This one's a bit weird...

Food on Friday: Pizza

ON

This is the second time around for this wonderful theme – Pizza!  The first time was in June 2012 so I know there will be lots of new pizzas out there just begging to be seen – and eaten.  If you would like to have a look at the first lot, just head on over to this Pinboard.  There are about 50 of them on the board.

To add your Pizza, just put the name of the pizza together with your blog name/name into the first Mr Linky box you will find below.  Then paste the url for your post about it into the second box.

I'll be pinning the links to this Pinboard – this is a quick way for you to scan the dishes and choose which ones you want to check out in more detail.

Ciao!

I agree you have to get up but not sure there isn't a remote!

Need Some Inspiration? Try Cocktails and Mocktails!

Vanilla Pear Cocktail

 

Food on Friday: Cocktails and Mocktails was a real thirst quencher – and a bit of a danger zone with some real zingers of cocktails!  I am sharing a few of them that caught my eye.  I hope they inspire you, too.  If you would like to see all of them, just head on over to this Pinboard.

The first cocktail is a Vanilla Pear Cocktail by The Sequin Notebook.  Lovely work!

Grapefruit Margarita by James & Everett

Cape Codder by Ms En Place

Mango Margarita by Cooking with Curls

Famous Myrtle Beach Peach Martini by Cooking the Recipe

Can Can Martini by October Farm

Nostalgia Alert!

Home-made ginger beer

Did you, as a child, experience the joys of home-made ginger beer?  My mother had quite a craze for it resulting in masses and masses of gallon flagons of the stuff.  If I'm remembering correctly the production line came to a shuddering halt when several of the flagons exploded with shards of glass flying all over the place!

But it was fun while it lasted.  Here are 2 links to recipes for how to do it by the New Zealand Women's Weekly (Wendyl Nissen) and another NZ cook Allyson Gofton.

Written in my own Heart's Blood by Diana Gabaldon – a tour de force!

There is only one word to describe Written in my own Heart's Blood – fantastic!!!  How on earth does Diana Gabaldon keep doing this?  This is the 8^th novel in the main Outlander series.

I don't recommend you reading it without reading the earlier books in the series.  Start with Outlander (or Cross Stitch as it was called in the UK and New Zealand)

The characters and plot are fabulous.

I won't do any spoilers but I do admit to getting all sentimental over the double wedding.

I have posted about Diana Gabaldon before here.

Read this soon!

Here's to Carole's Chatter – my blog is now 3!

Well, what do you know!  Carole's Chatter turns 3 today.  It's been 3 super years. 

As a tiny celebration I will send an individually handwritten New Zealand postcard  (or one from elsewhere if the recipient is a Kiwi) to 15 people who  comment on this post, leaving their name/blog name and their email too.  You can decode the email address if you like eg ca4ole AT gmail DOT com.  

I'll then email you to get a postal address for you. (If you get email reminders from me about Food on Friday or Books You Loved, I'll have your email address already)

If you are leaving a comment but don't want to get a postcard, please just say so.

If there are more than 15 qualifying comments in the first 24 hours, I'll select 15 by drawing numbers out of a hat, so to speak!

Pepper - the first in a monthly series about spices

Food without pepper is unimaginable to me – well for savoury dishes anyway!  It is no wonder that pepper is known as the King of Spices.

Pepper was known as far back as in Roman times.  Pepper is known for stimulating the appetite and assisting with nausea.  Some people believe that the smell produced by your body after eating lots of pepper repels mosquitoes!  Given how they munch on me given half a chance I find this hard to believe!

The best flavour comes from grinding fresh peppercorns.  I must admit to using quite a lot of ground white pepper though.  Ground pepper loses its punch quite quickly.  If your white pepper is fresh it will taste hotter than black pepper.

Peppercorns come in black, white, green and pink – each is fine on its own.  Pink peppercorns are actually berries rather than pepper.  The green ones usually come in brine.  The others are dried and can stay fresh for a long time as long as they are in an airtight container.  You can mix together different kinds of dried peppercorns into the same peppermill which will give you an interesting blend of pepperiness.

Try using 3 or 4 times your usual amount of pepper and see what a difference it makes.

Links to my recipes using pepper – Peppered prawns with snow peas, salt and pepper tofu, peppered tuna with sharp rhubarb

BIBLIOGRAPHY - with thanks to Auckland Libraries

Cook's Encyclopaedia of Spices by Sallie Morris & Lesley Mackley

Spice Market by Jane Lawson

Spicery by Ian & Elizabeth Hemphill

Spices & Natural Flavourings by Jennifer Mulherin

Spices by Sophie Grigson

Spices Condiments and Seasonings by Kenneth T Farrell

Spices, Salt and Aromatics in the English Kitchen by Elizabeth David

The Cook's Companion by Stephanie Alexander

It's a public holiday here in New Zealand - Labour Day! Have a good one!

Heartbreak Hotel

Well, since my baby left me
Well, I found a new place to dwell
Well, it's down at the end of Lonely Street
At Heartbreak Hotel
Where I'll be--where I get so lonely, baby
Well, I'm so lonely
I get so lonely, I could die

Although it's always crowded
You still can find some room
For broken-hearted lovers
To cry there in the gloom
And be so, where they'll be so lonely, baby
Well, they're so lonely
They'll be so lonely, they could die

A real classic for you today – Heartbreak Hotel sung by Elvis the Pelvis.  It's hard to believe it goes right back to 1956.  No wonder I feel like I've always known the song.

The song's writers offered it to another artist first who declined it!  Bad call!

If you want your fix of Elvis for the day, head on over to this YouTube clip

I've used this saying for years!

Spicy Yoghurt Chicken

This spicy yoghurt chicken dish was the first time I have based a marinade on yoghurt.  And I used my very own home made yoghurt too!

For the marinade:

Yoghurt

Tsp chilli powder

Tblsp cumin

Tblsp ground coriander seeds

2 tsp turmeric

Salt

Once I had ground the cumin and coriander with the salt I then added the other ingredients to the bowl and put in the chicken thighs (which I cut into thirds).

I let it sit in the marinade for over 30 minutes and then tonged the chicken out and coated it in seasoned breadcrumbs.

I then baked the chicken in a moderate oven until the juices ran clear when pricked with a knife.

The spice in the marinade did give a good feeling of heat to the chicken.  I would do this again.