Apparently, I can't be trusted

The NYT Dining section this week had an article that, quite frankly, irritated me. Don’t believe me? Just ask the husband, who got the full brunt of my tirade. The article, “The Fat Pack Wonders If the Party’s Over” by Kim Severson, talks about foodies with weight problems and, thusly, health problems. These hedonistic, blogging, obsessive food addicts have diabetes, heart problems, high blood pressure…you know, all the usual problems that come with overindulgence. Obviously, I don’t have a problem with the general subject of the article – it’s true, there’s an obesity problem in America; let’s address it.

Here is my problem: I hate the word "dieting". Dieting means restrictions, limitations, denial, forced physical activity. The article states that Joseph Bastianich’s recipe for weight loss is “run a lot and try not to eat after 6 p.m.” Really??? “Run a lot”??? Now, I know lots of people that truly derive pleasure from running, and that may be the case with Mr. Bastianich. To each their own. But I am not a fan of running if its sole purpose is to allow you to eat more. Heaven forbid, rather than running for your life, you simply eat slightly less than you normally would have had you run. Heaven forbid, rather than take the elevator up three floors, you walk up the stairs instead. Sounds much more pleasurable (and sexy) to me than running.

The article states that, instead of chili dogs, Jason Perlow now blogs about “lentil soup and The Big Salad.” Why stop blogging about chili dogs? Chili dogs are soooo good! Perhaps instead of eating the whole thing, as Mr. Perlow might have done previously, he only eats half. He derives enormous pleasure from it, yet doesn’t get the weight gain from overindulgence. Why deny oneself the pleasure of a chili dog? It is also said that “though [Mr. Perlow] is still in mourning for his old loves, especially pizza and burgers, he says his pleasure receptors are better tuned to the joys of vegetables and legumes.” Well, I’m enormously pleased for him; his “pleasure receptors” should be more in tune with veggies and legumes. But why deny himself “old loves”? Please tell me that he still allows himself joyous nibbles of these foods occasionally! Please! They both can’t cause harm…in moderation. Or try those delicious vegetables on a thin pizza crust. Why must anyone deny themselves anything? Eat consciously and learn moderation in all things…that way, you can have your cake and eat it too.

Ultimately, I resent the implication that people who are food-obsessed and truly passionate about gastronomy must be overweight. Don’t think that’s true? Perhaps I am overreacting – it wouldn’t be the first time – but with books like Never Trust a Skinny Cook by Iain Hewitson and Mo’Nique’s Skinny Cooks Can’t Be Trusted, I can’t help but feel we’re completely misguided in our belief that one must eat everything on one’s plate to demonstrate and derive enjoyment. Why must this be about fat versus thin with a side dish of mistrust? I argue that, in my case, I’m a better cook for being a thinner one. Why? Because I make smart choices in my eating. I’m not going to waste my time with anything less than fantastic. I’ve had one bite of a piece of cake and pushed aside the rest because it was dry and too sugary. I’ve thrown out entire dishes right into the trash because I don’t want to waste the calories, fat, and sugar on something sub-par. I make conscious, smart choices about what is going into my body. I stop eating when I am satisfied, not when I’m full. I eat small portions of a bunch of different foods so that I’m able to enjoy everything. I never skip a meal, and I never eat low-fat, non-fat, low-cal, low-carb anything. Since when has moderation been equated with deprivation?

The implication is that, because I’m a healthy weight, I somehow deprive myself of pleasurable food. And that just isn’t the case with me and I’m certain you’d find that to be true of other cooks with healthy weights. I only live by the credo: all things in moderation. Eat consciously. Respect your food and your body. Avoid processed foods. Be healthy. Be comfortable in your skin, whatever weight that may be. That is how I lost 25 pounds and have kept it off for the past 2 years. And I’ve never eaten so well with such variety in my life.

For heaven's sake, bon appètit

Photo by Getty Images

First Spring Visit to Union Square

Guess who went to the Union Square Greenmarket this morning! Yep, ME! I haven’t been in months – I hate to admit that I’m a fair-weather market-goer. But I was glad I waited because, instead of the sparse winter offerings, I was greeted by flowers and purveyors galore. Which naturally also meant people galore. I don’t know what it was about today, but there seemed to be very few accent-less Americans there – I heard lots of French, lots of Brits, lots of Swedes and Germans. Where did all the Americans go? That’s right – I heard quite a few of them saying they were going to Trader Joe’s a few blocks away. ACK! Why go to Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods when you have everything right here?! Bread, fruit, eggs, meat, jams, honey, syrup, cheese, flowers, herbs. Is there anything else? Curse corporate America for setting up so close to the market!

Please indulge my amateur photography…

The first hydrangeas of the season! Swoon!

Potatoes a-plenty...the fruits of late-spring and summer will have to wait a bit longer. Months ago, my mom-in-law, Adam, and I actually bought several different varieties of the potatoes and did a taste test. Not surprisingly, the delicate fingerling was our favorite.

I'm over parsnips - I've had way too many this winter. But I was happy to see Jerusalem artichokes. See, I have lots of recipes that call for them...but up until today I had no idea what these looked like uncooked and no idea where to find them. So I bagged a half-dozen of them and I'll experiment.

These guys are the best: Elk Trails Ranch. They carry beef and bison products, including doggie treats and jerky. The guys are super-friendly (which, surprisingly, isn't always the case at certain market stalls) and they'll answer your questions. Today I wanted to change up from the usual bison sirloin and flatirons I normally buy. So I bought a "delmonico", which I was told is akin to a beef ribeye. Can't wait to try it!



















In addition to the bison ribeyes, I also stopped by Flying Pigs Farm's stand. Based on the Amateur Gourmet's recommendation, I bought a HUGE pork shoulder and I'm hoping to braise it tomorrow and serve it with my new gratin Dauphinois recipe from My French Kitchen. Not exactly spring-y, I know, but it just sounded so darn gooood. I also bought Apple Sage pork sausage for breakfast tomorrow.



















Here are the rest of my treats: celeriac (again, never tried it, will experiment), eggs, mozzarella, ricotta, a loaf of olive rosemary walnut sourdough (!), Idared apples, Jerusalem artichokes, and cocoa powder-covered chèvre.



















And here was the best lunch ever. The mozzarella was substantial with a melting quality, and the ricotta spread like cream cheese on the olive rosemary walnut bread. Those two other pieces of bread were organic cheese sticks I bought as well - they were a tad on the dry side, but the tang of the cheese struck the perfect tone. The apples were a tad overripe but, given the perfect sweetness, I happily overlooked it. The cocoa chèvre was okay: they mixed the cocoa into the cheese, along with powdered sugar so it was verrrry sweet and dark brown throughout. I might buy some goat cheese and try to make my own with just balls of cheese rolled in cocoa powder. That way you'd get the contrast of the white cheese with the chocolate exterior. And it wouldn't be so sugar-sweet. Nevertheless, can you imagine a more perfect lunch than this on the first weekend of a new season?

Happy spring and bon appètit!

Indulging in a classic

Have you ever felt so excited about a Friday night that you just didn’t know what to do with yourself? The world is about ready to burst into bloom and you have a weekend ahead of you, full of promise. I don’t have plans this weekend and I’m just tingling with the excitement of doing everything and nothing.

In our house, Friday night is “TV Dinner Night”. We usually ban eating meals in front of the TV, but we do allow it on Friday nights and have made a ritual of it. Naturally, my dinners reflect our change of venue. Tonight, I brought back an old favorite from my childhood: grilled peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. My dad used to make them all the time when I was a kid, and I have the fondest memories of eating them. Then I went through a binging-dieting phase from about 14 years old through 30 years old…and, sadly, never had a grilled PB&J during those years because, you know, peanut butter was evil. But no longer. Tonight I had my first grilled PB&J in 18 years…and it was every bit as satisfying and rich and pleasurable as I remember it.

And, no, I didn’t document it with a photo. Some moments really shouldn’t be interrupted by a clicking camera and worries about the lighting.

So I entreat all of you to indulge a bit this weekend with a forgotten classic from your childhood. Remember that the week starts fresh on Monday – get back on track then. For now, though, enjoy.

Miss Erin's Novel Challenge June 2008

I’ve been enjoying Miss Erin’s blog for a couple months now – her voice is fresh and friendly, and her posts have a lot of variety. So am I the only one who realized, when she posted about herself and her family, that she’s so darling…and so friggin young?! Wow. Puts my own life in perspective when I see a teenager with so much eloquence and with a successful blog to boot. On the upside, it helps restore my faith in America’s youth. I don’t know what her future plans entail, but I certainly hope an education and career in NYC are included in them...we need her!

To top it all off, she’s posted a Novel Challenge June 2008.

Aspiring writer? Then go check it out. I’m half-tempted to accept the challenge myself… As Miss Erin says, “We all have a novel somewhere inside of us.” Indeed, I do. But who has the time to actually write it???

Color me way impressed with Miss Erin.

The One with the Recipe Reorg

For a couple years now I've been saving recipes from the Rachael Ray mag, Saveur, Bon Appétit, Food and Wine, and Cooking Light. I've been hole-punching them and dumping them all into a single 3-ring binder. Then when I try a recipe and like it, I mark it with a sticky tab. That's it. So there's been no organization, no point of reference, and messy sticky tabs cluttering it all up.

Well, no more. Check this out:


Now they're in three binders, alphabetically starting with Appetizers and ending with Vegetables. And it's difficult to tell from the photos, but I also bought a crapload of those plastic sleeves and when I try a recipe and decide it's a keeper, I'll put it one of the sleeves. Thus ridding my notebooks of the cluttery tabs. It looks all organized now, and now I'll actually have a prayer of finding what I want when I want it. And it wasn't without effort after three trips this weekend to Staples to get the supplies I needed...

I'm so pleased with my work that I'm going to pour myself a glass of the delectable Sauvignon Blanc I opened last night...

Cheers!

The One About Wines Under $15

Go check out the latest issue of Food and Wine (April). Among many interesting things, there was an article about the 67 Best American Wines under $15. I'm a big believer in wines under $20. I'm not cheap, it's just that I have tasted so many fresh, delightful, pleasant wines at such affordable prices that I just don't feel motivated to regularly drink more expensive wines. I do have more expensive bottles - in the $60 - $80 range - that I keep in a separate wine cooler to age a couple years. Not to mention that Adam and I did indulge in a bottle of Veuve Cliquot's La Grande Dame to celebrate our move to NYC. But that was a rarity - you won't see me pretentiously sipping $500 bottles anytime soon.

What pleased me enormously was reading about Oregon's wines. As a longtime resident of the Pacific Northwest, I always enjoy reading positive articles about the area that don't center on the amount of rain. Food and Wine had an article focusing on the Pinot Noirs alone.

I've tried 19 wines listed in the top 67, which isn't too bad. And I actually have a couple of them sitting in my wine rack and in my wine fridge right now. I can highly recommend the 2005 Bogle California Petite Sirah. We actually drank it with braised duck legs, which wasn't a good pairing. You need a big-flavored, super rich steak to go with this wine. The flavor is complex and bold. I also love the 2006 A to Z Wineworks Oregon Chardonnay. It's unoaked, and I normally like the flavor of oak in my wine. Nevertheless, this wine is light and creamy; it's rich and earthy enough that it doesn't need oak in the background.

I'll actually search out some of the 48 bottles I haven't tried - finding an affordable, interesting gem of a wine always thrills me!

Eat, drink, and be merry!

The One Where I Make Breakfast Sandwiches

Some of my favorite meals are the ones I come up with off-the-cuff, no premeditated planning, totally based on what I have in the kitchen. Which is funny because I’m actually a BIG planner. I feel lost without a plan. In the kitchen, though, I’ve become real comfortable with just throwing stuff together in a very unplanned way.

The husband has been out of town, which always leaves an interesting challenge to me because he normally deals with the kiddo while I fix dinner. So when he’s gone, I need to deal with the kiddo’s nightly routine…and avoid takeout and mac n’ cheese. I was at work on Thursday, pondering what the heck I was going to make us for dinner that night. Here was my thought process:

I’m tired of grilled cheese, but it’s the easiest. Is there a variation on it I can put together?

Crap, I don’t have any bread. Wait, I have those parbaked butter croissants in the freezer…

I bet that Taleggio would taste good melted on the croissants…with scrambled eggs! A breakfast sandwich!

Wait, what meat do I have? Hmmm…proscuitto! I can put that on mine! (The kiddo really can’t stand any meat…except Central Park hot dogs…and it’s debatable whether that’s meat or not)

And imagine my pleasure when I got home and discovered that I did in fact have all the ingredients…and I even had bacon in the fridge! Huzzah! So here’s what we had (forgive my totally unprofessional photos - I'm working on it...):

The kiddo declared it was the “best dinner ever, better than clams” and I didn’t realize how comfort food-esque this sort of meal is. Adam could go on trips more often – it forces me to be really creative and I have to admit I feel like a pretty rad person when I get home with the kiddo at 5:30, do her homework, get her a bath, put together dinners like this, and still get her in bed by 8:00 p.m. You can't see it, but I'm doing my Bad Ass dance right now.

The One Where I Stop Worrying About Pizza

I’ve been reading a lot about pizza lately – lots of bloggers (For the Love of Food and Lobster Squad, as examples) are experimenting with it and trying to make the perfect pie. But I don’t know – I just feel awfully uninspired to give it a go again and again. Why? Because I have tasted, to me anyway, the perfect pizza. Crust, toppings, everything. And it’s at Grazie in Scottsdale, Arizona. People who have even tasted the best in Italy (alas, not me) swear by Grazie. I’ve tried time and time again to replicate their crispy, thin, light-as-air, charred-in-all-the-right-places crust. I’ve made about a dozen attempts. All failures.

My friend Steve makes a stellar pizza. I won’t say that it’s not as good as Grazie’s…it’s just very different. The glorious, and most important, thing about Steve’s pizza is that it is a flavor explosion. He has perfected the right mix of herbs and toppings, and there are several flavors in there you can’t identify but desperately wish you could. I’ve tried another dozen times to make his pizza too. All failures. And that’s after sitting in his kitchen, watching his every move like a hawk!

I’m out. Especially since I bought Nigella Express and discovered using naan for pizza crust. It’s damn near Grazie’s crust. No more rolling out pizza dough and failing over and over again. I’ll stick with my naan and pine away for Grazie and Steve, thank you.

Note: Is this ever going to turn back into a children’s literature blog? I don’t know any more than you do. Stay tuned…