slow food | The Spamwise Chronicles

Spring Vegetable Risotto

May 11, 2011 by Stan Santos

Asparagus is one of my favorite vegetables. It exemplifies spring, regardless of the weather. There are many varieties of asparagus available — thick, thin, green, white and purple. Wild asparagus has an enchanting flavor reminiscent of the color GREEN, in a way that cultivated asparagus doesn’t. Although the tips are the most succulent, the whole asparagus stalk can be used. Here, asparagus is paired with ramps and upland cress, a type of watercress that tastes similar to horseradish. It has […]

Categories: cooking, food, general, Italian food, recipe, spring, vegetarian • Tags: asparagus, cooking, dinner, food photography, mint, ramps, recipe, risotto, seasonal and local, slow food, vegetarian, watercress

Saturday Snapshots

September 11, 2010 by Stan Santos

Scrambled eggs, with crème fraiche, lobster and lobster roe Click here and here to view high-resolution versions of these pictures. This was made using the double boiler method (which I describe in this post), with the substitution of 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped lobster meat and about 1 teaspoon lobster roe for the morels. It’s more labor intensive than usual but the results are well worth the effort in my opinion. Creamy scrambled eggs infused with the taste of the sea. […]

Categories: food, general • Tags: breakfast, eggs, food photography, lobster, scrambled eggs, slow food

Fish Dinner

August 18, 2010 by Stan Santos

If you’ve never had slow-roasted tomatoes, you’ve been missing out. It’s one of summer’s greatest pleasures, alongside homemade ice cream, hamburgers on the grill or ice-cold watermelon. It is, understandably, not for everyone. After all, the idea of waiting up to seven hours to eat something is anathema to a large number of people. That’s why fast food was invented. That being said, once you’ve tasted one of these beauties, your world changes. That’s when addiction sets in … and […]

Categories: food, general, Indian food, summer • Tags: coconut, cooking, dinner, fish, food photography, rice, seasonal and local, slow food, tomatoes, trout

Sunday Snapshots

August 16, 2010 by Stan Santos

Categories: food, general, summer, vegetarian • Tags: dinner, fettucine, food photography, pasta, slow food, tomatoes, vegetarian

Ricotta Gnocchi with Sungold Cherry Tomatoes and Shiitake Mushrooms

July 22, 2010 by Stan Santos

I adore ricotta gnocchi, moreso than potato gnocchi, for the simple reason that it lends itself well to so many different preparations — most of which are vegetarian. It all depends on what’s available at the market or in my pantry. Click here for a demo on ricotta gnocchi. This is a straight-up adaptation of Suzanne Goins’ recipe from Sunday Suppers at Lucques. I’ve made replicated her method several times — it’s foolproof and the results are well worth the […]

Categories: food, general, summer, vegetarian • Tags: California cuisine, cheese, cherry tomatoes, dinner, gnocchi, mushrooms, pasta, ricotta, seasonal and local, slow food, Suzanne Goins, vegetarian

Summer Squash

July 21, 2010 by Stan Santos

According to Wikipedia, summer squash are a subset of squashes that are harvested when immature (while the rind is still tender and edible). All summer squashes are the fruits of the species Cucurbita pepo (although not all squashes of this species are considered summer squashes), but they are considered vegetables in terms of culinary use. The name “summer squash” refers to the short storage life of these squashes, unlike that of winter squashes. Some varieties include: Globe zucchini — This […]

Categories: Alice Waters, food, general, summer, vegetarian, Weekend Herb Blogging • Tags: dinner, farmers' markets, gratin, heirloom vegetables, lunch, red onion, seasonal and local, slow food, summer squash, vegetarian, zucchini

Greenmarket Dinner

July 4, 2010 by Stan Santos

If there is a vegetable that epitomizes summer, it has to be corn. Plump, golden yellow kernels, provide an all-too-brief reminder of how short the season is. The best corn is that which has just been picked, minutes before. For those of us who don’t live on a farm, some sacrifices have to be made. An average ear of corn provides approximately 1/2 cup corn kernels. Cobs can be frozen and reserved for corn stock — an indispensable pale golden […]

Categories: food, general, summer, Union Square Greenmarket • Tags: buttermilk, chowder, cooking, corn, dinner, fish, potatoes, recipe, seasonal and local, slow food, soup, tomato

Cucina Povera

July 2, 2010 by Stan Santos

Cucina povera has its roots in Italian history shortly after the end of World War I and extending all throughout most of the 20th century until the last thirty years or so. It is a style of cooking meant to use all of the ingredients in any given recipe in such a way that it maximizes flavor so that nothing is wasted. Water that is used to simmer vegetables is re-used later for stock, soups, sauce bases or to cook […]

Categories: food, general, Italian food, summer • Tags: anchovy, dinner, fennel, pasta, quick and easy, raisins, Sicily, slow food

Curd Rice

June 16, 2010 by Stan Santos

A southern Indian vegetarian dish, curd rice consists of gently spiced yogurt or buttermilk folded into basmati rice. This is traditionally served with either a pickle or a chutney, or both. Originally I was going to do curd rice and a beet raita but saw that that combination would be too much of the same thing. Sometimes it pays to edit quickly. Indian pickles generally consist of a large variety of pickled fruits and vegetables which are acidified in citrus […]

Categories: food, general, Indian food, vegetarian • Tags: achar, beet, cooking, cucumber, dinner, mango, pickles, recipe, rice, slow food, vegetarian, yogurt

The Spamwise Chronicles

A blog devoted to the beauty of food.

Tag: slow food