Recognizing a Cooking Style

Or that you don’t have one.  The collection of recipes here is a bit random.  My interests (in life and in cooking) are all over the place.

But nothing gets on here without being made, eaten and liked — because why would you blog about a meal you hated (generally speaking).

There are some unifying factors of course, gluten free being at the top.  But in the Italian style, almost everything we cook quickly for dinner typically starts with diced onions and garlic sautéd in olive oil — the herbs vary depending the the direction – basil and oregano for tomato based, rosemary for chicken, simply gf flour, salt and pepper for a white sauce, pepper and chilies for a Indian or Tex-Mex journey, potatoes or mushrooms for a more French or Irish feel.

I grew up in a meat and potatoes type household with a lot of convenience food and not a garlic bulb in sight (although there were a LOT of onions) — I’m the youngest, my Mom worked and was pretty bored with cooking by the time they had me, and my Dad doesn’t really cook anything besides tomato soup, grilled cheese and brownies. It was the 70s and 80s and most people didn’t experiment with food and cooking the way they do now.  Mum made a lot of casseroles, stews, and convenience food (scalloped potatoes from a box, Hamburger Helper, Shake and Bake, spaghetti sauce from a jar — we did a lot to keep Betty Crocker in business).  More homemade items included macaroni and cheese, corn chowder, meatloaf, homemade pizza (we lived too far from any place that actually made pizza to order it) and something called “Tuna Wiggle.” (tuna noodle casserole with peas).  When I went to college I was not a great cook, and definitely not very experimental.  I did a lot of baking, and baking of course depends on the chemical reaction of the ingredients and the portions of each matter more than in cooking.

When I met my now husband, it was a revelation.  He cooked.  He doesn’t bake.  It completely freaked me out to cook something without slavishly following the recipe.  He loved to experiment and many of the things he makes often never came out quite the same twice.   One of his standbys in college was a simple chicken in wine with artichokes served over rice.  In the same way he had never even heard of Hamburger Helper, I’d never eaten an artichoke in my life.  I’ve gradually adapted to his way and cooking is one of the activities we share the most. With a lot of fresh ingredients and spices. I’m no longer afraid to experiment more with styles of cooking, with ingredients and with ratios — even when baking.  I eat a lot less processed food.

I’ve recognized my inner chef.

Although I still admit to loving Shake & Bake (and inventing a GF substitute!).

 

 

via Daily Prompt: Recognize

Colorful Kaleidoscope Carrots

As you might know, Boston had its snowiest winter ever recorded this year.  (The pile of snow removed from the streets in the South Boston “snow farm” did not melt until after Bastille Day in July!).  That meant I was absolutely desperate to see some sign of spring and was thrilled at the chance to go to the Boston Flower Show in March.  It was like heaven on earth.  Green things! Food for the soul.

One of the booths was Hudson Valley Seed Company, which sells seeds for heirloom variety vegetables.  One of the things I fell for was an art pack of Kaleidoscope Carrots – carrots in a rainbow of colors – purple, yellow, red and white, along with well, carrot orange. Oh, the ambitions one has for the garden while it is still winter.

We planted them in our expanded garden in late May when it was finally safe. They have a 75-day growing season so we should have been able to harvest them in mid to late August, but the few we pulled up (despite their giant green tops) were tiny, so we left them in the ground longer.  We finally harvested them for a dinner party this week. We pretty much had to since we were digging up the garden for the winter. Sadly, with only a few exceptions, they still did not look like the beautiful ideal we hoped for.

The kaleidoscope ideal. Sigh.

(One of the farmers at our local market said this was likely the result of not enough nitrogen and we need to fertilize better next year.) His vegetables are gorgeous so he ought to know.  That and i think we didn’t thin them properly.

None the less they still had gorgeous color, and they tasted lovely – very mellow compared to store-bought carrots. We steamed them in the microwave until crisp-tender and just added a little bit of butter.  Our friends thought they were beautiful – a feast for the eyes and the tummy.

Fresh from the garden

Straight from the garden.

I planted strawberries in the garden this year.  They are the “everlasting” type and they are still popping out berries, even though it’s mid July.

Yum!

What’s in your garden?