Christmas Day Cuban Sandwiches

In my family, Cuban Sandwiches are a Christmas day tradition. Since we prepare an enormous amount of pork the day before for Noche Buena, the best way to make a dent into so much pork is to carve it up and serve it in sandwiches.Cuban Sandwiches made of sliced pork, ham, swiss cheese, mustard, and a dill pickle. Traditionally there is no mayonnaise on the sandwich, and the outside of the bread is slathered in butter before the sandwich is pressed in either a panini pan or a sandwich press. On December 24th we usually send out my father, the authority on Cuban Sandwiches, to search for the perfect bread for Cuban sandwiches. The bread used is neither a baguette nor a bocadillo loaf (small sandwich loaf). The perfect bread is the length of a hoagie roll but not as soft. The key is for the bread to be soft enough to press and retain grill marks, but a Cuban sandwich is not supposed to be as thin as an Italian panini. The bread used in Cuban sandwiches is ubiquitous in stores like Fiesta that cater to Hispanic tastes, but our local grocery store does really have an equivalent, so this year we used small baguettes that tasted fine but didn't get the grill marks of the perfect sandwich.

Here is the set up
and the assembly

and I didn't get a picture of the pressing because I was frying yucca....but trust me the sandwiches were delicious!

Noche Buena Dinner

The Cuban tradition is to eat Christmas dinner on Christmas Eve and then roll to Midnight Mass after a meal of pork, yucca, black beans and rice, followed by flan and turròn, all washed down with excellent wine, port, and coffee. Now that I'm older and struggle incredibly during midnight mass to stay awake after such as a massive meal, I really respect the effort my parents exerted when we were younger present a perfect Christmas eve. They used to host a Noche Buena party for friends, go to Midnight mass, come home to clean up the mess and then stay up until 3am assembling toys and arranging them under the tree for their sleeping children who were counting on Santa Claus to deliver the goods.



The protein for the traditional Noche Buena is pork, usually leg, pierna, marinated either in a garlic paste that contains salt, pepper, oregano, and olive oil or the traditional Goya product, mojo criollo, which is a combination of garlic, onion and citrus. This year my mother served a pork rib roast that we marinated in the garlic paste for 2 hours, and eventually poured mojo criollo while it cooked.

The pork is accompanied by boiled yucca that is covered in mojo de ajo, which is sweated onions that are first marinated for an hour in sour orange juice mixed with mashed garlic. Also served at dinner is black beans and rice or Congrì (black beans and rice cooked together), plantains, and water cress salad. Sadly, I only captured the yucca on camera, but yucca is my favorite component of the meal.The finished pork roast.

My good friend Johnous, about to pounce on the pork roast.

Check out the next post about Cuban Sandwiches made from the Noche Buena pork roast.

End of the Year Eating

It's been a great year of eating and cooking here at Kitchen Pulse, and I'm happy to share my end of the year meals with my faithful readers. Though I've been lagging in my posting in November and December, one of my many New Year's resolutions is to post regularly on my blog and return to my original intention of blogging cook books and maybe a few original recipes.




I spent my Christmas holiday in Georgetown, Texas cooking for my family with my mother. She was the architect of the great paella de mariscos I posted in September. Though my mother is the chef and primary grocery shopper of the household, sometimes my father brings home food that is given as a gift by his patients. The week I was home for Christmas, my mother prepared venison and Texas red fish, both items were gifts from my father's patients.

The venison was a cut of meat called back strap which is two long strips of meat taken from along the spine of the deer. The meat we cooked was already cut into small pieces, so it looked like each piece was cut from an individual vertebrae.

The venison was prepared as fajita meat, marinated in wine and vinegar to tenderize the meat and then served with sauteed onions and colored bell peppers, guacamole, tortillas, and homemade charro beans.

The next night we ate delicious Texas red fish caught in the Gulf of Mexico by a fisher woman. Texas Red Fish, as one sustainable fishing site put it, is too delicious for its own good, so Red fish is a commercially protected species and most Red Fish you eat in restaurants is farmed. I recently ate farmed red fish when I visited Galveston, Texas for an interview, and compared to the fish I ate there, the fresh fish my family ate was indescribably better. The fresh caught fish had the subtle taste of the ocean without a fishy taste. This is the type of fish that you eat and each bite of light flaky goodness leaves you wanting more. My mother encrusted the fish in pecans and panko and pan fried the fillets until they were slightly browned. The fish was cooked to perfection and all it needed was a bit of lemon as seasoning.

Thanksgiving Day Menu

I've been busy lately traveling back and forth from Texas for the sole purpose of eating the Mexican food I've so dearly missed. In my spare time, I've also been attending medical school interviews. I haven't cooked anything special lately, but I have been planning my Thanksgiving menu! My friend John graciously offered to cook a goose for the occasion, so my responsibility is to cover the sides and some dessert.

My sous chef, Kirstan, and I will be preparing the following dishes:

Sauerkraut with apples
Spicy sweet potatoes with a crunchy pecan topping
Mashed potatoes with copious amounts of cream and butter
Brussels Sprout with bacon and dates
"Traditional" American Green bean casserole
Olive oil corn bread
Pecan Pie with Texas Pecans from the Knights of Columbus of Georgetown, Texas

I'll post pictures after Thursday, but in the mean time go plan your own Thanksgiving dinner and think about what you're thankful for besides delicious food.

Mark Bittman's Brussels Sprouts with Bacon

I'm a recent convert to the Brussels sprouts following. My mother never cooked Brussels Sprouts, so I never ate them until I left home, or more specifically until last year when Mark Bittman posted this recipe on The Minimalist. After eating these splendid tiny cabbages in many variations, I have decided that Brussels Sprouts + Bacon+ dried fruit=the best way to eat Brussels Sprouts.

So to inaugurate the beginning of Brussels sprouts season I prepared the recipe that turned me onto them in the first place.

Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Dates (adapted from Mark Bittman's Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Figs)

1 pound Brussels sprouts ( I used 2 pints, this comes out to about 40 sprouts)
6 slices of thick cut bacon, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
a large handful of dates,which is about 1/2 cup, quartered (you can also use raisins or figs)
1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar,
salt and fresh ground pepper
1/2 cup pine nuts
1/4 cup water or white wine

1. Fry the bacon until just crispy in the pan you plan to cook the sprouts.
2. While the bacon fries, you can shred the Brussels sprouts in your food processor with the slicing attachment. Or if like me, you've lost this attachment, slice the Brussels sprouts to get the shredded effect. Then quarter the dates.
3. Remove the bacon from the pan, and add the Brussels Sprouts, dates, 1/4 cup water, salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes until the sprouts are tender.
4. While the sprouts are cooking, toast the pine nuts for a few minutes over low heat in a small pan to release some oils and add a bit of crunch.
5. Turn up the heat to medium high, add the bacon and pine nuts and balsamic vinegar in with the sprouts, stir, and cook the mixture until all the liquid evaporates.

I ate my Brussels sprouts with a thick steak and roasted potatoes which turned out to be a delicious Sunday night dinner!

Mark Bittman's Ricotta Gnocchi

I must apologize for being so lax about the food blog. I realize it is not enough to cook, but that I actually have to write about what I'm cooking as well. I've made some pretty successful dishes lately, my favorite was these ricotta gnocchi with a lamb ragú sauce. I'll never be able to describe how to make dishes as well as Mark Bittman, so I suggest watching the video and following his recipe to make these babies.

This gnocchi was made easily in 20 minutes; all you have to do is mix together the ingredients for the dough and drop them in boiling water. If you love cheese, you'll love this meal. My boyfriend Sam, generously offered up ground lamb straight from (former) lambs from beautiful Honesdale, PA, so the lamb ragú tasted intensely of lamb and was pretty amazing. I thought lamb ragú would go great with these ricotta because I have salivated in the past over Giada's lamb ragú with ricotta and mint. I highly reccomend making this gnocchi no matter what sauce you put on top.

VOLT by Bryan Voltagio

I went to Baltimore this past weekend to visit a fellow foodie, and instead of staying in the city to enjoy the local fare we left the city...Well, we tried to to leave and make it to our reservation at VOLT at 12pm in Frederick, Maryland, but we ended up stuck for an hour in front of Howard St waiting for the Baltimore marathon runners to finish. If you're not in the food loop, VOLT is the brain child of Bryan Voltaggio, from Top Chef: Las Vegas. In 2009, VOLT received a James Beard Nomination for Best New Restaurant, however since it is located in Frederick, Maryland (ie the middle of nowhere) the price was rock bottom for four excellent courses plus a beverage pairing for each course. I can confidently say it was the best $40 I've so far spent on food.

I usually avoid taking pictures of food in restaurants because I think it's a sign of food obsession, but I made an exception for this experience. I'll just let the menu descriptions speak for the pictures.

shiitake velouté pinenut sabayon, chili oil, opal basil



tuscarora farm organic beets cherry glen farm goat cheese, upland cress


I didn't get a picture of my entree, but it was very autumnal looking.
freebird farms roasted chicken and scallop cippolini, confit potatoes,
maroon carrots, oyster mushroom

cheese course from artisanal creameries

textures of chocolate dark chocolate ganache, chocolate caramel, raw organic cocoa

THE END

Arroz con quimbombo (rice with okra)

Cuban food is my comfort food. As a stereotypical Cuban, I love black beans and rice, pork, more pork, garlic, onions, and sweet coffee. Because much Cuban food is heavy on starch and sugar, my family ate significantly less of it once my mother was diagnosed with Type II Diabetes. In the colder months, like everyone else, I feel inclined to bulk up by eating heavier meals, so I eat a lot of pork chops with some type of rice or another.

The rice dish I'm posting here comes straight from my abuela's kitchen to you...kind of. My maternal grandmother, then my mother both cooked the many of their Cuban meals from the same cookbook Cocina Criolla. The book is written by Nitza Villapol who is considered the "Julia Child" of Cuba because of her ability to communicate the art Cuban cooking to the at home cook. She had a TV show from 1951-1997, and though the show was censored in 1991 at the start of the Special Period in Cuba, when it was re-initiated, Nitza showed Cubans how to cook their cuisine despite the rationing of food. I was given my copy of the Cuban classic Cocina al Minuto (Cook to Order) a few years ago, but I don't cook from it very often because it's written in Spanish and sometimes I'm just too lazy to spend time translating recipes.

A week ago, I bought a huge amount of okra, and on one of the first coldish days we've had this fall I was inspired to make a HUGE batch of Arroz con quimbombo. I ate it with fried pork chops topped with mojo, which is sliced onion, soaked in sour orange juice, then softened in a huge amount of olive oil. Also, many Cuban meals are accompanied with a raw banana, a tradition that I love.

Arroz con Quimbombo (adapted from Cocina al minuto)

olive oil, salt, pepper
1 bell pepper, diced
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, diced
1/2 pound thinly sliced ham, diced
1 12oz can of diced tomatoes
2 cups of rice + 2 cups beer+ 2 cups water
1 pound okra, washed and cut into 1 inch slices
juice from two limes
3 cups of water

1. Add the lime juice to 3 cups of water, then add the sliced okra. This step is supposed to make the okra less slimy. This preparation does work but it's not necessary if the sliminess of okra doesn't bother you.2. Heat a large pot over medium heat, add enough olive oil to coat the bottom, then add the onions and peppers first, cook until the onions are soft, then add the garlic and ham and cook until you can smell the garlic. Add the sliced okra and cook it with the sofrito and ham for 5 minutes to let the okra absorb some flavor. aaaaaaaaaaaSofrito, the base of Cuban cooking, is onions, bell pepper, and garlic sauteed in olive oil.

3. Add the canned tomatoes with liquid, the beer, and water, salt, pepper and bring to a boil. Then add the 2 cups of rice, bring the mixture back to a boil, cover, turn to low and cook for 30 minutes.
4. When I cook rice, I cook it for the allotted time, then I turn it off and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes. This allows the rice to continue cooking for a bit longer but also cool off.

5. Serve with some type of pork and a raw banana.

Vegan Mexican Chocolate Cake + Dulce de leche = delicious but not so vegan anymore

I'm not sure if I've confessed in the past my love for chocolate. It might seem stereotypically female, but there you have it. As a Cuban I was born with a mean sweet tooth and my ultimate weakness is chocolate. During one of our many flan making sessions, my mother told me that as a child she was occasionally given a snack of coca-cola spiked with condensed milk. With that bit of background, you'll understand my deep affection for the set of recipes I'm presenting in this post.

Dulce de leche is Latin American caramel. It is traditionally made by simmering milk and sugar together until the mixture caramelizes as most of the milk evaporates. The easier way to achieve the same delicious final product is to simmer a can of condensed milk in water for two and half hours. Many food websites warned that this practice is DANGEROUS because the can of condensed milk can potentially explode if the water level is allowed to drop below half of the can. My solution to this was to NOT allow the water level to dip below 1 inch below the top of can. Making dulce de leche is not an operation that can be left unattended, but I simply topped off the simmering water every 30 minutes and I did not suffer from an exploded can of condensed milk.

Dulce de leche:

1. Remove the label from a can of condensed milk and pierce two holes on the top of the can.
2. Place the can in a pot and fill with water until the water level is a half inch from the top of the can.
3. Bring the water to a simmer and allow the can to simmer for two and a half hours for a spreadable, viscous consistency. Simmer longer for the thick, candy-like consistency.
**Check the water level every 30 minutes and top up to the original water level as needed to prevent a dulce de leche nightmare**

The chocolate cake posted here is classified as Mexican because of the large amount of cinnamon and pinch of cayenne pepper used in the mix. Though this cake has no milk, eggs, or butter and can be made without the oil, the cake remains rich, moist, and comes out really dark with a final spicy taste which contrasts nicely with the dulce de leche. If I'm in a rush, but obligated to bake, this cake is my go to dessert for entertaining or a birthday because it can come together in 45 minutes at the most.

Vegan-Mexican Chocolate Cake (adapted from Real Simple):
1 1/2 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
pinch of salt
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup cold water

1. Combine all the dry ingredients in a large bowl and whisk together with a fork.
2. Using the fork, make two wells in the mixture. In one well combine the vanilla extract and balsamic vinegar, in the other well pour the oil.
3. Pour the cup of cold water over all the other ingredients and mix together with the fork.
4. Stir until well combined, be sure to scrape all the dry ingredients from the bottom of the bowl. The mixture will become smooth and dark immediately as the reaction between the baking soda and vinegar takes place.
5. Pour the cake batter into a round 9 inch cake pan. Bake at 350 °F for 30 minutes.
6. Let cool for 15 minutes, run a knife around the edge of the pan and flip the pan onto a plate to decant the cake.
7. Top the cake with the dulce de leche.

Lamb Chop Taste Test on the Amateur Gourmet Community Blog

Hi dear readers,

Please check out my blog post about a taste test comparing farm-raised vs supermarket lamb chops. It's posted on the Amateur Gourmet Community blog which is an awesome cooking/eating/loving food forum supported by Adam Roberts--the Amateur Gourmet.

xx Kitchendoc

A visit to Monticello

It has been a while since I posted. First I was busy procrastinating my medical school secondary applications and then my parents came to town so I was busy eating out every night. I don't even have a new recipe to post, so I thought I'd post my pictures of Monticello while I find the time to cook something good enough to post.

Last weekend, on a day trip from DC to Virginia, I visited Monticello with my parents, my aunt and my boyfriend. We were not allowed to take pictures inside the house, but if I could, I would have I would have posted a picture of Thomas Jefferson's dining room which was painted this electric, ocher, yellow called "Chrome Yellow." The effect of the white and green china reflecting the color of the walls made the room glow. There was also a dumb waiter leading up from the wine cellar to the dining room so wine could be easily transported from below the house.

The room I of course have to post a picture of is the kitchen. Because the kitchen was outside, pictures were allowed. Jefferson had a state of the art kitchen for the time with an eight burner stove with adjustable heat. It doesn't sound like much now, but you have to remember that most people cooked over the fire in their hearth and that was it. Jefferson was a French food aficionado whose cook trained in France while Jefferson was minister to France from 1785 to 1789.

On a sort of political note, during the tour, all of Jefferson's slaves were either referred to as "servants" or "enslaved persons." I thought that the former obscured reality, but that the latter was a decent alternative to slave but still a bit too politically correct. Thomas Jefferson only freed six slaves during his lifetime; all of them were Hemmings. After Jefferson died all his slaves and belongings were sold to cover his debt. The picture below is of the Cook's room, which is a misleading name because the cook and his family lived in that room.

The grounds of Monticello were gorgeous with huge vegetable gardens (as seen below) a huge diversity of trees, and lovely flower gardens in the front and back of the house.

Paella de mariscos

I spent the last ten days of August in beautiful Georgetown, Texas. I returned to my homeland for a bit of relaxation and to celebrate my mother's birthday. To celebrate the eve of her birthday, she made a paella de mariscos, the ultimate celebratory meal. It might seem unfair that our family made my mother cook one of her birthday meals, but since visiting Valencia, Spain, my mother has become a paella master, so she graciously cooked a delicious paella to celebrate her birthday and my homecoming.

Paella is a regional Valenciana rice dish made in a special pan called a paellera.

Paella is seemingly straight forward to make: heat olive oil, cook onions and tomatoes together, add seafood, cook, then add rice, add liquid, let rice absorb liquid, and eat. Yet, as with all things, the act is always easier said than done. This post is a series of pictures of my mother making the paella along with a loose recipe. True paella can only be made in a paellera. I encourage you to try to make "paella" (or the imitation Spanish rice dish) at home; all the recipes are very similar so find one you like on the internet to follow.

The first step of paella is wash and cut your scallops and peel your shrimp and lobster (if you can afford lobster tails...).

Then add about 2 cups of shrimp peels, lobster tails, and salt and pepper to 3 cups of boiling water to make your seafood broth. Boil the shells and water for at least 30 minutes. When the broth is done, strain the seafood broth into a measuring cup and add 3 teaspoons of whatever type of "safron" you have on hand. I used the fake safron flowers you can buy in Chinatown or Indian stores, many Latins use Bijol, or you can splurge on real saffron. Saffron is what gives the rice its yellow color.

After finishing the broth, heat olive oil in the paella pan, add the onions, cook until translucent.


Add the tomatoes and cook for a few minutes.


Add the shrimp first because they take longer to cook.

Then add the scallops and lobster tails.

Add the rice, then the liquid.

Fold in the rice with the seafood and use a spoon to evenly distribute the rice and seafood within the paella pan. Cook the paella on the stove for 25 minutes on high enough heat so that the liquid simmers as the rice absorbs the liquid.

In Spain a paella is actually finished on the stove top so that a crispy rice layer (raspa) forms on the bottom of the pan. However, in my family, we finish it in the oven. A safe move is to add another cup of liquid to the paella before placing it into a 350 °F oven, then cook the paella for another 20-30 minutes in the oven until the top rice is soft.

Let the paella rest for 20 minutes to allow the ingredients to meld (cuajar in Spanish).

Then dig in. This sized dish is supposed to feed 8 to 12 people. As you can see, my family of four ate like professionals and only left a bit for the next day's leftovers.