Pleasures of the Palette
I was part of an incredible event at work yesterday, Pleasures of the Palette. It was exciting and fun, and I had a chance to meet some very interesting and talented chefs. I really do love my job!
Author: Kitchen Shaman
Wooden Spoon
So I have a question for all you culinarians out there; Do you have a favorite wooden spoon?
I have several wooden spoons. One I use only for bread baking, and batter. It is large with a blue handle. One I found at the .99 cent store, it is a spatula type, and great for saute. And my favorite is the small one I got from my mother’s kitchen. It is old and used, and has a short handle, and great for gravies, and small batch sauces.
Tell Kitchen Shaman your favorite wooden spoon story. In the meantime, here are some other stories to share.
The Mystery of tomatoes
I went shopping this morning with a plan to spend some time in my kitchen. I was thinking a fresh tomato sauce would be nice. They had some nice vine ripes at the market. There were some left over grilled veggies in the fridge that would add a nice smoky flavor to the sauce.
As I was boiling, peeling, and seeding the tomatoes, I thought to myself, “why do we go through all this trouble? I looked up one of the other culinary sites I have saved, and found this:
Latest Culinary Feat
We had guests over the weekend. I like to cook for people when they stay with me. However, these folks were busy with a conference, so they were in and out all weekend. I figured Sunday would be a good day to cook for them. (I did not know that they would be having dinner at the conference as well).
I planned to make Spring Rolls, and an orientalish fried brown rice. A light but filling “snack.” I had all the ingredients but one. Red Fresno (or red jalapeno) chilis. I live in Southern Arizona, I ought to be able to find a fresh red chili somewhere.
How I learned to be a right-handed Chef
A few weeks ago, my partner and I were preparing to move. I was pushing, not carrying, boxes down the hallway, and one slipped off the other, and I fell. My thumb was extended from my hand and the result is a severely damaged ligament in my thumb on my dominant hand.
I’ve been in a cast/removeable splint since the accident on 6/20. Consequently, I have not been working. (It’s a good thing, it is off-season for Southern Arizona!) I’ve had three sets of x-rays, and a session in the MRI tube. (now dubbed the wooba-wooba machine).
What’s any of this got to do with cooking? Well, I can’t work, and I can’t really cook at home. Since we just moved and I’m injured, the new kitchen took over a week to put together, and I’m still not sure I like the way I’ve got it set up.
Personal Chef Time
I had the opportunity and the time to create a special dinner for a friend's birthday. And here's what I created. The Menu:
Quinoa fruit Cakes Tofu and vegetable skewers marinated in a fresh herb vinaigrette Grilled/smoked zucchini and squash Micro green, jicama, and strawberry salad, complemented with a toasted cumin lime vinaigrette
Kitchen Gadgets:
Useful gadget
What is more annoying then walking into a dollar store and finding a Microwave Egg Cooker? It happened. I saw one. When I go to dollar stores, I always check the Kitchen Equipment shelf. I’ve found a wooden spatula with a curved lip that helps for saute. I’ve found a 4-pack of tongs, made of good quality metal (minus the silicon tip), the package included 2 short and 2 long tongs. I’ve picked up a funnel strainer, and one or two other cool things.But a Microwave egg cooker? Come on folks. What happened to the old fashioned boil-the-egg-on-the-stove? Are people really afraid to use their stove-tops? Does a microwave use less electricity than a stove? I don’t even have a microwave in my house. I am adverse to them, and short of a quick way to heat butter, or chocolate (double-boiler any one?), I find them useless.
Tonight’s Dinner
Here’s tonight’s dinner. Stuffed Zucchini with quinoa and roasted asparagus with a yellow pepper sauce.
The stuffed zucchini has sauted peppers, zucchini middles, and bits of tofu. I used pulverized almonds for the “glue.” This provides a gluten-free alternative to using bread crumbs.
The quinoa has sauteed peppers, onions and garlic, with turmeric, cardamon and mace added for flavor. The roasted red pepper sauce is yellow and green peppers and onions broiled then peeled. I pureed them in a blender, adding a bit of chili oil I had on hand, lemon juice and salt. I used olive oil to blend it together (not much though). If I had some veg stock on hand, I would have added that instead.
BBQ Seitan, and all the goods
I haven’t had a chance to photograph some of my culinary creations. Here’s tonight’s dish. I wish I could say that I made the bbq sauce and the seitan, but I didn’t. Whole Foods has a store brand called 365, and their bbq sauce doesn’t have anything to do with high fructose corn syrup. It is a yummy chipotle citrus sauce that has quite a nice bite. I marinate the seitan for awhile, then in a good size sauce pan, I saute a few onion slices, and add the bbq. I give this a nice slow cook with a cover on it.
Why I’m Here
I’ve added this blog because I have the intention of launching a culinary website.
Most likely it will sit here for awhile, until we get some other elements added.
If you have anything culinary related that you would like to add to this blog, please do, I’d be delighted.
thanks
KS
Books by Chef Johnna
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