Local Foodies Travel the World Without Leaving Miami

Maude Eaton beckons with a "come eat" look and her Persian Polo (steamed basmati rice with golden saffron crust).

I'm American but you can keep your turkeys, cranberry relish, green bean casseroles, bread stuffing and mashed potatoes for another day.

This is what I'm talking about: a great afternoon savoring delicious food and wine in the company of friends without having to rush through a meal that took an entire day to cook just to stand in line at some megastore. Forget about Black Friday. How about Sunshine Sunday?

Because that's what happened last week in Miami.

"This is better than Thanksgiving," said my friend.

"Better than what you'd get at many a restaurant," I replied.

So there was much to be grateful for when South Florida Foodies gathered at Zonin Wine's hospitality suite for an afternoon of gourmet delights, thanks to Maude Eaton and over a dozen folks who prepared 16 dishes, paired perfectly with prosecco, red and white wines chosen by Casa Vinicola Zonin.

And in true American fashion -- after all, we're a country made up of immigrants from around the world -- these potluck dishes served up flavors from French Polynesia, Lebanon, Scandinavia, Asia, Italy, India, the Middle East, Britain, Colombia and France.

So let our palates be thankful for variety and the pleasure of eating in good company, without having to set foot on an airplane.

Behold a sampler. If Pavlov was right, get a napkin.

The appetizers alone were enough to satisfy ...

Sardinian Octopus Salad (made with conch instead of octopus) for a Bahamian twist.

From other islands, across the globe: Poisson Cru with Coconut and Lime Juice, inspired by Tahiti.

Quick stir-fry bell peppers for Asian tacos by Wokstar.

Asian pork meatballs in sesame-toasted wonton cups with sweet chili aioli and pickled scallions by FOODalogue.

Unfortunately, the Italian wasn't on the menu, but the Prosecco was.

And then the main courses ...

Cooking, laughing, eating, drinking at the Zonin hospitality kitchen.

Tuscan grilled chicken with rosemary, lemon and olives.

Khoresh Gheimeh (Persian meat stew), saffron rice and Masto Khiar (yogurt salad with shredded cucumber and mint).

In the cup, a tribute to Louisiana: spicy Cajun crawfish sausage with creamy smoked gouda grits.

To sip it all down: Zonin's selections for the gourmet potluck.

And last but not least, dessert ...

Il Diplomatico Cake by yours truly.

Truffles, Sticky Toffee Pudding and Cheese Platter.

Hungry? More photos on Flickr or mouse-over and click on the arrows to see a slideshow.

Miami Plants A Seed for Healthy Eats

Wake up, taste buds! You won't need a rod and reel for this zesty Mushroom Ceviche from  plant-based Temple Kitchen in South Miami.

Last week, a seed was planted in Miami that will hopefully grow into a big tree, spread roots all over town and yield abundant fruit.

The first annual Seed Conscious Plant-Based Food and Wine Festival celebrated all things vegetarian, vegan and organic through a variety of activities, including a dinner hosted by health advocate Alicia Silverstone (you might remember her as the blond from the film Clueless) and a day-long festival in Midtown.

Since I've recently embraced a plant-based diet -- I hesitate to even call it a diet since it's by no means restrictive -- I ventured out to Saturday's festival not quite sure what to expect. The last time I attended the South Beach Food and Wine Festival, or as I like to call it -- the people-watching orgy -- I felt jaded and unsatisfied.

Not so with this gang of plant lovers.

Seed's one-tent wonder was full of enthusiastic folk with contagious energy. Smiles beamed. No 86 on happiness at this unpretentious event. Many of Seed's vendors were local mom-and-pop business owners who manned their own booths and offered samples of fine product.

And by product, I don't just mean food. If you are what you eat, then natural beauty was definitely on the menu here. My friend was drooling at the site of so much eye candy. I almost wiped his chin with a napkin. Oh wait, that was soursop gelato ... never mind.

Two of the ladies who run Lunchology, a Miami-based gourmet food delivery service. When you eat clean on the inside, you look great on the outside.

To be fair, I couldn't get my hands off this hot guy's vegan "pop," either. Who can resist that smile? Filippo from Eccolo Pops brings Italian ice and gelato tradition to his shop in Downtown Miami.

But back to the drinks and grub.

To my surprise, there were more businesses advocating healthy eats in Miami-Dade and Broward than I imagined -- a great discovery in a town with agricultural roots. Before urban development pushed plows down to Homestead, South Beach was a fruit plantation. Allapatah was farmland.

The festival's tent was only deceptively small. I thought I'd be there for two hours. I ended up staying five and still didn't try everything. I missed the wine, talks and cooking demos.

What I did thoroughly enjoy were some delicious bites that made me want more. That's right: a culinary tongue tease. For the bed, leave something to the imagination. For the table, leave something for the appetite.

And voila:

Spaghetti squash, lentils and curry from Lunchology. All food made fresh daily.

The brand name tells it like it is: Pure Brazilian Coconut Water. It's raw with a brief shelf-life. I'll never drink carton or canned coconut water again.

Live in a condo? No excuses. Grow herbs in these stylish wine boxes.  How? Contact Urban Gro in Wynwood.

Basil Park had run out of utensils, which was just as well. This marinated mushroom, water chestnut and cilantro iceberg lettuce cup with homemade sriracha was finger lickin' good.

Marcel had me at his exuberant hello. Or maybe the biceps. Definitely the flavor of Badass vegan artisanal cookies, made with spirulina and chock full of bounce-off-the-wall energy. Created by Badass Vegan founder John Lewis.

I've always wanted a monk in the trunk.

Fruit and Spice Park showed off their exotic specimens. Pay them a visit to see the amazing variety of plants grown in South Florida.

Fennel-icious faux meat Italian sausage and dairy free mozzarella from small-batch delicatessen Atlas based in Hollywood.

Worth a drive to Fort Lauderdale: Green Bar Kitchen's Walnut Taco (served in an orange bell pepper) and spicy Coconut Soup.

The line was long to sample Beyond Meat. I'll have to buy some at Whole Foods.

South Florida-based OnJuice makes cold-pressed juices for cleanses that also work well as cocktail mixers or refreshing alternatives to soda. Ginger freaks, try the Lemon Aid.

KIND bars was giving away pay-it-forward flowers.

Seed confirmed for me what I've lived in the flesh the last two months: cooking up a riot of vegetarian alternatives in my kitchen, eating well and abundantly yet shedding pounds. I always loved fruits and vegetables. Now I know they're loving me.

And that's a seed I'd like to see grow not just for me but for the rest of the community.

Seed was presented by Whole Foods. For a complete list of vendors who participated, click here.

There’s the Dishes and Then There’s the Dishes

I take pride in my humble little kitchen, the operative word being little. My imagination goes wild in this small space where I whip up memorable repasts.

Being single, I most often enjoy meals by myself. Food is my companion. It nourishes and speaks to my body. I like it. It likes me.

Last night's entrée was no exception. Salmon en papillote dotted with organic butter, encrusted with crushed black pepper and sesame seeds. On the side: curried cauliflower purée blended with almond and coconut milk. And of course, something green: sautéed kale with sun-dried tomatoes.

I slowly savored my meal while listening to two unlikely companions, Oprah and Pema Chodron on Super Soul Sunday. Pema spoke about embracing -- with an ever-expanding heart -- all that which makes us uncomfortable. Can you be present with your fears? Can you make room for your discontent?



After dinner, I was tired. A huge pile of dishes stood before me in the sink.

“Ugh.” I thought. “Can I be present with my fatigue? And for Pete’s sake, how can a meal for one person make such a mess?”



I sighed and put on my dishwashing gloves.



And then I chuckled through the suds.



As in dishes, so in life. You see, it’s not that I had an insurmountable number of dishes to clean. It’s just that the sink was too small for the joyful, messy abundance in my creative culinary life. I’m so happy in the kitchen. What else matters?

“Well, if only I had a bigger sink,” I thought.



And then I shook my head. “No what if’s, Maria. Just be present. Keep scrubbing.”


Maybe that’s what Pema meant: it’s not that we have insurmountable fears in life. It’s just that our hearts are too small sometimes to take it all in, fears and all -- those glorious messes that make a meal taste even better.



No wonder fears take a hold of us. They’re stuck in the chambers of a tightly bound heart, with nowhere to go.



Well, you know what? Hey fear: relax, sit down and have dinner with me.

Square footage be damned. Sure, I’d love a bigger sink someday. Heck, why not an enormous kitchen? But my little space will do just fine in this moment as long as my heart continues to grow in the only way it knows -- to infinity.



Photo by Lex on Flickr. Not my kitchen!


Noodles

The last time I asked my unrequited love to let me go, to never speak to me again, I ended the night with comfort food. What could be better than pappardelle noodles? It reminded me of our lovemaking, warm and buttery but still al dente, him stiff enough to please, but us melting in between my legs.

I dined alone, stoically, having no seasoning in my dish other than butter, crushed black pepper, a wee bit of chicken broth, a dash of pecorino romano and the salty taste of my tears.

And then I laughed at how “the salty taste of my tears” would sound so corny in writing.

And then I cried some more about the cooking process that led to this last supper.

It’s the yin of pasta and the yang of sauce.

For months, he’d start hard but stay dry in his heart, my hot water being the only place where he could crack, soften and let go in some kind of crazy sauce of devotion. You see, in order to be happy as a couple, the pasta must let the sauce stick to it, without fear, and both ingredients must blend in harmony.

He was my noodle. The only noodle I adored for a very long time. But my noodle had no give and wouldn’t let me stick, no matter how many wonderful, warm yummy sauces I offered him.

And this got me thinking: you can’t have your pasta and eat it, too.

This is the recipe for love. Both noodle and sauce must surrender to a heavenly combination of flavors and texture and be willing to repeat or vary over and over again, each night, as you humbly prepare supper for someone whose kisses refill that empty pot every day.

My pappardelle, were, of course, delicious, even if I had to eat them while watching stupid reruns on TV.

To be fair, he always complimented me on my cooking. Too bad he didn’t complement my heart.

Photo via VancityAllie on Flickr via Creative Commons license.

Rubbing Cock

What happens when you get three vivacious, single women in a room together with cock and a good rub? Read on ...

If you look closely, there's rubbed cock in there.

I rarely endorse products on this blog, but this one fell on my hot loins by coincidence when my friend and foodie extraordinaire from South Florida Food and Wine Blog introduced me to the makers of Cock Spice Rub.  “This is so Sex and the Beach,” she said.  “You gotta try it.”



Dear readers, you may not know this, but I’m really into stirring things up into a hot, delicious mess -- especially in the kitchen.  Food should be sensual. Food should be slow. Unless of course, it's a quickie against the refrigerator, but that's another story.

I tried the Cock Rub with two gal pals on a girl’s night.  Hey! I needed witnesses.  We cooked up a great and easy meal in my modest yet well appointed kitchen -- you should see my large rack -- oh, not my awesome mammaries! I mean my pot rack: rows of Cuisinart stainless steel glory hanging from the wall.

Now, any culinary spice that claims to be “titillating” with the tag line “Don’t Choke It, Rub It” was bound to capture my attention.  And the Cock Rub comes with a guarantee: “to arouse your senses and stimulate your meat.”

I was sold. They had me at "cock."

Rubbing cock is good family fun!

The plan was simple: rub some defrosted chicken breast cutlets and let them sit for an hour or so in the fridge while we had cocktails by the pool, and then, whip up a veggie stir-fry.  

I knew, the moment I opened the package and breathed in the heady scent, that I’d have a really good relationship with this cock.

The poultry seasoning includes ancho chili, sea salt, lemon peel and lots of other yummy goodness.

 I ended up throwing in some plain, diced tomatoes from a can.  “It will be more like a ratatouille,” I said. “ Oh wait! How about a cockatouille?”

COCKATOUILLE

Mis-en-place with the cock already rubbed.

So here you go: the first ever cockatouille, which was absolutely delicious, healthy, incredibly flavorful and just right on the heat index. I wouldn’t rub this on a cock, but I would definitely lick the sauce off his chin and I’ll just let your imagination roam to a stiff conclusion.


I’m not really a recipe writer, so I’m just going to give you the gist of it. If you’re a cook like me, you eyeball ingredients and improvise.



You’ll need some Cock Rub Spice, Himalayan sea salt, fresh ground pepper, garlic, onions, olive oil and butter for your foundation.  Rub chicken cutlets generously with the Cock Rub and let sit covered in the fridge for at least an hour. Worry not if you don’t notice an increase in size of the cock after the sensual rubbing of the flesh.




Put together a mis-en-place with your favorite vegetables. In our case, we cut up red bell peppers, baby mildly spicy orange peppers, broccoli, zucchini and baby portobello mushrooms.  Pre-washed spinach was on stand by.

Slice the rubbed chicken into small pieces and set aside.  Open up a can of diced tomatoes.

Let the onions soften over low heat with a little olive oil and a tiny dab of butter.  Then add garlic and stir without letting it burn. Burning garlic should be a federal crime worthy of the most undignified punishment, namely, one having to eat it.

That's why cooking a stew is like foreplay -- think low and slow, the onion and garlic getting lubricated by the oils -- instead of a massive, rapid conflagration of passion.  Why the rush? Imagine a seductive Barry White song.  Onion and garlic is your base and then add ingredients according to cooking time: hard veggies take longer to cook. Meat and leafy greens are almost post-coital in the cooking process.

Add broccoli, stir for a couple of minutes, then add peppers and zucchini.  Stir a little more and then complete with the mushrooms and chicken.  After a little more stirring, add the tomatoes and more Cock Rub spice, because it’s oh so good.  Flavor with additional salt and pepper, if desired.  Cover, turn the heat to low and let simmer a bit.  The key here is to time it precisely so that the vegetables don’t overcook and the chicken doesn’t get rubbery.

As a side dish, I served a pre-cooked Roasted Garlic Quinoa and Brown Rice mix from Seeds of Change that I happened to have in the cupboard.



Let the cockatouille cook down a little bit until the chicken is just about almost done, turn off the heat, add the spinach and let it sit.

If I could do this recipe all over again, I’d add some Andouille style chicken sausage, capers and put the cooked quinoa and brown rice in the pot once the chicken was cooked and oh, lord! I’d have me some kind of devilish jambalaya.

You get the point: improvise.

Our cockatouille, which I garnished with fresh parsley and a tiny dab of butter (sorry, I know, it's very Paula Deen), was slurp-the-bowl good. The chicken was tender and the vegetables still crunchy and fresh. The cock scent from the steaming bowl was indeed quite stimulating to the senses.



The final cockatouille.  I ended up mixing the quinoa and brown rice in the bowl.

Now I have all kinds of schemes for this spice mix. How about roasted sweet potatoes with cock? Or adding a bit of cock to hollandaise sauce? Movie fans: how about a little melted butter with cock for popcorn? For the vegetarians, I bet a little grilled tofu sprinkled with cock or even an olive oil and hummus bread dip with cock would be divine. Oh and the grill! How about grilled peaches and pineapple with cock for that sweet and savory delight?

As with all things that have to do with cock, you simply have to use your imagination.



Bon appetit!

ANNOYING FTC DISCLOSURE

Cock Rub Spice sent me some samples of their product, which I obviously put to very good use for your reading and my dining pleasure. All opinions, sexual innuendoes and cooking tips are mine. I use the 'no rel' attribute on my commercial links so they're not even getting my google juice, although they did get my juices flowing, just thinking about what to do with cock. What you do with cock is up to you and I do encourage everyone to try rubbing cock at home.

Get Out Your Frying Pan! Lionfish Is What’s For Dinner

This beautiful fish is wreaking havoc in our native Florida waters and beyond. Photo courtesy of REEF.

Last month, I attended the First Annual Lionfish Food and Wine Night at Key Largo’s Fish House Encore, hosted by REEF, a grassroots organization devoted to marine conservation. The house was packed at this exclusive gourmet event, where locals and tourists alike were eager to learn about lionfish.

Lionfish are gorgeous, dramatic-looking finny creatures, with elongated spines that jut out from their frames in mottled shades of red, orange, white and black. In water, the spines sway gently in a beguiling dance. Indigenous to the Indo-Pacific, lionfish are prized on this side of the globe as an exotic aquarium species.

It’s nothing personal, but unfortunately, they don’t belong in our coastal waters.

Lad Adkins of REEF lecturing on the marine issues involving lionfish.

Two visually identical species of lionfish were first introduced into the Atlantic via the aquarium trade in the 1980s. The result? Non-native lionfish have invaded waters from the Carolinas to South America, the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico.

And as one report indicates, they may even be able to handle estuarine environments with lower salinity, including the Loxahatchee River.

Voracious eaters, lionfish also spawn prodigiously, reaching sexual maturity in less than a year, while they feast on over 70 species of fish and many invertebrate species, altering the balance of long-established ecosystems. Lionfish densities can reach as much as 200 adults per acre and a female in the Caribbean can spawn over 2 million eggs per year.

This pretty fish is like the Terminator!

Lionfish have evolved a very clever defense system through their venomous spines, which protect their bodies with a neurotoxin, so they must be handled carefully to avoid stings on human flesh.

The venomous proteins in the spines can be denatured with hot water. Just be careful.

God forbid, but if a lionfish up a Florida river ever seriously hurt a human, we might even get Jeremy Wade of River Monsters to come down here and investigate!

It’s too bad this invasive species isn’t easily harvested by conventional fishing methods such as rod and reel, what with so many other fish in the reefs competing for bait. Maybe they’re just too wily. Also, they can thrive in depths as far as 1000 feet.

They tend to hunker down under structure and like stalking for live bait.

Spearfishing seems to be the best method of capturing lionfish and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission has encouraged open season on the possession and harvest of the species. Numerous lionfish derbies for recreational fishermen take place around Florida and other invaded aquatic regions.

A LIONFISH WEEKEND WARRIOR

Deborah Meltzer, owner of a printing business in the Fort Lauderdale area for the last twenty years, is a scuba diver and lady angler who takes her lionfish harvesting seriously. Sex and the Beach spoke on the phone with her about her underwater fishing endeavors offshore ranging from Pompano Beach to Fort Lauderdale accessible reefs.

“I’m more into the catching of them than cooking them,” she said. “I started out getting interested in hunting lobsters and then I took a course in lionfish. It’s not lobster season right now, so I like to go for lionfish since there’s no restriction.”

She admitted that divers can only keep them in check and that they’d never be able to get to them all to curb the population. “That’s how bad the problem is,” she said. “But I do my little part in helping save our reefs from invasive species.”

Because of their dorsal and anal venomous spines, they have no natural predators in this part of the world.

“Bigger fish would have to learn how to eat them,” said Meltzer.

“I’ve heard it’s like a bee sting on steroids,” she said. “Although, I’ve never been stung.”

In addition to a traditional spear, Meltzer sometimes uses nets or a PVC contraption that relies on a trap door to safely carry multiple lionfish underwater, thereby preventing stings.

“It's really important to learn how to handle them” she explained. “So this way you don't feel their powerful venom.”

Once the fish are on board and ready for a first mate’s fillet knife, it’s a different story.

“We fillet the larger ones and check their stomach content,” she said. “They eat everything that’s economically important to us and environmentally important to the reef.”

OUT OF THE WATER AND IN THE KITCHEN

Fillet carefully and you've got a tasty dinner.

But back to the Key Largo event.

The best part for fishermen is that once you’ve safely caught and filleted a lionfish, you’ve got a potentially tasty dinner if your culinary skills are up to par. The white flesh is tender, akin to hogfish, without that “fishy” scent and flavor we associate with species like tuna.

The fish fillet lends itself beautifully to a traditional wine, butter, shallots and cream sauce preparation with a lightly floured, egg-washed fillet.

Straight out of Escoffier. A traditional preparation. Julia Child would approve ... I think.

My favorite dish at the Fish House Encore was the Sea Salted Cured Lionfish served with heirloom tomatoes, red-onions, cilantro and drizzled with olive oil.

The second course was also delicious. The lionfish was encrusted with fried red onions and Japanese breadcrumbs, baked in the oven and served with a sweet and sour sauce over arugula salad.

I wasn’t too happy with the other two courses and besides, I was rather full by then. I’d avoid mixing bacon with the lionfish or anything too strong in scent, smoky or chewy in texture. Think white wines and light flavors or textures, flash preparations with minimal time in the pan to preserve the tenderness of the flesh.

Next time you go to eat fish at a Florida restaurant, ask if they serve lionfish. Or better yet, ask your local fishmonger if they’ve got any on ice. A bounty of recipes, which you can apply to similar fish like snapper or grouper, is available in the The Lionfish Cookbook, authored by Tricia Ferguson and Lad Adkins. Beautifully photographed, the book is a must for any home chef interest in reading simple yet varied preparations for fish. Proceeds from book sales will continue to support marine conservation and lionfish research.

RESOURCES

Reef.org

Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission

Lionfish Derbies

Lionfish Cookbook

Restaurants Serving Lionfish (to date)

Loxahatchee River Study

National Geographic post on sharks being taught to eat lionfish in Roatan, Belize

Follow @killthelionfish on Twitter for latest news on lionfish events and issues.

Fresh Eats in South Miami

Inspired by my buddy and neighbor Mike La Monica's post last week on the South Miami Farmer's Market, I finally made a bee line to city hall parking lot, skipping Winn Dixie for a change. I can't believe I've been missing out on this for so long!

The market is small, but I left with a decent variety of veggies and fruit. I would have brought more, but since I'm cooking for one, I'd rather buy just enough at a time so food won't spoil.

A little feast for the single gal's kitchen: cilantro, guava, baby eggplants, mamey, tomato, cucumber, avocado and sugar-free jam.

Freakin' Flamingo posing with her goods.

The best part of my morning was bumping into my Twitter friend Renée Joslyn (@rjflamingo), a very funny gal with whom I've had the pleasure of clinking a glass or two. She is the entrepreneur behind Freakin' Flamingo, where she makes delicious micro-batch jams. She's also a South Miami neighbor. Talk about supporting local business!

I brought the last sugar-free jam today; they're popular and she runs out of those quickly. Sweetened with xylitol, the Starfruit Vanilla is absolutely delicious, especially if you are a fan of that fragrant orchid seed pod. I enjoyed some of the jam over Whole Foods unsweetened peanut butter and Ezequiel toast for breakfast.

Easy peasy quinoa salad. I haven't cooked any rice since I discovered this versatile, high-protein grain.

Lunch was just as good with the produce I had purchased earlier in the day, and the perfect, spontaneous meal for one. Chopped tomatoes, cucumber and cilantro, plus an onion I already had in the fridge, mixed with extra virgin olive oil, white balsamic vinegar and salt -- all added to some cooked and cooled quinoa. So ridiculously easy and tasty! I made two servings, so it will be even better tomorrow.

I'm looking forward to sautéeing the baby eggplants in garlic and making milkshakes with the guava. I'll spoon the mamey pulp straight off the skin, sprinkling it with a little nutmeg.

I spent about $20 on the whole shopping spree. The jam was the most expensive item at $9, but well worth the price. The guava and avocado were grown locally. I'll definitely be going back to South Miami Farmer's Market.

Single ladies, don't tell me it's boring and pointless to cook for one! It's one of the best things you can do for yourself. Look at it this way -- at least you please yourself and don't have to worry about feeding other mouths!

Please stop over at Mike La Monica's blog to see a great video about the people and musicians at the market: Saturday in my little town.