March 2011

A Buttercream Fail (but a Pistachio Cake Win!)

March 29, 2011

A friend sent me a package of matcha powder in the mail. I’d never even heard of matcha powder before — Japanese green tea that’s been milled into a fine powder — but now that I had some in my possession, I was determined to figure out the best use for it. So I surfed [...]

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Seaweed Bread (Pain aux Algues) . . . again

March 27, 2011

We needed some bread after we returned home from property hunting in Queenstown — and successful property hunting, I might add! The photo below will hopefully turn out to be the view from our front windows if all the paperwork and legal hurdles pass without a hitch: The hills are alive with the sound of [...]

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Impressions of Queenstown: #1

March 22, 2011

A morning view of Lake Wakatipu from the deck of the room where we’re staying at the Azur Lodge in Queenstown: And a different view in the bright, sunny afternoon, with The Earnslaw vintage steamer ship (dubbed Queenstown’s “Lady of the Lake”) chugging into the distance: A detail shot of a stone and wire fence [...]

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Celebration: What the BF Wants

March 19, 2011

Yesterday was the BF’s birthday, so we had a meal of some of his favorite things, like: 1.) A buttery New Zealand raised Wagyu steak, cooked rare: 2.) A creamy, cheesy potato & leek gratin modified from a recipe by Melissa Clark: Ingredients: sliced gold yukon potatoes, sliced leeks, chopped mushrooms, diced mild cacciatore sausage, [...]

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Mandy Aftel & Liz Zorn: Letters to a Fellow Perfumer (ep. 1)

March 16, 2011

*NOTE: This is the first installment of a new “Letters to a Fellow Perfumer” series that will follow a conversation and collaboration between West Coast all-natural luxury perfumer and specialty culinary consultant Mandy Aftel (Aftelier) and independent Cincinnati-based musician, painter and olfactory artist Liz Zorn (Liz Zorn Perfumes). February 18, 2011 / Berkeley, CA Dear [...]

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Popovers: The Ongoing Saga

March 14, 2011

I somehow got it into my head that popovers were light, airy versions of the classic dinner roll, when in reality, they’re kissin’ cousins to the old Yorkshire Pudding — a kind of eggy, custardy, puffy souffle of a bready side dish. Reaching for the moment of truth So I mistakenly thought my popovers were [...]

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A Culinary Week in Review: From Venison Rump to Plum Cake to Ham Hock Soup

March 13, 2011

March 5th, 2011 (Saturday) Beef scotch roast with carrots & leeks: It melts in your mouth (and not on your plate) The one easy thing about cooking beef and lamb is that I don’t have to worry so much about it being undercooked. The redder the meat, the better, so I (thankfully) don’t have to [...]

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Bait and Switcheroo: Lime Marmalade Cake with pears and sultanas

March 9, 2011

Yes, it’s a Nigel Slater day again, but how can I help it? If there’s one thing that Slater knows how to do, it’s craft a home-chef friendly recipe in the rustic style I so love and adore (and devour). Take his Wholemeal Apple and Marmalade Cake: wholemeal, apple, marmalade, cake – four words that, [...]

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Mandy Aftel & Andy Tauer: Letters to a Fellow Perfumer (ep. 11)

March 8, 2011

Zurich, March 3, 2011 (A farewell to fire tree) Dear Mandy, How are you? This last month was so intense and passing by so fast that I did not find time to write a longer letter to you. One reason for this was my trip to Russia which was just lovely. There, in the eastern [...]

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A “Nathanized” Brownie for My Very 21st Century

March 4, 2011

My sister sent me a Facebook message yesterday, with an old family recipe that she wanted me to tweak: “Here’s a challenge for you – I’m going to give you Aunt Mehta’s brownie recipe. Do you think you can “Nathanize” it? . . . Really, I would love to bump the quality of this up [...]

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