Barley and Beef Stew

4lb roast from Stand Fast Farm
3 large potatoes
4 carrots
4 green onions
4 celery stocks

Everything is layered on top of the roast in a crock pot. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and 1 cup of water or beef or vegetable broth. Set to medium heat and cook for 6 to 8 hours. Serve over barley pearls.

Tilapia with roasted sweet pepper sauce crust

                 

                    4 fillets of tilapia             Panko crumbs  
                    1/2 cup roasted red pepper sauce  
                    1 cup rice                             4 tbls butter

Prepare rice. Preheat oven to 425*. Line a cookie sheet with tin foil shiny side up, folding the edges over to prevent any juice from escaping. Spoon the sauce on each filet. Spoon the panko crumbs over the sauce evenly. Bake for 18 minutes. Fluff butter into the rice. Dish and serve. This went very well with a large Greek salad with olives and freshly grated parmesan cheese.

Buffalo Eats - Eat It Up: Episode 54

I was interviewed by Donnie Burtless recently. We laughed over Paula Donuts, bemoaned the loss of Grant Street's B. Ferrante's, got grossed out over margarine, marveled over prepping for International Dinners and nerded out over Portal Cake and Nyan Cat Poptarts.

Japanese International Dinner

On Saturday, January 12 we celebrated Japan, our third dinner at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Buffalo.

After watching the different groups that were participating in the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society's Bunka no Hi, or Japan Culture Day back in November, I knew I had to ask the dancers if they would like to come and perform for our Japanese International Dinner.

Robert Poczik told stories about what it is like for a Westerner to go to a traditional Japanese public bath; this story was a humorous and surprising view of everyday Japanese culture. He then shared a slide show from his several trips to Japan, showing highlights of the city of Kyoto, the ancient capital of Japan and the country's greatest repository of imperial palaces, as well as it's monasteries, gardens and home to Japan's geisha. It was a very rich visual glimpse into the beauty of Japan.

Pictured above is a Japanese Buddhist altar. Pictured below is candied ginger.




The following people and groups helped to make this evening so successful:

Bruce Acker, the Assistant Director of Asian Studies Program at the University at Buffalo.

Dr. Takako Michii, PHD is the president of Buffalo-Kanazawa (Japan) Sister Cities Committee, former director of the Japanese program at SUNY Buffalo, distributor of Kaengen (Enagic) Water.

Joshua Smith of Serene Gardens.

Atsuko Nishida-Mitchell, certified tea ceremony instructor and Martin House docent.

Leader Setsuko Mullen, Yoshiko Connolly and others, all members of the Odori No Kai (Japanese Dance Group).

Susan Mann Dolce donated boxes and boxes of oranges for the center pieces.

Eve Holberg helped set up the main hall and produced dozens and dozens of origami cranes.

Kate Goehrig Scott helped transport all of the lovely dancers and assisted them with their music.

There were many many many door prizes that were donated by Serene Gardens, A Chau International, and Westside Stories, including books, chopsticks, gift certificates, and more. It made for a very exciting end of the evening!

The evening's menu included:

Salt massaged cucumbers with miso, undaria pinnatifida seaweed, and sesame seed

Sake steamed kabocha squash with white miso



Misoshiru with shaved daikon, yellow onions, and mountain yam

Sliced ginger and cracked red pepper crusted grilled tofu

Crystalized ginger wild rice blend with carrots and chaved cabbage

Roasted peppers with mentsuyu served on mixed beans

Azuki bean ice cream

Green salad with terriyaki nori and pumpkin seed dressing

Serene Gardens: Garden Center & Cafe

In preparation for the upcoming Japanese International Dinner, I've been experimenting with traditional recipes from rural Japan. Dishes from mountain farms are simple in construction but contain an unforgettable depth of flavor.

I've been reading Japanese blogs like The Humble Bean and Bohnenhase. Books like Japanese Farm Book and Washoku. I've also visited a number of restaurants in the area, sampling their food. Ichiban was my most recent stop prior to Serene Gardens and I liked their plating and flavors, but Serene seems to be one step beyond them.

I drove through picturesque and slightly nerve-wracking wintery weather to get to the garden center and discovered an exquisite hideaway. They opened in April of 2012, but it appears as though they have been there for years, rather than months; their website photos show a fully developed garden and center.

When I first stepped in the shop I noticed the intense scent of pine from the boughs and wreathes. It was such a delightful change from the artificial scents blown in most shops this time of year. The colors, fresh plants, the pottery all worked together, pulling me in further.

The center's commitment to providing organic and sustainably sourced product was wonderful to see.


There are a large number of gardening tools and other supplies, including items for Ikebana.

There are also a large number of distinctively Japanese items for sale.

The dining area is spacious and beautifully decorated.

A large Christmas tree sat in it's center, covered in all sorts of fun Japanese ornaments.

The front counter pulls you right in. I was eager to start ordering and chose a loose leaf Pu'erh tea, chocolate mint fusion, to begin with.

        

I also ordered a tuna roll. The wrap was so fresh that it had a tackiness not often found in local sushi shops. They were served with a modest amount of wasabi and freshly sliced ginger.

This soba, buckwheat noodle, soup with soy and bonito base, cubes of tofu, broccoli florets,  slivered carrots, minced green onions, and slivered mushrooms was hearty and rich.

This year-round garden center and cafe is not that far from Buffalo or Niagara Falls and is worth the adventure of traversing the Grand Island bridges! Family and pocketbook friendly, I'll definitely be back soon.

Free Mushrooms, From Poland with Love

Over the last year, I've taken on more and more unique cuisine. Although most would not consider Polish, or pretty much any food from Eastern Europe, particularly if you live in western NY, to be particularly exotic or adventurous, they would be wrong.

Aspic for one, is a dish from a distant time and no modern palate, most especially white bread Americans, could handle the cold gelatin with it's bits of meat and fat and colorless vegetables immobilized until melted on the tongue. Or calf brain cutlets. A favorite of my Scottish Nana, she would have her daughter, my Grandma Betty, stew them in butter and then fry them in bread crumbs and eat them with strawberry jelly and minced pickles, just like the people of southern Poland. Or how about beef hearts braised in heavy cream and salty brown gravy stuffed with barley pearls? No? Too exotic? Too adventurous?

With all of this "adventuring" has come offers around the globe to taste and sample cultural gems. Pictured above are Boletus, Borowiki dried forest mushrooms from the primeval forests of Podlaskie. I received an email at the beginning of December, asking if I would like to try free mushrooms. Skeptical, I opened the website, and discovered the "Green Lungs" of Poland. This operation takes place in forests over 8,000 years old for only a few weeks a year. Harvests are done by hand, with families going out together and making a day of it.

I recieved this mailer right before Yule, below is the recipe I used them in.

Indyk z nadzieniem pieczarkowym or Roast turkey with mushrooms

Cook turkey gizzard, heart, and neck in 4 cups water along with 1 portion diced kale and several peppercorns and allspice grains 1 1/2 hours or until giblets are tender.

Soak 1/2 pound stale bread in 1 cup milk. When soggy, run through meat grinder with giblets, kale, and raw turkey liver. Grind only the skin and meat of neck, discarding bones. I used a stick blender since I didn't have a grinder.

In 3 tablespoons butter simmer 12 ounces fresh, chopped mushrooms and 2 chopped onions until tender. Combine with ground mixture, add 2 beaten egg yolks (or 2 tablespoons of sour cream), the leftover milk if any,

several tablespoons bread crumbs, 2 beaten egg whites (or 1 tablespoon more of sour cream) , 2 tablespoons each chopped fresh dill and parsley and salt & pepper to taste.




Fill turkey with dressing, pin or sew up closed, and roast in 400 degree fahrenheit oven, allowing 25 minutes cooking time per pound. Baste alternately with melted butter and a little water (about 1 cup) and later with the pan drippings.

During last 1/2 hour of roasting, add another 12 ounces or more chopped or thinly sliced fresh mushrooms

(I reconstituted the dried mushrooms for this part) to pan drippings and let them simmer.

Pour the pan drippings and mushrooms over the sliced turkey and dressing on a platter or thicken with a little flour and sour cream, simmer briefly, season to taste, and serve in gravy boat.

We had this for our New Year's dinner with a large salad with sweet peppers, minced cold leftover brussels sprouts, and pomegranate seeds. It was outstanding!

Japan Culture Day and Ichiban Japanese Restaurant

On Sunday, November 4th, the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society hosted a Bunka no Hi, or Japan Culture Day.  The celebration of Japanese culture included dancing, a demonstration on how to put on a traditional kimono, calligraphy,

ikebana (flower arranging), a matcha tea ceremony, origami, sweets, and more.

Members of the Friends of the Japanese Garden of the Buffalo Olmsted Park Conservancy, The Japanese Group of Buffalo, The Buffalo Kanazawa Sister City Committee, Buffalo Bonsai Society, International Ikebana Club Chapter 50, Rotary Club of Buffalo Sunrise, Serene Gardens Garden Center & Cafe, the Asian Studies Department of UB, and the Buffalo office of the Consulate General of Japan were present to create a fully immersive event.

After the event we visited the Ichiban Japanese Restaurant in Bladell, NY. The unassuming store front hides a beautiful izakaya. My youngest daughter was enamored with the dolls in the alcoves, my eldest with the flowers drawn onto her plate, and my step-son actually savored his selections!

 

The chefs created artistic pieces that disappeared all too quickly.


I loved the freshly sliced pale yellow ginger and the house made panko crunch.

Everything was so fresh. Sweet and delicate with none of that tank flavor you find at some places. All of the sashimi and nigiri sushi were well proportioned and a great deal of attention went into each plate's preparation.

We will certainly be returning to this location and I highly recommend trying out the Holiday roll.