Roger's View of the World, Love and Seafood Gumbo!
Seize the Day! Put no trust in the morrow! — Horace
There aren’t a lot of Carrot Cake Rolls on the internet. There are some commercial outfits that will display what they call a carrot cake roll and I am sure there are carrots swimming through there somewhere. However, the challenge of making a roll from a standard carrot cake recipe is a big one!
However, I think it can be done and with only minor changes. The Amarula frosting really made it , too!
Here is my recipe made with love for Kris and Karen!
enjoy! oh yeah, it was very yummy!
Roger
For whatever reason, I have had a few requests for my Margarita recipe. What’s funny is that I don’t make my Margaritas for anyone but myself and my immediate family and my late mother-in-law June Sievers.
My recipe isn’t for the Margaritas-by-the-gallon set… but for those special occasions when only the best will do or to impress someone… this’ll work. I don’t measure when I make my Margaritas and this never has gone wrong… so here in it’s simplest form is what I put in it:
1 1/2 – 2 oz. Don Julio ‘Anejo’ Taquila
1/2 oz. Grand Marnier ( a triple sec)
1/2 oz. or more lime juice fresh or otherwise ( vary according to your taste for tartness)
1/2 oz. or more of liquid sweetener ( Agave syrup or Margarita Mix of your choice if you must)
(HINT) mix the lime juice and your choice to sweeten separately and taste until you get it right for you! I like it balanced. This Margarita might be slightly sweeter than you are used to… but definitely more flavorful!
refrigerate all ingredients
Pour over finely crushed ice!
delicioso!
Roger Freberg
Now that Halloween is over , we can begin to think about the next holidays. Obviously, one of the most popular holidays celebrated by most Americans is the colonial tradition of ‘Thanksgiving.’ It is that time of year when family and friends get together to celebrate the happiness of the past year and anticipate the possibilities of good things to come.
No one can talk about Thanksgiving without those wonderful words like: turkey ( we like Turducken or Ostruducken), feast, cranberries, creamed potatoes , stuffing and various desserts.
For dessert, everyone has their favorites: apple pie, rhubarb pie, chocolate pie, pecan pie and of course my personal favorite the ‘pumpkin pie.’
If you ever chawed into a raw pumpkin, it’s kind of like taking a swig of raw vanilla extract, it is definitely not what you were expecting! So what makes a pumpkin pie so special? The secret lies in the spices and in the crust.
First, there is a prepared spice blend called ‘Pumpkin Pie Spice’ that generally contains some of the following: Nutmeg and mace, ginger, cloves, cinnamon and allspice , cloves. Cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves are the most commonly used spices… and they are cheap. If you really look around you’ll find some recipes calling for small additions of other spices like cardamon. However, with a little practice, i am sure you can come up with a version that will make everyone smile.
As for the crust, you can’t beat a Crisco/ butter blend crust with a bit of mace…
The season of cooking has begun. How will you make yours special?
Roger
Chimichangas are generally the most expensive item on the menu of your local Mexican food restaurant. The reason is very simple, it is the extra beef and the preparation time.
Chimi’s were developed in and around Tucson, Arizona in the 1920’s as part of what many refer to as a blend of cultural tastes or ‘fusion’ cooking. Call it Tex-Mex or Tucson-Sonora Cooking, it tastes just as wonderful!
Here’s one fun way to make chimichangas. If you make them yourself, you may never buy another.
enjoy,
Roger
What good is a great deep fryer if you can’t use it to make something truly wonderful?
There are many excellent stories about the invention of Chimichangas in Southern Arizona around the early 1920’s. What started out as an overstuffed burrito that then was deep fried has evolved to a wide variety of very special meals with all the trimmings!
Rogelio ( pronounced ‘Ro-hel-lio’) has put aside his Boston Baked Bread to prepare ‘el magnifico chimichangas’… and pictures will follow. This is my project for today.
In the meantime…. Margarita’s anyone?
Roger