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Oh noes – Wimpy Soup!

I made a Soupe au Pistou this weekend to be my dinner-that-would-only-require-a-microwave-since-it-is-icky-hot-here for the entire week.

Only it it weak. Limpid. A bit lacking in flavor and body.

And I suspect it’s because the recipe I was working from required tomato paste, and I left it out because 1) I had none, and 2) there are many pistou recipes that don’t call for tomato paste.

That’s not something you can add after the fact, is it?

What else can I do to give my soup some character?

Suggestions from comments: cook the tomato paste in some bacon grease and add it, throw in some orzo, a dollop of sriracha, Pasta, some herbs, cornstarch

What to serve at tea – Coronation Chicken, Roasted Tomatoes in Parmesan Cups, Stir Fry in Wonton Cups

A friend of mine at work is getting married. So when word came around that there might be a bridal shower, I mentioned that I studied little tea sandwiches in college.

…sadly, this is not much of an exaggeration.

So I am contributing at least part of the food.

Here be menu planning
Limiting conditions:

  • I don’t want to give anyone food poisoning
  • *maybe* a microwave for heating things
  • Everything should come out in one go and appear effortless
  • Guest of honor does not like seafood

Coronation chicken (maybe with sultanas) in parkerhouse rolls with a bit of lettuce
– pre-bought rolls
– container with chicken
– stuff at work

Roasted tomatoes with basil & feta in parmesan cups
make parmesan cups ahead of time, cool, and just put in a plastic bag to transport
– roast tomatoes that morning so they don’t have a chill from the refrigerator and that should be warm enough

Veggie (& Chicken?) stir-fry in wonton cups
– again, make cups ahead and bring in a bag – no not trip on the way to work
– microwave stir fry and fill cups – with as little liquid as possible because that makes for a nasty surprise

[Redacted]’s bacon horseradish dip on triskets
– pretty container that can just be opened and put on a serving tray

And maybe some real little sandwiches, but I don’t have much patience for them.
I think I like this web page for that, and the likeliest suspects are:

  • Cucumber sandwiches
  • Pepper Cheese sandwiches
  • and possibly my own egg salad recipe

My life is full of hard choices

PIE vs Harry Potter.

Made from scratch key lime pie in which we tested out two different recipes… versus the new Harry Potter book.

Pie made with some absolutely lovely people who are wonderful people… versus the new Harry Potter book

Pie with people who live in the city versus my pre-paid Harry Potter book out in the suburbs at least 40 minutes away.

what do you think happened?

I totally managed to do both!

There was socializing and talking and baking – with an extra trip to round up enough ingredients for the *two* batches instead of the single one originally planned. We found that the Nigella Lawson one was bizarrely fluffy and that we probably liked the simple recipe printed on the bag of key limes best, but we are reserving final judgment until the pies have had a chance to cool and set in the refrigerator.

Because we ate the pies warm!

Pies came out of the oven about 11:20ish.

There was tasty sampling that was reasonably leisurely so as to fully judge the pies’ merits.

And then there was freakishly fast driving. And I did not get a speeding ticket even though I totally deserved one.

Got to the bookstore at 12:10 to a bunch of people leaving – but there were still a bunch of people buying. My pre-paid receipt was not in the special box, so manager-type person was called over and a list was checked – and I walked out with a copy at 12:20.

And now I need to calm down a bit before getting into the serious business of reading.

Tofu Shirataki

Food experiment: Tofu Shirataki

Yeah, so this was a total shot in the dark as to whether they would be edible, but they were both weird and on sale so they fit my standard requirements for a culinary adventure.

Shirataki noodles are made from a root (often translated on the packaging as yam) and – in this case – tofu. They are packaged wet, kind of like sauerkraut.

Because the packaging warned that they are often parboiled to get rid of the smell (other notes included “distinctive texture”), I drained the packaging liquid and set it to marinate in a spicy cooking sauce. Then, I fried it all up in a pan with eggplant and shredded cabbage.

Right after cooking – fairly tasty, but still not as sexy a texture as proper noodles… they ended up having an almost al dente texture. Maybe I should have parboiled, but I was more worried about the flavor.

After freezing – No. Just no. So the website has a warning not to freeze, but the packaging didn’t, and ew! It turned into thin strips of plastic, I swear! So I am picking those out and dropping them in my trash so I can eat the rest of the goody.

Moot hors d’oeuvres – tomatoey goody on shortbread, lil pancackes with trout, hot pork on pork action

tomatoey goody on jewish shortbread
[cheese/herb shortbread recipe]

take a lovely pint of grape tomatoes, and just slice them all in half and put them on a roasting tray. Drizzle them with some olive oil and roast them in a hot oven. When they are warm through, but not caramelizing, pull them out and sprinkle with a fistful of shredded fresh basil leaves. After the leaves are wilted and the tomatoes have cooled off a bit, stir in some well-crumbled feta cheese (if it has been stored in brine, it is worth your time to do a soak in fresh water so that it won’t be as salty)

Serve over the shortbread (what makes the shortbread jewish?)

lil pancackes with trout
[lil pancake recipe with extra dill]

combine in a bowl:
1 tin of smoked trout
zest of 1 lemon
1/4 teaspoon minced dill
2 ground/pounded white peppercorns
some grated nutmeg, not much

add enough sour cream to make a stiff mixture, and then add heavy cream, one Tablespoon at a time, until you have a lose mixture.

Top each pancake with a schmear of trout, dust with paprika, and add a festive sprig of dill.

Hot pork on porn action

take lil breakfast sausage links (cut them in half?) and wrap them in (half?) a strip of bacon. Secure with a toothpick. Cook on in a pan, turning as necessary.

When done, drain on kitchen paper. While still quite warm, move to a serving dish and drizzle all over with a Tablespoon of maple syrup.

Note – as of now, some of these recipes are incomplete, but I will update as I find more information
ETA: Hah – the bready bits will never have recipes, but just so you are extra jealous, I’ll tell you they were gluten free bready things, too, and very tasty.