i'm baaaaaaaack....

I thought when I came to check this blog after--eek!--nearly six months, that it would have been overgrown with weeds and brambles, and I'd need a scythe just to find it. But, wouldn't you know? It was right here, patiently waiting for me to come back. Not even tapping its foot with irritation. So, I'm going to give it a go again, and see what happens.

Speaking of happenings, there have been SO many since I last checked in here! Here are some highlights:
-we moved (again) to a new apartment. love the neighborhood, but hate the heroin business our neighbors are running upstairs and just the general too-closeness of living in an apartment building
-we got en-gay-ged!!!!!! yep, our engagement shower is on this Saturday. We have friends and family coming into town especially. So awesome! Super-casual potluck style on the afternoon after we ...
-are running our first 5K!!! Can you believe it? We started training in June, and it actually happens on Saturday (if you happen to be out and about in Shadyside on Saturday morning between 8-9 am, cheer for us and/or sing "Don't Stop Believin'" as we jog past you)! I'm half thrilled, half terrified.
-have eaten a bunch of new things--new recipes, old favorites, new restaurants, old favorites

So much to catch up on! And, I will make an effort to do that.

And, here's a little tidbit for you hot from the presses:
I was very excited when I learned a few weeks ago that a new little donut shop had opened in the Strip, right near my favorite coffee spot, 21st Street Coffee. Until...bum, bum, buhhhmm...someone forwarded me the owner's blog yesterday. It's so crazy that at first I wasn't sure it was even real. But, it checks out. It's frighteningly real. Homophobic, racist, extreme right wing hate under the guise of a good Christian fella. What would Jesus do? I think he'd probably boycott that donut shop with it's oh-so-ironic name (referencing peace and love and feeding inner hippies). Here's his blog post on the day that President Obama was inaugurated. Wow. The entire blog is just insane. Read as much as you can before you have to toss your donuts. This topic is all the buzz on the mailing list I moderate (with about 750 queer women in Pittsburgh). My favorite suggestion so far is that everyone should stop into this shop every time we're in the area and tell him that he's lost a customer. I plan on doing this every Saturday--which is when I otherwise would have been buying his donuts to enjoy with a cup of the fantastic joe from 21st Street. Sad all around.

tweet

I recently joined Twitter. I'm still not sure I really understand it--or rather, understand the hype, but I'm in. I can't stand to be left out.

One of the people I follow is China Millman, the restaurant critic for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Thanks to her tweet this morning, I saw that she has a new blog on the PPG site. You can find it here. The most recent post is about more accolades being heaped onto, as you know, one of my favorite restaurants ever...Eleven, how I love thee. I work for the same parent company as Eleven, and speak to and email the chefs there pretty often. Sometimes I send them fan letters. Sometimes I let it slip that I have a chef-crush on Chef Derek Stevens. Sometimes then he doesn't write back, and possibly is afraid. I have that effect on people.

I'm actually visiting another of our restaurants this evening--Kaya, here I come! It's always delicious. I've been looking at the menu this morning trying to decide what I'll enjoy later. It's hard to decide. The tuna dish that I tried of E-dawg's that pushed me into pescatarianism is on the menu. I might have to get that. But the Edamame and Shittake Risotto sounds pretty fantastic, too. Oh, dang.

In other news, Barbara and I went down to the WV/PA border last weekend, and met up with my parents to visit a ramp festival. It was great to see them, and the ramp offerings were yummy (well, most of them--I suggest you avoid the ramp wine). I got sunburnt to a crisp, and forgot to buy fresh ramps when we were leaving, but it was a success apart from that. I just realized that my pictures are on another computer, so I'll have to post them later.

Anyhow, have a nice weekend, folks. xoxo

oh, cool!

I was just looking up something on Urbanspoon.com, and saw this:



So cool!

birthday & easter eggstravaganza

My birthday this year was pretty low-key, but also just perfect. I had a fun Work Birthday Celebration on Thursday (my birthday eve), and we got lunch from Dormont Dogs and one of the most fantastic cakes I've ever tasted and seen from Vanilla Pastry Studio. (the folks at big Burrito know how to celebrate).

Dormont Dogs is a little venture started by Chef Captain Barnes and his wife, and they make the best dogs I've ever had. Great ingredients and clever combinations make for some delicious hot dog fare. You can almost get everything on the menu in a veggie dog version *and* they have sweet tea on the menu. It doesn't get much better than that. We had a FEAST.

And, if that wasn't enough, the cake that Vanilla sent over was just unbelievable. I'm sad I didn't get some pics of it, but it just didn't last long enough for that. It was a four-layer vanilla cake with a melt-in-your-mouth, light-as-air buttercream, covered in shaved coconut. And, between the layers alternated the buttercream and the most delicate and perfectly tart lemon cream. The cake was so moist, and while I'm sure it was far from a "lite" treat, it tasted so light, so spring, so sunny, so delicious that even after consuming my fair share of slices, I still can't stop thinking of it. Really, really stellar.

And, that was just Birthday Eve!

On the day itself, Barbara gave me some fantastic handmade gifts, and we had a quiet evening at home. Check out The Meerkat Johaansen with his new friend The Meerkat Snicklefritz! You should have seen them laughing and playing!



On the next day, Barbara made me breakfast in bed, and I had a half-industrious/half-lazy afternoon around the house. In the evening, we went out for my birthday dinner at Eleven (my favorite restaurant in town) where Chef Derek Stevens works magic with food as his medium. We had the Chef's Vegetarian Tasting Menu (this is available every day, folks!). The meal was beautiful, and we even lucked into an extra course that the chef sent out for us to try. Here's the run-down...

Amuse Bouche:
a tiny little grilled cheese sandwich on house-made bread with morels, Upland Farms Pleasant Ridge Reserve cheese and ramp pesto.
A fantastic way to start the meal! My first taste of morels and ramps for the season, and a taste of a cheese that I'd been wanting to try since Chef Bill Fuller declared it "the best cheese produced in America".

First Course: Soup and Salad
golden beet puree, whipped goat cheese, sumac
Three Sister’s Farm mesclun, olives, lemon, garlic, mint
A beautiful plate. The greens in the salad were so perfectly tender, and expertly dressed with a hint of lemon, and balanced with briny olives and delicate mint. Lovely.
The soup was the texture of velvet, and delectably sweet, and nicely balanced by the tang of the goat cheese. There was another odd taste that I couldn't place in my tastebud memory banks--I guess the sumac? I don't know anything about it. Will have to do some googling.

Second Course: Asparagus and Peas
raclette, sauce gribiche, fingerling potato crisp
This dish was Spring personified. Not only was it just a beautiful plate, but it had it all--bursting with seasonal freshness, rich colors, a mix of bold and delicate flavors and a little whimsy thrown in.
This was the only photo I took during the meal. I wish I'd captured everything, but I was too busy enjoying everything to concentrate on documenting it. But, really, wow. I'd never had sauce gribiche, but our server described it as a "tartar sauce, in vinaigrette form". It was briny with little capers, lemony, and super-fresh tasting while also being rich and satisfying. A perfect foil for the tender spring veggies. And, the tiny little whisper-thin fingerling potato chips were the perfect topping. Not only completely adorable, their crispness provided yet another layer of texture. Again, wow.


Bonus course!
Morel and Ricotta Ravioli
ramp pesto, Swiss chard, Parmigiano Reggiano
This is one of those moments that make me love my job. Getting to work with really talented chefs, and best of all--getting to try the fruits of their labor! The chef sent out this plate for us to try, and it was easily one of our favorites of the night. The ravioli were pillow soft, and stuffed with a rich ricotta and morel filling, and topped with some braised ramps and Swiss chard with a drizzle of ramp pesto. Fantastic!!!

Third Course:
Trumpet Royale
dandelion greens, semolina gnocchi, cipollini onions, balsamic vinegar
The main course was our least favorite, but it still had some great components. The mushrooms themselves were lovely (the surface just perfectly scored), but the texture just was a little tough. We ate around those to try the perfectly bitter dandelion greens and the rich little gnocchis. Yum.

Dessert:
Ehrrin - Meyer Lemon Meringue Shortcake
lemon ice cream, lemon curd, blueberry hibiscus tea, candied lemon
Oh! This plate was just beautiful! And, the lemon ice cream was rich and sweet, but the curd and blueberry tea was tart. The meringue and the shortcake rounded the whole thing out, and it was just divine. How I love a lemon dessert!
Barbara - S’more
marshmallow ice cream, graham cracker, milk chocolate Godiva mousse
Mmm! Rich and light at the same time! The mousse probably was the standout here, but the whole plate was just amazing. I had to sneak several bites to confirm.

Mignardise:
Salted Caramels
Ah, a perfect send-off for our last bite. Perfectly lovely little caramels, just with a hint of saltiness and with the bottom coated in a superfine granulated sugar.

A meal to remember indeed! Oh, Eleven, how I love thee!


Ah...

And that brings us to Easter morning. Barbara and I both woke up to Easter baskets chock full of tempting treats (the first thing I tried was a Smoked Chocolate square...interesting). And, after we'd dug through our baskets, I went to the kitchen to unpeel the eggs I prepped yesterday. I'd seen a photo of these on my favorite food porn site, Tastespotting , and needed to know more. The photo was from the Barefoot Kitchen Witch blog, and she walks you through a step-by-step of how to create these stunning Easter treats. I can't believe how simple it was! I'm following her to a tee, and making deviled eggs with them for our Easter dinner at Barbara's sister's house this afternoon. I hope everyone is as charmed as we are!

Happy Easter folks!

vegetarian

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

preserved lemons - manna from heaven

I had my first taste of preserved lemon when some delicate little curls of them were stationed atop a delicious spring risotto last year at Casbah. I am a lover of all things lemony, and these little bites bursting with salty, lemony brightness just rocked my world. But, it was one of the things I assumed was strictly the business of restaurants, and that I could never make something that ethereal in my own humble kitchen. But, then I stumbled across a very simple recipe for them, and undertook it--only about 20 minutes of kitchen time, and then a couple months of waiting, and voila: perfection!

I looked at a bunch of recipes online, and ultimately decided to forego any added seasonings because I wanted to be able to use them for a variety of purposes--although next time I might do them the Morroccan way because that sounds utterly heavenly, too. (David Lebovitz has some nice instructions and recipes here). So, next time you're at the market, grab a big bag of organic lemons (you definitely want organic here since you're going to be eating the skin), and some coarse sea salt, a jar, and you're ready to go.

Here's what I did:
Scrub 12 organic lemons (I preserved 8 of them, and used the others just for their juice). Here's another tip: whenever I'm juicing citrus, I always zest it first--whether or not I need it for the recipe--and keep it in the freezer. That way I always have some zest on hand when I need it. It's pretty great for sprinkling on lots of things.

Anyhow, I scrubbed my lemons, and juiced 4 of them. I got my jar ready, and made sure it and the lid were scrubbed clean. For the other eight lemons that were on their way to being preserved, I cut just the hard tip off of both ends, and then on one end I cut vertically twice in an X shape until about 1 1/2" from the other end (so, like you're quartering it lengthwise, but stopping shy of separating the quarters).

Now, you want to pack those babies with the salt--don't be shy, really pack it in there. And, throw about 1" of salt in the bottom of your jar. Now, start loading up the jar with the lemons, and really squish them in there tightly to get them to give up some juice. Keep doing this until all your lemons are packed in tightly, and squished. Throw another few tablespoons of salt over them, and then fill up the jar to the tippy-top with the lemon juice. Now, just set it on your kitchen counter, and admire it. And, also give it a few turns/shakes daily for about 4-6 weeks.

Now, open them up, and enjoy! You're going to use the rind here, so just slice it off, and discard the flesh. Use it in pretty much everything.

I used it to make a really fantastic risotto for Sunday Dinner. I just made a straight-up risotto: melt some butter, add some onion and garlic (1/2 an onion and 3 cloves of garlic), cook for a few minutes, add the aborio rice (2 cups), cook for a couple more minutes, and then start adding broth--and a couple glugs of marsala--1 cup at a time, stir, stir, stir while it soaks up each addition (adding about 3-4 cups of broth all told). It should take about 20-25 minutes. Then finish it with whatever goodness you want. For this one I added: 1/2 c. grated parmesan, some freshly ground pepper, some chopped chives and basil, and one of my preserved lemons (sliced off the skin of 1 lemon, and did a small dice). Sprinkle it with a little more of each of those things upon serving. I'd planned to also add some steamed asparagus and peas, but forgot. Ah well, still fantastic.

I served that as a main dish with some roasted green beans with onions, garlic, toasted walnuts and a drizzle of balsamic (from a Mollie Katzen recipe in The New Moosewood Cookbook), and some chive-parmesan popovers (from this month's Vegetarian Times magazine - April 2009). FYI - if you make those popovers, add a little more salt and pepper than the recipe calls for; and I made some in a proper popover pan, and the rest in a regular muffin tin. The ones in the popover pan turned out way better (the muffin tin ones were a little tough on the outer edge, as opposed to the popover pan ones that were perfectly crisp-ish).

It was a lovely meal, and tasted of spring--especially with the gorgeous weather (and then there's today - snow!? really?!). Here's a pic. See those lovely little flecks of preserved lemon in the risotto. Pure love.


Yum.

ps. stay tuned. Barbara and I are having dinner at Eleven on Friday for my birthday. I can't wait!

China-Bear, cat friend extraordinaire 04-08-92 - 03-28-09

I don't have a whole lot to say, because when I start saying, I start crying, and I've been in the depths of despair for days with missing my sweet little cat. China-Bear and I were together for just-shy of seventeen years, but it doesn't seem nearly long enough.

When I first got China-Bear she was so tiny she could squeeze under little body under my bedroom door (when she got locked out at night for being an insane kitten). Over the years, she's been a best friend to me, to our other cat Loudmouth (gone now 11 years) and the K-Bear (more than friends). She had the sweetest disposition and the softest fur. Sometimes she held her breath. Sometimes she looked like a Thanksgiving turkey. She inspired songs. Once she took a big breath, and her front feet came up off the ground. She created and succeeded on the Catkins Diet.

She was loved. Very much.

And, I miss her terribly.

sea kittens

My dear friend Schwatts came to visit weekend before last. She's not only one of my favorite people on the planet, but also a/an:
-real good time
-awesome chef
-hi-freakin'-larious lady
-sweet as all get-out

I wanted to, nay, needed to make a fantastic lunch for her arrival. She's fed me so many fabulous meals over the years, taught me lots, and I wanted to impress her while making it all seem, you know, effortless.

She arrived at noon that Friday (I'd taken the day off), and Barbara got home from work not long after that. After a tour of our place, a little walk with the dogs, and some chatting, I got our lunch on the table. I made:
-watercress salad with fuji apples, Cypress Grove Purple Haze chevre and a lemon vinaigrette
-Spicy Autumn Vegetable Burgers with sharp cheddar on homemade hamburger buns
-carrot and sweet potato oven fries with chipotle-orange dipping sauce
-chewy-chocolate ginger cookies for dessert


Those hamburger buns were amazing. One of my favorite things I've ever baked. They came out so well, and were so soft and tender. Loved them! I think I might make some more this week.


The cookies are heavenly. I made them for my holiday cookie exchange at work. They have such a fantastic flavor and texture, and the little crust of sugar is super. YUM.


After lunch we just visited until it was time for our next meal--a stupendous feast at Eleven. I was extra excited about the dinner because they'd just received a really fantastic review the day before.

I'd been considering starting to include some seafood in my diet for a while. A month or so ago I tried a few bites of a delicious tuna dish E-dawg was having at Kaya. So, I decided to indulge at Eleven. I know that they have options that are sustainable, and preparations that honor the ingredients.

But, I never do anything halfway. I had four courses of seafood. It was stellar. A truly memorable meal. My guts hated me for about a day and a half while they were readjusting to fish and the like, but it was truly fantastic. Eleven's food is so thoughtful and so precise that I think I had an Eleven-hangover that still lingers.

Here's the menu:
1/2 dozen Long Island Sound oysters on the half shell
(we each got a cocktail - mine was the Badlands-hattan and she had something cucumbery)

then the Chef's Tasting with Wine pairing:
-Spicy Tuna Tartar & Yellowtail Sashimi
kumquat ponzu, seaweed salad, lemon miso, cucumber, radishes, spicy soy
(the ponzu was served in a tiny little kumquat half!)
served with champagne (Leon Palais Blanc de Blanc, Doue La Fontaine)

Wild Striped Bass
calamari, Israeli cous cous, oven roasted & sundried tomatoes, watercress and caperberries
served with some delicious red wine that tasted like dried cherries and smoke (2003 Poderi La Collina Platinum Nebbiolo-Barbera)

Chatham Cod
Jonah crab risotto, forest mushrooms, leeks
served with a really great white wine (not sure what this one was, but I just emailed the restaurant to ask)

Black Forest Trifle
dense chocolate cake, dried cherries, Kirsh, milk chocolate cream, a little fudge on the bottom and a cocoa nib tuile
served with an unbelievable sparkling dessert wine (2007 Castello Banfi Brachetto d'Acqul Rosa Regale)

Wow. Just wow. Chef Derek Stevens is a rock star.


So, anyhow, to get to the title of this post, Katherine (aka "Schwatts") said that she'd read that PETA are now referring to fish/seafood as "sea kittens" to discourage people from eating them. And, we talked about the irony in that anytime anything is Super Cute we want to bite and/or eat it--you know, like babies' toes and, well, kittens. Oh, those wacky PETA-ers. I was down with them when I was younger, but the parade of blatantly sexist shock ads over the years, among other antics, soured me on them. But, that said, I do feel a little guilt at eating fish. I've been a vegetarian on and off since I was 13, largely because of the treatment of animals. But, I've also constantly and consistently missed the fish. My plan now is to occasionally eat seafood, but still primarily with a vegetarian diet. And, to make sure that the seafood I eat is sustainable. Just fyi.

Okay, so back to the incredible Schwatts. I mentioned to her that I have a problem with groceries. I buy A Lot of groceries. I spend a lot of time reading cookbooks and food magazines and food blogs and such, and every time I read about some new exotic or esoteric ingredient I feel like I.Must.Have.It. Even though, I already have a pretty bangin' pantry. I want to change this because I want to spend less and not overflow my space. So, she marched me into the kitchen with some boxes of glass jars and a sharpie, and we went through the entire kitchen--pantry, freezer, refrigerator--and cleaned out stuff that was old and/or unused and labeled and dated everything. And, then we went grocery shopping, and got some things to make some bulk snacks for the week. She made an enormous fruit salad, and we roasted four pans of veggies. She labeled all my leftovers. It was brilliant and such a lovely sight to behold! I feel so much more organized, and prepared to cook from my beautiful and well-stocked pantry. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Schwattzie-Bear.

I took fruit salad to work every day, and some incarnation of the roasted veggies. Here are some pizzas I made last week. One used the roasted veg, the other some sauce from a big batch I made, and I made a big batch of pizza dough, and froze some, so we've been able to just grab it and make a quick lunch or dinner any time.


I'm trying to be better about planning out our meals ahead of time, and having yummy stuff already ready to cook and eat. AND, trying to eat down the huge stockpile of food from the pantry.

Last night I made a variation of this wonderfully simple recipe from Mark Bittman's column "The Minimalist" in the NYT. I started my water boiling with some carrot, onion and garlic, and then swapped out the rice wine vinegar for an umeboshi vinegar, added cubed nigari tofu, swapped out the egg noodles for soba, and added some frozen peas right before serving. All told it probably took me twenty minutes, and it was completely delicious (and pretty low-fat and low-cal) and super fragrant. I brought the leftovers for lunch today, and it was even better. I love this recipe!

sea kittens

My dear friend Schwatts came to visit weekend before last. She's not only one of my favorite people on the planet, but also a/an:
-real good time
-awesome chef
-hi-freakin'-larious lady
-sweet as all get-out

I wanted to, nay, needed to make a fantastic lunch for her arrival. She's fed me so many fabulous meals over the years, taught me lots, and I wanted to impress her while making it all seem, you know, effortless.

She arrived at noon that Friday (I'd taken the day off), and Barbara got home from work not long after that. After a tour of our place, a little walk with the dogs, and some chatting, I got our lunch on the table. I made:
-watercress salad with fuji apples, Cypress Grove Purple Haze chevre and a lemon vinaigrette
-Spicy Autumn Vegetable Burgers with sharp cheddar on homemade hamburger buns
-carrot and sweet potato oven fries with chipotle-orange dipping sauce
-chewy-chocolate ginger cookies for dessert


Those hamburger buns were amazing. One of my favorite things I've ever baked. They came out so well, and were so soft and tender. Loved them! I think I might make some more this week.


The cookies are heavenly. I made them for my holiday cookie exchange at work. They have such a fantastic flavor and texture, and the little crust of sugar is super. YUM.


After lunch we just visited until it was time for our next meal--a stupendous feast at Eleven. I was extra excited about the dinner because they'd just received a really fantastic review the day before.

I'd been considering starting to include some seafood in my diet for a while. A month or so ago I tried a few bites of a delicious tuna dish E-dawg was having at Kaya. So, I decided to indulge at Eleven. I know that they have options that are sustainable, and preparations that honor the ingredients.

But, I never do anything halfway. I had four courses of seafood. It was stellar. A truly memorable meal. My guts hated me for about a day and a half while they were readjusting to fish and the like, but it was truly fantastic. Eleven's food is so thoughtful and so precise that I think I had an Eleven-hangover that still lingers.

Here's the menu:
1/2 dozen Long Island Sound oysters on the half shell
(we each got a cocktail - mine was the Badlands-hattan and she had something cucumbery)

then the Chef's Tasting with Wine pairing:
-Spicy Tuna Tartar & Yellowtail Sashimi
kumquat ponzu, seaweed salad, lemon miso, cucumber, radishes, spicy soy
(the ponzu was served in a tiny little kumquat half!)
served with champagne (Leon Palais Blanc de Blanc, Doue La Fontaine)

Wild Striped Bass
calamari, Israeli cous cous, oven roasted & sundried tomatoes, watercress and caperberries
served with some delicious red wine that tasted like dried cherries and smoke (2003 Poderi La Collina Platinum Nebbiolo-Barbera)

Chatham Cod
Jonah crab risotto, forest mushrooms, leeks
served with a really great white wine (not sure what this one was, but I just emailed the restaurant to ask)

Black Forest Trifle
dense chocolate cake, dried cherries, Kirsh, milk chocolate cream, a little fudge on the bottom and a cocoa nib tuile
served with an unbelievable sparkling dessert wine (2007 Castello Banfi Brachetto d'Acqul Rosa Regale)

Wow. Just wow. Chef Derek Stevens is a rock star.


So, anyhow, to get to the title of this post, Katherine (aka "Schwatts") said that she'd read that PETA are now referring to fish/seafood as "sea kittens" to discourage people from eating them. And, we talked about the irony in that anytime anything is Super Cute we want to bite and/or eat it--you know, like babies' toes and, well, kittens. Oh, those wacky PETA-ers. I was down with them when I was younger, but the parade of blatantly sexist shock ads over the years, among other antics, soured me on them. But, that said, I do feel a little guilt at eating fish. I've been a vegetarian on and off since I was 13, largely because of the treatment of animals. But, I've also constantly and consistently missed the fish. My plan now is to occasionally eat seafood, but still primarily with a vegetarian diet. And, to make sure that the seafood I eat is sustainable. Just fyi.

Okay, so back to the incredible Schwatts. I mentioned to her that I have a problem with groceries. I buy A Lot of groceries. I spend a lot of time reading cookbooks and food magazines and food blogs and such, and every time I read about some new exotic or esoteric ingredient I feel like I.Must.Have.It. Even though, I already have a pretty bangin' pantry. I want to change this because I want to spend less and not overflow my space. So, she marched me into the kitchen with some boxes of glass jars and a sharpie, and we went through the entire kitchen--pantry, freezer, refrigerator--and cleaned out stuff that was old and/or unused and labeled and dated everything. And, then we went grocery shopping, and got some things to make some bulk snacks for the week. She made an enormous fruit salad, and we roasted four pans of veggies. She labeled all my leftovers. It was brilliant and such a lovely sight to behold! I feel so much more organized, and prepared to cook from my beautiful and well-stocked pantry. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Schwattzie-Bear.

I took fruit salad to work every day, and some incarnation of the roasted veggies. Here are some pizzas I made last week. One used the roasted veg, the other some sauce from a big batch I made, and I made a big batch of pizza dough, and froze some, so we've been able to just grab it and make a quick lunch or dinner any time.


I'm trying to be better about planning out our meals ahead of time, and having yummy stuff already ready to cook and eat. AND, trying to eat down the huge stockpile of food from the pantry.

Last night I made a variation of this wonderfully simple recipe from Mark Bittman's column "The Minimalist" in the NYT. I started my water boiling with some carrot, onion and garlic, and then swapped out the rice wine vinegar for an umeboshi vinegar, added cubed nigari tofu, swapped out the egg noodles for soba, and added some frozen peas right before serving. All told it probably took me twenty minutes, and it was completely delicious (and pretty low-fat and low-cal) and super fragrant. I brought the leftovers for lunch today, and it was even better. I love this recipe!

bullied into blogging

Well, I guess not actually bullied--just encouraged. Pal Jess told me to sign up for Yelp, so I did, and was really curious about the Sousa dinner. So, I just did a quick review. I'm cross-posting it here. And, I'll backtrack on the other topics I mentioned next time.

Luckily, I found out about Kevin Sousa's guerrilla dinner series (while his to-be restaurant is still in its raw state) from a friend and fellow dining aficionado.

I read an article in the New York Times a few months ago about "The Anti-Restaurants" by Melena Ryzik and about a book called Secret Suppers by Jenn Garbee, and I was totally intrigued about these underground chefs and dining experiences. And, then I got to try one!

This dinner (03/22/09) was an all vegetarian six-course feast. The space is totally raw--no kitchen, even. Long tables, covered in paper and set with plastic-ware, and we saw friends and some usual suspects from the local dining scene. I really loved the atmosphere. Super casual, and charged with excitement.

The menu was:
1st: mushroom
wasabi, ginger, seaweed, rice cracker, avocado, ramp pickles, soy, cilantro, sesame

2nd: beets
endive, blood orange, truffle, mustard, fiore sardo, croutons, rosemary honey water

3rd: soy kefta
tomato, cumin, onion, chick peas, mint, parsley, shepherd's bread, quail egg

4th: miso risotto
chive blossoms, preserved meyer lemon, bok choy, smoked paprika, tofu

5th: eatloaf
tempeh, potato puree, green bean casserole, shiitake gravy, fermented pepper ketchup

6th: chocolate
yuzu, basil, lime, malt, yogurt, pumpkin seed rice krispies, peant butter

My preferences of courses was: 3, 1, 4, 2, 5, 6.

3: The soy kefta was phenomenal. Very rustic, seemingly simple street food-esque. Fantastic flavors. The spicing tasted Moroccan to me (kefta, in general, is a Middle Eastern/Greek-style dish). It also tasted like it could be the filling for the Best Sloppy Joe In The World. The little (soft) fried quail egg on top is a twist on a classic preparation, and totally key. The soft yolk with the spiced filling is just perfect. I could seriously eat this pretty much every day.

1: The mushroom course was very sashimi-ish. I was sad that the ramp pickles were left off my plate, but luckily my dining companion shared. The mushrooms were royal trumpets, and someone commented that the texture was similar to a scallop, and I definitely got that. Really nice and fresh-tasting. A perfect way to start.

4: The miso risotto was a revelation. I'd never think of putting miso in risotto, but it really gave it a wonderful richness. The preserved lemon brightened the flavor and provided a really lovely contrast. The risotto was perfectly cooked--quite impressive without a real kitchen.

2: The beets were tasty. I always love beets for their sweet earthiness and their gorgeous hue. I think this dish could really have been stellar with some spiffed up knife skills (pretty rounds of beets and small radish batons would have sealed the deal) and more blood orange.

5: The eatloaf meal was a nice spin on a classic Sunday supper. I really like tempeh, but several folks at the table weren't fans (of tempeh in any incarnation). It was good, but just didn't pop my socks off the way some of the other courses did. I liked the ketchup a lot, and the gravy was yummy, but the rest was largely forgettable.

6: My least favorite course was the dessert. It had a lot going on, and just felt sort of disjointed. The chocolate slice incorporated peanut butter, and felt really heavy compared to some of the other components. Also, I'm not really a foam fan. It just kind of looks like spit, but that's a personal preference. I would have loved a dessert concentrating on the citrus and basil flavors, but that's also a personal preference for me. I love chocolate, but I love fresh citrus even more.

All in all, it was a really great meal, and really fun atmosphere. I wish I'd taken my camera. I hope I get to attend another of these before the actual restaurant opens, but I'm also looking forward to the seeing what the space and menu end up looking like.

If you have a chance, check out one of the upcoming dinners. And, reserve early; they sell out.

foiled!

Well, I loaded all my images in on Friday evening for my bloggin' extravaganza on Saturday morning, and then...my NEW computer broke. Yep, the laptop I bought one mere month ago. The display went out. And, despite the best efforts of the help desk, it didn't come back. Now I have to wait for a mailer, ship it in, wait for the repair, and then to have it re-shipped home. It could be as long as a month. And, my hard drive will be wiped. My heart is broken.

And, then a couple hours later my glasses broke. Snapped in half. Luckily the awesome lady at Perle Vision in Waterworks (thanks, Jamie!) was able to find a pair of frames that kinda fit my lenses, and was able--through heat and ingenuity--to reform the frames around my lenses. Phew!

So...my blogging was foiled despite my solemn swear.

But, I'm going to try to get some time on a computer in the next few days because now I have even *more* to report! I did some great eating this weekend. On Saturday, Barbara and I went over to the home of our pals Liz and Emily (and Ben B-R, Erma and Janet-Angel-of-the-Lord) for a Liz-made Indian feast, and I went to one of Kevin Sousa's guerrilla dinners last night that was really fun and delicious.

i solemnly swear

I really do. I solemnly swear to blog some time this weekend. I have SO much to share!

-a truly memorable meal at Eleven
-a visit and kitchen overhaul from my dearest Schwatts
-some baking adventures
-some other assorted good eatin'
-a change in the way i'm eating
-trying (and struggling) to get back on track

advice corner

1. Do not get kidney stones.

Well, that's pretty much all the advice I have right now, but it's valuable, peeps. After two ER visits, two nights in the hospital, and a surgery, I can say with certainty and some authority that kidney stones are a drag. And, they said that it was the size of a freckle. It's unbelievable what a freckle with bad intentions can do to a body.

I am very lucky to have Barbara to nurse me and play Scrabble endlessly. (thanks, baby).

I got home from the hospital on Friday late morning, and am definitely feeling better, but it's relative 'cause I still feel pretty darn cruddy. Also, all the medicine than I'm taking has it's own set of issues. Let's just say that there's some irregularity happening, and leave it at that.

Well, one more thing about the irregularity, but only because it ties into a recipe. I shuffled downstairs this morning determined to try to deal with it from a dietary angle. I made some buckwheat waffles with flax seeds and blueberries. I adapted it from this recipe that was adapted from a recipe in The Pancake Handbook (I just requested that from the library), but here's what I did:

1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup golden roasted flax seeds, ground coarsely
1 egg, separated
1 cup 0% Fage greek yogurt
1/3 cup water
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup blueberries (I used some I had frozen from this past summer)

In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients, the flours, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt. In a smaller bowl mix up the egg yolk, yogurt, water and butter. Add the liquids to the dry ingredients all at once and stir just to blend. Like usual, whip the egg white with a hand mixer or a whisk until soft peaks form, then fold the whites gently into the batter.

If using a waffle iron, let it heat up first, then portion out about 1/2 to 3/4 cup batter into the iron. Liberally sprinkle the blueberries (I used them frozen, straight from the freezer). Close it, and wait for it to stop steaming. The waffle should become slightly browned and crisp. Serve with warm maple syrup.


Fun fact that I learned from the Dinner With Kirsten blog: buckwheat is an herb, not a grain, and is a cousin of rhubarb. Crazy!

I have been trying to do some baking each weekend, but I don't think that will happen today. But, I am trying to score some sourdough starter, so hopefully I'll have a post about that soon. I've never made a sourdough bread, but I'm excited to try it. Last weekend I made some basic whole wheat bread from a recipe in the The Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book: A Guide to Whole Grain Breadmaking book. Barbara made some potato-leek soup to go along with it. The bread was good, but not that exciting. The soup was souper!

backsliding

So...I'd let myself slide by here and there with not eating the way I should, and then with the kidney stones, I did a lot of justifying about how I needed a little comfort (from food). So, I didn't weigh myself this week. I'm afraid. I wouldn't be surprised if I'd gained back five pounds. Ugh. I need to rededicate, but I haven't done it yet. Why is it so hard???

I've still been cooking, just not as healthfully as I should.

Um...

Okay. In other news, B and I just celebrated our second valentine's day. This year we decided not to buy one another valentines, but to exchange ones we made for one another. She made me this really sweet card with stitching and a fancy button, and I embroidered her a ladies handkerchief. But, she said that she wouldn't ever blow her nose on it, so framed it instead.

We also went to the Pittsburgh Glass Center on Valentine's Eve, and did this couples' workshop on pulling glass flowers. Really fun! We get to pick them up today, and I can't wait to see how they turned out.

On the day itself, I made Barbara some valentine's pancakes with blueberry syrup and veggie sausage (the pancake recipe was, guess who's...Heidi's!).


And, then for dinner, I made the Vegetable Wellington I'd been planning on making last year for V-day dinner (before the comedy of errors set upon me, and we just ordered pizza instead).

The wellington is based on this recipe from Vegetarian Times magazine. I didn't use the pesto or tomato sauces, and used Cypress Grove Purple Haze goat cheese (oh dang, that's good cheese), and the veggies were onion, broccoli, red bell pepper, mushrooms, carrots, spinach and parsley. Barbara made some garlic green beans to accompany it. So yummy.


On Sunday, I made West Virginia delicacies--pepperoni rolls, vegetarian style (using LightLife faux pepperoni slices). I used this recipe for the dough (almost ALL the recipes I found called for frozen dough or canned biscuit dough, but this dough was easy and slightly sweet and just worked out swell). I used the faux pepperoni, a little grated parmesan, provolone, mozzarella, and in some of them, hot pepper jack. I had to bake them longer than the recipe said (about 22 minutes), but they turned out so well. Seriously, they taste just like the best versions of the real thing.




Incidentally, has anyone heard anything about a successful Pepperoni Roll Diet? If so, I'd be eager to hear about it. Just sayin'.

the best of times, the worst of times

It really has been a mixed bag lately. On the positive side, things with my lady have never been better, I got my tax refund within 5 days, and bought myself a brandy-new laptop, had a stellar dinner out at Kaya the other night, and am still slowly making progress towards my goal (15 pounds down). But, now I'm laid out with the slow and steady descent of a kidney stone through my system. Luckily, it's not this kidney stone (thanks, Kramer). But, I just feel pretty cruddy. And, I had a dream last night that I passed it, and it already had a little thingy on it so that it could be put on a necklace. Weird.

I want to write more, and show off my new laptop, but I just don't feel very well. So, I'll do that later.

oh, dang.

Luckily, I've been doing better with my eating than with my blogging. Although, a combination of some hard times and a surly uterus did contribute to a couple un-diet-y indulgences this past weekend. For the most part I'm going okay. Thirteen pounds down, and I'm feeling good about it. Just over half way to my first goal of twenty-five pounds. Woot!

And, I've definitely been doing some good eatin'. Last night I made this recipe for Orange Pan-Glazed Tempeh, recently featured on 101cookbooks.com. As Heidi promises, it's lick-your-plate good. It's a recipe that she tweaked by Jude Blereau. Her new cookbook (that contains this recipe) isn't available in the US yet, but I found her previous one used on amazon, and it should arrive any day. I can't wait.

I paired the tempeh with wheatberries, per Heidi's suggestion, and Barbara made some garlic green beans to go with it. It was a taste and textural dream! Really. Make this tonight.


Other recent highlights have been:
-Heidi's firecracker cornbread with spicy rice and beans

-homemade flour tortillas for burritos with leftover spicy rice and beans

-chili verde with seitan (using one of my holiday gifts - some of Chef Bill Fuller's home-canned green chili sauce)


And, just for fun, here's a picture of our dogs in their new coats!

struggling

I've just gotten started, and I'm already struggling. When it's zero degrees (or less) outside, all I want is some comfort food--something, anything that is warm and gooey and bad for me.

And, I also feel pretty depressed--possibly the weather, or just a regular bout of what I'm prone to.

I know, logically, that eating well and making progress on my goal will make me feel good, but in the moment it's tough to remember that.

Also, work has been sucktastic for the past few months, and I'm just feeling stressed.

But, I'm trying to soldier on. I went swimming with Kramer at the Oliver Bath House a few days ago, and we're planning on going again today (though the thought of being damp even for a second in this frigid air is scary!). I'm trying to remember that it felt really nice, and was a great low-impact exercise that doesn't hurt my feet and my ankle.

At least it's Friday, right?

another one bites the dust!

Actually, another five. Pounds, that is. Down ten in total so far!

It's really satisfying to see some movement on the scale going down instead of up. It's always slower than I'd like, but I'm just glad it's happening.

The weekends are more challenging for me since there's more time around the house for snacking and such, and more opportunities to feel like I'd like to indulge, but all in all, I did okay. I did splurge on making pancakes on Saturday morning, which didn't seem so bad until I entered them in the recipe calculator. And, there were other, more reasonable splurges, like some homemade vanilla-coconut frozen yogurt with fresh mango (with the 0% Fage Greek yogurt).

Tonight I have my monthly "Queers: They're What's For Dinner!" dinner, and I'm not sure what the menu will be, but i just have to keep portion control in mind, and I think I'll be okay.

the week in review

I don't remember how long they (the ever-present "they") say it takes to make a habit, but it hasn't happened yet. I've been doing well, but it's always a struggle in the evenings. When we're huddled around ye olde television set watching some "Lost" or "Office" dvds, I want something to have, something for snacking. Usually chocolate comes to mind.

But, I've actually done okay, despite my cravings. I've been tracking my food and intake on www.sparkpeople.com. It's really helpful for me to have to log everything because it completely cuts out the mindless snacking--which was happening A LOT, at work especially.

I didn't stick exactly to the meals we'd planned, but pretty closely, which was really nice to not have to turn circles in the kitchen for a half hour before deciding what to make for dinner. And, nice to have leftovers to bring as lunches. I've been planning out my days at work every day, and that's been working great. I bring breakfast, a.m. snack, lunch, p.m. snack, and then I feel well-fed all day, and am not ravenous as soon as I walk in the door at home.

Here's a sample of my feed bag for work:

from l-r:
1. Steel-cut oats, soaked overnight (not cooked) w/ red grapefruit, raspberries & blueberries w/ Fage 0% fat Greek yogurt and a drizzle of honey
2. a raw carrot, sliced into bite-size pieces
3. leftovers from the night before--Thai pineapple curry
4. 2% milkfat cottage cheese with a little fresh pineapple
5. down in front, a whole-wheat lavash roll-up with cheddar, avocado, spinach and a little diced quorn

Taking snacks like this, I feel satisfied and healthy all day.

I've also been having water chug-offs with my favorite work-pal every hour on the hour. That guarantees that we've gotten our eight cups by the time we leave for the day.

And, here's the curry before the brilliant colors were dulled by a night in the fridge. I just threw this together, but next time I'll add tofu and onion for sure. And, a little more heat.


I bought myself a rice cooker for ease of making grains (confession: I suck at making rice), and I love it!! That was the first run, and the rice was perfection. I LOVE it.

Okay, have a super weekend, and keep on keepin' on.

the first week

So, today officially marks a week into the Health Quest 2009! (I started a couple days still in 2008). I am planning to weigh myself each Monday morning to chart the progress, and this morning I was down by 5.4 lbs! Woot! That's encouraging to see! I attribute this all to all the water I've been drinking. And, I was thinking that I'd start to keep a list of some tips that are helping me.

1. Drink LOTS of water. I'm trying to make sure that I drink, at bare minimum, 8 cups of water per day.
2. Track everything I eat. For one, I find this fun, for two, I'm less likely to mindlessly snack when I know that I have to log everything.
3. Try to be flexible.

Number Three is a hard one for me. I'm rigid by nature, and I find this trait to be both a positive and a negative, depending on the circumstance. When I began my Health Quest in 2007 I was so strict that I ate no (zero) processed foods. I didn't eat out. I didn't eat at other people's houses. I spent pretty much all my time cooking and logging and blogging. Which did help me learn to cook a lot of things that I'd never attempted before, but also contributed to my feeling of being so completely invested in the strictness of my program that when I fell off the wagon, it felt overwhelming to have deviated from the plan.

So, I'm trying to be much more relaxed about it this time. The truth of the matter is that it's going to take a long time to lose the weight and gain the health that I want, so I need to be realistic in settling into something I can live with for a long time. So, if I eat something out that is higher in fat or calories (or whatever), then I just need to balance that the rest of the day(s) to make sure that I'm continuously heading in the right direction, but not feeling constantly hungry or deprived. I don't want food to be a reward or punishment tool anymore. Instead I want it to just be something that I love--to cook, to learn about and to eat.

To those ends, I did a little cooking this weekend. Just some simple things. I made the Caesar Salad from Veganomicon (just tweaked a tiny bit to cut back on some of the oil while retaining the fantastic flavor), some egg salad (replaced half of the mayo with greek yogurt), and some awesome peach frozen yogurt that I made with some home-canned peaches I got as an xmas gift (in the work Secret Santa exchange from Chef Bill Fuller). I love yogurt. I especially love frozen yogurt. And, I especially-especially love having the taste of REAL peaches in the dead of winter.

Here's my uber-simple peach fro-yo recipe. I use a Cuisinart ice cream maker, but here's a great article by David Lebovitz about making frozen treats even if you don't have a machine.

Peach Frozen Yogurt
makes 6 servings

8oz 2% Fage Greek Yogurt
8oz 0% Fage Greek Yogurt
4 peaches (separated)
1/4 c. sugar
1 T. freshly-squeezed lemon juice

Using a food processor or blender, combine the yogurts, 3-3.5 of the peaches, the sugar and the lemon juice. Taste, and adjust sugar and lemon juice as necessary.

Freeze in your ice cream maker according to manufacturer instructions. About halfway through the freezing, throw the remaining peach (cut in small chunks) into the mix.

My machine finishes in about 20 minutes, and comes out the consistency of soft serve. If I can wait to dig in, I freeze it for about a half hour to firm it up a little.

.........

Oh, and Number Four is a big one: Plan my meals for the week in advance! I've always just sorta cooked by inspiration, and by digging around in the pantry, but I tend to WAY overbuy groceries and often don't have that one ingredient I'd need for whatever it is. But, again, I don't have to be super rigid in the plan. Things can change. The loose sketch for this week's dinners is:

Monday: Beans & Greens with pasta and a salad
Tuesday: Butternut-Bean veggie burgers
Wednesday: Big Salad
Thursday: Thai Pineapple Curry over jasmine rice
Friday: leftovers or a stir-fry or big salad
Saturday: Wheatberry Salad & Sloppy Janes
Sunday: Veggie Chili and corn bread

I'm trying to think about what ingredients may be used in various meals, as well as planning for lunches to take to work. Another project for this week is that we're going to start washing and prepping all our veggies to have them ready at a moment's notice for salads, stir-fries, etc.

Anyhow, keep on keepin' on, peeps. And again, please share any little words of encouragement or tips you have up your sleeve. It really does help.

re-dedication 2009

When I first started this blog, I had a couple of months under my belt of Health Quest 2007. In the preceding months, my father had died of diabetes complications, I'd discovered Michael Pollan and Heidi Swanson, and I was afire with dedicating myself to get my health and weight under control. And, I did really, really well for six or seven months, and then I started gradually adding back in sweets and processed foods until I'd gained back all I'd lost (plus four extra pounds), and found myself in the doctor's office with a mysterious rash that was explained as a pre-Diabetes warning sign. And, then a few days later I saw a picture of myself, looking not unlike Jabba the Hutt, shoving a forkful of food into my mouth. Yuck.

So, this is my re-dedication to Health Quest 2009. I'm going to start blogging more regularly because it helps to have to be accountable. And, I'm starting fresh. Making sure I am drinking my 8 cups of water (at least). Cutting out all the processed crap that eked back into my diet over the past year and a half. Keeping an eye on my nutritional intake. Exercising.

And, all the while trying not to get so obsessive with it that I give it all up when I have one misstep.

I fired up my old www.sparkpeople.com account to track my food and exercise. I like data. It helps me stay focused. And, it's a free site. If you're trying to lose weight and get healthy, you should check it out. It works much like a Weight Watchers-style plan.

If anyone has some supportive words of encouragement, a personal story, or any such thing, please post it in the comments!

I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving, Xmas/Chanukah/Kwanza and New Year!