A Mouse in the Pantry

Moveable Type

Did you know that Hawaii is the most isolated population center on the face of the earth? Hawaii is 2, 390 miles from California; 3,850 miles from Japan; 4,900 miles from China; and 5,280 miles from the Philippines.

I have never been to Hawaii, but I have always wanted to give it a go.  You know, stay at a resort hotel, wade my perfectly pedicured toes in the crystal blue waters, take postcard worthy family portraits swimming with tropical fish, and drinks.  I think a lot of Americans have this dream. 

Hawaii is not the only tropical paradise out there folks.  There's the Caribbean, the Mediterranean, South East Asia... There are so many.  In the end, any white sand beach would do, wouldn't it?  Though I have never been to Hawaii, I think I would pass it up for a chance to travel just a little bit farther out of our ego-centric country for a vacation.  Sorry.

But what if, I mean suppose, well what I'm trying to say is...What if I got the chance to MOVE to Hawaii? Oh slow down, I'm not saying that just yet.  But what if?  If I had to pick the white sand beaches of Hawaii, over say, oh I don't know, Staten Island? What would you do?

You see, we're a family on the move.  My husbands job requires it of us.  Every two or three years, we pack up, relocate and re-establish our lives somewhere completely new. 

It's not always a shot in the dark.  We get choices.  Lots of choices.  Have you ever tried to write down the top 15 places you would just love to move (in the United States, not South East Asia OR the Mediterranean!)? 

Sometime last fall we tried to pick our top 15 (from a limited list of choices of course).  It's a bit ridiculous really, as the man in charge, "GOD", as I like to call him, could pick anything from your list.  You have no say.  You have no pull.  And, if you dare piss "God" off, your ship is sunk (sorry for the pun).

So we wait.  We wait in this weird flux reality of now.  Now can be very hard. NOW is my Zen self at work, trying to rise to the surface.

Since last October we have been waiting to escape NOW, and find next week.

We could continue to live here. This would be very good.  This would be fantastic.  We like HERE.  Don't tell "GOD" I said this.

We could be moved to Seattle, or one of it's suburbs, Kent.  I like the idea of Kent.  I could quote a character from one of Jane Austin's novels, "What news from Kent?".  That would be jolly fun.  If we move North, my husband will move out for up to six months at a time on the job.  But still, he could call home and say "What news from Kent Hot Stuff?" (ok, these criteria are not the best, but give me an inch).

We could move to Virginia. Very beautiful countrysides in Virginia. Yes California, even Virginia has it's bonuses.  Plus, we would be living near to D.C, which is where the Obamas live, and that is very cool!

We could move to Staten Island, or Boston or, Hawaii - oh yes, Hawaii.  Today I especially like Hawaii.  Forget the pedicure, the postcards, the clear waters, the tropical drinks, I like the idea of homesteading in Hawaii.

I will start an urban farm.  I will grow pineapples and sell them at my own homemade farmers market.  I will let my children become gloriously tan, all blond and brown locks falling over their faces.  I will get thin, really thin, really sporty surfer chick, mommy on the go, eats pineapples all day, thin. Ooh this is fun.

Or, maybe, they will pick somewhere off our list.  Something that wasn't our "choice".  It could happen.

Real Sour Dough!

Success!
Three weeks and several bags of flour later, a success! 
It's all in the sponge folks.  You know, the sponge! Oh come on, I'm sure you've scoured cookbooks looking for a deeper understanding of bread baking, right? Oh, well, let me enlighten you then.

It all starts with some yeast.  Wild yeast.  Wild yeast that I captured on my counter top using my best wrangler moves.  It was smelly yeast, but you already knew that.

Then the yeast wanted to become bread.  But the bread, it was eluding me.  Oh I made loaves.  I made loaf, after loaf, after loaf. Each a little bit more bread like then the one before. I wasn't sure what the magic trick was to making bread from wild yeast, but I could see this little glimmer at the end of the tunnel.  It was out there I could get it.
And then, on Sunday night last, I mixed up one more sponge.  The sponge is the like the incubator for yeast.  With  about 1 1/2 cups of starter, 3 cups of warm water and enough flour (maybe 3or 4 cups) of flour to make a pasty dough, it sits, for hours,and hours...and hours.  This sponge, sitting near the pilot light, loosely covered in saran, begins to bubble and move.

On Monday morning I should have been adding more flour, oil and salt, and beginning to form loaves.  Instead, life happened and the sponge sat too long.  Or did it? 12 hours later (24 after beginning the sponge), I successfully pulled off a bonafied sourdough bread!!!

I'm not done.   Oh no, success is too sweet.  I am feeding and growing my starter in the fridge, creating new sponges. I'm still baking.

On that note, if anyone has some information on forming a good bubbly blistery crust, I'm looking to make some leaps and bounds in that area!
Below are some fo my triumphs, however small (and a lot of failures).

Sunday Dinner

A mom can handle only so many days of nursing the sick, nursing the well, school break, and meal planning, before she must escape her brood for a little less holy ground.  In preparation for a mommy only departure from what has felt like two weeks of quarantine in the "house of Strep throat", I whipped up a homespun cottage pie. 

A spin on an old fashioned Sheppard's pie, and missing the lamb, this Sweet Potato and Eggplant dish made enough for two dinners worth, and is going to please even the pickiest of our lot (it better, cuz' I'm outta here!).

Sweet Potato and Eggplant Cottage Pie  - Serves 6
Recipe by Meloni Courtway

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons salt
2 cups cherry tomatoes or other small sweet tomatoes
2 medium sized eggplant, diced into 1 inch cubes

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 sweet yellow onion, diced
1/2 pound lean ground beef (preferable organic or sustainable).
2 large  carrots, peeled and sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup red wine
3 cups fresh spinach, or 1 cup frozen
1 pound white potatoes, peeled and quartered
1 pound yams or sweet potatoes, peeled and quartered
2 teaspoons salt, plus more for potato water

In a large pot, boil potatoes in salted water until soft enough to be pierced with a pairing knife. Drain and set aside.

On a rimmed baking sheet coat eggplant and tomatoes in 2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle liberally with salt.  Roast in hot oven (375 degrees) for 20 minutes).

In a large heavy bottom pan, preferably an enamel coated cast iron pot, saute onions in olive oil until translucent. Add carrot and beef, and 2 teaspoons salt, and saute until beef is browned.  Add garlic, and saute for 1 minutes. Add spinach red wine and pre-roasted eggplant mixture.  Cook over medium high for 2 minutes, or until wine begins to reduce.

In  a large bowl, or in your electric mixer, mash potatoes roughly.  Add 1/4 cup milk if needed to smooth. 

Spread potato mixture over beef mixture and seal to edges.  Place entire pot into oven  (lower to 350), and roast until juices begin to bubble around the edges and potatoes become lightly browned.

Serve with a nice mixed green salad or asparagus!

Pho your health

Have you ever gone on a diet?

Diets make people do, say, and believe crazy things.  I was once on a diet that caused me to believe Cool Whip was a food group.  It was a sad moment in my history that I try not to dwell in.

People on diets have all kinds of information for other people (some on diets, some not).  Recently, someone on a diet, a very "pointed" diet, told me about Shirataki noodles.

I was a little freaked out.  Hey, I love tofu.  I love noodles.  I was ready to love tofu noodles, but the packaging almost stopped me. "Rinse noodles to remove their authentic aroma". Hmm.  Authentic.  Right.

Yes my friends, they do have an authentic aroma.  I summoned my ancient grandmothers, my aunties, my "little chef", and all of my senses, and these wise sages want me to tell you that Shirataki Tofu noodles smell a little like a fishing boat that has been washed in formaldehyde.  Authentic aroma is not a good thing.

O.k., o.k., all this being said, and as long as you don't try to fool yourself into using this in place of spaghetti, tofu noodles have a place!  A very, very, low calorie/high flavor place!

We love this homespun version of Vietnamese Pho (pronounced "Fah", gringos).  Please do proceed with caution and follow the package's instruction - wash your noodle to reduce the authentic aroma!(it works).

Vietnamese PHO - recipe by Meloni Courtway serves 2

4 cups fate free organic chicken broth
2 cups water
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons hoisin sauce
1 stalk lemon grass
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, sliced
1 package Shirataki Tofu Noodles (found in the tofu section of your super market), or, equivalent rice boodles.
2 cups shredded roasted chicken, or shrimp, or thinly sliced grilled beef
1 cup fresh bean sprouts
2 green onions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
1 firm tomato diced
1 lime, quartered
soy sauce
Sriracha hot sauce

In a medium sized sauce pan combine chicken stock, water, salt, hoisin sauce, lemon grass and ginger.  Bring to a rapid boil.  Prepare all additional ingredients while broth is heating.

Just before serving flash boil noodles for 2 minutes in broth.  Add chicken (or alternate protein) and allow to heat 1 minute.  Ladle into bowls and serve with prepared veggies and condiments on the table for each person to add as they wish.

It's easy, it's fresh, and yes folks it's only 2 points per serving (oh dear, watch out for the weight watchers stampede in the tofu isle!)!

Petaluma Chili Cook-Off 2009

It is that time of year again folks.  The best little chicken orientated town this side of the Mississippi is looking for the best crop of chili makers to come forward and wow the crowds at the 12th annual Cinnabar Theater' Chili Cook-Off, Beer Tasting, and Salsa Competition!

Last years event was topped by no other, as crowds of chili eatin' fools crammed into Petaluma's own Herzog hall.  This year is shaping up to be even bigger, and now is the time to join in if you want to impress all of us with your chili making powers.

Call or email the cinnabar's number one fund-raising aficionado Laura Sunday, pronto, and get your name on the limited space list.  Don't like beans?  Well, you're welcome to try out your spice factor in the ever growing salsa competition.

Just want to eat it, and  don't want to cook it? No problem.  Mark your calendars for May 9th, 1-5 pm, and find yourself a designated driver (preferably with a convertible, if you know what I mean!).  The events tickets can be bought closer to the date, through the Cinnabar Theater.

And remember, all profits go to benifit our local Cinnabar Theater and its many wonderful programs!!!

www.greatchilicookoff.com

Start: Phase 2

The first stage of my homemade sourdough starter was easy enough.  I mixed one cup whole wheat white flour with 1 cup water.  Stirred with a wooden spoon until a dough began to form, added a little more flour and needed my little ball of dough for just about two minutes.  That's it.  Then, I carefully made evil eyes at my significant other, who was already eying my latest bread creation.  "Don't touch it!" I said clearly, as I put the dough in small bowl and covered it in a wet cloth.  "Now, we wait.  Do you know what waiting is?" I said snidely.

Two days later I checked the dough.  There was a thick brown crust on top.  When I pulled it back, there was this stringy mass of smelly bubbles (pictured here).  It was ready to be fed.  A little hand full of flour, and some water to reform another ball of dough.  The smell immediately began to get better and it was back to the counter with the wet cloth to wait for more action.  I was capturing wild yeast.  "How exciting and scientific" I thought.

Yesterday when I got home, with kids screaming, dog pouncing, mail waiting, floor looking suspiciously dirty, garbage over flowing, laundry spilling forth, lunch pending, emails piling,  and then..."Oh God, who stepped in Dog doo!"

The smell was atrocious.  I looked around from the computer?  "Not under my feet."  Over by the door? (the first place it would have been trailed in) Nope.  I made the boys prop up their feet for inspection.  I made the dog prop up his feet for inspection.  All clear.  Ugh, it was here somewhere.  Did the dog do "it" in the house???

Like a hound I traced the smell from room, to room, to the kitchen.  "It's in here!" I proclaimed victorious. I checked the overflowing garbage can, the fridge (well, you never know?), my feet again...  The starter? 

Oh yes, my sweet "yeasty" dough had actually more of a gym sock/dog dookie aroma going on for it.  According to the recipe I had been following - it was ready.  "Holy cow, how did the Gold Miners rely on this?" I said with my nose turned up to the hubs who was thrilled with my disgust.  "Because they had too!" he so smartly pointed out.

And so it was, San Francisco Sourdough putrid enough to feed a whole camp of gold miners, may have been born by some cowboys checking the bottoms of their boots.

Let's hope that the next phase brings a little more of what I like to find at the bakery!

Winter Squash Risotto

It is no wonder that we associate squash with the pilgrim's first meals, as its hardiness is undoubted.  As usual around our house there are still pumpkins lingering, many we grew ourselves this year, and it's hard to just toss them in the compost bin if they haven't started to move that direction themselves.

Also tucked in with the pumpkins were a few more red winter squash grown at our community garden.  A hard variety of winter squash (perhaps a hybrid between a "Turban" and a "Buttercup"), they have lived happily out on the deck this many months and were the perfect beta-carotene infused addition to our family meal.

When peeling any hard winter squash, whether its Kabocha or Butternut, Turban or Acorn, please take care to keep all sharps pointed away from you and never let your fingers end up on the receiving end.  Once peeled, sliced squash can stayed refrigerated in a dry container for several days, even a week.  Cooked winter squash can be stored in the freezer for 3 months.

Winter Squash Risotto
(Recipe by Meloni Courtway)

1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups sliced hard winter squash such as butternut, red squash, kabocha, or acorn
1 tablespoon fresh lemon thyme (or plain thyme), washed, leaves only, roughly chopped
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon saffron
1 cup Arborio rice
1 cup dry white wine
4 ½ cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

In a large sauté pan (very large) or good sized heavy bottomed pot, combine 3 tablespoons of olive oil and onion.  Saute until onion is translucent.  Add the squash, and sauté for 1 minute. Add Arborio rice, salt, black pepper, saffron, and thyme.  Stir to coat with oil.  Cook, stirring for 2 minutes.  Add white wine, in two parts, stirring well with each addition.  As wine begins to cook off, slowly add chicken or vegetable broth, about ¼ cup at a time.  Continue stirring.  As broth is absorbed, add more.  You may not need the entire 4 ½ cups, but have it ready in case.  The process of adding the broth should take around 20 minutes.  Each slow addition of broth and your constant stirring will make a creamier risotto.  When rice is translucent and creamy (about 40 minutes after starting the process), turn off the heat and cover with a lid until ready to serve.  Sprinkle with fresh Parmesan cheese before serving. Enjoy!

Copyright Meloni Courtway