My Italian blogging friend Paola has dedicated her food blog (in Italian) to recipes and tips to avoid wasting food. Her recipes are always simple and tasty, and I often take inspiration from her. Like in this case, when she … Continue reading Fusilli with Fava Bean and Saffron Ragù (Fusilli al ragù di fave allo zafferano)
Homemade ice cream has many advantages over store-bought: it tastes better, it only has natural ingredients, and you get boasting rights for making it yourself. If you own a simple ice cream maker, it is quite easy and not a … Continue reading Coconut Ice Cream
Four years ago I thought I had perfected lobster ravioli, but meanwhile I have developed an alternate version that is at least as good (and is an even better pairing with high quality oaked Chardonnay). This version has more texture … Continue reading Lobster Ravioli with Bisque Sauce (Ravioli all’Astice)
This is how sea bream (daurade) was served to us in Corsica: cooked in the oven with some colorful vegetables. When ordering fish on Corsica, be careful about the price. On the menu this daurade was listed as 12 euros … Continue reading Oven-Baked Sea Bream (Daurade au Four)
Friends, co-workers, and reader of this blog ask for my advice regarding wine, wine pairing, or recipes on a regular basis. Sometimes a friend is in a restaurant and sends me a photo of the wine list and asks for … Continue reading A Reader’s Question: How to Create a Menu for a Wine Dinner
We love Taiwanese food so much that it keeps coming on the blog (and that we are already thinking about when to there again). We liked the “three cup” scallops and squid so much, that I decided to try it … Continue reading Three Cup Chicken (Taiwanese Chicken with Thai Basil)
One of my favorite dishes in Taiwan was ‘3 cup’ scallops. The name refers to the sauce, which includes equal amounts of soy sauce, rice wine, and sesame oil. But the star of the dish is the Taiwanese basil, which … Continue reading Taiwanese Scallops with Basil (‘3 Cup’ Scallops)
Our friend Marjolein makes great Asian style food, and we really liked this variation on the well-known Peking duck that she prepared for us. Usually Peking duck is all about the skin, but in Marjolein’s version it is all about … Continue reading Duck Breast with Hoisin and Pancakes
These oysters are a famous dish from Chinese restaurant Nam Kee in Amsterdam, because a book and movie have been named after them (and because they are so good). The oysters are steamed with a Chinese black bean sauce. You … Continue reading Steamed Oysters with Black Bean Sauce (Oesters van Nam Kee)
This very simple and elegant yet unusual dish was inspired by a dish we had a RyuGin in Taipei. It uses only three ingredients (well four if you count water): clams, turnips, and scallions. In my adaption I’ve simply used … Continue reading Clam and Turnip Soup
Blood oranges are in season. They have a striking color and flavor. This is a light and nutritious dessert, in which the oranges are combined with yogurt and pistachios. Instead of yogurt you could also use ricotta, or a mixture. … Continue reading Blood Orange with Yogurt or Ricotta and Pistachios
Friends were coming over for dinner. He loves Burgundy wines, especially red. That goes well with meat dishes like Boeuf Bourguignon, but she doesn’t eat meat. What to prepare? Then I remembered the great pairing of a Chambolle-Musigny (red Burgundy) … Continue reading Tuscan Bean Soup (Minestra di Fagioli)
As Taiwan is an island we traveled along the coast, it is not surprising that seafood was abundant and fresh. Squid was available as street food (recipe to follow in the summer) and stir fried in restaurants. At 旗后活海產 on Cijin … Continue reading Taiwanese Squid with Thai Basil and Ginger
The inspiration for this dish came from the wonderful rosemary smoked squab we had at RyuGin Taipei, in combination with the method for smoking sardines using nothing more than a large bowl and some rosemary. Squab is a small farmed pigeon; … Continue reading Rosemary Smoked Squab with Butternut Squash
Darya has a wonderful blog and I especially like her Middle-Eastern recipes as they are so new to me and always delicious. Last year she posted a recipe for Iraqi date cookies that I put on my list of recipes … Continue reading Iraqi Date Cookies (Kleichat tamur)
When choosing a restaurant in Taiwan, do not let the (lack of) decor fool you, as it does not say anything about the quality of the food. Besides, most restaurants look like this so you would probably starve if you … Continue reading Taiwanese Stir Fried Shrimp With Black Beans
This is the first of a series of dishes that we really enjoyed in Taiwan and I wanted to recreate at home: dumplings that have soup in them, that will burst open in your mouth as you eat them. They … Continue reading Steamed Soup Dumplings (Xiao Long Bao)
In 2010 we had dinner at La Coccinella in Piemonte, and ordered a bottle 0f 1996 Barolo San Giovanni by Gianfranco Alessandria. I liked the wine so much that I was embarrassing Kees with the noises of appreciation that I … Continue reading Roe Deer Venison with a Red Wine Sauce
Bonifacio is the most beautiful town in Corsica, and that is where I had brandade de rouget et fenoil at the nice restaurant l’Archivolto. Brandade is usually an emulsion of salted cod and olive oil, but there are also versions … Continue reading Brandade of Red Mullet and Fennel (Brandade de Rouget et Fenouil)
One of my favorite dishes is veal saltimbocca, veal cutlets with prosciutto and sage. The combination works so well, that I thought it would be nice to make a variation using veal breast. This cut of meat is more flavorful … Continue reading Veal Roulade with Prosciutto and Sage (Punta di Vitello con Prosciutto e Salvia)
This was our main course for Christmas: a roulade of venison backstrap with prosciutto, rosemary, garlic, and parmigiano, with a side of roasted celeriac puree and some deep fried kale. Made with beef this roulade is called Rosa di Parma, … Continue reading Venison Rosa di Parma
This is the appetizer I prepared for Christmas dinner. You could also serve it as a main course if you use a whole partridge per person. Partridge is similar to pheasant, but smaller and the meat is more juicy (pheasant … Continue reading Partridge Sous-Vide with Its Own Jus, Deep Fried Salsify, and Parsley Root Puree
In part of Italy it is a tradition to have dinner on Christmas Eve (the 24th) rather than on Christmas Day (the 25th). The cena della vigilia often features fish, and after yesterday’s recipe from Veneto it is fitting to have … Continue reading Cod alla Vicentina Sous-Vide (Merluzzo alla Vicentina)
When we had dinner at Michelin-starred restaurant S’Apposentu in Sardinia (read about our experience there in my review), one of the dishes that I decided right away I wanted to try at home was an unbaked lasagna with a mutton … Continue reading Unbaked Lamb Lasagna
This way of preparing sous-vide braised venison was inspired by a recipe from Piemonte in Italy to braise beef in red wine (or more specifically, in Barolo): Brasato al Barolo. The traditional recipe tells you to marinate the meat in … Continue reading Neck of Venison Sous-Vide with Red Wine (Brasato di Cervo)
I enjoyed the combination of scallops, shallots and almonds so much that I decided to serve it as a sauce on homemade fresh pasta. First the scallops are sautéed in olive oil. Then the shallots are slowly cooked in that … Continue reading Tagliolini with Scallops and Almonds (Tagliolini alle Capesante e Mandorle)
Dorgali is a town in the mountains on the east coast of Sardinia. We were staying at the seaside resort of Cala Gonone, but drove up to Restaurant Ispinigoli in the mountains to try the local cuisine. (If you ever … Continue reading Ravioli alla Dorgalese (Pecorino and Mint Ravioli with Meat Ragù)
Beef short ribs are a very popular cut to prepare sous-vide, because they are so flavorful. How do you like beef short ribs? Braised and unctuous like in the photo above? Then cook them sous-vide for 24 hours at 74C/165F. … Continue reading Beef Short Ribs Sous-Vide: Like Steak Or Braised
A charlotte is usually a dessert, where a mold is lined with bread, cake, or biscuits, and then filled with custard or fruit. In this savory version, inspired by an appetizer I had at restaurant l’Ardoise in Bastia (Corsica), it … Continue reading Eggplant Charlottes (Charlottes d’Aubergines)
Pasta is sometimes cooked in the way of risotto in Italian cooking, which means that it is cooked (or finished to be cooked) in stock. The pasta will take on the flavor of the stock, so this will give your … Continue reading ‘Risottoed’ Tagliatelle with Mushrooms (Tagliatelle Risottate ai Funghi)
