New series! In this super-busy thesis time, I’m going to try hold myself to posting pictures of dinner each night. I mean, I gotta eat, right? Hence, WAWWA: sounds like babytalk, means “We Are What We Ate”. These new entries may or may not take the place of more substantive updates, but I know they’ll be better than nothin’…which is, quite regrettably, mostly what I’ve been servin’ up in recent weeks.
Tonight! Voila, WAWWA:
sweet & spicy tamarind noodles and year-old lentil patties
With some delicious iced adagio teas Peach Oolong to drink.
Allow me to explain the second one. They’re not quite year-old, but I’m pretty sure I made these savory lentil patties sometime last summer. I packed them well in foil and then saran wrap & they’ve just been hanging out in the freezer ever since. It’s amazing that so many moons later they’re in such great shape…so I’m gonna take a few extra minutes to type out the recipe. Try it!
1 cup dry lentils + 2.5 cups water or veg stock + 1 bay leaf + 1 small onion (or 1/2 cup) diced + 1/2 cup diced celery + a total of 3 tbsp mixed herbs of your choice (tarragon, marjoram, thyme, oregano…probably not basil or rosemary) + 1 tsp ground cumin + 1/2 tsp toasted sesame oil + 1/2 tsp lemon juice + 1 tsp salt + freshly ground black pepper to taste + 3/4 cup rolled oats + 3/4 cup dry bread crumbs
- Simmer lentils in water or stock with bay leaf for 45 minutes.
- Saute onion and celery in some oil in your skillet for about five minutes
- Remove from heat; stir in remaining ingredients except the last two (oats and bread crumbs)
- Process the oats in a food processor or mini-chop til finely ground.
- If baking the patties, pre-heat oven to 400.
- Combine oats, bread crumbs, and lentil mixture in a large bowl.
- Shape the mixture into small patties while still warm.
- BAKE: Place patties on greased baking sheet & bake for 15 minutes.
- SKILLET: Spray some olive or vegetable oil spray into your skillet and also on the up-side of the patty. Cook, flipping once or twice, about five minutes.
- IF SAVING: After shaping, allow warm patties to cool. Wrap in a small piece of tinfoil and then again, tightly, in a small piece of saran wrap. Put the whole shebang in a nice thick plastic sack and sock away for leaner times. …Like when you want to make spicy noodles but realize you’ve only got one third of one block of tofu for two people! Then you’ll be in good shape, little ant.
- WHEN COOKING FROM FROZEN: Thaw in the microwave. See “SKILLET” cooking instructions above.
Mmmmmmmmm…. NOODLERS.
Back to the thesis. Keep sending your good energy!
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Hello friends and foes, les liaisons dangereuses y amigos!
I had hoped to give you an update before the 6th of this month, but I’ve been dutifully working on my thesis before tomorrow’s first meeting with my advisor in the new year. Blessed with a quiet home, good tea and coffee, and bountiful blankets for snuggling, I’ve been able to get a lot done. Today I hope to read many more articles, finish a book (or two) and, of course, write write write! But first, a cheery update re: what I’ve been up to lately.
As this post’s title suggests, my chief kitchen (my chef chef?) concern in 2010 (at least the early part) is finding a way to provide fast, delicious, healthy, vegan meals for myself and Nate …on a budget. Last year my strategy toward eating well & saving money was to to cook exclusively from fresh, raw ingredients–from scratch–all of the time. I was so committed to saving money on the grocery bill that I regarded even a can of beans a luxury and insisted on preparing my own from dry in the crock pot.
While using raw ingredients (including dry beans) definitely saved me money at market, I, like many women, was missing something huge: I wasn’t counting the cost of my time in the kitchen. A good 2-3 hours start to finish every night has a cost–a time expenditure, yes, but also a cost on one’s mental, physical, & spiritual energy. I was so caught up in a routine & way of thinking such that even if I had been at work, school, and volunteering all day, I would still come home, running on empty, and prepare a big lush meal that I barely had the energy to enjoy once I’d finished. While I might have been saving money in the grocery store, I probably expended way more in crucial non-cash resources.
So I’m doing something different this year. I’ll still try to delight you with my elaborate creations on a regular basis, but they’ll be more likely to feature a canned or frozen or prepared ingredient. I’ll still focus on organic, fair-trade ingredients, but will now have to navigate my desire for something prepared/more easily accessible with my desire to avoid a lot of excess packaging. Of course, if you have any ideas towards these ends–especially recipes–please send them my way!
Here’s one of my early examples in 2010: spicy chick’n pizza. Ingredients: one store-brand organic pizza crust, one jar of non-GMO pizza sauce, chopped shallots, chopped onions, chopped garlic, frozen organic spinach, chopped organic mushrooms, and two Boca brand vegan spicy chick’n patties, chopped. Assemble (15 min), bake for 10 minutes (while reading an article), let sit for 5, voilà!
Cost: $5.59. About the same price as an Amy’s Kitchen organic frozen pizza, only double the size. About half the cost of a commercial delivered pizza, but way more nutritious and delicious (and organic), taking no more time than you would if you drove to pick up your pizza or waited for them to come to you. Win!
Further win, in the Italian theme: our cat Unix as stromboli (paradoxically, wrapped in an American flag throw)! She’s been doing a lot of burrowing lately.
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