the colors of the dominican republic

I am not sure if I have made it clear that I LOVE TO TRAVEL! I think I may have said that a few times in this blog already. I was afraid I was not going to be able to travel this year...afraid that I was going to break my momentum that I have had since 2005. Fortunately, and with some little luck, I was able to make it down to Joshabel's wedding in the Dominican Republic, sweet!

Most of my time was spent helping finalize the wedding, but after it was all over, we were able to take a day trip to a beach town. On our way there we stopped to purchase some fruit...oh, how lovely the colors! I went crazy taking pictures of the tantalizing and coquettish fruit! I think everyone thought I was insane..."hasn't she seen fresh fruit before?"

I have to admit that I became partially blinded, all I could see was the colorful fruit. No wonder I did not notice when Joshabel and Oscar purchased a mortar and pestle for me as a departing gift...sneaky!

As in all the Dominican Republic, music was blasting and the love birds would forget about all of us and just dance under the trees...very romantic! It made me miss my Tony...

Since I was a little girl I was addicted to mangoes. I can eat them all day long and thus I was given the nickname, the Mango Queen. Joshabel's dad saw how happy I got when I saw the mangoes so he bought me 10! He kept on offering me more and more to eat...my tummy just couldn't have any more. Now I wish I had one of those mangoes right in my hand! They tasted incredible!

So the mortar and pestle is used to make mofongo. It is a traditional dish from the Dominican Republic (they have it in Puerto Rico as well). It is made with fried plantain that is then mashed with chicharron (fried pork rind). This is the traditional mofongo, but it can also be made with garlic, shrimp, yucca, instead of plantain, etc... it is a delicious treat and I cannot wait until I make it at home...if only I could find the time to cook! (more on that on a later post). 

Oh how I love the bright color of the mango! At the beach we were able to relax, take a dip in the water, and just enjoy each other's company. The family we visited made us some fried fish, garlic rice and tostones. It was delicious!!!!! I love fried fish and the best I have ever had has been at the beach here in the DR and in  Puerto Vallarta. Both times local families have cooked the freshly caught fish for us.

I have a few dishes I want to try to make from the Dominican Republic...I guess I will start with the easiest one, tostones! This dish is made with green plantains that are twice fried. They are crunchy and go well with just about everything. I made an aioli sauce to dip the tostones in. 

Tostones

2 unripe plantains
1/2 cup of oil
salt

Peel the plantain and cut into 1 inch thick slices. In a deep frying pan, heat the oil and fry the plantains until golden brown. Flatten the plantains using the bottom of a flat glass (or anything with a flat surface). Fry the plantains again from 30-60 seconds on each side. Season with salt and serve.

gabe eating solids for the first time!

The day that I have been waiting for finally arrived! Gabe is now eating solids and his first time was so fun to watch! Tony and I were so excited, and after it was all over, we could not stop smiling and feeling so proud of our little munchkin. We decided to start with apple...I don't know why I started with this but I do know he really loved it. I made a homemade applesauce, very easy to make and I have to say it is way better than any store bought apple sauce. It was the simplest thing to make and the flavor was nothing but true apples, no preservatives, sugar, etc....

We started with very little since I did not expect he would eat much, then we gave him seconds, and then some more. He really loved it! I am really keeping my fingers crossed he is not a picky eater! I have to repeat that this homemade applesauce tastes way better than anything you can purchase at the store. The following is a recipe for making this quick apple sauce...honestly, it is really just mashed apples. Make it for your baby, your kids or yourself. Sprinkle a dash of cinnamon if you like and enjoy!

Homemade Applesauce

2 medium apples (Gala apples), peeled, cored and chopped

2 Tbs of water

Put the apples in a saucepan and add the water. Cover and cook over low heat until tender (6-8 minutes). 

Transfer the apples and cooking liquid to a blender or food processor and puree. Serve warm, at room temperature or cold. Add a pinch of cinammon if desired. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days. 

gabe and the abuelitas

Gabe is growing up so fast! It is so amazing to watch him develop,watch him discover his hands, watch him work hard to roll over, see his interest in color...the list goes on and on. Every second with him is so interesting. I really love being a mom, especially a mom to Gabe.

I have to confess that I totally melt when he smiles at me...it must be pretty cheesy to watch. My face lights up and my smile feels bigger than normal. I wonder what Tony thinks when he sees me melt that way, I think it is a bit embarrasing! I am afraid I will be one of those mothers that cry for everything that their kids do. Just watching him smile makes a few tears fall from my eyes. I am such a proud mama! A quick update on Gabe: he is almost 5 months, weighs 16.6 lbs and is 26 inches long. He is at 50 percentile weight and 75 percentile height. He rolls over so smoothly, he coos like crazy, giggles from tickling and he wants to walk with Abuelita Amanda's help. On Wednesday I will start him on solids...I can't wait!

As of now I am still working part-time. Abuelita Terrie takes care of Gabe on Mondays and Abuelita Amanda takes care of him on Tuesdays and Thursdays. This is such a treat for Gabe as he gets to spend time with these two amazing ladies!

Every time the abuelitas are over I try to make some delicious dinner. This recipe is one that I made for Terrie one Sunday night. I love it because it is easy and oh-so-fresh! I serve everything in seperate little bowls and I allow everyone to prepare their tacos just the way they like them. Because I had included a spiced peach jam, I decided to make lemon shrimp to give the tacos a sweet and sour touch. It turned out outstanding and I recommend you try this easy recipe!

Spiced Peach Jam

1 lb fresh peaches, peeled, cored and diced
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
3/4 teaspoon cumin
3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground clove
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 or 3/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (depending on how spicy you want the jam)

Follow the technique here for blanching and peeling the peaches (first step of recipe).

In a heavy medium-size saucepan, combine all ingredients. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring often. Reduce heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally until the mixture has thickened, about 30 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature, about 1 hour. Store in an airtight container refrigerated for up to 1 week.

Makes 2 cups.

Shrimp Tacos

1 lb of jumbo shrimp, peeled, deveined, cleaned and patted dry
2 Tbs of olive oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
half lime
salt and pepper to taste

For sides you can chop any of the following: tomatoes, onion, cilantro and avocado. I also saute corn in a bit of olive oil. I also provide sour cream, queso fresco and limes. Don't forget the tortillas!

Place shrimp in a large bowl and add olive oil and garlic. Toss to coat. Grill shrimp or cook on a medium-size skillet over medium heat. Shrimp are done when they turn pin and are no longer translucent.

Plase shrimp in serving bowl. Add cilantro, salt and pepper and toss to coat.

canning and TSS reunions...my new obsession!!

Recently I have spent a lot of time canning jams and preserves. I have always wanted to do it in the past but never got around to it. This year I decided not to slack off and I have invested a lot of time in learning how to prepare the fruit and how to can it to preserve it for the months to come. In reality, this is not hard at all, just a bit time consuming getting all the jars sterilized. I started with a very basic recipe...strawberry preserves. I decided to cut the sugar in half because of how much it required. in the middle of it all I was reading up on the technique of making jams without added pectin and I realized that  there is a science to it. You really need all that sugar to make sure it gels up. How dumb of me not to follow directions! Oh well, I decided to proceed since it was too late.

Fortunately the fruit did gel up for me and the jam came out delicious! It is very spreadable and it works just like any other jam. I am not sure what experts would say about this, all I know is that both Tony and I loved it! I spread some of this jam on a slice of homemade brioche...the thought of this combination makes my mouth water! I have made other recipes as well and I will post them soon. Just to tease you here is a preview of a few: fig, orange and rosemary jam; vanilla spiced pear butter; and spiced peach jam.

I had some leftover strawberries and I decided to use it to make a strawberry and apple galette for my reunion with some members of The Scholar Ship. Quick summary, back in 2007 I traveled on a cruise around the world with 200 international students for one semester. I met a lot of great people on this trip and I am fortunate to now have friends all over the world. Every once in a while I meet up with a few of them and it is such a special treat. I think the bond that we created on the boat is so strong that we will continue to keep it as we grow old. It is now 2011 and we are still meeting up across the world. I have been fortunate to meet up with many here in the Bay Area, in New York, Paris, London and soon in the Dominican Republic.

This time around it was Jarin and her lovely parents who came to visit us and of course we showed her a great Bay Area time! I hosted the lunch at my place and we ate Tony's amazing paella (I love this dish and it feeds a lot of people!) This day was truly an amazing one...I really love my TSS buddies!

I prepared my burnt milk with toasted coconut ice cream (recipe to come soon) the day before our reunion as I knew it would compliment the strawberry and apple galette. It sure did! Viewing all my friends eat this dessert made me feel warm and fuzzy as I could tell in their face that they loved every bite! Hope you enjoy this recipe and the one for the strawberry preserves!

Whole Strawberry Preserves
1.5 lbs fresh, medium sized and perfectly ripe strawberries
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice

Remove stems from strawberries and place in a large bowl and cover with 1.5 cups of sugar. Toss to coat and set the strawberries aside for 2-3 hours until the sugar starts to dissolve and the strawberries start to juice.

Place the berries in a colander over a large saucepan. Leave the juices in the pot and set the berries aside. Add the remaining 1/5 cup of sugar to the pot and bring to a boil, stirring constantly until dissolved. Add the berries into the pot and simmer for 10 minutes.

Take off the heat and stir in the lemon juice. Transfer the berries to a large shallow dish and allow the berries to cool. Cover and leave overnight.

The next day return the berries to a large pot, bring to a boil and simmer until it reaches 230 F.
Ladle the preserves into sterilized jars, cool and cover. Store the preserves in the fridge for 2-3 months or seal and process the jars to store the jam for up to a year.

Makes two 8oz jars

Strawberry and Apple Galette

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut in pieces
2 eggs

2 cups of strawberries, sliced

2 apples, peeled, cored and sliced

powdered sugar

Place the flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor, and process for a few seconds to combine. Add the butter, and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 seconds. Add one egg and process for no more than 30 seconds.

Turn the dough out onto a work surface. Roll dough into a ball and wrap it in plastic wrap. Press down to flatten the dough, into a disk. Refrigerate at least 3 hours before using.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a floured surface, roll out dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut large circles of dough with a cookie cutter or make one galette. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Place some apples on top, then strawberries. Sprinkle with a bit of sugar. Fold edge of dough over fruit. Refrigerate 20 minutes. Brush crust with egg wash and sprinkle galette with  sugar. Bake until crust is golden and underside is cooked through, about 20 minutes for small galette and around one hour for a large one (make sure to check galettes as they cook to ensure you don't burn them). Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving.

Makes one large galette or 5 small ones.

where does the time go?

Things have picked up for me, which is not good as I no longer have enough time to cook much these days. I went back to work at the beginning of July, although just part time, it still takes three days away from my baby, my husband and my kitchen. I am in the process of changing gears at work and I am extremely excited, but a bit scared that this transition will take A LOT of time away from the things I love to do. At least the transition period wont last long...I hope!

Baby Gabe is getting so big! I wish I could be by his side every second to watch him grow. It is hard for me to leave him when I go to work, but I do feel good he gets to spend time with both abuelitas while I am gone. However, I can tell that as he gets older and more alert, I am having a harder time being away from him, even if he is with family. He is growing so quickly and every day there is a new thing he does or discovers...oh, I love my son!

Oh....it is almost time to start feeding Baby Gabe solids! I am so excited as I will be making his food from scratch. Again, I am very fortunate to have very generous people around me. Lindsey gave me a few things that I will be using to prepare the food and one of Tony's ex co-worker, Marika, gave us a Baby Cook machine, the one that sells at William Sonoma. All of that combined with the hand mixer that Terrie's boss, Jimmy, gave us will make creating baby food so much fun. I can't wait to get Monkey (that is what we call Baby Gabe) to try all different kinds of food, especially food cooked by mommy. All I hope for is for him to be a good eater and an adventurous one as well. We have been very fortunate that little Michayla has turned out exactly that way. She loves everything and loves to try all kinds of food. We can take her to eat Indian food and she enjoys every bite! 

  

I hope to raise Gabe in a very healthy environment with delicious and nutritious food prepared at home, but I will also make him some special treats once in a while that may be a little naughty...such as this Apricot Clafoutis. I will make sure to pair this delightful clafoutis with some homemade burnt sugar ice cream. It is truly an amazing combination!

Apricot Clafoutis

1 lb. apricots, quartered, halved or a combination and pitted

2 tsp. brandy or cognac

2 eggs

3/4 cup plus 2 Tbs. milk

6 Tbs. granulated sugar

1 tsp. finely grated lemon zest

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Pinch of salt

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

2 Tbs. confectioners sugar 

Preheat an oven to 350°F. Butter baking dish. Place the apricots in the bottom of the dish, dividing them evenly, and sprinkle with the brandy.

In a blender, combine the eggs, milk, granulated sugar, lemon zest, vanilla, salt and flour. Process until smooth. Pour the batter over the apricots.

Bake until clafouti is puffed and golden brown, 40 to 45 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool slightly. Dust the top with confectioners sugar and serve. 

Serves 6.