Massaman-Marinated Roasted Leg of Lamb

This dish demonstrates one of the many, many non-curry ways massaman curry paste can be used. It also shows how well lamb and the herbs and spices found in massaman curry paste go together. There seems to be something in that combination, plus the addition of prepared tamarind pulp, that ameliorates the gaminess associated with lamb which prevents some people (me excluded) from enjoying this delicious meat.

Although lamb, in my opinion, makes for one of the most perfect meats for massaman curry, marinating a large hunk of lamb with curry paste and roasting it western-style like this isn't exactly a typical Thai preparation. Then again, we're not going for a typical Thai dish here; we're simply going for something delicious.

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Cinnamon-Pear Almond Cake

Liking my cinnamon-pear jam so much, I thought I would make a cake that captures the same flavor. This cake is not too dense, and yet not at all fluffy. It is a moist cake dotted with chunks of sweet and tender pear. It is thoroughly permeated with cinnamon. It slices like a dream. It tastes great freshly baked; it tastes even better after a day or two. It is mixed by hand in one bowl. It is flourless and gluten-free (albeit unintentionally). And it will undoubtedly make many more appearances in my kitchen.

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Nam Prik Pao Recipe (น้ำพริกเผา) - Thai Chilli Jam

Pretty much everything that is (hopefully) useful, practical, and relevant which I can tell you about this wonderful Thai ingredient has been said in my post on how to use Nam Prik Pao in modern Thai cooking. And since I will not go into its historical background (as the purpose at hand is to create the kind of Thai chilli jam that is used in contemporary Thai cooking), the only thing left to talk about is how to make this versatile condiment at home.

The following two methods of making Nam Prik Pao are what I have been using. Both have their pros and cons.

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Angled Gourd Stir-Fry

Like many Thai people who have coconut, mango, or banana trees in their homes, both sets of my grandparents had lots of fruit trees in their homes. Their herb gardens also grew all year round with various herbs sprouting new leaves ready to be picked every week. Once in a while -- just for kicks -- we even grew some vegetables that we could have easily obtained from the market.

Angled gourds were among those vegetables. When some gourds were ripe for the picking, we would make this and serve it as part of dinner.

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Sourdough Croissant Recipe from Floriole, Chicago

Plain croissants as served at Floriole
There was a time in my life when I woke up every weekday before sunrise just to bury myself in a dusty archive until it was dark out, analyzing the most impractical, the most irrelevant of things. My social life was nonexistent. And throughout that period, the only part of me that got any nourishment at all was my brain; the rest felt like it was dying an agonizing, slow, isolated death.

In the midst of that seemingly endless gloomy gray, there were thankfully a few bright spots. One of them was the presence of my favorite bakery, Floriole, at Green City Market in Chicago. No matter what happened during the week, I knew when Saturday rolled around, there would be this little table at the farmers' market that cheered me up. There would be perfect little canelés de Bordeaux in a glass jar. There would be delicious salted caramel, bread puddings, pies, clafoutis, pecan sticky buns, fruit galettes, and so much more.

And there would be the kind of croissants like you'd get at some of the best shops in Paris.

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Thai Three-Flavored Sauce: The Newbie-Friendly Sauce That Can Be Used in Many Dishes

This post will make much more sense to you if you have read a short article which I've recently written on five basic Thai ingredients that can be used in hundreds of variations. So, can I invite you to take a brief excursion over there before you continue reading? When you're done, please come back here; I'll be waiting for you with a plate of fried fish and a jar of sauce.

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Mango Meringue Tart with Coconut Cream

I'll start with a caveat: this is a multi-step recipe which, even though is not complicated, takes much more time to make than to eat. It needs to be assembled at the last minute and consumed immediately. This is because the meringue base turns sticky once it has been filled, and fresh mangoes turn brown quite quickly once they're exposed to air.

But it's not all bad, you see.

Like a lot of exquisite things in life, the beauty of this show-stopping dessert is fleeting. But isn't the short-lived pleasure derived from such things the stuff that explains the kind of folly human beings have proved capable of getting themselves into since time immemorial?

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