After a crazy day yesterday, I headed home at about 6. I stopped to pick up some artichokes and that was a feat for me. I was tired and didn't want to cook anything or even stop at the store! I'm not a cook, really, mind you. In fact I have thought of getting Peg Bracken's The I Hate to Cook Book and veg-ing up those recipes for this blog in a counter-reaction to the many steps involved in Mastering the Art of French Cooking. I even went so far as to look up Peg's recipes and book experts online. I wasn't that impressed with the ingredients and the style, so to speak, though, so back to Julia.
On Sunday night I learned how to cut and prepare the artichokes for cooking. I reviewed it when I got home last night and I actually had fun snapping, cutting and trimming. I'm learning more about preparation for cooking than I ever thought was possible. All those little details! They're so important! Here are some things I learned about artichokes:
Cut off the stems.
Pull off the very bottom leaves along the base so that the artichoke can stand on its base in the water. (Yeah, right...artichokes don't like to sit in the water any more than Styrofoam does!) :)
Lay each artichoke on its side and chop off about the top 3/4 of an inch...giving it a flat top!
Wash them well (letting water run between the leaves).
Rub the cut portions of the artichoke with real lemon juice.
Put them into a basin full of cold water with 1 Tbsp. of vinegar per quart of water.
I did all that. Then I put them into boiling water with 1/2 lemon to preserve color, and let them boil for about 45 minutes.
Artichokes are done when you can pull off a leaf easily and the meat of the leaf is tender.
The little suckers didn't want to stay under the water, so I put a veggie steamer on top of them to hold them down!
They turned out beautifully. I was very happy and proud. I'm a totally novice 'fancy' cook, if you catch my drift. I can sling all kinds of things together and get really creative in the kitchen, when the mood strikes, and it has over the years...but I only like to do it when I have time. So making something from a Julia Child cookbook is a major thing for me.
I will tell you about the dipping sauce I made for them tomorrow! That's a long story and I'm ready to call it a day!
Peace,
Beverly
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Julie and Julia 8/18 Corrected
I grabbed Mastering the Art of French Cooking Sunday night and began combing through the vegetable pages, most of which Julia suggests serving with meat, or garnishing with meat products of some sort. In between all that, though, are some good recipes for vegetables and a ton of information on how to prepare them. Before that, however, a reversion to my last blog about sauteed mushrooms.
One important tip regarding sauteing any vegetable: the veggies to be sauteed must be completely DRY, otherwise the water creates an effect that keeps the flavor from being sealed in and the veggies are not nearly as tasty. Also the reason for the super hot oil (and the importance of the sizzle sound as the veggies hit the oil) is that without it, the veggies are steamed rather than sauteed.
I'm learning so much, and the funny thing is, folks, I'm not even a "cook" by my own definition...certainly not like Julie.
Back to today:
I was going to tell you all about the preparation of artichokes today, but having witnessed a nasty accident on the road yesterday, I didn't feel like dealing with it, so I've postponed it until later today. I DID learn how to trim the tips of the leaves, how to get rid of the stem and how to remove the choke from the center of the artichoke, and that is a major accomplishment. The day before that, I would have just thrown the artichoke into the boiling water not thinking about any of the preparation. :)
More about the artichoke later. I'm looking forward to it and I hope you like artichokes.
Peace.
One important tip regarding sauteing any vegetable: the veggies to be sauteed must be completely DRY, otherwise the water creates an effect that keeps the flavor from being sealed in and the veggies are not nearly as tasty. Also the reason for the super hot oil (and the importance of the sizzle sound as the veggies hit the oil) is that without it, the veggies are steamed rather than sauteed.
I'm learning so much, and the funny thing is, folks, I'm not even a "cook" by my own definition...certainly not like Julie.
Back to today:
I was going to tell you all about the preparation of artichokes today, but having witnessed a nasty accident on the road yesterday, I didn't feel like dealing with it, so I've postponed it until later today. I DID learn how to trim the tips of the leaves, how to get rid of the stem and how to remove the choke from the center of the artichoke, and that is a major accomplishment. The day before that, I would have just thrown the artichoke into the boiling water not thinking about any of the preparation. :)
More about the artichoke later. I'm looking forward to it and I hope you like artichokes.
Peace.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
For Julie and Julia: Vegan Sausages and Mushrooms
Between 2 and 4 AM this morning, I woke up, tossing and turning, too awake to sleep and too tired to get up. (Has that ever happened to you?) During that restless time it dawned on me that I hadn't blogged yesterday! In the midst of actually cooking something, getting ready for a dinner party and submitting this blog for a space on the foodie blog roll, I totally forgot to write. I feel like I've broken a chain letter, or turned off the movie during the critical exposition phase, which is funny, because this blog is so new that it has no readers, at least no responders. I continue to believe that if I prepare this 'party', someone will attend. :)
This morning I heard a radio talk show host offer up a great recipe for happiness: "List five things you're grateful for, once a week." It was good to be reminded of that, because it's something I've tried to do on a daily basis ever since I watched The Secret for the first time three years ago. I thought this exercise would weave itself beautifully into this blog about food this morning, so here are five things I'm grateful for: 1) a brain to think up what to say here, 2) a computer on which to write those thoughts, 3) this blog space that provides the forum in which to express myself, 4) the film that inspired me to write this and 5) the money, food and cookbooks that will help me carry out this experiment and these reflections.
Now as for yesterday:
My roommate, Dori, gave a dinner party for four friends and she graciously invited our other roommate Dianne and me to join them. Being a typical Taurus, Dori loves to cook more than Julia Child or any chef on The Food Network; she would much rather eat at home, and she would much rather cook for me and my friends than to see us go out to a restaurant. I'm not used to such a person, but it's certainly a treat. For appetizers, Dori served chips and her homemade ceviche, guacamole and salsa. She made a wonderful corn and black bean salad, black bean soup and for the carnivores, a huge plate full of grilled steak and shrimp to fold into tortillas with her homemade salsa and guacamole.
As for me? I made my first vegan main dish, which two of the guests tried...and really liked! :) YEAH!
Variation on Julia Child's recipe for Sauteed Mushrooms with Vegan Mexican Chipotle Sausage:
1/2 pound of chopped mushrooms
3 Tbsp. olive oil
a pinch of minced fresh garlic (This is added when using olive oil to replace butter.)
2 Tbsp. chopped green onion
1 1/2 Tbsp. chopped parsley
1 Tbsp. chopped cilantro
(Parsley and cilantro are excellent detoxing agents for the body; they absorb and remove toxic metals!)
Saute the mushrooms for about three minutes, then add the green onions and saute for two more minutes.
Remove from heat and stir in the parsley and cilantro.
Julia's Sauteing Tips:
As Julie learns in the film, in order to saute correctly, you have to make sure the mushrooms are flat, not crowded in the pan. Otherwise they don't brown evenly.
The oil has to be really hot, almost smoking, before you add the mushrooms; they must sizzle when they hit the oil. If they don't sizzle, remove them from the pan immediately until the oil is hot enough. I tested a couple of mushrooms at a time.
Vegan Mexican Chipotle Sausage
2 vegan Mexican chipotle sausages, removed from their casing and chopped
1 Tbsp. oil
1/2 cup red cooking wine
There is not even one recipe for sauteed sausages in Mastering the Art of French Cooking. So, here's what I would do, and did:
Follow the instructions for sauteing except for the time. TIP! Plant-based foods require little to no cooking; they are already cooked, so all you have to do with them is heat them. If you overcook them, you will see what Mr. Goodyear experienced when he tried heating rubber for the first time: it will turn into something hard enough to make tires.
After thoroughly heated, add cooking wine to the sausages and stir until the wine is absorbed.
Stir in the sauteed mushrooms and serve.
There's probably a better way to do this than to saute the mushrooms and sausages separately, but they turned out fairly well and, as I said, the meat-eaters that tried them really liked them. My only complaint is that I may have cooked the sausages a bit too long; they were a wee bit dry, and I don't think they came out of the casing that way.
SO, there it is, my first attempt at an actual Julia Child vegan hybrid.
Have a wonderful day, and should you want to try this recipe, you can get the vegan sausages at many different natural food stores and sometimes even at major grocery stores.
This morning I heard a radio talk show host offer up a great recipe for happiness: "List five things you're grateful for, once a week." It was good to be reminded of that, because it's something I've tried to do on a daily basis ever since I watched The Secret for the first time three years ago. I thought this exercise would weave itself beautifully into this blog about food this morning, so here are five things I'm grateful for: 1) a brain to think up what to say here, 2) a computer on which to write those thoughts, 3) this blog space that provides the forum in which to express myself, 4) the film that inspired me to write this and 5) the money, food and cookbooks that will help me carry out this experiment and these reflections.
Now as for yesterday:
My roommate, Dori, gave a dinner party for four friends and she graciously invited our other roommate Dianne and me to join them. Being a typical Taurus, Dori loves to cook more than Julia Child or any chef on The Food Network; she would much rather eat at home, and she would much rather cook for me and my friends than to see us go out to a restaurant. I'm not used to such a person, but it's certainly a treat. For appetizers, Dori served chips and her homemade ceviche, guacamole and salsa. She made a wonderful corn and black bean salad, black bean soup and for the carnivores, a huge plate full of grilled steak and shrimp to fold into tortillas with her homemade salsa and guacamole.
As for me? I made my first vegan main dish, which two of the guests tried...and really liked! :) YEAH!
Variation on Julia Child's recipe for Sauteed Mushrooms with Vegan Mexican Chipotle Sausage:
1/2 pound of chopped mushrooms
3 Tbsp. olive oil
a pinch of minced fresh garlic (This is added when using olive oil to replace butter.)
2 Tbsp. chopped green onion
1 1/2 Tbsp. chopped parsley
1 Tbsp. chopped cilantro
(Parsley and cilantro are excellent detoxing agents for the body; they absorb and remove toxic metals!)
Saute the mushrooms for about three minutes, then add the green onions and saute for two more minutes.
Remove from heat and stir in the parsley and cilantro.
Julia's Sauteing Tips:
As Julie learns in the film, in order to saute correctly, you have to make sure the mushrooms are flat, not crowded in the pan. Otherwise they don't brown evenly.
The oil has to be really hot, almost smoking, before you add the mushrooms; they must sizzle when they hit the oil. If they don't sizzle, remove them from the pan immediately until the oil is hot enough. I tested a couple of mushrooms at a time.
Vegan Mexican Chipotle Sausage
2 vegan Mexican chipotle sausages, removed from their casing and chopped
1 Tbsp. oil
1/2 cup red cooking wine
There is not even one recipe for sauteed sausages in Mastering the Art of French Cooking. So, here's what I would do, and did:
Follow the instructions for sauteing except for the time. TIP! Plant-based foods require little to no cooking; they are already cooked, so all you have to do with them is heat them. If you overcook them, you will see what Mr. Goodyear experienced when he tried heating rubber for the first time: it will turn into something hard enough to make tires.
After thoroughly heated, add cooking wine to the sausages and stir until the wine is absorbed.
Stir in the sauteed mushrooms and serve.
There's probably a better way to do this than to saute the mushrooms and sausages separately, but they turned out fairly well and, as I said, the meat-eaters that tried them really liked them. My only complaint is that I may have cooked the sausages a bit too long; they were a wee bit dry, and I don't think they came out of the casing that way.
SO, there it is, my first attempt at an actual Julia Child vegan hybrid.
Have a wonderful day, and should you want to try this recipe, you can get the vegan sausages at many different natural food stores and sometimes even at major grocery stores.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Julie and Julia Day 5
I decided against the Brussels sprouts until I can get an actual cheese alternative that I can honestly promote. Whole Foods doesn't sell it. And I don't want to offer up a recipe for which the cheese must be mail-ordered from Scotland.
So, while at Whole Foods last night, I bought some amazing looking vegan sausages and some crimini mushrooms, which I will throw down with onions, peppers, olive oil and garlic. I will let you know how it turns out.
Speaking of olive oil, I have heard that in order to be a worthy substitute for the butter flavor, a dash of garlic must be added. My questions are: how much of a dash of garlic? What kind of garlic? Fresh? Bottled? Natural garlic spray?
I'm still awaiting a reply from the vegan blogger who made the claim.
Well, it's been five days and I still haven't cooked anything, but I have great plans...not bad for someone who one week ago didn't even want to think about cooking, much less experimenting and blogging about it!
Wait until you get my recipe for brownies with mint frosting!
Have a great weekend and stay tuned!
Peace...to all sentient beings.
So, while at Whole Foods last night, I bought some amazing looking vegan sausages and some crimini mushrooms, which I will throw down with onions, peppers, olive oil and garlic. I will let you know how it turns out.
Speaking of olive oil, I have heard that in order to be a worthy substitute for the butter flavor, a dash of garlic must be added. My questions are: how much of a dash of garlic? What kind of garlic? Fresh? Bottled? Natural garlic spray?
I'm still awaiting a reply from the vegan blogger who made the claim.
Well, it's been five days and I still haven't cooked anything, but I have great plans...not bad for someone who one week ago didn't even want to think about cooking, much less experimenting and blogging about it!
Wait until you get my recipe for brownies with mint frosting!
Have a great weekend and stay tuned!
Peace...to all sentient beings.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Julie and Julia Day 3
I'm sitting here thinking of going to the vegetarian restaurant, Zephyr, on 4th Street in Long Beach. Maybe that will be an inspiration. Right now I feel a case of blogger's block.
This morning my comic mind has mulled over images of recipes from the 'white trash' cookbook, and tips from the 70's book, "How to Eat Like a Child". Was that where I heard "Always eat your peas with a knife, but roll it in molasses first to keep them from rolling off."?
From there my thoughts moved on to vegan cheeses. Cheese is the hardest thing to make vegan and tasty as well as healthy. I think I may have stumbled onto one: Sheese. The difficulty is that Sheese is made in Scotland, and not readily available here in the U.S. I'll check out Whole Foods later and see.
Why the thoughts of vegan cheese? I want to attempt Amy Adams' favorite Julia Child recipe: baked Brussels sprouts with cheese. Sounds good to me even if many people cringe at the thought of Brussels sprouts. (I personally cringe more at the thought of eating something that once walked or flew.) It seems to me a person could substitute the sprouts for broccoli or any other wonderful veggie...although the cooking times would vary.
Here's a question to ponder: how long was it before that butter Julie left for Julia started melting and running down the shelf and the walls of that exhibit?
I've decided I like Meryl Streep better than Julia Child. Don't think Meryl would be as judgmental about vegetarians and vegans.
I'll get back to you tomorrow on that recipe.
This morning my comic mind has mulled over images of recipes from the 'white trash' cookbook, and tips from the 70's book, "How to Eat Like a Child". Was that where I heard "Always eat your peas with a knife, but roll it in molasses first to keep them from rolling off."?
From there my thoughts moved on to vegan cheeses. Cheese is the hardest thing to make vegan and tasty as well as healthy. I think I may have stumbled onto one: Sheese. The difficulty is that Sheese is made in Scotland, and not readily available here in the U.S. I'll check out Whole Foods later and see.
Why the thoughts of vegan cheese? I want to attempt Amy Adams' favorite Julia Child recipe: baked Brussels sprouts with cheese. Sounds good to me even if many people cringe at the thought of Brussels sprouts. (I personally cringe more at the thought of eating something that once walked or flew.) It seems to me a person could substitute the sprouts for broccoli or any other wonderful veggie...although the cooking times would vary.
Here's a question to ponder: how long was it before that butter Julie left for Julia started melting and running down the shelf and the walls of that exhibit?
I've decided I like Meryl Streep better than Julia Child. Don't think Meryl would be as judgmental about vegetarians and vegans.
I'll get back to you tomorrow on that recipe.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Julie and Julia Day 2
I'm still mulling over my vegetarian response to this wonderful foodie film...in between surges of ire regarding disrupters of town hall discussions about the deplorable shape of this country's health care system. I'm a teacher and I have much better control over my hormone-raging, ADD teenagers than the Senators seem to be able to gain over these terrorized, terrified and terribly misinformed citizens.
I wonder if I can channel that frustration I feel into something creative. Maybe a salad or a batch of chocolate mint brownies. I wonder which of those two would be the healthier choice. :) Then again, maybe I could pour out my soul in a new song. Haven't written one in a long time.
But back to Julie and Julia. I think the last option from yesterday's blog is the best so far: try to convert certain Julia recipes into a vegetarian equivalent..no easy task, but a worthy one. I'll look at Julia's book, owned and used by my two carnivorous foodie roommates. I'll choose a recipe and begin tomorrow.
Until then...peace and good health to all sentient beings.
I wonder if I can channel that frustration I feel into something creative. Maybe a salad or a batch of chocolate mint brownies. I wonder which of those two would be the healthier choice. :) Then again, maybe I could pour out my soul in a new song. Haven't written one in a long time.
But back to Julie and Julia. I think the last option from yesterday's blog is the best so far: try to convert certain Julia recipes into a vegetarian equivalent..no easy task, but a worthy one. I'll look at Julia's book, owned and used by my two carnivorous foodie roommates. I'll choose a recipe and begin tomorrow.
Until then...peace and good health to all sentient beings.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Julie and Julia
Julie and Julia. It was a great movie. The acting was wonderful, and who wouldn't expect that from such professionals as Amy Adams and the incomparable Meryl Streep?
How could I, a vegetarian and winged/four-legged rights advocate, enjoy all these animal-flesh-and-product-ridden frames of film?
The color was gorgeous: vivid shots of Julie's dark New York flat and tiny kitchen juxtaposed against those of Julia Child's and the Cordon Bleu in 1949 Paris, glimpses of simmering stews and spinning sauces. The complete absorption into the passion for cooking portrayed by the film divas was infectious.
Those factors got me past the de-boning of the duck, the hacking and the boiling of live lobsters...much like the happy scenes get me past the bloody, violent ones in action or war films.
Julie adores cooking...and Julia Child. She challenges herself to a one-year experiment: to prepare every one of Julia Child's recipes...500 plus...and blog about them..
Ok, so this already sounds like an attempt at a movie review. It isn't. These are simply my vegetarian thoughts and my vegetarian reaction to this colorful food film...because not one of Julia Child's recipes featured in the film was vegan. Everything had at least one animal product in it, usually butter. There was reference to a cucumber dish, but unless I missed something (and I didn't get up to use the facilities) there was no shot of such a prep, not even a frame of a cucumber.
Julia Child was said to have "wondered if vegetarians ever really enjoyed a meal". Oh, Julia..! Of course we have enjoyed our meals! You obviously never tasted what I would call a 'real' vegetarian meal, any more than you actually read Julie's blog. :)
Did you ever, ever taste olive oil? Sesame oil? Tahini? Orange bean curd? Teriaki tempeh? Roasted corn without butter? Not every vegetarian or vegan dish is bland. Some vegetarian and vegan cooks actually do a good job, and now there are vegetarian, raw and vegan gourmet restaurants springing up all over the place. So someone SOMEWHERE, must be enjoying non-animal-derived food.
While not judging anyone here, Julia or Julie, I really want to accept the challenge to address this issue. Here are some possiblities:
How could I, a vegetarian and winged/four-legged rights advocate, enjoy all these animal-flesh-and-product-ridden frames of film?
The color was gorgeous: vivid shots of Julie's dark New York flat and tiny kitchen juxtaposed against those of Julia Child's and the Cordon Bleu in 1949 Paris, glimpses of simmering stews and spinning sauces. The complete absorption into the passion for cooking portrayed by the film divas was infectious.
Those factors got me past the de-boning of the duck, the hacking and the boiling of live lobsters...much like the happy scenes get me past the bloody, violent ones in action or war films.
Julie adores cooking...and Julia Child. She challenges herself to a one-year experiment: to prepare every one of Julia Child's recipes...500 plus...and blog about them..
Ok, so this already sounds like an attempt at a movie review. It isn't. These are simply my vegetarian thoughts and my vegetarian reaction to this colorful food film...because not one of Julia Child's recipes featured in the film was vegan. Everything had at least one animal product in it, usually butter. There was reference to a cucumber dish, but unless I missed something (and I didn't get up to use the facilities) there was no shot of such a prep, not even a frame of a cucumber.
Julia Child was said to have "wondered if vegetarians ever really enjoyed a meal". Oh, Julia..! Of course we have enjoyed our meals! You obviously never tasted what I would call a 'real' vegetarian meal, any more than you actually read Julie's blog. :)
Did you ever, ever taste olive oil? Sesame oil? Tahini? Orange bean curd? Teriaki tempeh? Roasted corn without butter? Not every vegetarian or vegan dish is bland. Some vegetarian and vegan cooks actually do a good job, and now there are vegetarian, raw and vegan gourmet restaurants springing up all over the place. So someone SOMEWHERE, must be enjoying non-animal-derived food.
While not judging anyone here, Julia or Julie, I really want to accept the challenge to address this issue. Here are some possiblities:
- Do what Julie did, only the vegetarian version. Yeah right.
- Review vegan, raw and vegetarian restaurants from time to time, and blog about them. Maybe...starting with Zephyr in Long Beach.
- Experiment with vegetarian alternatives to some of Julia's most popular recipes, and blog about that experience. Cooking is all about chemistry, so this would be a challenge. Changing the chemical components of the animal dishes to non-animal dishes. This would be especially tricky with recipes involving cow cream and butter. I know this just from changing the milk from whole to non-fat in a quiche recipe once. :)
I'll think about more ideas and blog about them tomorrow. Meanwhile...what is my issue here? Why do I feel I might want to take this on? Because I truly believe it's possible to enjoy life and to relish food in a cruelty-free way...and if I can prove that point...people will have a scrumptious option while fewer animals fall victim to 'life is a bitch and then you die'.
Until tomorrow...peace.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
