Lula com coco - Coconut Squid

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Do you remember when I talked about Julie Schwob's "Breakfast du Monde" book yesterday?  What I failed to mention then, was that she also published another book which found its way into my library : "Apéros du Monde" (Aperitifs of the World), a collection of drinks and tapas/appetizers from every continent.

I already made several recipes from this book but never took the time to take a picture, let alone write a post about it.  Because these coconut squid slices were such a hit last time I made them, I gave them another try this weekend and it confirmed what I already knew : I love those Brasilian lula com coco.

Creamy crab dip

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The first time I wandered into the delicious world of Tide and Thyme, I was following the scent of beer candied bacon. Yes, I know, the things one finds on Pinterest, right? There, I discovered that this candied bacon could be incorporated into a chocolate cake with stout and this recipe has been on my to do list ever since.  I have nearly all the ingredients in the house, I just have to summon up the energy to actually try it. One of these days for sure ...

But that isn't the theme of the day which is ... Crab, and another of one the fabulous recipes featured on Tide an Thyme, the most delicious creamy crab dip you will ever sink your teeth into. Fingerlickingly good doesn't even come close to describing it.  Did that pique your curiosity? Have a look after the jump.

Surf & Turf Pasta with Pistachio Pesto

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Since joining Daring Bakers and Cooks last month, I started to look all over the internet for more of these food blog related challenges. Because nothing gets me going better than a challenge to live up to.  These challenges however have proved to be rather elusive, or maybe it's just me using the wrong search words with google. Who knows. 

Either way, I hadn't seen many interesting ones until I stumbled upon the Pasta Please challenge; initiated by Tinned Tomatoes.  Now, pasta is always a welcome dish at our house : it's quick, easy, liked by almost anyone (quite handy when you have unexpected eaters) and yet very versatile.  So, any challenge involving pasta means that I am game :o)

Daring Cooks - Paella

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Our Daring Cooks’ September 2012 hostess was Inma of la Galletika. Inma brought us a taste of Spain and challenged us to make our very own delicious Paella!

When you have real Spaniards around, it takes some guts to make a Spanish dish like paella, because you expose yourself to being compared to the real thing, la paella casera, and most of the time, you don't come out a winner of this battle.

Jambalaya

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A dish I make on a regular basis and which is always highly appreciated by those who get to taste it : straight out of the Creole cuisine,  Jambalaya.

Undoubtedly there are as many versions of Jambalaya as there are cooks in Louisiana and beyond. But this is the version I usually made, coincidentally also a rather skinny version of the dish.

Ingredients for 4 servings:

* 160g lean breakfast bacon (can be replaced by chicken as well)
* 1 red onion
* 2 garlic cloves
* 250g mushrooms
* 1 sweet ramiro pepper
* 1 tsp olive oil
* 125g brown rice (uncooked)

* 400g sifted tomatoes

* 150ml vegetable stock

* 400g gambas (pre cooked)

* 1 Tbsp parsley
* a pinch of sugar
* to taste : salt, pepper, thyme (and if you like spicy, you can add tabasco sauce as well)

Dice the bacon, the onion, the garlic cloves, the mushrooms and the bell pepper.

Bake the bacon in the teaspoon of olive oil, add the vegetables and stew.

Add the uncooked rice, tomatoes and vegetable stock.  Season with salt, pepper, a pinch of sugar (and tabasco if you want) and cook for 15 minutes.

Add the gambas and heat for an additional 5 minutes, finish with the tablespoon of parsley (and thyme).

Berberechos a la cataplana

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[First published on Bento Bliss on January 21, 2012]

 

During grocery shopping yesterday, I came across a little box of cockles in the seafood aisle and I knew immediately what I would make for starters on Friday night : Berberechos a la cataplana, or Portuguese cockles.  [Although it is originally a Portuguese dish, I gave it a Spanish name as (a) I don't speak Portuguese but do speak the language of Cervantes and (b) I put Spanish chorizo in this dish].

I am sure that there are as many versions of this dish as there are cooks in the world but this is how I made them.

Ingredients (for 2 servings): 

* 1 Tbsp olive oil

* 330g fresh cockles (strange quantity but that was the contents of the box)

* 4 shallots

* 4 garlic cloves (you can use less, but we love garlic over here so always use a lot)

* 50g diced chorizo

* 50g smoked ham

* chiseled coriander

* a pinch of chili powder (the original recipe would call for a tsp of piri piri or tabasco)

How-to :

Heat the olive oil in a frying pan and fry the diced garlic and shallots, until they are soft but not coloured.

Add the ham and chorizo, season with a bit of chili (or tabasco if you prefer) and cover. Let simmer a bit, shaking up the pan every now and then.

Add the cockles and the coriander, cover and let simmer for an additional 5/6 minutes, shaking up the pan again.  As soon as the cockles have opened up, the dish is ready.