Take all of the best, most delectable characteristics of Brie, intensify them twofold, and you've got yourself a nice, ripe Coulommiers.



This richer and nuttier flavored "little brother"" of Brie is produced just down the road from Brie in Coulommiers, in the Île-de-France region of northern France.
The flavor is slightly sweet, earthy and mushroomy and it has a wonderful creamy, chewy texture and an incredible, heady aroma. A perfectly ripe Coulommiers will bulge, not run.

Serve at room temperature with apples and pears and enjoy with a glass of Côtes du Rhône or white Burgundy.

Artisanal Cheese carries Coulommiers, as does Fromages.com. See full article.

Related Entries:

Laughing Cow Cheese - 20 August 2004

Yearning to Make Cheese - 09 June 2006

Macaroni and Cheese and Cheese - 04 July 2008

Cheese of the Month - Langres - 29 July 2008

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For my new home, I am going to request hubby install a classic Chandelier lighting in the living room. Although I am not very know how to select lights for the house. However, I know how to decorate my house with those beautiful lights. Chandelier lighting as below would be the best to decorate my lovely living room. Don’t you think so?

Idén egyre inkább kapható sárga színű cukkíni is a piacokon. Amennyiben még nem nőttek meg túlságosan nagyra, én jobban is kedvelem a sárgákat, mert valahogy több ízt vélek kiérezni belőlük, a magházuk nem olyan vizes, s egészében kicsit feszesebbnek tűnik a húsuk, mint a zöld cukkíniknél. Angolzellerrel és koktélparadicsommal spontán alkalmaztam is a sárga cukkíniket egy könnyű zöldségköret formájában, melyhez pisztrángot és citromverbénahabot készítettem.

  I am a tart kind of a girl. I really enjoy the whole concept of tarts. Crust, filling and topping it’s like having the best of everything in one dessert. Especially in the summertime, when there are so many types of fruit just begging to be used, there is often nothing easier than...

[Read the rest of this post on my website]

You’ll find us. With a fork and knife.

To say we love spicy food in this house is an understatement. We like our salsa is sizzling-ly spicy. Our pizza comes with sausage, pepperoni, and double order of fresh jalapeños… which we then top with crushed red pepper. Our jambalaya hits the table with a healthy dose of Tobasco and jalapeno-spiked cornbread. Our fajitas are served with a side of grilled serranos.

We tend to live by the mantra that if it doesn’t make your nose run, then it’s simply not hot enough. There seems to be a fine line between loving the heat and having your face melt off. We understand… and accept the bad with the good.

A busy work schedule of late and a hefty DIY project at our rental house means no time or motivation to cook. The only thing I’ve been really good about is throwing out wilty produce and making reservations. And hummus. I make a double-batch each weekend. I apparently eat a lot of it.

This week’s twice-a-day snack will pack the heat of on-their-last-leg, wrinkly jalapeños ’cause I just couldn’t bring myself to throw them out. To let peppers go bad is shameful but to actually throw them out… down right blasphemy

Roasted Jalapeño Hummus
3 tablespoons lemon juice (approx 2 lemons)
1/4 cup water
6 Tbsp Tahini
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 15-oz can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
3 garlic cloves, peeled
1/2 teaspoon course salt, plus more to taste
1/4 teaspoon cumin
dash of cayenne
2 roasted jalapeños with oil reserved (recipe follows)
Sliced fresh jalapeños, for garnish (optional)

Combine the lemon juice and water in a small bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the Tahini and olive oil together until smooth.

Process the chickpeas, garlic, salt, cumin, and cayenne in a food processor until almost fully ground, about 15 seconds. Scrape down the bowl. With the food processor running, stream in the lemon and water and process for one minute. Scrape down the bowl again. Turn the food processor on and stream in the Tahini and oil mixture and process until smooth, about another minute. Add the jalapeños (reserve the oil) and process another minute.

Transfer the hummus to a bowl, cover and refrigerate for an hour to let flavors blend. Sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt and drizzle with the reserved oil. Top with jalapeño slices and enjoy! Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.

Roasted Jalapeños
2 large fresh jalapeños
2 Tbsp olive oil

Place top oven rack 4 inches from the broiler and turn on the broiler. Remove the stems from the peppers and slice horizontally into quarters. Do not remove pith or seeds. Toss the pepper with the olive oil and place into a small oven-safe dish. Broil until blistered and softened. Remove from oven and allow oil and peppers to cool completely. Reserve the oil - you’ll drizzle it over the hummus before eating.

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1/2 pound pearl onions
1 medium red onion sliced thin
1 medium Vidalia onion sliced thin
4 tablespoons olive oil
6 cups chicken stock
Salt
1/4 teaspoon Red Pepper flakes
1/2 pound Angel Hair,
broken in 2 inch pieces
1/4 cup chopped Italian Parsley
4 teaspoon grated Romano Cheese

1. Place onion and oil in a large sauce pan over low heat and saute, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes, until onions are soft.
2.Add stock and salt to taste. Sprinkle with hot pepper flakes and simmer for about 1 hour.
3.Add pasta and parsley and cook until pasta is al dente.  Sprinkle with grated Romano cheese.

Serves 6

About a month ago I sent an email to my friend Gwen. I asked her to let me know the next time she was heading down to Chile. She works for the Huneeus family at Quintessa in Napa. They also own Veramonte in the Casablanca Valley just a short drive outside of Santiago Chile, and she travels there often. She replied immediately that a trip was in the works - she was in the process of booking her flight. The plan was to meet up with her friend Mai (who is Chilean and also works at Quintessa), head over to Mendoza (a wine region just a short hop over the Andes in Argentina), and then back to Santiago for a couple days of work/meetings. I asked if I could tag along, they said no problem, we tacked a few days in Buenos Aires onto the tail end of the adventure, and I started packing. It was an exciting whirlwind of a trip and I returned with a notebook full of notes, stories, and recipe ideas that I look forward to weaving into the site over the coming months.

For starters, I thought I'd share with you the day-by-day broad strokes of trip, links to the places we ate, stayed and visited, along with a few of the faces I encountered along the way. Thanks to Gwen and Mai for letting me tag along at the last minute, and for introducing me to their friends (and in Mai's case family!). Also, to all the individuals who were so generous with their time - we were greeted with open doors, stories, and friendship all along the way.

8/2: Getting to South America
American Airlines San Francisco to Los Angeles ---> LAN from Los Angeles to Santiago, Chile ---> Stunning flight over the Andes Mountain range - LAN Santiago, Chile to Mendoza, Argentina

8/3: Arrive in Mendoza
Checked into the Park Hyatt Mendoza, on the Plaza de la Independencia, about fifteen minutes from the airport. Went for a run on the treadmill at the hotel and then walked around central Mendoza. It was a Sunday so not much was going on. Just around the corner from the hotel we tasted a bunch of local wines at The Vines of Mendoza Tasting Room (if you go ask for Emilia Martinez, she did a great job guiding us through the wines). I did the Las Muestras flight, a sampling of signature regional varietals and Gwen did Las Reservas de Argentina, the reserve selections. And we also ordered a fantastic plate of cheeses from the area.

8/4: Lujan de Cuyo, Mendoza Wineries
Picked up our other friend Mai from the Mendoza airport. The Mendoza region is best known for its Malbecs and many of the wineries are a short drive outside Mendoza's city center. Having a driver was key to covering a lot of ground, and both drivers we had were great. If any of you want the details on the car company we used email me and I will track down that info for you. First stop - Carlos Pulenta Winery. Lunch at Club Tapiz’s Terruño restaurant, Maipu. Onto Achaval Ferrer Winery, and back to Carlos Pulenta for a tour of his winery. Checked into Posada Borravino before dinner at 1884 Francis Mallmann at Bodega Escorihuela.

8/5: More Mendoza Wineries
- We ran into Laura Catena at dinner the previous night and she was nice enough to invite us to Catena Zapata - not a bad place to kick of the day and get my camera warmed up. Next up - a tasting at Vina Cobos, and then up the road for a quick tour of Cavas Wine Lodge. Lunch was great - we did a tasting and visited with Mai's friend Sebastian and his family and colleagues at Bodega Ruca Malen. They did some delicious vegetarian inspired food pairings for me - a couple in particular used everyday ingredients (like zucchini and eggplant) in delicious and unexpected ways. More to come on this front in a future post. We were running a bit late and missed our appointment at Terrazas de los Andes, so we ended up stopping off at Marcelino Wine Store on the way to the airport instead. Flew from Mendoza, Argentina to Santiago, Chile, and checked into the Ritz-Carlton, Santiago. Walked up the street for dinner at Akarana.

8/6: Santiago, Chile
I hung out solo in Santiago. Started my day with a macchiato from one of the numerous Starbucks within shouting distance of the hotel (Chile is not known for its coffee). Then took the impeccable subway system to the Mercado Central de Santiago. Took the subway back in the direction of the hotel but got off to try to find one of the tortas shops a friend told me about over dinner. Found the tortas, had another coffee and decided to walk back to the hotel from there when I stumbled on Organisk - a little organic/natural foods shop. I ended up chatting with one of the owners for a while, they had some great products in stock. Freshened up at the hotel before enjoying a fantastic lunch at Rai with friends Paulina and Roberto (of Chileangourmet). They took me to one of their favorite spots where Chef Raimundo Tagle is doing some very cool things with Chilean ingredients - I'll write about the specifics (and why I'm such a fan of the work Paulina and Roberto are doing in Chile) in a future post. Went for a run on the treadmill back at the hotel and decided to stick around the hotel. Went downstairs and had a veg. club sandwich at Ritz-Carlton Wine 365 and then did a tasting flight of Chilean white wines. And chef Leiva gave me an impromptu tour of the Ritz kitchen :)...

8/7: Santiago, Casablanca, and Valparaiso, Chile
Had a leisurely morning and then drove out to the Casablanca Valley for a tasting at Veramonte and a tour of the vineyards. Spent a very special afternoon with Mery and Cristian at the Eden-esque Matetic. I got to walk the vineyards with alpacas, see how Mery makes her delicious Torta del Rosario - made from the milk of the sheep on the ranch, and watch the sunset behind the hills. I threatened to move in. We then drove to coastal Valparaiso and checked into Zero Hotel (if you go, splurge for a room with a view). A big group of us walked down the hill for dinner at Pasta e Vino Ristorante.

8/8: Valparaiso, Chile
Coffee and breakfast on the patio, and then a walk around Valparaiso. We stopped off at Casa Museo La Sebastiana before a drive out to Quintay. Then we headed back to Santiago, and checked back into the Ritz-Carlton. Got back in time to hit up Pura and Pueblito Los Dominicos for a bit of shopping before everything closed for the night.

8/9: On to Buenos Aires, Argentina
On to Buenos Aires where we grabbed our luggage and hopped into a cab to the Palermo Viejo neighborhood. Five Cool Rooms was the destination. Grabbed some lunch and walked around Palermo Viejo - great shopping on the cheap. Stopped at Bar 6 a bit later for a caffeinated pick-me-up, and eventually ate dinner at Bereber - all walking distance from the hotel.

8/10: Buenos Aires, Argentina
San Telmo Antique Market in the morning - loads of vintage cameras, costume jewelry, and vintage wind-up alarm clocks and old, colorful South America license plates. Walked around a bit then hopped into a cab and went to La Boca which ended up over-the-top touristy - we only stayed about 15 minutes. Lunch in Recoleta. Back to Palermo Viejo, where we had dinner at Bar Uriarte.

8/11: Buenos Aires, Argentina
Took a taxi to the Casa Rosada, and then a walked up the street to Cafe Tortoni. Walked from there over to the Puerto Madero district where I squirreled away snacks for the plane at I Fresh Market. Checked out El Gato Negro spice shop. And then took yet another cab to Bio in Palermo for lunch. Back to Palermo Viejo, sat out a thunder storm at Bar 6 and then Mott, before having dinner somewhere not worth mentioning.

8/12: 24 hours of flying
Checked out of hotel. Never-ending series of flights home. LAN Buenos Aires ---> American Airlines Santiago, Chile ---> American Airlines Miami, Florida ---> American Airlines San Francisco, California. Back home before noon in time for lunch with Wayne.

Continue reading Ten Days in South America...