YaDa Chef Private and Personal Chefs

German Chocolate Cak e is an American creation that contains the key ingredients of sweet baking chocolate, coconut, and pecans. This cake was not brought to the American Midwest by German immigrants. The cake took its name from an American with the last name of "German." In most recipes and products today, the apostrophe and the "s" have been dropped, thus giving the false hint as for the chocolate's origin. 1852 - Sam German (1802-1888) created the mild dark baking chocolate bar for Baker's Chocolate Company in 1852. The company named the chocolate in his honor - "Baker's German's Sweet Chocolate." 1957 -The first published recipe for German's chocolate cake showed up in a Dallas Morning Star newspaper on June 13, 1957 as Recipe of the Day. The recipe came from a Texas homemaker, Mrs. George Calay. The cake quickly gained popularity and its recipe together with the mouth-watering photos were spread all over the country. Americ

It was not until I was an adult that the realisation came to me that most people bought their sausage from a grocery store.  All of our sausages both of the Italian andPolish varieties were made by the local butcher. Every time I have this simmering it brings me back to my childhood. Oddly enough this was always a big favourite even in the heat of summer. Serves 6-8 1 pound/450g kielbasa, cut into 1-2 inch/2.5-5cm pieces 1 large onion, diced (about 1 cup/225ml) 1 medium head cabbage, roughly chopped (2) 28 ounce/794g cans diced tomatoes 2 pounds/900g (4) baking potatoes, cut in 1 inch/2.5cm pieces 1 teaspoon/5ml salt (optional) 1 teaspoon/5ml black pepper 2 teaspoon/10ml caraway seeds (optional) 1 bay leaf 1-2 quarts/1-2 liters water/chicken or vegetable broth (enough to come just below top of ingredients) Combine kielbasa, onion, cabbage, tomatoes, potatoes, salt, pepper, caraway seeds bay leaf and water in a large sauce/stock pan.  Simmer ingredients o

With Spring just a couple of weeks away we thought we would get a jump on the celebrations.  This is quick and easy hors d’oeuvres, a great starter or even a light lunch.  We used a classic pate brisee  recipe for the crust but use what ever you are comfortable with. We did not include the dough recipe as we have shared it numerous times. 1 tablespoon/15ml olive oil 2 fresh garlic cloves, minced 1  medium shallot, minced 2 small tomatoes, peeled, seeded and diced 1 pound/450g fresh asparagus spears, trimmed and blanched and cut into one inch/2.5cm pieces 2 tablespoons/30ml capers 1 ½ tablespoons/22ml dry sherry Preheat a medium sized skillet  on medium heat until hot to the touch Add the olive oil, and heat for a 20-30 seconds Add the garlic, shallot, tomatoes, asparagus, and capers Cook for 3-4 minutes.  Add the sherry and cook for one minute Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper to taste Place mixture into precooked basil tartlet* and serve

Roast Pheasant Recipe Most game is delicious on its own.  Nothing is added by smothering or drowning it in sauces or strong flavours.  Classics are classic for a reason.  Bacon, juniper berries, onion, leeks, cabbage and even sauerkraut seem to work best with most game. Pheasant is still hunted with good results.  If you are not likely to head into the woods, process and “hang” one yourself, and most are not, find yourself a reputable butcher that keeps a variety of game in stock.  Free range birds are an excellent choice and much less work.  Be prepared game birds in the USA unlike in most countries are a bit expensive and therefore a treat, but we all deserve treats.  Pheasants have a surprising amount of meat.  A 4-5 pound/1.8-2.2kg bird will easily serve 4-6 people. Serves 4-6 1 onion cut into quarters 1 stalk celery cut into quarters 2 carrots sliced in half vertically and horizontally 1 4-5 pound/1.8-2.2kg pheasant 1 tablespoon/15ml YaDa Maya Natural Sea Sal

Using Julia Child's recipe from The French Chef in muffin tins and look how cute they are, like little children all dressed up and ready to go...my little bebe baba! We followed Julia's recipe exactly except for the fact that we cognac instead of rum.  Recipe From: The French Chef by Julia Child Ingredient (dough) 11/2 cups/187g all purpose flour measured by the scoop and scrape method 1 tablespoon/15ml sugar 1/8 teaspoon/.5ml salt 2 1/4 teaspoons/11ml yeast 3 tablespoons/15ml water lukewarm 2 large eggs 1/4 cup butter/57.4g (half a stick) melted and cooled to tepid Directions (dough)  Mix the yeast, sugar, and water, stir and dissolve. Let it “prove or proof” for 4-5 minutes Place the rest of dry ingredients in the mixer, make a well and add the yeast mixture in the center. With the dough hook on your mixer set to # 2 start to mix, adding the eggs and butter as you do. It will be sticky but after 1 minute - if it doesn't start to form a sloppy b

  It is the time of the year that many of our clients are eating more fish. This is an adaption of a dish I grew up with. Fresh poached and flaked tuna replace the canned version. The dried "Italian Blend" herbs and powdered garlic are substituted with fresh mint and garlic. Canned tomatoes have been left in, but feel free to use your own tomato concasse (skinned and seeded) diced tomatoes. Whole cherry tomatoes would be fantastic too. Mint you are saying to yourself, really? Pazzo cuoco unico! This is not dessert. This is pasta. Basil goes with pasta. Everyone knows that even those not brought up in a household with Italian heritage. The mint brings an unexpected freshness and "pop" to the dish. As usual I would not finish this with cheese as it is a fish dish. A drizzle of good olive oil and if anything dried breadcrumbs. As always this is quick, easy Good and Good for You! serves 4-6 1 pound/450g Penne Pasta (4) 5 ounce/145g tuna fillets 1/4 cup

It seems that St. Patrick’s Day is the only real celebration most people think of when it comes to the month of March.  Being of one half Italian heritage, another important day in March is The Feast of St. Joseph.  St. Joseph is known as the the patron saint of the worker and the poor throughout  Italy, and the fava bean, or broad bean, has the story of being the savior of a nation, that of Sicily.  Yes, Sicily is part of Italy, but that debate will not be waged in this article. As the story goes, there had been a horrible drought in Sicily.  All of the crops died. The fields looked like deserts in a sea of dust. After much praying to St. Joseph, there was one crop that survived and indeed thrived.  It was the fava bean, which is why it is now commonly called “the lucky bean.”  An added bonus is the nutritional value.  They are very low on the Glycemic Index, and in saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium. Favas are also a good source of fiber, protein, phosphorus, copper and mangane

Serves 4 1lb/450g pasta, cooked according to package directions al dente (to the tooth) 2 tbsp/30ml olive oil 5 cloves garlic, chopped ⅛ tsp/.5ml red pepper flakes 1 cup/225ml onion, diced 1 bulb, 2 cups/450ml fresh fennel, cut into bite sized pieces 2 cans anchovies, drained and chopped 2 cups/794g crushed tomatoes 2 tbsp/30ml tomato paste 1 tbsp/15ml basil, chopped Heat oil in large pot, and saute in it the garlic and pepper flakes (30 seconds), add the fennel, onion and anchovies, saute until fennel is soft and onion is becoming translucent and anchovies “melt”(3-4 minutes).  Stir in tomato paste and coat all vegetables (1-2 minutes).  Add tomatoes and basil. Simmer 30 minutes. “Sawdust” 2 tbsp/30ml olive oil 1 tsp/15ml garlic, thinly sliced 2 tbsp/30ml pine nuts, chopped 2 tbsp/30ml basil, chopped 1 cup/225ml fine homemade breadcrumbs , toasted Pour oil and garlic in pan. Cook over low heat for 10 minutes.  Remove from heat, add crumbs a