Ethiopia Round-Up!

There's a time and a place for decorum.  Etiquette.  Etcetera.

And then there's a time and a place for eating your tablecloth.  Letting sauce from a heavily spiced stew drip down your cheeks.  Licking your fingers.

That time is now.  That place is Ethipoia.  Let's get started.




First up is Sweet Artichoke who was first inspired to make Ethiopian food from reading The House of the Calife by Tahir Shah.  I love it when one art form can inspire another (and yes.  Food is art.) and her Yataklete Kilkil is certainly art.



Andreas over at Delta Kitchen has been trying to expose himself to new tomato dishes, and this raw Ethiopian Style Tomato Salad fits the bill.  Spicy and satisfying.



Heather of Girlichef knows the way to my heart.  This Ethiopian-Inspired Chickpea and Sweet Potato Soup absolutely speaks to me.  And it's saying, "EAT ME!"



Kim of The Ungourmet loved the big flavors in the Chickpea Wat that she made.  And so do I.  Doesn't it just scream comfort food to you?



Marisa of The Creative Pot defies all conventional wisdom about childcare when she made this spicy and vibrant Mesir Wat.  That she then fed to her 8 month old nephew.  Who loved it.  Take that, Dr. Spock!



Not being able to satisfy her love of exotic food by making only one dish for Regional Recipes, Marisa also made Zilzil Alecha or Beef in Green Pepper Sauce.  And honestly, just looking at it is making me rethink my satisfaction.  Because I'm pretty sure I need to try this!



Deb of Kahakai Kitchen is also trying to use up tomatoes this week and so she, like Andreas, also made Bittman's Ethiopian-Style Tomato Salad.  In doing so, she transforms local ingredients into an exotic dish, the concept of which I love.



Lexi of Big Momma and Me makes her first (and hopefully not her last!) appearance at the Regional Recipes table with Doro Wat and Injera.  She served this to her family along with a history lesson about the origins of the cuisine.  Her son was riveted and well fed.  Double score.



I'm not quite sure what is more decadent, Susan of The Well-Seasoned Cook's Mesir Wat and Silver Dollar Injera Pancakes...or her writing.  She describes the stew as a "golden bowl of ridges and pockets" that are "tempestuously spiced".  And she serves them with a cold beer.  What more could a girl want?



Debbi of Debbi Does Dinner...Healthy and Lowfat is always willing to try new things and go to great lengths to really get an international cuisine.  It's what I love about her.  She searched and searched until she found the meth powder...err methi powder to make these Ethiopian Lentils with Sweet Potatoes.  Was it worth it?  From the looks of it, I would say so!



Elra of Elra's Cooking never lets me down.  Her beef stew with berbere and nitter kibbeh looks like it would make my taste buds very happy.



And finally, we have my Ethiopian Lentil Stew with Ethiopian Green Beans and Potatoes.  Which were the only things that could comfort me after my cell phone decided that it would rather live in the New York City sewage system than with me.  A tragic revelation, for sure.  But at least it resulted in a seriously tasty meal.

This brings us to the end of our trip to Ethiopia.  Let's all have a moment of silence, shall we?

Moving on.

Never one to dwell on the past and seeing as how there are many countries still left to visit, I think it's time we hop on a plane to our new country.

So.  Next month we are headed to...

PUERTO RICO!

 Okay.  Maybe it's not exactly a country but it is definitely a region.  And we are non-discriminatory equal opportunists here at Regional Recipes aren't we?

Here are some websites to help you out!  I can't wait to see what you guys cook.  Email me your entries (to jhbruno87@gmail.com) by August 31st!

The ever-trustworthy Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puerto_Rican_cuisine
Recipes from The Rican Chef: http://www.elboricua.com/recipes.html
Whats4Eats: http://www.whats4eats.com/caribbean/puerto-rico-cuisine

Ethiopia!

You know what's really fun?  Eating with your hands.

You know what's even more fun?  Eating with your tablecloth.

Especially when your tablecloth. Is actually one huge sheet of bread.

And with that.  I present to you.  Regional Recipes: Ethiopia!

Ethiopian cuisine consists of spicy vegetable and meat dishes, usually in the form of stews, that are typically eaten with a spongy sourdough bread called injera.  The flavor profile is very similar to that of Indian food, with a bit of Middle Eastern influence thrown in.  Basically. It's delicious.

Stumped for ideas?  Here are two sites with tons of Ethiopian recipes:

Recipezaar: Ethiopian Recipes
Ethiopian Recipes.net

Remember to email me your entries by July 31st!

Regional Recipes: Greece Roundup!

I have to be honest with you.

I didn't decide on Greece as our next rendezvous point based on the food.

Don't get me wrong.  The food is good.  The flavors are great.  It's got everything going for it.

But none of this is what reeled me in.

Instead.  I chose Greece because Greek foods have the COOLEST names!  Spanakopita.  Dolmades.  Avegelemonno.  They just roll off your tongue.

Or onto your tongue.  Depending on the situation.

Read along with me as we encounter some of these foods as well as the fabulous bloggers who submitted them!

Natasha of Five Star Foodie brings a tropical play on Domatokeftedes.  Instead of using the traditional cucumber tzatziki to top these delectable tomato-filled fritters, she instead chose to go with a mango tzatziki.  Personally, I can't think of anything I would like more.

Katerina of Culinary Delights really delved into her roots while trying to find a recipe for Batzina, a Greek bread.  She remembered the dish from her childhood and didn't stop until she found the recipe, even if it meant giving her father's 88-year-old aunt a call!  I certainly am glad she did because this looks fantastic.

Sharlene of Small Town Oven, one of my favorite fellow med student bloggers who will be joining me at Cornell for the next month, celebrated her first resuscitation by baking this Honey Walnut Cake!  Sure, the person being resuscitated may not have been alive per say...but you need to start somewhere right.

Faith of An Edible Mosaic and I both share a love of Baklava.  Also known as heaven wrapped in filo dough.  I've always wanted to make it at home, and now I can with this fabulous recipe that Faith shared with us!

In cooking for this month's Regional Recipes, the amazing Chaya of My Sweet and Savory discovers what I've always maintained is true - that really, we are not so different after all.  After all, it only takes the addition of one herb to convert one of her favorite potato recipes, this patates fournou, from Italian to Greek. 

Deb of Kahakai Kitchen must have somehow known how much I adore tahini, a blend of food processed sesame seeds.  As such, she submitted both a Greek Parsley Salad with Tahini dressing:  Over which I swooned.

And a Greek Manestra soup, the fresh flavors in which will satiate any palate.

Need a healthy but tasty burger to grill up during these summer months?  This Greek Juicy Turkey Burger submitted by Ivy from Kopiaste is the way to go!

Barbara was the life of our party by bringing everyone's favorite chip dip!  Oh yes.  You know what I'm talking about - tzatziki!

JS and TS of Eating Club Vancouver stray from their normal diet of Chinese fare to bring us two fabulous dishes this month!  The first being a Grilled Fish Fillet on Oregano.  In this dish, oregano is transformed from a seasoning to a bed upon which to serve the fish!  

And because they really couldn't stray from their Chinese roots entirely, they also discovered a Greek recipe for Pasteli, or sesame snaps, which are strangely reminiscent of Taiwanese peanutty snacks!  It really is a small world after all.

Not one to be stifled by the heat, Elizabeth from Blog From OUR Kitchen braves seriously hot weather to bake us two batches of Greek Sesame Galettes or Koulouria.  The first time, she made them with the traditional sesame seeds and the second time she topped them with Nigella seeds.  Both of which look good to me!

Carla of Recipe Addict, having never braised vegetables in olive oil before, decided to share a fabulous side dish of Bamies Me Saltsa or Okra with Tomatoes.  Doesn't that make you want to eat your veggies?

Even though Heather of Girlichef mostly associates Greek food with alcohol doused cheese that is then set on fire (a girl after my own heart), when she found some beautiful fingerlings at the farmer's market, she couldn't resist making a Greek Potato, Onion, and Caper Salad...along with some Dolmades of course!

When I went to my first "friend" wedding last week, I was intensely scared.  Why?  Firstly because Wedding Crashers had been playing constantly on TBS the week before.  And then because Marisa of The Creative Pot confirmed my wildest fear that wedding crashers actually do exist...by telling the story of how her dad used to crash weddings and try to get chicks by pretending he was Greek!  Yikes.  Some good came out of this, however, that being Marisa's fabulous submission of Garithes Yiouvetsi or Prawns with Tomatoes and Feta.

Cool Lassi(e) of Pan Gravy Kadai Curry combines all of my favorite spices into a wonderful sausage and pasta dish called SoudZoukakia.  I don't know which I want to do more...eat this dish or repeat it's name over and over.  What a mouthful, either way!

I was so glad when Debbi of Debbi Does Dinner...Healthy and Low Calorie bit the bullet and submitted one of my favorite Greek street foods...Chicken Souvlaki!  These make for some seriously tasty pita sandwiches!

Reeni of Cinnamon Spice and Everything Nice, who always comes through with my favorite comfort foods, shares a version of Greek Creamed Spinach from the book How To Roast A Lamb.  And really, when you pair spinach with a creamy beschamel sauce, how can you go wrong?

Kim over The Ungourmet is slowly but surely being won over to the eggplant lover's camp (of which I am a tried and true member.  We even have a secret handshake.  How awesome is that.)...especially after eating this Grilled Eggplant with a Warm Greek-Style Quinoa Salad.  Who could resist something this good!

Lori of Fake Food Free really cooked around the world this month with her Foodbuzz 24x24 challenge in which she grilled up a whole slew of pizzas that were inspired by different countries.  The Greek version had grilled summer squash and onions, feta, and hummus....how much better could it get?

Lauren of Healthy Delicious, usually a sucker for a traditional bacon and cheese burger, was won over by this Greek Burger with Feta and Tzatziki.  Served alongside a refreshing salad, this makes for the perfect summer meal.

Last up is me!  I had really been craving spinach and feta all month long, but wanted something a bit healthier than spanikopita.

Then came Spanakorizo.  A dish that mixes the flavors of spanikopita into rice rather than encasing it in filo dough.  It definitely satisfied my every craving.

Thanks everyone for playing along with me!  Stay tuned in the next few days (tomorrow perhaps) to find out where we'll be traveling to next!

Regional Recipes: Vietnam Round-Up and Next Month's Theme!

Welcome to this edition of Regional Recipes!  I hope you all brought your appetites because there is a serious feast awaiting you.  And if you weren't hungry before stopped by.  Well.  You will be.  Imminently.

So please, have a seat.  And get ready for Regional Recipes....VIETNAM!

 Marisa of The Creative Pot starts us off with a delicious Vietnamese Chicken and Pineapple Soup.  This soup helped her ward off some chilly weather while also satisfying her craving for Asian cuisine!  Talk about multi-tasking!

 Kim from The Ungourmet, one of my favorite blogs, took on this challenge even though she was unfamiliar with Vietnamese cuisine, choosing to make Com Ga, Nuoc Mam Gung, and Mang Tay Xao.  Nope, she didn't just dip her toes in...she dove headfirst!

Bonnie of Sweetlife Bakes was bemoaning her fate at having nothing to cook...when she realized that Vietnamese flavors share an uncanny similarity with those of Mexico.  And so she came up with this wonderful Garlic Shrimp and Green Papaya Salad. Ain't it pretty?

JS and TS of Eating Club (Vancouver) rejoin the Regional Recipes crew after a long hiatus and I sure am glad they did because they are bringing with them Cha Gio or Vietnamese Spring Rolls!  Who doesn't love a bite of some deep-fried goodness every once in a while?

Toni of New Veginnings turns her frown upside down with these Vietnamese Potato Patties, otherwise called Cha Khoai Tay.  She was kind of stressed out about not knowing what to cook for this edition of RR...but I think she chose quite a winning dish, don't you?

In an attempt to get out of her eating out rut, Lauren of Healthy Delicious makes this fantastic Vietnamese Braised Beef over Rice Noodle Salad.  With home-cooked food this good, who needs take-out!

Anne of Split Pear-sonality combined both sweet and salty flavors in her version of Vietnamese Caramel Ginger Chicken.  She decided to make this at home before trying it out at a restaurant near her house...and personally I think I'd take her version.  Any day.

Chaya of Sweet and Savory Says It All doesn't just cook these scrumptious looking Vietnamese Pancakes, but she also does some research on their Vietnamese name - Banh Xeo.  It's a fun story so stop by her blog and check it out!

I am so glad Christine of Kits Chow brought a dessert to this round-up because my sweet tooth was starting to ache!  Her Sticky Rice with Fruit Coulis is just the thing to satiate it.

Reeni of Cinnamon Spice and Everything Nice, knowing my intense love of peanut butter, decided to bring some Vietnamese Herb Salad Rolls with Peanut Dipping Sauce.  It's a good thing.  Because no meal is complete without peanut butter.  At least in my mind.

The lovely Deb of Kahakai Kitchen decided to further her fish kick with some Fried Fish with Lemongrass and Salad.  The flavors in this sound so fresh and delicious that my taste buds are bursting just thinking about them!

Kim of Stirring the Pot is wonder woman.  Otherwise known as multi-tasker extroadinaire.  Check out her blog to see how many balls she had to juggle while making this amazing looking Vietnamese Caramelized Grilled Pork. 

I'm so glad Katerina of Culinary Flavors made some time in her busy cooking rotation to participate in Regional Recipes this month. Otherwise we wouldn't have this Caramelized Garlic Shrimp to drool over! 

And finally, to add some more caramel to the mix, we have my Braised Tofu In Caramel Sauce.  Sweet, salty, and good served over pork, chicken or fish for the non-tofu lover...this dish was fantastic.

Thanks to everyone for participating! 

And now for next month. 

We are going to...Greece!  Mainly because I've been craving some spinach and feta lately.  And what better reason is there than that!

I'll make an official post announcing it and the rules and everything but I wanted to get the word out so that you guys could put on your thinking caps!

Regional Recipes: Vietnam!

So far we've eaten hummus in the Middle East, soda bread in Ireland, and rice and beans in Haiti. Next up, let's make our way East with a trip to...VIETNAM!

Vietnamese cuisine is typically admired for its emphasis on healthy and fresh ingredients. It can be broken up into three categories, based on the region it is from. Northern Vietnamese food is probably most similar to what you would expect to find in a Vietnamese restaurant, as northern Vietnam was the cradle of Vietnamese culture. It gave rise to popular dishes such as pho and banh cuon or a rolled cake. Southern Vietnamese food, in contrast, was greatly influenced by the Chinese and French and so it tends to emphasize sweeter flavors and utilizes a wider variety of herbs. Central Vietnamese cuisine veers from the aforementioned two in that it typically consists of a lot of smaller dishes...kind of like a Vietnamese tapas. It is also usually the most spicy of the three.

Feel free to check out this Wikipedia site for inspiration, as well as this, this, this, and this.

Please email me (jhbruno87@gmail.com) your submissions by May 31!