five things to eat before you die
a while back melissa at the traveler's lunch box started compiling entries for her food blogger's guide to the globe. everybody is invited to participate but as usual i need an extra kick in the *** to get moving and thus didn't post my suggestions for what to eat before you die - anyway as soon as you have recovered your appetite after having pondered over this grave matter - until matt tagged me.
i decided to exclude fresh fruit and vegetables of all kind simply because nearly every freshly picked sun warmed fruit/vegetable at the peak of its ripeness tastes divine. i also do not include dishes that are realistically not reproducable.
- deep fried paneer in tomato sauce
i came across this gem during our last stay in dublin at govinda's vegetarian restaurant. the paneer cubes are crispy golden on the outside and chewy and milky on the inside and the sauce is simply spectacular. if you accidentally find yourself in dublin one day, try out one of the two restaurants. if your are not so fortunate, you can still test your skills at this recipe (in dublin they omitted the egg plant and chili though). it's part of the hare krishna cookbook the higher taste which can be accessed online. if you are not interested in religious doctrines, jump directly to the recipe section. - (greek) rose syrup over vanilla ice cream
so far my favourite kind of rose syrup is the one used in the greek restaurant plaka in perchtoldsdorf near vienna (austria). it tastes a bit like greek rose incense smells and has a very subtle aroma. but then nearly every (high quality) kind of rose syrup i have sampled had its own characteristic, delicious flavour, so don't despair if you prefer to stay where you are.
when making this divine dessert at home, keep in mind that rose syrup is very sweet so don't choose an overly sweet ice cream. - risotto alla milanese
there is no excuse not to make a really good version of this classic dish. i have developed my own ideas concerning the best texture and ingredients (and will post my recipe as soon as possible) but i think with so simple a recipe and so few ingredients everybody should be able to produce a good risotto. and don't leave away the saffron if you can afford it - don't take everything angelo pellegrini writes too literally (as much as i like his book). - erdäpfelnudeln (lit. potato noodles, austrian specialty)
erdäpfelnudeln are (obviously) made from potato dough . the thick fingershaped noodles are usually tossed in butter with a mixture of ground poppy seeds and powdered sugar ("mohnnudeln"). they can also be served with breadcrumbs roasted in butter, powdered sugar and a fruit compote ("bröselnudeln").
either way they are yummy, especially when prepared by my grandmother. she makes the fluffiest melt-in-the-mouth erdäpfelnudeln you can imagine. personally i am still working on producing acceptable results, but i might share a recipe with you in the near future. - sformato di spinaci
in my family we call it simply "spinach pudding" because at the time my mother first made it, my italian was non existing (it is converging towards that state again but this is another matter). basically it consists of bechamel sauce with parmesan cheese, sauted spinach and eggs (like a soufflé). sformato di spinaci is steamed in a pudding mold lined with breadcrumbs. and as usual the mere ingredients and my clumsy description can not do justice to the finished product. the recipe can be found in a time life series on international cuisine (unfortunately out of print i guess, it's not on their website). the closest approximation i could digg up online (in english) is this. an italian recipe site comes even closer to what i have in mind. anyway - some day i might get around to post my own recipe...
well, that's it.
i considered including more typical austrian dishes but i realized that - probably due to being vegetarian - mostly dumplings came to mind how boring. and with autumn and winter approaching fast i will be posting more about things like that anyway, that is if i actually find the energy to do so - see above.
oh yes, and as there are almost no food bloggers - whose blogs i read of course - left over who have not already been tagged by someone or other, i tag sebastian and andi. i know they both care about food in their own strange ways and their choices might be interesting.
