a splash of blog, a dash of sarcasm
traditionally, a gumbo includes some form of seafood and a large dose of spice. i love adding shrimp to this version, and turning up the heat would also be more than welcome, but some of my closest friends/family are averse to both heat and ocean dwellers, so this recipe has been tailored to suit loved ones. ah, is there a better reason? 
chalk it up to being demi-asian. i adore food from this part of the world. japanese, chinese, thai, vietnamese, korean, malaysian, manchurian, etc. there are marked, yet subtle, differences in each country’s cuisine, and i’ve had a helluva time exploring each and every one of them.
toasted gnocchi earned a spot in my “top five revelations” category last year. i don’t know why it took me so long to find out about it, but i can tell you it took a helluva lot less time for me to attempt the dish at home. the crispy exterior and its soft, potato-y goodness of an interior provide a base that goes with almost any flavor your culinary heart could envision.
risotto had a bad rep with me for a long time. it takes FOREVER to cook, and it demands a kind of patience not many at-home cooks can muster (i certainly couldn’t). cook it too long, and all of your hard work is wasted . . . fail to cook it enough and walk away with a crunchy disaster worthy of elitist mockery. can you sense the bitterness?
below is a link for my recent article on the amazing food of seoul, south korea!
if you like bulgogi, kimchee, japchae, bibimbap, and banchan, you must go to seoul!
http://www.cntraveller.in/content/straight-seoul
one of my mother’s fondest memories spanning the three years she lived in france had to do with this dish. it was her go-to meal at the tiny café she frequented back in the 70s. in its most basic form, a croque monsieur is merely a fancy kind of ham and cheese sandwich. fans of the dish would vigorously disagree with the simplicity implied in that statement. i suggest you make it one afternoon for lunch and come to your own conclusion . . . ‘cause you can’t have my sandwich, that’s for sure.
pick a cold day. any cold day. now, set aside 3 hours to prepare this dish. i know it sounds like a lot, but trust me implicitly when i say that it’s a small price to pay. everything’s there for the best beef stew you’ve ever prepared. it’s not for the diet conscious, but it sure is for the comfort conscious. hey, julia child didn’t become famous for nothin’. there are never any leftovers when i make this — no matter how much i make…
i love dishes that take something familiar and twist it just a smidge. pizza is a perfect thing to experiment with because, let’s face it, it’s tough to find someone who doesn’t like pizza. i first had a variation of this dish at my sister-in-law’s house (thanks, julie!), and, like so many other things i enjoyed eating, i did my own spin of it at home. after some experimenting, i came up with this dish, and, even though people always give me a skeptically indulgent smile prior to trying it, they usually walk away fervently convinced it’s a winner.
my name is renee. i love to cook. i love to write. welcome to my amalgamation of the two. on this blog, i will post some of my favorite ethnic food recipes and experiences in a way that i hope will be easy, delicious, and fun! thanks for cooking with me!
© 2013 the candid cook. All Rights Reserved.
Powered by WordPress. Designed by 