pink cake equals love

Dear Spicy Chicken Sandwich with Avocado and Spinach

2010-07-31T12:34:00.000-07:00

Dear Spicy Chicken Sandwich with Avocado and Spinach,

Thank you for feeding my grumbling belly on such short notice. You made for a beautiful impromptu lunch with your lime green avocado slices, delightfully crisp wheat toast, and crumbled white cheddar cheese. I hope we'll meet again soon.

Love,
Kathryn

Spicy Chicken Sandwhich with Avocado and Spinach
1 boneless skinless chicken breast or thigh
1 handful fresh spinach
1/2 c. crumbled or grated sharp white cheddar
1/2 avocado, sliced
salt and pepper
cumin
cayenne pepper
olive oil
2 slices of good bread

Sprinkle salt, pepper, cumin, and cayenne over your washed chicken. Turn and repeat on the other side. Drizzle some olive oil in a non-stick skillet. Saute your chicken for five minutes on each side or until its cooked through and the spices have started to blacken. Top the chicken breast with cheese and cook for one or two minutes longer until the cheese is melted. Toast your bread. Top with spinach and avocado. Add the cheese covered chicken, and enjoy!

An Update... And Taco Seasoning

2010-07-18T15:08:00.000-07:00

(photo courtesy of Urban Decay)

...and so the sun set on Brooklyn and rose on the other side in Chicago. The move was not terrible, but was followed by the challenge of finding a new job and a new apartment, both of which met with a feisty, albeit lucky, challenger and were conquered. This, my friends, is why I've been so quiet...

Soon, a much welcomed routine will enter back into the equation. We'll move into our new place. My humble dishwasher will be delighted to be replaced by our very own dishwashing machine. And evenings will once again return to routine, a change I plan to welcome like an old friend.

And so in favor of time and simplicity and due to a particularly ugly three hour commute, I've been throwing together simple meals on a whim, if I even have the energy to cook at all. These tacos were particularly tasty.

El Paso would be offended at my use of homemade taco seasoning, but really, who want's to run out to the store at 8 pm on a Tuesday? My thoughts exactly.

Homemade Taco Seasoning Mix

1 tbs. chili powder
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. onion powder
1/8 tsp. cayenne
1/4 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. paprika
1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. fresh ground black pepper

Double, triple, nay quadruple this recipe and store it in a ziplock or spice jar for future taco making. Adjust the seasonings to your liking and sauté a small spoonful with your choice of meat. (Note: amount will vary based on the amount of meat.) I used diced chicken thighs this time, but you could easily use ground or shredded beef, diced chicken breasts, or pork. Take that, El Paso!

Heirloom Potatoes

2010-05-27T18:44:00.000-07:00

Have you seen how lovely heirloom potatoes can be?

Tossed in melted butter and rosemary....

And baked to crispy perfection.

Idea: Purple heirloom mashed potatoes!

Fancy Spring Chicken with Tomatoes & Basil

2010-05-02T16:00:00.000-07:00

Being a "grown-up" is hard. Sometimes, even as we appear to have mastered the art of the day job, the social life, the "grown-up" apartment, there are days it's just easier to stay at home and surround yourself with quiet comfort and perhaps something luxurious with which to coax the taste buds into submission. It's days like these, I find myself baking focaccia bread, stirring up a new soup, or reveling in a freshly stocked Sunday kitchen. And after all is put away and the last dish is clean, perhaps steaming over a cup of vanilla spice tea leftover from the winter months. This, some might argue, is also the magic of being a "grown-up."

Let me share with you a meal from one such night. Perfect, simple, healthful, this supper is all about love.

Chicken with Tomatoes & Basil
(Adapted from Eat Well)

Note: This meal is best eaten fresh. Make only as much as you plan to eat.

2-4 chicken breasts, halved (depending on how many people you're feeding)
1/4 c. minced shallots
1 clove garlic, minced
1 package grape tomatoes, halved
olive oil
salt
pepper
3 tbs. balsamic vinegar
1/2 c. fresh torn basil leaves

Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet or frying pan. Cook chicken about 4 minutes on each side or until cooked through and browned on both sides. Cover with foil and set aside.

In the same pan, saute your shallots and garlic, stirring frequently, until fragrant and softened (about 2-3 minutes). Add tomatoes and vinegar and stir until tomatoes begin to split (about 2-3 minutes). Turn off heat. Stir in basil, salt and pepper to taste, and add chicken back into the mix. Serve and enjoy.

Cheesy Tomato Soup: A Love Story

2010-04-18T13:24:00.000-07:00

Under any other circumstances, it might have been a very long winter, devoid of Summer's coveted ripe tomatoes and quite possibly, the very reason for my being. If it weren't for the bottom shelf of the canned food section in the supermarket next door, glowing like a beacon of light, I may never have found the San Marzano tomatoes, $1.79 for a 28-ounce can, and lovely in soups and stews, tomato sauces and more. Try them, you won't be sorry. So, I did, again and again, never pausing too long to long for a juicy plum or ripe vine treat. All winter long, I returned to that beacon of light, and reaped the benefits, in the form of this cheesy tomato soup. And so the love story begins...

Cheesy Tomato Soup
(Adapted from Mollie Katzen's The Enchanted Broccoli Forest)

1 tbs. olive oil

1 medium chopped white onion

1/2 tsp. salt

2 large cloves garlic, smashed, peeled, and minced

1/2 tsp. dried rosemary

1 tsp. dried basil

1 bay leaf

freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 28-ounce can plum tomatoes, pureed in a blender or food processor

3 tbs. dry sherry

1 tsp. honey

4 oz./half a block or cream cheese

Heat the oil in a soup pot. Add onion, garlic, salt, herbs and black pepper. Cook over medium heat until onion is soft (~10 minutes). Add tomatoes, sherry, and honey. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Carefully remove bay leaf. Cut cream cheese into pieces and drop into the hot soup. Stir until smooth. Serve hot with good bread and a big salad.

Portobello & Roasted Red Pepper Sandwich

2010-04-10T20:33:00.000-07:00

The other day, I ventured to Murrays' Cheese Shop for lunch. Encouraged by the aroma of stinky goodness upon my arrival, I surveyed the pressed sandwich selection and decided upon the Veggie Bite - complete with goat's milk gouda, artichoke pesto, arugula, and tomato slices. Needless to say, it was a little slice of heaven in my day. Though Thich Nhat Hanh's new book Savor encourages mindful eating, I must admit I'm guilty of the occasional sandwich-on-the-run. The sandwich is a food of convenience, one you can wrap up and haul along, tuck it in your purse or pack, and eat when the time is right. This sandwich was particularly tasty:

Portobello & Roasted Red Pepper Sandwich with Feta and Spinach

Heat a splash of water in a small frying pan with a lid. Steam a washed and stemmed portobello mushroom for 10 minutes or until tender and the juices have released. With the top of the mushroom facing down, add a handful of feta (next time, I'll use goat cheese), and let it melt for a couple of minutes.

Meanwhile, toast two slices of whole grain bread. Compile your sandwich by stacking roasted red peppers on top of the mushroom and cheese. Top with fresh spinach or arugula. Slice and enjoy!

A Nod to My Mother: Casserole

2010-03-29T19:15:00.000-07:00

I am a girl who grew up on casseroles - sweet potato casserole, broccoli cheese casserole, and squash casserole to name a few. They were the highlight at family gatherings, alongside sweet peas, tomato biscuit sandwiches, and a large red bucket of fried chicken. But for some reason I have always been reluctant to return to mass quantities of mush, however delicious and flavorful, in my own cooking adventures. But something about Mollie Katzen's scheherazade casserole caught my attention. In an era of "eat this, not that" advice from every direction, diets, cookbooks, nutritional theories and postulations, casseroles are not high on anyone's list of healthy foods. But this one combined several ingredients on my most coveted foods list, namely tomatoes, feta, and cumin. How could a dish that combined these ingredients turn out badly? And so the experiment began. A trip to the store supplied me with raw bulgur, dry soybeans, a beautiful red bell pepper, and white onion (because the spanish and yellow onions just aren't up to par lately). With garlic, olive oil, and spices on hand, that's all you really need.

Scheherazade Casserole
(Adapted from Mollie Katzen's The New Moosewood Cookbook)

1 c. raw bulgur
1 c. boiling water
1 tbs. olive oil
2 c. minced onion
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. dried basil
3 twists of freshly ground black pepper
3 dashes of cayenne
1 large bell pepper, diced
3/4 c. dry soybeans, quick soaked & drained
1-14 oz. can diced tomatoes, drained
3 tbs. tomato paste
1/4 c. dried parsley
2 c. crumbled feta cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Oil a 9 x 13 inch baking pan.

Place the bulgur in a medium sized bowl and add boiling water. Cover with a plate and let stand at least 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Add onion, garlic, salt, and other seasonings. Stir occasionally as you saute over medium heat for 5 to 8 minutes. Add bell pepper and saute for 5 more minutes.

Place your drained soybeans in a blender with a cup of water. Grind until it resembles a coarse batter. Transfer to your largest mixing bowl.

Add soaked bulgur and sauteed veggies to the soybeans. Stir in the tomatoes, and add tomato paste, parsley, and 1 cup of the feta. Mix well.

Spread into your dish. Sprinkle remaining feta on top. Bake uncovered for 40 minutes at 375 degrees. Remove and place under the broiler for 1-2 minutes or until the cheese is browned on top.

It is debatable as to whether or not this would make a satisfactory entree. I can see it doing very well alongside a piece of chicken or a mild fish. Also note this dish makes for fantastic leftovers, especially after sitting in the fridge overnight, allowing the flavors to mingle a bit more.

A note on terminology:
If you're from the Dakotas you might refer to this type of dish as a hotdish. If you're British, you might call it a bake. For the rest of us folk, casserole works just fine.

Sunday Supper

2010-03-21T19:53:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, when my humble dishwasher is watching horrible sitcoms on BBC America, I like to sneak away into the kitchen for some meditative vegetable chopping. Though my kitchen is more like a cubby hole, so deficient in storage space I must store bakeware and pots and pans in my oven and can't actually chop vegetables in the kitchen. It is a wonderful reminder of how lucky I am to have pots and pans in the first place and a little oven nook in which to store them.

On this particularly warm March afternoon, a colorful soup full of spices and magic was in order, as was a variation Momofuku's famous crack pie. Here it goes...

Gypsy Soup (adapted from The New Moosewood Cookbook)

2 chopped and seeded plum tomatoes from a can (or 2 fresh seeded and peeled tomatoes, chopped)

1 tbs. olive oil

2 c. chopped onion

2 cloves of garlic, crushed and minced

3 stalks celery, chopped

2 c. sweet potato, peeled and chopped

1 tsp. salt

2 tsp. paprika

1 tsp. turmeric

1 tsp. dried basil

2 dashes cinnamon

2 dashes cayenne

1 bay leaf

3 c. water

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1 can chick peas, rinsed and drained

Heat olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven. Add onion, garlic, celery, and sweet potato, and saute over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add salt, and saute for 5 more minutes. Add seasonings and water. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes.

Add tomatoes, bell pepper, and chick peas. Cover and simmer for 10 more minutes. Serve and enjoy with a cool glass of water.

And then there was dessert...Momofuku's crack pie is perhaps the most egg-, butter-, and sugar-laden pie I've ever encountered. A surefire way to satisfy any sugar craving, it's actually not as labor-intensive as people make it out to be. It basically involves making a giant cookie, cooling the cookie, crumbling it into some butter and sugar and molding it into your pie pan. Then, pouring some more butter, sugar, and egg into the pie shell and baking it for about 20 minutes. Peas Love Carrots has a lovely version of this pie as well, complete with step by step photographs.

Eggs, the Food of Many Faces

2010-03-20T14:59:00.000-07:00

How many ways are there to enjoy eggs? You can poach them, fry them, scramble and bake them. But eggs alone cannot satisfy this cook... There are perhaps as many ways to enjoy eggs as there are to make heuvos rancheros. Simple and delightfully messy, huevos rancheros are a terrific gentle-on-the-wallet weeknight meal. Like tortilla soup, huevos rancheros are all about the garnishes. Collect your favorite mexican food memories and compile them over tortillas and eggs, and you will have something like huevos rancheros. While a particularly creative friend of mine poaches her eggs in tomatillo salsa, I prefer to fry mine before transferring them to a cheese topped tortilla in a heated skillet.

Huevos Rancheros My Way

1 avocado, cubed

1 package of grated sharp white cheddar (Cabot Farms in Vermont makes a great sharp white cheddar)

1 c. salsa (I used Green Mountain salsa, later rinsing and saving the jars for water glasses)

6 small corn tortillas

6 eggs

1 tbs. butter

Heat a frying pan over medium heat. Place a tortilla in the pan and top with cheese grated on the big holes of a box grater. In another frying pan, melt butter, and begin to fry your eggs, one or two at a time.

When the eggs are begin to brown on the bottom, transfer them one at a time onto the heated tortillas. When your eggs are done cooking to your satisfaction, transfer the egg and cheese topped tortilla onto a plate. Garnish with salsa and avocado. Repeat the process, beginning each time with a clean tortilla, fresh grated cheese, and fried egg. Garnish and serve. Easier than pie.

Dear Spring, You Had Me at "Hello"

2010-03-14T19:49:00.000-07:00

It's true. Spring is coming, the air is warming, the rain is here, the masses are emerging from underground where they hibernated away the winter months. Umbrellas are out and soon will be bare legs and toes. The snow is melted, the winter gear is being put into storage. The city is turning from grey to color. Pastels and pinks have hit storefronts, and before you know it, the city will turn into a crowded humid mess of stink. While the wealthy will retreat to their summer cottages upstate over the weekends with a basket of heirloom tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and a bottle of port, the rest of us will open our windows, pull out our fans, and make sure our ice trays never emtpy. The oven will stay off, as will the stove, and you'll wonder, the sweat pouring down your sun-kissed brow, what in tarnation am I supposed to eat?!

Some might argue Spring Rolls are a good option. Think about it: There is virtually no cooking involved. Just a bit of chopping can deliver a few crunchy veggies wrapped into a neat roll. Add a side of thai peanut sauce, and you'll have a nourishing, fresh, and most of all, heat-free lunch! All of those in favor of spring, say "I" and proceed....

Summer Rolls

Rice paper (can be found in most Asian supermarkets)

1 avocado

leftover linguini, spaghetti, or rice noodles

lettuce (bibb or red leaf preferable though anything you have on hand would work)

1 red bell pepper

1 bunch mint leaves

1 bunch basil

2 carrots

1/2 - 1 lb. cooked shrimp, peeled and deveined (can be purchased at most supermarkets by the fish and chicken)

Slice your pepper, carrots, and avocado into matchsticks no longer than 3 inches in length.

Fill a baking dish or bowl with about an inch of warm water. Dunk one sheet of rice paper, and set it on your work surface. Wait for 30 seconds - 1 minute for the rice paper to soften.

Place 2 shrimp, about a 1/2 inch apart in the middle of your softened rice paper. Place a bit of lettuce in the middle and top with a small handful and a neat stack of carrots, pepper, and avocado sticks. Do not overfill your roll. While the rice paper will stretch, it is thin and fragile. Keep this in mind when stuffing your rolls. Next, add a couple of mint and basil leaves to the bottom part of the rice paper (the bottom is the last part you'll roll). You want the silhouette of the leaves to show through the rice paper because they're pretty, so including them just under the outer skin of the roll is ideal, but not necessary.

Begin rolling your rice paper from the top over the matchsticks and noodles. Fold each side in, emulating the steps you would take if you were making a burrito. Continue to fold until there is nothing left to fold. How did you do? Any rips or tears? If so, you can add another wet rice paper sheet to the outside of the roll to keep the contents in. Just dunk, let sit, and roll.

Repeat this process until you are out of matchsticks. Depending on the size of your rolls, this recipe produces 14-16 rolls.

Thai Peanut Dipping Sauce

3 tbs. creamy peanut butter

3 tbs. tamari or soy sauce

Juice of 2 limes

Sriracha to taste (I used about 1 tsp.)

1 tbs. Ground flax or sesame seeds

2 tbs. rice vinegar

Combine with a fork or in a blender until smooth.

If desired cut your spring rolls in half diagonally. Dip and enjoy!

Goat Cheese and Bacon Pizza

2010-03-13T10:24:00.000-08:00

What are your favorite pizza toppings? This is the question I asked yesterday to any one who would humor me with an answer. The most popular answer? Goat cheese.

The most memorable pizza I've ever eaten did not contain goat cheese. It was a basic margarita pizza made right in front of us by a skilled pizza chef at Lucali in Brooklyn and cooked in a brick oven. This is no Dominos. This is the real thing. Thin crust. Limited toppings. Simple and beautiful pizza. Truth be told, there are only two items on the menu at Lucali: pizza and calzone. Talk about no frills Italian.

I came up with this recipe last night, and was pleasantly surprised. And don't even think about leaving out the green onions. They add a freshness and crispness that's balanced by the addition of bacon.

Goat Cheese and Bacon Pizza

1 batch of pizza dough (Available in most supermarkets, I recommend an incredibly elastic and classic dough is available at Trader Joe's for 99 cents. You can also buy these at your local pizzeria for about $3. If you have a 2-3 hours to spare, make your own.)
6 slices of bacon
6-8 green onions, chopped, white and light green parts reserved
7-1/4 inch slices low-moisture whole milk mozzarella ~2 inches in diameter each
1 small log of goat cheese
1/4 cup tomato sauce
1 tbs olive oil
Flour for dusting
Cornmeal for dusting

Preheat oven to 450 degrees, and let your dough sit at room temperature for 20 minutes. Precook your bacon in the microwave between sheets of paper towel for 4 minutes. Place on a cutting board, coarsely chop and set aside.

Roll out your dough on a well-floured surface. Roll it as thin as you can without creating gaping holes. Don't worry about making the dough into a perfect circle. As long as it fits onto your baking sheet or pizza stone, you're good to go. Any organic shape will do, and to be quite frank, can add a lot of character to your pizza.

With the backside of a spoon, spread tomato sauce evenly across the dough, leaving about 1/2 inch at the edges.

Add the slices of mozzarella, making sure that none are touching. Crumble goat cheese between and over the slices of mozzarella. The idea here is to ensure that the cheese will melt evenly across your pizza.

Sprinkle with green onions and chopped bacon. Brush the crust with olive oil.

Scatter a small handful of cornmeal onto your baking sheet. Carefully transfer pizza onto your baking sheet.

Bake for 14 minutes or until browned and bubbly. Let sit for 5 minutes before slicing into the pizza. Because I do not own a trivet or cooling rack, I always turn a pyrex dish or a muffin tin face down on the counter, and let the baking sheet rest on top until cooled. Slice and enjoy!

Salmon: To Poach or Not to Poach?

2010-03-11T08:04:00.000-08:00

Have you ever poached fish? Poaching fish is easy and delicious. For a healthy post-run meal in a hurry, try poached salmon with green sauce, couscous, and steamed asparagus. Among the most traditional definitions of a complete meal - a protein, a veggie, and a grain - it doesn't get much more classic than this.

Easy Poached Salmon

A salmon filet (I got mine for 3 dollars at the grocery store)
Water
Garlic salt or some other basic meat/veggie seasoning like Emeril's or Tony's
1 tbs. olive oil
Add olive oil to a shallow pan and place over medium heat. Add about 1 inch of water and bring to a simmer. Add fish, sprinkle with garlic salt or other seasoning as desired. Cover and simmer.

Note: I like to use a clear glass lid so I can monitor the progress of my fish as it cooks.

Your cooking time will vary with the thickness of your filet. I tend to look for filets that are of consistent thickness so my fish cooks evenly, though the higher quality filets or salmon steaks are often irregular in thickness. Typically, it shouldn't take longer than 10 minutes to cook.
For the simplest of entrees, add a squeeze of lemon, and enjoy! For a more decadent option that will delight avocado fans, mix up a quick batch of green sauce and add a few spoon fulls over the fish.
While I don't profess to be a wine expert, a glass of your favorite house wine (Crane Lake's cabernet sauvignon if you are me) is a great addition to this meal. Talk about a week night treat!

Carbohydrates, I love you, but you're weighing me down

2010-03-04T16:59:00.000-08:00

On particularly cold & blustery nights....

When all you want to do is cuddle up in your comfy cozies....

You can take solace in baking.

Baked ziti may not sound all that impressive, but my belly would disagree with you. This baked ziti is simply marvelous. My humble dish-washer and I feasted on this dish two nights in a row (mathematicians take note, this is 4 main-course servings).

Supplemented with a simple salad, this is the carbohydrate-lovers perfect winter weeknight meal. If you are me, a simple salad consists of arugula, fresh cilantro and/or basil, lime juice, olive oil, white balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper to taste.

And on a particularly grueling day, a lone can of your cheapest brew.

Baked Ziti with Three Cheeses

(adapted from the Williams-Sonoma Cookbook: The Essential Recipe Collection for Today's Home Cook)

Olive oil for coating and drizzling

1 c. ricotta

1 egg yolk

1 c. freshly grated asiago or pecorino romano

A generous pinch of ground nutmeg

1/4 c. dried parsley

salt & pepper

1 lb. dried ziti

Your favorite tomato sauce (I used 1.5 28-oz. cans of Trader Joe's pasta sauce)

1/2 lb. mozzarella, cut into cubes

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Coat your baking dishes (I used one rectangular and one square pyrex dish). Bring salted water to boil, and cook your pasta until it is al dente (12-16 minutes).

Combine egg yolk, ricotta, half of the asiago, nutmeg, and parsley in your largest mixing bowl. Toss well. Add the heated tomato sauce, mozzarella, and drained pasta. Toss again.

Transfer mixture to your coated baking dishes. Smooth on top. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle the remaining asiago. Bake, uncovered, for 20 minutes until bubbling and lightly browned. Let the baked ziti rest for 5 minutes before serving. Garnish with fresh basil if desired.

Photos 1 and 2 courtesy of Urban Decay

...and she invited him into her home. His name was Stew.

2010-01-30T14:14:00.000-08:00

When I think of stew, I think of large chunks of beef in a soupy broth, but I've come to realize that stews need not be meat-centric to be flavorful. In fact, I've been making a flurry of stews this past week. My favorite was Tomatican, from none other than the Moosewood Collective's The Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home: Fast and Easy Recipes for Any Day. A Christmas present, this book is my current go-to for a quick and simple meal, one that doesn't require too much clean up or preparation.
A huge fan of soups, stews can stand alone and make for a nice topping for rice, barley, or quinoa. Last week, I made a Chilean stew called Tomatican twice. It goes something like this:

2 c. chopped onions
1 fresh chile, minced, or 1/4 tsp. cayenne
2 tbs. olive oil
2 tsp. ground cumin
2 c. frozen lima beans
3 c. undrained canned tomatoes, or 1-28 oz. can plum tomatoes
2 c. fresh or frozen corn
1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro (I used about 2x as much)
salt to taste

In a heavy nonreactive soup pot or saucepan, saute the onions and chile or cayenne in oil for about 5 minutes, until onion begins to soften. Add cumin and lima beans and saute, stirring, for a couple minutes. Add juice from the tomatoes, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes. Chop the whole tomatoes right in the can. Stir in the tomatoes, corn, and cilantro into the pan. Cover and simmer for about 10 minutes, until the vegetables are tender. Add salt to taste.

I served this over quinoa seasoned with a bit of salt and fresh lime juice, and feta.

The Best Green Sauce Ever

2010-01-13T20:01:00.000-08:00

is very easy to make! especially good on salmon, this sauce jazzes up just about anything with a zing of flavor. add your favorite cous cous and an arugula side salad with oil and balsamic vinegar, a smidge of goat cheese, a sprinkle of salt and pepper, and you've got yourself a luxurious feast.

- 2 avocados

- cumin to taste

- salt to taste

- a good squeeze of lemon juice

- 1 small container of plain non-fat greek yogurt

halve, seed, and scoop your avocados into a medium sized bowl, and mash with a fork. add the yogurt, and lemon juice and stir until smooth. this will take a couple minutes. next, add a good couple pinches of cumin and salt. stir and taste. adjust seasonings. the result should be pale green with golden flecks of cumin throughout.

Homemade Vegetable Soup

2009-08-22T17:54:00.001-07:00

Tonight I made homemade vegetable soup, a variation of a recipe from my mother's family recipe arsenal. While hers included juicy chunks of round cut beef, mine is vegetarian and chock full of veggies. A large pot costs roughly ten New York dollars. You could probably do it for 7 or 8 suburban dollars. Great for family feasts or for a week's worth of dinners for single folk, it's wonderfully supplemented by sourdough toast, but honestly, what isn't?! My father always made cheese toast in our oven toaster to accompany this one-pot wonder. Give it a try.

Homemade Vegetable Soup (vegetarian version)

1 bunch of celery, chopped

1 package of whole carrots, chopped

3-4 medium golden potatoes, skin on, chopped

1 package of frozen peas (about 2 cups)

1 28-ounce can of whole roma tomatoes

1 46-once can of tomato juice

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

olive oil
2 cups of water

1 large stock pot with lid

Once you've chopped all of the vegetables, heat a couple splashes of olive oil in your stock pot, and saute the onions until soft. Add carrots and celery. Stir the vegetables so they are all coated with a bit of the olive oil. Cover and cook over medium heat for 5-10 minutes. Meanwhile, place your chopped potatoes in a microwavable container, and microwave on high for 8 minutes. Add the potatoes & canned tomatoes to the pot. With a spatula, chop the tomatoes into bite size pieces. Add the entire can of tomato juice, the water, the package of peas; give it a stir. Bring to a boil and simmer for 30-45 minutes, longer depending on how soft you like your vegetables. Salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy with caution. It will be hot!

Tonight, I enjoyed my soup with a glass of water with a fresh slice of lime. This, I think, is the ultimate cheap summer luxury.

Good Idea: Grow Plants in a Hanging Shoe Organizer

2009-08-09T07:29:00.001-07:00

If there were one thing I could admit that I regret about living in the city, it's the lack of ample yard space for a garden. Not only would a garden save money, it would be a good excuse to get outside and out of the supermarket. I just hate the thought of petroleum and pesticides in my produce. Don't you?

Here is a terrific idea from Instructables:

A vertical vegetable garden would be perfect for growing leafy greens in a city setting where gardening space is difficult to come by, don't you think? I could envision hanging this outside our kitchen window or another particularly sunny building edifice with window access.

Read the full post for details.

Cleansing Tomato White Bean Soup

2009-08-08T16:59:00.000-07:00

Lately, I've been craving simple meals, full of flavor, and fresh seasonal ingredients.

Too often, meals are complicated by an overabundance of ingredients, prepackaged sauces and seasonings, and over-processed flours, preservatives, etc.

Not this one. This one was perfect and clean. Eating it I felt fresh and renewed. Isn't it amazing how food can change your mood and make you feel completely different from how you felt before, relaxed, better, or uncomfortably worse? For this reason, I want to eat only foods that make me feel clean and alive.

Tonight, I cooked a beautiful soup, adapted from Cucina Nicolina.

White Bean and Tomato Soup

2 large cloves garlic, minced
4 cups spinach, coarsely chopped
1 can crushed tomatoes (or 3 tomatoes, diced, juices reserved)
4 cups vegetable broth or water (I used water with low sodium vegetable bouillon)
2 Tb. dried basil
1 can white beans
salt and pepper to taste

Saute the garlic in olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat for a few minutes. Add the tomatoes, broth or water, dried basil, and beans. Stir well to combine. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Add the spinach, and simmer until wilted. Salt and pepper to taste. Simmer, half-covered, for about 15 minutes. Serve hot.

Serves 4.

Add two slices of good Tuscan bread, and you've got a meal. Perhaps vanilla bean ice cream for desert....

A Treehouse in the Sky

2009-08-05T08:17:00.000-07:00

Wouldn't you love to stay in this treehouse? Would this be a relaxing vacation or would it be more of a hassle? I think it would be rather peaceful and restorative, as long as there was a bit of day hiking. You can rent your own Free Spirit Sphere here.

via Apartment Therapy

my noble beast

2009-07-23T16:52:00.000-07:00

my noble beast isn't quite as talented on the violin as andrew bird nor does he know how to use a looping machine, but he's a pretty special fella anyhow. andrew bird's "noble beast" album is impeccable. if you need further evidence of his talent or if you, like me, had no idea what looping was before hearing of andrew bird, watch this breathtaking performance:

The Best Pie Ever

2009-06-13T11:06:00.000-07:00

....is this rhubarb pie, substituting half of the rhubarb for freshly sliced strawberries. I used William Sonoma's double pie crust recipe (beautifully elastic and soft enough to melt in your mouth), and formed a lattice top glazed with egg white. Add vanilla ice cream and a couple good friends, some white wine, and you've made yourself a little slice of heaven. The perfect Friday night.

sunday distractions

2009-05-17T09:36:00.000-07:00

Good afternoon, my curious folklings....I'm currently listening to Cat Stevens--an old love of mine--and dreaming about ways to organize our new Brooklyn kitchen. I love the idea of having a tea shelf. This one was featured on Design Sponge:

A Poem for Your Palate

2009-05-14T06:47:00.000-07:00

A friend sent this to me this morning. It made me smile.

Blue or Green
by James Galvin

We don't belong to each other.
We belong together.
Some poems
belong together to prove the intentionality of subatomic particles.

Some poems eat with scissors.
Some poems are like kissing a
porcupine.
God, by the way, is disappointed in some of your recent
choices.
Some poems swoop.
When she said my eyes were
definitely blue, I said, How can you see that in the dark?
How can
you not? she said, and that was like some poems.
Some poems are
blinded three times.
Some poems go like death before dishonor.

Some poems go like the time she brought cherries to the movies;
later a heedless picnic in her bed.
Never revered I crumbs so
highly.
Some poems have perfect posture, as if hanging by
filaments from the sky.
Those poems walk like dancers,
noiselessly.
All poems are love poems.
Some poems are better off
dead.
Right now I want something I don't believe in.

'Tis the Season to Eat Fruit

2009-04-26T16:44:00.000-07:00

I ate an entire cantaloupe yesterday.

Today, I bought another one. I move like this often, slipping from one obsession to the next. Lately, it's cantaloupe.

I love how impossible it is to eat cantaloupe half moons from the rind without getting it all over your face, the sticky juice streaming down your cheeks. Beautiful. It makes me feel 5 again. Sticky hands, cheeks and all.

Speaking of being five, these ice pops are a great, easy way to incorporate more fruit into your diet. Now that the winter freeze has subsided, 'tis the season to dive head first into fruitdom... and head to the shore. Plus, everything always tastes better at the beach. I can't wait!

Currently baking these pumpkin muffins from Smitten Kitchen. I'm sure they would be just delightful with my mother's cream cheese icing.

Until next time, my lovelies. I'll be watching Audrey Hepburn movies and dreaming about the perfect Park Slope apartment.

Vanilla is a Beautiful Flower

2009-04-21T10:06:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's true. Vanilla is a beautiful flower.

Ok, I lied. It's not actually a flower, but it is the only edible fruit in the orchid family.

Vanilla beans are truly a labor of love.

It can take up to three years after the vines are planted for the orchid flowers to appear. The fruits, which resemble large oversized green beans, must stay on the vine for nine months in order to acquire their famous flavor and fragrance. Then, the beans must dry in the sun for several weeks before they are ready. Truly amazing!

Recently, I made this fabulous vanilla pudding recipe. It's heavenly. I used vanilla extract instead of vanilla bean paste.

The Enchanted Broccoli Forest

2009-04-20T16:46:00.000-07:00

Photograph by Ay Mujer

Good evening, friends, and welcome to my new little blog, the title of which is inspired by none other than a half-eaten beautiful hot pink cake. It was about 4:27 in the afternoon on a Monday when I encountered such a cake sitting in a partially open white square cardboard box on a coworkers desk. Of course, I opened and wafted. Who wouldn't?!

And in a breath of unmistakable logic, I thought, obviously, I have to blog about this! Look at that beautiful mother of a cake, sitting all alone in it's perfectly square box, smeared with pink icing....

So here I am, dreaming about pink cake. A quiche is in the oven, recipe from none other than Mollie Katzen's The Enchanted Broccoli Forest. There is certainly something wondrous about old cookbooks like these, full of flavor and life.