I Ain't Playing Games!

The past two weeks I have been completely preoccupied. I graded over 125 student essays, read over 125 student reflections, and helped over 125 students prepare for the portfolio process and the end of the semester--all the while reading The Hunger Games trilogy.

Needless to say, I am exhausted.

But I am satisfied.

With the end of the semester. And with how the Hunger Games trilogy ends.

I could do a book review, give spoiler alerts, forecast how the movies will be different from the books, and try to convince you to read them, but that's a waste.

Really all I want to talk about is the food.

These YA books portray a strong female main character, have bomb-ass action scenes, and perfectly blend Harry Potter with Twilight, but what I love the most is when the food appears.

I don't think it's supposed to be the highlights of the book, seeing that most characters are starving, but I'm thoroughly intrigued that an author has taken on describing high-end food while (un)consciously taking on world hunger as an issue.

Of course, I'm torn. I want more descriptions of the lamb stew Katniss loves. I want to taste Peeta's family's bread. At the same time, I'm frustrated by how many families are starving while others are getting their fill and much, much more.

Everyone should have equal access to good food. Be in it a fictional trilogy or, more importantly, in reality.

Reading The Hunger Games was the first time I've seen food highlighted in a YA novel. It confirmed for me how food does form culture, set social classes apart, and gives us the nutrition we need. I knew all those things, obviously, but seeing them play out in a YA novel was truly compelling for me.

And as I was thinking about this blog post and researching, I came across several sites that developed recipes based on The Hunger Games. Fictional Food is pretty rad. But this recipe adapted from Mark Bittman for the lamb stew has me quite smitten.

But then I feel guilty. Not everyone can afford lamb.

Then there is the saving grace: The Hunger Games advocates hunting.

Alright, I'm on board.

My philosophy with meat is simple. If you can't respect the life of an animal, you shouldn't eat animals. I know that sounds like I'm vegan, which I could be, if not for the local farms that surround us. In other words, I want to be able to meet the animals I could be eating, I want to know that they are humanely raised, I want to cook and eat meat that has its bones in proper places because it reminds me of the sacrifice of a life for my life, and I want to "honor" the animal by appreciating how ALL of its parts provide edible, delicious food, clothing or shelter.

Besides buying from local farmers, such as Luginbill Family Farms or Omega Meats, the only other way to ensure completely honoring an animal is having the balls to be a hunter. Not a sport hunter, but a real hunter.

This is where Collins, author of The Hunger Games, got it right. Two of the main characters are hunters. And wildfowl hunters, in additional to small and big game hunters. That's pretty kick-ass awesome, in my opinion. What seems like a trivial action to get a potential "couple" engaged with one another, hunting takes on this beautiful theme--that hunting can provide for MANY people, that hunting isn't ethically wrong--it's a means to survival, and that hunting actually reconnects us with nature, others, and the self.

Any day in the week I'd take wild goose over a steak/hamburger at a restaurant where I have no idea how they procured it.

I respect animals. So much so, I'm toying with the notion of only eating meat when I know exactly where it came from. If I don't know, I eat vegetarian or, better yet, vegan.

The Hunger Games has made me feel like I've fragilely connected the worlds between left and right politics. And better yet, it made me committed to finding a stellar wildfowl recipe in honor of the premier of the movie on March 23, 2012.

Documenting A Weekend (Or A Lack Thereof)

Alexandria's Opening Night 11/18/2011

My dear friend and co-star of Spatula Sarah says where you find a foodie, you find a camera in hand and guests at the dinner table rolling their eyes.  It's true. Almost any time I go out to eat, I take my camera. I never know when I will need to capture a meal in a photograph.

This weekend while I had my camera on me at all times, I only took the photograph you see here. And it doesn't even capture the deliciousness of the meal. If anything, it documents a food memory I always want to remember.

During the fall and early winter, often I find myself as a hunter's widow. At first I wasn't a big fan of that new role. But as the seasons have come and gone, I've learned to enjoy the time in our quiet house when I grade, cook, write, work on projects, and/or catch up on Jersey Shore. I've realized alone time really nurtures my interior life. But after 36 hours I really start to miss FD.

This weekend was not so quiet as most, though. It began with a family dinner at my house with my in-laws and my sister-in-law on Thursday night. Then us ladies departed around 10 p.m. to get seats for the midnight showing of the epic Twilight Saga's Breaking Dawn (which was fucking awesome, despite what any haters would say.) Friday afternoon after Big F and FD got back from the marsh, FD took off for the island, and Sarah came over to run through our Winter Wheat presentation entitled "Food Writing: Subgenre or Multigenre?" Then, joined by her hubs, we headed to Findlay for the opening of Alexandria's, where Michael from Revolver is the head chef. (The mole is the die for. An in-depth review is forthcoming.) We met up with G and E there and had a great time; the only thing missing for me was FD. Saturday morning Sarah and I gave our presentation, which went exceptionally well, and then Saturday night I had a date with my sis SEM at Revolver.

What's funny is I had imagined taking lots of pictures at family dinner, at Alexandria's, at Winter Wheat, and at Revolver. It was weekend full of a lot of my favorite people and my favorite food. But the lighting wasn't all that great at Alexandria's. And at Revolver, the opportunity never presented itself for SEM and I to "snap" some pics of us. To force a photographic moment is way worse than not taking any at all. The chicken meatballs that SEM ordered at Revolver were gorgeous; the perfectly cut pieces of toast with an even spread of cream cheese and herbs standing like small pyramids on SEM's dish are embedded in my mind. And seeing her in a pretty dress and feeling all girly in my Odd Molly dress was the perfect way to eat a meal celebrating her moving on in her life and going to LA.  I can't help to wonder, though, if sometimes the best meals are better honored as memories.

In an age where Facebook has made us all feel like celebrities with our need to post every last picture of our comings and goings, it was nice to have a weekend with some of my family and best friends that I can cherish as vivid memories, without photographs. And being surrounded my the ones I loved, especially after FD left for his trip, made my weekend feel a lot less lonely. Great friends truly are one of the best parts of life.

Though a part of me does wish I would have taken just a few more pics, at least for my journal...

For the Love of Kale

The Kale Fairy (Homestead Gardens) has blessed me with the beginnings of a very tasty growing season.

And though I'm drowning in a sea of student essays, rubrics, and portfolio comments, I always find time to cook up some divine greens.

Enjoy my tribute to kale and the other spring greens. It's celebration of local produce! Yay!

Fish Fry with Flare

Fish, in general, never used to excite me.

In fact, it usually causes panic, especially when I used to buy it at the grocery store. I never knew if the fish--tilapia, sole, halibut, etc.--had come in contact with shelled seafood, my arch-nemesis that has the power to kill me.

So for many years I just avoided the whole fish situation by not eating it at all, unless it was a McFish sandwich during lent.

Then I married a fisherman. Then I stopped eating fast food. Then I became a returning Catholic.

Now I'm eating fish.

Not just any fish, though. I'm eating fish that FD or his dad or his brother caught--mostly crappies, perch or walleye--at Mosquito Creek Reservoir or in Lake Erie near the Canadian border.

Most times I've left it to FD to prepare and cook the fish. That is until Lent started. As one of my Lenten meditations, I've taken up cooking fish.

And, of course, the best recipe I found fries it. Proclaiming to be a huge fan of fried food doesn't do hot oil and batter justice. Literally, I would eat anything fried--pickles, pizza, twinkles, crickets, roaches. That's how much I love fried food. I try not to eat it often, though. As we all know, it's not the healthiest preparation.

FD makes the most healthy of fish recipes: sauteing fillets in curry powder, baking them in parchment paper, etc. And I find this little piece of buttermilk-battered heaven.

Surely God is proud of my Lenten promise to cook fish.

Or more likely the fool who invented Epicurious is definitely going straight to heaven.

FD and I didn't have the time or ingredients for the pickled onions and peppers or the salsa verde--mostly because I refused to buy the ingredients at the grocery when I know I could make it at the end of the summer with all local ingredients, which would taste WAY better--but we made the Baja Cream, I marinated those little fillets in the buttermilk batter and we fried up in an inch of oil for 4 minutes, kept them warm in the oven, and found ourselves absolutely in love with this Mexican fish fry. (Justin Timberlake and Timberland, how come you couldn't sing about this recipe???)

We made a few adjustments, though. Use flour instead of corn tortillas; they hold up better and taste better. (Yes, we used both to make sure.) Add Cayenne Pepper to the flour for a kick; it's awesome.

Seriously, I force myself to eat fish. With this recipe I devoured, easily and happily, four tacos in one seating plus a few sneak bites of leftover fish before FD did the dishes.

It was sick. It was sickly awesome.

(Note: I use the word sick as a good thing. I didn't get sick from this recipe. In fact, it made my tummy very happy.)

~

Ingredients:

Pickled Red Onion and Jalapeños

• 1 red onion (about 12 ounces), halved lengthwise, cut thinly crosswise
• 5 whole small jalapeños
• 2 cups seasoned rice vinegar
• 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1 tablespoon coarse kosher salt

Baja cream

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1 teaspoon (packed) finely grated lime peel
• Pinch of salt

Tomatillo Salsa Verde

• 12 ounces tomatillos,* husked, stemmed, divided
• 4 green onions, white and green parts separated
• 1 jalapeño chile
• 2 garlic cloves, unpeeled

• 1 1/4 cups (packed) fresh cilantro leaves
• 1 tablespoon (or more) fresh lime juice

Fish

• 2 cups buttermilk
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 tablespoons hot pepper sauce--Sriracha!!!
• 3 teaspoons coarse kosher salt, divided
• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
• 2 pounds skinless halibut, sea bass, or striped bass fillets, cut into 1/2x1/2-inch strips (or in our case, walleye, perch, crappies!)
  

• 16 flour tortillas
• 1t Cayenne Pepper
  
• 2 cups self-rising flour
• Vegetable oil (for frying)

• Fresh salsa
• Guacamole

Preparation:

For pickled red onion and jalapeños:
Place onion and jalapeños in heatproof medium bowl. Mix vinegar, lime juice, and salt in small saucepan. Bring just to boil, stirring until salt dissolves. Pour over onion and jalapeños. Let stand at room temperature at least 1 hour and up to 8 hours. (Can be made 1 week ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)

For baja cream:
Whisk all ingredients in small bowl. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)

For tomatillo salsa verde:
Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly oil roasting pan. Char half of tomatillos, white parts of green onions, and jalapeño directly over gas flame or in broiler. Transfer charred vegetables to prepared roasting pan. Add remaining tomatillos and garlic cloves to pan. Roast until all vegetables are soft, about 12 minutes. Cool.

Stem and seed jalapeño. Place all roasted vegetables, green onion tops, cilantro, and 1 tablespoon lime juice in blender. Puree until smooth, stopping to push vegetables down into blades several times. Transfer to medium bowl. Season with salt and more lime juice, if desired.

For fish:
Mix buttermilk, cilantro, pepper sauce, 1 teaspoon salt, and lime juice in large bowl. Add fish; toss. Cover; chill at least 1 hour and up to 3 hours.

Preheat oven to 300°F. Wrap tortillas in foil; place in oven to warm. Whisk flour and remaining 2 teaspoons salt in medium bowl. Add enough oil to large skillet to reach depth of 1 inch. Heat oil until thermometer registers 350°F. Working in batches, remove fish from marinade and dredge in flour. Carefully add fish to skillet, cover partially, and fry until golden brown, turning occasionally, about 4 minutes. Transfer to paper-towel-lined baking sheet to drain, then transfer to oven to keep warm.

Set up buffet with all taco fixings, along with fresh salsa and guacamole.

*Green and tomato-like with a papery husk, tomatillos are available in the produce section of some supermarkets and Latin markets.

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Fish-Taco-Platter-233703#ixzz0gsEL89K

A British Kind of Day

Today began with Jamie Oliver's crumpets for breakfast.

For lunch JB's Sarnies Shoppe. (Thanks, Jen!)

And dinner: Jamie Oliver's Wild Mushroom & Venison Stroganoff for Two Lucky People.

And we were lucky. Totally.

Even though I used lime peel instead of lemon, whiskey instead of brandy, and dried parsley instead of fresh.

Our recipe doesn't look as good as Jamie's but it sure tasted stupid good.

Another keeper recipe in terms of game. Another notch for Jamie.

I sooooo can't wait for Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution on ABC.

wild mushroom and venison stroganoff for two lucky people

main courses | serves 2
This venison stroganoff is absolutely fantastic – of course, you can use more traditional beef fillet instead of venison, and any mushrooms you like, but there’s something about venison and wild mushrooms that works so well together. Have a go at this and you’ll know what I mean!

The whole point of this dish is that by the time you start cooking the meat, it will all come together quickly. The meat will be quite pink – cook it for longer if you want but it will go slightly tougher.

Cook the rice according to the packet instructions until it’s just undercooked and drain in a colander. Put the rice back in the pan, cover with tinfoil and leave to steam – this will give you incredibly light and fluffy rice.

Heat a large frying pan on a medium heat and pour in a glug of extra virgin olive oil. Add the onions and garlic and cook for about 10 minutes until softened and golden. Remove from the heat and spoon the onions and garlic out of the pan on to a plate. Keep to one side.

Season the meat well with salt, pepper and paprika. Rub and massage these flavourings into the meat. Place the frying pan back on a high heat and pour in some more olive oil. Add the mushrooms and fry for a few minutes until they start to brown. Then add the meat and fry for a minute or two before adding the parsley stalks (you can do this in two pans or in batches if your pan is not big enough) and the cooked onion and garlic. Toss and add the butter and brandy.

You don’t have to set light to the hot brandy, but flaming does give an interesting flavour so I always like to do this. Once the flames die down, or after a couple of minutes of simmering, stir in the lemon zest and all but 1 tablespoon of the crème fraîche and season to taste. Continue simmering for a few minutes. Any longer than this and the meat will toughen up – it doesn’t need long as it’s been cut up so small.

Serve your fluffy rice on one big plate and your stroganoff on another. Simply spoon the remaining crème fraîche over the stroganoff, then sprinkle over the sliced gherkins and parsley leaves. Eat at once!

A Weekend of Cooking, Eating, and Grading

This weekend almost all of my dreams came true.

My all-time favorite poet joined FD and I for brunch at our house. We had bacon, goose, radishes, tomato salad, kale chips, and roasted potatoes. Everything we ate came from Ohio. It was a fantastic little meal, but what made it so fantastic was sharing it with Rachel Zucker. (Thanks, Rachel! I hope we can share another meal together soon!) My only regret: I didn't take any pictures.

[After brunch and before dinner I graded essays.]

For dinner that night, we invited friends over for homemade pizzas: one game pizza and one

pepperoni-onion-mushroom pizza. I served a side salad of bibb lettuce, radishes (clearly, I'm addicted to them), and red onion with the Everyday Food garlic and herb vinaigrette. Again,

great company. My only regret: I didn't take any pictures.

[After dinner I tried grading essays, but that was a futile cause.]

For lunch the next day, my foodie friend Lenz made me Chicken Liver Pate with wine soaked figs, as she promised. I was happy. And I finally remembered to take pictures.

What I loved about the pate was whatever condiment/garnish we added changed the flavor. On its own, the pate was rich, salty, and metallic-y (in a good way). Paired with a radish, the pate took on some heat and the pepperiness of the dish came alive. With yellow mustard, the sweetness moved to the forefront. With a fig, the earthy, gaminess came alive. I loved every bite. And if we hadn't decided to have a 3-course lunch, I would have eaten half the mold pictured above.

Our second course was artichokes with white wine reduction, butter, and Canal Junction's Burr Oak cheese dipping sauce. Lenz boiled the artichokes in salted water for about 45 minutes. In the meantime she made the sauce. We sat down to a feast of leaves and hearts. I was impatient for the third course, so quite frankly, all the peeling wasn't worth it to me. Lenz helped me get the heart, and after that I waited for the main course of game and polenta--my new food addiction.

As a token of appreciation, I'll let Lenz post her own polenta recipe. It's one I'm going to use again and again. As she says, polenta is the grown-up version of Mac 'n' Cheese. I adore it. And this course's was no exception. My only regret was that we didn't bake it right away after serving it. It got hard. I attempted reheating it on the stove later that day with more water and bouillon cubes. It just wasn't the same. Next time I'm baking it right away. Definitely.

Confession: Lenz and I cooked and ate from 11-3. That's food dedication.

[I graded later in the evening--after my wine buzz wore off...]

[The next morning and afternoon I graded like a fiend.]

Sunday was our dear friend Babs' birthday, and I wanted to give her something special. Of course, that gift would be a meal. But not just any meal. A Jamie Oliver meal. If I can't give her the man, I can, at least, give her his food.

For our first course, I served a simple garden salad with mushrooms, radishes, and red onion. Then for dinner I made her the Steak, Guinness and Cheese Pie with Puff Pastry Lid with a side of peas with the artichokes' wine, butter, and cheese dipping sauce. I was quite proud of how

everything turned out. (Though, I'm not sure why my pie filling was lighter and less liquidy than Jamie's...I will need to explore this more...) The taste, though, was spot on. It was the perfect birthday/comfort food I could have made for Babs' October birthday, and I think she was quite happy. My only regret: Babs made her own dessert because I suck at baking. And her cream cheese pound cake with pomegranate and cranberry sauce was a perfect ending to a spectacular meal.

[After dinner I could not grade. I was too full. But I finished this morning. Go, me!]

All in all, this was the best weekend I've ever had with grading.

Food does make everything better.

Canada Goose: It's What's for Dinner

Waterfowl is season approaching, so we're determined to use up the wild game in our deep freezer to make room for this year's prizes. (Go, FD!)

For a long time I haven't been a fan of goose, until FD prepared it with this recipe:

Spice-Rubbed Canada Goose

The Rub: equal parts of coarse sea salt, ground pepper, cumin, chili powder, & garlic powder. (If you feel adventurous consider using coriander, cinnamon or any other spice you like.)

Directions:

1.) Filet breasts horizontally so that you two equal pieces.

2.) Rub goose with spice rub.

3.) Grill in hot pan with EVOO until medium-rare, usually about five minutes a side. It's better to undercook than overcook goose. If it seems undercooked to you, just place it back on the grill and cook it a few more minutes. You don't want to overcook goose; that's when it will taste gamey.

4.) Slice against the grain like London Broil.

5.) Serve on its own, in a sandwich, taco, salad, etc. Spice-rubbed goose is great with a hot mustard or sweet jam.

I know wild goose isn't widely available to folks unless you have a waterfowl hunter in your household, but I wanted to share this recipe with folks we've given goose to and with those who do have it on hand but haven't found a good way to cook it.

If you have a goose recipe you like, please let us know. We're always looking for waterfowl recipes!

Dinner: Monday Night Walleye & Summer Veggie Gratin

When it comes to improvising, I leave it to FD.

I need a recipe.

He just needs his endless imagination.

Dinner tonight: Maumee River Walleye simply crusted in curry powder and fried served with herbed, stemmed potatoes, and summer vegetable gratin.

This meal was perfect.

(For the summer vegetable gratin, refer to America's Test Kitchen Cooking for 2 2009 for the smaller version without bread crumbs.)

Seriously, what would I do without FD? But what would he do without me? I did make some awesome side dishes.

Dinner: Venison Tacos

Another FD creation:

Venison with Wick Fowler's Taco Seasoning

Shredded Malabar Spinach (picked TODAY)

Shredded Carrot

Sliced Heirloom Tomatoes (picked TODAY)

Diced Sweet Onion

Blue Spice

Blue Basil

Shredded Grass-fed Aged Cheddar

= fiesta in my mouth.

App: Amuse Goose

Amuse Goose created by FD:

Grilled & Seasoned Wild Goose Breast from FD's collection

Bacon

Organic Whole Wheat cracker

Fresh Blue Basil

Fresh Orange Mint

Bleu Cheese

= Mind blowing party in my mouth

Meals, etc.

Sunday dinner: BLT with maple brushed hormone-free bacon, Homestead Gardens lettuce, Haslinger's Tomato, and garlic roasted Mayo on Zingerman's Brewhouse Bread. On the side: Moosewood Oven Fries.

Confession: The bacon was so good, FD and I put away one pound of it within 6 hours.

Though it sounds gross, it was absolutely divine.

Monday dinner: Biaggi's with our beloved friends Frank and Christine who moved to Delaware today. Breaking bread with them and guzzling two bottles of 14 Hands was the perfect way to send them off. The dessert sampler took the cake though. (Pun intended.) We can't wait to visit them and experience the Delaware food scene. Much love, you two; BG won't be the same without you. You're missed sorely, especially your hotchney, little plaid-clad man.



Tuesday: afternoon snack. Donna and Kelly in GSW got me this "Thank You" Hello Kitty cake for my work as Assistant Director this past Spring and Summer semesters. A very cute tasty chocolate cake treat. Thanks, ladies. I'm excited to step into my new role as Instructional Assistant.




Tuesday night: Happy Badger Food Club Tofu curry with Homestead Gardens fingerling potatoes, onions, and blue spice, chili-ready diced tomatoes, and tons of curry powder from Calico, Sage, and Thyme. Drank Calder's skimmed milk with one to cut the heat.












Tonight: FD-caught Maumee River Walleye with butter, garlic, and white wine reduction; sauteed Homestead Gardens spinach; and Homestead Gardens fingerling potatoes with orange mint, parsley, chives and oregano.

Just want to thank Ben for bringing my veggies to the office today. I can't express how happy it makes me to get local, fresh veggies in the middle of work chaos.

And I have to point out that FD noticed that instead of Hunan at the Falls in my "Out To Eat" links, I have Human at the Falls. (As I've said, I'm the Queen of Typos.) I guess if this blog was McCarthy's The Road, that typo might make some more sense.

More food adventures coming soon! Stay tuned!

Dinner: Vension Steaks with Herbed Potatoes & Beans

Venison steaks from a family friend with a red wine reduction and herbed heirloom potatoes--both herbs and potatoes from Homestead Gardens--and green beans from BG Farmers Market.

Teamwork: it's how FD and I cook. He was on the venison & I was on the veggies.

As awesome as this meal was I want to quickly note a few revisions I would make:

Cook reduction a bit longer and the venison a bit shorter. Separate the veggies--to cook, simply stem, add butter and parsley, mint, chives, and basil--from the meat. Roast the potatoes after steaming. Add more rosemary to the venison meat.

What to keep the same: WINE, ingredients, china (Kate Spade Gramercy Park), company (FD, my fav foodie companion for life), and music (Hank Williams: cooking & dinner; The Amps: dish washing.)

(Dan just rushed in my office, saying, "Everything we cooked tonight was Ohio based, except for the flour, wine, and vegetable oil." We don't count our Spanish Blood Orange EVOO because we buy it from the Olive Tap in Medina, Ohio with thanks to my sis-in-law Tra. If we broke down the cost, we don't have a meat cost and with the veggies we got about 4 servings, which would be about $.75 per person. Not bad, especially when the majority of the profit goes to local farmers! Oh, and FD simmered the reduction for 5 more minutes and it was perfect. Still learning; as G.I. Joe would say, "Knowing is half the battle!")

* To keep it "everyday" photos are taken with my iPhone. No fancy photography, just quick snapshots, then on to the eating.