Writer Adrienne Leon talks to me about my food background & style, my passion for cooking & entertaining. We also talked about cooking pork with Emeril! Link
Healthy Eating: Vaca Frita con Salsa Verde (Tomatillo) & Brown Rice Recipe
Tips & Tricks for a Vintage-Inspired, Missoni Designer & Colorful TableScape {Look 2}
Tips & Tricks for a Chic, Sexy & Affordable Setting for Entertaining At Home. {Look 1}
The Onion: An Every Day Simple Cuban Steak Dinner Recipe {or Bistec Encebollado}
Starting the New Year, Stress-free. Chamomile Sipping At Night.
Known as one of the world’s most popular and important spices, cloves are the floral buds of the evergreen clove tree. The spice has a nail head shape, hence the Latin name, “clavo,” which means nail. It can range in color from red to brownish… and can be used whole or ground. It’s used moderately in Cuban and Latin cuisine, giving certain savory and sweet dishes an absolutely amazing aroma and flavor. Cloves are the secret ingredient in several of my dishes!
Honey is a great natural source for reducing heat in 1st degree burns. Apply immediately.
Eggplant is related to the tabacco plant and it contains an insignificant amount of nicotine. Cooling eggplant causes it to shrivel and brown rather quickly.
Black garlic originated in Korea. It’s raw garlic that turns black when the sugars are drawn out of the garlic cloves during a special fermentation process. Most of the nutritional values in black garlic are higher & more potent than regular raw garlic.
A great way to preserve fresh ginger root is to cut it into smaller pieces and freeze. Keeping it in fridge or at room temperature will cause it to shrivel and dry faster.
The proteins in eggs are very heat sensitive and only need to be warmed to cook thoroughly. They will start to get firm at only 145 degrees. This is when a Bain Marie comes into play and is a great method for cooking egg custards.
Aging time of cheddar cheese determins the mildness and sharpness of it. The longer it ages, the sharper it gets!
Fat has 9 calories per gram. Carbs have 4, protein also has 4 and alcohol has 7. Did you know that?
Most of the fat we should consume should come from fish, nuts & veggie oils. Limit solid fats like butter, stick margarine & lard. Daily allowances for oils range from 5-7 teaspoons for adults.
Mousse is a French term meaning “froth” or “foam,” which is a rich, airy dish that can be sweet or savory, hot or cold. Fluffy desserts are due to the addition of whipped cream or beaten egg whites and fortified with gelatin!
Cherry liqueur is a a sweetened cordial using cherries. It can be used in cocktails in lieu of Brandy, especially Sangria! 1 oz of this cordial has 103 calories and 11 grams of carbs!
Did you know rose hips are the reddish-orange fruit of the rose and are used to make jellies, jams syrup, tea and vino!? They’re solid in vitamin C and can be made into a dried powder.
Truffle
(noun)
The world’s most expensive fungus, usually grown in France and hunted by pigs and recently by dogs. Used in fine cuisine all around the world.
(noun)
hobby; fans, supporters
Afición is a key word, since it refers to what we like doing in our spare time, or hobbies.
Mi afición es la filatelia
Translation: My hobby is stamp collecting.
(noun)
reason; motive
Motivo is one of the many Spanish words which have one meaning like their English equivalent and another which is different. It’s a very common word for the reason for something.
Dejó el puesto por motivos personales.
She left her job for personal reasons.
(noun)
raw fish marinated in lemon juice
Though cebiche now appears on the menu of upscale US and British restaurants, it is not yet as well established in English as other Spanish food words, such as tapas, and needs some explanation. The national dish of Peru, and one of which Peruvians are very proud, cebiche (also spelled ceviche) is a kind of fish or seafood salad.
(noun)
hat
This Spanish word is something of a ‘false friend’. When most English speakers think of a sombrero in English they see a hat with a wide brim which is worn mainly in Mexico and Latin America. But un sombrero in Spanish is simply a common-or-garden hat. Literally it is a hat for giving shade, or sombrain Spanish. The word sombrero was borrowed by English in the 18th century.
(adj.)
night; evening
Some English & Spanish words share the same Latin roots bur are used differently. While nocturnal in English is literary or technical, Spanish nocturno is the standard word referring to that happen at night.
(verb)
to develop; to take place
In an earlier Spanish Word of the Day we came across desarrollar meaning to develop.
Quieren desarrollar la economía del país.
They want to develop the country’s economy.
(noun)
Comb
El peine, a comb, belongs to a group which includes two other useful words. Notice the verb you use: pasar un peine por el pelo, to give your hair a comb.
Paso rápidamente un peine por el pelo.
He gave his hair a quick comb.
(verb)
Dislike
Desagradar works in the same way, with the thing you dislike being the subject of the sentence.
Había algo que le desagradaba.
There was something he didn’t like.
(adj.)
Monthly
It’s often useful to refer to things that occur monthly, and mensual is the word you need in that context.
En 24 cuotas mensuales:
In 24 monthly installments
(noun)
Virtue
In the meaning of virtue, virtud is similar to its English cousin.
Todas sus virtudes y defectos como político:
All his virtues and vices as a politician
(verb)
to connect; to link
Derives from the noun relación, connection, which we’ve already seen:
Ya hay tres documentos que lo relacionan con el case:
There are already three documents connecting him with to the case.
(verb)
to order
We’ve already come across the noun orden, meaning order. The related verb is ordenar, to order. Just as in English, you can use it with a noun object.
(noun)
Barbecue
Barbacoa is one of the many words that English has borrowed from Spanish. And Spanish itself took the work from the now extinct Arawak language, which was spoken in Cuba, Jamaica and Puerto Rico before the Spaniards arrived. The Arawak word was barbacoa, and referred to a wooden framework on posts, which was used for sleeping on or for drying fish and meat. To describe food which has been barbecued, you use the phrase a la barbacoa:
costillas a la barbacoa: barbecued chops
(noun)
Grill
The famous grill we all use to cook out, bbq and enjoy during major holidays & hot weather.
Tengo que encender la parilla para cocinar los bistecs:
I have to light the grill to start cooking the steaks.
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