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Childhood Food Memories – Bananas

Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

It’s fascinating to me how different foods can bring back memories. I think that’s why I loved the book and movie “Like Water for Chocolate” so much.

Bananas will always remind me of specific times and people:

In Infancy: I distinctly remember the smell of banana baby food – it reminds me of being a very little child. Then when I was an older kid, I remember buying a jar of banana baby food with friends and eating it… a flood of memories came back – or more like the feeling of babyhood came back to me… I was there momentarily. Interestingly, I expected the banana baby food to taste great – I must have loved it as a baby – but it was gross!

In Childhood in General: When I was growing up, my mother fried sliced bananas in butter for breakfast sometimes and put them on the side with fried eggs – it was a major childhood treat. This is now one of my comfort foods I make on occasions to feel warm and loved! (My own children haven’t taken to the fried bananas too much.)

The Tween Years: I remember making chocolate coated bananas with those kits you’d buy in the store with my mother. The chocolate was artificial, but if was fun nevertheless!

The Teenage Years: When I was a teenager, my grandparents would stay with us in the summer for about a month every year. I remember my grandfather eating peanut butter and banana sandwiches. This will always remind me of him.

Late teens: In college I studied in France for a few months, in Chinese restaurants in France they serve a banana flambé dessert that’s just out of this world! Funny that I think of a Chinese restaurant dessert in connection to France! (Obviously, I have lots of other food memories in France. But I’m limiting this conversation to bananas!)

And no, I’m not a skinny person! Someone who has this many food memories is not bound to be skinny! ;)

Feel free to share any food memories you have in the comments below. I welcome hearing about how other people enjoy bananas (feel free to include recipes).

To fry bananas, you literally slice them and fry them in butter in a frying pan on low to medium heat until lightly brown on both sides. They get caramelized. Then serve.

I thought my mother’s version was a Spanish or Puerto Rican recipe from her friend, but when I looked around the internet, I saw that it’s very American. There seem to be different recipes for fried bananas around the world. The flambé version in France probably includes liquor.

Soon I’ll post some correspondence between Gloria and me about the German cuisine we remember growing up with – it may be interesting for any of you children and grandchildren of German immigrants.

Bon appetit!

Mama Lisa

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Posted in Childhood Food Memories, Countries & Cultures, Cuisine, Food Memories, Mama Lisa, Parenting, Recipes of the World, USA | 2 Comments »

Banana Dosai – A Dessert from India

Monday, September 14th, 2009

I came across a video for Banana Dosai today. It looks yummy! We’ve been trying to ease our kids into Indian food – we love it and we’d like to expose our children to the varied cuisines of the world. Some Indian food is too spicy for younger American kids. This dessert looks like a good introduction. Banana Dosai is like banana pancakes or dumplings.

Depending on where you live, you may need to find a specialty food store to find some of the ingredients or order them on the internet. It’s possible you could simply substitute the butter for ghee (which the chef in the video says you can) and cake flour for maida (this I’m not sure of and I haven’t tested it myself yet).

Recipe for Banana Dosai

4 ripe bananas
1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped cashews
1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped raisins
Butter or ghee (a type of clarified butter)
1/4 cup maida (finely milled wheat flour – similar to cake flour in the West)
1/2 cup Rice flour
crushed cardamom seeds (optional)
Sugar to taste

Mash bananas. Add chopped raisins, cashews, rice flour, maida and a little sugar. Mix. Add a little crushed cardamom seeds if desired. It should be a pasty consistency.

Griddle should be at 325 F. Put spoonful of batter on griddle. Put a few drops of ghee on top of batter and let it cook until lightly brown on both sides.

Here you can watch it made…

I’d skip the spicy sauce that the chef in the video recommends, if you’re serving this to children!

This is a good dessert for the Indian Festival of Diwali!

You can find more Indian recipes at at Vahrehvah.com .

Enjoy!

Mama Lisa

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Posted in Banana Dosai, Countries & Cultures, Desserts, Diwali, India, Mama Lisa, Recipes of the World | No Comments »

Recipe for Garlic Ginger Basil Salmon with a YouTube Video

Monday, August 3rd, 2009

I made this Garlic Ginger Basil Salmon tonight… yum! It was good! The recipe comes from the YouTube video below.

I used:

1/2 pound Salmon
2 Tablespoons Rice Vinegar
3 Cloves Garlic
1 to 2 Tablespoons Ginger
1/4 to 1/3 cup Brown Sugar ( I eyed it – it depends if you like a more or less sweet sauce)
3/4 to 1 cup Water
5 Basil Leaves finely chopped
(In the video they added Chile sauce to the sauce mixture.
I left it out since my son doesn’t like anything too spicy.)

Finely chop the garlic and ginger and then mix them with the brown sugar, rice vinegar and water.

Heat pan on medium low. Add vegetable oil to coat. Add salmon. Cook salmon half way through – about 4minutes. Then flip and cook the rest of the way through – about another 4 minutes.

Add the sauce and chopped basil. Heat till the sauce is warm and serve.

You can watch how to make this recipe in the video below from Food Wishes…

I think I might try this recipe out with tofu next.

Enjoy!

Mama Lisa

PS My son and I loved this recipe. My husband, who is a salty person, thought the sauce was a little too sweet (though he doesn’t eat fish – so he only tasted the sauce. I must say the sauce is superb with the salmon!)

PSS Tip on the video for buying salmon: make sure to ask for a center piece and specifically not the tail.

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Posted in Countries & Cultures, Garlic Ginger Basil Salmon, Main Course, Mama Lisa, Recipes of the World, USA, YouTube | 2 Comments »

Recipe for Bavarian Fruit

Saturday, July 25th, 2009

Monique Palomares, who works with me on the French version of Mama Lisa’s World, sent me this blog post and recipe from France…

This morning, I made a full cake pan of "bavarois aux fruits" (Bavarian Fruit) for this evening… it’s an easy and cool recipe to make for the summer:

1 liter (4 cups) Fruit Juice of your choice (except pineapple, kiwi fruit, papayas, peaches, mangos, guavas, and figs because the gelatin won’t set due to certain enzymes in these juices.)

6 Gelatin Sheets (4 sheets equal the amount of gelatin in the 1/4-ounce packet of Knox powder gelatin found in the US – therefore in the US you’d need 1 1/2 -1 envelopes which should be 2 Tablespoonfuls.)

2 Egg Whites

20cl (7 ounces) Heavy Cream

150g Sugar (2/3 cup)

Vanilla-flavored Sugar (in France it’s in 7.5 grams poaches, but I think a couple of drops of Vanilla Extract should do) (Optional)

1) Dip the gelatine sheets in cold water if you’re using sheets. Otherwise, if you’re using powder, mix the gelatin powder with the juice. Warm the fruit juice on the stovetop on low. (If you’re using the gelatine sheets add them at this point into the tepid/warm fruit juice). Do not boil the juice or it will ruin the consistency of the gelatin! Stir until gelatin is dissolved – this should take a few seconds.

2) Allow to cool then put in the fridge long enough for it to be half set. When it is, beat the two eggs whites in a separate bowl until stiff, add the sugar. Whip the cream in a separate bowl until foamy and stiff and add the vanilla extract. Gently add both mixtures to the half set mixture of juice/gelatin. It’s better done with a whisk. Pour the mixture into a glass pie dish. My cake pan is 12" in diameter and about 3" high (7cm). Put it in the fridge to set… and voila!

Beware, if you leave it too long outside at dessert time, it’ll somewhat melt, it’ll look like a mess you’ll need to use a ladle!

Enjoy!

Monique

Note from Mama Lisa: I asked Monique about the consistency of the dessert and she said, "It’s less thick than Jell-O. It’s more or less the consistency of a mousse, but maybe a little more set. So you must serve it as soon as you take it out of the fridge. Then you can cut it and serve it with a cake server."

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Posted in Bavarian Fruit, Countries & Cultures, Desserts, France, French, Recipes of the World | No Comments »

Blueberry Pie Recipe made with Fresh, Unbaked Blueberries… Yum!

Tuesday, June 30th, 2009

My sister, Gwen, makes this wonderful blueberry pie every summer. This blueberry pie recipe leaves most of the blueberries uncooked. What’s so great about that is that you get the plumpness of fresh blueberries in your pie. (It doesn’t have the gooey feel of a baked blueberry pie – that might be more appropriate for the cooler weather). My sister’s pie is a very refreshing treat in the hot weather!

Blueberry Pie Recipe

Ingredients:

6 cups of Blueberries (2 1/2 pints) washed & drained
1/4 – 1/2 cup Cold Water
5 Tbsp. Flour or Cornstarch (we use flour)
Pinch of Salt
1/2 – 1 cup Sugar (depends tartness of berries)
1/2 cup Water
10 inch Pie Shell Baked (My sister uses frozen – I used a Graham Crust in the photo above.)

1) Wash and drain berries thoroughly. Mix together 1/4 cup cold water, flour & salt to make a smooth paste (add more water as necessary to make a smooth paste).

2) Mix 1 cup blueberries, sugar, 1/2 cup water and paste in saucepan. Bring to a boil and stir until mixture thickens. Remove from stovetop to cool.

3) When mixture is cool add remaining berries and put into already baked pie shell.

4) Optional – top with fresh whip cream. Mix 1 pint of heavy cream with 2 – 3 Tbsp. of confectionary sugar and whip with mixer.

Enjoy!

Many thanks to my sister, Gwen Eichler, for sharing her recipe with us!

Mama Lisa

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Posted in Blueberry Pie, Countries & Cultures, Desserts, Recipes of the World, USA | 1 Comment »

Wet Walnuts Recipe

Sunday, June 21st, 2009

It’s time to eat ice cream… with the warm weather here. Why not make your own wet walnuts as a topping when there’s a special occasion? I made some for tonight’s Father’s Day dessert: Wet Walnuts over Vanilla Ice Cream… My husband’s favorite!

I’m a strong believer in adapting recipes to your family’s tastes, so feel free to leave out the cinnamon from the recipe below, or change the recipe in other ways that suit you best. I’ll include notes at the end about possible adaptations. We love cinnamon and found the little hint of it to be a nice addition to the wet walnut recipe below.

Ingredients

1 cup Walnuts
3/4 cup maple syrup
1/8 cup corn syrup
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Chop up the walnuts…

3. Bake the walnuts in the oven on a cookie sheet or baking pan for about 12 minutes.

4. Mix together maple syrup, corn syrup and cinnamon. Add in the walnuts once they’re done cooking. Stir and voila! You’re ready to eat! Serve over ice cream.

Notes on adapting the recipe: The corn syrup is optional. It lightens the flavor of the maple syrup. I mixed pure maple syrup with "pancake" syrup. This gave it a lighter flavor too. Some people add in a little ginger powder for a different flavor. You could also use less syrup if you want to be conscious of calories. I’d say you could get away with using a total amount of 1/2 cup of syrup. In that case your walnuts won’t be as syrupy. However you adapt it, if you use these general guidelines above, it’s hard to go wrong with wet walnuts. You’re basically mixing walnuts and sweet syrup. What can be bad about that?!

Enjoy!

Mama Lisa

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Posted in Countries & Cultures, Desserts, Recipes of the World, USA, Wet Walnuts | 4 Comments »

Miso Soup Traditions

Sunday, May 24th, 2009

I recently posted a recipe for miso soup that Ayako Egawa from Japan helped me with. When she saw the photo of the bowls and spoons I used to serve it with, she made this comment: "It is interesting you use a spoon for Miso soup, because we use chopsticks for it. And we usually put it in a deep bowl. But of course it is all right! It looks yummy!"

Ayako said (regarding the photo above): "This is my Miso soup bowl. Most Miso soup bowls have beautiful pictures and they have covers."

I said to Ayako: "That’s interesting that you eat miso soup with chopsticks. Do you drink the broth at the end? Here, in restaurants, we use big, deep spoons to eat it."

Ayako replied: "We drink the broth at the end by putting our mouths on the bowl. In Japan, it’s not against good manners to do that, especially when eating Japanese food such as Miso soup, Udon or Soba. We drink western soup with spoons. In some restaurants, Miso soup may taste better than ours at home. But the important point is that each family has its own tastes. Generally people in northern areas prefer red miso and ones in western areas, especially Kyoto areas prefer white miso. But it depends on each family. It’s interesting"

Thanks for sharing that with us Ayako! Very interesting!

Mama Lisa

Hat tip: Thanks also to Linda Austin of Cherry Blossom Memories for sharing her Miso traditions too. Linda’s Mom is from Japan. She wrote, "My mom insists on using red miso, someday I’ll try white."

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Posted in Cooking, Countries & Cultures, Cuisine, Customs, Domestic Life, Japan, Japanese, Japanese Cuisine, Languages, Miso Soup, Recipes of the World, Soup, USA | 4 Comments »

Recipe for Miso Soup

Tuesday, May 19th, 2009

Miso Soup is pretty quick and easy to make! I made it for the first time this past weekend. My whole family liked it, though my 7 year old daughter only ate the broth with rice (no seaweed!).

The one possibly tough part of making miso soup is finding the ingredients. I got mine at a Japanese specialty food store in a nearby town. The owner also gave me tips about making the soup! So it was an interesting trip. If you don’t have a store like this nearby, you can get the ingredients on the internet.

I made a large pot. So I’ll give you the quantities I used for the recipe. Then I’ll tell you how much you need to make a small quantity and you can double it or triple it or whatever you want. It’s good to learn how to adapt recipes to your own needs.

Here are the quantities I used to make a large pot of soup:

20 cups of water
5 cups of Dried Bonito Flakes (mackerel)
1 1/2 cups White Miso Paste
1/4 to 1/3 cup Dried Chopped Seaweed
1 to 3 bunches Thinly Sliced Scallions
1 (4 to 8 oz) package Cleaned White Mushrooms, Thinly Sliced (If desired)
1 to 2 (14 ounce) Packages Firm Tofu, Cubed
Salt to taste (you can also use a little sea salt if desired)

First you make the Dashi which is the the broth for the soup. Ayako Egawa from Japan gave me instructions for making this. The rule of thumb is to use 2 cups of water to 1/2 cup dried bonito flakes (pictured below).

1. Here’s how you make the Dashi Broth:

Boil the water. Turn off the flame. Put dried bonito into the water and stir. Let sit for 10 minutes. Then you want to take out the bonito. You can do this by straining the broth through a colander and into another pot. I did the straining twice to get rid of all the bonito. Then you discard the bonito. The broth that’s left is the Dashi.*

2. Put the broth in the pot back on the stovetop and warm it up on a medium to medium-high flame. But do not boil it – especially after the miso has been added. Many people believe boiling miso ruins its beneficial health effects.

3. Add the miso paste (the rule of thumb is 1 Tablespoon of miso paste per 1 cup of water.) Stir in the miso paste to dissolve. Add the other ingredients (feel free to leave out any if you don’t like them). Note: I used the seaweed in the photo below – a little goes a long way! I originally put in 1/2 cup and you can see how much is in the bowl at the bottom. That’s why I changed the amount in the recipe to 1/4 to 1/3 cup. (I think a rule of thumb would be about 1 teaspoon dried seaweed per 1 – 2 cups of water. I would start with less, you can always add more!)

You can adjust the amounts of the mushrooms, tofu, scallions and seaweed used to suit your family’s taste. (Some people even put in carrots, buckwheat noodles and even a little sesame oil and soy sauce.) We wanted a lot of scallions – and I think it added flavor to the broth. Whatever you choose, simply warm up the final ingredients, add salt to taste, and voila, it’s ready to eat!

*FYI Ayako and the man in the Japanese food store both pointed out that you can alternatively make the Dashi (broth) by using Dashi powder – but the versions of Dashi powder that I found had MSG in it. That’s why I made it with the Dried Bonito Flakes instead. The man in the store insisted that restaurants use the powder, making me wonder if we’re eating MSG when we have miso soup in some restaurants. I guess that’s all the more reason to learn to make it yourself! This way you know exactly what’s in it!

Many thanks to Ayako Egawa for teaching me how to make dashi!

Enjoy!

Mama Lisa

PS Here’s "The Miso Soup Song" – a Korean Folk Song

UPDATE: Check out this later post to learn about some Miso Soup Traditions!

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Posted in Countries & Cultures, Cuisine, Dashi, Japan, Japanese Cuisine, Miso Soup, Recipes of the World, Soup | 6 Comments »

Recipe for Savory Matzo Brei

Wednesday, April 15th, 2009

Matzo brei means fried matzo in Yiddish. The traditional way to make it is with a lot of matzo – you generally use equal eggs to matzo. Jewish people eat it around Passover. Savory Matzo Brei is salty. There’s a different recipe for Sweet Matzo Brei.

You can put whatever you like into savory matzo brei. Here are some suggestions: fry up any of the following first: chopped onions, green or red peppers, mushrooms, or other vegetables that you might put into a normal omelet. You can also add cheese and/or herbs to savory matzo brei. If you’re using cheese, I’d recommend Swiss or cheddar cheese – but use whatever you and your family like.

Here’s how you make Savory Matzo Brei:

Recipe for Savory Matzo Brei

3 Eggs
3 Matzo
1 Tablespoon Milk
Salt and Pepper to Taste

1) Fry up any vegetables you want to use in a little oil or butter, until lightly brown and soft. Set aside.

1) Soak matzo in water for a minute or two to soften (no longer than that). Take the matzo out of the water.

2) Break matzo into small pieces with your hands.

3) In a separate bowl, beat the eggs with the milk (like you would for scrambled eggs). Add salt and pepper and stir. Then stir the egg mixture in with the matzos.

4) Put pan with vegetables back on medium heat heat. Then add the egg mixture. Break up like you would scrambled eggs while frying.

5) Add small cubes of cheese if you’re using cheese.

When it’s firm (not liquidy), it’s ready to eat.

Bon appetit!

Mama Lisa

PS If you’d like to try something different, check out my recipe for Matzo Omelet.

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Posted in Breakfast and Brunch, Countries & Cultures, Holidays Around the World, Israel, Languages, Main Course, Omelets, Passover, Recipes of the World, Savory Matzo Brei, USA, Yiddish | No Comments »

Recipe for Matzoh Omelet

Wednesday, April 15th, 2009

I’ll give the recipe here for a matzo omelet. It’s inspired by the dish called Matzo brei. There’s a little story behind this and I’ll tell it in a moment. Matzo brei means fried matzo. The traditional way to make it is with a lot of matzo – you generally use equal eggs to matzo. Jewish people eat it around Passover. A matzo omelet is different, it’s an omelet with matzo in it – more egg less matzo!

A few years ago, my mother-in-law was explaining matzo brei to me. I suppose I misunderstood her explanation. I went home and made a traditional omelet for my husband with matzo in it. I made it using a little matzo per egg. It turns out that he loved it! I made him omelets like that for years, thinking I was cooking authentic Jewish food. My bad! I wasn’t. I had come up with a new invention: a matzo omelet. It wasn’t until this year, when my sister-in-law taught me the real way to make matzo brei, that I learnt the difference. I personally prefer the matzo omelet to the savory matzo brei.

So let’s get to the recipe! I’ll start by saying the you can put whatever you like into the matzo omelet. Here are some suggestions: fry up any of the following first: chopped onions, green or red peppers, mushrooms, or other vegetables that you might put into a normal omelet. You can also add cheese to the matzo omelet. I’d recommend Swiss or cheddar cheese – use whatever you and your family like.

Here’s the basic recipe for the matzo omelette:

Matzo Omelet

3 Eggs
1 Matzo
1/4 c. Milk
Salt and Pepper to Taste

1) Melt butter in a frying pan, fry up any vegetables you want to use on medium heat. When they’re soft and lightly brown, turn off the heat and set aside.

2) Beat the eggs with a fork. Add the milk, salt and pepper and stir again.

3) Break up the matzo into bite sized pieces and put into the egg mixture.

4) Stir the matzo in the with eggs

5) Put the frying pan with the vegetables back on medium heat and add the egg mixture.

6) Once the omelet starts to get firm you can add cheese to half of the pan.

7) Once the cheese starts to melt, and the omelet gets less liquidy, you can flip half of the omelet over the other half. I flipped it and cut it in half to help it cook more quickly. You may need to lower the heat if the bottom starts to cook too quickly.

8) You can flip the omelet again after a couple of minutes, make sure the inside gets cooked. Once the eggs are firm on the inside, you’re ready to eat it!

Bon appetit!

Mama Lisa

PS I used whole milk for the omelet because we had it in our fridge for another recipe. I don’t normally use whole milk, but 1%. The whole milk gave the omelet a more custardy taste. More yummy, though more fattening. Interesting to know as a cook!

Next: Recipe for Savory Matzo Brei

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Posted in Breakfast and Brunch, Countries & Cultures, Holidays Around the World, Israel, Main Course, Omelets, Passover, Recipes of the World, Savory Matzo Brei, USA, Yiddish | 2 Comments »

Recipe for Sweet Matzo Brei

Monday, April 13th, 2009

Matzo Brei means fried matzo in Yiddish. This is a good dish to make near Passover. That’s when most Jewish people eat it. I’d suggest trying it even if you’re not Jewish. Here’s one good reason: Matzoh is always on sale around Passover and there’s tons of it in the store. How can you not buy a box?

After you buy your box of matzo, I’ll tell you two things you can do with it! You can made Sweet Matzo Brei or Savory Matzo Brei. Don’t go away – don’t be fearful! If you like sweet things, you’ll like Sweet Matzo Brei. I was suspicious about it for years. I KID YOU NOT! I would never in a million years have put matzo, with eggs and syrup. But man, this is good. If you like pancakes or French toast with syrup, you’ll like it. If you don’t, then try the savory way (which I’ll explain how to do in my next post). My savory way is different from everyone else’s. Mine is like a matzo omelet. Sounds a bit strange, yes! But it’s actually very good. That one I have been making for years.

So, let’s get to it!

You can choose how much you’d like to make depending on the number of people eating. The key to making Sweet Matzah Brei is to use one egg per matzo. We used 10 eggs and ten matzohs for 3 adults, 2 big teenage boys with hearty appetites and 2 young girls (one six and one eight year old). Using that as a general rule, it would be about 1 to 1 1/2 matzo per person for a serving size, depending upon how hungry the people are and how much they like to eat.

Recipe for Sweet Matzo Brei

What you need:

1 Egg per Matzo
Milk (1 teaspoon per egg)
Cinnamon
Nutmeg
Butter for Frying
Maple Syrup

1) Soak matzo in water for a minute or two to soften (no longer than that). Take the matzo out of the water.

2) Break matzo into small pieces with your hands.

3) In a separate bowl, beat the eggs with the milk (like you would for scrambled eggs). Add a dash or two of cinnamon and nutmeg and stir. Then stir the egg mixture in with the matzos.

4) Melt a slab of butter in a frying pan (enough to coat the bottom of the pan). Add egg mixture. Break up like you would like scrambled eggs while frying on medium heat.

Serve with maple syrup – yum!

Many thanks to Dale Durdunas for teaching me this great recipe!

Next: Recipe for Savory Matzo Brei and a Matzo Omelet!

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Posted in Breakfast and Brunch, Countries & Cultures, Holidays Around the World, Israel, Languages, Main Course, Passover, Recipes of the World, Savory Matzo Brei, Sweet Matzo Brei, USA, Yiddish | No Comments »

Taiyaki – A Japanese Sweet

Sunday, April 5th, 2009

I think it’s interesting to learn about different foods eaten around the world. Here’s one that’s eaten in Japan. Ayako Egawa shared this photo with me, with the note:

This is a fish shaped sweet called “Taiyaki”. It’s a popular sweet in Japan. Usually Azuki (red bean) paste is stuffed inside it. But this one has custard cream inside of it. It’s yummy!

Thanks for sharing that with us Ayako!

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Posted in Countries & Cultures, Cuisine, Japan, Japanese, Japanese Cuisine, Languages, Recipes of the World, Taiyaki | 1 Comment »

Bunny Bento

Wednesday, April 1st, 2009

Check out this post for making bunny bento. What’s bento? A Japanese lunchbox!

You can buy Japanese Bento Boxes at:

Asian Art Mall

Ayako Egawa wrote from Japan: “Hi Lisa, bunny bento, which is the cutting style of an apple, is very popular in Japan in lunchboxes!”

A couple of days later, Ayako wrote to me: “Hi Lisa, those are my bunnies! (See photo below.) I put them in my lunchbox today.”

Thanks for sharing that with us Ayako!

-Mama Lisa

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Posted in Bunny Bento, Countries & Cultures, Cuisine, Japan, Japanese, Japanese Cuisine, Languages, Recipes of the World | No Comments »

Fun Sweet “Sushi” to Make for Kids

Wednesday, March 25th, 2009

Fun Sushi to Make for Kids

Yuta, Yoji and Miki made this awesome “sushi” for a school birthday party. It’s made out of homemade rice crispy treats, gummy fish and fruit roll-ups. How cute and cool!

The one question everyone’s asking is: How did they get the rice crispy treats to be soooo pure white? Any ideas? If so, please let us know in the comments below! (I also wonder where you get the faux lacquer boxes?)

Thanks!

Mama Lisa

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Posted in Canada, Cooking with Kids, Countries & Cultures, Cuisine, Desserts, Food Sculptures, Japan, Japanese Cuisine, Kids Sushi, Mama Lisa, Miscellaneous, Parenting, Questions, Recipes of the World, Sushi, USA | 6 Comments »

Chocolate Hershey Kiss Pretzel Sandwich Candy a.k.a. "Grids"

Monday, March 16th, 2009

Here’s a yummy recipe given to me by Corrine Lewack. Corrine pointed out that it’s a good “math” teaching recipe to make with kids, since it involves counting out candy kisses and then doubling the amount of pretzels per kiss to make “sandwiches”.

What you will need:
25 Hershey Kisses (Plain)
50 Snyder’s of Hanover Pretzel Snaps (they are little 3 square x 4 square rectangular pretzels)
1 large sheet pan
Aluminum Foil or Parchment Paper (to cover the sheet pan… who wants to clean? LOL)

Math: You will need 2 unbroken pretzel snaps for every 1 kiss. You will probably want to make more. (This is good for the kiddies, they can count out the kisses and double the amount of pretzels per kiss).

What to do:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Unwrap the kisses. Foil is not tasty.
Place parchment paper or aluminum foil on the sheet pan.
Place pretzel snaps on the sheet pan.
Place a Hershey Kiss in the center of each snap. (See Photo 1)
Put kiss/pretzel in the oven for only TWO MINUTES… NO MORE! Remove from oven.
Place a Pretzel snap on top of melted kiss, push down slightly to make a sandwich. (See Photo 2)
Allow Grids to cool… or place in the refrigerator for quick cooling.

Getting ready for their quick melt in the oven. (They will retain there kiss shape but will be soft).

Voila! These are soo good… perfect for those salty/sweet moments!

Corrine wrote, “I must thank my wonderful sister-in-law, Jenny for bringing this recipe into our lives… Enjoy! xo xo”

Here are some variations to the recipe given by Corrine’s friends:

Cindy Roter wrote: “How clever! I can so see topping those little babies with peanut butter… Thanks for the share. Cindy”

Chelle Baldwin wrote: “I can top this one! Same idea but different ingredients. Get the pretzels, top with a rolo. Heat on low in the oven for a few minutes, then take it out and smoosh the rolo down with either a pecan or another pretzel. Super yummy!”

Susan Leonard Evans wrote: “Hahhaa, AWESOME! Thanks for sharing, I’m definitely going to try these. Also, I’ve had similar treats using "pastel-colored" chocolate wafers. Someone made them around Easter – they were yummy AND festive! Just an option :) Thanks again – xo xo xo xo”

Thanks to all of you for the great, yummy ideas!

Mama Lisa

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Posted in Chocolate Hershey Kiss Pretzel Sandwich Candy, Cooking with Kids, Countries & Cultures, Desserts, Holidays Around the World, Math, Parenting, Recipes of the World, Teaching, USA | No Comments »

Cassava Root Vegetable Chips – Yummy… They’re like Potato Chips.. but lighter and better!

Friday, March 6th, 2009

Joseph Banks Cassava Root Chips are an exotic and relatively healthy snack. Most important – they’re delicious!

In the interest of full disclosure, I’ll tell you straight out, these chips are sold by my friend’s company. Also, I’m eating them right now and I’m going to have a hard time keeping myself from polishing them off before I’m done with this article – so it’s a race against the clock. Finally, I must reveal that my husband is going to be very annoyed with me for finishing our supply. He’s been begging me to let him have more, but I kept telling him to wait till I was done writing about them, since I needed samples for the post!

These chips are made from the cassava root (which is also known as yucca).

Cassava was first made known to Europeans by Sir Joseph Bank. He was a Victorian botanist who sailed the south seas in 1768 with Captain Cook. On the voyage he discovered a rich abundance of exotic plants, and the cassava root.

Tapioca also comes from cassava. You may have seen this root in the store. (Note to cooks: cassava cannot be eaten raw. Raw cassava is toxic.)

Cassava is eaten all over the world.

The variety of cassava used to make the Joseph Banks chips is grown on the fertile volcanic highlands of Java in Indonesia.

We sampled each of the 4 flavors the chips come in. The chip itself is basically like a lighter, less greasy potato chip. I’ll try to describe what each flavor tastes like.

Original Sea Salt Flavor – These taste somewhat like normal chips – though they’re seasoned with a very light spice flavor. These were my daughter’s favorite.

Roasted Tomato – A light tomato-like flavor.

Cracked Pepper – These have a light peppery flavor with a slight sweet hint. These are my favorite.

Chilli and Kaffir Lime – These chips have a light tomato taste and are a little spicy hot (too much so for my 7 year old daughter). These are my husband’s favorites – he loves spicy food!

Joseph Banks Cassava Root Chips are all lactose free, gluten free and contain no trans fats.

You can buy these chips at specialty stores like Food Emporium & D’Agostinos.

Now that the sampling is done, and almost all the chips are gone, I’d better go out to the store and buy more of these for my husband – or there will be a fight tonight! He loves them!

Enjoy!

-Mama Lisa

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Posted in Appetizers, Countries & Cultures, Indonesia, Recipes of the World, USA | 4 Comments »

Recipe for Spaghetti Squash with Pasta

Monday, February 23rd, 2009

Spaghetti Squash with Pasta is a great dish to make in the Winter – since it involves baking the squash – it heats up the house. Squash is also inexpensive and easy to find in the North East U.S. in the Winter, making it an ideal cold weather staple.

This is an easy dish to make. Here’s what you’ll need:

1 Spaghetti Squash
1 pound Pasta (we use whole wheat)
Parmesan Cheese to Taste
Butter to Taste (we use about 1-2 Tablespoons)
Salt and Pepper to Taste

Here’s what you do:

Preheat oven to 375F.

-Place squash on baking dish and bake for about 45 minutes – turning it every 15 minutes. It’s done when a fork easily goes through the skin.
-Meanwhile, boil water and cook the pasta – timing it to be ready around when the squash is done. When the pasta is ready, drain it.
-When the squash is done, cut it in half. Spoon out the seeds and discard.
-Spoon out the good flesh of the squash, breaking it up a little.
-Mix the squash with the pasta, a slab of butter, salt and pepper and parmesan cheese. (Or any sauce that will support pasta.)

Bon appetit!

Many thanks to Kimberly Marrero for teaching me this recipe. We’ve made it just about every week this Winter!

Mama Lisa

UPDATE: Corrine Lewack wrote to me about this recipe: “Yum.. I’ve even used tomato sauce and parmesan cheese on top of the spaghetti squash only.. good for those of us who need carb control!” -Thanks for the tip Corrine! I’m going to try this the next time I make a pot of tomato sauce! -Lisa

PS I usually try to bake another vegetable while I have the oven on (to save on electricity): either another type of squash (like acorn or butternut squash) or eggplant to make Baba Ganouj for another day.

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Posted in Countries & Cultures, English, Languages, Main Course, Mama Lisa, Recipes of the World, Spaghetti Squash with Pasta, USA | No Comments »

Corn Bread Recipe (Using Milk not Buttermilk)

Wednesday, January 28th, 2009

Photo of Cornbread

We like to have chili in the winter with fresh cornbread. It can be hard to find a corn bread recipe that uses milk instead of buttermilk. Since milk is much more readily available in my kitchen, I was pleased to find this recipe for cornbread with milk. The resulting bread is smoother than typical cornbread.

I adapted this recipe from a cookbook dating back to 1902 called 365 Luncheon Dishes.

Corn Bread Recipe

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Mix together 2 cups of cornmeal, 1 cup of flour, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 2 teaspoons of baking powder.

Beat together 3 eggs until thick and light. Add 2½ cup of milk and stir. Mix into the dry mixture. Then add in 2 tablespoons of sugar, and 2 tablespoons of melted butter. Beat well with a whisk until the batter is smooth.

Grease well two 8 x 5 inch pans (if you don’t grease them well, the bread will stick). Divide the batter between the two pans. Bake for about 45 minutes, until golden brown.

Enjoy!

Mama Lisa

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Posted in Bread, Corn Bread, Countries & Cultures, Mama Lisa, Recipes of the World, USA | 1 Comment »

It’s Berry Wonderful News

Thursday, January 22nd, 2009

If you like berries like I do, you’ll be berry happy to hear yet another report extolling their healthy benefits – especially raspberries, blackberries, strawberries and elderberries. They’re good for you fresh or frozen. So, however you have them, eat those berries and make sure your family gets them too!

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Posted in Countries & Cultures, Cuisine, Food and Nutrition, Parenting, Recipes of the World, USA | No Comments »

Torrin Soup for Newlyweds, From the Occitan Region of Southern France

Tuesday, January 13th, 2009

Guest blogger, Monique Palomares works with me on Mama Lisa’s World en français. Monique grew up speaking the Occitan language in southern France. Occitan was the language spoken by the troubadours – largely in southern France – but also in parts of Spain and Italy.

Last week, Monique wrote about an Occitan Wedding Custom and Song from France. The custom revolves around a soup called Torrin, that’s given to the newlyweds. Here’s the recipe from Monique…

Recipe for Torrin Soup for Newlyweds
(Serves 4)

Ingredients

A large spoonful of goose or duck fat (or oil)
5 or 6 garlic cloves
A spoonful of flour
2 eggs
Salt & Pepper
Vinegar
(I usually use wine or balsamic vinegar but it’s just a dash of it so I suppose you can use any.)

1. Boil 4 to 6 cups of water in a pot.

2. Put the fat in a large frying pan and slowly fry the garlic, but don’t allow it to brown. Add the flour, stirring it quickly.

3. Pour in the boiling water. Add salt and pepper. Allow to boil for 15 min.

4. Separate the egg yolks and whites. Beat the yolks with a dribble of vinegar.

5. After 15 minutes, pour the egg whites into the garlic/flour mixture and stir quickly. Lower the flame. Add the yolks, stir and DO NOT allow to boil (or the yolks will coagulate and you’ll have yellow threads instead of a beautiful yellow broth).

Torrin Soup can be served with croutons or thin slices of bread.

In some areas they cook it with equal amounts of onions and garlic, then they sprinkle grated Swiss cheese on top and broil it in the oven.

My mother used to cook it. She’d use oil, not goose fat. She used peanut or sunflower oil, but you can use olive oil or any frying oil. The “genuine” recipe is with goose or duck fat. My mother also added vermicelli in step three, after the water started to boil again. Then came the egg whites and the yolks. But we didn’t serve it with bread, the vermicelli would be enough carbohydrates! We called it “Soupe à l’œuf” – “Soup with egg”.

“Torrin” is a word from the South-West.

-Monique

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Posted in Countries & Cultures, Customs, France, Main Course, Mama Lisa, Occitan, Occitan, Recipes of the World, Torrin Soup, Weddings | No Comments »

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Posts

Childhood Food Memories – Bananas

Banana Dosai – A Dessert from India

Recipe for Garlic Ginger Basil Salmon with a YouTube Video

Recipe for Bavarian Fruit

Blueberry Pie Recipe made with Fresh, Unbaked Blueberries… Yum!

Wet Walnuts Recipe

Miso Soup Traditions

Recipe for Miso Soup

Recipe for Savory Matzo Brei

Recipe for Matzoh Omelet

Recipe for Sweet Matzo Brei

Taiyaki – A Japanese Sweet

Bunny Bento

Fun Sweet “Sushi” to Make for Kids

Chocolate Hershey Kiss Pretzel Sandwich Candy a.k.a. "Grids"

Cassava Root Vegetable Chips – Yummy… They’re like Potato Chips.. but lighter and better!

Recipe for Spaghetti Squash with Pasta

Corn Bread Recipe (Using Milk not Buttermilk)

It’s Berry Wonderful News

Torrin Soup for Newlyweds, From the Occitan Region of Southern France