The Story Behind Gruyère Cheese
Written by Asinus Asinum Fricat on June 14, 2008 – 12:17 pm -Growing up in a hotel atmosphere had its pluses and minuses. On the plus side I got to meet some of the craziest people working in the hospitality industry (believe me, you have to be some sort of a nut to work in a seasonal hotel as both work and play are just as intense). One summer we had twin brothers from Switzerland, both equally whacky and incredibly forgetful. My uncle aptly named them the Gruyère brothers, because, as he saw it, they were full of holes!
Tags: Food, Gruyere Cheese, History
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Eggplant or Aubergine?
Written by Asinus Asinum Fricat on June 14, 2008 – 8:18 am -I like both, since they are the same. We use aubergine/eggplant in Provencal cooking till the cows come home! In Greece there’s the Moussaka, a hearty dish of baked eggplant & lamb. Throughout the Middle Eat eggplant is revered and eaten in many clever ways. At home, quite often I’d bake eggplants & bell peppers with a little olive oil and fresh thyme, a simple fare, delicious hot or cold.
Tags: Aubergine, Eggplant, Food, Fruit, History
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Green Gifts from the Mediterranean
Written by Asinus Asinum Fricat on June 11, 2008 – 8:32 am -There’s not much better than steamed asparagus served with a piping hot Hollandaise. As a young lad, I used to know where wild asparagus grew in the nearby woods. Needless to say that my great grandmother and I gathered quite a few for our dinner, simply steamed and served with melted butter with a dash of lemon. I feel that a recipe involving asparagus and the perfect Hollandaise sauce is on the cards!
Tags: Asparagus, Food, History, Hollandaise
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The Thyme of my Life
Written by Asinus Asinum Fricat on June 9, 2008 – 3:50 am -As a kid I used to take long walks with my great grandmother into the surrounding woods which were covered with wild thyme and sariette (a close cousin). I can still remember the scented hills, particularly in the spring, when gazillions of tiny thyme flowers would envelop our neck of the woods with their sweet perfume. We would gather a few bunches, and my great grandmother would make infusions, and lace it with some verbena and lemon balm. You could drink this hot before bedtime or iced cold on a sunny day.
Tags: Food, Herbs, History, Thyme
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The Welsh and the Leeks
Written by Asinus Asinum Fricat on June 8, 2008 – 8:38 am -Apart from bringing a subtle taste to any stews or soups, the leek is quite an achiever, with a more delicate and sweeter flavor than onions. Leeks are related to onions, shallots and scallions to which they bear some resemblance.
They look like large scallions having a very small bulb and a long white cylindrical stalk of superimposed layers that flows into green, tightly wrapped, flat leaves. In this pic above, it looks as though they’re wearing a little grass skirt! Read more »
Tags: Food, History, Leek, Vichyssoise Soup., Wales
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The World of Onions
Written by Asinus Asinum Fricat on June 2, 2008 – 5:49 am -Those of you who have paid close attention to my recipes would have noticed that I almost always use red onions. I like yellow onions as well and I particularly love the ones we call shallots. They’re somewhat sweet, and when minced finely, you can add a little balsamic vinegar and use it to spoon it over oysters before eating them. A great cure for hangover is an onion tart, laced with chilies. Another one is this: juice 1 onion and mix it with equal part of tomato juice, add some Tabasco and drink it straight. You’ll feel discobombulated for a moment but that nasty headache will clear.
Tags: Food, History, Onion
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The World of Cilantro
Written by Asinus Asinum Fricat on June 1, 2008 – 5:34 am -How can anyone dislike the sweet pleasure of the unique and refreshing flavor of cilantro? If I had to guess, I’d say no, but it has been said the world is divided into two groups: those who loathe this herb and those who love it. Personally, I fall into the latter category and l go even further: it is the sexiest of the herb garden. Its pleasing fragrance the delicate greens impart, is almost like a breath of fresh air.
Tags: Cilantro, Coriander, Food, Herb, History
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What Would We Do Without Tomatoes?
Written by Asinus Asinum Fricat on May 31, 2008 – 7:24 am -The tomato has origins traced back to the early Aztecs around 700 A.D; therefore we tend to believe that the tomato is native to the Americas. It was not until around the 16th century that Europeans were introduced to this fruit when the early explorers set sail to discover new lands (and plunder them!)
Tags: , Food, Fruit/Vegetable, History, Tomato
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Sandwich: the Ultimate Snack
Written by Asinus Asinum Fricat on May 30, 2008 – 9:10 am -I can never have enough bread in my life. Currently, I favor the Italian kind, ciabatta, because I can buy a particularly good stick, and as my daughters are extremely fond of it as well, I have to buy 6 loaves at the time. That makes quite a few sandwiches!
Tags: Food, History, Sandwich
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Mad about Saffron!
Written by Asinus Asinum Fricat on May 30, 2008 – 5:08 am -Coming from the dried stigmas of the saffron crocus, it takes 75,000 blossoms or 225,000 hand-picked stigmas to make a single pound which explains why it is the world’s most expensive spice! In Sydney, I used saffron liberally. I made a knockout Scallop dish, cooked lightly in a saffron & vanilla broth.
Tags: Food, History, Saffron, Spice
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