domenicadreamsofcalamari, Author at domenica dreams of calamari

September 19, 2014September 24, 2014

Ricotta

I was shocked by how easy it was to make this delicious cheese at home in less that 24 hours. Ricotta is great because of its versatility; we used it for a great dinner on fresh pasta and also had it for dessert on top of cake. We got inspiration and the recipe from Bon Appétit.

2 cups whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice or distilled white vinegar

Bring milk, cream, and salt to a boil in a medium saucepan. Remove from heat. Add lemon juice; stir gently until mixture starts to curdle. Let stand 5 minutes.
Pour mixture into a fine-mesh sieve lined with 2 layers of cheesecloth set over a medium bowl. Chill until cheese is spreadable, at least 20 minutes and up to 12 hours (the longer it strains, the thicker it will be).

Original recipe: http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/fresh-ricotta

After making the cheese, you’ll have quite a bit of whey leftover but don’t toss it! There are lots of interesting and useful ways to utilize it. This article explains all you ever wanted to know about curds versus whey: http://www.farmcurious.com/cheesemaking-what-to-do-with-all-that-whey/

September 19, 2014November 2, 2014

Marinated Goat Cheese Balls with Artichokes, Olives and Tomatoes

I got this recipe from the Food & Wine website in a French picnic slide-show. I made it for the sangria party night. I was especially interested in it because not only do I love all of the elements but the piment d’Espelette is a specialty of the Basque region near where I spent the first half of the year studying abroad. There I tried everything with the special chilli flavoring, from chocolate to cheeses.

1 1/2 pounds fresh goat cheese, softened
2 tsp chopped rosemary
2 tsp chopped thyme
1/2 tsp piment d’Espelette pepper or hot paprika
salt
1 quart evoo
20 cooked baby artichoke hearts
1 cup red cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes
1 cup Niçoise olives
1/2 cup pine nuts

Preheat the oven to 350°. Spread the pine nuts in a pie plate and bake for 10 minutes, or until fragrant and lightly toasted. Transfer to a plate and let cool.
In a standing mixer, using the paddle, blend the goat cheese with the toasted pine nuts, rosemary, thyme and piment d’Espelette. Alternatively, blend the cheese in a bowl using a wooden spoon. Season with salt. Shape rounded tablespoons of the seasoned cheese into balls.
Pour 1 inch of olive oil into a tall 1-gallon glass container. Layer the cheese balls, artichoke hearts, cherry tomatoes and olives in the container with enough of the remaining olive oil to cover. Let marinate at room temperature for 24 hours. Serve with the toasted baguette.

Original recipe: http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/marinated-goat-cheese-olives-artichokes-and-tomatoes

September 19, 2014November 2, 2014

Sunflower Seed, Rosemary Crackers

A couple of years ago, my friend and I were in Vancouver and all of a sudden I got a hankering for something bread-like, tasting of rosemary and salt. The hankering turned into a fierce, unwavering craving and I told my friend; I was on a mission. She was doubtful of our finding such a specific snack, but lo and behold, while wandering unsuspectingly through a fun marketplace, our eyes landed on a beautiful display of fluffy foccacia studded with rosemary, glistening with olive oil and sparkly salt crystals. I think I gasped, my eyes may have started to fill, I don’t know, but our mouths were definitely hanging open enough for the guy manning the counter to ask what was up. He happily served up some warm fluffy salvation with a chuckle. It was one of the most fulfilling experiences. This is what these crackers remind me of.

I found this recipe on the Food & Wine website a couple weeks ago and we ate them so fast that I’ve made it two more times since them. These crackers are the best. A great vehicle for bleu cheese…or any kind of cheese.

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds
1/2 tsp minced rosemary
1/4 tsp active dry yeast
salt
1/2 cup warm water
1/4 cup plus 2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil

In a large bowl, mix the flour with the sunflower seeds, rosemary, yeast and 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt. Stir in the water and 1/4 cup of the olive oil until a dough forms. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead until it becomes a smooth ball, about 5 minutes. Transfer the dough to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let stand for 2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 350°. Turn 2 large baking sheets upside down. Divide the dough in half. Set 1 half on a baking sheet and roll it out to a 9-by-15-inch rectangle about inch thick. Trim the edges to make a neat rectangle. Using a sharp knife, cut the dough crosswise into 1-inch-wide strips. Drizzle the tops with 1 teaspoon of the oil and season with salt. Repeat with the remaining dough and oil.
Bake the crackers for about 28 minutes, until golden. Let cool completely before serving.

Original recipe: http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/sunflower-seed-and-rosemary-crackers-cocktails-2008

September 19, 2014

Vitamix Japanese Miso- Shiitake Soup

This was one of the first Vitamix recipes we tried in the and it was a huge success. Lots of umami.

3 cups shiitake or oyster mushrooms, sliced
2 tbsp soy sauce
1/2-1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 tbsp miso, white or brown
1×1 inch cube fresh ginger root, peeled
1 garlic clove, peeled
3 cups water
1 scallion, chopped

marinate mushrooms in soy sauce and 3 tbsp evoo, set aside to marinate
put miso, remaining olive oil, ginger, garlic and water into the Vitamix
make sure lid is secure and turn on to variable 1
slowly increase to variable 10 then to High
blend for 30 seconds
pour soup and top each bowl with scallion and mushrooms

September 19, 2014October 5, 2014

Mediterranean Deviled Eggs

I love deviled eggs but I especially like dressing them up and making my own variations. There’s so much to more to fill with than just the plain ole’ egg yolk, mayo, mustard

This is my most recent rendition.

3 hardboiled eggs
1 tbsp grainy mustard
12 capers
1 tbsp pickled onions
2 sprigs thyme or rosemary or both
black pepper sprinkling
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp goat cheese

peel eggs, halve and scoop out yolks
chop some of your herbs making sure to leave a coupe of sprigs (only the most good-looking) for garnish
add mustard, olive oil and goat cheese and mash
refill egg halves with the mix (baby spoons are great)
top each egg with a sprinkle of pepper, a pickled onion or two, a couple capers and a nice little sprig of herbacious greens of your choice

September 19, 2014September 19, 2014

Cockles in white wine, tarragon sauce

One of the adventures my mom and I went on this summer was to the only Spanish store in San Diego. One of the many eclectic things we picked up were cockles in brine which are in the same family as clams and have a very similar flavor. The night we decided to create something with them there were some strange lookin lobster mushrooms at the store so we decided to give them a try. This was basically my mom’s creation but I loved it so here it is.

1/3 cup dry white wine
1 tbsp tarragon
8 threads saffron
1/2 tbsp thyme
1/4 lb lobster mushroom (or other mushroom)
1 pat butter
3 shallots
1 can cockles/clams
1/2 lemon
nice crusty bread

caramelize shallots in butter
juice lemon
remove caramelized shallots and use pan to heat white wine on low heat with tarragon saffron, thyme and sliced mushrooms
once mushrooms start to soften, drain and add cockles
let simmer at low temperature until the aromas are strong then add lemon juice, cook for another minute then remove from heat
serve in bowls with toasted bread

We used black olive rolls, toasted with garlic and it was divine.

This is the Spanish market: https://plus.google.com/104522045584702124507/about?gl=us&hl=en

The lobster mushroom:

September 19, 2014September 27, 2014

Olive Oil, Amaretto, Almond, Orange Cake

My mom got this recipe from Food52 and adapted it while I was studying abroad in France. She made it for my dad for Valentine’s dad and sent me pictures. I was dying to make it since then and we finally got around to remaking it last week. It was incredibly moist and the perfect dessert to go with our homemade Ricotta Possibly the best cake I’ve ever tasted!

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup almond flour/meal
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/4 cup whole milk (we used 1 cup whey left over from the ricotta and 1/4 cup heavy cream)
3 lg eggs
1 1/2 tbsp grated orange/tangerine zest
1/4 cup fresh orange/tangerine juice
1/4 cup amaretto

Heat oven to 350° F. Oil, butter, or spray a 9-inch cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.
In a bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, salt, baking soda and powder. In another bowl, whisk the olive oil, milk eggs, orange zest and juice and amaretto. Add the dry ingredients; whisk until just combined.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for one hour, until the top is golden and a toothpick comes out clean. Transfer the cake to a rack and let cool for 30 minutes.
Run a knife around the edge of the pan, invert the cake onto the rack and let cool completely, 2 hrs

Ricotta is highly suggested! Original recipe: https://food52.com/recipes/26709-maialino-s-olive-oil-cake

September 10, 2014September 16, 2014

Creamy Avocado Sauce/Dip

This recipe came to me one night when my mom had made a spicy dinner and we had a huge about-to-go bad reed avocado sitting around. I used spices to compliment the flavors of her dish. It was great as a cooling agent and it was just as good the next day as a snack on crackers.

Avocado Sauce/Dip:

1 lg reed avocado
juice of 1 lemon
1 pinch dried ginger
a few grinds of black pepper
a pinch salt
3 tbsp plain nonfat/lowfat yogurt
2 garlic cloves, minced

blend all ingredients in a food processor

September 10, 2014September 24, 2014

Summer Sangria

My cousin recently moved to San Diego to get her Master’s degree. When she was moving in, her parents gave her a hand-me-down punch bowl that had been an unused wedding present. We quickly came up with a new future use for the clandestine punch bowl as a sangria bowl. That same week, Jess came over with the bowl and we came up with this summery sangria recipe. The bowl even has matching glasses that hang off the side.

Summer Sangria:

2 bottles red wine (blends)
4 cups sparkling water
1 bag frozen cherries
2 large, firm peaches
2 passion fruits
lotsa ice

September 10, 2014September 24, 2014

Heirloom Tomato Bulgur Salad

I found this recipe on the whole foods website and decided to spice it up. It’s a great idea for summer because you don’t have to cook it and it really utilized the flavors and natural juices of superripe heirloom tomatoes.

Heirloom Tomato Bulgur Salad:

1 lb heirloom tomatoes
1 cup uncooked bulgur
1/4 cup capers
a few sprigs thyme and rosemary
a few squirts mustard

Cut tomatoes into large dices, saving juices
gently mix the tomatoes and their juices into the bulgur and let sit for three hours or more
add capers, herbs and mustard