It was close to 14 years ago when I walked into this funky little place in the Mission district of San Francisco called Slanted Door. It was that meal that took me into the joy of Asian food or more specifically Vietnamese food. I had just never tasted those flavors before. It blew my mind in such a glorious creative way. There was a balance of flavors in each dish. This wasn’t your sweet and sour pork Chinese takeout. The first bite from my lamb chop is still one of my strongest taste memories.  The sauce was so special. I could not identify find one ingredient by taste, so I had to ask. I did find out that it had tamarind paste and citrus in it.

This started the quest to understand the flavors of Asia. I had no idea what I was getting into, how complex and intricate it was, how I would work with ingredients I have never even heard of before that moment.  I have chased the flavors since. Man, oh man, have I made some mistakes in cooking with some of these ingredients. You only have to over pour sesame oil once to understand you should use it more sparingly next time. I still have a lot of learn.  I was thrilled when I saw that Charles Phan, co-owner of the Slanted Door, had a cook book out. It is a joyful book to me. I read it often trying to understand the flavors. It is a great tutorial. This is my take on the recipe from book, Lacquered Quail with Sichuan Cucumber Pickles. I used chicken legs instead of quail. I think chicken thighs would work as well. You just want to have the skin on, so that it crisps up nicely.

I made these chicken legs for my niece’s, Jenna, birthday dinner. She brought a friend to share our meal and we got to chatting and enjoying each other’s company so much that I forgot to take pictures of my food that night. I remember thinking, while we were entrenched in the pleasure of enjoying a fabulous meal, this is why I cook. I want to recreate a taste of food that has a powerful food memory. I also was able to share this time in my life with a new group of people, while creating a new food memory for them and myself as well.

The chicken legs and pickles didn’t miss a flavor step the follow day and even photographed well. This would be such great picnic food. The Sichuan Cucumber Pickles are worth making. Loved, loved, loved the flavor.

One of the things that Charles Phan suggests is serving salt, pepper, and lime juice on the side to dip your chicken in. This was great. I decided to also serve papaya with it and, boy, did it taste great dipped in the lime juice mixture. I would do that again in a minute.

Lacquered Chicken Legs

• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 cup distilled white vinegar
• 2 T. sherry vinegar
• 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1 t. kosher salt
• 1 (3-inch) piece fresh ginger, crushed
• 12-14 chicken legs
• enough oil for frying

1. In a large saucepan, combine the honey, white vinegar, sherry vinegar, brown sugar, salt, ginger and 3 1/2 quarts water and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar.

2. Lower the heat so that the liquid is a simmer and simmer for 30 minutes.

3. Set up a wire rack on the rimmed baking sheet. One at a time, submerge each leg in the simmering liquid for 30 seconds, then, using a slotted spoon, transfer to the wire rack. Let the chicken legs stand until cool enough to handle.

4. While the legs are cooling, in a small bowl mix:

• 2 t. kosher salt
• 1/4 t. five-spice powder
• 1/4 t. ground black pepper

5. Season each leg with the spice mixture. Place the legs on a rimmed baking sheet and refrigerate,  uncovered, for at least 6 hours or overnight.

6. Remove the chicken from refrigerator and bring to room temperature.

7. Fill a high sided pan with oil to a 2 inch depth. Heat oil to 350F. Place legs in oil. Do not over crowd the pan. I cooked the legs in two batches. I cooked the legs for about 8 minutes total, turning after 4 minutes.  Place cooked chicken legs on a paper-towel lined baking sheet to drain briefly.

8. Serve with dipping sauce and Sichuan Cucumber Pickles.

• 2 T. coarse sea salt
• 1 t. coarse cracked black pepper
• Juice of two limes

Sichuan Cucumber Pickles

• 1 English cucumbers, halved lengthwise and cut on the diagonal into 1/8-inch-thick slices
• 2 T. plus 1 t. kosher salt
• 1-inch piece fresh ginger, grated
• 1 or 2 fresh Thai chiles, stemmed, seeded, and julienned
• 4 cups rice vinegar
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 t. sambal chile paste a.k.a sambal oelek
• 1/2 cup toasted sesame oil
• 1 T. Sichuan peppercorns
• 1/4 cup whole dried chiles, such as arbol

1. In a bowl, toss together the cucumber slices and 1 t. of salt. Transfer the cucumbers to a colander and let drain in the sink for two hours.

2. Rinse the cucumbers briefly under cold water and drain well. Transfer to a bowl. Add the ginger, fresh Thai chiles and toss all together.

3. In a separate bowl, stir together vinegar, sugar, sambal, and the remaining 2 T. salt until the sugar and salt have dissolved. Set aside.

4. In a small fry pan, heat the sesame oil over medium heat, add the Sichuan peppercorns and toast for 10 seconds. Add the dried chiles and toast 10 seconds longer, until the chiles are darken slightly.

5. Pour the contents of the frying pan over the cucumbers, then add the vinegar solution and toss well.  Let cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate. The pickles are ready to eat in 2 hours. They will keep, refrigerated, for up to 1 week.

My youngest son told me that he wanted some more of those “Asian burnt looking chicken legs”. I will definitely make these tasty morsels again. Letting the skin dry out with the “lacquer” on it in the fridge was the key, I believe.  No matter what you do, make extra, because the leftovers are even better.

Pull up a chair, Elizabeth

Charcuterie is one of my favorite things on the planet. I have read recipes for preparing several different types of charcuterie, but I fear I lose steam when it comes to the time commitment. I will leave it to others, but a rustic rillette. I thought…I could do this. I could make this even easier… in steps the slow cooker.

Rillette is like a pate’, but more rustic. The meat is cooked by simmering in stock or fat with aromatics, then smashed with fat to make the spreadable smooth meat that will keep up to three weeks in your fridge. It has a beautiful layer of fat poured on top. Almost like it was sealing in the goodness of the meat underneath. I couldn’t be more happy with the slow cooker version. I love how little I fussed to make it, but how much depth of flavor it had. It is so great to have a jar in the fridge to pull out for a snack or light meal.

I always like having some thing that is pickled with it to compliment the fullness of the rillette. In the photo above, I chopped up some pickled garlic scapes that I had gotten at the farmers market to serve on top of the rillette and toast. I use the scapes in a so many ways, my son rolls his eyes when he sees me fish for the jar in the fridge.

In your slow cooker:

1 large leek, sliced
1 fresh thyme, small bunch
3 bay leaves
1 celery stalk, rough chopped
8 pepper corns
5 whole cloves
1 onion, medium, rough chopped
3 lbs. boneless pork butt
Kosher salt, to taste.
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 veal soup bone (optional)

1. Set on low for 6-8 hours.
2. Pull out meat and set aside.
3. Drain fat that gathered in the cooker through a fine sieve.
4. Let meat cool. Pull apart
5. Attach a paddle to your stand mixer.
6. Place meat and a big pinch of salt.
7. Turn the mixer on medium and break up the meat.
8. Add strained fat, a little at a time, if needed to help aid breaking it down and make smoother.
9. Add a half pint jar of your favorite preserve. I used Apple Onion Jam from American Spoon. I bet a sour cherry jam would work as well.
10. Blend with meat. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
11. Place in clean jars.
12. Pour the strained fat on top of meat to seal it in.
13. Store in fridge up to three weeks.

Now wasn’t that easy. Very fun.

So pull up a chair and a toast point, Elizabeth

I think it was 1991: Centro has just opened on Welles St. This Italian restaurant was crazy hot from the moment the doors were opened. Every sharp dressed spacone made this their spot to be. I had grown up in the restaurant business and had been known to hit the “scene” time and again, but this was a whole new world. My tour guide in this world was my friend, Sande. She is Italian and a Chicago native. We worked together for an Italian barber downtown.

First, it took me a while to figure out that spacone was the slang for a mobster. Now we were out at a place that all the spacones hung out. I had this imagine that all mobsters were in a perpetual state of hiding out from the feds. “What? You don’t know much about this stuff. Where do you think they get their haircut? Don’t you think it is a little funny that all the guys have nick-names?” Sande would chide me. “You need to see Goodfellas again.”

Friday nights was gumad night. That means it is the night that everyone brought their mistresses in to the restaurant.  We would head there after work and Billy, who ran the front, would whisk us to our table in the front section.  No one want to be sat in the back section and not be seen. Spacones treated the people well who were responsible for making them look good, by the way. Barbers, tailors, and jewelers. Billy was in control of the entire crowd and rank in the this jungle was determined by who could grease his palm well or who would kill him if they didn’t like what table they got.

One night really stands out to me. We were at a table with all ladies I worked with (we were all young with big hair, LOL) when an older average looking man came up to our table and started talking to me. He was in from New York. He was actually became much more handsome as he spoke. He just carried himself well. Suddenly the owner of the place came up to the table and told him that I was nothing he wanted. I couldn’t believe it. I was about to say, “What? Isn’t that for me to decided?”, but then I saw the look in his eye and I instantly knew I better keep my mouth shut for once. He goes on to tell him that I was just a good girl from Michigan and not to bother with me. I would be more of a pain then fun. This is all happening in front of me. I was like…”Hey, I have been know to be crazy, wild even.”, but I could not even get it out. It turns out that this guy was John Gotti’s attorney and just a bad ass. Dodged a bullet on that one. Wink, wink, nod, nod.

It was also the first time I had chicken vesuvio. Oh, you can not believe the teasing I got for never have tasted this classic dish. Chicken vesuvio is a Chicago thing. It is an Italian-American dish of crispy chicken with potato wedges and peas in a white wine oregano sauce. It is still on of the most really popular menu items at Harry Carey’s, but no one really knows the origin except that it is Chicago and Italian. It is just plain delicious.

Traditionally, it takes a while, but I often do not have a lot of time. So, I cut the potato and chicken in smaller pieces and use one chicken breast and one baking potato per person. This recipe takes me 20 minutes. I finished this dish for the picture with some fresh red sorrel that I had gotten at the market. I am not adding it to the recipe list because it is not necessary. Finish with parsley if you want or nothing at all, but you need to use oregano in the dish, no matter what. It is what makes this dish Chicken Vesuvio.

Centro has long sinced closed. I have a few more stories to tell you, but I would have to kill you if I shared them. Pull up a chair, Elizabeth

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Chicken Vesuvio, my way.

You will love how fast and easy this dish is to make. This is a two serving recipe and can easy be doubled or tripled.

Author: Elizabeth Schuler

Serves: 2

Cook time:  20 mins

Total time:  20 mins

Ingredients

• 2 baking potatoes, sliced to ½ inch slices
• 2T. olive oil
• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes
• ¼ cup AP flour
• 1 T. creole seasoning
• 2 T olive oil
• 1 T butter
• 4 gloves of garlic, chopped
• ⅓ cup dry white wine
• ⅓ chicken stock
• 2 t dried oregano
• ½ cup frozen peas
• handful of chopped parsley
• salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. Place potato slices on a baking sheet and coat with olive oil.
3. Bake for about 20 min.until golden brown.You might want to turn once.
4. While potatoes are cooking, heat up olive oil & butter in a pan over medium heat.
5. Toss the chicken chunks in the flour and creole seasoning.
6. Place and brown in pan. Turn to brown all sides.
7. Add garlic, white wine, stock, oregano, and peas.
8. Turn down heat to a simmer.
9. When the chicken and peas are cooked, toss the browned potatoes in pan.
10. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
11. Serve up with parsley sprinkled over top.

3.1.09

When it comes to tomatoes in perfect ripeness, I always keep it simple and let the tomato do the talking. The luscious sweet taste of a perfectly ripened tomato in August is nothing short of restorative.

Are you ready for how easy it is?

1. Sheet of puff pastry spread out on a parchment lined baking sheet. I do not even roll it out. Unfold. Done.

2. Spread the top with a thin layer of Dijon mustard.

3. Top with sliced tomatoes. These are from Frillman Farms. Green Zebra, Indigo Rose Black, and Black Cherry are the heirloom varieties that I used. Yum.

4. Drizzle with a light hand some extra virgin oil. Light salt and pepper.

5. Bake for approx. 20 mins. at 400F.

6. Let cool and if desired, you can drizzle with my light pesto (lemon juice, basil, garlic and evoo) or just tear up basil leaves on top.

NOTE: Store bought puff pastry is vegan. This is a vegan dish in case Ellen DeGeneres comes over to your house this August.

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Simplest Tomato Tart ever!

This is the simplest tomato tart ever!

Author: Elizabeth Schuler

Recipe type: Appetiser

Serves: 2

Prep time:  10 mins

Cook time:  20 mins

Total time:  30 mins

Ingredients

• 1 Sheet Puff Pastry
• Small amount Dijon Mustard
• 5-10 small heirloom tomatoes
• Extra virgin olive oil
• salt
• pepper

Instructions

1. Sheet of puff pastry spread out on a parchment lined baking sheet. I do not even roll it out. Unfold. Done.
2. Spread the top with a thin layer of Dijon mustard.
3. Top with sliced tomatoes. These are from Frillman Farms. Green Zebra, Indigo Rose Black, and Black Cherry are the heirloom varieties that I used. Yum.
4. Drizzle with a light hand some extra virgin oil. Light salt and pepper.
5. Bake for approx. 20 mins. at 400F.
6. Let cool and if desired, you can drizzle with my light pesto (lemon juice, basil, garlic and evoo) or just tear up basil leaves on top.

Nutrition Information

Serving size: 2

3.1.09

Enjoy!

Pull up a chair, Elizabeth

My new favorite thing to eat is eggplants. It was something that I did not love as a child and have not given it much of a break as an adult, but all my preconceived notions are now gone. This easy rustic recipe will convert even the skeptical ones of the bunch about this beautiful glossy purple vegetable.  The buttermilk sauce is excellent on the eggplant or slathered over any other grilled vegetables, lamb chops, etc. I am using fat free Greek-style yogurt these days, but whole milk would taste even better. It is a lovely side dish or serve it with some crusty bread or pita and you have a great little lunch. I served this pretty platter on a dinner buffet. Big hit because of it’s taste and beauty. I made it ahead of time because it more flavorful at room temperature, which freed me up for other dishes that needed to be prepped right before.

This is my adaptation from Yotam Ottolenghi’s recipe from his great vegetable cookbook, Plenty. He uses za’tar spice at the end to sprinkle over the buttermilk sauce. I did not have it, so I just stuck with the thyme and pomegranates, but then added some pomegranate molasses because it was handy and I thought the sweet tang would add something to the dish. This worked out great.

In my attempt to imitate Nigella’s scene of a late night raid of the fridge, I pulled out the cold eggplant that was beautifully slathered with buttermilk sauce and coated it with copious amounts of sriracha sauce. Oh, was this so fabulous. I washed it all down with an ice cold beer. I certainly was not as sexy as Nigella doing this. First of all, I had no makeup on and she wears red lip stick for her late night raid. Let’s not even mention my worn-out night shirt I was wearing. I did moan a bit like she does, because it was that tasty. Frankly, it is way too hard to see what is going on in the kitchen with just light from the fridge. How does she do that? This was all done for the sake of art, by the way. LOL.

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Eggplant with Buttermilk Sauce

This is my adaptation from Yotam Ottolenghi’s recipe from his great vegetable cookbook, Plenty.

Author: Elizabeth Schuler

Cuisine: Vegetarian

Recipe type: Main Entree

Serves: 2

Prep time:  20 mins

Cook time:  40 mins

Total time:  1 hour

Ingredients

Eggplat

• 2 large and long eggplants
• ⅓ cup olive oil
• 1½ teaspoons thyme leaves
• sea salt and black pepper
• ½ cup pomegranate seeds
• ¼ cup pomegranate molasses

Sauce

• 9 tablespoons buttermilk
• ½ cup Greek yogurt
• 1½ tablespoons olive oil, plus a drizzle to finish
• 1 small garlic clove, crushed
• 1 pinch salt

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Cut the eggplants in half lengthways, cutting straight through the green stalk (the stalk is for the look; don’t eat it).
3. Use a small sharp knife to make three or four parallel incisions in the cut side of each eggplant half, without cutting through to the skin. Repeat at a 45-degree angle to get a diamond-shaped pattern.
4. Place the eggplant halves on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
5. Brush them with olive oil—keep on brushing until all of the oil has been absorbed by the flesh.
6. Sprinkle with the lemon thyme leaves and some salt and pepper.
7. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, at which point the flesh should be soft, flavorful, and nicely browned. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
8. To make the sauce, whisk together all of the ingredients. Taste for seasoning, then keep cold until needed.
9. To serve, spoon plenty of buttermilk sauce over the eggplant halves without covering the stalks. Drizzle with pomegranate molasses and plenty of pomegranate seeds on top and garnish with thyme leaves as well.

3.1.09

Enjoy this super easy and healthy recipe. Make the buttermilk sauce all on it’s own. Fabulous. Let me know about your best Nigella imitation. Meanwhile, I will try to get a life. LOL.

Pull up a chair,  Elizabeth

I have signed up for a CSA this year. All the amazing seasonal veggies, I am so excited. Inspired by the restaurant, Balena,  I served roasted spring beets with burrata (mozzarella with cream inside), topped  it with a spring green garlic and lime vinaigrette.

Three years ago, I quit my job as a hair designer and makeup artist of twenty some years. The money was dwindling. When I say dwindling, I mean 20% of my salary every year for the last five years that I worked there. Perfect timing to have a child, huh?  I was just wanted to be home with my young son and not spend most of my time away from him to make a viable living. When it got to the point that transportation, daycare, business expenses, etc. were costing more then what I was making, I knew I had to quit.

Not sure what kind of change I was going to make to support Gabriel and myself, I started doing hair out of my house and I started a food blog. A food blog? What the hell was I thinking? Remember, I am in my mid-forties. No college education and I have been only a hair designer for most of my working life. I am responsible for a young child. He only has me and I have become the working poor for the first time in my life. The kind of poor where you have six bills in front of you and you have to decide which one will get paid. I was really lost, but the blog was my refuge from all the chaos. I kept telling myself that there has a way to make a decent living from my home, so I can also be the hands on mom that I wanted to be.

 Spring pea shoots, cilantro and garlic greens on hearty farm bread and goat cheese. Now that is a snack!

One thing I managed to do through all the tough times was make my son feel secure enough that he has never worried. One time when the electricity got shut off and it was going to be two days until they got turned back on, we strung extension cords from my neighbors apt to mine so that my fridge and a few lights would run. (Cool neighbors, huh?) Gabriel thought it was all a great adventure. Somehow in the middle of all this crap, I was able to put  homemade meals on the table everyday. Everything from scratch, because it saved me money. It was one thing I knew how to do.

Blogging exposed me to people that love beautiful food like I do, people that love to entertain and celebrate. I have truly met kind, supportive and generous  friends in the amazing world of food blogging. They helped me keep my spirits up. I kept thinking about Oprah saying to me through the TV, “Just do what you are passionate about and it will come to you.”, like she was Glenda the Good Witch.

Blogging led to my new consulting career in doing social media for different food related companies. Hooray. I somehow managed to change the momentum of poverty that was happening to us by staying with my passion. Now that the wolf is no longer at the door, I need to catch my breath and really think about the path that I am carving and where I want it to go. I realize that I have been dreaming about my life being lived more adventurously lately. Wow. What a luxury.

 Frillman Farms eggs are so fresh and tasty, you do not have to do much with them. Feta and scallions added to my  morning omelet made me realize I should never be with out these beautiful goodies  in my home. Get farm fresh eggs whenever possible.

My son is eight. He will only be with me for ten more years. I want to give him all that he needs to lead a passion filled life. In doing that, I also have to build a nice life, independent of him, so he can go off in the world with no worries about me. He needs to know that I have a full life and career, not worry about some martyr mom at home. I also have a twenty-five year old son that just wants to see me happy and foe-filled. This is really good incentive for me.

What I am passionate about and what I want for myself and children are all boiled down to food and getting to the most natural food source there is. My 8 year old has severe food allergies and I am overweight, like a 100 lbs overweight. How do I loose weight, protect my child from getting ill, and live passionately with food that I adore. Do other mother’s have these same issues? Do they have these issues in different countries around the world? Does having a clean natural food source something that you have to fight for in every country? Is it a rich or poor thing? Is it a political issue? It is our culture around food? Is our food source so pollutant that it is effecting the entire planet in different ways?

With more questions, then answers,  and a desire for adventure, I have some come up with an idea for a journey. A true sojourn. It all started with an offer from a high school friend of mine that lives in the Bangkok. Patrick lives there and suggested that I come and he could show me all the ins and outs of how fish sauce is made there. Really? I was intrigued. Then I started thinking bigger and connecting my different resources mentally that I knew that I had.

City Farm baby carrots and Frillman Farms radishes. I just served these as is with our meal. Delicious.

Next summer, Gabriel and I are going to travel the world and ask all those burning questions in all the different cities that we are going to visit. Now I have to make it happen and I have to figure out how to get this tripped sponsored.

Stop 1: London

We will investigate how people eat there. In the US, 15% of children now have food allergies. It is increasing everyday. Is it the same in the UK? How do they handle it? Our school system is having a hard time feeding children well to begin with, but you should try getting the right help for a kid with severe food allergies. Does a different health care system help?

Stop 2: Paris

I am lucky to have a brother that has lived there and has some good connections. France’s food source is the most locally sourced in the world, but they are also battling a rise in obesity for the first ever with fast food chains expanding there. We will talk to chefs, school age kids and see how France is handling their obesity crisis. I have a few surprises up my shelve for our Paris adventure.

Miso & maple syrup baked tofu with sauteed swiss chard and brown/white rice. We are converting to all brown rice in our house, but thought we would do it gradual. You should see how Gabriel chokes down tofu. I make him eat it, but he hates it. He drinks about a  gallon of milk (rice milk) to wash it down and it is spurting out of his mouth like he is trying not to have the tofu touch his tongue. Hilarious. He enjoys the Swiss chard, though.

Stop 3: Istanbul

Wow. I know that we could spend our entire time in this amazing city at the markets. How I love Turkish cuisine, but how well will we eat when my son is highly allergic to all tree nuts? (He does not have an air born reaction to nuts, though) If the Turkish culture does not have much experience with food allergies, will they take the request seriously or think nothing of using the same spoon for the nuts and then stir something that they will serve to my son? Interestingly enough, what would be our alternative…junk food. Ironically, potato chips, or McDonald’s would be a choice that we know he wouldn’t get sick on.

Stop 4: Bangkok

We will explore this amazing cuisine through their street food and how the locals eat. We will be able to visit a local school and see how the children eat there. How soon do the kids start eating chili? My son does not like spicy heat in his food. He is going to have a harder time with this then avoiding nuts. *Ironic: Not only do I have a high school friend that lives there, I have a nursery school friend that lives there as well. Two friends from my childhood in Michigan that live in Bangkok. That is so wild to me.

One thing I love being a part of a CSA share is the unusual vegetables that I receive that I have never tried before. This salad is made up of burrata, sliced turkey, red onions, cucumbers, haricot verts, roasted beets, tatsoi greens, and purslane. I tossed it all with a lemon vinaigrette.  What a treat.

Stop 5: Philippines

Gabriel’s god parents have been doing relief work there for over 30 years. I have been blessed to be able to have been there twice already. On the island of Cebu, the pig roasts are considered some of the best in the world. Anthony Bourdain even filmed one for his show there. We will as well, but I have the best sidekick ever. Gabriel will be up for anything when it comes to pork. The community there is such a wonderful welcoming group of people. I look forward to connecting with all my old friends.

We will also visit, weather permitting, a small remote island that has no local food source what so ever. (It will be a long boat ride and if too stormy we won’t be able to visit) In the 70′s, some short sighted fishermen from the island, decided to take some dynamite to the coral reef that fed the entire island. Thinking that having all the fish coming to the surface, would make quick work of all the fishing, not realizing that they would kill their food source permanently. This has effected them for generations. Malnutrition is abundant. How do people manage when there is no local food source?

Stop 6: Sydney

One of my best buddies, Christy, since the fifth grade lives there and is also the base for one of my clients that manufactures an amazing vegan bouillon product. (Massel). I really look forward to seeing if I can get my son to even try Vegemite. I like fermented things like a good scotch whiskey, so I will give it a go. I also understand that the food scene is amazing there. Australians are a healthier then Americans as a whole. Maybe it is all the warm weather or is it their food culture?

We plan on documenting our entire adventure through video, photos and writing. Gabe will have is own video blog so we can hear about the adventure from his point of view. We would like to spend a week in each city to make it a little more manageable pace for us both.

I am sharing this with all of you for several reasons:

I would love your ideas on what you are concerned about. What are your issues?
Do you have a child with food allergies? Would you travel the world with him?
Do you have any ideas or contacts that would add an interesting prospective to my trip? Any ideas whom I can solicit to help sponsor our trip?
I really need to spend the year getting in shape to make the most of this trip. I need some accountability with people checking in on me. I would love the support and the occasional pep talk to keep the course.
The journey before the journey seems as important and the journey itself.

My eldest son, Andrew, my brothers, and my sister, as well as few friends are telling me which part of the journey they are going to meet us on. I love that and everyone is welcome. If you aren’t joining us in person, join us on the journey’s documentation via my blog leading up to it and the journey itself?

Join me in the exploration of the world’s communal tables.

Pull up a chair, Elizabeth

At the mere mention of brisket, my mouth waters. I do not buy it that often, but with the chill in the air this spring, I went shopping. You can’t buy a small amount of brisket. About the smallest size I could find was 5 lbs.  It is a lot of meat for the two of us, but it can be used in many different meals after being cooked. The tough cut of brisket requires it to be braised slowly, but it doesn’t mean that it is difficult to make or prep. I made this meal during the week and we sat down to eat together before baseball practice. I am constantly picking up and running to one function or another. I really understand how parents get caught in the drive thru or convenience food cycle, but here is a couple of ideas for meals that are unprocessed and cheaper then drive thru, not to mention we were able to sit down and have a meal together. It is something we make an effort to do everyday.

Start out with a 5 lb. trimmed piece of beef brisket in the slow-cooker in the morning before the run to the school bus.

Pretty simple ingredient list, but if you do not have mushrooms, no worries. Gabe and I ate all the mushrooms up before we ate anything while we were serving up our meat. Oops. Yum.
Onion, 1 thinly sliced
Garlic, 6 gloves
Tomato paste, 1 can
Beef bouillon powder, 1 tablespoon. I use Massel because I love the clean flavor.) Now for full disclosure, I work for Massel, but I work for them because I like their product a ton.)
Red wine

NOTE: The brisket will shrink quite a bit in size because it is so marbled. No worries.

Fill the wine up until the sides are covered with the wine. Cover and put on low for 8 hours. There is something sorta decadent about opening a bottle of wine at 7 in the morning, by the way.

When Gabe arrived home from school, I had veggies cut up for him to snack on while he is doing his homework at the kitchen table.  Cut up veggies are my son’s version of salad. I pulled the brisket out of the slow cooker and fished out the mushrooms. Yum. We devoured them all.  I poured all stuff left behind in a pitcher.  I start peeling potatoes and set them to boil. In fifteen minutes, the fat raised to the top of the pitcher, then I skimmed all that fat off.

Now for my favorite kitchen tool… my immersion blender a.k.a. the boat motor. Blend the de-greased gravy. Taste and adjust seasoning. This time, it needed a little fresh ground pepper. It is tasty just like this, but I added a surprise finish to this gravy. I used BLiS barrel aged fish sauce. Just a touch creates a perfect earthy unami tone to the sauce with no effort. Huge difference and is becoming one of my pantry must haves.

Then I drained and mashed the potatoes, sliced the brisket, and poured the gravy all over it. 10 minutes prep in the morning, 20 minutes prep in the evening and we had a fabulous meal before heading out for practice. We had dinner early, but my son did not fill up on junk and not eat his dinner later. I am trying not to eat close to bed time, so it has helped me as well. If Gabe is hungry after practice, he has an apple and is satisfied.  We have cut down on snacking a great deal. The next morning I placed heated up mashed potatoes and gravy in my son’s thermos for part of his lunch.

NOTE: My son is allergic to dairy, so I mash our potatoes with vegan butter and rice milk. It is the only kind of mashed potato that he can have and I have not missed the dairy, especially as I know that these potatoes have no cholesterol and fewer calories. I am trying to keep our meat servings at about 4 oz.

On our lazy Sunday morning, I roasted some sweet potatoes in the oven.  Sauteed sliced briskets with onion, garlic, parsley, salt and pepper. Tossed them together, you have one fabulous sweet potato hash. I topped mine with a poached egg and a couple squeezes of sriracha sauce with an endless cup of black coffee. Gabe had his two helpings straight up with a berry smoothie chaser. Now that is perfect Sunday morning.

We love taco night. No flour tortillas at our house. We like the small (4 in. diameter) corn ones. My son can’t have dairy, doesn’t like any cheese replacement, so he  goes cheese-less.

Brisket tacos…slice of avocado, cheese, onion, cilantro, and roasted chili salsa. Oh, yes, lots of lime.

Rethinking the way you use your leftovers or planning head of time what you will do with the extra food, you have less waste and you really stretch your food dollars. The average American household waste  $130-$175 a month on spoiled or discarded food.

Pull up a chair, Elizabeth

I try not to like Rachel Ray, but this tamale pie that I adapted from one of her recipes was fabulous. Rachel’s raspy chirp and kitsch phrases drive me a little crazy.  She is constantly praising how great her food is smelling, tasting, and looking.  Now that may be something that I might, possibly, be known to do myself.  Maybe, I am, most likely, irritated by her boundless energy.

Rachel has that thing that Oprah & Martha has with her own magazine, food products and kitchenware that drives me crazy.  Julia would of never of done those things. As I judgmentally type my disdain, please note that I made this recipe in a Rachel Ray pan that I bought on QVC. (Great pan, btw.) Okay, I have to give Ms. Ray a break. She does produce recipes with ingredients that are easily gotten at the local grocery store. They are loaded with flavor and are easy on the pocket book. I also just love this pan that I got.

Now let’s get to the tamale pie. It only took me about 15-20 minutes and was not difficult in the least bit. The spicy rich meat with the creamy sweet polenta and gooey sharp cheese on top made us all happy. There is not a lot of heat in the recipe, which made it kid-friendly. I put a spicy salsa and sriracha on the table, so everyone could add more heat if they wanted it.  It is super affordable to make. The leftovers were used at breakfast with an egg on top. If you do not have every ingredient in the list, do not think you can not make it. Use beans, skip the beer…whatever you have about. Recipes are about giving you an idea, an inspiration.

I was on the hunt for a hearty vegetarian recipe. You know the one that a carnivore wouldn’t miss the meat at the meal kind of recipe.  Coconut Braised Spinach and Chickpeas over Sweet Potatoes is the exact kind of recipe that I was searching for. I could taste every flavor of each vegetable. There is heat and sweet, tang and subtle flavors in one bite. TheKitchn.com is great stop for a last minute recipe and it is where I found this one. Of course, I changed it around a bit, but this is a great resource.

My young son did not like the spinach and chickpeas at all. He was shivering as he was asking me if he had to eat it. He really hates anything with spinach. He love, loves, loves sweet potatoes, though.  That is what he ate. I had plenty of leftovers, which I used in soup and in a frittata.  This is also a great side dish. I have served it with lamb chops. Perfect compliment.

Braised Coconut Spinach & Chickpeas 
serves 4/main dish or 6/side dish

2 teaspoons oil or
1 small yellow onion
4 large cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 tablespoon grated ginger, from a 3-inch piece
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
1 large lemon, zested and juiced
1 dash of red pepper flakes ( I have also used roasted hot peppers. Your call)
15-ounce can chickpeas, drained
1 pound baby spinach( or frozen, thawed and drained)
14-ounce can coconut milk
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1 teaspoon ground ginger or grated from fresh
4 oz. cream cheese (vegan variety is also an option.)

1. Heat the oil in a large, deep Dutch oven or heavy pot over medium-high heat.

2. Add the onion and cook for about 5 minutes, or until the onion is beginning to brown.

3. Add the garlic, ginger, sun-dried tomatoes, lemon zest and red pepper, if using. Cook for 3 minutes, stirring frequently.

4. Add the chickpeas and cook over high heat for a few minutes or until the chickpeas are beginning to turn golden and they are coated with the onion and garlic mixture.

5. Toss in the spinach, one handful at a time. This will take about 5 minutes; stir in a handful or two and wait for it to wilt down and make room in the pot before adding the next handful. When all the spinach has been stirred in, pour in the coconut milk and stir in the salt, ground ginger, and lemon juice. Bring to a simmer then turn down the heat and cook for 10 minutes or until the chickpeas are warm through.

6. Stir in cream cheese until it melts.

7. Taste and add more salt and lemon juice, if necessary.

Serve with:
Whole roasted sweet potatoes
Pomegranate seeds, to garnish

You can bake a sweet potato quicker then a russet potato. It  will take about 40 minutes at 400F. You can always cut the sweet potatoes in half if you want them to cook quicker. I have used pomegranate molasses over the top as well when I can not find fresh.

You can’t even feel guilty about this recipe. It is super healthy. All the flavor is the bonus. This is the dish that you make for your friends that are vegan, gluten free, dairy free come over.

Pull up a chair, Elizabeth

I love reading cookbooks. I read them like novels, but it is rare that I make almost every recipe from a particular cookbook. I find them inspirational and only cook a few recipes from them.  I just recently opened a cookbook that blew my mind and I want to cook almost every recipe in it. It is Yotam Ottolenghi’s Plenty. It is a vegetarian cookbook from the guy that writes the vegetarian column in the Guardian. (London newspaper) He also has several restaurants in London.

I am really trying to have vegetables be the show case of our family meals and meat, the compliment. I want my son to crave vegetables. I want to crave vegetables more then fries. This kind of recipe answers this desire. These soba noodles with eggplant and mango are so flavor packed, that I wanted to lick the bowl when I was finished.

Okay, now I am going to bitch for a moment. There are a lot of typos in this book. At least, in the kindle version of it. For example, in this recipe it says that I need 12/3 cup of basil. What? Thank goodness I am a confident cook and knew how to switch this up, but just beware of this, if you buy the book.  I also used agave nectar in place of sugar, because I am watching my sugar intake. I also added fresh mint because it just seemed like it should be in there.

You can serve this as a starter or add some fried tofu to make it a main dish. I had some left over and ate it for lunch the next day.

SERVES 6

1/2 cup rice vinegar
3 T. sugar (2 T. agave nectar)
1/2 t. salt
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 fresh red chile, finely chopped
1 t. sesame oil
grated zest and juice of 1 lime
1 cup sunflower oil
2 eggplants, cut into 3/4-inch dice
8 to 9 oz. soba noodles (I used two neat little bundles)
1 large mango or 2 small mangos, peeled, diced or cut into strips
1 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped or torn
2 cups fresh cilantro, chopped
1/2 cup fresh mint
1/2 large red onion, thinly sliced

1. In a small saucepan gently warm the vinegar, sugar, and salt for up to 1 minute, just until the sugar dissolves.
2. Remove from the heat and add the garlic, chile and sesame oil. Allow to cool, then add the lime zest and juice.
3. Heat up the sunflower oil in a large pan and shallow fry the eggplant in three or four batches. Once golden brown remove to a colander , sprinkle liberally with salt and leave there to drain.
4. Cook noodles in plenty of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally. It takes 5 to 8 minutes. I would lean toward the 5 minute side  of this to keep them al dente. Drain and rinse well under running cold water.
5. Shake off as much of the excess water as possible, then leave to dry on a dish towel.
6. In a mixing bowl, toss the noodles with the dressing, mango, eggplant, half the herbs and onions. You can even leave it aside for 1 to 2 hours.
7. When ready to serve add in the rest of the herbs and mix well, then pile on a plate or in a bowl.

I made this ahead and served it to friends as a side dish. It has a big wow impact when you place this beautiful dish on the table. I had it made it ahead and all the prep dishes cleaned up before my guests got there. Love that.  You will love the tang, sweet, and heat in this dish. It is summer in the middle of winter. This is just a great recipe. My hat is off to you, Yotam Ottolenghi. Thanks for the inspiration.

Pull up a chair, Elizabeth