Foodmomiac

Gotta love braising

Tonight we had the short ribs that I braised yesterday afternoon. They were meltingly tender, with a really nice wine-y flavor. My only issue was that they were too oily - I should have removed some of the fat before re-heating. I also should have ditched the veggies that I braised them with and made some fresh ones. That said, they the meat was pretty awesome.

The potatoes were started in the microwave and then finished off in the toaster oven. We topped them with salt, pepper and Fage Total non-fat Greek yogurt.

I'm experimenting with my photo taking - I turned off the flash and turned on the macro setting. I think this turned out much better than some of my recent photos. Any comments?

Technorati Tags: Food, Braising, Parenting

Ingredient of the Week - Salt-Packed Capers

I love salt-packed capers. These are heads and tails above the usual brine-packed variety. They are bigger, plumper and tastier. Also, it is easier to control the salt on these - if you soak them before using, the saltiness is greatly diminished, leaving just a wonderful caper-y flavor.

Tonight I used these to make braised broccoli. I sauteed broccoli in olive oil with some freshly ground black pepper until it got slightly browned and tender. Then, I added a healthy splash of chicken broth, minced garlic, and chopped capers. I covered it and turned down the heat until it was done - maybe 10-15 minutes.

We had the broccoli tossed with some angel hair pasta and sauteed scallops and then topped with freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano. Dylan said, "This is GOOD!" She had three bowls and wants the rest for lunch tomorrow in her thermos.

On the parenting front, Dylan was super jiggy tonight. She would not stop wiggling and scootching and making messes and opening drawers and climbing furniture, etc. etc. I finally gave her a long hot bath and she calmed down a BIT. She asked me to put in one of Max's Baby Einstein DVDs, so I complied. As the movie begins, there is voice-over. Here was Dylan's response to the voice-over:

"They said enjoy the show, but I'm not enjoying it."

Technorati Tags: Food, Parenting

Blog - Why????

I got an email tonight from a friend asking me to explain the impetus behind blogging. Why do it? Why share your soul with the world, not even knowing if anyone is reading.

It's a good question. In college, my thesis topic was, "A Foucauldian Analysis of the Daytime Talkshow." I analyzed the distinct approach of three different talk show towards the topic of teenage pregnancy. My analysis led me to the realization that people were basically exhibitionists at heart. People WANT to bear their souls on Oprah. Hey, a million people saw me on TV!! (Never mind the fact that it was because you slept with your midget brother-in-law.)

This sharing of our innermost thoughts makes us feel important. It makes us feel like we matter. The talk show of the 90s has become the blog of the early 2000s. We share our thoughts, hoping for... what?? Commiseration, appreciation, controversy, pity, love, a book deal...

I've always been willing and ready to share my feelings with the world. I've never been one for endless editing of my thoughts or writings. Even with important papers in college, I'd write something once and then submit it. Drafts are rare for me. I write and go. A blog, then, is a good venue for me. I can write and go. Feel like sharing a thought? Just log on and there it is. Out for all the world to see. I'm a talker. I talk more than I should. I always have.

On a related note, I just completed a presentation at my day job. We had to explain, to one of our clients, the "big deal" about blogging, and podcasts, and Vblogs, and Google Map mashups. The web is totally changing. My "boss" Mike, who's really my friend, but technically my boss, but more my friend. Well, anyway, he'll be thrilled to see my writing about work stuff (and not goat cheese). So, here's what I think. The web is totally changing. That's why the new web stuff is called web 2.0. It's all different now. We used to go to sites to get our information. We went to search engines, and tried to find what we needed. Now, everything is populated by the masses. Wikipedia is a giant encyclopedia written by who the fuck knows? But, it's mostly right. And, it's totally thorough. And free. And not in a million heavy red hardcovers. It's easy. and it's so fucking democratic.

The old search engines are totally obsolete. really, you don't even need to go to a traditional news source for your information. Here is all you need to know: (you might want to double check this with someone who hasn't had 3 martinis and met Kobe Bryant - seriously, I went out to a bar with an old friend, and there was Kobe Bryant, wearing a ridiculous fur coat - he has very soft hands - I shook one of them):

- get a bloglines (or some other similiar thing) account and populate it with all of the stuff that's important to you - mine has food stuff, parenting stuff, TV stuff, and my netflix queue - OK, I see that i'm very shallow, except for the parenting stuff, but that does include Celebrity Baby Blog, so yes, I am shallow, and will add some kind of serious CNN type shit.
- maintain all of your bookmarks on del.icio.us
- put your photos on flickr
- get a video iPod

It is ALL CONNECTED. Just do these above things. You will soon understand how different things are now. It's crazy how much everything changes.

In 1995, I was a senior in college. The internet existed, but it was kind of mysterious. I knew how to send emails, but I didn't really understand the web. My friend Abby and I realized that the web was something "big and exciting" and we knew that her friend Jon used it. We asked for a tutorial, and instead he just gave us the URL for Playboy magazine. So, the only sites I visited were those that were linked from the Playboy site. I didn't know how to find any other sites. I didn't know how to find people of like minds. Fast forward to today. I have friends that I met online JUST BECAUSE OUR KIDS WERE BORN THE SAME MONTH AND YEAR. I have friends that I met online JUST BECAUSE WE ALL HAVE WEIMARANERS. I find everything online, from parenting advice, to a stupid lamp that clamps onto my headboard so I can do my knitting without having to get up and turn off the light.

My point is this: As recent as the early 90s, it was hard to fathom how important the Internet would become to our lives. In 10 years, we will look back and say that all this web 2.0 stuff is integral to our lives. So, why do I have a blog? Because I like to be one of the first. Because I like to share my thoughts, and maybe help someone else going through the same crap that I am going through. Because I am a narcissist. Because I need to write everyday. So, to those of you wondering why I am doing this? Now you know. Kind of. :-)

Not much cooking this week

A sick day turned into a sick week. First Max, then Dylie, and now me. Ugh, how I hate colds. After Sunday's soup, I made a pasta, goat cheese and ham casserole on Monday (very easy). And that was the extent of my cooking!

So, since I've been less than interesting this week, I'll try to spice things up with a little challenge. I read about this on Stalking the Waiter. It originated on Lucullian Delights. Here's the deal:

The 2006 Food Challenge or This Year I Dare! It simple, you just promise yourself to cook the five things you either don’t dare to make for some reason or that you made that once and made a mess of! So throughout the year, you post about it and let us know how it went . At the end of the year, in the hour of truth, you will turn back and “analyze” if you managed to keep your promises and if this have helped you to improve your culinary potentials in the kitchen!

Here are my five:

1. Use my mandoline to do anything. I got a gorgeous stainless steel mandoline for my birthday a few years ago and used it once. It scares me. I look at that thing and get instant gory visions of slicing off a finger.

2. Use my mandoline to make waffle fries. These seem impossibly difficult to make.

3. Use the pasta roller I bought on eBay to make homemade pasta, preferably a stuffed pasta from the eGullet eGCI stuffed pasta course.

4. Make bagels. I just read about homemade bagels on eGullet this morning (yes, I'm addicted), and now I need to make some.

5. Make homemade jello with real fruit juice. I also read about this today (in The Wednesday Chef)and it sounds awesome. I think Dylan would love to help.

I'm supposed to tag some other bloggers to participate in this.

Um, how about Randi and Kathy

Technorati Tags: Food, Parenting

Sick Days

Poor Max's simple cold turned into RSV, bronchiolitis and a double ear infection. This weekend turned into a sleepless marathon of crying, coughing and breathing treatments.

Dylan was supposed to spend Saturday night at Michael's, but her ears started hurting and she arrived back home at 3am. Yes, 3am.

Needless to say, I had little energy to pull together a filling Sunday dinner. Michael's parents came over to watch the kids (one for each - Dylan needed some major attention) and I went to the local market to pick up supplies, including a rotisserie turkey breast. I used the breast to make a GREAT sick day soup that I got out of an issue of Real Simple a couple of years ago. This soup is incredibly easy to make and has a nice spiciness that really helps clear the sinuses.

I made a couple of changes to the original recipe. Here's my version:

Easy Sick Day Tortilla Soup

1 jar green salsa (use whichever level heat you like - we used medium)
3 cups cooked turkey breast or chicken
3 cups chicken broth
1 can white hominy, drained*
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 scallions, chopped
plain yogurt or sour cream
shredded cheddar cheese
tortilla chips

Heat salsa in a soup pot. Add poultry, broth, hominy and cumin. The soup is done when it is heated through. Serve garnished with scallions, yogurt, cheese and crushed chips.

Serves: 4

* I used hominy because Max gets very gassy when I eat beans, but a can of white beans can be used as well.

Here's Dylan's bowl (sans yogurt and scallions):

Technorati Tags: Food, Parenting,  Recipes

What is this world coming to?

Let me first say that this is partly my fault. I should know what I'm getting into when I head out to an all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet, but still...

it's just not right.

The little girl at the table next to us was about six. Her drink was in a sippy cup, which I found strange. What made it worse was that it was frickin' Mountain Dew. Now, come on. If you are old enough to drink Mountain Dew, you are old enough to use a regular glass. Or, should I say, if you are too young to use a regular glass, then you are too young to drink Mountain Dew!

This wasn't the only strangeness we encountered. The sons of the owner were running (yes, literally running) around the restaurant having sword fights with swords fashioned out of straws that were stuck together end to end.

As I said, I probably shouldn't expect any better from a buffet, but I'm noticing bizarre kid behavior at other restaurants as well. Take Kotobuki, for example. Kotobuki is a very nice restaurant. It is probably my favorite restaurant in the Toledo area. They have high chairs and boosters, but there is no kids' menu, and the food is fairly expensive. I only take Dylan and Max there because I know they will behave, and because, if they won't, I have no problem leaving.

There are always multiple families with kids dining at Kotobuki when I visit. And, I've seen some strange things. Once, I saw a father BITE HIS SON'S EAR because the kid didn't use his chopsticks correctly. Two weeks ago, the family at the table next to ours allowed their daughter to watch a DVD (with headphones) on a portable DVD player. A 3D movie. Complete with 3D glasses.

What is going on here? Has dining out lost all pretense of special event? Should I expect the same behavior at Kotobuki that I expect at McDonald's?

Technorati Tags: Food, Parenting, Restaurants

I made it through another day

Phew.

Little Max is sick. He has such a junky cough and his face is all flushed. Poor little man. I left work early to take him to the doctor. It's just a cold. I'm so glad it's not something worse - I was worried that maybe he had RSV or some other horrible thing. I'm not used to him being fussy and unhappy.

I was planning on making something with my squash, beets and goat cheese. Actually, I wanted to do that yesterday, but I overslept, so I couldn't get it ready in the morning. (we had leftovers) I had every intention of preparing it this morning instead, but when I pulled the squash from the fridge, it was moldy. Such is the problem with buying pre-cut squash from Trader Joe's. Whole, uncut squash will last forever. So much for convenience.

I will try to buy a squash this weekend and we'll try again. The beets will hold and I can always grab some more goat cheese.

Tonight we had cheese ravioli and meatballs in marinara sauce. The ravioli and meatballs were in the freezer, and are both from a local Italian market called Sofo's. I love having stuff from Sofo's in my freezer. I almost always have meatballs. I also like to have the ravioli, their creamy marinara, canned pizza sauce (my secret Chili ingredient - no joke) and their frozen meatloaf. The food is all pretty tasty and it's good to have on hand for last minute dinners. The meatballs are great with pasta, but are also good cooked in a crockpot with barbecue sauce.

Sofo's is also my source for homemade ricotta cheese - I like using it my calzones and also on pizza. I buy Sofo's thick crust pizza shells (you can substitute boboli or homemade) and spread on a healthy amount of ricotta cheese, carmelized onions, pine nuts, mozzarella cheese and some glugs of olive oil. Awesome.

Technorati Tags: Food, Parenting

guilt

Is this a Jewish thing? a woman thing? a mom thing?

I am wracked with guilt these days, and I know I can't fix everything, but I'd love to know how to get past this.

Here's what I'm guilty about this week:

• being away from Max all day
• making Dylan go to childcare even though she wants to be with me
• making Max sleep in his crib for a few hours each night
• going to a food conference at the end of March and leaving Dylan and/or Max
• that my in-laws are so upset about this separation
• that I live so far from my parents
• that I don't spend enough time writing
• that I don't spend enough time cleaning
• that I don't work hard enough when I'm at work
• that I let Dylan eat too much junk food
• that my kids are going to be screwed up because their parents aren't together
• that I snipe at Dylan because I'm cranky all the time
• being happy when both kids are in bed and I have time to myself
• that I don't pay enough attention to my dog
• that I don't call my grandmas frequently enough

Technorati Tags: Guilt, Parenting

Kitchen Tool of the Week - Potato Ricer

I love my Potato Ricer. I love it so much that for this week, "Ingredient of the Week" has turned into "Kitchen Tool of the Week." You can get new Potato Ricers at any kitchen supply store, but I found mine (for $5) at a yard sale in Vermont about 10 years ago. It works perfectly, so I haven't seen any need to upgrade, but I'm sure the new ones work just as well.

Potato ricers make the fluffiest mashed potatoes imaginable. Tonight, Dylan peeled a few Russets and we boiled them until they were tender. I then drained them in a colander, and pressed them through my ricer back into the pot. Don't they look just like rice?

To turn riced potatoes into mashed potatoes, you just add some liquid. I added half a stick of butter and some skim milk. I also added salt.

The mashed potatoes were accompanied by Peppered Maple Turkey Breast. This turned out very well and was incredibly easy. Leftovers will make an awesome sandwich tomorrow for either myself or Dylan. I would have had leftovers for both of us, but my father-in-law joined us for dinner. I was glad - I'll take company over leftovers any time. 

Here is a photo of the plated dinner:

Yes, we had peas once again. Dylan pulled them out of the freezer, and I didn't dare argue with a four-year-old who is actually requesting a vegetable.

Lauren said she wanted to see what I would make with squash, beets and goat cheese. Stay tuned for tomorrow night's dinner to find out!

Technorati Tags: Food, Parenting, Kitchen Tools

Leopard Print PJs and Tropical Pork - It's all good.

Thanks everyone for your support and encouragement! I feel a lot better now, thanks to my friends (online AND off), retail therapy, and some great cooking.

Right after I ate a horrid lunch (Boston Market, don't ask...), my friend Barb and I drove over to a newish wine store that opened up just five minutes away from our office. It's a franchise called Vino 100 . The concept is 100 wines under $25. The storefront is very simple; wood floors, cubby-style shelves, one side red, one side white. I loved the way the wines are classifed. Ratings were nowhere to be found (thankfully - they are so subjective). Instead, each wine had a little sign called a wine barometer. I needed some inexpensive wines for weeknight drinking. I got three bottles (including the bottle described in the above link). The wine I tried tonight was just $10, and I really enjoyed it. It was called Cols des Vents.

My retail therapy continued after work. I left early and after running a couple of errands (bank, post office, etc.) I went over to Once Upon a Child with my swing. I got $20 for it, which seemed pretty good for a swing that is over four years old. I exchanged it for a smaller, portable swing that has a wider seat to better fit Max. This will be perfect for my second floor. I'm especially looking forward to putting him in it while I shower. Right now, I put him in the bassinet and wheel it into the bathroom, living me zero room to maneuver. He's also getting awfully big for the bassinet. I got a few other things at the store as well. For Dylie, I got a pair of pink Scooby Doo slipper socks (brand new). They were 80 cents. I also got her a very cute pair of leopard print PJs (Nordstrom brand) for $6, and a silly turquoise unitard for $3. Max got some cute baby tube socks (80 cents for three pair), and two Baby Einstein books ($1 each).

Here are the leopard PJs - I love them!!

Following Once Upon a Child, I headed over to Kroger to do a bit of food shopping. I got lots of baby food along with some supplies for tonight's dinner. Re: the baby food, I'm a bit torn. I made most of Dylie's food myself, and honestly, it didn't take much time. But, I have so much going on right now, and even a little time spent on that is time away from other activities. Also, given the fact that I'd want to use all organic fruits and veggies, it isn't even a cost-saving activity. I did buy a big bunch of bananas for the little guy - those can just be mashed with a fork.

After I got home, looked at all of the books Dylie bought, nursed Max and put away the groceries, I started making dinner. It was amazing. Granted, we didn't eat until after 7, but it was so worth it. I turned once again to All about Braising, and made Country Style Pork Ribs with Mango, Lime and Coconut. The pork was browned in olive oil and removed from the pan. I then added a thinly sliced onion, ginger, garlic, lime zest, a cinnamon stick and some cardamom. Once that cooked for a bit, I added rum (the recipe called for light rum, but I only had Captain Morgan's), a chopped mango, fresh lime juice and coconut milk. The pork was added back into the skillet which was then covered. I cooked the dish on low for about an hour and ten minutes and served it with white rice and leftover green beans. The pork was so tender and flavorful, and I just loved the sauce, especially with the fluffy white rice. Dylan ate every bite.

Max ate peas:

Technorati Tags: Food, Wine