Out of curiosity, I'm wondering if people here have noticed their favorite bloggers going for cheaper ingredients - making more spaghetti and vegetables, for example, and less pastured spring lamb in truffled butter? Is food porn looking cheaper?
Likewise, if you cook from foodblogs, have you found yourself unable to make an interesting recipe because the ingredients were beyond your price range?
The conversation went something like this.
Me: It would be really funny to veganize Anthony Bourdain's recipes.
Another person: We should make and sell a zine, then donate the proceeds to a vegan charity.
Then, this: http://hezbollahtofu.blogspot.com/
(I had nothing to do with the site, except that I'm posting the link here because it's hilarious and contains delicious-looking French vegan food. I will just be bragging about it being "my" idea forever).
My sister and I were talking about the recent tuna-mercury scare. Her question?
"Can't you just cook the tuna to get rid of the mercury?"
Last time I checked, heat can do many wonderful things. Evaporating heavy metal from fish isn't one of them.
I also saw a forum where a poster asked if it was possible to leave the bananas out of a "recipe" for oatmeal, and at work a woman wanted a latte made with half and half but without whipped cream (because of the calories) - whipped heavy whipping cream has less calories per tablespoon than half and half!
What other strange things do you people think about food?
I'm exploring the world of pies for one of my blogs. I'm going with the idea that every culture has a pie (pie= base or top + filling). So far, I've considered pastry pies, tarts, pizza, calzones, pasties, turnovers, knish, and empanadas - can anyone suggest other types of pie (or dishes similar to pie)? Asian, African, Latin American, Eastern Europe, Indian, etc.?
I'll appreciate any help remembering those pies that I'm clearly forgetting!
If one new food could incorporate every food trend, what would it be (the trends can be anything related to food (agriculture, cooking, packaging, presentation, ingredients, etc.)
I vote for a miniature organic pomegranate and bacon cupcake baked in a hollowed meyer lemon stuffed into a free-range duck baked into a heirloom turkey topped with truffled matcha foam divided into 100 calorie packets banned by schools and sold under Rachel Ray's name.
You?
I was wasting time surfing food blogs, and I found mention that some people who fill uncomfortable with the in-and-outs of bovine dairy farming (separating calves from their mothers, keeping cows continually pregnant) prefer goat dairy products.
How is goat farming different? Does anybody know? I imagine that goat farmers are more likely to be independent, organic, etc., and that they probably operate on a much smaller scale, resulting in less pollution, etc.
I'm very curious. I'll eat my local chevre and crottin regardless, but it would be nice to know the practices behind my delicious salad toppings, pasta mix-ins, and lasagna fillings .
Along the lines of the mixed nuts question . . . .
You are at Trader Joe's. You are surrounded by gourmet items at bargain bin prices. And you can only buy one thing. What would it be?
For me? Probably the goat yogurt (I can get affordable Greek yogurt closer to home, if need be. No way on the goat yogurt.)
How about you?
Dear Giant,
If persimmons are cheaper at Whole Foods, you no longer get to claim "everyday low prices."
Thank you,
Karyn
I have leftover mochi (still!) from New Years. I have adzuki beans simmering on the stove. Can I put them together in a traditional way without added sugar?
Can anyone point me to a traditional recipe for a soup with mochi dumplings?
I can "wing this" if needed, but I'd like to hear about some traditional soups/ meals/ recipes.
I'm young, and I look younger than I am (when I tell people I just graduated, they ask me from which high school). Still, I stand straight, I make good eye contact, I don't usually dress like a homeless person, and I happen to like cheese, wine, and loose-leaf tea.
Yet, cheese, wine, and loose-leaf tea sellers tend to treat me with disdain. The last time I went to buy loose-leaf tea, the woman at the counter rolled her eyes - rolled her eyes - when I asked for her recommendation in tisanes.
At artisan cheese shops, I'm often made to feel like I'm wasting the cheesemongers time (especially when I start throwing around phrases like "vegetarian rennet").
Is this considered the right customer service? Am I doing something wrong? Do I just not "fit in" - should I go back to Coke and American Singles?
Anybody else made to feel like crap when all you want is a nice, sheep's milk blue?
I can't figure out how to e-mail you, charm city cupcake!
I would buy sweet and sara's or vegan essential's marshmallows online (sweet and sara's are at some WFs, etc., too). There is also a vegan marshmallow kit that you can order. Ricemallow, while a vegetarian marshmallow fluff, works fine in s'mores and PB Rice Krispies. And hot cocoa.
Sadly, the people who invent good vegetarian marshmallows want to sell their marshmallows, not their recipes.
I didn't see that you were lactose intolerant. How bad are you? I can still handle yogurt and goats/ sheep milk cheeses and yogurts.
And -ooh - sorbet. It contains sugar, but there's usually some fruit in there, too ...
Okay guys, despite the bad hype, beans and rice, oatmeal, potatoes and pasta are not the most calorie-dense things on the planet. Plus, they contain fiber - that stuff that fills you up quickly.
huney_bumper : If you can handle liquid meals, try drinking your calories. The avocado smoothies someone mentioned are a good idea. Put honey or another high-calorie liquid sweetener in them. Tapioca pearls might be easy on the tummy, too.
Granola can be high-calorie, but not unhealthy if you make it yourself. Same with energy bars.
Also, if your stomach can handle it - coconut milk is tasty, healthy and very high calories. I think it comes around 40 calories a tablespoon.
Cheese is one of the highest-calorie foods out there, but it can also be hard to digest. You know what you can handle. Frozen yogurt, while not always terribly healthy, can be high calorie and easier to digest.
Also, dips. Bean dips will be high-calorie than straight-up beans. You could try juicing fruit and vegetables to get their calories without their filling fiber.
Good luck. Also, I would talk to a nutritionist who has dealt with cancer patients before and can offer lots of healthy suggestions.
I have to say that I really don't expect people to cook especially for me at parties. I always pack snacks in case there's really nothing for me to eat, but most of the time there's salsa, or salad, or a baked potato to keep me from starving.
I am, however, really touched when there are vegetarian options. I went to a cinco de mayo party where there were vegetarian refried beans and Boca crumbles for the tacos - I thought it was awesome beyond awesome that vegetarian guests were remembered.
I also went to a grilling party where someone made me my own vegetable kabob. I was really touched and thankful.
earlybirdkate - You are obviously enlightened. You won't believe the comments I've gotten when other people saw me with a meat-free plate. Without bringing my diet up at all, I've apparently opened myself to some pretty rude comments.
You said memorable - not good. I submit my mother's Halloween recipe for worm noodle soup.
Guess what gummy worms do in hot Campbell's chicken noodle? NOTHING GOOD.
Grocery stores generally let you bag your own vegetables. I miss out on deals buying one avocado at a time - but buying four avocados at TJ's really means eating two avocados, then letting two become art projects. Most of the time, I don't run into problems - frozen vegetables are the single cook's friend (take out a few, the rest of the bags lasts for months). You can also buy single servings of fish and burgers. I find vegetarianism easier and cheaper, so I've figured out how to cook single portions of rice and dried beans. I use a lot of herbs for flavor. You can freeze bread, pitas and baked goods. When fruit needs to be used quickly, smoothies prove ideal (though I will also freeze fruit like mangoes, cherries, and bananas). Vegetables at the end of their rope will often work in stews and soups.
Stuffed things make "oohs" and "aahs." So I do stuffed peppers, stuffed eggplant, stuffed pumpkins. I've also impressed people with stovetop paella and risottos.
For dessert - mini pie. People love getting their own pie!
Hot Potato ( http://www.threepotato.blogspot.com )
Mostly-vegetarian meals for one.
Butterface, marshmallows aren't simply Italian meringue. They require some kind of gelling agent such as gelatin or xanthan gum (or marshmallow root!). Without a gelling agent, they won't get set and get that distinctive springy texture.
@BangieB - is your friend vegan or just vegetarian? If she eats eggs, you can make marshmallows with egg whites (they were originally made with egg whites and starch from the marsh mallow plant's root).
You're essentially just making a meringue, but not drying it out all the way. Find a recipe for an Italian meringue (the kind with a cooked syrup), make it, then turn the resulting fluff into a square pan that's been oiled and dusted with confectioners sugar. Let it sit uncovered 2-4 hours, then wrap it but leave a few holes for air flow, and leave it at room temperature overnight. The next day, turn the whole meringue out of the pan and onto a confectioners sugar-dusted board. Use scissors to cut it into squares, and roll each in more confectioner's sugar.
@BangieB -- I get mine at Whole Foods. Hope that helps!
@charm city cupcake -- Thank you. I'll e-mail you.
I can't figure out how to e-mail you, charm city cupcake!
Thanks, everyone. I'm not sure I'll have access to xanthan gum by tomorrow, but I'll check it out. I'll let you know how it turns out!
This shows that I don't think about the process when I'm eating some things. I never really gave two thoughts about how to make marshmallows until this post, which led me to read:
http://itdg.org/docs/technical_information_service/marshmallows.pdf
Wow.
Good luck on your project~
To anyone who wants the xanthan gum marshmallow recipe - feel free to email me for it. I'm one of those people who doesn't like posting recipes from cookbooks. : /
I use Ricemallow a lot. It's really good, but you can't make marshmallows with it.
@charm city cupcake, having recently found out I have a serious wheat allergy, I am just getting acquainted with xantham gum. I've made regular marshmallows many times, but can't imagine how the xantham gum would work in place of the gelatin. May I e-mail you for the recipe? (-- Or, maybe you could just post it here if you don't want a lot of e-mails.)
i would tell my friend to pick something else.
In her book Demolition Desserts, Elizabeth Falkner provides a recipe for marshmallows made with xanthan gum. I've never made them, but I have no doubt that they're excellent. Send me an email if you want the recipe (raspberryeggplant at gmail dot com).
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Website: http://www.threepotato.blogspot.com
Location: Western Maryland
About: I'm a twenty-two-year-old pescetarian-mostly-vegetarian home cook who loves good, mostly healthy, always inspired dishes. I'm always looking for new foods and techniques to try.
Favorite foods: Fresh pineapple. Almonds. Eggplant. Yogurt. Apples. Winter Squash. Rosemary. Fresh summer tomatoes. Nuts. Forbidden rice. Maple sugar anything, including maple sugar candy. Hey, I might live in MD now, but I was born in New England . . .
Last bite on earth: Hopefully, I have some time to decide.