A Culinary Road Trip For Dad

 father's Day is usually about grilling dogs and burgers on the grill. There's the occasional steak but that's it.It's time to liven up dad's special day  with some international recipes.

Red meat is always important to the man of the house. You could go the way of the English and serve him Yorkshire pudding  with roast beef. It's a simple make because the pudding is nothing more than a savory popover. It's a mix of egg flour , milk and water. You can add the roast dripping along with a pinch of English powder mustard if you want. Finish with  chocolate stout cupcakes with a Guinness  infused buttercream frosting. Of course homemade sausage rolls, sausages encased in a flaky puff pastry crust and doused with HP sauce is another British treat dad would love, especially on a lazy Sunday afternoon. A picnic French style is always a fun way to reconnect with dads. Pack not just the soccer ball and bubble wands but  some good flaky croissants  that can be slathered with Brie or layered with slices of Gruyere and ham. A charcuterie style one is a great way for fathers to sample a variety of cold cuts, cheeses and different breads. Bring along a baguette too for quick sandwiches. Include grapes and wine  - if your local parks allow it.Dessert could be a box of macarons in all sorts of tasty flavors. You could also do a German style with wursts, hard rolls and mustard. Make sure you pack homemade potato salad too.

What father doesn't love Italian food? You could easily treat dad to a sausage straight from the grill and pepper sandwich. The peppers can also be grilled for added smoky flavor and you could add some grilled onions for more taste. A meatball sub  brimming with homemade meat balls and sauce is a fun late lunch.Another idea, and in keeping with the season is pasta con vongole, or with clams.  This is spaghetti made with a very easy sauce of manila clams,garlic, olive oil and red pepper flakes.Chopped parsley is sprinkled on top for coloring.What could finish this? Affogato or drowned ice cream. This is a yummy treat of vanilla or chocolate  ice cream drowned in a shot of very hot espresso. Place the ice cream in a glass or metal dish or bowl that's been chilled. This will cool down the coffee somewhat.  Add a splash of amaretto if you want. even better, crown it with some whipped cream and shaved dark chocolate on top.A culinary turn  East and dad could have homemade customized sushi,it is a bit more labor intensive , especially when making the rice. This can be made in an Instapot with Japanese short rice being mixed with salt sugar and rice vinegar. You will also have to have the dried seaweed or nori to wrap it in. Most grocery stores do carry it.. You can fill the rolls with dad's favorite from shrimp to crab for a tasty lunch. Have sake to drink for an authentic lunch or dinner.

Treat the man in your life to culinary trip for Father's Day, it could be an English country lunch, or French or German  picnic. He could feast on Italian Japanese or any international dish for his special day.

A Weekend In

 Between the frigid temps, snow and virus, it pays to spend a weekend in. It's a great time to hang around the kitchen and do a number of different things. It could be  baking or cooking or something more grander  - a plan to remodel. There's all sorts of different activities where you don;t have to go outdoors.

Baking and cooking are the obvious choices on a cold snowy day. Since it's the weekend consider fun foods for a Saturday or Sunday night in. Pizza is always a good choice.It's can be in a number of forms You can make the traditional pie or one with variations like a stuffed crust or a four cheese one. Pizza bread is a nice change up for dinner or a snack watching the games. This is just making a kind of savory jelly roll with cheese, and any kind of topping rolled in a flat sheet of dough. You can make your own or use PIllsbury's crescent dough. The sauce is later when the roll is sliced and you can dip the slices into the warmed sauce or spoon it over them.A weekend in is a good time to try new dishes. Crack open those cookbooks you received for Christmas. Try an Ethiopian stew rich with lentils and Berber spice or a crunchy croque Monsiuer . Go to the dessert section and give an English syllabub a whirl or a chocolate lava cake a try. Candy recipes are also an enjoyable to make . Nothing beats a pan of homemade fudge or peanut brittle.

A weekend in is a good time to assess your kitchen . It's a perfect   few hours to think about remodeling. Buy or download  some of the kitchen remodeling magazines like Homes And Garden to get ideas. Look on line to see what you'd like. It could be a farmhouse sink or a granite counter tops. Assess your appliances too. Is your fridge too old? How is your stove working? Start pricing online and seeing what you think would look best. are you thinking of expanding? Then spend the time indoors looking at your kitchen's dimensions. Do you want to bump it out a few feet? Or would you like to add a sunroom or small conservatory to expand the dining area? Again look on  line. there are some great videos on You Tube that walk you through the entire process. Check out Jessica Miller Nashville one that  shows the entire process. It will convince you or not to expand the room. While you're at it, also take a look at remodeler's and their websites.  You can leave questions or chat live with their customer service reps. You'll get ideas or pricing and time frame along with suggestions.

A weekend in can be a productive time. You can try out a new and fun recipe. You can sketch plans for a new , pretty kitchen. It's time well spent.

A Happy And Diversified Fourth

Celebrate the Fourth and the diversity that is our country. Have a barbecue with German hamburgers hot dogs and cole slaw. Rinse it down with beer from Germany and Mexico. Or if you prefer fried chicken, whose recipe came with the enslaved from West Africa. Finish with ice cream that had its' origins in Italy and France. Or you could have French based marshmallows with Brazilian chocolate on good old American graham crackers which are taken from the English digestive biscuits. Snack on indigenous popcorn later on as you watch the fireworks.

Just remember that America isn't about one race, one religion and one nationality. All of us make up the melting  pot and mosaic that is this great country. Don't listen to the harmful otherwise.

Celebrate everyone and everything about them, especially their foods!!!

Happy 4th of. July to Americans around the globe!!!!!!

🎆🎆🎆🎆🎆🎆

Hot Dog ! Choices!

what is the most versatile food out there? The humble hot dog. There are so many different ones, and ways to cook them. You can create corn or pigs in blankets. Try it with chili or kraut. They are the most easiest and versatile main meals to make.

The first aspect to consider is what kind of dog to get. Nathan's and Sabretts' have the best,especially the last, Theirs' is one hundred per cent beef and cook up nicely, creating  a nice juicy inside and crispy skin.These are the ones  I like,  and they coo up  well on my stovetop grill. Oscar Mayer does have the lower calorie turkey dogs while Trader Joe's has uncured (??) chicken ones. If you're fond of eating them, the consider the last, simply for calories. There are also soy dogs which are good for vegans, Morningstar Farms has their frozen which takes longer to cook than the meat ones . These can be thawed out in the microwave first, on defrost Now comes the cooking method. again, I love my little mini grill which is perfect for cooking up to two to three dogs at a time. They're cooked in a small , melted knob of I Can't Believe It's Not Butter

You can also use boiling water or even cooking them with sauerkraut for more flavor.

As for buns, I prefer the potato kind. They've got a sweetness to them and they also are good grill toasted (to do this, just lay them bottoms down butterfly style on one side of the grill for a minute ) KiIng's Hawaiian Roll lovers will rejoice for their new addition of hot dog rolls. They also have sub rolls too for a chewier texture. Many hot dog joints throughout New Jersey, such as Rutt's Hutt and the Galloping Hill Grill use the jaw widening Portuguese rolls. These are fine if you want more bread than meat, however they're great if you're also adding relish , cheese or any other extras. Now about those extras, you can zing your dogs of choice with everything from hummus drizzled on top to large clumps of sauerkraut stuffed inside the rolls. You could also create the fun barbecue crunch dogs. Add a good amount of any kind of barbecue sauce to the bun, then top with barbecue flavored potato chips. Cheddar dogs  can be another treat. Instead of that gooey jarred kind, try shaved curls of sharp English for real flavor.

Have fun with your hot dogs. Pick the ones you like and go wild with creativity. Try them with sweet buns or sharp cheddar. Make them your own signature  delicious dogs.

Bridge Club Holiday Classics

The best holiday memories always come from the kitchen. We may not remember the fancy dresses or jammies we received or whose college team were the state's football stars, but we remember the roasts and grvies, sides and of course the desserts. Nothing beats a homecooked holiday meal or party/ Luckily there's a cookbout just out to help create those memories.

Best of Bridge Holiday Classics(Robert Rose Press) is a great compilation of breakfast, lunch and dinner recipes along with recipes for party foods and desserts. The authors are eight ladies who not only wrote and tried these recipes but  also played endless and ruthless games of bridge together. Bridge parties always have some kind of food to snack on and these Calgary  ladies brought some interesting ones to the bridge table. It has been almost forty years since the first cookbooks were published . They are extremely popular and have been passed down now for almost three generations.The recipes reflect the British  and French influence  with English spiced beef and beef bourguignon. SOme are similar to American Midwestern dishes like cheesy scalloped potatoes and pork roast.There's  also a whole section  on leftover recipes, a great help especially during the days after Thanksgiving and Christmas.Another good section is the one for food gifts. There are great recipes for Crazy Crunch, a homemade version of Fiddle Faddle along with the very interesting green tomato mincemeat.

Best of Bridge Holiday Classics is also the perfect book for party throwers. Even the dishes would make any Saturday night cocktail party or Sunday football gathering.Try the Bridge ladies recipe for crepes that can have either chicken or crab filling. These are perfect for an evening with the girls, followed with a lemon soufflé recipe ,also from the book. Any of the recipes would be perfect at a tree trimming party/There are recipes for spicy chili con carne and a tasty Sumptuous Spinach and Artichoke dip.Planning on an elegant black tie New Year's Eve party? Then make a variety of pates offered. There's a meatless one made with  sharp Stilton cheese blended with brandy and a chicken liver one spiked with mace and dry sherry. The holiday breakfast recipes are great when hosting the relatives or just waking up on a snowy day.There's Scotty 's Nest Eggs, a take on Eggs Benedict along with that recipe  and sausage pie, loaded with sausage and spices.Their chewy  French toast is zested up with orange liqueur and pure cream., a perfect dish to wake up to on a cold, frosty morning.
If you love holiday cooking , Best of Bridge Holiday Classics is for you. There are recipes for almost eveyr meal, from brunch to dinner , from parties to dinners..They will create culinary memories everyone will remember for years to come.

Picnics With A Worldly Flair

With the weather getting warmer, it's nice to head to the parks, the beach or even the backyard. Unfortunately ordinary picnic food can bring down  a sunny day.Liven up the plain with an international zing. It'll make a day out even more special.

The French are known for their outdoor piqueniques.A typical bring along may be a salad Nicoise, a tasty mix of spring greens, sliced hard boiled eggs and tuna. To round it out there are artichoke hearts,anchovies and tomatoes. It's served with a simple dressing and loaves of crusty french bread.If this is too messy, then think the French bread with slices of Gruyere or Brie layered with thinly sliced ham. Buy imported fizzy lemonade to round it out along with some strawberries  for dessert. You could also go Italian , with cold cuts such as mortadella or cappacola along with marinated peppers on Italian bread. Bring olives too along with cherry tomatoes for some snacking. Instead of soda think about a premixed tamarind and seltzer combo that's refreshing and different.

Of course nothing is as elegant as an English country outing. Here you can cater to your inner "Downton Abbey"both up and downstairs with hearty meat and cheese sandwiches (this is the country that invented them)Using crusty rolls or the traditional baps, flattened rolls. The English love beef and ham , especially thickly sliced along with hunky slabs of cheddar. Add pickles along with onions to complement the taste. What to drink? Ale would be good in the backyard however if you;re out settle for the spicy yet tasty ginger beer. You could also try picnic with a German flair .Have rye bread sandwiches with teawurst or lanjaeger slices along with a true potato salad, with vinegar sugar, along with bacon and onions.

Bring the world with you when you go out into it. There are some great picnic foods out there from all over the globe that are tasty and different. Add some international flair to your picnic basket. It;s a fun way of enjoying the fresh air and warm sunshine!

Coleridge And A Proper Tea

Tomorrow is Samuel Taylor Coleridge's birthday (as well as being Trafalgar Day)/ The early romantic poet, , best known for Kubla Khan and The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner. Like any writer, he probably appreciated sustenance (and opium) during his writing sessions/. He was born in Devon,a shire known for it's luscious cream teas. Anyone can recreate them, to experience a true English writer's afternoon - or evening snack.

What makes a good English tea? Good English tea.Typhoo is the best, coming from the United Kingdom,itself .It's a deep rich  tea that has a lovely aftertaste.Twinings is very good too You can try the traditional flavors such as Assam or Earl Grey. Lady Grey is also good ,however because it has orange over tone' its'best plain or with sugar. The others go well with a splash of milk in them. You must never several cream at an English tea. It's just not allowed. If you do want a twist or modernize the tradition, then use fruit teas for a different spin. They're refreshing both hot or cold (which only works during a summer high tea)

As for food, if you're having a tea for one you can create a small plate of sandwiches for yourself .These go well if you;re creating epic poems as Coleridge did or just blogging. You can create cucumber or watercress sandwiches with cukes and cress. Layer these on lightly buttered spices of small bread. Another filling is a meat one that can be made with a mix of devilled ham or chicken and mayo. For a tea party make these sandwiches along with jam filled ones and perhaps petit fours or colorful macaroons.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge, like his fellow romantic poets, William Wordsworth and William Blake appreciated a good tea. Any modern writer or Anglophile  would appreciate a hot cup of tea accompanied by delicious sandwiches and sweets. It's  a great respite to have from writing