recipephile

Notes on Creativity - Let Travel Inspire you

When traveling I always try the local foods and end up inspired.  For example, while in Costa Rica I feasted on Chayote, Escabeche and Gallo Pinto.  In Southeast Asia I devoured chili sauce and loved the steamed fish with lime and mint sauce.  They make the best sandwiches at Primanti's in Pittsburgh PA with the meat, cole slaw and french fries right on the sandwich.  When possible I ask for recipes, always take notes and let my mind wander on the various ways I can recreate dishes using other ingredients and flavors. 

The ultimate goal is to make it something that ties regional flavors into something that is uniquely my style.  Thinking about the foods I have eaten from all ends of the earth allows me to be more creative when I cook.  It also lets me add a twist on original recipes.

Creamy Carrot Ginger Soup

Over the last few weeks I have been traveling with friends throughout Asia.  We visited Tokyo, Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand (I was supposed to travel to Vietnam as well, but I lacked the necessary Visa so had to stay in Bangkok). 

My absolute favorite place during our entire trip was a small island that we rented as a group.  Pulau Pangkil (www.pangkil.com) is a small island in the Indonesian Archipelago.  It measures at about a 1/2 mile long and 1/4 mile wide and takes about 10 minutes to walk from one end to the other.  The picture is one of the "driftwood palaces" where I slept for the five amazing days that we spent on the island.

Each and every day the staff prepared delicious meals for all of us.  From freshly caught and grilled fish to curries and even sauteed tempeh the selection was always vast and the portions plenty.

On one particular evening they served us a chilled creamy carrot soup that was out of this world.  It was prepared with lemongrass, which gave it a nice bite and lemony flavor.  The chef and I chatted (as best we could given the language barrier) about the recipe and preparation and when I arrived back in the states I tried my hand at this delicious soup.

Immediately on my arrival back to San Francisco I had to head home, shower, change, re-pack and jump on a flight to New York.  My good friend Christian was out of town so he let me use his apartment in Chelsea, mighty close to a Balducci's, one of New York's finest grocery stores.

Thinking that I would be able to find all of my ingredients at this foodie paradise I headed over and began to shop.  To my surprise, no lemongrass.  So I had to improvise and opted for ginger thinking that this would impart a similar flavor profile as the lemongrass.

I was amazed at how easy it was to prepare this soup.  Here is what you need:

Balsamic Beef Tenderloin

So many of my food influences come from my parents and their propensity to throw a party at a moment's notice.  Both my father and my mother are armed with a slew of easy to prepare dishes that always wow their guests and of course have them asking for the recipes.  The theme in most of the dishes that are prepared for mom and dad's get togethers was pre-party preparation or things that they could make ahead of time and then platter beautifully right before the guests arrive.

There always seemed to be one or two platters that many guests would swarm around and devour immediately.  This always included dad's beef tenderloin with balsamic sauce.  This is very easy to make can be prepared well before the guests arrive and also served at room temperature.  Here is what you will need:

Lemony Spinach Bean Dip

Many years ago my family and I used to go to this great Italian restaurant in Pittsburgh. For the life of me I cannot remember the name, but I do recall this great bean dip that they served at the beginning of every meal with the bread. It is so easy to make. This is my version, I added tomato and cheese. Here is all you'll need to make this tasty dip...

Apple and Cabbage Slaw with Mint

My very clsoe friend Nick makes a delicious slaw. This isn't the slaw that many of us are used to. The flavors in this dish are very fresh and reminiscent of light Asian flavors. He made this as an accompaniment to the pork shoulder we prepared and everyone absolutely loved Nick's take on a traditional slawl.

Here is how you prepare this dish...

Quick Bites - Goat Cheese and Strawberries

If you are regular reader of RecipePhile you know that I always try to offer up simple solutions to cooking or throwing a last minute dish together. The other evening I had a few friends over for my bolognese, but at the end of the meal I realized that I had no dessert to share with my guests. So I headed to the friedge, grabbed some fresh strawberries and served them with goat cheese. The two were perfectly paired with one another and was a nice and light ending to a delicious meal.

Roasted Pork Shoulder

Yesterday I told you about a meal that my friend Nick and I prepared. When we went to the grocery to buy the meat we noticed that there was a sale on pork shoulder. At $0.99 a pound we just could not pass it up. Having never roasted a pork shoulder before I decided that I should call up the expert at all things roasted. My mother.

She recommend that I roast the 5lb pork shoulder at 350 degrees for 3 hours. Her recommendation was spot on and the meat was tender and delicious.

Great Mashed Potatoes

Last night I helped my good friend Nick prepare a meal for friends that were visiting from Hawaii. We had roasted pork shoulder with carmelized onions and garlic, cabbage and apple slaw and some of the best mashed potatoes ever. The potatoes were oh so simple to make.

- 20 cloves of roasted garlic (place garlic in a foil tent or garlic roaster with 1/2 tbsp of olive oil and roast at 400 for about 1/2 hour)
- 5 russet potatoes peeled and boiled until a fork passes through with ease (you can chop them into large chunks to make them cook faster)
- 1 stick of butter
- 1/2 pint of heavy cream
- 1 cup of grated Asiago cheese
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place all of the ingredients into a large mixing bowl or food processor and mash or process until creamy smooth. I like using the food processor because it seems to make the potatoes a little smoother.

This recipe makes about 5-6 cups depending on the size of the potato.