Food Blog:
Cook In.
Eat Out.
Miss Tenacity.
New Mexico.
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Saturday, April 30
Half a World Away....
...and still pretty much all I can think about and do is food related. If you're wondering why the hell I'm not posting, its because I'm up to my eyeballs in Shanghai smog, frantically filling my gullet for 9 days straight and taking photos of (almost) all of it.
I'll be back soon with a multitude of those very photos, but here's a teaser to get ya through the weekend:
Time posted: 05:46 [permalink]
Wednesday, April 20
Heard Today on NPR
In praise of soup:
"...the human spirit can [endure and go on], to produce art and poetry and gardens and soup...."
From a feature about a novel about tractors in the Ukraine. *grin*
Time posted: 08:34 [permalink]
Tuesday, April 19
Guidelines on Food
This is a sign that is posted at a restaurant in New York. I like the spirit of the guidelines, if not the authoritarian and almost war-time forcefulness, but that's just how I am.
Time posted: 07:40 [permalink]
Thursday, April 14
Stop The Extravagance!
I realize that the celebrity chef 'thing' is huge, and that cooking is the new knitting, and that pyramid dinner party schemes are last week's news.... but it seems no trend is immune from pure exploitation.
First, there's the complete makeover of Food Network in the last decade. Then, at the same time a general upward nudge of mid-grade restaurant food is occuring, which can be both good and bad. [Here's why: when a place that can't quite cook a piece of meat or veg exactly right starts having tasting menus and including faux-impressive courses like "Braised Armpit of Swallow with a Bostwela-Tarragon Demiglace and Lumpia Coulis", things can only get ugly. You've got to be able to cook before you can create truly outstanding things that people will happily pay mucho dinero for. There are some places where the quality of the food has inched up slightly, and diners are more educated now so some of the mediocre food won't fool them behind the flowery prose. This is good. Unfortunately, I think the former occurs more often than the latter. That's my beef. But read on, there's more....]
Finally, this week in a local paper, is this advertisement for a class:
"Do you like chicken Caesar salad? Would you like to learn how to make one as yummy as those in restaurants? Join this class tonight at XXXXXXXX. The cost is $35."
And this lovely specimen:
"Cooking 101 -- Today at XXXXXX, the first of a two-part cooking class for those of us who somehow manage to burn salad. Basic cooking skills will be taught from 6:30-9 pm. Learn about all things soupy, saucy, starchy, vegetable-y, and meaty. The cost is $79."
Yes, that's right. Seventy-nine dollars to learn how to not burn salad. Hell, come over to my place and throw me a Ben Franklin and I'll show you how to make a stunning and perfect hard boiled egg - not just "as yummy" as restaurants, no! - far, far better. You'll leave confident in your strut-worthy prowess and feeling peaceful at your zen-like synthesis with the albumin, chalaze and yolk. Call me for details.**
I've been to a few cooking demos and classes, and at each one I was taught some new, amazing, and advanced techniques, fed some great food (usually a whole meal WITH wine), and enjoyed myself for 3 hours. None of the classes cost more than $30. That's my kind of cooking class. I get something, the cook gets something (a chance to try out something they've been thinking about but didn't have the time to really flesh out), and everyone is buzzed and happy.
**Yes, I'm kidding. Please don't call. Unless you really have the Ben Franklin to spare.
Time posted: 22:05 [permalink]
Wednesday, April 13
Eats Fit For an Equine
As per the 1755 Dictionary of the English language, oats are dismissed thusly:
"OATS. n.s. [a_en, Saxon.] A grain, which in England is generally given to
horses, but in Scotland supports the people."
After the oat bran fad of the late 80's (during which it was added to things like cookies, cereals and even meat products, all based on the findings that it was good for your cholesterol numbers), oats reached a critical mass and then started fading off in the morning breakfast landscape. Too bad, as oats are STILL good for you and when prepared with some creativity, damn tasty.
You can take steel cut oats and turn them into a kind of "breakfast risotto", nutty and creamy and just a wee bit chewy.
Or, you can make a more standard porridge, just stirring lots of things together and cooking until creamy. Savory porridges are awesome and just not all that common. The most recognized savory 'porridge' is polenta. Surely you like polenta, especially when Scalo makes it with equal amounts cream and butter.
Our product is going to start out with your choice of porridge-y grains, mixed or not. The instructions should say that they will cook in 5-10 minutes (just be aware of those that say 45 minutes...) Lately I like the 8 Grain mix from Bob's Red Mill, though check those bags before you buy - they are so unfilled with preservatives that I've found critters in at least one batch. One could call an AM non-sweet concoction like this "breakfast sludge", or something a little more user-friendly might be in order:
Perky Pudding (serves 1)
1/4c grain/mix
1 cup water, plus more if needed
1 glug of half & half
dash or 3 of salt
1 hard-boiled egg, finely chopped (or a fresh egg, see below)
Sriracha sauce
Combine the water and grain in a microwaveable bowl or pot and cook for a couple of minutes, stirring as needed. If it thickens too much, add a little more water. When nearly done, add the salt, half&half, and cooked egg. [If using a raw egg, crack it right into the bowl with the hot porridge and continue...] Stir vigorously, heat another minute or so, and taste for seasoning. When serving, season further with the Sriracha sauce.
Using a raw egg will make the end product thicken up a bit more than if you use a HB egg, so just be ready for that. It adds nice flavor and some creaminess to the bowl of perkiness, but if you hate eggs just omit it. I happen to love eggs. And Sriracha sauce.
Time posted: 09:25 [permalink]
Sunday, April 10
Tired Old Cold; Long Live Porridge
Spring has certainly been teasing us here in New Mexico. Yesterday - perfect example: sunny and in the 60's, with a strong breeze. Then today: wet, 40's, snowy in parts, generally wintery weather.
Weather like this influences my eating and cooking decisions. After making a few batches of ice cream in the last month, I am reluctant to eat them. Sure, they taste good, but they're just not appealing at the moment. Sorry, strawberry-basalmic, you'll just have to wait until its a wee bit warmer before I can face you again (by which time it will have gone icy and will probably have to be thrown out anyway, a shame).
Not so strangely, my thoughts have started to turn back to things like thick soups, warm and fiery dishes that leave you sweating, and easy filling starches. Tomorrow I'll have some steel-cut oats for breakfast that I cooked this morning - nutty, fragrant and earthy. Damn I loves me some oatmeal. Perhaps I should move to Alaska where every morning is an excuse to make a giant vat of some kind of hot porridge. In the meantime, I will continue my quest to find a local joint that serves steel cut oatmeal on its breakfast menu. Its the holy grail of winter AM food. Wish me luck.
Time posted: 21:49 [permalink]
Friday, April 8
Paella Panoply
Check out what I had at a friend's house this week:
Jealous? *grin*
Time posted: 17:11 [permalink]
I Got Yer TJ's Scoop Right Here....
Ever since Trader Joe's opened in Santa Fe last year, Albuquerqueans have been left wondering, "what did we do wrong?!" and "Are we next?". Yes, indeed, we are.
Thanks to some crafty web searching, I have finally found the scoop on the actual future TJ's location. Here's the relevant part of the quote:
"Denish & Kline Associates, Inc. has submitted a zone map amendment...[snip]...will allow Jayeff Construction to build a Trader Joe's in the Ventura Place shopping center (at the northwest corner of Ventura and Paseo del Norte)...."
The requested zone permit is a slight change to allow liquor sales at the store, if you were curious about that. So that's the news.... Now, who knows how long the place will take to get built and actually open, but at least the jockeying for parking spots can now begin.
Time posted: 09:48 [permalink]
Wednesday, April 6
Finding Good Coffee
Found a website today that is a growing collection of independent coffee shops, searchable by zip code. It is meant to steer you towards the independents and by doing so, away from the large conglomerate whose logo they sort of imply....
Go to Delocator and check out what's nearby when you need a hit of sweet black caffeine.
Also, please ADD to their site - I don't see a lot of the indies listed yet, so participation is key!
Time posted: 09:18 [permalink]
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CONTACT ME: tenacity -at- gmail.com
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