Archive for the ‘Ingredients’ Category
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Memorial Day
May 27, 2013 Amy

Hello, Dear Readers:

Once again I have been OBE, or “overcome by events,” and it has been another two weeks since I wrote. My apologies. I have one started and in the can (the draft folder) about a foodie adventure I went on recently, and can’t wait to tell you all about it. But today, I have lots to share.

First, let me say that Memorial Day is to honor the fallen soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and Coast Guard members who work hard to protect our rights and our lives in the US. (It is not about a day off, or great deals on furniture, cars and carpeting.) Because of those who died protecting this country, I can bring you this silly foodie blog, along with countless other folks who blog about a myriad of subjects. Cooking. Sewing. Cats. Cars. Gardening. Ranching. Homesteading. Theater. Traveling. And yes, (gulp) politics. People in the US who blog about their interests utilize their First Amendment right of free speech, which you don’t necessarily get in other countries. Some have died for what they’ve written because they were not allowed the freedom to express it (and not always politics, either.) You name it, there’s a blog for it, and we in the US all owe a debt of gratitude for the men and women who have given all in defense of our country.

Also, people in Oklahoma are suffering, so if you can donate, please do; if not, at least keep them in your prayers. There are a number of organizations helping tornado survivors, including the Salvation Army, Mercy Chefs (they bring mobile kitchens to disaster sites and hand out hot food to affected people) and others. I like that–and when I get to it I’m planning to give Mercy Chefs some funds myself. I’ve done it before, and I know they’re legit; but if you have a preferred charity, by all means, the great state of Oklahoma needs some help now. Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman, also lists these organizations that are helping out.

It’s not always about Texas. Even when it is. Anyway. . .

So what have I been doing? Snoozing on the bus when I’m trying to read going either to downtown or home from it. I’m still hacking my way through a book, but while it’s a good book, and I need to re-read it now, I can’t help but doze off. Glad to have my little travel pillow stuffed in my commuter bag.

I’ve had a weekend where I should have been drinking but wasn’t (not for lack of alcohol), but today I’ve done some cooking and planted the HeatCageKitchen garden (that’s another blog post, with pictures.) I’ve done both flower planting in the front and veg/sunflower planting in the back, and I’ve even bought a Meyer lemon tree. Let’s see how that works out. Unfortunately, didn’t realize that Mr. Snail was inside my dirty gardening clogs that I just intended to rinse off (I wore my tennis shoes and socks to protect my feet.) I found him after I’d rinsed them with hot water in the bathtub, so I’m guessing when I tossed him back over the fence, it wasn’t to a new life, but to a burial plot. Sorry about that, but I don’t like snails much anyway, and no, I’ve never eaten escargot. Nor do I intend to, I don’t care if Giada de Laurentiis makes it for me.

This weekend I did some sewing, too, but didn’t get as much done as I wanted. Later in this post, I’ll give you the recipe for the official HeatCageKitchen yeast-free, gluten-free, dairy-free ultimate Breakfast Quiche. It’s got a lot of eggs in it. (And boy, do I need a shower.)

First, an update: I am thoroughly enjoying having a salad when I get home at night. Lettuce sealed in jars is a fantastic idea and I am happy to report that it’s well worth the small amount of trouble. I’m telling you, if salad is your thing like it is mine, you really gotta try sealing lettuce in the jar for yourself. It works perfectly, and the lettuce is totally delicious a week out. Don’t believe me? Check out this pic I took this morning:

The lettuce lasts all week!

The lettuce lasts all week!

Two heads of iceberg lettuce were chopped, rinsed, spun dry, packed into glass jars and sealed up with the Ziploc tool method. However, the two in the front were packed up 8 days ago. No kidding. Today is Monday, and those two front jars were packed a week ago yesterday. I ate one of them today with a huge tomato. Know what? It was STILL GOOD. Fresh and tasty, just like I packed them. I realize that a month down the road the lettuce might be a little funky, but for lettuce to last a week in the fridge like that, and perfectly crisp. . .yeah. I’m enjoying my salads. Heck, even plain iceberg lettuce with a bit of olive oil and salt is good, too–long as it’s not limp and brown.

This weekend I also put half a pork roast in the crock pot with some homemade BBQ sauce, (I bought a three pounder and cut it in half, froze the other part) and roasted two turkey thighs. I love turkey thighs; they taste so much better than breast meat, they’re available in most bigger grocery stores, and they’re usually a lot cheaper. Also made a batch of Five Minute Hummus. Just ’cause I could.

So. . .drum roll. . .I think I have created the perfect breakfast dish. The HeatCageKitchen Supreme Breakfast Quiche. It’s a hit! (It’s really good.) But first, a little background: I realized that my previous attempts were missing something: MEAT! I love sausage, but conventional sausage usually has sugar in it, so I leave it alone.

I was thumbing through Dr. Hotze’s Optimal Eating Plan looking for something else when I came across a recipe for homemade breakfast sausage. It calls for ground turkey, but I had some ground chicken I wanted to use for something, and it fit the bill. A little salt, a little pepper, a little fresh sage, and it’s pretty darn good. (I bought some fresh sage and planted some organic sage seeds so I’ll have it all year long. I hope it grows.) I cooked it like ground beef, crumbled in a big cast-iron skillet with all the ingredients, and then put it in the greased pie plate:

IMG_1993Topped that with a jar of chopped sun-dried tomatoes in oil, oh, yeah:

IMG_1995

I didn’t lose any this time.

Then beat the heck out of ten eggs with some almond milk poured in (maybe a quarter cup?) and a few shakes of Chipotle Tabasco. This type of Tabasco has some heat but doesn’t burn you; when you add a couple of shakes to eggs in this fashion, it gives a smoky flavor but no heat to speak of.

IMG_2000

I like this shot best because you don’t see the cat’s homeopathic allergy drops, which are sitting right behind the mixer. I did not add them, despite the formula’s alleged “bacon flavor.” That’s for the cat.

I beat the eggs to a nice little froth with my Suzy Homemak. . I mean, Suzanne Somers super-duper hand mixer. No, there is no milk, cream, cheese or other milk-based foods in this dish (and no tofu, either, forget that.)

My regular 4 cup measure was in the dishwasher (round 1 of 2) so I grabbed the seldom-used 8 cup, which I have for occasions that I need more room. Good choice, ’cause I could beat them eggs but good!

So then you just pour it over the sausage and tomato mixture and bake it at 350F until it’s done.

IMG_2001

I don’t know, you bake it until the knife comes out clean. I wasn’t paying attention. I had dishes to wash, you know. You time it and get back to me on it, OK?

I used the countertop oven. Why? Well, think about it–110v vs. 220v. In Houston. In summer. I use the countertop much more than the regular stove anyway. Because it works. I still have to clean it, though.

So after it’s baked, this is what you get:

IMG_2006

Oh, yeah. . .that’s what I’m talkin’ about. Not too rich, not too light, meaty but not heavy, with the wonderful tomato taste tossed in. Yeah. Oh, and I skipped that crust part. Got sick of it, actually, but I do like the golden flaxseed meal for other things, like that gluten-free sandwich wrap you make in the microwave. I need to make those again soon, they’re so delish.

So, there you have it–the perfect breakfast quiche. No gluten, no soy, no breading, no milk, and all real food. (Yes, sun-dried tomatoes in oil are real food. I can eat a whole jar.)

The recipes are as follows:

Breakfast Turkey Sausage (from The Yeast Connection Cookbook by Crook & Jones)

1 lb ground turkey (ground chicken also works well)

3/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 to 1/2 tsp black pepper

1/2 to 1 tsp dried sage or 10-12 fresh sage leaves, minced.

Mix all ingredients using a fork or food processor for less than a minute.

You can turn this mixture into patties, cook and freeze, or freeze raw.

For this quiche, however, after you mix the ingredients, put it into a large pan and brown as you would ground beef:

IMG_1990

HeatCageKitchen Breakfast quiche

One recipe Breakfast Turkey Sausage (above), browned

One jar sun-dried tomatoes in oil (chopped)

10 eggs, beaten with 2 shakes Chipotle Tabasco and 1/4 cup almond milk (if not doing yeast-free, milk of your choice.)

Layer the sausage in a greased pie plate, covering the bottom.

Layer the chopped sun-dried tomatoes on top

Pour the beaten eggs over the top and allow to settle. Bake in a 350F oven until a knife inserted into the quiche comes out without liquid eggs.

Enjoy!

Breakfast,Considered opinions,Fast & Easy,Ingredients
The Sunday Cooking Spree
April 28, 2013 Amy

Happy Sunday, fellow Foodies:

Boy, have I been busy today! I’ve been baking, I’ve been cooking, I’ve been washing. We had some good rain last night, and even had gravel-sized hail for a little while. I thought my neighbor’s lovable pug wanted to come in and get at the cat food again. Hoping for lots of basil so I can pack my freezer with pesto this year. Supposed to rain all week, so I’ll be extra careful on the short drive to and from the park and ride.

The dishwasher is running for the second time today, and while I put out garbage yesterday morning, I also had to put it out again a little while ago. I sewed most of the day yesterday, as well as made a pot of chili. I finished some handmade gifts and a little repair work, and will finish that shirt and suit next weekend. But before I tell you about today’s cooking spree, let me tell you about something fishy I read in the weekend edition of The Wall Street Journal. . . .

The European Seafood Exposition was recently held in Belgium, and, if I read it correctly, it is to current trends in seafood is what the Houston Metro Cooking & Entertaining Show is to food and cooking. I think. (I went in 2011 and had a blast; nearly everything I sampled was either chocolate, garlic or olive oil.) Fish wasn’t exactly on the menu at this conference, but other forms of “aquatic cuisine” were available. Craig Harrison of Britain’s Big Prawn Company have been trying to win the Prix d’Elite with all sorts of, um, temptations. Creations like Fresh Seaweed in Sea Water, Black Pudding with Squid Ink and spreadable algae were available to tempt (or test the strength of) the taste buds of judges in Belgium. Oh, and one piece de resistance from last year’s contest was called simply, Jelly Shots, consisting of alcoholic seafood jelly shots with a jumbo shrimp floating in a mojito jelly. Um, what? “Mr Harrison claims that British night-clubbers fell for the drink hook, line and sinker. ‘Unfortunately, it didn’t sway the judges.'”

NOOOOOO. You think????? Maybe it was the alcohol the night clubbers had BEFORE the Jelly Shots, which the judges didn’t have the benefit of?

Then there is the “oceanic greenery” they want to start calling “sea veg.” In other words, seaweed. And now, because “French beaches are strewn with it,” Christine Le Tennier of SAS Globe Export is harvesting and promoting “gourmet algae.”

Algae is what develops in your swimming pool when you forget to put the chlorine in it. “Gourmet algae” is like like “clean dirt.” You can have it.

Now look–I love shrimp, crab, crawfish, regular fish, and the occasional scallop as much as the next seafood fan. But I can sum this article up for you in one word.

EEEEEEEWWWWWWWWWW.

Reminded of the songs my brother has frequently written (or re-written) about my cooking, I sent him the column. Let’s see what comes back.

So, my goal is not to have to cook at all this week, except maybe for some breakfast, and I’ll think about that soon, too. My toaster oven has been baking nearly all day, and I have completed, since 8:00 am, the following:

Not included is a pot of chili made yesterday and a small spaghetti squash I roasted yesterday, all for lunch and dinner this week. Glad I finished the last of the Spicy Shrimp Marinara, too.

I’m thinking baked eggs and some kind of meat with it. I’ll think about it some more. Since the yeast-free diet is coming soon, I’ll have to think carefully, since so many things are verboten, like cheese, butter and milk.

Oh, and in order to make that meatloaf, I had to go out and get a few things: one carrot, some celery, and. . .tomato juice, which I have never bought in my life. But I do it, ’cause I don’t mess with the recipes the first time I make them. I didn’t go to my my HEB, or even Kroger. No, I went to our neighborhood Food Town. . .and if you are in Houston, you know what that is–local, and basic, No almond milk, gluten free anything or sugar snap peas, but lots of biscuits, pizza and ice cream. It’s close, so I went. I didn’t take a picture, but they had something called Tastykake Dreamies, which look suspiciously like. . . Twinkies!  No, I didn’t buy any, even though they were not expensive. But with all the hoopla surrounding the end and the new beginning of Twinkies, obviously it wasn’t long before someone got the idea to replicate them while they were away. Let’s see what happens when Twinkies begin to populate grocery and convenience store shelves again. Holy Shish Kebab.

Well, that’s the capitalist free market system, isn’t it? Give the customer what they want, customers vote with their dollars, and the best one will win. If the Dreamies taste as good, or better, than original Twinkies, then they’ll be the favored brand. If not, they will be bought once, and if they are found to be inferior, then, nobody will buy them and wait for the Twinkies. If the new Twinkies are bad, then the market is open for someone else to “build a better Twinkie.” It’s that simple.

Yes, in America, we take our junk food VERY seriously the way the French take their wine and escargot seriously. That’s what makes us a great country!!

Anyway. . . .

I had planned to utilize a crock pot today, but I never got around to it, so that’s one less thing to wash up. That’s OK, I’ve gone through some soap this weekend!

I started doing the weekly cooking/ironing on Sunday back when I was a student at Tulane and worked 40 hours a week. THEN I went to work for Tulane while I was a student, and made a salary, had regular employee health insurance, paid holidays, and eventually, an employee tuition waiver. I had to take Sundays for setting up for the week,  because I didn’t have time to get all that done in the morning, especially if I got home at 10:00 or 11:00 pm at night, which I did frequently. If I went to bed late one night, I didn’t get to catch up until Saturday. (Nobody seemed to understand that for a long time.)

Even though I’d mostly kept it up while I was unemployed, I still did some cooking during the week. Now, this may not work with large families, or even couples–but for me it works like a charm. If you’re thinking about how to make it work for you, a crock pot would work wonders, IMHO–but you gotta do what works for you. Freezer meals may be what you come up with, and a lot of people do it that way–either on the weekend or making “one extra” of something and stashing it in the freezer.

In any case, I highly recommend “cooking ahead,” especially if you are of the busy sort. If it’s just you and a spouse and y’all aren’t picky, well. . .but if you’ve got a schedule of any kind and not much time to cook, carving out a few hours and/or putting out that crock pot is essential.

And let’s face it–how nice is it to come home, take your shoes off, get comfy and heat up a home-cooked dinner?  Yeah, I Know, you can just buy frozen dinners . . .well, if you want to. Me, I’m gonna keep pushing the limits of my kitchen and having home cooked dinners ’til I can’t cook anymore. (Remember that Julia Child cooked after the age of 90, although she wasn’t make Boueof Bourignon anymore.)

Now onto the wardrobe setup for the week with our rainy, somewhat chilly Houston weather this week.

Happy Dining!

Considered opinions,Fast & Easy,Ingredients,New Trends,What's for Dinner?
Odds & ends and an update on the lettuce experiment
April 16, 2013 Amy

Good evening, Dear Readers:

First, please say a prayer for the city of Boston. They’ve suffered a horrible tragedy, and while I make snarky remarks from time to time, this is not one of them. Not when it comes to what happened yesterday–using an ordinary kitchen pot, no less. Please, keep them in your prayers, they need it right now. Thank you.

I’m a little late updating you, since the sink backed up in the HeatCageKitchen last weekend, and I’ve been trying to catch up ever since. Today, I headed to The Woodlands (suburb just north of Houston) for a doctor’s appointment, and am going back again tomorrow for a different reason–they couldn’t do two things in one day. A late lunch at the beloved Sweet Tomatoes, studiously avoiding anything like croutons, baked goods or anything with wheat in it, with an extra helping of that delicious Joan’s Broccoli Madness, (raw broccoli, raisins, chopped walnuts, bacon, sunflower seeds and a creamy garlic dressing, also gluten free) and it was a pretty good day!

Also in The Woodlands Mall is a wonderful little place called Oil & Vinegar. As you might imagine, they sell. . .oil and vinegar. However, this is NOT the stuff you get in the grocery store. No, this is extra virgin olive oil infused with things like rosemary, black and white truffles and blood oranges, as well as and a selection of vinegars with things like pomegranate, cranberry, strawberry and fig; the newest is cranberry. My favorites from here: lemon oil and raspberry balsamic vinegar; blended together, they taste amazing.

There are only 15 O&V stores in the USA, two in Texas (and one in New Orleans, surprisingly.)  The Woodlands Mall store is run by a very nice couple, Karla & Anton Kharoufeh, who have been open for 3 or 4 years to my knowledge (likely longer, I’m slow to catch these things.) They have a number of other small food items, herbs & spices, chocolate and other desserts as well as gourmet gifts supplementing the oils and vinegars in large containers lining the walls. O&V is a great place for a foodie to visit, and Miss Karla is always welcoming.

So I get to go back tomorrow, and will try to make it to Trader Joe’s, a grocery store well loved in the northwest. I’ve never been, and didn’t have time to go when I was in Seattle two years ago. Also want to see about visiting Frost Cupcakes for a gluten free chocolate cupcake. Or two. Dunno if I’m going back to Sweet Tomatoes; I’ll decide that tomorrow.

Also passed through a bookstore and flipped through Nigella Lawson’s new Italian-inspired book, Nigellissima. I’ll get it eventually, but today, I just looked through it. What did I find? Something gluten free! (There is actually a gluten free cake in her last book, Nigella Kitchen, Flourless Chocolate Lime Cake with Margarita Cream, on page 281, so it’s not her first.) Specifically, something called Olive Oil Chocolate Cake. Oh, I’m not waiting for my birthday for this one. Whenever I do acquire this book, that will be the *first* thing I make! Yes, there is the requisite chapter on pasta (Giada de Laurentiis wrote a whole book just on pasta) but there are other delicious looking recipes as well. Like that cake. Beautiful book in the classic Nigella style with an Italian flair. I’ll keep you posted.

OK, back to the original topic. Lettuce in a jar. This is a serious subject.

So I have one jar of lettuce left in the fridge now, and it is still sealed from last Thursday night. As I write this, it’s Tuesday, and so far, so good, for six days out. I had some twice this week using two of the jars of lettuce I sealed up. I am happy to report that the lettuce was perfectly crisp and tasty as it was when I sealed it up last week.  The remaining jar in the fridge looks to be the same, and I will likely finish it off this week, maybe wait until Thursday or even Friday. I don’t see any browning or limpness from outside the jar, and I anticipate that it will stay that way until I open it.

If by Thursday the lettuce is still as tasty and good as it was, I’ll soon be making lots more salads in jars for a week at a time.

Now, if you’re a bit skittish about putting the dressing in the bottom, especially if you’re going to be transporting it somewhere, there’s also a solution: Dressing To Go, a little silicone bottle with a tight-sealing lid that holds 2 ounces of salad dressing. I got one last summer, thinking I would need it for work. . .well, I still have it, anyway. Haven’t used it yet, but it’s a solution. I actually saw someone buying little bitty one-serving containers of bottled salad dressing in Target, and suggested the Dressing To Go bottle. Buy a regular or larger size bottle of your favorite, and use the little bottle to take it with you. MUCH cheaper than single-serving sizes! (Dunno if they actually did it or not.)

Sorry to be so short, but I’m tired, and have a long day tomorrow. Just wanted to give an update on the lettuce, and brag a bit about my adventure.

Next time I’ll tell you about the Zombie Outreach Response Team I saw today. . .later!

Considered opinions,Ingredients
Cappuccino and salad days
April 11, 2013 Amy

Hello, again, Dear Readers:

Here at HeatCageKitchen, we strive to bring you the hip new trends in cooking and kitchen stuff. Up-to-date tricks and of-the-moment trends that you just can’t live without whether you’re just starting to cook or have been in your kitchen for a long time. The goal is to bring you these new trends that you just need to know before your friends know.

“Try” being the operative word.

I’ve got an update on my cappuccino machine and a new idea that crossed my Facebook path that I’ve got to tell you about. If you haven’t heard about this already. Your friends will be amazed. Keep reading. . .

So, I was thinking that although it would be lovely to go out and buy a brand, spanking new cappuccino machine, the thrifty side of me says, no, it’s just the frothing part that doesn’t wanna work anymore. I have on occasion seen hand-held milk frothers in different places. This evening, for the project I’m about to tell you about, I headed to Cost Plus World Market and discovered that they have these little babies at $2.99 each. They run on 2 AA batteries (like nearly everything else I own, right?) and they froth up milk. They don’t HEAT milk, they only froth it up. Online, they sell them in a set of 3 for $8.97, but in the store they sell them individually. I bought the green one, the first one the clerk handed me. I headed to Target to get a big 20-pack of AA batteries.

You never know when the milk frother is going to go out. Or the TV remote. Or the flameless candles on my altar. Or some other little thing that uses batteries. I used to carry a Sony Walkman–yes, a cassette player, and later, one with a radio–in the pre-iPod days. And I can tell you that the batteries that lasted the longest were coppered, so that’s what I buy. And nobody paid me to say that. Anyway. . .

So I put some milk in a measuring cup and warmed it in the microwave, then used the handheld milk frother to froth up the milk. It worked perfectly, and for $2.99, I now have perfectly frothy milk again when I make cappuccino. Woo hoo!

Wal-Mart also had an electric milk frothing pitcher, but that one was $35. Very nice, of course, but that’s OK. I’ll continue to steam the milk and then use the little battery powered frothers. That’s perfectly OK with me!

OK. . .now. . .this is a most momentus thing I’ve discovered, and it’s cheap. I LOVE salad, and yes, iceberg lettuce as well as Romaine, butter and red-leaf lettuce, but it tends to go bad on me, even when I keep on it. I hate that, so as a result, I don’t buy it too often.

A solution has been found. I am testing this as I type this.

Lettuce stored in Mason jars, or “Salad In A Jar.”

Let me say first that this is NOT my own idea, but the brilliant idea of one Paula Rhodes, who has a website. . .Salad-In-A-Jar.com. No kidding. I came across the idea, as many, on Facebook. Such a simple idea, but you absolutely MUST seal the jar and get all the air out to prevent browning of the lettuce.

Naturally, this wonderful lady is in Arlington, in the great state of Texas. (I’m in Houston, I can say that.)

Another idea where I wish I’d thought of it, but. . .well, you know I’m not smart enough for that. (I went to college at night.) Well, I did figure out that Scrubbing Bubbles will clean your kitchen cabinets and other surfaces by melting off the dirt. That’s another blog post.

On my trek out I went first to Cost Plus World Market for the jars, which are $2.49 there. I also have a couple of jars that I kept after the Classico Tomato and Basil is gone. The process is the same for both types of jars, but there is an essential step that you must do. You MUST vacuum seal the jars and get all the air out.

I am not suggesting you get one of those expensive Food Saver sealing thingies, although if you have one, you have an advantage, there is an attachment for wide-mouth jars and a tube for this purpose. Maybe one day I’ll get me one, but for now, I just want cheap.

That’s the real secret of HeatCageKitchen. Livin’ on the edge (of the kitchen). Cheap.

So if you’ve ever seen those Ziploc vacuum seal bags, well, there’s a vacuum pump tool that comes in the starter kit, runs about $4 or $5. Well. . .the directions are to wash and spin-dry your lettuce, chop it, put it in the glass jar, put the lid(s) on it, put a small hole in the top with a pushpin, put a small piece of electrical tape over the hole (don’t seal it), and use the vacuum tube to pull the air out.

VOILA! Sealed up lettuce! (I think I messed up a total of four pushpins, but that’s what Staples is for.)

Best part–you can make salad for a whole week like this! Put the dressing in the bottom, and the lettuce on top, with heavier ingredients like hard boiled eggs, sliced tomatoes, etc, in the bottom. The picture is from Mayra Cavazos, and this what she posted on Facebook:

Utterly brilliant, people. Not only does SALAD IN A JAR save space in your fridge, it also reduces food waste and gets non-salad eaters (me) to mow down daily.
THE ARRANGEMENT
From BOTTOM to TOP:
Dressing
Shredded carrots
Cherry tomatoes
Sunflower seeds
Hard boiled eggs
Baby spinach
DIRECTIONS
1) Arrange ingredients in a large mason jar
2) Store in fridge for up to a week
3) When ready to eat: shake jar, place on a plate, and eat!

You can make any arrangement you want… you can add red onion, cucumbers, radishes or peppers. Always remember to put the dressing at the bottom and the lettuce at the top—a MUST.

****NOTE**** If your making a few salads at a time for the week, you MUST remember to vacuum seal the Mason Jars. (Mason jars can be bought at Wal-mart, and various grocery stores) They must be vacuum sealed to remain fresh and crisp 🙂 Here are two different ways to vacuum seal a mason jar 😀
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhb1gfVSB9Y
Non Foodsaver vacuum seal 🙂
http://www.youtube.com/

If you’re having trouble wrapping your brain around this idea, take a look at Mayra’s picture she posted on Facebook and see if it makes sense:

Salad In A Jar

Is that not the coolest idea ever? And it’s SO SIMPLE.

So in the HeatCage Test Kitchen (ha, ha) I have purchased said Ziploc vacuum tool at Wal-Mart, as well as jars and the milk frother at Cost Plus World Market, and lettuce (and a few other things) at Target. (I went to Target first, they didn’t have it, darnit.)  I have three sealed jars of lettuce in the fridge, right now, and am thoroughly excited about this.

Simple, using readily available modern conveniences. I love it, and am hoping for the best on my end, too. I’ll let you know what happens next.

Since I my life will be soon become very busy, this will be a great help for my weekly food prep. You see, since I was a full-time working student at Tulane University (1991-1996), I do all my weekly cooking and wardrobe prep on Sunday, so that I don’t have to do as much during the week. (The crock pot cooking helps a lot, too, especially if I didn’t get it all done in time.) When I was getting home late at night, that Sunday ritual was a lifesaver. If I missed one thing, my whole week was messed up. Bad.

Salad, much as I love it, hasn’t been a staple for me, since I don’t buy it as much, it turns brown so fast on me. I’m hoping this experiment will work. I do love salad, and hate throwing anything out.

You can read all about it at Paula Rhodes’ Salad In A Jar website, plus lots of other of her recipes and ideas. (You can bet I’m subscribing now!) You can also see her video on YouTube doing exactly what I described.

Cross your fingers. This is the best thing to cross my path in a long time. (OK, this week.)

If you try this, let me know how your experiment turned out.

Happy Dining!

Fast & Easy,Health & Wellness,Ingredients,New Trends,What's for Dinner?
Happy Easter, Passover, Bunny Day, and Sunday!
March 31, 2013 Amy

Hello, Dear Readers:

As I’ve said a few times, I’m a Buddhist, since 1986. Therefore, Easter, Passover, and most other holidays aren’t part of my individual faith. However. . .that doesn’t mean I ignore them, especially if there’s food involved. I mean, why? No need to be rude if someone offers you a macaroon or king cake or something. . . .

Is your church group doing something for Easter? Egg hunt, having an Easter Bunny on hand, or maybe some other kind of spring-related celebration? Bet you’re not having the Easter Bunny jump out of an airplane. Well, someone is. . .and it’s a man who teaches Navy SEALS to jump out of planes, in a bunny suit. I mean. . .that’s a manly man you do NOT argue with, OK? He can kick your butt wearing that bunny suit, and you will address him as “Sir.”

Anyway. . .

I grew up Catholic. Didn’t meet anyone Jewish until I went to college. At Loyola in New Orleans. What I know about kosher is what folks have told me over the years (and the bits I’ve seen on TV), like what kosher salt is really for. (Of course I use it–doesn’t everybody?) I’ve never been to a synagogue. The only reason I know about Rugelach is because they’re in Barefoot Contessa Parties on page 69.

I mean absolutely no disrespect to anyone who is Jewish. I am only proclaiming my lack of information about Judaism, particularly as it relates to the culinary arts. Nothing more, I promise!

Imagine my thoughts when I came across Raspberry Rugelach. I saw them in Central Market on Friday, and I *almost* got some, but. . .it had wheat flour in it. Raspberries in dough? Oh, yes. . .but are they kosher for Passover with flour in them?  I asked the lady next to me if she was Jewish. Well, if she was, then she would have known if the rugelach was kosher. But she wasn’t, and she didn’t. Maybe next year. The cream cheese threw me off–I thought to be kosher for Passover it couldn’t have flour. Maybe that’s Hannukah or Yom Kippur. Again, I’m the *last* person to ask about that sort of thing; I was just hoping for no flour.

In the same book on page 176: Apple Crostata, a delicious dessert that’s good any time of year. (It too has wheat, in the form of flour.) I’ve never had anyone turn it down. Me included. Hey–it’s for special occasions. I’ve taken it to Thanksgiving a couple of times, and to a birthday party once–there is rarely any left. I think a couple of years ago I had one slice left and gave it to my neighbor, who finished it off quickly and enjoyed it as much as everyone else did.

Now, Easter is also wonderful, because there are chocolate bunnies and chocolate eggs and chocolate, well, everywhere. YUM! And those chocolate eggs filled with peanut butter? I’ve craved those once or twice (but not in a while.) I’m trying to stay away from sugar/carbs as much as I can; but sometimes, only chocolate will do. Like this, for instance, found in Central Market on Monday:

Chocolate sold by the pound at Central Market

Chocolate sold by the pound at Central Market

YEAH, BABY!!

I don’t remember the brand, but I can tell you it’s fancy, possibly from France. This weighed at least 2 pounds and was nearly the size of a brick. This is not a candy bar. Well, not in the traditional sense, but it is for me. Trust me when I tell you I sent this picture to my neighbor, and I was SOOO tempted! this brick is about $10, if I remember correctly; might have been $15. She texted back, “Don’t.” I didn’t. But I thought about it real hard. That’s a lotta chocolate, and even Giada de Laurentiis would be hard pressed to resist.

If someone left that in my Easter basket, I’d be all over it. And I’d put it in a locked safe, too. IT’S MINE!!!

Now, a couple of years ago, I was on a business trip in Washington, DC. Yes, the nation’s capital. There were six of us–four from Houston, one from Florida, and one from California, a younger bloke we sort of tortured a bit. We were walking around somewhere and had dinner in a nice restaurant and dessert in a gelato shop. However, we passed a little shop I found out later was called Edibles Incredible, a DC favorite. I couldn’t resist a little more chocolate (I think I had sugar free), but I had to go back in when I saw this baby:

Peeps Sculpture, May 2011, Edibles Incredible, Washington, DC

Peeps Sculpture, May 2011, Edibles Incredible, Washington, DC

Yes, dear readers, those are hundreds, if not thousands, of marshmallow Peeps, in what one might call a “sculpture,” or as they called it, a “display.” Whatever you call it, that’s a lotta Peeps. OMG. I’m not a particular fan of them, but I HAD to take that picture.

It was absolutely gorgeous, and about 10 or 15 feet high. Heck, I didn’t measure it, but it was way taller than my five-foot-three frame. It was huge–and it was a little bitty store! I forget what kind of chocolates I bought, but it was just a couple, and of course, handmade and very delicious.

Speaking of Easter. . .my mother used to tell the story that her engagement ring was a true surprise hidden in a chocolate Easter bunny, and she nearly threw it away. Whoops. . .fortunately, somehow, a very expensive diamond ring (very 1950’s) was saved and the folks got married some time after that. They’ve been married something like 55 years now.

It’s been many years since I’ve had a chocolate Easter bunny, much less an Easter basket, but that’s OK. Sometimes when I’m having a day. . .only some chocolate will do, you know?

And on Monday, all the Easter candy goes on sale 50% off. The thrifty mother will have a secret freezer to stash them in so that the kids don’t know when she bought it. The chocoholic will simply go shopping and make himself or herself very happy.

I’m going to try and behave myself.

Happy Easter, Passover, and Happy Dining!

Considered opinions,Cookbooks,Desserts,Holidays,Ingredients,Special Occasions

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