Cuban dinner!

Last night we made a Cuban dinner. Cuban food is influenced by Spanish and Caribbean cuisines, as I expected, but also by African cuisine, which does seem fitting but which I hadn't thought about prior to researching our Around the World meal. So the akara of our very first Around the World dinner (before we started our blog) appeared again as frituras de carita (black-eyed pea fritters). In any language, they're always a favorite at our table!

OK, these pictures don't have anything to do with Cuba, but we thought you'd like to see the backyard visitors we watched while we were writing this post!


Menu:
appetizer: Frituras de Carita (a.k.a. akara, black-eyed pea fritters)
main:
grilled fish with vinagrette
black beans
rice
sliced tomatoes

A very relaxing (for me) and fun (for M and me) playdate at a friend's house meant that we didn't get to try out a recipe for lime cookies (Torticas de Moron) but we'll make them sometime soon. It was a simple but yummy meal, the perfect end to a beautiful late summer day.

M's interruption:
i wanted cuba because i saw a cuban pitcher get interviewed in a Yankees-Red Sox game. i liked all of the dinner.

Anne here. Now for the recipes.
Frituras de Carita
INGREDIENTS:
1/2 pound dried black-eyed peas
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4-6 tablespoons water
peanut or vegetable oil for frying
fresh lime juice to taste

1.) Rinsed the black-eyed peas in cold water. Soak them overnight in cold water to cover, changing the water several times. When the peas have softened, remove their skins (just rub them off), soak an additional 30 minutes, drain, and rinse.
2.) In a food processor fitted with a steel blade, process the peas, garlic, salt, and pepper. With the motor running, add the water through the feed tube and continue processing until the puree is smooth and thick.
3.) In a large, heavy-bottomed skillet or deep fryer over medium-high heat, heat 2 to 3 inches of oil to 375 F. or until a drop of batter sizzles when it touches the oil, and fry 1 tablespoon of batter until golden brown. Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary in the remaining batter, then drop the mixture by tablespoonfuls into the hot oil, and fry the fritters until golden brown on all sides, turning with a slotted spoon. Do not fry too many at once, or the oil temperature will fall and they will be soggy rather than crisp. Place the fritters on a paper-towel-lined
platter until all have been cooked, and serve hot, sprinkled with salt and lime juice.

Grilled Fish Steaks with Vinaigrette (Pescado a la Parilla con Salsa Vinagreta)
INGREDIENTS:
4 firm-fleshed fish steaks, such as swordfish, kingfish, or snapper, each about 6 to 8 ounces and 1/2 inch thick
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
juice of 1 lime
2 tablespoons pure Spanish olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
FOR THE VINAIGRETTE:
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 cup pure Spanish olive oil
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tabespoon brine-packed Spanish capers, drained

1.) On a nonreactive platter, season the fish steaks with salt, pepper, and the lime juice, rub them with olive oil and garlic, and allow them to marinate at room temperature for at least 1 hour (or so the recipe said, I was running late so it was just 20 minutes of marinading for us!).
2.) Heat grill. Combine the vinaigrette ingredients in small bowl and set aside.
3.) Cook on an oiled rack 5 to 7 minutes on each side, brushing each side with the marinade before grilling.
4.) Transfer the fish steaks to a heated platter and pour the vinaigrette over them. Serve immediately.

Fondue Night!

We made a two course fondue dinner: cheese followed by chocolate. We had sourdough and pumpernickel breads and apples to dunk in the cheese and pound cake, strawberries, dried apricots, and banana slices for the chocolate.

M says:
i like fondue.apricots were the best.we went raptor center. we joked about ricky ,one of the owls, dunking his mousie in the cheese fondue and that mom would not eat it after he did it.

Late Post: On location in NYC

We just returned from our vacation in CT and NYC. Of course we stayed very busy visiting with family and friends and sightseeing: the Peabody Museum in New Haven, CT, the Met, Central Park, the NY Aquarium, and Coney Island when we got to NYC. But we also found time to enjoy a variety of regional American foods: a lobster roll at Clark's in New Haven, Cajun-Creole at the Delta Grill at 9th and 48th in NYC, deli sandwiches at the West 53rd St. Gourmet Deli,...

S's interruption: mmm, pastrami

(back to Anne)... and a stereotypical NY breakfast of bagels, cream cheese, and smoked salmon at Barney GreenGrass (W. 76th and Amsterdam Ave, NYC) were some of the highlights. What a big country this is and what a wide range of foods are part of "American" cuisine!

As a transplant from the East Coast, into the middle of the country, I miss the fresh seafood available on the coasts and was glad to be able to have lobster (even if it was just in a lobster roll) and tuna (blackened at Delta Grill) on our trip.

M says:
Mac and cheese at the delta grill was good. Playing at central park was fun.

Dinner from Veracruz, Mexico

Not your usual Tex-Mex fare! Veracruz is on the Gulf coast and, thus, is known for its fish and seafood dishes, especially Pescado a la Veracruzana (fish with Veracruz-style sauce). M liked rolling the dough and cutting out the circles of dough for the empanadas.

Our menu:
Pescado a la Veracruzana
Black Beans
Rice
and, for dessert, empanadas filled with peach-mango jam.

Yum, yum!

M's interruption: Veracruz is no. 1! I mean ,veracruz is plenty good. Plus, we chose the right things!

Back to Anne.
Here are the recipes:
Pescado a la Veracruzana (adapted from a recipe in Cooking Light, 2001)
* 1 tablespoon olive oil
* 1 1/2 cups thinly sliced onion
* 4 garlic cloves, minced
* 3 pounds ripe tomatoes, chopped
* 1 cup sliced pitted manzanilla (or green) olives, divided
* 1/2 cup water
* 1/4 cup capers, divided
* 1/4 cup sliced pickled jalapeño peppers, divided
* 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
* 3 bay leaves
* 1 teaspoon salt, divided
* 6 (6-ounce) red snapper or other firm white fish fillets (I used Mahi Mahi)
* 1/4 cup fresh lime juice

Preparation

Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic, and sauté for 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Add tomatoes, 1/2 cup olives, water, 2 tablespoons capers, 2 tablespoons jalapeños, basil, and bay leaves. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon salt. Discard bay leaves.

Arrange fish in a single layer in a 13 x 9-inch baking dish; drizzle with lime juice, and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cover and marinate in refrigerator 30 minutes; discard marinade.

Preheat oven to 350°.

Spoon sauce over fish. Bake at 350° for 15 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup olives, 2 tablespoons capers, and 2 tablespoons jalapeños. Serves 6.

Empanadas (so easy you'll be tempted to make them often!)
Makes 6 small empanadas (we had two each)
* 1/4 cup butter, softened
* 1/2 (3 ounce) package cream cheese
* 1/2 cup sifted all-purpose flour
* 1/2 cup fruit preserves (we used Favorit brand peach-mango jam)
* 2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons white sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. DAY BEFORE: Cream butter and cream cheese together until smoothly blended. Beat in the flour. Shape dough into a smooth ball, wrap in foil or cling wrap, and refrigerate overnight or up to a week.
2. AT BAKING TIME: Remove dough from refrigerator 30 minutes before using. Start heating oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
3. Roll chilled dough thin. Cut with 3 or 4 inch round cookie cutter. Place small spoonful of jam in center of each round, moisten edges with water.
4. Fold round over and press edges together. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet 15 to 20 minutes. Immediately roll in sugar mixed with cinnamon (traditional) OR in confectioners' sugar if preferred.

Late Post: Dinner from Greece

M here.last week we had a dinner from greece.have you done the challenge?i got 5/10.can you do better?

MENU:
meze (pita, feta, hummus and olives.)
grilled shrimp
okra
zucchini w/mint
bakery pastry

MY FAVORITES:
meze
bakery pastry

ANNE'S END:
M really enjoyed his challenge questions. And I thought it was funny that the first cookbook was considered a "corrupting influence". Almost made me think that I shouldn't be posting recipes here, lest you readers be corrupted. :) But I'll just let you cook at your own risk.

The steamed zucchini (from our garden!) with mint was an easy dish. I sliced thick slices of zucchini and put them in a steamer basket, over an inch of boiling water. I tossed a sprig of mint on top and steamed all under the zucchini was tender. Yum.

While Greeks do eat pastries, sweet desserts aren't common at the end of Greek meals; if they have anything at the end of the meal, it's just a plate of fruit. We compromised and picked up fruit tarts at our local bakery.

We are heading on vacation to CT and NY tomorrow. So look for our next post to be "on location" in NYC. We plan to enjoy some typical NYC fare, as well as a couple of ethnic restaurants and look for us to report on those late this week.


Hummus recipe
2 c. chickpeas (you can use drained and rinsed, canned chickpeas, but I prefer cooking mine from dry -- a pressure cooker helps with cooking the chickpeas from dry)
2-3 tsp minced garlic
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1/4 c. parsley
1/3 c. tahini
salt to taste

1.) Throw it all in a food processor and process until smooth. How easy is that? So simple you won't risk moral corruption!