Chef Michael Salmon - Join me in my Kitchen
Roti is a flat bread that is very simple and quick to make and is similar to Pita Bread. Roti came to the Caribbean from India and has become a local staple in many islands, especially Trinidad and Tobago. India’s influence in Caribbean cuisine is very apparent and curry dishes are a prime example. In Aruba, curried goat stew was very popular and roti is the perfect “utensil” for mopping up the sauce on your plate. Roti can also be filled with ingredients and rolled up to form a sandwich wrap.
The island of Aruba remains part of the Dutch Kingdom, so the Dutch influence is prevalent in everything from architecture to cooking. Keshi Yená is a dish that was originally made by filling an empty shell of a scooped out Edam or Gouda cheese with a spiced chicken or beef mixture and baking it.
Adding puréed spinach to pasta dough transforms it into a brilliant green color. Use the Spinach Dough to make any shape of pasta from Fettuccini and Pappardelle to Tortellini and Ravioli. When you use a colored (beet or spinach) dough for a stuffed pasta like ravioli, use a contrasting colored filling (like goat cheese) for a dramatic effect.
Compound butters are so versatile, easy to make and convenient. Flavor combinations are endless and the prepared butters can be stored in the freezer for months. Once you learn the basics on making compound butters you can let your creativity go crazy and customize flavored butters to pair with your favorite foods.
Budino is the Italian word for pudding. This is a spectacular combination of creamy butterscotch pudding and mouth-watering salted caramel with a crisp chocolate crumble surprise on the bottom. I like to make them in the 8-ounce Le Parfait hinged top jars.
This is one of my favorite appetizers from our trip to Tuscany and combines some of my favorite ingredients; Prosciutto, Fresh Mozzarella (use Buffalo-milk Mozzarella if you can find it), ripe tomatoes cooked down into a thick paste and fresh basil. Bake for just 15 minutes to soften the cheese, crisp the Prosciutto and meld the flavors. Make sure you have plenty of crostinis to “mop” up the sauce. A spoon is often needed at the very end to get every bit of goodness.
Mushroom soup is so hearty and earthy and can be so comforting as cool weather and fall settles in. I often supplement the portabella’s with wild mushrooms I forage from the local woodlands near my home and when I am in the Loire valley of France, we get Mushrooms that are grown in the ancient caves near our Chateau. In recent years, I started making this soup with a vegetable stock instead of the chicken stock for my vegetarian customers.
These butter cookies, also referred to as “thumb prints,” are similar in taste and texture to shortbread cookies and can be filled with your favorite jam, jelly or preserves. For a chocolate butter cookie, add another 1/4 cup flour in step 2 and drizzle in 1/2 cup of melted dark chocolate at the end of step 2.
I have been cooking my Thanksgiving turkeys “Sous Vide” for over 10 years now, and I’ll never go back to the traditional roasting method. The turkey comes out moist and tender GUARANTEED! No over-cooked, dried out breast. Make the brine days before the holiday to ease your last minute prep and this method frees up your oven and stovetop for other items. As an extra bonus, there is no roasting pan to scrub at the end of the meal. Happy Thanksgiving!
Zucchini blossoms are always a surprising hit on our Foodie Trips to Tuscany and Umbria. More often than not, they are a new experience for our travelers. In Italy, they are a mainstay. The male flowers grow on a short stem and are mostly a by-product (leave a few on the plant for pollination). Female flowers grow off from the zucchini fruit itself, and can be used for this recipe, but you will be sacrificing the fruit if you harvest them too early. Zucchini blossoms most simply are dipped in a batter and fried. I like to fill the flowers with a vegetable-ricotta filling before battering them.
Join me in my kitchen as I prepare recipes from my two cookbooks, European foodie trips and explore new inspirations.
