PORK TENDERLOIN ADOBADO

Posted in Pork by sallybr

One of the cuts of meat that is always present in our weekly rotation is pork tenderloin, because it cooks fast and goes well with many types of seasonings. For that reason, I am always searching for new ways to prepare it. I found this recipe through a Google search, decided to give it a try without any intention of blogging about it. Sometimes it’s nice to simply cook and eat dinner like normal people do. You know, without the need to scream at your partner “DO NOT DARE TOUCHING IT, I HAVE TO TAKE A PICTURE!”. It does get old after a while. So, I sliced the meat, served it, and Phil, very surprised asked me “You won’t be blogging about this?”. No, I’ll let this one slide by. Then, he took a first bite, and told me “Sally, this has got to be in the blog, it’s very good!”. I had to agree, it turned out super tasty, and deserves to be shared with my readers. A picture was quickly snapped, and we moved on with our dinner.

PORK ADOBADO
(adapted from Elly Says Opa)

1 Tbsp. grape seed oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1/3 cup ancho chile powder
2 Tbsp. cider vinegar
1 tsp. dried oregano, preferably Mexican
1/2 tsp. sugar
3/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup water
1 pork tenderloin, around 1.25 lb, butterflied

In a small saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant and golden, about 1 minute. Stir in the chile powder, vinegar, oregano, sugar, salt, and water. Simmer over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, for 5-10 minutes until flavors are combined. Let cool to room temperature (or, if making ahead, refrigerate). Set aside about 1/4 of the marinade.

Place the remaining marinade and the pork tenderloin in a shallow bowl or resealable bag, making sure to coat the pork with the marinade. Marinate for several hours or overnight.

Sprinkle a little extra salt on the tenderloin. Grill to your desired degree of doneness, brushing with the reserved marinade half way through cooking. Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: If you want to learn more about the concept of “carne adobada” in Mexican cooking, Wikipedia is waiting for you with a click here. This preparation ends up with a subtle heat, and the acidity of the vinegar brightens up the flavors. Very nice take on pork tenderloin, which should work equally well on boneless chicken breasts. You can cook the pork on a cast iron pan and finish it in the oven, or use any type of preparation you are comfortable with. I always butterfly it to speed up cooking, but the original recipe did not call for it.

As I mentioned many times, we grill 12 months of the year. Phil grew up in Michigan and a little snow (less than 3 feet, that is) doesn’t scare him. Me? I inform that we will be grilling, which means “Darling, you light the grill, monitor the cooking, and bring it all back to the warmth of our home once it’s done”. Sometimes I amaze myself at my efficiency.

ONE YEAR AGO: Braised Fennel with Saffron and Tomato

TWO YEARS AGO: Revenge of the Two Derelicts

THREE YEARS AGO: Plum-Glazed Duck Breasts

FOUR YEARS AGO: Peppery Cashew Crunch

FIVE YEARS AGO: Baked Shrimp and Feta Pasta

6Dec2014

IN MY KITCHEN: DECEMBER 2014

Posted in In My Kitchen by sallybr

Joining the virtual party that Celia from Fig Jam and Lime Cordial started years ago, I invite you to take a walk through our kitchen this month. To see what is going on in kitchens from food bloggers all over the world, click here.

A few gifts to get this show on the road….

From the one and only MC, hostess of Farine, a newly released book, Bar Tartine

Very unique cookbook, that will certainly stretch the horizons of anyone who is up to the challenge. Make your own powders, sprouted grains, vinegar, and come up with very creative and unusual dishes. The overall gist of the book reminded me of Ottolenghi & Tamimi’s recipes. Thank you, MC!

From my friend Cindy, who knows very well my taste for colorful stuff, this beautiful rest for hot pans.

Some gifts received during our recent trip to Brazil…

From my sister and her partner in Brazil, a very special bottle of pinga (ou cachaça) a sugar cane product similar to rum. Whereas the clear pinga is used for making capirinhas, this one, a little more yellow, is refined, barrel-aged, and best if consumed in small shots, very cold. From the state of Minas Gerais.

From our dear friend Gabi, some more color to spice up our kitchen, in a set of four kitchen towels, one of them already in use, perfect match for our Supernova stove.

From my niece Raquel, beautiful round place mats, very sturdy and of course, full of color, the way I like…

In our kitchen….

A cake stand, kind of retro. I found it at an antique store in a tiny town in Kansas called Cottonwood Falls. The town is just like one of those old wild west locations, frozen in time. A cool place to visit if you ever find yourself in Kansas.

In our kitchen….

A spatula to move cake layers. For someone who is afraid of baking cakes, I seem to get quite a few “right tools” for the job. What can I say? This seemed very handy, and was on sale at Tuesday Morning. It found a nice home in our cabinet, next to all my baking gadgets.

In our kitchen…

Jams and maple syrup brought home by the husband after a trip to Marshalls… From left to right: Wild Maine Strawberry Jam, “regular” Strawberry Jam, Confiture de Cassis, Red Tart Cherry Preserves, and Marionberry Jam (whatever that is… ).

In our kitchen…

Acacia honey… Forgive me local food advocates, because I sinned. Yes, this honey got into a plane and flew all the way from Germany to the US, probably yet another flight took it from New York to Kansas City, and with luck the last leg of the trip was in a truck. I am very sorry, but I love it.

In our kitchen…

Some oven gloves in silicone, how could I resist this bright red? Impossible. They work quite well, and I’m glad I brought them home.

In our kitchen…

This odd-looking bowl is actually super cool! You know how every KitchenAid comes with a plastic attachment to make it easier to pour flour and other ingredients into the mixing bowl? I don’t know a single person who likes it. It is cumbersome, a pain to assemble, and doesn’t work well. This bowl is perfect. You add all the flour into it, mix and use the pouring side to add it to the KitchenAid. No mess, no fuss, I love it! Plus, it’s bright red, in other words, irresistible.

In our kitchen….

This salt was recommended by a friend. It is infused with real truffles, and a little bit goes a loooong way. Sprinkled over fresh tomatoes, scrambled eggs, french fries, it adds intense truffle flavor.

And, as usual, some furry creatures want to say hello, because our kitchen is their favorite spot to hang out…

Chief, who is not too far from turning 16 years old, has been absent from our IMK posts, but this month he’s feeling better, and wanted to say that he is strong – and smart – enough to search for the spot with the brightest sun in our home.

Of course, sleeping is still his favorite pass time, but if I am “lucky” enough to reach 110 years old, it will be the same for me!

Oscar says: Mom, I am sorry. I begged and begged for this grape, but now I realize I don’t like it. Could you pick it up and take it away from me? It is giving me the creeps…

He also has a slight problem with the concept of the pillow, and prefers to sleep with his head hanging down from the bed.

Buck finds Oscar’s behavior totally unacceptable. A proof of intellectual inferiority, in fact. And to demonstrate his point, he shows his ability of twisting the head at the sound of a puzzling word. According to experts, a sign of canine intelligence. We simply find it too cute. Want to see it in a short video? Click here. Please disregard the fact that he doesn’t think twice before jumping on the furniture. We are working hard to change this behavior, and yes, we understand that giggling when that happens is totally uncalled for.

We’ve been traveling a lot, and that is pretty hard on the pups. Just after coming back from a trip to Chicago and Brazil, we left for another 3-day trip to Houston. Oscar is the one who suffers the most, and the look on his face as he realizes what is going on is pretty hard to take.

Please, Mom, don’t take me to the kennel again! I can stay here waiting for you and Dad… Please? Pretty please?

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Well, I hope you enjoyed the little virtual tour of our kitchen, the last of 2014. It is good to finally be home and have no plans to travel for a while. This has been one busy year for us and the pups… Celia, thanks for the work you put into your monthly In My Kitchen series!

ONE YEAR AGO: The Story of my First Creme Brulle
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TWO YEARS AGO: Half-a-Million Page Views!
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THREE YEARS AGO: Grilling Ribbons
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FOUR YEARS AGO: Peppery Cashew Crunch
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FIVE YEARS AGO: Ossobuco Milanese

2Dec2014

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE AND MINT COOKIES

Posted in Cookies by sallybr

If you type “chocolate cookie recipe” in a Google search you’ll get over 2 million hits in return. Two million. How many recipes for chocolate cookies does the world need? Nobody knows. Since in my humble food blog I only have 13 cookie recipes, of which less than half involve chocolate, I need to catch up. Here is one more for you, no chocolate chips, just good old melted chocolate, cocoa powder, and pieces of chocolate mint candy, such as Andes. By the way, did you know that Andes mints originated in Chicago in the 1920’s and were originally named Andy’s Mints? It turns out that the owners of the company quickly realized that men did not care to give their partners a candy with another guy’s name on the box. So, instead of honoring its creator, Andrew Kanelos, Andy’s became Andes, and now we have a chocolate mint that is not too far away from celebrating its 100th Birthday. The distinguished candy works well in this recipe from Giada de Laurentiis.

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE AND MINT COOKIES
(from Giada de Laurentiis)

6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
One 5-ounce package chocolate mint thins, such as Andes, each cut into thirds
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Heat the oven to 300 degrees F. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
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In a small bowl, combine the bittersweet chocolate and butter. Place the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water and stir occasionally until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth. Allow it to cool for 5 minutes.
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In a medium bowl, sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs, 2 tablespoons water and vanilla extract. Gradually add the dry ingredients. Fold in the cooled chocolate. Stir in the chocolate mint pieces. Chill the dough 10 minutes to firm slightly.

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Using 1/4 cup measuring cup, drop 6 mounds of batter onto each prepared sheet, spacing evenly apart. Bake the cookies for a total of 18 to 20 minutes, until slightly puffed and dry-looking with some small cracks on top.
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Cool the cookies completely on sheets.
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ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Mint is an interesting flavor. I think most people like it, but when someone doesn’t care for it, it’s a bit like cilantro. Intense hate. I wish I could tell you whether the mint flavor is too strong in these cookies, but I didn’t have a single one. I baked them during my lunch break, took them still warm to the department, but when I went back to grab one, only crumbs were staring at me from the platter. However, according to one of our graduate students, the mint component was pretty mild. Two pointers for success from watching Giada’s show: first, keep the pieces of the Andes candies on the large side, because that makes them melt in your mouth as you bite into the cookie. Second, cool the dough before baking. The recipe uses relatively little flour, so cooling is needed to be able to scoop them out nicely.

With this post Google has one more chocolate cookie to share with those desperately searching for it. Mission accomplished.

ONE YEAR AGO: In My Kitchen, December 2013

TWO YEARS AGO: Sourdough Mini-Rolls

THREE YEARS AGO: Do you eat your books?

FOUR YEARS AGO: Mediterranean Skewers

FIVE YEARS AGO Fettuccine with Shrimp, Swiss Chard, and Tomatoes

27Nov2014

SPICE CAKE WITH BLACKERRY PUREE & THE GLOBAL PASTRY TABLE REVIEW

Posted in Cookbook Reviews, Desserts, Sweets by sallybr

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL MY AMERICAN READERS!

After five and a half years blogging, a few things about me should be quite obvious for those who have been around this site for a while. For instance, my obsession with exercise and fitness is almost as intense as my fear of baking cakes. However, even though I am terrified of baking them, cakes fascinate me so much that I often visit blogs of talented bakers, to live vicariously through them. You know, those amazing people who are not afraid of Italian meringue, of piping gorgeous flowers with buttercream icing, or slicing a cake horizontally in perfect flat layers. One such blog is Pastry Studio. If you don’t know this site yet, you are in for a very sweet treat… Gayle Gonzales has been blogging since 2007, so there is a lot to drool over in her virtual spot. One of the reasons Pastry Studio captivated me is the way she adds “Bench Notes” to her recipes. Just to give you a couple of examples, check out her Roasted Pineapple with Pink Peppercorns., or her Brownie Brittle. The recipes would be great by themselves, but the bench notes add that extra stuff that makes a person like me consider the recipe doable. Little tips that an experienced baker can offer, but not always does. Many cookbooks and food blogs assume those to be superfluous, since it should all go well. Clearly, they have not been in my kitchen. 😉

When I learned that she published her first e-cookbook, I ordered it right away. The Global Pastry Table has 95 recipes, of which 70 are not in her site, so even if you followed her blog from the get-go, the book will give you a lot of new recipes to choose from. I had a bit of trouble to decide which delicious concoction to bake first. I wanted it to be a cake, and my love for spices pointed me to her Spice Cake with Blackberries. I am thrilled to inform that it was a smooth baking session: the dogs slept through the whole thing, undisturbed by eggs dropping on the floor, exploding bags of flour, or flying spatulas. So there! I might be getting better at this cake baking thing… Ok, I know what you’re thinking: it’s all thanks to her bench notes. I’m afraid you might be right.

SPICE CAKE WITH BLACKBERRIES
(reprinted with permission from Gayle Gonzales)

for the cake:
1 + 1/4 cups cake flour (5 oz)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground cardamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
pinch of ground cloves
1/2 cup (4 oz) buttermilk, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 oz (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup (3 + 1/2 oz) granulated sugar
1/4 cup (1+3/4 oz) dark brown sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature

for the filling:
6 oz fresh blackberries
2-3 teaspoons granulated sugar (to taste)
powdered sugar, for dusting

Heat the oven to 350 F. Lightly grease an 8” x 2 1/2” cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.

Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices. Measure out the buttermilk and add the vanilla.

Beat butter and both sugars until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Scrape down the bowl. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the bowl as you go. Add the flour mixture in thirds, alternating with half the buttermilk and beginning and ending with the flour. When the batter looks fairly well combined, use a rubber spatula to finish mixing the batter.

Pour the batter into the prepared pa and spread evenly. Bake for 28 to 30 minutes or until a tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Let the cake cool for 10 minutes. Run a thin bladed knife around the edges and invert the cake. Gently peel off the parchment and invert again. Cool completely.

Place the blackberries in a bowl and sprinkle with sugar, to taste. Set aside to macerate for about 10 minutes and then mash them with a fork.

Using a long serrated knife, cut the cake in half horizontally and set the top aside. Place the bottom on a platter and spread a thin layer of blackberries. Replace the top half of he cake and dust with powdered sugar.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

This was a great cake, from start to finish, no problems. Of course there is room for improvement, because I did not have the exact size cake pan she recommends. I used a 9-inch pan instead of 8-inch. So my slices were a little thinner, and I should have used less filling. But, I don’t really care, those are details that don’t bother me. I had NO trouble slicing the cake in half, and that in itself is a monumental feat. The cake was a huge success with the members of our department, I received emails and visits to the lab. Felt like a Royal Baker.

And now, let me take you through Gayle’s book, The Global Pastry Table…

First of all, did you know that even if you don’t have a reader like Kindle or iPad you can get ebooks and read them in your computer or other devices? All you need is to download a free software and you are all set. Stop by amazon and click away.

Gayle introduces her book with this paragraph: “The Global Pastry Table is a collection of pastries and desserts with a reverence for international style. It’s your invitation to the flavors and aromas of a world connected.” Indeed, all her recipes start with a little paragraph explaining its origin, and you will see she assembled a collection of goodies rooted in many geographic regions of the world. The book is divided in 6 sections: Cakes, Custards & Creams, Tarts & Galettes, Cookies, Ice Cream, and a final section on More Pastries and Desserts. The first adjective that came to my mind as I browsed the recipes was “refined”. Even recipes that seem pretty simple have an aura of refinement and rustic elegance. Apart from being a great baker, Gayle is a fantastic photographer, and took all the photos of the book.

For a visual tour of all recipes included in The Global Pastry Table, visit Gayle’s flickr collection.

Chapter One: Cakes
You would be surprised to learn how many cake and dessert cookbooks I own, but for most of them I’d say less than 30% of the cakes included appeal to me. In Gayle’s e-book, every single one of the 21 cakes sounded great. Shocking, I admit. I will not list them all, you can check the full index at amazon, but I’ll give you my top five (excluding the cake from this post). Cake with Chocolate Cardamon Glaze; Olive Oil Wine Cake, Rum Cake with Spiced Butter Rum Sauce, Hazelnut Cake, Yogurt Cake with Roasted Five-Spice Plums. Well, I must give you a sixth, because it is an amazing cake, very unique and enticing: it is called Coil Cake, an yeasted cake original from Morocco. Show-stopper.

Chapter Two: Custards & Creams
Ten delicious options, once again I would make any of them without exception. Five top choices would be: Brown Sugar Panna Cotta with Five-Spice Figs; Coconut Cream (reminds me of a Brazilian classic called : Flan de Coco); Oranges with Rosemary Sabayon (a simple, very refreshing dessert); Yogurt Mousse with Grapefruit Gelee; Maple Custard (must make this one).

Chapter Three: Tarts & Galettes
I admit that I don’t make tarts and galettes very often. For my taste, they are too heavy as dessert after a meal, and I am not too fond of sweets mid-afternoon or at breakfast. But, I know I am part of a minority, and of the ten options Gayle has in her book, it was easy to pick my top five. Apricot Galette; Butterscotch Cream Tart; Pear Galette with Honey Cream & Blue Cheese (great combination of flavors); Balsamic Strawberry Tart.

Chapter Four: Cookies
Twenty two amazing cookies for you. Don’t expect a regular choc chip cookie here, she really shines in this collection, going from very simple Plain Jane Cookies to Chocolate Hazelnut Nutella Sandwich Cookies (excuse me as I try to regain my composure). Five top choices for me (excluding that Nutella example already mentioned): Sesame Tiles; Oatmeal Shortbread; Chocolate Olive Oil Madeleines; Chocolate Garam Masala Cookies; Spice Route Cookies… but it’s really hard to stop here.

Chapter Five: Ice Cream
Fourteen ice frozen concoctions, that are all incredibly creative and unique. Five top choices: Pistachio Gelato; Brown Sugar Creme Fraiche Ice Cream with Balsamic Syrup; Earl Grey Ice Cream; Guinness Ice Cream with Oat Crumble; Lime Ice Cream with Ginger Crumble. I must say, though, that I would gladly try them all.

Chapter Six: More Pastries and Desserts
Eighteen additional goodies, very hard to pick only five to showcase here. By far my number one choice would be the Vanilla Custard in Phyllo. Her description and the photo made me want to go to the kitchen and make it right away. My other favorites would probably be Three Spice Russian Braid (gorgeous shaping of a loaf); Roasted Grapes with Yogurt Honey Cream; Pear and Ginger Scones; Pumpkin Empanadas.

I want to remind my readers that I do not do reviews by request, be it cookbooks or products. I only review things I love. I hope that you will stop by Pastry Studio to get to know Gayle and her wonderful site, and that you invite her cookbook into your virtual library. It is truly a special publication, made with a lot of passion and attention to detail.

If you love being in your kitchen… if you love having people at your table… if you love that moment of opening the oven door and seeing what has transpired… if you love the preparing, the serving, the sharing, the savoring, I know you will enjoy this collection. (Gayle Gonzales, The Global Pastry Table)

ONE YEAR AGO: Own Your Kitchen with Cappuccino Panna Cotta

TWO YEARS AGO: Chicken Parmigiana, the Thriller

THREE YEARS AGO: Wild Mushroom Risotto

FOUR YEARS AGO: Tartine Bread: Basic Country Loaf

FIVE YEARS AGO: Pugliese Bread

23Nov2014

SECRET RECIPE CLUB: GREEN RICE

Posted in Rice and Grains, Secret Recipe Club, Side dishes by sallybr

THREE YEARS AS A MEMBER OF THE SECRET RECIPE CLUB!

Last Monday of the month. You probably expect me to whine about the cold, but guess what? As you read this post, I should be far, far away in Brazil, enjoying balmy temperatures, wearing shorts, t-shirts, and recharging my batteries to face the frigid months ahead. But the last Monday means fun, because it’s Reveal Day for The Secret Recipe Club! I was paired with the blog “A Day in the Life on the Farm“, hosted by Wendy. Her story is fascinating: she and her husband were police officers in a large city (which of course meant a ton of trouble in their hands…), but when they retired they moved to a tiny little town of 4,000 people, and bought a house on 12 acres of land. They raise meat chickens, turkeys, and pigs, and Wendy – to fight her empty nest syndrome – decided to host foreign students in their place. Now she works part-time for the World Heritage, placing students into homes for a year of schooling here in the US. Being in academia and therefore often exposed to the troubles that foreign students face (plus, I was one myself), I know how important this type of work can be. Please, stop by her about page and read more about their life on the farm, and how on top of everything she also takes care of her Mom, who suffers from Alzheimer’s. She actually devotes a section in her blog to talk about it, under Life with Mom. Beautiful, touching, and at times funny.

We had so much going on this past month, that I needed to jump on my assignment right away. The recipe I set my eyes on was a drool-inducing dessert, a Caramelized Almond Apple Upside Down Cake. But, I decided against it. Why? With Thanksgiving saying hello, then the holidays, a lot of heavy food will be popping everywhere. I did not want to start early with the excesses, so this cake shall wait. Sorry, folks, but better safe than sorry. Then, I almost went with her cute Pretzel Dogs. Finally it was a tough decision between Zucchini Enchiladas, or Green Rice. As you can see, I went green. Green is good for you, and this was one of the most flavorful rice dishes I’ve made.

GREEN RICE
(very slightly modified from A Day in the Life on the Farm)

2 poblano chile peppers

1 green pepper (I used half a Serrano)

1 cup long grain rice

1 large bunch of cilantro

1 small bunch of flat leaf parsley

2 cups chicken stock
1/2 teaspoon salt

2 Tablespoons olive oil (I used grapeseed)

1 small shallot, minced

Dry roast the peppers in a griddle pan (or on a grill), turning frequently so the skins blacken but the flesh doesn’t burn. Place in a strong plastic bag, seal and set aside for 20 minutes

Put the rice in a heat proof bowl, pour in boiling water to cover and let stand 20 minutes.

Drain the rice, rinse well under cold water and drain again. Remove the peppers from the bag and peel off the skins. Remove any stems, then slit the peppers and scrape out seeds with a sharp knife.

Put the peppers in a food processor, strip the leaves from the cilantro and parsley and add to peppers. Pour in half the chicken stock and process until smooth. Add remaining stock and puree again.

Heat oil in a saucepan, add the rice and minced shallot and fry for 5 minutes over med heat until the rice is golden and the shallot is translucent. Add the salt, stir in the green puree, lower heat, cover and cook for 25-30 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed and the rice is just tender. Taste and adjust seasoning, if needed.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: Lately I’ve been quite smitten with poblano peppers. Very little heat, but so much flavor! Our stove did a great job charring them, I don’t think I was ever able to get such a beautiful blackened skin with almost no effort. Using a paper towel to remove the charred skin was also a great move, a tip I got from watching Marcela Valladolid in her show Mexican Made Easy. I never liked the idea of rinsing the peppers because there’s quite a bit of flavor loss if you do that. The paper towels removed just the skin and I could leave little bits here and there for an extra smoky flavor. Aren’t they cute?

Adding boiling water to the rice and waiting for 20 minutes was also something I had never done, and I liked the texture of the finished product. If you are a cilantro-hater, this rice is not for you, its flavor is obviously very prominent. You could substitute spinach.

This was a delicious dinner! Green rice, simple roasted carrots, and for our protein a few slices of center-cut pork chops, cooked sous-vide, and finished off on the grill. Life is good!

Wendy, I hope you had a great time this month with your assignment! It was wonderful to browse through your site, I read all your posts about your Mom, and am still in awe of your ability to do so much Everyday in your Life on the Farm…

For my readers: if you want to see what my fellow Secret Friends cooked up this month, give a little click on the blue frog at the end of this post. Normally Groups C and D would take a break in the month of December, but apparently me and Dorothy from Shockingly Delicious whined so much about withdrawal syndrome, that The Secret Recipe Club will have a little surprise reserved for both groups. It will be awesome, so stay tuned!

ONE YEAR AGO: Potato-Crusted Italian Mini-Quiches

TWO YEARS AGO: Beetroot Sourdough for the Holidays

THREE YEARS AGO: Cod Filet with Mustard Tarragon Crust

FOUR YEARS AGO: Soba Noodles: Light and Healthy

FIVE YEARS AGO: Potato-Rosemary Bread