Czech Foods Recipes

It seems contradictory to maintain a cooking blog post and also discuss curbing calories, don’t you think? Well, that is just what I am going to do! I have been gradually shedding calories during spring and summer going from 207 pounds down to 185 and it has been relatively painless. Losing calories has not involved the likes of Atkins, South beach, Nutrisystem, or Slim Fast. I still eat my favorite carbs such as dumplings, pasta, and rice as well as indulge in other guilty pleasures such as bacon, steak, cheeseburgers, and so on. I even make it a point to make a family trip to dairy queen a few times a month for treats. What is the catch? I count calories in a daily journal. I made my weight loss decision long back in January (just after witnessing all those diet and exercise commercials) while watching a Sunday football game dining on half a pizza and a few “pops”. Low energy and pudginess were enough to finally motivate me to lose some pounds. The trick is losing them without giving

Who can resist a perfectly crumbly, gently sweet, wholesome breakfast muffin? And when that very same muffin promotes a certain, um, regularity..well, that is the added benefit of including both prunes and oats in the same muffiny package. Prunes get a bad rap in the states. Abroad they don't seem to have attained the same stigma of being just a bowl of something old and wrinkly next to grandma's bedside. Rather they can be a welcome addition to baked goods.  Anywhere raisins are present, chopped prunes can be used for a bit more tangy sweetness and moisture. In these muffins, toasted almonds give a bit of texture. Oats and a mix of white and wheat flour make them ideal for brekkie. Orange zest, cinnamon, and nutmeg give it a bit of zing. And it's all quite healthy with honey and Greek yogurt added into the mix.  Careful when they are warm, their addictiveness hides how filling they are. Perfect for a post-run / workout bite too! Continue to Recipe... Recipe: Dried Plum

What better way to power ourselves through the weeks than with a nice fish dinner? Unfortunately, most wallets do not support a steady supply of freshly caught whatever-the-trendy-restaurant-fish-is-at-the-moment. This does not, however, lead one to succumb to fish fingers. Even though I am sure there is a time and a place for reliving such frozen nostalgic goodness, I am even more certain that if you have 30 minutes of kitchen time, the tastiest and tangiest of all fish cakes can be on your plate in less time than a run to the supermarket's frozen aisle. Fish cakes are what I dined on in university while caring for a well-off Jewish retiree, and they have always held this image for me. Food for discerning women. I welcome a new age of fish cakes. In fact, I will start calling them fish burgers. I think more men will eat them this way. Burgers are manly. Burgers are burly. And since so many men I meet in Italy admit openly to being on a diet, they will also appreciate the bun-less

How to Make Grilled Garlic Buffalo Wings It has been forever and a day since I posted on this site. Life (work and family responsibilities) seem to deter me from getting in the kitchen to cook as much as I would like. Well I am back cooking temporarily and glad to say I have finally found time to prepare a batch of buffalo wings using the grill. The weather is insanely too hot to be using the deep fryer or even the oven. Near hundred degree conditions have forced my meal prep to be done outside on the patio grill. Grilling wings is fairly easy and allows for flexibility on how you want to prepare them. As far as flavors I usually stick with the base starters of butter mixed with Frank’s hot sauce. Texas Pete and all the other brand names sauces will also work just fine. I also like to give my buffalo wing sauce a kick of garlic. I am not too finicky about wing soggyness. I typically prepare the wings by crisping them up during the initial cooking stages only to give them a good dunk ri

Peaches are a hit on the menu right now. Peach and goat cheese salad. Peach salsa on fish tacos. Peach and Brie quesadilla s. It simply goes on. So why not drink your peaches? Hailing from the most excellent American state of Wisconsin, I've learned that the Old Fashioned classic can be slightly toyed with by replacing the whiskey with it's grape-based cousin, brandy. This week, having some bourbon in cupboard after the maple-bourbon muffin glaze experiment , I decided to use this, and to introduce another variation - peaches. An Old Fashioned traditionally consists of whiskey, sugar, bitters, and lemon. More or less depending on your maraschino cherry predilection. Here, the sugar is replaced by honey and smashed peaches, and the lemon with lime. Some mint is added in, so it takes on a Mojito-Old Fashioned vibe. Whatever the drink tradition may be, it hits the spot on Friday afternoon. Continue to Recipe.... Recipe: Peach Bourbon Old Fashioned Serves 1 1/2 peach juice of 1/2

I've been waiting ages to make these!  I love the flavor and heat of fresh ginger so much, I wanted to pull this into a cupcake.  I used Hummingbird Bakery's vanilla cupcake recipe as a base, and made a few spicy changes. Yield: 10 cupcakes You will need: 120g plain flour 140g caster sugar 1 1/2 tsps baking powder tiny pinch of salt 1/4 tsp powdered ginger 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg 1/8 tsp ground cloves 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon 40g unsalted butter 120ml whole milk 1 egg 1 1/2 tsp vegetable oil 1/4 tsp vanilla extract 1 1/2 tsp lemon juice --- 500g icing/powdered sugar 200g unsalted butter 3 Tbsp fresh finely grated ginger A sprinkling of powdered ginger 1-2 Tbsp whole milk -- 10 thin coins of fresh cut ginger 60ml water 80g caster sugar (+sugar for dusting) -- I also came up with an egg-free version of this recipe, which removes the 1 egg, and changes the baking powder to just a pinch under 3 tsps. For the cake: 1.In a bowl mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, ginger, nu

Looking to liven up sandwich time? In an effort to stretch the mid-week dollar, tuna is ending up back on my plate. This is not at all as depressing as it might sound. In fact, I look forward to tuna sandwiches as a simple and quick lunch that offers me those omegas and other fishy goodies, all in a can with a pop-top. The saving grace, tapenade : a Provençal black olive spread. I simply cannot get enough of this tangy condiment. For years, a new jar would no sooner hit the shelf of my fridge before it was headed for the recycling bin...empty, and thoroughly enjoyed. Here, tapenade livens up whatever best-quality tuna one can procure, married with a bit of capers and mustard, topped with vine-ripened tomatoes and crisp arugula, all stuffed in a fresh slice of focaccia bread. Heaven. For lunch. On a plate. Continue to Recipe... Recipe: Tapenade-Tuna Sandwich Serves 1 - 2 Time 10 mins Adapted from Bon Appétit July 2008 1 large can (or 3 small) tuna 1 Tb red onion , minced 1 Tb capers i

A nontraditional salsa in a traditional way. Fruit salsa reigns supreme in summer on either chicken or fish. Or even just with chips and blended drinks. Whatever fruit is laying around, mix it up with a bit of jalapenos/chili peppers, lime, red onion, cilantro and/or mint. Add a tomato or some corn if you fear straying too far away from the salsa tradition. Let flavors mesh for a few hours. Devour. In a salsa, anything goes. Yet concerning the temperature of it, I am a bit more of a purist. I prefer the cool freshness of a salsa atop my meat. Others may enjoy it heated with the meat for the final few minutes. Either way, bring on the fruity spiciness that is mid-summer. Continue to Recipe... Recipe: Spicy Plum Salsa Serves 4  Time 20 minutes Eat with Muller-Thurgau 10-15 small plums, sliced and diced, 1 1/2 cups 1/2 small red onion large handful cilantro a few leaves of mint 3 jalapenos, (seeds removed in half) juice of half lime Finely chop everything and mix. Refrigerate at least 2

June 25th set a record of 1727 visits to Whimsical Cookery.  No seriously, what the glitch was going on that day?  I average < 100 per day, usually. Most of the visitors found themselves staring at Vanilla Chai Tea cupcakes ... yummy!

Late night baking for a breakfast surprise!  I wanted to make cinnamon twists, but have found myself without puff pastry and without time to deal with yeast rising issues.  Therefore I have improvised this quite satisfactory recipe for no-yeast cinnamon twists! You will need: 1 1/2 cups flour 1/2 tsp salt 2 tsp baking powder 1/2 cup milk 1/4 cup butter (or margarine works fine) + butter for spreading 1/4 cup granulated sugar + sugar for sprinkling Dark brown or Muscovado sugar for sprinkling Ground cinnamon for sprinkling For the icing: 1 tsp vanilla extract 1 cup icing/powdered sugar 2-3 Tbsp of milk (low/fat free fine) 1. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder in a medium bowl. 2. Using a pastry cutter or two forks, cut butter/margarine into the dry mixture. 3. Add milk and stir. 4. Using your hands, mix and knead until combined (do not overdo it!). 5. Press dough into a rectangle and roll out to approximately 1/2 inch thickness. 6. Butter the surface of the rectangle. 7. Sprinkle surfa

Some might splash in a little Baileys in their morning coffee. Jokes all around of tapping into ones Irishness. Living as an American abroad, I sometimes find myself tending to downplay such Euro familial connections, and instead, head straight for what America stands for. This morning, that happened to be maple syrup and bourbon.  Yes, banana nut muffins livened up with some mapley-bourbon goodness.  The muffins are fairly straightforward, with only a hint of maple and bourbon. But the glaze that transpired a few hours later, well, that makes them worthy of bringing to work. For the first time, I used a bit of gelatin in a glaze. I think it helped the structure a bit. If you've got the extra ten minutes to wait around for it to 'bloom' in the water, I say give it a go. Otherwise, skip it, and the glaze should be a bit thinner, but still work out if the muffins aren't traveling far. The deep maple-bourbon flavor marriage is grounded with a bit of whole-wheat flour and o

It's seems to be hot in nearly every time zone. Conversations with friends afar keep drifting to 'Its just so hot in my country X.' After weeks of wailing about the weather and devouring salads for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (and yes, I do mean breakfast), I craved meat.  I recently hit upon what I consider to be summer-meat-ingeniousness: thin slices of beef, veal, or pork, wrapped around some veg, cooked for a mere ten minutes in a sauce of tomatoes plus broth, with a handful of fresh gnocchi cooking along in the same pan.   Complete dinner, twenty minutes tops, no oven, and one pan. I am in roulade love. For last week's version (with much prettier pictures), check out Veal Roulade with Herbed Eggplant & Peppers. Continue to Recipe... Recipe: Beef - Green Bean Roulade with Gnocchi Serves 2 Eat with Chianti Classico  Time 20 mins 9 oz (260g) thinly sliced beef/veal a few big handfuls of green beans , ends trimmed 1 can stewed tomatoes 1 cup beef broth 1 tsp dr

 I love these!  By Ashliedesire' flickr Trying to think of new things to turn into cupcakes, besides actual cake. These are the thoughts that keep me up at night!  Okay not really. Okay maybe a little bit. Fried doughnut cupcake?

  After looking at several recipes for lemon meringue cupcakes, I decided that the whole 'cupcake' should be meringue.  I suppose this would technically be considered a cupcake-shaped meringue.  These delightful little desserts can be topped with sweetened whipped cream and drizzled with a tangy mixed berry syrup before serving. You will need: 6 egg whites 1 tsp vanilla extract pinch of salt 3 tsp lemon juice OR 1 tsp white vinegar 2 cups sugar (add 1/4 cup at a time to avoid deflating meringue) 1. Grease a 12-cup muffin/cupcake tray.  Be sure to grease the top of the tray, not just the cups, incase sugar bubbles over. (If sugar cooks to the tray, it is not fun to wash off.)  Line cups with 12 cupcake holders and spray with cooking spray. 2. Separate the whites of 6 eggs from the yolks.  Discard the yolks (or use in another recipe). 3. Add vanilla extract, salt, and lemon juice OR white vinegar. 5. Whip using an electric whisk (or extreme woman/man power) until mixture begins t

The week finishes. The weekend arrives. Sometimes as early as Thursday. When we are lucky. Sometimes not. This week finished with an abundance of watermelon in the kitchen. One glance at the stacks of deep red triangles on the plate and I heard the sound of ice clinking in glass. Watermelon-basil mojitos were made. There was still more melon. What better to do while sipping our drinks than make watermelon sorbet? The blender was already out, just a bit more blitzing, mix with strawberry yogurt and the same simple syrup that was used in the bevvies, and homemade sorbet was in the works. No ice cream maker, no problem. Freeze in a shallow metal pan for five hours, then blend again with a bit of milk, and creamy sorbet was gracing my spoon by midnight. I hope to post more weekend chill ideas using a single seasonal fruit for both cocktail and frozen treat. One moment of post-work blitzing, two very lovely ways to keep cool over the week end. Continue to Recipe... Recipe: Watermelon-Basil