Category Archives: International Cuisine

International Cuisine: Orange Chicken

Posted by Stephanie in International Cuisine and tagged with , , , , ,

Orange Chicken isn’t an authentic Asian dish as far as I know, but you’ll find it in many take-out Chinese restaurants. Since take-out Chinese is not a part of our diet, I like to make my own take-out from time to time. This isn’t as gooey, rich, and breaded as you’ll likely find at your local eatery. But it’s tasty, definitely healthier, and best of all can be made at home.

This recipe is from one of my favorite gluten-free cookbooks, Artisanal Gluten-Free Cooking by Kelli and Peter Bronski. I added some crisp-cooked broccoli to the chicken and sauce and served it over brown rice.

ORANGE CHICKEN
(from Artisanal Gluten-Free Cookbook)
Print This Recipe

2/3 cup orange juice
1/4 cup tamari wheat-free soy sauce
1 Tablespoons dry sherry
1 Tablespoon + 1 teaspoon brown sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1-2 Tablespoons olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tablespoon minced fresh ginger
zest of 1/2 orange, julienned
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed

Mix together the orange juice, soy sauce, sherry, brown sugar, and cornstarch in a saucepan. Stir to dissolve the cornstarch. Heat over medium heat until the mixture comes to a boil and thickens, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat.

Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, ginger, and zest and sauté until fragrant. Add the chicken and sauté until browned and cooked through.

Add the orange sauce to the chicken and heat through.

International Cuisine: Stir-Fried Shrimp

Posted by Stephanie in International Cuisine and tagged with , , , ,

I’m a bit iffy about shrimp. The texture troubles me and I dislike cocktail sauce (the way shrimp is typically available to me); however, my husband likes shrimp. Thus my quest to find a shrimp recipe(s) that I enjoy. Aldi sells frozen bags of de-veined, peeled shrimp for under $4. I bought a bag of the medium-size and set out to find a recipe.

The Cooking Light website offered several recipes that sounded quite good, but for the sake of ingredients on hand, I tried the Stir-Fried Shrimp with Spicy Orange Sauce. I added a bag of frozen sugar snap peas and diced onion (didn’t have the green onions) and served it on a bed of vermicelli noodles. The flavor was delicious. The texture, I’ll continue to acquire. Overall, a success and a recipe I’d definitely consider making again and tweaking with additional veggies.

Bonus, this is easily made gluten-free, if you use gf soy sauce (La Choy brand is gf, also San-J wheat-free Tamari).

STIR-FRIED SHRIMP WITH SPICY ORANGE SAUCE
(slightly adapted from Cooking Light website)
Print This Recipe

1 1/2 pounds peeled, de-veined large shrimp
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
2 Tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
2 Tablespoons honey
1 Tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon chile paste with garlic (I added 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes and an extra clove of garlic)
2 Tablespoons canola oil
1 Tablespoon minced peeled fresh garlic
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup chopped green onions
frozen vegetables of choice (optional)

Place shrimp in a medium bowl. Sprinkle with cornstarch; toss to coat. Set aside.

Combine juice, soy sauce, honey, rice vinegar, and chile paste, stirring with a whisk. Set aside.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet or a wok over medium-high heat. Add the minced ginger and garlic; stir-fry for 15 seconds, until fragrant. Add shrimp mixture and any additional veggies of choice; stir-fry for 3 minutes. Add juice mixture and onions; cook 2 minutes or until the sauce thickens and shrimp is done, stirring frequently. Serve immediately over a bed of rice, vermicelli noodles, or stir-fried veggies.

Weekend Fare: Meat Piroshki

Posted by Alaina in International Cuisine, Weekend Fare and tagged with , , , , , , , , , ,

These tasty meat pies go by many names internationally. In Kazakhstan, you can find them being sold on the street corners and in bakeries – they are nearly always wonderful! These hearken back to bierocks that my husband enjoyed and pierogies that are traditional for our friends. Whatever the name, these are great for travel, for making ahead, and for freezing. I think they would be really good with some cabbage or other vegetables in them as well.

MEAT PIROSHKI
adapted from Cooking for Kaz: Meals for Hope, Volume 2
Print This Recipe

 Meat Filling:
1 med. onion, diced
1 T. oil or butter
8 oz. ground beef
salt & pepper to taste
pinch of nutmeg
fresh herbs (opt.)
1 egg

Brown the onion and ground beef together with oil or butter if needed. Add seasonings. Allow to cool. Add egg. Stuff in piroshiki dough as described below.

Dough:
1 ½ tsp. dried yeast
pinch of sugar
5 Tb. warm water
5 Tb. butter, softened
1 lb. (about 4 c.) flour
1 tsp. salt
8 T. milk
2 eggs, beaten

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Dissolve yeast and a sugar in the warm water. Mix in the softened butter, flour, salt, milk, and eggs. Knead into smooth dough (I let my mixer do the kneading). Leave to rise until it has doubled in volume. Punch down. Roll out dough until quite thin. Cut out in small circles and brush the inner edges with milk. Stuff with filling and fold into semi-circle or canoe shape. Bake for 10 minutes until golden brown.

International Cuisine: Chrov Plov

Posted by Alaina in International Cuisine and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , ,

My oldest two sons were born in Kazakhstan. We feel so blessed to have the chance to celebrate and explore another culture. And we truly love the country, people, and food (!) of Kazakhstan. March 22 marked the Kazakh New Year (Nauryz) and so we enjoyed celebrating with friends and eating some traditional dishes. This was one of my absolute favorites but I will be sharing four different recipes throughout the coming weeks – they were all delicious.

The recipes were adapted from Cooking for Kaz: Meals for Hope, Volume 2 – my mom and I both have recipes in the book as well as many other talented cooks (how is that for a shameless promo! :) ). Please feel free to check it out – the fundraiser is put on by Two Hearts for Hope and all proceeds from the sales of the cookbook benefit orphans in Kazakhstan. And the cookbook features many different types of recipes in addition to several Kazakh recipes.

CHROV PLOV
adapted from Cooking for Kaz: Meals for Hope, Volume 2
Print This Recipe

1 c. rice, uncooked
¼ c. almonds, chopped
2 T. currants
2 T. raisins
6 dried prunes
3 T. dates, chopped
4 T. butter
¼ c. dried apricots, cut into strips
1 T. honey
2 c. water

Soak dates, currant and prunes in warm water for 15 minutes. Remove and pat dry, mix with apricots and raisins. Melt the butter in a large skillet over high heat and add the fruit mixture and almonds. Reduce the heat to low and stir for four minutes. Stir in the honey, rice, and water. Raise heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce to low, cover and simmer for 25 minutes, serve hot.

*I very successfully made this in my rice cooker by adding the sautéed fruit, almonds, butter, and honey to the rice and water in the cooker.

International Cuisine: Chipotle Mexican Meatballs

Posted by Stephanie in International Cuisine, Simple Suppers and tagged with , , , , ,

The other evening I had a flash of inspiration and wondered why there are Italian meatballs and Swedish meatballs and Greek meatballs, but no Mexican meatballs. So, I set out to make Mexican meatballs spiced with the smokey flavor of chipotle chile powder.

Not too spicy, with definite Mexican flavor, I wrapped these little meatballs in a soft corn tortilla, nestled on a bed of sautéed peppers and onions, topped with a bit of cheese, tomatoes, and guacamole. I call these Fajita Meatball Tacos (or something like that!).

CHIPOTLE MEXICAN MEATBALLS
Print This Recipe

1 lb ground beef
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp dried cilantro flakes
1/2-3/4 tsp chipotle chile powder
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
splash of milk

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Mix all of the ingredients together and thoroughly work the spices into the meat (you may need to use freshly washed hands to do this).

Scoop 1-inch meatballs (or your preferred meatball size) onto a foil lined baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes, or until cooked through.

Make into tacos or taco salad.

International Cuisine: Mongolian Beef & Broccoli

Posted by Alaina in International Cuisine and tagged with , , , ,

My dad loves Asian food and over time, most of us have to come to share that love. It’s one of my favorite comfort foods and I really like that it makes the perfect relaxed evening or can be dressed up for a nicer dinner. While I thoroughly enjoy take-out, it’s also a lot of fun to make Asian dishes at home! Perhaps one of my first favorite dishes (beside Sweet & Sour Chicken) is Mongolian Beef. Today, I’m sharing a recipe that I adapted and we enjoyed. Just make sure to choose a tender cut of beef and thinly slice it.

MONGOLIAN BEEF & BROCCOLI
Print This Recipe

2 tsp. vegetable or canola oil 
1 tsp. fresh ginger, minced 
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 c. soy sauce
1/2 c. water
1/4-1/2 c. brown sugar
vegetable oil, for frying
1 lb. flank steak
1/4 c. cornstarch
1 lg. head of broccoli florets
4 large green onions

Make the sauce by heating 2 tsp of vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over med/low heat. Don’t get the oil too hot. Add ginger and garlic to the pan; add the soy sauce and water before the garlic scorches. Dissolve the brown sugar in the sauce, then raise the heat to about medium and boil the sauce for 2-3 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Remove it from the heat.

Slice the steak against the grain into 1/4″ thick slices. Dip the steak pieces into the cornstarch. Let the beef sit for about 10 minutes so that the cornstarch sticks. As the beef sits, heat up about one cup of oil in a wok. Heat the oil over medium heat until it’s nice and hot, but not smoking.

Add the beef to the oil and sauté for just two minutes, or until the beef just begins to darken on the edges. After a couple minutes, use a large slotted spoon to take the meat out and onto paper towels, then add the broccoli and saute until tender crisp (about 3 min.). Remove broccoli and pour out excess oil. The add the meat and broccoli back into the wok and simmer for about one minute. Add the sauce, cook for one minute while stirring, then add all the green onions. Cook for one more minute. Serve over rice.

International Cuisine: Polish Dishes

Posted by Alaina in International Cuisine and tagged with , , , , , , , , , ,

We thoroughly enjoy trying different cuisines. I have yet to find one that I don’t like! It keeps food interesting, creates new ideas for flavor combinations, and expands the palates of my three sons. Last week, we spent time studying the country of Poland and whenever we focus on a country, we try to make at least one dish native to that area. This time we made two and both were delicious!

POTATOES BAKED with EGGS & CREAM (adapted slightly from this site)
Print This Recipe

2 Tb. butter, melted
3 c. potatoes, diced & cooked
salt & pepper to taste
2 eggs, beaten
1 c. sour cream (I subbed some yogurt)
2 Tb. chives or spring onions, chopped (I was out of both so I used a little dried parsley)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour butter into the bottom of an oven proof casserole. Add potatoes and season with salt and pepper. Mix together the eggs and sour cream and pour over potatoes. Top with chives or onions, cover and bake for 1 hour.

SAVOURY SAUSAGE & SAUERKRAUT (adapted slightly from this site)
Print This Recipe

2 Tb. butter
1 medium onion, chopped
¼ c. green peppers, chopped
1 lg. apple, peeled, cored, & chopped
2 Tb. brown sugar
½ tsp. caraway or fennel seeds
3 red potatoes, cleaned & diced
1 ½ c. sauerkraut, drained, rinsed, & packed
1-2 lb. smoke sausage (kielbasa), cut in 3-inch pieces

Melt butter in saucepan. Add onion and green pepper. Cook until tender. Add apple, brown sugar, caraway seeds, potatoes, and sauerkraut. Mix well. Place sausage on top of sauerkraut mixture. Cover. Cook over medium-low heat for 40 minutes.

Guest Post: International Cuisine

Posted by The Cooks Next Door in Guest Post, International Cuisine

We are so pleased to welcome Sarah Bailey as a guest blogger today. She is a recently married writer who aspires to be home chef extraordinaire! Her international recipes look wonderful and we are glad to have her join us this week!

______________________________________________

Greetings, fellow foodies. By day, I am online editor for Christianity Today magazine and blog 2-3 times a week at GetReligion.org. By night, I turn into a wannabee foodie, like many aspiring cooks in America. And in my spare time, I read books and magazines, play board games with friends, and pick up the violin/viola.

Last year, I married my college boyfriend and moved to Green Bay where beer, brats, and cheese create the perfect Wisconsin dish. I grew up with a love for baking because–let’s be honest–that’s where cooks tend to get the glowing reviews. Cooking was something that just had to be done to survive, but a few circumstances created the perfect storm for my relatively recent excitement for the culinary arts. Michael Pollan’s In Defense of Food eloquently argues for the value of food as more than energy, Julia Child’s My Life in France offered an inspiration for cooking, and regularly reading and reviewing recipes on sites like allrecipes.com helped me adapt recipes to my tastes. Finally, armed with new kitchen toys (wedding gifts), I became queen of my own kitchen after sharing a fridge and garage-sale utensils for so long. Sites like thecooksnextdoor.com also combined my love for blogs and cooking, giving me an extra appetite to continue my culinary experiences.

A few months ago, some of my friends and I signed up for a weekly international cooking class to expand my cooking horizons. Intimidated by the thought of handling foods I had never seen before, I was pleasantly surprised by the lineup that ranged from your average Greek salad to the French creme brulee. Each week, we focused on one particular cuisine–Thai, German, French, and Greek–and cooked everything from the appetizers to the main courses to desserts, to get an idea of what buffet style might look in that particular country. When the course was over, we held a dinner party where each of us made two items from the course. I chose the French Clafouti and the Mediterranean chicken and fennel with couscous.

FRENCH CLAFOUTI
(Adapted from Ina Garten)

1 Tb. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/3 c. plus 1 Tb. granulated sugar
3 eggs, at room temperature
6 Tb. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
2 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. grated lemon zest
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
2 Tb. brandy
2 to 3 firm but ripe pears
Confectioners’ sugar (to sprinkle on top)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Butter a 10-inch round baking dish and sprinkle the bottom and sides with 1 Tb. of the granulated sugar. Shake out the extra sugar.

Beat the eggs and the 1⁄3 cup of granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. On low speed, mix in the flour, cream, vanilla extract, lemon zest, salt, and brandy. Set aside for 10 minutes.

Peel, quarter, core, and slice the pears. Circle the pears around the baking dish. Pour the batter over the pears and bake until the top is golden brown and the custard is firm, 35 to 40 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature, sprinkled with confectioners’ sugar.

MEDITERRENEAN  CHICKEN & FENNEL w/COUSCOUS
(Adapted from the Food Network)

4 to 6 chicken thighs (about 1 1/2 pounds), bone in with skin
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
2 Tb. extra-virgin olive oil
1 small bulb fennel, halved, cut into 1/2-inch wedges, fronds reserved
1 small red onion, sliced into thin wedges
4 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup oil packed sun-dried tomatoes, roughly chopped
1/3 cup kalamata olives

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 450 degrees F. Season the chicken thighs generously with salt and pepper. Heat a large ovenproof skillet (I used a cast-iron skillet) over medium-high heat, add oil, and heat until shimmering. Cook chicken skin side down until golden and crispy, about 8 minutes. Turn chicken and brown for another 2 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate. Pour off 1 Tb. of the pan drippings and reserve; leave just enough oil in the skillet to cover the bottom, discard the rest.

Add the fennel, onions, garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes to the skillet and cook until the vegetables just begin to wilt, about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and olives. Arrange the chicken, skin side up, on top of the vegetable mixture and bake, uncovered, until the chicken is cooked through, about 20 to 30 minutes.

COUSCOUS:
1 1⁄2 cups uncooked couscous
3 cups chicken broth
1 tsp. kosher salt, plus additional for seasoning
Pinch nutmeg
Pinch cayenne pepper
Freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup pine nuts
1 orange, zested
1/4 cup roughly chopped or whole flat-leaf parsley
2 to 3 Tb. water or chicken broth

Rinse the couscous in a sieve under cold water until the water runs clear. Put the couscous into a medium bowl and set aside. In a small saucepan add the chicken broth, reserved drippings, the 1 tsp. salt, nutmeg, cayenne, and black pepper and bring to a boil. Add the broth to the couscous and cover with plastic wrap, setting aside until the liquid has been absorbed, about 5 minutes.

Toast the pine nuts in a small skillet over medium-high heat, tossing in the pan until golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes (be sure to keep them from burning). Add the orange zest, fennel fronds, and parsley to the couscous.

When ready to serve, fold the parsley mixture into the couscous and fluff with a fork. Mound the couscous on a warm serving platter and arrange the chicken around the couscous. Stir 2 to 3 tablespoons water or broth into the fennel mixture for a glazed look. Adjust seasoning and spoon fennel over the couscous and chicken; scatter the toasted pine nuts on top.

International Cuisine: Sabse Borani

Posted by Alaina in International Cuisine and tagged with , , , ,

I know, I know,  I said it would be market fresh but a girl can change her mind, right? My boys and I made this yummy dish last week during our study of Afghanistan. I found the recipe online and we all loved it! I served it on naan and as much as I would love to impress you and say that I made the wonderful onion naan, it would be a lie….it was a mix. There, I admitted it. :) It worked out great and since my kiddos were helping, it made the process more age appropriate for them. Perhaps the making of naan from scratch will occur one of these days. In the mean time, this was easy and fabulous.


Sabse Borani
Print This Recipe

4 cups fresh spinach leaves, chopped
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 cup lightly drained plain yogurt (drain about 1 hr – easiest method is to place the yogurt in a coffee filter and let stand)

Place damp spinach in a skillet and cook until wilted (can cover). Drain and squeeze to remove excess water. Heat oil in a large skillet, sauté onion at low heat until golden, add garlic and sauté briefly, then add spinach, and cook for a minute or two more. Let cool. In a bowl, smooth yogurt and add spinach mixture. Season with salt and pepper.

Delicious! We love it on the naan - kind of  like a pizza!

Off The Shelf: August Magazines

Posted by The Cooks Next Door in International Cuisine, Off the Shelf and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

It’s so fun browsing the various food magazines we receive in the mail and then deciding which ones will make the cut and what recipes we will try. It gives us a chance to try things maybe we wouldn’t and to enjoy our subscriptions. So here are our picks for this month!

Saveur (Alaina) – This magazine features Greek food which I love! I thoroughly enjoy this publication – it has interesting articles about travel, food, techniques and more. It perhaps does not have as many recipes as some of the more well-known cooking magazines but the recipes they feature are excellent. I like that they choose a theme (or a couple of themes) and include several recipes that tie into that theme.

It was tough choosing the recipe I wanted to try, so I made two.  The first I already mentioned a couple of weeks ago – a Greek Salad. The second was this Greek Lasagne. It was wonderful! I’m not generally a big casserole fan but I loved this – it was a little time consuming but so worth it. The flavors and textures worked so well together. It made alot – I served 4 adults and 3 kids and still had half a casserole left which we enjoyed as leftovers. This recipe would be excellent for the occasions that you take a meal to someone.


GREEK LASAGNE (PASTITSIO) - Saveur, August 2010
Print This Recipe
FOR THE MEAT SAUCE:
1⁄3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 green bell peppers, cored, seeded, and minced
2 medium yellow onions, minced
1 lb. ground beef, veal, or pork
3 oz. dry-cured chorizo, minced
2 cups canned crushed tomatoes
1⁄3 cup red wine
1⁄4 tsp. crushed red chile flakes
2 fresh or dried bay leaves
1  2″ cinnamon stick
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper,  to taste
Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
FOR THE BÉCHAMEL AND PASTA:
8 tbsp. unsalted butter
1 cups  flour
4 cups milk
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 eggs, separated
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
1lb. No. 2 Greek macaroni, bucatini, or elbow macaroni
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1. Make the meat sauce: Heat oil in a 12″ skillet over medium-high heat. Add peppers and onions and cook, stirring often, until soft, 8–10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer onion mixture to a plate and set aside. Add ground meat and chorizo to skillet and cook, breaking meat up into tiny pieces, until browned, 6–8 minutes. Add reserved onion mixture, along with tomatoes, wine, chile flakes, bay leaves, and cinnamon and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring often, until sauce thickens, about 15 minutes. Remove sauce from heat, discard bay leaves and cinnamon, and season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg; let cool.
2. Make the béchamel: Heat butter in a 4-qt. saucepan over medium-high heat. Add flour and cook, whisking constantly, until smooth and slightly toasted, 1–2 minutes. Add milk; cook, whisking often, until sauce coats the back of a spoon, 8–10 minutes. Remove from heat, add 3⁄4 cup cheese and egg yolks; season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Stir until smooth; set aside.
3. Heat oven to 350°. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil; add pasta and cook halfway through, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk egg whites in a large bowl until frothy. Stir in remaining cheese; drain pasta in a colander and then toss with egg white–cheese mixture to coat evenly. Set aside.
4. Grease a deep 9″ x 13″ baking dish with olive oil. Place half the pasta mixture on bottom of dish and cover evenly with meat sauce. Top with remaining pasta mixture. Pour béchamel over pasta, spreading it evenly with a rubber spatula. Bake until the top is golden brown, about 1 hour. Transfer to wire rack; cool 20 minutes before serving.
SERVES 10 – 12

Bon Appetit (Alaina) – Yum. That describes this entire issue. I was especially tempted by their many desserts – just look at the cover! Even my 2 year old was taken by this issue and insisted on looking at it several times and pointing out the photos of delicious looking food while saying, “Mmm!”
This is an issue I will hang on to and hopefully make many more of the recipes. I chose to make the Sour Cream Pound Cake w/Lavendar Peaches. Cooking with lavendar is new to me and so I really wanted to give this a try. And the verdict is – go.make.this.recipe. It was so summery and absolutely delicious. Halfway through the recipe as I was making the lavendar simple syrup and I was a little nervous – it smelled so floral. But by the end, with the peaches infused into the syrup, the result was a perfect balance of fruit and floral. And let’s not forget the cake – with vanilla bean and sour cream, it was moist and flavorful. I will definitely cook with lavendar again!

SOUR CREAM POUND CAKE w/LAVENDAR PEACHES – Bon Appetit, August 2010
Print This Recipe

CAKE
3/4 c. plus 1 Tb. flour
1/4 c. cornstarch
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. fine sea salt
3/4 c. sugar
10 Tb. unsalted butter, room temperature
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
1 lg. egg
1 lg. egg white
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 c. sour cream

Preheat oven to 325. Butter a metal loaf pan (8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 3/4 inch). Dust pan with flour; tap out excess. Sift 3/4 c. plus 1 Tb. flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt into medium bowl. Combined sugar and butter in large bowl; scrape in seeds from vanilla bean (reserve bean for lavender syrup). Using electric mixer, beat sugar mixture until fluffy. Add egg, egg white, and vanilla extract; beat until mixture is pale and thick, about 2 minutes. Beat in sour cream. Add flour mixture; beat just until blended. Spread batter evenly in prepared pan.

Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, 56-58 minutes. Cool in pan on rack 15 minutes. Turn cake out, then turn top side up. Cool completely. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Wrap in foil and store at room temperature.)

LAVENDER SYRUP & PEACHES
1 1/2 c. sugar
3 Tb. dried lavender blossoms
4 medium firm but ripe peaches, pitted, cut into 3/4-inch wedges
3 Tb. fresh lemon juice
1 c. chilled heavy whipping cream

Combine 2 1/4 c. water, sugar, lavender, and reserved vanilla bean in saucepan. Boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat; cover and let steep 10 minutes. Strain syrup into medium bowl; discard lavender. Pour 2 Tb. lavender syrup into small bowl; reserve for whipped cream. Cover and chill. Return remaining syrup to same saucepan; add peaches and lemon juice and bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer about 5 minutes. Transfer peaches to bowl. Boil syrup in pan until reduced to 1 c., 12-14 minutes (it took longer for me). Pour over peaches. Chill uncovered 2 hours.

Beat cream and 2 Tb. reserved syrup in medium bowl to soft peaks. Slice cake. Serve with peaches, syrup, and cream.
Cooking Light (Heather): The August edition is a thick, summer issue with plenty of good ideas. We tried the Sweet and Spicy Citrus Tilapia and it was so very good. I don’t cook a lot of fish, but this recipe makes me want to put it on our menu more often. It was easy and delicious and everyone had clean plates.
I also tried their recipe for Quick and Easy Pickles and a huge jar is sitting in my refrigerator right now. It was a great way to use garden surplus (it works for cucumbers and zucchini!).
Summer Squash and Corn Chowder is on my list of things to make — it looks so delicious in the magazine picture and would be a great way to use up extra corn and squash!
The issue is very festive with page after page of summer food. Many of the recipes are a bit more gourmet than I would make, but they are fun to look through and there are a handful of really good and useful recipes for the average cook.

SWEET AND SPICY CITRUS TILAPIA
(Cooking Light, August 2010)
Print this recipe

4 (6-ounce) tilapia fillets
cooking spray
1/2 cup fresh orange juice (about 1 orange)
3 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
1 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp. lower sodium soy sauce
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. ground red pepper
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 tsp. paprika
Arrange fish in a single layer in a shallow roasting pan coated with cooking spray. Combine orange juice and next 9 ingredients (through garlic); pour over fish. Let stand 15 minutes.
Preheat broiler. Sprinkle fish with paprika; broil 15 minutes or until desired degree of doneness. Drizzle sauce over fish. Serves 4.
NOTE: I didn’t have any orange juice in the house (and Alaina didn’t either!) so I had to improvise: I removed the brown sugar and put in about 3 Tbsp. of orange marmalade to replace the orange juice and brown sugar. It was perfect!
  Martha Stewart Living (Heather): We don’t often include Martha Stewart magazine because it’s not exclusively a food magazine. However, this month it included the most amazing summer recipe that is also extremely easy — all it takes is time to boil the pasta and you are finished!

Tomato and Basil Pasta is the pasta version of Caprese Salad. If you love that salad, you will love this pasta. My kids loved it too. We’ve made it twice and it is on the menu for this week again. You could also add some Kalamata olives to dress it up a bit.

TOMATO AND BASIL PASTA
(Martha Stewart, August 2010)
Print this recipe
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/2 tsp. coarse salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 pound cooked short pasta
4 medium tomatoes
1 pound fresh mozzarella cheese
basil leaves

Combine olive oil, garlic cloves, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Toss in cooked and drained pasta. Tear tomatoes and mozzarella and scatter over pasta. Garnish with basil leaves and sprinkle with pepper. Serves 4.