Just what is Chinese New Year? There's actually a lot more to it than lion dances and firecrackers, although these two pieces of tradition are integral and more visible, Chinese New Year to China is like Christmas to the West. In essence, Chinese New Year is spending time with family, gift giving and, the all important, food-fest. While—if you're lucky—may get Christmas Eve day off in addition to Christmas Day, Chinese New Year festivities officially last for 15 days!!!
Chinese New Year celebrations have their origin with end-of-harvest celebrations when people would offer thanks to gods for good harvests and pray for a good crop in the following year. Although they varied according to the different calendars used, the customs were formalized under Han Dynasty (206BC-AD 25) rule.
2010 brings the Year of the Tiger on the Chinese lunar calendar and the New Year started on 14 February.
In Lima, Peru—where I was born and raised—a traditional arch welcomes you to the "Barrio Chino" (Chinatown) at the corner of Jirón Ucayali and Jirón Andahuaylas, right next to Lima’s "Mercado Central" (Central Market). And between blocks 7 and 8 of Jirón Andahuaylas you'll find the well-known "Calle Capón" (Capon Street), where all the "chifas" (Chinese restaurants) are located.
"Chifa" is a term used in Peru to refer to a style of food produced by the fusion of creole Peruvian food with Chinese food brought by Chinese immigrants mainly from the southern province of Guangdong and particularly its capital city, Canton, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It is also used to define a restaurant where this type of food is served. "Chifa" has become one of the most popular types of food in Peru and has achieved international fame. Nowadays, "chifa" has evolved enormously and has acquired its own personality forming part of Peruvian gastronomy. A few interesting tidbits:
There are more chinese restaurants in Peru than in any other Latin American country: around 6,000, just in Lima.
In Peru, ginger is known by the Chinese world "kion" rather than the Spanish "gengibre", and soy sauce is "sillau" rather than "salsa de soya".
Fried rice is known as "arroz chaufa" or simply "chaufa" rather than the Spanish "arroz frito" or "arroz chino".
There are no "fortune cookies" at the end of your meal . . . rather, you get a white, soft, chewy candy wrapped in a thin edible paper-like wrapping made from sticky rice.
Everyone who knows me well is aware of my "passion" for Peruvian-Chinese cuisine or "chifa". I've been known to eat "chifa" for three days in a row whenever I'm back in Lima on vacation! :) When I was a kid, I would await with delight Friday nights . . . it was "chifa" night! We always went to the same restaurant, "Chifa Taiwan", which was an unassuming, small but clean place. We would always take one of the private booths, closed off with red curtains. The dinner fare typically included fried wontons with tamarind dipping sauce, wonton soup, pork or chicken fried rice, chicken in oyster sauce, roast pork with scallions, and sauté noodles with snow peas, mushrooms and quail eggs . . . all washed down with Inca Kola! :) It was a feast! Ahhh . . . those times! As I grew up, I realized there were "other" Chinese dishes, equally tasty, that soon became part of my favorites:
Chi Jau Kai chicken (boned chicken pieces marinated in oil, salt, pepper, sugar, ginger, garlic, pisco, soy sauce, and "mensí" or black bean paste sauce, vapor cooked, then drenched in cornstarch, deep fried, and served with oyster sauce and sesame seeds)
Chicken Roll-ups with Asparagus (chicken filets stuffed with asparagus, drenched in cornstarch, deep fried and served, also, with oyster sauce)
Crab Claws (Crab claws wrapped in a paste prepared with shrimp, egg white, salt, pepper, sugar, cornstarch, and sesame oil, drenched in cornstarch, fried, and served with lime juice and Chinese cinnamon)
Seriously . . . this is really ridiculous! Have been snowed in since Friday last week!!! The bad news: it is still snowing and can't even see outside the window! The good news, on the other hand: my flight to Detroit tomorrow hasn't been cancelled so far!!! Yay!!! :)
I was checking my "News Feed" on Facebook and got across this: "Food & Wine: We're proud to announce the winner of our first-ever Home Cook Superstar Search, Sarah Simmons, a digital marketing consultant in New York City! To learn more about Sarah and for more great entrants we loved: http://www.foodandwine.com/slideshows/home-cook-superstar/Home-Cook-Superstar."
So, I clicked on the link and started reading about the winner . . . then went to the second entrant and read the following: "Contestant Melissa Ainslie of Miami, blogs about her cooking adventures at bitchincamero.com." And, of course, had to check her blog!
I looooove figs! And, guess what? Melissa's current posting is precisely about figs . . . here it is:
Fig & Balsamic Jam
Published by mel on February 8, 2010 in breakfast, recipe and sides & bites
Anyone who knows me knows I’m a bit persnickety about my kitchen. I like everything to be immaculately clean and orderly – counter tops shining and everything put away. No toaster or blender or mixer out on the counter. I like as much space as possible to make a real mess on when I’m cooking. So, it’s an absolute wonder that I’ve kept my new Ad Hoc at Home cookbook on the counter for the past month. It’s just so beautiful and inspiring and I like to peruse it while I’m wondering what to make for dinner.
One of the recipes that kept catching my eye was a Fig & Balsamic Jam that sounded like the perfect accompaniment to a large hunk of Manchego taking up room in the cheese drawer (Yes, I keep an entire drawer of cheese… Don’t judge me.). Of course, it’s winter and fresh figs are still a few months away. But I wanted some fig jam now! So, I tweaked the recipe to see if it would work with dried figs. And happy surprise – it did!
This jam is super quick and endlessly delicious. Paired with cheese, it’s just dreamy. Brings a little bit of summer to your plate. I highly recommend you make it as soon as possible.
In case you’re wondering, that’s a Fig jam, Manchego and chorizo sandwich in the background. My favorite kind of food…
Fig & Balsamic Jam Adapted from Ad Hoc at Home.
1 lb. dried mission figs (or other dried figs), roughly chopped 1 cup demerara sugar (or cane sugar) 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar 1/2 cup water 1 tbsp. lemon juice
Place the figs, sugar, balsamic and water in a medium-sized sauce pan over medium heat. Once it comes to a bubbling simmer, reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for 20 minutes, or until the figs have absorbed most of the cooking liquid.
Remove from heat and carefully use a blender or food processor to puree the jam, breaking up any large pieces of dried figs.
Stir in the lemon juice and let cool completely to room temperature. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 month.
After being trapped in my apartment for three days now, I'm starting to feel just a tad bored. There's nothing particularly interesting to watch on tv, I'm bored of playing Bejeweled Blitz and Mah Jongg Toy Chest on Facebook, there's not much happening on Facebook itself, and can't spend all day long eating or talking with Bobby on the phone! lol . . . I'm not quite sure how I ended up on this blog—Baking Obsession—but, I'll try to retrace my steps: Let's see . . . I went to my blog, then clicked on the link "Next Blog" (on the top part of the site) and it took me to "Crabby Days". Then I clicked on a couple of the links under "Places I am Currently Lurking ...": "Anne's Food" from Sweden, and "Cooking the Books" from Scotland, both with interesting recipes. On "Cooking the Books" clicked on the author's "View My Complete Profile" link. Once there, went over the list of her "Blogs I Follow" and decided to click on the last link of the list, "The Goddess's Kitchen". Again, interesting recipes, and even got sidetracked for a minute with a cute photo of a cat named Coco! On the right side of the blog found several other links, but the one that caught my eyes was "Member of Cook It, Blog It", so I went in there. OMG! I found a huge list of—you guessed it!—more food blogs! OK . . . I was going through the whole list of sites and, somehow, resisted the temptation of clicking on any of them. Finally, decided to click on the last link, "From My Motorhome to Yours", but quickly left the site after listening to the music being played: "Shake Rattle and Roll" from Bill Haley and his Comets! Not precisely my favorite type of music! So, decided to go to the link immediately before that one, "Ria's Collection". The author is a young girl from India—and I'm not particularly keen on Indian food—but, nevertheless, I kept looking through her postings . . . I thought there might be something interesting if she had 130 followers! Well, my sight stopped on a Tiramisu Cake recipe which claimed to be made with homemade Mascarpone cheese! Skipped the Tiramisu recipe and went straight to the cheese recipe, just to find out that it had been copied form another site: "Recipe adapted verbatim from Vera's blog Baking Obsession" . . . so, obviously, my next stop was "Baking Obsession", and that's how I ended up with this recipe:
Homemade Mascarpone Cheese
Much easier to make than it might seem, homemade mascarpone is a tastier and less expensive alternative to a store-bought cheese.
Makes about 12 oz Ingredients: 500 ml whipping (36 %) pasteurized (not ultra-pasteurized), preferably organic cream 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
Preparation: Bring 1 inch of water to a boil in a wide skillet. Reduce the heat to medium-low so the water is barely simmering. Pour the cream into a medium heat-resistant bowl, then place the bowl into the skillet. Heat the cream, stirring often, to 190 F. It will take about 15 minutes of delicate heating. Add the lemon juice and continue heating the mixture, stirring gently, until the cream curdles. Do not expect the same action as you see during ricotta cheese making. All that the whipping cream will do is become thicker, like a well-done crème anglaise. It will cover a back of your wooden spoon thickly. You will see just a few clear whey streaks when you stir. Remove the bowl from the water and let cool for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, line a sieve with four layers of dampened cheesecloth and set it over a bowl. Transfer the mixture into the lined sieve. Do not squeeze the cheese in the cheesecloth or press on its surface (be patient, it will firm up after refrigeration time). Once cooled completely, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate (in the sieve) overnight or up to 24 hours.
The first time I made mascarpone I had all doubts if it’d been cooked enough, because of its custard-like texture. Have no fear, it will firm up beautifully in the fridge, and will yet remain lusciously creamy.
And here we go again! Snowed in for the second time since winter started. Very unsual as they keep saying on the news . . . and we even had thunder and lightning last night! Tens of thousands of homes were without power across the region early this morning. Metro bus service has been suspended until further notice, while Metrorail trains are only servicing underground stations. Virtually all flights are canceled at D.C. area airports. Right now is almost 2 p.m. and we already have some 18 inches of snow accumulated . . . and it keeps falling! Around 8 a.m. this morning I saw outside my bedroom window how this guy was trying—in vain—to dig out his car, start it and leave. He gave up after almost 30 minutes. You can't see the car anymore . . . it disappeared into a white mound of snow! By the way, it was President Obama who called Snowmageddon this storm that has shut down Washington, D.C. and surrounding areas. News are certainly confusing when it comes to the total snow accumulation expected by the end of the day. I guess we'll just have to wait and see what the official numbers are. The bad news is that we are expecting more snow on Tuesday . . . and I have a flight to take on Thursday! I'm keeping my fingers crossed and, hopefully, I'll be able to make it to Michigan for Valentine's Day!
Very few cocktails are as exquisite as Pisco Sour. It exudes a particular aroma, fragrance and a powerful presence. Yes . . . Pisco Sour is this and much more. It also happens to be Peru's flagship drink. And, as a well-deserved homage, the Peruvian Government (via its Ministry of Production through Supreme Decree Nº 161-2004-Produce) decided to institute "Pisco Sour Day" on the first Saturday of February since 2004. What is "Pisco Sour"?—you'll ask—A Pisco Sour is a cocktail containing Pisco (Peruvian grape brandy), lime juice, egg whites, "jarabe de goma" (similar to simple syrup), and regional bitters (like Amargo bitters, though Angostura bitters work if regional bitters are unavailable).
The origins of the drink can be traced back to the era of the Viceroyalty of Peru in the eighteenth century when Pisco used to be mixed with lime in bars adjacent to the bullring in downtown Lima, the country's capital city. But the first mention of Pisco Sour itself dates back to 1924 on a flyer promoting "Bar Morris" in Lima, which highlighted the cocktail as one of its specialties.
It was offered as a novel drink inspired by its counterpart, whisky sour, and was believed to have been first prepared by three Peruvian bartenders. On the other hand, in Jose Antonio Schiaffino's book "The origin of Pisco Sour" it is claimed the inventor of the recipe was Californian Victor V. Morris, the owner of Bar Morris. Now, if you're a tourist heading to Lima, interested in sampling the cocktail in the very premises where it was first served, you'll be a little bit disappointed: the bar that first opened its doors in 1915 has been closed since 1933.
But don't get disheartened that soon. Following the pioneering work that took place at Bar Morris, many of the more elegant hotels in Lima of that era started to imitate the drink, including "Hotel Maury" and the exclusive "Hotel Bolivar" on Plaza San Martin, which is still one of the most famous places in Lima to sip on a Pisco sour. It is said that the legendary American writer Ernest Hemingway holds the record for the most Pisco Sours consumed in one sitting there.
Of course, "Pisco Sour" wouldn't exist in the first place if it weren't for Pisco. In Peru, most types of Pisco belong to one of the four following categories: Pure, Aromatic, Green Must, and Acholado. Pure Pisco is made from a single grape variety, usually the traditional Quebranta grape. Aromatic Pisco is made from Muscat, or similar strains of grape, such as Torontel and Italia, which are closely related to Muscat. Production of Green Must Pisco incorporates the use of partially fermented must. Acholado Pisco, also known as Half-breed Pisco, is Pisco that is blended from more than one grape varietal.
I've posted here a two-part video “Pisco, Cultural Heritage of Peru” that walks you through the origins of Pisco.
And now, the famous recipe . . .
PISCO SOUR RECIPE FOR SHAKER
3 Parts (3 oz.) Pisco
1 Part (1 oz.) Fresh Lime Juice*
1 Part (1 oz.) "Jarabe de Goma"**
1 Egg White (or 1 tablespoon of pasteurized egg whites, which are available in most supermarkets)
1 Drop of Angostura Bitters
In shaker with 5 large ice cubes (not crushed ice), combine liquids adding egg whites last. Shake vigorously for 10-15 seconds. Strain into six ounce rocks glass (be careful not allow any ice to pour into the cocktail.
Ice is the enemy of a great Pisco Sour … it will melt and dilute the cocktail. Garnish with one drop Angostura Bitters (the one drop of bitters is for garnish only, do not stir into the Pisco Sour or you will affect the taste).
*To best match the taste of Peruvian limes (which are not available today in the U.S.) use limes from Mexico or Florida key limes when possible. Or you can use ½ lemon juice, and ½ Persian lime juice to replicate the taste of Peruvian lime juice.
** Superfine granulated sugar or simple syrup can be substituted for the "jarabe de goma" in any of these cocktails. If using sugar, use a little less than if using simple syrup.
PISCO SOUR RECIPE FOR BLENDER
(Makes approximately 6-8 servings)
Pour 1 and ½ cup of Pisco into a blender, followed by ½ cup lime juice (see note above regarding best ways to replicate Peruvian lime juice), and ¼ cup of "jarabe de goma" (or super fine sugar or simple syrup). Blend for 30 seconds until sugar is dissolved. Add 6-8 large ice cubes (do not use crushed ice) and add 2 egg whites (you can purchase pasteurized egg whites in a carton at most supermarkets…add about 2 tablespoons of pasteurized egg whites rather than fresh egg whites). Then blend for about 30 seconds. Pour into six ounce rocks’ glass. Allow to sit for 20 seconds until the frothy head forms on top of the Pisco Sour. Drop just one drop of angostura bitters on the center of foam. If made properly the one drop of bitters will form a bull’s eye in the middle of the foam. Do not stir the bitters into the cocktail as it will affect the taste, the drop of bitters is just for decoration.
I had always been curious about Limoncello—even the name sounds cool!—and, finally, had the chance to taste it for the first time three months ago. A friend from work, Sherry, invited me and another friend, Sandi, for dinner at her house. Sherry's and Sandi's birhtdays had been the day before. It was Halloween and kids kept knocking on the door for treats, even though it was pouring outside! We started the night with Mojitos, cheese and prosciutto, followed by the wonderful menu concocted by Sherry, complemented with a delicious red wine.
Photos at Sherry's house courtesy of Sandi
And then, after dessert, Sherry suggested we should try Limoncello . . .
Limoncello (or lemoncello) is an Italian lemon liqueur primarily produced in Southern Italy, mainly in the region around the Gulf of Naples, the Sorrentine Peninsula and the coast of Amalfi and islands of Procida, Ischia and Capri, but also in Sicily, Sardinia, Menton in France and the Maltese island of Gozo. Traditionally, it is made from the Sorrento lemon, though most lemons will produce satisfactory limoncello.
Limoncello is traditionally served chilled as an after dinner “digestivo” (digestif, which is an alcoholic beverage that is taken just after a meal, purportedly as an aid to digestion—hence the name). Along the Amalfi Coast, it is usually served in small ceramic glasses themselves often chilled, the Amalfi coast being a center of both ceramic and limoncello production. This tradition has been carried into other parts of Italy.
So . . . had you ever heard of it? I found out that you can easily make your own Limoncello at home. Of course, you can also buy it, but it's a little bit on the pricy side. There are many recipes online—and most of them come along with a story. I found this one (at "Living in the Boot" http://livingintheboot.squarespace.com/blog/2009/5/17/limoncello.html) particularly easy to follow. I'll just copy the recipe here, but you can click on the link to check the blog for photos and an interesting story.
Authentic Italian Limoncello 1 liter (1,000 ml) of Everclear alcohol (can be made with vodka, too, but not as authentic) 10 medium to large lemons - the best quality you can find 1 1/2 liters (1500 ml) of bottled water 3 lbs (6 cups) sugar
1. Wash the lemons with a vegetable brush and hot water to remove any dirt, pesticides or wax; pat dry. Using a good vegetable peeler, take all the lemon rind off, very carefully, avoiding any white pith which is bitter.
2. Place lemon peels in glass container with Everclear. Place in cool, dark place (where no kids can get a hold of it!) for 2 weeks.
3. After 2 weeks, place water and sugar in large saucepan, and bring to a fast simmer for about 15 minutes, until thickened some. Let simple syrup cool to room temperature. Strain lemon peels out of alcohol (it should be a lovely shade of yellow and the peels will be stripped of color), and add cooled syrup. Place in dark, cool spot again and let sit 1-2 weeks.
4. After second rest period, slowly filter alcohol through a coffee filter, to remove any residue, into a large pitcher. This takes time; just set up on counter and poor a little, walk away and let filter, come back add more, etc. This really helps "clean out" the limoncello. Place filtered limoncello in glass containers (rinsed liquor bottles work well) and freeze! Voilà!
Limoncello should be served out of the freezer, very cold, in a cold shot glass, sipped after a meal.
I also found recipes that included Limoncello in their ingredients:
Baker’s notes: This cake’s texture isn’t like that of a traditional pound cake (do to the amount of almond paste in it). I find it tastes best served the next day, after the limoncello has had a chance to completely soak in. I also like to serve the slices warm (a 15 second zap in the microwave does the trick). I highly recommend serving with whipped cream and fresh berries, but a dusting of powdered sugar will also do.
3/4 cup all purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 3/4 cup sugar 1/3 cup light olive oil (alternative: lemon-flavored olive oil) 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened 10 ounces almond paste (not marzipan), finely crumbled 2-3 tablespoons finely grated lemon peel 4 large eggs 1/3 cup limoncello liquer Whipped cream Assorted fresh berries
Preheat oven to 325° F. Butter and flour a 9-inch springform pan. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Using electric mixer, beat 3/4 cup sugar, oil and butter in large bowl until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes). Add the almond paste and lemon peel. Beat until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flour mixture; stir to blend. Transfer to prepared pan. Bake cake until golden brown on top and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Cool cake completely in pan on a rack. (Can be made one day ahead. Cover and store at room temperature). Remove pan sides from cake and transfer to serving plate. Poke holes all around top of cake with a wooden skewer and slowly brush the limoncello over the top, allowing it to completely soak in. Cut into wedges and serve with a dollop of whipped cream and fresh berries.
Ingredients:
500g ready-made shortcrust pastry zest and juice of 2 unwaxed lemons 4 tbsp double cream 100g pack ground almonds 5 eggs 100g butter , melted 8 tbsp limoncello liqueur 6 plums , stoned and cut into wedges 200g golden caster sugar Method: Roll out the pastry and use to line a loose-bottomed tart tin, 25cm diameter and about 3.5-4cm deep. Chill for at least half an hour.
Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Line the pastry with greaseproof paper, fill with baking beans and bake blind for 15 mins. Remove beans and paper.
Put the lemon zest and juice, cream, almonds, sugar, eggs and melted butter in a large bowl and whisk until smooth then stir in the limoncello.
Put the plums in the pastry case then pour the custard mixture over. Bake for about 20-30 mins until the custard is just set. Allow to cool then dredge with icing sugar before serving.
A verrine is a confection, originally from Paris, made by artfully layering ingredients in a small glass, and may be either savory or sweet. Very chic and trendy--this one is served in a shot-glass! Use the larger 2.5 to 3 ounce shotglasses, or use ramekins. Makes about 8 Verrines.
Ingredients:
* 1/4 cup fresh raspberry (optional)
* 1 teaspoon finely grated fresh lemon zest
* 1 cup prepared lemon curd
* 4 tablespoons limoncello (1 jigger plus 1 tablespoon)
* 1/4 cup mascarpone cheese
* 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
* 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
* fresh mint leaves, for garnish
Directions:
1. Rinse and drain raspberries, gently pat dry and set aside.
2. In a small bowl, stir together the lemon zest and the lemon curd. Stir in the Limoncello liqueur, whisking briskly until combined.
3. In a separate bowl, whip the cream until soft peaks form. Beat in the lemon extract. Fold in the mascarpone and stir gently; combine well.
4. In 8 large shot-glasses or ramekins, evenly and attractively layer the lemon curd mixture and the mascarpone mousse (use a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip, if desired).
5. Top with the fresh berries, and garnish with a mint leaf.
6. Chill until serving time.
It seems that lately I'm spending more time in Michigan than here in Virginia . . . wonder why . . . lol. After my last posting, I went back to visit Bobby that week because his birthday was on Friday, 15 January. We had a very nice time and did lots of stuff together. One of the things we've been doing lately--and enjoy a lot--is going to the Salvation Army thrift stores. I usually look for cat figurines, collectible boxes, kitchen thing-a-ma-jigs . . . and cooking books! On our last "scouring" I found three books worth taking home:
"The Perfect Dinner Party Cookbook" by Ceil Dyer
"Food Editors' Hometown Favorites-American Regional and Local Specialties" by Barbara Gibbs Ostmann and Jane Baker
"World Wide Cook Book-Menus and Recipes of 75 Nations" by Pearl V. Metzelthin
I'm very picky about cooking books--specially old ones--so, they really have to be "extra special" to catch my attention . . . and these three did! Book number 1 attracted me because of its unusual recipes--not your average weekday meals. It dwells more on the lost art of giving dinner parties and even suggests the right wine for every menu. "Anyone who has ever read Booth Tarkington's unforgettable Alice Adams knows that the overelaborate menus and the fussily decorated table are the twin evils of preasurable dining. However, simplicity does not mean starkness." The book is also full of interesting tips for menu and party planning. A formal Spring dinner serving eight--which "caught my eyes"--proposes the following menu:
Crabmeat Florentine
Chicken Breasts à l'Anglaise
Broccoli Ring with Fresh Peas, Tiny White Onions, and Pimentos
Watercress and Bibb Lettuce Salad with Crouton Dressing
Brie
Strawberries au Kirsch
Pecan Wafers
Wine: White Burgundy Meursault, lightly chilled
Book number 2 got my curiosity because I've always been interested in getting to know more about true american regional recipes. Every time I've asked around about typical dishes, people hasn't been able to name things other than meatloaf, barbecue ribs or southern fried chicken. And I knew there had to be more than that! Of course, along the years I got acquainted with things like New England clam chowder (love it!), fried catfish or walleye, key lime pie, potato salad, chicken-fried steak, red velvet cake, crab cakes, Cioppino, or Buffalo chicken wings, to name just a few. But . . . had you ever heard of recipes such as "Chicken Booyah" from Wisconsin, "Devonshire sandwiches" from Pittsburgh, or "Alligator rolls" from Missouri??? Not me, at least!
And, finally, book number 3 . . . for starters, it's a very old book--from 1944. I've always wanted to have cooking books from all over the world, and this book simply gave my taste buds a treat: recipes from 75 different countries or territories! I found recipes from Turkey--a country close to my heart because of my paternal grandmother--Japan, Bulgaria, Denmark, Brazil, Cuba, Egypt, Polynesia, Australia, Indo-China, "The Dark Continent" (Africa), Albania and many, many, many more places! The author tells that she got the idea for a book about the world's cookery and eating habits when she was a young bride stationed with a diplomat-husband in China (any resemblance to Julia Child's story?). How can you not like a book like this?
Well, it's almost midnight and I better get in bed now or, otherwise, I will never get up in time tomorrow for work!!! :)
I was born and raised in Lima, Peru, by a Catholic mother and a Jewish father . . . and attended a Methodist school! So, me and religion are like oil and vinegar! :)
As far as I can remember, I have always been in love with food and cooking. My mom and my paternal grandmother were fabulous cooks and I must have inherited my "cooking genes" from them!
