PA Farm Show

Part of the 6th grade curriculum at my children's school is culture.  In Pennsylvania, there's Philadelphia, Pennsyltucky, and Pittsburgh; the 6th grade takes an annual trip to the Farm Show to learn about PA's agricultural culture and the source of food (as opposed to the grocery store).  I was initially apprehensive about the trip, fearing that it would glorify industrialized agriculture, but I truly had a good time.

There was livestock, produce, environmental education, shopping, and most importantly, lots of food.  I ran my hand through the plush fur of an alpaca, watched sheep get sheared, saw a 1600 pound bison, and ate - I also saw first hand, the many products we get from animals (I'm so excited about the alpaca yarn I bought for myself) and found some good sources of meat.

The only thing that was troubling was the cows.  There were lots of cute cows, but their udders were engorged; they kept them full until after the competition and then walked them to a pumping station to relieve them (milk leaking from the nipple), after which their udders were as flat as pancakes...it truly does suck to be a cow. 

  

The party's over

It's Girl Scout cookie time and we plan to hit the ground running; not to mention the semester is rapidly approaching - this is my last week of "freedom".

Today I had lunch guests in the midst of cookie prep.  I made pancit for my sister and a pseudo-escabeche for my Ethiopian friend (we previously discussed Asian food and she said she liked sweet-and-sour). 

I only had snapper, so I used that - the skin is thinner than the tilapia, so the presentation was not as attractive.  They loved every bit of it and we had a great time, too bad the party's over.

Birthdays

My sister-in-law invited us down because of the proximity of my dad, Ms Nong, and my birthdays. We put together a nice menu: pancit, fish, beef; we asked Ms. Nong to make a dish and my dad asked my nephew's girlfriend to make something as well.

The food Ms. Nong brought was fragrant and delicious - nhuem, a salad made with finely sliced (almost shredded) vegetables (carrots, cucumber - seeded, peppers), rice sticks, and what they referred to as skinny/old chicken (essentially a lean, dark-meat chicken that is too old to lay eggs aka stewing hen), topped with cilantro and a pleasant vinaigrette. She also made plea (the Thai's call it laab) - a salad with beef (Cambodian's do not cook the meat, they simply soak it in lemon and lime to remove the blood, but she cooked it for us).  She served the chili peppers on the side.  Both dishes were attractive as well as delicious.  

When we arrived, the pancit and afritada was already made.  We decided to make the tilapia as escabeche (Ms. Nong said if we add pineapple to the sauce it would be just like the Cambodian sweet and sour fish) and also as a baked dish with coconut milk and hot peppers. We cut up two chuck roasts (beef cubes are too lean), pressure cooked and made caldereta - very tasty, I think would be delicious prepared with lamb (my brother says goat is the best)...I'm thinking it's time for me to get a pressure cooker - the meat is tender in a fraction of the time - my Saudi friend uses one and my grandmother suggested one - I think it would be a worthwhile investment.

My nephew's girlfriend brought chicken, well seasoned with peppers and onions and a rice dish.  We rolled the naim (similar to lumpia, egg rolls wrapped in the thin spring roll skin) and they were also very delicious - chicken
breast, onions, garlic, rice stick, cabbage, carrots...my sister-in-law was very impressed with the rolling technique Ms. Nong taught us.  

From the time we walked into the door until the time we left, it seems as if we ate non stop.  Happy birthday to us.

Philly style

I went to Godshall's in Reading Terminal on Tuesday...been wanting to get down there for ages - locally grown poulty....of course I asked how is it grown - apparently most stuff is free range (that's not really saying much), some isn't.  I bought turkey sage sausage and chicken breast cutlets. 

Yesterday I make chicken cheesesteaks - this is a Philadelphia original and you certainly can not have a cheesesteak without an Amoroso roll, so my husband went to Amoroso's and picked up a dozen of the freshest rolls I've had in a long time. 

I split, flattened, sliced, and seasoned the cutlets, sauteed onions and red peppers, topped with cooper sharp (no condiments) and had sauteed mixed greens (TJ's Southern Greens Blend) on the side - a healthy, tasty alternative to takeout. 

The cheesiest

A childhood friend posted on Facebook that she had made lobster mac n cheese.  Initially, I thought that was weird, but then I kept thinking I saw that as a menu item at some chain restaurant.  The idea was haunting me...do you use real lobster when you mix with pasta and cheese?  The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to make it...

At first I thought I would avoid lobster...I had been thinking about going to Maine or Rhode Island to get some good lobster - yes I'm out of control - I thought crabmeat and shrimp would be great with cheese.  Then I got to thinking, what kind of cheese?  Nigella Lawson talked about how cheddar was a ooey gooey comfort cheese and unique to the United States...but I didn't want to do cheddar - I rely on a combination of cheddars for my mac and cheese.  I kept thinking about cheese and shellfish...didn't want to do Italian cheese because that would be like alfredo.  So I thought about fondue...I use gruyere and emmental for my fondue, so I started with that. 

I Googled lobster mac and cheese and there were so many different recipes and styles, but none really seemed to hit the spot.  I went to TJs and got gruyere, fontina, asiago, and debated about cheddar...instead I did an aged gouda (I love prima donna) ...TJs is definitely the place to go for reasonably priced cheeses.  I walked down the frozen food aisle and saw langostino tails...they looked like lobster so I Googled that on my cell and learned that they are essentially a shellfish that is often used as a lobster substitute...I bought two packages.  Then I went to Whole Foods and bought two packages of quinoa shells - figured I'd try to make this a balanced meal. 

I sauteed garlic in tons of butter, added heavy cream, then started adding my cheeses...I briefly sauteed the tails in garlic and butter, then mixed it all together, then added some cheddar-jack. I had planned to add a bit of dijon mustard, but forgot.  I steamed broccoli on the side and we sat down and enjoyed our dinner.  The flavor had a slight resemblance to alfredo (perhaps it was the garlic) and it definitely has to be served hot to maintain the consistency of the cheeses.  Next time I may omit the garlic and go with a cheddar.  Thanks RG for the inspiration.

Liberian girl

I talked to my nephew's girlfriend today and as always I asked about food.  This was timely because although I have food stockpiled in the freezer, I had no plan for dinner.

She explained that they were "a coastal people" so they consume a lot of seafood.  She told me about a quick shrimp dish, so I went for it.  No, I didn't have wild caught, I used 16/20 shrimp out of the freezer.  I sauteed onions, peppers (green and chili), tomatoes, and seasonings for the "gravy".  I made basmati rice and then realized that I needed something on the side - the last of the okra out of the freezer, sauteed with onions and garlic.

I have a confession - most of the time I use Betty Crocker's cornbread mix...I searched high and low and not a package to be found...so I had to make the cornbread from scratch - the consistency and color was different, not the pleasant yellow that results from who knows what in the package- but it was appetizing and made with whole grains.

We enjoyed the food, and the shrimp were surprisingly tasty - I steamed them with a pepper as she suggested and the flavor was greatly enhanced.  Liberian peppers are pleasing. 

Nothing to report

2010 has come in with a thud...I haven't cooked anything...I'm actually trying to figure out what I've been eating during this past week.  This has truly been a week of hustle and bustle - handling personal affairs and running around for Girl Scouts...we had a Winter Wonderland party which, based on the girls' reaction, was worth every bit of effort (combining the other troop leader with myself creates a dangerous duo; there is no limit to our madness, no voice of reason - we already have plans for 2 more parties). Aside from the turkey wings, the occasional breakfast, and kale - I only made baked ziti (penne) for the party.

We went to Cracker Barrel for dinner tonight - I think it was a residual effect from the marketing along 95S...there must've been a Cracker Barrel at every rest stop from Virginia to Georgia.  We just finished making the Doubletree cookies and I truly have no idea what's on the menu this week, but I guess I'd better figure it out soon.