Things I Cook Very Well

It is spring! I know because I repotted and planted a bunch of cute flowers, and now my allergies are going nuts.

This post is a random smattering of “Things That I Cook Very Well” for the purpose of starting a business someday, for which this post, living in the interwebs for infinity, will serve as a reminder/inspiration/launching point. Okay.

PIZZA – 

Probably my signature ‘best cooked everytime’ dish. I mostly like veggie pizza, or ‘za, with cow’s cheeses, and little to no sauce on whole wheat dough. I make sure to coat the pizza baking sheet with olive oil and brush the crust edge once I have rolled it out; I also always use flour to stretch the dough (I don’t make my own dough…yet)

Baking – 

I can bake; not saying it is my strong suite though. These were plucked  from a recipe on Fit Sugar and marketed as “high protein, low sugar”; they were delicious with the homemade lemon icing I added to several of them (which caused them to be more like cupcakes but whatever!).

I made peanut butter, chocolate chip, banana bread for a baking contest and won the ‘non-cookie category’! I had seen the picture around Halloween time floating around Pinterest and decided it must be done. I super-modified the recipe though, opting for whole wheat flour and about a cup less sugar. It was fantastic that way too.

Savory Dishes – 

Curry, as a specialty. I learned how to make curry from someone else and eventually, grew to outpace their spicing and culinary skills, making the crispiest tofu, perfectly cooked brown rice, and creamiest curry sauce around Somerville. I like using red curry paste but dabble in green too; yellow is a bit mild for my liking/overly desensitized taste buds.

Cooking Vegetables – 

Vegetables are only as boring as you let them be. I love cooking leafy greens for their ‘volume’ effect; you start with a big handful and they cook down to reasonable volume, leaving you full with healthy fiber for hours. Spinach and Rainbow Chard are tops.

Vegetables are also fun cooked in varying textures. Something like Zucchini boats is all veg (with some cheeeeeeeese, please) but fun to eat and super satisfying.

Unpictured but in heavy rotation – POPCORN. I learned to make popcorn from my dad, using a stove-top and pot with hot oil, old-school style. I add all kinds of different toppings to my popcorn, making both sweet and savory versions, but if I had to open one food-related business, it would be popcorn sales.

I almost took this goat home from a farm the other day; he acted more like a puppy than a goat and I wanted to keep him as a pet! I also almost bought a bunny and then remembered I wouldn’t be home for four days straight so it seemed cruel to keep them.

I think his name was ‘Buddy’. I don’t cook goat BTW!

What is your best dish?

I ate a bunch of ice cream in Columbus, Ohio

 

I owe this post to several people though it is late!!!

Over the holiday weekend (Easter/Passover), I headed to Columbus with the bf to visit his family for Seder and Passover. After a quick pick-up from the airport, we lunched at a pub in downtown Columbus. I had the baked salmon over spinach salad with blue cheese and strawberries. The combination was great but I don’t believe the salmon was baked; more like fried as it was pretty greasy.

We hit up Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream within the first hour of landing.

Jeni’s is pretty famous in Columbus because they use a host of local ingredients like local cream and honey in many of their signature and wildly creative flavors.

I had seen an episode of Best Thing I Ever Ate the other day on Food Network that featured ‘Best Spiciest Foods’, and Tim Allen’s pick was the Queen City Cayenne at Jeni’s so I HAD to try it. First, there was a faint taste of gingerbread/cocoa, followed by a quick blast of hot hot spicy cayenne pepper. Like a five alarm fire going off in my mouth! I loved it!

The entire shop was so cute inside and you can sample a bunch of flavors before narrowing down your pick.

Jeni's delivers and ships all over the country

I was in Columbus to celebrate the Seder with the bf’s family. His sister hosted two nights in a row and I even made (and tasted) my first matzo balls for soup! People actually liked it too, which I hear is a high compliment! We had great company both evenings and amazing food cooked up by her husband; seriously impressive cheffing skills!

Seder table night #1

On day 2 of our visit, we ventured to the Short North Arts District area of downtown Columbus to do some sightseeing and wandering, my favorite part of visiting new places.

We popped into a few stores. This place Tigertree was too hip to be square, with adorable clothing and local artists goods; it was like walking through a real-life Etsy store.  I could have bought everything/anything and been happy. My bf’s sister and I were seriously oggling some cute dresses and housewares stuff.

I liked this chicken-egg machine too; it is so cool that I didn’t even grasp what its purpose was.

Later in the day we took to the streets and sidewalks in a biker gang to explore the Franklin Park Observatory. This park is comprised of sprawling grounds, walking paths, outdoor kitchen and function areas, a butterfly atrium, an apiary, community gardens, and an arboretum.

Wooden suspension bridge

Bike path

Arboretum

being weird posers; I look distracted

Apiary...BUZZ BUZZ

Hives inside the open air apiary; bees are so smart

Cold frames growing starter veggies

Guys 'hangin'' in the grapevines and hop trellises; get it?

French-style low-growing gardens lined the outdoor kitchen patio

On Day 3 we took a self-guided tour of the Ohio State campus.

Architecture building on Ohio State Campus

The legendary 'U' Horseshoe Stadium

And then we ate more ice cream. We hit up yet another famous ice cream shop, Graeters. This place is a bit more old-school style than Jeni’s and reminded me of Friendly’s Ice Cream  maybe. 

I had a good-old standby, Black Raspberry Chip, with jelly beans (as it was Easter Sunday, which in my book, requires candy). We had a great time in Columbus and it was so much more than I expected! I guess I thought it would either be more rural or suburban but the city/suburban line is much less defined than in other cities I have been to; the areas seemed to blend together more seamlessly. Plus while we were there, the flowers and trees were in peak bloom and everything was green, so it truly felt like the official ushering in of spring.

Cohasset 10K Road Race Recap

This past Sunday, I ran the Cohasset 10K Road Race. I have very mixed feelings about how it went.

I had practiced, so I felt as physically prepared as possible (possibly too prepared; knowing it was a hilly course made me more hyper-aware of the upcoming hills than was beneficial to my brain). I ‘executed’ well, meaning I did everything technically right before, during, and after the race. I had fun and saw a bunch of people I know from the area. I didn’t feel that I challenged myself enough though. By the finish, I had a little fuel in the tank left, and I didn’t run a consistent pace so I came in about 5:53 over my goal time. Boo. I blame…the wind. I know I can run faster because I have been running faster all winter outside but my friends who obsessively run assure me it is normal especially since this was a first race I was taking very seriously.

Our ‘race crew’ – wear black & red or you aren’t cool. My brother came in at a pretty sick placement with a time of 45:14, 113 overall. He should be running to compete I think!

I had read that Tina of Carrots N Cake was running the race and sure enough, as I spaced out staring at the race results board, I spotted her right there and went to say hello. She had a great race and she and her husband were very friendly. After the race, we all headed to my parents’ for a massive meal…

Scrambled eggs, bacon, hash browns...

Bagels, lox, cream cheese, banana bread

I washed down a full plate with a liquid order of water, Vitacoco, low-fat chocolate milk (kids sized), and a Smithwick’s Ale.

I’m proudly wearing my race shirt, with the 1-4-3 lighthouse (Scituate fact: the lighthouse used to blink in a succession of 1-4-3 flashes as a sort of SOS to tell the sailors and lobstermen out at sea that they were loved, as in I (1) LOVE (4) YOU (3). The Minot Lighthouse featured on the shirt is actually located off the shores of Scituate not Cohasset but this is a larger dispute).

I REALLY want to run another race now (of course) to prove that I can run faster than I did. I DO NOT have a desire to start running marathons though; I don’t think I want to be that much of a specialist. But I do enjoy running now more than ever before, especially since I am getting it down to a science for my body and watching myself improve my speed over the past winter, which is tough to do regardless because of variable weather conditions. I just may be a runner (albeit a slow one) after all. Know any good 10K I should sign up for?!!!