A smooth and yummy herbs and leeks soup

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 2 lbs of potatoes (about 6 medium potatoes)
• 2 leeks
• 4 twigs of fresh tarragon
• 1 bunch of parsley
• 2 chicken stock cubes (vegetable stock ok too)
• 4 cups milk
• pepper, to taste
• 2 tbsp butter

Wash, slice and cut the leeks
Cook covered in a large pot for 5 minutes with the butter
Then add the potatoes (diced so they cook faster), chopped parsley and tarragon, chicken stock cube and the milk (add a fifth cup for a thinner soup)
Add pepper to taste (the chicken stock is quite salty already).
Simmer for 15-20 minutes

puree everything using a blender

Overall, it took a bit longer than the 15 minutes Anne mentioned (but she may have it down better than I do)

Yields about 10 cups of soup

Advertisement: Everyday Italian 125 Simple and Delicious Recipes

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2008. | Permalink | No comment

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under Recipes, Soups.

Home Recipes new look

DarkZen also has this minimalist look I liked in Simpla. I may still make a few tweaks here and there over the next few days, but overall, I’m quite pleased with the results

What do you think?

Advertisement: Everyday Italian 125 Simple and Delicious Recipes

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2008. | Permalink | One comment

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under News.

The logos are at http://99designs.com/contests/10271

Please leave a comment below or use the Contact me page.

Thanks!

Advertisement: First ever Michelin Restaurant Guide for San Francisco and its region (32%off)

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2008. | Permalink | No comment

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under News, wine.

If you have not been able to access the site, I do apologize and it should now be fixed. If this happens to anyone else, here’s a piece of the offending script (in the header).

<script LANGUAGE="JavaScript">
<!--
function Decode(){var temp="",i,c=0,out="";var str="60!115!99

Back to cooking now. And if anyone what has been up to, and no new post, it is not that I have lost interest. I have just been busy with lots of other projects, including a new barbecue

So more to come, hopefully later this year…

Cheers,
Pascal.

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2008. | Permalink | 2 comments

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under News.

The site is very easy to use and has a bunch of different modules to create a lens (that’s really a page) about any subject you’d like.

Squidoo also includes lots of lenses about recipes.

Oh, almost forgot: Happy New Year!!!

Advertisement: Everyday Italian 125 Simple and Delicious Recipes

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2007. | Permalink | No comment

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under News, wine.

This is just plain and simple not acceptable behavior. Period.

Brad nails it when he says:

Kathy?s story sealed it for me ? reputation and trust are at a tipping point and are an issue that is going to have to be dealt with in 2007.

I agree.

And before someone mentions it, no, censorship is not the solution here.

Seth once said:

Have you ever noticed that people you know are far less likely to cut you off in traffic, curse at you, or steal your parking space than treal strangers seem to be? There?s a reason: Anonymity is the enemy of civility.

(From Small is the new Big)

Maybe it?s time we bring civility back, don?t you think?

Kathy, hang in there! We are here to help.

(crossed posted from my other blog)

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2007. | Permalink | No comment

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under News.

Once I have pictures, I’ll be posting a few key recipes (for next year!), and just throw my own opinion on how to cook a turkey. Can’t have too many choices…

I just added a new widget (WP-PostRatings) so you now get to vote on each recipe. I look forward to find out which recipes you like best! To vote is very easy, just click on the 1st, 2nd, …5th start (5 is best!) and that’s automatically updated.

It looks like with Thankgivings, my take on Deviled Eggs has been very popular over the past few days

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2006. | Permalink | 2 comments

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under Recipes.

Roasted garlic is really something special. The roasting will softened the taste, almost to the point where it becomes sweet (the sugar caramelizes) while intensifying its distinctive flavor.

And even though it takes a while to cook (about 90 minutes), it is well worth the wait!

Ingredients:

- One garlic bulb

- a teaspoon of olive oil

- salt and pepper

To get started, cut off the first 1/2 inch of the top the garlic bulb, so that it will be easy to spoon off the garlic later on (see picture above).

Put in a pan, drizzle with the olive oil, add salt and pepper and cover.

Place in a cold oven and set the temperature at 350F for 45 minutes

Uncover and bake for an other 45 minutes

If you have one of these special terra cotta garlic baker, use it, otherwise, you can use a pyrex pan, and use aluminum foil to cover it for the first 45 minutes.

Variation: you can add a teaspoon of white wine at the same time you put the olive oil.
This is ideal as the base for many recipes. Or as an apetizer with the right spoon, or as a spread if you puree it.

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2006. | Permalink | No comment

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under Appetizers, Featured, Recipes.

Here’s a partial list of the top rated restaurants.

3 stars

• The French Laundry, in vacaville. Chef: Thomas Keller. Their website.

The French Laundry does not need an introduction, especially if you live around here. Extremely difficult to get a reservation. I bet it is going to be impossible now!

2 stars

• Aqua, in San Francisco. Chef: Laurent Manrique. No website?!
• Cyrus, Headlsburg. Chef: Douglas Keane. Their website.
• Manresa, Los Gatos. Chef: David Kinch. Their website.
• Michael Mina, San Francisco. Chef: Michael Mina. Their website.

I’m surprised, and delighted at the same time that Manresa, litterally right in my backyard got 2 stars. I guess I’ll have to pay them a visit soon!

1 star

Here’s a notable selection, either because I’ve eaten there, or heard about them directly. For the full list, see the Michelin site. The full list includes 29 restaurants.

• Bistro Jeanty. Yountville. Chef: Philippe Jeanty. Their website. Nice Bal Musette on their website
• Chez Panisse: Berkeley. Chef Alice Waters. Their website. Across the bay. I’ve been wanting to go for a long time. One more reason to.
• Chez TJ. Mountain View. Chef: Christopher Kostow . Their website. I can’t believe I walked by so many times, with barely a second look. Oh well. It is not too late to fix that.
• Fleur de Lys. San Francisco. Chef: Hubert Keller. Their website. Best foie gras I ever had!
• La Folie. San Francisco. Chef: Roland Passot . Their website. Not only is the food exquisite, but it looks so good you can’t be sure whether you should only be looking at it, or dive in!

Hats off to all of you!

You can get the Michelin SF Guide from Amazon, or get the list on the Michelin site. The guide includes review from a lots more restaurants, and if some did not get stars, but are still worth a detour!

Advertisement: Barefoot Contessa Parties! Ideas and Recipes for Easy Parties That Are Really Fun

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2006. | Permalink | No comment

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under News.

Estelle, from My French Cuisine just tagged me for this meme started by Melissa of The Traveler’s Lunchbox.
First I was surprised, and I guess, yes, somewhat pleased that Estelle, one of my favorite food blog reads thought of me. But then PANIC struck! I could not come up with 2 things, let alone 5! That was this morning, and after a busy day, and fortunately, after reading Estelle’s contribution, ideas started pouring in, but then I had to chose…

Anyway, to make a long story short, here are my top 5 choices, in no particular order (It was hard enough to come up with the list that you should not expect me choose too, right?)

Bouillabaisse: a Mediterranean delicacy. This is a fish stew with small rock fishes with very picturesque names such as rascasse with head, saint-pierre, baudroie; grondin rouge, rouget (yes, that can mean lots of fish bones, but trust me, this is just worht it) not to forget the Rouille (a Mayonnaise based sauce with garlic and chili pepper). A very good recipe is available here and here.

Fois Gras: I’ve already covered under Serving Foie Gras and this one is a no brainer. And while you are at it, you should also try a pan fried fresh fois gras. This is literally to die for! If you are near San Francisco, there are 2 places you want to check out: Cielo in Big Sur (and while you are at it, be sure to stay at Ventana Inn for a few days, you’ll be glad you did :)), 20 miles south of Carmel and Fleur de Lys in San Francisco (and in Las Vegas too apparently, although I don’t know if they do serve fresh foie gras).

Ratatouille: A very simple dish, made primarily with eggplants, zucchinis, peppers (optionally), tomatoes and lots of garlic. This is dish from Provence in the South of France and is actually very easy to make. Just peel and slices all the vegetables, add some olive oil and garlic, and cook till everything is very tender. Such a delight!

Soupe de Pistou: an other specialty from Provence. This is a soup, which main ingredient is basil. Add some tomatoes, white beans, green beans, red beans, potatoes, zucchinis, celery, olive oil and lots of garlic. And to garnish, loads of Parmesan cheese, gruyere (real swiss cheese), and some more garlic. Something to look forward to every summer!

Omelette de la Mere Poulard: This is a very unique experience, and something you can only have in one place in the world: the Mont Saint Michel, right in between Brittany and Normandy, on the north western part of France. This is an age old recipe and makes an “ordinary omelette” taste like nothing else you’ve had before, so be sure to try it. (Legend has it that this has something to do with preparing the yolk and whites separately…). Mont Saint Michel is worth a visit, just by itself, and you should plan to spend a few days there as well!

And close seconds, and definitely worth a mention in case you have enough time:
- Prosciutto
- Magret de Canard (duck breast)
- Cassoulet (from the south-west of France)
- Tarte Tatin

My mouth is now watering, just to think about all this!

And now, I’m very curious to find out what some of my favorite food bloggers have to say:

Carolyn of 18th Century Cuisine
Elise of Simply Recipes
Ilva of Lucullian Delights - An Italian Experience
Kalyn of Kalyn’s Kitchen
Sam of Becks & Posh
Stacey of Just Braise
Michael of Cooking for Engineers
Rorie of Milk and Honey

You can also go to Melissa’s blog and enter your 5 things to eat before you die list, or add a link to your post, or feel free to leave your list here!

Enjoy!

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2006. | Permalink | 6 comments

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under News, Recipes.

Bigmista of The Survival Gourmet brings us a variation of a holiday favorite: Brandied Sweet Potato Casserole. This is a bit different from the same old candied yams that most folks serve for Christmas. Read it to find out why.

Carol likes easy uncomplicated recipes and hope her recipe is a blessing for busy people and qualifies this as one of the easiest cakes she’s ever made.

• bake two layers of gold cake mix.
• cool completely.
• place first layer on cake plate with a rim
• spoon 1 can crushed pineapple in its own juice over this layer.
• pour the remaining juice over this layer.
• place second layer on top of the first layer to which you’ve add the crushed pineapple and repeat the first step.
• whip 2, boxes of heavy whipping cream to which you’ve added a pinch of salt, some vanilla(1 tsp.) and some sugar sweetened to taste.
• frost the 2 layers with the heavy whipped cream.
• chill for about 4 hours or overnight.
• serve slices and get ready for the praise for the delicious treat.this is easy, delicious, and can be lethal for some.

DeputyHeadmistress of The common room surprises us with Meatloaf for a crowd. Meatloaf for a crowd with a Teriaky sauce and pork rinds in lieu of breadcrumb crumbs. Find out why!

Shawn Lea, of Everything And Nothing and Carnival of the Recipes organizer extraordinaire makes Pulled Pork Barbecue for a “slow cooked pork so tender it is falling away from the bone”.

triticale - the wheat / rye guy stops in a gas station, answers the call of the “junk food section” and after a chance encounter with a tastier than expected “cream cheese cake” prompted his wife to come up with Cream Cheese Pound Cake.

Next is Focaccia, which comes to us from Kicking Over My Traces. Focaccia is an Italian flat yeast-bread with herbs and a cheese topping and is also a great way to use up leftover mashed potatoes.

Riannan, of In the Headlights brings us Potato Dumplings. That’s a yummy treat, just don’t be afraid of getting every pot, pan and utensil in the kitchen dirty. Aren’t you glad you have a deal where the person who cooks doesn’t have to do the dishes? You do have such a deal in place, right?

A Weight Lifted treats us with Summer Stuffed Bell Peppers. A very colorful dish (when you use green, red and yellow peppers) and you can use tomatoes as well for some “Tomates farcies” (Stuffed Tomatoes)

Amy from MotherLoad: The MomAdvice Blog has a weekly feature called “Sunday Supper”, and as part of the series, she shares Chicken Tonight, a slow cooked Chicken Italiano.

Keewee of Keewee’s corner put her new 6 quart slow cooker to good use to minimize the time she spends in the kitchen during this hot weather. Check out her Cranberry Pork Roast.

Men in Aprons delights us with Camarones Del Diablo(Shrimp Diablo). Lots of garlic, black pepper and Hot Sauce for a spicy dish!

Joel, of Disease Proof brings us 2 healthy recipes with Quinoa (I must admit I had to look it up and will try it). Head over to Get Your Quinoa On.

Trent, a.k.a The Skinny Kid is making Jambalaya for this week’s edition of the Carnival of Recipes.

And to conclude this week’s Carnival, and to help quench your thirst from the hot weather, Baboon Pirate delivers on a number of Summertime Drinks. I think I’ll have a Tequila Sunrise soon! What will you have?

If you have a Home Business, or thinking of starting one, check out the first edition of the Carnival of Home Business.

Stay cool!

The next Carnival is going to be hosted by Men in Aprons. You can send recipes or links to recipe.carnival@gmail.com by noon CST on Saturday. If you wish to host a future Carnival send a message to the same address with the word host in the subject line and Shawn will help you. For a line-up of future Carnivals of the Recipes, visit our Carnival of the Recipes page on Blog Carnival. (You can also review all past Carnival of the Recipes there too.)

Thank you Shawn for being so helpful and creating this the Carninval of the Recipes! Thank you to everyone that submitted a recipe for edition 101!

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2006. | Permalink | 6 comments

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under Recipes.

Summer is here!

here’s a quick and tasty summer treat.

What you need:

• 2 small baskets of strawberries
• 2-3 Tablespoon of sugar
• the juice of one lemon

Takes about 10 minutes to prepare.

Cut the strawberries in small chunks (cut small ones in half, the bigger ones into 4 pieces) and put them in a bowl.

Spread the sugar on top of the strawberries

Cut the lemon in half, remove the seeds, and squeeze the lemon on top of the strawberries. Mix everything till the sugar is melted. Over the next 30 minutes, mix in the juice and enjoy!

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2006. | Permalink | 2 comments

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under Desserts, Recipes.

Total preparation time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 table spoon Butter
• 1/2 table spoon finely chopped garlic
• 3-4 shallots (makes a generous half cup) finely chopped
• 4 cups of coarsely chopped mushrooms
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup red wine (Carbernet Sauvigon works)
• 1 cup beef broth

First, start off by cleaning the mushrooms and chopping them coarsely. You don’t want to cut them too small as they will shrink quite a bit and it is nice to have something to sink your teeth into once you get to eat them. You can use any mushrooms that you have available. If you can’t find fresh one, you can use dried mushrooms. Just soak them in warm water for 20-30 minutes before starting.

If I can find them, I like to use 1 cup of morels, 1 cup of chanterelles, 1 cup of porcinis, and 1 cup of portabello mushrooms. The nice part about this recipe is that you get to experiment which combination of mushrooms you like best. Tell me what works for you!
Chop the garlic and the shallots.

In a large flat bottom pan, melt 1 table spoon of butter over medium heat. Once the butter is melted, saute the garlic and shallots for about 3 minutes till the shallots get soft.

Add the mushrooms, add salt and pepper and cook for 7 minutes.

Increase the heat to medium high and pour the wine. Cook for 2-3 minutes to reduce the wine to less than half what you put.

Reduce the heat to low, add the broth and simmer for about 25 minutes. Most of the liquid should be gone.
The last step is to add the remaining table spoon of butter and your are now ready to serve and enjoy!

It will reheats nicely so you may prepare in advance.

Advertisement: First ever Michelin Restaurant Guide for San Francisco and its region (32%off)

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2006. | Permalink | No comment

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under Entrees, Recipes, wine.

Fois-gras is always something I look forward to! And along the way, I’ve found a few things you can do to make the experience even more pleasurable. Fois-gras is a delicacy that carries quite a bit of controversy. More proof to that is the recent ban enacted in Chicago.  Fortunately, as I understand it, this is limited to restaurants, but still!  How can someone decide what I can and can not relish in? This is too unfathomable. At least you can still enjoy it at home.
Duck or Goose?

This is one you’ll have to decide for yourself. There is a distinct difference, and I have a small preference for goose, but duck is still a close second in my book.

Serve the fois-gras at room temperature

For the longest time, I had been serving fois-gras right out the fridge. What a mistake that was. One day, dinner was late and the fois-gras had been sitting on the table for longer that I thought it should have. But what a difference it made. The flavor was awesome!  I guess the cold puts your taste buds to sleep and hides the full flavor!  Since then, I take it out of the fridge at least an hour before serving. One thing where the cold helps is to remove the fat. A lot easier and less messy to do when the fat is solid.

Serve with lightly toasted white bread

My preference goes for sliced Country White French Bread (as close to “pain de mie” as I found). Somewhat halfway between sour white bread and regular white bread. And it only needs to be lightly toasted so it starts to turn golden brown and the surface is a bit hard.  It is easier to put a piece of fois-gras and hold it flat.  Presumably, you are not supposed to spread fois-gras on your toast, just cut chunks of it and put it on your toast (I suppose,  this is as opposed to pate that is meant to be spread, and to remind us that fois-gras is so much more than pate. If anyone knows, would you let me know?).

Serve with chilled Sauternes

As if fois-gras was not good enough, add a chilled Sauternes. This is sure to turn your ravishing experience into pure decadence :)  A nice Sauternes and fois-gras go so well together this is truly unbelievable.  If you’ve never had sauternes, you should try it, even by itself. Sauternes is a late harvest, quite sweet, white wine from the Sauternais, near Bordeaux in France, and they use a special method to achieve that unforgettable taste (plus is usually ages really well to bout).  Even though a Chateau d’Yquem is really out of this world (including the price), there are good values and I like the Coutet very much.

Advertisement: Everyday Italian 125 Simple and Delicious Recipes

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2006. | Permalink | 6 comments

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under Appetizers.

For full details, see the the main page for this Carnival.

Do not hesitate to submit early. I’ll be adding recipes as they come in.

Advertisement: Barefoot Contessa Parties! Ideas and Recipes for Easy Parties That Are Really Fun

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2006. | Permalink | No comment

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under News.

When I was a kid, back when I lived in France, the only time when I would have Celery Root Remoulade (pronounce “rm-läd“) would be at the school “cantine” (that’s french for Cafeteria). My mom never made that dish, and I was always looking forward to have some when the school would serve it.

Celery root picture from manthatcooks’ photostream

Growing up, Celery Root was the sort of thing I thought was growing in cans, or at best, in glass jars, and most convenient of all, I figured that this was something that was growing like grass, in little stick like things. Little did I know that in fact celery root remoulade is made from an actual root, and can be described as anything but pretty looking (see picture on the left side). It can be quite unsightly, and even intimidating for some. But in fact, it is fairly easy to clean and prepare, and best of all, is very very tasty!

To prepare the root, just wash it thouroughly under cold running water to remove any dirt and bugs. Then select the biggest and heaviest knife you have. You’ll want to use the weight of the knife to help you cut through it. First remove the whole outside skin to reveal the white root (somewhat yellowish for some). You’ll also want to remove as much of the darker bits as you can without wasting too much, not that they are necesarily bad, but just won’t look as nice in the finished dish. Then cut the root in large chunks to prepare for the shredding.  To shred it, I use a mandoline as I think that’s what works best, but if you don’t have one, or are too afraid to cut yourself, you can use a food processor. The goal here is to shred the celery root into small sticks of about 2 inches long, and maybe 1/8 square.

Once everything is shredded, the rest is quite simple.

Celery Root Remoulade Recipe:

Servers 4-6 as an appetizer.

• One celery root, shredded (see above). Comes out to 10-12 ounces
• 1/2 cup of mayonnaise
• 1/4 dijon mustard
• 1/8 to 1/4 cup red wine vinegar depending on your taste
• salt, pepper to taste
• a small cornichon, or some parley for garnishing

Total preparation time (including the shredding): about 30 minutes.  Maybe a bit more the first time around.
Put the shredded celery root into a large bowl (the large bowl makes it easier to mix everything without making too much of a mess). Add all the ingredients, and then mix till you have a smooth, almost milky looking sauce that coats the celery root evenly. And that’s it!

I like to let it rest and marinate a bit in the fridge for at least 2 hours, but if you can’t wait, that will be quite tasty already, so go ahead!

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2006. | Permalink | 3 comments

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under Appetizers, Recipes.

Don’t you love salads? Ever tried Arugula? Arugula is a very tasty treat. Arugula, also known as roquette in Europe, is not a lettuce, but an herb, and is a member of the mustard family. If you can not find any, it is quite easy to grow yourself. If you really can’t find any, you could replace it with red leaves lettuce.

This recipe also uses artichoke hearts. The preserved ones come in 3 kinds: in water, brine or oil. I prefer the ones prepared in brine as I think the added acidity works well for this recipe. If you are lucky enough to be near San Francisco, you can find the best marinated artichokes I’ve had at Molinari Deli. If you are up to it, you could prepare the artichokes yourself, and you should check how to trim an artichoke to get you started. However this will significantly increase the time required to prepare this recipe.

To prepare the prawns, you have several options. You can buy them peeled and deveined, or you can do it yourself. It is not that hard. One method you can use is to do it with the Shrimp Butler. At around $30, it may sound expensive, but when you factor in the cost difference to buy the prawns ready to use, this will quickly pay for itself. A more low-tech approach is to use special scissors, or an Endurance Shrimp Peeler & Deveiner. Last resort, is to do it using your fingers after you’ve cooked the prawns. Only problem of doing it after they are cooked is that they won’t look as good, but will taste just the same though.

Here’s how to prepare the Prawn Salad with Arugula:
Per person, for a main dish (for 4 people, multiply everything by 4):

Salad

• 5 medium to large Prawns, peeled and deveined
• 6 kalamata olives, pitted and sliced in half
• 3 small tomatoes (small cluster tomatoes work best)
• 2 artichoke hearts
• 1/2 ounce goat creamy goat cheese
• 1 ounce Arugula

Dressing

• 1/2 table spoon lemon juice
• 1/2 table spoon extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation: 20-30 minutes

Remove the pits from the olives, and slice them in half, wash and rinse the tomatoes, and cut them in small chunks (remove as many seeds as you can). Cut the artichoke hearts in 4. Dice the goat cheese if it is creamy enough, otherwise crumble it.

Wash and rinse the arugula. Save a few olives and artichokes pieces that you can use later to garnish the plates. Mix everything else in a large salad bowl.

To prepare the dressing, mix the lemon juice, the olive oil, salt and pepper, and mix thoroughly.

Up to this point, everything can be prepared ahead of time. The last step is to cook the prawns in a small frying pan. Put some olive olive oil in the pan, heat it up over medium heat. When the oil is hot, put the prawns, add some salt and pepper and cook the prawns a few minutes on each side till they have a nice orangy color.

When the prawns are done, mix the dressing with the salad, and serve immediatly. You can server as an appetizer or an entree by varying the quantities.
Enjoy!

Related Articles:

• Asparagus au gratin
• Deviled Eggs
• Marinated Mushrooms
• Crab Souffle
• Scallops with Butter and Lemon

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2006. | Permalink | 2 comments

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under Appetizers, Entrees, Recipes, Salads.

Here’s an easy to do recipe, and you’ll get lots of satisfied fans for it.

For 6 adults, you will need:

• 36 asparagus
• about 3 ounces of prosciutto, sliced very thinly
• 2 ounces of parmesan, grated coarsly
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Cracked pepper to taste

Wash and cut the asparus so they’ll fit in a 8×12 (inches) oven safe glass (pyrex) pan.

Cook the asparagus in boiling water for 7-8 minutes. They don’t need to fully cook, just enough so they get tender. Then dry the asparagus with paper towels. I put 2 paper towels on a plate, then put the asparagus on the paper towel, then pat the asparagus on top till most of the water has been absorbed.

Then taking 3 asparagus a time, roll a slice of prosciutto around them to make a little bundle, and lay it flat on your glass pan. For 12 bundles, a pan 8 inches by 12 inches should do. Repeat for the rest of the asparagus.

Then grate the parmesan coarsly over the asparagus. Sprinkle with the olive oil and put some freshly cracked pepper. Don’t use salt, there is enough in the parmesan and the prosciutto.

Then put the pan in the oven under the broiler (I use the low setting, with the top of the asparagus about 3 inches from the brolier) for 4-6 minutes. Timing is really going to depend on your oven, and you have to keep an eye on the asparagus till you reached that golden brown color, and take the asparagus before it is too late.

Serve immediatly.

Besides being very tasty, one of the nice thing about this recipe is that you can prepare things ahead of time and put the pan in the brolier 5 minutes before serving. This makes preparing a big meal less of a juggling act.
Enjoy!

For more recipes with asparagus, join the Asparagus Aspiration month!

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2006. | Permalink | 3 comments

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under Appetizers, Recipes.

One of the books I find myself going over and over again is Julia Child’s Menu Cookbook.

The book was first published in 1978, and the last edition dates back from 1991. As best as I can tell, the book is not published anymore, so some digging may be required.

Julia Child’s Menu Cookbook

It includes a lot of basic food preparations tips and tricks, gorgeous deserts, soups, fish, chicken beef, you name it.  Everything you need to put together the menu for a feast, whether impromptu, or for a special occasion.

One of my favorites is the rack of lamb with mustard  and thyme.  Really amazing cookbook and a prized possesion.

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2006. | Permalink | One comment

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under Books.

Advertisement: Everyday Italian 125 Simple and Delicious Recipes

© Pascal for Home Recipes, 2006. | Permalink | No comment

Add to del.icio.us

Search blogs linking this post with Technorati

Want more on these topics ? Browse the archive of posts filed under wine.