Roasting Rambler

As the cold weather settles into Iowa, my cooking turns more to hearty soups and stews. One of my favorite soups is tomato basil bisque, but until recently I had never made it from scratch. Then about a month ago I ended up with about a pound of tomatoes on the verge of going bad - I cubed them and threw them in a pot with some salt, garlic, and pepper, and cooked it all down. After some pureeing, some sieving, and the addition of some cream and basil I sat down to my first batch of homemade tomato basil bisque. Read the rest of this entry »

I started this blog to create a record of my own cooking experiences, and as I’ve written this blog I realized that successful blogging is harder than it looks. When talking about my blog the question that often comes up is how I started cooking. I grew up in a home where we ate supper together every night around a kitchen table. Those home-cooked meals were often followed up by homemade desserts (usually containing chocolate, my mother’s favorite).

Once I was out on my own, I realized that if I wanted to keep eating the way I grew up, I needed to learn how to cook. I did have a head start since I’d been helping my mom since I was too small to do much more than stir something in a a bowl. As an adult, I’ve been learning new techniques and trying different flavor combinations. My parents’ “try everything at least once” policy has turned me into a more adventuresome eater and cook than my mother, but lately I’ve been craving some of her specialties. Especially, the meal that I always requested for special occasions - egg rolls. Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve been eating cherries in several preparations lately, from the berries I made jam and cooked with some sugar to top some ice cream, but from the pits I’ve made a few batches of ice cream. I knew the flavor wouldn’t be that strong, so I wanted to avoid eggs, but I also didn’t think that an all-cream Philadelphia-style fit the bill. That’s when I settled on a cornstarch thickened spin on gelato. It took a few batches (pity) to get the recipe right, but I think this one’s a keeper. Read the rest of this entry »