King Pie from Franche Comte, France

Colette's recipe

This is a traditional pie served for Twelfth Night. The one who finds the bean hidden in it, is proclaimed King or Queen, and receives a paper crown.

Ingredients:

150 g flour
25 cl water (or milk)
75 g butter,
5 CS sugar,
1 TSP vanilla extract,
3 eggs,
1 pinch of salt,
1 CS orange blossom flower,
2 CS heavy cream.

a charm, a coin, or a bean

Directions:

In a pan, combine water, salt, butter, sugar and vanilla. Bring to a boil, and remove from heat.
Add flour in a batch, then continue to cook on low heat. Mix well until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the pan.

Remove from heat, and add the eggs, one at a time, with a wooden spoon, until the dough is smooth and shiny.

Add cream and orange blossom water.

Spread the dough on a pie pan (or a pizza pan), 1/4 to 1/3 inch thick. Don't forget to hide a bean or any charm in it.

Apply the egg yolk and then draw lines with a fork.

Bake in the oven 20 to 25 minutes at 210 C or 410 F.

Be careful, the pie can burn very quickly.

Venezuelan Sweet Cheese

Mabel's recipe:

Ingredients:

1/2 cup sugar.
1 tablespoon water
1 can condensed milk.
1 can whole milk (measure it with the condensed milk can)
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions:

Put the water and sugar in a metal mold over medium heat until it starts bubbling and gets darker.

Turn off the fire and cover the inside of the mold with the caramel by stirring it around.

Mix the eggs, condensed milk, whole milk and lastly the vanilla in a blender for three minutes.
Pour the mix into the mold with the caramel and cover.

Bake in a double boiler at 350 degrees for an hour and a half or until you attempt to insert a knife in the dessert.

Remove the mold from the hot water and let it cool to room temperature.
Then put it in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours.

Serving suggestion and comment:

The quesillo has to be turned out carefully loosening the edges with a thin knife. Serve in a deep dish so the caramel won’t spill.

Published by Escape Latino

Minestrone

Catherine's recipe

*Heat over medium heat a large soup pot 2 to 3 minutes:*

2 tbsp olive oil
2 slices bacon chopped ( I trim as much fat as possible)

*Add and cook, stirring, 5 to 10 minutes:*

1 medium red onion, chopped
2 carrots peeled and chopped
2 medium celery stalks minced
One 4" sprig fresh rosemary (I use some frozen from the garden)
1/4 cup basil, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 small head green cabbage (I use 1/2 Napa cabbage)
3 swiss chard leaves washed and chopped.

*Cover and cook until the vegetable are tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in:*

One 14-ounce can diced tomatoesone
16 ounces pinto beans or Northern.
4 ounces wheatberry
10 cups chicken broth, veggie broth or water
2tsp salt

*Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, partly covered, 45 minutes.*

*Drizzle olive oil over each serving.*

*Sprinkle with ground black pepper to taste.*

Adapted from the Joy of Cooking cookbook.

Corn bread,

Sabine's recipe

From Moosewood cookbook, by Mollie Katzen

Ingredients:

1/4 cup honey

1 cup buttermilk (or 1 cup milk and 1 TBS lemon juice)

1 egg

1 cup yellow corn meal

1 cup unbleached white flour

3 Tbs melted butter

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

Directions:

Beat together egg, buttermilk and honey.

Mix well together all dry ingredients.

Combine all ingredients, including melted butter, and mix well.

Spread into buttered 8-inch square pan, and bake 20 mnin a 425-degree oven.

Serve hot with butter.

Goes well with chili or hearthy, chunky soups.

Cheese Puff

Catherine's recipe

A Burgundian recipe served as an hors-d'oeuvre.

Ingredients:

250 g sifted flour
1 1/2 cups water
1stick butter (8tbsp)
5 eggs (or 4 big eggs)
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups grated gruyere or swiss cheese

Instructions:

Preheat the oven at 400 F.In a large saucepan, combine butter, salt and water.

Bring to a boil on medium heat. Add the flour all at once and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the pan.

Continue to cook for about one minute, to eliminate excess moisture.

Transfer to a bowl or in a mixer and let cool for a few minutes.

Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time by hand with a wooden spoon, or on low speed with a mixer.

Beat the dough until it is smooth and shiny.

Stir in the grated cheese.

Shape the dough into about 24 puffs on a baking sheet.

Bake for 15 minutes at 400F then reduce the temperature to 350 F and continue to bake until golden brown and very firm at the touch, 20 to 25 minutes more.

Tamagoyaki, Rolled Omelet Ritsu's recipe Ingredients: 4 eggs 3 tbsp dashi soup stock (Japanese fish stock) 2 tsp sugar 2 tsp soy sauce 3 tbsps chopped green onion Preparation: Beat the eggs in a bowl. Add soy sauce, sugar, dashi, and green onion and mix well. Heat little bit of vegetable oil in a square omelette pan on mid heat. Pour a scoop of egg mixture in the pan and spread over the surface. When the egg is firm enough, roll it up and slide it toward the end of the pan, then oil the rest of the pan and pour more egg mixture in the empty space and under the rolled egg. This will allow you to join another section of cooked egg onto the roll, for a longer continuous omelette. Cook until half done and roll the egg again so that the omelette becomes thicker. Repeat this process until the egg mixture is gone.

Tonkatsu, Fried Pork

Ritsu's recipe

Ingredients:

4 pork chops
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 cup flour
1 egg
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
Vegetable oil for frying
Tonkatsu Sauce

Preparation:

Cut the edge of pork chops in several places.

Sprinkle salt and pepper on the pork.

Put flour lightly on it. Dip the pork in beaten egg.

Put panko on the pork and pat them well. Fry the pork in 320F oil for a few min.

Turn over the pork chops and fry a few more minutes.

Take out the pork and put it on a paper towel to drain the oil.

Cut each Tonkatsu into small pieces.

*Serve with shredded cabbage and Tonkatsu Sauce.

Simple Spinach Salad with Mandarin Oranges

Gail's recipe

This recipe can brighten a winter day.

Salad:

Use as many greens as you want:

1/2 baby spinach leaves (sold in a bag prewashed, or chop large spinach)
1/2 lettuce (romaine, green leaf or red leaf)
1 large can mandarin oranges (drained but save juice)
3 chopped green onions (or 1/2 red onion)
1 handful sliced almonds

Dressing:

1 tablespoon orange marmalade or apricot preserves
1 tablespoon saved mandarin syrup
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, eyeball the amount
Salt and pepper

Directions:

Mix marmalade with vinegar. Add olive oil in a stream while whisking. Taste and adjust.Arrange salad greens on platter or individual plates. Top with orange segments, onions and almonds. Pour dressing over salad. Season with salt and pepper.