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Category Archives: food

Pasta Class!

I’ve been busy the last two weeks – there was a lovely wedding to photograph out on the ski trail and of course lots of computer work following. And this week I needed to produce a newsletter too. Now that I’ve finished both of those projects I can go on to some personal stuff. The dogs and I have had a few walks with friends and one evening this week I got to take a pasta making class at Tappi, a wonderful Italian restaurant in Twisp. It was a small class – just five students – taught by the owner and cook who learned cooking from his mother. I love that he cooks by feel, not so much with recipes; that’s how I cook. He showed us some cookbooks but then went on to say he doesn’t use them although some were obviously old and well-thumbed through. For the pasta, he said one egg per serving and enough flour to absorb the egg. How much flour? Well that depends on lots of stuff – how big is the egg, how humid/dry is it, how warm/cold are your hands, and so on. For the three sauce he showed us, he gave us a list of ingredients and approximate measures and then he showed us how he makes them in his own kitchen. There was Emma’s (his mother) , Diavolo (the devil) and Carbona (yes, there was bacon in it, lots of bacon) sauces. And the best part of a cooking class is the eating! To go with the three pastas, he fixed us a lovely salad with a nice chevre and roasted buttercup squash and red onions from the brick wood-fired oven and it was all paired with wonderful wines from Italy. By the time we finished eating, well after 9 pm, I think everyone was very satisfied with the evening.

Here are a few images from my cell phone. It was all too good NOT to photograph!

Flour waiting for an egg

Diavolo sauce simmering

Now we used our fork and fingers to make the dough

Sauces and water on the stove

Using the hand crank Atlas machine

Now I know why I’ve always had a hard time with mine. It really takes three hands to do this.

The electric version is much easier

Sheets of pasta drying before cutting.

Some of our noodles. We all got to take home the noodles we made.

He made this pasta for us to eat.

And some of the food!

Baking Again

November 13, 2012 – 7:35 pm
Posted in food
Tagged baking, bread, dinner rolls, Methow photography
Comments (1)

It’s SO nice to have an oven again. For more than four years since we have lived here, the oven in this house has always been touchy and didn’t always work and now that it has been replaced, just last week, I am tickled to be able to push the start button and know that I can cook using something other than a hot range (that won’t simmer) or a slow cooker! Yesterday I made a braised pork roast with ginger and garlic. Today I made some rolls and bread using local organic flour from Bluebird Grain Farms.

Dinner rolls in the oven. The dishwasher, that replaced the old one in February, is reflected in the window.

I’m out of practice. They varied in size and shape.

Almost perfectly golden. And trust me, they were wonderful.

And a small loaf of bread.

Can’t you just smell it? Nothing better than fresh bread from the oven.

Spring Rolls with Nasturiams

September 7, 2012 – 8:16 pm
Posted in food, Uncategorized
Tagged food, Methow photography, nasturtiams, spring rolls
Comments (2)

Ok, we like to eat. And we eat pretty well. So we eat a lot. But we do enjoy what we eat. Today I made spring rolls with nasturiams. Dogs surrounded me even though they didn’t get any spring rolls. Just the idea of it. Ken smiled. He likes spring rolls. So do I.

All the fresh stuff came from our garden.

The nasturtiams

The mess

Serve these up with peanut sauce and a savory sauce and what else do you need? A cold beer or a glass of white wine!

Life is good. Maybe we should make a t shirt! Oh wait, that’s been done…………

Food, Friends, Fun

March 23, 2012 – 7:09 pm
Posted in food
Tagged Indian food, Methow photography, Winthrop
Comments (2)

What happens when nine women gather in a well-stocked kitchen when one of the women has proposed an Indian cooking evening? Good times, Great aromas, Wonderful food, and Lots of Laughs. This new group, the Lady Chatterlys, has chosen to learn about a variety of topics – a different one each month. This month it was Indian cooking. Next month it is a critique of capitalism. An interesting bunch, that’s for sure. Teresa is an enthusiastic teacher with a real passion for food. If nothing else, we learned two terms – curry means gravy and masala means mix.

Aromatic and beautiful spices

Sliced green chiles and ginger

Coriander seeds

All of these spices were roasted and then ground to make the curry masala

Chopping potatoes

The start of the chicken curry

Curry leaves into the hot oil. Curry leaves are not related to curry powder.

Rather they lend a citrus flavor to food.

Curry leaves and cumin seed

Asafoetida powder, also known as hing

Add the potatoes to all those wonderful flavors!

And dried mango powder

Dough for naan bread

Forming our naans

And some vegetables for a fresh kachumber side dish

Ok, the naans are in the oven. Now what?

The start of coconut chutney – Greek yogurt and coconut

Naan coming out of the oven

More seeds and spices for the coconut chutney

Melted ghee for the naan

And fresh garlic too!

The finished potatoes

The finished curry – can’t you just sense the anticipation in the room?

There was more food and of course there was the eating and there was mango lassi to top it off.

Lots of fun and shared good food. Thank you Teresa.

Salsa Making

September 23, 2011 – 4:29 pm
Posted in food, garden
Tagged canning, homemade, jars, peppers, salsa, tomatoes
Comments (4)

The garden is doing pretty well producing tomatoes, especially given our late start on everything and slow developing summer. Not enough to make tomato sauce. Ken suggested salsa so I bought a bunch of peppers at the farmers market and figured out a recipe and well, I took a few photos along the way also.

Peppers at the market