The Pig and I

I've been pretty consumed with these simple pastas lately. Today I put a little chicken in one (it was penne today) and added a little orange juice and milk, but they're all essentially the same. Mainly I like them because it takes me about 15 minutes to throw dinner together. Which means today, I give you something from my archives. Not my archives here. Just from my piles and piles and piles of recipes I've written over the years that I never gave you, because I haven't even been actively maintaining this blog for a year, despite it existing before that. Today is grapefruit pie. I will give you my way of making it and the lazy way (buy the strawberry glaze; that's the lazy way). I found out about this pie a few years ago. Apparently there's a place in a little border town in Texas that serves it (don't ask me where, since I can't remember the name of the restaurant and I never have actually been to it), so I was told about the pie and I made my own...

I didn't take a picture of this. I'm way more interested in photographing the mutant cornichon P selected for me (I like mutant foods a lot) at the store today, but even that hasn't gotten me to get off my butt and figure out where I stuck the camera most recently. It's always somewhere. Just not somewhere I know about. I think I recently mentioned that I was going to make some minestrone, because I wanted to use up the last of those frozen carrots I'm just not that big of a fan of. I also used up the frozen green beans that were just on the edge of burning in the freezer. So, they're not burned. Now they're boiled. I don't know how to make small quantities of soup. I've (mostly) learned to make small quantities of other things, but soup? I jsut never seem able to pull that one off. This soup was supposed to just be a couple quarts. But it wound up filling an 8 quart deal. I felt lucky I didn't have to spill it over into one of the large dutc...

Ok, so here's the thing: there is no way to eat this in one sitting. Not if you use it for two servings, anyway, as I am. I guess if you're an athlete and were served this after all-day training, you could probably get it all down. But not a normal person. So I told P, "when you can't eat it all, don't think I'll be offended. My intention is to eat what I can, then let it sit in front of me on the couch to pick at as I blog and watch tv." And that's what I think you should do too - eat what you can, then pick at it (it took us a total of four hours to pick our way through this, but we enjoyed each little bite, despite the new pain in our bellies). I realised, slightly belatedly, that I am actually JUST in time for this month's No Crouton's Required . I was sad when I'd thought earlier this month I might not get to participate. This month's theme is dressings; and here is one of my favourites of the homemade varieties. So, here's m...

Ok, so there's no picture of this (and in honesty, you might not want to see it anyway, without being able to smell it. It wasn't the prettiest food, though it tastes amazing). I had only 3 slices of bacon left when P got back from Brazil, and we both wanted bacon one morning (and didn't want to go to the store to get more). So, with three slices in the house, we couldn't have bacon and eggs, bacon and matzo brei, bacon and... well, anything. How to equitably divide it? Then I remembered the rice in the fridge. And I remembered my former roommate from Holland, and the lovely Indonesian-inspired curries he'd make us (and oh how I miss them). And then I remembered reading it's common to eat fried rice for breakfast in Indonesia, and I could then see how we could both eat bacon, without anyone feeling they didn't get enough bacon. This is important, as any bacon eater can tell you. It wasn't especially pretty, but it was delicious. Here you go: 2 tab...

I was actually planning to post the bacon fried rice we had for breakfast the other day, but I suspect you all might need a break from the large amounts of meat I've been putting out there, as I do. So instead, you get tonight's dinner instead. I've really been wanting to use the preserved lemons I made before P went to Brazil ( this recipe is very similar to my preparation method), and had originally intended to just make a couscous with the lemons, using all the veggies as a side, but P wanted a larger type of pasta. So this is what we had instead. The lemons were really delicious, particularly with the beets and the roasted garlic. I hope you enjoy this (and soon, I'll give you the bacon fried rice too). 2 beets, peeled and cut into sticks 1 cup chopped carrot 1 cup potato, diced (skin left on) 2 celery stalks, cut into 2-3" pieces, leaves included 10 large garlic cloves, left whole 1 tablespoon each: vegetable oil, olive oil, citrus vinegar salt and ...

I am not normally one for "challenges," but the need has actually arisen. Since P has been back from Brazil, he has consistently enticed me with stories of delicious and exotic foods, many of which cannot be locally replicated (fruits and such, and other things where freshness is key). As a result, I must go to Brazil now. I mean, not now , but now I have the inclination to do so. That costs a lot of money, though. Traditionally, P and I take two vacations per year. We take a winter vacation at some arbitrary location, which P treats me to, and we go to Flipside each May, which I treat him to. We want to go to Brazil next summer, though. It's cheaper to go during their winter. Even if we skipped our winter vacation (which is simply not going to happen, since I need it badly), it'd still be tough to finance an international trip. So we're both saving up. Part of my "saving up" is going to be to properly utilise my change. I used to save up all my change i...

This was kind of a different take on traditional pork and beans. I had a pound or two of pork riblets in the freezer, and I am trying to use the meat more now that P is home. Well, we'll see. That might not hold for very long. I got accustomed to eating almost no meat, so I am starting to feel like I'm eating a lot of it. Anyway, this was yum. And I even took a picture (not pretty, but it exists at least). Miracle. Anyway, hope you enjoy. And for those who don't eat meat, some TVP would probably be a good substitute for the pork, since it can be texturally variable. This really is designed to be tossed together in the morning before work, tended at lunch if there's time (or completely ignored if not), and munched on after work later. I like this kind of food because I don't have to be a responsible adult to still eat well. 1-2 pounds pork riblets 1-2 cups great northern or navy beans (to be honest, I totally didn't pay attention to quantities) 3 cups water...

Ok... I didn't take a picture... again. I was too excited to eat. We had steak, rice and roasted brussels sprouts. Steak: 12 ounces ribeye 2 tablespoons butter salt and pepper 1/4 cup vegetable broth lemon juice to fill to measuring cup containing broth to 1/3 cup 1 tablespoon dried chives 1 teaspoon dried tarragon 1/8 cup canned or fresh mushrooms (I had canned) Melt butter in a pan. Season steak lightly with salt and pepper. On high heat, fry steak in butter until it has reached desired level of doneness. Combine remaining ingredients in measuring cup. Remove steak from pan and keep warm. Keeping pan on high, add remaining ingredients and reduce to a thick-ish sauce. Pour over steak. Serve. Serves 2. Rice: 1 cup rice 1 3/4 cup vegetable broth, minus 2 tablespoons 2 tablespoons lemon juice juice of 1 lime salt to taste 1/2 onion, diced 1 tablespoon oil of your choice (I mixed vegetable and olive) Heat saucepan. Add oil and onion. Fry until translucent. Add...

I fried up some scallops last night (they were dressed in flour, fenugreek, salt, pepper, paprika and... something else; in the manner I think I've posted previously), and made some greens and Brazilian cheese bread for dinner last night. I'm just posting the greens today, though technically they're only half green. I didn't take any pictures, because I was famished. 1-2 tablespoons olive oil salt and pepper to taste 1 large bulb fennel, sliced 1/4 cup diced onion bundle of purslane bundle of spinach 1/4-1/2 cup mint leaves, left whole 1/4 cup each: vegetable broth, lemon juice salt and pepper if needed Sweat oil, salt, pepper, onion and fennel over low heat until they are almost translucent. Add in remaining ingredients and wilt the greens. Serves 2.