The ossobuco is a truly scrumptious and deliciously historical dish from Italy. It's not a fast-to-make dinner, but there are good chances that once you make it exactly how it should be prepared, respecting all the steps etc you won't want to have beef any other way. Yes, that includes the comfy burgers. At least that's how I feel after eating it. It's precisely its "slow cook" technique that allows all the flavors to get very friendly with each-other and to mature together into a final harmony that will blow your mind.
When accompanied by a side of risotto alla milanese (with saffron), the ossobuco becomes a glorious Ossobuco alla milanese (what I did here). So, besides the butter-like soft meat and the flavorful roast vegetable bed, the dish contains a golden risotto serving and it's generously sprinkled with gremolata (a raw combination of garlic, parsley, lemon zest). Your taste buds will go mad with joy.
The special ossobuco meat cuts play an important role in the final flavor (because of the large quantity of marrow), so don't even think about replacing them with regular beef pieces. Trust me, it will be worth the extra effort to gather all the precise ingredients. :)
P.S: It goes perfectly with a sweet red wine. :)
Recipe source and guidance: the lovely Kiss the Cook.
Last year: nothing
Two years ago: nothing
Three years ago: nothing
Four years ago: Potage de garbanzos con chorizo (Spanish).
Five years ago: Turkish baklava.
Six years ago: Endive and apple salad with poppy seed vinaigrette (raw vegan).
Seven years ago: Dagaiku imo (Japanese sweet potatoes with honey and sesame) (vegan).
Eight years ago: Winter wheat berries soup with capers (vegan) and Endive and bacon pasta.
The "fajita" term initially referred to the cut of meat (beef) used to make this dish. It later evolved to signify the dish itself, consisting of all kinds of meat (not just beef) served on a taco/tortilla with bell peppers and a choice of various sauces like sour cream, guacamole, pico de gallo and other Mexican favorites.
At first it was only known to some cowboy's families, as they were being paid with this particular cut of meat which was deemed unpopular otherwise, but it boomed to mainstream popularity once the "Fajita King" (Sonny Falcon) started to commercially sell them at an outdoor stand in Texas, 1969.
It's one of the simplest Mexican dishes to make at home that provide you with a complete and delicious meal with a minimum of effort. Here I used turkey meat with its traditional counterparts: corn, bell peppers, cream, garlic and fiery Tabasco sauce. I wrapped the whole thing in wheat tortillas and it was done and ready to be devoured. Perfect for a Mexican-style dinner/afternoon/fiesta etc.
Last year: nothing
Two years ago: nothing
Three years ago: nothing
Four years ago: Simple yogurt muffins.
Five years ago: Strawberry and poppy seed four layer cake.
Six years ago: Kohlbrot mit wurstchen (German cabbage and sausage bread).
Seven years ago: Mini cheesecakes in ramekins, with honey and lime.
Eight years ago: Easy Spanish tapas (with deli meats) and Kolokitho Keftedes (Greek zucchini fritters) with tzatziki sauce.
Honey mushrooms are a very popular food item in the Romanian cuisine. Each spring people actually go in the forests to pick them (even your average Joe who's not in the mushroom picking business and wouldn't risk picking any other kinds of mushrooms for fear he doesn't know them too well) and large packs of these mushrooms are also frozen for the winter months.
To cut a long story short, this mushroom is consumed a lot and in various dishes: as a vegetarian alternative filling for sarmale (stuffed grape leaves, usually made with a meat-based filling), as a main component in earthy stews, stove-made or baked, stuffed with breadcrumbs and cheese or simply cooked with onions and garlic and served with a little cream, like here.
The key to obtaining something delicious from these mushrooms is cooking them long enough to melt away any potential chewy textures. Once that stage is reached, they become super-soft and buttery, unlike any mushroom you've tasted before. Enjoy.
Last year: Home-made garam masala (Indian spice mix).
Two years ago: nothing.
Three years ago: nothing.
Four years ago: nothing.
Five years ago: Peanut butter and bacon sandwich (American).
Six years ago: Breakfast pizza with bacon and egg.
Seven years ago: Dukkah-coated turkey wraps.
Eight years ago: Sweet pumpkin strips, pan-fried, with honey (vegan) and Simple wellness salad with potatoes, apple, feta and egg.
If you're from the Western world, you will be attempted to say "but this isn't a brownie" as soon as you see the recipe for these (one of the first things that might surprise you is that they don't actually contain any chocolate). Well, it was the closest thing Romanian households could afford to make during communist and early post-communist times, and the recipe caught on in its current form.
Sure, after the regime fell, especially in recent years, American-style brownies started stealing the scene in Romanian kitchens as well, but these cake squares right here are still associated with the childhood memories of many young people who grew up then (and in the immediate ten-year aftermath).
Anyway, to return to the recipe itself, it's lighter and less rich tasting than classic brownie recipes, and also more fluffy (leavened by a little baking powder and by beating the egg whites separately). After baking, a thick cocoa syrup is used to glaze the cake before cutting it into squares. Sometimes, it's also decorated with coconut flakes. Enjoy.
Last year: Mixed bean salad with pumpkin seed oil.
Two years ago: nothing
Three years ago: nothing
Four years ago: nothing
Five years ago: Orange and wine infused chickpea and mushroom stew (vegan).
Six years ago: New York-style pizza crust (puffy and thin) (vegan).
Seven years ago: Dukkah (Egyptian and generally Middle Eastern) (vegan).
Eight years ago: Simple chicken stock and Chicken risotto with bell pepper.
