Cornish Hens Tabaka are a traditional dish indigenous to the Republic of Georgia, a country of nine million inhabitants in the Caucasus Mountains. Its Georgian name originates from “tapha,” the cast iron pan with a weighted, screw-tightened lid used to prepare this succulent dish. It is sometimes also called Tabaka, Tapaka, Chicken Tabaka, Chicken Tabak, …
Food binds geographically and linguistically diverse Morocco together. Moroccan cooking reflects the influence of indigenous peoples, traders, invaders, immigrants and colonizers, each of whom, over centuries, played a role in the development of local culture and dietary habits with new ingredients and cooking techniques that remain influential today. Today’s Moroccan cuisine is a blend of Berber, …
This Turkey, Ham & Pork Sausage Pie is another solution for holiday leftovers. At our house, even a small turkey or ham often produces too much delicious meat which, while enjoyed the first time served, is hard to serve for more than one additional meal. Turkey and ham sandwiches, assorted creamy casseroles and soups are …
This dish of Rice Noodle Soup with Salmon, Snow peas and Shiitake Mushrooms is my nontraditional adaptation of phở cá, a fish phở I enjoyed in Vietnam, a splendid comforting lunch or light dinner for the first chilly, rainy days of autumn. Phở, the national dish of Vietnam, is the street food of ordinary people, …
Rice Noodle Soup with Salmon, Snow peas and Shiitake Mushrooms – A Relative Phở Read More »
Hot weather and cold food is a winning combination. A cooling and zesty Aquachile Verde (literally “green chile water”) with shrimp or scallops or both is a perfect antidote and a stimulating starter to make when seafood is plentiful and fresh; an excellent opening to a grilled dinner. Aquachile is a spicy, tart Mexican cousin …
Labneh (also known as labne, labni, lebni), a strained yogurt, has a softly tart taste like Greek yogurt, but a cream-cheesy mouth feel. It can be soft and spreadable, firm and moldable, or hard and salted for longer storage. I savored labneh throughout the Middle East and eastern Mediterranean at various times of day without …
This Silk Road Lamb and Dried Fruit Plov is my rendition of a ubiquitous dish I encountered in various forms from the Orient to Europe. Similar rice preparations appear in countries along the Silk Road, that ancient route that brought together civilizations of the East and West for centuries, facilitating the migration of culinary traditions. …
Country Captain, a chicken classic of southern cookbooks, became a staple in my childhood home after Mama read that it was a favorite of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. As the story goes, whenever President Roosevelt traveled by train to his Little White House in Warm Springs, Georgia, his assistant would warn Mrs. W.L. Bullard, a …
I first tasted reindeer stew at a Bavarian dinner in the lovely chalet home of Hermann Pfieffer, a German steel cable manufacturer. Hermann’s wife Sieglinde, an accomplished cook, served hirschgulasch (reindeer stew in German) and I was a little anxious about eating reindeer. I was torn between being a gracious guest and my affection for the Rudolf …
This Spiral Stromboli with Three Fillings (of Italian sausage and spinach, mushrooms and onions and sundried tomato and cheeses) is a product of insomnia. I am a chronic insomniac and when I can’t sleep through the night, rather than frustratingly toss and turn in bed, I go to a comfortable armchair in the another room …