We Just Ate Our Way Across Paris

Can we talk about food?

I am not a foodie. I have lived a vegetarian lifestyle more often than not for more than forty years. I have tremendous problems with dairy. So many things cause my digestive tract to revolt. But, early on in this trip, I decided to eat the foods I wanted, swallow copious amounts of Lactaid, and let the chips fall where they may. I mean, after all, this is Paris. How can one walk through the winding neighbourhoods and NOT stop at a boulangerie, a fromagerie, or a simple café for chocolat chaud? 

As The Professional Volunteer stated, "When in Paris, all the rules are out the window." 

And so...I ate the cheese. And it hurt. And I ate the croissants and the pain chocolat. And I suffered. And I ate the pain perdu made with croissants and tons of butter. And I farted. And I luxuriated in the baguettes slathered in butter. And I didn't care about the calories or the carbs because it was delicious. And I ordered an apple clafouti to delight in. And I finished every single bite. And we splurged on macarons because it is a moral imperative. And I drank champagne at the Moulin Rouge. And got a bit tipsy. And I ate a charcuterie board filled with cheese and fruit. And my lactose intolerance was very angry with me. It is simply impossible to come to Paris and not eat. If you can come here and stick to your diet, you are better humans than I am. But here's the thing. Why would you want to? I am in one of the world's great food capitals, and I'll be damned if I am going to let Jewish stomach issues or eating plans based on carb deprivation stop me. I figure that we are walking our asses off and that exercise is helping. My clothes still fit, and I am happy. I think that counterbalances the crazy snacking. My doctor may have something to say about my food porn excursion when I see her on Wednesday for my yearly physical, but I'll take the hit. "Come to Paris," they said. "Eat your way across the city."

Much has happened since I last posted, but I will hit the highlights at the bottom. Tonight is our final evening, and I just wanted to say how beautiful this trip has been. The weather has been close to perfect, except for a miserable rainy day yesterday, and even that didn't deter us. How can one go wrong on vacation with good friends, good food, and wondrous sites in one of the most beautiful cities in the world? I will count myself amongst the very fortunate.

A few random thoughts.

* If you plan on coming to Paris, play the tourist. It is really fun to do it that way. We went to the Moulin Rouge and had the best time. It is so kitsch and goofy, and yet, it was a blast. And the food was surprisingly good.  

* I can't imagine coming here and not visiting the galleries. Every single one was spectacular. We capped off our art tours with a visit to Giverny and Monet's house and gardens. The Husband figures he took at least one-thousand photos there. The rain stopped and was glistening in the gardens. I can't adequately describe it. It is a must-see. Monet did what most of us would love to do. He created his ideal space, then took that inspiration and put it on canvas. Simply stunning. We then drove to Auvers-Sur-Oise to visit where Van Gogh spent his final summer. We ate in the same café that he did and visited his room upstairs. We walked many of the same fields that acted as his muse in those final seventy days. He was incredibly prolific during this period, painting eighty canvases in seventy days. We stopped by the cemetery where he rests on our way out of town.

* I am less than enamoured by churches, but I must say that Sainte-Chapelle is a wow. The stained glass windows are off the charts. The chapel is small, but the windows left me breathless. The depictions of familiar bible stories had me searching the panels. I was less enthused by the illustrations of Moses with horns, but I cannot change some things. 

* As of last night, we had walked close to ninety kilometres. Add in a few more for today, and I am truly exhausted. I feel good about my exercise between the stairs and the uneven streets. Not a bad trip for activity.

* I loved Montemarte and the Jewish quarter. Rue de Rosiers was simply lovely, even in the rain. Every store seemed to have a mezuzah on the door, and we had terrific falafel. There are several memorials to the martyred Jews of France, and somehow we stumbled across them all. We even saw plaques dedicated to children at a school who didn't return from the camps. My heart was in my throat. We climbed to the top of the mountain and were gifted with a lovely view of the city. The Jews of Paris have done an excellent job of keeping the flame alive.

* As I said earlier, the weather has been near perfect. The rain yesterday was kind of yucky. We didn't let it stop us and managed to get to Sainte-Chapelle, Place de Vosges, a parfumerie for Twin Son's Better Half shopping, and Victor Hugo's house. The Husband and I were so tired last evening we came back to the hotel with a baguette and butter and ate dinner on the floor of Twin Son and His Better Half's room. Worked for me.

* I sometimes think that certain things are done explicitly for the tourists. In Montmarte, I saw an older gentleman playing La Vie en Rose on the accordion. Touristy but effective. I gave him a few Euros.

* This is an expensive city. Don't kid yourselves. There are ways to do it without breaking the bank, but it is costly. There is a refinery strike ongoing here, and it is pushing gas prices to crazy heights. The lineups for gas remind me of the 70s. If you think inflation is bad where you live, you should be in Europe now. It is off the charts.

And so, Paris 2022 draws to a close. We head to the airport tomorrow with too many calories in our stomachs and songs in our hearts. 

Au revoir. A bientôt.

Salut!

Monet's gardens

The sunflowers are a nice touch.

The stained glass at Sainte-Chappel

This is pain perdu made out of croissants

Passover and Food Choices

I sometimes wonder if social media was created for the expressed purpose of sharing food porn.

I am as far from a foodie as one can get. There are just too many comestibles out there that disrupt my delicately balanced digestive system or those to which I might have a moral objection. I rarely eat for sheer pleasure, but rather for nourishment, nutrition, and basic preference, (Hello, vegetarian sushi!) but I plead guilty to the online crime of occasionally sharing delectable images to Facebook, Instagram, and the like. When I do photograph my creations, it is mostly out of the sheer amazement that I was able to create anything that even closely mimics the recipe. (I am not in the least bit artistic, so any food that doesn't resemble vegetarian chili is a win.) So, sue me. Every so often I like to show off my rather limited culinary prowess.

At this time of year, it is almost impossible to avoid surfing food porn. The coming of the Passover holiday will do that to even the most lapsed of Jews. I cannot think of another observance that puts us more in touch with our inner gourmand and our continuing culinary legacy than does Pesach. (Unless of course we count the pure asceticism of Yom Kippur and that holiday makes us think less about food and more about hunger.) At Pesach, we become positively intransigent when it comes to preparations and menu planning. Favoured and cherished recipes, that still carry the stains of previous years' cooking, are dragged off the shelves. Family discussions about what dishes will or won't be served at the seder often take on greater significance and importance than planning for the event itself. Recipe sharing becomes almost cutthroat, and all of this takes place before even considering issues like kitniyot, vegetarianism, ethical eating, or nutrition. But, I have begun to wonder if we have become far too focused on the food and far less on what the food represents. In our zealousness to protect our food heritage, have we lost the simplicity to maintain our legacy?

Yes, we all know about the matzah and the maror and the significance of the seder plate. But what about the actual sitting down and the sharing of our birthright and our history? Do we really require an almost gluttonous experience to achieve this most important of Pesach lessons? And what does this type of overindulgence say about us as a people?

There is no question that food stimulates memory and that our memories are sensory. Many cannot even conceive of a holiday observance without Bubby's famous fish or Aunt Ida's chicken soup. The idea of introducing the perfectly legitimate and halachically-acceptable  rice, corn, and beans into Pesach ritual is anathema for some because it rubs against the grain of family history. I understand these positions. It is difficult to let go of things that we believe have become part of our ancestral fabric. But for me, it is more important to challenge and question past norms in order to build a Judaism that remains relevant for me in the here and now, and ethical, healthy, moderate, and sustainable eating is a huge part of that.

When I sit down to my seders this week, I want and will attempt to achieve a simple balance in my food choices. I don't want to remove the memories of my ancestors, but rather to build on them with care and consideration. I don't seek to redefine the holiday, but rather to adapt it to my twenty-first-century ideals of helping the planet and her creatures. When my Jewish heritage and beliefs easily coexist with my secular ones, Judaism becomes starkly relevant for a new age and only then will I be comfortable with the legacy that I am leaving for the next generation. We need for Pesach to be far more than "They tried to kill us, we survived, let's eat." 

This year, the first seder coincides fortuitously with Earth Day. The Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life created a few lovely readings that we can and should share at our tables. Here is one that particularly resonated with me.

This is the Lechem Oni, Simple Bread, that our ancestors ate when they were slaves in Mitzrayim. Let all who are hungry come and eat. Let all who are in need celebrate Pesach with us. This year, we are still alienated from the land and its living communities. Next year may we be more connected to our people’s homeland, Israel, and to the natural world that is homeland to us all. This year, we are still slaves, tied to materialistic and destructive consumption patterns. Next year, may we and all the peoples of the earth be redeemed by having enough to satisfy our needs without consuming beyond what the earth can sustain.

Chag Sameach.

Meatless Monday...The 2013 Edition

We are approaching an anniversary of sorts in our house. We are coming up on the fourth anniversary of The Husband and I adopting a completely vegetarian diet. While I have eaten mostly vegetarian for more than twenty-five years, The Husband took it on as a limited experiment. We both have had some grave moral concerns about factory farming and food supply insecurities over the years, and this was a way to demonstrate our commitment. We decided that this decision was for us and us alone, and that we would not become "preachy" in any way, shape, or form with our friends and family. How and what we choose to eat is our business.

It hasn't always been easy. Our two sons are still stunned at their father's rejection of a carnivore lifestyle and many of our friends feel as though they have lost a partner in their endeavours to achieve "meat sweats". But, we persevere. We have never felt better, healthier, and more aware of what we are putting into our bodies. We aren't perfect. There are still some steps to take, like a move to greater organic awareness and reducing our intake of the so-called "white foods" to even lower levels, but we are happy.

Recipe sourcing has always been a challenge, but it has become a shared activity. As a matter of fact, these Meatless Monday blogs have become some of my most widely read and shared posts over the last three years of Blog-a-palooza. Several friends have asked if they would be making a reappearance this month, because they too are searching for new and delicious vegetarian options for their families.

Catalan Sauteed Polenta & Edamame

This recipe was originally found at Eating Well. I have made a few personal changes like substituting edamame for butter beans to add protein and slicing the polenta and broiling it instead of stir-frying it. I like the way it holds together better. 

Ingredients

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 16-ounce tube prepared plain polenta, cut into 1/2-inch cubes or slices
1 clove garlic,minced
1 small onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 teaspoon paprika, preferably smoked, plus more for garnish
1 cup frozen and shelled edamame
4 cups packed baby spinach
3/4 cup vegetable broth
1/2 cup shredded Tex Mex Cheese (parmesan works as an lighter alternative)
2 teaspoons sherry vinegar

Preparations

1. Slice polenta and spray with cooking spray. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and a bit of garlic powder. Place under broiler until it begins to brown, about 5 minutes and then turn to do other side. Remove and set aside.

2. On medium heat, add 2 teaspoons of oil and garlic to a large non-stick skillet, and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 30 seconds.

3. Add onion and bell pepper; cook, stirring, until just tender, 3 to 5 minutes.

4. Sprinkle with paprika; cook, stirring, for 30 seconds.

5. Stir in beans, spinach and broth; cook, stirring, until the beans are heated through and the spinach is wilted, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in cheese and vinegar. Serve vegetables over polenta. Sprinkle with paprika, if desired.

Meatless Monday-The Decadent

Today's Meatless Monday is proof positive that.....

A. Eating a vegetarian diet doesn't have to be boring, mundane, or tasteless. And....

B. That eating vegetarian can feel decadent, rich, and creamy.

This recipe for Butternut Squash Risotto is so good that even the pickiest of eaters will love it. Risotto is one of those foods that is naturally rich in texture and flavour, so be careful. A little goes a long way as a main course. No substitutions allowed on the arborio rice. It carries a much higher starch content than other rices, and is what gives risotto its creaminess. I like to serve it with a green vegetable or a salad and dinner is done. While the recipe is not difficult, it is what my grandmother used to call "patschidik"or hands-on. You can't leave it alone and need to constantly stir it otherwise it either burns or turns gloppy. Dedicate the time and dinner will be great.

Butternut Squash Risotto
2 cups cubed butternut squash
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 onion, minced
1 cup Arborio rice
1/3 cup dry white wine
5 cups hot vegetable stock
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
salt and ground black pepper to taste

**If your butternut squash doesn't come already cubed, the easiest way to deal with that is to cut the squash in half, seed it carefully with a spoon, place it skin side down on a baking sheet in a 400 degree oven and bake it for 40-45 minutes. The flesh will then remove easily from the skin.


1. Place squash cubes into a steamer basket in a saucepan. Add water, cover, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Allow to steam until the squash is tender (10 to 15 minutes), then drain, and mash in a bowl with a fork. (Or use the oven method and then mash!)

2. Melt butter in a  large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion; cook and stir for 2 minutes until the onion begins to soften, then stir in the rice. Continue cooking and stirring until the rice is glossy from the butter, and the onion begins to brown on the edges, about 5 minutes more.

3. Pour in the white wine; cook, stirring constantly, until it has evaporated. Stir in the mashed squash and 1/3 of the hot stock; reduce heat to medium. Cook and stir until the stock has been absorbed by the rice, 5 to 7 minutes. Add half of the remaining stock, and continue stirring until it has been absorbed. Finally, pour in the remaining stock, and continue stirring until the risotto is creamy. Finish by stirring in the Parmesan cheese, and seasoning to taste with salt and pepper.



Enjoy!!

Just Another Meatless Monday....Whoa Ooo Whoa...

A friend at my synagogue stopped me a couple of weeks ago and told me that she loved the Meatless Monday posts, but wanted to understand my obsession with cauliflower. She really liked most of my recipe ideas, but she herself absolutely loathed cauliflower and broccoli. I laughed and apologized, but told her that it probably wouldn't end any time soon. The fact is that both vegetables are staples in our house, favourites of both The Husband and myself. They are cruciferous foods that add greatly to the vitamin and antioxidant intake of our vegetarian diet. As well, cauliflower is extraordinarily filling and hearty, and consumption tends to inhibit our dangerous evening snacking habits. Also....and this is important.....we both absolutely HATE eggplant which tends to be a go-to ingredient in far too many veggie entree recipes. (Please don't fill my inbox with "can't miss", "you haven't tried eggplant until you've tried this eggplant", or "even my kids eat eggplant this way" recipes. It is a non-starter!) Cauliflower seems to act as a main course  vegetable for us in a way that eggplant never will.

So, friends here comes another cauliflower recipe for Meatless Monday. Apologies to my friend at synagogue, but I will try to do better for you next week.

Sauteed Cauliflower with Israeli Couscous

Israeli couscous, also known as p'titim, is an Israeli developed toasted pasted shaped like little balls. It is made of hard wheat flour and toasted in the oven. It can also be found in whole-wheat and spelt varieties. It can be purchased at bulk, health food, or gourmet shops if not at the local supermarket. 

1 ½ cups Israeli pearl couscous
1 tblsp olive oil
4 cups cauliflower, florets
1 small shallot, peeled and sliced
sea salt and fresh ground pepper
pinch cinnamon, to taste
¼ cup dried tart cherries, cranberries, or raisins
1 tblsp red wine vinegar (I actually use a pomegranate vinegar because I love the flavour. Use your favourite.)
¼ cup parsely, chopped


1. Cook the couscous according to package directions until just tender. Drain if needed. Set aside.

2. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil. Add the cauliflower and shallots and sauté about 5 minutes or until the florets are slightly browned. Season with salt and pepper and cinnamon. Add the cherries and sauté about 2 minutes. Stir in the cooked couscous and red wine vinegar. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Sprinkle with chopped parsley or chives and serve hot.

Enjoy!!

R.I.P Twinkie

The daily rundown has brought news of an impending death. Today we must all bid farewell to the Hostess Twinkie. This morning, Hostess Brands Inc. made good its threats to liquidate the company in the wake of crippling debt and an unresolvable strike by it second largest union. The loss of over 18,000 jobs is tremendously sad and I feel great sympathy for those who will find themselves on the unemployment line, but I have to ask.....Should we be lamenting the loss of a product that is a nutritional vacuum and is a contributing destructive influence to our mutual health and well-being?

Twinkies list 37 or so ingredients on their package. 37!!! In his book Twinkie Deconstructed Steve Ettlinger plays detective and follows the ingredients found in some of our processed foods. Many are "often more closely linked to rocks and petroleum than any of the four food groups." Without getting into the grisly details, suffice it to say that there is more unnatural (in strictly eating terms) about a Twinkie than is natural. I mean, there must be a reason that the snack cake could survive a fall from a sixth floor window mostly intact, yes?

I get it. Twinkies and their Hostess cousins Cupcakes, HoHos, Devil Dogs, SnoBalls are a part of our collective nostalgia. We recall them in a sentimental haze along with Partridge Family lunch boxes and noontime double dutch competitions. But there are many products that were popular at the time; a time when we simply didn't know any better. Supposedly we do now. Would we feel this sadness if it were a cigarette, asbestos, or lead-based paint company ceasing operations? How many of us truly feel just fine about including a Twinkie in our kid's lunches?

I am not trying to dance on a grave yet cold. I really hope beyond hope that these workers find employment soon. I am simply wondering if perhaps a natural selective process, consumers making wiser and healthier food choices, has contributed to the Twinkies' fall from grace. We may economically and nostalgically lament the loss today, but won't we and our children will be healthier for it tomorrow?

Meatless Monday Soup Edition 2012

It is that time of year in the Great White North when soup can be the perfect meal for a chilly November evening. Last year I shared three of my favourite soup vegetarian soup recipes that are hits here. (Well, with me anyway!) The Husband is not a huge soup eater. He prefers his soup to eat like a meal, but neither of us like the canned stuff. Far too much sodium and ingredients that we cannot pronounce. Soup is too easy to prepare to resort to processed crap. So here are two recipes for soups that are hearty and truly satisfy.

Minestrone Soup 

2 tblsp olive oil, plus more for serving if desired
1 medium red onion, chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
1 large celery stalk, diced
1/4 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary, or 1/4 teaspoon dried
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 can (14.5 ounces) whole peeled tomatoes, drained and finely chopped
1 large potato, peeled and diced (I haves also used sweet potato)
1/4 head green cabbage (1/2 pound), cored and thinly sliced
1 can (15 ounces) kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 pound green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh basil, plus torn leaves for serving (optional)
3/4 cup grated Parmesan, for serving
Directions

In a large pot, heat oil over medium. Add onion, carrots, celery, red-pepper flakes, rosemary, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion begins to turn golden, 5 to 8 minutes.
Add tomatoes; cook until some of the liquid evaporates, 1 minute. Add potato, cabbage, cannellini beans, and 7 cups water; bring to a boil. Stir in green beans.
Reduce to a simmer, and cook until all the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve sprinkled with Parmesan and, if using, torn basil. Drizzle with more oil, if desired.
Variations
For variations on this classic version, try swapping green pepper for green beans, kale for cabbage, and chickpeas for beans

"Cream" of Broccoli Soup

1 bunch broccoli, diced and cut
2 tsp. butter
1 medium onion
1 large apple , peeled, cored and diced (granny smith is best)
4 cups vegetable stock
2 tablespoon parsely, minced

Melt butter. Add onion and apples. Cook slowly for 10 minutes over low heat. Add stock and broccoli. Bring to a boil. Cover and cook for 30 minutes. Puree in food processor or with hand held. Serve hot or cold.

Enjoy!

Meatless Monday

As a vegetarian, the question that I am most often asked from the incredulous meat-eater is "Don't you get tired and bored of your food?" It is surprising to most people that anyone could actually enjoy a completely meatless menu. Frankly, I never even think about it. Like anybody else who cooks, I am always searching for new recipes and ways to make our meals exciting, but I do so within the sphere of vegetarianism. We are not vegans. We do eat eggs and dairy products, but the health concerns of consuming too much of these foods does weigh heavily on our eating choices as well. That said, every so often I search for a treat that will appease both The Husband and me that will satisfy our palettes  while still maintaining our integrity.

There is a wonderful restaurant that came out of South Florida called Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza. Anthony's has always been a family favourite whenever we visit the Southern Home simply because it serves delicious food. Nothing fancy. Pizza and chicken wings. But it is to die for. My boys always need to make a stop there when they come down, as do most of my friends. The Husband and I are quite content with a veggie pizza and the wonderful salad. But last year, Anthony's introduced a new menu item; a roasted cauliflower pizza. Oh my! To say that we were in heaven is an understatement. It was nothing short of nirvana and it got me to thinking how I might duplicate this at home. 

Cauliflower is a funny vegetable for some. It is an either love it or hate it food, but in this house it falls definitively on the favoured side. Here is my attempt at Anthony's masterpiece. It wasn't the same. I couldn't even attempt to figure out what they put into the crust and I only have a standard oven not a coal-fired job, but it was pretty damn close. 

Our crust was a pre-prepared whole wheat fresh dough purchased at our local grocer. Any crust will do.

1. Cut a head of cauliflower into florets and place in a large bowl with 7-8 cloves of smashed garlic. (as much or as little as you want, but I should tell you that the garlic makes the flavour.)

2. Add olive oil, salt and pepper and mix well. 

3. Place on a baking sheet and roast at 425 degrees for 1/2 hour.

4. Once crust is spread out on a baking sheet, brush with olive oil. 

5. Add the cauliflower/garlic mixture. 

6. Sprinkle with a mixture of seasoned breadcrumbs and freshly grated parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes. 

7. Add shredded mozzarella and bake at 400 degrees for 18-20 minutes. (I am not a huge cheese lover, so I take it easy on the mozzarella. As well-all of our cheese was lactose free to accommodate me.)

Et Voila.....

Meatless Monday:Quinoa

The final Meatless Monday edition for this year's November blog extravaganza. I hope that you have tried a few of the recipes and given some extra thought as to the amount of meat that you are consuming on a weekly basis. My hope has not been to convert you to my dark vegetarian lifestyle, but rather to offer a bit of education and some delicious alternatives to the diet that do not require animal protein to be filling and nutritious. In today's Meatless Monday spotlight we see quinoa. Quinoa is a grain-like (note that it is grain-like) crop found mostly in South America and grown primarily for its seeds. It is closely related to crops like beets, spinach, and tumbleweeds, although I haven't seen anybody eat a tumbleweed since watching old John Wayne westerns. After it is harvested, the seeds are processed and the bitter outer coating is removed. Quinoa can be prepared much like rice, but it offers a complete protein in that all nine amino acids are present. It is also very rich in magnesium and iron, is a good source of dietary fibre, and is gluten free if that is an issue for you. Because it is relatively new on the North American scene, some Orthodox rabbis and most progressive Jewish organizations have classified it as Kosher for Passover rather than banish it to the kitniyot  pile. (Note: My family does eat kitniyot at Pesach and we do so proudly, but that is the subject for another post.) A few wonderful recipes using quinoa are offered below. Enjoy all.

Quinoa Salad


Ingredients:

1 cup quinoa, uncooked
8 asparagus
2 oz feta cheese, crumbled
¼ cup green olives, coarsely chopped
4 tbsp. sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
½ tbsp. olive oil+drizzle for asparagus
1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar (I use a wonderful fig balsamic)
salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Boil the quinoa in large saucepan and cook until tender, as per directions of package. While the quinoa cooks, prep the asparagus. Remove the woody ends by gently bending each spear until it breaks-it will naturally snap off at the right place. Lay the spears on a cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil and a pinch of salt. Place in the oven and roast for 10 minutes.
2. Chop the asparagus into bite-sized pieces and add to the cooked quinoa, along with the cheese, olives, sun-dried tomatoes oil, and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate until serving.

Quinoa Pilaf


Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 carrots, diced
1/2 cup quinoa
1 cup hot vegetable stock
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 cup frozen green peas, thawed
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

Pour oil into a medium saucepan, and place over medium heat. Add onion, celery, and carrots; cook and stir for 10 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.
Using a strainer, rinse quinoa under cold water. Drain well. Stir into the vegetables; cook and stir for 1 minute. Add stock, bay leaf and lemon rind and juice; bring to boil. Cover, and reduce heat to medium low. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until liquid is absorbed and quinoa is tender.
Discard bay leaf. Stir in peas, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve.

Quinoa Stuffed Peppers


Ingredients:

1 medium onion, finely chopped (1 cup)
2 Tbs. olive oil
2 ribs celery, finely chopped (1/2 cup)
1 Tbs. ground cumin
2 cloves garlic, minced (2 tsp.)
1 10-oz. pkg. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
2 15-oz. cans diced tomatoes, drained, liquid reserved
1 15-oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
3/4 cup quinoa
3 large carrots, grated (1 1/2 cups)
1 1/2 cups grated reduced-fat pepper Jack cheese, divided
4 large red bell peppers, halved lengthwise, ribs removed

Directions:

1. Heat oil in saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and celery, and cook 5 minutes, or until soft. Add cumin and garlic, and sauté 1 minute. Stir in spinach and drained tomatoes. Cook 5 minutes, or until most of liquid has evaporated.
2. Stir in black beans, quinoa, carrots, and 2 cups water. Cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 20 minutes, or until quinoa is tender. Stir in 1 cup cheese. Season with salt and pepper, if desired.
3. Preheat oven to 350°F. Pour liquid from tomatoes in bottom of baking dish.
4. Fill each bell pepper half with heaping 3/4-cup quinoa mixture, and place in baking dish. Cover with foil, and bake 1 hour. Uncover, and sprinkle each pepper with 1 Tbs. remaining cheese. Bake 15 minutes more, or until tops of stuffed peppers are browned. Let stand 5 minutes. Transfer stuffed peppers to serving plates, and drizzle each with pan juices before serving.

Happy Meatless Monday to all!

Meatless Monday:The Fall/Winter Soup Edition

Once again we find ourselves at Meatless Monday. It is amazing to me that since I began this Blogapalooza, (I confess that I blatantly stole that from my Aurora friend!) the Meatless Monday posts have generated the most feedback. It seems that we all are in search of new, refreshing, and healthy ways to feed our families. Once again I urge you to try to reduce the amount of meat in your diets. I have become tremendously fond of all of you and meatless meals, as I have stated before, are generally more healthy for your bodies and for the environment. Given the distinct chill in the air today, my Meatless Monday post is focusing on soups. I love soup. A hearty soup with a light salad and some fresh bread is a wonderful way to increase vegetable consumption, warm up the insides, and it is tremendously filling. Here are some of my winter favourites. Enjoy your Meatless Monday!

Lentil Soup Sababa Style
There is a wonderful middle eastern restaurant here in north Toronto called Sababa. Several years ago they shared their recipe for lentil soup which is to die for!


Ingredients:
1¼ cup red lentils
½ cup white rice
⅓ cup vegetable oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped
6 cup warm water
1 tablespoon vegetable stock
1 tablespoon cumin , ground
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon salt , or to taste
lemon wedges, optional

Directions:
1. Soak the lentils and rice in warm water. Add onion to hot vegetable oil in a large saucepan. Add the 6 cups of water and bring to a boil.
2. Drain the soaking lentils and rice, rinse well then add to boiling water with onion and boil 15-20 minutes.
3. Add vegetable stock, cumin, olive oil and salt. Serve each bowl with a wedge of lemon.

Spicy Black Bean Soup


Ingredients:
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 ½ cup red onion, chopped
1 4 ounce can mild green chiles, diced
2 clove garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon jalapeño, chopped with seeds
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 15 ounce can black beans, undrained
2 cup vegetable broth
8 tablespoon fresh cilantro, chopped
sour cream (Plain yogurt works just as well!)
tortilla chips

Directions:
Heat oil in heavy pot over medium high heat. Add onion, green chiles, garlic, jalapeno and cumin. Saute until onion is tender, about 5 minutes. Add beans with juices and broth. Bring soup to a boil. reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer until flavours combine, aout 15 minutes. Puree 3 cups soup in batches in blender. Return puree to same pot. Add 6 tablespoons cilantro. Season soup to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle soup into bowls with dollop of sour cream and tortilla chips. Sprinkle with remaining cilantro.

Tomato Bean Soup


Ingredients:
4 large onions, chopped
1 green peppers, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
1 28 ounce can tomatoes, undrained
3 tsp. chili powder
4 cups vegetable stock
1 can kidney beans, drained
1 can chick peas, drained
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Saute onion and peppers together is olive oil until soft. Combine remaining ingredients and cook until flavours come together. Could it be easier than that?

Disturbing, Disgusting, and Dumb

A few random items have caught my eye over the last few days and I must confess that each and every one elicited a response of "WTF?" I have to seriously wonder what went into the thought processes behind these campaigns. Somebody, somewhere had to realize that they would make the files of the disturbing, the disgusting, and the dumb.

Disturbing:

Clothing maker Benetton launched their new UnHate campaign yesterday with a series of creepy visuals of world leaders kissing each other. Check them out here.

Yes, that is the pope kissing an imam, Mr. Obama smooching with Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, Benjamin Netanyahu lip-locked with Mahmood Abbas, and Germany's Angela Merkel getting it on with Nicholas Sarkozy of France. It should be noted that the Vatican was so outraged about His Holiness puckering up, that Benetton pulled that picture from its campaign. Alessandro Benetton, executive chairman of the company launched the ads yesterday and attempted an explanation.

"While global love is still a utopia, albeit a worthy one, the invitation 'not to hate', to combat the 'culture of hatred', is an ambitious but realistic objective. At this moment in history, so full of major upheavals and equally large hopes, we have decided, through this campaign, to give widespread visibility to an ideal notion of tolerance and invite the citizens of every country to reflect on how hatred arises particularly from fear of 'the other’ and of what is unfamiliar to us."

While I can certainly appreciate the ideals of love and not hate, there is something untoward about these pictures. I am not getting the vibe of world peace that I believe that Benetton was aiming for, but rather an uncomfortable and squeamish feeling in the pit of my stomach. An age of understanding cannot be forced upon us with a kiss. There is actually a christological Judas imagery that comes to mind. In truth the photo of Angela Merkel and Sarkozy is the creepiest for me. It reduces one of the most powerful women in the world to a sexist punchline. This is just my opinion, but I certainly would be interested in others.

Disgusting: 


Just in time for American Thanksgiving, those whack jobs at PETA are at it again. In a campaign aimed squarely at children comes this little gem that is popping up on a roadside billboard near you.

Nice? Friendly? Grotesque!! And I'm a vegetarian! I have discussed PETA's over the top tactics before and how I truly believe that their mandate of animal protection gets lost in the morass when it behaves abhorrently and batshit crazy. All this ad serves to do is creep out a bunch of unsuspecting kids and probably land them on a therapist's couch trying to figure out from where their nightmares emanated. I know that it kept me up! All I could think about was some weird science experiment involving the dog Eddie from Frasier. Get with the program PETA. If you truly want to educate kids about ethical eating my advice would be to tone done the nonsense, stop trying to scare the shit out them, and stop thoroughly pissing off their parents. 

Dumb:

And now for the truly dumb. On Tuesday the United States Congress decided that pizza is a vegetable. From the Associated Press:

The final version of a spending bill released late Monday would unravel school lunch standards the Agriculture Department proposed earlier this year. These include limiting the use of potatoes on the lunch line, putting new restrictions on sodium and boosting the use of whole grains. The legislation would block or delay all of those efforts.The bill also would allow tomato paste on pizzas to be counted as a vegetable, as it is now. USDA had wanted to only count a half-cup of tomato paste or more as a vegetable, and a serving of pizza has less than that.Nutritionists say the whole effort is reminiscent of the Reagan administration's much-ridiculed attempt 30 years ago to classify ketchup as a vegetable to cut costs. This time around, food companies that produce frozen pizzas for schools, the salt industry and potato growers requested the changes and lobbied Congress.

A series of high-powered lobbyists from companies that produce and provide frozen pizzas and tater tots to school cafeterias managed to get the deep thinkers from the Congress to classify the two tablespoons of tomato sauce on a pizza as part of the daily requirement of vegetables that school children consume every day. And all of this whilst the United States is battling a growing obesity problem amongst the nation's young people. Jamie Oliver is out there somewhere crying into his fresh veg. Congress is sacrificing children's health and well-being in exchange for a deep-dish from Di Giorno. And we wonder why Americans have no faith in their legislative bodies.

If you have others from the files of disturbing, disgusting, and dumb please forward them to me or comment below.

P.S I've been syndicated on Blogher They liked my post entitled "What Have You Learned, Dorothy" so much that they published it. They like me!! They really really like me! Does this mean that I am now a professional writer? You decide.

Meatless Monday on Monday

Today we will actually do Meatless Monday recipes on Monday. Once again please know that I am not trying to convert anybody to what Twin Son calls the "dark side" of dining, (this week he actually saw my grocery list sitting out in the kitchen and added a melange of pork products to it in the mistaken hope that we might turn) but rather to make you more aware of the food that you are putting into your bodies. Meatless meals can be delicious, nutritious, environmentally friendlier, and are anything but boring.

The Husband and I love Indian recipes and we have taken to making many of them at home. One of our favourites is Chana Masala, a lovely spiced chickpea dish. Pair it with a roasted cauliflower or the Indian style okra and some rice and you have a terrific meal. Enjoy! 

Chana Masala

Ingredients

1 can chickpeas in water or 1 1/2 cups pre-cooked + 1/2 cup water

1/2 onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, diced

3 tbsp olive oil

juice from 1 lemon (approx. 2 tbsp)

1/2 tsp curry powder

1/2 tsp coriander powder

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp garam masala

1 large bunch of spinach (two handfuls) rinsed (this is optional, but I love it!)

Preparation

In a large skillet or frying pan, saute onions and garlic in olive oil until soft, about 3-5 minutes.

Add chickpeas straight from the can, including all the water. Add the spices and lemon juice, cover, and simmer about 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, adding more water if needed, until chickpeas are cooked and soft.

Reduce heat, add spinach and cover. Allow spinach to wilt for 2-4 minutes. Serve immediately.

Roasted Cauliflower with Indian Spices and Yogurt Dressing

Ingredients

1 head cauliflower (2lbs)

4 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp garam masala

Preheat oven to 400˚ F. Cut the cauliflower into small pieces and place into a plastic bag. In a cup with a spout, mix the dry ingredients with the olive oil and drizzle over the cauliflower. Mix swell and allow the dressing to coat the cauliflower evenly. Spread the cauliflower on a 9x13 baking dish and bake for 1 hour.

Combine 1 cup of yogurt with 1 tbsp of dill or cilantro, 1/2 tsp cumin and 1/2 tsp salt. Serve as dipping sauce to cauliflower.

Indian Style Okra

Ingredients

3 tablespoons butter or olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 pound sliced fresh okra

1 medium tomato diced

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

salt to taste

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, and cook until tender. Stir in the okra and the tomato and season with cumin, ginger, coriander, pepper and salt. Cook and stir for a few minutes, then reduce the heat to medium-low, and cover the pan. Cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally until okra is tender.

Dinner tonight is on me!!

Meatless Monday on Tuesday

We are coming up to an anniversary. On December 1st The Husband and I will be celebrating our second year since actively adopting a vegetarian lifestyle. As many of you know, this has been an on again off again proposition for me since my camp days, but when The Husband agreed to join me on my latest quest for ethical eating, it finally stuck. I suppose it is a bit like Weight Watchers. Food and diet plans really need familial support, and having a partner goes a long way towards making a difference. I have tried not to sound preachy about our eating habits, (it doesn't always work) but I do know that sometimes it does get in the way when socializing with friends and family. For those of you who have felt personally affronted by our fleshless fetish (yes, Twin Son-this means you!) I apologize, but I need you all to know that we are perfectly happy with our food choices and don't feel as though we are missing much, although I do crave a bit of sushi grade tuna now and then.

While I am not advocating that everybody join us in our vegetarianism, there are many reasons to attempt to eat less meat. There are a number of movements worldwide that advocate a Meatless Monday, i.e cutting out animal protein for only one day a week. The benefits are easily identifiable. Eating less meat can reduce the risks of cardiovascular diseases, some cancers, diabetes and obesity. It is better for the environment as it reduces methane and greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption, and dependence on fossil fuels. One does not have to fully embrace my cause to engage in ethical eating.

I had meant to use Mondays during NaBloPoMo to share recipe ideas for Meatless Mondays. I obviously messed that up yesterday, but let's just give me a mulligan and call it even. Today's Meatless Monday on Tuesday recipe is Black Bean Enchiladas. This is actually what I am making for dinner this evening.

Black Bean Enchiladas (source: all recipes.com)

Ingredients

1 green pepper, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes 

1/4 cup picante sauce

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

2 cups cooked brown rice

8 (6 inch) flour tortillas, warmed

1 cup salsa

1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (I use lactose free)

3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves

(I add a fresh jalapeño that was minced)

Directions

In a large nonstick skillet, saute the green pepper, onion and garlic in oil until tender. Add the beans, tomatoes, picante sauce, chili powder, cumin and red pepper flakes; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, until heated through and mixture thickens. Add rice; cook 5 minutes longer or until heated through.

Spoon a rounded 1/2 cup down the center of each tortilla. Fold sides over filling and roll up. Place in a 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking dish coated with nonstick cooking spray. Spoon salsa over each tortilla. Cover and bake at 350 degrees F for 25 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with cheese and cilantro. Bake 2-3 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.

Delicious sounding? You bet! Please share your own Meatless Monday on Tuesday recipes. I am forever searching for new and exciting ways to spruce up our diet. 

Really? You Want to Eat That?

My parents (all of them, of course) are currently travelling through the Amazon and the Galapagos Islands. And in related news, McDonalds has brought back the McRib. Confused? I promise you that there is a point and a connection. Bear with me.

My parents are not the type of people to let life pass them by. They are active participants in all that they survey, and are fully determined to leave this earth with no regrets. Thank God they have been blessed with the means and the health to do much of what they choose, and I as their daughter could not be more proud.  While they certainly enjoy a relaxing senior's cruise from time to time, to sit on a beach and watch the waves, they are in their absolute glory when their travels take them to some exotic locale where they can immerse themselves in local culture, traditions, and food. Hence this month's trek to the rain forests of South America and to the birth of Darwinism. Here was last evening's text message exchange as they checked in with their nervous offspring.

Mom: Great day. Bird watched and hiked in jungle. Panned for gold and rubber-tubed down the Napo River. I jumped in and let the tide carry my down the river. Having a wonderful time.
Dawn: You daredevil!! Who are you and what have you done with my mother?
Mom: This trip is so exciting. Have pictures of tarantulas and Dad holding a scorpion. Today we found a boa constrictor and Other Dad put it over his shoulders. So much more fun than seeing churches and cathedrals. Love.


I want to be them when I grow up. I want to live life to the fullest and jump into a river slide like Kathleen Turner in Romancing the Stone. I want to hold tarantulas and watch the sunset over the Amazon and I want to still be able to do all of this in my golden years.

So what does all of this have to do with McDonalds and its infamous McRib? Well....first some background.

The pressed pork rib-like sandwich was first introduced by Mickey-D's in 1982 and quietly disappeared again three years later. It has sporadically shown up ever since usually to great fanboy squeals of delight and brilliant marketing. It has developed a cult-like following and has generated Facebook pages, a Twitter account, and McRib Locator Sites. But, it is a cornucopia of everything that is wrong with twenty-first century eating. As Time magazine analyzed this week, the McRib is about as bad as it gets for knowingly putting a noxious substance into one's body.

If you haven't indulged in one yet, here's what you're missing: azodicarbonamide, ammonium sulfate and polysorbate 80 — those are just three of the 70 ingredients (34 in the bun alone) that go into the BBQ pork sandwich, according to the restaurant's website.

These components are in small enough quantities to be innocuous. But it's still a little disconcerting to know that, for example, azodicarbonamide, a flour-bleaching agent that is most commonly used in the manufacture of foamed plastics like in gym mats and the soles of shoes, is found in the McRib bun. The compound is banned in Europe and Australia as a food additive. (England's Health and Safety Executive classified it as a "respiratory sensitizer" that potentially contributes to asthma through occupational exposure.) The U.S. limits azodicarbonamide to 45 parts per million in commercial flour products, based on analysis of lab testing.

I am often stunned that anybody would eat crap like this. Fried butter at state fairs, burgers using donuts as buns, and sandwiches with enough fat and salt in them to bloat entire fleets of dirigibles have become a normative part of North American eating habits. We should all be crying "Uncle".

I am not a food prude. I have my vices. I like an occasional Diet Coke even though I know it is made of shit. I love my share of french fries and onion rings just like everybody else, and I have often stated in this space that chocolate is like air to me, but I like to know what I am eating and where my food is coming from. If I can't pronounce the ingredients in my daily fare, then I certainly should not be ingesting them. And for the most part, I try. It is a matter of health and welfare for me. I want to live long enough to safari in Africa and climb the volcanoes in Hawaii. I honestly have a hard time believing that anybody would choose eating a McRib over health and vigour in their later years. You cannot tell me that at the end of our days we want to say "I'm glad I passed on that trip to the Great Barrier Reef, but I loved me my pork sandwich!!" Some day I want to be able to take a picture like this one my mother sent me last evening.