Sweet Tooth Haven

Vegetarian Ceviche

2010-01-05T15:38:58-08:00

Ceviche is a dish generally made with raw fish or shrimp that is marinated by the acid in lime or lemon juice. I don't eat fish, raw or otherwise. This is a vegetarian version in which cauliflower substitutes for the fish. But don't worry, the cauliflower is diced so small and absorbs so many other flavors, it is unrecognizable. Trust me, I'm not a huge fan, and my carnivore boyfriend loves it. The idea from this came from a coworker who brought in some leftover vegetarian ceviche made by his mother. Needless to say it was outstanding. I got impatient waiting for his mother's recipe, so I created my own from what I remember as the ingredients. With all the fresh veggies, I imagine this would be crazy-good for you if it wasn't eaten with tortilla chips. Get your best chopping knife and get started!

Preparation takes a bit of time, but it's easily made ahead and kept in the fridge.

Makes about 3 cups.

Ingredients:

1 head of cauliflower
3-4 limes depending on juicieness
2 roma tomatoes
2-3 serrano chilies (or jalapenos)
1/2 yellow onion
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 bunch cilantro
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
salt to taste

Directions:

1. Separate the cauliflower into florets. Try to get them uniform in size.

2. Blanch the cauliflower in boiling, salted water for about 5 minutes until just tender. Immediately drain and place in an ice-water bath to stop cooking.

3. Once cauliflower is cool, it's time to chop. Dice fairly small, less then 1/4 inch is good. Also try to keep as uniform as possible.

4. Place diced cauliflower in a non-reactive bowl (glass, ceramic, stainless). Add enough lime juice to coat all the cauliflower and pool up in the bottom. You want it very wet because you'll be adding more to the juice. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours.

5. After about 1 1/2 hours, begin preparing the rest of the ingredients. Collect all the chopped ingredients in a bowl to add at once to the cauliflower. It's best to chop everything about the same size, with the chilies and garlic being smallest. Prepare yourself! Don your so-stylish, eye-saving Onion Goggles. Dice the onion very small (try for about 1/4 inch, or roughly the size of your cauliflower).

6. Quarter the tomatoes lengthwise and remove the seeds before dicing.

7. The easiest way for me to mince chilies: First cut off the stems. Cut chili in half lengthwise. Use a spoon to scrape out seeds and ribs. Cut matchstick strips lengthwise, then perpendicular. Wash your hands before touching eyes!

9. Chop the cilantro. Add the onion, tomatoes, chilies, and cilantro to the cauliflower and stir. Add the crushed garlic and 1/4 teaspoon cumin. Start with 1 teaspoon salt then add more to your taste.

10. Place back in the refrigerator for at least 1/2 hour for best flavor. This is one of those dishes that is better the longer it sits.

Serve with chips. Enjoy a healthy, flavorful dip!

Printable Vegetarian Ceviche Recipe (pdf)

Brown Widow Egg Sac

2009-09-20T16:42:58-07:00

Well, I went to see if the brown widow was still under the leaf and look what I found.

Move Over Oreos

2009-09-20T13:20:00-07:00

I usually purchase Joes Joes chocolate and vanilla sandwich cookies from Trader Joe's when I have an Oreo craving. (I love the vanilla Joe Joes as well!) The other day I was in Whole Foods and was looking for something sweet when these Late July Vanilla Bean with Green Tea cookies caught my eye. I purchased an individual snack pack to try them. I actually bought a whole box today. They are a bit pricey, but worth it. Organic cookies that include whole grains and green tea. At least you get something good for you when you're satisfying a cookie urge. The Decadent Dark Chocolate are probably worth trying as well.

Beware the Brown Widow

2009-09-20T12:40:40-07:00

Brown widow spiders are fairly new arrivals in California. For creatures that are supposed to be reclusive, I've been seeing quite a few. I first became aware of them at the end of August when cleaning my classroom. I saw some round, white, spiky egg sacs attached to the window and a coworker told me they were from brown widows. Never having heard about brown widows, I looked them up and she was right. I wish I had taken pictures. Now I found a large brown widow that lives behind a leaf on my back wall. There are babies as well. It's a speedy spider and I have not been able to get a good picture of the orange marking on the belly, but it's there.

You can just about see the orange marking through the blurriness.

My Mutant Feijoa Leaf

2009-09-05T20:02:00-07:00

I noticed this strange double-leaf on my feijoa tree today while I was watering. Not sure if I should be worried. Is it a harbinger of mutant fruit?

My Mystery Worm

2009-08-10T13:16:30-07:00

Since we moved into our house several years ago we keep finding these little critters. One will be scooting across the floor like pictured, or hanging on the wall in our garage. At first we just found a case/covering every once in a while, then one day I saw one moving and noticed the worm. I've never seen anything like it and have no idea what it could be or where it comes from. Maybe it's some sort of larva?

The case is tough and gritty and looks made of sand. The one pictured also seems to have some type of fuzz stuck to it. The little worm pulls the case along like a snail with a shell. Since I have no clue what it could be, I don't know whether it is harmful or not. We find them more often in the summer and even then only about once a week. Strange.

40 Years Ago

2009-07-20T08:26:33-07:00

Sweet Tooth

The Best BeachBooks

2009-07-18T08:51:35-07:00

Thousands of NPR listeners voted and chose the 100 Best Beach Reads. I'm sure this means different things to different people. Some readers might prefer an easy, breezy read while kicking back on the beach, other enjoy a good thriller, fantasy, or something that requires even more concentration. Whatever your choice, check out the final list. I printed a copy, highlighted the books I've read, and added others to my reading wishlist.

There are many terrific books on the NPR list. Some of my favorites from the list:

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R Tolkein
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
Interview With the Vampire by Anne Rice
Dune by Frank Herbert
Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

Favorites of mine that didn't make it:

Maisie Dobbs series by Jacqueline Winspear
Mistress of the Art of Death series by Ariana Franklin
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler
The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

Our President in Pictures

2009-07-08T16:20:41-07:00

The Boston Globe's Big Picture has a photographic look at President Obama's first 167 days. There's 38 photographs, so have a look.

Spare Change?

2009-07-06T12:10:06-07:00

We have a coin jar where we dump our change at the end of the day to make pockets and purses lighter. It was getting a bit full and since our credit union has a coin machine that counts the change for you for no fee, providing you're a member, I decided to cash in our coins.

Coins are heavy. I somehow managed to lift that jar just enough to pour the coins into 3 quart-size zip top bags. It was about half the coins, but that's all I wanted to carry at once.

In all, I cashed in about $200 in coins. Not bad! That spare change really adds up.

Feijoa - Pineapple Guava

2009-07-04T14:55:23-07:00

Whenever I find feijoas (AKA pineapple guavas) in the markets around here they are priced $2 or $3 each. Crazy. They are delicious eaten raw, and baked into bread, but the price is just too high. These fruit are supposed to be easy to grow in the southern California climate, so I finally decided to plant my own. I placed a special order at a local nursery, but when it finally arrived months later, I found they had several at Lowe's for a lower price.

I picked a 19-inch plastic pot and drilled a few holes in the bottom to allow good drainage. Then planted it with a mix of potting soil and soil for citrus trees that is supposed to be quick-draining. I planted 3 nasturtium seedlings in the pot to keep it company.

I hope it blooms next spring so I can have some fruit in the fall! If so, I might share my recipe for feijoa bread.

If you want to plant your own feijoa, look for a named variety that will bear fruit. The common one around here is Coolidge.

The Bird in the Garage

2009-04-10T16:09:48-07:00

I went to get the mail and when I got back there was a little bird flying around in my garage. I've left the door open for 10 minutes now, but it hasn't found its way out. It keeps flying up. Perhaps the reflection off our cars is confusing the poor thing. If I hadn't left my camera at work I'd show you a picture of it.

Waiting for Part Two

2009-03-12T19:12:32-07:00

Currently I'm awaiting the release of two books. Both are the second in a trilogy. If you like fantasy or crime/mystery novels, I recommend both of these books. However, pick them up at your own peril, soon you'll be wanting more and left waiting like me.

Two years ago I read the wonderful fantasy novel, The Name of the Wind by first-time author Patrick Rothfuss. I read it knowing it was the first in a trilogy and as soon as I was finished I found myself ready for the next part. Last April I ordered The Wise Man's Fear (Part 2) for myself and my brother-in-law and reread Name of the Wind while I waited for it to arrive. It never did, and even though I checked Amazon everyday, it took me about a week to realized the release date was indeed April, but of 2010. Oh well, at least I've had something to look forward to for the past year.

***UPDATE 4/9/2009*** I just read Patrick Rothfuss's blog and it doesn't look like Wise Man's Fear will be out anytime soon.

Just last week I finished reading The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Steig Larson. This was the first time I read a novel set entirely in Sweden and I was intrigued. A disgraced financial reporter, Mikael Blomkvist, is hired by a wealthy octogenarian to look into the mysterious disappearance of a beloved family member. The trouble is the disappearance happened decades ago and every lead seems to have already been followed to the end. The narrative switches between Mikael's story and that of the title character until their paths cross. All three novels are released in the author's native Sweden. The translated version of the second book,The Girl Who Played With Fire, is already out in England, and while I could purchase it from amazon.co.uk, I'll wait until July. It's always nice to have a good book to read during the summer.

Customer Service, Defined

2009-03-01T11:33:51-08:00

I would like to thank the good folks at Anchor Hocking for renewing my faith in Customer Service. Here's my story:

I have been using ramekins covered with plastic wrap as little individual fruit bowls for at least a year. I knew there had to be a better way, and during a recent shopping trip I found a set of Anchor Hocking glass storage bowls with plastic lids. No more plastic wrap, Horray!

After about a week, I was frustrated that two of the lids would not remained shut, no matter what. Before I tried returning the entire set without any packaging or receipt, I decided (with very little hope) to try and contact Anchor Hocking for a replacement. I looked up their website and found the Customer Service - Consumer Affairs email link.

Here's my email dated 2/17/09:

Hello,

I recently purchased a set of glass storage containers at Target. It was an 8 piece set containing 4 glass bowls and 4 lids. Are there replacement lids available? Two of the lids fit perfectly and stay on, but 2 lids keep popping off.

Thank you,
M

And the reply dated 2/20/09

Dear M:

Thank you for taking the time to contact Anchor Hocking regarding the
problem you have experienced with your glassware product offering.

Anchor Hocking strives to maintain high quality standards to produce the
finest glassware available. Therefore it is important for us to hear of
any problems that you experience with our product.

If you will provide the capacity size of the bowls or the UPC code we
will send replacement covers with our compliments. Please include your
last name and address (NO PO BOX).

We look forwarding to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

ANCHOR HOCKING COMPANY

Amy (last name removed)
Consumer Affairs

Quite surprising, right. After I sent my last name and address I got an immediate reply that the lids would be arriving in 4-6 weeks.

And so, the lesson is, there are still some American companies that provide good, old fashioned customer service. Thank you.

An Ode to Trader Joe's

2009-02-11T16:02:47-08:00

I haven't been around for awhile, but not because I don't care. When things are hectic at work, my baking and cooking, and generally anything fun suffers. Enough about me, I saw this today and I just had to share. If you have a Trader Joe's in your area, you'll know they don't advertise, so this guy created a commercial for them. If you are not blessed with a TJ's near you, you can email a location request (just choose location request from the drop down menu).