Is My Blog Burning? Eighth Edition Round-up – Lift your Spirits High!
Ya know, someone should have offered me a little cheese to go with all your "whining"! Ha, ha, ha… a little "spirited" humor. But, if there was one common denominator in this event, it was all the lamenting over what to prepare. It seems we all too frequently imbibe in the kitchen!
The result? Not only do we have some 45 splendid entries (many offering multiple courses or variations), but also a litany of recipes our guest chefs have previously posted, but opted out of for this event.
In the end, we used it all – red wine, white wine, rice wine, fortified wine; apperitifs and liqueurs of every kind imaginable – Limoncello (two types!), Kahlua, Baileys, Carolans, Godiva, Amaretto, and of course the Grand Daddy of them all Grand Marnier. There was Cointreau and Triple Sec, Vodka, Gin, Bourbon and Vermouth, and Beer. No. Not just beer, but Ales. Good Ales. Boddington’s and Guinness Stout. Spirited beverages in their own right. The list seemed endless (as did your emails!). Suffice to say, with the number of people we gathered around our tables to indulge, the bottles we opened, and the flavors we created, we are – without a doubt – one of the most spirited groups of people on our planet.
A special shout out to our two non-blogger participants: Cécile in Paris and a Team from Philadelphia, Bunny and Lou Zotter (my parents!). You can see their outstanding entries on my blog. And, though he dissed us for a vacation, no blog burning event would be complete without a fond thank you to our original host Alberto over at Il Forno. He is, no doubt, raising a glass and toasting us all. (Or, at least he better be!)
So, without further delay, I offer you Is My Blog Burning? Eighth Edition Round-Up, where today, There’s some 45 Guest Chefs in My Kitchen!
***update #1****
Jeanne at Cook sister! went retro glam with a Three-Cheese and Champagne Fondue, which she adds was a roaring success (as opposed to a roaring inferno!). Her story – and you should pour yourself a tall one before you head into this – is delightful tale of three women, copious amounts of Pimms and lemonade, a fountain of Cava spurting everywhere, not to mention blood. And, just when you think they’ll never get to enjoy their delicious creation, we discover… alas! NO FONDUE POT!!!
***end update***
Mik at l'art de vivre kicks things off for us by cooking up all her favorites: Vodka Salmon with Fennel and Blood Orange.
Johanna at thepassionatecook signs in with Mr. Obermayr's Cheese Fondue. And, in keeping with the spirit of the event, the punishment for losing your bread in the fondue is quite befitting.
Kitchen Chick spent two whole days to share with us the breathtaking English Trifle.
Irene at Cuisine Capers starts us off with a Ragu Bolognese, served with Tuscan Wine, and then offers a Pine Nut Torte with Port Wine Sauce, enjoyed with Vin Santo.
Petra in Germany at Chili and Ciabatta transforms figs with her Port Wine Marinated Figs with Vanilla Ice Cream.
First time participant, Karen Ostler at edible tales turns her Wine-Poached Chicken into a Curried Chicken Salad with Mango & Avocado.
Not to be outdone, another first time blogger ejm at blog from our kitchen joins us with a litany of his delicious recipes, ultimately settling on a variation of his chicken in dark beer: Pork Roast marinating in a bottle of Niagara Brewing Co. Gritstone ale, and enjoying the dish with Spanish Penascal Tempranillo 2001.
Renee at shiokadelicious! offers us Two Spirited Chiffon Sisters: Amaretto Chiffon Cake and Kahlua Chiffon Cake (with great thanks to her family of taste testers!), and just incase you need a little something savory before you indulge in these sweets, she gives us Boozy Potatoes!
Wena at mum-mum and her Granny cook us up a Sarawakian favourite: Kacangma, using a healthy dose of Chinese samsu.
Bill at Live Journal with a fleeting memory of his Coq Au Vin, gives us the grown-up (and far more decadent) answer to the ubiquitous Jell-O shot: Chocolate Cream Liqueur Panna Cotta.
Alice at My Adventures in the Breadbox stirs things up with her version of Green Tea-Tinis, and a healthy dose of advice: When all else fails "a stiff drink and some take-out would be the perfect end to a disappointing day." Words to live by!
Kate at Accidental Hedonist (an Amaretto Fuh-REAK) shares her Amaretto Cheesecake with Apricot/Amaretto Glaze.
Derrick at An Obsession With Food (who, coincidentally, will be hosting next month’s IMBB event) tempts us with Olive Oil and Sweet Wine Cake.
ST at Cheat Eat joining us for the first time with a traditional Taiwanese dish called San Bei Ji, made with Huadiao, a variety of Shaoxing rice wine – ah, that’d be with 18% alcohol. But we mustn’t let her Dad in on our secret…
Meg at Too Many Chefs serves us The Tipsy Englishman's Luncheon, an ambitious undertaking after returning from a long weekend away. Naturally, though, what would you serve five thirsty Brits on a Sunday afternoon? Meg may be in Paris, but England was her inspiration – an elegant pub lunch: a salad of pears poached in port wine with Stilton cheese, followed by a steak and ale pie and apple pancakes flambé to finish.
Linda over At Our Table demonstrates the versatile Poppy Seed Cake, flavored with Sherry.
Seattle Bon Vivant with a food-wine match, shares Lillet Pork Tenderloin with Apples and a Fig Molasses, and Dr. Loosen Riesling. The Riesling complements the tenderloin quite well. Low alcohol, with a lovely balance of acidity and sweetness, with apricot and flowers on the nose.
First time participant Zarah Maria, from Copenhagen Denmark, at Food & Thoughts with Chocolate Bailey Truffles. Chocolate. Bailey’s. Need I say more?!
A bit of a revolutionary, Pascale at C'est moi qui l'ai fait! with Crepes Suzette, crepes with orange butter and flambéd – with eyebrows and kitchen still in tact!
Mia from Nosh with Roasted Pears in Chianti, a fresh and elegant way to end a meal, and easy to prepare.
Ellen—first time participant – at chronicles of a curious cook with what she describes as "pedestrian" and "one of the kids' favorites:" Welsh Rarebit with Beer. Perfect for a weekend that has managed to change seasons mid-stride, from baking hot to cool and rainy! She says, it's really nothing more than a glorified cheese sauce with the beer adding a nice bite to it. I certainly wouldn’t mind being a pedestrian in her neighborhood.
Charlotte at Love and Cooking offers two early-morning items, one suitable for high festivals (Bill’s Kahlua Eggnog) and one for everyday (Banana Bread a la Domestic Goddess). Both recipes work for either "the hair of the dog" days, or a great start to any day, depending on how you look at it. At least someone thought to provide us with a little antidote for surviving this event….
Kelli at Culinary Epiphanies checking in with two sweet, ooey-gooey treats featuring Carolans Irish Cream: Irish Cream Sandwiches (nearly quadrupling the amount of Irish Crème called for – you go girl!) and a bonus recipe… Irish Cream Liqueur Bread – for a bread machine to boot. But, I guess after those cookies and that luscious cream, using a bread machine instead of an oven might not be a bad idea!
Jeanne at World On A Plate, her second time participating, brought us Torta di Limoncello. Limoncello, a liqueur made by infusing grain spirits with the juice and peel of lemons is from Italy's sunny southern Amalfi coast. This is a light 3-layered sponge cake wrapped with a fresh whipped cream frosting. Delicate as a cloud and not overly sweet. As one friend stated, "This cake is 'boozy'."
Celia, over at English Patis in the UK, joins us with a very simple Tahong (mussels) With Wine, using a Chilean Sauvignon Blanc – and sharing the sage cooking advice of an old man.
Ronald and Katia with loveSicily offer Dolce di Ricotta al Limoncello Bianco – a ricotta pudding with limoncello bianco. Limoncello bianco is a dense milky liqueur with a strong lemon flavour. Their limoncello bianco comes from a wonderful group of nuns that live in seclusion in Rosolini (next to Ispica) and are excellent cooks (yes we know it sounds very crazy but they tell us it’s the truth!).
Jennifer at The Domestic Goddess takes beef to a new level with her Wine Poached Tenderloin with Parmesan Polenta – prepared with a Spanish Red.
Angela at A Spoonful of Sugar showcases her own Strawberry Liqueur in her original Strawberry Liqueur Crème Brûlée.
Barrett at Too Many Chefs checks in with Old Kentucky Bourbon Truffles. Bourbon – the most authentically American spirit, he assures us. As pleasing as the recipe is the detailed lesson and sequence chart is not to be missed. Very scientific… just how many of those truffles did you eat before writing your post?!?
Josh at The Food Section shares an ode to the end of summer: Three-Citrus Margarita – and a strikingly beautiful photo.
Allison at general jinjur's journal steamed spinach and warm tomato concasse to serve with a Martini Sauce. Then, a Bulgar Salad with Ouzo (and golden raisins, pine nuts, grape leaves and feta, to boot!). She ends with Stilton Raviolis with a Red Wine, Port and Walnut sauce. Oh… and a gin salad that just might get you drunk.
First time IMBB participant, Fae at tinyfork, offers us these luscious little grape colored biscuits: Wine Biscuits, made with a spicy Shiraz.
Sam, another first timer over at Becks & Posh serves up Boozy Bangers and Mash using a wine-base sauce to go with the sausage and potato instead of the traditional English Onion Gravy. Lamb sausages cured with Red Wine, and ½ bottle of red wine in the gravy. Nice. Beverage of choice while concocting? Kir Royale. No, I’m not kidding.
Then Santos at the scent of green bananas. recycles her Cherry Mary, where not only is alcohol central to the recipe, but as Santos says, essential. Then putting us completely over the edge she adds: oysters on the half shell with salmon roe, chives, tiny diced tomato, and wasabi-vodka ice.
Following suit, Anthony (a/k/a ‘short term wagon boy’) at spiceblog offered us Beef and Stout Stew with Stone of Scone; Beef Bourguignon; and Deep Fried Wine with a Champagne Batter. Quite frankly, who cares about the rules when you get to discover new blogs… new people… and new food!
Amy at Cooking with Amy offers up Blackout!, a deep rich chocolate cake – aptly named as her Guinness Stout Chocolate Cake began its story without electricity!
Elise at elise's Simply Recipes offers a tempting Zabaglione – a simple Italian dessert made of egg yolks, sugar, and Marsala wine. A caudle, not a custard.
Clement at a la cuisine really gets to the heart of our event by deconstructing white wine… technically, I guess, cooking with the components of wine is the same as cooking with wine.
Claudine at delectation offers us two fondue selections – Cheese, with white wine and kirsch; then Chocolate Fondue with Cointreau.
Chika at she who eats gives us "Champagne" Chicken Casserole, and "Champagne" Chiffon Cake for dessert. Oh, and she adds… we opened a bottle of Veuve Clicquot with dinner.
Owen at Tomatilla! – who is late… late with his post… and late for a meeting as he finally does post, earns our forgiveness with a Butterflied Leg of Lamb Marinated in Red Wine with Rosemary, Garlic, Honey and Dry Mustard, then grilled outside. To even further make up for the lateness, he adds Pink Lady Apple Galette with Double Raspberry Sauce. This is made from the apples from his tree in the front yard, with a little brandy in the apple part, accompanied by a sauce made from raspberry sorbet (purchased) blended with a raspberry fortified wine, Framboise, from Bonny Doon Vineyards.
Finally, with two new – non blogger participants in tow, There's a Chef in My Kitchen tempts – or should that be attempts – to cleanse your palate with a refreshingly tart and heady Pink Grapefruit Sorbet with Vermouth. And, kudos to Cécile in Paris and Bunny and Lou Zotter for their first-time, non-blogging entries! Cécile gives us White Lillet Poached White Peaches; and the Zotter’s – yes, my parents – join in with Amaretto Shrimp.
So there you have it! These entries are not to be missed! Go! Read! Comment! Cook!!!
If I missed you, missed something; if the links don’t work… whatever… just let me know.
6:11:36 AM 
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