“They’ve jammed the radar!”

06/18/2010

That headline’s a reference to Spaceballs, by the way, if you didn’t recognize it.  And if you didn’t recognize it, shame on you.  Your penance shall be sitting down immediately and watching this national treasure of a film—while you’re waiting for this jam to cook down, that is.

So I’ll be up front here.  I am not a domestic goddess of any sort.  I’m barely a domestic imp.  I don’t sew–I can, but I don’t and I don’t have any desire to.  I clean but not nearly as much as I should.  I don’t really decorate.  My gardening skills and interests are minimal.  I don’t can.  (That sentence looks so wrong, by the way.)  I don’t bake my own bread.  And I know those things seem kind of odd, seeing as how I do cook a great deal and I’ll even make my own candy, chocolate, oreos and now I’m working on Snickers bars.  But I dunno.  Canning doesn’t really appeal to me and seems like quite a bit of work for an end result that’s not chocolate.  But I do like jam, and I like it minimally processed (as I prefer all foods to be, except Taco Bell, which gets an exception because it’s not really food anyway).  I don’t like jelly though.  I guess you could say that I’m not ready for this jelly. (No?  No good?  Well they can’t all be winners).  But I do love jam, especially stirred into some plain Greek yogurt with some chocolate chips and walnuts—that’s a winning breakfast right there, my friends.  Raspberry jam is awesome.  But strawberry jam is awesomer still.  Because I love strawberries so, so much.  It’s my second favorite flavor next to chocolate, and right before “barbecue.”  And it’s June!  Fresh strawberries abound cheaply.  Take advantage of it. Read the rest of this entry »

Citrus Salt: just what you scurvy dogs need

12/12/2009

I’m so terribly sorry.  I’ve been neglecting you, I know.  You want to read about food, I want to eat that food, but sadly, the past couple of weeks have not been conducive to deliciousness.  There was illness, dental surgery and the tedious anxiety and paperwork of attempting to buy our first house.  In the meantime, recipe ideas have just been piling up one after another.  It’s a culinary tragedy.

But never fear.  Slowly, the art of food is making its way back to the foreground of the landscape that is my life (poetic, aren’t I?).  I thought I’d ease back into things with something simple but effective.  A nice mix on an old standby.  Something to bring some sunlight and vitamin C into your day.  Maybe you’re a pirate suffering from a terrible case of scurvy and running out of ingredients for your morning hardtack.  Well look no further, matey, I have exactly what you need.

Citrus Flavored Salt
1/4 c. sea salt
the zest of one large orange
the zest of one large lemon

Lay the zest from both fruits out on a paper towel for about 5 minutes to dry out a bit.  Mix and mash into the salt, stirring thoroughly.  Store in an airtight container and use as a finisher for fish, pork, chicken and well..anything you want :-) .

Wasn’t that easy?  It’s like your very own flavor-based Easy button.

Everything you ever didn't know you wanted to know about vinegar

08/14/2009

Thanks to the Ann Arbor People’s Co-op Facebook feed, I found this jazzy little article all about vinegar, by professional Chef Kelly Myers

Vinegar quality depends on two things: the vinegar’s source material (what the vinegar is made from) and the length of time, if any, the vinegar is allowed to age and develop flavors.

Vinegar can be made from any sugar, making for a broad spectrum of choices. Besides wine vinegar, there is cane vinegar, malt vinegar, cider vinegar, East Asian black vinegar, purple sweet potato vinegar, balsamic vinegar, and vinegars made from white and red rice.

Read all about the magical wonderland that is vinegar in her article on culinate.com