Cook- up with Dzintra

~Bonjour mes amis~

Its time for another cook-up with Dzintra over at Queen of the Armchair! For those who might not know, Dzintra and I enjoy sharing cook-ups! Its a sort of Julie and Julia thing ...without Julie or Julia... just us (: What fun we've had! If you care to join in... please do! Pick your recipes and have a go! Link to us, and make it a party~

BTW, I saw the movie "Julie and Julia" over the holidays and loved it! If you haven't seen it yet... I don't think you would even have to love cooking to enjoy this fun and heart warming movie.

Dzintra is the real chef here! She has completed a Cookery Course at TAFE (which I would love to do one day too) Check out her cooking blog at My Dolce Vita . I love to cook, but have never done much other than cook for my family. Somehow as we chatted via email, we realized our shared love of cooking and a good Food Magazine from the Great Down Under by Donna Hay... so one thing lead to another, and when Dzintra suggested we do a cook-up, I loved the idea! The rest is history. Its been so much fun that we've continued... even if there are some long stretches of time between them.

It takes a surprising amount of time and dexterity to juggle food and a camera at the same time! During each cook-up, I find myself racing between stove, oven, sink and the camera... while trying to keep from smooshing food all over it... and keeping the food on schedule at the same time! DH thinks its hilarious to watch, but doesn't have a word of complaint when the food is brought to the table!

Usually we try to choose our menu from the most current issue. I've had a subscription to Donna Hay, but I didn't get it renewed before it ran out, so haven't received the most current issue yet. I decided to choose a few recipes from past issues for this cook-up.

So here it is, the menu for Cook-up with Dzintra #3:


The recipe for Avocado Egg Salad,
came from my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook.
Next time I'll use one of Donna Hay's great salad recipes,
but this one was delicious too.


Smoky Beef Rib Eye Roast
from DH issue #45, pg 112

This recipe started with a delicious rub that includes
lemon zest, sumac (not the poison kind. I had only
heard of the poison kind before, so had never used this before!)


both hot and smoked paprika,
Rib Eye Cutlet (which I couldn't get, so
I went with a roast instead)


and whole roasted garlic on the side.


This rich tangy recipe was delicious,
and a huge hit with DH and sons!

Pumpkin and Mascarpone Risoto
from DH issue #32, pg 104


The risoto was a hearty complimentary side to
the rich flavors of the Beef Rib Eye.
I had pumpkins left over from my fall garden... it was a perfect fit!

Sour Lemon Cake
from DH issue #44, pg 142

(Dzintra, one note of interest - I made this gluten-free!
I just exchanged the flour with my gluten-free flour,
and voila, it turned out great!
DH and boys didn't even notice!)


served with

Jackson-Triggs Vidal Icewine
from the Niagra Penensula

which I learned of from Susan
at Miss Maddie's


Thank you Susan!
This was a most exquisite sweet dessert wine that
offered a rich silky finish to our dinner.
I believe DH and this wine are new best friends!


~Bon appetite mes amis~