Selective Palate

So I am basically writing to ask for help. My other half is taking me away for my 30th birthday this weekend. We are not going too far, Montreal, but I have never been or atleast not really. I remember stopping at a McDonalds when I was a kid and it was the best McDonald’s burger I remember ever having. So as you can imagine I am anticipating this trip very much. We are staying downtown and plan on going over to Old Montreal for the site seeing touristy stuff. But really what I am looking foward to is the FOOD! I have been reading so much about the food scene in Montreal and needless to say I am psyched. But I think I am reading too much. There are so many places I want to try yet I only have 4 days to do so. I NEED HELP!!! Where should I go? What should I eat? I promise I will take plenty of pictures and let you all know where we chose to go and fill you in on all the details. I just need your help deciding on all the fantastic places in what seems like a really cool (literally) city.

As promised here is the traditional Sunday dinner I prepared. Like most every other foodie out there I watch Top Chef, though this season is not my favorite, I finally did start to get into it. I like Fabio he seems like a nice guy and I bet his food is homey and comforting. So when he won a few weeks ago with a traditionally roasted chicken I wanted to try it out and see how it compares with my own.

The only thing I did different from Fabio’s recipe was I rubbed the outside of the bird with some olive oil. Everything else I did exactly how written.

First I had to increase the cooking time; my bird was a nice size roaster 3-4lbs. Then the skin did not crisp up like I would have liked it to so at the end I increased the oven temperature, but still could not crisp it up enough, I did not want to over cook the bird. Over all the bird had a nice flavor and was moist and juicy but to be honest both M and I thought it wasn’t as good as my normal roast chicken.

With the chicken I made oven roasted carrots tossed with fresh thyme, olive oil, salt and pepper and crispy oven “fried” potatoes seasoned with some rosemary, olive oil, salt and pepper.

The meal was easy and tasty but I do have to wonder what he did to win that 1! Maybe I got something wrong but I doubt I will try it again.

Bad blogger! I know I know I said I was going to tell you all about my unconventional valentines dinner and the traditional Sunday dinner I made. Then I up and never did. I am so sorry, life got a little in the way but I will work on that promise.

Ok to get back to it as promised my unconventional Valentine’s dinner!

We started off with a nice appetizer of Sundried Tomato Hummus with just a hint of anchovy.

This was my course. This is one of my favorite dishes. When iIam “playing” single this is usually my dinner with just some crisp pita chips; YUM!
This was so simple to make it took me no time at all.

Ingredients

1 can white beans or chick peas, drained and rinsed (I used white beans this time)
1 clove garlic mashed into a paste
1 anchovy fillet mashed into a paste
1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes reserve about a T. for top
2 T. tahini
1/4-1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, reserve about a T. for top
Salt and Pepper to taste
Fresh Parsley

Place first 5 ingredients (except what is reserved for garnish) in a food processor pulse to combine then with the processor running drizzle in the oil just until you have a nice creamy but still thick consistancy. Taste and add salt and pepper. Top with the reserved sundried tomatoes that have been cut into a jullian, a drizzle of olive oil, and some fresh chopped parsley. Serve with some toasted pita or just a spoon!

Next up was M’s dinner choice!

Yup thats right Buffalo Wings! This has actually been a tradition for us since our first valentines for good reason its one of his favorite foods!
This year I really didn’t want to drag out the fryer plus we have been trying to eat better. Instead I followed Alton Brown’s wing method. Its a bit time consuming but it works well. My times were different than his by an extra 30 minutes but overall I think this is a keeper. The wings actually do cook up pretty crispy, hold sauce well, and don’t make your house smell like a KFC kitchen! Plus you don’t have to do a hole hell of a lot but wait. While waiting for the wings we had cocktails and hummus, not a bad way to pass the time!

So there you have it my special valentines dinner.

Tomorrow (I promise!!!) I will post my Top Chef inspired traditional Sunday dinner.

I feel like I have so many things to blog about. I made this great soup, we had a wonderful yet unconventional valentines meal, and a traditional Sunday dinner, compliments of Top Chef! Since there is just so much time and attention span I will plit them up.

Today’s post is all about the soup. I love soup and M likes grilled cheese so I decided to do a grown up version for dinner one chilly, rainy night last week. I took inspiration from this recipe and paired it with a wonderful grilled cheese made with fresh mozzarella and basil leaves!

First the soup:

I started with these bueatiful Roma tomatoes.

I know it is not the season but I found these at my local grocery store and they were from a local hydroponic farmer. They smelled wonderfull. But as soon as the farmers market is back I will have to make this again.
anyway this is what I did…

Ingredients

For the Tomatoes
2 lbs roma tomatoes
olive oil
4 (or so) cloves of garlic, minced
Several sprigs fresh thyme
Salt and pepper

Halves the tomatoes and throw them in a bowl cover with about a 4 count of olive oil (since they were going to be roasting I used regular olive oil nothing fancy). After removing the leaves of the thyme from the branches add to the tomatoes with a heavy pinch of salt and pepper to taste. Mix thoroughly and spread out on a baking sheet. Roast in a 475 degree oven for about 30 minutes.

For the Soup
Ingredients

Roasted tomatoes
olive oil
1 small onion or 1/2 a large onion chopped fairly fine
1 cup chicken stock or veggie stock
1/4 cup dry red wine
2-3 T. tomato paste
1 T. fresh oregano
1 cup 1/2 & 1/2, heavy cream or milk (I used 1/2 & 1/2 and it was plenty rich)

Heat the oil and saute the onions until translucent. Scrape the tomatoes and everything on the pan into the oinions and mix well while adding the stock. Use a stick blender to puree the soup but leave it a little chunky (if you do not have a stick blender pour the stock and tomatoes in a processor and pulse till desired consistency then return to pot). Mix the paste and wine together and add to soup, stir well to incorporate. Add oregano and let simmer to develop flavors. When almost ready to serve, warm cream in microwave and whisk into soup.

To serve,

I loved the idea of the inspiration recipe, she had left over rice and added it to the soup, I too had leftover rice but I didn’t want to add that much of it to the soup, I still needed good dunkablity for my grilled cheeses! So I warmed up the rice and put about 1/3 cup in each bowl then ladled in the the soup. I topped it with thinly sliced basil and Parmesan cheese.

Along side I stuffed some multi-grain bread with fresh mozzarella and basil leaves. I grilled them in olive oil weighing them down with heavy cans. They came up perfect and crispy.

All in all a great raining night meal for 2!

Dinner for 2

That’s it for now; next time my nontraditional Valentine’s Dinner!

So I woke up this morning with the urge to bake. Since I don’t eat a lot of baked goods, or more accurately I shouldn’t eat a lot of baked goods I thought it would be nice if I baked up some nice treats for the guys and gals at M’s work place. Last time I did this I made buttery (yummy) scones you may remember. But in doing so I ended up leaving someone out since they are vegan. I did not want to do that again so I decided to try my hand at some vegan scones this morning.

I found a recipe online at Recipe Zaar and tweaked it a bit to my tastes. I ended up with Oatmeal Cranberry Scones. They were quite good. They were a little different that the moist, buttery scones I made before but they had a nice sweet taste and were just slightly crumbly, very good with coffee. For all the non-vegans I whipped up some orange honey butter to go along with them.

Here is what I did….

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups whole wheat pastery flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1 t. cinnamon
1 t. orange zest
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 cup dried sweetened cranberries
1 t. vanilla extract
1/3 cup almond milk

First mix all the dry ingredients until well combined then add in the shortening a little at a time until mixture begins to look crumbly. Stir in the oats and the cranberries. Then mix in the almond milk and extract just until a dough comes together. Turn out on a floured surface and roll to about 1/2 thickness (or so) and cut into, well whatever you like. Times I have used a glass for nice rounds, or you can cut them into squares and then wedges. In this case given that tomorrow is Valentines Day I cut them into heart shapes. ENJOY!

Happy Valentines Day All!

So before I realized that my internet was down I had this whole post planned. I was going to write about all the foods I made yesterday; from the perfect omelet I made for breakfast to the curry toasted pistachios I made for dinner. Yes, pistachios for dinner, I was flying solo. But anyway that all changed; sorry I hope you weren’t looking forward to it. Instead, I want to tell you all about the wonderful lunch I made just about an hour ago. I was very bored you see (NO INTERNET!!!) and I was feeling a little creative and well “noodlely”. I didn’t want heavy pasta but more like something lite, more asian. I looked in the fridge and grabbed a package of Shirataki Noodles, the tofu noodles. I rinsed the noodles thoroughly several times in cold water and plunged them in a rabidly boiling light dashi stock. Then I conjured up a sauce. I whisked together sesame oil, shoyu (soy sauce), mirn, rice wine vinegar, and garlic chili paste. Meanwhile I heated up a fry pan with a touch of sesame oil and regular veggie oil until quite hot; when the noodles were done I just transferred them from the dashi to the fry pan and let them fry for a about 30 seconds. I thinned out the sauce with a little of the dashi stock and then added 1/2 the mixture to the frying noodles and tossed them around. Fried for another minute or 2 turned off the heat and added thinly sliced green onions. I put the remainder of the sauce on the side for dipping. It was simple and wonderful, in fact I may make it again for dinner!

And to make sure I was getting in my veggies I had a small bowl of marinated kelp salad that I had picked up from an Asian Super Market a while back. It was very good indeed!

So lately it seems that everywhere I look people are making braised short ribs. I turned on the TV there is Ina braising away, hop on the internet and its a featured recipe, go out to eat and its a special! So when I saw them on sale at my local meat market I decided to give it a go. I read a few recipes and they all seemed pretty similar so I winged it when I got in the kitchen. Its really was not that hard to make, a little prep of what you have on hand and then in the oven it goes for several hours. I have to admit for my first try it was not perfect but thanks to M we were able to rectify that.

Ok so here is what is did…..

First I seasoned the ribs heavily with salt and cracked black pepper. Then I rendered some pork fat down (I used salt pork rinsed with a little vegetable oil, but bacon would have been great if I had had it on hand). When the fat was nice and hot I removed the crisp pork fat and laid the ribs in the pot in a single layer to sear. I seared on all sides about 10 minutes or so and removed to a plate. To the pot I added 1 onion chopped, 1-2 carrots diced, 3 stalks celery diced, 2 small leeks sliced and rinsed, 4 cloves garlic smashed, and about 1 cup quartered mushrooms. Sauteed until translucent. Added some fennel seed (about 1 T.) and dried rosemary (about 1 T.) then 1 T. tomato paste when all was incorporated I added a few glugs of balsamic vinegar then 2 cups of a heavy dry red wine. I let that all cook down a bit then added some fresh thyme sprigs and the ribs back to the pot and covered with water. I would have used stock but I was all out and really I don’t believe it would have mattered much; it makes a pretty rich sauce as it is. I covered the pot and transferred to a preheated 250° oven for 4 hours.

Now it smelled great and after 4 hours I was hungry and I thought “4 hours it has to be done!” It was “done” but not “done” if you know what I mean. But instead of putting it back in the oven I decided to listen to my stomach and took the ribs out of the pot and put the pot on the burner set to med/high to reduce the sauce and skim the fat. This took too long for me (again the stomach) so I added a mixture of cornstarch and water to thicken it. This made a nice gravy but not too thick. When I served it it was still not perfect, the meat was not tender enough and the gravy just not thick enough for us. So this is where M came in and saved the dish. He took the meat out and cut it up in big chunks added them back to the pot and put the pot on a medium flame covered for about 45 minutes. This second cooking made the dish! It was perfect, the meat was very tender and the gravy thick and hearty with all the flavors concentrated wonderfully. All it took was a little patience, which incidentally is not my strong suit. Well without further ado here is the finished product. Here it is served with rice, we also had buttered noodles, and mashed potatoes! Not really all at once, just that we didn’t know what we wanted (potatoes were the favorite with this!)

Well I had to do some major shopping they other day. I was out of just about everything not just my fridge staples but the pantry as well. So while at the store I filled up on canned beans, canned tomatoes, grains and rice. Not to mention tons of fresh veggies. I went shopping with a friend who was completely shocked at the amount of veggies I bought, asking (more than once) “Are you guys REALLY going to eat all that before it goes bad?” To which I replied “Absolutely!” But inside I did get to wondering, will I, am I getting too much? And so, it is my goal to finish all our veggies! Which brings us to last night. I was putting away some of the pantry stuff and I realized even though I had used up most of the rice, all the bulgar and couscous, I still had an almost full container of pearl barely. Instead of opening up a new grain I decided I have to use the barley and so came a great mediterranean salad/side dish/entree that I will make over and over again!

Doesn’t that look yummy and believe it or not its healthy too! I mixed in plenty of veggies and perfectly cooked barley with a nice lemony dressing. It can be a salad served at room temp or even cold or it can be served warm as a nice side dish, which is what I did and served it with a nice baked salmon fillet or serve it on its own as the main course, great for vegetarians. It takes about an hour to make and the longer it sits the better.

Here is the recipe:

1 med. eggplant (any variety) cut into small bite sized cubes

1 med-small zucchini cut into same size cubes

1 cup sliced scallions (greens and white parts)

1.5 cup pear barley

2.5 cups stock/water/mixture (I used about equal parts homemade chicken stock and water, you do what suits you)

2 teas. cumin

1 teas. coriander

1/4 teas (or to taste) cayenne

1-2 tomatoes de-seeded and cut into cubes

about a handful of roughly chopped kalamata olives or any brined olive will do

1/2 cup sliced red onion

1 cup chopped flat leaf parsley

salt/pepper

olive oil

For the dressing:

juice of 1 lemon

1 garlic clove minced

1/4 teas. sugar

3 count or so of good extra virgin olive oil

Start by preheating oven to 425. Start the barley by heating about 2 T. of olive oil in a 6qt. stock pot, when its hot but not smoking add the scallion, cumin, coriander and cayenne. Saute for about a minute til the scallions are soft and the spices fragrant, add the barely. Stir to coat each grain and let them toast up for a 1-2 minutes. Add the stock and bring to boil. Turn down the heat to a simmer and cover for about 30-40 minutes. I check in on it at 30 a test the pearls should be tender but not mushy.

Once you get the barley going I start the eggplant so that the finish at around the same time. Dress your cubed eggplant and zucchini in about 1-2 T. olive oil and a good pinch of salt and some crack black pepper. Spread veggies on an oiled baking tray and roast in the oven for about 25-30 minutes.

When both are done let them cool slightly. While they are still warm I assemble the salad so that the barely and warm veggies absorb all that good dressing. Mix the remaining ingredients (minus the dressing) in with the barley and veggies, stir well to combine.

Mix dressing together in a separate bowl and drizzle of barley mixture toss to coat. When ready to serve i like to sprinkle with course sea salt for an added zing of flavor.

You can serve immediately or let sit at room temp until ready to sever. You can even refrigerate and serve the next day! Serve as a main course, a warm side dish, a salad. It is very versatile and very yummy!

OK, so I am being very lazy today. Instead of posting some recipe I made or really anything to do with food I am posting a meme. Its just that I wanted to post and well I didn’t take a picture of the beautiful soup I made in 30 minutes last night for dinner. It really was good, a creamy more healthful version of cream of mushroom soup. Maybe I’ll make it again and post the pictures and the recipe. If you just can’t wait and don’t care about pictures just let me know and I will email it to you. But for now here we go!

Meme courtesy of Beth at So the Fish Said. If you don’t read her you totally should.

To play, answer the following five questions on your blog (or in the comments if you don’t have a blog). A link back to me so I can come read your answers would be awesome, that plus a note in the comments that you are doing it would be nice. When you post your answers, include the instructions that follow so you can then go interview your own readers.

The rules:

1. Leave me a comment saying you want to be interviewed, or just take these questions and answer them on your blog or if you don’t have a blog the comments here. (read #2)
2. I’ll email you five questions. (most likely the same questions here because if you haven’t guessed it I am that lazy today)
3. You update your blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You offer to interview someone else in the same post.(or just spread the meme like me).
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions. They will answer these questions.

Ok are we ready, do we all understand the rules? Put your hand down back there we are moving on!

1. Remember the movie Brewsters Millions? That happens to you, except on a smaller scale. You receive a million dollars that you must spend in 30 days. However, you cannot have any assets to show for the money at the end of the month (and you can’t buy something and then destroy it), you cannot waste the money, you cannot give it away, and you cannot tell anyone what you are doing. How do you ditch the dough in a month or less?

I would 1^st pay off mine and my fiancé’s student loans. What it’s not asset really! Then we would travel, travel, travel! When I say travel I don’t mean stay at the Motel 6, I would live it up and stay at exclusive hotels, the suites that only the really rich get to stay at. And eat, a lot, at every restaurant that I cannot afford now but would love to try. I think I would also throw in that wedding thing. I am sure I could put together a nice intimate wedding in no time flat!

2. You are locked in a toy store overnight, with no way out until it reopens in the morning. What do you play with all night?

EVERYTHING!!!!! Seriously, why not you have the whole night right? I would touch every stuffed animal because I am obsessed with things that are soft; I would play with trucks and dolls, video games, legos, erector sets, and yes the Easy bake ovens; probably just long enough to get bored with everything. I would read the books, dance on that piano (we are at FAO Schwartz right!) until I passed out.

3. If you could have a dinner party with any three famous people, living or dead, you would be wasting your supernatural powers on hosting dinner parties. What would you do instead?

This is a hard 1 for me. I know 2 definitely, I would like to hang out with Anthony Bourdain and Julia Childs, I think that would be fun. I have always suspected that Julia was a blast to party with. As for the third famous person I really don’t know there are so many to choose from, maybe Billy Joel would make a nice addition to the crowd. I know I should pick based on me solely but I have to think of the company too, I wouldn’t want to put people together that would hate each other or have absolutely nothing in common. That would just suck. As for what we would do, not sure. Though in this case a dinner party would not be a bad idea, I think more so we would go out on the town, which town, not sure but I am guessing where ever we went Tony would be a good guide, though I wouldn’t let Billy drive.

4. What’s the best thing since sliced bread? Now, sliced bread ain’t all that impressive, so what’s the best mediocre, hum-drum improvement or advancement that has made modern life just ever so slightly more convenient for humanity, along the lines of saving yourself five seconds every time you want a piece of bread.

Gee this one is tuff. I mean there are so many its hard to pick just 1. We are a gadget house big time. We have laptops, a mini computer hooked up to the TV, video game consoles, smart phones, not so smart phones. In the kitchen I am pretty basic, I don’t have the storage for the Jack Lalane Juicer but if I did.. oh never mind. Anyway, the number 1 convenience gadget….. besides my laptop which I am totally addicted to and yes it makes my life so very much more convenient but, since this IS a food blog after all so I think I would have to go with my stick blender. I use it for everything, and it has attachments that I use just as much. I whip that thing out at least once a day, usually several.

5. What’s your best quality? The response to this question must be a simple declarative statement. You may elaborate on that statement, provided that your elaboration does not include the words “but,” “however,” or “although,” or any other hedging, equivocating, back-sliding, gerrymandering (which is not at all appropriate in this context, but I think it should be, don’t you?) or any other type of backing down from the simple declarative statement with which you began your response.

I can learn. I am a good learner, and a fairly quick learner; I pick up on things pretty well. Plus I love to learn. Well that and I think I have great hair, nice eyes and good teeth but I don’t think that is what the question was going for.

Ok, now you! Don’t forget to link back so that I can go a read all your lovely answers! Have a Happy Wednesday.