Tag: food

The Traveling Pan

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Magnolia Tree

This past week our stateside cooking adventure took us to Mississippi. While we were researching recipes it became very clear that two dishes are synonymous with the Magnolia State – catfish and Mississippi Mud Pie. It also happens that I need a dessert to take downstate to a family get together this weekend.

My family has a traveling 9″x13″ pan that always carries my favorite dessert when it makes its way up to this part of the state – my Grandma’s Blackberry Cobbler. Then when we head south, my mom whips up a chocolate dessert to take back in the pan. It just so happened that this time, the pan was at my house, giving us the perfect opportunity to try the Mississippi Mud Cake (similar to the pie, but suitable to this size baking dish).

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I’m not big on baking cakes and especially cakes that involve icing; but there are two things I love about this recipe: 1) It’s easy. 2) It’s supposed to look like mud. I figured that the kids and I could tackle this one. We chose Paula Deen’s recipe because she too is synonymous with the south. Continue reading →

Virtually Party Bound

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Today was one of those days that we were all going in different directions, and mom and dad both had a bit of work stress. That’s why I was so grateful for the fun distraction. One of my favorite bloggers, Laura at Manna & Quail, is hosting a virtual dinner party on Friday night. As we’re always up for a good party, we didn’t want to pass this one up. The party’s theme is spring, and it just so happened we were planning to make one of our favorite spring/summer recipes tonight. It’s a healthy, quick and flavorful veggie dish – Portobello Pizzaiola.

We started with these fresh ingredients:

chopped yellow peppers, red peppers, a red onion and Portobello mushrooms. We also chose a petite harvest grain loaf and a petite ciabatta square, but any fresh artisan bread will work. Continue reading →

Welcoming Spring Russian Style

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Miss A is our tour guide for the next two weeks and she’s taking us to the largest country in the world (and the largest pink country on her globe) – Russia. While there are Russian recipes a-plenty from which to choose,  today we picked a traditional dish to commemorate the start of spring (and one that was sure to please Mr. N and Miss A) – Blini.

Blini is a yeast-leavened, buckwheat pancake traditionally eaten during Shrovetide, an ancient Russian festival celebrating the beginning of spring and the god Volos. Today Blini is served anytime of the year, but is especially common at holiday celebrations. Continue reading →

Dishin’ Up Some Good Ole Southern Comfort

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After our first weekend of amazing summer-like weather we found our schedule full-up with activities (and an unforeseen event – get better quickly Nana!). Given our wacky schedule we opted to cook-up our weekly stateside meal today, and start sampling new recipes from our next international destination later in the week. The unseasonably humid and warm temperatures reminded us of the South, so today we sampled some traditional cuisine from Mississippi – Buttermilk Biscuits and Crispy Fried Catfish.

We began with the biscuits. It’s a quick and easy recipe. The dry ingredients are combined first, then the shortening and butter are cut in, followed by the buttermilk. Once the dough was formed, we transferred it to a floured surface and began to press it out. Continue reading →

More Deliciousness from New Zealand

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As promised, we have one more delicious recipe from New Zealand. I think that to-date this has been my favorite cooking destination on this adventure and I know that many of these recipes will become part of our regular rotation. Earlier this week, Mr. N and I baked up these little gems – ANZAC Biscuits.

They are a traditional treat from both Australia and New Zealand and were often sent to soldiers in the Great War; thus the name Australian and New Zealand Army Corp or ANZAC biscuits. The traditional recipe is easy to make and the biscuits last for weeks without perishing. Continue reading →

Taste of the Green Mountain State

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Maple syrup, apples, cheese and Ben & Jerry’s all come to mind when we think of Vermont. We had the pleasure of vacationing in the Green Mountain State several years back and it was one of the highlights of our New England and Canadian road trip. One of the many things we learned about Vermont was that not only is it known for the yummy foods listed above, but it’s also a great dining destination for foodies. Vermont is fairly well-advanced when it comes to sustainable, organic and local farm to restaurant cooperatives. One of our favorites was the Three Tomatoes Trattoria in Burlington – delicious!

Tonight, however, we opted to stick with some down-home, traditional recipes from the Dakin Farm including Apple Cheddar Muffins and (mom if you’re reading this, sit down) an Upside Down Ham Loaf. I am not a fan of meatloaf, to which my mom can attest, but this recipe sounded more appealing than most – especially after we adapted it a bit. Continue reading →