No Cooking Today

That's right, I took the day off.

Today was kind of stressful. That's a lie: It was insanely stressful, and I took the day off from cooking.

I'm now thinking that was a bad choice. Cooking always makes me happy, and it makes me feel like I've accomplished something. So, on days when I choose to "take a break" I usually end up feeling like I do now--like I should have cooked.

At least I would be going to bed having eaten a real meal and not feeling so...underacheiving.

Oh well, there's always tomorrow. I have plenty more recipes that are begging to be tried.

Recipe 3: Stew

There are a few great things about good stew. First of all, stew is completely customizable. Second, the leftovers are even better than the first servings. Here's a great one sent to me courtesy of Myrecipes.com.

Ingredients

• 2  teaspoons  canola oil
• 8  ounces  boneless center-cut pork chops, trimmed and cubed
• 1  cup  chopped onion (about 1 medium)
• 3/4  cup  chopped green bell pepper
• 2  teaspoons  bottled minced garlic
• 1  tablespoon  chili powder
• 2  teaspoons  ground cumin
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 1/8  teaspoon  ground red pepper
• 1/4  cup  no-salt-added tomato paste
• 1  (15.5-ounce) can golden hominy, rinsed and drained
• 1  (14.5-ounce) can no-salt-added diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1  (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1/4  cup  light sour cream

Preparation

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add pork to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Add onion, bell pepper, and garlic to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in chili powder and next 4 ingredients (through red pepper). Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in tomato paste, hominy, tomatoes, and broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Serve with sour cream.

I doubled up on pork and hominy and threw in two cans of diced chiles and a can of corn for texture and a bit of natural sweetness to balance out the spice. Although my 17 year old brother didn't even try it (this is not a new phenomenon) the rest of the family enjoyed it.

Personally, I loved it. The spices were definitely not our typical cuisine and so it gave me something warm and different to look forward to for lunch today. It being another cloudy, cold winter's day just added to the soupy appeal. Yum.

A Break for Some Tricks

I love cooking. Therefore, I love cooking shows. Not only is it entertainment, I get to learn new tricks of the kitchen to make my cooking life a little easier. I'd like to pass some of those on to you now.

Cracking an Egg
America's Test Kitchen on PBS taught me these tricks.
1.) Crack Eggs on a FLAT surface
     I know it's counter-intuitive, but the reason it works is because you gain access to the egg, but the inner shell membrane remains intact and keeps the eggshell from creeping into your bowl.
2.) Use eggshell to retrieve eggshell
     Anyone who has chased a piece of shell around a bowl of squishy egg guts knows it isn't easy. They simply do not want to come. For whatever reason, though, the shells are attracted to each other and allow you to lift stray bits right out!

Softened vs. Melted
There is a difference. Over heating butter leads to wet dough and shapeless cookies.

Chopping and Onion
Neatest trick ever!
Video version http://www.reluctantgourmet.com/cut_onion.htm
1.) Slice the onion in half.
2.) Set the onion on your cutting board sliced side down.
3.) Cut following the natural sections of the onion but only go 3/4 through.
4.) Make horizontal cuts 3/4 of the way through as well.
5.) Then set your blade on end like you would normally chop and chop away.

This has saved me many frustrating hours in the kitchen, I assure you.

Hope these tips help you as much as they have me!

An Introduction

I suppose I should first explain the name and reason for my blog.

My grandmother passed away a little more than one year ago. I thought I knew her pretty well in life as we shared many afternoons baking in the kitchen and later, sharing long, winding conversations about all manners of things. One of the most surprising discoveries since her passing, though, has been our very similar sense of style. It's odd how a colorful piece of costume jewelry can bind two people together across the span of heaven and earth.

Anyway, along with a cherished ring, a gorgeous dress and some other odds and ends, I received 3 gorgeous, practical aprons that had once belonged to her. And I love to wear them. Every time I tie a vintage ribbon around my waist, I hear my grandma's distinct laugh as she teases me for insisting on baking a cake from scratch. Each time I slip a recipe card into a simple, single-button pocket, I recall her absolutely care-free assurances that sugar is easy to clean up and a decent mess is an entirely necessary part of a good batch of brownies.

Not every memory I have is so glowing, but the ones revolving around the kitchen are…and she is my inspiration for sharing all of this with you. I hope you enjoy my anecdotes on culinary exploration as much as I enjoy exploring.

And I hope there is an echo of someone happy and carefree in the kitchen where you cook too.