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Sunday, October 31, 2010

Broccoli basket

How long does a basket of broccoli last and how many different ways can it be prepared?  Steamed, sauteed with garlic, quiche, casserole, and finally broccoli cheddar soup.

When my husband called me from the North Wales farm stand I remembered that there was one last head of broccoli in the fridge.  I truly haven't been in the mood to cook, largely because I haven't had a taste for anything, so soup seemed like the easiest solution.

I sauteed an onion in butter, added flour and seasonings to create a roux. I then added broth and a hodge podge of milk products (evaporated milk, heavy cream, and half & half) because I had a little bit of each. I threw in a diced potato and let that mixture simmer a bit while I chopped the broccoli (stems and florets).  I added the broccoli and additional seasonings and simmered until there was just a hint of life left in the broccoli...I decided against the stick blender because it seemed unnecessary to pulverize the limp veggie. I folded in the sharp cheddar my daughter grated, turned off the flame, and put the top on the pot while I baked a loaf of Simply Rustic French Bread.  

The soup was savory but the bread had that refrigerated dough aroma and taste.  Guess next time I'll have to pull out the bread machine.

Friday, October 29, 2010

Gravy train

As soon as we returned from our mini break I made pasta to accompany the gravy that I made prior to departure....I went with Dreamfields linguine - very tasty.  But you have to wonder- pasta with protein and fiber that has been "manufactured" to produce a lower glycemic index than traditional pasta - if this was a sensible choice.  Nonetheless, everyone enjoyed it. 

Our accompaniment was an Italianesque broccoli casserole - sauteed broccoli in butter and garlic, seasoned; removed to casserole, melted butter, whisked in flour, half & half, and Italian cheeses - baked for 25 minutes - very yummy. 

Other than the honey vanilla ice cream I made a few days ago, there's really nothing to report.

Saturday, October 23, 2010

Catching conch

When we arrived on shore, we fared substantially better; in fact, the highlight of our shore excursion was the food.  Potter’s Cay is nestled under the bridge and hosts tons of food stands.  We ate at McKenzie’s – the conch salad was very good (tomatoes, peppers, onions, lime, lemon, and orange - the citrus does the cooking); the cracked conch was especially good and the rice was quite flavorful; the cole slaw, however was a salty mess.  We picked up a virgin pineapple coconut daiquiri (aka pina colada) down the road and headed back to the ship, but not before stopping to get a chilled coconut and some conch fritters (essentially conch hush puppies). 

Nassau is a colonial port city turned tourist trap due to the subtropical climate. They say they are 85% chocolate and 15% vanilla; the majority of the chocolate seem to occupy spaces that not only lack modern conveniences but are inaccessible to the ammenites that attract so many to the island. Like so many other former slave colonies in the tropics, the Bahamians are both resilient and creative resulting in a local cuisine that is truly exceptional.

Friday, October 22, 2010

Uneven development

When we first arrived in downtown Miami I was taken aback by the intensity of development.  The waterfront screamed tourist trap but it also a bit transient.  The "ethnic food court" was blah and overall the area looked as if Bayside's hey day had come and gone without any reinvestment. 

On day two, we walked off the beaten path and ended up in a shopping district clearly zoned for the local ethnic population (Miami - Dade clearly hasn't invested any money into this area in at least 20 years).  Jackpot.  We went to a Peruvian restaurant - Mar y Tierra - ordered the $5.99 pollo especiala - the chicken soup was very flavorful, yucca works better than potatoes, the cilantro was very nice, and the lime and hot pepper sauce were excellent condiments - fried chicken, salad, and rice...we topped that off with fresh fruit drinks - I had guanabana and the husband had mango. 

As with any downtown tourist area there is marked zones of development.  Fortunately we chose to venture off the tourist path and hit the jackpot.  Now we're on a cruise and thus far the food has been unimpressive.  Maybe something tasty awaits us at the port.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Packing perils

It is glaringly obvious that I have an aversion to packing. Once again on the eve of a trip, I found myself doing everything except pack. At 7pm I started a pot of marinara sauce – I needed to use the tomatoes I picked up Sunday. Because they were salad tomatoes and had been refrigerated, I used two cans of 365 tomato paste for good measure, a ton of garlic, onions, and green peppers (because I have an abundance). I seasoned that with basil, crushed red pepper, sea salt, and quite a bit of evoo. The only thing I forgot to do is give it a whirl with my stick blender, but the tomatoes cooked down nicely. My daughter was very excited about the homemade sauce and we are both looking forward to having it over fresh pasta.

In addition to the “gravy”, I made several broccoli quiches – I did a cheddar, colby-jack, swiss mix and it came out quite yummy. The kids will have that for the next couple of days – did I mention that this trip is kid free?

Needless to say I never went to sleep – I had to do laundry, print out itineraries, send emails, and all the other stuff that goes along with attempting to put life on autopilot. I’m just hoping I’ll enjoy this “cruise fare.”

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Simple pleasures

It's amazing how fresh food tantalizes the senses; particularly for city slickers.  We had a soccer game in North Wales today and it seems that every family stopped by the farm stand and picked up produce - I was grinning from ear to ear - excited about the bargains I snagged...a bag of broccoli for $1.50 - maybe 8 heads (it was day old but looked like the stuff you see in the average supermarket).  I bought 15 tomatoes for $2.50 - they had spots on them, but work just fine for cooking - I immediately thought of a tomato pie, now I'm thinking zigni.  The other bargain was a bag of at least 10 green peppers for $2.50 - again day old. 

This experience was telling in a couple of ways- urbanites as deprived of farm fresh produce - and the factory food system has created a demand for perfect produce specimens, hence tomatoes with spots, or peppers with a little wrinkle are relegated to the clearance table. 

In addition to the clearance items, I bought yams, cabbage, and apples.  We drove down the road and stopped in the Whole Foods - half the team was there as well - I bought cheese, pasta, chicken, and some miscellaneous lunch box items.  I was so excited about my finds that I immediately started cooking once we arrived home.  First I pressure cooked the yams in pineapple juice; then I got started on the tomato pie - Gullah style of course.  I was so smitten with my booty from the farm stand that I had not planned the preparation.  As I marinated the chicken leg quarters, I thought of my husband's earlier response to my what's for dinner question.  He reminded me about the simple delicious meals I used to prepare - he claims it was the convection roasted chicken that made him want to marry me - I foolishly thought it was my good looks.

I boiled the cavatappi and started on the cheese sauce - this time I added Gruyere to my blend and it was absolutely fabulous.   After I put the chicken in the oven, I got started on the cabbage.  That's when I realized I was out of control so I stopped myself before I made the stuffing. 

Tonight's dinner was truly food for the soul.

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Hypocrisy

I'm plum tuckered out - my back is bothering me, I'm totally exhausted, and I'm completely over scheduled - things could be a lot worse.

We were on the verge of becoming a wasteful family - the one that dines out or takes out frequently - lately it seems that the majority of our meals have been prepared outside of the home with the exception of the puttanesca I made on Tuesday. 

Tonight I truly did not feel up to cooking - I was uninspired - but I couldn't bring myself to order out. There is plenty of meat in the freezer - beef, chicken, and lamb - as well as some miscellaneous frozen and fresh vegetables. 

The kids were nagging me about The Great Food Fight - they desperately wanted to go to Aldi and purchase canned goods for a food drive, expressing genuine concern about the children whose brains wouldn't develop properly due to malnutrition.  I'm not a fan of food drives and I'm definitely not a fan of canned food.  Food drives seem inauthentic - people clear their pantries of unwanted food and donate.  Canned goods were taboo in my house growing up so I've always avoided them because of the sodium content and the taste.  I relented and decided that I would spend $10 on canned goods. 

As I walked down the aisles I was thinking of foods that had relatively decent nutritional value...of course I couldn't resist reading the labels - we decided on kidney beans, pinto beans, butter beans, green beans, peas, corn, and diced tomatoes - I thought these foods could be combined for a tasty nutritious meal - I stayed away from potatoes, carrots, and asparagus because I felt certain that canned versions were unappealing.  I added fruit cocktail (in pear juice) as a dessert choice and evaporated milk for good measure.  I spent slightly over $20 but felt confident that my purchases reflected choices that I would make for my own family. 

At that point I knew I could not justify take-out so I returned home and threw together a meal - simmered fresh brussel sprouts in  broth, pressure cooked yams in juice, and put hamburger patties in the oven with onion soup mix and French dressing.  The meal was very good and the patties were exceptionally flavorful (I've never eaten salisbury steak, but I imagine it to be similar to this).

As I stare at the 35 cans of food, I think of how fortunate we are to have enjoyed a warm home cooked meal as a family.