We can never get a clear shot of his smiles cuz he’s always moving and sticking his hands in his mouth and doing his shy guy flirts.
Cynthia McKinney’s running-mate in 2012.At a loss for provocative food topics for stirring the pot, I’ve been talking about some of the weird choices that I sometimes make as I attempt to feed my wife and myself. Anyone who has cooked with me (RVA FNB?) knows that I often wind up pretty far out on a limb when assembling my list of ingredients. For me, combining flavors that are seemingly at odds is just a matter of hopping a mental barrier into the realm of possibilities. Black pepper and honey, coffee and oatmeal, and now roasted poblanos and brie cheese.
From the get go, this meal wasn’t firing on all cyllanders. I went with the tried and true way to use up leftovers: mash up the proteins with some savory filler and stuff it into bell peppers and bake them. Classic Betty Crocker pseudo cooking from the heartland. This shift to a centrist style must be the political conventions rubbing off on me. Luckily, I can’t resist showing my radical true colors.
Last night’s ancho-flavored cauliflower and zuchinni saute wound up mashed with some steamed tempeh, toasted and crushed cumin and annatto seeds. Mixed with shredded cheddar, it all went into some sweet peppers of mixed color varieties. While it all baked, I had a couple poblanos burning their skins to a crisp on my Rick Bayless pepper roaster. I was hoping to make one of Booby Flay’s spicy crema sauces.
Now, crema is usually some kind of dairy that is whipped until it’s thin and light. Flay’s method is usually to add spicy chilies and that was my goal. However, I couldn’t find any dairy in the fridge. I couldn’t use much half and half, or I’d get in trouble when Karen has her coffee and finds the carton empty. So, I pulled out the only white cheese I could find in the fridge: a half-eaten wedge of brie. That got diced, combined with a splashes of cream and water, diced poblano, and a bit of corn for sweetness.* I heated it all up, pureed it with my immersion blender, and voila: the heaviest crema you ever tasted.
Okay, the corn wasn’t really necessary and probably weighed it down. But the richness of the brie was dynomite with the roasted peppers. As for the stuffed peppers… they didn’t quite get cooked all the way, but the filling was hot and good enough with that sauce on top. On the side, we had some brown rice with corn and tomatoes mixed in.
As Karen and I got caught up on our Dexter episodes on the couch, Jasper was being all fussy and taxing on his primary comforter (mom). I bribed her into watching one more episode by offering to go get some desert from the kitchen. “Ice cream with whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles” was all she wanted.
In the kitchen, I looked for something to put the dish over the top. And there it was, the tail end of a slice of chocolate coffee pie that we’d picked up from Simply Southern Pies at the Farmers’ Market in Forest Hill Park. Having heard that these pies were fantastic, Karen made a bee line for their table when we got the market (and we’re both glad she did). The Chocolate Java Splendor pie is so powerful that we’ve been nibbling on it since Saturday. And on Tuesday night, I put some little slivers of the pie on top of Karen’s ice cream sundae. ** Since I generally prefer ice cream to pie, this juxtapositioning seemed like an appropriate arrangement of desert components.
*salt and pepper to taste
**it seems that I may have used the same unrinsed knife to cut the pie as I did on the poblano peppers, because Karen says the pie was really spicy. Doh!
It’ll be legible once you click it. Go to wordle.net for the low down.
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So, I emptied my little packet of Quaker Oats into a styrofoam cup and then held it under the Diamond Springs cooler’s hot water spigot. Trickle, drip, drip… Silence.
Doh! I need at least another 4 ounces of scalding hot water to make my oatmeal. Then, I look in front of me and notice that I’d just finished pouring myself a cup of hot coffee. The oatmeal was the cinnamon and spice variety. I’ve had flavored coffee along those lines. Why not oatmeal flavored with coffee? I generally like coffee flavored stuff: mocha (coffee/chocolate), coffee spiked rubs for grilled foods, tiramisu, etc.
The verdict: My oatmeal tased like there were one too many flavors going on. Not really disasterous, just a little off putting. The real kicker was the non-dairy creamer. Yup, I poured the coffee straight outta my mug, after I’d already mixed it up (no sugar). If you think you can detect the powdery aftertaste of non-dairy creamer in your coffee, wait til you try it in oatmeal. Blech!
Tonight I took charge of dinner trying to make a variation on a curry dish from the Veganomicon. But, I made several hasty substitutions and wound up looking for something raita-like to redeem my experimental dish.
I know, it’s kinda ironic to reach for a dairy product to rescue a vegan dish, but it’s not like that at all. The Veganimicon recipe was one of the few in my cookbook collection that incorporated swiss chard and I’d just gotten some great looking greens and pearly white stalks from the Byrd House Market. The other two main ingredients were basmati rice and garbanzo beans. I didn’t have either, instead electing to go with brown rice and black eye’d peas. From floral and light to earthy and heavy. Whups! The seasoning, toasty cumin seeds and sweet garam masala (begrudgingly purchased form Penzey’s), couldn’t quite brighten the flavors enough. I needed impactful condiments and garnishes.
Being a big fan of raita’s cooling effects on spicy indian food, I decided to whip up something yogurt based to dollop on top of my Indian pilaf (biryani?). Rather than the usual cilantro, cumin, mint combo in my yogurt, here’s what I did:
(mix it all together and let it sit in the fridge for 10 minutes, adjusting the flavor to make sure that the pepper and the honey are at the forefront)
1 cup yogurt
1 tbsp lime or lemon juice
1 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp garlic powder (or one finely minced clove of garlic)
several cranks of fresh ground black pepper
salt to taste
Even though I had sufficiently made up for my main dish with a kickin’ accoutrement, I wasn’t satisfied. Karen needed something on that plate that would really be a treat, without any disclaimers or excuses. So, I thought about the sauce and imagined what would go best with a sweet and spicy yogurt sauce. How about crispy fried sausage? We’ve probably been over this before, but Karen eats meat and I don’t, but oddly enough SHE has an insatiable appetite for vegetarian sausage, particularly Morningstar Farms. Today, all I had was Gimme Lean brand*, but it turned out great (meat eaters, substitute breakfast tube sausage, if you must).
I broke off bite-sized pieces of the soft fake meat and dropped them into a well oiled pan, turning them as they browned. Near the end of the cooking, I sprinkled the soysage with garam masala (truly a divine fragrance, if you haven’t already had it) and smoked paprika. These little nuggets were perfect with the yogurt sauce all by themselves. I could have skipped the complicated rice and beans and greens. But, I wouldn’t be full and filled with valuable nutrients.
*The Gimme Lean link features a great recipe for Southern Style Sausage Biscuits and Gravy. The first restaurant to offer this version will get my brunch money on a regular basis.
In June, I was pushing to see dogs legalized in Byrd Park, but the issue stalled at City Council, got postponed and now there’s a public meeting. I just got this email from Marty Jewell’s office. If you’ve ever considered walking your dog around the lakes in Byrk Park, you should show up to this meeting and make your voice heard. Personally, I’m not asking for leashless access. I just want the cops to leave me alone as long as I’m cleaning up after my dog.
Here’s the announcement (RSVP may be a good idea):
Hello All:
The Byrd Park Round house has been scheduled Wednesday, August 20, 2008 6:00 P.M. to discuss the Dog leash issue for Byrd Park.
I appreciate your assistance in notifying members of your respective groups who may have interest in this issue.
We apologize for the short notice, but please contact me to confirm your attendance at the number below or email back.
Thank you,
Francine P. Young
Council Liaison
5th Council District
(804) 646-5724
Francine.Young(a)richmondgov.com
It’s hard to find soft drinks that don’t have calorie and carb loaded sugar. Fake sugar is even worse and increasingly hard to locate on the label. Karen was able to find a brand of naturally flavored sparkling water at Kroger. It’s called La Croix. Every time she goes to the store, she brings home a different flavored twelve pack of La Croix cans. This time it was pamplemousse. D’yall know what that is? It’s French for grapefruit, as it turns out. And, it’s freakin delicious. Well, as tasty as a zero calorie sugar-free beverage can be. The lemon flavor is pretty darned good to. Much cheaper than San Pelegrino. Did I mention that the flavor is “all natural.” Seriously, I am not getting paid to tell you this.
Update: Digging a little deeper, it seems that the pamplemousse may actually be bigger and sweeter than a grapefruit. Does anyone know where I can get one? Tan-A, probably. Not sure how I’d feel asking a clerk in any store for a “pamplemousse.”
Tonight we made a guacamole dip that rendered us unable to eat dinner. It was easy to make, nutritious, and delicious. And it satisfied like nobody’s business, thanks to pumpkin seeds.* The satiating quality is a useful attribute for two reasons. Avocados are expensive and it sucks when your guac is gone in a heartbeat. This stuff, will not get eaten too quickly. And if it does, those people who eat it won’t be eating much for the next few hours. That’s the other benefit, fewer chimichangas.
Just recently, I learned to set the DVR to record all of the awesome cooking shows on PBS on Saturday morning. One of those is Rick Bayless’ “Mexico: One Plate at a Time.” So far, my favorite episode is the one where Rick is throwing a “block party” and he invites some PBS diversity over for finger food. Oh, hell yeah. That’s my kinda party. Did yall know that Barack Obama loves Bayless’ cooking? Well, me too. Only, unlike the very ‘presidential’ Obama, I’m quick to point out the cultural appropriation behind Bayless seeing the cuisine of real Mexicans and saying, “Si, se puede.” Yes, we can – make some money off of the tasty techniques of Mexico.
One of the dishes that Bayless prepares is Toasted Pumpkinseed Guacamole and I was a little skeptical when he described it to the camera. He talked about the toasty flavor, compared to his Mango Guacamole, but he didn’t, however, talk about the meal replacement effects of the dip. This dish , together with my whey revelation, will help me reduce my own intake and drop a few pounds, if I can remember to make it a few times a month. He served it along side some really simple tuna escabeche tacos. You can make these together, or you can just bookmark Rick’s recipe list and go to town on his awesome recipes a couple times a week.
If you’re too lazy to go to the link, just make guacamole like you usually would and stir in some pureed toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds).
What do yall think?
*Pumpkin seeds are a superfood. Pumpkin seeds are rich in the amino acids alanin, glycine and glutamic acid, and also contain high amounts of zinc. Enlargement of the prostate affects about half of men over the age of 50 and including a handful of pumpkin seeds may offer some protection against the development of prostate cancer. They contain high quantities of protein, iron and phosphorous and even a tablespoon a day would be a good addition to any healthy diet, particularly for vegans and vegetarians.
Jasper is a chubby baby with little chubby fingers. My fingers have actually been chubby my whole life, so I guess there’s some resemblence there, except, I’m not chubby. Nope. Not chubby. Hmmm-mmm. Just the fingers.
Lately, our baby has been looking a little freaky. When he’s not jamming his whole hand full of fat fingers into his mouth, he’s taking the lazy oral fixation route. He simply sucks on his bottom lip. Perfectly understandable, not having any teeth. Combined with his frequent surprised state makes a pretty funny faced baby.
Holding true to our “nearly everything for Jasper off of Craigslist instead of retail” policy, we got the little guy an exersaucer. He hasn’t really taken to tummy time, or turning over, sitting up, or crawling. Instead, he just wants to stand and jump while swing his arms around.
Here, Jasper is standing in his exersaucer, making his exclamation sounds and smiling at anyone who’ll stop blogging long enough to play with him.
A couple animated gestures from mom or dad and Jasper doubles over with laughter – hiding his face and flirting. And then it’s back to flipping the pages of his “book” and accidentally spinning the crystal ball.
I found her sniffing around my front porch today. She’s very sweet, but she’s got no tags other than a rabbies vaccination thingy from a distant veterinarian. Tried calling that number, but they’re not open until Monday. Anyone wanna dog sit? I don’t. Sorry, but we’ve got our hands full of our own dogs and baby right now.
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