The one pot meal: Swedish Lamb Stew!

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“Swedish Turnips” or Rutabagas ( in the turnip family and a stronger taste) are a key ingredient in this fun Swedish dish. Of course, we include baby turnips!

Red potatoes, sweet onions, green onions, garlic, carrots, celery, parsley, chard help insure that you get your vegetables! 😉

All of this surrounds chunks of beautiful seared lamb!

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Some of the veggies require more time in cooking… So it’s nice to precook (Carmelized onions is nice) the veggies!

I love the one pot meal and I hope you do too.

Bon Appetite!

Cioppino (Cha-Pee-No) for the holidays!

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Cioppino comes from the kitchens near the wharfs of San Francisco. Many fix it during the holiday season and it still has a great amount of appeal in California. It is said to have descended from the time when fishermen returning from their time at sea would be asked to ‘chip in’ something to the communal pot. Others claim that it is a version of an Italian meal from Genoa… either way, it is unique in its own way.

I love these one pot meals , especially since there really isn’t a right or wrong way to prepare it. Every cook or chef will add their touch to make it there own. For me, the real secret is making a delicious sauce to properly accent your fish and seafood collection.

MEATS

2 large talapia2 or more pounds of shrimp
9 large scallops quartered
1 pound or more of crab meat

( I prefer that the meat be slightly cooked and added at the last moment… and no shells)

WINES/LIQUIDS

375 ml ( 1/2 bottle) of a white slightly sweet wine
1.25 cups Pernod
1 tablespoon Tabasco
2 tablespoons Worcestershire
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Shrimp/shellfish stock (enough to make it a soup or less to make it a stew… this starts with the water you use to cook your shellfish… from there its up to you)

(Everyone… well almost everyone, adds some wine to the pot. I like the old World elegance of Pernod adding a tang of licorice )

VEGGIES & SUCH

4 tablespoons crushed Garlic
2 large shallots
1 bunch chopped Italian Parsley
1 sliced fennel bulb
1 large diced white Mayan Onion
1 – 28 ounce can of diced tomatoes
1 cup diced celery
1/2 cup chopped basil

(all veggies are sauteed prior to entering the pot! It’s nice to use a quarter of a cup of olive oil or more as you cook and throw whatever remains in the pot)

SEASONINGS

salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste ( probably 3 tablespoons total… but check as you go)
Taragon, Rosemary and Fennel seeds ( 1 teaspoon each)
Pimenton (smoked  Spanish Paprika) 1 teaspoon
Thyme 2.5 teaspoons
Fennel seeds 1 tsp crushed
Oregano dried 2 teaspoons

PROCESS

I love to cook the sauce (seasonings, liquids and precooked Veggies) overnight in a crockpot with enough shrimp stock that it renders down nicely. Add some tomato paste if you need and want a thicker sauce, follow with your choice of fish and scallops. When the scallops and fish appear cooked ad your precooked shrimp and crab for the last few minutes)

Lastly, whatever remains can be frozen and enjoyed again at a later time! I hope you make some for yourself and those you love!

CLICK  HERE for a 1 minute PTCH on my Cioppino

amarula pumpkin spice cake

Amarula Pumpkin Spice Cake
Amarula Pumpkin Spice Cake Rocks!

This is one of those recipes that you need three bowls… one for the dry, one for the wet ingredients and one for the frosting.

  • Wet ingredients bowl:

1/2 cup Amarula Liquor
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup heavy cream
4 eggs
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 can 15 ounce solid pumpkin
4 teaspoons pumpkin spice blend

( my blend is 6 parts, cinnamon; 2 parts each of nutmeg, allspice and cloves; 1 part each of mace, cardamon and ginger)

  • Dry ingredients bowl:

2 – 2 1/4 cups bread flour ( start with 2 then check)
2 cups fine sugar
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda


  • Basic process:

gradually blend the dry into the larger bowl with the wet ingredients


  • Baking:

350 degrees for around an hour


  • Frosting:

3 ounces cream cheese, 1 tablespoon butter, 2 cups powdered sugar. (Or as needed to be firm bu pourable)
ADD enough Amarula Liquor to make the frosting thick but pourable ( around 1/4 cup)

top off with sliced Almonds

  • RESULTS:

I made this for my wife’s 60th birthday and all 130 pounds of her had three huge servings… when she thought she’d just have a ‘taste.’

  • Bon Appetite!

a Monte Cristo for you

A Monte Cristo with Lingonberries is a meal and a dessert! CLICK on the above picture to see how I make it.

I grew up loving the Monte Cristo served at Disneyland and although memory can fool you, I just don’t think they make it the way I remember over 40 years ago. So I decided to try to recreate this fabulous meal for myself.

Although the Monte Cristo is distinctively American it has some rather popular European roots. Some version or another is prepared fondly in nearly every country. In France , it started off as the “Croque-monsieur” which means something like Crunch-mister… let me know if you figure that out?

It is a fun little meal that really doesn’t take all that time and energy to make… but makes everyone happy!

HERE is the recipe!

Fun Recipes of Africa from Michael Tracey’s AfriChef

Some of the Fun recipes from Michael Tracey's AfriChef! CLICK on the picture to transport yourself to South Africa and beyond!

I first became acquainted with Michael Tracey’s recipes when my daughter Karen traveled to South Africa for an internship. Needless to say, Karen tortured me with the culinary offerings of some of the wonderful restaurants she discovered from ‘forty ate’ and  ‘five flies’  to  ‘Cafe Mao’s’ to an extraordinary sushi restaurant smack dab in the middle of an elegant Italian Restaurant on the waterfront!

I wouldn’t mind making some Bobotie soon!

Bobotie: A wonderful South African Meal! CLICK on the picture for my recipe!