Soft Baked Pretzels: Pizza & Plain

Sometimes I outdo even myself.

Sometimes, for reasons known only to the universe, I crave pizza pretzels. My local overpriced grocery store makes and sells them, but they're not very good. Usually, they're just a bun in the shape of a pretzel (at least that's what the bread part tastes like), with some pizza sauce and some cheese not fully melted on the top. They do in a pinch - but just in a pinch. I have to be pretty desperate if I'm going to buy one from there.

About a year ago, I made soft pretzels using a recipe from Canadian Living. I was boiling water for bagels anyways, so I figured I'd do up some pretzels while I was at it. They turned out brilliantly, though I had some issues shaping them.

The other day, I really wanted a pizza pretzel, but because I'm trying to make more and buy less, and because I had some extra pizza sauce kicking around from the pizza night I had a few weeks ago, and I had some extra mozzarella from a lasagne I recently made, I thought I could make my own fantastic pizza pretzels just fine.

And so I did. I spent more time shaping them properly this time, and I only had enough sauce and cheese to do four of the eight pretzels pizza style, but still, I got excellent results.

I can't seem to find the pretzel recipe on the Canadian Living site to link to, so I'll repost the recipe here. It's from the October 2007 issue, though.

Soft Pretzels

1 tsp granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 pkg. dry yeast ( 2 1/4 tsp)
3 - 4 cups bread flour
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp baking soda

Topping

1 egg, beaten (optional)
2 tsp coarse salt

1. Combine sugar, salt yeast, and 3 cups of flour. Add water to make a sticky dough. Turn out onto floured surface and knead for 10 minutes or until smooth and elastic, adding more flour if necessary. I used my Kitchen Aid and developed the dough on speed 2 for about 6 - 8 minutes.

2. Place in a well-greased bowl, turning to grease all over, and cover with plastic wrap or a wet tea towel. Let rise until doubled in bulk.

3. Punch down the dough. Cut into 8 pieces. On a lightly floured surface, roll each piece into a 20" rope. Form into a circle, crossing the ends left over right above the circle 3" from the end. Pick ends up and cross left end over right again. Bring ends over and under to bottom of circle, overlapping by 1/4" to create a pretzel shape; press to seal. Place on parchment-lined baking pans. Cover and let rise for 15 minutes.

4. Add 2 tbsp baking soda to large, wide saucepan of boiling water. (I added 2 tbsp of honey, but this is optional.) Boil pretzels, 3 at a time, turning over once with slotted spoon, until puffed up and set - about 1 - 2 minutes. Transfer back to baking sheets and let cool slightly.

5. Brush with egg wash, if using. Sprinkle with coarse salt. Bake at 400F fro 25 - 30 minutes, rotating if necessary, until golden brown and bottoms sound hollow when tapped. Transfer to racks and cool.

As for the pizza toppings, I just brushed on some sauce and sprinkled on some mozzarella and cheddar cheeses. I didn't egg wash these ones, though I did for the plain.

The result: awesome. I took a couple hiking the next day and froze the rest so I'll have them around the next time I get a craving.

Garden Bounty: Eating Weeds

If you read my other blog at all, you may recall that a couple of months ago my small garden was overcome by a nasty weed. I had some issues identifying this weed, but thanks to my good blogfriend Karen, who took it upon herself to contact an Edmonton greenhouse, I was able to find out the name of the bane of my existence. It was portulaca, AKA common purslane.

After identification, all of a sudden all kinds of people were telling me how nutritious this plant is, with it's high Omega-3 content and other wonderful vitamins and minerals. My friend E, who comes from the southern US, said she remembers putting purslane on salads when she was a child. Another blogfriend of mine even found me a potato salad recipe containing purslane.

I didn't want to hear it! All I wanted was for the purslane to disappear from my life - and my garden! I hold it responsible for the death of my chives, the non-appearance of the onions I planted, and the removal of a couple of marigold plants! Not only that, it's herbicide resistant, and though I wouldn't want to use any nasty chemicals in my garden, I also got very sick and tired of picking this weed. With my gravely soil and the smallness of the plant, not to mention the fact that it was everywhere, it was a major pain in the ass. It made me bitter and resentful, and I eventually gave up the weeding and almost gave up the garden altogether.

And then, lo and behold, the weeding I had done appeared to have controlled the purslane somewhat. I went out after neglecting the garden for a week or two, and I saw that the patches I'd weeded were now portulaca-free. In some spots, I purposely let it grow where I knew it wouldn't harm an already robust plant (like my rosemary and beans, for instance). The other day, I saw that it actually has tiny yellow flowers.

Then, I see that the August 2008 issue of Gourmet has a recipe for Purslane and Parsley Salad. This made me do a double take. I don't know why, but it did. Now, I don't like tomatoes, cherry or otherwise, and you might have read about the lemon juice shortage. I also don't like parsley enough to have it make up the bulk of a salad, and I don't have 6 cups of purslane in my garden anymore (I should have harvested and bagged the stuff to sell at the farmers' market for God's sake - a great missed opportunity on my part!). So, in short, no I did not make this salad from Gourmet magazine. But, I did decide to get wild and crazy and go out and pick some of the purslane to see what it tastes like.

The exeperiment: purslane three ways.

1. Purslane plain. Crisp, juicy, but somewhat tart, kind of like an unripe berry. My purslane isn't very big, though. Perhaps if I let it get bigger, it might sweeten up a bit. But, I don't want it getting any bigger!

2. Purslane with dip. This was much better, but only because of the dip. It disguised any tartness. Like many veggies we see displayed on platters, they are merely a means of getting lovely, creamy dip into our mouths, right? Such was the case with this part of the experiment.

3. Purslane with freshly ground sea salt. Meh.

The verdict: I'm not about to start cultivating purslane/portulaca for culinary uses. In fact, I hope to eradicate it fully from my garden next year by laying down mulch when I put the garden to bed for the winter.

Coffee Chocolate Chip Muffins

I love it when I get a cookbook that leaves me wanting more and more. One such book was Beyond the Great Wall, which I reviewed here. From that book, I've become addicted to dumplings and a bit of a dumpling-making machine. Also, I love the Kazakh Family Loaf recipe, and have made it since the review. I plan on making the Green Tea Shortbread again soon, too. Another book I reviewed, Little Cakes from the Whimsical Bakehouse, has given me some great joy, too, particularly with their absolutely amazing blueberry muffin recipe. Today, I wanted to bake something sweet, for some quick gratification of my sugar cravings, but also to freeze for future sugar cravings. I am also going into squirrel mode and starting to stockpile and cook/bake stuff for the winter. The Coffee Chocolate Chip Muffins on page 56 were incredible when I made them for the book review, and so I decided to revisit the recipe again today.

Incidentally, I have four cookbooks coming to me this fall for reviewing, which I'm very much looking forward to. But, since I'm trying to cut down on possessions (moving 6 times in 2 years does that to you) I'm being much more ruthless about what I keep on my limited shelf space and what gets discarded. Cookbooks - though I am truly a cookbook junkie - are notoriously heavy and difficult to move around, so I'm trying my very best to only keep the best of the best, and those that make good reference books. I hope the stuff I get this fall will be shelf-worthy.

Anyways, onto the recipe.

Coffee Chocolate Chip Muffins, from Little Cakes from the Whimsical Bakehouse

Beat at high speed in a large bowl, until fluffy:
3 sticks/12oz/1.5 cups butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 brown sugar, packed
2 large eggs
5 tbsp instant espresso powder

Sift in:
4 cups all purpose flour
2 tbsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

At low speed, add until just combined:
1 cup milk
1 cup chocolate chips (I used 1 1/2 cups)

Scoop the batter into prepared muffin tins. Bake at 350F for 20 - 25 minutes or until tester inserted in centre comes out clean. You should get about 18 regular-sized muffins. I, however, do enjoy a smaller muffin, a mini muffin, so, I got 16 regular-sized muffins and a dozen minis. Perfect for two-bit occasions.

I cannot rave enough about how amazing these muffins are. They melt in your mouth, the balance of coffee and chocolate flavour is perfect, and the texture is so delicate and cakey you think you're eating a high-class cupcake.

And, just as a little extra bit of inspiration for you: this muffin, warmed up, served with vanilla ice cream & chocolate sauce...um...think about it! HEAVEN!

I also cannot say enough about having silicone muffin cups. If you can get your hands on a set, I highly recommend them. They are so easy to work with, are totally reusable, and are easy to keep clean.

Enjoy!

End of Summer Canning

When I moved back to the bosom of my family in July 2006, I discovered shortly thereafter that my SIL's family has a tradition of canning some of our summer bounty: pickles, salsa, jam, tomatoes, antipasto, and pasta sauce are amongst the items. My dad makes a day trip to the Okanagan, purchasing hundreds of pounds of produce that is fresh and relatively local, and one day at the end of August, my SIL, her mom, me, her friend, and whoever else might be interested, all get together to do the canning, splitting the jars and the costs among us depending on how much we take.

I have canned before. Shortly after I got married in 2002, I decided canning would be a great idea for some reason, and I organized a day with two other friends. I went to the Byward Market to get ingredients, bought a canner and jars from Zellers, and we spent a day making pickles and salsa. The pickles turned out OK but our salsa left a lot to be desired. It was OK, but we never canned again, and I left (for all intents & purposes, anyway) in Sept. 2004 to attend culinary school.

So, I was happy to see that my SIL's family canned, only they have a much bigger production - and a large outdoor propane burner that makes everything go super fast. I missed pickle day and I don't like antipasto, so I participated in tomato and salsa day.

Here is the salsa recipe we use, and this year we quadrupled it.

1/2 lb jalapeno peppers (10 -15 small)
8 cups chopped, peeled tomatoes
3 cups peppers, chopped
2 cups chopped onions
4 cloves garlic
1 bunch cilantro
1/2 cup vinegar
1 can tomato paste
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp salt
1 tsp oregano
2 tsp paprika

You can chop most of this stuff in a food processor, but it is important to peel the tomatoes, which means you put them into boiling water for a minute or so, then put them immediately into cold water. The skins should come off quite easily. Mix the salsa up in a vat! Bring to boil and boil for 5 minutes. Fill canning jars, wiping the rims clean. Process in a canner for 15 minutes. This is also a great fresh salsa to serve and keep in the fridge. During our canning day, we take out some before it's cooked and much on chips dipped in it, and it's so wonderfully fresh.

We never seem to have a shortage of jars, but my SIL has picked up many extras at the local thrift store for very cheap, so if you don't want to spend a lot of money, you might want to see if you can find second hand jars this way, and then you only have to buy new lids. Rings can be second hand or new. But, there is a difference between a good lid and an el-cheapo lid, which we learned the hard way. Bernardin brand jars and lids are always reliable and we've never had a problem with them sealing properly. However, this year, we also used some cheaper lids, and many of them buckled after processing, which means they didn't seal properly. So, just to let you know: don't use Home Discovery Cinch Seal Lids. Also, last year, someone brought non-Bernardin jars, and we found that the bottoms fell out of some of them when removed from the canner! Very ungood.

As for the tomatoes we did this year, that was very easy. Again, we peeled them, but as they were romas, no chopping was necessary. Just fill the jars and press down on the tomatoes so that there are no air pockets. We did have lots of peppers and garlic left over, so we chopped up the peppers and added them to some of the jars, and we added two cloves of garlic to each jar. Also, one heaping teaspoon of coarse salt, and we were on our way. I think these were processed in the canner for 15 or so minutes, too.



I came home with 12 jars of tomatoes and five jars of salsa (I don't go through as much salsa as some people in my family do), and a great time was had by all. It's a lot of work, but it's so worth it in the winter months when you can just go down into the basement and find yourself a home-canned jar of something from the summer. I'm looking forward to making soups and pasta sauces with my tomatoes, and having various Mexican-ish dishes with my salsa, not to mention chips!

Cookie Time

I live on a small income and can't afford to buy presents most of the time, as one would for a birthday celebration or similar, but I can afford to bake cookies. Sunday Aug. 17 was a bittersweet day. Sweet because I got to go to the lake and swim and refresh my body from the horrible heat wave we'd been having. Bitter because it was the last time I'll see my brother and SIL for a long time as they're moving way across the country. They set out the next day to drive from BC to Nova Scotia, and they needed snacks. Both of them love cookies (who doesn't?) so I made them a huge whack to take with them for their trip.

I made three kinds: Farmland Flax (recipe here), Mint Chocolate Chocolate Chip, and Applesauce Raisin Chews. The latter two came from one of my favourite cookbooks, The Cookie Bible. I've made lots of recipes from this book and they've all turned out wonderfully. Also, since I do mail cookies every so often, this book has really good advice on how to send cookies via the post. If you can get a copy of it, I highly recommend it.

As for the cookies...

Applesauce Raisin Chews (not pictured...I forgot and then it was too late), page 80 of The Cookie Bible

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup applesauce
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups oats
1 cup raisins

Oven: 350F. Cream, beat, fold, scoop etc. You know the drill. Bake 12 - 15 minutes.

Mint Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies
This recipe is an adaptation of the Double Chocolate Cranberry Chunkies recipe on page 56, a recipe I make often to give as gifts, however, I haven't any cranberries on hand so I winged it - with excellent results.

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup white granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups chocolate chips
1 tsp pure peppermint extract

Oven: 350F. Cream, beat, fold, scoop. Etc. Etc. Bake 10 - 12 minutes. It is best to underbake these ones slightly so they come out fudgey. Be sure your oven is no hotter than 350F because otherwise your chocolate chips will burn.

Mailing cookies is quite easy. What I recommend is using a metal cookie tin, and I find mine for 25 cents at my local thrift store. You'll need something really sturdy for the mail and I'm afraid that most cardboard might not cut it. Once you have your tin, line it with paper towel or tissue paper. Then wrap the cookies tightly in saran wrap in groups of 3 or 4, depending on their size and the tin's size, making sure to keep different types of cookies separate (some ingredients will impart or soak up other flavours of other cookies). Pack the cookies in tightly, using more paper towel or tissue paper to plug any big gaps. Wrap the tin in bubble wrap, then put the whole thing in whatever you plan on mailing it in. Mark the package FRAGILE or have the post office people put on "fragile" stickers. If possible, freeze the cookies between baking and mailing, and if you have a few days between packing them in the tin and mailing, stick the tin in the freezer. This helps keep the cookies fresh and gives them as good a start as possible on their journey.

Chocolate Covered Bacon: So Right, or So Wrong?

I found this article on Yahoo! this weekend. I couldn't help but feel that the picture in the article (different from the picture here, which came from the NY Times) made the idea seem extremely unappetizing.

I don't know. I'd have to try it before coming to a conclusion, but I would definitely give it a sporting chance.

What do you think? Yay or nay?

100 Desserts

Just for fun...I enjoyed the Omnivore's 100 so much. I have tried to include some more obscure stuff, and although I did some research here, most of these come from my own travels and experience.

1. Bold what you've tried.
2. * What you've made.
3. Cross out what you wouldn't like.
4. Italicize something you've tried but didn't like.

1. Baklava*
2. Chocolate Cake*
3. Blueberry Pie*
4. Real Italian Gelato
5. Dessert Pizza
6. Lemon Meringue Pie*
7. Rice Pudding*
8. Spotted Dick
9. Amaretti
10. Jello Chocolate Pudding
12. Spumoni
13. Angel Food Cake
14. Creme Brulee*
15. Deep Fried Ice Cream
16. Chocolate Fondue
17. New York Cheesecake*
18. Fruit Crumble or Crisp*
19. Sacher Torte*
20. Jam Roly Poly
21. Crepes Suzette*
22. Quark Cake
23. Maple Sugar Pie
24. Key Lime Pie (the real stuff!)
25. Bananas Foster
26. Creme Caramel
27. Oeufs a la Neige
28. Baked Alaska*
29. Gingerbread*
30. Blancmange
31. Linzer Tart*
32. Carrot Cake*
33. Steamed Pudding
34. Nanaimo Bar*
35. Flan (the South American kind)
36. Sernik
37. Pastel de Nata
38. Wagashi
39. Marzipan
40. Dulce de Leche
41. Gulab Jamun
42. Tiramisu
43. Moroccan Date Cake
44. Black Forest Cake*
45. Scottish Shortbread*
46. Halva
47. Clafuti
48. Pumpkin Pie*
49. Gajar Halwa
50. Plum Pudding
51. Pflaumenkuchen
52. Makroud el Louse
53. Eclairs*
54. Palmier*
55. Financier
56. Napoleons*
57. Pastel de Tres Leches
58. Wagon Wheel
59. Treacle Tart
60. Date Squares
61. Eve's Pudding
62. Pears Poached in Red Wine
63. Snickerdoodles*
64. Churros
65. Artisan Cheese Platter
66. Caramel Apple
67. Sex in a Pan
68. Devil's Food Cake
69. Red Velvet Cake
70. Mousse*
71. Chocolate Dipped Strawberry*
72. Coconut Cream Pie
73. Semifreddo
74. Granita*
75. Tortoni
76. Sticky Toffee Pudding
77. Peanut Buster Parfait
78. Zucchini Cake
79. Cannoli
80. Mont Blanc
81. Haupia
82. Eight Precious Pudding
83. Trifle*
84. Popcorn Balls*
85. Ambrosia
86. dessert soup
87. Pasha
88. Berry Fool
89. Sweet Potato Pie
90. Bread Pudding
91. Raisin Pie
92. Strawberry Shortcake*
93. Apple Duff
94. Fruit Cake
95. Pineapple Upside Down Cake
96. Waffle Cone
97. Mango Sorbet
98. Truffles*
99. Cherries Jubilee
100. Rice Crispy Square*

Garden Bounty: Lettuce Surprises

One of the things I was looking forward to this summer was my lettuce crop. I planted two rows of romaine, and they were among the first plants to sprout up out of the ground. But, they were also, therefore, among the seedlings at most risk during our June snow/monsoons and general late growing season. For a week in June, I was covering my lettuce plants with cardboard so that frost/snow/hail didn't kill them off.

Well, they survived! The plants didn't get too big, though, in comparison to the heads of romaine you see in the grocery store. But, who cares? Size isn't everything, right? Right?

I don't know. What I do know is that lettuce at my local overpriced grocery store goes for between 89 - 99 cents per head, and for the last two summers, the lettuce available in the stores has been crappy - really crappy. Brown-edged, buggy, slimy, and without much shelf life. Last week at work, when I was washing the lettuce for the next day's sandwiches, I had to throw quite a bit of our three heads of leaf lettuce away because it was in such rough shape. And it wasn't just at the local overpriced place; everywhere seems to have icky lettuce this year. I have also noticed that other produce has been looking iffy as well. I couldn't find a decent potato two weeks ago locally, but did find a couple that were OK at Save-On Foods, which is in Nelson, and hour away from here. Cabbage has looked off, as have peppers. Many of the apples at my local place also have appeared on the sketchy side. I don't know what is going on, but it's pretty bad. I was hoping to have beautiful lettuce that I didn't have to pay for.

I got more than I was bargaining for.

The big thing I haven't liked about gardening is the bugs. I'm not an insect fan. I planted marigolds in hopes of warding off some of the nasty beasties, but to no avail. My lettuce has been crawling with ants, wasps, earwigs, spiders, beetles, and God only knows what else. Someone - I have no idea who - laid some eggs. I was not happy to see this, and needless to say, I got rid of this leaf immediately and checked all other leaves extremely closely so that I wouldn't be ingesting any extra protein. This was lettuce surprise number 1.

Number 2 was the fact that when I went to cut off the leaves from the plant, a milky white substance oozed forth from where the stems attached to the rest of the plant. It looked like dandelion milk. When I think of dandelion milk, I also think ew, because...well, just because. So, when I saw romaine milk, I was all of a sudden put off my own lettuce.

Surprise number 3 was pleasant: lettuce regenerates itself after you cut the leaves from the plant. I had no idea this would happen. Who'd've thunk it? Certainly not I. I was just expecting to have a finite amount of romaine and I was fine with that. It looks, however, that I'll have more than I know what to do with.

Finally, the verdict. I made my favourite lettuce dish, Caesar Salad. I used Renee's light Caesar dressing, some organic croutons I bought cross border shopping the other week, and some parmeasan from the local overpriced grocery store. I made sure my lettuce was extra squeeky clean and free of unwanted reproductive deposits.

Unfortunately, I didn't like it. It was tough and bitter and I nearly cried because I was so looking forward to it! I could barely chew it. Now, I'll have to pawn off my lettuce to anyone unsuspecting enough to take it from me. I don't know if the newer, regenerated stuff will be better, but man...What I had just wasn't good.

Am I back to grocery store lettuce? I'm not sure yet. I just know that if I plant a garden again next year (still undecided on that front) I will try another variety of this veggie.

Anadama Bread

Sometimes we have to branch out, right?

I needed bread, and it's cooled off considerably in the past few days, so I thought I'd make myself a loaf. Previously, I have made Anadama Bread, and posted about it here. Coincidentally, that was almost exactly two years ago...I wonder where this impulse came from, eh?

Anyways, I searched around on the net for a new Anadama recipe and came up with this one here. It involved way more molasses and it also required cooking up a cornmeal mush mixture, rather than just adding cornmeal raw to the flour mixture. I was game, so away I went.

When I was kneading the dough in my mixer, though, I thought it was a little dark. In fact, it looked a lot like gingerbread. But I plowed on!

Well, all I can say is this: I probably would have enjoyed gingerbread a whole lot more. This loaf was way too molasses-y and the taste was really intense. I like molasses well enough, but not this much. It was nearly unpalatable for me. I was hugely disappointed! The texture was great, however. I called my dad up to see if he would like the loaf, as he's much more into...um...robustly flavoured bread.

Ah well. Not everything we make is a raging success, right?

During my research on Anadama Bread, I came across this site, which has a page telling the "real and authentic" story about the invention of this loaf.

Who knows? I just know I'm going back to my old tried and true recipe.

Blueberry Apple Crumble

Yes, another berry post!

My local overpriced grocery store recently had blueberries on sale (Fraser Valley-grown, I believe, so, though not local, they are at least from the same province), 4lbs for $9.99. Out of this, I got 11.5 cups of berries that I promptly froze. In June, I bought frozen blueberries from a huge big-box store that is extremely evil but also the cheapest place around for many grocery items. I wanted to use the frozen ones up before baking with the newer berries. Last weekend, I had a family dinner to attend, and since my family and its extensions all love blueberries and I needed enough for 12 people, I made a blueberry crumble. I also had some apples kicking around, so I added them for good measure.

For the filling, I used:

5 cups of blueberries and about 1.5 cups of sliced apples
2.5 tbsp cornstarch
juice of 1 lemon
2/3 cup sugar

For the topping:

1 1/3 cups oatmeal
1 1/3 cups whole wheat flour
2/3 cups brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup butter

Bake @ 350F for 40 - 50 minutes, or until golden and fruit is bubbling.

Now, I must admit this wasn't the greatest berry crumble I've ever made, and I think this had to do with the difference in quality in the frozen berries versus the berries I bought at the local overpriced grocery store. The crumble was a tad bland, and although I cut down on the sugar considerably because some people in the family are watching waistlines, one person had a fine enough palate to tell me that some of the berries seemed sweeter than others. Ah-ha! I can only imagine which berries were sweeter.

I learned, that for those of us who love to bake yet are on small budgets, buying fresh berries in season and freezing them is far cheaper than buying pre-frozen berries out of season. A good lesson.

Incidentally, I have no pictures of the dessert served up because we had dinner at the lake and it was dark out and busy and I just couldn't get it done properly.

Quinoa with Black Beans

Quinoa has become one of my new favourite things. As versatile as rice with a high nutritional value, it's now a staple in my pantry. I came across this recipe in the September 2008 issue of Bon Appetit, and I had everything on hand, so I made it for dinner the other night.

This dish is beautiful in its simplicity, and not only is it healthy, vegetarian (and easily made vegan), high in fibre and tasty, it's also a one-pot meal - something that comes in very handy quite frequently. I used crumbled feta cheese on mine, and the saltiness this addes made for a very well-rounded flavour.

Quinoa with Black Beans & Cilantro

1 tbsp veg. oil
2 cups chopped white onions
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 cup quinoa
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups water (I used chicken stock I had kicking around)
1 can (15oz) black beans, rinsed & drained
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Crumbled Cotija Cheese or feta cheese, optional

Heat oil in heavy medium sauce pan, over medium high heat. Add onion and pepper and saute until they begin to soften. Stir in the next four ingredients. Add water; bring to boil. Cover; reduce heat to medium low and simmer until quinoa is almost tender - about 14 minutes. Add beans and 1/4 cup of the cilantro; cook uncovered until heated through and liquid is fully absorbed, about 3 minutes. Transfer to bowl and sprinkle with remaining cilantro, and, if using, the cheese.

I found this is great not only hot out of the pot, but cold the next day. Enjoy!

The Omnivore's 100

I got this from Jen, the Leftover Queen, and it was originally posted here.

Here’s what to do:

1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.

The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi (I had to look this up; here's what I found)
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses (again, I had to look this up; it's a cheese)
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn or Head Cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper (I'm not a fan of anything this spicy)
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam Chowder in Soudough Bowl (though I have had lots of clam chowder and I have had other soups in sourdough bowls)
33. Salted Lassi
34. Sauerkraut (this is disgusting!)
35. Root beer float (I hate root beer)
36. Cognac
37. Clotted Cream Tea (one of my favourite things!)
38. Vodka Jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth $120 or more (whiskey gives me nasty acid reflux)
46. Fugu (AKA pufferfish)
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV (I hate beer)
59. Poutine (YUCKY!!)
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads (blech, and I'm not a fan of organ meats)
63. kaolin (what? why?)
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings (ew! no!)
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost or brunost (I had this in Norway and didn't like it at all)
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang Souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom Yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. 3 Michelin Star Tasting Menu
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose Harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole Poblano
96. Bagel and Lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee (sorry, don't drink coffee)
100. Snake

A Shortage of Lemons

While cruising the aisles of my local overpriced grocery store the other day, I happened to notice that they were out of lemon juice. Plenty of lime juice, but no lemon. I didn't really think much of it at the time because, let's face it, grocery stores run out of stuff - it happens. I didn't need lemon juice, and usually, if I do need it, I buy a fresh lemon. But, at this particular grocery store, lemons are about 79 cents each, so I really have to want lemons if I'm going to spend that kind of money.

On the way out to the lake last weekend, my SIL was telling me that she and her mother, who run a catering business on top of their day jobs, were having a really hard time finding lemons and lemon juice. At Save-On Foods, they found a few lemons, but they were exorbitantly priced at 99 cents each. Lemon juice was also in short supply and they got the last bottle in the store.

Way back in the mists of time (which in this case was probably a couple of weeks ago), I do recall hearing about a citrus shortage of some kind, but had it in my mind that it had more to do with grapefruit, which I regularly buy on sale, but I have noted that there haven't been any on sale lately.

My roommate, J, works at the local overpriced grocery store part time, and I asked her what she knew of this lemon thing tonight as she baked huckleberry cornmeal muffins. She confirmed that there is a lemon shortage.

Lo and behold, the CBC has an article posted about this very issue.

But...I was in the States last week cross-border shopping. I cannot bring fresh produce over the border (nor, as it turns out, can I bring beef-flavoured cat food into Canada from the USA, but 5kg of beef for human consumption is just dandy) so I don't normally bother to look at the produce on offer. I did this time, though, and saw that lucky Americans can purchase a 2lb bag of lemons for $3.99 - and there were plenty of 2lb bags available! I am lime green with envy! (Limes, it appears, by the way, are not in short supply.)

The facts, as much as I can suss out:

• 25% decrease in global lemon supply causes widespread lemon juice shortage
• Freeze, wind and drought responsible for drastically reduced lemon yields
• Despite shortage, experts claim supply should return to normal in 2009

[source]

The CBC story quotes someone from the Canadian Grocery Council, saying that lemon juice stocks should be replenished by the end of this month, though it does specify "large grocery stores."

Hm. I hope I'm not SOL for long!

In the meantime, A) I wonder why oranges are still readily available to me, B) I guess I should pay more attention to the 100 mile thing, and C) I hope I don't get a lemon craving anytime soon!

Huckleberry Pie

This year, according to everyone, has been an excellent year for huckleberries in the area. Probably because of the late spring and even later summer we had. My brother likes to pick huckleberries and has his own special little patch he won't even share with me. My roommate, J, and her mom are also huge huckleberry pickers, and many an evening this summer, they have gone to their special patches and come home utterly laden with berries. J has about 20+ cups of huckleberries stored away in the freezer, as a matter of fact, and Saturday she decided to make some pies.

She got up at 5:30 to do this, because, in case you didn't know, it's bloody ridiculously HOT here right now, and baking is the last thing anyone - including me - really wants to do right now. Since it's cooler first thing in the morning and J is a morning person to begin with, she got up at the crack of dawn to bake these pies, and I got a piece for breakfast.

This filling recipe is courtesy J's mom, and I have J's permission to publish it here. I do not have permission to publish the location of their berry patch - not that I know where it is anyways!

Berry Pie Filling

1 beaten egg
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 tbsp flour
2 tbsp lemon juice
4 cups berries

pastry for double-crusted 8" pie

Combine the first 4 ingredients, then fold in the berries. Put berries in pie shell and dot with butter. Put top crust on pie. Bake @ 450F for 15 minutes, then reduce the oven to 350F and bake for an additional 35 - 45 minutes. J made a good call and baked the pies on a baking sheet because the filling can boil over and spill onto the floor of the oven, so I'd recommend doing this, too. I generally do that when making a fruit-filled pie.

The result: excellent! The initial poof of the hot oven helps make the crust nice and flakey, and the filling was delicious - tart and sweet at the same time.

I guess I should go out into the bush and find my own huckleberry patch, eh?

Russian Borscht

Not too long ago, I wrote about Russian Lasagne, a dish we regularly serve at work. I said in that post that I cannot give out the recipe because my boss would not be too happy with me, and I mentioned also that I often make borscht at work, and that I cannot share that recipe with you because it could get nasty around the shop.

So, I'll provide you with some pictures instead, some background info on borscht, and give you some hints as to what you can to do make a borscht similar to mine - making sure to be careful that I reveal nothing at all of the much-protected secret recipe.

Here is a good Wikipedia article about borscht in general. Indeed, most borschts I've had in my life have involved beets, and I am not a fan of beets. Thus, I've never been a real fan of borscht. Until this one came into my life with its two cups of cream and one cup of butter. This hearty soup, that contains a whack of cabbage and more than two but less than four pounds of potatoes, is quite common in these parts since we have a significant Doukhobor population here. Many Doukhobors in this area are vegetarians, and so this soup doesn't contain any meat. Root vegetables, as evidenced in this article, are very important in borscht. Indeed, apart from the potatoes already mentioned, a certain orange root vegetable with a vaguely phallic shape is also a part of my borsch. Also, more than two but less than three cups a huge ton of those things that are round, contain many layers, and make you cry when you slice them are required.

Since the work recipe doesn't contain beets, it must have something to give it a red colour. Use three tins of diced tomatoes your imagination. In terms of seasoning, think of a popular pickle flavour and triple it. Salt & pepper. Etc.

Now, I don't always add the stipulated green pepper. Though I know it's kind of traditional, see here, sometimes I can't be bothered, and no one has ever said anything when I don't add it. But, when I do at it, it does brighten the soup up a bit and make it look a little perkier.

This is a spectacular soup, we always sell out, and I never work on Fridays when it's served. I do, however, savour the moments I get to adjust the seasonings, using several tasting spoons to get it all just right. I love it. What else can I say?