The Cooking Diva Blog: Original Tropical Creations by Chef Melissa De Leon

Anthony Bourdain in Peru, and the Conch-Ceviche-Blog-Rage

Would you believe me if I tell you that I only watch TV when I want to take a nap? Well, it is the raw truth! That's why I am so happy because I found a link to Anthony Bourdain's show on Peruvian Cuisine on line. First I saw it at Chef Elena's blog, and to tell you the truth, I couldn't resist the temptation to post it here and share this great source of information with you.

One of my favorite Latin American Chefs, Gaston Acurio, guides Anthony Bourdain through the best and most authentic places. The casual atmosphere of the conversation, the colorful sites of the city and the mysticism all over the air captivated my attention, and that sometimes is not an easy task. I was actually drooling while they talked about the ceviches, being the case that here in Panama we are very fond of ceviche too. Although the traditional Panamanian ceviche has its differences from the Peruvian, there is no doubt they both were born in our countries because of the abundance of the freshest fish and seafood.

On that same subject, I will tell you now what happened the other day. Believe it or not, I received a kind of nasty comment on my Ecuadorian Conch Ceviche recipe. The comment's author supposedly was from Peru and his complaint was about his "idea" that the "ceviche" is a strictly dish from Peru, and no one else in the whole world can prepare, write or talk about IT other than the Peruvians. Well, I wish I hadn't deleted it, but I did, and I also blocked his IP. Ha! Is this some sort of Blog RAGE? Just when I thought I was over the "I have been Cursed: The Revenge of the Guinea Pigs," the ceviche madness begins. This is a teaser for you my bellicose reader, just because you asked for it, next you will find a link to the most popular of the ceviche recipes I have published in this blog. I hope you enjoy them all :-)

We are very proud of our internationally famous method of serving fish tidbits. A mixed assortment can include squid, octopus, scallops, clams, lobster, crab as well as longorones, a black shellfish similar to scallops. You can use what you have available or what you like the most..., what insures a variety of textures and flavors. Now the recipes:

Ceviche de Pescado, Panamanian style (fish ceviche)
Ceviche de Pescado y Pulpo with Pineapple and Golden Raisins (Fish and Octopus ceviche)
Conch Ceviche from Ecuador. Yum!

Have a tasty day!

Chef M

Tags: ceviche, food blogs, cookingdiva, cooking, panama, recipes, food & drink, food, chef melissa

by Chef Melissa - CookingDiva · September 20, 2006 · 09:12 PM
Permalink · Comments (17) · TrackBack (0) · Categories: Food & Drink · General · Tropical Fruit and Vegetables

Chef Melissa's Fruit Cookies - Galletas de Frutas (EN / ES)

I discovered Blyberg.net and its Catalog Card Generator today and immediately loved the vintage look of the cards. In seconds I was inspired to share with you this recipe to prepare delicious Fruit Cookies. They keep well for months, and like good fruitcake, improve with age.

Now, head over to Blyberg.net and enjoy the Catalog Card Generator service for free!

Estas galletas pueden guardarse en envases herméticos o congelarse en bolsas ziploc por varios meses. de hecho, el sabor mejora con el tiempo!

Ingredientes:

1 taza de mantequilla
2 tazas de azúcar
2 huevos
3 tazas de harina
3 cucharaditas de polvo de hornear
1/4 cucharadita de sal
1/2 cucharadita de clavito de olor molido
2 cucharaditas de canela
1/2 cucharadita de nuez moscada
3/4 taza de leche
1 taza cada uno de: piña deshidratada, pasitas, cerezas deshidratadas o dátiles, nueces. Todo bien picadito.

Procedimiento:

Pre-calentar el horno a 350° F por 10 minutos. Batir la mantequilla y el azúcar hasta alcanzar una consistencia cremosa. Agregar los huevos uno a uno, batiendo bien despues de cada adición.
Cernir los ingredientes secos y agregar a la mezcla alternando con la leche. Incorporar las frutas secas y revolver hasta que esten distribuidas uniformemente.
Colocar por cucharadas la mezcla en una bandeja para galletas engrasada, dejando un espacio de 2-3 pulgadas entre cada una.
Hornear de 12-15 minutos o hasta que empiece a dorar. Retirar la bandeja del horno y dejar reposar las galletas por 10 minutos antes de removerlas a una parrilla para que se enfrien por completo.

Happy Cooking!

Melissa

Tags: cookies, food blogs, cookingdiva, cooking, panama, recipes, food & drink, food, chef melissa

by Chef Melissa - CookingDiva · September 19, 2006 · 07:31 PM
Permalink · Comments (11) · TrackBack (0) · Categories: Food & Drink · General · RECETAS - Galletas · RECIPES: desserts

2006 Knight-Batten Awards: And the Winner is Global Voices!

Felicidades a todos los miembros de la comunidad de Global Voices. La ardua labor del equipo, consistencia e innovación fueron reconocidos ayer por el Instituto de Periodismo Interactivo de la Universidad de Maryland, quienes adjudicaron a Global Voices el Gran Premio en el prestigioso 2006 Knight-Batten Awards.

From Today on Global Voices Digest by David Sasaki:

Knight-Batten Awards: And the winner is… - Congratulation to all members of the Global Voices community. The worldwide team's hard work, consistency, and innovation were recognized yesterday by the Institute of Interactive Journalism at the University of Maryland, which awarded Global Voices the Grand Prize at the prestigious 2006 Knight-Batten Awards. Managing Editor Rachel Rawlins offers her own congratulations and links to all the relevant press.

Global Food Blog Report #32 - Has the global conversation got you hungry? Not to fear, Panamanian Chef Melissa De Leòn serves up ten tasty food posts from around the world. I don't know about you, but I'm going for the Salmon Carpaccio with Herbs and Pesto from Denmark with Tanzanian Kashata for dessert.

To read the previous Global Food Blog Reports visit Global Voices Online.

Have a tasty day!

Melissa

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Paladares Unidos - Chef Melissa's Cooking blog en Español

Tags: global voices, food blogs, cookingdiva, cooking, panama, recipes, food & drink, food, chef melissa

by Chef Melissa - CookingDiva · September 19, 2006 · 09:00 AM
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Croquetas de Yuca, Chorizo y Brocoli, con Salsa de Naranja y Tamarindo

Yuca Croquettes with Chorizo and Broccoli, served with Orange-Tamarind Sauce. Yum!

Yuca , cassava or mandioca (Manihot esculenta, Crantz) is a root originary from Brasil and Paraguay. It is an annual tuber crop grown widely in tropical and sub-tropical areas. It thrives in sandy loam soil low organic matter and can tolerate low rainfall and high temperatures. It is therefore a cash crop cultivated by smallholder farmers within the existin farming systems in many countries.

Ingredients for Croquettes:

1/2 lb (8 oz) yuca, peeled, cut in chunks and boiled for 15 mins

4 oz chorizo (I am using Panamanian chorizo from Las Tablas)

2 oz broccoli, cut, steamed and drained

Stale bread, grinded and seasoned with dry herbs

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Once yuca is cooked, drain and pulse in the food processor until dough is uniform.

Chorizo comes heavily seasoned most of the time, so there is no need to add spices to the filling this time. But, if you want to be sure…go ahead, taste and adjust seasonings to your liking :)

Take two tablespoons of yuca dough aprox., make a ball and then flatten it to a disk. Put one layer of chorizo and one layer of broccoli in the middle and top with a second flattened disk of yuca dough. Seal the edges. Wet your fingers and rub the surface of the croquette with your hands to make it even and seal edges. It has to be smoth and beautiful.

Roll over some bread crumbs (ground stale bread seasoned with herbs)

At this point you have to choices: you can deep fry, or oven fry the croquette.

Oven fry directions: after spraying them with some canola oil …I`ll oven fry these beauties for 15 minutes (350º pre-heated oven)

While they are baking, prepare the sauce:

Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil, then add

1/4 cup red onion, chopped (or shallots),

1 tablespoon sugar

sautee until caramelized.

Then add 3 tablespoons tamarind concentrate

1/4 cup orange juice, and simmer for 3 minutes, or until it`s reduced to 1/2.

Adjust seasonings, and serve with croquettes!

Enjoy!

Chef M

by Chef Melissa - CookingDiva · September 17, 2006 · 10:38 PM
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Remembering 9/11 and a Recipe to prepare Chicha de Maiz

It was 7:30 AM, September 11, 2001, and I was on my way to a client's house in Sacramento, ready to start my cooking day as a Personal Chef. Everything was perfect, I had all the cooking utensils, ingredients and containers with my logo and re-heating instructions packed in my car, it was a bright beautiful day. It was then when by the time I parked in her driveway, the radio was screaming out loud the bad news about the attack. I was shocked. I couldn't understand such an infamy.

Even today, five years after the 9/11 attack, I do not understand the reasons. There are no excuses for all the wasted lives. The whole world changed on that day, everyone's lives changed on that day. Now, five years later I am in Panama, but the remembrance of that black day would not be forgotten.

My heart goes to the families that lost their people, and to the souls that unanticipatedly left us ...we send light and our prayers.

Stop the wars. Stop all that violence! Not oil, power, land or money justifies all the inhumane acts, and the lives lost in the process.

That being said, lets get cooking now.

First: Find some good dry corn, the kind that has the "germ." Place it in a container with some water and cover it with plastic wrap. Open a few holes on the plastic so it can breathe and germination begins. Check it out every day, shake the container a little bit and add more water if it seems too dry. After 2-3 days it should have sprouted.

Second: Grind the corn sprouts and place in a deep pan with water to cover. Simmer for 3-4 hours. Then, ~~ferociously~~ press the mixture through a sieve. Then put the liquid back on a deep pan, add molasses to taste, thin with water if it seems too thick and simmer for 1 more hour.

Third: Let the mixture cool to room temperature and then bottle it and serve cold.

Fourth: IF, and only if, you want to feel the tropical beat, heat up your ears a little notch, THEN, leave the concoction out, covered, at room temperature to ferment a couple of days. If you choose to ferment it, please take note of the very important issue we address next.

Disclaimer: do not attempt to juggle knives, ride a bicycle, or do anything important after imbibition of this beverage. It is for nutritional use only. The management is not responsible for your obscene and irrational behavior.

Un abrazo!

Melissa

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