Alouette's New Garlic & Herb Brie Wedge and Seasonal Cheese Spreads

Alouette cheeses are terrific to use for all kinds of party appetizers and just in time for the holidays, Alouette is introducing a new Garlic & Herb in a baby brie wedge form. I recently received samples of the Garlic & Herb Brie Wedge for tasting. This is a mild cheese with smooth buttery texture. We thought that the garlic and herb flavors didn't quite come through when tried it fresh just with a baguette. We did, however, enjoyed it very much, melted on a flatbread with butternut squash.

In addition to the Garlic & Herb Brie Wedge, I also received two seasonal cheese spreads, Berries & Cream and Cheesecake.

Light and creamy, both of these spreadable cheeses are perfect for the upcoming winter holiday parties. They can be eaten simply with crackers before or after the main meal they are lovely spread on bagels or in a delicious parfait for a brunch, great for lunches spread on a fresh or toasted bread, or used to put together a quick dessert.

Our favorite dessert with the spreads was a cookie sandwich. These seasonal limited edition cheese spreads are a must try!

New and Classic Recipes from Alouette:
Garlic and Herb Brie Wedge and Proscuitto Crescent Rolls http://bit.ly/mOrGKC
Garlic and Herb Brie Wedge Individual Open Face Stromboli http://bit.ly/pJl1yq
Garlic and Herb Brie Wedge Marinated in fresh Herbs and Olive Oil http://bit.ly/vGS8wO
Garlic and Herb Brie Wedge Millefeuille http://bit.ly/twt40j
Garlic and Herb Brie Wedge with Wild Mushroom Panko Topping http://bit.ly/vj8b1s

Berries and Cream Chocolate Phyllo Triangles http://bit.ly/2TRAJ5
Limited Edition Cheesecake Crème Brulee http://bit.ly/tt0CYy
Limited Edition Cheesecake Trifle http://bit.ly/v1srk7
Limited Edition Inverted Cheesecake http://bit.ly/sRLi2I

Japanese Fusion Tasting

As a foodie and a blogger, I am often asked by everyone about my favorite dish to make or my favorite style of cuisine. It is not an easy question to answer since I almost never cook the same dish twice or even if I do once in a while repeat a dish I don't make it the same way. However, going over the various posts on my blog recently in honor of my yet again missed blog anniversary (three years as of November 1st), I discovered quite a few dishes featuring the infusion of Asian, and, particularly, Japanese flavors. So, this weekend when I had a party to prepare food for, I have decided to review some of my favorite Japanese Fusion dishes that I have made before that resulted in a multi-course tasting menu. As is typical for me, though I was planning to execute the dishes as per original recipes, I ended up changing elements in every single dish.

We started our tasting with a Banana Cashew Hummus with Gyoza Chips. Instead of hot madras curry, this time the Banana Cashew Hummus was flavored with ginger and a touch of Japanese 7 spice. >> Original recipe.



I discovered onigiri, Japanese rice balls, a while ago and first made them with tomatoes, onion, and bacon, and then recently also with edamame and white truffles for a project with Marx Foods. For the tasting, I made the truffled edamame filling using black truffle oil. I really did intend on making many individual little onigiri of different shapes and was looking forward to decorating them in a fun way. However, I realized that with all the other dishes I had to make, there just wasn't enough time. So, I placed a layer of rice over nori, spread my truffled edamame puree evenly, covered the filling with another layer of rice and decorated the top with more nori. After refrigerating until just before serving, I sliced this "onigiri cake" into squares that held their shape perfectly. This course was delicious, with many requests for seconds. >> Original recipe.



Next, I prepared two tempura platters: shrimp and white & green asparagus. The dipping sauces, used for tempura, as well as throughout the meal included: Sweet & Sour sauce, prepared with red wine vinegar instead of a rice vinegar as in the original recipe served with tempura shrimp, miso mayo (as inspired by my friend Lazaro), wasabi-tarragon mayo as in the original recipe served with asparagus, and a brand new and awesome tahini ginger sauce, a recipe for which I promise to publish in the near future. >> Original recipes: Tempura Shrimp, Tempura Asparagus.







I first tasted Okonomiyaki, Japanese "pizza" or pancake, in London, and instantly fell in love with this specialty. Typically, these pancakes are large, but for the tasting I decided to make mini-Okonomiyaki with smoked salmon and green onions. >> Original recipe.



Tamago Omelet Meatloaf was a take on a meat roll with an omelet that my grandmother used to make, but with a Japanese flare. The Tamago omelet is made with the dashi stock, mirin, and sugar. The meatloaf is flavored with tamari and mirin. I followed the original recipe with one exception: after mixing all the ingredients for the meatloaf together, including the egg, onions, the panko breadcrumbs and all the seasonings, I put the whole mixture through the meat grinder. This one little change made a huge different in the meatloaf texture, making it very smooth and allowing for the shape to hold, resulting in a gorgeous presentation when sliced.>> Original recipe.



Soba noodles tossed with sesame oil, tamari, black sesame seeds, and green onions were a great accompaniment to the meatloaf or could also serve as a meat-free main course option. >> Original recipe.



For dessert, I wanted to make a Yuzu Chia Seed Loaf Cake but of course I no longer had any yuzu juice, blueberries are not currently in season, and I didn't really feel like adding chia seeds to my French-style yogurt cake either. Instead, I infused the cake with ginger juice and honey, adding these to the batter and as a glaze. This new Ginger and Honey Yogurt Cake was wonderfully moist, not too sweet, and very delicate. It was just perfect a refreshing homemade Matcha ice cream. >> Original recipe.

This was a wonderful meal that was fun to prepare and a joy to share with my family and friends.

Product Review: KeepCup

Now that we have celebrated Thanksgiving with delicious meals with our families and friends, it is time to think about the upcoming winter holidays and gift giving. I have received a sample that would be a fabulous gift idea for fans of coffee, tea, and hot chocolate, KeepCups.



KeepCups are eco-friendly and sustainable as they are recyclable, manufactured easily, with replaceable components, and are reusable. KeepCups replicate the barista standard sizes and so can be used with any espresso or one-cup coffee machines to replace many disposable cups. I particularly love my adorable mini KeepCup because it is so lightweight and pretty much splashproof. I can tuck it in my bag and carry it with me to work without worries about the spills. It's a terrific product and a must have for everyone who loves hot drinks!

Gingered Pumpkin Soup with Molasses Froth

My daughter and I made a mini-Thanksgiving dinner tonight inspired by Felicity, an American Girl historical character who lives at the time of the American Revolution, in Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia. For our first course, we made a wonderfully delicious Gingered Pumpkin Soup based on a recipe from The Colonial Williamsburg Tavern Cookbook, adding some modern 5 star touches.



We melted butter in a saucepan, and added finely chopped onions and celery, cooking those until softened. Then we poured the chicken stock and mixed in unsweetened pumpkin puree, agave syrup, and ginger, bringing the mixture to boil, then stirring in light cream. We pureed the soup with an immersion blender and strained it so it is completely silky and smooth, seasoning it with salt and pepper to taste.

5 Star Foodie Junior sprinkled her portion with cardamom. I blended some light cream with dark molasses with an immersion blender, creating a Molasses Froth and spooned some on top of my pumpkin soup. I really loved the unique taste of Molasses Froth and will be sure to use it in other recipes in the future.



Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

5 Star Foodie Junior: Everything-but-the-Kitchen-Sink Cookies

Welcome to the November edition of 5 Star Foodie Junior, a series of monthly posts that feature my daughter learning how to cook in the kitchen. This post features a special cookbook that we received for a review, Cookiepedia. This book has a terrific range of fun and delicious cookies. It's great for cooking projects with children and a nice resource for the holiday baking.

5 Star Foodie Junior:


Recently , we received a cookbook named Cookiepedia. This cookbook has many different cookie recipes. I really like looking through it and making lists of all the cookies I'd like to make with my mom.

This time, we chose the Everything-but-the-Kitchen-Sink Cookies. They were fun to make because we put all kinds of mix-ins from my Halloween candy pumpkin basket.

First, we creamed butter and white and brown sugars together.

Then, we mixed the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt, and added all the dry ingredients into the sugar and butter mixture.

The next part was my favorite and it was to add different mix-ins to the cookie dough. We added regular M & Ms, peanut M & Ms, pieces of Kit-Kat and Hershey bars, hazelnuts, pecans, maple crunch cereal, and sprinkles.

Then, we baked the cookies. These cookies were yummy and fun to eat, with different colors, and a mixture of sweet and salty flavors.

Roasted Chicken Thighs with San-J Gluten-Free Asian Cooking Sauces

Lately I have been choosing Tamari sauce over regular soy sauce as it has richer and smoother flavor, and it is also healthier and gluten-free, being made of 100% soybeans. San-J Tamari sauce has been a particular favorite, and I have used it in such recent creations as Three-Chile Glazed Grilled Tuna, Yuzu Tempura Shrimp, and Tamari Meatloaf.

In addition to Tamari sauce, San-J also makes fantastic gluten-free Asian cooking sauces, samples of which I recently received from San-J company. The six different sauces range from mild sweet-savory flavors to very spicy, and are great to use as marinades, for glazing, or as stir-fry or dipping sauces. The sauces include: Orange Sauce, Sweet & Tangy, Teriyaki, Asian BBQ, Thai Peanut, and Szechuan.



We did a fun tasting of all six San-J sauces with the roasted chicken thighs. We glazed each chicken thigh with a one of the sauces, prior to roasting and added more glaze on each, just before serving, using any additional amount of a particular sauce as dipping.

The Orange sauce was perhaps a bit too delicate for this particular preparation, being milder than some of the others yet we did like the flavors and are looking forward to trying it in a different dish. The Polynesian style Sweet and Tangy sauce featured really wonderful flavor combination with taste of apples, pineapple, and honey, and worked very well with the chicken thighs. We thought that the Teriyaki sauce was an excellent quality with a very authentic classic flavor. The Asian BBQ was my personal favorite with hints of sweetness, smokiness, and a bit of a spicy kick. We really liked the Thai Peanut sauce as well which was spicy and nutty with just a bit of sweetness from the honey. Szechuan sauce was very bold and spicy, awesome for the fans of very spicy foods.

We really enjoyed comparing these sauces side by side and are looking forward to trying them also in the individual dishes.

Seared Duck Breast with Balsamic Raspberry Gastrique and Coconut Milk Polenta

Recently I received an adorable package from The Artisanal Kitchen with samples of their award-winning authentic Modena Aged Balsamic Vinegar, accompanied by an excellent quality extra virgin olive oil and a tiny jar of organic raspberry jam.



I decided to use all three of the samples to make a fabulous meal of a Seared Duck Breast with Balsamic Raspberry Gastrique and Coconut Milk Polenta.

To prepare this dish, simply reduce balsamic vinegar combined with raspberry jam by about two-thirds, until the mixture is syrupy. Pour over the thinly sliced pan-seared duck breast. Polenta prepared with coconut milk (using coconut milk instead of water or stock) is an excellent side dish to compliment both the duck and the balsamic raspberry gastrique.

Goat Milk Yogurt Marinated Grilled Tuna Steaks

The final group of samples that I received from the Redwood Hill Farm were the goat milk yogurts. Made with all natural ingredients and many live active cultures, these yogurts are creamy, delicious, and healthy. The small yogurt jars were excellent for breakfast and snacks. We particularly enjoyed exploring the unique flavors such as apricot mango and cranberry orange.



Using the plain goat milk yogurt, I made a spicy and sweet marinade & sauce to prepare grilled Yellowfin tuna steaks.



Ingredients:

1 cup goat milk yogurt
1 teaspoon celery salt
2 teaspoons hot madras curry
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
2 tablespoons agave syrup
2 Yellowfin tuna steaks, sashimi quality

Directions:

In a large bowl, mix yogurt, celery salt, hot madras curry, white pepper, and agave syrup. Reserve about 1/4 cup. Use the rest of the mixture to marinade the tuna steaks, for at least 30 minutes.

Grill the tuna for about 30 seconds on pre-heated grill or until grill marks form. Top with the reserved yogurt sauce and serve with red quinoa.

Goats Milk Cheeses from Redwood Hill Farm

Recently, I was lucky to taste four different goats milk cheeses from Redwood Hill Farm. All four were excellent and each had it's own unique taste and style.

We started our cheese tasting with California Grottin, a French-style goat cheese. It was very flavorful with hints of nuttiness and a bit of sourness. It had a firm edible ride, and was buttery on the outside and very creamy inside.



The second cheese was the Goat Milk Cheddar. This was a mild cheddar, with a sweet milky flavor and smooth soft and crumbly texture.



The Raw Milk Feta was a great contrast to the cheddar, being very savory with salty flavor and, contrary to a typical feta, not crumbly.



Finally, we tried the Three Pepper Chevre, a soft spreadable cheese with the sweet aromatic flavor of the peppers but not spicy at all. It was terrific with fresh bread.



We really enjoyed this cheese tasting and were very impressed with the quality of the products from Redwood Hill Farm.

Steaks with Kefir Pine Nut and Rosemary Sauce and Spiced Roasted Butternut Squash Puree with Dried Apricots

Redwood Hill Farm is a family-operated farm in California that produces an excellent quality goats milk products such as yogurts, kefirs, and cheeses. I was fortunate to receive samples of these products, and I will be posting my reviews throughout this week.



The goats milk kefir was one of our favorites. It was a lot thicker than the other kefirs I tried and very smooth. Both the intense and sweet blueberry-pomegranate flavor and the refreshing tangy mango-orange. we just drank as a smoothie.



The plain kefir, in addition to drinking, I also used in cooking. I made a kefir goats milk sauce with pine nuts and rosemary. served with grilled bison steak (also great with lamb) and butternut squash and Turkish apricot puree, a new unique side dish created at the last minute to accompany this dish.



Ingredients:

1 pound butternut squash, cubed
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cardamom
1 tablespoons olive oil
8 Turkish dried apricots
2 tablespoons butter
Salt to taste

2-3 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup pine nuts
1 tablespoon rosemary, chopped
1/2 cup plain kefir

2 fillet or sirloin steaks
Salt, pepper, turmeric
butter, oil

Directions:

Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees. In a baking dish, place butternut squash, spices, and olive oil. Mix gently. Cook for about 25 minutes or until butternut squash is tender. Add dried apricots and cook for 5 minutes more. Place the butternut squash mixture into the food processor, add butter, and puree. Season with salt to taste.

Meanwhile, in a skillet, melt butter. Add pine nuts and rosemary and fry for a few minutes, stirring continuously, until the pine nuts are starting to turn golden. Swirl the pine nuts and rosemary into kefir.



In another skillet, heat oil and butter. Season steaks with turmeric, salt and pepper and sear to desired doneness.

To serve, place spiced butternut squash dried apricot puree on each plate, top with a steak, and pour kefir pine nut rosemary sauce over.