I'll Pass On The Guacamole

Those of you reading Ruhiyyih's blog, know that she flew out to Tacoma this past weekend from her home in the Washington D.C. area. She wanted to bestow a personal valentine kiss on her guy, Matt. He drove over from the Tri-Cities to spend the weekend with her.

Ruhiyyih has featured the highlightsof that visit. We were thrilled to see them both, and had a fantastic family reunion at Rue and Annie's. Annie's parents were there, our grand-daughter Daisy, and all my children and their spouses.

I made chipotle soup and little loaves of Naan for our lunch on Sunday. I also made a coleslaw from apples, carrots and celery. The kale decorating this coleslaw wintered over in the garden.

Before Ruhiyyih's arrival, I spent several days experimenting with recipes, including ways to use the left-over whey from my cheese-making. I made Cardamon Pudding, a Persian delicacy, and Cardamon Cookies.

This is a vegetarian lasagna that I prepared for the Nolan's fireside. The vegetables were broiled before adding them to the lasagna, to seal in the flavor.

Here, potatoes, onions and peppers are oven-baked for 15 minutes, then broiled for a crispy effect.

Salads for George's lunchbox: Garbanzo-fava bean, with Orange-Poppy-seed Dressing. Pasta with Pesto and Feta Cheese.

These crepes were frozen, then thawed for breakfast.

I made Flax-meal Bread, sliced it thick, and made French Toast. Pecan Strudel Topping with maple syrup.

We aren't great fans of guacamole, but I did experiment with it, creating one appetizer that could be used in a salad or dip. The other side dish used beet greens, previously frozen and then thawed (cleaning out the freezer). The photos were so bad I dumped them in our Flickr account, and the side-dishes were so ill-matched that I'll have to resort to finding some new recipes for using guacamole. I hear it is nutritious, but I just haven't found a savory way for using it yet.

I've been reading "Veggie Revolution - Smart Choices for a Healthy Body and a Healthy Planet" by Sally and Sara Kneidel. This book provides an in-depth account of modern farming practices, including small family farms and large corporate giants. Since reading it, I've come to understand just how devastating meat production can be for the environment, especially with regard to water, soil and waste runoff. I'm also reading "From the Farm to the Table: What All Americans Need to Know About Agriculture" by Gary Holthaus. Good books about sustainable agriculture featuring minimal impact farming procedures.

Brown Bagging It - Cauliflower Soup

George said he'd love to be able to pack home-made lunches for work, so I made him some cauliflower soup. This is garnished with finely chopped chives, freshly sprouted fenugreek, and crushed Asian crackers. Oatcakes shown here are great with peanut-butter.

George has been in the habit of purchasing salads from a local deli during his noon break at work, and drives to the market for his afternoon snacks. That is a lot of wasted time during his work day. It could be better spent on a brisk walk...but, that is another story.

He asked if I'd prepare a variety of things to pack in a lunchbox, so I spent some time on the weekend cooking, and placed everything in containers in the refrigerator to be pulled out when packing the lunches. We've tried lunchboxes in the past, and they never worked. George always seemed to rush out the door in the morning and never took the time to fill his lunchbox. Or, it would be prepared, sit in the fridge, and he'd forget to take it in the morning.

I figure that the only way it will work is if I become responsible for preparing the food, packing his lunchbox, and putting it by the front door in the morning. Seriously, that is a whole lot of work for someone (like myself) who doesn't function in the morning until after they've had their coffee! I'd have to put out a note by the coffee maker "Put George's lunch by front door." Then, I realized that I could prepare the food, pack the lunchbox and store it overnight in his car. It is 35 degrees at night!

So, I packed it all up, and wouldn't you know, he wanted to know what I'd packed for him. He wanted to open all the little containers, to know what he could look forward to! I had to laugh, but opened all of them for his inspection. Then, I took his lunchbox out to his car.

I made goat cheese feta for spinach salads.

Wheat-berry salad and carrot-cabbage coleslaw.

Roasted vegetables with spareribs.

Rice pudding with nutmeg, cinnamon, rum flavoring and home-made lemon yogurt.

Flaxmeal carrot cake with cream cheese frosting.

These last two - the desserts - are for a mid morning, mid-afternoon taste thrill with coffee or tea, very small portions.

I made the rice pudding with brown basmati rice, and used flaxmeal and whole wheat flour for the cake. Tomorrow, he'll get fresh fruit and roasted chicken, which I had, but couldn't fit into his lunchbox!

Now, the next issue is whether or not he will remember to bring all the containers home - rinsed out.

Lemon Yogurt with Meyer's Lemons

Last weekend when we visited Trader Joe's, we bought a few Meyer's lemons. A friend of mine mentioned how super sweet they are, told me to slice them very thin and eat them peeling and all. I have served them since on some fresh red snapper and fresh cod from the fish market. But best of all, I enjoyed blenderizing them with a little lemon pudding and a generous amount of my home-made yogurt for a fluffy fruit puff. Just so light, with a sweet tang.

I'm down with a cold, a stuffy nose, itchy-burning eyes, and my appetite is just shot. All I feel like eating is soup....and cinnamon rolls. Comfort food! I can't seem to 'taste' coffee in the morning, which is quite a disappointment when I go to so much effort to make the perfect cup: half 'n' half, with a tablespoon of sugar in a big Starbucks mug; then, 1/3 inch velvety foam, fresh ground nutmeg, and a sprinkling of raw sugar on top. Just holding the mug, all warm and inviting, is one of the best moments of my day....but I can't smell a thing!

We went up to Seattle to browse Pikes Place Market, and some of the surrounding shops across the street. The highlight of the Market are the young men selling fish (often throwing them across the shop for the tourists to enjoy).

George pulled me into a spice shop, the Moroccan shop, a kitchen specialty shop, and over to a fresh fruit/vegetable market. I purchased some Moroccan paprika (Poivron Rouge) which is a very dark red paprika uncommon in most of the stores in Tacoma. I bought some Chipotle Chili Powder mix also, for my corn chowder and chilies.

We also went to a little bread shop and purchased an artisan whole grain bread with a very dark nutty crust. Later I sliced it, grilled the top with olive oil and garlic, then spread some of my home-made cream cheese on top with some finely-chopped leeks. I made a tossed salad too, and served some burritos on the side. We had the lemon yogurt for dessert.