Recipe number two from the Steam Cuisine cookbook by Marina Filipelli was one of the most simple, yet easy, dinners I have ever put together. My choice for this was the Tofu with Spring Onions, Ginger and Ponzu Sauce. The sauce for the tofu is what really makes the dish and gives it a light…
This book came from the same school book fair that my tapas cookbook came from. I remember being so excited when I found it, because I had recently been gifted a bamboo steamer and wasn’t sure where to start. When I use this cookbook, I find that I will use it in stretches, and may…
My third recipe was chosen because I had just about everything on hand and it looked easy. It is called the Moorish-style Chickpea and Spinach Stew (or garbanzo con espinacas). Some changes I made to the recipe were to swap the spinach for kale from my garden, and to use red wine vinegar instead of…
My second choice for a recipe from this tapas cookbook was the Chicken and Mushroom Paella (or paella de pollo y setas). I love saffron so much that I purposely picked a second recipe which called for it, but that’s not terribly hard to do with Spanish cooking. Some changes I made to the recipe…
This is a cookbook that I’ve had for quite a long time, but felt a little intimidated to fully dive in. I tried one recipe from it before and used the wrong sausage and it ruined the whole recipe. It seems hard to screw up a recipe with any kind of sausage, but believe me,…
Lucky for me I have been good about selecting recipes at random for this project, as they have, for the most part, turned out quite well. The second recipe from the cookbook Vedge was as equally amazing as the first. I selected the Oyster Mushroom and Corn Chowder recipe so I could use my favorite…
This next cookbook, “Vedge”, was selected based upon what type of ingredients I had on hand, as I was stuck at home for several rainy days in a row and didn’t want to venture out. I picked this book up at the thrift store in Volcano and thought that it looked interesting because it is…
For recipe #3 of my cookbook challenge, I chose Baked Cheesecake (or Zapekanka iz Tvoroga), because I wanted to do a dessert that I was semi-familiar with, and I just happen to really love cheesecake. I’m kicking myself for not trying something new because the cheesecake turned out like junk, and I’m not totally sure…
In an effort to simplify my life, I am attempting to declutter my house by 20-30% before the first day of Spring, or the Equinox. This year it falls on March 20th, so I have almost three full weeks to make it happen. I know I can pull this off, but the hardest part about…
I am completely in love with Volcano Village and the Hawaii Volcano National Park area. In addition to the awe inspiring Kilauea volcano, there is native flora and fauna to appreciate, as well as art and cultural experiences to be had. The National Park is constantly offering Native Hawaiian cultural events and activities, and the Volcano…
