Saturday, December 29, 2007

Best Of 2007

Nupur over at One Hot Stove came up with the great idea of highlighting some of our best food blog moments of 2007. Since my blog isn't even a year old yet I've decided to do this a little different. So join me on this journey of recapping the top 5 new foods I tried in 2007.
1. Oxtail
The tail of a beef animal; oxtail is bony and often slow cooked or braised. Browsing through my local supermarket this past winter I stumbled across a package of oxtail. At the time I had no idea how to cook it; but decided to buy it anyway. I ended up making an oxtail ragu that I found in Molto Italiano by Mario Batali. It was delicious. Later in the year I had the opportunity to eat at Mario Batali's B&B restaurant in Las Vegas where I sampled his oxtail ragu. I'm happy to report that his is just as good as mine.
2. Speck
I won't repeat the details. You can read all about my speck experience here.
3. Cooked Fennel
The keyword here is cooked. My family has been eating raw fennel for years. It's our practice to eat the raw stalks between courses like celery. This year I decided to try roasting the fennel and eating it as a side dish. We enjoyed cooked fennel so much that I have been constantly trying to incorporate fennel into my menus. On Christmas Eve I made Fennel with Anchovies and Sambuca. If you're interested in learning more about the health benefits of fennel you can do that here.
4. Bulgarian and French Feta
I had the pleasure of trying both Bulgarian and French feta on a recent trip to Philadelphia. I know what you're thinking...All the way to Philadelphia to try feta cheese. Well I happened to be in my favorite cheese shop, Claudio's, and was offered a sample of both cheeses. The Bulgarian had a bit of a tang to it which I really enjoyed and the French was less salty and a lot creamier; which my husband liked. I like both varieties better than the Greek feta I was eating. They can be found here in Phoenix at the Middle Eastern Bakery and Deli.
5. Meringata This is something I recently enjoyed here at Andreoli's in Scottsdale. The owner makes several different types of these desserts. The one I tasted was described as a meringue and custard dessert flavored with chocolate and hazelnut. I did a quick google search and can't seem to find any additional information or recipes for meringata. Not in English anyway. (Goal for 2008...learn Italian) So I guess I'll be heading back to Andreoli's to enjoy this dessert and a lot of other things.
That's my top 5 for new foods I tried in 2007. Looking forward to 2008!

4 comments:

  1. Thanks so much for participating! It is really fun to discover new foods, right? Your list is very interesting...I have never really eaten fennel- raw or cooked. I'll be sure to try some soon!
    Happy New Year!

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  2. I like the idea of posting new foods that you have tried rather than the 'top 10 recipes of 2007'. Thanks for sharing. I've made Mario's oxtail ragu as well and quite liked it.

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  3. Aah, you discovered the goodness of the Italian Market. I love that place.
    Great list! Happy New Year!

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  4. that was interesting!

    Wish you a happy and healthy 2008!!

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