Happy Birthday Buckaroo
Just when all of you think I’m perfectly sane, I go out and bake a cake for my dog. This is a special day for Rocky, our 2nd born. He is a rescue, and since we don’t know his actual birthday, we celebrate the day we adopted him… two years ago today. He’s been a bit of a problem pooch as he has some slight behavior issues… I refer to him as five pounds of raw aggression. However, once he gets to know you, this little guy doles out big buckets o’ love. That’s how he got the nickname Bucky, but he also answers to Rocky and Stinkster.
This is not just a boring cake, but a savory one flavored with pureed chicken and… yes… that’s real bacon lining the sides. Carrots add sweetness and a nice fleck of color. The frosting is simply yogurt and cottage cheese pureed with a dab of swiss cheese (for extra stinky factor) and cake crumbs to make it stiff enough to be spreadable. The candles were Pupperonis cut in half. Good stuff. I’d almost eat it… ehhhh almost.
Going to the Dogs
When I first started this blog, I really didn’t know what to expect. I figured I’d blog for a little while until I ran out of recipes and/or time. Instead, it has become a part of my everyday life. I find it to be a fabulous creative outlet, and blogging pushes me to think about what I’m making for dinner or dessert. I started out doing mainly dinners, and it has evolved into more desserts and baking, as that is where my true cooking passion lies.
Although my husband is one of the biggest fans of my blog (and food) he is not my most discriminating taste tester. That would be my pooches, Sushi and Rocky. I posted a while ago about one of their regular dinners. They are probably the most spoiled animals on the planet. They get to eat what we eat, minus the un-doggy friendly ingredients, of course. The lucky dogs have even traveled to Germany twice. Although I assume they have no idea they are not in Florida… other than the fact it is cold and my father in law sneaks them German sausage for breakfast.
This is a sweet chocolaty cookie that is only for the dogs. Before you panic about me feeding the dogs chocolate, the ingredients are all natural and are doggy friendly. There is neither sugar nor chocolate in it. Instead it contains honey and carob powder. But shhhhh… don’t tell them, as I think I may have fooled them!
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Sadness…
It’s another sad day in my family… my husband’s grandmother passed away last night. I unfortunately never had the opportunity to meet her. However, I’ve heard so many wonderful stories about her, I feel like I know her. This comes not long after I lost my own grandmother, just a few months ago. I guess as I get older this is bound to happen, but that just doesn’t make it any easier.
Please… hug your loved ones today, and tell them you love them. Life is too short not to.
South Beach Wine & Food Festival
This weekend was the South Beach Wine & Food Festival. Unfortunately, it was the hottest day of the year so far… I think a record high of just shy of 90 degrees. However, even with the extreme heat, I had a absolute blast at the Grand Tasting. I’ve been wanting to go for many years, but have always had scheduling conflicts or the events were sold out. This year we planned early, and bought tickets shortly after they went on sale.
Stephan was concerned that there wouldn’t be enough food and wine for all the people, but definitely changed his mind the minute we stepped into the Grand Tasting Village. Being newbies at this event, we didn’t plan too well, and I was completely stuffed after about 15 minutes. Sheesh! I totally should have paced myself! We were passing one fabulous restaurant after another and I kept saying… OMG! I HAVE to try this! From tiny Kobe chili dogs to tuna tartare to oxtail risotto, there was every type of food imaginable. Unfortunately, I didn’t think of writing down which food was offered by what restaurant… but everything I had was fabulous!
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The World’s Most Expensive Dessert
When I worked as a pastry chef, I was once asked to put an engagement ring in a dessert. It was on top of a chocolate bombe (half-circle) that was then encased in spun sugar. Tooootally fancy pants… and the perfect dessert to use for a romantic proposal. Of course, as it left the kitchen, I had to follow it and peek at the couple and see the proposal. Thank goodness she said yes!
Check out some of these ridiculous desserts I found on the Forbes Traveller website. I’ll take this one with the 4 carat diamond, please! :) Here’s a link to the slideshow.
SoFla Bloggin’
I was interviewed by the Miami Herald about food blogging in South Florida, along with several other local bloggers. The article also mentions some of my favorite MIA bloggers, Mango and Lime and Miami Dish plus I found a few new blogs that I’ve added to my google reader. Check out the article here. Also BIG thank you to my husband Stephan for pushing me to start blogging and taking all those fabulicious images!
This is for You, Grandma
I generally keep this blog for my recipes and random food related thoughts, but today is a very personal one.
Last Thursday, January 17th, was the saddest day I’ve experienced in my 33 years. That was the day my grandma Evelyn passed away. I want to share with all of you how amazing and beautiful my grandma was. She loved to laugh and at 82 years old… still got most of my attempts at humor.
My grandma was a voracious reader, and since I am one too, we started to mail each other books after reading them. I would send her murder mysteries, and she would send me books that were, well, geez…. downright naughty. I found myself blushing while reading some of them thinking “OH.MY.GAH… GRANDMA READ THIS.” :) I finally had to tell her she could just hang on to the romance (aka dirty) ones, as they were not my cup of tea! How embarrassing, right? Of course she just laughed it off!
Grandma was also a wonderful cook of all things Southern. Her cornbread, biscuits, butter beans and turnip greens were specialties that I would always look forward to. My absolute favorite was her cornbread. She had this knack for making amazing cornbread, and her secret was… old buttermilk. She liked it when it was just shy of funky. According to her, the buttermilk needed to be a little (several weeks) past the expiration date to make great cornbread. I also brought home two of her cast iron pans that are the backbone of real southern cornbread. These pans are so beautifully seasoned, I must assume they are older than I am. Unfortunately, I never had her write down the recipe… not that she probably had one anyway. So my next challenge for myself is recreating her cornbread. I already have a container of buttermilk festering away in the back of the fridge, waiting for my challenge!
I ask all of you who still have your grandparents, to give them a call and tell them you love them. They may not be here tomorrow. Also, I must thank my amazing husband, Stephan, for being there for me. You’re my rock, and I have no idea how I would have gotten through the past few days without you.
Grandma, I hope you’re up there eating a big bowl of ice cream and gossiping with Aunt Lizzie. You will always be in my heart and memories.
Ratatouille
OK… who hasn’t seen this delicious movie? Ratatouille is officially my new favorite animated movie, perhaps even my current favorite movie! Confession: I love animated flicks, and have about 20 assorted Disney VHS Tapes that I can’t seem to part with. Funny thing is that we no longer own a VHS player… what’s a girl to do, huh? I’ve been collecting them since high school… and yes, that was many moons ago! Darn the creators of DVD!
Anyway, now that I’ve shared a slightly embarrassing confession, lets dish about the movie. Its about a rat that has a very well developed palate. And he cooks… very well. He teams up with a gawky kid that can’t cook worth a flip and the two of them cook at a famous restaurant in Paris. I don’t want to give away too much, but its a definite must see.
Ode to the In-Laws
We’ve been eating like crazy for the past week… but we’re on vacation, and that’s what you’re supposed to do, right? I’m so lucky that Stephan’s mother and sister are both fabulous cooks. We haven’t gone out to eat much because they have been cooking up a storm. When we were in France last week, I was disappointed to not find Boeuf Bourguignon or something similar on the menu. So my mother-in-law made it! It was fabulous… thank you mom! Then last night, we celebrated the new year at my sister-in-law’s home. She made a fantastic Coq au Vin. I really wish we had some cold spells at home in South Florida to warrant cooking dishes like this!
Thank you for cooking so much while we are here… we really appreciate it!!!
Cheese in Filo Pastry
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That’s One Spicy Meataballa!
Before we left for Germany, we had our annual Holiday Party for Stephan’s photography studio. We decided on Cafe Martarano for some Italian fare. The food there is among the best I’ve had in South Florida, and I’ve eaten at some great restaurants. We’ve eaten there a handful of times, but only for special occasions, as its quite pricey. Cafe Martoranos is known for its loud music, punctuated by loud “whacking scenes” from whatever mob movie or Soproanos episode is playing. Its true Italian in that it is served family style.
We started with the famous meatballs. So good, that Gourmet Magazine has written about these meatballs. Next, we had the giant shrimp scampi, which are the size of small lobsters. Another fantastic choice. Our main courses were both chicken, and my absolutely favorite pasta dish… the white bean and kale with sausage. Amazing, simply amazing. By the time we got our main courses were were all completely full, so most of it came home in a doggy bag. We also forgot to keep taking photos, as we had 3 bottles of wine for 4 people. :p As for dessert… what can I say? We were being gluttons!
Hope everyone has a safe and very happy New Year! See you in 2008!
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