• 1 1/2l of chicken broth
• 1 cup of white wine
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley
• 2 tbsp tamari sauce
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp miso paste
• 4 small carrots, diced
• 1/2 a small squash, diced
• 2 small onions, diced
• 4 garlic cloves, grated
• 4 sundried tomatoes
• 2 celery ribs, finely diced
• 1-2 cups leftover bbq chicken
• 1/2 cup short grain brown rice
• 1/4 cup wild rice
• 1/4 cup red rice
• salt & pepper to taste

After frying the onions, celery, garlic, carrots, tomatoes and squash in the olive oil for a few minutes, I added the chicken, rice, and white wine and covered the pot for a few minutes. Once the wine had evaporated, I added 1 1/2l of broth, some pepper and brought it to a simmer. Half way through (15 mins) I added the tamari sauce and let it simmer for another 15 mins. Once the rice and carrots were soft enough, I added the parsley and let it simmer another couple of minutes. I then turned off the heat and diluted 2 tbsp of light miso in a small bowl using 1/2 cup of the soup broth. I poured the miso into the soup, tried some and adjusted the salt (miso and tamari are salty so you might not need to add much salt).

The resulting soup was quite colourful and hearty:

Alan really liked it!

And I still had nearly 2 liters of broth left for another day!

I stir-fried orange peppers and celery in a tbsp of butter and 1 tbsp of olive oil until soft. Mixed in a tbsp of finely chopped garlic, cooked another couple of minutes and mixed in about 4 cups of arugula (I wanted to use kale but didn’t have any) and salt and pepper to taste. As soon as the arugula wilted, I added two chopped hard boiled eggs, one cup of millet grits and stir-fried everything until the grits were nicely dry. This is what it looked like:

It was VERY tasty. The millet worked even better than my favourite yellow manioc flour because it was much softer while still crunchy. Plus, the millet’s natural nutty flavour really enhanced the dish. Will definitely be making it again!

Feijoada

Wash a cup on dry black beans and soak it  overnight. Either on the day of, or the day before, cook the black beans by adding it (with the water it soaked in) to a large saucepot and bringing it to a simmer with two bay leaves. Simmer it for an hour or one and a half hour, until the beans are soft and the liquid has thickened, adding more water if it looks too dry. This step can be made ahead of time.

Chop half a block of firm or extra-firm tofu into one inch cubes and marinate it for at least half an hour in a marinade of your choice. I used tamari, cumin, garlic powder and a bit of water. After it has marinated for a half hour, roast it in the oven at about 400 F for about 5 mins per side.

Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a small saucepan and add a small finelly chopped onion and stir fry until it goes translucid, about 2-3 minutes. Add 2-3 chopped garlic cloves and stir fry for another 1-2 minutes. Add 1-2 tsp of salt and 2 tsp cumin and cook for another minute. Add a ladle of the cooked beans, with sauce to the pan, mix it well, and then mix it in to the larger pot of beans. Mix in the roasted tofu and bring the beans to boil. Let it simmer for a few minutes until all the flavours are well blended. Taste for salt and just before serving, add 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley.

Serve with rice and stir-fried kale or collard green. I didn’t have rice so I cooked some quinoa with a bit of turmeric and it complemented the beans really well. For the kale, after cleaning it and removing the tough stems, I heated a bit of olive oil in a cast iron skillet, stir fried some garlic, and added the chopped kale and cooked it, stirring, until wilted. I added a tablespoon or so of water when the pan looked dry.

Original recipe from here (in Portuguese)

So today I made pão de queijo for some Canadian friends, one of whom is married to a Brazilian girl from Minas and who had had it in Brazil.

It turned out so well I have to share the recipe:

Ingredients

250g tapioca startch (aka tapioca flour)

50ml vegetable oil (I used grapeseed oil but any vegetable oil such as canola or sunflower would do)

150ml milk

2 eggs

250g parmesan cheese

Instructions

1. Boil the oil and milk (watch it so it doesn’t boil over)

2. Add the tapioca startch to a large bowl and mix in the hot oil&milk. Don’t worry if it doesn’t mix well and it forms lumps. It will look rather dry.

3. Let the mixture cool a bit. Once cool to touch, add the eggs and mix well.

4. Add the cheese (I added half and add more a little bit at a time; I ended up using about 200g rather than the full 250g)

5. Now the hard part: kneed the mixture by hand until you get a uniform, smooth dough that unsticks from your hand. If it’s too sticky even after mixing it for a while, add a bit more startch.

6. Make the little balls (mine were about 1-2 inches) and bake them for about 20 mins at 400F

These freeze incredibly well. Just make the balls, put them on a baking sheet lined with wax paper and place them in the freezer. Once frozen, remove them from the baking sheet and put them in a ziplock bag. When ready to bake, just place them directly on a baking sheet without thawing. They’ll take slightly longer to bake but will be just as tasty. They are ready when crunchy on the outside, golden on the bottom, but still soft inside.

Brazil is the world’s largest coffee producer and many experts across the world vouch for the quality of its beans. And while Brazilians are avid coffee drinkers, that does not mean they have access to good coffee. Most of the best beans are reserved for export and what remains on the shelves of the supermarkets is often mixed with other stuff. Most roasters tend to burn the beans, effectively making the coffee too bitter and leading most people to over-sweeten their coffee.

Unlike in Italy, Spain or Portugal, most of our coffee is percolated rather than pulled from an espresso machine. Until a few years ago, it was served already sweetened with loads of sugar.

It was only after moving to Canada, and later traveling to France, Spain and Portugal that I have learned what really good coffee is supposed to taste like. I now know that a good espresso can be drank pure, without sugar, and it won’t taste bitter (unthinkable to any Brazilian). And that a real cappuccino has no chocolate in it. But my mother still gets bewildered whenever I call home and refuse her offers to send me ground coffee from Brazil. I’m happier buying my Brazilian coffee at Casa Açoriana, at Kensington Market.