In any case, with Passover quickly approaching and a neglected banana looking like an oozing  jumbo vanilla bean in a prone position  on my kitchen table I got a brilliant idea the other night to make banana pancakes.

I halved a recipe I found for pancake batter from scratch; 3/4 C flour, 1T baking powder, 1 T sugar, 1 t salt, 1 egg scrambled, 1 T melted butter and 3/4 C milk.  Sift the dry ingredients into a bowl, make a well for the liquids – scrambled egg, melted butter & milk. Once the pancake batter is well mixed I mashed in the banana.  I put the batter in the refrigerator for about 15 mins. Not because I was told to but remember this is done when making batter for crepes.

The pancakes came out beautifully.  I made quite large ones.  I melted a little Trader Joe’s earth balance an organic buttery spread in a non stick pan, poured the batter into the pan. Flip the pancake once bubbles form on the edge and within the pancake.   I topped the pancakes with Trader Joe’s lemon curd, served and ate them immediately with a cup of hot lemon ginger tea.

Here’s the long and the short of it, There are very few things I make that use, call for or require milk.  The last time I had milk in the house it was left behind by an Italian couple that sublet my place a few summers ago.  It didn’t take much more than a quick search that I soon became the queen of panna cotta. Thanks to panna cotta and ice cream I probably get the recommended daily allowance of milk in a year.

I think I’ll be going there this time too, meaning I’ll be making panna cotta. I’m going to make a pineapple one. More on that later, but here’s the punch line, even tho I only buy a pint of milk, when I do – I FREEZE the milk between uses. Yes, cooking with it requires a bit more planning but, hey, I couldn’t help but share what I think is a great Recipe 4 Survival – tactic and resourceful tip.

With much love I share this with you.

CHA!

D.

The next day I reconstituted the polenta in a saute pan with a little water, threw in the cleaned, chopped, escarole and topped it off with less than a 1/4 C of Trader Joes Kurma sauce.  Very satisfying on yet another very cold night.

Dtailed directions will follow under separate entry.

I also made Bunashimeji – commonly known as Beech Mushrooms. They are just adorable.  Brown topped white stemmed mushrooms. I cut the bunch in half, put them on a sheet of aluminim foild, threw in about a half dozen garlic cloves, tamari, a small pad of butter, & a good splash of Old Grouse! I balled the foil up and put it under the broiler for about 15-20 minutes.  I served these on top of the sushi rice, again with the scallions and gamasio.

roasted Japanese mushrooms

I know the title of this entry sounds sO boring but I must admit, I’m happily full and each dish was really flavorful.  I must also add, all ingredients are organic and I doubt I spent $4 to feed myself – two dishes.

CHA!

I could have opted for pouring some organic tOMato soup into a pot from out of a cardboard box but something inside said, NO, make yourself a soup. I’ve got a half a head of organic cauliflower, 4 or 5 heads of garlic, 2 small yukon gold potatoes and vegetable broth left over from the tOMato soup I made for Alex last week.

Healing ingredients

I’ll also highlight the healing aspects of the ingredients in this velvety cauliflower & garlic soup.

So there you have the ingredients, now here’s what I did.

First I cut the cauliflower into chunks that look like individual…flowerettes, keeping some of the stem. Put these into a steamer basket in a heavy bottomed pot with water that comes to just below the bottom of the steamer basket.  I also threw the 2 small yukon gold potatoes into the steamer.  This steamed for a good 20 minutes, then I turned the heat off and let it continue to cook another 10 minutes or so.

While the cauliflower & potatoes were steaming I went at cleaning up and preparing the garlic for roasting in a small sauce pot with oil.

inner green stem removal

If you’re new to cooking and not so comfortable with a knife, leaving the inner green ’stem’ in a garlic dent if FINE.  Many cooks don’t remove it. Those that do remove the green ’stem’ say it can heighten a bitter taste in what you’re cooking.

To roast the garlic use the whole cloves that are slightly cracked from the initial smash to get the skin off added to about a 1/2 C of organic, cold pressed olive oil. Cook over a medium heat. You want to see little bubbles. Don’t let the oil get to hot. A gentle simmer is great.

Roasted garlic & infused, seasoned oil

While the garlic was roasting I pureed the steamed cauliflower & potatoes in my ordinary blender, no fancy Cuisinart.  I sliced the potatoes into 1/4″ discs when I added them to the blender.  I blended the veggies in two batches adding about a cup of vegetable broth. This would become the base of the soup along with the organic vegetable broth I’d add to the roasted garlic roux.

With the garlic roasted and garlic infused seasoned oil and the cauliflower & potato puree, I began to make the roux.  This is simply done by mashing the roasted garlic cloves, adding the garlic infused seasone and a small hand-full of unbleached flour.

Garlic roux

I added about a 1/2 C of the vegetable broth to the roux to create the creamy stock for the soup, then I began to add the cauliflower & potato puree, alternating between adding stock & puree.  Stirring all the while.

MMgOOd and you’ll feel great too and boy oh boy did I have a LOT from just a half a head of cauliflower.

Once I was in the street, this vision flew away.  The street was entirely shuttered up . It was whipping freezing cold so a real scout about was not what this Dparture was about.  A place to read my book and maybe grab a bite would do – rather than standing in a cold lobby without a chair or bench in it.

The immediate choices were a Dunkin Donuts /Baskin Robbins or an iHOP, caddy corner to each other. I was shown to a nice clean table at the iHOP.  The coffee was good and the Swiss crepes were the cheapest thing on the menu. Their caloric measure is higher than I would have liked, but I order them.   They were so rich I packed up half of what I had been served and was still the first in line to register.

It was 11:15A when I was leaving.  At the elevator was a woman and her young son. Both were heavily bundled against the elements. I heard her say how frustrated she was. I mentioned what happened to me earlier this morning. This was nothing compared to what she was about to tell me. She was there to file her taxes on line with software provided there, for free. She had all her paperwork together but they wouldn’t let her in because she was with her little boy, a 4 yr. old.  She was given a piece of paper where she may be able to go – with her child.  It was way futher out in Brooklyn. She was saying that she would have to wait for a bus and she was with her son.  I looked right at her and told her, “Go right back up there. You do exactly what you inteded to do and are prepared to do.  I’ll look after your son.”

1st snap

I said I would hang out with him at the pancake house on the corner. Of course she was hesitant.  Her cell phone wasn’t working properly.  I cave her my DVine card, this made her think for a minute.  Leaving the premises with her son was not the right thing to do. I said I could be of help to her now. There was no reason for her to turn away from this favor, so we all went back up in the elevator  and I hung out with her son, Izaiah, in the hall outside the WORKFORCE ONE facility. It took all of an hour for Stacy to file her taxes.

Rahhh!

Izaiah catching a paper airplane

Izaiah noticed my tea cup charm on my phone and loved it. I put one on the zipper of one his sweat shirts but it was bothering him and it’s the phone he really wanted. Stacy came out at this point. She was happy to put the tea cup charm right onto her phone.  I could tell, she felt lucky and empowered.

As we were bundling up to go outside Izaiah mentioned that he was hungry and wanted pancakes.  Stacy said she made him pancakes earlier that morning with sausages.  I immediately handed her my left over ‘pancakes’ without much of an explanation. She told me that she’s a school crossing guard and during her off time she works on the computers here refining her skills and searching for a better job.  She had tickets for Sesame St. at Madison Sq. Garden so she was taking the A train into Manhattan. We got on the train together.  She and Izaiah ate the Swiss crepes on the train. Of course we told Izaiah they were pancakes.

I don’t know, I’d call this a recipe for survival; open eyes, open heart, no judgement and sharing what you can.

I came across these small, fist sized, not so pretty looking artichokes at the Manhattan Fruit Exchange in Chelsea Market earlier this week on one of the coldest days this season.  The motto, Frost Kissed Artichokes, not so pretty ~ but oh good, written in Sharpie and with a very reasonable per pound price I grabbed four of them.

I cut the top off of two of the four artichokes with a serrated knife and then snipped the thorny top off of each leaf with a heavy duty kitchen scissor.  As The Utilitarian Chef, gadgets are one thing I don’t feed into but good kitchen sheers are one of the few pieces of equipment I think is great to have in ones kitchen. So is a serrated knife.

Frost kissed artichokes preparation

I was reheating left over sushi rice I had from my first try at hako/press sushi, I got a press box as a holiday gift, so I decided to thrown these two artichokes into the steamer along side the rice. I added a pinch of Kosher salt, a wedge of lemon and a 2 dents of garlic to the water that came to just below the bottom of the steamer in a heavy bottomed pot. Artichokes are ready in 15 – 20 minutes. The rice was certainly ready.

While the artichokes and rice were steaming I flash wilted well washed, dark green, curly kale in a very hot saute pan with just a little olive oil.   I also whipped up a cup of organic mayonnaise and capers – for the artichokes.

I served the wilted kale on top of the rice and put the artichokes in another bowl.  All I can tell you is, these Frost Kissed, battered looking artichokes are so Dlicious I ate the first one w/out even dipping one leaf or nibble of the heart into the traditional sauce I made for it. Another surprise from these Dlectable chokes is that  when you get to the heart and have to remove the thistles, they’re so soft they wipe away with a swipe of your finger.

Get them, the season is short.  You can eat the whole thing: leaves, heart and stem – right to the bottom.

I asked what was stirring… if even a batter.

A loin was in the oven, trusseled with care and with the hope that broccoli and corn would soon be the sides.

From being nestled in my bed to bolt upright at the oven visions of a warm creamed corn pudding danced in my head.

Me in my sweats I reviewed a recipe or two and then settled in to make a corn pudding with what I had at hand.

From out of the cabinets, freezer, cubbies and oven there came such a clatter  as I sprang into action.

I tore to the freezer  and opened a bag of TJ organic corn. I threw half of the corn into a hot salt water bath in a sauté pan.

The sweet smelled filled me with joy like new fallen snow. I pureed the warmed corn. Milk would have glistened this concoction – but not from my kitchen.

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,but a colorful bag of farina de granoturco/polenta, two beautiful organic eggs, an onion, a small pad of butter and a fresh sprig of basil.

With all the ingredients together, so lively and quick, I knew in a moment what would be my trick.
More rapid than eagles the coursers they came: I blended, sautéed, mixed, soaked, scrambled and poured all as required by name!

I sautéed a diced onion. I soaked 1 cup of polenta in 1 cup of water. I added this to the sautéed onion, a dab of butter and stirred.  I whisked till it was creamy.
Now a dash of salt. A dash of pepper and Salt of D Earth went into the creamy polenta!

As dry leaves before a wild hurricane fly, into the creamy polenta went all the creamed corn.
With well scrambled eggs frothy with air I poured in the creamy corn pudding mixture and glared.

And then, with  a twinkle, I added a pinch more salt of D-Earth.
A Tablespoon of Turbinado sugar because it was here.
I pulled it all together, snapped a picture and turning around,
to grease up a Pyrex loaf dish in nearly a bound.

With the oven preheated to 350 Dgrees, I chiffonade a small pile of fresh basil leaves.
I mixed this into the creamed corn mixture and poured the whole mixture into the greased Pyrex loaf dish and flung open the oven.

OH how it twinkled! The texture so merry!
The surface like a new fresco, the smell like sweet heaven
My mouth was drawn up like a bow and the oven door was closed.

I caught a glimpse of the time.

With my broad face a smiling I turned over an hourglass and laughed as I took to my desk chair and created a blank page.

The next half hour went by quickly in spite of myself! A wink in my eye and a twist of my head, I knew I had nothing to dread.

I spoke not a word, but went straight to work researching and writing.

Then at about 25 minutes I turned with a jerk and peeked in the oven.

Giving a nod, it was off with the heat and oven door closed and pudding in place!

5 minutes later I sprang into action. I did not give a whistle, but dug through a draw for a spatula and pulled out a plate. I flipped the pudding over, onto the plate.

Like new falling snow I sprinkled the top with more finely chiffonade fresh basil.  I exclaim, to myself. I’m starving and couldn’t be happier with my Christmas corn pudding…and to all, have a rock’n good-night!”

Checking out of the market, the self scanning, self service computerized register wouldn’t read my debit card.  It didn’t take long for me to realize I was going to make a perfectly fine cucumber, red onion & tomato salad, sans fromage.

I’m also not going to call this Shepard’s salad just because I’ve seen it in numerous neighborhood Middle Eastern chow joints.  I’m calling this salad,  East End Salad.

SO you know the ingredients: Cucumber, red onion, tomato, lemon for juice, olive oil, vinegar and Salt of D Earth.

Now to MAKE THE SALAD

Cut a section out of the red onion, slice across the top and chop for minced pieces.

Sprinkle w. S&P but if you’re really lucky – Salt of D EARTH which everyone should have. Please contact me for SALT of D Earth – all organic salts, a variety of peppers,& herbs.

NOTE: salt helps to draw moisture out of vegetables, especially cucumbers & cabbage.

Next the cucumber – peel and 1/4 the cucumer lengthwise.  You can do this in shorter sections from the cucumber if you’re not so confident of your knife skills. I  used your everyday, regular cucumber, no fancy hothouse variety. Once the cuc is 1/4d remove the seeds by slidding the knife under the ‘row’ of them if you will. Slice the 1/4d section, in 1/2 pieces  across the  1/4d sections for bite size pcs.

In this salad I only used 1/2 of the tomato I had because you’ll see it is quite the gorgeous specimen.  In any case, cutting the tomato, again, 1/4′d sections, pull out the pulp, seeds and interior walls and thinly slice each section of tomato lenght wise and then a cross, again to make bite size pcs.

Squeeze some lemon juice from a section of a nice sized lemon.

I think that’s it – sprinkle with olive oil, more salt & a small amount of vinegar, maybe 3 or 4 Tablespoons, Dpending of course on your palatte.

So, the next time you see a Shepard’s salad in your friendly,neighborhood, Middle Eastern chow joint, order the fava beans – they’re much more time consuming and expensive to make.  Be resourceful, wise and eat well.

Keep it SIMPLE, keep it CLEAN.

Tomorrow morning I’ll make a fruit salad with the nectarine, orange & peach.

CHA!

FoodD*