earth food
grown from the page at earthside.org/Food & in support of the forth-coming cookbook of the same name by June Perg Floyd
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
metric quantification weirdness
Metric measurements are nice, imo - they allow me to use nice counting numbers that and up neatly. Most of the time. Here's a bit of weirdness that works in spite of the cross-system measurements:
My [current] Recipe for Rice
- 1 pound of white rice
- 1 liter of potable water
The above measurements, if combined in a pot, brought to a boil, then covered and cooked over the lowest possible fire for exactly 20 minutes will produce enough cocked white rice for 3 people for one day. Earth Time.
Labels: rice
Monday, December 28, 2009
Annemarie's Deep Fried Oreos
This is from Annemarie Frohn Hornsby via Facebook:
dunk some double-stuffed oreos in funnel cake batter... deep fry at about 350' or until golden. The cookie inside will be melted and gooey. Ummmmm
Powdered sugar on top of the oreos once they're done.
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Spicy Auto Fish Noodle Soup Recipe
Spicy Auto Fish Noodle Soup
This recipe is for one of a variet of newer dishes that fall into a a category we are calling 'autofoud'.
A common characteristic of all items which are dubbed 'autofoud' (or: 'auto-food') is simply that they are food items prepared and served by restaurants or fast-food places /which are used as ingredients in other, consumer-prepared foods. For example, the fish in this recipe is an autofoud, and hence is called 'autofish' (or: auto-fish)
Ingredients:
- 1/2 ten piece auto-fish dinner from [Cap'n D's] (approx 5 pcs auto-fish)
- 1/2 side order of auto-hush puppies [same as above]
- approx 2 dozen little plastic packages of malt vinegar (bottled malt vinegar may be substituted)
- 1 package [Top] ramen noodles (N.I.N.A. - Nissin Is Not Autofoud)
- soy sauce (to taste)
- North Korean Chinese Regular Hot Chili Sauce [see:Cock Sauce:Walmart]
- Water (approx 0.35 liter)
- chopsticks
- bowl
- microwave oven
- refrigerator
- Get the stuff
- Eat 1.5 auto-hush puppies and 2 or 3 pieces of the auto-fish while it's all still steamy hot from the drive-thru, with liberal use of the malt vinegar over alL (this step is important to keep you from getting too hungry or perhap even starving duing preparation, which will typically take at least four or five hours)
- Leaving the remaining autofoud in it's white styrofoam bounding box, place the box in a (working) refrigerator for about 8 hours, until cold.
- Rediscover the box of autofoud in the fridge.
- [Eat the remaing 0.5 auto-hush puppie - this step is optional and may be performed out of order]
- Crush/crumble the package of [Top(tm) brand from Nissin Corp] ramen noodles into a deep glass bowl (Pyrex is good, this is going to get hot - if Pyrex is not available, ceramic dishes also work well; we recommend you avoid plastic cookware in the microwave - or in general, for that matter - nasty stuff, plastic, except maybe the kind McD's serves - expensive, too); add water (don't quite cover the noodles), and microwave on high for 3 minutes or until the water is steaming; stir w/ chopstick
- Break up the pieces of fish into the bowl of [now steaming - be careful] noodles; stir w/ chopstick;
- Add the seasonings to the bowl of what has now become soup:
- a dash of malt vinegar
- hot chili sauce (squeeze the bottle until it feels right)
- soy sauce (add last)
- Stir w/ chopstick
- Enjoy
- if you like the small, salt-water crustaceans called 'shrimp', you could substitute auto-shrimp for the auto-fish in this recipe
- Other flavors of Vinegar may be chosen to complement the rice vinegar in the soy sauce.
- Eat with chopsticks, drink the broth from the bowl
- Reeses Peanut Butter Cup for desert
- For a beverage, we suggest that tea (as you like it) or a chilled mixture of sugar-water and lime juice goes well with this dish.
- ramen noodles are done when they turn whitish and have a consistency about halfway between cruchy and mushy
- throw away the 'flavor sachet' that comes in the ramen noodle package; it contains extreme (in a human context) levels of sodium and may be dangerous to consume; also, it covers the taste of the other ingredients if used; note that it needs to be disposed of properly - the only animals that will eat the stuff seem to be rats and roaches, and flavor packet contents are widely believed by the earthside community to be extremely toxic, and a move is afoot to give the dry, volatile powder a "controlled substance" status within The Realm until and unless certain prepared food manufacturers quit putting these things in the noodle packages; the stuff is just too hazardous to have lying about, and should have warning label
Labels: 0x0000, autofoud, chili sauce, earthside, fish, microwave, noodles, sake, soup, soy sauce, spicy, tea
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Pepsico: "No High Fructose Corn Syrup"
Pepsico - under their Pepsi™ soft drink brand name - has become a recent - and arguably the most high profile of the participants in the High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) conspiracy.
In a move of what could only have been calculated brilliance [at least from standpoint of that portion of the the US market segment which are not either a) actively engaged as members of some sort of bizarre suicide cult, or b) members of Al Qaeda)]:
Pepsico™ have announced that they will [for a "limited time" - WtF is up with that?] make available in their US markets a version of Pepsi tagged "Throwback" which is made with - wait for it: "Natural Sugar". As in: "No High Fructose Corn Syrup".
I tried some when I saw it in the local convenience store last week - very tasty, much more like what we (those of who are old enough) remember as a "fountain coke" taste. Good job, Pepsico. Somebody listening to the consumers, there, at least "for a limited time".
I'll buy a case as soon as my food stamps re-up. ;)
Labels: 0x0000, hfcs, high fructose corn syrup, pepsi, sugar
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Grandma June's Oatmeal Patties
This is an old recipe that I'm pretty sure my mother (June Perg Floyd) invented. Happy Mother's Day, mom!
[Grandma June's] Oatmeal Patties 1 cup uncooked oats 1 cup crumbs (bread or cracker or another cup of oats) 1 cup milk 2 Tablespoons soysauce 1 tsp salt Garlic Beat 2 eggs; add milk & soy-sauce mix and let sit a few minutes to soak up a little of liquid. Drop by spoonful into hot greased skillet. Can serve with gravy or a can of mushroom or tomato soup
I will reformat this - the above is as close a representation as I can get of whats on the stained warped old 3x5 card I have sitting on the laptop ;)
And as a reminder, this recipe is only one of those that may be found in the forthcoming earth food’s serial cooking for humans,
[and a couple final notes from my personal experience: use peanut, corn, or olive oil to cook them in - or walnut oil, if you can get it; also, (speaking of nuts) chopped pecans go great in this, iirc]
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Pizza Dough
Basic Pizza Dough Recipe
[makes 2 12" crusts]
1 cup lukewarm water plus extra as needed
1/4 cup olive oil plus extra for oiling bowl
1-1/2 teaspoons honey or sugar
1 package dry yeast (2-1/4 teaspoons)
3 cups unbleached all purpose flour, plus extra as needed
1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
DIRECTIONS:
1. If your kitchen is cool, preheat oven to 150 degrees or the lowest
setting.
2. Pour the flour into the work bowl of a large food processor or
stand mixer.
3. Sprinkle the oil, sugar, and yeast over the water and pulse the
mixer several times until mixed.
4. Add the flour and salt and process until the mixture comes
together.
5. The dough should be soft and slightly sticky. (If it is too
sticky, add flour 1 tablespoon at a time, and pulse until smooth.
If it is too stiff, add water one tablespoon at a time, and pulse
until smooth.)
6. Turn the dough onto a slightly floured work surface; knead by hand
a few minutes to form a smooth, round ball.
7. Put the dough in an oiled, clean bowl, turn it over a few times to
coat with oil, drizzle a little oil over the top, and cover tightly
with plastic wrap.
8. Place in a warm spot or turn off the oven and stick it in there.
9. Let rise until the dough has doubled in size, about 15 minutes in
the oven, or 1 hour in the warm spot.
10. Once the dough has risen, punch it down and knead on a lightly
floured surface for 1 to 2 minutes, until smooth.
11. Divide dough into two equal-sized balls and proceed with pizza
making.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Intersting Food-related Links
Ran across a couple interesting links over the last couple days:
- While looking for information about paraffin toxicity, I ran across this: Waxed Paper. It's a page published by Transport Information Service (TIS), according to the page: "Cargo loss prevention information from German marine insurers." The site has storage, shipping and handling information for many products. The focus is for land/sea cargo container shipping, but it's good information for anyone interested in the storage characteristics of products.
- Found this one in a old bookmarks file - it's built under some sort of MLM web-site hosting pyramid scheme, but it's an interesting site for the recipes and information about building and cooking in firepits, fireplaces, and so on. It's called "Firepit and Grilling Guru"
Labels: fire, food safety, food storage, grilling, shipping, transport
High Fructose Corn Syrup Contaminated with Mecury
The Democracy Now! newsletter for yesterday (2009-01-29) contains a bombshell piece of food-safety information buried in the update on the contaminated peanut butter story; from the newsletter:
* Food Safety: Georgia Plant Knowingly Shipped Contaminated Peanuts; Study Links Corn Syrup to Toxic Mercury *
We look at two stories on food safety. The FDA has issued one of the largest food recalls in history after eight people died of salmonella poisoning. A Georgia peanut plant knowingly shipped products contaminated with salmonella on a dozen occasions over the past two years. And a pair of new studies has revealed traces of toxic mercury can be found in many popular food items containing high-fructose corn syrup. The sweetener has become a widely used substitute for sugar in processed foods, including many items marketed toward children. [emphasis mine -ed]
Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/2009/1/29/food_safety_georgia_plant_knowingly_shipped
The implications of this are staggering. This needs to be in the news - in court - "Friends don't let friend's consume High Fructose Corn Syrup"
Labels: danger, food safety, hfcs, high fructose corn syrup, mecury contamination, peanuts, recall
Friday, January 23, 2009
Basic Pizza Dough Recipe
Basic Pizza Dough Recipe
[makes 2 x 12" crusts]
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 cup lukewarm water plus extra as needed
- 1/4 cup olive oil plus extra for oiling bowl
- 1-1/2 teaspoons honey or sugar
- 1 package dry yeast (2-1/4 teaspoons)
- 3 cups unbleached all purpose flour, plus extra as needed
- 1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
DIRECTIONS:
- If your kitchen is cool, preheat oven to 150 degrees or the lowest setting.
- Pour the flour into the work bowl of a large food processor or stand mixer.
- Sprinkle the oil, sugar, and yeast over the water and pulse the mixer several times until mixed.
- Add the flour and salt and process until the mixture comes together.
- The dough should be soft and slightly sticky. (If it is too sticky, add flour 1 tablespoon at a time, and pulse until smooth. If it is too stiff, add water one tablespoon at a time, and pulse until smooth.)
- Turn the dough onto a slightly floured work surface; knead by hand a few minutes to form a smooth, round ball.
- Put the dough in an oiled, clean bowl, turn it over a few times to coat with oil, drizzle a little oil over the top, and cover tightly with plastic wrap.
- Place in a warm spot or turn off the oven and stick it in there.
- Let rise until the dough has doubled in size, about 15 minutes in the oven, or 1 hour in the warm spot.
- Once the dough has risen, punch it down and knead on a lightly floured surface for 1 to 2 minutes, until smooth.
- Divide dough into two equal-sized balls and proceed with pizza making.
Friday, January 09, 2009
coming back online...
I haven't posted anything to this blog in about a year, but I'm starting now to bring it active again. I have broadened the vision I had for this blog initially, and so will be doing some more work on it, and plan [ultimately] to build the blog out into a larger and more useful site.
I'm thinking of using a tool called Tikiwiki - I was inspired to this by my recent discovery of the Green Life Inovators (GLI) website, which is already running on the Tikiwiki framework as customized by Vidar Kristiansen of Kristiansen Consulting ltd of Oslo, Norway.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
A Twist on Dipping Oil
Ciabatta bread dipped in a mix of plain yogurt, extra virgin olive oil, and paprika.
Q: What, exactly does one call that?
A:tasty.
Peppermint tea is good with this.
The facts speak for themselves.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS)
[this message is a cross-posting, some or all of the content is duplicated at http://blogs.earthside.org/earth_tech/2007/07/high-fructose-corn-syrup.html on the earth_tech blog]
We've been hearing that "high fructose corn syrup is not good for you" for a couple years now, but up until now it has just been something to avoid if possible (i.e. choose the brands that don't have it in the ingredient list if and when an alternative is available, pass up certain "SALE" items because they contain it, etc), but - at least up until this point, no evidence concerning HFCS has been presented (to me), and no critical warnings have been raised about its use in human food products.
Today while moderating a discussion at slashdot.org entitled PubPat Kills Four Key Monsanto Patents, I ran across a post (#19982005 by an "anonymous" author) which - while substantially directed at the issue of genetically modified (GM) crops, mentions some of the reputed [according to the anonymous author] problems with HFCS and includes some [supporting] internet links.
We've had HFCS on a sort of "probationary" status for some time since it's lack of usefulness for human consumption was first brought to our attention a few years ago.
At the present time, HFCS seems destined for infamy on that list I carry around in my head of "poisonous items which are disguised as food and to which the U.S. FDA turns a blind eye." Items which are already on that list include, but are not limited to:
- aspartame
- fluoride
The [anonymous] author of the /. post quotes from a source at http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Dangers-of-High-Fructose-Corn-Syrup&id=28535, which quote is reproduced again, here, in part:
When high fructose corn syrup breaks down in the intestine, we once again find near equal amounts of glucose and fructose entering the bloodstream. As covered in recent newsletters, the fructose short-circuits the glycolytic pathway for glucose. This leads to all the problems associated with sucrose. In addition, HFCS seems to be generating a few of its own problems, epidemic obesity being one of them. Fructose does not stimulate insulin production and also fails to increase "leptin" production, a hormone produced by the body's fat cells. Both of these act to turn off the appetite and control body weight. Also, fructose does not suppress ghrelin, a hormone that works to increase hunger. This interesting work is being done by Peter Havel at UC Davis.
Some of the problems associated with high fructose corn syrup:
Increased LDL's (the bad lipoprotein) leading to increasedrisk of heart disease.
Altered Magnesium balance leading to increased osteoporosis.
Increased risk of Adult Onset Diabetes Mellitus.
Fructose has no enzymes or vitamins thus robbing the body ofprecious micro-nutrients.
Fructose interacts with birth control pills and can elevateinsulin levels in women on the pill.
Accelerated aging.
Labels: corn, corporatism, danger, fda, health, hfcs, safety, sweet, syrup, warning
Saturday, July 21, 2007
"How to Make Mayonnaise" from WikiHow
The WikiHow site has an article titled How to Make Mayonnaise in their Recipes category.
There is also an article on How to Make Yogurt.
Although there doesn't appear to be an article [yet] on how to make tofu [soybean curd], the the article How to Prepare Tofu has some clues. Quoting the article:
" … [tofu is] basically just coagulated and pressed soy milk, very similar in production to cheese … "
The article also mentions freezing as a way to modify the texture of tofu before preparation, and talks quite a bit about the need to remove the water from tofu before preparing:
" … The best way to make the texture of tofu more appetizing is to press it for 1-2 hours before cooking or marinating it … "
" … most tofu is packaged in its own liquid (which is quite bland and monotonous) -- this liquid is actually the source of the dislike many people claim for tofu products, because when the tofu solids are saturated with the liquid in which it was packaged, other sauces, marinades, etc are prevented from soaking into the tofu. "
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
tofu and rice
This can be prepared using a microwave oven and a rice-cooker - there are numerous other ways to accomplish the same basic meal, but what we used this time is:
- standard four-cup rice-cooker
- standard 1500W microwave oven
- Botan rice
- [reverse-osmosis-filtered - $0.39 @ Wallyworld] water
- 16-ounce package extra-firm tofu (the "cold-pack" kind)
- extra-virgin olive oil
- soy sauce (Kikoman)
- garlic powder
- ground (powdered) red pepper (cayenne)
- beef stock
(note 1: any and all of these ingredients have substitutes - email if you want a list)
Instructions:
- Cook some rice - 3 cups should be plenty for two people
- After the rice is ready, break up about half the tofu into a [microwave safe] bowl
- drizzle some olive oil over the tofu
- Add the spices to the tofu and olive oil in the bowl
- Pour in about 2 ounces of beef stock
- Stir the contents of the bowl and microwave it on high for about 60 seconds.
- take the bowl out of the microwave and add about a cup or a cup and a half of rice
- drizzle more olive oil and some soy sauce over the rice (the tofu is in the bottom of the bowl, under the rice, at this point).
- Stir up up.
- Enjoy
Labels: beef stock, cooking, olive oil, rice, rice cooker, tofu
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
how to eat carp
Okay, for all those of you who, as I so often have wonder what carp is good for [human foodchain-wise], perhaps couching your wonder in some phrase resembling "How do you eat carp?" or "Is carp good to eat?" and something like that, here is the answer to that question that goes beyond the "boil it in a pot of water" answer we got from Korea in 2004.
This is from a news article about traditional [ethnic?] food once served in the waterfront districts of Baghdad [and, one presumes, more generally in the region we call "Iraq"] - this is a quote from the article, with HTML added:
National dish
Abu Ayyad’s masgouf recipe:
- Take large freshwater fish, preferably carp caught in Tigris or Euphrates
- Scale, gut and clean
- Cut along back and open up so that fish is flat and round
- Season with salt
- Place in barbecue grill
- Cook upright beside open wood fire
- Season with lemon
- Serve with bread and salads. Eat with fingers, ideally in the evening in the open air along river bank
The article goes on to point out that traditional preparations of this dish are no longer possible regionally due to the degradation fo living conditions in the city caused by internal combustion transportation technology, and the military occupation that currently places the Baghdad water-front areas "off-limits" to most locals.
Source: Imams put fatwa on carp caught in Tigris, Times Online (UK Edition), 2007-06-27
Sunday, June 17, 2007
Sustainable [urban] Agriculture
From: Willie Nelson Hits NYC for Farm Aid (http://www.ecorazzi.com/?p=2827)
According to the folks at Sustainable Table (who are well known for the Eat Well Guide and The Meatrix), one of the groups that Farm Aid is supporting in NYC is Just Food, a fantastic organization that has helped set up all the city’s CSA (community supported agriculture)
Saturday, June 02, 2007
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Lasar Coffee
Found this pretty cool video on YouTube.com ...
... but we here at Earth Food Ghetto Labs have - as both profession coffee preparation experts and as a lab rats - some minor critique of the process as shown in the video.
- Instant coffee? Questionable even as a "proof of concept" exercise. Should be latte, or at least a decent cone process.
- The programming of the laser seems to have a problem in common with the programming problems many people have with microwave ovens - the laser is applied to at least two of the cups of liquid for too long, over-heating the contents, and causing coffee to boil out of the cups, creating a mess in the heating chamber. Also, those two cups clearly have less liquid in them after the laser is switched off than they did before it was switched on.
No wonder the perpetrators don't try to claim credit for this one - they bolixed it all up. We here at Earth Food promise you, our readers, that we will not be so careless should such a choice piece of food preparation equipment as the laser (shown in the video above) fall into our trained and cooly professional hands...
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Jellof Rice
A question came up at the coffee stand today: What is "Jellof Rice"?
Looking it up on Google we find that it sounds a bit like what used to be called "spanish rice".
DancehallReggae.com Forums - View Single Post - Jellof Rice
Yahoo Answers - Does anyone know how to make the perfect jellof rice?
The dish seems to be West African in origin.
Saturday, January 27, 2007
leftover tortilla integrity
Ingredients
Note: this one is probably not easily repeatable - or at least, most food techs who are just interested in preparing a meal for consumption today won't go to the trouble of e.g. buying a package of tortillas and leaving them opened in the crisper drawer of the fridge for 2 weeks just to reproduce the condition of the torillas. I suppose a similar dish could be prepared using rice that hasn't been frozen, and fresh tortillas. Fortunately, Ghetto Kitches Labs maintains a substantial inventory of various specialized ingredients specifically for these types of experiments.
- Most of a quart of white rice - left over from an order of egg foo yung. It sat in the fidge until it froze. Nothing wrong with that, really, but it needed defrosting.
- Four whole wheat tortillas sat in the drawer in the bottom of the fridge in a torn package until the exposed part of each of the tortillas had gotten quite dried out and hard.
- A 7 ounce package of Starkist tuna
- olive oil, garlic powder, soy sauce, chili sauce
Directions
- Remove the frozen rice from the cardboard chinese food container, placing it in the large [microwavable] glass mixing bowl [Anchor Hocking]
- Adjust the "temperature" dial of the microwave to be somewhere around "medium" - this setting changes during cooking, so the precision used in this step is not particularly important - the idea is to thaw the rice gently, then heat it up causing it to give up some moisture to the tortillas
- Place the bowl in the microwave and lay the partly dried out tortillas over the top - on top of the rice
- Start the microwave - the timer setting doesn't really matter, since the m/w has to be stopped frequently to check the state of the rice and the tortillas
- After about a minute or a minute and half, stop the m/w and check - if the rice is not thawed, run it some more. It may be useful to adjust the temp, but if the rice gets too hot to quickly, the rest of this won't work right. Also, if the tortillas get too hot too soon, they will get too tough or (in the extreme case) too crispy.
- Once the rice has thawed, but before it gets hot, move the tortillas underneath the rice - a spoon might be useful for this, but is not required.
- Drizzle some olive oil (enough to plausibly make its way down thru the rice and onto the tortillas) over the top of the rice, increase the temperature setting incrementally and run the m/w some more. Repeat this step until the rice is steaming, and the tortillas have softened enough to eat.
- Take the bowl with the rice and tortillas out of the m/w, open the tuna and empty it over the rice.
- Add garlic powder, chili sauce, and soy sauce on top of the tuna, to taste.
- Stir the rice and spices into the rice [use chopsticks], then [again w/ the chopsticks] drag one of the tortillas out from under the rice - most of the way - capture some of the of the rice and tuna onto the tortilla and role it up - if you want extra chili sauce, this would be the time to add it. Repeat this step with each of the tortillas until the tune & rice are taken.
- Enjoy!
Notes
This is good with coffee.
This dish is significantly more complex and takes quite a bit longer to prepare than most of the stuff we do here.
Additional spices and/or different types of oils, rice, or tortillas would give the dish a slightly different character using the same procedure.
Labels: chili sauce, garlic powder, microwave, olive oil, rice, tuna
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
starting over again
Ramen noodles in the microwave - a different microwave now, and the hotpot got left at the lab.
Get some thinly sliced (shaved) chicken breast from the deli (the "buffalo chicken breast" is good). Put a good hand full of the chicken in the bowl. Drizzle some walnut oil over it, then add some of the powdered ginger, garlic powder, and chili sauce. Note that this chili sauce is different; it has a picture of a duck in flight instead of a chicken on the bottle, and it seems slightly sweeter. We will keep the bottle and compare the ingredients.
Put some water in a cup (we're using a styrofoam coffee cup from the Citgo store). Put the cup of water in the microwave for about 3 minutes (this is a slow microwave) to get it hot. While the water is heating get a package of Top ramen noodles and - before opening it - lay it on the counter and hit it a few times to crush the noodle (not too hard, or the cello wrap will pop open, and the noodles will go everywhere except into the bowl). Empty the crushed noodle into the bowl on top of the chicken and spices. Discard the soup mix packet and the cello wrap.
When the microwave dings (or beeps, as the case may be), pour the water over into the bowl over the noodles and chicken. You probably won't want all the water unless you want this to be a soup - we use about about 6 ounces - the noodle will soak this up, for the most part, leaving a little broth.
Stir.
You could cover the bowl and let the noodle soak up the water, but it's cold enough in here that we wanted to continue to apply heat, so: put the bowl back in the microwave and set it for another 3 minutes (2 might be enough). Wait [impatiently] for the m/w to ding again.
Be careful when you get this out of the microwave - it will be hot enough to burn you. Set it aside to let it cool before trying to eat it.
Labels: chicken, chili sauce, garlic powder, ginger, microwave, noodles, ramen, water
Wednesday, December 27, 2006
Mushroom Pasta Gravy Chicken
Ingredients:
- Olive Oil
- Campbell's™ Chicken Gravy in a pop-top can
- Great Value™ chopped garlic
- Italian Seasoning [herbs]
- Kroger brand tomato paste
- Aquafina water
- Walmart frozen chicken breasts
- Brummel & Brown™ yogurt/vegetable oil spread
Process:
First the sauce:
- in a skillet, brown garlic in olive oil
- add herbs to olive oil while
- put olive oil/garlic/herb mixture in into a saucepan with tomato paste, gravy, and water to form the sauce(half liter of water for one small can of tomato paste)
- heat sauce in the saucepan and reduce to a simmer
- set this aside [perhaps on a very low heat] until the chicken and pasta are ready.
Cooking the chicken breast:
- Fortunately, we thought ahead and thawed the chicken breast while we were making the sauce.
- Use the same skillet as the herbs started out in - add more olive oil and heat it up to frying temp for the chicken.
- Add more chopped garlic.
- Cook the chicken in garlic and olive oil.
Cook the pasta:
- Boil water in a very large pot
- Add the pasta to the boiling water
- Drain water from the pasta
- Add olive oil and garlic from the chicken frying phase of the operation to the pasta and stir.
-
Serve with grated cheese(s), garlic toast, and salad greens.
Notes:
"But what about the organic, instantly hydrating shitake mushrooms that come in the plastic jar?" you ask, "wouldn't those go well in this dish?"
Well Right you are - the problem is this: Do the mushrooms go best in the tomato-based sauce, sauteed in the olive oil and garlic alongside the chicken breast, or [perhaps ultimately] both?
Well, that sort of a decision is probably best left to the individual, as is the extremely delicate decision of just what kind of pasta you might want to use for this. And for that matter, [exactly] which herbs.
We just used what pasta and herbs we had on hand, and my personal preference is to brown the mushrooms with the chicken, but I would not try to influence anyone else in that...
Note that a lot of variations are possible on the basic sauce recipe, as there are with e.g. choice of pasta, choice of meat, and cooking of any and all of it. We did this in 3 pans on a single burner using ingredients we had in stock, so we're making no claims about the relative superiority it over any other body's favorite sauce recipe, pasta variety, or chicken. Like the rest of the stuff here, this is just simple, relatively cheap, and easy to make without access to a fully equipped kitchen.
Utensils:
- Big pot [stainless soup pot - picked it up at a Big Lots or some grocery store in Michigan - don't recall - these are very standard - something like 8 quarts or better] estimated cost $10 to $15, max - less if you can get it at Salvation Army, Goodwill, or you neighborhood thrift store - we do reccommend stainless, though, over the aluminum ones you can steal from out behind some restaurants and clean the grease out of...
- Skillet - the one we used is a 12" or 14" glass one - Pyrex™ or Corningware™ or something - not sure where it came from or what it costs
- Sauce pan - 2 or 3 quart stainless from Walmart - about $15 to $20, depending if it's "on sale" or not - we do not recommend using any of the new-fangled "non-stick" cookware - Teflon™ fumes have been known to kill parrots, and the things never last a year around here without the "non-stick" coating getting damaged and becoming worse than useless - and that includes the so-called "tough", "indestructible", and otherwise hyped non-stick stuff...
- Chopsticks - est. $1.29
- Knife - est $5 [folding pocket knife]
- Big stainless spoon with holes in it - est $2.00
- large stainless steel soup ladle - same as spoon, above
- Colander [plastic works for this if that's all you've got - could probably do this without a colander, but they do make the pasta nicely un-soggy]
- Plates, bowls, forks
Sunday, December 17, 2006
Instant Garlic Toast™ and Instant Garlic Toast Extreme™
Original Instant Garlic Toast™
If you have a pop-up toaster handy, and some of that garlic juice in a pump-spray bottle, and some extra virgin olive oil, Original Instant Garlic Toast™ is within your grasp, and just moments away. Simply:
- Toast some bread
- Spread some olive oil on the toast
- Spray the oiled toast with some garlic juice
Logical standard substitutions and variations apply - for example:
- butter, Brummel & Brown™ 30% yogurt spread, or other types of oils may serve in place of the extra virgin olive oil
- Different types of bread should be tried
- we would like to try this will walnut oil and sourdough bread
- margarine is Evil, even if tasty - use it only at your peril and if you can't get any other ingredient for the oil layer
- you can use an oven for this, but it takes longer - arguably, use of an oven contra-indicates the use of the term "Instant"
- However, if you want cheese on your garlic toast, forgoing the "Instant" in favor of Traditional Over Garlic Toast™ is probably a good idea.
Instant Garlic Toast Extreme™
If - like the folks here at Ghetto Kitchen Labs - you're not a sniveling, wimpy little consumer who lives in fear of kitchen appliances - and if you like your garlic toast hotter, with more olive oil and garlic than what you can feasibly get from applying the Original Instant Garlic Toast™ algorithm, you may want to try Instant Garlic Toast Extreme™ - it takes a bit longer to prepare, but we believe that the term "Instant" still applies, since this is just too easy - all that's required is a bit more vigilance against fires that may start due to mis-use of kitchen appliances - and for that reason, we are constrained to provide the following disclaimer of liability:
disclaimer
Disclaimer of Liability: Earth Food and Ghetto Kitchen Labs are collectively and individually not responsible for your screw-ups. Furthermore, we make no warranties or guarantees, neither expressed nor implied, concerning this algorithm or its suitability for any purpose, public or private, living or dead, summa cum laude. We haven't even tried this ourselves, and we don't recommend that you try it. In fact, we do recommend that you not read the rest of this article if you are the kind of person who would even think about blaming - or suing us - for any problem you have had in the past, have now, or may have in the future. We didn't do it, we weren't drunk, we weren't there. By reading the rest of this article, including the forthcoming algorithm for the production of Instant Garlic Toast Extreme™, you thereby agree to indemnify and hold harmless Earth Food, Ghetto Kitchen Labs, and all their respective employees, associates, owners, operators, and designees, henceforth, in perpetuity.
So don't blame us if your toaster catches fire, your home is destroyed, or any other disaster befalls you. Instant Garlic Toast Extreme is not for everyone, and it is certainly not for the faint of heart, or those with an impaired understanding of what makes smoke come out of kitchen appliances. Don't try this if your let kitchen appliances are mysterious or intimidating to you.
If, however, you are the kind of person who buys the toaster with the extra-wide slots - not so you can easily toast bagels, but because you found empirically that, while it is possible to squash a ham-and-cheese sandwich flat enough to fit into regular toaster slot, you just didn't want to have to work quite that hard at it, then this idea might be for you.
general considerations of production and use
The concept that underlies the production of Instant Garlic Toast Extreme™ is - like Instant Garlic Toast™ - relatively simple. The basic idea is that, when it comes to extra virgin olive oil and garlic, "more is better" - hence, while the ingredients for Instant Garlic Toast Extreme™ are the same as those for Original Instant Garlic Toast™, the proportions differ - specifically, the amount of bread remains the same, while the amounts of oil and garlic juice are increased proportionally.
Instant Garlic Toast Extreme™ also plays to the idea that olive oil and garlic juice - like the bread that carries them - are better consumed while still warm (perhaps even hot, but not so hot as to burn the roof of your mouth like, say, a pre-maturely delivered pizza).
With that in mind, the instructions are eerily similar to those for Original Instant Garlic Toast, differing only in degrees of precision, and in the number of [iterated] steps to accomplish the end result.
So [finally] here are the instructions for Instant Garlic Toast Extreme™:
- using a brush (or a paper towel, or your fingers, if you don't have brushes and paper towels lying about) carefully spread a layer of olive oil on the slice(s) of bread
- Spray the bread with garlic spray
- cycle the bread thru the toaster, using a "light" setting - the idea here is to warm the slices, perhaps toast them slightly, but not necessarily to brown them in one toasting, since this would result in burnt toast, eventually...
- Repeat from step one until the toast is browned, saturated with oil and garlic, and hot.
- Enjoy!
recommended side dishes
Both wine and pasta go very well with either Original Instant Garlic Toast™ or Instant Garlic Toast Extreme. We recommend Chianti and a thin vermicelli, ever so slightly al dente. Cheese of all sorts is also good.
additional caveats
- If your supply of toasters, bread, garlic juice, olive oil, or whatever ingredients you are substituting, is either severely constrained, or critically limited, you probably shouldn't be trying this.
- Some of the steps of the process will need to be performed once for each slice Instant Garlic Toast Extreme&trade: which you intend to produce - that is: twice for two slices, four times if you have a 4-slot toaster and want four slices, etc. If you don't "get" this, you probably shouldn't try this procedure.
future development
Note that Ghetto Kitchen Labs is also working on a process for Instant Garlic Toast ExtremeULTRA™. The experiments have had some limited success, but the the recovery of the cheese which slides off the bread and builds up in the bottom of the toaster is an economic concern for which we as yet have no definitive solutions in the short term.
As always: Have fun, and be careful.
Labels: bread, disclaimer, garlic, garlic juice, oil, olive oil, toast, toaster
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
organize? kitchen?
The WikiHow site publishes some interesting practical and semi-practical instructions on how to do many common tasks - this week they have one called How to Organize a Kitchen.
While the article overlooks those of us who are rigging makeshift kitchen's in hotel rooms, station wagons, homes without electrical power, and so on, it is a reasonably good article with some basic advice like "don't locate the spice rack near a heat source" that might be extrapolated for people who are living outside the kitchen-owning mainstream of netizens.
The WikiHow site is in general "not bad" for a .com site - there's a lot of practical stuff there - a bit like the stuff that used to come thru Hints from Heloise or other practical, homemaker-type syndicated newspaper features...
Saturday, December 09, 2006
ta in bloomington, il
I stopped at the Country Pride restaurant at the TA in Bloomington, IL. This entry is posted from their dining room, which is a really great spot - AC power, WiFi from the [new] TA wireless services - TA SpeedZone WiFi
Since I still wasn't really, really hungry, and since it is generally better for you to eat smaller meals, more often, and infrequent large meals, I seized on the oppotunity to get some oatmeal - Country Pride offers a breakfast called "Smart Start" which is a bowl of oatmeal with fresh fruit [seasonal] and coffee - I also ordered a side of wheat toast. The server was great - went and asked what sort of fruit was available, then asked me how I wanted the oatmeal - and she got it perfect - I was relieved that this is not "instant oatmeal" - I believe it was "quick oats" and she managed to get it just about exactly the consistency I make it when I make it myself. Really excellent.
The oatmeal comes with a little pitcher of milk, and a plastic cup with about 2 - maybe 3 - tablespoons full of brown sugar packed into it (homestyle, that) - I don't use either milk or sugar on my oats, so I asked for and got butter.
The fruit turned out to be a big bunch of red grapes and a couple slices of honeydew melon - very nicely arranged - which I continue to nibble on.
This meal was definitely on a par with the chili at Homestead, and the dining room as more power outlets. The buffet closes in the evenings - not sure what time, but it was already shut down when I got here.
Labels: restaurant, review, truckstop
Friday, December 08, 2006
truckstops
Iowa 80 Truckstop bills itself as "the largest truckstop in America" Well, They will need more than "biggest" to get me to stop there again - as it stands now, I won't waste my time going in there again.
There is a TA (TransAmerica) logo on the side of the building, so I expected them to have at least WiFi and a decent buffet (the East Columbus [Hebron] TA on I-70 in Ohio has a really excellent buffet, WiFi, and plugins for the laptop at most tables. Unfortunately, Iowa 80 has none of these.
I was very disapointed in Iowa 80 Truckstop Kitchen (the main restraunt - there are several fast food places in the building, as well - I didn't try those - in retrospect, perhaps I should have hit the Taco Bell). The cost was $12.xx for a crappy buffet and a cup of coffee, The buffet didn't have much selection. The meatloaf and mac'n'cheese weren't too awful, but there was no butt of beef roast to carve chunks off from (as with the East Columbus TA), no wireless internet (some locked network called "CHROME" - don't know what that was, but it was no help at all, to me). The service wasn't much, either - coffee was not refilled. No plugs for laptops - there were electrical boxes under a couple booths along one wall, but none of them had receptacles. Overall, my impression was that this place is a "tourist trap" and best avoided by any serious travellers - although I can't speak to the truck services. There didn't seem to be many drivers in the restraunt, though, which is some kind of a tip-off, I think.
The Homestead on I-74 in Illinois is better - about 40 miles east and south from Iowa 80. Homestead has a really good chili, good [free] wifi, and one of the tables in the smokng section is next to an A/C electrical outlet that can charge the laptop batteries... I reccomend the chili - not as spicy as my own, but thick, with plenty of meat, gravy-like sauce, only a couple pieces of onion (in the bowl I had), and the beans (it did have beans) were not kidney beans, but something like pintos - quite tasty. It also seemed to have tomato in it - not something I usually add to chili, but not bad, in context.
I had an omlette here [Homestead] a few months ago (cheese and mushroom, if I recall correctly) which was also good. I would have ordered more this time, but I had just had that (unsatisfying, but bulky) food up at Iowa 80, and was not terribly hungry...
Homestead seems a "homey" place - a couple drivers spoke to me, and the wait staff was friendly. They also do parties, and e.g. will be serving dinner on Christmas.
Info about Homestead:
Homestead Travel Plaza, I-74, Woodhull, IL
Entered info for this site at layover.com's "computer friendly truckstops" (Illinois) page.
Labels: restaurant, review, truckstop
Sunday, November 26, 2006
bread & coffee
A Simple yet tasty meal.
Brummel & Brown[i] yogurt spread, honey if you want sweet.
The preparation here is simple: make the coffee, swab the bread in the dish of spread, and [optionally] squirt some honey on it. Yum.
The bread in question here is pumpernickel rye from the SuperTarget bakery [target.com]. In fact, all the ingredients came from the SuperTarget, since it's right up the street...
Also used in the preparation of this meal - Melitta coffee filters, Starbucks coffee (Sumatran, "cone ground"), Nestle CoffeeMate [powdered] non-dairy creamer, Ice Mountain spring water, and the RTH brand hot pot[i] from CVS Pharmacy.
The Archer Farms Blueberry Honey ["Archer Farms" is a Target store brand] pictured in the Picasa gallery looks cool, and isn't bad, but doesn't taste much like blueberries - apparently the honey is made by bees who are feeding on blueberry plant blossoms or something - it's not blueberry flavored - which is okay unless you were expecting a taste like Smucker's blueberry syrup or blueberry preserves (either of which might be good on bread, as well, but I didn't have any of those).
Labels: bread, coffee, yogurt spread
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
food delivered
Ordered from Lee's Egg Roll House: chicken & mushrooms, spicy with garlic; an extra pint of white rice (the chicken came with a half pint of rice); and spicy noodles.
This order cost something like $12 and change (tip to delivery guy not included). There was enough food there for two meals. They sent 2 Styrofoam plates, about 6 plastic forks, two plastic spoons, 2 plastic packets of Panda soy sauce, two plastic packets of Panda hot mustard, and one fortune cookie.
The "spicy noodle" was $2.99 and was what appeared to be ramen noodle soup. Not bad, but something we could probably make in the microwave for - say $1 if we got the high end ramens... The mushrooms were nothing special, and in fact seemed a little tough, but the spiciness was right, and the chicken was good, although it was breaded.
There is no tofu or bean curd on the menu. When I called I asked them about it, and they just said "no", they didn't have it. There is some sushi on the menu - which appears to be the only thin Lee's has that's not pretty ordinary. I think I may try some california roll, next time.
Also, note that the chicken and mushrooms that I ordered was not on the menu - this didn't seem to bother them, which was gratifying.
Overall, the meal was satisfying, but nothing special - the main feature was the fact that it was delivered and we didn't have to cook it. A bit pricey for what it was, too, but I would guess that most people around here who are ordering from Lee's are not looking for a particularly special oriental dining experience, they probably just want some Chinese-type food delivered for convenience sake, which purpose I'm sure is served adequately. Not exactly Schezuan Bean Curd with Fried Dumplings that will have you ordering from them twice a day - but then, we've only ran across a couple of those, and they were in a much denser metro area (Germantown, MD). There is a really good place in Iowa City that we have been to in the past, but it's too far for delivery, and the car is in the shop, so zipping down there for takeout was not an option this time...
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
tofu and wild rice
Ingredients:
- 1 pkg organic extra firm tofu
- 1 pkg uncle ben's pre-cooked wild rice
- thai peanut sauce
- "rooster" chili sauce
- some chili oil I found in target
- chopped garlic
- some powdered ginger root mixed with sake (about an oz)
Directions:
- put the tofu, oil, peanut sauce, chili sauce, garlic, and galanga mixture into a bowl and microwave it for 2 minutes (time may vary)
- when the tofu finishes, put the package of rice in for 90 seconds (don't forget to open the top of it, or it makes a disturbing 'pop' sound at about 63 seconds into the cook cycle :D)
- when the rice is done, put it in the bowl with the tofu, stir it up (w/ chopsticks)
- enjoy!
This is basically another one of my "meal-in-a-bowl" specialties - quite tasty! It would be good with some chicken or beef broth, too, but I only have 1 liter cartons of those, and didn't want to open one, since I'll be leaving before I could use it up, and the weather is not cold enough to keep it chilled once I take it out of the fridge.
Labels: chili oil, chili sauce, garlic, ginger, microwave, rice, sake, tofu
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