Flavors – Page 6 – Growing Up Savvy

Published August 4, 2014 by Nadya

Weekending: Celebrating

Why is the weather always great during the week and the weekend gets washed out with rain? Either way, even rain and thunderstorms couldn’t keep my in-laws away. They visited with us and really lent a lending hand. We were thrilled to have adult company and adult conversations and Sophia was thrilled beyond words to have their undivided attention. Don’t get me wrong, Eliza received plenty of attention as well, but she is not nearly as demanding for it.

these pictures courtesy of my in-laws

Sophia’s been a busy bee what with all that attention from Grammie and Pop. Saturday, they took her to our local park (Cabin John) and she got to ride a train through the park and climb to her heart’s content on all the playgrounds. Sunday, they headed to Bethesda’s Imagination Stage for a performance of Mouse on the Move.

While Sophia was busy exploring and enjoying her special time, Evan and I spent some time relaxing … with Eliza and in the kitchen. We managed to grill during a break in the rain and I baked a flour-less chocolate cake in honor of my father-in-law’s birthday.

Grilled shishito peppers (Evan’s impulse buy) to satisfy our wanderlust for Japan. The peppers were grilled over charcoal and finished off with Maldon salt. These were a welcome accompaniment to home-made Korean BBQ wrapped in shiso leaves from our own garden.

This picture needs no description… it was death by chocolate and so very easy to bake. You can find the recipe here. I used Scharffen Berger’s 55% cocoa solids chocolate. As good as the BBQ and cake were, it was still all about spending time together as a family knowing we are very fortunate to have such wonderful parents in our lives who make time for us.

Cookery Dessert Flavors Hubby Cooks Life Moments

Published July 22, 2014 by Nadya

A Mother’s Olympic Sport

Successful athletes are dedicated to their sport. They eat, sleep and breathe their craft adhering to the strictest regiments. I am not a professional athlete and I don’t love the gym, though I have gone there when it was a dire necessity—before my wedding. I not patient either, but I do have one good quality—persevering and pushing ahead when I don’t want to do something such as … nursing on demand at all hours of the day and night.

Breastfeeding, you see, is like a sport. In order to succeed at it, you have to have dedication, perseverance and adhere to a strict regimen of rest and diet. A mother’s diet can significantly impact her child’s well-being and that, in turn, can impact your overall happiness. For example, some babies are not tolerant of dairy, while others of sugar. Besides being tolerant, you need to make sure you rest and eat enough to actually produce enough milk for your baby. Certain foods aid lactation and so, like an Olympic athlete adheres to a strict diet, nursing mothers need to adhere to guidelines too. Oatmeal and nuts are among the foods that are said to aid lactation and so in order to keep myself energized and Eliza fed and less cranky, I now stock an endless supply of home-made granola.

It is absolutely delicious packed with dried cranberries, cherries, almonds and pecans. I had an amazing helper assisting me in whipping up my granola, too. Now that she made it, she loves snacking on it. It is a win-win deal.

Cookery Flavors Moments

Published July 21, 2014 by Nadya

Weekending: A Spot of Tea For Two

Stop!

Did you know that the blackberry season has finally arrived? There is something magical about picking your own fruits and vegetables and when you throw in a few farm animals and a llama into the mix, well, the pull to go to the farm becomes irresistible. Sophia was so excited to go to the farm that she rushed through breakfast and barely let us finish ours before dragging myself, Evan, Eliza and my parents to Poolsville, Maryland where we went blackberry fishing. When I say we, I really mean Baba and Deda, Evan and Sophia (after she fed the goats and looked at the chickens and pigs, of course). I wish I had pictures of our time there but manning little Eliza was keeping my hands plenty busy. After picking well over ten pounds of blackberries and feeding the animals—again—we finally headed home.

We decided to share our pickings with my parents and my sister and eat our portion out of hand. The fruit is just so ripe, so perfect that I don’t see any need to add extra sugar and cook with it. Speaking of not cooking with fruit; I am finally able to eat moldy, unpasteurized, and stinky cheeses again—now that I am no longer pregnant. I don’t think you can understand my irrational love for these unctuous, luscious morsels of… goodness. I also don’t understand why it took me a month to realize and remember that they need to be added to my shopping list. Worry not, once I did, a Gorgonzola Dolce made it on the list and so did figs for this simple crostini with fresh fig and the gorgonzola atop toasted sourdough. mmm… try it for yourself, there is no recipe but you just put a bit of cheese, top with a bit of fig and you can also sprinkle with honey. Serve with a crisp white wine and a midday snack.

We didn’t just snack on crostini all weekend long. We benefitted from Baba and Deda’s culinary delights but managed to add our own such as this home-spun Cioppino with fennel and cod. The secret to the rich stock was potatoes and anchovies. I don’t follow a recipe per se, just a set of principles such as using vermouth to deglaze the shallots and fennel, adding anchovies to the olive oil and cooking the fish very little at the very end.

I also added a home-made tomato soup from Sprouted Kitchen and it won high praise from the diners. I suppose when you add a toast with melted, fresh mozzarella on top, almost anything will win high praise :-).

And saving the last for best … I got my hands untied for a little bit and it was glorious. Even though Eliza is not my first baby, I still learn plenty from those who’ve done this long before me and for much longer than I have.

This … this right here was simply the best. Sophia and my mom having “tea for two”. If you look carefully, you’ll notice they even decorated their table with a flower in a vase. Attention to details.

Perfection. I just wish my parents lived closer and we could visit them and the rest of our family more often. Then, we wouldn’t miss on fun events like our cousin’s 8th birthday bash :(.

Cookery Culinary Adventures Flavors Hubby Cooks Life

Published July 15, 2014 by Nadya

Weekending: Nice and Easy

It wouldn’t have been a nice and easy weekend if my Mother-In-Law (MIL) hadn’t offered to come and visit us for 22 hours. Yes, I counted and I was savoring every one of those and wished there were more. This would have been the first weekend we were left to our own devices with two children or 2×2 as I like to call it. The 2×2 situation is no joke—it is infinitely more difficult than having just one child.

The key to surviving and even enjoying the chaos is keeping your older child occupied with new and fun activities. My MIL is great at that and here is Sophia enjoying some painting. I try to pay attention at how she organizes Sophia’s activities and learn so that I can hopefully reproduce. I am sure valiant attempts lack the finesse with which Evan’s mom manages her time with a toddler.

Anticipating a 2×2 weekend, I’d designed an easy menu consisting of a new chicken wing recipe paired with boiled potatoes dressed with dill, sour cream and garlic.

The potato recipe is a Russian oldie but goodie. We continued our chicken themed cooking with Green Goddess Chicken served with basmati rice and a side of Dandelion greens Evan picked up at the grocery story. I am sure going to stop writing “something green for a vegetable” in his shopping list because he can get quite creative with his choices. I was hoping he’d get peas or broccoli and he comes home with Dandelion greens. I am not sure I’ve ever had them before and we’ve certainly never cooked them until Saturday. Since he chose these weeds, he got the privilege of cooking them and I wasn’t disappointed with the results.

You can pretty much bet that anything will taste great when cooked with soy sauce, ginger and garlic. Perhaps I’ll throw down a cooking challenge Evan’s way to acquire a stinging nettle next time and make a traditional Ukrainian borscht with it?!

All cooking aside, we were able to enjoy being out of the house. Eliza is just three weeks old and my cabin fever is at an all-time high. Shortly after my MIL headed home (sigh), we headed out to our first post-Eliza soiree—a birthday party for our friends’ little girl. We really had a great time having visited with our friends and Sophia enjoyed playing with other kids. For her, visiting with so many little kids is quite a luxury since she doesn’t attend nursery school yet. We came home yesterday with a cranky Eliza and a tired but thrilled Sophia. As for ourselves, the company of other adults can do wonders for one’s cabin fever and spirits. Seeing all those reasonably relaxed parents with two or more children running around gave me great hope that I too one day shall manage as well as they have learned to.

Cookery Flavors Hubby Cooks Life

Published July 7, 2014 by Nadya

Weekending: We’re Back

Can you believe it is already past the 4th of July? No? Well, neither can I. Time flies especially at times like today, when I bid a somewhat sad goodbye to my parents, after a long weekend that seemed too short. I wish time stood still or I had just a little more of it with them. On the other hand, I wish time would fly by and I could finally bid diapers and bottles a cheery adieu. I can’t have it all, so I’ll settle for whatever time I am afforded with those whom I love most and a great celebration—whatever the reason.

We’ve been loved on by our families with attention and delectable edibles so much that we’ve both missed being in the kitchen. My parents provided us just that when they visited and took the girls off our hands. I can’t really get used to saying it … the girlS. Admittedly, as I am still the sole food supply for Eliza, Evan did more cooking but I contributed in selecting the recipes and making some sides and desserts. July, as you should know, is the national ice cream month and so we have home-made vanilla ice cream and a lovely berry crostata.

I also continued to slowly make headway into Yotam Ottolenghi’s Jerusalem cookbook and made this amazing Chermoula Eggplant.

It was simply spectacular and very easy to make. While I focused on all things sweet and vegetarian, Evan made rockfish simmered in dashi finished with a Chinese hot oil/herb dressing.

He also made korean BBQ from a Cooks Illustrated recipe I discovered while perusing their magazines that we have from when we used to subscribe. It was delicious and I’ll post a slightly updated recipe shortly.

Cookery Dessert Flavors Hubby Cooks Life Moments

Published June 30, 2014 by Nadya

Weekending: Hugs, Kisses and Delicious Food

The weekend was here at last. Funny how I still look forward to the weekend even though I am on leave. I sometimes wonder if I will loose perspective by the end of my 12 week vacation and every day will be the weekend at that point. I suppose having Evan at home and visits from our family make the weekend exceptional. Maternity leave is certainly not a vacation, though it is incredibly rewarding!

As expected, our families came to visit and meet the new addition bringing with them able hands to play with Sophia and delicious dishes for us to enjoy. As most parents know, cooking when you’ve just welcomed a new addition can be difficult and we haven’t dabbled into much cooking since Eliza’s birth. Evan did however wing an amazing beef recipe that we had two different ways over the last week and felt it was good enough to share. It is a hands off recipe that can be enjoyed in a tortilla with fixings in a Tex-Mex sort of way and also with simple Marinara sauce and pasta in an Italian style. The recipe is here and here’s how we enjoyed it:

… and while the beef was marinating …

Cookery Flavors Hubby Cooks Life

Published June 16, 2014 by Nadya

Weekending: Jubilee

At last, the rain stopped and the sun came out. The humidity stayed away and we really enjoyed being in the country. As if insatiable with summer and what it has to offer, I hightailed to the farm on Saturday morning to pick tart cherries. The season has just started but if I know anything, it is that you got to show up early or not at all. I took my dad on a father/daughter excursion for help and also as an early Father’s Day treat to myself. I don’t remember the last time we spent time just the two of us and I couldn’t think of a better time to restart the counter.

You see, my father has many wonderful traits, but one of them, he comes by naturally: he’s fairly tall. We weren’t as serious about picking as some of the others braving the 9 am farm crush. I could see a slight disappointment in my father’s eyes as he eyed the competition armed with ladders, but we found a few trees that were yielding Jubilee Cherries which are a slightly sweeter, larger tart cherry. You had to go a lot deeper into the grove to seek out this variety but we, and, unsurprisingly a whole group of Russians found them at the same time. The cherries were scrumptious, so juicy and tender that we found it difficult to leave the grove but finally decided it was time to head out when the scales tipped past the ten pound mark. I feared what Evan and my mom would say about the sheer magnitude of our harvest as it had to be used rather quickly.

I knew that we could always be generous and share them with my sister whose absolute favorite food is tart cherry vareniki. Sharing would still leave me with quite a bit and sure, we can turn into jam, preserves, conserves or something of the likes. You can even make fruit punch with them. But I wanted them in a baked dish and hand pies or pierogies seemed like a lot of bother. After some searching, I decided that we had to go big and so made a large, sour cherry slab pie. Mmm, so good. My dad and I picked the cherries, my mom pitted the cherries, I made the heavenly pie crust and assembled with the help of my dad. Unsurprisingly, for a sweet tooth anyway, he never turns down an invitation to help in the kitchen when someone is cooking something sweet.

It was heavenly — tart and sweet, meaty and flaky and just everything that you think summer and summer desserts should be. Thankfully, I froze a batch of cherries for one more pie just like this and I am sure they won’t stay in my freezer too much longer. There aren’t too many other culinary stories to share with you with this weekend because in addition to visiting with us and playing with Sophia, my parents brought us dinner and lunch for the next few days. For once, we’re grateful for the break and are enjoying some of our favorites like cold borscht.

Speaking of playing, and play they did. In the sandbox and in the garden, outside in the front yard and in the back yard. Sophia planted new seeds and watered them too. Happiness is seeing your child involved in take care of her demesne and sharing that with your family.

Cookery Dessert Flavors Life

Published June 9, 2014 by Nadya

Weekending: Play

It has been significantly warmer and muggy around these parts. When the winter chills hit, I forget that the District of Columbia and its surroundings are pretty much one big swamp that gets hot, humid and full of mosquitos come summer time. Usually, the beginning of June serves as an unwelcome reminder and we realize that summer around these parts means early morning/evening walks and hiding out in the comfort of an air conditioner at all other times.

No matter, the weather and the sudden bout of humidity did not deter my sister and her family from visiting.

The kids, despite their age differences played wonderfully together and we all enjoyed great food and great company.
Evan and I whipped together a very easy lunch of a summer-vegetable pasta salad and a chicken sausage with sautéed peppers and onions. Sophia was my sous chef.

We deglazed the sausage and peppers with red wine vinegar to cut through the sweetness of the peppers and the richness of the onions. Since the meal was rich and satisfying and the temperatures far too warm, I whipped up a rhubarb compote with home-whipped cream, meringues and fresh berries for dessert… say a non-messy Eton Mess.

Cookery Culinary Adventures Flavors FriendsFamily Hubby Cooks Life

Published June 2, 2014 by Nadya

Weekending: With Friends, Family and Great Food

Is the weekend really over? Time flies when you’re having fun and we really had a great weekend. The only issue was that it was far too short, or it sure felt that way.
Strawberry picking season is finally here and so we headed to the farm bright eyed and bushy tailed this Saturday morning to pick strawberries. Sophia and I fed the farm animals while Evan picked. Strawberry harvesting is not that easy and it almost feels a shame to cook with any of them once you’ve worked so hard to pick them. We opted against making strawberry pies or cobblers or even ice cream and are just eating them out of hand.

We also had a special treat this weekend in seeing our good friends from Philadelphia. They were enjoying a long weekend in Baltimore and were generous enough to drive a bit further southwest to have dinner with us. Sophia enjoyed spending time with their son who is also two years old.
We also couldn’t pass up a visit from my parents this weekend who re-supplied us with Baba’s famous meat blintzes and other delicious treats. However, my parents weren’t here on just a culinary delight delivery mission. It just so happened that Sunday was our anniversary and we got a chance to get out for a lunch-date while Sophia enjoyed some time with her grandparents.

Alas, since the weekend was rather busy with being out and enjoying company, there wasn’t as much cooking as is typical around these parts. I did choose a Chicken with Cardamom Rice recipe from my Jerusalem cookbook that Evan cooked and it was a-h-m-a-z-i-n-g. Here, see for yourself.

You’re probably thinking to yourselves … “where’s the dessert?” Fear not, there were home-made, extra fudgy brownies and home-made vanilla ice cream, too. It was our anniversary, after all!

Culinary Adventures Flavors FriendsFamily Hubby Cooks Mom's Cooking

Published May 20, 2014 by Nadya

Weekending: With Nuts!

… and not just any nuts, but pistachios and not your average pistachios but ones that come from Sicily. What were we doing with nuts? Making pistachio ice cream of course. The season and everything else going on around here hasn’t slowed down the pace at which we are churning out (literally) delicious goodies.

I used this recipe for the ice cream and ended up shelling the big bucks for the pistachio crema. It makes sense to go to Sicily just to stock up on the pistachio products alone.

We have also embraced seasonality and so Evan whipped up an amazing fish en papillote from a local catch. What could be better than ginger, lemon, scallion and herbs from our very own garden?

All of them steamed with fish in a pocket and topped with asparagus of course.

Delicious as that is… nothing beats time with Grammie and water-play!

There was of course more cooking that this … but most of the other culinary delectables were repeats from our past favorites and I won’t ~~tantalize~~ bore you with pictures.

Cookery Culinary Adventures Dessert Flavors FriendsFamily Hubby Cooks

Category: <span>Flavors</span>

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