Re-enactment

April 2, 2009February 6, 201517 Comments

So, Kate came over last night for my meal-of-the-year re-enactment, courtesy of the amazing leftovers I was lucky enough to snag at Tuesday night’s Electrolux ICON event. After sharing the leftovers with my coworkers earlier in the day, I still had about 1/2 cup of risotto and a hefty segment of lamb tenderloin left … not to mention the seared tuna and molten lava cakes hanging out in my fridge. I was worried about the damage I might do if left to my own devices, so Kate popped over to relieve some of the expansion responsibility (because, oh, what a heavy burden it is).

I started us off with fancy apps:

OK, so my seared tuna atop wasabi-infused guacamole and a white cheddar soy crisp is not exactly on level with the giant-spoon classiness I experienced Tuesday, but I think it is a close approximation … and it tasted delicious. Kate and I had two each.

Kate and I both prefer our meat closer to well-done than to rare, so I fired up the oven to give the lamb a few more minutes. While that was cooking, I worked on the risotto. Since I brought such a small amount of it home from work, I decided it needed (1) bulking and (2) healthing. I sauteed the veggie scraps I salvaged from the event (asparagus peels, mushroom stems, and spinach) with garlic and olive oil and then immersion blended them into a paste (another non-classy variation of the Chef’s method). The paste went into a pot with 1/2 cup cooked brown rice, the remaining 1/2 cup of risotto, and lots and lots of freshly grated parmesan cheese.

The result: enough food for two! Colorado Lamb Roast, Spring Asparagus Risotto, and Carmelized Onions:

I think I am most excited about those onions!! Thank goodness I still have a bunch more in the fridge 😀

Can you guess what came after dinner????

Yes, the chocolate molten cakes!! I tried to keep presentation as true to the original as possible. Sadly, I had no gold dust on hand.

I heated the lava cakes in their tins for about 10 minutes at 350. When they were warm, I slid a knife around the edges and inverted them onto the plates. In lieu of the magical chocolate disk, I topped each cake with a square of Newman’s Own Organics orange dark chocolate. Ohhh, yum. I daresay this chocolate actually improved the cake (which I didn’t think was possible before I took a bite!). Seriously, look at the melt-action taking place here:

The “ice cream” was actually about 1/2 cup each of lemon curd-infused healthy cream cheese icing which I iced via the freeze-for-20-stir-freeze-for-20-stir method. It needed color for photography’s sake, so I topped it off with a blueberry sauce I made by simmering a couple tbsp of Brigitte’s homegrown frozen blueberries until the juice thickened.

One last look at the whole package:

As much as I could eat molten lava cake every night for the rest of my life, I am relieved that Kate helped me so that I do not have to! Expansion does have its limits, even for me 😛

In case you would like to try your hand at re-enacting this meal from scratch (something I haven’t even attempted yet!), I have created a page of Chef Steelman’s very own recipes right here!

Have you re-enacted anything (food or non-food) lately?

And have you entered my Bob’s Red Mill giveaway?

Whirligig + reviews

April 1, 2009February 6, 201518 Comments

Ahhhhhh, I haven’t stopped moving all day. My commenting and replying are temporarily on hiatus as I try to climb over this mountain of work. I will catch up on everything ASAP, I promise!

And by the way, every single one of the selections you’re submitting for the Bob’s Red Mill giveaway is making me drool. If only I could afford the whole line of products …. Keep those wish lists coming!

Breakfast feels like it happened about 10 years ago, but I’m pretty sure it was delicious:

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I hope you can see the striking resemblance to a black and white cookie because that’s what I was going for:

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The “white” contained 1/2 cup Healthy Cream Cheese Icing topped with unsweetened shredded coconut. The “black” contained 1 cup protein porridge mixed with 2 tbsp raw chocolate mousse, 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder, and 2 tbsp PB2 powder — topped with Hershey’s Kiss shavings and a hefty spoonful of extra dark cashew-almond butter:

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The cashew-almond butter is delicious, but I keep expecting it to taste like chocolate fudge (even though I’m the one who made it!) because it is SO dark.

Oh, by the way, today is April Fools Day, if you did not get the memo! I clearly hadn’t gotten it at 7am because my dad (of the no-brown-foods and almost-birthed-you-in-the-Dining-Room fame) got me with a trick for, ohh, the 27th year in a row. You’d think I would have caught on by now! This time, he emailed to tell me that something was wrong with the blog because every time he typed in the address, Kristie’s blog popped up instead! I replied that he must be mistaken and maybe he had accidentally clicked on one of her comments? It never even crossed my mind that this could be a trick. He’s so good at getting in there with something subtle and just believable enough!

picture-425 Anyway, that breakfast kept me so full all morning (as it should have — holy protein plus no cardio in days!) that I didn’t even need my typical morning snack. Plus, I was racing around crazily what with my visits and work to make up from Monday. My “injury” was kind of giving me a lot of pain today — I think I overdid it with the hobnobbing around town last night plus the nonstop visits today that required loads of traversing East Harlem from end to end on foot.

In lieu of a snack, I opened a pack of Newman’s Own Ginger Mints and maybe ate 4-5 over the course of the day. Again, they’re not sugar-free, but neither are the seven pieces of candy I usually swipe from Belkis’ candy jar on a daily basis. This seems like a healthier alternative … plus I love ginger, and these ginger mints taste like the root itself has been shaved right into the mix!

Lunch was a repeat of what I had yesterday: collard greens and baked beans from Monday and Myrna’s rice and salad from yesterday.

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The whole early childhood department at my office ate lunch together today in honor of April Fools, so I also got to try some coconut water and a big hunk of fresh coconut meat from Jessica:

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Mmm, it was tasty!

Next, I enlisted the captive audience in helping me with more product reviews. First up:

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Rosey said:

I like the chocolate on the outside, but I don’t like the caramel. And I usually like caramel.

I had to try one for myself, obviously:

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I thought it was delicious, but I tend to not be all that picky when it comes to chocolate and caramel!

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Sarah (the other one) said:

Oh, wow! This is different from Reese’s. It actually tastes like real, creamy peanut butter inside. I like it.

Sarah ran out and gave one to Erik in Environmental to try. He said:

Holy sh**!! This is amazing.

I tried one, too (obviously again):

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I second the other reviewers’ sentiments. I’m not going to judge when it comes to chocolate and peanut butter!

Finally:

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This review needs no words, as Heather and the baby are clearly in ecstasy. Just to bring the point home, Heather said:

These are good. They are a good chocolate-y dessert.

Rosey and Jessica said:

They taste like shortbread cookies with chocolate in them.

Sister Suzanne said:

I like them because they’re not too sweet.

Sarah (the other one) added:

Yes, a good snack treat.

I ate four.

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To me, they tasted like the cookie part of an Oreo. Again, not going to complain!

Immediately following lunch, I raced across el barrio for my 2pm visit. I ended up staying a little late because the mom needed help with something, so I decided to bus it back to the center to make my 3:30. I had to run to catch the bus. OWWWWW. And I was still 10 minutes for the session!

I had my “morning snack” of fruit salad (the end of it), yogurt + ricotta + lemon curd, and granola at 4:30.

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Quickly followed by an orange:

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As I mentioned earlier, I brought in the leftover risotto and lamb from last night to share with everyone at lunch, but there was still quite a bit left at the end of the day. I shot a quick email to Gina and Kate (with whom I had to break dinner plans last night for the event) to see if they’d be interested in an impromptu dinner party of leftovers. Gina couldn’t make it, but Kate was up for the re-enactment challenge which will be coming soon (as in sometime tomorrow) to a blog near you (ummm, this one).

The week is halfway done. Are you running behind, ahead, or right on schedule?

(And you know I’m going to keep reminding you about the Bob’s Red Mill giveaway in every post until Sunday!)

Do you have plans for the leftovers?

April 1, 2009February 6, 201536 Comments

Such a simple question … yet one that has worked like a charm time and time again for this lady on a mission to save good food from a dumpster destiny.

I received a last-minute email yesterday afternoon inviting me to attend a fancy schmancy event featuring Chef Brad Steelman of Brooklyn’s famed River Cafe. (The spot opened up because poor HangryPants Heather was still too sick to attend, so go give her some love … after you read this post!)

Chef Steelman’s demonstration took place at the Desiron Gallery in SoHo using the Electrolux ICON line of dream-material kitchen appliances (think magnet-triggered stovetop ranges that reach your desired temperature in seconds — whether hotter or colder — and somehow stay cool to the touch).

When I arrived, I grabbed a goblet of sparkling water to keep me company as I took in the scene. Right off the bat, I met some fun new foodie friends — Michelle from Taste As You Go, Mike from Man Eat Food (no kidding, a rare male food blogger live and in person?!), and Elizabeth from The Kitchn — and we settled in at a table together to watch Chef Steelman work some culinary magic.

(I promise the sparkling water was not spiked. WordPress is the lush that won’t let my picture upload correctly.)

The event kicked off with a glorious round of hors d’oeuvres. I had two lentil wafers with lobster salad:

One giant spoonful of seared tuna on bed of avocado-sesame-wasabi puree:

Proof:

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(I also took the most hilarious photo series of Michelle in similar poses. I hope she posts a slideshow … but I think she might delete them all instead!)

And two pieces of roast duck with rhubard sauce (yesssssss, yum is right!):

But that was only the beginning! Before our very eyes, the chef whipped up a Spring Asparagus Risotto with mascarpone, parmigiana reggiano, and crispy trumpet mushrooms:

Which we enjoyed as first course (or 5th course if you live in expansion world like I do):

The main meal was Colorado Lamb Roast with carmelized spring onions, potato puree, and roasting juices. In process:

Moments pre-disappearance:

And finally, the classic gourmet dessert of classic gourmet desserts: Melt Away Cake (aka molten chocolate lava cake). Chocolate magic:

Pre-belly:

Topped with gold dust (told you it was magical!):

Just because:

Lava:

(And if you are in the market for new kitchen appliances and have money to burn, the chef managed to cook all of this food in front of us and have it plated and served in what was likely less than a half hour. This kitchen was not messing around! And neither were the phenomenal sioux chefs …)

So, as I was savoring my cake, I noticed that some kitchen clean-up had begun and wondered aloud (as I am wont to do) where the leftovers were headed. My curiosity (or misplaced survival instinct) was so strong that I actually left the table mid-cake to go and ask the chef, Do you have a plan for the leftovers?

The following exchange ensued:

Chef: No, would you like to take some with you?

Me: That would be LOVELY!!!!! But I do not have any containers (sad face).

Chef: I’m sure we have something around (finds tupperwares and Ziplock baggies). What would you like? Lamb?

Me: Anything you’re willing to give me, really!

[Chef scurries around collecting. I follow behind.]

Me: Ummm, you can totally send me away if I’m being obnoxious … but what about your display asparagus and mushrooms?

Chef: Really? Of course! [tries to dispose of spinach and asparagus peelings to make room in a container for asparagus]

Me, intercepting spinach and peelings before they hit the trash can: No, really, I’ll use it all!!

Chef, doubtful: You’re sure?

Me: Absolutely.

Chef puts sioux chefs on the job. Sioux chefs help me pack up some of everything and even come and bring me more food as they find it while cleaning out the fridge … and give me tips for how to reheat and cook it all! Here they are at work, my new best friends:

Expandable bag out:

Inventory at home. Asparagus, portobello mushrooms, spinach, and veggie scraps:

(Scraps are for my frozen veggie broth bag.)

Seared tuna, carmelized spring onions (omgsogood), lamb, and risotto:

(I’ve got the risotto and the lamb at work today to share since we’re all having an April Fools lunch together. Gotta give back! I’m going to have to do some research on how best to store the tuna, aside from in the fridge, obviously. I wonder how it freezes?)

Two melt away cakes and … wait for it … the melt away cake batter left from the demo!!!!!!

The batter is in my freezer now, waiting for the perfect occasion.

Moral of the story? Always ask.

When were you glad you asked?

P.S. Enter my Bob’s Red Mill giveaway!!!

Live from the ice pack

March 31, 2009February 6, 201513 Comments

Though I probably also could have titled this post: How to double your size in five days or less. On a positive note, though, it is a (thankfully!) rare experience for me to be physically unable to engage in vigorous excerise, and I might as well enjoy the expansion by continuing to eat as I normally do (and then some) and getting an extra half hour of sleep … in theory 😀

The work day started like any other: with tropical fruit salad, lemon curd + part-skim ricotta + yogurt, and granola.

I actually ran out of time to finish this before my 11am visit, so I saved the last two bites for lunch dessert later.

Lunch at 12:30 was a repeat of yesterday’s southern comfort in slightly smaller portions with 1/2 cup sweet collard greens, 1/2 cup baked beans, and 1/4 giant piece of cornbread:

To supplement, I also had about 1/3 cup of Myrna’s Dominican rice and fish:

And one cup of her salad:

Aren’t those cabbage ribbons beautiful? Myrna brought me enough of this rice and salad for tomorrow’s lunch, too. My coworkers treat me too well!!

Also, I probably had 4-6 of these guys throughout the day:

Loving the cinnamon mints!

When the mid-afternoon nibbles hit around 3, I had another serving of the Newman’s white cheddar soy crisps I reviewed yesterday with about 2 tbsp homemade guac:

While the soy crisps still tasted delicious, I have to add one complaint. The bag claims to hold 3.5 one-ounce servings. I actually used a food scale (for once) to measure one ounce of these crisps … and it definitely involved about half the bag!!! While I’m delighted that so many light and puffy soy crisps can squeeze into one serving, I’m bummed that I’m only getting 2-ish servings from what is supposed to be a 3-ish servings bag! And that’s using Newman’s serving guidelines — not even my own. Hmph.

Moving on, I had to leave my internship today at 3:30 to head to a mandatory seminar on working with aging populations at Hunter. I was thrilled to find that I was passing by Butterfield Market (aka my weekly supplier of manchego cheese samples) during their Passover Menu Tasting that I’ve seen them advertising on the sidewalk for a couple of weeks. How fortuitous … especially since Passover is my favorite holiday in the world due to the food that comes with it (and probably also because I am always so freaking starving after all the seder-ing that matzo becomes the most delicious delicacy EVER)!

Since I definitely needed more food (because eating is fun and not because I was hungry, obviously), I stopped in for “a little bit of everything, please.” Butterfield did not hold back:

That plate included (in no particular order) gefilte fish, beef brisket, boneless chicken with apricot glaze, zucchini “linguine” with fresh herbs (YUM!), apple matzoh kugel (the BEST of the plate’s contents … but still no better than Aunt Sherye makes it), caulifower kugel with toasted pecans, and a non-Passover Ritz cracker with pate.

That could have been dinner, but why stop?? Especially when I had a fun dinner trick up my sleeve ….

To be continued!

Do you have any tricks up your sleeve?

Reminders:

1. Enter my Bob’s Red Mill giveaway!

2. Do you want to win the chocolate-covered vegan in a box? I know I do …

Southern comfort and a GIVEAWAY!!

March 30, 2009May 21, 2017179 Comments

Before you find about about the giveaway, of course, you get to hear about the yummy lunch I cooked heated.

This lunch was inspired by the south because (1) I wish the weather here were warmer, (2) I love country music and that’s something southern, too, and (3) I’m temporarily (I hope) an invalid and happened to have some frozen and canned ingredients on hand that fit this theme brilliantly.

That’s right, collard greens, baked beans, and cornbread!! YUM 😀

I made and froze these sweet collard greens a few weeks ago (remember when I brought home those huge bags of them from the food pantry overflow at work?) using Kath’s recipe here.

Seriously delicious. If you ever find yourself with collard greens on your hands, this is the way to cook them!

I also rummaged around and found this can of fat free vegetarian baked beans in the cupboard that didn’t really seem to belong to anyone. Since it didn’t belong to anyone, it belonged to me:

And on the side, I had 1/2 piece of the cornbread that I brought home and froze after dinner at BBQ two weeks ago:

Perfect! I felt like I was in Arkansas or somewhere while I was eating this 😛

Earlier, I snacked on two biscotti bites (and a piece of oatmeal chocolate chip cookie that “broke off” when I was rummaging through the freezer cookie bag for the bites) with this delicious Tazo tea sample I had lying around:

Normally, I’m not into fruit teas … but something about the lemony-mango-ness of this tea reeled me in, and I loved it. It would be amazing in oatmeal, I’m sure. Look at the gorgeous color!

OK OK, I suppose it’s time. You all know how I LOVE my whole grains (case in point: this morning’s protein porridge). Well, Bob’s Red Mill, home of what is probably the most extensive selection of whole grains/seeds/nuts/beans/baking mixes/flours ever, has generously offered to send FIVE lucky readers a full package of the food item of their choice (from the list of categories I just mentioned). This is a very exciting giveaway because it means you could pick out a familiar staple (such as oats) to replenish your supply … or you could go totally wild and experiment with something new (my suggestion) like whole grain chocolate cake mix or organic amaranth grain.

How to enter:

Step 1. Visit the Bob’s Red Mill website and select the one food product you would most like to try (again, from the list of categories I mentioned above).

Step 2. Leave me a comment with your selection!

Step 3. Link back to this contest on your blog to help me spread the word! If you like me, you can also add me to your blogroll, but this is not mandatory as that is a very personal decision 😛 If you don’t have a blog, email me at talesofexpansion@gmail.com after you leave your comment to let me know this is the case and that you still want to enter.

Step 4. I will randomly choose the five winners Sunday, April 5, so you have until NOON on that day to enter.

While you’re busy contemplating your next whole grain experiment, I will be at my doctor’s office. I’m so relieved I was able to get an appointment this afternoon — hopefully I can make it there without getting stuck on the subway steps … and hopefully the injury is just a simple muscle issue that will fix itself with rest. Eeek!

Ready, set, go!

Tales of Expansion: Baby Butternut Edition

A Natural(ish) Parenting & Food Blog

Tag: greens

Re-enactment

Whirligig + reviews

Do you have plans for the leftovers?

Live from the ice pack

Southern comfort and a GIVEAWAY!!

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