An Aussie Favorite For American Tables

Every country has their comfort foods. We may have our meat loaf and chocolate chip cookies but the Australians have something a bit tastier - sausage rolls. This kid classic is loved  Down Under and with good reason. They are a flavor and texture explosion, perfect to make at home for a fall lunch or dinner.

Regular contributor Melissa Clark dedicated her entire A Good Appetite to them in yesterday's New York Times Food section. Sausage rolls were to Aussie school cafeterias as meat loaf and mashed potatoes were to ours. The school made ones weren't exactly made from the greatest ingredients according to Paul Allam, owner and baker at Bourke Street Bakery. Ms. Clark interviewed him, along with also getting his best recipes for them. Most school cafeteria rolls are composed of cartilage with the more upscale ones adding celery. His are different, a spin of the classic English sausage roll which is a puff pastry filled with sausage and sometimes an egg. His bakery sells ones with such fillings as a fennel scented pork  along with a turkey and cranberry, a riff on our Thanksgiving dinners. There's also a rotating menu of vegan ones stuffed with eggplant and chiles and spinach and feta. As far as the crust, the flakier the better. Mr. Allam uses his own recipe,a daunting feat but one that can be made at home.

What makes a sausage roll delectable is the crust. Ms. Clark found a  good all butter brand of puff pastry (you can use Trader Joe's store brand or Dufour's for this) but you can also use your favorite pie crust recipe or try your hand at making your own puff pastry. The fillings are mouth watering. There is aforementioned pork and fennel, plumped up with classic comfort food veggies like, peas, carrots and onions. You can use ground pork but ground chicken or turkey is just as good, Vegan meat crumbles are also recommended for  hearty vegetarian fare. Fennel seeds are used for flavor and also fro decoration as they're sprinkled on top. For a Middle Eastern spin there is a lamb and almond one, zinged up with harissa paste, a smoky blend of chiles. There's also couscous and currants added, the last to give it a kind of tangine vibe.Poppy seeds decorate the outside. Vegetarians will love the flavorful leek and mushroom roll.Any kind of mushroom is used and two large leeks. Tomato paste is added for more taste and color and almond butter is also included for creaminess and more substance . There's also garlic and soy sauce added too.

Sausage rolls are the perfect meal  for these cool days ahead. They are the perfect comfort food, filled with tasty flavors and textures. They may be Australia's comfort food but they sure' to be America's too.

Bruschetta For Coleridge's Birthday

 Samuel Taylor Coleridge never went to Italy but I have a funny feeling he would have loved any dish  of Italian food for his birthday today Bruschetta is one of those dishes.It makes for a great lunch or dinner. It can be used as an appetizer or hors d'ouevre. A big plus is putting your own spin on it  - which I did.

Double layers bruschettas are not widely made.I decided to give it a try, using a white bean bruschetta and the traditional tomato. 

I couldn't find cannelini beans at Wal-Mart where I bought all the ingredients so chose Goya's white beans. I drained them and mixed them with a drizzle of olive oil. It was then slightly pureeing the mix iwith the immersion blender.

It was a bit creamier than what I expected. Next time I'll use a potato masher instead to produce a chunkier bruschetta. The next step was creating the tomato one. This was dicing the tomatoes and milling the basil in the herb mill. I used  four tomatoes and a handful of freshly picked basil. Then it was mincing one clove of garlic.

All this was mixed with a good glug of olive oil and a capful of red wine vinegar.It was then adding just a bit of sea salt and a grind of freshly ground pepper.

I should have used the pretoasted rounds but opted for Italian bread slices. These were a bit soft but not bad.

I sprinkled the tops with  Parma vegan Parmesan cheese for more flavor and crunch. It wasn't a bad mix and I plan on making it again. The recipe will be tweaked to make it more flavorful and the bean bruschetta less runny.

Would Coleridge have preferred this to his Devon cream tea as a birthday dinner? Hopefully. It's tasty and different, packed with flavors and textures.

Special Days Special Meals

 It is tough to celebrate anything these days. Restaurants have only limited capacity or offer dining in bubbles or tents which may or may not have heating. Your best bet is creating a birthday or anniversary lunch or dinner is at home. It can still be festive with special recipes and treats. Best of all you can control the menu for the small event.

The one thing about creating a special meal is deciding what you want. If you love grilled steak, then get the barbecue out and start grilling,. Make the cuts fancier with a round of garlic or herb butter melting on top. This is an easy mix of pressed garlic or milled herbs blended with butter and then the whole mix is shaped into a log and chilled until serving. It's then slicing the roll into half inch thick coins to be put onto the meat. You can also make these flavored butters for lobster or shrimp too as well as for salmon or tilapia. What to serve with the steak? Hasselback potatoes!! These glammed up spuds are the perfect accompaniment and can be easily made. You can use any potato for them, from Yukon Golds to Russets to Red Blisses. It's then  continually slicing each one twelve to fifteen times right before you hit the potato's bottom. Each slice should be about a quarter of an inch wide. Brush the entire spud with melted butter and season with salt and pepper. Bake for thirty minutes and then brush them again with more melted (or flavored butter) to ensure crispy edges. Add a side dish of string beans almondine for added lushness. This classic French dish is the perfect marriage of slivered almonds and green beans with garlic and lemon zest. Finish with a rich devil's food cake with a ganache topping and whipped cream or a cinnamon laced apple or pear galette.

Of course a birthday or anniversary can be fun.One of the easiest fun dishes to make is bruschetta. This , in in its' simplest form, is chopped tomatoes mixed with basil, balsamic vinegar and olive oil. This is spooned over oiled and toasted rounds of Italian and French bread. You could liven it up with a few hot pepper flakes or sweetened with chopped bell peppers. A variation involves cannellini beans and sun dried tomatoes or just the beans and grated lemon zest mixed with olive oil. Another idea is a charcuterie platter, perfect for a family of four or five. A board or large plate can hold a variety of different cold cuts. Think favorites such as salami and mortadella along with the fancier prosciutto. Have cheeses everyone likes, such as sharp cheddar and Brie. You could serve all of this with water crackers but they taste delicious with Italian or French . bread. Sparkling wine such as Prosecco works but you can also crack open whites wines and light bodied reds. Mexican food is a fun and tasty way to elevate any celebratory dinner. Think about shrimp or London broil stuffed fajitas or tacos instead of the usual ground beef or chicken. These two meats can also be incorporated into a big cheesy nacho dish too.End with spicy Mexican chocolate cupcakes and Kahkua spiked coffee.

You don;t need to eat out to celebrate a birthday or anniversary. Fancy and fun dishes can be made at home . They're even better than any offering from your favorite eateries..

Parma Vegan Parmasan Pure Cheesiness

 Vegans and vegetarians have a hard time with cheeses. Most of the time they can be gummy and zero flavor. It's even worse when it comes to Parmesan cheeses. They can be tasteless, adding nothing to the dishes they're sprinkled on. Yet there's a new cheese out there that tastes like freshly grated Parmesan.

These are Parma, vegan Parmesan cheese that comes in the original and Garlicky Green flavors as well as Chipotle Cayenne and Better Than Bacon.The company is a subsidiary of Sister River Foods which features healthy produces for healthy eating. I love the Garlicky Green, chock full of  dried basil and dried oregano in it. it is delicious on gnocchi. I sprinkled it on a plate of the potato puffs and it really amped up the flavor of both their flavor and the sauce.

I plan on making a cannllini bruschetta with it (which will be posted) along with using the Original for simple farfalla or butterfly pasta soup. The Parma cheeses will also be good for pizzas too, especially the Chipotle Cayenne and the Better Than Bacon flavor for extra taste and zing.  I may even sprinkle some on popcorn for a good for you version of cheese corn.They do need to be refrigerated, although thanks to their great taste, will not be there for long. The  cheeses are made from nutritional yeast, walnuts sunflower and hemp seeds. 

Vegan and vegetarians rejoice! Parma has given you four tasty cheeses that's perfect for Italian dishes and snacks. Try them today in your pasta or snacks.

Veggies Made Great Frittatas ; Tasty And Healthy

 There's something about breakfast for dinner. It's a fun way to get all the flavors of the morning meal for a tasty supper. The only problem is that breakfasts can be a nit unhealthy. Not to worry Veggies Made Great has created frittata cups that are flecked with Beyond Meat sausages.

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These are the perfect breakfast . lunch or dinner,They're called frittatas but are more like egg cups or muffins made from eggs, Beyond Meat, peppers and cheese. These were the ones I chose for a light supper. The company also make a mushroom and three cheese version along with a broccoli and cheddar ones.

You can make them in the oven or microwave, but they turn out better in the air fryer.

Keep in mind to turn them after being cooked for nine minutes at 350 degrees F. Then turn on their tops and cook for about six more minutes.They come out a golden brown, crispy on the outside , mousse like on the inside.

The taste is light and airy , with the sausage and peppers coming through.

The cheddar ones were flecked with a good amount of cheese. These would also be good with a salad for lunch or dinner. Veggies Made Great also has a variety of healthy muffin like cakes, packed with veggies along with veggie infused baked mac and cheese cakes.

These little egg cakes are perfect for those looking for a healthy alternative to bacon and eggs. They are flavorful yet light. Try them for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Mighty Lil Lentils Mighty Big Taste

 No one really thinks of lentils as a snack, yet there's a new company that has taken this humble legume to new heights. Seapoint Farms has turned a kitchen staple into a fun new treat - Mighty Lil Lentils, This not only introduces snack lovers to a protein filled bean but also to a new kind of bite.

This Hunting Beach California company is known for its' healthy snacks, Seapoint Farms produces frozen and dry roasted edamame , both tasty as well as seaweed crisps. They also offer such riced veggie dishes as Buddha Un-fried Rice and Chik'n Tikka Masala along with organic edamame spaghetti and fettucine.

         Mighty Lil Lentils come in four flavors, Pink Himalayan Salt, and Barbecue.

                                                  Along with Cinnamon Sugar and Falafel.

The savory flavors are packed with taste. Any one of them is a perfect handful of snacking. They're all crunchy , sort of like dried chickpeas and have that kind of aftertaste. I can see the Pink Himalayan Salt and Falafel flavors being used in salads for extra crunch and more flavoring. The Barbecue flavored lentils could work as a crust  for pork chops or even chicken. Surprisingly the cinnamon sugar lentils isn't that wild tasting. These's a sweetness and a crispness to them which would make them perfect for sprinkling over cupcakes and cake and as a surprise on sundaes and cereal bowls. They'd also be good in a tangine, replacing raisins in the recipe. Another plus is that a quarter cup of any of the lentils is only 150 calories and that much is filling.

Mighty Lil Lentils are the perfect savory and sweet snack for those who want to eat healthy. Try them on their own or with salads or sundaes. They are the perfect little treat for those looking for something new and different.

Autumn in France

 One of the most desirable countries  in the world is France. Even better is when cooler weather descends on this country of sophisticated cities and seaports and rustic mountains and valleys. Traveling there with the lockdown is virtually impossible. There is one way to have a delicious French meal.Cooking it from your kitchen,it's a way of getting a taste of Gallic cuisine

David Tanis provided an amazing slew of recipes in yesterday's New York Times Food section. This is a hearty fare, perfect to make for the chilly days ahead.He starts out with a salad he once had in Normandy. He had it was when he was working in Paris, and taking weekends to this  historic northern country side on the English Channel. He combines beets and tomatoes with scallions, dill and watercress. Two kinds of beets are used, golden and ruby red. The tomatoes used can be yellow or red. It's dressed with a simple Dijon mustard infused  red wine vinaigrette. The beets have to be cooked separately (and no, Mr Tanis doesn't recommend using the canned ones - no flavor) in baking dishes in a 400 degree F oven.They can be cooked up to two days in advance to make it easier timewise. They can be served first or with the main dish pan roasted duck with wild mushrooms. Mr. Tanis suggests using magret or the large breasts of the Muscovy duck.Each is twelve ounces which translate into two portions each.as in typical Gallic style with a sauce flavored with red wine and trumpet mushrooms.It is a labor intensive dish with washing the mushrooms and prepping and scoring the duck breasts. The sauce and meat are made separately.More mushrooms are sauteed in the extra duck fat that's been trimmed off the breasts and then served with the meat and parsley.

The piece de resistance of any French dinner is the dessert. Mr. Tanis doesn't disappoint here.He offers up the classic Gallic lemon tart with a buttery cookie like crust. This recipe is beautifully balanced.It's neither too sweet or too puckery. There's a hint of more color thanks to the addition of freshly grated lime zest. The tart starts out with a crust made with  half a stick of butter and one egg. There's white flour and sugar too in it . Like a good cookie dough, it's refrigerated for an hour in the fridge so  it's not too soft when handled. You can even make it two days in advance. It's chilled again after it's been put in the pie pan and until the filling is added. The filling is a mix of lemon and lime juices and zests along with four large eggs and four large egg yolks.Granulated sugar is added to counterbalance the tartness. This is a type of lemon curd and like it , butter is added to make it creamy.This is made in a saucepan over a medium heat and try not to curdle it. Everything is then whisked together and then poured  through a sieve into the crust where it's baked in a 350 degree F oven for only ten minutes. Dust with confectioner's sugar for a nice touch.

There's nothing like France in the fall. This dinner will make you feel like you're there, with rich flavors and textures. It's the perfect culinary visit , right from your kitchen.