(Photo: Ann Grummon, www.6acrestudio.com)
As life has gotten bigger and wilder in the last few weeks, my mind has become full of untamed beasts, all clamoring for my undivided attention. I have spent the last few days trying to wrestle each of these beasts into cages, to no avail. They will be wild. So, rather than a trip to the zoo, how about a little safari through life in its natural habitat? Here we go.
Posted by realfoodroad on May 18, 2013
http://realfoodroad.com/2013/05/18/quests/
It is finally starting to look and feel like spring around here. After dropping an additional foot of snow on our winter-weary heads, Mother Nature has at least had the decency to come back every day and melt it. The frozen ground underneath the ice and snow is turning to mud, and little green shoots are poking their heads out to feel the warm (!) sunshine. All the mud has earned this time of year an in-between seasonal nickname: Mud Season. But it is also Maple Tapping Season here in northern New England, and there is nothing, I mean nothing, like real maple syrup that went from tree, to pail, to tub, over fire, to jug, to you. I have waxed on about REAL maple syrup before, so I will stop now.
Posted by realfoodroad on April 3, 2013
http://realfoodroad.com/2013/04/03/apple-maple-boston-baked-beans/
Just a quick post to let you know I have not gone completely insane since Mother Nature decided we needed another 12 inches of snow in the yard. Even Luna the Dog doesn’t want to go out in it anymore.
The pizzas and little mini-pies were our impromptu celebration of Pi Day, which to those not blessed/cursed with the geek gene, was March 14. (3/14, get it?) I was doubly entertained by the fact that our pizzas, bedecked with sausage in the shape of the greek letter pi, were also round, and pi is the number that you multiply the diameter of a circle by, to get the circumference of the circle…
Sorry.
The pizzas were a) Pepperoni and Sausage (The Boy’s favorite), and b) Prosciutto, Dried Fig, Gorgonzola, and Sausage (for The Husband and I). When figs are in season, we love to top slices of fig with a little Gorgonzola cheese, and wrap them in prosciutto, so I figured the combo had to work on pizza, and it did.
The little pies were made with the ridiculous unitasker I fell for, the Babycakes Pie Pop Maker. I admit it, I was seduced by the Suzie Homemaker siren song of all the possibilities this appliance promised: desserts, party treats, appetizers, all at my fingertips. Not to say the little dears aren’t tasty (fill them however you want, use your favorite crust recipe or frozen puff pastry dough), but the thing is so obnoxious to clean, it’s not exactly a go-to toy for some quick fun with your food.
But they’re round. Plus no one was really into an actual pie, so making one seemed dangerous (for me, the one who would end up eating it).
So, that was our Pi Day! I’ll see you soon, somewhere down the (hopefully) sunny Road.
Posted by realfoodroad on March 19, 2013
http://realfoodroad.com/2013/03/19/belated-happy-pi-day/
This year’s deathmarch through winter has seemed interminable, and has brought on two maladies: a bit of Writer’s Block, and that peculiar cube-shaped fever known as Minecraft Mania. The Boy and I have been playing a lot of Minecraft together, it being far more colorful and compelling than the actual scenery outside. But I have been cooking, so, time to come out of hibernation (cube-ernation?) and let you see what I’ve made.
Posted by realfoodroad on March 9, 2013
http://realfoodroad.com/2013/03/09/meyer-lemon-bars/
Whoa, where did that week go? Well, actually, I’ll tell you where it went-into a lot of pet care and maintenance, that’s where. Nothing terribly serious, but let’s just say the pets made a lot of extra laundry this week. You really don’t want to know (and if you have pets, you already have an idea.) Oh, and then there was the day I wore myself out scraping ice from the driveway. So done with winter. This will be a quick post, just to let everyone know we’re still alive and kicking here on the Road.
This was dinner the night of the snowstorm. The menu was planned by The Boy, the meal was mostly prepared by The Boy, and it was also plated by The Boy. What we have here are Salmon Fish Fingers, and Crispy Salmon Skin Strips. They are served on a bed of buttered orzo, and accompanied by steamed broccoli. I removed the skin from the salmon, then The Boy cut it into portions, and they were salted, peppered, and dredged in flour. While I pan-fried the salmon, The Boy put the orzo into boiling water, and trimmed the broccoli for steaming. I sauteed the skin strips in a very hot pan, while The Boy stirred lots of butter into the cooked, drained orzo. Finally, The Husband took the lovely photo of the finished dish. It was delicious, and we enjoyed it all the more because we all put something into it. The Boy wants to add bread crumbs to the fish fingers for next time. I’m looking forward to the next time we cook together, no matter what it is.
Cook with your family, cook whatever you all like, and see if it doesn’t taste just a little better, with that special added ingredient. You know the one.
See you on down the Road.
Posted by realfoodroad on February 17, 2013
http://realfoodroad.com/2013/02/17/a-family-effort/
See what I did there? Sorry if it was too cornball for you, but I couldn’t resist.
I hated beets as a child, but only by proxy. You see, my mother detests beets. I’m not sure “detests” is a strong enough word to describe the way her whole face screws up in disgust just to utter the word “beets”. So you can understand why the wretched root was never served to me as a child, and I assumed I would hate beets just as much as my mother did.
But time passes, and we grow up, and move out into the wider world, and begin to discover which of the things our parents told us were right, and which were fundamentally wrong, wrong, wrong.
Posted by realfoodroad on January 29, 2013
http://realfoodroad.com/2013/01/29/unbeatable-borscht/
During a recent phone conversation with a good friend, the topic of dinner came up. My friend inquired about what I was planning to cook, undoubtedly expecting me to fire off some interesting, amazing-sounding meal. My answer (hopefully not too disappointing) was “American Chop Suey”.
Posted by realfoodroad on January 17, 2013
http://realfoodroad.com/2013/01/17/american-chop-suey/
Over the holidays, I tested a recipe for the FOOD52′s Pomegranate recipe contest, and was fortunate enough to have my testing notes featured on their website (look for mamamarti’s comments-that’s me), as well as a fabulous new side dish to add to my recipe files.
This dish is one of the most rocking grain dishes I have ever eaten. If you have never eaten farro before, don’t let that stop you. It is in the wheat family, with a nutty flavor and satisfyingly chewy texture, and cooks as easily as rice or barley.
So, without further ado, I present THE LINK to the recipe. Congratulations, Ann S., for being a Community Pick on FOOD52, and thanks for sharing this recipe with the world.
Posted by realfoodroad on January 11, 2013
http://realfoodroad.com/2013/01/11/farro-with-roasted-sweet-potato-kale-and-pomegranate-seeds-food52/
(Edited to clarify when the peas go into the dish-doh!)
Hoppin’ John is traditionally eaten on New Year’s Day in the Southern U.S., for good luck. The black-eyed peas are symbolic of coins or pennies, so represent prosperity. We are not Southern, but the whole family loves this dish, New Year’s or not. It makes a big enough batch that The Husband can take some in his lunch for a few days.
Posted by realfoodroad on January 3, 2013
http://realfoodroad.com/2013/01/03/a-hoppin-happy-new-year-to-you/
You know, I think leeks are magic. Everything is better with leeks. The humble potato meets up with leeks in Julia’s Potage Parmentier, and they become a soup that you want to share with everyone and no one all at the same time. They are a depth-adding member of a fall/winter vegetable soup. They are a mild, yet assertive companion for chicken and pork in almost any form. In the dish above, they transform simple white rice into a luscious comfort-food side dish that seems like there’s more to it than there is.
Posted by realfoodroad on December 6, 2012
http://realfoodroad.com/2012/12/06/sauteed-rice-with-leeks/
