Middle West Meals

2013, Graphed

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Wed, 11 Dec 2013 16:24:00 +0000

This post is part of Think Kit by SmallBox
Today’s prompt: “Visualize Your Year: Draw a pie chart, graph, or Venn diagram of your year.”

2013: It Happened | Create infographics

Sparkling Surprises

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Mon, 09 Dec 2013 20:38:00 +0000

I am completely surprised by almost everything about my kid, and everything about how Ben and I are parents.
Emerson is incredibly sweet and intensely focused. He gives big, deep hugs by clutching his arms around my neck and pulling us together tightly. He smiles sweetly. When I am sad or overwhelmed, he pats my back, as I pat his. Before Emerson could crawl, he once patted his teacher's back when she was having challenges with her older son, as if he could tell she just needed a tiny boost from a little hand.

Emerson refuses to give up his grand campaign to touch the knobs on Ben's stereo receiver. He wants to shake the bases of lamps, in spite of every "No, thank you," and returns to the scene of each crime within at least a day of being removed. He does not give up easily. I like to imagine that this is the early onset of what some people might call "grit."

Ben is an incredibly fun and tender dad. Neither of these things were unexpected, but they are somehow still beautiful surprises, seeing them for real, that break through the sometimes tedious to-do lists of parenthood. My favorite moments of the last year involve hearing quiet conversations and loud laughter from rooms that I'm not in, knowing that there is a third member in this family and that each of us get to form new relationships because of that.

I'm both more patient and less patient than I thought I might be. I can deal with a lot, but sometimes, when I am utterly sick of nursing or rocking or stacking blocks, I feel the need to run away, just for a split second, and then I return back to where I am. I love being a mom, being my Emerson's mama, but there are times that overwhelm me, just slivers of seconds and the occasional minutes of late, late night, but they are there. And I am surprised both that they can creep into this giant new love and that they can be pushed aside so readily. I am also surprised that people tell only one side of this teeter-totter life experience to expectant parents - there is either dread or unqualified bright-sided-ness. And neither is true.

I am also surprised that it took me over a year to realize, in full, that it's my job to co-create a new family unit, a little mini-constellation in a bigger star system, and to create it with care. That's what I'm most looking forward to this next year - that chance to create our own little patterns as my little man becomes more away of the world, and to build in some sparkling surprises for him inside of those patterns.

This post is part of Think Kit by SmallBox
Today’s prompt: “What completely surprised you this year?”

Limey Couscous, Black Bean & Veggie Salad - Great for New Parents

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 13:10:00 +0000

IndySpectator invited me to write a guide to bringing food to new parents which ran today. The article, "Bundles of Culinary Joy for New Parents", includes an image with a mix of homemade and store-bought treats for parents, including an amazing tomato sauce that Ben recently made with a Smitten Kitchen recipe (more on that later) and a couscous-black bean salad that I whipped together to make the photo a bit more complete.

This salad is sturdy and healthy - made with whole wheat couscous, fiber-rich beans, veggies, a limey dressing and a bit of fresh cilantro to add a boost of flavor. This recipe could be refigured in a variety of ways - different beans, different vegetables, lemon in place of lime, basil in place of cilantro - to fit the taste of a new parent that you're delivering it to. Or your tastes, if you just want to make a simple salad that will keep in the refrigerator for a day or two. It also doubles beautifully.

Couscous Salad with Black Beans & Veggies - makes two side servings

Ingredients

1/2 cup whole wheat couscous

1/2 cup boiling water

1 tsp olive oil

pinch of crushed red pepper

1 carrot, cut in a small dice

1 small or 1/2 a medium zucchini, cut in a small dice

salt & pepper

1/2 cup black beans - homemade or canned

1/2 lime, juiced and zested (zest first to make life easier)

2 tsp olive oil

salt & pepper to taste

1/2 - 1 Tablespoon chopped cilantro (to taste)

Optional: crumbled feta cheese

In a medium skillet (I used nonstick - you may need more oil if you're using a traditional pan), heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add crushed red pepper, carrot and zucchini, cook until the vegetables are tender, seasoning lightly with salt and pepper while they cook. Add the black beans, stir and set aside to cool.

In a small bowl, combine the lime juice and zest, olive oil, salt and pepper. Add to the cooked couscous, stir in the vegetables and cilantro, and add more salt and pepper if necessary. If desired, stir in the feta cheese. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

If you are delivering this to a new parent, please take a moment to label it with instructions for eating and proper storage advice. If you add the feta, you'll want to advise eating it more promptly.

Menus, with Soundtracks

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 01:40:00 +0000

The husband and I wrote a little piece for Punchnel's. It's basically some menus paired with albums, because food and music are awesome.

Here's a little sample of one of our musical picks for one of the four menus.

Little Pleasures: Kouign Amanns at Circle City Sweets

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 00:50:00 +0000

Have you ever wondered what would happen if a danish and a croissant had a baby, but that baby was a little bit more dense? If so - or if not, frankly - you need to go get a kouign amann from Circle City Sweets.

The Circle City Sweets crew typically offer a mix of choices - cinnamon, cream cheese, cream cheese and cherry, and on the absolute best of days an almond filling - in their kouign amanns. No choice is a bad choice (kind of like their croissants).

Cherry-cheese Kouign Amann

Saturday, Ben and I split a cheese-cherry one, because I love him. There is no other reason to share one of these delicious, rich, perfectly buttery delights.

You can pick up your Circle City Sweet kouign amann at the southern end of the Indianapolis City Market. And you should.

People Knowing My Name...

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 04:04:00 +0000

It's hard for me to pick a place where everyone might know my name. I'll blame my parents and myself for that, because they gave me a hard-to-pronounce name and then I made it worse by hyphenating my last name when I got married.

However, there are a few places that I really love to go, because I am recognized and valued there. Three essential spots:

The Red Key - Lana knows my name, which is the most important part, because I love Lana. Everyone else is lovely, too, and we always run into friends here.

I like the Red Key so much I bring finger puppets there.

The Monon Coffee Company, either location - it's kind of funny that someone who seldom drinks coffee (me) would feel so much at home at a coffee shop, but I do. It doesn't hurt that they have Rene's delectable almond croissants and pumpkin bread, as well as a clientele (and staff) that typically includes a friend or two.
Yats, early crew on College - I love the Yats crew, Joe and all the good guys at the counter. They always welcome me, noticed when I lost weight this year, even though I go there one-tenth of the amount that I used to (it's not close to work any more), are respectfully flirty, and always ask how my husband is.

It's fun to go places where people know me, but it's even better that I get to go places where I know people - you know what I mean?

This post is a part of #thinkkit11.

Best Event of 2011 (for me)

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 01:42:00 +0000

2011 had a lot of events in it. I saw some exciting speakers, participated in good conversations, laughed, cried, all that, thanks to all the exciting people making cool stuff happen in Indianapolis.

Still, my favorite event was Tonic Indy. The event benefits Second Helpings, where - full disclosure - my guy works. Tons of my friends contribute, in the form of visual artistry, musical stylings and/or cool-kid volunteering. Every planning meeting is fun (I co-chair the Tonic Gallery and provide a lot of social media support to the whole event). Each conversation about Tonic, with artists, musicians, press, friends, anyone, is a pleasure.

Why I loved it even more than usual: This was the 10th Tonic Ball. We raised over $40K - all of which will go to feeding hungry neighbors and providing job training for unemployed and underemployed people. We got Ken Honeywell an amazing custom-designed suit in the style of Nudie, created by the undeniably talented Jerry Lee Atwood, to honor Ken's decade-long contribution as a founder and leader of the event.

And these things happened.

This post is a part of #thinkkit11.

2011 Best Meal: The Mayan Cafe in Louisville

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 01:11:00 +0000

My best meal of 2011 is actually a tie, but because I already mentioned the $5 Slow Food Challenge pitch-in, I'm declaring the meal I had at the Mayan Cafe in Louisville the best meal of 2011.

The Tok-Sel Lima Beans, picture via the Mayan Cafe

The Food
Chef Bruce Ucan knows what he is doing here, combining Yucatan food traditions with local products. The flavor combinations here, which included generous servings of Capriole goat cheese, amazing spice combinations best evidenced by the Tok-Sel Lima Beans and seasonal produce, were surprising in the best possible way. Case in point: Ben's brisket chilaquiles featured sweet potatoes in place of the traditional tortillas. Another case in point: the salbutes (sort of like extra-crispy and flat sopes) are changed up to match what is available each week; ours had a mix of vegetables, cheese and crisp cabbage and came with a firey-fresh dipping sauce.

The Space & Service
The Mayan Cafe is located on Market, a street that is dotted with great places to eat, in a pretty small space that was absolutely full (but not uncomfortably packed) when we ate there. The room is just-barely decorated with photographs, dark walls, and low lighting - it lets the food be the star. Our server was attentive, excited about the food, but appropriately restrained. When I asked him about ingredients in some of the dishes, he was excited to share both what he knew and his own appreciations of the food. Louisville seems to be full of restaurants like this - intimate, special, but not overly fussy, and staffed by people who are genuinely thrilled about the food.

The Occasion
Ben and I like to go on a trip each year around our anniversary; this year we went to Madison, IN and Louisville.
It's usually a long weekend. We tend to eat a lot, spend at least one night at a state park (hiking!), and take it very easy. I love these vacations, especially because we intentionally take at least one night to get a bit gussied up and head out to a great place.
In Louisville, I'd say that we did that about four times (dinner at the Hillbilly Tea Room, a mid-day stop at Proof on Main, breakfast at Toast on Market & several hours spent in the lobby of the Brown, where we stayed) but the Mayan Cafe was the most surprising and delightful experience for me.

This post is part of @thinkkit11.

Favorite Read of the Year

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 03:23:00 +0000

2011 will go down as the year in which novels and I did not get along. Right around page 42 or 153 or 209, we would split up, or at least separate. But like many exes, they lingered - on my nightstand, in my car, in tote bags and purses.

Seeing that novels and I just couldn't make it work, I turned to short stories.

My favorite read this year came from My Mistress's Sparrow Is Dead, a collection of love stories (and not-quite-love stories) edited by Jeffrey Eugenides. It came out a few years ago, full of really good and not especially new stories.

"What We Talk About When We Talk About Love" by Raymond Carver is three decades old. It's also a canonical story from a very important 20th century writer who also happens to be one of my husband's favorite writers. In other words, I am very late to this game. This story, in addition to having Carver's characteristic inclusion of alcohol consumption, ordinary people and brevity, has searingly realistic but somehow still lyrical dialogue. It's like harsh reality, but upgraded and poetic, with characters who talk about something really important in exquisitely human terms.

It's the kind of story that recognizes what is sad about life while also dousing that sadness with honest beauty. I'm just really glad I read it.

Favorite Album of the Year AKA Cop Out 2

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 23:20:00 +0000

Do you ever find yourself wondering why everyone has to rank things all time? Why everything needs to be a competition? Then, you are like me.

If you also find yourself being overly competitive in games like Big Boggle, Trivial Pursuit, Badminton & who-made-the-best-dish-at-this-pitch-in, you are also like me.

That's what makes me an enigma. Or just contradictory. You pick.

In any case, when asked by SmallBox, "You know SmallBox likes the rock. We can't resist asking about your album of the year. Why did it grab you?" I came up with two answers: (1) the album that was released this year that I consider best and (2) the album that I enjoyed the most this year, regardless of release date. Both are great for party music. The first is good for cocktail time, the second for dance time.

In category one, I offer you the latest TV on the Radio album. They could turn Radiohead and start putting out things that make no sense and I would likely still pick them. However, this is not that moment. This album perfectly combines their booty-motivating beats with an atmospheric 80s feel, for me. And I could listen and chair-dance to "Keep Your Heart" for 24 hours straight. "Will Do" ain't no slouch, either.

In category two, I implore you to listen to the B-52s eponymous release from 1979, the year of my birth. It's got "Rock Lobster", "Dance This Mess Around" (how does one dance the Shy Turnip?) and some of the most outrageously dance-able songs ever recorded, but I'm particularly fond of "52 Girls". Ben and I have listened to this album repeatedly, on vinyl, and it never fails to make me happy, more energetic and generally appreciative of life.

Picture of the Year: 2011 AKA The Cop Out

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 22:09:00 +0000

Sometimes, a girl stops blogging, but she misses it. This has been one of those occasions. I'm taking on a little adventure, thanks to SmallBox, to get me back in the blogging habit. It's the ThinkKit. First up, my favorite picture of the year. And I'm starting with a cop out. You're going to get three pictures.

Here we go, yo.


Fragrant Eggs from Duos from the time that Sara Leah visited the new house.

Why I love this photo:
In addition to working like a woman on a mission by day, I've also helped my friends at Duos out a little bit with their social media by night and weekend. I love working with them because good friends are hard to come by, and good friends who make the most amazing food I have ever eaten are rare indeed. Chefs Becky & John, as well as Anthony & David, are great people making great food. These eggs are from Duos.

My friend Sara Leah is similarly special, a true gem with smarts, humor, enthusiasm and fortitude in the face of whatever comes her way. Also, we like the same odd-ball things and books. These eggs are from when Sara Leah came to visit and we went to Duos.

A picture at the new house from the Slow Food $5 Challenge dinner party that new friend Kate and I hosted.

Why I love this photo:

This was the beginning of a delightful night with a group of friends who each brought $5 or less worth of slow food to contribute to a collective feast. It wouldn't have been possible without Kate, whom I got to know through one of my favorite community events this year.

Also, it's at our new house, which I love!

This was just a really good moment.

Why I love this photo:

If you don't like this, too, I'm not sure that we can be friends. I mean, I'm open to being your friend in that case, but we'll need to discuss the value of Hammer Time.

Plus, when I saw this, the next thing that happened was lots of laughing with Ben, which is maybe my favorite activity in the world (tied with eating good food).

A Drink at the White Rabbit Cabaret

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 14:00:00 +0000

People, Fountain Square is fantastic. In addition to my favorite rock music venue (with my favorite bar bathrooms) Radio Radio, they've got delightful little and large restaurants. The neighborhood hosts the Tonic Ball. Fountain Square residents walk around on their sidewalks and happily chat up neighbors and strangers alike. It's got a good vibe, a mix of arty, folksy, edgy and welcoming.

White Rabbit's killer neon sign

Given these qualities, it should be no surprise that one of the newest additions to the neighborhood - the White Rabbit Cabaret - is a great place to catch a burlesque or low-key songwriter show - or, in my case, just get a drink with my guy on a quiet, show-less night. (If you're wondering about the other new addition to Fountain Square, the New Day Meadery tasting room, I'll be getting to that in another post soon.)

With a great selection of craft beers, as well as select wine and sake choices, this is a great post-work stop on a weekday night. While the room is definitely designed for a much larger crowd (fire marshall capacity is 175 people), the friendly service and other patrons made it feel cozy and comfortable. Our bartender-operator, Andrew, was fun to talk to, shared some upcoming ideas for enhancing the already-impressive selection.

My Zipang - with a backdrop of the bottled beer selection

But onto the drinks: Andrew let us have a sample of the on-tap New Albanian's Beak's Best - a nice combination of a hoppy first-taste with a bitter finish. Though that was tasty, Ben ended up getting a glass of the Sun King Firefly Wheat - also on tap (as was PBR). I got a mini-bottle of Zipang sparkling sake, which was a pleasant surprise to me, combining sweetness with a borderline-buttery taste and a slow stream of tiny bubbles. They also have a great list of bottled craft beers - seems like a fun place to explore new lines from all across the country, as well as some international brews.

While I'm excited to head back when they have a show - check out the calendar for the crazy-fun and often risque shows - I also think this is a great place to wind down on a weeknight. Plus, they toss out calendar updates, good specials and drink updates on their Facebook page on a semi-regular basis, so it's easy to stay in the loop.

Location: 1116 Prospect St. Indianapolis, IN and/or the door underneath the neon white rabbit

Support for Seldom Seen Farm's Kelly Funk

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 14:01:00 +0000

Seldom Seen Farm is a lovely place, run by Kelly Funk and John Ferree with moral support from their little girl Laila. It's also where I got my CSA share this year, after a couple of emails back and forth with Kelly. She was charming and serious about her food, so I felt thrilled to join the CSA.

As many of you already know, Kelly was struck by lightning while harvesting onions on the farm recently. She's in critical condition in the ICU, though John reports that she is making improvements and is stable.

I cannot imagine what it would be like to have this happen to a loved one.
I cannot imagine how the Seldom Seen Farm staff are keeping things going, but they are, representing the farm at markets and fielding what must be very difficult questions.

In times like this, it is good to have ways to help. There are two excellent opportunities available to you and me that allow this community to contribute support for what will be a long and hopefully steady recovery.

Donations can be made to the Kelly Funk Recovery Fund. You just have to note the name of the fund on the deposit slip at any Huntington Bank location. EDIT: Denise shared in the comments that you can donate online at www.kellyfunkrecoveryfund.com - an even easier way to share some financial love!
Slow Food Indy will host a benefit dinner for Kelly and her family. They'll serve up a sustainably harvested and deliciosly prepared New England Lobster Bake at the Apple Family Farm on Sunday, August 22. Tickest are $75/person and all proceeds will be donated to the Kelly Funk Recovery Fund. Get your tickets and check out the menu.

Many others are providing other opportunities to give, by collecting contributions at market tables or community events.You can also share words of support on the farm's Facebook page.

the delights of sour beer

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 14:25:00 +0000

Unlike many local-drink enthusiasts, I am not a lover of brews that are heavy on the hops. Too often, these Hoppy McHopperson brews seem more like a dare than a drink, bordering on unpalatable. I know that many love them, and that's good, because that's what local and regional craft brewers seem to enjoy making.

When I'm drinking something special, something other than a highly drink-able Pilsner or light ale, I love a sour beer. I like sour things generally, enjoying granny smith apples more than red delicious and making vinaigrettes that are more vinegar than anything else. This sour love has me thrilled that Brugge is having a special sour beer night as part of the Indiana Beer Week.

While the full line-up of beer choices can be seen at Brugge's Facebook Profile, I am most excited that Brugge will be serving Bell's Poolside and their own Pooka. I had Poolside when we visited Kalamazoo last summer and liked its sweet-sour taste so much that I almost cried when it wasn't on tap when we re-visited Bell's two weeks ago.

this picture is bad, but the Pooka is good

But I'm also excited that more people might get to try the Pooka - an acidic, fresh drink that takes what is good about Lindeman's framboise and kriek - the brightness - and leaves what is bad - the sometimes cloying sweetness. Made with boysenberries, Pooka is refreshing, barely wheaty, beautfully colored, and delightfully sour. I love it.

Now, that we have a local place making and celebrating sours, hopefully malty beer is next. Just, please, anything but another hop-crazy drink.

Busy, busy weekends & Brother Juniper's booth.

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 14:04:00 +0000

Did you love Brother Juniper's? Do you love free art festivals? Then get yourself to the Talbot Street Art Fair NEXT (edit, thanks to Kevin) weekend because the much-beloved and much-missed Brother Juniper's restaurant will have a booth at the event next Saturday and Sunday.

Juniper Berries, courtesy of the USDA

From 1978 to 2003, Brother Juniper's offered up sandwiches and other good food to patrons at several locations in the near-north side of Indianapolis. In recent years, they've had a booth at Penrod, but Penrod isn't free and Talbot Street is. In other words, if you've been craving a Happy Hermit since Brother Juniper's closing, you buy one next weekend without additional costs beyond the purchase price.

Other weekend recommendations:

Evans Woollen is featured in a super cool exhibit at IMOCA this weekend.
Woodruff Place will have its annual Flea Market this weekend.
Next weekend: Indianapolis Music and Art Festival (IMAF) will be just around the corner from the Talbot Fair.Next weekend:
Next weekend: The Italian Street Festival will be rocking the near-south side with cannoli, parades, and good times.

not another long term break

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Thu, 13 May 2010 21:45:00 +0000

Hey there. I'm super busy this week at the job, because we're making it possible for a few hundred kids to see the Dalai Lama speak and then have some meaningful conversation with one another afterward. It's kind of amazing.

I just wanted to let you know that I'm still eating, but not good stuff. That will come this weekend. Do you have any new recommendations for yummy places? Or food that you think would be good enough for His Holiness the Dalai Lama? Then comment it up, people!

Review: Napolese - first experience

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Wed, 05 May 2010 14:44:00 +0000

Normally, reviewing a restaurant in the first few weeks is a bad idea. They're still working out the kinks, getting their timing down, getting truly at home with the menu. But when the person in charge has been slinging omelets and croques monsieur for years, like Indianapolis restaurant maven Martha Hoover of Cafe Patachou and Petite Chou reknown, one need not delay dining at a new place. Martha's new restaurant, Napolese (subtitle: an artisanal pizzeria), is right next to Patachou's new-ish place at 49th and Pennsylvania, and it is good.

Ben and I went there following a visit to the Tara Donovan exhibit at the IMA (go, if you are at all art-adventurous, please go). We were told that it would be a 30 to 45 minute wait and, after reading over the menu, decided that the wait was worth it. We were offered some drinks; they have Sun King and Bell's in bottles and cans (those quirky Sun King guys), as well as a short list of wines, Italian sodas, more common sodas, and coffee and tea offerings. Ben got the Bell's Oberon, and I got the Sun King Cream Ale. I haven't been in love with any of the other Sun King brews that I've tried, they've been good but not great, tending a bit too much toward hoppiness for my taste. But the Cream Ale is yummy. I'm considering filling my fridge with those canned wonders. In any case, the waiting crowd was jovial and excited to try out the new pizza, so the wait was a pleasurable experience.

baked goat cheese at Napolese

Once we were seated in the cozy space, we'd had plenty of time to review the menu and ordered promptly. The food came even more promptly, which is what we wanted. We started with the baked goat cheese in tomato sauce. With a sauce-free pizza in mind, this dish gave us the chance to try out their tomato-sauce style. The cheese had tiny brown bubbles covering the surface, and the sauce was yummy, with a healthy dose of oregano for flavor. We scooped it all up quickly, smearing it across the toasted bread that accompanied the tangy cheese.

Smoked Salmon pizza at Napolese

As soon as we were done, our salad and pizza arrived, brought by our cheery and just-engaging-enough (read: attentive but not demanding attention) server. The salad, a large pile of arugula, raw mushrooms, nutty parmesan and simple oil-salt dressing, had the right amount of sharpness, though I imagine that a little bit of lemon might have added a nice additional note to the dish. It provided the perfect contrast to our smoked salmon pizza, served sans sauce and with delicious smoky salmon, capers, creme fraiche and little bits of roasted leeks. The leeks were so good that I've been dreaming of dishes to add roasted leeks to for the past five days, pretty much considering my options every 15 minutes. But the real story here, the story that is at the heart of this lovely little pizza place is the dough, the crust, the brown-black bubbles and chewy edges. The pizza is baked in a gas-fired, stonehearth oven. Each pie spends less than two minutes baking with an open flame lending a pleasing toasty taste to the crust. We finished up our meal with a scoop of pistachio gelato, made by midwest-food-mecca Zingerman's. It was the best pistachio gelato I've ever eaten, rich, full of pistachio flavor and without green food coloring, and the second-best gelato I've ever eaten (the best is the chestnut from this great little New Orleans place). I've never been to Italy, so take that with a grain of all-American salt.

Am I going back? You betcha! I can't wait to try eat the Buffalo Margherita (roasted grape tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella, basil), the Broken Yolk (classic Margherita with an egg cracked on top) and whatever combinations I come up with that use some lovely freestyle ingredients including fingerling potatoes, wild mushrooms, roasted eggplant and, of course, those leeks. I'm not actually a regular of Patachou or Petite Chou - I appreciate them, but I'm not drinking the kool-aid here (have never actually liked kool-aid). This is just really good pizza, warm and capable service, a nice atmosphere, and a really good menu.

the prettiest melons of all

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Tue, 04 May 2010 19:43:00 +0000

picture nabbed from Thebarefootshaman's etsy shop where

you can find many seeds that result in gorgeous veg and fruit

People may be going crazy for square watermelons, but I have a produce crush on these pretty "the moon and the stars" watermelons, seeds for which are for sale on Etsy. You love them, too, right? (via Black*Eiffel)

Dine out for life today!

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 13:49:00 +0000

On the day after Elton John's apparently amazing (everyone was buzzing about it) performance at Clowes last night here in Indy, I want to remind you that tonight you can eat out and see 25% to 50% of your bill go to support HIV/AIDS prevention and cure by the Damien Center.

Click on over to the Dining Out for Life website to choose from a slew of restaurants including Adobo, Petite Chou, Hoaglin, Bazbeaux's & Santorini's (and a bunch more).

The Damien Center is a great place doing important work. This is a lovely opportunity to eat out and make a little bit of impact for a disease that, yes, still impacts people here in our local community and to support an organization that continues to work on outreach and prevention of HIV/AIDS.

Well, hello, Papa Roux.

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 15:22:00 +0000

Ben and I grabbed lunch at Papa Roux last weekend. Given the super-positive recommendation of a certain nit-picky (that's a good thing) chef and the generally vegetarian-friendly menu, this was definitely a long-overdue visit. My return, however, will be rapid.

Papa Roux - from the outside

Because of their generous side dish policy (as in, you can have as many side dishes as you want with your main course for FREE!), Ben and I got to taste a bit of everything. My little bowl of red beans and rice was probably my favorite dish, with just the right amount of richness in the mildly spiced beans. I got the plain etouffee for my main dish - it was good, mild and made with a light roux, but super-duper rich. I'll keep that in side-dish territory for the future. Ben's roast pork po' boy was a sight, dripping with their creamy "Vouxdoux" sauce and packed with fresh cole slaw. They offer a grilled onion po' boy and that will definitely be my pick on my next visit. We also got some cornbread, which was excellent for dunking into the beans and the etouffee, and the nutmeg-rich bread pudding custard. I adore nutmeg, so Papa Roux's rich, eggy concoction met every bread pudding desire I didn't know I had. In addition to those free sides (apple sauce, french bread, creole and coleslaw are other options), you can get free iced tea - sweet or not-sweet. They also have Zapp's N'awlins chips, a rare experience in Indiana. I nabbed more that a few of Ben's dill variety.

Unfortunately, it was all so good that I didn't take pictures

until we were already done eating. Bad blogger.

The atmosphere at Papa Roux pairs perfectly with the dishes. From the front counter to the food runners, all the staff are friendly, helpful and excited about their food. The walls are decorated with customer graffiti, a fun distraction to explore while waiting for the food to arrive. The workaday dishes and paper-wrapped po' boys provide a relaxed, approachable presentation for the food. On each table - most are large, as was ours, so we ended up sharing with three other folks - a paper napkin dispenser and jumbo Louisiana hot sauce bottle will take care of your basic necessities. The location just west of Post on 10th street, easily identified by the matter of fact and bold building sign, may be a bit of a drive for non-East-siders, but it is so worth it.

Customer wall graffiti

Ben and I keep talking about it; my cravings for those red beans and rice are at a fever-pitch. Allegedly, he'll be going there for lunch today. I'm completely jealous.

the Feminine Food Condition

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 16:37:00 +0000

Well, there certainly have been some interesting articles about food in news sources over the last week. NUVO's informative article about factory livestock farming had me, as expected, nodding my head in agreement and admiring Hoosier advocates for healthier farming practices. The widespread reporting on KFC's new double down "sandwich" has me doing less head-nodding, but such is life. What has me thinking the most and reflecting on my own life is the NYTimes Magazine article "The Fat Trap." This article, which is essentially about the hand-wringing challenge of trying to raise a daughter who is healthy and does not possess a "complicated" relationship with food, made me really sad.

Print by johnwgolden for sale on etsy.

Not sure if this approach is advocated by Orenstein or me.

Essentially, Peggy Orenstein writes a lot about the Obama's public conversations about the health and weight of their daughters, the statistics of both eating disorders and obesity, a little about the problem of Berkley moms (why not dads?) being overly competitive and judgmental about food sources and a little bit more about her own attempts to raise a daughter who "watches her size and accepts her body". Her approach is a "conscious antidiet" and "studied unconcern" when dealing with food and her weight, tossing out the scale and not fetishizing food. But, despite these efforts, she still has a six-year-old daughter asking her to stay slim.

This is all just depressing for me, as a woman who loves food and who tries each day to make food a health or enjoyment choice and not a moral choice. I made it through years of childhood dance classes, recitals and competition as a perfectionist kid who, amazingly, never adopted a lot of the diet dysfunction of many dancers who surrounded me. I also grew up in a house where we had lots of food choices, mostly healthy, and with parents who seldom, if ever, commented on people's appearances. Though my dad ate lots of junk food and took me along to eat with him, we always had fruit around, too. And none of our choices felt morally coded.

To be honest, I've usually been a little bit on the "rounder" side of healthy, maybe because I love food, maybe because I'm less active than I'd like to be. I've had moments where I've been unhappy about how I look, but in the end, I'm most unhappy that I care so much. What I've found as an adult is that it's hard to spend much time with talented, accomplished, whipsmart women without hearing a lot about diets or calories. I've also found, at times, that it's hard not to join in. I'm not a mother, might not ever be, but I do know that I don't want the girls I know to spend their energy on worrying about looks, obsessing about the scale, or experimenting with unhealthy diets. There's much more to life.

I would really like to live in a world where we would address issues of women's weight as health issues, not as moral issues. And I'd like us to begin seeing boys' and girls' health on equal terms. If we want girls to stop pleading with their mothers to remain not-fat, then we need to realize that this is in many ways a gender issue and one that women tend to self-perpetuate. We also need to recognize that two parents are involved in raising kids, typically, and that it's not just up to mothers to help kids develop healthy relationships with food and exercise.

Seeking Springy Home Dish Delights

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 20:51:00 +0000

Spring has taken me completely by surprise. I wasn't ready for this warm weather; and I wasn't ready to change my dining habits to move from the comfort foods of summer to the light flavors of spring. In fact, I'm kind of having a low-food-interest slump, which is putting a serious damper on meals at home. Instead of tinkering in the kitchen, I find myself picking up take-out and eating it like a sad sack in front of the TV. No good! I want to stay in with my guy and eat lovely dishes full of spring flavors, but I just can't get it together.

Ashley G's lovely, springy print,

inspiring me to want to stay in and cook.

I know I should be out scouting for ramps and looking for asparagus, maybe even some fresh peas or morels (my boss found a half dozen of them today), perhaps lemons and bright leafy greens, but it doesn't sound all that exciting to me to eat any of that stuff. I made some minty mushed peas last month for a little dinner with friends, which were delicious and new-tasting, but since them I'm just boring myself in the kitchen. And I'm hoping you can help. Pretty please?

Do you have any great ideas for home dining flavors that I'm just forgetting about - those that combine this season's in-season good and maybe some new flavors?

Chew on This

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 19:28:00 +0000

The good folks at the Indiana Humanities Council have planned another exciting food-focused community event, Chew on This, scheduled for the evening of May 4th. This event - really a set of communal dining experiences - is designed to spark conversation about utilizing Indiana's agricultural and artisanal food strengths to position the state globally. There are fifteen locations, from pitch-ins to pricier options (up to $50 per plate at places like R Bistro and Recess) all around town, and each location is limited to 20 participants.

Get more information at the Indiana Humanities Council website. If you're interested, you might want to jump on this opportunity immediately, given the limited seats.

Advocating on behalf of (1) food carts and (2) a vacation to Portland

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 15:36:00 +0000

Portland, OR - 2009
Originally uploaded by robjtak

If you like fries as much as I do AND you like the idea of late night eating as much as I think you do, then you should understand why Indianapolis needs food carts to be more "allowed" and we all need to take a vacation to Portland. People, I am writing to you in favor of poutine.

That box full of fry goodness is from a little food cart called Potato Champion in Portland, OR. What's on top of those awesome fried potatoes? It's cheese curd and gravy. That combination, a culinary superstar from Quebec, Canada, is known as poutine. And, in Portland, you can get it vegan or vegetarian style. Looks like this little lady is either going to have to start protesting for food-cart-friendly laws or plan a trip to the Pacific northwest. Which path should I take?

(This post was totally inspired by Not Martha and her jealousy-inducing report on the poutine.)

Russel Settle will be missed.

noreply@blogger.com (Kirsten) — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 14:44:00 +0000

My husband, Ben, received a phone call from our friend and his coworker Nora Spitznogle yesterday, sharing some sad news. Russel Settle, longtime owner of the Red Key, passed away at home early Sunday. He owned the Red Key for 59 years and had just turned 92 on Valentine's Day.

As I'm sure you may know, the Red Key is a neighborhood anchor in the eastern part of Meridian Kessler. Located at the corner of College and 52nd, it's a cozy place, steeped in tradition, with the most charming jukebox of any place I've ever been. It's also the first place that I had a real conversation with Ben (we met at the Melody, but that was a bit too loud for a good talk). On an early date with Ben, we sat on stools at the Red Key bar. As Russel served us, he gave Ben a hard time, asking me what I was doing, hanging out with a guy like that. And Ben loved it; he's a third-generation Red Key-er. So did I.

Russel's Red Key is one of my favorite places in town. There's no artifice, not shiny surfaces, just lots of heart and the best not-too-fancy whiskey sour in town. Their Manhattans are delicious, too. But the Red Key's beauty isn't about the drinks; it's about the warmth and real-ness of the place. There are also the rules: no cussing; no feet on chairs; coats hung properly; and no moving tables and chairs around without your waitresses consent. And Russ would throw you out if you didn't mind them or if you got too rowdy. If he was a bit curmudgeonly, he was also just as charming, holding place at the bar in the most natural way.

Russel's impact on the local neighborhood, providing a space with warmth, whiskey and order, has been huge. His legacy is large. I'm sure that I'm not the only person who had something life altering happen in that space.

While Russ hadn't served at the bar regularly the last few years, he was at the Red Key on Saturday. Sometimes Red Key waitress, Nora took the picture, above, of him then. I thank her for letting me share it with you.