish of the show by far was the Hot Tamales turkey (yes, turkey) ice cream, which used the bourbon Wild Turkey, and (regretfully) turkey stock. As one of the judges aptly put it, high marks for originality, low marks for the proteiny taste. Much as I like Mary Sue and Susan, I have to say that they reached a little too much here - who on earth would eat a poultry-flavoured ice cream? I must say that the presentation was beautiful though, a chocolate ball crust in a chocolate turkey-shaped basket.
Their other dishes beat Mr.Flay’s multi-turkey breast renditions (all the same, different sauce) by a mile I thought, with things like turkey meatball soup and a scotch egg which looked absolutely scrummy. You don’t get to see of the humble scotch egg on television much, and I have to say that the last time I saw one was at a garage shop in a UK motorway.
Sadly, it was a tie (the injustice!!), and even if Alton said that that was “rare” for the show, I should really email them and say that the last time I watched it was also a tie.
But anyway, one good thing was that I got to see the Two Hot Tamales again, who I hadn’t seen in years and had actually forgotten about in the sea of the new breed of Celeb Chefs (or dare I say media whores?). Now you know who I’ll be blogging about next.
Technorati Tags: Thanksgiving, Two Hot Tamales, Iron Chef America
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