This month’s dish to try came about from Amir’s suggestion. We would take a trip to Sweden through food. We’ve featured one Swedish delicacy here before. Perhaps you remember the kroppkakor? They were potato dumplings stuffed with meat and onions and served with a cream sauce. The name may have been hard to say, but they were not hard to eat. That being said, it was decided to try something else that would be brand new to us. It involved pickling, and it’s not just vegetables that were on the table.

Pickled herring. Pickled herring was our final destination. I’ve never had pickled herring, but Amir enjoys it. We figured it would be a simple creation, and with a dish on the side, it would make a complete meal. Finding the herring itself was not too difficult. Amir grabbed salted herring filets from Olson’s Scandinavian Delicatessen one day after work, and he actually set about pickling it the same night. Now, you may be wondering, what do we know about pickling herring? We had to consult the online guidance of those well-versed in Swedish cuisine, one of them being Marcus Samuelsson. As we looked around for the best way to go about it, one of his recipes for an appropriate side dish came up on the “official gateway” site to Sweden. Our version of the pickled herring comes from a Scandanavian food site based on a television show. Both of these recipes felt like quite the authentic and trustworthy sources, so we went with it all the way.

When most people think about Swedish food, perhaps they imagine a full smorgasbord, or buffet, of food to make a huge meal. Herring–pickled or fried–is most often available for the first round, followed by many types of breads, cheese, butter, cold meats, hot foods, and perhaps dessert to round out the entire affair. The Christmas smorgasbord, known as the julbord, is even bigger with a wider array of foods. Although the regional foods of Sweden may vary based on location and worldly influences, pickled herring is one of the ubiquitous classics. It is usually eaten with bread or crackers, sour cream and potatoes or served on a plate with an assortment of spreads, dark breads, cheeses and butter. Homemade recipes may vary slightly, but the love for pickled herring is all the same.

Red and tangy sumac colors the onions and adds flavor.

With the herring already sitting in brine, it was just a matter of tossing together the salad. It is a no fuss salad that is much easier to prepare than the original recipe makes it seem. You can do it all in one pot. The sumac, dill and lemon are the three ingredients that give the salad all of its flavor. Sumac has such a tangy, acidic bite that is uniquely its own. It’s not an ingredient that we expected to find in a Swedish recipe, which is one thing that stands out for sure with this salad. You can find it in almost any Mediterranean or Middle Eastern market. If you find yourself wondering what to do with the leftovers, use it to season kabobs, sprinkle over dips and spreads and stir into rice dishes. Don’t let it go to waste!

Now what happened upon first taste of our dishes. Well to be honest, I realized that pickled herring was an acquired taste that I had yet to acquire. Amir loved it. As you can see, we do not always agree. If you have an appreciation for pickled fish, then this herring would be right up your alley. We did come to a similar opinion on the salad, though, which had a nice bite from the dill and sumac. As always, our kitchen trials prove to be interesting attempts to broaden our minds to all of the foods that find themselves on plates around the world. Now we can cross a few Swedish dishes off our list.

Glassmestersild (Pickled Herring) – Serves 6 to 8 (Adapted from News Can Cook)
2 pounds salted herring fillets
4 cups milk
4 tablespoons sugar
2 1/2 cups water
6 tablespoons white vinegar
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup pastry flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon white pepper
1/2 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 carrot, thinly sliced
1 star anise
12 whole black peppercorns
10 whole cloves
4 bay leaves

1. Lay herring fillets flat in a 9″ x 13″ glass baking dish. Pour milk over fillets, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight. (This helps draw out the salt; skip this step if using fresh herring).

2. In a medium saucepan, bring water to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in sugar and vinegar until fully combined. Let cool for at least 10 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, whisk together both flours, salt and pepper in a medium mixing bowl. Set aside. Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium-heat, and the butter to the pan. When butter is completely melted and begins to brown, cover both sides of three fillets with the flour mixtures and fry each side until golden brown, about 4 minutes on each side. Remove from pan and let rest on paper towels. Then, rinse the remaining three fillets under cool water.

4. Cut fillets–fried and rinsed–into thirds. Divide the fillets between two 16 ounce mason jars, putting the fried fillet pieces into one, and the non-fried ones into another. Divide the remaining ingredients between the two jars, putting half of each ingredient in each one. Divide half of the water mixture into each jar. Cover and refrigerate overnight or up to 4 days.

Bean and Potato Salad – Serves 6 (Adapted from Marcus Samuelsson)
1/4 cup olive oil, divided
1 large yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, sliced
3 tablespoons ground sumac, plus more for garnish
2 large white potatoes, cubed and boiled
14 ounces white beans, drained
3 scallions, chopped
4 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped, plus more for garnish
Juice of 1 lemon
Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste

1. Heat the olive over a medium flame. Once hot, add the onion and garlic and cook until softened, approximately 3-5 minutes. Sprinkle the sumac over the onions and garlic.

2. Add the potatoes and white beans, tossing to mix everything well. Cook for another 2-3 minutes or until everything is warm.

3. Stir in the scallions, dill and lemon juice. Season the salad to taste with salt and pepper, then transfer to a serving dish. Season with additional sumac and dill if desired.

Click HERE for printable recipes.

Last month, we were invited to take part in the Fiery Foods Challenge at the annual LA Travel and Adventure Show. Each year, thousands pack the Long Beach Convention Center to learn more about various travel destinations around the globe. While they’re there, folks sample foreign foods and beverages while enjoying entertainment from notable guest speakers, watching cultural performances of music and dance from just about every region of the world, and collecting more than enough travel brochures to plan the perfect vacation. This year’s show featured two Travel Channel hosts, Andrew Zimmern and Samantha Brown. There was even a rock climbing wall, zip line, and water activities for guests to try throughout the weekend of festivities. As you know, food and travel go hand in hand, so it only made sense that the Fiery Food Challenge would rock the stage during the show.

The travel show’s Culinary Stage is where I come in. Sadly, Chrystal was not able to attend, so it was just me this time around. The stage featured several live demonstrations to showcase all the unique flavors represented at the whole event, and it would be the location of the friendly cooking competition.

Amir getting the samples ready backstage.

The Culinary Stage is set, and my cooking demo has just begun.

I was one of the four local chefs and cooking aficionados to prepare a spicy recipe that represented a specific destination present at the travel show. My assigned place was Tenaya Lodge in Yosemite National Park. I was tasked not only to share a recipe selected by Tenaya with a live audience, but I also had to prepare 125 individual samples of the dish for audience members to sample after the cooking demo. Yep, 125.

Tenaya has such a robust culinary scene, offering a variety of foods from a selection of several eateries at the resort. The recipe they gave me was an original creation from their Executive Chef Frederick B. Clabaugh– Spicy Tequila Marinated Prawns. I was honored to be given the opportunity to represent him, his recipe, the Tenaya Lodge, and the Yosemite and Mariposa County Tourism Bureau. With a lot of prep work and planning the night before, I was able to get the samples completed without a hitch. In fact, to my surprise, I had a few extra ones that I was able to share with everyone backstage.

TV personality and food author, Mark DeCarlo, MC'ed the challenge and made a great assistant in the kitchen.

There are four main components to this dish. First, of course, was the tequila marinated shrimp. These little guys are soaked in a spicy tequila-lime bath before a final heating on the grill. Then, they are placed on top of a sweet corn pancake and topped with roasted red and yellow bell peppers. The whole thing is brought together with a simple cilantro-lime butter sauce. For the sake of the demo, I made them into an amuse bouche by cutting small sections of the corn cake out with the top of a shot glass. I thought it was the perfect serving size for the occasion. Chef Fredrick’s creation was so creative, simple, and tasty, it was only appropriate to share the recipe here. The corn cake adds a wonderful amount of sweetness to balance out the heat from the shrimp. The peppers also bring in a nice touch of additional sweetness, while the buttery sauce rounded the whole thing out with an added zesty punch of flavor.

The shrimp recipe was picked "Most Unique" by the audience!

Posing with SriAdriani 'Jenny' Martono from the Indonesia Tourism Board, Chef Tracey Augustine of Cashmere Bites, and host Mark DeCarlo.

Chrystal and I have done a cooking demonstration in the past, but this was my first time flying solo. I admit that I was nervous leading up to the event, but when it was all said and done, everything really did go off without a hitch. Everyone was a winner at the end of the challenge, as each cook was awarded a special title that was decided by the audience. Hopefully, Chrystal will be able to join me next year. Even better, hopefully she and I can make it up to Tenaya to thank Chef Fredrick in person and experience all the delights Yosemite has to offer. In the meantime, we’ll make sure to include this appetizer at our next meal gathering.

Spicy Tequila Marinated Prawns – Makes 18 individual servings (recipe courtesy of Fredrick Clabaugh)
18 raw prawns, peeled and deveined
1 yellow bell pepper
1 red bell pepper

Tequila marinade
1 cup tequila
2 tablespoons siracha
4 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped
Juice of 2 limes
Salt and black pepper, to taste

Sauce
1⁄2 tablespoon butter
1 shallot, minced
Juice from 2 limes
1 750 mL bottle white wine
2/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

Corn cakes
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons cornmeal
1 egg
1 tablespoon fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
2 jalapeño peppers, seeded and diced
1 tablespoon green onion, chopped
1 ear fresh corn, peeled and cut from the cob
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup milk

1. In a pre-heated oven at 425 degrees, place bell peppers on a parchment lined baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and roast in the oven for about 18 minutes, or until blackened and charred on all sides. Place in a lidded, ceramic or glass dish, cover, and let sit for an additional 10 minutes, or until cooled to touch. Remove outer layer with your fingers, gently peeling way the thin skin. Remove stem and seeds and chop into thin strips. Set aside.

2. Meanwhile, combine all the ingredients for the marinate in a large glass or plastic mixing bowl. Add shrimp, cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 15-20 minutes.

3. While the shrimp marinates, make the sauce. Heat half of a tablespoon butter a saucepan over medium-high heat. Sauté shallots and until become soft, about 4 minutes. Add lime juice and wine, and let reduced by 3/4ths. It will be a thick syrup. Stir in butter cubes very slowly, continually string until all are incorporated. Mix in cilantro and salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat and set aside.

4. Make the corn cakes. Heat an electric griddle to medium, or 325 degrees, or heat a large, flat pan over medium-high heat. Mix together all the ingredients for the corn cakes in a medium mixing bowl. Stir until just until wet and dry ingredients are well combined. The mixture will resemble a pancake batter. Ladle 1/4 cup of batter into the pan and cook until golden brown on both sides, about 1-3 minutes on each side, and cooked throughout. Remove from pan and let cool to touch. Using the top of a shot glass, cut out 1-2 inch circles out of each pancake. Set pancake circles aside.

5. Immediately prior to serving, grill prawns for 3-4 minutes on each side. To assemble each serving, place one prawn onto of one pancake circle. Top with a few strips of roasted pepper and drizzle sauce over the whole thing. Enjoy warm.

Click HERE for the printable recipe.

There were four eggplant just sitting, waiting, to be used. But how? At least three hours of research and thought went into the process of figuring out something fun to do with them. Eggplant parmigiana would’ve been great, but the idea of fried, cheesey eggplant felt too heavy for the occasion. A salad would’ve been nice, but a few ingredients were missing. Eggplant is great as the main star of a stir fry, but for some reason, that didn’t quite measure up either. Sometimes you spend so much time trying to go overboard when simple is all you really need. We’ve found that happen to us many times, and it’s nice to pull back and just let the natural flavors of the star player do their thing. That’s how those four eggplants ended up taking a ride in a food processor for one of the easiest dips you’ll ever make.

Baba Ghanoush may have several spellings, but it’s preparation is pretty much always the same. It’s a blend of softened eggplant, tahini, olive oil, lemon juice and salt. Anything else you add is your special touch. There are usually two points of contention with baba ghanoush. The first revolves around the eggplant. Many people will tell you, even the nice folks at a local Middle Eastern restaurant, will probably tell you that the roasty toasty flavor of the dip comes from the eggplants. You can cook them over a grill for the best flavor, or you can try this broil then bake method. Second, there’s the tahini. Tahini–roasted sesame seed paste–is surely optional, but it does add that seedy, rich umami note that really sings in this dip. Instead of using tahini though, this recipe utilizes sesame oil, in conjunction with olive oil, to bring out those flavors.

You can dress it up as you like, and for this version, smoked paprika adds an aromatic, oakey earthiness to each scoop. Cayenne would be nice too. Baba Ghanoush is great with crackers, bread or vegetables. It also can serve as a perfect spread for sandwiches. The  key is to keep it simple. You can’t go wrong.

Baba Ghanoush (Middle Eastern Eggplant Dip) – Serves 4
4 medium Italian eggplants
3 cloves garlic, unpeeled
Zest of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/8 – 1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley
Smoked paprika

1. Place the eggplants on a baking sheet and slide under a preheated oven broiler set to high for 5-7 minutes, turning the eggplants over every minute or so to ensure all four sides are blackened. Remove from the oven and turn off the boiler. Set the oven to 400 degrees.

2. Wrap the garlic cloves in a small piece of aluminum foil and place them on the baking sheet with the eggplants. Put the baking sheet back into the oven and roast the eggplant and garlic for 30-35 minutes or until soft. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

3. Once the eggplant and garlic are cool enough to touch, peel the skin off the eggplants and place the meat in the bowl of a food processor. Squeeze the roasted garlic cloves out of their skins and put them in the food processor as well. Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, salt and sesame oil. Secure the lid on the food processor, turn on the machine and drizzle in the first 1/8 cup of olive oil until just combined. Add up to another 1/4 cup of olive oil based on your preference.

4. Scrape the mixture into a serving bowl and top with the parsley and a sprinkling of smoked paprika. Pair the dip with your favorite crackers, bread or vegetables. If desired, cover and chill for a couple of hours to allow the flavors to build.

Click HERE for the printable recipe.

We haven’t done a pizza in a while. Why not go all the way and do pizza according to Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois? Their newest book, Artisan Pizza and Flatbread in Five Minutes a Day, ended up in our hands during last year’s Foodbuzz Blogger Festival in San Francisco. The book is an in depth explanation of various doughs and toppings, as well as fully detailed preparation and cooking methods, to help you make artisan-style pizza in minutes. Five minutes, to be exact. The base notion of this book is in line with one of the cooking rules we believe in, and that is the fact that not every homemade dish has to take up your entire day. Homemade pizza dough can be all your’s, and once you give it a whirl, you’ll find that your fives minutes will be well spent.

Does your favorite pizza crust crackle and crumble with each bite? Or does it fold and soften with a chewy pull? Some people like it thick and buttery, while others can appreciate the thin fired crust. We’ve made a few basic pizza doughs, and usually our’s will fall into that chewy category. There’s no wood burning brick oven in our respective backyards, and believe it or not, neither one of us has a pizza stone or peel. We’re in the same pool with the average person who just wants to make pizza at home instead of calling for takeout.

Freshly made dough sitting in the mixer

Here's the dough after rising overnight

Luckily for us, Jeff and Zoe’s book is still applicable for the everyday pizza maker. They do offer great breakdowns on the types of flours, sweeteners, leavening agents, oils and toppings, as well as the water, that all go into the making of a great pizza. It’s the perfect set up to learn the basic foundations of pizza. A discussion of flour included explanations about all-purpose, bread, semolina, spelt, cake and gluten-free flours, as well as the hard to find (at least here in the States) Italian Caputo “00″ flour. The latter is the flour used to create the Neapolitan pizza crust, which is crispy and tender. If you can’t get your hands on that flour, you can use the book’s recipe that combines all-purpose and cake flour to achieve the tender crust.

Mozzarella, cream sauce and spinach ready for the oven

Softened peppers and hard salami resting under goat cheese

With book in hand, it was pizza time. There are a number of delicious recipes that include flatbreads, soups, dips and even dessert pizzas. The Ultimate Tender Neopolitan Pizza Crust served as the base for two very different pizzas. The dough literally took just a few minutes, and can supposedly be used immediately, but it is naturally a very sticky mess. It’s best if you give the dough time to rest in the fridge, so it is easier to form in your hands. This dough actually rested overnight, but it was still a bit sticky. A well floured work surface will do you good. Also note that the pizza recipe is supposed to make four thin pizzas, but for the purpose of this post, the batch of dough was split into two pieces. This created thicker pizzas. A variation of the White Pizza with Spinach was on the menu, in addition to a Salami and Goat Cheese pizza. Both were served at a friend’s movie night, and they were gobbled up quickly.

Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois would love for one of you to grab a copy of their book, so here is your chance to nab a giveaway. Here’s how you can win:

Leave a comment on this post with your favorite pizza combination.

Leave a comment on our blog for each of your entry methods. All entries must be submitted by Wednesday, February 15th at 11:59 pm pst. Be sure to include your contact information. Entrants must reside in the contiguous United States.

Ultimate Tender Neopolitan Pizza Crust – Makes 4 – 1/2 pound 12″ pizzas (Adapted from Artisan Pizza and Flatbread in Five Minutes a Day)
1 1/2 cups plus 1/8 cup water, warmed to 120-130 degrees
1/2 tablespoon yeast
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups cake flour

1. Pour the water, yeast, salt and sugar into the bowl of an electric mixer equipped with a paddle attachment.* Give the mixture a slight stir and allow to sit for 3-5 minutes.

2. In a separate bowl, whisk the two flours together until combined. Carefully pour the flours into the liquid and mix until combined. Remove the bowl from the stand, cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rise for two hours or until doubled in size.

3. Divide the dough into six pieces, and use them right away if desired. Otherwise, use what you need, wrap the remaining dough balls in plastic wrap, then foil and keep them in the fridge or freezer if necessary. Use the dough within two weeks. If frozen, allow to thaw overnight before using.

*You can also make this dough in a bowl. Just mix the ingredients with a large, study spoon.

White Pizza with Spinach – Serves 8 (Adapted from Artisan Pizza and Flatbread in Five Minutes a Day)
Ultimate Tender Neopolitan Pizza Crust (recipe above)
2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons flour
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
2 cups heavy cream
2 cloves garlic, sliced
Zest of 1 lemon
Pinch of ground nutmeg
1/2 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon olive oil
6 ounces spinach leaves
Cornmeal, for dusting the pan
1/3 cup ricotta cheese
8 ounces fresh mozzarella, sliced 1/2″ thick

1. Melt the butter in a medium pot over medium heat. Once melted, add the flour and salt, whisking continuously for 1-2 minutes. Add the heavy cream and garlic, reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for another 2-3 minutes or until the cream begins to thicken. If the cream begins to boil, reduce the heat once more. Remove from heat, and stir in the lemon zest, nutmeg and cheese. Cool completely.

2. Heat the olive oil in a wide pan over medium low heat. Once hot, add the spinach and cook for 30-45 seconds, stirring often, just until the leaves wilt. Remove from heat and set aside. Once cool, drain and squeeze out any moisture.

3. Dust a baking sheet or pizza stone with a bit of cornmeal. Spread the dough out to a radius of 12″ and set on the sheet or stone. Top with the cream sauce, and dot the ricotta on top. Spread the spinach around followed by the mozzarella cheese. Bake in an oven preheated to 450 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until the crust begins to brown along the edges.

Salami and Goat Cheese Pizza – Serves 8
Ultimate Tender Neopolitan Crust (recipe above)
8 ounces diced tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1/4 cup fresh parsley
1/8 cup chopped yellow onion
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Cornmeal, for dusting the pan
1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 large green bell pepper, thinly sliced
4 ounces Italian salami, thinly sliced
2 ounces goat cheese

1. Pour the diced tomatoes, garlic, parsley, onion, red pepper flakes, basil, oregano, balsamic vinegar and salt into the bowl of a food processor. Blend for 1-2 minutes. Pour the mixture into a medium sauce pan with 1 tablespoon olive oil, cover and cook for 15 minutes over low heat. Remove the lid and continue cooking for another 10-15 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat and cool completely.

2. Heat the remaining olive oil in a shallow pan over medium heat. Once warm, add the onions and peppers and cook until just softened but not browned, approximately 3-5 minutes. Set aside until cool to the touch.

3. Dust a baking sheet or pizza stone with a bit of cornmeal. Spread the dough out to a radius of 12″ and set on the sheet or stone. Top with the salami, onions and peppers and dot the goat cheese on top. Bake on the bottom rack of an oven preheated to 450 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until the crust browns along the edges.

Click HERE for printable recipes.

Just last year, I had the opportunity to meet both of the lovely ladies behind UrbanSwankBlog.com during the 2011 International Food Blogger Conference. They are food fanatics based in Houston, Texas who have asked us to send along a guest post for the month of February. Amir decided to share a dish inspired by one of his favorite shows, Top Chef. It’s an African Groundnut Stew featuring a unique spice mix. Click over to Urban Swank Blog to check out the full story!

Click HERE for the printable recipe.

It has been a dulce de leche kind of year. We’re only one month into 2012, but there have been more dulce de leche recipes around these here parts than may be necessary. You saw the first appearance with the January Ethnic Exploration that featured alfajores. When you have a couple of cups of dulce de leche in your fridge, you have to use them up. Brownies came to mind almost immediately. They would be a perfect sweet for a friend’s movie night, and dulce de leche is the perfect partner with rich, fudgey chocolate. How does Starbucks fit in? It’s in the mix of course. Literally.

Last summer, we attended a Starbucks Reserve Tasting Event featuring two new varieties of coffee–Kenya Tana River and Sumatra Tapanuli. By now, you have probably seen a few of the Starbucks Reserve flavors popping up in your favorite corner store. The flavors are limited releases that are only available in certain stores, and they span a range of unique and provocative flavor profiles and are usually single origin coffees. On that warm evening in August, we spent a couple of hours with Yuli, a local Starbucks Coffee Master and store leader, Marianne from Starbucks’ corporate office in Seattle and Nicole Weston from Brewed Daily. We sipped iced and hot coffees brewed with the Clover, which is only available in certain stores. This was our first time watching such a detailed preparation process for coffee brewing. The internal chamber is temperature and time controlled during brewing, then the liquid is filtered and deposited straight into your cup. The Clover is for the serious coffee company that wants to ensure each cup is perfection.

We sipped both coffees black, which is arguably the only way to truly pick up the flavors of coffee. The additions of sweeteners and dairy, although tasty, dilute the natural flavor in the brewed beans. It’s best to have the coffee black. We tried our coffees iced and hot in order to taste the differences. Starbucks sources its beans from three main regions, and we were trying two coffees from two very different areas. The Kenya Tana River is a mild bean with notes of cherries and berries and the acidity of black tea. We paired it with orange cranberry scones. The Sumatra Tapanuli is a darker blend with heavy notes of cocoa and fig. We paired that one with maple scones and peanut butter chocolate cupcakes. It was a sweet ending to the afternoon.

Amir cheesin' over cups of iced coffee.

A couple of months later, I had a trip to the Pacific Northwest on the calendar. Amir was unable to attend, so he missed the opportunity to tour the Starbucks corporate office. Two friends and I were escorted through the building and given a much better understanding of the corporation’s social and philosophical outlook. Motivational internal marketing featuring employees, impressive interior design and images of Starbucks stores around the world grabbed our attention. Towards the end of the tour, we took part in another tasting of three different flavors and learned about how coffee beans are selected, harvested, processed and packaged, then finally shipped to your neighborhood store. Whenever you have the chance to learn more about the back end of a company’s procedures, you definitely have a new understanding of how they work and what they strive to produce for the consumer.

There's the magnificent Clover brewing system. It goes to work!

Just after the New Year, Starbucks offered to send us a sample of a new Reserve coffee–Organic Ethiopia Sidamo. It was officially available in stores on January 10th, and hopefully your store was lucky enough to carry it. The bag is stamped with Starbucks’ new QR code. The codes allow you to trace and track your coffee’s production line starting all the way from the farmer’s plantation. This particular coffee’s beans were grown by a longtime farming family in volcanic soil right next to other food crops that have flavored the coffee cherries (the pods that hold the beans). The soil and climate of this region of Ethiopia, along with the coffee’s wash process, have left it with the flavors of spiced gingerbread and graham crackers. The acidity level is light and slightly sweet. Starbucks suggests pairing it with stone fruits and chocolate. Now, you understand where brownies pop into the picture.

Rob & Nicole Weston of BakingBites.com and BrewedDaily.com and Yuli from Starbucks

The Starbucks Reserve Organic Ethiopia Sidamo coffee beans

With tons of dulce de leche leftover from an earlier cookie adventure, there was no reason to let it go to waste. A handful of the coffee beans were ground to a fine powder and brewed. Unfortunately, there was no Clover machine to produce that ‘perfect’ pot, but this was pretty right on. The aroma is intense. It reminded me of the way I used to wake up on Sunday mornings when my parents made coffee with their breakfast. It’s very earthy and intoxicating, which felt like just the right notes to add to a batch of homemade brownies. Imagine that smell resting just under your nose as you take a bite. With sweet dulce de leche seeping out of each bite, it would be one of the best brownies around.

Of course, a cup of coffee alongside your evening dessert is an appropriate way to enjoy the pair. As we’ve seen before, Starbucks wants to be sure that you find ways to combine food and drink in every way. (Maybe you remember that coffee-infused maple bacon?) If you’re a coffee lover, or you have a coffee loving person in your life, here’s your chance to win a sample of Starbucks Reserve Organic Ethiopia Sidamo coffee. Here’s how:

Leave a comment on this post with your favorite coffee pairing, whether it be during breakfast, lunch or dinner.

For additional entries:

1. Follow us on Twitter and tweet “Win a sample of @Starbucks Reserve Organic Ethiopia Sidamo coffee from @TheDuoDishes http://wp.me/pWonA-3pt”.

2. Like us on Facebook and post a message on our page about the new Starbucks Reserve Organic Ethiopia Sidamo coffee.

Leave a comment on our blog for each of your entry methods. All entries must be submitted by Wednesday, Februay 8th at 11:59 pm pst. Be sure to include your contact information. Entrants must reside in the contiguous United States.

For more information on Starbucks Reserve Organic Ethiopia Sidamo, check out this video. Learn more about how those beans move from the farm to the stores, and inevitably, into your cup.

Dulce de Leche Brownies – Makes 16 (Adapted from Joy of Cooking)
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature, cubed, plus extra for greasing the baking dish
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons bittersweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons brewed coffee*
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3 eggs, slightly whisked
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup flour
1/2 cup dulce de leche**

1. Grease the bottom and sides of an 8″ x 8″ cake pan with butter. Then line the pan with parchment paper to create two handles on opposite sides of the pan. Grease the parchment paper with a little more butter. Set aside.

2. Place the butter and both types of chocolate chips into a medium, heat-resistant bowl over a pot of simmering water. Make sure the simmering water does not touch the bottom of the bowl. Allow the butter and chocolate to melt, stirring occasionally to combine. Remove the bowl from heat and set aside to cool slightly for 3-5 minutes.

3. In a small bowl, mix the coffee, sugar, salt, eggs and vanilla until smooth. Plop about 1/8 cup of the melted chocolate into the egg mixture and whisk quickly to combine. Then, scrape the egg mixture into the bowl with the melted chocolate and butter. Whisk to combine.

4. Fold the flour into the chocolate until just combined. Transfer the brownie batter to the lined baking pan. Drop pools of dulce de leche in the four corners and the middle of the batter. Using an knife, drag the tip through the batter, creating swirling patterns on the top. Slide the pan into an oven preheated to 350 degrees and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool for 5-10 minutes before carefully lifting the brownies out of the pan with the parchment paper handles. Eat warm or allow to cool completely.

*You could leave the coffee out of this recipe, although there will be one layer of flavor missing. It will not result in an undesirable brownie though! You could also swap 1-2 teaspoons of finely ground beans for the 2 tablespoons of brewed coffee.

**Feel free to use jarred dulce de leche or caramel, but it is pretty easy to make dulce de leche as well. We have a recipe here in our last post on Alfajores (Dulce de Leche Sandwich Cookies).

Click HERE for the printable recipe.

Disclaimer: We received a free sample but no compensation for this post. All opinions are our own.

For our first Ethnic Exploration of the year, we are waffling between two different countries. In fact, some of you may know Chrystal rang in 2012 in Barcelona. While I was home slumping on the couch, she was eating exotic dishes, checking out historic sites, and gallivanting around the city. From the snapshots she shared with me of her trip, it was clear she experienced plenty of incredible eats, even describing one tapas dish as “the best mussels she’s ever tasted in her entire life. Ever.” Wow! That was a pretty bold statement, I thought. With praises like that, we clearly had to explore a couple of elements of Spanish cuisine this month. There was really no other choice!

To be honest, this month’s Ethnic Exploration begins in Spain, but it could be argued that it ends in Argentina. Every dish is the summation of its parts, but most importantly, it owes everything to its roots. That’s the story of the alfajor. Let’s start at the beginning. The cuisine in Spain is as varied its culture–both past and present. The foods of Spain have ties to nearly every country in Europe, parts of Africa and throughout the Mediterranean. Ancient Roman rule and Moorish invasions in Andalusia would forever imprint their culinary traditions into the region, creating a lasting impression of North African influence. The proximity of Portugal and France lend themselves to the food along the border regions. Barcelona itself is entrenched with the history of its Catalan population, some of whom regard themselves as a completely distinct ethnic group within the country. There’s no doubt as well that the country’s geography adds a crucial contribution to the cuisine, for the country’s seaside surroundings provide abundant seafood available just off its shores. Mussels, like all seafood, are strongly flavored by their surrounding waters, which could explain why Chrystal’s Barcelona order of Mejillones a la Marinera were so memorable compared to previous experiences.

We both have an insatiable sweet tooth, so it should be no surprise we wanted to make a dessert this round. These sandwich cookies are called alfajores. Two sweet biscuit-like cookies with a dulce de leche filling is all that it takes to create an alfajor. These cookies traditionally are made with flour, honey, nuts, and a variety of spices such as cinnamon or anise. Alfajores have roots in the Arab world, and were first introduced to Spain during the Moorish occupation. Since then, this sweet ending has embedded itself into Spanish culture and undergone numerous incarnations. In Spain, this dessert is most popular during Christmas, although the Andalusia region sells them anytime. Alfajores even made its way across the Atlantic, spreading throughout parts of Latin America–Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Peru, for example–as a treat to be enjoyed year-round.

The sweetened condensed milk has a date with the oven.

The dulce de Leche is ready with the perfect color and thickness.

Believe it or not, the traditional Spanish alfajor was not quite what we tend to see in bakeries today. In the Moor capital of Andalusia, Medina-Sidonia, alfajores used to be a cylindrical shaped wafer dusted with powdered sugar and filled with a paste of nuts, honey, dried fruits and spices. The influence and spread of Spanish culture amongst other Central and South American countries is the reason why alfajores have seen a change. Here is where our Ethnic Exploration takes a few bumpy detours. Today, you’ll encounter countless versions of alfajores around the globe, with each country boasting its very own adaptation. In Arabic, the word ‘alfajor’ simply means stuffed, so it makes sense that other countries would have their own specialties. For example, it’s common to see a finished alfajor in Argentina dipped in chocolate or completely coated in powdered sugar. In Mexico, an alfajor there would most likely be multicolored with coconut used as the main ingredient. Though some places prefer a type of jam, alfajores are most commonly filled with a simple dulce de leche. Dulce de leche, literally translated to ‘sweet of milk’, is one of the top choices in Latin American countries, not so much in Spain. It’s important to note that the version of alfajores that we see so often in the States are very similar to those served in Argentina. If you make a trip to Buenos Aires or another Argentinian city, you will find varieties of alfajores almost anywhere. The fact that Argentina is a major producer of dulce de leche makes that option one of the most popular.

Making the cookie dough went off without a hitch. The dough and cooked cookies very much reminded me of a common shortbread. After some frustrating boil-overs and a complete mess of our preliminary homemade dulce de leche, we had to try a second method.  Instead of milk and sugar simmering in a sauce pan, we just went with the condensed milk version. Once cooked down in a bain marie, it’s dulce de leche time with no fuss.

The cookies themselves are light and crisp, but not overwhelmingly sweet. The subtle sweetness was perfect, though, making way for the intensely sweet caramel filling. We rounded it off with a sprinkle of toasted coconut for the perfect complement. This story of the alfajor is so very layered, but it has a very special place in Spain’s history as one of its founding confections. Of course, it seems as though the cookie most of us know visually hails from Argentina. Either way, they both have important meanings for their respective cultures and to the historical bond the two countries share. You may have several other versions in your worldly travels. No matter where you hail from in the world, you’re sure to find something to love about these sweet little ones. We did add some dark rum into the mix because that was what we had in our liquor cabinet, but a cognac or brandy would work just the same. Or feel free to leave the booze out all together. Give ‘em a whirl!

Alfajores (Dulce de Leche Sandwich Cookies) - Approximately 1 dozen (Adapted from Recipe Girl)
Cookie
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
Zest of one lemon
4 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons dark rum
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
2-4 tablespoons whole milk
1 cup shredded sweetened coconut, toasted
Powdered sugar, sifted

Filling
14 ounces sweetened condensed milk

1. Whisk together flour, cornstarch, salt, baking soda and powder, and lemon zest in a medium mixing bowl. Set aside. In a small mixing bowl, lightly beat together egg yolks, vanilla extract and rum. Set aside.

2. Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar together on medium speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add in egg yolk mixture in two parts, continuing to mix until well combined.

3. Using your bare hands, add flour mixture to the butter mixture and knead until well combined and a soft dough is formed. If the dough is too flaky and dry, add in milk 2 tablespoons at a time. Divide dough in half and wrap each piece in plastic wrap or parchment paper. Refrigerate for 2 hours to 2 days. (Any unused dough freezes well. Simply double wrap the dough and keep up to 6 weeks. Let sit in the refrigerator for 24 hours to thaw.)

4. When ready to bake cookies, preheat oven to 325 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Let dough rest a room temperature for 5-10 minutes before rolling. On a well floured surface, roll one piece of dough out to a 1/4 in sheet. Using a cookie cutter or top of a shot glass, cut about 2 inch round cookies and transfer each one to the baking sheet. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until the cookies are completely dry but not brown. Let cool on a wire rack. Repeat with remaining half of dough.

5. For the filling, pour the sweetened condensed milk into a 9″ x 9″ cake pan or a similar baking dish. Place the baking dish into a larger roasting pan, and fill the pan up halfway with water to create a bain marie. Cover only the pan with the sweetened condensed milk tightly with aluminum foil.

6. Slide the nested pans into an oven preheated to 425 degrees and cook for an hour, then remove from the oven and carefully stir the liquid. It should be a caramel brown and slightly thickened. If necessary, slide it back into the oven for another 15-30 minutes, checking halfway through the additional cooking time. Remove from the oven once the mixture has reached your preferred color and texture.

7. Assemble alfajores by dividing cooled cookies together into pairs. Spread desired amount of caramel filling on flat side of one cookie and top with its match, also on the flat side, forming a sandwich. Gently press the cookies together until the filling slightly peeks out the edges. Sprinkle with grated coconut and top with sifted powered sugar.

Click HERE for the printable recipe.

Our first Guest Test Kitchen of the New Year comes from our dear friend, Cameron. Cameron and Amir are extremely close friends who met in undergrad at the marvelous University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Go Heels!). Cameron currently lives in Raleigh, North Carolina and is on track to become an expert baker. She’s always sharing pics of her latest, magazine-ready sweet creations. She raved on how spectacular these Banana Nutella Whoopie Pies tasted, so we’re ecstatic to share this one with you. Here’s Cameron with more…

“Things I can’t get enough of right now: My new Kitchen Aid stand mixer, whoopie pies, and Nutella! Put all of those together and you get this recipe. Ever since I got my new mixer for Christmas (which by the way is a lovely shade of “Aqua Sky”), I’ve been itching to bake things that I haven’t before like whoopie pies! If you haven’t had a whoopie pie before, it is a cake-like sandwich cookie with “gobs” of delicious filling. To learn more, I bought a really fun book of mix and match recipes called Whoopie Pies (shocker) by Sarah Billingsley and Amy Treadwell. The book gives you a great base knowledge on how to make whoopies, what supplies you need, and a ton of different recipes for cakes and fillings! I really do recommend this book… it’s fun, simple, and down to earth!

For this recipe, I used the “Banana Whoopie” recipe found in Billingsley and Treadwell’s book and then adapted my own Nutella Cream Cheese filling from their variety of filling recipes.

Banana Whoopie Pies with Nutella Cream Cheese Filling – Approximately 20-24 pies (Adapted from Whoopie Pies)
Cakes
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
4 tablespoons vegetable shortening*
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
3 very ripe bananas, mashed

Preheat your oven to 350˚F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Sift together both flours, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl or onto a piece of wax paper. In the work bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, shortening, sugar, and vanilla until light and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat until combined.

Add the bananas and beat on medium for about 2 minutes or until until completely combined. Add the sifted dry ingredients gradually, beating on medium until well combined.

Using a spoon (or I used a small cookie scoop), drop about one tablespoon of batter onto one of the prepared baking sheets and repeat, spacing them each at least 2 inches apart. Bake one sheet at a time for about 10 minutes each, or until the cakes begin to brown. Remove from oven and let the cakes cool on the sheet for at least 5 minutes before transferring them to a rack to cool completely.

Filling
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup Nutella

Beat together the cream cheese and the butter on medium until smooth. Beat in the powdered sugar and vanilla for about 2 minutes. Beat in the Nutella until well combined. (You may want to start by adding 1/4 cup of nutella and then slowly add more until the flavor suits you).

Once your filling is ready and cakes are cooled, assemble the whoopie pies! Put a generous amount of filling on the flat side of one cake, and sandwich together with another cake. Serve immediately or refrigerate. It’s a good idea to keep these bad boys refrigerated since they have cream cheese in the filling. They can even be frozen!

Jazzy additions to try if you wish:
- Melt a little Nutella and drizzle on the tops of the whoopie pies
- Roll the edges of the whoopie pies in chopped hazelnuts
- Spread a thin layer of Nutella in addition to the filling on the inside of the cookie for a deeper Nutella taste

*Billingsley and Treadwell insist that shortening is “a necessary ingredient to achieve lift, lightness, and that classic rounded whoopie shape”!

I love this recipe because it’s not super sweet tasting like other whoopie pies I’ve tried, and the filling combo of Nutella and cream cheese is just heavenly! These whoopies were definitely a crowd pleaser with my co-workers and college students that I advise, so I hope you enjoy them too!”

Click HERE for the printable recipe.

These mini puddings would have been perfect for a virtual potluck party. Just perfect. Here’s hoping Gojee will still be open to including them in the bunch, but for now, we don’t know. That’s because we missed the deadline! Have you ever had something at top of mind, or at least in your list of to do’s, and for some reason, it just never gets done? That’s what happened during most of January. In December, we filled a friend’s birthday cake with a caramelized pineapple and ginger sabayon that was inspired by two previous successful sabayon flavors. If you’re not familiar with sabayon, don’t think we’ve gone all fancy on you.You too can pull together a sabayon. If you do it in a timely fashion, maybe you will make it to the party with dessert in hand.

We’ll break it down as simply as possible. The French sabayon is an egg-based mixture similar to the Italian dessert known as zabaglione. Whisk egg yolks with sugar and a flavored alcohol such as Marsala wine, champagne or port wine until the eggs are thick and cooked through. You can eat the sabayon warm or chill it for a dessert. A sabayon can also be savory if sugar is omitted and unsweetened liquids are used for flavoring. When a dish like sabayon has so many variations, you feel inspired to try them all. The problem is, the sweet tooth runs strong around these here parts, and the desire to create a sabayon dessert took over. Chocolate, dry sherry and vanilla set the flavor base for what will become creamy, decadent puddings. The whipped egg whites folded into the melted chocolate mixture add just a touch of levity to what would otherwise be a very heavy treat.

So let’s go back to this Gojee potluck, shall we? If you haven’t checked out the Gojee site yet, make sure you take a look. If you’re a fellow food blogger, you will most likely notice a few familiar faces as contributors–including us! The site is a new way for hungry folks to find recipes based on ingredients they have on hand or foods they love. The company is based in New York, so unfortunately we haven’t been able to participate in any of the in-person contributor events. In an effort to keep the Gojee crew tight, there will be a virtual potluck. On Thursday, January 26th, you can see what other virtual attendees are bringing. Just go to the Gojee site and enter the words “gojeepotluck” in the I Crave menu bar. You can also follow the good stuff using the hash tag #gojeepotluck on Twitter. Hopefully, you’ll find these mini puddings in the picnic basket.

Chocolate Sabayon Puddings – Serves 6
4 large eggs, at room temperature
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon dry sherry
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/3 cup bittersweet chocolate chips (at least 60%)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature and cubed
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
Toasted shredded coconut, optional

1. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites, placing the yolks into a heat resistant bowl and the whites into another medium sized bowl. Place the bowl of yolks, along with the sugar, on top of a pot with water and whisk to combine. Add the sherry and vanilla. Bring the water to a simmer, making sure not to let the water touch the bottom of the bowl. Whisk the sweetened yolks continuously until the mixture is thick, ribbony and creamy, approximately 5 minutes. Remove the bowl from heat.

2. Pour the chocolate chips and butter into a heat resistant bowl over the same pot of simmering water. allow the chocolate and butter to melt, stirring occasionally. Once melted, remove from heat and scrape the chocolate into the warm egg yolks. Stir to combine. Set aside.

3. Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites, salt, powdered sugar and cream of tartar until soft peaks form, approximately 2-3 minutes. Scoop about one-third of the egg whites into the chocolate and stir to combine. Fold the remaining egg whites into the chocolate mixture.

4. Evenly divide the sabayon between six 4-ounce ramekins.* Chill for at least an hour or cover and chill up to over night. If desired, sprinkle with toasted coconut prior to serving.

*Precious sake cups were gifts from a friend, and they were the perfect mini serving size for a little taste of a rich sweet. The best ramekins for this dessert would be deeper than shallow. You could even use small espresso cups or dessert wine glasses for this one.

Click HERE for the printable recipe.

Winter’s vegetables are in full force with kale winding its way to the top of the list. It is one of those vegetables that goes a long way, but it was never one that frequented either one of our family tables. Kale popped up once we found the farmers markets and restaurants of L.A. Kale chips and kale salads were the winners that swayed folks in the direction of this green. Kale salads are fairly easy to find on restaurant menus, but they are very simple to make at home. The dark, rich greens stand up well to a tangy, sweet vinaigrette and a variety of stir-ins to add a variety of textures to each crunchy bite. A version of this salad was served last month at the Social Justice Learning Institute’s monthly workshop in Inglewood. The salad shown above was shared with friends this past weekend for brunch. Now it’s your turn to make your own.

Kale just might be addictive. You can judge for yourself once you take a bite. Who can feel guilty after swallowing a big bowl of greens? It’s nearly impossible. Look for the deep green, large curly bunches, and be sure to wash the leaves very well before trimming out the fibrous stems down the middle. Once you have the hearty leaves, where you go from there is up to you. We suggest a salad for starters. Here’s one that will set you on a delicious path.

Massaged Kale Salad with Caramelized Onions, Cranberries and Pine Nuts – Serves 4 to 6
Dressing
1/3 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Salad
2 pounds kale (approx. 3-4 bunches of kale), stems removed and leaves very thinly sliced
1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1 large red onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon water
1 cup pine nuts, toasted
1/2 cup dried cranberries, chopped
Parmesan cheese, shaved

1. Whisk the olive oil, red wine vinegar, honey, mustard, salt and red pepper flakes together in a large bowl. Add the kale and toss to coat. Using your fingers, rub the kale gently for 3-5 minutes or until the greens begin to wilt and soften. Set aside.

2. Heat the butter and olive oil in a shallow pan over medium heat. Add the onions and sugar, tossing all of the ingredients in the pan. Season with the salt and pepper. Cook for approximately 5 minutes, then reduce the heat to medium low and cook for another 15 minutes. Stir occasionally. Add the water and continue cooking for 15 minutes, then remove from heat.

3. Top the wilted kale with the warm onions, pine nuts, cranberries and Parmesan cheese before serving.

Click HERE for the printable recipe.