Day 321 - 328, or, The Backlog

Day 321 - Tuesday May 1
I am thankful for sanctuary and moments of peace in the storm.

Day 322 - Wednesday, May 2
At least, whatever the other insecurities and changes about to rock my world, I know who I'll be living with next year and we share the same priorities. I am so thankful for this grace.

Day 323 - Thursday, May 3
Swimming 2000 yards in the sunshine at lunch.
I need the time to think.

Day 324 - Friday, May 4
This guy.

Day 325 - Saturday, May 5
The beach is pretty awesome. 

Day 326 - Sunday, May 6

I used up my Crate & Barrel gift card (from my credit card points) to upgrade some very needed kitchen tools. I paid a total of $6.90 for all this.

Day 327 - Monday, May 7
Productivity. When it happens, it rules!

Day 328 - Tuesday, May 8

Graduation season is good for one thing - lots of free lunches. Like ones at the fancy Hawaiian fusion place in Downtown.

Day 139: Asian Meatballs with Shitake Mushrooms

Photo by the Sweet Beet

Nothing is more amazing than trying a recipe and discovering that it works.
The Sweet Beet's recipe for Asian meatballs with shitake mushrooms is delicious. I am grateful for the simple pleasure of clean, homecooked food.

Day 134: Fennel

I love fennel (which is funny because I don't like anise or black licorice). I know, Berna, this, and beets, too? Yup.



I can personally recommend this recipe and also
this one from New York magazine, which I tried making tonight.



I didn't have walnuts, so I substituted almonds; I don't like parsley, so I didn't use that at all but to bring out the sweet taste from the walnuts I missed, I added a dash of cinnamon. Oh my god, delicious.

I'm grateful for experiments that turn out!

Day 21

I am grateful for second chances, and the knowledge that I'll never be perfect, but I can have a practice of being better, making better choices.

"Happiness is also a way of interpreting the world, since while it may be difficult to change the world, it is always possible to change the way we look at it."

Also I'm thankful for loved ones who cook me dinner :)

Experiments in Cooking: White Bean Chili with Jalapeno Bulgur

Yes. Real Simple, again.

Lots of delicious ingredients.



My coworker who was heading out of town gave me her leftover jalapenos (among other delicious vegetables). So, I found this recipe: handy since we bought organic bulgur up in the Catskills (more on that coming soon). The bulgur is cooked almost all the way, with the jalapeno, lemon juice, and garlic added at the last minute.






Aside from the jalapenos, this is a moderately spicy menu anyway. We used up all the bulgur into two servings, but have about two servings remaining of the chili - so this recipe makes 1/2 the bulgur needed. It's really healthy, takes about half an hour, and is a spicy twist on regular chili. We'll definitely make this again as we head into winter and the hibernating season!

Experiments in Cooking: Making Pickles

Between my organically grown cucumbers from upstate, courtesy of my boss donating her CSA to me while she's in France for the summer, and the Mediterranean cucumbers I usually gorge on from 3 Guys, I found myself with lots of extra beloved cucumbers. My ability to consume them couldn't keep up, and their once-crispy skins were starting to wrinkle, their crunch diminishing.

Rather than toss them, I thought I'd take the opportunity to experiment and make pickles of them. I've never converted cucumbers into pickles myself, but I've been wanting to try. So I found a recipe on Old Faithful (Real Simple): dill pickles! I used regular instead of sweet onions, and dill rather than dill seed. Following the recipe didn't yield enough liquid to cover the cucumbers in the Ball jar, so I added some water to bring the liquid over the cucumbers.

It took about 4 days for them to marinate fully. Delicious!

Experiments in Cooking: Spaghetti with Zucchini, Walnuts & Raisins

Real Simple again has yet to let me down! We tried the spaghetti with zucchini, walnuts and raisins recipe. The recipe calls to lightly sautee the walnuts, and then gently toss the zucchini and raisins before adding to spaghetti and touching the whole plate off with a sprinkling of parmesan (we used feta instead, it was also delicious). Zucchini is my new favorite food, a fresh, healthy summer treat. It’s delicious fresh, a delicate taste! Sauteeing the walnuts brings out their nutty flavor, which contrasts nicely with the sweet punch of the raisins. This recipe doesn’t require a lot of time, nor a lot of heat to prepare, and is a healthier than creamy or heavy tomato-based pasta.

Experiments in Cooking: Cabbage and Chicken Soba Salad

RealSimple has yet to let me down. In my quest to find summer dinners that require little cooking and not a lot of time and effort in an oven-like kitchen, I stumbled upon a recipe for Chicken and Cabbage Soba Salad.




The salad is delicious, slightly tangy and very easy to make. It's fresh cabbage, soba noodles, green onions with chicken in a sauce that's equal parts soy sauce and rice vinegar (white vinegar is an acceptable substitute). Although the recipe calls for 3 tbsp of canola oil, 3 is really too much so I amended (my second go-round) to 1 tbsp and it was perfect. It's very fresh and crisp, with the crunch of the cabbage, the zing of the green onions, and the sweet-saltiness of the soy sauce and vinegar on the noodles. I introduced it to the ladies at work as part of our lunch co-op, and they liked it too. My coworker and friend Colleen admitted to me that she had made herself twice over the weekend after we had it! If that's not a good recommendation...don't know what else could be!

Experiments in Cooking: Citrus Chicken with Lime/Mint Vermicelli

E & I have been trolling our way through the Australian Women's Weekly: Cheap Eats cookbook that his mother sent us from Down Under. I recently attempted to make citrus chicken with vermicelli, lime and mint salad. The recipe consists of marinating the chicken in lemon juice, marmalade and spicy Thai chilies, and serving it on a salad made of cold vermicelli noodles, lime leaves, and cucumbers tossed with lemon juice.




I couldn't find any marmalade so I used apricot jam, which may have cut the spicy flavor a little bit. If I were to attempt this again, I'd make the chicken super spicy (read: go to Whole Foods or Fairway Market and buy some chilies especially). The lemon, cucumber and mint vermicelli salad is delicious and refreshing; this is a great recipe for summer nights. It's fairly easy to make - it takes about an hour, between marinating the chicken, baking it, and then boiling the noodles and cooling them.

Experiments in Cooking: Kibbeh

Semi-successful attempts at kibbeh.