It’s funny how our tastebuds change as we age.  Not too long ago, eggplant was on my shortlist of foods I didn’t like, now it seems I can’t get enough of it. One day I looked at the plate of baba ganoush my friend had ordered and it just clicked, “I’m going to like eggplant now!” The same thing happened with onions, black licorice, and avocados. One minute I hated it, the next I suddenly can’t get enough of it. There’s no gray area either, I don’t ease these new ‘likes’ into my diet, I go whole hog. The first time I ate raw onions I didn’t just squirrel them into a salad, no, I made an onion sandwich! Crazy, I know.

Now that eggplant is on my radar I find that I’m consistently searching for new, unique ways to prepare and satiate my addiction. I recently discovered this delicious Moorish dish, Badenjan – a creamy smokey dip with deep notes of saffron balanced by fresh mint – and in two weeks I’ve made it twice. Both times I’ve prepared it as a condiment of sorts to our main dish. The first time, to accompany aromatic lamb meatballs (filled with garlic, onions and mint), the second time an addition to a Moroccan-style grilled chicken.  The perfect addition to both meals. I’m telling you, this is some serious eggplant goodness.

Click below for the recipe:

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Categories:	Cooking tips • North African • Vegetarian • Veggies	Leave a Comment
Tags:	appetizer • condiment • dip • eggplant • moorish • north afri • side dish

Oh, what to do with all that zucchini! It’s piled high in farmers markets, your neighbor’s trying to pawn some off on you, but you’ve got a glut in your own garden. You stuff them, bake them, grill them, add them to soups…the same old things you usually do with your over-abundance of this prolific grower.

Here’s a new twist – goat cheese stuffed grilled zucchini rolls, inspired by Ellie Krieger, healthy chef/dietitian on the Food Network. Goat cheese blended with fresh lemon juice and zest, wrapped with fresh basil leaves in a grilled zucchini bundle makes for the perfect appetizer or light meal.

Click below for the full recipe:

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Categories:	Vegetarian • Veggies	4 Comments
Tags:	appetizer • goat cheese • main • side dish • zucchini

Smelt season doesn’t last too long, so when I saw the glistening smelt in the seafood department, any previous thoughts I had for dinner were scrapped.  The cool thing about smelt is that you eat them whole. If you are a fresh sardine or fresh anchovy lover, then you’ll be excited to know that you have a new fish to fry! Simply roll the fish in seasoned flour, dip them into an egg wash, roll them in panko and fry them in hot oil. Sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt and serve hot. Excellent with a lightly-oiled green salad and a cold glass of chardonnay.

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Categories:	European • Fish & Seafood • quick and easy	3 Comments
Tags:	appetizer • fried fresh smelt • smelt

Julia Child week continues at Foodista! Last night I prepared Julia’s appetizer of Mussels Marinated in Oil and Herbs. I was looking to cook something quick and delicious and slightly off the beaten path of weeknight dinners. If you are a shellfish fan like I am, you’ll love it. Fresh herbs, vermouth and sweet mussel meat creates one tasty dish! Although created as an appetizer, these herb-y mussels would be perfect added to a salad with some scallops or shrimp or just added to a light angel hair pasta.

Love mussels? Here are three other mussel recipes that I’m planning to make in the near future.
Sausage and Mussel Soup with Kale From imafoodblog

Cedar Planked Mussels From Steamy Kitchen Food Blog

Moules Fromage Bleu From Laura’s Best Recipes Blog

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Categories:	Fish & Seafood • French • Herbs • Salads • Shellfish • Uncategorized • quick and easy	2 Comments
Tags:	appetizer • Herbs • julia child • mussels • Shellfish

Today is the 5th day of Julia Child Week at Foodista! There are so many delicious recipes, we really could go on for months! Looking through Julia Child’s recipes and watching her episodes, it’s clear to me that she wanted to take the fear and intimidation out of cooking. Her explanations are clear and well described. She offers excellent substitutions and make-ahead suggestions to help the busy cook. I can imagine hundreds of women watching Julia effortlessly create Caneton a’ l’ Orange or cook live lobsters like it was an every day occurrence and surely thinking to themselves okay, I can handle this, or at least some of it!

Cooking can be incredibly nerve racking and awkward when you are first starting out, but instead of tackling live lobsters or roasting whole ducks right off the bat, Julia has several other recipes that are far less intimidating to start out with. For example, nothing could be more simple than making Julia’s Roquefort cheese balls. Elegant, rich and delicious, especially paired with a nice red wine, it’s a recipe that is perfect for a potluck or a party, and although easy to make, they look and taste like you slaved half your day in the kitchen!

Bon Appetite!

Other inspirational recipes for Roquefort cheese appetizers you may be interested in trying:

A Roquefort cheese roll by Homesick Texan, a leek and Roquefort tart from Too Many Chefs or some Roquefort and wine pairing tips from Rhino Wino with a scrumptious recipe for Roquefort gougeres.

Photo by Kaytethinks

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Categories:	Cheese • Chefs • Cookbooks • Entertaining • French • Uncategorized • potluck	2 Comments
Tags:	appetizer • cheese balls • Entertaining • julia child • Party • Roquefort cheese balls

Family picnics,  Friday night barbecues and last minute invitations to a friend’s potluck doesn’t always require that you bring a dish to share, but more often than not it’s a good idea to bring a little something even if it means a bottle of wine, olives or some good cheese. But, if you like to cook and want to bring a little something to the party that doesn’t take up too much time in the kitchen, here are a few simple ideas that are quick and easy to make and celebrate summer’s freshest ingredients.

Summer tomatoes, garlic, sweet and spicy garden basil and tangy balsamic vinaigrette over toasted baguette slices are heavenly and a snap to make!

Fresh figs stuffed with sweetened ricotta and drizzled in honey is a a great appetizer to bring to a wine pairing party.

And lastly, one of my favorites is peppadew peppers stuffed with herbed goat cheese. The sweet and vinegary peppers mixed with the tangy and creamy goat cheese is a marriage made in heaven. One quick stop to the grocery store and a maximum of 20 minutes pre-party and you’ve got yourself some great potluck or party appetizers.

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Categories:	Cheese • Entertaining • Uncategorized • Vegetarian • potluck • quick and easy	Leave a Comment
Tags:	appetizer • bruchetta • family picnic food • peppadew peppwers • potluck • stuffed figs

Even though we had  (all in one day, mind you) snow, sleet, rain, clouds/fog, beautiful blue skies, then more snow again, our group of friends felt the urge to fire up the  barbecues and smokers and have ourselves a cook-off. We are more than ready for spring here in Seattle! The categories were the standard trio: meat, sauces, and sides.

I made Barnaby’s famous potato salad, which is easy as pie and always a winner – even though I felt a bit like a slacker – but I felt it best to steer clear of the serious grillers. Plus, I was the photographer and the unofficial Official Wine Taster (even though that wasn’t a category, nor were we doing any wine tasting). Still, I looked official seated on the leather barstool.

With all the meat being smoked and grilled (tri-tip, pork ribs, flank steak) I felt we needed to add some fish to the “red meat mix.” Especially after last week’s pork gluttony at Cochon. I vaguely remember swearing off meat for a month, didn’t I? That obviously didn’t last long.

Barnaby threw four whole trout in the smoker and let them swim in alder smoke for about an hour. The pellets we use are all-natural wood pellets from BBQr’s Delight, by far the best we’ve found.

We mixed fresh finely chopped chives with whipped cream cheese, smeared a bit on water crackers, and placed a lovely tender hunk of trout on each. Then our friend’s five-year old son, Sammy, topped them off with more fresh chives. As he put it, “My dad was a sous chef, I know how to do it.” Ahh, the child of my dreams!

Stay tuned for the rest of the menu…

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Categories:	Cheese • Cooking tips • Entertaining • Fish & Seafood • Herbs • Meat & Poultry	Leave a Comment
Tags:	appetizer • BBQr's Delight • chives • cream cheese • hors d'oeuvres • small bites • smoked fish • smoked trout • trout • wood pellets

Do you ever have a craving for something, but you just can’t seem to put your taste bud on it? Not sure if you want something salty, sweet, sour or spicy? Maybe you want it all! If so, then I have just the thing to satiate your desires: mieng kum.

Whenever I go to a Thai restaurant I look for mieng kum on the menu, usually listed as an appetizer. To people who have never had this delicious dish I describe it as “a taste explosion in your mouth.” It has about every flavor, thus awakening any part of your tongue that has been neglected. If your tongue could grab pom-poms, do back flips and sing a cheer, this would be the dish it would root for.

You take a leaf and put a little of the following in it:

ginger (fragrant and sweet with a kick of spiciness),
shallots (aromatic and spicy),
Thai chilies (to give you that fire heat),
dried shrimp (adding the perfect amount of salty-fishiness, but in a good way!),
peanuts (a salty, earthy taste to balance with the sweetness),
lime (citrus adds the perfect amount of sour),
toasted coconut (giving it that sweet, tropical flavor),
top it with a sweet and savory sauce,
fold it up and pop it in your mouth…

POW!!!!

The perfect dish to satisfy all of your taste buds.

Mieng Kum

Any edible leaf can be used. Usually it is served in betel leaves, beautiful shiny dark green leaves, but they can be difficult to find. Check your local Asian market. When we can’t find betel leaves we use large spinach leaves.

Filling:

5 tablespoons grated coconut, toasted
3 tablespoons finely diced shallots
3 tablespoons diced lime, with the rind on
3 tablespoons diced ginger
3 tablespoons small dried shrimp
3 tablespoons unsalted roasted peanuts
2 tablespoons diced Thai chilies

Sauce:

1 tablespoon shrimp paste
1/2 tablespoon sliced galangal
1/2 tablespoon sliced shallots
2 tablespoons grated coconut
3 tablespoons chopped unsalted peanuts
2 tablespoons chopped dried shrimp
1 teaspoon sliced ginger
1 cup chopped palm sugar
2 1/2 cups water

Roast the shrimp paste, galangal and shallots in a small skillet until fragrant. Set aside and let cool. Once cooled toss into a food processor with the coconut, peanuts, shrimp and ginger, and blend. Transfer mixture to a saucepan and add the sugar and water. Mix well and bring to a boil. Simmer until it is reduced to about 1 cup, then let it cool.

Place all the ingredients in little individual bowls or in separate piles on dinnerware. Take a leaf and place a bit of each ingredient in the center, top with the sauce, fold it up and pop it in your mouth!

Recipe courtesy of The Food of Thailand: Authentic Recipes from the Golden Kingdom.

Note: if the sauce is too ambitious for you, or you are unable to find some of the ingredients, simply make a sweet/savory sauce with what you have in your pantry. We’ve made concoctions with Major Grey’s chutney mixed with a bit of fish sauce and a dash of Sriracha. Use your culinary creativity!

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Categories:	Asian • Cooking tips • Thai	5 Comments
Tags:	appetizer • Food • foodista • mieng kum • snack • Thai

There is a Spanish restaurant, Iberia, in Menlo Park, California that we used to love to go to for tapas. One of my favorite things to have was pa amb tomàquet. Catalan for “bread with tomato,” pa amb tomàquet is simple to make and simply delicious. It consists of toasted bread rubbed with tomato and is sometimes accompanied or topped with sausage, ham, anchovies, grilled vegetables or cheese. My favorite version at Iberia is served with a layer of hand-sliced cured ham, which is cut off of a beautiful leg perched on the bar.

This easy appetizer, or meal if served with salad, takes no culinary skill to prepare. Simply toast slices of a good quality bread, cut a tomato in half and rub it on one side and lay a slice or two of prosciutto on top.

Delicioso!

(Thanks to Tinet.org for their beautiful image).

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Categories:	Restaurants • Spanish	1 Comment
Tags:	appetizer • Food • foodista • Iberia • Restaurants • Spanish • tapas

Dukkah, or duqqa, (DOO-ka) is an Egyptian mixture of toasted and ground nuts, seeds and spices into which olive oil-dabbed bread is dipped.

Apparently dukkah is all the rage Down Under, and reading about it inspired me to whip up a batch myself. Boy, am I glad I did! As I toasted the ingredients the aromas burst open, filled my kitchen with nutty perfume and transported me back to Egypt. My mother and I visited Egypt in the late 80’s and dukkah reminded me of how it smelled: fragrant, earthy and bold.

This tasty mixture makes me want to blacken my eyes with kohl, smudge perfumed oil behind my ears and dance to percussions and lutes on the banks of the Nile!

Dukkah
Use the following recipe as a starting point. You may find, as I did, that you want more or less of a particular spice. I added a bit more mint.

1/2 C hazelnuts
3 T sesame seeds
1/4 C coriander seeds
2 T cumin seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 T black peppercorns
1 teaspoon dried mint leaves
1 teaspoon salt

In a very hot skillet (or in a 375 degree oven) dry-toast hazelnuts until golden. Wrap the hot nuts in a kitchen towel and let cool for a few minutes. When they have cooled slightly, rub the nuts vigorously in the towel to loosen and remove the skins. Place peeled nuts in a bowl and allow to further cool.

Put sesame seeds into the skillet and over medium heat toast until lightly golden, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and add seeds to the hazelnuts.

In the same pan, toast coriander, cumin and fennel seeds until they begin to color and become fragrant, about 2 minutes.

Add all the above ingredients to a food processor (or mortar if you are going to hand grind) and let cool completely. When the mixture has cooled, add the black peppercorns, salt and mint, and pulse (or grind in mortar) until the mixture is coarse.

Serve with olive oil and bread.

Store in a tightly sealed container for up to a month.

Other dukkah uses to inspire you:

• Drizzle a little olive oil over feta and sprinkle with dukkah
• Use as a rub on lamb, chicken or steak
• How about with a little honey on a toasted English muffin?

Check out Stonesoup for her hazelnut macadamia version of dukkah. She also offers a number of wonderful uses for dukkah.

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Categories:	North African • Seasoning & Spices	2 Comments
Tags:	appetizer • caraway • cumin • dukkah • duqqa • egypt • egyptian • fennel • Food • foodista • hazelnuts • hors d'oeuvres • mint • olive oil • salt • sesame • spices