2023 Prague, Czechia: The goulash in Prague tastes as good as it looks, and you absolutely must try it when you visit because it is celebrated as traditional fare. It is nothing like the goulash I grew up with in the Midwest. Those memories involve thick concoctions of meat and pasta in a heavy tomato sauce. There MIGHT have even been some ketchup involved!
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2020 Hvar, Croatia: When our sister-in-law Allie asked if we were in for some wine, food, and blues in Croatia, we enthusiastically agreed, “Yes! We are IN.”
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Mark and I fell in love with cannellini salad, and so we started paying attention to the versions we enjoyed the most. First came scribbles on napkins, followed by snapshots, and finally, we began experimenting with ratios at home.
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When in doubt, shrimp with cocktail sauce is a gathering staple. For a beautiful presentation, plate the shrimp neatly on a plate with a bowl of cocktail sauce and a few thin slices of lemon as a garnish. Alternatively, spoon a little sauce into individual tiny glass cups with a shrimp hanging over the edge.
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Chicken Pot Pies are an all-time great comfort food. You can bake it in a single pie plate, but it is particularly satisfying to break through a personal flaky crust into the steamy, savory goodness waiting in the dish below.
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Authentic spaghetti carbonara is easy to make, but the ingredients and technique are pretty precise. Guanciale (GOO-on-cha-lay) and pancetta are close enough in nature to interchange because they are both cured in a smoke-free environment. Guanciale is salt-cured pork jowl or cheek, deriving its name from guancia, which is Italian for “cheek.” Its salt curing process traditionally includes curing the pork jowl or cheek with a variety of spices. Pancetta is pork belly cured with salt and pepper.
Continue reading “Spaghetti Carbonara“Authentic spaghetti carbonara is easy to make, but the ingredients and technique are pretty precise. Guanciale (GOO-on-cha-lay) and pancetta are close enough in nature to interchange because they are both cured in a smoke-free environment. Guanciale is salt-cured pork jowl or cheek, deriving its name from guancia, which is Italian for “cheek.” Its salt curing process traditionally includes curing the pork jowl or cheek with a variety of spices. Pancetta is pork belly cured with salt and pepper.
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