Sunday Feast № 29 | Korean Soybean Paste Soup

This is a simple story I am prone to have. After a discussion about miso soup, I ventured to procure miso paste. Now a sane person would probably pay more attention to the fact that they are in a Korean supermarket and Korean delicacies are more than likely to occupy shelf space. I grabbed a box of soybean paste not paying attention that doenjang is not the same as miso paste. The preparation process differs and so does the taste spectrum, so I read. What to do with doenjang then, I asked myself?    PBS Food website features a warming and light yet nourishing soup from Cathlyn’s Korean Kitchen that I altered by not using enoki mushrooms but upping the amount of shiitake and ground beef, using ichimi togarashi still curiously left from when I made Japanese-style Squid/Seafood Salad, and using a simple konbu and soy sauce broth instead of anchovy seakelp one. Apologies for straying into Japanese, but happily a mistake turned into a new favorite that hugs the belly just right.

Sunday Feast № 28 | Apricot or Peach and Almond Cake

When flicking through my cookbooks are got it into my head to make a cake with almond flour or at least almonds. Ultimately, I was looking through Spanish desserts and came upon inspiration. Then some time passed and apricots were in season. I found a recipe for Apricot and Almond Cake by Christina Marsigliese on her Scientifically Sweet blog. Admittedly, it is not as almond-y as I originally thought of, but is has almond flour and almonds and allowed me to incorporate apricots. Fast forward a bit and I tried the same again this time with peaches that appeared in the shops. Both cakes were light and fruity as desired and are highly recommended for tea hour.

Sunday Feast № 27 | Take on Caprese Sandwich

Caprese. Always a salad. Insalata Caprese. The foundation comprises mozzarella, tomatoes, basil, and olive oil, then you play. I like a side of good bread to mop up the juices, whatever they may be, so the Charred Caprese Sandwich I found in Bon Appétit magazine June 2016 was absolutely up my alley - insalata Caprese on bread. Perfecto! Almost ...    I did not alter this one ... much ... well I made a "mistake" of not using fresh mozzarella like I know better. Kind of dumb of me really, since I have access to fresh white goodness at a reasonable price. I was lazy and used a somewhat solid one ... that I picked up at some point off the local supermarket shelf. Oh fellow buongustaio, please do not judge. I don't know how and when, but the solid stuff ended in my fridge, and I am lazy and was too hungry to do the walk to get something better, so there it was. However, when it is your turn, please be better foodie than me and use the lovely semi-solid mozzarella that floats in brine.

Sunday Feast № 26 | Goat Cheese Cucumber Radish Avocado Sandwich and Pimm's Cup, anyone for tennis?

So for the longest time, at least it seemed like a long time, I have been preoccupied with cucumber sandwiches, that dainty staple of Victorian upper classes in Queenly Kingdom. I would mention them often enough, and mentioning does not necessary mean doing, to anyone that would listen, that I felt like the Kid from "Bad Santa" and probably deserved Willie's response, but everyone was polite and just nodded and hmm-d. Kid: Want me to fix you some sandwiches? Willie: What the fuck is it with you and fixin' fuckin' sandwiches?    By the time I got to it, Pimm's № 1 came into the picture, which may not be typical pairing for cucumber sandwiches, but what a great London offering! And it was all in the Queenly family! As far as coincidences go, Pinterest offered a tasty looking alternative to the Victorian fare - OK, maybe not so coincidental considering I did search cucumber sandwich recipes and the algorithm is watching.   So it was set: The Green Thumb Sandwich courtesy of Broma Bakery - adapted to what I had - and a Pimm's № 1 cocktail. Next choice was to rather than go with Victorian afternoon tea to find some tennis. Made sense with Pimm's № 1 in the picture. Instead of waiting for next tennis Open, I went with a movie about upwardly mobile former professional tennis player and his twisted pathway. Anyone for tennis?

Fun on the side Pimm's Cup 2 parts Pimm's № 1 4 parts lemon-lime soda 1-2 mint sprigs A few slices of cucumber Add ice to a chilled highball glass, then pour Pimm's, lemon-lime soda, and stir. Garnish with slices of cucumber and mint. Movie Match Point (2005)

Sunday Feast № 25 | Pea Cashew Soup

The inspiration was a scene from "Best in Show", a mockumentary about a prestigious dog show: Sherri Ann Cabot: [Discussing her 80 year old husband who's 44 years her senior] Leslie and I have an amazing relationship and it's very physical, he still pushes all my buttons. People say 'oh but he's so much older than you' and you know what, I'm the one having to push him away. We have so much in common, we both love soup and snow peas, we love the outdoors, and talking and not talking. We could not talk or talk forever and still find things to not talk about. Soup. Snow peas. Peas. How about a pea soup? Luck had it that Bon Appétit July 2016 issue arrived earlier and it had a recipe for a more mealy pea soup, thanks to the cashews, that I adapted and dressed up with olive oil and pepper.

Sunday Feast № 24 | Vietnamese Chicken and Mint Salad

Have mint. Crave a salad with more than vegetables and dressing. A salad that can stand on its own, yet feels light. I looked to the trusty "The Cook's Companion" by Stephanie Alexander for answers and found a super easy recipe to play with. Thai chilies may make more sense regionally, but Serrano chilies are a good substitute, if that is all you can get your hands, and in a pinch if you are in possession of sambal oelek, that ground chili paste goodness, you are good. Three teaspoon, about.    I like the way my small herb garden is pushing me around, first with Thai basil - a beef dish repeated many times since, also with substituting Thai chilies with sambal oelek - then with mint - mixed with radishes and pumpkin seeds. Thai basil shoots up and out vigorously, while mint - well, mint really just hangs around draping as it sees fit, gently twisting on itself, surprisingly laissez-faire for such a refreshing herb. Cocktails with it will be in order soon. Meanwhile, poach chicken breasts yourself with lemongrass, ginger, salt, initially covered with cool water by an inch or so. Bring to boil then simmer for 10-15 min. Skim the foam as you go along if you plan to hold on to the light broth. Might come in handy.

Sunday Feast № 23 | Pizza Margherita with 212 Cocktail

Thank you The Daily Meal for pointing out that savory cocktails CAN go with dinner - see 11 Cocktails That Go Perfectly With Dinner slideshow - and since I am still on the gem looking cocktail trip since the Negrosky aperitivo session, 212 cocktail recommended by Ryan Fitzgerald, bartender at New York City’s ABV, looks good to me. I lightened it up by switching reposado tequila parts with grapefruit part, going for 1:2 instead or Ryan's 2:1. Take your pick there. The Daily Meal suggests pizza Margherita to go with. Not a problem at all. Not a problem whatsoever.    The recipes for the dough, sauce and the final product are abridged from “The Food of Italy: A Journey for Food Lovers”.	Fun on the side 212 Cocktail Lite 1 part reposado tequila 1 part Aperol 2 parts grapefruit juice And useful to know How to Defrost Frozen Pizza Dough

Sunday Feast № 22 | Aperitivo, or what to have with that Russian cousin of Negroni called Negrosky

The yearning for sunshine increases as the temperatures rise and days become longer. To while away the long afternoons drinking and eating at an outside table at you favorite watering hole is now a real possibility, and one long overdue. All that whiling means that a preamble to the dinner is called for. Since that ray of sunshine limoncello has to wait till after the dinner, being a digestivo, my mind drifted to Campari, a fine red aperitivo, a pre-dinner gem reminiscent of freshly breaking sunrise or the last smidgen of sunset, the latter yet to come if you start early enough. Now, we are civilized people; therefore, we will not sustain on Campari drinks alone (say, the titular Russian cousin of Negroni called Negrosky), but indulge the Italian art of aperitivo which calls for curbing alcoholic overindulgence with tasty sides. What a way to ease into the dinner hour!    As for that red goodness, "[Campari] is made by infusing a base of alcohol and water with a proprietary mix of herbs and fruits, including rhubarb, orange, and a variety of sour orange known as chinotto in Italian. The bitter infusion is then sweetened with sugar in the form of simple syrup and stiffened in accordance with its destination: 24% alcohol (48 proof) for American drinkers and 25% alcohol by volume (50 proof) for the Italians. Differences in taxation on alcohol are the most likely explanation, as Italians are not particularly well known for their high tolerances. Campari's signature ruby red color comes from colorants. Until recently, Campari's colorant of choice was cochineal dye, an all-natural coloring agent extracted from a beetle-like insect native to Central and South America. In 2006, the beetle juice was replaced with FD&C Red #5. Some claim the change came in response to protests of animal rights activists, but it's more likely that the artificial colorant was simply less expensive." - from Aperitivo: The Cocktail Culture of Italy by Marisa Huff, where the recipes are also from. Saluti bambini!

Fun on the side Negrosky 1 part vodka 1 part Campari 1 part sweet vermouth You know what to do. Serve on ice with a slice of an orange. Movie Cinema Paradiso (1988)

Sunday Feast № 21 | Roasted Cornish Hens with Lemon, Rosemary, Garlic, and Balsamic

Photo by Aurora Samar

Last time was Chinese. "We should do it again." "What should it be this time?" "Greek! We can do lots of salads. Stuffed peppers." "OK, what about a meat dish? Lamb?" That is roughly how it went. Fast forward. "We can do Greek, but maybe mix in Italian ..." "Mediterranean like? Well, close to." "Then I make tiramisu." "Love Tiramisu!" "Then I'll think if it is still lamb or something else." In the end, it was close to Italian. And sorry, but no, this is not tiramisu recipe blog. I have professionals for that. My mind drifted to chicken. And rosemary. The Gooey Shell    Having found a recipe for roasted chicken with rosemary in one of my trusty books, I went shopping for an approximately 3 lb/1.5 kg bird. Maybe it was laziness, but with little time to scour supermarkets within my immediate walking distance let alone any further a field, I settled for the closest and met with monster chickens. At around 6 lbs each! Whoa mama! Yes, each could feed a small army but roasting a BIG BIRD is a different game I might reserve for turkey. Luckily, the supermarket had lots of frozen Cornish hens, and those I was willing to deal with. Six of them. Yes, yes, also can feed a small army, but smaller birds mean quicker roast and greater likelihood of being cooked throughout without drying out. So I set to task finding required roasting temperature and time, as well as possible combinations of flavorings for the roast. One criteria for the latter: rosemary must be included.    The result was a lovely brood of hens for carnivores (one bird per person in one sitting) and lesser carnivores (half a bird per person in one sitting with the other half for next days). Very satiating. Mind you there were salads - "Mum" made sure, grilled octopus - we had two that not just love but LOVE octopuses (queue up Octopussy snickering and general nudge nudge wink wink behavior), there was bread, foccacia, polenta, bruschetta, tiramisu of course, and macarons with smoked salmon filling (not my recipe or mine to disclose, but a fine product, and like I said, I have professionals for that), and more. Macarons?! Well, France does boarder the Mediterranean Sea.

Sunday Feast № 20 | Cherry for Blueberry, or with Blueberry, Tart with Oat Crumble

There is nothing like late night baking. Well, there are other as exciting, if not more exciting things, to do late at night, but sometimes switching it up is called for, and honestly, if the muse strikes in the middle of the work week, late night is the only time to do it. The beauty of late night baking is that it perfumes the air for a great soporific effect while the baking goods cool overnight to welcome you in the morning with temptation. So here I was again, this time adapting a recipe by Rachel Conners of Bakerita.com. The result didn't last long when next day's visitors started tasting - a seal of universal approval.
The original recipe called for blueberries since Rachel was "having waaay too many blueberries in the house". I had leftover frozen cherries, reserving fresh ones to eat as they are, and I had some blueberries for the start of the season, which for the most part I also wanted to eat raw. Nevertheless, I "sacrificed" some. Walnuts I had on hand were a good pairing for what in my case was predominantly cherry filling.    This is the most solid coconut oil I have ever used in anything, and baking at night when it was cool meant it stayed solid rather then liquefying in the jar the way it tends to do at the height of summer. There is also something comforting yet decadent in baking with almond flour. With the addition of honey and oats, I guess this tart is borderline healthy in a way few tarts can be. Trick of the mind? Perhaps, but a very good one. Very tasty.