Apple cake from United States

Ingredients
(serves 4/6)

1/2 cup of softened Butter

1 cup of Sugar

1 Egg, lightly beaten

1 cup pf Flour

1 teaspoon of Baking soda

1 teaspoon of Cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon of Nutmeg

2 Apples (peeled, cored and chopped)

1/2 cup Walnuts (lightly chopped)

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Join the butter and the sugar in an electric mixer and cream well until fluffy. Add the egg and beat to integrate.

In a large bowl, mix up together the flour, the baking soda, the cinnamon and the nutmeg. Then, with the mixer on low, slowly add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture until incorporated (do not over beat).

Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir in the apples and nuts. Join all together with a spoon.

Pour the batter into a buttered 9-inch cake pan and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until browned and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Remove to a rack and cool before cutting.

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Alsatian Pork with Sauerkraut

Ingredients

(serves 4)

• 4 slices of bacon, cut into small pieces
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 can sauerkraut, drained
• 2 tablespoons of brown sugar
• 2 potatoes, cut into fourths
• 2 tart apples, sliced
• 12 juniper berries
• 6 black peppercorns
• 2 whole cloves
• 1 sprig parsley
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 smoked pork chops
• 4 frankfurters, slashed diagonally
• 2 cups chicken broth

Preparation

Cook and stir bacon and onion in a skillet until bacon is crunchy; drain. Stir in the sauerkraut and the brown sugar. Add potatoes and the apples. Tie juniper berries, peppercorns, cloves, parsley and bay leaf in a cheesecloth bag or place in tea ball - add to the sauerkraut. Join the pork chops and the frankfurters. Pour chicken broth over the meat. 

Heat to boiling and then reduce the heat. Cover and simmer until meat is ready and potatoes are tender, about 30 minutes.

Remove the spice bag. Remove sauerkraut, potatoes and apples to large platter with slotted spoon. Arrange meat around edge.

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Papa a la Huancaina - Peruvian potatoes with chile-cheese sauce

Ingredients

(serves 4 to 6)

• 8 Potatoes
• 1 cup of feta or Muenster-style cheese
• 1 cup of Evaporated milk
• 3 tablespoons of Ají amarillo paste, or minced jalapeño
• 1/2 teaspoon of Turmeric
• 4 to 8 crumbled Saltines or soda crackers
• 4 tablespoons of Oil
• Salt and pepper
• 12 Lettuce leaves
• 4 hard-boiled and quartered Eggs
• 2 Tomatoes, cut into thin wedges
• 10 pitted Black olives

Preparation

Cover up the complete potatoes with cold, salty water and cook them. take away from the heat, drain and let them cool. Unpeel the potatoes and cut in half or into rounds.

Put the cheese, the evaporated milk, the peppers and the turmeric in a food processor and smash until smooth. With the motor running, add the crackers one by one to thicken the paste. With the motor still running, sprinkle in the oil. Add more crackers if the sauce is too skinny or some milk or water if it is too chunky. Season with salt and pepper.

Line a serving platter with the lettuce leaves. Place the potatoes on top of the lettuce leaves. Spoon the prepared sauce over the potatoes. Decorate serving plate with egg quarters and tomato wedges. 

Sprinkle olives over potatoes and serve cold.

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Flan de Leche - caramel custard

Ingredients

(serves 6)

• 1 cup of Sugar
• 1/4 cup of Water
• 4 Eggs, beaten
• 1 can Sweetened, condensed milk
• 2 cups of Whole milk or water
• 1/2 teaspoon of Vanilla
• 1/2 cup of Sugar

Preparation

Preheat oven - 350°F. Place the sugar and water in a heavy-bottomed pan and mix to liquefy the sugar. Place over medium heat and boil the sugar, without stirring, until it starts to turn a honey brown (10-15 minutes).

Remove the caramelized sugar from heat and pour into a 9-inch cake pan, swirling to cover the bottom. Place the cake pan in a baking pan large enough to hold it without touching.

In a bowl, beat together the eggs, the condensed milk, whole milk or water, the vanilla and 1/2 cup sugar until smooth. Pour into the cake pan.

Fill the baking pan with enough warm water to come about 2/3 of the way up sides of the container. Place in the oven and cook until a knife inserted into the center of the custard comes out clean, anywhere from 45 minutes to over an hour. Do not overcook the flan or it may go off.

Remove the custard from the water bath and chill it. Run a knife around the edges of the custard, invert over a serving dish. Serve as dessert.

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Empanadas - savory stuffed pastries

Ingredients

(makes 12 empanadas - 2 /person)

Pastry

• 3 cups of All-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon of Baking powder
• 1 teaspoon of Salt
• 1/4 cup of oil
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup of Milk

Filling

• 2-3 tablespoons of Oil
• 1 minced Onion 
• 2-3 cloves minced Garlic
• 1 pound of Ground beef
• 1 tablespoon of Paprika 
• 1 teaspoon of Cuminseed
• 1 teaspoon of Oregano
• 1 cup of Water or stock
• 1/2 cup of Raisins
• 1/4 cup of Black or green olives
• 1 tablespoon of Flour

Preparation

Mix the flour, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl. Rub the lard or shortening into the flour with your fingers, breaking it up into small pieces. If using oil, simply stir it in.

Stir in just enough milk, water or broth to form a kneadable mass. Remove it to a floured work surface and knead for about 5-10 minutes, or until it is silky smooth. Add a little flour if it is too sticky. Cover it with a towel or bowl and let it rest at least 30 minutes.

While the dough is resting, heat the oil in a sauté pan over medium flame. Sauté the onions until they are translucent, 3-4 minutes. Add the garlic, paprika, cuminseed and oregano and sauté 1-2 minutes more. Add the ground beef, salt and pepper and sauté, breaking up the beef until it is cooked through, 5-7 minutes.

Stir in the water or stock, raisins and olives and bring to a simmer. Sprinkle flour over all and stir in well. Simmer for another 5-8 minutes, or until lightly thickened. Adjust seasoning, remove from heat and set aside to cool.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Cut the rested dough into 12 equal portions. Lightly flour a work surface and roll each portion out into a 6- to 8-inch round. Add about 1/4 cup of filling to the center of the pastry round, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Wet the edges with a finger dipped in water, fold over into a half moon and seal the edges with the tines of a fork or by rolling them up into a scalloped edge. Lay out on a baking sheet.

Brush tops with an egg beaten with a little water if you like. Bake for 30-40 minutes until browned on top. Serve warm with a salad.

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Chakchouka - North African eggs poached in a pepper ragout

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons of Olive oil
• 2 tablespoons of Paprika
• 1 Onion (thinly sliced)
• 3 minced Garlics
• 3 Tomatoes (peeled, seeded and diced)
• 3 diced Green and red bell  peppers
• 1 cup of water
• Salt and pepper
• 4 Eggs - or more if you want

Preparation

Heat up the oil in a deep skillet over medium fire. Mix in the paprika and cook slightly to tint the oil, about 10 to 15 seconds. Put in the onions and the garlic and cook until the onions are transparent and flaccid but not browned, +/- 5 minutes.

Adjoin the tomatoes and cook for 3-4 minutes to diminish a little. Add the peppers, water, salt and pepper and let it boil. Decrease the heat to low, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add more water as required to keep it from drying out.

Using a ladle, shape 4 small holes in the simmering peppers to put the eggs. One by one, crack the into the prepared holes. Cover the skillet and cook for 10 more minutes.

Serve with crispy bread and rice.

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Brazilian fish and coconut milk stew - Moqueca

Ingredients

(serves 4 to 6)

• 1 1/2 pounds of White-fleshed fish, cut into chunks
• 2 Limes, juice only
• 1 teaspoon of Salt
• 2 tablespoons of Oil
• 2 diced Onions
• 2 diced Bell peppers
• 3 minced cloves of Garlic, minced
• 2 minced Chile peppers
• 3 cups of peeled, seeded and diced Tomatoes
• 2 cups of Coconut milk

Preparation

Mix the fish, lime juice and salt together in a large bowl and set aside to marinate for about 30 min.

Heat the oil in a medium-sized pot over medium flame. Add the onions and peppers and saute until the onions are translucent. Add the garlic and chili peppers and saute for one more minute.

Stir in the tomatoes and simmer for about 5 minutes to cook them down somewhat.

Stir in the coconut milk and the fish with its marinade. Bring to boil and then reduce heat to low. Simmer gently for about 5 minutes, or until the fish is cooked.

Adjust seasoning and serve in bowls over rice or simple.

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Clambake

Ingredients

(serves 10)

For the Food

• 4 or 5 Lobsters, medium-sized
• 4 pounds of Clams in their shell
• 10 or 12 large potatoes
• 10 Corn on the cob, cut into two cobles
• 4 Onions, cut into large wedges
• Large amount of cheesecloth
• Bucket of clean seawater

For the Pit

• Shovel
• Large beach stones
• Wood
• Lots of seaweed, well washed
• Canvas cover, covered with seawater

Preparation

Initiate by constructing your fire pit at least 5 hours before you desire to eat. Excavate a hole on the beach that is about 2 feet (60 cm) wide, 3 feet (90 cm) long and 1 1/2 feet (45 cm) bottomless. Line up the pit with large, smooth stones collected in the beach. Put up a fire over the stones and let it burn down to bright coals, around 2 or 3 hours.

While the fire is burning down, organize the food. Obtain a big container of clean seawater to have on hand. Cut out section of cheesecloth about 1 1/2 feet square. Enfold the lobsters in 2 or 3 sections of cheesecloth and attach closed. Do the same with the clams, the potatoes, the corn and the onions. Plunge each cheesecloth bag into the seawater to infuse it through.

Scoop the ashes off the hot stones in the pit and remove. Force any burning ashes down between the stones. Line the bottom of the pit with a fair amount of seaweed. Deposit the cheesecloth bags over the seaweed. Top the pit with another layer of seaweed. Lay the seawater-soaked tarp over the fire pot and seal the edges, weighing them down with more stones.

Let the clambake vapor for 2 or 3 hours. Remove the tarp and take out the cheesecloth bags. Open the bags onto serving platters and serve the food hot with lemon wedges and lots of melted butter for dipping.

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Maine Lobster Rolls

Ingredients
(4 sandwiches)

• 4 cups (3 to 4 medium lobsters), Fresh cooked lobster meat, chopped into chunks
• 1/2 cup of Mayonnaise
• Salt and pepper
• 4 Hot dog buns
• 4 tablespoons melted Butter
• 1 cup of shredded green leaf lettuce

Preparation

In a large bowl, mix the lobster meat, the mayonnaise, salt and pepper until it all comes together.

Brush the inside of the hot dog buns with a generous amount of melted butter and toast the insides of the buns on a grill over a fresh fire.

Add some of the shredded lettuce into each of the hot dog buns. Then stuff the buns with the lobster salad and serve with lemon wedges and potato chips on the side.

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