Inspiration, enlightenment, and perseverance
Hello dear readers, we’ve got a lot of ground to cover today so get comfy, get a snack or a beverage if needed, and we’ll get started.
We’ve eaten the same meal two days in a row. It was just that good. I can only take credit for preparing it because the inspiration and recipes came from two fabulous food blogs, What We’re Eating and Chocolate & Zucchini. The snapper was the best fish I’ve ever made. I rubbed it down with a mix of garlic, canola oil, cumin, and smoked paprika and then cooked it in a really hot pan with just a bit of canola oil. But it was Amanda’s smooshy dressing/sauce (that is meant for the jicama salad) that really made the snapper pop. I didn’t have tamarind paste so I substituted a few dried berries, some fresh ginger, and a splash of white vinegar. I have no idea how the original tasted but this sauce/dressing was so tasty I could have eaten it with a spoon. Thank you so much Tyler and Amanda, we really enjoyed this.
I didn’t make the jicama salad because I already had beets ready for a salad and when I went to the market there was my favorite…mache! I had read Clotilde’s post about mache/beet salad earlier in the week and I was envious because of my lust for mache. You should have seen me at the market when I realized they had it…I was so thrilled, it was, well… rather embarrassing to be that excited about a leafy green. But that’s me, I’m an excitable girl. Anyway, I quickly recovered, bought two bags and knew we would happily munch on the same salad two days in a row. I didn’t use Clotilde’s dressing because of the aforementioned succulent sauce/dressing which enhanced the salad just as it did the fish. I added a few toasted pecans and we feasted like kings (as opposed to dining in hell)! Oh, and I can’t forget the tender and flavorful artichoke served with an espresso cup of melted butter and coarse French gray sea salt. Delightful and oh so decadent.
Now on to enlightenment…obviously there was nothing local about that meal (either time). In my last post I lamented the lack of Fair Trade bananas and Laura left a comment to let me know there is. When I was at Willy St. today I asked about them and sure enough…fair trade bananas were right in front of me. Thanks go out to Laura for sharing the knowledge. I love it when that happens.
Yes, I’m obsessive and yes, I did make strawberry scones again. This time I used Ina Garten’s recipe. They were denser and more toothsome and very close to the “ideal scone” that I’ve been questing for. Here’s the recipe. Jacob, I guess your going to have to start baking!
Strawberry Scones (I’ve lost count)
adapted from Ina Garten’s recipe
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
3/4 pound cold unsalted butter, diced
4 extra-large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup 1/2 n 1/2
12 large frozen strawberries, sliced
Preheat the oven to 400. Sift into your mixing bowl the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Add the butter and let the mixer work it until it has a coarse texture. Combine the eggs and 1/2 n 1/2 and add to the mixer. Mix it as little as possible to get it combined.
Turn it out onto a floured counter-top and work in the strawberries. Pat the dough out until it is 1 inch thick. Cut on the diagonal and place the scones parchment lined baking sheets. bake for about 20 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through (toothpick test works well). Drizzle with a powder sugar/OJ glaze (see previous posts on scones).
Whew…that’s it. We’re leaving Wednesday for London and while we’re traveling I’ll post photos and such so check back for that. Cheers!
Good, clean, and fair food.
I think this gratin was inspired by one of the food blogs I read… but I can’t remember which one. If you’ve posted on celeriac gratin in the past 30 days then I thank you for the inspiration.
I’m embarrassed to say that I’ve had these celeriacs in the refrigerator since last fall. But they seemed to have held up quite well. I sliced them thin using a mandoline and I layered them with onions and a single layer of crumbled French sheep’s milk feta. 
Then I topped them with strips of my canned Roma tomatoes and add some bread crumbs and some thyme. This was a definite two thumbs up from the GH and the leftovers heated up well in the microwave the next day.
Instead of using cream as the emulsifier I used tomato water. Tomato water is that really flavorful liquid that seeps out of the tomatoes after they’ve been processed in the canner. I’ve only encountered it with home-canned tomatoes and I used to believe that it was a nuisance, but I’ve since come to love it for its purity of flavor. It’s top note is very much of August…sunshine, heat, and that lovely fresh tomato smell. But it has an acidic note too that is quite useful in soups.
This meal was an almost local affair (the French cheese blew it…but it is so good). That brings me to my current thoughts on eating local. I’m a vigorous advocate of eating fresh and local. But I’m not (ever) going to give up my coffee, chocolate, bananas, and wine (have you tasted Wisconsin wine…I mean really, who are they trying to kid!). So that leaves me with the responsibility of making the best choices not only for me, but also the producer, and the planet. Fair-trade coffee and chocolate have helped to fill that gap. I wish there were fair-trade bananas but at least there are organic bananas, and wine has been the currency of the globe forever and given the nature of viticulture I think it is a rather self-policing (is this true…any ideas dear readers?).
I’m reading Slow Food’s compendium from Terra Madre 2006 and I’m struck by the eloquence of their philosophy:
“We believe that everyone has a fundamental right to pleasure and consequently the responsibility to protect the heritage of food, tradition and culture that make this pleasure possible. Our movement is founded upon this concept of eco-gastronomy – a recognition of the strong connections between plate and planet.
Slow Food is good, clean and fair food. We believe that the food we eat should taste good; that it should be produced in a clean way that does not harm the environment, animal welfare or our health; and that food producers should receive fair compensation for their work.
We consider ourselves co-producers, not consumers, because by being informed about how our food is produced and actively supporting those who produce it, we become a part of and a partner in the production process.”
Now that’s is a philosophy I can get behind.
Smokey-Spicy Spanish Soup with Dandelion Greens
Here’s another quick, easy, low-cal dinner that warmed us up on a chilly night. This time the big flavors were predominantly Spanish from a good dose of smoked Spanish paprika. I used dandelion greens but any green with a bit of a bite would do. GH and I could exist on this type of food all the time. There were no leftovers and we stayed on our lower calorie goal.
Smokey-Spicy Spanish Soup with Dandelion Greens
1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced
2 chicken/spinach sausages, diced
1 medium onion, diced
1 can chickpeas
1 bunch dandelion greens, chopped
1 cup frozen, chopped red and yellow bell peppers
3 roma tomatoes, diced
6 cloves garlic, chopped fine
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup tomato water or tomato juice
1 tablespoon smoked Spanish paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon chipotle powder
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt / pepper
Heat a 4 quart pot on a medium burner, add the olive oil and the onions and sautÄ— until it starts to brown. Add the chicken and sausage and sautÄ—. Add all the other ingredients and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to a simmer and let it cook for 15 minutes or until the greens are tender. Taste for salt/pepper and adjust accordingly. Serves 2-4
