Las Navidades

How can I express the pure wonder of the season better than saying: I believe in love.  In magic.  In family.  


We've had laughter, joy, and the best food us three: mom, myself and my little sister/best friend.  Between a 14 plate taster menu at my number one restaurant in the DR, which included a lobster lasagna, foie gras and truffle ravioli, gravlax and simply the best gosh darn bread I have ever laid a tooth on in my entire existence, and our traditional christmas Dominican fare: roasted smoked pig (charcoal), with bread as light as a baked cloud, pastel en hoja filled with savory beef, surrounded by a hug of mashed plantains, the lot cooked in the green leaf parcel.  The table heaving with goodies, mouthes busy with chatter, laughter between bites.


I am blessed.  I am lucky.  I am utterly and completely at tears with the amount of goodness in my life.  And entering this new year with two of my favorite people in this world will be the crowning achievement on 2010, lessons and all, as well as the warm breeze that will push me gently into the new year.  I lift my glass to you, 2011.  My heart overflows with love, just like my glass will overflow with some kind of bubbly liquid come midnight, be it beer, champagne or sparkling wine.  Sparkling and dizzying, the bubbles dancing in my cheeks, making them puff up, my lips puckering and ready for that kiss: Happy New Year.

Mango Tree

Arrow leaves

Shoot, spread

like thousands of green fingers

Guarding, keeping...

The expanding bark;

Hanging fruit

Dancing teasingly

Flirting, quivering

Promising me

Through the sparkling, bright sun

Parting the leaves

Stinging my eyes

Caressing the green, yellow, ochre juiciness...

I wish I were a mango tree.

Pasta Intercultural Food Baby: The Caribbean and Italy with grouper and olives

The conception of this dish was a newfound obsession with smoked salmon stuffed green olives and a mound of cooked lasagna noodles in my fridge, begging to be invented with.  The flavours are very fresh and definitely taking a Caribbean influence, marrying the taste of the islands with the ones of the shoe-shaped country we call Italy.

For the creation of your intercultural food baby, you will need (for 2 peeps or one really hungry one):

3 lasagna noodles, cooked, cut into strips, or fettucine, cooked

6oz of grouper

Half a can, with juice of smoked salmon stuffed green olives

1 small zucchini, sliced

½ red onion, sliced finely

½ red pepper, sliced finely

2 small roma tomatoes, chopped

3 leaves of wide cilantro, chopped finely

1 garlic clove, minced

½ tsp of ground oregano

Squeeze of lime

Good handful of parmesan

In a sauce pan, pour in your olives and juice, bring to a boil, then throw in your grouper and zucchini, cover and let simmer until grouper is cooked through (about 5-10 minutes, depending on the thickness of the filet), remove the fish, put aside to cool a little bit, add your garlic, oregano, noodles, onion, pepper, tomato, cover and steam for 2-3 minutes, add back your grouper in pieces (break into rough bite sizes).  Cook for another minute, turn off the heat, add lime juice, cilantro.  Plate up and douse with parmesan, and if you’re feeling festive, a little olive oil.

**DO NOT SALT!  The olives are plenty salty enough and their brine will season your dish.

Skyving a little

Admittedly, have not been writing as much as I had before, but with good reason: travel, good food, long walks and a dear new person in my life has made me a little bit more pensive.



Here is a bit of a report of last weekend:

I buggered off with my friend, Mariam to Punta and Cap Cana (as we affectionately called them by the end of the trip “the Villages” complete with Village people impersonations).


It was... beautiful with and ethereal edge. The vines of puffy “grape flowers” as I call them hung from the trellises, illuminated at night by a thousand fairy lights, like overhead sprites to oversee our next excursion into rapture by yet another perfectly executed meal, funny anecdote, bursts of laughter jumping from our throats and ringing through the perfect square.


The beaches spread like micro universes across the shore, containing our world for mere hours, but nonetheless enclosing it; filling our ears with waves, wind, our eyes with sight of water and foam, and bathing our skin with warm sunlight, all the while the dutiful guardians of the beaches, the palms, keeping a watchful eye on us alien creatures encroaching on their universe, pulling a few hours of joy and relaxation from Neptune.

The Juanillo beach was the most calming of the three (the two others being Playa Blanca and Caletón), an expanse of soft pastel, truly great work from the creator: marrying pinks, purples, soft blues with the pale gold of the supple, plush sand. Accompanied by the best mojito I’ve had in a long time, an unexpected rain shower that reduced all the patrons of the newly opened beach bar in a fit of wet giggles and a good pizza composed of mozzarella, parmesan and arugula. Food was pushed onto our plates, drinks poured into our glasses, for the merry festivities celebrating their aperture. I witnessed an explosion of fireworks over a liquid, starry sky, with the wave of knowing there was nowhere else as magnificent on earth at that very moment than where I was standing.

Caletón was another wonder of calm, but sharper than the former. Framed by reddish volcanic rock, forming a perfectly hostile contrast against the deep beauty of the jewel-coloured waves. This rocky frame was the emmental of the beach: covered in holes that would whistle at every crash of liquid sea envoy, spiky and unwelcoming by nature, beauty taming it into yet another component of this coastal masterpiece. As I was slipping through its waves, I looked at the sky and thanked all the sea and land gods for permitting me this vision into their utopia.

Finally, Playa Blanca was the exciting finish of all this beach time. Wind surfers swam through the sky, the feet walking on the waves, the breeze taking their now-light bodies away into a more heavenly plane than their usual earthly station. The horizons were endless, plane and stretching until the end of the world, until the drop off. The waters were that crystal clear colour of the Caribbean sea: the most striking incarnation of blue and green, as they should be seen. Warm and crystalline, the water leached over our floating bodies as we stared at the cloudless sky, both of us feeling like mermaids, our hair floating underneath us in an imitation of a sea creature, all tendrils and swaying by the gentle coaxing of the sea nymphs.

Finally, these 4 and a half days were like a deep inhale of cold crisp air after being kept down in warm water for too long. I am refreshed and back to my sparkling, ebullient self.

Raw Falafel Sandwich

One tired Saturday evening, I needed something to eat that was fast, delicious and most of all, that would sustain me until bedtime.  I adore middle eastern flavours, but sometimes it just takes too long to cook everything together... now you don't have to:

For one:
**(simply multiply by how many people you want to make it for if you're more than one)

1 pita bread

Filling:
3/4 cup of chickpeas, if canned, rinsed thoroughly
1 garlic clove, grated
1/2 tsp of cumin
pinch of salt
juice of one lime
2 tbsp of chopped parsley
1 tomato, sliced
2 romaine leaves, sliced into fine ribbons

Sauce:
1/4 cup of yogurt
1 tbsp of light mayo
1/2 garlic clove, grated
Pepper, salt and hot sauce, to taste

Put chickpeas, cumin, salt, lime juice and the grated clove of garlic in blender/food processor (I have a magic bullet and it works *wonders*!), blend coarsely.  Adjust seasoning if necessary.  If It's a little too thick, add  touch of water, but not much!  It should be very thick.  Add parsley and mint to mixture.

Heat your pita bread to piping hot, while it's heating, slice the veg and assemble the sauce: just bung all ingredients into a bowl and stir well.

Make a pocket in the pita and fill with first your chickpea mixture, then veg.  Self-serve the sauce at the table while eating (so bread doesn't get too mushy).

It's that good that we are now Sunday morning and I WANT ONE.
Humph.  Out of chickpeas.

Vegan Vanilla Va-va-voom cake

What? Beans in a cake recipe? Yes! The beans make it perfectly moist and add protein and fibre.  I'm not vegan but anything that will let me lick the bowl without worrying about raw eggs is a winner for me!

1 can of white beans, drained and rinsed well
1 c of water
¾ c of sugar
1 c of white flour
1 c of oat flour
¼ tsp of baking soda
1 tsp of baking powder
1 tbsp of vanilla extract
1 tsp of almond extract
2 tbsp of vinegar
Optional: 1 tbsp of anise seeds


Blend the beans with the water in a blender. Pour into a large bowl adding vanilla, almond extract and vinegar. In other bowl, mix together the flours, baking powder, baking soda and sugar. Mix bowl B into bowl A.


Pour into a greased tin and bake for 45 minutes at 350 F.

Let cool before slicing.


To use honey instead of sugar, use ½ cup of honey and reduce the water by a ¼ cup.

Easy Healthy Thai Green Curry

The ingredient list looks daunting, but I merely separated it out between stages of the recipe and you will find they repeat themselves. This makes an incredibly fragrant not too spicy curry that is very difficult to stop eating. If you can’t find pumpkins you could substitute for any winter squash or carrots. Also, if you can get your hands on a magic bullet blender it makes this whole process incredibly easy for prep AND cleanup.



Chicken Marinade:

1 tsp of ground coriander
1/3 c of coriander leaves
2 cloves of garlic
½ inch of ginger root
2 tbsp of vinegar
1 tbsp of nam pla (vietnamese fish sauce)
Pinch of pepper flakes
½ tsp of olive oil
2 tbsp of water


Thai Green Curry Paste:
1 tsp of ground coriander
¼ tsp of ground pepper
Pinch of sea salt
Pinch of dried pepper flakes
2 cloves of garlic
1 inch of ginger
1 small red onion, quartered
Roots of a punch of coriander and some leaves
3 lime leaves (or any citrus tree, I used grapefruit because I have one... smell them!  They smell like froot loops!)
Zest of 1 lime
3 tbsp of vinegar
1 tsp of nam pla (vietnamese fish sauce)
1 tsp of olive oil

Other:


4 chicken breasts cut into 1 inch strips
2 small eggplants cut into 1 inch cubes
1 ½ cups of pumpkin cut into 1.5 inch cubes
1 large red onion
1 small can of coconut milk (8oz)
8oz of regular milk
1 tbsp of olive oil
2 cups of cooked basmati rice
1 tbsp of chopped coriander, for garnish


Whizz all the ingredients for the marinade in a food processor or small blender. Pour over chicken, set aside.


Cut up all your vegetables (pumpkin, eggplant and onion). Set aside.


Place all your ingredients for the curry paste in the food processor or blender, whizz thoroughly.


Place a large pot on the biggest burner you have and heat thoroughly. Drizzle olive oil in, and add your curry paste. Fry through, stirring constantly until it has reduced in size and is thicker (about 5 minutes). It should never burn, if it looks like it’s going to happen, reduce heat and add the liquids.


Add your coconut milk, your milk, mix thoroughly and bring to a boil. Add your vegetables, turn down the heat to low and cover. Let them simmer for about 20 minutes. Add chicken with marinade, let simmer covered for about 15 minutes, and then turn off. Let rest for 15 minutes before dishing up with a side of basmati rice, sprinkled with your coriander. Try not to hog all of it for yourself.

Healthy Chicken Tikka Masala

I brought the normal recipe down to a healthier caloric intake, as well as fat (notice, 1 cup of cream is clearly omitted). It is also very, but VERY hard to find certain spices on this island, so I did my best to substitute and still get an authentic, full flavour, without authentic ingredients.


Serves 4 people or 2 really greedy ones.


4 chicken breasts, skinless but bone-in (less of a tendency to dry out this way and more flavourful)
That you have cut a hash pattern in the top of (criss-cross for the flavours to enter better)


Marinade:
½ cup of yogurt
2 tbsp of Hot Madras curry powder
1 tbsp of sweet paprika
¼ tsp of cumin and cloves
A pinch of baking soda
2 garlic cloves, grated
¼ inch of ginger, grated


Sauce:
1 tbsp of olive oil
1 large, sweet onion, sliced
2 garlic cloves, sliced finely
½ inch of ginger, grated
3 cups of chopped tomatoes (fresh) or 1 ½ cans of chopped canned tomatoes
1tbsp of tomato paste
2 tbsp of sweet paprika
3 tbsp of hot madras curry powder
¼ tsp of cumin and cloves
1 small can of coconut milk (8 fl oz) the same again of milk (cow), and the same of water
1 tbsp of honey
1tsp of vinegar
Salt, to taste
For the chicken, simply bung all the ingredients together in a container (that shuts! You don’t want your whole fridge smelling of this, trust me), massage into the meat, really getting the marinade pushed into every crevasse. Place in the fridge and leave overnight. Dream of your curry while you sleep.


Now the sauce; Place olive oil with the onion in a large saucepan while still cold, then place on heat with a little salt. Sweat the onions for a few minutes, then add garlic and ginger, sweat for a few minutes more (just one or 2), then add your spices, fry a little longer, mixing constantly. Add your tomatoes, paste, milks and water, stir through, cover and let simmer for 1-2 hours on very low. Once everything has just melded together in gorgeous ruby lusciousness, place your chicken in the oven on the hottest setting for 20 minutes, then turn down to about 330 F for another 20 minutes. Add honey, vinegar and salt to the sauce, cook another 10 minutes, then adjust seasoning and let the sauce rest a few minutes before serving (just like the chicken, it needs some resting time).


Plate up with basmati rice, decorate with coriander leaves and a bit of grated coconut (unsweetened) if you have it and eat with gusto....


Leftovers freeze well... if you have any.

I Dream of Apple Loaf

2 c. of oat flour
½ c of wheat flour (or rice if you have it)
¼ c of sugar
1 tbsp of baking powder
¼ tsp of baking soda
½ tsp of cinnamon
Pinch of salt

2 big apples, grated
1 egg
1 cup of nonfat yogurt
1 tsp of vanilla extract

Topping:
¼ cup of slices almonds
2 tbsp of granulated sugar
1 tsp of cinnamon



Mix together all the dry, well, then add the wet ingredients, mix well. Pour into greased loaf pan, top with almonds, sugar and cinnamon, place in a 350 F over for 45 minutes, or until the center is set.


Try to not devour it all in one day (difficult).

Wicked Wednesdays

Beautiful Beets!

I would never under normal circumstances use such predictable words together like “Wicked Wednesday” (unless I was unapologetically enthusiastic about something very specific... and I am!), but this week it just fits, because in a few short days it’s one of my favourite holidays: Halloween. Costumes, silliness, candy, haunted houses... and in my childhood it also meant the world smelling of wet leaves - Of hummus and forest - the air would smell frosty and catch in your nostrils. While completely enchanting and magical, this weather (and temperature) change meant that we could never go trick or treating without an honest-to-God winter coat beneath or on top of our costume (if you were lucky it was somehow incorporated in your ghoulish, scary character). It also meant that my dear, imaginative, wonderful mother would feed us very special soup before we would run off: vampire soup. First off, it was deep, jewel mauve-red (thanks to beets), and loaded with garlic “to keep the vampires away” (I think it was more to keep the colds away that run rampant at that time of year, but that doesn’t sound as exiting). The soup, simple and absolutely delicious, is prepared as follows:


Vampire Soup


2 lbs of beets, cleaned and scrubbed
2-4 cloves of garlic, depending on strength and size
2 cups of buttermilk (or enough to make the soup liquid but not overly runny)
Salt, pepper, to taste


Boil your beets in water until they become tender (this depends on the size of the beet, but I would say anything between 20-50 minutes). Take off the heat and let cool slightly, or until you can handle the beets (recommended kitchen gloves unless you want stained hands). Once cooled sufficiently, but not cold, they should still be warm, peel and cut up in quarters. Plop in the blender. Add garlic (best to grate it in, to prevent huge-lump-of-garlic phenomenon), a dash of pepper and buttermilk to the beets. DO NOT SALT! Salting a soup before its blended is never a good idea, because the strength changes, and if you don’t want to have to eat a bowl of Dead Sea, hold your horses and add last. Blend very well. Here is your vibrant, delicious liquid! Ok, you can salt it now (you have my permission)... and serve in a white bowl with a little bread and butter on the side, just like my mother used to.  Soup is served room-temperature, but is also great chilled later.


Note: if your beets are not the freshest, add a little sugar to the soup (between 1 tsp and a tbsp should do). The interesting thing with this soup has always been for me the strong, pungent garlic, contrasted with sweet, delicate beets, and vibrant colour.


All the little witches must eat their soup before going to collect their sugar treasures!

Persimmons

I love them. Everything about them. From their thicker-than-average skin that crunches and gives beneath your teeth as you bite into a succulent, honeyed, plush fruit, to their beckoning colour, right down to their acorn shape. I love the smooth jewel-like seeds, that drop out of the fruit, looking like a piece of woodwork, polished and perfected to an elegant sheen; I love its elegant hat, looking every bit the ‘couvre-chef’ that it should be.



Here they are called “Kaki”. I name that in my belief does them little justice. Persimmon on the other hand... just say it: Persimmon. It evokes perfect.... and mom and mmmm. What better name for a fruit that is so comforting?

I will be looking up recipes today to see if there are any worth doing, but as always with a perfect fruit or vegetable, I am afraid to ruin it. Why make jam with such a perfect specimen? Why alter something that in its natural state is just, perfect? And this is the difference between myself and so many other cooks and chefs. I love foods as they are, the most simple, the purest form. Sure, I will cook them, but in no way do I want to lose their distinctiveness... what makes that perfect aliment... itself. I love the sweet, grassy taste of zucchini, and I love the way it melts into a more buttery version of itself as it cooks, needing very little help and being delicate, wonderful, smooth. It’s a shame it loses so much colour as it cooks, because for me, the bright deep emerald of a zucchini is just part of its charm. Its mystery. Just like a beautiful woman enhances herself with makeup, it’s bright green exterior beckons, calls... and I will answer.


And with that I will leave you to ponder persimmon thoughts... and maybe ones of zucchini, with it’s crazy names and so many uses.... zucchini cake anyone?

Sushi Ya

Several locations throughout the city

5$-20$ per person with soft drink

 

Fast n’ Furious Sushi

 

The name really does say it all: Sushi YA (which translates to sushi NOW). Qualified as a fast food sushi, you could conclude falsely that the sushi is no good, but this is definitely not the case. With a smaller menu than another sushi chain in the capital, their view seems to be “less but better”, executing every single one of their dishes well and consistently. There are the classic rolls like the Spicy Tuna (wrapped in sheets of delicate, sweet, creamy avocado), or their pure inventions like the standout Fiesta Shrimp (delectable panko fried shrimp with ripe plantains and avocado). Their rice tasted fresh, the sauces were good and complemented the dishes perfectly and weren’t overpowering of the delicate flavours.


One of their triumphs, for me, is getting the seasoning for the wakame salad just right, although they are overly generous with the avocado, making the dish a touch too heavy (option to ask for it with none or half of the normal amount of avocado). The dressing is zingy while still being earthy. The seaweed tastes crunchy and ozony. The shades of brilliant greens excites the palate and prepares you for every bite of salty-sweet, crunchy, slippery goodness.

Their menu is not very long, but well thought out, even with a child’s section (although regrettably, it is never available!). The decor is a modern mcdonald’s type take on a sushi house, with every table neat, small, yet perfectly formed. Food is relatively cheap, yet good, the ingredients are fresh, the only thing that left a lot to be desired is the service. Clumsy and a little slow, it left me wishing that they paid their staff a little more.

If you are going to be 2 or more (or want more than one meal out of it), I highly recommend sharing a sushi platter, which includes 2 rolls (California and spicy tuna, although I usually change out the uninspiring California for another roll, costing me a mere 50 pesos extra), a generous portion of tuna and salmon sashimi on top of shredded carrot along with a solitary nigiri. The value is incredible at a mere 315 pesos + tax (about $10), and you can quite easily share it between two hungry souls and have a little left over for snack.


All in all, it has swayed me as my sushi place of choice, winning my taste buds over Yokomo, which of late have been getting cocky with their success, churning out less-than-best dishes and an overly elaborate menu, poorly executed.


If only they offered more comfortable chairs, I would spend many a weeknight nursing a beer, with a couple of friends, regaling ourselves with tasty morsels.


Until next time: be good, be merry and most important of all, happy.

Peperoni Review

Ensanche La Julia, Plaza Universitaria

Santo Domingo

$40-$80 per person with wine

What’s in a name?

The first time I was told that I was going to “Peperoni” I was deceptively deflated. The name evoked bad New York Pizzerias with eggy crusts and fake cheese... but not so. I arrived to an absolutely breathtaking patio, completely bustling that Wednesday evening with a pack of extremely well dressed women, some of a certain age, others not so much, and distinguished men.


While the outside terrace is beautiful, airy, complete with a royal palm jutting out near the diners (a 20 ft palm), the tables it is to be said, are slightly rickety. But the service is impeccable. The maitre d’hôte proceeded to change my table immediately, and carry over all the drinks, appetizers, even cell phones, that were left on the table. The white wine was crisp and cold with a choice of two (a chardonnay and a sauvignon blanc) by the glass, and one red (a cabernet sauvignon, decent but not stellar), as well as a well rounded wine menu by the bottle, with choices of French, Spanish, Chilean, Californian, and nicely enough, Italian wines.


The menu exhibits the classic fare of most upper class restaurants in Santo Domingo, with an interesting imaginative twist to each dish. They are a little heavy on the oil in my taste (in every dish I tried), but the flavours are well thought out, interesting and most importantly, delicious.


The stand outs are the calamari salad, a steal at 600 pesos, enough to feed a family of 3 quite generously, with an absolutely impeccable mix of salad leaves and red cabbage with bitter and crunchy chicory giving the dish character, enabling the chef to use a heavier dressing that perfectly complements the airily crisp fried calamari. The dressing is heavy on the sesame oil and has a distinctive “Asian” quality, while still keeping it Italian, almost like the Italian’s version of what Asian should be. It is rich yet light, generous and elegant, savoury and crunchy. Really, everything you could ever want from a salad. The calamari come fried or grilled upon request. The peperoni roll is their take on sushi, with quite frankly, impeccable flavours, the smoked salmon is distinctive yet not overpowering, the rice perfectly cooked and seasoned and the presentation classic and modern. The salmon dishes on the menu all come with a choice of doneness (not yet de rigueur in these parts of the world) and are fresh. As for dessert, not to be missed is the chocolate souffle. To be ordered 25 minutes in advance, and worth every single instant waiting. It’s rich, unctuous, with a liquid chocolate centre, served with a vanilla ice cream (in my opinion, if heaven doesn’t have chocolate and ice cream, I want to stay on earth).


All in all, service is excellent. The inside decor is a little stuffy and dark for my taste (dark wood and badly organised seating that make it often impossible to get to your seat without knocking into another old dear). The bar being incredibly small, make a reservation! Or you will have the unfortunate experience of being in the way of every server out of the kitchen and every guest on their way to the bathroom trying to get past you. The portions are unapologetically generous, most being enough for 2 or 3 people: this is definitely a place to being friends to share a few dishes. The ambiance reminds me of glamour and class, while still being fresh, very much like a Caribbean New York. The outside terrace is honestly the best spot to be seated (even with the lack of air conditioning), between the fairy lights in the bushes, the view of the street and the fashion display of your fellow diners, you are bound to be entertained, well fed, and best of all, feel like a little piece of a greatly directed movie.

Look at My Face

Lets put it this way: I have recently over-done the retinoids due to... well, habits that do not agree with fair, dry skin like I have.

I have  policy for face masks and treatments: it takes a lot for me to put something on my face that I wouldn't eat because A- my skin is very sensitive and B- no trust in the beauty industry.

Here is my skin brightening steps that I took today...

Wash face with baby shampoo (great, hidden beauty trick), rinse thoroughly
Halve a tomato, dip in granulated sugar, scrub whole face toroughly with your tomato scrubber :)
Let soak in for 5-10 minutes
Rinse thoroughly
Make my Oatly Perfecting Mask:
1 tbsp of oat flour
1 tsp of honey
1 tsp of natural yogurt

Mix well into a paste, apply to dried face, let soak in for 10-20 minutes, rinse thoroughly with cold water
While face is still wet, apply good olive oil to seal in moisture.
Admire your perfect complexion :)