Homemade Arepas: Take One
These were delicious, if extremely messy. The fillings were blueberry jam and mayo, chicken, and lettuce. I still have a bit of work to do to perfect it. I just used the instructions on the package, so I may have to try something more involved.
It’s Raining, Re-discovery of Soup: Progresso Split Pea with Ham
Walking into a grocery store, for me is a mix of exciting and overwhelming. So much food… so much food I can’t eat. One of the hardest things about a gluten and dairy free diet is my mind still defaults to the way I ate before. Back in those days I ate Beef & Barley and Chicken Noodle - both clearly a no go no. I’ve tried the organic chicken and rice noodle from whole food but, direct substitution is frequently only ever disappointing. I have found one of the best ways to adapt is to re-define various food experiences. Since we’ve got a rainy week here in the city, topic of the day: soup. In the soup aisle last night I learned that Progresso is now explicitly labeling some of their soups gluten free. Hooray! No random flour spoiling my meal! The website does an ok job with the “gluten free” subcategory but it is not exhaustive and most are cream based. I don’t remember liking split pea soup as a kid. I actually remember hating it. But, tastes change and I would like to say that I really liked this soup. Up next: chicken & rice.
Eating Well: Pea Pesto w/ Prosciutto Tartines
After reading the NYT article on Peter Kaminsky’s new book, “Culinary Intelligence: The Art of Eating Healthy (and Really Well),” I was inspired to buy prosciutto. We also had some leftover mint from a mojito excursion (thing a separate store for each ingredient and like 4 for the mint) and a quick foodgawker search led me to this crostini recipe (yes, again, now you know how I spend my work day). I was a little iffy on the translation but I remembered the amazing pea crostini I’d had at Giada de Laurentiis’s book signing two summers ago in my pre-food avoiding days. So I used the Pea Pest Crostini recipe from my signed copy of her “Giada at Home” book (of note, I was noticeably the youngest person there - excluding the babies and small children dragged along). My modifications were subbing nutritional yeast for Parmesan, under blending (I didn’t feel like whipping out the food processor when I was making a 1/3 recipe), and adding about 10 mint leaves. Served on gf df bread I’d found at the Union Square Greenmarket last week (you have to go early to get the gf baked goods) with prosciutto.
This brings me back to my point about Kaminsky. I got two bites into my second piece of toast and couldn’t finish… It was just too rich. I wished I’d saved that second half of the pea pesto for a wrap/sandwich later this week but I was total caught unaware. I felt SO FULL - a weird feeling for me. I guess that makes this recipe a huge success!
Note: Trader Joe’s German prosciutto, while good, is not at all the same as the Italian Prosciutto de Parma. Buy with caution.
Craving Fulfilled: Easy Thai Beef Salad
If I was really trying, I would have marinated the steak instead of cooking it immediately after buying it. However, recently spending as little time in my kitchen and using as few dishes as possible without going crazy has been the goal. However, sometimes I just crave something. Ok, a lot of the time, but rarely can it actually happen as easily as this one came together. Not all cravings are bad. I found this recipe for Thai Beef Salad found via foodgawker. Made as written pretty much minus the tomato, chili and coriander, and subbed GF tamari for soy sauce.
This one made another couple of good lunches. I just chopped the leftover steak into bite size cubes and heated up separately in our office microwave. For the avocado, I split one into thirds and drenched the leftover pieces in lime. At work I could just use a plastic knife and add to the salad when time to eat.
Also, the butcher at whole foods have me a .75 lb steak so I used 1/3 for orange + veggie stir fry one night (no picture). Just a note: I don’t recommend frozen snap peas… gag.
Food Blogging Fail: Spring Potato and Asparagus Pasta
I made this over a week ago and subsequently also ate the leftovers for two lunches… But if you excuse the delay this was pretty awesome improvisation on my part. I got excited at the Union Square Greenmarket and bought the season’s first asparagus (YESTERDAY I SAW STRAWBERRIES!). Clearly being back in the Northeast, I am growing impatient without California’s never ending growing season. So, I had asparagus and some red potatoes that needed to be used up. I was torn between a true spring pasta dish and something more comforting given we’ve had a lot of grey rainy days. So I did both, in one. Basically, I went to AllRecipes and made this recipe for Oven Roasted Red Potatoes and Asparagus then I made some pasta, baked a couple chicken thighs and squeezed half a lemon on each serving right before eating. It was very yummy, even microwaved again when the potatoes and asparagus lost the crispness they had on the first go.
People’s Pops, Brooklyn Flea
Our favorite thing about the warmer weather? Fresh & local fruit popsicles from People’s Pops.
so excited for summer! definitely going to the highline/chelsea market location soon
That is the deeper problem with all the deceit around the question of caramelized onions. The premise is wrong. The faster you try to do it, the more you waste your time. This isn’t some kitchen koan. It’s a practical fact. The 10-minute-cum-28-minute caramelized onion is all labor and anxiety. Give yourself 45 or 50 minutes to brown onions, working slowly on a moderate flame, and it’s an untaxing background activity. You can chop other vegetables, wash some pots, duck out to have a look at the ballgame on TV in the next room. Keep half an eye on the pan. It will only need close tending toward the end.Layers of Deceit By Tom Scocca, Slate
Not Just Another Stir Fry: Orange Chicken Stir Fry
While I was picking up a new bottle of San-J GF tamari, I spotted this product: GF San-J Orange Sauce. I had in fact planned on making my own orange beef/chicken this week but this was so much easier! Stir fry in oil then add the sauce and serve over rice. It was very subtly orange but super tasty. Granted, if I could have fruit incorporated into every meal I probably would. But anyway, less fussy than making my own orange sauce and an easy way to spice up some stir fry
