Tofu Ground Beef

I am not a fan of fake meat. I've tried it, admitted that it wasn't bad, and subsequently never ate it again. For me, there is little point in being vegetarian if you spend your meals pining after that which is forbidden. Rather, I enjoy vegetables and grains and legumes on their terms--as vegetables, grains and legumes.

However, like all things, there are exceptions. One dish that I sorely miss is mabudofu: hearty, slightly spicy, totally delicious and belly warming. Unfortunately, the main ingredient is ground beef. Besides ground beef, there are chunks of tofu, and green onions for garnish. All this served on top of steaming, hot rice. I tried making vegetarian mabudofu once. I opened up the packaged, forewent the ground beef, and just added tofu.

It was a disgusting mess.

Since then, my desire for good, but quick vegetarian mabudofu has only increased. This was a childhood favorite for me and a quick standby for my parents. We'd often have a roll of frozen ground beef in the freezer, and our fridge was always stocked with multiple boxes of tofu. I would also heavily encourage my dad to make it whenever I saw we had ground beef (i.e. almost every week). I was nothing short of obsessed. I probably still am.

So there a few obstacles in my way to obtaining a good recipe for veg mabudofu. One, a ground beef substitute. I could, of course, go the fake meat route. For reasons outlined above, I'd rather not. Although it may be my Plan Z, should all other options fail. Trader Joe's sells a meatless ground beef, though I've yet to try it. However, there is something I have found that sounds perfect: tofu ground beef. Now, this is not a store-bought soy product chemically manipulated into looking like and tasting like ground beef. Rather, it's a seemingly straightforward and simple way to give tofu a ground beef texture. I found it buried in a cookpad recipe. I've yet to try it, but I'm writing about it and posting it so that I'll hopefully get around to trying it out sooner rather than later.

Tofu Ground "Beef"

Ingredients
1 block of firm tofu (Probably the firmer the better, although some experimentation is certainly in order to determine whether extra-firm [sold in the plastic tub filled with water] or super firm [sold vacuum packed without water] would be better. The original recipe recommends the extra-firm sold in water.)
Sesame or neutral oil
Soy sauce

Instructions
1. Wrap the tofu in paper towels, place on microwave-safe plate and microwave for 2 minutes.
2. Drain off the excess moisture completely.
3. Heat up sesame oil (or neutral oil) in a pan over medium heat. Add the tofu, then scramble. Chopsticks probably work best for scrambling them into ground beef sized pieces. Keep scrambling and browning them until it begins to resemble ground beef.
4. Add a teaspoon or so of soy sauce, stir fry quickly (a bigger utensil would probably better at this point, once it's been broken up into pieces), then remove from heat.
5. Serve in place of ground beef in mabudofu.

Crispy Tofu from kitchentreaty.com

I'm dying to try this recipe I just found on kitchentreaty.com when I was looking up flatbread recipes. Sounds like it turns out with a great texture!

Crispy Salt & Pepper Tofu

Ingredients
1 block extra-firm tofu
1/4 cup vegetable or canola oil
1/4 cup corn starch
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper (or to taste)
Additional salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Press tofu to remove excess moisture. To do so, line a plate with several paper towels. Place tofu on paper towels and top with two or three more paper towels. Place three or four more plates on top of the tofu, making sure they're well-balanced. Drain for 20 - 30 minutes, checking occasionally to make sure plates are still balanced (toppling plates = bummer!)

Remove tofu from paper towels. Place on cutting board and cut tofu into squares or rectangles, as desired.

Add the vegetable or canola oil to a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Add the corn starch, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper to a large plate or shallow baking dish. Mix.

Working in batches, dredge the tofu in the corn starch mixture, turning to coat evenly.

Carefully add tofu to hot oil in skillet. Cook over medium-high for about 10 minutes, turning occasionally to brown all sides.

Remove tofu from pan and place on several paper towels, blotting to remove excess oil.

Serve as desired.

Food Swap - Round II

Second edition of the food swap! The haul: some yummy baked goods, like chocolate chip pumpkin bread, brownies (already baked this time), and some cumin-spiced Indian butter cookies. We also got something neither of us have tried before--dried jujubes! They're very chewy, and kind of like a very dry date, but a bit firmer and tougher. The brown airy flesh has a pleasant, slightly fruity, but not overwhelming sweet taste. Also in line with the sweet items was a tub of whipped cinnamon butter--oh my god amazing. I could eat that stuff straight.

We also got some homemade thyme, oregano, garlic croutons made from the most amazing bread ever from BREAD Artisan Bakery in Santa Ana. Also in the bounty is a nice big bag of homemade granola.

Some ready-to-eat items were a cold orzo salad, hummus and salsa. The salsa had oregano in it, which I never understand because it makes it taste like pasta sauce instead of salsa (Trader Joe's has a salsa that they add oregano too as well... Bought that once, never again). So I tossed it all in a pot (we got 3 containers of it!), added a can of tomatoes, some tomato paste and herbs, and made a great pasta sauce for the spaghetti squash I cooked up last night (and had no idea how I was going to eat).

On a side note, I'm not really convinced that spaghetti squash is all that great. It's pretty bland, the texture is meh, and it has a pretty high moisture content, making the resulting dish kind of soggy. I think I'm going to try to put the leftovers into a casserole with a hearty sauce. I much prefer regular pasta over squash, but it was fun to try! Also, the shells of the squash are fascinating and I want to figure out something to do with them. They're almost like a very thin, hard plastic material. Maybe a planter for bromeliads?

Back to the bounty: peach salsa (Jim wanted this--I'm not a huge fan of peach salsa), salsa verde (delicious!), prickly pear jam (wasn't able to try it but sounds intriguing), and nut "chorizo!" Very excited about the salsa verde and the chorizo for breakfast this week. We also just coincidentally made some pico de gallo on Saturday, which will be great with all of that too.

I've also tasted just about the best mustard I have ever had in my entire life. It's the Oktoberfest beer mustard in the picture. We got 2 jars of it because it's soooo good. We got a couple of pretzel rolls that they sell at TJ's ($.99 each!) and just dipped chunks of bread into the mustard. Amazing. We also got another jar of mustard that was only so-so; it had a really spicy kick at first and then it mellowed out and had an almost sweet aftertaste. I'm going to let it mellow out some more in the fridge for awhile; it must have been freshly made.

From the same woman that made the beer mustard came infused kosher salt: sriracha and pinot noir. The sriracha salt is so good! We dipped some of the pretzel rolls in the sriracha salt with the mustard and I swear you couldn't tell the difference between that and a real pretzel.

On the non-edible (but still delicious-sounding) side, I got a bar of cucumber-avocado soap and a small jar of coffee facial scrub. Actually, the facial scrub is edible, although it probably doesn't taste very good.

And finally, a bottle of bouquet garni vinegar that I'm not really sure what to do with but am excited to have! All in all, a very successful swap. However, I did feel like at the last swap, there was a better selection or at least some more exciting items. At this one, there were only a few items that I really, really wanted. The rest of them were otherwise fairly meh. Although, maybe that serves as a good reminder to bring good stuff. The pomegranates were, surprisingly not as popular as we thought they'd be, although that may have been due to the fact that someone else had also brought pomegranates (and pomegranate wine, and pomegranate arils...). What WAS popular (and surprisingly so) were the green apples from Jim's dad's backyard! I think there were a couple factors that helped the apples: (1) telling people that they were sweet green apples, as opposed to tart and (2) offering samples to prove our point. We ran out of apples by the end, except for the few we wanted to save for ourselves. We had probably 6 small pomegranates and 4 large (which we never set out anyway) left over by the end. My 3 jars of pumpkin spice syrup I easily traded away, although I think it was better that I didn't bring a whole bunch of jars. They weren't quite as popular as I thought they would be, though people still seemed excited about them. All in all, a lovely day :)

Pol Roti (Sri Lankan coconut flatbread)

Here is a lovely, crispy-outside, soft-and-chewy-inside pol roti recipe. I could eat these every day and never get sick of them. These are thicker than chapati, but not as thick as naan and less fluffy. Definitely more dense and chewy than naan, but in a good, hearty way. So easy to make and so delicious. 

Pol Roti
Yields approximately 8 rotis

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat atta flour (or regular whole wheat flour)

1 cup unsweetened, shredded coconut (fresh is best but you can also use frozen fresh or dried)

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon oil/ghee

Lukewarm water, less than 2 cups

Instructions

If using dry coconut, soak it in a small amount of lukewarm water, just enough to rehydrate it. Let soak about 5 minutes. If using frozen coconut, defrost until soft. 

Sift together the two flours and salt. Work the ghee into the flour. Add the coconut; mix. Add the water a little bit at a time, mixing each time after adding water. Go slowly. You don't want the dough to be too wet or shaggy. It should be a solid ball that doesn't stick to your hands much. 

On a floured surface, divide dough into eight or so small balls, about golf ball sized. Heat skillet over medium heat. If you're not using a non-stick pan (e.g. cast iron or stainless steel), add a small amount of oil to the pan. If you're using a non-stick, oil isn't necessary. 

Flatten a ball of dough to about 1/4 in or 1/2 cm thickness. You can flour or wet your hands if the dough is sticking. Place flattened dough on the skillet. Let cook for a few minutes, then flip. Cook on both sides, flipping occasionally. Cook until both sides are golden brown, with a couple of dark spots; about 5-7 minutes total.

Serve with parippu or your favorite curry.

Parippu Hodi - Sri Lankan dal

I've been thinking about Sri Lanka lately. I think part of it has to do with reminiscing this past weekend about my time spent studying abroad there, telling stories about my host family and my little host sister, or nangi. My host family was really fond of this white bread that you could find at any corner store. It had a tough, thick crust and a soft, white inside. Most oddly, it was very tall and narrow, meaning you got about as much of the soft, white inside as you did of the crust. 

Tall and skinny pieces of Sri Lankan bread.

My favorite part was the crust. It was tough, so it soaked up all the flavors of the soupy curries most excellently, and softened without becoming too soggy. My nangi, on the other hand, loved the soft, inner white part. The time I traded the insides of my bread for her crust, she was incredulous. "Aki (older sister), are you sure??" Even my host mother, Ami, seemed skeptical that I actually wanted the crust. 

Dushyanti, my nangi. Self-portrait. 

But as much as my host family loved that bread, my favorite by far was the pol roti, or coconut flat bread. My new comfort food after coming back from Sri Lanka (once I taught myself how to make it in the States) was parippu hodi and pol roti. This was one of my favorite breakfasts in Sri Lanka. Simple, nourishing, and delicious. 

Parippu hodi, with a curry leaf on top.

I was craving that simple, nourishing food today. Rich, coconutty, curried lentils. Crisp on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside pol roti. This parippu recipe might seem a little involved. If you want to skip the tempering step, you can just add all the spices at the beginning and cook them all together with the lentils. The tempering, though, just adds a different flavor, and you should try it if you can.

Parippu Hodi
Serves 2-3.

Ingredients

1 cup red split lentils, washed and picked over for any stones

4-6 tbsp ghee/coconut oil/mustard oil

1 white or yellow onion, diced, divided in half

8 cloves of garlic, roughly minced, divided in half

2 tsp ground turmeric

3 tsp curry powder

10-12 curry leaves

1 cinnamon stick (~3 in.), lightly smashed into large pieces under a knife

1 can coconut milk (14 oz)

1 1/2 cup room temp water
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp black mustard seeds
1/2 tsp ground coriander

Instructions for the curry
Heat ghee/coconut oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add half of the diced onion, half of the minced garlic cloves (4 cloves), and salt to taste; stir for about 30 seconds or until fragrant. 

Add 2 tsp turmeric, 3 tsp curry powder, 5-6 curry leaves and the smashed cinnamon stick. Stir for 1-2 minutes. 

Stir in 1 cup lentils for 2-3 minutes, then add 1 1/2 cup room temperature water. Bring to a boil, then turn down to a low simmer. 

Add the coconut milk, and bring to a low simmer again. Let simmer for about 20-30 minutes until lentils are falling apart and dhal has thickened. While simmering, make the temper. If the parippu finishes before you finish the temper, turn down to the lowest heat and leave on the stove. 

Instructions for tempering
In a dry pan over medium low heat, toast the 1 tsp cumin seeds for 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Set aside. 

Heat ghee/coconut oil/mustard oil in the pan on med-low heat. Add 2 tsp mustard seeds. When they begin to pop, add the other half of the diced onion, the rest of the garlic (4 cloves) and salt to taste. Stir until fragrant (about 30 seconds), then add the 1/2 tsp coriander and the rest of the curry leaves (5-6). Add a few chili flakes if you like it spicy. Stir on heat for 2-5 minutes. 

Final steps
Once the temper is finished, stir it into the thickened dhal. Serve with pol roti (Sri Lankan coconut flatbread), naan or rice.

Vegetarian soft foods

Some more ideas about what to eat while I'm on this baby food diet.

Creamy polenta - http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/creamy_polenta/

Avgolemono - http://greekvegetarian.blogspot.com/2013/08/avgolemono-soup-greek-egg-and-lemon-soup.html

Rajgara ni Raab - http://www.7spice.net/drink-beverages/rajgara-rajgira-ni-raab-recipe-amaranth-malt-recipe/

Moong Osaman - http://www.tarladalal.com/Moong-Osaman-(-Eat-Well-Stay-Well-Recipes-)-33481r

Creamy potato and leek soup

Missing front tooth.

Braces.

What am I, like twelve?

My tongue is rubbed absolutely raw on one side from the metal bracket on my molar. This means that even swallowing is painful, since my tongue does this inadvertent bobbing motion whenever I swallow. I imagine everyone's tongue does it, you just don't notice it until you start bleeding because of it. Both sides of molars are still sore from the spacers they put in some three weeks back, so chewing is pretty much out. Suffice to say, I'm on a soup binge this week. And probably next week.

I've always wanted to make potato and leek soup. I love the simplicity and the heartiness of it. Potatoes and leeks! So much flavor from two ingredients.

This is a recipe I lifted (almost) directly from my newly discovered How to Cook Everything Vegetarian by Mark Bittman. It's everything I've dreamed of and more. Just like this potato and leek soup recipe.

Creamy Potato and Leek Soup

Serves 4

Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
3 medium potatoes, any type, peeled and cut into small cubes (the smaller, the quicker this'll be ready)
2-3 leeks, white and light green parts only, well washed and sliced into thin rings (Trader Joe's package of 2 leeks are perfect for this)
salt and black pepper
1 tsp white pepper (optional, but great if you have it)
4 cups vegetable stock, warm
1/2 to 1 cup of cream, sour cream or yogurt
chives, for garnish (or parsley, basil, chervil, etc)

Instructions
Heat the butter in a large, deep pot over medium heat. When the butter is melted, add the leeks and potatoes. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper (and white pepper if using) and stir, cooking for 2-3 minutes.

Add the warm vegetable stock and cook until the potatoes and leeks are very tender, about 20 minutes.

Remove from heat. Using an immersion blender or regular blender in batches, blend the soup until thoroughly pureed. Stir in the cream/sour cream/yogurt. If you're using yogurt, don't let it boil. Add more salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with minced chives.

Variations
If you want vichyssoise, cool the soup completely and garnish with chives just before serving.

Vegan vichyssoise: Use oil instead of butter. After you've pureed the soup, let the soup cool a bit, then stir in coarsely chopped ripe flesh of 1-2 avocadoes instead of the cream. Chill thoroughly before garnishing.

Cook about 1 cup of shredded carrots or cabbage along with potatoes and leeks. Increase stock proportionately so the soup doesn't become too thick.

Grate a little parmesan over the finished soup.

Add another vegetable in place of a portion of the potatoes (Bittman recommends asparagus or peas).

Chapathi

Chapathi
Yields about 15 chapathi

Ingredients
2 cups durum atta flour (or whole wheat)
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup warm milk (or water, but milk will result in softer chapathi)
2 tbsp ghee/coconut oil/melted butter/other neutral oil

Instructions
In a large bowl (a shallow and wide pan is good too), add the flour and salt.

Add about half of the milk, then knead. Add milk as needed until dough is sticky.

Add the 2 tbsp of ghee and knead until the dough is smooth and not sticky. Your hands should have barely any flour on them at this point.

Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a clean surface/cutting board (not floured). Knead more until dough is uniform and smooth, not sticky or shaggy. The longer you knead, the softer the chapathi will be.

Return to the bowl, cover and let rest for 10-15 minutes.

Break dough into golf ball sized balls, rolling with your hands until balls are smooth and no cracks are visible.

Set up a wide shallow bowl or flat plate with a bit of flour. Also, heat a pan over medium heat with 1/2 tsp ghee.

Roll a single ball lightly in the flour. Place on a clean surface (unfloured) and press it down into a disc with your hands. Once it's flattened down a bit, place it in the flour again, flipping it to get flour on both sides.

Then roll it out with a rolling pin. It should take about 2 rolls each way (up down, up down then side to side, side to side). They should be fairly thin, about the thickness of a tortilla.

In the heated-up pan shake the ghee around the pan to distribute it, then place the rolled out chapathi in the pan.

The chapathi should start to puff up and inflate, with air bubbles forming inside. After about 15-30 seconds, flip the chapathi. Using a blunt spatula, gently press down on the edges of the chapthi, encouraging more air bubbles to form. After another 15-30 seconds, remove from heat and let cool, or eat hot.

Notes
* I've found these to always taste better as leftovers, rather than fresh. I'll typically make a large batch, let them cool, then freeze them. This can be done easily by stacking the chapathi and placing a square of parchment paper in between each one so they won't stick when you want to heat up just one or two. Put the stack into a freezer ziploc and heat up on the stove or in the toaster.

Super fluffy, moist and yummy (with just a little bit of crispy) whole wheat pancakes

Ingredients
2 cups buttermilk or 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar + room temperature milk to the 2 cup line
2 eggs
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup canola oil
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 tbsp baking powder
scant 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Instructions
If using apple cider vinegar + milk, begin by bringing milk to room temp (microwave just barely). Add apple cider vinegar, and let sit a few minutes, or until curds begin to form.

Beat eggs until uniform. Mix in canola oil, buttermilk and vanilla until evenly combined, then add sugar and mix.

Sift together dry ingredients. Also, heat up a pan over medium heat and add some oil/butter. While the pan is heating, add all the dry ingredients to the wet ones and stir until just barely mixed, leaving lumps of batter. Don't overmix or let the mixed batter sit for very long, otherwise the pancakes will be flat and gummy. Depending on how you did with the milk and vinegar, the batter will probably expand significantly.

Ladle batter onto hot, oiled or non-stick pan over medium/med-low heat. Thicker pancakes are better, but not too thick! Fill the pan so the batter is not too thin at the edges. When bubbles form, flip and cook until both sides are golden brown. Serve immediately. These are delicious enough to be eaten plain, or you can lightly butter them, or eat with jam.

Or, freeze and reheat in the toaster.

Roasted Red Bell Pepper Hummus

Notes
*I found this to be an excessive amount of oil and tahini. Next time, I would probably use 2 tbsp of tahini and maybe 1 tbsp of olive oil. I had to add a lot more lemon juice (and even lime since I ran out of lemon juice, which worked out just fine) to balance out the richness of the oil and tahini.
*I also like a bit more garlic, so I think I actually used 3-4 cloves, but I would probably use up to 6 or 7.
*The red bell pepper component definitely needs some more experimenting. I didn't think there was a strong enough red bell pepper taste, even though I added about 2 tsp of smoked paprika too.You can make this recipe exactly as is without the red bell peppers if desired.

Ingredients

1 jar of roasted red bell peppers (e.g. from Trader Joe's)

3 tablespoons lemon juice (1 to 2 lemons)

1/4 cup water

6 tablespoons tahini

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

14 ounces chickpeas, rinsed and drained (1 can)

1 garlic clove (minced or pressed through garlic press 1/2 teaspoon)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 pinch cayenne pepper

Instructions

Mix lemon juice and water in small bowl.

Whisk together tahini and olive oil in another small bowl.

Drain red bell peppers, saving liquid for another purpose (e.g. vegetable stock!). Blend red bell peppers until liquified. Pour out and set aside. 

Process chickpeas, garlic, salt, cumin and cayenne in blender until chickpeas are crumbled and ground up. Keep the blender running while adding the lemon/water mixture. Scrape down the sides and blend until incorporated. 

Add blended red bell peppers from earlier, blend until incorporated.

Scrape down sides, and then with blender running, slowly add the oil/tahini mixture. Process until smooth and creamy. 

Place in container and drizzle olive oil on top, ensuring an even coat on top of hummus. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes, although overnight is best to let the flavors meld together. 

Original hummus recipe from Cooks Illustrated

Finesse

I cry easily.

In fact, I probably cry at least once a week. Sometimes I cry out of pain or anger or sadness, but more often than not I may be crying out of happiness or relief. But I never thought I'd cry over a cookbook.

Michael Ruhlman proved me wrong. I was reading the first section of his book The Elements of Cooking, which is broken up into eight "notes on cooking." The eighth note was on finesse, which he explains using a quote from Lulu Peyraud: "Finesse is the opposite of coarseness or crudeness. It is a light touch as opposed to heavy-handedness. It is spirituality, subtlety, and intelligence, from which comes an aptitude for knowledge and deeper understanding. It is also a matter of sensibility, of perceptiveness combined with a great deal of delicacy in regard to emotions and feelings." While Ruhlman highlights finesse being sense-based, like being able to tell the difference between a "sanded, oil-rubbed piece of cherrywood versus a split log," Peyraud struck me with her association of finesse with spirituality, perceptiveness and emotions. That feels good and right to me. It reminds me of the conversation of quality that Robert Pirsig engages in his book Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.

Finesse, in fact, makes me think of quality. Finesse, I think, must be present for quality to be present. Ruhlman hits on this point when he describes the practices of finesse as resulting in "knowledge for the person putting it to use. The exertions required for finesse are not expended but rather transformed; struggling hard to achieve finesse does not leave us spent and empty, it fills us." My eyes filled with tears as I read that sentence.

That sentence speaks so much to my struggle right now: my struggle with my job, in which I am paid decently to work for a non-profit but to do administrative work that I find unfulfilling and unsatisfying. My work leaves me feeling empty, not full. My work leaves me feeling exhausted, not invigorated. My work leaves me feeling drained and soulless. I do not take pride in my work. I do not practice finesse, I do not produce quality. I do not care about the details.

This is not like me. I am someone who lives in the details, especially in the details that make all the difference. I am someone who has a deep, deep desire to create and produce quality with my hands, though I struggle to express it. I find some solace in fixing computers, though it's not as direct as I would like. I find more solace in working on my car, though my knowledge is very shallow and limited. I find satisfaction in drawing, though I do it so very rarely and am very unpracticed at it, so it is not at fulfilling as it could be. I wish I could express it through woodworking. I express it in some ways in cooking, though I feel my attempts to be amateurish. Perhaps this is what Rumi meant when he said to "let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love."

What do I love? I find this very odd (strange, yes) satisfaction that I get from organizing things, and creating space where before there was none. I did it today at the office, getting rid of donations, reorganizing, moving things, packing things differently. How much impact will it have? Not much, really. I could have stopped at just getting rid of the donations, but I kept going because I found it soothing and comforting and quite satisfactory and perhaps the most fulfilling thing I had accomplished all week. but I don't know that I could make a career out of that.

"The surgeon who ensures that his or her stitches, in repairing a baby's heart, are spaced perfectly uniformly so that the stress on the tissues is uniform, is expressing a degree of finesse that has life or death implications. Finesse should not be considered a flourish, an extra final step, but rather something fundamental in our actions. . . A builder of wooden boats is a different creature from one who builds fiberglass boats. A surgeon for whom finesse is second nature understands the human body and healing and decay with more depth and clarity than the surgeon who has no sense of finesse. The cook who cares as much about peeling asparagus as he does about making a beautiful finished plate will have a greater understanding of, and appreciation for, the work of the professional kitchen and what it means to serve people than the cook who is only focused on the end result."

Slow Cooker Recipe Ideas

I got my tiny little 1.5 quart slow cooker back from Lisa. I've already used it once, and it turned out okay, but I'd really like to utilize it more. I bet it's a great way to spend a bit less time in the kitchen, or at least multitask if I am in the kitchen.

Some ideas for future exploration...

Tangy black bean soup - http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2012/11/tangy-black-bean-soup-slow-cooker-recipe.html

Chinese BBQ tofu and vegetables - http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2006/10/chinese-barbecued-tofu-and-vegetables.html

Mushroom stroganoff - http://www.amuse-your-bouche.com/slow-cooker-mushroom-stroganoff/

Lemon poppy seed bread - http://www.bhg.com/recipe/lemon-poppy-seed-bread/

How to cook beans in a slow cooker - http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-cook-beans-in-the-slow-cooker-74529

Mulled cider - http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/drinks/mulled-cider-in-a-crockpot/

Kabocha - http://southsidekitchencollective.com/2011/10/10/slow-cooker-winter-squash-soup-with-curry-and-coconut-milk/ for slow cooker times and for kabocha no nimono: 200 cc water (~7 oz), with 2 tbsp each of shoyu, sake, and mirin for 1/4 of a large kabocha or 1/2 of a small kabocha (http://cookpad.com/recipe/1448171 -- I tried it with the sugar that's listed in the recipe, it was way too sweet. I think the mirin makes it sweet enough. ) Also want to try this ratio instead, which also uses dashi instead of water: http://kanakoskitchen.com/2011/01/24/kabocha-nimono/

Cornbread! o.O

Carmelized onions - http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-caramelize-onions-in-the-slow-cooker-cooking-lessons-from-the-kitchn-193413

4-5 onions, halved and then finely sliced
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbsp oil/melted butter

Place all ingredients in a slow cooker, and mix well. Cook on low for 10 hours.

Cashew and Cauliflower Curry with Homemade Paneer

I went on a library book spree recently. I finally got some library cards for Orange County. Yes, cards, plural. Just two though. It's rather odd but Santa Ana's library is not a part of the Orange County Public Libraries, so I had to get a separate card.

It's been awhile since I've been in a library, sadly. I thoroughly enjoyed visiting the Mesa Verde branch. It's nothing fancy to look at, inside or out, but it feels just like a library should. It has this awesome little upstairs alcove in the middle of the library that looks down on the rest of the library. It's also slightly warmer up there, lending it all a very cozy feeling. I checked out multiple cookbooks, which is a wonderful alternative to subscribing to magazines (of which I will only use a few recipes) or buying cookbooks, I also got a couple of "fundamentals" cookbooks: How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman and The Elements of Cooking by Michael Ruhlman. I also discovered a cookbook by Lukas Volger, whom I had come across one day when I was food-blog crawling. The below recipes are adapted straight from his book; in fact they're almost exactly identical to his, I just made a few changes based on what I had on hand.

Making homemade paneer for the first time was great! Cheesemaking always sounded like some difficult and complicated thing, but it's surprisingly easy (although I'm sure it can be difficult and complicated in the case of some cheeses).

When I told my coworkers that I made my own cheese, and then they subsequently found out I also make my own vegetable broth and have saved food scraps for composting, they called me "domesticated" and "organic." I found that amusing, as I consider myself neither, just practical, frugal and adverse to waste.


Cashew and Cauliflower Curry with Homemade Paneer
Serves 4

Update: After eating this curry for a week, I got a bit sick of it. It ends up being too thick for my liking--I prefer a more soupy curry than stew-y curry. A leftover frozen portion was greatly improved by mixing with another leftover frozen portion of paripu hodi (lentil curry) Some recommendations, then: add a 1/2 to 1 can of coconut milk in step 3, along with the broth. Don't simmer all the liquid away in step 4, but simmer until it is the consistency you like. Don't bring to a boil otherwise you'll curdle the coconut milk.

Honestly, this dish is best served alongside others, not as the main course. Eat it Sri Lankan style, with at least 3-4 other curries to keep it company on your plate. My ami (Sri Lankan host mother) was always apologetic when she couldn't put more than 3 curries on the table, which was funny because I would have been happy eating paripu hodi with pol roti for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Ingredients
2 medium white potatoes (8 oz, 230 g)
1 small cauliflower (1 lb, 450 g)
3 tbsp coconut oil (or neutral oil)
2 tsp curry powder
2 tsp black mustard seeds (optional)
5-10 curry leaves (optional)
1 bay leaf
1 large onion, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp grated fresh ginger
1.5 tsp turmeric
1/2 cup water, broth or whey
1.5 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp salt
4 tbsp plain, unsweetened yogurt
1/2 cup roasted, unsalted cashews
rice, for serving
paneer (Optional, but you can easily make paneer alongside this recipe without taking too much extra time if you have the ingredients. This is not really a paneer curry, but who doesn't like cheese!)
8 cups of milk (2% or whole)
2-4 tbsp lemon juice
cheesecloth, large mixing bowl (heat-resistant, preferably metal or glass), 2 large glass jars for leftover whey


Instructions
(P) Bring the 8 cups of milk to a boil. While waiting for it to boil, line the large mixing bowl with cheesecloth, and then proceed with prepping the vegetables for the curry.

1. Peel the potatoes (save peels for scrappy vegetable stock) and then cut into 1/4 inch cubes. Break cauliflower into small florets. Set aside potatoes and cauliflower (same bowl is ok). Mince the onion.

(P) As soon as the milk boils, remove from heat, and stir in 2 tbsp lemon juice. The curds should begin separating from the whey within a couple minutes. If not, add up to 2 more tbsp of lemon juice. Set aside while it separates and cools. 

2. Heat the 3 tbsp of oil in a large, wide pot over medium heat. Add onion, 2 tsp curry powder, 1 bay leaf and (if using) 2 tsp mustard seeds and 5-10 curry leaves. Stir every now and then to keep from burning, but cook about 10-12 minutes until onions are deeply colored, almost burned.

(P) Pour the curds and whey into the large bowl lined with the cheesecloth. Pull the cheesecloth out of the liquid, squeezing (if it's not too hot) any excess liquid from the curds. Situate the cheesecloth somewhere so it can drip any excess liquid freely (e.g. place in a sieve that's over a bowl/measuring cup, or colander over a bowl--just make sure the cheesecloth isn't sitting in the liquid as it collects). Pour the liquid whey into the glass jars and set aside to cool. 

3. Add the 3 cloves garlic and 2 tsp grated ginger, saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add cauliflower and potatoes, gently stirring just a few times to coat in the yellow spices. Add 1.5 tsp of turmeric and 1/2 cup of liquid (water, whey, broth). Cover and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.

(P) Squeeze any more excess liquid from the curds, then shape curds (still in the cheesecloth) into a flat rectangle. Place on a clean, dry, flat surface (like a large cutting board), then place another cutting board on top and weigh it down with a few heavy items (e.g. cans, or fill the pot you used to boil the milk with water and place on top--good for soaking any dirty dishes thus far!)

4. Uncover the pot and let the liquid reduce until almost gone, 1-2 minutes. Test the cauliflower and potatoes for doneness; if necessary, add a little more liquid and cook longer.

5. Once the potatoes and cauliflower are tender, remove from heat and add the 1.5 tsp garam masala, 1/2 tsp salt, 4 tbsp yogurt and 1/2 cup of cashews. Stir gently until incorporated.

(P) Remove paneer from the cheesecloth. Cut into 1 inch cubes, then pan fry in ghee for a nice, crispy exterior. Add to top of curry and serve with rice or chapati. 


Notes
* If you want to take the extra time to use whole spices instead of curry powder: Heat oil, then add 8 black peppercorns, 5 whole cloves, 3 smashed cardamom pods, 1 smashed cinnamon stick, 1 bay leaf, 5-10 curry leaves, 1 dried chile pepper (or chili flakes, to taste), and let sizzle until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Then add 2 tsp cumin seeds and 2 tsp black mustard seeds, let sizzle about 10 seconds, then add the onion. Continue with directions in step 2.

* Only fry the paneer you're going to eat. Freeze any unfried paneer, then fry right before you eat. Paneer will also keep for a few days in the refrigerator, stored in water (change water daily)

* The liquid whey leftover from the paneer is acidic whey. It can be used instead of water to make a rich vegetable broth or as a base instead of water in a soup. It can be added to soaking water for pulses or as a cooking liquid or pasta, rice, etc. Add it or use in place of other liquids in smoothies or shakes. Use it in place of water/milk in baked goods. Use it instead of milk for bechamel. It cannot be used to make ricotta or other whey-cheese because the milk was boiled before the acid was added. 


Credit: Recipe for curry and paneer adapted from Vegetarian Entrees That Won't Leave You Hungry by Lukas Volger (p. 104-105, 2011). 

Mini Lemon Poppy Scones

In my desperation to find something, anything, to bring to the food swap on Saturday, I googled "what to bring to a food swap." It yielded some interesting results; not all practical or very good either. However, I did discover this recipe for lemon poppy scones, which reminded me of a small bag of poppy seeds that I have had for probably over a year (and which made the move with me when I moved out of my old apartment). I also love the combination of lemon and poppy seeds. I did end up bringing these to the food swap, and they were a relative hit--at least I didn't have to resort to giving them away at the end, like I did with my plain buttered popcorn.

I keep on trying to reassure myself about the popcorn failure. James doesn't think it was a failure; he said people liked it (which was true, to some extent, I suppose, as people did put their names down for it). But it was fairly clear that it wasn't terribly popular. But failures are there to teach you a lesson, right? One, popcorn is not a popular food swap item. Two, popcorn must be crunchy for it to be good. I knew this already, but I have no idea why the popcorn turned out not very crunchy. Three, lemon poppy scones are a better item to bring to a food swap than popcorn. Four, cinnamon and sugar are more popular than plain buttered popcorn. Five, lemon poppy scones are still more popular than cinnamon-sugar popcorn, even if you call it "churro popcorn." Six, people are food swaps are very generous, nice people and will trade you for your food even if it is subpar and worth much less than what they are giving you. Seven, better items to bring to a food swap are items that you consume in small quantities (like vinegar?), so that you can make smaller quantities and give away smaller quantities, while still maintaining a certain perception of value. Eight, baked goods, though common, are still popular. Nine, food swaps are a great way to build up a collection of canning jars. I could probably think of a tenth thing, but I'll be rebellious and stop at nine.

Mini Lemon Poppy Scones
Yield: Makes 8

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour
4 tablespoons white sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch salt
1/3 cup unsalted butter
*2/3 cup buttermilk
1 egg
1 organic lemon, zested and juiced
1/2 lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon poppy seeds, divided
*4 tablespoons caster (superfine) sugar


Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. 

In large mixing bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir until blended. Cut butter into small sections. Add to dry mix. Knead until pea-sized pieces form, about 2 minutes.

In separate bowl, combine buttermilk with egg and stir, about 1 minute. Pour onto dry ingredients. Fold with fork until dough forms, about 2 minutes.

Add poppy seeds, lemon zest and juice. Stir until blended, about 1 minute.

Drop heaping spoonfuls of batter onto baking sheet lined with parchment paper. For mini scones, you should have about 12. For regular scones, you should have about 8. Bake on center rack of oven for 12 to 15 minutes, until golden brown.

Meanwhile, combine juice from 1/2 lemon and caster sugar in small bowl. Stir until sugar is completely dissolved. Remove scones from oven. Brush glaze over scones and sprinkle with poppy seeds.

Notes

* Buttermilk substitute: 2/3 cup milk (at least 2% or whole, not skim) and scant 1 tbsp lemon juice/white vinegar (typical ratio is 1 cup milk to 1 tbsp acid). Mix and let stand for at least 10 minutes or until you see small curds forming.

* Caster sugar substitute: Briefly grind regular white sugar in a coffee/spice grinder. You can grind more than you need and put any extra straight back into the regular sugar.

* For a cinnamon-roll-type glaze/icing, start with 1/4 cup of powdered sugar, and add freshly squeezed lemon juice, 1/2 tsp at a time, mixing well with a fork each time, until icing reaches desired consistency. Mix in 1 tsp lemon zest (if you have it).You really need a scant amount of liquid to make this into an icing, so don't add too much at the beginning, like I did, otherwise you'll have to add more sugar and end up with way more icing than you need.

Original mini lemon poppy scone recipe from mnn.com

Week 1 - The food swap

First week of my $20 a week grocery budget, so far so good!

Monday - Treated to lunch by Janet. Saved leftovers for lunch later in the week.

Tuesday - Lunch was leftovers from my dinner-break-fast on Sunday: chewy, texture-full brown rice topped with roasted fridge veggies (julienned carrots, on-their-way-out broccoli and red bell pepper, all tossed in sesame oil and white pepper). Simple and delicious. Went out to dinner at a new (for us) place called Genie Den with James since we didn't see each other this past weekend; it was amazing! Saved the leftover falafel and pita.

Wednesday - Had leftover falafel for lunch (note to self: learn how to make Genie Den's tahini sauce). Cooked for dinner! Garlic and sundried tomatoes lightly sauteed in olive oil in butter to toss whole wheat spaghetti with, topped with steamed broccoli, diced ripe tomatoes and freshly picked basil chiffonade. Did double duty while cooking the spaghetti and steamed the broccoli on top of it! Still need to work on not using as many pots and pans and dishes. Made enough for leftovers, one full lunch, and probably another meal too. Have two lunch boxes of leftovers ready to go for the week, and we have a staff meeting this Friday! (Free lunch :) Food swap this Saturday, trying to think of something cheap but "exotic" to bring.

Thursday - Lunch was leftovers from Monday's lunch. Probably should have eaten it earlier in the week. Dinner was leftovers from Wednesday dinner, the spaghetti.

Friday - Lunch was from the staff meeting, have more than enough leftovers for dinner. Yay :) Slightly apprehensive because James is coming over this weekend. I don't know how my fridge and pantry will survive -_-

Saturday - Food swap day!! Spent all morning baking mini lemon poppy scones and popping popcorn. Why I chose the most labor intensive items to bring is beyond me. Anyway, was still able to bring back: peach cobbler, tomatillo salsa, strawberry jam, sweet and spicy habanero jelly, oranges, pb&j cookies, wild rice mix, banana bread, croutons, granola, homemade soaps, brownie mix, and spicy pineapple marinade. Awesome haul :)

The food swap bounty: all in exchange for 12 bags
of popcorn and 12 mini lemon poppy scones!

Next time I want to try to bring something that we consume in small amounts, so making a big batch of it won't be that intensive. I saw a blog post about flavored simple syrup (although not really something I have a connection to), and I was also thinking about bringing chai concentrate, which I think would be awesome. It'd be great to have little samples too, and it would work for any season--iced or hot! I think the next one is in October, I'll have to perfect it by then. Anyway, had a couple of bites of leftover Chinese from Friday's lunch for breakfast (along with snacking on scones and popcorn). Had plenty of samples at the food swap itself. Then when James and I got home, we popped the wild rice mix into the rice cooker, then did a simple roasted vegetable mix of mushrooms, zucchini and julienned carrots. I'm really thinking about investing in a julienne peeler. Then again.. maybe not. If I don't buy one, then I'll get really good at manually julienning vegetables! Like when I didn't have a vegetable peeler at the room I rented on Catalina, I got really good at peeling stuff with a knife, a task I previously thought impossible.

Sunday - Down to SD today for my grandmother and mom's birthday. We had the leftovers from Friday's staff meeting lunch in the car on the way down for lunch, then dessert at my grandma and grandpa's. Early dinner was Thai that my dad treated us to, then more coffee/dessert at a coffee shop. By the time we got home, I was exhausted and went straight to bed.

Overall, not a bad week! Certainly the food swap gave a great mid-weekend boost in food, especially since James was over.