Weekend Cooking, Mutilated Mexicans

The weekend involved some cooking, at long last I tried making a baked risotto, it was OK, but not as good as a real one where you stand stirring for quite a long time. It didn’t have that creamy texture which is so essential to a really good risotto and which is caused by releasing the starches as you stir in the stock. Nevertheless it made an enjoyable side dish to our fillet steak. The steak itself was covered with another Gordon f***king Ramsay sauce called Mushroom, sherry & grain mustard sauce which was excellent. I was cooking my little heart out on Saturday. Not an easy thing for me any more. We have a heap more risotto and another serving of the sauce so I will have to figure out something to do with it. On the web site somebody mentioned chicken maybe I will try that - we did try it on chicken, and it worked just as well. I do like meals I can use twice as for me, standing in the kitchen for a long time causes my back to ache like mad these days.

A delightful story in the news this weekend. 49 decapitated and mutilated bodies were left on the highway in Mexico between Monterrey and the US. They apparently think it is drug related, but what a horrible thing to do. They have not ruled out the possibility that these might be US bound immigrants. Such people are often killed apparently. Reading further I see the drug cartels often leave multiple dead bodies around. Matt has said for years he wouldn’t go near the place, this just adds fuel to the fire. Can you imagine being their on vacation and coming across a pile of mutilated remains. The article contains details of other bodies found in Mexico in the last year or two. There have been quite a few reports over the years of Canadians being killed. No, Mexico is not for us.
I have been writing a guest post as a consequence of the A to Z challenge, having written it, we are not quite sure how to get it from my computer to theirs in view of the fact that I compose all my posts on Windows Live Writer. If it doesn’t work, I guess it will eventually become a regular post.

This is going to be a hectic week for us, so I am not sure about the blogs I will be posting. If I can keep up I will, but if not my apologies.

I came a day late to the First Loves Blogfest, I will post mine tomorrow.

I can think of nothing better than some of the flavours of Scandinavia. This recipe landed in my inbox over the weekend and looks and sounds delicious. I have been picking up some lovely recipes from Viveca of My Guilty Pleasures blog too and have her permission to share them. This recipe, however, is from Eating Well, easy to make and delicious to eat.

Smorgastarta

Source: © EatingWell Magazine


4 servings


Don’t let the name intimidate you. This delicious take on the Swedish "savory sandwich torte" is sure to please family and guests alike. We’ve transformed this traditional smoked-fish dish into a light layered sandwich that captures the essence of Scandinavia. Make it a meal: Serve with a beet salad or steamed red potatoes.

INGREDIENTS


2/3 cup reduced-fat sour cream
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
2 teaspoons lemon juice
6 large hard-boiled eggs (see Kitchen Tip), finely chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill
1 tablespoon finely chopped red onion
2 teaspoons finely chopped rinsed capers (optional)
4 ounces smoked trout, skin removed, shredded
1/3 cup finely chopped celery
2 teaspoons finely chopped parsley
1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds (optional)
Pinch of freshly ground pepper
12 thin slices whole-wheat bread or rye bread, lightly toasted

To hard-boil eggs: Prick the fat end with a pin. Place eggs in a single layer in a saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low and cook at the barest simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat, pour out hot water and run a constant stream of cold water over the eggs until completely cooled.

DIRECTIONS


Mix sour cream, lemon zest and juice in a medium bowl. Combine eggs, dill, onion and capers (if using) in another medium bowl. Stir in half of the sour cream mixture.
Add trout, celery, parsley, caraway seeds (if using) and pepper to the remaining sour cream mixture.
To assemble sandwiches: Divide the egg mixture among 4 slices of bread. Top with bread, then spread with the trout mixture. Top with the remaining bread. Cut each sandwich in half and serve.

Have a great day