green!

Green is my favorite color. It is the color of growing things, springtime renewal, PLANTS! Thus it is only fitting that I celebrate it today, my ****TWO YEAR BLOGIVERSARY****!

I know I am not the frequent poster that I was before, but I like to believe what I have lost in frequency I have (somewhat) made up for by making posts that are a little less “Dear Diary” and a little more food writer. Plus, my picture quality in the early days had nowhere to go but up.

Anyway, I still relish the time I spend (lately, mostly just Sunday afternoons like this), on my couch, putting together pictures into posts, Sheila working diligently beside me.

 

Sometimes I (narcissistically?) reread old blog entries I have written, and then it makes me remember delicious meals I have eaten and want to recreate them.

So the other night’s dinner was inspired by one of my favorite co-chefs, who lives in one of my favorite places: I remembered the fish baked in rainbow chard leaves I made with my cousin Rachel in Austin. I had bought some beautiful rainbow (but mostly green) chard at the farmer’s market and was easy to take it out for a spin again.

This was made in a rush on a weeknight and was therefore less sophisticated and also incidentally had less (meaning no) butter… but was still good.

Layer of chard leaves. Then salmon. Salt and pepper, drizzle of olive oil.

 

Lemon slicey!

 

More chard on top. Aren’t those colors so beautiful? I think rainbow chard is one of the most artistic looking vegetables on earth.

 

Foil topper for (I hoped) moisture retention and steamage.

45 or so minutes later at 350 degrees, it emerged from the oven steamed down considerably (note to self: use WAY MORE CHARD LEAVES next time! I know intellectually that they cook down but they REALLY REALLY COOK DOWN).

Steaming things inside things makes for such an attractive presentation! Minus the salmon fat, which I sort of scraped off of my piece cause I hear that’s where mercury and other narsty toxins accumulate. True? False?

             

Also green: Thursday! Saint Patrick’s Day! Obviously I was compelled to honor my Irish heritage, at least culinarily, because I am one sixteenth. I know people who get frighteningly drunk over a far smaller percentage.

I arrived at Steve’s at lunchtime with the following things:

For potluck later in the evening, I brought some of my broccoli stem pickles (hereinafter referred to as “brickles”), Cooking Light’s brown Irish soda bread which is intensely delicious but I, in a moment of intense stupidity, misread the recipe of and overcooked by ten minutes, thus making it taste like (slightly dry) plain bread rather than EARTH SHATTERING BUTTERY AWESOMENESS. (I have since made another loaf. It is much better).

And, for our lunchtime sunshiney picnic in the park, a green salad of farmer’s market jolly green goodness mix that includes mustard greens and I don’t know what else but is luscious; some Mutzu apple, and Trader Joe’s Persian cucumbers which, like everything in Trader Joes’ produce section are nonlocal and excessively packaged, but are quite yummy; and homemade dressing of lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, and olive oil.

To round out the meal, Steve contributed brown rice with some nice sauteed trail mix on top. Bizarre, yet not bad at all in taste and highly highly filling. Who knew?

Following work and a lovely walk in the park with Erin, I headed to Steve’s, where he was making his potluck meal. In separate pans, onions and garlic with SCADS of oil (really the reason Steve’s cooking is so delicious and satisfying is that he is not neurotic, like me, about using more than a teaspoon of oil at a time).

And a colorful and nutritious variety of frozen (mostly green) vegetables. It really should occur to me to buy frozen okra because it is one of my favorite vegetables and still totally delicious when flash-frozen at its in-season ripest. And its growing season is just too short!

The resulting dish, with some rice, eggs, and seasonings for good measure, was vair delicious fried rice. Steve is typically not a recipe follower (save that succulent falafel), but there’s a reason: he makes really really awesome rice. If it ain’t broke…

Carolyn is a lot more passionate about Saint Patrick’s day than any of us, so she chipped in heart-stopping and glorious baked potato soup (Expected? Totally rich and cream-packed. Unexpected? Luscious luscious rosemary. Nom!) as well as an amusing looking cake. The shamrock symbology is pretty obvious. The icing just happened because she had two half-containers. We spent a happy moment together in the kitchen cleaning out the almost-empty jars (She took vanilla, I dispatched the chocolate.)

We were actually too fully to break into the cake on Thursday, but it constituted most of my dinner on Friday. The ensuing sugar high sent me on a moonlit monument stroll with Steve. So lovely!

Back to potluck, my firsts. Only small plates were clean and available. Thus, many refills.

The soup, lotsa fried rice, and Erin’s green salad with edamame, tomato, olives, avocado, and other goodies. Had already snacked on a lot of pickles. Mostly rejected my own bread: everyone else said it was fine but I knew I could do better. My greatest kitchen competitor is myself.

Finally, some sweet green: our awesome supervisor Katie, following a planning meeting which causes me anxiety when I think too much about it, brought some bizarrely delicious mochi ice cream. Say what?!

I was all over the green tea flavor.

Fascinating. Starchy chewy mochi goodness on the outside, cold, rich, green tea ice cream on the inside. The coldness is a bit unexpected… my fellow Americorpse Joslynn had a pretty hilarious brain freeze.

I enjoyed. Though have always thought green tea ice cream tastes sort of like grass.

A final green story: our cactuses have been getting it on. This cactus now has its original red blossom… and a PURPLE one from the next guy over. Naughty, naughty!

Beautiful beautiful growing things. A final green hope for this (increasingly) length blogiversary post: could spring really be here?

 

being nourished

Hot and Sexy in March has involved contemplation, which is good, but I must also remember all the ways OTHERS, not just myself, nourish me.

For example, my kitty makes me laugh with her Exorcist moments on the screen door to the deck.

And then my boyfriend is sort of just the best ever. I am terrible at being sentimental, hate any hint of gushiness. So instead I will state, categorically, based on a thorough review of data, my boyfriend is better than anyone else’s boyfriend. He just is. He is just way way more awesomer.

Yesterday was sunlit stroll through Georgetown, make-your-head-spin tasty pizza at Pizzeria Paradiso.

Today was lunch surprise! I was ordered to report to his apartment for homemade lunch. Well, sure!

For the first time I think in his entire life Steve followed a recipe, and not just any recipe. Possibly the greatest food in the world: FALAFEL.

Oh. My. God.

TEN OUT OF TEN. I cannot even believe how delicious it was.

Though he (absurdly) said things like “It just needs to be coated in butter!” (no.), it was ex.tra.ord.in.ary.

The texture was absolute perfection, somehow achieved through the use of an oven rather than a deep fryer: doughy lusciousness in the middle (who hates dry falafel? I do! This was meltingly tender!), plus crisp exterior. It  Sauteed onions and spices imparted a heavenly flavor. Plus the whole additional powerhouse of HOMEMADE TZAZIKI made from full fat Greek yogurt (nom nom nom nom!).

The recipe will need to be in ALL OF our lives soon. For now, I can report that it involved mashed garbanzos, and Steve has no food processor and is awesome and did it all by hand.

I ate roughly four times the amount pictured. Add.ic.tive.

Also, long overdue praise: Steve made a massive batch of Get Well cookies upon my broken pelvis’d mother’s return from Antarctica (what a hilarious sentence.) They had dried cranberries, macadamia nuts, white chocolate chips, and ABSURD quantities of butter.

 

Finally, a couple of Fridays ago I got off work and it had been… a rough day.

Stupid stupid morning meeting>rushed preparation for the afternoon program>controlling 40 children while an 80-year-old retired physicist with a heavy accent made them make graphs (just… don’t ask. I work for a nonprofit. When it comes to guest speakers, beggars can’t be choosers, apparently?). There were mean, mean fifth grade girls. Fifth grade girls are MEAN.

I had to be back on the job at 10 am the following (Saturday) morning, leading the program that I’d planned for the month with our executive director “dropping in.”

Went to Steve’s. Asked to use his shower (another impressive thing about Steve: his bathroom is clean. After I… gave him a gentle talking to about it. But it’s lovely! I mean, except he has no soap. But I just use shampoo.) Cried in the shower. Got out.

And was fed this, which entirely healed my soul:

 

Element 1: pasta (whole wheat) tossed with egg (free range) and feta (!)

Element 2: Tons of walnuts toasted in olive oil and basil. Deconstructed pesto of sorts?

Element 3: Scads of sauteed veggies, including wonderful wonderful fresh asparagus.

On the topic of pasta being good for the soul, can’t forget my mama. It’s also decidedly soul-healing sitting down to dinner of her farmer’s market impulse buy of pumpkin ravioli, tossed with some spinach wilted in garlicky olive oil and a lotta black pepper.

 

Pillowy outside, tossed with bitter greens and tangy garlic…

Sweet pumpkin-y inside.

   

So tonight I sat down to dinner, fearing the onset of sickness due more to physical and mental exhaustion than pathogens, and nourished myself. SOUP!

Stock, culled from veggie trimmings, simmered in the crockpot all day yesterday.

Tortellini, purchased once again by my mother, Ms. Leave No Carb Behind (she informed me that she ate leftover spaghetti clam sauce for dinner last night… then was still hungry… so she ate a sweet potato).

Rainbow Swiss chard, grown to beauty by local farmers.

Crushed red pepper flakes, cause spice makes nice :D

 

Nourished!

Finally, cheers to the ritual.

I don’t know what I’d do without my after dinner cup of tea.

However, this one was a bit special:

 

Well, first of all, AWESOME, where do you see licorice spice tea?! Not in enough places, that’s where.

But, in fact, this came from ANTARCTICA! While getting x-rayed, before getting airlifted off the continent, (hahahaha, oh my poor mother)  my mama meekly requested a warm beverage. The nurse offered her flavors, she went “Licorice spice?!” and so she got on the plane with four bags.

One of which she gave to me :D Souvenir!

in a pickle

Am trying to formulate coherent thoughts on my current state of mind related to food/exercise/body image/insecurity/life stress. Progress is unremarkable at said formulating.

Let’s talk pickling.

I have what I call “Cavewoman moments”. Insane accumulation of unrealistic quantities of not particularly desirable foods. It must be evolutionarily driven: there is a giant dead mastadon and who knows when the tribe will have enough to eat again, it is time for a FRENZY.

These moments happen primarily on two occasions:

1. When food is free.

2. When food is about to be thrown away.

So, work, broccoli stems, it happened.

Fortunately, once sliced and diced, I know what to do with those woody guys: it’s broccoli stem relish, and it hails from Fast Food My Way, my love Jacques Pepin’s ode to the quick, simple, and delicious.

But quelle horreur Jacques! (Jacques is probably feeling the horreur at my French spelling).

THE essential ingredient to said relish is fresh mint. Fresh mint is a HUGE PAIN to procure, particularly this time of year.

However, my pantry saved the day:

A (seriously antique) bottle of mint sauce promised to deliver what the recipe asked for: mintiness! Vinegary tang! Sweetness! Salt! Success.

Two big containers of broccoli stem pickles currently hang in my fridge.

For one batch:

   

1 lb. broccoli stems, cut into little bitlets
2 tsp. mint sauce
2 tsp. chili-garlic paste
1 clove garlic, minced (I don’t mess around on the garlic)
sprinkling of salt, to taste

Let ‘em all hang out.

It was around lunchtime, but I felt like being productive, and I was due for a massive batch of…

No, not cookies, but don’t they adorably resemble them when stacked?!

Lentil Burgers!

Seriously, I cannot believe I made up this recipe. It is so delicious! I am so extraordinarily pleased with myself for having done so!

Griddle cooking is essential. So fun watching them go from raw and beany to golden and burgery!

It is Lent again, so I’m seeking out veggie proteinaceous goodness now that meat is off the table. Not that it’s usually on it, but I am trying to sort of oomph up my protein content. Hot and Sexy and March seems to be causing rather alarming things to happen to my hamstrings. They deserve some coddling.

      

So, one of my favorite Saturday activities (precooking) completed, I then sat down to one of my other favorite Saturday activities: the leisurely lunch. I enjoyed the following enjoyable, colorful, varied, multi-temperature dishes! I did not eat in 15 minutes! Lunch was not harried meeting, preparing some insane craft project while calculating how long it would take me to cut up 40 oranges in the tiny interval of time before the children arrived!

It was, hilariously, I just realized, the colors of the Irish flag!

Lunch included an always nice Plate of Green Things, in the form of my fresh picklies and some lovely green grapes.

My morning farmer’s market trip, taken with my mother’s recommendation for “some kind of fun soup”, netted this beauty:

The white beans sold me.

The exquisite pumpkiny goodness caused me to lick the bowl. SO SWEET! SO VELVETY! SO LOVELY! I’d like approximately 500 more bowls, please.

That speckled white goodness? A moment of brilliance!

Flavored yogurts are: nonlocal, nonorganic, either packed full of high fructose corn syrup or artificial sweetener, individually packaged. And delicious.

Farmer’s market plain yogurt is none of those things (except delicious) but sometimes, dang it, I want sweet desserty yogurt in my lunch.

THUS. Plain yogurt, instant coffee crystals (!) and liquid stevia (for easy blending)

PERFECTION! The yogurt was actually liquidy enough to dissolve the coffee! It had none of the weird cloyingness of artificially sweetened coffee yogurt! It was PERFECTION! This is a triumph that will be frequently repeated.

So, today’s victory. Enough for now. Still feeling contemplative.

hurray for pantries

I love the farmer’s market. Love wonderful fruits and vegetables. They perish. Sometimes you wanna cook dinner out of the cupboard.

I wanted scones. It was rainy and gloomy. Furthermore, I’d purchased golden raisins at Trader Joe’s and dang I love golden raisins. They are so sweet! Then I thought about ginger, because when do I not?

So I consulted this Skinny Gourmet recipe, and came up with my own recipe.

Mmm, flaky loveliness.

Whole Wheat Raisin Spice Scones

1 cup plus 1 tablespoon white whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1 packet stevia (since I still feel a somewhat silly resolve about no desserts. Use whatever sweet thing you like! But I recommend only using a little, as I really believe scones shouldn’t be a sweet, just a… carb-y nibble)
1/2 tablespoon flax
1 1/2 tablespoons cold butter
1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/3 cup golden raisins

Combine dry ingredients (flour through flaxseed) in a large mixing bowl. Chop up butter into little pieces, then crumble it into the flour with your fingers until it looks like wet sand.

Then add oil, buttermilk, and vanilla, and stir just to coat dry ingredients with the wet.  Then fold in raisins.

Put the sticky mix into a floured work surface, and knead just a few times until it holds together (DO NOT OVERWORK!). Then pat it into a circle.

   

Butter chunks, nom!

Cut into that circle from the center out to make triangles (I made 7 scones; coincidentally my lucky number!). Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes or until lightly browned.

 

So good in lunches! Or with tea. Not totally buttery like a traditional scone, but loverly!

My next pantry classic I got out of what my best friend calls my “Holy Cookbook”. A meatless, mostly vegan cookbook (with the odd exception of seafood, as you will see) with yummy, comfort food recipes.

A classic: linguini with clam sauce. The key to making this mondo delicious is having the time to simmer it for an hour. Essential!

 

Start by sauteeing 1/2 cup of chopped onion and a clove of garlic in 2 T olive oil. You are supposed to add 1 T fresh parsley, but I had none, so I added 1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning.

 

Then add your pantry staples! 1 can of tomato paste, 1 can of tomato sauce, and the juice from two cans of clams (you’ll use the clams themselves later- they get added at the last minute. We always use whole clams because we think they are most delicious!)

 

Also 1 tsp. dried basil, 1/2 tsp. sugar, salt and pepper, and water. It called for a cup and a half, but I added that and my sauce was a little thin, so I’d recommend starting with 1.

 

It’s amazing… you cover and cook for an hour and the sauce gets so succulent!

    

This recipe makes a TON- you’re supposed to toss the sauce with a pound of pasta… which for some reason I went ahead and made despite the fact that my mother and I are the only two people in my house… I am ADORABLE.

Actually, my mom said “You are channeling your grandma.” Which I was. Back in the day she would
1. Always have a ton of people wandering in and out of her house who she was always able to feed something delicious and
2. Really liked to eat pasta!

This sauce is so wonderful. It tastes like those Italian restaurants with the red checkered tablecloths that wouldn’t actually pass muster back in Bella Italia but are just a wonderful cultural fusion with American comfort food.

And it tastes so deep, despite being mostly from cans!

I like it with an earthy whole wheat pasta.

With some fresh green things for health: farmer’s market greens, TJ’s Persian cucumbers, vinaigrette. Loverly!