What? Strawberries aren't a year-round fruit?

It is funny the things we forget. When I was a kid growing up in England, I knew that berries had a season. Once a year we all pile in the car to go strawberry picking, and we would love eating the wild blackberries from bushes round where I lived. But as for the rest of the year, if we ate those fruits at all, it was out of a can. The fresh stuff didn't appear. 

And tangerines. They only appeared at Christmas. And not in crates like you get now, but a few at a time.

So I was a bit taken aback when I realized that strawberry season had come and gone in an eyeblink. One week the tables at the farmer's market were full of strawberries, the next - nothing.

Of course, they hadn't really registered. Why should they, when I can get them all year round from God-knows where?

Yes it is nice and convenient and we can do things like eat fresh strawberries and cream in the middle of December, but how much sweeter would they be if we didn't? If you just accepted the fact that you could only get them for a few short weeks in June and July and the rest of the year - nothing. How excited we'd be when the first of the crop appeared, small and slightly sour, and how sad we'd be when we realized they were gone for another year. I for one would have made lots more of my strawberry syrup!

* * *

From Talking Heads 1983 album Speaking In Tongues: Swamp.

* * *

Street Food at Night

A number of years ago, I went to one of the Asian festivals in Toronto. I think it might have been the Dragon Boat. It was a huge disappointment, almost an embarrassment. No thought had been put into the organization, there was no excitement, class or style, just an array of cheap booths selling pre-packaged dumplings in styrofoam boxes. A few booths even had microwaves! A couple of years later I attended a mid-Autumn festival which at least went on till late in the evening but was still pretty lame. I understand it is hard to create atmosphere and excitement but still, the two I had gone to hardly seemed to have made an effort.

So, last night, we went to last day of the tenth anniversary of the Night It Up! Night Market held outside the Markham Theatre. We arrived at ten pm - the thing went on till midnight - and there were a couple of signs this was going to be very different. 

First, the place was heaving. Just jammed. There were, I guess, about four rows of booths in tent formation laid out at right angles to a small stage. Each row had maybe 20 or so booths and most of them had huge lines. (A full list of booths can be found here.)

Second, as we approached, we were hit with the unmistakeable smell of stinky tofu frying away in a corner stall. It got stronger and stronger as we neared until it was almost overpoweringly ghastly. I honestly thought this stuff was illegal in built up areas.

This was definitely an event for young people - mostly young Asians. I am pretty sure I might have been the oldest person there.

Unfortunately, we had made the mistake of eating before we went, so were too full to sample anything. I did force myself to try a murtabak, which is (in this case) a Malaysian pancake filled with a very tasty beef, chicken, or vegetable filling depending on your choice. It was just fantastic and left me ruing the fact I had not planned this a bit better.

I washed it down with a freshly made sugar cane juice which I enjoy ordering as I think it makes the vendor work hardest for the money. Serena got a pineapple drink made by slicing the top off a pineapple, then using a pineapple corer to take out everything but the core, blending the pineapple you just took out, then pouring it back into the empty pineapple.

If you don't like weird smells, slow-moving crowds or being squashed and pushed at every turn, or are intimidated by too many young people, then this is not the event for you.

As for me, I am already looking forward to the next one!

* * *

Black Bean Soup Brownie

There was episode of Starsky and Hutch where they sang 'Black Bean Soup'. Bizarrely, try as I might, I can't remember anything else about the series.

If they had known about Black Bean Brownies, I am sure they would have ditched the soup. As horrific as they may sound, they are suprisingly good. All you need is a tin of black beans, eggs, cocoa powder, sugar, vanilla, baking powder, a little oil, salt, a blender and some chocolate chips. About thirty minutes later, you will get something that looks like this:

On top is a splodge of fat-free yoghurt that I strained for a day so it was nice and thick, and then mixed with a little agave for sweetness.

* * *

In case you were still thinking about Starsky and Hutch, or thought that I had just made it up  ...

Forging Ahead

Before today's food-related item, a little backstory. A while ago I met the owner of a nutrition and wellness centre. She was just moving into a new place on her own, where previously she had been sharing premises. Eventually, I asked her why she didn't provide meals to her clients. She gives advice, treatment and so on, but as soon as they leave her place they are free to eat what they like. She thought it was a great idea and asked me to do it. The two rules were: they had to be vegetarian, and they had to be low low low calorie. Under 600 calories a day for two meals.

I said yes without really thinking because ... well ... because I didn't really think about it. That was over a month ago and here's what I know.

It is really hard to make dishes low calorie, vegetarian, tasty, healthy and varied.

However, I have recently entered the trial and testing stage and I must say I have had some success. But just cooking and preparing and thinking about vegetables all day every day takes its toll. Especially when you are constrained by calories so that means almost no oil, cheese or dairy.

But, a breakthrough came today when I convinced her to let me cook some chicken and  fish dishes. In a fit of productivity I promptly made a salad and three soups. They are:

A green bean, tuna, cherry tomato, olive salad with a lemon vinaigrette.

[Note to self: if you are going to pile a dish up high, don't take the picture from up top and make it look all flat.]

And, from the left, a Sun-dried Tomato Soup with White Beans and Swiss Chard; a Cauliflower, Apple and Tarragon Soup with Chinese Bak Choi; a Summer Green Soup (served chilled).

I also made for dinner - kind of as a celebration of being free from vegetables - a penne pasta with Italian sausage, cherry tomato and cream sauce. No pics. It was all eaten too fast.

* * *

Tomorrow I need to make three entrees and two salads, and pack them all up in little boxes to deliver on Monday for the next stage of testing. Oh, and I invited some people round for a barbecue, as if I didn't have enough to do. How's that saying go again: If you need a job done, give it to a busy man. 

I bet a guy with nothing to do but sit around and think came up with that one.

* * *

Taking Stock

Making a vegetable stock today and thinking about recipes. The vegetable stock is an easy thing to do. You basically just throw old stuff from the fridge into a pot and boil it for an hour. My recipe, such as it is, goes like this:

1 large onion
1 1/2 lb carrots
1 lb celery
1/2 lb shallots
1/2 lb mushrooms
2 cups white wine
5 quarts water (20 cups)
bayleaves
whole black peppercorns
fresh herbs (thyme, oregano etc)

To that you can add whatever green vegetables you have left over. I threw in a half bag of spinach that was going to spoil very soon, and a few stems of bak choi. It is also a good time to use those parsley and cilantro stems you saved. You did save them, right?

* * *

Cure

Debut album by The Cure, Three Imaginary Boys. Man, I played this album to death. Gave it away to my friend Simon when I left England and knew I wasn't coming back. Everything I had ever known and loved was in England and I just turned my back and walked away at 18.

* * *

Strawberry Deals Forever

Last Sunday, I went to the Unionville Farmer's Market a little later than usual. The good thing about that is you can get great deals on produce the stall owners would have to throw away otherwise, mostly perishables. Of course, the downside is that most of the good stuff is gone, but I have got tomatoes, lettuces, and various vegetables pretty cheap in the past. Today, I picked up a whole flat of strawberries for $ 12. We ate a bunch right away, and the rest I washed and put in a big bowl in the fridge while I thought of what to do with them.

Freezing is a good option for fruit. My freezer if getting kind of packed, so I decided to make some of them into jam. I took 4 lbs of strawberries, coated them in sugar and left them overnight to macerate. The next day, I put them into a large put with the rest of the sugar (roughly equal in weight to the strawberries) plus the juice of one lemon. Once the sugar was dissolved, I then hit it with a hard boil for quite some time - around 30 minutes I think in the end, or maybe a little longer. 

You definitely need a high pan for this as the mixture will rise all the way up, settling down after ten minutes or so. 

Once the jam is setting up correctly, you take it off the boil and stir in a blob of butter, then leave it to cool slightly. Then, just transfer to sterilized jars, seal and store.

My 4 lbs of strawberries made a little over 5 cups of jam.

As I was making it, it seemed far too sweet for me, but once it settled down into its jam-ness, the sweetness turned out to be just right. You can adjust the amount of sugar, of course, but then you run the risk of it not being jam. I think next time I will not boil it for quite so long and have a slightly thinner jam than the one I ended up with - just personal preference.

* * *

I still had a fair amount of strawberries that would rapidly become unusable if I didn't do something quick, so I decided to make a syrup. I soaked the strawberries with a generous splash of port wine and some sugar and then left them overnight. Next, I put them into a small pot with a few blueberries I had left over, some agave syrup and boiled them for 10-15 minutes. Then, I strained it all off, squeezing the fruit through the strainer, and then simmered it with about two tablespooons of balsamic vinegar until it reduced enough to become a syrup. I did add some more agave half way as it was not sweet enough. 

This should be pretty good on some quality vanilla ice cream with chocolate shavings on. I'll let you know!

* * *

Finally, I made a strawberry vinaigrette from a recipe I found that used olive oil, balsamic and a little sugar, all blended with fresh strawberries, a little salt and pepper, and some tarragon. When I looked at it, I thought it would be a little too sweet and I was right. Also, where is the acidity? Any you got from the balsamic was overwhelmed by the berries. So, I added a little lime juice and it was just right. I used this vinaigrette as a basic for a sald with cucumbers, quartered beets (boiled), some mint and some parsley, and sprinkled on top with some goat cheese I happened to have lying around. I have a feeling it will do well also with some butter greens, like arugula, or maybe a baby spinach salad.

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NOTE: Totally forgot to post this!

I Finally Snap

Today I woke up and realized that I hated the way my kitchen was arranged, then realized that I was the one who arranged it. The problem is that I have so many cupboards, drawers and cabinets - over sixty - that  it seemed unnecessary to actually organize anything. Who needs organization when you have so many places to put stuff? Turns out, you still need to have things organized.

The minor irritation is that the sink is next to the stove, meaning I don't have a place to do all my food prep, and I have to do it all quite some distance away. The fridge is far away too, on the other side of the kitchen, so cooking is quite the tiring task, and it is made even more tiring when things aren't in any particular place.

But ... all that ends today!

We Get a Visa to Visit Downtown

Yesterday, we packed our survival rations, armed ourselves with small, non-lethal weaponry, and set off downtown. 

We saw a couple of places to eat ...

But ended up at the Danforth, the heart of Greektown. It was at one time North America's largest Greek community. It might still be, but I imagine these kind of facts are hard to prove or disprove, so let's just assume it still is. The street itself is littered with Greek businesses, such as restaurants, travel agents and bakeries. We picked one restaurant, called Mezes, a word people often assume means appetizers. Not so. Mezethes are kind of a course all to themselves - a bunch of hot, cold, spicy, savoury small dishes round which you can gather with friends and chat and drink without ever having to have a main course.

We ordered the combination dip platter, or kria poikilia. Four dips - humous, taramosalata, tzatziki and melitzanotsalata (an eggplant dip) - are served with toasty warm pita bread. It was delicious, and we easily polished off the lot, though we had to order more pita.

Next were two dishes: dolmades (stuffed vine leaves) and the grilled octopus. The dolmades were pretty good, far better than the ones you see in the supermarket that have been sitting there for who-knows how long. Clearly these had been made within recent living memory. They are still not as good as my aunt's, straight out of the oven dolmades.

The grilled octopus is a favourite of mine and I had to say I was a little disappointed as one of the legs was a bit on the chewy side. It was still tasty, and I might order it again, though probably not as there are a lot of items we didn't order that I want to try.

Finally, we shared the arni psito or Roast Lamb. While definitely lamb-y, and quite tasty, this also fell a short in my opinion. I was expecting the roast leg, slow cooked and packed with flavour. Instead we got a boneless leg meat that had no sear and somewhat lacking in flavour. What's more, it had a pre-packaged tasting gravy poured on top. The potatoes, rice and salad were all up to par though. 

What is a good Greek meal without a cup of Greek coffee to round it off? I made the rookie mistake of remembering to ask for it to be made sweet, but forgetting to tell them how strong I wanted it. The result was that I got what I think was a medium-strength one when I expected a sweet strong one.

* * *

After that, I went to this place, the Greek House Food Market (no website, just a yelp link) to stock up on some decent feta at a decent price, some Greek Mountain Tea (tsai tou vounou) that the store keeper guaranteed would  keep me healthy till I reach 106, and which I later found out was ironwort, some Greek oregano and a good Greek olive oil.

On the way back to the car we couldn't help but stop at the Athena Bakery to grab a few very sweet pastries.

* * *

We drove to Kensington Market area to look at tattoo parlours, finally finding one we liked about fifteen minutes walk away on Yonge Street (this one if anyone is interested). On the way back, stopping only to shelter from the rain, we were almost at the car when I spotted a tiny Mexican restaurant called El Trompo. Of course, I persuaded the girls to go in and we ordered a few small items. Actually, I think everything is quite small, which is fine by me. We had a chicken quesadilla (delicious), guacamole (delicious also) and a molten cheese with chorizo or cazualita fundito con chorizo (equally delicious). We washed it down with three drinks: the classic horchata, a tamarindo and a jamaica. Total bill? $ 30 including the tip. 

We also paid a visit to Fada Scooters where I discovered a second-hand Vespa goes for only $ 2,500 or less, and from owner Troy I found out Serena can get her M1 license at age 16. Thanks a bunch, Troy! However, I am seriously thinking owning a Lambretta would be pretty cool especially if I could get one that looks like this:

Finally, we discovered that pigeons don't like rain.

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Thanks again to Serenatography for the photos!

Ragu Alla Bolognese

Every now and then, I get asked to share a good spaghetti bolognese recipe. I usually know what they want - it is a tomato-based meat spaghetti bolognese recipe. Actually, a true bolognese sauce does not have any tomatoes, and it involves cooking meat quite slowly with celery, carrots and onions, a little tomato paste and milk. The only seasoning is salt and pepper. If you do it right, it'll look something like this. 

Strictly speaking, a bolognese sauce isn't served with spaghetti, but tagliatelli. Of course, I didn't have any. Hopefully the ragu alla bolognese police didn't notice. 

In looking up Italian sauces, I came across this particular nugget, The Cook's Decameron A Study In Taste. Published in 1920, it has over two hundred Italian recipes and merits further inspection. However, I don't have time as I need to get back to vegetarian dishes. More on that at a later date!

* * *

Finally, a piece of - well, I am not sure how to categorize it, but it is food related. Anyway. Just enjoy.

Recipe? What Recipe?

I don't spend all my free time glued to the TV watching the Food Network, honestly. But one of the programmes I seem to catch with some frequency is Michael Smith's Chef At Home series. I think this is the only place he does cook any more, but even so it is an interesting programme. His "thing" is cooking without a recipe - not mentioning that he can only do this after years of cooking with recipes. And he has a really, really well-stocked pantry. But still, the concept is a good one. 

Today was one of those days. The finished meal was Fried Cornmeal Chicken with Spicy Chickpea Stew and Fresh Baked Cornbread with Honey Butter. And here's how it all came about ....

I started by defrosting freezer four chicken thighs I had bought the other day from Costco and used my Food Saver to vacuum seal them.  Once that was done, I marinated them in a cup of buttermilk I had left over, plus black pepper and cayenne pepper.

Next up, I grabbed a jar of the tomato sauce I made last summer, added it to some leftover chickpeas, plus some tomato paste and red pepper flakes. I also stirred in a small tub of ricotta cheese.

The cornbread was fairly simple and the whole thing was done in my skillet. You melt 1/2 cup of butter in the skillet, add 1/2 cup of sugar and two beaten eggs. Next, whisk in a cup of buttermilk plus 1/2 tsp of baking soda, followed by 1 cup each of cornmeal and flour and 1/2 tsp of salt. Once it is smooth, pop it in a 375F oven and wait around 30 minutes until a toothpick (or thin chopstick) comes out dry. Serena helped me whisk honey and butter to make the Honey Butter.

As the cornbread baked, I dredged the chicken thighs in seasoned flour-egg-seasoned cornmeal, shallow fried them till crispy then finished them in the oven.

The colours are a bit bleached in this photo, but you get the general idea.

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Aurora Farmer's Market

I decided to drive up to Aurora, about 25 minutes away from the house, for the Farmer's Market. It is not a huge market, with maybe 20 stalls but the location on the edge of the park is great and today was a warm sunny day for it.

First stall we saw was Farmer Andy's - the farmer who gave Serena a job last year. He said they are just starting to get their produce in, which explained the relatively small selection. He had some lovely looking tiny potatoes that he had dug up just the day before, tomatoes, strawberries, beets and radishes. We got the potatoes, tomatoes and strawberries, plus some organic popcorn.

Further down, I picked up three meat pies - a chicken pot pie, a steak and guinness, and a steak and onion pie from John of Snowden Farms. He raises his cows on an all natural, hormone and antibiotic free diet, and has a guy who makes the pies. He was so keen for me to try the steak and kidney that he gave me one for free! I also grabbed two steaks for tonight - a rib eye and a sirloin.

And here are the pies. Strangely enough, the previous night I had a dream that we were all in Melbourne and I was quite upset because we had gone all over the place without ever having an Aussie Meat Pie. Going to Australia and not having a meat pie would be like visiting Tokyo and not having any sushi.

Next, we stopped for a hot dog.

And then, we stopped for a hot dog.

The grill chef was my friend Nick who I met from Unionville Farmer's Market last year. He was in good shape and we were both happy to see each other. Next Sunday is the opening of the Unionville one so I will see him there and from then on every week.

And with that, we were done.

* * *

That evening, I boiled the new potatoes and then drizzled them with olive oil, a little salt and pepper and some parsley. 

Then put together a nice salad of frisee lettuce, tomatoes and radish.

 And, of course, the steak. Locally produced, free from hormones, mostly grass-fed - it was very tasty.

 

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All the photographs are courtesy of the person whose name is written on this grain of rice.

* * *

Disemboweled Sausage Pasta

I had planned on making a few more dishes yesterday but various things popped up and I only got round to making a Summer Green Cream soup, using spinach, zucchini and lettuce with buttermilk to make a bright and tasty chilled soup. Serena helped make the soup and drank a teaspoon of buttermilk. She was very disappointed that it tasted like yoghurt and not, as she hoped, like a mixture of butter and milk.

Buttermilk, incidentally, is more easily digested than regular milk, and is a good option if you are watching your calories and/or fat. A cup is only 100 calories, and it has something like a quarter the fat of regular milk.

The soup is basically a blender soup: you steam the spinach for a few minutes, then do the same with the zucchini. The recipe calls for fresh basil, though if you don't have it you can use dried but add it in when you are steaming the zucchini or spinach so the basil has some opportunity to flavour the vegetable. Puree the two and transfer to a large bowl.

Next, puree a medium lettuce with enough buttermilk to do the job. Combine with your spinach/zucchini blend, and add more buttermilk - up to a quart. Add a dash of nutmeg and enough black pepper to taste. I used about a teaspoon of tamari or soy sauce to season instead of salt. You are going to refrigerate this, so if anything I would suggest slightly under-seasoning as it will intensify slightly when left to rest. You can always add ...

 When finished, you need some kind of garnish on it just to give it a nice textural crunch - I used green onion and parsley. I briefly considered a whisper of grated parmesan, or a drizzle of cream, but it really doesn't need it. Even my old standby of a squeeze of lemon is unnecessary.

When I woke up around 6:30 I remembered I had not made any lunch for the girls. They would have the soup, of course, but that would be nowhere near enough. I poked around in the fridge to see what I could throw together.

In the drawer were half a dozen breakfast sausages that we hadn't eaten for a few days, and that gave me an idea. I disemboweled the sausages, fried them in a little olive oil for a while, then added some finely chopped leaks, half a shallot I had left over, a clove of minced garlic, black pepper and red pepper flakes.  At the same time, I then cooked the rest of a pack of penne I had around and tossed it in with the meat. Finished it off with cream and grated parmesan.

* * *

Official Government Manure

Lunch for the girls today was a simple salad of tomato, feta, green leaf lettuce, thinly sliced shallots with olive oil and red wine vinegar, and grilled chicken.

* * *

In other news. I bought two tomato plants from J-Town the other day. They are about two feet high and should produce tasty Japanese cherry tomatoes, assuming I don't mess it up somehow. To make sure I don't, I spoke with my neighbour John who probably knows more about growing stuff that I ever will. He recommended I purchase manure - either sheep or cow to replant the little guys in. After that, just sunshine and water.

So, I went off to Loblaws to buy manure this morning. Three bags for $ 9 seemed a good deal, and John said it is the cheapest around. But the bill came to $ 10.17 including tax, which means your government is taxing manure.

And that, my dear friends, should tell you everything you need to know about government.

* * *

Vegetarian Day

Four - count 'em four - vegetarian dishes today. Two soups and two entrees. The two soups necessitated me making my own vegetarian stock a day before. I didn't have to do it the previous day, but I just thought it would make things easier. Both soups used beans that had to be soaked overnight and cooked for an hour and a half.

The first soup was a Brazilian Black Bean soup. It starts off well - black beans with garlic, carrot, celery, cumin and coriander - then takes a bit of a left turn with the addition of segmented orange and orange juice. It gives it an interesting sweetness, but I think this would be a dish that makes you go 'hmm' rather than 'wow'!

Next up, a soup called Gypsy soup. A colourful and flavourful concoction with chickpeas, peppers, tomatoes, squash, featuring appearances from paprika, turmeric, basil and cayenne. I can see this being made again, though I might cut down the spices a little, just to let the flavours of the ingredients come through more.

And so on to the entrees. I picked two fritters, the first being a Curried Sweet Potato Fritter. A mixture of eggs, cornmeal, curry powder and grated sweet potato, plus some other things, made this a pretty tasty dish. Served on a bed of baby spinach, this is also a low calorie meal (less than 200 calories for two fritters and spinach). I liked this, but I wanted to like it more than I actually did, if that makes any sense.

And, finally, my favourite for the day: an Asian Vegetable Cake with Cabbage Salad. The vegetable cakes comprise cornmeal, split pea soup, carrots, sugar snap peas with ginger, soy sauce and green onions. The salad was fresh and crunchy, though I had to experiment with a few Asian dressings before I got one I kind of liked. I also made a tangy sour cream dip to go with it. This one I will definitely make again!

* * *

Thanks to Serena and Serena's camera for the photographs!

Of TV Chefs ...

TV chefs. Back in the early 90s, I used to watch a tremendous programme on PBS called 'Great Chefs'. They had Great Chefs of New Orleans, of Chicago, of San Francisco and a heap of other places. It was there that I first came across Emeril Lagasse. Back then, he wasn't this larger than life TV celebrity, yelling and throwing garlic everywhere. He was this young, thin, intense guy who clearly loved his food, what he did and where he lived. He had this strange way about him when he cooked, all hunched over as if he didn't want to get too far away from his dish. You could tell this guy was class: something Anthony Bourdain might have found out if he wasn't too tied up selling his mother's jewellery to buy heroin.

Emeril used his celebrity to open up more restaurants and build a mini-empire. Bourdain used his to dump his old wife and get himself a brand new one. So they've both done well.

All this is by way of introduction to something I made yesterday. I had bought a turkey breast, and had in mind to make some kind of roast stuffed dish, but as the time drew closer I wasn't really feeling it, and then changed my mind to doing it on the barbecue instead of indoors. So ... I went to the internet and one of the recipes that popped up was from Bobby Flay. He is someone I never really got to look at too closely, though I have seen him a few times on Iron Chef. I do know that he grills a lot, and is big into Southwestern flavours. Until yesterday, I never tried any of his dishes, or even variations of them, so it was a bit of a leap. Still, the Grilled Turkey Breast with Bacon, Green Tomato, and Goat Cheese-Sage Mayonnaise sounded too good to pass by, so we didn't.

To save you skipping to the end - it was a huge success.

You start by rubbing the turkey breast - make sure you get the one with a bone in, I think it makes a huge difference - with oil, salt and pepper. Pop it on a hot grill, skin side down, and grill till the skin is nice and brown and crispy, maybe ten minutes. Turn it over and lower the heat to medium for another 30 minutes. I used a meat thermometer (thanks for the tip, Bobby) and took it off when the internal temperature was just over 160. Covered with foil and set aside.

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Glenn was making the goat cheese-sage mayo, which is just as it sounds. Mayo, goat cheese and sage.

Bacon done on the barbecue is just awesome. I think I will do it like this forever from now on! Once the bacon was done, I lightly grilled some slices of farmer's bread, then went inside to assemble.

First, we divided up the mayo on to the bread. Then, the bacon, and next the tomato and lettuce and on top of that - the turkey.

None of us had ever had turkey breast like this. Somehow, it had stayed nice and juicy throughout. Now, there were a few differences: his recipe is a closed sandwich, mine was open. Because of that, I think we could have put a lot more mayo on, as once you bit through to the bacon ... well, that was it. Plus I had no green tomatoes, unless you count the mouldy one at the bottom of the fridge. And I used green leaf lettuce because that was all I had.

Now I am tempted to try more of his grill recipes - perhaps in the next couple of weeks?

By the way, in case you didn't get it - bacon on the barbecue? Amazing!

Anyway, here is a video of Emeril Lagasse from around 1992 or so.

I think if I want someone to make me steak and french fries, Bourdain will do. But anything better than that, more adventurous, I'll call on Emeril and Bobby Flay.

* * *

At the same time we were making the grilled turkey breast, I was preparing a casserole. This was a very simple one to do. I browned some ground beef, then took out the meat and tossed in some chopped onions and garlic. After a few minutes, I put the beef back, seasoned it and added some nutmeg and cinnamon. This I then spread in the bottom of a casserole dish.

While that was going on, I made some pasta. I chose a ziti; small pasta tubes about an inch or so long, and arranged top of the meat. 

I poured over that a bechamel sauce that I had made with cheese, two egg yolks and some nutmeg and cinnamon. I topped the whole thing with grated cheese and breadcrumbs.

Bake in the oven for about 35 minutes or so. Delicious hot, warm or cold.

* * *

By request: All photographs courtesy of Serena Panayi.

Food Memories

Many people who are passionate about food have at least one clear moment early on where they realized that food was something more than just a means of stopping yourself from being hungry. Anthony Bourdain's oyster moment, on a boat in France, comes to mind. Google kicks up 65 million results for 'early food memories', but only 15 million for 'great religious experiences'. So that should tell you something.

Growing up in the tiny town of Wallasey, I knew I was not the same as all the other white boys. Yes, I looked the same, but I had a Greek name, and a Greek father, and ate weird stuff like olives. My dad used to go down to the docks and buy the garbage fish for a pound - fish that today is endangered or highly desirable or both, but back in the Seventies if it wasn't cod or haddock, no one wanted it. So we'd have the most delicious fish soups - something that I always asked him to make. Sadly, he made it but a handful of times as he got busy, I got more busy, and our family disintegrated. I did try to let my friends in on the secret of the wonderful food I had been eating while they were gobbling down chips, beans and fish fingers, but the more they just went "Ewwww!" the less I spoke of it.

But one of my absolute favourite meals was when he'd come home with a big bag of whitebait: tiny fish about an inch or two long that he'd season, flour and fry. He would cut up some raw onions, and some lemons with the all the skin peeled off, and we'd eat them just like that. Pop a whole fish in your mouth, take a bite of onion, and a bite of lemon. Repeat and repeat and repeat. 

This was, I now know, one of the great memories food creates. Not even my mother would join us as she hated raw onions, didn't like eating whole lemons, and wasn't too crazy about eating fish heads, bones and stomachs. So it was just me and my dad, partners in this simple, yet exotic feast. 

I could re-create dish quite easily now, of course, but it wouldn't be the same. It never is, is it?

* * * 

One of the most memorable meals I had was in Japan in about 1985 or 86. We had just finished a big show, and we all went out to eat after at a restaurant whose name escapes me. I had long hair back then, and a beard and moustache, so when I came in all the dancers from the show started singing "Jesus Christ, Superstar..."

The meal went on forever, and the sake just kept coming and coming. Later, a bunch of us went out to do some more drinking and eating at bars where at least one of our party had a bottle with his name on behind the counter. Gradually, our party diminished as one by one people cried off, or just simply faded away. 

Finally, there were just the three of us. Myself, Nagatuska-san and Ando-san. It was the middle of winter in Tokyo and f-r-e-e-z-i-n-g. Plus there was a howling gale - so strong that as we crossed the road the wind ripped Ando's scarf right off and flung it into the middle of the street.

As we got to the other side, I saw a small wooden hut. 

"What is that?" I asked.

"Noodle," they said. "You want some?"

So we sat down, shaking from the cold, at this hawker stall. It was like a hawker stall if Ikea invented it. Everything had an exact place for itself. It all fit together like some Apollo space mission, and I am willing to bet it all folded up into a cart the owner could just wheel home when he was done and nothing would spill or break. There was a counter and small chairs, and the whole thing was made out of pine.

"Sake?"

"Yes, please."

"Udon?"

"Yes."

The sake was poured. None of the thimble-sized refinement you get at resaturants. Here they served it the same way the Chinese drink brandy at banquets - in straight six-inch high glasses. Each one held about four shots of the regular sake.

The noodles appeared right away, or so it seemed. Hot, beefy broth and thick, perfectly cooked udon. Bits floated in it that I didn't recognize, but I didn't care. Steam billowed up and we hunched down close to our bowls letting it hit our faces as this was the only way we could stay warm. The wind battered our backs as we sat, unprotected in the empty street. Our ears grew pink and chapped. But our faces and hands survived, thanks to the noodles and the hot sake.

The stall owner stood there, impervious. Not talking, not smiling, just waiting for us to finish so he could clean our glasses and dishes away.

We paid the bill, stood up and said our goodbyes.

Twenty years later, I met up with Nagatsuka-san and we still talked about that evening. What was it that made it so special? Yes we were drunk as lords, so drunk and so cold we could barely light our cigarettes or even speak in full sentences. But just in those few minutes, in those sub-zero temperatures in the middle of Tokyo just before dawn, memories were forged;  memories of the time three friends sat and ate and drank together. 

Could be possible to go back in time, even for a second, to breathe that moment?

Perhaps, in some way, we can. Who knows?

Or perhaps that is what this life is all about - so that at its end all we are left with is a collection of the sharpest memories of the times when we really, truly lived.

* * *

Mediterranean Chicken and Tofu Burgers

I am thinking of changing our dog Ella's name to Ella? This is partly because every time you call her name it is followed by a question, as in 'Ella, what are you doing?' or 'Ella, why is there a shoe in Dash's bed?' or 'Ella, why are you carrying round a sock in your mouth?'. And it is partly because she is herself almost always puzzled by something. Take yesterday for example. When throwing a ball for her, if she takes her eye off it, or it goes over her head, or it lands behind a tree, to her it has effectively vanished and she is completely at a loss.

I went out yesterday to find the only supermarket that was open on a public holiday: at Market Village. It was surprisingly empty - only took me 40 minutes to get in and find a space. Picked up some chicken legs/thighs, a whole chicken, some tofu, lean pork and a 'soup carrot'. Also grabbed four small Hawaiian yams and a bag of baby bak choi.

Woke up at 6 am and started putting things together. I was going to do the minced chicken tofu patties with Middle Eastern flavours I had done before, but changed things up at the last minute. I ended up with a sort of deconstructed chicken mapo tofu patty, made of minced chicken, tofu, miso paste, cilantro, green onion, parsley, soy sauce with calamansi that I have been dying to incorporate into something, pepper, ginger, garlic and onion. To cook, I formed them into golf balls and patted them down, then pan fried them to get a crust and then added some chicken stock I had made out of the bones, and covered for five minutes.

In addition, I took the thighs (having used the legs for mincing) and marinaded them with lemon juice, cinnamon, olive oil, salt and pepper, then pan fried them the same way as above.

For grain/vegetable, I added finely chopped bak choi that I had dunked in the simmering chicken stock for a minute, then combined with steamed Japanese rice.

This - together with an oven-roasted Hawaiian Yam, was lunch for the girls.

I was still cooking the soup - Chinese style with dried mushrooms - so it should ready for the evening meal.

So, a good food day, with the only slight cloud being what to do for tomorrow.

And finally, it has come to my attention that a lot of my recipes are the sort of Jamie Oliver "a bit of this, a hunk of that" style which is not too helpful. Next time I make this, I will measure the ingredients and put it into a proper recipe format.

* * *

The World Comes to an End. Maybe.

Today is the last day of the world as we know it so I guess I shouldn't have gone out and bought food for tomorrow. But old habits die hard as they say, and I set off for Price Chopper, remembering it had closed for renovations last week and was supposed to open yesterday. 

It is no longer Price Chopper, but FreshCo, and I have to say it is wonderful. I bought some ribs and a whole chicken for tomorrow and some halal chicken thighs for the afternoon.

I also bought a selection of dried beans that I am going to use for various dishes the next couple of weeks, and some good looking pasta.

I bought eight tomatoes so I could make roasted tomato soup. It is very very easy. Quarter the tomatoes and roast them on a sheet of parchment with three small onions, four or five whole cloves of garlic, about 1/4 cup of olive oil, salt and pepper and herbs of your choice. Basil and oregano are obvious ones.

After 45 minutes or so, remove from the oven and puree. It will be quite thick, so you need to put it in a saucepan and add some liquid. I added about a cup of water and a cup of chicken stock, but I would have used vegetable stock if I had any. It still needed salt to taste.

To serve I drizzled some fresh cream, and sprinkled some cubed feta and some parsley. A slice of French bread. Actual cost of homemade roasted tomato soup: about 40 cents. A similar portion of Campbell's tomato soup? About 40 cents.

Serena and I made our own BBQ chicken thighs using the barbecue rub from last week. I grilled them on indirect heat at about 425 for 30 minutes, then on direct heat with the store-bought barbecue sauce for about five minutes. They were tasty and juicy. Mmmm!

Serena made a chunky salad out of tomatoes, cucumbers, finely sliced onions, and feta cheese.

* * *

We had a massive amount of fresh fruit salad left over, so today I pureed it, and made granita with a lime  and mint infused syrup.

* * *

Final word about the non-ending of the world. The Bible refers to false prophets several times. Needless to say, they are not looked upon kindly. Think of it as an early example of brand protection. Deuteronomy, for example, is quite specific on this, saying that if a prophet says God told him X will happen, and X does not happen, then he is not speaking for God (clearly), and ... he should die.

I await the execution of Harold Camping with interest. If I was the guy who spent $ 140,000 of his own savings on billboards and subway ads, I'd be first in line. But that's just me.

* * *

FOOD COSTS
Ribs  $ 8.75
Chicken $ 11.00
Chicken Thighs $ 8.12
Navy Beans $ 2.29
Black Beans $ 2.29
Romano Beans $ 2,29
Chick Peas $ 2.29
Penne $ 0.99
Farfalle $ 0.99
Linguine $ 0.99
Spaghetti $ 0.99
Tripoline $ 0.99
Tomatoes $ 3.56
Onions $ 1.77