Alright, after putting it off, I am finally posting a blog, and that was my obviously lame attempt at a joke.
First of all, there is something you should know about me before I begin: I am addicted to cheese. Any kind, ranging from cottage to parmesan to gouda. I love it all. There’s nothing better than a scoop of cottage cheese topped with some black pepper, or a spinach salad topped with some mozzarella cheese.
That being said, I also love to cook. I love to find new recipes or just mix a bunch of things together and see how it comes out.
Now, if you haven’t found a connection yet, I think you should just stop reading. But here’s a hint, I love to COOK with CHEESE!
On a somewhat related topic, it’s everyone’s favorite time of year… or least favorite, depending on how you look at it…it’s the tail end of Lent! Lent begins on Ash Wednesday and concludes on Holy Sunday (otherwise known as Easter). During these forty days, it is traditional to abstain and/or fast (ie giving something up, anything ranging from sex, to biting one’s nails, to a certain kind of food). For a more complete background, visit the second best information source on the internet: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lent
Although this tradition is typically Catholic, I, myself, choose to participate in it, as I find the sentiment behind this particular form of religious sacrifice to be gratifying.
I’ve never realized that food could be such a spiritual thing… until this year when I gave up cheese. Although I have given things up for lent before, I am only now seeing how something as commonplace as a dairy product can impact every meal.
During my past few weeks of sacrifice, I’ve become much more in tune with the ingredients I use in my food. For example, when I make pasta, I use parmesan cheese. Or when I make dips, I’ll use cream cheese, or blue cheese with wings! I mean, I can’t even have pizza right now! It’s ridiculous. The first week, I almost gave up my sacrifice…but as time goes by, things are getting easier. Now instead of just adding cheese, I’m experimenting with different spices and new vegetables to compliment the natural flavors in my food. I’m also branching out and trying new recipes, instead of just making your basic chicken or beef, I’ve braved the world of lamb, pork, and GASP! Meatless!
Although I occasionally find myself saying, “man, this would be pretty amazing with a slice of muenster,” I have to say that I am definitely getting better and even enjoying going cheeseless. Yes, I admit, when lent is over, I am really looking forward to sinking my teeth into a giant slice of cheese pizza, or enjoying some delicious brie with fresh fruit, I’ll now consider other ways to pump up the flavor without that milky goodness. One thing I definitely try to focus on is bringing color to my meals. This has come partly from having lived with Shap and partly from wanting to incorporate a greater variety into my diet during my cheese sebatical. I love the natural greens, yellows, and reds that come from fresh fruits and vegetables and all of their flavor.
I truly believe that this short break from one of my true loves in life has really opened my eyes to new possibilities, and in the end, it will bring us closer. I have a new found appreciation for herbs, vegetables, and yes, a greater love of cheese. I am constantly amazed how my tastebuds react to my cooking creations, it’s a spiritual awakening and I thank god everyday for being able to enjoy it.
Happy Lent everyone, and may your last week of sacrifice be just as blissful as mine.
Filed under: tomato
in response to pato’s statement about her not being able to feed (quite literally) her tomato addiction because one, we live in the troylet, and two, she doesn’t have a back yard, i have a suggestion: grow some. many think that a city setting means no garden, right? wrong. tomatoes, among other plants like beans, peas, herbs, and some peppers, can be grown in doors by a window. you can also use grow lights.
mint from my bathtub, i mean, garden.
this past summer, i had some amazing tomato plants. i live near the Cahulawassee River, and unfortunately the earth is thick red clay and it hasn’t rained since 1998. But nonetheless i am able to plant tomatoes, peppers, sugar baby melons, and an old bathtub full of herbs. the tomato plants were easy enough to grow, and they grew so fast we couldn’t eat all the tomatoes before they would fall off. my grandmother and i would cook everything from gazpacho (recipe later) to sun dried tomato tartines; we would sun dry them; we made countless bloody marys; but my all time favorite was fried green tomatoes.
to make the fried green tomatoes is simple, quick, and we rarely did the exact same thing twice. we would heat up some lard in a skillet. while it was heating, beat a couple eggs (depending on how many tomatoes you have) and take corn bread crumbs, parmesean cheese, and whatever herbs you one hand, and mix them in a separate bowl. dip the sliced tomatoes in the egg, then in the bread crumb mix, and plop in the pan. sizzle, sizzle, golden brown & crispy, done.
while i grew common beefsteak tomatoes, my mom grows amazing heirloom tomatoes. not only are heirloom plants more colorful and funny shaped, but they offer such a variety of flavors. they also help preserve the natural biodiversity of plants we commonly grow, and most importantly, eat.
yes, being from the country makes it easier to garden. but it doesn’t mean its hard to grow your own food in an urban setting. even in my dorm room i grew a chili pepper plant. if you live in a city and don’t have the time to join a community garden (or just don’t want to) grow some plants indoors. even just having a basil plant brightens my life, and my supper.
Filed under: 1
no, i am not the first person to claim that as my mantra. but it fits. not only am i extremely slow (i act like a 70 year old trapped in a 21 year olds body) and a penny pincher (except when it comes to select few designer handbags and shoes), but i fully believe and adhere to the slow food nation philosophy. i believe that the freshest, best tasting produce comes from my neighbors back yard and that you should support your local csa. yes, i am one of those. and thusly, when it comes to purchasing more exotic goods that can not be grown in central new york (i.e. the coffee needed to fuel my addiction) i, whenever possible, try and buy free trade shade grown coffees (nuts, bananas, all other foods that come from far away).
so how is this easy? and celriac root at a farmers market costs more than the conventionally grown at the supermarkets, so that certainly does not sound cheap. well, here is the thing: its easy because it makes my life less complicated. i don’t have to fret over supporting Monsanto. and the cheap? i am investing in my health. i am not consuming chemicals, massive amounts of sugar, and am going to benefit from this in the future. it is a long term investment. put a way a little now, and it will pay off in the long run. also, when you do the math, buying a csa share is much cheaper than buying the same produce in the farmers market normally, or even at your local super market. and if you grow your own food, then that saves a heck of a lot more dough than buying it.
and that explains the green. growing your own food, or purchasing food that is local, helps your pocket book, your neighborhoods pocket book, and Mother Nature. its been beaten into the ground that cafo’s and gargantuan monoculture plots are environmentally damaging, so i feel like i needn’t explain much more. i just will site all the above reasons as to why i chose to eat like a locavore.
so there, that explains why i choose to eat slow, easy, cheap and green. and honestly, who wouldn’t?
Filed under: random
okay. this is day 2 of blogging and i’m confessing deep dark secrets. i guess that’s the effect the internet has. here is my secret: i have never eaten a mushroom. and anytime they are in a dish, or someone offers one to me, i always shriek “ewwww i don’t like mushrooms!” yes.. i did not think i would be a person who would choose to arbitrarily not eat a food, but alas. i don’t know if i’ll ever get over this mushroom thing. but ANYWAY. the point of me telling you my life story is not just for the quiz (which there will be one later) but i’m wondering what other food issues, fears, strong dislikes, and obsessions you all have. and by “you all” i mean “shap and ohlno,” because, no one else reads this.
here’s my NO list:
1. mushrooms- see above.
2. shellfish- i’m allergic. but i used to not be. i can’t say i really miss it, though.
3. caraway seeds- i used to gag when a single caraway seed would make it’s way onto my sesame seed bagel (when i used to eat bagels).
4. rye- obviously, the caraway issue.
5. now, i’m really really not one of those nutrition people who think anything besides broccoli is evil. this fact will be evinced by my YES list. but i do have issues with processed foods, soda, bagels, pepperoni… not to say i don’t like those because they are not healthy, but i have issues with them for a variety of reasons…
6. dry red wine. or dry white wine for that matter. give me a riesling or a moscato, please.
7. egg yolks- just creep me out.
8. olives- again, never eaten one. i think the smell turns me off.
the YES list:
1. brussells sprouts and cara cara navels are my newest obsessions- i mentioned this yesterday.
2. CHEESE. any and all varieties. i would live on cheese alone if i could. maybe one day i will. favorites: fresh mozarella, smoked gouda, extra extra sharp cheddar, smoked cheddar, jarlsberg baby swiss, BRIE, parmesan, asiago… i could keep going.
3. tomatoes. i wish i didn’t live in this silly city so i could grow tomatoes, being as i would eat about 3 pints of grape tomatoes every day if they weren’t $3 a pint.
4. bread- especially the crust. not sliced bread, you know, the good stuff.
5. having said the above three, pizza is definitely my favorite food.
6. i’m currently obsessing over vegetarian sausage and more specifically “soyrizo.”
7. saracco sparkling moscato wine. there are no words.
8. proscuitto. i haven’t eaten meat in about 3 months, but, holy shit that’s good stuff.
moving on, i made a really simple dinner tonight so i could make it to class on time. i used the brussells sprouts recipe i mentioned yesterday and made a veggie burger from trader joe’s. but as i am trying to get a handle on this whole taking pictures of food business (and i bought batteries for my camera today) i present to you my dinner…
Filed under: bulgar, cous cous, summer squash, tomato | Tags: bulgar, grape tomato, israeli cous cous, summer squash
ok, so, i think i made bulgar.
but i’m not sure.
this all started with a trip to honest weight on sunday following an adventure trying to find a farmer’s market in march in upstate new york (don’t get me started). as it was the first time i had been there, i was experiencing far too much wonder and awe to be paying much attention at all to what i was doing (which is pretty typical for me). i purchased a few grains from the bulk bins, but didn’t feel the need to label what i bought. so thusly, i’m about 95% sure about this bulgar situation.
the food co-op, by the way, was pretty wonderful. i purchased 2 summer squash, a pound and a half of brussels sprouts (more about this later), 2 cara cara navels (also more on this later), polenta, bulgar (?), and red quinoa (!!!)… for $9.70. holllerrrrrrrr! so, i made the brussels sprouts last night, something i have never tried before, and used a recipe from one of my new website obsessions, 101 cookbooks. they were… awesome. crispy, salty, cheesey. really i’m all about anything golden crusted. the cara cara navels? wikipedia them. seriously. they are like the most deliciously delectable sweet orange i have ever experienced.
anyway, the bulgar recipe. i tried to do that fancy thing where the rest of this entry would be in a link in case you aren’t interested in my experience with bulgar, but during that attempt all that i had typed up til this point disappeared and i had to start over. so until i become more tech savvy, you will have to deal. i also want to point out how it currently says its 11:28 am, when it is most definitely 10:28 pm. hmmmmm. i got a few ideas for this recipe from smitten kitchen.
bulgar and israeli couscous pilaf.
makes about 5 cups.
(this is not technically a pilaf because i did not brown the couscous before i boiled it. i did this the last time i made it, and i wanted to try it a different way. attribute the weird amounts of ingredients below to me wanting to use up what i had in the pantry)
ingredients:
1/2 cup israeli (pearl) couscous
3/4 cup bulgar
1 summer squash
1 pint grape tomatoes
drizzle of olive oil (this is a really exact measurement)
sea salt and old bay seasoning to taste (don’t go overboard on the old bay like i did)
feta cheese (optional)
1. i put the oven on 325 (a number i randomly chose) and chopped the summer squash to bite size pieces and the grape tomatoes in halves. i put them on a baking tray with some olive oil and sea salt and started them roasting in the oven. i ended up keeping them in for about 30 minutes, but this is personal preference (read: i like really crispy things).
2. i boiled 1 1/2 cups of water for the bulgar and then let that simmer for about 20-30 minutes until it appeared to be soft, absorbed, and all that good stuff. (i had to strain some water out in the end, but from what i read about bulgar this is sometimes normal? i’m not sure. this is the first time i’ve made it.)
3. then boiled 1 cup of water for the couscous, let that simmer for about 5 minutes until it was good and done.
4. can you guess what comes next? i mixed the bulgar and the couscous and seasoned with (too much) old bay. it evened out when i added the veggies though, so all’s good. i sprinkled it with some feta cheese before i ate it and it was delicious!
since i’ve got that whole nutrition thing going, here’s some info on this dish (according to my various resources/calculations):
1/2 cup israeli couscous: 285 kcal, .75 g fat, 0g fiber, 9g protein.
3/4 cup bulgar: 113 kcal, .3g fat, 6g fiber, 4g protein.
1 summer squash: 31 kcal, 0g fat, 2g fiber, 2g protein.
1 pint grape tomatoes: 50 kcal, 0g fat, 2g fiber, 4g protein.
1 T olive oil: 124 kcal, 14g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein.
totals: 603 kcal, 15g fat, 10g fiber, 19g protein.
per serving: 120 kcal, 3g fat, 3g fiber, 6g protein.
(1/2 oz of feta cheese adds an extra 40 kcal, 3g fat, and 2g protein.)
i promise, the next time i make food i will take pictures so i don’t end up with such a boring looking blog update ever again. if i can learn to make food look artistic/pretty. shap will have to teach me. i just want to say this took me like 2 hours to write. i’m serious. okay bye!
After not much deliberation at all, it was decided that a joint blog should be started to give us a place to ramble (besides to each other). What about? A few obsessions: food, cooking, nutrition…
