MarlenaSpieler.com

Three girls on a couch in Napoli....waiting for Peppe Zarbo

2009-09-10T11:28:00.002+01:00

Might I add "The Handsome Peppe Zarbo"? very delicious recipes too: Sonia Carbone's potatoes and peppers from the campania countryside, and Judy Witts Franchini (aka divina cucina)'s Pepperonata from her own book, "Secrets from my Tuscan Kitchen"

oh la la, Paule Caillat's Promenades Gournmandes famous Parisian pie crust

2009-09-10T11:25:00.002+01:00

Its no fail and delicious too. you don't even have to roll it out, just pat pat pat. i say no fail, but the truth is that you CAN fail at it: don't whip it up with an electric beater as one reader did! And bake it in a metal tart or pie pan; pyrex can be a bit iffy. but oh, its my go-to crust for every tart, sweet and savory. if savory, just omit the sugar. right now i'm making this pie quite often, using the wild blackberries that surround my home....

Terror Island was full of poodles!

2009-09-10T11:20:00.002+01:00

The little French island of Ouessant had once been known as Terror Island. When I got there, via a teeny tiny plane, the only terrifying thing was trying to decide what delicious thing to eat or drink next. I nicknamed the island Poodle Island: I've never seen so many lovely little fluffy dogs, mostly riding in the baskets of bicycles! Good recipe for salmon with sorrel and shallots. in fact, thats the whole recipe: nothing else, just a little seasalt. delish!

Happy 4th of July!

2009-09-10T11:18:00.002+01:00

Whatever kind of American you are, whatever your heritage is, have a happy day! and, have a wonderful radih and pea salad and watercress burger!

Past + Eggplant = Happiness!

2009-09-10T11:11:00.002+01:00

Pasta plus eggplant. what more can i say? well quite a bit more, as there are SO MANY ways to make fabulous pasta with eggplant. this is one wonderful way. the secret is: soak in salted water or sprinkle with salt ahead of time. the eggplant becomes light and almost sweet, doesn't absorb much oil. its sooooo good. and if you aren't in the mood for spaghetti or pasta, just make the eggplant this way and toss it with toasted cumin, ground or seeds, chopped garlic, and eat it with your fingers. or with yogurt, or.....well its the start of a zillion delicious things to do with eggplant. but start with pasta. you'll be glad you did!

pasta and vegetables: ahhh my inner Napoletana!!!

2009-09-10T11:06:00.001+01:00

Heres the delicious way to become a Napoletana: go to the marketplace or the garden and choose what is most sparklingly fresh. Put up a big pot of water for the pasta, and get ready. You might not even need CHEESE!!!

Roving Feast: yummy quinoa as risotto! quinotto!

2009-05-02T11:31:00.000+01:00

first do as the shamans on the inca trail do: rub the grains of quinoa inbetween your palms to activate them. Then toast them, stir in flavorful liquids as inspired by risotto-making italians, or should i say, milanese....et voila: quinotto! rich and decadent, earthy and healthy. Best of both worlds!

Roving Feast: Memories and Matzo in Beijing

2009-04-11T12:07:00.002+01:00

My brother lived--and died--in Beijing. A handful of years later, I went there for pesach seder....and ever since have been making the following frozen chocolate matzo treat. i mean its not that we ate it there or anything, but i was inspired by the ginger, and also i don't know: concocted the treat and now can't stop making it or--sadly--eating it. its definately not safe in the freezer if i'm alone in the house. Dark valrhona, crispy caramelized matzo, fresh rosemary, coarse sea salt, candied ginger. freeze. crunch. yum.

Roving Feast: Yummy Salad DRessing!

2009-04-11T12:06:00.000+01:00

A new salad dressing is like a best friend: everything in life seems better for your having discovered it!

Roving Feast: My Furry Valentine: oh Jake, I love you!

2009-04-11T12:04:00.002+01:00

I love his little paws, I love his little brown eyes, I love his one ear up and one ear down expression, oh i love love love this pup. Happy Valentines Day Jake--have dinner with me?

Roving Feast: I'd walk a mile in my Jimmy Choos for THIS TUNA TARTARE!

2009-04-11T12:02:00.000+01:00

The tuna tartare was delicious, but oh, how I lust for those shoes.......

Roving Feast: a Zest for Lemons!

2009-04-11T11:56:00.001+01:00

Okay, I stole a lemon, maybe even a few lemons, maybe i steal lemons wherever i see em, and yes, this week when i go to greece i'll probably steal a lemon or two, but here is the thing: i love being surrounded by lemons, and if there are a zillion lemons i can't help myself.....they are so refreshing and healthfully delicious. and here is the other thing: as i snatch an errant lemon from a nearby tree, so too do i offer you a snip or two from my herb garden, heck, come and pick armfuls! take all you want! its a pleasure to share!

Roving Feast: Frankfurt Gruen Sosse!

2008-12-09T14:08:00.002Z

Its flecked with green, its tangy-savory-yummy, its as delicious licked off the fingers as it is spooned onto boiled potatoes, tender boiled beef, crisp potato pancakes, hard-cooked eggs......its Frankfurt Green Sauce!

polish countryside foodie holiday video!

2008-11-08T21:31:00.002Z

Follow this link to a video of our foodie trip to the polish countryside. here is what we did: eat drink, be merry, eat some more, cook cook cook, make music, dance, cook, eat some more....it was so much fun! poland culinary tours offers a handful of new tours next summer, and really, between the castles and stuffed cabbage, the rendered bacon fat on bread and the pickles, the goats milk cheeses and the sour rye, and the ladies of the countryside, with their pierogi and the men with their accordions.....its a wonderful glimpse of a world that might not be with us forever. as it is, you need the polish language to be a part of it, and sarna, the woman who runs Poland Culinary Vacations was born and grew up in Poland, and has great love for the culinary traditions, plus she can get you from a to z in the blink of an eye. go on the culinary holiday, i can hardly wait to go back and go to a different corner of poland! i just know there is more deliciousness waiting for me! in the meantime, the video is delightful!

Roving Feast: Difficult Days Demand a Happy Sandwich

2008-11-05T09:04:00.002Z

I was a slave to da man! seriously, my bosses were horrible sadistic people who enjoyed humiliating us poor workers--the no-nonsense Marcella from Marseilles who could lift twice her weight in salami and cheese, the timid South African Cecilia who sometimes made her cappucchino with a smiley-face of foam, and myself, a pocket-poor single mom who knew when someone needed a smile with their sandwich, and needed it badly. When I left--I believe I was fired for something like not wiping down the counter fast enough, or making too delicious a sandwich-- I took away not bitterness, I left with a great sandwich recipe, and fabulous sandwich-making skills.

pickle soup: the recipe! (adapted from Roving Feast, San Francisco Chronicle, as adapted from S.F.

2008-11-02T19:51:00.004Z

Here's the recipe, fresh from Poland! INGREDIENTS: About 8 ounces waxy white potatoes, peeled and cut into small chunks or large dice, more if you like and the winter night is cold...... 1 - 1 1/2 carrots, peeled and cut into small chunks or large dice 1 celery stalk, (or chunk celery root) including a small handful of the inner leaves, chopped 3 cups low-sodium beef, chicken or vegetable broth 2-3 big fat juicy kosher dills, shredded or finely chopped 1/2-2/3 cup of pickle brine 1/2 onion, very finely chopped 2-3 cups heavy cream Freshly ground black pepper 1/2-2/3 cup coarsely chopped dill leaves INSTRUCTIONS: Combine the potatoes, carrots, celery and broth or water in a large pot with half of the shredded pickles. Cover and bring to a boil; reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes. In a small saucepan, combine the remaining pickles with the brine. Place over medium-low heat and warm through to keep it from curdling the cream when you add it to the soup. . Serves 6 Note: This soup is just as good made a day ahead. Stir in half the dill when the soup finishes cooking, then sprinkle the rest in when you reheat the soup to serve.

grating pickles for yummy pickle soup!

2008-11-02T13:25:00.000Z

i chose the direction of the pickles! YUM!

2008-11-02T13:18:00.000Z

this way to pierogi, this way to zurek, that way to pickles....every direction deliciousness!

2008-11-02T13:16:00.000Z

my buddies the countryside housewives are getting ready to cook me up some pierogi! I love these women!

2008-11-02T13:14:00.000Z

sandwiches in a field in poland with my buddies

2008-11-02T13:09:00.000Z

my beautiful big bread!

2008-11-02T13:07:00.000Z

a big beautiful bread in a field in Poland!

2008-11-02T13:02:00.001Z

Harvest festival near Wroclaw, Poland, and the "Association of Countryside Housewives" gave me a loaf of this beautiful bread! As you can see, I loved it. We ate the most delicious zurek, a soup of fermented rye, with root veggies and all sorts of sausagey cured meats! and it was a festival of pickles, too, my kind of festival!

Roving Feast: Pachamanca!!!!!

2008-10-30T17:15:00.003Z

Pachamanca! yay pachamanca! What more is there to say?

Roving Feast: Chronicle Columnist Becomes Diet Outlaw!

2008-10-02T12:30:00.002+01:00

Eat eat eat, swim swim swim: my motto! Eat only what I love, eat only a little, and.....move around a lot with joy! well, its worked for me, so far.....i need that eating joy, forget diets forever!!!!