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Cooking 
Mon May 11, 2009 at 20:32:54 PM PDT
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The La Vida Locavore community gave me good ideas when I posted a diary on favorite food substitutions a few months ago. Now I would like your input on favorite shortcuts in the kitchen.
I'm not talking about picking up take-out or eating a peanut-butter sandwich instead of a hot meal. For the purposes of this thread, I am seeking ideas that save preparation time or cooking time when you are making the meal.
After the jump I've posted my chili recipe, which incorporates three shortcuts. This won't win you a prize at the chili cookoff, but it is tasty and highly adaptable to your own preferences or what you have in your kitchen. I'm all for cooking with what you have rather than slavishly following recipes.
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Mon Apr 06, 2009 at 19:55:04 PM PDT
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I don't mean to sound like Miss Manners, but my cousin who has invited our family to a Passover seder this week has sent me an "assignment" (her word) of what side dish to bring and told me how to cook the vegetables.
She did the same thing last year. When I offered to bring a side dish, she sent me a specific recipe for a beet salad that I'd never made before. I don't care for one of the ingredients, so I asked if I could bring one of my own favorite beet dishes instead, which worked out fine.
I don't want to create any grief for this cousin, so this year I think I will just make what she's suggesting. Her mother is a caterer, and that's probably why menu planning is important to her. But I think that if friends or relatives ask what they can bring to dinner at your house, you should just give general guidance such as, "A veggie side dish (or salad, or dessert) that goes with chicken would be great." If you need to avoid duplication, you can say something like, "Someone's already bringing a pasta salad, but if you could bring some other kind of salad or side dish, that would be wonderful."
Obviously it's ok to ask people not to bring certain foods if you have vegetarians or food allergies in the mix, but otherwise I believe in letting your guest bring something he or she is comfortable cooking and serving to others.
Please share other do's and don'ts in this thread.
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Wed Mar 18, 2009 at 07:55:14 AM PDT
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Do you always follow the recipe, and make dishes that look like the picture? Or are you a kitchen improviser? Do you put nutrition and health first, maybe at the sacrifice of taste?
Find out by taking the NYTimes quiz, What's you're cooking personality?
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Sun Mar 01, 2009 at 09:59:13 AM PST
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As kids I'm sure most of you were told to eat your greens and your grains. I sure was. Whole grains are a good source of B vitamins, Vitamin-E, magnesium, iron and fiber, as well as a myriad of valuable antioxidants not found in some fruits and vegetables. ~Why whole? All grains are composed of three parts: bran, germ and endosperm. Most of the antioxidants and vitamins are found in the germ and the bran.
However not all grains are created equal: all grains contain complex carbohydrates and various vitamins and minerals, but unrefined (whole) grains such as brown rice, quinoa, and oats are an even better source of fiber, selenium, potassium, and magnesium.
Cross-posted on the Big Orange!
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Sat Feb 28, 2009 at 06:50:30 AM PST
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"Eat well on a tight budget" articles are all the rage in this tough economy. I have a few of my own diaries in mind on that topic, but today I felt inspired to write about one of my favorite winter foods.
As you may know, wild rice is not really rice; it's an aquatic grass that "towers over other grains when it comes to amounts of protein, minerals, B vitamins, folic acid, and carbohydrates." Wild rice is often considered a luxury food, but if your local grocer has it in the bulk food section, the price per meal may be more reasonable than you think.
You don't need to soak wild rice before cooking. Just rinse and add to a pot with approximately 2 parts water (or a little less) to 1 part rice. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer until some of the grains have split, about 25-40 minutes depending on the type of wild rice. Don't wait until all the grains are split--you'll overcook it. If there is any extra water in the pot, drain the rice before proceeding with your recipe.
After the jump I've posted recipes for my two favorite wild rice dishes.
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Fri Feb 20, 2009 at 10:23:35 AM PST
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We all have our favorite herbs. Personally I could not imagine a world without Thyme. Being a son of Provence, one of my earliest childhood memory is running through scented hills covered in wild thyme (something to avoid in spring as I discovered, with bees being very keen on its subtle flowers too!) and collecting huge bundles for my great grandmother who would turn them upside down and allow to dry for a few days in her little wooden outhouse. She would use its dried leaves for a number of preserves (one of her many recipes appears below) and she'd brew her own "tisane" (herbal tea) by adding a sprig of rosemary and a handful of common verbena to a handful of thyme.
The other one I can't live without either is Rosemary. Cross-posted on the Big Orange!
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Fri Feb 13, 2009 at 11:08:05 AM PST
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Know your onions! I do, having been exposed to its pungency in various guises, some of which appear in this diary. Onion tart, anyone?
It is hard to say when the onion came into being. They were grown in Ancient Egypt, this much we know and eventually arrived in Rome and became known as the word onion (from the Latin word Unio, which means large pearl or one). In Middle English, it became Unyon. And onions are really good to us for a variety of reasons.
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Fri Feb 06, 2009 at 12:43:49 PM PST
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My earliest memory of chili heat was when I inadvertently dipped a slice of bread into what I thought was some kind of tomato relish: I gasped for air for nearly an hour, drinking vast amounts of liquids (stupidly, see below why) while contorting like a demented fool. I had made my acquaintance with Harissa, a fiery chili paste made in North Africa, aged ten.
It took several years to reacquaint myself with chili via my then girlfriend who introduced me to her surefire hangover cure: fried onions with eggs laced with a liberal dose of fresh chilies. It worked wonders. Still does.
Cross-posted on the Big Orange!
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Sat Jan 31, 2009 at 16:22:43 PM PST
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It's the end of January. So far I've stuck to my pledge to make soup once a week (through the cold months at least, but I'd like to continue this in the spring and summer--I love soup).
I have substantially cut back on my carbs and dairy intake; that started right after Thanksgiving. I find it easier to eat well on the days I get more exercise, so I'm trying to stick to that routine too.
How are my fellow Locavorians (Locavores?) doing with their food-related New Year's resolutions?
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Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 20:00:00 PM PST
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A lot of people resolve to make changes in their diets in January. This is an open thread for any tips you have on substituting one kind of food for another for any health or ethical reason.
If you're a vegetarian or vegan, do you have a tip for adapting a recipe you used to enjoy with meat, eggs or dairy?
If you're trying to lose weight, have you changed the way you cook any of your favorite meals? Some people would rather eat a completely different dish than adapt a beloved recipe that is "too fattening."
If you have developed a food allergy or sensitivity, have you learned any trick for replacing the foods you can't tolerate?
My favorite food substitutions are after the jump.
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Sun Jan 11, 2009 at 08:58:37 AM PST
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(This is as good as the best I've read about Indian cuisine. Trust me, I know my curry! - promoted by Asinus Asinum Fricat)
Ever since I was teeny-tiny, I've had this thing about India. I remember being about 4 years old and finding a Hare Krishna booklet and falling in love with the beautiful drawings...the saturated colors, the serenity and grace in the faces of the goddesses and gods portrayed. When I played my brother's Beatles albums I was mesmerized by the songs produced in their "trippy" period. So, follow me after the jump for a little discussion of Indian cuisine as well as some of my favorite recipes.
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Fri Jan 09, 2009 at 13:25:33 PM PST
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Due to a change of lifestyle I can no longer post late into the night since I'll be working during daytime hence this new weekly series (cleverly titled Cooking with AAF!) that will be posted every Friday at 4pm EDT, 9pm GMT here in good old Eire. You have been warned.
In this series I will deal with world cuisine and its infinite permutations and simply give two easy-to-follow (with a keen eye on low cost) recipes in each diary. World cuisine is not difficult to produce in your/any kitchen, all it takes is a little planning and a zest for what I call "foreign adventure cooking". I hope you like Malaysian food, exotic and spicy!
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Mon Dec 08, 2008 at 04:52:26 AM PST
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I've always been a big fan of comfort food; and what could possibly be better on a cool, wet December night than a steaming bowl of creamy homemade mac & cheese?
Let's go to the kitchen!
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Sun Nov 02, 2008 at 15:40:22 PM PST
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[Note: I'm interested in American culinary history, as well as an obsessive political junkie. This is my first diary and my first day here, so I am looking forward to new experiences. I've been on DailyKos for a while. I'm a nutritionist by training, with a lot of history thrown in for good measure.]
Hands down, my vote for the greatest presidents we've seen in this country goes to George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Franklin Delano Roosevelt. John Kennedy might have been a truly great president, but he died before he could prove his mettle, though his stand against the USSR during the Cuban Missile Crisis counts as something commendable, I guess. Anyway, I thought it would be nice to get in the mood for Election Day by cooking up food served in the White House during the time each man served as president. The following recipes come from these men or their wives and chefs/cooks. Bon appétit!
(Cross-posted on 11/03/2008 elsewhere.)
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Mon Jul 28, 2008 at 07:56:14 AM PDT
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Now that I have your attention, I'd like to present you with the first diary of a series discussed here yesterday. Today's edition deals exclusively with the necessary kitchen appliances needed in these recessionary times like a bread-maker, a sturdy mandolin etc...
The object of this short series is to demystify some aspects of cooking as we're told - surveys after surveys - that we're eating far too much garbage and not enough time is spent in the kitchen preparing wholesome foods. Whilst some folks have little time on their hands others have limited transportation then there's the problem of sourcing affordable edibles from farmer's markets, co-ops and reasonably priced discount chains such as Aldi's (Lidl is poised to enter the US market by 2012) Trader Joe's and others. We all have our cross to bear.
In the next installment I will concentrate on quick recipes and fast cooking techniques particularly aimed at those who have too little precious time to prepare healthy meals.
Cross-posted on DKos
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