Tag - I'm It

I've been enjoying a blog called once in a blue moon written by Jain, who lives somewhere in northern California. The photographs of her home and property are gorgeous. She has great recipes and funny stories too. Today she tagged me in a blogger chain, where I'm supposed to tell you 6 random things about my self, then pass it on to six more bloggers. Being the least computer-savvy person you'll ever meet (if you were to meet me), I hope I'm doing this right...

Here are the rules:

Rule #1 ~ Link to the person that tagged you.

Rule #2 ~ Post the rules on your Blog.

Rule #3 ~ Write 6 random things about yourself.

Rule #4 ~ Tag 6 people at the end of your post.

Rule #5 ~ Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their Blog.

Rule #6 ~ Let the tagger know your entry is up.


Hey look! I can copy and paste! Ok...about me -


1. My desk is very messy.


2. I am extremely punctual.


3. I think exercise is boring, but I do it anyway.


4. I would like to be a race car driver.


5. I am a distant cousin of Harry Houdini.


6. I have a huge collection of cookbooks and I'd still rather go out to eat.


These are pretty random. There are many other things to know about me, but these six appeal to the broadest audience without offending anyone. If you would like the uncensored version, here's what you should do:

Subscribe to Mignardise, by putting your email in the box to the left.
Send a comment telling me you have done so. Click  "comments" at the end of this post and a form will appear. Include your email.
I will reply with 6 more random, much more interesting things about myself.


Being fairly new to the blogging community, I don't know a lot of other bloggers, or I should say, they don't know me. I subscribe to a number of other  blogs that I find entertaining (see column at left), so I feel like I know these ladies, at least their on-line personas. I also read many others that I find on Tastespotting. So to those on my blog list, I say TAG - you're it! Thanks for playing along...

Erin at Type A Diversions

Elle at Elle's New England Kitchen

Marilyn at Simmer Till Done

Kellypea at Sass & Veracity

Renee at Almost Foodies

Rechelle at The Country Doctor's Wife

Snow Flower and the Cashew Chicken

For December, our book group read Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See. Aside from the less-than-inspiring title, we all agreed it was excellent. It's astounding to read about how women were treated in China hundreds of years ago. (And we have that same sense of astonishment when we hear about how women are treated in many parts of the world today.)
In China, girls were considered "worthless branches on the family tree...raised by one family for another." Their feet were bound, essentially crippling them, to make them more beautiful to their future husbands. (I'm sure the pain I feel in my ski boots is nothing like this.)
Even after marriage, girls lived with their natal family, until giving birth to their own first child. They pray for a son, as "sons are the foundation of a woman's self...they give a woman her identity as well as dignity." (Yes, in some circles I am known only as "Jack's mom".)
It's a wonderful story of friendship, and the misunderstandings that sometimes occur even among the closest of friends. It's about the strength of women in adversity and the clarity that comes with old age.
In honor of Snow Flower and her friend Lily, here's my recipe for Cashew Chicken, a favorite with boys and girls, equally.

Cashew Chicken adapted from Martha Stewart

1 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1" cubes

1 Tbsp. cornstarch

coarse salt and ground pepper

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

6 garlic cloves, minced

8 scallions, white and green parts separated,
each cut into 1" pieces

2 Tbsps. rice vinegar

3 Tbsps. hoisin sauce

3/4 cup raw cashews, toasted

1. In a medium bowl, toss chicken with cornstarch until chicken is coated; season lightly with salt and pepper.

2. In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 Tbsp. oil over medium-high heat. Cook half the chicken, tossing often, until browned on all sides.  Transfer to a plate.

3. Add remaining oil to pan. When heated, add remaining chicken, along with the garlic and white parts of scallions. Cook, tossing often, until chicken is browned. Return first batch of chickn to the pan. Add vinegar, cook until evaporated, about 30 seconds.

4.Add hoisin sauce and 1/4 cup water, tossing until chicken is cooked through, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in scallion greens and cashews. Serve immediately, over rice, if desired.

I often serve this with sauteed snap peas. Stir fry them in a tablespoon of vegetable oil. When they start to turn bright green and brown around the edges, drizzle with a tablespoon each of sesame oil and soy sauce.

Birthday Sushi , with Cake

If you have a child whose birthday is during the holiday season, you know this can be a mixed blessing. My youngest, the Bonus Baby, was born nine years ago on December 23.  While in labor, I breathlessly told my husband where all the gifts and stocking stuffers were hidden, just in case something happened to me. Nothing happened (well nothing too serious) and we came home on Christmas day. My other two children weren't happy about waiting to open presents until we arrived with their baby sister. To them, she was not the joyous gift we believe her to be.

So now, in the midst of holiday baking and shopping, I must come to a screeching halt and wrap my head around the Birthday Party. Party planning, favor creating, cake decorating, invitation making. One evening in early December, while we were eating at our favorite local dining spot, a stroke of genius hit me in the head  ( although it may have been a snowball). Have the party here! At Chopstick! Why not? It's practically a home away from home for us and the people who own it and work there couldn't be nicer. The Bonus Baby agreed it would be a great idea,  Mr. Ma agreed and so the sushi party was on.

 

   

 

  

The girls rolled their own with Mr. Ma's help. They also had edamame, miso soup and spring rolls.

It was a smashing success! And the Bonus Baby's favorite gift? Ironically, it's a live goldfish...

And here's the cake I made, decorated to look like a giant California roll. I am pretty proud of myself and the Bonus Baby declared it "awesome". Mission accomplished.

 

 

Italian Lessons

Last week, I got a taste of what it's like to eat a sane, healthy and delicious diet. I was lucky enough to snag a spot in one of Stephen Lanzalotta's cooking classes in Portland.

Stephen is the author of The Diet Code. He used to own Sophia's on Market Street, but now he works out of Micucci's, the Italian grocer on India Street. He bakes and sells the lightest, most flavorful bread I have ever tasted. It's the opposite of all the crusty baguettes and dense whole grain loaves we're all used to. This is something completely different - soft and chewy, even pillowy. You could take a nap on a pile of this bread (try that on a baguette!). Head to the back left corner of Micucci's where Stephen bakes these and other items (pizza, cookies). Go early in the day - they sell out quickly. Take home your demi-lune (half moon shape) and pour yourself a small dish of olive oil for dipping, and maybe a glass of wine. You think maybe you should have bought two. You don't want to share. You think about signing up for one of his classes.



Not only will you learn how to prepare a meal, you'll learn some history of Italian food before there was tomatoes and pizza. Completely fascinating. Why didn't they teach this in college?
Stephen had already prepared the Melanzana Agrodolce, or Sweet and Sour Eggplant. Thinly sliced and grilled eggplant, sweet with a bit of honey, tangy from two types of vinegar. Squisito, as they say in Italy.

The next course was a buckwheat crepe (crespelle), filled with chicken and a bechamel sauce made with fontina. Served along side was a puree of turnip and pear as well as sauteed turnip greens. No red sauce, no garlic, yet utterly Italian in origin and concept. This is the Italian food of the Middle Ages, carefully balanced, healthful and light. Stephen's book can give you a full explanation of why we should be eating this way today and how to do it.



Italians are not keen on very sweet desserts, like we are. We took turns cooking our own crepes, swirling the thin batter around the pan and attempting to flip it gracefully (or not). The crespelle were then filled with almond ricotta cream and topped with a simple blackberry sauce. It was a fitting end to the meal.
In the middle of a very busy season, it was a joy to sit quietly in Stephen's class and learn about good food. There was no candy canes, no marshmallows, nothing dipped in chocolate. It was simply a delicious few hours. I can't wait to do it again.

Don't Wait - Bake!

Friends, it was almost two days without power and I've come to a new and scary realization. I am addicted to the internet. To my email, Facebook, food blog surfing, shopping on line, Tastespotting, and to blogging. There's a lesson in all this. I've been wanting to share a couple of things with you, but I WAITED TOO LONG and the lights went out. Metaphorical? You decide. But don't wait too long.
Anyway, the power's back, I'm back. Earlier this week, before the storm, I cooked up some really decadent brownies. If you don't like fruit with your chocolate, like some people I know (Bob), these won't be for you. If you are willing to go beyond the basic brownie and think of this as a holiday sort of brownie, I think you'll be very glad you made them. Rich and fudgy, festive with the cranberries and pistachios, they're easy and quick to make. Find the recipe from Bon Appetit here.

Orange-Scented Brownies with Cranberries, Pistachios and Ginger

Our neighborhood cookie exchange is coming up this week. I'm not sure what I'll be making yet. It could be an old favorite like Cranberry-Coconut Macaroons. Or I might try something different, say a biscotti or a chocolate-dipped shortbread. Whatever I decide, I'll be sure to let you know. There are some things you shouldn't put off.

48 Meals

I could provide you with some Christmas cookie recipes or some holiday decorating tips in this space. That would be the seasonally appropriate thing to do. There are many cookie recipes on my mind and at some point soon, I will share them. But right now, I am focused on the 48 meals that still have to be dished up between now and Christmas day. Breakfast, lunch and dinner every day for the next 16 days. Unfortunately, they can't be ignored. They're not festive. They're not fun. They're just like any another day of the year.
Breakfast is easy. You know the drill - cereal, toast, yogurt, fruit and of course coffee.
Lunch, not too hard, especially when you're on your own - a salad, a sandwich, a cup of soup. Make the kids buy school lunch.
Dinner, that's another story. Every day those kids are going to ask the same damn question, "what's for dinner, Mom?". You better have a good answer. Some days you can get away with take out pizza or mac and cheese or maybe "breakfast for dinner". But some days you are going to have to come up with a real home-cooked meal, even when you've been up to your elbows all day in baking or wrapping or shopping or addressing cards or decorating or crafting or whatever it is you do.

Tonight I'll be making my kids' favorite, purely out of guilt. What else have I made them this week? To be honest, nothing. And there's lots more of that to come, so tonight it's...

Chicken Broccolini Pasta

1 lb. pasta

2 bunches brocollini, ends trimmed, cut into 1" pieces
(if you can't find broccolini, use broccoli or broccoli rabe)

1 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces

3 Tbsp. EVOO

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 cup white wine

1/2 cup chicken broth

2 Tbsp. butter

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

salt and pepper

1. In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook pasta to al dente. Remove pasta with a strainer, saving all the water in the pot. Set pasta aside.
2. Return water to boil. Blanch broccolini for 2 minutes. Drain and set aside.
3. On a large plate, dredge chicken pieces lightly in flour. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Heat oil in large saute pan. Add chicken, being careful not to crowd the pieces. You might have to do it in two batches. Cook until browned on all sides.
5. Add garlic and broccolini to pan with chicken. Toss to combine.
6. Add wine, broth and butter, stir and let simmer 3-4 minutes. If it looks dry, add a bit more liquid.
7. Add cooked pasta, stir to combine. Remove from heat and stir in cheese. Season with salt and pepper and serve with additional cheese, if desired.

One more dinner down, 15 to go.

Lagniappe

Just when you were getting the hang of saying "mignardise", I'd like to introduce you to another word that's hard to say and even harder to spell. Lagniappe - say "lahn-yahp". A lagniappe is a little something extra that you didn't expect, in a good way. For instance, when you put your plain bagels in a bag with the onion bagels and you get just a few bits of the dried onion on your plain bagel.Those tiny onion bits are your lagniappe. Or when you have homemade lemonade, and the sugar falls to the bottom. Then when you're finished you have all this lemony sugar goodness to enjoy as a lagniappe. Free samples at the makeup counter are also a nice lagniappe.

At our house, we have pie lagniappe. When Bob makes the pies for Thanksgiving, he makes us a special  treat from the dough trimmings. We call it rugelach, because it's kind of like the Jewish pastry made with cream cheese dough and rolled up. We really only have the rolling up thing in common, and the fact that they're both tender and delicious.There's hardly ever enough to go around. Sometimes we eat them all before any company arrives. Sometimes we lie and tell the guests that Bob didn't make them at all this year  - so sorry.

Extra pie dough gets rolled into a rectangle and brushed with butter.

 

Sprinkle with brown sugar, cinnamon and maybe some nuts, if you like them (I do).

 

Roll up the dough, on the long side of the rectangle.
 

Slice it up, and put the pieces on a baking sheet.
 

Bake until edges are golden, at 350.

  

Yum. Pseudo-rugelach, a Thanksgiving lagniappe.