Posts by The Culinary Chase
radish leaf pesto
Pesto derives its name from pestâ which means to pound/crush. A typical pesto consists of crushed garlic, basil, pine nuts mixed with olive oil and Parmesan cheese. Pesto was originally used mostly to flavor vegetable soups. It wasn’t until the early 1900’s that it was used as a sauce for pasta. Earlier versions of pesto…
Read MoreLemon Olive Oil Cake
If you’ve been following my blog, you’ll see that I don’t post many desserts (the most recent was oats & cranberry bars back in March) and if I do it’s usually ones that are easy to make. My sweet tooth tends to gravitate to things such as blue cheese with fruit and a glass of…
Read MorePasta e Patate (pasta and potato)
Pasta e Patate is a recipe from a dear friend of mine. I met Francesca in Singapore back in 2001. I had heard glowing accounts of her Italian cooking classes and was eager to meet this culinary wizard. Francesca did not disappoint. Her kitchen was light and airy and her cheery disposition made all who…
Read MoreRoasted Cipollini Onion Crostini
What do you get when grilled baguette slices (crostini) and roasted cipollini onions come together? Answer: a heavenly snack that’s so easy-to-make and ridiculously delicious! Cipolini (chip-oh-LEE-nee) onions are small and flat. The word in Italian means little onion and are sweeter than the average yellow or white onion. I have seen them in food…
Read MoreGrilled Pork Tenderloin
For whatever the reason, the air last night was perfumed with backyard barbeques. I love that smell. A simple sign our neighbors were venturing outside and grilling. We were connecting once again with our neighbors with a casual wave of a hand or nod. Pork tenderloin, also known as pork fillet, is one of our…
Read MoreHalibut Fish Cheeks
Fish cheeks? The first time I heard this we were living in Hong Kong. The Chinese love fish and the prized part is the cheek. Why? The cheeks are the tastiest and sweetest part of the fish…I kid you not! Tender chunks of flesh that smell like the ocean and are opaque. A smaller fish…
Read MoreNova Scotia Mussels – Italian style
Even though I cook through the week, it’s our weekends that I look forward to the most. Whether we are entertaining or it’s just the two of us, I like to plan a nice meal. And when I say nice, it doesn’t mean a long time in the kitchen…just a few key quality ingredients.
Read MoreFried Eggplant with Tomato Sauce
Eggplant, also known as aubergine, has not always been popular and yet there are oodles of eggplant recipes out there making this nightshade plant shine. I’m sure if you ask your friends if they like it, you’ll receive mixed reviews. It must be a North American thing ’cause everywhere else this humble plant is consumed…
Read MoreRoasted Pork Belly
When we first moved to Hong Kong, one of our all-time favorite fast foods was char siu fun (Chinese bbq pork over rice with a side of ginger sauce – yum!). This was our first introduction to pork belly and before that I hadn’t heard of it. Well, that’s not strictly accurate. Although I grew…
Read MoreMarinated Olives
The olive bar at any food shop makes me stop dead in my tracks. I’m a sucker for anything that reminds me of the Mediterranean. I wasn’t always a fan until one day, a few years ago, I had ordered a cheese plate and Kalamata olives were on it. At first I scrunched up my…
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