Garlic Salt and Other Kitchen Horrors

Okay, so I know my friends laugh at me for being so adamant in my distaste for garlic salt, but really people, this stuff is gross!  Do not, I repeat, DO NOT ever purchase this nasty excuse for a seasoning.  Not only does it not have the delicious and versatile qualities of real garlic, but it quite literally leaves a bad taste in your mouth.  You end up using a lot of it because it has insufficient flavor to actually season anything, then everything turns out salty, with a rancid garlic flavor, ruining perfectly good food.  It is truly sad.

If you really want a hint of garlic, just use the real thing.  It is really cheap, lasts a long time in your cupboard, and is not much extra work, especially when compared to the delicious results.  Personally, I put fresh garlic in almost everything.  It is healthy, and adds great flavor  -- why, oh why, must people spoil their food with nasty garlic salt??  I equate the presence of garlic salt in the kitchen to people who keep ramen noodles stocked in the cupboard, eat canned peas, Kraft singles, and might heat up their beanies and weenies in the crock-pot.  In essence, they are the American processed food eaters and have not yet learned that fresh ingredients reign supreme! (this last statement should be read in the tone of Iron Chef, "whose cuisine shall reign supreme?!?") 

So, use fresh ingredients, please!!  Not only are they tastier, but they are better for you, and usually cheaper compared to prepared processed foods.  Rid your kitchen of these major offenders:

• Garlic powder
• Onion Powder
• Canned peas (frozen peas are great, but canned are gross!)
• American cheese singles
• Powdered beverage mixes
• Flavored cooking spray (cooking spray is a great convenience, but just go with plain)
• Vienna sausages or other similar processed links (why would you buy this when there are so many other more delicious options out there?)

I will probably add more to this list later, but in the meantime, to prove the deliciousness of real garlic, try out this roasted garlic recipe.  When I was a kid, we used to go to this restaurant that served roasted garlic with fresh crusty bread, and we practically could have made a meal of just that!  So, we figured out how to recreate it at home:

Roasted Garlic

Ingredients:

Several heads of garlic

Olive oil to drizzle

Salt and pepper (optional)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Keeping each head of garlic intact, peel away some of the papery skin from the outside of the bulb. (Don't go too crazy peeling them, or else they won't hold together)
   
3. Cut away the top of the head of garlic, exposing the tops of each clove of garlic in the bulb.
4. Place heads of garlic in a pan (muffin pans work well), with the sliced side facing up.
5. Drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper, if desired
6. Cover the garlic with foil or an oven-proof lid.
7. Bake for about 35 minutes, or until garlic is soft and brown.
8. When cooled slightly, you will be able to use your fingers or other implements to squeeze the soft roasted garlic out of it's skin.  It can be spread directly on warm crusty bread, or mashed and used in dips, sauces, and other recipes for a great rich garlicy flavor.

Kohlrabi Experiment

So, I was at the farmer's market yesterday (hurray for farmer's markets being open again!), and I decided to try out a new vegetable that I had never cooked with before: kohlrabi.  The farmer told me that it was sort of in-between a potato and cabbage in flavor, and could be served raw or cooked.  It was a good deal, so I brought some home to try.

I looked up some information about it online, and basically the name means "turnip cabbage".  It is a bulb, and the leaves can be cooked down like collards, while the bulbous part can be sliced and put in salads, used in curries, or roasted (which is what I tried).  You will want to peel the bulb a little bit because the green outer skin can get tough when it cooks (I probably could have done a better peeling job, but I did really enjoy the flavor of the roasted vegetable).  To me, when roasted, kohlrabi takes on a sweet turnip-y flavor -- it was very tasty. This is what I did:

Roasted Vegetables with Kohlrabi

1 Kohlrabi bulb

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 small onion

other vegetables to taste -- I used mushrooms, carrots, and green peppers because that is what I had in the fridge

drizzle of olive oil

salt and pepper

herbs or spices to taste -- I used a little paprika and chili powder, but would probably also be good with thyme or other herbs

Peel outer green layer off of the kohlrabi bulb, slice into uniformly sized chunks so they will cook evenly, and throw the chunks into a baking pan with an edge.  Prepare and chop all other veggies that you plan to use, throwing everything in the pan as you go.  Add the garlic, salt and pepper, herbs/spices, and a bit of olive oil.  Toss vegetables in the pan with the olive oil and seasonings.  Roast in 450(F) degree oven for approximately 30 minutes.   When done, the kohlrabi will be tender, but still hold it's shape (think of the texture of a turnip).  I served it with brown rice and baked tilapia.

Spring Awakening

I just saw the musical "Spring Awakening" with my friend Jean.  Everything I had heard about this show was very positive -- I believe it won Best Musical of 2008, and everyone has been talking about it as a controversial show, and as a good one to use for talking to kids about sex (not that I particularly care about the kids part, but more on that later).  I'm not ordinarily a big fan of Broadway shows -- I tend to go to more contemporary dance, opera, gallery openings, etc., but I took a chance with this one because it seemed a little different from the average broadway show.

My opinion?  I liked the dancing and the music, but the plot and moral of the story were very disconcerting.  Parents, do not bring your children to this show unless you plan to have a serious discussion afterwards!!  Basically, the story is about a bunch of teenagers coming of age in a provincial German town during the late 1800's.  None of them are educated about sex (because their parents won't talk to them about it) except for one boy who read about it in a medical book.  He tells his best friend about it, and the friend goes into a downward spiral, eventually commiting suicide.  He also has sex with one of the girls in the story (which comes off as date rape, by the way), unknowingly gets her pregnant, and he gets sent to a reformatory.   The girl later acts like it was some big romantic scene, after she had clearly screamed "NO" to him several times during the process -- this just did not sit well with me.  Seriously, date rape should not be portrayed as romantic, and if you take your son/daughter to this, you should tell them that it is wrong.  It is a non-violent scene, but she is clearly an unwilling partner.  No means no.

The girl's mother, having previously refused to answer her questions about where babies come from, cannot accept the pregnancy, secretly arranges for an abortion, and the girl dies during the procedure.  Meanwhile, lover boy gets a letter that the girl had written mentioning the baby, escapes from the reformatory, and finds out she is dead.  He nearly kills himself, but then everyone comes out of the woodwork, they do a little dance, and live happily ever after.

The morals of this story?

1- Don't have sex or talk about it; it will kill you.

2- Date rape is A-Okay!

3- Take no responsibility for your actions, and just dance off the bad times.

Yes, I'm being a little sarcastic here -- the real moral of the story is: teach your kids about sex so that they are capable of making smart decisions and protecting themselves!  And now I will seriously get on my soap box.  Why the heck do public schools in the US now teach abstinence only?  As if people are seriously going to stop having sex just because you do not arm them with information -- the only purpose the "abstinence only" programs serve is to render young people unprepared.  We figured out years ago that educating people in developing countries about safe sex practices was the solution to reducing the spread of AIDS, other diseases, and unwanted pregnancies, so why won't we provide that same education in our own country to avoid the same problems??  It just does not make sense to me.  (By the way, did you know that ever since they implemented the "abstinence only" program, STD's and unplanned pregnancies have been on the rise?).  I do not see why information is treated like the enemy here -- education is a weapon against society's problems, including health, politics, the economy, and everything else.  Okay, off the soap box...

Since I'm already talking about sex and relationships, I have an update on the relationship complications (noted in a previous post).  Guy #2, who I'm friends with, now seems to be making an extra effort.  When I was sick, he offered to do my grocery shopping for me, and kept checking in to see how I was doing.  This was really nice of him, but I hope that he is not getting any ideas.  I have really come to enjoy our friendship.  Meanwhile, Guy #3 (who is friends with Guy #2 -- guys, don't you talk to each other about these things?) has asked me out.  I didn't really know what to say because I've never been in the position of having to turn down a perfectly nice guy when I am single (usually I get jerks, or am already dating someone, making it a lot easier to say "No way!" or "I'm with that guy").  So, it was a hard response to write (he had sent me an email because he doesn't have my number), but I just told him I was taking a little break from dating and would love to hang out sometime just as friends.  I hope it works out because he really is a nice guy.  Can single people really be friends without this kind of misunderstanding?  I feel like this ends up happening with a lot of my male friends.  Ugh.

Fennel Salad with Oranges

So, I recently went out to eat at this great little Italian restaurant near where I live, and had this fantastic salad.  I definitely need to learn how to recreate it at home, because it was delicious!  This is what I think they did, but feel free to add notes if you are experienced with this type of salad.

Fennel Salad with Oranges

Mixed salad greens

Raw fennel, sliced

Red onion, thinly sliced in rings

Fresh orange segments with juice

Kalamata olives

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Olive oil

Red wine vinegar

Mix together vinegar, oil, salt, and pepper, plus any juice from when you segmented the orange.

Mix together all other ingredients with dressing.  Do not be stingy with the olives!  The saltiness of the kalamatas combined with the fresh fennel, the sharp vinaigrette, sweet orange, and all the other flavors... mmmm!!!

I had this salad along with a fresh mozzarella, roasted pepper, pesto, and prosciutto panini.  It was a delicious meal.  I've never really used fennel at home since I did not grow up with this ingredient, but I think I will now!

Jimmy Stewart and Egg Drop Soup

I stayed home from work today because I was not feeling well.  Consequently, I spent the afternoon curled up on my tiny loveseat watching the Jimmy Stewart fest on TCM (for those who are not in the know, Turner Classic Movies shows great old movies without commercials).  I just finished watching "Rear Window" -- that movie never gets old.  It is always suspenseful when Thorwald catches Leisa (Grace Kelly) in his apartment.  Besides this being a great movie, I also really love Jimmy Stewart.  He is one of those classic movie stars -- great on screen, but also seemed to actually be a nice person in real life.  Those are the sort of people that deserve to be famous.

Me and a friend went to the Jimmy Stewart Museum last summer, and he really was one of those wholesome small-town types that everybody liked.  I've never been much of a patriot, despite the fact that many people in my family have been service members (or maybe because of?), but I really do admire that old-fashioned, all-American goodness that Jimmy Stewart seemed to have.  I wish there were more people out there like him today.

Don't ask me why, but whenever one of us was sick growing up, my mom would order Chinese food and we'd watch old movies on TV.  We would always get soup and lo mein, plus whatever else sounded good.  Now, years later, any time I'm sick, that's what I want.  I'll never forget the time that me, both siblings, and my mom were all sick at once.  None of us could sleep, and we all stayed up late into the night.  The only thing on TV other than infomercials was an all-night marathon of musicals.  Each of the movies had the "follow-the-bouncing-ball" sing-along feature at the bottom of the screen, and we all sat there, pathetic as we were, singing along to "Bye, Bye, Birdie", "South Pacific", and "Oklahoma".  Ha.

Anyway, so every time I'm sick, I watch movies and eat Chinese food.  Somehow it does make me feel better...

If you don't have a good Chinese restaurant near you, it is pretty easy to make your own egg drop soup.  It is pretty good when you are not feeling well, and you can adjust the flavors depending on what you like and what you have in the fridge.  Here's my basic recipe:

Egg Drop Soup

1 carton chicken broth

1 egg, beaten

1 clove garlic, smashed

small hunk ginger root, peeled

cornstarch

soy sauce to taste

other optional ingredients: scallions, sesame oil, sherry, spinach

Put chicken broth, garlic, and ginger in a sauce pan.  Bring to a boil, and you can add a splash of sherry at this point, but it is completely optional.  Continue to boil 3-5 minutes, and let flavors steep.  Remove garlic and ginger root.  Add soy sauce to taste.

In a small bowl, mix together cornstarch and some of the hot broth until there are no lumps, then add back into the sauce pan.  The amount of cornstarch used will depend on how thick you like your soup -- I usually start with about 2 tbsp. cornstarch, but sometimes end up repeating this step after a few minutes to get the soup a little thicker.  Let the soup boil for a minute or so for the cornstarch to take effect.  

Once you have achieved the desired thickness, and the soup is actively boiling, it is time to add the egg.  It is important to do this *after* adding the cornstarch, or else the egg will come out in a big lump.  Pour beaten egg into boiling broth while stirring.  Egg will cook quickly and form small shreds.  At this point, the soup is ready to eat.

If you have any green onions around, they are a nice addition at the last minute, or drop in a few spinach leaves.  A few drops of sesame oil finish things nicely.

Best Rhubarb Pie Ever!!! From My Grandma to Your Kitchen..

I love rhubarb, and I am so glad that it is finally in season again!!  For those who are not so familiar with this delicious vegetable, it looks like pink celery, but is completely different in flavor.  I don't know of anyone who eats it raw, but it takes on a lovely tart flavor when cooked.  

Anything sour, and I'm sold, so I love rhubarb.  If you like lemon meringue or gooseberry pie, then you will love rhubarb pie.  The following recipe is my grandmother's, and I've never tasted anything like it elsewhere.  You will notice an absence of strawberries (which often end up in rhubarb pies), and no other spices to distract from the tart flavor of the rhubarb.  I am also including a great pie crust recipe.

Grandma's Rhubarb Pie

2 c. chopped rhubarb

1 1/4 c. sugar (yes, it's a lot of sugar, but the pie is still sour in the end!)

2 tsp. butter

1 egg, beaten

2 tbsp. flour

1/2 tsp. salt

2-crust pie shell

Beat together sugar, egg, flour, and salt.  It will be thick.  Mix in rhubarb and stir well -- mixture will turn juicier.  Pour mixture into pie shell, dot with butter, and top with other crust.  Cut a few vents in the top crust to release steam during cooking.  Place pie pan on a cookie sheet to catch any drips.  Bake for 10 minutes at 450 degrees F, then reduce to 350 degrees F and bake 40 more minutes.  Allow pie to sit at least 15 minutes before slicing.  It is great with a splash of milk, cream, or a scoop of vanilla ice cream to compliment the tartness of the pie.  This pie can also be made dairy-free by eliminating the butter or using a non-dairy substitute.

Butterless Pie Crust

Ever since I learned about trans-fats, I have become completely paranoid about buying anything with partially hydrogenated oils.  Since almost all pre-made pie shells contain either this or lard, I've found a great pie shell recipe that I can make at home.  It is vegan and can be used for other pies too!

2 c. sifted flour

1 tsp. salt

1/2 c. vegetable oil

3 tbsp. cold water

In electric mixer, combine flour and salt.  Add oil gradually, followed by water.  Dough should turn smooth in the mixer.  Add a little more water if needed.  Remove dough from mixer, divide in two, and roll out each half on a floured surface.  When I do it, I lay a piece of wax paper on the counter, flour it, lay the dough on the flour, put more flour on top of the dough, and then top it with another piece of wax paper.  This makes it a lot easier to flip the dough while you're rolling it, and it won't stick to the counter.  It also makes it easier to transfer the dough to the pan because you can just roll up the dough in the wax paper and unroll it over the pan.   Add more flour as needed while you are rolling.

Ambiguity -- Dating Challenges of Twenty Somethings

So, relationships.. they get complicated once people hit their mid to late twenties.  After the last two guys I dated (who, by the way, were actually both nice guys, but things just didn't work out), I decided to take a break from the whole dating scene for a while just to have some time to myself and figure things out on my own.  Now, shortly after having come to this conclusion, I have met someone new and am completely confused!

Guy #3 is very nice, though I would only be interested in friendship at this point -- the problem is, I can't figure out what he is interested in.  Guy #3, if you ever somehow find my blog and realize that I am talking about you, I sincerely apologize for any misunderstandings that may have occurred, but here's my situation.  When I first met Guy #3, I was Guy #2's date to a party -- Guys 2 & 3 are friends, and we were all talking at the party.  After I had broken up with Guy #2 (we are now good friends), I ran into both of them at another party, and we ended up hanging out.  Since I had resolved that I was done dating for a while, I just assumed that Guy #3 thought I was still dating Guy #2, and did not bother to make any corrections.  My female friend who was also at the party later asked if Guy #3 had been "trying to chat me up" -- I did not think so.  In fact, I was pretty sure that Guy #3 was gay, but had been so out of dating mode that I wasn't even thinking about it while I was talking to him.  The fact is, he is a perfectly nice guy, we had a great conversation, and it never even entered my mind that he would be interested in me, firstly because I was pretty sure he thought I was still dating his friend, but secondly because I thought he was gay.

Now to the present.  He "friended" me on a social network, and sent me a nice note asking me about my weekend plans last week.  He has also invited me to a few upcoming events in town, but he has also invited many others.  So, what is going on here?

Maybe he is just being nice and looking to make a new friend.  He has not done anything overtly flirtatious, or tried to "make a move", but I also feel like most straight men would not go so out of their way to reach out to some girl they hardly know if they weren't a little interested.  Ugh.  And I'm not even interested in dating right now!  Why does this drive me crazy??

I would like to be friends with him, but fear that if this ambiguity does not get cleared up sometime soon, then it could lead to an embarrassing misunderstanding in the future.  What to do??

For dinner tonight: Roasted Salmon Fillet with Cumin and Chili Powder, Mashed Potatoes, Sugar Snap Peas, and Chocolate Brownies.  I love this salmon recipe.  It is easy, very fast, and delicious!

Roasted Salmon with Cumin and Chili Powder

Cumin

Chili Powder

Salt & Pepper

Olive Oil

Salmon Fillet (For obvious reasons, I use a personal sized piece of fish, but this would probably work fine with a larger piece if you are having guests -- perhaps with a slight adjustment on cooking time)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.  Spray a baking pan with non-stick spray.  Put fish in pan.  Brush lightly with olive oil, then sprinkle liberally with cumin and chili powder (fish should be lightly coated).  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Roast fish for 8-10 minutes, then turn off heat and let stand in unopened oven for 3-5 minutes.  Eat!

Puppets

Okay, I'm already getting addicted to blogging.  Since the title of the blog is Culture Nerd, I figure I should include some more artsy stuff in addition to my recipes.  Today I will be helping to make giant puppets for a program at the city zoo.  If you had asked me a year ago, I probably would never have guessed I would be making puppets, but it is actually really fun.  I volunteer for a small arts organization in town, and they have a puppet festival every year.  Through this, I met some puppet people who make giant paper mache  puppets -- the puppeteer wears the puppet sort of like a backpack, with a big pole sticking up out of the back to hold the head up above his/her head.  Fabric hangs down from the paper mache head to hide the puppeteer from view, and make the body -- the puppeteer has sticks on the inside to control the puppet's arms.  I am looking forward to making more puppets today because it is so fun to be creative with other people, and it is an excuse to play with paper mache, which honestly I probably hadn't thought about since the 3rd grade.

Spinach and Goat Cheese Salad.. Looking for blogging tips..

Since I am  new to blogging, I was just wondering if any other bloggers out there might have tips or ideas on how to bring more people to my page?  Any advice on this would be much appreciated.

In the meantime, I will share another recipe.  This is a really good salad that I made up for Mother's Day brunch last weekend.  My mom was in town, and we stayed home for brunch -- I made scrambled eggs with roasted peppers, scallions, and cheese, toast (using the bread recipe in my previous post), coffee, grapefruit juice, and this salad:

Spinach and Goat Cheese Salad

Fresh baby spinach, couple of handfuls

Grape tomatoes, small handful

1/2 c. toasted walnuts

Crumbled goat cheese to taste (I used some soft and creamy chevre-like cheese by Silver Goat)

Balsamic Vinaigrette:

Use 2:1 ratio of olive oil to balsamic vinegar

Add a pea-size amount of brown mustard (use more if making a bigger salad)

Add salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Dry basil and/or oregano to taste (optional)

Mix together the dressing -- the mustard will keep the oil from separating, but it also adds a nice zing.  Put all of the salad ingredients together in a nice big bowl, and toss with the dressing.  If the goat cheese is very creamy, it will hold together better if you keep it very cold before adding it to the salad.  Also, try mixing up the rest of the salad ingredients and adding the cheese last.

This was a great addition to our brunch, but would also be great with a piece of fish for dinner.

The Inaugural Post

After enjoying the blogs of others for a long time, I've decided to start one of my own.   I hope to meet new people, share ideas, recipes, and various other thoughts, and I hope you will share with me too.  I think one of the reasons that it occurred to me to start this was because of a book I read recently -- I would highly recommend it.  It is called "Julie and Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen", and it is about a woman who is trying to find her place in life.  In the process, she challenges herself to cook all of the recipes in Julia Child's cookbook, and blogs about it the whole time -- while she is going through a lot in her personal life, she makes friends across the country through her blog.  It is a true story.  (Julie Powell has her blog available at http://juliepowell.blogspot.com/ )

I guess I'm hoping this blog can be sort of like that.  So, welcome to my blog.

To tell you a little about myself, I just turned 27, and I live and work in a city full of art.  I love to cook, having learned a lot from my grandmother, and enjoy experimenting with new techniques and ingredients.  I have not yet figured out my purpose in life.  In the past month I have considered opening a bed and breakfast, going back to school to learn about web design, or simply running off to some foreign country to live for a while.  I have also had some more practical ideas, but those never seem to hold my interest.

For my first recipe to share, here is a really good basic white bread.  It makes great toast, and I think I will try it next time with some combination of whole wheat and white flour.  It is very easy to make, and is also vegan and fat free, but that was just a coincidence.  I am always looking for recipes like this for family gatherings because many of my family members are vegetarian, allergic to dairy, and/or do not eat eggs.  It can be a little tricky to feed everybody sometimes, but this one works!  Hope you enjoy hot fresh bread!

Fat-Free Vegan Bread

1 tbsp. active dry yeast

2 1/4 cups warm water

1 tbsp. salt, scant

1 tbsp. sugar

6 to 7 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

Cornmeal

White distilled vinegar

Directions

• In a standing mixer fitted with a dough hook combine the yeast and water, mixing slowly until yeast is dissolved. Stir in salt and sugar. Mix well. Set aside for 5 minutes.
  
• Beat for 5 minutes, gradually adding flour until the dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl.
  
• Turn out on a lightly floured surface. Knead for 8 to 10 minutes, until dough is smooth and elastic, adding flour as necessary to prevent stickiness.
  
• Lightly oil a large bowl. Place dough in bowl and turn to coat on all sides. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours. Alternatively, cover with plastic wrap and let rise slowly in the refrigerator for 10 to 12 hours or overnight.
  
• Line a baking sheet with kitchen parchment or sprinkle with cornmeal.
  
• Punch down the dough. Divide in half, shape into 2 round loaves, and place on the baking sheet. Carve an X in the top of the loaf and spray with vinegar. If you don't have a spritzer, you can just brush a little vinegar on with a pastry brush.  Place in a cold oven and turn the oven on to 400 degrees F for 45 minutes. Transfer to wire rack to cool.
  

*I found this recipe online, but made a few changes.  I find that the loaves do not get very brown in the oven, but you can tell it is done when the outside feels crisp.   It is particularly good straight out of the oven with lots of butter.