Kitchen Epiphanies

KITCHEN epiphanies

Exploring diverse foodways...

Pulled Pork Vindaloo with Indian Coleslaw on Naan

This Pulled Pork Vindaloo with Indian Coleslaw on Naan combines the pulled pork preparation of America’s South with the flavors of Goa, an Indian state located along the west coast on the shore of the Arabian Sea. Recently I hankered for pulled pork, a dish I hadn’t prepared in a long time.  As I fantasized …

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Turkish pide — Variations on a Theme

My inspiration for blog topics often comes from unusual origins.  The idea for preparing this Turkish flatbread —pide (pronounced “pea-day” in Turkish) — was born in an airport business lounge.   Over the years, I’ve traveled to Istanbul dozens of times and enjoyed pide throughout Turkey in various forms, but I never considered baking pide until …

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Italian Oxtail Stew – Coda alla vaccinara

Curiosity often drives what I cook and this Italian Oxtail Stew post arose from my preoccupation with learning how to prepare unusual meats. Watching Andrew Zimmern eat off-cuts and internal organs, or “variety meats” as they are euphemistically called in America, for years touting them as delicious has repeatedly piqued my curiosity and presents me …

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Starlight Sugar Crisps

I always looked forward to my mother-in-law Solie Johnson’s visits to Chicago, usually in early February for our daughter Sophia’s birthday.  Solie would arrive with a suitcase laden with Weldon’s favorite cookies and lefse, a Norwegian potato flatbread.  Her presence was a blessing. It meant that for the time of her visit, Weldon and I …

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Savory Rye Crackers – Plain and Smørrebrød

With the holiday season fast approaching, I am determined to ease the stress of entertaining family and friends.  As I was preparing for my annual holiday cookie baking, it occurred to me that I should experiment with savory rye crackers, which can be baked ahead like cookies and which can be a base for hors-d’oeuvres …

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Cranberry Cream Tart

I created this Cranberry Cream Tart to highlight cranberries, an underutilized fruit which plays a secondary role to savory dishes and rarely in desserts.  Since learning about the importance of wild cranberries to the diet of Native Americans in my third-grade lesson on the first Thanksgiving and their use by Pilgrims as a ubiquitous condiment, …

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Grape Focaccia – Savory and Sweet Versatility

This grape focaccia was inspired by crates of deep purple, vibrant green and ruby red grapes which caught my eye at the farmers’ market in September, a welcome sign of approaching autumn after a blistering summer.  In the early morning light, the glistening grapes еstablished a gorgeous image highlighting nature’s abundance.  It was impossible to …

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Malaysian Chicken Curry Kapitan with Roti Jala

This Chicken Curry Kapitan is a product of centuries of migration to, and colonization of, the Malay Peninsula by Indians, Chinese, Portuguese, Dutch and British and is an inspired adaptation by Malay cooks.  I first encountered this curry near Phuket, Thailand on the Malay Peninsula close to the border with Malaysia, a region where a …

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Revitalizing Ukrainian Cooking with Masterchef Evgeniy Klopotenko

The most interesting experiences often arise from serendipity.  I recently shared a kitchen and an evening of Ukrainian cooking with 31-year-old Evgeniy (Zhenia) Klopotenko, winner of the 2015 Ukraine’s Masterchef contest, a graduate of Paris’s Le Cordon Bleu culinary school, a Ukrainian TV personality and producer of jams and marmalades. Young Zhenia is a trained …

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Peruvian Causa – Colorful and spicy mashed potato starters with chicken or shrimp

l never thought of eating cold mashed potatoes flavored with various citrus juices and hot peppers as a salad or appetizer until I discovered la causa rellena (literally translated as “the stuffed cause”) in Cusco, Peru’s imperial city high in the Andes Mountains. Until I traveled in Peru, I was dismissive of leftover mashed potatoes.  I …

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