My Year in Review

This year I enjoyed some wonderful culinary adventures, and while I only started my blog in November, this post is to share the year in review with my readers.

The year didn't start well for my family. On January 1st my husband broke his leg, and it took him about six months before he could really get out of the house. One result of this is that I was doing a lot of cooking at home.

Fortunately, I received two wonderful cookbooks during the last holiday season - Jean-Georges: Cooking At Home and Asian Flavors of Jean-Georges. For someone who loves to cook as much as I do, I don't own too many cookbooks. I sometimes enjoy looking at cookbooks for inspiration or to learn certain techniques, but I seldom follow others' recipes exactly. Jean-Georges' cookbooks are an exception. I immediately loved those cookbooks and in the first six months of the year I made practically every recipe.

At the end of June, my husband and I finally had a chance for a mini-vacation, traveling to Las Vegas to eat at Joel Robuchon at the Mansion. This turned out to be the most perfect culinary experience we have ever had. All the dishes were amazingly creative and prepared perfectly, the flavors were extraordinary, the presentations were delightfully artistic, and the excellent service made us feel like royalty. Our favorites included Le Caviar, La Saint-Jacques, and Les Crustacés, but really we loved every course. This experience exceeded even our very high expectations and became the culinary highlight of my year. (Read the full review of Joel Robuchon at the Mansion.)

In July, we visited Savannah, Georgia. One standout here was the delightful Southern cuisine at the Pink House. We loved the Southern Sushi of shrimp and grits, crab hush puppies, and very delicate sweet potato ravioli. Our favorite dish was the Bourbon pork loin, cooked with amazing flavor and consistency.

After spending a few days in Savannah, we headed to the luxurious and beautiful Sea Island Resort, on the Georgia coast. One major reason why we chose this destination was their new 5-star restaurant, the Georgian Room. Chef Scott Crawford's unique menu perfectly captured the sweet summer taste of Georgia. Our favorites here included the shrimp bisque, Foie Gras served over pecan pain perdu, and Kobe Beef with grits souffle. (Read the full review of Georgian Room.) This also my four-year-old daughter's first experience at a 5-star restaurant. Here's what she had to say:

My favorite part was our dinner at Georgian Room. We dressed up in fancy clothes. There was a pretty harp and we listened to harp music. The Georgian Room was so fancy. I liked the sweet melon and goat cheese. And I had chilled corn soup with bacon ice cream. It tasted a weird taste and it was yummy. I had some special breads and I tried a Georgian cheese. I tried some of the dessert and chocolate candies. At the end, I got to meet the chef in the kitchen. The next day we did a kitchen tour. We saw the bakery, and we saw where the chefs cook. And that was my favorite part.

In August, we traveled to Dublin, Ireland. We had a wonderful time exploring the city and surrounding areas including Newgrange and the Hill of Tara. Of course, we sampled food in the pubs and enjoyed such dishes as Guiness beef stew and fish & chips. However, Dublin is becoming a more sophisticated food destination as well. Our two best meals were at the Tea Room and Thornton's. The Tea Room featured an excellent modern Irish cuisine that uses local ingredients and traditions and blends them with classic French techniques. The star dish of this dinner was the Dublin Bay prawns in a prawn bisque. My daughter had her very first taste of Foie Gras here, and she immediately loved this version which captured her imagination with the inclusion of chocolate. My personal favorite in the Tea Room was the souffle. I am determined to replicate this delicious dessert very soon and if it works I will definitely be sharing my recipe. (Read the full review of the Tea Room.)

Our meal in Thornton's was fabulous. Kevin Thornton is Ireland's celebrity chef and his restaurant is one of the best in Ireland. We really loved all the eight dishes that we had there. Our two favorites were the Foie Gras rolled in truffles and the Wicklow lamb. (Read the full review of Thornton's). The service here was really wonderful and they were incredibly child-friendly. My daughter got her very own tasting menu! Here is her review:

After the Riverdance show, we went to eat at Thornton's. That was a fancy restaurant. And they were very kid-friendly. They brought me yummy bread with special Irish butter. My first dish was chicken terrine with fig jam and it tasted like dessert. Then, I tried Mommy's foie gras rolled in truffles on fresh brioche bread. It tasted a little bit strange but it was really delicious. Next, I tried a [celeriac] soup and the soup tasted yummy and creamy. For my main course, I had truffle risotto and that was the last course. It looked a little bit like a rice tower and I really liked it and I wanted mommy to make one like that at home. That was the best dinner in Ireland.

In September, we visited New York for a long weekend. My daughter was delighted to see the tall buildings and landmarks, and a highlight for her was seeing Mary Poppins on Broadway. We enjoyed several nice meals in the city, including a fine Russian dinner at Firebird, but our best dinner was at Jean Georges. I had really looked forward to this dinner since as I explained above I have both cooked and admired nearly every recipe in his recent cookbooks. We really enjoyed our Autumn Tasting menu, featuring such dishes as Maine Lobster with potato gnocchi and pickles chilies and Nishiki risotto. (Read full review of Jean Georges.)

For the remainder of the year, I've enjoyed designing my 5 star foodie website and writing about my recipes and adventures in my new blog. This has been the start of an amazing adventure so far!

What's next? On New Year's Eve, we will re-visit our local 5-star restaurant The Inn at Little Washington. While we have eaten there before, and enjoyed a wonderful dinner experience, we have not yet had a chance to experience Patrick O'Connell's tasting menu, as we now have enjoyed at other 5-star restaurants we have visited. I look forward to his New Year's creations and will share my findings. It should be a wonderful meal!

Dill Weed Crusted Arctic Char with Horseradish Sauce

This dish is elegant yet easy to make and pairs perfectly with potato pancakes for our holiday celebration. A good Pinot Noir is wonderful with this dinner.

Ingredients:

4 Arctic Char fillets
2 tablespoon dill weed
Salt and pepper to taste
Olive oil

2 tablespoons Mayonnaise
2 tablespoons white horseradish

Directions:

Cut the skin off the arctic char fillets, brush with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and sprinkle all over with dill weed.

Cook the fillets in a skillet over a medium-high heat, about 3-4 minutes per side.

Meanwhile, mix mayonnaise and horseradish.

Serve the fillets alongside potato pancakes and top with the horseradish sauce.

Makes 4 servings.

Note: You can find my recipe for potato pancakes (latkes) here

Banana Pancakes with Nutmeg Syrup

Our favorite destination in the Caribbean is the island of Mustique, in the St. Vincent’s and Grenadines. This idyllic spot provides private views of some of the most beautiful scenery in that part of the world. We stayed in an exclusive resort, the Firefly, with only four bedrooms for the entire island. The restaurant in the Firefly was excellent and offered wonderful Caribbean dishes featuring local ingredients. For breakfast, we quickly discovered the best dish on the menu – Banana Pancakes with Nutmeg syrup. These pancakes were really delicious and we had them every single day during our stay on the island. I had to replicate these banana pancakes at home and made them once before using plain flour and plain milk. Today, inspired by the Leftover Queen’s January Royal Foodie Joust and Cynthia Nelson’s new book My Caribbean Cookbook, Tastes Like Home, I am using coconut milk and brown rice flour.

Ingredients:
½ cup coconut milk
1 large egg
2/3 cup brown rice flour
2 tablespoons sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
2/3 tablespoon baking powder
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted,
plus additional melted butter
1 banana

1 tablespoon of freshly grated nutmeg
2 cups sugar
1 cup water

Directions:
Add water, sugar, and nutmeg to a small pot and stir well. Bring to boil, stirring occasionally. Cook on medium heat, for a few more minutes or until all sugar is dissolved and the syrup starts to thicken.

Whisk coconut milk and eggs in small bowl. In a large bowl, mix rice flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder. Gradually whisk coconut milk mixture into the flour mixture. Mix in 3 tablespoons melted butter.

Mash a banana finely. Add to the batter and blend well.

Heat griddle over high heat. Brush lightly with additional melted butter. Working in batches, pour batter by ¼ cupfuls onto griddle. Cook until light brown on one side for about 1-2 minutes. Turn over and cook on the second side for about 30 seconds.

Serve the pancakes with nutmeg syrup.

Magical Holiday Doughnuts

For Hanukkah celebration in Israel, special doughnuts, called Sufganiyot, are even more popular than latkes. My special recipe features doughnuts, dusted with powdered sugar and pink sprinkles, with three different fillings - strawberry jelly, blackberry jelly, and chocolate. At my daughter’s pre-school holiday party, these delicious doughnuts seemed to “magically” disappear.


Ingredients:

1 cup milk
1 teaspoon sugar
2 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast
3 1/2 cups flour
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup sugar
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
1 large egg
2 teaspoons butter, melted

Chocolate chunks, strawberry and/or blackberry jelly
Vegetable oil

Confectioner’s sugar
Sprinkles (optional)

Directions:

Warm ¼ cup of milk, add sugar and sprinkle yeast. Mix to blend. Let the mixture stand until foamy, about 8-10 minutes.

In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, sugar, cinnamon, egg, the rest of milk, melted butter and yeast mixture. Mix until a ball forms. Cover and put it in a warm place for at least an hour and a half and let the dough rise.

On a floured surface, divide the dough into 3 or 4 parts. Shape each into a thin roll, then cut it into 1 inch pieces and flatten each into a rounded disk. Place just a little bit filling (chocolate chunks or jelly) inside, close, and shape into a ball.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a large pot to reach at least 2 inches. Drop doughnuts in oil, 6 at a time. Fry until deep golden, turning occasionally. Dust with Confectioners’ sugar and sprinkles (optional). Eat while still warm.

Tea Flavored with Imagination

I enjoy drinking tea and have some almost every evening. For the longest time, my “usual” has been Honey Vanilla Chamomile by Celestial Seasonings. However, a few years ago, when vacationing near Charleston, South Carolina, we stayed at the Woodlands Resort and Inn and experienced the magic of their afternoon tea. Of course, dining at their 5-Star restaurant – the Dining Room at the Woodlands - was a very special experience (read review). Tea time was unique in its own way. Relaxing in one of many gorgeous sitting rooms at the resort, we sampled all kinds of delicious pastries and tea sandwiches accompanying the tea menu. The selection of teas was incredible. Our favorites included a black current tea and a peppermint tea. Both were wonderful.

Ever since that experience we love to search for special teas. Our latest find is a little out of the ordinary, “Teas Flavored with Imagination” by the Eastern Shore Tea Company in Lutherville, Maryland. Each of their wide variety of flavors seems to come with a story. Black Raven Tea is flavored with blackcurrant and inspired by Edgar Allan Poe’s darkly poetic imagery. Other favorites are the Pomegranate Tea, from the principal fruit in legends such as Persephone’s story, and the Spiced Apricot tea, lush with ripe apricot flavors, cinnamon, and cloves.

We buy these teas from Wegman’s and, according to Eastern Shore Tea Company (http://easternshoretea.com) website, they are also available at Dean & Deluca Stores.

If you also enjoy special teas, or have a tea experience, I’d love to hear about it. What is your favorite tea?

Brioche Frittata with Ham and Cheese

Last night for our supper we had a special Brioche Frittata with Ham and Cheese. I created this dish because it is very easy and quick to make and it is a perfect meal for my 4-year old and me when my husband is out of town.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon oil
2 eggs
1 tablespoon sour cream
2/3 cup brioche, cut in 1-inch cubes
2 slices of Virginia Ham, chopped
1 green onion, chopped
2-3 tablespoons tomatoes, finely chopped
Pinch of salt and pepper
2-3 tablespoons shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

In a bowl, combine eggs, sour cream, brioche cubes, ham, onion, and tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper.

Preheat broiler. Add oil to a skillet over medium-high heat. Pour the egg mixture, spreading evenly. Brown on one side, about 2 minutes. Flip the frittata and take off the heat. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese and place in a broiler until the cheese melts for about 1 minute.

A Perfect Foodie Moment

If you have seen my 5starfoodie website, you will already know that my ultimate culinary experience was dinning at Joel Robuchon at the Mansion, involving a complex, multi-ingredient, multi-course tasting menu that lasted for hours. By contrast, however, my one perfect foodie moment, was a very simple moment in time, and involved just two basic ingredients – bread and cheese. Here’s my story.

Around seven years ago, on a brisk cold, sunny December day, my husband and I visited Oatlands Plantation, a beautiful historic site in Loudon County, Virginia. We toured the gorgeous, classic Federal-style mansion that belonged to Virginia’s Carter family, and we walked around both the gardens and the grounds. Afterwards, we were pleasantly tired, quite cold and hungry. Thus, we decided to stop at Piedmont Gourmet in nearby Middleburg, no longer in existence but our favorite gourmet store at that time. Their selection of French cheeses, imported directly from France, was extraordinary and the Brie de Meaux was irresistible. This cheese is very difficult to get in the United States, and when found it is rarely properly ripened. To pair with this cheese, we found a freshly baked loaf of Sourdough bread, just out of the oven and still hot.

Fifteen minutes later, we were at our table eating our incredibly delicious bread and cheese lunch. The delectable buttery taste of that Brie de Meaux nestled in warm fresh bread was simply unforgettable!

That was my perfect foodie moment. Please share your perfect foodie moments! I would love to hear your stories.

Cheese Blintzes

Cheese Blintzes are our long-time family favorite dish. We can eat these delicious blintzes for breakfast, lunch, or dinner! Even though I make them all the time, we only now took a picture of this dish. Enjoy!

Ingredients:


1 cup all purpose flour
3 large eggs
1 1/3 cups milk
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
Nonstick vegetable oil spray

1 cup ricotta cheese
1/4 cup plain yougurt
2-3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoons vanilla

Directions:

Mix first 6 ingredients using electric mixer until smooth.

Spray nonstick skillet with vegetable oil spray and heat over medium-high heat.

Pour 2/3 of the scoop of batter into pan and turn the pan gently to spread the batter around the whole pan. Cook until edge of crêpe turns light brown, about 1 minute. Loosen edges gently with spatula and turn crêpe over. Cook until bottom begins to brown in spots, about 30 seconds. Transfer to plate and cover with foil. Repeat with remaining batter, spraying pan with oil spray as needed and keeping the crêpes warm.

Mix ricotta cheese, yogurt, sugar, and vanilla.

Place 1 crepe browned side up on work surface. Spread filling on one side of the crepe. Roll crepe up and cut in half. Repeat with remaining filling and crepes.

Before serving, brown on buttered skillet for 1 minute on each side.

Our favorite toppings for the blintzes include maple syrup, cherry preserves, sour cream, or chocolate sauce.

Sweet Potato Soup with Sage and Pecans

By now, all Thanksgiving leftovers have definitely been eaten. But I still had leftover uncooked ingredients in my refrigerator that I absolutely had to use up right away. Here's what I had: 1 very large sweet potato, some baby carrots, celery, fresh sage, pecans, and lots of stock. I decided to make this delicious and comforting sweet potato soup.

Ingredients:

1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into small pieces
1 cup carrots, sliced
1/3 cup celery, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 tablespoons butter
4-5 fresh sage leaves
1 teaspoon cardamom
5-6 cups of chicken stock
Salt to taste
1/4 cup maple syrup
Smoked Paprika to taste

Creme Fraiche or sour cream
Pecans

Directions:

Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a large pot. Place sweet potatoes, carrots, celery, and onion. Cook vegetables for 7-8 minutes.

Add sage leaves, cardamom, stock and salt to taste. Bring to boil and then simmer until all vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes.

Discard the sage leaves. Puree the vegetables in a food processor. Strain throuh a fine sieve back into the pot. Add maple syrup and a few pinches of smoked paprika. Warm up before serving.

In each bowl, place a dollop of creme fraiche and sprinkle with pecans.