Give In to Temptation

So Bill asked me to pick up some Ovaltine and vanilla ice cream when I was shopping yesterday. Intrigued, I asked him what he needed both ingredients for. Turned out they were separate cravings... but it got me thinking. Would it be possible to make a topping for ice cream using Ovaltine?

We have the chocolate version, so I adapted a basic chocolate sauce:

Ovaltine Ice Cream Sauce

1/3 cup cocoa powder
2/3 cup chocolate Ovaltine
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon light corn syrup

Simmer in a saucepan for about five minutes, whisking constantly. Watch out when it gets to the boiling point... it can bubble over really quickly.

Remove from heat and whisk in 1 teaspoon vanilla extract.

I cooled ours in an ice water bath for a few moments to bring down the temp, then scooped a few mugs of vanilla bean ice cream (the only one in the store that didn't have artificial vanilla flavoring! sheesh!), then drench with your sauce and devour. Yum!

Can it be that nobody has thought to do this before? I'm doubtful, but I don't see any other recipes for it on the 'net. Well, pass the word, because this is some seriously good stuff!

I just put together a nice summery salad for dinner, and thought I'd toss it on here as a way to let you all know I'm still alive.

Two cans of Costco chicken breast meat
One can of coconut milk (not sweetened or low fat or anything fancy)
Big glop of mayo (maybe 1/2 cup?)
Big squirt of Srirachi sauce (about a tablespoon?)
Squeezins from half a lime
A couple of green onions, finely chopped

Make up plates full of fresh greens (we used greenleaf and Romaine lettuces, and some baby spinach). Chop up a couple of tomatoes and/or avocados. Pour the chicken mixture over the greens (it'll be a little soupy, but it doubles as a dressing... voila!). Makes four dinner servings.

If I'd had some fresh ginger, I might have grated up a couple teaspoons and squeezed in the juice (I think the actual gratings themselves might have been too strong). Some toasted almonds might have been nice, too, or chopped green apple or celery for crunch. I was too lazy for those... we were very hungry.

No photo, sorry. It was devoured in seconds.

That's what my youngest son asked when I opened up my produce box on Saturday and pulled out a huge bulb of fennel.

I've only used fennel a few other times, and not at all in the last year, so I kept it in the back of my mind as I perused my favorite food blogs over the next few days. As it turned out, a link over at SlashFood pointed me towards a Toronto Star article offering a fennel recipe. Since the box also brought us a couple of tangelos this week, I used them instead of tangerines.

Fennel and tangelo salad

Whisk together 1/4 c. olive oil, 2 T. rice vinegar, 2 T. minced shallot, and 1 tsp. grated tangelo peel (once again, let me pimp my Microplane zester!). Add salt and pepper to taste. Toss with one large, thinly sliced bulb of fennel (chop the fronds finely) and 2 peeled, seeded tangelos, sectioned and chopped into bite-sized pieces (scrape any juice on your cutting board into the salad).

The article said to add another 5 oz. of mixed greens, but I didn't find that necessary... we just ate it as-is. It would have easily served 6 people.

This was also a chance for us to try out the new-to-us OXO mandolin we recently acquired from a friend. The online reviews are mixed, saying the blade was too dull for things like bell peppers and tomatoes, but I wouldn't use a mandolin for those things, anyway. It did great on the fennel.

The mild licorice flavor of the fennel was a nice backdrop for the tangy citrus and vinegar, with the shallots giving a little more depth. I'm looking forward to the leftovers today, after they've had all night to mingle and saturate the crispy fennel.

I still couldn't get the 4-year-old to try it. Oh well.

So after receiving two boxes full of mostly out-of-season and entirely non-local produce from Door-to-Door Organics, I wrote an email to the company, asking about their sourcing. They do, indeed, provide an entirely organic box of produce, but the website gave the impression that they worked with local farmers. The truth is that, while they do purchase some things from local farmers, it won't happen until later in the season, and even then it won't be all local. For now, the box is entirely non-local.

You can swap out items for more seasonal things, but when you swap, it's not an equal amount or value... you definitely seem to take a loss (which I suppose is understandable... it's a pain to process substitutions).

I'm debating whether to continue this box. I could see it being a nice convenience if I already had another grocery subscription to cover the staples, but I don't... I go to the store a couple of times a week, so I'm there anyway and picking up some produce isn't difficult for me at all.

The stores I currently patronize offer organic produce, unlike the shopping options near the house where I was living just a few months ago. Also, I'm not getting things that I would normally stock up... we now have two mangos sitting around, waiting to ripen and turn into lassis, which feels totally wrong given that I was seeing snow drifting down only yesterday.

I do love the surprise of opening the box on Saturday morning and checking out the goodies within. I think we'll keep it for another week or so and see if I feel any better about it.

One article in the most recent issue of Cook's Illustrated talks about cookware sets. I've long since decided against the major purchase of an entire packaged set of one brand of cookware, mostly for the reasons listed in the article (wrong sizes of frequently used pots, odd pots added in to set that are not frequently used).

The article featured a list of CI's "Ideal Cookware," and it was interesting to me to see how my own personal collection measured up. I own at least an equivalent version of most of the items listed: the cast-iron skillet and Dutch oven, small and large saucepans, a large stockpot, and a non-stick skillet.

But the first, and presumably most valuable, item in the list is one that I don't (yet) own: a traditional stainless-steel skillet. I use my non-stick skillet all the time, so I suppose I would be using a stainless skillet for most of those tasks and reserving the non-stick for things like eggs. Since I have to replace the non-stick every year or so, I do like the idea of a skillet that I wouldn't have to replace as often, as well as the fact that the non-stick is likely to last much longer if it weren't used so heavily.

Not surprisingly, the skillet that CI recommends in their Ideal list is the ALL-CLAD 12", which Amazon offers for $130. Yeah, you can see why I haven't gotten one, especially since the replaceable pan tends to go for a pretty small fraction of that cost. I got my 11.5" Cuisinart nonstick skillet about two years ago, although it doesn't look like this one is available any longer (The closest I can find, the 12" Cuisinart, seems to have a "helper handle" added now, which I don't really see as a plus but possibly could be convinced otherwise). Incidentally, for that particular piece, CI now recommends the WEAREVER 10" pan, which is still a good size and certainly affordable at $16, even when you add the $8+ shipping.

While pondering the unlikelihood of obtaining the pricey stainless skillet, I noticed that the review of the sets actually included the recommendation of a super-cheap series of cookware. While I certainly don't need the entire 8-piece set (which, by the way, costs almost exactly as much as the single ALL-CLAD skillet mentioned above), I perceived that it compared quite favorably to the ALL-CLAD set, being similar in design and performance... and it included a stainless skillet. A bit of Googling, and it was clear that the single item could be obtained for less than $40.

What's the rub? In order to get my hands on this thing, I'd have to give money to Walmart.

I've only gone into Walmarts under extreme circumstances. Once was on a road trip to obtain diapers (I'm an advocate of cloth, but even us dirty hippies have our limits). Another time was during another road trip, in Springfield, MO, on the day that the final Harry Potter book was released (apparently there are no independent booksellers in Springfield, or at least none I could get any locals to admit to being aware of. We finally passed our third gargantuan Walmart of the day, after searching for hours, and I caved). Yet another time was a third road trip, when Linc and I were stranded in tiny Evanston, WY, for three days with I-80 closed in both directions and the temperature hovering around 0 Fahrenheit... not only was I reduced to wandering the Walmart in an attempt to entertain the bored toddler and avoid the livid truck drivers, but I actually allowed him to play in the local McDonald's indoor playground (I think this means I'm banned from the Rainbow Family Gathering for at least a decade).

How badly do I need this pan? Would the ten bucks of shipping be worth not having to actually step foot inside the place? I admit that I'm leaning towards that option... but it still leaves a pretty bad taste in my mouth.

WWDLJD?

I braved the rain and slush yesterday to attend the annual Kansas City Food Circle Exhibition of Farmers over in Shawnee.

There were plenty of local growers offering fresh produce and plant starts, several markets (including a potential resurrection of a market on Troost), numerous purveyors of local meat, eggs, wool, soap, bread and honey, and a few assorted supporters of sustainability, e.g. The Sierra Club.

I scored a rack of lamb for Easter from Green Dirt Farms, plus a couple of their new sheep's milk cheeses... one looks like a crumbly feta with rosemary, the other is a vegetable-ash-covered round that was promised to age into a runny Camembert-type cheese in a few weeks (the Dirt Lover).

I raised dairy goats and sheep in 4-H, and I can testify that most sheep teats are absolutely microscopic compared to those of the relatively busty Nubian. I was assured that these cheeses were from "dairy sheep," who, on a quick Googling, appear to indeed have milkable udders.

There were also a large number of abandoned exhibitor tables, presumably due to the weather, and a notable lack of ready-to-eat food. My four-year-old liked the worm exhibit and his honey stick, but all the great ingredients and no way to sit and enjoy any of them was pretty torturous, so we headed back out into the sleet for a guilty Steak-n-Shake drive-through.

If you were smarter than I was and kept off the nasty roads this weekend, you still have another shot at the expo. There's a second event next Saturday, April 4 (note different site), and a better weather outlook to boot. Did I mention this was free? Check the website for a list of vendors and detail.

So last week, my baker husband, 2006in2006, requested that I make an Indian curry one night so he could try out a new recipe for naan. Happy to oblige, I decided to try doing an authentic scratch curry, instead of my past Indian curry attempts: essentially a big pot of cauliflower, potatoes and peas sauteed in butter and curry powder with basmati rice. I'd already learned how to pound my own authentic Thai curry, so it seemed high time to learn the basics of the Indian style, too.

It turns out I had nearly all of the necessary spices on hand for this basic lamb curry from Indian Food Rocks, and I found this Apartment Therapy page with tips and ideas on how to adapt the recipe to a slow cooker. I got some cheap arm steaks, and was ready to roll.

After my Nia class last Friday morning, I started frying the whole spices (cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, peppercorns and a bay leaf) and onions in my ancient Dutch oven over low heat.



Forty-five minutes later, here's what I had:



I wasn't seeing the pink described in the recipe, but my time was limited and I needed to progress to the next step. I added the diced tomatoes and tomato paste, then the garlic and ginger, and let it simmer for another 45 minutes before adding the lamb and moving the whole thing into my slow-cooker.



It braised over low heat for four more hours, causing the entire house to smell heavenly. I mixed rice, water, saffron, peas and knob of butter in the rice cooker while my husband finished off his naan, and we prepared to feast.



I was amazed at how the onions just melted away into the sauce. Three onions create a significant amount of vegetable matter, and this pile gradually transformed to a mellow, savory mush that carried the rest of the ingredients. I honestly had no idea that this was how the traditional curries were made, and it was surprisingly easy, if time-consuming. The meat, even though it was a cheap cut, was absolutely melting in our mouths, and the combined rice and curry leftovers were even better the next day.

There's still a bit left over in the fridge, but we watched The Silence of the Lambs last night... oops.

Ho hum. The May/June Cook's Illustrated does another version of chocolate chip cookies. Somebody alert the media.

Oh, wait... hmm... hey, this actually sounds really good. More brown sugar, and melting/browning a majority of the butter, and dissolving the sugar in the butter to recreate that aged-dough flavor...

Okay. I guess I'll give 'em a try. Usually I have the Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate chips on hand, but an emergency PMS session with the Charlie's Chocolate Pudding Cake recipe from Francois Payard's Chocolate Epiphany cookbook wiped me out, so I had to make do with a chopped bar of Scharffenberger 71% bittersweet.



Survey says: Rich, toffee-like scent, crisp edges and chewy center, nutty and complex... multiple layers of flavors and textures combine for a very satisfying cookie experience. Recipe author Charles Kelsey really has managed to come up with a fool-proof (well, at least as far as this particular fool is concerned) version of the stand-by family favorite.

CI has a free two-week trial for their website, if you don't want to get your own copy of the magazine or wait until someone else types it up as their own.

... I wonder where the birdies is?
They say the birds is on the wing... ain't that absurd?
I always thought the wing was on the bird.

So YumSugar has a poll on springtime vegetables, asking folks to choose their most-anticipated spring garden treat. If I had to limit myself to this list, I'd have to say asparagus was the winner.

But they left off my number one fave springtime goodie: green garlic! We're supposed to have snow this weekend, but after that, I'm going to buy a bunch of organic (ie, non-irradiated and non-GMO and non-sterile) garlic bulbs and poke 'em into the little terraced area in my front yard, in hopes of growing a bit of my own green garlicky goodness. It couldn't be easier, and there's nothing as bright and uplifting to toss into your morning eggs than a stalk of baby garlic stems.

Speaking of springy veggies, I signed up our family for a Door-to-Door Organics weekly produce box. We've got the "bitty" mixed box, and our first delivery is supposed to be tomorrow. We tried a CSA a few years back, but the local farmers, while certainly earnest and dedicated, could only offer multiple weeks of huge Napa cabbages. I love a good stir-fry as much as the next gal, but four weeks of these gigantic curly green heads leering at me from the veggie drawer was too much... we bailed.

It looks like Door-to-Door is a cooperative venture between many different farms, which means many different crops to be included. At least, that's what their sample boxes look like. We'll see what the reality is. Another nice bonus is that you're not beholden for an entire season, or even more than a week at a time... you can subscribe, or just get one box, or whatever you want to do. You can swap out a hated item for something more palatable. And it's dropped at your door, no parking-lot pickups.

Yesterday I met with a few local eGulleteers to help plan the Midwest eG Gathering in July. Holy molé, this thing is gonna rock!

Hope you're all enjoying your spring morning, and that the flurries don't freeze off your lilac buds!

So I had this package of chicken thighs. I was feeling lazy and kinda wanted to do a one-pan dinner, sort of a cacciatore-type thing maybe, but not bake them. I didn't even want to do a separate pasta pot. I wondered if there was a way to cook 'em in the crockpot or rice cooker.

Of course, the day slipped away and the slow-cooking method got abandoned. I never really found a good recipe I wanted to try, but I did find one that included rice with veggies cooked with a single thigh on top. Why not all the thighs?

I also thought that claypot cooking, an Asian method of baking food in a moistened, sealed earthernware pot to steam the meat and veggies, sounded an awful lot like a rice cooker. So I went ahead and marinated the thighs in some water, black bean sauce, and sesame oil for about an hour, then threw the whole thing in with rice, water, chopped red bell pepper and onion, some more sesame oil and soy sauce, a few cloves of garlic and a chunk of grated ginger, and set the whole thing into the rice cycle.

It was fantastic! The meat came out juicy and flavorful, and the rice was almost like fried rice (but not so oily). Even the teen who hates rice ate some. So, two lessons: 1) you can cook chicken just fine in the rice cooker, and 2) go ahead and experiment if you think it sounds good, even if you can't find a specific recipe!

(Hee... now you are all gonna show me the Big Giant Rice Cooker website I missed that explains this in detail, right?)

Local foodies and those who enjoy writing will be pleased to hear about the eGullet Heartland Gathering, scheduled for the weekend of July 25, 2009, a low-key event designed to showcase the best KC has to offer.

More info over on the eGullet thread.

What? You're not on eGullet yet? Hie thee over there, and enjoy! I think the forums are open for public perusal, but to become a member, you have to go through an application process to ensure your commitment to good food, good writing, and community. I was actually nervous when I first applied, but now I'm really glad to have landed there.

As much as his strident anti-mayor hounding and sexism makes my skin crawl, I admit that I do visit Tony's Kansas City blog now and again... the boy does have contacts and for all his shrewish whinging, he does seem to have a genuine love of all things KC-related. So when he pointed to The Making of a Foodie blog with the following link, I clicked through.

And if you live in the KC area and are interested in food, you should do the same.

Christopher Elbow's new chocolate bar based on Pop Rocks... the little bistro at Oak and 63rd that opened right as we moved away from that neighborhood... local donuts... lots of lovely nibbles to explore.

Moodyfoodie is getting ready to pack up her kitchen and move back into town, so please stay tuned, and thanks to the diehard readers that have stuck with me!

Pangea, the small-plate internationally inspired café helmed by Martin and Wendy Rudderford, has closed.

I hate it that we're so tight on money... and after this move, we'll be even more so... because I know that the only way these creative chefs will stay alive is through our patronage.

I'm going to make an effort to do lunches and brunches when we can, and to continue to always choose local small places over larger chains. They're not as cheap, but it's the same as supporting your local hardware store instead of giving your dollars to Home Depot, or paying a midwife out of pocket instead of letting your insurance cover the hospital... sometimes they way you spend your money really matters.

How are you making sure your favorite places don't go tits-up during this bleak economic phase?

So I'm getting ready to move back into KC proper, after nearly a year out in the south-east corner. I miss posting here, so I think I'm going to try to get back to it. Just wondering if I have any readers left, or is this a purely an exercise in self-amusement?

In any case: coming soon, a quick commentary on a couple of California restaurants, and the Starker's Reserve Valentine's Day dinner.

Today was just one thing after another. So after life had kicked me for the fifteenth time, I hung up and headed to the kitchen... I KNOW I can do good in there!

I had some peaches, and I had Dorie Greenspan's fabulous baking book, and ( here's what I made. )

Woohooooo! (note to future readers: link probably won't be current after mid-August, 2008)

Good thing my mom sent a check for almost exactly the price of two seats for our anniversary. Saves us from having to sell another of the kids' kidneys (see, there IS an upside to multiple offspring!).

My only regret is that I have just a few hours to build up anticipation. Half the fun is in the wondering and dreaming.

Okay, well, not half. Maybe a tenth.

Note to self: Remember the damned camera this time.

This is more for my own info, but I'll slap it down here in case anyone has any more suggestions or ideas...

First off, a few goodbyes. Noodle Shop closed just as we moved out of the neighborhood... in fact, I think we ate there within their last day or two. Funny, 'cos we accidentally tripped over them on their opening day. I certainly hope you've got another project up your sleeve, Mr. Kanigar. Sayonara and domo arigato gozaimasu!

We also found out that 40 Sardines closed, but this wasn't quite so sad once I learned that Beard Award winner chef Debbie Gold has returned to the American Restaurant. I wonder where Celina Tio went, though?

I've been badly out of touch in the KC food scene (partly finances, partly just needing to drop an interest for a while due to time), so I missed that Joe West took over as executive chef over at the Delaware Market Cafe. I think Joe's about 12 years old, so this is kind of a big deal. Congrats, Chef Joe, and I can't wait to get over there and see what you've done!

I've been SO out of touch that I completely spaced on the Starker's heirloom dinner (here's what happened last year). It's TOMORROW NIGHT! I called as soon as I figured it out, but the chances of scoring two seats at this late hour are about nil. I am a very sad foodie.

jillcook and I headed out to the brunch at bluestem last Sunday. Still a great deal, although I hear that they're doing a nice early bird thing 5-7 T-Th that we're gonna have to try out sometime. Oh, they also FINALLY got their four stars from the local food critic... not sure why she's been so slow to figure out this phenomenon, but now she's with the program.

In a blinding stroke of stupidity, Justus Drugstore is being pushed to change their name.

My kid got hired at Bella on 39th as a dishwasher, and laid off the week after that. If you want to check them out (they do local food with an Italian flair), don't wait. I have a feeling they won't be around much longer, either. The breakfast was particularly wonderful, and I hear great things about their risottos.

Tried the Malt Bodine at Murry's Ice Cream a couple weeks back. Kinda like a Whoppersicle. Good stuff.

That's it for now. What all have you been nibbling on this summer and where?

Hey, is anyone still reading this blog? Helloooo?

*crickets*

Well, just in case... this really is something I want to share, and it's food related, and I've been feeling foodie-ish lately, so I'll throw it out there.

jillcook and her lovely family came over for dinner and games today. I was just going to grill brats and burgers, but of course had to make things more complicated. So, along with those, we had a lovely ripe Athena melon, just-right bicolor corn on the cob, a chipotle-corn-macaroni salad that turned out really well (anyone want that recipe?), some yummy locally made pita chips and feta dip 2006in2006 found at the store, many libations starting off with homemade faux Frappuccinos, and for the finale, one of the best things I think I've ever made: a peach galette. 2006in2006 showed up right when I was feeling nervous about rolling the dough (you're supposed to roll it out 24 inches!) and finished that part... once again, it's so nice to see what a great team we are!

That recipe is from Rose Levy Berenbaum, author of the Cake, Pie and Pastry, and Bread Bibles. Bill's been a big fan of hers for a long time, and while I've enjoyed her stuff, I tend to be much more of a relaxed entity in my kitchen. Measuring things by grams just never appealed to me. However, I might be starting to see a glimmer of what everyone's been raving about with her books. Maybe following directions isn't such a bad idea. Maybe.

OK, fellow foodies... here's a great way to support a couple of local folks doing good work and help the less fortunate at no cost to yourself. From Dan over at GoneMild, register here and have 10 lbs of food donated from Pryde's.

I know I've been a lazy blogger over here. Let's see if I can get some holiday cheer flowing soon...

Here's a list of the ten best and worst foods you can eat.

No big surprises, except that the prepared food you already knew was bad turns out to be really, REALLY bad. I thought the Chipotle burritos were actually a decent deal, with all those rice and beans!