What's cooking? part 4

It's awesome, isn't it, to have enough stuff ready that a meal can be got together in a few minutes. I think the key is finding those things you like enough to eat a few times in a week, and figuring out how to cook them for storage while retaining versatility. Roasted beets and yams are mainstays for me now, where it used to be pasta. Stuff that can be tossed into a salad or a frittata, etc. Slow-braised proteins that can be sliced or made into stew/soup.

Trick for storing prepped lettuce - put a paper towel in the bag or bottom of the container and don't seal it all the way. You want humidity and a bit of airflow.

I do that too -- pre-prep really makes a difference. Cooking something totally different every night is kinda bonkers really!

Roast chicken in the oven, made a salad with quinoa, peas, tomatoes, coriander, and lemon juice/oil dressing. Sometimes a Sunday of staying in can be nice.

xps yeah my problem is that i can't really eat the same things bc i am super fussy (ugh :/), and it's too easy for me to eat the same thing and then get so sick of it i can never eat it again! but i'm trying to be more economical in my cooking - eg the oven-roasted tomatoes will be in 2 nights' of salad made with romain/avo/spicy tempeh/croutons and also in a pesto sauce for a pasta w/zucch and spinach (another 2 nights' worth of dinners).

last week we ate lentils/barley/salad every night, but i made different vinaigrettes in advance to switch it up each time.

i've been wasting a lot of food the last few months, bc i was getting these lofty ideas for all the things i would cook each week, but then i would get home at 8pm and just be like 'eh fuck it, frozens for me, pasta marinara for you'.

p.s. jaq that is how i do the lettuce - wash it all in one big go, chop it up, spin it, wrap it in paper towels and put in ziploc bags. but i might try your tip and leave the bag partially open.

what is this adobo marinated tempeh, of which you speak, all about?

neighbor came by with some BEAUTIFUL salmon filets that he said he just caught over by the farralons. my go-to salmon preparation lately has been miso glazed..... i'm looking forward to din-din!

I got a crock pot and am gonna do LL/VG BBQ chicky manana!

Did kinda-sorta french onion soup in it today; not really the most appealing thing for lunch when it is so hot out :( And I have yet to find decent gruyere here. Or really good french bread.

Geez I am a cranky cook today.

On the upside, we did pizza in a friend's wood-burning oven last night and it was great!

outdoor_miner: http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/tlt-sandwich-recipe.html

it's REALLY good - usually we have on sandwiches per the recipe, but this time i'm gonna switch up into a salad with croutons instead

thanks. that sandwedge looks incredibly delicious!
not jaq by any means but i'm guessing cutting off crust for croutons is a aesthetic thing (i.e... makes 'em look less rustic and more fancy)

in addition to visual aesthetics crust removal allows for a more porous surface area, so whatever lube you use will allow for more flavor. as we all know fat is the magic carpet that flavor rides upon

I want to eat something. I don't know what. I've had too much potato salad today and it's not satisfying anymore.

haven't been cooking due to wedding/honeymoon ish, came back dying for vegetables so this is basically an all-salad week. started with a bittman salad of corn, red peppers, onion, avocado, cilantro. topped with a few seared shrimp.

Bbq Chicken A La Lechera was a resounding success! Tons leftover for yay some weekday lunches!

Phew now you don't have to sweat yr lunches yaaaaay :)

you are a genius fyi :)

I made Mexican rice, and as usual, forgot to take my contacts out until I'd already minced the onions and garlic. Luckily I remembered before I did the jalepenos.

I wish I had done something more spectacular to earn that title, but I'll take what I can get!!

Your genius is for integrating cooking into your already full daily life, though, and still enjoying it! Most people do not make 3 meals a day from scratch while also doing everything else you do. You have good workarounds and the best attitude.

^^^

my dinner:

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5344/9002510681_8876b05bab_z.jpg

I don't know what it is, but it looks like something I would love!

recipe link a few posts up - it's tempeh marinated in adobo sauce/balsamic/soy/sugar, fried then shoved in a sandwich with avo/romaine/vegan mayo with grape toms roasted in oil/brown sugar etc

i'm not a huge fan of tempeh, but i love this. the creamy avo + the sweet/acidic tomatoes + the crunchy romaine/bread + spicy tempeh = amazing balance of tastes and textures.

i'm sure chicken would sub for the tempeh pretty easily too.

My favorite sandwich is goat cheese/arugula/tomato/cured meat/avocado, so I think however you make it those tastes and textures are fail-safe. Looks beautiful, too!

and dessert:

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7439/9002670901_20121829c4_z.jpg

vegan chocolate raspberry torte thing

that is a thing that I would eat

I made the bbq chicken but I think I messed it up bcz it is much too saucy, like an ill-tempered 8 year old girl. It basically is just chewy barbecue sauce; there is no flavor other than the barbecue sauce ;_;

but I mean I like barbecue sauce so it could be worse y'know?

That's what I mean about the BBQ sauce -- the flavor depends on which kind you use.

I also usually fish out the chicken, then shred, then add more sauce if it seems necessary.

Sorry I didn't mention that sooner. I don't want prison crockpot BBQ chicken to be my legacy!

I experimented this morning by adding like 1/4-1/2tsp red curry paste to the oil/butter before I fried my eggs; the result was overly spicy but with very little yummy curry flavor. Would not recommend

ok, the parsley/barley/feta salad from jerusalem is the best salad i've ever had.

uh omg

Parsley and Barley Salad
adapted barely from Jerusalem

1/2 cup pot barley
200g feta, broken into pieces
6 Tbsp olive oil (divided)
1 tsp za'atar
1 tsp crushed coriander seeds
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/3 cup finely chopped green onion
2 cloves garlic crushed
1/3 cup cashews toasted and crushed
1 green pepper chopped
3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
salt & pepper

Fill a medium pot with water and bring to a boil, then add barley. Boil for about 30min, until barley is tender but still chewy. Drain and reserve in a large bowl.
While barley is cooking, mix together 2 Tbsp olive oil, za'atar, coriander and cumin. Pour over broken feta pieces and gently mix together to marinate.
To the barley, add parsley, green onion, garlic, cashews, green pepper, lemon juice and salt/pepper. Divide among four plates and top with the marinated feta. Enjoy!

yep that's it. here's a couple diff proportions from the book:

4 green onions
1/4 cup pearled barley
1/2 tsp coriander
1/4 tsp cumin
5 oz. feta
3 oz. parsley

i got a food scale recently--3 oz. parsley is basically one big bunch with about an inch and a half of stem removed.

the cashews are the secret weapon imo.

i'm so going to make that. ottolenghi's curry roasted root vegetables with lime is an A+ recipe.

za'atar is also really nice spread on bruschetta, or just mixed with extra virgin olive oil and used as a bread dip.

i am making a crockpot tenderloin even though I am suspicious that it will not really turn out terribly well

why because i can't be arsed cooking anything else

:D

Baked a batch of grainless olive-oil rosemary crackers to have with paté later. Need to think about what thing to make tomorrow for the week's lunches - pork? Beef? Eggs? Chicken?

Leaning toward pork tbh

Pork is v good. Always.

i changed my mind and made some marinated mushrooms as well

i CAN be arsed to make those

So what's in the crackers besides olive oil and rosemary? I'm jonesing for pate lately but have mostly stopped eating bread so it feels sort of sad.

It's from zenbellyblog.com - beat an egg with 1 tbsp olive oil, then mix in 2 cups almond flour, a tbsp of rosemary and 1/2 salt. Roll out between parchment and cut into squares. Bake at 325 for 15-20 minutes.

She's got some nice sounding biscuit and cake recipes too. I'm trying biscuits for strawberry shortcake tomorrow.

1/2 tsp of salt btw. I sprinkled some more on top since I used larger flaked kosher.

It is so hot that I think I have lost my mind a bit. Went into the "big city" today and came home with a random assortment of things, including 1) ground dried shrimp, 2) za'tar, and 3) ponzu sauce.

How do I shot these things (not in the same recipe)?

is cooks illustrated online memebership worth it? (keeping in mind that i only cook vegan)

I never thought so and I only occasionally and unintentionally cook vegan. I looked up recipes for other ppl more than myself iirc.

yeah i was wondering if a lot of it might be focused on meat cooking techniques and a lot of dairy-based stuff.

I've used it mostly for equipment reviews and always forget that I have it. I'd say probably not worth it for vegan recipes.

toooooootally gonna make this green fritatta/Persian herb quiche/kookoo sabzi
i was trying to remember what it reminded me of, and i figured it out -- sometimes when i order dal palak there's so much left over that I have to make a quiche out of it, and of course it's totally green.
serve with ham for good time family yuks!

http://familyspice.com/recipes/recipe/?recipe_id=140

http://familyspice.com/database/photos/recipe/kookooyeh_sabzi2.jpg

rad!

the crockpot tenderloin I made last weekend turned out okay, but I think my conclusion is that only people who haven't had grilled or oven-baked tenderloin would ever rave about tenderloin cooked in a crockpot

VG I meant to ask if it was pork or beef tenderloin? I could imagine crockpot not being the kindest means of cooking either.