Oct 16
The Seattle area was supposed to get 65 mph winds from a dying typhoon last night. Fortunately, this did not come to pass. We did get plenty of rain, but we never lost power. This morning I found a couple of puny branches from the big ass Douglas fir on our upper deck and the dining room skylight, but no major damage.
Our former next door neighbor, the weather geek, forwarded this on her Facebook page:
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/10/16/storm-what-storm/
Oct 15
I had a bunch of Jonagold apples that I originally was going to use to make apple crisp. However, the week got away from me, so I opted to get some more apples and make applesauce. I used my tried-and-true method that I outlined last year. This time I added a couple of knobs of fresh ginger instead of crystallized, and used a little apple cider as the liquid.
All Jonagolds.
This was the first time I used the induction range to make applesauce. The pan I used was one of Julian’s cheap-os that he’d had for years. Surprisingly, none of the applesauce burned on the bottom of the pan as it did when I used the pan on an electric coil burner. This was promising.
When it came time to run the apples through the food mill, the ginger hunks were still intact. (Note to self: Peel and chop the ginger next time.) Regardless, the final result looked and tasted good. The red from the peels colored the product nicely. Not as red as if I’d used Rome Beauties, but still pretty.
Pretty in pink.
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/10/15/first-of-the-season/
Oct 15
I’m used to getting tutti frutti iced tea in Seattle. Today we went to a sports bar and I asked for hot tea. The waitress asked me what type I’d like. “We have orange tea, peppermint tea…” I asked for black tea. She came back with Earl Grey: “This is the closest we have.” The struggles of being a tea drinker hereabouts continue.
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/10/15/yet-another-tea-rant/
Oct 14
We’re in the midst of what could be a serious rain/windstorm for the next few days, the remnants of a typhoon. I got some hamburgers out of the freezer for dinner last night. The last thing I wanted to do was to stand on the upper deck in the rain and grill them. So I made picadillo, a classic pan-Latin American dish.
Picadillo is very easy to make, and cleans out the produce bin quite nicely. Start by breaking up that ground beef (or pork, turkey, chicken–hell, you can even use tofu if you must) and browning it in a frying pan. Chop up some onions and garlic, and throw them in the pan once the meat has started to brown. You can also add chopped bell pepper, jalapeño, celery, or whatever else needs to get used up. I had one whole bottled pimiento that I chopped and added to the pan. Once the onions become translucent, stir in a can of diced or stewed tomatoes. I used a can of tomatoes with green chiles. If you have them, you can use a can of Ro-Tel tomatoes, but that may be a bit strong for chile wimps. Add a little oregano and a bay leaf. No salt needed, for reasons that will become clear shortly. Bring the mixture to a boil, and then simmer while you make the rest of dinner. I made a pot of rice and roasted some parsnips and carrots (snips and rots, as we call them at Casa Sammamish). About 10 minutes before you’re ready to eat, stir in some sliced green pimiento-stuffed olives, capers, and a handful of raisins. The key to a good picadillo is a balance between salty and sweet. The olives and capers will supply the salt. The final picadillo should be fairly dry, not soupy. The raisins will absorb some of the liquid. Once your sides are done, dinner is ready. You can garnish the picadillo with parsley, cilantro, or cheese, roll it in tortillas, or serve it atop rice.
This recipe is very scalable. For the two of us, 1 pound of meat and a 14-ounce can of tomatoes gives us enough for a meal and leftovers. For a larger household, double those main proportions and add as many accoutrements as you have in the fridge. ¡Buen provecho!
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/10/14/picadillo/
Oct 13
I went to the hand surgeon yesterday to get the results of the MRI on my poor pinky finger. Good news: I don’t need surgery. I will need physical therapy to get the finger back to normal. Better news: I can go swimming, provided that I put the splint back on afterward. So this morning I got back in the pool. I swam in the slower lane, since it’s been 6 weeks since I did much of a swim. The best part was getting back in touch with my pool pals. Next week I’ll get back to the twice-to-thrice a week routine.
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/10/13/good-news-better-news/
Oct 08
It was cool and raining this morning. What to do? Make some bread. Next question: What bread to make? I went to my trusty copy of Bernard Clayton Jr.’s New Complete Book of Breads. I found a garlic bread recipe that I’d made years ago. The garlic cloves are peeled, blanched, run through a press, and mixed with butter. The garlic butter mixture is kneaded into the dough. The kitchen was redolent with the aroma of garlic. Let’s just say that Casa Sammamish is safe from vampires for a day or two.
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/10/08/rainy-saturday-activity/
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/10/08/debate-prep/
Oct 02
I’m not talking politics. This concerns the state of college and professional sports. Let me count the ways:
The last one is definitely a harbinger of the end of days.
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/10/02/are-we-in-the-end-times-october-2016-edition/
Oct 01
When fresh figs are in season and you can get them for a decent price, buy them. I bought two pints the other day at the fruit stand and puzzled about what to do with them for the usual Friday Night Follies. Luckily, I found a recipe in Deborah Madison’s cookbook, Local Flavors, for a fall fruit salad featuring figs, pomegranate seeds, persimmons, and walnuts. Since I didn’t have any persimmons and we have one friend who’s allergic to walnuts, it was time to gemisch. [Gemisch is Yiddish for mess. It’s our in-house term for kitchen improvisations.] Below is what I came up with:
Fig-Pomegranate Salad
1 1/2 pints fresh figs
Seeds from one small pomegranate
A few grinds of freshly-ground black pepper
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2-3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
drizzle of honey
drizzle of pomegranate molasses
pinch salt
Combine the figs and pomegranate seeds in a medium bowl. Grind the pepper over the fruit. In a separate small bowl, whisk together the oil, vinegar, honey, pomegranate molasses, and salt. Pour the oil and vinegar mixture over the fruit; toss to coat. Serve at room temperature.
This was a big hit with the crew. It went very well with the main dishes, grilled salmon for the omnivores and chickpea fritters for the vegetarians. The crunch of the pomegranate seeds was a good contrast with the softness of the figs.
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/10/01/more-figgy-goodness/
Oct 01
I grew up on the East Coast eating McIntosh, Cortland, Jonathan, and Rome Beauty apples. Family and friends are in the orchard business. My maternal grandfather co-owned an apple orchard. When we visited Seattle in the 1990’s, the apple selection was limited to Red and Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, and one or two other varieties. Luckily, the selection has widened in the years since our first visit.
The other day I bought a locally-grown, new crop, McIntosh apple at the fruit stand. Julian doesn’t like them, so I usually don’t purchase that variety. I took it to lunch yesterday. One bite and I thought to myself: “DAMN! Is this a Red Delicious in disguise?” The apple had no snap to its flesh. It was as if it had been in cold storage for six months. The potential explanations are as follows:
Maybe I should stick to West Coast apples on the West Coast–except for applesauce.
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/10/01/misplaced-nostalgia/
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