Vegetarian

Exposure to various cuisine is the portal to understanding and embracing cultures around the world. The flavors represent not only the people’s lifestyle and philosophy but their attitude towards life. And I don ‘t speak of the food you eat when you go out, or the food you make when you have guests. I talk about the food you eat when you are wearing your pajamas and your hair is all messed up. I am talking about real down to home food that is family, nationality and you… Thee real you. The food you eat from a house in India, Bolivia, Ecuador, Greece, Russia, Pakistan and you think you are back home. For a split second that house becomes your home. 

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The cheesecake is indeed an american classic. I never considered myself american or even close to the culture it represents till the moment my oven rolled out one of these beauties! It is a desert that sums up the american spirit. Many reasons for that. First of all it has a bunch of american ingredients, cream cheese, Graham cookies and butter. The all american cooking fat. Also the idea of a cake that has a base that can be tailored to anything sweet and savory it is an all american classic. An all american classic. But most of all it is the basic custard filling that is the heart and soul of the american country desert cooking.

Mashed potatoes has been a staple food around holidays table almost since its utilization. For the first people that cultivated potato boiling was the only way to go since open fire roasting was not as easy as is today. Mashing the potato is the second most common way to consume them after frying. And although it is easy and delicious we most rely on the boxy stuff. Flakes that come out of a box and are revived in microwaved water. No. Today we will reclaim the potato in its purest form. We will make the potatoes again the comfort food that is. 

This is an alternative salsa, something you do not see very often. It is a sweet and hot spicy salsa, that is very good compliment to white meat like fish (tilapia, mahi-mahi etc) and chicken or pork. A quick method to turn this to a marinate is to pass it through a blender. This will pulverize the salsa to a thick marinate. An additional effect of this is the papain. It is an enzyme primarily found in papaya and it has the ability to break down proteins like collagen. This will tenderize the meat making it juicer. Its primary utility actually is the breaking down the tough meat fibers and has been utilized for thousands of years in its native South America. 

The summer is here and nothing reminds of summer better that the fresh veggies, the cold refreshing food and the porch snacking. Among probably the most common foods that can compete as the most summery food snacks is salsa. The mexican traditional food that took over the world. It is refreshing, easy to make, and a good way to polish your knife skills. 

Recently I was trying to find a alternative to the tomato sauce I use for the pasta. The tomato sauce is fine, but it is used for the last years of my life and it is boring. Tomato is quite acidic and not as creamy as would like to be.  So I thought about it and I found a few recipes for what I was looking for, and suddenly I found it. It is a combination of recipes I found on line, and recipe cooked for me long time ago from a dearest friend. So I did some changes and I made it. As you probably guessed by the title it is a sauce based on the roasted red bell peppers.

here are only few things that can initiate reactions that smell home. There smells, sounds and tastes that when combined properly they can take you all the way back to your childhood. One of the is the dished featured here today. All the way from the island of Crete, the island whose velvety soil, I felt for first time under my feet.The island were I had my first steps in life (and secretly wish to have my last steps). It is a simple dish with simple and humble ingredients as everything in life. Some bread some olive oil tomatoes and cheese, all bind together by the universal greek herb of oregano.

After a busy month, and a big absence I am back with more recipes. As you probably guessed by the tittle, I am going to speak for the condiments, those creamy things that are on every fast food table and on every refrigerator. The trinity of those condiments are the mustard, the ketchup, and the mayonnaise. All those condiments, are very easy to make, but for some reason we have been taught that they only come in jar. Well they don ‘t!!! They are easy to make and they are so flavorful, that once you try them, you will never go back to the store bought again. Well you might go, but you will not like it. 

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