Hittin the Motherload

Last weekend was Mother's Day. A few years ago, my favorite mom moved away from her favorite daughter (sniff). As her only human child (there are furry ones as well), this holiday is starred, highlighted, bold and set up with both 1- and 2-week reminders on my calendar so that I don't miss it (this is why I'm her favorite daughter -- lucky her). Babs also has the same situation with her lovely and sweet mother (Hi Mrs. Robinson!). We only-children with single parents have a lot of pressure and guilt (and we understand how important it is), so we try and do our best. It helps that we have awesome moms.

Anyway, my mom has a food itch like I've never known. Most sweets and desserts just don't cut it. No pie, no cake, no cobblers or cookies. No no.. Chocolate *only* please. She's not just any average chocoholic. If it doesn't include DARK CHOCOLATE, then she puts down her eating utensil and steps away from the table. It's just not worth it. And it HAS to be dark chocolate. Milk and whatever that "white" stuff claims to be (puh-lease) is just not good enough. As one who likes to cook, I know that I better make the dessert with dark chocolate unless I plan on eating alone.

Lucky for her, she makes this so well known to everyone (she's not much of a hinter), that I decided to bake up some Chewy Brownies (uncopyrighted free version) for Mother's Day to send to her. This recipe has been twice recommended to me, even from a source who claims to be 'picky about my chocolate.' Well, ok then. Plus, it's a Cooks recipe, so I have a fairly good chance of success. And they are SO FREAKING GOOD and easy to make (hellllooo sugar!) that I'll definitely be making these again.

I also decided to make some sugar scrub labeled as Gardener's Soap. Fun and easy. I sent that along with a pretty silver spoon with the word 'mom' inscribed on it.

Oh, and one more thing was in that big box o' love. A rag rug I crocheted from fabric to match her new red decor kitchen. Now this one took a long time to make and I butted up against the mail deadline a little too close for comfort (the night before I had to send it). However, I think it looks great and was worth all the effort. Even Rob ripped some of the fabric strips for me. Colby made sure many of the fabric balls had a loop or two around the living room (in his mouth), and even the cat took a nap atop it. What a great gift. Happy Mother's Day Mom!

Eggplant, the other white-fleshy meat

Rob finally admitted to me the other night that he really doesn't like eggplant. I was holding two beautiful shiny purple globes in my hand, ready to be sliced, when he announced it. "In fact," he said, "I kind of hate it. Sorry." It was heartbreaking to hear from the person that I cook for the most.

Eggplant is one of those vegetables that people tend to love or hate -- that firm consistency and it's an unusual looking veg, that's for sure. But I think that's why I adore it -- it's like the underdog of vegs. I feel like I cook with it just to introduce it's 'other yummy side' to people who are initially turned off by it.

The good news is that I think I've figured out how to include it in meals so that Rob (and others, and you know who you are) might eat them. I hide them with other deliciousness. Pasta Salad with Eggplant, Tomatoes, and Basil from Cooks Illustrated Guide to Grilling and BBQ is one way to do this. The eggplant was grilled, fresh tomatoes and basil added to a large warm pot of pasta and sauce. Rob loved it (really). He even scarfed down the leftovers for lunch the next day. My heart has healed. I realize that Cooks online recipes are subscription-only, so I also found a free pirated version (tsk tsk).

The Best Grits, er Polenta, I Ever Made.. Y'all

Once upon a time, before I fell in love with New Mexican chiles, Colorado peaches, and Wisconsin beer (and cheese), I grew up in the South. It wasn't really the 'true South' since we lived on the coast with an expanding flux of New Yorkers and New Jersey folks overtaking the beach-side real estate. However, half of my family was fairly southern-like (my Dad's side has a strong accent), and we all certainly loved southern food, fried and fatty. Every week I was fed grits for breakfast, topped with butter, salt and pepper - as any good Southerner should consume grits. I didn't know what decent oatmeal tasted like, or whatever 'cream of wheat' was (sounded disgusting to me at the time).

I never knew what grits were really made of - corn, sure, but the rest was a mystery. It didn't occur to me that grits are the same as cornmeal. NO! Oh yes, it's true. I never realized that corn, ground into different consistencies, becomes cornmeal, grits, and that I'll-never-cook-hominy. My mom, being a good pseudo-Southerner (she's from LonGisland but moved to the South when she was just a wee one), once made the faux-pas mistake of asking for 'grits' in a snooty Colorado health-food store. 'Oh, you mean 'POLENTA' was the storekeeper's response. Needless to say, my mom rolled her eyes and gave him a glare.

Tonight I cooked Creamy Parmesan Polenta (GRITS!) with Sauteed Cherry Tomato and Fresh Mozzarella Topping. It calls for coarse-ground cornmeal (none of that inferior stone or, god-forbid, quick-cooking). This is one of those rare quick-to-make Cooks Illustrated recipes.

This dish was fantastic. Ok, so it passes one of my important criteria: lots of cheese (2 kinds - whoo hoo!), but the sweetness of the tomatoes combined with buttery, cheesy grits was really really good. Really good. The best grits I've ever tasted. Yo. Y'all.

Cooking at the Kasbah

Every month or three for the past 4 years, Rob and I meet up with our friends Dave & Melissa to cook an extensive feast. I say 'extensive' because over time we've met earlier and earlier in the day since it takes hours to construct an entire meal. This is due, in part, to our abundant ingest of wine. We like wine. A lot. One time we didn't eat dinner until 10. I don't really remember it, but the ones sitting and waiting for the meal definitely do and remind us of it regularly.

Usually it's Dave & I doing the cooking, while Rob & Melissa eat and drink and discuss god-knows-what (most likely what hill they're going to tackle next in skiing or biking), or maybe they wax their skis. It seems to me that they're just buying time until we bring them something more to eat. Melissa, being a planner like myself, wants to eat on a regular schedule and preferably before bedtime, and therefore has been cracking the whip ever since the 10pm fiasco. Dave & I clearly need time limits (or wine limits). I really love these times together. Dave & I have cooking zen (except when drunk and cooking), and it's an opportunity for us to make something more advanced since we share a love of Cooks Illustrated (which is how this all started). Rob & Melissa are excellent tasters and critics - and easy to cook for, even when they're hungry and ornery.

Last night they came over and we made 4 dishes, 3 from Cooks. Moroccan Chicken with Olives and Lemon (chicken tagine, but don't tell Rob) and Couscous Pilaf with Raisins and Almonds. We also used this moroccan recipe from Cooking at the Kasbah: Carmelized Carrots with Sweet Paprika. The chicken and the couscous were especially tasty, and they were all fairly easy. I'm not sure how much better toasting the couscous made for its dish, but toasting the almonds was definitely a good thing. Anyway, we ate at a reasonable time - 8pm. Progress is good.

Then came the bread pudding. As a kid I wouldn't even think of eating something that resembles soggy bread. That all changed when Jo, my roommate in Madison, introduced me to cinnamon-toast-bread. Then she cleverly paired the bread with cream, eggs, chocolate, coffee and sugar, and baked it. How can anyone resist that? I actually remember the first bite: creamy (not soggy at all!), sweet and unlike what I had expected. I have been hooked on bread pudding ever since.

So this version includes rum and raisins. Yeah, I think I can handle a forkful of that (or 3). It's from Cooks - Rum Raisin Bread Pudding with Cinnamon. This isn't the healthy version, if one actually exists. We're talking about 2 cups of cream, milk, 9 egg yolks, challah bread, sugar, etc. Nothing wrong with that. It was pretty good - we all had it for breakfast. It was agreed that the challah made for an overly creamy bread choice, and it needed more crispy topping, but I'd make it again.

Eat Your Heart Out, Columbus

Columbus may have 'discovered' America, but I have recently uncovered TWO new things about myself and food. Looks like I win.

I love satisfying salads (those that contain much more than greens). I also love chickpeas. So it's only natural that I would want to make this recipe: Brown Rice and Chickpea Salad from Cooks Illustrated. Being as how it's a Cooks recipe, it's kind of a pain in the ass (fussy), but it was worth it. This was the first time that I've ever used dried chickpeas. Yes, the canned variety worked just fine in the past, why mess with tradition? Well, the only recipes I try to stick to very carefully are those from Cooks. I respect the scientific process and they work hard to determine the best way to fix something. Fine. Dried chickpeas. Soak them for many hours (I remembered ahead of time - yay!), and wait, what's this? I tasted one and huh... these are actually pretty good as is once they've been soaked... [tried a second handful] hmm... nutty, creamy... nothing like those that come out of a can [tried some more]... Oh crap, now I'm going to have to soak chickpeas from here on out [grumble... tasting more] because I could have eaten them all raw. Who knew? Cooks did I suppose.


Anyway, back to the recipe. The salad has a curry-basil sauce that is especially tasty, and you top with toasted almonds (do *not* skip the toasted almonds). This would make a great take-along lunch. Except that Rob is currently busy scarfing down the rest.

I am pleased to announce that I have discovered THE best and easiest way to cook kale. It should have been obvious to me to roast kale since I cook nearly everything else this way. So why didn't I think of this already? Crispy Sesame Kale from the Vegan Yum Yum cookbook. The cookbook is really great, and her blog is beautifully scrumptious, so check them both out. Toss the kale with some dark sesame oil and sesame seeds, and throw into the oven for 10 min. Easy, healthy and insanely delicious.

The Absolute Best Lasagna

Once, a few years ago, I made a meaty lasagna for some friends. One of them, Uncle Ben, as I call him, asked whether everyone else was finished. We all said Yes. He then proceeded to hoist the remaining 1/3 of the pan of lasagna onto his plate. I am sure that my mouth dropped. I always have leftovers... until that moment. I guess he liked it. A lot.

So last night we had another guest over for dinner and I made the same recipe. And let me tell you this, dear readers, it really is *that good*. Oh Yeah. Cooks Illustated Simple Lasagna is to die for. The 'meat mixture' calls for veal, which I don't buy, so they suggest substituting ground beef and sweet Italian sausage. It's freakin' delicious. With guests, I say 'forget healthy - we're going all out on fatty goodness'. So it's the whole milk ricotta cheese. Uh Huh.

The really momentous part of this entire meal is my attitude. So. There are people reading this that might be shocked to discover that I went home, after a full 8 hours of work, and made this lasagna, from scratch, Without FREAKING OUT. Yeah, I see you nodding your heads in disbelief. There are some that knew me before I was a semi-experienced cook, that needed to plan WAY in advance for such a complex meal. No way was Heather going to make something as complicated as lasagna (or anything else) after work for someone she didn't know. No way, no how. I'm looking at the ex-boyfriends (and I'm sure that maybe one of them actually reads this blog), and they're the ones who know the best. Anyway, it was fun. =)

AND DELICIOUS! Oh how I love it when a plan works out.

Everyone Loves Eggplant

Or everyone should love eggplant. I certainly have an odd fondness for it, much to the dislike of my family and friends (some of them). I love the texture and how it feels between my teeth (like I said, an odd fondness).



At some point I taught myself how to cook stir-fries. This type of dish is a whole lot of fun to make, as long as you're prepared before the first items hit the pan. Once a stir-fry begins its course, it's cooking in fast-forward high-speed until it's all over. I learned this the hard way -- burning a few in the process. The reason it's so quick is that you cook over high heat. Using peanut oil (THE stir-fry oil of choice, as it has a higher smoking point - meaning that you cook at high heat without it smoking/burning as quickly) makes it uber flavorful.

Tonight I tried a Cooks Illustrated recipe: Stir-fried Eggplant with Garlic and Basil Sauce - very Thai-inspired. It, like many stir-fries, calls for Fish Sauce. Now, in my house I have to hide the fish sauce when I use it. Rob nearly has a gag-reflex every time he thinks that 'vile nastiness' is in the vicinity. So I tend to use it quickly and slyly put it away without his knowledge. Ironically, he usually hasn't a clue that it's in my dishes. He senses something when I start frying with it (it's very odorific), but I just tell him it's vinegar. He believes me. We agreed that this recipe was pretty good - I added some jasmine rice as well.