Taraz Captures the Spirit

Adventures with Taraz ~ Quincy Lakes from Ornament Pictures on Vimeo.

Our bags are packed, the food too. We're heading over to eastern Washington to camp and explore - wish Taraz were with us! As he has said, "a good day is when I pull the twigs and leaves out of my hair."

Cooking - Camping - Gardening

Lettuce, mustard and onions from the garden.

Cucumber raita salad with yogurt dressing, placed on finely shredded spinach from the garden. Tomato curry. Bacon. Scrambled eggs with shredded cheese. A fried, seasoned tortilla.

Our backyard, this weekend - tall grass, but too wet to mow.

We are planning a long camping trip with our son and his family, so spent Saturday afternoon at Cabela's, checking out the camping gear. We bought a fire grate that can be used 'out in the middle of nowhere' in eastern Washington. It will go over the fire, and hold a kettle of water, the coffee pot, or a frying pan. Nice for cooking and keeping food warm.

I'll head out with my son, his wife and children, early Tuesday. George will join us on the weekend for another five days. It will be an experiment, to see how our little grandson handles a long trip outdoors. We'll head east, then when George arrives we'll explore the Okanogan country in Northern Washington. Rugged outback country, warm during the day, cool at night up in the mountains. Options are open for return, depending on how everyone is doing - I could stay out there all summer! I love exploring the Okanogan - excellent canoeing, hiking, and just gorgeous country.

We had cold weather all weekend, a bit of rain. I did the last of my chores at the garden - including spreading slug bait. Those little buggers have thrived during the last several months.

But, the cold weather is the worst - we are about a month or more behind in production - these plants are still in the seedling stage, slightly thinned. The mustard has bolted.
Last year at this time, my garden was at it's peak; it has hardly grown at all this year.
Steve brought his special bike over today, hauling manure.

Dum Aloo Chutney Wale with Tomato Chutney

Some of the ingredients for Tomato-Pineapple-Mango Chutney.
It will look like this when finished, and used as a side-dish.
Pureed coriander- mint for the Dum Aloo Wale Chutney Curry.
Dum Aloo Chutney Wale - stuffed potatoes in a rich curry sauce. Similar to our meatballs, potatoes and gravy if paneer is used.

Egyptian Pastries: Basbousa

Basbousa is a favorite Egyptian pastry, much like our cornbread and honey - crispy on the outside, soft on the inside.
Lemon juice and sugar are simmered into a thick syrup and poured over the top.

Almonds and fruit are favorite toppings. I used a fresh peach, coconut, nutmeg and almonds.

Grilled Chicken Kebabs & Curried Spinach

I made a spicy peanut sauce to brush over the chicken as it was grilling, made paneer for the spinach curry, and served this for dinner last night.

The kebabs were marinated in lime juice, vinegar, crushed fresh ginger, salt, pepper, and cayenne.

We had our Devotional last night, with just one friend attending, Corinne. It was pretty laid-back - George got a phone call from Charles and they talked sports. I fell asleep on the sofa in the den, and Corinne read one of my cookbooks while all of us were momentarily 'disengaged' from the Devotional.

I roused myself about 8:30, when George played some music. Brought out my thermos and poured some hot tea. I was so tired I slouched in the big Lazy-boy and pulled out the scarf holding my hair. Oh that feels good, to be totally undone!

Summertime: My mind might want to keep going, but this ole body says 'stop'...right after dinner!

Out of the Garbage and Onto My Windowsill

I've spent a lot of time this week working in my garden, getting everything cultivated, weeded, and staked. George put up a strong fence for my peas, and we have more grass to haul for the trenches.

Because it has been a cold spring, with a lot of wind, many of the gardeners have suffered losses, and have to replant. My corn got very wind-damaged, making the outer leaves shredded and bleached out. However, the inner strands appear normal, so I'll risk not replanting.

Club root has taken hold again this spring in many of the plots, and the gardeners are throwing away all their mustard, kale, cauliflower, and cabbage. Plants affected with this fungus have swollen and miss-shapen roots which become incapable of hydrating the plant. They wilt, turn yellow, and die. There are very few treatments available which would be sanctioned by the Park District for public plots. The co-ordinator at my plot suggested using a solution of cooked rhubarb leaves at planting time. I tried this, pouring it all around my brussel-sprout sets and my collards. So far, neither has shown evidence of the fungus. The best solution is to wait 5 - 7 years before planting anything in the brassicaceae family. At 66, seven years is a long time to wait just to get cauliflower!

I learned last year to harvest early, before the systemic damage causes the plants to wilt and die. At least a little mustard and kale is better than none.

My neighbor ripped out all her collards and threw them into a garbage can. I saw them there, all deep green and beautiful, and had to bring a few leaves home, just to enjoy on my windowsill. The light, pouring through them, highlighted the intricate vascular network in the leaves.

Egyptian Koshari - Street Food for the Hungry

Koshari is the national dish in Egypt - like our hamburgers and fries. It is wholesome, filling, and inexpensive.

The Koshari cooks work from street carts in the marketplace. There is a clanking of serving spoons on the bowls holding the diverse grains, legumes, spices, and sauces. It makes a tapping sound, like music, and draws the hungry shoppers.

Imagine a combination of lentils, garbanzos, rice and macaroni topped with spice blends, garlic and tomato sauces, and dressed with caramelized onions, vinegar and salsa. It sounds atrocious!

The preparation is important - all the legumes, macaroni and rice must be kept to small portions, and must be cooked separately, so that each item holds its flavor.

I also rinsed the beans ( matpe and brown lentils) after cooking to remove any residual starch film - the impact is to feature each item, then enhance them with a sauce that causes everything to dance in a whirlwind of flavor and aroma.

I made a few adaptions and changes, to address our palatte, so my recipe is different from the original Koshari. I made a red curry sauce, added a little parsley and bacon for topping, and added suets I had left-over in the fridge. I save these to enhance sauces when I'm not using meat in a dish - they give body and flavor to an otherwise subtle tomato flavor.
We also stirred all the legumes and rice together, then added the sauce. In Egypt the blends are kept separate when served, and dipped into the bowl of tomato sauce.

I'll post the recipe here, as this dish is worth the work! Great warmed up the next day, or packaged in individual serving pouches for the freezer.

Koshari - a celebration of flavor and substance:
Cook separately until just done, (almost al dente):
1/2 cup brown lentils
1/2 cup whole matpe beans
1 cup orzo macaroni
1 cup basmati rice
1 cup garbanzos (or 1 can)

Prepare and have on hand:
1 large onion, chopped, and caramelized
2 crushed garlic cloves
Finely chopped red-orange-yellow bell peppers
Chopped parsley or cilantro
Cooked, chopped bacon

Red Curry Sauce:
1 1/2 tsp crushed garlic
2 tsp peanut oil
Any suet from cooked meats, plus a little fat
Two cans of chopped tomatoes
3/4 tsp coriander
1 1/2 tsp curry powder
2 tsp Thai red curry paste
1 1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp cumin
4 tsp tomato paste
1 Tbs Braggs liquid aminos (or soy sauce)
1 1/2 Tbs molasses powder (or brown sugar)
salt and pepper to taste

Saute garlic, then add all curry ingredients together, simmering until the thickness of the sauce is to your preference. Then place the curry sauce on top of the lentils, rice, etc - don't mix it in. Let it mingle without over-powering. Dress with the bacon, parsley, and caramelized onions.

Beautiful Weather on the Weekend

The Pacific Northwest FINALLY had sunshine and temps in the 70's over the weekend - so we spent Saturday afternoon canoeing (our Flickr set) around Herron Island, a privately owned island that is referred to as 'the jewel of the South Sound'.

The water was very calm so we enjoyed looking at all the underwater aquatic life - flowing seaweeds, starfish, jellyfish, schools of fish. George photographed a lot of it, but since it was mid-day, with brilliant sunshine, very few of them appear clear.

We had a picnic under some bluffs overlooking the water. I packed broadbean soup, PBJ's, and a coleslaw, Turkish coffee and decaf green tea - I packed for cool weather, not sure if wind would make the outing chilly out on the water.

But, it was gorgeous out, and while George walked around the ferry-landing, I enjoyed a cup of tea and watched kids and dogs playing in the water.

Several times a day a little ferry visits Herron Island, and about eight cars are unloaded.

Yes, Puttering in the Kitchen on a Sunny Day

I should have been working in my garden, but instead I was blending spices for a curry - these are so beautiful!
This weekend I made more paneer for curries, and also this feta-type queso blanco cheese that is seasoned with caraway seeds. Both are exceedingly simple (or I wouldn't be making them).

I prepared so many dishes this weekend - Bombay Biryani, Eggplant Curry, Navratan Korma, Salmon Fritatta's on Naan, and a cucumber-tomato salad with a yogurt dressing.
All of this is intended to be packed in George's lunches, or eaten for breakfast. This was breakfast on Saturday, before canoeing - kebabs, rice, eggplant curry, tomato chutney, and a fried tortilla seasoned with chili pepper and tumeric.
This was breakfast Sunday, a sweet curry with vegetables, paneer, cashews and pineapple. At the end a few tablespoons of heavy cream is added, and the paneer are covered in curry. This was served on basmati rice.

Cherry-rum Chocolate Pie

I couldn't figure out what image I liked best - none of them did justice to this wonderful pie! The crust is made with flaxmeal, crushed almonds, and butter. The filling was made with chocolate pudding.
The top is crushed graham crackers mixed with butter.
The rum flavoring is in the pudding, with sour dark cherries as a border.

Making Chapatis

So many of the Indian curries I've been serving are best eaten with naan or chipati. Naan, a yeast flatbread, is soft and puffy, the chipati are more coarse. I've enjoyed playing with the naan dough, making some of them like buns, for salmon fritattas.

However, lately I've used flatbreads for the curries.Last week I made more eggplant curry, a pungent hot curry, and Navratan Korma, a sweet curry made with many vegetables and pineapple. Both are eaten with chipatis in India, with the flatbread used to scoop up the curry.

I've never made chipatis, so I watched videos first, to see how it is done. Most of the online reviews of chipatti-making indicate that it is an acquired art, that practice will perfect the quality of the chipatti. So, I figured, if it doesn't turn out, I can always throw the results out into the street in the morning, for the gulls and crows.

I have a tawa, a round flat griddle used in India, and a chipati breadboard and rolling pin, specifically made for making these flatbreads. They are not necessary, as anything can be used that is on hand - I just enjoy using authentic products from India, imagining limited workspace like a corner of the courtyard.
This street in Tibet is called Chipati Row. The chipati are baked in an oven, then sold at the market.
My chipati turned out OK, but far from perfect...I eagerly look forward to trying this again.
First, I gathered all the ingredients together - whole wheat flour, yogurt, salt, and oil.
Then home-made plain yogurt was poured into the bowl of flour - yogurt creates a softer chipati. Mixing and kneading the dough, which must be smooth for a good chipati.
Adding oil makes for a smooth, softer chipati.
A perfect, soft ball of chipati dough.
Little golf-ball sized rounds are then rolled out in the hands.
I used a knife to cut the portions, but they can be pinched off.
The balls are pressed onto a floured breadboard.
Then rolled out, using flour to keep the dough from sticking.
Initially I oiled the surface of the tawa to fry the chipati, but stopped doing this - it made the chipati too saturated with fat. Eventually, I learned from my proceedures, finding just the right temperature and duration for frying.
The chipati were puffy yet coarse, with a hole inside for stuffing curries and vegetables.

America's Funniest Home Videos

Our son Rahmat stops by the house from time to time when he is working a split shift. Sometimes he'll take a nap in the guest room, but often he will watch America's Funniest Home Videos on his laptop. I'll be working in the kitchen, and I'll hear him howling and laughing so hard that it makes me laugh. He likes the funny pet videos, and kids torturing themselves while learning a new skill - like sliding down a waterslide in the backyard. Fortunately there is always a big brother with a camera, who captures a summersalt instead, and the kid with grass and dirt in his mouth.

When I finished my work in the kitchen I went to check my e-mail, and was hoping for some down-time. Our cat Pandora was outside on the front porch watching me from the window. She decided she'd rather be inside pestering me while I was on the computer. So, when she lightly tapped on the windowpane, which is her signal for coming inside, I ignored her. And ignored her. And.....ignored her.

She got tired of tapping and stretched her paws way up over her head as far as she could reach. Then she slowly slid her nails down the windowpane. Right. In. Front. Of. Me! It was like chalk on a blackboard! Just horrible! Rahmat laughed so hard while I scolded that darn cat. He said he'd wished he had a camera ready so he could have sent Pandora to America's Funniest Home Videos.

Making Paneer for East Indian Curry

These firm little balls of paneer add substantial protein to east-Indian meals, and are frequently fried, then added, to many curries. I made the paneer by boiling the milk, adding white vinegar, straining out the whey, then pressing the wrapped curds between two heavy tiles.

A few pots and pans, a load of books, and the weight will press out the remaining whey.

It results in a dense wonderful cheese, perfect for frying.

The cheese is cut into cubes.

Once added, they add a bit of crunchiness to a vegetable curry.

Tomatoes, celery, carrots and turnips provided the substance, and spices were cumin, asafoetida, ajwain, mustard seeds, paunch poran, garam masala and dried chillies. I made a big pot-ful, and will make naan today, for sopping up the curry.This is my favorite curried vegetable soup, extremely flavorful, with a mild heat.