Since I’ve retired from restaurants, I’m grateful for not working the big holidays. Living in the American Southwest, this means I duck taco station duties on one of the most celebrated days besides Mother’s Day: Cinco de Mayo.
It’s the first of May and that brings with it, Beltane, a celebration of fertility and health. There are other wonderful celebrations that happen this time of year, but May Day is one of the oldest on-going celebrations. Along with this day, there is also food, lots and lots of food. Vegetables and fruits come forth and provide sustenance for us humans who have braved the long, cold winters, dreaming of that first taste of fresh asparagus or strawberries.
Restaurants come and go. Aspiring chefs, people who have money to invest, and those encouraged by friends and family with money to invest decide to open concept restaurants without researching the food and the area.
Usually these folks have no understanding of how the food industry works (if they aren’t an experienced chef). Whether it is due to high food cost, bad management, or an ill-conceived concept placed in a non-supportive or hard to get to location, they fail, and fail hard. Doors close as fast as they open.
April is upon us and the national food holidays certainly reflect that. This month there are many food days for vegans to celebrate along with omnivores. It is probably due to the fact that April brings with it full on spring. Lush, beautiful produce spilling out over the bins at the market.
Some of the month-long celebrations include National Soyfoods Month, National Garlic Month, National Florida Tomato Month, and National Pecan Month.
March is a month-long celebration of celery, so here's what you need to know about this often overlooked veggie.
Celery has been consumed by humans for a long time now. It’s that vegetable that we grab at the store, because we were taught to by our parents or grandparents, and then it lives in the crisper (the vegetable drawer) long past its expiration date (value of vitamins), until it goes limp and brown and finally gets thrown away. Why is celery purchased then ignored? Deep in our genetic bones we know that celery IS good for us. At some level we know that if we eat it, we are helping our bodies in some way.
I love doing chef demos. It gives me a chance to cook a few recipes, share lots of food facts & cooking tips, and show off my chopping skills. (How fast can YOU chop cabbage?) A few years ago I was invited to participate in "Party in the Parking Lot," an event to help raise interest for VegCo, an all vegan grocery store in Phoenix, Arizona. As with any live event I had fun, but also had challenges -- like almost catching myself on fire.
I made Portabello Fajitas with Ancho Chili Sauce, and Summer Citrus Coleslaw.
This is our Google+ Hangout with the Kitchen Shaman from Sunday, March 8th. We discussed what food is in season, working as a cook in the culinary industry, who I am, and what I do. I'll be having more Hangouts in the future, and am hoping for a co-host to help bounce ideas off of.
It’s National Frozen Food Day (Frozen Food Month, too!) and there are thousands of different kinds of frozen foods on the market, but what is available for a plant-based eater? Not so long ago there were only a handful of products to choose from and it was usually the obligatory cardboard-tasting veggie burger or soy patty.
The companies that are coming up now hold to higher standards and integrity and are gaining a strong following.
There are many, many veggie burger recipes and books with recipes for meatless burgers, so why the motivation to hunker down and make my own? Determination. Every time I attempted making a veggie burger it did not have the right consistency. It fell apart. It was too wet or not the right flavor. Armed with Southwestern cuisine flavors, I created this veggie patty that pleased both the Spouse and my inner chef.
Spices. We love them. We use them.
Nutmeg is a small round seed that comes from the inside of an apple looking fruit. It is encased in the “netting” of mace, another spice that has a variety of culinary uses.
Once spices became common and lost their mystique, (sometime between the 18th and 19th centuries) the fragrant and aromatic nutmeg was pushed back into the Bakers rack. After centuries of spicing meats and poultry, it became a base seasoning for desserts.
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