Food and Crafts for All Occasions

Vanilla, Lemon and Honey Semifreddo

Semifreddo is an Italian dessert that literally translates as half(semi) cold(freddo). What it really is, is ice cream without ice cream machine. It is frozen and it has the same smooth, creamy, airy texture, though it’s done using absolutely different technique than ice cream.

In fact, the method* of making semifreddo is very much the same as for mousse. So, you may say that semifreddo is frozen mousse. Whereas in ice cream light airy texture comes from ice cream being churned, in semifreddo it comes from the ingredients being whipped before combined together. In my recipe, I separately whip all three major ingredients – cream, egg yolks, and egg whites. The result is a super light semifreddo.

Puff Pastry Tarts with Goat Cheese, Blueberries and Nectarines

Here’s another delicious recipe for the nectarine and blueberry combination. And almost as easy to make as the clafoutis if you use a store bought puff pastry.

Nectarine and Blueberry Clafoutis

Now is the season for my all-time favorite fruit combination: nectarines and blueberries. I like it anytime, anywhere and anyhow. Raw and cooked. In tarts, pies, crumbles, clafoutis, roasted with honey and goat cheese or baked and used as a topping for ice cream or semifreddo.

4th of July Feast (last minute recipe): Corn and Jalapeno Dip

Here's a superfast and simple hot dip recipe which is a perfect choice for 4^th of July feast. Raving reviews are guaranteed and the total damage on your side is about $10 and less than a half hour of cooking time with only 5 minutes involving your active participation – the rest is done by the oven.

Lamb Ragout with Ricotta and Arugula

Here's my take on the popular Italian Bolognese sauce. I make it quite nontraditional so I just refer to it as 'meat ragout' in order not to tease authenticity advocates. (Who knows how pissed I would be if someone served me borsch with sweet potatoes instead of regular ones…)

Instead of beef I take lamb as it has more robust and pronounced flavor that is not easily overpowered by tomatoes. I also add ricotta, which softens the acidity of the sauce and gives it a nice creamy texture, and arugula to balance out the richness with its fresh peppery bite.

Rich and Airy Chocolate Mousse

This mousse is everybody's favorite. It's so light and fluffy and creamy and velvety and melting in your mouth and so deliciously chocolaty, it will make you go 'wow' and squint your eyes until the last bite.

Pizza, Part III: the Toppings

Besides a good dough, the success of pizza depends on its toppings. A tasty topping means a tasty pizza, right?  And to make a tasty topping is quite easy – all we need is quality components and a balanced combination of them.

Beans in Tomato Sauce wit Cinnamon and Fresh Dill

These beans seemed to be quite popular at our last Society lunch. I myself happen to be a big fan of this Greek inspired dish. I make it using either cannellini or garbanzo beans, though the Greeks, I believe, would take large white beans called Gigandes, which are, unfortunately, are not available in our stores yet.

Russian Style Wild Mushroom Gratin, aka 'Julienne'

Mushroom julienne is a dish made with sautéed mushrooms (preferably, wild) combined with sour cream or béchamel sauce and baked in small individual ramekins or cocottes under a cheese crust. It's one of those treats, eating of which is always accompanied by joyful moaning and multiple "OMG" exclamations. No exaggeration here!

Julienne is quite rich, so a small serving is enough to enjoy it. It’s served as a hot appetizer and I prefer to eat it with a teaspoon.

Blini, Russian Crepes

Blini are Russian crepes. They can be made with yeast or plain batter, with regular wheat flour or its combination with other flours, like buckwheat, rye etc. My all-time favorite is small, very thin blini made from a simple non-yeast batter based on all purpose flour and milk.  

These blini go equally well with savory and sweet toppings. Most of all I love them topped with salmon caviar. Paired with a shot of ice cold vodka or hot, sweetened black tea – mmmmm…. Ilya loves them with homemade lox with onions and fresh dill. For dessert, my choice would be to top them with a dollop of sour cream and sprinkle with white cane sugar just like I used to do it when I was a kid.

Langoustine, Ricotta and Spinach Ravioli with Lemon Brown Butter

I was raiding my bottomless freezer yesterday and came across an open package of cooked langoustines from Trader Joe’s. I remember they tasted quite unremarkable and that’s why were exiled to the freezer in the first place.

Lebanese Eggplant Salad

In Russia, when we really enjoy a meal, we say, it tastes so good you can swallow your tongue! Well, I almost did when I first tried this eggplant salad in a neighborhood Lebanese restaurant. Light, with an extremely velvety texture and amazing smoky flavor, for me it tasted even better than baba ganoush. And if you only knew how much I love baba ganoush...mmmm.

Feta Baked with Olives, Cherry Tomatoes, Olive Oil and Herbs

In cooking, I enjoy the process itself as much as the results, and because of that I often tend to choose elaborate dishes like homemade pasta or sausages, smoked ribs, stuffed vegetables and such. However, in a lack of time I have no problem whatsoever with cooking – and eating – simple dishes.

"Wow" Factor or Stuffed Eggplant Rolls Baked Under Tomato Sauce

Sometimes, there’s a dish that you’ve been cooking successfully for a while and everybody seemed to love it and then one day you decide to change the recipe just a little, just a tiny bit, and all of a sudden you say, “Wow”, and your guests say, “Wow”, and everybody’s raving about it and asking for the recipe.

I had this situation just recently with my stuffed eggplant rolls in tomato sauce, which I’ve been making for years (top picture). I filled them with a mixture of ricotta and soft goat cheese and baked under a tomato and basil sauce. Kind of an Italian style dish. But then, for one party with a Greek flair (mezze, lamb kebab and such) I decided to alter the recipe slightly to fit the theme. I substituted ricotta with feta cheese, added some chopped dill to the filling and spiced the sauce with cinnamon instead of basil.

Chicken Thighs Braised with White Wine, Dijon Mustard, Soy Sauce and Cream

If you have nothing against super tender, succulent and moist chicken meat in a light creamy sauce, here is a recipe for you. I used to make this dish quite often several years ago, but somehow along the way, with trying more and more new things, it gradually dropped out of my cooking repertoire. Recently though, Ilya reminded me of it and so now it’s back on our menu and, OMG, how we love it!