Sticky Fingers (Washington, DC)

This is a vegan carrot cake cupcake from the DC bakery Sticky Fingers, located in the Columbia Heights area. Vegan, of course, means that there were no eggs or butter involved in the creation of this cupcake. That said, this still tasted deliciously decadent. I’m guessing that the frosting was a cream cheese-style topping. Presumably, they had to use something other than cream cheese, since that is obviously not vegan. Honestly, I don’t care what they used, it was delicious.

Pumpkin Soup

Pumpkin Soup (easier than pie) with inspiration from Barbara Kingsolver

Buy small local sugar pumpkin. Cut out top and save. Carve out inside (remove seeds and pulp).

Fill with stock and 2 tablespoons of butter. Add dash of salt & pepper. Replace top.

Bake at 375 for about 40 minutes.

Remove from oven. Scrape down sides, being careful to not scrape too close to edge. Add 2 tablespoons milk (if you have it) and squirt of honey.

Blend with handheld blender (this is key). Add dashes of cinnamon and nutmeg.

Serve!

Farmer’s Market Bounty Hunter

This past weekend, I was driving East on the Mass Pike when I spotted one of those signs for a farmer’s market at the rest area.

“Damn,” I thought, “it’s after 5:30, they’ll be closed!” But I decided just driving through the rest area couldn’t hurt.

Thank goodness I did! Though they were packing up, the farmer’s market still had lots of produce. I bought a quart of blueberries, about a pound of green beans, an eggplant, an Asian eggplant, a bunch of beets, a bunch of carrots, and a cucumber. The total was $14.10. Such a bargin for so much organic produce! I was so overjoyed with the fact that I’d made it in time, I gave the farmer $15 and told her I didn’t need change. She looked surprised, then grateful. (And then she told me to take another cucumber!)

We devoured the blueberries en route. I thought we’d munch on the green beans, but I never want them quite as much as I think I do. I think I confuse them in my head with snap and snow peas. I’ll make those with garlic and lemon sometime this week. The beets and carrots will get shredded and make a nice salad.

Tonight, though, I tackled the eggplants and the cucumbers: I sliced the cucumbers, salted and peppered them, and tossed them in some vinegar and olive oil with some freeze dried dill.

And then, whoops, I ate them all. SO TASTY!

For the eggplant, I braved the summer heat and warmed up the oven. I sliced them up, laid them on a cookie sheet, coated them in olive oil, sprinkled on kosher salt, pepper, and dried rosemary.

(Now, in retrospect, I can see that I need a pastry brush, since I definitely used too much olive oil. But if there’s one thing I hate, it’s chewy eggplant, so I erred on the side of caution.)

I stuck the eggplant in the oven on the top rack uncovered at about 350ish (my oven is old and I don’t think that it gets up to its temperature sometimes), waited about 10 minutes until everything was crispy and delicious. Then I put them in a bowl, got a fork, and devoured them all. The regular eggplant got softer than the Asian eggplant, but really, they were all SO TASTY!

(Now, in retrospect, I really should have blotted them with a paper towel. But man, they were so perfectly charred and the greatest combination of crispy and velvety that I couldn’t resist. But really, could they have been any worse for me than fries? I doubt it. Somehow organic eggplant plus olive oil can’t be as bad as partially hydrogenated oil-coated potatoes.)

Plus, while the eggplant was cooking and while I prepped the cucumbers, I marinated and then roasted some chicken for lunch this week. With fresh basil from my little basil plant, hooray!

Simple Summertime Dinner

Lately in the evenings I just want something simple and fresh:

• Fage Greek Yogurt (drizzled with local honey)
• Fresh Herb Salad (with lemon/mustard dressing)
• Watermelon a la Rum (what? a girl can’t have a little rum drizzled over her fruit?)

It’s not a bad life, really.

Easy Summer Dinner

Made an easy summer dinner tonight:

Cucumber Salad: One cucumber, sliced thinly. Dressed with a light vinegar (I used rice and cider), salt & pepper, dill, a dash of olive oil, and about a tablespoon of sugar. Delish.

Broiled shrimp: One pound cooked shrimp at $4.99/pound. Tossed with Old Bay Seasoning, paprika, dill, olive oil, and salt & pepper. Let it sit for a few minutes while I let the oven get to broil. Put it all in a shallow baking dish, broiled for about 10 minutes (until starting to char at the edges). This actually wound up being too much for me with everything else, but if I’d had fewer other things, it would’ve been fine. As it was, I have some for lunch tomorrow.

I also cut a few pieces of quality bread and spread them with butter. Then I cut up a quarter of a watermelon. About half went for tomorrow’s lunch. But the other half was quickly gobbled up. Watermelon is so delicious!

Yay for summer!

ps. For the curious, tomorrow’s lunch will be: Watermelon, shrimp, bread, and maybe some boiled corn on the cob.

Pickles Are Particularly Perfect

I was walking home from work today when I saw the Grillo’s Pickle cart that is often outside the T at Park Street. I’ve walked past it many times, but this time I stopped. For a dollar, I purchased two spears, handed to me wrapped in aluminum foil.

I wasn’t sure what to expect, but they were fresh, crunchy, and light. Very flavorful but not too sour. Delicious! I can’t wait to hit that cart up on a really hot summer day. Who needs ice cream!?

For a more in-depth review, see this post over at Pickle Freak.

Pink Berry versus Red Mango

This weekend in NYC, I was made part of a fierce and heated debate: Which is the better low-cal, yogurt-flavored, of-vaguely-Asian-origin frozen yogurt? Started in 2005, Pink Berry had the first-in-market advantage in the states, and quickly became the stuff of celebrities and obsessions. Red Mango, on the other hand, was founded in 2002, came late to the scene in the United States, and seems relegated to second-class status.

Both are yogurt-flavored frozen yogurt, served with mostly fresh fruit toppings and other not-so-sweet toppings (Captain Crunch is available, but heath bar is not). The styles of each store are a similar style—clean, hip, and happy. Each has its converts and its faithful contingents who swear, “It’s so much better than [other brand].”

Add me to that list. After a weekend in the city, I can now be counted among the Red Mango enthusiasts. While so much is similar between the two franchises, there’s one thing that’s quite different; the taste. Red Mango’s servings do a better job of capturing that tangy sour-sweetness of real yogurt, meaning that the fruit it’s so often served with works to (I love it with mangos) complement it instead of serving as a distraction.

I went back for seconds in the same evening, just because it was so delicious. Thank you to Claire and Kyra for the introduction to my new favorite obsession.

Oatmeal in the Rice Cooker

I was reading a blog post by Casual Kitchen about how breakfast cereal is so overpriced and how no one should buy it, and I commented that my solution to this is to buy oatmeal, which I can make so easily in the rice cooker. Surprisingly, everyone wanted to know how to make it. It’s so easy, folks!

Oatmeal in the Rice Cooker

1 cup regular Quaker Oats oatmeal (neither instant nor slow-cook)

2 cups water

Instructions: Combine in rice cooker. Hit “cook.” Wait about twenty minutes. If you want to spice it up, add raisins to cooking process (or afterwards, if you don’t like ‘em plumpy), and serve with honey or maple syrup. I like to put soy milk on mine instead of milk. Yum!

Spain, Sangria, & Spring

I recently returned from a trip to Europe with my family that included a stopover in Sevilla, Spain. It was wonderful—not just because Sevilla is a particularly gorgeous and exciting city, but also because Sevillanos know how to live! Sangria with lunch (maybe gazpacho or salmorejo), followed by a siesta, then tapas (potentially with more sangria), followed by a late dinner (and the chance for more sangria!), which can then be followed by a leisurely walk around the beautiful city at night. Need to get lots of sleep? No problem! It’s entirely ok to sleep in a bit until it’s time for churros y chocolate with your coffee the next morning.

There is so much to talk about with regard to Sevilla that I’m going to have to break it down into parts, but, as always, there will be lots of discussion about food! Lately, I’ve been thinking about having a Sangria & Spring party to try and conjure up some of the warmth that Sevilla had. I think I’ll serve the following:

• Sangria (obviously!)
• Salmorejo (this is slightly thicker than gazpacho and perfect for dipping bread into)
• Guacamole & Chips (ok, they didn’t have this in Sevilla, but I love it too much to exclude)
• Salad (my style, not the “vegetables-and-lettuce-on-a-plate” style they serve in Sevilla)
• Olives (another Sevillian staple)
• Paella (so yummy!)

Salmorejo I can figure out by tasting as I go, my little brother is a guacamole expert, and salad and olives are a no brainer, but I’m a little concerned about the sangria and paella. I like my sangria to be sweetened with something other than sugar. My mother prefers Manischewitz, but I worry that might be too sweet. Anyone have any ideas on good combinations?

Sangria aside, I’m way more concerned about making paella. I don’t have the paellera required to make it, and I’m not sure I’m ready to invest in one just for this occasion. (Plus, I have a strict policy that all kitchen items must be multi-purpose—What else can I use a paellera for besides paella? And even if I did want one, where could I get it?) Does anyone have any good tips for first-time paella makers? Or good leads on buying discount-yet-quality saffron?

The Miracle Fruit

I remember reading about the miracle fruit last year in the New York Times. The story captivated me immediately—a small fruit that, when chewed and swished around the mouth, confuses taste buds into thinking that bitter and sour things are sweet.

Today, I read another story about it, this time on CNN.com: Lemons taste like lemonade! Hot sauce tastes like honey! Goat cheese tastes like cheese cake!

Aside from the fact that I love food, I absolutely love the idea of trying weird things. In the New York Times story, they talk about people just going crazy with wanting to try things out before the berry’s effects wore off (it lasts about 30-90 minutes):

…guests became “literally like wild animals, tearing apart everything on the table.” “It was like no holds barred in terms of what people would try to eat, so they opened my fridge and started downing Tabasco and maple syrup,” he said.

So, I’m of course DYING to try this thing! Does anyone know of any tastings in the Boston area? Kyra, do you think that your next Dinner Club could revolve around this? I would totally make the schlep down from Boston!