Author: Sanura

Appetizing Guest Post: Cookbook Author, Funke Koleosho of “Contemporary Nigerian Cuisine Cookbook”

Sanura

One pot aromatic Jollof rice, served with grilled chicken breast, covered with salsa style mixed sweet pepper sauce and steamed mixed vegetables.

Yes, I’ve been missing in action. Unless absolutely necessary, apologies are rare on this food blog. In this situation, my excuse is because of news that went from crazy good to fortunate and grateful. It’s the kind of news to jump up and down to yell, “Hallelujah,” with tears of joy. My life is changing for the better—the best. It’s long coming and deserved. Every moment is savored.

In the midst of joy, is incorporating less cooking time in a new schedule. Life is crazy busy, which explains my absence from MyLifeRunsOnFood.com. In anticipation of this week being the finale of crazy joy, I invited a guest who graciously agreed to write a post and share her recipes.

Funke Koleosho is an award winning cookbook author and has a mobile recipe app, Cook! Nigerian. In her guest post, Ms. Koleosho is sharing her Nigerian cuisine and ingredients. Enjoy her story. If you know or would like to learn about Nigerian cuisine, leave a comment below and download her smart phone app.

I’ll return soon to share happy details of what’s going on in my life. And, yes… there’s going to be changes here soon, because My Life Runs On Food. Read more →

Tarragon Sweet Potato Crepes with Roast Asparagus and Shrimp topped with Parmesan Cream Sauce

Sanura

Tarragon Sweet Potato Crepes with Asparagus and Shrimp topped with Parmesan Cream Sauce

At the last minute, I decided to enter North Carolina Sweet Potato Commission Inc.’s “No More ‘Mallows! Blogger Recipe Contest,” which ends today–March 31, 2012. Sweet potatoes are one of my favorite comfort food ingredients. My first taste was Aunt Anne’s candied dish to adore. As a Brownie in the Girl Scouts, someone brought a pureed sweet potato dish topped with marshmallows to a potluck event. That’s when my true love for sweet potatoes was realized. The marshmallows won me over. Read more →

Appetizing Places: BedStuy’s Latin American Beso

Sanura

Chef Richard McDuffie, Jr.

Brooklyn’s BedStuy neighborhood has quite a few new restaurants opening or in development. Recently opened Beso, meaning “Kiss” in Spanish, is a pan-Latin American restaurant featuring dishes from Central and South America, Cuba and Mexico. It opened late last year, and it’s positioning itself to be a festive Summer hot spot offering live salsa music and dancing, comedy nights, a garden opening in late Spring or early Summer, and a brunch menu starting April 1st. Personally, I’m looking forward to their Tasty Tuesdays with seven dollar appetizers & cocktails. From their list of coctails, I ordered a Caiprinha de Tangerina, a drink made with muddled tangerines and brown sugar along with the Brazilian rum, cachaça. Bartender Roberto explains unlike other rums distilled from molasses, cachaça is distilled from sugarcane. Read more →

Rosemary Lamb Chops with sauté Beet Greens, Roast Beets and Artichoke Risotto

Sanura

Rosemary Lamb Chops with sauté Beet Greens, Roast Beets and Artichoke Risotto

A promise was made to my boyfriend to never cook lamb chops again because of his ethical beliefs against eating red meat. Out of respect, my compromise is eating lamb chops when dining with girlfriends. It’s an expensive dish on most menus, but the price is pretty fair when cooking them at home. Recently, he started working on a major Broadway play. His rehearsals are on Sundays, our sit-down dinnertime. Out of all the promises and compromises we’ve made to each other, his good fortune is being celebrated by breaking the ‘no lamb chop in the house’ rule for my lonely Sunday dinners. Read more →

A Sweet Salad of Medjool Dates, Oranges, and Gorgonzola Cheese

Sanura

Date and Orange Salad

There’s an incredible depth of toffee richness in Medjool datess. They have a crinkly paper-thin skin similar to a sugar glaze. They’re dark honey brown with an oblong shape. The succulent flesh oozes sugar. It’s a fruit tasting like cake soaked in maple syrup. In this salad, dates are classically paired with oranges, and they’re tossed with creamy Gorgonzola cheese, shredded dried coconut, pine nuts and citrus vinaigrette.

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