Dinner Last Night

Street Quesadillas & Laksa

2009-04-13T18:40:00.004-04:00

We had flor de calabaza & huitlacoche quesadillas made by a street vendor in Queens and enjoyed in a Salvadoran coffee shop for lunch on Feb 13. Then we picked up the ingredients for the night's veggie laksa at a neighborhood Asian super-market.

Farmstead Mac & Cheese, again!

2009-04-13T18:36:00.002-04:00

Made at home by Hil on Feb 11.

"Fruit and Cheese" Plate

2009-02-09T23:47:00.003-05:00

My veggie option at Sloane's wonderful wedding turned out to be chopped up apples and pears. My concerned tablemates eagerly offered their mini-croissants and buttered carrots to round out my meal. It was refreshing, actually, to get so much edible fresh fruit in Mexico! And the most important thing, of course, were the chilaquiles at midnight...luckily there was a real veg version then.

Mac and cheese 2

2009-02-09T23:44:00.002-05:00

New French oven! Deep dish mac & cheese. Look at that CRUST. 1/11/09. Yum!

The making of borscht

2009-02-09T23:36:00.002-05:00

Slicing cabbage, finished product. Roasted chestnuts & pickles (go great with radish!) Sauteed kale. Sweet potato-carrot puree. The whole ensemble. Dinner 1/10/09

Post Thanksgiving

2009-02-09T23:31:00.004-05:00

Post-TG coconut curry stew with veggies and tempeh, tomato-coconut milk based. Over brown rice. I based this on a recipe I found online, I think, but I can't remember. There wasn't much food in the house--I had Thanksgiving elsewhere--but I pulled this tasty meal together 11/28.

Composed salad

2009-02-09T23:28:00.004-05:00

Such things as helped keep me composed during a month of writing. Black beans, sprouted legumes, Boston lettuce, carrots. Dressing on the side. Prepared and eaten 1/9/09.

Hummus!

2009-02-09T23:24:00.003-05:00

My first hummus in a long time, along with the christening of a new Le Creuset with mac & cheese (Farmstead recipe).

Green salad. Dinner 12/2/08.

Fideos

2009-02-09T23:19:00.003-05:00

Too spicy but fun and delicious. Served with crackers and a stinky Farmstead cheese, my favorite olives and carrot sticks. Dinner 12/01/08.

October Oatmeal

2009-02-09T23:17:00.002-05:00

Steel-cut oats with raisins, cinnamon apples, and soymilk. Breakfast 11/29.

zenfully delicious

2009-02-04T23:26:00.003-05:00

red lentil soup with a scoop of rice, a dollop of yogurt, and a handful of buttery sauteed spinach.

*note the pretty, inventive-but-unfortunately-bland cilantro whiskey sour to the right

Seafood, Pasta and.... Pickles?!

2009-01-27T22:17:00.006-05:00

Over the break, my mom, Nick and I drove to the Gulf Coast of Florida for dinner at Tony's in Cedar Key. My mom and Nick indulged in the restaurant's famous clam chowder, which the restaurant will ship throughout the US, and agreed it rivals anything you find in New England.

For dinner, Nick had the "guilt free" platter (pictured on left), which includes grilled Grouper bites, steamed shrimp, and steamed Cedar Key clams, while my mom enjoyed some Teriyaki shrimp. I was amazed that a seafood restaurant in this tiny FL town actually had a vegetarian option on their menu, described as "A generous portion of pasta topped with our fresh grilled vegetable medley." Served in a fish platter (right), the pasta and veggies looked great... until I took a bite and realized that the "zucchini" in the vegetable medley were actually pieces of pickles, mixed right in with the other vegetables in the marinara sauce. Blasphemy!

At least the Key lime Pie was top notch. (http://www.tonyschowder.com/)

Ecuadorian holiday eggnog

2008-12-24T09:06:00.003-05:00

Rompope (pronounced rome-poe-peh) is a Hispanic version of eggnog. My mom showed me how to make it Ecuadorian style. Here is the recipe:

1 liter milk
1 cup sugar
Cinnamon sticks to taste
Vanilla extract
Rum or aguardiente

Mix milk, sugar and cinnamon in a pot. Boil milk until slightly thick (~30 min), mixing regularly

When milk is thick enough, turn heat off and let cool until lukewarm (keep mixing)

Meanwhile beat 4-8 egg YOLKS (in blender or with electric mixer) until very creamy (can save egg whites for making meringue)

Warm milk with low flame and add egg yolks slowly and mix quickly and constantly. Do not let boil (turn heat off if necessary). Mix constantly until thoroughly warm and thick.

Let cool, then add some vanilla extract and rum to taste. For real authentic Ecuadorian rompope, instead of rum add some Aguardiente Caña Manabita, from my hometown of Portoviejo, Ecuador (bottle shown, with finished rompope).

Sorrel and Salmon Soup

2008-12-15T16:43:00.010-05:00

this past friday night's dinner. light and yummy.

Poached Pears

2008-12-10T09:28:00.018-05:00

Saul's delicious dessert this past Friday night.

And Rosh Hashanah

2008-11-29T16:50:00.002-05:00

RH East-coast style. Robin's brownie cupcakes and chocolate-cream cheese cupcakes. Eli's Aliza Cohen's apple tart. Apple cake. Challot, apples & honey, black-eyed peas, Moroccan carrot salad, green herb omelet with yogurt, muhammara & pita chips, kugel. Not pictured: Yakov's savory pies in two flavors, and his beet salad, all from instinctual Russian recipes.

Dessert

2008-11-28T13:13:00.005-05:00

Shabana's first apple pie, perfectly not sweet, with Nick's favorite vanilla ice cream (appropriately named "Turkey Hill"). And, Shabana's light, rich invention, pumpkin mousse tart. Caramel and candied pecans above and below the mousse. Thank you to all the chefs!

Bounty

2008-11-28T13:10:00.002-05:00

All the veggies, including SO GOOD candied yams.

TG Veggies!

2008-11-28T12:59:00.002-05:00

Fava beans (yum!), asparagus with sesame seeds (yum!), baby spinach with grape tomatoes and hearts of palm (I made the dressing, so as not to be a total slouch), rolls, olives, awesome millet with butternut squash, cranberries, and hazelnuts.

Turkey, cranberries, stuffing

2008-11-28T12:52:00.004-05:00

Thanksgiving Day Curry Powder

2008-11-28T12:42:00.002-05:00

This year I was thankful for not having to cook anything for Thanksgiving! Still, it felt a little funny, so I got started on some curry powder. Toasting spices pictured. I am still thankful for the curry leaves.

Jori came over and we had pad thai 26 Nov

2008-11-28T12:38:00.003-05:00

My first successful pad thai! I modified the recipe from Real Vegetarian Thai. Delicious after samba class.

North African Stew 24 Nov

2008-11-28T12:29:00.003-05:00

A delicious throwback from Fields of Greens. A little sweet and mild--good thing Eli had salty hot sauce on hand. Shared with Eli & Jess. Over quinoa and kasha.

A charoset recipe

2008-11-25T16:59:00.002-05:00

Just dug up Fulyah's recipe for the amazing charoset log she made for Pesach 2007. Wish I had a picture. Charoset as I'd never seen it before, and tasty, too. Fulyah, we miss you!

"So here's the recipe for charoset from Estelle's blog, with a slight modification from me... "

Ingredients

1 cup m dates, chopped
1 cup dried apricots, chopped
1 apple, very thinly sliced
1 cup raisins
1 btl. of red wine
1 tbs sugar
1 pck. of Neufchatel cheese
1 cup almonds
1 cup walnuts
Cinnamon
Brown sugar, to sprinkle

Recipe

1. Place dates, almonds, apples and raisins in a pot. Pour over the red wine just enough to cover it on top and bring heat to a boil.

2. As the fruity mix gets softer, add cinnamon and sugar. Stir well and keep the heat on until the mixture has a jam-like density.

3. Take it off the heat when wine has evaporated and let it cool down for a while. Add almonds and walnuts. Mix well. With the help of a fork, smash them well. (You can use a blender, but I did not)

4. Place the cheese in between stretch film. With the help of a rolling pin, make it flatter into a rectangle.

5. Place the filling right in the middle of the flattened cheese and cover it up on the sides, making it into a cylinder-like roll. Sprinkle brown sugar on top and let it rest in the fridge for 1.5 hrs. Then slice and serve

Bon apetit!

Zephyr chard sautees, 23 Nov

2008-11-24T20:56:00.002-05:00

Beautiful rainbow chard sautees with garlic, then finished product with raisins, pinenuts, and a side of chickpeas with ancho powder and tomatoes.

Baked 10 Nov

2008-11-24T20:53:00.002-05:00

Pumpkin-chocolate chip bread from the Tartine cookbook.

Lemon slices leftover from sangria then stewed in a spiced syrup glaze a lightly lemony tea cake from a Russian recipe.

A Meal, 8 Nov

2008-11-24T20:48:00.002-05:00

The last of the Mt Tam on the last of the pumpernickel; green lentils with roasted beets and preserved lemon, our standby; a really, really good potato salad that I later dropped on the floor but before that had roasted yellow fingerling & purple potatoes, red onion, baby celery, fresh chives, with a little mustard, mayo, oil & vinegar.

Obama Frittata

2008-11-24T20:46:00.003-05:00

Made the 3rd to ensure success election day.

Did anyone else spend that week eating round things?

2 Good 2 Nov

2008-11-24T20:41:00.003-05:00

Red mustard greens turn leeks purple.
Mt Tam, toasted Olga's olive pillow.
Leftover sage squash pasta.

A quiet Halloween

2008-11-24T20:35:00.003-05:00

Impromptu butternut squash with sage and onion over whole wheat spaghetti. Complete deliciousness. Three cheers to the cook!

Fall Table

2008-11-24T20:33:00.001-05:00

Zephyr Farm squashes, Indian salt to the right, gomashio in tin, flowers from the yard

Late-night snacks, Claire's wedding weekend

2008-11-24T20:31:00.001-05:00

Out of Margot's cabinets to sustain the retreat.

21 Oct

2008-11-24T20:28:00.003-05:00

Stir-fried tofu with black bean sauce & peppers, bok choy, winter squash, rice.

Beans and rice, 19 Oct

2008-11-24T20:13:00.001-05:00

Fantastic apple pancake 19 Oct

2008-11-24T20:03:00.005-05:00

A wall outside the Essex St Market

2008-11-24T20:01:00.001-05:00

Chocolate babka, and a breakfast 18 Oct

2008-11-24T19:56:00.003-05:00

Fried green tomatoes with jalapeno sour cream, grits, fried eggs, chocolate babka. Hand-picked rhubarb in the background.

Stuffed Peppers, 10 Oct

2008-11-24T19:53:00.001-05:00

Amazing Russ & Daughters

2008-11-24T17:11:00.001-05:00

Rosh Hashanah Challah

2008-11-24T16:45:00.001-05:00

Buttermilk barley herb soup, 17 Sept

2008-11-24T16:39:00.002-05:00

a Deborah Madison recipe

Eli's exam dinner, 16 Sept

2008-11-24T16:33:00.002-05:00

Balsamic roasted red onions, potato-leek soup (divine), molasses mustard bbq baked tempeh with red peppers and baby celery

Avo Salad in the avo, 13 Sept

2008-11-24T16:28:00.002-05:00

from Sundays with Moosewood

Harvest Minestrone, 11 Sept

2008-11-24T16:22:00.002-05:00

With pistou, and then with parm

Fried Green Tomato Sandwich, 9 Sept

2008-11-24T16:19:00.001-05:00

Fried green tomato slices, arugula, feta, homemade mayo on Afghan bread. All Zephyr veggies, all the time.

Brunch, 6 Sept

2008-11-24T16:14:00.003-05:00

Mixed Zephyr Farm potato home fries, peaches & blueberries, tofu scramble, coffee

Late Summer Fridge, 4 Sept

2008-11-24T16:06:00.002-05:00

Needless to say, everything in and created out of this fridge is delicious!

a taste of bahia ~or~ acaraje in four parts

2008-11-03T14:52:00.010-05:00

i. the token

ii. the mae

iii. the friends

iv. the food

rio vermelho, salvador, bahia. august, 2008.

2008-10-29T13:27:00.002-04:00

Here are the beets I just pickled, a recent chicken paprikash, ans a lasagna with homemade sauce, noodles, and ricotta. It's so nice to have the time for delicious projects!

Yum again

2008-10-07T16:07:00.002-04:00

Here is sticky rice, miso eggplant, winter squash-coconut tempeh, green salad with grated beet. Cold-weather foods from last winter...

The Usual

2008-10-07T16:06:00.001-04:00

Lentil stew over quinoa, sauteed greens with pine nuts, yogurt. Green salad off-screen.

Coconut milk curry

2008-10-07T16:04:00.001-04:00

This is a not-great photo of a great coconut milk curry with veg & tofu over rice.

Tu B'Shvat 5768

2008-10-07T15:54:00.003-04:00

I hosted a last-minute Tu B'Shvat seder in January. Pictured here are root veggie soup on the stove (and to the far right on the table). I thought the beets overdominated (color was the least of it) but everyone loved this soup! There's also a moon challah with various fruits and nuts, spaghetti squash, tamarind chutney, another red sauce, an Indian spiced yogurt & nut sauce, basmati rice with fava beans, Geoff & Charlotte's apple-pecan wild rice, and a tray of my variation on Top-of-the-Wall Cookies from the Tassajara Baking book. Refined-sugar free!

An Eli & Hil Meal

2008-10-07T15:53:00.002-04:00

We ate this in the winter. Radiatore with tomato sauce, broccoli, salad.

The Cake

2008-10-07T15:48:00.002-04:00

This year I got into making 30th and 60th birthday cakes. Here's a slice of Heather's 30th: three layers alternating Tartine devil's food & Baking Illustrated chocolate, filled with whipped cream mixed with morello cherry fruit spread from TJ's. Plain whipped cream frosting.

Ghost of Rosh Hashana Past

2008-10-07T15:37:00.007-04:00

highlights from the 7th annual rosh hashanah celebration at tara m's house.

grilled peppers, ginger poundcake with handpicked wild blackberries and whipped cream, muhammara with toasty bread, green herb and spinach omelet with yogurt, ruth's apple torte, rustic apple tart, challah with and without raisins, the buffet table (incl andy katzman and aunt syl's noodle kugels, apple cake, and stew in awesome pot)

Here I Blog

2008-10-07T15:31:00.003-04:00

Beginning with Thanksgiving Last Year! Nothin' like reminiscin'.
This is sangria and artichoke dip with pita. Of course we are at mom's.
Then it's the homemade tofurkey! Amazing! My mother made me do it and it was worth the (one) time.
Finally, salad, turkey, cranberries.
Fall is good.

Grandma food.

2008-08-18T12:15:00.005-04:00

Homemade Cuban food a la grandma. Pictured here: black beans, amarillos (fried sweet yellow plaintains), yucca with mojo (lemony, oily garlic sauce), and brown rice - my grandmother's going healthy!

Not pictured: avocado, which was the only thing green on the menu. So, I guess healthy is all relative . . .

Mango Season

2008-08-18T12:07:00.009-04:00

If you ever travel down to Vieques, make sure to plan your trip during mango season. Our hotel had overflowing mango trees and we were told to help ourselves. We even picked a few to smuggle back to the mainland. Pictured at right: the perfect mango.

Best meal on Vieques

2008-08-18T11:56:00.009-04:00

Nick and I spent a couple nights on the small Puerto Rican island of Vieques, 7 miles from the main island. The New York Times travel section wrote about Vieques a few years back, and warned there were no good restaurants on the island. They must not have been to el Quenepo. Fresh, delicious food, beautifully prepared, but in a relaxed, mellow island environment.

Nick started with more ceviche, top, and then moved on to a giant freshwater fish, whose name I can't recall. Nick was in love with this pescado!

I even tried it and conceded it was pretty good. But I was happiest with my homemade sweet potato gnocchi.

Puerto Rican bar food

2008-08-18T11:35:00.007-04:00

In San Juan, we went to the trendy bar at the hotel La Concha for delicious fruit-flavored mojitos (I had parcha - yum!!) and some tasty snacks. From top to bottom, rice-and-bean croquettes, local root vegetable chips with hummus, and ceviche. Delicioso!

pickled onions have changed my life!

2008-08-16T12:40:00.012-04:00

even in brasil, land of tasty-beyond-belief produce, this simple stovetop trick has made eating even more exciting. so much so that i needed to share it will you all.

in an on-the-fly attempt to make a chutney to go along with the cashew and tomato-based curry my roomate barbara was cooking, i sliced some red onions into rounds, put them in a pot of salted boiling water, let them cook till they were no longer spicy but maintained their crunch, drained them, and tossed them in an old jar with white vinegar, more salt, and couple pinches of sugar. i then put them in the fridge. half an hour later they emerged, super flavorful and brightly colored and crisp. i chopped some mango into cubes, mixed with the onions, and voila--delicious quick chutney.

but! the best part is this--these onions pair amazingly with all sorts of things. i´ve been eating them every morning with tomatoes or avocados or eggs for about a week straight.

try it out. picked onions just might change your life too.

chicken cashew curry with quick mango chutney and cardamom flavored rice. note: iced beer in the corner. that´s right, iced beer! i take my cerveja bem, bem gelada these days.

Rollin' on the River

2008-07-25T13:18:00.003-04:00

Dinner Last Night hits the LA River headwaters in a matter of hours.

If you're in the LA area, come support us! See the Trip Timeline and learn more at http://www.lalatimes.com/lariver/events.php

It sounds like I'll be eating a lot of energy bars, and drinking organic tea. Who knows what else? Hopefully not swallowing any river water!

root cause

2008-07-07T17:59:00.003-04:00

poached salmon served atop mustardy mustard greens

steamed asparagus with lemon zest

roasted purple and golden beets with white sweets, salt, and pepper

YUM

Coconut Pudding!

2008-07-03T09:25:00.002-04:00

A lovely pudding beautiful with tropical fruit, berries, kiwi, whipped up July 2 for Julia & Luca. No photo, sorry. Add a little coconut extract for extra coco flav. Make with unsweetened soymilk for jolielaide results!

(recipe from Didi Emmons' Vegetarian Planet)

Boil 2 C milk & 2 T minced fresh ginger in a medium, heavy saucepan. Take pan off heat as soon as it boils, so that it doesn't boil over. Let steep 15 mins, then pour milk through a fine strainer into a bowl.

In another bowl, whisk together 4 egg yolks and 1/2 C of the strained milk. Add 3/4 C sugar and 1/4 C cornstarch, and whisk til smooth. While whisking, slowly add 1 14-oz can coconut milk and the rest of the milk.

Return the mixture to the saucepan & place over medium heat. Whisk constantly until the pudding begins to boil. Continue whisking 2 mins. Add 1 T unsalted butter and whisk until it melts.

Pour pudding into a bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap so a skin doesn't form. Chill at least 2 hrs. Serve with colorful fruit.

Spring Back

2008-06-26T00:48:00.004-04:00

At the tail end of April, Ayshe and Eleanor assembled a spontaneous picnic in Bryant Park. I couldn't resist posting this little old memento, if only for the bursting spring colors on the table.

Deutschland Delights

2008-06-07T10:51:00.007-04:00

Nick and I traveled to the Mecklenburg Lake District in (formerly East) Germany last month for the wedding of my old roomate Nina. Two hours North of Berlin, its the least populated region in all of Germany and is full of lots of old castles. We spent a hungover post-wedding afternoon cruising around in our German sports car, and happened on this lovely cafe and market.

Nick enjoyed some potato soup (tasted too much like schwein for me!) with delicious homemade bread.

I had hot chocolate and some kind of apfel cake. In the picture below, you can also see some laminated shots of the local castle, located just around the corner from the market.

what i didn't have for dinner last night!

2008-06-03T09:54:00.004-04:00

at the chicago midway airport terminal b. would you trust a place that "specialized" in all these "cuisines"?

the only redeeming quality is the chinese food and fish & chips fonts, only in their accuracy.

scallops over farfalle with alfredo sauce

2008-06-03T09:47:00.005-04:00

the picture doesn't quite do it justice, but last night's scallops were braised in leeks and onions, a little vegetable stock, and white wine. i added black olives with herbes de provence, tomatoes, and fresh thyme. and a little bit of pancetta for a smoky base. served it up right good over farfalle with romano (for good measure) and a lot of white wine (for good fun). MMMmmmm!

urban forage & bridal sweets

2008-05-28T12:56:00.023-04:00

for the last month, i haven't really been cooking. i've been living off a funny combination of plain yogurt, peanut butter, pumpkin seeds, brown rice, flatbreads, honey, avocados, street-vendor fruits, and many supplements of scavenged, greasy and sugary leftovers from school & hospital functions.

but, a couple weekends back, i did have the pleasure of bussing it to the famous fairway in red hook with joanna and spent an evening preparing treats for caolan's bridal shower and an afternoon gulping them down.

chocolate covered strawberries, hand-dipped and delivered from providence by mary farrell

the neborsky family secret: sherbert punch with pineapple juice, champagne, gingerale and plenty of ice.

lemon tart

apricot macaroons

green lentils with red wine-glazed vegetables

the bride-to-be

2008-05-22T14:42:00.007-04:00

amazing curry-yogurt salad dressing (yellow globs) among leftover quinoa, cukes, corn, and salad greens. will post recipe when back in Prov...

Curry Vinaigrette from Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone:

1 garlic clove minced or pounded in a mortar
salt
2 tbs yogurt, mayonnaise, or sour cream
2 tsp curry powder
1.5 tbs fresh lemon juice
5 tbs light olive or sunflower seed oil
2 tbs finely chopped cilantro.

Mix and let stand for 15 minutes.

You will want to quintuple this recipe. If you don't finish that much, I'll eat your leftovers.

Breakfast at Baba Yaga's

2008-05-22T14:34:00.004-04:00

boiled grechka, fried yayichnitsa, half-sour ogurtsy

Dinner at Baba Yaga's

2008-05-22T14:18:00.006-04:00

We got nettles from our neighborhood coop since they were one of the first fresh greens available for the spring. We had read rave reviews and wanted to try cooking them, but they were totally scary. They're all pointy and long-leafed and the stalks are covered with hairy spines whose burn I clearly remember from hiking trips when I was little. Maybe eating them is something like the thrill of eating fugu? Seriously, though, I had a bit of a psychosomatic tingle as I downed my first bite, but the rest went down easily. Sauteed in oil and garlic, they tasted kind of oystery and oceany. Hil thought they were too strong but I enjoyed the flavor. The next time we cooked them, though, we blanched them and then made them into a milder pesto with ricotta, pine nuts, garlic.

We ate them with my best miso soup ever: red and white miso with button mushrooms, sliced leeks, tofu, and bits of kombu.

2008-05-22T14:15:00.003-04:00

kosher l'pesach tagine of squash, tomato, carrot, turnip, kale, and preserved lemon with mashed potatoes.

twin cuisine

2008-05-22T14:09:00.011-04:00

Think fast!

Who made these lovely braised collards and quinoa-n-cashews?

If you guessed Eli Feiman and Hilary Kaplan, you'd be WRONG!

This was dinner I ate at Bryan and Lesley's in Cambridge back in April. So good! My own homecooking in someone else's home!

They also had these vegan cakes left over from Bryan's birthday.

Guys, come down to Providence and I'll feed you um.... more of the same!

macrobiotic

2008-05-22T14:04:00.003-04:00

I can't decide if I should go vegan for a while this summer, do raw foods, or all protein. I'd like to have an amazing body for my trip to Brazil and am wondering what the best culinary approach should be. Definitely less food, though I've been good about not eating late at night and couldn't face too much restraint with food. This meal certainly felt eminently healthy: miso-covered oven-broiled eggplants, kale, steamed brown sushi rice.

Farrell Family Fiesta

2008-05-22T13:44:00.005-04:00

Mary Farrell hit one of those milestone birthdays equidistant between 50 and 70 back in December, but celebrated in April. Caolan went ALL OUT with a tower of homemade and exquisitely decorated cupcakes, pomegranate vodka fizzy cocktails, champagne, flourless chocolate cake, a lemon cake from Pastiche, a cheese cake covered with three kinds of fruit, chocolate cookies, cheeses, olives, fig jam and crackers, plus lots of other things I certainly ate but do not recollect. Hurray for Mary Farrell! Thanks, Caolan!

savory savory

2008-05-22T13:38:00.002-04:00

I braised short ribs and some tempeh in a fantastic mixture of chipotles, red wine, and coffee. Then I cooked some pozole with pepitas, curry, and lime and then served it with some steamed kabocha squash. totally eclectic meal, but oh-so-satisfyingly spicy.

Vegetable Feast; Wayland, MA

2008-05-18T17:23:00.003-04:00

Post-chemotherapy #3, I was a little manic from the steroids and had a "pile" of vegetables to cook so I hosted some college friends: Hayden Gallary, Sarah Caldwell, and Sarah Seo (for those of you that were in TD and this is relevant :)

We had some great cheeses, breads and olives from a specialty cheese shop in Cambridge (courtesy of Hayden and Sarah C.) Dinner was Mediterranean chicken (marinated in yogurt and herbs) with pita bread, an eggplant-dill salad and many gluten-free desserts! I forgot to photograph the first dinner but sure enough my energy and guests extended to Friday night when I finished using the "pile of veggies" to make a spinach-avocado salad with citrus dressing and eggplant ragout (see below).

I had the pleasure of cooking in an amazing kitchen with great ingredients at the home of my family friends. I think people are a little overwhelmed by the energy I summon post-treatment, not sure where it comes from, but it was truly a relaxing retreat and great to get to see old friends.

2008-05-16T19:31:00.002-04:00

this is some kind of black eyed pea concoction I ate with kasha

The Taco Truck: Angeleno to the Core?

2008-05-02T23:10:00.007-04:00

Today's news! Check it out!

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/03/us/03taco.html?ex=1210392000&en=3ba1164790fa664b&ei=5070&emc=eta1

"Taco flouters"? Was that meant to be a bad pun on the flauta?

As for the final quote, "people say this is part of our culture. I don't recall any towns in Mexico having taco trucks"...Maybe not trucks, but this NPR story (Sept 07) features Oakland taco truck El Gordo and its owner Carlos Montero, who picked up his skills "when he was an apprentice at his father's taco cart in Mexico."
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=14509760

I think it was John Baeder who did some great paintings of taco trucks exhibited in LA a few years ago. Before taco trucks, he painted another American food institution, the diner.

Love,
Your Angelena bloggera

Backblog

2008-04-29T17:34:00.004-04:00

So much delicious prepared and consumed in 2007, yet posted not to the blog! Now I attempt to make up for lost time. First up, a scrumptious summer brunch a la Mom. Two frittatas, bagels & lox, salads, fruit, something like tofu with mushrooms...Viva la mama!

Gluten-free Pizza, at last!

2008-04-27T15:50:00.002-04:00

Hello diners! Since finding that I was gluten-intolerant a few years ago I've had to find new ways to enjoy some old favorites, pizza was always the item I missed most. The crust for this pizza which I made last night is made of garbanzo&fava bean flour mixed with tapioca flour. The chewiness comes from a mixture of gelatine, xanthan gum, and yeast. Its not exactly like pizza dough but its a great vehicle for cheese and toppings :) The recipe for the crust is taken from the side of the bag of fava & garbanzo flour

see (http://www.bobsredmill.com/recipe/detail.php?rid=932)

Imbolc

2008-04-05T22:46:00.004-04:00

Lillian hosted an Imbolc gathering a few months ago. We celebrated love and the quickening of the earth with food*, mead, and the help of several goddesses. Our incantations & oaths seem to be bearing fruit. Thank you Lillian, Fi, Lyn, Chana, Renee, Yemanja, Oxum, and all goddesses!

*aphrodisiacs included chocolate truffles, goat cheese & Sarabeth strawberry-rhubarb jam, olives, agua de coco in two flavors, my roasted beets & lentils with preserved lemon, & lyn's favorite donuts.

Tower of Cake

2008-04-05T21:51:00.005-04:00

My birthday cake of the year: alternate layers of Tartine Devil's Food and Baking Illustrated's Old-Fashioned Chocolate Layer, filled with fresh whipped cream mixed with Trader Joe's Morello Cherry fruit spread. Made for Heather, Margot, and Claire's 30ths, brought to new heights for my dad and Uncle Alan's 60th bday bash. Happy birthday, everyone!

(Having now made versions of this cake 3 times, I've determined the Tartine cake is tastier & bakes better than the Baking Illustrated. Whoever has the next bday is getting 100% Tartine, or, does anyone have a chocolate cake they recommend?)

As requested

2008-04-05T12:58:00.004-04:00

Here I am {sleepily/goofily/springily} matching the superb meyer lemon ice cream from Eli and Andrea's Easter brunch. Yum, yum!

Maple Hamantaschen

2008-03-28T13:12:00.003-04:00

Saul & Aliza made hamantaschen with the Sweet Tart Dough from the Tartine cookbook. Parfait. Some had apricot butter, others had this whipped maple syrup spread that you can buy in a jar at Fairway. A freylekhn purim!

Grace Food

2008-03-28T12:02:00.003-04:00

I made my first foray to Park Slope Monday to eat lunch with Grace and have her stick me full of pins and needles. Before I turned into a human voodoo doll in the name of healing, she fed me a delicious meal of miso soup with wakame, tofu, and barley; stir-fried carrots, kale & almonds with black sesame seeds; roasted butternut squash, and brown rice. With an umeboshi plum on the side! All organic from Park Slope Coop. How I'd missed Grace! How I'd missed her cooking! Then she gave me a taste of her acupuncture skills, and now I feel all better. Thanks Grace!

Easter Brunch

2008-03-27T12:07:00.011-04:00

Andrea Hill and I hosted a knock-em-dead (or resurrect them?) brunch last Sunday. Sandra Kister helped us cook and cook and cook the afternoon before and Sara Sani helped us finished up the morning of. On the table, we had Niman Ranch smoked ham and mustard, roasted lamb and tzatziki, deviled eggs, quinoa-chayote-edamame salad, lentil-beet-preserved lemon salad, segmented citrus-berry salad, green salad, roasted fingerlings-fennel-carrots, deviled eggs, cheese, bread, choco bunny, choco eggs. Not pictured: shortbread, Andrew with the meyer lemon ice cream - anyone have that to share? Me and Andrea... please post if you've got them!

2008-03-27T12:04:00.002-04:00

Just another night at 140 Chapin Ave...

looks like we were eating marinated tempeh, steamed veggies, salad. The roasted squash we were eating is visible at the far L and brown rice not pictured.

Fish Friday

2008-03-27T11:55:00.005-04:00

I'd been wanting to cook something substantial for a while and wanted to have Yagmur over for a relaxed evening, so a few Fridays ago, I baked some cod on a bed of roasted potatoes, leeks and fennel just like Mommy does and then made Aliza Cohen's unbelievably delicious 20-minute (prep time) apple tart. Here's the recipe:

Crust:
1 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbs sugar
1/2 unsalted butter
1 tbs white (or maybe apple cider) vinegar

Filling:
1 cup sugar
2 tbs flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
4 cups coarsely grated apples

Combine flour, salt and sugar lightly with a fork.

Cut in butter, and then blend with a fork until mixture looks like a
shortbread dough.

Stir in vinegar with a fork. Spread dough thickly on the
bottom of a 9 inch tart pan, and thinly about 1 inch up the sides.
(I had a 10-inch tart pan so I made a 5/4 portion of the crust)

Combine ingredients for filling and spread evenly over dough.

Bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour.

Cool and remove from pan.

Sift icing sugar on top or pipe with whipped cream at
serving time, if desired.

Et voila!

Sara (and Eli's) Manhattan

2008-03-27T11:50:00.006-04:00

I popped into the city at the end of February. It had been three months since I'd seen Sara and most of my other NYC friends. MEK was hosting a leap year party and Josie and Lynn had another party planned; Caolan was in town. How could I stay away?

So Sara and I ate most of our meals that weekend from the salad bar at Eli's Manhattan. I don't remember all of what we went for, but there was some disappointing salmon niçoise. Most of the rest of the stuff was delicious, though.

And can you believe the bags?!

Grading Party

2008-03-27T11:44:00.012-04:00

piles of exams to grade + Heather + Hil + piña coladas + lychees + grass jelly + Mana = A+

Debbie and Rick's Dinner

2008-03-18T19:44:00.006-04:00

My very first blog post. Wish me luck.

I made a nice Shabbot dinner last Friday;
Roast Chicken with a glaze of Raspberry Jalapeno ambrosia which I found on my refrigerator shelf (and which must have been there since jalapenos were discovered as a trendy food item). The chicken was made in a new convection toaster oven. Accompanying were some spinach, some homemade applesauce with raisins and some raisin Challah.

I got inspired and made a Coconut Flan. It has a bit of dark rum. As for the still life, the avocados are from the tree in my back yard, and the lemons are from my neighbor's tree. Note the joined lemons.

If you have relatives in LA who would like an avocado, they can contact me during the next month. If you're in LA, come and pick!

2008-03-15T07:09:00.012-04:00

Greetings from Venice! The food here is very expensive, so I've spent lots of time visiting markets and cooking at home.Highlights include cleaning and gutting sardines, mozzarella bi buffala, and the snail who rode home on my broccoli

what was i thinking?

2008-03-09T22:05:00.006-04:00

i bought entirely too many vegetables last week and realized that i had to cook them ALL tonight or never, since this week is packed with exams. i turned my cabbage, potatoes, onions and cauliflower into some bready approximation of knish. (note: a knish without the buttery dough just isn't a knish!) i'd write y'all a limerick about the silly girl who baked all her vegetables into knishes but forgot the butter and ended up with something far from delicious, but i best be studying...

at least they look pretty.

I See You!

2008-02-24T09:30:00.005-05:00

I had a four hour layover in Vienna on my way home from Armenia. Though I didn't sleep before my 6am flight and barely did while squished into the very back row of the plane between an oversized Finn and the toilet, I felt like I ought to make the most of my amazing February adventure and see the Innere Stadt of Vienna. It was undeniably beautiful - lots of baroque detail, gold, cobblestones. Good for a glimpse, but probably too much for an extended stay. However, I could definitely get into the pastries. Here's my 8am latte and slice of apfelstrudel at the Aida Kafe-Konditorei around the corner from Stefansdom.

Armenian Snickers

2008-02-24T09:26:00.002-05:00

Here are some delectable fruit and nut confections that are Armenian specialties. To the left are straight-up dried fruits. In the middle - fruit lavash - predecessor of the fruit roll-up? And then on the right is sujuk - a sausage-shaped treat billed as Armenian snickers. They string walnuts into a kind of walnut rope and then dip it and dry it successively in a mixture of grape and mulberry juice. What results is an amazing nutty fruity energy-packed treat. Which would you rather have while x-country skiing?

Lahmajo

2008-02-24T09:23:00.004-05:00

This is lahmajo - Armenia's version of Turkish lahmacun - flat bread spread with a minced meat mixture and baked. Fantastic washed down with tan, Armenia's salty yogurt drink - Iran's dugh - Turkey's ayran...

More Lavash

2008-02-24T09:21:00.002-05:00

So my team got snowed out of the region we were supposed to monitor on election day. It snowed a foot and a half the night before, and once the wind kicked up, the roads became impassable. At noon, we descended from the mountains to the town of Aparan, where we wandered into this lavash bakery.