tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16224312529752094952024-02-02T00:59:22.191-06:00Life of CynEat,
cook, and
moreCynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.comBlogger51125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-67184882116731025292011-07-20T08:33:00.003-05:002011-07-20T09:14:58.023-05:00Study: Beware restaurant calorie listingsIt's no shocker that a study this week in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that the calorie contents listed by popular restaurants was sometimes blown away by the actual calorie contents of the food.
To be fair, the majority of calorie listings were pretty much on the mark. But if you need to watch your calories, that isn't good enough, especially considering that some of Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-32328130613508720022011-03-11T18:17:00.004-06:002011-03-12T14:27:28.342-06:00Sea no evil (salmon or trout with coconut sauce recipe)
Trout with coconut sauce
The pun is deliberate. As lent has gotten under way, Catholics spend several weeks eating no meat (at least not from land or air) on Fridays and heading for the fish counter.
The problem is that many choices, at least at my supermarkets, can be bad for the oceans (and us) in the long run. Some species, including Chilean sea bass, are overfished to the point that theirCynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-88352872625143535642011-02-14T23:55:00.000-06:002011-02-14T23:55:20.641-06:00Sweet dayIf it were up to me, the only gift acceptable or traditional on Valentine's Day would be chocolate. Just try eating roses, diamonds or lingerie. Well, maybe I should leave the latter off the list. There are purportedly edible versions, BUT ...lingerie isn't really a gift for the recipient anyway.
Here's to chocolate.
My husband bought me the chocolate pictured. He knows me. Sweet.Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-59770719475167633082011-02-02T23:33:00.006-06:002011-02-03T13:47:52.072-06:00Wrapping up another year (dumpling recipe)
These dumplings tasted delicious in spite of improper folding.
Gong xi fa cai, xin nian kuai le, or happy new year, everyone!
The eve of the Chinese New Year found the family and me snowbound. The only thing I forgot to pick up before the storm was a package of dumplings, or jiao zi, for our dinner to celebrate the arrival of the Year of the Rabbit.
That's almost like forgetting the stuffing Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-19196220157977932212011-02-01T19:56:00.002-06:002011-02-01T22:11:11.311-06:00Soup dreams
A blizzard is whipping the house, it's effectively 4 degrees below zero outside with the wind chill, and the family and I are relaxing. We don't have to be on the roads, and there's plenty of food to keep us fed for a couple weeks.
Not so long ago I was one of those people who rushed to the supermarket the day before a major storm (or even after the deluge of flakes started) to grab what I Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-87772882320850815392011-01-10T17:10:00.002-06:002011-02-01T22:20:21.369-06:00Braised leeks with lemon vinaigrette
When my husband and I went to Paris (while we were still dating), we went to an old-fashioned little neighborhood restaurant that we had found. I don't remember how we found it, but we had heard that the former prime minister liked the place and we wanted to check it out.
Since we were in the neighborhood, and it was a weekday and we were early (and presentable) for dinner, I figured we could Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-32953862754216762582011-01-06T23:01:00.003-06:002011-01-06T23:24:31.497-06:00Homemade Galette des Rois for Epiphany
A galette des rois, or king cake, is relatively easy to put together.
When I was 5 years old my family moved to an apartment complex in St. Louis, Mo., where my mother got to know a French Canadian woman and I got to play with her daughter, Nathalie.
One evening we went to visit and played what to me was the coolest game. My parents and I and Nathalie and her parents sat around a table for Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-47103975104009341752011-01-05T01:14:00.003-06:002011-01-05T01:22:46.966-06:00Baby Steps on Road to Improvement
Cornmeal-coated tilapia with couscous, lemony carrots and green beans
I may not make New Year's resolutions, but that doesn't mean I think my self improvement is done. It's just that I'm constantly reflecting on myself and how I can continue to grow, learn new skills, make smarter decisions, treat people and the planet with respect and be a better person in general. Shouldn't those aspirationsCynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-7914313304067414712011-01-03T11:34:00.056-06:002011-01-03T13:07:30.620-06:00Hope for 2011: Sense and Sensitivity
I have high hopes for every year, 2011 being no exception. If I didn't, then what would be the point of going on?
Of course, I won't hold my breath for some things. For example, I hope that more people learn to use some common sense, which is rather an oxymoron isn't it? Sense is very uncommon. I'm not talking about intelligence. Sure we could use more intelligence to go around. But the really Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-55467794503618202082010-12-30T00:46:00.001-06:002010-12-30T00:54:38.449-06:00Spinach Bacon Quiche
I love eggs in just about any form, so it's inevitable that they show up on my table at all times of day. It doesn't hurt that they are so easy to prepare, which is a nice break from some of the other cooking projects I've had during the holidays. Sometimes I make bacon, egg and cheese sandwiches. Sometimes I have soy sauce eggs with rice or noodles. And then sometimes I bake quiche.
The first Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-44185955533413585552010-12-19T06:26:00.000-06:002010-12-19T06:26:16.399-06:00Pineapple Isn't Citrus (Not that there's anything wrong with that)
A pomelo and lemons.
Since when is pineapple considered citrus? At least since yesterday for The Wall Street Journal, which featured a story and "recipes that unleash the sweet power of citrus," including instructions for fritters in which pineapple is the only fruit.
The reporter wrote, "It's fitting that chefs looking to play around with produce turn their attention to fragrant citrus—Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-59837255599762097512010-12-09T10:38:00.004-06:002010-12-09T13:43:00.205-06:00Peanut Butter and Chocolate Financiers
Small squares of chocolate are hidden in the madeleine-shaped financiers.
Eggs are an important component of so many of my recipes, so when I found out about the salmonella outbreak in August and then the massive recall of eggs from two egg producers tied to the outbreak, I worried that the eggs I was feeding my kids were dangerous time bombs. I checked our refrigerator. Ours weren't part of Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-56430282099820137202010-12-06T04:37:00.002-06:002010-12-06T04:48:56.922-06:00Toaster Pastry Tussle
The pastry cools in peace, until my son and I go for it simultaneously.
It's been far too long, but at least I've been cooking and baking during my absence.
One of my favorite things was an impromptu Pop-Tart, er, I mean toaster pastry, that I made to use extra pie crust dough. I filled it with some pear butter sitting in the refrigerator.
I'm going to have to make a batch of dough just for Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-88224976696326120152010-11-02T05:58:00.002-05:002010-11-02T13:46:48.411-05:00Easy Peasy Split Pea Soup
Soups are a good way to use leftovers and prevent waste.
Coincidentally, Tara Parker-Pope in The New York Times writes about wasting food just as I'm on a kick to use up leftovers instead of forgetting them.
Now that we have a preschool tuition to pay that we didn't last year, I've had to be much more conscious of our expenses, including groceries. It's easy to underestimate the cost ofCynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-78914720480428830502010-10-21T17:21:00.001-05:002010-12-12T13:02:14.811-06:00Asian Lettuce Wraps
I love easy meals, and I love meals the kids will eat. I'd say lettuce wraps filled with this sweet and savory, barely tangy filling falls into both categories. I don't have time to nag anyone to eat, and I hate - really hate - to toss perfectly good food in the garbage. An added bonus is this recipe is budget and health conscious, especially when some of the meat is replaced with textured Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-79685172758645033132010-10-06T16:09:00.002-05:002010-10-06T16:27:15.193-05:00Posole, and a Little Sous Chef
Posole, a hominy and pork soup, uses inexpensive shoulder, or Boston butt.
Posted at 4:09 PM
This past weekend my 3 year olds were sick — and crabby and irrational. And that's different, how? Oh, right. It's even more fun for their 7-year-old brother to rattle their cage. All. The. Time. Think "monkey house on Mountain Dew." The sun was shining, the air was crisp, and the universe had Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-44193914323074983222010-10-01T14:22:00.002-05:002010-10-06T16:24:59.883-05:00World's Smallest Stuffed Pepper
Posted at 2:22 PM
Among the peppers I've gotten from the farmers market were a few miniature bell peppers. I wasn't sure what I'd do with them at the time. They were just so cute I had to take them home with me.
Finally I decided to fill them with some leftover empanada filling, a bit of cheese and a little green tomatillo salsa.
Unfortunately there were only three. As for the other peppers ...Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-37248678697778843142010-09-27T17:14:00.028-05:002023-10-12T13:00:47.343-05:00Cheap Dinner: Soy Braised Chicken
Lu ji tui, or soy sauce cooked chicken legs, is a bargain meal.
Posted at 5:14 PM
Why did the cook cross the supermarket aisle? To get to the chicken calling, "Cheap, cheap!"
One of my supermarkets was selling drumsticks this morning (and still is) for 89 cents a pound, so I had a great reason to make one of my favorite comfort foods, lu ji tui, or soy braised chicken legs. Not counting the Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-66076278408316423592010-09-25T15:24:00.011-05:002010-09-28T04:34:21.383-05:00Eye CandyPosted at 3:24 PM
This is one of the vendors' tables at the Bloomington, IL, farmers market (this morning).
It may be tiny compared with those in New York City or Paris, but it has its gems.
I got enough long beans to double my recipe — after one of the vendors collected the loose ones that had fallen in the bed of his truck — and I nabbed a creamy sheep's milk cheese called Ewe Bloom made Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-34440237988207225382010-09-24T08:00:00.188-05:002010-10-07T19:16:34.993-05:00Farmers Market Fakes
These white radishes were grown locally.
Posted at 8:00 AM
One of my favorite vendors at a Saturday farmers market in Bloomington, IL, posts pictures of his crops and livestock on the farm's blog. Customers get monthly tours during the growing season. It's the real deal. They see for themselves where their long beans and shiso come from.
Purple and green long beans
When many of us head Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-47677472316328236852010-09-21T14:18:00.014-05:002023-10-12T13:25:50.228-05:00I'll Be Looking at the Moon, But I'll Be Seeing Mom
Moon cakes (月餅) range from traditional to cartoon inspired or ice cream filled.
Posted at 2:18 PM
When I was a girl, my mother's monthly loot from the Chinese grocery store occasionally included moon cakes. Red bean or lotus seed paste filled a tender layer of thin dough molded into shapes with symbols I didn't understand. A full moon of yolk, from a preserved duck egg, virtually glowed at the Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-24115112629082350822010-09-20T19:36:00.002-05:002010-09-21T14:47:17.359-05:00One Potato, Two Potato ...
Potato latkes, the edges still shatteringly crisp.
I was making a gratin Dauphinois and realized I had cleaned and peeled too many potatoes. I couldn't just slice and pile them into the baking dish; that would make the gratin too deep.
What to do if you have too many potatoes? Or should I say, what not to do with extra spuds? Celery root and potato mash? Fries? Wedges? Gnocchi? PotatoCynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-71666295869996783842010-08-28T21:08:00.002-05:002010-09-25T14:00:22.908-05:00Watermelon Strawberry Smoothie
When I was studying in Aix-en-Provence, France, there was a little hole in the wall called Crepes a Go Go where I'd regularly stop to pick up my lunch, usually an egg and spinach filled crepe with a smoothie on the side. What I liked best about it was that I could choose the fruit and they would take my chosen fruits, a whole kiwi or pear or peach, and peel and cut it right in front of me beforeCynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-80736260701037934992010-08-20T10:47:00.006-05:002010-10-07T07:58:11.418-05:00Egg-Free, Make that Dairy-Free and Fat-Free Too, Vegan Banana Ice Cream
Just as the chicken shit was hitting the fan and hundreds of millions of eggs were being recalled, I was playing around with an egg-free, fat-free, dairy-free "ice cream" recipe I had seen bouncing around the Internet for a while.
To be precise, I probably shouldn't call it a "recipe" because it's just one ingredient. But really, this frozen banana whip does taste like ice cream -- even my Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1622431252975209495.post-34983023883881297742010-08-15T23:51:00.007-05:002010-09-24T18:10:10.918-05:00Chinese Pulled Pork Sliders, or Non-traditional Gua Bao
Pork shoulder makes a great substitute for belly in this sandwich.
Until I learned about the Momofuku eateries in Manhattan and eponymous cookbook this year, I hadn't realized that Chinese pork sandwiches, a popular menu item, were so appreciated here in the states.
Momofuku's creator, Korean American chef David Chang, apparently knows a good thing when he tastes it and has shared his Cynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11884673305001701045noreply@blogger.com0