Some weeks ago I tried to work for the 1st time with conchiglioni, these giant shells to be filled with … whatever. So I still had quite a lot of this pasta in my pantry. Last time I created a filling with minced meat – totally classic approach – baked in the oven. Now I opted for a filling of vegetables – resulting in a lighter dish than back then. I had in mind to…
Another recipe I found in Vincenzo Buonassisi’s pasta cookbook (published in the 70s – no longer available…) is the fusion of pasta with lots of peppers, also a very simple recipe for which the cookbook is known. I imagined the process and had the idea of a one-pot-pasta process. (Buonassisi didn’t think of any one-pot-pasta dishes in his cookbook – I think it’s a modern way to cook pasta.) So I made some changes to…
The Amalfi lemon… I never met any lemon as juicy, as soft, with delicate acidity… and so much flavor in the zest. Only one single Amalfi lemon will suffice for a cake – trust me. … and I decided to combine this extraordinary lemon flavor with fresh blueberries. I started with a long rectangular tarte baking tin with loose bottom which I oiled carefully. Later in the oven I put a sheet of baking parchment…
I’ve seen conchiglioni bakes every now and then … Conchiglioni are a type of pasta you won’t stumble about in any supermarket, but then I found a packet of these “big” pasta shells. So I pondered how to start … a pasta bake. I decided to start simply with a Bolognese style filling, lots of sauce and on top lots of cheese. To be honest cooking the conchiglioni was easy, filling the soft shells (only…
I read about Boeuf Bourguignon in Julia Child’s cooking bible & started thinking how to do it – a modest version of course. Instead of a dutch oven I decided to do it in my slow cooker meaning that I prepare the ingredients, put everything in my slow cooker & start the high temp program. Afterwards the slow cooker will sit in a corner on my kitchen counter daydreaming … no need for any stirring…
I like vegetables roasted on a baking tray in my oven with just some herbs and olive oil. However, when I realized that there wasn’t enough stuff in my fridge for a standard oven session I decided to throw together all the rests in a casserole and to add some canned Italian tomatoes as well as some meatballs. The mix went into the oven and … a delicious dinner dish was ready rather soon. A…
During the last weeks … months I was working on pizza. I love pizza. Either I eat pizza at my favorite Italian restaurant or I order pizza & pick it up from the restaurant. Or I make my own pizza at home. (I admit that there is another option: buying frozen pizza, but honestly – no frozen pizza can keep up w/ pizza from restaurant … & definitely not with a home-made pizza. I remember…
This morning I was shopping. Food shopping. So this morning I checked the fridge & the pantry, made some mental notes & started for my trusted food store. In my mind I pondered about what to do for lunch … For little lunches at home we prefer something fast to prepare, light & delicious. We often decide on vegetables pimped w/ cheese or whatever meat is in our fridge. (Or pasta!!!) In my trusted food…
It’s summer time. All people think about BBQ dreaming of perfect sausages & steaks – or whatever. Also substantial or less substantials salads are in vogue. Nobody thinks about a roast … in a kitchen … needing long hours … However, I bought a beef package (100% organic) processed from happy cows somewhere in Bavaria weeks ago. All portions went straight in our freezer. Amongst others there were beef roulades which hang around since then.…
I always prepare tomato sauce during spring and summer w/ lots of fresh tomatoes roasted in the oven until a really soft mess. It’s the best tomato pasta for any pasta as well as vegetables or meat. You may produce quite a lot & store it in containers in your fridge for some days or even put to 2-3 weeks – be sure: it won’t last so long. What I had in mind for rather…
What happened? I opened my fridge & learnt that there were some leftovers … vegetables to be correct. Carrots & spring onions. Also in my pantry there were some potatoes … & in my freezer I had some frozen peas. In each case it wasn’t so much … not enough for whatever … So I decided to make a real big batch of mixed vegetables! Next morning when shopping I bought a big kohlrabi &…
It’s an olive oil cake w/ orange flavor – the basic recipe from one of my favorite cookbooks. The recipe defines cake for 2 rather small round cake pans – I used a larger springform. I made some rough calculation & decided that the area covered by 2 small cake pans or by a larger springform – like mine – was almost the same. So there were no changes necessary due to the dimension of…
My favorites for working with pumpkin are still hokkaido and butternut. Especially for a creamy result, like soft mashed potatoes, butternut is the best choice. Above there is a butternut mash with red onions, bacon & goat cheese. Below there is another butternut mash, the sweet & spicy version with Asian flavors & ham & shrimps. Any butternut mash you serve like mashed potatoes together with meat or fish … or other vegetables, however, you…
This is a spontaneous soup. I mean I had the idea in the morning before shopping – so I was spontaneous. Most of the ingredients were already in my pantry resp. fridge. All I had to buy were the sweet potatoes. So I set up my private cooking show after shopping & prepared the soup & took photos & made notes – then we had lunch. (You’ll see soon that there wasn’t any need for…
In one of my last posts I worked with a Hokkaido pumpkin which I baked in the oven with some olive oil and a spice mix on top. Some of the Hokkaido slices I reserved for the next weekend – for a quiche convenient for autumn. So what do we need for this special quiche?