NYE | Bigos, or Polish Hunter's Stew

Before the bacchanalia, comfort. In fact, comfort food to line the stomach. Cabbage, sauerkraut, mushrooms, sausage are key. Without those it's just not it. Beyond that, get creative with cooked meats and prunes. Wash down with vodka preferably and traditionally, or beer to keep it in the hunter spirit, or red wine to take it in that direction. Be bold. Happy New Year!

Sunday Feast № 52 | Roasted Red Snapper with Rosemary and Fennel

About a year ago, a photo of red mullet with fennel appeared in front of me again. OK. Less dramatic: I was looking for a Christmas Eve fish dish that was not carp. I went to one of my local stores that still has the fishmonger-like stand and one that seemed the most likely to have less standard fish options despite still being a supermarket, and looked for mullet. Saw none and asked - yes, actually interacted in the supermarket with someone beyond a cashier! I was told that this supermarket doesn't carry mullet due to its poor sustainability. "What is a good substitute then?" "Sea bass is one." It was good. Just did not have the red tinge on in its scales, and I suppose that's what I wanted. Too.    But red snapper does! What's more, supermarket next door always has it and I had a roasted red snapper recipe ferreted away already. This one was from Food Network courtesy of Giada De Laurentiis, which is rather fitting since the red mullet recipe was from an Italian cookbook. My oil use was liberal; hence, no measure. I sliced the onion and fennel bulb being too lazy to chop - isn't that the height of laziness?! This roasted snapper makes a great alternative to Christmas Eve carp, and beyond.

Sunday Feast № 51 | Almond Frangipane and Cranberry Tart with Honeyed Pistachios

Ever since late fall, there was a bag of fresh cranberries still hanging around in the bottom drawer of my fridge. They should have been gone by now, meaning eaten, but no, and suprisingly still looked highly edible. Maybe it is the skin... Anyhow. Here I had in my hands the latest issue (December/January 2017) of Saveur magazine, with this tart on the cover. Well, "those cranberries are dead now!" The original recipe called for ¾ cup frozen cranberries, which I thought suprising considering my state of fridge affairs and perception of the season, but probably normal for other fridges-freezers, and the original recipe called more sugar to mix them in. Also, seeing all the butter mixture beating, this recipe pushed me to acquire a hand-held electric mixer despite trying to keep the kitchen as "decluttered" as humanly possible - for me. Hand-held since I am still not ready to graduate, spacewise and otherwise, to a standup mixer. Give it time. Before that, bake this tart.

Sunday Feast № 50 | Quinoa with Dried Cranberries and Pistachios

Quinoa is one of those ancient Latin grains that became very popular outside of its indigenous regions around mid-2000s and early 2010s, and around that time, funnily enough, I always ate it as a cool salad with fruits and vegetables that one would most likely not cook. Fast forward tiny bit past exactly mid-2010s, and yes I am super late to the party, I considered the season and locked onto this version, which in fact tastes better warm, and was a very welcome alternative to the cool, or cold to be exact. Serves 4 as stand alone lunch or 6 as a side dish. The recipe is from Muscle & Fitness magazine November 2014 issue and has been slightly changed by adding twice the dried cranberries and pistachios.

Sunday Feast № 49 | Grilled Swordfish with Cilantro Chile Vinaigrette

The combination of what I see as Latin flavors of cilantro, chilies, lemon or lime juice, is irresistible to me. The multi-dimensional citrus flavors cut with spicy heat enhance any rich food far better than any of those ingredients alone. Plus, the simplicity of this meal is quite alluring. Think about it: simply grilled fish steak with butter finish, elevated with that kind of a vinaigrette. Have it with crisp dry white wine and good bread to mop up those juices, or maybe skip the latter if you have big fish steaks, and after all, licking the plate is acceptable is certain circumstances. If you can't get swordfish steaks, I hear halibut and fresh tuna are good substitutes. The recipe is very slightly adapted from Food & Wine magazine November 2014 issue (yep, still with the same issue after the pumpkin focaccia): it was the garlic - the cloves I had were big so I downsized from two to one as not to lose the other flavors. And yes, I did use left over vinaigrette like pesto. Fun on the side The same magazine issue made me happy to no end by including a recipe for Yemeni hot sauce. This meant that for once I didn't have to fret over what to do with significant amount of cilantro left behind, which is more often than not the case in my kitchen. This sauce drizzled over roasted vegetables was a divine simplicity. Yet again.