Although they made a great many amazing foods at home that I feel regretful I didn’t ask about, I’m not sure if my Polish relatives ever made sauerkraut at home. They definitely ate a lot of it. Kielbasa, Polish sausages, simmering in sauerkraut is a childhood scent. My Dad, arriving home late from work, sat at the table tucking in to those sausages that snapped to the bite. He said to me recently that he is “not a foodie like you and your mother” but I know that he loves Polish food. And, of all the pierogies we ate made by my Mum or carried in a suitcase by my grandmother, the sauerkraut ones were the best. They had to be fried, not just boiled, and slathered in sour cream. People were given those plastic pierogie formers for Christmases and Mothers’ Days but really, only a tuck of the fingers and a smash with a fork can get sauerkraut juices sealed in to perfection.

But from growing up, even with self-unbeknownst “foodies” in the family, I really thought sauerkraut came in a jar or a bag from the supermarket. In fact, when I mentioned on Facebook that I was making sauerkraut, a childhood friend queried, “You can MAKE that? I thought it came in a bag.” I guess we all just thought it was an ingredient…like tuna*.

Given my love for all things fermented and the fact that the cabbages are in season and beautiful I decided to make up a batch of basic salt-based sauerkraut. You can use whey or wine if you don’t want all the salt, but whatever you do, do try and make it yourself even if it is only a one off. It’s almost as easy as finding your shoes, wallet and keys and heading out to the supermarket.

Sauerkraut

You need:

One cabbage, shredded (about a kilo)

2-3 Tablespoons of salt

A big crock or other container and something to weigh down the kraut with (I use a bottling  jar full of water). I also place a plate under the weight just to keep more of the cabbage in place, but it just depends on what kind of weight you have.

You do:

Sprinkle the cabbage with the salt until it tastes quite (and by ‘quite’ I mean ‘very’ for all those N. Americans who have a different interpretation of the word!) salty and squish it up a bit so that the leaves become bruised and the water starts to be released. You can just press and roll it on a chopping board for this. Smile while you do this because it is the fun part…wait, maybe eating it is the fun part. You decide.

Place it in the container you will ferment in.I use a ceramic Chinese hot pot.

Put the weight on and push down until there is water (ie. cabbage juice and salt) coming up the sides. There may not be a lot at the start, but you just keep pressing on it over the first day or so until enough water comes out to cover all the cabbage.

Once you get it good and juicy, be sure that all of the cabbage is submerged as this is how it both ferments and stays safe from other bacteria.

Depending on how hot your house is, it takes two to five days for the cabbage to start to sour. If you find any mould on top, just scoop it off. It’s perfectly normal even though we’ve all been trained to be afraid of mould. Just be sure your cabbage is submerged and you will be sweet.

When it is the desired sourness, eat. Kielbasa optional.

Shhh, sauerkraut sleeping!

*I assumed tuna was just an ingredient for mixing with mayonaise to put on a sandwich. I remember when I found out that it was an actual fish! Nobody called it “tuna fish”, just “tuna”.

One of the staples that I keep in my cupboards is besan, or chick pea flour. It’s a high protein flour because it’s made from beans, but it is also really easy to use because you only need to mix it with water in order to have a starter batter for whatever you want. If you chuck it in a bowl with a little turmeric and and pinch of salt and chilli powder, you can use this as a base for any pakora you like. Have an onion? Slice it and toss it in the batter! Wondering what to do with that last courgette lurking in the veggie drawer? Chop or grate, dunk, scoop out and fry in spoonfuls! Big chillies? Oooooh, stuff them with seasoned, cooked lentils, dunk and fry. Serve with chutney or just carry in your tiffin box.

I am very lucky to have been a recipient of a set of American pancake forms, from my Mum, that are all animal shapes. Being inspired by my son’s recent learning, and perpetual performing, of “the rawr”, I decided to go with the lion form. So, I thought a besan and turmeric based batter would suit a yellow lion down to the ground and a hidden vegetable thrown into the mix would suit me, the Mummy, down to the ground as well. With a little luck, all of this would also suit “Sir”. What follows is the result and, might I add, it wasn’t just yummy to him, his father and I pretty much scoffed up the rest of the batter in pikelet-sized pancakes once the wee tyke was off for his nap.

I’m writing in recipe form here for the sake of giving you an idea, but you’ll need to use your judgement. Besan comes in different grinds and carrots come in different sizes (This is true. I checked on the internet.) but you are looking for a loose batter that is muchly filled with carrot.

Cumin and Carrot Savoury Pancakes

You need:
1/3 cup besan
1/2 tsp haldi/ turmeric
a pinch of salt
a pinch and a half of cumin seeds
5 Tbls water
1 small carrot, grated

Mix the first four ingredients in a bowl and press out any lumps with a fork. Add the water and mix gently. It should look fairly thin. Finally grate in the carrot and turn over a few times. As with any pancake batter, you don’t want to over mix it or the pancakes will be tough. Pan fry on medium heat in olive oil or lovely, lovely ghee.

Serve with chutney or on their own. This makes enough for a snack for two people or one really hungry one, about 9-10 small pancakes or one giant lion.

What does any of this have to do with quick lunches, I hear you ask? Well, because we were late getting back for naptime and the routine has been changed, I know that anything could happen and my son could wake up at any minute and I am hungry! Must… eat… and… blog…. So, I’m typing as fast as I can type and eating a lentil salad that is one of my favourite standbys. To the annoyance of my husband who loves them, I am not keen on sandwiches unless there is absolutely nothing else available. Because why eat a boring ol’ sarnie when you can have one of these lovely things in just about the same amount of prep time?  When I am in a hurry, some of my faves are:

Lentil Salad

1. Open and drain a tin of lentils and dump into your salad bowl. Yes, I said tin. This is a quick and easy ideas post so, deal with it.

2. Chop one tomato in your hand directly into the bowl. Do NOT use a chopping board or you will have to wash it up. Capiche?

3. Slice off a bit of onion into the bowl.

4. Search kitchen for those last bits of hydroponic herbs, whatever they are, that never get eaten and throw those into the bowl. Use dried if necessary, no biggie.

5. Add a pinch of salt and pepper.

6. Drizzle on some vinegar, preferably balsamic, and some olive oil. I like Chilli infused olive oil because I am addicted to chilli, but it’s your call.

7. Optional: If you have some blue cheese or feta chop this in as well.

8. Eat

Antoine’s Potatoes

This is just so easy since you don’t really have to watch the potatoes. Just let them boil until ready and voila! Click here for details

Scrambled Tofu

If you have any kind of tofu in your fridge, this is easy and tasty. I would take the time to do the onion and garlic as they make it that much more savoury and delicious. But, really the whole thing should take a matter of minutes. Click away!

Come on now. Tell me what you do for quick lunches. I love to get new ideas for this time of day.

“The U.N. recently announced that the number of people suffering from the problems of “overnutrition” has for the first time exceeded the number suffering from undernutrition” (Pollan 2008:xiv)

As the book sits here accruing library fines (Naughty blogger!) I am finally getting round to reading and reviewing In Defence of Food by Michael Pollan. Well, I loved it. It says all the things I have always believed about the food industry and how it affects what we, as normal consumers, eat. The difference is that it explains in more detail than I have ever had, the connections. For example, from reading Diet for a New America in the 1980s, I knew that the meat and dairy boards in the U.S. are the ones responsible for supplying schools with ‘educational’ materials about what to eat but this book goes on to explain how, why and by whom food has been “nutritionised” and “industrialized” in other ways. Where it used to be that humans were drawn to foods by taste and colour and instincts (remember those?), now we have been trained to think in terms of nutrients. That doesn’t sound so bad, does it? But the thing we have to think about is who has called for the nutrient-determining research and for what purpose? By reducing a food item to it’s nutrient parts (which, by the way, is a very inexact science as far as variable-laden food is concerned) industry can successfully market in terms of “low fat” “low GI” “high carb”, etc. His best example is that of margarine. Seriously, you would think that it was a super food in the way it can be manipulated to fit any deficiency. This month, it seems, magarine can lower your cholesterol. Cue eye roll.

He goes on to cite researchers such a Weston Price who have looked at the ills of the Western Diet through fieldwork in the past and how their findings, some of which need to be taken with a pinch of low-sodium salt, tend to lean toward the same idea, we need to eat real food, but we don’t eat real food, so we get sick.

Michael Pollan’s manifesto is this: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.” Pretty straightforward if you ask me, but he does go on to define ‘food’ and clarify the other two points. Sadly, what should be obvious to us about food is often lost in these days of fake foods and “nutritionism” and I really like how Mr. Pollan has laid it all out here in black and white. While reading the book I often found myself thinking “I knew it!” when I’d come across things that I’d been doing and felt were right, but just didn’t really know why. It’s good to find someone who thinks that same as you, or is it just that instinct thing?

I’d recommend the book as an alternative to nutrient-based writings on food. The book doesn’t say that low carb/low fat/ high protein/high sugar/extreme fibre/veganism/meat eating is the way to go. Instead, it explains how we have been looking at it all from a managed perspective. And that perspective has been managed for us by others (scientists and educators led by industry, basically).

Have you read this book or any of this others? I’d love to hear your opinions.

While I’m not going to pretend that I have any sort of deep understanding of the Paleo Diet, I am interested in how people are trying to regain healthy lives by looking to what is or has been natural for our bodies. I am always searching for naturally sweetened desserts and snacks for my son so he feels like he is getting a treat and I feel happy he will not be doped up on refined sugars. He can do that later when he goes to university, ha.

My version is adapted from a  recipe that I found on a lovely blog called Food, Farm, Health which saw me continuing to dream about the day I will have my land for growing food. She used walnut flour, which is something we can buy here in New Zealand but, unfortunately, not in my budget so I am using almond meal. I’ve also used a nice local macadamia nut oil. As I’ve mentioned, I know very little about the Paleo diet and it is quite possible that my adaptation of this recipe makes it no longer Paleo. Sorry about that paleo people. Don’t be offended!  But it is still a) yummy b) gluten free and c) very easy to make. Plus, I really just like to imagine cavemen baking biscuits…don’t you?

Gimme a biscuit!

Caveman Biscuits

You need:

6 small dates
150g almond meal
1/4 cup shredded coconut
1 tsp baking soda
2 Tblsp NZ macadamia nut oil
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
fruit sweetened jam (optional)*

You do:

Slap the oven on at 175C (350F), or start stoking the fire if you really are a caveman (in which case, can you contact me through Facebook? I’d really love to interview a caveman.).

Place the dates, almond meal, baking soda and coconut in a food processor and press go, or smash to smithereens with a club. Then add the egg, vanilla and macadamia nut oil and pulse some more.

Roll the dough into balls and press your thumb into each to make a nice indentation while placing them onto an oiled baking sheet.

Bake for about 10 minutes or until they are lightly browned and the bottoms have browned without burning. If you are using jam, dollop it in after the biscuits have cooled.

Shake your hands above your head, jumping up and down and shouting “Captain Cavemaaaaan!” **

*I started to put jam on but found the biscuits too sweet so left it off the rest of the batch.

**This step is optional.

Dashi is the stock most used in Japanese cooking. The ingredients are simple, seaweed and shavings from a block of the dried fish known as bonito, and the method could not be simpler. Much of Japanese food is approachable like this and it’s a shame that so many people think that you need some sort of superskills in order to prepare Japanese food. Oh yes, there are Japanese masters! But there are also students who only eat 2 minute noodles for every meal but then manage to feed their families well once they’ve moved on to the next stage in life. Like anything, you can learn a few good tricks or you can go in for a major qualification. I say, learn a few nice things and leave the fancy stuff to the professionals. That’s the joy in eating out, isn’t it?

Once you’ve tried making dashi, and you realise how quick and easy it is, you can keep the ingredients on hand so that you are always ready with a base stock. Bring in some tofu, veggies or meat and you have soup! Add some miso and voila! Dashi is also used in other recipes such as for cooking vegetables or making sauces, so knowing how to make it is a good thing to have up your sleeve. Of course each cook will have his or her own preferences, but if you start here you can then adjust to make it more smokey by adding extra katsuobushi or more gentle by using more water or whatever. You can also make it with niboshi, tiny dried sardines, or with dried shiitake mushrooms for a totally vegetarian version. Have a play around.

Straining through a coffee filter keeps it clear

The ingredients are not usually cheap outside of Japan, but you do get good use out of them since the bits for the slightly stronger tasting ichiban dashi (1^st dashi) are reused to make milder niban dashi (2^nd dashi). You can also use the kombu again in other dishes or just chew on it as a snack. But,as I’ve said, I am here to prove how simple it is, right? So, let’s get to it!

Ichiban Dashi

You need:

A piece of dried kombu about as long as your hand, or pieces that add up to that

4 cups of cold water

1 big handful of katsuobushi (bonito flakes)

Start by placing the kombu into the water in a pan. Some say to wipe off the excess salt on the kombu with a towel first, but as long as there isn’t any sand or other grit you can safely leave this out. Your choice. Leave the kombu to rest in the water for 15 to 30 minutes. Have a cup of tea and peruse a few Japanese cookery books in the meantime to whet your appetite.

Now turn on the heat as if you are going to boil the kombu. Just before the bubbles start to appear, take the kombu out, drop in the katsuobushi and turn off the heat. Leave it to rest for a few minutes. Strain through paper kitchen towels or coffee filters to obtain a nice, clear broth for beautiful soups.

Niban Dashi

You need:

The leftover kombu and katsuobushi from Ichiban Dashi

Put the seaweed and fish flakes into a pot with 4 cups of water and bring to a light boil. Let it go for around 10 minutes and then strain.

We’ve just had Halloween which used to be one of my favourite holidays as a child in the United States. Although the roots of the event lie in Ireland, North Americans have taken to idea and run with it. From the beginning of October lots of spooky and fun things start appearing in shops, on TV, in the press and pretty much everywhere. Since Halloween coincides with autumn harvests, there are lots of lovely veggies that get celebrated, the best known of which is the pumpkin.

I believe there may be a photo of me somewhere as a wee girl pulling a disgusted face whilst pulling the guts out of a pumpkin in preparation for making a Jack-o-lantern. The funny thing was that, in the 1970s and 1980s at least, nobody ever ate those pumpkins. Yes, pumpkin pie (one of the world’s best pies IMHO), that great American delicacy, was more often than not made from tinned pumpkin. That’s just the way it happened. Imagine my surprise when I lived in England and my (now) Mother-in-law surprised me with a pumpkin one year so that I could make a pie. Granted, I was still an undergraduate and my life was about partying, not cooking, but I did know that pumpkin came from a tin and you mixed it with “pumpkin pie spice”…also pre-mixed. Nobody ever dealt with the real McCoy!

Well, now I live in the land of pumpkins, New Zealand*, and I’ve been experimenting a lot with converting the veggie for use in sweet dishes. Last week I made my Mother’s pumpkin bread recipe, an all time favorite of mine. I used a good ol’ NZ buttercup squash or kabocha. Would you believe there is actually a New Zealand Buttercup Squash Council? The things you learn! Anyway, it turns out that that particular variety made up a very tasty version of this cake, and yes it is a cake so don’t let the word “bread” fool you! The pumpkin makes this such a moist and moorish thing that I have a difficult time not plowing through a whole loaf in a day. At least I have to wrestle my husband for it so that cuts down on my portions as well as gets me a bit of exercise to burn off the calories.

I’ve adapted my Mum’s recipe a bit here and I also used chocolate melts for the first time, rather than normal chocolate chips. The problem with them was that they sink to the bottom of the cake. This did three things:

1) left me without chocolate in some bites (grr!)
2) presented a layer of chocolate in the bottom 1/4 that meant the bottom came off as I took it out of the pan (will wait for it to cool and solidify next time)
3) meant that at one point I ended up with a smiley face one one of the slices complete with walnut eyes and choco-smile. I almost thought Jesus was in my pumpkin bread!

So, unless you are looking for religious icons in your tea time delicacies, I’d go for real chocolate chips.

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

You need

1 2/3 cup flour
1 slightly overflowing cup sugar (Let’s call it a cup and an eighth)
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp “pumpkin pie spice” or a mix of warm spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and whatever you’ve got (chai spice would work perfectly as long as it has not got too much black pepper)
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup olive oil
1 cup of cooked, mashed pumpkin of your choice but laess watery ones are best
1/2 cup water
1 cup chocolate chips
2 eggs
1/2 cup of broken walnuts

It couldn’t be easier. Preheat the oven to 175 C (350 F) and mix all the dry ingredients together and then add the wet ones. Mix it all together and then stir in the chocolate chips and nuts. Spoon into an oiled and floured loaf tin. It rises a bit, but you can fill it up most the way without disaster (she says, bwa ha ha ha! ). Bake for an hour or more depending on how wet your pumpkin is. You may need to cover it in foil if it starts to brown prematurely. Slice and serve with tea.

*Well, OK, they are originally from South America but you’d never know it round here.

And woo-hoo to New Zealand for hosting!

and this:

and buying this:

Why?! Because while I was in Bangkok, one of my favourite cities, I also became a Mum (Ta daaaa!) to a lovely wee lad through adoption. It’s been a long haul, but we are so happy to be home and be a family:)

He is an active little 20 month old boy, so I may need some leeway on posting as we all settle in to life in New Zealand. But, rest assured, I am here and thinking about food!