Clean Fridge

This may not look like much to you ... but to us, it is a wonder.

In a nearly-psychedelic trance of cleaning enthusiasm yesterday, Carl and I did some major damage control on the refrigerator. We emptied the shelves, one by one, and gave all the surfaces a good cleaning. Condiments dating back to 2004 were discarded, rock-hard cheeses were tossed. Nothing was returned to the fridge unless it was clearly identifiable, totally edible, of relatively recent vintage, and labeled with an approximate date of opening. This was a serious endeavor. The only items that were not labeled with a date were leftovers that would be eaten in the next few days (i.e., yam fries, pozole, hummus, middle shelf), and fundamentals or condiments that we know will be consumed before they go bad (i.e., yogurt and beer, bottom shelf; maple syrup and Mama's jams, top shelf).

This clean fridge thing me feel like a whole new woman. I highly recommend it to you all. And while you're at it, send us a photo of your fridge! It's hardly the Shoot! The Blog Hot Photo Assistant Contest, but it'll give me something with which to entertain myself.

Like Bacon for Vegetarians

People often say that bacon is the single food most likely to cause vegetarians to fall off the wagon. Sure, I know some people who have slipped for curried chicken salad, and others for mom's meatballs. But bacon is the evil temptress of meat products, the Angelina Jolie of straight women's fantasies. Don't believe me? See the Jews For Bacon website, and a recent Chowhound post which begins, "I’m vegetarian, except I like to eat bacon."

Dear readers, I am thrilled to be writing this post about something miraculous -- a dish that will have even committed meat-eaters thinking seriously about going meat-free. Or at least thinking about switching to an all-kale diet. Behold the New York Times' Raw Lacinato Kale Salad, which is likely to do to carnivores what bacon does to vegetarians. Since the recipe was printed in October of 2007, Carl and I have probably made it at least once a week, sometimes twice. We served it to my skeptical brother and sister-in-law, who are now converts. We eat this stuff religiously. I've made a few modifications to the recipe, below, but at this point I've made the dish so many times that the recipe is irrelevant. I could do it in my sleep. Whether you're a vegetarian, omnivore, or pizzatarian, I insist you try this recipe. You will love it. And if you don't, please file a complaint (in triplicate, of course) with What We Ate, and the authors will be sure to scoff at you in their next post.

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More Food From People We Love

What with our long absence from the interweb, you may think we have been subsisting on water and dry crackers for the past two years. To the contrary, my friends. I've just been too busy to write - practicing law full-time while teaching on the side can do that to you. But given that my new career depends on my ability to put the proverbial pen to paper and produce words of insight, I am training myself to exercise my writing muscles daily ... even if the subject is tortes rather than torts.

Unfortunately for you, the reader, we actually enjoyed some mighty good chow during our hiatus, though I have neither the memory nor the time to fill you in on the details. But if there is one lesson that Carl and I learned during this time that we can share with [what remains of] our readership, it is this: We heart Marigold Kitchen. We heart Michael, we heart Brett, we heart all the staff. We heart the food, the ambiance, and the bathroom. We heart them with all our heart. The folks there are miracle workers and deserve some Nobel Prize for improving the world through food. Which is why we're so excited about the public announcement of Zahav, the new restaurant Michael Solomonov and Steve Cook are opening sometime early next spring. The theme? Israeli street food. The website-in-progress? So charming, I want to give it a hug. You can follow Zahav's progress at the Philadelphia Inquirer link above, courtesy of Michael Klein.

Pasta with Butternut Squash

Here's a nice vegetarian fall dish that we made when Carl's dad was in town. We served it with a simple arugula salad on the side (Recipe: Swirl some mashed garlic in a bowl of olive oil with salt. Add plenty of fresh lemon juice and plenty of pepper. Go to the roof and pick some arugula. Toss.)

Pasta with Butternut Squash, Walnuts, and Sage

Peel your butternut squash and chop into 3/4-inch cubes. Toss in a roasting pan with melted butter and salt, and roast in the oven on high heat, tossing occasionally, for about an hour. You want the squash cubes to get good and caramelized.

Now you can put your pasta water on to boil.

Next, slice an onion pole-to-pole and cook in butter or olive oil over low heat in a saute pan until the onion is golden and soft, about 35 minutes. Set aside.

Now's a good time to start your pasta -- I'd suggest campanelle, gnochetti sardi, or some other short pasta with open nooks and crannies.

While the pasta is cooking and once your squash is nicely roasted, throw about a cup or so of broth or water into the squash roasting pan to sizzle and deglaze.

You also want to toast a good handful of walnuts in a dry saute pan (you can reuse the onion pan) until they start to smell good. Chop them up.

When the pasta's ready, toss with the squash and any juices, the onions, some grated pecorino or parmesan (pecorino would be better), and plenty of pepper. Top with the toasted walnuts. Just before serving, fry up a good handful of fresh sage leaves in some butter, and pour the buttery sagey goodness over your pasta.

Sous Vide Tuna Tacos

Don't be fooled by the highfalutin' sous vide. This is actually a quick and easy weeknight dinner. I came up with the idea when I saw some lovely local albacore tuna at Whole Foods at $8.99 a pound, half the price of the regular tuna, and thought it would do well low and slow in some oil. And it did.

Tuna: Sprinkle the tuna chunks (mine were about 1 ½ to 2 inches thick) with salt, pepper, and ground cumin, and bag them with some whole coriander seeds and olive oil. Cook them in a 50° Celsius water bath for 20 minutes, or less if your chunks are thinner than mine.

Pickled Red Onions: Slice a red onion pole-to-pole and deposit in a glass jar. Set to boil in a small pan some apple cider vinegar, water (about equal to the amount of vinegar), salt (a nice fistful), sugar (generous, but not as much as the salt), and whole cumin, coriander, and pepper. When at a boil, pour the vinegar mixture into the jar until the onions are covered and cap the jar. Half an hour later, voila, pickled onions.

Red Cabbage: To prepare the cabbage for the tacos, shred it finely and toss with a generous amount of salt. Let rest in a colander for half an hour until it's slightly deflated but still crisp-tender.

You'll also need some fresh tortillas, avocado, cilantro, and maybe some roasted salsa verde from the store. Assemble and enjoy. Mmmmm!