A touch of coffee gives the chocolate cookies a sophisticated flavor.
Even though I grew up in Germany, my American mom made sure to introduce me to that American classic: The Oreo. However,when I was a kid the globalization of food products was still at the outset. So while I was privy to all sorts of Kelloggs, Oreos were limited to the occasional care package from the US, and Fluffernutters grew on the moon. While undoubtably good for my lithe pre-teen physique, my sweet tooth ached under the suspicion that my milk was missing something.
Fast forward a few years: Milk has been replaced by coffee, and aforementioned pre-teen physique has become as unattainable as a fluffernutter.
The world I live in today is a far cry from those days in Germany. Today I am in Spain- the land of ham and cheese- and American junkaliciousness can be found in its very own supermarket aisle. Yet somehow, two chocolate cookies filled with sugary Crisco cream don’t hold the appeal they once did.
A perfect pairing: Cardamom & Lemon.
At a good friend’s I was recently greeted by a sticky two year old. “Like Pooh Bear,” she informed me beginning a mad dash around the room in her pampers, spreading droplets of honey in her wake, like pooh bear, just faster. Her third lap came to an abrupt conclusion: She wanted baby scones.
My friend turned to me with a crooked smile. “You don’t happen to have a quick scone recipe at hand?”
(Pizza)²: Pizza al Cuadrado
I tend to be boastful of my recipes. But I know I good thing when I see it, or in this case taste it. And I can readily admit that Pizza al Cuadrado is fricking amazing, really oodles better than my pizza dough. But hey, they spend all day whirling dough through the air so I guess they should be good. So good in fact that I spent Valentine’s dinner noshing on their signature squared pizza.
Swiss Mont D'Or...bow-chic-a-wow-wow.
This seasonal Swiss cheese is an absolute delight. Containing between 45-50% milk fat, this cow’s milk cheese melts in your mouth. It’s surprisingly green taste, reminiscent of asparagus, is a fresh balance to its creamy texture and makes it pair well with a crisp dry white wine and whole wheat bread. Because of the seasonal production, the cheese is only available between September and May; which means move fast! Only three more months to stash up on Mont D’Or!
©Martina Hemm 2010
Not Paris, not Amsterdam, it's Madrid.
It has been a very long time since I last wrote. Lamentable, yet excusable. You see, I have been busying my body (mostly brain and fingers) to get finish my degree. And ladies and gentlemen: it is done. Fait accompli.
In full celebratory mode I hopped a plane to Spain; a mere two weeks after graduating, and without a return ticket. Brash? In all likeliness, but I am pretty darn happy.
All my giddiness veritably bubbled over when we hit the runway, obliterating my mind of such minor details as an apartment search. Thank heavens I have friends and they have couches.
I thought of channeling my positive energy into The Foreign Kitchen, to share some lovely cheeses I found with you. But my last post was on cheese, and as ancient old as it is, I don’t want to come across as an annoyingly chipper cheese addict all in one paragraph. Nope, one self-deprecatory quality per day will do.
Scrap the cheese, let’s talk about one of my favorite Madrid haunts: Cafe Lolina . read more…
Idiazabal, a ghostly pale sheep's milk cheese from the North of Spain.
Tonight I watched Lourdes from Fiore di Nonno whip some mozzarella into shape. And as I walked home cradling my own little nugget of handmade mozzarella, I realized it’s not really fair. Here I am about to dig into my milky-fresh mozzarella and you have nothing. So be my guest. Feast your eyes on these creamy creations.
You may remember my ode to French Cheese, or my choice cheeses from the Vermont Cheesemaker’s Festival. And perhaps you recall that I was living in Spain last year. If you do not, Madrid’s queseros do. Spain’s cheese industry experienced an unprecedented rise in demand while I was there. What can I say, I have an affinity to cheese.
It's the Olive and Chocolate Cookie, your friend.Usually my kitchen experiments are eagerly met by grubby little hands. This time around the only thing coming my way was a prolonged “uhhhm…” while feet scampered in the other direction. Sure I knew my Olive and Chocolate Cookies wouldn’t be an easy sell, but why the cold shoulder? After all, I had some classic proof to back up my little scheme.
Salted Caramel, Kettle Corn, Pâté with marmalade, even cheese with honey are all savory-sweet pairings that have some seriously good chemistry. What’s more, Kalamata olives are pickled in red wine vinegar, which basically translates to wine in my mind. And I don’t know about you, but wine and chocolate sounds good to me any and all the time. Throw it all into a cookie and you’ve got the holly trinity! (Please smite me later)
Now if you are still a skeptic, listen to the lovely ladies of Bordeaux and Barsac, who know a good pairing when they taste one. Having knocked on the noggins of doubters more than a few times, their claim that wine and chocolate are, in fact, a delightful twosome is finally being heard. Likewise, I hope that one day my Olive and Chocolate Cookies will be appreciated for the munchy morsels they are.
In the meantime, I don’t mind if non-believers keep their hands to themselves. Don’t mind it one bit. This batch of little buggers is all mine.
…and buy this book! Even if you’re not a Foodie, just a good eater, you should get this cookbook – “a collection of profiles and recipes from the best blogs around the world”, including yours truly, The Foreign Kitchen.
Now that I’m done with my shameless self promotion may I add that those were the publisher’s words, not mine. Though it may be hard to fathom, I still haven’t reached such heights of self adoration yet. YET. World domination might change my mind, although I’d like to think I’d be a humble despot.
But I’m getting ahead of myself. This really is a great compilation of recipes, pictures, and stories from around the world. It’s such an example of what I always held to be true: Food is borderless. Understood and loved in every culture, the tastiest food can be a neutral ground for us to see that were more alike than it may seem.
So get your copy of Foodies Of The World (and I promise I will be lenient on you).
Yours,
Martina
with besos from The Foreign Kitchen.
Clover's Chickpea Fritter has many lovers.Clover Food Lab has a problem with lines.
Ever since rolling into Boston in the fall of 2008 , this food truck has been fighting a battle against long lines. In an effort to at least disperse lines across town, Clover now has multiple locations throughout Boston and plans on opening a restaurant in the near future.
But really, there is just not much you can do when your food is that good.
The eclectic yet fully vegetarian menu calls for reflection.
Should it be the chickpea fritters or will I take the plunge for the BBQ Seitan…what is Seitan anyways? And why does everything taste so damn good?
To find out all this and more, I thought it best to ask executive chef Rolando Robledo, a character as multifaceted as his menu.
Catching Robledo between crisis management and gazpacho making, isn’t easy. But this past week I had the chance to sit down with him and find out what drives the hands behind Clover food.
A Tortilla...or is it?
In true spirit of The Foreign Kitchen today you are faced with countries, cultures, and the question of “Isn’t it really all the same?”
Tortillas, Palachinki, Pfannkuchen, Piadina, Crepes, Pancakes, are at the very least brothers from a different mother. Or sister, that’s up to you.
You take flour, water, and fat. Yes fat, ladies and gentleman, it comes in many different forms: lard, oil, eggs. Fat. Perhaps that’s why this generic recipe is universally popular. Or maybe because it is simple, easy and delicious, every country has their take on this recipe.
Although the whole issue of the “pan-pancakeism” brings up another question altogether: Why the hell am I harping on about pancakes?- I have never even made one. An American pancake, that is.
My family has always been a fan of the German pancake – Pfannkuchen. And I’m personally a fan of the unadulterated pancake. Too many concoctions clog the blogosphere. No pretzel n’ peanut pancake, for me. I prefer flour, water, and fat any day.
And today our floury and fatty friend is the Tortilla. Or Mexican pancake as I like to call him.