Confession: Australia has never been on my must-visit list. It seemed like an awfully far distance to travel to visit a country that wasn’t that different per se. I mean, sure, they have kangaroos and the Great Barrier Reef and all. But that didn’t seem like enough to travel so far for. Good thing I can admit when I am mistaken. Which I totally was. BlogHer recently brought me to my senses when they invited me to a Tourism Australia event to learn more about the Australian food scene. I also looked into Australia a little myself and learned that Australia has the most beaches in the world — more than 10,000. And among those is Hyams Beach in Jervis Bay, New South Wales, which holds the world record for the whitest sand on Earth, according to the Guinness Book of Records.

Now, another confession: I’d never given a single thought to the cuisine of Australia. But let me tell you, I learned that it’s absolutely divine. Australian food is all about fresh, local flavors. And the farm-to-table movement? That’s totally their thing.

At the Tourism Austalia luncheon, BlogHer introduced about 20 bloggers from the New York metro area to the food and wine of Australia. It was kind of awesome. We started off with cocktails and introductions by the car at The Sunburnt Calf on 79th Street in Manhattan. Then we sat down for an interesting presentation and lunch.

We started off with shared appetizers. My favorite were the Oysters “Kilpatrick,” a tempura-fried oyster with pickled shallots and Worcestershire-bacon butter served in oyster shells. I am a huge, huge fried oyster fan, and these were absolutely a bite of heaven — sweet, salty, crunchy amazingness. The Steamed Buns (above) were pretty amazing too.

While we were enjoying these appetizers — including this Classic Prawn Cocktail with creamy cocktail sauce — they told us more about Australia food and tourism. “Real Australian food is a state of mind,” says chef Michael Moore, a top Australian chef and author of the new cookbook Blood Sugar: The Family. What really resonated with me is what Moore said of chefs in Australia: They aren’t in competition with each other but rather have more of a team mentality. “We connect. We work together. We are all working to do the common good of what we’ve got here,” says Moore.

Moore describes the food scene in Australia as sophisticated and connected, which is kind of awesome. This BBQ’d Barramundi Fillet, topped with frisee salad, new potatoes and anchovy aioli, was absolutely divine — I totally came home dreaming of recreating this dish because it was so good. (Salad on this firm, white fish? Absolutely amazing). I left The Sunburnt Calf with Australia firmly ensconced on my to-travel-to list. During the presentation, some breathtaking photos on a big screen showed how beautiful the Land Down Under is. (If I sound a little infatuated with it, I totally am now). And the Great Barrier Reef? It’s home to 500 varieties of seaweed and is the largest reef in the world — the size of the eastern coastline of the United States. That’s something to be impressed by, for sure. But then, there are lots of pretty sizable things in Australia, from the world’s largest oyster to the heaviest crab. And let’s not forget the unique wildlife like kangaroos and emus.

So, what can I tell you about cuisine in Australia? It’s a delicious mix of cuisines that relies on what’s fresh and local for them. Love that. I hope I can travel there to experience it for myself someday. How about you? Have you been to Australia? Do you want to go?

———

Disclosure: I am being compensated by BlogHer for this blog post and for attending this event. However, all opinions are, as always, my own.

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When my power went out on Sunday and I couldn’t work on Monday and Tuesday, it wasn’t a restful few days vacation. There was the stress of having no power and no running water, the worry about the kids safety and health and the extreme concern over my job and freelance writing. It was unsettling, to say the least.

And yesterday and today? It’s been a relief to be back to work and back on track … but there is still so much stress. My week’s worth of work has been condensed into a mere three days. And the recipe development work that was due this week? Hard to do when the grocery store is still restocking after losing power themselves. Tomorrow will be a whirlwind of finishing recipes, processing photos and writing. Oh, the writing I have to do still. It’ll be something.

So tonight’s post? We’re keeping it simple. I’ve been meaning to talk a little about my new favorite way of making bacon: in the oven. What I love about it is that I can minimize the mess (no splatter on the stove! Easy grease disposal!).

You start with good bacon. This is Nodine’s Apple Smoked Bacon, which I totally teased you with yesterday. I discovered this bacon a few years back when I first got interested in eating locally. It’s meaty and filled with a lovely sweet smokiness — perfect for a great brunch or making a killer sandwich. We’re huge fans, and I love buying it even more because it’s made here in Connecticut in the town where I first worked as a newspaper reporter post-college.

But if thick bacon isn’t your thing (and it’s not always mine), don’t worry. These directions for baking bacon can be used for both thick and thin styles.

How to Bake Bacon with Minimal Mess

NOTE: This technique works equally well with thin- and thick-cut bacon. Cooking time for thick-cut bacon is toward the longer end of the 15-20 minutes total.

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. You’ll want the foil edges to trail up the sides of the pan. Top this with a wire mesh cooling rack.

Place the bacon on the cooling rack close together without overlapping. This allows you to maximize how much bacon you cook.

Bake the bacon for 10 minutes. Using tongs, carefully flip every piece of bacon. Return to the oven and bake for 5-10 minutes until cooked through and browned. Be careful, those last 5 minutes are critical. The bacon goes from brown and limp to crispy to burnt really fast, so you need to keep an eye on it.

Remove from the oven and transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate.

Enjoy.

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Since our first glimpse of spring this year, I have been waiting, yearning, planning. For months, I have been imaging what it would be like when I got to start bringing home my overflowing veggie basket from my CSA.

If you aren’t familiar with CSAs, it’s an abbreviation for Community Supported Agriculture programs. Basically, you purchase a share in a farm’s crops before the season begins and then you receive a basket filled with produce each week for a specified time in the summer. For veggie lovers like me, it’s awesome.

Today was our first pick-up. Our basket was stuffed with greens – chard, kale, mustard greens and pak choi. Lettuce too. And there’s corn. Ten ears of fresh corn. Oh, I’ve waited so long for fresh corn. I can’t wait to eat some. Unpacking the basket is always a nice, fun surprise.

When I saw the basket, I immediately knew what was for dinner: Penne with Swiss Chard and Kielbasa. It’s a riff on a summertime recipe that I created five years ago, changing the type of pasta and updating the method. It was just as delicious as it was when we first started eating it years ago.

The kids and I hit the grocery store and picked up kielbasa, then I whipped up the ultra-easy pasta. It takes about 30 minutes to make, but most of the time is spent just preparing the ingredients for cooking like chopping chard and cutting the kielbasa. All in all, it’s simple, easy, fast. And the kids? They loved it.

Penne with Swiss Chard and Kielbasa
serves 6
adapted from my recipe for Swiss Chard & Kielbasa Pasta

1 bunch Swiss chard, stems and leaves separated
1 kielbasa, cut into 1/4-inch chunks
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp Kosher salt
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup water
1/4-1/2 tsp dried red pepper flakes
1 pound penne pasta, cooked and kept hot
fresh grated Romano cheese

Chop the Swiss chard stems finely and set aside. Then, chop the leaves roughly and set aside separately. Additionally, gather all of your ingredients and have them ready to go. This whole dish cooks up really fast.

Set a large pot over high heat on the stove and preheat. Once it’s good and hot, toss in the kielbasa and cook until golden brown, stirring occasionally (about 2 minutes). Remove the kielbasa from the pan with a slotted spoon.

Next, reduce the heat of the burner to medium. Add the olive oil, salt and Swiss chard stems to the pot and cook for 3-4 minutes, until they begin to soften. Add the garlic and stir well. Cook for 1 minute.

Stir in the Swiss chard leaves, water and red pepper flakes. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for 5-8 minutes, until the stems are tender. Stir in the kielbasa and toss well. Remove from heat.

Add the pasta to the pan and toss to mix. Serve immediately with freshly grated Romano cheese for sprinkling.

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When I came home from work the other day and set up to, well, work, I discovered that my home internet wasn’t working. And to make matters worse, tech support was closed. So, I worked offline for a bit (getting a ton done!) before going to bed early. The next morning I woke up early and found that my internet still wasn’t working. Joy.

But then I really did find joy in the situation. I got up, read for a little while and then started working on a few new recipes and techniques in the kitchen. Before I knew it, I had several dishes done, had fed the kids and myself and it was 9 a.m., when tech support opens again.

I cannot tell you how great it felt not to be tethered to the internet or my computer for those hours. It makes me want to take time away from it on purpose. Actually, I really know that I should.

One of the things I was working on that morning was these Grilled Roasted Red Peppers. It’s a super easy technique that doesn’t heat up the kitchen and does produce juicy, sweet, smoky peppers. Oh, they are so good — perfect for sandwiches, sauces, on salads and so much more (and no, not all the uses begin with ‘s’!).

How to make Grilled Roasted Red Peppers:

Start with a hot, hot, hot grill. Place the peppers directly on the grates and close the lid. Let them cook for about 5 minutes, then flip them. Let them cook about 5 minutes more. Then flip them again to any spots that are still red.

Once they are good and charred, remove them from the grill and let the peppers cool. They will deflate as they do.

Peel away the charred skin and, if desired, rinse in cool water. Finally, cut away the stem and seeds. Slice the peppers as desired. Enjoy!

Next week, I will be sharing a favorite way to use these peppers.

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Do you ever just want to cheer from the rooftops? Maybe let out a loud whoop? Or perhaps jump on Oprah’s couch … oh wait, that’s just Tom Cruise.  Anyway, even if you aren’t couch jumping, everyone feels like this sometimes … where something thrills you so much that you just want to tell everyone. Right. Away.

That’s totally how I feel about this kale dish. And yes, I am being absolutely serious.

Although the kale is braised, it retains that texture that makes it so special. It’s softened, but still definitely leaves. In fact, that’s one of the things I love about kale and chard: they don’t turn to mush when cooked. It’s that mushiness that makes spinach and I have a tenuous relationship.

In any case, this is dinosaur kale … aka Tuscan kale. The leaves are sweeter than other varieties of kale, and milder in flavor. They are delicious when used raw, but also good for cooking.

This kale is a little sweet, but totally savory. And the lemon and Romano finish make it simply spectacular.

And perhaps the best, bestest, best part? This is local kale. I dropped by my cousin’s organic farm earlier and bought this, chard and scallions — my first local food of the season. There is nothing like it. And I couldn’t be more thrilled that the local season is here at long last.

Have your farmers markets opened yet? Are they open year-round?

Braised Dinosaur Kale with Shallots, Lemon and Romano
serves 3
inspired by Kalyn’s Kitchen

olive oil spray
1 medium shallot, finely diced
1 bunch dinosaur kale (aka Tuscan kale), stems removed
salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup no added salt chicken stock (I prefer Kitchen Basics)
1 lemon, cut into quarters
freshly grated Romano cheese

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Spray with olive oil cooking spray. Then, add the shallots. Cook, stirring occasionally until just beginning to brown (about 3-4 minutes).

While the shallot is cooking, rinse the kale under cool water and dry in a salad spinner device. Transfer to a cutting board and loosely chop it (you want big pieces).

Add the kale to the skillet and toss well to mix with the shallots. Continue tossing and cooking until the kale begins to wilt slightly.

Lower the burner to medium-low heat and add the chicken stock, salt and pepper. Mix well. Cover and cook for 10 minutes. Stir. Then, remove the lid to the pan and cook for an additional 5-7 minutes, until the liquid evaporates.

Serve hot or cold with lemon wedges and Romano cheese for sprinkling.

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Maple syrup is a staple in our house. We eat it on pancakes (like these delish Pumpkin Chocolate Chip ones) and use it to glaze veggies and meats. And it always has to be the real thing. No imitations, or else I just won’t eat it.

The kids know that we only use real maple syrup. Why? Because in a time not that long ago, Shawn didn’t. There was maple syrup and “Daddy’s syrup,” and the kids quickly learned the difference: maple syrup comes from trees … Daddy’s comes from a factory.

But maybe a year ago, Shawn gave up his syrup in favor of the real deal. I can’t remember when it happened, but I’m glad it did. Now, we only have maple syrup.

About a month ago, Will started asking questions about maple syrup. Where does it come from? How is it made? Who makes it? So, I figured it was time to head off to a maple syrup fest so he could see for himself how maple sap becomes maple syrup.

Years ago, I covered the opening of maple syrup season for a newspaper, checking out a family farm and covering a super informative festival. It was awesome, so I knew a fest would be perfect for this. So, I did a quick Google search and found one not too far away.

We ended up heading to the Open House Maple Festival at  Sullivan Farm in New Milford, which is run by the New Milford Youth Agency. Guides showed us everything about the process, even letting us sample Grade A and Grade B syrup.

We saw how trees are traditionally tapped, and more modern taps like the one above. The maple sap drips from the tree, down the tap and into the bucket. These days, most trees are tapped using a tubing system instead of individual buckets like this. New taps need to be make each spring.

And we saw a basic history of how maple syrup makers boiled the sap into the sweet, delightful syrup. Originally, it was done in big hollowed out logs and heated with hot stones, which took awhile, as you can imagine. Then came this bucket method (see photo above), where a heavy bucket of sap was placed over an open flame and boiled down. Eventually, the boiling was done in a special metal unit that allows the fire to reach a wider section of the sap. Today’s methods are similar to that, though on a larger scale. Sadly, I failed to take photos in the sugar house.

Oh, and one more interesting fact: Maple sap has 2 percent sugar. It’s boiled down until it has a 67 percent concentration of sugar.

What cool food-related outings have you taken lately?

The post Weekend Outing: The Making of Maple Syrup appeared first on Sarah's Cucina Bella.

Last week, Rivki encouraged me to be adventurous with veggies in the winter, since it’s better to enjoy what you are eating then to stick to what’s inexpensive. It makes a lot of sense. I rarely eat beef, instead opting for chicken or turkey or fish, so I spend less on proteins these days. So, why not channel the savings into veggies I really want? In the summer, I am in my glory with all sorts of fabulous fresh veggies hitting the table. But in the winter, it gets flat out boring. So I listened.

We don’t often eat baby bok choy, but it looked so inviting at the grocery store, that I bought it. Paige helped me transform it into a fabulous sweet and sour version, with a sprinkling of crispy bacon. Just a little — moderation is key.

In making this, I had a lot of help. At 3, Paige is amazing with a whisk. She’s come a long way from the little girl who’d spill all the contents of a bowl onto the counter. These days, she is a fabulous helper in the kitchen, always eager to lend a hand or help in some small way. And when whatever I am cooking is too much for her, she is content to just watch.

I love cooking with my children. They continually surprise me with what they remember and can do. So, when I was recently asked to co-host a virtual cooking school about cooking with loved ones, I was fast to say yes. Here are the details. I hope you’ll join us!

I’m co-hosting an upcoming class in the Web’s first-ever virtual cooking school, Cooking Connections, and I would love for all of you to join me!  Here’s what you need to know to participate:

When: Wednesday, Feb. 9, at 8 p.m. ET

Where: TheMotherhood – here is the link to the page where the class will be held: http://www.themotherhood.com/talk/show/id/62132

And here is the registration page for all seven Cooking Connections classes: http://www.themotherhood.com/cookingconnections

What: The class I am co-hosting is called “Cooking with Loved Ones Across the Country,” and it is hosted by Vera Sweeney, who blogs at Lady and the Blog.  During the class, we all will talk about how technology has changed the way people can cook together, and how we can connect with loved ones near and far to continue that ritual of cooking together!

The class is sponsored by ConAgra and hosted by TheMotherhood.

I hope to see you there!

My other fabulous co-hosts are:

Audrey McClelland, Mom Generations
Whitney Wingerd, Mommies with Style
Colleen Padilla, Classy Mommy
Melissa Chapman, Married My Sugar Daddy
Victoria Pericon, 24/7 Victoria
Nancy Horn, The Product Mama
Jennifer Leal, Savor the Thyme
Zareen Fidlon, Cooking with Z
Kate Selner, Kate in the Kitchen

Sweet and Sour Baby Bok Choy
serves 4 (as a side dish)

1 lb baby bok choy
olive oil cooking spray
salt and pepper
3 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp honey
1/2 tsp ground ginger
Optional: 4 slices cooked bacon, crumbled

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.

Wash the baby bok choy well, and remove the leaves from the stalk. Pile the leaves (don’t remove the stems!) onto the baking sheet and spray with olive oil cooking spray. Season with salt and pepper.

Bake the bok choy for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together the rice vinegar soy sauce, sesame oil, olive oil, ginger and honey.

Once the bok choy is done baking, pour the sauce over and stir lightly to combine. Return to the oven and cook for an additional 5 minutes.

Serve, with a sprinkling of bacon, if desired.

Combine all ingredients in a bowl or dressing craft, whisking or shaking until well combined.

This can be stored in the refrigerator for up to one week in an airtight container.

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Homemade pasta with pesto

If there was just one carb to darken my doorway for the rest of eternity, it would be pasta. My kids request it nightly. I like it. My husband likes it. And there are endless ways to flavor and dress it. As far as versatile ingredients go, pasta is right up there.

Typically, we eat dried pasta. Heck, if you were to open my kitchen cabinets, you would find no less than five boxes of dried pasta. Go down to my basement and there is a whole tote of pasta (I stocked up during a great sale). It’s easy, and we like it.

But lately, homemade pasta has been on my brain. When I recently went to Minneapolis, I ate a delicate, tender housemade pasta that was out of this world. Every bite was creamy, silky bliss. Ever since then, I have been toying with the idea of making pasta again. The last time I made pasta was years ago, and I didn’t feel like the results were better than my favorite dried pasta, so I swore it off. But things change — skill levels, interests, desires … so this weekend, I did it again.

The recipe I used came from Vegetarian Pasta Cookbook, a cookbook that I’ve own for … a long time (and we will just leave it at that). It started like most pasta recipes do — flour and eggs. But it also had oil and water.

The dough is mixed together until it’s crumbly. Then, you turn it out onto a floured surface and knead it until the gluten breaks down and it gets smooth. It takes maybe five minutes of kneading to get it there. While I was working the dough, Paige came running in to see what I was up to. She, as is often the case, pulled up her favorite stool and stood to watch. I know she wanted to help, but being my first time, I decided to press on myself. Next time though, I would love to let both Will and Paige take a turn at knead (with just-cleaned hands, of course). It’s an interesting process to feel as the dough goes from crumbles and bits of flour between your fingers to an elastic-y ball of dough. The change in texture and composition is amazing.

In any case, one the dough is smooth, it’s stuck into a resealable plastic bag and left to sit for about a half-hour.

Once it’s all rested (and yes, that is an important step), the dough is rolled thin in a pasta roller into a sheet. Again, this could be a good place to get the kids involves — they could catch the sheets as they come out of the pasta roller and set them aside for cutting (natch, that’s the next step). I made linguine, using a pasta cutter attachment for my KitchenAid for this step as well.

Now, this is the point where I have gotten frustrated in the past — because when you are inexperienced in the art of pasta making, it all can be intimidating. But this time, I learned a few things. First, the dough needs to be relatively thin before feeding it into the roller for the first time — otherwise it will get stuck. Also, the dough that you aren’t rolling should remain covered so that it doesn’t dry out. And finally, the dough needs to be rolled thinner than you think you want it to be, because it will puff upon cooking.

In the end, the pasta was pretty good — tender, but not silky. Flavorful, but not perfect. The dough was firm — perhaps too much so — which made handling it a challenge as well.

So, no, this isn’t the perfect homemade pasta recipe, so I am not going to share it today. But I am on the hunt. One of the big things to come out of my pasta making was discovering that it’s not as intense a project as I remember it being. All in all, the pasta went from flour to plate in about an hour and a half, which isn’t bad for a lazy weekend day.

Do you make your own pasta? Have a favorite recipe? Share in the comments!

P.S. Love pasta? Johnsonville Sausage has recently launched Pastaville, a recipe contest using their Italian sausage. Head over to the site to find out how to enter — and yes, I will be entering soon too! Details on my entry to come …

The post Searching for the Perfect Homemade Pasta Recipe: Part 1 appeared first on Sarah's Cucina Bella.

I love this photo. Aren't they cute?

Every year, the kids and I (and often our friends) head to local farms for pick-you-own fun. This past weekend, that meant apple picking. The apple picking season generally starts in September and goes through early November here in Connecticut, so we are more than half-way through the season (and late by our standards). Fortunately, the day we chose was sunny, but neither too hot nor too cold.

Usually, holding the bag is a big source of contention. Everyone wants it (even though I really find it to be the worst job while picking — that bag gets seriously heavy). But, I must be getting smarter in my old age or something, because I stemmed the dispute before we even arrived at the orchard. How, you ask? Well, I told the kids the order in which we’d hold the bag … and explained the logic (the person who can hold the most weight holds it last; the person who can hold the least holds it first). As a result, passing the bag was without a single cry or screech. I can’t tell you how happy that made me.

As for the apples, usually I cook with them right away, but this time, we’ve just been eating them. Will wants to make an apple pie, which we will probably do sometime this week. But other than that, we’re snacking on them (we found some tiny apples that are the perfect size for the kids — those have been in lunchboxes all week). Turns out that I forgot how good an apple can be.

Notice Paige double fisting ... she ate so many apples.

Typically, we apple pick twice in a season (last year was an anomaly with three trips to apple orchards). I can’t say whether that will happen this year, given our late start. It’s possible that we might go again in November, if the weather is nice like last year.  But whatever ends up happening, it’s okay. The kids and I had an awesome time together at the orchard. Ultimately, that’s all that matters.

The post Apple Picking 2010: Now, With Less Stress! appeared first on Sarah's Cucina Bella.

A few years ago, I fell deeply in love with beet greens. They have a similar taste to beets, though far milder — like a beet-tinged spinach. And they are lovely served raw in salad, sauteed and more. Until learning that they were edible, I had always been in the cut-and-toss camp, though.

A similar situation popped up recently. While making roasted veggies the other night, I was left with a particularly beautiful bunch of radish greens. These looked so fresh, so green, so inviting. I couldn’t dream of tossing them away or sending them to the compost pile. While I contemplated using them, I noticed the vibrant carrot tops from a recent trip to the farmer’s market. Again, I couldn’t let them be wasted.

I did a little research to confirm that both radish greens and carrot greens are edible (answer: yes). So, then it was just a matter of how to cook them — or not. I initially planned to saute the carrot greens and radish greens, but after some contemplation, I decided to just make a salad with a lovely sundried tomato vinaigrette.

I just couldn’t stand the idea of wasting the greens. I mean if we don’t at least try to eat then, how can we know if we like them? And furthermore, if we do like them, then we are totally missing out by not eating them.

So I made a Carrot Green and Radish Green Salad with Sundried Tomato Vinaigrette.

We ate it, but the dish wasn’t a winner (mostly the fault of the carrot greens — the texture is similar to frisee and isn’t a favorite around here). Nonetheless, I was happy that we at least tried to eat them.

While we probably won’t be tossing carrot tops into our salads again anytime soon the pleasant flavor does make them prime for pureeing (hello, carrot top pesto!) or finely chopping for dips, soups and sauces. As for the radish greens? Those could be fab tossed with some Bibb lettuce in a salad.

We will definitely eat these greens again … There’s no need to just cut and toss.

PS – I need to retest the vinaigrette recipe before sharing it. It will be up soon!

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