Joelen’s Culinary Adventures has quite an ambitious list of food blogging events. I couldn’t keep up this month, but I do have an entry for Iron Chef: Honey. For this one, make a dish where honey is one of the main ingredients.

I got this chicken marinade recipe from my Uncle George’s second wife, Cathy. They met when George was on his 7-year sailing trip around the world in the 1980s; Cathy is from Australia. She made this for us once when they had first come back to the States via the Atlantic Ocean and up the Intracoastal Waterway from North Carolina. I hadn’t made it in quite a while, but we really enjoyed it, so I’ll have to make it again soon.

Cathy Twomey’s Chicken

2 lbs. bone-in, skin-on chicken
1/2 cup clear honey
2 tsp. curry powder
2 tsp. soy sauce
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup vegetable oil

Whisk all marinade ingredients together in a small saucepan and heat over low heat till well combined. Cool. Season chicken with salt and pepper; loosen skin with fingers and make two one-inch cuts in skin (do not cut meat) to allow marinade to get to meat. Pour marinade over chicken and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.

There are various ways to cook this. It’s done when an instant-read thermometer reads 160 degrees F.

In a skillet or saute pan: Brown chicken well on both sides, turn heat to low, cover and simmer 20 minutes till done.

In a grill pan: Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Cook chicken on both sides in oven-proof grill pan (I used cast iron), till well marked. Place pan in oven and bake for 20 minutes or till done.

I served the chicken with an Asian noodle salad that I made up this afternoon. I’ll post that recipe later. It worked out quite well.

It’s time for another Monthly Mingle, an event started by Meeta of What’s for Lunch, Honey?, and hosted this month by Mansi of Fun and Food. The theme this time is vegetarian Appetizers and Hors d’Oeuvres.

As it happens, in March, our neighborhood civic league sponsored a progressive dinner, where our house hosted the appetizer course, and two other neighbors hosted the main dish and dessert courses. There were several vegetarians in the group, so my co-hosts and I made mostly veg appetizers. One favorite was Crostini with Goat Cheese and Roasted Peppers. It was a hit, so that’s my submission to this event.

Crostini with Goat Cheese and Roasted Peppers

1 loaf French baguette
2 red and 2 yellow bell peppers, or 1 15-oz. jar roasted peppers
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. dried oregano, crumbled
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
8 oz. goat cheese

Slice baguette on a diagonal into 1/2-inch slices. Toast in a 350-degree oven till lightly browned. Cool on wire racks and set aside.

Preheat broiler on high. Halve, core, and seed peppers; flatten with your hand. Broil 3 inches away from broiler flame on cookie sheet for 8 minutes, until skin is charred black. Remove from oven and place in a plastic bag for 15 minutes to steam; pull off and discard skin.

Cut peppers into 2-inch x 1/4-inch strips and place in a baking dish or other wide, flat dish. Sprinkle garlic, oregano, vinegar and olive oil evenly over peppers. Set aside to marinate for 2-3 hours.

Stir peppers to mix up the colors. Spread a thin layer of goat cheese on baguette slices. Top with peppers and serve.

There’s a new food blogging event that is perfect for me, since I love to read and to cook: A cook’s book club, hosted by Meena of Hooked on Heat, where everyone reads the same book, then cooks a dish inspired by the story. “Serving Crazy with Curry,” by Amulya Malladi, is the first book.

I really enjoyed the book, although it was sad and intense in parts. But there was also humor and, for me, interesting descriptions of a culture that I was not real familiar with. In all, I found it absorbing and a great read.

The next task was to select a recipe inspired by the book. I decided to make the Cajun Prawn Biriyani with spiced rice that Devi, the main character, creates after an intense episode in her life (I don’t want to give away too much, in case any readers want to read the book). I had chicken biryani at a local Indian restaurant once and really enjoyed it, so I decided to try this one.

The main problem was that Devi didn’t give any measurements or proportions in the recipe printed in the book, so I had to improvise. I know that Indian cooking is often intensely flavored, but I didn’t want to overdo it, so I was probably a bit more conservative than necessary. It turned out well, but it didn’t taste as good as it smelled I will probably make it again, but I will adjust the amounts of herbs and spices to provide more flavor. She also didn’t say what the marinade consisted of, other than the herbs and spices, so I added some canola oil.

I was going to buy some cardamom, but it was very expensive and I wasn’t sure I would use it again, so I decided to use garam masala, which I already had and which has most of the spices mentioned in the recipe for rice in the book. I also served garlic naan bread from Trader Joe’s.

Cajun Prawn Biriyani

Prawns (Shrimp)

1 lb. large raw prawns, shelled and deveined
1/2 tsp. each granulated garlic powder, onion powder, rosemary, basil, oregano, thyme, sage, paprika, white pepper and black pepper
1/8 tsp. cayenne powder
dash of Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp. canola oil
2 tbsp. butter
2 cloves chopped garlic

Whisk together herbs, spices, Worcestershire sauce and oil. Add prawns and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate to marinate for 30 minutes.

Spiced Rice

2 tbsp. ghee or canola oil
1/2 tsp. garam masala
1 bay leaf
1/2 onion, chopped
1 cup basmati rice
2 cups water

Heat ghee or oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garam masala and bay leaf; stir for 30 seconds or until fragrant. Add onion and stir till softened, 4-5 minutes. Add rice and stir to coat with ghee or oil. Add 2 cups water, bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until done.

In a saute pan, saute marinated prawns in butter with marinade, 3-4 minutes or until prawns are pink and opaque. Serve with rice and cucumber raita.

Back in March, Dan and I went to see Bobby Flay do a cooking demonstration in downtown Norfolk. It was lots of fun, and I got an autographed copy of one of his books: “Bobby Flay’s Mesa Grill Cookbook: Explosive Flavors from the Southwestern Kitchen.” I’ve made several recipes from the book and loved them all - although I’ve tweaked a couple

We both really like this recipe for Southwestern Potato Salad - I’ve made it three or four times now. This last time, I used green onions, a red onion, and cilantro from our garden. I know the cilantro looks a little funny, but it’s trying to bloom and I’m trying to stop it

I’m trying to expand my taste horizons, so I went ahead and added the red onion, even though I don’t like the flavor of raw onion. Guess what? I still don’t. But Dan does, so next time, I will just dice an onion for him and he can add it to his portion.

Also, the recipe says to add one jalapeno pepper, finely diced. If you like a lot of heat, go ahead and do this. I made it this way the first time, and it was too hot for us. The second time, I removed the seeds and membrane first, and it was too mild. The third time, I cut the pepper in half and removed the seeds and membrane from one half, leaving them in the other half. This time, it was just right

Bobby Flay’s Southwestern Potato Salad

2 lbs. small new potatoes (I used Yukon Gold potatoes)
Kosher salt
1 cup prepared mayonnaise
2 tbsp. Dijon mustard
2 tbsp. fresh lime juice (about 2 limes)
2 tbsp. ancho chile powder
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 large ripe beefsteak tomato, seeded and chopped (I used 2 roma tomatoes)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 jalapeno pepper, finely diced
3 green onions, white and green parts, thinly sliced (I used two)
1 medium red onion, halved and thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Freshly ground black pepper

Put the potatoes in a large pot and add enough cold water to cover. Add 1 tbsp. salt and bring to a boil over high heat. Cook until the potatoes are tender when pieced with a knife, 12 to 15 minutes.

Drain well, let cool slightly, and slice 1/4 inch thick (I cut into 1/2-inch chunks). Put in a large bowl and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm while you prepare the dressing.

Stir together all remaining ingredients except black pepper in a medium bowl. Pour the mixture over the warm potatoes and mix gently until combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve cold or at room temperature. This can be made up to one day ahead and refrigerated.

We had this with cole slaw and our first smoked BBQ ribs. It was a great meal.

This is my contribution to the Grow Your Own food blogging event, hosted by Andrea of Andrea’s Recipes.

Well, unfortunately, I’m too late to enter this food blogging event (happens too often), but I really wanted to, so I’m posting this anyway.

Tasty Tools is a monthly food photography event hosted by Joelen’s Culinary Adventures. April’s theme was scoop - use any kind of kitchen scoop and photograph it. View the entries and winners.

Lately, I’ve been eating a lot of brownie-loaded chocolate ice cream (blame Dan - he brought home the first carton, and now I’m hooked). And last fall, while visiting my brother and sister-in-law in Oak Park, IL, near Chicago, we discovered this wonderful little shop called Olive and Well. It’s a specialty shop that carries mostly olive oils, balsamic vinegars and various gourmet condiments, breads and sauces.

They have lots of small casks of olive oils (probably hold a couple of gallons) with little paper cups for tasting. We tasted almost all of them and finally settled on one. Then I noticed the vinegars - and I’m a vinegar freak, just ask Dan - so I went over to see the flavors … and then I saw it - strawberry balsamic vinegar. I poured some into a little tasting cup and lifted it to my mouth - before I could even taste it, the aroma tingled my nose and my mouth watered instantly. I knew I was going to be buying this one So I did.

And what goes better with chocolate than strawberries? That’s right - strawberry balsamic vinegar. Scoop out some brownie-chocolate ice cream and drizzle it with strawberry balsamic vinegar - a dessert truly to die for.

Oh, about the scoop Years ago, when we first moved into the neighborhood and I was on the board of the Civic League, it seemed like every few months, someone was having a Pampered Chef party - I had one annually for a few years myself. This is one of the gadgets I got during those years. Works great - it has anti-freeze in the handle that flows down into the scoop when you use it, to help melt the ice cream so it scoops more easily. I love it.

I discovered the New York Times No-Knead Bread recipe a few months ago on SteamyKitchen.com and have made it a few times myself. Just doing my part here to get the word out You, too, can make delicious artisan bread at home with just a few minutes of hands-on time.

Just plan ahead by about 22 hours. It needs to rise for 18 hours right after mixing, then roll it around a little, then let rise another 2 hours before baking. But with the price of bread rising so much lately, it’s nice to be able to throw together water, flour, yeast and salt and get this result the next day:

When we first bought our house, the wife of one of Dan’s co-workers gave me part of her rosemary shrub. I had several herbs that I had been growing in window boxes attached to the fire escape outside our apartment in Norfolk’s Ghent neighborhood, and all of these were planted for the time being in a half-whiskey barrel.

This is our rosemary shrub a week or so ago - it’s blooming One day last week, I was cutting back the thyme, which is under part of the rosemary, and kept brushing against it, setting off waves of rosemary and thyme fragrance. Mmmm.

Our first exchange student, Olaf, from Erfurt, Thuringia, Germany, helped us dig out our first herb garden, and it’s grown from there. I love cooking with fresh herbs, as well as fresh veggies. Can’t wait till the veggies are grown enough to pick.

Anyway, this is about the perennial herbs that are available now. We had a dinner party last weekend, and I made the Herb-Crusted Pork Roast from the January 2007 issue of Cooks Illustrated. It was delicious

I used rosemary and thyme from my garden and basil from the store. One friend brought the penne with four herbs and cheese, and another brought the homemade applesauce with rosemary. It was quite the herby dinner

Herb-Crusted Pork Roast

2 1/2–3 pound boneless center-cut pork loin roast
Table salt
1/4 cup sugar
1 large slice hearty white sandwich bread, torn into pieces
1 ounce grated Parmesan cheese (about 1/2 cup)
1 medium shallot, minced (about 3 tablespoons)
4 tablespoons olive oil, plus an additional 2 teaspoons
Ground black pepper
1/3 cup packed fresh parsley or basil leaves
2 tablespoons minced fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary or 1/2 teaspoon dried
1 large clove garlic, minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 1 1/2 teaspoons)

Cut pocket in side of roast. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Pulse bread in food processor until coarsely ground (you should have 1 cup crumbs). Transfer crumbs to medium bowl (do not wash food processor workbowl) and add 2 tablespoons Parmesan, shallot, 1 tablespoon oil, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Using fork, toss mixture until crumbs are evenly coated with oil.

Add parsley or basil, thyme, rosemary, garlic, remaining 6 tablespoons Parmesan, 3 tablespoons oil, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper to now-empty food processor workbowl and process until smooth, about twelve 1-second pulses. Spread 1/4 cup herb paste inside roast and tie. Season roast with salt and pepper.

Heat remaining 2 teaspoons oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add roast, fat side down, and brown on all sides, 8 to 10 minutes, lowering heat if fat begins to smoke. Transfer roast to wire rack set in rimmed baking sheet lined with aluminum foil.

Spread remaining herb paste over roast and top with bread crumb mixture. Transfer baking sheet with roast to oven and cook until thickest part of roast registers 145 degrees on instant-read thermometer, 50 to 75 minutes. Remove roast from oven and let rest 10 minutes. Internal temperature should rise to 150 degrees. Using spatula and meat fork, transfer roast to carving board, taking care not to squeeze juices out of pocket in roast. Cut roast into 1/2-inch slices and serve immediately.

This is my entry this month in the food blogging event Grow Your Own, hosted by Andrea of Andrea’s Recipes. The round-up of all the recipes is here.

Several years ago, Dan gave me a copy of “The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood” by Rebecca Wells for Christmas, and I absolutely *LOVED* it. It’s a wonderful, can’t-put-it-down kind of book. Toward the end, I started reading it more and more slowly - I didn’t want it to be over.

This past Christmas, I bought “Ya-Yas in Bloom,” Wells’ latest book, and it was just as much fun.

So that’s what came to mind when I saw that Lisa of Champaign Taste and Simona of Briciole were co-hosting Novel Food as a food blogging event. I did a search and amazingly enough, found this site dedicated to all things Ya-Ya, including recipes compiled by book club members.

I’ll definitely be going back to that site for more recipes, but for this, I decided to start with a starter - Artichoke Dip. The Ya-Yas are always having great parties, and artichoke dip is always a hit at parties.

I did tweak it slightly - the novels are set in Louisiana, so Dan and I thought a Louisiana Artichoke Dip was screaming for some hot sauce. Shhhhh - I didn’t have Louisiana Hot Sauce, so I used Texas Pete. I also left out the bacon.

Artichoke Dip

1 can (14 oz.) artichoke hearts, drained and diced
3/4 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 (8 oz.) carton sour cream
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 small onion, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp. hot sauce

Preheat oven to 350°, mix all ingredients and spoon into a 9″ quiche dish. Bake for 20 minutes and let stand for 5 minutes before serving. Serve with toasted French bread slices.

You can also cook this in the microwave until bubbly.

For a delicious variation, add a package of frozen chopped spinach (thawed and drained) before cooking.

– submitted by Sister Mary Bad Girl, tweaked by Kim

btw, the Ya-Yas all had pet names for each other, and there’s a Ya-Ya Name Generator on the site. If I use my married name, the Ya-Ya name doesn’t really suit me - Duchess Jokes a Lot. But if I use my maiden name the Ya-Ya name is this: Queen Loves to Cook. It’s karma, man.

This is my entry this month for yet another food blogging event called “No Croutons Required,” sponsored by Tinned Tomatoes from Scotland. The theme this month is spicy vegetarian soups or salads. The round-up of the inaugural event is here.

I love the idea of gazpacho - mixing together the pungent flavors of garlic, onions and peppers with tomatoes - but I don’t really enjoy the sharp flavors of these ingredients raw. So I cook them! Then the flavors are mellowed and I enjoy it much more. So my entry is “Hot Gazpacho.” It’s also good chilled - still cooked, not raw

btw, I left out the traditional cucumber, since it’s a cooked soup. Hm, maybe I ought to try it, though … or maybe I’ll serve a cucumber salad on the side next time. Yeah, that’s the ticket.

Hot Gazpacho

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1 green, yellow, and red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
Salt and pepper
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 14-oz. can diced tomatoes
2 cups vegetable stock
3 tablespoons chopped cilantro or flat-leaf parsley
sour cream
cilantro sprigs

Heat a medium soup pot over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, jalapeno, bell peppers, onions, and garlic. Season with salt and pepper, then saute veggies 5 minutes.

Add crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes and stock and bring soup to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and stir in cilantro. Garnish with sour cream and cilantro.

I’m trying harder to be on time for these food blogging events. Too often, I make the foods and take pictures, but I can’t seem to get the blogging part done in time. I made this one, though

When it’s chilly and windy like it’s been lately, I love a nice, old-fashioned New England Pot Roast. The flavorful beef, the well-cooked potatoes and carrots, the caramelized onions, the savory brown gravy over everything … it’s major comfort food for me. So that’s what I made for the Monthly Mingle One-Dish Dinner for this month, hosted by Meeta of What’s For Lunch, Honey? The round-up of all the recipes is here.

I use Betty Crocker’s recipe, the same one my mother used when I was growing up. I’m not really a fan of horseradish, so I used to leave it out, but it didn’t taste right. I’ve since learned that the strong flavor of horseradish is tamed considerably by the long cooking. Good stuff. And the recipe makes so much, we can eat the leftovers for days

New England Pot Roast

2 tbsp. canola oil
4-lb. chuck roast
1 tbsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
1 5-oz. jar prepared horseradish
1 cup water
4 Yukon Gold potatoes, quartered
24 baby carrots
1 large onion, roughly chopped
1/4 cup all-purpose flour

Sprinkle roast with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat and brown roast well on all sides; reduce heat. Spread horseradish over both sides of beef. Add water and heat to boiling. Reduce heat, cover and simmer on stove or place in 325*F oven for 2.5 hours. Add vegetables. Cover and cook until tender, about 1 hour longer. Remove to a warm platter. Prepare gravy and serve with beef.

Gravy

Skim excess fat from broth. Add enough water to broth to measure 2 cups. Shake 1/2 cup cold water with 1/4 cup flour in tightly covered container; stir gradually into broth. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil 1 minute.