Many years ago, my sister Maria Oliver and her family spent one year in Potchefstroom, South Africa, where Jim, her husband, had a research project. Upon their return to Maryland, Maria entertained us with bobotie (pronounced ba-boo-tea), a spiced minced-meat pie topped with custard, recognized as South Africa’s national dish. Maria’s Bobotie was my first […]
This Grilled Caponata with Balsamic Vinaigrette is a summer vegetable dish inspired by caponata, the classic Sicilian sweet-and-sour vegetable stew.* Here, the vegetables shine without the need for heavy tomato sauce or copious amounts of olive oil. It is a versatile dish, delicious at all temperatures. After seeing this year’s crop of eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash,
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My daughter Sophia teases me whenever I choose a beet dish from a restaurant menu, saying, “So Ukrainian of you!”. But I love the sweetness and earthiness of beets, which have been a part of my diet in soups, main dishes, and salads since childhood. This Winter Beet and Dried Plum Salad with Walnut Dressing
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I first encountered this Korean Carrot Salad (in Ukrainian морква по-корейськи, корейський салат з моркви; also called morkovcha in transliteration from Russian) when I started to work in Ukraine over two decades ago. In those days, most fresh vegetables vanished from Ukraine’s markets by the end of October and those that remained were imported and
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I became curious about salting and fermenting vegetables when I lived in Ukraine and this post summarizes what I learned and provides my adaptation of classic recipes to small batches. The first summer I worked in Ukraine, a female colleague returned to the office with red-stained hands after a weekend in their family village. When
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Preparation of Vietnamese summer rolls, also called fresh spring rolls, is not as simple as it appears. These flavorful, transparent bundles of vegetables, rice noodles, a few bits of shrimp or pork with spicy sauces which often set the tone for a wonderful Vietnamese meal are difficult to assemble. I tried my hand at making
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Even though I’ve worked in Europe for many years, I have never been able to adapt to the local habit of a three-course lunch as the principal meal of the day. I don’t understand how my European colleagues stay awake and work after a huge meal. Salads, using seasonal ingredients, are my preferred midday meal.
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This colorful Roasted Summer Vegetable Terrine makes a great meal on a hot day. It features roasted zucchini, red and yellow peppers and eggplant layered with basil, parmesan and garlic flavored cream cheese and provolone. It is a mid-summer showstopper as a flavorsome starter to a dinner of grilled fish or celebratory lunch. I have
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Simple ingredients assembled innovatively can make a delectable meal. This composed Chicken Salad with Spinach, Fennel, Buckwheat and Purple Cabbage Mousse is my adaptation of a salad I enjoyed at lunch several weeks ago in Kyiv, Ukraine. The menu simply said Chicken, oven baked with sweet cabbage, violet mousse and grains. When the dish arrived,
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This Pulled Pork Vindaloo with Indian Coleslaw on Naan combines the pulled pork preparation of America’s South with the flavors of Goa, an Indian state located along the west coast on the shore of the Arabian Sea. Recently I hankered for pulled pork, a dish I hadn’t prepared in a long time. As I fantasized
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