food; bummer; kids say the darndest . . .

First, the tabouli that I made to take to the work potluck on Sunday night:


After I made the tabouli, I got all excited about massive amounts of guacamole. I made a big batch of baked chips from the leftover tortillas I had hanging around:


And then I cut open the avocado to make the guacamole:

MAJOR bummer. There was not a salvageable part of this ginormous avocado. Worse even was that when I tried to scoop out a tiny bite from the top that wasn't all gross, the flesh tasted starchy and disgusting. In the future, I will stick with the Haas and Fuerte avocadoes that I have had mostly successes with. (Just so disappointing! Sometimes, I guess things are too good to be true, right?)

Last, a story from work:

One of the little girls in my class was being pushed around by one of the older boys yesterday afternoon. I said to her, "the next time he does that, turn around and say to him, "stop pushing me! I don't like that!" Use a strong voice." She replied, "Like a pirate?"

Tee hee. Kids say the darndest things.

Bamix, Glorious Bamix!

After work on Friday, I hopped on the bus and headed down to the store to buy myself a new stick blender. (Sort of a practical "new job treat.") Since I burned through my last stick blender in just about a year, I decided to invest this time -- spend a little more on a near commercial-quality blender that will definitely last longer than a year! Meet my new Bamix:

It's efficient, powerful, and remarkably quiet. I can actually hear myself think while blending, and am no longer tempted to don earplugs. (P.S. I am totally sold on stick blenders in general -- never will I buy a traditional blender again!)

The Bamix is in for a work-out this weekend, but not immediately. Spring rolls:

I make a super-simple dipping sauce made of roughly equal parts peanut butter, low-sodium tamari, and rice vinegar.

Lasagna Rolls with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce (Got Bamix's feet dirty while pureeing the sauce):

This recipe tasted fabulous (Ann joined me for dinner after giving me a ride to drop off some stuff at the Goodwill,) but was FUSSY to prepare. I may slightly alter the recipe in the future, or switch to stuffed shells or something.

And now, the tale of my crepes. Thanks to many years of high school and college French classes, I have made and eaten many a crepe in my day. (I possess an "official" recipe, according to an old French teacher.) I love, love, love crepes, but they take an eternity to make, are super fatty and not all that healthy, (especially when you slather them with Nutella,) and don't really fill me up at all. In the end, I probably haven't made a batch of crepes for at least three years.

I have been craving crepes lately. Every once in a while, someone comes in to the store to buy a crepe pan, (either stovetop or electric,) and that gets me thinking about crepes. Lately, I have been thinking about crepes a lot. So much so in fact, I had a dream last night about making and eating crepes. (That really was the whole dream -- I dreamed I made and ate crepes.) So, tonight, I decided to "make dreams come true," and whipped up a batch of basic crepes (courtesy of the Bamix, again!)

I pathetically attempted to make the crepes slightly healthier by substituting half whole-wheat pastry flour, with excellent results. (I honestly couldn't tell the difference . . . but with that much egg and butter, the flour is merely a backup singer, right?) I made up a caramel-apple filling for them, which turned out quite tasty, especially since I didn't use a recipe and didn't measure anything. I have a bunch of crepes left, and will munch on them over the course of the next week. Yum.

Lastly, this is what I get for forgetting to take the placemats off the table after dinner:

Silly Oliver. (Now I have to wash the placemats . . . ! Argh.)

More cooking tomorrow . . . off to tackle the dishes.

shopping, shopping, and more shopping

I have been away from the blogosphere for a variety of reasons: life/work/being insanely busy, having no food in the house (and subsequently, not cooking,) and just not having much to say. My apologies. :) However, I'm back, with a full kitchen's worth of groceries, and a picture of the largest avocado that I've ever seen (and ever purchased!)

This is called a Simmons avocado. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with it yet -- probably just an insane amount of guacamole. (Need to cut up some tortillas and bake some chips, too!)

My co-op has started doing the coolest thing -- listing the total dollars spent and percent of purchase on local products/companies on your receipt. Isn't that cool? Yesterday, I spent $40.97, or 28.2% of my total purchases on local items. Not too bad, since I wasn't even trying. :) Next time, we'll see if I can get that number even higher!

I discovered the greatest website/resource the other day -- Vitacost.com! A friend of mine had told me about this website ages and ages ago, and I have just not gotten around to checking it out . . . and placing an order. They have a ton of natural health and beauty products at super-deep discounts (we're talking anywhere from 30% to 70% off retail price,) and charge a flat $5 shipping rate, no matter the size of your order. (As an example, the face moisturizer I use is so cheap on Vitacost, if I buy just one of those, the shipping pays for itself, plus I still save, like, two bucks.) Check it out!

I need to head down to the store after work tonight to buy a new stick blender. My old one died, (it literally fell apart in my hands while I was using it,) and I have been sorely missing it! I want to make soup and smoothies and hummus and other great stuff!

I have very little to do this weekend, other than clean up the kitchen and turn around and mess it up again. Cooking projects planned over the next couple of days:

tabouli (to take to a baby shower for one of my coworkers,)
spring rolls with peanut dipping sauce
tomato soup (to pop directly into the freezer,)
gnocchi with roasted eggplant
lasagna rolls with roasted red pepper sauce
falafel
possibly a giant batch of guacamole (I'm so excited about the ginormous avocado!)

I also may cook up a bunch of the dried beans that I bought at the store yesterday. But, I've been eyeing several recipes in Madhur Jaffrey's "World Vegetarian," and she often calls for the bean cooking liquid, so I may just wait for now. :) We shall see . . . stay tuned!

Before & After

(waves magic wand . . . )

summer food, summer reading

I somehow thought I was going to have all of these food photos to post . . . I don't. Why? Because I've been eating beans and rice, sushi, salads, smoothies, cold cereal, and lots of fruit. Why? Because it's been HOT, up until today. I do have a couple of things to show you, though!

Dan's birthday sushi (he bought, and enjoyed, his own fish, while I took care of the rest):


A salad of mixed greens, local tomato, fresh mozzarella, basil chiffonade, salt, pepper, balsamic vinegar, and extra-virgin olive oil:


TODDY COFFEE CONCENTRATE (I made this in my very own kitchen!):

This is my absolute most favorite thing in the whole, wide world of coffee. Why? Many reasons:
1. Cold brew method means more flavor, a little less caffeine, and WAY less acid.
2. You can brew up to a pound of coffee at a time (thus, no more messing about with the coffee grinder.)
3. It only takes 24 hours to brew a pitcher of concentrate, and all you have to do during that time is remember to pull the stopper after 12 hours.
4. The coffee concentrate stays fresh in the fridge for up to two weeks (and it's also freezable.)
5. Coffee's already ready every day -- just reconstitute with water or (soy) milk, and heat if desired.
6. The filters can be reused many times, for up to three months.
7. The whole system is extremely low-tech, and uses no electricity (other than to grind the beans before, and chill the concentrate after.)

If you like coffee, buy a Toddy. (Oh yeah -- and they retail for right around forty bucks.)

Segue . . .

Recent reading (courtesy of the Minneapolis Public Library):

Must. Buy. This. Cookbook. The chapters on muffins and whole-grain breakfast cereals alone make it worth the purchase price! I want to try EVERYTHING!


Julia Child was a hilarious, intelligent, passionate, amazing woman, who lead a hilarious, intelligent, passionate, amazing life. Read this book (if you can stomach the many, many references to cooking meat -- the only part I really had trouble with was her description of how to make "pressed duck.") This was one of those wonderful reads that, when I finished the book, I felt a little sad it was over. (Does that ever happen to you, or am I just a little bit nutty?) P.S. Paul Child's photographs are breathtaking.

Hm. I really have been devouring books lately. I guess it's been too hot to do anything else!

Off to bed -- more training for the new job tomorrow morning!

BIG NEWS!

I accepted a full-time teaching job last week! I start orientation tomorrow morning, and will begin working August 20th. I'll be working for a nonprofit organization pretty close to my house that serves young, single mothers and their children -- a break the cycle of poverty type organization, with onsite living for the families, and onsite childcare for the kids, (where I'll be working,) while the moms go to school, work, and attend life skills training classes.

I'm really, really looking forward to it.

Woo-hoo!

keyboards rock.

I have a new keyboard with a functioning spacebar!

Keyboards rock. (And my property tax return rocks, too!)

Will be posting more sometime soon, but right now, I have to go do the dishes, so I can finish making bread. Why did I think that making bread at midnight was a good idea? Sheesh. ;-)

A Birthday Adventure

(I still haven't fixed my keyboard, but am copying and pasting spaces for the time being. Time consuming, but effective!)

The Minneapolis Public Library has been offering passes to museums, zoos, and other local, cool places to visit for check-out! I think it's the coolest program, and have only recently taken advantage of this service.

Dan and I checked out a pass to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum and had a little adventure on Wednesday to celebrate his birthday! We packed up a picnic and LOTS of water, since it was so hot and sunny, and drove down to Chaska. As usual, I took lots of pictures (this being a small sample, of course):








(Dan really wanted the koi in the pond in the Japanese Garden to nibble on his fingers, but they didn't seem all that interested, once they discovered he didn't have any food.)


(One very cool thing about the Arboretum is that they incorporate art -- sculpture,mainly -- into nature. There's a statue of a bird well-hidden in this pond!)










We stopped at the "weeping trees" display along the 3-mile drive and enjoyed our picnic of iced tea, fruit, nuts, and a cold soba noodle salad, underneath this willow tree -- a breezy, shady spot!




The view from "high point."


This year's main attraction -- a living maze. Tricky, but fun!


Lastly, a view of a neighboring farm, with a perfectly-painted barn.

Next on the check-out list for us is the Minnesota Zoo . . . and I have a bunch of food photos to post, too. Stay tuned!

Crazy Tragedy

Hey Blog Folks:

There was a huge tragedy in MN today -- the I-35W bridge over the Mississippi River collapsed. Just wanted to say that I'm OK, and so far, everyone I know is OK.

Check out the Star Tribune for more information.

PhooeyKerplooey

So,(withhelpfromthecat,)
Ispilledaboutahalf-teaspoon
ofcoffeeonmykeyboardthismorning,
andnowthespacebardoesnotwork.
Ithinkit'stimeforanewkeyboard.
(Sheesh!)

Iwon'tbepostingforafewweeks
untilIcangettotheApplestore!

Staycool!

Tasty Delicious pt. II

First, thank you to everyone for your encouraging comments regarding my last post. I'm sure I've written about this quote from Helen Keller before, but it is always worth repeating:

"I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something. I will not refuse to do the something I can do."

Enough on this topic for now . . .

. . . because I need to move on to Tasty Delicious pt. II!

Peanut-Tamarind Sweet Potato Curry (from Vegetarian Times):

This was supposed to be a simple curry of sweet potatoes and a rich, complex sauce, but since the one sweet potato I had purchased for the curry had begun to, um, decompose at parts, (damn heat!), I decided to supplement with cooked chickpeas and green peas. (P.S. A first for using tamarind paste in my kitchen! Yum.)

Deep-Dish Polenta Pizza (from Real Simple):

This recipe originally called for radicchio as one of the toppings; alas, the Wedge did not have any the last time I went shopping. I subbed thin ribbons of local, organic, dinosaur kale . . . with delicious results! This really reminds me nothing of pizza, but it's tasty delicious, nonetheless. (The "pizza" also includes diced, smoked mozzarella, and sun-dried tomatoes.)

Custard Pie (from the Betty Crocker Cookbook, using a prepared, wholegrain, frozen crust):

Custard pie is food of my early childhood. My dad used to make custard pies, (also sour-cream raisin pies) for my great-grandma for family holiday get-togethers. I wanted to bake on Sunday night, but didn't have much in the house to work with. (I also wasn't feelin' anything chocolatey . . . imagine!) Frozen piecrust, eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla, and nutmeg . . . I had all of those things, though! I learned my lesson with custard pies, however -- don't use a prepared crust in a disposeable, aluminum pie plate. Why? Because when you pull the pie out of the oven, the hot custard is wobbly and bendy . . . and the pie will bend in half, fall out of your hands, and hit the floor! Fortunately, the pie hit the floor face-up, so it is still edible, although majorly mangled. (This piece pictured above was the only one left photogenic, in the end!) Sometimes, you just have to laugh at yourself. :)

A Really Big Salad:

It's disgustingly hot and humid right now . . . what can I say? (I also can't seem to get enough greens lately . . . maybe my iron's low, or they're just in season and look irresistable? I bought two big bunches of local spinach, one big head of local red lettuce, and one big bunch of local dinosaur kale the last time I went grocery shopping. Munch, munch, munch.)

Enchilada Lasagna:

This recipe started as Corn, Black Bean, and Zucchini Enchiladas (from Cooking Light,) but in the end, I decided I was going to layer everything in a baking dish, instead of trying to roll up enchiladas. (I have had whomper issues with tortillas cracking and splitting when trying to make enchiladas in the past.) Verdict? FABULOUS!!! I made a whole 9X13 pan's worth, but split the recipe into two 9-inch pans, so I have some now, and some in the freezer for later.

And, thus ends Tasty Delicious -- at least until the heat and humidity go down. Leftovers and salads for the next week or so!

P.S. I finished "Hope's Edge" today . . . very, very good. I would like to purchase a copy someday, because many of the recipes in the book look absolutely irresistable. One more to add to the list!

energy, diet, carbon footprint, ranting, oh my!

I just took the Minnesota Energy Challenge, and am feeling a little bit frustrated. It allows you to calculate your carbon footprint based on a limiting number of checkboxes, which assumes you own both a car and an air conditioner. Also, nowhere in the challenge did it mention eating vegetarian meals as a way to reduce your carbon footprint! This frustrates me.

Vicki over at Vegan Vice just posted about this same topic. Why, when most people consider what they can do to help the environment, do they think compact fluorescent lightbulbs and driving less, and refuse to consider their food choices? Not that choosing compact fluorescent lightbulbs and driving less don't help . . . it's just that folks ignore the single most important thing they can do -- eat a vegetarian (or mostly vegetarian) diet!

And really, in the end, it's not that hard. My blog, and countless others, are proof that you can eat healthy and well enjoying mostly plants!

I could keep ranting about this, but my thoughts are a little disorganized right now. Instead, I encourage everyone to go and calculate their own ecological footprints using a device that allows you to include your dietary decisions in determining your carbon footprint.

Here's the thing:

I recycle, buy as many locally produced foods and products as I'm able, live in a small apartment with energy efficient lightbulbs and the works, purchase products that are manufactured in a sustainable way, create a minimum amount of waste, eat a vegetarian diet, buy local as much as I can, ride my bicycle and use public transportation, and many other things.

Still, according to the results of my ecological footprint quiz, if everyone lived like me, we would need almost two earths to accomodate everyone!

Sometimes, I want to throw in the towel.

Instead, I'm going to go check out a new website I just discovered. They have a function that allows you to minimize the amount of junk mail you receive! Off to learn more.

P.S. I want to read "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle," by Barbara Kingsolver. (I also want to read the new Harry Potter, but that's unrelated . . . I can't wait until my property tax return shows up! Money for books and a few other things I've been waiting for!!)

TASTY DELICIOUS

("Tasty Delicious" is a phrase we've been using at the store lately . . . it is redundant, but oftentimes, appropriate!)

Beans and Rice:

I never use a recipe, so my beans and rice is never exactly the same, but it always hits the spot.

I received this rhubarb pie as a thank-you gift from one of my coworkers for picking up a shift for him very last minute. (He and his partner are buying a house, and they had emergency last-minute paperwork to fill out!) See how pretty:

The only bad part about the pie was that, due to the warmer weather, I lost three pieces to "the fuzz." A major bummer. (I suppose it was a sign that I didn't need to eat an entire pie by myself?)

Tomato and Parmesan Strata:

This recipe was pretty good -- not stellar, but pretty good. If I made it again, I would probably use sandwich bread, per the recipe's suggestion, as opposed to the week-old homemade bread that I used . . . the strata was far too bready for my tastes. The other flavors were spot-on, however, so I'll just have to play with the texture.

Barbecued Seitan:

A recipe from VT that I altered slightly and served with coleslaw, local sweet corn, and juicy, red watermelon, to appease Dan, who has been hinting off and on how much he'd like some vegetarian barbecue and sweet corn. (He ate this exact meal two days in a row!)

And lastly, Millet-Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms:

Believe it or not, this is the first time that I've enjoyed eating millet! Combined with garlic, green onions, sun-dried tomatoes, and parmesan cheese, it made a delightfully rich, slightly crunchy yet slightly creamy, filling for one of my all-time favorite fungi. Kale on the side.

More to come in a couple of days . . . .

sushi (again)

I've discovered that sushi is a great way to use up produce remnants! Lately, I've kept sushi rice, nori, sushi vinegar, and wasabi on hand as staples, and have been enjoying homemade veggie sushi on a somewhat regular basis. Dinner the other night (pictured in leftover form at lunch the next day):

Sushi (using half a leftover red bell pepper and some broccoli stalk,) and miso soup (using about six leftover button mushrooms, a couple big handfulls of remaining spinach, half a package of leftover tofu, and half a leftover onion.)

If only there was a way to make sushi with brown rice . . . anybody have suggestions on this front?

busy in the kitchen

Maple-Cinnamon Granola (with flax and sesame seeds):


Udon noodles with stir-fried tofu, red peppers, pea pods, green cabbage, and broccoli, seasoned with tamari, toasted sesame oil, and rice vinegar, and garnished with sesame seeds:


No-knead bread:


Raspberry-ginger iced tea:


Black bean and walnut burger (from VT,) topped with avocado and salsa, and watermelon and coleslaw (with apples and raisins) on the side:


Dark chocolate chunk and walnut cookies (vegan, lower sugar, and whole grain, to boot!):


Pizza (homemade half wholegrain crust, a light layer of tomato sauce, mushrooms, spinach, red onion, garlic, roasted red peppers, kalamata olives, mozzarella, and feta):


Not pictured: a baked sweet potato topped with black beans, salsa, broccoli, and mozzarella cheese, and a simple pasta and salad dinner.

In non-food news, I'm very happy it is no longer 100 degrees in MN. I can't guarantee the more comfortable weather will last, but I'm enjoying it for the time being. :)

Segue . . .

THE GREAT SUSHI DISASTER OF 2007: Friday, Dan and I both had the day off, and since it was hotter 'n' heck and very sunny, we decided to head to the beach. We stopped at the Wedge on our way to pick up lunch. I picked out a salad, some crackers, and a Naked juice, and Dan grabbed some sushi from the prepared food section. We paid, packed everything in my drawstring bag, and drove off to the beach. When we parked, I opened the back door to get out our bags . . . and my drawstring bag toppled to the ground! Dan's sushi landed open and face-down in a puddle in the gutter. The look on his face . . . you'd have thought someone had murdered his puppy! In the end, we split my lunch, hung out for a shorter period of time, and ate when we got back to my house. Poor Dan's sushi! (And poor, disappointed Dan!)

And, job news:

I have two interviews for teaching jobs this week. Wish me luck!

STILLWATER!

Ever seen that movie "Almost Famous?" Well, "Stillwater" is the name of the fictional band in that movie, and I can't help but think of that movie every time someone mentions the town Stillwater, MN.

Speaking of Stillwater, Dan and I went there for the 4th of July -- one of the littler bands he plays in was supposed to play a house party there, but they ended up cancelling -- I guess the neighbors weren't too interested in outdoor rock 'n' roll. (Alas.) So, we just ended up bumming around downtown Stillwater -- poking in shops, dodging the crowds, (it's a VERY popular tourist destination, especially on holidays!), and grabbing some dinner.

We went into a kitchenwares store that I thought was very similar to the one at which I currently work . . . this store had lots and lots and lots and lots of stuff, (we're talking, overflowing gadget bins to the ceiling, probably fifty different styles of teapots, a whole back room of tabletop, etc.) but a very limited selection of cookware, and almost no cutlery. How can you cook without decent pots, pans, and knives??

We also browsed briefly in a local used bookstore -- they had a whole room of old maps, globes, and atlases, which were right up Dan's alley, and I, of course, beelined for the cookbooks. They had a whole shelf of vegetarian cookbooks -- wahoo! Didn't buy anything, but I certainly could have. :)

We had dinner at a local ice cream/grill type place -- very cheap, very tasty, and very quick. I had a grilled cheese and tomato, onion rings, and a root beer float. (And a stomachache later . . . I don't usually eat like that!) Mmmm . . . tasty. Can't remember the last time I've had a root beer float!

I didn't take too many pictures -- I was too busy having too much fun! It was a beautiful day, though:


The bridge over the river, to Wisconsin:

(We debated "just walking over to Wisconsin," but in the end, decided to wait until next time.) :)

I should have taken pictures of all of the boats out on the river, waiting for the fireworks to start, but there were so many people, I couldn't get a decent shot!

In the end, we grew tired of the crowds, and just tired in general, so we drove back to the city long before the fireworks started. (I did catch glimpses of a few displays from the freeway, however.) Hope everyone else had a happy Independence Day!