Chocolate

I love chocolate.

Dark Chocolate.

And usually we have a Dagoba Bar in the home.  Or some delightful organic equivalent.

Tonight my little brother brought home some Hershey's Special Dark from Special K on his run to pick up some chaw.  

Have you tired that kind of stuff lately?

Gross!

Ginger Steamed Golden Sea Bass with Greens; Side of Roasted Lemon Verbena Potatoes

I have not had meat for about 4 weeks.  Fish seemed a reasonable route to see if I wanted it again and notice how I felt.

My little brother moved in from across the country yesterday and I have found myself in the position of "head chef" of my new 3 person household and this is what we made tonight.  

The men in my life love carbs. You could serve this dish with rice, but both Eric and Geordie love potatoes. Also, since this was an experiment, I knew that if it failed, at least they would be happy with the potatoes.   (If Marty Nation was cooking we could have had that amazing potato puree he used to make at the IRON PAN...oh! I miss those!)

Roasted Potatoes

1. Heat Oven to 400.
2. Scrub Little Red Potatoes (from Farmer's Market)
3. Thinly Slice
4. Toss with Favorite Olive Oil, crumbled Dried Lemon Verbena (from BD) and Freshly ground Pepper
5. Lay out on Baking Sheet in Single Layer
6. Bake for about 30 to 40 minutes until desired crispiness is achieved.

The Fish

1. Mince too much ginger.  Mince or smash 3 cloves or more if you prefer of garlic.  Wash and thinly slice 1/2 bunch of scallions all the way into the deep greens.
2. Wash greens.  Tonight we used a combo of dandelion greens and baby bok choy.  I was looking for mustard greens, but to no avail.  I left the stems whole.  (I might at some mustard seed to the dish to get this...but the wasabi served at the end pulled it together).
3. In a large Pan (I used a Crueset Enameled Cast Iron) heat toasted sesame oil.  When hot, add garlic and ginger and some red pepper flakes if desired.  Saute briefly until fragrant.  Add the greens, tamari soy sauce (or other favorite), rice wine vinegar and toss.  Cook until they start to wilt, about 3 minutes.  Lay fillets of Golden Sea Bass on top.  (I split the fillets into half pieces so they were smaller).  Shake a little extra soy sauce onto fish and rub in.  Sprinkle scallions on top.  Cover.  Set timer to 10 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, mix the wasabi powder with water as directed and let sit for 5 minutes to make Wasabi.
5. Meanwhile, pan toast whole slice almonds in a little olive oil.
6. When potatoes are done, remove.
7. Check Fish at 10 minutes.  Tonight I set the timer for 3 more minutes and that was PERFECT.  Moist, flaky and infused with the ginger flavor.
8. To serve, arrange potatoes on plate.  Scoop fish and greens next to potatoes.  Sprinkle with  little lemon zest.  (My brother does not like lemon zest and went for the juice instead).  Sprinkle with the roasted almonds.  Serve with wasabi and soy sauce.  
9. I think it would have been better to make a "sauce" of the wasabi and soy to dip the fish into....Next iteration to be revealed soon, I suppose.

Eggplant Tomato Custard

So i have been on an Ayurvedic cleanse for the last 4 weeks or so. Mostly I have been eating basmati rice cooked in ghee and Indian spices with a variety of vegetables, interspersed with kitchare.

Tonight was the first thing I cooked other than that. Inspired from a recipe from Deborah Madison's Green's Cookbook. I rarely cook eggplant. Eric cannot stand it. So I never buy it. But Steve gave me a CSA box the other day filled with it, so what's a dedicated local organic cook to do??

Also, I already had some tomato sauce made from roasted heirloom tomatoes with a little bit of garlic and lemon basil, so the dish was super easy.

1. If you do not already have tomato sauce made set the oven to 400. Core and half 3 to 5 heirloom tomatoes, depending on the size. Place Cut side up on baking sheet. Rub with Olive oil and grind fresh pepper. Roast for about 45 minutes, or until they look shiny and dry. Remove from oven and let cool a bit before handling.
2. In a large bowl, mash a clove or more of garlic, add tomatoes and mix. Rip up some of BD's amazing Lemon Basil and add to sauce. Add more olive oil and some balsamic vinegar.
3. Turn oven down to 350
4. Diagonally Slice up 2 or 3 your perfectly grown Japanese eggplant grown by Steve Sprinkle.
5. Heat some oil in pan and once hot, add the eggplant slices. Brown on both sides. Remove to a plate with paper towels to drain and cook remainder.
6. To assemble the gratin, spread some tomato sauce into the bottom of a pyrex or earthware dish. Tonight I used my 9" circular Pyrex dish cuz I was the only one eating it. (Again, eric hates eggplant). Layer with eggplant slices. Salt and Pepper. Grate some Gruyere cheese on top and scatter whole or sliced basil. Add another layer of eggplant, more cheese and more basil and then top off with tomato sauce.
7. To make the custard top, beat one egg with 1/2 cup of ricotta, a shy 1/3 cup of milk, grated Parmesan and saffron softened in hot water.
8. Pour custard on top of gratin and put in oven. I ended up baking it for about 50 minutes. Usually I set the oven for about 3/4 of the time I think it might take so I can check on it. Then add time. The custard top puffs, hardens and becomes a beautiful golden brown.

I ate it straight and liked it that way. To serve to a pal, might be nice to have a rocket citrus salad to compliment or to keep the heartiness, some rice would make it more dense.

Geeky Pan Article

NYT's Food Section had a nice geeky pan article worthy of Cook's Magazine.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/08/dining/08curi.html

Talks about Cast Iron, Nonstick, Metal Pans, Enameled Cast irons...the properties of butter vs. oil...all the good stuff...even clean up advice!

The thing is, we get so used to doing things a certain way and then someone reveals a tip. Problem is that its so hard to take the tip and CHANGE!

oh goodness. another tight spot. my pans!

Ayurvedic Cleanse

I am on a 21 day Ayurvedic Cleanse. Cleanse is the modern spiritual word for a "diet" and can be a dangerous hiding place for eating disorders. But the Ayurvedic method is pretty relaxed. You are still eating and the emphasis is on detoxing the mental and emotional layers as well as the digestive system through a sattvic diet and scheudle. The plan has you eating your biggest meal in the middle of the day and not eating after 6:00pm.

My main reason is that I am in the process of unraveling some old crusty and deep unconscious patterns and food and drink would be the natural escape route and rest place. So, in anticipation of that, I asked my pal Jackie Parker to put me on a cleanse.

For about 15 days I have been eating bowls of basmati rice with ghee, lots of Indian spices and a variety of approved vegetables that I can get at the farmer's market.

I make my meal in one pot. My favorite cutco pot left over from when I used to sell their knives door to door. I heat up the ghee, add mustard seed, whole cumin, whole corriander, whole fennel seed, some other spices Uschi brought back from India, Curry Powder or Garam Masala, Hing and Tumeric. Then a scoop of rice. I add sliced carrots or fennel or turnips. Letting the water come to a boil, I usually throw some green beans or sliced kale or other green on top. Cover with the lid and set timer for 10 minutes.

Cooking and Cleaning

I have always been the cook in our family, and Eric has always done the dishes.

Suddenly, due to unraveling of some deep patterns born totally out of resistance to my mother, I am willing and even compelled to do dishes.

And all of sudden, my cooking has become incredibly limited. The amount of dishes and mess I would produce was never taken into consideration when Eric was doing the dishes. Now that I am involved all the way through to the end, we have become a one pot, maybe 2, meal household.

But like the constraints of poetry, I am hoping that this efficiency gives birth to a whole new set of flavors and understanding. The test will be in entertaining.

Fresh Tomato Sauce

Late Summer Tomatoes Rule!

Tonight, we oven roasted a selection of local heirlooms and vine ripes from Steve's Farm.  

Mashed them up.  Added some basil from B.D.'s Farm, minced raw red onion from Steve's Farm, olive oil and balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper.

Maybe the best tomato sauce ever.

Added some browned turkey sausage and served with Strangled Priest Pasta topped with some fresh mozzarella.